March 2015 - West Seattle High School

Transcription

March 2015 - West Seattle High School
March 2015
West Seattle High School
Diversity
Dinner on
March 18th.
See Pg. 3
Teen Dating
Violence needs
attention.
See Pg. 10 & 11
Vol. 88 No. 3
Spring
Sports begin.
See Pg. 18
Wildcats go to State
Women’s basketball makes school history
By Eryn Johnson
With a 22-4 overall record, the West
Seattle High School girls’ basketball
team continues to make school history. The team started their run at the
State Tournament yesterday against
Lynwood at 2 p.m. They will play
again today at the Tacoma Dome.
“I am so proud of the girls,” said
head coach Sonya Elliott. “They set
high goals for themselves this season
and they have worked so hard, and
worked together as a team to make
this happen.”
The top eight teams in the state
make it to the tournament. The Wildcats first won their league play with
an undefeated record in the league.
Next they went on to win the Metro
League Championship by beating
Cleveland on February 13th.
The team beat Cleveland High
School in a close one, 49-48. One of
Cleveland’s top players fouled out
of the game, giving the Wildcats an
edge. WSHS was without point guard
Gabby Sarver who tore her ACL in
their last league game. Several other
players stepped up to fill the void.
With seconds left, Cleveland had
a chance to take the win, but they
missed and the Wildcats got the win.
After winning the Metro League
Championship the team suffered two
losses, first a 51-48 loss to Juanita
and then a 57-54 loss to Cleveland
which knocked them out of the running for the District Championship.
They suffered their third loss of the
season February 19th to Juanita High
School; they were down 15 in the first
half after starting the game off slow.
The second half of the game WSHS
came back and found their rhythm
but ultimately lost 51-48.
On February 21st the Wildcats lost
to Cleveland 57-54. This was the third
time the two teams faced each other,
and the first time Cleveland got the
win.
Head coach Jaimie Redd told the
West Seattle Herald, “We knew we
had to make sure that Fiso didn’t get
hot at the end.”
The Wildcats struggled with turnovers giving the Eagles unnecessary
opportunities.
Despite these two close losses, the
Wildcats overall record allowed them
another chance to make it to State.
Saturday, February 28th in a loser
out regional game, the Wildcats held
onto their State hopes by defeating
Sumner 56-18 at Renton High School.
The Wildcats started early and finished with four players in double digit
scoring, including Lexi Ione with 13,
Lydia Giomi with 12, and Annalisa
Ursino and Emily Fiso with 10.
In addition to a strong offensive
effort, the Wildcat defense shut down
the Spartans offense playing man to
man, including holding them scoreless in the third quarter.
“Beyond blessed,” is what sophomore Izzy Turk has to say about
the team making it to State. “It is so
amazing to see our months of hard
work paying off.”
Senior leader Emily Fiso has a
lot to say about being a leader on the
basketball team.
“I’m honored but I don’t think I’m
the only leader, everyone on this team
is a leader in every aspect,” said Fiso.
She then went on to talk about
making history for West Seattle basketball.
“I think it’s a great opportunity,
we worked so hard to get to where we
The West Seattle High School women’s basketball
team celebrates making history after defeating Sumner 56-18 Saturday, Feb. 28 at Renton High School
in order to advance to the State Tournament for the
first time in school history.
are and I knew we had what it takes
to make it to the dome,” said Fiso.
“We’re going to just take it one game
at a time and keep playing our game
and play as a team.”
WSHS lost their starting point
guard, Gabby Sarver, who was second in state with assists in their game
against Franklin High School. Junior
Lani Taylor offers hope in the midst
of this loss though.
“Together we are strong is our logo
and we live by it,” said Taylor.
The Wildcats head into State with
plenty of accolades for their already
outstanding season.
Giomi was named league MVP, and
although the Wildcats led the league,
no other members were given first
team honors. Ione was named second
team and Fiso was third team. Charli
Elliott and Sarver were given honorable mention. Head coach Elliott was
named coach of the year.
Last year the team made it to the
District Tournament, but got knocked
out by mercer Island.
The team was sent off with a
school-wide pep rally yesterday and a
rooter bus took fans down to cheer on
the Wildcats. A bus is available today
as well.
HOROSCOPES
THE CHINOOK STAFF
Editor-in-Chief--------------------------------Jacob Carney
& Hannah Gordon-Kirk
Staff Reporters------------------------------Kabrea Brooks
Sumaya Dirie
Emily Fiso
Zayla Gipson
Kaya Hubbard
Shara Ibrahim
Nialanni Jackson-Jordan
Alex Jessup
Cassidy Julian
Kylie Leinbach
Andre Moore
Zoe Mullen
Allison Parker
Shelby Walker
Shaneen Walter-Edwards
WSHS - March 2015
Your Futures Revealed
Discover what the stars hold in store for you...
Pisces: (Feb 19 – Mar 20)
It’s time to stop being modest and own up to all of your
accomplishments in life. Instead of letting your emotions control you, breathe and allow yourself to see everything with a new perspective.
Aries: (Mar 21 – Apr 20)
This is your year Rams and it’s okay to let your energetic, competitiveness show. You might to slow down
and relax before all the stress in your life leads you to
making some iffy decisions about life.
Taurus: (Apr 21 – May 21)
Your ability to be patient will be useful in the near future. Keep on observing the world around but be sure
of yourself and all of the choices you make. You don’t need anybody’s validation for
your own success.
Gemini: (May 22 – Jun 21)
Now’s your chance to slow down and stop doing so many things at once, even if it might
go against your nature, because you’re starting to have too many things on your plate.
THE CHINOOK MISSION
The mission of The Chinook is to facilitate a top-notch student
newspaper, to provide an in-depth view of our school, to enlighten our readers and to remain unbiased. The Chinook is a studentrun publication and the staff has taken the pledge to adhere to
the Tao of Journalism.
S UB SCR I P CRIPT ION POLIC Y
Subscriptions forms are available at www.seattleschools.org/
schools/wshs. For $35 you will recieve a monthly newspaper
mailed to your home in order to keep updated on Westside happenings. For $50 you can become a Friend of The Chinook, $100
a Patron and $250 a Benefactor. Friends, Patrons and Benefactors will be listed in each issue of the paper.
A D V ER TI SEM ENT POLICY
The Chinook accepts advertisements from 1/12 page to full page
with costs ranging from $25 - $175. If you are interested in advertising in The Chinook please contact the advisor at 206-2528833. The Chinook reserves the right to approve all advertisements. This is a great place to get your name known to a large
market with 800 copies printed each month.
C OP YR I GH T POLICY
No part of The Chinook may be reproduced in any form by any
means, electronic or mechanical (including photocopying, recording or information storage and retrieval) without permission
in writing from the publisher. Copying for purposes other than
personal use or internal reference, or reproduction of articles or
columns not owned by The Chinook (including comic strips, Associated Press and other wire service reports) without written
permission of The Chinook or the copyright owner is expressly
forbidden.
C ON TAC T T HE CHINOOK
Please write to: The Chinook, West Seattle High School, Rebecka
McKinney, 3000 California Ave. SW, Seattle, WA 98116
Please email: ramckinney@seattleschools.org with questions
or letters to the editor or other submissions. It is The Chinook’s
policy not to accept anonymous letters to the editor. Please sign
your name and include your contact information so we can verify
your identity if you want letters printed in the newspaper. Please
call: 206-252-8833.
Cancer: (Jun 22 – Jul 22)
It is necessary to learn how to be less aggressive towards those you believe have wronged
you. Also it’s okay to make new friends and allow others to see your true feelings.
Leo: (Jul 23 – Aug 23)
Let your creativeness shine through. It may be time to focus on you and stop taking
care of other people’s business. If there is someone in your life that isn’t treating you
with the respect that you deserve, then let him or her go away because you don’t need
him or her in your life.
Virgo: (Aug 24 – Sep 22)
Stop doubting yourself and be self-confident in all that you do as it may be necessary
in future endeavors. Allow yourself to let go of all your worries and face your troubles
head on.
Libra: (Sep 23 – Oct 22)
You must shed your laid-back nature and start to work on the responsibilities you have
instead of putting them on the backburner to pile up.
Scorpio: (Oct 23 – Nov 21)
Your ruthless ambition and flexibility in reaching your goals will come in handy these
coming weeks. It’s okay to forgive and forget those who have wronged you because the
time has come to stop holding grudges forever.
Sagittarius: (Nov 22 - Dec 21)
Your need for freedom will limit the amount of opportunities that you accept. Your
emotionally detached nature is great for a clear perspective but it is damaging to all of
your friendships and relationships.
Capricorn: (Dec 22 - Jan 19)
Now’s the time to start taking risks and not think things through. Your overly cautious
nature will rub people the wrong way and give off a bad reputation.
Aquarius: (Jan 20 - Feb 18)
Your spontaneity will be your downfall as you make grand ideas that cannot be followed through. But it is time to search inside yourself to find that something you think
is missing.
Page 2
Issue 3
NEWS
- West Seattle High School - March 2015
Taryn Smith Don’t miss sixth annual Diversity Dinner
BY Meron mulu
wins Miss
Seattle
By Lindsey Jensen
West Seattle High School is home
to Miss Seattle 2015. Senior, Taryn
Smith, won the honor in January.
Smith could not pass up the
amazing opportunity brought to
her attention by teacher Danielle
Warman about how incredible the
Miss Seattle program is, including
scholarships, community service
opportunities, and the overall experience. Not only did Warman open
her eyes about the pageant but she
was also Smith’s mentor that taught
her everything she has recently
come to know.
“I didn’t expect to win my first
pageant and as one of the youngest
competitors… but I just had fun and
was myself and it all worked out,”
said Smith. “I owe it all to Danielle!
I would never have even tried if she
hadn’t encouraged me to.”
Balancing training for the pageant, being a varsity cheer captain, and schoolwork was harder
than she expected and still is. She
couldn’t’ have done it without the
constant support and help from
her family, best friends Gabby and
Claire, and Warman and teacher
Christina Posten.
“The most important thing I
learned was its okay to ask for help,
I hope I can be there for those people in the same way they were for
me someday, because I owe my success to them,” said Smith.
In only a month of being Miss
Seattle, she has already served her
community in many ways, which
she is very excited about because it’s
like a dream job to her.
What’s the next step? Smith
will compete in July 2015 for Miss
Washington.
“If I win Miss Washington in July,
which is a huge honor, not only will
I serve the entire state but I will also
represent Washington and compete
in Miss America,” said Smith.
