march 2009, the gahr forum
DESCRIPTION
March 2009 issue of The Gahr ForumTRANSCRIPT
Volume XLIV Issue VIIThursday, March 26, 2009
The Gahr Forum
Cerritos, California
Richard Gahr High School
At a school board meeting on March 10, Su-perintendent Dr. Gary Smuts and the school board reached an agreement on how to manage the ABC Unified School District’s budget for the next school year.
According to The ABC Federation of Teach-ers, Smuts pledged that no permanent employ-ee would be laid-off.
“It’s good because we don’t have to let go of any tenured teachers, so none of the teachers in our district got pink-slipped,” Jackie Burneson, science teacher and union member, said.
Along with their jobs, abiding teachers have secured their health benefits.
“What I am thankful for for is that as a dis-trict, we keep it as normal for the students as possible. You want to run your school the best way possible and you can’t run a school with-out people,” principal Gina Zietlow said.
Health benefits are not the only entities being kept in the 2009-2010 school year, after-school intervention programs, free transportation pro-grams, summer school, and a number of other agendas will be preserved also.
“I’m glad we don’t have to lose our music and art classes,” Burneson said.
The maintenance of the measures will be met by the reduction of next year’s $6.7 million debt through what the district calls strategic hiring, cost containment, categorical flexibility, and a non-mandated reserve.
“For us, it means less money to operate with. What I envision is that we make sure we have the essentials: paper, utilities, and supplies. From there, security for certain areas will be determined. We need to cover the basics,” Zi-etlow said.
Class size reductions will remain through categorical flexibility, which lets the district use money that was originally earmarked, to fill holes in the budget.
“English and math are going to look differ-ent next year,” Zietlow said.
What might be cut or reduced are the GATE program, Peer Assisstance and Support System, and the School and Library Block Grants. Fresh-man class size reduction will be removed.
“Ninth grade classes will not have the same 20: 1 student-to-teacher ratio next year,” Ziet-low said.
Nearly $8 million was cut from this school year’s budget. Next school year’s budget will be cut by $8.6 million. Burneson offered a solu-tion to the state’s monetary problems.
“I personally think the state should look into saving money by not doing so much test-ing. From what I hear, testing like star testing costs a lot of money,” Burneson said.
Many programs will be kept for the next school year. It was a meeting full of agendas, agree-ments, and promises.
The School Board Has Spoken
Lockers and doors were the victims of a few pranks on March 16-17.
On a monday morning, the key-holes of classroom doors were filled with El-mer’s glue.
“If it’s our own stu-dents, it’s sad that they’re wasting resources. What’s hard is that kids get the impression that since it’s public, it’s free, but the truth is we pay for it,” principal Gina Zietlow said.
The next morning, St. Patrick’s Day, random lockers in all three quads were found defaced.
“The locker combina-tion was sprayed black and I couldn’t even see the numbers to open my locker,” Joy Tawadrous (10) said.
The cost to repair the lockers and doors has yet to be calculated by the dis-trict.
Many students’ rou-tines were hindered by the spray-painting of lockers and many faculty mem-bers were disappointed by the situation.
“Respect of property starts in your own home and your home is Gahr High School,” seceratary Diana Flores said, “Con-sidering the economic sit-uation, it would have been
better to put the money spent on repairs to better use such as classroom ap-pliances or books.”
Despite speculations that the acts were part of a senior prank, some hope for otherwise.
“I heard something very disturbing the other day. Some students thought it was just a senior prank. It probably cost the district $50,000 to fix the so-called prank,” John Baylis, math teacher said.
The district’s employ-ees swiftly jumped on the situation.
“When I came out of the CAHSEE testing, the paint was already cleaned off,” Tawadrous said.
Monetary concerns have caused one student to disapprove of the van-dalism.
“A prank is supposed to be something that is entertaining to the audi-ence; however, during this recession, I believe such a prank is unnecessary be-cause money that could be spent on the students is being spent on overtime pay for the custodians,” Jason Kerr (11) said.
Another student agreed with Kerr’s dissatisfac-tion.
“If you’re going to do a prank, do something clev-er, not stupid,” Adelaide Padernal (11) said.
Baylis, whose door was one of those damaged, had a few words for the vandals who glued the classroom doors.
“I really hope it was the other people who climbed the fence to vandalize the school. A prank does not call for 20 people coming to school to fix the situa-tion,” Baylis said.
The district sends people to remove the spray paint from the lockers. The paint was gone by the afternoon.
Photographed by Maria Tuadi
The school has witnessed a vandalism spree. Some things were glued and others things were painted.
Campus Attacked by VandalsBy Maria TUadi
News ediTor
Students Go Pink with SupportIt was a rally day that had a splash of color in the stands. Students join astate-wide protest.
By Maria TUadiNews ediTor
Boys basketball makes history in CIF and state championship league.
By Maria TUadiNews ediTor
Sports Features
Wielding pink shirts and sweat-ers, students joined the March 13 protest against the pink-slipping of teachers, brought on by the cutting of state funds.
“I wore pink to support our teachers after all they’ve done for us,” Devyani Chandra (11) said.
One teacher explained what she thought to be the cause of the lay-offs.
“When some people get a chunk of money, they go out and get a maid to take care of the things. Because they think they’ll keep getting the same chunk of money every year,
they keep spending and hiring more and more maids, but this time the money didn’t come. Other school districts did just that,” Ivy Roulette, art teacher, said.
Although over 20,000 pink-slips have been distributed to public-school teachers, none will be given out to permanent teachers in this district.
“Our superintendent has made the students and teachers a priority. Although some people might not think so, our superintendent kicked butt,” Roulette said.
Because of the responsibility of thRoulette talked about how teach-ers from other districts were not as lucky as ABCUSD teachers.
“Many of my friends who work for other districts have been pink-slipped and might not get their jobs back next year,” Roulette said.
Mukul shared her concern of the effects the budget cuts may have on students.
“I wonder why they are cutting back on education. It’s going to be hard for this generation,” Mukul said.
One student believed that wear-ing pink was the least she could do for teachers.
“We need to recognize their ef-forts and show appreciation for the work they’ve put in,” Suparna Bajaj (10) said.
Senior, Marquis Tyler strives to complete his first album and make
it in the music industry.
“I’ll be wearing a heart moni-tor and I just explain what it’s for,”
Debra North said.
Entertainment
Thursday, March 26, 2009News Features
The school’s elected officials share a part of their plans for the next school year. Elections were held March 2-3.
Say Hello to Your
Future Leaders
ASB President-elect 2009-2010Larissa Lacroix
ASB Vice President-elect 2009-2010Stefanei Freeman
“As a former music person, one thing I want to make sure of is that the music people get
some recognition. They do a lot of things for the school,” Freeman (11) said.
Photographed by Maria Tuadi
Elected positions for the next school year:
2010 Class PresidentDesmonde Meas
2011 Class PresidentKristen Jang
2011 Class Vice PresidentSimone Evangelista
2011 Class TreasurerJoy Tawadrous
2012 Class PresidentChandler Murphy
2012 Class HistorianKymmia Haley
ASB TreasurerJoel Tercero
ASB Commisioner of ActivitiesStaci Ani
ASB HistorianWonjai Bong
By Maria TUadiNews ediTor
Teams from high schools across the district gather to build contraptions of miniature proportions. Friday night was a blur of sticks, ping-pong balls, ex-ploding bags, and cash.
Students Catapultto Second Place
Christa Ky, Jason Kerr, Berly Trinh, Phil Elliot, and Aparna Baranwal fan their money after snatching the second place prize. The team created a length-defying device.
Photographed by Maria Tuadi
Filled with groups of panicky Physics students from all over the district, the Cerritos High School gym housed the 2009 Building Contest last Friday.
“It’s an opportunity for stu-dents to physically build things. They do brainwork all year round and this lets them have some fun with the things they’ve learned,” Phil Elliot, Physics teacher, said.
Gahr took second place and its triumphant team of juniors, Apar-na Baranwal, Christa Ky, Jason Kerr, and Berly Trinh, received $75 for their efforts.
“Yay! We won,” Baranwal said as she jumped around celebrating with her teammates.
The objective of this year’s con-test was to build a device, using a bag of given materials, that could be operated by one’s feet and could launch a ping-pong ball. The team that sent the ball the farthest dis-
tance was declared the winner. Al-though the team was happy about their accomplishment, they could not help but feel disappointment at the judges’ ruling.
“One of Cerritos’ teams ping-pong ball flew towards the bleach-ers and they measured where the ball rolled, claiming that it was part of the ball’s projection, but that’s not how they measured other teams’ ball projections,” Ky said.
