The Hawk Eye, Volume 18, Issue 1

THEHAWKEYE

Hebron High School. 4207 Plano Parkway, Carrollton, TX. www.hebronhawkeye.com. Twitter: @hebronhawkeye. Room 1315.

October 23, 2019

Volume 18, Issue 1

Theater to perform “Romeo and Juliet” Thursday to Saturday page 2

THE LOOP UPCOMING EVENTS

NAHS to sell custom buttons page 2

Volleyball to play MacArthur Friday page 3

SPOTLIGHT SECTION 8

Senior organizes drive for Section 8 tenants page 4 & 5

Nov. 1: Pep Rally - 3p.m.-3:30 p.m.

Nov. 2: Speech and debate tournament- 6 a.m.

Nov. 1-3: Band BOA super regionals Nov. 11: Veteran’s Day program - 10 a.m.

Nov. 14: Puffs theater first show - 7 p.m.

TEACHER SPOTLIGHT: Megan Stinson

English 3 teacher Megan Stinson taught junior high students at Killian Middle School for seven years. Though she loved working with students at Killian, she decided it was time for a change.

“I was ready for some maturity, and I’m getting that for the most part,” Stinson said. “I have always wanted to teach high school, but when you start out, you kind of want to get your feet wet with something more comfortable and really master that. I was ready to move up to a more rigorous curriculum and have those older kids that could have those deeper conversations.”

Stinson has always had a love for teaching but was truly inspired to pursue it as a career after taking her first AP class in her junior year of high school.

“The [one] that had the biggest impact was my high school teacher; she was my junior English teacher,” Stinson said. “It was an AP English class that I took and she really encouraged me to think.

She made me see reading in a whole different way.

She really made me think differently and expand my view of stuff for reading.”

On top of teaching a different age group of students, Stinson also sponsors Hands of Hope, a writing mentor program between students at Hebron and students from elementary schools nearby.

“When I saw [Hands of Hope], A, I’m an English teacher, so the writing aspect caught my eye but B, it was a way to really get involved in the school,” Stinson said. “It’s so easy in high school to be limited to your hallway and who’s in your department, so I really wanted to kind of get out of my room and see kids who aren’t my students get involved in anyway that I could in the school.”

Stinson said her favorite part about being a teacher is her involvement with the students and the relationships she builds with them.

“Such a small amount of [teaching] is you getting in front of the kids, teaching them and interacting with them,” Stinson said. “There’s so much more behind the scenes and I wish that my whole job was to be in front of the kids. I love building those relationships with them. I love joking with them, making fun of them, making them laugh. That’s why I got into this.”

- Leila Olukoga

For updates and new stories check out our social media and website!

Twitter: @HebronHawkEye @HumansofHebron

Instagram: @TheHebronHawkEye

Website:

www.hebronhawkeye.com

COMMUNITY - Senior Sameer Haq loads a box of donated supplies into senior Allan Jacob’s car. The supplies included canned food and academic materials and were intended for Section 8 residents.

NEWS

District still in deficit despite increase in state funding YASMIN HAQ EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Due to the passage of House Bill 3 on June 11 by the state legislature, LISD has received more state funding for the 2019-2020 school year along with a reduction in recapture.

Recapture (also known as Robin Hood) is a system where wealthier school districts give a portion of their funding through local property tax to the state to be redistributed to other school districts. According to Parker, recapture was reduced by about 50% state wide. For the district, recapture was reduced from $60 million to $18 million.

“Under the old system, in five years, the school district would have been broke,” Board of Trustees president Katherine Sells said. “If we had maintained that same level of having to pay back to the state we would have literally had no money. With [the bill], it has lowered what we pay back.”

Despite receiving more funding, the district is operating at a deficit - spending more than its bringing in -

this year, which was predicted to be $14 million. The deficit is covered through a fund account, which is the district’s savings in case of an emergency or natural disaster.

“If we aren’t bringing in more money, but we want to continue to expand programs and take care of our teachers and take care of our insurance bill, then that’s why there’s a deficit,” superintendent Kevin Rogers said.

