T h e

Tiger Hi-LineVolume 48 Edition 18 http://hi-lineonline.shorturl.com 1015 Division Street, Cedar Falls, Iowa 50613

Natasha WoodsStaff Writer

With the help of the Gold Star Award founded by RJ McElroy, teachers are getting more recognition. Students, parents, colleagues and administrators can nominate a fa-vorite teacher.

Ten teachers from various elementary, intermediate, sec-ondary and schools are chosen around Black Hawk Coun-ty.

The Gold Star committee considers a numerous amount of things such as creativity, classroom effectiveness, unique teaching skills and the impact on students. The teachers should go above and beyond their normal expectations in the classroom. The 10 teachers chosen will be awarded with $1,000 at a ceremony in May.

Gerald Ramsey, CFHS band teacher, was a recent win-ner.

“It’s a good program. A lot of teachers go year after year not getting recognized. It’s fun to get the award, but I don’t think too much of it,” Ramsey.

To nominate at teachers, fill out a form online or look around the hallways for flyers before midnight on March 1.

Award provides opportunity for recognizing teacher efforts

Like many high school seniors, Arusha Afzal is experiencing the woes of the college application process.

“It definitely takes a lot of time, more than you would think. They seem like easy decisions at the time, but they really aren’t,” Afzal said of choosing and apply-ing to colleges.

Thankfully, there are ways that seniors can prepare for the college application process. These preparations don’t have to wait until senior year either; there are also many steps that sophomores and juniors can take in order to prepare for college.

Guidance counselor Ryan Flaherty said that seniors should decide on the col-lege that they want to attend and that they should focus on applying to that college and gathering letters of recommendation, as well as think about potential financial aid. He said juniors should narrow the number of colleges they are interested in to between five and seven and to go on college visits to some of the potential col-leges.

Guidance counselor Susan Langan also said that even as sophomores students cans start to explore potential careers and take classes that would prepare them for what they want to do once they have fin-

ished school, and that it always helps to take as rigorous a schedule as possible.

The college application process for any college is a daunting task, but some students face the added stress of trying to get into selective or highly selective col-leges. Flaherty mentioned that students that are planning to apply to highly se-lective schools should consider starting to make preparations, such as taking ad-vanced classes, before their senior years.

Langan added that although most of the competitive colleges have the same requirements, it does help to take higher-level classes, get recommendations from teachers and counselors, write essays and volunteer. Langan also said that for extremely competitive schools, having completed a research project or taking classes during the summer increases stu-dents’ chances of getting accepted.

Senior Casi Naber kept college in mind throughout high school in order to increase her chances of being accepted to the college of her choice.

“Basically I try to get good grades and do well in school, and hopefully that will look good to colleges,” Naber said.

Earning good grades seems to have paid off for Naber too.

“It’s going pretty good for me,” Naber said of the college application process. “I only applied to one college, and I got into

that one,” Naber said.Even if a student has not yet received

that coveted letter of acceptance, there are still plenty of other preparations to be made, such as being an involved student and volunteering.

Flaherty said that the importance of volunteering and extra-curricular activi-ties really depends on the school; general-ly volunteer hours and activities are con-sidered more by private schools where students are judged more individually in order to be accepted as opposed to state schools.

He did mention, though, that commu-nity service is often included as a part of scholarships; however, both volunteering and being involved in activities were of equal importance.

“They both have equally good value and bring good things to the table. They both provide good things for a student to use on a college resume,” Flaherty said.

Another aspect of being accepted to colleges that worries many students would be standardized test scores. Fla-herty said that depending on the college or scholarship, standardized tests are pret-ty important, but that a high GPA could possibly balance out a low standardized test score. However, Flaherty also said that a high standardized test score may qualify students for certain scholarships,

but he maintained that GPA, class rank and standardized test score are all impor-tant for acceptance to college and receiv-ing scholarships.

However, students that do not have high standardized test scores need not worry. Although standardized test scores are still important to being accepted to college and receiving scholarships, they are not the sole factor in determining whether a student will receive either of these.

