Skylines Nativity BVM High School, Pottsville, Pennsylvania Volume 10, Issue 6/7

March/April 2014

By Skylar Stoudt

At the end of Febru-ary, men on ladders in-terrupted the flow of stu-dents switching from class to class and even clogged the entry to cer-tain stairwells. But what were they installing? Students soon learned that Nativity would be joining the 84% of high schools in the United States with secu-rity cameras. Many students had expressed curiosity at the reasons for the in-

stallation of the cameras. Security camers are

located at “every door that leads outside of the building, the ramp, the cafeteria,” Nativity BVM principal Mrs. Sabol said. Sixteen cameras feed

a computer monitor on school administrative professional Mrs. Yourey’s desk in the main office. The cameras monitor entrances and

exits only, with the ex-ception being the main office itself. The cameras do not record audio. In the state of Pennsylvania audio recording without the consent of the parties being recorded is illegal. “The Governance Board recommended [the installation of cameras] as part of security up-grades to the facility,” Mrs. Sabol said. The cameras stream to the monitor all day. However, certain faculty members only watch the

Continued on Page 2

Lent time for fasting, giving of yourself to others

Security cameras installed in halls

to guard entrances at Nativity NCAA tourney predictions

2

Personality profiles

3

Opportunities for service

4

Spring sports in full bloom: Photo package

4

Inside this issue:

Upcoming

Events

Thursday, April 17-

Tuesday, April 22—

Easter Break

Thursday, April 24—

Liturgy

Godspell—Friday, April

26, 7 p.m.

Godspell—Saturday,

April 26, 3 p.m.

Wednesday, April 30—

Senior Class Trip to

New York City

Friday, May 9—Junior,

Sophomore, Freshman

class trips

Friday, May 16—Prom

Friday, May 23—

Senior Exams

Monday, May 26—

Memorial Day, No

school

By Elizabeth Winter

Lent is a 40-day period in which

we abstain from eating meat on Fri-

days and Ash Wednesday.

As a child, students were taught to

give up their favorite candy or maybe

even toy.

Now, as students grow older, our

the Church recommends that we give

to others in exchange for giving some-

thing up for ourselves as a Lenten sac-

rifice.

At school, students are urged to

Continued on Page 3

Hilltopper Happenings

Rossi’s & Rushannon’s tourney picks

By Kenny Rossi

(Written March 25)

It’s that time of

year again, Division I college basketball

teams battle for the

crown. All these teams will be looking

for that “One Shining

Moment.” I’ll give you some

of my teams to

watch:

Upset Pick

No. 12 North

Dakota State

The Bison are first

in the nation in of-fensive efficiency at

51%. Look for the Bi-

son to win a game or

maybe even two.

Watch Out

No. 3 Duke

The Blue Devils better watch their

backs against a

tough first-round op-ponent in Mercer.

Look for Mercer’s

Guard Langston Hall

to have a huge game.

My Final Four

No. 1 Florida

The Gators have strong guard play

and a presence in-

side. Also they are led by a group of

hungry seniors that

want to win. I expect them to win the

South Region

No. 2 Villanova

Jay Wright’s Wild-

cats know how to

Continued on Page 3

Page 2 Skylines

From Page 1

feed periodically. The cameras were installed not to watch students, but to watch who enters and exits the building.

A few students commented on the installation of security cameras at Nativity. “I think it is a good safety meas-ure, I mean it caught the school ghost it can’t be that bad,” sopho-more Travis Hunyara said. Some students also agree the cameras can’t be that bad.

“I don’t really mind the cameras. In an emergency situation, I’m sure students would be grateful for them,” Mady Ulsh, freshman, said. Certain students see the camer-

as as both good and bad. “I think it’s a good security pro-tocol, but many consider it to be an invasion of privacy,” Zach Adams, senior, said. Other students are indifferent to the installation. “I don’t really care [about the installation of cameras],” seniors Josh Buehl and Jermey Hoban said.

“I don’t care about the video cameras, I just need a date to the prom,” Mark Sabol, senior, joked. Many of Nativity’s students disa-gree with the installation.

“The video cameras are bad for us because we can’t get away with our usual shenanigans,” juniors Kayla Prezelski and Megan Croley, said. Whether students are pro or con security cameras, the decision isn’t theirs; the cameras will be here to

stay as a safety precaution.

Cameras installed to protect students, school

NCAA Tournament

Picks

By Brett Rushannon

(Written March 25)

Final Four

Arizona vs Duke

Duke. The Arizo-na is good, just not

quite as bad as last

season.

Florida vs.

Michigan State

Florida. Billy

Donovan has a

team. Not the great

teams of 2006 and 2007, but good

enough to reach

the title game.

Title Game

Duke vs. Florida

Duke because

they have a awe-

some freshman Jabari Parker.

They have a re-

ally good three-point shot. I just

don’t think Florida

has a really good

offense.

North Carolina

State

Will make a run

because of T.J War-

ren. They will also make a run be-

cause they can

shoot from any-where on the floor.

