21-22 The Whirlwind - Issue 4

Whirlwind WEST ALBANY HIGH SCHOOL • MAR. 2022 • ISSUE 4

The Roots of Change Never Alone, Always Lonely

Exploring the generational and societal shifts in teen connections Page 28

Is education the answer to climate change? Page 24

Put a Spring in Your Step Three things to do in Albany this spring break Page 26

TABLE OF

CONTENTS

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06

10

14

21 NEWS

OPINION

Ready for What’s Next 04

Activism: Behind the screens 08

New Superintendent Hired 06

The Future of Tradition 09

What’s Up: News 07

Branching Out 10 What’s Up: Opinion 11

SPORTS

ENTERTAINMENT

The Climb to College 12

Put a Spring in Your Step 16

Juggling ‘til you Drop 14

Clashing with the Casting 18

What’s Up: Sports 15

What’s Up: Entertainment 19

FEATURES The Plant: Schools generate a lot of waste. Where does it all go? 21 Growing Downtown: A local business and what they’re doing to promote sustainability in our community 22 The Roots of Change: How West Albany is taking up arms against climate change—is education the answer? 24-25 Thanks for the Gigabytes: What students feel nostalgia for 26-27 Never Alone, Always Lonely: Exploring the generational and societal shifts in teen connections 28-31

CONTACT US

Corrections and Letters to the Editors Please send corrections or comments on this issue to: wahswhirlwind@gmail.com

Cover | Illustration by Mollie Brown T H E W H I R LW I N D

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STAFF Editors-In-Chief Ethan Biersdorff Tori Thorp

Managing Editors

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Eleanor Peterson Melia Rasmussen

Learning to Listen

esides being editors of the Whirlwind, we are people just like you. This likely won’t come as a shock to you, but we all live on this thing called a planet. That planet is called Earth, third planet from the sun, and the only planet known to have life on it as of now.

All in all, we are incredibly unique in the grand space far beyond our horizons. There is possibly infinite space outside our planet, but at the end of the day, we don’t really need to worry about all that yet. We have a lot to figure out here at home first.

Despite what some may say, climate change is as close to undeniable as things get in the world of science. It is widely agreed upon that humans are a large part of that change, confirmed by 97 percent of scientists, according to NASA. We cannot completely halt or reverse climate change, but we can certainly slow it down. We all have a responsibility to this planet, and a good place to start paying this planet back is educating ourselves.

We not only have a responsibility to learn, but a responsibility to take action as well. There are many places to start, with things as simple as using the Chrome extension OpenTabs, which places ads on your default browser and uses that ad revenue for charities, including one that helps efforts involving growing trees. There are also many charities you can directly donate to, like Mr. Beast’s #teamtrees where one dollar equals one tree; or the Center for International Environmental Law, which works worldwide to use the

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law to push against corporate environmental damage, protect rain forests and advocate for the enforcement of environmental protection laws. We don’t all have the financial capabilities to help in such ways however, and if you wish to take it to an even smaller scale, you can look to your backyard, your local parks, the sides of roads or anywhere you feel you can help. Recycling, throwing trash away and protesting are all things you can do to make small differences that add up in really big ways.

If you wish to educate yourself, you can also look to page 21 to find out how the GAPS school district deals with waste, and how they are working towards more sustainable options. On page 22 you will find a timeline outlining the history of climate activism and issues, both of which were created by reporter Gabi Emery after compiling information about the evolution of our understanding of the climate and how the battle against the problem evolved along with it.

Also on page 22 is a profile on a local sustainable business Urban Ag, written by Violet Zinck, showing planet friendly agricultural products, biodegradable packaging and a potential example for other companies to follow. Following that is a story written by reporter Samantha Zimmerman on page 23 presenting steps you can take as an individual to go down a more sustainable path in your day to day life.

There is also the option to join classes and clubs here at West made for that same purpose, which you can read about on pages 24 and 25, where Brogan O’Hare and Mollie Brown give you all the information you need to become a member of activities within the walls of your school that work to educate on and combat against climate change.

This issue - The Environmental Issue--was created in the hope that we can provide a new perspective to some and an enhanced one to others. Our goal is never to change who you are, but to add some passengers to your next hydrogen-powered train of thought.

A LETTER FROM THE EDITORS

Business Manager

Colvin Parvin

Art Directors

Harvest Buchanan Legend Engberg

Photography Director Austin Rudel

Audience Engagement Helen Whiteside Violet Zinck

Multimedia

Cecilia Greene

News

Tyler Stacy Ming Wong

Opinion

Gracie Balkema Brynna Gritter Kenneke

Special

Gabrielle Emery Samantha Zimmerman

Sports

Gigi Roldan Joe Wagner

Arts & Entertainment Coral CwmCwlamare Marshall Hamel

Staff

Kylie Brown Mollie Brown Jose Lopez Ortega Hailey Miles Aubrey Murphy

Adviser

Michelle Balmeo

Tori Thorp & Ethan Biersdorff, Editors-In-Chief

WE WOULD LIKE TO THANK THE FOLLOWING SPONSORS: Blue Level: Sekaye Gaudet Albany Farmer’s Market Mother Goose Resale Sierra Hebert

Brogan O’Hare Cali Stenger

Gold Level:

Sarah Whiteside Aaron + Mickey Parvin Ron and Stephani Rasmussen The Shirley Family Frank and Joan Rasmussen Brigitte’s Place Fine Fabrics Citadel Oasis Mesmer Eyes Lash + Beauty Studio Nicole and Josia Roldan Cathy Summers The Rustic Mason Jar

Bulldog Level: Homeland Excavating, LLC Ruth Mello TnT Builders Patty and Jerry Mello Elizabeth Randleman Rita Crawford Ridgetop Wireless Solutions Inc.

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THE WHIRLWIND is a dedicated student forum. Content and editorial decisions are made by student staff members exercising their rights as protected by the First Amendment and the Oregon Student Free Expression Law (Ore. Rev. Stat. sec. 336.477 (2007)). Opinions are those of The Whirlwind staff and not West Albany High School or the Greater Albany Public School District.

MARCH 2022

Ready For What's Next HOW CONFLICTS ARE AFFECTING MILITARY FAMILIES

Illustration by Harvest Buchanan

Q & A WITH PHILIP SAMOYLICH Ukrainian American senior How does your family feel about the current conflict between Russia and Ukraine?

My mom has friends that live in Ukraine back where she used to live, but otherwise we don’t really know that many people that live in Ukraine because either everybody left or they moved to another country.

Do you guys keep in contact with the people who are living in Ukraine?

Yeah, it’s mostly just through things like Facebook or Instagram, or there's a Russian social media and WhatsApp. T H E W H I R LW I N D

While the rest of the world watched in horror as footage of Russian troops entering Ukraine spread through the news and social media, military families watched with a different kind of worry. Currently, the U.S. is not involved in the Ukrainian war, but the possibility remains. Should Russia attack a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the U.S., along with other membering countries, would likely get involved, putting American soldiers on foreign soils.

Growing up with a parent in the military is already hard enough, and according to the American Psychological Association, this makes up approximately two million children in the U.S. Many children who grow up in this situation have to learn to cope with frequent parental absences, possible harm coming to their parents, and the aftermath of that parent coming home. Having a parent in the military can also, according to sophomore Ben Howell, change one's outlook on war.

Howell’s father served in Iraq until 2007, his grandfather served in Vietnam, and his great-great-grandfather in World War I. Despite the long family history, Howell has no intentions of joining the military. “It’s not really something I’m particularly big on,” Howell said. “I’ve been around someone who went to war my entire life, so he’s giving me those ideas of ‘war isn’t that great.’”

Howell said that growing up around people who have experienced war has made him more of a pacifist. “[I think] that peace should be pursued whenever possible,” Howell said.

Senior Hunter Nelson, on the other hand, is following in his family's footsteps. Nelson’s mother and two of his grandparents served in the Military and Navy.

Have you thought about joining the military or helping in any way?

No, I would not join the military just because it's not really my thing...Well, for most Americans, they can’t find Ukraine on a map until maybe just like a week ago.

But for them, going to Ukraine is not their fight; they have no reason to go. But for my uncles, they feel much stronger becaue that's where they grew up, but in terms of going there and fighting, I dont think that's a very serious idea because Russians know Ukrainians, and Ukrainians know Russians. It's not a fight I think either countries really want.

Do you feel especially close to the conflict given that you are Ukrainian?

Absolutely. I mean, it’s terrible to see images of people that you know, who speak the language you speak. I mean, if you saw Americans getting killed, you

Nelson is following close behind, having recently joined the National Guard.

“I knew I wanted to do military,” Nelson said. “My mom was in the Navy and both my grandparents.”

There’s been a lot of debate whether or not the U.S. should get involved in the war in Ukraine. Nelson said that while he’d be nervous, he’d support the U.S. getting involved. “We’ve seen it before in Georgia, Crimea, and eastern Ukraine,” Nelson said. “They’re putting pressure on other countries, [and] it’s going to continue happening if we don’t do something.”

However, some fear that getting involved might make the situation worse.

“The U.S.’s role would be [to continue] what they're already doing,” senior Gabe LaChapelle said.

“You fight them economically and you provide what weapons you can to Ukraine, but there's not much else you can do without causing something a lot worse that would probably end up with the destruction of Ukraine anyways.”

According to Howell, his main concerns about the U.S. getting involved in the war in Ukraine is the possibility of a draft. “I’m more worried about if it goes on and if there's a draft that occurs,” Howell said, “the fact that highschoolers at West Albany could get drafted into a war.”

While the U.S. does not have an active draft, it could still be reinstated during an emergency by an act of Congress. Men ages 18 to 25 are still required to register with the Selective Service, the agency responsible for running a draft should the need arise.

would feel very strongly attached to it. It’s very sad to see Russians kill Ukrainians, and Ukrainians fight Russians. It’s not just a tragedy, it’s like some part of you wants to help. It's kind of a deeper thing.

Do you feel obligated in any way to help donate or offer shelter?

Yeah, our parents have donated a lot to causes that they know, one of which was the posters out [in the commons]. They donated like $100 or something. It’s not an obligation; it’s more like your duty.

You don’t have to do this, it’s more like your gonna do this.

Why do you think they feel that way?

Not just because they are Ukrainian, but because it is their heritage. They have deep ties to Ukraine, to their country.

Is that people who don’t know a lot about the conflict might not know?

Things like the 2014 Merredin

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coup that overthrew a pro-Russian president and put in a pro-United States president. The Pro-Russian parts of Ukraine that were upset about it broke away from Ukraine are Crimea, Donetsk, and Luhansk, all of which voted to join the Russian Federation. Crimea was accepted, however Doetsk and Luhansk were not.

Anything you would like to add?

It’s a lot of focusing on few things and not the whole picture... You miss the forest for the trees. I think with Ukrainians, there's a very strong sense of pride. A very strong sense of independence.

They’ve always seen themselves as independent and have always had bad feelings toward Russia.

Just as it's like big brother and little brother. There's a lot of acts of heroism and stuff like that. A lot of that stems off of national identity.

Slava Ukrayini, or Glory to Ukraine.

THE HISTORY OF RUSSIA VS. UKRAINE

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WHICH STORIES ARE RELIABLE?

We asked two social studies teachers about the history of the conflict, and how they view it.

y Bryan Wadlow International Issues Teacher

Yeah, there have been multiple interactions between the two. There has always been conflict, but I think most recent to this was in 2014, when the Russian Federation took the Crimean Peninsula.

Kristen Grosserhode World History Teacher Has Russia and Ukraine had any conflict in the past?

There's some longstanding animosity. Ukraine used to be a part of the Soviet Union, and when the Soviet Union fell, the Ukrainians voted for independence from Russia. Like, over 90% of them voted for independence.

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Due to Ukraine not being a NATO country, we will offer financial support [but not more]. So a lot of the work has been outside of NATO. If NATO were to get involved in a non-NATO country, I think implications would be that all NATO countries would have to be on board.

What is being done to aid Ukraine?