Some teams were not as suc-cessful at reaching the goal as Kerr’s team.
“When one of the teams from some other school was being judged, I was sitting down in the bleachers and I heard a loud ex-plosion, looked up in one direc-tion and all of a sudden, snap, the ball hit my hand and landed on my lap,” Hanny Tanama (12) said with a shocked look on her face.
Many teams had difficulties with the task.
“Our trouble is that we keep
coming up with new ideas,” Mar-vah Farooqui (11) said while brain-storming with her teammates, ju-niors, Pooja Vaidya, Mahira Godil, and Uzma Karwa.
One team revealed their strate-gy toward building their catapult-ing device.
“We’re going to put a ball on the stick and use a rubber band at-tached to a bag filled with air to release the stick, which will hope-fully catapult the ball through the air after we step on the bag,” Maxwell Stout (12) said as he and his senior teammates, Kelli Lamb, Monique Diaz, and Kyle Santelio, tested out their gadget.
The challenge to build a foot-operated catapult proved to be a tough one.
“We have to squeeze our brains out to figure out this thing,” Debo-rah Seoung (11) said as she sifted through the materials with her fellow junior teammates, Serena Chu, and Aishah Majeed.
By Maria TUadiNews ediTor
“One thing I really want to do is bring the school closer together. I want to keep people from only hanging out with their cliques in ASB,” Lacroix
(11) said.
Candidates campaigned Feb. 19-March 3 and the student body chose their new representatives
“There were more votes than I’ve ever seen in past elections,” Justin Velez, ASB advisor said.
The newly elected ASB president shared the winning strategy of her and her running mate.
“We reached out to a lot of freshmen,” Lacroix said.
Multiple offices are still available. Visit room 507 for more information.
2Last Tuesday, students and parents came to school to attend Open House. The night allowed parents to
visit their children’s classrooms and see what the year has been like. Parents and teachers were given the chance to interact and discuss with one another. Parents gave feedback on what they thought of the night.
Open House Welcomes ParentsBy aNTieM TraN
MaNagiNg ediTor
“I come to check out what ‘s going on in my daugh-ter’s classes. It helps me learn how she’s doing in school,” said Boonsong Ananthasukhon, father of Benz Ananthasukhon (9).
“I visit to learn about my child’s grades and the projects presented in the classrooms,” said Imelda Conchola, mother of Yorick Vega (9).
“Open House helps me learn what is current in the classroom,” said Ana Perez, mother of Marlene Perez (10).
“Visiting Open House helps me to communicate with my son’s teachers and see how he is doing in his classrooms,” said Sheila O’Connor, mother of Nick Marco (11).
Photographed by Maria Tuadi
3ActivitiesThursday, March 26, 2009
“Let’s Get Loud!”
This year’s talent show, “Let’s Get Loud!”, sold more than 360 tickets and took place on March 13.
“I liked all the hidden talents,” Juan Tarin, SIA, said.” “The audience gave great support and everyone stayed for the entire show. To me, they were all winners.”
This was the first year that drama took over the talent show.
“I wanted to revive the talent show from falling,” Mario Baca, drama teacher said. “I wanted everyone to get pumped
up for the show.”There were five judges: Aaron Jones,
Gahr alumni and actor; Rob Grishkoff, band director; Stacy Parker, dancer; Rocìo Llamas, singer and dancer; T Lo-pez, singer; and Momo Rodriguez, co-medic actor.
The show started with Rodriguez tak-ing the stage and performing stand-up comedy.
He made a few “fat” jokes about him-self, which the crowd loved.
From “Super Mario Brothers,” Mario, played by Joey Byington (10) and Luigi, played by Marvin Ceballos (10), both hosted the first part of the talent show, keeping the show moving smoothly.
“I enjoyed being able to make a fool of myself on stage,” Ceballos said.
The most important part of the talent show was of course the talent and acts that the participants had prepared for the audience.
There were five different categories - multiple singing, solo singing, dance, instrumental, and acting.
Of course, all this talent did not just fall right out of the sky, the participants had to work extremely hard, put in a lot of effort, and be determined to perform their very best in such short time.
“All together, we only had a week to practice,” Maya Ohayon (10) said.
There was also some participants that didn’t practice as much because of other activities or responsibilities.
“We didn’t practice much because Niel had basketball,” Benjamin Clement (12) said.
During the fifteen minute intermis-sion, much of the audience already start-ed picking out their favorite acts.
“My favorite was Ciera because I felt her performance. My body felt vibrant,”
Joey Dewan (11) said.“My favorite was Bianca and Juan be-
cause they brought ‘flava’ to the stage,” Warren Kennedy (11) said.
After an entertaining and exuberant three hours, the winners were finally an-nounced.
Some of the performers were very happy to be part of such a great show.
“It was amazing to share the stage with my sister.
This was the first, last, and best talent show that I have done,” Sapir Ohayon (12) said.
“The talent show was a very beautiful experience,” Helen Lee (12) said.
By gregory poBleTesTaff wriTer
Upcoming ActivitiesMarch
26 - Spring Concert, •Grad Night Tickets Senior Day 8:30-12:00p.m. at Cypress College28 - Band Festival•30 - Caesar Chavez Holiday •(No School)31- Prom Tickets on Sale, •Prom Nomination Forms Go Out Last Day for Cap and Gown
April2 to 5 - Calculus Camp •8 - PTSA Meeting, •Homeroom Rep. Meeting9 - Sadies, Prom Nomination •Forms Due10 - Good Friday (No School), •3rd Quarter Ends13 to 17 - Spring Break •19 - The Orange County National •College Fair20 to 24 - Multicultural Week, •Club Elections21 - Club Presidents’ Meeting •Museum of Tolerance for Social Science and ELD students22 - SSC Meeting, •Prom Nomination Lunch Rally
WinnersSolo
1st Place: Maya OhayonRunner Up: Revel Johnson
Multiple1st Place: Ben Clement, Niel
Taniguchi andJustin Angcaco
Runner Up: Eddie Perez and Andrea Vasquez
Dance1st Place:
Kekilakolina GaoayRunner Up: Ciera Westfal
Acting1st Place: Morgan Mason Runner Up: Austin Matos
Instrumental1st Place: Samuel White
Runner Up: Grace Liu
The talent show was a big success with some unforegettable performances.For many, this was their last high school talent show performance.
An EducationalContribution
The French Club will sell snacks to raise money. The profits will go towards helping children in Haiti.
It’s not unusual to see many club members around our campus selling snacks in Ziploc bags to help raise money for club activities.
But the French Club is taking a dif-ferent step by taking the profits and turning them into a brighter future for others.
Club president, Sabrina Morales (11) describes it as a “humanitarian effort” that will help underprivileged children in Haiti.
During French class, Morales and her classmates were learning about the history of the poverty-stricken country, Haiti and how many chil-dren are suffering when it comes to education.
The information that they had learned had them feeling helpess.
They then decided to take an extra step in finding a way to help out and contribute.
“It’s unfortunate that this country
is so poor and it’s in our own hemi-sphere,” Club advisor and French teacher, Mrs. TenBroek said.
Because many families in Haiti are poor and unable to afford school sup-plies, the club decided to raise money in order to give the children in Haiti a better education.
“The money will go towards an in-ternational organization to help kids in Haiti,” Mrs. TenBroek said.
Specifically, the proceeds will go to-wards funding projects such as teach-ing the children “computer skills” TenBroek said.
The proceeds will also go towards supplies for the schools.
Haiti native, Wyclef Jean started the organization that the money will be sent to, Yelé Haiti (yele.org).
Although an exact date has not yet been set, club members will be sell-ing snacks all around school that are fairly cheap.
It will go a long way to help pro-vide for the less fortunate children in Haiti.
By alexis TaylorsTaff wriTer
Photographed by Gregory PobleteSamuel White (11) played an extraordi-nary piece by Beethoven on the piano.
Freshman, Austin Matos, performing a lesson on karate.
Photographed by Gregory Poblete
caltopDriving School Traffic Violator School
Driving (562) 402 - 9877Traffic at the YMCA (562) 809 - 9877
Fax: (562) 860 - 4885 Email: [email protected] Gridley Road, Artesia, CA 90701
4 Thursday, March 26, 2009sports
Spring at A Glance
Scholarly AthletesA few athletes who received scholarships for their athletic achievements.
