HOOVER PUBLICATIONS 4800 AURORA DES MOINES.IA. 50310 515.242.7313 2.26.10 V.43 I.8 WWW.HOOVERCHALLENGER.COM

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BY MELISSA HOLLISTERCONTRIBUTOR

Student schedulingStudents get opportunity to choose their own classes and schedule on Infi nite Campus

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Nathan Brown takes the ice

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Counselor’s work effi ciency

Counselors assist students with scheduling and other confl icts

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Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting

the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press

or of the right of the people to peaceably assemble and to petition the government

for a redress of grievances

As of last year block scheduling started, but also advisory was every day of the week for 15 minutes. Next year students will have advisory once a week for 30 minutes every Wednesday. This will make classes on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 90 minutes long. Principal Doug Wheeler noticed that advisory every day of the week may have not have been a good idea for students. “The research said that having advisory every day of the week worked for students and helped students but I guess Hoover proved them wrong,” Wheeler said. With having advisory every day of the week the attendance was not strong in advisory and with the length of advisory teachers can’t get much done. “Teachers will be able to provide consistence in what is going on in advisory. Like the extended length of the class helps with more learning. So the same thing as advisory. It will make advisory more special once a

week. Hopefully have better attendance too,” Wheeler said. Learning transitions and resources teacher Marjorie Flowers sees positives and negatives in this change. “I see it as a smaller learning community. We have to be more focused on that one time a week. With that though that means not having a community,” Flowers said. Sophomore Miranda Murr who used homeroom time for homework and to relax will miss homeroom but she thinks it is a good idea. “We waste more time, we can have more times for electives and class. I will miss the time to relax and do homework,” Murr said. With the incoming freshmen it may be a little bit harder to have that relationship or connection with their homeroom teacher. “It will be harder. It took awhile last year. I was new and I had a freshmen class. If it would be once a week we would still be working on it,” Flowers said. Murr feels that sometimes

homeroom can be wasted time on the days when students don’t have anything for homeroom to do. “We won’t waste time just sitting there when there is no information,” Murr said. Teachers and staff will be setting up a committee to see what requirements there will be. Although it is a once a week class students will still get credit and it will still be pass or fail. Wheeler will also go to S.P.I.R.I.T. (a student lead group) what they think too. “We will form an advisory committee and we will look at what needs to be happening at each grade level and put together a calendar to know what is going on,” Wheeler said, “I think I will ask the S.P.I.R.I.T. group what they want to do. I ask students first then go to teachers. Students are smart; if we don’t listen to them then we are stupid.”

Advisory elimina� onAdvisory gets dropped to once a week for 30 minutes due to weak attendance numbers and lack of time to get things done

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Starting near the end of the school year students will have the opportunity to complete their schedules online for the fall 2010 school year. The counselors are still involved in making the schedules, but the students have more control in what their schedules look like. Science teacher Eric Hall is new to the process. “It’s good students start the process,” Hall said. “...It’s still good someone is looking over it.” Students will be going to the library with their English class sometime next month to make their schedule for next year. Sophomore Kailie Liggett thinks that students will benefit from creating their schedules. “Counselors tend to screw some things up and the students know what they need and want,” Liggett said. However Ligget realizes that due to classroom sizes and availability some students won’t be able to take the classes they need. Another issue is that certain students may not sign up in time to get a class they want. As an advisory teacher Hall has to look back on the schedules and explains that creating a schedule could be challenging for some students. “Be careful picking needed classes,” Hall said. With the new responsibilities of creating a schedule, Liggett believes there’ll be students who take advantage of it by picking classes that they know their friends picked. On the other hand Hall thinks that the new system will allow students to be accountable for their choices. “(Students will have) more ownership for what (they) do for (their) choice,” Hall said.

BY KAYLA JOHNSON

HEALTH EDITOR

10 ways to keep the body healthy this winter

English teacher Nick Jackson’s advisory class spends � me talking and playing games. Advisory has been cut down to once a week to 30 minutes. “We waste more � me, we can have more � mes for elec� ves and class. I will miss the � me to relax and do homework,” sophomore Miranda Murr said.

