THEMOORNEWSPAPER.COM ISSUE 7, VOL. 103

ALL-AMERICANHALL OF FAME

3OPINIONS

4FEATURES

7SPORTS

Discover how employers are oppos-ing the Obamacare mandate.

Learn about different dis-abilities and how they they

affect our daily lives.

Discover why AHS’ varsity basketball teams have had to

forfeit games.

PREVIEWS

I’ll miss the convenience of having a supermarket

next to the school. -Jeffrey Weng

“ ”

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2013

The Era of Digital Legacies: Afterlife OnlineOLIVIA CHEUNGEditor in Chief

In today’s technology-dependent society, it be-comes a necessity to check one’s emails and Facebook newsfeeds on a daily basis. The Internet has integrated itself into the daily routines of adolescents and adults alike. However, what hap-pens to these online invest-ments after death?

Facebook, currently the world’s largest social net-work with over one bil-lion registered members, connects distant friends, families and even strang-ers. Facebook notifies users about birthdays and other day-to-day updates. Simi-larly, Facebook can also be a platform for grieving loved ones.

In the case of Anthony Dowdell, a New Jersey native who committed sui-cide in July 2012, many of his friends and family were unaware of his pass-ing. According to Huffing-ton Post, most discovered

his death through a post on Dowdell’s Facebook wall. A friend had con-firmed Dowdell’s death and wished to inform his other geographically-scattered friends. Although many of them didn’t know each other, Facebook allowed them to mourn together.

“Whenever [people are] feeling sad or miss-ing the person, they can always go to their page and look through pho-tos, videos, or posts to [reminisce] their be-loved friend or family [member],” freshman Xena Huang.

According to Time mag-azine, Yale’s Director of Center for Cultural Soci-ology, Jeffrey Alexander, stressed that society’s mod-ernization has individual-ized the grieving process as loved ones scatter across the globe. However, unlike most tangible items, the on-line community is conve-nient and does not require packaging.

“While not a replacement

for a funeral, online memo-rialization can help people work through their grief after the funeral,” Jessica Koth, the spokesperson of

the National Funeral Direc-tors Association, told CNN. “Expressing one’s grief online is an outgrowth of what’s happening in other areas of our lives.”

Facebook provides a unique option that memo-rializes profiles of deceased users. To memorialize a profile, a family member

or friend must fill out a form and submit evidence of death, which Facebook staff reviews. Memorializa-tion disables features, such as status updates and group

affiliations, but confirmed friends and family are still allowed to visit the profile and post comments.

“I can see [Facebook] as a place you can go to and reflect [on] the memories you have with someone who passed away,” ju-nior Anthony Amato said. “There are some things found on Facebook like photos [and] videos that hold a lot of meaning.”

Other sites, such as Ya-hoo and Google, follow privacy rules, even after death, but these rules can be overridden with court orders. Currently, few laws explicitly concern the han-dling of digital assets.

However, New Hamp-shire State Represen-tative Peter Sullivan recently proposed legislation that gives

the executor of an estate—the person named in the de-ceased’s will to administer the will and ensure their fi-nal wishes are respected—control over all Internet ac-counts. According to ABC

Super A Closes, Imminent Construction of Residential Buildings

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JENNIFER THAIStaff Writer

Super A Foods is a privately owned franchise that was first es-tablished by Louis Amen in 1971. A store was built in Alhambra just a decade later. After 32 years of business, Alhambra’s Super A closed its doors on Feb. 3.

More than a year has passed since new designs for Alhambra were proposed in place of Super A. According to the Alhambra Source, Super A no longer had its lease since January. Details were announced at the Jan. 14

City Council meeting. The va-cancy lot is going to be converted for mixed-use development; the city advocates the construction of more residen-tial apartment complexes and a new com-mercial market for the area has been scheduled for March. Con-struction of the new structure will take approximately two years.

“I used to do my grocery shop-ping [there] before the kids got out, since it was more convenient.

I need to find another place [to shop] now,” Alhambra resident Lynn Tran said.

Many are still confused about

why the renewal of Super A’s lease was not approved. The resi-dential and commercial plan was proposed in 2011 by developer Pacific Plaza Investment and de-

signer Simon Lee and Associates Architects, and the final plan was approved in 2013. The city coun-cil members of Alhambra made

the decision to construct new homes and a new commer-cial market. Super A was located in cen-tral Alhambra,

which was easily accessible and affordable for both students and parents.

“I’m going to miss the fact that we used to go after every practice

Switched at Work: Assistant Principals Rotate Positions was made to ensure that Infran-ca and Nguyen would be able to learn new skills in order to be more prepared and be suc-cessful for future positions.

“Mr. Walsh has given us the opportunity to diversify our backgrounds, ultimately pre-paring us to become school principals,” Infranca said.

Infranca and Nguyen have a

DEBORAH CHENCopy Editor

AHS takes numerous ad-ministrator to run successfully. Recently, Assistant Principal of Business and Activities Phuong Nguyen and Assistant Principal of Guidance Jeremy Infranca have switched positions.

The decision for the switch

myriad of duties every day. After the switch, Nguyen

now oversees sports, clubs, the physical plan of buildings and the finances of the Asso-ciated Student Body (ASB) amongst other obligations.

Infranca’s responsibilities currently include tasks such as class scheduling, testing, registration and special educa-

tion. “Even though [we’re in] dif-

ferent offices, I […] can work closely with Infranca and [we can] assist each other,” Nguyen said.

Though their roles have changed, the assistant principals feel as if their positions will be the same because of their contin-ued support and cooperation. In

addition, the change is occur-ring in the middle of the school year, when it is not as hectic as opposed the beginning of the school year because schedules have already been solidified.

“As an administrative team, we stick together. It’s really made our team stronger to know different roles,” Infranca said.

news, similar legislation has been adopted by Rhode Island, Idaho, Oklahoma, Indiana and Connecticut.

