the dart: vol 74 issue 3
DESCRIPTION
The Dart is the official student newspaper of St. Teresa's Academy in Kansas City, Mo.TRANSCRIPT
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SCHOOL OF THE LIVING DEADHow the causes of sleep deprivation leave students brain dead
the
St. Teresa’s AcademyKansas City, Missouri
Book censorship in freshmen English classes ›› pg. 4 | KC jazz remains in full swing›› pg. 15 | Royals: 1985 to now ›› pg. 28
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CONTENTSthe Dart vol. 74 issue 3 14 November 2014
news4 // Admin. censors book in freshman class
star spotlight8 // STA junior embarks on medical mission trip
reviews10 // American Horror Story: instant cult classic
features12 // Science teacher has roots in the Navy
cover story18 // Students suffer from sleep deprivation
a&e23 // KC celebrates Day of the Dead at the Nelson
perspectives24 // It's not always fun looking young
sports27 // STA lacks a field hockey team
community28 // Blue October sweeps over KC
last look30 // Match students and their costumes
restricted reading | Freshman Kate Jones poses with "Wild" in the library Oct. 31. The book was removed from the freshmen English classes due to reports of it being inappropriate for the students. photo by MADDY MEDINA
seriously sweet | Carrie Parker and her son, Silas, decorate sugar skulls during the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art Day of the Dead celebra-tion Nov. 2. Parker is an employee at Oracle, a local shop that sells taxidermied animals, framed insects, and other curiosities. photo by SIOBHAN MILLER
missing out | The Pembroke Hill varsity field hockey team runs downfield after scoring at their home game Oct. 27. The Pembroke Hill Raiders defeated the Sion Storm 1-0. photo by ANNA HAFNER
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3the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 14 November 2014page design by Gloria Cowdin, cover design by Mary Hilliard
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From theEditors
Last year, former web editor Anna Leach suggested covering “stress culture” at STA. She claimed students’ sleep deprivation and constant preoccupation with schoolwork had become social constructs.
No one pursued the story.When the Dart editors met to plan the
paper’s second issue, another staffer pro-posed an article on teenagers’ lack of sleep. However, others claimed the topic was not newsworthy.
In this cover story, the Dart recognizes a health issue that has become an STA norm, as the previous examples confirm. Particularly, writers Mary Hilliard and Kath-erine Green relate the conflict to students’ ceaseless opportunities to participate in the community. Varsity sports, AP classes and after-school jobs compete for students’ at-tention. To avoid the guilt of not challenging themselves, many students sample a large amount of activities.
Ironically, our cover story encourages easier lifestyles by introducing another
requirement for students: 8 to 10 hours of nightly sleep. As with any guideline, slip ups will occur. Perhaps a student decides to stay up until 2 a.m. at a friend’s house or set her alarm for 4:30 a.m. to finish a semester-long project. Above all, instances of sleep deprivation will arise naturally in students’ lives, not occur daily out of pres-sure to be perfect.
Enjoy the issue!
Staff
Lis
t CopyOpinion Editor Torie RichardsonSports Editor Leigh CampbellFeatures Editor Mary HilliardNews Editor Anna Bauman
PhotographyWeb Editor Hannah BredarPrint Editor Jessie CulverJournalism Projects Editor Arinna HoffineStaff Photographers Lauren Zastrow, Meg Thompson, Maddy Medina, Katherine Mediavilla
PrintProjects Coordinator MaryMichael HoughCultural Correspondent Emma WillibeyBreaking Local News Editor Meredith MulhernGraphics Illustrator Mackenzie O’GuinPage DesignersMary Hilliard, Gloria Cowdin, Anna Bauman, Bridget Jones, MaryMichael Hough, Maggie Knox, Maria Don-nelly, Mackenzie O’Guin, Christina Elias, Torie Richardson, Amy O’Leary, Siobhan MillerStaff WritersLinden O’Brien-Williams, Alexandria Davis, Alexandra Frisch, Elsa Feigen-baum, Molly Bird, Helen Wheatley, Clare Kenney, Anna Hafner
WebCopy Editors Audrey Carroll, Madi WinfieldSocial Media Manager Katherine Green
Editors-in-Chief Libby Hyde, Siobhan Miller, Emma Willibey Adviser Brad Lewis
QuestionMonthly
What is one weird talent that you
have?
“I can pull my leg over my head.”Gina Ptacek, senior
“I am really good at Tetris. I can get to level 40.” Maureen Havey, junior
“I can flip my tongue over completely in my mouth.” Skye Hewitt, sophomore
by ALEXANDRIA [email protected]
“People have told me that I am really good at growing plants.”Matthew Bertalott, teacher
CORRECTION: In the Dart Volume 74, Issue 2, the story ”Rockhurst Improv Club admits STA students for first time” by staff writer Alexandra Frisch mis-identified senior Marie Green as “Hailey Greene.” The Dart regrets the error.
The book "Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail" by Cheryl Strayed has been removed from fresh-men English classes at STA. "Wild" is a memoir detailing Strayed’s experi-ences hiking the 1,100 mile Pacific Crest Trail, containing flashbacks to her life prior to the journey. Released in 2012, the memoir has been placed on the New York Times Best Seller List, Oprah’s Book Club 2.0 and has been consistently praised by critics.
However, according to STA president Nan Bone, administration decided the book contained material that was too mature for a freshmen audience. According to Bone, it was “a tough decision to make.”
“When I make decisions, I always base it on what's best for students,” Bone said. “We just felt like if it had been a junior or senior book it would have been perfect.”
The students in English teacher Car-rie Jacquin’s English 1 and Advanced English 1 classes began reading the
first chapter of the book at the begin-ning of the school year. After receiving parent complaints, the administration decided to remove the memoir from the curriculum. According to Jacquin, there is some explicit language and mature content. However, she believes it could have taught important values.
“It deals with realities that some of our students, even as freshmen, have experienced in different ways: loss, grief, divorce, substance issues,” Jacquin said. “Ultimately it's a story about redemption and finding religion for yourself.”
Jacquin went on to say that she was “absolutely amazed at the ability of [her] freshmen girls to talk about difficult issues with grace, insight and intelligence.”
Some students, like freshmen Grace Langdon, really enjoyed what the class read of the novel.
“As soon as I started reading it, I couldn’t put it down,” Langdon said. “I was so mad [that we stopped reading the novel] because I really enjoyed all the class activities and discussions we had done so far.”
Langdon said there was a lot to be learned through "Wild," and believes the class should have continued read-
EditorialPolicies
Ownership and SponsorshipDartNewsOnline and the Dart are created by the student newspaper staff and are main-tained and published by general operating funds of St. Teresa’s Academy, a Catholic insti-tution sponsored by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet. DartNewsOnline and the Dart will not publish opinions that contradict the teachings and beliefs of the Catholic church, whether on a diocesan or world-wide level.
Editorial PolicyThe staff of DartNewsOnline and the Dart are subject to prior review by the St. Te-resa’s Academy administrative team in circumstances that concern Catholic doc-trine, student safety or illegal behavior. DartNewsOnline and the Dart will not publish reviews of student work or per-formances. Personal columns reflect the opinions of the writer, not necessarily the
staff or school.
Letters & Reader Interaction Policy
DartNewsOnline and the Dart encourage the community to post comments on the website. Letters to the editors can be sent in the following ways: in person to Brad Lewis in Donnelly room 204; by mail to St. Teresa’s Academy, Attn: Brad Lewis, 5600 Main Street, Kansas City, MO 64113; by email to [email protected] or to [email protected]. DartNewsOn-line and the Dart staff reserve the right to
edit or shorten letters for publication.
Comment PolicyDartNewsOnline and the Dart encourage readers to comment on all posts. Howev-er, DartNewsOnline and the Dart reserve the right to monitor and edit all comments on DartNewsOnline. Comments that dis-agree with the editorial policy will not be
published.
Photo Use PolicyPhoto illustrations are conceptual pho-tos that combine drawing and photogra-phy. All photos on the website are free for public use. If a reader is interested in high-quality copies of photos, please email DartNewsOnline at dartpaper@
gmail.com.
Corrections PolicyDartNewsOnline and the Dart will publish corrections as soon as possible after the
error is discovered.
Administration deemed a book inappropriate for freshmen after parents complained. by HELEN WHEATLEY [email protected]
book abandonment | The books above are just a few examples of novels that have been challenged by parents or administration for mature content. Many of the novels challenged include classics such as "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn." photo by MADDY MEDINA
Administration bans novel for freshmen
news
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into the wild| Freshman Kate Jones reads "Wild" in the library Oct. 31. The book was removed from the freshmen English classes due to reports of it being inappropriate for the students. photo by MADDY MEDINAing the book.
