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Titan Scroll Volume VII, Edition 1.
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Titan Scroll
Lee’s Summit West High School 2600 SW Ward Road
Lee’s Summit, MO 64082
Friday, Sept. 17, 2010Volume VII, Edition 1
Wipe-Out Winnetonka
Your Homecoming survival guide
Electronic policies differ throughout district
Get to know your athletesFall Sports Q&A
2 •News• Opinion • Feature • Arts & Entertainment • Sports • Titan Scroll
Page Designers
Eric DedovishJesse Eiskina
Joey Franke Gabby HaydenRachael Hilton
Rachel Paddock
WritersAndy EvansKrista Kern
Taylor JensenA.C. Long
Carlie NashHaley Roach
Katey Stoetzel
Editor in ChiefJenna Keeble
Copy Editor Sydnee Owens
AdvertisingManager Brooke Admire
Graphics Design Manager Hayley Brower
The Titan Scroll is a student publication of Lee’s Summit West High School. It welcomes all letters to the editor, but reserves the right to edit for libel and for space. No unsigned letters will be printed. Letters may be dropped off in Room 2048 or mailed to 2600 SW Ward Road, Lee’s Summit, MO 64082. Volume 7 of the Scroll is published 10 times dur-ing the 2010-2011 school year. The opinions con-tained do not in any way represent the Lee’s Sum-mit West faculty, administration or the R-7 school district administration or school board.
Adviser Carol Ullery
Business AdviserKarrie Smythia
Photography Editor Martin Steele
Photographers Nicole Conniff
Sam ConradElisa Cox
Nathan FosterAnna Hunter
Jean MadisonKatie Maloney
Alex PalmerAriel Thompson
Distribution ManagerJed Manaco
Web ManagerElisa Cox
Web Photo EditorAnna Hunter
A&E EditorKatey Stoetzel
Sports EditorBen Poeschl
2010 -2011 Staff
Staff ArtistAlex Katzfey
News
Opinion
Arts&Entertainment
Feature
Sports
Titan Scroll Friday ,Sept. 17, 2010
Volume VII, Issue I
New electronics policy enters district Pg. 3Red Alerts Pg. 4
Well, if you ask me Pg. 7 Health Freak Pg. 8
Fall Sports Q&A Pg. 20LSW grad makesthe big leagues Pg. 23
Movie Match-up Pg. 15Homecoming crossword Pg. 18
Teacher Feature: Meet Mr. Davis Homecoming
Pg.11 Pg.12-13
Sept. 17, 2010 •News • Feature • Arts&Entertainment • Sports • 3
This year, the lunchroom of Lee’s Summit North High School is buzzing with all the ringers, vibrations, and tunes it can handle as a new electronics policy is executed. The policy allows students to use all electronics including cell phones, iPods, and other devices during their lunch shift. According to Cheryl Bramlette, LSN Assistant Principal and Athletics Director, the idea was piloted during the last few weeks of the previous school year. Assistant Principal Brad Parson said a change in policy at West, “has been brought up especially when I’m trying to push student privileges and things like that and I know that every time we talk about student privileges with students it’s the one thing they want; they want use of their cell phones. So therefore, we bring that up to the staff and it’s just not something that they’re willing to accept at this point.” Parson said that he believes the staff is against the idea because they are worried about the effects it could have on student academics. They fear that this could potentially cause chaos with things such as communicating test answers to other students. However, there is potential for the student body to change the electronic policy at West. “Anytime students want to propose something–as long as they get some evidence to back it up because having another school that feels like it’s worked for them gives them testimony from those
other schools–the chances of getting it passed here would be greater. That doesn’t mean it’ll work, but it is a possibility. It has been discussed but it has never made it to the point where we were willing to do that,” said Parson. To make the change, LSN’s site-based team spent over a year on a study trying to find a way to privilege students without it becoming a supervision nightmare. They took input from students and other schools and came up with this solution. Bramlette explained that, “we had to get permission from the SLC (Central Office); since we were not using the same policy as the other two high schools. We had to ask if we could have that as our policy to see how that would go and of course, they said yes.” After last year’s successful trial run, administration decided to continue giving students electronic privileges throughout the ‘10-’11 school year. North Junior Chad Cornish said he was very happy when he learned of the new policy. He now uses his cell phone everyday in the lunchroom as a great way to check up on things. Most of North’s student body had the same reaction to the news. Bramlette said that after the initial excitement died down, the rule really wasn’t that big of a deal. Students have the opportunity to make phone calls or use other devices, but it hasn’t caused any distractions or problems. North has not had any increase in the number of electronic violations during class time.
Many students agreed the new policy has had positive results. “Now that we can text at lunch, our desire to text in class has reduced,” said North Senior Dalton O’Donnell. North Freshman Chelsea Cooper said that, “It lets me get away from class. Kids text less during class now because they don’t have to check.” Bramlette added that one of the benefits to the new policy is communication. “They actually can pull out their phone and call someone if they need to. I know their friends are there but there’s other people that they might call or they can check in with their parents.” She also added that the new policy works great with the new Red Alert system. Now that students can check their phones at lunch, they can receive Red Alerts and have plenty of time to arrange rides or change plans as needed. With LSN’s new privileges, many students may wonder why West has not instilled the same practices. Although some may be all for the change, there are negative effects to this idea. The policy is a way to privilege
students and giving them something they enjoy. It also helps with necessary communication between parent and student and has possibly decreased the rate of texting during class time. Although, some may not support this new idea because of the system’s downfalls. Officer Conard pointed out that one reason West has not made the move toward allowing electronics is because of theft. It is one of the biggest issues here at West and cell phones are the number one stolen item. If cell phones were allowed at lunch, it is possible that this rate could increase, he said.
Jenna Keeble
Will West be next to change their policy?
The Lee’s Summit North electronic policy allows students to use their electronic devices during lunch.Photo by Martin Steele.
