The Dispatch, Vol. 38, Issue #2 11/7/25

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FEATURE Senior Elisa Morgali channels passion for veterinary agriculture into future career possibilities pg 4

PHOTO BY Gabby Bochey

PHOTO ESSAY FFA students participate in dog washing and grooming to support their program pg 6 PHOTO BY Arlo Stockstill

THE DISPATCH FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025

SPORTS Freshman Lily Knauss strides to success during first varsity cross country meet pg 10

ENTERTAINMENT Theatre produces children's shows to be performed at elementary schools pg 12

PHOTO BY Ashley Marcus

PHOTO BY Elizabeth Yowell

Vol. 38, Issue 2 www.thedispatchonline.net James Bowie High School 4103 W. Slaughter Lane, Austin, TX, 78749

Pride in Publishing

Music players banned on Unity project presented on campus to call out hate among student body campuses

Inclusivity inspired in classmates Peyton Dorsey News Editor

Students across campus have been experiencing racism, discrimination, and various forms of hate in much more noticeable amounts from their fellow classmates this school year. Alliance clubs across Bowie have realized this is an issue, and are working together to change the direction of this increased hate.

Bowie Unity is a student-run project designed to foster a sense of community in areas where some groups have felt a disconnect among their peers. Key groups involved with the project are the Black Student Alliance (BSA), Asian American Allies, and the Gender and Sexuality Acceptance (GSA) clubs.

“The goal is to bring people together and have a stronger sense of community at Bowie,” senior BSA member Derrick Osobase said. “The biggest thing is that some people have been rude to certain groups of people, so we want to bring all these groups together.”

BSA sponsor Justine Lashley spotted one of these displays of discrimination in her class room. Inappropriate language was written on tables in her room, and she brought this to the attention of administration. Lashley introduced an idea to combat this hate to academic director Kaylin Brett and lead counselor Nicole Hepburn, who remained in touch with Lashley regarding the support of a potential project.

“I think a lot of adults have seen the trajectory of how things are going and the disrespect that is occurring on campus,” Lashley said.

“Whether it's students using slurs or calling someone out for their sexual orientation, or anything like that, we want to combat it.”

DERRICK OSOBASE Lashley Senior BSA member called attention to these events with the BSA club, and suggested the students try to fight against this. The members agreed with

MP3 and cassette players prohibited in AISD schools

ART BY Jenny Kimbrough

the noticeable increase of discrimination on campus, and decided to work together with other clubs to counter the hate.

“We’re trying to get people together to teach others that those things hurt,” Osobase said. “We really want people to understand that.”

After reaching out to other groups, the realization that these discriminatory acts have been noticed by many students across campus became apparent. Senior Ayah Hakim is a representative for Student Leadership for the project.

“I’ve noticed since we have been on our phones less this year people are being rude face to face since they can no longer conceal it behind a screen,” Hakim said.

“There’s definitely been a shift in the

community, the Bowie culture feels more The various groups are working tointense now in a negative way.” gether with the Dispatch Media team to BSA is organizing a video produce an additional video that to be shown during Charwill be shown during Character SCAN TO acter Strong to convey the Strong. This video will include SEE MORE! message of the project. Usskits and panels with members ing a ‘street interview’ style, of these groups calling attention BSA members will interview to the mistreatment and prejstudents about their stance udice towards others that has and opinions regarding the been present on campus, and increased discrimination. how to handle these situations.

“Our goal for the videos “My hope is that students VIDEO BY Gabby is to have students explainwill take the video seriously and Bochey and Ryan actually watch it when it is ing what unity means to Zuniga shown during Character them,” Osobase said. “We Strong,” Lashley said. “I’m hope the interviews will be hoping for a little bit of change in the done in a kind of fun and more casual culture at Bowie.” way to keep the responses genuine.”

Students left without teachers during shortage Thia Betts Dispatch Reporter

As Bowie students are moving to the 2nd nine weeks of school, classes with substitute teachers are finally being assigned certified teachers to fill positions. Schools across Texas have been experiencing a teacher shortage. As a result of limited staff, some of Bowie’s chemistry classes were left without a teacher for the first nine weeks of school. AISD has recently hired additional teachers to fill this gap, one being chemistry teacher Tate Farmer, who is filling the empty position at Bowie. This has caused schedule changes for some students.

“There are a lot of people passionate about teaching and making sure the younger generation has what they need to go and succeed,” Farmer said. “I think that's what draws people to the job.”

According to the Learning Policy Institute, the United States had more than 400,000 teacher positions that either weren't filled or were filled by someone uncertified in the 2023-2024 school year. According to the Texas Tribune, almost 40% of new teacher hires were uncertified across Texas.

“I think it's definitely a shame,” Farmer said. “Teachers are very important and you can't really have a functioning society without people who understand the world around them and that can think critically so I definitely think there needs to be more done to fix that shortage.”

For the first nine weeks of school, students that did not have a chemistry teacher were left with a permanent sub. These students had to find different ways to learn the material without the typical class instruction and one-on-one support of a trained chemistry teacher.

“I have to teach myself a lot of the curriculum and look at the slides and notes on my own time,” sophomore Maddy Nixon said. “I watch YouTube videos about chemistry and I go to other chemistry teachers first.”

With this

GETTING IN THE GROOVE: Chemistry teacher Tate Farmer conducts an experiment for his class. Farmer is the new hire for the previously teacher-less sophomore chemistry class. PHOTO BY Cole Wong

INSIDE:

NEWS 1, 2, 3 FEATURE 4 , 5 IN-DEPTH 7, 8-9

SUBBING STRATEGIES: Substitute teacher Stefania Garcia sits at Jacqueline Gonzalez's desk, covering her class while Gonzalez was out. Garcia subbed for Gonzalez's freshman and senior English classes. PHOTO BY Ben Wong

change, students are having to adjust their learning strategies.

Some think that the classroom setting could change with someone new taking over.

“It will be a little weird having someone who is here permanently,” sophomore Hadley Hilton said. “The new teacher might have a different teaching style than the sub.”

As Farmer has taken over the class, students are learning how to work in a more structured classroom. Farmer is working to build relationships with his students as he settles into teaching at Bowie.

“The first thing that I tried

SPORTS 10, 11 ENTERTAINMENT 12 REVIEW 13

to do coming in was to really try and build a relationship with the students in my class and make sure they get to know about me, " Farmer said.

“I've been trying to make it clear that my students can ask questions and I try not to be intimidating.”

Farmer is working to catch students up in areas that were not adequately covered before he took over. He has encouraged students to ask questions when they're confused so he can provide help to those who struggled with the sub.

“Teachers have a lot of different responsibilities,” Farmer

COMMENTARY 14, 15 PHOTO ESSAY 6,16

said. “They not only have to know the material that they are teaching but they also need to play the role of social workers and make sure that all the students' needs are met, it’s a lot for one person to do.”

With the increase in teachers across AISD, class sizes are able to decrease. These smaller classroom sizes will allow for more direct instruction.

“I’m happy that we have a teacher now,” Nixon said. “I think that a lot of students that had the substitute will learn from a permanent teacher more and I’m glad that Bowie is receiving more staff.”

FIND US AT @jbhs_dispatch

Going into effect at the beginning of the 2025-2026 school year, the Texas Legislature passed HB 1481, which banned the use of cellphones or any form of electronic communication devices in all public schools in the state. Along with cellphones, this bill banned AirPods and other Bluetooth headphones.

Because of this, teachers and staff at Bowie High School did allow for students to bring and use alternate music devices such as MP3 players, Discmans, Walkmans, cassette players, among other things. Students could connect devices to wired headphones and this way they could listen to their music without breaking any rules that had been set in place by HB 1481.

“The message conveyed to administration at the beginning of the year was that wired headphones that were connected to something that’s not digital would be allowed,” assistant principal Crystal Keck said.

However, a few weeks into the school year, the district reached out to Bowie administrators and a meeting was held regarding the use of MP3 players and such on campus. The AISD Student Code of Conduct and the AISD Student Success Guide states that devices of the kind weren’t allowed at schools, and having them could result in disciplinary action.

“The Student Success Guide historically had no MP3 players, no Walkmans, nothing where you could plug in a headphone and then listen to it,” algebra teacher Leanne Walker said.

“Soon after school started there was a principals meeting, saying those devices are not allowed either because they’ve never allowed it, it had been such a long time since anyone used any of those devices that everybody forgot that they actually existed.”

With the enforcement of this policy, students have been given significantly decreased access to music; which is why certain teachers allow their students to connect wired headphones to their Chromebooks to listen to music.

“I feel for my students because the class gets loud or someone’s talking and you’re trying to focus, and if you’re listening to your own music it’s easier for you to dial in,” Walker said. “I’ve used GoGuardian to allow music sites that have not already been blocked.”

A few of the unblocked sites include Apple Music, SoundCloud, and Titan Music, which have been helpful to students that find it hard to concentrate without any form of music.

“I listen to music on the bus, at home, in the car; but in school if I didn’t have music I’d fail, 100 percent,” junior Jonaven Rondeau said. “My friend got me these headphones so I can connect them to my computer; and SoundCloud has helped me so much.”

Changes to music accessibility by students that were brought up by the house bill and reemergence of old district policies have been something the district and Bowie’s staff and students have had to get used to, favorable or not.

“Everything’s been a big adjustment with this law,” Keck said. “We’ve all gone through this together, for better or worse.” STORY BY Eliza Williams

2 NEWS

THE DISPATCH FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025

BULLDAWGS SPEAK!

Recent legislation raise concerns about student expression

Could legislation preventing schools from using preferred names violate student freedom of expression? Why or why not?

Yes, because a lot of students go by different names and pronouns and by getting rid of that, they can't really express who they are.

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Henry Hall Freshman

Yes, because it restricts students from being themselves around their friends and teachers who are supposed to be the ones available to support them.

Vern Nyaga Junior

Pia Arce Sophomore

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Yes, because it should be an unalienable right to express yourself however you want.

Yes, because preventing preferred names doesn’t allow for students to build their own identity and grow into that identity.

Marcos Espinoza Campus Safety Monitor

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Z Arce Senior

New Texas Gender Laws

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If it doesn't distract other students then I don't think so. When you come on campus it's no longer about your individual freedom as much as a learning environment.

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INTERVIEWS BY Sophia Shaw and Logan Cottle PHOTOS BY Ryan Zuniga and Sophia Shaw

Katie Grumet Executive Objective Editor Dressed in athletic wear to appear more “straight,” junior Gwen Anderson anxiously steps into their family’s car, terrified of the judgment they may face as their family embarks on their annual summer road trip. Anderson, a teen who is a part of the LGBTQ community, is nervous about driving through small, conservative Texas towns.

As Texas continues to pass more oppressive laws that directly impact members of the LGBTQ community, it could be increasingly harder for LGBTQ teens such as Anderson to feel safe in their home state.

According to the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas (ACLU), a civil rights organization in Texas, this past legislative year, over 200 anti-LGBTQ bills were proposed in Texas and only eight ultimately ended up passing. As stated in an article by the Texas Tribune, these bills are part of a larger, multi-year movement to limit the presence of LGBTQ and trans Texans. According to the ACLU Texas has the second-largest population of LGBTQ people however, LGBTQ Texans currently lack basic protections.

“These bills are being passed because Republicans want to control others, specifically women and people who are generally discriminated against, such as people of color or LGBTQ,” Anderson said. “Before these bills, we were functioning genuinely well. I felt comfortable. I’m non-binary, and as a child, I felt protected. These bills continue to be passed as a way of control rather than protecting these communities.”

Senate Bill 12 (SB12) was signed into law on June DAMIEN BORING 20, and can affect Senior LGBTQ communities in several different ways. According to Texas AFT, this bill prevents schools from helping with “social transitioning,” which is non-medical steps to align one's gender expression with their gender identity. Social transitioning can often include changing one's name, pronouns, or style of dress. According to Texas Public Radio, under SB12, nicknames based on a student's birth name are allowed. However, in situations where a nickname appears to be gender-neutral, such as a student named Samantha going by the name Sam, there is a gray area regarding whether teachers can still honor the nickname.

“One of my close friends who lives in Florida, where similar bills have been passed, specifically bills that prevent teachers from accepting nicknames, have caused my friend and a lot of her queer friends to feel terrified for themselves,” Anderson said.

“Similar things are going to take place here in Texas. It’s already started, and I know certain friends of mine are absolutely terrified of what this means for them because they come from conservative families. There will be more damage caused to students because there will be this rhetoric pushed from their parents that their child is born wrong.”

Additionally, SB12 enforces some curriculum and instructional changes in the classroom. Teachers must provide syllabi or instructional plans before the semester begins, and they’re prohibited from teaching any materials outside of the scope of Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS).

Schools must also obtain written parental consent at least 14 days before human

accused of entering the wrong bathroom. sexuality instruction. This helps to prohibit instruction, guidance, or activities that relate While the conversations on how the bill would be enforced started with committee to sexual orientation or gender identity at members suggesting that the policy would any grade level. This is often referred to as be enforced based on how someone looks, the “Don’t Say Gay” provision. the government buildings will ultimately be “Bowie tends to be a very welcoming responsible for deciding how they want to place,” lead counselor Nicole Hepburn said. enforce the bill.

“Teachers are doing the best they can within “I think these bills are going to make the law to still make sure that students feel students more aware of the laws,” Hepburn welcome. I think that with these bills, espesaid. “I’ve seen in my lifecially SB12, the goal is for more parent time that teenagers are involvement, but I more aware of laws than do feel that certain they’ve ever been before because they’re realizing groups are being There will be more that these bills impact targeted.” damage caused to them.”

In addition to With many high this, SB12 requires students because there school students subwritten parental will be this rhetoric pushed consent for student mitting their college participation in any applications right now, from their parents that authorized student many Texan and Bowie their child is born wrong. club. This bill also students end up applyprohibits school ing to the University of districts from authoTexas or other local Texas colleges as an option. rizing or sponsoring Junior However, students' clubs organized college decisions may be around sexual oriimpacted by the Trump entation or gender administration, because they recently sent identity, specifically impacting Gay-Straight a letter to the University of Texas and eight Alliances (GSAs) and similar groups from other universities asking them to join a receiving official recognition. This bill does “compact” that would give them access to allow for single-gender clubs with missions preferential federal funding, according to the that “do not advance a political or social Texas Tribune. To qualify for the benefit one agenda,” creating a slim exception to the of the things asked of universities is to hold law. One example of this would be a club a stricter definition of gender. Universities like the Bowie Society of Women Engineers would also be required to ban the use of club. race and sex considerations in admissions.

“There are so many laws and legislation “As a queer individual, I wouldn’t go to limiting stuff, which makes school not a very UT if they accepted Trump’s money because safe environment for students and makes it shows a lack of respect and inclusion everything a lot more complicated,” senior for the queer community,” senior Hannah Damien Boring said. “The law allows teachVanhorn. “I would not feel safe or welcome ers who might not agree with how students attending UT if they chose to disregard the choose to express themselves to get away with bigotry and discrimination against their identities of their students.”

Organizations such as the ACLU, believe students. Even outside of the bills, students misuse resources that were supposed to help that every kid in school deserves a safe, supportive learning environment. The make people who are trans or gender-queer ACLU has created an online resource called feel more comfortable, forcing those reTxTransKids.org, where students can go if sources to be taken away from people who they need to talk to someone about access need them.” to school bathrooms or other facilities, Another bill that was GSAs, bullying, cyberbullying, harassment passed this most recent or dress codes. Their goal is to ensure that legislative session, K-12 transgender, non-binary, and Senate Bill 8 (SB8), regender nonconforming students stricts which restrooms have access to the resources transgender people are that they need. allowed to use in gov“The legislation will ernment buildings and public continue to get worse, schools. This bill requires especially in public that people use the bathschools, because these room that coordinates with have already been their birth sex. According in place,” Boring to the Texas Tribune, the bill Source: Movement said. “They’ve will go into effect on Decemalways been ber 4 and allow for institutions Advancement somehow written to be fined up to $125,000 for Project in, whether it's violations. microaggressions “I don’t think that AISD will enforce this against trans bill as harshly as other districts,” Boring Of or just not said. “I feel like if Texas chooses to enforce the workforce in people respecting people's this bill harshly, like with the phone ban, then they would have to be more strict. We Texas is LGBTQ names. There are a lot of things do have a lot of communities here at Bowie getting passed that don’t crack down on stuff like that, so right now that hopefully that will continue.” people disagree Supporters of SB8 have referred to this with, but the legislators don't particularly bill as the “Texas Women’s Privacy Act,” claiming that the bill is necessary for helping care. This legislation could cause people to go back into the closet if they are out or not keep intimate spaces such as bathrooms and come out because of fear of being bullied or changing rooms safe and comfortable for harassed, or even force people to take women. However, opponents of the bill feel drastic measures like suicide.” that it allows for the harassment of trans people and for cisgender people to be falsely

"

Gwen Anderson

1,053,000

LGBTQ population (13+) in Texas

5%

Surplus of phishing emails catch students by surprise Thia Betts Dispatch Reporter Opening his laptop, sophomore McCrae Flickinger checks his school email only to find his inbox flooded with messages.

