2015 16 issue 2

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The

Puma Maria Carrillo High School

First-year college experiences

Sports

Centerspread

Features

Halloween costume contest

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Freshman weightlifting champion Page 6

Prensa www.thepumaprensa.com

6975 Montecito Blvd., Santa Rosa, Calif. 95409

November 5, 2015

Volume XX, Issue II

New tardy policy adopted Brittany Herdman centerspread editor

A student purchases food in the MCHS cafeteria during lunch on Nov. 3.

Kate Koell / The Puma Prensa

The Maria Carrillo High School administration has put into place a more restrictive tardy policy.

The new policy states that if students are tardy to a class without being excused then they get a detention.

If they don’t serve that detention within three days then they get another. Miss it again and then they get what’s called a suspended suspension, where a student would then receive five morning detentions.

If that student does not attend these morning detentions then they could get a suspension that would go on their student record, a record that colleges see when reviewing applications.

It began within the first month of the school year and

Principal Vicki Zands has been visiting advocacies ever since informing students of this change in the tardy policy. As far as Assistant Principal Patrick Eagle knows, the decision to modify the tardy policy was solely left to administration and neither parents nor teachers were consulted.

In the past, students who were late to class were given a detention and a demerit if they didn’t attend that detention within 10 days, then nothing else.

A student could serve it right away or simply let them pile up until the last few weeks of the semester because with such a loose enforcement of the policy, the office found it hard to keep students on track to serve the detentions. According to Eagle, the reason that administration developed this new tardy policy was so See Tardy, page 2

The inside scoop on school lunches Career Center in, fiction out William Schoeffler staff writer

Pears from Petaluma, apples from Graton, and potatoes from Sebastopol can now all be found in Maria Carrillo High School’s school cafeteria. It’s all a part of the big push to get more food from local farms into the diet of Santa Rosa students.

The school district is now “spending $200,000 on milk from Clover farms, and over $100,000 buying local fruits and veggies this year,” said Bryan Nyberg, the district’s school nutrition director.

Farms from around So-

noma county now provide 25 percent of MCHS’ food, which is a big increase from years past when processed and lower-cost national brands dominated the lunch room. Walker, Gabriel and Bloomfield farms are among the added farms that bring local produce to over twenty Santa Rosa City Schools that whip up over 10,000 meals daily for K through 12th grade students.

It’s common knowledge that Sonoma County is known for its produce, but premium products are a major barrier that the food program faces. The school

cafeteria gets only $2.93 per meal for each student on the free lunch program. School districts historically opt for the lower-priced Red Apple brand, but cheap apples get thrown away by almost everyone and the district is required to make each student buying lunch in the cafe to take a fruit.

“It’s better to spend a premium on Walker apples if the kids like them better,” said Nyberg.

Santa Rosa High School students are getting involved in the effort of providing schools local See Local produce, page 2

dent before they proceed in any sexual relationship.

“No means no” isn’t what affirmative consent is trying to enforce. In fact, “no means no” is not only vague, but it is refusing to acknowledge whether or not the sexual act is wanted between the two parties.

“It’s not about the absence of a no, but the presence of a yes,” said Carlos De La Torre, a Maria Carrillo High School senior. The purpose of affirmative consent isn’t to teach anyone how or when to say no. Instead, it focuses on communication and developing an understanding for what both parties are willing to participate in when engaging in a sexual relationship.

Sara Flynn, life skills teacher at MCHS, and Bethany Magnuson, sports medicine teacher at MCHS, declined to comment

on the topic of affirmative consent in their classes.

Bryan Price, former MCHS health teacher commented that “[affirmative consent] is an important topic in health class and a lot of good is created from it. Students can have questions and concerns clarified and answered. They can express themselves in a safe learning environment and become more educated on various matters.”

On Aug. 8, 2014 the state of California approved the “Yes means Yes” Law, which clearly defines affirmative consent and the heart of what it means. Added to section 6738 of the Education Code, relating to student safety, the law states that affirmative consent is the “affirmative, conscious, and voluntary agreement to engage in sexual activity.”

See Yes, page 2

Senate passes ‘yes means yes’ bill

Erin Rael centerspread editor

Yes. This one word, simple as it is, is the foundation behind affirmative consent and the beginning of any sexual relationship.

The concept of the affirmative consent standard is “the verbalized permission or acceptance of a course of action prior to taking that action —right now being used most commonly in the context of sexual acts,” said Jennifer Lee, a physician at Sutter Health Care.

As of this past year the Senate Bill 967 was signed by Governor Jerry Brown to require universities and colleges to establish ‘affirmative consent’ as the basis for clarifying any sexual assault cases. Some universities even requiring an explicit consent from its stu-

Kate Koell / The Puma Prensa

The Career Center, located in the MCHS library, opened on Oct. 27, taking the place of the fiction section.

Hannah Levy staff writer Holly Urquhart staff writer A ribbon ceremony took place in Maria Carrillo High School’s library on Oct. 27 for its newest addition, the Career Center. Although it’s a great opportunity for the students, it is causing much stress in the library.

The decision to move the fiction section was decided

by MCHS’s previous principal, Rand Van Dyke.

Due to the lack of available space. Melanie Miller, MCHS librarian, said that the career center has “impacted the fiction collection” and they’ve been working tediously to put most of the 20,000 books into place.

Now that the Career Center has moved in, the fiction section is currently scattered across random shelves, carts and patches on the floor.

“The school’s book collection is by far the most sophisticated in the district. It’s a shame that there won’t be room for growth,” said Miller.

The staff in the library also pointed out the lack of support they are feeling. Tia Kerwin, the library technician, comes in the library to help 12 hours a week, yet every other school in the Santa Rosa City Schools District has a library technician come in and help 18 hours a week.

A very clear point the librarians made was that the displacement of the fiction section destroys the students joy of browsing for a book during break and lunch.

Some teachers believe the same thing.

“I am 100 percent supportive of the career center, but I don’t like what it’s done to our fiction section. With the section being moved, others may think that Carrillo doesn’t think reading See Career, page 2

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November 5, 2015 The Puma Prensa

Yes: change in consent laws

William Schoeffler / The Puma Prensa

Workers calculate total price of the food that’s been bought for student lunches in the Nutrition Service Building near Santa Rosa High School.

Local: schools incoporate more local produce Continued from page 1 produce. The school’s agriculture class manages a garden that produces tomatoes and cucumbers. That farm produce which is grown and managed by students is then sold to the district’s child nutrition services, who then send it out to schools such as MCHS. At MCHS, students can find Santa Rosa High School’s tomatoes and cucumbers at the school’s salad bar and in some sandwiches.

The school lunch program was started in 1946 because boys getting out of school were too skinny for basic military service.

The U.S. Army wanted a fully nurtured and well-fed population to chose from for military service. Today the

lunch program is facing the exact opposite problem; our youth are obese. To counteract the modern day trend of the obesity epidemic the federal government passed legislation called the Healthy Hungerfree Kids Act, which greatly expanded requirements and called for larger portions of fruits and vegetables in every school meal.

The law has tackled this issue by doing things such as banning soda machines and candy from being sold during school hours. The law also created a mountain of rules that the school has to follow, rules that opponents say do not make any sense.

Since the Healthy Hungerfree Kids Act was passed in 2010, the district has seen a 19 percent decrease in participation in the lunch program. For

many students pizza is the only reason they come back to the lunch room. “I wouldn’t even eat at the cafeteria if it weren’t for the pizza,” said MCHS junior Frankie Garnica.

Another MCHS student had a more harsh tone, Henok Tewolde said, “the pizza is the only food I’d even consider eating from the cafeteria, everything else is questionable.”

According to the district pizza strikes an appropriate balance.

“Let’s be honest the pizza that the district provides is low calorie, low fat and more nutritious than most lunches students bring from home,” said Nyberg.

The cafeteria at MCHS uses Gilardi pizza products which aren’t from Santa Rosa but, meet all the standards for nutrition requirements.

MCHS “wanted to have a more authentic behavior policy that allows school administration to teach the right behavior for school.”

Mirasty-Oropeza, student advisor, said that a major reason why administration got rid of the demerit system was that the demerits “didn’t have the same weight. A fight at school would give you the same number of demerits as if

a student got a tardy.”

MCHS was the last school in the district still using the demerit system and no other new punitive system will be put into place any time in the near future. Rather than everyone receiving a standardized punishment for different violations of school rules, students will now be punished based on each individual violation.

Tardy: students must serve detention

Continued from page 1 that MCHS students could be “more accountable for being tardy.” Assistant Principal Shauna Ferdinandson has said that since this policy has been put into place more students have been attending their mandated detentions.

In addition to a modified tardy policy, administration has also gotten rid of the demerit system. Eagle said that

Continued from page 1 The law goes on to state that “lack of protest or resistance does not mean consent, nor does silence mean consent.

Affirmative consent must be ongoing throughout a sexual activity and can be revoked at any time.” “[Affirmative consent] is a person who is of sound mind explicitly agreeing to the acts that they will perform or that will be performed upon them.

A verbal contract,” said MCHS senior, Alexia Ainsworth,, when asked to define affirmative consent.

Affirmative consent is a way to ensure that both parties are comfortable and completely willing. “To give consent a person needs to be at 100 percent—not drunk, high, tired, hungry, sick, pressured, or otherwise distracted,” said Lee. In any situation involving a sexual relationship it’s important to take a moment and think about what you’re doing and if you really want what’s happening.

If you are unable to give consent you are unable to voice your opinion. Nothing should ever be assumed.

“At any point should someone say no, it should be stopped. If one person changes their mind or is impaired in any way, be it under the influence of drugs or alcohol, it’s considered sexual assault,” said Charlie Gittins, an MCHS senior.

Affirmative consent is more than a yes or a no. Those two words may be the foundation, but the structure is the communication that forms between them. “’Closed loop communication’ is what it’s called in the workplace; it’s good manners,

it protects both people from getting into uncomfortable situations, and in the long run it teaches people that they have choices in all areas of life, and that those choices have consequences,” said Lee. Yes, teenagers are sometimes said to be “swept up” in the moment. But sometime in the near future being in a situation where one must make the decision on whether or not to say yes or no may become inevitable. It’s important to make sure that everyone is secure, both are consensual and they understand the responsibility that each of them upholds.

“In the area of choosing a partner to have a relationship with. It shouldn’t be the hottest person, it should be the person that you can laugh with, yell at, and fart in front of; the person that you could say anything to. And when that comfort comes the next step will come more naturally also,” said Lee. “I think the unease around sex comes from reaching physical intimacy before emotional intimacy. We should be learning how best to communicate with them before getting physical.”

