AfloodoflivelymusicseepsoutoftheS-wing, a usually quiet corner of campus. Following the trailof the livelymelodytingedwithHispanicflavor,onefindsS-8rumbling. The floor shakes and the roomtremblesasstudentspartnerupinaflurryofquickmovementsthatarereminiscentofaforgottenageofdance. Asadancerthrowshispartnertooforce-fully,DianaOrdaz,danceinstructor,rushestothesideofthecoupleandplayfullyrep-rimandsthesmirkingmale.“Iknowyou’restrongbutwoah,woah!” Ritmo Caliente (“hot rhythm” in Span-ish) isoneof themanyactivitiesoperatedbyElConcilio in theKing’sCourtAfter-school Program. Describing themselves asa dance group that specializes in differenttraditions from reggaeton and cumbia tofolklórico andbachata,Ordaz and the stu-dentsareadamantinreversingthepopularbeliefthattheyarelimitedtooneparticularstyle.“Wedon’tjustdosalsa.” The group is led by sibling instructors,Diana and Rafael Ordaz, who were hiredbytheKing’sCourttoteachculturaldancesto interested students. Meanwhile, acrosscampus, studentsare liningup in frontofL-3tosign-infortheKing’sCourt. AngelJimenez,aprogram d i r e c t o rfrom El Concilio, makes his rounds ob-serving various activities and emphasizesthe importance of student involvement.“Students came up with the name ‘King’sCourt,’” Jimenez said.“Wedidn’twant tojustcallit‘after-schoolprogram.’” El Concilio, a non-profit organizationoriginallyfoundedtobenefittheHispaniccommunity,partneredwithStocktonUni-fiedSchoolDistricttocreateextracurricularpursuitsforstudentsatStagg.AccordingtoJimenez,itstrives“toprovidestudentswithacademicsupportandculturalenrichment”and have been doing so for two years oncampusatStagg. Through funding fromEl Concilio and othergrants, the King’s Courtis determined to remainhere forat least fouryears.“Iwould love for thispro-gram to continue becauseit’s something people canenjoy instead of sitting athome being bored,” Mar-icelaMendoza,junior,said. Once students receivea stamp on their hand atL-3, they are able to at-tend any course they wantweekly from 2:30 p.m. to6:00 p.m. and 12:30 p.m.

to6:00p.m.onminimumdays.“Ilike(theKing’sCourt)becauseithelpsusstayoffthestreetsfromgangs,fights,andthingswe’renotsupposedtobedoing,”ReubenSuchil,senior,said. For males desiring moral development,El Concilio’s oldest and first program oncampus, El Joven Noble (“Noble YoungMan”), under Sean Barras, teaches youngmentolivehonorably. Intherealmofthevisualandperform-ingarts,theKing’sCourthasaculturallit-eratureclass,agospelchoir,andanartclasstaught by retired Franklin teacher RaoulMora. Jimenez andhis staff reasoned that“we have a lot of taggers (on campus) sowhy don’t we direct that focus? Let’s helpthem develop that into art.” Senior EricaHeyne enjoys studying design fundamen-tals likeshadingandcontouringinMora’sclass.“Theclasshelpsbettermyartandal-lowsmetograduateontime.” TheKing’sCourtoperatesAPEX,apro-gramforcreditrecovery,inthelibraryandtutoringindifferentsubjects.Infact,mostofthecoursesprovidedbytheKing’sCourt,exceptforRitmo Calienteandgospelchoir,canbeusedasaseventhperiodclassforgar-neringelectivecredit.Studentsmerelyhavetoregisterwiththeircounselorstodoso. Ashetravelsacrosscampusafterschool,Jimenezgreetsstudentsandhandsoutbuspassesandsnacks.HesaysthatpartoftheKing’sCourt’spurposeistoservestrugglingstudentsandsothey’reworkingonprepar-ingChristmasfoodbasketsforthem.Inor-dertoallowstudentstofeelcomfortable,alltheKing’sCourtstaffmembersaresociable.Freshman Edward Heitman sees how theKing’sCourtstaffhelpsstudentswithsocialissues. “If you’re stuck, they can help youwithproblems.” “I think it helps that staff talk to stu-dents,”Jimenezsaid.“It’sreallythekeytoourprogram.” Jimenezencouragesanyoneto participate in their activities and thatstudentsshould“takeownershipofthepro-gramandgiveusideas.”

the Stagg LineHome of tHe Delta Kings

12.10.10VOL. 54 NO. 4ON THE WEB

staggonline.netLunch cutting video

ON THE BLOGstaggline.blogspot.com

CLEARLY CLAIRE examines nostalgia and how Pixar takes advan-tage of it. CLEAR AND PRES-ENT DAMON explores the history of Thanks-giving and what the holiday season really means. INSIDE THE ISSUEClub Holiday Projects

the Stagg Line

NSPA Hall of Fame newspaper

Amos Alonzo Stagg High School

1621 Brookside Rd.Stockton, Calif. 95207

NEWS IN BRIEF

AntigoneThe Advanced Drama class will be presenting “Antigone” tonight at 7 p.m. in the theatre. Free Admission for all who attend.

ScholarshipsThe local scholarship package will be due on Jan. 15. Fill one out on the SUSD website or see Susan Suarez in the Career Center for more information.

College WorkshopThere will be a financial aid workshop on Jan. 12 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Students who attend will be entered in a $1000 scholarship. Go to the Career Center for more information.

CosmetologyThere will be a cos-motology program presentation for juniors and seniors on Jan. 11 during third period. Sign up in the Career Center.

Winter FormalWinter Formal will take place on Jan. 29 in Lodi. The price will be $25 for singles and $50 for couples. ASB will be selling tickets in Student Activities in January.

This all started with National FrenchWeek, then progressed to a movie night.Soon,ideasbegantoburst,andtheFrenchNationalHonorsSocietybegantoblossominto something more, something that has

slowly begun to touch thehearts of somemembersandtroops. ProjectEnvoyerwasasuccess,accordingtotheFrenchNationalHonorsSociety.Theclub got the idea to collect miscellaneousgoodsandletterstosendoverseastotroops.TheycollaboratedwithPactofPridewhichisanorganizationthatBeckyMizenerstart-

ed after the loss of her son Jesse MizeneroverseasonJan.1,2004. “It’sagoodthingbecauseIlikehelpingandsupportingourtroops,”saidjuniorSar-ahMcLaughlin. “Ididn’tknowIwasgo-ingtomakesuchachange,”said freshman Thuy Tran.“I enjoyed helping soldiersand making an impact onthem.” Mizenerallowspeopletoregister their family mem-bers and friends for theprogram.Allyouhavetodois go to www.packedwith-pride.comandclick“addasoldier”. This allows somepersonal connection withoneoftheclubmembers. “I heard stories of sol-diers, itpersonally touchedme,” said senior JosequeenLee. “Some of my familyandfriendsareoverseasandIwasabletogetthemregis-teredfortheprogram.” NowLeeissurethatherlovedoneswillreceivesomeof the care packages thattheyhaveputtogether. Soafterthisproject,theclubdecidedtostartanotherprojectclosertohome.Theydecided they were going to be painting amuralinoneoftheschoolhallways. “Itisourfirstyear,”McLaughlinsaid.“Itisourwayofleavingourmarkandtohope-

fullyencourageotherpeopletojoin.” The mural is going to be around thearchwaysofoneofthedoors.Itisgoingtobe a triumphal archBasedon theArcDe

Triomphe, a famous land-mark in Paris. Comple-mentingtheArcisgoingtobeFleurDeLis,whichisasymbol associated with theFrenchMonarchy.Totopitalloff,itisgoingtohavetheFrenchFlagthatconsistsofthreestripeswhichareblue,white,andred.Thisisamu-ral representing the FrenchNational Honors Society,and it will be left in markofthemostactiveyearasaclub. But as of right now, theclub iswaitingonapprovalto paint from the painter’sunion, and acceptance ofthe design from PrincipalBillParks. “I think it will be a funproject to do,” said fresh-man Lucy Phovisay. Shealso said it is fun being inthe club with upperclass-

men.Someof the freshmenareexcitedtopaintamuraltoseethroughouttherestoftheirhigh school years, and for seniors, itwillbeashadowleftbehind. “It’s going to help us get close and tohave fun,”Lee said. “It’s also something IcanleavebehindafterIgraduate.”