This time, instead of his email containing messages from BLEND or from his friends, it's emails asking for his personal information. Fake companies pretending to be legitimate organizations like the United Postal Service enter Flickinger’s email attempting to trick him into giving away his identity.

Flickinger, however, doesn't fall for the trap and deletes the emails.

This year, AISD students and teachers are getting greater numbers of spam emails in their school inbox. October was Cybersecurity Awareness month and AISD has numerous resources on their website designed to inform students and families how to be safe online.

From online games to resources for parents to help advise their TARA WALKER-LEON kids on Librarian using online resources, AISD is prepared in helping every person

within the AISD community stay safe online.

“I receive spam emails pretty often, maybe once every two days,” Flickinger said. “I usually don't even open them and I delete them because they usually say potentially spam but if I do, it normally asks me about a lost UPS package or something like that.”

According to AISD, a person’s email is the most dangerous source of IT breaches.

To help inform district members, AISD has prepared several tips to help people be aware of spam emails. People should be aware of suspicious links and emails, not automatically reply to emails that claim to be urgent and remember that links from the internet end in .com, not hacker.com. Additionally, AISD will never ask for a student or teacher’s personal information via email.

“You should look for a weird prefix, there's a standard format to all of AISD’s emails,” librarian Tara Walker-Leon said. “It’s your first name, your last name @austinisd.org. The spam emails could also come from a school gmail account or they might not have the same uniform format before the @ sign. Another thing you could look for is things in the email that are misspelled. A big thing is if they ever ask you for your private information, then they are trying to get you to give

CAUGHT IN CONFUSION: Checking his emails, junior Porter Johnson is baffled by the amount of phishing emails in his school inbox. This school year, AISD students and employees have been receiving an abundance of phishing emails, raising concerns about the safety of school email. PHOTO BY Cooper Ford

personal information to steal your identity.”

According to the Austin Journal, the recent attacks have involved hackers pretending to be an AISD account to send fake emails. These emails ask

students for personal information such as a student's name or personal email address and try to trick students by asking them to do time sensitive tasks such as filling out a job application or resetting a password.

These emails put students' identity and personal information at risk, so students should ignore and report them.

“They get in somehow and they get in your email and then from that entry point they are able to access maybe your birth date, " Walker-Leon said. “They take that information and they sell it to the dark web. If they can match all of your information shared online, then they can steal your identity and do all kinds of things.”

As stated in an article by the Guardian Digital, clicking an embedded malicious link can lead to a leak of private information and cause data loss. According to the National Cyber Security Center, most cyber breaches are not a result of complex and sophisticated attacks, the vast majority of attacks are from well-known techniques such as phishing.

Phishing allows hackers to piece together parts of someone's identity and sell online, putting private information in the public view.

“The whole idea behind phishing is to get your information and from what I understand is they try to get young kids,” Walker-Leon said. “Hackers that steal people's identities love to steal young people's identities, so by the time you turn 18, you won’t even know someone stole your identity.”

According to HOXHUNT, a

platform that trains employees to recognize and report security threats, particularly phishing attacks, the total volume of phishing attacks had increased by 49% since the creation of ChatGPT in 2022. Additionally, 65% of attacks target organizations, such as schools or entire districts and 35% target individuals. The 2024 FBI internet report says that most phishing complaints came from California, Florida, and Texas, with the report stating that people over the age of 60 had the biggest losses of $5 billion dollars.

"People don't think before they start clicking links," senior Theresa Linsalata said. "I know someone who fell for one and she didn't realize it was a scam until she read the email again."

Ask a teacher if an email looks suspicious and report any phishing emails and report them to the AISD police if any information was shared.

Students can also report any cybersecurity concerns to the AISD directly through the district website. Teachers can also help verify an email.

“I hope students that receive spam emails don’t interact with them because digital safety is really important,” Flickinger said. “There are so many ways to tell when an email is just trying to steal someone's information.”

NEWS 3

FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025 THE DISPATCH

Clubs united across campus

Bowie U.N. allows for better collaboration between organizations Marissa McGowan Objective Executive Editor On a campus buzzing with clubs, fundraisers, and student initiatives, students walk down the halls, filled with posters promoting endless organizations. A new effort is underway to bring campus groups together, from dancers in Silver Stars to cadets in JROTC. Every group has a mission, and this year there is a push to share the goals to be more unified. The Bowie U.N. is a new way to align the clubs in a way that benefits the entire campus.

Aiming to strengthen collaboration across campus, Student Council has created the new program led by Student Council presidents Gabby Bochey and Reed Watts, designed to bring multiple clubs together and enhance the school community. The Bowie U.N. aims to unite clubs, help support broadcasts, drives, and fundraisers to make the campus more connected and informed.

“Our purpose of doing a U.N. as Student Council is to support overall and broadcast more drives going around the school and engage community awareness,” Student Council Co-President Gabby Bochey said. “Whether it's events for smaller Bowie clubs or fundraisers, or drives.

The purpose of U.N. is just to spread and further enhance communication around the campus, among students and staff.”

While Bowie U.N. is led by Student Council, it will feature the involvement of many different clubs and organizations. Consisting of groups such as Black Student Alliance, Spanish Honors Society, Bowie Buddies, Band, Silver Stars, JROTC, and more. While not all clubs can be included, Bowie U.N. has assembled a group with high involvement and broad impact around campus.

“We're trying to create sort of a place for the leaders of a bunch of different important organizations around campus to kind of come together and kind of create a more cohesive community,” Student Council Co-President Reed Watts said. “Where you can kind of see what other parts of your community are working on as a team, and work together to accomplish similar goals.”

Bowie U.N. will meet once a month to discuss events around campus. Clubs can discuss new fundraisers and projects, and request any support needed from other organizations

AISD school closures lead to redistricting Due to declining student enrollment AISD is forced to change boundary lines in order to fill classrooms and provide proper education

TAKING THE LEAD: Student Council advisor Alejandro Garcia speaks with various club leaders. This took place during the first Bowie U.N. meeting, featuring leaders from several clubs to discuss the plans for the organization. PHOTO BY Skyler Haywood to help contribute to their events.

“With the Spanish Honors Society having a big following on Instagram, we can help by getting out the word to our members and promoting other volunteer opportunities for smaller clubs, like the Hope Club, and their sock drive,” Spanish Honors Society president Sara Lenahan said. “We try to let students know the benefits of doing these drives, and just promoting other clubs with all our members as a whole.

With there being many clubs throughout campus, smaller organizations struggle to gain the support

and awareness they need. Bowie U.N. has a goal of eliminating the communication gap between students and helping to ensure each organization has a chance to promote its events.

“It's been something we've been kind of thinking about for a couple of years,” Watts said. “We will see failed drives and throughout a lot of different communities, we just realized that if we work together and we could have a much more positive impact.”

According to Student Council leadership, the idea for Bowie U.N. had previously been in progress for mul-

tiple years. However, the COVID-19 pandemic led to its discontinuation.

Co-President Gabby Bochey pushed for the organization to make a comeback.

“I remember when running for president, during my interview, we had to have a couple of ideas of things we wanted to bring to Bowie, one of my things that I wanted to heavily emphasize was Bowie U.N.,” Bochey said. “ I just kind of thought more about what it should be and more efforts that we should put into it.”

Government shutdown puts nation on pause Katie Grumet Objective Executive Editor

After the United States government failed to pass a new budget on October 1, the government entered a national shutdown. As of November 4, the government has been shut down for 35 days, leaving more than one million federal workers unpaid.

“The big cause of this shutdown is arguments over healthcare,” junior Arya Bhattacharya said.

“Democrats are outnumbered in Congress, making it more difficult for their ideas to get passed, which gives Republicans more power.”

According to the BBC, Congress must agree on a budget to send to the president for it to be signed into law. While Republicans currently hold the majority control in both the Senate and House of Representatives, Democrats were still able to block the bill from passing in the Senate.

Democrats have been advocating for the budget to include the extension of expiring tax credits that would make health insurance cheaper, a reversal of Trump’s cuts to Medicaid, and oppose spending cuts towards government health agencies.

“We’re waiting for Congress to pass a budget that would fund all of the ongoing functions of the government,” government teacher Ruth Narvaiz said. “The longest shutdown in history was during the first Trump administration, and it was 35 days.

I think this shutdown could go on for a long time.”

The last shutdown took place from December 22, 2018, to January 25, 2019, and was caused by Democrats' refusal to pass a budget that would include funding for Trump to build a wall along the US-Mexico border. Trump ultimately agreed to a temporary spending deal that would reopen the government without funding for the wall.

“Even after the government reopens, there will be a lingering effect due to blame for the shutdown,” Narvaiz said. “The shutdown could affect elections, depending on who Americans think is responsible for it. Right now, the people most affected by the shutdown are park rangers, the military, and air traffic controllers. However, traffic controllers and TSA are getting the most attention because that's where the public is most affected.”

Without an approved budget, according to the National Conference

SHUTDOWN

ART BY Sara Fowler

of State Legislatures (NCSL), the government can only allocate a limited number of funds for services the president deems essential for public safety or national security. This means that many government workers must continue working without pay until a budget is passed or workers are furloughed and are required to receive pay after the new budget is approved.

“The government shutdown specifically targets government workers,” Bhattacharya said. “I know a lot of them are being sent home and the ones that aren’t being sent home are working for no pay at all. All this is happening while the government fights over healthcare cuts and the Big Beautiful Bill was passed recently which already brought massive cuts to healthcare and Medicaid.”

As stated in an article by NBC News, core healthcare programs such as Medicare and Medicaid will keep functioning because their funding is built into the law; however, the shutdown does impact whether certain healthcare programs continue once the new budget is agreed upon.

Telehealth services, for instance, provided by Medicare, expired when the shutdown began, with the exception being for people living in rural areas, people who experienced a stroke or are on dialysis.

Additionally, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and local health clinics currently have the funding to keep going for the next year but if the government does not allocate money in the new budget for these programs, challenges for families relying on these services will arise.

“It’s very complicated,” junior Israel Chavez said. “Healthcare is definitely important and something everyone needs and it’s hard when legislators are playing with people’s lives. Students should care about it because it affects people either directly or it affects someone you know.”

According to Every Texan, last year, Texas was home to over 255,000 federal workers, and currently, Texas has 114,000 active duty military members who are being required to work without pay, due to the shutdown. With Texas having the highest uninsured rate in the nation, 22%, the shutdown will impact Texans who rely on government aid programs. For instance, 3.4 million Texans utilize the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to buy food, and 41 Million Texans use Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) to access healthcare.

“Students should use news outlets and social media to stay informed because it definitely helps them be prepared in case anything happens that might impact them,” Chavez said. “This shutdown could influence more people to get involved in politics because this is such an important issue that impacts many different people. At the end of the day, Congress should be considering every person they represent and listening so that they can make the best decision for their people.”

Among a persistent funding deficit and declining enrollment numbers in Austin Independent School District (AISD), 11 elementary schools and two middle schools have been proposed to close. Bedichek and Martin Middle schools, as well as Barrington, Becker, Bryker Woods, Dawson, Maplewood, Oak Springs, Palm, Ridgetop, Sunset Valley, Widen and Winn Montessori elementary schools are all on the closure plan. These closures would result in boundary changes for 98% of schools in the district to accommodate the fluctuation in student enrollment.

Some schools such as Sunset Valley Elementary support unique programs such as a Spanish immersion program, where elementary students are able to practice foreign language skills. The program includes wall to wall dual language practice, incorporating it into every school day. Sunset Valley is one of very few elementary schools in AISD that has a cheerleading team.

The closure of this school would affect the students in these programs as the Spanish immersion program transfers to different campuses upon closure and the cheerleading program would not transfer to either of the new campus options.

Parents have been given options of new schools to pick from, one including the Spanish immersion program, the other without it.

“My daughter is on the cheer team at Sunset Valley and was really hoping she’d get a position as captain next year when she goes into fifth grade,” Sunset Valley parent Christina McGee said.

“The realization that next school year won’t look how she anticipated is quite upsetting to her.”

Even though the closure of these schools does not hold a heavy impact on Bowie enrollment itself, the community is being affected by the foreseeable closures and rezoning that comes along with them. Math teacher Peyton Bobo has three children, two elementary age who will have to change schools among the anticipated closures and rezoning.

“The school my kids currently attend is on track for them to feed into McCallum, and they will be redistricted to a school that will feed them into Anderson’s track,” Bobo said. “They’re both a bit stressed about the anticipated changes and having to make new friends.”

Elementary students across Austin would be shuffled around to different schools as a result of the closures. Even students attending a school that are not closing will face possible campus changes due to the rezoning that would be coming along with the closures. This is causing some emotional disruptions within families with younger kids. Although some parents remain optimistic about the change.

“My wife is a bit stressed about the change but I’m not,” Bobo said. “I think it’s a good thing, I'd rather my kids meet new friends now before they go off to middle school.”

Small parts of the former Bowie boundary have been rezoned to Crockett and Akins Early College High Schools.

Bowie sits on the far East side of its boundary, so this rezoning means students who live very close to Bowie are still being rezoned to these other schools.

“The rezoning could change some students to attend less privileged schools,” junior Evan Dranguet said.

“That could definitely affect the environment that they grow up in and the outcomes of how they grow up.”

The possibility of closure is affecting a large part of the Austin community, parents are weighing many different options and having to consider many factors.

“Ultimately we support the district in trying to keep itself alive by equalizing populations at different schools,” McGee said. “Although it’s a bummer that we’re caught up in the middle of it and got the hard end of the deal by having our school and community that we really love being broken up and closed.”

According to the Education X Podcast, On October 30, 2025 AISD board approved a $19 million loan to cover payroll till the end of November. While the board explained that cash flow in November is always tight, that slowdown has become more severe this year.

This will cost the district approximately $250,000 of interest.

“Teachers should be paid more than what they are currently, so for AISD to have to borrow money to pay their current salaries I find it worrisome,” senior Piper Pombrio said. “Closing and redistricting will likely put more pressure on teachers and make it that much harder to do their jobs, these issues are worrisome and I hope staff and students are able to cope with these new changes.”

STORY BY Peyton Dorsey

4 FEATURE

THE DISPATCH FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025

MOOOving into a career in agriculture Elisa Morgali grows lifelong love for animals into succeeding in livestock showmanship Madeline Whitten Dispatch Reporter Senior Elisa Morgali stands there, heels dug into the powdery dirt, gripping her cow’s halter. Morgali’s mind is full of determination and focus, as the voices of the judges echo throughout the large arena while they evaluate the steer’s balance and build.

A member of Bowie’s Future Farmers of America program (FFA), an organization focused on agricultural education, Morgali has elected to take care of five cows this year. Morgali was first introduced to FFA in middle school, joining the organization out of interest after growing up with a life revolving around agriculture, continuing her part in the program for the next five years.

“My family is very agriculture heavy,” Morgali said. “I took an agriculture class in middle school, and I found out that livestock showing was a thing.

I started showing in middle school, and then stuck with it into high school.”

Animals require Morgali’s daily attention for being walked and fed. With the addition of her participation in competitions to her daily chores, Morgali has been able to grow and learn from her experiences.

“It teaches a lot of responsibility and dedication, because an animal’s life is dependent on you going out and feeding it,” Morgali said. “FFA is a lot of hard work and also respect, especially in more professional, business settings

LEADING THE WAY: Senior Elisa Morgali walks one of her five steers around the farm on Bowie property. Everyday, Morgali feeds, walks, and cares for her animals, in order for them to be in the best shape for livestock shows. PHOTO BY Gabriella Bochey

when I’m having to meet people from different parts of Texas, like at rodeos.”

Throughout her years in the program, Morgali was able to gradually take on more responsibility through larger animals, now raising cattle.

Despite having a full schedule from her cows, Morgali is able to manage her time, finding ways to fit in school work and other extracurriculars.

