Occidentalist 2019 Nov. Edition by Catherine Hansen

OCCIDENTALIST Senior Molly Jass acts in the Advanced Theater production of Romeo and Juliet. Page 6. Photo: T. Crowley

VOLUME XXI,

Traverse City West Senior High

EDITION 2

Holiday Diversity Pixabay

Genuine gender of my head that I was a boy because my mind was telling me that, but my body’s saying it thompsonhop04@tcapsstudent.net differently,” Thompson said. t started with clothes. From that, hairSeveral studies done at universities, includcuts. And then, after sophomore Lane ing Harvard and the University of Hawaii, Thompson came out to his parents as show evidence that being transgender is transgender, he began meeting with a linked to genes developed in utero. This is doctor at Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital why identical twins are more often both in Grand Rapids about transitioning to male transgender than fraternal twins and why with hormone therapy. a transgender woman’s brain resembles a “It was the biggest, scariest thing I could cisgender woman’s brain more than it does a ever think of, and it was very surprising once cisgender man’s. I came out,” Thompson said. “At first my par“It’s not like we choose one day to be like ents weren’t very happy about it, but once this,” Thompson said. “We always had this they realized they loved me and my happiinside of us. It’s like people who are gay, ness matters to them, they started making and they always knew they were gay in the appointments with back of their head the hormone doctor and they question down in DeVos and about it. We question GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian helping me with the about what gender we Alliance Against process—transferidentify with, and we Defamation) has called ring schools, makfor the media to recognize go through the same ing sure I’m happy struggling process. transgender victims as and comfortable We’re just like other more than statistics by with myself.” including their names. The queer people.” The process of Since transgender names of the 22 becoming more people relate to gay transgender people killed comfortable with and bisexual people in the U.S. this year are: himself and his in this way, it leads to gender has been a confusion concerning Ciara Minaj Carter, Nikki Janelle Enriquez, difficult and ongoLondonn Moore, Shantee Tucker, Dejanay gender identity and ing process. sexual orientation, Stanton, Vontashia Bell, Sasha Garden, “Personally, for two things that are Keisha Wells, Cathalina Christina James, me, it’s been really Diamond Stephens, Antash’a Devine Sher- “pretty much unrehorrific,” Thompson rington English, Gigi Pierce, Nino Fortson, lated to each other,” Karla Patricia Flores-Pavón, Sasha Wall, said. “We’re raised according to Deanna Amia Tyrae, Phylicia Mitchell, Zakaria Fry, Heath, therapist at in a society up here Celine Walker, Tonya Harvey, Christa Leigh Greater Michigan in northern MichiSteele-Knudslien, Viccky Gutierrez gan where people Gender Services in are not exposed Mount Pleasant. to queer people— “A good way to say transgenders, gays, whatever—and people it is: orientation is who you have sex with, don’t understand it, so they judge people. I and your gender is who you have sex as,” had to switch schools, because I was getting said Heath. death threats once I came out, and that’s Another incorrect assumption that Thompwhy I go to Traverse City, now because son comes across is the idea that because he they’re more accepting.” is transgender, he is trying to create a whole Death threats like the ones received by new gender. Thompson are commonly faced by trans“People think I’m trying to be this whole, gender people. In 2018 alone, 22 transgender entirely new thing instead of going from people have been killed in the U.S. On Nov. one to another, so they don’t know what 20, people in the LGBT+ community and pronouns to use,” he said. allies honored those who were killed on Thompson believes the best way to get Transgender Day of Remembrance. past the common misperceptions is for those “It seems like being transgender is like the who are uninformed to simply ask questions new ‘gay’, if that makes sense,” Thompson to those in the LGBT+ community. said. “People are not exposed to it enough “People nowadays are just very afraid to and they see us as these foreign creatures. It ask questions and their curiosity eats them just— it hurts. Once it piles up, more and and they make bad assumptions because more people over time, it does hurt. We’re of it,” Thompson said. “Just ask questions. just people. We’re just trying to get through We’re not going to get offended if you make life like everybody else. We’re not any differ- a mistake as long as you show that you’re ent. Everybody should be accepted no matter interested and that you actually care to use who they are.” the right pronouns and name.” Those who are least informed about Thompson has found people who do care transgender people generally harbor many about those things after transferring schools, misconceptions about what it means to which offered him a fresh start through his be transgender. For example, while some transition, and he was glad to meet people believe that transgender people choose to be who were willing to get to know him for the way they are, and can therefore choose to who really is. not feel that way, scientific studies have con“Once I transferred over here from my presistently demonstrated that is not the case. vious school district, it was just a bunch of “My brain, for example, produces different new people, which may be nerve wracking, hormones than my body developed my feabut they don’t know me and they know me tures to be, so I always thought in the back See GENDER, page 3 Hope Thompson

I With the holiday season approaching, students have different traditions to celebrate with their families and friends.

Crafting Community Photo: L. Wright

The annual craft show draws in 83 vendors and 93 booths, as a fundraiser to support teachers and students in the Olympia wing.

Winning Writers

Front Street Writers students learn from the best in a recognized writing and literature program formed in Traverse City.

6 R+J

Photo: T. Crowley

Weeks after starring in the fall musical, seniors Mason Gratton and Hallie Snowday take the stage again in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.

Seeing the World Submitted by: A. Foley

Savanna Yuncker yunckersav12@tcapsstudent.net

T Junior Alyssa Foley has lived in four countries throughout her lifetime and has traveled to several more before finding her way to Traverse City.

Twitter: wshnewspaper Instagram: tcwoccidentalist Website: tinyurl.com/Occi-Online

November 2018

obacco use is on the rise with today’s generation. Juuls, which have products that are marketed heavily towards youth are on the rise, too. As teachers work to combat the increased use of Juuls, administrators will start relying on technology to cut down on e-cigarettes, tobacco, and other substance use in the bathrooms. Students are tired of waiting for a stall to open in the bathroom that is occupied by multiple students who are hitting on tobacco devices, and some are even arriving late to classes as they wait for a stall to open during the short passing times. Soon, new smoke detection devices will ensure fewer lines at the stalls in the bathrooms. E-cigarettes vaporize a liquid that may contain nicotine and other flavorings, and turns them into an aerosol that users inhale into their lungs. They are hard to detect because they don’t have an odor,

LGBT+ Terminology & Symbology

The Rainbow Flag represents gay pride and is often used to mark gay-safe establishments.

Transgender: umbrella term for people whose gender identity differs from their assigned sex Transsexual: older term referring to people who have permanently changed their bodies to resemble the opposite sex of their assigned sex with medical intervention

The Transgender pride flag represents the transgender community and is designed to be seen correctly no matter which way it is flown.

Gender Dysphoria: mental condition (not mental illness) concerning severe distress, anxiety, and depression due to identifying with the gender that does not match one’s assigned sex

The Intersex pride flag is purple and yellow because they are typically gender neutral colors, representing hermaphrodites.

Cisgender: term describing people who are not transgender Intersex: conditon where one is born with both male and female sex organs Gender identity: strong internal sense of personal gender, which may or may not align with one’s assigned sex at birth

The Genderqueer pride flag represents androgyny, gender neutral individuals, and a third gender identity.

Revoke the Smoke

New technology will detect smoke and vape odors in the bathrooms and the devices may look like everyday items, like a USB drive. With the new sensors being added in the bathrooms, vaping will become more difficult. “There are new sensors going in that will detect banned substances at school that is an airborne sensor, just like a smoke detector is an airborne sensor, but it is calibrated to the molecular characteristics of smoke and carcinogens,” Head Principal Joe Esper said. “These are detectors that are sensing for certain elements that are airborne. It does not make an audible alarm, it is internet base, so it just alerts the staff what it detected and where it detected it.” The problem of vaping in the bathrooms has become so problematic that the school recently sent an email to edu-

cate parents about the hazards of vaping and how to identify vaping products. The rise in vape usage within the school has is what inspired administrators to find ways to keep students from using them on school grounds. “The goal with adding these detectors is hopefully to deter the use of vape devices, which is really the popular thing, and marijuana use in schools, and things that are all banned in the student handbook,” Esper said. “Hopefully having those [detectors] out there deters students from using those things at all, but certainly from bringing them or using them at school.” Esper explained that the new detectors are not being added to simply “bust”

See SMOKE, page 5

The Occidentalist

Grace Clark

clarkgra92@tcapsstudent.net

TAKING

ithin the past couple of weeks, as thousands of Central Americans legitimately attempted to travel into our country, the White House issued orders to shut down certain areas of the border, prohibiting entry from a multitude of asylum-seeking caravan members. Yet as these travellers protest in non-violent manners, they have been greeted with the disgustingly violent tendencies of our government’s response to border inconvenience. On the north side of the border, American citizens ignorantly shop at an outlet mall just yards from the destruction on the south side, where distraught caravan members are treated with such horrible force. The travellers organized a march and protested against the painfully long wait for admittance to our country and asylum. The non-violent protesters are tirelessly seeking a life of safety and prosperity through completely valid forms of protest, and should not be punished for this, especially if their most pressing goal is to regain peace and stability. The American border then shamelessly flooded the crowds with tear gas, producing haunting sights of children screaming and crying as their parents try to transport them to safety. Most were forced to succumb to the horrors of this method of warfare and suffer through the awful effects. After the tear gas was unloaded, rubber bullets were then shot into the crowds. These are not criminals who deserve harassed. These are civil adults and children who long for a safe life in America. Protecting American borders with warfare tactics is completely valid if our country is facing an actual threat. But when the situation merely consists of immigrants wanting to escape poverty and danger from their home countries, and contribute to our economic society, our government should not react with such violent orders. Our society should not validate the inhumane treatment of other people, simply because they are not native to our country.