“I believe the content was fine for my age group,” Langdon said. “We are in high school and eventually we are going to be exposed to this stuff.”
“I’m very upset and confused why the administration had to stop us from reading a great book,” Langdon said. “I do think there was a little harsh lan-guage, but nothing that a high schooler can’t read.”
After developing a new curriculum over the summer, Jacquin wants her classes to focus on the idea of women creating their own stories. Although "Wild" illustrates this concept, Jacquin and Bone are both excited for "Kin-dred" by Octavia Butler, the novel stu-dents will be reading second semester. While Jacquin said there will be themes of female independence in "Kindred," she also believes some of the lessons taught in "Wild" will be lost.
“I think what is lost is the exposure to a real life female epic hero,” Jacquin said. “She goes through all the ele-
1. "1984" by George Orwell2. "The Adventures of Huckleberry
Finn" by Mark Twain3. "The Catcher in the Rye" by J.D.
Salinger4. "The Color Purple" by Alice
Walker5. "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott
Fitzgerald6. "I Know Why the Caged Bird
Sings" by Maya Angelou7. "Lord of the Flies" by William
Golding8. "Of Mice and Men" by John
Steinbeck9. "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's
Nest" by Ken Kesey10. "To Kill a Mockingbird" by
Harper Lee
ments that we talk about with the male character Odysseus, but she goes through them in a real life sort of way.”
Langdon agreed with Jacquin, believ-ing it was a more realistic way to under-stand the concepts presented in classic literature, and will continue to read the book on her own time.
“It was nothing like I had ever read before; it was a great change from reading the Odyssey," Langdon said."It was interesting and pulled me in. I be-lieve that 'Wild' had a lot of information and a great story that you couldn’t find in any other book.”
Jacquin explains that although the material may not have been suitable for the freshmen age group, there are still lessons to be taught.
“Almost everything we teach has been challenged somewhere at some point, but the mark of good literature is making people think, and sometimes that means making them a little un-comfortable,” Jacquin said.H
Risky readingThe Dart compiled the 10 most commonly banned books in America.compiled by GLORIA [email protected]
5the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 14 November 2014page design by Anna Bauman
“How long have you been singing?”“Since I can remember.”“What about public singing?”“Since third grade.”Nine years later, senior Hillary
Talken, along with 15 other STA stu-dents, auditioned for KC Metro choirs Oct. 4. Six students earned a role in the KC Metro Women’s Choir, while five, including Talken, are a part of All-District Choir.
Those five girls auditioned for Mis-souri All-State Choir, the most selective of the KC Metro choirs, Oct. 25. Only eight students - six members and two alternates - are chosen from each dis-trict for each vocal part: soprano, alto, tenor and bass. Each district performs in their own separate festival, then comes together as a full state choir at the MMEA Conference. This is held annually at the Tan-Tar-A Resort in the Lake of the Ozarks Jan. 28 - 31.
This year, Talken was chosen as one of six altos in the choir, while seniors Micah Welch and Maggie Hutchison were named All-State Choir alternates.
“All-District Choir is SATB - soprano, alto, tenor, bass - and obviously we don’t have tenors and basses here, except for Varsity Singers,” Talken said. Actually, Varsity Singers has six people in [All-District Choir,] which is some-thing that can’t be said throughout the whole state.”
Eight students also earned roles in the KC Metro 9-10 Honor Choir. To qualify for this choir, students audi-tioned for STA choir director Greg Monsma, who can only send eight freshmen and sophomores to partici-pate.
“Each school in the district submits
news
by MADI [email protected]
Students excel in KC Metro choirsEleven STA students earned roles in the KC Metro Women's Choir and All-District Choir.
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16 students,” Monsma explains. “They get scored on sight reading and a solo. The highest 120 scores make it into All-District Choir. After those slots are filled up, the next 100 top-ranked scores are
included into the Women’s Choir.”According to the Kansas City District
Choirs website, the All-District Choir audition process consists of a solo audi-tion, key signature identification and sightreading tests. Even so, it is pretty “laid-back,” according to senior Monica Stanley, a member of All-District Choir.
“I think that’s why a lot of the girls from STA prosper so well in District Choir,” Stanley said. “They don’t really see [auditions] as a life-or-death situa-tion; they’re just going to do what they love, and I think that really works out well for a lot of people.”
Junior Connor Hodes, a member of the Women’s Choir, agrees that the choirs require dedication.
“It’s a really unique experience,” Hodes said. “You meet so many differ-
ent people that have the same passion as you, that are there because they sing and because they love to sing.”
All KC Metro Choirs - All-District, Women’s, and 9-10 Honor Choir - as well as All-State Choir spend a full day together learning their performance pieces and preparing for their concert that night. All-District and Women’s Choirs have one supplementary re-hearsal before Jan. 17, the day of the festival, while All-State Choir has four.
“It’s a lot of fun,” Stanley said. “We do get a lot of free time, but during that free time we’re still looking over our words and practicing even when we don’t have to.”
“How did you find out you were chosen for All-State?”
“I was cleaning my room with my little six-year-old sister and refreshing the page over and over again. It came up and I scrolled and saw my name and I screamed really loudly. That really freaked Kaitlyn out because she’s six years old and didn’t know what was happening.”
According to Talken, she is looking forward to Tan-Tar-A the most. Both the All-State Choir and the STA Singers Choir will attend the MMEA Conference this year.
“I’ll get to participate in all kinds of things down there [at the conference],” Talken said. “It’s an experience that I’ve never had before.”
Freshman Kate Willnauer, a member of 9-10 Honor Choir, is excited to expe-rience a different conductor.
“I mean, I love Mr. Monsma, but I think being taught by someone else would be kind of interesting,” Willnauer said. “Just to see how other people teach differently.”
“What do you like most about choirs?”“They’re nice because I get to sing in
front of people and perform really fun music, but it’s not like all the pressure’s on me.” H
KC Metro ChoirSenior Annie Huber Senior Micah Welch
Senior Maggie Hutchison Senior Monica Stanley Senior Hillary Talken
KC Metro Women's ChoirSenior Alexia Arrieta
Junior Lily WalshJunior Hayley BurgessJunior Lily Cosgrove
Junior Connor HodesSophomore Libby Terril
KC Metro 9-10 Honor ChoirSophomore Emma SwinneySophomore Mary LePiqueSophomore Olivia JacksonSophomore Gina BissacaSophomore Lizy Hagan
Freshman Courtney TalkenFreshman Kate Willnauer
7the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 14 November 2014page design by Bridget Jones
Alleged police killer Mat-thew Eric Frein was captured Oct. 30 by authorities after 48 days on the run. Accord-ing to police, Frein am-bushed two state troopers outside the Blooming Grove Barrack in Blooming Grove, PA., killing one and wounding another Sept. 12. Since then, Frein spent weeks evading police before his capture.
Missouri voters elected six Republicans to the House of Representatives and two Democrats Nov. 4. Missouri’s election mirrors the rest of the country’s choices - Republicans retained control of the House and overtook control in the Senate. In a news conference, Presi-dent Barack Obama said he wanted to let Americans know that he “heard them” in their election choices.
Each issue, the Dart highlights groundbreaking events in the world, US, Missouri and KC.
The Ebola virus has killed nearly 5,000 people worldwide. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 9,000 people have con-tracted the virus in West Africa alone. According to the Wall Street Journal, President Barack Obama plans to boost the U.S. effort to control the Ebola outbreak, including more involvement of the U.S. military.
the NEWS FEEDin the world in missouriin the u.s. in kansas city
The Kansas City Royals baseball team lost the World Series to the San Francisco Giants 4-3 Oct. 29 at Kauffman Stadium. This was the first time the Royals made it to the play-offs in 29 years. Three play-ers were awarded Golden Glove awards for their per-formances throughout the season: catcher Salvador Perez, first baseman Eric Hosmer, and left fielder Alex Gordon.
by LEIGH [email protected]
triple threat| STA juniors Connor Hodes, from left, and Lily Cosgrove and senior Madalyn Schulte rehearse a song at Varsity Singers practice Nov. 10. Hodes and Cosgrove were selected for the KC Metro Women's Choir.
hearing it out|STA seniors Hillary Talken, Alexia Arrieta and Maggie Hutchison listen to advice from STA music teacher Greg Monsma. Talken and Hutchison were selected for All-District Choir, while Arrieta was selected for KC Women's Choir.