Like our first war with Iraq, when Iraq invaded Kuwait, the United States responded to the conflict. Since then, the wars we have been in fighting in Iraq have been kind of an ouster or a push to change the government.

What was the world like the last time we had a major conflict?

I don't think we can take this lightly or think that it's going to resolve itself. I also think it's really a wake up call to the world. I think we had a very long period of peace because a lot of the major nations have nuclear capabilities.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

Trust or Bust

The U.S. is sending aid, but not soldiers to fight. That would be getting very close to war at that point, and that's not something we want. We have done multiple sanctions on Russia. One of the most recent sanctions has been on Russian energy, so no Russian oil, although the United States doesn't rely heavily on Russia oil.

It's argued it is more of a symbolic gesture.

I mean, during the [President Donald] Trump presidency we were worried about war with North Korea, we had our 20 years of fighting in the Perisian Gulf, or the Persian Gulf wars, and people will ask me if we are about to see WWIII, and I'm not sure that will happen.

With the rise of social media, many people turn to sites like Instagram or TikTok for information, but it can be difficult to sort through fact from fiction when anyone and everyone can post whatever they like. According to The U.S. Department of State, here is some common misinformation being spread about the Russian and Ukrainian crisis.

Fiction: The conflict was instigated by Ukraine and the West.

Fact: Russia started the conflict by building a military presence on their side of the border with no such activity from the Ukrainian side

Fiction: Russia is defending ethnic Russians in Ukraine.

Fact: There are no credible sources of Russians in Ukraine being threatened, however, there are reports of Ukrainians in Russia-occupied Crimea and Donbas facing suppression.

Fiction: NATO is a threat to Russia.

Fact: NATO is a defensive alliance that aims to protect its member states and avoids confrontation. NATO countries do not encircle Russia.

Russia has land borders with 14 countries, of which only five are members of NATO. Some reliable sources: CNN has provided exhaustive, on-the-ground coverage of the war in Ukraine.

In any conflict, everyone should be really careful. We always want to find a good guy and a bad guy, but there's just so much more to it than that.

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE CONFLICT BETWEEN RUSSIA & UKRAINE? Senior Taylor Jeanette “I haven't been keeping up with it too much besides for our government class. I do have some huge concerns for the Ukrainians, and I wish we could help them all out more without actually getting involved.”

Senior Lauren Harvey “It’s scary that it could affect us in the future so much, but I feel like things have happened where countries disagree and all that stuff a lot in the past and it hasn’t outright just become a war, so I’m not terribly worried.”

The New York Times has on the ground reporters in Ukraine.

VoxUkraine is a Ukrainian fact checking organization working to stop the spread of misinformation.

Senior Ahmed Rashid “I’m not sure. Well, it’s been going on since like 2014, which most people don’t know. They all just blame [President Joe] Biden for it, they don’t necessarily blame Biden for it in its entirety, but they think he is a weak leader.”

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MARCH 2022

New Superintendent Hired

ANDY GARDNER SHARES HIS VISION FOR THE FUTURE OF THE DISTRICT

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By Ming Wong

n Feb. 3, the Greater Albany Public Schools school board convened for a roughly 13-minute special board meeting in which they announced and voted unanimously to make Andy Gardner the next superintendent of the district. This isn’t Gardner’s first time being a superintendent; he’s currently the superintendent of North Santiam School District and has held this position since 2010, according to information shared by GAPS. Gardner will become superintendent of the district on July 1, as interim superintendent Rob Saxton’s contract ends at the end of June.

How do you view the voice of the community?

I think the different voices are going to be coming from different perspectives. It’s a complex organization, but yet there’s some very simple things that run through our entire organization. Safety of students, students learning to their ability level, exiting with work or college skills. So there’s some things that whatever people’s viewpoints are, they can still agree on those central core outcomes. From wherever you approach, whether you’re from the Chamber [of Commerce], whether you’re a parent, whatever, so it’s going to be about fine tuning that. So I see different organizations or viewpoints. It’s just looking at a different side of that same picture.

How will the voices of the community, including students, factor into your decisions as superintendent?

FAST FACTS

So there’s two student reps on the board. One of the things we have done here, there was one year we missed, but just listening to students at the end of the year, like seniors, about their experience so that we can take their impressions of the district. So listening to kids, I think sometimes you have to really scope what that looks like. But we have two student reps on the board that we would hear from regularly. Of course, being in the schools like we are here we get to know the kids really well, so they’re a little more comfortable talking to us. We’re a smaller district. So I think we’re going to have to be a little more explicit and organize some things where we are listening to kids about their experiences, all kids, but also diversity groups, things like that.

Grew up in Eastern Oregon

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Lived in Albany in the 1990s Loves fishing & camping Principal of Stayton Middle School (2007-2010)

Current Superintendent of North Santiam School District Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA) Executive Board Member (2012-2018)

How do you plan to help marginalized communities in this district?

Well I think there’s already been some good work that’s been done. I think we’re going to have to regularly meet with people to hear from them — how our systems inadvertently marginalize them, make it harder for them. I think we have to be really intolerant of racial epithets, and some of the things that have increased recently. I think that’s really important. I know that [interim superintendent Rob] Saxton is working on developing a strategic plan for some outcomes, among which is to increase the number of diverse staff members in the district. And so as that is developed, of course, that’ll be my responsibility to implement that.

Scan the QR code above to check out the full Q&A

Photo used with permission of Andy Gardner

Famous by Word of Mouth!

Tuesday-Saturday 11 a.m.-8 p.m

www.emmadowntown.net 422 1st Ave W, Albany, OR 97321 (541) 926 1717

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(541) 704-1128 thefirstburger.com 210 1st Ave NW, Albany, OR 97321 06

WHAT’S UP // NEWS

Sternberg: The Soldier Stop Turned Furniture Store HOW A BUILDING IN ALBANY WAS TURNED INTO A HANGOUT SPOT FOR SOLDIERS

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• The most common mortgage in the United States is a 30 year mortgage where you pay off the entire house in 30 years. 15 years being the second most common.

Austin Rudel

A picture of the Sternberg building, also known as Boda Furniture. snacks and socialize. Swoboda explained that this floor was used as an ice cream social area; most people who were going to fight in the Pacific weren’t old enough to drink.

The basement contained an entire bowling alley where soldiers could and bowl. Due to the absence of automatic pinsetters, which weren’t invented at that point, each and every pin was set by hand. An issue that Swoboda mentioned was the hot temperatures that the basement reached because of the bowling alley.

After the war, many USO centers closed, including this one. Later, Swoboda bought it in January of 2003. Since then, Swoboda has been running his business while also doing occasional upkeep on the Sternberg building.

A Student’s Best Friend

HOW HAVING A PET HELPS SOME STUDENTS WITH STRESS

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tress is no stranger to high school students. More than 40% of students in the U.S have experienced the negative effects of stress in their daily lives, both in and outside of school.

MentalHealth.org describes stress as the feeling of being overwhelmed or unable to cope with mental or emotional pressure. There are many strategies that can help students cope with stress: practicing yoga, getting enough sleep, and working on hobbies are just a few.

By Tyler Stacy

An interview with Cole Pouliot, Financial Algebra teacher

By Tyler Stacy

n the corner of First Street and Lyon was a bowling alley, café, department store, ballroom, and even a government issued United Service Organization center (USO). This three-story building currently housing the 22-year old Boda Furniture store encompasses a large array of furniture and offers views of Downtown Albany. Named after the family who originally owned it, this building is called Sternberg.

Owner of Boda Furniture, Chuck Swoboda, explains that the city and county didn’t keep a record at the start of the Sternberg building. “We believe that the building was finished around 1929, but because of The Great Depression it may have not been occupied by the people who originally built it,” Swoboda said.

The time between its original building and 1942 are slightly unclear. In the summer of 1942, the Sternberg building was approved for remodel into a USO center. Initially, $17,000 was put into the remodel and the Sternberg building saw new life.

According to Albany Regional Museum, in July of 1943, the brand new USO center opened in Albany. In November of that year, it was reported that 46,000 soldiers visited the USO, which provided entertainment and relaxation for those who were from Camp Adair or returning from the front.

The top floor of the Sternberg building was used as a ballroom.

“My mom and her twin sister were bussed down from Salem to dance with the Camp Adair men over here at the USO,” Swoboda said.

On the second floor, there are six apartments in which soldiers could stay. Half of this floor was actually missing because it was part of the first floor’s ceiling. The first floor housed the general lobby of the USO center, as well as a pool hall and a place for soldiers to get

HOW TO: MORTGAGES

By Cali Stenger

However, one of the best strategies that may be surprising is spending time with pets. According to Harvard University, studies have shown that a person’s blood pressure significantly goes down after petting a dog. “My dog is a source of comfort to me,” said sophomore Anika Ylen, who has multiple pets including Nugget; an Australian cattle dog mix, chickens, and two cows named Daisy and Sparrow.

Ylen agreed that just being able to care

for and spend time with an animal takes some of the weight off people’s shoulders by fostering a sense of unconditional love.

“It’s very nice. If I’m having a bad day and I go visit my cows or my dog, I feel better, and if I can’t play with my dog one day, I know he will still love me no matter what.”

Stress especially affects students in the spring, as they are preparing for AP exams and finals. With the challenges of

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• 30 year mortgages have higher interest rates, but lower minimum payments. While 15 year mortgages have lower interest rates with higher minimum payments.

• A good rule of thumb is to save up to 20% of the cost of the house you are looking to buy as that is usually the cost of a downpayment on a house.

• Most people try to get fixed mortgages because the payment rate stays the same where as a adjustable mortgage rate has a changing rate.

difficult exams as well as having lots of classes.

“I like to unwind by hanging out with my cat,” sophomore Madison Gray said.

Gray has cared for animals for her whole life, and she said that they definitely help reduce stress. She especially enjoys caring for her horses and her dog, Dolly.

“With the horses, I like teaching them new things, since I compete with them too. My dog is a rescue and it’s been so nice to see her open up and start liking people and new places,” Gray said.

Whether it’s a cat, dog, tarantula, or gerbil, pets could offer a unique friendship and love that can often be therapeutic for their owners.

MARCH 2022

Activism: Behind the Screen SOCIAL MEDIA IS A STRATEGIC, THOUGH SOMETIMES INAUTHENTIC, MEANS FOR ACTIVISM

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ocial media has changed and developed so much throughout the years. It has expanded into a global phenomenon. It has become prominent in today’s society, and it has influenced many major events around the world. People using social media get to share their lives through the internet.

They get to talk about their passions and hobbies, and give the world a play-by-play.

However, some people use social media, like Instagram and Twitter, in not so helpful ways. They are using social media, and the problems occurring

in the world, for personal gain. When people truly care about what they are posting, you can see it. Long captions, explanations, stories. Although this is what activism should be, your opinions rising up and boiling over for the sake of a change, there is a large amount of the population who say they are interested in something controversial just for the attention and the likes.

Social media is a wonderful thing that can connect people all over the world, but

OPINION OF THE WHIRLWIND EDITORIAL BOARD

72% of US adults 18+ use social media

75% of US adults use Instagram

73% of US adults visit Youtube regularly

QUIZ

grown and grown at a tremendous rate.

Social media isn’t another fad. It’s here to stay, with numbers still climbing.

Performance activism isn’t leaving anytime soon either. Because of social media, people are allowed to get even more lazy

TikTok has over 800+ Billion users Statistics compiled by Maryille University

nothing to the actual cause that these people seem so passionate about; it only grows their platform.

Especially with all of the death and problems going on in Ukraine right now, people are starting to speak about the injustice that is happening, and yet in the mix of videos of destruction and terror, we are getting people who say they care, but do nothing to help the cause.

Social media is a tool of mobilization and interaction meant to stimulate conversation, and grow change; but even with the large numbers of the population using social media, you still get those fake people who pretend to be invested in a cause.