Affirmative consent is a very technical term for something very personal and intimate. There is no handbook to how affirmative consent is to be handled, or if it even truly does helps make people feel comfortable.

What it does do is open up a conversation about their expectations and boundaries.

Affirmative consent is about “not waiting for someone to get so uncomfortable that they say no or refuse, but proactively confirming that the two people are on the same page,” said Lee.

Career: fiction section scatters

Library could close during break, lunch

Kate Koell / The Puma Prensa

Students help decorate the MCHS library for Dia de los Muertos.

Hannah Levy staff writer

On rainy days, the Maria Carrillo High School library is shelter from the storm. On days when students need to print work at the last minute, the library is there. During break and lunch when students need a quiet place to work, the library is open.

However, this may come to an end because it’s possible the library will close during break and lunch.

That’s because some students are not behaving as li-

brary etiquette and common sense require, according to Melanie Miller, MCHS librarian.

But for many students at MCHS, the school library is a place to relax, finish homework or read a book. Paola Becerra, a MCHS sophomore, said she likes the atmosphere of the library.

“It’s really effective when I need to do my homework and the computers are always available to me when I need it.

Also, it has a really chill vibe which makes it comfortable for me and my friends to hang

out in,” said Becerra.

However, with the limited space in the library, “it has become harder to maintain the order, safety and keep the congestion down,” said Miller said. “People have been complaining that the students are being less responsible, and an idea was brought up to the administration that the library should shut down during break and lunch.”

Although she is opposed to this idea, she cannot deny that the library has been a little hectic.

“I treat students as mature beings. As a result, they are respectful of their space. But it only takes a few to ruin it for everyone else,” said Miller.

The only way to avoid shutting the library down is for the student body to accept its rules and be considerate of others.

For example, students should clean up after themselves and put things back where they found them.

“The library has literally saved my life so many times, and I’m thankful for that. If it were to close down during lunch and break, I wouldn’t have a place to finish my homework,” said Gabby Bernhardt, a MCHS senior.

Kate Koell / The Puma Prensa

The Career Center in the MCHS library showcases several professions, including firefighter with the Santa Rosa Fire Department.

Continued from page 1 is important and I think we should’ve found a different space for the Career Center,” said Ken Emery, a MCHS humanities teacher.

James Hart, MCHS English teacher, agreed with Emery stating that it was a “mistake to move.”

“I saw people enjoying the section and it has now lost its social atmosphere. The students have lost their place.

Fiction is extremely valuable to academic development as well as creating understanding and empathy in students,” said Hart.

They would like to designate a seating area for upperclassmen in order to attract more people and to maintain

the library’s sophistication.

However, that goal seems less likely to become a reality.

“With the limited space, it is getting harder to maintain the order and safety,” said Miller.

Since the Career Center has moved in, the library staff has been working hard to find a place for all the books. Unfortunately, that means having to get rid of some. Books are being donated to other schools, to classrooms, and some are thrown away.

Though the Career Center has caused stress on the library staff, it is still a great new addition to the MCHS campus. It has given the students easy access to information about colleges and helps them decide their future.

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November 5, 2015 The Puma Prensa

Exclusion and isolation: MCHS working towards awareness Sierra Winter staff writer

Heather Reyes staff writer According to Ambassadors for Kids Club, one out of four kids in the United States is bullied on a regular basis. Approximately 77 percent of students are verbally bullied at some point in their lives.

While Maria Carrillo High School attempts to prevent exclusion through means of an anti-bullying rally and a part-time therapist, there’s still room for improvement.

For example, we could be more aware of those in need of a friend or form a mentoring program for transfer students.

Anonymous opinions about the existence of cliques at MCHS included: “I don’t know about exclusion, but there are social groups.” However, other people say that they have been bullied or have friends that have been excluded from groups.

Another person said that while MCHS is generally accepting, there are people who aren’t welcomed. A lot of students were hesitant to answer questions. No one was willing to recount their own experiences with exclusion or loneliness. MCHS counselor Keith Donaldson believed that this was because people don’t want to appear vulnerable in front of their peers. No one wants to be the person that

doesn’t fit in, so students may not have been willing to share their stories.

Donaldson asks “How open are you?” He gave the example that if a new student came up to a group, and they didn’t appear to fit in, would the group be welcoming?

Most MCHS students would say yes, but some people may be less aware of how welcoming they actually are.

Owen Rattanavong, freshman, thinks that some people at MCHS are excluded because others don’t like the way that they dress or look. However, he said that “If you talk to them [the people being excluded], they’re really nice.” He believes that activities such as clubs that are truly open to everyone will decrease exclusion through people meeting new friends.

“People have personal preferences, and if another person doesn’t match that, they don’t like them,” said one student who preferred to remain anonymous. Emilee Roskam, senior, said that this is “not an open-arms school.” Roskam is a Puma Peer, and a few of the freshmen in the advocacy that she works with have asked her what to expect from

MCHS’s social structure. Other people, not in the advocacy, have talked to Roskam about being depressed and stressed.

While Roskam knows that cliques can’t be banned, she thinks that this issue could be improved by forming a club for people who have transferred here that “accepts all

events that teach students respect for others such as the MLK Jr. assembly. Diez said that “Everyone goes through rejection and isolation somewhere in their lives, and it’s even more amplified in high school.”

Diez believes that our school specifically is moving in the right direction toward acceptance, and that we should keep appreciating uniqueness and respecting everyone. However, Diez admits that many students on campus could be experiencing exclusion and judgement, and he just hasn’t Heather Reyes / The Puma Prensa personally witnessed it. He students.”

John Diez, senior, at MCHS has observed that some social has been taking psychology groups appear dominant over classes at the Santa Rosa Junior others, creating “feelings of College in order to prepare for superiority and inferiority.”

Diez’s advice is to “Stay true his intended future career, and has an insightful look into this to who you are, and even if you’re brought down, if you’re issue.

Diez believes that at all high able to stand up and acknowlschools people gravitate into edge and learn from the exgroups with similar inter- perience, you’ll be an even ests, but there can be a prob- stronger person. It’s a step to lem when the environment becoming more mature.”

MCHS counselor Marie is judgemental instead of accepting. Diez has been able to Speaks said that some students feel welcomed and safe in his come to her because they’re interactions with people out- feeling isolated, and “not part side his normal friend group. of a group or the community He attributes this to MCHS’s at MCHS.” She said a majority of the kids being excluded are

new to this school, transferring here at the beginning of the year or partially into the school year. Freshmen can also have some trouble adjusting since the social scene at MCHS is more pronounced than in middle school.

If freshmen are lonely, it becomes more exaggerated in high school. Speaks thinks that the transition for new students would be smoother if there was a monthly meeting for the socialization of transfer students, and possibly a mentoring program.

She believes that a group of conscientious people could identify those in need of a friend and make an effort to start a conversation with them.

Speaks said that the problem in MCHS’s social structure which is leading to exclusion is “insensitivity to those who might not be a part of a circle, and a lack of awareness [of others].”

Speaks emphasizes that the big issue on this campus is awareness, and she encourages everyone to “Look around you, break, lunch and class, and if you see someone alone, reach out and offer them a friendly voice.”

The interviews show that while MCHS is heading in the right direction regarding total acceptance of others, people still need to work on being aware of others and doing what we can to help each other.

swered and gave up her advocacy to devote that time to host more college representatives.

Not a lot of thought is given to the process that Ligotti must go through in order to contact and schedule these visits.

Typically, it takes hours of being directed from one department to another in order to ultimately get in touch with the college’s representative.

Other times, recruiters contact Ligotti through email. She has a group of colleges that usually schedule a visit to MCHS every year.

Ligotti decides which colleges to contact by creating a poll for the students. This poll is put in the advocacy boxes to be distributed and filled out amongst the students.

Out of the polls that are returned, Ligotti goes down the list of student requests and calls each college to find out if they are interested in speaking

at MCHS. UC Berkeley, UC Davis and UC San Diego are some of the the top requests from students.

The colleges that are most difficult to contact are ironically the most popular schools that students say they would like to see: the UC campuses and the Ivy League institutions. The reason why these colleges generally do not accept our invitation to come and talk with the students is because they do not need to recruit. Popular schools arrange countywide visits, but not individual school visits.

Private schools and some outof-state schools are easier to schedule meetings with and are more eager to visit because they need to recruit more prospective students.

The number of students that usually attend the college representative visits depends on which college is present-

the University of Arizona, and even the University of Dublin from Ireland were some of the 10 to 15 schools that talked at the event. Ligotti hopes that the mini college fair will be held again this spring.

Eventually, college counselor Susan Winters will run the college representative visits.

The meetings will take place in the library at the MCHS college and career center, which opened on Oct. 27.

Like Ligotti, Winters will have a rotating survey that will be distributed to advocacies so that students can express which colleges they would like to know more about.

“The college and career center is all about the students.

There is a section dedicated to students’ interests or questions about a certain college or major as an extension to the college representative visits,” said Winters.

College reps give an inside look at schools, scholarships Shaelin Green staff writer

By junior and senior year, college is on many students’ mind. One option is to visit various colleges on the weekends or during the summer.

Another way that is much easier is to have colleges visit you. Every week, Maria Carrillo High School biology teacher Gale Ligotti invites college representatives to visit the campus to talk to students in her classroom, D4, during advocacy.

MCHS has been hosting college representative visits for many years. In fact, these meetings were initially part of a lunch program. It included military recruiters who would talk to students and answer their questions in the library.

In 2014, parents vocalized their desire for more collegefocused visits. Ligotti an-

Skateboards no longer a free ride Jack Rowe staff writer

Recent announcements over the loudspeakers at Maria Carrillo High School strike terror in the hearts of MCHS skateboarders: Skateboards will be confiscated if ridden on campus.

The rule states that skateboards, bikes, in-line skates etc., are not to be ridden on school property at any time.

Skateboards that have been confiscated must be picked up from the office by a parent.

Students can carry or leave their skateboards in the office during school hours.

But this isn’t exactly a new rule.

Principal Vicki Zands confirmed that the rule was preexisting. The rule also is a civil code in every SRCS school.

William Schoeffler / The Puma Prensa

The rule was inaugurated because “the school is liable for injury,” and could be sued according to Zands.

Assistant Principal Shauna Ferdinandson said that six to ten skateboards have already been confiscated. Skateboards were not confiscated at first, but after giving “lots of warnings,” the decision to enforce the rule was made.

This decision prompted the announcements over the loudspeakers during advocacy.

However, the school is more concerned about student’s safety and the fear of being sued, rather than taking away skateboards.