Opinion

SIDES

YES

Michael Carley

carleymic87@tcapsstudent.net

OPINION?

s a sovereign nation, the United States has the right to do whatever is necessary to defend its borders. We also have the right to determine who enters this county and when they do it. The migrant caravan that is currently staying in Tijuana, Mexico is seeking to claim asylum status in the United States. To clarify, people seeking asylum are people who are fleeing their home countries to avoid some type of persecution and threat of violence because of their race, religion, or political affiliation. None of people currently in this caravan fit the bill for asylum seekers, but the liberal media paints them that way. Liberal elites want to see these people gain the ability to enter this country as quickly as possible, not understanding the fact that our immigration system is already backlogged with the thousands of requests that are received for immigration status. Due to their pent up frustration by their lack of quick entry, these migrants have begun to act out violently against border patrol agents and have gone so far as to enter this country illegally. In response to the violence errupting at the border at members of the caravan wait to cross, agents have to use methods to break up these violent actors, going so far as to fire rubber bullets and tear gas to break up crowds. While some may say that this an unfounded way to deal with the migrants, I would say it is incredibly justifiable. Border agents should do whatever is necessary to defend our borders, even if it means having to take physical action. When these migrants act out first, they shouldn’t be surprised when they see backlash from a nation that is simply trying to defend its borders.

Are the forces being used against people at the Mexican border justified? “No, we shouldn’t use force to keep them out, but we can’t exactly let them in.” - Freshman Maddie Winslow

“Yes, what’s a country without borders? You can’t just let everyone in.” - Sophomore Blake Cutting

“They’re illegal, but we shouldn’t be tear gassing them because of it.” -Junior Luke Krcmarik

“No, because all people should be treated equally.” - Senior Skye Payberg

Who argued it best? After reading both sides of the issue, tell us who argued it best at the link below. We’ll post the winner in our next edition. Last month, MICHAEL CARLEY took the most votes for his opinion piece on Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court.

tinyurl.com/Occi-19-TS

CCI Outlook

Tears at the Border Cartoonist: Chloe Moser

Title IX has the Occidentalist staff divided, and keeping the dialogue going is what really matters

Retraction Correction: In our October edition, in the article titled “Setting the Standards,” we inaccurately reported that “In standards-based grading, receiving a one on the grading scale is equivalent to an F and a four is equivalent to an A.” While some districts may use this system, it is not one that is required, and German Teacher Claudia Riedy, who is piloting a Standard Based Grading program for the World Language department uses a scale that reflects 100% = 4, 95% = 3, 85% = 2, 75% = 1, and 0% = IE, or insufficeint evidence.

Contact Us: Send us an e-mail with questions, story ideas, concerns, or requests to: wshnewspaper@tcapsstudent.net or drop your letter to the editor in the main office. Letters to the Editor must be 250 words or less. Please contact Mrs. Hansen with requests to purchase ad space in the Occidentalist newspaper at the e-mail listed above.

Editors:

Hannah Ashbury Annaka Hansen Alyssa Roland Hope Thompson

Graphic Designer: Sol MedwedCohen

Section Designers: Taylor Smith Allison Anglin Riley Ashbury Aleah Dobb Remy Germaine Dominik Glew Tasha Hilborn Emma Irvine Aamon Howse Ella Rintala

itle IX is one among many Titles the United States has in order to protect its citizens. This Civil Right law was passed as part of the Education Amendments of 1972 in order to prevent gender discrimination. According to www2.ed.gov, it states that “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.” It seems that what should guarantee all citizens equal rights, under a new proposal under the Trump administration, Title IX is open to interpretation. To begin, the idea of gender will only accpeted as what someone is assigned at birth, stating that gender “would define as either male or female, unchangeable, and determined by the genitals that a person is born with,” according to a summary of the proposal in the New York Times. The Department of Health and Human Service is now considering this Title, which

From the Editorial Board

The Occidentalist is the official student produced newspaper of news and information published/produced by WSH newspaper students. The Occidentalist newspaper has been established as a designated public forum for student editors and reporters to inform and educate their readers. As well, it will not be prior-reviewed or restrained by school officials prior to publication or distribution. Advisors may and should

Staff Writers: Taylor Smith Allison Anglin Riley Ashbury Aleah Dobb Remy Germaine Dominik Glew Svanna Yuncker Ella Rintala Tasha Hilborn

Emma Irvine Shea Kyser David Fischer Blase Gapinski Saraisa Guzman Addison Haworth Alexis Hepler Ammon Howse Joseph Lyons

Nathaniel Myers Eric Pugh Navada Richards Izaya Rokos Taylor Smith-Wagner Rachel Silkovoskiy Brendan Sonnenberg Brandon Whipple Holly Yoder

coach and discuss content during the writing process. Because school officials do not engage in prior-review, and the content of the Occidentalist media is determined and reflects only the views of the student staff and not school officials or the school itself, its student editorial board and responsible student staff members assume complete legal and financial liability for the content of the publication.

Business Manager: Joseph Lyons

Photo Editor: Tess Crowley

could strip transgender citizens of being able to classify as a their desired gender. As the country seems divided on the issue, so is the Occidentalists staff, in fact, too struggled to make a defined stance on this issue as there are many things to consider in if the new interpretation should be considered. Advocates of reinterpreting how the Title is interpreted support that there can only be two genders, female and male, which are based on the genitals they are born with. People opposed to the reinterpretation believe that this proposal discriminates against transgenders and believe it will limit their civil rights that allow them to transition and classify as the gender they transition to. While the staff is divided on how Title IX should be interpreted, we are having conversations almost daily about the struggles that transgender people face when making the important and difficult decision to identify with a new gender. As Title IX is considered in the political arena and the legal system, we recognize that it protects transgender people from discrimination, something we all support.

Cartoonist: Chloe Moser

Social Media Editor: Annaka Hansen

Columnists: Grace Clark Michael Carley

Adviser:

Catherine Hansen

In-Depth 3 Staying Alive

The Occidentalist GENDER, page 1 country, you should.” as Lane and not my previous identity with Another area where the government is my birth name,” Thompson said. “So I got getting involved with policies concerning to be myself without being judged for being the transgender community is Title IX, transgender.” This clean slate gave him a the federal civil rights law which made chance to be a part of a more open-minded discrimination based on sex or gender in social group. educational programs illegal. A recent pro“I made a lot of new friends,” he said. “True posed modification to Title IX would define friends, I suppose. People who won’t leave sex as male or female, determined by fixed me just because of who I really am. I haven’t biological traits identified at or before birth. contacted anyone from the previous school This would mean that transgender people, district. I’ve kind of moved on.” of which there are approximately 1.4 million Thompson still faces obstacles as a transin the U.S., would always be identified as gender minor, however. the sex on their birth certificate and would “It’s very challenging when you’re a minor lose civil rights protections under Title IX. and to change your name legally you have “I don’t think politicians should identify to go in front of a judge who will approve it or declare what gender is because there’s or not,” Thompson said. “Sometimes there’s science with the hormones and the brain,” people like me who live in a very homophoThompson said. “Doctors and scientists bic, terrible society and the judge is just goshould have the authority to, because they ing to say no for no reason. They’ll say, ‘No, have the actual evidence behind the details. you can’t legalize your name until you’re of Whereas politicians just play to get what age,’ and that really sucks, because in the they want in the end, so they could just school program, I am identified as this perchange it whenever they want. There’s no son who I am not. That raises more confustability behind it.” sion for people around me. Those who support My friends will hear my the proposed change birth name and it raises a “Typically it leads to a lot of disagree. They belot of questions and chaos lieve that there is less depression and anxiety... it’s stability if transgenbasically.” like carrying a huge secret Although Thompson der people have the cannot change his name around your whole life and authority to change legally until his 18th birth- going out in the world as their own gender on day, it won’t be long until their birth certificate, somebody you’re not.” he’s sixteen and eligible and have doubts that Deanna Heath, Psychologist for testosterone shots. those who want to “There’s ups and transition truly have downs,” he said. “I know gender dysphoria. it will be better once I But this is not the fully transition with hormone treatment, case, at least with Heath’s patients. but I’m taking really big steps right now on “I’ve worked with more than 500 [pathe way there.” tients] and I’ve probably had one or two In the future, one potential “down” who I’ve thought maybe were wrong about could be difficulty in enlisting in the U.S. it,” Heath said. “People need to be believed.” military. Thompson’s father served the One important reason that people need to country, so Thompson wanted to follow be believed is that if a transgender person suit by attending West Point and joining is unable to transition, they are at risk for the military. But in summer 2017, President many adverse mental health effects. Donald Trump announced via Twitter that “Typically it leads to a lot of depression transgender people would be banned from and anxiety,” Heath said. Many of those serving unless they served as the sex they who do not transition because they are not were assigned at birth. Since then, federal believed, “end up eventually committing courts have blocked the ban from being suicide.” Heath said, “it’s like carrying a enforced. Nevertheless, transgender people huge secret around your whole life and who have tried to enlist have gotten stuck in going out in the world as somebody you’re the medical review part of the process and not.” very few have succeeded to join the service. Thompson’s advice for someone who is On Nov. 23 of this year, Trump asked the struggling with their gender identity is to Supreme Court to fast-track a ruling on the not keep it to themselves. transgender military ban, calling attention “Don’t be afraid to come out,” he said. “No to the issue again. matter where you live, what type of family “I don’t think they should limit people’s you have, people will realize that it will careers, like enlisting for example, because make you happy to be yourself and they will not only will we be paying for our own change their thoughts for you if they care hormone treatment and not the government, about you.” but also it shouldn’t matter what gender people are— woman, male, transgender, For more on Title IX, see the going from one to the other,” Thompson Occi-Outlook on page 2, Opinions said. “If you want to serve and protect the