Nielson (12), quarterback for the football team, received an honorable scholarship to the University of Ha-waii of Manoa. “Once Coach McMackin offered me the scholarship, it was something I couldn’t turn down,” Nielson said. In 2008, he was the San Gabriel Val-ley League MVP, second team all-CIF quarterback, and one of fifty Old Spice Red Zone Players of the Year. “Athletically, I would like to learn as much as I can from the great coaching staff over in Hawaii. Academically, I’m getting free school for five years,”
said Nielson.
Cory Nielson
Victoria Fallgren
Deondre Powell
Aaron BradleyBradley (12) wide receiver, re-
ceived a scholarship to Arizona Uni-versity for his football skills.
“I feel like if you work hard and take care of your grades in school any-thing is possible and there is nothing like playing a sport at the next level,” Bradley said.
Bradley also mentioned that Ari-zona University has a good athletic program as well as many polished academic programs. He worked hard and showcased his skills. Bradley had 57 catches, 960 yards, and 10 touch-downs.
Fallgren (12) will be attending Gonzaga University.
“My grades fit the profile of a stu-dent GU was looking for as well as my strong golf resume,” Fallgren said.
While attending Gonzaga Univer-sity Fallgren plans to play golf for the university.
“I believe that the coach [and] the time I put in and the facilities will help me take my game to the next level,” Fallgren said.
Fallgren has worked hard with her grades and skills in golf to be able to attend the Gonzaga University.
Powell (12) received a scholarship to University of Hawaii at Manoa for his football achievements.
“[The scholarship] will help me pay for my education and will be good to get the opportunity to get the degree for Computer Tech,” Powell said.
Powell is a well-rounded athlete who has been watched by recruiters since his junior year.
Powell has been named first team all-CIF and first team in San Gabriel Valley League.
Fri. 03/27Tennis@ Lynwood 3:00
Baseball@ Warren 3:15
Sat. 03/28Track and Field@ Pasadena Games TBA
Tues. 03/31Badminton@ home 3:15Baseballvs. Paramount @ home 3:15
Golfvs. Warren @ La Mirada 4:00Softballvs. Bishop Mont-gomery @ home 3:15
Tennisvs. Warren @ home 3:00Volleyballvs. Dominguez @ home 3:15
Wed. 04/01Golf Knabe Cup @ Lake-wood 1:00
Photographed by Petra Slaughter Photographed by Petra Slaughter
Photographed by Petra SlaughtetPhotographed by Petra Slaughter
Today 03/26Boys Volleyball@ Whitney 3:15
Badminton@ Loara 3:15
Track and Fieldvs. Lynwood @ home 3:00
Thurs. 04/02Golf vs. Mayfair @ La Mirada 3:30Track and Field @ Warren 3:00
Badmintonvs. Marina @ home 3:15
Volleyballvs. Lynwood @ 3:15
5sportsThursday, March 26, 2009
Road to State Ends a Game Short
Devin Golston (12) drew a foul during the game as the boys basketball team fell to the Harvard-Westlake team at their home in North Hollywood.
SportsNutrition
Boys varsity basketball‘s road to winning CIF was cut when they were defeated by Harvard-Westlake on March 12.
The team made it into CIF- Southern Section Division III-A playoffs as an at-large team after defeating Diamond Ranch in the quarterfinals.
“No one had picked us to beat the #1 seed Diamond Ranch so we had no pressure on us to win,” Niel Taniguchi (12) said.
After winning in the quar-terfinals against Diamond Ranch, the boys then made it to semifinals playing against
Golden Valley at Cerritos College.
“We used the same mental-ity against Golden Valley and we just kept winning games,” Niel Taniguchi (12) said.
Defeating Golden Valley at Cerritos College, gave the team a chance to play at the Honda Center in Anaheim against Harvard-Westlake on March 7.
The boys varsity basketball team were defeated but were able to go on to State playoffs in Fresno.
The team was able to go on, “because we were the top 2 teams in Division III-A,” Cameron Bell (11) said.
The State playoff game against Hanford West was ex-citing and a good experience
for the team.“It was really fun and ex-
citing to see Davon Potts score 27 in Fresno,” Anthony Martinez (9) said.
After winning in Fresno, the team had to face Harvard-Westlake yet again, this time at Harvard-Westlake in North Hollywood.
“Each game went well ex-cept for the last,” Devin Gol-ston (12) said.
After losing to Harvard Westlake a second time, the road to winning CIF was over for the boys. The team lost with a score of 97-77.
“We felt terrible after los-ing, but the fact that we had another chance of winning something gave us hope,” Taniguchi said.
However, the team still enjoyed their run.
Many students started to go to the games and support the team.
The support and cheers helped the team get pumped up and enthusiastic.
“It gets us more motivat-ed,” Martinez said.
The team came closer while competing for the CIF title.
“We improved drastically and came closer as a team,” Sean Morris (12) said.
Varsity basketball made history by going to State for the first time.
“It went well, making the CIF finals were exciting,” Gipson Lyles (12) said.
Boys varsity basketball represented all through the CIF rounds going back and forth between wins and losses the boys have come to the end at the CIF Finals.
Photographed by Alisa Wong
By peTra slaUghTer sTaff wriTer
Read about what nutrition students and athletes should consume as during the day and on a day to day basis.
By alisa woNg sTaff wriTer
Want to pump more muscles or just stay fit?
Students are required to be physically fit for their sport and maintain a healthy diet.
Daily nutrition and a well-balanced diet will certainly be the guide for a healthy, fit body. You’ll absolutely be ready for your next game.
First, start your day off with a big breakfast.
Knowing how many students do not even enter the kitchen before going to school, it is essential that athletes eat a complete breakfast.
Going through the whole day without any food in your stomach can cause your body to quickly lose energy and stamina.
Remember: perfect practice makes perfect performance, but a perfect nutrition and diet make perfect practice first.
Also, how many bottles of water do you drink in a day? Let’s hope you’re staying hydrated and are drinking 8 cups of water each day—that’s water, not soda or Gatorade. (8 cups= 2 bottles of 32 fl. Oz. Arrowhead bottled water)
Staying hydrated and keeping it “moist” inside will nourish the body and prepare it for the day’s workout or game. Whether you are in an indoor or outdoor sport, the body can still become dehydrated.
Before working out, you should eat light snacks with carbs and still more water. In addition to carbs and fluids, you should also be eating many calories throughout the day.
Depending on how much you eat, the speed of your metabolism, and the sport that you are participating in, the number of calories may vary. However, before the workout begins and before the day ends, the intake of calories for athletes should be between 1000 and 1500 calories.
Even if you eat more than enough calories, daily practices should still be able to burn off those calories in just one workout. A night’s sleep for 8 hours can burn 411-514 calories alone (if you are between 120 and 150 pounds).
Eating regularly each day during school can help an athlete’s body to rejuvenate before every practice.
Every 100 calorie snack pack you buy and your parents buy contributes to the daily food necessity of your body.
By now, you should have already drunk a full bottle of water. Go on to the next article or page of your own desire and continue to drink and eat more calories before 6th period.
Photographed by Ralph Porter
Briefing during the game, Coach Robert Becker along with assistant coach Rhonda Allen updated the boys at the Honda Center in Anaheim for the CIF Finals game for their firs match against Harvard-Westlake.
6 Thursday, March 26, 2009fashion
•Hollistersweatersareano-no.TrygoingtoaZumiezstoreandfindingahorizontalstripedpulloversweaterwithnopocketsorhood. • High top Converse might look awkward on your
feet.TryapairoftieupVans. •Hugebeltbucklesarenotcute.Ifyouwantto
wearsomethingaroundyourwaistthataddstoyouroutfit,tryasimplebeltthatisnottooflashy.Shoelacesarenotbelts! •Actionfigures,shoelaces,anddesignscutinto
yourhairisunattractiveandtacky.Asimplelineuporcutisfine.Don’toverdoit. • Overly baggy clothes are on its way out into
extinction.Tryapairoffittedjeansinadarkcolor.Remember,don’tgotootight. •Wearinganytypeofjerseyisnotinstyle.Just
don’twearitunlessyou’replayinginagame.
•Brightcoloredjeansareanegative.Especiallywhenwornallthetime.Trydarkercolors,likebrownsorblacks,andwearthemoccasionally.Thatwillalsokeepthemfromfading. •Layeringthesamecolors(blackonblack,white
on white, etc.) is tacky and looks bad. Overmatchy isUNmatchy.Weardifferentcolorsbutdonotgooverboard. •Stayawayfromurbanwear.Pantsandshirtswith
sparklybedazzleddesignsonthemareafashionfoe-pa.Tryregularplaindenim.Ifyouwanttowearmajorbrands,tryLevis. •Flannelbuttonupsareafashionmust!Everyone
shouldhaveatleastone.Makesuretheyareironedandcleaned.