“We usually won’t confiscate the skateboard unless you give us an attitude when we ask you to stop,” said Zands.

“But just keep it in advo or the office.”

ing that day. During a visit, the recruiter answers any personal questions the students may have about the college.

The most typical questions are: How do I get around on campus? What is there to eat?

How is my roommate selected? What sports do you offer?

What is the social life like? One question that students tend to not ask is: What is the cost?

The representative covers all of these concerns and even hints what colleges are searching for in the admissions process.

“What triggers an admissions officer to accept a student into their college is their grades, their letters of recommendation and their talents or passions. Colleges want students that are different,” said Ligotti.

Last year, MCHS had its first mini college fair in room H6. The University of Oregon,

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Mia’s

November 5, 2015 The Puma Prensa

Carrillo Grind serves a quality cup of joe

CARRILLO CORNER Three students qualify for National Merit Out of five National Merit Scholarship Program semifinalists in Sonoma County, three came from the prestigious Maria Carrillo High School senior class. Alexia Ainsworth, Davis Chong and Gabe Schoenbach stand among only 16,000 students nationwide who qualified.

To prepare, Schoenbach, along with his buddy, dressed in running shorts, uniform and shoes. He said he “dressed as if he were running a race. I guess I did pretty well.”

These three students beat the PSAT test and are in the running for part of the $32 million that the National Merit Scholarship program awards to around 7,500 students.

Get hooked on the student WiFi Need to check your grades on Jupiter Grades? Or quickly look up definitions for this week’s vocabulary quiz? With the installation of MCHS’s new student WiFi, all this is made possible. Teachers handed out the username and password for the student WiFi account last week and it is now in full use. Though this seems incredible, the account is somewhat blocked, meaning social media apps and school inappropriate websites are not available for use. So sorry to your loyal Instagram followers, but picture liking and posting using WiFi will have to wait to after school hours.

Username: SRCS Student Password: SRCSconnect!

Puma Picnic not up to par The second annual Puma Picnic let down the small crowd it attracted. With performances by only Jazz Band and Jazz Choir, it lacked the variety and excitement of last year’s picnic. “Horrible,” said senior Spencer Macon, a member of MCHS’s Jazz Band. “No one showed up. I didn’t want to do it.” Spectators were also disappointed Advanced Dance wasn’t included in the performances. President of Advanced Dance, Claire Knight, said it was due to a miscommunication of dates. Maybe the third annual Puma Picnic will attract and satisfy a larger crowd.

Cameron Stimac / The Puma Prensa

Senior David Quam and junior Hailey Zappelli prepare coffee during first period in I-5.

Kylie Hodges staff writer

A ritual of many adults is to begin their day with a steaming cup of fresh coffee, but buying a large latte at a coffee shop chain can get expensive.

If a teacher bought a large latte at Starbucks every day, that adds up to $68 a month. But for teachers and staff at Maria Carrillo High School, getting a

fresh cup of quality coffee just got much cheaper.

The Carrillo Grind is a student-run coffee shop in Jon Robbins’ room, I-5. Robbins, a special education teacher, has an assortment of coffee pots lined along one of the counters of his room, and each morning during first period his students are bustling around making coffee for staff members. The mission state-

ment the students uphold is “to sell quality and affordable coffee to teachers and staff of Maria Carrillo High School.”

Although the students do not make much profit from the business, they refuse to raise prices in order to maintain their mission statement.

Carrillo Grind has been in business since September, and Robbins acquired district approval to have the business last year.

Unfortunately for students, Carrillo Grind is strictly for teachers and staff because of the conflict with the districtrun concessions that would arise if the business was open to students. Another business is not allowed to compete against the concessions stand, so Carrillo Grind is limited to just teachers and staff.

They sell lattes for $1, mochas for $2, and a hot tea is only 50 cents. They also sell iced drinks, an Americano, and a French roast. If a staff member bought a latte from the Carrillo Grind every day, it would only add up to $20 a month.

Don Feleay, a math teacher, bought a cup from the Carrillo

Grind the first day it opened for business. “It’s cool. I got the flyer and called the first morning. It’s good, too,” he said.

The business is a part of Robbins’ special education class, and he is teaching his students the skills necessary to run and operate a business.

Carrillo Grind is completely student run: they make the coffee, manage finances, and perform other tasks necessary to run a business.

A staff member can purchase a quality cup of coffee while adding to the enrichment of students’ education. There are not many opportunities in the public school system for students to learn valuable skills, such as running a business, that will help them succeed after high school.

The students continue to work hard and build their customer base among the staff at MCHS. Their goal is to be able to save up enough money from the growing business to be able to purchase a professional espresso machine. Until then, they will be selling one cup of quality and affordable coffee at a time.

Senior takes up rodeo, roping as hobby Natalie van Winden editor In seventh grade, Cole Martin, senior, decided to do something a little different after his longtime friend convinced him it would be worth it. He decided to enter into a rodeo, where he would compete in steer wrestling, calf roping, and bull riding. Anyone can sign up so he entered into his very first rodeo. He was coached by his friend’s dad and right away, he was a natural.

“Roping took a lot of work to learn, but steer wrestling and bull riding came naturally to me,” he said.

The goal of calf roping is to throw a loop of rope from a lasso around the calf’s neck, dismount from the horse, and tie the legs of the calf together in as little time as possible.

Martin competed last year in both calf roping and steer wrestling.

Photo courtesy of Cole Martin

Cole Martin prepares for a competition in Plymouth, CA.

Steer wrestling, is when a horse-mounted rider chases a steer, drops from the horse to the steer, then wrestles the wild animal to the ground by its horns. Last year Martin won his event in steer wrestling and competed at the state

finals in Bishop, CA. “[The rodeo] was huge, there were tons of events and people all the time,” he said of competing at the state finals.

“It was exciting, really the chance of a lifetime.”

He ended on high note and

El Día de los Muertos Photos by Kate Koell

To honor this tradition, MCHS created a presentation that is on display Oct. 30-Nov. 6.

Sophomore Riley McGee helps decorate the Día de los Muertos display.

decided to make his junior year his last year of being a cowboy. Martin hopes to join the military after high school and decided to take this test off in order to prepare.

“It’s a lot of work and dedication to the sport and this year I just don’t have the time between football and getting ready for the military,” he said. “Hopefully I’ll enter in again someday.”

Of course, being an American cowboy is one of the most dangerous professions in the world. No one comes out of a rodeo without some injuries.

After a competition last year, Martin shattered his wrist and thumb steer wrestling. He has sustained many other injuries over the years including a dislocated elbow.

“You get cuts and bruises every rodeo no matter what,” he said. However, Martin is never afraid of the danger he’s put himself in. “It’s just a thrill ride,” he said.

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November 5, 2015 The Puma Prensa

Shedding light on the medically fragile Jacob Herbstman staff writer If you’ve ever been near the class in L1, you may have heard a scream of some sort and felt inclined to feel sorry for the students, or at least to wonder what was wrong.

However, those screams are often of “happiness from finishing a task or getting a reward, and not from pain like people assume,” said senior Charley Gittins, a student volunteer in the medically fragile class at Maria Carrillo High School.

Working at the edge of the campus, teacher Jordan Johnson and his assistants manage a class of students with a range of ages and severe physical disabilities, from cerebral palsy to various genetic conditions.

Not all students are born with these disabilities, but they all need constant medical attention from the staff who know medical procedures and have the ability to give medication.

During the day, Johnson and the staff engage in sensory activities and tasks such as music and having students take objects from one box and put them into another.

Although this is Johnson’s third year teaching this class at MCHS, he has a long history with helping people with special needs.

“My mom used to work with special needs kids, and I used to come with her to work sometimes. I felt at home in the class,” said Johnson. “They appreciate when you talk to them, even if they can’t talk back.”

Johnson also worked in a medically fragile class at Peta-

luma High School, and a severely handicapped class at Cloverdale High School.

The class may make some people feel uncomfortable when they first enter, but it’s open to all students.

Johnson encourages anyone to visit if they want to learn more about the class and become acquainted with the students.

“We are open if you ever want to stop by, visit, and introduce yourself to the students,” he said.

Integration into MCHS can be difficult because the class is run by the Sonoma County Office of Education, not MCHS. Johnson said, “There are different classes at different high schools in Sonoma County, allowing the classes to be more specialized for the students.”

Although this is beneficial for the class because SCOE has “more resources,” it does take away from the integration of the class into the school.

Along with that, Johnson said, “I am not even considered a staff member at Carrillo, and Mrs. Zands is not my boss.”

The only time Johnson ever works with Principal Vicki Zands is when consulting her on how to grade the student volunteers in the class, who are from MCHS. Students can help in the class as an elective, and it is one of the few ways that the class is integrated into the school.

It is also a very rewarding experience, as summarized by Gittens, who is volunteering in the class for her second year.

“It can be a little nervewracking when starting out, but I’ve bonded with lots of the students and some of them have become some of my best

friends,” she said. “Now, I know what I want to do in my life.” Gittens is also receiving an award from SCOE later this year for her efforts in the class.

However, besides student volunteers, there aren’t many chances for integration with MCHS. Zands acknowledged this, saying, “they should be more integrated,” and that the class allows MCHS students to “have more sensitivity toward the [medically fragile students].”

However, Zands said that going forward, MCHS will “definitely look into new ways to integrate them.”

Students can also stay in the class up until graduation from SCOE, or 22 years of age.

They then can go into various programs to work and learn job skills, and to advance towards independence, which was Johnson’s intention from the start.

“I just want to see them included in the community,” he said.

There isn’t an abundance of opportunities because of their limited abilities due to their medical conditions.

Opportunities are also limited because the life expectancy of many of the students is quite short, and some students pass away before they are able to graduate.

Although the students lead lives filled with challenge and hardship, Johnson still manages to find that special spark present in each one.

“These students have tremendous courage, and if people got to know them better they would realize that.

Everyday, they face difficult challenges, and it is quite honorable.”

Democrazy: Ted Cruz

Conservative rising out from the shadows Cameron Stimac staff writer Having made big waves in Washington these past couple years, Ted Cruz is likely the most conservative Republican candidate for president to be seen this coming election. A Tea Party hardliner, the Texas senator’s policies tend towards the far right, across the spectrum, but have been overshadowed by some of the bigger Republican personalities currently in the running, including the explosive Donald Trump and gentlemanly Ben Carson.

Cruz favors a pro-life stance on women’s reproductive rights, and believes companies should be allowed to deny the provision of birth control to their employees on moral or economic grounds. If elected, he would also institute a ban on abortions after 3 months, regardless of any potential harm, and opposes government funding of organizations that provide abortions such as Planned Parenthood. He also voted against reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act back in 2013.

