Los Angeles Leadership Academy

The VoiceNewspaper serving the Lincoln Heights community since 2008Volume 5 Edition 5 April 2013

The Home of Lion Pride

Editor-In-Chief:Rebecca Garcia

Managing Editor:Pablo Espinoza

Copy Editor:David Ortiz

Photo Editor:Diana Toj

Staff Writers:Marco AguilarJoseph CristobalAraceli GraciaBany GuardadoOscar Isem Steven MunozDavid OrtizSandra SanchezMarito Solis

Contributors:Diana MartinezSalvador MedinaHector PachecoAnthony RoqueAlexandria Vasquez

Faculty Advisors:Phyllis RosenAl Schleicher

Printer:Gardena Valley News

Publication PoliciesThe Voice is a student news-­paper produced by students at L.A. Leadership Academy. This paper is published to in-­form, educate and entertain the student body, faculty and members of the community of Lincoln Heights.

Students, faculty and com-­munity members with strong opinions are highly encour-­aged to write a guest com-­mentary or a letter to the edi-­tor, which may be published.

Send letters to the editor:thevoice@laleadership.org

L.A. Leadership Academy High School

Attn: The Voice234 East Avenue 33

Los Angeles, CA 90031

Stork Visits LALAGloria Velasquez has baby boyBy Sandra SanchezStaff Writer

The Voice is happy to report that Gloria Valasquez’s baby, Jacob, was born on April 8. At a healthy seven plus pounds, he is fortunate to have wonderful parents and a great start in life. March 15th was the last day at

Gloria Velasquez. At a surprise baby shower organized by school Parent Coor-­dinator Cindy Baez, and attended by many teachers and staff, Gloria was surprised with many gifts for her baby. Accompa-­nied by congratulations from students at the school, Gloria left on maternity leave.Gloria departed a bit earlier than sched-­uled because she contracted diabetes, a not uncommon ailment for pregnant women. When asked about how she felt about Gloria leaving, senior Joy Woo said, “She’s on maternity leave and it’s doctor’s orders.”

New Born: Jacob resting at home “One week, Gloria looked normal walking around, and the next week you could tell she was very pregnant, it was surprising,” freshman Vanessa Sanchez commented about Gloria and her pregnancy. Gloria was in charge of many things, one of those being graduation. Even on her last day, Gloria made sure everything was left in place and orga-­nized. With many wishes for a strong and healthy baby, Gloria departed and until she comes back, Cindy will be helping

High School. Former LALA student Candelaria Duran has been hired to assist Cindy.

Top Story

Fundraiser a Major SuccessTelevision executive receives Social Justice Award

For many years Los Angeles Leadership Academy hosted an annual banquet where money was fundraised for the school. Impor-­tant people were invited to learn more about our small school and to help to keep it going. For a few years, the banquet did not occur, but this year on March 14, almost three hun-­dred people came to USC’s Town and Gown Hall to make big contributions to the school. The banquet honored Michael Wright, President of TNT network and a great friend to Los Angeles Leadership Academy. His star power led many of the at-­tendees to contribute $280,000 to the school. Most of the funds will go to the capital campaign for the new building at the middle school campus. Several of our LALA staff mem-­bers were there to support the school as well as the three students who were selected by Executive Director Roger Lowenstein to talk about their experiences at LALA. Among the guests attending the banquet were celebrities like Conan O’Brien, Vince Vaughn and Noah Wyle along with our very own celebrities -­ Phyllis, Al, Jessicah, Mercedes, Eileen, and many more. The three student speakers were: Dominique Reed, Anthony Roque, and Bany Guardado, who prepared speeches describing their experiences at LALA, how the school has made them better people and prepared them for the future.

The teachers who attended agreed that the best part of the night was the students giv-­ing the speeches because as Al said, “It shows that ‘this’ plus ‘this’ equals” a successful high school student who is ready to go into the real world. “ You all made me so proud,” said Phyllis, who at the end of the speeches was “crying with pride.” And it was not only our teachers who were delighted with the speeches, but also the guests who were very engaged with the students. At the end of the night, guests came to congratulate each and every one of them for their accomplishments, wishing them luck on the things that are yet to come in their lives. Executive Director Roger Lowen-­stein shared that he “loves this kind of event” because it helps the school in a great many ways. One of those is using some of the money raised to send a group of students for a summer debate program. This experience will enable students to become more acquainted with the techniques and skills they need to be success-­ful in debate competitions. Most importantly, the banquet pro-­moted what LALA is really all about, dem-­onstrating that we have students with drive, ambition and capacities to succeed.

By Bany GuardadoStaff Writer

Inside !is Issue...

Student Elections 2013Make sure to vote: You Decide!

Candidate Statements page 4 & 5

Election on Wednesday, April 24th

Dynamite: Michael Wright, President of TNT Network with Noah Wyle and Conan O’Brien

News & Features2 The Voice April 2013

www.laleadership.org

Teachers and StudentsDo You Want to Write for The Voice?Submit original work!

(narratives, opinions, poetry)

Now is your chance to be a published author!

