Volume 50 Issue 2

“

—’07 graduate Matt Nader Pg. 44

THE FEATHERDUSTER

“

We have a history of success, and it’s each class’s duty to continue it.

FD

50 years of

Westlake

Westlake High School Volume 50 Issue 2 March 5, 2019 4100 Westbank Drive Austin, Texas 78746

01-68_cvoer mayeb copy.indd All Pages

2/19/2019 2:01:09 PM

Did you know?

That Westlake hosted a Battle of the Bands event for 21 years, in which local teenage bands would compete against each other.

5 Westlake at

In 2008, a group called The Soles played the event and were so good that they just kept playing. They now form the local band The Mammoths which plays venues across the country, including at SXSW this March.

“Battle of the Bands is still something we bring up to people all the time. It’s pretty rare to find bands on the road who have played together since early high school. I remember rehearsing in Tyler [Rush]’s parents’ living room and getting the police called on us ... we thought that was so cool back then!”

—’08 graduate and member of The Mammoths David Kapsner. former FD photographer Logan Lloyd That the cheerleading uniform on the second floor of the Commons was worn and donated by ‘72 graduate Nancy Tilson.

That Westlake has won four national championships for cheerleading, in 2014, 2015, 2016 and most recently in 2019.

El Paisano file photo

Pg. 18 Elizabeth Jackson That there are 13 Westlake faculty members who have worked here for at least 25 out of the 50 years that Westlake has been open: Pat Betzner (35 years) Dale Baker (34 years) Deanne Brown (33 years) Kerry Taylor (32 years) Ginny Bader (31 years) Mark Misage (30 years) Valerie Taylor (29 years) Kitty Mellenbruch (29 years) Melinda Darrow (29 years) Carolyn Foote (28 years) Nancy Misage (25 years) David Paschall (25 years) Becky Stucky (25 years) Chuck Nowland (25 years) That 82 percent of all AP exams that were taken by Westlake students last year earned a score of 3 or above, and this percentage has never been below 71 percent since it started being recorded in 2004.

2

courtesy photo: Bradley Wilson

Pg. 32

Helaina Hackett That senior Ben Przybocki was one of three students worldwide to earn a perfect score on the AP Statistics exam last year. “I was definitely surprised,” Ben said. “I knew I would do well, but I’d never thought I would get a perfect score. Math comes somewhat naturally to me, and Mrs. [Laura] Ringwood is a great teacher, so that helped.”

Emily Beebe Anne Saltel Reporters Ben Aydelotte Oliver Aydelotte Mehuli Basu Roy Luke Boyd Morgan Burkhardt Jill Dodson Bobby Duncum Julia Franco Tosca Johnson Cameron Loven Sophia Lowe Abby Murr Isabella Newlands Eli Pastor Nick Pigott Kristen Pletcher Nora Romman Ben Rose Carly Rose Mikaela Sherry Ava Valdés Adviser Deanne Brown

Front cover photos from left to right by: Elizabeth Jackson, Anne Saltel and Featherduster file photo.

Featherduster file photo

Pg. 50

Izzy Vo

Editors-in-Chief Kendall Carroll J.T. Sparks Business Managers Isabelle Franco Hadley Waldren Brains + Brawn Jack McManus Adam Jasper Jake La Barbiera People + Places Catherine Barany Asst. Helaina Hackett Trends + Traditions Shelby Sperling Asst. Sarah Davis Rants + Raves Kenzie Finch Asst. Hadley Waldren Design Consultant Helen He Webmaster Turi Sioson Photographers Editor Izzy Vo Asst. Elizabeth Jackson

Pg. 64

The Featherduster attempts to inform and entertain in a broad, fair and accurate manner on subjects which concern the readers. The publication seeks to provide a forum of ideas and opinions between the staff of the news magazine, the faculty, the student body and the local community about issues presented. In this vein, the staff encourages signed letters to the editor. Due to space limitations, not all can be published, and the editorial board reserves the right to edit them for length.

All material published by The Featherduster staff is copyrighted and cannot be reproduced without the writer’s consent or that of the

Elizabeth Jackson

Back cover photos from left to right by: former FD photographer Hannah Kunz, El Paisano file photo and courtesy of Nancy Misage.

editors. Content decisions rest in the hands of the staff, despite the Supreme Court’s ruling in the case of Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier. Opinions expressed in the columns that appear in The Featherduster do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the entire staff, the school administration or the adviser.

No material will be printed that is libelous, advocates any illegal activity or which the editorial board deems is in poor taste. This restriction includes letters to the staff, advertising and anything else the board feels presents an inappropriate message.

we are westlake westlakefeatherduster.com

02-03_TOC new.indd All Pages

2/28/2019 3:01:20 PM

Did you know?

That Westlake hosted a Battle of the Bands event for 21 years, in which local teenage bands would compete against each other.

5 Westlake at

In 2008, a group called The Soles played the event and were so good that they just kept playing. They now form the local band The Mammoths which plays venues across the country, including at SXSW this March.

“Battle of the Bands is still something we bring up to people all the time. It’s pretty rare to find bands on the road who have played together since early high school. I remember rehearsing in Tyler [Rush]’s parents’ living room and getting the police called on us ... we thought that was so cool back then!”

—’08 graduate and member of The Mammoths David Kapsner. former FD photographer Logan Lloyd That the cheerleading uniform on the second floor of the Commons was worn and donated by ‘72 graduate Nancy Tilson.

That Westlake has won four national championships for cheerleading, in 2014, 2015, 2016 and most recently in 2019.

El Paisano file photo

Pg. 18 Elizabeth Jackson That there are 13 Westlake faculty members who have worked here for at least 25 out of the 50 years that Westlake has been open: Pat Betzner (35 years) Dale Baker (34 years) Deanne Brown (33 years) Kerry Taylor (32 years) Ginny Bader (31 years) Mark Misage (30 years) Valerie Taylor (29 years) Kitty Mellenbruch (29 years) Melinda Darrow (29 years) Carolyn Foote (28 years) Nancy Misage (25 years) David Paschall (25 years) Becky Stucky (25 years) Chuck Nowland (25 years) That 82 percent of all AP exams that were taken by Westlake students last year earned a score of 3 or above, and this percentage has never been below 71 percent since it started being recorded in 2004.

2

courtesy photo: Bradley Wilson

Pg. 32

Helaina Hackett That senior Ben Przybocki was one of three students worldwide to earn a perfect score on the AP Statistics exam last year. “I was definitely surprised,” Ben said. “I knew I would do well, but I’d never thought I would get a perfect score. Math comes somewhat naturally to me, and Mrs. [Laura] Ringwood is a great teacher, so that helped.”

Emily Beebe Anne Saltel Reporters Ben Aydelotte Oliver Aydelotte Mehuli Basu Roy Luke Boyd Morgan Burkhardt Jill Dodson Bobby Duncum Julia Franco Tosca Johnson Cameron Loven Sophia Lowe Abby Murr Isabella Newlands Eli Pastor Nick Pigott Kristen Pletcher Nora Romman Ben Rose Carly Rose Mikaela Sherry Ava Valdés Adviser Deanne Brown

Front cover photos from left to right by: Elizabeth Jackson, Anne Saltel and Featherduster file photo.

Featherduster file photo

Pg. 50

Izzy Vo

Editors-in-Chief Kendall Carroll J.T. Sparks Business Managers Isabelle Franco Hadley Waldren Brains + Brawn Jack McManus Adam Jasper Jake La Barbiera People + Places Catherine Barany Asst. Helaina Hackett Trends + Traditions Shelby Sperling Asst. Sarah Davis Rants + Raves Kenzie Finch Asst. Hadley Waldren Design Consultant Helen He Webmaster Turi Sioson Photographers Editor Izzy Vo Asst. Elizabeth Jackson

Pg. 64

The Featherduster attempts to inform and entertain in a broad, fair and accurate manner on subjects which concern the readers. The publication seeks to provide a forum of ideas and opinions between the staff of the news magazine, the faculty, the student body and the local community about issues presented. In this vein, the staff encourages signed letters to the editor. Due to space limitations, not all can be published, and the editorial board reserves the right to edit them for length.

All material published by The Featherduster staff is copyrighted and cannot be reproduced without the writer’s consent or that of the

Elizabeth Jackson

Back cover photos from left to right by: former FD photographer Hannah Kunz, El Paisano file photo and courtesy of Nancy Misage.

editors. Content decisions rest in the hands of the staff, despite the Supreme Court’s ruling in the case of Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier. Opinions expressed in the columns that appear in The Featherduster do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the entire staff, the school administration or the adviser.

No material will be printed that is libelous, advocates any illegal activity or which the editorial board deems is in poor taste. This restriction includes letters to the staff, advertising and anything else the board feels presents an inappropriate message.

we are westlake westlakefeatherduster.com

02-03_TOC new.indd All Pages

2/28/2019 3:01:20 PM

We are

Westlake

50 “

“

It’s really the family we formed at Westlake that made it memorable. Once a Chap, always a Chap.

—’83 graduate Bradley Wilson

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westlakefeatherduster.com weare arewestlake westlake westlakefeatherduster.com 44 we

04_westlake section opener.indd 1

2/26/2019 1:32:23 PM

It’s 1967,

and the citizens of Eanes ISD are faced with a decision. Send their high schoolaged students to Austin ISD, or travel down a new path. They have the chance to build a new high school, one with the potential to create driven, academicallystrong students.

It’s 1968,

and the 48-acre patch of land that was once a corn field holds the bones of a new high school. The community is teeming with apprehension over the toll the project may take.

It’s 1969, It’s 2019,

and the first 497 students call themselves Chaparrals, boasting the colors red, white and blue.

Kendall Car

roll

and 50 years in the making has brought us here.

Thousands of teenagers have passed through the halls of Westlake. From walking into the Fish Bowl on the first day, to walking across the stage at graduation, every student leaves his or her individual mark and photo on the wall. Time seems to fly by in these four years, but they set the stage for who we will be for the rest of our lives. No matter where we end up, we’ll never forget where we came from, and those who came before us. The experiences we have here will live within us in one way or another.

Super Bowl champions, Olympians, Tony-nominated actresses – they all started here. From National Merit Scholars to nationally recognized activists, Westlake has fostered a sense of tenacity, persistence and grit within its students. Here, we are encouraged to utilize every second of every day in order to pursue our passions. The tools for success go beyond just the tangible accessories. They are founded in the empowering attitude of teachers and staff. With such a mentality, the spirit of Westlake is elevated. And with every year that passes, the determination to succeed only grows.

Eventually — in 10, 20 or even 50 years — our stories will be the ones being told. But for now, it’s time to

turn back the clock.

—Tosca Johnson, Carly Rose and Kristen Pletcher

05_fluff.indd 1

2/18/2019 3:26:24 PM

Through

the years

Westlake’s community, rich history creates lasting legacy In the 50 years that Westlake has been around, it has seen thousands and thousands of students come and go, and will no doubt see many more. Today, there are 2,772 students in attendance. With these students come new changes, challenges and successes that leave their mark. The many memories and the lifelong influence that come with Westlake are a result of the long and eventful history leading up to its creation, and the transformation into the school that exists today.

It all began when Robert Eanes, a settler from South Carolina, moved to Texas and built the one-room log cabin on the site now known as Eanes Elementary in 1872. In those days, school was in session for only three months out of the year.

The tiny school experienced many changes over the years and was replaced by a tworoom schoolhouse as more students enrolled in the 1930s. By 1958, the school had grown so much that a vote to create Eanes Independent School District passed. Two years later, in 1960, all middle and high school residents were required to attend schools in the Austin Independent School District. “[I had to be] bussed to O’Henry Middle School,” ’72 graduate Nancy Tilson said. “It was a long day, about 40 minutes each way and a bus change. It was hard to be part of the West Austin community. Eanes kids were from ‘out there.’”

The bussing created a lot of hassle, and AISD eventually refused to accept any more transfer students from Eanes due to overcrowding in 1967. This left Eanes residents with an important decision — they could either join AISD or build a high school in their own district. They chose the latter.

This move ended up being easier said than done. The preplanned site for the new juniorsenior high school was ready, but construction on the school itself was nowhere near finished. Residents asked AISD to educate their

6

students for one more year. AISD declined, and the district found itself in a jam. The only option was to use portable buildings as temporary classrooms, which concerned local parents who felt as though this would compromise their children’s educations. However, the controversial motion to use the portable buildings passed among residents, and Westlake High School was officially established in 1969, with 497 students in attendance. The physical campus was completed in August 1970, on the same day that classes for the new year began.

It became the second-oldest out of the nine schools that would eventually form EISD, and the only high school.

“It was fun being in on the beginning of a new school,” ’75 graduate David Depwe said.

“Starting out in 1969, we had all the grades, one through 12, on the Eanes Elementary campus. It was pretty funny watching seniors trying to fit into elementary school chairs. Who knew it would grow into the school it is now?”

Over the next several decades, the school experienced many changes, both internally and externally, and worked hard to create a name for itself. “[Westlake] was like a child, still figuring out its place in the world,” said Bradley Wilson, ’83 graduate and assistant journalism professor at Midwestern State. “[When I went] we had somewhere around 1,000 students with about 250 in my graduating class. Few people knew of that sleepy little district outside Austin in 1979.”

Westlake was a young school and still settling in, but students were already loyal Chaps.

Even then, school pride was synonymous with football. Despite the football team being less than stellar, the stadium was still the place to be on Friday nights.

“Everyone went to football games,” Tilson said. “[It was the] highlight of the week.

Fridays were fun. We wore spirit ribbons and had themes each week and pep rallies with the

band.”

“The band was small and good,” Wilson said. “Football wasn’t great. Still, like in all Texas suburbs and small towns, Friday night was the center of attention. Actually, baseball was our big sport back then. We made it much farther in the playoffs in baseball.”

Since its early days, Westlake has expanded monumentally, with a student body that exceeds many small colleges. Today, it’s a standout high school on a city, state and even national level. With this recognition comes an assortment of reputations, some of which are unfavorable. Westlake is widely mocked in the area for being rich and especially white, an issue that has always been touchy.

“We certainly saw it as a negative that we didn’t have more diversity, among my group of friends at least,” said Corrie MacLaggen, ’98 graduate and managing editor of the Texas Tribune. “In that, I have some mixed feelings about Westlake, because I loved high school, I got a great education, and I made great friends. But at the end of the day, diversity is incredibly important, and we did not have that in high school.”

Another thing Westlake is known for is its level of academic rigor, which has been around since the very beginning. Westlake is known today for the level of academic excellence it inspires in students, and consistently places highly in national high school rankings. This reputation doesn’t come easily and, as a result, students often bemoan their stressful workloads. However, what they come to learn has gone on to serve them well, both in the classroom and in the real world.

“I felt better prepared coming out of high school than I know a lot of students feel coming out of college today,” Wilson said. “I can say that, with 100 percent certainty, Westlake prepared me for the rigorous coursework at the University of Texas. I learned how to be a leader at Westlake, how to deal with failure,

Featherduster file photo Tiffany Hildreth and other art students in Dale Baker’s class paint a mural in 1986 commemorating the 150th anniversary of Texas’ statehood. The mural now hangs in a hallway off the Commons. “When they demolished the old administration section of the school to make way for the Chap Court, I assumed the mural was destroyed,” Hildreth said. “I have to admit my surprise at seeing the mural in the hallway during Back to School night during my daughter’s freshman year. Looking at it brought back so many memories of my time at Westlake.” Hildreth’s son, Dane, is now in also in Baker’s art class.

how to motivate people, how to meet deadlines and how to work on a team. These are all skills that have served me well in my jobs and activities.”

“We had a very competitive, very academically driven environment,” MacLaggen said. “I probably studied harder my junior year than at any other point in my life. I see that as mostly a good thing, because we worked so hard and learned so much. It was overwhelming at times, but definitely set us up well for college.”

Schools can’t have an excellent academic reputation without quality teachers who care deeply about both teaching and their students, and that’s another thing Westlake has had since the beginning.

“At the end of the semester, [one of my teachers] asked us to write down on a piece of paper what grade we thought we deserved, and that has always stuck with me,” Depwe said. “We had great teachers — very involved with the student body and very approachable.

I remember some being available for conversations and advice not related to school.”

Thanks to the the wide variety of classes and activities Westlake offers, students have many opportunities to pursue their interests.

Passions are discovered and nurtured at Westlake that prove to have a life-long effect on many of its graduates.

Izzy Vo The house of Robert Eanes, who founded the school in 1872, is now a historical site and can be found on the campus of Eanes Elementary. Also on campus are the Eanes History Center in the old rock school house from 1937, which contains an archival library and displays many original artifacts from the school’s early days, and a cemetery containing the remains of 30 Eanes residents.

“[Westlake is] where I fell in love with journalism, and I’m a professional journalist today,” MacLaggen said. “That was incredibly meaningful for me. I was also involved in Spanish, and Spanish language and literature became something very important to me throughout my life. I studied abroad in Spain and lived in Mexico City after college. I’m still doing a lot of the things that I became passionate about in high school. That’s very telling.”

As the years change, so does the school, and new classes are created and old ones are dropped. However, some of the past classes have been equally as influential on students as the ones that exist now.

“Funny to think that taking a class of how to use a typewriter and 10-key adding machine would help me in my profession after college,” Depwe said. “I ended up being a computer programmer. I also enjoyed taking shop. I learned how to use a planer, router, table saw and continue to use those tools today in my own woodworking shop, and still love to build things.”

High school is a formative part of anyone’s life for many reasons, one of which is the friendships and relationships that are made within the four years. Many of these connections tend to endure throughout time.

“I had such special friends in high school,” MacLaggen said. “When I

think about what was most meaningful to me at my time at high school, I just think of the dear friends I made. Some of them are still my very good friends today.”

From Friday nights in the crowded stadium cheering the Chaps towards a win to rallying around local families facing hardship or loss, the Westlake community is a force to be reckoned with.

“I learned how valuable it is to get behind a cause and how important it is to be part of the Westlake family,” Wilson said. “Sure, our times at high school help us develop as a person. But it’s really the family we formed at Westlake that was the most memorable. Once a Chap, always a Chap.”

—Catherine Barany

we are westlake westlakefeatherduster.com

06-07_ History of Westlake.indd All Pages

2/18/2019 3:13:39 PM

Through

the years

Westlake’s community, rich history creates lasting legacy In the 50 years that Westlake has been around, it has seen thousands and thousands of students come and go, and will no doubt see many more. Today, there are 2,772 students in attendance. With these students come new changes, challenges and successes that leave their mark. The many memories and the lifelong influence that come with Westlake are a result of the long and eventful history leading up to its creation, and the transformation into the school that exists today.

It all began when Robert Eanes, a settler from South Carolina, moved to Texas and built the one-room log cabin on the site now known as Eanes Elementary in 1872. In those days, school was in session for only three months out of the year.

The tiny school experienced many changes over the years and was replaced by a tworoom schoolhouse as more students enrolled in the 1930s. By 1958, the school had grown so much that a vote to create Eanes Independent School District passed. Two years later, in 1960, all middle and high school residents were required to attend schools in the Austin Independent School District. “[I had to be] bussed to O’Henry Middle School,” ’72 graduate Nancy Tilson said. “It was a long day, about 40 minutes each way and a bus change. It was hard to be part of the West Austin community. Eanes kids were from ‘out there.’”

The bussing created a lot of hassle, and AISD eventually refused to accept any more transfer students from Eanes due to overcrowding in 1967. This left Eanes residents with an important decision — they could either join AISD or build a high school in their own district. They chose the latter.

This move ended up being easier said than done. The preplanned site for the new juniorsenior high school was ready, but construction on the school itself was nowhere near finished. Residents asked AISD to educate their

6

students for one more year. AISD declined, and the district found itself in a jam. The only option was to use portable buildings as temporary classrooms, which concerned local parents who felt as though this would compromise their children’s educations. However, the controversial motion to use the portable buildings passed among residents, and Westlake High School was officially established in 1969, with 497 students in attendance. The physical campus was completed in August 1970, on the same day that classes for the new year began.

It became the second-oldest out of the nine schools that would eventually form EISD, and the only high school.

“It was fun being in on the beginning of a new school,” ’75 graduate David Depwe said.

“Starting out in 1969, we had all the grades, one through 12, on the Eanes Elementary campus. It was pretty funny watching seniors trying to fit into elementary school chairs. Who knew it would grow into the school it is now?”

Over the next several decades, the school experienced many changes, both internally and externally, and worked hard to create a name for itself. “[Westlake] was like a child, still figuring out its place in the world,” said Bradley Wilson, ’83 graduate and assistant journalism professor at Midwestern State. “[When I went] we had somewhere around 1,000 students with about 250 in my graduating class. Few people knew of that sleepy little district outside Austin in 1979.”

Westlake was a young school and still settling in, but students were already loyal Chaps.

Even then, school pride was synonymous with football. Despite the football team being less than stellar, the stadium was still the place to be on Friday nights.

“Everyone went to football games,” Tilson said. “[It was the] highlight of the week.

Fridays were fun. We wore spirit ribbons and had themes each week and pep rallies with the

band.”

“The band was small and good,” Wilson said. “Football wasn’t great. Still, like in all Texas suburbs and small towns, Friday night was the center of attention. Actually, baseball was our big sport back then. We made it much farther in the playoffs in baseball.”

Since its early days, Westlake has expanded monumentally, with a student body that exceeds many small colleges. Today, it’s a standout high school on a city, state and even national level. With this recognition comes an assortment of reputations, some of which are unfavorable. Westlake is widely mocked in the area for being rich and especially white, an issue that has always been touchy.

“We certainly saw it as a negative that we didn’t have more diversity, among my group of friends at least,” said Corrie MacLaggen, ’98 graduate and managing editor of the Texas Tribune. “In that, I have some mixed feelings about Westlake, because I loved high school, I got a great education, and I made great friends. But at the end of the day, diversity is incredibly important, and we did not have that in high school.”

Another thing Westlake is known for is its level of academic rigor, which has been around since the very beginning. Westlake is known today for the level of academic excellence it inspires in students, and consistently places highly in national high school rankings. This reputation doesn’t come easily and, as a result, students often bemoan their stressful workloads. However, what they come to learn has gone on to serve them well, both in the classroom and in the real world.

“I felt better prepared coming out of high school than I know a lot of students feel coming out of college today,” Wilson said. “I can say that, with 100 percent certainty, Westlake prepared me for the rigorous coursework at the University of Texas. I learned how to be a leader at Westlake, how to deal with failure,

Featherduster file photo Tiffany Hildreth and other art students in Dale Baker’s class paint a mural in 1986 commemorating the 150th anniversary of Texas’ statehood. The mural now hangs in a hallway off the Commons. “When they demolished the old administration section of the school to make way for the Chap Court, I assumed the mural was destroyed,” Hildreth said. “I have to admit my surprise at seeing the mural in the hallway during Back to School night during my daughter’s freshman year. Looking at it brought back so many memories of my time at Westlake.” Hildreth’s son, Dane, is now in also in Baker’s art class.

how to motivate people, how to meet deadlines and how to work on a team. These are all skills that have served me well in my jobs and activities.”

“We had a very competitive, very academically driven environment,” MacLaggen said. “I probably studied harder my junior year than at any other point in my life. I see that as mostly a good thing, because we worked so hard and learned so much. It was overwhelming at times, but definitely set us up well for college.”

Schools can’t have an excellent academic reputation without quality teachers who care deeply about both teaching and their students, and that’s another thing Westlake has had since the beginning.

“At the end of the semester, [one of my teachers] asked us to write down on a piece of paper what grade we thought we deserved, and that has always stuck with me,” Depwe said. “We had great teachers — very involved with the student body and very approachable.

I remember some being available for conversations and advice not related to school.”

Thanks to the the wide variety of classes and activities Westlake offers, students have many opportunities to pursue their interests.

Passions are discovered and nurtured at Westlake that prove to have a life-long effect on many of its graduates.

Izzy Vo The house of Robert Eanes, who founded the school in 1872, is now a historical site and can be found on the campus of Eanes Elementary. Also on campus are the Eanes History Center in the old rock school house from 1937, which contains an archival library and displays many original artifacts from the school’s early days, and a cemetery containing the remains of 30 Eanes residents.

“[Westlake is] where I fell in love with journalism, and I’m a professional journalist today,” MacLaggen said. “That was incredibly meaningful for me. I was also involved in Spanish, and Spanish language and literature became something very important to me throughout my life. I studied abroad in Spain and lived in Mexico City after college. I’m still doing a lot of the things that I became passionate about in high school. That’s very telling.”

As the years change, so does the school, and new classes are created and old ones are dropped. However, some of the past classes have been equally as influential on students as the ones that exist now.

“Funny to think that taking a class of how to use a typewriter and 10-key adding machine would help me in my profession after college,” Depwe said. “I ended up being a computer programmer. I also enjoyed taking shop. I learned how to use a planer, router, table saw and continue to use those tools today in my own woodworking shop, and still love to build things.”

High school is a formative part of anyone’s life for many reasons, one of which is the friendships and relationships that are made within the four years. Many of these connections tend to endure throughout time.

“I had such special friends in high school,” MacLaggen said. “When I

think about what was most meaningful to me at my time at high school, I just think of the dear friends I made. Some of them are still my very good friends today.”

From Friday nights in the crowded stadium cheering the Chaps towards a win to rallying around local families facing hardship or loss, the Westlake community is a force to be reckoned with.

“I learned how valuable it is to get behind a cause and how important it is to be part of the Westlake family,” Wilson said. “Sure, our times at high school help us develop as a person. But it’s really the family we formed at Westlake that was the most memorable. Once a Chap, always a Chap.”

—Catherine Barany

we are westlake westlakefeatherduster.com

06-07_ History of Westlake.indd All Pages

2/18/2019 3:13:39 PM

Then and now

Fifty years ago, when Westlake opened its doors, reporter Ernie Raithel of the Road Runner Express (the predecessor of The Featherduster) interviewed the first superintendent and principal, publishing an article discussing their thoughts on ideal qualities of students and their pride in the school (the article is pictured below). It also discussed the administration's goals for the school and the students. This year’s Featherduster staff decided to see how, 50 years later, the administrators feel about the qualities of Westlake students (below on right).

—Mikaela Sherry Principal Steve Ramsey’s goal for Westlake is “for our kids to have the best educational experience they can that’s personalized to their needs.”

He stressed the importance of offering a variety of courses for students so they can get where they want to be academically.

“There are so many various types of students out there,” Ramsey said. “A traditional role model does not exist anymore.”

He explains that what a traditional student is has changed, and that it’s the school’s job to help students reach their goals. The administration has more flexibility with catering to the students’ needs because of students’ stellar behavior.

Because students feel empowered to make choices, they take pride in their work and environment.

“You see pride in different ways,” Ramsey said. “The way you guys treat each other in the building shows that you’ve got a lot of pride. I’m just a firm believer in treating people with respect, and you guys have a great maturity, and you guys deserve that.”

Ramsey said that the way students had privileges in the past was different.

“There used to be a very transactional model, even when I first got here, that if you guys did this as a class, then you got this reward, if not, we might take it from you,” Ramsey said. “Now I think what we try to do is really look at the people individually. It’s not a bartering system.”

westlakefeatherduster.com westlake westlakefeatherduster.com 8 wewearearewestlake 24

08_ideal student new.indd 1

Superintendent Dr. Tom Leonard said that it’s hard to say what exactly an ideal Westlake student would look like because there are so many ways to be successful. But a quality that he deems ideal for any student is “a sense of awareness and a sense of caring about other individuals.”

“I think they care about the environment, I think they care about one another, I think they care about the greater good,” Dr. Leonard said.

Many of the students take part in volunteer work outside of school.

“While a lot of people in the Austin area might not know about it, there are a lot of charitable [acts] and giving back to community that our students do that is another segment that our student population takes pride in.”

Dr. Leonard said he is impressed with the maturity the students display.

“There seems to be a mutual respect for the students among their peers and to the adults and back and forth,” Dr. Leonard said. “Because of that, it’s almost like you’re walking through a professional building at Google or Dell or Apple.”

Dr. Leonard explained that students know how to behave, and said that “when you have that kind of environment, you can be very open as an administration.”

This mutual respect is what allows the students to enjoy many privileges.

“The students of Westlake High School are extremely well behaved, mature, rational and I think they behave like responsible adults,” Dr. Leonard said.

He said that test scores and other academic and athletic achievements add to school pride.

“I think most of our students strive to be successful in some way,” Dr. Leonard said. “That could be a successful artist, or a successful business person or politician, or military, or whatever it might be, but I think they do want to excel.

I think what’s significantly different is the road map to that path is not as structured or clear as it was in the 1970s, and there were certain paths that you knew certain careers were going be around for a long time, you knew if you did A,B,C,D that you’d be OK. I think the world is changing a lot faster now than it did, I think that there are jobs that are in existence now that will not exist in the future, and there’ll be new opportunities that we can’t even fathom.”

2/18/2019 3:14:24 PM

State of the art Veteran teacher adapts to new technology

Digital Art and Media teacher Dale Baker helps senior Anna Lowrimore with her project.

I

n 1985, Digital Art and Media teacher Dale Baker began teaching studio art at the school. Just a few years later, Baker noticed how computers were increasingly being used to create art and began to incorporate them into his classroom.

“I could have continued with the traditional studio media, but back then I saw how [digital art] was a trend and how art was going in this direction, so I decided to pursue that more,” Baker said. “I basically taught myself how to use a computer and handle different programs. I never took a formal class on animation, computer graphics or anything else. I just went online and saw some tutorials that other people were doing.”

After teaching himself, Baker began hosting workshops for other art teachers with questions on how to properly use a computer. He also met with them to discuss how they could use technology as an advantage in the classroom.

“Some of [the teachers] took to it, some of them didn’t,” Baker said.

“Traditional art teachers wanted to keep it traditional, but now, if you don’t have some sort of digital background, it’s really hard to market your work. Everything is digital, so if you’re going to submit any of your artwork to Visual Arts Scholastic Event, Scholastic or any other art competitions, you have to upload it digitally, meaning you have to know how to do all that stuff.”

In ’86, Baker and his students received their first Apple computer. The computer itself was revolutionary, but the digital art software wasn’t.

“Some of the software programs you could color in circles and squares, but it was really limited,” Baker said. “I stopped using it for a while, but then the software started developing a little more. We got some 3D programs that we used, and it was pretty amazing. The kids were able to do some really cool stuff on the computer.”

Seeing how fast technology and art were evolving, Baker decided the school needed a curriculum based around digital art. He asked the district for more computers, eventually creating what would be one of the first electronic media classes in Texas by 1988.

“I just kind of said, ‘We need a curriculum for this,’ so I wrote my own curriculum,” Baker said. “We started off with six computers that we got from the district. It started off really small, and we worked in the back of the store room of my art class that’s now gone. We started with one computer, then six, then we were able to get a whole lab of comput-

09_bakerreal thing!.indd 1

Izzy Vo ers, and the software continued to develop.”

In the years since Baker and his students received their first Apple computer, technology has developed tremendously. Now, the class uses a variety of different programs to create digital art, as well as drawing in their sketchbooks. Some of the most widely used by his beginning students include ZBrush, Lightwave 3D, Illustrator, After Effects and Photoshop. “[The class] is more of an overview of how you can use a computer in the art industry,” Baker said. “We start off with Photoshop techniques, how to do composites and how to extract things from different images so they look really nice and clean. A lot of people have a misconception that in digital art, the computer does all the work for you, which is not even close because you have to really do it by yourself.”

Writer, director and storyboard artist Mark Bristol is one of Baker’s former students. He graduated in ’87, and has since gone on to work on many different films, his most recent being Mission: Impossible Fallout.

“Mr. Baker had a tremendous influence on my career as an artist and filmmaker,” Bristol said. “His calm, supportive teaching style always encouraged me to explore my own interests and passions. I specifically remember becoming very frustrated with an Aliens movie poster I was painting. He refused to let me give up, then offered me some techniques and encouraged me to work through the problem. He taught me to approach my creativity with a calm, determined perseverance that can overcome any seemingly insurmountable obstacle. Mr. Baker’s art classes are some of my fondest memories from high school, and his influence over my character and career is indelible.”

After just under 34 years of teaching at Westlake, Baker predicts that technology will only get more powerful and that art will become even more advanced.

“Already the computers are amazing,” Baker said. “When I first started doing digital art, I was able to put my whole classroom’s worth of stuff onto a hard drive that was probably six GB. Now, I’ve got terabytes of space that the kids use. The project files are getting bigger, applications are getting more powerful and everything is larger. You need faster processors and bigger computers to do what we do. There are so many different areas now, it’s amazing how fast it’s growing.”

