Katy Hall of Honor. Happy Holi. Junior Year Stress

Transcription

1 L O O H C S H G I H Y T KA T N I R P PAW 016 December 2 h e of Katy Hig agazin The Newsm s day Happy Holi Katy Hall of Honor Junior Year Stress What to Expect in College Coaches Juggle Classes and Sports We had a good season overall, but we just did not get to accomplish our ulitmate goal. We will be back next year. sophomore Deondrick Glass

2 CONTENTS Katy High School 6331 Highway Boulevard Katy, TX Volume III Issue 2 What do you like about the month of December? I am only one semester away from graduating. Tristen Fry, 12 I really like Christmas because of all the holiday spirit. Meliroth Nou, 10 SPORTS 3 Even though we are in Texas, I like when the weather gets cooler. Courtney Patterson, 11 INDEPTH 6 I like getting presents at Christmas. Hannah Davis, 09 NEWS 12 FEATURES 13 pawprint NEWS MAGAZINE OF KATY HIGH SCHOOL Editor Ashlee Winters Staff Jack Aistrup Brendan Collum Portia Coffin Photos By Mrs. Schneider Ashton Lindsey Denise Sadberry Adviser Johanna Schneider Paw Print is the official publication of KHS. Unsigned editorials are the opinions of the newspaper staff and do not represent the opinions of the KISD administration. Paw Print is a member of the Journalism Education Assoc. (JEA) and the Texas Assoc. of Journalism Educators (TAJE). For advertising rates, contact the Publications Office at It is the policy of Katy ISD not to discriminate on the basis of sex, disability, race, religion, color, age or national origin in its educational programs, activities and employment practices.

3 PawPrint 3 January/February Events January 4-4th Six Weeks begins January 10- Course Selection Videos January 11- Fall Sports Awards Night January 16- Holiday January Close Up to Washington DC February 1- Mr. Katy Tiger Pageant

