Issue 1 of The Roadrunner

THE ROADRUNNER J. Frank Dobie College Prep Academy

Austin, Texas

SI SE PUEDE

PHOTO BY JUNE GONZALEZ

The Injustices of Middle School Custodians The cleaning staff struggles as student trash becomes unbearable.

Commentary - p9

Dobie Band Rises to District Auditions

Violence in North Austin

Albert Rodriguez represents Dobie in District Auditions.

News - p5

News - p4

Volume 1, Issue 1 December 2024

Crime rate increases in September and October.

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9 1 2

Volume 1, Issue 1 December 2024

Life & Arts The Teaching Styles of Dobie

By Yahaira Bello Reyes

Commentary The Injustices of Middle School Custodians

By Evelin Paola Ponce Aguilar

-COVER STORYLife & Arts First Pep Ralley in Five Years

By Arlette Medina Salazar

THE ROADRUNNER J. Frank Dobie College Prep Academy

Austin, Texas

SI SE PUEDE

Publications Department 1200 E Rundberg Ln, Austin, TX 78753

-Staff WritersYahaira Bello Reyes Rayan Bendris Allison Garcia Campuzano Antonella Fernandez Amelia Gonzales Paul Gonzalez Jose Mexquitic Arlette Medina Salazar Evelin Paola Ponce Aguilar Ivy Sanchez Jesse Vazquez Jermei White

-Publications AdvisorTatiana BrownGomez

-Publications SupervisorOsarobarijima Goya

EDITORIAL POLICY

The Roadrunner is published by the newspaper students at J. Frank Dobie College Prep Academy during the school year. The publication strives to meet the highest ethical and professional standards for news and advertising. It will strive to be an inclusive publication free of prejudice against race, creed, national origin, people with disabilities, or gender. Information in this publication is deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Neither the newspaper staff, the adviser, Dobie Middle School administration, nor Austin ISD can be held responsible for errors or omissions in content. All editorials are the sole viewpoint of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the organization.

Volume 1, Issue 1 December 2024

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Dobie News DOBIE BAND RISES TO DISTRICT AUDITIONS

By Ivy Sanchez

Students competed at District Band Auditions for the first time in 10 years. They announced that out of five musicians, three received their District Band distinction, and one, 8th grader and trumpet player Albert Rodriguez, will advance to the Region Band Audition.

“It's really honorable to be a part of this. This is the first year in a long time that our name has been up there, and we, as a school, have been going through many different transitions. We haven't had a strong enough group of students that we felt could go to these competitions and represent Dobie.” Head Band Director, Alana Urbano said.

The Dobie band has improved over the years, increasing its numbers from around 200 to 230.

This is why trumpet player Albert Rodriguez was able to make Region Band Auditions.

“I feel good that I'm in Region Band and going. I'm proud of myself for achieving this. I hope I can do better in the future so I can have a full time job as a trumpet player.” said Rodriguez.

Last year was the first year in three years that the Dobie Middle School band attended UIL. The band continues to improve, by taking two bands to UIL this year, which hasn’t been done in years.

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Photographs by Dobie Band Dobie band members, including Albert Rodriguez, playing at the AISD PAC.

Photographs by Dobie Band Left to right. Estephania Romero-Estrada, Jose Chavez-Bonilla, Alana Urbano, Albert Rodriguez, Noah Cisñeros, and Fabian Valdez.

Volume 1, Issue 1 December 2024

Dobie News VIOLENCE IN NORTH AUSTIN

By Rayan Bendris

Photograph by Rayan Bendris Juan Mercado stands in front of his AISD police car.

Photograph by Rayan Bendris Juan Mercado stands in front of his AISD police car.

In the past year, there have been 73 homicides reported in North Austin. In 2021, the year that had the highest crime rate, Fiftyfive homicides took place in October.

According to KXAN, since October there have been five crimes committed.

Oct. 1: One dead, two hurt in northwest Austin homicide.

Oct. 4: 1 dead following stabbing near North I-35; suspect taken into custody, APD says.

Oct. 14: Amber Alert, homicide suspect accused of killing mother of his children, APD chief says.

Oct. 16: APD identifies 20-year-old found dead following southeast Austin shooting.

Oct. 21: APD arrests, charges 16-year-old boy with murder in death of girl in north Austin.