Send manuscripts to:thevoice@laleadership.org

By Marco AguilarStaff Writer

On March 5th Monica Garcia success-­fully ran for re-­election as president of the Los Angeles school board. Several Los Angeles Leadership Academy students worked on her campaign, making phone calls and canvassing in the neighborhood. On February 27th Monica do-­nated some of her time to visit our Middle School. Before she arrived, Executive Director Roger Lowenstein gave a speech talking about how the system of public schools has changed over the years and how we now have the freedom to choose what school kids go to. Once Monica arrived, she spoke to all the people in the room and spent time answering questions. She asked a question herself when she said to the audi-­ence, “Do you support change? Or, do you want to go back to the old way?” Ms. Garcia shared with her audi-­ence her experience in visiting a prison,

LAUSD Board Member VisitMonica Garcia attends Middle School reception

By Araceli GraciaStaff Writer

Compounding Student InterestEconomics students learn finer points of finance

On Friday, March 8 the seniors took a trip to Junior Achievement Finance Park, Glendale, as a part of their study of Economics. The point of JA Finance is to

Each senior was given a card that told them how much they earned in a year. Then they were put into groups and had to calculate the maximum and minimum they were able to spend on necessities such as car, rent, and extra activities. Next, the seniors had to go around to various stations that were small simulations of real world options to see

budgets -­ more. Some stations they went to were Toyota, Bank of America, sports station, hospital, charity, clothing depart-­ment, entertainment, and groceries. As the seniors created their bud-­gets, some had to cut down certain things on their list because they went over their monthly take home pay. The seniors were able to get a sense of what their parents have to go through each month. They also had to keep a checking register. A check register records where the money was spent. JA Finance Park really taught the seniors important lessons in how to manage their money and cut down unnecessary items. Senior Joy Woo stated, “Now I don’t want to go to prom, knowing how much money my parents spend.” Many seniors grew to appreciate what their parents go through each month

and understand why their parents tell them, “We can’t buy that,” or “We don’t have enough money.” Overall, the seniors enjoyed their day together at Finance Park. Senior Anthony Mata said, “It was fun, eye open-­ing, and a wake up call to reality that we seniors inevitably are about to develop into.” Seniors are going off to college in a few months and they are going to be ontheir own. It was important for them to learn about debit cards and credit cards. They needed to hear that being behind on a payment will be on their credit record for seven years. Seniors will think twice before spending money on something they do not need, especially when it comes to credit cards. Jose Martinez stated, “More money, more problems!”

Working Overtime: Students worked on re-­election campaign for Monica Garcia

saying that all she saw were youths who never got an education.

across as someone who cares about people, especially youth and their educa-­tion. Ms. Garcia attended USC and UC

School Board President. In this election, she was one of four candidates who actively favored char-­ter schools like LALA. Charter schools are open enrollment and tuition free so parents do not have to pay tuition for their children to attend school and receive a quality education. Monica Garcia has been success-­ful in helping build thrity new neighbor-­hood schools in our district. Her plan for the future is to completely wipe out the dropout rate and make sure every student is college ready and career prepared.

Students Attend International Relations Conference @ USC Leadership Conference created by popular USC professor gets students to think about political theory

By Anthony RoqueContributor

A a group of seven students from LA Leadership attended a student Interna-­tional Relations Leadership Conference at USC on April 6th. The all-­day conference separated the students into groups where they had to come up with solutions to simulations that were close to crisis situations around the world. Before the conference, the LALA team -­ consisting of Kasey Sierra, Anthony Roque, Ever Vergara, Evelyn Thomas, Alexandria Velasquez, Bany Guardado and Citlalli Velasquez -­ learned what group they would be representing

-­ence a decision in an international crisis.

The LALA team was assigned one country group -­ the United States

Organizations) -­ Amnesty International and Doctors Without Borders. Each group went to three ses-­sions where all the other groups congre-­gated. Graduate students taught ways each group could effectively represent their particular point of view on the crises. The crisis situations involved intervention in Mali, a refugee crisis on the border of Thailand and Burma, and a humanitarian crisis in Indonesia where terrorists attacked Dutch aid workers. The conference provided students with a broader view of what is going on in the world. The graduate students who led the sessions were cool and interesting.

Several LALA students offered effective opinions in the big sessions led by USC Professor Steven Lamy, which in-­

Students enjoyed the lunch which was provided by Subway. The USC cam-­pus had lots of stuff going on. Next year, LALA plans to send many students to this event, especially those interested in IR (International Rela-­tions) and those who need to add things to their resumes for college.

Conference AgendaGlobalization, Governance, and Human Security

Responsibility to Protect: Preventing war and

providing human security

What is it?College Major

International RelationsTo study the relationships among

countries, governments, peoples, and organizations all around the world. To learn about global issues from a variety of perspectives-­issues includ-­ing war, poverty, disease, diplomacy, democracy, trade, economics, and

globalization.

