UCSANTABARBARA UNIVERSITY OF OREGON MOORPARK COMMUNITY COLLEGEU N I V E R S I T YO FA L A B A M A S E AT T L E U N I V E R S I T Y A R I ZO N A S TAT E U N V E R S I T YCALIFORNIALUTHERANUNIVERSITY ECKERD COLLEGE BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITYCALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY NORTHRIDGE CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSI-TY CHANNEL ISLANDS SAN DIEGOSTATE UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY OF PORTLAND

MASSACHUSETTS COLLEGE OF PHARMACY AND HEALTH SCIENCE SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY CAL POLY POMONA HUMBOLDT STATE UNIVERSITY COLORADO UNIVERSITY AT BOULDERUNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME COAST GUARD FULLERTON CITY COLLEGE UC DAVIS NORTHERN ARIZONA UNIVESITY DUKE UNIVERSITY OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY GAP YEARUNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH POMONA COLLEGE BOSTON UNIVERSITY AZUSA PACIFIC UNIVERSITYCUESTA COLLEGE UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO LOYOLA MARYMOUNT UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY OF PUGET SOUND

BRYANT UNIVERSITY MESA COMMUNITY COLLEGE NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY UC RIVERSIDEUC IRVINE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY GONZAGA UNIVERSITYUNITED STATES MARINE CORPS BIOLA UNIVERSITY CLARKSON UNIVERSITY UTAH VALLEY UNIVERSITY

UC BERKELEY FRESNO STATE UNIVERSITY VENTURA COMMUNITY COLLEGE BOISE STATE UNIVERSITY

SOUTHWESTERN COLLEGE BAYLOR UNIVERSITY PIERCEUNIVERSITY COUNTY COLLEGE OF MORRIS

UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN CSU CHANNEL ISLANDS SONOMA STATE UNIVERSITY IOWA STATE UNIVER SITY

GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY SANTA MONICA CITY COLLEGE PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY

FRANCISCAN UNIVERSITY OF STEUBENVILLE HARVEY MUDD COLLEGE MARINELLO SCHOOL OF BEAUTY

STONY BROOK UNIVERSITY SAN FRANCISCO ART INSTITUTE CHRISTOPHER NEWPORT UNIVERSITY

ALLEGHENY COLLEGE CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY LONG BEACH COLLEGE OF SOUTHERN IDAHO

MIRAMAR COLLEGE QUEENS UNIVERSITY OF CHARLOTTE UNIVERSITY OF CALGARYSANTA BARBARA CITY COLLEGE PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY

WILLAMETTE UNIVERSITY STONY BROOK UNIVERSITY WESTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITYWESLEYAN UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY TECHNICAL INSTITUTE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI

BETHEL’S SCHOOL OF SUPERNATURAL MINISTRY FULLERTON CITY COLLEGECOLLEGE FOR CREATIVE STUDIES CHRISTOPHER NEWPORT UNIVERSITYUC SAN DIEGO UNITED STATES MILITARY ACADEMY ESSEX COUNTY COLLEGE

SADDLEBACK COLLEGE THE AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF THESSALONIKI

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA MCDANIEL COLLEGE PIERCEUNIVERSITYCERRO COSO COMMUNITY COLLEGE UNION UNIVERSITY WAYNE COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE

CAL POLY SAN LUIS OBISPO STANFORD UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY TECHNICAL INSTITUTE

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY MCDANIEL COLLEGE

MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY PORTLAND COMMUNITY COLLEGE UNITED STATES AIR FORCEVENTURA COMMUNITY COLLEGE PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY SAN FRANCISCO ART INSTITUTEWESTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY BAYLOR UNIVERSITY PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY STONY BROOK UNIVERSITY UNITED STATES MILITARY ACADEMY UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA HARVEY MUDD COLLEGECSU CHANNEL ISLANDS SONOMA STATE UNIVERSITY QUEENS UNIVERSITY OF CHARLOTTECHRISTOPHER NEWPORT UNIVERSITY BIOLA UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTASANTA MONICA CITY COLLEGE CLARKSON UNIVERSITY PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITYLOYOLA MARYMOUNT UNIVERSITY WOODBURY UNIVERSITY SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY UNION UNIVERSITY

BIOLA UNIVERSITY CSU CHANNEL ISLANDS SONOMA STATE UNIVERSITY CSU MONTEREY BAYBLACK HILLS STATE UNIVERSITY CLARKSON UNIVERSITY WOODBURY UNIVERSITY SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY

SEATTLEUNIVERSITYARIZONASTATEUNVERSITY SANTA BARBARA CITY COLLEGE NAVY

WESTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY WESTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITYNORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY BAYLOR UNIVERSITYBAYLOR UNIVERSITYPORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITYPORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY STONY BROOK UNIVERSITY STONY BROOK UNIVERSITY UNITED STATES MILITARY UNITED STATES MILITARY

ACADEMY ACADEMY UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIAUNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA H HARVEY MUDD COLLEGEARVEY MUDD COLLEGECSU CHANNEL ISLANDSCSU CHANNEL ISLANDSSONOMA STATE UNIVERSITY SONOMA STATE UNIVERSITY QUEENS UNIVERSITY OF CHARLOTTEQUEENS UNIVERSITY OF CHARLOTTETHE LANCER SENIOR ISSUE

THE LANCER

2015

02 june 2, 2015senior issuetable of contents the lancer

think of how blessed I am to see Dr. Swanson at 7 a.m.

say an explicit word

regret waking up to get ready for school

hit snooze

turn off my alarm and go back to sleep

trip on my way to the shower

make a cup of chai

sleep through five alarms

look at my gainz

pet my dog

greet the sun with some soothing yoga

the porcelain throne

FIRST THING YOU DO WHEN YOU

WAKE UP

Finally! After two years of begging, harassing and pleading, I fi nally have a column. Now I may not be a master of sass, but I can fi gure this column writing thing out.

It is still a little bit amazing to me that high school is ending, as cliche as that sounds. I still remember walking into basketball practice and being terrifi ed of the massive, much more developed varsity play-ers. I remembered this experience this year when I noticed some terrifi ed freshmen looking at me. It’s amazing how things come full circle like that. How you think that you are never going to reach that point, and then four years later you fi nd yourself standing in that exact place.

“Are you Dr. Swanson’s kid?” That is the exact question I have heard precisely 100,528 times in my time at TOHS. Yes, Dr. Swanson is indeed my father, we live in the same house, he coached me in little league my entire life, and this year he was my teacher. Believe it or not, having him as a teacher was not all that strange. The strangest part is the looks that other people give me when he brings up a story about me or my brothers. Other than the oc-casional “call him Dad or Dr. Swanson debate,” we didn’t have a single awkward interaction this year and I am grateful for it.

It’s funny when you’ve dreamed about doing something for so long and then it’s happening right before your eyes. This was the case for me playing varsity basketball. I’ve dreamed of playing basket-ball at T.O. ever since my Dad took me to a game when I was seven. Then came our fi rst league home game, 11 years after the dream was instilled in me as I was warming up . The season was almost a dream season for me.

The most memorable moment for me was when I came off the bench late in our blowout win over Newbury and I hit a three pointer, causing a Green Hole eruption. That entire night for me was just kind of surreal, because I have a feeling that about half of the Green Hole had absolutely no idea who I was, and afterward I was a top player in the eyes of the Green Hole. Overall though my favorite game of the year was when we beat Westlake at Westlake by one point to put us on our way to a Marmonte League title. Even though the season ended too soon, I will still look back on it as one of the great times in my life where I was a part of something great that ener-gized the school. To this day I wish we had a chance to have that semi-fi nal playoff game at home, but that’s how it goes sometimes.

For me in high school there was basketball, the thing everyone knew I did and then there was journalism, the thing no one knew I did. That being said I feel that journalism helped me see a whole other side of TOHS and the high school experience. A side where you work just as hard but for much less recognition amongst the student body. It helped understand and appreciate that every student has a passion for what they do and that they should be recognized for it some way or another by their peers.

As cliche as it sounds, high school goes fast and one minute you are looking up admiring a place someone is in and then the next minute you are there living out your dreams. Now as high school draws to a close and as much as I love TOHS, it is time to move on to new places and new dreams to aspire to.

SENIOR ISSUE 2015

INDEXfour year review03

staff advice04

features05

california destinations08

community colleges09

out of state destinations10

valedictorians12

senior leaders14

sports standouts16

SENIOR COLUMNS Dane Swanson, pg. 2Sara Wilson, pg. 5Edwin Chikukwa, pg. 9Kendell Snow, pg. 15

baby photos20

Completing my Dane-asty through reflection on the best

four years of my life so far

senior column SARA WILSONDANE SWANSONWe completed our last hoorah as TOHS Lancers.PAGE 3

“Learning was not about a report card grade; it was about understanding the material in order to move to the next level.”

PAGE 4

“My parents have been really supportive. Without them I probably wouldn’t be where I am.”

PAGE 6

Putting our names on the mapPAGE 10 & 11

A photographer. A cross-country runner. A yearbookie. The 13 valedictorians graduating from TOHS this year are diverse, dedicated and—of course—very intelligent.

PAGES 12 & 13

“His dedication to our school, his family, his friends, and his dreams are clear after getting to know him.”

PAGE 15

“I’m a big strong man. With big strong hands.”PAGES 12 & 13

FRONT COVER » GRAPHIC » KENDELL SNOW AND SARA WILSON

We entered high school as eager (or not so eager) fresh meat. • Beyonce showed off her *flawless* blossoming baby bump at the MTV Video Music Awards. • Kim Kardashian and NBA star Chris Humphries spent about three bazillion dollars on their wedding; their marriage lasted 72 days. • Google tried its hand in the social media game with the failed Google Plus • “The Hunger Games” trilogy hit the big screen; the odds were ever in its favor as it raked in over $400 million • Adele dominated the charts with “Someone Like You” and “Rolling in the Deep” • Apple cofounder and CEO Steve Jobs passed away, and one could argue the trendy tech giant has not quite recovered yet. (Case in point: the not so hype-worthy Apple Watch) • 2012 Linsanity infected the NBA as Jeremy Lin played for the New York Knicks • “50 Shades of Grey,” a totally respectable work of literature by visionary author E.L James, became a worldwide sensation • Korean pop star Psy essentially broke YouTubewith “Gagnam Style,” and we all babbled through the Korean rap until the ‘HEEEEEY, SEXY LADY!’ • The Los Angeles Kings won the Stanley Cup and everyone pretended to care about hockey • Disney boughtLucasfilms, maker of “Star Wars,” for $4 billion. • Victor Hugo’s zillion page novel “Les Miserables” was made into a zillion hour movie, and Anne Hathaway had no hair and dreamed a dream and died. • There was more cinematic singing in “Pitch Perfect,” and every chick had to know the horrendously catchy “Cup Song.” • NASA successfully landed the rover Curiosity on Mars; it immediately drew phallic shapes on the Red Planet (please Google this, it’s out of this world) • Barack Obama was reelected.

TAKE IT BACK NOW, Y’ALL

The pop culture events that defi ned our high school experience

2014 • Kim Kardashian: Hollywood overtook our summer, and we obsessed over our virtual social standing (What’s new, though?) • The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge was the only post on our Instagram feed the whole month of August, aiming to raise awareness and funds for Lou Gehrigs Disease • The Unit-ed Nations appointed Emma Watson as a Women Goodwill Ambassador; she delivered her “He for She” speech, imploring gender equality • The World Cup was in Brazil, and a bunch of Americans pretended to be passionate about soccer. • Ellen Degeneres took a selfie with a bunch of celebrites while hosting the best Oscars in history, and it broke Twitter. • Thousand Oaks made international headlines when a rare monocled cobra escaped after biting some dog. I guess he was heading to the Hiss-issippi River • Kim Kardashian married Kanye West in another three bazillion dollar wedding. • DANESAN-ITY 2015 Varsity boys basketball and varsity wrestling both brought home Marmonte League titles. Go Lancers! • Teenage girls damaged their nerve cells doing the Kyle Jenner Lip Challenge. • California continued suffering one of the worst droughts in its history. What a thirsty state. • Big Sean and Ariana Grande broke up after nearly a year of dating; true love died shortly after. • Nobody could decide if The Dress was blue and black or white and gold, and we all continued ignoring global issues on social media. • If you’re reading this, it’s too late. • We completed our last hoorah as TOHS Lancers.

