Facebook controversy leads to suspension Northsiders head to

Northside College Preparatory High School February 2007
HoofBeat
Vol. 8 No. 6
The
News
pages 1-3
•Northsiders show spirit
before homecoming
A&E
pages 4-6
•”Pop, lock, and drop”
Huey’s new album
•Radkowski bashes PDA
Centerfold pages 8-9
•STDs increase with the pill
•Sex in pop culture
Features pages 10-11
•Northsiders age at Kedzie
Shores
Editorial pages 12-14
•Facebook controversy: the
school was right
•Beres: “emo” teens
Sports
pages 15-16
•Girls Varsity Basketball:
victorious on Senior Day
Page 2
Mr. Rodgers to
take over next
year
Page 11
Belcaster up
for the Golden
Apple
Facebook controversy leads to suspension
by Aliy Markowski
Facebook served as the platform for
incidents of student bullying last week that
led to the two-day suspension of at least one
student and the lesser punishments of several
others. The controversy began over studentposted derogatory comments on the site of
a ‘Facebook group,’ where students united
to object to a recent peer jury verdict. These
offensive posts led to the creation of an entire group devoted to lashing out at a single
fellow student who had served as a juror in
the peer jury trial. Seven Northside students
joined the group.
“I was surprised and terribly disappointed that our students think freedom of
speech is license to harass or intimidate one
another,” Dr. James Lalley, Principal, said.
The infraction began over the peer jury
proceedings for the case of John Ko, Adv.
909. After an incident in colloquium where
Ko climbed from the pool level to the bleachers to retrieve a beach ball, Ko was sentenced
to a peer jury trial.
“Ms. Cirrincione told me I could get
thrown out of colloquium or take it to peer
jury,” Ko said. “I chose peer jury.”
Ko quickly developed an advocacy group
in the case. His friends and supporters created an official Facebook group called ‘Save
John Ko.’ On the Facebook, members can
join ‘groups’ that promote a common cause
or interest. The ‘Save John Ko’ group was
created to defend Ko’s actions and speak out
A snapshot of the Facebook group that students started in response to the suspensions handed
against his punishment.
“The group was to keep me from getting out in bulk.
Photo courtesy of Facebook website
expelled,” Ko said. “It was my classmates
who thought my punishment was unfair and
was a personal attack on one student when they
Other students who joined the Facebook
were trying to do something about it.”
joined. Shortly after the hate group was created,
group were called down to speak with Mrs.
Ko, bound by Peer Jury’s confidentiality
Northside administrators saw the site. Appalled
Moreno who explained the implications of joinclause, cannot disclose his peer jury sentence.
at the offensive comments posted on the website’s ing an effort to publicly attack a fellow student.
The ‘Save John Ko’ group was never intended to
wall, Mrs. Moreno, Assistant Principal, called
Students who were administrators on the website
turn into a forum for hateful comments, Ko said.
or posted offensive comments in either the hate
Yet regardless of the initial purpose of the group, the CPS Law Department to determine what
action
to
take.
group or the ‘Save John Ko’ group were issued
the site became a forum for dialogue blaming a
Administrative action was in accord with the
one-day in-school suspensions for contributing to
single peer juror for the result of the trial. One
CPS
Student
Code
of
Conduct,
where
‘the
use
of
bullying and/or posting slanderous content.
student took the offensive conversation a step
any computer or information technology device
Dr. Lalley says that unlike many other
further, creating a new Facebook group that
to
stalk,
harass,
or
otherwise
intimidate
others’
schools,
Northside will not institute new policies
profanely attacked this Northside student in the
is listed in Group 5 Inappropriate Behaviors,
to control the use of social networking websites
group title and description. The creator of the
those infractions that ‘most seriously disrupt the
outside of school.
hate group invited numerous Northsiders to join
orderly educational process in the Chicago Pub“Northside is not a school that revolves
the group.
lic
Schools.’
The
Code
states
that
for
first-time
around
rules and punishments,” Lalley said.
“I joined the group without really seeing
violations of Group 5 infractions, ‘a student shall “The students who contributed to the attack of
what it was all about,” Juan Rodriguez, Adv.
be suspended for five to ten days, and may be
one of their peers were sanctioned accordingly,
808, said. “It was just one more group under my
referred for expulsion and/or disciplinary reasbut we do not plan on changing the distinctive
belt.”
signment.’
(Page
12)
The
creator
of
the
group
in
quality of Northside based on this event.”
Rodriguez was one of several group members
question was issued only a two-day suspension.
Continued as “Facebook” on pg. 3
who said they did not understand that the group
Northsiders head to MUNUC
Model United Nations
by Muhammad Akhtar
Over fifty Northside
students attended the 19th
annual Model United Nations
at the University of Chicago
(MUNUC). The group was
composed of select students
from both the Model UN colloquium and club. Due to the
overwhelming popularity of the
program, several students were
not placed on the roster this
year, adding more to the value
of the experience. However,
despite their differences in age
and experience, all participants
shared a passion for international politics.
The event was held at the
Palmer House Hotel downtown, from February 1st to
4th. Northside represented the
nations of Ukraine and India
on various committees ranging
from UNICEF to the Human
Rights Committee. Schools
from all over the nation, and
even one from Honduras, were
also present. The ultimate goal
of the conference was to reach
a resolution on the topics assigned to each committee.
Patricia Mazur, Adv. 701, and Max Brown, Adv. 706, prepare for the first
The majority of each day
session of the ECOFIN Committee at Model UN.
was spent discussing certain
issues in individual committees. Photo by Aliy Markowski
For example, DISEC (Disarmament
and International Security Committee) debated possible resolutions to
illegal small arms trade. However,
during lunch and dinner hours, the
streets were littered with teenagers
eager to explore Chicago’s cultural
riches. One student from Indiana
stated, “This program is amazing
and so is the city. The committees
create a nice atmosphere and actually feel like the U.N. Chicago as a
city is awesome too.”
Northside walked away from
the conference with its fair share of
awards. Aubrey Cunat, Adv. 706,
and Dimitra Bounas, Adv.707, won
Honorary Delegate Awards for
accurately portraying their country
(Ukraine) and actively participating
in committee discussions. Patricia
Radkowksi, Adv. 807, who was
the lone Press Corps member from
Northside, was recognized with an
“Honorary Mention”. Radkowski
wrote six articles for the MUNUC
newspaper (“The Phoenix”); one of
these was written at 2:00 A.M. during an “international emergency.”
Overall, this Model UN convention was reported by attendees as
highly enjoyable and enlightening.
As Anthony Eben, Adv. 806, stated,
“It was really fun and truly a learning experience.”
Page 2 News The Hoof Beat
Spirited away
Northside College
Northside holds its 6th annual school spirit week Prep High School
by Muhammad Akhtar
to interpret the occasion a little differentThe final day of the week was “MusThe week of January 15th brought
ly, sporting the clothes, and mannerisms,
tang Spirit Day.” The turnout was trewith it some odd sights: students sporting
of a stereotypical Latino street gang.
mendous, as the school was flooded in a
swimming trunks in freezing temperaFor the third day of spirit week,
sea of silver and maroon. Some students
tures, groups of friends dressed similarly
students dressed according to a certain
who were on sports teams, like Ikram
in tacky outfits, and a few others covered
decade or just in a tacky manner. Thus,
Khan, Adv. 800, on varsity basketball,
head to toe in Northside apparel. While
the hallways became a time-machine of
wore their uniforms and jerseys.
outsiders may conclude the student body
sorts, providing a glimpse into the 1960’s,
“This week is a great way to blow off
finally gave in to the pressure of final ex1970’s, 1980’s, and even 1990’s. Joseph
some steam before finals and to just enjoy
ams, Northsiders were actually celebratKanikunnel, Adv. 807, dressed as a selfourselves while displaying our school
ing their 6th annual spirit week.
proclaimed 70’s hipster.
spirit,” Khan said.
The first day of spirit week, January
“This is a fun thing to do, you know,”
Such was the opinion of countless
16th, had a peculiar theme. Students were
Kanikunnel said. “I get to dress like a
other Northsiders celebrating yet another
asked to dress as they would for a day
funkster and show my school pride.”
successful spirit week.
on the beach. Despite freezing weather,
many Northsiders
wore swimsuits,
trunks, and even
carried towels.
“I was
overwhelmed
by the number
of students
wearing clothes
that should be
worn on warm
days,” Salim
Patel, Adv. 809,
said. “Frankly,
I thought it was
stupid, but since
I love Northside,
I dressed for this
day too.”
“Twin Day”
was the second
event of the week.
Groups of two
students were
to dress similarly, although
the majority of
participants included larger sets.
Many students
were seen wearing
similar colors
and textures, but
some chose to go
further. For instance, clusters of
girls wearing the
exact same outfits
(down to the
color of their shoe
Jill Swanson, Adv. 702, Tatiana Karpouzian, Adv. 802, and Jenna Witkowski, Adv. 705, dress up as
laces) spanned the dancers for twin day.
hallways. A group Photo by by Muhammad Akhtar
of seniors chose
And the principal is…
LSC names Barry Rodgers to succeed Dr. Lalley
by Max Brown and Natalia Emanuel Northside was gripped by apprehension
throughout January as it awaited the Local School
Council’s (LSC) selection for Dr. Lalley’s successor. On the evening of January 18 at the public
LSC meeting, Mr. Chuck Killman, the LSC
Vice-Chairperson, made a motion to vote for
Northside’s future principal as Mr. Barry Rodgers.
The vote was a unanimous 10-0.
“This is a dream come true for me,” Mr. Rodgers said upon hearing the news. “I feel like I’m
home again.”
LSC members highlighted their confidence in
their selection. \
“I think it was a great decision,” Patricia
Sharkey, an LSC parent representative, said. “But
it was a tough decision to make because we had
five excellent candidates…These are all remarkable
people with remarkable educational backgrounds.”
Dr. Lalley, Northside’s retiring principal, expressed similar confidence.
“I am leaving the school in very secure hands,”
he said. Rodgers proceeded to greet congratulatory
community members and reassured them of his
commitment to listening to the myriad of Northside voices.
“Whatever I do, I plan to involve the school’s
community,” Mr. Rodgers said, concerning his
plans for Northside. “I do have some great ideas,
but there are some other great ideas from students
and parents and we can work together. So I’m really excited about that.” This type of vision was mentioned by LSC
members as an important aspect of their choice.
“As Dr. Lalley says, quoting e.e. cummings,
‘We can never be born enough,’” Ms. Sharkey
said. “I think there is a sense that Barry is the guy Dr. Lalley embraces his newly-announced successor, Barry Rodgers.
who will keep us being born over and over again.” Photo by Natalie Emanuel
5501 N. Kedzie
Chicago, IL 60625
Tel: (773) 534-3954
Fax: (773) 534-3964
Principal: Dr. James Lalley
Assistant Principal:
Ms. Lisa Moreno
Advisor: Mr. Chester Tylinski
Editors-In-Chief: Damon Beres,
Aliy Markowski
Copy Editors: Maxwell Brown,
Natalia Emanuel
Managing Editor: Kana Yoo
Assistant Managing Editor: Rachel
Hautzinger
News Editor: Ashraf Abbas
Features Editor: Elizabeth Jose
Centerfold Editor: Abir Usman
Editorial Editor: Muamera Hadzic
Arts and Entertainment Editor:
Patricia Radkowski
Sports Editor: Geethi Abraham
Photo Editors: Neha Alam,
Zenobia Gonsalves
Art Editors:Vasiliki Mitrakos,
Michelle Zacarias
Polling Managers: Shoaib Ali,
Mohammad Kahleelullah
Satire: Liz Born, Damon Beres
Reporters: Zainab Bilfaqi, Sejla
Dizdarevc, Muhammad Acktar,
Mohammad Khaleelulah, Nadir
Rashid, Sonya Dekhtyar, Sejla
Dizdarevic, Ahmed Imtiaz,
Farrukh Mukhtar, Zlatana
Alibegovic, Andrea Ljevar,
Mohammad Rahman, Riaz Shaikh
Junior Reporters: Sarah Jose,
Helen Liutongco, Bridget Illing,
Jordan Garcia
The Hoof Beat is a monthly publication
produced by the Northside Prep Journalism
Class. As a student-run newspaper, your
opinions are important to us. If you have
any comments, corrections, critiques, or
questions, please e-mail Mr. Chester Tylinski
at ctylinski@northsideprep.org.
February 2007
News
Page 3
“Facebook”
Continued from front page
Instead, Dr. Lalley says he plans
to use this incident as a learning
experience for Northside students.
“This kind of thing doesn’t lead
me to come up with a new list of
rules or a contract for students to
sign,” Lalley said. “It makes me
wonder what we aren’t teaching students if they think this is appropriate behavior and how we can try to
make these lessons more clear.”