“Five heads of cattle is a huge responsibility and OH HAY THERE: Rocco the cow poses during a commitment,” walk. Morgali has been involved in agriculture Bowie FFA since she was a child, starting with her family’s almond farm in Chile, and leading into her FFA member Mattie career. PHOTO BY Gabriella Bochey Barry said. “I

honestly don’t know how Elisa lo, Fort Worth, Houston, San manages that with school and Antonio, and Mercedes. I’m baall of her other commitments, sically gone for three months.

It’s hard to keep up with school but she gets it all done well.” w o r k The beginning of the spring w h e n semester brings you’re with it an eventnot there.” heavy season for The state of Morgali. With the Texas has livestock addition of constant shows hosted in traveling added to various towns and her plate, balancing cities.

Morgali’s school work can traveling has resultprove to be a chaled in her forming lenge. friendships with “It’s definitely students from othdifficult,” Morgali said. “Right SHOW UP, SHOW OUT: Honk, er schools she met while competing. now it’s fine, a determined steer, stares.

“My favorite but when we All of Morgali’s steers have part is meeting get to the major unique names like Diva, season, which is Prada, and Honk, alongside people,” Morgali their longer show names.

January through PHOTO BY Gabriella Bochey said. “I’ve become friends with a lot March, it’s when all the rodeos are happening. of people that I wouldn’t have I’m going to Austin, San Ange- met if it wasn’t for FFA and

for showing. Some of my best friends are all over Texas, because we travel a lot for shows, and we meet a lot of people all over the place.”

Students competing in an FFA competition can choose to work alone, or with a show team. While members of a show team still compete with their own animals, they work together to raise them.

“I’m on a show team, so I get to show with my friends in FFA, and they’re really awesome,” Morgali said. “They’re like a second family, and hanging out with them is always really awesome.”

Morgali’s steers have unique names, such as Diva and Honk, and are housed on Bowie’s farm, where they are walked, fed, washed, and trained for livestock shows. Being a part of a show team gives Morgali a

line of support when she needs help.

“We are always helping each other,” Morgali said. “If one of us is running behind, I’ll take over and wash someone’s steer, or someone else’s steer or heifer needs to be exercised. We jump in and help each other.”

Consistent with her twice daily visitations to tend to her cattle, Morgali shows her devotion to her animals, proving to be a role model to others in FFA. “Taking care of five cows this year shows how dedicated and passionate she is about what she does,” FFA member Grace Cajuste said. “Managing that many animals takes real effort, so it’s something to be proud of and she really inspires me to get more show animals.”

Years of involvement in raising and taking care of various animals, such as goats, pigs, and lambs, has left Morgali with lots of experience. This training has enabled her to work better with her growing amount of cows.

“Elisa is very capable,” FFA advisor and Bowie teacher Paige Gomes-Green said. “She has been showing for a number of years, and has learned to take good care of her cattle.”

Every moment since she took her first agriculture class has led up to this year. Learning and growing from the time spent tending to each animal, Morgali has worked her way up to where she is today, tending to her five cows.

“Elisa is very hardworking and on top of everything,” Barry said. “She’s really devoted to showing and her animals, which are traits you definitely need if you’re raising this many, and she just knows what needs to be done and how to do it.”

SCAN TO SEE MORE!

VIDEO BY Gabby Bochey

An aim to introduce financial literacy through investing Zoe Stover Dispatch Reporter

ally fulfilling to teach my peers a really valuable skill they can use for their entire lives.”

A bright glow lights senior Brendan At the end of Binford’s freshman Binford’s face as he stares in amazement year, he reached out to Vance to exat his computer screen. The spiky green press his interest in starting a club path of his most recent stock invest- where he could share his passion for ment has shot through the roof, signi- investing with others. Vance became fying its success. Staring at his charts, the club sponsor when Binford estaban idea pops into his head, how can he lished the Young Investors Society in help others his sophomore year. find financial “I just think he’s a leader,” Vance success too? said. “The fact that he came and startHis pas- ed discussing being a leader of a group sion for in- as a freshman is pretty impressive. vesting led He’s definitely an avid investor, and he him to start says he’s going to major in business.” the Young InBinford takes macroeconomics, envestors Soci- trepreneurship, and accounting classes ety at Bowie, at Bowie to expand upon his financial Total Balance BRENDON BINFORD sharing his skills and prepare for his future. He Senior k n o w l e d g e has also taken online courses from the 35+ club members of investing and teaching kids financial University of Pennsylvania and Harsince club creation in 2023 skills to help them generate wealth and vard related to finance. Binford aims set themselves up for the future. The to pursue a career related to business first meeting this that allows him to year will be held in generate wealth, and accounting teachconsiders exploring Total Balance er Jennifer Vance’s a pathway in investroom, F121, on Noment banking or 35+ club members vember 7. private equity consince club creation in 2023 “I started it besulting in the future. investment cause I wanted to Binford believes banking or private Total Balance teach my friends and investing gives him equity consulting my peers a really more35+ confidence that Young club members valuable skill,” Binhe’s in control of his STUDYING UP: Senior Brendan Binford spends his time learning about and investing in stocks. Through this process, he sparked Investors since club creation in 2023 ford said. “People talk future. a passion for teaching others about investing. Thus, Young Investors Society was started, a club at Bowie dedicated to doing about how they want investing in Society “Investing, for so. PHOTO BY Ben Wong stocks to be financially indeme, is just kind of pendent, but no one ART BY Charlotte Schwarte a big way that I’m vesting skills from Binford. tion covering topics such as spending simple.” investment talks about how, and settingormyself up for success,” Binford Binford believes he’s been successful “Brendan was actually the one who versus saving to give kids a simple founbanking private my way to get to that point is through said. “I can be confident knowing that introduced me to investing,” Rogers dation of financial knowledge and teach overall with investing so far. Currently, equity consulting investing. So, I just thought I’d teach I’m going to stand out from a lot of my said. “It sounded like an easy way to them to use their money wisely. at HEB and invests some of Then In the Future Nowhe works Young kids about that.” peers with my investthe money he earns make money, and is club this year, BinIn the Young Investors Society, Investors Bin- ing skills, and that back into his portfosomething I might ford plans to contininvestment ford teaches the importance investingofin conBrendan Binford I’m probably going to Society consider doing in the ue teaching financial lio.

One of his finanbanking or private servative investing forstocks beginners and be able to retire early future. So, I started skills to his peers in cial goals is to save equity consulting provides members with a foundational and have some good coming to the Young a simple and engagup for retirement, Young skill set in the stock market to set them passive income going Investors Society ing way. and his investments up for future financial success. To help for me.”

Investors because I wanted to “Our have set him on track approach $2.2 thousand made from his members begin investing, he shows Binford previously learn more about it is simple, direct, to accomplish this. investing in Society Then Future Now investing them how to create brokerage accounts worked alone as pres- stocks and possibly get into straightforward, and “Brendan has and helps them invest in indexes like ident of the Young one of my majors of really easy to grasp,” drive,” Rogers said.

FIRST MEETI the S&P 500. Binford also creates pre- Investors Society, but choice, which is in- Binford said. “I talked “He’s a super smart NG Brendan Binford sentations for club meetings to teach this year, he asked seNovember 7th, guy, and he’s very teto my co-presidents, vesting.”

2025 members financial concepts.

Room F121 niors Vaughn Rogers nacious. He’s told me Over the summer, Vaughn and Jack, a Then Future Now “Public speaking can be kind of in- and Jack Calvin to Binford and Rogers few weeks ago, and about what he wants timidating for people, so talking to a assist in leading the volunteered at Bear we were saying that to do inFIRST the MEETING future, room of 40 people can sometimes be club $2.2 thousand made andfrom take on the roles of co-presi- Binford Creek Elementary through the Young we want a third grader to be able to his aspira- tions, and honestly, I adBrendan November 7th, 2025 scary, but it’s really fun,”investing Binford said. dents. Rogers and Calvin attended the Investors Society to teach kids about understand what we’re talking about in mire the guy, because he knows what he Room F121 “I have a good time doing it, and it’s re- club in previous years and learned in- financial literacy. They gave a presenta- our club. So, that’s our approach, very wants to do and he’s getting after it.”

$2.2 thousand made from

FEATURE 5

Website creates academic community FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025 THE DISPATCH

Sophomore Jordan Butler launches a study guide webpage to help his fellow students Savannah Riggins Feature Page Editor The classroom buzzes with activity as students work together on homework and projects. Sophomore Jordan Butler walks around answering questions and helping in any way he can. It is the first meeting of the Bowie Study Central (BSC) club. Butler began this club as an in-person counterpart to his online website under the same name.

“BSC is made exclusively for Bowie students,” Butler said. “To access it, you have to be signed into your school email address, or else the URL will not load properly. But it is available for our school and in the first week we had 300 users.”

With the school year just beginning, Butler wasted no time turning his vision into reality. He JORDAN BUTLER Sophomore began thinking up ideas for the site within days of coming up with the concept. He put his idea into action on September 3 when he began the rough draft of the website. Eight days later, on September 11, Butler had finished the final draft of the website, and it was ready to be used by students.

“I created the website to give time back to the students,” Butler said.

“Studying and creating things like flashcard sets, worksheets and practice problems take up a lot of our time. By making BSC, I want to give others the relaxed feeling you get when knowing you have resources to help you succeed.”

Once the idea was finalized, Butler focused on bringing it to life digitally. Using a platform he was already familiar with, he started building what would become a central hub for Bowie students seeking academic help and collaboration.

“I find it very easy to use,” sophomore Matilda Fagan said. “The website has a place for everything and I feel like it really brings us together as a community of students.”

Butler used Google Sites to build the website. Butler had previous experience with Google Sites from other projects that required the software.

Google Sites is a free platform with an interface designed for simplicity.

SCAN TO STUDY: Sophomore Jordan Butler gestures to a QR code on screen, encouraging listeners to join the Bowie Study Club. Butler is the founder of the Bowie Study Central website, which is the focus of the club and quickly forming a following.

PHOTO BY Andrew Covert

“I didn’t do anything to fancy,” Butler said. “I basically took everything I was thinking in my head and designed it through Google Sites. It was really satisfying to see it turn out how I envisioned.”

The layout for BSC features clearly organized sections, such as classes, where users can find notes and assignments for various subjects, an About SHIV DUNGAR page detailing Sophomore the project contributors and mission, a Club section connecting students with the extracurricular group, and a Study Corner, which is a current work in progress

but features things like focusing techniques, calming music, educational games and study timers.

“One of our contributors made the study corner,” Butler said. “It is his passion project, and he has spent a lot of time making sure that students have a ton of resources to feel confident in their studying approach.”

Faculty members quickly took notice of the site’s growing popularity and impact. Lou Kuhn, one of Butler’s former teachers, has watched the project evolve and praises the students’ initiative in creating a supportive learning environment.

“This website is useful to students because they can get immediate answers from each other, and it is very student-oriented,” Kuhn said.

“I decided to sponsor Jordan’s club.

I know he has a driven personality,

which I observed when I taught him in eighth grade, and anytime a student asks for help with a club, I want to do what I can.”

Certain students take a more active role in the website. Butler calls the contributors. This set of students is the one leading the creation and uploading of the study sets. Currently, there are six contributors: Butler, Paavan Vaswani, Ethan Stevens, Shiv Dungar, Lucas Smith, and Evie Johnson. According to Butler, the contributors are the backbone of the web page, and nothing would be possible without them.

“I became a contributor

because I am passionate about helping with World History, and I thought it would be a good use of my time to help others, too,” sophomore Shiv Dungar said. “Jordan reached out to me about it, and I thought it was a really great idea, and Jordan’s a cool guy, so I knew it would be a success.”

As the website gained popularity, Butler wanted to take its collaborative spirit beyond the screen. That idea led to the creation of the BSC club which is an in-person space where students can come together to work on homework, prepare for tests, and build new study sets for the website. The club allows members to share knowledge face-to-face and support one another in subjects where they might struggle.

“When Jordan told me about the club version of the website, I was super interested,” Fagan said. “I use the website often, and I know a lot of people who were joining the club, and it really feels like we are coming together as a school.

As BSC continues to grow, Butler hopes more students will take advantage of the website and the new club that complements it. Whether it’s preparing for a WHAP test or reviewing Algebra 2 notes, the site offers a place for collaboration and shared success.

“I can’t wait to see how BSC will change in the coming years,” Butler said. “I intend for it to become more popular with all grades and to keep adding more notes and study guides. I have big plans for this website, and I want it to be a lasting resource at Bowie even after I graduate.”

ART BY Savannah Riggins

Theater student takes preforming to a whole new level Alice Goss Entertainment Editor

Stage lights flashing in your eyes, music carrying you through the choreography, sophomore Mila Maxon performs across the stage, surrounded by a new community of people. Taking advantage of one of Austin’s many artistic programs.

Select Ensemble (Select) is an intensive musical theatre training program for all levels of high school, hosted by Impact Arts and this is Maxon’s second year auditioning for the program. Last year she made it into the program and is hoping to go back this year to work on her singing, acting, and dancing skills, with a goal of preparing her for college auditions and pursuing a professional career in musical theatre.

“I decided to audition for Select Ensemble again this year because the program is really important to me,” Maxon said. “It’s a really great way to train yourself, it helped me improve a lot, I definitely learned a lot of new things, met a bunch of new people, and I feel like it’s what helped me get into Summer Stock this past summer.”

The audition process for Select is strenuous and competitive. Each student is required to send in a statement video about why they love musical theatre, learn and record a dance video, and submit themselves singing two contrasting musical theatre songs. Maxon is submitting “On My Own” from the musical Les Mis for her emotional song and “Anything Goes” from “Anything Goes” for her upbeat piece. And has been practicing the dance which is set to “Carrying the Banner” from “Newsies.”

“I’m really happy with how my songs turned out, and the dance is pretty hard compared to last year,” Maxon said. “But I like the challenge, even though a lot of the jumps and tricks required surprised me, it’s been a lot of fun.”

Select is a program that students can participate in while also being involved in their school’s theatre programs. Maxon did this last year and junior Preston Withrow who auditioned for Select this year is already preparing to do the same.

“I’m not too worried about balancing my time because I plan to make my time at school more relaxed for the second semester,” Withrow said.

“I might take a show block off, so I can focus on select ensemble opportunities.”

Bowie does not attend any other competitions as a theatre company except for theatre UIL in the spring semester. Because of this the Starlight Theatre Company (STC) does not get to interact with other performers across Austin very often and this is one of the main reasons theatre director Marco Bazan recommends his students try out for Select.

“The program is a great opportunity for students to work with people at all different levels,” Bazan said. “It especially connects you with students and professionals all across Central Austin.”

A critical skill for young performers to learn is the ability to audition and perform under pressure. Impact Arts has created multiple programs to best prepare students across Austin for the professional world and teach them these skills.

Many times leading participants to not only learn lessons in performance, but lessons in life.

“One of the most valuable things I learned from auditioning was definitely how to deal with my self-doubt,” Maxon said. “I feel like it just takes a lot out of what you can do in theatre and life. But without self-doubt, you can just be the best version of yourself.”

Maxon’s involvement in the STC and Impact Arts has her working consistently outside of school to further her experience. From taking dance classes to working privately in her own

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garage, Maxon is always preparing for the next audition or production.

“I do a lot in my garage and it’s become a very creative space for me,” Maxon said. “I love taking things from my dance class and making it my own, or playing around with choreographing my own pieces. Also just working on new songs or acting in my garage.”

Select starts preparing pieces in January for competitions and as April approaches the students start putting together a medley for the Heller Awards for Young Artists (HAYA). HAYA celebrates high school musical theatre across Austin and features different programs in a format modeled after the Tony Awards. This past year Select put together a medley following the theme of musical movies and put it on at HAYA 2025.

“I loved the musical movie medley, especially the parts featuring ‘Voulez-Vous’ and ‘Dancing Through Life’,” Maxon said. “But the day of the Heller Awards show everyone got freakishly sick, but we were all just in it together and we killed it. So, that will probably always be one of my favorite memories with Select.”

Maxon spent the entire year working with Select, refining her skills, and making contacts with people within the program. She then decided to audition for Impact Art’s summer musical, Summer Stock. In this program she got to perform in “Mary Poppins” and “Jesus Christ Superstar” which STC senior Aidan Schexnaydre went and watched.

“We got to see how much character and energy she was bringing,” Schexnaydre said. “She had a great stage presence which I hadn’t seen previously at Bowie.”

