August 27. 2015

TSTRATFORD HE

RACLE O

Friday, August 28, 2015 Stratford High School

Volume 43, Issue 1

@shs_benevolence Guest Column pg. 2

The World of Tri Theta pg.3

Photos: Spartan Summer Trips pg.6

shsoracle.com Houston, Texas

Staying afloat

in the new year

without losing all the fun of summer

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@stratfordoracle

@spartanoracle

[08/28/15]

opinions

2

Approaching the Year

STRATFORD ORACLE STAFF 2015-2016

Our goals for the next 9 months

OPINION OF THE EDITORIAL BOARD It’s here.

Like it or not, another school year is under way.

It’s easy to get overwhelmed by everything going on and to neglect ever taking the time to decide what you want this year to be like. So, with school supplies still being bought and sunburns still fresh, we’ve decided to identify our goals for the year, both as a staff and as individuals. It’s less about what we do and more about how we see the world around us everyday. So here’s our two cents:

populate our student body. Instead of rejecting others or neglecting them because they are different than us, we should celebrate and delight in those differences. If everyone was the same, wouldn’t that be boring? It’s our hope that celebrating these differences in The Oracle allows others to become more open-minded and familiar with those who they may not talk to, or do not share the same culture with.

We want to seek out the stories of Stratford America. Everyday we walk into a building with over 2,000 people, and each person has a unique story to tell. As a staff, one of our goals for this year is to be intentional about seeking out stories from everyone, not just the play makers and headliners, but those outside of the spotlight as well. We believe that these stories (that aren’t told as often) have the power to relate to us, encourage us, and challenge us as much as any other. So we hope that when you open up a copy of The Oracle, along with fun pictures and graphics, you take the time to learn a little more about the hearts and stories of the people featured in our Stratford community.

We want to become Buc-cees in the middle of the highway. Consider the school year as a long car ride. Everyday on the road will not be happy and easy-going. There will be days when you just want to pull over and scream at the top of your lungs. There will be days where you feel lost in the middle of an intersection and want to rest for a while. That’s what The Oracle is for-we make it enjoyable so that you look forward to every issue.

We try our best to produce attractive stories, which may be more interesting than some English essays or DBQ’s. We take striking photos that make your eyes dance. We design graphics that make a statement. Watch out. You might become addicted to this sweet and relaxing break and want to display The Oracle in a museum.

We want to dive into this school year. Instead of playing it safe on the sidelines this year, we want to be all in what we choose to do. Whether it be a sport, a fine art, music, theatre, or academics, we hope to be engaged and rooted in the school we call our home. Every year we focus on making The Oracle the best it can be, and this year is no different. Aristotle once said, “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit.”

Our hope for ourselves, and for you, is to be confident in achieving our goals and to hold ourselves to a standard of excellence this year.

We want to make the year more fun and enjoyable. The year will be what we make it, and this year, we want to be awesome. Through The Oracle, we hope to get you excited about the year and what’s going on around our school. Before we know it, we’ll be walking across the graduation stage, and Stratford America will be in our past. So, make this year count! Enjoy the moment and make this school year the best yet. Keep everything up to date, especially reading The Oracle. So stop by and see us sometime. We are always here, in Room 120, just past the cafeteria and before you get to the gym.

We want to celebrate the diversity of our school. There’s no denying that SHS has a vast student body filled with diversity and unique qualities. This year, our goal is not to focus on the trends or idea of “normal” in our school, but to become more aware of the differences and variety that

Editors’ Note:

Staff Editorials are written by the Editorial Board.

Members of the Editorial Board are noted in the staff box to the right. If you would like to submit a letter to the editors, the Editorial Board will review it and may publish it or even publish a response.

Anonymous Spartan Spreads Insta Praise Mystery Senior Starts Social Media Cheer Campaign There’s a quote by Maya Angelou that reads, “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

I find this to be such an inspiring quote because I believe it can truly change our perspectives on what is really important throughout our high school years.

