Creek’s newspaper, The HiLife, celebrates 90 yearsBy Arlen AddisonEditor-in-Chief

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By Jasmine GarzaEditor-in-Chief

Mark Wood brings Electrify Your Strings to CCISD

Electrify Your Strings is a musical education marvel that allows intermediate music students from around the country to participate in a once in a lifetime experience. This extreme program allows students to gain confidence, motivation, community involvement and the opportunity to raise funds for their musical department.

An international recording artist, electric violinist, music education advocate, Emmy Award winner and inventor Mark Wood created EYS. Wood’s dedication to music was no surprise.

“My mother was a musician with four boys and we made a string quartet,” Wood said.

Wood started his career with a full scholarship to Julliard School in New York with the privilege of studying under the Maestro Leonard Bernstein at the Tanglewood Music Program. In the early 1970’s Wood invented the first solid body electric violin and holds the patent for the first ever, self-supporting violin.

Wood is an internationally recognized performer who gained fame as string master and original member of the Trans Siberian Orchestra. A solo artist at times, Wood produces original music for film and television. Wood has released six solo albums and tours with his band The Mark Wood Experience, featuring his vocalist wife, Laura Kaye, and their son Elijah as drummer.

In accumulation to his solo and commission work, Wood has worked with some of the most talented figures in music including Celine Dion, Kanye West, Billy Joel and Paul McCartney.

EYS is currently in its 14th year, visiting more than 60 schools per year,

with a waiting list of schools who hope to become involved. This year Wood and his accompanying artist Bridgid Bibbens were able to bring EYS to League City Intermediate School, Clear Falls Intermediate School, and Seabrook Intermediate School.

“We think it is very important to

get into schools and show kids today that this is an available avenue for them to express themselves and find a different layer of connection to their instrument and music,” Bibbens said.

On May 16, Wood and Bibbens performed during the school day with

the League City Intermediate orchestra in a pre-concert performance played for the entire school to show-off all the hard work of the individuals. At the performance the students were able to showcase their hard work with energizing performances. During the performances both Wood and Bibbens were able to

lead the orchestra into pieces in which they specialized. Musical pieces included popular pieces such as Radio Active and original pieces such as La Vibora. While performing, Wood and Bibbens would choose students to be under the spotlight.

“We’re not looking necessarily for the best player, we’re looking for spirit and energy. Last night we featured a student who was bullied and teased for months, we supported him and elevated him and gave him a spot to showcase his talent, and he is now a super hero,” Wood said.

While performing, students were able to take turns on different orchestra instruments including the Viper, and the Stingray, which was raffled off to Reid Lang, 8th grade student in the LCIS orchestra, on the big night where the LCIS orchestra was able to perform in the Clear Falls High School auditorium.

“I like the enthusiasm and excitement with being able to share something new with kids. There is something that is really magical about opening up the eyes and mind,” Bibbens said.

Although Wood and Bibbens may be nationally acclaimed artists who have worked with high profile names, a special

moment comes when they are able to work with students and make a difference.

“When we are perfoming and traveling with a big act we love it in a personal way but when we can change a kid’s life, you can’t put a price tag on that,” Wood said. “Once you gain confidence as a kid you can doing anything.”

This final issue of the 2013-2014 HiLife School Newspaper marks a very special occasion for the paper. It is the ninety years of contentious publication of the HiLife Newspaper. For nine decades now, HiLife staff members, known as HiLifers, have been training future leaders and journalists, as well as producing an outstanding paper.

The HiLife newspaper has been around to cover most all-major world events of 20th and 21st century. From the Great Depression, to WWII and the Korean War, the Kennedy assassination, Vietnam War and the Moon landing, the Challenger and Columbia shuttle disas-ter to 9/11, the War in Afghanistan and Iraq and Hurricane Katrina and Ike. For all events members of the HiLife staff have been reporting from not just a stu-dent perspective but a global one as well.

The HiLife newspaper began in 1925 at Webster High School by local students. This small building was lo-cated in roughly the same place as Web-ster Intermediate now stands. The school housed grades one through twelve. On

the first day of the 1929 school year, 118 students were reported to be enrolled, 82 of them being High School students.

Webster High served students of Web-ster and parts of Seabrook and Kemah. As a 1928, hand-drawn masthead declared “Webster HiLife ; the only school paper on the Gulf coast serving 6 towns and 3 coun-ties.” According to letters from previous editors, the first HiLife issues were hand typed by the first year typing class and most illustrations and mastheads hand-drawn.