Making Peace

Club seeks new memebers to make the world a better place

he world has never seemed more divided and students are coming together to work for peace, equality, and social justice. The United Network of Young (UNOY) Peacebuilders is a global network of young people and youth organizations being active in the field of peacebuilding and conflict transformation. Social Studies teacher Karlee Humphrey, English teacher David Richardson, and Science teacher Denise Iverston are forming a team to get the Young Peacebuidlers club up and running again this year. “The Young Peacebuilders is a student led group to give

students the abilities and tools to problem solve,” Humphrey said. The club will provide education at weekly meetings where students can discuss ways to make a positive impact on the world through. Past Peacebuilder groups have worked with refugees in the area, decorated bags for the Meals on Wheels program, and donated $400 worth of BATA passes for various organizations in the area, including the Father Fred Foundation, and the Women’s Resource Center. The goal of the YPB club is to support youth as they explore inequality, violence, and neglect, and work on

projects to create peace in their community and the world. “A reward would be seeing more students get involved and being more aware of issues,” Humphrey said. “The main goal is really to have more of it to be a group effort and the impact positive on {students] and a positive impact on the community.” Richardson, Ivester, and Humphry are recruiting students to take on leadership roles as they restart the club. Students interested in joining the Young Peace Builders can contact David Richards in room B105.

Zack Miller uses machines to help manage his diabetes Aleah Dobb dobbale13@tcapsstudent.net

ack Miller is a typical high school student, but what many don’t see are the medical devices taped to his skin under his shirt that help to keep him alive. Zack has had Type One Diabetes (T1D) for three years. In T1D, as it is known in the medical world, the body does not produce insulin. T1D is not a consequence of bad eating habits or obesity, but instead it is an autoimmune disease that according to the American Diabetes Association (ADA), 1.25 million Americans suffer from. A person with T1D does not produce insulin in their pancreas, a hormone that the body needs to get glucose from the bloodstream into the cells of the body in the form of energy. Miller wears a Tandom TSlim insulin pump to deliver the synthetic insulin that keeps him alive. His days are filled with finger pokes, counting carbs, alarms, and checking his devices to ensure his blood sugar levels stay in range. ”If you don’t control it, it could lead to serious consequences,” Miller said. Insulin plays a key role in getting sugar — a major source of energy for muscles and other tissues — into the cells. Without enough insulin, the body begins to break down fat as fuel. This process produces a buildup of acids in the bloodstream called ketones, eventually leading to diabetic ketoacidosis if untreated. This is a very serious condition that can be fatal. To keep on top of this, Miller also uses a Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) system to track his blood levels. “I have to use my machines every hour except when I’m in Weights class,” Miller said. “Every now and then they will go off in class, and some people ask ‘What’s happening’.” Both the insulin pump and Dexcom are inserted into Miller’s abdomen, stomach, hips, legs or arms every few days. Basically, it is like wearing a mechanical pancreas on the outside of his body. When his Dexcom alarms that his blood sugar is above or below normal ranges, Miller can enter the number into his insulin pump which will deliver a correction dose to bring his sugar levels back into range. Of course, there are times that the machines that keep Miller alive can be problematic, but certainly not enough so to prevent him from using them. The machines beep with alarms in

Eric Pugh pugheri10@tcapsstudent.net

hile some students are dreaming about sugar plums and iPhones as Christmas approaches, others gear up to celebrate holidays like Kwanzaa and Hanukkah. Diversity of religious practices and cultural differences is what makes the United States special and unique. Ninety percent of the U.S. population celebrates Christmas. When Europeans came to America, they brought the celebration of Jesus Christ’s birth with them and with that, the holiday that revolves around the act of giving was put into motion. Christmas has become the most popular holiday, one that has been especially commercialized by the image of Santa Claus and shopping on Black Friday and Cyber-Monday. “It means a lot because I have a lot of fun with my family, sharing gifts with one another,” Sophomore Ben Miner said. “I also feel that it is important to celebrate Jesus’s birthday because my family is Christian.” With Christianity being the most celebrated religion with more than 30 percent of the population practicing it, Christmas is celebrated around the world. Freshman Timofey Silkovskiy, who is from Ukraine, has many different traditions when he celebrates the birth of Christ, but his family doesn’t necessarily celebrate it like most would think. “We don’t put up Christmas trees and we don’t have stockings which is a lot more different than most families,” Silkovskiy said. “We also celebrate on Christmas Eve instead and have a big family dinner with traditional Ukrainian foods, like Salo, which is like raw

class, and sometimes, if too much insulin is taken or Miller is over active or does not eat on a regular schedule, he can suffer from hypoglycemia, or blood sugar levels that run below 70 (80 to 120, is considered a normal range). “The machines help because it means less shots for me, and I feel like I have more control over my diabetes,” he said. One time his pump malfunctioned and he had to go back to six shots a day to manage his health. Uncontrolled diabetes will result in major health problems. People with consistent high blood sugars can suffer from blindness, kidney failure, neuropathy, heart disease, loss of limbs, and more. With the available technology, Miller is able to control his diabetes to live a normal, healthy life. As a diabetic in the 21st century, the future is looking bright. Clinical trials to treat Type I Diabetes by replacing the damaged pancreas with a healthy one through islet cell or pancreas transplant have been underway. Also, new insulin pumps with CGMs are being invented, so that one machine can deliver and restrict insulin depending on the user’s blood sugar levels. Of course, Miller has high hopes for a cure in his lifetime. “I hope a cure comes sometime soon,” he said. “It would be a lot less stress, less my parents and I would have to worry about. If a cure comes, I can eat and not worry, and not worry about how active I am. There would be far less complications to worry about, too.”

Zack Millers uses his Dexcom and Insulin pump to track his blood sugar levels after school.

bacon.” For Hanukkah the Jewish commemorate the victory over the armies of Syria in 165 B.C.E., leading to the eight day long celebration held from December 2nd to December 10th. The Jewish holiday involves the lighting of the Menorah, which holds eight candles, one for each day of the celebration. Some other traditions that the Jewish community take part in revolve around cultural foods. “I eat potato pancakes for Hanukkah because it’s a family tradition,” Sophomore Abe Starr said. “I feel like with Hanukkah you spend a lot more time with your family because of how many days there are and the games you play.” Latkes, or the potato pancakes Starr shares with his family are a traditional food eaten over the holiday season. They are eaten to commemorate the miracle of the small source of oil that kept the menorah lit for eight days in Jewish history. Starr might also play the popular dreidel game over the holidays. Eid is celebrated by Muslims and honors the willingness of Ibrahim to sacrifice his son as an act of obedience to God’s command. Prayers, charitable acts, social gatherings, festive meals, and gift-giving are all included in the Muslim celebration, which Senior Omar Nadji takes part in. “We read verses with my entire family and we gather to eat breakfast,” he said. “Some of the traditional foods my family eats is Couscous which is kind of like rice.” Among all of the different holidays celebrated by students, they remain an important part of keeping cultures and sacred traditions alive.