Fashion Tips for the SpringBy Jessie sladesTaff wriTer
My Style Watch
This month’s My Style Watch features Samuel Piedra (12). “I like keeping my style nice and simple, in other words, casual. It also depends on what kind of mood I am in,” said Piedra. His favorite stores are PacSun, Anchor Blue, and Sears. Obviously, Samuel believes that you don’t need to go to the big expensive stores to look good and express style. One fashion advice from Samuel Piedra is, “Don’t over think it, keep it nice and simple.”
Blue Cardigan from Pac Sun
White V-neck fromTarget
Blue Fitted Jeans from Mervyns
Nike Shoes
By peTra slaUghTersTaff wriTer
Try other things for the Spring!
What fashion tips do you live by?
SeungHan(12) AndrewDayrit(12)
“I live a laid back style. I feel comfortable when I feel good in my clothes. And that’s what makes me different.”
“One tip I live by is to not try other things because I like to be myself and sometimes it doesn’t work out for me.”
It’s all about thepatterns this Spring!Dresses, skirts, andfloraltopsaremakingtheir way in! Don’tput away your graphict-shirtsbecausethey’restillinaswellastanktopsforgirlandguys.Don’tbeafraidtotryother things for theSpring!
By lizBeTh ochoasTaff wriTer
Bob Marley Graphic Tee
Obey T-shirt
RockSmith Patent Jacket
Sex Pistols Graphic Tee
7fashionThursday, March 26, 2009
•Skimpyandtightlittlesweatersarenotinstylethisseason.Donotwearanythingsmallerthanyoursize.Tootightisnotcute.Biggersweaterslikecardigansorgrandmasweatersareahitthisseason.Mainlyoverashortdressandmaybesomeleggings. • Boot cut and flair jeans are staying out, as
wellassuperskinny.Startfindingalittlewiderleg.Straightleggedjeansareagoodalternative. • Bright make-up that matches your outfit is a
fashiondon’t.Ifyoudecidetowearmake-up,weareyeshadowthat’sgoodwithyourskintone. •Animalprintleggingsandtightsarenotinstyle
thisspring.Trywearingjustasimplecolor. •Proportionyourclothing.Forexample,ifyouare
showingalotoflegs,donotshowtoomuchchest.Viseversa. •ThisseasonputyourUggsinthebackofyour
closetuntilnextwinter.TryapairofregularbootsfromShiekorVisionShoes.Youcanalsonevergowrongwithapairofsandals.
•Nikedunksandblazersarealwayscute.Stayawayfromshoeswithalotofneoncolorslikepastriesoryums. •Neckscarvesinbrightcolorscansometimesoverdo
youroutfit.Tryaneutralcolor. • Do not be dirty. Make sure your undergarments
arefresh.Donotstinkorhavebadbreath.Makesureyouhavecleanshoesandcleanshoelaces.Wearcleansocksandalwayswearperfume/colognethatsmellsgood. •Donotfollowsomeoneelse’sstyle!Stayinyour
ownlaneandfindwhatlooksgoodonyou.Peoplewillactuallylikeit!
Fashion Tips for the SpringBy Jessie sladesTaff wriTer
My Style WatchBy peTra slaUghTer
sTaff wriTer
This month’s My Style Watch features Kristal Hardges (10). When asked how Kristal described her style, she said, “My style is Kristal Hardges.” As you can see, she is very into animal print. Her favorite stores are Forever 21, Juicy Couture, and Victoria’s Secret. She likes to shop for the latest trends and cute outfits. One fashion advice she can offer to others is, “As long as you feel comfortable in it you can wear it.”
What fashion tips do you live by?
KristinaEusebio(11)
“Don’t match my colors too much and no make-up.”
“Even though no one can see my socks when I put shoes on, they need to be the matching pair or else I will not leave the house.”
MichelleGregory(11)
Floral Shirt
Long Tube Floral Dress
Ruffle Floral Dress
Ruffle Floral Shirt
Black Cardigan
from Tilly’s
Leopard Dress from Forever 21
Leggings from Tilly’s
Uggs from Nordstrom
Bangles from Victoria’s
Secret
“I am looking forward to Karen Du-arte and Yasmeen Aldogmi’s birth-days and the spring fashion line.”
-Xiomara Hernandez (9)“I like the sun, it’s nice and warm and there is love in the air.”
-Johnathan Johanson (10)“My family goes to Palm Springs every year in the spring time.”
-Cat Pearson (11)
S p r i n g i n t o F u nWhat is your favorite part of spring? Now that spring is here, a few students share their favorite part.
March has been dedicated to Women’s History, however, it has not always been a whole month.
The National Women’s History Day used to only be on March 8.“Women in the United States, their blood, sweat and tears are wo-
ven into the fabric of this country,” Kym Larkin, one of the U.S. history teachers, said, “Their contributions are many ranging from participat-ing in the military in various ways to working in America and taking care of kids. We have been honored by the contributions of women.”
According to United Nations website, Women’s History Day was first celebrated on February 28, 1909 and was then celebrated on the last Sunday of February until 1913.
At the beginning of World War I, Russian women celebrated Wom-en’s History Day on the last Sunday of February, while other women in different parts of Europe held rallies and protests against the war on March 8.
The Russian women started celebrating on when they were granted the right to vote on February 23, according to the Julian calendar.
But it is March 8 on the Georgian Calendar, which was being used by the rest of Europe.
With World War I over, the fight for women’s rights became less and less popular.
It did not resurface u n t i l
the 1950s and 1960s, which was after Betty Friedan, a feminist who founded the National Organization of Women, stated that housewives had to give up their own goals to stay at home.
Women then began to notice how much of Women’s history was not being taught in schools.
In the 1970s, people started college courses where people can learn specifically about women’s history, and soon after, Women’s Histo-ry was being taught to people of all ages in primary and secondary schools.
“It’s woven into the curriculum in the U.S. history textbook. I talk about women in almost every chapter,” Larkin said.
Women’s History Day became Women’s History Week in Califor-nia due to classes that taught about women’s history.
The popularity of Women’s History Week eventually reached Con-gress, who passed a resolution for the week to be celebrated through-out the whole country.
After becoming nationally known, other schools throughout the country had special projects to honor the week.
The National Women’s History Project was created to spread more information about Women’s History.
In 1987, the National Women’s History Project per-suaded Congress to make Women’s History celebrated for the whole month of March. Today, Women’s History Month is celebrated throughout the world.
“Well, I celebrate being a woman each and ev-eryday,” Larkin said. “No I don’t really do
anything special, but smile because I’m glad women are being acknowledged.”
Discovering The Roots of Women’s History Month
By Myia dickeNssTaff wriTer
Photographed By Payton Schachtell
Photographed By Payton SchachtellPhotographed By Pearl Aguilar
Drawn by Lisa Kim
Many people do not know the hardships in order for Women’s history to be recognized. Instead of only a single day, Women’s History is now the month of March.
“I am looking forward to Karen Du-arte and Yasmeen Aldogmi’s birth-days and the spring fashion line.”
-Xiomara Hernandez (9)
“I look forward to spring break. I don’t stress during spring break. I can relax and have some fun.”
-Andrew Sanchez (12)
“I like spring break because I get to go to the beach everyday with my friends.”
-Loretta DiLallo (10)
“The season of baseball and the weather. Just perfect, it’s not too hot and not too cold.”
-Vincent Murillo (11)
“My family goes to Palm Springs every year in the spring time.”
-Cat Pearson (11)
S p r i n g i n t o F u nWhat is your favorite part of spring? Now that spring is here, a few students share their favorite part.
Debra North has lived her whole life with a serious heart condition. She inspires people to live their lives normal despite medical conditions.
A Heart to TeachSurviving a total of eight
surgeries and procedures, Debra North still stands tall as an English teacher.
“It’s really not that hard,” North said. “I am high strung and I’m crazy, so it makes my life interesting and I have a very supportive husband.”
Having valvular heart disease and an abnormal heart rhythm since birth never slowed North down.
She ran track in high school and has been teach-ing for nine years.
“I really had no limita-tions because of my condi-tion, I ran in track,” North said. “The only time I felt limited was when I was six-teen. I ran for a year and was
in my second season when my cardiologist said I had to quit. The stress on my heart was making the valve worse and basically I could have the valve replaced then or later.”