The number of people utilizing social media is insane, and since the first social media site was launched, the number of users has

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at the same time it becomes a breeding ground for not so pleasant things. For example… performance activism. Performance activism is activism done to increase one’s social capital rather than because of devotion to a cause. It gives

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when it comes to “their cause”, putting on the facade of a caring person, when in reality they are reposting, and blindly agreeing with the masses.

There are a lot of problems associated with social media, especially when it comes to politics and global issues.

People get banned all the time for post ing inappropriate things because people put their ideas out there, and things get heated.

People should have integrity over their own actions, and over a device. They shouldn’t be alluding to a cause they don’t support.

If you plan on putting your cause up on social media, or spreading it around your social circle, at least back it up with actual support. Social media is an outlet to share your life story, not false truths. Back up your claims, make a difference, and do good on and off the screen.

The Future of Tradition WEST IS IN NEED OF SCHOOL SPIRIT NOW MORE THAN EVER

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By Brynna Gritter Kenneke

t our high school reunions, we won’t talk about school. We’ll talk about our favorite teachers, old friends, and who was dating who… but most of all, we’ll probably talk about COVID-19. This pandemic is part of history, and our high school experiences will be forever impacted by it. Now, as people start to discuss ‘returning to normal,’ it reminds us of what we have been missing and what gave West Albany its unique school culture that thrived before the pandemic.

Not only are the underclassmen of this year new to high school, only this year’s senior class has seen a full year of high school inside the walls of West, from pep assemblies to prom to the carnival-like end-of-year spring picnic.

By next year, only a small number of students will be here to pass on the traditions and spirit that give our school character, something they proudly inherited from generations before them.

West has the motto, ‘Where Excellence is a Strong Tradition,’ but a lot of our traditions have taken a hit from lockdown, distance learning and pandemic-related restrictions, like social distancing. While those measures were important, we are now moving to a more normal school experience, and we should take the time to rekindle some of the best parts of West Albany with a new emphasis on the importance of making our time here worthwhile. It is far from too late to find the collective spirit of the student body, but we need a new awareness of how important these feelings of unity are.

Many students struggled through distance learning and are returning to school with one goal: surviving high

When asked what traditions they missed most, multiple juniors and seniors said they missed pep assemblies. This is what they rembered made them so special:

Illustration above by Harvest Buchanan Photos below from 2019 WAHS Yearbook

school. In these uncertain times, students are giving their all just to pass classes and make it through the day, but school shouldn’t just be about getting to the finish line.

High school is a time to have valuable experiences that allow us to learn more about ourselves and the world. It is understandable that isolation made us lose motivation, but this is leading to many students missing out on being a part of our school.

This loss of school spirit and culture is sad to see in a school known for its unique student culture, but we can still bring back these traditions, and now we have the chance to do even better, spending more time making sure every student has a chance to feel welcomed and experience West the way they deserve.

Ultimately, the choice to have a rich school environment, or to just spend four years for a piece of paper without gaining anything more from our time and hard work, is up to each of us.

The staff and leadership class of West can only do so much with all their hard work. We need to make a conscious choice to improve our school for ourselves, our peers, and future students. This means making an effort to connect with other students beyond our immediate small groups and reaching out to others who share this space with us.

In past years, traditions have been passed on from upperclassmen to younger students through assemblies and demonstrations at events throughout the year. But with COVID-19 rules, we haven’t been able to have nearly as

I miss how much energy we had as a school. It felt really cool to be part of a community.

Sachi Wrigley The atmosphere of the pep Senior assemblies and the juniors and seniors singing our alma mater as we left.

Ky Barksdale Junior

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many of these experiences as usual. This means we must find new ways to interact with others. Juniors and seniors need to find new ways to inspire underclassmen to actively enjoy their high school experience, and younger students need to be ready to learn and find our own places in the school community.

With the relaxing guidelines and increasing likelihood of us returning to a much more normal-seeming school life, it’s tempting just to go back to exactly what we know, how things used to be. However, going straight “back to normal” prevents us from learning anything from these events. This is a golden opportunity for us to take a look at what was working and what wasn’t, and make changes that promote inclusivity. This year, some great steps have been taken to welcome more students to comfortably share experiences, like the scholarships given out during Culinary food truck day, and the welcoming of non-binary students to join Powder Puff and Powder Tuff, and we need to move even further in that direction.

Overall, in order to make West a better place, we students need to actively work to make our education better for us, and give what little effort we can to make it fun and worthwhile. While some students might argue that there’s no point in unnecessary effort when we’ll all graduate soon enough, even seniors still have plenty of opportunities to grow as people and make their lives better. After all, we spend over 35 hours a week within these walls, over 1,200 hours a school year. It stands to reason that we should try to make the most of it. So, strike up a conversation with someone new, cheer with the rest at the next event, try something interesting and different.

Don’t let the dreary monotony of lockdown follow you to college.

It was just fun to be all together and feeling the school spirit, and it felt really cool to have so many kids together.

How loud everyone Ally Willard was, how we would Senior group together in the band and scream.

Hannah Ebbs Junior

MARCH 2022

Branching Out

MILITARY RECRUITERS BRING POSITIVE OPPORTUNITIES TO STUDENTS AT SCHOOLS

E

By Melia Rasmussen

veryone recognizes the posters depicting Uncle Sam aggressively pointing at the viewer, “I WANT YOU” in capital blue letters at the top.

The last significant uptick in people enlisting in the military was between 1964 and 1973, during the Vietnam War, where a third of the serving men were drafted. Active personnel reached over 3.5 million before the war grew too, according to the website History in Pieces.

However, this isn’t the 1960s. Modern problems require modern solutions.

During school registration, there were papers taped around the school telling juniors and seniors to fill out a Google Form if they didn’t want to be contacted by the military. Even so, military personnel are still allowed an opportunity on campus. If college representatives are allowed to send little green slips of paper to students to

Similar to the draft from the 1960s in that those wealthy enough were able to afford higher education, but the working class had little option.

Strangely, the U.S. Army based in Kentucky had a Twitch account in 2020 where A common table layout when military recruiters visit they gave away prizes and links that sent the school, displaying papers for contact imformation, viewers directly to the Army recruitment free pens, and other informational pamphlets. form. Twitch flagged them when the Army and Navy esports teams started banning Someone should raise their hand to take that oath because viewers who pointedly asked about war crimes, which they genuinely want to and because they have all the inTwitch said was a violation of the First Amendment. And formation possible. Being able to ask someone millions while the Army banned the use of TikTok on government of questions because one’s confused about life after high phones in 2019, some still used the app to bribe people school shouldn’t be condemned, it should be normalized to join. just as much as talking to people in other professions. It’s That’s not to say recruiters should be locked out of a method of reaching out that other businesses and occuschool. People’s actions can give their organipations don’t use, and it shows the military’s willingness zations a bad reputation, but that doesn’t mean to listen, to help, and to make people feel welcome. everyone should be seen or treated the same way, especially if they actually perform ethically. The approach the military takes to present With several themselves at the school is quite commendable. family members Compared to colleges that send piles of emails, with military backgrounds, or spam callers that are so common that people senior Lauren made apps to combat them, the military is ironHarvey had ically docile. Their presence at this school is the no doubt what opposite of aggressive as they stand casually and she wanted to wait for students to approach the table on their do after high school. Starting own. After that, recruiters such as PO1 Nicolas at the Air Force, G. Ensign are more than happy to answer any PO1 Nic Ensign (right) poses as senior Paige WheelHarvey made her questions thrown their way. Or, in Ensign’s case, er (left) writes her contact information for the Navy way to the Air prompt kids to ask questions about his sleeve during a visit on March 2 National Guard tattoo on his left arm. for a better fit.

“I went and talked to the recruiter at “When I was 17, I had no guidance in my life, school because I knew the day that he was inform them of a meeting, military recruiters are allowed and I wanted to travel. That’s why I joined the Navy,” coming to school,” Harvey said. “I signed up the same access, per federal law. But instead of handing Ensign said. “I want to help kids figure that out as well.” for the military thing back in my sophomore out flyers, recruiters post themselves in the lobby with a He estimated that 30 to 50 kids ask them questions each year when I said I was interested.” table containing free pens, informational papers, and a visit, and about five people decide to sign up to join the Harvey was sworn into the 142ND Wing in Dec. of 2021, and will be going nice uniform.

Navy afterward. into Non-Destructive Inspection shop for In the Career Center, Lynn Magnuson schedules the Ensign said that being a recruiter is voluntary for three aircraft and equipment. recruiters to visit during lunch, but school administrators years, and those interested sign up in the initial contract “I think a big part of why I was able to have the authority to decide who can arrive and the des- with the Navy. From there, they’re assigned schools to swear in so fast was because I was seeing ignated area for them to occupy. visit based on the job they chose. Creating good relationmy recruiter [Sergeant Zach Scribner] at school... Instead of when you email someSince the official draft was abolished in 1973, enlistships with the school is key, so any form of aggression one, and they don’t get back to you right ment has relied on voluntary commitment. In the past, to students is not the way to remain in good graces of away. It was easier to plan out getting a rumors that recruiters purposefully went to low-income administration, nor is that good for any form of reputahold of him.” high schools and tried to sell them on joining. With bention building.

Harvey said that she’s most excited to efits such as health care, housing, job training, and life “I care about finding leaders, and leaders can come travel to interesting places in Europe, such as Germany. The NDI shop, Harvey said, insurance after retiring, high school graduates with limfrom low income schools like I did, or rich schools who gets deployed about every two years or so, ited options might not see easier courses. Or children of pay a lot of money for [stuff],” Ensign said with a wave but only in six month increments, so she’ll immigrant families might see the opportunity of educaof his leather watch-bound wrist. “You find those people be able to come home more frequently. tion programs to ensure their future financial stability. everywhere. It doesn’t matter what school it is.”

THE WHIRLWIND

10

WHAT’S UP // OPINION

Under the Influence

Hot Takes: Masks Edition

HOW MUCH DO TELEVISION SHOWS ACTUALLY INFLUENCE THEIR AUDIENCE?

T

By Jose Lopez

he presence of serious topics within T.V. shows has risen over the years, with shows such as “Euphoria” and “Skins” becoming popular in the entertainment industry, as well as a must-watch for teens. Mental illness, substance abuse, disabilities and other controversial topics are often covered in these types of more mature television.

Drug use in “Euphoria,” an ongoing T.V. series, is followed by a colorful, aesthetically pleasing high. Characterized to be enjoyable and a solution to the characters problems through the bright blue and purple shades, it’s a glamorized interpretation of what

answers “Oh wow…I was really... I didn’t eat for three days so I could be lovely.” This graphic inclusivity of the number of days Cassie has gone

By Legend Engberg without eating comes off as extremely triggering and encourages teens to grow dangerous habits.

Even if the messages of these pieces of media are intended to warn viewers of the dangers of these real life issues, the damage is still be-

drugs feel like. It could bring curiosity to impressionable teens watching, encouraging them to seek out this portrayed high. In season one, episode two, two of the main characters take oxycontin. The hue of the show’s color palette switches to bright purple and dark blues. While under a childlike fort made of fluffy blankets and pillows, the two characters stare into each other’s eyes whimsically. They giggle and smile in awe as time around them seems to slow down.

Mental illness lives at the heart of other T.V. shows such as “Skins,” written by Bryan Elslen. One of the main characters, Cassie Ainsworth, suffers from various mental illnesses, mainly anorexia. She shows clear symptoms throughout her screen time, and avoids eating as a coping mechanism for her unreciprocated feelings of her love interest, Sid. This coping mechanism is shown in dangerous detail during season one, episode five. After Sid cancels on his and Cassie’s plans one night, Cassie, in a haze,

ing done. In the case of Euphoria, creator Sam Levingson states what he hopes will come out of the show’s take on drug use. “If anything, I hope that it at least opens up a dialogue between the two, because it’s hard being a teenager. It’s difficult, especially if you’re struggling with addiction and battling those things. Hopefully it’ll open up those means of communication.” Obviously the creators of these shows do not have ill intent, but the negative effects on viewers are still apparent. Even if they are made to educate, the dark themes still gravely impact their viewers Whether intentionally or not, this surge of serious topics within popular media is an influential aspect affecting teens and adults today. Not to say they should be canceled or be discouraged from being made--it is art, whether problematic or not. The real issue lies in the culture surrounding the viewership of these shows; the easy access and disturbingly casual talk around them results in an outcome that completely contradicts the message of the shows.