Get the PointInstead of counselors making schedules, students are making it themselves

Diffi culties include not knowing required classes

Class sizes will have to be worked around

On Feb. 18 the Hoover Meredith GSA went to Iowa Safe Schools annual governor’s conference. They par� cipated in a workshop about eff ec� ve student and GSA advisor rela� onships. This will also be the fi rst year that the Gay- Straight-Alliance will bring an LGBT aspect to the diversity assembly.

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Students walk to class during passing period. The RTTT fund aims to turn around the bo� om 5 percent schools. DMPS decided to pass on the fund. “SIG funds will allow us to make an impact in a shorter amount of � me than if we were using the limited resources of the district,” Sebring said.

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BY JASON REICHENBACHERENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

The drama department has begun rehearsals for Li� le Shop of Horrors. The musical is centered around a man-ea� ng plant whose fi rst target is nerdy Seymour. The cast is made up of four males and females along with a couple extras. Main cast list goes as follows: Seymour: Jay Jacobson Audrey: Allison O’Braza Orin (Den� st): Sean Carnahan Audrey II: Nicholas Clark Mr. Mushnik: Logun Buckley

The mock trail team is preparing for the regional compe� � on at the Polk county conven� on center where they will present both the prosecu� on and the defense side of their case. Instructor Sarah Hamilton speaks highly of the leadership on the team. “We have great seniors who have been with us for a couple of years, who are really stepping up and showing leadership,” Hamilton said. Aside from the seniors, the underclassmen on the team are showing ini� a� ve and ge� ng involved. “My goal for the program is for students to realize that hard work and dedica� on are benefi ts itself,” Hamilton said.

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BY KIRA HERRON

BY JASON REICHENBACHER

BY ALEKSANDRA VUJICIC

The DMPS Jazz Concert took place at Roosevelt. Hoover played two songs. Jazz band director Sco� Davis’ favorite song played by the band was called “Killer Joe,” which is a jazz standard and is a well known piece to those who listen to jazz. The two hour long concert had an audience of an es� mated couple hundred for the metro school bands. Roosevelt and Lincoln had two bands each, and each band played two songs.

BY KAYLA JOHNSON

Race to the Top FundApplica� on Criteria

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The bell rings and it’s time for class. Students file into the classroom, sit down at their desks, pull out their phones and put in their ear buds. Test scores and academic achievement are struggling, causing the building to fall below federal requirements for being a successful school. The standards for a successful school are set forth by the federal government, it is a combination of ITED scores and graduation rates. If schools fall below the mark they are awarded the title of Persistently Low Achieving School (PLAS). Nine of Des Moines Public Schools (DMPS) are on this list. But according to Principal Doug Wheeler it isn’t an accurate assessment. “These federal requirements focus only on one score (ITEDS) it doesn’t take into consideration that Hoover has made steady gains over the past three years with test scores. The problem is that the public see the schools on this list and automatically assume that the teachers are doing something wrong,” Wheeler said. According to Wheeler quantifying academic achievement is close to impossible . Despite low test scores Wheeler has the utmost confidence for his educators. “I’ll put any one of our teachers up against anyone in the suburbs for making student gains,” Wheeler said.

The district realizes that having nine schools on the PLAS list is a problem, and are considering applying for what is called a School Improvement Grant (SIG). These federal funds would be used to change the PLAS into a proficient school. This change is called Reform. There are four different templates for reforming. (see sidebar,) The federal money does not come without hefty requirements. With a sigh Wheeler understood about the application for the money. “I don’t think we can turn down money in this economy,” Wheeler said. Superintendant Nancy Sebring is in support of the application. “It is recognition that money is important to turning around low performing schools. Funds are needed to train staff, purchase new curriculum. and provide supplemental services to students,” Sebring said. President of the teachers union Alan Young agrees with Sebring that the application for the grant is a positive move. “We certainly aren’t afraid of it,” Young said. With application for the grant it is required that districts and the teachers union must now negotiate through collective bargaining meetings on how

they will carry out these reform policies prior to submitting the application. While Sebring does feel that the collective bargaining agreement is restrictive, she thinks that DMPS can make it work. “I believe that we will see additional language coming from the DE regarding the collective bargaining requirement that may make it more palatable,” Sebring said. According to Wheeler, out of the four different reform possibilities, the transformation model seems to be the most beneficial. “It offers the most support and doesn’t create as much discontinuity,” Wheeler said. Discontinuity meaning the model does not take as many drastic measures to transform the school. The transformation model requires that the principal of the school be removed and a new evaluation system for teachers and principals be implemented. This is to measure student progress and teacher effectiveness. According to Sebring the funding the district provides right now just isn’t cutting it. “SIG funds will allow us to make an impact in a shorter amount of time than if we were using the limited resources of the district,” Sebring said.