Since the suspension, additional
Facebook groups have been created.
Rana Marks, Adv. 804, began a
counter-group to the hate group,
which stated in its description that
the group was ‘for all those people
who condemn intentionally cruel
actions.’ 96 Northside students
joined Marks’ group. Another
Northside student created the
group, ‘Don’t suspend me because
I dislike an a------,” opposing the
Administration’s actions. 100
Northsiders joined this group.
Both groups’ ‘walls,’ where
members can post comments,
quickly became a forum for a debate over whether or not it was the
place of Northside’s Administration to take action in the situation.
Students left over 50 comments on
the group’s wall, many of which
were lengthy paragraphs of opinion
on the school’s actions. Marks says
she thinks it’s important for students to have a means to talk about
and learn from the incident.
“I don’t think this is a dumb
debate at all,” Marks said in a wall
post on her group’s site. “This issue
mirrors the legitimate question of
what rights we, citizens, have. I
don’t think there’s anything wrong
with making this a conversational
issue because there is definitely
something to be learned and discussed.”
Many students argued that
the school has no
place becoming
involved in events
that occur off
school grounds.
“I feel the
school shouldn’t
have gotten
involved because
Facebook has
nothing to do
with the school so
they really have
no jurisdiction
there,” Kevin
Hom, Adv. 708,
said.
Pages 3 and
4 of the Student
Code of Conduct state that
‘students shall
be encouraged to
seek assistance
from school
personnel to
prevent or resolve
conflicts and to
report incidents’
and ‘students may
also be subject
to discipline for
Group 5 or 6
Inappropriate
Dr. Lalley sent out a school-wide e-mail addressing the controversy and challenging students to act responsibly.
Behaviors that
Photo by by Kana Yoo
occur either off
freedom of speech if they think it
speech no matter how offensive its
mail challenging Northside students
campus or during
makes harassing a fellow student
content.’ The Administration did
to act responsibly in the future.
non-school hours.’ The Facebook
appropriate behavior,” Lalley said.
not defend its actions through a
“My challenge is really to make
hate group and the offensive comIn defense of the school,
constitutional exclusion of the dethis a teachable moment,” Lalley
ments posted there and elsewhere
several students posted on the wall
fense of hate speech. The offensive
said. “I encourage all students to
are Group 5 infractions.
of Marks’ Facebook group that
publicly-posted comments violate
reflect on their behavior. I’m a man
Other students question the
hate speech is not constitutionally
the CPS Student Code of Conduct
of few rules, but I hope that in the
violation of the constitutional right
protected. According to the ACLU,
and are subject to school sanctions
future students will act responsibly
of freedom of speech.
‘the First Amendment to the
on those grounds.
with the freedom they are given at
“I think some students may
United States Constitution protects
Dr. Lalley sent a school-wide eNorthside.”
have a misconception of the
Page 4 Arts & Entertainment
The Hoof Beat
“Pop, Lock, and Drop it” with Huey’s debut single
by Zainab Bilfaqi
Huey, a new artist in the rap industry, makes a futile attempt with his
breakout single, “Pop, Lock and Drop
it,” in which he sure does drop it. Although Huey has the rap star appearance
with his throw back hat, baggy clothes,
platinum chain and rims, his single, like
his appearance, portrays no individuality.
Despite his lack of originality, the song’s
constant repetition of the words “pop,
lock and drop it” make it somewhat
catchy and might cause some people to
listen to it again.
Huey began producing beats and
writing rhymes at the age of twelve in
St. Louis, but his music sounds like that
of any other rap star. Huey attempts to
combine the beat of Kanye West’s “Jesus
Walks” with the nonchalant rapping
style of 50 Cent. The rhythm of the
song is not distinguishing and the overall
tone of the piece is redundant. With the
song’s slow rhythm and tempo, nobody
would be able to “pop, lock, and drop
it.” Instead, the song could easily put
listeners to sleep. He fails miserably in a
genuine attempt to be original. It is odd
that the Zomba Label Group (partnered
with Jive Records), who has signed
Ciara, T-Pain, and Usher, would even
consider signing Huey.
Aside from not possessing any
musical talent, Huey’s lyrics are neither
creative, nor logical. Similar to other rap
lyrics, the song’s words are degrading to
women. It says that if a girl, not woman
or lady, does a sexual dance for a man
then maybe, depending on how good she
“pop, locks, and drops it,” they can go
on a date. On top of insulting women,
Huey copies the overused phrased of
“got money in my pockets.” To top it
off, Huey has a few background singers
repeating his already repeated phrase of
“pop, lock and drop it,” showing that
Huey really wants to get his point across.
On November 13th of last year, Jive
Records announced the launch of YouTube’s video contest to promote Huey’s
single. Since the launch of this contest,
hundreds of videos have been posted in
efforts to win a Sony HD television set.
At the age of 17, Huey partnered
up with Angela Richardson, a local
entrepreneur, to develop his own production agency “Huey Records.” In another
effort to promote the song, local clubs in
St. Louis have put the song into rotation
but it obviously was not good enough
to become nationally recognized, seeing
that it has not been played by Chicago
radio stations.
In a few months, Huey, now 19, will
release his debut album “Notebook Paper.” He chose this title because he writes
his lyrics in a notebook and because
he wants to make money or “paper,”
displaying the low level of intelligence of
this new artist.
Though the song may have catchy
lyrics, it is not worth the time or the
“paper.”
A wound-up sound of disappointment
Gwen Stefani’s “The Sweet Escape”
by Vasiliki Mitrakos
After a series of smash hit tracks on “Love.Angel.Music.
Baby,” the expectations for Gwen Stefani’s newest release
were pretty high. Yet, it is disappointing to say that her second
solo album “The Sweet Escape” is not as sweet as it may
seem. The 12-track album was released on December 5th.
Although many of the songs have heartfelt sources of inspiration and hold deeper meaning, the mixing of musical influences does not produce the same gratifying effect in comparison to Stefani’s previous work. Unlike her last album, which
proved to be a great dance record, “The Sweet Escape” has a
mellower theme. Despite a change in character, Stefani con-
tinues to work with the Harajuku girls and makes references
to LAMB, her clothing company, throughout the album.
The first single, “Wind it Up,” is one of Stefani’s most creative pieces and includes a stylish mix of drum-line, Stefani’s
creativity, a remix of the Neptune’s sound track, and, of all
things, the “The Sound of Music.” But that should not come
as a big surprise because, according to Moxie, the musical
was one of Stefani’s biggest influences and major source of
inspiration. But beside the fact that it reflects Stefani’s eccentric style and is very upbeat, “Wind it Up,” is one of the
few songs on the album that sounds similar to “Love.Angel.
Music.Baby.”
The album’s second single, “The Sweet Escape,” is a
1950’s style mix of R&B. It has a general feeling of bubbly
sweet sounds that do not blend together. Many of the songs
do not have the same upbeat dance quality of her previous
work. “Now That You Got It” is one of the most irritating
songs of the album; not only is the title repeated throughout
the whole song, but when Stefani starts rapping in between
verses, it sounds like a horrific karaoke of R&B. To complement the alarming theme of the song, a continuous police siren plays in the background. Of the other songs in her album,
“Yummy,” featuring Pharrell, has a softer tone and sounds
like a more boring version of “Wind it Up”. It has strange lyrics and the mix of drum-line with video game sounds create a song not pleasing to hear. “Fluorescent” has an 80’s
style mix to it, with the electric piano in the background,
but it is not a song that should be played twice in a row.
Another tarnish to Stefani’s song writing career in this
album is the catastrophic song “Breaking Up.” It sounds
like a bad rap remake of a singular wireless commercial:
all it talks about is losing bars, the phone battery, and
ring-tones. But the song would not be complete without
repeating “Can you hear me now?” about sixteen times.
Another track in need of refurbishing is “Don’t get it
Twisted,” which is based completely on the ringmaster
circus theme music and classic orchestra along with R&B.
This is the perfect example of why some genres just do
not mix. “U Started It” is one of those songs that will
always be skipped over when listening to the album. It
does not have a catchy beat to it, and the repetition of two
verses makes the song too dull.
But there is still hope for the die-hard Gwen Stefani
fans that long for some original “No Doubt” tracks.
Stefani worked with “No Doubt” bassist Tony Kanal to
create “4 In The Morning”, which has a soft but delightful sound to it, with a touch of classical piano that still
reflects Stefani’s girly 1980’s style from her last album.
Her description of true love and the melody make this
song very catchy. Although “Orange County Girl” may
seem irritating in the beginning, the chorus eventually
sticks and becomes memorable.
Another exceptional song is “Early Winter,” which is
filled with emotional, melancholic melodies portraying
Stefani’s wish on incorporating a ballad in her album,
according to Moxie. Stefani worked with Tim Rice-Oxley
from “Keane” to create a soulful song with beautiful lyrics
that can bring up happy memories even when it is sorrowful. “Wonderful Life” is another mellow sweet song
about love and life. Similar to “Cool” from Love.Angel.
Music.Baby, this song has a positive meaning combined
with soft music to create a romantic song.
The whole album contrasts with Stefani’s style, and
can sound really odd when she begins to rap in some of
her songs. Although there are a few exceptions, the R&B,
rap, and hip-hop sounds don’t match her original band
style. This crossing of genres and various artists is not satisfactory and in the end, the CD as a whole is a let-down.
In order to fully enjoy this album it would take multiple
times of listening to it. In other words, it is not Stefani’s
best work. It is not consistent to Stefani’s style and lacks
the very thing that makes her music special. While working with artists like Akon and Pharrell may not have been
the best idea for this album, it is definitely a new beginning for Stefani.
January 2007
A few yards short of a
touchdown
“We Are Marshall”
by Muhammad Akhtar
Over the past ten years
or so, American cinema has
been paraded by formulaic
sports movies. First came
“Remember the Titans,”
then “Friday Night Lights,”
and more recently, “Rocky
Balboa.” All these films
used the same essential
blueprint: an underdog prevails over daunting circumstances to either a triumphant victory or a glorious
defeat. “We Are Marshall”
is able to break away from
that tradition, providing a
different, more emotionally centered formula for its
audience. Unfortunately, it
does not really work.
“We Are Marshall”
chronicles the tragedy of
Marshall University’s football team, the Thundering
Herd. For those unfamiliar
with this situation (a possibility that was ignored by
filmmakers, as the historical context of the movie is
hardly discussed), the entire
Marshall Football Team,
along with faculty members
and fans, were killed in a
devastating plane crash in
1970.
The Thundering Herd
was the joy and pride of
Huntington, Virginia, a
working-class and footballcrazy town. Overwhelmed
by the loss of his home
team, the president of the
university settles on cancelling the Marshall Football
Project indefinitely, but is
persuaded not to do so by
townspeople and students.
The crash left the townspeople emotionally wrecked,
but not hopeless. Later in
the film, a new head coach,
Jack Lengyel (Matthew
McConaughey), and his
assistant William Dawson
(Mathew Fox), embody the
town’s hope to bring the
“Young Herd” to a satisfying, albeit losing, season.
“We Are Marshall” is
different from other sports
movies in many ways,
perhaps most noticeable in
its focus on human drama
rather than the thrill of
football. Football, actually,
seems almost secondary
in the movie. There are no
tremendous victories, no
ingenious plays, and certainly no big football events.
The entire film seems to be
driven only on emotion, at
first providing much needed
relief for those tired of
mechanical sports films. In
fact, the direction of the first
half of the film was nothing
short of spectacular, Oscarworthy even.
Unfortunately, after
the first 45-minutes or so,
the film began to lose its
appeal, and the walk to the
end zone was a sluggish and
drunken one. It seemed that
“We Are Marshall” promotional poster.
Courtesy of www.amazon.com.
director Joseph McGinty, affectionately called “McG,”
was replaced and a zombie
was put in his place instead.
For instance, too much time
was allocated to a game
with little significance to the
plot line and random, somewhat irrelevant scenes were
emphasized; in addition, a
series of motivational scenes
were needlessly added.
The new formula already
appeared to have been overused, indicating poor performance on McG’s part. Star
performances alone kept
audiences in theaters for the
latter half of the film.
McConaughey was
undoubtedly the star, with a
spot-on portrayal of Coach
Lengyel. At times, his
character was so believable
that the film felt like a live
documentary. Fox had a
decent performance, but
he was mostly eclipsed by
McConaughey’s brilliant
acting.
Although “We Are Marshall” is a nice break from
the monotonous world of
sports films, it is definitely
not a cinematic achievement. Misguided direction
(oxymoronic, yes, but true
in the context of the film)
in the second half of the
movie mainly accounted for
this. Simply put, “We Are
Marshall” was a few yards
short of a touchdown.