4 •News • Opinion • Feature • Arts & Entertainment • Sports • Titan Scroll
Sydnee Owens
The new Red Alert system (RED), is like a Twitter for the Lee’s Summit high schools, sending updates about school events to subscribers’ cell phones and e-mail. RED was actually developed by a 2010Lee’s Summit High School graduate, Patrick Stoddart. Stoddart started working on the project in the summer of 2009. He was involved in JLabMag, LSHS’s online newspaper and as a web editor, he said he was searching for something his school’s website was lacking. “I saw that there was no event calendar on the website, which I thought was odd,” said Stoddart. Stoddart already had ideas about combining texting with an event calendar so he decided to take on the project. Business teacher and webmaster Julie Kelly encouraged Stoddart to try to sell the program if it went well. “This is a texting society, that’s how kids communicate. It’s designed to make everyone’s life easier,” said Kelly. LSHS was the guinea pig for the project and they agreed to use it last year for free. “If it’s free and things go wrong, they can’t really complain,” said Stoddart. This gave him the opportunity to correct all the kinks in the system so he could make it good enough to sell to other schools. Stoddart formed his own business, Revdel, at the end of his senior year in order to sell his product. In April, Stoddart approached Lee’s Summit North with his system. He
sold it to North and North has now passed up LSHS with subscribers. Stoddart sold his system to West in June for $2600 for the first year and $1,250. But so far West is following far behind in subscribers compared to the other schools. LSHS still does not pay for Stoddart’s product, but North and West are currently on a three year contract which they can choose to renew once it expires. Stoddart made a website to advertise his product and hired a sales representative to help him. His website is revdel.com. “I pursued some local advertising, but found it to be pretty costly. At the moment, I’m still working on that,” said Stoddart. He said he plans to expand RED. “Entire school districts could use it, public and private. Many churches, businesses, and municipalities could even use the service,” said Stoddart. As far as going national and so forth, Stoddart said he would love to see that happen in the far future. “I could see it eventually doing so, with the right marketing plan and staff,” said Stoddart.
“Twitter” for school has arrived
Statistics shown are those of Lee’s Sum-mit West High School specifically, but all of Lee’s Summit high schools are avail-able online.
OVERALL USEas of 11:20am, Sept, 1Lee’s Summit West High School
Graphics Courtesy Patrick Stoddart
Sign up at the West homepage!
Sept. 17, 2010 News • Opinion • Feature • Arts&Entertainment • Sports • 5
Sydnee Owens
Tunes help students tune in
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Contracting, Inc.
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While students might not need to play their music so loud, the music that is often viewed as a distraction, may actually be helping them grasp concepts quicker, stay focused better, and help them learn more efficiently. However, since iPods are banned this year at West, listening to music while working and learning is less likely to happen. “Music has an important role in our development and its value lies beyond entertainment,” said Dr. Deanna Hanson-Abromeit, assistant music therapy professor at the University of Missouri - Kansas City. For years music has been incorporated into educating children.
For example, learning the alphabet is by using the ABC song. From Sesame Street to Dora the Explorer, television programs for children use music to introduce and help them to understand new concepts. “Even current shows like “Glee” use music to help reinforce a concept, such as how to handle sensitive social situations and emotional expression,” said Hanson-Abromeit. Music can also benefit students in different ways other than reinforcing a topic or concept. Hanson-Abromeit said that music could be used to “increase or decrease energy.” If a class rolls in and is dead-beat tired, then learning and participating in the lesson is the last thing on their mind, using “an upbeat, popular song to create an energized environment” could wake
up the class. In situations like these, “music isn’t being used to facilitate the learning, but is used to prepare the students for learning.” Listening to music while doing in-class work helps according to Sophomore Shawnie Watkins. “It’s better than just sitting there in silence.” Teachers sometimes turn on their own music for the class to listen to while working on homework.
“About four of my teachers will play music during work time. Some more than others,” said Senior Allison Hataway. Junior Cody Fearon
said his art teacher turns on music for the class to listen to, “but that’s not always the music you like.” Music preference is a key factor too. “Individual preference is an important consideration when using music during study time,” said Hanson-Abromeit. “[Listening to the teacher’s music] helps, but because it’s not always what I like or prefer in music, it doesn’t have the same effect. But I admit it’s definitely better than nothing,” said Hataway. Allowing students to listen to the music of their preference has its ups and downs. According to Hanson-Abromeit, familiar music or music that one does not particularly like causes students to focus on the music, “rather than what the intended learning situation is, so it is not a positive influence on
your learning.” For example, students might be singing along to the song in their heads or thinking about how much they hate the song being played by the person next to them could be distracting. However, this is not the case for Watkins. “Music never distracts me, I always listen to music when I have to read a book.” However listening to the music of choice also has its benefits. “We have more positive associations and engagement with music that we like or that isn’t too complex,” said Hanson-Abromeit. Students said that listening to their iPods helped them tune out other distractions in the room and kept them focused. “It helped me tune out other distracting noises and it helped me avoid the temptation to talk so the only thing to focus on was the work in front of me,” said Hataway. Fearon agreed, “It helped me zone everything else out and I think it’s much harder [without music] because sometimes it makes you want to join into other conversations.” “It sounds totally weird, but when I listen to music and do my work, I get into it. It lets everything I think about go away,” said Watkins. According to Hanson-Abromeit, music “is a valuable contributor to education and should be integrated across the curriculum.”
6 • News • Opinion • Feature • Arts&Entertainment • Sports • Titan Scroll
Haley Roach West is “green” in the classrooms, but not in the cafeteria. “About 80% of what Americans throw away is recyclable, yet our recycling rate is only 28%,” according to dosomething.org. West is part of the 80% and not adding to the 28% when it comes to recycling in the cafeteria at this point. Recycling in the cafeteria would take a lot of effort, but no club or organization has stood up to take on
the task. Student Senate plans to bring up the idea of recycling in the cafeteria at the next meeting. “Since I have been involved in the last eight months with Student Senate it has never come up. I think it’s a great idea though,” said Math teacher and Student Senate sponsor James Asher. “It requires someone responsible to get containers and dump them everyday and no one has shown interest,” said Principal Dr. Cynthia Bateman.
If West decided to recycle in the cafeteria our poundage of recycling would go up and we would get more money for our school. Recycling in the Cafeteria would be a struggle because food may not get separated from
its container when it’s put into the recycling bin. With only three daytime janitors currently at West, having to clean up a recycling mess would be a challenge.