Popularity, attractiveness, intelligence, and athleticism are all goals that adolescents strive for in order to be accepted or remembered after high school.

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to be

the best you can be, but many people search for all of these titles for the wrong reasons.

There will always be someone who you believe is“better” than yourself in all aspects of life.

However, we each have a specific purpose in our school; a gift we can use to better ourselves and inspire others.

For these reasons, I created an Instagram account called “shs_benevolence” this summer. I want everyone at school to feel appreciated and recognized for being the amazing individuals that they are.

My goal is to post a picture of every student in the Class of 2016. In the post, I write what makes that student special, in

[The Oracle]

hopes that other students will see it.

As the year progresses, I hope that we will see a change occur in our school as we become more united than we’ve ever been.

The word “benevolence” should dominate our high school careers. It is defined as “an act of kindness.” I, and hopefullymanyotherstudents, want to be remembered as someone who treated others with kindness.

Odds are, ten years from now, no one will remember how many friends you had or even the touchdown you scored. They will, however, rememberhowyoutreatedthem.

*

Editors-in-Chief Scott Kennedy Cameron Henkel

*

Associate Editor Olivia Siciliano

*

Photo Editors

*Taylor Brittain *Riley Timmreck *Jordyn Richards Opinions Editors Tina Kang Emma Holland News Editors Taylor Morris Ellie Herrmann Culture Editors Nazlee Khadjeheian Maddie McKenzie Sports Editors Jacqui Comparin Haley Grace Francis Sebastian Draz

Reporters Alex Parizot Daniela Trujillo Gillian Meredith Lindell Lewis John McGowan Elizabeth Cole Ellie Pena Photographers Arturo Benitez Perry Sheperd Erin Walsh Lauren Perry Jaina Kiley Ethan Godinez Dayera Gamez Natalie Gaiser Caitlyn Boatwright Caroline Bucek Andrew Park Jackson Fass Madeline Rustam Belle Benton Grayson Wilson Sydney Bucek

The Oracle newspaper is the official, school-sponsored student media of Stratford High School, 14555 Fern, Houston, Texas 77079, 713-251-3454.

The Oracle is published monthly by the Journalism Department, and is also available online at shsoracle.com.

The newspaper is a member of Columbia Scholastic Press Association, National Scholastic Press Association, and Interscholastic League Press Conference.

The Oracle serves as a public forum of student expression, and is open to contributions submitted by the readers. Readers may submit material via e-mail to info@shsoracle.com.

All letters to the editor must be typed and contain the author’s full

Ads Editors Matthew Martinez Ads Staff Cooper Lane David Quinlan Alice Morse Tea Sharp Saldana Kallie Henckel Gabi Brasher Design Editor Lauren Byram Staff Artist Rachel Torres Copy Editors Noelle Flores Katie Newsom Building Principal Danny Gex Advisor Janice Cummons

*Editorial Board Members

name, grade and signature. Submitted material is subject to editing based on space and/or content. The opinions expressed are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editors, the staff, the administration or the school district.

The staff is responsible for the content of the publication, and strives maintain professional standards of accuracy, objectivity and fairness. The editors reserve the right to determine whether submissions will be published.

The Oracle staff strives to produce a newspaper that covers the entire Stratford community, and welcomes freelance submissions.

Front Page: Photo of sophomore Raymond Kelly by Taylor Brittain

You can’t be everyone’s best friend, but you can strive to see the good in others.

With an average of over 500 students in each grade, there’s a great chance that we haven’t talked to even half of the students in our class.

Whether you’re an incoming freshman or senior, I encourage you to talk to new people and get to know them. It may be surprising who you connect with.

No matter what anyone says, we have all felt the hurt of gossip or bullying at one point or another. We all care to some degree what people think of us.

High school has the poten-

tial to be an amazing experience depending on what we do with it.

If we love one another and stand up against the judgement and gossip or whatever may try to bring us down, there will be no room for negativity or hatred.

Throughout this journey, I’ve realized that we all have the potential to be benevolent ones in our own way.