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BY ERIK HOFFMAN

FEATURES EDITOR

Counselor Penny Weishaar works on paperwork. Three counselors do this kind of work every day. “I’m always reac� ng to someone else so I can’t be as organized as I want to be,” counselor Linda Hart said. ���� ������ �����

In Brief:Get the story in 100 words or

less

Counselor Linda Hart says she does her job to the best of their ability. Students such as senior Nick Ahrens and sophomore LeAndre Lee have diff ering opinions on this. The counselors get

”

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I have someone to go to if I have questions -senior Nick Ahrens

Guidance counselor Linda Hart helps students with scheduling, checking credits and college among other duties on a daily basis. Hart says that she can get as many as 130 emails a day that she has to respond to. “I see anywhere between 8-25 students (daily),” Hart said. Hart has loads of paperwork to do a s we l l a s computer work. With all that she says that she’s a little more disorganized than she wants to be. “I’m always reacting to someone else so I can’t be as organized as I want to be,” Hart said. Senior Nick Ahrens has benefited from the work counselors do and says that the counselors help people with college and schedules. This helps Ahrens in a big way. “I have someone to go to if I have questions,” Ahrens said.

Ahrens has only been to the counselor once this year because of scheduling but he still thinks they do a fine job. With only three counselors for around 1100 students, there are other students who don’t agree with Ahrens. Sophomore LeAndre Lee for example says that the counselors do a bad job and don’t help much. “They barley do anything, they

go to meetings and don’t help us,” Lee said. Lee has been to the counselor twice for schedule changes, but he still doesn’t like them. Lee thinks that the counselors

should be more open than what they are now. “The counselors need to be more open to our personal life,” Lee said. The one time that Lee went to see his counselor he got his schedule changed and was talking about other issues that he was going through. Lee said that the counselor only cared about his schedule and didn’t even ask what was wrong. As a result of this experience Lee came to the assumption that

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counselors only care about scheduling. “They don’t care about our personal life. They don’t even talk to us in the hall way or anything,” Lee said. Hart says that she basically listens to students and gives feedback if she can. Hart also says that she makes referrals to other places if the student needs it. “People get frustrated all the time with the current system,” Hart said

a li� le disorganized when dealing with students, teachers and parents every day. They also have loads of paperwork and mee� ngs every day. For Hart it gets a li� le hec� c some� mes with all the paperwork.

3

4 Page 4Health

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A li� le bit at a � me fi ve days before the test. You’ll be less stressed to try and cram the night before.

For at least eight hours. Don’t stay up studying too late or taking it easy, your brain works be� er a� er a good night’s sleep.

A healthy breakfast. Get enough sleep that you can make yourself eggs and toast, oatmeal or cereal in a pinch. You’ll be more focused if you aren’t thinking about hunger.

Ge� ng stressed can ruin all your hard work. Just stay calm and focus on the task at hand.

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Q: Is water important to good health?

A: “Drinking suffi cient amount of water is important for good health. Every cell is composed of water and is required in order to function properly. Recommended and is required amounts are around two liters a daily. If a person exercises they will require more water to replace what is lost through perspiration,” Livingston said.

Q: Do vitamins really work?

A: “If you were to eat a healthy enough diet. It’s important to have vitamins to supplement the body,” Mark said.

