Spokesman Volume 51 Issue 7
Wheeling High School
900 S. Elmhurst Road
Wheeling, Ill. 60090
April 17, 2015
Harper offers free tuition through “Promise Scholarships” 3.2 GPA. Juniors and seniors must also obtain grades that are a C or higher in order to remain eligible. Persistence requires that students must obtain the minimum amount of required credits As of next year Harper College will be each year and that they graduate on time with offering up to two years of free tuition to their class. Students also have to complete a eligible students through their new scholarship total of 50 hours of community service. program. Meeting this criteria during high school The new Promise Scholarships give gives students one semester at Harper free. financially struggling students the chance to In order to keep attending Harper with free attend Harper for up to two years without tuition, students would have to continue having to worry about tuition. However, meeting similar criteria. This includes having to students must meet certain criteria in order to maintain a constant GPA throughout the year. fully utilize this opportunity. Students must also earn a minimum of fifteen These requirements include attendance, credit hours per semester and must attend rigor, quality, persistence and community each following semester until they complete service. Eligibility for the scholarship begins their degree. Summer sessions are not covered during the second semester of their freshmen by the Promise Scholarships. Students must year. For each grade, a different set of also complete ten hours of community service requirements must be met. through Harper-related programs. When it comes to attendance a student Students like Lesly Gonzalez, freshman, can miss up to a certain number of days each are incredibly pleased that such a program now year. Rigor and quality requires the student be exists. ready for college by the time they graduate, “I think it’s great that Harper is offering which means being able to maintain their GPA. these scholarships. Many people aren’t able to District 214 requires that freshman have to have afford tuition, and I’m glad Harper knows that. at least a 3.0 GPA, sophomore and junior year Harper is giving high schoolers the opportunity requires a 3.25 GPA and senior year requires a to succeed in life,” Gonzalez said.
Max Piasecki Staff Reporter
Attendance
GPA
Community Service
Freshman 5 days
3.00
5 hours
Sophomore 9 days
3.25
10 hours
Junior 8 days
3.25
15 hours
Senior 7 days
3.20
20 hours Graphic by Max Piasecki
Year-long anti-bullying campaign kicks off on Tuesday Along with Tuesday’s presentation, the campaign will include monthly activities to spread awareness. Some events will take place during lunch periods and will involve the entire Beginning next Tuesday with a presentation school, while other events will occur within the by “Rachel’s Challenge,” the principal’s advisory classroom with teachers working to incorporate committee (PAC) will be kicking off a year-long short lessons on bullying into their curriculum. campaign to promote the end of bullying. A number of students are involved in a “I don’t necessarily think bullying is as huge committee to help promote the campaign. of an issue here as it is at other schools. That Diamante Durruthy, sophomore, is one student being said, even if it’s only happening to one who has been helping plan activities for the person, that’s not acceptable,” Angela Sisi, campaign. principal, said. “(PAC) decided to start this and “We’re trying to make sure we’re planning to really own it and bring students in as well to ahead of time. We’re making sure we have events help us.” for the incoming freshmen so they’re involved
Kelly McKewin Co-Editor-in-Chief
right away and they are into the program, but we’re also making sure (the message) stays over summer,” Durruthy said. “We’re doing something that will hopefully have kids interact so they can actually be a part of it instead of just watching a presentation.” Leo Walker, Eleni Lafazanos and Rochelle Laude, sophomores, and Colleen Keefe, senior, have been working on creating a video to promote the campaign and have also met with students from Prospect High School to discuss a Twitter campaign. Walker is most excited to help spread positivity through the campaign. “Your whole attitude in life changes when
you are more positive. I’m really excited to make this impact on people and help their lives so they can become better people,” Walker said. The campaign will run throughout the end of this year and into the 2015-2016 school year. It will end on Monday, April 19, 2016 with another school-wide presentation called “Stand for the Silent.” However, Ms. Sisi hopes the message will continue on even after the campaign ends. “My hope is that it doesn’t stop. My hope is that organically students start promoting it at lunch and teachers continue to do lessons in their class because it is extremely important,” Ms. Sisi said.
Majority of students will receive iPads next school year are using iPads there is less of a need to teach students how to use technology. Teachers can just get on with their lesson plans instead of worrying about how to teach students to use All freshmen, sophomore and junior technology,” Rebecca Kinnee, innovation students will receive an iPad at WHS next technology facilitator, said. year as District 214 continues to expand and Though the entire senior class will not promote a digital curriculum. receive iPads next year, a number of seniors “Our students are growing up in a digital will receive them through elective classes. This world. This is very different than how our means that very few students at WHS will parents grew up. We didn’t have access to these not have iPads, which can pose a challenge to tools. Students are engaged and learning from them as they try to keep up in a school where each other in very different ways. The world is technology plays a major role in the curriculum. now at their fingertips. It’s exciting to know However, Ms. Kinnee says that teachers our students have these types of opportunities will continue to tailor their curriculums to to help them be successful in their high school accommodate the seniors who do not have and future careers,” Keith Bockwoldt, D214 access to technology. director of technology services, said in an email “It will be challenging to be almost one to interview. one because the teachers are changing their Since 2010, D214 has been promoting a curriculum and getting new ideas about being shift to a digital curriculum by starting iPad innovative in their classes. Yet while students pilot classes and encouraging iPad use in aren’t completely one to one, teachers have to classrooms. The first pilots involved only 350 plan for all students regardless of their access to students but have expanded this year to include technology,” Ms. Kinnee said. 9,000 students across the district. Despite not every student at WHS having WHS has been a part of this shift and in an iPad next year, the benefits to switching the last two years, has seen an increase in the over to a digital curriculum are still being use of iPads. During the 2013-2014 school year, utilized. Though an increased use of iPads won’t only freshmen students received iPads, while completely eliminate textbooks or papers and this school year the program was expanded to pencils from WHS, they have still allowed include sophomore students as well. teachers the chance to update their curriculum The decision to provide iPads for only more often. freshmen, sophomores and juniors next year “Digital curriculum can be updated to the came down to a matter of funding and how next version very easily, whereas a new textbook easily the technology could be implemented would need to be purchased increasing the into the classroom. Since next year’s juniors at expense. It also reduces the amount of textbooks WHS will have had iPads for two years already, that students need to carry in their backpacks,” they are familiar with the technology, making Mr. Bockwoldt said. the transition easier for teachers. The district hopes to provide all students “As more teachers and as more students with iPads within the next two years.
Kelly McKewin Co-Editor-in-Chief
Jean Pabon
Kristina Mykhalchuk, senior, watches while Bruno Salgado, freshman, uses his iPad to work on homework during his lunch period.
Wondering why this page is in black and white? Check out our full-color “Humans of Wheeling” spread on pages six and seven to read stories from WHS students and teachers.
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Artist of the Month: Monaxious excels in music and theater Courtesy of Lair
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Little Wildcats share their dreams for the future Erika Pogorzelska
Olsen returns from injury to play in last season of softball Courtesy Of Lair
Read More Online wheelingspokesman.com
Sports: Check out our video guide to watching and understanding the rules of water polo.