In previous years, the district has often run on a deficit budget. For example, the plan for the 2018-2019 school year budget included a deficit of about eight and a half million dollars on paper. Rogers said, because of conservative budgeting, the actual 2018-2019 deficit ended up to be around $2 million - $3 million.

The deficit has mainly impacted staffing numbers on campuses and other departments across the district.

Rogers said class size has increased over the past four to five years due to cuts in staffing.

“We can’t not pay the electric bill, we can’t not pay for bus service, we can’t not pay for hazard in-

surance [because] if there’s a storm and buildings are damaged we have to pay to get it fixed,” Rogers said.

“Eighty-four percent of [the budget] is people, so if we get squeezed, that’s really the only way we can try to make the deficit not quite as bad. Which is no fun. I don’t like doing it. I wish I didn’t have to.”

House Bill 3 also mandated school districts to give raises to experienced teachers with the new funding it provides. The district was able to give classroom teachers a 2.5 - 3.5% ($1,479-2,081) increase based on years of experience.

“We had state leaders saying experienced teachers were going to get anywhere from a $4 - 5,000 raise,” Rogers said. “It didn’t happen, not only in LISD, but hardly anywhere.”

Rogers said $9.5 million was spent on teacher raises this year in the district. For every one percent the salary is raised, about $3.75 million is added to the budget.

Parker said the projections for how much funding LISD was going to receive initially from House Bill 3 did not match the amount that was actually given in the final

bill.

“I believe that there shouldn’t have been a deficit if the original formulas came into play that we saw,” Parker said. “But the ultimate net result unfortunately provided a lot more money than they have gotten in the past, but not as much as was originally hoped for.”

Parker said he plans to make some changes to the bill to provide LISD and other school districts with additional resources at the next legislative session in 2021.

“No piece of legislation initially is ever perfect, so we have to come back and fine tune it,” Parker said.

“But LISD, it has received or will be receiving more money than what it received in previous cycles, so House Bill 3 was a victory for LISD.” Despite the deficit, the district still has plans to expand and continue to be efficient with its budget.

“We’re going to continue to try to be innovative, but it puts us at a disadvantage because there’s a lot of things we’d love to do,” Rogers said. “But you have to ask the question: How do I pay for it?”

hebronhawkeye.com

District implements security measures SAROSH ISMAIL REPORTER

New security measures were implemented around campus by the district at the start of the school year in an attempt to make a safer environment for students.

“The last thing that I or any other adult here wants to happen is something like we’ve read or seen where people are getting seriously hurt,” assistant principal Glen Croll said. “I don’t want kids walking around scared being here at Hebron, but I want them to be aware of what to do when something happens. I just want to have a plan.”

It’s Croll’s first year at Hebron and he is in charge of managing security. New cameras and video doorbells, funded by the 2017 bond, have been placed around the school, mainly at the entrances. Anyone coming in the building has to show a form of ID and state a reason for wanting to enter.

“This year, having everybody sign in and show their ID [to see] who’s coming through the front has been good,” associate principal Jacob Garlinger said. “It’s new, so we are just going to see how it’s going to play out.”

Although the security increases have been implemented to make the school safer, students and

Photo by Sarosh Ismail

Parent Kimberly Estrada shows her ID to the video doorbell so that she can enter the school for the pep rally. Estrada has two kids who go to Hebron, and even though the she feels the process of getting into the school is tedious, she is assured that they are safe inside the building. “It makes me feel safe as a parent to know that my kids are in a place where security is held in high regard,” Estrada said.

teachers on campus are still get- doorbell and ID process to even ting accustomed to changes like get inside. wearing IDs “I think we and checking to are learning make sure that “The district obviously feels compelled now, but once everyone has with the current state of things to make everybody gets theirs. Parents people feel that they’re sending their kids used to [wearare also affected somewhere safe. As a parent of students ing IDs], it’ll here, I value that.” by rules such as become kind only dropping of a non-thing off lunch for and it’ll be just - Jeanatte Rooks, English teacher their own child. business as Even then, they usual,” English have to go through the whole teacher Jeanatte Rooks said. “But

it may take a while for the kids to accept that.”

The people who are in the safety and security department for LISD have been taking input from everyone affected by the changes to decide what the best option is regarding safety. They are open to feedback from not only the school but also the community.