Different grade levels has their own section in the HiLife , including Third and Fourth grade Babble, Fifth and Sixth grade Shocks, Fish Flops, Soph News, and the Senior Report. The stu-dents of the 1920’s were no strangers to the tough academic struggles of school.

Groundbreaking news in a paper (circa 1929) included “The fourth grade are busy making maps of the countries of Northeast-ern Europe. We are afraid, however, some of the countries wouldn’t recognize them-selves.” While in the Soph News it was complained “We Sophs will never have a chance to win the ‘Best Attendance’ banner if teachers don’t let up on our lessons. Only

we began to appreciate this land of de-mocracy. Yes, we began to think of a lot of things that we’d been overlooking”.

As the world entered WWII the school began contests to see who could buy the most bonds and stamps to support the war, with the HiLife frequently print-ing who was in the lead. The paper also listed the names of all senior boys who enlisted in the armed services and every afternoon the school would gather around the flagpole outside to say the pledge of allegiance and sing patriotic songs.

Following WWII and the 1940’s, the HiLife experienced its next major change, the opening of Clear Creek in 1956. Web-ster High students moved to Creek fol-lowing the open and the HiLife followed. Creek had a relatively small student body at the time of its opening, having only having only 62 graduates its first year in 1957. Dur-ing this the newspaper distributed a small weekly issue, normally a single sheet front and back. As well as a larger issue printed every month that contained large news sto-

last week we had 40 lines of Shakespeare to learn and an English and Algebra Exam.”

As times changed, so to did the news-paper. As Webster High grew larger, the paper took on a more modern and so-phisticated look. Column layout, pictures and stencil mastheads began to emerge. However, the 1930’s HiLife still featured a gossip and joke section, known re-spectively as the Spy Life and Gay Life.

The gossip section featured such cov-erage as “Martha Nell Stewert has her heart set on Billie B. because she thinks he is cute...Mildred Iccet can’t seem to make up her mind. Now it’s B.R. Gorsett. Not bad HUH??...What’s this we hear about Ellen N. and Jasper Coker? Is it true Ellen?” as well as such jokes as “Mrs. Connor to Victor: How dare you, I’ll teach you to kiss my daughter! Vic-tor: Too late, I have already learned.”

During the early 1940’s the HiLife shifted focused on the top-ic on everyone’s mind, WWII.

A 1941 holiday editorial read, “With-in twenty four hours the greatest change that has ever been witnessed came over the people of America. For the first time

Photo courtesy of Laura Kaye press photos

continued on pg. 5

2 OpinionWho has been your most

influential teacher? Why?

Coach Byran. He is like a father to me, and I know he has my back whenever I need him.

-Craig Canepa

“Coach Marrie. He taught me

how history is just a story to be

heard.”-Daisha Bland

“Mr. Sheets, because he is

inspirational, and he gives us life

lessons instead of unimportant

speeches.”-Jose Reyes

Ms. Varso. She is always

energetic, and you can go to

her for anything.

-Brittany Crowley

Mr. Lewallen, because

he showed me teachers

can be friends too.-Myranda Rios

“Mrs. Reyes, because she has been like a mom the past 3

years.”-Hallie Baker

“Bradley Hewlett, because

in the classes I have him in,

he teaches us how to work

together and be a family,”

-Dylan Chaudron

Mr. Drake, my old Assisant Principal. He taught me not to just think about myself when

someone makes me mad.-Steven Corcorran

“Mrs. Keill, because she treated us like human beings that we

are and helped us all get through high school with certainity.”

-Tabitha Kinney

Mrs. Kregel because she was a friend as well as a teacher.

-Gabe Garcia

“Mrs. Miller. She is such a passionate teacher who truly

cares for her students. She has inspired me to do what I love.”

-Tiffany Kim

Principal: Jamey Majewski Advisor: Wynette Jameson Editors-in-Chief: Arlen Addison Jasmine Garza Design Editors: Audree Hall & Jasmine Garza Managing Editors: Lisa Nhan Jessica Sieling Features Editor: Jenan Taha News Editor: Arlen Addison Teen Interest Editor: Jessica Sieling Around Creek Editor: Lisa Nhan Arts Editor: Arlen Addison Sports Editor: Staff Advertising Manager: Jasmine Garza Photo Editors: Mallori Flanagan Elena Rodriguez Online Editors: Monica Jackson Sydney Matthews