2013 Our dear Hannah Montana twerked at the MTV Video Music Awards • Pope Francis became the first non-European pope in over 1,000 years; also became the coolest pope in over 1,000 years. • Syfy’s “Sharknado” happened. There was a sequel. • Amanda Bynes regained national attention when she set a Thousand Oaks driveway on fire. Amanda, please! • The Red Wedding on “Game of Thrones” was a devastating, bloody mess. Walder Frey and Roose Bolton are the ulti-mate wedding crashers. • We all did the Harlem Shake (and posted it).

2011

june 2, 2015 03senior issuethe lancer four year review

HABIT YOU WISH TO BREAK?

drooling when I fall asleep in class

chronic tardiness

being dishonest with myself

bad eating

eating my whole lunch before lunch

snacking before bed

tweeting instead of studying

sleeping in

I am literally perfect

my anti-socialism

answering these surveys like an egotisical prick

excessive snapchatting

We entered high school as eager (or not so eager) fresh meat. • Beyonce showed off her *flawless* blossoming baby bump at the MTV Video

ALL PHOTOS » WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

TEACHER TRIBUTES

04 june 2, 2015senior issuestaff advice the lancer

MR. MCGINNIS,You have been the greatest English teacher I have ever had. You really care about your students and constantly ask us about our lives. You make learning interesting and fun. I respect you greatly as a teacher and a person I hope you continue to inspire and make a difference in other kids’ lives.

— Preston Fusci

DR. SWANSON,Though AP Econ is a struggle everyday, your advice on colleges and life in general have helped me a lot (most of the time). I’ve learned not only about Gov and Econ, but also about how to survive out in the real world and how your teacher said Adam Smith’s name weird. I hope your book on baseball unions is successful. Thank You!

— Sharri Park

SEÑORA VILLA,Señora Villa is one of the friendliest teachers at TO. She cares about what is going on in your life and loves to hear about plans after college and the most random things. She made me enjoy Spanish and even got me addicted to telenovelas.

— Celine Godfrey

MR. CUMMINGS,He is extremely straight forward and isn’t afraid to say what’s on his mind, while still showing com-passion and shows he cares for his students. I wish I would have met him earlier in my high school career but thank you for making me like going to English class every day this year and keeping me interested.

— Rogan Wells

MS. BURGARBasically, your 1st period AP English class made waking up at 6 AM everyday worth it. Also I’m sorry for being late every single day, I haven’t gotten any more punctual with age (sorry Fleming). Your weekly vocab tests made up for my lack of studying for the SAT, your incessant essay practices got me a 5 on the AP exam, and you made me smile countless times during a very tough school year!

—Katherine Eisenbrand

WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST LESSON YOU LEARNED YOUR FIRST YEAR OF COLLEGE?The biggest lesson I learned my first year of college was that my education was about me. This sounds strange, but until then I went to school because my parents and teachers expected me to. Education was about jumping through hoops that others put in front of me. When I went to college, no one was looking over my shoulder. Learning was not about a report card grade; it was about understanding the material in order to move to the next level.

—Mr. Jon Fleming

WHEN DO YOU TRULY START FEELING LIKE AN ADULT? DO YOU EVER?

I am 40-years-old with three beautiful children. As long as I think young and

live young, I don’t need to ever feel like an adult. You can still be responsible and

feel young at heart.

—Mrs. Heather Austin

WORDS FROM THE WISETeachers give advice on how to navigate the next four years of life.

WHAT DON’T THEY TELL YOU ABOUT LIVING IN A DORM?Your roommate might end up a lifelong friend, or someone you wish you nev-er met. Most likely, they’ll just be your roommate and you’ll need to learn to communicate. You’ll spend a lot of time on your friend’s futon otherwise.

WHAT WAS THE MOST CHALLENGING ASPECT OF BEING A FRESHMAN IN COLLEGE?Understand that you are a small fish in a big ocean, so be okay with it. You are no longer the smartest, the best athlete, the most likely to succeed. You need to em-brace the fight to the top all over again.

WHEN DO YOU TRULY START FEELING LIKE AN ADULT? DO YOU EVER?I started feeling like an adult when I start-ed working in schools. I realized I needed to be an adult for students to have a structured learning environment. Week-end mornings are absolutely still focused on cartoons though. That never ends!

—Mr. Jordan Daigneault

WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST LESSON YOU LEARNED YOUR FIRST

YEAR OF COLLEGE?How to make my own way in the world. I was pretty independent in high school—

but you learn the true meaning of independence in college.

—Dr. Krister Swanson

WHAT WAS THE MOST CHALLENGING ASPECT OF BEING A FRESHMAN IN COLLEGE?Realizing that I have to make all serious decisions in life myself; friends are very competitive.

—Dr. Nikki Malhotra

ARE YOU STILL CLOSE TO ANY OF YOUR HIGH SCHOOL FRIENDS? IF SO, HOW DID YOU MAINTAIN THAT FRIENDSHIP?Just my best friend. We talk on the phone and meet up every time I go back to visit my home-town. My lifelong friends were those I met in college, like Mr. Park and Dr. Swanson.

WHAT WAS THE MOST FUN ASPECT OF BEING A FRESH-MAN IN COLLEGE?Being on my own! Meeting a whole bunch of new people! Intramurals! Girls! Anything else...that would incriminate me

HOW DO YOU MAKE FRIENDS IN COLLEGE?Study groups, of course. Nothing like the library to meet new people. Oh, and you know—parties, ice blocking.

WHEN DO YOU TRULY START FEELING LIKE AN ADULT? DO YOU EVER?The first time you go back home and it no longer feels like home.

—Mr. Robert Haar

WHAT WAS THE BIGGESTLESSON YOU LEARNED YOUR FIRST YEAR OF COLLEGE?Get to know your professors and graduate teaching assistants. Go to their office hours and ask lots of questions.

WHAT WAS THE MOSTCHALLENGING ASPECT OF BE-ING A FRESHMAN IN COLLEGE?I remember being extremely stressed about how the class grade consisted only of two mid-terms and one 3-hour long final.

WHAT WAS THE BIGGESTADJUSTMENT?Biggest adjustment was probably having to go to a new hair salon.

—Mrs. SuGen Grano

WHAT WAS THE MOST CHALLENGING ASPECT OF BEING A FRESHMAN IN COLLEGE?The workload. Get-ting my first C and feeling stupid.

—Mrs. Doris MacDonald

ARE YOU STILL CLOSE TO ANY OF YOUR HIGH SCHOOL FRIENDS? IF SO, HOW DID YOU MAINTAIN THAT FRIENDSHIP?Yes. Calling, writing, visiting, social media. You have to make an effort.

WHAT WAS THE MOST FUN ASPECT OF BEING A FRESHMAN IN COLLEGE?Meeting a lot of new people from all over.

—Mrs. Hillary Villa

WHAT WERE YOU MOST HESITANT ABOUT LEAVING HIGH SCHOOL, AND HOW DID YOU OVERCOME IT?High school was SO awesome. I was afraid college wouldn’t be as much fun. I needn’t have feared; college is better!

WHAT WAS THE MOST FUN ASPECT OF BEING A FRESHMAN IN COLLEGE?New people, new adventures, college foot-ball, college guys!

—Ms. Marty Crawford

staff advice

Teachers give advice on how to navigate the next four years of life.

TEACHER TRIBUTES

june 2, 2015 05senior issuethe lancer features

JOYCE HUCHIN Center Editor

Fourteen years ago, a young Dani Schneider fell in love with horses while accompanying her mother, to work at a wedding venue. Watching the equestrians practice nearby inspired her to become one herself.

“My mom is a wedding planner, and she used to bring me to work,” Schneider said. “I would watch the lessons and beg my mom to let me ride. Finally, when I was almost fi ve, she let me take a lesson, and I’ve been hooked ever since.”

She rides and works at Fieldstone Riding Club. As an equestrian, Schneider show jumps horses, which she found to be unlike any other activity she had done before.

“Once you have a passion for something, it’s all you wanna do,” Schneider said. “At the time, I was playing soccer and dancing, and I thought it would be neat to do something different. I really liked horses in general, so once I started lessons, I quit soccer and dance to pursue riding.”

On weekdays, Schneider rides horses after school until 7 p.m. at the earliest. She rides for about eight hours on Saturdays, and six to eight hours on days off from school. Her dedication and skill earned her a scholarship to the University of Fresno and a spot on their NCAA Division I equestrian team.

“Its really good to know that all my hard work paid off,” Schneider said. “My parents made a lot of sacrifi ces for me to keep riding, so I’m fi nally able to repay them. The blood, the sweat, the tears, the broken bones—everything has fi nally payed off.”

The journey to fi nding the right school was more complex than she expected. Getting along with her team mates and coaches was just as important as the school’s academics.

“I was in talks with a few coaches,” she said. “I loved Auburn [University], but I wasn’t necessarily

in love with the coach, so I met with Fresno’s coach. They liked me and gave me a good scholarship. I liked their program so I decided to go there.”

As a Subdivision One athlete, Schneider will compete in four competitions against girls from other schools. Each university has a total of twenty partic-ipants, and schools receive points based on the best performing equestrian in each category.

“My favorite thing about competitions are the nerves I get when I go to draw the horse I get to be competing on,” Schneider said. “When I step in the ring, all the nerves go away. I’m always really nervous right before I go in, but as soon as the buzzer goes off, all of it washes away.”

In each category, athletes from all schools must ride on the same horse. Competition horses are pro-vided by the host school, so visiting teams only have about fi ve minutes of experience with their horse before riding. The chemistry between horse and rider is important in their performance.

“Some personalities clash, just like people some people don’t get along with certain people,” Schnei-der said. “Horses defi nitely have their own personali-ty and some people click with them. You can have the nicest horse in the world, but if they don’t suit your personality, it’s not gonna work.”

Schneider is excited for these competitions, yet she will miss the loved ones she is leaving behind at home, especially those who encouraged her as she trained and stood by her when she signed her Nation-al Letter of Intent.

“The hardest part would be leaving my barn family,” Schneider said. “I’ve been with them for so long that they truly are like my family and they’re always there. I was a little nervous just because I’ve been riding with the same trainer for 14 years. Going to a new school and doing a sport with a new coach is scary. Overall, I’m excited.”

MS. PAPPASMy first year at TO was your first year as a teacher here and you were the one teacher that really made me feel comfortable and welcomed. I always looked forward to my fifth period because I got to attend a class I loved with the teacher who helped me get acclimated to a new school. Thank you so much, Ms. Pappas!

—Sarah Basden

MRS. BEAUDOINFreshman English class was probably my favorite class of high school, which is funny considering I sucked at it. Your lecture about why you need to graduate in 4 years have been done of most important and relatable lessons of high school, and that’s when I was a stupid freshman. She taught a class with no BS and I even worked myself to AP and I would not have done it without the English experience I had as a freshman.

—Michael Maga

MRS. BENIOFFI had Mrs. Benioff for three years, Japanese 1-3. Not only is she an amazing teacher, but an amazing person. She cared for each and every one of us as if we were her own children. Without her and her classes, high school would of been really boring. Come on, what other high schools offer Japanese in this area? And if other schools did offer Japanese, no other teacher could be like Mrs. Benioff. Thank you for always being there for me.

—Emily Hara

MS. DAWSONThank you for showing me a whole new world that I can be apart of. I will cherish that for the rest of my life.