The fifth crime that happened on October 28th, 2024, was a fatal stabbing at Manor Senior High School. A senior at the high school stabbed another student in the restroom multiple times until the student passed away. The student is now facing a first-degree murder charge. “[I am] heartbroken that he threw his life away.” The student’s former teacher, Laurie Stauffer, said.

Dobie Middle School teachers Laurie Stauffer and Osarobarijima Goya don't live in the North Austin area, but they feel safe coming to work at Dobie.

“I don’t have fear living in this area because I have lived in places that have higher crime rates. With that being said, our security could be greatly improved. An example is the doors not being secure enough. Personally, the schools I went to had metal detectors.” Goya said.

Volume 1, Issue 1 December 2024

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Life & Arts

FIRST

PEP RALLY IN FIVE YEARS

By Arlette Medina Salazar Photograph by June Gonzalez The cheerleaders cheer on the students and sports teams.

Dobie Middle School held its first pep rally in over five years.

Staff members were very excited to celebrate the football and volleyball players' hard work and achievement of goals.

“It's going to be awesome seeing the students come wearing their orange, white, and black and cheering chants.

Plus, seeing cheer out there, seeing drumline, seeing dance, and seeing band.”

Head Band Director, Alana Urbano said.

Urbano wanted band players to play at least three different songs to hype up the crowd.

“We will play ESPN, Funky Town, and something really small,” Urbano said.

Meanwhile, the band and cheer perform.

When the games happen, Clarence Conner, a CTE teacher, will photograph the pep rally.

Conner wants to make highlight reels to show off Dobie’s pride to the community.

On October 22nd, Dobie had the muchanticipated pep rally. It opened with a bang, as the Dobie drumline started playing while the school was getting seated. After that, the cheer team made a tunnel with their pompoms as our Dobie roadrunner teams ran out.

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“I was very excited for the players to feel celebrated, and it was good to see everyone show so much school spirit,” Head Football Coach Osarobarijima Goya said.

Next on the pep rally’s agenda was band and cheer performing together and playing fun games. Band and cheer were teaching the audience how to do the Dobie chant. The cheer team held up posters that said, “Go, Dobie, Go.” Lastly, they played Hungry Hippos. The goal of the game was to get the most balloons. This two-person game has one person getting on a scooter while holding a basket and the other holding their legs and pushing them. Dobie Principal Roxanne Walker and 7th grade ELA teacher Johnathan Kiser came out victorious in the Hungry Hippos game.

“I wasn’t expecting to be called up to play Hungry Hippos in front of the entire school,” Kiser said. “I was just there to chaperone and enjoy the other festivities. I enjoyed seeing how all the students got into the game; everybody was cheering, and I felt more pumped up because the students were so into it, which was kinda what fueled my competitiveness. Ms. Walker and I ended up winning.”

Volume 1, Issue 1 December 2024

Life & Arts THE

TEACHING STYLES OF DOBIE

By Yahaira Bello Reyes Photograph by Yahaira Bello Reyes Sarita Rani teaches Jose Chavez-Bonilla and other students about the baking soda lab.

Teachers use many different teaching styles to help their students understand different concepts. For example, some teachers like to explain the topic to their students and guide them step by step so they understand.

“My teaching style is one of collaboration where I like to work with the students. I model what I'm doing, which means I like to show them how I'm thinking about it and show them every step.” math teacher Ethan Smetana said.

Teachers use different types of teaching styles because they think their students will understand better.

“I think it is helpful because it gives students the power to do it on their own.

They see how I do it. They get to hear what my thoughts are so they can do it themselves, and we do it together,” Smetana said.

Teachers use different teaching styles because they think they are more effective for the students.

“I think my teaching style is 50/50 because, for example, if there is too much talking, it is not good, but one thing that is good is that if we do projects, it really gets the students interested in learning," social studies teacher Desmond Workhoven said.

Some students have complained about how their teachers teach because sometimes they don’t understand. Some students learn quickly, while others learn slowly and take more time.

“Some ways I don’t like how my teachers teach are if they talk a lot about the subject and don’t check to see if I am really understanding. If they just immediately give the answers and don’t let us do some of the work to understand the concept better,” 8th grader Emmanuel Ramirez said.

Students have also spoken about ways their teachers could improve their teaching so that they can better understand the concepts.

“I think my teachers could be better by getting less frustrated if I don’t get the concept and try to understand me better so I will succeed,” 8th grader Santiago Muños said.

Some students think it would be helpful if their teachers changed, but others think it wouldn’t benefit them.