There may be hope for West to recycle in the cafeteria if the student body is inspired to by other schools.
Other schools in our district, such as North, do recycle in their cafeterias. North’s ECO club is in charge of recycling at their school. In their commons and throughout the hallways multiple trash cans dedicated for recycling are set up. “I believe it effects the school by letting all of our students know that recycling is important” said Dr. David Ulrich, Principal at North. According to dosomething.org, “Recycling one aluminum can saves enough energy to run a TV for three hours. In spite of this, Americans throw away enough aluminum to rebuild our entire commercial fleet of
airplanes every three months.” If West was willing to take on the challenge of recycling, West could be apart of lowering negative statistics and making a change.
To recycle or not to recycle
Buy one get one free concrete!
Let’s Go
Titans
1701 N.E. Douglas Street Lee’s Summit, MO 64034
Sept. 17, 2010 • News •Opinion• Feature • Arts&Entertainment • Sports • 7
Staff Editorial:
Hayley Brower Sydnee Owens The new Lee’s Summit North policy allows students to use their electronic devices during lunch. As a staff we think a similar policy here at West would be beneficial. Titan Scroll Editors recently went to check out the lunch scene at North. With their new cell phone policy, we expected the lunch atmosphere to be very different than what we are accustomed to here at West. We were sure to find iPod headphones blaring the latest Ke$ha song, and girls too busy texting the latest gossip to know what was being served for lunch. Instead, we found that the abil-ity to use electronic devices did not cause much commotion at lunch for North’s students at all. Even though students are allowed to be on their phones and listen to their music, most were not. We saw a few phones laying lifelessly on the ta-bles and only a few students sending texts. The majority of the students who were using electronic devices were talking on the phone.
One of the main reasons why allow-ing electronic devices during lunch does not result in complete chaos is probably because North’s staff does not make a big deal about it.
If North is successful with this new exception to the rule, then what’s the harm in West giving it a try? Just like West, North banned iP-
ods during class, however North can still use them at lunch. So by cracking down on the rules in the classroom, North gave their students some free-dom at lunch in exchange.
West could benefit in the same ways North does if the same policy is applied. One advantage students would
have is the ability to keep in contact with their parents during the school day. Students would be able to call their parents letting them know, for instance, they need a ride home from
practice or they forgot their math book at home and need it to be brought up to school. This policy would also be benefi-cial for parents because they would be able to send messages to the stu-dent’s phone, knowing it would be checked at lunch, instead of leav-ing messages in the front office. Another positive result would bring would be allowing students to check their Red Alert notifica-tions. This would give students more time to change their after-noon schedule if necessary. The privilege of using iPods at lunch. would allow students to have some down time and ease their minds from the stress of the school day. They would be free to listen to the music of their choice or relax and play games. Our staff believes that having a
similar policy here at West would be a positive change without causing any distractions.
Wikipedia defines a “sting operation” as “a deceptive operation designed to catch a person committing a crime.” Here’s how it happens: an undercover agent poses as a drug
dealer. They sell you the drugs, and you go about to do whatever you were going to do with the drugs. Then they arrest you. It’s a very simple and useful technique that helps law enforcement catch dealers, whom they flip to catch other dealers. Now let’s describe a similar situation. You go to the cafeteria, which is open during passing periods. You buy your snack, and walk happily to your next hour. When your teacher sees that you are eating in class, he writes you a green slip. Busted. Essentially it’s a sting operation for zebra cakes. If you can’t eat it,
then why would they sell it? It’s the same with the vending machines. The planner states that food is not to be sold in the hallways, or eaten anywhere besides the commons. This means that all fundraisers that sell food are breaking this rule. Administration must first approve anything that is to be sold at the school, and in doing so are allowing the sale of snacks in the hallways, which is contradictory to the planner. I am personally a fan of food. I like to eat, and have no problem with the school selling food during passing periods or in vending machines. I also
advocate the school organizations that sell foods/snacks for fundraising. It is a great way to raise money. But if you’re going to pay for it, you shouldn’t get in trouble for it. The rule needs to change. There are other ways to enforce keeping the school clean. It isn’t eating that’s the problem, it’s littering. The rule could be changed to say that anyone caught littering or not throwing away trash will be sent to the office. Either way, administration shouldn’t turn into DEA for mini donuts and fruit roll ups.
Well, if you ask me...
Guest Commentary By: Ryan Schafer
Cell phone dilemma
8 •News • Opinion • Feature • Arts&Entertainment • Sports • Titan Scroll
Eat Your Breakfast I don’t know about you, but when I first came back to school this year there was usu-ally only one
thing on my mind by third hour…FOOD. But why? I eat breakfast re-ligiously because it helps you jump-start your day and if I happen to for-get I know that I will be one grumpy person. So why am I always so dang hungry? As I started to think about this I realized that it must be because I am not eating the right type of food in the morning. And to my surprise I was right. I LOVE pancakes and waffles, so often times in the morn-ing I would pop my blueberry waffles into the toaster and eat them quickly on my way out the door to school. Or there would be those mornings where I would have time to run to JP coffee and order a muffin and a cup of java. But once again I would be sitting in third hour taking a quiz and what do you know, my classmate next to me
can hear my stomach making horrible, LOUD
noises while the class is dead silent! How embarrassing. So, for you fellow students who share my problem of not eating quite what you should in the morning (or those of you who eat nothing in the morning) I have some helpful tips for you! #1: Foods that make up the core of a healthy breakfast: Whole grains. Options include whole-grain rolls, bagels, whole-grain cereals, and low-fat bran muffins. Low-fat protein. Options include hard-boiled eggs, peanut butter, lean slices of meat and poultry, or fish, such as water-packed tuna or slices of salmon. Low-fat dairy. Options include skim milk, low-fat yogurt and low-fat cheeses, such as cottage and natural cheeses. Fruits and vegetables. Options include fresh fruits and vegetables or 100 percent juice beverages without added sugar. **All of the above foods will help you obtain that feeling of fullness
and keep that feeling longer! Try to choose one or two categories each morning to help you round out your meal! #2: Foods that can be great energy boosters after that long night of studying! Oatmeal. It’s great for boosting energy and is a great fiber-rich food, which keeps you fuller longer! Add antioxidant packed blueberries, or a variety of other healthy fruits such as apricots, bananas or apple slices. Omelets. They are high in protein, which will give you lots of energy in the morning hours. Add healthy veg-etables such as broccoli, spinach or red and green peppers to provide an-tioxidants! Turkey Bacon. It has a ton of protein and is lower in fat than regu-lar pork bacon. Pair your bacon with some eggs for a protein packed morn-ing! Smoothies. The key is to not add any unnecessary sugars or processed foods. Try a cup of fat free yogurt, throw in some blue berries for anti-oxidants and bananas for protein and
add a little honey, or play around and make your own recipe. Parfaits. Use the fat free yogurt as your base, then add your favorite berry combination (I recommend raspberries, blueberries, strawber-ries, and blackberries), and top off with some granola of your choice! Almonds. A handful of almonds along with one other healthy core food item makes for an effective breakfast! Almonds are packed with protein and contain virtually no car-bohydrates! #3: Do not forget to eat some kind of meal in the morning!!! I know you have all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and it really is true! It keeps you focused and energized through those busy days at school. A study in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association found that individuals who eat breakfast are less likely to be overweight-- and more likely to exer-cise than non-breakfast eaters! My advice to you…EAT BREAK-FAST.