Some say masks are still necessary, others think it’s been long enough.

In any case, mask mandatory status was dropped on Mar. 14. Here are some student’s Hot Takes!

Josiah Sloan Senior “I’m not wearing it, I think it’s good ‘cause I can finally breathe, but respect to people who will still wear. it”

Khylin SanchezHernandez Senior “I don’t want to take off my mask until I see other people not get sick..like a green light.”

Cynthia Barron Junior “Personally, I feel like we’re doing fine with masks on and getting rid of them will get people sick.”

Cut the Week SHOULD WE HOLD SCHOOL ON FRIDAYS?

M

By Harvest Buchanan

ore than 1,600 school districts in the U.S., including 137 of Oregon’s schools, have implemented a system that cuts out a single day from every week according to a study by Associate Editor Steven Sawchuk on Education Week. This makes Oregon the fourth-highest number of school districts with the implemented four-day school week in the country. The thought of a smaller school week sounds like a great idea, considering waking up early five days a week to go to a place where you have to learn things you never wanted to even hear about doesn’t exactly scream “fun”. It’s hard to focus on things that you enjoy when you’re stressed out all the time about assignments, future projects, and school in general. Not every student is able to spend all their time out of school working on assignments, and they begin to fall behind without being able to help it. But would an extra day off of school really help?

High school students need a break in between all

the schooling and homework, something a little longer than the two days that are usually spent working, rather than relaxing. If the weeks were shorter by just one day, wouldn’t that make students feel better about their work and home environments? Probably not. While the prospect of an extra day on the weekend every week sounds like a wonderful idea, the drawbacks of having fewer days to learn at school may outweigh the benefits. According to a report from Lamar University studying the pros and cons of the four-day school week in the U.S., schools that have implemented a four-day school week don’t always see the desired results.

Schools usually have to extend the school hours once the fifth day is cut, which stresses out students, especially those in elementary school. Not only that, but some families struggle with finding a way of caring for their students on that day off because of situations outside of school Studies for each school that implemented this sys-

11

tem differ widely. A study reported by Paul Thompson, an associate professor of economics from Oregon State University, focused on 137 schools in Oregon that adopted the four-day school week. It showed a temporary decrease in performance, mainly in minority, low income, and special needs students.

It is hard to draw conclusions from any of the data because of how inconsistent it is around the US. It may be better to leave the week as it is because an inconsistent schedule would likely be much worse for students, especially during times where students miss much more school due to COVID-19 and other related diseases. To be frank, the answer to the question “Do you need an extra day off?” is a no. But there is room for compromise here. Students don’t need time tacked on to the rest of the days they get, and the stress of transitioning schedules and such would be way too stressful. So schools can instead try to find time to build in what is called a “passion period” where students are allowed to do work that they are most passionate about under the supervision of a homeroom or study skills teacher. We don’t need less days, we need more time to work on the things that we are actually interested in pursuing as a career path.

MARCH 2022

The Climb to College TRENTON WORDEN

Salem University Water Polo

While water polo may be a lesser-known sport to many, to Trenton Worden it’s everything. Since freshman year, he’s been playing (and loving) the sport. Though he wasn’t anticipating the sport to score him any financial aid for college, Worden is now going to Salem University in West Virginia on a water polo scholarship, working towards a career in real estate. “I wasn’t actively seeking out colleges and it felt so good that people were seeking me out to play for them,” he said.

Worden is a multi-sport athlete, also a part of the school’s competitive swimming team. However, he much prefers water polo. “I don’t really like swimming,” the senior admitted. “I prefer polo because it gives a purpose to swimming.” Although he’s partial to water polo, Worden has acquired valuable skills from both sports. “[They’ve] taught me a lot of lessons that are applicable to school,” he said, “like working hard and getting things done that need to get done.”

Since signing with the school, Worden has researched his future team. “I’m nervous to measure up to my fellow teammates…They’re really good, and it’s really scary,” he said. Even so, the athlete is excited for his time at Salem University. “I’m looking forward to the competition level being a lot higher than high school polo,” he said. “I have more fun when games are higher stakes.”

Worden is grateful for the opportunity to play his sport in college, and thankful for his time with both swimming and water polo at West Albany. “I feel like they helped strengthen my work ethic, and helped me to see that the only way I’m gonna improve is by working hard. It’s such a valuable lesson.”

WHY FIVE WAHS ATHLETES HAVE COMMITTED TO

SYDNEY HARRINGTON Virginia Commonwealth University

Volleyball

Sydney Harrington began playing volleyball when she was in seventh grade, a mere five years ago, making her an underdog when she began playing in high school. “I know a lot of friends that started playing in third or fifth grade, so I started pretty late,” Harrington said. “It really felt like I was at the bottom of the food chain.”

Regardless of her start to the sport, Harrington was determined to improve. “I like to be good at things, and I didn’t like that I wasn’t very good at volleyball when I started.” Harrington’s hard work must have paid off, because she’s now committed to play volleyball for Virginia Commonwealth University, and has three out of four of her years there paid for due to an athletic scholarship.

However, Harrington was required to make a quick decision. “[Coach Jody Rogers] told me how much she was willing to offer scholarship-wise, and then she told me that I only had a week to say yes or no.”

Thankfully, it was a fairly easy choice for the senior. Between the school’s Division One volleyball program and acclaimed College of Humanities and Sciences, Harrington was able to commit to the school with ease. “VCU has exactly what I want to study—I’m planning on doing psychology and they have a phenomenal social sciences program,” she said.

Though Harrington feels nervous about being across the country from her family and friends, she’s incredibly excited to further enrich her volleyball skills. “I’m just excited to get to play the sport that I love as much as I possibly can,” Harrington said.

“The level of dedication [on the team] is going to be the same as mine, and so it’s going to be a completely different environment.”

Playing high school volleyball has taught Harrington countless valuable life skills, as well as helping her meet lifelong friends. No longer the underdog, Harrington says that her success has given her “that amazing feeling when you work hard and earn something…It’s driven me to go for the feeling more often.”

T H E W H I R LW I N D

12

NATHAN MARSHALL

Lane Community College Baseball

Since he was just four years old, Nathan Marshall has liked the idea of hitting a ball with a bat, but little did he know that baseball would carry on to be a passion for the majority of his life as a young adult.

The now-senior says he “started off with t-ball and then moved along to baseball,” and simply “fell in love.”

Even when complications arose, Marshall’s dedication to baseball remained strong. In middle school, the athlete practiced in Portland three days a week and commuted to Seattle for tournaments nearly every weekend while still keeping up with his school work. “The biggest challenges were probably the driving and logistics…I had no time for myself,” Marshall said.

However, the sacrifices Marshall made were worth it. Now, he’s preparing for a new chapter of his athletic career: college baseball. In August of last year, he went to visit Lane Community College in Eugene and was offered an athletic scholarship. “I was super excited because I’ve been working for a pretty long time to get where I am,” Marshall said.

Though he’s committed to Lane, Marshall’s story with baseball is not yet over. He plans on attending the college, honing his skills, and then pursuing a Division One school. “Since Lane is a community college, I want to get in and get out,” Marshall said.

He plans to study something in the business field, perhaps to become a sports agent.

“My life is baseball, and I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Marshall said. “I love it.”

TED TO CONTINUING THEIR ATHLETIC CAREERS IN COLLEGE HAILEY HEIDER

Sam Houston State University

Volleyball

By Helen Whiteside

BROOKLYN STRANDY

Portland State University Basketball

THANK YOU’S FROM THE STUDENTS Harrington wants to thank her coaches for being exceptional, her parents for understanding the stress that comes with college sports, and her teammates for being her biggest supporters.

Worden would like to say thank you to his parents and water polo coach, Rob Nelke, for being his biggest supporters.

“Volleyball is definitely my thing.”

Senior Hailey Heider has known this for over seven years, starting to play the sport when she was in just fifth grade. Now, she’s going to Sam Houston State University on a full ride athletic scholarship, planning to major in biology.

“It was such a relief because the long recruiting process was over. I didn’t have to worry about it anymore,” Heider said. “I’m getting college paid for, which is so crazy and unbelievable…that’s a life changing thing that not everyone gets to experience.”

For years, Heider has been inspired to pursue volleyball for a multitude of reasons, one being her role model Haylie Bennett. The athlete was an iconic volleyball player on the Oregon State team for years, before pursuing a professional career within the sport in Paris, France. “I watched her play Oregon State for five years and then watched her go pro…Following another Hailey that’s doing exactly what I want to do…it just made goals for me that I didn’t know I had,” Heider said.

Although she’s now accomplished one of her biggest athletic ambitions, Heider still has a few worries. “I’m probably most nervous about playing time. Not being able to play would be my biggest fear for my freshman season,” she said. In volleyball, there’s also the matter of height especially when it comes to Division One. “I’m only 5’11 and most girls are 6’1 or bigger,” Heider said.

However, just as she’s overcome hardships in the past, Heider is confident she can make it over any struggles she may encounter in the coming years. “I know I have to work harder than an average student who doesn’t have that kind of extracurricular…It just makes the hard work worth it when you get the things you want.”

Less than two percent of high school athletes play their sport Division One in college. Included in that percentage, however, is senior Brooklyn Strandy, who will be continuing her basketball career at the higher level of competition this coming fall.

“I’ve played soccer, volleyball, track, cross country…but I really stuck with basketball,” Strandy said. “I fell in love with it at a very young age, and I knew that’s what was for me.” In October of 2020, Strandy was offered a full ride athletic scholarship to Portland State University and committed to play basketball for the school the following July. “It was my first offer, which means a lot,” the athlete said. “It’s my dream school.”

Though Strandy is eager to start her journey at Portland State, she has her concerns. “I think going from being a leader and a main player on this team to not knowing my role next year is what I’m most nervous about…I’m going to be stepping into a new role,” Strandy said.

Nevertheless, Strandy is optimistic about her time at PSU. “It’s a very urban campus…literally downtown Portland, and for me that’s perfect,” she said. “I think I’ll fit in well there.” She plans to study applied health and fitness, focusing on kinesiology.

She hopes to someday work for the Chicago Bears athletic training team.

Basketball has molded Strandy into the person she is today, and for that she’s forever grateful.

“Basketball means everything to me. If basketball isn’t going well, I’m not going well. It’s my life line…what I’ve had from the very beginning, and what I want to always have,” she said. “It’s the most important thing in my life and my first love.”

Marshall wants to say thank you to his family for coming to all his games and always supporting him, as well as his coaches for pushing him to work harder every day. He’d also like to thank his grandfather, for driving him everywhere and teaching him that “hard work is the only way to get to where you want to be.”

Heider would like to thank her parents and coaches for pushing her to play at the level they knew she could, as well as her team for being her best friends.

Strandy would like to thank her parents for being her biggest cheerleaders. “My mom and dad have always been there, constantly supporting me in my dreams.”

ADVICE FOR YOUNGER ATHLETES Worden would say to keep working hard, without losing sight of the end goal.

Harrington would like to tell younger athletes that their hard work will be worth it, and to nourish their relationships with teammates, because “there’s nothing better than the family that comes with playing competitive sports.”

To younger athletes with big dreams, Marshall urges them to “work as hard as you can when you’re young...Don’t take anything for granted.”

Heider would like to advise younger athletes to strengthen their bonds with teammates. “If you don’t like each other off the court, you’re not gonna connect on the court,” she said.

Strandy would like to advise younger athletes to do whatever it takes to achieve their dreams, warning them that “there will be times where you need to train when your friends are partying, and you’ll have to get up early or stay up late doing what you need to do...You have to make sacrifices in order to stand out.”