French Honors Society gives back to soldiers fighting overseas

Junior Amy Kitchens and her freshman sister Michelle organize supplies to be given as care packages to troops overseas, along with Lauina Cha, junior. Each box contains a letter and various goods.

photo by Erica Trevino

I didn’t know I was going to make such a change. I enjoyed help-ing soldiers and making an impact on them.”

Thuy TranFRESHMAN

“Nicole Lawrence

Art, autos, and all that jazzEl Concilio offers after-school classes for credit recovery

Seniors and siblings Gilberto and Mariela Camacho participate in El Concilio’s Ritmo Caliente (“hot rhythm” in Spanish), a dance class which teaches students different forms of Hispanic cultured dances, from reggaeton and cumbia to folklórico and bachata. Left, Erica Heyne, senior, retakes an art class offered after school by El Concilio to catch up on her credits.

photos by Erica Trevino

Jeremy Dela Cruz

Politics or not, every student wants to know the provoca-tive side of things. They

may be oblivious or even apathet-ic to the world of politics, but the tradition breaking, gasp provok-ing, “what the hell?” propositions such as Prop 8 and Prop 19 will grab their attention. The opposition to California’s amendment to outlaw same sex marriage, Prop 8, was ev-erywhere. MySpace pictures of vandalized supporter signs of the proposition were common. Dur-ing the 2008 campaign, while Prop 8 was up in the air, it wasn’t hard to hear someone randomly saying “No on Prop 8!” But it was hard to hear someone debating against that statement. The only support seems to be coming from the signs stuck into the clean cut lawns. Many thought Prop 8 would easily go down the drain as the younger the generation, the easier it seems to break a tradi-tion. Prop 8 passed.Prop 19, the legalization of mari-juana, definitely grabbed atten-tion. It’s not hard to admit that a fair percentage of teens do or

can get their hands on the herb. A money maker. A cool down. A party. To that percentage of teens, marijuana takes the place of at least one or even all three. While lounging around Empire Theater, a totally laid back environment, a person can hear marijuana as a topic amongst a group of college students. Eventually, the proposition would come up; support for Prop 19 was strong. Prop 19 failed. Is it hard to believe these results? Yes, but only from those who don’t fully understand why.

Prop 8 opponents could have defeated the same sex marriage initiative and Prop 19 had more than enough support to be passed, and each mass was com-ing from the younger generations So what went wrong? They didn’t vote. Students who are frustrated with the outcomes should keep this in mind. If anyone wants to be heard then they must speak. In government, voting provides anyone 18 years or older with the voice to do so. We had the chance to be heard, it’s just the fact that hardly anyone took the effort to follow through and vote behind it. In this year’s primary elec-tion, according to the American Association of Retired Persons, about two-thirds of the voters were 45 or over. Those two-thirds represent older generations, more traditional generations. Most have the tendency to strongly oppose hooligans doing drugs and have more conservative values toward marriage, and because they wish to keep the world in correct order, they make it a priority to vote. Their opinions are heard every

two years with the pass or denial of a proposition or measure.The government is shaped by every ballot held. Every ballot shapes the government according to that populations vote. Therefore, if the government ever comes across as “wack” or foolish, it’s because we’ve made it to be so. At 18 everyone from then on has a say in government, it’s just a matter of who chooses

to take advantage of it. This isn’t a preaching seminar, but younger generations, begin-ning with high school seniors coming of voting age, need to make it a trend to vote. Represent themselves and what society has grown into. If not, we’ll remain unhappy with an “old fashioned” government because we simply chose not to keep it developing with society.

Opinion2 12.10.10

the Stagg Line

EDITORIAL

the Stagg LineAmos Alonzo Stagg High School

1621 Brookside Rd.Stockton, CA 95207

(209) 933-7445 ext. 8487

The Stagg Line newspaper is a member of the National Scholastic Press Association and the California Newspaper Publishers Association.

Awards and recognitions include the following: X 16 consecutive NSPA All-American rankings X NSPA Hall of Fame, 2005 X NSPA National Pacemaker six times X NSPA First-Place Best of Show five times X JEA Impact Award, 2002

Stagg Line student journalists have won many awards and scholarships over the years,

including California Journalist of the Year, National Story of the Year, and

National Photo of the Year.

The Stagg Line newspaper is published monthly and distributed free of charge to students and faculty.

Our newspaper is a long-standing open forum for free student expression. Student editors and reporters make content and style decisions with

the adviser offering guidance. Editorials reflect the view of the entire editorial board and therefore are unsigned. Opinion columns reflect the view of the writer. Readers are welcomed to write letters to the editor. We will make every effort to print any

letter as long as it is not libelous. Letters longer than 250 words may be edited. Unsigned letters will be

printed only in unusual circumstances, and only when we know who the writer is. Letters may be

brought to the newspaper room, A-8, or emailed to dbott@stockton.k12.ca.us

Chelsea ColluraEditor-in-Chief

Lissette RodriguezEditor-in-Chief

Don BottAdviser

Claire SchefferNews Editor

Mikeala AxtonOpinion Editor

Missy Rae MagdaleraFeatures Editor

Alisya MoraEntertainment Editor

Taylor HurlesSports Editor

Michelle PheavGraphics Editor

Erica TrevinoPhoto Editor

Xe XiongWeb/Multimedia Editor

Kristin AcevedoCopy Editor

Jeremy Dela CruzBlog Editor

Annamarie Cunningham

Harmony Evangelisti

Faith Harris

Damon Heine

Nicole Lawrence

Jera Machuca

Gabriella Miller

Tiffany Pech

Annamarie Rodriguez

Reanna Rodriguez

Seyma Tap

Mia Torres

Evolution of math benchmarks

Those not voting should not complain

Kristin Acevedo

Young people don’t

realize the value

of the democratic

process

Graphic by Seyma Tap

Change has been a constant in Stagg’s math program over the past few years, and, accordingly, this news-

paper has written many a story on math’s ever-changing standards, structure, and policy. Now, another change will hopefully improve the benchmark system. While the benchmark system has been in place for only about a year and a half, it has undergone several changes, the most recent occurring only a few weeks ago. THE BEGINNING Stagg collaborated with the Institute for Research and Reform in Education. The company came in with precise guidelines and asked that the Math Department de-velop a course without conferring with the textbook, but merely using what the math teachers felt was important. The downfall of this, said Math Depart-ment Chair Andrew Walter, is that “some-times when you think about something (that is) important, you miss things that are crucial.”THE FIRST CHANGE The initial change to the system came when the Math Department thankfully broke away from the confines of the IRRE in January and worked on its own with the skeleton of the benchmark system, making adjustments to make the structure “more

user friendly,” Walter said. These changes kept the grading system the same, that is, consisting of 100 percent tests. This structure, while it promoted mastery, made it difficult for some students to improve their math grades. The system remained the same in order to maintain some stability in the program, Walter said. A SECOND CHANGE A shift away from this test-heavy grading policy produced the second change to the math system. The new grading policy was 70 percent tests and 30 percent other work for the class, which more closely resembled the tra-ditional grading methods. The benchmarks at this time were graded out of 5, anything above a 4 passing, and anything below, fail-ing, percentages disregarded. This method made it harder for students to pass the benchmarks, but benefited those with a higher grade, as anyone who earned a 4 or a 5 had an automatic 100 percent, thus, an inflated grade. When this policy was not producing positive results, there was a…THIRD CHANGE The third and most recent alteration changes the scoring process for benchmarks to percentages instead of pass-or-fail, pro-moting higher passing rates. The challenge was to “not water-down

expectations but (still) get more people to pass,” Walter said. Thus far, the newest and most welcomed change has proven to be more successful than the initial changes for the system. After the first change failure rates were about 75 percent, whereas now they hover around 60 percent. RESULTS? Things have been positive with the

changes thus far, and if the newest refine-ments continue to bring improvement, then it seems that the alterations have been more than worthwhile. Anything that can promote mastery and aid the dismal math failure rates is a change for the better. We can only hope that this most recent update will be effective enough to be the final necessary change.