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singing seniors | Seniors Monica Stanley, from left, Maggie Hutchison, Annie Huber, Hillary Talken and Micah Welch pose for a photo during Varsity singers practive Nov. 10. These seniors were selected for the All-District Choir. photos by MAGGIE KNOX
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star spotlight / bits & pieces
COLLEENDERUYTER
What did you do on your mis-sion trip?
"Basically, it was a ENAT (ear, nose and throat) mission trip. So the doctors and
nurses did tonsillectomies and adenoidec-tomies. I got to play with the children be-
fore and after they went into surgery. I also helped get the operating room ready and scheduled every day. The team performed 165 tonsillectomies, which is is more than
they do in a whole year in Santiago."
What was your favorite part about the trip?
"My favorite part was seeing the children and playing with them because they were
all really scared for surgery. But then I played with them and got their mind off
of it. And so it was fun getting to know the children before they went in for surgery."
What was your daily routine? "We woke up at 6 a.m. and surgeries
started at 7 a.m.. We did 30 surgeries a day. Basically, we did that starting around
7 a.m. and ending around 5 p.m.. And then we had dinner. Some nights we went out to the villages. We stayed at the ILAC center; someone through Creighton started [the
center]. It is really nice."
Did the mission trip affect you in any way at all?
“It is cool seeing how they are so happy and thankful for everything they have even
though they don’t have all the material items we have. And the families are all so close to each other. So it’s just really cool seeing that. It just made me realize how
fortunate I am."
STA junior Colleen DeRuyter went on a medical mission trip to the Dominican Republic for a week Oct. 4. by LEIGH [email protected] by HANNAH [email protected]
Are you planning on going on any future mission trips?
"Yes. I have already been to Peru twice. This was my third mission trip. Hopefully, I will definitely go back to the Dominican next
year with my dad."
Was it difficult missing school?
"St. Teresa’s and my teachers were very accommodating. I was able to get most of
my assignments turned in the week before the trip and then some after. They helped me make it work so that I could miss the
week without coming back to school loaded with homework I had to make up."
Can you recall a specific mo-ment that impacted you the
most?"There was not any specific moment that
stood out because the whole time we were there was amazing and all the kids were so cute. I would just say that being there with the kids before they went into surgery was really cool because although they were all scared I was able to calm them down by
playing with them and just being there with them. This experience was so amazing and I
can’t wait to go back in the future."
9the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 14 November 2014page design by MaryMichael Hough
moose on the loose| Royals fan Craig Rookstool poses in a bush at Kauffman Stadium Oct. 30 sport-ing moose antlers. Rookstool took them to the World Series games in support for Mike Moustakas, the Royals third baseman. photo by MARIA DONNELLY
Here, a student shares a moment that really made her cringe.
My life sucks // My life rocks
"I just got my car in the end of August and I was driving out of school and rear-ended [junior] Kenzie Grimaldi's car because I
dropped a safety pin. Ihad to drive around with a crashed car then I couldn't drive my car for two days."
-Kayton Froeschl, sophomore
“My close friend has connections to the Uptown Theater, so we got in 10 minutes be-fore doors opened for the rest of the crowd at The 1975
concert. I stood front row the whole time and it was great because the band means a lot to me.”
-Megan Lewer, sophomore
InstagramsOF THE ISSUEEach issue, the Dart high-
lights students’ Instagrams. This month’s theme:
friends.
Photo by sophomore Isabella Patterson@ispatt09
Photo by senior Ceci Ismert@ceciismert
Next theme: holiday#dartnewsonline
by HELEN [email protected]
by LINDEN O'BRIEN-WILLIAMS [email protected]
My life sucks My life rocks
That’s whatshe said
Junior Delaney Meyer @meyeronfire13Won’t ever be able to go to Panda Express again without feeling like I’m stabbing my city in the back
Freshman Mamie Murphy @mamie_mur-phywe have hosmer and you have pence who really won am i right ladies
Sophomore Gretchen Gleason @greatch-Gleason KC needs a group hug
Each issue, the Dart shares entertaining student tweets.by BRIDGET [email protected]
PHOTO OF THE ISSUE
Here, a student shares an especially exciting experience.by LINDEN O'BRIEN-WILLIAMS [email protected]
Photo by junior Emily Laird@emilyy214
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reviews
'American Horror Story':Twisted, Creepy, Intriguing"American Horror Story:
Freakshow" keeps audience on the edge of their seats with terror.by BRIDGET [email protected]
6.127 million. That’s how many view-ers tuned into the season premiere of "American Horror Story: Freakshow." Obviously, from these numbers, the show’s creators, Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk, seem to know what they’re do-ing. Since the show's premiere in 2011, there have been three seasons and it is currently on its fourth.
For those not familiar with the show, each season is completely different from the last; some of the actors in each season are the same, but they also bring in new people. Jessica Lange, Frances Conroy, Sarah Paulson and Evan Peters, who many people call the “Fantastic Four,” are the only four actors who have been in all four seasons.
Warning: "American Horror Story" is not for the faint of heart. Many, if not all, of the episodes include gore, death and sexu-ally explicit scenes, so I wouldn’t watch it with your dad on the couch next to you - unless you really want some awkward tension. Murder House, Asylum and Coven were the first three seasons and each one was stranger, creepier and more twisted than the last. "Freakshow" is right on point with all of them.
"Freakshow" is based in the typical southern small town of Jupiter, Fla. There
have been many murders and kidnap-pings and as society usually does, the citizens and police blame it on the people of the town who aren’t “normal.” In this case,
these people are literal freaks. Elsa Mars (Jessica Lange) runs a freakshow that includes various “freaks” such as a two-headed woman (Sarah Paulson), a bearded lady (Kathy Bates) and Lobster
Boy, or Jimmy Darling, played by my personal ultimate Man Crush Mon-day, Evan Peters.
Each episode goes in-depth with the backstories and history of
each character, truly giving the audi-ence strong feelings towards each
character. "Freakshow" is truly one of a kind. Each episode is simultaneously terrifying and thought-provoking. The show proves that sometimes the people who are differ-
ent are not the true freaks; it is the seemingly normal next
door neighbor or the pretty girl who seems to have her whole life together who is the true twisted maniac.
"American Horror Story: Freak-show" truly makes the audience
think. What is the definition of “nor-mal?” Is everyone a freak in their own way? Why do we as a society exploit people who look or act different than us? What is it about freakshows and
freaks that make us so inter-ested and drawn into them?
What are we willing to do to fit in or be normal? Think about all of these ques-tions next time you watch
"American Horror Story: Freakshow." H
H H H H H
11the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 14 November 2014page design by Mackenzie O'Guin
'How to Get Away with Murder'Show succeeds because of its dramatic content and diverse cast.by AUDREY CARROLL [email protected]
ABC premiered its new show "How to Get Away with Murder" Sept. 25. The show follows Criminal Law professor Annalise Keating and a small group of her law students as they become involved in a murder that will “rock the entire university,” according to ABC. Keating teaches her students the craft of being a defense attorney.
When I first heard about this new show, I was a little skeptical because I wasn’t really familiar with any of the cast members, aside from Matthew McGorry ("Orange Is the New Black") and Viola Davis ("The Help"). Little did I know, this would become one of the show’s greatest strong points.
H H H H
March 22, 2013. I am 13 years old. My mother finds me curled in the fetal position on my closet floor, sobbing hysterically.
“Oh my god, what happened?” she rushes to my side.
“My Chemical Romance,” I stammer dramatically between wails, “they broke up, mother. MY LIFE IS OVER.”
I stay in that position for an hour and a half, an old MCR playlist blaring yet nearly inaudible under my obnoxiously loud crying. As I wallow in misery, I reflect on the era that has just ended before my eyes. Twelve years of pop punk history down the drain, tunes like Sing and Teen-agers were the essentials of every mid-2000s emo teen’s iPod. My poor mother finally coaxes me out of my misery with an offering of soup.
When I first heard former MCR
No way Gerard can redeem himselfFormer My Chemical Romance vocalist Gerard Way disappoints with solo album, "Hesitant Alien."by MACKENZIE O'[email protected]
H H
Read more on DartNewsOnline
The main thing that makes the show so great is its diverse, outspoken char-acters played by an amazing, yet fairly unknown, cast. The students chosen to work with Annalise at her law firm are the other main characters of the show. I didn’t really realize it until I took time to think about the cast, but it is a group filled with minorities you don’t typically see represented on screen as main characters. Two of the leaders of the group of students, Wes and Michaela, are black. Another member of the group, Connor, is gay. It was great to see these characters in a powerful, influential position on this show.