Published at Mirror Publishers in Texas CityEmail us at: creekhilife@gmail.com

Visit us at: http://clearcreekhighschool.ihigh.comFor ad rates call: (281)284-1889 Fax: (281)332-9079

HiLife Staff

Emily BerthiaumeAllie Casey

Paige Coffey

Makenzie JacksonDeja Harrell

Brendan HudspethEmily RuthvenCarolina Sarria

2013-2014

“Mrs. Reyes has taught us so much in Cavaliers and made us into the ladies we are today.”-Allie Johnson

“Mrs. Seelbach taught me a lot and pushed me hard in all of my classes.”-Mikayla Ford

“Coach Marrie, because he’s real. He’s really good at giving advice about life, and plus he is passionate about what he teaches.”-Tatianna Walker

“Hewlett because he gave me a new sense of

appreciation for theater.”-Randy Powell

“Woolweaver, she has a unique way of teaching. The first day of Computer Science we read The Little Engine That Could.”

-Andrew Nash

“Mr. Hewlett because he taught me everything that I know

about acting. Everything that I need to improve on, he tells me exactly what it is. Without him

and his classes, I would be back where I was in 8th grade.”

-Drew McCord

“Fontenot- he has prepared me so much for my SAT and gave me criticial knowledge for college.”-Allison Medina

Seniors:

Editorial 3Brendan’sBabbles

By Brendan HudspethReporter

I’m not going to write a wall of good-byes, or things I’m looking forward to. I’m not going waste time thinking about how to fix mistakes I’ve made. Well, except one. Don’t wear socks and sandals. That was the mind of a freshman on his first day of high school at work. I like to think I’ve ma-tured enough to know not to do that again.

Freshman year for me was full of im-patience. I tried being more social, tried to break out my middle school shell. It ended badly in retro-spect. I was kind of tall, and people constantly asked me if I was a sophomore. Now, the difference be-tween freshman and sophomore is basically non-ex-istent to me, but as a fish, it went to my head. Like I said, I wore socks and san-dals on the first day. I thought I knew what I was doing. I didn’t, and still don’t.

Sophomore year was my first full year at Creek. Freshman year was at Springs, and included a short-lived ex-perience in de-bate followed by a failed season in basketball. I came back to de-bate, and have been there ever since. That was the year I started meeting some of my best friends. Nothing brings people together like being in a rather easy 7th pe-riod World History class in the portables.

For Junior year, I took the manda-tory Physics class, did the boat project, and watched a group member jump in and sink the boat. Don’t sink the boat, every-body. I was way more active in debate this year, and met people from not just Creek,

not just CCISD, but all of the Houston area. Like a portable with bad AC in the afternoon, debate brings its own variety of bonding. Put a bunch of high school kids in suits and let them talk about poli-tics and morality. In our eyes, we make Congress look like a bunch of toddlers.

And then I got to senior year. After be-ing told that one my debate electives got cancelled, I had to pick a new one. My counselor told me there was an opening in newspaper, as they needed a sports writer, so I took it. Writing essays stopped annoy-ing me after 6th grade, and I liked sports. Why not? Now I get to spend 50 minutes every day on a Mac, with no clue what I’m doing on it. The best part, however, of se-nior year is the end. It’s not just gradua-tion, as I haven’t actually done that yet, but more the end of three years in debate, one in newspaper, and life after high school staring you in the face two weeks away.

On Friday the 23rd, I had my last de-bate banquet. I got to go up and give joke awards to every other debate team member with the four other seniors. My personal favorite was “The Atlanta Falcons Biggest Fan Award” to one our debabies, Donovan

Johnson. He’s a huge Saints fan, so he hated the award. That means I did my job well. On the other hand, while the seniors were making awards out of jokes for everybody on the team, the team was working on something for the seniors that was kept under high-er security the Pentagon. Turns out it was a dec-orated box filled with goodbye notes and scrap-book pages. I might have cried a bit. Maybe.

There’s a lot of common ad-vice with flaws, but one piece sticks out to me as completely flawless. When you get to high school, do extra-curricular activi-ties. Whether it’s football, band, or debate, do some-thing more than just the minimum

needed to skate by and get out. High school may not be the most important or fun time of your life, but that doesn’t make it worth-less. Develop skills, make friends, and find interests. You might come into high school not interested in anything, but that’s why you have four years to find something. Find out what you want to do, and as long as it’s safe and legal, go out and do it.

“Focus on the journey, not the desti-nation. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it.”