Graphic by Tiffany Pech

Opinion12.10.10 3the Stagg Line

Faith Harris

Gabriella Miller

Organization in clubs is crucial to successful projects

You’ve probably seen the typical holiday movie. You have your

shopaholic, your Scrooge type character, and then there’s the person who loves helping the less fortunate. This holiday season, various campus clubs decided to play the part of the caregivers.Many aspired to help the com-munity, and no doubt, these students and advisors had their hearts in the right place. However, I have to say that this holiday scramble to make a difference could have been much more productive if they slowed down and planned these projects out more carefully. Not to say they weren’t successful, just that they weren’t as successful as I think they could have been. National French Honors Society and French Club worked together to build care packages for the soldiers, National Honors Society had a canned food drive, and the Leadership class promoted a coat drive as part of the SLC Olympics. Key Club seemed to be the odd one out. Instead of having a typical school drive, they decided to go even further. During the Thanksgiv-ing break in November, they helped set up for the Run to Feed the

Hungry. Regardless of how clubs choose to help the commu-nity, organization should always be key. I understand that clubs sometimes want to have their own special projects, but they definitely should communicate with one another. Boxes are in the corner of almost every classroom, and sadly, there’s nothing in most of them. Now, let me get into telling you why that is. It’s nice enough that teachers

will allow these club members take up space in their classroom with boxes. Is it their responsibility to take time out of class to announce what they’re for and/or continually promote it? No, it’s definitely not.Club members (especially club presidents) should take the initiative to make the projects known to students rather than expecting students to do it. Not only this, but with so many drives going on at the same time, the clubs should have planned a way to promote them together. Some-thing as simple as a flyer would have done some good. Another issue I had was with where the boxes were put. They were anywhere and everywhere. There were two boxes in this room, one box in that room, and maybe six small boxes in another. Having one clear place for a certain project would make it a lot easier on students, and a lot easier on those organizing it. Another idea would be to do more collective drives throughout the year. If they all worked together, there would be less confusion and more achievement. Now that I’m done complaining about the flaws, I must admit that all of these gestures were awesome. I love the fact that these teens were intent on making such a huge difference. More selfless people will make for a much better society. Better organization and fewer boxes will benefit these projects. Don’t get stuck in the typical “stick a box in a classroom” mindset. Be unique, come up with clever ideas to promote your drives keep it simple and organized, and give it a clear deadline.

People love staring at me.Of course, I’m no celebrity and I doubt they glance in

my direction with awe or admi-ration. Instead, they give me an old fashioned gaze, something that is usually reserved for when a person has leftovers in his teeth or when passing a car accident on the highway. This typically happens when-ever the topic of future plans comes into the conversation. At a young age, I would reply with the stereotypical answers: a firefighter, policeman, or very wealthy man. After my clichéd response, I’d receive a smile, a pat on the head, a follow up question, or a mixture of all three. Around freshman year, how-ever, it seemed people around me began changing their reac-tions. When asked the traditional question, I would deliver my new answer and then a creeping metamorphosis would take place in the other people. Their eyebrows would begin a slow bushy ascent towards their forehead. Their eyes would start to widen, amazingly increasing each eyeball’s circumference. Their jaws would also be drop-ping as if to allow excess aston-

ishment to seep out. Suddenly, standing before me were no lon-ger mere mortals but dull-faced, slack-jawed automatons. All these zombie-like developments would last but a second and then the doctor that lies dormant within everyone would come out. In their best impression of a medi-cal professional consoling a sickly patient, these concerned citizens commenced reassuring me that everything will be all right and that I have nothing to fear. I had simply told them about my vocation to the Roman Catholic priesthood. It’s not like I said I had only 24 hours to live or that I was dropping out of school to become a hillbilly. My shyness about telling peers about my calling is pretty much over. Through all the innocent joking and simple questioning, my friends came to accept who I was and what I’d like to one day become. One might think that a teenager declaring that he wants to remain celibate the rest of his life is basically committing social suicide, but that wouldn’t be giv-ing adolescents any credit. The feedback that mortifies me the most comes not from fellow students but from teachers. Dur-

ing my whole high school career, the top responses I’ve received are the following: “Don’t waste your life!” “This is just a phase.” “Don’t you want to get mar-ried?” There’s nothing more damag-ing to a teen’s confidence than when a trusted adult criticizes him about his future plans, espe-cially when they’re something as profound as wanting to enter the priesthood. Young people like me already face a world naturally opposed to religious vocations. From the liberal media to an increasingly secularized popular culture, there really is no social haven outside of churches, synagogues, mosques, or temples for us. It’s no surprise that according to a 2009 study conducted by the National Religious Vocation Conference and the Center for Applied Research in the Aposto-late, respondents noted that they “did not experience a great deal of encouragement from parents, siblings, and other family mem-bers when they were first consid-ering a vocation to religious life” and that “people in their school or workplace” were also sources of

opposition. Teachers really shouldn’t be trying to discourage religious call-ings because it doesn’t conform to the general view of achievement. The popular opinion of a success-ful life involves getting married, having kids, and earning a lot of money. Emphasis on the money part. We hardly ever consider at-taining a sense of personal fulfill-ment from one’s job. Besides, teachers are really in the wrong field if they only want to mold students into factory drones of the future. Education comes from the Latin “ex ducare,” meaning “to lead out of.” Students were never originally intended for an endless cycle of test-taking and memorization that would strip them of indepen-dent thought. Judging from the original meaning of education, teachers are supposed to encour-age the development of innate talents, allowing skills “to be led out” of each person. Of course, many teachers have been supportive of my vocation, even going as far as giving me ad-vice as to where to study. Rather than discouraging me from enter-ing the priesthood, they uphold the idea of entering a profession that one enjoys. A few years ago, I became the Press and Publicity Manager for http://www.catholicpriest.me.uk, a website run by teens for teens considering a vocation to the priesthood. Our goal is to reach out to the young men who have this special calling and make them feel that they aren’t alone. Since we get at least a million hits a year and receive vocation story submissions on a regular basis, I can tell that I’m certainly not unique in the world for want-ing to be a part of the clergy. There might not be many individuals on campus who are striving to be a part of the world’s next generation of priests, nuns, rabbis, or imams, but certainly most people have a calling they wish to pursue. Whether one wants to become a doctor or a professional athlete, education should be an ongoing period of discernment, which is a time of immersing oneself in ac-tivities that clarify one’s vocation. Through discernment, individuals can experience the true meaning of education: an awareness of one’s potential.

FAN-TASTIC: Student explores the qualifications for calling oneself a ‘real fan’

What is a

“true” fan? The qualifications are many and can’t be stated in one-word answers. For some, it may be to own one t-shirt that dis-plays the name of your favorite band. To oth-ers, it could be buying every-thing in the gift shop pertaining to your hometown’s team at the football game. In reality, it’s not all about what you wear or how much you spend, but the reasons why you did and the passion behind what drew you to it. Memora-bilia is the physical way to show your interests, but it’s not even the half of it. Take the San Francisco Giants, for example. After they won the World Series, many people began to wear everything that had the team name on it, from shirts to hats to slippers. Some of these people would say that they have it on to express their happiness at the Giants winning their first World Series since 1954. Others, however, have little to no knowledge of the team. To be near the ballpark of saying that they are in “love” with the Giants, they should be able to answer questions about the team. They should be deeper than the general questions that test common knowledge. The perfect fan of the Giants should know information that involves recognizing names of different players and who they are, not just “Barry Bonds played for them a few years ago, right?”

In regards to music fans, listening to their songs 50 times over shows that you love the artist you’re listening to, but there is also something that can push you into true fan territory. Attending concerts is a major part of being a true music fan. Concerts are where you see bands and artists’ ideas come to life and hear the music in a new light. While concert tickets can get expensive, summer concerts, like the Warped Tour, offer cheap tickets that give the opportunity to see many bands for one price. But, before going out to concerts, knowing who the band or artists are is a major step in understanding the types of music they produce. The tracks and concert set-up may not seem cohesive until the story behind the scenes is revealed and it cannot be seen until crossing the line from just being a regular fan to a perfect one. For all the true football fans, every Sunday is reserved for one thing: hours of televised football starting at 10 a.m. They make sure to not forget when their favorite team will be televised and if it’s not, the Internet browser is open to see every play. No matter the record, that team is the best and that’s a belief that will never change. They won’t make it to the playoffs this year? So what, there’s al-ways next year and the years to come; they’re bound to win something in a 20 year span. Or, if they never even come close to winning a championship, showing dedication is important. Displaying love to a team isn’t hard to show. The jersey that’s worn doesn’t have to be the authentic throwback; no one will know if you got it on sale for $50 — all that counts is that you have it. It’s what sets the perfect fans away from the majority. The list can continue go on and change over the years. Maybe in 10 years, concert prices will have risen and make it hard for some to attend. If that happens, then edit the list and keep on pushing forward.