Smith had an outstanding audience
with the entire cheer squad, friends,
and family in the stands to cheer her
on at the Miss Seattle pageant.
Everyone is beyond ecstatic about
her win and couldn’t be happier to
see what a wonderful future is yet to
come for Taryn Smith.
The sixth annual Diversity Dinner
is set for Wednesday, March 18th from
6-8 p.m. in The Commons. The Diversity Club has been planning this event
since its inception in the 2009-2010
school year as a way to celebrate and
bring together all the cultures of West
Seattle High School.
The dinner is about cultural food
and performances. Everyone is asked
to bring a dish to share. It can be a cultural food that you or your family has
cooked, or just a food item you like
that you purchased from the store.
The night also offers a variety of cultural performances that celebrate the
diversity at WSHS. This year’s event
will include several performances including a Samoan dance, an African
dance, some spoken word performances, an Irish dance, a performance
by the school’s Latino Club and many
other potential performances. The
night’s line-up is still being finalized.
The evening will end with a cultural fashion show featuring many of the
clothes from the cultures around the
world that are represented at WSHS.
“You get to experience culture from
around the world at the Diversity
Dinner,” said Diversity Club co-vicepresident Claret Ruiz. “It’s a tradition
and you get to learn about all the different cultures in the school that you
never knew about.”
Everyone is invited to this event
from students and staff to families
and community members. This is a
family friendly event that has grown
each year and the Diversity Club is
hoping for the biggest turnout yet.
It’s FAFSA time
By Kylie Leinbach
Some people may be asking: What
is FAFSA? Well, FAFSA is a Free Application for Federal Student Aid.
The form is designed to determine
the amount of money a family should
contribute to the price of attending
certain schools.
You may be asking, “Why would
I need this? I can pay for my own
tuition.” FAFSA applications are required by practically all colleges even
if financial aid isn’t needed.
It determines a student’s eligibility
to access federal, state and college-
sponsored aids. Aids like these include grants, student loans and even
work study programs.
“It’s something everybody needs
to do their senior year,” 10-12th grade
counselor Tia Filippelli said. “It can
be a little scary, but it’s necessary.”
The application can be found at
fafsa.edu.gov and it is available for
printed and electronic submission.
Yet, electronic submissions are accepted and processed in about three
days, whereas printed and mailed
submissions can take up to three
weeks.
FAFSA applications need to be
submitted as soon as possible after
January 1, so seniors better get moving. Aid is awarded until funds are
depleted, so the sooner you get yours
in, the better chance you have of getting aid.
The school already held their annual FAFSA night where they helped seniors fill out their applications, however there are still plenty of resources
available if you need assistance.
You can get help from the counselors or the CAN office in the library.
You’ll need your parents help as well,
since it’s their information that goes
on the application.
Issue 3
Page 3
NEWS
The Chinook - West Seattle High School - March 2015
The build up of West Seattle
By Shelby Walker
West Seattle is known for its quaint
city-like atmosphere. It is family friendly but accessible and desirable to people
of all ages and livelihoods. Living here is
like residing in your own little bubble,
you never have to leave the community
to find fun things to do or to buy the
necessary items. Residential neighborhoods are known to have block parties
and group yard sales; there are grocery
stores, restaurants, fun little shops,
parks, and even the beach. West Seattle
caters to a mass amount of people, so
who wouldn’t want to live here?
This community seems to have it all
but the reasons people love their West
Seattle home so much also appeals to
non-Westsiders as well. The skyline
has erupted with apartments, the parking has become near impossible, new
stores and restaurants are opening, and
above all the population has drastically
increased. West Seattle is being taken
over, leaving many very disapproving of
these changes.
“I don’t like the change from a smaller
neighborhood to more of a big city,” said
Casey Hart.
One wonder of West Seattle is the
Junction. There are little shops and
restaurants that you may never find
anywhere else on the planet along that
stretch of California Ave. Every day people walk around those streets to visit the
little shops and eat at delicious eateries.
It is a lovely place to be, it feels relaxed
yet alive, quaint but a place where you
can find anything, it encompasses the
West Seattle lifestyle.
“I love the city scene, but West Seattle isn’t a city. West Seattle is a tight
knit community where people look for
a safe environment to start families and
live their lives. With all the condos and
large buildings being put up, the tight
knit feeling goes away due to new people coming in to live in the apartments
and it honestly just takes away from the
beautiful scenery,” Lindy Tongol said.
However, the Junction among other neighborhoods is being torn to the
ground into heaps of rubble, eventually
leaving a hole in the dirt where a local
business once stood. That construction
zone may be left there with a wire fencing surrounding it for months before
any movement is seen there again. And
when the workers come back to finish
what they began, what do they replace
the beloved shop with? Apartments.
Dull, ugly apartments with no parking
and no decorative architecture like the
buildings that surround it.
“This is not the city of Downtown, this
is our community of West Seattle, and
The new year brings a measles outbreak
By Shaneen Walter-Edwards
The Measles outbreak of 2015 has
141 cases with four of those cases being
right here in Washington.
Measles is a contagious virus that is
spread through the air or things contaminated by a person infected with the
virus. Although babies and young children are more susceptible to the virus,
anyone can get it.
The most common symptoms of Measles are coughing, sneezing, rashes or
red spots, fever, fatigue, headaches, and
sore throat.
The vaccine for Measles is the MMR,
which also protects against Mumps and
Rubella, and has a 97 percent effectiveness rate if both doses of the vaccine are
given to the child or adult.
Some of the cases of Measles in California have been led back to Disneyland. No one is sure where exactly the
virus originated from but it is similar to
the strain that infected the Philippines,
which leads some to believe that it may
have been spread that way.
It was thought that undocumented
migrants that pass through the United
States might be linked to the spread of
Measles in someway. Anne Schuchat,
director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases
at the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC), believes that this is
not true because there is no evidence
and that people who don’t want illegal
immigrants in the country make those
claims.
It has been discovered that most
people that have contracted the disease
were not vaccinated against the disease.
This has resulted in a slew of K - 12
schools and universities requiring proof
of Measles vaccination before entry into
the college or school.
Luxuria Bordeaux, a West Seattle
High School Senior, said, “I’m not sure
how I feel about it, I mean if there is a
vaccination then you should use it.”
Bordeaux has had the vaccine and
doesn’t understand what the big deal is
about getting one.
Chipotle is one of the chains coming to West Seattle.
it is being destroyed by the building of
apartments,” said Gabby Carufel.
The small town like feeling is being
destroyed by an influx of new Seattlites
as well as the increased construction
that follows them. Soon walking down
the Junction or anywhere in West Seattle won’t have the same feeling. The
streets will be littered with more trash,
the skies more polluted, parks overused if not destroyed, backyards more
shadowed, more traffic, less parking
spots, and other consequences not yet
foreseen. The vibe of West Seattle may
forever disappear but yet more apartments and fast food chains are built
right down the streets without local’s
consent. But you can help support the
local businesses by continuing to enjoy
their service over the fast food chains.
Talk to officials about the possibility
of slowing the growth of West Seattle
down, so maybe you can preserve your
community.
Indian Ed Culture Night and Coming Home Dinner
When: Monday March 9, 2015
Where: At Boren STEM (old Indian Heritage on Delridge), from 5.30-8:00p.m.
What:
• Blessing, smudging and ceremony to bless our way back into this building
we’ve been away from so long.
•
Please share the word about this event.
•
Potluck
•
Sharing songs and ?
This will be the beginning of a monthly gathering at the Boren building (the old
Indian Heritage on Delridge) to share knowledge, culture, crafts or just relax with
friends and family. Bring your drums to share a song, bring your craft work or whatever you’d like to
work (or not work) on.
Cowlitz Tribal Health Services will bring a main dish and desert.
Please bring side dish or anything you want to share.
Questions? Gail Morris, Native American Education Services Manager
Seattle Public Schools #1
PO Box 34165
Seattle, WA 98124-0179
Tel: 206-252-0948
Fax: 206-252-0179
gtmorris@seattleschools.org
http://nativeed.www.seattleschools.org/
Page 4
Issue 3
The Chinook - West Seattle High School - March 2015
NEWS
Know your senior requirements
By Cassidy Julian
As seniors approach graduation they
have to make sure they have all their requirements to graduate and go on with
life past high school. Counselors Tara
Vanselow and Tia Fillipelli can help you
make sure you’re on track to graduate
on time. If you have any concerns as to
whether you are on track to graduate, go
talk to your counselor.
Senior requirements include taking
language arts 12, and American government. You will also need 21 minimum
credits to graduate but 24 is recommended for college.
Also you are recommended to take
four years of math and science, and you
are required to take three years of these
classes.
To graduate you will need to achieve
four credits of language arts, three credits of social studies, three credits of
mathematics, two credits of science, 1.5
credits of occupational education. two
credits of physical education/health,
one credit of fine arts, and 4.5 credits of
electives which include world language,
and/ or elective courses from other subject areas.
To complete your requirements you
also need to pass the EOC (Algebra OR
Geometry), and the Biology EOC, if you
have not taken the EOC or you have not
passed you need to talk to Sandi Whiton
in the tutoring center.
Also you need to complete your senior
project, HSPE (language arts and reading), 60 hours of community service,
and a minimum GPA of a 2.0. If you are
struggling your teachers can help as well
to make sure you get back on track.
As far as test requirements go they do
change based on your graduating year,
so if you’re not a senior check with your
counselor about which tests you will
have to pass. Students plan for spring break
By Cassidy Julian
Having trouble coming up with what
to do for spring break? How about going
on a mini vacation, or a road trip, help
out in your community, catching up on
homework, or even getting more sleep?
There are so many things for Westsiders
to do over spring break.
If you are looking for something to
do Washington has many offers during
the month of April such as the Tulip
Festival which is April 1 - 30 in Mt. Vernon located in Skagit Valley. The Tulip
Festival consists of blooming tulips and
daffodil fields and a free street fair from
April 17-19.
Also there is a spring fair located
in Puyallup from April 16th- April 19th,
where you can see features baby animals, pig races, fair food, a garden show,
and a demolition derby at the Puyallup
Fair and Events Center. Other ideas could be as simple as
sleeping in, or hanging out with friends,
the possibilities are endless.
Not to mention there are tons of concerts occurring during spring break,
such as Moody Blues, Ariana Grande,
Elvis Costello and much more.
If you are on a low budget some suggestions are going bowling, the zoo, beach,
the ferris wheel downtown, or kayaking
which you can find on Alki. You could
even stay in and have a movie night.