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When a student is walking in the hallways they may not think about how much germs are around them. Teenagers may not understand how to keep their bodies healthy simply because they don’t care or they don’t think about it. A lot of teens just want to eat junk food. Nurse practitioner Maggie Livingston believes that one very important part about being healthy and not getting sick is to eat right. “Teens tend to be very busy so snacks that are healthy are hard to find. Granola bars that are low in sugar and high in protein and fiber are good options,” Livingston said. Sleep plays an important role in a teenager’s health. They are supposed to get around seven and eight hours of sleep. “When we sleep our body is expanding itself from stress, pollutants, infection and sun exposure. Sleep also helps strengthen your immune system. Sleeping also keeps our heart healthy by reducing levels of stress and inflammation,” Livingston said. Although this year there has been less people sick in our school, school nurse Jeanne Mark noticed. “Normally the common influenza is the most common in our school. I don’t know if it is the H1N1 that people are taking care of their selves. I have not seen much this year. The most common probably is strep or the common cold,” Mark said. During the winter season it’s more likely to get the cold or the common influenza. “Dress appropriate for the weather. You can get sick easier in the winter because we are all confined inside more. If you are sick stay home,” Mark said. Exercise is a key part of staying healthy. It can be a hassle when someone can be very busy. It helps teens stay fit which helps the body stay healthy. According to WebMd.com Exercise, on the other hand, helps boost immunity. Researchers aren’t sure exactly how exercise helps strengthen the immune system. Studies show that people who exercise have better-functioning white blood cells (the ones that help fight off infection) than people who don’t exercise. The best advice for a teenager about keeping their body healthy, are just the key things. Exercise, sleep, and good eating habits. “To continue these throughout your lifetime. I would also recommend taking daily vitamin and getting plenty of calcium. Building lean muscle mass helps keep you strong it burns more calories. At least avoid smoking and also drug use,” Livingston said.

Keep the body healthy from disease

BY MELISSA HOLLISTERCONTRIBUTER

Put Your

Face Here

Q: Is the fl u and H1N1 vaccine important to get?

A: “Yes, averages of 36,000 people die each year from regular seasonal infl uenza and infl uenza related deaths. Both vaccines are important to get because one does not protect against both. It is recommended 6 months to 18 years receive it. Children are oftentimes in closer contact with each other which makes the virus more easily transmitted,” Livingston said.

Q: Are teens today healthy?

A: “No, there are lots of reasons that they aren’t. You sit down and play games. When I was a kid we went outside. We did not have cell phones. Although you always have the ones that are health conscious. It depends if the parents are healthy. When I was young they just then were fi nding out how bad cigarettes are for you. Now we know more stuff like that,” Mark said.

q & a

The varsity girls soccer team, who are the conference champions as of last year, are ready to defend their � tle with the upcoming season. Girls soccer coach Jon Rubino is ready for a tough schedule but knows that this will be one of their best years. Last year the varsity team was strong in every posi� on and now this year they will have two or more strong people in every posi� on. “Despite one of the toughest schedules in the state. I am looking forward for them to be compe� � ve every game they play, defending our conference � tle and an opportunity to go to state,” Rubino said. Sophomore Bri� any Wells who was a star� ng forward for varsity last year know this year will be a tough season. “I think it is going to be tough at fi rst, but a successful season,” Wells said.

melissa hollister page design sportswww.hooverchallenger.com 5

It’s sort of Even though not many students play it, there are those who breathe it

SPORTS BRIEFS

BY AARON HOMARDNEWS EDITOR

BY ERIK HOFFMAN

BY MELISSA HOLLISTER

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Nathan Brown playing for his club team the Des Moines Oak. Boys track offi cially began Feb. 16, with some older veterans prac� cing in speed clinics before this. The boys are currently taking weight training mee� ngs, with their fi rst compe� � on being on March 16. Coach Byron Williams has been coordina� ng with other team coaches to help teach track skills to assist other sports, like baseball, basketball and football throughout the year. This will allow enough � me between sports to let students take track in addi� on to other sports. Williams is looking forward to the rest of the year a� er what he’s seen so far. “Our members are growing and I think this is going to be the best start we’ve ever had in terms of intensity,” Williams said.

The preseason has started for the boys soccer team and it seems like it’s going well according to geometry teacher, and coach Josh Griffi th. Griffi th thinks that the preseason is going well and that there are more posi� ve a� tudes. The season kicks off the week of spring break. Preseason started right a� er fi nals. “I don’t like to predict, but as long as we buy into a system, play together and for each other we will be successful,” said Griffi th.

5 Girls Varsity Basket Ball Players

Senior Elizabeth Rodriguez #12

Junior Alysse Messa # 20

Senior Liza Brittain # 42

Senior Alexis Andrews # 44

Junior Grace Phillips # 22

BY AARON HOMARD

With a tennis season about to start, players are ge� ng ready for prac� ces. Senior Elizabeth Bourland is ge� ng ready to meet her new team and the challenges ahead.

Bourland has played varsity all three years of her high school career and hopes to make it yet again. She has to maintain at the top of her game because the spot is always open for a challenge.