In terms of immigration, Cruz stays close to conservative norms. He would seek to disallow illegal immigrants any path to citizenship, triple the amount of active Border Patrol agents, and has even suggested walling off sec-

tions of the Mexican border.

He also believes police officers should possess more power in terms of handling suspected illegals, such as giving officers the power to demand proof of one’s citizenship without a warrant.

The Texas senator also longs for a more aggressive foreign policy, particularly in terms of military action. He has advocated for the arming of Ukrainians against the suspected Russian seizures, as well as for the use of heavy sanctions against Putin. Cruz desires an increase in military growth, and believes the U.S should play a larger part in Middle East, against such foes as the Islamic State.

Senator Cruz also advocates for a decrease in the separation of church and state, as shown by his view of abortion. His religion beliefs also dictate his stance against the legalization of gay marriage, and seeks to overturn the Supreme Court decision on same-sex marriage made earlier this year.

Cruz’s opposition to gay marriage extends to members of the military, which Cruz would have be prohibited from performing marriages for same-sex service members.

Such a policy would both sizably easier to enact as President than overturning the Supreme Court’s decision on gay marriage, and would restrict homosexual servicemen and

women from a long honored military tradition.

Cruz’s most heavily emphasized platform, not only for the 2016 election, but since the beginning of President Obama’s second term, has been the defunding of Obamacare, as well as a host of other social programs. The Texas senator has fought furiously for the last several years for a no-compromises repeal of Obamacare, even going as far as to organize a Tea Party shutdown of the government last year in an attempt to reach that goal.

Other social programs receive a similar response from Cruz, including his resistance to raising the minimum wage, extending unemployment benefits, his crusade to abolish the IRS, and a belief in the establishment of a single tax rate system.

As one of the most extreme right presidential players to be seen in this presidential election. Of the more traditional Republican candidates, he is the most conservative member on the ballot: the only obstacle between Cruz and the vote of the Tea Party and other rightist groups is the introduction of more civilians candidates such as Trump and Carson. Cruz’s success this election will depend on the staying power of these candidates, and his own ability to continue standing out in an increasingly far right Republican primary.

Photo courtesy of Hyrum Cook

MCHS Alumnus Hyrum Cook and Political figure Ann Coulter pose for a picture in Washington, D.C. during the summer.

Graduates make strides Daksh Chauhan head staff writer

How would it feel to be in a different country and enjoy its rich culture and history?

Alumnus from Maria Carrillo High School, Surbhi Dhiman, knows. By participating in a program offered by her college, UC Berkeley, Dhiman has expanded her world-view and experienced things otherwise hard to come by.

Dhiman is participating in a program, Global Edge London, that bases it classes in London and follows themes related to the city. In the program, participants take classes during the summer session to get adapted to the rigor and style of the university. Later, they go to London to attend classes and learn various lessons that equip them well for life.

“I chose[the program] because I want to study abroad and see as much of the world as I can. This program gives me an opportunity to expose myself to new cultures and people,” said Dhiman.

The program started in mid-June after the orientation for incoming freshmen at UC Berkeley.

With this program, Dhiman has had the opportunity to not only explore London but other parts of Europe as well. “Over weekends, I took short trips to various countries in Europe like Greece and other places in U.K. as well,” said Dhiman.

For her, taking trips like these and interacting with so many different people makes her acquainted to various cultures and the diversity of the

world.

Hyrum Cook, another MCHS alumnus of 2015, who is attending Brigham Young University at Provo, Utah, also participated in a program that seemed to help him expand his skillset. Cook has had an interest in politics and and worked for the Eagle Forum.

He decided to participate in a program offered by the Eagle Forum called the Eagle Collegians and represented his college.

As a part of the Eagle Forum, Cook flew with the other participants to Washington, D.C. for a weekend to meet with members of congress and political figures such as Ann Coulter and Kevin Jackson. In Cook’s opinion, “it was a very informative trip [that] armed the participants with techniques in debating and a general knowledge of the working on the hill.”

Cook, who claimed to have developed a conservative point of view after having lived in Sonoma County his whole life, liked the trip and believed that it changed his perception of the political processes in the country.

“Though I am an engineer, not a politician, I like to be informed and active in the processes with which our leaders are elected,” said Cook.

Cook, like Dhiman, experienced new environments and learned things that may prove useful later on. They believe that hard work is the key to success everywhere and that MCHS students should never give up and work hard to achieve goals they have for themselves.

6

Sports Eggs & Yolk

by Shahab Yazdanpanah

Nutrition: A crucial part to any diet is protein. Everyone needs it to survive, whether you are on a paleo diet, vegetarian, vegan, etc. The world of packaged foods nowadays emphasizes carbohydrates and sugary snacks. It can be hard to find a bulk of protein through these kinds of foods, so it’s definitely a better choice to keep it fresh and lean when buying and eating protein.

The most effective bulky source of protein comes in the form of protein powder and shakes. I have never found a food with 25 grams of protein and 0 grams of carbohydrates and fats other than a synsethized powder, and this is because no macromolecule is ever isolated in an organic form, it will always be paired with another. Cheese is protein and fat. Milk is fat and protein, but can be carbohydrates and protein if it is the store-bought “nonfat” version.

Beef and lean meats are fat and protein. Chicken, poultry, and turkey are mainly protein and carbohydrates. But powders can be found containing pure protein.

When it comes to protein powders, there are two main types: whey and casein. The only real difference that I’ve found in my experience with both of them, and from online research from Yale graduate Jim Stoppanni, is that casein digests slowly and whey digests more quickly.

It’s better if you drink a casein shake in the morning and at night so that you’ll have your amino acids working all day and all night, and it’s better to drink whey shakes before and after a workout to give your muscles the quick burst of energy and prepare them for growth, recovery, and a good pump.

These forms of synthesized proteins can be bought in powders, protein bars, protein chips, protein cookies, and protein brownies: basically any recipe involving wheat can be replaced with protein powder and you can cook any of your favorite foods, but protein based. If you don’t want to have these chemicals in your body, although they pose no known harm and Arnold Swarzennager is still alive today after using them consistently, you can find good sources of protein in lean and fresh foods, but it won’t be at the same magnitude. These sources include eggs, cheeses, milks, beef, poultry, other meats, nuts such as almonds and cashews, and much more.

I consider diet to be 70 percent of one’s physique, so understanding what you’re eating and what you should be eating to reach your goals is integral to your successes in the fitness world.

Tip of the Section: Try eating different sources of protein, and remember to apply it to your diet and consider your macros. For exam-

ple: if you want to eat a sugary cake that is 30 grams of carbohydrates, but also need 30 grams of protein to meet your numbers for the day, a dense protein shake is your best choice. If you don’t have such cravings and have been eating lean meats with bread and dairy all day, then you can probably find your remaining 30 grams of protein in something like almonds and yogurt.

Fitness: Regimenting your workout plan can be difficult if you don’t have much time, but it’s a good idea to try to exercise at least three times a week to see results and six times a week for maximum efficiency. Always have one rest day because most muscle growth and strength comes from the rest and recovery stage of the workout cycle.

I’ve seen people break up their splits into a single muscle group a day such as Monday is chests, Tuesday is triceps, Wednesday is quadriceps, etc.

This program is very good for isolation and muscle tuning, but can often become too spread out and have too much rest time between each muscle’s prioritization if people aren’t consistent. Also, there aren’t only seven muscle groups in the body and so one cannot fit a full cycle into a week and so the days for different muscle groups will change week by week and this can be hard to keep track of and be inconsistent. I like to split my workouts in opposite muscle groups. An example of muscle groups that work together are biceps and triceps. When you flex your biceps, your triceps stretch. When you flex your triceps, your biceps stretch.

Experiments have gone to show that after stretching, muscles will often be a little bit smaller than before due to elongation, and so I don’t like doing paired muscle groups on the same day. For example, I will not do chest and back together because when I flex my chest, my back stretches. I will often do chest and triceps together or chest and calves, or any combination besides chest and back. I have done workouts where I hit paired muscle groups and haven’t noticed much of a difference besides general fatigue. Your arms will be very fatigued and tired if you work out your biceps and triceps together, and the pump will be greater if you do them separately due to elongation.

Tip of the Section: Try out a paired muscle group workout and a separated muscle group workout and see which one you like better.

Notice the difference in the pump of the worked muscles from the different workouts and see which one you like better. It all comes down to personal preference and the mindset of the individual in this field.

November 5, 2015 The Puma Prensa

Do you even lift, bro? She does.

William Schoeffler staff writer

Standing 5’4 and only 127 pounds, Athena Schrijver wouldn’t strike you as a two-time Youth Olympic weightlifting champion.

Swinging a bar of 187-pounds over her head Schrijver, 15, set a U.S record at the National Youth Championship weightlifting competition in Minneapolis, Minnesota back William Schoeffler / The Puma Prensa in June.

Athena Schrijver lifts after school for the Olympic Weightlifting Club.

At the competition, Schrijver bested more Schrijver teaches her MCHS that much. But she laughs off than 400 other competitors peers proper posture and comments like these because and earned herself a national weight lifting form twice a she “gets drug tested by the record in the clean and jerk, week in the newly formed USADA.” a complex set of movements Olympic weightlifting club.

Even with all of the med with a weighted bar, which Being a female, she wishes als and awards, weightliftstarts on the ground and ends to inspire others girls that ing practice doesn’t take a lot with the bar above the weight- weightlifting is not just a male of time. Schrijver only spends lifter’s head. sport. “Girls are equally ca- about one hour a session, four Her 187-pound clean and pable of weightlifting as boys days a week. jerk also bested competitors at are,” said Schrijver.

But it requires a ton of dedithe competition that were four Trying to spread her passion cation, “especially when there years older than her. for her sport and get more fe- is a competition coming up, I “She has an incredible de- males access to the sport, she’s have to maintain my weight termination when she sets her now leading MCHS’ olympic class. But the problem is, I like mind to a certain weight on a weightlifting club as Presi- food too much and hate only lift, and she gets it done,” said dent. eating broccoli and chicken,” Sara Flynn, Maria Carrillo’s The club boasts over twen- said Schrijver. physical education teacher. ty active members that come Schrijver looks forward Flynn introduced Schrijver out to the school’s gym twice to more opportunities in futo weight lifting as a way to a week and complete a regi- ture competitions, where she improve her strength for gym- mented set of lifts created by hopes to break even more renastics.