Arts & Entertainment
Page 5
Radtrocity
Get a room!
by Patricia Radkowski
The second floor atrium feels like a
lounge and many Northsiders use it as
such. The couches in our school create a
dormitory atmosphere, which is perhaps
what motivates so many couples to lay on
them together, whispering sweet nothings
into one another’s ears, giggling, playing
with hair (among other things), kissing, and
generally acting very cute. There is nothing
wrong with teenage love, other than being
impulsive, fast-paced, and as long-lasting as
the flavor in a wad of gum. But is it really
necessary to do all of this as students and
teachers wander all around you?
Of course, it is not your fault that the
hormone levels in your body are skyrocketing, but self-control is a very important skill
to have in life. You (usually) don’t swear at a
teacher to their face, not because you don’t
want to, but because you know the difference between right and wrong. Although
cussing out a teacher has immediate negative consequences, making out in school is
very similar. People judge you 24/7.
So you want attention, yeah? Hopefully
you are aware of the double standard with
which teens judge couples. If you are rather
good-looking and the person whose lips are
lodged between yours is rather good-looking, you earn social points. “Wow, that’s so
hot!” We all secretly admire you and our
little hearts flutter at the hope that one day,
their lips will be between ours. When two
attractive people are in love and showing it
in a hallway, everyone is okay with it. There
may be a little jealousy, but most ill will is
murdered by the overwhelming hope that
one day we, too, will find someone to kiss in
the hallway.
However, ff you did not win the genetics
lottery and even your parents tell you that
“it’s the inside that counts,” maybe you
shouldn’t kiss in the hallway. The public
internally screams “get a room” when two
fair-looking people are expressing romantic
emotions in school. We may be amazed
at your boldness and even shocked that
anyone would touch you, what more in
public, but we are still left with a disgusting
aftertaste.
You don’t necessarily have to be a hottie
to reap social points from public displays
of affection, though. Everyone can name
those cute couples that do quick hugs and
kisses before the door of the girl’s next class.
We love them. It is lovely how they hold
hands while walking down the hall (as long
as they are not dragging, as discussed last
month) and look deep into each other’s eyes
before they part, as if this moment was their
last. Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet
would be put to shame if their “Titanic”
parting would be juxtaposed with the affectionate looks some Northside students can
muster. Cute couples are just that: cute. And
once again, they hold a promise that one
day we’ll find someone, too.
Nor do we mind couples staying after school,
cuddling in a corner ‘til
they’re kicked out by one
of the security guards.
Some of you are actually
justified for showing affection in school. Those of
you who happen to have
younger siblings that look
up to you have the hard
job of being an example
for them. Role models
have to think twice before
displaying affection in
their own homes. I suppose you can snuggle on
the third floor after school
in peace. For others, the
school is a shelter away
from the stern eyes of
their parents. If your
parents don’t know who
your second half is and
you don’t want them to
find out, you are licensed
to hang out after school.
At least most of us aren’t
around to see you.
Probably the worst
place to display affection
is in the cafeteria. Other
people are eating. They
don’t want to see your
tongue darting in and out of someone else’s
mouth. You will also be ambushed by nasty
looks if you eat and kiss at the same time.
If the other person wants some of your
food, don’t give it to them via mouth. That’s
nasty: mother birds regurgitating for their
young do that. Your love can certainly aim
a fork into his or her pie hole without your
assistance.
The moral of this story: before you suck
face against your lover’s locker a) practice
self control and wait until after class, b) just
give them an adoring glance, or c) check the
mirror and then give it your all.
But you might also consider not engaging in public displays of affection altogether.
Intimacy is a sweet aspect of romance.
You could also leave the rest of the school
wondering what it is that you and your
significant other do on your dates. Chances
are the Northside public will overestimate
your activities and then you’ll enjoy your
fictional “achievements” without actually
losing your dignity. Boys, please don’t make
up stories. If some other guy suggests what
happened between you and your girlfriend
last night, just don’t answer. Locker room
talk is trash. Don’t ruin a girl’s reputation.
Love can be a beautiful thing. Take your
time: you have the rest of your life to enjoy
your sexuality. The older you get, the more
tangled your love affairs will become. Not
only will you be bogged down by memories
of exes, but relationships will get serious as
the pressure to marry rises with your age.
Right now you can date someone for two
years and not feel any obligation to stay
with them for the rest of your life. Enjoy the
innocence of youth: don’t grow up too fast.
Rushed relationships eliminate the
subtle romantic aspects of attraction. There
is something undeniably powerful in looks,
touches, whispers, kisses, fantasies and selfcontrol. Louis Armstrong says it best in “A
Kiss to Build a Dream On.”
Give me a kiss to build a dream on
And my imagination will thrive upon that
kiss
Sweetheart, I ask no more than this
A kiss to build a dream on
Give me a kiss before you leave me
And my imagination will feed my hungry
heart
Leave me one thing before we part
A kiss to build a dream on
When I’m alone with my fancies... I’ll be
with you
Weaving romances... making believe they’re
true
Give me your lips for just a moment
And my imagination will make that moment live
Give me what you alone can give
A kiss to build a dream on
October
Editorial
Page 6 2006
Arts & Entertainment
The Page
Hoof7Beat
“The Messengers”
They obviously didn’t get the memo
by Abir Usman
“The Messengers” is a sad
excuse for a horror movie. With
cheap thrills as ammunition for suspense, “The Messengers” achieves
nothing more than a few laughs
and confused expressions.
The film successfully hit all of
the clichés found in the basic horror
movie. Picture it: small town, female victim, and a chase scene. The
characters of the movie feed into
another cliché. The father figure of
the family and newly established
sunflower farmer, Roy (Dylan
McDermott), tries to keep the family together. McDermott provides
the audience with nothing more
than a mediocre performance. The
daughter Jessica (Kristen Stewart)
lacked talent as well. Appearing uncomfortable on the screen, Stewart
delivers her lines like a true amateur. The weary mother (Penelope
Ann Miller) is tired of worrying
about her daughter, the reason for
their move to North Dakota. Miller
shows no emotion, which fits
perfectly with her
role of a woman
estranged from
her family and
the rest of the
world. Miller was
one of the the
only actors who
gave a decent
performance.
Ben, the baby of
the family (Evan
and Theodore
Turner), doesn’t
play a significant
role, except for
being the first to
see dead people.
Ben can’t tell
anyone though,
not because he
doesn’t want to,
but because of
his inability to
speak after that
tragedy back in
Chicago. Bobby
(Dustin Milligan)
becomes Jessica’s
new friend or
love interest, as
viewers might
infer from his
attempts to show
off his sports
skills. Milligan
plays a memorable character,
mostly due to his
attempt at humor
and being the one
who saves the
day. The lonely
drifter Burwell
A small child is grabbed by unknown spirits in “The
Messengers.”
Photo courtesy of Amazon.com
(John Corbett) quickly befriends
the family and helps run their farm.
Corbett was the best actor in the
film. He not only did justice for his
character but he expanded upon the
image of the modern-day drifter.
“Fangoria: America’s Horror
Magazine,” considered the epitome
of all horror movie fanatics, gave
the film two skulls for its delivery
of “easy jolts [and] minor shivers,”
as reviewed by managing editor Michael Gingold in issue 260. Many
audience members left the theater
wondering what the message of
“The Messengers” really was.
If the film did anything right,
it would be its tribute to Alfred
Hitchcock’s “The Birds”: black
birds constantly perched atop the
Solomon house and there were
a few scenes of them attacking
people.
“The Messengers” lost the real
message, whatever it was, in the
chaos of trying to deliver a decent
film. The directors of the film, the
Pang Brothers, should have focused
more on meeting the standards of
the horror genre.
“With a scary movie, when the
audience comes out of a theater, all
that matters is whether it's scary,"
said co-director Oxide Pang according to the Internet Movie Database
(IMDB).
The Pang brothers should
instead focus on the second thing
that matters which would have
been including more scenes of the
other occupants of the home. The
fear factor could have easily been
raised by adding a few more ounces
of blood here and there, not to
mention some more chase scenes.
Overall, “The Messengers” failed to
even send the audience the message
of fear.
“The Messengers” promotional poster.
Courtesy of www.amazon.com.
Moaning for more
by Damon Beres
Opening with some thoughtful
quotes set to black and white film,
director Craig Brewer (famous for
the Academy Award-nomianted
“Hustle & Flow”) might have the
audience believe that there’s some
substance to “Black Snake Moan.”
Then Christina Ricci makes hot
love to Justin Timberlake, flips off
tractors, and takes drugs at a wild
party. High art, indeed.
Despite grasping at some
higher meaning via the grimly
righteous Lazarus (played by none
other than Samuel Jackson), the
movie isn’t going to appease those
looking for much else besides a
scantily-clad Ricci walking around
in chains for half its duration. Perhaps it has something to do with
Timberlake’s wooden acting or a
lazily crafted script.
It’s generally well-made,
popcorn-guzzling entertainment,
though. Lazarus and Rae (Ricci)
play off beautifully against one
another, igniting many an awkward moment and progressing the
film’s characterization in meaningful ways. Brewer has stylistic flair in Samuel L. Jackson stars in “Black Snake Moan,” now in theaters.
his directing, and he manages to stir Courtesy of www.amazon.com.
emotions and evoke some thought
during a number of powerful
don’t move things along too quickly. Yes,
as it is) attempting to force the word of God
scenes, particularly one involving the film’s
the two play off each other well, but no film
into a battered, nymphomaniac Caucasian
title song and Jackson on the electric guitar.
should place all of its eggs in one basket.
(no need to offend just one end of the race
At an hour and 50 minutes, “Black
Maybe it aspires for more, but “Black Snake
spectrum, of course). It works for a while
Snake Moan,” manages not to overstay its
Moan” relies on its crazy gimmick of a
but ultimately grows a bit stale. The audiwelcome, but does amble a bit. Though the
foul-mouthed, African-American evangelist
ence wants more.
Rae-Lazarus interactions are enjoyable, they
(teetering on some dangerous stereotypes,
Overall, it’s an innovative film, as it’s
not everyday that a talented director pushes
the boundaries of transgression via the blues
and quirky characters. Judging from “Hustle
& Flow,” however, and what it strives for but
never quite reaches, “Black Snake Moan”
could have been a lot more.
Page 8
Centerfold The Hoof Beat
SEX Ed.
Holy intercourse
Religious take on sex
by Muamera Hadzic
Sex and sexuality, heavily infused
in popular and teen culture share a
common thread in the three Abrahamic
religions. Christianity, Judaism and
Islam almost identically reject the notion of sexual activity before marriage.
However, the carnal act of sexual intercourse carries its significant religious
weight as a holy union between two
married people. The three holy texts do
not shy from explicit references to sex,
despite the fact that it is sternly forbidden, but rather outline for its followers
the appropriate conduct.
Judaism condemns engaging in
pre-marital sex and adultery in the Old
Testament, which lays out an unwavering framework for what is and is not
allowed. Leviticus begins in a standard
"Tell the Israelites: I am the Lord your
God. Follow my rules, and live by my
standards. I am the Lord your God.
Live by my standards, and obey my
rules. You will have life through them.
I am the Lord.” (Leviticus 18) The
remainder of that section is comprised
of 14 prohibitions in terms of sexual
activity. Verses 20 through 23 state
that one should “never have sexual
intercourse with [one’s] neighbor’s
wife and become unclean with her, [to]
never have sexual intercourse with a
man as with a woman, [to] never have
sexual intercourse with any animal and
become unclean with it and a woman
must never offer herself to an animal
for sexual intercourse. It is unnatural.” Along with the remaining verses,
it is clear that those followers are to
refrain from sexual activity that is not
pure and/or does not involve married
participants.
The New Testament similarly
cautions people to “run from anything
that stimulates youthful lust. Follow
anything that makes you want to do
right. Pursue faith and love and peace,
and enjoy the companionship of those
who call on the Lord with pure hearts.”
(Timothy 2) Premarital sex and adultery are prohibited. Christianity, like its
other two counterparts, only endorses
sexual activity when the people in
question are married. The remainder
is deemed and condemned as fornication and is referenced several times
throughout various sections. The Bible
first warns its believers: "Know ye not
that the unrighteous shall not inherit
the kingdom of God ? Be not deceived:
neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor
adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor
thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards,
nor revilers, nor extortionists shall inherit the kingdom of God ." (Corinthians 6) Secondly, Thessalonians shows
that “God wants [his followers] to be
holy and completely free from sexual
immorality.” With these two pressing
verses it is clear that pre-marital sex
is forbidden in religious thought and
study.