Spring break is going to be here before you know it, and it is from April
11th-April 19th and West Seattle High
School will be have a spring assembly
on April 10th. Some Westside students
already have in mind what they plan to
do, which include vacations, sleeping,
and overall just relaxing. The Tulip Festival is a great spring break activity.
Issue 3
Many of the tests required to graduate are moving to
computers this year and future years.
Native American Club starts
Did you know West Seattle High
School had a very active Native American Club for several years? They even
hosted a Pow-Wow or two that included a potluck, drumming and singing,
and vendors. Sound interesting? Come find out how WSHS can
get this valuable cultural experience
up and running again. On Tuesday,
March 10, 2015 in Room 143 there will
be a gathering of students interested
in bringing new life to a WSHS Native
American Club. Open to all students, but focused
on Native Americans, advisors will
be available both lunches. Come join
Sandy Polzin, Paula Tortorice, Marguerite Jones, Jenny Miller from Native American Services for SPS and
Seth from Cowlitz Tribal Health Services. Pizza and a beverage will be
available.
Native American Club hopes to celebrate culture.
Page 5
A&E
The Chinook - West Seattle High School - March 2015
Local hang out spots limited in West Seattle
By Andre Moore
There aren’t many places to hang out
at around West Seattle unless it’s for
recreational purposes. The Circle, View
point and boat launch are a few places
that many students find themselves
hanging at if they don’t have something
better to do.
With the lack of kick it spots in this
area, many kids spend a lot of their time
at the Safeway. Now my opinion isn’t
everything that matters but to me my
opinion is the only thing that matters
and in my opinion, chilling at Safeway
has to be your last resort.
Some kids use Safeway just as a meet
up spot essentially which is totally acceptable. But once you start spending
hours there is when you need to stop and
go do something with your life. I promise Safeway isn’t going to just up and
leave with no warning like a deadbeat
dad. It’s been here for many years and
will be for many more years to come.
A hot spot for many people in West Seattle is Nikkos. For those of you that have
been living in total isolation the past 20
years that don’t know what Nikkos is or
where it is here is a brief overview.
Nikkos is a small family owned Teriyaki shop located in Jefferson Square
right next to Subway. You can’t go into
Nikkos without seeing someone you
know. At any time of the day you can go
into Nikkos and at no point will you be
the only customer there.
For some people they go to Nikkos
just for the food but I go for the Nikkos
experience. Calling in and talking to the
nice lady that barely speaks English and
having to repeat my order three times
before her saying; “Thank you, see you
in 10 minutes.”
Then 10 minutes later coming in
and running into people I haven’t seen
in years coming to sink their teeth into
Washington’s best teriyaki, drowning my teriyaki in the famous Nikko’s
white sauce and eating every bite. It’s
no wonder why so many people come in
to the small shop faithfully, if you’d like
to change the way you look at teriyaki
forever then bring your family and everyone you’ve ever talked too to Nikko’s
Teriyaki.
Another popular hang out spot in the
west is Lincoln Park. During the summer if you ever see yourself bored with
Nikko’s is about more than just the great food, it’s
also a great place to hang out.
nothing to do and you’re tired of Safeway just go to Lincoln.
Even on weekdays you can always
find something to do at Lincoln. A lot
of my high school memories have to do
with going to a “Lincoln Meetup,” although these Lincoln meetups get shut
down faster than it takes for them to get
2014 worst year yet in Kpop history
By Sahra Ibrahim
In the Korean Pop (Kpop) music world
everyone thought that this would be one
of the best years yet. Almost every kpop
group was scheduled to have a comeback
with new albums. But the problem with
it was mixed in with all that goodness;
a million problems came with it. From
scandals, to company lawsuits, and even
deaths this is not a year that any one
wants to remember.
Endless scandals began the year stating that various Korean artists were in
some sort of relationship. Many were not,
but there were also a few that were, this
sparked up endless outrage and support
from fans that didn’t know how to react
to it all.
“Honestly Korean Idols joined the
company to live their dream to become
either a singer, dancer, actor, or rapper,”
said sophomore Suad Ibrahim. “They
want their fans to support them for whatever they do, which includes their personal life.”
There were two unforgettable tragedies
that happened this year one was on April
15 with the Sewol Ferry Accident, out of
the 476 people that the ship carried, who
were mostly secondary school students,
304 died leaving approximately 172 survivors. This brought great distraught
amongst everyone. Making it difficult
for anyone to get anything done, only to
worry for the safety of those on the ferry.
“It was an accident that shouldn’t have
happened, the captain of the ship told
everyone to stay, but if he told everyone
to go then no one would have died,” said
Senior Abby Terry.
A few months after recovering from
this in September, a member from the
5-member girl group Ladies Code, Go
Eun-Bi, passed away. A few days later
a fellow member Kwon Ri-se passed as
well. Both of these deaths were caused by
a car accident on a rainy night.
“In the Korean music industry the
manger and the artists are on the same
schedule, the problem with this is that
neither get enough sleep. Since the manager is the one to drive everyone around
they tend to fall asleep behind the wheel,
Jessica Jung left Girls
Generation.
this is the cause of a lot of car accidents,”
said Terry.
Within all of this there were lawsuits
as well. Many were in SM entertainment,
which was the Head Company in the Korean Music industry, but due to all this
controversy they have fallen behind and
now are the fourth leading company.
The reason for this was due to the continuous removal of the artists in the company. The first to leave was Kris one of the
Chinese members of EXO, a few months
later taking another member with him.
The biggest thing to happen with the
company was the removal of Jessica Jung
from the world wide popular girl group
Girls Generation; because of this SM’s
stocks dropped like there was no tomorrow.
Problems in SM was not the only thing
happening there were also many other
members from various companies who
left their groups as well.
“SM had this coming for them, they always mistreat their artists so seeing them
leave is understandable. But it’s still sad
to see them go,” Terry said.
This is only 2014 though, some say
that more will happen in this coming year
of 2015. While others pray that the nightmare ends here.
But in the end one thing for sure is that
ALL fans want the groups and artists that
they support to stay healthy and continue
working hard.
started at least it’s something to do with
all your friends which is probably why
so many people go there.
West Seattle is a great area but doesn’t
have much for teens to do for fun so if
you ever find yourself with nothing to do
try hanging at Linclon, Boat Launch, Circle, View Point, Nikkos or even Safeway.
Sasquatch Festival in May
By Zoe Mullen
Sasquatch is a music festival held on
Memorial Day weekend (May 22-25) at
The Gorge, (Quincy Washington). It is
a four day long music festival and one
can stay in nearby hotels to attend, or
camp out to attend the concerts of their
choice. With headliners such as Kendrick Lamar, Lana Del Rey, and Flume
playing, this four day concert is not to
be missed.
There will be plenty of other
performers too, Modest Mouse, The Decemberists, and Of Monsters and Men
are just a few to name.
There is a wide range including huge
musicians, to small, undiscovered indie artists. This music festival is full of
people you may be interested in seeing,
and these varieties provide music for everyone to enjoy and performers to see at
Sasquatch 2015.
Ticket prices start at $350.00 as a
festival pass, which allows you to attend the music festival all four days. VIP
tickets start at $950.00, with access to
a private club and special seating. This
festival may be considered a bit pricey,
but it is well worth the money spent, especially if you love and live for music.
“I am hoping to go to Sasquatch and
I’m most excited to see Flume there,”
said sophomore, Annika Salenjus.
If you have the money and are looking
for a great experience, Sasquatch is
something you cannot miss.
Page 6
Issue 3
A&E
The Chinook - West Seattle High School - March 2015
Beyonce addresses racism
By Meron Mulu
Beyoncé Knowles is the queen of today’s
music industry. She’s beautiful, talented
and fierce. However some used to feel that
she didn’t use her fame for enough good.
She often speaks out on feminism but not
racism until recently.
In preparation for her Grammy performance her and her dancers made a video
sharing their personal opinions on racism in today’s society. She talks about the
struggles her father went through growing
up.
“Now I can sing for his pain,” Beyoncé
said.
Beyoncé strayed from her usual genre
of music as well as from her silence on racism by singing a gospel classic, “Take My
Hand Precious Lord.”
These kinds of actions from celebrities
is what inspires the younger generation
to act on today’s social issues. We idolize today’s singers, rappers and actors, so
more of them should make statements on
important problems and current events.
Their instagrams and twitter have so
much potential in changing the way people think about racism.
“I think it’s very courageous of her to
speak upon a serious and sensitive topic
like that,” said senior Essence Cassell.
The Diversity Club tweeted her video as
well as a quote from the video.
“The best way to assist the devil is to
act like he’s not there, and a lot of times
with racism, we act like it’s not there,”
tweeted @wsdiversityclub quoting one of
the dancers from the video.
Many less famous artists have been
speaking up about and writing songs dealing with the endemic racism that has been
brought to the forefront of society through
Ferguson and the Black Lives Matter campaign, however many feel that artists like
Beyoncé have been silent for too long.
“I feel like they should talk about it
more because it makes an impact on the
people that listen to them and support
87th annual Oscars
By Sahra Ibrahim
This year’s Oscars, or the 87th Academy Awards, ceremony by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
to honor the best films of 2014 took
place February 22, 2015, at the Dolby
Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles.
Academy Awards, otherwise known
as ‘Oscars,’ were handed out in 24 categories. Hamish Hamilton directed the
ceremony, televised live by ABC in the
United States, and produced by Neil
Meron and Craid Zadan.
The nominees were announced on
January 15 at the Samel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills, California. There
were 60 films in this years award show,
and more than 20 actors nominated.
The nominees for Best Actor award
were Steve Carell, Bradley Cooper,
Benedict Cumberbatch, Michael Keaton, and Eddie Redmayne.
For the Best Actress category, they
were Marion Cotillard, Felicity Jones,
Julianne Moore, Rosamund Pike, and
Reese Witherspoon.
The nominees for best supporting actor were Robert Duvall, Ethan Hawke,
Mark Ruffalo, and J.K. Simmons,
while for best supporting actress, were
Patricia Arquette, Laura Dern, Keira
Knightley, Emma Stone, and Meryl
Streep.
“Tonight we honour Hollywood’d
best and whitest- I mean brightest,”
joked Oscars host Niel Patrick Harris
in his opening remarks.
He was mocking the Oscars’ lack of
Beyonce and her dancers made a video addressing racism in this country.
them,” said senior Jada Crespin-Thissel.
“They have a bigger impact than me.”
Many fans who are actively fighting racism hope that this is a new beginning to
Beyoncé’s voice on the subject.