Teen travels path to priesthooddespite some discouragement

photo Courtesy of Marita Llanes After enjoying dinner at the University of Notre Dame with Vincent Nguyen and Rev. James Gallagher, C.S.C., Jeremy Dela Cruz gets ready to attend a hockey game on campus. Jeremy was on an assignment for www.catholicpriest.me.uk to review the Old College program, an undergraduate seminary at Notre Dame.

Regardless of how clubs choose to help the com-munity, organiza-tion should always be key.”

“

Jeremy Dela Cruz

Graphic by Tiffany Pech and Mia Torres

4 12.10.10Featuresthe Stagg Line

512.10.10

What is family? The answer often provokes debate. The “tra-ditional family” has over time become warped into many dif-ferent meanings. Family is no longer solely identified through biology or who shares a roof. Nevertheless, a family is a crucial component of one’s environment. It shapes one’s character, both in the household and out in society. The definition of family has diverged so much that there is no longer a correct answer. So what is family? With every individual, a different answer.

Kristin Acevedo

Reanna Rodriguez

Xe Xiong

‘My family wings it and goes by what the day brings’

You close your eyes and your nose is greeted with the delicious scent of home cooking. Your ears are greeted with the laughter of children. You’re expecting the sight of a typical American fam-ily, with the smiling mom and dad and the perfect son and daughter.

But when you open your eyes, you’re greeted with the sight of a boy riding his bike in the drive-way, a grandma on the couch watching a soap opera in Taga-log, a mom cooking dinner in the kitchen, two little boys play fight-ing, a girl playing with a puppy, and one girl at the center of it all with a huge grin on her face. This may seem like a busy scene for one household, but for Alexis Jones, sophomore, it’s the scene she comes home to every day.

After her parents’ separation a year and a half ago, Jones moved into her grandparents’ home with

her mother and four siblings, while her father moved to Florida. The separation has given her new responsibilities and a closer rela-tionship with her mother and sib-lings. It has also changed her daily routine.

“Some of the families I’ve seen are extremely organized,” Jones said in contrast to her household. She went on to say that in her household all of her siblings play sports and her mom stays busy with errands, leaving her to clean the house and help her siblings out with their homework. Jones takes a lot on in her family and used to get frustrated with all of the responsibility, but now that some time has passed she’s gotten used to doing chores and helping her family out any way possible. She said that she helps her mom handle what the day brings.

“My mom is like my sister and my best friend,” Jones said. Her mother works hard to give her kids everything they want and of-

fer them stability. She’s not only her mom, Jones said, but also her teammate. Jones looks after her siblings while her mother plays bingo to put food on the table. She admires her mother for her hard work and hates to see her up-set when things are tough. During the tough times, Jones makes sure that the little kids are happy and worry-free.

“They look up to me, but if I make a mistake, then they look down at me,” she said. They go to most of her basketball games to cheer for her and hang out with her at home. They have become very close and they all contribute to bringing joy to one another. Jones said that she loves her sib-lings and would do anything to make them happy. Her actions and the way she looks at them shows that she is always there for her siblings when they need her. She said that she can feel the love in her house.

“Living in a home with my

grandparents is like living in my first home,” Jones said. It has of-fered her a chance to live with a huge family that knows the im-portance of love. Along with the happy days in the household, there has also been some bad days. She said that there are times where they struggle with money and having to support such a big fam-ily, but they get passed it.

“As long as my kids wake up in the morning, I’m happy,” said Marites Grogan-Jones, her moth-er. She went on to explain that the family takes each day as it comes and tries not to worry too much about the future but focus on the present.

At bed time, as every member of the family lies down to go to sleep, they close their eyes where they are met with dreams of a happy family. And they sleep with smiles on their faces because they know that while their family may not be like most, they are happy and that is all that matters. Sophomore Alexis Jones shows her little brother Alishan how to multiply during one of their homework sessions.

photo by Reanna Rodriguez

‘We just have a lot of quirks’

Lissette Rodriguez

It is not often that a family can say their household is like a sit-com. But in a household where punch lines are always on cue, background music is not to be missed, and siblings finish sen-tences for each other, senior Al-exandra Owens says her life could make a popular TV show. Her younger sister freshman Adrian-na Owens quickly adds, “It’s like somebody could film us and put it on TV and not even edit anything out, except the cuss words.”

Growing up, though, life for the Owens’ sisters hasn’t always been like the comedies on prime time TV. To an outsider, their family could be differentiated by the fact that they interact with a mix of seven siblings. Alexandra and Adrianna are sisters from the same parents but they also have step and half siblings on their dad’s side of the family. One sib-ling has autism and another bipo-lar disorder. Alexandra says that their family dynamic has a larger complexity than that.

“We had a pretty rough child-hood,” Alexandra said. Adrianna says that at times they were ver-bally and physically abused.

Since a young age, they have become accustomed to their bio-logical parents being divorced. Shortly after their parents’ di-vorce, from 2005 to 2006, they lived on the big island of Hawaii with their dad and his new wife. Alexandra clearly remembers the “Windex-colored” water at the nearby beaches, driving down the only highway on the island, not seeing any billboards, and gazing at all the constellations of the stars at night. Despite the beauty of the island Alexandra and Adrianna faced not seeing an aunt back in California who cared a lot about them. Alexandra said their step-mom became abusive and Alexan-dra had to raise Adrianna as well as her new half-sister.

But not everything was stable upon their return to the mainland. They were allowed to see their aunt once again, but she passed away a month after they came back. Another loss in the family came temporarily when their dad was sent to federal prison. “He didn’t kill anybody, though,” Alex-andra said. “It was for a probation violation.” At this time Alexandra and Adrianna moved back in with their mother where they encoun-tered some of the same situations while they were with their dad.

Her mom had found herself a new companion when her daugh-ters came to live with them. Al-exandra hesitates as she squeezes

her hands around her teacup and says, “My mom is yeah…” Alex-andra interrupts and laughs as she says, “rainbowed out.” This com-panion was what Alexandra and Adrianna call their mother’s “lady-friend.” But similar to their prior step-mom with their dad, they say they were verbally and physically abused by her.

Once their dad was out of prison their parents created a new joint custody agreement where they would alternate weeks that they would either spend with their mom or dad. By this time both of their parents had found new com-panions. Alexandra and Adrianna agree it’s more like living two dif-ferent lifestyles.

Alexandra and Adrianna feel that it’s more like a family en-vironment at their dad’s house. “Here it feels like the whole mom, dad, daughter, son and dog feel-ing,” Adrianna said. While at their mom’s house they have to figure out how to do things on their own since their mom works from 8 in the morning until 11 at night for her two jobs. Alexandra says that because of their mother’s absence while they stay with her, this has gotten her to take on a motherly role. Alexandra cooks, cleans, and sometimes feels frustrated. “I feel like I’m the mom cleaning after the lady-friend,” she said.

At their dad’s house, it was only over a year ago that they all took on a family project. Due to their youngest brother’s obsession with Michael Jackson they decided to decorate their house according to a “Thriller” theme for Halloween.

One of the biggest differences they see within the two house-holds is when it comes to eating dinner. “We have sit down dinners at our dad’s, and at my mom’s we kind of disperse,” Alexandra said. They even see a difference within the food they eat at both homes. At their mom’s house they are used to eating more junk food. While at their dad’s house almost all the food they eat is strictly healthy. They open the refrigera-tor and pull out a bottle of spray butter, Alexandra looks through the nutritional facts and finds one fact that does not say zero, she says “Oh yeah, take a look at those 15 ml of sodium.”

Alexandra says that although some people may not think her upbringing or family dynamic isn’t necessarily normal she has never seen anything “not normal” about her life. Adrianna looks at her older sister and says “I think every family has quirks, but we just have a lot of quirks.”

The Owens’ family gathers to eat dinner. On this week, Alexandra and Adrianna spent the time at their dad’s house.

photo by Lissette Rodriguez

‘If I had to decide, it’d have to be my grandpa’

Ashley Johnson and her grandmother look at a picture of her grandfather, who was Johnson’s father figure as a child. Several of her family members wear similar necklaces in his memory.

photo by Mikeala Axton

There’s a mom, a dad, brothers, and sisters. These family roles are filled in junior Ashley Johnson’s life – just not by the correct biological match.