—Danni Ryan

MRS. MACNAMARAYou’ve been a constant support in my life since sophomore year and I owe you the world. Letting me sit in your room for the better half of junior year helped me figure out myself. You taught me to challenge myself to figure things out on my own, giving me small nudges in the right direction and I’m glad to have had you as a teacher for the past three years. Thank you so much for everything.

—Heather Higdon

GALLOPING ALONG—Schneider competes in the HITS Thermal week 5 from Feb. 23-28. The accomplished rider received a blue ribbon in the level two jumper class, but competed in the children’s jumpers throughout the week.

My parents made a lot of sacrifices for me to keep riding, so I’m finally able to

repay them. The blood, the sweat,

the tears, the broken bones—everything has

finally payed off.”

“

DANI SCHNEIDER

FURTHERING HER EQUESTRIAN CAREER AT FRESNODANI SCHNEIDER

FURTHERING HER EQUESTRIAN CAREER AT FRESNO

To my third grade self, who composes original plays on wide-ruled notebook paper and writes, designs and prints a newsletter for Child Care: you are such a weird, overachieving kid. And you’re the best. Your ideas about the world and what you’re ca-pable of are so simple and so stunning. Please don’t let your ambition fade as you progress through life, even though things get convoluted and your specifi c ideas of “cool” turn out to not be so cool. I’m sorry that nobody wants to do extra Math Boxes with you or spend their Saturdays reading the newest Magic Treehouse installment—you’ll fi nd your people eventually.

Third grade self, It’s your perfectionism and curiosity that will make things diffi cult, but they’re also what will make your existence so worthwhile in the end.

To myself as I fail my fi rst black belt test: this is far from your last interaction with failure. But it is your fi rst opportunity to sit with the disappointment. Notice how it feels and tastes and how it rests in your core and slithers until you ache. Now notice how you endured it. Notice how absolutely alright you are.

To myself as I fail my second black belt test: I promise that the third time really is the charm.

To my 12-year-old self, whose father just dropped her off at the mall for an afternoon of middle school window shopping: go back and hug him one last time. Tell him you love him. He needs you, craves your admiration, and he’s actually not as embar-rassing as you assume. He’s quite hilarious, but you unfortunately won’t see that for a few more years. Let him take you out to lunch. Let him sit with you and hear about your life, your classes, your hesitan-cies. Let him have a little girl before you get too old and too sassy.

To my 15-year-old self who just wants to have clear skin and straight teeth: you are more beautiful than you realize. Even with the forehead zits. Stop putting the worth of your day into what you see in the mirror that morning and allow your confi dence to stem from your integrity and character. You will eventually love yourself, not just because the braces come off and eight months of Accutane will do wonders, but because you will recognize your own strength and learn to cherish your intricacies.

Also, 15-year-old self, stop wearing so much makeup; your foundation is six million and two shades too dark and all it’s doing is clogging your nose pores. Sheesh.

To my 16 year old self whose entire world just crumbled: it’s a funny thing, but your life will be so dazzling when you fi nally put the pieces back together. It will be scarred and some of the edges will be rough, but every piece will be born out of love and light.

And fi nally, to my 18 year old self preparing to roll tide: you are absolutely killing the game, girl.

I guess this is my swan song or something. The sassmaster is

moving on.

senior column SARA WILSONSARA WILSON

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TEACHER TRIBUTES

EDWIN CHIKUKWA Senior Writer

Nik Patterson casually sat in his sixth period economics class going through his regular routine. The day was like any other day, predictable—until Congresswoman Julia Brownley called during class to announce he had been accepted into the United States Military Academy at West Point.

“I don’t remember the conversation,” Patterson said. “I was kind of shell shocked.”

Patterson’s entire family was overwhelmed by his acceptance.

“[During class] I called my dad when he was at work,” Patterson said. “I could tell he got teary and his voice got higher.”

Being accepted by West Point, however, was not the only signifi cant achievement Patterson attained during the admission process.

According to the U.S. Army website, most students accepted out of high school are sent to the United States Military Academy Preparatory School for a year. Afterwards, they have to re-apply to enter West Point. Patterson is one of the few who made it directly into West Point.

“To get in your senior year is actually really hard.” Patterson said, “I didn’t know that until I was looking at the Facebook page and realized that some guys in the freshmen class were in their twenties.”

Although it was worth the effort in the end, entrance into the academy took Patterson years of hard work.

“They don’t let you open up your profi le until January of your junior year,” Patterson said. “But there’s stuff they recommend like national honors society and boys state. But since it’s a leadership academy, I became the ASB Vice President and presidents of other clubs. I also founded clubs and worked at my church and put myself in position where I could be a leader.”

Although Patterson acquired an impressive resume that portrayed his leadership capabilities, he had to prove himself athletically apt to handle the physical demands of West Point. So like all West Point candidates, he had to take the physical test.

“I took it twice. The fi rst time I did really well on the pull-ups and maxed out on the push-ups.” Patterson said. “The shuttle run wasn’t that hard, the sit ups I did really well on and the basketball throw I got average. But after you do all the other things you get tired so I got a bad mile time.”

Patterson took the test again to improve his mile time. While his mile time did improve, he did not perform as well in the other areas. He decided to submit his original scores to the academy.

He sent the information in and received the great news on Feb. 26. Currently he is focusing on what lies ahead

“I report for duty June 29 so I’m trying to get into shape because there’s going to be a lot of running.” Patterson said, “Most people quit or go to other branches but when I’m done, I will be a second lieutenant in the army infantry.”

SHRAYA BLAISDELL Features Editor

The senior at Thousand Oaks High School could pass for any designer residing in Los Angeles, but Blake Blair actually is a student at Thousand Oaks High School. Next year, Blake Blair will attend the Savannah College of Art and Design, or SCAD, to become a designer.

“I really had a feeling that it was going to happen, like I just knew the school was right for me at the beginning,” Blair said. “That’s why I picked SCAD— I felt like they really wanted to help me.”

SCAD has locations in Georgia, Hong Kong, and France. During his sophomore year of college Blair hopes to travel to the school’s France location to further his knowledge of accessory design.

“I could really travel anywhere, and that is what I really liked about the school and found appealing,” Blair said. “I will be able to travel and get a really nice experience there learning my craft. I’m super, super excited.”

Blair originally found out about SCAD through a pamphlet Dr. Sonstegard, his AP art teacher, gave him. He received further assistance on scholarships from Mrs. Peters in the College and Careers Center. Before applying to SCAD, he participated in a sum-mer course at the Art Institute of California in West Hollywood and was featured on a pilot for the show Fashion Phenoms in which he used his experience at making dresses, bags, and clutches.

He also saw his designs featured in Thousand Oaks High School’s art show. His passion, however, began at the age of 7, when he created handbags

out of paper. After watching the show, “That’s So Raven” and seeing the main character’s drive to fl ourish in the fashion industry, Blair was inspired to create accessories of his own.

“It progressed from watching a TV show to me liking that to actually being like, “Oh, this is something I really want to do,”’ Blair said. “I want to create a brand.”

Blair will major in Accessory Design and he wants to start his own lifestyle brand. He loves having paper on hand so he can draw any ideas for his future brand.

“It’s really easy to put [designs] on paper, but when it comes to making [accessories] , you really need to have experience,” he said. “And that’s why I feel like this college will give me that experience on making it and manufacturing it.”

Blair wishes to adjust the way people see fashion with his line, while supporting causes for children with epilepsy who don’t have the money to receive proper treatment. He appreciates his parents’ love and support and help with his own previous experi-ence with the disease.

“I think anyone that has a Louis Vuitton bag has to be a little materialistic, but I would love to change that,” Blair said. “I think it’s a beautiful industry, too; it gives a lot of people jobs.”

Blair is excited to start learning at SCAD and learn more about accessories. He is certain he will rise to the challenge and succeed in his fi eld.

“Believe in yourself. Be inspired,” Blair said. “Even if you take the path that is risky, everything will turn out okay.”

NIK PATTERSON

WEST POINT BOUND, AT LAST

BLAKE BLAIR

A PURSUIT FOR HIS PASSION

06 june 2, 2015senior issuefeatures the lancer

MR. HOAGMr. Hoag is one of the best teachers I have ever had. He’s understanding of his students, but also expects us to perform at our best level. You don’t want to disappoint him. He prepares you for the AP Chem test and any other Chemistry test you may have. He helps us for the real world with his experience as a pharmacist and a teacher. He’s a great teacher and is extremely needed at this school! The country needs more teachers like him!

—Hayley Blaauw

MR. THOMPSONI’m sure I’m not the only one who would like to thank Mr. Thompson for the hard work and dedica-tion he has applied to helping the EThOS program grow into the amazing academy that it is. Mr. Thompson has not only taught me many sides of business and economics but how to be a successful individual after college. I will forever be grateful to be able to call you my teacher and mentor.

—Kailey Jones

MRS. WOHLSTATTERI had you for both freshman and sophomore year. They are some of my favorite English classes I have ever had. I still remember you saying that being students is our job, and it’s something that I’ve taken to heart. I’ve done really well in high school, and I think part of it was you saying that to me as a freshman. I cannot express how much I loved your classes and what a great time I had in them. I cannot thank you enough Mrs. Wohlstattar.

—Madeline Hake

MR. MCGINNISYou didn’t just teach me how to analyze poetry, you taught me how to analyze life.

—Neil Reed

MR. DEL SESTOMr. Del Sesto was always patient and kind. He was the first teacher who had ever recognized that I had something special to share with the world. He has guided me through many lessons I have learned. His classroom was always a safe place for me to talk to him and I would always get the a honest answer if I liked it or not. I will always treasure his kind words and encouragement that he has given to me.

—Aubrye Kissick

To get in your senior year is actually really hard. I didn’t know that until I was looking at the Facebook and realized that some guys in the freshmen class were in their twenties.”

I think anyone that has a Louis Vuitton

bag has to be a little materialis-tic, but I would love to change that. I think it’s a beautiful industry, too; it gives a lot of people jobs.”

I think anyone that has a Louis Vuitton

bag has to be a little materialis-tic, but I would love to change that. I think it’s a beautiful industry, too; it gives a lot of people jobs.”

“

“

TEACHER TRIBUTES

NATALIE PAGAN Features Editor

Traveling has always been a big part of senior Traveling has always been a big part of senior Sarah Lam’s life.

“My family [has] traveled a lot ever since I was “My family [has] traveled a lot ever since I was little. I was on a plane when I was two months old—little. I was on a plane when I was two months old—maybe less,” Lam said.

Lam knew she wanted to study abroad during col-Lam knew she wanted to study abroad during col-lege. Northeastern University provided her with the lege. Northeastern University provided her with the perfect opportunities to travel. Lam decided to ap-perfect opportunities to travel. Lam decided to ap-ply to Northeastern because of their NUin program, ply to Northeastern because of their NUin program, which allows students to study overseas.which allows students to study overseas.

During her fi rst semester at Northeastern Univer-During her fi rst semester at Northeastern Univer-sity, Lam is studying in Thessaloniki, Greece. But sity, Lam is studying in Thessaloniki, Greece. But choosing Greece wasn’t an easy decision. Because choosing Greece wasn’t an easy decision. Because of her cultural anthropology major, she could study of her cultural anthropology major, she could study in England, Ireland or Greece.in England, Ireland or Greece.

Ireland served as an exciting option to Lam, as her Ireland served as an exciting option to Lam, as her family almost moved to Ireland when Lam was in family almost moved to Ireland when Lam was in fourth grade due to her dad’s job. fourth grade due to her dad’s job.

“[It] ended up falling through and not happening. “[It] ended up falling through and not happening. So Ireland had the attraction of it just being a full So Ireland had the attraction of it just being a full circle,” she said. “It was like this is the opportunity I circle,” she said. “It was like this is the opportunity I missed out on in fourth grade.”missed out on in fourth grade.”