“People like Beyoncé should use their
popularity to be an advocate,” said senior
Aby Follansbee.
Upcoming concerts in Seattle
By Zoe Mullen
Seattle is a big city and holds a rich
diversity, a controversy sparked by the
and
dynamic music history. Music in
absence of actors of colour – and of
this
city is still alive and enjoyed by
Ava DuVernay, the African American
many.
Concerts are a typical event for
woman who directed “Selma” – from
those
who
have a passion for music, like
the nominees list. But one group that
the
citizens
of Seattle. Bands such as
represents diversity did make a breakThe
Who,
Imagine
Dragons, Death Cab
through in Hollywood for the second
for
Cutie,
and
Tycho
have shows taking
year in a row.
place
soon
in
Seattle.
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu was the
The Who is playing on September
first Mexican to have his film, the dark
27,
2015,
in the Key Arena. September
and surreal satire on show business
seems
long
ways away, but it will be
“Birdman,” win Best Picture at the Oshere
before
you
know it and it’s going to
cars, and the second – in just the past
be
a
big
show.
two years - to win Best Director, after
The Who is an English rock band
Alfonso Cuaron’s win for “Gravity.”
that
came together in 1964. They have
“Birdman” won four Oscar honours been
huge in the music industry ever
Best Picture, Best Director, Best Origisince
and produce unforgettable songs
nal Screenplay, and Best Cinematogsuch
as
“Baba O’Riley,” “The Kids are
raphy, which was awarded to another
Alright,”
and “Pictures of Lily” (just to
Mexican, Emmanuel Lubezki, for the
name
a
few).
second straight year.
Their many hit albums and songs have
“I just pray that they can be treated
made
a large impact on many musicians
with the same dignity and respect of the
today.
Including lead singer Roger Dalones that came before and built this intrey,
guitarist
Pete Townshend, bassist
credible immigrant nation,” he said.
John
Entwistle,
and drummer Keith
For the intermission there were perMoon
a
great
show
will be performed.
formances, that included segments to
Tickets
start
at
$75.00,
and doors open
showcase the nominees for the ‘Origiat
7:30
p.m.
nal Song’ category, namely Adam
Imagine Dragons will be playing at
Levine with “Lost Stars” (from Begin
the
Tacoma
Dome on July 31st. Tickets
Again), Common and John Legend with
start
at
$63.00
and the doors open at
“Glory” (Selma), Rita Ora with “Grate7:30
p.m.
ful” (Beyond the Lights), Tim McGraw
Imagine Dragons is an American rock
with “I’m Not Gonna Miss You” (Glen
band
from Las Vegas, Nevada. MemCampbell...I›ll Be Me) and Tegan and
bers
Dan
Reynolds, Daniel Wayne SerSara and The Lonely Island with “Evmon,
Daniel
Platzman, Ben Mckee, and
erything Is Awesome” (The Lego Movie). various others bring their fans many
hit singles such as “Radioactive,” “Demons,” and “It’s Time.” Plus an unforgettable hit album called Night Visions.
Death Cab for Cutie is an alternative
rock band from Bellingham, Washington. Members Ben Gibbard, Christopher Walla, Nick Harmer, Jason McGerr, Nathan Good, and Michael Schorr
will be putting on a great show. They
will be performing at The Paramount
Theatre for three nights: October 3, 4,
and 5, 2015. Doors open at 8:00 p.m.
Well known songs by Death Cab for
Cutie are “I Will Follow You Into the
Dark,” and “Soul Meets Body.”
Tycho will be playing at The Showbox
in SODO, with doors opening at 7:00
p.m. on March 18. Tycho consists of one
musician from San Francisco, whose
name is Scott Hansen.
His music is electronic, and he is also
fairly un-wellknown. His popular songs
are “Awake” and “Dive” from his first album, Awake. Tickets cost $25.00.
Issue 3
Page 7
A&E
The Chinook - West Seattle High School - March 2015
West Seattle Art Walk
By Zoe Mullen
The West Seattle Art Walk is on California Ave
SW and Alaska Ave SW every second Thursday
of each month. This walk is to celebrate local
artists by displaying their art and showcasing it
to the public. It begins at 6:00 p.m. and ends at
9:00 p.m. Most companies along California Ave
SW and Alaska Ave SW participate, as well as
the galleries.
Catch Empire on Wednesday nights
By meron mulu
Empire is the hottest new show on
tv. It deals with a wide spread of issues.
Empire airs Wednesday nights on Fox.
“That show is fire,” said senior Ben
Jordan.
Taraji P Henson plays Cookie who
is released from serving 17 years in
prison and Terrence Howard plays Lucious who has worked his way up from
the ghetto to glamour but has been diagnosed with ALS.
Their oldest son Andre has to deal
with his bipolar disorder, their other
son Jamal has never been accepted by
his father because of his homosexuality,
and their youngest son Hakeem tends
to constantly find himself in trouble.
Empire airs on
Empire has a strong cast.
Wednesday
nights
on
Fox.
In addition to dealing with the
unique issues of each child, the
show’s plot centers around music.
Lucious Lion owns the record label
Empire. His children are competing
for who the label will be passed down
to once Lucious is gone.
“It’s great because there’s so many
personalities,” said senior viewer Essence Cassell. “One of the
sons is gay, one of the sons is
dating like a 50-year-old woman
and then the oldest son doesn’t
seem like he’s part of the family, he just acts like he’s better
than everybody else. I love that
show.”
The music is all original for
the show, which is another part
of what fans love.
“I do love the music, it’s good,”
said Cassell. “I even downloaded
the songs.”
Timbaland has created several
original songs for the show. Columbia Records plans to release
the songs on iTunes each week.
Snow-lo a success
By Allison Parker
This event is great to attend if you are interested
in seeing new upcoming artists or just want to get
out for the night. This can also be a great “go to” if
you are looking for a place to showcase your own
art work.
This art walk provides to any artist from West
Seattle an outlet to express themselves and
present their work.
“The more art work you see, and the more
cultures you take in expands your outlook on
the world,” said art teacher Michelle Sloan on
what she likes about the Art Walk.
On the official website of the art walk, you
can check upcoming venues and artists that you
may be interested in seeing. Make note of this
upcoming month’s art walk, which will take
place on March 12, 2015.
Book a free trial
lesson!
206.294.3175
westseattle.schoolofrock.com
West Seattle High School’s
Winterball was held on February 21 in the high school cafeteria, doors opened at 8 p.m.
and it ended at 11 p.m. This
year’s theme was “Winter Wonderland.” With help from the
junior class officers, the cafeteria looked beautiful. These past
few months leading up to Tolo,
we’ve seen some very cute proposals and many students were
excited.
“I’m just excited to dance with
my friends,” said sophomore Emily
Parker, before the dance.
There was lots of excitement
prior to the night.
“I’m ready to raise the roof,”
said Annika Salenjus, before she
went. “I think it’s going to be the
best dance yet, hopefully better
than homecoming.”
The pre-dance predictions
were great, but it was all up to
Saturday night see if it lived up
to the student body’s expectations.
When you approached the
historical entrance the night of
the dance, you were immediately greeted with candles highlighting the walkway. Once you
walked in, you could see the
cafeteria full of streamers lining
the ceiling, silver confetti sprinkled along the floor and colorful
lights beaming across the dance
floor. It definitely felt like a winter wonderland. Although it started at 8 p.m.,
mass amount of students did
st
not start arriving until around 8:40 p.m.
The DJ was very creative with his
remixes but some students were disappointed that he only played one slow
song.
Many opinions were given out after the
dance, ranging from what they thought of
the music to what they liked about the décor.
“I had fun dancing with my friends, but
I wish they had played Uptown Funk before
I left,” said sophomore, Lucinda Wickersham.
Many students had something to say
about the music selection.
“I wish they had played more Kanye,”
said Emily Parker.
Alex Halverson agreed and said, “I
liked it when they did play Kanye though
because the audience responded well.”
Although the music wasn’t always
what the students wanted, they were
impressed with the food and décor.
“I thought it was neat how the lights were
flashing when we walked in, it really added
to the event and made it more lively,”
said Wickersham. “I’ m also impressed
with the marketing class and how well
they supplied food and beverages.”
Overall Winterball was thought as a
great dance, and many people attended
and seemed to be having lots of fun.
Expectations were high after all of the
creative proposals, and luckily expectations were met.
Turnout was good on the dance floor at this year’s
Winterball.
Page 8
Issue 3
A&E
West Seattle High School- March 2015
Will you go to SNOWLO with me?
By Shaneen Walter-Edwards
West Seattle High School’s Winter
Ball was a TOLO this year, which means
that traditional roles were reversed and
girls had to ask boys out to the dance.
This twist on who asks out who allowed
everyone to be creative and go all out to
have the best idea to ask their date to
Snowlo.
WSHS senior Thu Nguyen asked
Chandra Lim out by having a friend
lead him blindfolded to the Commons,
then telling him that there was nothing
there for him. Nguyen then came out
with a poster that read ‘roses are red,
violets are blue, you uggs, but I am too!
Let’s be ugly at Sno-lo?’ to which Lim
obliged.
“I was confused and annoyed at first,
but when Thu came out with the poster
I thought it was cute and said sure,”
said Nguyen’s longtime friend Lim. “I
was then ridiculed for my poor word
choice. I kind of knew that Thu was going to ask me though.”
Megan Duong asked Naod Sebhat
to Snowlo by walking up to him with a
poster that had a poke ball at the bottom with I choose you near it and sing-
ing ‘Naod, I wanna be your TOLO date
that no one ever was.”
“I loved it and thought that it was
really cute and creative,” said Sebhat.
“I thought it was just a poster for class
and was awed when she started singing
to the Pokémon theme song.”
Karina Kerper asked her best friend
Aby Riggins to the dance during her
fourth period class. Kerper did this by
bringing Riggins her favorite Starbucks
drink with a pink balloon attached to it
that had several pictures of them over
the years with the words ‘ I love you
Abs, will you go to TOLO with me?’ to
which Riggins agreed.
“I thought it was mad cute and not
just because she asked me in this weird
but cute little voice,” said best friend
Riggins. “But because we always talk in
front of my class and that she took time
to find, print out, and attach pictures of
us but also because she knew my Starbucks order.”
There were many creative ways to ask
dates to Tolo this year and the reviews
from the dance were just as positive as
the reports on how people asked their
dates.
Senior Aby Riggins (second from right) with her friends
at the dance.
Buy your yearbook now
WSHS yearbooks have sold out the last two years,
don’t miss your chance to get one and be a part of
WSHS history. Buy your yearbook online today.