The show almost always has a dif-ferent case per episode that the group works on winning, while following one big primary case throughout all the
episodes so far. As if a new case each episode wasn’t enough to put me on the edge of my seat, the huge case only reveals little parts of itself throughout the episodes. Every time I sit down to watch the show, I pay close attention to piece the case together myself. The intensity and suspense of the show make it really enjoyable.
However, some viewers of the show would disagree and say that there are many legal inaccuracies in "How to Get Away with Murder." Even though there are a few inaccuracies in the show, it adds to the drama the writers are trying to create. "How to Get Away with Murder" has the highest viewership out of all of ABC’s shows right now, accord-ing to the Wall Street Journal. The cast and the subject matter leave audiences coming back for more each week. H
vocalist GerardWay was releasing a solo album, I was absolutely ecstatic to hear his voice on some new tracks- in the last year and a half, I had yet to find a vocalist with the same cynical edginess of Way.
When I first listened to Hesitant Alien, I was terrified. What if it sucked? What if Way’s talent was solely dependent on MCR? What if it didn’t? What if the other members of the band had simply been dead weight, prompting the breakup?
Finally, I pressed play. After the first three songs, I was already extremely dis-satisfied. The lyrical artistry and stunning subject matter MCR boasted had com-pletely disappeared. In place of iconically striking anthems like MCR’s Welcome to the Black Parade, I was bombarded with fragmented mashes of sound like track one, The Bureau.
In addition to being aesthetically dis-pleasing, Way’s new music also complete-ly denies basic understanding of music. You would think that the instrumentalists had never actually collaborated with each other or Way. Every component sounded like several solo tracks layered over one
another. Each song had the same basic sound- Way’s nearly inaudible voice, me-diocre guitar, maybe some base, perhaps a drum here or there. Not once was there a dramatic change in volume or pace. There's a fine line between album continuity and monotony, and consider-ing I had to check to see when one song ended and another began, Way definitely exercised the latter.
Unfortunately, the entirety of the album was an incoherent stream of sameness. Never did I find myself gaping at lyrical sophistication, nor did my heart catch in my throat like it would have for a true MCR album. Should I be grateful to at least have Way, if not the band itself? Perhaps. But, after hearing the product of Way as a solo artist, I concluded a me-diocre Way isn’t really a Way at all. With that I made a ghastly realization-- the Gerard Way I knew and loved died with MCR, and that is that. H
FROM THEfeatures
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TONAVY
STA
front and center | Science teacher Terry Conner, front row, third from left, poses with her Military Sealift Command Unit at Pusan, South Korea. photo courtesy of TERRY CONNER
the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 14 November 2014page design by Maggie Knox
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Here at STA, we are a blend of many different backgrounds. Both teachers and students
alike have their own stories to tell, and science teacher Terry Conner is no exception.
Before coming to STA, Conner worked in the Navy for 31 years.
“I joined the Navy during my junior and senior years in college,” Conner said. “I was looking for what jobs were available, and I happened to see a poster in the engineering building that said ‘Earn $500 dollars a month your senior year.’”
So, Conner applied for the program. After numerous tests and interviews, she got the job.
“[The program] was to teach at the Navy’s nuclear power school,” Conner said. “My major in college was nuclear science and engineering, so [my job] was to teach at the Navy’s nuclear power once [I] graduated college. “
During her time in the Navy, Conner
had many different jobs. She taught physics and nuclear reaction op-erations at the nuclear power school, worked in the headquarters office and oversaw policy for nuclear-powered submarines and suffer ships.
Later, she was transferred to work in nuclear weapons. Then, Conner and her family moved, and she began work-ing in communications of a high-level staff for an admiral, communicating war directions during wartime.
Next, she worked in logistics and
was in one of the units that managed ship cargo that included personal prop-erty of those in the military as well as weapons and airplanes. Finally, Conner moved on and began to work as a state liaison officer for emergency prepared-ness.
When Conner was a liaison officer, she helped the military coordinate their efforts after Hurricane Katrina to help rescue people, establish temporary
homes for them and hand out neces-sities. She arrived the day Hurricane Katrina hit and stayed for a month, handing out MREs (individual meals that are ready-to-eat), water and help-ing set up places for people to stay for the time being.
Conner explains some of the things that she misses and doesn’t miss about being in the Navy.
“What I miss are the people,” Conner said. “At school, I love my colleagues, but we see each other during the day, and it’s not life or death. If I give some-one a 60% on a test its not going to kill anyone. But if I screw up in something that I do in the military, I could end up killing someone. The level of depen-dency on your peers is very different because you know that your life could depend on what they do. I’m not wor-ried about what Mrs. Blake does as to whether I’m going to live or die. What I don’t miss is that if life or death, then it depends on your decisions [and] it is stressful.”
Conner recalls a particular stressful situation that was also one of her first exercises in dependency.
“By the time I was getting out of the military, I was responsible for units of
[The program] was to teach at the Navy's nuclear power school“ “
— Terry Conner, STA science teacher
by ALEXANDRIA DAVIS [email protected]
Science teacher Terry Conner was in the Navy before coming to STA.
The United States Navy was founded Oct. 13, 1775 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The Navy is part of the U.S. Armed Forces, which also include the Army, the Marine Corps, the Coast Guard and the Air Force.This information was taken from the websites of the United States Military and US Navy.
U.S. MILITARY QUICK FACTS
compiled by CLARE [email protected]
on the lookout | Science teacher Terry Conner poses at the periscope of submarine USS Scranton. photo courtesy of TERRY CONNER
features
14
40 or 50 people,” Conner said. “I was the commanding officer for that unit. One of my very first experiences as a commanding officer of a new unit, it was my very first time being with them, was a field exercise. We did a midnight navigation.”
The exercise that Conner and her unit did involve them being dropped off in the middle of the woods a couple miles outside of their base. The unit had to find their way back to base using compass navigation, while also look-ing out for pretend snipers. Conner stressed that the level of dependency during this particular exercise was extremely high.
“I had never really done anything like that [and] I had to really depend on the people who were in my unit that knew what they were doing,” Conner said. “But on the other hand, I was the one in charge. So if things went wrong, ultimately it would come back to me. It
was a crazy exercise in dependence of each other.“
After 31 years of service in the Navy, Conner retired.
“You can only be in [the military] for a certain amount of time once you reach a certain rank,” Conner said. “I had maxed out the time I could be in for the rank I had achieved, [which] was a captain in the Navy.”
When Conner retired, she began looking for a job, knowing that she was good at teaching physics and technical subjects.
“I looked around at the time when all the schools in the area that were looking for physics teachers,” Conner said. “STA happened to be looking for exactly what I had to offer, so I sent in my resume and the rest is history.”
But after all of her experience in the Navy, would Conner ever want go back?
“Not really,” Conner said. “I loved being in the military, [but] I think you get
to a point where you know you’ve done your job and you’ve done your job to the best of your ability.”
Fellow science teacher Renee Blake is glad that Conner can share her life accomplishments and sees them as a great way to motivate students.
“When I first learned that Conner was in the Navy, it just totally blew me away,” Blake said. “I never would have guessed that of her. And when she told me what she did in the Navy as her job and how it linked to physics I thought, ‘What a great role model for our students.’”
For Conner, she is happy to have the experiences she does and believes that the military is a good career field, especially for women.
“Just about five years ago, [the mili-tary] has opened up [more positions for women],” Conner said. “There’s really nothing women can’t do in the military, and it’s a great opportunity and a great place to prove what you can do.” H
1. suited up | Science teacher Terry Conner, far left, poses with her squad ready to begin a stealth night navigation exercise.2. family love | Conner, second from left, poses with her family. Her daughter, Kim, far left, is in the US Air Force.3. workin' hard | Conner works at a pre-war game exercise conference. photos courtesy of TERRY CONNER
3.
1.
2.
15the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 14 November 2014pages designed by Maggie Knox and Maria Donnelly
Jazzy city Kansas City reinvented jazz in the 1920s, and today's artists continue updating the genre.by EMMA [email protected]
features
16
toot your own horn | A painting of jazz trumpeter Buck Clayton adorns one wall of the Broadway Jazz Club. Clayton performed with Count Basie, a bandleader who frequented Kansas City’s clubs in the 1920s and ‘30s. photos by EMMA WILLIBEY
all that jazz| Pianist Andrew Oullette, left, accompanies musician Laura Chalk at the Broadway Jazz Club Oct. 26. The Broadway Jazz Club hosts a Sunday Jazz Brunch from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. each week.