Choosing where to travel to was a very diffi cult Choosing where to travel to was a very diffi cult choice. The way Lam made her decision of which choice. The way Lam made her decision of which country to go to was different than the way most country to go to was different than the way most people would.

“I fl ipped a penny and my dad called out tails and “I fl ipped a penny and my dad called out tails and my mom called out Greece and it landed [on] tails,” my mom called out Greece and it landed [on] tails,” she said.

Greece also has classes that were more geared towards Lam’s major. Along with majoring in cultural anthropology, she wants to double major in environmental science.

“Environmental science [is] such a broad, global issue that I think studying abroad gives you a per-spective and an experience you couldn’t just get in a classroom,” Lam said.

Now that Lam has enrolled in the program, she has started to connect with other students traveling to Greece with her.

“I’ve connected with some of the students through Facebook and the admitted students portal, but I don’t know any of them personally,” she said. “It’s kinda scary, but also really exciting because [it’s] a fresh start.”

The whole transition is going to be much different than that of a normal college freshman in many ways, but Lam is excited, yet terrifi ed to spend her fi rst college semester so far away from home, but she is excited for her classes and for the experiences she will have.

“Anyone who is willing to take this giant leap is someone like me,” Lam said.

After college, Lam plans on continuing to travel and hopes to have a career that allows her to travel.

“I always said I don’t need enough money to live in a big house and drive a fancy car. I just need enough money to travel,” she said. “And if the company pays for my travel, I don’t need any money at all.”

ANDREW CHAU Center Editor

Senior Cameron Gassert made an unusual deci-sion: instead of studying in college, he’s chosen to pursue one of his greatest interests: stunt work.

“I was thinking about starting a profession or studying at school,” Gassert said. “But then I real-ized it’d be such a waste of the talent that I have.”

His choice was heavily infl uenced by friends and connections. Through a friend, Gassert met Wyatt Carnel, a stuntman working at the show “Water World” in Universal Studios. Afterwards, he decided to follow this career path.

“It gave me a light bulb in my head, and I thought I would try something like that,” Gassert said.

Although he has no formal experience in the area, his activity in extreme sports such as motocross, diving and snowboarding give him the confi dence to pursue a career in stunt work. Gassert is drawn to these sports because they offer a unique experience.

“Throughout high school, I’ve done six differ-ent sports, and it was just me trying all these team sports, but not really fi nding what I was looking for,” Gassert said. “Most of the individual sports I do, extreme sports, are different because you feel the adrenaline in them.”

As a stuntman, Gassert would have many op-portunities to experience this thrill. But despite his physical abilities, he currently lacks knowledge in the subject. Because of this, he plans to attend vari-ous camps for training over the summer.

“People think you can go into being a stunt man just by being ready to do whatever they want you to,” Gassert said. “But they really want you to be professional about it and know all the safety rules.”

Being a stuntman generally involves working as a stunt-double for a movie or performing at a show. Through his connection to Carnel, Gassert hopes to land a job this summer.

“I’m excited. As soon as I get out of high school, I want to start pushing and trying to get into the business,” Gassert said.

Throughout this entire process, he has been sup-ported by friends and family, who all agree with his decision and see it as a good fi t for him.

“Anybody I’ve told that knows me personally have all had the same reaction—that they couldn’t see me doing anything else,” Gassert said.

Still, Gassert has some concerns about the profes-sion. One is fi nding consistent sources of income.

“The thing about being a stuntman is that there’s lots downtime between jobs,” Gassert said. “You can go a couple months without a job, but then all of a sudden, someone can call you for a big movie.”

Because of this, many stuntmen have secondary jobs to fall back on. But even in these times, Gassert wishes to continue following his own interests.

“I’ll probably do something small like surfboard shaping, but I’m not sure honestly,” Gassert said. “I still have to fi gure that out.”

But no matter what, Gassert hopes to fi nd a job that utilizes the skills he’s developed outside school.

CAMERON GASSERT

A CONSTANT ADRENALINE RUSH

SARAH LAM

TAKING HER EDUCATION ABROAD

june 2, 2015 07senior issuethe lancer features

MRS. GRANOEven though calculus seems like a dreadful class I enjoyed showing up every day. She was an awe-some teacher and I learned a lot in her class. More than that I got to know her and she is definitely one of those teachers I will come back to visit!

—Jeske Glenn

MR. HOAGThank you for always caring about your students. You always made sure we were as prepared as we could be and offered extra help everyday. Thanks for helping me figure out what I wanted to do with my life. I was clueless until I joined your chemistry class as a sophomore.

—Stacy Orellana

MR. RONDThank you for your wise words of advice every day. I looked forward to coming to 5th period because I know it was impossible to be in a bad mood sitting in your classroom. You have positively influenced me to always be my best self and work hard towards my aspirations. I am very thankful for the 2 years in a row with you and sad it has to come to an end.

—Sabrina Waite

MR. LYNEMr. Lyne has been a huge influence in my life, and had pushed me to my limits in wrestling. He has physically and mentally broke me down and built me back up as a better person.

—Donald Misraje

MRS. RAVITCHThank you for supporting my photography. You always make sure that we all put 110% of our talent and effort into our photos, and that we create to the best of our ability. Your dedication to the entire photography department has developed a lot of pure talent, and without your critiques, comments, and support, I would not be as confident in my photography as I am now.

—Tia Liu

some submissions have been edited for length or clarity

I always said I don’t need enough

money to live in a big house and drive a fancy car. I just need enough money to

travel.”

People think you can go into being a stunt man just by being ready to do whatever

they want you to, but they really want you to

be professional about it and

know all the safety rules.”

“

“

08 june 2, 2015senior issuecalifornia destinations the lancer

hearing the ceramics teacher laugh

family, friends and dirtbikes

puppies and music festivals (and music in general)

good burritos

having genuine, in-depth conversation

12:07

driving at night

seeing others happy

dopamine and seratonin

the misery of others

being a hero to the people I care about

Panera’s pesto sachettini

WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY?

BIOLA UNIVERSITY Ginah BanksElise Posey

BROOKS INSTITUTEKiernan Szakos

CAL POLY POMONA Aleena AliCole BriggsSavannah Macaluso

CAL POLY SLOSkye BruceEmma ElkingtonMelanie FloresChristopher HatchAnna HempillDonald KentBennett McKayPamela MuellerHalie SwansonRogan Wells

FULLERTON

Katlin Hughes

MONTERREY BAY Madeline Hale

CHARTER COLLEGEClaire Turner

CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY Genevieve Vacherot

CHICO Marley Del OlmoSean Walters

LONG BEACHAmanda CrommelinLuke Romacker

CHANNEL ISLANDSAlex Alsabery Suki BartlettMatthew BurdickKimberly CookShayn GarronKailey JonesVeronica MezaAlex SafianKyle SparkmanSarah TiffinMikayla Ybarra

NORTHRIDGEEvan BlockGrant BubarMelanie GarciaJake De La GarzaMatthew GuzmanSarah HaggertyMax HopsKenneth LeakMaria MartoneEmily McNabbAlex Mirras

SAN MARCOSCole Maki

SAN JOSEGrace Rau

FRESNODani Schneider

HUMBOLDTJosephina Brooks

LOYOLA MARYMOUNT UNIVERSITYSamara Harris

Brian Joerger

PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY Chris Dilworth

POMONA COLLEGE Shai Goldberg

SANTA CLARA Matt Hauser

SAN FRANCISOTynann BodilyEliza FlynnTiana HayesLeah SchilloCatalina De La Torre

SAN FRANCISCO ARTINSTITUTE Olivia Anderson

SAN DIEGOAnthony AlvidrezSarah AyyadNicole CarnerTaylor HalbyNatalie MayerHayley McHughTaylor Perryjordan PincusEvan RankSpencer ReedKana RuhalterCamille TachellAlex VonarbRoy WardAnthony Watkins

SONOMAJimi Torosian

STANFORD UNIVERSITY Katherine EisenbrandAndrew Perry

ST. MARY’S COLLEGE OF CALIFORNIA Andrew Clear

BERKELEY Danielle IpAndrew SattlerEdward SiSofia Vizulis

SANTA BARBARAJessi AndrewsEdwin ChikukwaJacob GreeneStephen HernandezKyle JonesClaudia Zamora

DAVISCamila ArellanoMadison DeLucaMihoko KuboOlivia NolanKelly Steffen

LOS ANGELESSally DengJeannette HannTia LiuAlly Zlaket

SANTA CRUZKyra HuelsmanStacy Orellana

SAN DIEGOEsther Loose

Perris Navarro

RIVERSIDESonia LinRyan MaynorAndrew Mooklar

IRVINE Michael SteinhilberSabrina Wong

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIAErin GouldBrooke SchneiderKyle Van Landingham

UNIVERSITY OF SAN FRANCISCOShannon McKenna Paige Sternberg

CALIFORNIA DREAMINGCALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY

NORTHRIDGE (CONT.)Mariela MoralesPeyton ParrishNeil ReedKarven RodrigoAdam RappIvee SantosRhiannon SimkoDaniel Velarde

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA

AZUSA PACIFIC UNIVERSITY Kimberly AndersonJoel HurleyDan MartinMeghan OwenSierra Isaak

BETHEL SCHOOL OF SUPERNATURAL MINISTRYSamantha Fischer

COLUMBIA COLLEGE HOLLYWOODYale Apter

WOODBURY UNIVERSITYGinger Rae Esqueda

HARVEY MUDD COLLEGEJacob Rothschild

CALTECHCaroline Paules

Whether it’s a UC, Cal State, or otherwise, 147 seniors are matriculating to a school in sunny, familiar California this fall, with 45 distinct schools represented.

LOS ANGELESKarla Mooklar

CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY Samantha Merlo

CALIFORNIA LUTHERAN UNIVERSITYNadine AbukhzamJoe CarbineAlexander CervelliPaige DePriscoGiselle DuranWill HaddockIrene JangLaura MurphyRiley O Shaughnessy

CLU (CONT)Nikos TomlinsonSharri ParkNikole PrelookerKeri PringerTheresa Wegher- Thompson

june 2, 2015 09senior issuethe lancer other destinations

HOW DO YOU START A

CONVERSATION?

“I’m sorry in advance for irritating you.”

“Your tweets are so relatable.”

“I like your shoes. Did you make them yourself?”

“Wanna lift?”

“So...do you like ‘Grey’s Anatomy’?”

“Sup, bb gurl.”

talk about something in common

with a sweaty handshake

I say “Hey Bryan,” regard-less of what their name is

by sliding into their DM’s

I usually just introduce myself to the person’s dog instead

“Hey, wassup, HELLO.”