0
6
$
It’s easy to buy online:
1. Go to www.yearbookordercenter.com
2. Search by school (West Seattle High School)
3. Enter your name and grade
4. Submit your online secure payment
5. Pick up your book at the end of the year
Questions:
Contact advisor,
Ms. McKinney
- Room 133
- ramckinney@seattleachools.org
- (206) 252-8833
Issue 3
Page 9
FEATURE
The Chinook - West Seattle High School - March 2015
Help out your friends
By Shelby Walker
The importance of great friends is that
they will always have your back. They
laugh, share secrets, comfort each other
when they’re sad, and above all have a
connection through trust and shared
common interests. Everyone needs good
friends to surround themselves with,
sometimes not for just the laughs and
good times, but for protection and support too.
So what happens when your good
friend starts to seem quieter, more nervous, possibly depressed? Do they jump
at your touch and loud noises? This could
mean many things but they could potentially be in an abusive relationship with
someone.
Times like these are when they will
need your friendship and support the
most, even if they are not yet willing to
confide in you what is happening. But as
a friend, it is your responsibility to help
them through their hard times, even if
that just means being supportive of them
and creating a safe environment while
they are with you, even when you don’t
know what may be happening.
Never push them to confide in you, no
matter how much you feel like they need
to, they might feel in danger if they tell
you. Also they might still love their significant other and don’t want you to interfere and hurt the person that they are
dating. So don’t try to get completely involved in the beginning. Wait for them to
feel ready, but don’t let them suffer and
be hurt. It is a fine line to walk, but crucial in keeping a friend healthy, and quite
possibly alive.
Lindy Tongol decided that she would,
“Talk to them about it and I would give
them the opportunity to give their side of
the story. But I would make it clear that
from the outside it didn’t seem safe and
that I was genuinely worried.”
Be there and be supportive of them, not
of what is happening, but of your friend.
Help them find the courage to safely get
away from their abusive partner. Don’t let
them feel stranded, or all alone in their
ordeal, because that can lead to more
problems internally, like depression or
even suicide, as well as take them down
the dangerous road of drugs and alcohol.
It is of utmost importance to keep them
safe from both their abuser and themselves.
“It’s important to help your friend get
out of the relationship quickly and safely
but you need to listen to your friend, and
make sure that they know that you are
there for them and support them unconditionally,” stated Casey Hart.
When you are able to find out everything that may be happening in the abusive and even violent relationship between your friend and their significant
other, try to have a calm conversation
with your friend about routes to take.
Make sure they are all safe and beneficial
for your friend. There are many outlets
to take but finding the right one for each
specific circumstance can seem tricky and
overwhelming, but you don’t need to do
it alone.
Talking with parents, family members,
other friends, counselors, or doctors can
and will help you make good decisions.
Be sure that your friend is willing, but if
you feel that they are in true danger and
are refusing to talk or get help, then it
may be necessary to go behind their back.
Carynia Smith believes the best course
of action would be, “To tell them to go talk
to an adult they trust to help them safely
get out of the relationship.”
West Seattle High School has a great
resource with the Teen Health Center.
They offer people to talk with confidentially and the necessary help for your
friend while they are in the relationship,
getting out of it, and afterwards if they
still need that help and support.
Don’t ever
leave
your
friend to fend
for
themselves during
a time like
this, they are
most likely
overwhelmed
or have gotten
accustomed to the
abuse. They
need
you
during a time
like this more
than ever, to
be there and
be supportive
of them.
•
•
•
E
V
O
L
1.5
• One
About high
in 10 high
school stu
n
o
i
l
l
h
s
as been p
t
dents
mi
n
e
d
u
u
rposefully
t
s
l
o
o
slapped o
hit,
sch
r physica
ide
l
w
a
n
c
o
l
i
l
i
y
s
a boyfrien
hurt by
nat
ce phy
d or girlfr
n
e
i
r
e
iend.
exp
om a in a
r
f
e
s
abu
rtner
a
• Approximately 70% of
p
g
n
dati
.
college students say they
year
single
have been sexually coerced. One in three adolescents
n
wome nd 24
in the U.S. is a victim
g
n
u
o
y
of 16 a te
s and
s
l
e
of physical, sexual,
r
i
g
a
G
•
n the
est ra e
e
h
e
g
i
w
h
emotional or verbal abuse
t
be
ce the ner violenc
n
e
i
r
e
from a dating partner,
al
exp
part
e
t
ation
a
n
m
i
e
t
h
n
t
a figure that far exceeds
of i
triple
t
s
o
m
rates of other types of
-- al
ge.
youth violence.
avera
school
h
g
i
h
f
o
r
te
of
One quar
n victims
e
e
b
e
v
a
girls h
al abuse.
u
x
e
s
r
o
l
physica
•
n
o
i
t
i
d
E
l
o
o
h
c
S
High
Violent behavior typically begins
between the ages of 12 and 18.
According to www.Loveisrespect.org:
The severity of in
• About 72% of eighth
timate
partner violence
and ninth graders
is often
greater in cases
are “dating.”
where
the pattern of ab
use was
established in ad
olescence.
ence can
c
s
e
l
o
d
a
in
ionships
tting the
t
u
a
p
l
e
y
r
b
e
t
v
s
n
a
n
e
oh
tio
• Viol
youth wh
ce abuse,
ramifica
f
n
s
o
a
u
f
t
l
o
s
i
a
b
r
H
e
u
s
s
•
or
have
ms of both
avior and
her risk f
g
h
i
e
h
b
t
l
a
a
been victi
s
u
sex
victim
lence and
rs, risky
e
d
r
o
s
i
d
dating vio
,
e.
eating
pt suicide
ic violenc
m
t
e
s
t
t
e
a
m
e
o
p
d
a
r
f
further
to 12.5% o
d
e
r
a
p
m
co
girls and
d
e
s
u
b
a
• Being physically or sexually abused
non
ed boys.
s
u
b
a
n
o
makes teen girls six times more likely
5.4% of n
to become pregnant and twice as likely
to get a STI.
• Only
33% of tee
ns who w
in a violen
ere
t relation
• Eighty one percent of parents believe
ship ever
told anyo
ne about
teen dating violence is not an issue or
the abuse
.
admit they don’t know if it’s an issue.
•
•
A teen’s confusion about the law and their desire for confidentiality are
two of the most significant barriers stopping young victims of abuse
from seeking help.
Page 10
Volume 88
By Zayla Gipson
As a teenage girl I grew up being taught
that boys are never supposed to hit girls
and that I am to be treated with respect. I
wish that all kids were taught this so once
they get involved in relationships they
would know that being abused and put
down is not okay and is not something
to be accepted. Love is not painful, love
is not being scared of your partner, it’s
not something that you feel forced to do.
Love is not being isolated from your family and friends, it’s not being controlled.
Yet, so many young people believe that
these actions are okay.
You have a choice to leave no matter what your partner tells you, them
threating you in the first place should
be a signal to leave. There are a million
people in this world, why be stuck with
someone who brings you way more pain
than happiness, laughs and smiles? Love
is being able to be yourself, being able to
make mistakes and work through it, love
is communication, love is trust, and love
is something beautiful.
As teens we already have enough problems to go through: school, parents, jobs
and everything else that teens go through.
Being beaten by your partner should not
be one of these problems. It’s always “It
won’t happen again” but if it happened
the first time what makes you think that
it’ll be the last time? Your partner also
sees that you’ve stayed even after hands
were laid on you, people that are abusive
feed off of weakness and know when they
can manipulate someone meaning it’s far
from the last time.
It usually starts with little name calling, beefing about the littlest things, being overprotective, and jealousy. If you
start to pick up on this behavior from
your partner you should really leave, it’s
not worth it at all. In a relationship you
should feel beautiful and loved everyday,
if your partner doesn’t make you feel like
the only girl or boy in the world you need
to find someone that does.
I’ve been in a few big relationships in
my short 17 years and if things were looking left I had to get right. Over the years
I’ve learned who I am and what I will not
settle for. Before you even decide to start
dating I feel you should truly love yourself so you aren’t looking for love, but love
finds you and when it does it’s something
wonderful, not something that is your
only option and you tell yourself, “It’s not
that bad.”
As teens we still have our whole lives to
be in love, to get married, to do all of that,
so why be stuck with someone now that
doesn’t treat you right? Just think about
the next five years: are you going to deal
with a bunch of losers like the ones you’re
dealing with now? Or are you going to
find self value, self love and self worth
and find someone who truly matches your
fly. Don’t settle for a beating bum.
You know this is something you can’t
tell your best friend, you know that your
bestie would not be okay with this and he/
she would flip out that your partner would
even have the nerve to put their hands on
you. If you aren’t comfortable to tell your
best friend you know it’s wrong so let this
be a sign. Don’t be okay with what’s happening to you. YOU SHOULDN’T BE!
You can’t even keep it real, all because
you’re in love, in love with someone who
doesn’t love you! If they loved you, you
wouldn’t be hurt mentally and physically
right now, you wouldn’t be emotionally
drained and you shouldn’t be. Healthy
relationships consist of trust, honesty, respect, equality, and compromise. Unfortunately, teen dating violence—the type of
intimate partner violence that occurs between two young people who are, or who
were once in, an intimate relationship—is
a serious problem in the United States.
A national survey found that ten percent
of teens, female and male, had been the
victims of physical dating violence within
the past year and approximately 29 percent of adolescents reported being verbally or psychologically abused within the
previous year.
Before doing this article I honestly forgot about teen domestic violence I always
just thought about adults when domestic
violence was brought up but teen domestic violence is a huge problem which leads
to the violence once you become an adult
because that’s all you know.
I want whoever is reading this and
is going through violence from physical abuse to hurtful words to know that
you do not have to stay. You are so much
more than this, you are smart, you have
so much potential, you are beautiful, you
are wonderful, you are funny, you are a
great person and you are not to be hurt
anymore. Take a stand and leave today
you can start a fresh chapter in your life
once you release this burden in your life.
Focus on being the best you; I know
that’s its easier said than done but stop
talking and start walking. We are the generation of do-ers and we are making the
path for our future generations, our kids
and grandkids, you don’t want to teach
this violence to your children and grandchildren.
We need to help each other realize how
important they are so we are never in an
abusive relationship because we don’t
have time for that. We are way too good.
Don’t forget it.