KC jazz remains in full
7 p.m. The band enters amid shouts and clinking glasses. Music envelops the room, the rebellious mood swells and, in an hour, the performers have packed their instruments. Stepping outside, they stroll past houses until locating the next club.
8 p.m. The band’s rich sounds invigorate another crowd.
9 p.m., midnight, 2 a.m.“[The clubs] were operat-
ing 24 hours a day or close,” American Jazz Museum
education manager Bill McKemy said. “[There] wouldn’t always be music, but there were drinks and gambling.”
According to McKemy, jazz “grew up” in Kansas City. The city’s 1925-1939 jazz age matched the term of political boss Tom Pend-ergast, whose dismissal of Prohibition fueled Kansas City’s lawless reputation. National interest in rock and pop, while reducing the amount of recognition Kansas City’s jazz receives, has also tightened the jazz community, McKemy said.
“Now, we can look around and at least say jazz is not at the top of the pop charts,” McKemy said. “Now,
Kansas City's jazz scene, sparked during Prohibition, still thrives.
swing
17the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 14 November 2014page design by Maria Donnelly
it’s taken its form as an art music.”Jazz developed in New Orleans, La.,
in the early 1900s, with many musi-cians frequenting a prostitution-strick-en neighborhood called Storyville, McKemy said. When the department of the Navy prepared to station troops in New Orleans, the city closed Sto-ryville to pre-vent the men from partying. In ending jazz perfor-mances, the shutdown destroyed musicians’ financial framework.
“[A] huge number [of performers] left New Orleans [and] went to Chi-cago, Kansas City and New York City,” McKemy said. “[Storyville’s shutdown] set in motion the dispersion of the New Orleans sound.”
The sound settled in Kansas City’s 18th and Vine, an African-American community.
“It was a city within a city,” McKemy said. “Whatever types of professional services, whatever people needed to have, if they were African-American, they were shopping here.”
In this creative hub, Kansas City’s jazz style formed. According to McK-emy, a quick pace characterized early jazz material like Louis Armstrong’s “Hot Fives & Sevens.” In Kansas City, musicians distinguished themselves by integrating the blues into New Orleans' jazz.
“The Kansas City musicians were generally playing the material [with a] slower, more relaxed feel,” McKemy said.
When frequent KC performer Count Basie played on a national radio broadcast, jazz musicians across the country adopted the swing style, McKemy said.
“[Count Basie] changed the feel of the music from [dance phenomenon] ‘The Charleston’ to the [bluesy] ‘One
O’Clock Jump,’” McKemy said.When Pendergast’s tax-evasion
charges forced his term to end, Kan-sas City’s vibrancy faded, according to McKemy. Forced into reform, the city left musicians few opportunities to earn revenue. Thus, jazz musicians sought radio jobs in other cities.
“The musicians that were able to go to New York and get on NBC or whatever, that was much higher potential than playing clubs any-where,” McKemy said.
The residential stronghold on 18th and Vine deteriorated with jazz culture, as amend-
ments to segregation allowed African-Americans in other KC areas, McKemy said.
“All of sudden everyone can go to the Sears and Macy’s downtown,” McKemy said. “The neighborhood kept dwindling.”
Recently, housing projects and institutions such as the American Jazz Museum have sparked interest in 18th and Vine, but McKemy said re-development is “a work in progress.”
“Things seem to be going in a sustainable and healthy direction currently,” McKemy said.
The jazz scene, however, has never lost its followers. According to McKemy, the genre’s community has spread throughout the city, with no-table venues ranging from Midtown’s Broadway Jazz Club to Take Five Cof-fee + Bar at 135th Street and Metcalf Avenue.
“A Johnson County establishment is vastly different than [venues of] the heyday,” McKemy said.
But, while jazz’s community re-
mains strong, public knowledge of the genre has narrowed since the 1930s. Jazz musician Laura Chalk, who grew up in Kansas City, said she did not become familiar with the area’s jazz history until her 20s. According to Chalk, Kansas City’s Prohibition-era jazz scene deserves every resident’s attention.
“If we had programs that taught [jazz history] in schools … I think that there would be a lot of kids, young people tuned in to what was going on,” Chalk said.
According to Green Lady Lounge owner John Scott, Kansas City’s jazz venues serve as educational tools. Even those who enter Green Lady Lounge without jazz knowledge will be hard-pressed not to love the material, Scott said.
“[Jazz is] not popular music of the day, and it hasn’t been for a while—it’s been a niche genre,” Scott said. “But it is always ... quality music.”
However, encouraging “quality mu-sic” does not mean booking musicians who imitate the greats, Scott said.
“Kansas City is … full of fantastic musicians,” Scott said. “That’s the
easy part [of booking performers]. Then, I didn’t want these bands to play traditional jazz. I wanted to move the genre forward with origi-nal compositions.”
McKemy cited trum-peter Hermon Mehari as an innovator in Kansas
City jazz. Like his predecessors, Me-hari cannot cultivate his sound in one place, and he will travel to Australia as a semifinalist of the Thelonius Monk Institute of Jazz’s 2014 Trumpet Com-petition. But, also like his predeces-sors, Mehari remembers to honor the Kansas City community.
“When [Mehari is] in town, you can see him for free almost any night of the week,” McKemy said. H
Now, we can look around and at least say jazz is not at the top of the pop charts.
“ “
— Bill McKemy, American Jazz Museum education
manager
Now, [jazz has] taken its form as an art music.“ “
— Bill McKemy, Ameri-can Jazz Museum edu-
cation manager
swing
18
cover story
BRAINDEAD
Students aren't getting the amount of sleep they need to stay focused.by MARY HILLIARD and KATHERINE GREEN
19the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 14 November 2014page design by Christina Elias
20
cover story After cross country practice, dinner, work and a drive home through traffic, junior Hallie Ryan sits down to start her homework at 9:30 p.m.
I’m completely exhausted, but I still have three hours of homework.
Entering high school means a lot of different things to different students. However, according to the Center for Advancing Health, 92 percent of the United States’ high-school students share something in common: sleep deprivation.
At STA, sleep deprivation can be caused by a number of different things. Since students have the oppor-tunity to take advanced classes, play sports and be a part of other extracur-riculars, stress is added to complete each task.
“Sleep deprivation, in other words not getting enough sleep to function at a high level . . . is a chronic problem for teenagers,” psychology teacher Pat Sirridge said.
I’m going to be so tired tomorrow.
Studies show that high school-ers need nine hours of sleep to be fully rested. But according to a poll by the National Sleep Foundation, less than 20 percent of students reported getting that much sleep on a school night.
I guess I’ll do the easy homework first; at least I can get the satisfaction of cross-ing those assignments out in my planner.
“I think that many of the students choose to study, and they also want to be social,” social studies teacher Ray Hain said. “So, they’re going to choose [social time] and study over sleep, and so that creates sleep deprivation. There’ll be a few [students] who don’t care, and they’ll give up the study part. But most here, with the stress level to do [well] academically, [will] stay up later rather than flunk a test and still have social time.”
On top of students having extracur-riculars to attend as well as homework to do, Sirridge says distractions in the bedroom can lead to sleep deprivation also.
“[Students] have a full load of things to do and not quite enough time to get them in,” Sirridge said. “Then if you add that on to the social media time that teenagers seem to love, whether it’s computer or texting or doing other kinds of things with Twitter, that has caused an extra amount of time to be used instead of sleep. So . . . [students] have too much to do, yet their own sorts of habits and behaviors now are also causing a loss of sleep.”
I can’t get distracted; I have so much homework to finish.
According to Psychology Today, electronics are not just a distraction; they can actually prevent or delay sleep because the light from a screen can suppress melatonin, the hormone in the brain that signals sleep.
Few students are aware that lack of sleep has other side effects than just being tired throughout the day. According to the National Sleep Foun-dation, sleep
deprivation can “limit your ability to learn, listen, concentrate and solve problems.” It can also cause forgetful-ness of names or dates. Lack of sleep can also contribute to acne or other skin problems. According to the Huff-ington Post, long-term effects include increased stroke risk, obesity, memory loss and bone damage.