4 4 PawPrint Sports Update Teams Advance to Playoffs, Cross Country to State Cross Country At the District Cross Country Meet the Boys Varsity team placed 3 runners in the top ten and the team advanced to the Regional Meet. Ryan Yerrow placed 1st, Garvin Chilton placed 4th, Mason Boswell placed 10th with the rest of the team including Cameron Colvin, Bret Brock, Rafael Hernandez and Richard Gomez finishing up. At Regional Meet, the boys team were Region III Back-toback Champions. Yerrow placed 1st, Anthony Vasquez placed 11th, Chilton placed 12th with the rest of the team including Colvin, Boswell, Brock and Lorenzo Orozco finishing up. At the State Meet, the boys team came in 8th place. At the District Meet, the Girls Varsity team came in 3rd place advancing them Volleyball After an exciting season of play, the Varsity Volleyball team advanced to the playoffs. In the Bi-District game, the girls faced off against Ft. Bend Dulles at Wheeler Fieldhouse. The girls won 3 out of 5 games 21-25, 22-25, 26-24, 25-13, Next up in the second playoff game game, the girls took on Cypress Woods at Colman Colesium and won in 3 games 25-12, 25-22, In the third round of the playoffs, the girls met up with Ft. Bend Ridge Point at Wheeler Fieldhouse and in a hard fought game, lost 16-25, 26-24, 18-25, Football After a shaky start to the season, the Tigers began District play by beating Cinco Ranch 45-7 and rolled through the rest of the season only allowing their opponents 36 points total. They played their final District game against Mayde Creek winning 58-0, earning them their 31st District title. For playoff pairings and bracket information, go to and click on playoff brackets. Bi-District- Ft. Bend Travis: The Tigers came away with a win over Travis in the first round of the playoffs. Katy had 392 total yards, 332 of that rushing with sophomore Deondrick to the Regional Meet. Abby Brudnick placed 4th, Isabella Anderson placed 8th, Karly Anderson placed 11th with Aaliyah Nelson, Bella Tablante, Tara Mayes and Carolina Ortiz finishing up for the team. At the Regional Meet, the girls placed 5th out of 22 teams. Both Abby Brudnick and Aaliyah Nelson qualified individually for State. At the State Meet, Brudnick placed 55th and Nelson placed 125th. The Boys JV team placed 3rd at the District Meet with Anthony Vasquez placing 1st and Dylan Koch placing 8th. The Freshmen Boys team placed 2nd with Lorenzo Orozco placing 1st and Darren Acopa placing 8th.The Girls JV team placed 1st at the District Meet with Brook Lomax placing 1st, Audrey Witham placing 2nd and Jenny Smith placing 3rd. The coaches are just beyond proud of them and all of the hard work, time, and dedication that they have put in to this season, said Coach Fischer. Going for it. Junior Kennedy Bonham watches the ball as it comes over the net during the Cy-Woods game. Sophomore Tori Whillock and senior Chole Simon look on if needed to help. The most challenging thing about volleyball is it s a game of mistakes, so if you make a mistake, you have to move on right away, said sophomore Amanda Meuth who is helping to block at the net. Photo by Ashton Lindsey Glass scoring 3 touchdowns. Junior Seth Small contributed 2 field goals in the 3rd quarter with 6 point after kicks to add to the score. Senior Ryder Anderson caught a 6-yard pass from senior Rocky Emery and junior Keshon Rowe had a 70-yard interception return for a touchdown. In the 4th quarter, junior Joshua Oglesby ran in the ball for a touchdown with 0:51 second left on the clock. Area- Cypress Ranch: Katy took on Cy-Ranch in the second round of the playoffs winning Junior Johsua Oglesby stepped up and scored 2 touchdowns in the second half. Senior Parker Eichenberger caught a 5-yard pass from senior Rocky Emery State Bound. The Boys Cross Country team alongwith the Abby Brudnick and Aaliyah Nelson smile on a Katy fire truck at thier send off Pep Rally. Photo by Mr. Ullrich in the 1st quarter, and Jaxson Borowski caught a 12-yard pass from Emery in the 4th to seal the win. Junior Seth Small added points after and 1 33-yard field goal in the game. Regional Quarterfinals-North Shore: In a tight game at NRG Stadium, the Tigers racked up 247 total yards, 75 passing yards, 172 rushing yards along with junior Seth Small s field goal, but it was not enough to beat old rival North Shore. Junior Josh Oglesby ran in 2 touchdowns a 38-yard and a 22-yard run, but the Tigers came up short in the end We did pretty well all game long. We just didn t get it when we had to have it, said Coach Joseph.

5 Basketball Preview Girls: Q: What are your expectations for this season? Coach Marhofer: Our team goal is to win district and make it past the second round of the playoffs. Q: What do your practices consist of? Coach Marhofer: Hard work, transition, shooting, man and zone defensive principles and drills, offensive strategy and drills, lifting weights, and watching video Q: What has the team been doing in the off season? Coach Marhofer: We put in a new man offense, getting in shape, putting up a lot of shots, getting stronger in the weight room, and team bonding. Q: How many returning players do you have this year? Coach Marhofer: 14 on the team, but 4 are currently hurt. Q: Which players do you think will make a big impact this season? Coach Marhofer: We have a great group of talented players, but we are expecting great things and leadership from seniors Laura Rowe and Kelley Skinner. Q: Who is the team s biggest competition in District? Why? Coach Marhofer: Seven Lakes.they are a very confident and disciplined team with a lot of talent. Upcoming Games: Dec. 12 at Oak Ridge Dec. 16 at Cinco Ranch Dec. 20 Seven Lakes Dec. 30 at Stratford Jan. 3 at Morton ranch Jan. 6 Tompkins PawPrint 5 Girls and Boys Teams Gear Up For District; Coaches Weigh In Boys: Q: What are your expectations for this season? Coach Russell: I expect us to play hard, compete and represent our community well. Q: What do your practices consist of? Coach Russell: Right now we spend a lot of time working on defense, communicating, offensive continuity and cohesiveness. As the season progresses we will spend time preparing for opponents and there is always an emphasis on skill development. Q; What has the team been doing in the off season? Coach Russell: Off season for us began last year in the spring, and then SAC over the summer. We focused on being tougher and competing more. This fall we have been putting in our system. Q; How many returning players do you have this year? Coach Russell: 2 Q: Which players do you think will make a big impact this season? Coach Russell: We have a talented group of young players who I look forward to watching mature. We have a couple seniors who played JV last year that will have a big impact on our success. Nick Applby competes hard and has really turned himself into a great athlete. Jean Mitchel will provide us with much needed leadership. Q: Who is the team s biggest competition in District? Why? Coach Russell: We are in a competitive district. I look forward to seeing a bunch of teams compete for play-off spots and us being in the middle of that conversation. Upcoming Games: Dec. 16 Cy-Ridge Dec. 20 at Seven Lakes Dec at Conroe Tournament Jan. 3 Morton Ranch Jan. 6 at Tompkins 19-6A All-District Volleyball Selections 1st Team All District Outstanding Hitter: Chloe Simon Outstanding Defensive Player: Kelley Skinner Outstanding Setter: Autumn Gentry Amanda Meuth 2nd Team All District Jayla Walker Tori Whillock Honorable Mention Sarah Hunsucker Kaelyn Lance