My wish is that we will find even bolder ways to express positivity and encouragement in the Stratford community, and always remember to treat others the way we want to be treated.

Editors’ Note: Have an opinion you want featured in the Oracle?

Send it in and you too could be appearing in a future issue as a guest columnist.

E-mail articles to thestratfordoracle@gmail.com with your name and grade level included.

[The Oracle]

news

3

News In Brief

Tri Theta: Spreading Spartan Spirit

PHOTO BY RILEY TIMMRECK

PHOTO BY TAYLOR BRITTAIN

Welcome to Stratford Once again we have the privilege of greeting a whole new group of educators. Please help us introduce these faculty members to Stratford America.

Joining the campus is,

Valerie Johnson - 10th grade principal Lynn Hollister - Special Services Jim Herrington - 9th Grade Counselor Casey Burleigh - Academic Advisor Nancy Espino - Academic Advisor Alina Mitchell - Academic Advisor Daniel Mitchell - Fine Arts Bill Barber - CATE Kelsey Hodde - Science Jacquelyn Ford - SPED Andrea Mullins - SPED John Huntsman - English Deborah Owens - English Yvonne Evans - Transition

Anything Goes Senior Noelle Flores rehearses a dance for Anything Goes. The musical will be performed by Stratford Playhouse Jan. 28-30 and Feb. 4-6.

[08/28/15]

William Barber - Math Alexa McCoslin - SPED Laura Soto - Foreign Language Julie Vinyard - Dance Kimblay West - Testing

Visit us in our 2 Locations Selections & prices may vary from locations

Bunker Hill

Kirkwood

9427 Katy Freeway Bunker Hill & Echo Ln. (M) 713-468-5900 lafiestahouston@yahoo.com

11623 Katy Freeway @ Kirkwood Dr. (M) 281-496-9497 (F) 281-496-9461

During the football season, one may see colorful, catchy football signs hanging around the school.

Have you ever wondered who was in charge of painting these intricately designed posters?

It’s Tri Theta.

Beginning August 3, the 102 girls in Tri Theta work diligently over the summer and collaborate together to create over 340 football signs.

Each group is required to paint 31 signs for their 5-6 players that include 6ftx15ft posters for the players’yardand10ftx20ft postersforrunthru.These posters are put up before the day of the game.

Designing Spirit

Working before school, senior Abigail Hirst helps her Tri -Theta group paint signs for the upcoming football game.

[08/28/15]

4

You’ve gotten your schedule. You’ve gone to your classes. You’ve waited in long lunch lines, forgotten your third period room number, and tripped going up the side stairwell. It’s official— school is here. With the inevitable return of homework, hard tests, and late nights, how do you keep from making back-to-school a drag? Here we submit our suggestions for the year— tips for each grade, what to watch out for, and advice from upperclassmen and administrators. No one wants going back to school to be a bummer, and it doesn’t have to be. To paraphrase the old mantra: “Make it a great year or not, Stratford— the choice is yours.”

GRAPHICS BY RACHEL TORRES

How to Keep Your Head Above Wate Stepping in the Water Get involved. Your high school experience is what you make it, and getting involved will help you make friends and make every week more interesting.

Get to know your teachers. They’re really interesting people, and having a good relationship with them will pay off when you need help.

Your grades matter. A lot of people think freshmen grades don’t count, but they do. All four years go on your transcript and count towards your GPA for college.

Freshmen

Staying Afloat Enjoy it. Sophomore year is an

Drowning in School Work

underappreciated gem. You’re no longer a freshmen but don’t yet have the pressure and workload of being a junior. Don’t try to rush through the year, slow down and enjoy it, you’ll miss it before long.

Get standardized testing done.

Refine your goals. Make sure

year doesn’t necessarily have the hardest classes, but it probably does have the mos work. Get your homework done the night you get it or in class if possible, otherwise you’ll get overwhelmed. Netflix can wait.

you know what you’re aiming for academically. You don’t need to know where you want to go to college or what you want to major in, you’ll have time to figure that out later. But have a general idea of what you need to acheive and then stick to it. Adjust your endorsements if necessary.