Langan said that colleges are now us-ing a formula, called the Regent Admis-sion Index (RAI) to determine student admission to their school. The RAI com-bines ACT or SAT score, high school class rank, GPA and the number of completed core courses. Langan said that courses in the math, science, social studies and world language departments are consid-ered to be core courses. Langan also said that a RAI of at least 245 is required for admission into any of Iowa’s three state universities. For more information on RAI and other aspects of college plan-ning, students can visit the CFHS website or www.ICANsucced.org.

Planning for financial aid is another essential step in college planning.

“It’s an important piece of choosing a college,” Flaherty said of financial aid.

Flaherty recommended two main

Kellie PetersenNews Editor

steps to keep in mind when considering financial aid; one would be staying on top of scholarships and another would be making sure that the FASFA, a govern-ment tax form that determines eligibility for financial aid, is filled out correctly and in a timely fashion.

There are many different factors for students to consider when choosing the college that is best for them. Afzal listed the prestige of the school, whether or not she would be accepted, the size of the school and how educated the profes-sors were as factors she considered when choosing a college, while Naber men-tioned how far away the school is and how good of a school it is as factors she considered when choosing a college.

Flaherty said that some important factors he noticed students took into ac-count were the reputation of the school, the programs offered for certain majors, the number of successful graduates for a certain major and the size of the school. Flaherty mentioned the importance of choosing a college that is best for you based upon several different factors.

“Just the overall lifestyle, whether or not they are suited for a big college in a big city or a small college in a small town. I think you have to balance college with academics and just moving forward in life as well,” Flaherty said.

College Prep:Making college preparations maximizes chances of success

AP Exam ReminderAll Advanced Placement (AP) students at Cedar Falls High School will

have the opportunity to register for AP exams to be given in May. Registration for the exams runs from Monday, Feb. 4 through Friday, March 7, with Teresa Martin in the English Department. The fee is $84 for each exam. All checks must be written to CFHS AP Exam.

While taking an AP exam is optional, Cedar Falls High School encourages its Advanced Placement students to take AP exams. Students who get college credit through the AP program clearly have a head start on their college course work as well as reducing their college tuition costs. It is encouraged that par-ents register their sons or daughters for the AP exam.

Each season has unique character-istics that we either love or hate, along with these character-istics and personality is a sound-track, full of slow and fast songs, but these albums that are abso-lutely essen-tial for winter listening.

1. Ameri-can Analog Set-Set Free. A great indie band made for winter. Their album was released in 2005. Set Free contains very slow and melodic songs

our viewour view

Tiger Hi-Line

T h e OPInIOnOPInIOn

Write the Tiger Hi-LineThe Tiger Hi-Line is a weekly publication of the journalism classes of Cedar

Falls High School, 1015 Division St., Cedar Falls, Iowa 50613. Each edition is published on Wenesdays during the school year in The Insider and Waterloo/Cedar Falls Courier, 501 Commercial St., Waterloo, Iowa 50701.

Columns and letters do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Hi-Line or Cedar Falls Schools. The Hi-Line editorial staff view is presented weekly in the editorial labeled as Our View.

Reader opinions on any topic are welcome and should be sent to the Tiger Hi-Line staff or delivered to room 208. All letters must be signed. Letters must be submitted by 3 p.m. on Thursday for publication the following Wednesday. Letters may not exceed 300 words and may be edited to meet space limitations. Include address and phone number for verification.

Editorial StaffEditor-in-Chief: Briana McGeough

News Editors: Olivia Schares and Kellie PetersenOpinion Editors: Andrea Huber and Torie Jochims

Sports Editor: Jacqueline JordanFeature Editors: Honor Heindl and Briana McGeough

On-Line Editors: Ellen WredeEntertainment Editor: Kristen Hammer

Hoping you enjoy your snow day, Hi-Line Staff offers a few ideas for winter fun

Hey there, Tigers! This edition of the Hi-Line is brought to you by all of us, working our tails off in the journalism lab right now, to beat the deadline. The heater just went off, and now we’re freezing. But this paper must be put out on time! How’s that for dedication? Just kidding, by the way. The students of advanced journalism have put together this edition of the paper ahead of time, to save until a snowy day, just like today.