—Abby Murr

2/18/2019 3:14:51 PM

Staying classy Staff, students reflect on evolution of school courses

Y

ou’re sitting in the Lecture Hall with the rest of your English class as the counselors give their well-rehearsed speech regarding the graduation requirements and the four-year plan. You open the wide, cardstock brochure you were handed when you walked in, its margins teeming with available classes. In decades past, this list of classes would have looked quite different. You could have chosen home economics, office education, woodshop or Future Homemakers of America. There was a Skills for College class,

10

as well as bookkeeping.

One option was Home and Family Living, which had a marriage project complete with a mock wedding between two of the class members. At the time, the class was taught by current Career and Technical Education department chair Pat Betzner, who has taught at Westlake since 1985, making her the teacher with the longest tenure.

“We did one wedding in the Commons and one in the big auditorium,” Betzner said. “The whole school was invited, and we would have the reception afterwards. The students had to learn all the different [components of planning a wedding]. Guys went and got tuxedos. Local businesses were gracious to take time to share

Elizabeth Jackson wedding etiquette and their samples with students to further the participants’ understanding of this tradition.”

In addition to the obvious changes in the elective classes offered, there have been changes made in the track of the core classes, particularly in the science department. There used to be a physical science class offered to freshmen, which is now also offered in middle school under the title Integrated Physics and Chemistry, more commonly referred to as IPC. Now, biology is the course offered to on-track freshmen.

“There was a different [science] track,” said Scott Gardner, former German teacher and current substitute teacher. “Typically, in the old days, freshmen took physical science, sophomores took biology, juniors took chemistry and seniors took physics. At some point, they started allowing students in middle school to start taking more advanced classes, certainly in math and sciences. And somewhere they got rid of the class called physical science.”

With more students taking advanced math

classes in elementary and middle school, Westlake has had to offer higher levels of math.

“In the earlier days, you didn’t see people trying to do anything but Algebra I in middle school,” said Carol Niemann, a Westlake counselor from 2005-2018. “Now, we have kids coming in enrolled in pre-calculus. Calculus BC was the highest math that we had when I came, and then we added multivariable, and of course now we’ve added linear.”

Many students who take higher level math courses do so because they want to pursue a career in a related field.

“I’m trying to become an engineer one day, and since it’s critical to have a solid base in both math and science, I decided to push myself in that area,” senior Max Marshall said.

“Westlake has allowed me to do that by making classes like multi and linear available. I’m always eager to learn when I think the information could be useful later in my life, and that’s why I’ve decided to take the classes I have.”

This noticeable increase in students en-

rolled in advanced math courses reflects the teach a class of students who didn’t care about well-known AP-centric mentality present at the multiplier and were just in it to learn about Westlake. Since Westlake began offering AP language and how enriching language could courses in the mid-’80s, the difficulty of these be.” classes has not changed, but the number of AP Despite the general shift toward collegeclasses each student takes has increased. credit classes, some departments still offer “That’s a big difference between now and courses that allow students to explore their then, I would say,” Gardner said. “It’s insane interests in a hands-on environment with very how many AP courses you’ll take. It used to be little lecture. Examples within the journalism like, ‘Oh my god, you’re taking AP Physics and department include news media (The FeatherAP Chemistry in the same year?’ These days duster), yearbook (El Paisano), literary magathat’s just commonplace. I think there’s more zine (The Final Draft) and photojournalism. academic pressure on your generation than Also, the CTE department, which started with there was on my generation or the ones in the family consumer classes, foods and fashion, ’80s.” has grown to include robotics, mentorship and As a high-performing school, the academic computer science courses, among others. pressure to excel in classes is not a new con“I was always interested in science and cept at Westlake. In the ’70s and ’80s, before math, but didn’t really do any activities with AP classes were offered, there were still what them until I did an MLK Girls in STEM camp Gardner dehosted by Westscribes as “GPAlake robotics,” sehunters.”

But nior Cristina Sait was in the las said. “I don’t early ’90s that think that there’s the widespread any activity like pressure to robotics where take AP classes you can design, began, and it manufacture and has grown ever complete a robot since. while also learn“My daughing pitch, manter graduated agement and soft in 2003 and skills, which is was in the top what I love most 5 percent of her about robotics.” class,” Niemann Over the past said. “She grad50 years, class uated with eight offerings have AP courses and adapted to the went to Rice. changing wants Most people and needs of stuthat are at the dents. However, top of the class with the increasnow are graduing pressure to ating with 11 to take AP classes 15 AP classes.” regardless of In order to one’s own interstay competiest in the matetive, students rial, class enrollhave to take ment might not more AP coursalways accurately es than they stu—English teacher Becky Stucky represent might be predent interests. pared to take.

“I see a defiMany students nite place for vowould rather cational classes, take an AP course and secure the multiplier and I think we have a number of them in the than enroll in an on-level class that interests CTE department, a lot of them having to do them. with computers or child development,” Stucky “I teach AP workshops over the summer said. “But I do think we have a population that to other teachers, and when I tell them that is underserved. The problem is it’s hard to hire we have 22 sections of AP Language and five a teacher for just a few students and justify sections of regular junior English, they’re as- spending the money for one teacher when you tounded. It isn’t this way in most schools,” AP only have maybe 10 students sign up for the English teacher and department chair Becky class. What do you do with the teacher the rest Stucky said. “We have a number of kids who of the time? Economically, I understand why struggle in AP more than we used to have some of those classes went by the wayside, but because they just want that multiplier. And I think it’s a shame that they did.” sometimes I wonder what it would be like to —Carly Rose

“Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to teach a class of students who didn’t care about the multiplier and were just in it to learn about language and how enriching language could be.”

we are westlake westlakefeatherduster.com

10_AP Classes 2.indd All Pages

2/28/2019 2:36:12 PM

Staying classy Staff, students reflect on evolution of school courses

Y

ou’re sitting in the Lecture Hall with the rest of your English class as the counselors give their well-rehearsed speech regarding the graduation requirements and the four-year plan. You open the wide, cardstock brochure you were handed when you walked in, its margins teeming with available classes. In decades past, this list of classes would have looked quite different. You could have chosen home economics, office education, woodshop or Future Homemakers of America. There was a Skills for College class,

10

as well as bookkeeping.

One option was Home and Family Living, which had a marriage project complete with a mock wedding between two of the class members. At the time, the class was taught by current Career and Technical Education department chair Pat Betzner, who has taught at Westlake since 1985, making her the teacher with the longest tenure.

“We did one wedding in the Commons and one in the big auditorium,” Betzner said. “The whole school was invited, and we would have the reception afterwards. The students had to learn all the different [components of planning a wedding]. Guys went and got tuxedos. Local businesses were gracious to take time to share

Elizabeth Jackson wedding etiquette and their samples with students to further the participants’ understanding of this tradition.”

In addition to the obvious changes in the elective classes offered, there have been changes made in the track of the core classes, particularly in the science department. There used to be a physical science class offered to freshmen, which is now also offered in middle school under the title Integrated Physics and Chemistry, more commonly referred to as IPC. Now, biology is the course offered to on-track freshmen.

“There was a different [science] track,” said Scott Gardner, former German teacher and current substitute teacher. “Typically, in the old days, freshmen took physical science, sophomores took biology, juniors took chemistry and seniors took physics. At some point, they started allowing students in middle school to start taking more advanced classes, certainly in math and sciences. And somewhere they got rid of the class called physical science.”

With more students taking advanced math

classes in elementary and middle school, Westlake has had to offer higher levels of math.

“In the earlier days, you didn’t see people trying to do anything but Algebra I in middle school,” said Carol Niemann, a Westlake counselor from 2005-2018. “Now, we have kids coming in enrolled in pre-calculus. Calculus BC was the highest math that we had when I came, and then we added multivariable, and of course now we’ve added linear.”

Many students who take higher level math courses do so because they want to pursue a career in a related field.

“I’m trying to become an engineer one day, and since it’s critical to have a solid base in both math and science, I decided to push myself in that area,” senior Max Marshall said.

“Westlake has allowed me to do that by making classes like multi and linear available. I’m always eager to learn when I think the information could be useful later in my life, and that’s why I’ve decided to take the classes I have.”

This noticeable increase in students en-

rolled in advanced math courses reflects the teach a class of students who didn’t care about well-known AP-centric mentality present at the multiplier and were just in it to learn about Westlake. Since Westlake began offering AP language and how enriching language could courses in the mid-’80s, the difficulty of these be.” classes has not changed, but the number of AP Despite the general shift toward collegeclasses each student takes has increased. credit classes, some departments still offer “That’s a big difference between now and courses that allow students to explore their then, I would say,” Gardner said. “It’s insane interests in a hands-on environment with very how many AP courses you’ll take. It used to be little lecture. Examples within the journalism like, ‘Oh my god, you’re taking AP Physics and department include news media (The FeatherAP Chemistry in the same year?’ These days duster), yearbook (El Paisano), literary magathat’s just commonplace. I think there’s more zine (The Final Draft) and photojournalism. academic pressure on your generation than Also, the CTE department, which started with there was on my generation or the ones in the family consumer classes, foods and fashion, ’80s.” has grown to include robotics, mentorship and As a high-performing school, the academic computer science courses, among others. pressure to excel in classes is not a new con“I was always interested in science and cept at Westlake. In the ’70s and ’80s, before math, but didn’t really do any activities with AP classes were offered, there were still what them until I did an MLK Girls in STEM camp Gardner dehosted by Westscribes as “GPAlake robotics,” sehunters.”

But nior Cristina Sait was in the las said. “I don’t early ’90s that think that there’s the widespread any activity like pressure to robotics where take AP classes you can design, began, and it manufacture and has grown ever complete a robot since. while also learn“My daughing pitch, manter graduated agement and soft in 2003 and skills, which is was in the top what I love most 5 percent of her about robotics.” class,” Niemann Over the past said. “She grad50 years, class uated with eight offerings have AP courses and adapted to the went to Rice. changing wants Most people and needs of stuthat are at the dents. However, top of the class with the increasnow are graduing pressure to ating with 11 to take AP classes 15 AP classes.” regardless of In order to one’s own interstay competiest in the matetive, students rial, class enrollhave to take ment might not more AP coursalways accurately es than they stu—English teacher Becky Stucky represent might be predent interests. pared to take.

“I see a defiMany students nite place for vowould rather cational classes, take an AP course and secure the multiplier and I think we have a number of them in the than enroll in an on-level class that interests CTE department, a lot of them having to do them. with computers or child development,” Stucky “I teach AP workshops over the summer said. “But I do think we have a population that to other teachers, and when I tell them that is underserved. The problem is it’s hard to hire we have 22 sections of AP Language and five a teacher for just a few students and justify sections of regular junior English, they’re as- spending the money for one teacher when you tounded. It isn’t this way in most schools,” AP only have maybe 10 students sign up for the English teacher and department chair Becky class. What do you do with the teacher the rest Stucky said. “We have a number of kids who of the time? Economically, I understand why struggle in AP more than we used to have some of those classes went by the wayside, but because they just want that multiplier. And I think it’s a shame that they did.” sometimes I wonder what it would be like to —Carly Rose

“Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to teach a class of students who didn’t care about the multiplier and were just in it to learn about language and how enriching language could be.”

we are westlake westlakefeatherduster.com

10_AP Classes 2.indd All Pages

2/28/2019 2:36:12 PM

The adventure to acceptance Throughout the years, the perspective on college has changed from nonessential but favorable to necessary. With nearly 90 percent of millennials going to college within eight years of high school graduation and a steady rise in attendance in the United States, many high school students have adopted the view that college is a necessity to obtain a successful job and career. Those who apply to college must be willing to take on the high prices and stress that come with the application process. However, the high cost isn’t just a worrying point for potential applicants. It’s the steady rise of selectivity with growing numbers of applicants. This is how college application has changed, and how it has affected many. “[Colleges] have become more selective for sure,” lead counselor Heidi Sauer said.

“There are two things that have changed. One of them is students are applying to a bigger number of colleges. The other is that there are more individuals actually applying to college.”

With the number of applicants rising and colleges becoming more and more selective, parent influence and pressure to gain acceptance into college have become prominent factors affecting students. The number of applicants has also vastly changed the application process.

“I think 30 years ago college admissions were a little more black and white,” Sauer said. “You looked at GPA, and test scores were important, and those are still very important parts of college admissions. What’s changed is that a lot of colleges require essays within the application just to get better insight into the student.”

With a more holistic approach to applications, many high schools have improved their programs and hired counselors to help students in their applications.

“It’s definitely become a larger role for counselors to be people that are available to answer those questions and give good advice,” Sauer said. “I also think software and technology have taken a larger role.”

Even with these programs, the competition within the student body to come within the top 10 percent is high. Students are looking for any way to stand out and be recognized through taking all AP’s or overworking themselves.

“There is not really one formula to [getting a college to recognize you],” Sauer said. “Colleges are interested in seeing your level of commitment to something. If you love band, you should do it for all four years. But if you don’t, you should move on and try something else.

These are two completely opposite things that colleges totally respect.

If you can show that you’ve been exploring different things and are finding things meaningful to you, it looks just as good as the person who’s committing to something for all four years.”

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College application process has changed over the decades, becoming more stressful, expensive

One of the most prominent ideas on the problem with acceptance is tuition. In-state tuition to UT averaged $3,004 per year in 1998 and, by 2017, increased to $10,136. This price, not including room and board, has inflated dramatically and is especially evident in out-of-state tuition. While higher prices come with rising numbers of applicants and natural inflation, it shines a light on how much the journey to college has changed in the span of 20 years.

“Among Westlake students, I can’t imagine it affecting them too much,” senior Xavier Jordano said. “However I can imagine it being a deciding factor, as I knew a senior last year that didn’t go to a very prestigious Ivy League school because the tuition was too high.”

With acceptance and application comes the decision: Which college is right for me?

As for the students who graduated from Westlake, popular Texas-area colleges have always had the Nora Romman highest attendance record and seemed to remain steady in number from the ’70s. UT, Texas A&M and Baylor have always been the top three to which Westlake students apply. However, with the evident rise in the expectation of a college degree, the college attendance rate has risen from a mere 8.1 percent of females and 14.2 percent of males attending four years of college in 1970 to 34.6 percent of females and 33.7 percent of males attending four years of college in 2017. While the pre-2000s era college decisions were more simple, with many students going to the well-known schools around them, the later 2000s have become difficult in choosing where to go.

“I think that that’s a very individual [decision] and should be very individual,” Sauer said. “Things that commonly play a role are [things like,] does the colleges offer the major of the program that you’re interested in? Another variable that students and parents look at more and more is whether they are going to be successful after college. Like, is completing this program going to lead to a good job?”

Seniors have also noticed the growing selectivity within recent years.

“My parents always talk about how easy it was for them to get into college around 30 years ago, and so through my experience I definitely think it’s gotten harder,” senior Andrew Loomis said.

—Morgan Burkhardt Sources: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/09/22/more-peopleenroll-college-even-rising-price-tag-report-finds https://www.statista.com/statistics/184272/educational-attainmentof-college-diploma-or-higher-by-gender/ https://www.chronicle.com/interactives/tuition-and-fees

Learning experience

How special ed department has improved over decades to better serve students

It’s 1981, and a not-so-average high school student anxiously awaits his first day at Westlake. Jumping from school to school, his dyslexia has labeled him as unable and unintelligent. Similar to his previous experiences, he spends his days in special education classrooms, surrounded by a diverse range of students who have completely different needs.

My dad, Richard Johnson, took classes through the special ed department during his time at Westlake. Although many people don’t associate dyslexia with the special ed program, his experience was quite different than those with dyslexia today. In fact, most kids with dyslexia now will never step foot in the special ed classrooms. However, back in the early 1980s, the entire department was small, and therefore wasn’t able to make accommodations for each student’s specific needs.

“That was the hard thing about the special education department back then,” Johnson said. “They didn’t separate us.”

Apart from his learning disabilities, Johnson was a typical high school student. He was surrounded by friends and was a star player on the soccer team. While his dyslexia prevented him from being able to meet the challenges of most regular education classes, he also wasn’t being accommodated for his disability within the special ed department either. Not much was known at that time about how to individualize for various learning disabilities.

To compound the problem, general education and special ed teachers didn’t work together to assure student success.

“There was a disconnect between the special education teachers and the mainstream teachers,” Johnson said.

His experience though, is one I was quite unfamiliar with. Walking the halls of Westlake, I encounter so much diversity each day. The stigma about dyslexia, ADHD and other disorders has become significantly lessened which gives students more opportunities both in and outside of the classroom.

Seeing as the department has dramatically grown in size, Westlake has undoubtedly transformed the educational lives of special ed students for the better. The answer? In large part, technology.

“In special education, we were using iPads way before anyone even started to think about bringing them to the whole masses,” assistant director of special education Matt Zemo said. “We were using them because some students with specific needs use those as communication devices, for assistive technology needs or for reading and organization.”

Even more so, the department has introduced tools such as flexible furniture in an effort to honor students’ space within a classroom. Both

13_Special Ed.indd 1

the use of iPads and flexible furniture originated within the special ed department before being introduced to the entire school.

But apart from the fancy things like chairs and technology, the understanding of special education and mental disabilities has improved beyond measure.

“We really try to make sure that every student has the opportunity to show their knowledge and experiences in a different way,” assistant principal Lacey Victor said. “Even thinking about how we’re trying to reach every single learner in the classroom, I feel like that’s spreading out to all general education classes.”

In terms of inclusion, the special ed department has made it a clear priority to treat each student with the respect they deserve. In that, the department has made sure to assist students on the basis of them being general education students first.

“We’re starting with general education and what supports the services that a student might need in general education, and then we work back from there,” Zemo said. “Every single student is a general education student first.”

Once the accommodations are brought in, there is a large emphasis on making sure that each student’s learning experience targets them specifically. Back in 1975, one of the first major acts to affect students with disabilities was passed. Although it did carry a large impact throughout the country, by 2005 it needed some adjustments. Thus, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act was born. The act allows for each student with any sort of disability to have an Individualized Education Plan, or IEP. This makes sure that each student’s learning experience is specifically catered towards his or her needs.

“It starts with our SST, that’s our student support team,” Victor said. “Those are the kinds of academic resource teachers who work with students and try to recognize where some of those challenges might be Assistant director of speand start trying out different intercial education Matt Zemo ventions within the classroom that counsels a student. might help.”

A large part of this is the introduction of 504 accommodations.

Most students with disorders like dyslexia will receive these accommodations that permit longer testing times, page-by-page exams, and other benefits that help the student specifically.

“School with dyslexia was definitely a challenge at first,” junior Will Rhodes said. “But the 504 really set me on track and got me ahead to the point where I’m in AP English, Elizabeth Jackson and I actually do well.”

With such a focus on individuality also comes an understanding of not just what that student needs now, but what they will need in the future. Although academics are a great way to measure progress with students, helping students with what’s called their transition plan is a vital part of the special education program.

“Starting in elementary school, we’re having conversations around the acronym of what we call SPIN, which is strengths, preferences, interests and needs,” Zemo said. “Each year beginning at the age of 14 we do transition assessments to support that end goal of preparing them for adulthood.”

At the end of the day, it’s safe to say that the experience my dad had within the special education department is certainly different than it would have been today. While changes can always be made, Westlake prides itself on the continual effort to improve learning for all students.

The department provides a number of resources and programs that serve the community each and every day.

“Nobody’s perfect, but I think that we have the opportunity to step back and reflect on the work we can do to improve,” Victor said. “And I think that’s a great thing.”

—Tosca Johnson

2/25/2019 2:43:13 PM

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How Westlake’s disciplinary policies, procedures have changed throughout the years From Westlake’s opening in 1969 until now, administrators have faced a variety of disciplinary challenges. These problems range from skipping class to drug use.

Starting in the 1970s, one of the problems was student drug and alcohol use. According to ’73 graduate Beth South, illegal drugs and drinking were as much a problem then as they are now. In those days, the male coaches were mainly in charge of disciplining the boys for this problem.

“If anybody was caught drinking, or if anybody was caught with some kind of drug back then, [coaches] would hit them with a paddle,” said South, whose own children Jenna, Shannon and Hank graduated from Westlake in 2000, 2005 and 2009. “They called them licks.

But it was almost kind of a badge of honor if you got licked from the coach. Kids didn’t really care that much.”

Smoking cigarettes was another big prob-

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lem. Students would sneak around in different places and would be suspended if they were caught. At that time, it was up to individual school districts to allow or not allow smoking on campus.

“They designated a smoking area outside by the library,” South said. “Since they couldn’t stop it, they went ahead and allowed it.”

In those first few years of Westlake, it was a much smaller community, and most students followed the rules. According to South, they were pretty simple.

“You were supposed to get there on time, you were supposed to stay in school all day, you were supposed to take the classes seriously, you weren’t supposed to cheat, you were supposed to turn in your work on time and be respectful in classrooms,” South said. “It was easy to follow the rules, so most people did.”

Even so, there were still consequences for those who did get in trouble.

“There was detention hall,” South said.

“Parents were called. Back then, I think parents took a more active role in disciplining their kids.”

The teachers were mainly in charge of the discipline in their classrooms. Not many cases went to the principal’s office. “[Teachers] had the authority from the administration to discipline in their classroom as they wanted to,” South said. “The discipline in the classroom was based on the style of the teacher. If they didn’t feel like they could do that, then it would go to the principal or the vice principal. The vice principal was really in charge of discipline.”

A lot changed in a decade, though. In the 1980s, the disciplinary problems were very different.

“I’d say that [sneaking off campus for lunch as an underclassman] was probably the most popular thing to go do,” ’86 graduate Darin

Walker said. “Also, we had a parking enforcer.

His nickname was ‘Flash,’ and he would have your car towed off or you’d get ticketed or fined or put in after-school suspension.”

Even though there were so many different problems, most of them had similar consequences. The most common consequence was after-school detention, but student could also receive “swats” with wooden boards, much like the “lick” from the previous decade.

Usually, the counselors would hand out the appropriate punishments for the offenses.

Expulsion was the most extreme consequence there was. Most of the time, a student would get after-school detention and learn their lesson, so they rarely ever went to the level of expulsion.

“One student got expelled for skipping school constantly,” Walker said. “I believe there was a kid or two that got expelled for something to do with drugs. Other than that, I can’t remember too many instances of that.”

In the 1990s, the problems changed again.

The biggest were cheating, copying homework, fighting and sneaking off campus. Some of the issues were the same as the decade before, but there were some new ones as well. According to ’93 graduate Cord Shiflet, the biggest problem was sneaking off campus to smoke after the smoking area was removed.

“Some kids smoked back then, so they would walk across to where the dry cleaners was and smoke,” Shiflet said.

The usual consequence for this offense was after-school detention.

“You’d have to stay after school for about an hour and just sit in a room, not saying anything, and you could do your homework or something,” Shiflet said.

However, if it was a repeated offense, the consequences could be worse.

“In a more extreme case, they would give what was called ISS, In School Suspension,” Shiflet said. “You would be in there all day. The worst case was that you would get sent home.

Usually, we’d have to go just talk with one of the assistant principals. In extreme cases, you would be sent to the actual principal. That was rare and would have to be something pretty serious.”

Teachers did have quite a bit of freedom when it came to disciplining their students.

They would handle more minor problems, especially ones in the classroom. Again, the most extreme case was expulsion, but there was also a place off campus for students who were involved with drugs, much like DAEP, the disciplinary school that is currently in place.

According to assistant principal Casey Ryan, this year there have been three main problems: skipping, honor code violations and vaping. Students skip class usually just to avoid something. The consequences escalate as the offense is repeated.

“Usually, we’ll just start off with lunch detentions, then increase to multiple lunch detentions and then if need be, up to ISS,” Ryan said.

Even though there are some repeat offend-

ers, most students learn after one time.

“I think the far majority of kids usually turned around,” Ryan said. “I think the idea of losing exemptions is a big motivator for kids here.”

Next is honor code violation. The honor code is the academic integrity and honesty rules that every student has to follow. A violation of this code can result in many consequences, depending on the severity.

There are three tiers of the honor code. Tier One includes things like copying homework, Tier Two includes things like copying sections of tests and Tier Three includes things like copying entire tests or plagiarism. There are also consequences for each of the tiers.

These range from a failing grade on an assignment to losing all final exam exemptions. If it’s bad enough, a student can even be sent to the DAEP. “DAEP stands for Disciplinary Alternative Education Program,” Ryan said. “At the high school, we only tend to send students for mandatory offenses. That is the most severe.”

Cheating usually happens because students don’t feel prepared for a quiz, test or assignment. Because they don’t know something, they feel the need to get the answers from somewhere else.

“People know when they should and shouldn’t share,” Ryan said. “There’s a time where it’s appropriate to share answers and share work, and there’s times where it’s not, like when teachers need to know what the student independently knows and can demonstrate on their own.”

According to Ryan, though, vaping is the most concerning problem for most of the administration. Drugs have been a problem ever since Westlake opened, but vaping is new.

“Last year was a big jump from the previous years,” Ryan said. “I just think it’s become more common.”

Ryan and the other assistant principals try to make sure they’re on the same page with discipline. They find that the most effective way of dealing with things like this is communication with the student, the parents and the teacher.

“I think we as an administrative team try and approach things by problem solving versus just disciplinary consequences,” Ryan said.

“My hope with any disciplinary thing — whether it be tardies, skipping, drugs and alcohol, disrespect, whatever it is — my hope is that it’s not a continuing pattern of behavior. We address it, you serve your consequences, you learn from it and we don’t have further recurrences of that issue.”

Even though all these problems are happening, most students have been following the rules.

“This year, I personally have dealt with the least amount of discipline that I have in my four years,” Ryan said. “It’s been going down every year since I got here. I think we have really good kids who follow the rules and are respectful. Now, for the most part, people do the right thing.”

–Mehuli Basu Roy

Honor Code Violations

Tier 1

For copying homework, allowing another student to copy homework or using a translation tool on a World Languages assignment.

The student will receive 0-50 percent on the assignment, and the teacher will notify the parent and assistant principal.

Tier 2

For sharing or receiving answers to a test or quiz or using a translation tool on a World Languages major grade.

Student receives a zero on a test or a quiz and cannot exempt the final exam.

Tier 3

For collusion or theft of test, plagiarizing or sabotaging another student’s work.

Student is assigned to ISS.

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2/18/2019 3:18:52 PM

Di v ide d Westlake High School brought together the Westlake Hills community in 1969. But since then, some issues have threatened to tear the community apart. Westlake has experienced scandals, but it’s the large-scale controversies that force people to take sides and reflect on what they think is right and wrong. The following articles detail just a few of the wide-scale debates that have stood out throughout the school’s history. To read more about one of Westlake’s earlier controversies involving racism, visit westlakefeatherduster.com. Resources used for these articles include: firsthand accounts, past Featherdusters, past El Paisano yearbooks, online articles and blogs, Facebook posts and speeches.

—Shelby Sperling

Assassin

Off-campus game came under fire after school shootings in 2018 The game Assassin is not uncommon in high schools across the nation. It’s so popular it has its own WikiHow page on how to play.

Generally, the game is made up of pairs of people who each are given “targets” that they have to “kill” with harmless weapons in a given amount of time in order to advance to the next round until only one team is left. Due to the rise of school shootings in America and the tensions between the pro- and anti-gun parties, there is an ongoing debate on whether or not Assassin is a game appropriate for students to play.

Each year, some Westlake seniors partake in their own game of Assassin, using Nerf guns. Here, the game is organized and regulated by a pair of seniors who volunteer and keep a portion of the reward for their effort. Last year, just three weeks into the game, on Feb. 14, a gunman opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, killing 14 students and three teachers.

This tragedy caused the Westlake High School community to reflect on the message students were sending by playing this game, and not all agreed on the best course of action.

Some felt the game should be suspended or even canceled out of respect for the victims and their families. The idea of using ping pong balls to throw as opposed to Nerf guns was considered. Some even suggested the reward money be donated to the Stoneman Douglas Victims’ Fund. Before the events in Parkland, The Featherduster was planning on running a story covering the game, but pulled the story last minute out of respect.

“It seemed inappropriate to run a story highlighting a ‘game’ at Westlake that made light of gun violence against other students,” 2017-18 editor-in-chief Conor O’Bryon said.

“To run the article right after such a horrifying tragedy wouldn’t have reflected very well on the publication or the school.”

There were many different opinions on how

17_controversies oh my god (the miracle design).indd 1

or if the game should continue, but there was one thing all parties agreed on: They needed a response from the 2018 organizers. A post to the senior Facebook page announced the game would be temporarily suspended out of respect, and once the game continued, players would no longer use Nerf guns, but throw ping pong balls instead. Ultimately the decision to continue using Nerf guns was made before the suspension was lifted and the game then continued as usual.

photo illustration by Izzy Vo The Featherduster reached out to last year’s organizers who declined to comment for this story.

Before the game returned to its original rules, there was push-back from seniors who were playing. Some felt the game did not reflect poorly on the school or students because it was just a “harmless game,” some were upset about losing the $15 deposit they paid to play the game and some were disappointed that their senior tradition could end. A select group

of students even went so far as to start up their own game of Assassin.

“We should not have switched to ping pong balls, but I thought a pause in the game was a good idea out of respect,” ’18 graduate Niko Kumar said. “Everybody was upset by the ping pong ball change. So, we thought we should make a new game everyone would want to switch to. As we were recruiting people to play, [the coordinators] switched to using Nerf guns again. Since that was basically the reason we organized [a separate game], we decided not to have two Nerf gun games running because enough people were playing the first one.”

Keeping the previous year in mind, the 2019 game coordinators, seniors Reed Senterfitt and Prakrith Raja, released their rules and regulations for the game.

“We think that Assassin is one of the coolest traditions,” Reed and Prakrith said in an official statement. “Our goal is to just provide seniors with a fun and awesome experience.”

After complaints about the price being too high last year, it was lowered to $10 in hopes of encouraging participation. Additionally, this year the rules are strict, especially when it comes to the Westlake campus and surrounding area, along with any EISD school grounds, including parking lots, school buses and school events. Any place of worship such as churches, mosques and synagogues have been blocked off as a “safe zone.” If any students are spotted with a Nerf gun in or around the school, they will automatically be disqualified. The school’s administration has made it clear from the beginning that they and the school do not support the game and have a no-tolerance policy regarding Assassin activity on campus.

“We know the game does take place off campus,” principal Steve Ramsey said. “We don’t condone it being played because there can be safety issues. It’s never come on to school grounds. You guys have always respected this … and we thank you for that.”

2/28/2019 2:47:12 PM

The history of the dance The hat dance to the Class of 2019 is drastically different from how the tradition looked in the beginning. Its origin is not well-known. It started as an accident during a pep rally in 1970. All attending students had gathered around the W in the commons. The band played “Jalisco,” as it has done every pep rally for 49 years since then. During the song, varsity football player Bob Mayo pushed varsity football player and drama student Scott Sparks into the center of the crowd, thinking it would be funny. Confused and with all eyes on him, Sparks began to dance the Mexican matador jig that would go on as a Westlake tradition for years to come.

“In 1969, when Westlake was founded, Scott Sparks dances we had no traditions, no legacy,” ’71 gradthe first hat dance in uate and original hat dancer Scott Sparks the Commons during said during his speech for the January a pep rally in 1970.

2018 Westlake football banquet. “The school sorely needed something to cheer El Paisano file photo about. We were hungry to find our way and define for ourselves whatever Westlake meant to us because we had no history to rely on. It continued because this silly dance built a tremendous amount of spirit at pep rallies and literally gave us something to rally around.”

While the general dance moves and song have stayed the same, over the years the details surrounding the hat dance and what it entails were altered for a variety of reasons. The first few years, the hat dancer was elected by the entire football team. This changed so the up-and-coming dancer is picked by the outgoing dancer and announced at the football banquet. Over time, informal regulations have been put in place so the hat dancer is a senior lineman on the varsity team, and is usually a captain.

In the early years, the cheerleading squad bought and donated a large

embroidered sombrero for the dancer to wear.

In 1998, Betty Etier, the mother of a Hyline dancer, embroidered and sequined a vest for Greg Marberry, the hat dancer that year. Etier left a space on the vest to include the initials of every hat dancer.

Back when pep rallies were once a week, each hat dancer would have to perform up to 12 dances during the fall semester, meaning they had to get creative in order to entertain the crowd. One player would go shirtless or seven different players would all dance together. Sometimes they would go without the hat or they would place the hat on the ground and dance around it. Matt Nader, ’07 graduate and dancer in 2006, held a cowboy hat and was accompanied by three other players. In his year, ’93 graduate and current boys golf coach Lane Grigg wore the Mexican hat and vest, plus a special pair of grey cowboy boots. When his replacement was chosen, Grigg passed on the boots to him.

El Paisano file photo “I was given the cowboy boots because I listened to rap music all the time, and the player that passed the hat dance down to me liked country music,” Grigg said. “He gave me the boots to poke fun at me, and I thought it was hysterical.”

Traditions evolve to reflect the community of students at the time.

The dance is something seniors can rally around.