Sophomores

You will need to take the SAT and/or ACT a some point. It’s best to take them early so you have time to study and retake them if necessary.

Stay on top of your work. Junior

Start seriously thinking about your future. Do your research on colleges and career paths, compile your resume, and visit colleges if possible.

Juniors

Tips from the Top

5 Missing Out on the Fun

“

“

Teachers and administrators share their tips for students this upcoming year:

“

The only thing that stands in the way of you and greatness is yourself.”

—Carl Blaze, Senior Principal

—Ann Hough, Math

at

st

“ “

Upperclassmen share their tips on how to keep from getting the back-to-school blues:

I like to wear nice outfits that make me feel good about myself.”

—Anna Langlois, Senior

Be thankful to be around all your loving friends again!”

—Collins Rush, Senior

I enjoy hanging out with my friends right before and during the first few school days.” —Patrick Schulte, Junior Come dressed in a fancy suit!”

—Matthew Hopper, Junior

Don’t Get Burned

er

.

“

Reach for the moon, if you miss you will be amongst the stars.”

[The Oracle]

With so much going on from the start of school, it’s easy to get overwhelmed or let things slip through the cracks. Here are a few things to make sure you don’t get burned:

Not studying.

Tests count for a huge portion of your grade, and your decision not to study now can hurt you in the long run. Even if you only have time to study a little, every bit counts.

Getting Over-Involved.

Floating to the Top

It’s good to get involved, but you don’t need to sign-up for every club in school. Sometimes it’s best to pick just a few things that you are really interested in and focus on those, instead of spreading yourself too thin by trying to do everything.

Get your applications done. These always take longer than expected, and it’s best to get them out of the way. Then you can stop worrying about them.

Don’t stress so much. It’s easy

to get in panic-mode while waiting to hear back about college. Once you’ve applied there’s nothing else you can do, so just enjoy the year and try not to worry.

Don’t blow it off. A lot of colleges will look at your senior year grades, so don’t let senioritis go too far.

Bad Relationships with Teachers.

Getting started off on the wrong foot with your teachers will only hurt you. Even if the two of you don’t immediately click, work hard in the class and be respectful, and they will be more willing to help you throughout the year.

Skipping Homework.

Even though homework doesn’t count for as much of your grade as quizzes and tests, you’d be surprised at how much a single zero on a homework assignment can hurt your overall grade.

Seniors

Neglecting Your Social Life.

School is important, and you need to stay on top of everything, but don’t forget to take the time to just hang out with friends and relax. It will help you recharge and maintain balance in your life.

Not Enough Sleep.

There will inevitably be nights when you have to stay up late to study, work on a project, or participate in an extracurricular activity. But take advantage of the nights when you can go to sleep early, otherwise you’re going to run out of steam.

[The Oracle]

culture

6

[08/28/15]

Spartan Pride finds its way around the globe Student travel destinations of this summer

PHOTOS PROVIDED BY LAURA RINCON, MACKENZIE KOOKEN, DAVIS BEASLEY, AND KELLY PLITT

While most decide to go on tropical-getaway vacations for the summer, Senior Makenzie Kooken and eighteen of her fellow church members went on a mission trip to Uganda.

Here, they were given

the amazing opportunity to work with Lulwanda Children’s Home and Imbale Presbyterian Church by playing with the kids at the Children’s Home, teaching VBS classes, and participating in Good Neighbor

Day (where kids from the surrounding community come into the children’s home for the day).

They were even able to evangelize in a slum called Namatala where translators from local

churches helped out in order to spread the love of God. The only way Kooken could sum up her trip is by describing it, “as cliché as it sounds, a trip I will never forget.”

Another group of Spartans went to ex-

plore British Columbia and develop strong,lifelong connections with each other and the ideals of YoungLife. Finally, a junior spent the summer travelling around Europe and witnessing its rich history.