COMMUNITY COLLEGESCALIFORNIA

CERRO COSOSavannah Lopez

COSTA MESAElizabeth Moorman

CUESTASarah HartShea Carothers

COLLEGE OF THE DESERTElvia Soto

FULLERTONNaythan Dekowski

MIRAMARDavid Betancourt

MOORPARKBrett AaronBerenice AcBrandon AguilarGerardo AguilarJosh AguilarDiego AlmenaraAustin AlvaryBranden AndersonOscar AngelRicardo ArambulaKimberly ArzolaDylan BaltauDanielle BakerCameron BlairPreston BlockGrant BodenMatheus BorgesLisa BrandJames Brinkley Adriana BritoJohn CastanedaSara CervantesConnor ChaneyReilly ChapmanRobert ClarkeSage CluxtonAshley CohenMackenzie CornwallJessica CortesKatie CoulterToby Dalton

Matthew DavisRaquel De La CruzLyndsie DelaneyCindy DiazPatrick EngelAdranik EkimianKelsey EscobarAndrea EsparzaMatthew EstradaLewis FairleyTamim FatahiMarisol FernandezNicolas FerroHaley FickJames FishDustin FosterVanessa Frame Preston FusciChristopher GamezDallas GarciaMaria GarciaAndrew GavinLauren GoldsteinIsabel GrossSamantha GuzmanLillian Guzman FlameHolly HaileBrennan HansonEmily HaraSarah HarberNick HartkeKelly HaverBrianna HawkinsKelsey HernandezBritney HerreraDaisy HigaredaHeather HigdonJake HillardByron HollisterMikel IrigoyenDevon IversenNatalie JohanssonBrianna KellyMarilyn KingShaun KinseyAubrye Kissick-D Am-brosioAmber KleinConnor KoeritzWyatt KohlerKevin Kohnmann

Andrew LaChapellePat LaChapelleJesse LafayetteHassina LatifDaniel LeeChase LippertJosh LopezZuly LopezRebecca LotzBrie LucareliMadisen LunnenHannah MackLogan MaleskiJusto MarquezJacob MasciClayton McCurdySarah McGinleyKieran McGuireEmma MerrittCasey MeyersJoseph MilitelloNicole MillmanDonald MisrajeSam MobleyGabe MontesHenry MotylHannah NarramoreTori NiedrichShelby NineEmiley NoonanShannon O NeillCJ OrtizTyler OwensDarby PearsonAydan PenaChristian PlascenciaHarrison PopeTristan QuintanarSamuel RalstonAvi RamosFatima RivasAlejandro RobledoJack RosenbergMatias RubioRebecca RuggieroJasyn RussoJordyn RussoCarla SaballaJacob SagerTanner SaldanaLewis Sample

Pedro SanchezJaylene SaraviaKendra SatterleeAmanda ScogganDante ShaneJack SherbetjianAna ShibataRuby SibrianMathhew SiegerGrayson SillersDerek SimmonsAlexis SmithLindsay StephensVincent SvedeJennifer TaylorAxel TegroenMatthew TomlinsonMarton TothAlexis TristanCasie TrotterReina TufflyDaniel Van UnenAlessando VannelliCristian VargasAlberto VillalpandoNicole VogtChristian WilderomCaleb WadmanJack WaldmanJeff WilsonElad YaarAllan YamashigeDavid YelichJonathan YlaganEmily YuKathryn ZarateJose ZepedaRyan Zamora

OXNARDMiguel AvalosWendy DavilaAustin Frabasilio

PIERCEAllison JohnsonAngeline MuirJenna SturgeonMadison Wright

SADDLEBACKKenny Alldredge

SANTA BARBARAMegan AbramsAli AbdallatColby AlvianiTrent AtkinsonIshan BasuJake De La GarzaCindy GarciaShae HagadornMyles Hudson-BambergJustin JennettBecca LlewellynJuan Ventura

SAN DIEGO MESASean HallHeidi JoachimsAndrew Lachina

SANTA MONICAKimberly Candreva

SOUTHWESTERNCassie Soto

VENTURADevon AldersonShannon MartinezDavid SchwartzNick SeleskyJustin Spencer

MARYLAND

ESSEXEric Conlon

MICHIGAN

WAYNEJames Perez

NEW JERSEY

MORRISSophia Svitenko

OREGON

SE PORTLANDMichaela Maki

It’s that time of the year where nostalgia grips us all and forces us to refl ect. As my fi nal service to the newspaper, I have been asked to capture the emo-tional experiences that made my time at Thousand Oaks High School unique. Yet how can I?

How can I capture the exhilarating rush of an entire community roaring in support for its very own athletes?

Boosters bending their backs to make sure their boys and girls have the best seasons.

Coaches endlessly correcting, passing on lessons that pertain to life itself while never failing to remind us that there are things greater than the game at hand.

How can I begin to describe the teachers? The quiet, awkward ones who at the mention of

their subject material suddenly become impassioned with inexplicable fervor. The jovial, optimistic ones, who develop relationships with students that extend beyond the confi nements of a classroom.

How can I thank these various personalities of teachers for the commonality that exists among all of them — a compassion that extends far beyond the curriculum but to the very well being of the students.

And what about the strangers? The familiar face whose name we don’t know but always see when heading down to our lockers. After several run-ins with this familiar face, we awkwardly smile until the amiable exchange becomes an anticipated part of our daily routines.

Or the random underclassmen, who seem like their sole purpose in life is to annoy us. Of

course, as seniors, we try to remain cool and aloof but deep down we love the attention.

Then there are the classmates, who make class, even the most boring one, an event worth looking forward to because of their comical idiosyncrasies. Or that special person who sits across the classroom, who you never got to know but is just so chill, that you wish you had.

Then, there are the friends. That small select cluster of crazy people that can truly relate to our weirdness. They laugh with us at the inside jokes that puzzle everyone else. They compete with us for ultimate glory in sports. They annoy us during group projects because we can’t seem to get anything done when you’re around them. And even though they’ve seen us do a lot of borderline illegal stuff, we’re not afraid that they will tell because they probably did it with us.

They are also the few who really got to know us. They sense when we’re mad and almost as an automatic response can soothe away the sourness that incenses us. They know what to say, when to say it and how they should say it. They are our friends and we’ll move heaven and earth in favors for them, because we know they would do the same for us.

Yet last but not least, the parents. The real MVPs (sorry Dane Swanson). We argue with them, laugh with them, disagree with them, make peace with them, fi ght with them, thank them. But most of all we love them.

Refl ecting on these moments I guess I realize the real question—how can I capture community? In four words. Thousand Oaks High School.

INTERNATIONALUNIVERSITY OF CALGARY, ALBERTAMatthew Fichter

CAREER TECHNICAL EDUCATIONART INSTITUTEJose Gonzalez

BEAUTY SCHOOLBree Alatorre

MARINELLO SCHOOL OF BEAUTYSyndey Kaplowitz

STUNT SCHOOLCameron Gassert

DANCEEDGE PERFORMING ARTS CENTERAndrew Allan

ADULT SCHOOLCONEJO VALLEY ADULT SCHOOLHector Perez

GAP YEARBrittany AvinaKendrich DimalantaAnna CamachoMitchell EnnisMissy FrakesNatalie LadeDuy NgyuenAmi NoveloAndy NoveloKelsey Stevens

Carley TuckmantelJohn OefflingKevin PalazzoloJake Parris Christian WheelockEvelin Zamora

MILITARYMarc AmezcuaConnor CyrTanner DaltonRhyder DayAdam ManchelMichael MaldonadoAlexander NietoCristin OsornioJack StalnakerBrandon SwisherCiara WhalenSalvador ZamoraShane Zimmerman

LDS MISSIONJosh Eyre

WORKJosh Demangelaere

Mitchell EnnisHaley KappAubrey LytleParker McMinnOlivia MillerVictor PerezMikey SalcidoFaith Severns

TRAVELPriya Allen

Miguel Garcia

COULD NOT BE CONTACTED:Juan AgueroChristopher AlcarazErin BrisslingerTracy DiazRachael FIscherJames GrepiotisMelanie HendersonYesenia MarinJacob MasciLeslye PerezHarrison RobertsCarlos RogelHannah SieversonSean Simmons

OTHER DESTINATIONS

COMING FULL CIRCLE: MY FINALREFLECTIONS ON THE

PAST THREE YEARS

senior column SARA WILSONEDWIN CHIKUKWA

ARIZONAARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITYDaniel Aguirre Tanner CereghinoMegan DurazoDevon LottLogan OchoaKirk RaleighLauren WaldmanAlana Wilson

NORTHERN ARIZONA UNIVERSITYJorge DiazAlejandra GonzalezMax RobinsRyan Schuberg

UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONASydney EyreJustin Stalberg

COLORADOCU BOULDER Zach ByingtonJenna FieldRachael Hempy

COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITYRyan ClemRiley MagidowHaley MossAbby Portnoy

UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVERSara MossChristian Neel

ALABAMAAUBURN UNIVERSITYBrent BartholomewNatalie Usher

UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMASara Wilson

IDAHOBRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY—IDAHODerek LudlowBOISE STATE UNIVERSITYRyan PembertonJack SanchezJocey SanchezRyan Sheridan

COLLEGE OF SOUTHERN IDAHOJustice Dilworth

INDIANAUNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAMEAlexa CoubalVictoria DevineMelissa Pech

LOUISIANATULANE UNIVERISTYSophie Ormond

MASSACHUSETTSBOSTON UNIVERSITYCeline Godfrey

MASSACHUSETTS COLLEGE OF PHARMACY AND HEALTH SCIENCESZachary Ackerman

NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY Sarah Lam

MINNESOTAUNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTAMichael Maga

WISCONSINUNIVERSITY OF WISCONSINEmma Spear

MISSOURIUNIVERSITY OF MISSOURIAllie Boyajian

FLORIDAECKERD COLLEGEHaley Norton

ILLINOISNORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITYJoshua Fields

GEORGIASAVANNAH COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGNBlake Blair

RHODE ISLANDBRYANT UNIVERSITYKristin Kingi

WASHINGTON D.C.GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITYKai Yoshinaga

OHIOFRANCISCAN UNIVERSITY OF STEUBENVILLEChristopher Mundwiller

UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDODanni Ryan

NEW YORKCLARKSON UNIVERSITYSavannah Peters

STONY BROOK UNIVERSITYAvery Barshay

SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY Sebastiano Mura

WEST POINTNik Patterson

SOUTH DAKOTABLACK HILLS STATE UNIVERSITYPaige Bielke

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH DAKOTACoral Suarez

CONNECTICUTWESLEYAN UNIVERSITY Steven Fields

MARYLANDMcDANIEL COLLEGE Zachary Magidow

WASHINGTONGONZAGA UNIVERSITYSean MoranSEATTLE UNIVERSITYPatrick CurtisKendell Snow

WESTERN WASHINGTONUNIVERSITYMadeleine GardnerUNIVERSITY OF PUGET SOUNDEmma KellyAaron Moxness

VIRGINIACHRISTOPHER NEWPORT UNIVERSITYNicholas Auger

The class of 2015 is spreading out across 61 out-of-state colleges and universities.

10 senior destinations 11senior destinationssenior issue

see pg. 8 for California

destinations

MICHIGANCOLLEGE FOR CREATIVE STUDIESHannah Firouzan

MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITYBrooke CareyMaddox CryeDylan Lasley

ARKANSASUNIVERSITY OF ARKANSASJacob Allred

GRAPHIC » HANNAH FIROUZANGETTING ON THE MAP

NEW MEXICOUNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICOChristine Casarez

NEVADAUNIVERISTY OF NEVADA—LAS VEGASHarrison Brooks

NORTH CAROLINADUKE UNIVERSITYSpencer Flynn

QUEENS UNIVERSITY OF CHARLOTTEHayley Blaauw PENNSYLVANIA

ALLEGHENY COLLEGESarah Basden

UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGHZach Grimaldi

OREGONOREGON STATE UNIVERSITYMaddi BartulaNathalie GardnerThomas McDonaldGianna Scalise

PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITYCiara Eure

UNIVERSITY OF OREGONJeske Glenn

UNIVERSITY OF PORTLANDDane Swanson

WILLAMETTE UNIVERSITYKevin King

TEXASBAYLOR UNIVERSITYCatherine Stimson

TEXAS CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITYMadison Weinstock

IOWAUNIVERSITY OF IOWASabrina Waite

KANSASUniversity of KansasMelissa Singleton

SOUTH CAROLINACLEMSON UNIVERSITYBrady Finigan

UTAHBRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY—PROVOJoshua EyreJordan Grover

UNIVERSITY OF UTAHOlivia WeltschEan Yeakey

UTAH VALLEY UNIVERSITYMakayla Pressler

TENNESSEEUNION UNIVERSITYBailey Holbrook

UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHISBreana Valenzuela

SALLY DENG SPENCER FLYNNJOSH FIELDS TIA LIUCHRIS HATCHSHAI GOLDBERG

Started from the bottom,

TIA LIUCHRIS HATCH

WHY I CHOSE MY SCHOOL: Because it’s better than USC.

MOST REWARDING EXTRACURRICULAR: Photography, because it’s the one extracurricular I did for myself and not for college.

WHAT MAKES ME MORE THAN MY GPA:My SAT score.