According to North giv-ing up running was a very heart breaking decision, but it gave her a few years be-fore she needed surgery.
It was not until April 2006 that she felt the need for sur-gery.
“During lunch one day I was helping students with their research papers. I felt short of breath, like an el-ephant was sitting on me,” North said.
She was taken away in an ambulance from school and had to have surgery on her heart the following June.
Though her heart disease
is stressful and frightening, North is very open about her condition to students.
“I’ll be wearing a heart monitor and I just explain what it’s for,” North said. “It makes me more relatable, I’m not just an authority fig-ure, I am a real person, and I have real problems.”
Having a positive atti-tude toward her condition, North hopes to inspire those affected by heart disease to live a fulfilling life.
“The heart monitors are a pain. I have to wear them ev-erywhere I go, but it is part of who I am,” North said. “I can still have a functional, normal life. If I can inspire anyone, that’s what I want, I don’t want pity.”
North is an active volun-teer for many organizations including The American
Heart Association. “I am helping organize
the Orange County Heart Walk,” North said. “I was a model in the Go Red For Women where I was one of the survivor models wear-ing a red dress. I am also involved in a heart disease photography program.”
Despite going through so much over her lifetime, the past three years especially, North still takes time to en-joy her life and teach.
“I like English honors two,” North said. “I really like the subject matter and I love assigning one-pagers.”
For information on how to participate in the upcom-ing Orange County Heart Walk, you can contact North or visit www.OCheartwalk.org.
By payToN schachTellfeaTUres ediTor
Debra North mantains a positive atti-tude and continues to teach her classes while wearing a heart monitor.
Photographed by Payton Schachtell
Photographed By Pearl Aguilar
Photographed By Payton Schachtell
Photographed By Payton Schachtell
Photographed By Payton Schachtell
By pearl agUilar & payToN schachTellBeaT ediTor & feaTUres ediTor
Drawn by Lisa Kim
10 Thursday, March 26, 2009arts10
By doMiNiqUe saNTiago & ariaNNa roMeroarTs ediTor & gUesT wriTer
A trip to experienceA beautiful day spent outdoors. Students, teachers and
graduate, Jeiroh Yanga joined together to participate in a fun-filled excursion.
A heart-stopping moment is felt as sixty-four students, six teachers, and alumni, Jeiroh Yanga gathered around the flagpole to experience an inspiring trip to the Norton Si-mon Museum and the Huntington Library.
“I was looking at the sky say-ing, ‘please don’t rain on us!’ But I thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful day as to the students who were hanging out with [us],” Allison Chatman, ATA Director, said.
There were extraordinary ways artists made their artwork that even sophomore ATA teacher, Ivy Roulette was amazed.
“There was a painting by Edgar Degas at the Norton Simon and the tutu of the ballerina was by the Artist’s thumbprint,” Roulette said.
The students who have been at Norton Simon Museum discov-ered much more than before.
“It wasn’t my first time visit-ing but it was interesting because I got to see a lot of very good art. I was also able to learn new things about different artists,” Jenesis Flores Gomez (12) said.
The trip to Huntington Library however, was a big experience for the first comers.
“It was pretty big; we kept on walking without planning where to go,” Grace Guinto (12) said.
A few students were excited right when they set foot on the grounds.
“My favorite part is getting the feeling of excitement when we got there,” Carlos Ramirez (10) said.
The outing was fun and educa-
tional at the same time.“I learned that the cherry blos-
soms were to bloom in March,” Chao Zhang (11) said.
Senior Kistianne Saguin and a few friends took advantage of the experience and confessed that the trip was more than an educational one.
“We took pictures in front of the mansion and we played hide and seek [and] ’I spy’ with two groups and we texted each other clues in which we were hiding at,” Saguin said.
Science introduced itself to Art as students and teachers named the gardens.
“Something that interest me were the different shapes of the flowers from the rainforest ex-hibit. Also, there were plants that ate insects. They are spider eating plants, rawr!,” Roulette said.
Students were able to recognize some of the famous pieces at the Huntington Library.
“I saw the big book of The Can-terbury Tales, which we read in class and I thought it was kind of cool,” Guinto (12) said.
According to Chatman, it was a gorgeous experience filled with art and gardens.
There were a few minor flaws about the trip.
“I brought my own food be-cause the food there was expen-sive,” Rachel Bonifacio (12) said.
Overall, the trip was a success.“I’ve been to the Norton Simon
and Huntington Library last year but it was a breathtaking expe-rience,” Florizza Reyes (12) ex-claimed.
According to Chatman, it was a gorgeous experience with art and gardens.
Phot
ogra
phed
by
Jenn
ifer F
lore
sNorton Simon
Museum
The blissful day at the Norton Simon Museum brought out the fun side of the students and teachers.
The beauty of nature, a few candid shots and kodak moments were cap-tured at the Huntington library.
Photographed by Jennifer Flores
Library. . .
Hun
ting
ton
11Thursday, March 26, 2009 11arts
By Jewely raMosarTs ediTor
Budget Cuts Affects ArtThe Arts department have budget cuts for the upcoming school year. Temporary teachers were affected by the budget cuts.
The Arts department are having 100 percent bud-gets cuts, but aren’t cutting any programs.
“We knew this was going to happen a few years ago,” Mario Baca, head chair of the Arts department, and drama instructor said.
With the budget cuts, the department will contin-ue to receive capital from the school, and will be able to continue to buy supplies.
“We know it’s a real tough time,” Baca said. The Arts department will be adding more fund-
raiser, sponsors, or donations in June for the upcom-ing school year.
“As long as we don’t lose our main programs,” Baca said.
To have budget cuts in California schools, tempo-rary teachers such as Daniel Fernandez, Arts teacher and Rob Grishkoff, band director, who have been teaching two or less years, may be laid off.
“Grishkoff will be back next year,” Baca said.
“We need a band.” Full-time teachers, such as Gregg
Kincaid, video and film teacher; Allison Chatman, Art and ATA head chair; and Ivy Roulette, sculpture and ATA teacher, will return.
“As far as I know, they will all be back,” Baca said.
Baca has discussed the budget cuts with his theater students; therefore, no one in the classes will be affected by the news.
The amount of students in Arts and Technology Academy (ATA) has increased over the years.
After being interviewed and if accept-ed, students begin attending Gahr High School due to the ATA programs, where these programs aren’t offered in other schools.
“Gahr has a good reputation,” Baca said. The amount of students that enter won’t be affect-
ed due to the budget cuts.
Video Games Take Over Spring Concert
By lizBeTh ochoaBeaTs ediTor
The Gahr band’s spring performance includes songs from popular video games. Practicing for the music festival, the band will be aiming to score some points with the judges for the spring musical which will be today.
Get plugged in at the spring concert today by downloading yourselves to the band’s elec-trifying performance.
“[I feel] excited it should be pretty fun, we have a lot of good music in store,” said Christian Manser (11) said.
Tickets was sold for five dollars and with ASB, three dollars, and is taking place at the MPR at 7 p.m.
“[I am] excited, eager and happy. I love playing at con-certs and I always find myself playing different instruments,” Justin Angcaco (12) said.
The band has practiced long and hard for this show -- close to six months.
“ [ I feel] energetic and wild towards the spring concert as it approaches because I get to play music with my peers,” Juan Alvarez (11) said.
Many known pieces are
playing, that are from “video games live part one,” which are songs from some famous video games like Halo II, Civilization IV and Kingdom Hearts.
Other music they are play-ing is from “Shaker Variants,” which is based on folk songs from simple gifts.
They are doing variation on “Scar borough fair” that was made famous by Simon and Garfunkel.
These are also some songs that will be played for the up-coming music festival on Sat., March 28, in the morning at Sunny Hills High School in Fullerton.
Professional judges will at-tend to give suggestions to the band.
Everyone in the band seems to be excited for both upcom-ing shows.
So come support our school’s band, and go to the Spring concert.
Dra
wn
by A
lisa
Won
g
Daniel Fernandez, Arts teacher, announcing news to students, while students listen to the announcements.
Photographed by Jewely Ramos
Featured Artwork
Raymon Campos (9)
Lashauna Williams (12)
Adeleigh Padernal (11)
Photographed by Lizbeth Ochoa
The energetic band blazes out tunes that is presented at the spring concert.
Library
12 Thursday, March 26, 200912Entertainment
For senior Marquis Tyler singing is not only his passion, but his life.
Since his freshman year at Washington High in Los Angeles, Tyler developed an interest in music.
After enrolling into the choir at Wash-ington for an elective, Tyler has been singing ever since.