Health Freak by Alex Katzfey
251 SWGreenwich Drive in the Raintree Shopping Center
Order your homecoming corsage and boutonnieres today. Fresh flowers uniquely made for your occasion!
Sept. 17, 2010 • News • Opinion • Feature • Arts&Entertainment • Sports •
350 11g 44g 1g Wendys Crispy Chicken Sandwhich Without Mayo
Grams of fatFood Calories Total Carbohydrates
Grams of Fiber
Taco Bell Two Fresco style Ranchero Chicken tacos
340 8g 44g 4g
Fast food junkies, here’s a better choice
Garrett Thornhill is weighing his choices of which drink is healthier. Photo by Nicole Conniff.
Wendy’s Mandarin Chicken Salad 265 7.5g 28.5g 3g
Quiznos Small Turkey Lite 334 6g 45g 3g
Ultimate GrilledChicken Sandwhich 370 8g 44g 2g
Small Honey Bourbon Chicken
359 6g 45g 3g
Restraunt
Wendy’s
Quiznos
Taco Bell
370Bean Burrito 10g 50g 8g
Student Discount Coupon
Whi
te T
ips
$25
Regu
lar
$23 Scrapbook Boutique
Lee’s Summit local scrapbook store where we have all the latest papers, tools and embellishments for your scrapbook-ing needs. We hold crops and classes.We carry many custom LSW titan papers and foil embossed albums
WWW. Scrapls.com
Did you know?The average serving size for burgers, fries and sodas has more than tripled since the 1970’s. Swapping “white carbs” for whole grains may lower risk for heart disease by 33 percent.
Healthy Eating tips: Ask for butter, gravies, and dressings on the side to control portions
Chose grilled chicken over fried or breaded
Dont super size; it increases fat, sugars, sodium, and calories
Chose marinara sauce rather than alfredo
Avoid buffets; you’ll eat more than needed so that you feel like you get your moneys worth
Information from the American Heart Association
10 •News • Opinion • Feature • Arts&Entertainment • Sports • Titan Scroll
This past summer, a group of West students were given the opportunity to travel Europe with the German Club. Students from all three Lee’s Summit high schools went on the trip, including Juniors Ingrid
Roettgen and Lauren Feekin, and Senior Sarah Bechtold. The three Titans flew into Frankfurt, Germany, and from there traveled to Berlin. From Berlin
a bus took the group to Dresden, then to Nuremberg, and to Munich, which was a favorite of Roettgen and Feekin. Roettgen said, “One of my favorite parts of the trip was in Munich; we climbed 503 stairs to the top of a cathedral where we could see the whole city. It was amazing.”
After Munich, the students proceeded to Rothenberg and Cologne, before arriving in Mainburg, where the girls stayed for the remaining 11 days of their 20 day trip. Once they were in Mainburg, the three were housed by a German family. Although the Titans were interested in learning more about German culture, the Germans seemed to be even more interested in learning about American culture. Feekin said, “The Germans love to speak English with you. They all ask if we know famous Americans. I had a couple people ask me if I knew Justin Bieber. They love American pop-culture.” Even though the Germans wanted to soak in everything they could about American society, they did take time to show the West students a bit
of their homeland. Roettgen said, “Something else really cool we got to do was go to what’s called a public viewing. It’s basically when a bunch of Germans
go to what is essentially a bar and watch the World Cup. They were all singing and stuff and it was really fun.” This trip was put together through a foreign exchange program. German high school students will be coming to West this October and April. West students will travel to Germany again in the summer of 2012. Feekin, Roettgen, and Bechtold weren’t the only Titans in Europe; history teacher Matt Turner took a trip of his own. Turner, along with Seniors Lauren Culbertson, Madison King, Hannah Klanke, Morgan Staab, Tyler Zentz,
and Sophomore Tyler Cox took a self-organized trip to Greece and Italy. The group started their trip in Athens then explored parts Greece before taking an overnight cruise to Italy. While in Italy, they visited Rome, Sorrento, and Pompei. Turner said, “Probably my favorite experience from the trip was just standing in the Coliseum in Rome. It was incredible.” Turner is planning on taking another group of students next summer to Spain and Italy. The trip is not school-sponsored and is organized by Turner.