Page 3 Skylines

By Cassidy Nush & Erin

Luckenbill

Alara Cetin

Q. What is the biggest dif-ference from your country, Turkey, and the United States? A. There are a lot of differences between every cul-ture. I find the American culture a lot more relaxed and easygoing compared to the Turkish. Q. What are your plans after you graduate from Nativity? A. I am plan-ning to study in Korea, University Business School,

which is in Seoul, South Korea. Be-fore that, I’m go-ing back to see my family and friends back home. Q. What is your favorite thing about America and why? A. I love the fact that fast food chains are so cheap. It might sound funny, but I love eating so I can say that I re-ally enjoy your burgers. Q. What do you enjoy doing in your free time outside of school? A. I spend time with my host family and friends, try to

travel to bigger cities as much as possible, and ex-

plore the country.

Steph Killian

Q. What is the highlight of your senior year? A. Hanging out with my friends and playing soft-ball Q. What col-lege do you plan on going to? A. Penn State Schuylkill. Q. What do you plan on ma-joring in?

A. Business.

Q. Where do you see yourself in 10 years? A. Successful and married with

children.

Personality profiles:

Alara Cetin, Steph Killian Rossi From Page 2

win this squad, has only lost four

games all season.

Led by Senior James Bell there

my pick to win the

East Region.

No. 3 Creighton

Doug McDer-

mott is the reason

the Blue Jays are where they are

now. This team

knows how to shoot the three

and is in a weaker

West Region. I look for team to

win the West Re-

gion.

No. 4 Louisville

Rick Pitino’s

Cardinals are se-

verely under-

seeded. They blew out teams all year

in their confer-

ence and they get a four?! I think

the Cardinals will

make the selec-

tion committee pay for the bad

seed. I expect

them to win the

Midwest Region.

National

Champion

Villanova

This team is

hot, and I believe

they will rise to the top and win it

all. If this happen

it would be Villa-nova’s first Na-

tional Champion-

ship since their Cinderella run in

1985.

From Page 1

give during Lent and also through-

out the rest of the year.

Campus Minister Miss Wassel

consistently reminds students of

community service hours being

turned in and there are many ways

for us to give and meet that goal.

A good example of where stu-

dents may give of themselves dur-

ing Lent is Nativity Chaplain Father

Loeper’s parish, St. John the Bap-

tist, Pottsville.

St. John’s hold fish dinners on

Fridays and the parish could always

use some extra hands in the kitchen

or serving the dinners.

St. Michael the Archangel par-

ish in Minersville is holding a Fish

Dinner on Good Friday. The parish

is still looking for student volun-

teers for the event.

As teenagers, Lent affects stu-

dents in many ways. The focus is

taken off the individual and instead

is on Jesus. For example, our Fri-

day plans change due to the sacri-

fice of not eating meat and poultry.

In school, students also have

opportunities to attend Stations of

the Cross, both dramatic and litur-

gical style.

In the dramatic stations present-

ed by the senior class, students have

more of a visual idea of what hap-

pened. Students get to be involved

by acting as Jesus, Mary and other

important roles.

Easter ends the days of fasting,

but it also brings together students’

families and friends to celebrate the

Resurrection of Christ.

As Lent comes to an end, stu-

dents need to be thankful for what

Christ did for us and for our fami-

lies in sacrificing Himself.

Lent time for sacrifice of ourselves to others

One Lawtons Hill Pottsville, PA 17901

Phone: 570-622-8110 Fax: 570-622-0454

E-mail: nativity@infionline.net Website: www.nativitybvm.net

Value Then

Value Now

Values Forever

New season produces opportunities

Skylines Staff

Erin Luckenbill Cassidy Nush

Amy Jo West Collin McGovern

Kenny Rossi Tyler Rossi

Gino DiNicola Walter Lash

Lauren Moyer Lindsay Lord

Maddeline Domalakes

Tyler Cooper Bailie Shockley

Kristin Goodman Brett Rushannon

Soueun Kim Pauline Yoo Jeff Yordy

Skyler Stoudt

Allicia Antalosky Lizzy Winter Adviser: Mr.

Kevin Keating

Spring sports under way

By Amy Jo West

After such a harsh and cold win-ter, many are looking forward to this year’s spring.

Some people are hoping for one more two-hour delay or a day off, while others just want winter gone. Everyone has something to look forward to this spring. When asked, Campus Minister Miss Wassell said, “What I like most about spring is

watching the magic of God’s creation coming alive after the dark, dreary days of winter-especially this past winter. I like the scent of a gentle rain watering the earth to new life. “Day by day, I watch the tree buds open to fresh leaves ever so silently and come to full growth without any interfer-ence from anyone.” Spring brings new life to the earth, but it also gives new/more opportuni-ties for service hours.

As we all know Miss Wassell is in charge of recording our hours. She says the following about spring service hours: “There are many opportunities for stu-dents to give their time to service if they are open to them. “Throughout many neighborhoods, especially, the elder-ly, people are looking for help to clean up from the winter as I mentioned for myself. “Families look for help in sweeping, pruning, cleaning

windows, gardening, recycling removal. Community parks, church grounds, our own school property could use students to help them. “Spring activities also call for help re-pairing broken items, walking dogs/ animals, building anew. There are also many opportunities for indoor cleaning, getting rid of junk. There are always things to do for oth-ers when students are willing to ‘seek and find’.”

Photos by Bailie Shockley

TOP LEFT: Sophomore Adrian Datte prac-tices throwing the discus during a track practice in front of Nativity BVM. TOP RIGHT: Josh Buehl, right, gets ready to hand off the baton to Sean Greco in prepa-ration for a relay event. BOTTOM RIGHT: Junior Maura McDonald practices throw-

ing the javelin.