He came to Gahr during his sopho-more year, and has been in the choir for 2 years, which strengthened his love for music even more.
Recently, Tyler recorded in a studio owned by his aunt's client. "It's a little hard (recording) because you have to make sure you hit every note, and get pitches and things right.
You can't make a mistake," said Tyler. So far he has recorded only one song and is looking forward to dropping an album, but the release date is uncertain.
"It's kind of taking time, because my auntie's a lawyer, and she's really busy."
Tyler also released a song he wrote on
Myspace, titled "How Does It Feel". He created the beats for the song as well.
He has not released any singles on Youtube yet, but is looking forward to doing so soon.
Besides singing at school, Tyler has sung outside of school.
As a freshman at Washington High, he sung in the talent show.
Also during his junior year he sung a solo at the House of Blues. "It felt good to sing in the House of Blues," Tyler said.
However, Tyler did not perform in the talent show.
Instead, he would like to strengthen his vocals. His aunt is working on getting him a vocal coach.
"The talent show, I'm not doing. I still want to get more work done on my vo-cals and wait until they are fully ranged out well where my voice is supposed to fit," Tyler said.
After high school, Tyler plans to ex-pand his passion for music, and major in that subject.
His uncle and his two friends are his connections to the music industry, they know Reverend Run and Omarion.
Tyler also plans to start his own label after a few years in the music industry. "I look up to Al Green, Michael Jackson, Chris Brown, and the late Ray Charles" he said.
Tyler would like his music to stay "low-key," so people could only down-load it off of Limewire.
"If you want to be a singer, songwriter, lyricist, producer, or anything that has to do with music, stay focused, be positive, and don't let people bring you down. Don't let anybody say you can't do any-thing, and believe in yourself. And if you want to perform, do it wherever you can, don't give up, stay humble, and study."
The Passion of Music
By chaNiece poNder & coUrTNey Taylor
sTaff wriTers
By roMaN dUeNas & qUiNTiN MaTTearsTaff wriTer & eNTerTaiNMeNT ediTor
Capcom’s highly anticipated Resident Evil 5 was released for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.
Both versions of the game offer the same amount of features so it is up to the gamer to choose which system he or she wants to play the game on.
The game’s story plot continues from the ending of Resident Evil 4.
However, now players take the control of the orig-inal Resident Evil’s main character, Chris Redfield.
Redfield is now a BSAA agent along with his new partner Sheva, who is on a mission in Africa, where he once again faces mutating monsters and familiar foes giving the player a feel for horror in gaming.
Resident Evil 5 is the first in the series to be re-leased for next generation consoles and it is shown with its detailed graphics and amazing visuals.
Unlike Resident Evil 4’s dark atmosphere, this game has a very bright setting where players must fight hordes of mutated villagers in the bright day-light, which is very different from past resident evil games.
Resident Evil 5’s strong point is that it offers amazing action sequences where players face off in epic battles.
Some fans may complain about the change in the type of game play that Resident Evil 5 produces, but it offers some of the best gaming released so far this year.
The controls for the game are very much similar to previous games, while also offering some new com-mands that make the game very easy to pick up and play for new players.
Resident Evil 5 takes what made the previous games so revolutionary, and while making some changes that fans may disapprove of, this game is a definite hit and is an easy contender for the best game of the year.0
The Dream's sophomore album entitled "Love vs. Money" does not disappoint, and still upholds his self proclaimed title as a "radio killa.”
This CD keeps the same rhythm, beat, and song scheme as his previous CD "Love vs. Hate.”
On both CDs he sings about love, romance and playing in, or sweating out a girl's hair.
The sound of this album can easily be described as pop R&B and sensual lyrics and sound.
While his song selection and variety are superb, his song entitled "Eyes of a Girl" does not impress me.
His voice stays at an all time high throughout the song, leading a listener to believe he is a school girl hitting puberty.
One of his better songs would be "Rockin' that Thing" which is also a single, and radio hit. He defi-nitely "beats the track up like gorilla"
Many of these songs foster the heavy beats of drums and deep basses.
While this album is superb, it does not measure to his first album in which every song was a hit, but most fans will not be disappointed with this album.
This CD is recommended to everyone from the heartbroken to the romantic.
It also features guest stars such as Fabulous, Juelz Santana, Rick Ross, Ludacris, Lil’ Jon, Kanye West, and Mariah Carey.
I would have to say that the best song on the CD is "Should’ve Been You.”
He speaks to you while holding your interest at the same time.
The trademark noises The Dream makes such as "ehh" gives the song its flare and one of a kind style
“Love vs. Money” is an excellent follow up album from The Dream and it shows that he is here to stay.
By kaNayo UcheMefUNasTaff wriTer
“Watchmen”
By faBiaN zaMBraNo & qUiNTiN MaTTearsTaff wriTer & eNTerTaiNMeNT ediTor
It seems as though Alan Moore’s highly acclaimed Graphic Novel Watchmen has been long over due on the big screen.
But did the fans of the illustrious novel receive the movie they hoped for? The answer is yes and no.
Although a great film overall, it is more a movie for fans who have already read the book and not so much for someone just looking for a good action film.
“Watchmen” is set in alternate version of 1985 and tensions between the U.S. and U.S.S.R are worsening which makes the possibility of nuclear war is almost inevitable.
The plot of the movie starts after one of the Watch-men is attacked. The only active hero Rorschach (Jackie Earl Haley) starts to unravel a sinister plot that not only threatens the remaining heroes but the whole world as well.
Snyder directs “Watchmen” in a similar style to his previous film “300” which means most of the ac-tion scenes are shot in slow motion and the visual affects are top notch.
All of the actors are excellent in their respectable roles and bring each of the beloved “Watchmen” characters to life.
The movie has a runtime of 2 hours and 45 minutes so maybe moviegoers that don’t enjoy long movies may be turned off at this.
Watchmen was definitely made for the fans but we recommended that you read the graphic novel before seeing this movie. “Watchmen” is a one of a kind movie that we enjoyed a lot but some people may not.
If you’re looking for an all out action movie with super heroes then this movie is not for you.
If you’re looking for a superhero movie that has more story than action then you will enjoy “Watch-men.”
March reviews Resident
Evil
Having high hopes for the future, Marquis Tyler plans on starting his own music label. He also plans on maturing his voice for future performances and keeping focused for the rest of the school year.
VS.LOVE
MONEY
Photographed by Chaniece Ponder
Thursday, March 26, 2009 Ads 13
14 Thursday, March 26, 2009Editorials
As the days quickly pass us by, students, especially seniors, tend to start catching an epidemic.
Though it is brought up by the usual cough of a large workload, an AP test, and continuous complaining, this so called “ill-ness” just seems to be spreading through-out our campus.
Students are constantly tardy and ab-sent from school for unexcused reasons, but what they fail to realize is that every absence or tardy causes the school to lose money.
With these gruesome budget cuts that are affecting our school tremendously, some funds are going to be cut from various de-partments on campus.
Senioritis has not only brought on lazi-ness, but has inspired many students to give up.
Just because you know that you are go-ing to graduate and leave Gahr, you are still responsible to represent the Class of 2009.
One has a loyal duty to oneself and to your parents to be the best person possible.
For your information, senioritis is just a made up excuse by seniors to slack off and procrastinate.
As a senior, I personally do not believe in
senioritis because some of us have actual re-sponsibilities that require hard work and by partaking in these so called “pranks” and by not do anything academically enhanc-ing, one would just be wasting time that is valuable these last couple months before graduation.
Though we may not feel like doing much this last couple months, we have an obliga-tion to fulfill as seniors and upperclasse-men.
Seniors, know that after graduation the real world comes into play and we are no longer to be tended for by our parents.
We demand respect and to be treated like adults, but we need to be willing to accept the challenge of life and by conforming to the normality of senioritis, we are telling the world that we are not qualified.
Stop being childish and step up and fin-ish your senior year how you should, to demonstrate that we are mature and indeed are worthy.
For upcoming seniors and underclass-men, beware of this made up condition and continue to strive to do your best in school.
Take into account the classes you are choosing for next year and if you know that you are prone to senioritis, be smart and choose “chill” classes because your senior year is still looked at by the colleges and universities.
Seniorit is is deadlier than ever!
It’s the first ever that students at Gahr High School as well as teachers are going to be given the day off in regards to the celebration of Mexican-American activists Caesar E. Chavez.
It is amazing how many students as well as teachers are skeptic when it comes to this man. For everytime we get a day off, whether it’s Washington’s Day or Lincoln’s Day off, we don’t really care as long as we get the day off.