Impact Arts offers many programs and opportunities that offer professional training and experience. Select Ensemble and Summer Stock are only a few of these programs which Maxon

ROUND AND ROUND: Building muscle memory, sophomore dancer Mila Maxon practices her moves. Practice like this helps keep her prepared for STC and select. PHOTO BY Elizabeth Yowell

has taken advantage of. These experiences have helped prepare Maxon for Bowie shows and her professional journey after high school.

“Being on stage is such a privilege and I’m really grateful to have opportunities like Select,” Maxon said. “Theatre means a lot to me because it’s so amazing that I get to work with such talented people and I get to share my emotions with people through acting. I want to make the most out of each opportunity and I encourage you to audition for Impact Arts because they have something for everyone.”

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6 PHOTO ESSAY

THE DISPATCH FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025

Scrub-a-dub-dub, DAWGS in the tub

Vet-med students wash and shape the pets of Bowie teachers Zoe Stover Dispatch Reporter Fluffy tails wagging in excitement, puppies scamper into Bowie’s vet room, leaving a trail of muddy paw prints in their wake. Their noses sniff the air in curiosity as they take in the fragrant scents of the shampoos that will soon be lathered into their soft fur. Eyes eagerly darting around the room, the pups spot the smiling faces of the veterinary students who will be treating them to a fun day of pampering and care.

On October 24, the Future Farmers of America (FFA) JBHS chapter resumed its tradition of ‘Grooming Day,’ a monthly event where staff bring their dogs to the vet room for bathing and grooming services performed by students in the veterinary practicum program at Bowie. Paige Green, the agriculture teacher at Bowie, is in charge of coordinating the grooming days, which typically takes place once a month on a Friday.

“I just have to look at my schedule and see when I can have it, and then I’ll tell my practicum students,” Paige. Green said. “Instead of them going to their vet clinics that day, they come to school and then we groom the dogs.”

Bowie staff members can request which tasks they want practicum students to perform for their pups, like bathing, de-matting, cleaning ears, brushing teeth, and trimming nails and hair. Practicum students, like seniors Emily Sturzl and Xoaquin Perez, can also take the dogs for walks around campus and feed them.

“I enjoy it because you just get to hang out with dogs and groom

them,” Sturzl said. “As a senior, I will definitely be more hands-on this year than I have in the past.”

Grooming days are mostly led by seniors in the veterinary practicum class, but students in prerequisites also have the opportunity to help with the program and gain experience in a veterinary setting. They can assist with tasks such as walking the dogs or checking out the animals after their day of pampering and care.

“I think it’s a great thing that a lot of the kids in the program look forward to getting to be in practicum and getting to do the groom days,” Sturzl said. “We loop them into the grooming days without them actually doing the grooming, so they watch it happen for however many years in the program, and then they finally get to do it.”

Grooming days usually raise $300 - 400 for FFA, which helps fund agricultural and veterinary opportunities for students in the program. Grooming days also help students in the FFA develop leadership skills and hands-on experience caring for animals, giving them a foundation to pursue a career in the veterinary field.

“I’m going to try to be a vet, so it’s a good experience to deal with and handle dogs,” Perez said.

In addition to leading the grooming days, students in the veterinary practicum program work in vet clinics and animal hospitals during the class period. Sturzl notes that while she enjoys gaining experience from working at a fast-paced animal hospital, she also enjoys the calmer environment of the grooming days.

“The kids love the dogs,” Green said. “They get a ton of treats, and they get a ton of snuggles.”

CLIPPERS ON: The clippers buzz loudly as senior FFA student Elisa Morgali gives a puppy cut to the last dog of the day. Morgali has to carefully shave just the body and legs of the dog to satisfy the requests of the dog owner. “There is definitely a level of stress that comes with grooming each individual dog,” Morgali said. “The outcome is definitely worth it in the end though, when you finally finish your hard work you get a strong sense of accomplishment.” PHOTO BY Arlo Stockstill HOLD STILL: Preparing to give the dog a haircut, senior Xoaquin Perez gets his partner to hold the dog still as he prepares the clippers.

The dog was preparing for a full body cut. “This is one of my favorite fundraisers we do for FFA,” Perez said. “Not only is it a super fun event to work, but it is rewarding too. Yes, we clean and wash the dogs, but we also protect them by administering drop vaccines to keep them safe from common viruses that they are at risk of contracting. PHOTO BY Arlo Stockstill

SNIP, SNIP: Snipping with precision, senior Izzy Kalyoncuoglu cuts the nails of dog in an FFA fundraiser. Kalyoncuoglu enjoys every moment of her hard work and loves the process. “I really just enjoyed being with the dogs,” Kalyoncuoglu said. “The handling process can be frustrating and tiring sometimes, but the connection you get with the animals is so unique and special”. PHOTO BY Arlo Stockstill

SCAN FOR

VIDEO BY Eva Sweeney BRUSHING WITH CARE: Brushing meticulously, senior FFA student Elisa Morgali very gently cleans the dog, making sure he remains calm, and does not jump or freak out and cause both staff and other dogs at the event to panic.

The dog pictured had not showed aggression yet, and continued to remain calm and not get nervous throughout his whole cleaning process. “The thing about working with dogs is you have to remember they are still animals,” Morgali said. “Taking proper precaution when grooming is necessary, things like leashes, a partner to hold the dog, and in some cases with scarier dogs, even muzzles are absolutely necessary for your own safety, and there is no way around it.” PHOTO

BY Arlo Stockstill

SQUEAKY CLEAN: Senior Emily Sturzl thoroughly scrubs and dries her dog off after its bath. The bath helps prepare the dog for the rest of the grooming to come, such as nail clipping and brushing. “Bathing the dogs is really fun,” Sturzl said. “I have been helping out with it for all my four years.” PHOTO BY Arlo Stockstill

IN-DEPTH 7

FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025 THE DISPATCH

Applying to college Senior efforts to pursue higher education take off for application season Liberty Pittman Media Editor-in-Chief As the early action deadline gets closer, anxiety rises in her. Trying to work on applications while balancing course work from advanced classes like AP literature and composition, AP Physics C, and Multi-variable Calculus, senior Riley Soffera has to put off assignments in order to get her applications done.

She calls over her mom, finally ready to submit her application two days before the looming deadline. She double checks, triple checks, quadruple checks the information to make sure her applications are perfect before she clicks the final submit button, and is congratulated by the Common App confetti signifying her application is done.

Seniors across the Bowie campus, and the nation as a whole all face a similar task when they choose to apply for college.

“I should have started earlier, most people should start applying to college in the summer of their junior year,” Soffera said.

“A lot of seniors applying to college are taking AP classes and advanced classes, and it’s stressful applying to college on top of class starting.”

CONSIDERING COLLEGE For many students in America, high school is not the end of their educational journey.

According to the Education Data Initiative, 62 percent of high school graduates go on to post-secondary study, and in the fall of 2024 in the United States undergraduate college enrollment totaled 19.28 million students.

“College is a bubble where people are able to make mistakes, and take courses that they may not have taken RILEY SOFFERA in high school,” Senior College and Career Advisor Amber Luna said. “It's the one time where you can really try anything out and it does not really affect you in a way. Everybody is on the same playing field, they're all trying to get a bachelor's, better themselves, have different experiences, meet people, and find connections.”

According to the Harvard Division of Continuing Education (DCE) there are many things students can do while in high school to prepare themselves for college including creating an academic plan, developing good study habits and life skills, and participating in extracurricular activities.

“In my application I wanted to highlight my GPA, rank, and all the organizations that I am involved in like student council, ultimate Frisbee, and National Honor Society,” senior Reed Watts said. “Sometimes people are more concerned about their grades and how they’re going to get into whatever college they want to get into than actually learning the material and preparing themselves.”

Colleges across the nation advertise what they are looking for in students, and offer statistics about the average students on their campus such as their average SAT scores. This information can be helpful to students trying to build a resume to get into their chosen universities, but can also cause stress for students who feel they don’t match the campus statistics.

According to Big Future, the University of Texas(UT) at Austin has a 27% acceptance rate, an SAT score range of 1230–1480, and an ACT score range of 29–34.

“One of my parents went to college and she got into the UT School of Social Work,” Soffera said. “It's a lot more difficult to get into college nowadays, because of the increasing number of people going to college. It's become more competitive, especially in STEM fields. As a person going into engineering, it's a very competitive field, schools only take a certain amount of mechanical engineers.”

College is not the only option for graduating students. Students can also move straight into joining the workforce, enroll in a trade school, take a gap year or a few, or join the military.

“If you want to go to college, you should go to college,” Watts said. "If someone is going to do something that needs a college education, they should go to college. However, it can be just as beneficial to go to trade school or to start working, we need all kinds of jobs.”

APPLYING AND ADVISING

ART BY Liberty Pittman

When applying to college, the first step for many students is choosing which colleges to apply to and doing some research to see if the college is a fit for them. There are multiple factors that influence students' college decisions including college

know more about you.” ranking, courses offered, campus life, location, Applications require a lot of steps and can be and academic rigor. stressful or overwhelming for students which is “The academic program someone wants to go why schools offer resources like college counselinto is extremely important, but people should ors. Aside from helping students with individual also look at the college campus, the dorms, the questions, Luna often hosts college information club life, and the social life,” Soffera said. “In sessions and visits from admission counselors college people are going to want to do things to help students with their college applications. other than academics, and they'll want to be in a Outside of school, students can also access a community that best fits them. variety of internet resources I’m an engineer, and I'm also which can provide recomin orchestra, so I'm looking mended timelines for working at colleges that have an orchesor breakdowns of application tra, because that's something that questions. In addition to this, stuI really care about.” dents can hire their own personal Another major influence to college advisors to help with their college application choices for applications. students is whether or not a “The college application college is likely to accept them. process was good for me, I wrote College prep websites like Big University of Texas my essays, did all the common Future can take students' college app stuff, it was pretty straightlists and organize them into Rank 30 Watts said. “Sometimes match, reach, and safety schools Acceptance 27% forward,” there were questions on the appliusing information given to the rate cations that I was just like ‘I don’t site like GPA and test scores. know.’ I had a college counselor, This can help students create a In state $11,687 and she knew a lot of the answers. balanced college list with realistic It’s not cheap, but it’s definitely expectations about college accep- tuition helpful.” tance.

“Some schools are really intense, and that in turn, makes students freak out,” Luna said. “I've had conversations with students and they're like ‘I really want to get into UT, but it's so hard to College can be a very expensive experience get in.' They're like, ‘I'm not good enough,' and I for a lot of Americans, but what students may have to tell them, ‘you are good enough.’ I want not realize is that the application process can be to continue to reiterate that to students. I do costly as well. Texas State, UT, Texas Tech, and know the reality of college acceptances. There A&M all have a $75 application fee. In addition will be students that get denied, but that doesn't to this, there are fees required for students who mean that they can't get into a college, it just are required to, or choose to submit SAT or ACT means that they have to pivot. That's one of the scores. On the College Board website, to send big things seniors applying to college are learna school SAT scores there is a $15 fee. Both the ing, is learning how to pivot.” application fee, and test score send fee can be Even before students are sure about which waived if a student applies and colleges they want to apply qualifies for a fee waiver. to, they can begin their base “I always like to be transparcollege application. This is often ent and tell students to talk to done online through sites like their parents about how many Common App or Apply Texas, schools they’re applying to, and requires students to fill because it does cost a lot to send out personal information about applications, and to send scores,” themselves as well as their famiLuna said. “I do have fee waivly, education, activities, and honers for a lot of these things, but ors. Once a student chooses the they’re for students who are on colleges they would like to apply free and reduced lunch or things to they can fill out the college like that. There is help to allespecific applications through the viate application fees, applying same online sites. The college to college is expensive. When I specific applications are often was in high school, I only applied more thorough than the general to four or five schools. I had to application and allow or require really do my research and decide students to submit supplemental where I really wanted to apply.” essays.

According to the Education Data Initiative, “From what I've experienced at Bowie, Comtuition at four-year public universities has mon App is more user friendly, so students are increased in cost by 36.7% from 2010 to 2023. able to move through the application a little bit Tuition cost has risen 197.4% since 1963, making quicker,” Luna said. “ Apply Texas has free applithe current college tuition 40 times more than it cation week, which is amazing, and I think that was then. Tuition prices can fluctuate based on that really stirs up kids to use that application. I many factors including whether an institution don't think students were using that application is private or public, or if a student is applying a lot, but now they have changed the interface, from in-state or out of state, but across the board and it looks a lot easier for students.”

Students can create a Common App account at tuition prices have risen.

“I have kids who are worried any time, but the Common Apps because college is so expensive, open for application submission and they don't know if that is on August 1 of every year. Folsomething they, or their family lowing this, students have until can do financially,” Luna said. their chosen school deadline “I always say ‘if that's where to submit their applications. you're at, what you can still Colleges offer many different apply.' Students can get scholtypes of application submission arships, or financial aid. There's cycles including, early action, also community college, which early decision, regular decision, is free at ACC right now.” and rolling admission. Schools In order to better handle like A&M and Texas State offer the cost of college students can rolling admissions meaning fill out a Free Application for applicant materials are reviewed Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) when they are submitted and a to see if they are eligible for decision is made soon after. In grants, scholarships, workcomparison, some schools like study programs, or loans.

UT offer different deadlines for According to usa.gov, students must complete students to submit their applications with correthe FAFSA to be considered for federal student sponding decision dates. aid, and many states and colleges use the FAFSA “If I had a student, and she was wondering information to award their own financial aid. if she should apply early decision I would say if “Around October, when it opens, students that's her top school, do it, but that means if she would want to start working on the FAFSA,” is accepted, that is the only school she's going to, Luna said. “It doesn’t take that long, students fill she forfeits any other acceptances,” Luna said. it out with their parents. Out of the population “Let's say she applied to UT, and UT gave her here at Bowie, some kids don't this great scholarship. If she said, ‘Miss Luna, really like to complete it. I always I really want to go to UT’ I would then say students should just fill it have to tell her, she can’t go to out, because a lot of times UT because she applied early schools will look at the decision somewhere else, it is a FAFSA to give scholarships, binding contract, she has to go even if students don't get a to that school.” grant, or a loan.”

Once a student applies to There are many types of college through their chosen financial aid available for stuapplication platform they will dents including grants, workoften also have to create an study, loans, and scholarships. account to a college portal According to Luna, a spreadfor the school they applied sheet of scholarship opportunito. In that portal the stuties collected by AISD should dent can submit additional become available to students supplemental materials at the end of November. In such as transcripts, letters addition to this, students can of recommendation, test find scholarship opportunities scores, and resumes. The offered by the universities they portal is also often where colleges will show applicaSOURCE usnews.com are applying to, or on online sites like Big Future or Appily. tion and admission status.

“Most people only rely on “Colleges will see students' extracurriculars, the FAFSA for financial aid when they should be and transcripts, but the essay helps a lot give looking into other scholarship opportunities,” more context to who a student is,” Luna said.

Soffera said. “There's so many scholarships that “When I worked at Texas Tech and I was reading just give away money for people, like dependents applications, one of my favorite things to do was of the military, women going into engineering, read the essay, because I can see the grades, and and minority groups. People should be looking the test scores, but that doesn’t give me a feel for into that as well as the FAFSA if they're conwho the student is. If there is an option to send cerned about the cost of college.” an essay, send the essay, you want colleges to

CALCULATING COST

A & M

Rank 51 Acceptance 57% rate In state tuition $12,928

Texas Teach Rank 198

Acceptance 73% rate In state tuition $11,852

Texas State Rank 257

Acceptance 90% rate In state tuition $12,240

IN-DEPTH 9

8 IN-DEPTH

STUDENTS IN THE WORKFORCE

THE DISPATCH FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025

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How teens balance school, work, and extracurricular activities and the skills they have learned from their jobs Elizabeth Yowell Print Editor-in-Chief

teens aged 16-19 were employed in the U.S. as of April. With 33% of those teens being employed by restaurants. Among that 33% is Suzi After a long eight hours at school, and anothCollings, a senior member of the varsity dance er two of rehearsal, senior Brandon Beeler drives team Silver Stars, and employee of Satellite straight to work. Beeler takes a step through the Cafe. back door of his workplace to the sound of that “Something I really like about my job is familiar security jingle. Clocking in, he remembers that there are a lot of high schoolers that work the homework and alarm clock set for 7 a.m. waitthere, but I don’t often work with other high ing for him at home. schoolers,” Collings From gas, to clothes, to said. “Sometimes I’ll be food, to entertainment and working with 30 year those pesky application fees, old employees, and it’s many Texas teens find themjust interesting to hear selves searching for jobs the about their lives while moment the summer after also talking about mine, they turn 15. However, manbecause our lives are so aging several hours of work a different. I really like week becomes more compliwhat I get to do. I like cated when fall rolls around taking online orders and and the school year begins. matching everything on “I’ve worked at TCBY for the screen. I like being about seven or eight months able to memorize what now, it’s really, for the most goes on each dish.” part, laid back,” Beeler said.