Muslims are also prohibited from
engaging in pre-marital sex, as well
as pre-marital acts of lust. The Quran
warns “believing men that they should
lower their gaze and guard their modesty: that will make for greater purity of
them: And God is well acquainted with
all that they do. And say to the believing women that they should lower their
gaze and guard their modesty.” (The
Light 24: An Nur) Islam calls for a
purer lifestyle in its entirety and this includes sexual modesty that starts with
simple things like social interactions.
However, despite the fact that the
three core religions prohibit sexual
activity before marriage, premarital sex
has become a norm in American Society. The Public Health Records report
published results from the National
Survey of Family Growth from 1982
to 2002 which show that by the age of
20, 75% of men and women have had
premarital sex and 95% of men and
women have had premarital sex. Even
out of those that abstained from sex
until the age of 20, records indicate
that 81% then had premarital sex by
the age of 44. This has shown effects
of marriage trends in that people are
waiting longer to get married and are
sexually active at the same time, a significant change from 1950s American
Standards.
“The trends make a lot of
sense because as societal norms
are evolving, religious justification is not necessary or
people will find a way to alter
religion to fit our rapidly
changing society,” said a
Northside student.
“Well I see it two ways
in terms of religion: there’s
those that are extremely spiritual and think that a firm belief
in God and generalities outweigh
concrete things that are forbidden, or
you stick to scripture and refuse to engage in premarital sex,” said Jai Garg,
Adv. 703.
The increasing debate and controversy over decisions to engage in
premarital sex and still be considered
a practicing follower continue as
scripture contrasts social acceptances
and socially religious norms. However,
it is clear through Biblical, Quranic and
Jewish textual references that premarital and inappropriate sexual activity are
forbidden in their most concrete sense.
The Sexual Revolution of the 20th Century
by Zahra Lalani
American society views sex very differently today than 50 years ago. What was the
driving force behind this sexual revolution
and the fundamental change in society’s
opinions on pre-martial sex? Recent statistics from the Guttemacher Institute of
Sexual and Reproductive Issues proclaim
that the driving force of the sexual
revolution in the 1960s was the
introduction of birth control pills.
Such a ground-breaking innovation
made having sex before marriage
more tempting. Without the concern
of unwanted pregnancies, young
adults remained sexually active for
longer periods of time out of wedlock.
Since the 1940s, the number of women
sexually active before marriage has
been rapidly increasing. 95 percent of
the women interviewed in Guttemacher’s study admitted to engaging
in pre-marital sex.
This sexual revolution defied society’s traditional perceptions of good
girls being virtuous and waiting until
marriage to become sexually active.
How did society change its perceptions so quickly? Many believe that
the liberal promotion and habitual
practices of pre-martial sex occurred
because of the increasing influence
of the media.
“It’s [pre-marital sex] more of
a common thing because of how
much sex is in the media,” Jane
Bialek, Adv. 808, said.
It was during this sexual revolu-
tion that men and women were equally likely
to engage in pre-martial sex, Lawrence Finer,
Director of Research at Guttemacher Institute, reported. This likelihood has remained
stable since the 1950s.
Despite the widely-accepted sexual promiscuity
of today, religious virtues continue to prosper
at Northside challenging the media’s message
that pre-martial sex is acceptable. Amy Perez,
Adv. 708, has decided not to engage in sexual
activity before she marries.
“There’s a time and place for everything,
and my time is after marriage,” Perez said.
Society’s norms are established when
people start to think that if one person does it,
then the act becomes acceptable. In this fashion, Perez says she does not want to promote
the idea of making such a sacred practice a
common habit. Religion clings tight to some
students, like Perez, but other views are also
evident at Northside.
Although not a promoter of pre-marital
sex himself, Fabian Flexas, Adv. 900, says
that sometimes having sex before marriage
is acceptable.
“I think it’s okay and even necessary
at times, as long as you take measures to
protect yourself,” Flexas said. “There’s way
too much of that [young women becoming pregnant] today. It’s one thing I promised
myself I would not do.”
Pregnancy is a serious concern for
those who engage in this type of behavior.
Statistics support Flexas’s claim that sexual
promiscuity has led to a spike in the number of unwanted pregnancies. The Guttemacher Institute reports that the number
of teen mothers has increased throughout
the years despite the easier access to birth
control medication. Further studies by
the Institute foreshadow an increase in
pre-marital sex in the decades ahead.
“This perception amongst teens today
that sex is a casual act is an ongoing problem even with all the contraceptives available,” Flexas said. “That just goes to show
how different the teen psyche of this century
is than it was fifty years ago.”
February 2007
Centerfold
Page 9
Fewer babies may mean
more STDs
by Aliy Markowski
The rate of teen pregnancy has begun
to decline in the last ten years. But is this
improvement at the cost of an increase in
sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), which
are now spreading at a rate that the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services
reports is 50 percent higher than last decade?
High school students, themselves, admit that
unwanted pregnancy is their main concern,
and teens may be less likely to protect themselves from STDs if they are using hormonal
birth control in the form of the pill or the
patch.
“If guys know that their partner is on the
pill, they’re way more resistant to using condoms,” Sam Spread, Adv. 702, said. “The
reason people our age wear condoms it to
protect against pregnancy. They don’t think
about STDs as much.”
Females agree that the risk of STDs
seems like less of a concern than pregnancy,
Corey Kasten, Adv. 708, said.
“I’m not worried about STDs at this
point in my life,” Kasten said.
Aisha Taylor, Adv. 708, says that STDs
are an afterthought for most teens she
knows.
“I very rarely hear of people using
condoms for oral sex,” Taylor said. “This
may be stupid, but I think it shows that teens
worry more about pregnancy than STDs,
which you can easily contract from oral sex,
too.”
Taylor is right. In a recent ABC survey,
65 percent of American teens who reported
engaging in oral sexual activities said they
do not regularly use a condom or other form
of STD protection.
The increase in teen access to hormonal
birth control over the last ten years may be
the cause of the rise in STDs. The International Planned Parenthood Council reports
that Pill users are more likely to have sex
and less likely to use condoms. In a recent
joint study conducted by the Council and
Family Health International, pill users were
1.5 times as likely to contract Chlamydia
and Gonorrhea as those who were not on
the pill. But is this correlation worth limiting
the availability of the pill to teenage girls?
Maggie O’Connell, Adv. 807, says decreasing unwanted teen pregnancies is worth the
risk.
“Both pregnancy and STDs are concerns,” O’Connell said. “But if we have to
battle only one thing at a time, it would be
my hope that we could lower the epidemic
of teen pregnancies first.”
O’Connell says she thinks Northsiders
underestimate the rate of teen pregnancies
in the U.S. and overestimate the risk of
contracting an STD.
“It would be the doctor’s responsibility
to explain to teens that the pill doesn’t protect against STDs and I’m sure any doctor
would do that,” O’Connell said. “Besides
how many of us actually have STDs? I
don’t think it’s as big of a risk, especially at
Northside.”
Kati McKelvey, Adv. 708, agrees. McKelvey says that unintended pregnancy is
such a big issue for many teens that any step
to reduce the risk is necessary.
“At Northside, I think people don’t
really think teen pregnancy is that big of a
problem because we’re not around it all the
time,” McKelvey said. “But at other schools
it’s a huge issue.”
McKelvey has seen the extent of the
teen pregnancy crisis at a medical clinic
where her mother works.
“About half of the women who come
in with unwanted pregnancies are teens,”
McKelvey said.
Camila Youniss, Adv. 700, says that
the increased promiscuity that may result
from access to hormonal birth control is a
conscious choice on the part of teens- not a
case of ignorance.
“It’s not like people don’t understand
that condoms present STDs and the pill
doesn’t,” Youniss said. “It’s about responsibility and personal choice.”
Rana Marks, Adv. 810, says she agrees
that teenagers still know to use a condom if
their partner might have an STD.
“If I were to ever be in the situation
where I was having sex with someone who I
didn’t know very well, I would definitely use
a condom no matter what,” Marks said.
But Stephanie Levine, Adv. 805, says
the problem is many teens’ false sense of
immunity.
“Once people are using contraception
like the pill, they underestimate the potential of people they know to carry an STD,”
Levine said. “It’s like pregnancy seems like
a realistic threat, but STDs are sort of an ‘it
could never happen to me’ kind of thing.”
Researchers from the Planned Parenthood Council say there’s no perfect solution. O’Connell agrees.
“It’s sort of a lose-lose situation,”
O’Connell said. “Sure you may find teens
being less responsible about STDs if you
give them a sure-fire way to protect themselves from pregnancy, but it’s better than
the alternative of stripping teen girls of the
ability to take control of their reproductive
future.”
SEX! Now that I have your attention…
The role of sex in the media and pop culture
by Kana Yoo
It appears that the old adage “sex sells”
holds true from the amount of sex permeating the media and pop culture. From Lindsay
Lohan’s “fire crotch” to VH1’s “I Love New
York,” the public is bombarded with sexual
images and suggestiveness. Over the last five
decades, American culture has undergone a
series of transformations from the wholesome
1950’s, to the free love of the
1970’s, to our current condition of explicit
sexual material. This dramatic wave is clearly
portrayed through America’s sex icons, from
Marilyn Monroe to the late Anna Nicole
Smith. The shifting ideals of feminism and
the role of women in society have contributed to this change. While a woman can use
sex to attain power and status, she also faces
objectification in the male-dominated media
industry.
In a recent issue
of Newsweek titled
“The Girls Gone
Wild Effect,” Paris
Hilton and Britney
Spears appeared on
the cover with their
arms draped
around each
other and with
Britney looking provocatively into the
camera. The
article addresses
the issue of how
celebrities’ behavior affects children.
A Newsweek Poll
found that “84 percent of adults say
sex plays a bigger
role in popular
culture than it
did 20 or 30
years ago.” Paris Hilton inched her way into
the spotlight through her own reality show
“The Simple Life” on Fox, but it was her
sex tape that sky-rocketed her into infamous
celebrity status. Britney Spears launched her
career using a schoolgirl fantasy, and then
became progressively more sexual as a sweaty,
hipbone bearing slave dancer, and now, as a
vagina-flashing post-preggy.
While it is easy to scorn these women
for their over-exposure, some celebration
may be due. There was a time when women
were stoned for adultery. Fast forward a few
decades from this period of public humiliation and a woman revealing her arms or her
calves was seen to be indecent. Today, women
must still live with a double standard when it
comes to relationships and sexuality, but they
have certainly come a long way. Some might
call Paris Hilton’s burger-gorging, soapy car
wash ad empowerment.
Every generation has had its dose of
shock and scandal. Marilyn passed the torch
to Madonna, who passed on the torch (and
some saliva) to Britney. Even celebrities who
do not use their sex appeal to gain fame are
nevertheless trapped in the culture. They may
even promote their more anti-Britney image
to garner fans, like Pink’s statement in her
single “Stupid Girls.”
Men are not objectified as frequently as
women, but they must still maintain macho
men personas to win leading roles. Brad Pitt
trained to attain chiseled abs and bulging
biceps for his characterization of Achilles in
“Troy.” Summer tabloids chronicled the progress of shirtless Matthrew McConaughjey.
Female fans ogle the male body just as much
as men regard women.
Beyond the image of individual celebrities, there are sexual references throughout
the media, including television. In 1991,
Barry S. Sapolsky and Joseph O. Tabarlet
published their findings on sex in primetime
television in the Journal of Broadcasting and
Electronic Media. They found that within an
average hour of prime-time television on the
three major U.S. networks, there were about
15 sexual acts, words, and innuendos. Today,
residents and doctors in “Grey’s Anatomy”
have sex more often than they perform medical exams; on “Lost,” Sawyer and Kate made
love while trapped in a cage by the Others;
and Fox’s “Family Guy” is filled with sexual
jokes and themes, epitomized by Quagmire,
the perverted sex-addict.
In response to inappropriate content on
television, the Parents Television Council was
founded in 1995, and continues to inform
parents of the content and ratings of various
television programming. If there is enough
backlash from parents and other concerned
citizens, society may sway towards more
conservative times, like how the family-oriented 50’s followed the flapper era of the
1920’s. Whether this change would be good
or bad is subjective. Until then, the American
public can expect more scandalous headlines,
raunchy reality shows, and steamy relationships on the screen.