Hopefully, you’ve enjoyed both the stories in this edition and your snow day. We bring you tidings of joy and all that good stuff on top of hopes for a more substantial paper next week, but come on, how fun is this one? With any luck, we’ll have fulfilled your daily fluff quotient and you can continue sipping hot chocolate and building snowmen with warm fuzzies (and maybe a few useful tips and ideas) from the articles found in these four pages.

Here’s a few more ideas for those of us putting off that assignment we meant to do earlier, but are saving for after a good snow angel party (don’t worry, we know you’ll do it).

Have a snowball fight. Seriously. With snow like that out there, how can you not? At the very least, shove someone into a nice big pile of snow. Purely out of good spirits, of course. Proceed to laugh hysterically, but don’t be suprised when they pull you down to join them.

Make a fort before you have said snowball fight. Everything feels more realistic when you’ve got a wall of white to hide behind and de-velop your complex battle strategies. Not to mention, it’s a great place to stockpile snowballs.

Of course, don’t do any of this before you’ve suited up properly. We believe that elephant sized snowpants and puffy winter jackets are the way to go.

Feel free to throw yourselves a hot chocolate and movie party. After all, it’s never too early to start watching The Christmas Story over and over and over again. Most of all, we here at the Hi-Line believe in good, clean fun. You know what that means: enjoy the day as best you can, but stay away from the yellow snow. See you all next week!

The snow is falling down now, covering the ground with a blanket of white, and that leaves many of us with the desire to stay in-side. And with that desire of-ten comes a lot of boredom. One of the g r e a t e s t w a y s t o spend a snowy day is curled up with a blanket, a good cup of hot cocoa and a great book. Finding a book to read on these snowy days can sometimes be difficult, but here is a list of a few (in no particular order) that I have enjoyed very much and hope that you will, too.

1. Inside the Mind of Gideon Ray-burn by Sarah Miller. This book is a fun and whimsical adventure following the narrator (a girl) as she suddenly finds herself in the mind of the boy she has a crush on. She follows this boy (Gideon Rayburn) through his thoughts and the more she listens in on his feelings and lives his experiences, the more she falls in love with him. The story moves fair-ly quickly, and the amusement comes

from the added quirk of the boy’s thoughts being shared through the girl who is now privy to them.

2. Sticky Fingers by Niki Burnham. A book like this may not seem hard to find, it follows Jenna Kassarian in her normal teenage life, her struggles to get into a good college, avoid pressures for sex with her boyfriend, and deal with the average ups and downs of every day life. However, this was one of the quickest, most enjoyable reads I’ve ever indulged in. Jenna is so person-able that, after awhile, you begin to feel as though her thoughts are your own, sucking you into the story even deeper. This book proves that a character’s life doesn’t need to be completely screwed up in order to make a good book.

3. Undressed: The Naked Truth about Love, Sex, and Dating by Jason Illian. I discovered this book at ONEfest last year, while the author was speaking. It seemed like a very interesting book, so I bought it, and from the moment I cracked open that cover, I couldn’t put it down until I had finished. It is true that the advice is geared to those a few years older than most high schoolers, but the messages are universal, and Il-lian does not sugar coat anything, nor does he claim to be 100% right about everything he has to say. His insight is enlightening and presented in a non-preaching way, allowing the average reader to take it in.

4. The Gossip Girl series by Cec-ily von Ziegesar. Okay, so this one is a series, but that doesn’t make them any less enjoyable, it actually makes them moreso. These books follow the lives of a handful of Upper East Side teens (boys and girls) as they “suf-fer” through the drama of the lives of the rich and charmed. Though these books teach no life lessons, and aren’t anything to base life decisions off of, they are a great escape, and are great for your daily dose of drama. Cecily makes her characters come to life, and the way they all intertwine is so much fun to follow. For those drama-adverse readers, like me, these books will still manage to become an addiction. And yes, this is the series that has become a hit TV show.