If you ever need someone to talk to
I am always here, I’m sure a lot of you
have seen me in halls, don’t be afraid to
just to ask me to listen to you, give you
advice or help you. There are a handful of
students that are here for you if you don’t
feel as comfortable talking to an adult:
Eryn Johnson, Larenn Dixon, Emily Fiso,
Meron Mulu, Alex Jessup, and Nialani
Jackson. There are also over 100 adults at
this school you can go to for help.
Issue 3
Page 11
OPINION The Chinook
- West Seattle High School - March 2015
Hip Hop is too black
By Sumaya Dirie
It’s a
trend
becoming all
too
common
in
modern
m e d i a .
Anything
and
anyone a shade
darker than
your common loaf of
bread is being flushed out and replaced
with a more approachable, neighborhood friendly Sally or Chester. Because God forbid a black woman is
singing-or rapping-about her body or
how much she loves herself, that’s just
shameful! Let’s have a white person do
it instead.
I know what you are thinking; this
article is totally biased and rash. How
dare she say things that obviously
aren’t true? What is she upset about?
Everyone loves Beyoncé! While yes, it
The media has a history of whitewashing.
is true that everyone loves Beyoncé, it
doesn’t mean that society doesn’t secretly hate on every black woman who
doesn’t look like her.
You can’t tell me that the reception
towards ‘Anaconda’ by Nicki Minaj
and ‘Booty’ by Iggy Azalea wasn’t
worlds apart. Every reporter and stylist on E! Magazine was salivating and
losing their minds to that song, while
Celebrity Twitter beef a bad example
By Emily Fiso Recently
in the social
media network world,
Amber Rose
and Khloe
Kardashian
got into a
dispute over
an
interview Khloe
had on her
youngest
sister Kylie (17) with regards on her dating rapper Tyga (25), a lot of controversy has been said on the relationship because of the age difference. Khloe mentioned how Amber Rose was a stripper
at the age of 15. That sparked the drama
on twitter. Amber then fired back at
Khloe. This dispute went on for a good
hour before Amber finally decide to call
it quits tweeting “done dragging this
b****, lesson of the day please don’t try
Muva, cuz I will humble you.”
After witnessing such behavior from
two women who hold a lot of power in
today’s society, I asked myself, are these
the women young girls are supposed to
look up to? The example they are setting in today’s society is that it’s okay
to flaunt your body and show the world
something that should be a prized possession and valued. Women like that,
who are grown and can have an argument and say such hasty words on social
media set a bad example for younger
girls.
Double standard living?
After seeing many of the comments
regarding the two women bashing each
other what bothered me was a comment
that mentioned “#WIFEGOALS” on a
nude picture of Amber Rose. Why is it
okay for women of “Power” to be able to
be naked and flaunt SEX, and be some-
one’s “Wife Goals”? Comments like this
from MEN only are a sad realization on
how men don’t VALUE women.
When men stop valuing women and
their worth, women begin to stop valuing themselves. Which results in behavior like this twitter drama. Actions like
this are setting a double standard for
many minds. For instance, it’s okay for
Amber to be naked and proud but for
someone like my peers and I, we would
be looked down on and considered a
shame to society. My question is, what’s
the difference?
they deemed Nicki’s song as “trying
too hard” and “too scandalous.” So if
the body-or shall I say booty-is white,
it’s less offensive? What am I saying?
Of course it is.
The fact that it is 2015 and people are
still uncomfortable with black people,
or any person of color for that matter
despite the high-pitched squealing of
every white person you know about
how they have two black friends, and
how “they don’t go here but I swear
they exist!”
And obviously there are white people who aren’t racist and don’t really
hold prejudices against anyone, but we
aren’t talking about them. Why lecture
an A student on a bad grade they were
never given?
The whole point of this article is
to bring attention to the reality that
is our media. People of color are still
having the hardest time of their lives
to be represented in the media correctly, and it won’t become any easier until
we all admit to ourselves that there is
a problem.
Work to the beat
By Zayla Gipson
Music
should
be allowed in
classrooms, during tests, during
quiet classroom
time or just when
students have to
work hard individually or downtime.
As I’m writing this I’m listening to
music because it’s helping me be able
to crunch this out and focus more.
Classes at West Seattle High School
can get very noisy very quick sometimes.
Some students like myself can’t focus when it’s too quiet because it can
get boring really easily. That’s why
having your own music can be helpful
to block out whatever everyone else is
doing and be able to get things done.
Obviously we wouldn’t have it blasting because that’s just disruptive but
if it’s only for your ears I don’t know
why teachers have such a big problem
with it.
I think it makes things more peaceful, music is a way for people to release stress and just have a moment to
themselves.
Teachers need to stop being so uptight and sticking to what they think
is best when they should be thinking
about what’s best for the students.
Page 12
Issue 3
The Chinook - West Seattle High School - March 2015
Why Black History should be taught all year
By Eryn Johsnon
Black history is American history;
it shouldn’t
be jammed
into
one
month and
then disappear
until
next year.
At schools
a r o u n d
America
black history should be a part of the curriculum. We learn about white people
all year around, so why does black history have to be taught for 28 days?
Also at some schools around America
people don’t even talk about the African
American influence in America. In the
1900’s African Americans fought hard
for their rights after generations of being lynched, burned, and bombed.
I think that we should know more
leaders than just Rosa Parks, Martin
Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X.
We need to know about Emmett Till,
the four little black girls that died after
their church was bombed, and the things
that black people had to go through so I
can sit in school by a person of a different race.
There have been so many contributions to history that so many of us don’t
even know about because of the EuroCentric history that has dominated curriculums for years.
Not only is it essential to understand
how the Civil Rights movement continues today, but it is critical that Black
History be taught as more than just a
struggle.
African Americans have been innovators, leaders, inventors, scholars, hard
workers and so much more. However,
the story that so often finds its way into
history classes is the story of slavery and
the civil rights movement. There is so
much more to the story, including the
story of race itself.
Black History Month began as Negro
History Week, started by Dr. Carter G.
Woodson. He chose the second week of
February because it marks the birthday
of two people who greatly influenced
African American history, Frederick
Douglas and Abraham Lincoln. What
once was a week, later turned into Black
History Month.
Although the intentions behind Black
History Month are noble and respectable, initially filling a void of then nonexistent black history, now is the time to
do better.
African Americans have had such a
huge impact on America, and for it to
not be taught in school or even out of
school is ridiculous. It needs to change,
black history is American history and
we should learn about it more than just
during the month they gave us.
Why you should join a club
By Larenn Dixon
Other
than
the
fact that it
looks good
for
colleges, there
are many
reasons for
joining
a
club.
First, you
get to learn a lot of new things about
whatever it is that the club focuses on,
so it should be something you’re interested in.
I joined the Diversity Club at our
school because I saw the Martin Luther King Jr. assembly they were in
charge of in previous years and it was
so amazing. I also saw other things
that were happening, so my 10th
grade year I joined.
Being a member of Diversity Club
has made me realize that I should
stand up for what I believe in and I
shouldn’t feel bad to talk about anything.
Another reason to join a club is for
all the great people you get to know
better.
You meet a lot of new people that
you may have not known and together
as one you’re bonding. In Diversity
Club we became a little family so it’s
always easy for me to say what I feel in
a safe environment as well as learning
things I was completely blind to in the
past with people around me that will
not judge me for not knowing what
was going on.
I have made so many great friends
through being a part of this club and I
am excited to continue growing in the
club next year.
In a club you can also really make a
difference.
This year has been one of the most
powerful of them all. We moved from
It’s really great to
feel like you are a part
of change and maybe
even a part of history
at your school.
just being known in our school to being on news channels, having the
NACCP come to our to our MLK assembly and for me the most powerful
was being able to lead the MLK March
on January 19th.
To me that was one of the best times
of my life because I’d never done anything like that before and it was all because of the West Seattle High School
Diversity Club that made it happen
for me and everybody else in the club.
It means so much to me and it was
amazing exposure.
Joining a club can give you a place
and help you leave a legacy.
Diversity Club has given me a place
in this school. We meet twice a week
at lunch and we’re always working on
something. It’s really great to feel like
you are a part of change and maybe
even a part of history at your school.
Another benefit of many clubs is
that you can get your community service hours done with your new friends
in the club. Certain clubs are more service oriented than others, but many of
them should at least introduce you to
potential opportunities for volunteering.
Diversity Club is my choice for a
club, but this school has so many clubs
to choose from. Everyone can find a
place where they can learn new things,
meet new people, make a difference
and maybe even leave a legacy.
You can find a listing of potential
clubs at the YMCA office with Brian
Caylao or you can check with activities
coordinator Christina Posten. There’s
also lots of clubs listed on the school
website with contact information for
the advisors.
So if you’re not in a club yet, it’s not
too late. Join one today.
OPINION
Off to college
By Kylie Leinbach
Why
should seniors prepare
for
college?
Well, college is a
big step in
every person’s life.
Should
you
so
choose
to go, jumping in and overwhelming
yourself isn’t the best way to do it.
Not only are there FAFSA applications to fill out, SAT/ACT tests to take
and the act of actually finding a college, you can’t just show up at the door
with an extra T-shirt and some jeans,
now can you?
Preparing for college doesn’t only
mean studying up on your college
and its programs; you have to do your
best in the last year of high school and
avoid damaging your grades.
The internet calls it Senioritis; the
urge to make a complete ‘blow off’
schedule instead of taking actual elective courses that could potentially impress your chosen colleges and universities.
On top of that there are dorm policies and campus rules to read, jobs to
consider, professionnal and correlating classes to select, and a lot more
that takes a while to prepare to have
the best, least stressful college life possible.
While it can be daunting, the preparation process doesn’t have to be impossible. You should consider points
such as: ‘What do I want to do?’ ‘Does
this college have the classes I’m looking for?’ ‘Do I like the campus and
dorm policies? I am going to live here
after all.’
Looking on your selected college’s
admission site, or even setting up an
appointment with your admissions
counselor, would be the best way to
discover if it’s right for you and how
best to prepare for the year ahead.
College is a great way to open up
future options, find yourself and learn
how to support yourself as you become
an adult. It’s not too late to apply to
some colleges this year and if you are
an underclassman, it’s never too soon
to start researching your future college.
Consider college a chance to learn
something new, try something new, or
even live somewhere new. Consider
college a new beginning.
Issue 3
Page 13
OPINION The Chinook
- West Seattle High School - December 2014
Dear Doktor Mo
Dear Dr. Mo,
My parents are super strict and I am thinking about
moving out and getting my own apartment. Do you
think this is a good idea?