Page 10 Features
Working towards a ‘Peaceable Kingdom’
The Hoof Beat
Animal Rights Club screens a film
by Kana Yoo
The days of Old McDonald’s farm are over. Smaller farms dumps to suffocate, or killed in some other way because they
“It gave me more insight into the meat packing industry
with grazing cows and pecking hens have been replaced with
are deemed useless. They come from a breed of chickens
and how it branches out into dairy and other products,” Khrisbig industry factory farms and stockyards, which were the
genetically manipulated to be of smaller size and to lay eggs
tian Estrada, Adv. 707, said. “I’m definitely going to consider
focus of the film, “Peaceable Kingdom.” Animal Rights Club
more quickly. Fact: Veal is a byproduct of dairy. Dairy cows
reducing meat from my diet, especially now that I know of
screened the film for free, along with serving vegan desserts,
must be pregnant in order to produce milk. Once they give
alternatives. But meat is a big part of my culture.”
providing informational pamphlets, and having a post-film
birth, the male cows (who have no purpose because the female
At the end of the film, two representatives from ‘Mercy
discussion.
cows are artificially inseminated) are removed from their
for Animals’ answered audience questions. In response to one
“Our goal for tonight is to educate people of the conmothers and confined in a small space until the day they are
question about foods labeled ‘organic,’ the representatives
dition of animals used for food on factory farms, and of
slaughtered.
stated that such labels mean very little. According to them,
animal rights in general,” said Omnia
vegan is the only way to completely proIbrahim, Outreach Coordinator from
test the poor treatment of animals within
‘Mercy for Animals,’ an animal rights
the industry.
organization in Chicago. “We are here
“They only advocated a vegan lifeto show people it is possible to live
style, which really excludes many who
without animal exploitation in their
may not be able or willing to take such a
lives.”
huge step,” Friedmann said. “Although I
The film centers on Farm Sanctumay be willing to try to be a vegetarian, I
ary, a shelter that rescues abused
could never be a vegan: it’s too limiting.
animals and raises awareness. The
Free range chicken may not be as ideal
Sanctuary provides lifelong care for
but it’s a step.”
the animals, and can also act as a
Animals Rights Club is more flexible
form of therapy for humans. Harold
in their promotion of animal advocacy.
Brown and Howard Lyman are two
The club is open to anyone interested in
such men who use the Sanctuary as
the topic and deals not only with animal
a means of healing. The former grew
rights, but also with welfare. Those who
up on a farm and the latter owned a
are concerned about animal welfare can
feedlot operation before both came to
still eat meat, but oppose the maltreatthe realization that animals deserve
ment of animals before slaughter. The
better treatment. Footage from the
club meets on Tuesdays, twice a month.
film showed hens packed into cages,
Past projects have been collection for the
struggling calves being dragged into
Anti-Cruelty Society and for Orphans of
slaughterhouses, and dying cows piled
the Storm. The purpose of this event was
on top of each other.
to raise awareness.
“The film had a lot of emotional
“I think we had a really good
appeal. It was effective and I felt
turnout,” said Pinal Sheth, Adv. 807, Coinspired,” Jennifer Friedmann, Adv.
President of Animals Rights Club. “The
904, said.
film conveyed the message. We got a lot
Facts about the food industry
Before the start of the film, an audience member looks through a pamphlet on “Why Vegetarian?” of people to think about factory farming
were brought to light. Fact: Male
and vegetarianism. Overall, it went really
while Omandra Zamora, Adv. 800, serves vegan refreshments.
chicks are thrown away in garbage
well.”
Photo by Kana Yoo
You’ve got a friend
Peer Mentoring Program
by Ashraf Abbas
Northside offers many programs to its students, all of which try to provide something
beneficial and worthwhile. Perhaps the most
helpful of these programs is the Peer Mentoring program, a program that allows freshmen
to ask questions and learn from the experiences of upperclassmen.
“The program seeks to help freshmen
make a positive transition into life as a high
school student,” Ms. Angela Lekkas, of the
Guidance Department, said. “It’s basically
Northside’s version of ‘Big Brothers and Big
Sisters.’”
As the brainchild of Ms. Lekkas, the Peer
Mentor program appears for a second time
with newfound determination to succeed. The
program existed two years ago and came to
an abrupt end after the first semester of the
2004-2005 school year because of schedules
set by CPS. Nonetheless, Ms. Lekkas plans
to take past experiences and build upon
them, creating a more efficient, more helpful
program.
There are 21 mentors (12 seniors, eight juniors, and one sophomore) that were selected
last year by Ms. Lekkas for their leadership,
level of empathy and communication skills.
All were trained for three days over summer
break on their responsibilities for the coming
the school year, some of which include communication, attentive listening and conflict
resolution. Soon after, the mentors were assigned to advisories and told to do their best.
Every Tuesday and Wednesday morning,
the mentors visit their respective advisories
and speak to them on a number of topics,
all of which are geared to help the freshman
class.
“Sometimes there are special days when
Mrs. Lekkas wants us to talk to them about
things like the program selection or AP
classes,” Mentor Santino Merino, Adv. 802,
said. “And other times the advisory teacher
brings in games like Clue and Uno, and that’s
just a good way to get to know them—so they
are then more comfortable telling us if they’re
stressed out or need help with anything.”
The mentors meet Thursday mornings
with Mrs. Lekkas to plan and discuss possible
topics and events. They also look over polls
given to advisories in an effort to understand
what it is that freshmen want to learn or be
exposed to.
“In our meetings we talk about upcoming
events, plan meetings, and go ahead and plan
our discussion topics for extended advisory,”
said Mrs. Lekkas.
The program also schedules outings like
“Double-OO-Day,” held on October 18th.
Freshmen and mentors worked side-by-side
in activities that brought them closer together
like pumpkin-carving a massive tug-of-war
competition. The current plan is to continue
close interaction between the mentors and the
freshmen.
“Sometimes they walk up to me and ask
me questions about what they should do
next,” Merino, Adv. 802, said. “They even
give me high fives!”
Freshman and their peer mentors work to win a game of tug-of-war on
Double-OO-Day.
Photo Courtesy of Orhay Mirzapolos, Adv. 708.
Business or bogus?
Students wonder about talent scouts
by Molly McAndrew
Before winter break, on December 20,
Northside had a special guest during a few of
the later lunch periods. A sponsor from John
Robert Powers Performing Arts Academy
visited to inform the students of the various
programs offered by the academy. However,
she spent most of the time going from
table to table asking students to fill
out note cards offering the opportunity to get a callback from
the school. At times, she would
stop and talk about how she
used her wages from modeling to put herself through
medical school.
The cards asked for
personal information such
as name, phone number,
etc. and below asked
about the student’s area
of interest. The choices
were acting, modeling,
singing, sitcoms, soap
operas, and more.
There was also
help with public
speaking and job
interviews.
Students, to
say the least,
were unimpressed by
the woman’s
presentation.
Chyei
Vinluan,
Adv. 908,
said, “It
was really
weird. She
asked us
to fill out these
cards that asked
us what we wanted
to do. A lot of
kids lied and said they
wanted to be models or
actors as a joke.”
Not many students expected to receive a
callback and so far, most, if not all, students
have not received one. Some students confessed to putting down fake names and email
addresses. Others told the truth just to see
what would happen. A few were interested
and were a little upset when they did not hear
back from the school.
John Robert Powers Performing Arts
Academy is a well-known talent-scouting
agency throughout the United States. It trains
people interested in the business of entertainment. Former clientele who have made names
for themselves are Lucille Ball, AJ Trouth,
Diana Ross, and Jackie Onassis. There are
hundreds of locations throughout the
United States of America.
There are special programs
designed to target particular interests. “Life program” is a ten-week
course covering confidence building, goal setting, public speaking, nutrition, image development: hair, skin, make up,
and more. “Model Program”
offers workshops such as
runway and commercial.
“Acting Programs” work
on theatre, film, soaps,
and sitcoms.
All programs at
John Robert Powers Performing Arts
Academy have fees
that are paid before
training begins.
Those who are
interested in that
type of agency
should be cautious of places
that swindle
people for
money.
There are
many
stories of
places
similar to John
Robert Powers
that have ripped off
young hopeful teens
in search of fame and
fortune. Although there is no hard
evidence against John Robert Powers
one should remain wary if they want to look
deeper into this.
Anyone interested in what happened to
his or her chance for fame should visit the
John Robert Powers website, www.johnrobertpowers.net/Privacy.html.
February 2007
Valentine’s Day:
How Northsiders
celebrated
by Riaz Shaikh
It began with a simple love letter expressing the deep emotions
of an incarcerated medieval saint to his separated lover. Now, it’s
an annual American tradition celebrated by many around the nation and at Northside.
Although the true history behind Valentine’s Day is somewhat
obscure, there is a rough idea accepted by the majority of people
about how the holiday originated According to an article on www.
history.com, Valentine’s Day was created sometime around the
third century in memory of the Christian priest, St. Valentine. Roman Emperor Claudius II found that single men served as superior
soldiers in comparison to men who were married or had families.
Thus, he forbade young men from marrying and registered them
into his army. In objection, St. Valentine performed marriages for
many young lovers. When his crimes were discovered, he was
jailed and sentenced to death. This is when St. Valentine fell in
love with a young woman and wrote her a love letter before he was
executed, signing it with the now commonly used words, “From,
your Valentine.” People around the world now commemorate February 14th for those they love and also in memory of St. Valentine.
Many Northside students made plans to celebrate Valentine’s
Day. Some students and faculty members shared their ideas for the
holiday.
“My plans for this Valentine’s Day were to sleep, eat, do some
homework, hangout with my significant other, drink three cups of
coffee, read a good book.,” Karla Ortiz, Adv. 902, said.
“My schedule for this year was: to look pretty, hangout with
my boyfriend, and eat lots of chocolate,” Megan Cleary, Adv. 905
said.
“For Valentine’s Day my plans were to do something incredible, hangout with my friends, and wear lots of red,” Ursula
Moreno Vanderlone, Adv. 902 said,
Northside’s NHS (National Honors Society) also had plans to
accommodate the holiday. From Monday, February 5th to Friday
the 9th, NHS sold candy grams to Northside students.
“I think that selling candy grams was a good idea for NHS
because it worked wells as a fundraiser,” NHS member Matthew
Cohen, Adv. 710, said. “Many students purchased candy grams,
and on Valentine’s Day NHS members delivered both anonymous
and public purchases to students during advisory.”
Hollywood is conveniently providing two new romance movies, released especially for couples to enjoy on the 14th. These two
new films are Marc Lawrence’s “Music and Lyrics”, starring Hugh
Grant and Drew Barrymore, and Tyler Perry’s “Daddy’s Little
Girls”, starring Gabrielle Union and Idris Elba. Of the two, the latter seems to uphold a more mature story directed to older couples.
One student, however, believed that neither film would be suitable.
“I don’t think watching a movie on Valentine’s Day is a good
idea because you really don’t get to spend time with whoever
you’re with,” Chelsea Ringquist, Adv. 904, said. “Ordinarily I
would be willing to watch a movie, but I just feel that watching
a movie isn’t the proper or brightest thing to do. Instead I would
enjoy doing something more recreational or fun where I’m able to
spend time and actually talk to my date.”
It seems that students are not the only ones who frown upon
movie-watching on “love-day.” Northside faculty members Mr.
Chris Pagani, of the Physical Education Department, and his wife
Mrs. Janet Torres-Pagani, of the World Language Department,
eliminated a movie from their schedule, regardless of genre.
“We didn’t go watch a movie, instead we went to see a play,”
Mr. Pagani said. “The top things on our list were to enjoy a candlelit dinner in a nice downtown restaurant (further specification
kept confidential). After that we’ll go and watch the ‘25th Annual
Putnam County Spelling Bee,’ a Broadway musical and comedy.”
“Well, before we enjoy our night out we exchanged gifts with
the children like we always do and then sent them to their grandmother’s house,” Mrs. Torres-Pagani said.
The couple offered some advice for students.
“Don’t take it too seriously, because you’re still only young,”
Mrs. Torres-Pagani said. “Some kids take it out of proportion and
depress themselves over girl/boyfriend issues. I think students
should enjoy themselves with their friends and just have fun.”
Mr. Pagani agreed.
“At the end of the day it’s only a Hallmark holiday, and
shouldn’t be taken as anything else,” Mr. Pagani said. “Have fun
and eat some chocolate.”
Features
Belcaster’s Golden Apple
Page 11
award will be announced. For Mr. Belcaster, though, it’s
about more than a golden trophy.
“One would hope that everyone in this profession
answers a higher calling,” Mr. Belcaster said.
For him, it is about making the world better in smaller
ways. Though he’s worked alongside Barack Obama in
the past, even appearing in his 2008 campaign video, Mr.
Belcaster never regrets dropping that to become a teacher.
“If he becomes president, and I’m a teacher at Northside, I got the better deal,” Mr. Belcaster said. “140 times
a day, I have direct involvement with those who could
become future Obamas.”
All of this would not be possible without the influence of the teachers Mr. Belcaster had as a child. Though
his parents did not even attend college, Mr. Belcaster
was driven by those who had a direct involvement in his
education.
It all started with Mrs. Taurus, second grade teacher.
Mrs. Taurus gave him the immense responsibility, to
a 7-year-old, at least, of being the class’ official ‘paper
passer-outer.’