“The district obviously feels compelled with the current state of things to make people feel that they’re sending their kids some-

where safe,” Rooks said. “As a parent of students here, I value that.”

Along with the new technology, there have been other additions such as the “See Something, Say Something” campaign to raise awareness among students. The goal is to get students to feel comfortable and safe enough to make a report, text the tip-line, or speak to an adult when they think something is wrong.

“I would say that I would like to see, not necessarily changes, but that students are taking advantage of these resources,” Croll said.

“I’d rather be safe than sorry, so it’s OK to report something and have it turn out to be nothing, rather than not saying anything at all.”

As the year goes on, Croll said the hope is that students and teachers can come to school without the fear of being victims of a school shooting or any other tragic event.

“I think we stay on top of things, and we are alerted a lot of times to what’s going on and that’s a compliment to the students that go here, because they want to have a safe school,” Croll said. “Hopefully, they feel safer and more at ease. I think working together with our administrative team and always thinking about how things can change and how they can be improved is helping to create a safer atmosphere.”

Hawk Theatre Company to NAHS buttons perform “Romeo & Juliet” go on sale Tuesday YASMIN HAQ EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Photo by Sarosh Ismail

Sophomore Melat Woldu practices scene 1 of “Romeo and Juliet” in drama A after school on Oct. 17. Woldu plays Tybalt, a supporting character who is a Capulet and the cousin of Juliet.

SAROSH ISMAIL REPORTER

Hawk Theatre Company will perform “Romeo and Juliet” in the auditorium on Oct. 24 - 26 at 7 p.m.

“It’s going really well so far,” director RaMina Mirmortazavi said.

“This is the first Shakespeare [play] for all of our students who are in it, but they’re really focused, they’re running their lines and they’re handling the language well, so I think it’s go-

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NEWS

ing to be a really great show.”

Although the original lines are being kept for the play, the setting is being modified. Instead of the elaborate costumes and old fashioned look from the Elizabethan era, the show is being interpreted in a black, white and red theme.

“We’re setting it in the ’90s and also our costumes are going to be simple and elegant in black and white,” sophomore Ishrita Pol said.

“In the first half of the

show, we actually wear all white, plus the set has many different parts and is really abstract.”

Since “Romeo and Juliet” is a classic Shakespearean play, the dialogue is different from modern English, making it a challenge for the actors to memorize.

“The only challenge is learning the lines because Shakespeare is really difficult,” junior Abby Vitt said. “Plus, Juliet has around eight monologues throughout the show, so it’s a lot to learn, but other than

that, it’s been really good.”

The company has been working on this production for two months and are confident in the reactions they will receive on show night.

“I think it’s going to be beautiful and people will be really impressed by the acting,” Mirmortazavi said. “I think it’s going to be a different twist on ‘Romeo and Juliet’ that maybe people haven’t seen before, and I’m really excited to see what people think of what we’ve done.”

To raise money for funding and supplies, National Art Honor Society (NAHS) will be selling pin back buttons starting Oct. 29 during block lunch in the cafeteria for a dollar each.

The buttons will fund projects including a mural for Indian Creek Elementary School and a craft fair. NAHS president Shruti Ada and officer Ashley Kim came up with the idea to sell buttons over the summer while running the NAHS booth during sophomore orientation.

“We were just coming up with ideas and thinking about things we really wanted to sell but couldn’t in the past,” Ada said.

Photo by Sarosh Ismail

Senior Shruti Ada presses a design into a button. The designs are made by NAHS members.

“Before, we did mugs and candles and stuff but no one buys that, so I want to make cuter things that people will actually buy.”

NAHS members create their own original designs by hand or digitally using templates at meetings on Fridays during A block. The designs are then

pressed into buttons using a button machine.

Ada said the goal is to make 1,000 buttons.

Hopefully [the sale] goes well,” Ada said. “I think it will because [buttons] are something that’s really trendy now, and so a lot of people will buy them.”

Volleyball to play MacArthur

Photo by Leila Olukoga

The volleyball team raises their hands and chant before their game against Marcus on Oct. 11. This is a tradition for the Hawks before they begin every game.