After a two year custody battle, Johnson’s grandparents on her father’s side legally adopted her when she was 7 years old. With her grand-parents Phyllis Reynolds and Fred Johnson listed as parents on her birth certificate, as far as she’s concerned, her parents have always been there for her.

Brief memories of her youth with her mother and older sister are still intact, but her home has always been with Grandma and Grandpa play-ing the roles as Mom and Dad. She knows her parents. She just doesn’t know them as her par-ents.

Jaquie. She isn’t too sure of her mother’s last name and even had a notable hesitation about the first name’s spelling. She left for Oklahoma when Johnson was 6 years old. She’s now consid-ered no more than a stranger in Johnson’s life, “a stranger I talk to on Facebook,” she said.

Grandma Phyllis Reynolds is the provider. She’s always fulfilled the motherly duties in Johnson’s life, from enrolling her in school to providing a roof over her head. For many other family members, her grandmother has indeed saved them too. “If it weren’t for Grandma, ev-erybody would be on the streets.”

As for the father figure part, it has been loose-ly played throughout her life, but if she had to

decide “it’d have be taken by (her) grandfather.”Michael Johnson, her biological father, is more

of a friend living in the basement of her grand-parents’ home. Because he had such an unsteady income and life, he was ruled as being incapable of providing Johnson with a stable home. She remembers wanting to be put into his custody when she was younger. He’s always been there, just not as the role of her father, but Johnson still appreciates their friendship.

Johnson’s Aunt Janie, who also lives in the home, has played a mother’s role as well. As she is considered to be “a second mom,” it’s difficult to say Johnson’s never had a real mother in her life. “She’s always there to just put me in check,” Johnson said.

She is her father’s only child and one of her mother’s four daughters, so biologically, Johnson has no brothers. But growing up, Johnson knew herself as the little sister of Aunt Janie’s sons, Brian and Steven Geller. Johnson recalls peek-ing underneath doorways to see what they were doing and her “older brother Steven getting an-noyed.”

Her three sisters are in Oklahoma with Jaquie, but she’s still close to them. Through cell phones and Facebook, she and her sisters try to remain up to date with one another. “I wish I could be with my sisters,” she said. “To me, siblings shouldn’t be torn apart.”

Although the people chosen to play those family roles aren’t biologically correct, they’ve performed well for Johnson.

Two mothers, a father, two brothers, and three sisters. This is Ashley Johnson’s family.

‘I consider them my real family, the ones I can really trust’

In the room surrounded by mirrors and machines, a father and son monitor each other as they lift weights one at a time. As the son is given more weights to lift, his hands begin to shake, tak-ing the barbell off and lowering it towards his chest.

Still shaking, he makes an at-tempt to lift it. His father, stand-ing by his head, helps lift the barbell back to its original place, and then switches position with the son.

This pair on the outside may look like a normal family, but it is actually the relationship of a step-father and his son.

Anthony Griffin takes his son, sophomore Daviaun Mc Cann, to a 24 Hour Fitness gym every week to work out.

Though Griffin is not his bio-logical father, he does everything necessary for Mc Cann.

“He is the father figure … he helps me out a lot at football … everything that a real father had to do,” Mc Cann said.

Mc Cann treats Griffin as his real father because he admires

and appreciates what Griffin has done for him. “It’s the real re-sponsibility … a man taking care of somebody else’s kids even after they broke up … he’s still by my side.”

Griffin said that young adults with one parent may be able to use that as an excuse for one’s failures in life, but he said Mc Cann can’t be like that.

A few months ago, Mc Cann decided to live with Griffin in-stead of following his mother to Los Angeles because he thought it would be better for him. He wanted to pursue football and Griffin was there to help him.

Mc Cann was building a “foundation with football” and made so many friends out here that he wanted to stay.

When Mc Cann made his de-cision, his mother was hurt; her pain was evident when she came back to visit him.

On one of her visits, she was in tears and Mc Cann’s baby sister was also very convincing, crying for him as they said their good-byes.

“(That) hurt me,” Mc Cann said. “And I realize I need to be with my family … the ones I can

trust.” Mc Cann has his mind set on

moving back in with his mother. He said, “I’m a little mama’s boy.”

Before she moved, Mc Cann lived with her and on Saturday nights, they would sit together and watch movies as a family and have dinner together.

Lately, since his mother left, things were beginning to fall apart and especially now that his mother is no longer with her pre-vious husband, he is worried.

“If my mom and little siblings were to get hurt, I’d feel guilty,” Mc Cann said.

He wants to move in with his mother to protect her and his younger siblings. He said, “It just hurts… I don’t want to see my mom cry.”

Mc Cann said Griffin’s re-sponse to his decision was “wher-ever (he) moves, (Griffin’ll) al-ways love (him).”

Griffin said that he’d “always be there” because at the age of 15 is when a young man needs his father the most. And despite the distance, Mc Cann will always consider Griffin his real father.

Mc Cann said, “It hurts him but I know he’s going to love me.”Sophomore Daviaun Mc Cann’s stepfather Anthony Griffin coaches him

on his exhaling as he lifts weights during one of their weekly workouts.

photo by Harmony Evangelisti

graphic by Harmony evangelisti, Tiffany Pech, and Mia Torres

‘I get advice from all the women in my family’

photo by Kristin AcevedoJunior Alyssa Copeland and her boyfriend Arturo Merino share the responsibilities of caring for their son, Angel.

It’s the middle of the night and the baby is crying. The mother wakes up and knows that school is tomorrow. But she has another priority now. A priority that is in no way easy to ignore.

According to the Center for disease control, one third of girls can get pregnant before the age of 20. While the media can tell the stories of one individual, some cannot help wondering how the family feels on such a life-chang-ing experience.

“When I first had him when I was in the hospital he was up ev-ery two hours,” Alyssa Copeland, junior, said. “It was not easy at all.”

Copeland had her son, Angel Arturo Merino, four months ago, and has felt the stress of raising a child. “I’m not able to go out (with friends) and do the things I used to,” Copeland said. “Having a child is different; it’s not as easy as people make it out to be.”

Not only has her regular life been affected, but so has her aca-demic life. “I sleep a lot during class; I used to have three F’s and now I have four.”

Since she was 2 years old, Co-peland has been raised by her

maternal grandparents. They also care for her son when she is away at school. Copeland’s biological parents have encountered their set of difficulties. Her father lives in Oregon and is paralyzed from the neck down. “I haven’t seen him since I was 5,” Copeland said.

Despite being a state apart, Copeland communicates with her father via phone every day. Her mother lives in Stockton, and has also experienced hardships. “She is homeless,” Copeland said. “She moved into a hotel and her boyfriend is a drug addict, but is about to be homeless again.”

When it came to telling her grandparents about the situation, Copeland was hesitant. “I didn’t tell my grandparents at first,” Co-peland said. “The doctor did.”

Copeland’s grandparents re-acted the way almost any parent would. “They asked me why I didn’t tell them earlier,” she said.

Regardless of the lack of par-ents around every day, Copeland says she has gotten a lot of advice on how to raise her son. “I get ad-vice from mostly all the women of my family, especially my mom” she said.

Though not able to see her mother, Copeland communicates with her through text messages. “When (her son) was two-three

months old, I thought, how am I going to afford this?” she said. “My grandma and family is help-ing me a lot; they buy almost ev-erything.”

Copeland still communicates with her boyfriend and father of her child, Arturo Merino, a senior attending Adult Ed, although the relationship is not free of the usual conflict. “We argue a lot,” Cope-land said. “He takes him on Fri-day night and sometimes wants to keep him until Sunday; I cried the first night away from him.” But Copeland says, “He still takes care of him.”

Though much has changed since having her son, Copeland does not show apathy in her deci-sion. “At times you’d say it was a mistake, but not to hurt the baby,” she said. “I say it’s not a mistake, it was just too early.”

Despite the hardships in her family altogether, Copeland still has great trust in them. “I con-sider (my grandparents) my real parents,” she said. In spite of being raised by her grandparents for the majority of her life, she still ap-preciates her real parents who she keeps in touch with. “They are still there for me,” she said. For Cope-land, family is “truthful, honest, there for you – that’s what I have in my family.”