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Photo credits: Trenton Worden, Sydney Harrington, Nathan Marshall, Hailey Heider, Brooklyn Strandy

MARCH 2022

Juggling ‘til you Drop

HOW DO ATHLETES PLAY SPORTS AND KEEP UP WITH THE REST OF THEIR LIVES? Story and Illustration by Gigi Roldan

A

n athlete’s schedule consists of waking up, going to school, going to practice for their sport, then going to sleep. Adding in homework, eating, naps, jobs, and more, everything gets even more complicated.

“You don’t have enough time to do what you want to do for yourself,” junior Taylor Lumpkin said. “If

“

YOU DON’T HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO DO WHAT YOU WANT TO DO FOR YOURSELF

you want to do a sport, you will have to have a lot of dedication because it takes up your time.”

Students have to get good at managing their time, especially if they have classes that give out a lot of homework or if they have an after-school job. “[Sports] can fill your schedule… It’s hard to find time to do what you want,” senior Kendra James said.

Despite some of the drawbacks, many students

THE WHIRLWIND

14

find the constant organization of their schedule helpful. “Practicing every single day and getting pushed to get better… it definitely keeps you going,” Lumpkin said. Athletes are often able to stay in shape and pick up a new sport quicker when transitioning between seasons, due to having already been in shape.

“It’s an outlet for if I am stressed from school or other things outside of school,” James said. Students are able to use practices to have a few hours where they can just focus on working out and practicing for their next game.

“You will have a little time to not worry about school while playing,” basketball coach Derek Duman said.

Students even find themselves being able to meet new people through sports, gaining a team that will support them in and outside of sports. “Some positives are making friends and keeping healthy, though mostly making friends. Most of my friends are from sports I’ve played,” sophomore Austin Simmons said.

Despite how brutal it can be having to constantly be shuffling between different parts of their lives, these athletes have shown that it often is worth it in many ways, from friendships to learning valuable life skills. Sports may rough up its players, but they will just come back twice as strong.

WHAT’S UP // SPORTS

State Champion

A Season in Review A LOOK AT THE GIRLS BASKETBALL SEASON

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By Ethan Biersdorff

ith the West Albany girls basketball season com-

Despite the early end to the season, Stinson still feels incredi-

ing to a close, there is a fair amount to reflect on.

bly proud of his team. “I still feel, even after the season, we’re the

Despite not taking the division title, they end-

best team in the state even though we didn’t get it done,” Stinson

ed with a 17-8 overall record, 12-4 in league and 5-4 outside

said. “We had eight total losses on the year, and all eight of them

of league. Twelve of those wins came from three separate win

came from the teams that made it to the gilded coliseum [finals].”

streaks. West placed fourth in its league, shy of all three teams

Nobody has a perfect season, but with lessons learned and hopes held high; West is looking forward to

above them by at most two wins. In the 5A rank-

next season’s victories. And while the sea-

ings, West placed 10th out of the 32 teams.

son ended without the big trophy, there

While the season was built by the

are still some good wins to look back

girls on the team, there is an ele-

on,

ment of that craftsmanship that can

and

be attributed to the coach that

as

West

Stinson

students, himself

players,

witnessed.

“Beating Silverton at Silverton,

was there to teach all the way.

Shawn Stinson, Head Coach

that was big. Beating Corvallis, that

of the girls basketball team said,

was big. Obviously we split with both

“Little

disappointed

in

how

those teams — we tend to have issues

we

with those teams for whatever reason —

finished, but we had a great sea-

but we got past them. Beating Springfield

son through and through, great group

in the Christmas tournament in overtime, and

of kids, really worked hard all season. We

then really outplaying Willamette until the last 4.1

just decided to have a hiccup at the wrong time, you know? If I knew how to prepare my kids for the nerves

seconds of the game in that same tournament, we started the

going into the playoff game, I’d probably try a bit more psy-

season really well. We just didn’t finish it well,” Stinson said.

chology with them because we ultimately beat ourselves.”

Whirlwind Workout Recs 5 SONGS PICKED FROM A SURVEY OF 91 STUDENTS AND RANKED SO YOU CAN JAM WHEN YOU'RE GETTING YOUR GAINS

By Ethan Biersdorff

Q + A with wrestling state champion, junior Ariana Martinez

By Hailey Miles

Q: How did the season go?

A: It went good. I accomplished what I wanted to accomplish. It was pretty cool to particiapate in and have all my teammates and parents cheer me on.

Q: How did it feel being the first female wrestler in over 10 years to win the state championship?

A: It’s pretty cool to be the first one. I wanted to leave a legacy, and I think I defintlely left that.

Q: Do you think this could be a career for the future?

A: I defintely want to wrestle in college.

The coaches want me to come back and mabye coach after a couple years. I might have other plans I would like to go through in college, but wrestling will definitely be a part of that.

Q: Do you feel any pressure having one more year left at school with this new reputation?

A: I do feel a lot of pressure because now that I won this year, I feel like I have to win next year. So, I think next year's season will be very stressful. I know it’s going to be bad, if not worse.

Q: How did you get into wrestling? Why did you start?

A: I started wrestling my freshman year, so about three years now. I asked everyone if it was a cool thing to pursue, and I just took it and stuck with it. I'm glad I did.

Q: What was being at the state meet like?

A: I was nervous the whole two weeks before and extremely more nervous the night of. School was getting hard. I went to practice the morning of, talked to my coaches and reaasured myself it was going to be okay. I was so relieved when it was over, and I realized how far I made it.

1. Till I Collapse

by Eminem

2. Face Off by Tech N9ne

3. Hit 'Em Up Style by Blu Cantrell

4. New Magic Wand by Tyler the Creator 5. Enter Sandman by Metallica 15

Photo used with permission of Jean Smith

MARCH 2022

Put a Spring in Your Step 3 WAYS TO SPEND YOUR SPRING BREAK AROUND TOWN

H

Story and photos by Marshall Hamel

ere in Albany, it can be difficult to find ways to occupy your time. This is truer than ever for teens, and with spring break on its way, teens may be struggling to come up with interesting ways to have fun around town. Luckily, Albany has a lot to offer to those with open minds and a love for getting out. These are a few things worth exploring around town.

Explore Albany’s many parks

The city of Albany is home to 29 city parks spread out all over town, all of which have something interesting and unique to offer. Whether it’s the 3 mile long walking trail at Takena Landing, the perfect picnic spots right by the river at Monteith, or the hidden dirt bmx park and disc golf at Bryant park, the activities available at these parks are a great way to spend your leisure time, and it’s almost completely free of hassle.

Eastern end of Waverly Park

Explore Talking Water Gardens

Talking Water Gardens is a wetland created with the intention of not only nurturing and preserving nature, but also people as well. The wetland is located right next to the water treatment plant, and serves as a paradise for nature lovers and animal lovers alike. On top of that, it’s the perfect place to take a walk and observe the various wildlife that take shelter in the wetland.

Walking trail at Talking Water Gardens T H E W H I R LW I N D

16

E

Explore Albany’s historic downtown Albany’s historic downtown is full of things to do, places to see, and at the heart of it all, a deep history. Whether you’re looking to grab a bite to eat, see a movie, or experience Albany’s rich historical background, chances are you can find what you’re looking for downtown. Some must-see locations include the Albany Antique Mall, The Pix, The Carousel, The Albany Regional Museum, Margin Coffee, Little Wuesten Cafe, and Tone Thai.

2nd Street in downtown Albany

J. C Penney Building

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MARCH 2022

Clashing with the Casting HOW CAN CASTING MAKE OR BREAK A PRODUCTION? Story and Illustraded byLegend Engberg

In 2019, a new Batman movie was announced. With a good at the sport, they might be able to get away with new Batman comes a new possibility for casting; whoit,” sophomore drama student Adam Keeling said, “but ever could it be? The internet waited for the announceactors, if they get dirt on their name, it sticks with them.¨ ment of who could possibly play the Caped Crusader English teacher Margie Graves has strong feelings in this new theatrical outing. Then Robert Pattson was about the 2021 adaptation of the novel Dune. ¨If it’s goannounced. ing to be a big movie, it needs to be someone who’s good ¨I think immediately all the Batman fanboys were enough that you want to remember their name,¨ Graves rioting in the streets getting all angry about the Twilight said. She stated that a lack of reputation is what kept her guy being cast as Batman,¨ junior Joshua LaBelle said. from even remembering the main actor of the movie and Though LaBelle remembers the reaction to it being mostthat a larger name would have worked better for the lead ly negative, he was hopeful for the new take. role to help the epic flow more efficiently.. Graves gave With every movie comes its collection of performanother example with the adaptation of Eragon, saying ers. Productions rely upon individuals to bring characthat the actor for the main role was forgettable, someters to life so audiences can one Graves had never even heard of and be thoroughly entertained by assumed no one else had heard of either. the substance of what they’re Actors usually have to fit the mold watching. So when it comes to of their characters, which might require IT’’S NEVER SOMETHING THAT the factor of casting, it can be a simple accent, or have a certain talent,

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a tricky business: sometimes BOILS DOWN TO JUST PURELY ABILI- Tom Holland and his acrobatics abilities it can be a golden globe of a which fit the role of spider man for inTY OR TALENT production or it can cause the stance, but what if the character requires production to crumple to its physical appearance as well to be spot foundations. on? Harry Potter’s eye color was depictDrama teacher Cate Caffarella stated that an actor ed as blue in the movies but green in the books. Did that needs to bring their character to life in the story that is change the story? being told to accomplish their purpose in that production.

Jack Reacher was a movie from 2012 which casted The basis of that story is the thing an actor should form Tom Cruise in the main role. The late 90s novel series on. With her time as an actress and getting her chance it was based on made out the protagonist to be at a six behind the curtain back in high school, Caffarella has had foot stature at 200 pounds, with Cruise not really fitting a lot of experience up on stage, working with performers that description. Laura Beck, director of the Corvallis and having experience when it comes to casting.

High school theater program, drew the conclusion that ¨Reputation is a big thing when it comes to achis casting might have been a result of him financing the tors, especially because [unlike] sports players, if they’re film. ¨He’s a fine actor, but I don’t think he was proper THE WHIRLWIND 18

casting for that character,” she stated.

Beck deals with casting all the time, since her job requires her to pick and choose people for theater productions. She said that a few years ago she was asked to direct a production of West Side Story in order to bring attention to what was the current spiraling hurricane in Puerto Rico and the plight of the people being affected.

With the Shark family being Puerto Rican, there was a search for actors of similar ethnicities. ¨We had no actors of Puerto Rican descent. I had a few actors of Hispanic descent and of African descent. I had a few actors of Asian descent, but mostly I had Caucasian actors. So we did our very best to have actors who were portraying Puerto Rican characters to do honor to the culture of the society. And we received quite a bit of backlash because we didn’t have Puerto Rican actors playing the Puerto Rican characters.¨ Unlike theater productions, movies can bring people to life through computers. A CGI actor can be fine tuned and changed in any way, so there’s no need to really search if you just need to press a few keys to generate a mold of code that can look however the production wants them to look.

2001 presented the world with Final Fantasy: The Spirit Within, a fully CGI, photo realistic movie based on the video games of the same name. Core character Aki Ross was promoted during the time as being a virtual actor, trying to be promoted as being the same as any flesh and blood one which could show up in other movies. She also starred in magazines and was praised for being a replacement for real actors underlined in the 2001 article by the New York times ¨̈Movie Stars Fear Inroads By Upstart Digital Actors.¨ The Call of the Wild movie tried to use a similar technique with bringing the main character Buck to life through CGI. ¨Why couldn’t they use a real dog?¨ Graves wonders. She stated that the adaptation and the movie as a whole fell short in her eyes. She thought it lacked something because when it came to CGI acting of any kind, Graves said it was missing components that normal actors brought such as craft and art in a performance. ¨Well, I think that a really good performance will tell the story for the audience,” Beck said. “So they will see things in the character that they would not have seen had they simply read the piece. If the performance is subpar, I think that they will see more of the inadequacies of the production itself and maybe won’t leave with further understanding of the play, so distracted by the subpar performance.¨ ¨I pretty much reverted back to the stories of Michael Keane, Michael Keaton being cast as Batman and people saying it was bad and then give a good performance.,¨ LaBelle stated. He also elaborated, stating that Keaton was a comedic actor before taking on the cowl, known for Night Shift and when he was announced as Batman, just like Pattinsons people didn’t have high hopes for his performance. LaBelle spent a weekend watching four times over with friends. With him saying that he was not disappointed by 21th century’s newest dark night.