“It is an incredibly cool experience, one that is very unexplainable until you experience it,” 2018 hat dancer senior Blake Webster said. “The hat dance represents something so special for the senior class, and it was an honor to get to carry that tradition on.”

There have been 49 hat dancers thus far, and the 50th, junior Connor Halverson, was announced in January.

“I’m really honored to be the next hat dancer and hopefully carry on the tradition from all the years in the past,” Connor said.

Hat Dance

Long-standing tradition sparked heated debate over cultural insensitivity dedication to the team. To alumni, it At the end of every pep rally, after represents their contribution to the Hyline has performed its dance, after traditions of future generations. But the Push Up Squad has impressed the this is not all the Westlake hat dance crowd with its flips and after the cheerrepresents. To some, it represents leaders have brought out the spirit cultural insensitivity. stick, each grade gets a chance to show Early September 2018, many difoff how much noise they can make. The ferent stories surrounding the Westsenior class always goes last, its pep lake hat dance surfaced. Rumors earning them the stick every time. As saying the dance and song were all other grades watch, a football playbanned quickly took off, resulting in er in the classic khaki trousers, a white widespread confusion. People soon button-up shirt and a red tie with an began taking sides, saying either the embroidered vest and matching Mexi1983 graduate Kevin Johnson and ’84 graduate Dan Giladministration was in the wrong or can sombrero walks to the center of crest hold roses in their mouths as they dance the tradithey were finally doing something the court, red rose in hand. The band tional hat dance with fellow varsity players. that should have been done a long starts up the familiar intro to "Jalisco," former FD photographer Bradley Wilson time ago, without knowing all the and the player begins to dance the information.

To the student body, it represents spirit.

Westlake hat dance. He is not alone The catalyst of this uproar: a post on Facefor long — in just a few moments, seniors rush To seniors, it represents an opportunity to onto the court and circle around the dancer, come together in their last year before they book. A photo of a tombstone reading “Westcheering and dancing themselves. This is how part ways. To one lucky varsity football player, lake Hat Dance, Born: 1970, Died: 2018” along it represents recognition for his four years of with the caption, “A nearly 50 year pep rally the Class of ’19 knew the hat dance to be.

24 18

tradition at my alma Westlake Nation was mater, Westlake High positive, but this will School, has come to an be an ongoing converend. Sadly, the adminsation in the years to istration caved to one come.” teacher’s complaint Throughout the of ‘cultural insensitivconversation, the ity,’” was posted by biggest concern for a Westlake alumnus Ramsey was the poSept. 4. tential harm negative The source that led media could have on to alumni believing the the 2018 hat dancer, tradition was canceled senior Blake Webster. is unknown. Contrary “Coach [Todd] Varsity football players watch as seniors Gabriel Lozano and Blake Webster perform the to popular belief, there Dodge and I worked traditional hat dance at the Sept. 21 Homecoming pep rally. The use of the vest and hat were was no official comtogether with [superdiscontinued after Sept. 5, but the song and gathering of the senior class remain the same. plaint by any parent, intendent] Dr. [Tom] Emily Beebe Leonard to look at student or teacher letic and campus administration to carry on about the dance bewhat we needed to do ing insensitive in the fall of 2018, according to the senior pep rally dance with a few adapta- to remove the student from a precarious situations to continue to build the camaraderie of tion,” Ramsey said. “If media does show up or principal Steve Ramsey.

The hat dance was not under any official seniors and community. Students and staff anybody takes a picture, and he has on certain review or ban by the administration, as was should be trusted as they work together to bal- attire, how can this potentially negativly imfalsely stated by the Facebook post. Alumni ance the past, present and future and continue pact Blake’s future in this social media-driven who feared losing their cherished tradition the legacy of Westlake High School.” age?”

It is the students’ and alumni’s pride in this began commenting, urging people to call the As the hat dancer at the time, Blake was in school or attend parent-teacher meetings to 49-year-old tradition that fueled all of the re- the center of all the turmoil. The position as hat “grill” teachers and administration for an- cent turmoil surrounding the dance. It is the dancer is passed down each year to one player swers. Even when some alumni reached out to same pride that the administration wanted to who is picked to carry on the legacy. But when Ramsey and he denied that the dance was to take into consideration before making a deci- the legacy was subject to change, the situation be canceled, the misinformed comments and sion on what needed to change.

Blake was put in was fragile, so the morning of On the morning of Sept. 5, Ramsey put to- the meeting, Ramsey went over the issue with posts continued.

“If the tradition had just sort of faded away, gether a meeting with a handful of students Blake to see where he stood. if the football players or athletic department or from football, Hyline, Student Council, cheer“I believe whatever decision the school the student body thought it was a relic that had leading and others involved in pep rallies. The makes regarding the hat dance going forward goal was to gather opin- will be the right one,” Blake said. “I would obrun its course, I would ions that fairly repre- viously love to see it continue as it represents have understood,” ’71 sented the student body something so special.” graduate and original so they could make an hat dancer Scott Sparks Ramsey received positive and negative appropriate decision on feedback after coming to his conclusion. Alsaid. “But, for the tradithe future of the dance. tion to almost end due though some were disappointed, many felt the “I think the [most im- decision to keep but alter the dance was fair. to some perceived slight portant thing] was getto Mexicans and their “Since there was no sombrero or vest the ting the kids together to first few years of the tradition, I guess we can traditions, I was outask what they like, what look at this new policy as returning to the origraged. Never, ever, had they didn’t like, and then inal dance,” Sparks said. “It's a shame that a anyone taken the dance, seeing how that played compromise to eliminate a sombrero and vest the song ‘Jalisco,’ the out,” Ramsey said. might be construed as an admission of somesombrero, vest and rose “What they mentioned thing wrong being done through the years between the teeth as a were, ‘We like the song, when there was absolutely nothing wrong, just slight or insulting. It former FD photographer Bradley Wilson we like going on the an embellishment as the tradition grew.” broke my heart that anyone perceived something so pure, innocent, court or the field and we like just dancing.’ So Once the football season was over, the those are definitely elements that would stay.” backlash died down. However, the Facebook fun and crowd-pleasing as racist.”

After coming to this conclusion, the group posts are still up and the general public is still Alumni then began asking Ramsey what time the next pep rally would start so they talked about what may be perceived as disre- misinformed on what decisions were made in could attend. Fearful that the stories could get spectful and what could be removed to avoid the end, but Ramsey said he feels that the outout of hand, the administration decided the offending anyone or their culture. They de- come overall has been positive. cided to omit the sombrero and vest from the hat dance and its future should be discussed. “[I have] to make decisions based upon On Sept. 5, Westlake released a statement tradition, but continue the song and dance as what's best for students,” Ramsey said. “Lookregarding the issue on the Westlake Facebook usual. ing back on it, I'd say that there were two easy “When we met with Mr. Ramsey about the choices we could have made. One was to keep page, in hopes of clearing up any confusion.

“In preparation for Westlake High School's hat dance, we discussed both sides of the is- it like it is, endorse it and make some happy 50th anniversary in 2019, Eanes ISD and WHS sue,” Student Body president Sloane Hayashi that everything is still intact. The other thing staff, students and alumni will review many said. “We concluded that it is important to would have been to go ahead and take away of the school's traditions,” the post said. “The keep traditions alive, but it is also necessary the whole dance. But I think when you really school’s traditions have evolved over time as for traditions to adapt to better fit the chang- get down to it, I'm not going to let anything students shape them to make them their own, ing times. This season we took away the vest dissuade me from making the right decision while also respecting the history and cultures and hat from the dance to see if the audience of making sure everything's right for all our of the district. Students have met with the ath- would respond differently. The response from students, especially students here at this time.”

westlakefeatherduster.com we we are are westlake westlake westlakefeatherduster.com

17_controversies oh my god (the miracle design).indd 2-3

2/28/2019 2:47:13 PM

The history of the dance The hat dance to the Class of 2019 is drastically different from how the tradition looked in the beginning. Its origin is not well-known. It started as an accident during a pep rally in 1970. All attending students had gathered around the W in the commons. The band played “Jalisco,” as it has done every pep rally for 49 years since then. During the song, varsity football player Bob Mayo pushed varsity football player and drama student Scott Sparks into the center of the crowd, thinking it would be funny. Confused and with all eyes on him, Sparks began to dance the Mexican matador jig that would go on as a Westlake tradition for years to come.

“In 1969, when Westlake was founded, Scott Sparks dances we had no traditions, no legacy,” ’71 gradthe first hat dance in uate and original hat dancer Scott Sparks the Commons during said during his speech for the January a pep rally in 1970.

2018 Westlake football banquet. “The school sorely needed something to cheer El Paisano file photo about. We were hungry to find our way and define for ourselves whatever Westlake meant to us because we had no history to rely on. It continued because this silly dance built a tremendous amount of spirit at pep rallies and literally gave us something to rally around.”

While the general dance moves and song have stayed the same, over the years the details surrounding the hat dance and what it entails were altered for a variety of reasons. The first few years, the hat dancer was elected by the entire football team. This changed so the up-and-coming dancer is picked by the outgoing dancer and announced at the football banquet. Over time, informal regulations have been put in place so the hat dancer is a senior lineman on the varsity team, and is usually a captain.

In the early years, the cheerleading squad bought and donated a large

embroidered sombrero for the dancer to wear.

In 1998, Betty Etier, the mother of a Hyline dancer, embroidered and sequined a vest for Greg Marberry, the hat dancer that year. Etier left a space on the vest to include the initials of every hat dancer.

Back when pep rallies were once a week, each hat dancer would have to perform up to 12 dances during the fall semester, meaning they had to get creative in order to entertain the crowd. One player would go shirtless or seven different players would all dance together. Sometimes they would go without the hat or they would place the hat on the ground and dance around it. Matt Nader, ’07 graduate and dancer in 2006, held a cowboy hat and was accompanied by three other players. In his year, ’93 graduate and current boys golf coach Lane Grigg wore the Mexican hat and vest, plus a special pair of grey cowboy boots. When his replacement was chosen, Grigg passed on the boots to him.

El Paisano file photo “I was given the cowboy boots because I listened to rap music all the time, and the player that passed the hat dance down to me liked country music,” Grigg said. “He gave me the boots to poke fun at me, and I thought it was hysterical.”

Traditions evolve to reflect the community of students at the time.

The dance is something seniors can rally around.

“It is an incredibly cool experience, one that is very unexplainable until you experience it,” 2018 hat dancer senior Blake Webster said. “The hat dance represents something so special for the senior class, and it was an honor to get to carry that tradition on.”

There have been 49 hat dancers thus far, and the 50th, junior Connor Halverson, was announced in January.

“I’m really honored to be the next hat dancer and hopefully carry on the tradition from all the years in the past,” Connor said.

Hat Dance

Long-standing tradition sparked heated debate over cultural insensitivity dedication to the team. To alumni, it At the end of every pep rally, after represents their contribution to the Hyline has performed its dance, after traditions of future generations. But the Push Up Squad has impressed the this is not all the Westlake hat dance crowd with its flips and after the cheerrepresents. To some, it represents leaders have brought out the spirit cultural insensitivity. stick, each grade gets a chance to show Early September 2018, many difoff how much noise they can make. The ferent stories surrounding the Westsenior class always goes last, its pep lake hat dance surfaced. Rumors earning them the stick every time. As saying the dance and song were all other grades watch, a football playbanned quickly took off, resulting in er in the classic khaki trousers, a white widespread confusion. People soon button-up shirt and a red tie with an began taking sides, saying either the embroidered vest and matching Mexi1983 graduate Kevin Johnson and ’84 graduate Dan Giladministration was in the wrong or can sombrero walks to the center of crest hold roses in their mouths as they dance the tradithey were finally doing something the court, red rose in hand. The band tional hat dance with fellow varsity players. that should have been done a long starts up the familiar intro to "Jalisco," former FD photographer Bradley Wilson time ago, without knowing all the and the player begins to dance the information.

To the student body, it represents spirit.

Westlake hat dance. He is not alone The catalyst of this uproar: a post on Facefor long — in just a few moments, seniors rush To seniors, it represents an opportunity to onto the court and circle around the dancer, come together in their last year before they book. A photo of a tombstone reading “Westcheering and dancing themselves. This is how part ways. To one lucky varsity football player, lake Hat Dance, Born: 1970, Died: 2018” along it represents recognition for his four years of with the caption, “A nearly 50 year pep rally the Class of ’19 knew the hat dance to be.

24 18

tradition at my alma Westlake Nation was mater, Westlake High positive, but this will School, has come to an be an ongoing converend. Sadly, the adminsation in the years to istration caved to one come.” teacher’s complaint Throughout the of ‘cultural insensitivconversation, the ity,’” was posted by biggest concern for a Westlake alumnus Ramsey was the poSept. 4. tential harm negative The source that led media could have on to alumni believing the the 2018 hat dancer, tradition was canceled senior Blake Webster. is unknown. Contrary “Coach [Todd] Varsity football players watch as seniors Gabriel Lozano and Blake Webster perform the to popular belief, there Dodge and I worked traditional hat dance at the Sept. 21 Homecoming pep rally. The use of the vest and hat were was no official comtogether with [superdiscontinued after Sept. 5, but the song and gathering of the senior class remain the same. plaint by any parent, intendent] Dr. [Tom] Emily Beebe Leonard to look at student or teacher letic and campus administration to carry on about the dance bewhat we needed to do ing insensitive in the fall of 2018, according to the senior pep rally dance with a few adapta- to remove the student from a precarious situations to continue to build the camaraderie of tion,” Ramsey said. “If media does show up or principal Steve Ramsey.

The hat dance was not under any official seniors and community. Students and staff anybody takes a picture, and he has on certain review or ban by the administration, as was should be trusted as they work together to bal- attire, how can this potentially negativly imfalsely stated by the Facebook post. Alumni ance the past, present and future and continue pact Blake’s future in this social media-driven who feared losing their cherished tradition the legacy of Westlake High School.” age?”

It is the students’ and alumni’s pride in this began commenting, urging people to call the As the hat dancer at the time, Blake was in school or attend parent-teacher meetings to 49-year-old tradition that fueled all of the re- the center of all the turmoil. The position as hat “grill” teachers and administration for an- cent turmoil surrounding the dance. It is the dancer is passed down each year to one player swers. Even when some alumni reached out to same pride that the administration wanted to who is picked to carry on the legacy. But when Ramsey and he denied that the dance was to take into consideration before making a deci- the legacy was subject to change, the situation be canceled, the misinformed comments and sion on what needed to change.

Blake was put in was fragile, so the morning of On the morning of Sept. 5, Ramsey put to- the meeting, Ramsey went over the issue with posts continued.

“If the tradition had just sort of faded away, gether a meeting with a handful of students Blake to see where he stood. if the football players or athletic department or from football, Hyline, Student Council, cheer“I believe whatever decision the school the student body thought it was a relic that had leading and others involved in pep rallies. The makes regarding the hat dance going forward goal was to gather opin- will be the right one,” Blake said. “I would obrun its course, I would ions that fairly repre- viously love to see it continue as it represents have understood,” ’71 sented the student body something so special.” graduate and original so they could make an hat dancer Scott Sparks Ramsey received positive and negative appropriate decision on feedback after coming to his conclusion. Alsaid. “But, for the tradithe future of the dance. tion to almost end due though some were disappointed, many felt the “I think the [most im- decision to keep but alter the dance was fair. to some perceived slight portant thing] was getto Mexicans and their “Since there was no sombrero or vest the ting the kids together to first few years of the tradition, I guess we can traditions, I was outask what they like, what look at this new policy as returning to the origraged. Never, ever, had they didn’t like, and then inal dance,” Sparks said. “It's a shame that a anyone taken the dance, seeing how that played compromise to eliminate a sombrero and vest the song ‘Jalisco,’ the out,” Ramsey said. might be construed as an admission of somesombrero, vest and rose “What they mentioned thing wrong being done through the years between the teeth as a were, ‘We like the song, when there was absolutely nothing wrong, just slight or insulting. It former FD photographer Bradley Wilson we like going on the an embellishment as the tradition grew.” broke my heart that anyone perceived something so pure, innocent, court or the field and we like just dancing.’ So Once the football season was over, the those are definitely elements that would stay.” backlash died down. However, the Facebook fun and crowd-pleasing as racist.”

After coming to this conclusion, the group posts are still up and the general public is still Alumni then began asking Ramsey what time the next pep rally would start so they talked about what may be perceived as disre- misinformed on what decisions were made in could attend. Fearful that the stories could get spectful and what could be removed to avoid the end, but Ramsey said he feels that the outout of hand, the administration decided the offending anyone or their culture. They de- come overall has been positive. cided to omit the sombrero and vest from the hat dance and its future should be discussed. “[I have] to make decisions based upon On Sept. 5, Westlake released a statement tradition, but continue the song and dance as what's best for students,” Ramsey said. “Lookregarding the issue on the Westlake Facebook usual. ing back on it, I'd say that there were two easy “When we met with Mr. Ramsey about the choices we could have made. One was to keep page, in hopes of clearing up any confusion.

“In preparation for Westlake High School's hat dance, we discussed both sides of the is- it like it is, endorse it and make some happy 50th anniversary in 2019, Eanes ISD and WHS sue,” Student Body president Sloane Hayashi that everything is still intact. The other thing staff, students and alumni will review many said. “We concluded that it is important to would have been to go ahead and take away of the school's traditions,” the post said. “The keep traditions alive, but it is also necessary the whole dance. But I think when you really school’s traditions have evolved over time as for traditions to adapt to better fit the chang- get down to it, I'm not going to let anything students shape them to make them their own, ing times. This season we took away the vest dissuade me from making the right decision while also respecting the history and cultures and hat from the dance to see if the audience of making sure everything's right for all our of the district. Students have met with the ath- would respond differently. The response from students, especially students here at this time.”

westlakefeatherduster.com we we are are westlake westlake westlakefeatherduster.com

17_controversies oh my god (the miracle design).indd 2-3

2/28/2019 2:47:13 PM

Proposition 1

Community divided over splitting Westlake into two high schools In 1998, the Eanes Independent School fields, tennis courts, practice fields and a 500- very much,” librarian Carolyn Foote said.

District faced a debate that tore apart the West- seat auditorium. It also included renovations “And, the community had pride in ‘Westlake High School,’ so there was division about splitlake community. The District was scheduled to to both middle schools.

Those who supported Prop. 1 said two ting into two schools.” vote on Proposition 1, a proposition that proThose in favor of a single high school arvided a solution to the overcrowding dilemma smaller schools was ideal for providing stuthe school was facing at the time: building dents with the most opportunities and a more gued that splitting the population between two a second high school. The voters ultimately individualized learning experience. Those who schools would eliminate any diversity in the turned down Prop. 1 on Sept. 19, 1998, result- might otherwise fall between the cracks would student body and any chance for smaller clubs, ing in enlargements to the Westlake campus have a better chance at participating in sports organizations and classes to succeed because and the addition of the Ninth Grade Center of and other extracurricular activities on a higher the population of potential participants would level. be cut in half. On top of this, Westlake would today as a compro“As a teacher new go from one 5A division campus to two 3A dimise. But where the to Westlake at the vision campuses, changing its designation for controversy lies is time, I was certain the UIL academic and athletic competition. not in the results, but proposition would “It was widely thought that another reason in the hostility Westpass,” AP English III Prop. 1 failed was because of football,” Stucky lake residents showed teacher Becky Stucky said. “It was rumored that patrons did not towards each other said. “I was shocked want to split the pool of talent into two sepaprior to the vote. when the proposi- rate schools, and that in order for Westlake to In the months tion was defeated. remain a football powerhouse, we absolutely leading up to the ‘Why wouldn't a com- had to keep all the talent in one school.” vote, friends, comunity want to offer While both options would be funded by tax workers, neighbors, smaller classes and dollars, each party claimed the other was going educators and even more options for their to be a bigger drain on the EISD budget overorganizations turned youth?’ I thought.” all, worsening the already rising tensions. Both against each other.

Featherduster file photo If Prop. 1 was de- sides scrambled to find ways they could fund There were two parfeated by voters, the their preferred project, and fought over which ties: pro-Prop 1 and anti-Prop 1. Each party went to great lengths plan was to enlarge the Westlake campus and fundraising tactic would be most successful. If to gain support for its side. They campaigned add an Eighth and Ninth Grade Center either Prop. 1 passed, the project would require fundduring school-related events, showing up with on campus or on a separate plot of land. This ing for the new facility and staff. ultimately “My personal signs, buttons and pamphlets. It became such would feeling was/is that a disturbance that the administration banned cost $650,000 less splitting into two all political campaigning from campus. The than building a new schools would retactics got petty. There were reports of people school.

Those against quire additional stealing pro-Prop. 1 signs from front yards and staffing in a number replacing them with anti-Prop. 1 signs. Argu- Prop. 1 didn’t feel of places,” Taylor ments would break out in classes between stu- building a second said. “At the time, dents and quickly escalate. It was rare to find school was justified.

They were scared of we were just beginsomeone who was neutral. ning to feel the imWhile most faculty members had an opin- the rift in the compact of the state's reion favoring one side or the other, they were munity that a sepacapture plan, Robin asked to not share those thoughts with stu- rate school would bring. If a second Hood, and I thought dents or parents. it unwise to set up a “As a rule, faculty and staff are not allowed school was to be situation that would to promote for or against a bond package,” built, each school require additional band director and visual arts department chair would have its own staffing and strain on Kerry Taylor said. “They can only inform oth- n e i g h b o r h o o d s , our limited budget.” ers as to specific needs that may be addressed teams, mascot and a The vote shot in a bond package. Because of this, the staff separate identity all Featherduster file graphic together. How will down Prop. 1, and a was not involved much in the public debate.”

By the late 1990s, the Westlake campus was the two schools compare to each other? Will plan for enlarging the one high school was put struggling to house the 2,200 students attend- there be unhealthy competition? Will funding into action. The Ninth Grade Center is in use, ing. The EISD school board agreed that stu- for the district be split evenly? These were the and Westlake continues to offer students a didents are most successful at a high school with questions being asked, and the opposition was verse college-prep curriculum.

“Looking back, I don't even remember why 600-2,000 students. Westlake was expected to sure the answers pointed towards maintaining reach 2,700 or more by 2007. It was clear that one school. If the separation that the commu- anyone would want two high schools,” calculus something needed to change in the coming nity was already facing just over the decision teacher Jocelyn Bixler said. “Our enrollment to add a new school or not was any indicator, has never been big enough to support two, plus years to support the growing population.

Prop. 1 called for $49.9 million to build a the polarization between parties would only with the amount of money we give back to the state, it would be a financial stretch. The comnew high school campus that could support get worse.

“They weren't sure how much the district munity didn’t seem to take long to get back on 1,500 students. The new facility would be equipped with a 700-spot parking lot, a mul- would grow because there's only so much board with one school. They have always been tipurpose athletic field, softball and baseball available land for new houses, which wasn't great about supporting Westlake High School.”

20

we are westlake westlakefeatherduster.com

17_controversies oh my god (the miracle design).indd 4

2/28/2019 2:47:14 PM

Making moves

E

Policy on transfer students changes over time; students apply for various reasons

anes ISD first started to accept out-districttransfers in the 2002-03 school year as a means to help offset the loss of state funding, according to deputy superintendent Jeff Arnett.

“Overall enrollment in the school district was declining — as were the revenues — when the Board of Trustees decided to begin accepting transfers,” Arnett said. “The difference of enrolling transfer students is we do not pay ‘Recapture’ monies on transfer students like we do with resident students. Recapture is the amount of money property-wealthy districts, such as Eanes ISD, have to pay back to Texas due to the school funding formula. Because the money we get from transfer students is not subject to the Recapture formula, there is a slight financial benefit to enrolling transfer students.”

Throughout the years, the transfer policy has changed periodically, primarily to meet a manageable goal for the number of transfers accepted.

“It changes as often as it does because the Board of Trustees usually chooses how many transfers Westlake will accept,” Arnett said. “However, for the last few years, Westlake has been accepting less and less transfers so as to prevent the school from becoming overcrowded.”

Each year, transfer students must reapply to attend Westlake.

“It’s a little complicated because transfers, whether they have attended Westlake the year before or not, still have to apply as a transfer student,” Arnett said. “There is an application fee of about $125, but no tuition.”

The criteria for acceptance is based upon various factors, but they mainly focus on the academic potential of a transfer student.

“The Board of Trustees has to make sure the student has

good grades and has good behavior,” Arnett said. “It is not a given that new transfers will get in, as the Board of Trustees decides whether or not they have enough space to accept transfers.”

Transfer students want to attend Westlake for a multitude of reasons, whether it be the academic rigor or the classes offered.

“I wanted to pursue a career in marketing, and Westlake provided opportunities for me to get experience,” transfer student senior Vivian Nguyen said. “I’m currently the president of DECA [Distributive Education Clubs of America], and I don’t know if I would have the same experience with another school.

I have done so many things at Westlake that I never would’ve done if I stayed in my [zoned] district.”

Transportation has never been a problem for Vivian, even though she lives in Pflugerville.

“My parents both worked near Westlake, so when my siblings and I were younger, that made it easier to pick us up and for them to go to events,” Vivian said.

Some students transfer in to pursue specific curriculum areas.

“My reason for going to Westlake is the great fine arts program,” transfer student senior Everest Maher said. “That, and the PAC. I’ve interacted with Westlake through band, yearbook and being a loyal fan of our teams. Westlake has given me so much room to learn and grow.”

However, one of the drawbacks of living in a district outside of Eanes is that neighbors are not likely to attend Westlake.

“I definitely missed out on hangout opportunities because my neighborhood friends went to schools like Austin High and private schools like Veritas or Regents,” Everest said. “So I have two friend categories: school friends and neighborhood friends.”

—Cameron Loven

We want to thank everyone who helped make this issue possible.

A special shoutout to: El Paisano yearbook Principal Steve Ramsey Former Westlake students whose photos were used WHS graduates who took the time to speak to us about their stories

For additional related stories, visit:

www.westlakefeatherduster.com Order now to reserve your copy WWW.JOSTENS.COM

21_transfer.indd 1

2/26/2019 10:57:07 AM

Put it into

perspective Members of Westlake community share their experiences with outside opinions

Murray Montgomery Before Westlake was what it is today, socalled “red-neck cedar choppers” lived and worked in rural clusters of cedar forests which are now home to luxury estates.

Murray Montgomery, a born-and-raised Texan, posted an article explaining his family tree on the Texas Escapes Online Magazine in August 2003. His mother grew up in a family of hard-working cedar choppers who lived in this area.

“Back in the old days, cedar choppers were not highly thought of,” Montgomery wrote in the article. “Some considered them to be lazy or just plain trashy.”

According to Montgomery’s mom, this perception was far from the truth. They worked 10 hours a day doing intensive labor. On the weekends, their pleasantries included a dance to the traditional fiddle and picnicking by Bull Creek, only to go back to work from dawn until dusk the next day.

“They were virtually uneducated, and they got by on the strength of their physical labor,” Montgomery’s mom said in the article. “They

22

John Spong Former writer for Texas Monthly magazine ’85 graduate John Spong has called Austin home since fifth grade. While he was in high school, he observed Westlake’s relationships with other schools and how students could have contributed to the well-known stereotypes still strong today.

Developers, attorneys and doctors who moved to the area didn’t bring a negative stereotype with them, but brought ideas that shifted Westlake into a more affluential part of Austin, according to Spong.

“People moved here because [the landscape] was beautiful,” Spong said.

Developers took the opportunity to build estates that were pricier than many other neighborhoods. The high mortgage invited people who could afford this lifestyle. “Rich Boy,” “Cadillac Kid” and “Trans Am Clan” were just a few nicknames given to students during the ’80s and, according to Spong, seemed partially accurate. Spong remembers students running around the perimeter of a gym “shooting the finger at the entire Austin High crowd” during a basketball game, that students “destroyed the Waller Creek Hotel during prom night of ’87” and started a riot on the football field after a game in ’84 against Taylor, adding to the sterotype of immature and entitled.

Will Spong, John’s father, (an Episcopal priest, seminary professor and grief counselor) met people who associated Westlake with “people who ran away from blacks,” Spong said. Being a man who strongly believed in equality, he found it difficult to have to explain that he didn’t move to Westlake for those discriminatory reasons.

“When people asked, ‘Where do y’all live?’ and Dad said ‘Westlake,’ if they raised an eyebrow, he would have to say, ‘That’s not why

th

lived a hard life and did the best they could under the circumstances.”

Dane Hildre

We$tlake; Your money’s no good here.

Waving dollar bills, waving credit cards. New Balance shoes, you always look the same …

Westlake rich boys playing with their dads’ toys … DADDY’S MONEY! DADDY’S MONEY! The Chaps’ oldest and fiercest rivals may not be the best source for an opinion of Westlake, but their diss tracks, sporting event chants and signs sure do have a lot to say.

Their opinions are prime examples of the generalizations associated with this district. Today, whispers about this community mention money, education and pride. Some are valid, some may have been true at some point and some are simply false. With a little digging, one might realize how the stereotypes of Westlake have impacted everyone — both those within the Westlake community and those not.

we’re here,’” Spong said. “The people who [moved to Westlake] because they were motivated to stay away from blacks brought a mindset that washed out everybody else.”

Robert Lucero Robert Lucero, current history teacher and boys varsity basketball coach, began teaching at Westlake in January 2007 and started coaching here in the fall of 2008. Prior to his move to Austin, he coached in Albuquerque, El Paso, Dallas and Nacogdoches. Not having grown up hearing the latest rumor about Westlake or having known of the various labels that brand this district, Westlake was “just another school with students dealing with their own developmental issues” to him. He heard that “achievement was really important here” from his aunt, Janet Espinosa, a Westlake social studies teacher who retired in 2017. As Lucero familiarized himself with the area, his new colleagues and the students, he had to build his own view of campus.

“A couple years in, I really saw what the parents do, how the kids live and what cars they drive, but [Westlake students] are just regular teenage kids,” Lucero said.

After five-and-a-half years, at the beginning of the 2012 school year, Lucero left Westlake to take a position at Hays High School.

In conversations that included his connection to Westlake and his ethnicity (Hispanic), he would get questions like, “How did they treat

you?” He said it was surprising for him to hear this due to all the kindness he’d been shown by Westlake staff, parents and students, yet this wasn’t the only time he was quizzed about his acceptance at a mostly white school.

“One time my wife and I took an Uber to the airport and started talking with the driver,” said Lucero, who noted that the driver was also Hispanic and who told them he was a former Austin ISD student familiar with the chatter — negative and positive — about Westlake.

“I mentioned I coached the boys varsity basketball team, and he was so taken aback that Westlake would have an Hispanic head coach.”

Rather than perpetuate the negativity, the basketball players at Hays, according to Lucero, built strong relationships with the Westlake players which have had positive outcomes.

“The players at Hays went to basketball camps during the summer where Westlake players would be,” Lucero said. “They’d get to know each other pretty well.”

Lucero said the Hays players themselves didn’t have any radical stories or perceptions about Westlake students, but he found that the parents of the current generation thought of Westlake as “a mythical place.”

“They thought that [Westlake students] were all wealthy and strictly white,” Lucero said. “People thought that everything was given to them. I think that’s an idea that’s only seen from the outside perspective.”

Lucero returned to Westlake in 2014. His experience with both schools, communities and students has led him to observe the perceptions of Westlake from the outside viewpoint while carrying with him the first-hand experience of being a Chaparral. He is someone who knows the people, dedication and teamwork that are at the heart of Westlake.

“There is a level of excellence here that everybody else [at other schools] measures themselves by,” Lucero said. “I think that is a really good expectation to have and to be placed on the students [that go] through here.”

This long-standing perception of all Westlake students being wealthy and successful, according to Lucero, “has been a really big positive for the [students] and the people that work here” because people “expect the best from us.”

Junior Helaina Hackett Junior Helaina Hackett is someone who’s seen it all. She has attended 14 different schools in Texas before enrolling at Westlake, so she’s been immersed in other schools’ cultures and how other teachers and students view Westlake. However, Helaina was not new to the district.

She attended Valley View Elementary her fifth grade year, so she had an idea of the environment she would be walking into, but nonetheless, this was Westlake, the high school she’d heard so much about. When coming through the doors her first day of sophomore year, she felt “ecstatic” about the year ahead of her, but nervous due to all the remarks she had heard about her new school.

“When I told my friends at my old school

I was going to Westlake, they’d say ‘Oh, now you’re going to be preppy, all about school and better than all of us,’” Helaina said.

According to Helaina, she felt like she had this new “label” merely because she was going to Westlake. No matter what school she attended previously, she was seen as a “Westlake girl” now, and the label was not a compliment.

In transferring, not only did her peers, classes and teachers change, but so did the level of competition in the sports she played.

Basketball, for example, was a place for her “to let go and have fun” at her previous schools.

“A lot of the schools I went to were small, so there weren’t even tryouts,” Helaina said. “You just were on the team. I decided because of the tough academics here that I wouldn’t try to be on the team.”