“I think that teaching styles like Ms. Frederick’s are the best because her teaching style is more hands-on and interesting, as opposed to other teachers. Some teachers have more from the textbook to paper work.”

7th grader Jermei White said.

Volume 1, Issue 1 December 2024

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TEXAS WILDLIFE WONDERS

By Jermei White

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Photograph from Texas Parks & Wildlife

Photograph from Texas Parks & Wildlife

The Ringtail Cat

The Texas Pronghorn

Ringtail cats live up to 6 to 9 years and can reach a maximum length of 24 inches, including their tail.

They live in rocky outcroppings, crevices, and cracks inside mountains. Ringtail cats are nocturnal and spend most of their time at night foraging for food.

Texas Pronghorns are now only found in the deserts of the Trans-Pecos and the high plains of the Panhandle. The pronghorn is the only animal in the world with horns that branch out. The pronghorn is the only horned animal that sheds their horns yearly. They get up to about three feet tall and rarely exceed 110 pounds.

Photograph from Texas Parks & Wildlife

Photograph from Texas Parks & Wildlife

The Texas Ocelot

The Kit Fox

The average Texas ocelot is up to 3.5 inches long.

Believe it or not, the average lifespan of a Texas ocelot is up to 20 years! They can get as big as 35 pounds! Their tail length ranges from 10 to 16 inches. They were once found widely across Texas, but the state's ocelot population is now very small and federally endangered. According to some estimates, there are fewer than 100 in the wild.

The Kitfox is the smallest species of fox in North America. Despite their slender size, they have large ears to help aid their hearing and dissipate heat.

These nocturnal animals find shelter in dens to avoid the heat of the day and instead hunt at night.

They live up to seven years in the wild, while captive, they can live up to 12 years. There are fewer than 7,000 in the wild.

Volume 1, Issue 1 December 2024

THE INJUSTICES OF MIDDLE SCHOOL CUSTODIANS

By Evelin Paola Ponce Aguilar

Photograph by Evelin Paola Ponce Aguilar Custodian Marina Perdomo poses with a duster mop.

Five people are responsible for cleaning the school: Marina Perdomo, Maria Macedo, Maria Martinez, Elisa Garcia, and Feliciano Molina. Most have been working at Dobie Middle School for 12 years or less.

The custodians work five days a week, sometimes six days a week. They leave between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m.

They spend their time cleaning the classrooms since several inconsiderate students do not value their work, drink soda or eat Cheetos in the classrooms, throw trash, and don’t bother to help clean.

“It takes us a long time to clean the classrooms since we have to move tables and chairs to collect food scraps that are thrown on the floor,” Marina Perdomo said.

They always keep our school clean, and thanks to them, we have a comfortable and clean place to study. The only thing they want is for us to be careful with the cleaning. It’s unfair that they work twice as hard as they must, simply because we behave like fools, littering the school excessively. ¨I think the same way students behave here at school, they act the same way at home. So let's contribute and keep the school clean," said eighth grader Marjory Contreras.

It is unfortunate that we are not aware of their work. The school does not clean itself, but five people are responsible for keeping us in a hygienic place despite our bad behavior.

“I would like you to help me clean the areas where they practice soccer at least once a week.” Head Custodian Maria Macedo said.

We should contribute a little and help them keep the school clean.

Volume 1, Issue 1 December 2024

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ENTERTAINMENT NOW

Roadrunner Rating

SMILE 1 & SMILE 2 REVIEW

By Jesse Vazquez Ever since the release of Smile 1, a few cast members have done publicity stunts to increase the movie's profit.

One cast member was spotted in an MLB stadium, and another was also seen there. Smile 1 was an exceptional movie for various reasons. Some reasons are that people smiling at you is creepy in general, and it also has a good story. It is based on a true story. I rate these movies four out of five roadrunners.

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A look at both Smile movies SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

A SUMMARY OF SMILE 1: After witnessing a bizarre, traumatic incident involving a patient, Dr. Rose Cotter starts experiencing frightening occurrences that she can’t explain. Rose must confront her troubling past to survive and escape her horrifying new reality A SUMMARY OF SMILE 2: About to embark on a world tour, global pop sensation Skye Riley begins experiencing increasingly terrifying and inexplicable events. Overwhelmed by the escalating horrors and the pressures of fame, Skye is forced to face her past.

Volume 1, Issue 1 December 2024