“You have challenges where if you want to move up in the varsity ladder you need to challenge somebody; you get varsity playing � me if you beat the person ahead of you,” Bourland said.

Prac� ces start within the couple weeks a� er spring break and games shortly a� er. Bourland looks forward to a new and exci� ng season as she always does.

“Last year I played in the top six and we just got really close and had a lot of fun,” Bourland said.

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Sports like football, baseball and basketball are commonly known in the high school realm of sports. But some sports such as hockey just don’t get the credit. Junior Nathan Brown is a fellow hockey player not for a high school but currently for a club league called the Des Moines Oak Leafs. He is the only student from Hoover among other schools from

Dowling, Valley, Waukee, Urbandale, Norwalk, Dallas Center-Grimes and Johnston. Brown has been playing his favorite sport of hockey since he could at the age of four. “My parents put me on my first pair of ice skates when I was two,” Brown said. Most athletes don’t start their sport until they have started school let alone learning their ABCs. Brown gives that credit toward his dad. “My dad has always liked that sport; he got me into it. After my first year I just got hooked.” Brown said. Hockey, unlike other sports, is

played all year round. Players aren’t necessarily on the same team but they are constantly playing. “I play on a 3A team over the summer. It’s not professional; we’re not getting paid to do it. There’s a bunch of kids on my winter team that play on it,” Brown said. Many of Brown’s friends from high school don’t play hockey because they didn’t have the early influence. Junior Ben Markey is a close friend of Brown. He has never played for a team but enjoys watching a game now and then. “I never ice skated before and it was kind of too late by the time I started getting into it,” Markey said. Markey admires Brown’s talent for hockey and gives him credit for some of the abilities hockey gives. “You get a lot of quickness and agility for other sports he wants to play. He’s in good condition too,” Markey said. Markey doesn’t have the same drive as Brown does with hockey. Markey would rather spend his time in front of the TV watching a game of football rather than a throw down on the ice with hockey. “I don’t think a lot of people know about hockey so they aren’t that into it,” Brown said. With many of his friends not in to hockey, his friends find it hard to hang out with him. “He’s playing almost all year round and he has practice about every day,” Markey said. Brown’s practices work on a whole range of skills including puck handling, shooting, passing, speed and acceleration for an hour and a half, four days a week. “They (coaches) always lay down on Monday practices what the other team does. We watch video tape and we just prepare our week,” Brown said. Brown truly lives and breathes hockey with at least one game a weekend. “I just like the atmosphere. I like winter and I love when fall rolls around because I know hockey season’s coming around. I just love to play,” Brown said.

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jason reichenbacher page designentertainment 2.26.10 v.43 i8 entertainment6

BY MICHAEL ROBYOPINION EDITOR

Movie Review

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey has been bel� ng it for years, but her tears may have caught up with her. Carey seems to think that her breath will carry a pitch, this is not true. No one wants to sit through a performance of a sex symbol breathing into a microphone.

Vince Neil While Motley Crue’s Vince Neil can keep the crowd energized every night on tour, he can’t keep his breath. Neil is very famous for skipping numerous words in Motley Crue’s live performances over the past 10 years. A� er 25 years of screaming, the Crue front man has lost some voice muscle.

Carl Lewis In 1993, Olympic gold medalist Carl Lewis sang the Na� onal Anthem. From the get go, the performance had the crowd a� emp� ng to hide grins .A� er singing way out of range, it was apparent that Lewis had lost his voice. Minus the bad performance, Lewis is a highly credited athlete

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Combine the lives of several simple couples, an all star cast and the premise of love and you have a hilariously unorthodox comedy everyone can relate to. The plot is difficult to follow at points, as it tries to blend many different stories, from teenagers aiming for their “first time” to accepting a failed marriage proposal and forgiveness after an affair. All of these elements come together into a film that’s bittersweet at times, but simply hilarious at others. Romantic comedies are something of a staple of a date night, and I’d strongly recommend this one to any couple, young or old. There’s enough content and hilarity to appeal to practically anyone. The many stars include Ashton Kutcher and Jennifer Garner as best friends struggling in their own love lifes, Taylor Swift and Taylor Lautner as a teenaged couple and Julia Roberts

and Bradley Cooper as friends on an airplane out for something more. These are just a few in the huge all star cast that made up this hilarious comedy. The movie was not lacking in its different kinds of humor either. There were sex jokes, intelligent jokes and cute love jokes. Despite never taking itself too seriously, the movie brings several messages of forgiveness, being patient with the people you care about and respecting the nature of love itself. There’s not a lot to learn from this movie, but you may take home some tips anyway. The only problem with the movie is its struggle to keep consistent and prevent the different stories from becoming too choppy. This is recurring and makes it difficult to connect to the characters early in the film, but more than makes up for itself later. After two comedic hours, I was left just wanting more of this charming and hilarious comedy.