Her previous school’s teachers and counselors had only positive affirmations to give about the high-level academics at Westlake.

“They would say things like ‘Westlake is a college prep-school,’” Helaina said. ‘To graduate from there is such an honor.’”

She was told that she may be behind her Westlake peers academically in the same grade.

“I was so intimidated by the academic difficulty, I actually tried to study throughout the summer just to get ready for Westlake,” Helaina said.

Once she settled in, she was astonished at how many programs and opportunities Westlake provided. The fact that the teachers took a special interest in helping every student was something very special to her. She did notice, however, that some students here were given expensive cars and possessions while at her old school, Helaina and her peers had to work to pay for most things.

“I have two jobs so I can afford to pay for my own car and my own insurance, and on the other side of town, where I used to live, that’s normal,” Helaina said.

She knows students at Westlake who have crashed their cars and immediately received new ones. She recognizes this stereotype as the superficial, wealthy Westlake known to her before she transferred. But beyond this, she has met people within the Westlake community who have become true friends and mentors.

“There are really genuine people here who show me that my views on Westlake were wrong,” Helaina said. “Everyone here is a person, not just a stereotype.”

While many Westlake families have above average incomes, and while the Chaps generally excel academically and athletically, a closer view is needed to get past the stereotypes. Westlake is the athletes, the scholars, the nerds, the musicians, the artists and every colorful character rumudging within it. It can’t be defined by just one word or phrase or diss track. This community has been stereotyped since long before the high school existed, and this will likely not change.

—Julia Franco Special thanks to coast2coast and DJ D.I.L for SoundCloud diss track material

‘‘

How would

Westlake

describe itself?

“I would say that Westlake is an all-around competitive school. Students try their hardest in sports and academics, and it shows.”

—senior Jacob Thompson

“It’s a really big school, and it’s full of opportunities. The people are also really nice.”

—sophomore Taylor Fambrough

“Westlake is a good high school for individuals who want to do well in school. The teachers are nice and really care for the students.”

—junior Brady Whipple

“There are all different types of people, and no one you meet is the same as anyone else.”

—sophomore Karina Kumar

“There is a philosophy in Westlake High School to praise and reward success in all aspects.”

—substitute teacher Dean Phillips

quotes collected by Luke Boyd

we are westlake westlakefeatherduster.com

22_perception.indd All Pages

2/26/2019 1:26:36 PM

Put it into

perspective Members of Westlake community share their experiences with outside opinions

Murray Montgomery Before Westlake was what it is today, socalled “red-neck cedar choppers” lived and worked in rural clusters of cedar forests which are now home to luxury estates.

Murray Montgomery, a born-and-raised Texan, posted an article explaining his family tree on the Texas Escapes Online Magazine in August 2003. His mother grew up in a family of hard-working cedar choppers who lived in this area.

“Back in the old days, cedar choppers were not highly thought of,” Montgomery wrote in the article. “Some considered them to be lazy or just plain trashy.”

According to Montgomery’s mom, this perception was far from the truth. They worked 10 hours a day doing intensive labor. On the weekends, their pleasantries included a dance to the traditional fiddle and picnicking by Bull Creek, only to go back to work from dawn until dusk the next day.

“They were virtually uneducated, and they got by on the strength of their physical labor,” Montgomery’s mom said in the article. “They

22

John Spong Former writer for Texas Monthly magazine ’85 graduate John Spong has called Austin home since fifth grade. While he was in high school, he observed Westlake’s relationships with other schools and how students could have contributed to the well-known stereotypes still strong today.

Developers, attorneys and doctors who moved to the area didn’t bring a negative stereotype with them, but brought ideas that shifted Westlake into a more affluential part of Austin, according to Spong.

“People moved here because [the landscape] was beautiful,” Spong said.

Developers took the opportunity to build estates that were pricier than many other neighborhoods. The high mortgage invited people who could afford this lifestyle. “Rich Boy,” “Cadillac Kid” and “Trans Am Clan” were just a few nicknames given to students during the ’80s and, according to Spong, seemed partially accurate. Spong remembers students running around the perimeter of a gym “shooting the finger at the entire Austin High crowd” during a basketball game, that students “destroyed the Waller Creek Hotel during prom night of ’87” and started a riot on the football field after a game in ’84 against Taylor, adding to the sterotype of immature and entitled.

Will Spong, John’s father, (an Episcopal priest, seminary professor and grief counselor) met people who associated Westlake with “people who ran away from blacks,” Spong said. Being a man who strongly believed in equality, he found it difficult to have to explain that he didn’t move to Westlake for those discriminatory reasons.

“When people asked, ‘Where do y’all live?’ and Dad said ‘Westlake,’ if they raised an eyebrow, he would have to say, ‘That’s not why

th

lived a hard life and did the best they could under the circumstances.”

Dane Hildre

We$tlake; Your money’s no good here.

Waving dollar bills, waving credit cards. New Balance shoes, you always look the same …

Westlake rich boys playing with their dads’ toys … DADDY’S MONEY! DADDY’S MONEY! The Chaps’ oldest and fiercest rivals may not be the best source for an opinion of Westlake, but their diss tracks, sporting event chants and signs sure do have a lot to say.

Their opinions are prime examples of the generalizations associated with this district. Today, whispers about this community mention money, education and pride. Some are valid, some may have been true at some point and some are simply false. With a little digging, one might realize how the stereotypes of Westlake have impacted everyone — both those within the Westlake community and those not.

we’re here,’” Spong said. “The people who [moved to Westlake] because they were motivated to stay away from blacks brought a mindset that washed out everybody else.”

Robert Lucero Robert Lucero, current history teacher and boys varsity basketball coach, began teaching at Westlake in January 2007 and started coaching here in the fall of 2008. Prior to his move to Austin, he coached in Albuquerque, El Paso, Dallas and Nacogdoches. Not having grown up hearing the latest rumor about Westlake or having known of the various labels that brand this district, Westlake was “just another school with students dealing with their own developmental issues” to him. He heard that “achievement was really important here” from his aunt, Janet Espinosa, a Westlake social studies teacher who retired in 2017. As Lucero familiarized himself with the area, his new colleagues and the students, he had to build his own view of campus.

“A couple years in, I really saw what the parents do, how the kids live and what cars they drive, but [Westlake students] are just regular teenage kids,” Lucero said.

After five-and-a-half years, at the beginning of the 2012 school year, Lucero left Westlake to take a position at Hays High School.

In conversations that included his connection to Westlake and his ethnicity (Hispanic), he would get questions like, “How did they treat

you?” He said it was surprising for him to hear this due to all the kindness he’d been shown by Westlake staff, parents and students, yet this wasn’t the only time he was quizzed about his acceptance at a mostly white school.

“One time my wife and I took an Uber to the airport and started talking with the driver,” said Lucero, who noted that the driver was also Hispanic and who told them he was a former Austin ISD student familiar with the chatter — negative and positive — about Westlake.

“I mentioned I coached the boys varsity basketball team, and he was so taken aback that Westlake would have an Hispanic head coach.”

Rather than perpetuate the negativity, the basketball players at Hays, according to Lucero, built strong relationships with the Westlake players which have had positive outcomes.

“The players at Hays went to basketball camps during the summer where Westlake players would be,” Lucero said. “They’d get to know each other pretty well.”

Lucero said the Hays players themselves didn’t have any radical stories or perceptions about Westlake students, but he found that the parents of the current generation thought of Westlake as “a mythical place.”

“They thought that [Westlake students] were all wealthy and strictly white,” Lucero said. “People thought that everything was given to them. I think that’s an idea that’s only seen from the outside perspective.”

Lucero returned to Westlake in 2014. His experience with both schools, communities and students has led him to observe the perceptions of Westlake from the outside viewpoint while carrying with him the first-hand experience of being a Chaparral. He is someone who knows the people, dedication and teamwork that are at the heart of Westlake.

“There is a level of excellence here that everybody else [at other schools] measures themselves by,” Lucero said. “I think that is a really good expectation to have and to be placed on the students [that go] through here.”

This long-standing perception of all Westlake students being wealthy and successful, according to Lucero, “has been a really big positive for the [students] and the people that work here” because people “expect the best from us.”

Junior Helaina Hackett Junior Helaina Hackett is someone who’s seen it all. She has attended 14 different schools in Texas before enrolling at Westlake, so she’s been immersed in other schools’ cultures and how other teachers and students view Westlake. However, Helaina was not new to the district.

She attended Valley View Elementary her fifth grade year, so she had an idea of the environment she would be walking into, but nonetheless, this was Westlake, the high school she’d heard so much about. When coming through the doors her first day of sophomore year, she felt “ecstatic” about the year ahead of her, but nervous due to all the remarks she had heard about her new school.

“When I told my friends at my old school

I was going to Westlake, they’d say ‘Oh, now you’re going to be preppy, all about school and better than all of us,’” Helaina said.

According to Helaina, she felt like she had this new “label” merely because she was going to Westlake. No matter what school she attended previously, she was seen as a “Westlake girl” now, and the label was not a compliment.

In transferring, not only did her peers, classes and teachers change, but so did the level of competition in the sports she played.

Basketball, for example, was a place for her “to let go and have fun” at her previous schools.

“A lot of the schools I went to were small, so there weren’t even tryouts,” Helaina said. “You just were on the team. I decided because of the tough academics here that I wouldn’t try to be on the team.”

Her previous school’s teachers and counselors had only positive affirmations to give about the high-level academics at Westlake.

“They would say things like ‘Westlake is a college prep-school,’” Helaina said. ‘To graduate from there is such an honor.’”

She was told that she may be behind her Westlake peers academically in the same grade.

“I was so intimidated by the academic difficulty, I actually tried to study throughout the summer just to get ready for Westlake,” Helaina said.

Once she settled in, she was astonished at how many programs and opportunities Westlake provided. The fact that the teachers took a special interest in helping every student was something very special to her. She did notice, however, that some students here were given expensive cars and possessions while at her old school, Helaina and her peers had to work to pay for most things.

“I have two jobs so I can afford to pay for my own car and my own insurance, and on the other side of town, where I used to live, that’s normal,” Helaina said.

She knows students at Westlake who have crashed their cars and immediately received new ones. She recognizes this stereotype as the superficial, wealthy Westlake known to her before she transferred. But beyond this, she has met people within the Westlake community who have become true friends and mentors.

“There are really genuine people here who show me that my views on Westlake were wrong,” Helaina said. “Everyone here is a person, not just a stereotype.”

While many Westlake families have above average incomes, and while the Chaps generally excel academically and athletically, a closer view is needed to get past the stereotypes. Westlake is the athletes, the scholars, the nerds, the musicians, the artists and every colorful character rumudging within it. It can’t be defined by just one word or phrase or diss track. This community has been stereotyped since long before the high school existed, and this will likely not change.

—Julia Franco Special thanks to coast2coast and DJ D.I.L for SoundCloud diss track material

‘‘

How would

Westlake

describe itself?

“I would say that Westlake is an all-around competitive school. Students try their hardest in sports and academics, and it shows.”

—senior Jacob Thompson

“It’s a really big school, and it’s full of opportunities. The people are also really nice.”

—sophomore Taylor Fambrough

“Westlake is a good high school for individuals who want to do well in school. The teachers are nice and really care for the students.”

—junior Brady Whipple

“There are all different types of people, and no one you meet is the same as anyone else.”

—sophomore Karina Kumar

“There is a philosophy in Westlake High School to praise and reward success in all aspects.”

—substitute teacher Dean Phillips

quotes collected by Luke Boyd

we are westlake westlakefeatherduster.com

22_perception.indd All Pages

2/26/2019 1:26:36 PM

Picture perfect

L

ooking back on these past 50 years, The Featherduster and El Paisano photographers have been faced with thousands of moments worth showing and visual stories worth telling: the anchor of the race crossing the finish line, a masterful leap performed by Hyline or the anticipation of the crowd during a football game. Whether it’s behind the scenes or on center stage, the photographers have captured all aspects of Westlake through their lenses. These are just some of the highlights that the publications have featured throughout the years, taken by former staff photographers.

Shannon Soule

Katie Kraus

Roy Mata

Laura Gilligan

Summer McWilliams

24

we are westlake westlakefeatherduster.com

24_phots CORRECT.indd 1-2

“My experience as a basketball player at Westlake was great! My teammates were pretty much my best friends and our coach (Coach Clifton McNeely) was a great leader at the time. The best memories were the road trips and the fans that came to support us against our rivalry, Austin High. Everyone wanted to beat Westlake, which made me proud to be on the team and to be a student at this high school. I was number 44, and I was lucky to have it retired.”

—’02 graduate Brad Buckman

Hannah Kunz

Chris Ditto

Featherduster file photo

2/26/2019 1:28:40 PM

Picture perfect

L

ooking back on these past 50 years, The Featherduster and El Paisano photographers have been faced with thousands of moments worth showing and visual stories worth telling: the anchor of the race crossing the finish line, a masterful leap performed by Hyline or the anticipation of the crowd during a football game. Whether it’s behind the scenes or on center stage, the photographers have captured all aspects of Westlake through their lenses. These are just some of the highlights that the publications have featured throughout the years, taken by former staff photographers.

Shannon Soule

Katie Kraus

Roy Mata

Laura Gilligan

Summer McWilliams

24

we are westlake westlakefeatherduster.com

24_phots CORRECT.indd 1-2

“My experience as a basketball player at Westlake was great! My teammates were pretty much my best friends and our coach (Coach Clifton McNeely) was a great leader at the time. The best memories were the road trips and the fans that came to support us against our rivalry, Austin High. Everyone wanted to beat Westlake, which made me proud to be on the team and to be a student at this high school. I was number 44, and I was lucky to have it retired.”

—’02 graduate Brad Buckman

Hannah Kunz

Chris Ditto

Featherduster file photo

2/26/2019 1:28:40 PM

“[I was] letting the crowd hear it after our victory over Lake Travis for the second year in a row. Ten years later, I still remember the electric feeling as the team made our way to the field while the song “We Ready” blared and the unmistakable roars from the students after a big play. Westlake football is a way of life ... each victory is earned, not deserved. This victory was possible through the hard work of our team and the leadership of our coaches (as well as plenty of Double D’s post practice to ensure that our team owned the fourth quarter).”

—’08 graduate Alex Miller (number 55, center)

“The friendships I made on the soccer field at Westlake have stood the test of time. I just attended Sara Flieller’s (’06 graduate, right) wedding this past fall, 13 years after this photo was taken. That’s pretty special to think about.”

—’08 graduate Brittany Johnson (number 12, left)

Featherduster file photo

Hillary Kunz

Casey Simmons Sam Womack

Stephanie Cox

Katie Kra us Katie Kra us

Roy Mata

26

we are westlake westlakefeatherduster.com

24_phots CORRECT.indd 3-4

“Whenever I raced, I always tried to finish strong and leave whatever I had left on the course. I know it’s not flattering, but I usually threw up almost as soon as I crossed the finish line. I have many fond memories of cross country and especially that year.

We usually ran around Town Lake two to three times per week, so the park felt like our home court.”

—’02 graduate James Schleicher, far left

“Westlake swimming helped shape me into the woman I am today.

Winning the 400 freestyle relay at the Texas State Championship will forever be one of my favorite memories, and I continue to cherish the friendships and mentorships I developed while at Westlake.”

—’13 graduate Mackenzie Franklin

Eva Cranford

s

Casey Simmon

mons

Casey Sim

Hannah Kunz

2/26/2019 1:28:43 PM

“[I was] letting the crowd hear it after our victory over Lake Travis for the second year in a row. Ten years later, I still remember the electric feeling as the team made our way to the field while the song “We Ready” blared and the unmistakable roars from the students after a big play. Westlake football is a way of life ... each victory is earned, not deserved. This victory was possible through the hard work of our team and the leadership of our coaches (as well as plenty of Double D’s post practice to ensure that our team owned the fourth quarter).”

—’08 graduate Alex Miller (number 55, center)

“The friendships I made on the soccer field at Westlake have stood the test of time. I just attended Sara Flieller’s (’06 graduate, right) wedding this past fall, 13 years after this photo was taken. That’s pretty special to think about.”

—’08 graduate Brittany Johnson (number 12, left)

Featherduster file photo

Hillary Kunz

Casey Simmons Sam Womack

Stephanie Cox

Katie Kra us Katie Kra us

Roy Mata

26

we are westlake westlakefeatherduster.com

24_phots CORRECT.indd 3-4

“Whenever I raced, I always tried to finish strong and leave whatever I had left on the course. I know it’s not flattering, but I usually threw up almost as soon as I crossed the finish line. I have many fond memories of cross country and especially that year.

We usually ran around Town Lake two to three times per week, so the park felt like our home court.”

—’02 graduate James Schleicher, far left

“Westlake swimming helped shape me into the woman I am today.

Winning the 400 freestyle relay at the Texas State Championship will forever be one of my favorite memories, and I continue to cherish the friendships and mentorships I developed while at Westlake.”

—’13 graduate Mackenzie Franklin

Eva Cranford

s

Casey Simmon

mons

Casey Sim

Hannah Kunz

2/26/2019 1:28:43 PM

Oil Paintings with a twist Wendy Ford Mackey 512.917.1336

Listen to your mother, always see an orthodontist.

512-327-8818 28_ad.indd 1

2/18/2019 3:22:41 PM

We are

Legends

50 “

“

Really identify what you want and just go for it.

former FD photograph

er Andrew Loehman

—’08 graduate Christina Chang

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“My favorite high school memory would be traveling and competing with the marching band.”

Raleigh Taylor, ‘12

Blast from the past Teachers share their favorite memories from when they walked these halls as Westlake students photos by Anne Saltel and Izzy Vo quotes collected by Jill Dodson yearbook photos courtesy of El Paisano

30

we are legends westlakefeatherduster.com

“The first memory that pops in my head was my senior year, as a squad leader at Pedernales.

It rained non-stop, so all of the activities were cancelled, and it was an absolutely miserable time. For some reason, I got put in charge of making all of the hamburgers for the middle school kids, and I just sat there in the rain, with smoke billowing up into my face. I hated it at the time, but I look back fondly at that memory all the time, because it really encapsulates how I feel about leadership: Some things are going to be awful and uncomfortable, but a leader will find a way to get them done. Funny how bad times can often lead to the fondest memories.”

James Baker, ‘01

“My favorite memory related to my time with volleyball was making it to the State playoffs. Now, looking back, my favorite memory was meeting the friends that I still have to this day, almost 17 years later. My favorite school or social memory was finishing my school day at 1 p.m. and heading to Twin Falls almost every day.“ Andria Chaney, ’11

“Right before my senior year, I realized I didn't know what I wanted to do with my life and panicked. I was also home sick with mono, so I had time to freak out. I looked through the course catalog trying to think of careers I might be interested in, and I found a teaching course that caught my eye — Ready, Set, Teach. It conflicted with my percussion class period though, so I had to make the choice. Do I stay with band or do I quit and take a teaching class? Sure enough, I quit, and it was the best thing that ever happened to me. I started the teaching course after the hard conversations with band directors saying I quit, and it was exactly where I should have been. By taking that course, I realized I loved teaching. It gave me the opportunity to work at Valley View Elementary School and it led me to pick Texas State University as my college, as it had such great teaching program. I graduated with a degree in Special Education in 2015 and I'm currently getting my masters there as well. Now I teach at the very high school I was a student at, and I have my dream job.”

Shelby Kroll, ‘11

“There are countless amazing memories of my time at Westlake, but competing with Hyline and performing in Zenith with my best friends were among my favorites.”

“My favorite high school memory was attending Dylan Day. I remember it was so fun to see my teachers and fellow students in a completely difference context, expressing themselves creatively and enjoying the arts. To this day, any time I hear a Dylan song, I smile remembering that carefree day spent with my friends and classmates.”

Julie Sturm, ‘01

“I’m not sure I have a favorite high school memory. I enjoyed all my years here at WHS!” Jordan Johnston, ‘97

“Going out with friends over lunch. We had open lunch then. Taking drivers ed with Coach Ebbie Neptune and making him lose his cool.”

Margaret Ellis, ‘84

Lauren Smith, ‘04

“I’d have to say just the daily interactions — in classes, in hallways, going to Time Out for Burgers or Willie’s for lunch, Homecoming senior skit — there were so many!”

“Junior year, getting to stage manage the musical, ‘Beauty and the Beast,’ was one of the coolest experiences I had.

Working on a production that large, with that many people and completely selling out all of the shows was an experience like no other."

“Not really one overall favorite memory, just a lot of fun with a lot of good people. Westlake was a very positive experience for me.”

Lane Grigg, ‘93

“For prom, our group decided to go have dinner at the Riverwalk in San Antonio. We took a limo there and back and barely made it for any of the dance — yes, we actually went to the dance back in the day.”

Lindsey Stokes, ‘00

Ashley Favaron, ‘11

“Going to Wurstfest in German class, studying in the library with friends during lunch, going to Barnes and Noble on half days during finals, Teen Teaching at Pedernales, being in charge of an NHS service project, FCA Christmas party, etc.”

Whitney Donaldson, ‘06

Alison Leifeste, ‘94

“I loved just hanging out with friends, going on the lake, going to concerts and the freedom that came with driving. If I had to pick just one favorite memory, though, it would probably be going to Playa del Carmen for spring break with all my friends senior year.”

Megan Olsen, ‘04

“One of my favorite memories was of Ms. [Melinda] Darrow’s AP English IV class. I had a great group of friends in that class, and we always had so much fun together.”

Aly Strahan, ‘04

“When I went to WHS the NGC hadn't yet been built. I fondly remember that everyone would congregate and socialize in the Commons. It was a nice central meeting place between classes.”

Erin Root, ‘01

Other Westlake grads who currently teach at Westlake: Krissy Morrow, ‘91 David Poole, ‘81 Jana Robertson, ‘08 Jeffrey Strange, ‘04 Derek Taets, ‘13

former FD photographer Andrew Loehman

32

courtesy photo: Bradley Wilson

2

3

Cartney

her Ju lia Mc grap

On Jan. 13, two former Super Bowl MVPs, ’97 graduate Drew Brees and ’07 graduate Nick Foles, faced off in the NFC divisional round of the playoffs. It was the first time NFL Super Bowl MVP quarterbacks from the same high school had played each other on a professional stage.

But they aren’t the only former Chaparral football players who have experienced success beyond high school. Baltimore Ravens kicker and ’08 graduate Justin Tucker and current University of Texas starting quarterback and ’16 graduate Sam Ehlinger have all had national spotlight moments.

Ehlinger made his name during the 2018 season as quarterback of UT, his first as consistent starter. He was considered by many to be a candidate for this year’s Heisman Trophy. During his tenure at Westlake, he surpassed Brees’ and Foles’ records to become the all-time leader in touchdowns and passing yards. He came out of high school as the 119th ranked quarterback in his class and a four-star prospect.

“I definitely try to model my game after Drew Brees and Nick Foles and the work ethic of all the other guys who have come through Westlake and succeeded on and off the field,” Ehlinger said. “My

Escaping a defender, quarterback Drew Brees prepares to make a throw. The Breesled ‘96 team won Westlake’s only football State Championship to date.

Nick Foles takes a snap in the 2006 5A Divison I State Championship game. The Chaps lost a high-scoring contest to Southlake Carroll 29-43.

Alongside coach Mark Hurst, Justin Tucker watches from the sideline. This past NFL season, he missed his first PAT in his pro career, making him 241 for 242.

Dp hoto

Four former football players rise to stardom after Westlake

rF

for life

ning 42-41.”

Foles is the latest Chap to win a Super Bowl ring and a Super Bowl MVP, beating the Patriots in the 2018 Super Bowl in Minneapolis. While at Westlake, he played alongside a few other notable Chaparrals, including Tucker and ’09 grad Ryan Swope. Swope is Texas A&M’s record holder for yards and receptions in a season and was drafted in the sixth round by the Arizona Cardinals.

“Nick had an impact on everyone at Westlake,” Swope said. “He was a great mentor and role model, and he always led by example. Nick was also a fierce competitor and always made big-time plays in big-time situations. He loves the pressure and always backed it up.”

Playing alongside Nick Foles at Westlake was Justin Tucker. From Westlake, he went on to be the kicker for UT and later the Baltimore Ravens. He spent what would have been the final semester at Westlake working out with the Longhorns as a UT commit. His college claim-to-fame was his game-winning field goal against A&M in their last-ever matchup.

“Justin is very talented,” said Lane Grigg, who coached Tucker and is now an assistant boys golf coach. “He would make rap songs for the team, he sings opera, he plays instruments, too. He was an incredible kicker and also played some wide receiver as well. Every kickoff went into the end zone — he was amazing.”

The tremendous impact that these players have had on the school has not gone unnoticed, especially to Ramsey.

“When any of our former students have success in their chosen career paths, they serve as examples for our students that our campus and community creates an atmosphere for all kinds of achievements,” Ramsey said. “These athletes are all fabulous leaders who represent Westlake positively each and every day.”

—Jake La Barbiera

for me

Chaps

courtesy photo: Bradley Wilson

1

time at Westlake made me extremely competitive because of the competitive environment that’s all around the school and the community.”

Brees, who led the New Orleans Saints to a Super Bowl victory in 2010, is the only Westlake quarterback to ever win a high school State football championship. He was also named the Texas High School 5A Most Valuable Offensive Player when Westlake was still a 5A school. He threw for 5,461-yards and 50 touchdowns, also completing 314 of his total 490 passes. Brees also overcame a torn ACL during his junior season that forced many college scouts to overlook him. He showed everyone by leading the Chaps to the State title in 1996. Ultimately, he played for Purdue and then was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the second round in 2001.

“Drew was the most conscientious, on-time, polite, and mature sophomore that I remember,” current Art History teacher Melinda Darrow said. “A lot of sophomores are still growing up, but Drew was always on top of things. He would always say ‘yes m’am’ or ‘no m’am,’ ‘I have this ready’ or ‘I have this early.’ He was super focused.”

Graduating 10 years later was Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles. At Westlake, Foles threw for 5,658 yards and 56 touchdowns, breaking most of Brees’ records. He was the Eagles’ third-round draft pick in 2012. During his senior year, he led the Chaps to a State final where they eventually lost to Southlake Carroll.

At the time, Foles was coached by current principal Steve Ramsey.

“One of the best Nick stories is when we were playing San Antonio Churchill in the first round of the playoffs,” Ramsey said. “They had a really good quarterback, a really good tight-end, and a really good offense, but so did we. You could tell it would be back and forth. We were trying to figure out how our defense would hold up in the second half. Nick came to me with one of the running backs and said, ‘Hey, we can run against these guys all night,’ and I said, ‘Yeah, we can.’

He said, ‘Let’s try and keep our defense off and keep them fresh all night.” So we went out there with someone who ended up being a Super Bowl MVP and ran the ball all night. We ended up win-

Looking to the sideline for directions, Sam Elhinger listens for the play call agasint Hays Sept.

30, 2016. He is the current starting quarterback at the University of Texas.

we are legends westlakefeatherduster.com

32_brees foles tucker elhinger.indd All Pages

2/26/2019 2:54:11 PM

former FD photographer Andrew Loehman

32

courtesy photo: Bradley Wilson

2

3

Cartney

her Ju lia Mc grap

On Jan. 13, two former Super Bowl MVPs, ’97 graduate Drew Brees and ’07 graduate Nick Foles, faced off in the NFC divisional round of the playoffs. It was the first time NFL Super Bowl MVP quarterbacks from the same high school had played each other on a professional stage.

But they aren’t the only former Chaparral football players who have experienced success beyond high school. Baltimore Ravens kicker and ’08 graduate Justin Tucker and current University of Texas starting quarterback and ’16 graduate Sam Ehlinger have all had national spotlight moments.

Ehlinger made his name during the 2018 season as quarterback of UT, his first as consistent starter. He was considered by many to be a candidate for this year’s Heisman Trophy. During his tenure at Westlake, he surpassed Brees’ and Foles’ records to become the all-time leader in touchdowns and passing yards. He came out of high school as the 119th ranked quarterback in his class and a four-star prospect.

“I definitely try to model my game after Drew Brees and Nick Foles and the work ethic of all the other guys who have come through Westlake and succeeded on and off the field,” Ehlinger said. “My

Escaping a defender, quarterback Drew Brees prepares to make a throw. The Breesled ‘96 team won Westlake’s only football State Championship to date.

Nick Foles takes a snap in the 2006 5A Divison I State Championship game. The Chaps lost a high-scoring contest to Southlake Carroll 29-43.

Alongside coach Mark Hurst, Justin Tucker watches from the sideline. This past NFL season, he missed his first PAT in his pro career, making him 241 for 242.

Dp hoto

Four former football players rise to stardom after Westlake

rF

for life

ning 42-41.”

Foles is the latest Chap to win a Super Bowl ring and a Super Bowl MVP, beating the Patriots in the 2018 Super Bowl in Minneapolis. While at Westlake, he played alongside a few other notable Chaparrals, including Tucker and ’09 grad Ryan Swope. Swope is Texas A&M’s record holder for yards and receptions in a season and was drafted in the sixth round by the Arizona Cardinals.

“Nick had an impact on everyone at Westlake,” Swope said. “He was a great mentor and role model, and he always led by example. Nick was also a fierce competitor and always made big-time plays in big-time situations. He loves the pressure and always backed it up.”

Playing alongside Nick Foles at Westlake was Justin Tucker. From Westlake, he went on to be the kicker for UT and later the Baltimore Ravens. He spent what would have been the final semester at Westlake working out with the Longhorns as a UT commit. His college claim-to-fame was his game-winning field goal against A&M in their last-ever matchup.

“Justin is very talented,” said Lane Grigg, who coached Tucker and is now an assistant boys golf coach. “He would make rap songs for the team, he sings opera, he plays instruments, too. He was an incredible kicker and also played some wide receiver as well. Every kickoff went into the end zone — he was amazing.”

The tremendous impact that these players have had on the school has not gone unnoticed, especially to Ramsey.

“When any of our former students have success in their chosen career paths, they serve as examples for our students that our campus and community creates an atmosphere for all kinds of achievements,” Ramsey said. “These athletes are all fabulous leaders who represent Westlake positively each and every day.”

—Jake La Barbiera

for me

Chaps

courtesy photo: Bradley Wilson

1

time at Westlake made me extremely competitive because of the competitive environment that’s all around the school and the community.”

Brees, who led the New Orleans Saints to a Super Bowl victory in 2010, is the only Westlake quarterback to ever win a high school State football championship. He was also named the Texas High School 5A Most Valuable Offensive Player when Westlake was still a 5A school. He threw for 5,461-yards and 50 touchdowns, also completing 314 of his total 490 passes. Brees also overcame a torn ACL during his junior season that forced many college scouts to overlook him. He showed everyone by leading the Chaps to the State title in 1996. Ultimately, he played for Purdue and then was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the second round in 2001.

“Drew was the most conscientious, on-time, polite, and mature sophomore that I remember,” current Art History teacher Melinda Darrow said. “A lot of sophomores are still growing up, but Drew was always on top of things. He would always say ‘yes m’am’ or ‘no m’am,’ ‘I have this ready’ or ‘I have this early.’ He was super focused.”

Graduating 10 years later was Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles. At Westlake, Foles threw for 5,658 yards and 56 touchdowns, breaking most of Brees’ records. He was the Eagles’ third-round draft pick in 2012. During his senior year, he led the Chaps to a State final where they eventually lost to Southlake Carroll.

At the time, Foles was coached by current principal Steve Ramsey.

“One of the best Nick stories is when we were playing San Antonio Churchill in the first round of the playoffs,” Ramsey said. “They had a really good quarterback, a really good tight-end, and a really good offense, but so did we. You could tell it would be back and forth. We were trying to figure out how our defense would hold up in the second half. Nick came to me with one of the running backs and said, ‘Hey, we can run against these guys all night,’ and I said, ‘Yeah, we can.’

He said, ‘Let’s try and keep our defense off and keep them fresh all night.” So we went out there with someone who ended up being a Super Bowl MVP and ran the ball all night. We ended up win-

Looking to the sideline for directions, Sam Elhinger listens for the play call agasint Hays Sept.

30, 2016. He is the current starting quarterback at the University of Texas.

we are legends westlakefeatherduster.com

32_brees foles tucker elhinger.indd All Pages

2/26/2019 2:54:11 PM

t t e

G

g n

a h

C

s f o ing th

Top: Matthew Chang sits at a computer in The Featherduster room. “I have a lot of great memories from Featherduster, Matthew said. “I made a lot of friends and learned a lot as well.”

Bottom: Christina Chang works with physics teacher Mark Misage on the Misages’ plane.

Sibling alumni find passions through advanced high school courses

34

“Really identify what you want and just go for it.”

—’08 graduate Christina Chang

2011 grad Matthew Chang and ’08 grad Christina Chang stand in front of MIT when Matthew was a student there.