WHAT’S UP // ENTERTAINMENT

Pulling My Strings

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RECOMMENDATIONS

WHO IS THE ALBANY STRING ORCHESTRA?

By Cecilia Greene

hoir and band have always been the face of music at West Albany, but not many people know about the string orchestra music program and what goes on behind the scenes of the Albany Strings Orchestra. Unlike West Albany’s extracurricular activities, the orchestra program isn’t run through just one school, but is available to schools from cities from all over Oregon. Albany Youth Orchestra requires auditions to get in and join specific groups that are available in the program. Depending on what group someone may be looking for, a group can be less than 25 people together.

Sessions and practices take place at Browser’s Bookstore on Pacific Highway and usually contain eight to nine people due to audition cuts. With such a small room to perform in, each practice results in more accomplishments for the performers, but this also means mistakes are more noticeable. Students that range from middle school to high school are encouraged to keep their heads up and keep on trying no matter what mistakes are made. When difficult parts are given for certain players, Denver Spelman, the instructor of the Chamber Orchestra, takes his time to see what the main struggle is while reassuring his students.

As small as Spelman’s group is now, freshman Logan Falotico expressed the need for a bigger one to create a lot more opportunities and a bigger audience.

“It’d be cool if we could get more members to make the groups bigger and provide more chances for everyone to get noticed,” Falotico said.

With such a hectic year, the program is set to have one performance for this year. Prior to COVID, groups from the Albany Strings Orchestra would have up to two performances per year, but have minimized it to one for the safety of everyone.

Spelman’s group specifically is the highest of all in the orchestra program and he takes pride and joy in the work he’s helped his students with. As professional or stern as an orchestra may sound, soundtracks from video games and classical music are the main genres that are covered throughout practices and concerts.

For now, the small group hopes for a safe year so that they can recruit more members and create a better and heartwarming space for everyone.

For something as heartwarming and nostalgic, “10 Things I Hate About You” brings out the hopeless romantic outlook to life with the help of actress Julia Stiles. As the main character is introduced, the nonchalant and feminist attitude Stiles brings to the movie really sets the scene for the struggle of a girl just trying to break boundaries in such an odd and new era.

Filled with outrageous scenarios and humorous life lessons, “The Boondocks” shows the perspectives of the Freeman family dealing with raunchy “Tom and Jerry”-like adventures with the help of Aaron McGruder’s art style. McGruder, the creator and director of the show, allows the animated characters to touch base on serious topics while poking fun at the same time to help create a comfortable dynamic for a viewer being introduced to such heavy scenarios.

The Chamber Orchestra during practice at Browser’s Bookstore.

Colds and Blues

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Junior Amelie Crow singing at West Fest Choir concert.

COMEBACK FOR THE YEAR?

uch like students at West Albany, Band and Choir have dealt with major adjustments throughout the past 2 years because of COVID. Fewer performances, online practices, and less socializing would also have a major impact on the students that are involved in the programs. With limited access to having a normal class dynamic, many students lost motivation for certain classes in band or choir, and just stopped showing up in general. This would continue throughout 2020 and 2021 after so much stress and confusion.

Since the start of this school year, events and traditional activities have slowly started coming back in the picture to help create a transition into a somewhat normal school year. For the most part, some groups in band and choir have made their efforts to head back into district and eventually state competitions against groups and individual people from different schools across Oregon.

Junior, Mason Chambers, who’s been in the Jazz group for West Albany’s band had spent his time in quarantine has been in band before and during the pandemic as the program is making a comeback.

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Isolation would be Kali Uchis’s second studio album fixating on betrayal, healing, and maintaining a healthy relationship with herself as she grows into the woman she is. The album is blessed with the features of Steve Lacy, Bootsy Collins, and Tyler, The Creator as they bring out the funk and hypnotic R&B out of Uchi’s art work.

Not only does the album bring out the singer’s struggle with relationships and poor mistakes, but it also draws attention to her hopes of starting a new beginning with her identity.

MARCH 2022

GLOBAL WARNING

HOW STUDENT GROUPS, TEACHERS, THE DISTRICT AND THE COMMUNITY ARE FINDING WAYS TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN FIGHTING CLIMATE CHANGE

THE WHIRLWIND

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THE PLANT SCHOOLS GENERATE A LOT OF WASTE. HOW IS IT DEALT WITH SUSTAINABLY?

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By Gabi Emery

n any given school day, over a thousand people can be found on West’s campus. Students, teachers, parents, and other visitors enjoy West’s well-kept grounds and clean facilities. But with such a large group of people, huge amounts of waste are generated daily. While students have the luxury of moving on with their day without giving the topic a second thought, it’s not as if all the waste suddenly disappears--the school has to work hard to keep the school clean, both for the environment as well as the students and staff.

There are about 20 school buildings in the GAPS school district alone.

With fluctuating populations and newer technology, the number of needed school supplies is ever-changing. For example, a class might have 32 desks when they really only need 25. How are schools supposed to deal with the extra desks and limited space? The answer is the facilities department,

formerly known as the physical plant.

“We have what we call ‘The Barn.’ It’s out at Clover Ridge.

It’s literally a pole barn…items that can withstand a little bit of moisture, like a metal chair, or something like that, would end up [being stored at] Clover Ridge,” Pigman said. “If somebody asks for a chair or a desk, Bins filled that’s the first place that we’ll look to make sure that it’s to the brim with being utilized.” books no longer This system allows ACCORDING TO A being used in schools schools to share the SURVEY OF 91 STUDENTS, wealth of needed furnishset to be donated or ings across the district, OVER HALF OF STUDENTS DO recycled. reducing waste as items are reused instead of NOT BELIEVE THAT WEST DOES the school district’s facilities foreman, and immediately being sent his team. However, when a certain amount WELL REDUCING ITS CARBON to a recycling facility. of time passes or when storage capacity is The extra supplies are all FOOTPRINT. met, the surplus supplies are advertised to transported between buildthe community and put up for sale in a last ings by Gary Dahlquist, attempt to reuse the furnishings.

“The public is invited to come out, and it’s like a garage sale. If it doesn’t get used, then it will be recycled,” Dahlquist said.

As far as actual garbage and recycling goes, it’s left up to each individual school to choose how they want to dispose of their waste. While students at West aren’t involved with the whole recycling process, other than trying to shoot a paper ball into the blue bin from across the classroom every once in a while, other schools in the district incorporate the importance of recycling into student life much more directly.

Tranell Johnson, a secretary at GAPS facilities, worked at Oak elementary school until October of last year. While she was there, she observed the elementary school’s interactive recycling program.

“The fifth graders would go through all the recycling bins from each classroom and Above: Facilities director Doug would divide it up into cardboard, paper, and Pigman dumps a bundle of light plastic,” Johnson said. bulbs into a special container to Besides the systems already put into place, send to a separate location for reGAPS is also trying to reduce the amount of cycling. Top right: Stack of chrome waste that goes through our school in other book packages waiting to be ways; namely, through energy conservation. reused or recycled. Right: Pigman According to Pigman, plans have been optishowing a map of West Albany’s mistically set into place to have solar panels floorplan. installed on West’s roof by this summer.

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MARCH 2022

GROWING DOWNTOWN A LOCAL BUSINESS AND HOW THEY’RE PROMOTING SUSTAINBILITY IN OUR COMMUNITY

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By Violet Zinck

regon is well known for its environmentally conscious attitude, and with a new generation at the forefront of climate activism and sustainability, our local businesses are adapting to the demand for change. With the introduction of newly passed House Bill 4077, replacing and providing funding for Oregon's environmental justice task force, this change may escalate in our future.

Local business Urban Ag supply has been a beacon of sustainability in Albany for five years now, providing alternatives for one use items. This family-owned business is currently run by father and son duo Patrick and Nick Chonaiew.

“We wanted (to sell) things a lot of places, like your normal hydroponics store or garden center didn’t necessarily carry, so we kind of came up with a hybrid model just to kind of see how it would work, and it seems to be doing well,” said Nick.

At the base of this business is the interest in basic healthy living, organic products, and knowing what you put in the ground so that you know what you’re eating. “The easiest way to describe it is, it was things we were looking for that we couldn’t find under one roof, so we figured if we were interested in this, others would be as well,” Patrick stated.

Back Entrance of Urban Ag Supply. Photo by Violet Zinck

Urban Ag Supply sells a variety of alternatives for things we use everyday like paper towels, reusable snack bags and other household items that are plastic free, and biodegradable.

“We mainly focus on sustainable products that try not to harm the ecosystem and the way people do normal things in their daily lives without leaving that much of an impact,” Nick said.

Albany as a whole has volunteer opportunities for environmental change specific to the area that can help make an environmental impact. Even if you can’t afford to go a sustainable route you can still help where

possible. Some of the efforts made by the city to reduce, reuse, and recycle are energy-efficient lighting installed at city facilities, recycle paper, plastic, metals, oils, cardboard, and electronic equipment, reduce the use of paper by increasing electronic documents and information sharing and much more. Visit cityofalbany.net for more information on what you can do.

Though the transition to even semi sustainable living is never easy, small businesses like Urban Ag are cropping up all over town to make things a bit easier for you and a bit kinder to our planet.

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THE WHIRLWIND

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• Traditional metal braces

Call for a free consultation!

LITTLE

FOLKS YOUR AGE

CHANGES

Invest in some metal water bottles.

Be it cheap or expensive, they all do the same thing: they reduce the amount of plastic waste that we put out into our environment.

About 14% of all litter comes from drink containers, according to the Plastic Oceans program. That is a lot when you think of the amount of drinks that you buy everyday

HAVE BEEN A HUGE PART OF BRINGING

BIG

PUBLICITY [TO THE CAUSE].

Something

that

you

can

even do here at school is minimize your food waste.

Simply taking what you need and finishing that without having tons of leftover food

OUTCOMES

go in the trash really helps to keep our waste levels down, according to Kiwi Energy. A

By Samantha Zimmerman Photos by Violet Zinck

good thing to do if you can is

and just throw away. Some more

pack a lunch because then if

things that are nice is that even

you don’t finish all your food,

around the halls there are the fountains to where you can fill up the water bottle.

Plus, you can

What can we as a community do to help the climate crisis?

you can just save it for later.

really personalize them and make them your own.

14% OF ALL LITTER COMES FROM DRINK CONTAINERS

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Put the car away for a little while.

It can be hard to do that sometimes, but if you can walk or ride a bike, that will help with the carbon levels in the atmosphere. According to science teacher Gareth Engler, it’s much cheaper and a good way to exercise. Engler is someone who, if you were to ask, would proudly say that he drives an electric car and that it saves him lots of money. Electric cars can be expensive, but something to keep in mind is that even if you can’t afford an electric car, there are many alternatives.

Walking alone is something that lots of people do just for fun, take for instance hiking, going shopping, golfing, going to a museum. Also biking is very fun and will make your legs crazy strong too.

MARCH 2022

THE ROOTS OF CHANGE

HOW WEST ALBANY IS TAKING UP ARMS AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE—IS EDUCATION THE ANSWER?