Students celebrate holiday traditions in unique ways

News

The Occidentalist

Crafting the Community Craft show raises money for school

Riley Ashbury ashburyril74@tcapsstudent.net

hether you’re at an expo with hundreds of vendors or a small local craft fair, the researching strategy behind running a successful booth is the same. When you’re planning your booth, it’s important to know your audience, know your goals, and think about the client base you’re trying to attract. “The best thing about it is connecting the school with the community, getting to see the vendors come back year after year, and we get a ton of students that help, too. {It’s nice] getting to walk around and do some Christmas shopping,” English teacher and craft show coordinator Laura Wright said. Wright has her creative side, and has worked many craft shows herself, selling unique photo albums she makes by hand. Eighty-three vendors came to fill the school for the annual event. “Our Mandarin and Cranberry Chicken Salad was voted best product at the Country Living Magazine Fair in Atlanta Georgia, and our Hog Heaven, which is a Bacon, Onion, Garlic and Tomato blend dip is our top seller,” Pam Redman, owner of Pam’s Pantry said. The awards for specialty foods don’t stop there, her business has also won first and second place ribbons, including for “Favorite Booth” in the Marketplace at the Amish Acres. She has traveled far and wide to sell her food items, and has made the school’s annual craft show a priority since 2009. “We do over 300 craft shows a year, like this coming weekend, we have 12 shows that we are doing,” she said. “We have done shows as far west as Colorado, South to Austin Texas, Atlanta Georgia, Nashville, Tennessee and east to Rhinebeck

High scores hurt Navada Richards richardsnav@tcapsstudent.net

t’s not hard to identify a student who is not engaged in class. Their hoodie is often pulled up to shield their face, headphones in ears, arms crossed, they are quiet, and often sit off to the side of the classroom to avoid making connections with others. It may be easy to spot a struggling student on the outside, but their reasons for not engaging may be less obvious. As part of the TCAPS mission statement, the school is committed to helping “all students find success,” and some teacher administaters have begun to look at how childhood trauma may negatively impact learning and attendance rates. The Adverse Childhood Experiences test (A.C.E.) is a tool that determines a tally of possible different types of abuse, neglect, or other hallmarks of a rough childhood. As organizations like the Center for Disease Control have

New York and Washington D.C.” Through its work at craft shows, Pam’s Pantry has been named one of the top 100 Home Based Businesses in the U.S. by Start up Nation. While the craft show is an excellent way for community members to stock up on holiday gifts as the giving season approaches, the real giving comes after the craftshow ends. The funds raised from vendors who rent their booths support student and teacher needs. “The craft show brings in anywhere from 2,000 to 3,000 dollars every year based on booth and lunch Local businesses and craft vendors gather in the Commons to display and sell their homemade products to the community at the annual craft show fundraiser. Photo: L. Wright sales,” Wright said. “Some of the things that are commonly sold are dish cloths, hats, and scarfs and things like that. Jewelry is always big and vendors. The large gym, the Commons, the first floor hallso are Petoskey stones, those are two of our biggest things.” ways, and even the first four classrooms in all wings were Wright estimates that over 1,200 community members came to completely transformed into a marketplace for vendors to shop at the event. sell their various home made goods and products. Each year The 10th Annual Craft Show took a lot of effort from both the number of vendors that apply to particpate in the annual the school and local community. Teachers and students stayed event increases, and the community comes out to support the after school late on a Friday night to set up the booths for the cause as they stock up on their holiday gifts.

ACE scores reveal why some student struggle continued to research this topic, they have found a strong link between ACE scores and risk factors such as drug use, alcoholism, or abuse may contribute to struggles with attendance at work and school, and possibly cause future health risks, like cancer and high blood pressure. The higher one scores on the ACE test, the higher the risk for health and emotional problems later in life. According to the A.C.E test, there are ten types of childhood trauma measured in the study. When staff and administrators consider students who struggle with engagement in school, they are beginning to consider how their background, home life, and childhood trauma may be contributing to their struggles. While one might assume students who slack off in class are simply bored or lack understanding, that’s not always true. They may be “checking out” because they have dealt with trauma by witnessing domestic violence, being a part of it, or growing up with a family member who has an issue with substance abuse. American Sign Language teacher, Jennifer Campbell is studying the effects and relationships of the ACE test and how it may affect student learning. Her background includes a degree in social work from the University of Michigan. “The idea is that these people who have had

negative things happen to them as kids were more likely to have different health risks,” she said. “With an ACE score of four or more things start getting serious and the likelihood of depression increases 460 percent, and the likelihood of suicide increases 1020 percent,” Campbell said. As administrators and teachers realize that students sometimes have obstacles to overcome prior to ever stepping foot into the classroom, the district showed the movie Resilience at a required staff meeting last year, and many teachers took the A.C.E. test to see how their results may have contributed to their own struggles when they were in school. The movie a documentary about how adverse childhood experiences can cause emotional physical health problems, particularly, how toxic stress can trigger hormones that affect the brains and bodies of children, putting them at higher risk of disease, struggles in school, homelessness, poverty, and more. “The idea is if we can look a little deeper for our students and not just see it as here’s a kid who doesn’t want to work, but instead, here’s a kid who grew up in a house, where their dad went to jail, where X, Y, and Z happened to them, school will be lower on

Transformations for TCAPS Ella Rintala rintalaell75@tcapsstudent.net

n the mid-term elections in early November, five new TCAPS Board members were elected in hopes of bringing change to the district. The battle to the ballot was difficult, with 10 candidates campaigning hard in the community for five separate seats on the board. A unique and potentially controversial aspect of this recent election was that Cathy Meyer-Looze, Patricia Henkel, Deyar Jamil, Erica Moon Mohr, and Rhonda Busch ran together as Team 5 TCAPS. This caused more tension than usual and many of the other candidates voiced their opposition to the group running as a team. Ultimately, the voters elected Sue Kelly, Matt Anderson, Pamela Forton and Erica Moon Mohr to four-year-terms and Jeff Leonhardt to a two-year term to serve the TCAPS school district. Now that the board members are established, they must organize themselves before any large-scale ideas can be assessed and improvements can be made. “The first thing we need to do is organize

TCAPS Board members attend a training session as they approach their new positions. Photo submitted by M. Anderson.

ourselves as a Board,” Anderson said. “Somebody will be elected as the Board President, someone will be elected as the Vice President. And then different people will chair different committees. There’s a lot of discovery and a lot of learning as we set out as a new Board.” Sue Kelly had the most experience of all five elected with one four-year term. So, the new Board members must go for training, which includes Board members going to the Michigan Association of School Boards to ensure they are prepared for their new roles. “It’s basically a first time trustee training that will help give us some more details and insight on the position,” Anderson said. After some training, the new Board members will be ready to set both short and long-term goals that will focus on the school community. “The overriding goal is to put students in the best possible condition for success for the next step in their life,” Anderson said. “Our responsibility as Board members is to set the strategic direction of the school district‐to guide its current and future path.” Whether they are making financial, curricular, human resource, or communication decisions, the student centered, collective goal is the Board’s priority. Anderson hopes that people are “comforted with the fact that we have a very diverse group of people with a lot of different walks-of-life.” According to Anderson, the members of the TCAPS community can trust that the new Board members will come together to make good decisions for TCAPS and its students and staff. “Whether it’s teachers, administrators, or executive-level team members, we have a good group of passionate people who are volunteering their time to help make the schools better.”

their priority list,” Campbell said. “I think the idea is for teachers to understand that goes more into education than just what we teach.” There are designated places around the school where struggling students can go to for help. The Testing Center, Academic Assistance, the Writing Center, and an after school tutoring program are put in place to help students.

ACE Scores and how they affect learning With a score of zero on the A.C.E. test students have three percent chance of behavioral and learning issues. When that score increases to a four or higher, students have a 51 percent chance of having behavioral and/or learning problems. As numbers increase on the A.C.E. test, individulas are at increased risk for alcoholism, drug use, domestic violence, depression, and even health risks like increased blood pressure, diabetes, and FIND OUT YOUR ACE SCORE AT: tinyurl.com/ace-test-my-score

School News

The Occidentalist How would you decorate your beard for the Holidays?

“I would put food in it so that I have a snack for later” -Sophomore Sander Breneman

“I would put lights in the beard” -Junior Bailey O’Brien

“I would braid it and paint it green and red”

SMOKE, page 1 students for using illegal products, but in reaction to student complaints about vaping in the bathrooms. “Part of the reason we are doing it is because some students are super annoyed with things going on, particularly in the bathrooms where people want to go use them, but there is a group vaping in there or eating lunch in there,” he said. “So I think some students will actually be pleased because they just want to do their business and move on.” Senior Zack Plank is one of those students. “It frustrates me that there are kids in [the bathroom] vaping, and when it’s passing period, I have five to six minutes and I’m just trying to get in there, use the bathroom and get to class,” Plank said. “I get that some kids have an addiction, but you can go six to seven hours and get through school.” He admits to having missed lessons because he has had to use bathroom passes during class time when he couldn’t get in because students were taking up stalls to vape. Not everyone will be happy about the new smoke detectors, however. “Other students will be annoyed because it checks off another option off their list for doing something they know they shouldn’t do here,” Esper said. “At the end of the day we are a school, we have rules, and want to enforce them.” Esper’s main concerns are student health and ensuring students don’t find distractions from their learning. He thinks the new detectors may help in both areas. “They are not healthy things, they are not good for people, and they tend to be a gateway for people doing other substances that are even more unhealthy,” Esper said. “Also from the school aspect, the point of being here is to learn and be in your classes. There are these areas in the school, by locker rooms, bathrooms, or end of hallways for people, under stairwells; places we know people try to congregate to do illegal stuff, and if people don’t feel safe doing illegal stuff in those places, maybe they will be in classes more and be doing better in their classes, and that will keep them on track to graduate.”