Through websites, such as Legacy Locker, The Digital Beyond and Death-switch, a person’s digital life can be handled after death. These sites allow users to set up online wills that designate which ben-eficiaries inherit their on-line accounts, such as user-names and passwords after death.

Although online wills provide convenience, the more traditional form of handwritten wills have not become obsolete.

“People should [also] create a traditional, writ-ten will with their online information attached. A traditional will is more sen-timental and provides any thoughts from the person to his friends and family,” junior Jeff Liang said.

MOOR graphic by ARELI ARELLANO

SURVEY: Do you think families should be granted

log-in access to social media accounts of the deceased?

Yes: 278No: 586

Total: 864 students surveyed

to get an Arizona [tea],” senior Wai Sett said.

Recently, there have been ru-mors of a Trader Joe’s opening as the market in place of Super A. According to a Trader Joe repre-sentative, there is nothing stated in their one-year plan about open-ing a store in Alhambra.

Regardless of what building will be launched, Super A Foods will remain a part of Alhambra’s history.

“I’ll miss the convenience of having a supermarket next to the school,” sophomore Jeffrey Weng said.

IN OTHER NEWSUnofficial Heart Attack Grill

spokesman dies of heart attack

Boy tries to avoid bed-time by calling 911

Alhambra artist Kazu Kabuishi de-signs new Harry Potter book covers

Meteor passes over Russia; at least 1,200 hurt

Montana TV station hackers warn of zombie attack

Inmates jump in to rescue three boys from WA state creek

Misery has More Company on FacebookELLEN LINews Editor

In the online community known as Facebook, there are one billion registered users. Ac-cording to Morrison Foerster’s Socially Aware blog, each user has an average of 130 friends and spends a monthly average of 6.9 hours on the site, mostly to keep in touch with old friends or main-tain other offline relationships.

Furthermore, according to a joint study released in January by Humboldt University and Tech-nical University in Germany, one in three users feels frustration and envy after using the social network. The researchers in the study cited “good news,” such as vacation photos and the pro-files of successful friends, as the source of their dissatisfaction.

“By and large, online social networks allow users unprec-edented access to information

munication have negative experi-ences after using the site.

“Seeing what people have and how they can hang out after school makes me feel depressed, lonely

and poorer

ings by “unfriending” or avoid-ing adding people who cause the negative experiences, which may result in social tension.

Researchers also observed that some of these users will then leave Facebook or at least reduce their use of the site.

“From a provider’s perspec-tive, our findings signal that us-ers frequently perceive Facebook as a stressful environment, which may, in the long-run, endanger platform sustainability,” the re-port said, adding to speculation that Facebook could be reaching saturation point in some markets.

Nevertheless, students at AHS still see the merits of using this social networking site as a con-venient mean of communication.

“I have a positive experience with Facebook,” junior Diana Ly said. “I get to keep up [to date] with friends and my clubs.”

MOOR graphic by SHARON XU

than I really am because they have things or get to do things that I can’t have or do,”

an AHS

student, who asked to

have their name withheld, said. To combat their negative feel-

ings, some users feel compelled to embellish their own Facebook profiles, which only incites envy among other users. This paradox is a phenomenon that researchers have termed “envy spiral.”

In addition, Facebook mem-bers try to avoid these feel-

on relevant others—insights that would be much more difficult to obtain offline,” project man-ager and Humboldt University researcher Dr. Hanna Krasnova said, according to NBC.

The re-search-ers also f o u n d that peo-ple who p e r u s e t h e web-s i t e w i t h -out con-t r ibu t ing were most affected. Pas-sive users who use Facebook for infor-mation, such as through friends’ postings and photo browsing, but do not en-gage in interpersonal com-

Speech and Debate Team Talks Its Way to VictorySYLVIA WINSTONStaff Writer

Over the past decades, AHS has had success in various ar-eas. This year, the Speech and Debate (S&D) team has brought acknowledgement to AHS after seizing first place sweepstakes at their recent Spring Varsity tourna-ment for the first time in addition to successes at other tournaments.

“The three first place sweep-stakes trophies won by the team [...] thus far have surpassed our previous successes. As for the Na-tional Forensic League, the team keeps adding seals from compet-ing, winning at tournaments and moving up the national ladder,” coach Kevin Tong said.

Many members recognize the benefits of being in a program like S&D.

“[S&D] has helped me with public speaking and [thinking] on the spot. It has also helped me improve my diction and perceive things on a more analytical level,” freshman Sharleen Mock said.

The team is among the top 30 S&D programs nation-wide, bringing pride to its coach.

“I feel very proud of the team. Many of the members have done a great job working on speeches and debate cases and dedicated their time to practicing and com-peting,” Tong said.

S&D members also feel satis-faction when they see their hard work come to fruition at tourna-ments and in day-to-day life.

“It is a privilege to be part of this program and it has helped me gain self-confidence. I no longer fear expressing my own opinion,” sophomore Matthew Chan said.

However, the team does not run on its own. It has four senior cap-tains who strive to end this year with a big win and prepare the path for incoming members.

“I’m very proud of this year’s team, and it’s an honor to be able to help lead the team this year. My responsibilities as captain range from ar-ranging practices to mak-ing sure everything goes smoothly with our team at tournaments,” captain Kimberly Phan said.

Hours of rehearsal and memorization are key to t h i s team’s success.

“[Practices] can be stressful be-cause there’s a lot to manage and teach,” captain Henry Chen said.

According to sophomore Fe-lice Gonzales, S&D has become her second home. Not only has she gained experience in public speaking and competition, but

she also gained a family.“I [never dwell] on my

achievements. I always seek for more. I tend to draw inspiration from others,” Gonzales said.