“There was nothing more exhilarating, in anyone’s view, than being designated this highly important
position,” Mr. Belcaster said.
Taking things a step further, he
would stay in during outdoor recess,
at Mrs. Taurus’ request, to help cut
paper.
“She did it with a twinkle in her
eye and made me feel special,” Mr.
Belcaster said.
But it wasn’t just the menial
tasks that affected Mr. Belcaster,
as he would find out from Ms.
Formato in eighth grade. The year
was 1977, and busloads of young
African-Americans arrived at school
from far away, only to be treated, as
Mr. Belcaster explains it, “terribly.”
Realizing this, Ms. Formato
assigned all of her classes to watch
the television special, “Roots,”
based upon the work of Alex Haley.
This program exposed the trials
Mr. Belcaster tells his World Studies class about his days as a civil
and grand traditions of the Africanrights attorney, when he defended the rights of women factory workers.
American family.
Photo by Kana Yoo
“I’ve never forgotten that piece,”
Mr. Belcaster said.
Gallon, former law partner, were Mr. Belcaster’s picks),
Years later, he would look back on the methods of
and a four-page “day in the life” report. Mr. Belcaster was
Mrs. Taurus and Ms. Formato and realize that both had
initially reluctant.
unusual teaching methods.
“I am someone who looks around this building and
“I try to replicate that,” Mr. Belcaster said. “There are
sees others at the top of their game,” he said. “I’m still a
not enough of those teachers.”
student myself.”
Northside has the great fortune of having such teachHis wife insisted, however, and what man can argue
ers in spades. Mr. Belcaster will learn in early March if
with that? After submitting the final components of the
he’ll be joining the award-winning members of the social
application, Mr. Belcaster was subjected to a full day of
science department, Mr. Tim Devine (also a Golden
examination from a two-person Golden Apple committee.
Apple winner) and Mrs. Catherine Irving (Disney Award
The same committee also held a private meeting with a
winner).
group of Mr. Belcaster’s students.
To this he says, “We’re still looking for an Emmy.”
In early March, the ten winners of the Golden Apple
by Damon Beres
Why does a Yale Law School graduate and former
practicing civil rights lawyer drop it all to teach at a Chicago Public School?
“My teachers made me feel like the most important
person in the world,” Mr. John Belcaster, social science
teacher, said.
He wants to give that feeling to new generations of
students.
His efforts have been recognized by the Golden Apple
Foundation, which takes nominations from students,
teachers, and administrators every three years. A total of
803 teachers were nominated this year, a number eventually narrowed down to 32 finalists.
After the initial rounds of nominations, teachers could
opt to move forward with the application process, which
consisted of a write-up of biographical information, an
explanation of how they go “beyond” in the workplace,
colleague recommendations (Dr. James Lalley, principal, Mr. Tim Devine, social science teacher, and George
A taste of old-fashioned fun
Kedzie Shores Assisted Living
by Aliy Markowski
The chipper of Abbot and
Costello’s “Who’s on First” hums
in the background. A tall figure in a
colorful home-knit sweater chews on
pair of spectacles as she leans over a
puzzle, a work in progress that has
spread to cover the entire table. A
shorter woman shuffles around the
room asking newcomers for spare
change. Cane in hand, a man offers
peppermint and butterscotch candy to
the group. No, this is not the cover of
an AARP magazine, but an afternoon
at Kedzie Shores Assisted Living, a
new club emulating the lives of the
elderly.
“I really like lots of the pastimes
that old people take part in,” ClubFounder John Holler, Adv. 705, said.
“I created Kedzie Shores so we can
take part, too.”
“When I come in here on Thursdays I become Arthur, not John,”
Holler said. “It’s like a break from
our reality and a step into theirs.”
Each group member chooses
a name characteristic of an older
generation to use during the Kedzie
Shores meetings. These aliases add
to the feeling of a retirement home
in Northside’s English wing. Since
October, the group has participated in
activities like bocce ball tournaments,
watching old movies like “Casabalanca,” bingo hour sessions, and
listening to 1940s radio shows like
“The Avenger.”
“Listening to the old radio stations always warms my heart,” said
Sharon Neely, Adv. 700, who uses the occur every other Thursday right after
alias of ‘Constance’ while at Kedzie
school in Ms. Malueg’s classroom
Shores.
(203). Holler says students can expect
The group has about eight memto see posters in the room and around
bers on average, 12 to 15 on good
the school about upcoming Kedzie
days, Holler said.
Shores events.
“I think lots of
people our age think that
the elderly just sit around
nursing homes all day,”
Holler said. “Kedzie
Shores shows them that
there’s a lot more to it
than that.”
Holler says that
he guarantees that if
students stop by a session
of Kedzie Shores, they
will be surprised by how
much fun the pastimes
of the older generations
can be.
“Who doesn’t like a
good game of scrabble
or an old-fashioned gift
exchange?” Holler said.
Holler describes the
re-gifting event that took
place on January 18.
“We asked everyone
to bring in wrapped,
used gifts that we passed
around to each other,”
Holler said. “The example on the poster was
a Chia Pet. It’s the gift
that keeps on giving.”
Rana Marks, Adv. 810, spoons some custard
Kedzie Shores Asinto her “toothless” maw.
sisted Living Meetings
Photo by Damon Beres
Page 12 Editorial
Beresoufflé
The Hoof Beat
The angst you crave!
by Damon Beres
You ever notice that teenagers just don’t
like being happy?
The other day I was on the train. On said
train was a mother of two small children,
clearly a bit disheveled. It was
clear, both from how she sat, her
wearied face, and how she was
snapping at the person on the
other end of her phone, that the
weight of the world was on her
shoulders. Always one to be nosy
(I am a journalist), I listened in
on her conversation to find that
it was about a necessary medical procedure and that she didn’t
have the money to cover it.
The kicker to this story is that
this mother of two was, to my
estimate, in her very early 20s,
probably about 22. Despite having a grand total of nothing going
for her at that very moment, she
took out a small bag of popcorn
to share with her little girl, and
there was a flash, however brief,
of sweetness and contentment.
Of course, a few rows away
was a teen with disheveled black
hair, bags under the eyes, and a
frown. How terrible the world
must seem to her as she rides
the train alone, wearing her nice
black coat and listening to her
expensive iPod.
We all do it. In fact, I often
reflect on things and realize that,
on a distressingly regular basis, I
act like an angst muffin buttered
with crimson emo jam. This is
something I’m trying to change,
because it is annoying and makes
one seem like a tool.
So why can’t everyone do
that? Why does every generation
have mopey masochists that are
only happy when they’re sad? Is
it all of those raging hormones?
That there psychobilly rock music that mommy worries about?
What is it about high school
culture that drives 20% of all teens (according
to www.teendepression.org) to depression,
and perhaps more pertinent to our generation, a quadrupling of the teen suicide rate
over the past 25 years? Why can’t everyone
just be happy?
I say, if the grass isn’t green, play in the
mud. Things aren’t always honeysuckle and
chocolate teddy bears. It is more disconcerting to me that our generation’s unhappy
campers aren’t getting the help they need
than the fact that they’re down to begin with.
It’s a complete mind-over-matter situation.
There have been times when I crash on my
bed after a long day of school, feeling more
like a clump of flesh
paste than an actual
human, when it dawns
on me that I’ve forgotten why I was upset
to begin with. Perhaps
all of us angsty teens,
particularly iPod girl
on the train, need to
take a closer look at
ourselves instead of
deciding that the whole
world is out to get us.
Maybe our school
isn’t doing enough to
help. The Wellness
Center is nice, but it’s
tucked into a corner
and thus seems to have
some sort of stigma.
Though it shouldn’t be
the case, the kiddies
seem unwilling to pay
it a visit.
Let’s throw our
issues out into the
open, then. Therapy is
supposed to be about
as effective as prescription anti-depressants
anyway, so why not
have communal catharsis? Advisory teachers could be doing so
much more during
extended periods on
Wednesday (actual
advising sounds nice),
so start there, I say.
Maybe we’d have fewer
Facebook catastrophes
if that was the case,
or at the very least,
one less sad girl on the
train.
Hijab
A radically liberal ideology behind “radical Islam”
by Muhammad Akhtar
The Muslim hijab has become a
symbol of oppression in many cultures. Women wearing heavy black
veils (niqabs), with scarcely enough
holes for sight, have long been associated with a radical, conservative
Islamic ideology. Many feminist
organizations have even begun to
organize protests against what some
call a modern-day sexist atrocity.
However, it is most ironic that the
religious ideology these women
fight against is almost identical to
their own beliefs. In fact, a wider
and more in-depth interpretation
of the concepts behind the hijab
reveal it to be a surprisingly liberal
approach to modesty.
Before the philosophy of the hijab can be discussed, it is important
to define what the term actually
entails. The hijab is not only the
head-covering, or in certain cases
body-covering, seen so frequently in
the Muslim world. In Islamic scholarship, it has a broader meaning
of privacy, morality, and modesty.
The Quran (Muslim Holy Book)
states the following concerning the
hijab: “[O Prophet!] tell believing
men to restrain their eyes and guard
their private parts. That is purer for
them. And God is well aware of
what you do. And tell the believing
women to restrain their eyes and to
guard their private parts and… to
draw their khumūr (hijab) over their
bosoms.”
Muslim scholars have interpreted these lines differently. Some
believe they suggest modest clothes
alone. Others, however, think that
they demand a full covering of
all body parts. These differences
are visible in the different sects of
Islam. For example, the dress code
of Sunni Muslims differs greatly
from that of the Sufis (who wear
long black robes and very distinctive top-hats). However, almost all
Muslims believe that beyond being
just a dress-code, the hijab asks for
a diffident lifestyle.
For many non-Muslims, this
diffident lifestyle is synonymous
with oppression. There is a widespread consensus that the hijab is
a cleverly devised plot to suppress
the rights of women in Muslim
countries. In fact, some Christian
supporters of the hijab favor it precisely because they believe it allows
for tighter control over women.
These misconceptions arise
because the hijab is being viewed
through the wrong lens. Such a
lens assumes and accepts the idea
of male dominancy. In a society
where the superiority of men over
women almost serves as a given, it
is not difficult to understand why
this is so. To properly understand
the hijab, however, a different
stance needs to be considered, one
that perceives the issue from the
woman’s side.
The hijab, first and foremost,
is not a medium through which
women can please their husbands.
Such is a common misunderstanding arising from poor knowledge
of the Islamic faith. The ideology
behind the hijab is significantly
more feminist than this.
At its most superficial level, the
hijab is meant to protect women
against “the evil stares of men.”
Similar practices to prevent lustful
gazing are present in Christianity
and Judaism as well. The hijab is
also a way for women to externally
display their love and dedication to
God. Many women claim this to be
a tool for empowerment and others,
a purely spiritual experience.
Upon further analysis, the hijab
reveals itself to also be a means for
women to escape objectification. In
other words, it is a way for women
to be known for things besides their
physical assets. In such a context,
the hijab is
very similar to
non-revealing
clothes; that is
to say, women
who do not expose themselves
in public are in
many ways like
women who
wear hijabs.
The two just approach modesty
in slightly differing manners.
The reasoning behind
choosing to
wear the hijab
commonly lies
in the ability to
escape labeling.
Some women
even say they
wear the hijab
to be seen as a
person, not just
another body.
This view
of the hijab is
almost parallel
to what some
call liberal
feminist idealism. Many
advocates of
women’s rights
fight against the
promotion of
sexual objectification, while simultaneously pursuing counterproductive measures against the hijab.
Nonetheless, it is important to
emphasize here that this perspective
of the hijab only functions when
it is not mandated. When required
by law, the hijab is as oppressive as
anything may be when it is forced
upon someone else. Modesty can be
achieved through several ways and
the hijab may not be the method of
choice for some women. Thus, this
liberal ideology of the hijab only
stands when it is left as an option,
not as an obligation, for women.
February 2007
Editorial
Page 13
Mark My Words
A step backward in the fight against teen pregnancy
by Aliy Markowski
Four months ago, the FDA approved the over-the-counter
sale of emergency contraception (the ‘morning after pill’) to
women 18 and older. FDA officials cited the inefficiency of
the product with the prescription requirement because of the
very short window of time in which the pill is effective. This
explanation seems completely logical. The pill only works for 72 hours
after intercourse and scheduling a
doctor’s appointment in three days
can be a nearly impossible task. But
why limit the over-the-counter sales
to women over 18? There seems to
be no justification for this, especially
considering that it is certainly more
difficult for a teenage girl under 18 to
obtain a doctor’s appointment than it
is for an adult.
The limitations of selling emergency contraception to teens stem
from the opposition from ultra-conservative and/or religious interest
groups who argue that the sale of
the morning after pill will encourage
teens to be sexually promiscuous.