Psychology teacher, “It can be pretty tedious Diana Croll-guard has work sometimes, a lot of taught at Bowie for eight cleaning, but I mainly work years across a variety of the register and just keep the Senior social studies subjects back in stock. There’s not and says that she obreally one set thing that we serves anywhere from do.”

40-50% of the juniors According to the United States Bureau of Laand seniors and 10% of freshmen in her classes bor Statistics, 6.2 million working part-time jobs.

“When students work a moderate or manageable amount of hours per week, I think that part-time jobs have immense benefits,” Croll-Guard said. “They gain responsibility, confidence, learn new skills and develop many soft transferable skills.”

Brandon Beeler Senior

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I really like what I get to do. I like taking online orders and matching everything on the screen. I like being able to memorize what goes on each dish.

Scan to see how Bowie students juggle school and work

Suzi Collings

BENEFITS AND CHALLENGES There are several expenses many high schoolers are expected to be responsible for. Beeler noted that he is responsible for paying half of his car

G and ART

insurance bill each month. Although The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) sets specific caps on teen working times, with monthly expenses like these, working regularly is necessary to meet financial needs.

“It’s important Brandon Beeler for me to have my Senior own money and my own budget,” Beeler said. “I think it’s important to learn how to manage money and manage things on your own.

It’s just a sign of independence and responsibility.

It can be really challenging managing stuff like that, but I think it’s definitely worth it. So, as well as the experience, it’s good to have different job experiences and learn how to do these types of things so you’re ready once you kind of leave for college and stuff.”

While money management is an important skill to learn, holding a job while being responsible for projects, homework, studying and extracurricular activities can create challenges for students who push themselves with course levels and number of after-school commitments.

“Adolescents still have several years for their prefrontal cortex to fully develop and that plays a major role in executive functioning skills such as time management and task prioritization,” CrollGuard said. “Adolescents tend to feel stressors more severely because their amygdala is more active and their prefrontal cortex is still developing which is responsible for higher-reasoning.

Operating with more emotion can cause added stress, but some stress is good and a sense of

VIDEO BY Elizabeth Yowell

Su z Sen i Co ior llin gs

Time

FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025 THE DISPATCH

BY HICS RAP

what is referred to as the Youth Developmental purpose is great” Study which followed participants from middle With still developing prefrontal cortex’s, high adolescence to adulthood. The findings of the study school students are in many ways unprepared suggest that students performance in school were for what can quickly become a 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. dependent on the frequency and pattern of work workday. Additionally, many students already load hours, not whether the students work at all. Those their plates with several clubs, sports, and fine arts who limited either the number of hours worked a commitments. According to a 2019 national study week or number of weeks

by Michigan state, 46% of surworked throughout the year veyed middle and high schoolwere most likely to enjoy age children were expected to school, and have higher participate in more than one grades. type of school activity, with “Focus on the areas you 80% participating in at least have control and account one. for those elements,” Croll“If I have 7 a.m. practice, Guard said. “Stressing club meeting after school, about something you cantests the next day and a shift, not influence will only add those days are really difficult, to an individual’s stress. because I have four hours Limiting social media is where I’m at work and I could also very beneficial. The be working on all the other representation someone things, but I have to do my presents on their social mejob,” Collings said. “I think dia is not their reality and that’s probably the biggest it is extremely unhealthy to challenge. Sometimes I just compare your reality with get really burnt out, especialSenior someone’s theatrics.” ly early morning, super late Before getting her job nights. I’ve gotten very used to at Satellite cafe, Collings it, but it still is pretty diffiwould complete her homecult.” work the moment she arrived home. However, now According to the Center for Disease Control and that she is working she finds creative ways to maxPrevention, teens ages 13-18 need at least 8-10 imize her time, sometimes doing her homework in hours of sleep a night to function effectively the the restaurant’s back office when business is slow. following day. With school, after-school activities “Really prioritize your time and don’t push and work, many students don’t get home until late things off, don’t have the ‘I’ll do it later mentality,’ and are kept up by homework after. because that is what really held me back,” Collings “It can have negative effects when it is not balanced,” Croll-Guard said. “It is important to always said. “I would be like, ‘I’ll do it later,’ after my shift, prioritize time for yourself. Sleep should be the last and then it’s 2 a.m. and I have to get up in three thing that goes wayside. Sleep is needed for growth, hours. Find a job that you would like, because I feel like if I worked in retail, I would probably hate it. I memory and learning.” really like what I do and I knew from the start that I would like what I do.”

Beeler got his first job during his freshman year and noted that he initially struggled to balance his workload. Eventually, he found support in his friends. By maintaining a flourishing social life, When looking for employment, teens will have Beeler was able to relieve some of his stress. to consider finding a job with flexible hours and “I think that it’s really healthy to have a very ability to fluctuate shift frequency, especially if their good balance, it can take a lot of time to find that school and extra-curricular activities take up a conright balance, but it’s possible,” Beeler said. “School siderable amount of their day. doesn’t teach you, necessarily, on its own, how to “During the school year, I’ll try to work like be a successful and responsible human being once twice a week, sometimes three, if I can,” Beeler you go to college or right into the workforce or said. “Theater takes a lot of after school time, so sometimes I can’t get a full four-hour shift. I would whatever your plan is after. So, I think it’s really important to teach yourself and take on maybe be working three hour shifts which means that more than you think you can handle. If it doesn’t I need to work more times in a week in order to work out, it doesn’t work out, but I think that’s meet the amount that I want in my paycheck each really one really good way to teach yourself to be a time I receive that.” responsible, soon to be, adult. “ The National Library of Medicine conducted

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I think that it’s really healthy to have a very good balance, it can take a lot of time to find that right balance, but it’s possible.

Brandon Beeler

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FINDING BALANCE

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In 2023, 54.8% of employed teens and young adults ages 16-24 worked in hospitality, retail, or education and health

10 SPORTS

THE DISPATCH FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025

Freshman cross country prodigy

Brand new trainer joins Promising underclassman Lilly Knauss runs herself to her first varsity win the Dawgs Caroline Baxter Sports Editor

YsaBel Cuellar, Athletic Trainer

Cuellar starts her journey as a sports med trainer Every morning, the Bowie training room is bustling with activity as athletes file in to receive treatment for soreness or injury. At the center of it all are Bowie’s athletic trainers: head trainer Pablo Riera and assistant trainer Ysabel Cuellar, who is new to the program this year.

Cuellar went to high school at Anderson and applied for the job at Bowie to get back into the Austin area. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in athletic training and started her training career at Elgin High School and Elgin Middle School.

“I’ve always loved everything about the environment of athletic training,” Cuellar said. “I did sports medicine in high school and really enjoyed the sports setting, and after that, I knew I wanted to continue studying it.”

Athletic trainers specialize in the muscles and bones of the body, as well as injury prevention and diagnosis.

According to many students, Cuellar uses efficient treatment techniques and has become someone whom they can rely on. One of these students is junior Maren Moore, who says Cuellar has helped her countless times when she was suffering from physical injury.

“At the beginning of this year, I had a hip injury, and would go to the trainers to receive treatment,” Moore said.

“Coach C was always there, ready to help, so I could quickly get back to playing.”

Adapting to an unknown workplace and community of people can be difficult, but her colleague, Riera, says Cuellar is a good fit for Bowie and a role model for his sports medicine students. And adds that her positive attitude encourages the kids and brightens the overall environment.

“I think she brings a new perspective and new drive to the program,” Riera said. “She has a hard-working attitude that brings much-needed energy to what it means to be an athletic trainer.”

As Cuellar settles into her role, her dedication and enthusiasm haven’t gone unnoticed by staff and students alike. Rather than feeling overwhelmed by the new environment, she embraced the challenge and quickly found her place in at Bowie.

“My favorite thing about Coach C is that she’s easy to talk to and get along with,” Moore said. “Whether it’s talking about injuries and health, or something smaller like chatting about how the day is going.”

As said by many students, Cuellar’s approachable personality and genuine care for athletic training have made her a trusted figure among Bowie athletes. Her ability to connect with her students on a personal level is something she takes pride in.

“Interacting with the athletes and getting to know them better while helping them with whatever they are going through is my favorite part of my day,” Cuellar said.

“It’s very exciting to be at a school with such talented athletes and a competitive sports program. I can’t wait to see what great things our sports teams accomplish.”

STORY BY Eve Johannson

Sprinting to the end, running step by step, using her final push of energy, freshman Lilly Knauss passes the finish line ahead of the rest. Knauss is the only freshman on varsity and ran to victory in her first cross country race.

Knauss has been working out since middle school, running track because her friends encouraged her to.

As she entered high school, Knauss decided to continue her newfound passion for running throughout the year and beyond.

“The first time I had run was in 8th grade, and it was mostly because my friends were doing it too,” Knauss said. “I didn’t have any expectations, but I ended up really liking it. So, I decided to do track in high school.

Then my friend told me about a cross-country camp, and I enjoyed it, so I kept doing it during the school year.”

So far, Knauss has been successful with a varsity win already under her belt. Knauss describes how the race went for her and the highs and lows of the race.

“I won the Marble Falls race with a time of 18:15,” Knauss said. “Towards the end, I started slowing down because it got really hard for me, but when I started to hear other runners coming up behind me, it encouraged me to push to the end.”

Every race during the cross country season is important because they count towards whether the team goes to districts or even further. However, Knauss believes she won this race because of the low stakes of this race.

“It was the one meet that didn’t really mean anything before we went to districts,” Knauss said. “I went there with the mindset of wanting to try something different, like let’s see how fast I can go without being worried about maybe slowing down later in the race.”

According to Knauss, for athletes, practice is important to improve in the areas of weakness. Cross country coach Lora Tilson credits Knauss’ success to her work ethic.

“Lilly works very hard at practice. She has perfect attendance, shows up on time, and learns from her leaders and peers,” Tilson said. “She contributes not only her speed, but also, she comes with a positive attitude, she is excited to attend, and she is competitive.”

Knauss’ success isn’t just noticed by her coach, but also by her teammates. Senior captain Miah McAulay has high praise for her underclassman teammate.

“Lilly has such a drive for success that she puts the right amount of pressure on herself to do it herself and for the team,” McAulay said.

“Her positive energy enables her to push through anything and complete it with a good mindset.”

Preparation for a race is one of the most important things a runner needs to do, according to Knauss. She believes working hard is the key to preparation for a big race or even a small race.

“Coach Tilson has us do stuff every day, whether it’s a long run or a short run, throughout the week,” Knauss said. “To prevent myself from injuries during the race, I make sure to roll out and stretch before every race, and then eat healthy food and drink lots of water to prepare.”

As a freshman, Knauss still has three years of running ahead of her. Tilson has high hopes for the future of Knauss and is excited to see where she goes throughout her running career.

“In Lilly’s future, I hope that she becomes a top-5 runner in the state,” Tilson said. ”Her progression this season has been amazing, and she is already competitive with top runners in the district.”

Cross country is at the tail end of their season, heading into the state meet. Knauss describes her expectations and goals going into this upcoming important race.

“I just came off a couple of not-so-good races of mine, but this upcoming course is my favorite course,” Knauss said.

“I just need to go and stick with someone because there will be a lot of people, but hopefully that can push me to do my best and get the best result I possibly can.”

RUNNING IN STRIDE: Freshman Lilly Knauss sprints during her hard working practice. Knauss works out almost every day to keep improving her running. PHOTO BY Ashley Marcus

Bowie cross country attends the state meet

This past weekend the Bulldawg cross country team participated in the Texas state meet.

Both the girls varsity team and the boys varsity competed in the meet, and were both successful in their respective categories.

Coach Tilson attended the meet with her team and had high praise of the team. Tilson describes the success of both teams and who led the team to

their successful finishes.

“The boys finished tenth out of 16 teams, and the girls ninth out of 16,” Tilson said.

“The boys were led by Griffin Hummel who finished seventh overall with a time of 15:06.

The girls were led by Lilly Knauss with a time of 19:02.”

The success wasn’t just noticed by Tilson, but by the runners itself. Senior Willa Bock describes the results from

her own point of view.

“Our state meet went really well. Our teams have worked hard all season to place this high because last year we didn’t even qualify for the state meet,” Bock said. “At the meet itself, energy was high since this meet has been our focus all year. Everyone wanted to put it all out there on the course to show how strong the Bowie team has become.”

Long time lifter Max Ferrera pushes to the limit Olivia Hunter Dispatch Reporter

Plates rattle, lifters stretch, as junior Max Ferrera reaches for the bar. Using the leftover residue of chalk on his hands, he steadies himself and begins to lift. Trusting his technique, he goes through every mechanic with one goal: to beat his personal record.

Weightlifting, often referred to as Olympic lifting at the Austin Barbell Gym, has grown in popularity in the Austin, Texas area. Founded in 2017, the club offers individual coaching and competition-based training. According to founder and head coach Rob Ronan, the program provides a way to bring

athletes together to learn proper lifting techniques and become stronger.

“Austin Barbell operates as a true barbell club, not a commercial gym.

We’re organized around coached training sessions led by certified Olympic weightlifting coaches,” Ronan said.

“Each athlete belongs to a structured roster, typically grouped by training level. This structure keeps programming individualized while maintaining a team training environment.”

Ferrera began lifting at Austin Barbell in seventh grade, and for the past five years, he has continued to focus on growing and improving. He enjoys the positive atmosphere and the way peers work together to motivate and push

LIFTING THE WORLD: Junior Max Ferrera lifts heavy weights in preparation for his upcoming competition. Ferrera focuses on consistency during his practices to keep improving his weightlifting skills. PHOTO BY Cole Wong

COMING UP IN SPORTS:

each other towards achieving new goals.

“The gym is actually very supportive and a great environment,” Ferrera said.

“I find the community really encouraging because the gym is smaller and more personalized.”

Gym members range from high school students learning how to properly hold barbells to experienced lifters in their twenties who are focused on pushing themselves to the limit. Despite the two very different experience levels, Ferrera often takes time to listen and learn new tips and techniques from other experienced lifters.

“There are mostly young adults ranging from like twenty to forty, so the environment is a little different compared to a high school club, but I find it valuable because you get real-world experience and advice,” Ferrera said.

“It’s a super supportive community, and I often get people who approach me after a lift and give me insight on what I’ve done wrong.”

Ferrera began lifting at Austin Barbell in seventh grade, and for the past five years, he has continued to focus on growing and improving. Junior Jordan Garner, claims that throughout the years of their friendship, Ferrera has inspired him because he balances the gym, relationships, and being top of his class.

“He manages to find time to help others and still improve himself,” said Garner. “It’s insane, and watching him makes me more motivated to keep pushing myself.”

According to the Strength and Conditioning Journal, athletes who participate in weight training have a significantly lower injury rate of 26.2 percent compared to 72.4 percent of those who do not. Ferrera, who also plays basketball, found that training helps him gain strength and avoid injuries during the season.

“I find that Olympic lifting is very

rewarding because the technique is challenging, and once I’ve completed my sets, I feel accomplished,” Ferrera said.

“Having a coach guide me and push me helps me fix my form and prevent injuries.”

In addition to staying healthy and safe, he focuses on setting goals and pushing himself to place at nationals. In hopes of being consistent and improving, he follows a workout regimen consisting of three main Olympic lifts with added accessories that target different muscles each training session.

“I usually train three to four times a week to keep consistent,” Ferrera said.

“My workouts are through an app that tells me what exercises to do and how many sets and reps to complete.”

Ronan explains that competitions, which are primarily Olympic lifts like snatch and the clean and jerk, work by allowing athletes three attempts at each lift to achieve their personal best.

“Competitions are high-energy but structured. Each athlete gets three attempts in the snatch and three in the clean and jerk,” Ronan said. “Our coaches manage the clock and cues while athletes focus on execution. It’s intense, like chess with barbells, but our team keeps it supportive. Everyone cheers for everyone, no matter the skill level, whether you’re going for your first meet or a national total.”

Despite the many challenges Ferrera faces with balancing school, extracurriculars, and family, he continues to focus on his lifting goals, including competing at both state and nationals.

“I luckily haven’t faced any injuries, but my biggest challenge is keeping up with school and all of the other extracurriculars I’m a part of,” Ferrera said.