Online Courses: An Alternative Learning Sourcemore convenient,” junior Ivy Dang said. “Students can finish at their own pace.”

However, cheating has been a concern for professors, since they

do not know who is actu-ally in front of the computer. While some schools abide by the hon-

or code, others are considering implementations that help verify a student’s identity, such as iris recognition technology. Even so, this may not stop students from

reading a cheat sheet or listening to answers from someone nearby.

Additionally, a survey con-ducted by Excelsior College and Zogby International found that 83 percent of executives consider an online degree as credible as one earned on campus. Nonetheless, there are still employers who deny online degrees from both accred-ited and unaccredited schools.

“If I was the employer, I would employ the person with a regu-lar degree [acquired by attending class],” senior June Chen said. “I don’t learn as much if it’s online. There are too many distractions.”

recreate the Penn experience on-line.” At UPenn, there are online courses for credit and non-credit directed toward UPenn students wishing to fulfill graduation re-

quirements and high school stu-dents searching for college expe-rience.

“[The online system is] easier to access and more effective. It’s

conflict, commute issues, punctu-ality and tuition. The Sloan Con-sortium’s 2012 Survey of Online Learning reported that there were over 6.7 million students taking online cours-es in the fall term of 2011; the number i n c r e a s e d by 570,000 compared to the previous year.

According to the UPenn Di-rector of Program Development Marni Baker-Stein, UPenn’s on-line program was “designed to

JENNY LEEStaff Writer

Although education has been associated with tangible text-books, online courses are grow-ing in popularity. Schools, such as the California State Universi-ties (CSUs), the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) and Har-vard University, have begun to incorporate this system. Students can either take online classes as supplements to their campus courses or for a degree.

Taking online courses lessens a student’s concern over schedule

[The online system] is easier to access and is more effective [...]

Students can finish at their own pace.-Ivy Dang“ ”

TALKING IT UP AHS’ Speech and Debate team smile their way to success.PHOTO courtesy of SHIRLEY LI

One of the highlights of the Super Bowl season is not only the game but also the special commercials created especially for the intervals between game coverage. They are the only ones I ever look forward to, as com-mercials are often the bane of my Sunday night “Once Upon a Time” airtime existence. This year, however, GoDaddy—corporate company, domain registrar and web hosting superpower—de-cided to air a rather unconventional commercial in hopes of possibly re-building their customer fanbase that was lost after the Stop Online Piracy Act boycotts in 2012. Within the commercial, GoDaddy claims that there are two sides to their company. Bar Raefeli, an Israe-li supermodel, represents GoDaddy’s “sexy side” and Walter, played by Jessie Heiman, represents the “smart side.” In order to visually portray its abil-ity to be the perfect fusion of sexy and smart, GoDaddy presented a physical analogy and had both sides fuse lips. The camera then proceeded to lock onto the scene of mashing and sucking, complete with an am-plified soundtrack of smacks, slurps and sucks, zooming in on the trading of spittle. The scene lasted approxi-mately ten seconds, but felt more like a million—when sitting next to my dad. After the excruciating commercial had ended, I had a chance to reevalu-ate my life. How in the world had I gone on so long without understand-ing just how perfect GoDaddy’s ser-vices are for my website ventures?! Just kidding. Honestly, I got nothing from the commercial, except the de-duction that GoDaddy has a strange idea of who’s their target audience: people who associate the sound of saliva with commercial success. If their goal was to make an im-pression, they certainly achieved it. Jay Leno himself has already done his version of a reenactment—albeit more hilarious than cringe-worthy. Good advertisements are hard to for-get. GoDaddy is bound to have some intrigued reactions to their otherwise embarrassing marketing methods.

SUSANNA AIGAStaff Writer

Does the contraception man-date ultimately help or hurt busi-nesses? The Supreme Court’s decision to declare ObamaCare constitutional worried many, and some have even found it an intru-sion on their beliefs, as is the case with Tom Monaghan, founder of Domino’s Pizza. The new man-dated healthcare plan covers contraception and some business owners do not believe that birth control is something that they should have to provide their em-ployees with. Although suing the federal government is a little ab-surd, the option to supply workers with birth control should remain a business owner’s decision. Employers are not responsible for their employees’ personal lives, and it is only right that the employers decide whether or not

to aid their workers in affairs out-side of work. Some executives do not find it necessary to help workers with birth control, as it does not affect their company in the long run. Others want to keep their employees in good health and are fine with paying for con-traception. Either way, it would be fair if the decision to provide contraception be left in the com-pany’s hands. There are many people who do think that birth control should be supplied for women, as it may prevent health issues like ovarian cysts, in addition to preventing pregnancies. I understand these concerns, but there are already 26 states which require insur-ers and employers to cover the Food and Drug Administration-approved contraception, Califor-nia being one of them. However, 21 out of the 26 states also allow for exemptions from this cover-

age, mainly for religious reasons. This is fairer than the ObamaCare mandate, and seeing as there are state laws already in place for birth control insurance, it is not really necessary for the federal government to have an additional plan for contraception. Also, as businesses struggle economically, it is becoming increasingly difficult for them to provide for their workers. Taxes on the healthcare indus-try—which help pay for the new benefits in the health law, such as birth control—simultaneously increase the costs of insurance. It seems unfair to pile the spiraling costs on top of the towering debt and other financial problems that plague many businesses. Most employers want to provide their workers with health care, but if the situation intensifies, the ex-penses may backfire on employ-ees. More companies might start

trying to find loopholes in the law, such as firing more full-time workers in order to get under the 50-employee threshold, where businesses with more than 50 full-time employees will have to sup-ply workers with affordable insur-ance or be fined, and employ more

part-time workers instead. Although Monaghan’s law-suit may seem extreme, his ac-tions draw attention towards the mounting pressure on the private sector in general. In the end, con-traception is just one more thing for CEOs to worry about.