6 6 PawPrint COACH RUSSELL COACH ORTIZ MRS. LAWERENCE Coaches who teach classes as well as coach a sport are like superheroes. They go from being normal, everyday teachers teaching classes to out on the field or court coaching their teams to success. Coaches who double as teachers have one of, if not the most, difficult jobs in the building. Often being the first to arrive and last to leave, coaches that also teach math, science, English, and social studies classes are put under a lot of stress with having to juggle the responsibilities of both. The hardest part is juggling being great in both areas. The extra time that it takes to be a great teacher and a great coach requires large amounts of energy. It cannot be done without a great group of people in both areas. Family support is vital because we spend so much time up here. If there is a breakdown of support from the faculty, staff, and family you just cannot be successful, said football coach Robert Ortiz. As a result of the long hours spent at the school, most teacher coaches don t get enough sleep, so the battle against fatigue is constant. As a result, coaches often have to find ways to persevere. Teaching and coaching makes for long hours, said Volleyball coach Katherine Allen, and I don t ever want fatigue to keep me from doing a good job in both areas. So on days that I may be tired and irritable, I have to find a way to push through and hide it so that my students and athletes aren t negatively impacted and that can be difficult sometimes. Another struggle for teachers who coach a sport is the unique transition from being a teacher to a coach during the course of the day. It is difficult switching gears and staying in the moment. You have to focus on the present and not allow your mind to drift to the class period or allow a previous class period to steal your thoughts. As we tell our players, the most important thing is now!, said head boys basketball coach Danny Russel. Something that everyone faces in some form or fashion throughout their lives is stress, and coaches and teachers are no exception. Coaches who also teach classes have some of the most stressful jobs in the building. Coaches aren t the only ones who have to double down and lead two groups of people to success. Mrs. Lawerence, one of the many organizations sponsors, and orchestra director has to represent the Katy High School Orchestra Booster Association (KHOBA) as well as conduct and teach her orchestra classes which do sometimes cross paths. The most difficult part is balancing all of the extra duties with actual teaching, said Mrs. Lawerence. I need all forty five minutes of class to teach our technique, scales and concert music. However, it takes valuable rehearsal time to discuss fundraisers, field trips, uniforms, orchestra officer meetings, and socials. Despite that, she absolutely loves her job. She s in the building before everyone else with a smile on her face ready to start the day.