INTERESTING STUDY HABIT: Studying is never to be done at home, but rather in the class right before.

BEST HIGH SCHOOL MEMORY: When me, Tia, Sharri, and Perris made T-shirts for our AP Chemistry lab group. We named ourselves the Asian Pears... you can figure that one out.

UCLA // 4.65

WHY I CHOSE MY SCHOOL: North-western’s computer science program is really fabulous and allows for exploration of a wide variety of facets of the computer science field. Additionally, I will be studying within the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, allowing for me to receive my computer science degree within the context of a liberal arts education.

WEIRDEST THING ABOUT ME: The weirdest thing about me is that most of my senses are messed up. I wear contacts because of vision problems; I have a minor hearing loss; I have a very limited sense of smell, and thus a limited sense of taste; and I have no sense of humor.

NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY // 4.68 DUKE UNIVERSITY // 4.82

INTERESTING STUDY HABIT: When I can’t figure a problem out, I pace and mutter to myself in a British accent because it makes me feel smarter.

BEST HIGH SCHOOL MEMORY: Lots of cross country stuff, but my best high school memory where most of the high school was actually involved was probably prom this year—it was really fun being able to talk with everyone and see everyone who I’ve gone through high school with together and happy.

DE-STRESS METHOD: Yoga

WEIRDEST THING ABOUT ME: There’s a lot. Uhhh...I do yoga?

POMONA COLLEGE // 4.67

WHY I CHOSE MY SCHOOL: Smaller, smarter, quieter and cheaper than my other options.

MOST REWARDING EXTRA-CURRICULAR: Yearbook. It will be quite a while before I forget the blood, sweat and tears that went into that thing, and will be even longer until I forget what I got out of it. Four casts of interesting characters, four years of Haar life lessons, and four years of pure, unadulterated Legend.

INTERESTING STUDY HABIT: I’ve been known to frequently pray to a pantheon of gods, just to make sure I get the right one.

CAL POLY SLO // 4.76

WHY I CHOSE MY SCHOOL: I enjoyed their motto of “Learn by doing,” because it provides an opportunity to get hands-on experience to com-plement the theory. Also, the campus has a great feel and the people are extremely nice.

WHAT MAKES ME MORE THAN MY GPA: My sarcasm.

BEST HIGH SCHOOL MEMORY: Saturdays.

WEIRDEST THING ABOUT YOU: My affinity for fanny packs.

MOST REWARDING EXTRA-CURRICULAR: Church.

UCLA // 4.66

WHY I CHOSE MY SCHOOL: UCLA has the best campus food, duh. But really, I’ve been a big UCLA fan since I was little, since both my parents went to UCLA for college, so I’ve come to know the school pretty well. They also have an excellent band program, especially marching band, which I would like to continue through my college career.

PROUDEST HIGH SCHOOL MOMENT: Probably Freshman year when I had a B+ in Mr. Parks Geometry Honors class and I thought I was going to end the year with a B+ (an Asian F), but then I did well on the final and ended the class with an A- (an Asian A.. sorta).

DE-STRESS METHOD: Watching Grey’s Anatomy, or baking cupcakes.

12 june 2, 2015senior issuevaledictorians the lancer

NOW WE’RE HERE

nix

fetch

incandescently

dingus

daft

lalochezia

nok

indubitably

perpendicular

macabre

noodle

love

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE

WORD?

SOPHIE ORMOND ANDREW SATTLERCAROLINE PAULES KAI YOSHINAGAMADDIE WEINSTOCKSOFIA VIZULUSSOPHIE ORMOND CAROLINE PAULES KAI YOSHINAGAKAI YOSHINAGAMADDIE WEINSTOCK KAI YOSHINAGAMADDIE WEINSTOCKANDREW SATTLERCAROLINE PAULESCAROLINE PAULES ANDREW SATTLER MADDIE WEINSTOCKSOFIA VIZULUS MADDIE WEINSTOCKSOFIA VIZULUS

WHY I CHOSE MY SCHOOL: Two words: New Orleans. Tulane is in the heart of one of the coolest, most culturally diverse cities in the world, and I know that my education will extend far beyond the actual classroom, because NOLA is basically a classroom in itself. A classroom, of course, that looks a lot like Disneyland and smells like freshly-baked Beignets and has a live street band on every corner.

WEIRDEST THING ABOUT ME: I have synaesthesia, which is kind-of like a “blending” of the senses. It’s different for every person who has it. My type of synaesthesia is called “color to graph-ite,” which means that, when I read or hear or think of a word, I see colors in my mind (totally bogus, duuude).

TULANE UNIVERSITY // 4.65

WHAT MAKES ME MORE THAN MY GPA: My… personality? Is this a trick question?

PROUDEST HIGH SCHOOL MEMORY: The TEDxYouth@Conejo 2015 event. It was so beautiful to see the conference finally come together since we worked so hard on choosing and preparing our panel of speakers, advertising, organizing, designing, and trying to act like responsible adults. When it finally happened, I felt like the planning committee and I had accomplished something on par with the moon landing.

DE-STRESS METHOD: Prayer. How can I be stressed out about schoolwork when I’m talking to the creator of the universe?

CALTECH // 4.71 UC BERKELEY // 4.65 UC BERKELEY // 4.68 TEXAS CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY // 4.74

WHY I CHOSE MY SCHOOL: TCU has solid academics, a good cross country team, and a great location. The scholarship didn’t hurt either!

MOST REWARDING EXTRACURRICULAR: Cross country has by far been my most rewarding extra curricular. I love giving my best every run and there’s no feeling like a great race.

WHAT MAKES ME MORE THAN MY GPA: I am my GPA.

WEIRDEST THING ABOUT ME: I never set alarms to even numbers like 0 or 5. It’s a superstition I guess!

WHY I CHOSE MY SCHOOL: Historically Georgetown and Duke are basketball rivals so I will have another excuse to TP Spencer Flynn’s house.

INTERESTING STUDY HABIT: Falling asleep to the sound of Mrs. MacDonald’s voice while using my physics textbook as a pillow.

FAVORITE CLASS: Mr. Hoag’s Fun with Chemistry and Celebrations of Learning.

PROUDEST HIGH SCHOOL MOMENT: One day I stayed awake in all my classes. Freshman year was fun.

WHAT MAKES ME MORE THAN MY GPA:My biceps.

GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY // 4.84

june 2, 2015 13senior issuethe lancer valedictorians

INTERESTING STUDY HABIT: Writing my study guides in different colored pens because it helps me remember the phrases easier somehow.

BEST HIGH SCHOOL MEMORY: Learning how to not care so much. I used to be really reserved, sorta didn’t know how to express myself. But the best thing about high school is definitely how much it can open you up.

FAVORITE CLASS: I can’t pick between AP Chemistry with Mr. Hoag and AP English Literature with Mr. McGinnis. I’m usually biased towards the sci-ences, but the type of philosophical discussions we have in my English class has actually awakened my interest in the humanities.

MOST REWARDING EXTRACURRICULAR: Band because I made most of my friends there. Also, the hard work everyone put in always paid off in the competition. After four years, I have learned many valuable skills and traits that will stay with me forever.

WHAT MAKES ME MORE THAN MY GPA: I love to camp, surf, and relax. I spend most of my time hanging out with my friends, and I am always up for an adventure.

FAVORITE CLASS: Mrs. Grano’s AP Cal-culus Class as a junior. We were able to make waffles and play board and video games everytime the seniors were gone. Plus, Mrs. Grano was an excellent and fun teacher.

A photographer. A cross-country runner. A yearbookie. The 13 valedictorians graduating from TOHS this year are diverse, dedicated and—of course—very intelligent. More than that, however, they represent the passion and spirit that allow Lancers to excel in just about all things. not pictured is Edward Si, who is attending UC Berkeley

WHAT DID YOU REALLY LEARN IN

HIGH SCHOOL?

how to maneuver through a crowd of slow freshmen

hard work pays off

to just give everything an honest try

how to get a parking ticket

that it takes eight pieces of paper to clog a school toilet

how to avoid reading books

that the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell

the truth of success

that senior year is really expensive

how to survive on no sleep

how to associate with a vast array of people

these are “the good old

Leaders

I fi rst met Kendell back in those dark and dreary middle school days doing some kind of Girl Scout thingy. Through the fi ve plus years I’ve known her she has continued to evolve into an even cooler, hipper, swaggier, kinder and all around amazing human be-ing. And it’s only been fi ve plus years—imagine what she’ll have done in 20.

For starters, she is a genuinely good person. And I don’t mean good in the boring cookie cutter way I mean a genuinely great person. She co-founded a charity to help bring drinkable water to people in third-world countries during her sophomore year, and this year she completed her Gold Award by building a Monarch Butterfl y enclosure at Underwood Family Farms. She is the coolest and most dedicated big sis-ter, and her pets love her an unimaginable amount.

She’s been working towards being EIC of this very paper for the last four years of high school, creating and improving upon the publication which deserves far more praise on campus. While the banter is fun back and forth between the journalism and yearbook staffs, she really has produced an exceptional product time and time again and I hope she (and the entire staff) know how amazing it is.

She’s continuously there for her friends. To listen to their problems, to help them through whatever hard times they are currently facing without any harsh judgment and always with encouraging words. She has been able to master being the hippest person on and off Instagram with captions almost as on point as her hair. From your outlook on life and jokes, to your shark shoes and your patched backpack, Kendell Snow, you continue to be the hippest person I know and I cannot imagine the past four years or the next 15, for that matter, without you in my life or at least sending me screen shots of things online we can laugh at together.

written by Becca Llewellyn written by Kendell SnowBecca Llewellyn is possibly the only person that

can bake a batch of chocolate chip cookies better than your grandmother while also lamenting over the plot twists in the Vampire Diaries and the dangers of the patriarchy. She has a loving, almost unhealthy connec-tion with milk and she’s one of the best humans you could ever meet.

On any given day you could walk into the yearbook room and fi nd Becca cutting out photos on Photo-shop, piecing together creative layouts, yelling at her younger brother, drinking chocolate milk and listening to some hip music—somehow all at the same time. While her time management skills aren’t always the greatest, she is still in no uncertain terms a modern day superwoman.

I am lucky to have known Becca for the past seven years and in that time I’ve learned a lot from her. Oth-er than her cookie recipes, the most important thing Becca has taught me is that you can’t control what happens to you but you can control how you deal with it. She has dealt with more than most high schoolers but she always manages to come out of everything stronger and with plenty of jokes to tell.

More than anything else, Becca is everyone’s best friend, sister and mom at the same time. Not in the bossy kind of way, in the loving and wise beyond her years kind of way. As evidence of this, everyday after school you will fi nd four or fi ve kids piling into Becca’s white little Camry so that she can drop them off at their houses. And if you ever need to talk about life, Becca will be there no matter what with plenty of advice and cookie dough ice cream.

Not only is Becca one of my best friends she’s also one of my role models and I can’t wait to see where life takes her and all of the amazing things she will continue to accomplish.

The Lancer takes a

moment to recognize a

few of the seniors who

dedicated their time to making

the last four years a

success.

senior leaders 14

Sara Wilson & Kendell Snow

Becca Llewellyn

BECCA LLEWELLYNyearbook editor-in-chief

14 june 2, 2015senior issuesenior leaders the lancer14 senior leaders

LeadersLeaders

KENDELL SNOWnewspaper editor-in-chief

SARA WILSONnewspaper editor-in-chief

LeadersLeadersLeadersLeadersLeadersLeadersLeadersLeaders

I learned within minutes of meeting Sara that she has had more life experiences than people twice her age. I could ask her anything, and even to this day, she has given me priceless advice that is brutally honest, which I hate at the time, but is always useful and relevant. As a seventh grader, I am eternally grateful to have had her in my life to guide me as I was trying to fi nd myself, my friends, and the person I wanted to be for others. Throughout those years, we tackled the cringing, awkward years of middle school and adjusting to high school, and she has always been by my side for every milestone since.