I probably wouldn’t be as stressed out if there wasn’t so much pressure to be a well-rounded student, enrolled in challenging classes, involved in sports and extracurriculars, and keeping a job to earn my own money.
“I can see St. Teresa’s as a college preparatory is a high-stress academic environment [and doing well in school is] a higher priority than sleep and it has to be a balance,” Hain said.
Ryan looks at her phone. 1:00 a.m.Maybe it’s time to call it a night.She shuts down her netbook,
stacks her notes and books, turns off the light and sets her alarm for 6:15 a.m. Another day over. H
[Students] have a full load of things to do and not quite enough time to get them in.“ “
— Pat Sirridge, psychology teacher
33%
The average person spends 33 percent of their life asleep.
31%
Only 31 percent of high school students report getting eight or more hours of sleep each
night.
SLEEP ON IT
compiled by CHRISTINA [email protected]
Teens aren't receiving the amount of sleep they
should be at their age.
sources: Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Better
Sleep Council, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, 2010 "Sleep" journal
study
24%
Studies show teenagers who go to bed after midnight are 24 percent more likely
to be depressed.
the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 14 November 2014page design by Christina Elias
21
ELDERLY
Age is one of the deciding factors in how much sleep a person requires. How much sleep do we need?
INFANTS
CHILDREN
TEENAGERS
ADULTS
= 2 hours of sleep
BRAIN POWER
impaired judgement
decreased memory retention
production of stress hormones
obesity
depressionslower reactionsheart disease
unstable emotions
mood swings
behavioral problems
attention deficiency
illnesschronic fatigue
poor concentration
irritability
frustration
anger
migraines
migraines and headachesheadaches
syndrome
poor work/school performance
increased
problemsrelationship
Sleep is vital to mental, physical and emotion health.
compiled by CHRISTINA [email protected]
Being awake for 18 hours is equivalent to having a blood alcohol content of .05, which is just under the legal limit of
.08. After 24 hours, it increases to .10.
SLEEP LIKE THE DEAD
cart
oon
by M
ERED
ITH
MU
LHER
N
right onTARGET
Caroline Anglessenior
How does sleep deprivation affect high schoolers?
compiled by ANNA [email protected]
22
main ed / A&E
Dear Past Me,I get it. Now that I’ve graduated from
STA, I’ve realized that high school is re-ally difficult. Between balancing hours of homework AND extracurriculars, sleeping has become a luxury for you. You sweep it to the side until you’re either done with homework or you’re too exhausted to think clearly. But you don’t realize how important sleep is, and how your lack of sleep affects me. You can’t focus as well in school and don’t have as much energy after school either. I’m proud of you for making homework a priority in your life, but you can’t continue to deny your need for sleep.
I can just hear you now: “I don’t have time!” But, why do you make time to post on Instagram and watch hours of Netflix? Even when you actually do finish your homework at a decent time, you stay up anyway! Maybe it’s because of the culture at STA: all of your friends are
sleep-deprived, so why should you come to school well-rested?
But you’re better than that. You are responsible for your own health, and even though getting five hours may seem like the norm, you need eight hours of sleep every night.
I’m begging you to prioritize. Sleep is just as important as eating or working. When you study until 3 a.m. for that test you forgot about, it hurts you more than if you would have just gone to sleep at a decent hour, because after sleeping you’ll actually be able to focus on the test.
Don’t worry, getting more sleep won’t ruin your social life. Getting sleep means
you’re more productive, so you’ll end up having more free time anyway. Besides, is staying up to text people you’ll see this weekend really worth putting yourself at a higher risk for depression, loss of memory and tons more health prob-lems? I don’t think so.
Girl, it’s time to open your eyes. Liter-ally. You can’t stop pretending that lack of sleep doesn’t affect you. So, please, determine the time you need to go to sleep in order to be well-rested (it doesn’t take a math genius). Shut your phone off when you’re doing homework (because, let’s be honest, it probably prolongs your studying for at least an hour). Budget your time when you know you have a lot to do later in a week (you know you never actually study for a test anytime before the day of). Do whatever works for you, but please, get some sleep. Trust me, you’ll be happy that you did.
Sincerely, Your Future Self H
Students ignore lack of sleep's damaging effects
5 of 5 editors voted in support of this editorial[ ]
Students should place a higher priority on getting the necessary amount of sleep.
The Dart asked students their opinion of the main editorial.
“It ruins your life and causes poor performance in school. Sleeping pills have no effect on you once you use them enough.”
Quinn Kernellsenior
“Sleep deprivation is a detrimental but inevitable problem that all high school students face because we have too much homework and too much to do after school.”
Lauren McCannsophomore
“It af-fects my listening in class because if I don’t get enough sleep, I tend to doze off.”
23the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 14 November 2014pages designed by Christina Elias and Mackenzie O'Guin
Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art hosts annual festival celebrating Hispanic holiday.by GLORIA COWDIN [email protected]
For many STA students, the days fol-lowing Halloween are a time to sit back, relax and eat an excess of candy. For some, however, Nov. 1 and 2 mark a spe-cial holiday: Día de los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead.
STA sophomore Isabela Solorio knows the festivities surrounding this holiday firsthand. The Day of the Dead is an especially busy time for Solorio’s Mexican folkloric dance troupe, El Grupo Atotonilco. The company performed at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art for the Día de los Muertos festivities Nov. 2.
Every year, the Nelson holds a public celebration for Día de los Muertos in collaboration with Mattie Rhodes Center, an agency that “enriches the lives of individuals, families and communities in a respectful, multicultural environment” according to their website. The celebra-tion provides free arts and crafts, musical performances, dance routines and more.
According to Nelson volunteer Jessica Manco, this function is “a great com-munity event where people can come together and think about our lost loved ones and celebrate and learn about a different culture.”
The Day of the Dead is a two- to three-day Mexican holiday which cel-ebrates the lives of passed loved ones. The festivities may start Oct. 31 but tradi-tionally begin Nov. 1, when dead children are remembered. Nov. 2 marks a time to commemorate deceased adults. To respect loved ones who have passed, many families build altars that are decorated with the deceased’s favorite foods, drinks and objects. Other customs include making sugar skulls, cleaning grave sites and decorating the house
with marigolds. Although the holiday is traditionally
Hispanic, it resonates with people of many different cultures. Children, adoles-cents and adults of all racial backgrounds participated in the Nelson’s activities, and many people arrived with complete face paint and costumes.
One such attendee was Jane Gold, a Kansas City resident who has found a personal connection with Día de los Muertos. Gold said she has traded Halloween festivities for the Día de los Muertos celebration.
“I’ve gone to different places in Mexico, like Oaxaca, during Day of the Dead to see how different communities do it,” Gold said.
Along with the festive side of Día de los Muertos, Gold also observes the somber truth behind the holiday.
“I’ve had a lot of people die in my family, starting when I was very young,” Gold said. “I have one relative left that’s still alive, so I just thought [the Day of the Dead] was great. It’s like our Memorial Day, but the way it should be done.”
Día de los Muertos is not the only cel-ebration the Nelson puts on pro bono; in fact, it is part of an entire event series headed by the Nelson’s family educator, Sarah Schmiedeler. These events include the Thanksgiving Weekend Luminary Walk, Chinese New Year Celebration, Passport to India Festival, Mother’s Day Celebration and the Sculpture Park An-nual Celebration. According to Schmie-deler, these events are planned months in advance to collaborate with commu-nity partners and bring together Kansas Citians of every background.
“[This event series is] one of the ways that the museum reaches out to Kansas City and to various communities in Kansas City to welcome them to the museum,” Schmiedeler said.
However, Schmiedeler said the event
is a two-way street, relying on the dona-tions of museum-goers to support the many activities the Nelson provides for free.