7 PawPrint 7 COACH DARROW COACH ALLEN [The most stressful part is] focusing on the task at hand said basketball coach Clarence Darrow, and not looking ahead to a game, or to the gel electrophoresis lab. Likewise Coach Russel added, I believe for the most part people do not understand the amount of stress that goes into teaching. Our teachers do an amazing job with students at KHS. I have found when I was most stressed I didn t even realize it and typically it was a result of a multitude of reasons involving teaching, coaching, parenting, etc. I try really hard to prevent stress by keeping first things first and control the controllables. One of the biggest misconceptions that students have about teachers and coaches is students feel like teachers don t care about their student s success. This couldn t be any further from the truth. One of a teachers and coachs favorite things is seeing their students and athletes succeeding in the classroom or on the field. [My] favorite thing about being a teacher is being around the kids said Ortiz, because they keep you young and on your toes. I like being surprised by small accomplishments. It s really special when you see the students gain success and you know that you had a little part in it. Now this will be an obvious point but one more thing that makes being a coach and a teacher quite laborious at times is the amount of paperwork. Having to fill out all the required forms to teach a class is daunting already, add on top of that all the paperwork required to coach a sport, and you have the recipe for quite a large amount of work. The amount of paperwork involved to provide liability necessary for a country that requires every person in society to live in a bubble wrapped world. Everyone is a victim so you have to have a person sign every possible acknowledgement to allow you to coach and teach in today s world, said football Coach Tim Ripperger. Balancing being a coach as well as a teacher isn t all stress and paperwork however. It also has its bright spots. One thing teachers and coaches alike enjoy is students keeping them awake and learning something new every day as well as watching their students excel in what they re doing. [My] favorite thing about being a teacher is being around the kids said Ortiz, because they keep you young and on your toes. I like being surprised by small accomplishments. It s really special when you see the students gain success and you know that you had a little part in it. Balancing being a coach and a teacher certainly has its difficulties. Having to juggle the responsibilities of both jobs most times means long hours away from home and family often resulting in many nights with very limited sleep. Yet despite that they re at school everyday teaching and coaching their students and athletes to greatness. Now that s one heck of a balancing act. BALANCING ACT Coaches Struggle to Balance Academics and Athletics By Brendan Collum

8 8 PawPrint DON T PANIC: It s Only the Beginning to Adulthood Junior year is considered the hardest year of high school; and if college is a plan, it really is. It s the year when most realize, I need to get my life together! But don t freak out too much. There are plenty going through the struggle. Mavy Alvarado Are you in any, all, or no AP classes? I am currently in DCUSH. Anything in particular you re working to accomplish for college? Yes, I want to major in nursing and study to be a pharmaceutical technician or transplant coordinator. For SAT and ACT, do you plan on taking both, none, or just one? I will be taking both hopefully that way the highest score I get will do better. How to Plan? By Portia Coffin 1.) Create an specifically for college related things, such as applying for schools and scholarships. Remember, nothing cutesy or suggestive. 2.) Make sure to check colleges you re interested in and see what class credits they require, especially for certain degrees. 3.) Don t forget to check out scholarships you can apply for scholarships even as a junior. 4.) Start studying for the SAT and/or ACT now! Plan early so you can be done quickly and have the rest of the year for subject tests and AP exams. 5.) Remember; don t freak out, try to plan as much as you can to avoid that familiar panic we all get. This year will be over before you know it. Enjoy it while you can but also stay focused! Katy ISD and Katy High School have introduced Naviance. It incorporates the following: College, career, and scholarship searches Ways to compare colleges Help creating a resume Interest surveys to help students identify possible career choices College application tools Students, parents, teachers, and counselors can all access Naviance; It is encouraged that you log in, browse the site and explore all that Naviance can do.