Damon Heine

Remember where it all began? “Halo: Reach” sets the prequel for Master Chief ’s heroic mission by focusing on the Noble Team’s duty to protect the planet Reach. The most enjoyable aspect of “Reach” is the cooperative cam-paign, especially with the new armor capabilities and the ability to fly around aimlessly with jet packs. The story mode deals with plot surprises which will have you crying out at the immediate loss of an essential char-acter. Added features, such as being able to customize your full-body helmet and armor, delivers a more personalized feel to the Spartan suit. The forge mode, now called the Forge World, adds another creative touch to the game, where creating your own battlefield and maps reveal a different approach and advantage. The new control scheme however, holds players back from their usual familiarity with “Halo.” Although some small things are added that weren’t in “Halo 3,” – such as the new guns, the jet pack feature, and the ability to sprint – the feel of “Reach” still falls short. The online multiplayer is distasteful and frustrating. The maps are bland and effortless, like the amount of work put into the hype of this game. With such a captivating co-op campaign having an emotional story plot, the multiplayer falls short in receiving that same satisfaction.

Entertainment6 12.10.10

the Stagg Line

The Supreme Court is deciding whether California should prohibit violent videogames, such as first-person

shooters, to people under 18. Should they be banned?

Bloody bodies, riddled with bullets, fall to the ground as an air strike flies overhead dropping bombs, devastating the enemy’s forces and leaving a wave of destruction in its path. You are the soldier, dropped in the middle of a battlefield, fighting to live long enough to get to the next mission. This is just one scenario first-person shooter videogame players can experience when they pick up their controller. To some, this kind of violence may seem to be too much, something needed to be kept from the eyes of impressionable young children, and I agree -- to an extent. The Supreme Court is now overseeing a case that will decide wheth-er states should be allowed to prohibit the sale of violent videogames to children. As of right now, there is a law in California that gives anyone who sells to children a videogame that depicts killing, maiming, dis-membering, or sexual assault a $1000 fine. Supporters of the law claim that studies have linked playing violent videogames with an increase in aggressive thoughts, anti-social behav-ior and desensitization to violence in both minors and adults. A report done in 2006 by the Indiana University School of Medicine used brain scans to show how violent videogames caused an increase in emotional arousal, as well as a decrease in self-control, inhibition and attention. Yet, is it the job of the state to police what children can buy? When my brother, the one into those violent shooting videogames, wanted to buy a very violent, very graphic game, my mother told him no. We didn’t need a state law to forbid us from buying something most deemed as inappropriate for our age, we had my mother telling us we couldn’t. Shouldn’t parents, the people who know their child’s devel-opment best, be able to decide if a game is too violent for their child, or having too adverse reactions? Some may say that the government has laws banning children from buying alcohol or cigarettes, but those addictions waiting to happen

can seriously hurt a child, who may not understand the consequences. The situation is unlike a videogame which is fantasy and cannot hurt a child other than a sore thumb from a controller. Those same critics argue that showing violence to children desen-sitizes them to violence in the real life, but games aren’t real life. They are fantasy worlds where lives are endless and guns never run out of ammo, and if they do, there is some five feet away on the ground. Ex-posure to violence doesn’t cause violence. But there is something bigger at stake than just the videogames. This is censorship, plain and simple. We would be banning a group of people from buying something because it is deemed “unacceptable” by some. This is a blatant disregard of our First Amendment rights which are given to us, not when we are mature enough to understand all violence and sex and inappropriate material in the world, but from the moment we are born. We don’t stop students from reading violent books, or seeing vio-lence on the news. Both can be more graphic and disturbing, because unlike a game, the violence can be real. When men are shot on the news, and bombs blow up civilians overseas, they don’t get another life. Yet, we find this important because reading is educational and a knowledge about what is going on in the world stops people from making the same mistakes when it is their generation’s time to rule. So, yes, maybe games are too violent, but who is the government to say what is or isn’t too violent? Parents need to be in control of their children and manage what they play and decide if the effects are hurting their child. So while games are not always the most substan-tial thing in the world, they are worth protecting. Censorship is never okay, no matter what the intentions, it just leads to too slippery a slope. Besides, I grew up on Mario Brothers and still love turtles and mushrooms, even though as a child, I was taught to kill them. It is a game, not real life, and most immature children know the difference.

How do you feel about violent videogames being banned?

“The games the government are considering violent aren’t even that bad. They’re more entertaining than anything.”

“Another source of violence will only provoke (gamers) to be more violent... We’ll see when ‘Mortal Kombat’ comes out.”

Claire Scheffer

Dennis SoeurBIOLOGY TEACHER

Treyarch takes “Call of Duty: Black Ops” to a whole new level, straying away from Infinity Ward’s basic ele-ments but adding new aspects as well. The improved “Modern Warfare 2” standards and recognizable “World at War” aspects fire an awesome explosion of zombies and gore alike. The campaign, unfortunately being single player only, successfully delivers a promising plot twist that’ll have you questioning the existence of numbers forever. A personal favorite also returns: the endless wave after wave of mind-less zombies. Not to mention you can unleash carnage on those zombies as President John F. Kennedy as well. Despite the horrible servers that don’t allow you to connect to a match with friends a majority of the time, the new maps, perks, and wager game types outweigh that problem. The added touch of personalization, such as cus-tomizing your emblem and being able to watch/edit your recent matches with theater mode, make it worthwhile. The hidden achievements and arcade game “Dead Ops” will you have you literally breaking free from your chair in excitement. Although the tomahawk isn’t as great as the throwing knife and the “skillful” quick-scoping technique is harder to achieve, the realistic campaign, addictive zombie horde and challenging multiplayer will have you diving back for more.

‘My Chem’ blasts a stale music scene with ray gun filled return

If, four years ago, you looked at My Chemical Romance and thought to yourself, hmmm, one day I bet they’ll misplace their eyeliner and write an album full of upbeat songs and bright colors, you would have been crazy. You also would have been right. MCR has plunged into its fourth studio album – twice, in fact, having written, recorded and trashed an entire album before releasing “Danger Days: The True Lives of The Fabulous Killjoys.” The album contains a loose storyline, set in California 2019, in the wake of an environmental disaster. The world, in its weakness, has been taken over by a brainwashing behemoth known as the Bet-ter Living Industries, BL/ind. The band is cast as a color-clad, ray-gun wielding rebel force against BL/ind agents. If this is starting to sound like the familiar, in-depth storytelling My Chem album, worry no more. Gone are the days that it took a shovel to dig through the band’s sweeping metaphors and imagery (however enjoyable the process)! The listener is guided through the album by 2019 pirate-radio DJ Dr. Death-Defying, who opens the

blazing first track “Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na).” This first single sets the tone for the rest of the album, reeking of high speeds, fast times, and an element of fun never before heard from MCR. “SING” evokes a similar feeling of defiance as “Na Na Na,” asserting that My Chem is back and loud as ever, no matter the criticism. “I am not the singer that you wanted/ But a dancer/ I refuse to an-swer” harkens front man Gerard Way, summarizing their knack for doing the unexpected, disregarding the nonbelievers. A track few would have expected from MCR, “Planetary (GO!)” is a rip-roaring, electronics-infused dance song. The seemingly uncharacteristic melody is backed by Way’s ever-impassioned lyrics, spitting that “My word is the Beretta/ the sound of my vendetta,” an open revolt against all things sterile, ingestible and safe. “Planetary (GO!)” makes you want to dance like a complete idiot, and fortunately instills one with an attitude that makes you not care what others think (especially their thoughts on your wicked dance moves). Closing out the album is the old-school-punk-

all-over “Vampire Money,” and homage to bands like the Stooges and direct reference to glam greats like Bowie and Marc Bolan of T.Rex. The song is a blistering commentary on the recent “vampire craze” and a thrashing, resounding “NO” to the numer-ous pleas that the band get in on all the “vampire money” that the franchise has to offer. And while some may say that this track is MCR stealing from the classic punk handbook, it feels more like them adding their own page than anything else. My Chem has never been shy about voicing its influences (like comic-book veteran Grant Morri-son, who appears in the band’s recent music videos) and this album is no exception, with shout-outs to the Stooges and others, like MC5 (“Light up the stage and watch me kick out the jams!” commands Way on “Party Poison”). But even while paying tribute to classics, My Chem only further cements themselves as masters of creativity in a stagnant music scene. “Danger Days” is a rebellion, a fun, loud rebel-lion, armed with pounding drums, savage guitar anthems and Way’s aural assault on all the misfor-tunes and criticisms stacked against them, and a sure sign of the good times to come.