Flynn. cords. She also aspires to be on But she got hooked quickOthers working out in the the U.S Olympic weightlifting ly, “after I tried it, I kept at it gym take notice when she lifts team. and then fell in love with it,” more than they do.

“In the next year she might said Schrijver. Quitting gym“I have never seen a girl make it to the Senior weightnastics, Schrijver now does lift that much. I can’t even do lifting league where she will weight lifting as a full-time the weight she does on most be competing with twenty-one sport. She trains four days a of her lifts,” said junior Zeke year olds at the age of sixteen, week, an hour each practice at Viter. Schrijver she has heard she definitely has a big future her team’s gym, Myles Ahead comments like she must be on in weightlifting ahead of her,” of Petaluma. steroids because girls don’t lift said Flynn.

Varsity Sports Wrap-up

Bianca Hillegas copy editor Daksh Chauhan head staff writer Football The MCHS football team is currently 5-4 on the season and 4-2 in the NBL coming off of consecutive wins versus Santa Rosa, Rancho Cotate and Casa Grande and a loss to Windsor.

The playoff-bound Pumas face Ukiah this Friday in their last regular season game and hope to improve to 5-2 in the NBL as they gear up for NCS playoffs the following week.

“I can’t wait for playoffs,” said senior Isiah Kohne.

“I feel like our team is healthy and strong and I think we can go far.”

Photo courtesy of Cindy Lui

Volleyball The Puma volleyball team once again reigns as champion of the NBL after winning their final league game last week.

The Lady Pumas enter playoffs undefeated in all NBL matches.

Photo courtesy of Gabe DeBaca

Gabe DeBaca makes a tackle in a game against Analy High School on Sept. 4 at Analy High School.

They have recently participated in weekend tournaments which have helped to improve their ranking as they prepare for the NCS tournament.

Women’s Soccer The women’s varsity soccer team is 14-1 in NBL play.

The Lady Pumas recently defeated rival Montgomery in a NBL playoff game and are chasing a fifth consecutive North Coast Section title as their first game of the NCS tournament is this Saturday.

“I like playing Montgomery because they’re a strong team and playing them so often heats up the rivalry,” said junior Sami Stefan.

Women’s Golf The women’s varsity golf team won 11 matches and lost

three, one versus Cardinal Newman and two versus Ukiah.

“We work hard and have fun,” said junior Hailie Aanenson. “Next year, we will perform better and defeat all our opponents.”

The Lady Pumas golf team is headed to NCS playoffs.

Women’s Tennis This year, the women’s tennis team won five games and lost nine. Although this season wasn’t what the Lady Pumas were hoping for, they remain optimistic about the 2016 season.

“We tried our best and had fun throughout the season,” said senior Tejoni Johnson.

“We have a strong exhibition team that will do well next year,” concluded Johnson about her senior season.

7

Sports

November 5, 2015 The Puma Prensa

Lacrosse to be a CIF sport?

Jacob Herbstman staff writer

Mary Kelleher / The Puma Prensa

The women’s JV cross country team starts off strong at the second NBL meet at Spring Lake on Oct. 21.

Goals still high for cross country team Mia von Knorring editor

Thirteen years of Maria Carrillo High School cross country dominance looked like it was in jeopardy after the women’s varsity team lost the first NBL cross country meet on Oct. 7. While the men easily won their race, beating Santa Rosa High School 40-50, the women’s team lost to SRHS 39-38.

“If I had beat one girl, we would’ve tied. If one of our top girls had pushed a little harder, we would have won,” said senior captain Allie Ahern.

But MCHS took control on Oct. 21 at the second NBL meet, easily beating SRHS 3048.

“I was a little concerned

because our girls didn’t run well,” said head coach Greg Fogg about the first league meet. “But we swung it around.”

MCHS sophomore Sydnie Rivas took third place followed by Ahern, senior Cecilia Avelar, freshman Aimee Armstrong, and senior Carolina Avelar. Men’s varsity won by one point with a score of 3637.

“It was really amazing that we could get our top five together,” said Carolina Avelar.

Cecilia Avelar felt relief and pride after winning the second meet.

“It was a team effort through and through,” she said. “We knew we had it in us.”

This is the first year of the

new NBL race format. Instead of racing each school in dual or tri-meets, all eight schools in the NBL compete in three meets together. Meets take place at Spring Lake around an approximately three-mile course.

The first two meets are worth 25 percent of their total score and NBL finals are worth 50 percent. This allows runners more rest between meets along with more hours of training.

“I was one of the primary people pushing for it,” said Fogg. He went on to list more benefits such as less time out of class.

NBL finals take place Nov. 6 at Spring Lake and will determine who earns the NBL title.

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The Santa Rosa City Schools district is trying to establish lacrosse in high schools, and is making a proposal to the board of education about it on Nov 18. The district, along with the Santa Rosa Lacrosse Club, is trying to implement it as an official California Interscholastic Federation, CIF, sport. Lacrosse in high schools is “inevitable,” according to Santa Rosa Lacrosse Club president Mike Volatile. “Lacrosse will happen eventually.

The board and the district recognize that. They aren’t fighting it. The challenge is to find a way to make it happen,” he said.

If the board approves the plan after the meeting, there is a miniscule chance that lacrosse will be introduced this coming spring, but a better chance that it will arrive in the spring of 2017 for Maria Carrillo and Montgomery high schools, according to Volatile.

Volatile was also quite optimistic about the prospects of girls lacrosse.

“There are at least a halfdozen girls dying to play at Carrillo. I believe there’s a good chance it will start along with the men’s,” he said. Raylene Leavitt, who has a daughter who plays lacrosse and is

a freshman at MCHS, said, “I absolutely think it can happen at the same time. There are many girls who are interested in playing. If the proposal is approved soon, we can certainly get a team together.”

There are still challenges to overcome, such as funding and a lack of experience among the district and board members in adding new sports. The last sport to be inaugurated to the SRCS district was soccer in 1974, and only one district official, Russ Peterich, remains from that event 41 years ago.

He, along with Elizabeth Evans, Jason Lea, and Steve Eichman, are working with the Santa Rosa Lacrosse Club to create the upcoming presentation for November.

The district’s proposal involves slowly implementing lacrosse to the high schools, starting with MCHS and MHS because of the higher level of interest and experienced players present at these schools.

MCHS and MHS would play against each other and other schools that currently have teams, such as Cardinal Newman, Petaluma, and Casa Grande high schools. The proposal recommends that the sport be added into Santa Rosa, Piner and Elsie Allen high schools as the interest level and potential pool of players at these schools grow.

8

WELCOME TO THE FIRS

Why take Advanced Placement classes?

Aimee Eagle staff writer What rhetorical device is Thoreau using to accomplish his purpose? What is the mass of 28.3 liters of oxygen? These are some questions that students taking Advanced Placement classes at Maria Carrillo High School have been asked.

These students have the information they need to find the answers to them, but one question that most can’t answer while finishing their 34th problem of calculus is: Is it worth taking AP classes?

Graduates and current students at MCHS provide examples to prove that they are.

AP classes at MCHS prove to be a challenge, but that is what most students sign up for. An AP class offers a more in-depth learning experience in a subject, a chance to earn college credits, a higher weighted GPA, and a better chance for admission into a college of choice. On the other hand it also includes more work, and less sleep, but it will help for college right? At least that is what students are hoping.

Audrey Kang, graduate of MCHS last year, is in her first year of college at University of California, Los Angeles. Kang took a total of 10 AP classes while at MCHS and found that the most beneficial part was the GPA bump and receiving credit for units. She said “although it may be hard to figure out when some of the information is applicable, the AP classes’ rigor helped prepare me for college.”

Kang also said that taking AP classes didn’t really set her aside from other applicants because of the more competitive schools she applied to, it was normal for applicant to be taking many AP classes.

For example, almost every student at UCLA took lots of AP classes in high school. In addition all of the credits Kang earned from AP classes at MCHS allowed her to enter UCLA with a large amount of credits already complete. This in turn will allow her to start taking classes for her major earlier than others.

Kang’s advice to students taking AP classes right now is: “Don’t psych yourself out with all of the AP classes, in the long run, the one class you got a B in is not relevant. College classes are a lot different than high school classes, but they are good for college prep.”

Samantha Perry, who graduated MCHS in 2015, is now in her first year of college at Tulane University and took a total of five AP

classes while at MCHS. Like many others, Perry acknowledged the GPA bump, college credit and inevitable large amount of work, but decided to take them for other reasons as well.

“I really liked how in depth the classes got and the challenges they gave me, it definitely set me up for the kind of work I’m doing now,” Perry said. She explained how some of the more challenging aspects of AP courses have in turn allowed her to be more prepared for the workload that college has presented her with. In addition, some of the skills she learned at MCHS such as managing time for heavy reading assignments, homework and studying have all been applied to her academic life in college.

One of the benefits of AP classes that Perry and many others use to their advantage is taking the AP tests in the spring in order to receive college credit. Perry took AP French her senior year, and passed the AP test, which allowd her to be at a higher level in college. Although Perry is not majoring in French, this will allow her finish her foreign language requirement earlier and take more classes of her choice.

However, credits are not the only benefit of the AP classes. By taking AP Biology her junior year Perry said “It [AP Biology] really gave me a good foundation for the major I am interested in now, which is really important and helpful.”

AP Spanish Language teacher, Mary Jo Renzi, has similar hopes for her AP students besides just passing the test for college credits. She said, “I teach an AP class in hopes of pushing my students and challenging them in different ways to help them achieve all they have worked at.”

Most students who take AP classes are also hoping that it will help them get accepted into a four-year college. College and career center counselor Susan Winters said “Most colleges are looking to see that you are willing to push and challenge yourself by taking AP classes.

They would much rather see you have Bs in AP classes than straight As in easier courses. They like to see that you can handle some changes by taking harder, more difficult classes.”

John Diez, senior, takes AP classes for reasons other than getting into a four year college. Like many other seniors, Diez is planning on attending the Santa Rosa Junior College next year. He has taken five AP classes at MCHS and said “I take AP classes because the people you work with in an AP class are working with the same amount of effort and at a higher caliber.” He also will being using the credits to his advantage by being done with his General Education credits much earlier than an average JC student.

Although AP classes at MCHS are challenging, they prove to be worth taking. Perry’s advice for students taking AP classes right now is: “Work hard, know that the skills you are learning now will be useful in college, and that they will have an impact.”

9

ST YEAR OF COLLEGE

Older siblings aid college transition

ROTC pays college tuition Cameron Stimac staff writer This summer, a college student named Ian Schwartz learned how to stop a fellow soldier from bleeding out. The drill was part of Schwartz’s training as a U.S. Army officer training which will pay for four years of college.