9 Cristian Podesta PawPrint 9 So far, how has junior year been? It has definitely been the most challenging year so far; however, I enjoy the challenge and this year has been going relatively well. About how much time a day do you spend on homework? One to three hours. Have you started thinking about colleges you want to attend? Sort of, I have looked into A&M and Rice University that s about it so far. Scholarships? Christian A. Herter Scholarship / Up to $15,000 / Deadline is February 05, 2017 Helen Abbott Community Service Award / Up to $1,000 / Deadline is March 01, 2017 Create-a-Greeting Card Scholarship Contest / $10,000 / Deadline is March 02, 2017 FIRST Scholarship - Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute / $12,500 / Deadline is May 15, 2017 Marie Anne Barron Anything in particular you re working to accomplish for college? Yes; I d like to attend either Columbia or Brown for neurology. I want to help others. Have you applied for scholarships yet? Yes, I ve written a couple of poems and essays, as well as done a couple of activities like Driving Thumbs. For SAT and ACT, do you plan on taking both, none, or just one? I plan on taking both SAT and ACT just to see if I could score well on both. How to Browse for Schools? Look on college websites. You may find information on a school you re already eyeing or another school you may be interested in. Also, try visiting campuses and filling out visit cards while there. And, the counselor s office usually has pamphlets/information on colleges and scholarships. If you need to find out who your counselor is, you can go to the KHS website, go to Campus, and click Counselors. Julia Reeves So far, how has junior year been? It s been good-ish. There is a lot of pressure on us. About how much time a day do you spend on homework? About two hours because I m also taking DCUSH which is a college course. Have you done any research on colleges? I ve looked at colleges that are well known for forensics and criminal justice.

10 10 PawPrint I Don t Think We re in High School Anymore Clarifications on the Realities of College Life By Ashlee Winters As senior year draws to a close, students are faced with an exciting yet nerve-wracking reality: college is coming. Everyone has their own expectations, yet they never really find out what college truly entails until they experience it. The extent of the differences between high school and college may come as a shock to future college freshmen. First of all, the amount of independence a student has greatly increases in their first year of college and not just in the way that most teenagers anxiously expect. College professors give their students much more freedom College teachers don t tell you what to do. They just expect you to do it, said Pr. Drew C. Appleby. in classes than high school teachers do. According to Professor Drew C. Appleby of Purdue University, instructors assume that students now know how to keep up with their assignments and therefore do not need constant reminding or busy work. College teachers don t tell you what you re supposed to do. They just expect you to do it. High school teachers tell you about five times what you are supposed to do. Also, professors are not as accessible as high school teachers. College classes meet as little as once a week, and the student to teacher ratio is much larger than that of a high school class. As a result, students do not receive as much help from the professors as they may have gotten used to in high school. Instead, they have limited opportunities to access their professors as opposed to just stopping by at anytime. I could drop into my high school teachers offices anytime and just hang out. College professors have office hours we have to use if we want to discuss things with them, said one of Appleby s students. Succeeding in a college class not only requires getting decent grades but also participating in class. In high school, anyone can sit in the back and remain completely silent during class yet still make straight A s, but in college, professors want students to speak up and discuss their opinions. In their article How College is Different So much work, so little time. The workload a college student has to complete greatly outnumbers that of a high school student. Also, college students must find their own time to work on assignments rather than having class time. Now what? After graduating high school, most students think college will be just as easy to get through. The actual amount of effort to expect in college may surprise students. from High School, Jennifer Klein and Alicia LaPolla reveal the expectations professors have from their students. In college your professors are expecting you to voice your thoughts, and disagreeing with the professor s opinion is considered an interesting debate, not deviant behavior. Class participation and providing your own perspective and analysis are key to success in the college learning environment. The amount of work assigned to students greatly increases in college as well. In high school, students read the textbook for extra knowledge on what they learn in class, but in college, the lesson comes directly from the textbook. Students must read in order to pass because they will get tested mainly on the material in the book. You can expect a very heavy load of reading all of it done outside of class. Some of the reading may be discussed in class, but even without discussing it, the professor may choose to test you on it, said Dr. Randall S. Hansen in his article, Ways in Which College is Different