5. Hero by Perry Moore. Here’s a book with a great twist. The story told in this novel is Thom Creed’s, as he tries to hide several things from his fa-ther and achieve dreams as well. What I love about this book (apart from su-perheroes keeping the city safe) is that it deals with some touchy subjects in a manner that isn’t drop dead serious, such as sexual orientation.

There are my top 5 picks for a snowy day’s reading. So pick the one that grabs you by the belt loops the most, check it out or buy it, and enjoy! Hopefully you find a new favorite just as I did.

Torie JochimsOpinion Editor

NovelEscapes Recommended literature provides winter getaway

making you reflect, and has the ability to keep a catchy beat and maintaining a very slow pace perfect for watching the snow fall.

2. Man Man-Six Demon Bag. This is one of the crazy winter albums.The Philadelphia band relies on using obscure instruments to achieve the punk-wop/rock-soul sound. Great for winter because of its offbeat style and ability to drag you out of the winter time blues.

3. Carissa’s Wierd-Songs about Leaving. Another indie rock band that sets the mood perfectly for a win-ter wonderland scene. This album, released in 2003, contains very slow rhythmic melodies completely capture the ‘desolate’ feeling of winter, give-ing the season lyrics that fit perfectly and is great for those below freezing

nights. 4. The Weakerthans-Reunion Tour.

This is the Winnipeg based band’s latest album is full of different types of songs with their own dry Canadian humor. They have a lot of experience with winter weather and the ups and downs of living in this kind of environ-ment.

5. Silver Jews-American Water. An-other indie rock band from the 1990’s, their album was released in 1998 and fits the spirit of winter perfectly. Within this album there are many lower songs which seem depressing un-til you truly listen to the wacky lyrics. The songs contained in this album are perfect for those cold car rides in the winter and they are really easy to listen to because of their catchy melody, lyr-ics, and pace.

Past editor suggests snow day playlist

Andria HuberOpinion Editor

Tiger Hi-Line SPORTSSPORTST h e

Jackie JordanOpinion Editor

It’s that time of year. Families get together to celebrate the holiday sea-son and most importantly get off track staying healthy and fit, but the CFHS running coaches and teaches have the inside lane for comfort and safety in winter training.

It all starts with healthy eating hab-its. Men’s Cross Country coach and women’s Track coach, Troy Becker suggested, “A well balanced diet that includes lean meats, fruits and vegeta-bles. Don’t drink regular pop because they are totally worthless calories. Re-member, diets don’t work. They are just a temporary fix and people who diet will always gain the weight back.”

Keeping in mind that dieting isn’t the answer to effective weight loss proves that just eating right proportions of healthy food can get great results.

Having the right proportion for each meal can be great advantage to staying fit and healthy.

Women’s cross country coach Bob Schmidt recommended, “Control car-bohydrates. Count your carb. 75-100 grams per meal and control portions for each meal.” Also, teacher and runner of Bike Tech Scott Gall suggested, “Natu-ral Organic foods such as raw fruits and vegetable are essential.”

But, eating the right food with the right amount isn’t the only thing to get the best results for a healthier you. Ex-ercise plays a huge factor in getting the toned body one wants.

Becker suggested, “Staying on a regular routine to exercise will be a benefit for anyone. People really need a lifestyle change of nutrition and ex-ercise. The Cedar Falls Rec. has some awesome choices and is a great place to go. And, it is very affordable for citi-zens of Cedar Falls.”

Although exercising at the Rec. is convenient, running outside is possible with the right apparel. “Wear layers with all extremities covered includ-ing your face, fingers, hands and etc,” Schmidt said.

Gall suggested polypropylene cloth-ing that is capable of wicking the mois-ture for one’s body and drying cloth-ing.