Ashley RobertsSENIOR

Christof KenworthySENIOR

“It depends on what kind of kid you got. The over imaginative kinds and the ones who take it too seri-ously.”

Mikeala Axton

BACK WITH ABANG!

‘TOSSING

‘Black Ops’ takesfranchise to new level

‘Reach’ falls short of expectations

Art by Mikeala Axton

Michelle Pheav

GRENADE!’

Graphics by Michelle Pheav

I want to better myself for my team. I want to win. I want to improve. These goals help connect the boys and girls bas-ketball teams. Some believe these two teams to be incredibly different, but in reality they are very simi-lar. Like most teams, the players try to live up to their coach’s expectations. Goals for boys basketball coach Tony Espinoza in-clude “Focusing on maintaining satisfactory grades, attendance, and putting ourselves in a position to compete for league championships.” However, when asked if he sees a difference in boys and girls basketball other than gender he said, “No, both (he and Hung Nguyen) run the same program, (with) similar structure and expectations.” Some players have a different point of view. “Boys basketball is more aggressive and up pace,” Nate Da-vis, senior, said. Some of the girls agree. Junior Me-gan Garza thinks, “boys seem way more intense and faster than girls basketball.” However, not every player shares this opinion. “Girls have more aggression and take fouls more per-sonally, whereas guys keep it professional,” Angelique Wilson, junior, said. Nguyen, the girl’s basketball coach, has goals simi-lar to Espinoza. “Every year’s goal is to be competi-tive, good kids, great program, and being able to rep-resent Stagg as best as we can,” Nguyen said. “It’s not about winning, it’s about playing hard.” He also said he finds little difference in boys and girls basketball. “They’re both competitive – both compete with different teams, there is no difference.” Basketball for some is just a way to have fun, but for some players it’s far more than that. “Basketball gives a life skill of working together and gives direc-tion,” Wilson said. “You also learn to not take things personally.”

While some feel basketball gives direction, others admire the structure that comes with it. “It makes me more disciplined, stay active, and (stay) out of trouble,” junior Dashad Bonner said. Though both teams are hopeful for a good season, the girls feel their skills will always be compared to the boys’. “(The boys) set us at high standards, they make us want to be better so we can be at the same level,” Garza said. However, the girls feel that they can’t compete on the boys level because, “the boys are better; they are guys,” Garza said. The boys also have the same standpoint. They feel as though they are better because “We are boys and we are more athletic and faster,” Bonner said. Through all the commotion the boys and girls bas-ketball teams have with one another, they both set standards for themselves and their teams that they hope to meet by the end of the season. Jaime Morel, junior, has set expectations for him-self and the players on his team to “set an example for the Stagg basketball program, and to be a better role models.” Bonner said that he wants “everyone to give it their all, go hard and to have mental toughness be-cause (they) have to picture what (they) are going to do in their head before (they) do it.” Davis is looking at the bigger picture. He aspires to “make it to playoffs and (wants) to get 25 points in one game.” He hopes the team will “be the most aggressive team in America.” The girls team, however, has different expectations. “I want to win at least one game,” Wilson said. “We need to all play with heart and go our hardest. We might not have the skill but we all get along, which builds chemistry.” Garza too hopes for this. “I want my team to grow as a whole and to win for the team and not just my-self.”

Girls, boys have different perspectives

It’s not just showing up to prac-tice each day for a particular sport. Try showing up to two practices when they occur at the same time. Try being on a team that will go to nationals and another team that may go to league in the same season. Try being senior Gabriel Contreras, a cheerleader and a wrestler. To Contreras, senior year is sup-posed to be exciting and a chance to have as much fun as possible. But right now, for him, it tends to be stressful at times managing both sports and academics. As with any other sport, Con-treras has to keep up his grades to be allowed to participate. “If I get one F, then I’m off the wrestling team,” he said. Head varsity coach Andres Uyeda has stressed to Contreras that grades are very important and if Contreras wants him to stop “pushing his case” then he will have to turn in a good grade check. “The pressure helps because I’ve been trying to do better in some of my classes.” He says that he feels a lot of pressure to get good grades along with participating in both sports, but he enjoys it. “Gabe is a very intelligent per-son and applies it to wrestling,” head junior varsity coach Martin DeSantiago said. Contreras remembers the end of freshman year when he discov-ered that he was able to use his op-ponents momentum to make him a better wrestler. “He’s one of the brighter stars on the team,” off season freestyle coach Dave Avina said. According to DeSantiago, Contreras knows the techniques of wrestling. “He understands the moves and angles of the oppo-nents during his matches,” he said. From not only wrestling but playing football for all four years, Contreras feels he has gained a great amount of physical strength

and endurance. All of these are qualities that he has recognized that must be applied to cheerlead-ing as well. “Everyone underestimates cheer,” he said. Contreras said that next to wrestling, cheer is one of the hard-est sports. “Wrestling is hard be-cause you have to make weight, but cheer is nerve-wrecking,” he said. “You have to go out and dance in front of people; it’s going to take time to get used to.” Contreras says that people’s first reaction about him joining the squad was one of surprise. He encountered inappropriate com-ments and some of the questions were stereotypical about male cheerleaders. When senior Nyeema Carter found out he would be joining the team she was taken aback. “I was very surprised,” she said. “It was like all of a sudden he wants to cheer.” While Carter was shocked, junior Frank Allen felt indiffer-ent about his wrestling teammate

joining cheer. “He comes into practice and works out with the rest of us,” he said. “It doesn’t change anything when he practices.” The different reactions haven’t fazed Contreras. “I joined because they can use the muscle and it’s fun.” He has been talking to friends and trying to persuade them to join, but so far, no one has made a definite decision. One person who Contreras has tried to persuade is senior Joseph Dolihite. “(He) kept telling me how much fun it was,” he said. “He makes it seem like it’s some-thing that other guys can enjoy too.” In addition to worrying about others’ comments, Contreras also runs into other issues, such as practice times. “I only go to half of each practice because they’re both around the same time,” he said. “It’s hard because my wres-tling coach gets mad that I’m not focusing on just wrestling.” “He’s a veteran wrestler so

(coming late to practice) doesn’t affect him too much,” DeSantiago said. “But conditioning wise it could.” Contreras hasn’t made it to ev-ery practice this year and won’t because the two teams end at the same time. Without putting full effort into wrestling practices the coaches be-lieve that his performance may be affected and advancing to league may be out of the question. The schedule conflicts don’t just end with practices. In fact, advancing may not be

possible. Contreras could possibly give up his chance to go to state for wrestling to accompany the varsity cheer squad to nationals in February. “I have to drop out when wres-tling really counts,” Contreras said. “I’m helping the (wrestling) team out for league, but if I make it into subsections I’ll have to drop out.” Because Contreras joined so late into the season he’s behind many girls and boys who have been cheering more than a year, like Carter.

He has to work hard to learn moves that are basic in cheer such as toe touches, pikes and herkies, and the terminology that corre-sponds with those moves in or-der to move to the more difficult things like stunts. The issue is that Contreras has to learn these techniques in a small amount of time and while this can create stress he takes it all in and deals with it. Even though his decisions have created different obstacles, Con-treras stands by his choices. “I al-ways give my best.”

Sports 712.10.10

the Stagg Line

Senior athlete doubles upGabriella Miller

photos by Chelsea Collura and Gabriella Miller

Gabe Contreras manages cheerleading and wrestling at the same time

graphic by Tiffany pech and Mia Torres

Annamarie Rodriguez

(Left) Gabriel Contreras, senior, practices stunts with junior Alissa Gomez. (Above) He attempts to pin down his opponent, coach Harold Brown.

News8 12.10.10

the Stagg Line

Annamarie Cunningham

It’s good the way they changed it.”