S NOVEM -Freshman Bryce Hoskins

beard

No-shave November is more than just a play on words. Underneath the alliteration, No-Shave November is a month-long journey in which people give a boot to shaving and grooming in order to create conversation and raise awareness about a very serious topic; cancer. “You should participate in Noshave November because it’s only one month out of the year,” Sophomore Zack Koncheck said. This is his second time taking part in the annual event, which first started at the school in 2004. According to no-shave.org, the goal of No-Shave November is “to grow awareness by embracing our hair, which many cancer patients lose, by letting it grow wild and free,” and then participants donate the money they typically spend on shaving and grooming to organizations that support cancer patients, research, and education. Both men and women can get involved in the annual event by simply ditching their razors. Each year at the school, students who want to participate and also compete for a prize, get their picture taken on the first day of November, then again on the last day to compare hair growth. “I like to participate in the world wide event because it really shows my respect to cancer awareness. I do donate a decent amount for Novembeard because it is for a very good cause,” Konchek said. This year’s Novembeard competition was run by sophomore Peyton Wilkening and senior Andrew Amato. Twenty-five students competed for the longest beard, the winner earned a $20 Visa gift card. “I think this is a fun way to get students involved with the school,” Amato said. Senior Max Winkler won the Novembeard contest.

BeingNew a role MODEL UN adviser has big shoes to fill Rachel Silkovskiy silkovskrac37@tcapsstudent.net

fter a 12 year winning streak for Best Prepared team in Michigan, the Model UN team went home with an unfortunate defeat after last year’s Mid American Model United Nations Conference. This sparked some change in the program. Some speculate that the loss could be contributed to new conference rules which were not apparent to all participants, and that possibly the rules were altered to ensure other teams had a fighting chance at winning. “They changed the rules shortly before the conference, and during the conference,” Civics and Debate teacher Charles Rennie said. He was the coach for all 12 previous wins, but this year is handing over the reigns to English teacher Aimee Cole. Although the team still dominated and did well, they were unable to take the title for Best Prepared School because the expectations and judging had changed abruptly. “It’s sad obviously, it’s a long time to have a winning streak, but you win some, you lose some,” Senior Max Winkler, a member of Model UN for three years, said. Rennie brought a lot of experience to coaching the Model UN team. He was on the Central High School team, and taught the class and was the travel adviser for 16 years. In the beginning, the class was small, but expanded within years, winning Best Prepared team for the first time in 2006. “It was kind of magical, [there were] just so many wonderful kids involved in the program,” Rennie said about his years as adviser. While he appreciates the trophies earned by teams over the years, he feels they are just “wood and plastic”. The biggest awards came from the team awards, especially Best Prepared School. “When you win the team award everybody wins and everybody can contribute to the team and feel good about it,” Winkler said. Members of the team and even Rennie felt that last year’s ruling was swayed a bit. “They needed us to take a second place because they did not want to lose any more high schools,” Rennie says, “Our streak was hurting their business.” West’s winning streak was thought to have discouraged other schools from participating.

Writing with Winners Joseph Lyons lyonsjos13@tcapsstudent.net ince its humble beginning in 2019, the National Writers Series has made an impact on Traverse City and the surrounding region. The National Writers Series brings major, award winning writers to the to the Opera House where they read and discuss their writing process with the community. Well-known writers like Margaret Atwood, Lee Childs, Gillian Flynn, Elmore Leonard, Jodi Picoult, Maggie Stiefvater, and Alice Walker, to name only a few, have come to discuss books with the community, including students in the Front Street Writers program at the TBA Career Tech Center. Anne Stanton, the Executive director of the National Writers Series and co-founder with best-selling author, Doug Stanton, said that the series was made in response to observations by her husband of the impact that several trends that were changing the way people approach literature: the massive shift of the book industry to online sales, the disappearance of book reviews from major newspapers, and a declining interest in personal, face-to-face author interactions. The Stanton’s feared that true, meaningful conversations with the public about writing were on the verge of extinction. “We like to say we have conversations on stage about what it means to be alive today,” she said about the The National Writers Series has multiple programs to help aspiring writers in Northern Michigan. The Front Street Writers program

is designed to engage student writers in 11th and 12th grades in the writing process as they explore potential careers and writing crafts in a wide range of creative, professional, and nonfiction writing. Throughout the year, authors who appear at the City Opera House as guests of the National Writers Series stop by the FSW class to talk about writing and their published works. Throughout the year, interviews with authors on Interlochen Public Radio, poetry readings, writing workshops, and Battle of the Books events engage students and eager writers in the writing and reading process. The NWS has also provided $45,000 in scholarships to students who are pursuing writing in writing. Junior Adam Warner attends Forest Area schools and is a student in the Front Street Writers program. “The Front Street Writers class is genuinely the highlight of high school so far,” he said. “I’ve been able to expand my knowledge on writing and English and meet some great people in the process. I’d highly recommend it to anyone who has a passion for writing.” Senior Shelby Brown from Kingsley is in her

Although the team may have been thrown a curve ball the past year, many are confident that they’ll get back on track for winning soon. Rennie is working side-by-side with Cole to prepare her for the next big conference. This year Rennie stepped down as travel adviser, although he still teaches the Model UN class. With big shoes to fill, Cole applied and was accepted as the new Model UN Travel Adviser. To ensure the team is held to the same high standards, and to bring back the winning streak, she is working closely with Rennie to learn the ropes. “She will be able to help the students in ways that I can’t,” Rennie said, referring to Cole’s skills in English that she will bring to the table. Her skills in English grammar will help students write their resolutions, which is a required part of Model UN, as they contain all the proposed solutions to a topic that students debate for their assigned countries. The written resolution is a very important part of Model UN because the ultimate goal of the committee sessions is for delegates to come up with written solutions to the problems they are trying to solve. Cole is grateful for the guidance and expertise of the previous adviser, and she is working to give the teams new experiences. “It is always a bit stressful when you are transitioning into a new role, but I enjoy all of the activities I do with students, so while I am busy, it is incredibly rewarding to work with so many motivated and engaged students, whether that be through service work or learning to be more engaged in the topics that concern them and the world around them,” Cole said. “I am extremely fortunate to have Mr. Rennie and the veteran students supporting me in the transition. The veteran students do much of the work, as they know how to prepare the students best for the conference. We are going to all new conferences this year, so it will be a learning curve for all of us.” The team is working hard within the new competition guidelines and plans to attend new conferences this year, avoiding the Mid-American Model United Nations Conference where they took the loss last year. second year of the Front Street Writers program. Meeting her author-heroes at the NWS events has been very meaningful for her. In the fall she met Dr. Hanna Mona-Atisha, the pediatrician who exposed the Flint water crisis and author of What the Eyes Don’t See. “She told us she wrote her book on the crisis for our age group, and she came over to my classmates and me and she looked so excited to ask us questions, when it should have been the other way around,” she said. “It was like we were the adults.” Brown also said that the Front Street Writers program is a great place to hone writing skills and build a community with fellow writers. “Front Street Writers has changed my life. Our program is priceless,” she said. West alumni from 2018, Paul Oh, is now attending Colorado College. He found his experiences in the FSW program invaluable and believes it prepared him well for his college years. “Front Street Writers taught me to think critically about language,” he said. “It also helped me develop a thicker skin and use criticism as a helpful tool instead of a personal attack. I have actually grown to love critiques.” As the National Writer Series winds down its 2018 season, it is already considering which writers it will bring in for the next season, and will post a list on Dec. 15 on their website for community members to preview and purchase tickets for writing, reading, and speaking events. Students interested in taking the Front Street Writers class at the Travers Bay Area Career Tech Center can contact their counselor or English teacher for more information.

WE CARE st s The season for giving is upon us NHS will also be partnering with the Father Fred foundation again in a Toys for Teens event. “Instead of Toys for Tots we are doing Toys he Student Senate and the National for Teens, because what a lot of Honor people don’t know about Toys Society are for Tots is that the age range for busying themselves that is from infant age to kids our with collecting age,” Senior and NHS member, items for families Michael Carley said. NHS will set in need as the up a trailer to be filled throughout holiday season apthe month of December with gifts proaches. NHS has that are better suited for teenagkicked off a coat ers. and winter gear Student Senate members will drive in correlation Jason Seekamp paints signs for the commons to help be going to multiple areas in the with the Father Fred promote “Toys for Teens” Photo: A. Hansen community, including elementary Foundation, a local schools, to read stories to children. non-profit that provides food, clothing, house“Our main goal is to give as much as we can hold goods, and financial assistance to those with throughout the holidays and if that goal is set we less in the five-county region. will be happy,” Senior Sierra Perkette said. To encourage students to participate in the Other groups are doing what they can to giving season, NHS is giving raffle tickets for help in the community over the holidays. The donated items, which a winner of a $50 Visa gift music wing is conducting their annual sock card will be drawn. Brendon Sonnenberg sonnenbebre61@tcapsstudent.net

drive, which will support students in the STEP program. The band students held their “Band Together” event to collect food and needed hygiene items that were donated to local food pantries before Thanksgiving. Orchestra students will play classical music at events at the Village Market, Pavilions, and Munson. The Titan football program is collecting family wish lists for children and will be handing out gifts to children before the winter break. Players will shop, wrap and provide a special Santa visit on Dec. 19 to distribute the gifts to families in the TCAPS system that cannot afford gifts for their children. There is no doubt, West students and staff care about their school and local community. NHS students will be ringing bells for the Salvation Army, students and staff will serve meals at local churches on Christmas, and others will volunteer to bring in the New Year at the annual Cherry Drop event. It is our student groups that prove that giving to those in need is the best gift of all for the holiday season.