“It takes a lot of time management and organization, but lifting has taught me to push through when things get difficult.”

NOV 7 Va r s i t y G i r l s B a s -

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Vista Ridge

Bowie High School

Anderson

@ M i d d l e S c h o o l Fe e d e r

ketball vs. Vista Ridge @

ketball vs.Pflugerville @

ketball vs. Anderson @

k e t b a l l v s . S t o n y Po i n t

SPORTS 11

FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025 THE DISPATCH

Building bonds Bowie tennis prepares

Bosada helps foster a positive and unified team environment Sydney Murphy Sports Editor

that Bosada is a natural leader and her enthusiasm shapes the team. She is currently ranked 3rd among the Bowie girls varsity and this is her first year representing the team as a captain.

“I really enjoy Bowie Tennis, and I look forward to practicing during 8th period,” Bosada said. “The environment is extremely loud and everyone always has a good time.”

According to her teammates, Bosada’s work ethic and lively personality show her commitment to the team. She plays club tennis at Grey Rock with junior Avery Camp, which has built their connection outside of practice.

“Tatiana and I have gotten a lot closer this year, which has been amazing,” Camp said.

“When we have away games and tournaments, mostly in the Austin area, we always carpool together and it is really fun” Bosada and Camp’s friendship has blossomed both on and off the court, contributing to their chemistry as doubles partners last year. According to Bosada, their connection has brought them memories that will last a lifetime.

“One of my biggest achievements is when me and Avery, my tennis doubles partner last year, won a really tough tie break at this tournament,”

The tennis ball ricochets off the racket and spins towards the corner of the court.

Bam. The ball smacks the ground as junior captain Tatiana Bosada jumps with joy, the match has been won. The crowd roars with excitement as the rest of Bowie tennis team rushes over to the court to celebrate the district win.

Bosada has been a member of the varsity tennis team for three years and plans to continue to particTATIANA BOSADA Junior tennis captain ipate her senior year as well. She has been playing tennis since she was four years old and has grown to love the sport.

“Tatiana is a leader and she is a good role model for the younger players and the ones who are coming up the ranks,” assistant tennis coach Michele Fagan said. “She is a very talented athlete and that shows on the court.”

Fagan highlights her belief

FULL SWING: During practice, Tatiana Bosada sends the ball flying across the court. Her determination captures the energy that Bowie tennis is going into the season with. PHOTO BY Cole Wong

Bosada said. “We only won by a couple of points and the energy was really high.”

Bosada’s competitive personality sets a foundation for the team’s success in the upcoming season. Her perseverance, along with her team’s effort has the coaches feeling satisfied about the matches this coming season.

“I feel really good about the upcoming season,” Fagan said.

“Tatiana is already shining as well as her teammates and I think that we are headed towards victory this year.”

With encouragement from her coach, Bosada is open to playing tennis in college and is currently undergoing her recruiting process. For now, her main focus is now on getting closer to the younger team members and helping them in succeeding this year.

“I am looking forward to getting better and getting to know the team better, especially the new freshmen because I don’t really know them yet,” Bosada said. “I am excited for the upcoming season, I think that we have a good chance of doing really well this year.”

As the new season begins, Bosada is looking to improve her own skills as well as lead the team to victory. She understands that she also has club tennis which is making her individual progress even stronger.

“School tennis is more team oriented, we do more group type of drills,” Bosada said.

“But club tennis is focused more individually just to see where you are at.”

According to Bosada, balancing school and club tennis is tough but she loves the sports so it is all fun for her. This leaves her teammates with an appreciation for her resilience and causes the Bowie tennis community to become tighter.

“She makes the environment at Bowie Tennis really fun, especially since we have gotten a lot closer,” Camp said. “I always enjoy practices, and I am ready to compete with Tatiana this season.”

Camp comments how Bosada creates a welcoming environment of Bowie tennis by making sure everyone is included. That is one of the reasons Bosada enjoys being a part of Bowie tennis, the culture and warmness of the team feels like home.

“Overall I love Bowie tennis and I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else,” Bosada said. “I am excited for what this upcoming season has in store and I can’t wait to start competing in tournaments and matches with my group.”

Bosada’s devotion to the

POWER SERVE: Junior captain Tatiana Bosada launches he ball into play with focus. Sharpening her skill during practice, her powerful serve sets the tone for the upcoming season. PHOTO BY Cole Wong

team has left her teammates in awe. Additionally, her strong bond with Camp last year sets a positive tone to kick this season.

“We had a lot of fun playing doubles last year and it was overall a really great experience and since we are so close we worked well together,” Camp

said. “We did really well throughout the season and placed in most of our tournaments, winning some really tough matches together.”

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12 ENTERTAINMENT THE DISPATCH FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025

Thoroughly Lively laughter erupts in the Starlight TYA shows allow actors to have a stress free and playful experience Theater

Increase in audition numbers creates opportunity Alice Goss Entertainment Editor Questions? Concerns? Email:

bowie.journalism@gmail.com

It’s audition day for the Starlight Theatre Company (STC) and students line up to audition. They perform prepared monologues and finally take a deep breath once it’s over, but what they don’t realize are the lines of people behind them who have yet to audition. This year the number of students auditioning for STC shows has reached a record high, with increased numbers for Fall Shows, over 120 auditions for Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA), and numbers as high as 106 for the greatly anticipated main stage musical Les Mis. These increased numbers were a surprise to the staff and student directors, but I believe the increase in students auditioning is beneficial to the growth of the company, creates more opportunity, and is being dealt with gracefully.

The increase in students who auditioned allowed for the addition of characters and ensembles to shows, which greatly improved the show quality. In the production of “Picnic,” directed by Kade Lasseigne, there was a small ensemble, and while this show does not typically require an ensemble the addition of these students created a much fuller story. This aided the plays professionalism and gave it a more finished look which would not have been possible without the influx of performers.

In “His Girl Friday,” a play directed by Matthew Humphrey, there were many small featured characters which could have been played by the same performer every night, but the increase in audition numbers made it more realistic to cast two people in these smaller roles. This opened up many opportunities to new performers and was a beneficial experience for many actors in the company.

Moving into TYA shows, the senior directors had a turn at dividing opportunity between the surplus of students who auditioned. Traditionally TYA is a show block where the upperclassmen take a step back and the underclassmen step into the spotlight. Juniors and seniors would take on a smaller role, so the student and staff directors could get to know the freshmen and sophomores as they learn and grow as performers.

Due to the increase of underclassmen auditioning, the majority of large roles in these plays were able to be taken on by younger students. While normally a few juniors and seniors would have to step into these larger roles, the large number of underclassmen has created a show block where freshmen and sophomores can shine more than ever.

This was not an easy process, with only nine TYA shows made for casts of six to twelve students, the senior directors worked extra hard to make sure every single person was cast. These student directors went above and beyond performance opportunities to everyone, handling the influx of performers gracefully.

As we move towards the musical, the directors are preparing for the large number of auditions. While they want to give as many people as possible performance opportunities, every stage and show has a limit to the number of performers it can hold. Due to the pattern of high audition numbers the STC is bringing back the tradition of a winter play.

This play will be directed by student teacher Emaline Bailey and is an amazing opportunity for anyone who doesn’t want to be in or might be cut from the musical. In the past many performers have ended up in the musical simply because they don’t want to be absent from theatre for such a long time. The winter play will allow actors who don’t enjoy singing and dancing to continue to grow as performers and increase the number of people on stage from November to February.

While the increase in students going out for parts has raised stress and competition among some company members, the directors have found ways to include everyone in each show block. So, despite the increased number of auditions I hope each person can see that the STC will always try to find a place for anyone who wants to be there.

The opportunities the company has been able to offer are invaluable. Working with a large cast of people is a wonderful experience which offers students an educational experience most high school companies can’t offer. This increased growth and interest in our company can only lead to more support and larger shows, which showcase the company’s professionalism and experience.

I look forward to seeing so many new people on stage and commend the staff and student directors for how they have balanced the influx of performers and created more chances for performance experience.

Madeline Whitten Dispatch Reporter

Laughs echo through the air during rehearsals for Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA) shows.

These short plays are directed by seniors, and make up the Starlight Theatre Company’s (STC) second show block of the year.

TYA shows are the seniors first time taking on the role of director. This show block is an eye-opening experience to the student directors who are able to experience the full weight for putting on an entire show by yourself.

“Being a director is stressful because you have so much to do,” senior director Ellie Nowlin said.

“You’re in charge of everything, you have to cast the show, cut the script, do the costumes, and more. It’s all been so much fun, but it’s definitely a lot of work.”

Being brand new to directing, the seniors use their freshness to bring new ideas to their shows.

Their unique methods for dealing with obstacles allows for them to learn and grow from the experience.

“I’m impressed every year, because they come in with this level of enthusiasm,” theatre teacher Matthew Humphrey said. “This being their first play that they’ve ever directed, everything is so fresh to them. I love seeing how they handle adversity, and mold their creative vision to the people they have at their disposal.”

This is also the seniors first time being in a position other than an actor, experiencing a new point of view from an authority role allows them to see the entirety of the work that is put into shows.

“They gain a lot of perspective from the whole process of applying for the TYA shows and going through the audition process as well,” Humphrey said. “There’s a great amount of growth, and they start seeing things the way that we, as directors, see things.”

Nowlin, director of Frog and Toad went through three years prior to being a director.

Seeing how different students direct and being an assistant director her junior year.

“I’ve had the opportunity to work with so many directors throughout my years,” Nowlin said. “Taking bits and pieces of what they did. I’ve seen what works well, which has helped me be the best director I can be.”

Children’s shows are not only performed at Bowie, but also at nearby elementary and middle schools, in hopes of introducing theatre to kids who have no access to such programs. The senior directors arrange these days and communicate with the schools.

“Theatre has never been stressful for me,” Nowlin said. “I don’t know if it will be as a director, but it’s always just so much fun to see the kids and meet them and see how they enjoy the show.”

The directors are enrolled in theatre three-four, meaning their class is a mix of junior assistant directors and senior directors. During this class period, they are able to work on the technical PERIOD PINK: Junior Preston Wielements of throw performing as Prime Minister their show, in TYA shows. Withrow had lots of as well as fun with the colorful, period cosarrange tumes. PHOTO BY Elizabeth Yowell

POPPING PERSONALITIES: Freshman Reece Wheeler and Grace Dawson perform side by side bringing “Bedtime Stories” to life. Dawson enjoyed getting to step out of her comfort zone and play an over the top character. PHOTO BY Elizabeth Yowell

giving tips, or telling what they liked.” touring dates.

Senior directors this year have approached “I love that it gives a lot of opportunity to their shows differently to those in the past. They work with people,” Nowlin said. “To work with focus not only on their actors, but also all of the your assistant directors, and getting to know all the upperclassmen helps build a really good bond technical elements of their show, such as lights, sounds, costumes, and set. for the leaders.”

“They have a talent in seeing the show as Due to the large number of shows, each show a whole,” Humphrey said. “Thinking typically has a small cast, less about the show as a whole and making than 15 students, making them sure that the lights and the sounds and an opportunity for tight bonds SCAN TO the props and the costumes and everyamong actors and directors to SEE MORE! thing is the way that they want it to be, form. it’s a huge responsibility, but I think “With TYA shows, you get that they deal with it admirably, and to know the directors more,” I’m always so impressed with the end sophomore actress Rae Bagnall products.” said. “It’s a deepening of those reAfter weeks of hard work, the seniors lationships, and you get to know get to share their creative visions with the seniors really well.” others. The shows were put on across The TYA structure of students a total of three days, with each show directing students allows for acVIDEO BY Jude Davis performing twice. tors such as Bagnall to feel more “I think they turned out amazing,” comfortable at rehearsal. Most sesophomore actress London Sherman niors have already had chances to said. “I really enjoyed watching all of my friends bond with their actors in previous show blocks, perform, and it’s always cool to see the senior creating a strong bond between them. director’s visions come to life. It’s also crazy to “I feel like a senior director is a lot easier to think about the amount of progress that was talk to about things,” Bagnall said. “I feel that way partly because you’re all students, so you can made in such a short amount of time, starting from just a script to a fully fledged show.” be more relaxed with them, and I feel like they’re a lot more open to commenting on your acting,

Melodies explode harmoniously from string quartet Gracie Ruland Entertainment Editor Notes, music, and passion fill the rehearsal space as the string quartet made up of violinist Hannah Salz, violinist Ryan Soon, cellist Samantha Homsy, and viola player Riley Soffera play their beautifully meshing and unique instruments.

“Our string quartet is a chamber group where students who love playing their instruments and want to not only grow as players can work together to make really great music,” Salz said. “It has two violins, one on each part, a viola, and a cello, and is self conducted.”

There was a similar quartet prior to COVID, but this is the quartet’s first year back in action since. Although Salz didn’t create the quartet, her teacher wanted her to be a part of it.

“The program is through a chamber academy that has quartets at many differHANNAH SALZ ent schools, Junior my private lesson teacher is actually the one who got it started at Bowie and is teaching us this year,” Salz said. “I found other willing musicians and helped put it together.”

Most of the members of the current quartet haven’t played in a group like this, but Soffera has had

ROMANTICISM: Ryan Soon practices his violin after school, preparing pieces for their string quartet. Soon is very passionate about playing pieces from the romantic period and hopes to work on them with his quartet group. PHOTO BY Nick Forrest

some experience and believes it has made her a stronger musician.

“I have loved music all of my life, but I really started to understand my passion for it when I started playing the viola in sixth grade,” Soffera said. “Making music has affected me in such a positive way and I am so glad that I have had the opportunity to play my instrument and be a part of the orchestra programs at Bowie and Small Middle School.”

The rehearsal process has shown the members how to build a foundation in the creation of music and then uniquely express themselves

by adding collaborative ideas on top of it. They typically rehearse once a week during the orchestra period.

They go through small sections and talk about articulation and style.

“We usually start with a slow tempo on new passages to see how the parts come together,” Soon said.

“In chamber music, it’s so interesting seeing how each part works together creating music. There are so many parts to it that we can’t see but only realize when we break it down.”

Ever since Homsy was exposed to the complexities of music, she

has learned to love the small details.

“The quartet is an opportunity for me to share my knowledge with the other players while also improving chemistry with them,” Homsy said. “Quartets and orchestras are one of my favorite types of ensembles to play in.”

The quartet has their first performance in November and their final recital in the spring.

“I don’t love how performing can go south quickly,” Salz said. “ However, in the end it’s just notes and it’s more about putting on a fun show with your friends.”

REVIEWS 13

The Austin Film Festival is back, y’all FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025 THE DISPATCH

An event made for those who love film screenings, TV premiers, and all cool things film Eleanor Blue Dispatch Reporter Austin is a hub of creatives and artists. It’s home to countless theaters, dive-bars, music shops, and murals. So, it makes sense that so many festivals find permanent homes downtown, amid the color and culture of Austin’s sprawling cityscape. October is a busy time in Austin. Halloween, ACL, and most recently, the 32nd annual Austin Film Festival.

The writers festival stretches from October 23-30. This year there was a showcasing of 183 films from 32 countries, an incredible range of talents and topics.

As a self-proclaimed film nerd with a Lone Star pass in hand, I was debating quitting my job and dropping out of school to make the most of the week.

While my parents weren’t on board with the entirety of that plan, I still spent a lot of time running around downtown watching movies.

MOVIE WATCHING For me, the festival started Friday night with Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, the last of the trilogy. I arrived an hour and a half early and waited in the badge-holders line at the Paramount.

While a badge lets you into the building, it doesn’t guarantee you a spot. It’s every person for themselves once the doors open, so I was locked in.

I don’t mind waiting in lines. The people-watching at festivals is always spectacular, and the buzz before a highly anticipated movie is infectious.

Wake Up Dead Man was a masterclass in film. Daniel Craig was an obvious powerhouse, but most of the actors were incredibly strong. Josh O’Conner held his own as a flawed yet likable priest, and the film flowed from one scene​ to the next.

There’s no feeling to

describe the experience of watching a movie premier with people that are just as excited as you. The entire audience laughs with one voice, sharing an experience that transcends an at-home movie watching experience. The excitement is palpable, the joy is unmistakable. Film has the power to bring people together in the most beautiful ways. I didn’t stop smiling for the entire showing.

I did not have the same reaction for the next movie on the docket, The Long Shot.

The Long Shot is a movie set in Austin about a group of misfits trying to save their beloved Municipal Golf Course.