As every hair follicle on my skin rose from ex-citement to get onto a 100 mph beast that takes its riders up for a rush of adrenaline, I realized I was putting my life on the line. At that moment, I feared for my safety; what if the entire roller coast-er malfunctioned and broke down? Every year, approximately 300 million people spend their leisure times at amusement parks and

thousands are reported injured; a fraction of those are fatal. Of those peo-ple, none of them wanted to get injured; all they wanted was a great time. Obviously Disneyland’s slogan of “Where Dreams Come True” didn’t mean sending their customers to incapacitation or their deathbed, but fear-ing for safety after being put in high-risk situations suggests the violation of trust in a business transaction. For a safe environment, maximum attention to the details is vital for lim-iting the chances for accidents. Rides are supposed to be built with safety in mind, and it becomes the fault of the amusement parks to allow riders to enter after paying for their ticket that their only obligation is not upheld. In a recent California Supreme Court case where a woman was injured while being on bumper cars, I agree with the court’s decision that liabilities are limited; however, the court made a valid point that amusement parks are “not to unreasonably increase the risk of injury.” How would one even define unreasonably when any injuries are possible within amusement park premises? Though some tickets have disclaimers in fine print absolving amusement parks of any liability issues, disclaimers themselves are too vague that it is considered “patently unreasonable” in the courtroom. In spite of the fact that some injuries occur because of consumer behav-iors, serious injuries caused by mechanical mishaps and operation failures should make the amusement parks legally responsible for those injured.

SEAN NGUYENStaff Writer

People from around the world flock to amuse-ment parks to experience the thrills and excite-ment of heights and speed that would otherwise never be experienced. However, in the same way that people flock to these rides, it seems that in-evitably, some of these visitors bring with them lawyers and unwarranted litigation. Although amusement parks are responsible for maintaining and caring for their rides, the park-goers themselves must fully understand that, in the pursuit of adrenaline and thrill, the riders assume many risks and hazards that are inherent to the nature of the attractions they ride. Consequently, these individuals cannot expect amusement parks to compensate them for the injuries that might be sustained on amusement park rides. In the same way that parks have an obligation to maintain and design the rides with safety in mind, those who visit the park have their own obliga-tion to understand the limits of their physical bodies and to understand the risks associated with getting on the attractions that parks offer to them. If a rider has even a slight history of heart issues, then they should prob-ably think twice before hopping on the new rollercoaster with the flame-throwers and pretzel loops. Moreover, as ruled by a 6-1 California Su-preme Court decision this past December, amusement parks cannot be held liable for injuries resulting from risks inherent to the nature of the rides. However, the risk of injury is not limited to mega-coasters and frail se-nior citizens. In the aforementioned court case, a woman broke her wrist while riding the bumper cars. The court ruled against her simply because, whether a person chooses to engage in low-speed bumper car mayhem or a gravity-defying coaster, it is ultimately the rider, not the theme park, who makes the decision to assume the related risks.

MOOR vs. MOOR :

Contraception Commandment Cons

Tug My Finger!DENISE TIEUStaff Writer

Accidents occur every day. If you watch “1000 Ways to Die,” you’ll understand how accidents lurk around every corner. A game of tug-of-war may seem harmless, yet this simple game caused two students to lose fingers recently at South El

Monte High School. However, someone losing their appendages over a game of tug-of-war is not a one time incidence. In 1997, two men lost their arms and 40 others were hurt from a tug-of-war game in Taiwan involving over 1,600 people. School officials should have con-sidered how school activities can possibly affect the students. Further-

more, the rope should have been ex-amined, since a specific type of rope is needed to prevent any injuries, ac-cording to the International Tug-of-War Federation. The students now have to suffer the consequences of the officials’ oversight on the matter; the school district is currently planning to re-view policies on the appropriateness of tug-of-war on campus.

Though school officials were at fault, they aren’t entirely to blame. Students should’ve had the common sense to not wrap the rope around their hands. They should’ve ac-knowledged that they may have been in danger when their peers got too enthusiastic with their rope-pulling. For future safety liabilities, students should be wary of the activities they choose to engage in.

TINA CHENStaff Writer

JUST FOR THE HAL-

Katherine OngOpinions Editor

GoDaddy-A-NoNo!

Should amusement parks be held liable for injuries?

Approximately 650 million people live with some form of disability. People often seem unaware of these specific individuals’ needs or circumstances. The “world’s largest minority” according to United Nations organization, actually endures many difficult obstacles, physically and mentally, just to get through the day. Some of these barriers include—but are not limited to—transportation, communication and discrimination. In addition, they do not have equal access to benefits like the rest of the people around them. Some don’t realize that disabilities can affect women, men and children, of any ethnicity, at any time. Some disabilities happen at birth, due to an accident, age or sickness. Studies show that the whole commu-nity benefits when a person with disabilities fully participates in the physical environment present in their lives. By understanding what people can do to assist these individuals, we would be providing them with more resources and a chance to be part of the world that we all share. Together, with more possibilities, ev-eryone would be able to achieve greater comprehension and, ultimately, unite as a group with similar goals.