LEILA OLUKOGA REPORTER

Volleyball will play an away game against Irving MacArthur at 6:30 p.m. on Friday.

This will be the team’s second game against MacArthur after winning at home against the Cardinals 3-0 on October 1. “[MacArthur] is one of the easier opponents we play,” junior Brooke Nichols said. “I feel like it’s an easy game for us, and we have a very strong

chance of doing well.”

Volleyball recently started its second round of district and will now be playing all their opponents from the first round again. At time of press, volleyball was 7-4 in district and is fighting for a playoff spot.

Keeney said playing against MacArthur will give the entire team freedom to participate in the game.

“That’ll be a game where I can get some kids who don’t always get to play in some of the games and give them an opportunity to shine and show

us what they got,” Keeney said. “This is a game to remind us why we love to play this game. Although I think MacArthur didn’t fight us very hard the last time, I think they’re going to be a little tougher this next round.”

Keeney said she has introduced freshman players into the lineup to help strengthen the front row with their hitting.

“I pulled up a freshman a week ago, Jada Johnson, and then yesterday I pulled up another, Hannah Redrow,” Kee-

ney said. “Both of them will help us in that front row situation of hitters. That’ll be good for us and it will give us more options.”

Along with modifying the lineup, Keeney has been strengthening the offense and she hopes to create movement within the front row.

“I feel like it will be a good game to try new things,” senior Alexis Lowe said. “I think with the way we’ve practiced and worked, we can win this game. [Coach Keeney’s] been working with us on things that we’ve struggled with in the past so we can improve our game.”

After MacArthur, volleyball’s next game will be against Coppell on Oct. 29 at 6:30 p.m. at home. The Hawks beat Coppell 3-0 on Oct. 4.

Keeney said the girls are getting better in practice and games and she hopes the team will fare better during its second run through district “I told [the girls] that their energy level in practice has been much better, that they seem more focused,” Keeney said. “I don’t know if it’s me or them or if it’s a combo of the both of us, but they’re doing good things. They’re understanding things that we have to do to be successful.”

Football faces road test at MacArthur Friday REPORTER

“[Irving MacArthur is] a team that has struggled a little bit, so any time you’re

UPCOMING SPORTS EVENTS

OCT. 25 • Volleyball at MacArthur 6:30 p.m.

OCT. 28 • Cross country Regional meet at Mae Simmons Park (Lubbock)

OCT. 29 • Volleyball v. Coppell 6:30 p.m.

NOV. 1 • Football v. Lewisville - 7 p.m.

NOV. 8 • Football at Irving- 7 p.m.

NOV. 9 • Cross country state meet at Old Settlers Park

NOV. 19 • Boy’s basketball v. Plano

HAILEY DIRKS The football team will play Irving MacArthur on Friday at Joy and Ralph Ellis Stadium in Irving at 7:00 pm.

“I feel that our team’s best strength is our toughness,” assistant coach Eric Mach said. “Our players have shown the ability to persevere through some very adverse situations multiple times this year and still come out on top.”

Irving MacArthur is 2-5 on the season, but has won its last two games. Head coach Brian Brazil said, despite MacArthur’s record the game presents some unique challenges, such as going on the road and playing in a new environment.

October 23, 2019

West - 7:30 p.m.

• Golf tournament at Richardson High School

DEC. 3 • Girl’s basketball v.

Prosper - 6:30 p.m.

Photo by Katlynn Fox

Junior kicker Brayden Beck kicks off to start the game against Plano Senior High on Aug. 30 at Hebron High School. The Hawks beat the Wildcats by a final score of 53-26.

playing a team that

struggles, you don’t want the team to go in with the mindset that you’re going to be overconfident and thinking you just show up and win,” Brazil said. “You have to go and play your best game always because it’s about improving.”

Throughout the season, Brazil said he emphasizes the “little de-

tails” such as showing up to practice on time and staying focused on the game, which he hopes will help control their performance.

“I think defensively, we’ve had a lot of really good stops early in the game, which creates momentum for us and puts the opponents in tough field positions,” Brazil said. “This has created

good field positions for us offensively.