Critics say that if teens are given
easier access to the pill, they will be
less likely to take precautions before
having sex.
This argument seems glaringly
similar to that of the interest groups
who oppose the new vaccination
for Human Papilloma Virus (HPV),
which would protect women from the
two strains of the virus that cause 70
percent of cervical cancer and 90 percent of genital herpes cases. Spokesmen from the Family Research Council, a leading Christian lobby group,
told New Scientist Magazine that
“abstinence is the best way to prevent
HPV” and “giving the HPV vaccine
to young women could be potentially
harmful, because they may see it as a
license to engage in premarital sex.”
The Family Research Council and other religious groups opposing the vaccine are essentially saying that because girls will
know they have less of a risk of developing cervical cancer by
having sex, they will jump at the opportunity to have intercourse, and therefore they are not worthy of being protected
from an extremely common and often fatal disease. This logic
is ridiculous. Women’s lives are more valuable than a religious
ideal. A simple cost-benefit analysis would tell us that the
benefit of saving lives enormously outweighs the possibility
of teens misconstruing the vaccine as a license to engage in
unprotected sex. In fact, I would argue that most teenage girls
were not aware before the publicity for the new vaccination
that contracting cervical cancer was even a threat. Therefore,
it’s not as though some huge concern that had been discouraging teens from having sex has been lifted. Instead, lives will
teen pregnancy epidemic. Over the last ten years, teen pregnancies have declined because of new technology to prevent
unwanted pregnancies and increased education. We have
the means to help lower the number of unwanted pregnancies. We have the ability to prevent babies from being born
into homes where mothers do not have the means to support
be saved of many of the 50 percent of women infected with
the virus who don’t even know they have it.
After looking at the absurdity of the argument against
the distribution of the HPV vaccine, we can apply the same
logic to the distribution of the morning after pill. The doctor’s
prescription requirement essentially prevents the vast majority
of teen girls who would want to use emergency contraception from being able to utilize the pill effectively. This is a step
backward in the struggle America has fought in reducing the
themselves, let alone a child. We have the opportunity to drastically reduce the number of abortions of teenage girls who
would have prevented the development of a fetus before the
egg was fertilized if they had had access to the morning after
pill. Aren’t these goals worth fighting for? Aren’t these ambitions more important than our distrust of American girls to
take responsibility of their sexual behavior? I think so. This is
a fight worth fighting to grant teen girls access to the morning
after pill and control of the rest of their lives.
The Hoof Beat Student Newspaper
The price of harsh words
As punishments were handed out
for the recent Facebook controversy,
many students, even those not directly
associated with the situation, began to
cry foul. They bemoaned what they
interpreted to be a violation of First
Amendment rights. Many thought that
the administration was overstepping
its bounds and taking actions not fully
accounted for in the Chicago Public
Schools Student Code of Conduct.
They are wrong. Group Five in
the CPS Student Code of Conduct
specifically states in its 14th section that
“use of any computer or information
technology device to stalk, harass, or
otherwise intimidate others” is an offense. Said offense bears consequence.
“For first-time violations of Group
5 Inappropriate Behaviors,” the Code
states “a student shall be suspended for
five to ten days, and may be referred
for expulsion and/or disciplinary reassignment.”
It is clear, then, that the students
in question got off easy. Dr. James
Lalley himself confirmed in a schoolwide email that the Facebook group
was used to “threaten another student
with vulgarities and bullying comments,” a clear violation of Code 5-14.
The primary offender was suspended
for two days, three days below the
minimum. Others got off for far less.
It would seem that students should be
thanking the administration instead of
complaining.
Some students argue that what
transpired on Facebook doesn’t qualify
as “bullying.” Exhibit C in the Student
Code of Conduct says otherwise,
describing bullying behaviors as
“verbal or nonverbal behavior that…
causes physical and/or emotional
harm to another. Such behavior may
include, but is not limited to, teasing,
taunting, threatening, hitting, stealing,
or destroying personal property.” The
Facebook group was clearly malevolent
in targeting a member of the Northside
student body.
The administration was wise in
setting a precedent for punishable
behavior on cyberspace. Though social
networks are a new frontier, the student
body needs to realize that websites such
as Facebook are part of the Northside community. When you create an
account, you are required to submit
a school email address. Students are
still interacting with their peers, even if
some are confused by the presence of a
computer monitor.
And, of course, what flies for
“freedom of speech” in a public school
is not cut and dry. While under normal
circumstances, the American Civil
Liberties Union stresses that even hate
speech be protected under the First
Amendment, it is necessary that a
school administration take steps to
protect its students and faculty. Students should feel free to say what they
want, but they cannot be surprised
when invective statements are met with
appropriate punishment. It is this basic
system, along with common sense and
decency, that keeps Northside’s halls
safe for all.
One would not expect to shout
obscenities at a passerby without repercussion. It should be no different on the
Internet.
The previous article is an editorial written by a member of the Hoof
Beat staff. Letters to the editor are
welcome. Please e-mail questions
or comments to Ctylinski@northsideprep.org.
Page 14 Editorial
The Hoof Beat
The Hoof Beat Point Counter-Point
Soft-Serve University
by Liz Born
As the snow melts and seniors begin to receive those prized acceptance letters, it’s time
we considered one of the most important decisions of our young lives. Over the course of
this summer, and for the next four years, will we choose soft-serve or scooped ice cream?
My fellow Northsiders, the answer is clear. During the school year, we work hard, and
we deserve a break. Soft-serve ice cream, it just so happens, is the only kind of ice cream
you can eat without using your brain. Why should soft-serve be a delicacy reserved for
young children and cheap buffets? It’s time to return to that twisted, velvety treat, because
we’ve earned it.
Consider this: most college cafeterias
serve ice cream. When choosing an institution where you plan to spend four years of
your life, it’s important to make sure that
their ice cream is going to serve you, not the
other way around.
Imagine for a moment that you are
a newly enrolled freshman at one of the
nation’s most prestigious universities. You’ve
just spent six hours working on your first research paper, it’s nearly two in the morning,
and you’re so hungry you could eat a goat.
You head over to the cafeteria, which luckily, is still open. ‘Self-Service’ reads the ice
cream freezer. You swirl the scooper around
in its tub of murky liquid, and dig in. The
ice cream, unfortunately, is rock hard. You
struggle with it for several minutes, and then
collapse on the floor, sobbing. You live like
this for the next four years. Upon graduating, you suffer an ice cream-induced nervous
breakdown and spend the rest of your life in
your parents’ basement.
Though it may seem trivial, ice cream
is a powerful thing, folks. This summer, I
urge you, underclassmen and seniors alike,
to indulge yourselves. It’s time to return to
our roots. Don’t give in to the moralizing of
nutritionists. Don’t let a Prada-clad barista
tell you which frozen beverage you’d like.
Take control of your life, and your appetite,
and go soft-serve.
Scooptastic: the way to go
by Damon Beres
When asked at the local ice creamery whether I’d like my order served in near-liquid form
from a filthy machine or scooped hard ‘n tasty style from a luscious pint, I think the choice is obvious. ‘How dare you degrade me in such a way,’ I’d bark at the register nugget. Why even waste
my time with the option?
First and foremost, ice creams that come in a full tub of glory, as opposed to in those softserve contraptions, seem more likely to actually contain cream. Culvers, a real slice of Americana
that serves “double bacon butter burgers,” amongst other things, prides itself on its real frozen
custard. This custard isn’t rank frozen yogurt that’s loaded with artificial sweeteners, but good, sweet milk ‘n egg juice.
Again, why would someone opt for the possibility of carcinogenic
artificial sweeteners if they don’t have to? Aspartame and saccharin,
often found in cheaper food products or those that come “sugar free” or
“light,” have been suggested as possible cancer-causing substances. I’d
take the hundred calories to the tumors, thank you very much, unless
those tumors come in delicious custard scoops.
But now, allow me to tell you a story. It is a tale of Farmer Dale
Cornhusk, who wakes up every morning at 4:30 AM to squeeze sweet
milk out of the udders of his cow Yolanda. Yolanda’s been getting
skinner as the days go on; ice cream companies are buying less and less,
making due with additives and cheaper ingredients for their soft serve
machine. Yesterday, when Farmer Cornhusk was milking Yolanda,
sand and yogurt came out, but no milk.
Surely it was just a bad day, Farmer Cornhusk thought. Then the
bad day got worse. Unable to afford seeds for the coming season, he
was forced to kill his favorite mule Ted just to put food on the table. His
wife, Tammy, unable to ride Ted to work, had to walk all 10 miles, falling on the mud on the way, shattering her glasses and blinding herself
forever.
But Farmer Cornhusk had hope. He went to Yolanda one last
time. “Please, Yolanda, just give me enough milk to get by.” Instead,
Yolanda’s udders imploded onto themselves, leaving Cornhusk with
nothing. And then he was kidnapped by Splenda manufacturers, forced
to work in their evil factories until the day he died.
This is a true story. More or less.
It’s a fact, according to Wikipedia, anyway, that soft serve machines
use less milk and minimize the “real” ingredients. That’s the same
sort of corner-cutting evident elsewhere in our society, and it’s pretty
terrible. Take the scoops, it tastes better and won’t give you lesions in
tender regions.
And please, think of Farmer Cornhusk and dear, beautiful Yolanda.
Aliy’s Sudoku
Fill in the grid at the left so that every column, row and 3 x 3 box contain the digits one
through nine without repeating.
Think you solved it quickly?
Be featured in the next issue
for your fast time by emailing it to hoofbeat@northsideprep.org.
February 2007
Sports
Page 15
The Power of Fantasy Sports
by Geethi Abraham Have you ever overheard
people eagerly discussing
their fantasy sports teams
and wondered what they
were talking about? Or better
yet, have you ever notice a
friend or relative intensely
gazing at stat sheets on a fantasy sport website for hours
on end? This phenomenon
of fantasy sports is an online
game in which fantasy owners build a team that competes against other fantasy
owners based on the statistics
generated by individual players of a professional sport.
Although fantasy sports
are based on a very simple
concept, they have captured
the attention of over 16
million adults in the US,
ages 18- 55, and the Fantasy
Sports Trade Association
now runs a multi-million
dollar business that generates
an average of $600 million
per year.
(Left to Right,) Danny Priemer, Conor Camp, Adv. 800, Obina Osuji, Adv. 810, and
The draw of fantasy
Mackenzie Rivers, Adv. 807, check their fantasy basketball stats.
sports lies in the fact that it
Photo by Geethi Abraham
gives everyday sports fans the
ability to manage their very
individual players plays is important. There self,” Geoffrey Wang, Adv. 700, said.
own sports team; fantasy sports players can
is also something great about having all of
“Fantasy sports allow you to be readd or drop multi-million dollar players
your favorite players on one team. It is not
sponsible for every choice that you make in
with the push of a button.
very often that you run across a Jordan/
regards to your team. You, yourself, choose
“I think the most addictive element of
Pippen duo in the real league, so there is
the players on your team, drop a player
fantasy sports is that you construct a team
something really satisfying about being able who has sustained an injury, and trade
of players from different [professional]
to put two great players on one team youraway players who are having a bad season.
teams, so every game that each of your
It feels great when the starting lineup
that you lay out for a week produces
great results,” Arpit Kuvadia, Adv. 701,
said.
All in all, fantasy sports have
brought many fans closer to the game.
However, many feel that there are
faults in the way fantasy sports operate.
Sports writers have criticized fantasy
sports of over-emphasizing the individual statistics of a player. A strong team
player that helps his team win championships does not hold a candle to a
player who has great individual statistics. For example, Kevin Garnett was an
amazing fantasy sports player because
he individually averaged 22 points and
10 rebounds per game; however, his
team, the Minnesota Timberwolves, finished second to last in their conference
last season, with a pitiful 33- 49 record.
Even some professional players are
not pleased with fantasy sports. Jake
Plummer of the Denver Broncos said
in the Chicago Sun-Times, “I think` it’s
(fantasy sports) ruined the game actually. There are no true fans anymore,
because if I lose a game I come out of
Invesco Field and there’s not a Denver
fan mad that I lost, but happy because I
threw three TD’s. When I was growing up,
I was a fan of my team, not the points I’m
getting.” Whether you agree or disagree with
fantasy sports, the number of fantasy sports
players indicates that they are here to stay.
In the past, sports have always emphasized
team victories over individual victories.
Hopefully the growing popularity of fantasy sports will not turn that around.
Mustangs Blown-Out
Varsity City Tournament Bracket
by Mohammad Khaleelullah
The 16th ranked team in the
Men’s Varsity City Consolation Basketball Tournament, Northside Prep
Mustangs, ended their run in the tournament this past week with a loss against
the number 8 ranked team, Lakeview
Wild Cats. Northside reached the quarterfinals after ousting the number 17 ranked
Tilden High School in round one and upsetting the number 1 ranked Clark High
School in round two by a score of 63-57.