-Greg Anderson

Arlen’sAnthropology

By Arlen AddisonEditor-in-Chief

As graduation day approaches, I keep comparing how I once thought my graduation experience would be to how it actually is. So much is differ-ent from how I thought it would be.

For most of High School I had this pristine plan on how I thought High School and everything afterwards would be. For a while, maybe the first three years, things stuck to my plan. It was good, my plan was working. I was happy. Then things changed in my senior year. I experienced sev-eral life changes, both in and out-side of school. I was so frus-trated that things hadn’t turned out the way I hoped that I tried des-perately to cor-rect them. But, in the end this only a mistake because when my life still wasn’t how I wanted it to be I was only more unhappy.

If only I could have realized that my plan wasn’t going to fit my situation anymore then I could have accepted things as they were and adjusted to that. Soon I began to be regretful of all the mistakes I made trying to fix my life, which only served to throw me into a few more months of misery.

Somewhere along the line I finally re-alized that all this regret and longing for something I didn’t have was getting me nowhere. I’m not sure how exactly I did,

but I simply decided to just be happy about life as it is not. To be sure several things in my life weren’t ideal, my life was no where near where I hoped it would be and the re-gret of my mistakes still hung close by, but I just decided that I wasn’t going to let that regret and longing make me miserable.

Now that I look back on all those times of great regret for all the mistakes I made, I feel this strange sense of pride for making them. Yes, at the time of the mis-take I felt miserable about screwing up but mistakes can be very powerful learning experiences. Learning from my mistakes made me a stronger, happier and more ma-ture person. Given the opportunity would have I rather learned not to makes those mistakes from someone else, to have read or heard about them rather than actually experience them? Maybe, but sometimes we have to experience something ourselves to understand, simply hearing about it from someone else isn’t good enough.

I feel like our society tries to promote an idea of the perfect person, who always

makes the right call and never makes mistakes. Mistakes are part of life and some of the biggest tri-umphs in life are us overcoming our mistakes to rise far above them.

If I could give one piece of advice to myself four years ago or to anyone at any stage throughout life, it would be this. Have a plan. Plans are great, they allow us lay-out and prepare for future events. However, if things change in an un-expected way and it seems like your plan won’t fit your new situation, that’s ok. Don’t go down with the sinking ship of your old plan, up until the very last moment trying to keep your doomed vessel on course. When something unexpected hap-pens, re-evaluate your situation and plan, and then ask yourself “Can my plan still hap-pen? Should it still happen?” If you answer no, then change your

plan, make a new one. Life will happen regardless of your plans, goals, or agen-das. Life won’t change to fit your way, but hopefully you can have the cour-age to change your way to fit life.

“It does not do to dwell on dreams

and forget

to live.”-Albus

Dumbledore

News4200 Nigerian girls kidnapped from boarding schoolBy Emily BerthiaumeReporter

More than 200 girls in Nigeria were kidnapped from their boarding school by a terrorist organization, and the majority of them are still missing. They were in their dorms at the Chibok Government Girls Secondary School when armed men burst through the door, promising to save them from the gunfire they could hear in the surrounding town. The men, part of the Boko Haram terrorist group, forced the girls onto pick up trucks, driving them away into the dense forest.

Some of the girls were able to escape, including a 16-year-old that has spoken out on the kidnapping.

“Don’t worry, we’re soldiers,” she recalls them saying. “Nothing is going to happen to you.”

The gunmen told all the girls to go outside, and then they proceeded to steal all the food from the storeroom and set the school on fire.

“They started shouting ‘Allahu Akhbar’, (God is great),” the girl said, “and we knew.”

276 girls are still missing now, three weeks later. Two have reportedly died of snakebite, and twenty are ill, according to the intermediary who is in touch with the captors.

There were more gunman then they could count, the escaped student said, so all the girls sat quietly and did as they were told. When the trucks stopped for a moment, some girls jumped. Some were reluctant, the girl remembered.

One girl said, “We should go! Me, I am coming down. They can shoot me if they want but I don’t know what they are going to do with me otherwise.”

As soon as the girls jumped, they ran as fast as they could away.

“We ran and ran, so fast,” said

capital city of Nigeria, are corrupt, and that a better form of government would be a strict enforcement of Islamic Sharia law. Him and Boko Haram reject all things Western, including the education at Chibok and other schools across Nigeria.