Source: The Princeton Review

News & Features3The VoiceApril 2013

The Home of Lion Pride

Teach-in at Middle SchoolTeachers create “stations” around school for Black History Month

By Oscar Isem Staff Writer

in the multi-­purpose room. There were nine posters on walls all over the room. Students read the posters and wrote one accomplishment for each person featured

helped bring equality to people of color in their own way. The people were: Martin Luther King Jr., Frederick Douglass, Bar-­rack H. Obama, and more. Not all went smoothly, however.

were technical problems that caused the -­

dents believed that the Underground Rail-­

the end of the day, a student triggered the

he leaned against the glass with his elbow and the protective covering broke. The teachers all had optimistic reaction to the day. Although they admit-­ted that the day was video-­heavy, most believed that the students would learn from this and that it would have a long lasting impact. The teachers agreed that some students learned more than others, but Joey the sixth grade history teacher, ended with an upbeat note. He said, “ It was great, I loved the teachings.”

On February 20, 2013, Los AngelesLeadership Academy Middle School (LALAMS) celebrated Black History month by having a Teach-­in Day. Teach-­ers Cornell Stephenson, Shannon Liao, Ja’Niece Allen, and Patrick Lazo were in charge of the event. The day began with a video sponsored by the YWCA group;; made by kids for kids to get the students prepared for the day ahead. Students then went into different stations every period of the day. Each of the six different stations was

-­away slave who used the Underground Railroad to get to freedom inthe north. The second station was about the life of John “Jack” Johnson, the

champion,whose career was hampered by racism. A third station had a series of vid-­eos of different African American success stories.

went into a different direction. “America Beyond the Color Line” was about racism in America with great African Americans weighing in their opinions. These people include Samuel L. Jackson, Colin Powell, Jesse Jackson, and Morgan Freeman.

student response. It was about racial slurs and when they are acceptable to use. As explained by facilitator Jessicah Rolapp, some slurs are never acceptable while a few are if the person it is directed to is okay with it. Students began this station by having two minutes to write as many slurs as they could think of and the rest of the class was spent discussing those words.

Firehouse Field Trip

Four LALA juniors visited Highland Park Station 12 in order to explore a

Medina, Hector Pacheco, Steven Lelong and Hugo Lopez’ visit was organized by Assistant Principal Ms. Fernandez after several of the students visited Station 1 and learned that the best cadet program in LA County was run in Station 12.

visit involved a top to bottom tour of

-­men consider to be their personal space. One highlight of the tour was learning about the incredible amount of tools that

truck. From oxygen tanks to chain saws

equipped for every situation.-­

ing enough to allow one of the students,

helmet, oxygen tank and axe. Altogether, this weighs more than seventy pounds and

pole from their dormitories up above.

special technique for coming down the

trucks smell like smoke. Station 12 has

paramedic truck. Fire trucks carry all the tools and the engines transport the water. Sitting in the engine gave a feeling of a tight space. Captains always occupy thepassenger side. After becoming familiar with the station, the students were guided by Fire Fighter Riley through the details of the

being accepted into the program, which lasts for several training sessions. All four LALA students were invited to return to the station to try to pass the required physical. The following Monday, the boys discovered just how hard this physical test actually was. There

hundred feet while wearing the jacket and tanks in under thirty seconds. Next, run-­ning up and down one hundred stairs in under four minutes. Finally, while very tired already, aspiring candidates have to maneuver around ropes and cones, without knock-­ing them over, in under four minutes. After completing all of these tasks, Hugo immediately threw up. Though all four students completed the challenges, only Salvador did all four in the required time period. Salvador began his cadet training almost immediately after and has enjoyed the sessions a great deal. Hector intends to retake the test in June and is working out to get ready. All four came away deeply

-­tion, even though no cussing is allowed.

Hector Pacheco and Salvador MedinaContributors

Explore: Juniors Salvador Medina, Hugo Lopez, Hector Pacheco, Steven LeLong

Activist Learning: Teachers and students create protest-­style environment for learning

LEADERSHIP NEWS

Fundraising Committee- International dinner planned for April 26 Car wash - was held on Saturday April 20Graduation Committee- Meeting date to be announced, but working on slideshow is priorityRecycling Committee- Please remind your student reps to toss all the small blue bin items within the big blue bin items and to not toss trash or edible items into the big blue recycling bin.Earth Day- April 22, wearing green to honor EarthEvents committee- Mother’s Day grams Elections Committee- candidates will be delivering their speeches Elections from April 22-24

Student Government Election4 April 2013The Voice

www.laleadership.org

My name is Jesus Martinez, and I am running for Vice President. I want to run for Vice President because I’d like to work along with the President to change our school for the better and make it stand out. I believe that within our class there has to be more of a family feeling in order to reunite us all as we once where in the ninth grade. I know there has to be a better way to communicate with faculty, parents and students;; this is another reason why I want to work along with the president. My vision for our school is to be one big family as it was when i came in, for all of us to enjoy each other’s company and to not be so separated as we currently are. If placed in the position I will work to better

believe that I am the best candidate for this position of Vice President because

taken workshops to better myself and my leadership skills. I want to work to better our school because together we hold the power.

Presidential Candidates My name is Anthony Roque and I am running for Student Body President at LA Leadership. My vision for LA Leadership is a very interesting one because what I want for the school is what it has been known for, a culture of family. What I believe needs improvement is the social life of every student of the school;; I want to create events in advisories to bond teachers and students as well as creating school wide events that will liven up the students from their everyday studies. My goal is to have the students become more comfortable with one another. My interest is music and art so I will try my best to create events such as a music festival or a free art convention. I don’t want events to be mine only, I would want students to give their input on to what they would want in the school or events they would want to create. I believe I am the best candidate for this position because I have many ideas for the school as well as being open-­minded to what others would want. I want our school to be known for something great and with my help. I know that we can be known throughout Los Angeles as a one-­of-­a-­kind school.