Knowing when it is the right tem-perature to run outside depends on the willingness to dress warm in zero de-gree weather. “In general, on really cold days the key is to have clothing that can protect you from the wind chill. With the right clothing, you can run outside in below zero temperatures,” Becker said. Determining whether running outside of the Rec. is more effective all depends on the person.

Gall said, “The only benefit to run-ning outside is the fresh air.”

On the other hand, Becker said,

“Running inside on the small track can be a lot harder on you body and boring. Most people will enjoy running outside a lot more if they are dressed right. A treadmill workout with a TV can be a good alternative because most tread-mills will be easier on your legs than running continuous tight circles on a hard surface.”

Determining what different people prefer amounts to what they enjoy the best. It is a lot more fun working out doing it the way you want to. “Be cre-ative. I feel you can run outside as long as the temperature is above 15 degrees. The Rec. can be a great alternative. Stay away from poor footing and dangerous wind chills,” Schmidt recommended.

Finding the right places to run out-side can sometimes seem overwhelm-ing to those who aren’t familiar with the best places to run. “The trails in town work great until we get a lot of snow. Then you have to just try and use

sidewalks. It’s frustrating when some people don’t take the time to keep theirs cleaned off. But, for the most part our community does a great job, so you can usually run on the sidewalks year round, “ Becker said.

Snow can act as a barrier that can prevent anyone from the thought of going on a run outdoors, but there are solutions that can make it easier and manageable to run when there’s snow. Gall gives a definite yes to running in the snow with snow shoes or even hik-ing in the woods.

Then, there’s the factor of having to worry about the fact that ice can ruin the chance to run outside.

“If it is a day where there is a lot of ice, I usually run inside on a treadmill or cross train indoor,” Becker said.

Becker aslo noted that most impor-tantly, having the right diet, apparel and exercise develops a fit and healthy you.

Honor HeindlFeature Editor

As snow begins to blanket our world, we have a decision to either embrace the winter chills or hiber-nate until spring.

For many CFHS students, the hours of winter are limited with limitless opportunities—all you need is a little creativity.

Senior Ryan Rieger is one of those extreme athletes who get a kick out of the pure thrill of riding rails and learning new tricks on his snowboard. Ever since he was in eighth grade, Rieger has been tear-ing up the slopes, his favorite ski resort being Welch Village, located just south of St. Paul.

“I’d say the best part is just the feeling you get when you’re riding the slopes. If I had to give any tips for beginners—just make sure you don’t start out with a board that is really small because it’s harder to stay in control with them.”

Junior Benjamin Bremner is also quite the daredevil when it comes to boarding.

“It’s important to just let your-self go crazy down the slopes. You can’t be afraid to fall or you will. You’ll see success and you’ll expe-rience the bruises, but it’s all worth it when you finally land a difficult jump or whatever,” Bremner said.

Skiing is also quite popular with students, although the locations are somewhat distant if you really want a quality experience.

Last Spring Break, I had the opportunity to spend the week snuggled into the Colorado town of Vail, home to some of the most breathtaking and elevated areas in the country.

Before I had only experienced skiing in Minnesota and Iowa, and let me tell you, once you hit the slopes in Colorado, nothing else will ever compare.

Riding up the lifts, you get to take in the scenery jam-packed with snowy Rockies and little specks of people traveling down

Black Diamonds and other trails. However, a road trip to Colorado deems quite difficult on any given snow day, and so I would suggest if the opportunity arises, make an effort to learn how to snowboard or ski at some point in your life—it’s a thrill you can’t find anywhere else.

For the little less daring and lit-tle more artistic who still want to make the most of the beautiful out-doors, there is always the option of “extreme snowman making.” Junior Elise Berry is an avid snow-man sculptor who likes to add a touch of color to a world of white.

“Last year I made a University of Michigan snowman and dyed half of it yellow and half blue with food coloring,” Berry said.

Whether you’re a wimp like me and could do without the excess amount of temperatures dropping below zero or a person who wishes it snowed year round, you cannot deny that the liveliness and frenzy of winter bubbles in us all as we arrive at our first snow day of the year.