High school is a a time for people to discover their passions and begin to pursue long-term goals. Westlake alumni Christina and Matthew Chang, who graduated in 2008 and 2011 respectively, are the optimal examples of what is achievable with perseverance. They both credit their later successes in part to the opportunities they were offered at Westlake.

“In retrospect, going to Westlake was great, as far as high schools go,” Matthew said. “Going into Westlake, and sort of my whole life, I knew I wanted to do computer science.”

Having already honed in on his interest, Matthew enrolled in the computer science class with Lynn Rosier and became very active in the program. Eager to extend his passion for the subject outside of the classroom, he joined the UIL Computer Science Team.

“During the ‘season,’ Mr. Rosier would drive us around to these various competitions,” Matthew said. “I don’t know how long there had been a team doing that before I arrived, but I think it was relatively young. I have a lot of great memories from that.”

Additionally, Matthew competed as an individual in the International Science and Engineering Fair, where he placed third in the world.

“Everyone made a poster and wrote a description of their project and a team of judges would assess it for how valuable it was to research,” Matthew said. “There were multiple levels. There was an Austin area competition, a state-level competition and then straight to the international competition. At the time, Westlake didn’t support that competition, so I had to

ing on a futon. It was a lot of fun and shows how much my Westlake contacts have mattered to me.”

Call 9 is a telemedicine company that provides emergency service to patients who are sick and in acute distress.

“Right now, we are serving nursing home patients,” Matthew said.

“Nursing homes have a lot of sick patients who can’t always get to the hospital when they need to. We stationed a paramedic in nursing homes. So, when patients are sick and they need help, they can connect to an emergency doctor. [The paramedics] can stream data live to the doctors through our program.”

While their interests and careers took very seperate paths, Matthew and Christina each give similar advice to current Westlake students.

“Westlake has so many resources,” Christina said. “But in order to take advantage of them, you might have to be creative. Really identify what you want and just go for it.”

Similarly, Matthew had his own experience with pursuing his own interests.

“Westlake was very flexible to let me do what I wanted after I asked for it,” Matthew said. “[When I was on newspaper], I told Mrs. [Deanne] Brown, ‘Hey, I want to make a website for us,’ and she just let me do it. There are things like the International Science Fair that there may be students who are interested in doing, but right now there isn’t a team of people doing it at Westlake because people aren’t aware of it.”

Christina also stresses the importance of participating in other programs that interest students, even if those programs don’t necessarily fit into their career path.

“I loved Spanish and wanted to make it a bigger part of my life,” Christina said. “I thought ‘Why don’t we have a Spanish club?’ I asked Ms. [Julie] Jimeno, and she said ‘Sure, I’ll be your sponsor.’ I, of course, did all the work along with my VP Samantha Specchio. We recruited members and created activities for us to do, and we got chips and salsa. I didn’t major in Spanish in college, but that didn’t matter. I did spelling UIL and captained the team three of the four years that I did it. I didn’t major in English, but I learned a lot of etymology which has been useful in my study of new languages since graduating. There are so many ways to explore the things that you love if you allow yourself to think creatively about achieving those dreams.”

— Sarah Davis

register as a homeschooler. I was there as the ‘Chang Homeschool.’ [Westlake] let me take the time off, which was great because we had to travel to San José for the international competition.”

After high school, Matthew attended MIT to study computer science.

“College admission was very competitive,” Matthew said. “I think [the International Science and Engineering Fair] was one of the things on my resumé that I attribute my success in college admissions to.”

Additionally, Matthew’s background in computer science gave him an initial advantage over his peers at MIT. “I had a much stronger background in computer science than a lot of people going into MIT,” Matthew said. “A lot of them didn’t have computer science programs offered at their high schools. It gave me a huge leg-up.”

While he was studying at MIT, Matthew traveled with a group to Seoul, South Korea to teach high school students at an international school.

“It was a lot of fun,” Matthew said. “They were just starting their computer science program at that time, and they were about to start offering AP Computer Science. They asked us, ‘How valuable is AP Computer Science to your students?’ I recommended that any exposure you can give your kids to computer science can give them a big leg-up if they study that in college. I’m very thankful it was offered at Westlake.”

Christina, similarly, was able to find her passion because of the wide array of advanced courses offered at Westlake.

“I knew I liked chemistry from [AP Chemistry] and [AP Organic Chem-

Courtesy photos

g in

e th

istry,]” Christina said. “I was in the second year of Denise DeMartino’s organic chemistry offering. Shelby Johnson, a student who was either one or two years before me, started the organic chemistry class. It’s a very specific class and usually you take it sophomore year in college.”

After graduating from Westlake, Christina majored in chemistry at Princeton before being selected as a Marshall Scholar. The Marshall Scholarship is a grant of money from the U.K. government to students of high ability to get a graduate degree in the U.K. “I met Prince Charles, the first minister of Wales, and other famous people,” Christina said. “It was very humbling. You know that these people have worked incredibly hard and they represent so much, and it’s just an honor to be a part of something where you get to interact with people.”

While in the U.K., she completed her masters degree in sustainable energy at Imperial College, London and Cambridge.

“With Princeton, I said, ‘Chemistry’s awesome, but what can I apply it to?’” Christina said. “I decided that sustainability would be my thing forever.

The masters in England gave me a chance to translate my knowledge into something I thought could be really useful.

Currently at Harvard, Christina is working to get her PhD in the chemistry department.

“I work on making solar panels better than what we have today,” Christina said. “I am doing chemistry research, which is also engineering and applied physics-style research, towards commercializing a new type of solar panel.”

Her love for both physics and chemistry was fostered by the teaching style at Westlake.

“Even though chemistry became my passion, I continue to be in love with physics,” Christina said. “I use both in my work. Mr. [Mark] Misage just made physics fun, and he left me haunted by physics. He didn’t want us to memorize; he wanted us to truly understand.”

In her senior year, Christina recieved the Presidential Scholar Award.

This award is given to one boy and one girl from each state. She recieved the award in part for her perfect scores on both the ACT and SAT. Along with recieving the award, Christina was also one of the two people given the chance to read their speech about their favorite teacher; Christina’s was a tribute to physics teacher Mark Misage.

“I truly did get to be an ambassador to the U.S. Department of Education as a representative of Westlake, which was an honor and a privilege,” Christina said. “I cannot speak highly enough of the Misages, who imbued me in a love of physics and an understanding that I will carry with me my whole life.”

Matthew also praises Mark Misage’s teaching style.

“When I was in Korea, we taught AP Physics for a little bit, and I got to see how it was led in other schools,” Matthew said. “It just gave me such an appreciation for how great Mark Misage was. I think my favorite thing was he never wasted any time. He taught right at the edge of your knowledge.

He wasn’t telling you things you already knew, and he wasn’t saying things no one was getting. He had an acute understanding of how well his students were learning, and he was able to deliver the material at the perfect speed.”

Now, Matthew works at a company called Call 9 in Brooklyn, NY. The company was started by one of his high school friends, graduate ’11 Xiaosong Mu. Matthew joined the company upon completing his four years at MIT. “[Mu] brought me on really early as the company was starting,” Matthew said. “We had a very typical Silicon Valley startup experience. At the beginning, the three of us were working out of an apartment in Palo Alto and built the company from there. I moved out there and didn’t have an apartment lined up, so I was living in the office for like a month and sleep-

Left: Christina stands with Mark and Nancy Misage in 2008 in Washington D.C. where she was honored as a Presidential Scholar. “I got to be an ambassador to the U.S. Department of Education as a representatve, which was an honor and a priviliege,” Chang said.

Right: Siblings Matthew and Christina Chang stand with ’11 grad Xiasong Mu (left) at Call 9’s first office in Palo Alto.

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Top: Matthew Chang sits at a computer in The Featherduster room. “I have a lot of great memories from Featherduster, Matthew said. “I made a lot of friends and learned a lot as well.”

Bottom: Christina Chang works with physics teacher Mark Misage on the Misages’ plane.

Sibling alumni find passions through advanced high school courses

34

“Really identify what you want and just go for it.”

—’08 graduate Christina Chang

2011 grad Matthew Chang and ’08 grad Christina Chang stand in front of MIT when Matthew was a student there.

High school is a a time for people to discover their passions and begin to pursue long-term goals. Westlake alumni Christina and Matthew Chang, who graduated in 2008 and 2011 respectively, are the optimal examples of what is achievable with perseverance. They both credit their later successes in part to the opportunities they were offered at Westlake.

“In retrospect, going to Westlake was great, as far as high schools go,” Matthew said. “Going into Westlake, and sort of my whole life, I knew I wanted to do computer science.”

Having already honed in on his interest, Matthew enrolled in the computer science class with Lynn Rosier and became very active in the program. Eager to extend his passion for the subject outside of the classroom, he joined the UIL Computer Science Team.

“During the ‘season,’ Mr. Rosier would drive us around to these various competitions,” Matthew said. “I don’t know how long there had been a team doing that before I arrived, but I think it was relatively young. I have a lot of great memories from that.”

Additionally, Matthew competed as an individual in the International Science and Engineering Fair, where he placed third in the world.

“Everyone made a poster and wrote a description of their project and a team of judges would assess it for how valuable it was to research,” Matthew said. “There were multiple levels. There was an Austin area competition, a state-level competition and then straight to the international competition. At the time, Westlake didn’t support that competition, so I had to

ing on a futon. It was a lot of fun and shows how much my Westlake contacts have mattered to me.”

Call 9 is a telemedicine company that provides emergency service to patients who are sick and in acute distress.

“Right now, we are serving nursing home patients,” Matthew said.

“Nursing homes have a lot of sick patients who can’t always get to the hospital when they need to. We stationed a paramedic in nursing homes. So, when patients are sick and they need help, they can connect to an emergency doctor. [The paramedics] can stream data live to the doctors through our program.”

While their interests and careers took very seperate paths, Matthew and Christina each give similar advice to current Westlake students.

“Westlake has so many resources,” Christina said. “But in order to take advantage of them, you might have to be creative. Really identify what you want and just go for it.”

Similarly, Matthew had his own experience with pursuing his own interests.

“Westlake was very flexible to let me do what I wanted after I asked for it,” Matthew said. “[When I was on newspaper], I told Mrs. [Deanne] Brown, ‘Hey, I want to make a website for us,’ and she just let me do it. There are things like the International Science Fair that there may be students who are interested in doing, but right now there isn’t a team of people doing it at Westlake because people aren’t aware of it.”

Christina also stresses the importance of participating in other programs that interest students, even if those programs don’t necessarily fit into their career path.

“I loved Spanish and wanted to make it a bigger part of my life,” Christina said. “I thought ‘Why don’t we have a Spanish club?’ I asked Ms. [Julie] Jimeno, and she said ‘Sure, I’ll be your sponsor.’ I, of course, did all the work along with my VP Samantha Specchio. We recruited members and created activities for us to do, and we got chips and salsa. I didn’t major in Spanish in college, but that didn’t matter. I did spelling UIL and captained the team three of the four years that I did it. I didn’t major in English, but I learned a lot of etymology which has been useful in my study of new languages since graduating. There are so many ways to explore the things that you love if you allow yourself to think creatively about achieving those dreams.”

— Sarah Davis

register as a homeschooler. I was there as the ‘Chang Homeschool.’ [Westlake] let me take the time off, which was great because we had to travel to San José for the international competition.”

After high school, Matthew attended MIT to study computer science.

“College admission was very competitive,” Matthew said. “I think [the International Science and Engineering Fair] was one of the things on my resumé that I attribute my success in college admissions to.”

Additionally, Matthew’s background in computer science gave him an initial advantage over his peers at MIT. “I had a much stronger background in computer science than a lot of people going into MIT,” Matthew said. “A lot of them didn’t have computer science programs offered at their high schools. It gave me a huge leg-up.”

While he was studying at MIT, Matthew traveled with a group to Seoul, South Korea to teach high school students at an international school.

“It was a lot of fun,” Matthew said. “They were just starting their computer science program at that time, and they were about to start offering AP Computer Science. They asked us, ‘How valuable is AP Computer Science to your students?’ I recommended that any exposure you can give your kids to computer science can give them a big leg-up if they study that in college. I’m very thankful it was offered at Westlake.”

Christina, similarly, was able to find her passion because of the wide array of advanced courses offered at Westlake.

“I knew I liked chemistry from [AP Chemistry] and [AP Organic Chem-

Courtesy photos

g in

e th

istry,]” Christina said. “I was in the second year of Denise DeMartino’s organic chemistry offering. Shelby Johnson, a student who was either one or two years before me, started the organic chemistry class. It’s a very specific class and usually you take it sophomore year in college.”

After graduating from Westlake, Christina majored in chemistry at Princeton before being selected as a Marshall Scholar. The Marshall Scholarship is a grant of money from the U.K. government to students of high ability to get a graduate degree in the U.K. “I met Prince Charles, the first minister of Wales, and other famous people,” Christina said. “It was very humbling. You know that these people have worked incredibly hard and they represent so much, and it’s just an honor to be a part of something where you get to interact with people.”

While in the U.K., she completed her masters degree in sustainable energy at Imperial College, London and Cambridge.

“With Princeton, I said, ‘Chemistry’s awesome, but what can I apply it to?’” Christina said. “I decided that sustainability would be my thing forever.

The masters in England gave me a chance to translate my knowledge into something I thought could be really useful.

Currently at Harvard, Christina is working to get her PhD in the chemistry department.

“I work on making solar panels better than what we have today,” Christina said. “I am doing chemistry research, which is also engineering and applied physics-style research, towards commercializing a new type of solar panel.”

Her love for both physics and chemistry was fostered by the teaching style at Westlake.

“Even though chemistry became my passion, I continue to be in love with physics,” Christina said. “I use both in my work. Mr. [Mark] Misage just made physics fun, and he left me haunted by physics. He didn’t want us to memorize; he wanted us to truly understand.”

In her senior year, Christina recieved the Presidential Scholar Award.

This award is given to one boy and one girl from each state. She recieved the award in part for her perfect scores on both the ACT and SAT. Along with recieving the award, Christina was also one of the two people given the chance to read their speech about their favorite teacher; Christina’s was a tribute to physics teacher Mark Misage.

“I truly did get to be an ambassador to the U.S. Department of Education as a representative of Westlake, which was an honor and a privilege,” Christina said. “I cannot speak highly enough of the Misages, who imbued me in a love of physics and an understanding that I will carry with me my whole life.”

Matthew also praises Mark Misage’s teaching style.

“When I was in Korea, we taught AP Physics for a little bit, and I got to see how it was led in other schools,” Matthew said. “It just gave me such an appreciation for how great Mark Misage was. I think my favorite thing was he never wasted any time. He taught right at the edge of your knowledge.

He wasn’t telling you things you already knew, and he wasn’t saying things no one was getting. He had an acute understanding of how well his students were learning, and he was able to deliver the material at the perfect speed.”

Now, Matthew works at a company called Call 9 in Brooklyn, NY. The company was started by one of his high school friends, graduate ’11 Xiaosong Mu. Matthew joined the company upon completing his four years at MIT. “[Mu] brought me on really early as the company was starting,” Matthew said. “We had a very typical Silicon Valley startup experience. At the beginning, the three of us were working out of an apartment in Palo Alto and built the company from there. I moved out there and didn’t have an apartment lined up, so I was living in the office for like a month and sleep-

Left: Christina stands with Mark and Nancy Misage in 2008 in Washington D.C. where she was honored as a Presidential Scholar. “I got to be an ambassador to the U.S. Department of Education as a representatve, which was an honor and a priviliege,” Chang said.

Right: Siblings Matthew and Christina Chang stand with ’11 grad Xiasong Mu (left) at Call 9’s first office in Palo Alto.

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2/26/2019 11:57:19 AM

It runs in the family

Mangums tell story of athletic past, future 2 1 2

The Mangum family poses for a picture after the 2013 Eanes Education Foundation 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament.

After getting past a Brennan defender, junior Mason Mangum stretches out his hands on a 99-yard touchdown play.

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3 3 4

At the age of 6, junior Mason Mangum jumps over a hurdle at his brother Max’s practice.

During the 1983 Chap Relays, April Newton Mangum competes in the 110-meter hurdles.

hen April, Mark and Mason Mangum entered through the front door of Texas Honey Ham, it was like everyone in the restaurant was in the presence of royalty. The family possessed a command of the room, one that is not easily replicated and was built up through years of dedication to athletic excellence.

For years, the Westlake community has felt the presence of a family of athletes, the Mangums. 1987 grad Mark met his wife, ’85 grad April at Westlake, when he was the starting quarterback and April was a multi-sport athlete who starred in track and volleyball.

Once Mark graduated from the University of Wisconsin, and April from Baylor, they married and eventually settled back in Westlake.

They have two children, junior Mason, who is a starting receiver on varsity football, and ’16 grad Max, who played cornerback for Westlake and is now in his junior season at Harvard University. Both have followed their father’s footsteps in playing football for Westlake. This was certainly Mark’s intent.

“I wanted them to have the opportunity to be a part of that camaraderie on a Friday night,” Mark said. “[The team] is able to represent the community well, and now [Mason and Max] have both gotten to see that.”

Being able to suit up for Westlake in any sport doesn’t come easy.

Mark and April couldn’t will their sons to be athletically talented, no matter how hard they tried. But each remembers a different moment when they knew that Mason and Max would have what it takes.

“We were at Max’s elementary school football practice,” April said. “I looked over at Mason running around, and the next thing I knew he was clearing the full set of hurdles at age 6.”

“Max was playing shortstop in his second-grade baseball league,” Mark said. “A ground ball popped up and hit him in the face, which made him bleed a lot. He was fine and kept on going.”

But the involvement the Mangums have with sports doesn’t end with Mason and Max. April and Mark have both coached youth sports around Austin, culminating in their own sporting events company: The Road. The Mangums have all chipped in to help organize these events,

4

El Paisano file photo which include Sports Day at Nite, held at Ebbie Neptune Field, and dodgeball tournaments for Eanes Independent School District students of all ages. Mark and April both have extensive knowledge and skill concerning sports and fitness, which hasn’t just helped with The Road, but also Mason and Max with their sports careers.

“Competition is sort of a way of life for us,” April said. “I remember when Mason and Max each joined the swim team. Mason was swimming across the pool at 3, so sports have been there from the start.”

With Mason trying just as hard to be a student-athlete as Max did and with all that Mark and April involve themselves with, it might be hard to find time to spend as a family. But through the various events that The Road puts on and by watching Mason compete in football, basketball and track, the Mangums have plenty of time to spend together.

“We do a lot together, even if most of it is sports-related,” Mason said.

The Mangums also have friendly competition within their family, especially between Mason and Max. “It’s really everything,” April said. “We have a dog named Fudge, and they’ll argue about whose it is. Wrestling, picking out the Christmas tree, you name it. But it’s good-natured, and the age difference helps with that because they know they can’t fairly compare themselves.”

Like his brother did with football, Mason may receive scholarship offers in football, basketball or track. With the way things have been going, Mason will probably receive his best offer for football, as he amassed more than 1,100 receiving yards this past season. Making this potential decision even harder is the fact that he can’t decide which of the three sports he likes best.

“Football is really exciting, and the energy of the crowd is awesome,” Mason said. “A good play feels great to make. I like the pace of basketball — there’s not a lot of standing around. For track, I just like beating people.”

Even when Mason graduates next spring, the impact that the Mangums have had on Westlake and the surrounding community will not fade.

“It comes with the territory,” Mason said.

—J.T. Sparks

“I looked over at Mason running around, and the next thing I knew he was clearing the full set of hurdles at age 6.”

1 36

courtesy photos

—’85 graduate April Mangum

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2/26/2019 10:53:41 AM

It runs in the family

Mangums tell story of athletic past, future 2 1 2

The Mangum family poses for a picture after the 2013 Eanes Education Foundation 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament.

After getting past a Brennan defender, junior Mason Mangum stretches out his hands on a 99-yard touchdown play.

W

3 3 4

At the age of 6, junior Mason Mangum jumps over a hurdle at his brother Max’s practice.

During the 1983 Chap Relays, April Newton Mangum competes in the 110-meter hurdles.

hen April, Mark and Mason Mangum entered through the front door of Texas Honey Ham, it was like everyone in the restaurant was in the presence of royalty. The family possessed a command of the room, one that is not easily replicated and was built up through years of dedication to athletic excellence.

For years, the Westlake community has felt the presence of a family of athletes, the Mangums. 1987 grad Mark met his wife, ’85 grad April at Westlake, when he was the starting quarterback and April was a multi-sport athlete who starred in track and volleyball.

Once Mark graduated from the University of Wisconsin, and April from Baylor, they married and eventually settled back in Westlake.

They have two children, junior Mason, who is a starting receiver on varsity football, and ’16 grad Max, who played cornerback for Westlake and is now in his junior season at Harvard University. Both have followed their father’s footsteps in playing football for Westlake. This was certainly Mark’s intent.

“I wanted them to have the opportunity to be a part of that camaraderie on a Friday night,” Mark said. “[The team] is able to represent the community well, and now [Mason and Max] have both gotten to see that.”

Being able to suit up for Westlake in any sport doesn’t come easy.

Mark and April couldn’t will their sons to be athletically talented, no matter how hard they tried. But each remembers a different moment when they knew that Mason and Max would have what it takes.

“We were at Max’s elementary school football practice,” April said. “I looked over at Mason running around, and the next thing I knew he was clearing the full set of hurdles at age 6.”

“Max was playing shortstop in his second-grade baseball league,” Mark said. “A ground ball popped up and hit him in the face, which made him bleed a lot. He was fine and kept on going.”

But the involvement the Mangums have with sports doesn’t end with Mason and Max. April and Mark have both coached youth sports around Austin, culminating in their own sporting events company: The Road. The Mangums have all chipped in to help organize these events,

4

El Paisano file photo which include Sports Day at Nite, held at Ebbie Neptune Field, and dodgeball tournaments for Eanes Independent School District students of all ages. Mark and April both have extensive knowledge and skill concerning sports and fitness, which hasn’t just helped with The Road, but also Mason and Max with their sports careers.

“Competition is sort of a way of life for us,” April said. “I remember when Mason and Max each joined the swim team. Mason was swimming across the pool at 3, so sports have been there from the start.”

With Mason trying just as hard to be a student-athlete as Max did and with all that Mark and April involve themselves with, it might be hard to find time to spend as a family. But through the various events that The Road puts on and by watching Mason compete in football, basketball and track, the Mangums have plenty of time to spend together.

“We do a lot together, even if most of it is sports-related,” Mason said.

The Mangums also have friendly competition within their family, especially between Mason and Max. “It’s really everything,” April said. “We have a dog named Fudge, and they’ll argue about whose it is. Wrestling, picking out the Christmas tree, you name it. But it’s good-natured, and the age difference helps with that because they know they can’t fairly compare themselves.”

Like his brother did with football, Mason may receive scholarship offers in football, basketball or track. With the way things have been going, Mason will probably receive his best offer for football, as he amassed more than 1,100 receiving yards this past season. Making this potential decision even harder is the fact that he can’t decide which of the three sports he likes best.

“Football is really exciting, and the energy of the crowd is awesome,” Mason said. “A good play feels great to make. I like the pace of basketball — there’s not a lot of standing around. For track, I just like beating people.”

Even when Mason graduates next spring, the impact that the Mangums have had on Westlake and the surrounding community will not fade.

“It comes with the territory,” Mason said.

—J.T. Sparks

“I looked over at Mason running around, and the next thing I knew he was clearing the full set of hurdles at age 6.”

1 36

courtesy photos

—’85 graduate April Mangum

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2/26/2019 10:53:41 AM

student becomes the teacher

Former Hyline captain inspires dancers in role as assistant director Hearts pounding, hands shaking, an overwhelming mix of excitement and nervousness overtakes Hyline members as they take the field at halftime of a football game. Though 2004 graduate and assistant Hyline director Lauren Smith is no longer dancing with the team, she still feels the same excitement watching from the stands.

Smith began dancing as a middle schooler at Alisa’s Dance Academy. Before beginning dance, she had a background in competitive acrobatic gymnastics and competitive cheerleading. In the winter of her freshman year, Smith tried out for Hyline.

“When I decided to try out for the dance team, I also decided that this is what I wanted to do for the rest of my life,” Smith said.

In her junior year, Smith held the position of first lieutenant. The responsibility she was given set her up to be captain her senior year.

“Being captain was amazing,” Smith said.

“The directors were amazing to let me do as much as they did. I did a ton of choreography, a ton of the teaching and I got to create formations. They knew that I wanted to be a director, so I got to do things that would prepare me for my future career.”

However, being captain brought its own set of challenges not always considered when being a part of leadership positions.

“The hardest thing about being captain was finding a balance of when to be a friend and when to be a leader,” Smith said. “It is a unique set of circumstances, but one that helped me grow so much as a leader.”

Smith became very close with Hyline directors Barbara Loomis and Shannon Harty over the course of her membership on the team. It was this relationship that allowed her to more successfully fulfill her dream of becoming a dance director later in life.

“The relationship that I created with them was unlike anything else,” Smith said. “They

38

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‘‘

opened up a whole world for me of meeting the right people and getting a different perspective on the whole drill team thing.”

Using the experiences Smith has acquired, she teaches with a passion for connecting with her students, mimicking the connection she was able to have with her own directors.

“I learned a lot about how to be a teacher from being a student,” Smith said. “Getting to grow as a leader [on Hyline] taught me a ton and opened up a lot of opportunities for me to choreograph all over the state of Texas, and get to where I am now.”

Long after Smith graduated, her relationship with Loomis is still thriving. They went on to become lifelong friends, and Loomis continues to mentor Smith to this day.

“Mrs. Loomis said to me, ‘You cannot have your first job be here [at Westlake], because it’s what you experienced and it’s all you know, and you can’t be a good successful director unless you’ve experienced different environments and different teams,’” Smith said. “I think that was the greatest advice.”

After working at Lake Highlands High School as a director and choreographing for many dance teams around Texas, Smith returned home to Westlake in 2014.

“The cool thing [about coming back to Westlake] is that now I’ve grown up and matured as a person, and I understand my role in my job,” Smith said.

As the dance program continues to thrive, Smith focuses on inspiring her students to not only become good dancers, but also be the best people they can be.

“I try to encourage dancers while still pushing them hard to meet their full potential as a dancer and young lady,” Smith said. “I think back to the influence my directors had on me and the woman I have become and I hope to have a fraction of the impact on my students.”

—Isabelle Franco and Hadley Waldren

Demonstrating some new choreography, ’04 grad Lauren Smith teaches her Dance 2 students during sixth period. The students will perform with the Dance 1 students at the annual spring showcase, Zenith, April 25-27.

‘‘

The

Elizabeth Jackson

“Mrs. Smith brings a certain energy to dance at Westlake with her positive and upbeat spirit. She encourages us to take risks and helps each and every one of us reach our full potential.”

—second lieutenant junior Sophie Lyssy

“What was evident in her early days is still clear today. She is filled with joy and abundant talent, and sharing that makes her an incredible teacher. She is fearless, driven and confident.”

—former Hyline director Barbara Loomis

As captain her senior year in 2003, Lauren Turnbull Smith performs the traditional “Boband-Suzie” halftime dance with her father.

former FD photographer Natalie Brown

2/20/2019 1:10:22 PM

Center stage

Daughter of two Eanes choir teachers, ’05 grad Lauren Snouffer discusses musical career 2005 graduate Lauren Snouffer’s background is one you might expect of a Grammynominated opera singer. After graduating from high school, she went on to receive an extensive music education at Rice University and Juilliard. “[Rice] combined a very high-level music conservatory environment with a very highlevel academic environment,” Snouffer said.

“After Rice, I did my masters degree at Juilliard, finding that I was ready to really hone my craft. I ended up getting into one of the top young artist programs in the country at Houston Grand Opera, where my voice teacher from Rice also teaches young professionals.

From there, I had a lot of stage experience in a large opera house; I sang many auditions in Houston and in New York City and, due to successful auditioning, formed a relationship with a NYC-based manager who continues to work with me to build my schedule each season.”

With her father Ed and mother Andrea working as choir directors at Westlake and West Ridge Middle School, respectively, Snouffer grew up with a constant exposure to music.

“My parents played the piano often, listened to music constantly, and taught voice lessons and piano lessons,” Snouffer said. “My grandpa was also a trumpet player, so I always heard him practicing when we went to visit; the sound of the trumpet is still incredibly nostalgic for me. I must have seemed interested in singing when I was quite young, because my dad and I would spend many evenings in our living room playing and singing through music. I consider him to have been my first voice teacher. My parents both have incredible ears, so even when I was working on something on my own, I always got help and feedback. I really don’t think my sound as a singer would be what it is today were it not for the way they helped inform my aesthetic choices when I was learning to use my voice.”

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However, opera isn’t a genre she grew up around.

“I never set out to be an opera singer,” Snouffer said.

“When I went to college, I knew I wanted classical training because it seemed to me that it would allow my voice the flexibility to do anything I wanted to do with it. From there, my teacher assigned me art songs and opera arias to learn; being in operas was also part of my degree plan. From there, it just kind of happened.”

She also attributes some of her success to her experience as a Westlake student and the people around her in high school.

“I had the rare privilege as a high schooler to feel like I could be friends with people from many different social groups who had varied interests and opinions,” Snouffer said. “In some of my most formative years becoming

courtesy photo an adult, it was this environment that sort of made me who I am, and which has actually benefited me greatly as I travel the world as a singer. I was always passionate about music and went home and practiced for hours a day completely of my own volition. I also sang with the jazz band and participated in several UIL activities throughout my time [at Westlake]. My English teachers really stand out as having had a profound impact on the work I still continue to do today. I essentially read and tell stories for a living, and am constantly analyzing language, so I am continually grateful for all that they did to inspire me and help me grow.”

—Jack McManus

courtesy photo 2005 graduate Lauren Snouffer performs in the choir’s 2004 production of “Brigadoon.”

2/18/2019 3:33:24 PM

Rain or shine

KXAN weatherman, ’05 graduate goes in-depth on career, high school

oto

El Paisano file ph

ans’ 2005 David Yeom o from his ot ph yearbook senior year.

David Yeoman s works at KX Anne Saltel AN as a meteo the weather fo rologist. He cr recast and deliv eates ers it on the ne ws.

The Featherduster: So what was it like being on The Featherduster during the early 2000s? Looking back at some of the articles you wrote, there were several about street racing, which was really interesting.

David Yeomans: Well, I was into cars in high school, and all my friends and I would trick out our cars. But the street racing thing was because of The Fast and the Furious. When the first and second ones came out, I was in high school. The moment people left the theater, they started street racing. So Austin [including Westlake Hills] had to redo the laws so [street racing] went from a misdemeanor to a felony.

For those articles about street racing, I went down to the police department and talked about it with them. I thought it would be a cool way to combine my interest and something that was a current event.

FD: Do you think that The Featherduster and Westlake in general prepared you for life after high school?

DY: Absolutely. I went to college feeling like I had a really good high school education. I felt like I was prepared my freshman year of college, and I thank Westlake for that. I certainly

40

think Westlake set me up for success, and I think they set a high bar of expectation, and you’ll find that wherever you go to college or choose what to do, Westlake really does prepare you for that. The Featherduster absolutely helped. Mrs. [Deanne] Brown taught us all the fundamentals.

FD: What drew you to weather, or have you always been into it? Were your parents supportive of your passion?

DY: I’ve been into weather ever since I was 7 years old in Albuquerque. Back before the Internet was what it is now, I’d go the library and check out just stacks of books about weather. And in Albuquerque there is all kinds of weather. There’s lightning, dust storms, snow, heat, cold rain. So I just got curious about it and how it all worked. My parents, lucky for me, fostered my interest and bought me a little weather station for Christmas that I put on the roof so I could tell how much it rained or what the winds were doing. And when I was 8 or 9 years old, I was keeping an official record of the climate for the National Weather Service, and I was a registered storm spotter for the NWS. I’d call in with my high voice, like, “There’s quarter size hail,” and they were probably like,

After graduating in 2005, David Yeomans studied meteorology at the University of Miami and is now a meteorologist for KXAN. Anne Saltel “Who is this kid?” But yeah, it’s a combination of a lifelong passion and having a family who supported me.

FD: Was there any point in or after high school that you didn’t think you’d go into that line of work?

DY: Yes. There was actually a point after my undergrad degree at the University of Miami.

I applied for a couple of TV jobs, and I didn’t get them. They were, like, in Lubbock, and just wherever I could find them, and nobody wanted me. So I came back to Austin, and I had been accepted to graduate school for meteorology, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to do that, and I was a little burned out of school at the time.