My name is Diana Toj and I am running for treasurer for the class of 2014. Although I only began attending this school last year and am still getting situated, I believe that I can bring forth a new voice within the leadership council. Throughout my time here, I have noticed a growing disinterest for future senior activities among the junior class. That attitude made itself clear during one of our junior meetings. In order to regain some of the missing school spirit, I feel that we should introduce a group of more diverse activities. As treasurer, my job is to manage themoney coming in for our class and make sure it is all accounted for. With that, however, I am also able to suggest ideas for activi-­ties that would help us fundraise and further strengthen the family bond that LALA prides itself in upholding. Some of those ideas include things like poetry slams, gaming nights, and a beach trip. These are just some preliminary suggestions that can be made possible if enough students are interested. With more involvement from the entire student body, wecan make a lot of new ideas come to life. All in all, if elected treasurer, I will work to keep our funds secure and to help restore the family atmosphere here at LALA. I am a fast learner, good with numbers, and I am com-­mitted. I hope to see that our class is taken

-­dent. I want to run for president because I want to get out of my comfort zone and try to

The position of president has been a good one but I believe it can be improved in some aspects, like having better communication with the student body and also with the administration. One of my visions for the Leadership Class is for every member to be unafraid of speaking what they think. If I am elected, some of my goals are to keep pushing at bettering the lunch situation, establishing a solid communication system with the

make the students become leaders on their own. I believe I am the best candidate for this position because I am very social and know most of the people at school. Also I know I can push myself to take the extra responsibility that comes with being president.

My name is Aisli Valencia and I will be run-­ning for the position of Vice President. Through my past year in Leader-­ship Council, I noticed the younger grades were not taken into consideration as much as Seniors;; thus, one of my goals if elected

lower grade levels. I hope to establish an incentive system in which Freshmen, Sophomores, and Juniors will be rewarded for assisting seniors in fundraising for Prom, Grad Night, etc. I will also be a solid support for the elected President and his or

responsibility, honesty, and determination make me a good candidate for Vice Presi-­dent.

My name is Selenah Martin. I am a junior and I am running for Treasurer. I want to run for this position because I am responsible and trustworthy. Not only do I have these traits but I will be an advisor to those who need me or would like to talk to me. I am capable of keeping the students’ money safe and accountable. Something I would like to improve in my class as well as the other classes is the feeling of unity. I would want students to berespectful of their peers and be able to

A goal I have is to get the school more involved with each other. I would want do more activities and fundraisers to support each class.

Hello classmates, my name is Kassan-­dra Sierra, I am currently a junior run-­ning for the position of vice-­president. Although I challenged myself to run for this position, the purpose behind it is because I would like to not only chal-­lenge myself but also make our school a better place. If elected Vice President my main goal is to have a standard disciplinary goal and be able to have a better communication between leader-­ship and the whole school as one. One of my other goals would Be to set a goal as to what amount should be spend towards our senior activities. I believe that I am a great candidate for vp because I am open minded, open to others concerns and opinions, I’m social, smart, a critical thinker and most of all, I’m a great stu-­dent who learns From my mistakes as well as you. If I get elected, I will give

my power and/or anything that I can

My name is Evelyn Thomas;; I am a current junior and running for next year’s position as secretary. I believe that our school has a lot to show and it can become a better place for every student year by year. By making the school more organized, we as a school can achieve a lot. In each school event, like dances, fundraisers, and school activities overall, we can improve drastically by becoming more organized. I believe that next year’s senior class (and school at large), needs to improve on its communication. The

calendar of the year events and I would organize that as soon as possible. I am that best candidate for this position because I know I have leadership and organization skill that can help our school improve.

Student Body Treasurer Candidates

Oscar PenaJunior

Anthony RoqueJunior

Vice Presidential CandidatesJesus Martinez

JuniorAisli ValenciaJunior

Kassandra SierraJunior

Diana TojJunior

Selena MartinJunior

Evelyn ThomasJunior

Secretary

Student Government Election5The VoiceApril 2013

The Home of Lion Pride

Student Body Candidates for class rep.

I, Sandra Sanchez, am running for 10th grade Representative. I want to run for Sophomore Representative because I want to take ideas from my classmates and acton them. I want to talk to my pears and, as a class, plan out activities that will help us fundraise. I want my class to come together to fundraise and help one another. My ultimate goal is to go to a

for our hard work and growth as a class. I am the best candidate for this position because I am determined.

I am Esteban Cordova and I am running for the position of Junior Class Representative. I am running for class rep because I feel that I can really help our class fundraise and set an example for upcoming LALA Juniors. I feel as if I can represent the junior class in a way that is fun but serious, too. Our class has little to no school spirit whatsoever and I would like to change that! As a school at large, I feel like we can work on respect and not putting others down when they walk up to get an award. If elected I would work on fundraising for all of our senior activities and will work on helping other classes raise money for their activities as well. I am perfect for the position because i am loud, outspoken, and I can get thejob done. In addition, I am very involved with school activities. Though I can be known for being quite a knucklehead, I would ike to show everyone that i can do it!