Winter training takes careful prepping

Sara StreverStaff Writer

The women’s bowling team faced a devastating blow this week-end. The team came in fourth at Re-gionals and will not be continuing on to State.

“Our season is over, other than Jessica Fuller who made 1st team All Conference,” coach Diana Si-dler said.

The Tigers were at Cadillac Lanes in Waterloo and competed against seven other teams. The Ti-gers placed fourth overall.

“In the beginning of the year we were beat by Dubuque by about 100 points, but then yesterday, we beat them. I’m proud we did as well as we did,” Sidler said.

“This is our biggest disappoint-ment. I really thought we would have gone on, but I’m really proud of what they’ve done. Jess made the 1st team. Sydney Good made 1st or 2nd All Conference. Heather

Barth and Amy Kohler made Honor-able Mention,” Sidler said.

Overall, the Tigers had a record of 9-2 and won their Mississippi Division. Their coach, Diana Sidler, won Coach of the Year in their division.

“They were just great. We’re go-ing to miss all of the seniors and those graduating. They all got along really well. They were friends supporting each other. Back in 9th grade, they nev-er really did that before,” Sidler said.

“This year the team is great. In the past we’ve never got a long like we do this year, which is great. It really brings the team together, and I love my coach, Diana,” Sydney Good said.

Extreme Winter Sports: How far will you go?

Sports Opinion

Women’s bowling team eliminated at Regionals

“I really thought we would have gone on, but I’m really proud of what

they’ve done.”Diana Sidler

—women’s bowling coach

OPInIOn Tiger Hi-Line FEATUREFEATURET h e

The Hard LifeArlene Freudenberg

Staff Writer

Many people grow up ignorant of

the fact that there are people whose lives are less glamorous than their own. They grow up not understanding how hard it is to survive in the world once someone has made mistakes.

Recent CFHS graduate, we’ll call him John, is one example of someone who works ex-tra hard just to survive. He barely made it through high school and didn’t even try to go to college.

He spent most of his time in his room playing com-puter games, and hung out with the wrong crowds, and eventually he broke into his high school with the inten-tion to steal.

“Breaking into a high school, some people may have thought that made my life worse. But what I got now, it means so much to me. If I got a chance to change it, I wouldn’t. I don’t regret anything,” he said.

John certainly does not recommend this behavior.

He currently lives in a small apart-ment with his fiancée and their two kids. He works long hours for little pay. The demands are often difficult to balance.

“Trying to find a balance between working long hours so I can get money that I need and time to spend with my family is probably the hardest thing,” John said.

Even though John’s family does get a little help, it’s not enough to thrive on.

“Having access to food stamps only helps so much. Most of the time, toward the end of the month, we’re scraping for food. But as long as the kids are fed, I really couldn’t care less if I’m hungry when I go to bed at night,” he said.

Priorities change for people in simi-lar positions to John.

“What happened to me? I used to get excited about buying video games. Now I’m excited about buying diaper bags,” John said.

John didn’t take his jobs seriously and often bounced from one to the oth-er until reality hit him.

“I’ve had five jobs since high school. It wasn’t until I started putting together a family before I kept one. I liked hav-

ing money and spending it on whatever I wanted, but now I need the money to spend on what my family needs,” he said.

But construction is no dream job for John. It’s a job he’s forced to do because, currently, there’s little else he can do with only a high school di-ploma.

“I am stuck in a job that won’t take me anywhere in my life, and I don’t want to do it for the rest of my life. If I went to college I’d be able to do what I wanted,” John said.

John is determined to make a differ-ence with his life.

He doesn’t want to waste away in construction. He understands that if he does not make changes in his life, no one else will.

“This winter I’m hoping to go to Hawkeye to take some general ed. classes. I get laid off in the winter. I’m just wanting to take it one step at a time,” he said.