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Jason Reichenbacher Sidebar

The CHALLENGER is published by the newspaper staff of Herbert Hoover High School, and exists to serve as an open forum for the students, faculty, staff, administration and community. All state and federal laws regarding the publication of student materials shall apply, and the CHALLENGER will not publish materials which also fall under the guidelines established by the Des Moines Public School system, and are deemed libelous, obscene or a material and substantial disruption to normal classroom activities. The views expressed are not those of Des Moines Public Schools, faculty, staff or administration. All articles are researched, written, edited and designed by the staff, and are the result of editorial decisions made by the entire staff. Any student, faculty, staff, or community member wishing to contribute materials will need to submit copy within deadline restrictions; however, final publication is at the discretion of staff. Letters to the editor are encouraged, and must be 250 words or less in length and signed; letters may be edited for length, grammar, spelling, etc. Every attempt will be made to verify the authenticity of the author, and no anonymous letters will be published. Advertising will be accepted for all products or services that are legal for minors to possess or utilize. Advertisers wishing to reserve publication space should call 242-7313 and leave a message.

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The No Child Le� Behind Act has le� all students behind

The Challenger staff voted 9-0

for this editorial

michael roby page designwww.hooverchallenger.com opinion

Student sound off “

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In 2001, President George W. Bush passed a law to put him down in history as the education president. This law is known as the No Child Left Behind of 2001(NCLB). Within NCLB, all public schools are set at a standard in which they must improve their test scores and proficiency ratings gradually every year until the year 2014 where 100 percent of the students will be performing at 100 percent levels. This law has set up every single student for failure in their education because now all teachers don’t care about teaching their lessons; they care about teaching the test and nothing less. NCLB has also meddled with every fine arts department and extra curricular activity because most funding is put toward mathematics and English departments. Another problem of NCLB is the fact that not all students are treated equally. What that means is that the student who attends Central Academy also receives the same test as the refugee from another country who does not read a bit of English. Not only that, but even the children with disabilities are required to be at the national set benchmark. NCLB violates another law allowing disabled students to take their own

tests at their own level under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). For instance, a blind student who cannot read the test under IDEA may listen to the teacher read the test out loud. But because

they cannot read, the blind student therefore fails the reading portion of the test and from there fails at the national level. NCLB is fully and one hundred percent unfair to require all students at different levels to compete with each other.

Passion over ratings

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When schools do not meet the requirements or do not improve their scores, they receive a punishment. Those punishments can range from firing the principal to denial of money grants to closing the school for good. When all schools lose the money they were promised, private schools will benefit in enrollment and their own development of their schools. Overall, the result of privatizing all schools where each school budget can pay for their own education and diminishing the spending on public education from the government is in effect. It may have sounded like a great idea with the title of the act, but the politicians needed to do their job and read the actual context of such a failure for all students. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 does not benefit free public education. It destroys it. It does not boost test scores. It lowers the quality of education and sets up

We’re All Ge� ng Le� Behind���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������

It’s Saturday just past 11am. My heart rate has reached lightning speed, my hands are restless and clattering against my pant seam and I’m taking deep breaths to try to relax myself. This is nothing new to me; it’s how I always get when anything of meaning in my life is about to take place. I repeatedly tell myself to stop freaking out, but the nerves take over as I enter a room with three judges, a small audience and a stage. The journey to state speech contest had started about six weeks earlier when the IHSSA speech contest groups had been posted on the drama board. I eagerly peered through the list for my name; it appeared with three others- Cassie Tant, Drew Davis and Kayleigh Wren- performing a scene called He said and She Said. Rehearsals soon began, and we quickly realized how twisted the plot of our scene was. Just reading through the script made me stop to try and comprehend what was going on. The scene was centered on a friendship between two women, Enid