The Occidentalist

Arts & Entertainment

R+J

Freshman see updated version of Romeo & Juliet as they prepare to read the play Tasha Hilborn hilborntas25@tcapsstudent.net

omeo and Juliet is a story of romance and sacrifice. It’s a classic and most students know it, including the entire freshmen class who will read it as part of their ninth grade English class. In mid-november, all freshmen were excused from their fifth and sixth hours to see the updated version of the old classic. Senior Hallie Snowday, who played the lead role of Juliet Capulet, has been in theater for most of her high school career. She finished as a lead in the fall musical, Urinetown, only four weeks before hitting the stage with the Advanced Theater Arts production. Her workload was heavy. “It’s been so cool to have these opportunities to spend so much time on stage embodying these characters and they were both very dynamic ones to play,” Snowday said. “It was a lot of hard work and it was a lot of time actively rehearsing and memorizing, so it’s been a really tiring process but a really, really rewarding one. The shows overlapped so having to develop them separately but at the same time and to get to play with two very different people I think was really cool, and its very fulfilling to get to play with one character after another.” Snowday’s leading man, Romeo, also played the lead role, Bobby Strong, in Urinetown. “It’s very flattering and very humbling,” senior Mason Gratton said. “It’s not something that I’m used to or that I’ve done in the past but it also just gives me a lot of new experiences and helps me improve my acting and vocally as well. So, I think in the long

Top Left: Seniors Mason Gratton and Hallie Snowday kiss as head roles Romeo and Juliet. Top Right: Maria Daniela Castillo performs in a scene at the freshmen matinee. Middle Right: The cast of R&J act out a scene for the entire freshmen class. Bottom Left: Senior Sydney Thomas plays Mercutio, the best friend of Romeo. Bottom Right: Gratton, as Romeo, leans down to kiss Juliet, played by Snowday, when he finds her dead from drinking poision. Photos: T. Crowley.

Bathroom Book Blurbs

Sol Medwed medwedsol84@tcapsstudent.net

ueen, the famous band from the 80s makes their return with Bohemian Rhapsody the movie. This movie is insanely fun and entertaining, even for those who aren’t familiar with the band’s iconic music (like, is that even a possibility?). Unlike some band biography movies, this one gets it right, which is surprising considering that the movie incorporates different tones, moods, and various conflicts. Somehow, Rami Malek and his team of actors playing the band members, pulls it off. Maybe it’s the hysterical costume designs (that look fantastic by the way), or possibly the way everything flows together with nice transitions, that make it believable. For most viewers, however, it is the wellknown music that keeps the audience entertained. The directors were sure to incorporate every one of Queen’s greatest hits. For me, Malek’s portrayal of Mercury was fantastic and believable. He did a great job at pulling off the looks, the feel, and moves that everyone knows and loves about Freddie Mercury. The story focuses on his life struggles and the bands’ conflicts as well as his Mercury’s personal demons. While the band played on, Mercury dealt with his troubled relationship with his dad, his sexuality, and drugs and alcohol. The movie had a few minor flaws that didn’t bother me, but could ruin it for others, especially those loyal fans of Queen. For example, the focus of Freddie Mercury as a character is a double-edged sword in the fact that Malek got him right, but there was a lot of room for more development in the other members of the band. The movie definitely got one thing totally right. The reenactment of Queen’s performance in the legendary Farm Aid charity concert, which at the time was the biggest rock concert in history, erased any doubts I had about the movie. As one of Queen’s most memorable performances, Live-Aid was a dual-venue benefit concert held on July 13, 1985. The movie recreates the entire concert, and it is impossible to sit still and not sing along while watching it. Also, the director was sure to show how this concert was a way for Mercury to make amends with his bandmates, after a troubled split and realizing his time was limited. The emotional battle for Mercury to play with his bandmates at the concert as he refuses to become the “poster boy” for people with AIDS is the most powerful part of this movie, which is a must see for any adoring Queen fan.

run having these roles and having this big responsibility will help me in the future not only in the performing arts but in life in general to be able to buckle down, work hard, and handle that big responsibility.” Written in a poetic, iambic pentameter, the script of Romeo and Juliet is difficult to work through for even the most seasoned of actors. “Memorizing lines was a beast for this show,” Snowday said. “Memorizing lines for a show in the first place is difficult but it’s literally having to learn a show in another language because if you just read Shakespeare for what it is, you will only understand the language on the surface, so you have to dive in into the way that he writes and into the way that old English was spoken.” Since it is a Shakespearean tale with heavy romance, what is even harder for some actors is making the chemistry that clearly portrays the intense love between the two lead roles. Because of their work together in Urinetown in the previous months, Snowday and Gratton brought their own chemistry to the stage. “We had already done the Urinetown thing which had definitely helped a lot because we were already comfortable with each other so it was easy to have those intense romance scenes and have fun with it,” Gratton said. The freshmen were happy to miss a few hours of class time to view the play, and all can use what they learned in their upcoming unit on Shakespeare. “It gave me a visual to base the story off of,” Freshman Megan Holm said. “When I read the Odyssey, it was confusing sometimes, but when I saw the movie, it cleared things up for me.”

Librarians post book summaries in bathroom stalls Hope Thompson thompsonhop04@tcapsstudent.net

n a library full of thousands of books, there are many that go ignored. In order to stir up interest for these overlooked books, librarian Genevieve Minor created the Bathroom Book Blurbs. This brought literary intrigue to an unexpected place— bathroom stalls throughout the school. “The idea behind the Bathroom Book Blurbs is to just get students and staff thinking about the books that we have here in the library,” Minor said. “We hope we can expose many groups of people to titles they might be interested in, but wouldn’t have looked into otherwise.” Minor selects three books for the female population, three books for the male population, and three books for the staff and posts the synopses on bathroom doors to the stalls. The hope is that when someone sees a Bathroom Book Blurb, they will find something that appeals to them to the point that

they come to the library and check it out. Whether students want to read the book because they find it more compelling than what they are currently reading or because they’re looking out for something new to read, Minor hopes the Bathroom Book Blurbs will inspire students and staff to head to the check-out desk in the library. “It’s like an advertisement. That’s what I see it as,” Minor said. “It’s just to encourage people to come to the library.” The nine books which are featured in the book blurbs are displayed behind the circulation desk, so if one catches the eye of a curious reader in the bathroom, the can pick it up easily in the library. Minor tries to replace the books every four to six weeks, especially before breaks when people will have more time to read. Those interested in reading over Winter Break can keep an eye out for new, exciting options and head to the library to check them out.

Seniors Bryden Susalski, Grace Miner, Becca Bohrer perform for the American Idol competition during second lunch in the cafeteria at the end of November. Photo: A. Hansen

Features

The Occidentalist

Seeing the World Alyssa Foley lives in four countries, and travels the world before landing in TC

Taylor Smith-Wagner smithtay56@tcapsstudent.net

xperiencing foreign cultures can change people. Junior Alyssa Foley has lived in four countries: Nigeria, Malaysia, the Netherlands, and the United States. Her parents are geological engineers which required them to move around a lot. Having been to roughly 35 countries, she can’t keep track of all the ones she’s visited, yet there wasn’t a single place that she didn’t like. “I really liked the scandinavian countries like Sweden. I liked Iceland a lot, New Zealand, I liked the places in Asia like Thailand and Cambodia,” Foley said, “I don’t have least favorites places, because everywhere is interesting and has different cultures, and I like experiencing different cultures.” Having been to roughly 35 countries, she can’t keep track, yet there wasn’t a single place that she didn’t like. She has experienced multiple different cultures, but how some neighborhoods in Asia were on water really stood out to her, along with how some people chose to live. “I got to see people who have lots of different things than we have, some who aren’t as fortunate as us or are fortunate in different ways. Then there were people who lived on the water all the time in the ocean basically, so that was cool. In places in Asia they literally live in huts that are built into the ocean on stilts,” Foley said. She even got a little taste of what life would be like without electricity for a few weeks, and she enjoyed every moment. “There’s people who live completely without electricity, but they want to live like that, and they choose to live like that, and are completely content that way, and that’s really awesome. We got to live

like that for two weeks or something on one of our vacations and that was really cool,” Foley said. In other places arounf the world, like Europe, Foley was interested in the history. “In Europe, all the buildings and everything have so much more history there than there is here, so just walking down the street you see a thousand more years of history than you do when you’re walking down the street here,” Foley said. Witnessing other parts of the world had such an important impact on her that she considered her place in the world differently. “It’s definitely shaped my political views, and has made me want to be involved in international affairs because seeing places that kids didn’t have education or water or food or basic healthcare makes me want to help these kids,” she said. “And I also want to have kids in the U.S. learn about different cultures.” Traverse City can feel like a secluded bubble at times, and this is something that struck Foley when she arrived to the area. “When I moved here I saw that people didn’t even know the places that I lived in and didn’t even know where those places were, and that was really shocking to me,” she said. “I just want to make the world more aware. The world is a lot more than just Traverse City, and there is so much more to experience and there’s so many ways that you can experience life. It’s important to always keep that in mind as you go through your day.”