John’s parents had his life all set up

for him; they tried to help him and mo-tivate him to do better, but he chose to not take advantage of their help.

“All that talk your parents gave you about high school being the des-tiny of your lives. When you’re out of high school, you’ll find out they were right and you’ll absolutely hate that,” he said.

Like many, John didn’t like doing his school work. He chose to not work in school. Now, looking back on his education, he sees it in a different light.

“Homework is a part of high school. High school seems not that important while you’re in high school, but as you leave high school you’ll find how important it really was,” he said.

With a very low GPA, a criminal record and a disap-pointed family, John barely slid by.

“I think he really regrets not going to college,” his step

mom said. “He had it all set up, and he knew all he had to do was get on board, but he didn’t.”

Even though John made some bad choices in life, his parents recognize that he is trying to correct his mis-takes.

“We’re really proud of him. He’s really stepped up taking responsibility for his actions,” John’s parents said.

John has gained a lot of life perspec-tive from his many trials and triumphs. He hopes that his life can serve as a lesson for the many students that do not care about their education and their lives.

There is certainly a life worth living outside of high school and high school serves as a venue to get there.

For all the kids who think nothing bad could ever happen to them, John said, “I have a friend that swore we’d live to old age together on a ranch or a farm house. He died a couple weeks ago. If you think nothing will happen to you, then you’re just naïve.”

What happened to me? I used to get excited about buying video games. Now I’m excited about buying

diaper bags.

—John CFHS Graduate

CFHS graduate works to get life back on track

Rachel ConnellyStaff Writer

Kids find trouble all the time, but parents, friends and CFHS staff face pressure to keep them from getting into this trouble in the first place or helping them once they get there.

“Sometimes they start referring themselves or parents call. Teachers can tell us if they’re skipping class-es. Teachers tell us if they’re acting strangely. Students tell us about their friends,” guidance counselor Susan Langan said.

Principals deal with the paper work before the students.

“I have a list of student tran-scripts. We have a list of tardies and truancies to try to catch them. I have a lot of data to use with at-tendance and grades. We meet with the guidance department,” associate principal Dana Deines said.

Teachers have ways to tell if students in their classes are having problems, too.

“Struggling students are usually easy to spot because they are either trying to ‘hide’ from me and keep a very low profile or they are look-ing for attention,” foreign language teacher Linda McCormack said.

It’s not always that easy, how-ever.

“Often identifying troubled stu-dents is difficult, but some of the signs are declining grades and loss of motivation or apathy in the class-room,” social studies teacher Chris Dyvig said.

The problems vary among stu-dents, whether it’s mental, academ-ic or attendance.

“If it’s drug or alcohol use, we refer them to Pathways, and they do a substance abuse evaluation. If

they’re suicidal, we call their parents because we’re mandatory reporters. We send them to the hospital for a mental health evaluation,” Langan said.

The guidance office also tries to prevent problems.

“We have a little one-on-one coun-seling. In the past, we’ve run small support groups, like the changing fam-ilies program,” Langan said.

The small support groups are help-ful because students are more apt to listen to another student that has been through the problem than they are to listen to their parents.

It’s important for students to get help if they need it.

“If students know of someone who’s not sharing, let an adult know. Keeping it a secret isn’t going to help anyone. We’ll keep it confidential un-less they’re suicidal,” Langan said.

A possible issue is that the student may get into legal trouble.

“Most students are reasonable and their behavior eventually changes. If seriously troubled students are not caught and helped, chances are good that some will end up in the court sys-tem while the rest of them will prob-ably outgrow those tendencies,” Mc-Cormack said.

Another issue that comes up is stu-dents who don’t graduate.

“We’d like to see every student graduate. We have a really high gradu-ation rate; the dropout rate is less than one percent,” Deines said.

Anything greater than zero percent means that someone dropped out and wasn’t reached in time.

It’s important to help everyone who may need help. All problems are im-portant to catch.

“You only get one life—bad deci-sions make your life a lot more diffi-cult,” Dyvig said.

Staff take many steps when students stray