I actually just came back and worked in Austin for a year after college at a law office. That year was actually very beneficial for me because I kept in touch with Jim Spencer (KXAN meteorologist) who I had interned with between my freshman and sophomore year of college. So that whole applying for a job, getting rejected and then just going into a temporary other job really helped refocus me and really helped me realize that’s what I want to do. I went back to graduate school completely motivated to not only do something in weather, which I always

knew I wanted to do, but also be on TV. FD: What was it like being an intern at such a big company like CBS? DY: Because it was the local station, it was similar to interning at KXAN, but Miami is a bigger city, so it’s still intimidating. You feel like you don’t know anything, and you’re always afraid to be in the way and step on people’s toes. But really I should have apologized less because I was there to learn and they were there to teach me. They accept interns for a reason: Whatever it is that you do, they want you to learn and they want to groom you. And a lot of places like KXAN like to hire interns, so use them to your advantage.

FD: Was there something you struggled with at Westlake, either academically or socially?

DY: I had trouble finding my group of friends and finding where I fit in at Westlake. The summer before freshman year, I moved to Westlake, so I came in not knowing anyone.

So it took some trial and error between a few groups of friends. Joining the soccer team was super useful, and I was able to find a great group of guys through that. But I found it takes a good year, year-and-a-half for a new place to feel like home and to be happy and settle in.

The beginning of high school was rocky and a weird period — I think it is for a lot of people.

Moving here with a fresh start was certainly a time of transition for me. Really, you don’t have to fit into one box.

And when I look back at high school, it’s just too bad that people have to be an art kid or a journalism kid or a jock or a cheerleader or whatever. Because everyone goes on after high school and to college to find themselves.

And everybody ends up fitting in with whoever they truly are. High school is a weird time, I know, but in college and after, whoever you are and whatever you’re in to, you can make your own way. So don’t stress it too much. I know that’s easier said than done.

FD: As you might know, high school to college is a pretty big jump for a lot of teens.

So what was your transition like from Westlake to college?

DY: It’s cool because in college you get to choose what you study and in high school, to a large degree, everyone does mainly the same thing. In college you still have some requirements, but you can really go on your path and pursue whatever you’re interested in. When I

moved to Miami for college, I was in heaven because half of my classes were just about weather, and I really got to study what I loved.

I went through three hurricanes during my first semester, including Katrina, which was awesome. And I thought that happened every year. I was outside with my hand-held wind meter in the hurricane, the school was shut down and I was out there trying to see how fast the winds were … and then we never got hit by another hurricane. It was just cool to feel like you were in your element. To go somewhere to study something and then do it is just very cool.

FD: What was it like covering these huge storms for the first time like Harvey?

Were there any panic moments?

DY: I was in Harvey for KXAN, and not even two weeks later I was in Hurricane Irma in South Florida, and that wasn’t for work. They didn’t want to send me, so I just went on my own. It looked like it would be a category five hurricane and hitting Miami directly, and I didn’t want to miss that. It ended up being weaker, luckily for them. Harvey was definitely a lot scarier. We were trying to choose our location very carefully. It was a question if we were going to shack up at the Emergency Operation Center. But we realized we didn’t really have a place to sleep there, so it was a question of do we stay, or drive through these 65-mph winds to the hotel just a mile down the road that was also the newest, strongest, highest building. Last minute we decide to leave the EOC and go to the hotel. Luckily, even though one half of that hotel was ripped off — it was a four-story building and one whole wall was gone — I never really felt like my life was in jeopardy. It was a big hotel, and there were rooms within rooms within rooms to where I felt safe. When you’ve studied [hurricanes] and you’re obsessed with them, like I am, I think to some degree you sort of know what to expect. We didn’t even eat or sleep the whole night. We only realized half of the hotel was missing in the eye of the storm, which is the calmest part. So right before the eye hit, we realized it was getting kind of breezy inside the hotel and all the doors were closed. In the eye of the storm, we walked outside, and that’s when we saw the whole wall was missing. People started to panic and fight with each other because they thought the wind would do a 180 and a rip the other side of

“Really, you don’t have to fit into one box.”

—’05 graduate David Yeomans

the hotel off. When people started feeling that, they were not polite to each other anymore.

There was actually a guy who started screaming and cussing at me while I was doing a Facebook live to 20,000 viewers. And it’s like dude, language.

It was quite an experience.

And the thing is, the day after a hurricane knocks you back like a century. There was no internet, cell towers, landlines ... nothing. So the first thing we woke up to that morning was a team of police officers in a big armored SWAT truck who knocked on the door of the hotel and asked if there were any fatalities here. They said their 911 system was down so they were having to just proactively look for emergencies because nobody could call 911, which is crazy. Nobody knew if we had made it through the storm, not my mom, not the station, so we had to drive 30 miles outside of town ’til somebody got a cell signal so we could make some calls.

FD: Going back to high school, there’s this sort of cliché that high school is the best time of your life, so do you believe that high school years are the “golden years?”

DY: I think everyone has a different experience. For some it might be. I hope it’s not for you because I think there’s a lot more to experience after high school that’s even better.

FD: Do you have any fond memories from Westlake?

DY: Yeah, I have a lot of fond memories, like playing soccer in the cold rain with a bunch of friends. I have a lot of memories of the football games. We would always tailgate and sometimes paint our chests. We’d be the guys in the front screaming and getting wild. I had a lot of good classes and a lot of good teachers. It’s just a good environment. I think we are fortunate to go to Westlake because it is a great school that sets you up for a pretty good life.

FD: If there’s something you could tell your high school self, what would you say? Or any advice you’d give to Westlake students?

DY: I like this quote: “As long as you have something to offer the world, you will never go hungry.” That would be my piece of advice.

Don’t go into a career that you’re supposed to go into that you don’t care about. Don’t go into a career or pursue something that your parents want you to do that you don’t.

—Isabella Newlands

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2/25/2019 2:10:40 PM

Rain or shine

KXAN weatherman, ’05 graduate goes in-depth on career, high school

oto

El Paisano file ph

ans’ 2005 David Yeom o from his ot ph yearbook senior year.

David Yeoman s works at KX Anne Saltel AN as a meteo the weather fo rologist. He cr recast and deliv eates ers it on the ne ws.

The Featherduster: So what was it like being on The Featherduster during the early 2000s? Looking back at some of the articles you wrote, there were several about street racing, which was really interesting.

David Yeomans: Well, I was into cars in high school, and all my friends and I would trick out our cars. But the street racing thing was because of The Fast and the Furious. When the first and second ones came out, I was in high school. The moment people left the theater, they started street racing. So Austin [including Westlake Hills] had to redo the laws so [street racing] went from a misdemeanor to a felony.

For those articles about street racing, I went down to the police department and talked about it with them. I thought it would be a cool way to combine my interest and something that was a current event.

FD: Do you think that The Featherduster and Westlake in general prepared you for life after high school?

DY: Absolutely. I went to college feeling like I had a really good high school education. I felt like I was prepared my freshman year of college, and I thank Westlake for that. I certainly

40

think Westlake set me up for success, and I think they set a high bar of expectation, and you’ll find that wherever you go to college or choose what to do, Westlake really does prepare you for that. The Featherduster absolutely helped. Mrs. [Deanne] Brown taught us all the fundamentals.

FD: What drew you to weather, or have you always been into it? Were your parents supportive of your passion?

DY: I’ve been into weather ever since I was 7 years old in Albuquerque. Back before the Internet was what it is now, I’d go the library and check out just stacks of books about weather. And in Albuquerque there is all kinds of weather. There’s lightning, dust storms, snow, heat, cold rain. So I just got curious about it and how it all worked. My parents, lucky for me, fostered my interest and bought me a little weather station for Christmas that I put on the roof so I could tell how much it rained or what the winds were doing. And when I was 8 or 9 years old, I was keeping an official record of the climate for the National Weather Service, and I was a registered storm spotter for the NWS. I’d call in with my high voice, like, “There’s quarter size hail,” and they were probably like,

After graduating in 2005, David Yeomans studied meteorology at the University of Miami and is now a meteorologist for KXAN. Anne Saltel “Who is this kid?” But yeah, it’s a combination of a lifelong passion and having a family who supported me.

FD: Was there any point in or after high school that you didn’t think you’d go into that line of work?

DY: Yes. There was actually a point after my undergrad degree at the University of Miami.

I applied for a couple of TV jobs, and I didn’t get them. They were, like, in Lubbock, and just wherever I could find them, and nobody wanted me. So I came back to Austin, and I had been accepted to graduate school for meteorology, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to do that, and I was a little burned out of school at the time.

I actually just came back and worked in Austin for a year after college at a law office. That year was actually very beneficial for me because I kept in touch with Jim Spencer (KXAN meteorologist) who I had interned with between my freshman and sophomore year of college. So that whole applying for a job, getting rejected and then just going into a temporary other job really helped refocus me and really helped me realize that’s what I want to do. I went back to graduate school completely motivated to not only do something in weather, which I always

knew I wanted to do, but also be on TV. FD: What was it like being an intern at such a big company like CBS? DY: Because it was the local station, it was similar to interning at KXAN, but Miami is a bigger city, so it’s still intimidating. You feel like you don’t know anything, and you’re always afraid to be in the way and step on people’s toes. But really I should have apologized less because I was there to learn and they were there to teach me. They accept interns for a reason: Whatever it is that you do, they want you to learn and they want to groom you. And a lot of places like KXAN like to hire interns, so use them to your advantage.

FD: Was there something you struggled with at Westlake, either academically or socially?

DY: I had trouble finding my group of friends and finding where I fit in at Westlake. The summer before freshman year, I moved to Westlake, so I came in not knowing anyone.

So it took some trial and error between a few groups of friends. Joining the soccer team was super useful, and I was able to find a great group of guys through that. But I found it takes a good year, year-and-a-half for a new place to feel like home and to be happy and settle in.

The beginning of high school was rocky and a weird period — I think it is for a lot of people.

Moving here with a fresh start was certainly a time of transition for me. Really, you don’t have to fit into one box.

And when I look back at high school, it’s just too bad that people have to be an art kid or a journalism kid or a jock or a cheerleader or whatever. Because everyone goes on after high school and to college to find themselves.

And everybody ends up fitting in with whoever they truly are. High school is a weird time, I know, but in college and after, whoever you are and whatever you’re in to, you can make your own way. So don’t stress it too much. I know that’s easier said than done.

FD: As you might know, high school to college is a pretty big jump for a lot of teens.

So what was your transition like from Westlake to college?

DY: It’s cool because in college you get to choose what you study and in high school, to a large degree, everyone does mainly the same thing. In college you still have some requirements, but you can really go on your path and pursue whatever you’re interested in. When I

moved to Miami for college, I was in heaven because half of my classes were just about weather, and I really got to study what I loved.

I went through three hurricanes during my first semester, including Katrina, which was awesome. And I thought that happened every year. I was outside with my hand-held wind meter in the hurricane, the school was shut down and I was out there trying to see how fast the winds were … and then we never got hit by another hurricane. It was just cool to feel like you were in your element. To go somewhere to study something and then do it is just very cool.

FD: What was it like covering these huge storms for the first time like Harvey?

Were there any panic moments?

DY: I was in Harvey for KXAN, and not even two weeks later I was in Hurricane Irma in South Florida, and that wasn’t for work. They didn’t want to send me, so I just went on my own. It looked like it would be a category five hurricane and hitting Miami directly, and I didn’t want to miss that. It ended up being weaker, luckily for them. Harvey was definitely a lot scarier. We were trying to choose our location very carefully. It was a question if we were going to shack up at the Emergency Operation Center. But we realized we didn’t really have a place to sleep there, so it was a question of do we stay, or drive through these 65-mph winds to the hotel just a mile down the road that was also the newest, strongest, highest building. Last minute we decide to leave the EOC and go to the hotel. Luckily, even though one half of that hotel was ripped off — it was a four-story building and one whole wall was gone — I never really felt like my life was in jeopardy. It was a big hotel, and there were rooms within rooms within rooms to where I felt safe. When you’ve studied [hurricanes] and you’re obsessed with them, like I am, I think to some degree you sort of know what to expect. We didn’t even eat or sleep the whole night. We only realized half of the hotel was missing in the eye of the storm, which is the calmest part. So right before the eye hit, we realized it was getting kind of breezy inside the hotel and all the doors were closed. In the eye of the storm, we walked outside, and that’s when we saw the whole wall was missing. People started to panic and fight with each other because they thought the wind would do a 180 and a rip the other side of

“Really, you don’t have to fit into one box.”

—’05 graduate David Yeomans

the hotel off. When people started feeling that, they were not polite to each other anymore.

There was actually a guy who started screaming and cussing at me while I was doing a Facebook live to 20,000 viewers. And it’s like dude, language.

It was quite an experience.

And the thing is, the day after a hurricane knocks you back like a century. There was no internet, cell towers, landlines ... nothing. So the first thing we woke up to that morning was a team of police officers in a big armored SWAT truck who knocked on the door of the hotel and asked if there were any fatalities here. They said their 911 system was down so they were having to just proactively look for emergencies because nobody could call 911, which is crazy. Nobody knew if we had made it through the storm, not my mom, not the station, so we had to drive 30 miles outside of town ’til somebody got a cell signal so we could make some calls.

FD: Going back to high school, there’s this sort of cliché that high school is the best time of your life, so do you believe that high school years are the “golden years?”

DY: I think everyone has a different experience. For some it might be. I hope it’s not for you because I think there’s a lot more to experience after high school that’s even better.

FD: Do you have any fond memories from Westlake?

DY: Yeah, I have a lot of fond memories, like playing soccer in the cold rain with a bunch of friends. I have a lot of memories of the football games. We would always tailgate and sometimes paint our chests. We’d be the guys in the front screaming and getting wild. I had a lot of good classes and a lot of good teachers. It’s just a good environment. I think we are fortunate to go to Westlake because it is a great school that sets you up for a pretty good life.

FD: If there’s something you could tell your high school self, what would you say? Or any advice you’d give to Westlake students?

DY: I like this quote: “As long as you have something to offer the world, you will never go hungry.” That would be my piece of advice.

Don’t go into a career that you’re supposed to go into that you don’t care about. Don’t go into a career or pursue something that your parents want you to do that you don’t.

—Isabella Newlands

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2/25/2019 2:10:40 PM

Rock the house

Westlake alumna now serves in Texas House of Representatives From winning “Jeopardy!” three times to writing a children’s book, Erin Zwiener has done many things in various fields since graduating from Westlake in December of 2002. Up next for her is serving on the Texas House of Representatives for Hays and Blanco counties. All of this started back at Westlake.

“I’ve always been interested in politics, but I’d moved on from the idea that I would ever run,” Zwiener said. “But I noticed how many seats went uncontested in the Texas House and that really bothered me. There’s a saying in politics that you either run unopposed or you run afraid. I think all politicians should run afraid because you do a better job representing your district if you’re worried about whether or not you’re going to be re-elected. I realized the district I live in wasn’t competitive, and no one had run against [former representative] Jason Isaac since 2012. So I started looking for the person who was challenging him to see if I could support them. I didn’t find anyone, so before I knew it I was a candidate.”

During her time at Westlake, Zwiener was involved in Model United Nations and Junior Statesmen of America, both politicsbased organizations. In both clubs, students debate and discuss world issues and potential solutions. Participating and improving those skills would prove valuable in the extensive public speaking and speech writing essential to her campaign.

“To me, what was more influential were the extracurriculars,” Zwiener said. “Model UN was some of the best training on how to think about politics I’ve ever had. You are thinking about how to think in someone else’s shoes, which helps you understand where other people are coming from. I never represented the United States, I represented Russia or The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the middle of a crisis.”

Another way high school prepared her for being a politician was practicing speaking in front of an audience.

“One of the biggest barriers a lot of folks feel to entering politics is fear of public speaking,” Zwiener said. “I was terrified of public speaking in middle school and early high school, but I kept doing it, and by the time I was in a position to be running for office, I wasn’t scared of it anymore. If you have that feeling [fear], confront it early.”

Running a campaign is intimidating and hard to do alone. Luckily for Zwiener , the friends she made during high school were a massive help in her campaign.

“Several Westlake friends contributed early on to my campaign,” Zwiener said. “The worst part about running for office is trying to raise money, but some classmates were part of helping me get that campaign kicked off. The parents of one of my classmates even threw a house party for me in October just over in Rollingwood.”

As for her advice for current Westlake students who may want to follow in her footsteps, Zwiener says that getting involved as early as possible is the best way.

“Being a candidate is one opportunity, but there are also many other jobs in the political world, and being this close to the Texas capitol gives folks here a unique opportunity to engage,” Zwiener said. “So I would advise any students interested to reach out to the Texas House of Representatives. You could start with your member and let them know you’d love an internship. If folks want to get involved, right now is the time.”

—Anne Saltel

42

While holding her daughter Lark, Erin Zwiener files her first bill as a member of the Texas House of Representatives.

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42_zweiner new.indd 1

2/18/2019 3:34:24 PM

Be

that girl

Alumna Alexis Jones becomes international public speaker 2001 graduate Alexis Jones has become well-known since her days as a Chap. She starred in the TV show “Survivor: Micronesia.” At 19, she started a non-profit organization called I Am That Girl, with the purpose of empowering women. Later, she founded ProtectHer to teach men the importance of respecting women. “[I Am That Girl] is the badass version of Girl Scouts for college students,” Jones said. “We have about 1.2 million people involved. We just opened a chapter in our 24th country.”

I Am That Girl empowers women around the globe and reminds them that they are valued. In 2014, she started ProtectHer, where she addressed male athletes in their locker rooms about the importance of respecting women.

“I wrote a book called ‘I AM THAT GIRL,’” Jones said. “I gave a talk for ESPN that ended up going viral. I was hired by every Division I school. When the MeToo movement happened, it became a corporate program. I spoke in NFL [locker rooms] and to the military on why it’s so important to respect women.”

During her time at Westlake, Jones participated in volleyball and soccer.

“It was kind of an outlet because [Westlake] was so difficult academically,” Jones said.

“Freshman year in college was a joke compared to my time at Westlake.”

Throughout high school, Jones loved attending football games, and went full-out for spirit week dress up. She went to all the big events, games and dances.

“I went to prom all four years,” Jones said. “I got grounded freshman year because the one rule my dad had was I wasn’t allowed to go to prom my freshman year, but I did. I never went to prom with my boyfriend — always my best guy friend. Everyone went to prom. We would dance our faces off, leave and eat pizza.”

There were a handful of teachers who helped encourage Jones and gave her the motivation she needed.

AP Calculus teacher Jocelyn Bixler, courtesy photo chemistry teacher Denise DeMartino 2001 grad A lexis Jones co and art teacher Dawn Delgado were mpeted on “Survivor” and now runs a few of the people who inspired her. the organization, I A m That Girl.

“Mrs. Bixler once told me, ‘Don’t

43_alexis jones.indd 1

marry the guy who peaked in high school, marry the guy that’s just getting started,’” Jones said. “Which is funny, because I met Brad Buckman in high school, but he totally peaked outside of high school. I can’t believe how painfully accurate she was. He was a year younger and graduated in 2002, and he played basketball at UT. When Bixler found out we were getting married, she was like, ‘No way!’”

Jones’ love for school came not just from the academics, but from having excellent “In most schools, teachers who cared about her — teachers who motivated her you could either be harder. the ‘pretty dumb girl,’ to work “DeMartino pulled me out the ‘shy, nerdy kid’ or of class and was like, ‘You gotta stop the pretty, dumb-girl an amazing athlete. thing. I don’t care how pretty Westlake offered us you are. You’re smarter than that,’” Jones said. “And as a an opportunity to be 16-year-old to have a teacher all of that.” say ‘You’re better than that’ really sets high expectations —’01 graduate and helps them become that person.”

Alexis Jones While the academics were difficult, Jones agreed that they helped prepare her for the real world. She had to push to outwork everyone, and it gave her a glimpse of how things were going to be. Westlake also helped her break free of the status-quo.

“It’s rare when you have that kind of balance with academics and athletics,” Jones said. “In most schools, you could either be the ‘pretty dumb girl,’ the ‘shy, nerdy kid’ or an amazing athlete.

Westlake offered us an opportunity to be all of that.”

Since she was 13, Jones always had big goals. She’s thankful for the competitive nature of Westlake because it helped her to reach them. Even now, she continues to grow.

“My goals continue to evolve,” Jones said. “My family didn’t have very much money, so I had to get a scholarship to go to college. My single focus was to get into a great college. I joked that I didn’t have the luxury to party. I was so focused on my career and always had pretty extreme goals.”

More than anything, Jones appreciates the teachers in her life that helped get her to where she is.

“They taught me I could be really good at something just by practice and putting in effort,” Jones said. “It’s something you need a lot of as an adult. They showed me the power of investing and believing in a human. I think about them a lot.”

—Kenzie Finch

2/18/2019 3:30:25 PM

With teammates, Matt Nader performs the hat dance at the 2006 Homecoming Pep Rally Nov. 10.

Silver lining Say you are a writer. You’ve spent years honing your command of the language of your choice. You’ve written countless books, all of which are raved about by critics worldwide.

You’ve achieved the seemingly impossible canon that is personal and societal success at the highest level. Then one day, you wake up and can no longer write, and you are unable to explain why. How would you respond? Where would you go from there?

The point is, nothing is guaranteed in life.

Time is the tide which can wash away every bit of progress in an instant. The story of ’07 graduate and former offensive lineman Matt Nader proves this to be a harsh reality. A nearly fatal evening at a varsity football game in College Station stripped him of his ability to play football at the collegiate level, throwing his life plans out the door.

“I remember it like it was yesterday,” Nader said. “It was extremely hot and humid, a gru-

44

former FD photographer Aaron Altounian

Cardiac arrest inspires former football player to spread awareness

eling time period of the year. I just remember being lethargic. I even took a nap before the game.”

Even though it wasn’t a District game, Westlake vs. A&M Consolidated held its weight, with Consol being the fourth and Westlake the seventh ranked team in the state. Harris Ratings had it listed as the top Texas high school football game of the week. And the start of the game lived up to the hype.

“We basically took the entire first quarter marching down the field, we scored, and I came off the field,” Nader said. “I’ve obviously gone over this with my parents and friends and people in the stands of what I looked like from their perspective. And they’re just like ‘You were definitely not yourself the entire drive.’ [I was] kind of slow off the ball, and not getting low, not using [my] athleticism.

“I was sitting on a bench without a back to it,” he said. “All of a sudden, I just felt this

explosion of pain in my chest. As soon as that happened, I kind of slumped off the back of the bench. The last thing that I remember were the stadium lights in front of me fading out.”

It was a ventricular fibrillation, what the American Heart Association classifies as the “most serious cardiac rhythm disturbance.”

Essentially, abnormal electrical activity causes the heart’s ventricles to fibrillate, inhibiting the heart from pumping blood and causing cardiac arrest. The game was stopped and called off with 10 minutes and 25 seconds left in the second quarter, the score at 7-7.

“After I went out, my eyes started rolling to the back of my head,” said Nader about what spectators witnessed. “And this is all hearsay, from my perspective. I started to kind of turn pale, and everybody started freaking out. The cheerleaders were behind me, and they started to scream and everybody was screaming to my parents ‘Paul, Barbara, Matt’s down.’ And they

immediately ran down to my side to search for An All-American athlete, Nader was on a pulse, which I [didn’t have].” track to play football at the University of TexAt that point, Nader was in agonal respira- as. He had received a scholarship offer from tion, a state where the body’s breathing pat- Mack Brown. Despite not being able to play terns are irregular in order to gasp for air, usu- football again, UT honored his scholarship, ally occurring when someone is under cardiac and he joined the team after graduating. arrest. It was something “When I first got [to UT], he called his body’s “last Mack Brown told me, ‘The ditch effort” to breathe. day you committed to us, we Both of Nader’s parents, committed to you, and you’re Paul and Barbara Nader, going to be a part of this are doctors and helped to football program and this keep their son alive. university until you gradu“At the time, the proate, no matter what.’ I took tocol called for mouththat in stride, and I wanted to-mouth and chest comto earn my scholarship. It pressions, so my mom costs a lot of money to go was on mouth-to-mouth, to college, and UT is a great and my dad was on chest college, and I wanted to earn compressions,” Nader my keep. I started learning said. “Then they brought the playbook, learning the in an Automated Exterdefenses, breaking down nal Defibrillator, cut off film and being involved in my jersey, put the AED the program because I still on my chest, and it deloved the sport of football. tected that I was in car- former FD photographer Shannon Soule I got into the communicadiac arrest. And it said, At halftime of the 2006 Homecom- tions school as well, be‘Click the red button to ing game, Matt Nader stands with cause I thought that maybe deliver shock.’ That AED cheerleaders Callie Puett and Kendall I would be a sportscaster. If was donated to Westlake Burns, holding an Eanes ISD check to I was able to coach football, High School about five I thought I could parlay that purchase four new defibrillators. years prior to that event into a career in coaching or and had never been used, broadcasting.” but they brought it to every single football Despite his early aspirations, Nader’s life game and made sure it was charged up and plans diverged from sports. ready to go. Thankfully they did that, because “As time went by, I realized that playing otherwise I wouldn’t be here. football and coaching “I came to in the hospital and didn’t know football are two differwhat the heck happened,” he said. “And [the ent things. And while doctors said,] ‘you went into cardiac arrest, I loved flying [with you almost died.’ And my first questions were: the team to games], I Am I gonna be able to play football, and what didn’t love coaching. does this mean? They said they didn’t know I think that’s a lesson what it meant. I was transported to Austin, for all young people to where I fell under the care of the cardiologists learn, that when you in Austin. They ran a series of electrophysiol- have a vision, and you ogy studies where they poked and prodded in pursue that vision but my heart and tried to see if they could recreate it doesn’t work out, the heart rhythm that was so dangerous, which then it’s OK to switch. they were not able to do. Because of that, they I think it’s important had to put an Implantable Cardioverter-Defi- to find something that brillator in my chest, and I will live with that you’re good at dodevice in my chest for the rest of my life.” ing, but also to find After a week, he was back in regular class- something that makes es. The school put on a “Now it’s for Nader” you happy. I think fundraiser, raising thousands of dollars to buy the combination of more AEDs for the district. those two things cre“It was incredible support from the West- ates successful, happy lake community and the football program, people when they’re family friends and the University of Texas and 40, 50, 60 years old. their coaching staff,” Nader said. “I mean, it re- My story can help ally made everything so much better. It made educate people and the psychological aspect of what happened to propagate that need. me manageable. They did the “Now it’s for That’s why I emNader” fundraiser, and that was the thing barked on an initiative to help the community, Westlake did that really opened up my eyes help the state, help the country understand the and gave me some perspective into my life and importance of AEDs and raise money for AEDs some meaning, that a silver lining could come and CPR education and awareness.” out of such a horrible thing.”

Nader’s story also proves the power of story-

telling. Alongside many state representatives, he helped pass laws requiring the presence of AEDs at UIL events and in all Texas schools, from elementary school to high school.

“It all started out in high school, when I met [former] Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst and [former] Governor Rick Perry,” Nader said. “At the time, they had been working on an initiative, coincidentally, to try and get AEDs at all the schools in Texas, and they weren’t getting anywhere. Then I went and told my story and boom: Senate Bill 7 passed, put all the AEDs in all the schools in Texas. Then a state representative, a lady named Donna Howard, who was working with the the UIL Medical Advisory Board, asked me to come give my testimony and tell my story in front of the board. After that, they changed their wording from ‘encouraged’ to ‘required’ to have AEDs at all UIL events. Those people came to me right off the bat, and I had two huge victories right off the bat. That’s what made me realize: Wow, my story is impactful, and that’s what led me down that road.”

Now working as a territory manager for Abbott Laboratories, a company that manufactures health devices, including AEDs, Nader also fills his time telling his story at events to raise money for nonprofits.

“To this day, I do probably four or five speaking engagements every single year for various groups, nonprofits like the American Heart Association or the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation. Every day, I’m working with organizations and physicians and individuals who are in that sphere. What happened to me shaped what my life would be like looking down the road now, 11 and 12 years after all that happened.”

Having been fully assimilated into the working world, Nader is grateful for the things he learned during his time as a Chap. “[Westlake] has a culture of being successful and working hard,” Nader said.

“Like the football program, we may not be the most athletic, but we’re going to play the smartest and the hardest. We’re not going to give up. Those things are instilled in me, and I give credit to Westlake for that.

We have a history of success, and it’s each class’s duty to continue it. I have very fond memories from high school and what it’s done for my life. I draw back on the things that I’ve learned here every day in my career and my personal life as well.”

—Adam Jasper

“My dream was manifesting, and then all of a sudden, without my ability to fight for it, I had it all taken away from me.”

—’07 graduate Matt Nader

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44_matt nader.indd All Pages

2/18/2019 3:29:42 PM

With teammates, Matt Nader performs the hat dance at the 2006 Homecoming Pep Rally Nov. 10.

Silver lining Say you are a writer. You’ve spent years honing your command of the language of your choice. You’ve written countless books, all of which are raved about by critics worldwide.

You’ve achieved the seemingly impossible canon that is personal and societal success at the highest level. Then one day, you wake up and can no longer write, and you are unable to explain why. How would you respond? Where would you go from there?

The point is, nothing is guaranteed in life.

Time is the tide which can wash away every bit of progress in an instant. The story of ’07 graduate and former offensive lineman Matt Nader proves this to be a harsh reality. A nearly fatal evening at a varsity football game in College Station stripped him of his ability to play football at the collegiate level, throwing his life plans out the door.

“I remember it like it was yesterday,” Nader said. “It was extremely hot and humid, a gru-

44

former FD photographer Aaron Altounian

Cardiac arrest inspires former football player to spread awareness

eling time period of the year. I just remember being lethargic. I even took a nap before the game.”

Even though it wasn’t a District game, Westlake vs. A&M Consolidated held its weight, with Consol being the fourth and Westlake the seventh ranked team in the state. Harris Ratings had it listed as the top Texas high school football game of the week. And the start of the game lived up to the hype.

“We basically took the entire first quarter marching down the field, we scored, and I came off the field,” Nader said. “I’ve obviously gone over this with my parents and friends and people in the stands of what I looked like from their perspective. And they’re just like ‘You were definitely not yourself the entire drive.’ [I was] kind of slow off the ball, and not getting low, not using [my] athleticism.

“I was sitting on a bench without a back to it,” he said. “All of a sudden, I just felt this

explosion of pain in my chest. As soon as that happened, I kind of slumped off the back of the bench. The last thing that I remember were the stadium lights in front of me fading out.”

It was a ventricular fibrillation, what the American Heart Association classifies as the “most serious cardiac rhythm disturbance.”

Essentially, abnormal electrical activity causes the heart’s ventricles to fibrillate, inhibiting the heart from pumping blood and causing cardiac arrest. The game was stopped and called off with 10 minutes and 25 seconds left in the second quarter, the score at 7-7.

“After I went out, my eyes started rolling to the back of my head,” said Nader about what spectators witnessed. “And this is all hearsay, from my perspective. I started to kind of turn pale, and everybody started freaking out. The cheerleaders were behind me, and they started to scream and everybody was screaming to my parents ‘Paul, Barbara, Matt’s down.’ And they

immediately ran down to my side to search for An All-American athlete, Nader was on a pulse, which I [didn’t have].” track to play football at the University of TexAt that point, Nader was in agonal respira- as. He had received a scholarship offer from tion, a state where the body’s breathing pat- Mack Brown. Despite not being able to play terns are irregular in order to gasp for air, usu- football again, UT honored his scholarship, ally occurring when someone is under cardiac and he joined the team after graduating. arrest. It was something “When I first got [to UT], he called his body’s “last Mack Brown told me, ‘The ditch effort” to breathe. day you committed to us, we Both of Nader’s parents, committed to you, and you’re Paul and Barbara Nader, going to be a part of this are doctors and helped to football program and this keep their son alive. university until you gradu“At the time, the proate, no matter what.’ I took tocol called for mouththat in stride, and I wanted to-mouth and chest comto earn my scholarship. It pressions, so my mom costs a lot of money to go was on mouth-to-mouth, to college, and UT is a great and my dad was on chest college, and I wanted to earn compressions,” Nader my keep. I started learning said. “Then they brought the playbook, learning the in an Automated Exterdefenses, breaking down nal Defibrillator, cut off film and being involved in my jersey, put the AED the program because I still on my chest, and it deloved the sport of football. tected that I was in car- former FD photographer Shannon Soule I got into the communicadiac arrest. And it said, At halftime of the 2006 Homecom- tions school as well, be‘Click the red button to ing game, Matt Nader stands with cause I thought that maybe deliver shock.’ That AED cheerleaders Callie Puett and Kendall I would be a sportscaster. If was donated to Westlake Burns, holding an Eanes ISD check to I was able to coach football, High School about five I thought I could parlay that purchase four new defibrillators. years prior to that event into a career in coaching or and had never been used, broadcasting.” but they brought it to every single football Despite his early aspirations, Nader’s life game and made sure it was charged up and plans diverged from sports. ready to go. Thankfully they did that, because “As time went by, I realized that playing otherwise I wouldn’t be here. football and coaching “I came to in the hospital and didn’t know football are two differwhat the heck happened,” he said. “And [the ent things. And while doctors said,] ‘you went into cardiac arrest, I loved flying [with you almost died.’ And my first questions were: the team to games], I Am I gonna be able to play football, and what didn’t love coaching. does this mean? They said they didn’t know I think that’s a lesson what it meant. I was transported to Austin, for all young people to where I fell under the care of the cardiologists learn, that when you in Austin. They ran a series of electrophysiol- have a vision, and you ogy studies where they poked and prodded in pursue that vision but my heart and tried to see if they could recreate it doesn’t work out, the heart rhythm that was so dangerous, which then it’s OK to switch. they were not able to do. Because of that, they I think it’s important had to put an Implantable Cardioverter-Defi- to find something that brillator in my chest, and I will live with that you’re good at dodevice in my chest for the rest of my life.” ing, but also to find After a week, he was back in regular class- something that makes es. The school put on a “Now it’s for Nader” you happy. I think fundraiser, raising thousands of dollars to buy the combination of more AEDs for the district. those two things cre“It was incredible support from the West- ates successful, happy lake community and the football program, people when they’re family friends and the University of Texas and 40, 50, 60 years old. their coaching staff,” Nader said. “I mean, it re- My story can help ally made everything so much better. It made educate people and the psychological aspect of what happened to propagate that need. me manageable. They did the “Now it’s for That’s why I emNader” fundraiser, and that was the thing barked on an initiative to help the community, Westlake did that really opened up my eyes help the state, help the country understand the and gave me some perspective into my life and importance of AEDs and raise money for AEDs some meaning, that a silver lining could come and CPR education and awareness.” out of such a horrible thing.”