can help students think differently about life. “A lot of people stop drawing and ophomore Arielle Jean is a talented expressing themselves because they’re artist, and she has been painting for worried about what other people will as long as she can remember. Most think,” Jean said. “If more kids drew and recently, one of Jean’s paintings hung on painted, they would be a lot less worried the corner of busy State and Front Streets about all the rules in life. There would in downtown Traverse City. for the enbe a lot more freethinkers in the world.” tirety of last summer. Jean’s artistic accom3 0 0 word story...300 w This was the first plishments are different time Jean’s work had than the usual painter. been put on display for Instead of displaying her the public. Jean’s work paintings in galleries and is very personal to her, art shows, Jean impacts a so having her work in small group of people with such a public place was her art. She often paints something that took pictures, draws birthday getting used to. cards, and makes neck“I feel like for a lot of laces for her friends. people art is like a diary “I use my art to show and I’m definitely one of people that I care about those people,” Jean said. them and that I’m going “It’s not really meant for to put time and effort people to see, but more into something physical for myself.” that represents that I care Jean believes that about them,” she said. more teenagers should be creating art to Whether a birthday card, or art hanghelp them become more confident and ing at the busiest intersection in town, less afraid of criticism. She feels that Jean is happy to touch people’s lives creating art, whatever the medium used, with her work

New teacher inspires

Margaret Novy inspires students to start career counseling “I just try to streamline it as part of the curriculum content and I’ve been doing it for a lot of years,” Novy said. “I’m taking class time to help these stutudents in business class know their future dents prepare for their future.” is in their hands. Business owner Margaret Novy does not just offer help to her students, but Novy is helping them take the reigns as to anyone. She currently owns a company that does they navigate towards it. career counseling. She’s willing to sit with students “I think it’s really, really important,” Novy said. on a one-on-one basis to go over opportunities and “If you’re unsure, it’s normal.” career possibilities as well as the credentials or Though it’s hard to make some students engage, degrees they are considering. she ties multiple activities into her classes in hopes Senior Samantha Arnold is one of the students that they will take the opportunity to prepare who is taking advantage of those opportunities. themselves as much as they can. In Novy’s classes, She is thankful that Novy has given her advice and she brings in guest speakers and applies what she helped her discover some of the things she needs to has learned as a business owner to her teaching. do to prepare herself for her life after high school. Guest speakers have talked to her students about “The way she teaches the class is really interestusing social media to project a positive image ing,” Arnold said. “She tries to do it through projects when applying to jobs and colleges, and has kids that are engaging and prepare me for my future,” build their portfolios to help prepare for the day Arnold said. “I’ve gone to her multiple times for they leave high school. career advice and what type of college I should look “Right now, we’re working on resumes,” Novy for and what I should look for and she’s always a big said. “That will definitely help.” help students in the With Novy’s help, future.” Arnold has figured Novy’s students will out that she needs to also be going over cover look for a community letters and have already college. To become taken career placement an EMT, she needs tests, which allow them specific certifications to explore the careers rather than a four-year and colleges they may be degree, so a community interested in. Whether college would be better the students choose to than a large univertake the next step is sity. Arnold has been their choice. They have accepted and plans to the opportunity to do go to Northwestern more elaborate research Michigan college to about possible career pursue her career. interests. “Not everyone needs “Some are very to go to get a fourengaged because it’s year degree to do the hitting close to home,” job that they want to Novy said. “This is their have,” Novy said. New Business teacher Margaret Novy talks with students during her future we’re talking There are plenty of sixth hour Personal Finance class. Photo: C. Hansen about.” jobs out there that Novy has already don’t require a college helped many students as degree. Students may be unaware of the opportunithey consider what is in store for them. ties they have or their pathway to get there. “They’re either seniors and are unsure so they’re As students consider their future, Novy wants readily seeking out help and guidance and getting them to know that if they are unsure, she is more someone else’s opinion,” Novy said. “Or they’re than willing to talk with them about their interests students who are looking for a job so they want my and what options they have available to them after help with their resumes.” graudating high school. Novy teaches AccountNovy feels that helping students prepare for their ing, Personal Finance, Marketing & How to Start futures is an essential part of her class, and makes a Business, and coordinates the work internship room for it in the curriculum. program.

Holly Yoder yoderhol87@tcapsstudent.net

Debating one’s future A student finds a love for debate, considers how she will use it in her future

Tess Crowley crowleytes33@tcapsstudent.net

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Allie Anglin anglinall31@tcapsstudent.net

ophomore Caroline Griffiths is aligning her career goals through her Debate class. She may be using her high school time to prepare for the future, but her interest in arguing first came while a student in middle school. “I started Debate last year as a freshman because I saw it in middle school as an option and we did class debates in eighth grade for history and it was really fun,” she said. Research shows that students in Debate are able to advance their skills in research, critical thinking, organization, persuasion and communication. Students in Debate see benefits from participation while in school; confidence in speaking situations, improved writing in other courses, and diverse perspectives. “Debate helps you see the argument from both sides, it helps with your speech and ability to write strong arguments,’ Griffiths explained. “Your general understanding of politics and economy grow and you are challenged to come up with ways to support your understanding.” Griffiths also believes her Debate class has helped her improve her communication skills in writing as well.

suited my personality.” Mcallister said. Plenty of people take notice of his hair and often stop him to comment on hit. “I mainly get comments about my hair Students express themselves from middle-aged women saying ‘I wish I had our hair’ or ‘You should cut your hair’, Emma Irvine but these comments don’t bother me.” he irvineemm74@tcapsstudent.net said. here are many way that students express Sophomore Hannah Barth’s bright personthemsevles; for some it is their clothes, for ality is matched by the bright, neon colors others, the way they communicate through in her hair. Three years ago she decided to art. For many students, it is their locks that helps make a bold decision and dye her hair for them make a statement the first. Freshman Mogan Mcallister has been growing his “I decided to dye my hair because I was hair out for four years, and his blond curls are hard simply board of having normal hair colors to miss in the hallways. so I decided to style it in a different way.” “I decided to grow out my hair because I simply Each student is unique, and certainly didn’t like having short hair and I didn’t think it one’s hair helps show this.

“I decided to grow out my hair because I didn’t like having short hair and I didn’t think it suited my personality,” Mogan Mcallister said.

“It helps with argument essays in English, too,” she said. “In debate you gather statistics and lots of evidence, you have to research the topic a lot to make your arguments stronger. If someone brings up a topic that I have debated before it’s easy to shut people down , because you know the topic like the back of your hand.” The skills Griffiths has gained from her Debate class are what she is counting on to carry out her career goals. Her goal is to become a lawyer where her skills in these areas will be crucial. “I want to be a lawyer when I’m older so I thought debate would be pretty interesting to take up, and that’s what sparked my interest”. Although, Griffiths is unsure about that college she would like to attend or what kind of law she is interested in studying, she is keeping her eye on the end goal. “I want to go to a good law school that tests my knowledge and helps me become better at my dream of being a lawyer,” she said. “There are many types of law and I don’t know which one I want to study yet, I hope I’ll figure it out when I get there.”

“I decided to dye my hair because it’s an easy was to incorporate fun colors into my life,” Senior Rebekah Keeder said.

“I decided to dye my hair because I was simply bored of having normal hair colors so I decided to style my hair in a different way,” Hannah Barth said

Sports

The Occidentalist

Making a winning team

A young team takes to the ice Blase Gapinski gapinskibla42@tcapsstudent.net

ith the hockey season just beginning, the coach’s final decisions for players who were going to make the team have been made. The Varsity head hockey Coach for the last 11 seasons, History teacher Jeremy Rintala, had some tough decisions to make to build his team. “We have a lot players trying out every year and unfortunately we don’t have a J.V. team,” he said. With more than 40 students trying out for the season, the team had only 20 available spots. “It’s a really hard decisions by all the coaches just trying to get in their input.” According to Rintala, it is not always about being the best player, but there other factors that come to the arena when choosing a strong, coherent team. “It sometimes comes down to what we need,” he said. “For example, if we need someone that has one type of skill or a type of character, and even work ethic, we try to be as fair as we can.” Throughout the entire tryout week, all of the coaches were involved in evaluating the players. “We try to make the best decision we can for our team. It is definitely the toughest week of the year.” Rintala said. Rintala has had many great season to reflect on as he chooses his team for this year, even though it is a young team. “Every season has its moments that you will never forget. We have won three Regional championship but last year’s trip to the State