For students with physical or learning disabilities, a day at school is essentially the same as any other student’s. However, certain accommodations must be made to meet their needs and to ensure that these students are properly receiving their education. Condy Kan, a senior at AHS who is hard of hearing, says that her day at school is basically like anyone else’s, besides the addition of a translator. An interpreter sits across from her or next to a teacher during a lesson to translate the teacher’s spoken words into American Sign Language (ASL) which Condy learned at the age of six. Additional assistance is received through the cochlear implant, a surgi-cally implanted device that aids people who are deaf or hard of hearing. Outside of class, Condy participates in many sports, such as field hockey, swim and water polo. In field hockey, as she did with gymnastics in the past, Condy learns the daily routines and repeats them. Because she doesn’t have a translator during her after school activities, she learned how to read lips. Since she can’t wear her cochlear implant during swim and water polo, she asks her teammates what to do during practices. For other students, additional help during the school day may be required. A team comprised of the student’s parents or guardians, a psychologist, a special education teacher, the nurse and, perhaps an administrator, meets to discuss whether or not an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) is necessary to meet the student’s needs. The team decides together, based on an individual’s needs, how best to ac-commodate the student and make education at the school a smooth process. Some elements of IEPs may include certain classes designed to help students with disabilities or the assistance of a one-on-one aide. Teachers are trained to be able to adapt to all types of learning prefer-ences, while aides are district staff members assigned to certain individuals who need help throughout the day to make the school day flow more easily. “I want to make sure that all students have equal access to public education, not just special educa-tion kids,” Head of Special Education Department Jessica Castillo said. “Individuals all have different needs and strengths, and teachers should make sure that everyone is successful.” School psychologists Tak Tsubo and Vivien Wong, school nurse Anita Man, senior Condy Kan and teacher Jessica Castillo agree on one idea, which is that students with disabilities are just like students without. At the end of the day, Tsubo emphasizes the idea: “Students with disabilities aren’t very different; they are part of our school community and shouldn’t be treated as a separate group.”

Connecting One Piece At a Time “The purpose of the Learning Independence For Transition (LIFT) program is to

guide and teach adult students with disabilities the skills they need to live as indepen-dently as possible. Our days are busy and full! It is never a boring day at the LIFT program. We learn daily living skills, such as cooking, cleaning and maintaining a house-hold. Cooking, of course, is one of our favorite activities! We have a kitchen area with stove, sink and refrigerator. We also grow vegetables and herbs to use in our cooking lessons, thanks to a grant from the Alhambra Rotary Club and Alhambra High School’s Green Academy, who built the raised beds for the garden. We learn what we call “functional academics.” Functional academics are real life skills students need to function independently, such as banking, understanding taxes, use of money, filling out job applications and writing résumés. Students also learn about the importance of social skills in job settings. We go out into the community every day. We learn to safely navigate the city with use of public transportation, and practice use of money in the community. One of the perks of this program is going out to eat at a fast food restaurant every Friday! We also do volunteer work in order to gain important vocational skills for future jobs. With the help of AUSD’s Voca-tional Specialist, Melanie Ware, and her team, we work at places such as Sizzler, the Alhambra Courthouse, YMCA, Smart N Final and Gamestop.”

Day in the Life of Alumnus James Takhar

Day in the Life of an AHS Student with a Disability

What Can We Do to Help? “We are all part of this one family called the human race, and we all share the same feelings, hopes and dreams. I find that my students are some of the most inter-esting people I know! I enjoy their sense of humor, and learning about their perspec-tives and unique views of the world. It’s very easy, to simply say “hello” to someone with disabilities. I would also encourage AHS students to sit next to someone with disabilities at lunchtime and get to know him or her. If you have someone with a dis-ability in one of your classes or clubs, start a conversation, or walk with him or her to the next class. Ask a few questions, and you may find that you have some things in common. There are also many great programs that welcome volunteer help, such as Special Olympics or Ability First. And one day, when you become that successful business owner or manager, I hope you will consider hiring someone with disabili-ties. You’ll find you have an employee who is, not only, dependable, dedicated and hard working, but also very likely someone with a sense of humor and positive out-look that is almost guaranteed to increase morale in the workplace and productivity in all employees.”

By Copy Editor: Caroline Ren

By Features Editor: Dalla Wong

“When I was going to college in Fort Worth, Texas, I taught dance to students in some of the more disadvantaged areas of the city. I was impressed by the resilience of many of these students in spite of very difficult circumstances. I found that I could be a positive influence and had the potential to make a difference in their lives. Yet, as much as they learned from me, I learned far more from them. When I came back here to my home state of California, I decided to pursue a teaching credential, and soon began teaching in Glendale. Then my kids were born, and I stayed home for a while to care for them, including my youngest son who has disabilities. Before my son was born, I was, admittedly, naïve about people with disabilities. I taught my son at home through a program designed specifically for him and learned a great deal. When I returned to teaching, I entered the special education field and feel so fortunate to have found my way to the LIFT program. Like those dance students in Fort Worth, my students face challenges and difficult circumstances of their own. Every day, they impress me with their posi-tive attitude, hard work and willingness to keep going despite tough odds.”

By Staff Writer: Sarah Takhar

Growing up, I always knew my older brother, James, was different compared to everybody else in my life. He could not talk the way other children did and he had a hard time understanding people. When it came to focusing in class, he had a hard time doing so and did not learn as fast as his peers. James has these traits that set him apart from others because he has autism. Right now, James is 21 years old and his life is packed with activities so that every day can be fulfilling. He attended AHS and graduated in 2010. While at AHS, James participated in full-inclusion classes, meaning that he took all the same classes as any student without a disability would, but with an aide. At AHS, his classmates were very accepting of their fellow Moor and, rather than ignore him, they befriended him. Even though it is unclear if James truly comprehended their actions, he none-theless expressed enjoyment from the company of his peers and the support they gave him. After graduation, James moved on to take classes at both Mountain View High School (MVHS) and Pasadena City College (PCC) and had his aide with him at both schools. A normal weekday for James begins with him getting ready for school at six in the morning. After he has prepared for the day ahead of him, he leaves for school, where the program James attends provides a bus service to take him and other students with disabilities to school. At MVHS, he participates in the school’s transition program which teaches functional living skills: mobility, safety, work experience and community-based instruction. Basically, this program teaches him how to interact with the world around him, to better understand people and vice versa. After classes at MVHS, the next item for the day is a com-puter class at San Gabriel Valley Training Center. When his school day is over, James takes the bus back home, and depending on the day of the week, he has a variety of activities. For example on Mondays, he goes to palates and speech therapy almost immediately after school, while he goes ice skating Thursday afternoons. Additionally, he works at the sporting goods store R.E.I. once a week in Ar-cadia, and stocks supplies on the shelves. Although James seems very different from the average student, he actually has a great deal in common with every-one. He enjoys being active, meeting new people, watching movies and hanging out with friends. He always gives a big smile whenever he sees one of his old friends from AHS who included him in activities . Even though James may act dif-ferently, in the end, he is just the same as everyone else.