Schwartz, an MCHS graduate, is in his second year at Westminster College in Salt Lake City, Utah, as a member of the Reserve Officer’s Training Corps, or ROTC. ROTC is a college-based officer training program that allows members to graduate from college as a commissioned officer in the United States Armed Forces.

Schwartz is just one of 20,000 cadets enrolled in Army ROTC. As members of ROTC, cadets’ college tuition costs for the first four years of college are paid for by the U.S Armed Forces, and are considered non-deployable until they complete their four years.

Schwartz, who entered ROTC on scholarships, stated that prospective students should “apply for the scholarship the same as one would a normal college scholarship, as well as maintain a high GPA” in order to get the scholarship. “I also had to take a physical aptitude test called the APFT, or Army Physical Fitness Test,” he added.

According to Schwartz, ROTC has its fair share of responsibilities.

Schwartz, who is majoring in

Middle Eastern Studies, must also take military classes as a part of the program, as well as a required physical training regimen to prepare him for active duty. To do this, Schwartz must “get up as early as 5:30 in the morning” for drills or classes. “You also have to be ready to give up your summer for combat training,” he added.

Applicants are expected to be prepared for such military training, and according to Schwartz, “don’t have to be an athlete, but must be physically fit enough to pass the APFT.” Schwartz himself swam competitively in high school, and recommends “you should take one or two sports, ideally in a team leading capacity, as well as take any other extracurriculars you can manage to help you stand out”.

These duties are the cost of the opportunities ROTC provides its cadets. Besides the ability to graduate a ranking officer, ROTC also give cadets the chance to travel abroad for training and instruction, both inside the U.S and with foreign militaries.

ROTC provides its members college tuition for fours years: a benefit that is greatly appreciated with universities’ ever rising price tag. But it also requires responsibility, leadership acumen and strength of character in each of its cadets. As summed up by Schwartz, “an ROTC cadet is a leader and a role model, and candidates must reflect those qualities”.

Mia von Knorring editor The transition into college is tough. New schedules, dorms, and meal plans make life all the more challenging. But does having an older sibling make this change easier?

According to Maria Carrillo High School graduate, Victoria Le, who now attends UCLA, having an older brother certainly helped with not only the transition, but the application process as well.

“My brother was kind of the family guinea pig,” said Le, whose 21-year-old brother now attends UC Davis.

Her brother attended Santa Rosa Junior College before transferring, so little sister Le got to see him go through the application process twice and it “gave [her] the reality of the college acceptance process.”

She learned to be proactive and not just rely on grades to get into the schools she wanted.

She also commented that “he did give me a pretty good idea about the UC system since we are both in it.”

MCHS graduate Trysha

Hicks’s older sister told her that everyone has a different adjustment to college. Before attending University of Arizona, Hicks was advised by sister Tacey Hicks “to get involved in as many things on campus as possible.”

Le also commented that she was encouraged to join clubs because her older brother “had a great experience with the clubs he got involved in.”

Both graduates also described how their parents were much more relaxed and informed when their second child started college.

“My parents already had expectations for what it was going to be like for me and what I should do,” said Hicks.

“Also they knew about all the normal freshman things and made plans early to attend events like parents weekend.”

These students along with many other younger siblings, had the adjustment to college eased by having an older figure. Siblings aren’t just there for comfort and mandatory annoyance, but also for advice and help.

Hit or miss with freshman college roommates Shahab Yazdanpanah staff writer Bianca Hillegas copy editor “College is better than high school” is something almost everyone hears from freshmen at universities who have just stepped into this new academic world.

While this common understanding can be true at times, both the good and the bad have been experienced by Maria Carrillo High School graduates of 2015 and their roommate situations.

Most universities require freshmen to live on campus for their first year, and this usually involves having a roommate unless one gets a single. Living with a stranger is something foreign to many students here at MCHS, and while this situation can be difficult, it has its advantages.

Having a good roommate, which most people want, ultimately comes down to compatibility. MCHS class of 2015 graduate Mel Anderson only had positive things to say about her roommate at Chico State University. “I really like my roommate and we got along right away. So far, we’ve done everything together.” Anderson was luckily randomly paired with someone she aligns with very well: the ideal scenario.

Vidur Kailash, at John Hopkins

University in Baltimore, also had the luxury of having a good roommate whom he is compatible with. However, this case was not simply luck, but as a result of planning.

The housing institutions at John Hopkins University allowed for Kailash to meet his roommate beforehand in a compatibility test, and both of them checked each other off as a suitable fit for a roommate. “We actually knew each other before-hand so that helped,” said Kailash. “It’s a new situation for both of you, and it’s easier to make new friends and meet more people when you have a roommate because often their friends are your friends.”

Gabby Glaser at Pacific University in Oregon has made fast friends with her roommate who hails from Hawaii and also plays for the Pacific University Women’s Soccer team. Claire Brady, who attends Utah State University, also enjoys the company of her first-year roommate. Others, however, haven’t been so lucky.

Oliver Clarke, Pacific Lutheran University, had quite a few complaints about his roommate situation. “I hate it when I’m sitting at my desk working and he leaves the room and turns the lights off.” said Clarke. He went on to exclaim how he has no freedom and that his roommate is an awkward presence, goes to bed early, whines about computer lights, watches loud soccer games, and has very early morning alarms:

all things that would lead to a stressful living experience.

Similar to Clarke, Steven Chobotov at the University of San Diego had issues with his roommate.“He constantly invades my personal space and privacy” said Chobotov.

“He tries to study on my bed with me and looks through my stuff.” The list goes on about Chobotov’s nightmarish roommate who listens to loud music annoyingly from distorted phone speakers and naps at the most inconvenient times, according to Chobotov. “It’s weird living with someone who isn’t your friend” exclaimed Chobotov, which is a key aspect of the incompatibility seen amongst bad roommates.

For MCHS seniors planning on going to universities in the fall of 2016, there are ways to avoid the bad and embrace the good.

At Pacific University, students can choose to room with someone they know during the two-week period to make a roommate selection. Otherwise, they will be assigned a freshman roommate. Most other schools, such as the CSUs, have written assignments for freshman to complete, called the “Roommate Agreement and Interview”, which entails a matching system that isn’t completely random and does account for certain compatibility aspects between students.

Getting a roommate is definitely something that shouldn’t be overlooked.

10 Halloween: MCHS staff and students dress to impress

November 5, 2015 The Puma Prensa

Photos by Mary Kelleher / The Puma Prensa

Students, teachers and a dog show off their Halloween spirit.

From left to right, top to bottom: Gerard Borromeo, John Kirby, Josh Groesbeck, Claire Bleck, Ian Smith, Steven Tuft, Sam Gearing, Bailey Clelland, Vicki Zands, Trevor Brady, Sara Raike, Jerry Deakins, Mike Mastin, Jacob Saunders and Yukki

Art Talk Art Walk Use your cell phone to take an interactive tour of the art collection at the SRJC Doyle Library.

Check the website for library hours.

Art Talk

A multimedia collection of art and video. www.santarosa.edu/library/art

Arts & Entertainment 12 New line of iPhone pleases users and playing video games delightful. This is a direct result of the M9 motion processor being built in the A9 chip- a change that improves the efficiency of the motion processor.

The RAM sizes of the new iPhones have also increased from one gigabyte in iPhone 6 and 6 Plus to two gigabytes in iPhone 6s and 6s Plus.

This change makes the iPhone’s processing abilities better and allows it to have better operating systems that make its functioning faster and smoother.

The iPhone 6s and 6s Plus are also equipped with better front and back cameras.

The new lines of iPhones have 12-megapixel iSight cameras, improvements over the 8 megapixel ones of the previous iPhone.

This upgrade has two improvements over cameras embedded in previous iPhones: optical image stabilization and improved focus.

Due to this change, the iPhones can now take better images in low light or in a dim environment, have a better focus on moving objects and make less noise while taking one.

This is a feat that makes the iPhone perfect for adventurous trips in places with low light.

The new cameras also enMary Kelleher / The Puma Prensa hance the quality of videos taken and add an effect Apple The new iPhone 6s plus, shown above, hit the market Sept. 25. called the “Live Photo Feaphone, some have stated that ture,”. The Live Photo Feature Daksh Chauhan the big size of the iPhone 6s records for several seconds behead staff writer and 6s plus makes watching fore the actual picture is taken, Since their launch on Sept. videos, playing games and us- giving context to what hap25, 2015, the new iPhone 6s ing google drive more enjoy- pened up until the photo was and iPhone 6s Plus have been able than before. captured.

Though iPhone 6s and 6s enthusiastically accepted by The new camera also enpotential customers as two plus, have become bigger than ables the users to record high of the best models of smart- their predecessors, they have definition and 4K videos. Each phones on the planet. Though certainly gotten better and frame in a 4K video has eight many doubt whether any equipped technology that po- million pixels, giving the vid“real” differences exist be- tential buyers awaited for. eo amazing clarity.

The new versions of the tween this model and the preiPhones are now also availvious one, it is clear that Apple iPhone have also gained better able in four new colors: silver, has equipped the new model processing chips and RAMs gold, space grey and rose gold. of iPhone with cutting-edge that make their functioning They are made of an alloy of a technology that makes this faster and more user-friendly. 7000 series of aluminum, also Plus, unlike the previous gen- used in airplanes, that makes product a delight.

Due to the new changes in eration of iPhone which used the phone classier than the the iPhone, the sales of the the A8 chipset, use the latest previous models. new iPhone, cheapest of which A9 chipset and have a signifiThis material change, costs $649, hit records of about cant improvement in terms of however, has weakened the 13 million units sold by Sept. processing speed and display strength of the case. of graphics.

28.

I noted that it has become According to ipos7.com, easier to dent the new iPhone The new models, compared to the previous ones, have ac- , the A9 chipset makes the and because of that, I recomquired a more beautiful and CPU performance of the new mend that everyone use a iPhones 70 percent faster than separate case to provide extra space-age-like look.

They have gotten thinner as the previous ones which used protection. well as the screen wider and the A8 chipset.

Overall, the new iPhone has Not only that, the graph- certainly improved a lot over longer, a change which hasn’t been liked by some people ic performance of the new the previous iPhone and has who believe that this makes iPhones is about 90 percent innovative features that make better than that of previous its handling and functioning the newer phones unwieldy.

While some complain about ones, a significant change better. It certainly is a phone the clunkiness of the new that makes watching videos worth the price.