Semi-finals was pretty special so that was definitely a highlight,” Rintala said. This season will start out with younger players, as many of the experienced skaters graduated last year. This is forcing the coaches to rethink their training sessions. “Last year we had a large senior group so we have a very young team this year,” Rintala said. “We have a lot of underclassman so we’re Photo: Submitted by Yearbook, Carly Stoops kind of having to start over with some basic skills Sophomore Josh Reece takes to the ice at Center Ice Arena to take the puck at away from a Warren de La Salle player. and change the pace we want to play at so we’re definitely having to change the way we run practices and what have some fun and, win as much as we can.” we expect them to know. We are going at their own pace right Returning sophomore player,Tyler Herzberg thinks that now and getting them ready for their first competition.” this years team shares in Schermherhorn’s concerns, too. This is freshman Michael Schermerhorn’s first year on the “We have a really young team this year and the chemistry Varsity team. With limited spots on the team available, he isn’t as good, but if we all try our hardest we can make it had to work extra hard to get in ice time after just ending his a good year,” he said. He put in a lot time to workouts and football season. drills to earn his spot on the team. “Football was kind of hard because the week after was try“I just grinded during the off season and worked hard,” outs [for hockey], but I tried to get out on the ice as much as I Herzberg said. “I hope we can win the BNC and make it as could before tryouts,” he said. Although he is new to the team, far as we can in the play-offs.” he understands the pressures that the coaches and players are The season is off to a tough start, with the team losing under with the newer team. to both Warren de La Salle and Farmington with scores “Last year I was playing club [hockey] but as far as West of 4-1. As the newer team gains experience and begins to hockey goes, we lost a lot of seniors so were going to need to bond as a succinct unit, the players and coaches hope to practice hard and try to get that back up. I hope to get better, turn things around for the rest of the season.

Trotting along on turkey-day Students rise early to run for a cause

Ammon J. Howse howseamm67@tcapsstudent.net

T Top from left to right: Ryan Durand,Ethan Satchwell , and Luke Krcmarik run in the Turkey Trot race on Thanksgiving morning. Photo. J. Satchwell. Local Runners dress up and run in the Turkey Trot. Photo : Chris Howse

TITAN UP

Sports Recap

Students Anika Dy, Katy Bank, Morgan Lyon, and Brendon Pierce each sign their letters of intent on Nov. 15. Dy will play golf for the Wolverines at U of M, Bank will join the rowing team at Merrimack University, Lyon will run track and cross country at Northern Michigan, and Pierce will play baseball for Wingate University. Traverse City West Hockey had their first games on Nov.23 and Nov. 24. The hockey team lost 4-1 to Warren De LaSalle and 4-1 to Farmington High School. Coach Vaughan was awarded the Regional Coach of the Year by the Michigan High School Coaches Association. This was his first year as Head Coach. The Titan Girls Bowling team won their fourth consecutive BNC tournament title.

See photo story on Girls Cross Country State meet @ tinyurl.com/Occi-Online

hanksgiving Day is a time of stuffing oneself, being thankful, and being around relatives. The last thing most would expect is that people would get up before the break of dawn, in the cold, to run three to five kilometers. Those who doubt the commitment of athletes wouldn’t expect that 2,594 people from the community ran the Turkey Trot Marathon on Thanksgiving Day. Cross Country and Track runner, Sophomore Claire Ackerman listened to the National Anthem before the gunshot that started the race at exactly 9 in the morning. “I think it’s better for more people to run it, because it makes it funner and everyone seeing the people dress up, it’s just fun to see that,” she said.

Alyssa Roland rolandaly60@tcapsstudent.net

ootball is a tough sport, one that requires its players to be fierce on the field. Drills are intense, and coaches tend to work their players hard in order to build resilience and strength when facing the opposing team. Prepping players in a hyper-masculine coaching culture requires a lot of hard work that not all are capable of. “Players and coaches expect 100% effort during every drill, every play, every practice and every game,” assistant football coach Mike Wilson said. “It is not always easy to give that kind of effort every day, all season long.” This football season, Wilson was in the spotlight when, according to a letter written by Athletic Director, Jason Carmien, “he shoved the defensive player down and yelled at him concerning the rules of the live drill. The player landed and hurt his wrist.” As a result, Wilson was suspended from coaching for a week without pay while an investigation was conducted. In the report submitted after the investigation, it was determined that “in this instance, the amount of force used by [Wilson] as the coach was not reasonable as it was not necessary to protect player safety at that point.” According to Wilson, however, he was protecting his quarterback when the incident occurred. Football is a full contact sport that can sometimes lead to injuries during play. Because of this, safety is most important, especially during drills. According to data recorded on ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, high school athletes sustain more than 1.4 million injuries annually, many a result of playing, but sometimes as a result of being pushed to hard at practices. “I was concerned for the safety of the quar-

Ackerman is no novice with her being in the top 220 contestants at the Turkey Trot in 2017, but she doesn’t just run to show off. One of her reasons for running has to do with the Thanksgiving feast. “It makes you feel way better about what you eat at Thanksgiving because you know you already ran,” she said. Race Director, Amy Fritz noted that the race was not only about staying fit over the holiday feasting season, it also about running for a cause. “Brian Hagerty who is the owner of Up North Media started the race because his family would go to other cities and participate in their Turkey Trots and wanted to start the tradition in Traverse City,” Fritz said. “And to add to that, Brian, gives the profits from the Turkey Trot to local nonprofits and Food banks.” The main beneficiary this year was the Traverse Area Recreation and Transportation Trails (TART), a local non-profit that

terback who was exposed without blocking,” Wilson said. Former girls JV soccer coach David Noller received a red card and had to leave the field for arguing with a referee at an away game against Petoskey in soccer. The red card at the game in 1998 resulted in a permanent record that remains in his personnel file today, and Noller said his actions were based on protecting his player. “The play that made me scream at the referee was one that could have injured my player,” he said. “I was concerned that the referee was putting my player at risk.” That outburst earned him his warning. The phrase that led to his red card; “That’s unacceptable” Winning is something that all players and coaches strive for. Winning means college recognition, which means more opportunities for players. Today’s culture and the pressure to be the best is often what pushes players, coaches, and even parents to overstep boundaries. Instances of coaches working players too hard to get to this point are not uncommon. In recent events over the summer a 19-year-old from Randallstown, Maryland, collapsed during an outdoor Terrapins workout on May 29. He died two weeks later. The case brought, once again, the culture of coaching to the forefront, highlighting the idea that coaches who use overly harsh training methods risk causing their athletes physical and psychological harm. Coach Wilson has been a coach, for 25 years, to more than 1,000 student athletes. While his reaction to the incident that resulted in his suspension may have crossed the line, he knows that an important part of coaching is building a meaningful relationship to inspire his athletes. “Effective teaching is about building positive relationships with students,” Wilson said. “We are all most proud of our best efforts and when part of a team, it is extra special to bring the best out of each other. Football teaches so much more than blocking and tackling.”

The culture of

COACHING

When coaches push too hard

is “dedicated to providing recreation and transportation opportunities through preserving open space corridors, building trails and advocating for active living and outdoor recreation.” Freshman Morgan McAllister also ran in the Turkey Trot, and his reason for running had nothing to do with avoiding the guilt of gorging himself at a Thanksgiving meal. “It’s worth it to run that early in the morning because it’s for a good cause,” he said. McAllister, like other runners, paid a fee to enter the race, which funds supported nonprofits like the Salvation Army and food for local food banks. This year’s 11th annual Turkey Trot race was the biggest to date, and with the upward trend of adding more athletes each year, it is expected that the race will increase to over 2,600 runners next year, all competing for a good cause.

Where to B-ball

Players have a choice of where to play Izaya Rokos and Jerek Whitmen rokosiza@tcapsstudent.net

any who love playing basketball have committed a lifetime to training, practicing, and competing. The boys basketball tryouts were held in mid-November, and by the second day some players knew they didn’t make it to the next round. “It made me kind of upset,” Sophomore Landon Hunt said. “I feel like all that time I put in didn’t pay off.” For those players who didn’t make the team due to limited positions, the YMCA offers them a chance to keep playing. Senior Miigwaanhs Barrientoz has been a star player for the team for three years in a row, playing on the Varsity team every year since his freshman year. This year he wanted a change, and is only playing for the YMCA team. “It’s something to do throughout the winter because I didn’t feel like playing this year through the school,” Barrientoz said. “Playing for the school and the district is not exactly the best way to play high school basketball,” Barrientoz said. Barrientoz feels that the Y-team gives him more rigorous play time that he would normally get through playing with other high school students. “We’re playing against real men that have played overseas or they are ex-college players,” he said. Senior Billy Jo Kyser senior also joined the YMCATeam. “I did it because I got cut [last year] and didn’t want to try out for the team,” he said. “I felt like it would be more fun making a team more enjoyable with all my friends. I enjoy being able to run the team as a group, not having a coach telling us what to do so we can figure out our own stuff and progress ourselves.” According to J.V. Coach Lyle Cheever, cutting players at try-outs is one of the hardest parts of developing a team. “It’s the hardest part of my job,” he said. “It’s hard to take away something that a young man wants.” While it is heartbreaking not to make the team, the Y-team offers players a way to stay in the game.