Diamond HartJUNIOR

“

New benchmark system aimed to

raise student grades

‘Toil and trouble’Freshman Honors English students act in

‘Macbeth’ to gain Shakespearean knowledge

Freshmen Sami Nand circles the Banquos as he holds up his sword ready to murder Macbeth’s enemy. He was one of six murderers.

photo by harmony evangelisti

Top Ten Gifts9. Rasputin to the rescue! – Used DVD’s/music CD’s starting at $1.95

10. Bake some warm cookies! – $0.98 for Lofthouse cookie

dough and $1.48 for Pillsbury frosting at Food4Less

8. Everybody loves chocolate! – $3.79 for a pack of Hershey’s

at Kmart and ribbon for $1 at Target’s dollar spot

5. Tickets for two! – Grab two Tuesday tickets for a holiday movie at Regal Cinema for $5 each on Tuesdays

2. Fill a cup with love! – Dollar Tree has nice coffee mugs and bags of candy for $1 each

7. Make them comfy! – $10 for cozy socks at Kmart

6. Picture Perfect! – Photo albums at WalMart starting at $7

1. Play games! – Handheld games are available at WalMart for under $10

3. Fix a sweet tooth! – Six ice cream cupcakes at Cold Stone Creamery for $9

4. Claim a spot on their tree! – Photo holder Christmas ornaments from Hallmark are on Amazon.com for $7.56

To:

From:

Good Friends

The

Great Gift List

‘Twas after Black Friday and money was low.Few people had any cash, bacon, or dough.

Still, with gifts to buy and pockets not deep,People needed items that were cheap, cheap, cheap!

StudentsinAlgebra1-2andGeometryareinforsomeverygoodnews.Thebenchmarkprogramhasrecentlybeenupdatedinawaythatmakesitpossibleformorestudentstoimprovetheirgradesmoreeasily. “We’retryingtogetstudentsinAlgebra1-2andGeometrytogetmastery,”saidAndrewWalter,mathdepartmentchair. Mastery iswhenastudentreceivesa4(80percent)ora5(100percent).Thewaythenewsystemworksissimilartothepreviousone.Oneofthechangesmadeisthatscoresonbenchmarksarenowmarkedasdirectpercentages,unlikebefore,whenanythinglowerthana4outof5wasfailing. Butnotallstudentsagreethatthenewbenchmarksystemisben-eficial. SophomoreRebeccaRomerohas troubleunderstanding thenewgrading.“Theyshouldleaveitthewayitwas;thenewsystemisconfusing.” Anotherchangemadetotheoldsystemishowstudents“onlygetfivechancestotakethetestnow,”Waltersaid.Thesechancesincludethemandatorytimeintheclass-room. Walterrecallshearingthehor-rorstoriesofwhenastudenthadtoretakeonebenchmarktest13timesafterschoolandstillwasn’tabletopassit. One major change from theold version of the benchmarksystem is the percentages a stu-dent can receive when retakingtests after school in the Bench-markCafé. Ifastudentdoesnotpassthetest in class and they choose togo to theBenchmarkCaféafterschool,inordertoretakeit,theyonly have four more chances topass. The second and third timesthe student takes the test, thestudentisstillabletorecieve100percent.However,thefourthandfifth times the test is taken, thestudentcanonlyreceive80per-cent,eveniftheygetallanswerscorrect. The previous version of theprogramhadsomeminorflaws.ManywhoreceivedanAintheclassactuallyhadwhatWalter referred toas an“inflatedA.”SometimesstudentswouldhaveanAbutiftheirtestscoreswerebasedonper-centage(insteadofapassorfail),theywouldhaveactuallyearnedaB. Somestudentswhoarenewtothisschool,thusnewtothebench-marksystem,havespokenwelloftheprogram.SeniorJessicaVargasmoved here three months ago from Mexico, where she never tookalgebra.Here,thankstothebenchmarks,shehasanAinhersecondperiodAlgebraclass.Vargassaidithashelpedherunderstandthecon-ceptsofAlgebra. DiamondHart,junior,alsolikesthewaythenewbenchmarksys-temworks.“It’sgoodthewaytheychangedit.” Thelast,andpossiblymosthelpful,changewiththenewbench-marks is the lunchtime tutoring. During lunch on Monday andWednesdaystudentscangettutoringinroomA-7.OnTuesdayandFridaystudentscantakethetesttheytutoredforinroomC-1.ShouldtheywanttogettheirtestsalldoneinonedaytheycantutoratlunchandtakethetestafterschoolinroomH-7.Shouldstudentswanttogettutoringafterschool,gotoroomK-9.Studentsusuallyhavemoreofachancetogetoneononetutoringduringlunchsoteachershavesuggestedit. Thenewbenchmarksystemhasprovenverybeneficialtostudentswithlowgrades.Becauseofthewaythescoringhaschanged,thenewafterschoolscoringandnowthelunchtimetutoring,studentshavemoreofachancetoimprovetheirgrade. ThingsarebeginningtolookbetterforthosestudentswhohavealowgradeintheirAlgebra1-2andGeometryclasses.

A loud chatter comes fromvoicesrecitinglinesandstudentsproperlydistributingeachother’sprops and scripts. The musicroomisimmediatelytransformedintoastage;musicstandsformaline behind the actors to act asa curtain. As Freshman Hon-ors English teacher ThongthipDuangsawat and Kohl Elemen-tary teacher Cynthia Wildmanentertheanxiousenvironmentoftheclassroom,thestudentsbeginto quickly assemble their posi-tionsforActIII. Thecastwascompromisedofthe Duangsawat’s entire fresh-man class and five upperclass-men. The class’s first rehearsalwasinportableclassrooms.AdaybeforetheofficialperformanceattheMondaviCenteratUCDavisonNov.18th, they ran throughtheir lines in the school theater.“Itwaswaydifferent,” freshmanNickiGeorgesaid.“Ihadnocluewhat ‘Macbeth’wasaboutwhenweweregiventheplay.” Thisprojectwassponsoredbythe Globe Education Academy.Duangsawatwasgrantedaschol-arshiptoparticipateinaprogramthat analyzed Shakespearean lit-erature.She,alongwith11otherteachers from northern Califor-niaschools,wasgivenablockof“Macbeth”toactout. “Weneverrehearsedwiththeother school,” Duangsawat said.Eachschoolhadn’tmetuntiltheday of the production at UCDavis’ theater where their per-

formance was filmed in what isdescribedas“theaudience’sper-spective.” “The way the Globe looks atShakespeare is that it’s low onprops,highonlanguageandac-tion,”Duangsawatsaid.Herex-periencefromtheGlobeprovid-edanewperspectiveinhandling“Macbeth.” Theactingwasplayedbymul-tiple students, with little props.“For theMacbethsweonlyhadone crown,” George said. Theactors eachpassed the crown towhoever was to speak, whethertheyhadthecrownornot,eachactorplaced itharmoniouslyonthenextMacbeth’shead.Thedayoftheperformancecalledforthecasttowearallblackinordertoportrayastrongersenseofthelit-erature.

“NowsomeofthemhavebeenexposedtoShakespeare,”Duang-sawatsaid.Herfreshmanhonorsclasswillnowgointo“TheMer-chantofVenice”alotmorepre-pared.

“Itwaseasytolearn(thelan-guage)butunderstanding itwasdifferent,” freshman AutumnSaldana said, who was one oftheMacbeths.“Itriedwithalotof emotion so that she pickedme for the role.” The portrayalof the many characters was notdecided by audition. “(Duang-sawat) wanted the people whoreally(memorizedtheir lines) tobe‘Macbeth,’”Georgesaid. Wildman, brought in byDuangsawat, assisted the cast inacting“howtonottobeyourselfbuttobeyourcharacter,”Saldanasaid.“Ifeltalotmoreconfidentinmycharacter.” “Posture is important!”Duangsawatsaidasthestudentsbegan to stumble on their linesduring rehearsals. The studentsonce again began acting outtheir scene. Wildman carefullyhovered among the students,insisting to concentrate as eachnervously tried to recover theirforgottenlines. “Thatmurderscenewasgood,very intense,” Wildman said, asthe Banquos descended to thefloor; the class returns to theirpositionsforDuangsawat’sreply.“Banquo, you must show youactually want to live,” Duang-sawatsaidtothegroupofactors,andwithagrin,continues“Shallwetakeitfromthetop?Yes,weshall.”

photo by harmony evangelisti

Sophomore Carol Amaya, playing Macbeth, and Emily Cornelison, playing Lady Macbeth, practice being husband and wife as part of a production of Macbeth in order to teach students about Shakespearan writing.

The way the Globe looks at Shakespeare is that it’s low on props, high on language and action.”

Thongthip Duangsawat

ENGLISH TEACHER

“

information compiled by Faith Harrisgraphic by Jeremy Dela Cruz

Alisya Mora