Andy Evans
Titans venture across the world
Junior Lauren Feekin visited a Catholic church in Dresden, Germany. Photo courtesy of Lauren Feekin
Juniors Ingrid Roettgen and Lauren Feekin and Senior Sarah Bechtold enjoying spending time with old and new friends. Photo courtesy of Lauren Feekin
Sept. 17, 2010 • News • Opinion •Feature• Arts&Entertainment • Sports • 11
Family Care at Arbor Walk
(816) 537-6232FamilyCareArborWalk.com
Teacher Feature: Introducing Brian Davis This year West has been lucky to gain Brian Davis as an English teacher. Davis was a teacher at Grain Valley High School for eleven years. He was then planning to move to Chicago and resigned from his job, but when plans fell through he ended up at West. “Wow! I am so lucky. What a great
building, I hope the kids are cool.” Were Davis’ initial thoughts on com-ing to West. So far, Davis has really enjoyed the students at West. “It’s been really cool being in the hallway and having kids come up and say ‘hey, we’re glad you’re here,’” said Davis. A downside to Davis’s new job at West, is the daily 80 mile drive to school. “It is far, but it gives me time to focus on the way in the morning and time to decompress on the way home,” said Davis. Davis is very passionate about his work; he said he cannot imagine do-ing anything else. Davis said his ability to get along with others is what makes him good at his job. He said, like his dad, he has “never known a stranger.” Davis said in some ways he has al-ways wanted to be a teacher because he has always been a reader. Davis
said he wants to inspire others to read. “I try to talk about cool things I've read and how it may have impacted my life. I also try to make connec-tions to real-life, and show that read-ing is something we all do every day,” said Davis. In his spare time, Davis said he en-joys reading poetry. He said he likes authors such as Walt Whitman, Tom Robbins, and E.E. Cummings. He also said he spends time read-ing books about things like brain re-search in order to improve himself as a teacher. He said another one of his favorite genres is science fiction. Along with reading, Davis said he also enjoys writing. He writes poetry and occasionally music lyrics. “I write poetry usually spoken word kind of stuff,” said Davis. Davis said he is similar to Taylor Mali, an American slam poet, in his poetry. Music is a passion for Davis. Davis
plays upright and electric base. Once a month Davis plays all of the great swing music from the ‘30s and ‘40s with a thirteen piece band. Davis has played with The Joe Walker Band for ten years and is the young-est member. He also plays with the Alan Voss Quartet. He recently did a charity gig for Midwest Foster Care, and does several events for them throughout the year. Davis is also a part of a band called Heidi Mikhali and the Justice League. Heidi Mikhali and the Justice League are more jazz but also do R&B and soul. Davis said he also enjoys cooking. “I love to cook, I am really good and have a lot of sharp knives,” said Da-vis. As a new teacher, Davis is keeping students entertained with his silly traditions, like wearing a kilt every Friday.
Davis helps to inspire students in his classroom. Photo by Samantha Conrad.
Haley Roach
A Survival Guide to a Successful Homecoming
Friday
Saturday
“Cause we gon’ rock thisWe gon’ go all night. We gon’ light it up,
Like it’s Dynamite!”
C L U B
1:00 --- Football Game vs. Winnetonka!3:00 --- Go Home & Shower.3:30 --- Girls, Get your Hair Done & Get Ready.4:00 --- Boys, Get Dressed & Look Sharp with your Tied Ties!5:30 --- Pictures!!!6:30 --- Dinner at your Favorite Restaurant8:00 --- Homecoming Dance!
Thursday
Wednesday
Tuesday
Monday Pajama Day
Color Catastrophe
TV Show Day
Superhero DayTitan Wear
“We changed the game to a Saturday this year to keep ahold of our tradi-tion. Our Friday night tradition includes feed-
ing the kids, having quiet time, and then to the
game. With the parade on the Friday, it throws off the entire tradition.” – Royce Boehm, Head Varsity Football Coach
Tip #1: Be a spirited Titan!Tip #2: Follow the Perfect Schedule
How to tie a tie!
step 1 step 2 step 3 step 4 step 5 step 6Put the tie around your neck. Make
sure the thick part is longer than the thin
part!
Place the thick part of the tie on top of the thin part. The
tie should make an “x”.
Wrap the thick-er piece of the tie all the way
around the thinner piece.
Take the thicker piece and pull it up through the
top of the tie. Make sure you go from the
bottom.
Take the thick-er part of the tie and pull it down through the loop you made in the step before.
Pull the thick part all the
way through, nice and
tight! Now you’ll look
sharp for the dance!
Tip #3: Look Sharp for Homecoming ---
“I’m excited for the dance because Steve is a cool guy. It’ll be more like a club, not just another stu-pid school dance. I’m also excited to look sharp with my good looking date.” -Tyler Rassmusen, 12
Sept. 17, 2010 • News • Opinion • Feature • Arts&Entertainment • Sports • 13
“The dance will have more of a club feel. There will be
more lighting, a text & request, shadow screens, and music
videos.” – James Asher, Student Senate Coordinator
2010
Tip #4: Get Excited!!!
12• News • Opinion •Feature• Arts&Entertainment • Sports • Titan Scroll
14 • News • Opinion • Feature • Arts&Entertainment • Sports • Titan Scroll
Sept. 17, 2010 • News • Opinion • Feature • Arts&Entertainment•Sports• 15
IMDB Synopsis: While still out to destroy the evil
Umbrella Corporation, Alice joins a group of survivors who want to relocate to the mysterious but supposedly unharmed safe haven known only as Arcadia.
Predictions from students: Senior Tyler Kirn: “I predicted it would be pretty cool, I was stoked.“Junior Cassie Frear: “I predicted it would just be a cool scary movie to see in 3D.”
Strengths of the movie: Kirn: “I liked the slow motion gun sling in 3D the most.“ Frear: “I could follow the story line without having to see the other movies and I liked the 3D effect.“
Recommendations:Kirn: “I would recommend
this to a friend any day.“Frear: “I really liked it for a thriller movie, I would recommend it.”
W h a t the critics said: “ T h e action i s easier t o r e a d t h a n i n most films of the genre, and therefore m o r e enjoyable. Anderson m a k e s particular use of sets and locations to wring out more bang for the stereoscopic buck.” - Michael Ordoña, Los Angeles Times.
“Like a grease-laden fast-food meal, the fourth and highest-budgeted installment in the videogame-based tale of bio warfare gone amuck is slick, tasty, gimmick-laden and literally in-your-face”- Luke Y. Thompson, E! Online.
First weekend box office: $26,650,264 boxofficemojo.com
IMDB Synopsis: A romantic comedy centered on a guy (Justin Long) and a gal (Drew Berrymore) who try to keep their love
alive as they shuttle back and forth between New York and San Francisco to see one another. Rated R
Predictions from students: Junior Nick Thorsen: “I expected it to just be a funny movie.”Senior Chelsey Phoebus “My friend’s really wanted me to go see it. So I didn’t really know what to expect.”