November 5, 2015 The Puma Prensa

Artist of the Issue:

Caitlin McFall

Graphic by Caitlin McFall Caitlin McFall’s newest piece of manga art. since she was in third grade.

Heather Reyes It was a subject she has always staff writer taken a liking to, and while she Samurai’s, elves, and scarves stated that her ability wasn’t of rank fill up the mind of great as a child, she continCaitlin McFall. Set on another ues to improve the longer she planet after the fallout of Earth, works as an artist. She also Samurai: A Tale of Scarves is a does free commissions, somegame that McFall is currently thing that she does very well working on creating for Mind- since commissions require fist Games. This game has feu- taking another person’s vision dal era themes and is a fantasy and “making it become real.” filled realm of heroes and vil- Any concept designer has to lains that are all designed by be talented in doing this. ConMcFall. cept art is tricky because the Mindfist Games is a family art isn’t always what the artist company owned by McFall’s envisions, but is what the perfather. Within the next few son giving this commission to months, Mindfist will be put- you wants. ting up this game on Steam “Really, for the past two and making their big debut. years I’ve been edging more Steam is a website where you towards a career [in art] than can download games to play just a simple hobby.” McFall on computers, and a place that said. She was first inspired many new game companies or to become an artist when her independent game artists like friend, Lily Kinsey, showed to use to start out.

McFall her art.

What makes this so incred“It was that day that I vowed ible is that McFall, Maria Car- to become a manga artist.” Mcrillo High School sophomore, Fall specializes in anime/manis the concept designer and ga style artwork. Anime referscriptwriter for this game. ring to artwork that is made Concept artists create charac- to be put into animation, and ters and sometimes scenery manga, which is made strictly for a game before it’s taken to for books. animation.

Both are a common style of The job isn’t easy. It takes a Japanese art with many diflot of trial and error, and many ferent genres inside of them. concept drawing attempts be- Her art mainly focuses on the fore a character’s concept art is classic manga styles of art, the finalized. semi-realistic but slightly exConcept art shapes what the aggerated body, often with focharacter will look like, and cus on the eyes. The other art sometimes embodies some of style is commonly referred to their important characteris- as “Chibi” which is hyper-extics. aggerated artwork with small The script and concept art bodies and disproportionate, have to fit nicely together in larger heads and facial feaorder to make the finalized tures. game or animation as impresLess detail goes into creatsive as they always turn out to ing these pieces, but the end be. result is no less spectacular McFall has been an artist and adorable.

7 tips on how to become a publicly known artist Heather Reyes staff writer Not everyone has a super fantastic job working for a game company, but for artists out there who want people to see what they can do, here are a few tips that will hopefully lend you a helping hand you might need.

Join Social Media sitesWebsites such as Facebook, Instagram, and DeviantArt are common places for artists to start publishing on. Have a fan page or even just post pub-

lic statuses when you come out with a new piece. When you do this, make sure your artist signature or watermark logo is present to avoid the possibility of someone else taking credit for your work.

Social media sites are free, and they don’t require any sort of license in order to post your art or fanart. Fanart is a production of artwork you make about a person, place or thing that was originally made by another person.

Attend local conventionsFor this, a license is necessary

if you intend to sell the artwork that you make.

Local art conventions include the art gallery at the Sonoma County Fair, the Toycon convention at the fairgrounds or any other type of conventions where artists are always welcome. If you have a license, you can sell your original work or fanart there. This helps you make money and it puts your name out there.

Make business cards- Business cards don’t have to look fancy and are fairly cheap.

Most places charge around $10 to print 250 cards. It would cost more to have them design business cards for you, but making a design yourself is simple. Always keep a card or your media/contact information on you. If someone sees your work and really likes it, there is a possibility that you could be commissioned.

Do commissions- It doesn’t matter if you like what your client is asking for a commission of, the attempt and the experience will be worth it!

Ask around- Coffee shops

and comic stores like displaying artists’ works, so try asking if they wouldn’t mind hanging one of your pieces on their wall.

Practice!- The best way to get your career started it so practice. Continue working on whatever you love, but try to experiment and try new styles as well. Expand on your abilities.

Remain positive- The most important part about being an artist is remaining positive.

Don’t let failure ruin your desire to try.

November 4, 2015 The Puma Prensa

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Editorials

November 5, 2015 The Puma Prensa

Put an end to fighting firearms with more firearms

Graphic By Kate Koell

Guns. The word boasts as much of an impact in the hearts of Americans as does the weapon itself.

After devastating school shootings at Columbine and Sandy Hook it is surprising that there are people advocating for more guns. According to Everytown for Gun Safety, an organization dedicated to promoting gun control and creating safer communities, there have been nearly 152 school shootings since 2013. That’s an average of one school shooting

each week.The Mass Shooting Tracker defines a mass shooting as four or more people killed or injured. By that definition, in the first 274 days of this year there have been 294 shootings. According to The Washington Post, the longest period without a shooting this year has only been eight days.

With such appalling statistics, the government should be taking action to decrease gun violence. Instead, pro-gun lobbyists and advocates are adding fuel to the fire. More guns.

If we have guns we can protect ourselves. But is that really the case? The irony of the matter is that people need to protect others, like family members, from the weapon they use for protection. To clarify, guns and other assault weapons are supposed to be kept in a safe and secure place, so how convenient would they be in a situation such as a school shooting or even a burglary?

But not all gun owners are responsible. If gun control laws were set into place, then more guns would be taken out of circulation.

With less guns available, then the incidences of young children shooting younger siblings while playing copsand-robbers and the likelihood of a student bringing a weapon onto campus would be reduced. How many times do heartbreaking incidences like these have to take place before people realize that the availability of firearms is the problem?

Pro-gun lobbying and support from political leaders has driven President Barack Obama to enact executive power to pass stricter gun laws, something this country needs. Obama has planned 23 executive actions to achieve stricter gun laws. One is to ban all military-style weapons and to limit the magazine capacity to 10 rounds. Another part of his plan is to require background checks and to improve the system to allow more transparency of mental illness information from buyers.

Stricter gun control could work, and it has worked in a democratic government. Australia is an example of how it’s possible to achieve safer communities without allowing everyone to own an assault rifle. In 1996 a mass shooting in Tasmania caused the Australian government to impose strict gun laws that banned all automatic and semi-automatic assault weapons and initiated a mandatory buy-back

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and its policy to support her views.

The right to bear arms is the leading argument against gun control. The Second Amendment states: “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” Pro-gun supporters rally against gun control by saying that it is their constitutional right to be able to own a gun. They’re not wrong, but even that argument lacks concrete support.

The main purpose of this amendment is to uphold local militias.

Militias are no longer a prominent force in protecting communities, and the intended purpose of militias in the time were to ensure peace and to keep the government in check. The amendment is outdated and vague. While it is not invalid, it should be amended to accommodate for the state of technology and society today. The right to “keep and bear arms” does not entitle someone to buy a semiautomatic weapon that can cause irreversible damage in the wrong hands.

How many children and innocent people are going to be killed by this militaristic mindset before there is change?

Executive action is the fastest way to achieve at least some sense of security and to battle the increasing gun violence by overriding lobbyists. More guns is not the answer.

Kylie Hodges, junior program. A study done by Andrew Leigh and Christine Neill of the Washington Post showed that the firearm homicide rate fell by 59 percent and the firearm suicide rate by 65 percent, and Australia has not had a mass shooting since the laws were in place. This is exactly the type of action that President Obama and Presidential canidate Hillary Clinton are advocating for.

Clinton has challenged the National Rifle Association, the NRA, on a few occasions. In October, she said that she supports a gun buyback program, which was interpreted by the NRA to mean that she wants to eradicate all guns. Clinton has made it clear that she wants a stricter gun control policy and she wants to be more forceful than President Obama. Like many other pro-gun control activists, she uses Australia

A new law in California: the Right to Die Live until you die naturally

California recently became the patient committed suicide legally fifth state to pass the “Right to or illegally, it carries the same efDie” law. Patients who are termi- fect on family and friends. nally ill now have the option to A couple years later when I was end their lives by lethal injection about 5, my grandfather was diagwith a doctor’s assistance, what is nosed with ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s known as an “elected suicide.”

Disease. He was slowly starting Patients must meet certain re- to lose control over his body, first quirements to be considered for his legs and then his arms. He had this injection. Suicide affects many gone to many doctors for help and people everyday, whether it be the had been prescribed many mediperson acting on it, or the friends cations to help lighten the pain. and family.

One day he was at an appointment When i was about 2 my grand- when he was prescribed a new mother took her own life. She had pain medication. It came in a botbeen suffering from severe depres- tle that was easy to open so that he sion and Bipolar Disorder almost could access it himself. That night her whole life, and one day it be- he emptied the bottle and overcame too much for her to handle. dosed, he went to bed and never She wrote a letter explaining why woke up. she did it and The last why she felt memory commentary by the time was I have of right. With her him was Jamie Cline, junior daughter starthis gooding her own bye.

We family, my went to nanny had no one left to take care his house, he was sitting in his of. The pain ended for my nanny wheelchair next to the window, as soon as she pulled the trigger. he looked like a sad Saint Nick. I And that’s the day my mother’s didn’t know that this visit would pain began. be the last, it seemed like any othI remember my mom bent over er visit. Before we left he gave my crying, grasping the folded yel- brothers and I each a present. He low notepad paper in her trem- gave me a baby doll with blonde bling hands, barely breathing in hair and blue eyes, she was wearbetween sobs. Her mom was gone ing a tye-dye bathing suit. That’s forever and she had left without the last memory I have of my saying goodbye. grandfather.

Because of this my mom has My grandfather suffered from been dealing with depression for a terminal illness and decided about 14 years. My mom has been that the best thing for himself was seeing a counselor about the re- to end his life before the disease lationship she had had with her could. Both of my grandparents mom and learning about the men- ended their lives by suicide. My tal state of my nanny. nanny did it on her own and my Mental illness is not something grandfather did it with a doctor’s that would qualify a patient for help. But they both had the same the right to die. But whether the effect on those around them.

Die on your own terms

The “Die with Dignity Act”, or Right to Die is a new California law that allows terminally ill individuals the right to choose when they die.

When I heard this law was passed I was happy to hear it. Growing up I heard stories from my mother about my grandmother who died of stomach cancer. Chemotherapy is very intense and damaging to the body and in cases like my grandmother’s don’t get rid of the cancer just keep it from progressing.

My grandmother was a teacher at a little school house. She was loved by her family and students.