11 PawPrint 11 Students who are struggling are encouraged to seek extra help and tutoring, but very few college professors offer any type of extra credit, said Dr. Randall S. Hansen. from High School. The workload seems significantly larger not only because of the amount of reading but also the requirement of completing every assignment outside of class. Rather than having classwork every day like in high school, assignments are hardly done during class and students must instead do all of their work on their own time. The bulk of class time is spent taking notes or participating in discussions not completing homework or other graded assignments, said Hansen. Students also have much more responsibility in college than they do in high school because they must rely on themselves to go to class and get everything done instead of having parents encourage them. Most professors do not take attendance, but students still have to attend class whether they want to or not. Also, most professors do not offer make-up tests or extra help, so missing class can drastically hurt students grades. According to Dr. Hansen, students have less chances to make up their grades than they did in high school. Students who are struggling are encouraged to seek extra help and tutoring, but very few college professors offer any type of extra credit. Although students hear different views about college life, the reality is that it differs greatly from high school, and students may not fully understand just how much until they experience it for themselves. How to Prepare for College Now 1. Read the textbook. The majority of tests and assignments come from the material in the textbook, so read the textbooks for class in high school to prepare for all the reading in college. 2. Don t procrastinate. The workload in college is far greater than that in high school, so putting it off will just make it worse. Try to get work done as soon as possible now to get ready for the amount of work in college. 3. Try not to ask for help. Getting help in college is harder than in high school, so try to get as much work done as possible without asking anyone for help. 4. Keep track of work. There will be a syllabus handed out in college classes with all of the assignments, so it is the student s responsibility to know what to do and when to have it completed. 5. Get organized. It is important to keep everything organized in college because professors will expect students to have all of their work and materials accessible. Develop some method of organization now in order to be prepared.

12 12 PawPrint Hall of Honor Alumni Inducted to the Tiger Hall of Honor Renee Zellweger Graduated 1987 Academy Award winning actress and star of movies such as Jerry McGuire and the Bridget Jones series Andy Dalton Graduated 2006 Quarterback for the NFL Cincinnati Bengals and coordinator of the Andy & Jordan Dalton Foundation benefiting seriously ill children Clint Black Attended Platinum album country artist and Country Music Association Male Vocalist of the Year Dr. Nancy Wilson Dickey Graduated 1968 First woman president of the American Medical Association and president of the Texas A&M Health Science Center Bill Haskett Graduated 1960 Former principal of Katy High School. Active member of the KHS Alumni Association and current Katy High School Football Announcer Patricia Wardlaw Harrell Graduated 1958 Long-time staff member and continued supporter of Katy High School Captain Darren G. McPherson Graduated 1988 Graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and current Commanding Officer of the Aegis Guided Missile Cruiser, the USS Lake Erie

13 PawPrint 13 Holiday Gift Guide What to Buy Based on Interests For the reader For the gamer For the fashionista Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Eyeshadow palette Dark Souls III For the athlete For the techie For the Netflix enthusiast Bluetooth speaker Fitbit For the animal lover Stranger Things Christmas sweater For the Broadway fanatic Cat mug Hamilton pillow