Strengths of movie: Thorsen: “It kinda was a
funny movie about a long distance relationship. But it’s also a chick flick, which I didn’t know.”Phoebus: “Definitely worth going to see again. It had a lot of dry humor and I find dry humor really funny.”
Weaknesses of movie: Phoebus: “Really the bad
part is the cussing since it’s rated R, it sometimes overtakes the movie.”
R e c o m m e n d a t i o n s : Thorsen: “I recommend it
because it’s a good comedy. It was very comical.”Phoebus: “If you’re looking for a funny movie, definitely go see it.”
What the critics said: “Going the Distance is, in
a way, a remarkable film: It’s hard to imagine any romantic comedy going wrong in so many different ways.”-Kirk Honeycutt, The Hollywood Reporter
“If it is at times a bit indie-by-numbers without the courage of all its convictions, this is a grittier, saltier than usual rom-com populated with laughs, smarts and a couple you can root for.” -Ian Freer, Empire
“A bicoastal comedy with a bit of a bipolar disorder.”-Justin Chang, VarietyAll from mahalo.com
First weekend box office: $6,884,964...
boxofficemojo.com
Resident Evil:After Life
Going The Distance
http://going-the-distance.warnerbros.com/
Movie match up
http://www.residentevil-movie.com/
16 • News • Opinion • Feature•Arts&Entertainment• Sports • Titan Scroll
When “Mockingjay,” the third and final book in “The Hunger Games” trilogy, was released in August, the odds were in everyone’s favor. Of course, by the end of the book, it could be argued whether the odds were in our favor or not. (By the way, the phrase “May the odds be ever in your favor!” is a common saying in the trilogy “The Hunger Games.”) “The Hunger Games” is the first book in the trilogy, “Catching Fire” the second. If you have been living under a rock, here’s the premise to “Mockingjay”: North America is gone and in it’s place is Panem, a country that consists of 12 districts and one central government (dictatorship!). As punishment for the Dark Days (when the districts rebelled against the Capitol and lost) each district has to send one boy and one girl to compete in an arena of the Capitol’s
creation for a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year old Katniss Everdeen is forced to c o m p e t e along with her district p a r t n e r P e e t a M e l l a r k and at some point, acc i d e n t l y b e c o m e s the face of the new r e b e l l i o n . The story t h e n c o n t i n u e s in “Catching Fire.” Once you have crawled out from under your rock and read the first two, pick up “Mockingjay.” But be prepared, dear friends, to stay up in the deep recesses of the
night to finish the book. Be prepared to have the urge to fling the book across the room in frustration.
But you won’t because you’re hands will be GLUED to the book and your eyes TRAINED on the page. One thing that “Mockingjay” lacked and the other two were in
constant supply of was the romance scenes between Katniss and Peeta. For reasons explained in the books,
Katniss has to “play up the romance” causing her to act like an annoying, flirtatious Barbie version of her normal “hunt to stay alive attitude” self. Those scenes occurred in “The Hunger Games” and “Catching Fire,” but in “Mockingjay” it’s just Katniss and her tough attitude. Because of the lack of romance, readers can focus more on the rebellion and the action in the story. “Mockingjay” has more of a depressing feel to the whole story, where readers can notice Katniss slowly deteriorating
as the pressure of being the rebels ‘mockingjay’ takes effect. The book ends with a lot of closure, but will most likely leave readers feeling empty and asking the question, “why?”
Mockingjay: the final bookKatey Stoetzel
Photo by Ariel Thompson
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Sept. 17, 2010 • News • Opinion • Feature•Arts&Entertainment• Sports • 17
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School Pictures “The Town” and “Easy A” open in theaters
Theater parents’ meetingFCCLA meetingGlee premieres
Early ReleaseMake up picturesHomecoming football game- 1:00 pmHomecoming dance- 7:00pm
6 week grading period ends
LSW group pictures
LSW debate tournament
Upcoming Titan Events:October 2010
District choir auditionsVampire Weekend at Starlight
Senior class meeting: cap n gown
“It’s Kinda a Funny Story” opens in theaters
LSW test day
Senior announcements and cap n gown orders at lunchFall choir concert
No school
Early release
Start Red Ribbon weekTaylor Swift’s new cd releases
LSW orchestra concert
ACT testState choir auditions
No schoolParanormal Activity 2 shows in theaters
Athletic booster club meetingCollege night
NHS 6:55 am in lecture hall
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18 • News • Opinion • Feature • Arts&Entertainment • Sports • Titan Scroll
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Sept. 17, 2010 • News • Opinion • Feature • Arts&Entertainment • Sports• 19
Power Balance Technology is said to improve an athlete’s strength, endurance, flexibility, and balance. NBA Basketball stars such as Shaquille O’Neill, Lamar Odem, Trevor Ariza, and Paul Pierce swear by it. NFL quarterbacks Sam Bradford and Colt McCoy wear them as well. But do the bracelets, bands, and pendants really do what they claim? According to Powerbalance.com, Power Balance Technology “is based on the idea of optimizing the body’s natural energy flow.” It all has to do with the human body’s natural electric balance. The low frequency transmitted by the Mylar discs in Power Balance bands promotes the athlete’s performance. Randy Smith, Director of Accounting at GSI Sports, distributes Power Balance bands. He has been
wearing a Power Balance band for over a year now. “I used to have bad shoulder problems, and at one point it got so bad that I was going to the chiropractor two times a week. When I started wearing a Power Band, the pain was just gone,” said Smith. Smith enjoys running and golfing much more since he discovered the “power” of Power Balance Technology. At GSI Sports, Smith is given the opportunity to show other people the bands. “I’ve given them to a lot of clients and friends, because they worked for me, so why not let them try it?” asked Smith. The bands have made their way into the halls at LSW as well. Sophomore Jaycie Johnson has been wearing her Power Balance bracelet for over two years now. “At first I didn’t really think it did anything until I saw a demonstration of how they worked. Now I think that they do make a
difference in my game.” Johnson played for the Varsity soccer team at LSW last school year as a freshman. However, there is another side to the bands that must be presented. Are the bands really having a significant physical effect or are the bands working simply because people “believe” that they’re going to? Just like in the children’s story; the little train who said “I think I can” to get to the top of the hill, many people who wear the bands, like Smith, think that some of the band’s ability to drastically alter an athlete’s performance comes from their mind.