At first she didn’t let the cancer interfere with her life, but as it progressed she got weaker. As a result of the constant chemotherapy, she had to stop teaching, causing her to sink into depression. She eventually stopped doing the chemo and went back to teaching, doing the thing she loved. She lived her life how she wanted until the cancer made it impossible. The stories I hear from my mother from this time in my grandmother’s life mostly involve my grandmother not being able to control her own body. Doing simple tasks like getting out of bed would cause her throw up a vile green substance.

As she slowly and painfully died, her family had to sit and watch and know

nothing could be done. It got to the point where my grandmother had two options: continue chemo and live another year or not do the chemo and only live for a few months.

She chose a third option, to die on her own terms.

She begged her nurse to help her, and she did. My grandmother died in her sleep, peacefully and without pain do to an overdose of morphine given to her by her nurse. With the ending of her suffering, her family was able to find peace.

Giving terminal patients

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ily affected him mentally, and made him have mood swings or forget things.

He didn’t want to lose who he was. He was taking a lot of medications that he couldn’t afford, and often times he would have to choose between medication or food, and he really didn’t have a choice. It was the medication or die.

He was always in constant pain. He and I talked every day at six in the evening, and towards the end, every time I called him, he has a horrible migraine and couldn’t really speak.

He wanted to stop forgetting the important things. He wanted the pain to stop. It killed us (me and my family) to see him in such pain.

So he chose to die. He stopped taking his medicine, had one final meal and he died. But his mind had deteriorated, and he didn’t remember a lot. He didn’t want to forget all the wonderful things. He didn’t want to be in constant pain anymore. I miss him every day, and I will till the day I die.

But I am happy that he didn’t have to continue to live in pain, and that he got to choose when he died and that he still got to be himself when he died. Right to Die is a blessing to the dying. It gives them the choice to escape their pain.

Kate Koell, senior the right to choose when they die is an amazing gift.

It gives people the option to get away from the pain of their illness without endangering those who choose to help them. To be honest I can’t understand people who want their suffering loved ones to keep suffering. If dying will relieve their pain then they should be allowed to die.

I grew up with these tales of my grandmother, and I thought I understood. It was only till my grandfather was diagnosed with brain cancer that I knew that I hadn’t.

My grandfather and I were very close and when he got sick it was really hard on me. The brain cancer heav-

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Editorials Non-truants suffer from extreme tardy policy November 5, 2015 The Puma Prensa

Nothing is certain in life but death and taxes. Oh, and occasional tardiness. There has been no change to its certainty, but one thing has changed: Demerits have been removed from the school, and the current punishment is much more severe.

In case you haven’t heard about the rule change, tardy students will be required to serve a detention, which if not served in three days doubles to two detentions, which when left unserved results in a suspended-suspension, alternatively known as a morning detention, which if not served results in a oneday suspension.

From my understanding, tardiness punishments are there to prevent truancy, the intentional illegal absence from school. But the average student often isn’t trying to be intentionally absent from school. For those students a verbal warning along the lines of “Hey, don’t be late again or else,” seems to be a great alternative to the new system, as tardiness is often accidental and the current punishment can put some students in quite the predicament.

However, repeat offenders who purposely skip class should be punished to prevent truancy. Infrequently tardy students should not have to serve detentions or suspensions.

For example, say your younger sibling couldn’t find their math book this morning and you sprint into first period two minutes late. Your teacher

tells you that you have a tardy and a detention to serve. However, that isn’t a possibility for some people who have afterschool responsibilities such as sports or jobs, or making sure your younger sibling is being safe after school until your parents get home keeps you from serving your detention in time before the punishment doubles. Missing a day of practice can land you on the bench and out of the starting line up for the next game, if you aren’t already missing a game. And missing a day of work could

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to fall asleep before 11 p.m., if you aren’t already up that late doing homework. AAP also suggests that schools start at 8:30 a.m., which makes MCHS’s start time early for any student’s biological clock even without the morning detention. To top it off, a National Sleep Foundation poll found that 87 percent of high school students do not sleep for the recommended eight and a half to nine and a half hours of sleep already. These morning detentions do give an important alternative for those with afterschool activities, but the facts don’t lie: Teeneagers need sleep.

But what other alternative options are there? Jennifer Mirasty-Oropeza of the Attendance Office stated, “We can’t just get rid of discipline...there are at least 35 tardies a day, and not all of them are for just one period.”

Oropeza said that a recurring group of students often leave school unexcused during lunch or break. The old policy’s problem was that “demerits could be worked off and it wasn’t working.” The teachers and assistant principals came up with the new policy over the summer, late enough that the change is not included in your student planner, and it instead states the old policy.

However, the new policy does not stop at morning detentions. If you skip them, or are unaware that you even have a tardy, you will serve a suspension. Suspensions are very bad. No matter how fun

Jack Rowe, sophomore get you fired, or at least upset your manager.

So, if you are a person with an after-school responsibility, the next step is morning detentions. Morning detentions are not fun. Getting to school by 7:15 a.m. is not the prefered time to arrive at school. Not only does it mess with your sleep schedule but your parent’s as well. Let me highlight that issue: Grumpy parents, grumpy you. Sound fun?

Here is a little bit more information on lack of sleep. Reports by the American Academy of Pediatrics, or AAP and many other institutions all link a lack of sleep to harmful effects such as obesity, a higher chance for traffic accidents, depression, higher blood pressure, lower grades and lower test scores. AAP studies also state that adolescents’ sleep cycles shift, making it difficult

Dear Dream School: I am absolutely, positively perfect—let me in

Dear Dream School, You said in all of the 12 letters and 14 emails you recently sent me that you’re searching for the best of the best for your school. Well, stop your searching, because here I am!

I am pleased to inform you that I meet all of your criteria: brilliant, creative, motivated, humble, you name it. Seriously, name any quality. I will find a way to conform to it.

Let’s begin with my academic qualifications, shall we? Through hard work and motivation, I achieved a 5.6 GPA in my junior year of high school. I took chemistry, English, calculus, statistics, U.S. history, government, Spanish, French, Mandarin and biology during my first semester, all of them AP classes.

Because I enjoy the rigor and challenges that these classes present, I took initiative and assigned myself supplementary projects in the majority of my classes. My vocabulary is prodigious; in essence, I am an ambulatory dictionary. If you’re curious about my SAT scores, I earned a 2400 all nine times I took it. In my defense, I would have gotten 2500s if they had accepted my extra credit questions.

My academic excellence, while clearly exactly what you are looking for, is outshined

by my participation in extracurricular activites. I couldn’t possibly list all of them, so I’ll just jot down a few that I think you’ll find intruiguing. In my spare time, I picket for the rights of transgender goats from broken homes, a cause that is very dear to me.

I also founded my city’s first

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them on a weekly basis. My resting heart rate is 20 beats per minute, and I’ve even taught myself Tai Chi and Kung Fu. Of course, none of this amounts to the life-changing experiences that I’ve had to prepare me for my college experience. Buckle up, Dream School, there have been quite a few of them.

When I was seven years old, I traveled to Mexico for the summer to build houses and learn respect, perseverance and other life skills that build character.

At the age of eight, I moved to Malawi for two months to administer life-saving vaccinations that I invented myself.

And most recently, at the age of 14, I won a Pulitzer Prize for a newspaper that I singlehandedly wrote, edited and funded.

In conclusion, I think that I am the perfect candidate for your program. If you need any further references, please go to my letters of recommendation.

I think you’ll find the ones from Pope Francis, Richard Dawkins and Beyonce particularly interesting. Please pick me, Dream School. Please.

With love and fierce desperation, A Hopeful Future Student

Mary Kelleher, senior Disabled, Blind and Deaf Orphans from Minority Races Awareness Foundation and enjoy reading the Bible to trees in peril.

I’ve noticed that you prefer students with school spirit. I think you’ll be pleased to hear that I have more spirit than the Holy Ghost. I’ve built a shrine in my living room to my high school’s mascot and, as the captain of the cheer teem, have taken it upon myself to wear my uniform every day of the week to show my school pride.

My stellar physical abilities will contribute immensely to your athletic program. You have renowned baseball, volleyball, basketball, football, soccer, badminton, track and field, cross country and dance programs. I am phenomenal at all of these sports and practice

Graphic by Kate Koell

not going to school sounds, all the school work you are missing and not getting credit for those assingments can hammer your grade. It will go on your permanent record, and some colleges will ask if you’ve ever been suspended on application forms. On a less important note, the suspension will also land your name on the Loss Of Privilege list, barring you from school dances and other activities. Suspensions can be hard to recover from, and seems to be especially harsh for a punishment that

can stem from a tardy.

Sleeping through an alarm clock, traffic and transportation issues can all make you late for perfectly good and accidental reasons. And if you have siblings, sometimes it isn’t even your fault. The new policy does hold the truants accountable, but could the accidentally tardy students at least get a second chance? People who want to go to school and make an effort to get there on time every day should not be immediately or as extremely punished.

The Puma Prensa Centerspread Editors Editors Mia von Knorring Natalie van Winden Brittany Herdman Erin Rael Copy Editors Staff Writers Bianca Hillegas Shahab Mary Kelleher Yazdanpanah Jack Rowe Photo Editors Jacob Herbstman Mary Kelleher William Schoeffler Kate Koell Sierra Winter Kylie Hodges Head Staff Writer Hannah Levy Daksh Chauhan Jamie Cline Aimee Eagle Business Manager Shaelin Green Daniel Virtue Heather Reyes Cameron Stimac Holly Urquhart If you would like to submit a Letter to the Editor, please e-mail it to thepumaprensa@gmail.com with “Letter to the Editor” as the subject.

Letters must be signed and may be edited forlength.

16 ACT and SAT preparation classes

November 5, 2015 The Puma Prensa

at Carrillo?

With one of the country’s best SAT/ACT tutors?

You bet!

All Ahead of the Class courses are taught by David Benjamin Gruenbaum, one of the nation’s top SAT/ACT teachers.

Gruenbaum has worked with over 6,000 students during the last 25 years.

Ahead of the Class had a great summer working with some of the top juniors and seniors at Carrillo right on the Carrillo campus!

Many of those students have achieved fantastic ACT scores and are already finished with testing!

“Our daughter, Hailey worked with David Benjamin Gruenbaum.

After the classes, her ACT score rose from 28 to 32!”

David Begert MD and Caroline Hellings MD, parents of Hailey Begert, attending Berkeley, and Matt Begert, current junior at Carrillo.

“The Ahead of the Class ACT/SAT prep classes were invaluable to our son.

Jason achieved a perfect score of 36 on the ACT test on his first try.

The tuition we paid for the classes was absolutely the best investment we have ever made!”

John Lawler- father of Jason Lawler, a Cardinal Newman graduate now attending USC

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