This shouldn’t be the case because these people were very significant in our lives and we should know who they are and why we are getting the day off.
Chavez was a very outspoken person , who spoke out about the lack of pay and bad conditions for Mexican American farm workers.
Born on March 31, 1927 Chavez worked very hard for the Mexican-American com-munity to be recognized and to make better lives for them.
Chavez (March 31, 1927- April 23, 1993) was a Mexican American farm worker, la-borer leader, and civil rights activists who, with Dolores Huerta, co-founded the Na-tional Farmer Workers Association, which later on became the United Farm Workers.
Many people who believed in has cause says his work led to numerous improve-ments for union laborers. His birthday has become a holiday in eight U.S states. Many parks, cultural centers, libraries, schools, and streets have been named in his honor in cities across the United States.
Later, education became Chavez’s focus.He is currently buried at 2900 Woodford Tehachapi Road in the Keenecommunity of unicorparated Kern County, California. There is a portrait of him in the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C.
It is time that Chavez gets acknowldged for his work. Chavez died on April 23, 1993 and this is the first year he is being recog-nized for all his achievements.
When the name Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is mentioned its not hard for people to remember what he has done for African Americans.
When it comes to Chavez, people fail to notice his actions.
Chavez has drafted many inspiring speeches that people hardly know about.
When it comes to pop icons, people know almost everything about them, but I have never learned about or celebrated anything that has to do with Chavez because no one has considered Chavez as a big deal.
Chavez is hardly mentioned in any other classroom besides Spanish and when, he is Chavez is mentioned very briefly.
In honor of Chavez, history classes should give a lesson about what he contrib-uted to.
Children should educated about his fa-mous speeches such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I have a Dream”.
I hope that more students are educated about Chavez especially since we all are taking the day off on March 30th.
Instead of disregarding that day as an-other day off, we should all take notice of the amazing person that once was and cel-ebrate all his achievements.
C a e s a r C h a v e z D a y : Taking Time to Learn About the Unknown
When I first looked at the CAHSEE practice test scores, I was really shocked at the number of people who passed.
The students who passed com-pared to the students who failed makes a pretty uneven ratio of 215 passing and only 22 failing the math section, and 213 passing and about 30 failing the English section.
Being a freshman I didn’t know much about the CAHSEE test scores, but after looking over the scores I realized that the students who took the practice tests didn’t go through much of a struggle.
I learned that out of an aver-age of about 200 students only a few students failed their practice tests.
Although a percentage of the sophomores, juniors, and seniors failed to score proficient on their CAHSEE finals, the department was hoping that the students would do better the second time around.
The students have really stepped up, because the practice test scores turned out great.
Steve Alfi, the head of the math department said, “Out of the two-hundred and fifteen sophomores, and seniors who took the math practice section of the CAHSEE, about thirty or less students didn’t manage to pass.”
This just proves that if you didn’t pass the practice CAH-SEE you probably didn’t try that hard. and with just a little effort, students should easily pass both sections.
The practice math section of the CAHSEE for the sophomores and seniors was taken on Febru-ary 25, 2009, and the juniors and seniors were taken on October 22, 2008.
Out of the 215 students, 193 managed to score proficient and higher.
Only about 22 students didn’t
manage to pass, but for those stu-dents the school provides as much extra practice as they need.
By seeing how well the scores were for the practice tests I knew the students were working hard.
Not only the students, but teachers who were devoting their time and effort into helping the students reach their academic goal have definitely noticed the great turnout of the test scores for the practice tests.
“The data looks great, and very promising. The math department is excited about the test results, and we are looking forward to the MOCK tests next year,” Alfi said.
Even though I don’t have ex-perience of my own with the CAHSEE, it doesn’t seem like it’s something to stress about, as long as you give it your all when the time comes.
The English department gave the CAHSEE English practice test on January, 21, 2009.
Out of 213 students, about 30 students scored below basic or far below basic.
On the other hand, 75% of the students passed, which made the department very pleased with the number of students who passed this time around.
By analyzing the practice test scores, it’s easy to see that the ef-fort of the teachers, and the hard work of the students will pay off when the time comes for the stu-dents to retake the CAHSEE.
The best part was that out of the 213 students that took the CAHSEE English practice test about 36% scored at an advanced level, which was foreshadowing great test scores for the upcoming retakes.
With so many students who scored at an advanced level, it’s obvious that our school is ad-vancing academically each day.
All there is to do is wait and see the turnout of the final test scores as the CAHSEE English test was taken on March 17 and the CAH-SEE math test on the 18th.
CAHSEE: Retake Scores At Their Best!
By Marisel VasqUezopiNioN ediTor
By JUlie siNghsTaff wriTer
By kaela pieroTTsTaff wriTer
By Marisel VasqUezopiNioN ediTor
To deface Gahr has become more than just an act of vandalism or a “prank”, but a destruction of private property.
The pranks that have been com-mitted have consisted of super gluing the doors lock shut of cer-tain classrooms closed and spray painting the numbers of the lock-ers, enabling students from enter-ing their correct combination.
These pranks are not only in-fantile, but are also adding on to the school’s burden of the financial crisis, which will be much worse in the following school year.
To result to this sort of behav-ior just portrays the student’s in-ability to reason and their lack of judgment.
Think about it.Who would spend money to
commit a prank that wasn’t even successful?
The teachers ended up getting into their classrooms on time to start their classes and students were still able to open their lock-ers if they scraped off the paint.
A downfall to this tedious act is not only that the school had to spend money to melt the super glue off the doors and remove the spray paint, but it wasted the time of the teachers who arrived early that day to finish up last minute work.
Besides the extra money paid to workers to clean up after these children, this unfortunate event was unnecessary and accom-plished nothing.
Seniors need to be aware that this is not the time nor is it ever going to be the occasion to vandal-ize property that is not their own and that they could not replace.
As examples to the underclass-men seniors must be on their best behaviors and act like the adults they are on their way of being.
More than Just a Prank
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EditorialsThursday, March 26, 2009 15The
Gahr ForumEditor in Chief
Jessica Lee
Design EditorDonna Garcia
Managing EditorAntiem Tran
Activities EditorPriyanka Patel
Sports EditorEric Wilson
Opinion EditorsMarisel VasquezMartha Vasquez
News EditorMaria Tuadi
Features EditorsTiffany FranciscoPayton Schachtell
Fashion EditorDonna Garcia
Entertainment EditorsQuintin MattearChristopher Feng
Beat EditorsPearl AguilarLizbeth Ochoa
Arts EditorsDominique Santiago
Jewely Ramos
IllustratorsLisa Kim
Alisa Wong
Ted ChangMyia Dickens
Roman DuenasCrystal GossKaela Pierott
Gregory PobleteChaniece Ponder
Pavan Rami
Julie SinghPetra Slaughter
Jessie SladeAlexis Taylor
Courtney TaylorKanayo Uchemefuna
Fabian Zambrano
Staff Writers
AdviserAndrea Alfi
The Gahr Forum is published about once a month during the school year as a public forum for the student expression of news and opinion at Gahr High School at 11111 Artesia Blvd., Cerritos, CA 90703; Room 661. Telephone Number: (562) 926-5566 ext. 22088.
Ads are available by calling the number above. Sub-missions to The Gahr Forum should be dropped off to Room 661, turned into Mrs. Alfi’s box, or emailed to [email protected].
We reserve the right to edit submissions for clarity and length. Major editorials which are unsigned represent the opinion of the staff as determined by the majority of the editorial board. All other editorial pieces will be signed and will represent the opinion of the writer. Reviews and regular columns will always be considered the opinion of the writer. All views and opinions are solely those of the author and are not considered to be the opinions of The Gahr Forum, the Editorial Board, the adviser, Gahr High School, or the ABC Unified School District. Corrections
Significant corrections will be noted in the upcoming edition. Please send any corrections to: [email protected] to the Editors
The Gahr Forum is an open forum for student and other public expression and the discussion of issues of concern to its audience.
The staff welcomes feedback, including letters to the editor, guest columns and other expressions of opinion from students, faculty, administrators, community resi-dents and the general public.
Please send feedback to: [email protected]. The Gahr Forum staff will work to maintain the intent of feedback providers but reserves the right to edit all such submissions for length, grammar, invasion of privacy, po-tential libel, obscenity, and other factors consistent with California Education Code section 48907.