Ever since we were fourteen, I have always known that Sara has a clear mind and carefully laid out plans

for her future, no matter what roadblocks get in her way. While our peers dealt with petty issues, Sara was always on to the bigger and better, unintentionally out shining everyone in her way by genuinely being herself and not caring about her image to other people. She has known the person she wanted to be for prac-tically forever, and has not cared about if her image fi ts with everyone else’s. She has endless, endearing quirks that everyone knows about her, and she stands out to everyone she meets.

She will always and forever be my best friend, my sidekick, my partner in crime, my soul sister and family to me. I know she will fl ourish at Alabama in her Fellowship program, and I am more than excited to see what she accomplishes and how she uses her resources to make the best experience she can. I am going to miss her so incredibly much, but knowing Sara, she will have stories upon stories to tell me when we do meet up.

giving advice

my fashion sense

my mental-toughness

my calf muscles

my reliance on God

parallel parking

eyebrows so fierce they can kill

behind-the-back shot

my ability to comfort people

throwing shrimp on the bar-b

blending in

getting to class on time

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST

STRENGTH?

Allie Boyajian Sharri ParkNik Patterson Halie Swanson

written by Lauren Waldman

Sharri Park has always been short. Since I met her in preschool until now, standing at fi ve feet tall, Sharri Park has been my fun-sized best friend. Small stature aside, Sharri Park has the biggest heart and most tenacious ferocity of any person I have ever met. She is fearless in her ambitions, stopping at nothing to complete a task with effi cient perfection. Working side-by-side with her will possibly be the scariest experience I will ever have in my life, and I mean that in the nicest way. Creativity comes to her as easily as breathing, and evenly spaced, beautiful penmanship fl ows from her hand to the paper in the blink of an eye. It’s impossible to not be amazed by the speed with which she completes tasks, and yet, everything she does is incredibly detailed and intri-

cate. She’s also a carnivorous sassmaster who, with a single raised eyebrow, can send a six foot two senior boy running away in fear. Warning: touch her meat, and you will pay. There is never a dull or humorless moment with Sharri. Her laugh energizes a room, and her jokes never fail to make me laugh.

Underneath the sass, Sharri is overfl owing with passion and kindness. She spends her days giving limitlessly without asking for gratitude in return. Her selfl essness is truly inspiring, and I am blessed to have been able to know Sharri for 14 years. I know she will go on to do big things, spreading her sassy perfectionism wherever she goes. Being in ASB with her for four years has been the most amazing experience. I don’t think we would have survived it without each other. Sharri, even though we’re going our separate ways, I know that we will continue our close friendship over the next 14 years and beyond that. I will forever remember our time together as senior class offi cers.

This year, Halie was the Senior class Vice President while I was the President (in CSF though, it was the opposite). In the past she’s been sophomore class vice president and student body president.

Halie and I have also been best friends since the 7th grade, and being able to work with her this year was a lot of fun. Though we’ve been in ASB and classes together, working together as President and Vice President was completely different. Being in charge of the senior class isn’t exactly easy—there’s a lot of time, work, and stress that goes into it, and not a lot of people understand. However, working with my best

friend made it so much easier. We had a level of un-derstanding and usually had the same opinions, so it was easier to make decisions. Though we got stressed A LOT, it was the best way to end high school. There were a lot of times when I wanted to give up or try to fi nd some way out of things, but in those times if I wasn’t working with Halie, I probably would have quit. Halie always takes initiative and does the work that no one else volunteers for, which makes her a top class leader. There’s always something good to say about her because of her hard work, which you can see throughout her 4 years of ASB, high school, and countless extracurriculars. Thanks, Halie, for being the best VP this year. I don’t think I would have sur-vived with anyone else. You’re da bomb and I know you’re going to do great things at Cal Poly SLO and even better things afterwards.

written by Halie Swanson

written by Sara WilsonAllie used to have this big, furry, in your face white

vest. It is what one would call a “statement piece,” a divalicious thing that could not go unnoticed. It was huge. I remember her wearing the vest years ago, and thinking that I would never have the gall to wear such a bold--and adorable--thing to school . It was intimidating to wear something trendy (read: weird), because it drew way too much attention. But then there was Allie with her fuzzy vest. And she rocked it.

That’s who Allie Boyajian is. She is confi dently and unabashedly and wholeheartedly herself, and it is exactly what makes her an excellent leader.

While she is always cautious to heed advice and learn from precedent, she doesn’t shy away from enacting her own, original ideas. She’s not scared of the unattempted, but welcomes the creative challenge. It’s what makes her events so successful—she’ll turn the Teen Center foyer into an aquarium for the Youth Commission Therapeutic Dance, a basic wooden platform into a Disney Castle for Homecoming, or the Quad into a lovely venue for an ASB banquet. She doesn’t settle for the expected or subpar. Nix that.

Allie is the girl who gets me. She understands the pressure of producing an event for hard to please teenagers, and is a constant reminder of how to be an introspective, patient and complete individual. She reminds me to seek passion and growth in my life. She reminds me to simplify and to constantly believe in my own aspirations and goals, just as she believes in her own. She reminds me to love.

Mizzou will have Allie’s mark well within the com-pletion of her freshman year, in whichever way she decides to leave it.

Well here it goes. This is my shot at summing up the last four years

in a little over 500 words.But it’s not that easy. Regardless of what the Disney Channel has led us

all to believe, high school can’t be summed up with cliché phrases or song lyrics or group musical num-bers or, dare I say it, even a newspaper column. And here’s a disclaimer: I’m not going try to encapsulate your high school experience or even my own in this column–but I am going to try to show you why it’s important.

Thirty years from now you’ll have only vague memories of high school. You’ll look back on old pictures and forget the names of your friends. Your favorite teachers will be retired (or otherwise). The TOHS campus will look completely different. All you’ll be left with are some faded high-waisted jeans and a few yearbooks, maybe even a copy of The Lancer if you’re lucky. You’ll probably remember the high points, like Dane Swansons’ newfound Twitter fame after scoring 7 points against Newbury, and the low points, like all of the times you failed Hoag’s Chemistry tests, but not the day-to-day mo-notony. Not the everyday greetings in the halls or the hilariously witty comments your classmates made during history.

When we walk off the campus after graduation our lives will never be the same again. If you’re like me, that thought initially sounds nice. After all, we’ve spent the greater part of our lives under the sometimes overbearing control of the public school system, and this is our fi rst taste of real freedom.

But it’s important to remember that when we walk off the campus for the last time we’re not just leav-ing behind a few angry teachers, or homework as-signments, or bathroom rules, or questionable school lunches—we’re leaving behind our community. The one that we’ve been with since freshman year when we were all scared out of minds. The one that comes out to every football and basketball game, that kept a game of Water Assassins going for 6 months, the one that even made rallies a little fun, and the one that we’ve grown to begrudgingly love.

The truth is, the people we’ve met and the four years we’ve spent here cannot be packed into a simple, neat little column with a pretty bow on top. These four years were tough. There were tears, there was stress, there was drama, there were timed essays, and there were a lot of math tests. But no matter how diffi cult these years were, they had their perks. There were friends, there were laughs, there was love, there were about a million Instagram pictures, and ultimately we all grew up—well most of us, at least.

Regardless of how much you want to leave just re-member how much it shaped you and all of the peo-ple you met here, because after we cross the stage at graduation that is all we’ll have left of TOHS. Well, other than a diploma and a lot of green apparel.

I know you’re dying to go off to college or go on some wild summer adventures, but as we come up on our fi nal week of senior year just try to remem-ber all of the things you actually might like about TOHS and how different your life will be when you wake up on Monday, June 15 and you don’t have anywhere to be at 7 am.

written by Brady FiniganMost everyone knows Nik is going to West-

Point next year (he isn’t shy about the fact). Being admitted to our nation’s most prestigious military academy speaks for itself of his achievements and leadership ability, but what some may not realize is how incredible of a person and friend Nik is.

He is one of the most intelligent students academ-ically, the vice president of Thousand Oaks ASB, a varsity lacrosse and football player, the king of Snapchat, and he knows more words of “Piano Man” than Billy Joel himself.

His dedication to our school, his family, his friends, and his dreams are clear after getting to know him. In all these aspects of his life he has proven himself to be a go-getter. He holds himself to the highest of standards and is never satisfi ed with mediocrity, and still manages to be the funniest person I know. His witty comments remain unsur-passed, and his dancing never fails to make people smile. Nobody has ever had to tell Nik to speak up, because he always passionately defends everything that he believes in.

Nik still has a long journey ahead of him at West Point and as a cadet and future offi cer in the United States Army, but I have no doubt that he will perse-vere and continue to be one of the most admirable people I know.

Being a fellow Lancer and member of the Class of 2015, I feel lucky to graduate amongst someone as respectable as you.

Nik, as your classmate, co-worker, teammate and friend, I wish you the best of luck in all of life’s ventures.

lea

der

sco

nti

nu

ed

NIK PATTERSONasb vice president

ALLIE BOYAJIANasb president

HALIE SWANSON

SHARRI PARK

senior class vice president

june 2, 2015 15senior issuethe lancer senior leaders

WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF?

Hilary Clinton becoming president

the librarian

getting out in Water Assassin

inaction

having no money in my bank account

myself

the past and future; the present is pretty comfortable

not finding “the one”

being with people who make me feel alone

losing my motivation

crashing into another student in the parking lot

the bottom bunk

This isn’t high school musical and we don’t get to do a big

“goodbye” group dance number, so I’m hoping this

column will suffice.

senior column SARA WILSONKENDELL SNOW

written by Sharri Park

A FEW OF THEIR FAVORITE THINGS

“Presenting the year-book to the student

body and seeing their reactions makes all the

late nights worth it.”—BECCA LLEWELLYN

“My favorite part was running the American

Red Cross Blood Drive.”

—NIK PATTERSON

“I think the best part was getting to plan

all the end of the year events that everyone

enjoys so much.”

—SHARRI PARK

“I liked being able to see people enjoy

something that I had a huge part in putting

together. ”—HALIE SWANSON

senior class president

16 june 2, 2015senior issuesports the lancer

watching telenovelas in Señora Villa’s Class

the Green Hole

dancing to “Jingle Bell Rock” in the winter rally

too many to name just one

kissing my crush at Homecoming

EThOS San Fran trip

walking to class with mybest friends

the play “Noises Off”

crazy nights with my friends

beating Westlake in

kickin’’ it with the fam

marching band

BEST HIGH SCHOOL

MEMORY?

SENIOR STANDOUTSthe

It takes years of dedication and hard work to excel at any sport. Blood, sweat and tears are poured out in the process to become a great athlete. These individuals have put in the time and effort to be elite amongst their athletic peers and leaders in their respective sports.

JACOB ALLRED

»lacrosse 4-year varsity»University of Arkansas

FAVORITE COACH SAYING: : “JAKE, WHY?”PREGAME RITUAL: Thanking God, pre-workoutMEMORABLE MOMENT: Hugging my teammates after losing in the semi-finalsCOLLEGE MAJOR: Law Enforcement

OLIVIA ANDERSON

»swimming 4-year varsity»San Francisco Art Institute

FAVORITE COACH SAYING: “Get in the pool.”PREGAME RITUAL: Pray to the swim gods.MEMORABLE MOMENT: First lunch in Band LandCOLLEGE MAJOR: Film productionFAVORITE COACH SAYING: “Get in the water.”