While the synopsis of the movie is endearing, the end product felt like a Hallmark movie that was missing the emotion and character of Austin.

It might have had its moments, but I walked upstairs to the second story of the Bullock for the next showing with a sense of disappointment. This feeling did not last long however, as my favorite movie of the festival was next on the docket.

Crystal Cross is a visually stunning film about a suicidal dad and a wannabe-singer escaping her criminal boyfriend.

There are a few movies that truly capture the complex feeling of being a human, and this was one of them. With an impressive all-original soundtrack and shoe string budget, I was shocked by the quality and beauty in every shot and line of this movie.

A charming Q&A with the director, writer, and lead made me wish that more people had been in attendance.

There’s something insanely cool about seeing the creators of a film in person. There were several people that I recognized at other shows after watching their movie. They go from regular viewers to the creators of something meaningful and important.

It was also a very humanizing experience, seeing people you admire in such a humble and personal light. They were

ART BY Claire Ferrante

on the whole, so likable. Just regular people that had an idea and fought for it. I have so much respect for film makers, especially in a time where the rise of AI and short-form content threatens the work they feel called to do.

MOVIE WRITING The Austin Film Festival was “for the writers” this year.

I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about that over this past week, wondering why this was such a significant action.

There’s a lot of fear in the creative world about the future.

You can feel it in everything, even the triumphant moments.

Everything is unknown. The looming threat of technology replacing humans is a through line in every celebration of film.

“For the writers” is a line drawn in the sand. It is a reminder that the most important parts of a movie are the people behind it. The ability to laugh in a movie theater and the desire to talk about it afterwards.

That’s what this is all about.

I heard this sentiment echoed throughout my time at the festival, especially from the creators themselves.

This festival wasn’t my first experience with panels, but was by far the most successful one. The conversations flowed naturally, and there was usually time for the audience to ask questions.

This fluidity was especially impressive for the short series panels. With so many creators and representatives for each film, it was a testament to the skill and effectiveness of the festival.

which allowed for development of both characters and plot.

Every short brought something interesting, and the production was much better overall.

Some of my favorite projects were at this showing, rapid fire programs that brought a sitcom-pilot type energy.

From a mockumentary about a children’s talent agent to a notso-true story about the life of Betsy Ross, the Digital Shorts kept me guessing.

MOVIE SHORTS

The theater it was in was decent too, smaller than the others showcased at the festival. The Galaxy Theaters downtown are what you visualize when you picture a classic cinema experience. Sticky seats, digital movie posters, and lots of popcorn.

My favorite theater that we went to was definitely the Paramount. If you haven’t been to the Paramount, you’re missing out. The theater opened in 1915, and you can feel the history in every seat in the house.

The first of these showings was called Shorts that Bump in the Night and was a minor disappointing experience. Shorts are such an interesting form of media. How do you take seven minutes and properly scare your audience? Although I found that collection to fall short overall, I was pleasantly surprised with the next short series: Digital Shorts.

The filmmakers had a longer amount of time to work with,

MOVIE THEATERS

One of my earliest memories is sitting in the front row of a Sound of Music showing. The feeling of rumbling feet in the opening scene, the breathtaking cinema that is made even better by the gigantic screen.

I’ve been back to the Paramount dozens of times since then, and I can safely say that there is not a bad seat in the house.

Another standout is the Bob Bullock IMAX theater, where I eventually ended my film festival experience, surrounded by critics, producers, directors, and film fans like myself.

The Austin Film Festival was an unforgettable experience. To be able to see incredible movies in completely new environments was so special. I love Austin. It’s a rich tapestry of art and music and the weirdest bunch out there. To experience new theaters and new parts of the city was so special.

Growing up in one place for your whole life can take away from the magic around you. I got used to it. The film festival reminded me why I love it here, why film is so important, and why popcorn is such a beloved snack.

A Hole Coffee succeeding in “Keeping Austin Weird” Ava Weaver Review Page Editor

I would never expect myself, as a Texan, to wish for outside seating.

Everything is bigger in Texas, and that includes the heat and the sweat stains I get from just being outside.

But fall has apparently graced Austinites this October. There’s a subtle wind that makes my nose scrunch. It makes me want to skip to a cinematic coffee shop, sit outside on a bench, pretending I’m experiencing fall in New York, and fooling myself into believing that an iced coffee from an underground local shop will lead me to being the next “it girl” like Rory from “Gilmore Girls.”

I digress. I just really love fall. I might have found the perfect coffee shop that has exceeded my expectations. If you ever happen to find yourself in East Austin on 23112 Morelos St, you’ll find this hidden gem of a coffee shop: A Hole Coffee. And yes, there is only outside seating.

A Hole Coffee is a food truck strategically stationed by a cement wall that separates the location from the road. On the cement wall is a hole. And through this hole, you get your order. But no ordinary hand

FALL LATTE: A Hole Coffee’s fall specialty “Smore’s Latte” being handed out with a fish glove. This specialty drink has been a fan favorite for the fall season. PHOTO

BY Ava Weaver

A HOLE COFFEE OWNERS: Candace and Mitchael Harkey ready to serve customers. This husband and wife team started this establishment together with a smile on their faces. PHOTO BY Ava Weaver

will cross the threshold to hand over your coffee. Of course not. You can expect a bear glove, a fish glove, or maybe even the hand of Mickey Mouse himself to provide your order. Much more logical. Because it truly lives up to the Austin motto: “Keep Austin Weird.”

Now, let’s get to this outside seating. A Hole Coffee is accompanied by two other food trucks in a park-like environment. There is also another truck that provides equipment for the upcoming trendy sport of the year, pickleball. At the back of this park is a pickleball court where customers can release all their coffee-given energy.

Whether you are sipping on your coffee or catching your breath from a exhilarating pickleball match, you can sit at either the wooden tables with umbrellas or big porch swings.

Though I have to say, the best part of this outdoor arrangement is the offleash dog park.

A Hole Coffee’s slogan, “built for the duality in all of us,” promotes their goal to provide services fit for everyone. If you are a social butterfly, you can order at the front window of the food truck, make small talk, and maybe become lifelong friends with the co-owner Candace Harkey.

But, if you’re like me and would

rather do as little talking as possible, you can scan the QR code displayed on the cement wall. No talking needed.

I decided to try three drinks. First, I obviously had to get a fall specialty drink, and I picked the “Smore’s Iced Latte” that was $7. Lattes are my go-to at any coffee shop, so as a latte connoisseur, my expectations were high. And lucky for my wallet, those expectations were met.

It was an attack of sweetness on my mouth, but surprisingly, it didn’t hurt my teeth. The coffee was topped with marshmallow fluff, toasted marshmallow syrup, vanilla, chocolate drizzle, whipped cream, and crushed graham crackers. This drink is simultaneously my dream coffee and my dentist’s worst nightmare.

My second drink was a regular latte that was originally $5, but I added caramel and cinnamon honey syrup bumping the price to $7. I have never seen a coffee shop offer cinnamon honey syrup before, and I was eager to try it. Disappointingly, it wasn’t my favorite, as the coffee was overall thin and the flavors had a weird aftertaste.

Overall, it wasn’t bad, but compared to their other drinks, it didn’t stand out to me.

But my spirits were raised when I had the best chai latte of my life. I got their “Dirty Chai Latte,” which is

a chai latte with added espresso. And because I’m extra, I added their vanilla cold foam and cinnamon honey syrup.

If Cinnamon Toast Crunch were a drink, it would be this drink. With my first sip of the fluffy and dense cold foam and the sweet cinnamon honey flavor blending into the smooth coffee roast, I was transported back to my kindergarten days of having Cinnamon Toast Crunch in the morning. It felt like a full-circle moment, and a good beverage does that.

A Hole Coffee’s brew, the taste of the beans themselves, is pleasantly dull and smooth. Its acidity, the pH level in a coffee that usually consists of a fruity or tangy taste, isn’t strong.

It doesn’t give you that jolt aftertaste that some strong coffee does. It’s not bitter either and rather quite sweet, which I prefer.

Unfortunately for most Bowie students, the commute to A Hole Coffee from South Austin is about forty-five minutes, considering traffic is on your side. I personally had to drive on I-35, which is so stressful for me, so the coffee felt like a reward for making it through the interstate highway without a collision.

Another downside is that there is also no parking at A Hole Coffee itself.

I ended up paying $5 for parking and walked about seven minutes to the

location. Although this wasn’t a deal breaker for me, it might cause some complications for other high school students.

Overall, I think A Hole Coffee is the perfect coffee place for a day out with your friends or family. You could honestly spend hours here with the number of activities supplied to you.

Bring your dog, get coffee, play pickleball, eat lunch, study with your second cup of coffee, and just feel the vibe of being in Austin during the fall season.

Honestly, I love the unique way A Hole Coffee has decided to differentiate itself from other coffee shops. It is silly to be handed your coffee by someone wearing a Mickey Mouse glove, but I love it. And so does Austin. With my coffee in my hand and a smile on my face, I watched as the lady behind me giggled and took photos of her receiving her coffee.

Today, many are bored with the tedium of everyday life. Often complaining about the repetition of trends, movies, etc. So, instead of waiting for life to be interesting, go and make it interesting. And that is what A Hole Coffee did. Their unique features break you out of the cycle of boredom, and their smooth coffee makes you say, “see you next time” through the hole in the wall.

YUMMY ICED LATTE: A Hole’s Coffee iced latte being handed out by a person wearing a Mickey Mouse glove. This drink is a classic. PHOTO BY Ava Weaver

14 COMMENTARY

THE DISPATCH FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025

D ISPATCH STAFF Dispatch Media Editor-in-Chief Liberty Pittman Print Editor-in-Chief Elizabeth Yowell Objective Executive Co-Editors Katie Grumet Marissa McGowan Charlotte Schwarte Subjective Executive Editor Sam Bode News Editor Peyton Dorsey Feature Editor Savannah Riggins Sports Editors Caroline Baxter Sydney Murphy Entertainment Editors Alice Goss Gracie Ruland Review Editor Ava Weaver Commentary Editor Capri Wyatt Photo Essay Co-Editors Isadora Parra Arlo Stockstill Online Co-Editors-in-Chief Gabby Bochey Ryan Zuniga Multimedia Editor Will Olenick Social Media Editors Sydney Cotsonas Andrew Covert Skylar Haywood Webmasters Sawyer Daniel Claire Ferrante Dispatch Reporters Gus Abbott Kate Alexander Koko Badgley-Finan Thia Betts Eleanor Blue Diego Cardenas Logan Cottle Jude Davis Emma Exter Sofia French Cooper Ford Nick Forrest Sara Fowler Shane Ferguson Morgan Hertel Olivia Hunter

Eve Johansson Jenny Kimbrough Izzy Maes Ashley Marcus Casey McAuley Chelsea Rodgers Brianna Saucedo Sophia Shaw Zoe Stover Eva Sweeney Reese Walker Madeline Whitten Eliza Williams Ben Wong Cole Wong

Advisor Michael Reeves, MJE

PRIDE IN PUBLISHING Friday, Nov. 7, 2025 Vol. 38, Issue 2 www.thedispatchonline.net James Bowie High School 4103 W. Slaughter Lane Austin TX, 78749

Citizens deserve free speech

Fear mongering and government policies should stop immediately EDITORIAL

This editorial, as well as all the newspaper stories that came before it in the Dispatch, are examples of writers using their freedom of speech.

The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects people’s freedom of speech, which is one of the most vital parts of the foundation that the U.S. was built upon. It allows citizens to respectfully express their beliefs without being silenced or punished for it, even if those in power disagree with their message. Throughout history, everyday people, like Martin Luther King Jr. and Susan B. Anthony, have used this freedom to create change peacefully and hold those in charge accountable.

That freedom is now in jeopardy. The First Amendment has taken hits lately from different groups. People may be scared to express how they feel due to the direct political attacks on free speech or the fear mongering that has spread across social media outlets. Freedom of speech is one of the most important American rights and needs to be protected at all costs.

No Kings protests have swept across the nation, one in June and again on October 18. The point of these protests is to give the power to the people and push back on the idea of America being controlled by one “king.” This type of speech is constitutionally protected, but that didn’t stop people from going online and trying to convince people otherwise. Videos were shared online encouraging protesters to wear plain clothing with no identifying marks and to cover their faces to protect their identity. This kind of message can scare people and make them think what they are doing is dangerous when it isn’t. Well, it shouldn’t be.

According to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Trump has ordered the

ART BY Jenny Kimbrough

National Guard to multiple ministration supposedly “took states, including California, the freedom of speech away” in Illinois, Oregon, and the District regard to burning the American of Columbia. That had active flag. Burning the flag has been protesters concerning a range of protected by the First Amenddifferent issues. The National ment since 1989. Trump claims Guard is meant to assist in dothat burning the flag induces mestic emergencies, but none of violence, but that reason isn’t the protests they were deployed concrete enough to justify an to were dangerattack on the ous or out of First AmendEDITORIAL BOARD VOTE ment because control. Naturally, deploying there isn’t any the military to Agree with stance 16 evidence that average suburthere is a direct ban neighborcorrelation be0 Disagree with stance hoods makes tween the two. people feel unBurning the flag easy and keeps them quiet, even isn’t the most charming act, but though there is no legal ground that doesn’t mean it’s wrong for an arrest or detainment. and should be prohibited. Once The government is trying the government starts to cherry to restrict free speech in other pick what kinds of speech can ways, too. On October 8, USA be banned, it’s only a matter of Today reported that President time before the opinions of govDonald J. Trump and his adernment officials control what

the American people can say.

It's also hard for people to feel comfortable expressing their opinions when people they see on TV are getting in trouble for it. Jimmy Kimmel was suspended for a controversial monologue back in September.

In addition to this, CNN and USA Today reported that Trump has publicly stated multiple times that Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers need to be taken off the air. Kimmel, Fallon, and Meyers are all comedians that have made many jokes about Trump and his administration, so it’s not surprising that Trump doesn’t support their content, but they aren’t the only news outlets that are being restricted.

AP News explained that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth imposed strict new rules and restrictions that reporters had to follow inside the Pentagon.

Dozens of reporters, rather than agreeing to the new rules, left the Pentagon, deciding that leaving was better than being restricted.

Censorship isn’t always a bad thing. Some parents censor the content their young kids watch, and social media platforms censor crude or disturbing content to protect their viewers.

However, censoring the U.S. Constitution, specifically the 1st Amendment, is a slippery slope and will not have desirable effects. Censorship won’t make people quiet down, it will only rile them up with anger and retaliation. Besides, quiet doesn’t always mean peace. Complete freedom of speech, unless causing direct harm to someone, is the best way for America to remain peaceful.

These attacks on free speech cannot be ignored. Freedom of speech is one of the greatest gifts the U.S. has to offer, so use your power to protect it. Get out on the streets or social media and push back on these restrictions before they spiral out of control. No one gets to take your voice away.

U.S. leader fear-monger with misinformation Kate Alexander Dispatch Reporter

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It’s not surprising that politics are rapidly consuming our everyday lives. Whether it’s in school, on social media, or the news, political messages about a variety of different topics are being spread. While there has been a great increase in the amount of information spread, there has also been an increase in the spread of misinformation.

Misinformation in political messages can be extremely harmful to society. Whether it’s medical advice, lies about climate change, or the ‘dangers’ certain people bring to the U.S., arguments made by leaders, especially President Donald J. Trump, are not always factually accurate. Many of America’s population blindly follow his choices without fact checking the information they are being told. This ignorance is extremely alarming.

Trump gave unsupported medical advice at a White House press briefing in September. During the briefing, NBC News stated that Trump “announced that the Food and Drug Administration was warning doctors not to prescribe acetaminophen.” Acetaminophen is the active ingredient in Tylenol, a medication that acts as a painkiller and reduces fever. Trump stated that consuming acetaminophen while pregnant can lead to autism in children.

Shockingly enough, Trump has no scientific or medical background, and he couldn’t even pronounce the word ‘acetaminophen’, yet people are still listening to him. There is also no scientific proof of any sort of Tylenol being harmful to those pregnant or the child. Lying about the effects of Tylenol is extremely dangerous because Tylenol is one of the few medications you can take during pregnancy to help prevent pain and fevers.

This is just one example of the danger of unchecked political messaging.

Trump continues to promote disinformation by stating the “dangers” that immigrants bring to countries. While presenting a speech to the United Nations he started by bashing Europe and saying that they are being “invaded by a force of illegal aliens like nobody’s ever seen before.” Trump’s narcissistic words calling immigrants “illegal aliens” is enough to make many people's

heads turn.