“It’s really amazing that Kansas City has such a strong support for the arts,” Schmiedeler said. “The Nelson-Atkins is a private museum and relies on dona-tions… So, [this event] is just our testa-ment to what a great town Kansas City is to support the museum.” H
like mother, like son | Carrie Parker and son, Silas, decorate sugar skulls during Nel-son-Atkins Museum of Art Day of the Dead celebration Nov. 2. Parker works at Oracle, a shop dowtown that sells taxidermied ani-mals, framed insects and other curiousities. photo by SIOBHAN MILLER
Day of the Dead: A hit with the living
perspectives
24
Picture this: It’s a cold winter day, and I am sitting in the waiting room of Littlefield Eye Associates in Waldo. A middle-aged receptionist sorts through files at her seat behind the desk, because, surprise-surprise, my mom has managed to mix up the insurance. AGAIN. But that’s for another column. Anyway, the receptionist calls my name. I smooth out my STA skirt and walk up to the desk. “How old are you, sweetheart?” she asks innocently. “Sixteen,” I respond. This is when things get weird. “OH MY GOSH, seriously?! I definitely would not have guessed that! I can’t believe you’re sixteen, that is amazing!” I smile sheepishly in response to her overreaction and say my go-to line in these situations: “Thanks….? I get that a lot.” And that is true - I do get that a lot. Throughout my high school and middle school career, adults have been shocked about the correlation between my age and appearance. For example, when I was in eighth grade, I found myself at Littlefield once again (they’re really bad about age, obviously). I was sitting in the little machine chair thing that’s on the cover of Justin Timberlake’s latest album, and I kid you not, my eye doctor actually asked if I was in fourth grade. News flash, bud, I was fourteen.
Obviously this is a touchy topic for me because it can be very frustrating. If I’m volunteering somewhere, my age is always questioned and checked. Up until sophomore year, I basically looked like a seventh grader, and high school boys are not into girls that look like they’re in seventh grade -it’s okay, I’m pretty now. I still fit into kids clothes, yet all of my friends have been questioned if they are in college or not. Also, I play competitive soccer, and it’s not hard to knock around a girl that is just over five feet tall. It doesn’t help that I am not intimidating at all either. However, being small and looking young does come in handy. Everyone thinks I’m very quiet and sweet and nice - ask my friends, I definitely do not have any of those qualities - so I can surprise people with my fabulous personality and dazzling sense of humor. That also comes in handy because I’m never suspected of doing something wrong. Adults love me; they trust me with their children, their homes, and their animals. Then again, the only bad thing I do when I babysit is steal packets of Welch’s fruit snacks. Young looks also seem to run in my family. My grandma is almost 90, but she looks the same as she did when she was 60. My aunt is almost 60, but she looks like she’s 40. So maybe when everyone else who looks their age now is old, they’ll look their age when they’re older. However, I’ll still be looking like I’m twenty when everyone else looks like they’re 35. Plastic surgeons will hate me because I won’t need any work. So, overall, the whole young looks thing evens out. I obviously won’t be bitter about looking young when I’m older, so I guess I’ll have to deal with looking like a middle schooler for a little longer. H
never growing upHere's to literally
by MEREDITH [email protected]
Theology class schedule change
leaves me confusedby JESSIE [email protected]
In years past, students’ theology courses were three days a week. Administration decided to change this to four days a week. With this significant change, students are given half a credit for theology courses instead of the quarter credit given previously. Therefore students should not be required to take a theology course for eight semesters. With such a change, students would have the opportunity to pursue other electives. Theology is a large part of the curriculum at STA, however, so are other areas of study. Being an College Preparatory school, our workload is heavy and rather demanding. Students begin to struggle among what classes are the most important. Grades begin to slip and students are left to dig themselves out of what seems like an endless hole. Administration and teachers alike wish to see students succeed, but the four theology classes a week are actually adding unnecessary workload to already busy students. Students are required to take four theology courses in order to graduate: Theology in Faith, Morality, Social Concerns and World Faiths. Other theology electives were needed to fulfill the necessary credit minimums. The extra theology courses and four day-schedule are detrimental. Administration should either allow students to take one theology course a year, or go back to the three day cycle.
From personal finance, foreign language and theology courses, students are only able to take very few classes of their choice. Why take courses that may not benefit students in a future career? When will the administration allow students take control of certain aspects of their curriculum? H
25the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 14 November 2014page design by Torie Richardson
Blog Spotlight Scan these QR codes to visit the Dart's latest blogs on dartnewsonline.com.Mackenzie
O'Guin"Nobody Puts Kenzie in the
Corner"
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Madi World"
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"Confessions of a Black Girl"
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compiled by TORIE [email protected]
Amy O'Leary"Humans of STA"
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Date rape drug test just GLOSSES over problem
by LIBBY [email protected]
25% of women cite drugs as a factor in a rape
4 times more likely to be sexuallly assaulted than any other women
About 75% of all rapes are date or acquaintance rapes
From the age of 16, most girls are taught never to leave their drinks unattended when they are in public. Since STA’s freshman PE class, I have heard that is never safe to stop watching your drink, for fear that certain drugs may be put in it, such as date rape drugs.
Undergraduate students at North Carolina State University have created a nailpolish that can be used to detect whether or not drinks have been laced with common date rape drugs such as Rohypnol or Xanax. The individual wearing the nail polish simply stirs his or her drink with their finger, and if the drink has been tainted with drugs, the nail polish will change color.
This certainly seems like a promising step forward to making it safer for individuals who would normally be susceptible to such crimes.
This is still not enough. The bottom line is that people,
especially women, feel they have to protect themselves from date rape by testing their drink every time they take a sip.
This new invention is inherently geared toward women, perpetuating the stigma that is a woman’s responsibility to protect herself from date rape or unsafe situations. Shouldn’t the solution be to combat the problem of rape, rather than solving it by making women feel they have to test their drinks for fear of drugs?
Women are often encouraged that they can protect themselves from rape and sexual assault if they refrain from wearing provocative clothes and only ever travel in numbers.
Should we be solving the problem at a more basic level? Creating a nail polish that tests for drugs does not solve the problem that drugs are still being used to take away basic human dignity. It merely sustains the fear that women are alone in their efforts to protect themselves from such injustice. H
Startling Statistics
compiled by TORIE [email protected]
The following statistics are compiled from Day One, the Sexual Assault and Trauma Resource Center.
Audrey Carroll"The Weekly
What"
New post every weekend
Females aged 16-24 are
stick it to 'em | Pembroke Hill varsity field hockey player looks to pass downfield at Pembroke Hill’s home game against Sion Oct. 27. keep calm and hockey on | Sion field hockey player, left, and Pembroke Hill player look
to advance the ball either direction as members from both teams and fans look on at the Pembroke Hill Wornall Campus Oct. 27. photos by ANNA HAFNER
KC field hockey needs interestLocal teams for this emerging sport seek new competitors in order to continue.by LINDEN O'[email protected]
STA students and athletic depart-ment express interest in creating a field hockey team to compete with area schools. The sport, a combination between lacrosse and soccer, is popular across Europe and the East Coast. According to Notre Dame de Sion High School’s head field hockey coach Gwyn Savage, schools like Sion and The Pem-broke Hill School have been involved for around ten years, but the sport has yet to take off.
Field hockey is predominantly a female sport around the United States, played in the fall season. Each team is allowed 11 players and the rules are very similar to those of soccer and la-crosse. Field hockey uses hockey sticks and a lacrosse-sized ball.
Currently, three schools around the Kansas City area have field hockey teams: Sion, Pembroke Hill and St. Thomas Aquinas High School. Aside from needing to attract interest, the lack of turf fields hinders the spread of field hockey around Kansas City.
While schools around Kansas City lack turf fields, another issue is finding willing and qualified coaches, according to Savage.
“It's difficult to find someone quali-
fied with a flexible schedule to coach high school at 3:30 or 4 in the after-noon when people have real jobs,” Savage said.
Because of limited local competi-tion, KC field hockey teams have to travel multiple times each season, adding costs. According to Savage, the Sion team travels twice a season just to find competition: once to Tulsa, OK and once to St. Louis, MO.
Though there are some difficulties, Savage says that field hockey is an in-clusive and popular sport at Sion, with 40 to 50 girls on the team each year.
“Most of the girls, even freshmen, are great at lacrosse and soccer because it's the same concepts really,” Savage said. “The girls enjoy the sport.”
Sion field hockey players agree that the team is inclusive.
“It’s a great sport if you want to try something new in high school,” Sion sophomore and field hockey player Zoe Locke said. “You don’t need to come into it with any experience and you won’t be behind anyone else.”
Before a lacrosse team was cre-ated, Sion started a field hockey team because a group of Sion girls playing club field hockey were interested. Soon after, some parents went to ad-ministration to persuade them to start up a team, according to Savage.
“It just takes one or two parents to try to convince the athletic directors, ‘Hey, you’ve got a field sitting there doing nothing,’” Savage said.
STA has been on Sion and other schools’ radars for competition, with Sion specifically coming to STA admin-istration to start a team, according to Savage and STA athletic director, Mark Hough.
There are no field hockey players at STA, but there is some interest. STA Sophomore Helen Krause plays lacrosse and says she and others, es-pecially the lacrosse team, would play if there was a team.