Our offense has done a good job of using a lot of tempo, which means just trying to go at a real fast rate which helps us to be more successful in moving the football.”

The team sets small goals week-to-week to achieve its long-term goals.

The team’s aim is

to win the day, and by winning each day, they can win the week.

“Ultimately, we’d love to be a district champion, we’d love to go and play until Christmas time and play in a state championship game,” Brazil said. “But you can’t think about those goals until you think about the weekly and daily goals.”

DEC. 13 • Boy’s basketball at Allen - 7:30 p.m.

DEC. 17 • Girl’s basketball at

Coppell - 6:30 p.m.

SPORTS

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hebronhawkeye.com

Senior organizes drive rent through directly paying private landlords.

While the HCV program YASMIN HAQ provides compensation for EDITOR-IN-CHIEF housing, there are still some other expenses that need to be covered such as everyday Ms. Anderson had never con- items and food. sidered the possibility that In order to alleviate some she would become a Section expenses of Section 8 ten8 tenant until Oct. 15, 2016, ants, Ng organized a drive when her house caught fire where students could donate while she was visiting family items to room 2110. Ng disover three hours away. She tributed the supplies after lost everything she owned school on Sept. 26, when the to an exploded water heat- drive ended, to the Inclusive er. Without Commuinsurance nities to comProject “There are people that are very, pensate, (ICP), a Anderson, very unlucky in this world, so I just not-fora single thought it would be a good chance p r o f i t mother to give back to them,” organizawith four tion di- Phillip Ng, kids, had rected at senior to figure helping something Section 8 out, which tenants. led her to Section 8.

Ng was able deliver 506 Anderson found out about items to ICP, including Section 8 housing through school supplies and canned a couple of friends on the food. program, and found a house “There are people that are available for rent with se- very, very unlucky in this nior Phillip Ng’s father as world, so I just thought it the property manager. After would be a good chance to about six months, Anderson give back to them,” Ng said. moved to a home in Cook “The biggest point of SecCounty. tion 8 is desegregation and Anderson has been on to have some form of social the Housing Choice Vouch- mobility,” Ng said. “You er (HCV/Section 8) pro- can’t just do that with the gram for four years, and has house. The house provides moved houses twice. She you with a [good] school currently lives in Rockwall. that helps, but [tenants] still “Because of Section 8, need things such as school I’ve never had to actually supplies and food.” reside in a below-level area Ng’s knowledge of the where there’s a lot of crime HCV program stems from and the school districts ar- his dad, whose job as a en’t as good or anything like property manager includes that,” Anderson said. “We all handling the houses and relive in nicer neighborhoods lationship between the tenant where there is a higher rent, and landlord. Toward the beand as a single parent, it ginning of his involvement would be hard for me to af- with the HCV program as a ford that.” freshman, Ng helped repair The HCV program allows houses to make them ready individuals to rent and live to pass inspection so tenants on properties in areas that could live in them. Working otherwise may not be af- in houses is where Ng’s mofordable with their income. tivation to start the drive and In order to integrate tenants bring awareness to the HCV into more affluent neighbor- program stems from. hoods, the Housing Author“What I did in the summers ity covers a portion of their was I would help fix these

The items were picked up by the Inclusive Communities Project to distribute them to tenants

houses, and some of them were really messed up,” Ng said. “I was really able to see the kind of conditions in which some people lived in, and it was absolutely horrible.”

Despite already being familiar with the Section 8 tenants and the program for several years, Ng got the idea for the drive this summer after Ms. Anderson expressed she wanted her kids to excel in school.

“I remember going up to their rooms, and it was basi-

In total, the seniors were able to gather 506 items to donate

“We’re forcin cally empty except for a few said managing houses for toys here and there,” Ng said. landlords and creating rela- gagement through dleman “But the desk was Ng said. empty, and I was just thinking: how “Some people need [the program],” Anderson to [landlo said. “They need that help. They’re not being proper ma could you excel in school without the lazy, they need help. It could be a single parent, these hous supplies to do so? I it could be a disabled parent or somebody that only be pr can’t go to work.” the lando just thought maybe also it can this [drive] is sometenants, thing I could do to - Anderson, House Choice Voucher program the same help with that.” tenant bating the Ng said there is a ICP a stigma surrounding efforts to c Section 8 tenants which deters landlords from tionships with tenants will reotypes through the public about renting homes to them. He help reduce it.