By Mollie Brown and Brogan O’Hare

T

Art Credits Mollie Brown

can open their eyes and maybe o many, the global crisis inspire them to go further with that is climate change is it,” Backer said. a daunting, multi-faceted Inspiration to physically enact issue that can seem change can be more difficult to unsolvable—especially to some come by, and teachers cannot of today’s youth. Education can ensure actions will be taken be an empowering resource and outside of their classes, although a critical first step in learning Backer mentioned that many of about the effects of climate her former students have gone change. At West, teachers work on to study marine to provide this biology in college. education and Backer said she inspire students spends most of the time to develop their I WANT TO EDUCATE SO educating and planting own opinions the seed of change in about the topic. THAT STUDENTS CAN FORM her students’ hearts and In science THEIR OWN OPINIONS AND minds, hoping they will teacher Kelli continue to further Backer’s IDEAS, AND HOPEFULLY develop their marine biology LEAVE HERE AND BE AN knowledge, and create class, innovative solutions. cultivating EDUCATED MEMBER OF Finding small, students’ SOCIETY accessible ways to be knowledge more aware of their about carbon footprint is one maintaining possible way for students to global resources is her top make an individual difference. priority.

This is one of the reasons “I am not here to push my senior Ally Willard has chosen beliefs on anybody,” Backer to be a vegetarian for almost said. “I want to educate so that seven years. Meat consumption students can form their own is a substantial contributor to opinions and ideas, and climate change, and with the hopefully leave here and be an growing accessibility of educated member of society.” plant-based products, Willard One of the main focuses of recognized this as a plausible marine biology is learning about change she could apply daily. marine ecosystems such as coral In fact, BBC News says that reefs, marshes, and oceans. The almost a quarter of global class also specifically focuses greenhouse gas emissions come on the harm that humanity has from agriculture and other caused to the biodiversity of related land use—a big part of those habitats. that being livestock.

“It’s fun to teach a class that

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T H E W H I R LW I N D

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ACCORDING TO A SURVEY STUDENTS, 58.2% OF WEST DOESN’T TEACH CLIMATE

O S E C

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of the sustainability movement.

Willard is currently enrolled in At the head of the school’s AP Environmental Science. service efforts are the students “I’ve been interested in [cliin leadership, taught by advisor mate change] for a while,” Willard Erik Ihde. They have been at the said. “That’s one of the reasons I forefront of many projects and chose the class, so I could learn activities at West Albany. about the science behind it.”

However, the last time Similar to marine biology, AP leadership turned their Environmental Science focuses on attention to creating a more the impact of humanity on overall sustainably-focused school was global resources. Recently, the back in the 90s, when the class has been learning about the leadership students organized danger of air pollutants, and maintained a especially recycling regarding public system between all the health. classrooms, even going Gareth I WOULD ENCOURas far as decorating the Engler instructs AGE PEOPLE TO LOOK familiar blue bins in this class and order to encourage better prioritizes INTO THE ENVIRONrecycling habits. Ihde teaching his MENT TO AN EXTENT acknowledged this and students the mentioned that importance of THAT IS INTERESTING leadership is open to recognizing the TO THEM more climate-centered relationship activities taking place in humans have the future. with the Ihde relies on students in environment. leadership to come up with “It really falls under global project ideas they are passionate change which encompasses a about, which is key to the whole bunch of other issues, like student-driven nature of the climate change,” Engler said. “The class—meaning it is hopeful class in general is about how the for more sustainability-inspired world works.” efforts in the future.

Becoming appreciative of the “It would not surprise me in beauty nature holds can be a great the future if there is a student-led first step in becoming passionate effort,” Ihde said. “But there about sustainability. In Society and haven’t yet been any specific Nature at West, instructor Blain proposals.”

Willard teaches his pupils how to With ever-changing do this by studying technology and new mindsets, something called eco-literature, Ihde senses a shift to a more which is a branch of literary study sustainable approach to the that addresses the theme of nature. projects the school as a whole Many pieces of eco-literature have takes on. spurred change in public It is possible that the students consciousness. and teachers will continue to take “We try to create space for initiative and make meaningful reverence in appreciating the wonder changes that could change our and beauty of creation, and the earth school for the better. in all of its diversity of life forms,” “I would encourage people Blain said. to look into the environment to He said this is a productive way an extent that is interesting to to take away from some of the them,” Ally said. negativity that can be a main focus

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OF 91 WEST ALBANY STUDENTS THINK THAT ENOUGH ABOUT CHANGE

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MARCH 2021

Thanks for the Gigabytes WHAT STUDENTS FEEL NOSTALGIA FOR

By Coral CwmCwlamare

M

emories are something that stick with people. Good or bad they are something that people reflect on and remember fondly. People can have memories like this with books, shows, video games, and other forms of entertainment. That nostalgia can become very important to a person.

“It’s something that you miss and you can’t let go,” said senior Kelly Cook. “It’s the past.”

Recently there has been a wave of nostalgia in the entertainment industry with the release of “Red (Taylor’s Version)” and “Pokémon Legends: Arceus” along with anncouments for new games in the “Kirby” and “Sonic” franchises. Here are what some students feel nostalgic about.

First released in 2014, “Five Nights at Freddy’s” is a survival horror game where you play as a security guard who must survive killer animatronics. With each game released, a story of children murdered with revenge in mind slowly unfolds. The game has additionally spawned books and a roleplaying game.

In a survey of 91 students

42.9% have played the first “Five Nights at Freddy’s” game.

Senior Kelly Cook first discovered the series while sitting on the bus. There, they saw their friends playing the game on their tablets, and from there it became a point of interest.

“I think I liked watching Markiplier and stuff doing that playing for FNAF [‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’],” said Cook. “We watched it together, but seeing Golden Freddy in the game as a character was really cool.”

The “Five Nights at Freddy’s” franchise quickly became a cultural staple and it’s hard to not notice its impact on culture. Many Youtubers like Markiplier became well known for their videos on this horror franchise.

THE MORE YOU KNOW

The popular “Mario Kart” series originally started on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System with “Super Mario Kart” and in 2008 released their sixth game. This installment has the distinction of being one of the best selling video games of all time with over 37 million copies sold. The game became a staple of the Nintendo Wii library and many of its tracks in game are being added to the game’s sequel this year.

T H E W H I R LW I N D

Junior Eamon Moffett played “Mario Kart” with his family while growing up. These moments helped to create a lasting impression on him.

“I’d have to say ‘Mario Kart Wii’ for the Nintendo Wii,” Moffett said. “I don’t know, maybe it’s just nostalgia. Or it’s just something that I’ve been wanting to return to for a long time. It’s just fun.”

Nostalgia to him was that feeling of something in the past that he experiences happy feelings from and “Mario Kart” was something that had those emotions for him.

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The American Psychology Association reported in a podcast with researcher on nostalgia and psychology professor Dr. Krystine Batcho, that there are two types of nostalgia; historical nostalgia, which is nostalgia for a period of time before a person was born, and personal nostalgia, where a person longs for a past event that they experienced.

According to a study, as reported by the New York Times in the article “What Is Nostalgia Good For? Quite a Bit, Research Shows,” there is a connection between feelings of loneliness lessening after having nostalgic moments. The article, by John Tierney, discusses how not all nostalgic memories start happy, but they often end well.

In a survey of 91 students

45.1% have played the earlier “Pokémon” games.

In a survey of 91 students

35.2% have played a “Kirby” game.

Sophomore Spencer Madsen first started playing “Minecraft” after seeing his brother playing the game.

“My older brothers played it,” Madsen said. “So when they got off, I would just hop on and build my world.”

The game was something simple that kids could understand but allowed endless possibilities for what they could do in the game.

“I think that’s still going on. Kids are growing up at Minecraft just because it’s so simple and kid friendly. It’s something that kind of lasts,” Madsen said. “The good thing about nostalgia is sometimes it doesn’t have to last forever, but some things like movies, they can still retain their value over time.”

“Minecraft” is still played today with the game receiving regular updates to this day.

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“Minecraft” was met with much success, allowing people to explore worlds and create anything that they could think of in 2009, when it had a limited release. Spawning many spinoff games and books, both official and fan made, it has made a splash on a global scale.

Games, such as Telltale Games’s “Minecraft: Story Mode,” done by the company that specializes in making games similar to interactive movies, and “Minecraft Dungeons” are just some of the franchise’s ventures into different genres. Besides different gaming styles, the games have been used to help teach chemistry, graphic design, and computer science.

MARCH 2022

Never Alone, Always Lonely EXPLORING THE GENERATIONAL AND SOCIETAL SHIFTS IN TEEN CONNECTIONS Story and Illustration by Tori Thorp

W

alking into the leadership class-

room for the first time since the pandemic, senior and student body president Sid Holloway was looking forward to seeing the smiling eyes of her peers and working to improve the school as a tightly-knit team. Unexpectedly, that wasn’t the scene she was greeted with. Before school transitioned to fully virtual, Holloway recalled, leadership was a very “interconnected” class, with committees of students all working toward their respective goals. An environment that fostered mutual respect and appreciation. That

camaraderie isn’t completely absent now, but there’s something holding it back from reaching the same level.

“We’d go into our big committee room and we’d be trying to brainstorm,” Holloway said, “and I’d look around, and half our committee would be on their phones.”

As the year went on it became increasingly clear that eyes cast down and periodical glances at phones were the new normal. A lot had changed, and students’ relationship with technology was no exception.

“So Ihde said he was gonna start taking phones,” Holloway said, “and people were annoyed, to say the least. Especially the people who weren’t in leadership before the pandemic, because that was their new normal. Well, that was T H E W H I R LW I N D

their normal, not even their new normal.”

This shift in attitude toward communication among teens is a widespread phenomenon that has been slowly increasing as technology progresses. However, when the pandemic hit, the process was accelerated. Phone and screen overuse has become more common in young peo-

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I’D LOOK AROUND, AND HALF OUR COMMITTEE WOULD BE ON THEIR PHONES. 28

ple, amplifying the division between students during in-person interactions.

“The research is pretty sound on this,” Biology teacher Shana Hains said. “Your generation is more open to the world than any generation before you, and yet as much access as you have, you’re lonelier.”

As a teacher, Hains has watched the evolution of how teens interact with the world around them first hand. From a biological perspective, the correlation between excessive screen use and dysfunctional mind and body systems is significant.

“There’s so many variables with human behavior, but what [psychologists] are seeing is that absolute direct correlation between screen time and happiness,” Hains said.

Studying a topic as convoluted as mental health is difficult and has to be approached as “soft-science,”

“

meaning a correlation-based approach, as opposed to a clear path to a conclusion with only a few variables in play. When studying the correlation between mental health and screen use, scientists and psychologists have to be aware of the myriad other factors besides screen usage that could affect someone’s state of mind.

information and physical touch aren’t being used when a conversation is over text, which ultimately makes virtual communication ineffective in fulfilling human want for interaction in the long run.

Short-term gratification, however, is a different story.

“It’s releasing dopamine, which gets you addicted to your phone,” Hall explained, “so you get withdrawals from your phone, which doesn’t make you happy. You don’t get chemical withdrawals like that from just not seeing one of your friends.”

These chemical withdrawals, named by the American Psychiatric Association as a symptom of a theoretical new disorder called Internet Addiction Disorder (IAD), help perpetuate the mindset that life exists digitally, which in turn creates

YOUR GENERATION IS MORE OPEN TO THE WORLD THAN ANY GENERATION BEFORE YOU, AND YET AS MUCH ACCESS AS YOU HAVE, YOU’RE LONELIER.

So what kind of factors are looked at when studying loneliness caused by screen time?

First and foremost, exploring how extensive amounts of screen time affects underdeveloped neurological functions is important to understand how those effects show up as measurable symptoms. What exactly are the psychological effects of screens that are causing rates of unhappiness, loneliness, anxiety and depression to increase in young people?

Psychology teacher Kyle Hall explained that while forms of communication such as texting and social media may feel like a genuine connection, it’s stimulating a completely different part of the brain than it would in person. When humans interact with each other eye-to-eye, they’re activating their occipital lobe, which is responsible for processing visual information, to a higher degree than they would while staring at a phone. Not only that, but areas of the brain that process auditory

an environment in which people become stressed, afraid, or depressed when they are not consistently checking their phones.

“You feel like you have more access to the world because you do, more than ever before,” Hall said. “You can talk to somebody from across the world. Just facetime them and there you are.