My name is Oscar Isem and I am running to be next year’s Class Representative for the class of 2015. I am an observant fellow and I noticed that more and more o!en we as a class tend to move towards certain groups. Whatever happened to the big, old, happy LALA family we were back in seventh grade? I want to bring that feeling back. As a whole, we all need to RESPECT. "at is the key word. Heck, respect needs to be school wide. Who else hears people talking and laughing over a speaker? We are hypocrites, each and every one of us. We all want it but don’t dish it out to others. To borrow a phrase from Martin Luther King Jr., I have a dream that one day a speaker at our school will be able to do just that, speak. Change starts with individuals. Will this be easy? No.Will this be quick? No. it will be a long, arduous journey that shall require much guidance at #rst. As time goes on, I hope that that guidance will not be needed as much. If I am elected Class Rep., I will work on getting LALA back into a family and making sure we learn this life lesson on respect the easy way. I believe that I am the best candidate because I listen to others. And although I rarely show it, I also think of solutions to people’s prob-­lems. I care about each and every one of my peers and want us ALL to succeed.

High School tradition of service

On Cesar Chavez day, Los Angeles Leadership Academy took part in the annual contribution to help out the community.

As usual, advisories were dispersed to different locations throughout Los Angeles. Sonia’s advisory helped out in the Lincoln Heights Public Library. “We cleaned around the library [picked up trash] and went inside to read,” said senior David Ortiz. Dalila’s class went to Debs park where they plucked out weeds,

LALA’s middle school cafe. Al and Marissa’s advisory took part in the Friends of the LA River Project to pick up trash and learn about the river. “It was cool to help clean near the river because helping the community was a great experience,” stated junior Sophia Huang. Katie and Lonnita’s advisory stayed at LALA’s urban farm. They plucked weeds, created lemonade, planted and watered plants. “Everyone worked very hard, we were all sweaty, at the end we were all happy how the farm looked,” sophomore Arlene Garcia said fascinated. Kathleen’s advisory attended Olvera Street. Maya stated that they “sepa-rated into groups, some people had to go sand some statues, plant...” “It was a memoriable experience that I will not forget because it was my last time participating in the day of service,” remarked senior Marco Agui-lar. ~Pablo Espinoza

Cesar Chavez Day Journal

I am Steven Munoz and I am running for Class Representative because I trulybelieve that I have all necessary skills and motives that successful leaders have.I have GREAT, and I mean GREAT com-­munications skills. This idea of beingClass Representative is more than just a “position”. To me it’s job in which Irepresent my own grade and also stay open to any ideas that my peers haveand present them to leadership. My strong determination WILL motivate thestudents not only in my grade but in oth-­ers too see that they can make a changein their community, whether it is a small change or a big change. I want to

the school, and be a positive role model

school. To me this position has a biggermeaning. I have this intense drive and motivation in me that believes that I canachieve great accomplishments within our school!

Sandra SanchezFreshman

Esteban CordovaSophomore Oscar Isem

SophomoreSteven Munoz

Junior

News & Features6 April 2013The Voice

www.laleadership.org

Spirit WeekActivities bring grade levels together

Roots & Wings Camping club makes headway on outdoors programContributors to this story: Pablo Espinoza, Diana Martinez

By Steven Munoz Staff Writer

What is Spirit Week? At Los Angeles Leadership Academy (and most other high schools) we have developed the tradition of Spirit Week -­ a school wide celebra-­tion organized by our Events Committee where students and teachers come dressed in whatever theme corresponds to the day of the week for one week. This year spirit week was held from March 18-­22. LALA celebrates this schoolwide event so that the spirit of the Mighty Lions can be exhibited proudly and so that the energy is more uplifting and satisfying. This fun and motivating week gives stu-­dents a chance to experience a great time, even within the boundaries of the school. Spirit Week proves that school can have a different feel and energy to it. In some schools, Monday would be crazy hair day, so any students would come to school in the most crazy and out-­

rageous (but still appropriate) hair style. LALA decided that Monday would bePajama Day, Tuesday Sports Day, Wednesday Hippie Day, Thursday Twin/Free Dress Day, and Friday would be the school’s Day of Service. The most popular theme was Pajama Day, as students wanted to be in their comfortable attire. Twin/Free Dress Day was also popular, where students expressed their style and their creativity. Students such as Bany Guardado (senior) and Sandra San-­chez (freshman) both decided to be each others twins for Twin/ Free Dress Day on Thursday. When asked about what she thought about the week’s events, Citlalli Velasquez (current senior) answered, “I hope that Spirit Week has made the school spirit better!”