Sincerely,
Almost an Adult
Dear Dr. Mo,
I am struggling to keep up with my work. When I get home I just want to play
video games or sleep, not do my homework. I know I need to do it, but I always
end up coming up with an excuse not to. What should I do?
Sincerely,
Slacking
Dear Almost an Adult,
Considering that I have no idea who you are or what
your level of maturity is I’m not so sure I can give
you the best guidance. If you have a stable job that can support someone living on his or her own then I don’t see why not. Don’t rush into
anything to soon though, make sure you have everything you need and
enough money because living on your own is far too expensive for most
high school students. Also if you’re planning to go to college next year
while keeping a full time job to pay for your apartment then be ready to
say goodbye to your social life. Although there are some advantages to
living on your own like no rules, no curfew, and you can bring who you
want over to your place whenever you want; there’s also many cons out
weighing the pros.
Sincerely,
Dr. Mo
Dear Slacking,
You are not alone, many kids have the same problem you are going through.
Something you can do is stay after school everyday until you’re finished with your
homework, that way you can’t get distracted with video games or beloved sleep.
Another route you could take is just continue to not do your homework and apply
for the McDonalds nearest you. Hope I could help!
Sincerely,
Dr. Mo
Dear Dr. Mo,
Why do high school boys always talk bad about girls? Why is there such
a double standard when it comes to things boys do and things girls do?
Sincerely,
Sick of It
Dear Sick of It,
I’d like to start off by saying high school boys don’t always talk bad about
girls but it definitely does happen. There is a big double standard when
it comes to boys and girls and some might seem not to be fair. If a girl
at our school went around and had five different guys at once her girl
friends would think of her as a hoe. Now in the case of guys it’s completely different, if a guy has five different girls at once his guy friends would
look at him with praise. You see there’s a double standard because guys
don’t care what other guys do. If a guy found out a guy was with five girls
why would another guy have a care about it? It’s not his business nor his
place to say something. If a girl finds out a girl is messing with five guys,
for whatever reason feels the need to call her a hoe.
Sincerely,
Dr. Mo
Dear Dr. Mo,
My teacher is making us read Hamlet. It makes me so sleepy, so I struggle to
answer any questions about what it even means. What can I do to get through
this?
Sincerely,
Soliloquy Struggles
Dear Soliloquy Struggles,
My evil teacher is currently making my class read Hamlet too and I hate it. Fortunately for you, you don’t get graded on how well you can explain what something
means. Just continue to participate in reading in class and maybe drink some
Starbucks before going.
Sincerely,
Dr. Mo
Dear Dr. Mo,
I’m wondering if I should sign up for AP classes next year, and if so how many?
My mom thinks I should take all AP, but I don’t want to get in too deep.
Sincerely,
Stressed
Dear Stressed,
Pick one class, two at the most, to challenge yourself in. Don’t overdo it though
becuase once you sign up, the counselors do not let you out. Pick the class you
enjoy the most and the one you think you could pass the test and get college credit
in, If you’re going to pay $100 to take the test, you might as well get the credit too.
Sincerely,
Dr. Mo
Need advice?
Drop off your letters to Dr. Mo in Room 133,
or email ramckinney@seattleschools.org
Page 14
Issue 2
The Chinook - West Seattle High School - March 2015
OPINION
Faceoff: University or CC?
Go to a University
By Cassidy Julian
As you
rapidly app r o a c h
graduation,
you’re most
likely going
to become
stressed
about what
you decide
to do after
high school.
One of the
things you will consider is whether
you want to go to a university or
community college. There are many
benefits to going the university
route.
As for universities they are quite
expensive, and the average tuition
cost per year is $30,094 at a private
college, such as UW, Gonzaga, and
WSU, $8,893 for state residents at
public colleges and $22,203 for out
of state residents attending public
universities.
Although the tuition is higher
than a community college you will
usually make more salary wise with
a degree from a university. Not to
mention you will get to attend your
Community College is better
college’s activities such as sport
games, festivals, also you will get to
meet new people and create memories you won’t get anywhere else.
Many also say you will be better
equipped for your career choice due
to the intensive education you will
acquire in a university. You will also
have the option to join a wide spectrum of clubs and groups. Off campus learning is also provided.
If you are planning to get into
a university you will have to complete a personal statement, have
recommendations, good grades, and
extracurricular activities and even
then you are still not promised admittance to your desired university. If you are trying to decide whether
toapply or not it is highly suggested by teachers and deans to attend
school and try your best to make
sure you succeed.
Most universities look for driven,
responsible, and well characterized
young adults to promote a positive
environment. Also they look for students with good grades, who participate in clubs and sports, and do well
on their schoolwork. Keep in mind
that they look at your transcript
from freshmen year to senior year. University life has a lot to offer that you won’t get
anywhere else.
By Zayla Gipson
A f t e r
spending
13
years
in
school,
s e n i o r s
around the
world have
to
start
making life
choices,
like
what
career field
they want to
work in, what jobs they should start
looking into and most importantly
what school they’ll be at next fall for
college.
I think as a young kid growing up
everyone looked down at community colleges because they just don’t
have that university label, a university just sounds so much better than
a community college but like everything else that’s just a name that has
left a bad stigma for whatever reason.
At any school university or community college overall you get the
same education that will still get you
in the same field of profession you
want to be in if you put in the work
to get there.
At a community college classes
are much smaller than at a university making it easier for you to learn,
be able to ask questions, and be able
to get a better understanding of your
professor.
In a university a professor honestly might not even know you’re in
the class, classes can be up to 300
students. Until they see the assignments you’ve turned in, they may
not even know your name. Community college is also much cheaper
and like I said before it’s really the
same education for a fraction of the
price of the university.
Millions of people have degrees
from universities with a job or not
and they also have thousands they
have to pay in student loans.
A lot of people in community college do programs in the professions
they’re interested in and end up getting hired and having a nice job right
out of school and a lot more in their
pockets.
If you don’t want to spend thousands of dollars, you want to actually
know who your professor is and get
hands on learning that can later land
you a job, then a community college
is perfect.
I am personally going to a community college for those reasons.
You will still get a degree but you
just might have a little more flexibility and a lot more money in your
pockets if you choose a community
college.
South Seattle Community College is a great option
for saving money while still getting a great education.
Issue 3
Page 15
SPORTS
The Chinook - West Seattle High School - March 2015
Special Olympics unified basketball second in state
By Chinook Staff
The West Seattle High School Special Olympics Unified Basketball team
took second in State last weekend in
Wenatchee, Wash. to end their season
14-3.
The team was undefeated going into
the state tournament.
On February 7th the team won the
District Tournament at Rainier Beach
High School. They defeated Granite
Falls and Franklin for the title.
In their first game at the State
Tournament they played Rogers High
School, winning 17-14.
In their next game they lost to Decatur High School.
“It was a hard game, they were a
competitive team,” said unified player
Niecko Glover.
In their third game at the tournament they beat Othello 26-22 in order
to make it to the championship game.
“That game was intense,” said Glover. “It was a back and forth game and
we had to play defense in the end to
win.”
In the championship game the Wildcats lost to Decatur again.
“That game was better,” said Glover. “We were down by one at half, but
then everybody started to get hurt.”
Austin Hall hurt his knee in the
game and another player was injured
as well.
The unified basketball team consists
of a combination of special education
student athletes and peer athletes. On
the court there are always three spe-
After the CHampionship game from left: Ceasar, Niecko, Kensley, Morgan, Natalie,
Austin, Hanad, Pete, Alex LaRosa.
cial education athletes and two peer
athletes. There were a total of nine
students who went to the state tournament.
The athletes worked hard to prepare for one game a weekend. The
season started in January.
This was the first unified sport
season this school year. Soccer is the
next sport for the Special Olympics
Kensley (left) and Ceasar (back center) get their hands
up on defense while niecko brings up the ball.
Niecko Glover, Austin Hall and Pete Williams in the
game.
program at WSHS. Soccer will start
soon, so if you are interested in joining contact Billy Edwards in the special education department.
The goal of the unified teams include both giving special education
students a chance to participate in
high school sports, and work to create an inclusive community.
In addition to the athletics aspect
of Special Olympics, there is a Special Olympics Club that does a lot of
work around inclusivity.
“We work towards creating an inclusive environment in our West Seattle High School community,” said
club co-president Claire Elbaum.
“Right now we’re working on raising
awareness of the ongoing Spread the
Word to End the Word Campaign in
hopes of raising awareness of the
dehumanizing hurtful effects of the
word retarted.”
The club will have a table set up
at both lunches on Tuesday where
people can pledge to stop using the
r-word. If you’re interested in joining the club, let club co-presidents
Elbaum and Mira Skladany know
and they will add you to the list to
get notifications about upcoming
meetings.
Page 16
Issue 3
The Chinook - West Seattle High School - March 2015
SPORTS
Rylee MacDonald wrestles her way to the top
By Shelby Walker
West Seattle High School has some
greats among us. One of these stars is
Rylee MacDonald, a wrestler who just
recently competed in a national tournament down in Reno. She is always
striving to be her best and understands
that the harder she works for what she
wants then the more she will achieve.
Down in Reno, where the national
tournament took place, there were
only about 10 girl wrestlers that competed, McDonald was among those
few. She competed against two girls
who each were multiple time state
champions. Although MacDonald did
not place in this tournament she put
in all of her effort and looks toward the
future for more opportunities.
“I didn’t win but I tried my hardest and my parents told me that was
all that mattered. I plan on placing in
the next few years and upcoming competitions. It has always been a goal of
mine to be the captain for my wrestling team. At my school in California
I was promised captaincy because the
coaches knew I would stick to wrestling no matter what,” MacDonald
said.
MacDonald also understands that
to be great she has to be committed,
which is why she wrestles through
every season. Wherever she ends up
she wants to wrestle, whether it is for
WSHS or for her club team. Getting
in practice time is crucial to become
amazing at what you do, so all great
athletes are willing to sacrifice their
time for what they love to do.
“It doesn’t matter where I am at,
wherever I end up I want to wrestle,”
said MacDonald. “It is all about getting the mat time to improve on my
skills.”
Next year MacDonald plans on
wrestling for the school. Although the
school doesn’t compete every weekend and don’t reach out for the wrestlers. For WSHS wrestling is a smaller
sport that doesn’t have much of a fan
base behind it so it doesn’t get nearly as much attention. Some sports,
such as basketball, are put in the announcements every day, while others
like wrestling you almost never hear
about. Despite these shortcomings
of competing for the school there are
opportunities every time MacDonald
steps onto the mat.