Conquering the great outdoors with YoungLife Seniors trek up the mountain on the YoungLife Beyond Malibu backpacking trip.

European Adventures

Junior Laura Rincon smiles for the camera at the Leaning Tower of Pisa on the Italy part of her 4 country, 15 city tour of Europe.

Uganda Mission Trip (Above) Senior Mackenzie Kooken ventured to Uganda for mission trip served by her church, Memorial Drive Presbyterian.

Monthly Sudoku is back!

Test your mental strength

Climbing Peanut Rock (Right) Senior Andrew Kelly celebrates reaching the group’s second campsite on the Beyond Malibu Young Life Trip.

Journeying to Jerusalem

(Below) Sophomore Julia Gelber visits the Western Wall in Jerusalem after touring Paris, Rome, and Israel.

Cruising on the Coast

(Above) Braving the cold weather, sophomore Kelly Plitt enjoyed an Alaskan cruise.

Find the solution to this month’s puzzle at shsoracle.com

For more summer vacation photos log on to shsoracle.com

[The Oracle]

sports

ONE ON ONE with...Coach Pinkney

7

[08/28/15]

Season Kickoff

Starting Off On the Right Foot PHOTOS BY: TAYLOR BRITTAIN, RILEY TIMMRECK, JORDYN RICHARDS, AND NATALIE GAISER

Back At It

What are your initial thoughts of Stratford’s football team?

It’s a great program, wellcoached, great coaching staff. The athletes are great to work with, they’re very coachable, they seem like a fun group that are serious about what they do.

What do you hope to contribute to the athletic program?

A lot of self-knowledge from me playing the game and me coaching from whatever experience I’ve had in the past as far as enthusiasm, knowledge and technique.

Did you participate in any sports in high school or college?

Yeah, I did. I played high school football, I ran track.

I got a football scholarship, played a lot of arena football. I would’ve ran track in college but I had a couple of injuries that kept me from doing it.

Was there any particular reason you chose a position at Stratford?

I heard about how great the program was, and how great the community was. I decided to make the move here because I heard a lot of great things about the school.

What do you hope to achieve this season in track and football?

Obviously, in both I hope to win a state and district championship and learn more about the teams as a coach.

Junior Nestor Mejia, is wide open at football practice on August 11. The football teams have been practicing since the beginning of August getting ready for the tough upcoming season.

Preseason Warm Up Senior Michael Milstead prepares for the scrimmage against Cinco Ranch on Friday August 21st at Cinco Ranch High school. This was the Spartan’s first opportunity to practice a game with another team.

Reuniting with the Courts The tennis team steps onto the court for summer training on August 11.

They’re training heavily for their first match of the season which was held on August 21.

THE

SCHEDULE Football:

9/4 Elsik @ Crump 7 p.m.

9/12 Ridgepoint @ Hall 6 p.m.

Cross Country: 9/5 Seven Lakes Showcase @ Seven Lakes HS 7:30 a.m.

9/19 SBISD Invitational 5K @ Nottingham Park 8:00 a.m.

Volleyball:

9/11 Magnolia West @ Stratford 5-6 p.m.

9/15 Brenham @ Stratford 5-6 p.m.

9/18 Waller @ Waller 5-6 p.m.

9/22 Spring Woods @ Spring Woods 5-6 p.m.

Favorite Pump Up Song:

Jordyn Brooks

“Lip Gloss” by Lil Mama

Fav. Restaurant:

Years Playing Volleyball: 8 years Favorite Movie:

Game Number:

The Sound of Music

Toughest Competition:

Fuddruckers 25

Toughest Competition: Magnolia West

Tomball

Favorite Pre-Game Meal:

Favorite Restaurant:

Subway

James Coney Island

Go-To Dance Move: The Dougie

Favorite Quote: “You do you.”

Jaclyn Swanson

Most Embarrassing Song on iPod: “You Belong with Me” by Taylor Swift

Favorite Quote: “Treat others the way you want to be treated.”

[08/28/15]

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