Statistics of Students With Disabilities (2009-2010)

MOORgraphics by Sharon XuInformation courtesy of GoogleMOORphoto by Sarah Takhar

Interview With Special Educa-tion Teacher Kathleen Doyle

What is the LIFT Program?

Who or what caused you to be-come a Special Ed. teacher?

Interview by Features Editor: Cynthia Luong

What are the options for those who are not four-year university bound?

The MOOR 101 South Second Street, Alhambra, CA 91801

The Moor serves as one of the checks and balances of district and school policies. It is an open forum for the campus population and one of the records of Alhambra High School’s history. The Moor is not a vehicle for the promotion of any school organization, individual and/or activity, excluding those promoted via paid advertisement. The Moor is protected under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution and California Education Codes 48907 and 48950. The Moor encourages students, faculty and community members to submit Letters to the Editor. Topics need not deal with stories previously published but should pertain to issues affecting the school and/or surrounding community. Letters can be delivered to C-225, or the The Moor’s suggestion box in the Activities Office at least one week in advance. For legal reasons, The Moor cannot publish letters written anonymously but can withhold the name of the writer at their request. The Moor also reserves the right to refuse publication when the opinions expressed or issues discussed have been previously addressed or are of no relevance to the campus community and/or surrounding areas as deemed by the Editorial Board.Note: Issue reviewed and edited by adviser for content and journalism standards.

Editors in ChiefNews EditorsOpinions Editors

Features Editors Sports EditorAssistant Sports EditorCopy EditorsGraphics EditorHead CartoonistBusiness ManagerStaff LiaisonCirculations ManagerPhotos Editor

Joyce Tsui, Olivia CheungEllen Li, Diana LiKatherine Ong, Michelle PaulinoCynthia Luong, Dalla WongKevin KongNate Garcia Deborah Chen, Caroline RenSharon XuCandace WongSarah TakharCandace WongMikaela ChuJoyce Tsui

Staff Writers

CartoonistsPhotographerGraphicsJournalism AdviserContact

Susanna Aiga, Tina Chen, Anhayte Guajardo, Jenny Lee, Sean Nguyen, Sarah Takhar, David Tan, Jennifer Thai, De-nise Tieu, Sylvia WinstonJacqueline Chau, Mikaela Chu Yibei LiuAreli Arellano, Simon ZhaoMark Padillamoornewspaper@gmail.com

An emergency medical techni-cian (EMT) responds to emergency dis-patches and provides advanced life sup-port to those injured on the way to a hospital. To gain an EMT basic certificate, one must be of at least 18 years of age with CPR certification to enroll in a paramedic-training program. Instructors educate students in skills like assessing patients’ conditions, controlling bleeding, managing airways and responding to cardiac emergencies. A part of the EMT training program is completed in an am-bulance or hospital emergency room. In addition to successfully completing the course, it is important for applicants to be in good physical condition. As soon as one completes the EMT course, one must pass a state-issued exam to gain EMT-Basic credentials. After gaining the credentials, one can begin earning work experience. Upon completing around six months to a year’s worth of experience, applicants who wish to become paramedics can en-roll in paramedic training and obtain state licensure.

Emergency Medical Technician

A dental assistant’s job responsibilities include sterilizing and preparing instruments for dentists, tak-ing impressions of teeth and assisting the dentist di-rectly at the chair with oral surgery and other procedures. To be an unlicensed dental assistant, one must complete a California Dental Board-approved course, as well as a course in infection control. In addition, one would need to successfully complete a course in Basic Life Support. To become a registered dental assistant, one would have to graduate from a board-approved dental assis-tant educational program or complete 15 months of work experience as an unregistered dental assistant. The ap-plicant must also complete a board-approved course in radiation safety and coronal polishing to supplement courses required to become an unlicensed dental assistant. To complete becoming registered, one must pass a state written and practical exam, along with a state written exam in law and ethics and then apply for a license as a regis-tered dental assistant to the Dental Board of California.

If one had an interest in law, but did not wish to commit to acquiring a Juris Doctor, becom-ing a legal secretary might be an appropriate job. A legal secretary’s work is very similar to that of a paralegal’s where the workload includes tasks such as filing and preparing legal documents per-taining to a case organizing law libraries and work-ing closely with attorneys, judges and clients. Acquiring a high school diploma remains a pre-requisite to becoming a legal secretary, and there are various methods to become certified. One can par-ticipate in a vocational or technical school program, complete a community college program or acquire a bachelor’s degree, master’s degree or PhD degree. Legal secretaries who have less than three years of ex-perience (in an entry-level related position) can become accredited legal secretaries. Those who have more years of experience can become professional legal secretaries, given they pass the appropriate exam to gain the title.

Certified Nursing Assistant

Certified Dental Assistant

Other occupations (but not limited to)that do not require a four-year college degree:

• Phlebotomist: $30,081 • MedicalAssistant: $31,343 • NuclearMedicineTechnologist:

$70,558 • Cosmetologist: $22,570• PharmacyTechnician: $32,203• AccountingClerk: $32,326• AnesthesiaTechnologist/Technician—

high school degree only!: $35,525• MRITechnologist: $66,547• PersonalTrainer: $53,474• RadiologicTechnologist:$49,239

Congratulations!