“Is the difference mental? I can’t tell you. All I can tell you is from my personal experience, and the experience of people I’ve sold them to, is that a majority of them, as well as myself, swear by them,” said Smith.
Are Power Balance Bands Really Helpful?Andy Evans
Watching the opening series of the Chiefs game on Monday Night
Football I realized what a great impact the noise of the fans have on the opposing team. With that in mind, I would like to give a fat shout-out to our Titan “Twelfth Man.” Looking back on the opening game against Ray-Pec, I truly believe that the Twelfth Man helped out on the victory. Lead by Senior Jake Admire who is assisted by Juniors Hank Mendenhall, Ryan Fenwick and Cole Plumlee, the Twelfth Man is no joke. They come into battle painted up,
with their voices ready to be lost. Not only is it the Titan Twelfth MAN, but I hear the ladies are bringing it to the table too. Now some girls are dressing to a different theme for a few of the games. Not only does this apply to football, but there is the Titan Seventh Man, for volleyball. Last time the squad came out to the volleyball game at the MOKAN Tournament, they might have gotten a little bit too rowdy. No one knows what to expect of this “family” (as they call themselves).
They are always coming up with new ideas and chants. What I would really like to say to this Titan Twelfth Man and the rest of the supportive fans is a giant thank you. Not only do you get us ready and pumped for the game you change the game. You make it a mistake for any team to try to make an effort to put up a fight. No one could possibly think about coming into our house with our amazing fans and even think about winning.
Ben Poeschl
Ben’s Backyard: Titan Twelfth Man
20 • News • Opinion • Feature • Arts&Entertainment • Sports • Titan Scroll
Fall Sports Q&A
Alec JacksonSenior Boys Swimmer
Q:. How does it feel to start your last year of swimming for LSW?A: It is pretty sad that it is my final season as a LSW swimmer, I have had a lot of
great times with the guys and Coach Gibler. It will be tough moving on.Q: What is your team’s biggest threat against other teams this season?
A: Our biggest threat is probably Park Hill High since they are in our conference and we are pretty evenly matched. They have good guys but so do we. We have depth even past our state guys especially Ryan Schafer, Connor Allwood and
several other members of our team.Q: What are your goals this year as a senior? State?
A: My personal goals include; making top eight in state which is All State in my personal events, and also help get our relay teams into the top eight; this is prob-
ably the biggest goal that I have. Also it would be really nice to win conference senior year.
Chelsey PhoebusSenior Girls Cross Country runner
Q: After all of your years of running and winning State championships as a result of your hard work, do you think
there is more pressure this year to reach that same goal?
A: Yes! There is pressure of course to do better than I have before. Doing
well this year will help decide on what college I attend next year!
Q: I hear you have some stand out freshman this year, how does that ef-
fect the team’s chemistry?A: Everyone is bonding well. We’re a pretty easy group to get along with.
It helps that we hang out a lot and do pasta parties before big meets!
Q: Running in spandex, is this com-fortable? Do they help you to run
faster?A: They are more of a goofy thing that we do in practice to have fun! We have
spandex Wednesdays!
Demarcus EdwardsSenior Boys Football playerQ: Can you give me one word to describe Titan football?A: FamilyQ: What NFL player do you most consider yourself to be most like? Why?A: Deion Sanders, he plays the same position as me and same number, and he’s someone I look up too.Q: What are some of your thoughts on the big Satur-day Homecoming game? Will it have any effect on the team?A: I think its going to be a fun game, hopefully the fans still come out and sup-port us. I don’t think it will have much of an effect at all, we’re taking it as a nor-mal game.. our coaches are good at keeping us focused and prepared!
Taylor JosephSenior Girls Tennis playerQ: Who is responsible for putting up the phrases on the side of the tennis courts?A: One of our dads (Ed Andres) on the team thinks of a ‘phrase’ and puts it up, usually along with our record.Q: What do you hope will happen this year so that the team can have a great season?A: The whole team all wants to accomplish a Conference win & 1st at Districts. Then we would all love to go to State as a team. If not, send as many players as possible!Q: How are the new tennis courts? Did the construction effect practices and/or any matches?A: We haven’t actually been able to play on them yet, they should be done in the upcom-ing week. Since we haven’t had courts though we have had to practice every single day after North’s tennis team on their courts. Our home matches have also been scheduled to play at North as well. But the whole team is really excited to finally get on our new courts!
Sept. 17, 2010 • News • Opinion • Feature • Arts&Entertainment•Sports• 21
Corben GaileySenior Boys Soccer player
Q: How does the new turf field effect the speed of the game if at all? Positively or Negatively?A: The turf makes a huge difference in the speed of the game. The ball moves so much faster on the turf which
means players have to be faster and have much better touches on the ball. I would say the turf has a positive impact on the game because every bounce is true and every pass is consistent because it’s not being played on an uneven,
regular grass field. Q: The team has new jerseys this year, was there any certain inspiration for the new design?
A: I am not sure, maybe Croatia’s nation jerseys.Q: What will be the team’s greatest advantage this year over other teams?
A: Our speed will be our best advantage this year. We have extremely fast players all the way through our line-up so we can run balls down faster than most teams and we can play more through balls.
Brittany KallenbergerJunior Girls gymnast
Q: The happenings of the gymnastics team is often overlooked or unnoticed, why do you think this is?A: I think that is because it is an uncommon sport. We also don’t compete against anyone in Missouri. But it does bother many of us because it is a very tough sport that should be recognized.
Q: How many girls are on the team this year? I know there are often only a few that par-ticipate in this hard sport. A: There are five newcomers this year. We only have 12 girls on the team total. Q: What are your goals for this upcoming season? A: Well since all of the rules have changed this year to be more like competitive gym-nastics we will have to learn new routines and new skills. The sport also has new require-ments that are going to make it harder.