The team was riding on the momentum
of defeating the number 1 ranked team
coming into Lakeview high school.
“As a team, we were confident coming into the game because we had just
beaten number 1 Clark in a tough game
on the road,” Saif Rahman, Adv. 806,
said. “It hurts to lose this game because
we were in it in the first half but lost focus
on our game plan in the third quarter.”
The Mustangs went with a
starting five of Danny Priemer, Adv.
807, Mackenzie Rivers, Adv. 807, Conor
Camp, Adv. 800, James Smith-Grattan,
Adv. 706, and John Kinsler, Adv. 907.
Northside got off to a fast start
leading the game 7-3 on a couple of
baskets by Danny Priemer who finished
the game with four points. The team
continued solid play and held a 11-9 lead
at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter featured
solid play from both teams as the first
quarter did. Both teams were trading
baskets until Northside scored a quick
four points, displaying some of their
passing skills as sophomore John Kinsler,
who finished the game with 10 points,
made a sweet pass to fellow sophomore
Robert Kennedy, Adv. 903, for a quick
jumper. A few plays down, Kennedy
beat his defender off the dribble driving
to the basket and finding Mackenzie
Rivers, who had a team high 12 points,
for an easy two off the glass. However,
the game went downhill from there. In
the final two minutes of the first half, the
Wild Cats went on a 9-2 run to take a
21-27 lead.
The Mustangs came out strong
in the beginning of the third quarter
looking to forget the run Lakeview put
together at the end of half. With 7:29
to go in the third, sophomore Wemi
Jemine, Adv. 903, made a strong move to
the basket scoring and getting a foul for
a three-point play opportunity. Unfortunately, the move was not enough to stop
the strong Wild Cats guards. Northside’s
offense execution was poor as the offense
gave up many turnovers while trying to
overcome the deficit.
“We felt like we had them
intimidated in the first half,” Mackenzie Rivers, Adv. 807, said. “Our ball
movement in the second half [was not
existent] causing our turnovers. We just
didn’t execute in the second half.”
Lakeview closed the last 7 minutes of
the third quarter with a 14-5 run.
The fourth quarter didn’t fair
any better for the Mustangs. They were
outscored 27-13 in the last frame and
Jemine Oritseweynimi, Adv. 903 shoots his second free throw.
went on to lose by a score of 42-71.
Northside was eliminated from the tour- Photo by Mohamad Rahman
nament.
Women’s Varsity Soccer
Continued from back page.
coach and we all miss him a
lot,” Keenan said. “He pushed us
really hard and it paid off during
the season. Both coaches are very
experienced and we’re lucky to have
them.”
Now that the team has had
Coach Albritton for a second year,
things should run much smoother
than before.
“I am very optimistic about the
upcoming season,” Keenan said.
“We have some good freshmen and
have been conditioning and playing
in a league in Schaumburg since
November.”
Northside plays its home games
in Winnemac Stadium, south of Foster and Leavitt. Tryouts for Varsity
are March 5th.
“Last season was a building year.
The fact that it was a losing season
is disappointing, but we are looking
forward to the upcoming season.”
Oliveira said.
With the upcoming season
rapidly approaching, the girls remain
hopeful to bounce back from their
previous season.
Page 16
Sports
The Hoof Beat
No Mo’, Ali Spirit and victory
or Nothing Girls Varsity Basketball wins senior day game
Grossman on Fire
by Mohammad Khaleelullah and Shoaib ‘M’ Ali
Mohammad Khaleelullah: Salaam. Even with the Super Bowl
being a few weeks old now, the Bears are still wandering my
thoughts. 21 years after our last appearance we leave the Super
Bowl with a loss to the Indianapolis Colts. But fear not, my
faithful cronies. This is just the beginning. Back in the December
issue we featured a debate on whether or not these mighty Bears
were the real deal or some phony stuffed teddies. The bears were
7-0 at the time, and I proclaimed that these Bears were genuine
and certainly carried a shot at hosting the championship trophy.
Now we’ve endured this sad loss, many fans that were once
hopefuls are now denouncing my love, Rex Grossman, calling for his departure and campaigning for the Bears to bring in
injury-recovered Chicago native Donovan McNabb to lead this
team. How can the administration look at the quarterback, who
just led his team to the Super Bowl in his first full season, and
tell him he is being second fiddled?
Shoaib Ali: It is not that we are denouncing Rex Grossman;
we are simply saying we need someone better. Yes, he led us to
the Super Bowl, but not by himself. With the great play of the
2 man backfield, an occasionally present powerful defense, and
dare I say a relatively weak schedule, the Bears were able to plow
through the NFL season and then survive the two playoff games
(Yes, I am saying the New Orleans game was a fluke.).
Now you are defending Grossman on weak grounds, pal.
Yes, he is inexperienced so I will give you that. But he also just
lacks many fundamental skills that are necessary in a quarterback. In the Super Bowl, Grossman botched two costly snaps.
Now imagine Olin Kruetz, the Bears’ all Pro center and one of
the best in the league, snapping the ball off to Grossman. Grossman must have gone through this motion of receiving the ball a
few thousand times in his career through games and practices.
There are no excuses for something like that. Some might point
out that it was raining. I fire back that Manning, Super Bowl
MVP, did not botch any snaps.
Now I’ll tell you how you tell your Super Bowl quarterback
that he is being replaced. You tell it to him like it is. You say:
right now, you just don’t have it kid. McNabb would make the
team dangerous. He’d bring in his consistent 96 quarterback
rating over the past three years compared to Grossman’s 72.4
career rating and league worst 5 games under 40 rating. The fact
that McNabb is a Chicago native is simply another incentive.
McNabb could turn this Bears team from NFC elite to Super
Bowl champions.
MK: Perhaps McNabb would make the Bears a much more
dangerous team, but what happens with Grossman? Do you
trade him? Make him second string? No player is going to want
to play on a team who doesn’t want him. And that is what not
only bringing McNabb in would do, but simply talking about
bringing him in would do. What happens as McNabb ages? He
is already 30 years old, the age when many quarterbacks begin
to drastically lose their skills. I am sure a 26-year-old Grossman
would be a lot more logical to keep for now and the future.
You fail to mention that along with those five horrible
games, Grossman had with a rating under 40 and he also had
a league-leading eight games with a 98-plus quarterback rating.
This shows that when Grossman is good, he is real good. And
when he is bad, he is real bad. But that is exactly what happens
in a young quarterback’s first season. This is where Grossman
grows. He has always been skilled at the position—he was a
runner-up in the Heisman voting, the most prestigious football
award for College football, during his junior year at Florida. The
experience of a Super Bowl game under his belt can only make
Grossman a stronger player who can produce more games like
the eight great ones this season. Let me also mention that he
was 7th in the league in touchdowns and fumbled less than great
quarterbacks such as Carson Palmer, Tom Brady, and Micheal
Vick. Let’s give the guy more credit.
Also instead of focusing on Grossman, the team
should be looking to move forward with other issues such as
keeping our other star linebacker Lance Briggs, who is now a
free agent, on the team. And I am sorry to say this, but our wideouts have to go. As great of plays as Bernard Berrian has made,
he is definitely not a number one option. By plugging in these
holes and having a more experienced quarterback, the Bears can
start looking forward to next season, as they will certainly still be
the team to beat.
SA: While Grossman is still learning how to start in profootball, he is holding back the Bears from bringing back a
trophy home. We have no idea what is in store for the Bears if
Grossman continues to start. Grossman may have had these
eight so-called ‘great games’ this season, but you failed to mention that seven of those eight games were played against sub .500
teams so there really isn’t much to brag about. And 30 years is
not that old for a quarterback, as you can see Manning and even
Brady continue their dominance as they approach the 30-year
mark. With Grossman’s QB rating of a 74, he shouldn’t look
forward to start for the Bears next season if the managers can arrange for a better starting quarterback. Unless you’re absolutely
sure that we’ll be raising a future Manning, Brady or Farve by
holding onto Grossman, there is no reason for the Bears to waste
their time with someone who will turn out to be only a decent
quarterback. Settle for the best, and expect to win every contest. If the Bears still find it in their best interest to invest in Mr.
Grossman, then he should throw the football until he can’t hold
onto a snap anymore, which was obviously a costly mistake he
committed on Super Bowl Sunday. Suddenly, I’m in no rush to
own my football jersey. Wasalaam.
always remember.”
This statement holds
true for in the last three years
Northside Girl’s Varsity
Team has always yielded a
victory for their Senior Day
games.
Team players agreed with
Mr. Heavy that this Senior
Day game will be remembered as one of their last
games for Northside.
“I think we played well
enough to win, but we
could have done better. We
could have avoided a lot of
the small mistakes that we
made,” Angie Nizio, Adv.
710, said. “In all, I thought
it was a good game, but also
a sad game because it’s one
of my last as a student at
Northside.”
Other players also shared
Nizio’s sentiments, especially
with regards to their grief
since this was one of their
last games.
“Even though we won,
we didn’t come out as strong
as we could have done,” said
Nicole Lynn Inniss, Adv.
706. “It was a really different
feeling playing as a senior
rather than any other grade
level in the past. I have both
good and bad feelings about
the game: good because we
were able to pull a win on
Senior Day and bad because
it is one of our last games.”
Aral Johnson, Adv. 809 and Rhianna Rey, Adv. 809 wait to get the rebound.
“Like many of the
senior girls on the team, I
Photo by Riaz Shaikh
found playing in the Senior
Day game as a senior to be a
On January
Mike Heavy was pleased with the
new
experience,”
Mary Shelus, Adv.
th
17 , the Girl’s Varsity Basketball Team
victory but still disappointed with the
703, said. “I’m definitely happy that
played their senior day game. Competexecution on court.
we won the game, especially because
ing against Walter Payton for third
“The girls played well in spirit and
it was our Senior Day game, but I’m
place in conference, Northside girls
played well enough to win, but not well
displayed their determination, commit- enough to be satisfied with their overall sad that it is one of the last games that
we’ll play here at Northside.”
ment, and talent in a very tense and
performance,” Coach Heavy said. “I
Despite the grief accompanied by
close match. In the first two quarters
do think that the fact that it was Senior
senior day, the season is not over for
Payton held a short lead, luckily by the
Day contributed to the way they played
the varsity girls. The seniors as well
end of the first and beginning of the
because it tends to always be a factor in
as the other members of the team will
second quarters Northside was able to
games. Senior Days may have negative
still need to be on top of their game
quickly secure a tie and ultimately a 44
affects as it is sometimes a distraction
in order to do well in the approaching
– 42 win.
and causes them to make mistakes. But
IHSA Women’s Regional Basketball
However, not everyone was happy
it is a well deserved and special experiTournament.
about the game, even if it ended in
ence that they have earned and will
by Riaz Shaikh
favor of the home team. Head Coach
Remain strong despite setbacks
Varsity Soccer hopeful about the upcoming
season
by Farrukh Mukhtar
Last season Northside’s Varsity Soccer Team
had its first losing season.
They finished the year
with 8 wins, 9 losses, and
2 ties. The disappointing
season was most likely the
result of various changes
that occurred throughout
the season and during the
off season.
“I would say last
season was an adjustment
season because of the difference in coaching styles
and strategies,” Katherine
Keenan, Adv. 707, said.
“It took us a while to get
used to Mr. Albritton as
the coach rather than
Andrew.”
Albritton took over
the coaching position,
and the team couldn’t adjust in time for last year’s
season.
“I’d say the main differences between the two
are that Andrew always
encouraged us to work on
individual moves,” said
Keenan. “Mr. Albritton
encouraged us to work
more on team movement
and effective passing.”
“His style of coaching is different, and he
switched some people
around which changed
the dynamics of the
team,” Jacy de Oliveira,
Adv. 807, said. “Coach
Albritton played for the
University of Michigan
team and brought along a
lot of new ideas for conditioning and practice.”
Despite losing their
goalie Pat Duffy, their
manager Kenny, and their
lead player Stephanie
Couchman, the team is
looking forward to this
season as an opportunity
to bounce back from last
year.
“I’m pretty confident
about this year. We have
a lot talent despite the
people that left,” Hannah Lantz, Adv. 808,
said. “I think we’ll have a
great team this year and
I just hope we’ll have the
chance to show it.”
While Coach AlbritGraduated Senior, Aileen Cordero, runs the ball up the field
ton is the head coach,
Coach Andrew still helps during one of the final victories of the 2006 Women’s Varsity
the team out and coaches Photo by Farrukh Mukhtar
off-season leagues.
continued on page 15
“Andrew was a great