For taking an interest in:

A certified nursing assistant helps patients with health care needs with the accompaniment of a reg-istered nurse or licensed nurse. Responsibilities vary based on where the nursing assistant works, but tend to include cleaning and sanitizing patient rooms or patient areas or administering medica-tions or treatments, directed by a nurse or physician. Settings of a certified nursing assistant include hos-pitals, personal homes and assisted living facilities, which could benefit from the nursing assistants’ help in mediating between registered nurses and the patient. To become a certified nursing assistant, one can take classes offered by the Red Cross, commu-nity colleges, online schools or medical training facilities. All certified nursing assistants are re-quired to pass an examination before they are quali-fied to work. By completing a course that can range from four to six weeks and passing a competency exam, one becomes a certified nursing assistant.

Annualsalary: $31,931- $45,834 (in-creases with experience)

LocalProgram: UCLA emergency medical technician course

Annualsalary: $33,470 (median wage in 2010)

LocalPrograms: Pasadena City College, Alhambra High School

Annualsalary:$30,000-$60,000 (increases with experience)

LocalProgram: UCLA extension - Legal Secretary training program

Annualsalary:$28,300 (median wage)

LocalProgram:Pasadena City College

Legal Secretary

MOOR graphics by SHARON XU AND SIMON XHAO

Articles By MICHELLE PAULINO

YOUR FUTURE

For more information regarding these types of occupations, visit the Bureau of Labor Statistics website, sites pertaining to your interests, or programs offered at your local colleges and universities.

Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics, The Dale Foundation (California Dental Assistance requirements), Gulf Coast State College, Salary Blog site, Dental Board of California, All about careers site, Education Portal - How to become a Paramedic, Education Portal - How to become a Legal Secretary, UCLA emt course description, UCLA legal secretary course description, Pasadena City College Course details.

ANHAYTE GUAJARDOStaff Writer Professional football is one of the most popular sports in the United States, but there are increas-ing concerns behind the scenes. The sport has been known to lead to long-term physical dam-ages, such as traumatic concus-sions. Although brain injuries have long been accepted in the hard-hitting world of football, the Nation-al Football League (NFL) has recently announced its part-nership with the National Insti-tutes of Health to produce new technology for helmets in order to reduce injuries for football play-ers, claims the Washington Post. “Helmets are supposed to pre-vent catastrophic brain injuries, like hemorrhages. They do a good job of that, but we need a helmet that does that as well as pre-vent concussions,” chair of NFL Subcommittee on Safety Equip-ment and Playing Rules Kevin

Guskiewicz said in an inter-view with National Geographic. According to an article in National Geographic, the NFL is funding a yearlong project to place sensors in the helmet, the helmet mouthpiece and the center of the head padding to approxi-mate the G-force and impact that must be absorbed during a game.

In order to produce these helmets, the NFL enlisted the U.S. Army to “[place] tens of thousands of sensors [...] in the helmets to measure the forces exerted on their heads,” accord-ing to National Geographic. “Accurate sensors that measure impacts in real time would be a big advancement in head-trauma protection,” U.S. Army’s prod-uct manager Lieutenant Colonel Frank Lozano said in an inter-view with National Geographic.

Slamming and shaking against the skull can also lead to brain damages. Xenith, a company dedicated to health and safety in sports through innovation and education, has developed a new product called the Xenith X1 football helmet. According to Xe-nith.com, the Xenith X1 football helmet comes with a ‘Fit Seeker’

that “helps keep the helmet secure during all impacts experi-enced on the field”.

This new helmet is also created with a ‘Shock Bonnet’, which is a shock absorber that releases air

when the helmet faces impact to prevent the head from rapid movement. National Geographic also states that if a helmet can absorb more energy from an im-pact, a lesser amount of energy will be absorbed by the brain. “I’ve never had a concussion playing [football] but I know someone who did and had to be taken out of the game,”AHS var-sity football player Joshua Di-vila said. “I think more padding will help prevent concussions.”

NFL Discovers Innovative Ways to Prevent Future Concussions

Girls’ Soccer Advance to Playoffs, Finishing Second in League

Varsity Wrestling Ends Season Second in League, Advancing Seven Players to CIF Preliminaries

DAVID TAN Staff Writer

After a long season of hard work, the Lady Moors’ soccer team ended with an overall record of 8-6-6 and a league record of 5-3-2. They earned second place in Almont League, which advanced them to the California Interscho-lastic Federation (CIF) playoffs. The girls believe everyone did their part and contributed to the success of this team and are excit-ed about making the CIF playoffs. “I feel that for having a lot of new players from [JV] this season and only about four returning varsity members, we have come together and we have done really well,” captain Autumn Krueger said. Going into the playoffs, the team knows that they have to

KEVIN KONG Sports Editor

On Jan. 24, the Power 106 game hosted by FHA-HERO took place. The AHS team consisted of four players from the varsity boys’ and one player from the var-sity girls’ basketball team. How-ever, the California Interscholas-tic Federation (CIF) Constitution states that students who play in an organized sporting event outside of league become ineligible. Re-sulting in the two forfeited wins by the boys and one for the girls. Samantha Garcia, the varsity girls’ captain, claimed that this did not affect their chances at league and playoffs. The team ended their season with a record of 2-8. “It was hard for me [...] to just watch my team play. The punish-

ment was not justified because we caused no harm,” Garcia said. The boys were close to tying for first; however, after the two forfeits and losses that followed, the boys fell to the fourth rank. The rules of the CIF Constitution cost them the title, according to Assistant Coach Bryan Gonzales. “It was a lot of hard work we put in the last two years to be close and have that changed in a matter of hours [was hard to believe],” Gonzales said. The four players were cap-tain Wai Sett, center and power forward Carlos Barrios and guards Brandon Cadena and Aaron Cosme. Head Coach Robert Blanchard claims that the coaches wanted them to be a part of the team, but from only the bench, without receiv-

ing playing time The boys were urged not to play to avoid injury. The boys’ coaches claim that in the future, if a player plays in an “outside” organized game, they will be taken off the school’s team. “I don’t support what the ath-letes did, but they only played for two minutes. [The penalty] doesn’t seem right,” Blanchard said. Nevertheless, playoff dreams are still alive after the boys’ vic-tory against San Gabriel on Feb. 8 with a score of 36-33, making their final record 5-5. Although they still ranked fourth, they will play in CIF as an wild card, a team that did not make the cut-off, but had a qualifying record. “It’s nice [...] that after every-thing the team has been through, we still [have the] opportunity [to play in] the playoffs,” Barrios said.