Morgan MaddoxGirls golfer
Q: How is the team looking? Do we have a solid group of girls?
A: Yes! This year is looking to be our best chance to go to state as a team. We have very good chemistry.
Q: Unfortunately Coach Rohlfing retired last year, but I hear that Coach Meyer is the new coach! How is he dif-
ferent compared to Rohlfing?A: Meyer instills a competitive edge to the team that we didn’t have as much of last year. Coach Rohlfing always
made sure that we were enjoying the game. Q: What do you like most about playing a sport with
flexible times and locations?A: It is a lot easier to work on your own personal game. I often practice on weekends on my own or with a partner.
Katie DouglasSenior Girls Volleyball player
Q: What do you think will be the team’s greatest obstacle this season?A: Our greatest obstacle will be after conference when we compete in Dis-tricts because of the new teams in our district. It will be a lot tougher than usual to go on to Sectionals.Q: What are some of the team’s strengths during tough matches?A: During close matches our team has been very good about not letting the pressure get to us. We stay calm, we come together more; the competition really brings out our best.Q: Do you have any certain goals this year to end your final season as best as you can?A: Since the team is mainly seniors we all want to get back to state like we did during our Freshman and Sophomore years! It would be awe-some if we could do it all together.
Will DoeringSenior Boys Cross Country runner
Q: What are your predictions for this season?A: We definitely want to qualify for State as a team! Once we accomplish that goal we hope to compete our best at that level.Q: What motivates you to keep run-ning in a race once you have become exhausted?A: Music. I like to think of it while I run, usually some head banging music. It helps to keep me pumped.Q: Are there any special rituals that the team does before important meets?A: As a group there is not. But by myself I do pray, I get a really good warm-up in, and I have to high jump before the gun! It helps me get loose and ready!
22• News • Opinion • Feature • Arts&Entertainment • Sports • Titan Scroll
For most athletes at West, playing a sport means making a pass or scor-ing a goal. But for Senior Jean Madi-son, it’s a lifestyle. Every year the National Interscholastic Coaches Association (NISCA) takes all of the scores from six State meets and finds the top sixteen swimmers. Madison happened to be one of them. “I was really caught off guard be-cause I didn’t think I did that great at State,” said Madison. “But I’m really honored and happy that I did win it.” Winning this award didn’t come by slacking off in practice. It took a lot of hard work. “Jean has dedicated years of her free time to excel in swimming,” said Coach Colleen Gibler. “When she is in the pool she puts out all of her en-
ergy and intensity into her workout. In no way is she a time waster,” Gibler added. “I practice everyday in the afternoon and I also swim mornings three times a
week,” said Madison. “I want to do better so I can be better.” Madison keeps up a good work ethic to ob-
tain her success. “Jean has a wonderful ability to focus and work hard. When she’s given a set, she figures out what she needs to do and just does it,” said Gibler. For Madison, high school swimming is really just a break from the workouts she swims in Elite, a competitive swim team that she swims for. “I think high school is a great place for Jean to relax and reap the rewards for her hard work,” said Gibler. “It’s a place where she can really en-joy the sport.” With how things are going now, Madison seems to have a bright future ahead of her. “I plan to swim in college for Florida Inter-national University and want to study to either be a physical therapist or a physical education teacher,” said Madison. “Although I would like to qualify for college olympic, it’s really hard to do that.” “I think Jean can go as far as she wants in swimming as long as she continues the way she is now,” said Gibler. “Some people are all talk. Jean doesn’t talk, she just does it.”
Swimmer Jean Madison Wins Prestigous Award
Jean Madison was very honored and happy that she won the award and is hoping it leads her to a future of swimming at Florida International University, studying physical therapy or physical education. Photo by Elisa Cox.
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Former Lee’s Summit West Titan Ryan Hafner has been making news as he was drafted in the 17th round of the MLB draft, and elected to sign rather than attend college at the University of Missouri State. Ryan Hafner had planned to play baseball and further his education at Missouri State University, but after being drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates and some negotiations he elected to play baseball for a living. “I chose to skip out (on) college and sign with Pittsburgh, because my dream has always been to play professional baseball and going straight out of high school gets me started on the route sooner.” As far as negotiations go Hafner knew that if he didn’t get offered the amount of money he wanted he could always go to college and then sign at a later date. “I had been talking with them (The Pittsburgh Pirates organization) a few times a week all
summer, but no offer had been made. Then around the beginning of August they came at me with an offer, but it was significantly lower than the
amount I had in mind. So I told them if that was all they could do then I would be attending college. Then I sat for a few days without hearing from
them and then they gave me a call and bumped that offer up to the final amount I received.” That final amount was an offer of $1,100 a month, and a $450,000 signing bonus to top it all off. But money wasn’t the only thing that factored in to Hafner’s final decision. “Pretty much the decision was based on what was best for
me and my family. Throughout the whole negotiation period I set a few criteria: was this worth missing out on the college experience? Could I make more after 3 years of college by improving in college? So I kept that in mind the whole time and in the end it came down to me just wanting to be a professional ball player and living out my dream.” And that’s exactly what he’s doing now that he’s in the Gulf Coast Rookie League in Bradenton, Florida. “My experiences so far have been amazing. I flew to Pittsburgh, did my physical; then went to dinner with the head guys, and watched the game. Then they flew me to Florida. I’ve gotten close with a lot of the guys already and I was only there for 3 weeks. We practice 7 days a week and play games 6 days a week. Sundays we just practice, we start around 7:45 each day and are done by 3:00. It’s a pretty relaxed environment.” “I definitely made the right decision. I have no regrets what so ever. My dream has always been to play professional baseball and this is the fastest way to reach that dream. College would have been fun but nothing can compare to playing baseball and getting paid to do it. It’s a dream come true.” The season ended Aug. 28 for Hafner, but his instructional league starts next week.
The Road to the ShowA.C. Long
2010 Titan graduate Ryan Hafner, opted to sign for the Pittsburgh Pirates to play professional baseball, instead of going to college at Missouri State. Photo courtesy of Ryan Hafner.
Sept. 17, 2010 • News • Opinion • Feature • Arts&Entertainment • Sports • 24
