SPORTS FEATURE I survived Black Friday: a first person tale —Page 5
OPINION FEATURE
OPINION ENTERTAINMENT Independent rapper brings fresh honesty to the hip hop scene —Page 8
Annual naughty and nice list —Page 10
The Bruin Voice
Volume 22, Issue 3
Bear Creek High School, Stockton, California
December 18, 2012
Communication breakdowns could threaten safety of students and staff By MIKALA BUSSEY SPORTS EDITOR
Bear Creek’s classified personnel—which include campus supervisors and cafeteria workers—have recently complained about the lack of information they receive from the administration. A recent complaint involves the information withheld by the administration that two campus supervisors say unwittingly placed them in harm’s way when they were told to pick up a student suspected to be armed. At approximately 10 a.m. on December 5, campus supervisor Harley Vancourt was called to remove a student from class and bring him to the office. When Vancourt asked if he could have fellow supervisor Don Tirapelli accompany him, Assistant Principal Sera Baysinger agreed. “She said to bring him in on the cart because she wanted him in the office quickly, and told us to keep a close eye on him and make sure he didn’t try to throw anything away on the way there,” Tirapelli
said. “We figured he had some sort of contraband on him, but we in harm’s way; it’s the opposite. We want to make sure that everyone assumed it was drugs.” remains in a safe environment—students and staff.” When the student was searched in the office, a lock-back knife If campus supervisors could not be informed of the knife threat was found on the student. via radio, why was the time not taken to inform them of the risk in “If they suspected he was armed, they person? should have called the School Resource “We have to use our best Officer,” Tirapelli said. “At least they could judgment as to where we need to We feel like we aren’t part be at any given time,” Baysinger have told us he was armed. I mean, you of the team. If we aren’t never know if he’s going to go wacko and said in response to that question. try to hurt one of us or himself.” As of now Bear Creek does going to have e-mail, we According to Baysinger the school not have any sort of radio code need more verbal commuresource officer was not on campus at the to prevent students from overnication. time. hearing sensitive information “You have to be careful with what you — Don Tirapelli, campus supervisor like the possibility of a knife or a say on the radio, that’s why sometimes we gun in the possession of another call and ask for someone to be escorted to student. the office,” Baysinger said. “It is never our intention to put someone Other frustrations were brought to the surface by the anti-bullying rally earlier this quarter when cafeteria staff and campus supervisors were surprised by the changed lunch schedule. “Usually the administration puts a schedule in my box when we’re on a rally schedule; this time they didn’t,” Cafeteria Supervisor Becky Octave said. The e-mail administration sent out regarding the anti-bullying assembly did not specifically mention the schedule change, and Octave said she didn’t realize that assemblies changed the lunch schedule. “I have never worked in a place with so little communication, and I’m not the only one that feels this way,” Octave said. Campus supervisors share Octave’s frustration; they were also unaware of the schedule change for the anti-bullying rally because they no longer have access to district e-mail. According to Tirapelli, when Asst. Principal Marlon Gayle took control of the school’s camera system at the beginning of the school year he removed the campus supervisors’ access to that system, and with it their e-mail access. Campus supervisors say they have repeatedly expressed this concern to the administration, but their concerns have been ignored. “They know we don’t have e-mail and they don’t do anything to correct that,” campus supervisor Anthony Sulfaro said. “We feel like we aren’t part of the team,” Tirapelli said. “If we aren’t going to have e-mail, we need more verbal communication.” “I think we have a really good security team, they have a great background,” Vice Principal Tim Swartz said. “We’ve discussed it [the campus supervisors concern] and we try to meet weekly to create a more cohesive group.”
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HALLS RINGING WITH THE SOUNDS OF THE SEASON LE T SN IT OW
Walmart begins sending royalty checks for sales Success in freshman year is key of BC-logo items PHOTO BY KIRSTEN WARNKE
Good Tidings to You: Sophomore Hannah Jobrack leads the Glee club in singing “Let It Snow” for its holiday performance at The Commons, a local retirement home, on Friday, December 14.
to graduation dropout rates Putting the ‘F’ in FRESHMAN FACTS Over one-third of all dropouts occur in the ninth grade. PHOTOS BY KIRSTEN WARNKE
Freshmen with less than a C average are more likely to drop out than graduate. More than 95 % of students with a B average or better in their freshman year graduate.
Linking Freshmen: Link Crew junior Sean Ajolo meets with freshman Anissa Ypon to check up on her academic and personal progress. By MARY TRAN ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
“Freshman year doesn’t even matter since colleges don’t look at them.” This thought is what many freshmen believe when they enter high school. They think that freshman year is just a time for them to mess around and hang out with friends. What these students don’t realize is the importance of ninth grade to the eventual success of high school students. Stud-
ies have shown that much of a student’s success depends on whether he or she can maneuver deftly through high school’s initial year. “I think there is a correlation between future high school success and freshman year,” counselor Denise Angerstein said. “There is a real concern that if you fail your first semester of high school, you may be at a greater risk of dropping out. It is important to do well your freshman year so that you can establish yourself and study habits for later
on in high school.” Similarly to how a tall building needs a robust foundation, to get stellar grades and go to a good college students need to start off strong. Students who are unable to adjust to the rigors of ninth grade usually find themselves on a downward academic slope and are more likely to drop out. “I didn’t even try my freshman year because I thought it didn’t matter and told myself I will just work hard my next three years in high school, but now I am struggling to keep a decent grade in a CP
SOURCES: ALLIANCE FOR EDUCATION INFOGRAPHIC BY ELIZABETH LEE
class,” senior Chris Vithaya said. “The reason why I am struggling so much is because I slacked off freshman year and it was hard for me to break that trend and I also missed many of the basic skills.” “This stark reality has caused educators and researchers dub ninth grade the ‘make or break year,’’’ said Kirsten Blair in an article entitled “Reversing Freshmen Failure.” Strong students can quickly fall behind if they start ditching classes and not completing assignments. See FRESHMAN — page 2
WALMART ITEM
BC STUDENT STORE ITEM
By KIRSTEN WARNKE FEATURE EDITOR
Hearing the slogan “Save Money. Live Better” automatically elicits one thought: Walmart. The multimillion-dollar corporation claims to have the best products at the lowest prices. Merchandise ranging from groceries and electronics to beauty products are sold there, and surprisingly, Bear Creek apparel. According to businessinsider.com, “90 percent of all Americans live within 15 miles of a Walmart.” This statistic is not hard to believe considering Stockton has three Walmarts, one of which sells groceries. In fact, a Walmart has recently opened in the Trinity Parkway shopping area just a few miles from Bear Creek. Many students have gone to Walmart on Trinity Parkway and purchased Bear Creek apparel such as sweaters, shirts, sweat pants, and basketball shorts because these items sell for less there than at the Bear Creek student store. Students can been seen wearing these items all around school—at football games, on rally days for school spirit, and just as everyday attire. BC apparel sold on campus is more costly. For example, a Bear Creek shirt at Walmart sells for $9.97 and a similarly styled shirt sells in the BC student store for $12. The proceeds from the BC student store “go to an account controlled by the school district to restock inventory and to purchase supplies needed for the teams,” Athletic Director Anthony Sahyoun See WALMART — page 2