Nader’s story also proves the power of story-

telling. Alongside many state representatives, he helped pass laws requiring the presence of AEDs at UIL events and in all Texas schools, from elementary school to high school.

“It all started out in high school, when I met [former] Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst and [former] Governor Rick Perry,” Nader said. “At the time, they had been working on an initiative, coincidentally, to try and get AEDs at all the schools in Texas, and they weren’t getting anywhere. Then I went and told my story and boom: Senate Bill 7 passed, put all the AEDs in all the schools in Texas. Then a state representative, a lady named Donna Howard, who was working with the the UIL Medical Advisory Board, asked me to come give my testimony and tell my story in front of the board. After that, they changed their wording from ‘encouraged’ to ‘required’ to have AEDs at all UIL events. Those people came to me right off the bat, and I had two huge victories right off the bat. That’s what made me realize: Wow, my story is impactful, and that’s what led me down that road.”

Now working as a territory manager for Abbott Laboratories, a company that manufactures health devices, including AEDs, Nader also fills his time telling his story at events to raise money for nonprofits.

“To this day, I do probably four or five speaking engagements every single year for various groups, nonprofits like the American Heart Association or the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation. Every day, I’m working with organizations and physicians and individuals who are in that sphere. What happened to me shaped what my life would be like looking down the road now, 11 and 12 years after all that happened.”

Having been fully assimilated into the working world, Nader is grateful for the things he learned during his time as a Chap. “[Westlake] has a culture of being successful and working hard,” Nader said.

“Like the football program, we may not be the most athletic, but we’re going to play the smartest and the hardest. We’re not going to give up. Those things are instilled in me, and I give credit to Westlake for that.

We have a history of success, and it’s each class’s duty to continue it. I have very fond memories from high school and what it’s done for my life. I draw back on the things that I’ve learned here every day in my career and my personal life as well.”

—Adam Jasper

“My dream was manifesting, and then all of a sudden, without my ability to fight for it, I had it all taken away from me.”

—’07 graduate Matt Nader

we are legends westlakefeatherduster.com

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2/18/2019 3:29:42 PM

Izzy’s Votography Book photoshoots now!

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We are

Candid

50 “

I think [Westlake] will be really diverse and have a lot of kids who are really good at a lot of things that haven’t been invented yet.

“

—sophomore Jillian Weeks

Emily

Emily Beebe

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Emily Beebe

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Pg. 49

Beebe

cour te

Pg. 48 Pg. 50

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2/18/2019 5:03:21 PM

HUMANS OF WESTLAKE

In

50

years,

“I think it will be really overpopulated.

I think we’re gonna have to keep building. It’s gonna be really big and even better, because we’re gonna know what’s good about a school, because we’ve already had the experience. So in a while we’ll have even more improvements.”

what will Westlake

be like?

“We’re gonna have escalators instead of staircases. No more stairs. They’re gone. Also, robots that feed you water.”

“Everyone’s gonna show up to school in flying cars, and to get to class you don’t even have to walk; you get carried by a bunch of servants that are born through genetic engineering, just like in Brave New World, if you’ve read that book. And then there will be APs everywhere, and there will be clones of APs. The APs will be the only thing around, like there will be only one AP, but there are 50 of them and they’ll be in every classroom watching you. And there will be posters that say ‘AP is watching.’ And that’s it.”

photos by Emily Beebe

48

we are candid westlakefeatherduster.com

“I feel like you’re probably just gonna stay in one classroom, and you’ll have all your assignments sent to you.

Like, you probably won’t even have teachers. The food’s probably gonna be different; they won’t have Chickfil-A and stuff. They’ll probably have food cars or something, like food delivery to the classrooms.”

“I think it will be really diverse and have a lot of kids who are really good at a lot of things that haven’t been invented yet.“

“Everything’s glass. There are probably fire pits and stuff outside. The students are gonna be super smart.

Everyone’s gonna know everything ahead of time.”

“More windows. Better lighting. It will definitely be bigger, and the academics will be way more intense.”

“I believe that Westlake will continue to integrate technology into daily learning and really use that to the kids’ advantages. It’s really awesome and we’ve seen that with the iPads, and I also think that they’ll continue to create spaces for kids if they feel overwhelmed or something and places to talk and more resources for that kind of stuff.”

“Westlake in 50 years ... I think will be extremely hard academically and [there will be] way more schoolwork than there already is. I think the campus will expand, and the school activities will be way better.”

“In 50 years, Westlake will be super futuristic, and all the buildings are going to be white. All the students are going to be wearing all white clothes and listening to the teachers, and there are just going to be no disruptions.”

“I think Westlake will be bigger and will have different campuses. More futuristic. Instead of iPads, we’ll have computers. It would be a whole lot cooler and we would have a different mascot. Our football team will be State Champions, but golf would be the biggest sport here.”

“In 50 years, instead of teachers, there will be robots, and class will be recorded every day, so you can reuse lessons for future years.”

“I think the academics will get more rigorous. The campus will expand.

More North Face backpacks. More Lululemon. More Patagonia.”

Mission: senior prank A history of the most memorable, funny, clever, gross tricks

Senioritis: A disease contracted in the last year of high school. The symptoms: Little to no motivation for doing school work, the overwhelming urge to blow a whistle on the first day of school, the constant need to stand in the “W” during passing periods and, most importantly, making sure to go out with a bang.

A prank is one way a class can leave a mark.

A good prank is simply defined by principal Steve Ramsey as “one that is easily cleaned up, doesn’t cause damage and some adults know about beforehand.”

Ramsey has seen many pranks while working with the school district for the past 17 years.

“Some pranks can be entertaining, they can be unifying, they can be silly, they also can be destructive,” Ramsey said. “They can be major campus disruptions, and they can bring legal issues onto seniors. I’ve seen some that are very harsh, cause lots of damage and there are lots of consequences. I’ve also seen some [pranks] where the kids do something, they clean up after themselves and it was all over in a matter of four or five minutes, everybody laughed and said, ‘That’s a good senior class.’”

Director of safety and risk management Laura Santos-Farry stresses that if seniors decide to take a risk and do a dangerous prank,

Mission: Take Out the Trash Year: throughout the ’80s Firsthand take: Seniors trashed the Commons.

“Many faculty and staff members and all custodial staff had to spend the whole day cleaning up.”

—band director Kerry Taylor

Mission: Rat Race Year: 2011 Firsthand take: “They let rats run out in the Commons, Featherduster file photo and they were numbered 1, 2, 4 and 5 so everyone was looking for number 3. There was no number 3. A girl actually brought one into my class, and I said ‘Nope, not in my class,’ and she put it in a shoebox and left it outside my classroom.”

—English teacher Jeff Montgomery

Mission: You Wood Not Believe It Year: 2009 Firsthand take: “As you leave the Chap Court and walk outside, the firstrow parking lot has a tree on a little island. [Seniors] put a bench, a tree and bushes on that island. The tree still stands today.”

—child development teacher Pat Betzner

then it will most likely result in legal action.

“In recent years, with school shootings and terrorist attacks, school administrators and law enforcement no longer take these ‘senior pranks’ lightly,” Santos-Farry said. “What may have been met with a chuckle over students’ antics in years past are now being taken as serious threats and criminal offenses.”

Throughout the years of Westlake, seniors have instigated many infamous pranks, from campus beautification projects to more disruptive things like setting off fireworks on campus.

Here are some of the most memorable ones.

—Helaina Hackett

Mission: Down a Slippery Slope Year: unknown Firsthand take: “I got called to a medical emergency, and I remember running out of my office, and I could feel a teacher grab me and warn me about slipping. The seniors had squirt guns filled with oil, and had set up a Slip-N-Slide in the Commons.”

—school nurse Holly Hubbell Mission: Jiminy Cricket Year: 2015 Firsthand take: Seniors let out hundreds of crickets into the Commons.

“My daughter took the SAT at Westlake, and because of all the chirping from the crickets, they let her take it again.”

—counseling administrative assistant Laura Davis Mission: Rated R Year: ‘90s and ‘00s Firsthand take: “Back in the ‘90s and 2000s, it seemed like every year there was a competition to see who could sneak a giant paper mache’ phallus into the Commons. In hindsight, maybe not the most enlightened of pranks.”

—English teacher James Baker Mission: Bounce Back Year: 2016 Firsthand take: Seniors let out approximately 2,000 bouncy balls from the second floor Commons stairs.

“The aftermath was just bouncy balls everywhere.”

—senior Chris Vescovo

Mission: Light It Up Year: 2011 Firsthand take: Seniors decided to let off fireworks during a pep rally. The fireworks went off in the gym and were extremely loud which upset many students, and the fireworks even hit some students and caused injuries. “I think that was pretty alarming because when something like that first happens, you don’t know what’s going on. Anytime there’s smoke in a big group of people, people scattering and then people trying to figure out who did it, there’s just a certain level of nervousness and anxiety that everyone feels while you’re going through that. One firework by itself, if everyone knows it’s coming, in a controlled environment, that’s completely OK. But in that environment, the gym floor, trying to figure out what’s going on, that’s totally different. I think everything nowadays when it comes to school safety with the different events that have happened nationwide, anything I think that has a loud noise or any kind of fire to it, is going to cause chaos.”

—principal Steve Ramsey

24 50

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Chaplibs

(gossip column) Our school's newspaper has been publishing issues since Westlake opened its doors in 1969, but The Featherduster didn’t always look the way it does now. Our publication was called The Roadrunner Express up until the 1973-1974 school year. So how did we get our name? The first few issues released featured a gossip column titled The Featherduster. The staff liked the title so much they decided to rename the newspaper after it. To pay homage to our history, we replicated a gossip column with our own twist: it’s a Madlib!

—Shelby Sperling

This past week at our (

(adjective)

) high school was rather eventful.

Here’s what you may have missed out on, or need to know. Our school’s newest ( She

lby

fan account for (

their (

Spe

rlin

g

) just reached (

) is under investigation after

) account, where they only post (

(adjective)

)

) , was reported. In contrast, the

(noun)

) followers! (

(number)

(extra curricular)

Just two days earlier (

(social media)

pictures of their (

(teacher’s name)

run the page. After (

(teaching position)

) to the girls in fourth period who

(congradulatory statement)

) tryouts, (

) was seen fleeing the scene with tears in their eyes.

(emotional student’s name)

) and (

) were spotted walking into Petco together, holding hands.

(your crush’s’ name) (your arch-enemy’s name)

Sketchy. Buzzword this week: bathroom. (

) just pulled off the (

(name of authority figure)

(

) boys were found (

(number)

) in, you guessed it, the bathroom. Just when we thought things were calm-

(activity ending in “ing”)

ing down on campus, (

) broke up with (

(hottest student’s name)

) for dealing (

(amount of time)

(

(noun)

) is offering (

(name)

) dollars to

(number)

) just got back from the DAEP, after being sent there for

) on campus. But, when one soul is redeemed, another is punished. Just yesterday

) ran through the (

(rebellious student’s name)

). (

(second hottest student’s name) (School club/organization)

whoever can guess what caused the split. ( (

) bust in school history:

(adjective ending in “est”)

) closely followed by (

(location on campus)

) as a group gathered around cheering

(authority figure)

on their favored party. It’s rumored the chase began after (

) was caught hazing freshmen. To top it all

(same rebellious student’s name)

off, there will be a rap battle hosted by (

) and (

) on Friday, in hopes of set-

(club or organization of students #1) (club or organization of students #2)

tling the long term conflict between these two. The feud all began in ( the Chap Recap and smack talked (

52

) when (

) highjacked

(club or organization of students #1)

). The winners will receive a lifetime supply of (

(club or organization of students #2)

first dibs to any (

(year)

(noun)

),

) and branding rights. Whelp, that’s all for now folks, until next time, XOXO gossip girl.

(nouns)

we are candid westlakefeatherduster.com

52_ChapLib2.indd 1

2/18/2019 4:48:13 PM

5

years

1969

1970

1975

Westlake High School is founded.

The Hat Dance tradition begins (see story on page 18).

Powderpuff football tradition starts — guys act as the cheerleaders and Hyline members, whereas the girls are the football players.

70s Can you dig it?

Dream on!

1979 STUDENT POPULATION: 722

To the max!

Far out!

teen trends

of

WESTLAKE HIGH SCHOOL EDITION information collected by Jill Dodson and Ava Valdés art by Isabel Burke AROUND AUSTIN AND THE WORLD 1970: The Beatles break up 1973: The first mobile phone is invented 1975: The Vietnam War ends 1975: Austin City Limits starts broadcasting – Willie Nelson is recorded for the pilot episode TOP SONGS - “Close to You” by the Carpenters - “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” by

Elton John and Kiki Dee - “One of These Nights” by the Eagles

53_Teen Trends.indd 1

TOP MOVIES - Jaws - The Exorcist - Star Wars TOP TV SHOWS - “Happy Days” - “M*A*S*H” - “Three’s Company”

3/15/2019 1:55:38 PM

1989

1981

1986

Westlake’s first computers, four Apple IIs, arrive.

The total cost is $13,500.

The first Project Graduation night is hosted

by Student Council. The event is filled with food, fun games and prizes.

During a football game with LBJ High School, a group of students allegedly graffiti racial slurs onto the visitors’ side of the stadium (see story on westlakefeatherduster.com).

1996

Drew Brees leads Chaps to State Championship with a 55-15 win over Abilene Cooper.

80s 90s Totally wicked!

Talk to the hand.

Take a chill pill.

Radical!

Booyah!

FYI

1999 STUDENT POPULATION: 2203 That’s dope!

Totally tubular!

TOP MOVIES

TOP TV SHOWS - “A Different World” - “Dynasty” - “The Golden Girls” TOP SONGS - “Alone” by Heart - “Eye of the Tiger”

by Survivor - “When Doves Cry”

by Prince

54

- Clueless - Jurassic Park - Titanic 1989 STUDENT POPULATION:

TOP TV SHOWS

1438 AUSTIN AND WORLD NEWS 1980: Austin only has 12

buildings higher than 15

stories tall 1982: Pennybacker Bridge opens 1987: South by Southwest begins 1989: Treaty Oak Poisoning – Paul S. Cullen is sentenced to three years in prison for poisoning the 600-year-old historical tree

we are candid westlakefeatherduster.com

53_Teen Trends.indd 2

TOP MOVIES

art by Isabel Bu rke

- Back to

the Future - E.T. - The Breakfast Club

AUSTIN AND WORLD NEWS 1991: The World Wide Web is released to the public 1999: The Columbine shooting takes place in Littleton, Colorado 1999: Austin-Bergstrom International Airport opens

- “Seinfield” - “The Sopranos” - “The X-Files” TOP SONGS - “Baby Got Back” by Sir Mix-A-Lot - “Macarena”

by Los del Rio - “Vision of Love” by Mariah Carey

3/15/2019 1:55:39 PM

2003

2006

2010

2012

2017

Chaparral Stadium’s $6.6 million renovation is complete. Current seating capacity is 10,267.

“Friday Night Lights” airs. Westlake’s stadium is used for rehearsals, and many WHS students are featured as extras.

During the filming of Bernie on campus, Jack Black makes a surprise appearance during morning announcements.

Every Westlake student receives an iPad.

The multiplier GPA system, implemented in 2011, is changed for the class of 2022.

00s 10s Roll out!

Selfie!

2009 STUDENT POPULATION:

As if!

Throw shade.

Yas, queen!

Chillax.

2442

You go, girl!

LOL!

TOP MOVIES - Star

Wars: The Force Awakens - The Avengers - Toy Story 3 TOP TV SHOWS

TOP MOVIES - Mean

Girls - Mission: Impossible II - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

- “Breaking Bad” - “Game of Thrones” - “Parks & Recreation”

2019 STUDENT POPULATION:

TOP TV SHOWS - “Friends” - “Mad Men” - “The Office” TOP SONGS - “I Kissed A Girl” by Katy Perry - “I Gotta Feeling” by the Black Eyed Peas - “Umbrella” by Rihanna ft. Jay-Z

53_Teen Trends.indd 3

2772

TOP SONGS

AUSTIN AND WORLD NEWS 2001: The 9/11 terrorist attacks happen 2002: The first Austin City Limits festival takes place at Zilker 2007: Hill Country Galleria opens 2008: Barack Obama is

elected into office as the first African-American president

AUSTIN AND WORLD NEWS 2010: The Saints, led by 1997 Westlake graduate Drew Brees, win Super Bowl XLIV 2011: Bastrop fires start, resulting in two dead, 1673 homes destroyed and about $325 million in property damages 2015: Highland Mall closes

- “Despacito” by Luis Fonsi ft.

Daddy Yankee - ”Fancy” Iggy Azalea ft. Charli XCX - “Party Rock Anthem” by LMFAO ft. Lauren Bennett & GoonRock

3/15/2019 1:55:39 PM

Roller disco

art by Hadley Waldren

1

Big hair

Everyone at school is getting a perm, and after four months of begging, your mom finally agrees to let you get one, too. You’ll probably have nightmares about the smell for the rest of your life, but at least your hair looks good. You make sure you take your Farrah Fawcett hairspray to school for the quick fix your hair will need every hour or so. It may feel like you’re carrying a 100-pound helmet on your dainty little neck, but the migraine you feel creeping up on you just isn’t as important as looking like Albert Einstein in that one photo where he sticks his tongue out. With your Shirley Temple stop-sign red permed hair, you can finally fit in with the kids whose parents are also so negligent that they let their children fry their hair off to look like the popular kids. Sure, you’ve got a little chemical burn here and there, but for tight stiff curls, you’ll do anything.

’90s

Nora Romman

Stuff we like

You pull your rainbow suspenders over your freshly shaved shoulders and snap your sweatband on your perspiring forehead. Your calf muscles: tight. Your laces: tight. Your short shorts: TIGHT. The intro to “Car Wash” blares, and you're ready to show off your boogie skates. You enter the rink and break out your choreographed sequence of moves. Disco Finger, Disco Finger, do the hustle, sprinkler, pelvic thrust, jazz hands.

’80s

Grunge

I'll let you in on a secret: it’s this super underground band — you probably haven't even heard of them — called Pearl Jam. Last week I spent a trimester’s allowance on Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged in New York album at Tower Records. I wish someone could understand me as much as Meat Puppets understands me, and don't even get me started on Dave Grohl. His voice and emotion are just so raw. Sometimes I'll sit in my car, pop in my Soundgarden's Best Hits CD that I burned, and just think about how one day I'll pack my bags and move to Seattle where the movement is alive.

’00s

Mikaela Sherry

Purse dogs

The purse is perfect. The style: mini shoulder clutch bag. The brand: Puma. The color: icy-electric-skypastel-baby blue-aquarious-turquoise. The handle: hard metallic plactic. The trim: fluffy faux fur. The infomercial from which you ordered the adorable accessory said “dog not included,” but that didn’t faze you; you were already stocked with your previous pup from the Coach and Michael Kors collaboraTos weency tino ’spizlittle zar issue olls — your miniature yorkie/teacup-chihuahua tive fall collection. There’s only one tincy mix won’t fit. Now is the time to get brainstorming. Time to find the surgeon who will willingly take your dog from a 5” by 9” to a 4” by 2”. It’s crunch time, and you have to do the only thing you can to accomplish the look — sacrifice your pooch’s appendages. Sorry Princess Tattina Luigi Gianni Vuitton, your limbs gotta go. Princess knows you don’t want to do this, but she also understands WWPHD?: — What would Paris Hilton do?

g rlin pe

by S

SoundCloud culture

A fire truck passes by and you wince with anticipation. “Looks like they found my mixtape,” the teen boy, with Sharpie face tattoos that read “soleless” and tin foil covering his teeth, jokes. When SoundCloud was finally bestowed upon on the public in 2007, American culture elevated to a whole new wavelength. Shakespeare was just the beginning, Young Thug, with his profound sonnets which are beyond human conception, has inspired teens everywhere to create their own BARS straight from their bedrooms. Gen Z? More like Lil Gen.

56

Shelby Sperling

She l

’10s

What decade are you?

Mikaela Sherry

’70s

You strut your fine self into Cool Cuts 4 Kids. You evaluate your options: there’s a boat, a choo-choo train and, your personal favorite, a firetruck. You hop into your plastic red throne, and the barber asks you, “Whatchu want?” How do you respond?

A. “Bleach blond tips,” wannabe JT. B. “Give me the skunk look. I’m talking blond streak highlights, and while you’re at it, throw in a couple of butterfly clips.”

C. “I want each of my dreads dipped in a different flavor of Kool-Aid so my hair can look and taste like the rainbow. Colorful hair don’t care.”

D. “Do you sell any ‘at home perm kits’?”

E. “I don’t cut my hair, I let it grow until it naturally falls out. This way, the follicles are given to the earth’s crust as a form of compost.”

2

You’ve been crowned the school’s new DES: Drug Escapade Supervisor. One of your duties is to pick and train a new drug-sniffing animal for the school. What animal do you pick?

A. Black cat. We’ll call him “The Reaper of Bad Luck,” and we’ll give him a little toy scythe, but don’t be fooled by his adorable taste in weaponry — he’s still a ferocious feline.

B. Chihuahua. It will ride around in the sheriff’s purse looking all fabulous and sniffing out authentic Louis Vuitton Vapes.

C. A swarm of bees. Each one will be individually tied to its own leash made of string and wear a tinsey collar with its name on it. This will help #savethebees.

D. Flamingo. We buy a plastic one, dress it in a pair of swimming trunks and a windbreaker, and stick it in the front of the school to keep watch.

E. Koi fish. We replace the W in the commons with a pond, and all the stoners will flock to the pretty fish in their pond. That’s how we’ll catch them — the stoners, not the fish.

(Mostly E’s) You love hanging out, down the street, doing the same old thing you did last week. You’re always ready to party at the Moon Tower. You like bells, you love bottoms, and don’t even get you started on bell bottoms. You’ve saved up all your allowance and couch change in hopes of one day buying your dream car: a Tuscan-Sun yellow 21-window Volkswagen Bus. You hate the government because you know they’re just preparing your generation for war, and they banned cannabis, so you’re planning a protest.

(Mostly D’s) Your locker was spray painted a derogatory term by your rival high school because your school’s varsity sports captain kidnapped the other school’s mascot. Every morning you struggle to choose between your letterman jacket, Ronald Reagan merch or D.A.R.E. tee. The smell of hairspray reminds you of home, and you’re saving up your allowance to get a perm. There’s never enough blue eyeshadow.

(Mostly A’s) You’re so ’90s, Nickelodeon keeps trying to bring you back. You’re groundbreaking, not because of your creative ideas, but because your combat boots weigh 300 pounds each. You’re trying to bring JNCO jeans back because you’re insecure about your ankles.

You identify yourself with one of the Olsen twins, but Lindsay Lohan is your role model at heart. Your eternal mood is most accurately described as “blah,” “eye roll.” You made a cassette tape of your go-to hits like “Photograph” by Nickelback and “Wanna Be” by The Spice Girls.

3

(Mostly B’s) You probably have David Guetta set as the background on your Nokia phone. Your friends are determined by who’s in your MySpace Top 8; you already have Raven-Symoné and Paris Hilton, so you only have room for six IRL friends. You’re considering joining Facebook, but you’re not sure it’s going to take off. You always make sure you’re up to date on the latest 50 Cent vs. Ja Rule feud. Speaking of RnB, you just finish that masterpiece by R.R. Kelly: “Trapped In The Closet.” You spend your Friday nights wearing Apple Bottom jeans, listening to Apple Bottom Jeans and watching the “7 Things I Hate About You” music video on repeat.

4

(Mostly C’s) You have a ringer on your phone set to alert you every Thursday at 10 a.m., when Supreme merch drops. Your favorite pastime is watching Gucci store hauls. You have gigabytes worth of memes on your iPhone XR. Your favorite Kanye album is The Life Of Pablo.

You’ve ended friendships over lost Snapchat streaks, but you’ve made friendships over House Party. You recently made your Instagram a business account so you could check your insights because they are directly related to your self-esteem.

—Hadley Waldren and Shelby Sperling

You start a new niche club at our school. What’s the club and what’s your mission statement?

A . Tamagotchi Live Action Club: “It’s not a club, it’s a way of life.” If you leave, the dogs are not the only thing dying.

B. Smell Updog Club, or SUC for short. “What’s up, dog?”

C. Bape Hoodie Appreciation Club: “All the way up…” get it? Cause the hoodies zip “all the way up.”

D. Under Appreciated Instruments Club: “BYOI, Bring Your Own Instruments.” You specialize in keytar.

E. Hallucinogenic Graphic Design Club: “Tie dye or die.” Everyone’s hands are always stained.

The school’s Moms For Preventing Malnutrition Association is putting on a bake sale to raise money to purchase Kylie Jenner Lip Kits for hungry people, because even if your stomach’s grumbling, it doesn’t mean you can’t have plump lips. What do you bring to the bake sale?

A. Yoplait Trix yogurt B. Lunchables C. A Tupperware bowl of vegan scrambled eggs D. A bowl of spiked fruit punch E. Special brownies

we are candid westlakefeatherduster.com

56_SWL and Decades Quiz.indd All Pages

2/25/2019 2:35:07 PM

Roller disco

art by Hadley Waldren

1

Big hair

Everyone at school is getting a perm, and after four months of begging, your mom finally agrees to let you get one, too. You’ll probably have nightmares about the smell for the rest of your life, but at least your hair looks good. You make sure you take your Farrah Fawcett hairspray to school for the quick fix your hair will need every hour or so. It may feel like you’re carrying a 100-pound helmet on your dainty little neck, but the migraine you feel creeping up on you just isn’t as important as looking like Albert Einstein in that one photo where he sticks his tongue out. With your Shirley Temple stop-sign red permed hair, you can finally fit in with the kids whose parents are also so negligent that they let their children fry their hair off to look like the popular kids. Sure, you’ve got a little chemical burn here and there, but for tight stiff curls, you’ll do anything.

’90s

Nora Romman

Stuff we like

You pull your rainbow suspenders over your freshly shaved shoulders and snap your sweatband on your perspiring forehead. Your calf muscles: tight. Your laces: tight. Your short shorts: TIGHT. The intro to “Car Wash” blares, and you're ready to show off your boogie skates. You enter the rink and break out your choreographed sequence of moves. Disco Finger, Disco Finger, do the hustle, sprinkler, pelvic thrust, jazz hands.

’80s

Grunge

I'll let you in on a secret: it’s this super underground band — you probably haven't even heard of them — called Pearl Jam. Last week I spent a trimester’s allowance on Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged in New York album at Tower Records. I wish someone could understand me as much as Meat Puppets understands me, and don't even get me started on Dave Grohl. His voice and emotion are just so raw. Sometimes I'll sit in my car, pop in my Soundgarden's Best Hits CD that I burned, and just think about how one day I'll pack my bags and move to Seattle where the movement is alive.

’00s

Mikaela Sherry

Purse dogs

The purse is perfect. The style: mini shoulder clutch bag. The brand: Puma. The color: icy-electric-skypastel-baby blue-aquarious-turquoise. The handle: hard metallic plactic. The trim: fluffy faux fur. The infomercial from which you ordered the adorable accessory said “dog not included,” but that didn’t faze you; you were already stocked with your previous pup from the Coach and Michael Kors collaboraTos weency tino ’spizlittle zar issue olls — your miniature yorkie/teacup-chihuahua tive fall collection. There’s only one tincy mix won’t fit. Now is the time to get brainstorming. Time to find the surgeon who will willingly take your dog from a 5” by 9” to a 4” by 2”. It’s crunch time, and you have to do the only thing you can to accomplish the look — sacrifice your pooch’s appendages. Sorry Princess Tattina Luigi Gianni Vuitton, your limbs gotta go. Princess knows you don’t want to do this, but she also understands WWPHD?: — What would Paris Hilton do?

g rlin pe

by S

SoundCloud culture

A fire truck passes by and you wince with anticipation. “Looks like they found my mixtape,” the teen boy, with Sharpie face tattoos that read “soleless” and tin foil covering his teeth, jokes. When SoundCloud was finally bestowed upon on the public in 2007, American culture elevated to a whole new wavelength. Shakespeare was just the beginning, Young Thug, with his profound sonnets which are beyond human conception, has inspired teens everywhere to create their own BARS straight from their bedrooms. Gen Z? More like Lil Gen.

56

Shelby Sperling

She l

’10s

What decade are you?

Mikaela Sherry

’70s

You strut your fine self into Cool Cuts 4 Kids. You evaluate your options: there’s a boat, a choo-choo train and, your personal favorite, a firetruck. You hop into your plastic red throne, and the barber asks you, “Whatchu want?” How do you respond?

A. “Bleach blond tips,” wannabe JT. B. “Give me the skunk look. I’m talking blond streak highlights, and while you’re at it, throw in a couple of butterfly clips.”

C. “I want each of my dreads dipped in a different flavor of Kool-Aid so my hair can look and taste like the rainbow. Colorful hair don’t care.”

D. “Do you sell any ‘at home perm kits’?”

E. “I don’t cut my hair, I let it grow until it naturally falls out. This way, the follicles are given to the earth’s crust as a form of compost.”

2

You’ve been crowned the school’s new DES: Drug Escapade Supervisor. One of your duties is to pick and train a new drug-sniffing animal for the school. What animal do you pick?

A. Black cat. We’ll call him “The Reaper of Bad Luck,” and we’ll give him a little toy scythe, but don’t be fooled by his adorable taste in weaponry — he’s still a ferocious feline.

B. Chihuahua. It will ride around in the sheriff’s purse looking all fabulous and sniffing out authentic Louis Vuitton Vapes.

C. A swarm of bees. Each one will be individually tied to its own leash made of string and wear a tinsey collar with its name on it. This will help #savethebees.

D. Flamingo. We buy a plastic one, dress it in a pair of swimming trunks and a windbreaker, and stick it in the front of the school to keep watch.

E. Koi fish. We replace the W in the commons with a pond, and all the stoners will flock to the pretty fish in their pond. That’s how we’ll catch them — the stoners, not the fish.

(Mostly E’s) You love hanging out, down the street, doing the same old thing you did last week. You’re always ready to party at the Moon Tower. You like bells, you love bottoms, and don’t even get you started on bell bottoms. You’ve saved up all your allowance and couch change in hopes of one day buying your dream car: a Tuscan-Sun yellow 21-window Volkswagen Bus. You hate the government because you know they’re just preparing your generation for war, and they banned cannabis, so you’re planning a protest.

(Mostly D’s) Your locker was spray painted a derogatory term by your rival high school because your school’s varsity sports captain kidnapped the other school’s mascot. Every morning you struggle to choose between your letterman jacket, Ronald Reagan merch or D.A.R.E. tee. The smell of hairspray reminds you of home, and you’re saving up your allowance to get a perm. There’s never enough blue eyeshadow.

(Mostly A’s) You’re so ’90s, Nickelodeon keeps trying to bring you back. You’re groundbreaking, not because of your creative ideas, but because your combat boots weigh 300 pounds each. You’re trying to bring JNCO jeans back because you’re insecure about your ankles.

You identify yourself with one of the Olsen twins, but Lindsay Lohan is your role model at heart. Your eternal mood is most accurately described as “blah,” “eye roll.” You made a cassette tape of your go-to hits like “Photograph” by Nickelback and “Wanna Be” by The Spice Girls.