HELMET TECHNOLOGY New football equipment funded by the NFL can reduce injuries and concussions using shock-asorbing memory foam and impact-measuring helmets.

Helmets are supposed to prevent catastroph-ic brain injuries, like hemorrhages. They do a good job of that, but we need a helmet

that does that as well as prevent concussions.-Kevin Guskiewicz

play at the level they were play-ing at throughout the season and remain focused. The girls also believe that confidence in their own abilities and trusting each other, along with the sup-port of everyone at AHS, are vital to the success of the team. “We need to not break down everything that we worked for and we need to try to keep a hold of all our plays [that we learned] throughout the year. That will bring us success,” Head Coach Armondo Gutierrez said. The team’s CIF journey ended after winning 6-0 against New Common Jewish High School and losing 0-2 against Saddleback Valley Christian High School.

MOOR graphic by ARELI ARELLANO

a lot of young guys this year. We had 3-4 [ w r e s t l e r s ] , such as Steven Ovse-pian and Aaron Lo-gan, that h e l p e d t h e t e a m prog- ress,” c a p - t a i n M i - chael R o - bles

said. T h e s e v e n wrestlers who have advanced to the CIF p r e l i m s i n c l u d e A a r o n L o g a n , S t e v e n Ovsepian, Michael R o b l e s ,

NATE GARCIAAssistant Sports Editor

Wrestling is a sport that requires both dedication and fitness. The varsity wrestling team practices daily from sixth period to 5:30 p.m. in the wrestling room. They begin practice with a series of stretches and move on to learn new moves that will better their overall skills. With the intense and hard work put into prac-tices, the team has come in sec-ond place in Almont League and seven wrestlers have advanced to the California Interscholas-tic Federation (CIF) preliminar-ies. Despite the reduced roster this year, the wrestlers have overcome their opponents and broke through to the next round. “We had a smaller roster and

Peter Sosa, Michael Median, Eric Garcia and Ruben Garcia. Robles, along with teammate Logan, were able to achieve a league record of 4-1. On the oth-er hand, the reduced roster has shown to have an effect on many invitationals and dual meets. “What hurts us the most is not having a complete team. […] During dual meets, for every per-son that is missing in a division, we lose three points,” Logan said. In this case, size is not an ob-stacle for this unified, strong team of wrestlers. They are hop-ing to get past the first round of the CIF preliminaries, which takes place on Feb. 15, and ad-vance to later rounds and pos-sibly the CIF finals. Overall, the wrestling team has fought strong this year despite a small size.

Spotlight : Vanessa Peña

MOOR photo by YIBEI LIU

• Four-year member of the varsity girls’ water polo team

• Varsity member of the girls’ volleyball team

• Varsity member of the var-sity swim team

• Biomed student• Member of Bloc Work

NATE GARCIAAssistant Sports Editor

1) What values have you learned from being on the team?“I’ve learned to be a dedicated, committed, team player. Also, I have learned to be responsible and, overall, water polo has shaped me into the athlete I am.”2) What is your favorite memory of water polo?“After a game, we got on the bus and even though we lost, we messed around to be happy and we did rap battles and beat boxing.”3) What plans do you have after high school?“I will [definitely] play water polo at a Division I school, which will better me as an ath-lete.”

Photo courtesy of Google

“ ”

Boys’ Basketball Qualify for CIF PlayoffsDespite Forfeiting Games to Rule Violation

Michael RoblesMOOR photo by YIBEI LIU

2013 AAEDE Scholarship Opportunity Who’s Eligible?

Award Amount:

1) Must be Graduating High School Senior, Class of 2013

2) Demonstrate financial need (to be eligible for financial aid, applicant must have submitted a FAFSA form by the

March 2013 deadline.)

3) Cumulative high school unweighted GPA (out of a 4.0 scale) must be 3.0 and above.

4) Only U.S. Citizens are eligible to apply. (Please note, affiliates of AAEDE are not eligible to apply.)

Requirements: *1) Complete the AAEDE Scholarship application.

2) Include the required 500-word essay on one of the chosen topics below:

A) Please describe an instance, event, or permanent condition of adversity in which you have overcome (or are still overcoming). What did you learn? B) Name and describe the one person (famous or not famous) who has significantly influenced who you are today. What did you learn from him/her? C) If you could change the world, what would you change? D) What is your dream, vision or hope for your life, career? *3) Provide one Letter of Recommendation. The recommender must fill out the recommendation form and attach a letter and seal/sign over the envelope flap. Applicant’s name must appear on the front of the envelope. 4) Provide an official sealed copy of your high school transcript. 5) Please include a copy of your FAFSA SAR Report. (Please refer to sample report on our website.) *Scholarship application and recommendation form are posted online at www.aaede.org and also distributed to high school administrators/counselors. Please check your high school website or ask your scholarship coordinator for more information.

There will be (3) awards of $500 each and (3) awards of $1000 each.

A total of 6 scholarship awards will be offered.

216 W. Garvey Ave. Ste. #E, Monterey Park, CA 91754-1688 • (626)572-7021 • info@aaede.org • www.aaede.org

MOOR graphics by ARELI ARELLANO