“it’s had a very positive impact just 4

October 23, 2019

e for Section 8 tenants Seniors Phillip Ng and Allan Jacob load boxes filled with donations into Allan’s car. Along with Ng and Jacob, seniors Gavin Lloyd, Rahul Kolla, and Sameer Haq were also involved with transporting supplies.

Senior Phillip Ng poses with Anderson and her son.

After loading the supplies into the car, the seniors go shopping with the remaining donation money.

ng this enh this midprocess,” “We show ords], with anagement, ses can not rofitable for owner, but n benefit the [while] at time come stigma.” also makes combat steh educating t the HCV

program. Mobility Assistance Program director Nicole Rolfe said ICP works to create economically and racially inclusive communities to combat segregation and discrimination.

“ICP staff members spend much of our time educating clients, landlords, developers, city officials, and the general public about the program and fair housing, etc.,” Rolfe said via email. “Having a landlord finally decide to rent to a voucher holder is a great way to begin to over-

ride stereotypes and myths.”

Anderson said she has mainly had a good experience with the HCV program, but has heard stories from other tenants. Anderson said she wishes more landlords would be open to partaking in the HCV program.

“Some people need [the program],” Anderson said.

“They need that help.

They’re not being lazy, they need help. It could be a single parent, it could be a disabled parent or somebody that can’t go to work.”

Above are the counties ICP plans to make donations to.

t being there when we needed it.”

- Ms. Anderson, Section 8 tenant

FEATURE

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hebronhawkeye.com

DI-Why have a boring costume?

Over the years, costumes seem to have lost their appeal to people in the Generation Z age range. Teenagers are usually inhibited by the idea that dressing up is not socially acceptable or age appropriate, which is a common misconception. Simple costumes that are more casual and easily accessible might normalize dressing up for Halloween, taking away the stress of choosing a costume. Here are some easy last-minute costumes to make your Halloween spooktacular.

Suspenders Thrift City

Hawaiian shirtthrifted

Sunglasses Target

Glasses Warby Parker

Camera thrifted Jean Jacket Goodwill

White tennis shoes - Adidas

Jeans Michael Kors

Pink dress Forever 21

Sandals Birkenstocks

White tennis shoes - Adidas

Eleven from Stranger Things Season 1 Immerse yourself in a world of Dungeons and Dragons, Demogorgons, and dynamic duos in Eleven’s iconic Season 1 outfit.

Smartie Pants Show off your punny side with this sweet and clever play on words.

Tourist Look like you’re traveling far and wide even if you are just going down the block with this vacation-ready outfit.

- Complied by Mia Nguyen and Katlynn Fox

Kate’s tricks and treats

Senior Kate Haas ranks her top five and bottom five Halloween candy

Treats (top five) Kit Kats are delicious. They’re the best chocolate candy -- sweet but not too sweet -- and are basically perfect. No one should be disappointed in seeing one of these land in their trick-or-treating horde.

If so, I will gladly take it off your hands.

Reese’s are almost as delicious as Kit Kats, but not quite. The chocolate/peanut butter combination is iconic. However, a lot of people have peanut allergies and therefore can’t enjoy them.

Tricks (bottom five)

The best hard candy by far.

Jolly Ranchers completely

I don’t know a single person who enjoys Dots. The flavor is gross and the texture and consistency is as well. There’s no way the gumdrops that grace all those Christmas stories taste like these things.

I completely hate coconut so Almond Joy is high up on my hate list of Halloween candy.

It’s not like the almonds help either; it’s a pointless candy.

Like I said, Jolly Ranchers are the top of the hard candy food chain.

No one is happy to see any Lollipop on Halloween night.

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ENTERTAINMENT

Twizzlers are basically the lame version of Sour Punch Straws and Airheads Extremes.

They’re OK, but pretty underwhelming and definitely not exciting.

Despite the fact that these are just gross, I have bad memories of kids pretending to smoke Smarties in middle school.

overshadows any lollipop that might land in your pillowcase.