During the second semester of econom-­ics, Phyllis Rosen partners up with Los Angeles Leadership Academy board mem-­ber, Allan M. Rudnick, to share teaching responsibilities every Friday. Allan Rud-­nick has over 40 years in the investment managing industry and brings invaluable knowledge to teaching this course. Allan Rudnick started his career in 1966 as a securities analyst and was so successful that he was soon managing hundreds of millions of dollars in invest-­ments. When aked about why he decided to come help teach at LALA, Allan says, “Because I get satisfaction out of sharing my experiences with younger students. The more time passes I realize that the real joy is giving back to the community.” Allan took special training at Ju-­nior Achievement Financial Park in order to implement their program at LALA. The highlight of this comes when the seniors

and get to play at being real world adults with jobs and budgets. (See article on Page 2 for more details.) Allan also hosts a game with the seniors that challenges them to follow the stock market for six weeks. The four se-­niors who gain the most money in stocks win special prizes. There is a “Big Board” outside of Phyllis’ classroom where you can follow the leaders week to week. The LALA seniors are very grateful to have the expertise and advice of Allan while learning about economics. Not to mention that Allan is a very gener-­ous person to our school.

What is it?College Major

Business: FinanceDesigned to prepare you for a career

major learns the art and science of managing money.

You’ll study things like commercial and investment banking, forecasting and budgeting, and asset and liability management. You’ll learn more than you may ever want to know about money, stocks and bonds, and how

markets function.

of interest. Typically, business majors choose Accounting, Finance, Man-­agement, Marketing, Organizational Behavior, or Entrepreneurship

Source: The Princeton Review

Investment AdviceSchool Board Member shares expertise with students

By David OrtizStaff Writer

No cellphones, no beds, and tempera-­tures of 18 degrees. How much fun can one have with all those conditions? In February, members of the exciting new (to Los Angeles Leadership Academy) program, Roots and Wings, went camping at Manzanar, California and found out that it could be lots of fun. At the same time, the students learned the history of internment for 1940’s Japanese Americans. The members traveled from Los Angeles Leadership Academy ro Man-­zanar in two vans.The trip to the desert was over a three hour drive. When the Roots and Wings Club arrived at Man-­zanar they learned that the camp was the place where Japanese Americans were incarcerated by Presidential Executive Order 9066. This order was declared by President Franklin D.Roosevelt after the bombings of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. After visiting the historic site, the students and their three chaperones traveled to a nearby camp site. Soon after, students separately chose different spots to set up their tents. After setting up, few

-­ate the food. As night fell, everyone went on an evening hike. Everyone was awed by the astonishing view of the stars in the sky late at night. Sophomore Selena Augustin said, “It was an amazing day with people

I had barely talked to before. I liked how much we all bonded, laughed and danced. I enjoyed it a lot. It was just an amazing weekend;; its unexplainable.” Anna Hernandez agreed. “I think

wouldn’t usually hang out at school but here we all seemed to connect and bond with one another, on different levels. Two, going to the Manzanar national site was great, not only did we have an insight into an historic time but we really experienced it ourselves with some hard work on the service project we at Manzanar. During March break, a second and longer trip was taken to the Mojave Desert. The group was larger and con-­tained some veterans of the Manzanar trip, as well as several new recruits. One of them was Sophomore Diana Martinez.

Culminating Event: Spirit Week ends with Cesar Chavez Day of Service

Lora Hall, who runs the Urban Farm program at the high school, is the liason to Roots and Wings and led early hikes around Los Angeles for the students before the over night trips started. She went on the Manzanar trip and will be on the last planned trip to the Sequoias. Lora says, “My favorite thing about Roots & Wings is seeing how excit-­ed students are about getting outside. I’m so glad our students want to explore, to go camping and hiking. It makes me happy that they are willing to reach beyond their comfort zones and get out in the world. This has been a great opportunity for our students so I’m glad they are taking advantage of it.”

In an essay for her English class Diana wrote: LALA is full of in-­ner city children, but when we are out there in the forest, you feel peace-­ful within yourself and nature welcomes you. Sometimes we don’t take the time to appreciate nature, and only worry about social media. Roots and Wings has shown me so many things about nature and how to take care of it. The beautiful thing about the program is learning about nature while learning from those beautiful and amazing people that camped along with me. I so appreciate the school and the urban farm teacher, Lora, for making this program possible.

Opinion & Editorial7April 2013 The Voice

The Home of Lion Pride

ViewpointSpeech & Debate

Isabel FongSenior

“Anger Management”

Growing up, have you ever noticed characters in a cartoon with an angry per-­sonality? Many of the childhood cartoons I’ve seen, have portrayed traits of angry personality. For instance, Buttercup from the PowerPuff Girls, whom was very protec-­tive of her sisters Bubbles and Blossom, Buttercup hardly ever smiled and she of-­ten looked bitter or cranky. Then we have Squidward from SpongeBob, who always portrays a persona of hatred towards Pat-­rick and his best friend. Squidward gets easily annoyed by his neighbors’ actions and comments. We also have Grumpy from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. These might be silly characters from childhood which didn’t necessarily

do however, resemble human traits on a daily basis. Anger is known as a “strong feeling of annoyance, displeasure, or hostility.” Anger is in all of us, an emo-­tion that can take over and make humans change into a different person. We there-­fore should learn how to deal with anger. Anger is an emotion that can be controllable depending on the per-­son. Some individuals have experienced the common feeling of anger and know how to forget the emotion and move on;; however, there are those individuals who despite knowing their anger level, still make mistakes and hurt either themselves or the people around them. The famous Greek philosopher Aristotle once said, “Everybody can get angry, that’s easy. But getting angry at the right person, with the right intensity, at the right time, for the right reason and in