“Wherever you wrestle you are guaranteed to get opportunities because it
is individual, not a whole team,” said
MacDonald.” Of course you are on a
team and they become like family but
because it is such an individual sport
the more effort you show the more you
will progress and get opportunities.”
MacDonald is a wrestling star for always having sportsmanship, working
hard, never giving up, and competing
at a high level. She has gone through
a lot of trauma in her past but she has
never allowed it to bring her down, she
uses her pain as an advantage to make
her stronger. She pushes through all
adversity to be at the top of her sport
and maintain a winning attitude.
Freshman Rylee MacDonald competed in a national
wrestling tournament in Reno.
Gymnastics finishes strong
By Hannah Gordon-Kirk
The West Seattle High School gymnastics team has endured a difficult yet
successful season. They had a total of
eight meets this year ranging all over
the Seattle area. Wildcat gymnasts have
tirelessly invested countless hours of
dedicated hard work into their practices
throughout the winter season.
Despite two thirds of the team being out during the season due to injuries
and illness, four elite athletes stood out.
Sophomore Anni Salenjus, and seniors
Tina Le, Zoe Russell, and Bella Bryzynski performed well enough to advance
to districts. All girls executed their routines to a very high standard, especially
Zoe Russell who qualified for state on
vault.
“We’ve had a lot of varsity gymnasts
this year, and they really made a great
contribution to good scores,” said senior
Renee McMinn.
At mid-season the team was bolstered
by the introduction of a new assistant,
Coach Chris. By the end of the season,
his guidance assisted the team in reaching their full potential as gymnasts;
many saw him as a lifesaver.
“He really helped us to improve
against all odds,” said McMinn.
The Wildcat gymnasts didn’t let injuries or adversity get in the way of enjoying their season.
“We were by far the most spirited
of all the schools,” said junior Audrey
Lansdowne. “Even if we didn’t win all
the meets, we never lacked excitement
and joy. We all got along exceptionally
well and there was never a dull moment.”
The gymnastics team hopes to gain
more gymnasts for the 2016 season, and
to stay healthy and prevent injuries for
even more promising performances. A
quote that many of the girls follow is by
the famous Olympic gymnast Nadia Comaneci, “Jump off the beam, flip off the
bars, follow your dreams and reach for
the stars.”
The gymnastics team enjoyed a great season.
Issue 3
Page 17
SPORTS
The Chinook - West Seattle High School - March 2015
Spring sports season starts strong
By Shelby Walker
Winter sports are wrapping up,
which means that the spring sports season has begun. The choices this season
are track and field, tennis, boys soccer,
softball, and baseball. There is a sport
for everyone this spring, and try-outs
began Monday.
In years past there have been successful spring teams coming out of West
Seattle High School. They have won
games, matches, and meets in order
to do represent the school. Teams are
shaping up to be very promising this
year with committed and skilled players returning for another year as well as
new players to be added to the roster.
Anyone can make a difference on the
team and be the tie breaker, so consider
trying out.
Track and Field delivers a multitude
of different events to compete in. There
are different events that involve longdistance running, sprinting, throwing,
or jumping, so it caters to many different types of athletes. It is a great way to
have fun out in the sun while staying
titude but are still able to come together
to beat their opponents consistently.
“I’m super excited for softball to
start,” said Carynia Smith. “We should
have a pretty good team this year, and it
will be a lot of fun.”
Baseball is always a favorite for the
school to root for. They have many talented players that are returning from
successful seasons that involved winning records. They are looking forward
to practices to bring them together as
teammates that will prepare them for
another season; they look for new talent
to continue their upward rise in talent.
“I am pumped for the baseball team
this year because they did really well
last year and I have high hopes for them
again this year,” said Carufel.
If you’re not interested in playing for
the school on any of the teams then it is
time to get loud and start rooting on the
teams. When their games begin spring
athletes will appreciate a big crowd out
there to cheer them to victory.
“Spring sports will be exciting to root
for, I have a good feeling the teams will
to proceeding further and with higher
goals next season.
“Each and every player had their
strides of greatness and struggle but the
Wildcats managed to come together and
pull forth a surprising winning season
that most people thought would’ve ended differently,” said sophomore varsity
member, Chaaka Trahan.
The girls varsity basketball team has
had an amazing season as well. Being
undefeated, they moved on to playoffs.
With no surprise, the girls won the Metro League Title and quickly moved on to
the next round of districts. They made it
to the top 16 and then moved up the top
8 teams. They started their run at State
yesterday.
“We’re all best friends on and off
the court and it shows,” said Metro
Girls League MVP, junior Lydia Giomi.
“We’ve been so successful this year because we work together and push each
other every day…We also love how involved the school and community has
become throughout the year. We’re really thankful for that.”
WSHS’s wrestling team had a fantastic season as well. Senior Nicolas
Outley took fourth place in Districts
and advanced to the state competition
on February 20th and 21st at the Tacoma
Dome. Junior Miquel Cervantes and
sophomore James Applewhite went as
alternates.
Senior Andre Moore goes up for a layup.
Winter sports finish on top
By Lindsey Jensen
West Seattle High School winter
sports saw lots of success this season,
with all the teams making it to post season play.
The boys varsity basketball team had
to put together a lot of new and different techniques to form a great team this
year, losing six seniors from the previous year. They achieved a surprising
winning streak to send them to playoffs. The returning players look forward
Bella Burzynski practices
her floor routine.
go far this year,” said Casey Hart.
healthy and enjoying friendly competitions with various schools.
“The track coach is really building
up the team this year so they should be
fit and ready to go,” said junior Bailey
Wyatt.
Tennis is a great sport to be able to
play because people play it around the
world. At this level it is very fun but still
competitive, with the number of tennis
players around the Seattle area there is
bound to be someone that makes a great
match.
“A lot of people have been talking
about playing tennis this year so it’ll be
a super fun experience this season,” said
junior Gabby Carufel.
Boys Soccer is an exciting way to get
to know more guys that have the same
love of the game as you do. It’s competitive but it’s still a great group of guys
that come together as teammates every
year in order to create victories.
Softball is getting pumped up for their
season and look forward to doing better
than they have done in the past few seasons. They love the team for it’s fun at-
The gymnastics team at WSHS had
an incredible season that ended with a
big bang. Four gymnasts; seniors Tiana
Lee, Bella Burzynski, Zoe Russell, and
sophomore Anni Salenjus, qualified for
the District Championship. Zoe Russell
qualified for the State Championship.
“Our team got really small towards
the end of the season, but those gymnasts that stuck around were very dedicated and made our team stronger,”
said a member of the gymnastics team,
Bella Burzynski.
Boys swimming had a small group
this season, but they had many individual improvements as the season progressed.
Even the Wildcat is ready
for spring sports.
Daniel Kemp wrestling.
Page 18
Issue 3
The Chinook - West Seattle High School - March 2015
FUN PAGE
You are so punny
What is Infinity’s curfew? -Before the Dawn
Did you hear about the guys whose whole left side was cut off? -He’s all right now
I used to be a banker but I lost interest.
I’m glad I know sign language, it’s pretty handy.
Who ever invented the “knock-knock jokes” should have a No-bell prize.
What did infinite do on your birthday? – They Sunggyu a song
I used to sell computer parts, but then I lost my drive. Now you know…
- If you have 3 quarters, 4 dimes, and 4 pennies, you have $1.19. You also have the
largest amount of money in coins without being able to make change for a dollar.
- The numbers ‘172’ can be found on the back of the U.S. $5 dollar bill in the bushes
at the base of the Lincoln Memorial.
- President Kennedy was the fastest random speaker in the world with upwards of
350 words per minute.
- The 57 on Heinz ketchup bottles represents the number of varieties of pickles the
company once had.
- Cats sleep 16 to 18 hours per day.
- The most common name in the world is Mohammed.
- It is believed that Shakespeare was 46 around the time that the King James Version of the Bible was written. In Psalms 46, the 46th word from the first word is
shake and the 46th word from the last word is spear.
Issue 3
Page 19
CALENDAR
Sunday
Monday
2
Honor Society
Awareness Month
8
International
Working Women’s
Day
15
Incredible Kids day
22
International goof
off day
29
9
International
Awesomeness Day
16
No selfie Day
23
- West Seattle High School - March 2015
Tuesday
3
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
4
5
6
7
11
12
13
14
National Caffeine
Month
10
South Korea’s
Labor Day
17
St.Patricks day /
Rob Kardashians
Birthday
24
International
Puppy day
30
Wednesday
National Day
Lithuania
18
19
Diversity Dinner
6-8 p.m.
The Commons
25
Palm Sunday
Youth Day in
Zambia
26
Waffle Day
31
Popcorn Lover’s Day
1
Independence day in
Bangladesh
2
April Fools Day
Myungsoo of
infinite’s birthday
20
National Pi day
21
Sandeul’s Birthday
27
28
Mariah Carey’s
Birthday
3
Eddie Murphy’s
Birthday
4
Tell a lie Day/
Robert Downey Jr.’s
Birthday
West Seattle High School Sports Schedule:
Saturday March 14, 2015
Girls Softbal against Nathan Hale @ Southwest Athletic Complex: 9:45 am
Girls Softball against Roosevelt@ Southwest Athletic Complex: 11:15 am
Girls Softball against Kennedy@ Southwest Athletic Complex: 1:30 am
Tuesday March 17, 2015
Boys Soccer against Chief Sealth@ Walt Hundley: 3:30 pm
Girls Softball against Bethel @ Bethel high school: 3:30pm
Wednesday March 18, 2015
Tennis against Chief Sealth/ Ballard @ Lower Woodland Tennis Court: 3:30pm
Tennis against Nathan Hale @ Meadowbrook: 3:30pm
Tennis jv against Nathan Hale @ Lincoln Park: 3:30pm
Thursday March 19, 2015
Boys Soccer against Nathan Hale @ Adam#2: 3:30pm
Boys Soccer against Nathan hale @ Walt Hundley: 3:30pm
Wednesday, Mar 25, 2015
Boys Baseball against Cleveland @ Rainer Beach 1: 3:30pm
Boys Soccer against Cleveland @ Walt Hundley: 3:30pm
Thursday, Mar 26, 2015
Boys Baseball against Cleveland @ Hiawatha @ 3:30pm
Friday, Mar 27, 2015
Boys Baseball @ Walt Hundley: 3:30 pm
Wednesday, Apr 1, 2015
Tennis against Chief Sealth @ Chief Sealth: 4:00pm
The Chinook
March 2015
West Seattle High School
Volume 88
3000 California Ave. SW
Issue 3
Seattle, WA 98116