The tangy, sort-of-sour and sortof-sweet flavors (especially the blue one) make me want to just continuously eat them. All the time.

Twix are some majorly underrated chocolates. I don’t get the whole right/left thing, but I will gladly eat both any day. The chocolate/caramel duo is right there next to the chocolate/peanut butter of Reese’s and Twix is the better cousin of Snickers, Milky Way and 3 Musketeers.

Starburst are one of the best non-chocolate candies, and have an upper hand in that they don’t melt like chocolate does. The juicy, chewy candy has a great flavor compared to similar pieces like Laffy Taffy and the pink flavor should be made a national treasure.

Editorial: It is time to re-think advisory Last school year, advisory was implemented into students’ schedules with the intent of promoting meaningful connections between staff and students as well as providing academic support. After over a year of advisory, it is clear that it has not achieved its purpose and therefore needs to be re-thought or removed.

Spending 30 required minutes every Monday analyzing character development through heavily structured Power Points makes students feel coerced to discuss topics they have no interest in. Discussion should be fostered, not forced.

The detailed structure of the lessons with the specific questions, videos and discussion topics do not encourage the kind of student discussion administration wants to create.

In addition to advisory’s forced nature, its inconsistency is an issue as well. The way students obtain information and start discussions depends on how the teachers execute the lesson. It’s pretty evident that stu-

dents are receiving a different learning experience from advisory due to its inconsistency with teacher participation.

Furthermore, advisory was designed to provide a “more personalized learning environment” for students. While the objective was clear, in many classes, students have yet to warm up to their teachers and their environments. Every week, advisory lessons rotate from emotional lessons, such as the discussion over suicidal prevention, to announcements such as voting for homecoming court. It seems as though the only goals being met are the ones relating to school activities; leaving the sentimental, impassioned discussions to the side. Because students are not eager or comfortable talking about these emotional topics, advisory can be a waste of time.

Some students believe advisory is a way of alleviating stress by giving them a 30 minute period to take a breather or have a group to confide in.

October 23, 2019

THEHAWKEYE

HEBRON HIGH SCHOOL 4207 Plano Parkway Carrollton, TX 75010 469-948-2850

Photo illustration by Yasmin Haq

Despite good intentions, advisory’s forced lessons lead to disengagement in some classrooms. In a poll of 100 students, 86% said they believe their advisory class is not accomplishing its stated goal.

For some students, advisory has definitely met the goal. Some students believe they have gotten closer with their advisory teachers, though the majority have not. However, depending on the leniency of the teacher and the willingness of the students to participate, students could either complete homework or be coerced into discussion about emotional topics that may make students feel uncomfortable. In a recent poll, 100 students were chosen at random to vote for the cancellation or improvement of advisory and if advisory has accomplished

its goals. Out of those 100, 86 students believe that advisory hasn’t accomplished its stated purpose and 20 of those students believe administration should consider changes to make advisory more effective.

The solution to this problem may not be simple. Just because advisory has not worked out doesn’t mean there can not be changes made to improve it. Reconstructing advisory to where it is held only at the beginning of every month instead of every week may lessen the opposition from students. Administration

should try to find ways to make students genuinely interested in topics that are relevant by reducing lesson structure and encouraging teacher flexibility to allow them to become more emotionally connected to students.

Advisory is well-intentioned, but mandatory discussion is not the way to get students to form meaningful connections between students and teachers as well as constructing a place to feel encouraged to communicate.

Despite the best efforts, advisory has not been successful and needs to be updated or cancelled all together.

The Hawk Eye is a student-produced newspaper which strives to represent the student voice. We will aim to report all news relevant to Hebron High School and its student body without bias to race, religion or creed.

Views expressed by columnists are their own personal opinions and do not necessarily represent the views of the entire staff. Editorials reflect the staff opinion and may not reflect the views of the school administration.

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COLUMN: Climate change can not wait

EDITORS

KATLYNN FOX

YASMIN HAQ

REPORTER

Whether you lean left or right on political issues, it’s hard to deny the scientific facts that prove our earth is actively suffering the effects of climate change and global warming. From severe or unpredictable weather patterns to melting glaciers in Greenland and Alaska, the world is in major trouble and scientists believe we only have 12 years left to slow down global warming before the effects worsen.