“I feel like not that many people play it and it would be a cool new addition,” Krause said. “If it really took off, maybe some people who haven’t really played a sport or don’t like other sports would play.”
According to Hough, lacrosse began at STA with a group of girls who played on a club team pushing for a school team. The process to start a team included finding qualified coaches for an emerging sport, paying for equip-ment, finding adequate field space and competition. Hough said this is the same process that would be repeated to establish a field hockey team.
For STA, being competitive in a sport is important, according to Hough. Hough proposes a field hockey team at budget meetings annually, but cheer-leading and bowling are also on the list.
“I think our stance here from the athletics and school is that we want to provide as many opportunities as we realistically can,” Hough said. H
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run, Ann, run! | Cross country runner Ann Campbell finished her race first with a time of 18:30:19 Nov. 1. Campbell advanced to Missouri State Championships for her fourth time. photo courtesy of GREG HALL
Sophomore Cora Mar-tin competed in the State golf tournament Oct. 13 and 14 in Joplin, MO. Mar-tin placed 67th out of 88 competitors with a score of 102.
The first day of the tournament was canceled due to rainy weather, so the golfers played only one set of 18 holes instead of two. According to STA athletic director Mark Hough, the weather was horrible.
“[The course] wasn’t actually that hard, but the conditions were awful, it was raining and windy,” Martin said.
The previous week, Martin advanced out of Sectionals with the exact cut-off score of 92.
According to Hough, he felt good about having a golfer advance to State.
“We came out of a very tough District and very tough Sectional,” Hough said. “[Martin] is our fourth golfer, so it was kind of a surprise.”
The rest of the Varsity golf team did not advance out of Sectionals.
Cora said she felt motivated by her team to do well.
“[My team was] so determined to all go to State together so that kind of drove me to try my best because we all really wanted to go,” Mar-tin said. H
by ANNA [email protected]
STA golfer Cora Martin competed in the State golf tournament.
state smiles | Sophomore Cora Martin competes in the State golf tournament Oct. 14 in Joplin. Martin was the first STA golfer to advance to State in two years; she placed 67th out of 80 competitors with a score of 102. photo courtesy of ALISON MARTIN
27the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 14 November 2014page design by Amy O'Leary
STA senior Ann Campbell won 8th place at the cross country State meet with a time of 18:30:19, becoming the first STA student to win All-State hon-ors for the same sport all four years.
“I ran a fast race but the competi-tion was tough,” Campbell said. “I fell a few places short of my goal, but I gave it my all.”
According to Campbell, she placed 23rd her freshman and sophomore years and 5th as a junior at the State meet. The top 25 finishers receive All-State honors, according to the Missouri State High School Athletic Association’s website.
This year, the State championship was held at the Oak Hills golf course in Jefferson City, a course Campbell knows well.
“It’s always on the same course,” Campbell said. “I’ve raced there before. Racing is really challenging, especially this course, which is really hilly so it makes it really hard.”
However, Campbell feels that the STA cross country team prepared her for this course.
“I trained well the whole season preparing for the hilly course,” Camp-bell said. “I am planning on training hard so I can keep improving in the track season this spring.”
As a senior, this was Campbell’s last STA cross country meet, but she plans on continuing the sport in col-lege.
“I think as a senior you realize that this is your last time ever racing high school cross country,” Campbell said. “You just kind of want to end it the best way you possibly can and improve because you're not going to have another chance.” H
STAte of mind
STA senior Ann Campbell placed eighth at State with a time of 18:30:19.
by ALEXANDRA [email protected]
sports
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community
tickets for sale | A pair of tickets from game seven of the 1985 World Series.
1985photos courtesy of AMY O'LEARY [email protected]
sports stars | A Sports Illustrated cover celebrates the Royals' World Series vic-tory in 1985.
out with a bang | Firework celebra-tions commence after the Royals defeated the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1985 World Series.
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photos by AMY O'LEARY and SIOBHAN MILLER [email protected] | [email protected]
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1. batter up I Royals third baseman Alex Gordon prepares for a hit Oct. 15. 2. time out I The Royals discuss a play dur-ing their fourth game against the Baltimore Orioles Oct. 15.3. pump it up I A Royals fan cheers during the ALCS game Oct. 15. The team advanced to the World Series. 4. hats off I A Royals fan takes off his hat while cheering Oct. 15.5. legendary view I A statue of Frank White overlooks the Royals game.6. sweet victory I After storming the field, the Royals huddle excitedly to celebrate their fourth and final win in the ALCS game Oct. 15.7. day at the K I The Kansas City Royals take on the Baltimore Orioles Oct. 15.
check out the full story on
DNO
Kansas City has always sup-ported the Royals for the most part, even when we were not as good.
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— Stephanie McHugh,Royals fan
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the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 14 November 2014page design by Siobhan Miller
This fall, the Kansas City Royals made the World Series for the first time in 29 years, losing to the San Francisco Giants.
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ANSWERS: 1.Junior Gillian Cutter as a prisoner 2.Senior Gina Ptacek as Riff Raff 3. Senior Marley Schmidtlein as Wednesday Addams 4. Senior Catherine Whitmer as Elsa from "Frozen" 5. Senior Gretchen Dudleyas a nurse
by KATHERINE GREEN [email protected]
Every year at STA, students are given the option to dress up in a costume on Halloween. However, this year students were required to bring three canned food items for Food for Thought in order to dress out of uniform. Try to guess the student and their costumes from Oct. 31.
Costume craze at STA
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1. playing dress up | A student dresses up for school on Halloween. STA students were allowed to dress out of uniform if they donated at least three cans of food for the Food for Thought can drive.
2. crazy costumes | An STA student sports her costume to school on Oct. 31. Students were seen walking through the hallways in different costumes.
5. halloween horror | An STA student exhibits her Halloween costume at school. Halloween was the highlight of many stu-dents week. photos by ARINNA HOFFINE
3. spooky fun |A student poses in her outfit on Halloween. Many students had two costumes, one for the school day and one for the night.
4. trick or treat | An STA student shows off her costume on Oct. 31. The students' costumes on Halloween ranged anywhere from teddy bears to clowns.
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last look
sta H libby JESSIE [email protected]
Every St. Teresa’s student knows
_____________. He/she is the _____________ per-
son in the _____________. This teacher is always
caught_____________ing in the _____________
during Activity period.
Many students and parents
_____________ this teacher.
_____________ was spotted in the
Brookside area doing some
_____________.
What does _____________ do
in his/her free time? He/she
enjoys spending time with his/
her_____________. Together,
they go out to eat at the
_____________ restaurant. His/
her favorite dish consists of
_____________ and _____________.
After their dinner they go to
_____________, their favorite en-
tertainment place.
One day they were spotted
on the Plaza, buying _____________. STA stu-
dents attempted to say hello, but _____________
just ignored them. The ______________ part
of seeing a teacher is the fact that you see
him/her the next week. During a
class period _____________ asked the
student how the rest of her night
was. It was _____________! After stu-
dents saw him/her, they went to
_____________ to eat a _____________.
The students and teacher
started talking during a free,
and _____________ told them
_____________ facts about himself/
herself. Apparently, _____________
collects _____________. This collec-
tion is kept in their _____________.
Even with such a(n) _____________
collection, _____________ is still the
_____________ around. STA teachers
are the _____________! H
Use the craziest words you can think of to filll in this STA-styled mad lib, then tweet a picture to @dartnewsonline using the hashtag #STAlib!
31the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 14 November 2014page design by Katherine Green
STA teacher superlative adjective
noun
location
verb noun
teacher
noun
adjective
noun
noun
location
noun
teacher
superlative adjective
noun
teacher
adjective
teacher
plural noun
adjective
teacher
adjective
teacher
superlative adjective
noun
plural noun
teacher
superlative adjective
graphic by HANNAH BREDAR
verb
Humans of STA
Senior Amy O'Leary asks students about their Hal-loween costumes.
Humans of STA blog
32the Dart // dartnewsonline.com // 20 October 2014page design by Mary Hilliard
In the
Take a look at the current coverage on DartNewsOnline
Gallery: Undercover talent at STA Sophomore Lindsey O'Leary is an avid baker, which few peo-ple know. In this post, she bakes a family recipe.
Senior Lizzy Keller "I was a skeleton. I love Hal-loween so much."
Senior Micah Welch"I was my mom for Hallow-een."
Check out this full gallery and more on DartNewsOnline!