Not all letters will be published; letters are published at the discretion of the editors, with the input from the staff’s adviser, based on the above-stated principles and on individual circumstances. Advertisements
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Re: “Bon Voyage, French Fourteen”Thank you for including an article on the stu-
dents who visited Gahr from France. Though it was nice to see it in the paper, I was truly disappointed that the article on the students who came for ONE DAY from China got a larger photo and 1/2 page spread, and that the “Yogurt Battle” got an entire page, as opposed to students who were here being hosted for TWO WEEKS by Gahr families that got 1/4 of a page.
Does the fact that students of Gahr and their fami-lies generously opened their homes to someone that they didn’t know out of kindness and international understandings for 14 days to 15 students escape you?There area variety of mistakes in the article: There were 15 students, not 14. The school that they went to is not a boarding school, as not all of the students who attend the school live there.
Some do, but only about 50 students total at the school, and 7 of the group. The name of the school was St. Jean Eudes, not St. Jacques. They arrived on January 31st not Feb. 2nd. Two of the students’ names were misspelled: Jeremie and Adelise. It’s disappointing that there are so many mistakes and that they received such little press. I was hoping to send copies of the article to my friend, their teacher Martine Gournay, and the students, however I’m a little embarrassed with all of the mistakes and I’m hesitating in sending it.
Would any of the editors or writers want this ar-ticle to represent The Forum to a group of students who were very excited to be here? Perhaps asking them more questions and involving them in the ar-ticle more would have been nice, as well as checking facts before publication.
SUZANNE TENBROEKFrench Teacher
Re: “Hurley Walk the Walk”
This month’s Fashion page was interesting to read, especially about the “Hurley Walk the Walk”. It seemed pretty fun. From the way you girls ex-plained how we did on the fashion show I think we should’ve won even though I didn’t see it. Even though we didn’t win, it seemed that every student that participated had a blast in the show and the pic-tures that were taken were pretty clear.
CRYSTAL LUQUIN Sophomore
Since I was one of the assistant producers in that event, I found that article very interesting about how it explained what happened and quotes of some of our participants. I really think we should of won that event, because I saw that our school had put a lot of effort into it. It’s amazing how almost everyone that received a ticket went.
I think we should’ve won because we had the best clothes, school spirit, and style. But you have to admit it was pretty fun. I think those pictures that you took of the even were pretty nice too. I hope you guys get to write more articles like that.
PETER KHAOV Sophomore
Re: “It’s Not All About the Romance”I enjoyed reading your article, “It’s Not All About
the Romance”. I agree with you when you say, “It (Valentine’s Day) doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to have a significant other in order to celebrate Valentine’s Day” because to me it’s not all about the flowers and candy, it’s about spending the day with the people that matter most to you and taking the time out to do something special for them.
For Valentine’s Day, I spent the day with my fam-ily and that night I hung out with my friends and I had fun just by being with them and I didn’t feel like I had to be with a guy because I was with the people that mattered most to me already. Also this letter taught me you don’t have to wait for Valen-tine’s Day to do something special for the person you love, you can show them that you love them all throughout the year.
MONIQUE QUARLES Sophomore
Re: EntertainmentI enjoyed the layout of the entertainment section.
It is very eye catching. The illustrations are wonder-ful. I also enjoyed reading all the movie reviews. It helps me decide which movies to see and which ones I shouldn’t waste my money on from reading your review “He’s Just Not That Into You” seems like an awesome movie. Overall, I think you all did an ex-tremely good job. I know this is off topic but I have a new story idea. You should talk about the potholes and “dents” on the school’s grounds. Maybe it’s just me, but I trip an at least three everyday. Hope you consider it. Keep up the good work.
JILLIAN TIEDEMAN Sophomore
Re: “ Difficult Times Call for Dif-ficult Choices”
I saw your article about the millions of dollars lost in the budget. I liked the contingency plan for the years. It is unfortunate to hear about the prob-lems that are going to go to the class they want or get that class to graduate. It is good to hear that the district will not cut any of art or athletic programs.
I think that cutting so much money from the school will affect the students next year. It is good that there are some people who are taking up funds for the budget in the district. I hope that the budget crisis will get better soon. Also I hope that the stu-dents get to pick the classes that they want or need. This financial crisis is affecting everyone not just the school so it is troublesome for all the people.
STEFIN MATHEW Sophomore
Re: “Yogurt Battle”I enjoyed reading this issue of THE GAHR FO-
RUM. It had articles that I was interested in read-ing. The article that caught my attention was the one that was debating Yogurtland and Golden spoon. It grasped my attention because I always get that question asked if I like Yogurtland better or Gold-en spoon. I also had fun reading the articles on the walk the walk fashion show because the stars of that show were some of the people I know.
The article about the budget cut for all of the schools in the ABC School District is one of the things I was interested while reading. Because that will affect our future in school and if we can take the classes necessary to go into a better college could wane because of the budget cut. I also liked the ar-ticle about the forgotten tales of African history be-cause it was celebrating the black history and taught us a lot about the African culture during the presen-tation.
Thank you THE GAHR FORUM newspaper staff for taking some of your time off and reading my let-ter. This issue of THE GAHR FORUM was the issue that gave out the most information about recent new in school and for the schools future. I liked this issue because it talked about recent things that are going on.
JASON MENENDEZ Sophomore
Re: Sports I am writing to tell you that I have been reading
the past few newspapers, and I feel like you have mixed it up with the sports. Before you were writ-ing about sports not many people were interested in, but now you wrote about basketball. There were many students at the game on Friday to show their support for Gahr.
One thing I think you should add to the article was a person dunking so that it could give your article more excitement. If you put Gipson Lyles dunk in your article it would have been a little bit better. Great job writing the sports section this time through. I will still be reading up on your articles to see if you us my advice for the picture. Hope that you get excitement in your article. Keep writing.
JOSHUA PERKINS Sophomore
Letters to the Editors
STEP 1: Fold corner to corner.
STEP 2: Fold the outside corners down, but leave a gap in between.
STEP 3: Form the head by folding the top down and then back again, in a
pleat.
STEP 4: Round the body by folding back the two outside corners and the
corner under the wings.
STEP 5: Make the Ladybug three-dimensional. Fold the body in half.
Then open the paper agin until it is not quite flat.
STEP 6:Draw dots. You’ve got a LADYBUG!
How to make aLADY BUG
Follow these easy step-by-step instructions and bring in your completed lady bug when claiming your prize.
Where on campus can
you find this?
ATTENTION!The first person
to bring this page, completed with
correct answers, to Room 661 wins a
prize!
February Winners!
Gipson Lyles (12)Ricardo Flores (12)Niel Taniguchi (12)
GUess whO?My worst subject in school is science.•My favorite food is Italian•I’m left-handed.•My hero is my Dad.•My worst habit is biting my nails.•My guilt pleasure is eating chocolate •until there’s no tomorrow.My favorite movie is “The Notebook”.•My favorite color is yellow.•My hometown is in Brockport, New •York.I love to talking on the phone with Mrs. •Jones.
ACROSS2 - In what category did Maya Ohayan win at this years “Let’s Get Loud!” talent show? (Two words)4 - Samuel White won 1st place in the ___ category at the “Lets Get Loud!” talent show.6 - Boys Varsity Basketball made it to CIF, but their trip was cut short after their defeat against ___.10 - According to Marisel Vasquez, ___ doors shut and painting the locker numbers is infantile.11 - The French Club decided to raise money to get children a better educa-tion in ___.12 - Every absence and tardy causes the school to lose ___, according to the “Senioritis is deadlier than ever!” article.14 - The Art department make 100 percent budget cuts, but did not cut any of the art ___.16 - What agency does Chris Redfield work for from the Resident Evil 5 video game? (Found on Entertainment)18 - Mrs. North suffers from 2 different ___ conditions.19 - How many people failed the math section on the retake CAHSEE?20 - Kanayo gives her thoughts about The-Dream’s album ___. (Three Words)
DOWN1 - “___ sweaters are a no-no,” according to Jessie Slade.3 - Who said “I am looking forward to Karen Duarte and Yasmeen Aldogmi birthdays and the spring fashion line,”? (First and Last name)5 - What is the theme for this years Spring concert?7 - Women’s History Day gradually became Women’s history ___ after Congress passed it throughout the country.8 - Who is featured on the Fashion Pages male MyStyle Watch? (First and Last name)9 - Cesar E. Chavez was an Mexican-American ___.13 - Sports ___ is essential for athletes. (Found on the Sports page)15 - Capcom released ___ 5 for Xbox and Plastations 3. (Two words)17 - According to Jessie Slade, “___ make-up that matches your outfit is a fashion don’t.”
Forum CrosswordRead through the paper to find the answers!