As students, we mostly feel like we can’t do anything about our dissatisfaction with the current political stance on climate change, but youth presence in the media right now is contradicting that. On Sept. 20, students around the world skipped school to attend over 4,000 separate events to demand action. Students have taken more initiative and have begun to address the climate crisis that we are currently facing by asking the government to reduce carbon emissions and to devise a plan to stay within 1.5 degrees Celsius of global heating, because beyond that, the current effects go from bad to terrifying.

I’ve recently been inspired to get more involved in the climate

conversation because of 16-yearold Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, who has become a prominent leader in the movement to educate people on climate change. She has made major political statements like sailing 13 days across the Atlantic Ocean in a zero emission boat to avoid the greenhouse gasses that planes emit and giving a passionate speech addressing government officials at the 2019 United Nations Climate Action Summit on Sept. 23.

“This is all wrong,” Thunberg said in her speech. “I shouldn’t be up here. I should be back in school on the other side of the ocean. Yet you all come to us young people for hope. How dare you!” The powerful nature of her words expectantly shocked some people, but more importantly, it got influential leaders to acknowledge her message of urgency. This speech is what really made me emotionally connected to the related issues of climate change because it is more serious than people realize, and in the future it will be a life or death situation.

After she vocalized her demand for change, a panel of 15 other young activists filed a legal complaint against five separate countries for violating the rights of a child by not taking proper measures to control global warming. This gives me hope for the

future because it’s inspiring to see teenagers standing at the front lines and influencing not only their peers, but adults too.

The main goal of these efforts w a s to demand t h e attention of national representatives in order to facilitate the reform of climate policies. A solution to the threat of global warming has been the promotion of the Green New Deal, which is a congressional resolution proposed in February to eventually stop the use of fossil fuels in the U.S. and establish a more sustainable clean energy industry. I think at this point every decision we make is vital to ease the effects of the climate crisis, which is why everyone

should be pressuring powerful officials to take action. This is especially important now, because the 2020 elections are getting closer by the day so a candidate’s response to the expansive amount of strikes that recently took place reflects heavily on their electability.

That being said, get out there: go research, go protest, get on social media and connect with other activists.

Join a strike and vote in the next election if you can. You are never too young to be heard or to make a difference. Our voices are more important now than they ever have been. It is our responsibility to recognize the state of our climate because we are going to inhabit this planet long after the current political leaders. We are the next generation of voters, so knowledge on issues like climate change is of immense importance.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

KATE HAAS

MANAGING EDITOR

REPORTERS Hailey Dirks Katlynn Fox Ashna Haiderali Arisha Hirji Sarosh Ismail Mia Nyugen Leila Olukoga

ADVISER STEVEN JONES

PRINCIPAL AMY BOUGHTON Find us online at:

www.hebronhawkeye.com

OPINION 7

October 23, 2019

hebronhawkeye.com

Photo Gallery:

Hispanic Heritage Month: Sept 16. - Oct. 10

Students and staff try different Latino foods at the Hispanic Heritage Showcase on Oct. 9. During the showcase, there was also a salsa contest.

Featured food at the Hispanic Heritage showcase Chicharróns from Spain

Tortilla chips

Salsa Salsa

Plantaines One of the members of the Denton High School Los Broncos mariachi band performs. They performed a songs such as “La Llorona” and “Carino.”

Corn from Argentina

Pan de Jamon from Venezuela Figs from Spain Students sing along to the songs of the Mariachi band in the auditorium. The Mariachi band played during block lunch on Oct. 10.

Fresas Con Crema

Los Broncos violinists play in the auditorium to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month. The theme this year was “Quienes Somos?” meaning “Who Are We?”

Seniors Leah Mendoza and Natalia Sanchez dance to Latino music at the Hispanic Heritage Showcase on Oct. 9 in the Hawks nest.

Junior Rafa Cachutt, seniors Leah Mendoza and Ayilaa Williams, junior Jacqueline Lopez, and sophomore Bela Rodriguez pose in front of the super H for photo connections.

PHOTO GALLERY

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