quite understand it until I found myself in that exact same situation. I came to realize

that when I’m in a situation where anger takes over who I am, I tend to hurt the people around me. Up to this day, I have not seen someone being able to achieve what Aristotle said. Now, is anger a hereditary trait? According to experts, anger is not a hereditary trait and it does give a placebo effect into a person’s mind, so therefore, as humans we tend to believe what others say and input that into our heads. If some-­one tells a child that a candy will make them hyper, the child will in fact, act like a wild animal thinking the sugar rush is making them behave that way. Although experts say it’s not he-­reditary, another research report shows the opposite. Dr. Redfor Williams states that we all have “a tiny molecular variation of a gene that will predict those more prone to anger. Those who have the genetic variation have blood pressure that will soar to dangerous levels, and are at greater health risk,” so this leads us to make our own presumption of whether or not anger is hereditary. Now I want to ask all of you, what makes you angry? Does seeing someone get the newest technology make you mad? How about when you studied so hard for a test, but you still failed? Don’t you want to scream at the world and ask why is it that bad things happen to good people? When you’re watching your favorite show and one of your favorite characters suffers great pain and leads to death, does that make you angry? There are different levels of anger that one can have. But the one that people can relate to is called “Level 3” which is anger with a scowl or harsh words. There are different levels of an-­ger that a human can experience. Different levels of anger predict the outcome on a

situation, and depending on the level, it might cause severe impact on people’s lives. Some say anger is just an emo-­tion that we all have, but have we really looked into what consequences it carries? To believe that anger is simply an emotion might be foolish, to believe that it’s ac-­ceptable by many might be true, to believe it to be a human trait is certainly true. Angry actions can lead to taking someone’s life away. It affects family members and the community they live in, which makes parents more cautious with their children and the things they go through. People with severe anger issues have done extreme actions that create danger to others. We might not think that words can possibly hurt people, but they can injure others and cause harm. Many of us think that being angry is normal, and that it will have no great effect. But, bullying examples are pervasive at many

Anger is an emotion that is controllable, there are different levels of anger that humans can experience, and anger has led people to convict severe ac-­tions that have jeopardized their lifestyle and relationships with others. Now, I ask all of you that the next time you get angry, before you let anger take control of you, to remember that what Aristotle said, “everybody can get angry, that’s easy. But getting angry at the right person, with the right intensity, at the right time, for the right reason and in the right way, that’s hard.”

Isabel Fong is the President of the Leadership Council at L.A. Leader-­ship Academy High School. This viewpoint is an edited version of an Orginal Oratory speech.

Use Your Own IdeasCheating will get you nowhere

Marito SolisSenior

Since the recent Voice survey about students and plagiarism went out, several instances of plagiarism have occurred in English and History classes and it has be-­come apparent that plagiarism is a bigger

The Voice’s survey revealed that there are a variety of interpretations of plagiarism that students hold and that student judgments bout the importance and severity of plagiarism vary. It is hard for most students to say that they have not plagiarized at some point. While learning what plagiarism really is, I have come to realize that I have plagiarized both purposely and ac-­cidentally. I can admit to it and now that I know, I will do my best to avoid plagiariz-­ing again. But it is disappointing that not everyone wants to put the same effort in to taking responsibility for recognizing what plagiarism is and producing honest work. Skimming through the surveys, it was ironic to see a few surveys which stat-­ed that the respondents did not plagiarize;; yet multiple papers before and after have the exact same options circled and word for word responses. I don’t know whether it seems “cool” to plagiarize for some students, but I believe quite the contrary. Plagiarism just shows how little you care about your own education. The teachers can only do so much to help a student and the rest is dependent of that student. It may seem like you’re passing the class by plagiariz-­ing, but in fact you’re cheating yourself. High school is an important part of your life. It’s a chance to set a solid educational foundation for the rest of your life. For those who do their best to avoid plagiarism, I encourage your effort. It will

Graphic Novel Review

Finding Your Identity

American Born Chinese

Every person has a dream to become someone who they aren’t -­ that’s the American dream. A.B.C., also known as American Boy Chinese, is a story that leads into three different stories. In this fascinating graphic novel the main charac-­ters are the AmericanChinese boy, Jin Wang, a white American boy, Danny, and the monkey king who

Jin Wang hates being Chinese because he would get bullied constantly by his peers in school. As Jin Wang gets older, he would meet many people like Wei-­Chen, who would soon be Jin’s best friend. As the two friends grow up many great things come with some bad times to follow. Danny is the second main char-­acter in the story. He and a girl named Melanie are at the beginning of a romance when Danny’s cousin Chin-­Kee comes to visit. Chin-­kee proves himself a constant source of embarrassment to Danny. As for the monkey king he was no ordinary monkey. He was born from a rock and has mysterious powers, but is also a savior to all monkeys.

By Joseph CristobalReviewer

He defeated a tiger spirit which

the monkey king ruled. As he began de-­feating every king or god the only one that everyone had to depend on is Tze-­ Yo-­Tzuh, the god of gods, the creator.

nature, he is sent to help the monk and since he has thousands of children from his many wives, he has a monkey who wants to become like him. He sends him through a journey to live with the humans for many years. Eventually, all the characters’ stories come together. As Wei-­ Chen learns about lying, the monkey king is disappointed in him which makes Wei leave. As for Jin Wang, when he kisses Suzy, Wei-­Chen’s girlfriend, things get

Wei leaves but punches Jin in the face. As Jin sleeps, his memories of the old man in the tea storesasks for what he wishes and that’s when Danny, the white american boy, comes in.