3

(Mostly B’s) You probably have David Guetta set as the background on your Nokia phone. Your friends are determined by who’s in your MySpace Top 8; you already have Raven-Symoné and Paris Hilton, so you only have room for six IRL friends. You’re considering joining Facebook, but you’re not sure it’s going to take off. You always make sure you’re up to date on the latest 50 Cent vs. Ja Rule feud. Speaking of RnB, you just finish that masterpiece by R.R. Kelly: “Trapped In The Closet.” You spend your Friday nights wearing Apple Bottom jeans, listening to Apple Bottom Jeans and watching the “7 Things I Hate About You” music video on repeat.

4

(Mostly C’s) You have a ringer on your phone set to alert you every Thursday at 10 a.m., when Supreme merch drops. Your favorite pastime is watching Gucci store hauls. You have gigabytes worth of memes on your iPhone XR. Your favorite Kanye album is The Life Of Pablo.

You’ve ended friendships over lost Snapchat streaks, but you’ve made friendships over House Party. You recently made your Instagram a business account so you could check your insights because they are directly related to your self-esteem.

—Hadley Waldren and Shelby Sperling

You start a new niche club at our school. What’s the club and what’s your mission statement?

A . Tamagotchi Live Action Club: “It’s not a club, it’s a way of life.” If you leave, the dogs are not the only thing dying.

B. Smell Updog Club, or SUC for short. “What’s up, dog?”

C. Bape Hoodie Appreciation Club: “All the way up…” get it? Cause the hoodies zip “all the way up.”

D. Under Appreciated Instruments Club: “BYOI, Bring Your Own Instruments.” You specialize in keytar.

E. Hallucinogenic Graphic Design Club: “Tie dye or die.” Everyone’s hands are always stained.

The school’s Moms For Preventing Malnutrition Association is putting on a bake sale to raise money to purchase Kylie Jenner Lip Kits for hungry people, because even if your stomach’s grumbling, it doesn’t mean you can’t have plump lips. What do you bring to the bake sale?

A. Yoplait Trix yogurt B. Lunchables C. A Tupperware bowl of vegan scrambled eggs D. A bowl of spiked fruit punch E. Special brownies

we are candid westlakefeatherduster.com

56_SWL and Decades Quiz.indd All Pages

2/25/2019 2:35:07 PM

Stop doing after school like a kid.

3654 Bee Cave Rd - smoothies - teas - snacks - fast wifi - study rooms

58_ad.indd 1

2/18/2019 3:14:34 PM

We are

Evolving

50 “

“

Never give up and be confident in what you do.

—junior Ethan Warren

Will Rhodes

Pg. 65

59_evolving section opener.indd 1

61. 67 PgP. g oto

sy ph

cour te

El Pais

ano file

photo

Pg. 61

courtesy

photo

2/18/2019 5:05:48 PM

Head football coach Todd Dodge speaks to his team after their Dec. 15 loss at the State semifinal game in Katy. Dodge is married to ‘80 graduate Elizabeth Neptune-Dodge.

Elizabeth Jackson

Keeping it in the family

Todd Dodge continues family’s history in the Westlake community In 1969, when Westlake opened its doors for the first time, coach Ebbie Neptune and his wife, Mary Sue, started what was to be a long and fulfilling lifetime as Chaparrals. The couple had two young daughters, Elizabeth (’80 graduate) and Rebecca (’78), and together the family watched as Westlake took its first steps toward being the highly regarded school it is today. “[Our family had a lot of] pride because when we came to Westlake, we helped start the school,” Elizabeth Neptune-Dodge said. “All the traditions and all the things that y’all have today, we helped create back then.”

During her father’s 34-year career as coach and then athletic director at Westlake, Neptune-Dodge embraced all that the Westlake sports culture offered.

“My whole life has been about football,” Neptune-Dodge said. “I used to ride the bus with my dad to the football games. Back in those times, he would bring his reel-to-reel film and watch all of the video at home, and I’d be sitting in there with him. It’s been Westlake games on Friday and UT games on Saturday for my whole life, and then I married a coach, so that has not stopped.”

Neptune-Dodge and current head coach and athletic director Todd Dodge met while they were students at UT and married in the summer of 1986. A few months later, Dodge started his student teaching at Westlake alongside Elizabeth’s father. When Dodge started as a student teacher, he immediately noticed

60

El Paisano file photo Elizabeth Neptune-Dodge pictured as a senior in the 1980 yearbook. something special about Westlake athletes.

“They were absolutely driven, as driven as our kids are today,” Dodge said. “They were the ones that kind of paved the road for the great teams that would come after them in the early part of the ’90s. You could already see the great tradition of Westlake High School. The hat dance was huge, the pep rallies were awe-

some ... there was a lot of school spirit.”

After completing his student teaching at Westlake, Dodge went on to coach at various schools, including Southlake Carroll from 2000-2007. He then moved to the college level at the University of North Texas during 200710 and then took a job at Marble Falls High School. In 2014, Dodge was offered a position at Westlake, bringing him back to where he started.

“Dr. Nola Wellman, the former superintendent, reached out to me and said the job was open and would I like to come interview, and I said ‘absolutely,’” Dodge said. “Five years ago I was interviewed for it and obviously accepted.

I always had in the back of my mind that before my career was over with, I would love to be the head football coach and athletic director at Westlake. I feel very blessed to be back at Westlake where I started my career.”

After growing up in Westlake and then returning to the community five years ago, Neptune-Dodge said she notices more similarities than differences between the past and current Westlake school and community.

“The kids are just as motivated,” NeptuneDodge said. “They expect to win. There’s a lot of pride in being a Chaparral, and I don’t see that many differences, actually. The kids work just as hard, and they’re all wanting the same thing. They want to be the best. It’s just been a lot of fun to come back, and it’s almost like I hadn’t left.”

—Kristen Pletcher

we are evolving westlakefeatherduster.com

60_dodge.indd 1

2/18/2019 3:13:22 PM

All

night long El Paisano

s

file photo

Former students reminisce on their experience at high school dances

F

inally, it’s the most anticipated night of the year: prom. You drive up to Onion Creek Country Club in your ’78 Cadillac CTS and enter the “Color My World” themed dance (named after a popular song by Chicago). You and your date enter the room and admire the pastel-colored outfits while simultaneously laughing about how you bucked the trend and are wearing all black. Your mom stayed up all night making your dress perfect, and together you bought a white feather boa to go with it. The boa is a hit — the whole night everyone at the dance takes turns wearing it while dancing around. It is nearing the end of the dance, and it is time for the last slow song of the night to play, which is always “Stairway To Heaven” by Led Zeppelin. The rest of the night is spent with your head on your date’s shoulder as you sway in unison.

Early in Westlake’s history, the junior/senior proms were highlights of the year.

“When I was a junior, we went on the paddle boat on Lake Austin to a venue,” ’72 Westlake graduate Nancy Tilson said. “It was pretty boring, and the band was awful. Senior year I didn’t attend prom because I couldn’t bring my then-boyfriend (now husband of 45 years) because he had graduated class of ’71. Students had to attend Westlake High School to attend prom.”

In addition to prom, the Homecoming dances were popular student activities. Energetic pep rallies stirred up excitement in students which culminated in an unforgettable school dance that practically everyone in the school attended.

“During the ’70s, the traditions for the dances were very different,” said ’78 graduate Heather Newton Kight, mother of ’08 grad Hannah, ’14 grad Olivia and ’16 grad Jay Reilly. “You only danced when a boy asked you to dance. No fun group-dancing like now. For Homecoming, there was a dance in the cafeteria, and everyone went. Your date would bring you a real chrysanthemum which was about 12 inches long. Girls did not buy the boys anything. We had a DJ, and we danced all night.”

Back then, the pep rally got the school excited for the dance and the opportunity to show off their groovy dance moves. While most pep rallies were held in the

61_dance.indd 1

gym, the annual Homecoming pep rally was full of fun events for the students to partake in.

“The best part of Homecoming was the pep rally,” ’81 grad and Featherduster editor Deanna Delana said. “We used to sit in class sections. The goal was to win the spirit stick and Homecoming skit. Let me tell you, there were some wild skits. The administration would never allow y’all to do what we used to do, but back then it was the biggest part of Homecoming.”

Beyond the school-sponsored dances, students also threw dances in their garages.

“Dances were huge,” Delana said. “We even n Woody had garage dances sometimes. People would nd Gordo a rg e b just bring their stereos out to the garage, make Terry Holm 1973 prom. the some calls to get the word out and dances would dance at ensue. School dances were DJ only. Prom was bands only. I was in high school in the height of disco music, so dancing was indeed a big deal.”

Pep rallies during the ’70s were held alongside a “burning W” bonfire.

“The Westlake fire department put the kabosh on the bonfire thing,” said former German teacher Scott Gardner, who was at Westlake for 35 years.

For athletes, track meets and games often landed on prom and Homecoming nights; if the student-athletes were lucky, they would show later and enjoy the last couple hours of the night.

Missing these celebratory nights was bittersweet. Athletes simultaneously revelled in the importance of their athletic competitions yet longed for the simple social milestones of their youth and high school years.

“These bigger dances … prom and Homecoming ... were always on the eve of a big cross country meet,” ’84 graduate Kyle Lowe said.

“It was highly unusual for me to attend a Homecoming dance. As for the Friday night dances, we would meet at a ‘circle’ of some newly constructed road that did not yet have lighting or homes. There we would all hang In 1988, Mike Layne and Cla udine DeFeout before the dance.” lice were voted prom king and queen.

—Sophia Lowe

2/18/2019 4:11:05 PM

Sam Ehlinger, ’14-’16

Ryan Nunez, ’95

17.5

16

most sacks in a season

most tackles for loss in a season

David Neil, ’17

David Neil, ’17

“My goal was to play football with everything I had. If along the way I did something like break a record, I just look at it as a part of the game.”

—senior David Neil

Boys Golf

Girls Golf

152 pounds

Matthew Kearney, ’17

Justin Wood, ’01

Justin Wood, ’02

10.21

152 pounds

106 pounds

Christian Campbell, ’01

Peyton Burns, ’09

Jack Skudlarczyk, ’14, ’15, ’17

5A State Champion

boys mile record

team low score, ’17

27 out of 30

17 out of 20

3

4

District Championships won

57.55

girls 400-meter dash

Shay Holle, ’18

12.05

individual State Championships

individual State Championships Ginny Brown, ’05 Daphne Vines, ’06 Sierra Sims ’11, ’12

Tyler Duncan, ’01 Matthew Perrine, ’12, ’14

“I definitely did not expect to share a Westlake record [with ’12 grad Sierra Sims] because I know the amount of talent the girls before me had. I think that is another thing that makes this so special, the fact that I can be compared to the others.

Also, the fact that I can hold a record at a school with such a great athletic reputation.”

Tennis

4

fall team State Championships

7

doubles State Championships

16

singles State Championships

Mary Catherine Aune holds the record for most aces in a season.

2

Christian Campbell holds the record for the boys 100-meter dash.

3

Dakota Luther holds the record for the girls 100-yard butterfly.

4

Drew Petersen and his partner, Calon Alpar, won State in boys doubles in 2007.

Swimming

1553

1:37.93

Sarah Shaw, ’10

Matthew Willenbring, ’16

1

2

boys 200-yard freestyle

49:22

most blocks in a career

boys 100-yard butterfly

Bethany Howden, ’01

Andrew Wang, ’06

2897

1:44.64

Elly Barrett, ’09

Samantha Tucker, ’09

696

52.16

most assists in a career

girls 200-yard freestyle

most digs in a season

girls 100-yard butterfly

Tessa Hunt, ’10

Dakota Luther, ’18

130

most aces in a season Mary Catherie Aune, ’06

—’18 grad Matthew Kearney

1

Volleyball

396

“From my first day on the Westlake cross country team, I knew that breaking the mile record was going to be my long-term track goal.

Every time I would walk by the record board, I would stop and envision those four laps, the toil in conquest of my limits and the test of pain it would require.

Every time I wanted to cut a workout short or skip core at the end, the motivation of beating that record kept me focused and driven.”

—’02 grad Justin Wood on winning the 5A State Championship in 2002

5A State Champion

most kills in a career

Linh Tran, ’00

District Championships won

5A State Champion

5A State Champion

boys 100-meter dash

22 under par 546 7 under par 281

team low score, lowest two-day total by a high school team in UIL Texas golf history, ’18

—junior Sadie Englemann on her Chaparral team record low score of 64/72 par shot at Brackenridge Park in 2018

62

145 pounds

girls 100-meter dash

–Ben Aydelotte and Oliver Aydelotte

The year by each person’s name is the year in which each record was achieved

4:14.69

“With family, teammates and quotes hereI think there coaches, was a lot of pride as we had all worked together collectively to see the goal come to fruition.”

Katie Krause

A look at Westlake’s athletic achievements over the years

most rushing yards in a season

Featherduster file photo

Just for the record

2199

most passing touchdowns in a career

Wrestling

Featherduster file photo

82

Track

Claire Schaffer

Football

3

4

we are evolving westlakefeatherduster.com

62_Athletic Records.indd All Pages

2/26/2019 12:19:03 PM

Sam Ehlinger, ’14-’16

Ryan Nunez, ’95

17.5

16

most sacks in a season

most tackles for loss in a season

David Neil, ’17

David Neil, ’17

“My goal was to play football with everything I had. If along the way I did something like break a record, I just look at it as a part of the game.”

—senior David Neil

Boys Golf

Girls Golf

152 pounds

Matthew Kearney, ’17

Justin Wood, ’01

Justin Wood, ’02

10.21

152 pounds

106 pounds

Christian Campbell, ’01

Peyton Burns, ’09

Jack Skudlarczyk, ’14, ’15, ’17

5A State Champion

boys mile record

team low score, ’17

27 out of 30

17 out of 20

3

4

District Championships won

57.55

girls 400-meter dash

Shay Holle, ’18

12.05

individual State Championships

individual State Championships Ginny Brown, ’05 Daphne Vines, ’06 Sierra Sims ’11, ’12

Tyler Duncan, ’01 Matthew Perrine, ’12, ’14

“I definitely did not expect to share a Westlake record [with ’12 grad Sierra Sims] because I know the amount of talent the girls before me had. I think that is another thing that makes this so special, the fact that I can be compared to the others.

Also, the fact that I can hold a record at a school with such a great athletic reputation.”

Tennis

4

fall team State Championships

7

doubles State Championships

16

singles State Championships

Mary Catherine Aune holds the record for most aces in a season.

2

Christian Campbell holds the record for the boys 100-meter dash.

3

Dakota Luther holds the record for the girls 100-yard butterfly.

4

Drew Petersen and his partner, Calon Alpar, won State in boys doubles in 2007.

Swimming

1553

1:37.93

Sarah Shaw, ’10

Matthew Willenbring, ’16

1

2

boys 200-yard freestyle

49:22

most blocks in a career

boys 100-yard butterfly

Bethany Howden, ’01

Andrew Wang, ’06

2897

1:44.64

Elly Barrett, ’09

Samantha Tucker, ’09

696

52.16

most assists in a career

girls 200-yard freestyle

most digs in a season

girls 100-yard butterfly

Tessa Hunt, ’10

Dakota Luther, ’18

130

most aces in a season Mary Catherie Aune, ’06

—’18 grad Matthew Kearney

1

Volleyball

396

“From my first day on the Westlake cross country team, I knew that breaking the mile record was going to be my long-term track goal.

Every time I would walk by the record board, I would stop and envision those four laps, the toil in conquest of my limits and the test of pain it would require.

Every time I wanted to cut a workout short or skip core at the end, the motivation of beating that record kept me focused and driven.”

—’02 grad Justin Wood on winning the 5A State Championship in 2002

5A State Champion

most kills in a career

Linh Tran, ’00

District Championships won

5A State Champion

5A State Champion

boys 100-meter dash

22 under par 546 7 under par 281

team low score, lowest two-day total by a high school team in UIL Texas golf history, ’18

—junior Sadie Englemann on her Chaparral team record low score of 64/72 par shot at Brackenridge Park in 2018

62

145 pounds

girls 100-meter dash

–Ben Aydelotte and Oliver Aydelotte

The year by each person’s name is the year in which each record was achieved

4:14.69

“With family, teammates and quotes hereI think there coaches, was a lot of pride as we had all worked together collectively to see the goal come to fruition.”

Katie Krause

A look at Westlake’s athletic achievements over the years

most rushing yards in a season

Featherduster file photo

Just for the record

2199

most passing touchdowns in a career

Wrestling

Featherduster file photo

82

Track

Claire Schaffer

Football

3

4

we are evolving westlakefeatherduster.com

62_Athletic Records.indd All Pages

2/26/2019 12:19:03 PM

Wing man

Former German teacher takes flight as first mascot in 1980 Scott “Herr” Gardner served as the German teacher at Westlake from 1979 to 2016. Nowadays, he can often be found substituting for various classes, but he made an additional significant contribution in his early years as a teacher. Gardner was the first Westlake mascot with a real bird costume.

“The Chaps didn’t have a home field the first year (1969), but had one the second year,” Gardner said. “There was a guy named Doug Dabbs and he was like 10 years old. He was the son of the first head coach (Kenneth Dabbs), and he was actually the first mascot. No one was the mascot after him until my time came.”

Gardner only served one year as the mascot in 1980.

“My second year at Westlake, I was approached by a parent of one of the students,” Gardner said. “She was president of the PTO and asked me if I would be the mascot, and I said ‘Yes.’ A mother in the community made this costume, and it’s kind of tough to explain what it looked like.

There was a little carrot-looking thing that was the nose, but I had to add to this costume.”

The original costume didn’t look anything like the ones Westlake has now. It didn’t even feature the school colors.

“Most of it was brown except the tail which hung down and was black and white,” Gardner said. “Then I added yellow leotards and took my Converse high tops and painted them brown, and it was the most ridiculous looking thing. Every time at the football games when Westlake scored, I would sprint down the track in this costume. One time my contacts were fogging up, and I ran straight over a cheerleader because I couldn’t see. I felt really bad. Overall though, high school students loved my costume.”

While Gardner received enthusiastic support from the high school students, it was the middle school students who gave him trouble at the home football games.

“Every time I was with them, they would chase me and harass me, calling me turkey,” Gardner said. “One year was enough for me.”

Gardner said his experience as a mascot was somewhat embarrassing at times. Once, in 1984, he was asked to make a special appearance as the mascot at a pep rally to debut the new professionally-made costume.

“I was wearing tights in this costume to make it look better,” Gardner said. “When the time came for my entrance at the pep rally, they introduced me and I came sprinting and sliding on the gym floor like soccer players do. When I got up, though, I looked down and I scraped my knee. Later on in the day it looked like I took a gunshot blast to my kneecap. That all happened in 1984 though, and that was the last time I was the mascot.”

—Bobby Duncum

64

we are evolving westlakefeatherduster.com

64_ Herr Gardner.indd 1

Elizabeth Jackson Former German teacher Scott Gardner holds a newer version of the mascot head. “What I was wearing was amateur and handmade back in the ‘80s,” Gardner said.

Acting as the mascot, former German teacher Scott Gardner hypes up the crowd during a schoolwide pep rally in 1980.

“The PTO president, whose son was in German, asked if I would be the Chap, probably because I had a rep for being fun and crazy,” Gardner said.

courtesy photo

2/18/2019 3:11:53 PM

W

hen someone thinks of cheerleading, the first assumption that comes to mind would usually be that it’s a “girly” sport cheering on a “manly” sport. But, as it turns out, the world of cheer can be pretty diverse. This was the case for ’88 Westlake graduate Russ Phillips, who cheered for the school in 1987.

“The year before [I started cheering], there were two guys that cheered,” Phillips said. “One of them I knew pretty well, and the other was a year ahead of us. They seemed like they were having a fair amount of fun, and I wasn’t involved in any sports at that point. In junior year tryouts for the spring, eight guys tried out. Three of us made it.”

Every sport has its challenges, and Phillips can remember a particular memory from his cheering days.

“I remember I used to do a stunt called the basket toss with a girl named Tracy,” Phillips said. “Two guys would interlock their arms, and she would step up on our hands, and on the count of three, we would throw her up in the air. I remember the first time we threw Tracy, I was scared because I thought we threw her way too high, and she would hit the roof of the gym. I remember that sensation. Of course, she didn’t come close to that high, hit the apex of the throw, piked and came down, and it was no big deal, and I thought ‘Man, this is pretty fun.’”

Cheerleading requires a lot of trust. One little slip-up could result in serious injuries.

“There was a camaraderie of sorts,” Phillips said. “I thought it was pretty cool to have that level of trust.

I was pretty shy around girls, and it was a good confidence builder. Nobody questioned motives, or looked sideways at you.”

65_malecheerleaders.indd 1

on

Male cheerleaders break stereotypes, redefine sport

Some people unfamiliar with the concept of male cheerleaders might give them a hard time. This wasn’t the case for Phillips.

“There might have been someone joking, but I never felt harassed or ridiculed or anything like that,” Phillips said. “[Being a cheerleader] never struck me as weird. I was pretty proud I could lift a girl above my head. It was counter-cultural, but it wasn’t weird.”

Three decades passed with no male cheerleaders. Then this fall, the legacy continued with the only male cheerleader currently on the team, junior Ethan Warren.

“I like to hang out with my team, and we all have cheer in common, so I guess that’s what unites us,” Ethan said. “I had a lot of friends on the cheer team, and I knew how to tumble for a long time. Finding a sport that let me tumble with such a great team is what made me join.”

Ethan soon found out that sometimes challenges don’t always come from the sport directly.

“I haven’t faced any major challenges, but little things,” Ethan said.

“They didn’t have a locker room for me when I first joined the team, so now I just change in the soccer locker room, but other than that, it’s been a smooth transition.”

Like Phillips, Ethan said he finds it easy to shift between different friend groups.

“I don’t try to stay in one clique,” Ethan said. “I’d really like to get to know a lot of people, because when I graduate, I don’t want to look out and think ‘Oh, I don’t know these people.’”

Ethan wants to pave a new path and has a message for potential future male cheerleaders.

“Never give up and be confident in what you do,” Ethan said.

—Nick Pigott

Russ Phillips (center back) poses with his cheerleading squad in 1987.

El Paisano file photo

Will Rhodes

n

ldre y Wa Hadle

Lead

Junior Ethan Warren cheers at the Oct. 12 pep rally in the competition gym.

2/18/2019 3:11:10 PM

1

2 3

1

Princess Winnifred and Prince Dauntless, played by senior Emma Booth and junior Sidharth Srinivasan, perform together.

Senior Lauren Orrell (Lady Larkin) and junior Andrew Baker (Sir Harry) sing one of their duets. The musical ran Feb. 7-9 in the Westlake Performing Arts Center.

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Choir produces annual musical, “Once Upon a Mattress”

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lte

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The Mistrel, played by senior Drew Young, and the Jester, played by senior Julius Tabery, earned principle roles in this year’s musical “Once Upon a Mattress.”

the

An

3

The Nightingale of Samarkand, played by senior Neha Kondaveeti, pretends to help the princess fall asleep.

The lights begin to fade, chatter turns into whispers and spotlights focus in on the cast of “Once Upon a Mattress.” It’s opening night, and the cast, crew and audience alike are eagerly awaiting the start of the show.

One of the cast members was senior Emma Booth, who played the role of Princess Winnifred. Her mom, ’92 graduate Kimberley Sommerlatte, performed as the lead in “Guys and Dolls” and “Hello Dolly” while she attended Westlake.

“Music and theatre run deep within all sides of my family,” Emma said. “I’m so blessed to have been able to share this experience with my mom. It certainly has brought us even closer. I guess you could say the apple didn’t fall far from the tree.”

“Once Upon a Mattress” was Emma’s first major introduction into acting, although not her first time performing.

“I make funny and sort of weird home videos and post them on my social media,” Emma said. “I do a lot of skits — it’s all improv. One of the hardest things for me was actually sticking to the script. I embellished a lot on stage, and I actually did stuff I never did in rehearsal right on the spot during all four performances.

2007 graduates Cory Dove (Scarecrow), Paul Bernucci (Tin Man), Matt Aicklen (Lion) and ’08 grad Chrissy Ensley (Dorothy) perform in the 2007 choir production of “The Wizard of Oz.” former El Paisano photographer Paul Schleicher

The 1998 Princess Winnifred, played by then-senior Megan Highland, performs “Shy.” At the time, she served as the choir president.

In the 2016 muscial, “Cinderella,” ’16 grad Taylor Thomas (Cinderella) transforms her dress from rags to a sparkling golden gown with the help of pyrotechnics and ’16 grad Nicole Jefferson. former FD photographer Lucy Wimmer are many tradiEvery single show was different every night.”

Throughout the month of January, the cast tions for those parmembers bonded as they rehearsed daily after ticipating. One of these is placing a school.

“I just think that it was such an amazing rubber chicken as thing to show up to rehearsals and interact an “Easter egg” in with people I had and hadn’t known before the show.

“That tradition and really get to know them and have fun with them,” said junior Sidharth Srinivasan, who has been around since both of my played Prince Dauntless.

During the performances, however, there parents were in the are often some minor mishaps, calling for Westlake choir,” Emma said. “The directors find some sort of way to sneak it in there some creative thinking.

“When it comes to showtime, small things every year.”

This year, the rubber chicken shows up always go wrong, and the trick is to play them off,” Sidharth said. “For example, something as a consolation prize. “[In the play], my mom (played by sewill fall off or a prop will fall on the ground, and you just have to work it into what you’re nior Emerson Stack) doesn’t want me to get married, and she invites princesses to the doing.”

Some of these mishaps can create funny palace, gives them a really hard test and sends them out the back door,” Sidharth and unexpected moments.

“During Act II of the final show, [senior] said. “The consolation prize for every prinJulius [Tabery] accidentally ripped his mic off cess is this dead chicken.”

Another well-honored tradition has during his spotlight solo song,” Emma said.

“He turned to the audience and said, ‘My mic been “the circle,” when the whole cast gathfell off!’ and then continued to belt out his song ers into a circle to give shoutouts, perform flawlessly and phenomenally. He got the loud- skits and give moving speeches to one another. est applause of all time.”

“The last circle is an emotional rollerBeyond the on-stage performances, there was a lot of behind-the-scenes work that went coaster for everyone,” Emma said. “The into making the show happen. The TEC crew circle is the time for us to bond and energize built the stage in about a month, and separate ourselves before every performance we do.”

After all the rehearsals and time spent teams within the organization managed lights together, the performances were more than and mics and mixed sound.

“TEC is a huge staff, and they do so much,” individual efforts, they were group efforts.

“I loved watching everyone else sucSidharth said. “This year, being more involved, I really got to witness it. They were definitely ceed,” Emma said. “I enjoyed the success, the people that enabled us to put this musical failures and tremendous growth along the on.Without them, we’d just have a bunch of way. However, the best part was watching all my friends kill it on that stage.” singers and no show.”

—Turi Sioson With the musical occurring annually, there

former FD photographer Jessica Graves In this year’s musical, “Once Upon a Mattress,” Princess Winnifred, played by senior Emma Booth, has diffuculty falling asleep because of uncomfortable mattresses.

Anne Saltel

2015 graduate Ryan Newberg (Lord Farquaad) sits on top of his castle in that year’s production of “Shrek.” former FD photographer Lucy Wimmer

2/25/2019 3:11:20 PM

1

2 3

1

Princess Winnifred and Prince Dauntless, played by senior Emma Booth and junior Sidharth Srinivasan, perform together.

Senior Lauren Orrell (Lady Larkin) and junior Andrew Baker (Sir Harry) sing one of their duets. The musical ran Feb. 7-9 in the Westlake Performing Arts Center.

4 2

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Sa

Choir produces annual musical, “Once Upon a Mattress”

ne

An l

lte

Sa

ne

An l

lte

Sa ne

An l

lte

Sa

we are evolving westlakefeatherduster.com

66_choir real.indd All Pages

Face

music

4

66

The Mistrel, played by senior Drew Young, and the Jester, played by senior Julius Tabery, earned principle roles in this year’s musical “Once Upon a Mattress.”

the

An

3

The Nightingale of Samarkand, played by senior Neha Kondaveeti, pretends to help the princess fall asleep.

The lights begin to fade, chatter turns into whispers and spotlights focus in on the cast of “Once Upon a Mattress.” It’s opening night, and the cast, crew and audience alike are eagerly awaiting the start of the show.

One of the cast members was senior Emma Booth, who played the role of Princess Winnifred. Her mom, ’92 graduate Kimberley Sommerlatte, performed as the lead in “Guys and Dolls” and “Hello Dolly” while she attended Westlake.

“Music and theatre run deep within all sides of my family,” Emma said. “I’m so blessed to have been able to share this experience with my mom. It certainly has brought us even closer. I guess you could say the apple didn’t fall far from the tree.”

“Once Upon a Mattress” was Emma’s first major introduction into acting, although not her first time performing.

“I make funny and sort of weird home videos and post them on my social media,” Emma said. “I do a lot of skits — it’s all improv. One of the hardest things for me was actually sticking to the script. I embellished a lot on stage, and I actually did stuff I never did in rehearsal right on the spot during all four performances.

2007 graduates Cory Dove (Scarecrow), Paul Bernucci (Tin Man), Matt Aicklen (Lion) and ’08 grad Chrissy Ensley (Dorothy) perform in the 2007 choir production of “The Wizard of Oz.” former El Paisano photographer Paul Schleicher

The 1998 Princess Winnifred, played by then-senior Megan Highland, performs “Shy.” At the time, she served as the choir president.

In the 2016 muscial, “Cinderella,” ’16 grad Taylor Thomas (Cinderella) transforms her dress from rags to a sparkling golden gown with the help of pyrotechnics and ’16 grad Nicole Jefferson. former FD photographer Lucy Wimmer are many tradiEvery single show was different every night.”

Throughout the month of January, the cast tions for those parmembers bonded as they rehearsed daily after ticipating. One of these is placing a school.

“I just think that it was such an amazing rubber chicken as thing to show up to rehearsals and interact an “Easter egg” in with people I had and hadn’t known before the show.

“That tradition and really get to know them and have fun with them,” said junior Sidharth Srinivasan, who has been around since both of my played Prince Dauntless.

During the performances, however, there parents were in the are often some minor mishaps, calling for Westlake choir,” Emma said. “The directors find some sort of way to sneak it in there some creative thinking.

“When it comes to showtime, small things every year.”

This year, the rubber chicken shows up always go wrong, and the trick is to play them off,” Sidharth said. “For example, something as a consolation prize. “[In the play], my mom (played by sewill fall off or a prop will fall on the ground, and you just have to work it into what you’re nior Emerson Stack) doesn’t want me to get married, and she invites princesses to the doing.”

Some of these mishaps can create funny palace, gives them a really hard test and sends them out the back door,” Sidharth and unexpected moments.

“During Act II of the final show, [senior] said. “The consolation prize for every prinJulius [Tabery] accidentally ripped his mic off cess is this dead chicken.”

Another well-honored tradition has during his spotlight solo song,” Emma said.

“He turned to the audience and said, ‘My mic been “the circle,” when the whole cast gathfell off!’ and then continued to belt out his song ers into a circle to give shoutouts, perform flawlessly and phenomenally. He got the loud- skits and give moving speeches to one another. est applause of all time.”

“The last circle is an emotional rollerBeyond the on-stage performances, there was a lot of behind-the-scenes work that went coaster for everyone,” Emma said. “The into making the show happen. The TEC crew circle is the time for us to bond and energize built the stage in about a month, and separate ourselves before every performance we do.”

After all the rehearsals and time spent teams within the organization managed lights together, the performances were more than and mics and mixed sound.

“TEC is a huge staff, and they do so much,” individual efforts, they were group efforts.

“I loved watching everyone else sucSidharth said. “This year, being more involved, I really got to witness it. They were definitely ceed,” Emma said. “I enjoyed the success, the people that enabled us to put this musical failures and tremendous growth along the on.Without them, we’d just have a bunch of way. However, the best part was watching all my friends kill it on that stage.” singers and no show.”

—Turi Sioson With the musical occurring annually, there

former FD photographer Jessica Graves In this year’s musical, “Once Upon a Mattress,” Princess Winnifred, played by senior Emma Booth, has diffuculty falling asleep because of uncomfortable mattresses.

Anne Saltel

2015 graduate Ryan Newberg (Lord Farquaad) sits on top of his castle in that year’s production of “Shrek.” former FD photographer Lucy Wimmer

2/25/2019 3:11:20 PM

“

—’07 graduate Matt Nader Pg. 44

THE FEATHERDUSTER

“

We have a history of success, and it’s each class’s duty to continue it.

FD

50 years of

Westlake

Westlake High School Volume 50 Issue 2 March 5, 2019 4100 Westbank Drive Austin, Texas 78746

01-68_cvoer mayeb copy.indd All Pages

2/19/2019 2:01:09 PM