14 14 PawPrint All About Athletics Awkward Ashlee The focus of most high schools typically revolves around one thing: sports. Between games, pep rallies, and social buzz, sports gain the majority of attention amongst students and even faculty. This leads to those not involved in sports to ask, What about us? Students involved in less popular activities such as orchestra, or newspaper get far less attention than those who play sports. Most students do not know when orchestra has a concert or that the school even has a newspaper. Even the majority of teachers will ask athletes how their game went and neglect to ask a choir student about his or her concert. Students in organizations other than sports must start receiving the same amount of attention as athletes. If football makes it to the playoffs, it seems to be all anyone talks about, but if theatre advances to the next round in UIL, hardly anyone even knows. After putting in just as much effort as athletes, students in other organizations are hardly recognized. Fine arts, clubs, and other extracurricular activities get highly overlooked because of all the attention sports get. The school has pep rallies, Theme Thursdays, and fan buses to encourage students to support the sports teams but does nothing to raise hype about any non-athletic events that students put plenty of time and work into. The lack of recognition for students involved in activities other than sports must come to an end. Non-athletic events should be called to attention with more signs posted around the school and having a place in the announcements. Pep rally-type events to raise hype about organizations other than sports can also help to increase the recognition of these students and clubs. Staff Editorials Express Yourself Bodatious Brendan Imagine for a moment a world without creative freedom. No one has any original ideas, no new advancements are being made, and the world is just completely and totally lifeless. Doesn t sound like a fun world to live in does it? Unfortunately this could become a reality if schools don t allow students greater creative freedom. Schools aren t giving students enough freedom to be creative, it s an undeniable truth. Students are given assignments that have to be done a specific way or the student will receive a bad grade not allowing for any creativity to be used. There s also the matter of how students are taught. Most teachers teach straight from the book and, using math as an example, demonstrate how the book says a problem must be solved. Even if a student sees another way to solve the problem and get the correct answer he or she will still have their work counted as wrong because they didn t solve it exactly as the book told them to. The issue isn t also extends into classes that are supposed to allow students greater creative freedom such as art. In art classes students are told by the teacher to draw or paint out specific things in very specific ways and if they don t the student doesn t the student s painting or drawing is given a failing grade. Even in art classes where the freedom to be creative and think outside the box is encouraged students still don t have enough freedom to think on their own and do things more their way. One thing that could be done to fix this problem is give students more assignments that encourage a student s creativity instead of having them just following instructions. This needs to be done to avoid students becoming mindless instructions followers unable to express their creativity because students are the future of our world and who wants to live in a world without creativity? Fish Climbing Trees Peculiar Portia Within the schooling system, there s always the same routine: take notes, study and hope to cram it all for the test or quiz. And while some students can follow this pattern, some cannot. Even Albert Einstein once said Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid. First off, everyone has their own intelligence and special talents meaning no two students are exactly the same. While one student may enjoy learning visually, others may enjoy reading and writing, auditory, or tactile. There s nothing wrong with this; it s just how people learn. So why, out of the nearly one hundred years of public schooling, has nearly nothing changed to accommodate the personal needs of students? Of course, electronics are now handier then they ve been before, but another question to ask is why can t we have customizable forms of education? Another related issue is that students tend to value their grades more than their education or even their mental or physical health. With the oncoming pressure to succeed, especially in high school, many students feel the need to cheat in order to avoid a failing grade. From a CNN report, 75% of high school students engage in serious cheating, over half plagiarize directly from the Internet, and about 50% believe that copying answers doesn t even count as cheating. So please, for the sake of students and their education, make a change. The solution is simple: allow students to pick their path, such as the methods listed before. With this, students can succeed in a way that is easiest for them. And with this, let s stop making fish climb trees.

15 PawPrint 15 What do you think the school can do to provide an equal amount of attention to all school organizations and clubs? The school should provide equal media coverage for each club and organization. Maybe have people speak about their club at a pep rally. - senior Alondra Loredo Not everyone is a gifted athlete; not everyone is a gifted artist; we all have our individual strengths, and everyone should recognize that. - sophomore Ross Hyatt-Henson If you could choose your preferred method of learning, would you choose visual, reading and writing, or auditory? Visual, because it can help keep my attention and put the image in my mind. - junior Kyle Bevil Visual because it can help me see the steps of what I am supposed to do rather than just ask a million questions about the subject. - sophomore Katie Martinez Do you think schools allow enough creative freedom? Yes, schools encourage and permit students to express thier passions in a multiude of ways. They offer classes and clubs designed to make sure students are able to express thier talents no matter the activity. - junior François Edmonds No, although schools allow outlets for students in Fine Arts, they don t give all studetns this opportunity because most core classes follow a strict teaching rubric that allows for no creative wiggle room. - junior Mason Anderson

16 Seniors Sign for Scholarships Mason Boswell signs to run cross country Texas A&M Corpus Christi Laura Rowe signs to play basketball at Abilene Christian University Chole Simon signs to play volleyball at Texas A&M Corpus Christi Ryan Yerrow signs to run cross country at Texas A&M University