Danny wakes up and is happy but is then bothered by Chin-­kee. They get in

kee’s head fall off. As Danny freaks out, the monkey king give him an explanation of why he was pretending to be his cousin -­ to have Jin Wang talk to Wei-­Chen and learn that he always has to remember to be himself. This is the lesson of the book: to be yourself because if you don’t you will soon forget who you really are.

Arts & Entertainment8 The Voice April 2013

www.laleadership.org

My Passion

Parkour is the freedom you have,

the possibilities running, jump-

ing, vaulting, rolling, flowing and

moving.

My love for parkour is nothing

but real,

cuts and grazes will eventually

heal.

As I sprint off nothing can go

wrong,

then I dive perfectly into a kong.

I land on the grass on the oppo-

site side,

and run off with confidence in

each stride.

Against your face the cold breeze

will brush,

there’s no other feeling like adren-

alin rush.

As I jump off a height and start

to fall,

then land and instantly flow into a

roll like a ball.

I see a tall wall standing in my

way,

but I do not cower or begin to

stray.

I run at the wall and kick up

high,

like I’m trying to touch the sky.

I get good grip at the top of the

wall,

and pull myself up, refusing to

fall.

I do not turn back to see what I

find,

but I stride on forward with par-

kour on my mind.

- Erick Macias

One of a KindLove is patient, love is kind,Like your tender voice that is stuck in my mind.Words can’t explain how I feel that you’re mineEvery day I realize you are one of a kind.

Love is a sung tuned by us two,It brightens my life and sometimes it’s blue.The feeling of your lips makes me crazy.It makes my heart skip a beat or two.

High notes and low notes,Have made a wonderful song.A love song sung beautifullyLike the dim light at dawn.

The fact that I love you makes me freeze,Puts my heart at ease, continuously I feel the breeze.The breeze of your love towards me.The love that has grown from an aw-ing friendshipTo an astonishing relationship.

I don’t want you to go,Never walk out the door.Without you my life would have no color.The dazzling glow of your smile gives color to my life.The texture of your skin makes me want to never let go.

Away I want to be with you,But that is not far enough.I want to spend the rest of my life with you,Even if people say I am not good enough.I am stuck on you, on the shine of your eyesBecause I know for sure you are one of a kind. - Jose Hernandez

(untitled)

If you were amazing,

You wouldn’t be easy,

But if you were easy,

You wouldn’t be amazing.

I’m at the point where I should

forget

Forget! What I feel,

And remember what I deserve.

So if you don’t need me,

I don’t need you!

So why, why?

Why do you come back

Thinking I’m going to be with

you,

Yeah, I’m mad, why?

Because you didn’t appreciate,

What I had to offer you.

But then again, who the hell are

you

Coming to my house,

Telling me what to do.

Ha-ha-ha! You expect me?

Me! To forgive you!?

You came through,

For a couple months,

Just like any other season

Know it’s your turn,

Your turn to move on

Don’t come back

With stupid reasons,

Because it just breaks,

Breaks, my heart to little pieces.

- Aldo Diaz & Rossy Rodriguez

The world is a stage.You get up there and can feel the heat.And it beats you down, beats you downTil you’re just a piece of meat.Then you just stand there and you’re reminded

The world is a stage.The lights dazzle you, blinding you.Rendering you useless, unable to move.And you stand there like a mannequin.While you stand there, blinded, you’re reminded.

The world is a stage.Unmotivated, you don’t care.You’d rather spend time with material objects.Using objects created by othersYou spend your time using, and not creat-ing.You are a follower, following, not re-minded.

The world is a stage.You march on with the others, as the days fade.You work like busy bees, not knowing.What great mysteries the world holds for you.Remember, express yourself, the world is a stage.

- Edwin Coro

Living these streets is like living in a war. The only boundary we have is what we call our front door.

But even that can’t stop a bullet. And no need to say we try to stop the one that pulls the trigger.

Gang related is what’s anticipated minorities feel degraded.

There’s talk about racial segregation. All this for a reputation.

Not only is there violence in my world. But drugs are around and they’re treasured like a pearl.

A slick slippery snake slowly sweeps the streets. Fills the junkies’ lungs with tweak.

I have lust for money, it’s always on my mind.

Through all of this I manage to close my eyes and stop time.I sit and think to myself, “What if this world were mine?

-Jesus Quintanilla and Angel Espinoza

The Voice Ch-Ch-Ch Challenge 10 examples of Literary devices:

simile, metaphor, hyperbole, assonance, and alliteration. You must underline the examples. -­vices should speak to Phyllis

Prize: bag of candy + Maus by Art Spiegelman

Student Poetry

While working on a poetry unit, Ms. U challenged her 11th

page are some of those her students’ best work.

“Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thoughthas found words.”- Robert Frost

“If I feel physically as if the top of my head were taken o$, I knowthat is poetry.” - Emily Dickinson