He claims that “four months in a row, the number of illegal aliens admitted and entering our country has been zero,” which has been proven false by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (USCBP) reports that the number of border crossings has dropped significantly in the past months with around 8,200 crossings in July 2025. Though this is the lowest it has ever been, it is not zero as Trump said.

He gloated that his inhumane immigration policies allowed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to arrest immigrants and anyone in their way, violating their natural rights. With these statements Trump continues to spread about the “threats” immigrants pose and the violation of hundreds of thousands of citizens rights, it’s important to recognize the misinformation in these messages. Through this misinformation Trump is tearing apart communities, ripping apart families, and creating distrust in a large portion of the American population. This causes division and tension throughout America, and is only furthered when people support his policies without looking into their actual impacts on American citizens.

In an article from The Guardian, Trump expressed that renewable energy projects and climate change is so called “the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world,” and

that “all of these predictions made by the United Nations and many others, often for bad reasons, were wrong.”

Facts provided by The Guardian prove that Trump is wrong. Scientists prove that the earth has been heating up ever since the Industrial Revolution, which is when oil and production of fossil fuels began to ramp up. Along with that, research from a paper in 2021 by Research Gate suggested that around 90% of all scientists agreed that human activity was causing the climate crisis.

Climate change is at an all time high, and if something isn’t done now, wildlife will continue dying, our air will continue to be polluted, and dangerous weather will happen more frequently. Trump’s continued misinformation used to dissuade support for climate issues only impedes climate activist efforts to create a clean and safe planet.

Although Trump has proven to lie on numerous occasions, many people argue that Trump kept his promise of funding the United States military. Even though he has held true on some promises, that does not change that he continues to go back on promises and lie to the American public.

Just because someone like Trump is presented as a leader, doesn’t mean they don't spread misinformation. For the safety of yourself, your peers, family, and the society, do your research. Check the facts. And above all else, stay safe.

COMMENTARY 15

FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025 THE DISPATCH

Women at risk in Texas

New legislation infringes on womens reproductive rights

Its not that deep Gen Z

Meaningless trends put pressure on teenagers and young adults

Capri Wyatt Commentary Editor Questions? Concerns? Email:

bowie.journalism@gmail.com

Everyone should be allowed to control their body and their body alone, however, legislation over the years has taken this right away from women across the nation.

On September 17, Governor Greg Abbott signed House Bill 7 (HB7), also called the Woman and Protection Act, that would allow individuals in Texas to sue anyone who they see providing, distributing, or manufacturing abortion pills. If the person who is suing the distributor or manufacturer is related to the woman who is attempting to obtain these pills, they will be rewarded at least $100,000. However, If the person who is suing is not related to the woman, they will only be rewarded $10,000 and the rest will go to charity.

This means that the woman will not be in any legal trouble if they are caught obtaining the pills. The bill was originally declared unconstitutional by a state judge, however, the bill proceeded to go through to the house vote. This bill is set to go into motion on December 4 of this year.

If HB7 successfully lowers the number of abortions in Texas, the bill will most likely be adopted by other states further tightening the restrictions on women’s reproductive rights.

The legislators who are supporting the passing of HB7 are not taking into consideration the full negative effect it will have on women across Texas. HB7 is unconstitutional, and should be restricted from going into effect, and prevented from spreading into other states.

Banning the distribution of abortion pills will not lower the amount of abortions in Texas, instead it will only push more and more women to resort to dangerous means of abortion. In a study done across the United States by PubMed Central, abortions done with medication supplement, or herbs were regarded to be the safest and most effective form of self-managed abortions.

Additionally, it was also found that the majority of self-managed abortions were done by using the methods that are considered safe.

The remaining women used drugs, alcohol, or another physical method that resulted in harm to the woman.

The passing of HB7 will only increase the percentage of woman who use these dangerous methods and put themselves at risk of harm or even death.

Additionally, guaranteeing those who report the selling or manufacturing of the abortion pills a reward encourages people to take advantage of the bill. Many people are concerned about those who may be motivated to put the women around them at risk just for the money, not because they have good intentions for the woman and the unborn child.

Although lawmakers tried to combat this concern by lowering the reward for plaintiffs unrelated to the women, $10,000 is still a large sum of money.

Doctors who are caught and sued

Ava Weaver Review Editor Questions? Concerns? Email: bowie.journalism@gmail.com

ART BY Jenny Kimbrough

for distributing abortion inducing medication to women seeking it specifically for abortions will be sued at a minimum of $100,000. This aspect of the bill is leading many doctors to be hesitant distributing the medication at all, even in cases of miscarriages or sepsis. In many cases, women may need medication immediately, and cannot afford to face abortion accusations.

HB7 also extends to doctors outside of Texas if the pill is given to a Texas resident. In a specific situation, a woman in Texas named Shelley Hall experienced a tragedy, the baby she had been carrying had not survived. When the doctor told her that the next step was for her to obtain abortion pills, Hall had to prove through her heartbreak to a pharmacy that she needed the medication for a miscarriage when they wouldn’t give it to her in fear of getting in trouble and fined.

On one of the worst and most tragic days of her life Hall had to beg the pharmacists to believe her that her baby was truly gone.

Not only does this ban put women in physical danger, but it can also cause extensive emotional distress on women already going through extreme hardships.

The conservative legislators who are in support of HB7 claim that the bill is not a punishment for women and provides exceptions for miscarriages, ectopic pregnancies, and medical emergencies. Although these legislators claim these exceptions protect women, the bill ignores other possible needs for the pill including victims of sexual assault and children. Just because someone does not meet a legislator’s opinion of what

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kind of person should be allowed an abortion, does not mean that that person should be denied the right to have autonomy over their own body.

There are many things we can do to show support for the overturning of HB7, such as safely engaging in local protests, contacting your state representative, or even directly contacting Governor Greg Abbott to express your opinion. As a society, we need to fight against the government’s attempts to control women’s bodies and reproductive rights. Any act of protest has an impact in the fight to maintain the rights every human deserves.

We can also contribute to the fight by supporting organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Texas Women’s Health Caucus.

Another organization supporting the overturn of HB7 is Planned Parenthood, a nonprofit that focuses on fighting for and supporting women’s reproductive rights. By signing petitions, donating, and volunteering to help out at Planned Parenthood, anyone can play a part in the future of women’s rights across America The passage of HB7 is ignorant and disregards giving women the rights that they are entitled to.

Women should have full autonomy of their bodies, and it should not be up to legislators to decide how they use them. The passing of bills, such as HB7, that affect women’s reproductive rights are just the government’s way of getting closer and closer to gaining full control of women’s bodies. HB7 needs to be repealed in order to keep the women of Texas safe.

Women should have full autonomy of their bodies, and it should not be up to legislators to decide how they use them.

BULLDAWGS SPEAK!

PHOTOS BY Capri Wyatt

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Freshman

My peers are friendly and I mostly make friends with other freshman so we are on the same level.

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INTERVIEWS BY Capri Wyatt

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How do your peers make you feel safe in school?

They stay close with me, respond when I talk to them, and think from my perspective.

Stella Thompson

Deer makeup. Bunny makeup. Latte makeup. Clean girl makeup. Glazed donut makeup. Can you keep up? Do you have the new Rode lip liner to achieve the perfect no makeup, makeup look? Have you mastered that “it girl” makeup, Gen Z? No. You can’t. Because once you have it, social media discards it.

Gen Z was practically raised on social media, and as a result, they can navigate all the ever-changing trends and beauty standards. But it’s exhausting. So yes, Gen Z can keep up with trends, and I argue that they’ve built what is trendy in mainstream media today. But I believe that there is vanity in these makeup and beauty trends. When kids constantly try, try, and try to mold their faces into what is in, they are blinded and can no longer see the beauty in themselves.

Harmful beauty standards have always existed. The difference for Gen Z is social media’s obsession with one trend, then, about a week or two later, everybody thinks it’s too mainstream and basic. Now this is worse because in the two-thousands, at least you had time to thrift a look to look like Paris Hilton, then post on your Tumblr with the caption “that’s hot.”

For Gen Z, by the time they acquire enough money to buy the makeup products that all cost about $30 or more each to achieve the “bunny makeup” look, they will find out that, because it’s fall now, “latte makeup” is in. Oh, and then they’ll find out that they actually have “siren eyes,” not “doe eyes,” so bunny makeup wouldn’t look good on them anyway.

It is ridiculous that these are real words I have read while doom-scrolling on social media.

Gen Z does not have the time or money to keep up with the rise and fall of trends on social media. And I don’t have the willpower to. Although I don’t think the makeup itself is harmful. Are the names for the style kinda dumb, yes. But enjoying trying out different styles of makeup is totally valid, and honestly, I encourage it. But it becomes harmful when social media becomes obsessed with it.

You’ll get FOMO when you can’t afford that viral product that an influencer, that you already forgot the name of, told you to “run, don’t walk” to get. You’ll become resentful of influencers like them who get hundreds of free products that will collect dust in a drawer, while you’re running out of eyeliner that you feel like you just bought. Then, you’ll get angry at yourself because there are bigger things to worry about than micro-makeup trends. I’m projecting. You might not feel any of this, but I do. And I’m tired, aren’t you?

Trends fading as quickly as they appeared come with Gen Z’s own harmful obsession with being niche. The “that was so last season” joke carries truth. But now it’s “that was so last week.” Obviously, no one is saying this directly, but Gen Z tends to want to be the main character. Differentiate themselves from society. Be unique and not basic. Addicted to that feeling of pride that comes with going against the norm of society. But when a trend does what a trend is defined to do and becomes popular, people lose that enjoyment for it because they realize they aren’t different; they are a byproduct of what’s trendy.

There is a level of self-discovery with makeup that should be savored and enjoyed. Rushing and changing your makeup to look like what’s trending is like someone rushing you to finish your favorite meal. What was supposed to be enjoyable is now filled with anxiety to keep up, be quick, and it’s all powered by the fear of being left behind.

Again, there is no issue in trying out new makeup looks.

But I challenge Gen Z to slow down and take the time to get to know their face. Not Haliey Bieber’s face. Not the face of that influencer you can’t remember the name of. Your face.

Your beauty. Find the makeup that enhances it. Challenge yourself not to be swayed by trends because they will change, but your face will always be yours. Yes, your face might change slightly, but your bones won’t decide to move three inches to the right every week. Which means, you have time to learn the valleys and hills of your face and love it.

That pressure to fit in, that weight on your chest, is removed when you realize there is no deadline to getting to know yourself. There is no pressure to have the exact products or look like someone else when you’re applying makeup for yourself. There is just the journey of finding you in a creative outlet like makeup.

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Hunter Griffin Sophomore

They always offer a space for me to share my feelings.

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Lela Asamoah Junior

My close friends check up on me a lot if I’m sad and that makes me feel welcome

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Dylan Shahid-Russell Senior

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Leanne Bilnoski Dance Teacher

I feel safe by knowing that my peers care about me as a person and my overall wellbeing

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16 PHOTO ESSAY

THE DISPATCH FRIDAY, NOV. 7, 2025

Homecoming week brings Bowie pride A fun week of spirit days, performances, and school traditions brings Bulldogs together Isadora Parra Photo Essay Editor

colors and packed the gym.

“The pep rally really set the tone for the Homecoming game Fans pack the bleachers that night because it brought under the glow of the stadium everyone together and made lights, their cheers echoing it feel like something we were across the field as the band all a part of,” sophomore Alina blares. Football players charge Ortiz said. “Everyone was forward, and the school spirit cheering and showing their surges through the crowd for a class pride. It was fun seeing all homecoming night filled with the performances and how loud energy, pride, and celebration. the crowd got, I could really From Monday, September 29 feel the excitement building for to Saturday, October 4, Bowie the game.” celebrated its annual HomeAfter a week of themed outcoming Week with themed fits, decorations, and pep ralspirit days each day leading up lies, the excitement of Hometo the Homecoming Week coming game came to a peak on Friday, under the Friday October 3, night lights. The and the dance bleachers were on Saturday filled up with night, October students cheer4. ing on the foot“As a ball team, while cheerleader, the cheerleaders my favorite aimed to keep part of Homethe energy alive coming Week from the sidehas always lines. The night been the spirit brought the days,” junior Taylor Phillips school together Mary GutiJunior to celebrate errez-Jaimes both tradition said. “I love and teamwork. how each day “The energy during the has its own theme and everygame was something different,” one really gets into it. Twin day senior Isa Montanez said. “The is always my favorite because crowd was loud the whole time, it’s so fun to match with my which really pushed the players friends, take pictures together, and the rest of us to keep that and see how creative everyone energy going and winning gets with their outfits.” made it even better, especially Before the Homecoming since it’s been a few years since game, students gathered in the we’ve had a win for our Homegym for the pep rally, which coming game.” brought them together to celeBowie’s football team took brate school spirit and build an- the field against Del Valle for ticipation for the night ahead. the Homecoming game, deterThe pep rally featured performined to play hard and make mances from the cheer team, the most of the night. At the the Silver Stars, and the band. end of the night Bowie took the Students dressed in their class win with a score of 48-21.

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Homecoming Week really brings Bowie spirit and energy to every part of the school.

“The fans play the biggest role in keeping us motivated,” senior Julius Silva said. “Their noise gives us energy and keeps us in the game. Since it was my last Homecoming, it meant a lot to be out there and enjoy every moment of it with my teammates.”

During halftime, crowds filled the stands with anticipation as the Homecoming Court was introduced onto the field.

Students and families watched from the stands as each nominee was announced, waiting to hear for the final results.

Seniors Soren Shelton and Jackson Lang were crowned the 2025 Homecoming Queen and King.

“When they started calling names, I was nervous but also really excited because it’s one of those moments you look forward to all week,” Shelton said. “When I actually heard my name, it didn’t feel real at first, but then I looked over at Jackson, and we both just started smiling.”

As Homecoming Week came to a close, the excitement from the week carried over to the game, leaving memories for everyone involved. The week was filled with school spirit, creativity, and moments that stood out for different reasons, whether on the field, in the stands, or during the celebrations afterward.

“Being on Homecoming Court with my girlfriend made Homecoming week really special for me,” sophomore Eliana Jones said. “It was such a fun experience, and everyone was really supportive the whole time. Getting to be part of something that brings people together in so many ways made it one of my favorite memories from this year.”

CROWNED IN SCHOOL SPIRIT: Seniors Soren Shelton and Jackson Lang smile at each other after being crowned Homecoming King and Queen. The two decided to run for Homecoming Court together to make the most of their senior year and take part in one of Bowie’s biggest traditions. “Being crowned with Soren was such a cool experience,” Lang said. “It felt really special to share that moment with her, especially since we’ve both been part of so many school events over the years. It’s definitely something I’ll remember as one of the best parts of senior year.” PHOTO BY Will Olenick

PRIDE IN TUNE: Seniors Isabella Channel, Taylor Godwin, and Ella Erickson stand on the field holding pinkies during Bowie’s spirit song. Godwin was a nominee for Homecoming Queen. “I was honestly so nervous but also really excited when we stepped onto the field,” Godwin said. “It was such a unique experience to be part of Homecoming this way, and being there with my friends made it even more fun. I’ll definitely remember all the energy, the cheers, and just how special it felt to be included in something like this.” PHOTO BY Will Olenick QUEEN OF THE NIGHT: Senior Soren Shelton holds her crown with a bright smile as the crowd cheers from the stands. She said she wanted to run for Homecoming Court to take part in a moment that brings the school together and highlights student involvement. “I’ve always looked forward to seeing who gets crowned each year,” Shelton said. “Actually being the one up there this time felt really surreal and something I’ll never forget.” PHOTO BY Will Olenick

LOUD AND UNITED: Cheerleaders lead the crowd during the Homecoming pep rally in the gym, performing routines and chants to get students excited for the week’s events. Baylie Wright said the pep rally is one of the best ways to energize the school and build excitement before the game. “Cheering at the pep rally is always so much fun,” Wright said. “It’s great to see everyone coming together, showing their school spirit, and getting hyped up for Homecoming. Being part of that energy and helping everyone enjoy the week makes it one of my favorite parts of the year.” PHOTO BY Isadora Parra

GAME ON: Senior Julius Silva runs across the field during the Homecoming football game against Del Valle. Silva has been on varsity football for the past three years and is a running back and a wide receiver on the football team. “Football is honestly one of the best parts of high school,” Silva said.

“Being out here with my teammates, pushing each other, and playing during Homecoming makes it even more exciting. It’s just a great experience, and I really love representing the school on the field.” PHOTO BY Will Olenick