JESSICA ANDREWS

»water polo 4-year varsity»UC Santa Barbara

NICKNAME: JessPREGAME RITUAL: Listen to music or goof off with KristinFAVORITE COACH SAYING: “You’re off the team, burn your suit.”MOST MEMORABLE LANCER MOMENT: Breaking school records in water polo

SARAH BASDEN

»lacrosse recruit»Allegheny College

PREGAME RITUAL: American flag bandanna, listen to pump up-music, strip of tape on my left wrist, left cleat, right cleat, stick tricks, pre-warmup passingMOST MEMORABLE LANCER MOMENT: Instagram beef with Newbury Park Girls Lacrosse

HAYLEY BLAAUW

»swimming recruit»4-year varsity»Queens University of Charlotte

PREGAME RITUAL: Listen to country music, pop my hips before I get on the blocks. MOST MEMORABLE LANCER MOMENT: Breaking the school record in the 100 yard breast-stroke and going to CIF with our team

GRANT BODEN

»cross country »4-year varsity»Moorpark College

PREGAME RITUAL: CantaloupeFAVORITE COACH SAYING: “Are you barfing?” “No.” “Then get up here.”MAJOR: PsychologyMEMORABLE LANCER MOMENT: Getting second in county for large school varsity

ZACH BYINGTON

»lacrosse recruit»4-year varsity

»CU Boulder

PREGAME RITUAL: Pregame garage time FAVORITE COACH SAYING: “He can’t stop a beach ball!” MOST MEMORABLE LANCER MOMENT: Winning Marmonte League

ALEXA COUBAL

»track and field recruit»University of Notre Dame

PREGRAME RITUAL: Listen to my “clutch” playlist, eat Cheez-its, always put my left shoe on first.MAJOR: Pre-Med

JOECARBINE

»football recruit»CLU

NICKNAME: The man. The myth. The legend.PREGAME RITUAL: Listening to “Boys of Fall” by Kenny Chesney.FAVORITE COACH SAYING: “Can you read the damn scout card?”

june 2, 2015 17senior issuethe lancer sports

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE AN ADULT?

becoming responsible for our words and actions

matching your socks

I’ll let you know when I get there.

having your own bowling

You’ll get arrested if you start a fight.

paying for your own gas

not avoiding this question for ten minutes

paying for taxes/complaining

You’re the one paying for your juice boxes and ramen.

stepping up

doing the right thing over the easy route

responsibility

BRIAN JOERGER

»cross country recruit »4-year varsity»Loyola Marymount

NICKNAME: JoergerFAVORITE COACH SAYING: “A win is a win is a win is a win, and we won.”MEMORABLE MOMENT: CIF preliminaries

KRISTIN KINGI

»volleyball recruit »4-year varsity»Bryant University

NICKNAME: KingiPREGAME RITUAL: EatMEMORABLE MOMENT: Winning back-to-back-to-back championships.

BAILEY HOLBROOK

»baseball recruit »4-year varsity

»Union

University

FAVORITE COACH SAYING: “Oh, horse feathers!”PREGAME RITUAL: Get food from Carl’s Jr., sleep, listen to music that pumps me up, pray.

MATT HAUSER

»basketball recruit»4-year varsity

»Santa Clara

University

NICKNAME: Hauser PowerPREGAME RITUAL: Service road jog with Dane and AmmanMEMORABLE MOMENT: Trip to Hawaii with the team for a tournament this year.

STEPHEN HERNANDEZ

»track and field recruit»4-year varsity»UC Santa Barbara

NICKNAME: Scuba StevePREGAME RITUAL: Do push-ups before my races.MEMORABLE MOMENT: Being able to come from behind and win the 4x4 relays with my team.

JESKE GLENN

»cheer and lacrosse »4-year varsity»University of Oregon

NICKNAME: JeskPREGAME RITUAL: Always sit in the back of the bus, listen to musicMEMORABLE MOMENT: Beating NP last year in the final minute of the game

FOOTBALL: Started 6–0 for the fi rst time in 8 years. The team fi nished 7–4, losing in the fi rst round of CIF playoffs to Atascadero. Junior quarterback Max Gilliam enjoyed a breakout season and verbally committed to Cal Berkeley this spring.

BOYS CROSS COUNTRY: Finished the year 6–3 good enough for 2nd in the Marmonte League. The team managed to advance to the CIF Finals where they did not place. Brian Joerger led the boys team and will continue running next year at LMU.

GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY: Finished the year

6–3, earning second place in the Marmonte League, did not qualify for CIF. Madison Weinstock, after just picking up the sport this year, qualifi ed individually for CIF and earned a scholarship to run at TCU.

GIRLS GOLF: Finished 6–8 on the season, good for fourth place in the Marmonte league. Failed to qualify for playoffs.

BOYS WATER POLO: Finished 17–13 for third place in league. The team was knocked out in the fi rst round of CIF playoffs. Chris Dilworth broke the career scoring record this year.

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL: Finished 12–17 but managed a third place league fi nish thanks to a 6–4 league record. The team earned a playoff bid, but was knocked out in the fi rst round.

GIRLS TENNIS: Finished 11–5, good enough for a second place fi nish in league.

BOYS BASKETBALL: Finished with a 26–4 record, won the Marmonte league title and earned a number one seed in CIF playoffs. Matt Hauser, who will play at Santa Clara next year, rewrote the basket-ball record book in terms of scoring.

KELSEY ESCOBAR

»soccer»4-year varsity»Moorpark College

NICKNAME: K-diddyPREGAME RITUAL: My dad always yells “hard and smart” at me from the stands.MEMORABLE MOMENT: Winning against Westlake my freshman year

JENNA FIELD

»soccer»4-year varsity»University of Colorado at Boulder

NICKNAME: Jen, JPREGAME RITUAL: Pre-game hair with the wolf packMEMORABLE MOMENT: All our pasta parties and team bonding

CHRISTOPHER DILWORTH

»water polo recruit»4-year varsity»Pepperdine University

NICKNAME: Big DPREGAME RITUAL: A solid power napMEMORABLE MOMENT: Tearing my leg open falling off of the bleachers at a football game.

2014-2015

SPORTS IN

REVIEW(continued on pg 18)

18 june 2, 2015senior issuesports the lancer

Moneymaker Mike

DJ Doris

DJ HULK SMASH

@swandizzle

Reel Neid

DJ MACDADDY

I will never be a DJ. Ever.

Igloo Australia

DJ Toasted Marshmallow

DJ Tissue for Your Issue

DJ Jet Fuel Can’t Melt Steel Beams

DJ Fly-nn

WHAT IS YOUR DJ NAME?

ROGANWELLS

»wrestling 4-year varsity»Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

FAVORITE COACH SAYING: Too many golden quotes from coach Kerry Lyne.MEMORABLE MOMENT: Winning most outstand-ing wrestler in the Marmonte league

ALEXANDRA VONARB

»soccer recruit»4-year varsity»SDSU

NICKNAME: AlexPREGAME RITUAL: Wolf pack circleMEMORABLE MOMENT: Beating WestlakeFAVORITE COACH SAYING: “No excuses.”

BREANNAVALENZUELA

»softball recruit»University of Memphis

NICKNAME: Bre, B, Easy Breezy PREGAME RITUAL: music, left cleat before right, show up earlyMEMORABLE MOMENT: Making playoffs

SPENCER REED

»football recruit»San Diego State University

NICKNAME: The BodyPREGAME RITUAL: Listen to “Down with the Sickness” before heading to the field.MEMORABLE MOMENT: Overtime win at Simi.

DANNI RYAN

»softball recruit »4-year varsity»University of

Toledo

NICKNAME: Big RedMEMORABLE MOMENT: When I hit both walk off home runs to beat Newbury Park and Simi Valley my sophomore year.

NIKOLE PRELOOKER

»soccer recruit »4-year varsity

»CLU

NICKNAME: Nik, ShrimpPREGAME RITUAL: The “Wolf pack” group hug with Jenna Field, Alex Vonarb, and Kelsey Escobar.

MICHAELA MAKI

»lacrosse 4-year varsity»Portland Community College

NICKNAME: One Mack Wolf PackPREGAME RITUAL: Taking two hours to put in my contactsFAVORITE COACH SAYING: “I’m a big strong man, with big strong man hands.”

RYAN PEMBERTON

»baseball recruit»Boise State University

NICKNAME: Freckled FiendPREGAME RITUAL: Listen to rap musicMOST MEMORABLE LANCER MOMENT: Playing Newbury Park in football.

SARAH LAM

»lacrosse4-year varsity

»Northeastern University

MEMORABLE MOMENT: Sarah Basden trying to lick Catlin’s elbow without her notic-ing.FAVORITE COACH SAYING: “GAS” (Give A Sh--)

GIRLS BASKETBALL: The team fi nished with a record of 21-7 good for a fourth place league fi nish. The team qualifi ed for the CIF playoffs and managed to win in the fi rst round before being knocked out in the second round.

BOYS SOCCER: Finished 11–5–7 good for a third place fi nish in the Marmonte League. The team made it to the second round of playoffs, via a thrilling overtime win in the wild card round of the playoffs against Paso Robles.

GIRLS SOCCER: Started out fast with a 5–1–1 record in the fi rst month before losing momentum and falling to their fi nal record of 6–7–1.

GIRLS WATER POLO: Finished with a record of 20–10 .and qualifi ed for CIF playoffs where they were dispatched in the fi rst round. Jessi Andrews set the Program’s career scoring record.

WRESTLING: After losing Rogan Wells early in season, the team dug deep to take home their fi rst Marmonte League Championship since 2007.

BASEBALL: Beat the number 8 team in country 13–4, but the team ends with a 6– 9 league record and doesn’t make playoffs. Bailey Holbrook played a large role for the team from the mound and at the plate.

BOYS LACROSSE: 14–5 overall record. Beat Westlake 17–8 to take fi rst place in league only to lose 7–6 to Newbury Park in the following game. The team made a run all the way to the semi-fi nals in playoffs before losing a one goal heart-break-er to Crespi.

GIRLS LACROSSE: An inexperienced girls lacrosse team struggled through an up and down season that fi nished with a 5-12 record.

BOYS TENNIS: Struggled to a 3–10–1 record and failed to qualify for CIF playoffs.

BOYS GOLF: Finished with a 10–3 record good for a third place fi nish in league. The team qualifi ed for CIF but did not make it past the fi rst stage of the CIF tournament. Freshman Seldon Doyle broke onto the scene qualifying for CIF.

BOYS VOLLEYBALL: fi nished 10-15 but still managed to qualify for the playoffs where they were eliminated in the fi rst round.

BOYS TRACK: Finished with a record of 6–3 and qualifi ed for CIF in many different events. Stephen Hernandez was a CIF qualifi er in the 200, 400, 4x400, and the 4x100.

GIRLS TRACK: Finished 5–4 and qualifi ed for CIF play-offs in many events, highlighted by Rachel Craft and Alexa Coubal who are top in the county in Pole Vault and Shot Put respectively.

SOFTBALL: struggled to a 4–21–1 record and fi nished in last in the Marmonte League, failing to qualify for CIF playoffs.

BOYS SWIM: Finished 1–4–1 and failed to qualify for CIF playoffs.

GIRLS SWIM: Finished 3–3, Haley Blaauw excelled for the team this year setting a new record in the 100 meter breast-stroke. Next season, Blaauw will swim at Queens University of Charlotte.

PHOTOS » KENDELL SNOW, DANE SWANSON

june 2, 2015 19senior issuethe lancer advertisement

ACCESS

For more information, contact

Bill Ackerman(818) 371-4956

accesscollegecounseling@gmail.com

Ackerman College Counseling and Educational Support Services

» ACCESS offers college advising as well as Classes and Tutoring to prepare for the

ACT, SAT and SAT Subject Tests.

» Locally owned and operated by father of 4 former and current Lancers

» All college advising and SAT/ACT courses taught personally by Bill Ackerman

THEN & NOWA glimpse of what a few Lancers looked like before the stress of high school

classes, the spirited chaos of football season, and the joy that comes with senior year.

20 june 2, 2015senior issuebaby photos the lancer

SARA WILSON

HALIE AND DANE SWANSON

KENDELL SNOW

EDWIN CHIKUKWA

ZACHARY BYINGTON COLE MAKI

SAMARA HARRISSAMARA HARRISOLIVIA NOLAN

KENNY ALLDREDGEHANNAH FIROUZAN AND MICHAELA MAKI