and Diana, that was manipulated by an older woman, Mrs. Packard, who spent her days gossiping about others’ personal affairs. The scene gets twisted when Mrs. Packard accuses Enid’s husband, Felix, of secretly having an affair with Diana. From there it becomes a story of exactly what the title says- he said, she said. One of our first tasks was to map out our character’s life, even before the script began. I had to know Diana’s past, her relationships and her outlook on life. In other words, I had to become Diana. I spent 3 hours reading through the script, looking for hints of why she said every word she spoke- where it was coming from. As we were discovering our characters, my group, along with our coach, Chelsea Cunningham was starting to bond as well. I didn’t really know my group members before this experience, but I came out of it with three people I can call good friends. We would spend more time talking about the scene than we would actually run it. We would get caught up in our characters and have continued dialogues, past the written script. I remember leaving our districts center so ecstatic and just overwhelmed after one of our best performances to date. The icing on the cake was our perfect score of one-automatically qualifying us for state. The two weeks I spent at rehearsals after districts, I think I learned more about acting than ever before. Cunningham had pages full of notes after repeatedly watching our scene.

We were now focusing on the details that would separate our performance between good and pure quality. We had to build to a climax and we had to actually listen to each other, like living the scene instead having it memorized in our head. We were bringing life to the scene. I could feel the intensity rise in the room as the highest point in our arguments was expelled. There was a point in which it really hit me that we, as a group, were truly committed to this scene. There was a point in the scene in which Enid and Diana (Kayleigh and I) had a final, desperate plea to save their friendship. We had run the scene dozens and dozens of times, but this time there were tears in Kayleigh’s eyes during that moment. That’s the moment that I realized that we had taken a script, written 90 years ago, and made it ours. We were set to perform at 11:15. The scene had to come to us naturally, because once we hit that stage, everything went blank, and it was up to us to have the instinct to know what our character would do. What we would do. We spent the next fifteen minutes giving a performance that had been dissected and analyzed, and had been turned into our own. I remember leaving the room ready to burst. We quickly came together in a group hug, one that felt so familiar. By then, scores meant nothing. A number could never represent the feeling I had after our state performance; a feeling of accomplishment that I got to share with four really great people.

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By Aleksandra Vujicic

managing editor

Jay JacobsonI don’t like it. I didn’t think it would work when they first came up with the idea.

Cole KleverI think it’s a good program, it helps students.

Mittzi CastellanosIt’s not the school’s fault. Sure they should have a push to succeed but it’s not fair to the kids who don’t have that academic capacity.

Samra HamzicIt’s not the teacher’s fault, it’s the student’s fault for not caring.

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KIRA HERRON ILLUSTRATION

MONDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY SUNDAY

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1 game to play

6 7

10 11

3 places to go

Jazz Fest Concert @ 7:30 pm.

90 minute early dismissal

Conferences 4-8 pm

Band Trip

Conferences 12:15-8 pm

No Classes

Carmike Wynsong 16

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Salisbury HouseEast Village

The Salisbury House has all the charm

of sixteenth century England. It’s the

perfect place to impress the date. They

are holding a history series Mar. 6 and

students can get in for just $5 with ID.

Check their website for more info.

the board8

MARCH

8 9Murder Mystery Event Audi� ons

Hoover/Meredith SM Ensemble Concert 7 pm

Diversity AssemblyMeredith Solo

Ensemble Fes� val

NCDA Honor Choirs @ Minneapolis

SUNDAY4 5

TUESDAY

Diversity Week

Mock Trial @ PCCC

Meredith Solo Ensemble Fest

V B BB Sub State

120 min early dismissal

Mock Trial @ PCCC

Publica� on Ad Sales

21 3

Band Trip

No Classes

Band Trip

IHSSA IE State

Band Trip12 13 14

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sudokuThe grand Wynsong movie theater is able to seat hundreds of audience member in comfortable raised sea� ng. The top movies to see at this loca� on are Wolfman, Valen� nes Day and Avatar 3D.

The East Village has been described as the most vibran neighborhood in Des Moines. Residing near the hill of the state capital, the East village has a collec� on of warm shops, restaurants and residents. The East Village is the perfect place to have a stylish dinner.

The Boys swim team ------=

Boys swimming

{ T H E C H A L L E N G E R B O A R D }