So it gives people this false sense of ‘but look! We have it at our fingertips, we can talk!’ Yes, you can, but human-to-human interaction is vastly different than over the phone, and you can’t mimic that.”

This cycle of digital withdrawal leading to loneliness and anxiety struggles may be the reason that, as Holloway described, “We’re not always as connected as we think we are, just because social media makes it seem like we’re a lot closer with people.”

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What does screen overuse look like at West Albany?

In a randomly selected sample of 91 West Albany students, 78 percent of them reported using their phones over three hours a day. Out of those students, 61 percent said that they felt lonely over half of the time. As reported screen time use increases, students experiencing loneliness remains above 50 percent. Out of the students that spend 12 hours or more on their phone every day, 88 percent feel lonely over half of the time.

Through her position as student body president and someone who has watched the school evolve since her freshman year, Holloway has noticed a difference in how people are socializing with their peers.

“Senior year you always hear that everyone comes together,” Holloway said. “Whether it’s in the movies, or even our parents or grandparents saying it, all the groups mesh together. I think I’ve seen that a little bit this year, but I feel like because of social media and the social group divide that it’s created, we haven’t seen that as much.”

Holloway speculated that the access to constant communication with friends that social media provides encourages students to stay secluded within a specific social scene. She’s noticed that people are more hesitant to reach out or even think about interacting with someone that is different from the group that they usually hang out with.

“Seeing the connectivity of everyone in our school, even just from freshman year to senior year, I’ve seen a decline,” Holloway said. “The social interactions just aren’t as much as they used to be in person.”

Yet even with social groups congregating online, Holloway explains, it can be difficult to fully connect with people that way.

“Social media friends are almost half there for you,” Holloway said. “You don’t always have those people that you can always count on, you have a lot of people that you can half count on.”

Hains also sees a connection between the willingness of students to step out of their com-

MARCH 2022

Figure 1

LONELINESS LEVELS OF STUDENTS IN RELATION TO SCREEN TIME 90% 80% 70% Percent of students who feel lonely over half of the time

cording to the survey of 91 students.

Ninety-one students is about seven percent of the entire student body at West, and 1.1 million students is the same in comparison to the national fort zone and their constant exposure population of high school students, to screens. Technology makes docu- seven percent. mentation easier, which means that all The survey results from West Almoments, the good and the bad, stick bany students found that students who around for a long time. Increased lev- spend zero to one hour on their phones els of anxiety in anticipation that their all feel lonely less than half of the embarrassing moments will be broad- time. This is a stark contrast from the cast online may make kids much more students who spend over 12 hours on hesitant to interact with the physical their phone, of which 88 percent feel world around them. lonely most of the time. Rates of lone“It makes you walk on eggshells,” liness tend to increase as screen time Hains said, “because if you make a increases, as shown in figure 1. mistake, it’s not something that’s goThe differences are subtle, but the ing to be forgotten by the next day. percentage of students who feel loneEven if somely over half body else makes the time is not a mistake bigger a completely than yours, your linear graph as mistake hangs phone use inIT’LL NEVER BE THE SAME. around, and it’s creases as rethrown in your SO I THINK IT’S UP TO US TO ported in the face. It’s just that UGA and SDSU ADAPT TO THE CHANGING fear that it might study. However, CULTURE. happen.” over half of all This fear of students who embarrassment spend more could apply to many aspects of student than three hours on their phones a day life. From Holloway’s perspective, so- feel lonely the majority of the time. cial media combined with the potential The steep incline at 10 to 11 hours for embarrassment has made it so that to above 80 percent of students over people no longer want to get involved three reporting feeling lonely over half with school events and activities. the time shows a correlation between “Whether it’s not wanting to go to a screen time and loneliness. dance because you don’t have anyone to go with, I feel like social platforms What are some possible solutions to have made it seem like you need to helping students overcome digital have a group of friends to go with or dependency? you’re going to look like a loser,” Hol- Recovering from the long-lasting efloway said. “It’s just created a sense of fects of such a significant and addictive people not wanting to get involved.” habit is not, and never will be, a simple

“

How does West Albany compare to national findings?

In an ongoing study done by psychologists at the University of Georgia and San Diego State University, research done with 1.1 million high school students found that “happiness levels were higher among adolescents using new media a few hours a week compared with those not using it at all, with mean happiness then progressively declining with more hours of use.”

West Albany students fit this trend to some degree, but not in all cases acT H E W H I R LW I N D

feat. Addressing the root cause of teen unhappiness is not a straightforward solution; everyone has different factors contributing to their unhappiness.

One thing is abundantly clear about digital dependence and screen overuse, though: society can never go back to how it was before technology.

“Am I hopeful? Yes, because I believe in science and I believe in education, and the more we can educate society about the problem, it’ll get fixed,”

60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 0-1

2-3

4-5

6-7

8-9

Screen time on phone (hours)

PEDIATRIC RECOMMENDATIONS Hains said. “Do I think it’s gonna be too late for some? And already is?

Yeah, I think the amount of anxiety and depression in our nation is terribly sad.”

Because the science and research on the subject is so new, it’s difficult to draw conclusions that will inspire national change.

“We live in a technological world where everything is being done digitally, so how do you fix that? I don’t know how you do it,” Hall said. “It’ll never be the same. So I think it’s up to us to adapt to the changing culture. Include technological advances but at the same time, do it in a way that’s safe and still allows us the time to promote interaction, promote things that are better for us than our phones or laptops.”

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Currently, pediatric recommendations are fairly loose to account for growing technological use, allowing individuals to find their own limits and use screens wisely. The American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry encourages parents to begin their children on a screentime schedule as early as six years old, with screens being put away 30 to 60 minutes before bed and periods of time during the day during which screens are not allowed.

OUT OF A RANDOMLY SELECTED SAMPLE OF 91 WEST ALBANY STUDENTS...

A YEAR ON SCREENS: SEE A YEAR DISPLAYED BY DAILY ACTIVITIES

78%

The American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry reports that on average, American teens spend about nine hours every day on some type of digital screen. This includes computers, smartphones, televisions, and any other electronic devices.

A poll done by research company Gallup found that the average American gets about seven hours of sleep every night.

The average American spends 106 days per year sleeping.

spend more than three hours a day on their phones.

67%

Typically, there are about 36 weeks in a school year. If four school days every week are 7.5 hours long and one day a week is 6.5 hours long, then West Albany students go to school for about 36.5 hours a week.

During the school year, there is only about 30 minutes left in a week day to do things other than be on screens, sleep, or go to school. In the summer and on weekends, teens without a job have eight hours a day to do activities other than be on screens and sleep.

get less than eight hours of sleep every night.

8-9

10-11

12+

51%

The average high school student will have 67 days per year for jobs, homework, extracurricular activities, hobbies, household responsibilities, and freetime not involving electronics.

report feeling lonely more than half of the time.

hours)

OFF YOUR RHYTHM: HOW SCREEN TIME CONTRIBUTES TO SLEEP DEPRIVATION ing mental health?

“The brain is the only part of the body not directly linked to the lymphatic system,” science teacher Shana Hains said, “so it doesn’t get cleaned out like the rest of your body does through the lymph system. It only gets cleaned out when you sleep.”

Essentially, when your brain can’t take time to clean itself out at the end of the day, it has a much more difficult time processing chemical cues and functioning properly.

“Screentime lowers the amount of sleep people get,” Hains said, “and sleep deprivation mimics anxiety, mimics depression. The same symptoms.”

The average West Albany student will spend 55 days per year at school.

One Full Year

It’s not a new scientific discovery that sleep deprivation causes significant damage to brain function, especially in developing minds.

However, there is evidence that suggests that screen time can be the root of some sleep issues, contributing to the brain damage that can occur from not getting enough sleep.

Among surveyed West Albany students, 67 percent reported getting less than eight hours of sleep a night. Of those students, 84 percent spent over three hours a day on their phone.

Human sleep schedules operate largely on circadian rhythms, which take their cues from sunlight.

The sun goes down and your body releases melatonin, which lets your brain know that it’s time to shut off.

Because digital screens of almost all kinds give off a type of light called “blue-light” that is released in short wavelengths that mimic sunlight, it confuses your body’s circadian rhythm. Melatonin production is delayed, and it becomes much more difficult for your brain to shut down.

Why is this significant to declin-

The average American spends 106 days per year sleeping.

The average American high school student spends 137 days per year looking at a screen.

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MARCH 2022

3

THE RECS

5

MINI SKETCH-IT

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(6/10) Easy to control, this etch-a-sketch creates smooth lines.

When erased, however, it left marks around the screen and made the images drawn after it look muddy.

1

4

SLINKY

WHOOPIE CUSHION Whoopie Cushion: (8/10) While whoopie cushions are an old prank that the Whirlwind staff found difficult to pull off in the traditional sense, it was “fun to sneak up behind people and just make a loud fart noise.”

(8/10) The staff had a great time messing around with these quality bubble wands. One dunk gives you a large amount of bubbles for hours of fun.

Spring into some fun We looked for the most fun toys to bring joy to people of all ages, within reasonable price (under $20), and we rated them to help guide you through the hectic season of spring.

BUBBLE WAND

6

(7/10) This slinky provided a good amount of entertainment, although we had no stairs to send it down. Because it was metal, it didn’t tangle and held its form well.

3

BUBBLE WRISTBAND (5/10) Described as “sub-par” because it can easily pop on one side but is hard to pop on the other, so it only provides half the satisfaction of a higher-quality pop-it.

The wristband format was praised, though, as it is convenient and wearable.

KINETIC SAND (6/10) This childhood favorite fidget substance was described as “melting in your hand, while also being solid at the same time.” The smell was a topic of contention, 1 some saying it was nice and others describing it as department-store like.

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6

5

THE QUESTIONS

THE BACK STORY The origin of April Fools The exact origin of April fool’s day is uncertain, but historians have several ideas about how the holiday came to be. In the year 1582, the country of France made the switch from a Julian calendar, which started in April, to the Gregorian calendar, which began on Jan. 1 and is the calendar we use today. However, some people were slow to recognize the official switch, and those that celebrated the start of a new year in April were named the “April fools.”

This calendar-switch is not necessarily the only explanation for the holiday’s start, however.

There was an ancient Roman festival called “Hilaria,” in which followers of the cult of Cybele would dress up and mock other Photo by Umanoide on Unsplash citizens in the area of the festivals.

There are many speculations about where April Fool’s day began, but ultimately, it has evolved to become a harmless prank-playing holiday, even if it did come from a cult tradition.

The Quiz How many holidays are there in April, excluding the unofficial ones?

CULINARY ARTS

SOPHOMORE

Dolly Victorine

Anika Ylen

“[Government teacher Erik] Ihde told one about the pope today.”

“When my brother and I were little, we thought it was the funniest thing when we would set the table and give my dad a Best prank tiny fork and a tiny spoon, you’ve ever and hide a huge fork and been involved a huge spoon under the with? table, so when we sat down to dinner my dad would have to get up to go get regular sized utensils and then we would switch the tiny ones out for the giant ones.”

“If you’re going to be a “Three moles in a Karen, don’t be one who garden. Baby comes stands around doing out and smells radish, nothing. Be a Karen daddy comes out who actually does and smells zucchini. something.”

Mommy mole comes “The biggest one that up behind daddy mole I’ve done was on a youth and says it smells like group retreat, where one mol-asses.” of my friends brought this giant roll of Saran Wrap, probably two-ish “I had this kid and he feet high, maybe a little always left his sweatshirt in the classroom. bit more, and we Saran So I took a five gallon wrapped the boys’ door bucket and froze it solid so that they couldn’t get for him. Unfortunately, out. We filled up a bunch he got back at me by of tiny water balloons and just threw them in there plastic wrapping my and duct taped the Saran chair.”

Wrap to the door as well.”

3 7 90 13 1,301 7! While there are some more local holidays, there are seven that are nationally celebrated, although this does vary by source.

Best joke you’ve ever been involved with?

SENIOR Marie Guthrie