Boko Haram has killed over 1,500 people in attacks since the

beginning of the year, according to AP. Like all of the schools in Borno

state, Chibok, which teaches both Christian and Muslim girls, had been closed because of increasingly deadly attacks by Boko Haram on other schools. However, it had recently opened to allow final-year students to take exams.

On Monday, May 5th, Shekau released a video, claiming he will sell the abducted girls.

“I abducted your girls. I will sell them

in the market, by Allah,” he said. “There is a market for selling humans. Allah says I should sell. He commands me to sell. I will sell women. I sell women,” he continued, according to a CNN translation from the local Hausa language.

It has been reported that some girls have been forced into marriage for as little as $12, while others have been taken across the border to Chad or Cameroon.

Many soldiers have told the Associated Press that they are demoralized in the search for the girls, because Boko Haram is more heavily armed and better equipped, while the Nigerian soldiers get little more than a meal a day.

Parents are also losing confidence in the authorities.

“I am so very sad because the government of Nigeria did not take care of our children and does not now care about our children,” one mother of an abducted 15-year-old girl said. “All we have left is to pray to God to help them and help us.”

The mother of six wondered what would happen to her daughter’s ambition to become a doctor. She said the girl spent her time caring for and cooking for the family.

“She is my first-born, the best,” the mother, who broke into a scream followed by wails of sorrow said. “What am I to do as a mother?”

The escaped 16-year-old constantly thinks of her friends, and wonders why she was able to escape while they are still captive.

“I am really lucky and I can thank God for that,” she said. “But God must help all of them ... Their parents are worrying. Every day, everyone is crying.”

A hashtag on Twitter, #BringBackOurGirls, has been trending worldwide to encourage and quicken the search for the missing girls.

the 16-year-old girl, who had always prided herself in running faster than her six brothers, according to ABC. “That is how I saved myself. I had no time to be scared, I was just running.”

When the girl returned, her family was happy she had escaped.

“I’m the only girl in my family, so I

hold a special place and everyone was so happy,” she said, “but that didn’t last long.”

Boko Haram, which translates to “Western education is sinful,” in the native language, is a Muslim terrorist organization located in the northeast region of Nigeria. This is one of the most economically depressed and least educated areas of Nigeria, according to CNN. The leader, Abubakar Shekau, uses Islam to convince residents that the powers in Abuja, the

Davis Trumble, of Washington, D.C., protests against the abduction of over 200 girls by the terrorist group Boko Haram in northern Nigeria, at a rally and demonstration in front of the Embassy of the Federal Republic

of Nigeria on May 6, 2014 in Washington, D.C. (Mary F. Calvert/Zuma Press/MCT)

MERS virus spreads to US from the Middle East

A deadly virus, known as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, is a viral respiratory illness caused by a coronavirus. The second U.S. case has been confirmed in Florida, according to federal and state health officials. This case came just days after the first infected patient was released in Indiana.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Florida Department of Health announced the MERS case ten days after the first case was confirmed.

Symptoms of the MERS virus include fever, cough and shortness of breath. It was first reported in Saudi Arabia in 2012, and 30 percent of people who contracted MERS have died.

The infected patient in Florida was an unnamed healthcare worker who traveled from Saudi Arabia to Indiana. Officials said the patient flew from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia to London and started to feel unwell on that flight. The MERS victim

contact with ill people, such as caring for or living with an infected person, but has not spread in a sustained way in communities, according to the CDC. There are no specific treatments for the virus, and medical care focuses on treating the symptoms. The virus’ incubation period, which is the time between exposure to the virus and the onset of symptoms, is about five days.

The CDC recommends people who develop a fever and cough or shortness of breath within two weeks of traveling from countries in or near the Arabian Peninsula should see a doctor right away.

Since the MERS virus appeared two years ago, about 600 cases have been confirmed in 19 countries, and 175 have died from it. Those countries include Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman, Jordan and Kuwait.

“In the greater Washington area, a patient traveling from Saudi Arabia last month is suspected of having MERS and is now hospitalized at Children’s National Medical Center,” Aegis Health

Security said in a statement, according to TRN. “The patient is isolated as the CDC follows testing and evaluation protocols.”

The World Health Organization warned at the end of April that cases of MERS could increase with warm weather. The occurrence of new cases seems to follow a seasonal pattern, with increasing incidence from March-April onwards. The number of cases sharply increased since mid-March, essentially in Saudi Arabia and UAE, where two important healthcare-associated outbreaks are occurring, according to a press release from the WHO.

It was noted that as much as 75 percent of reported MERS cases are secondary, which means they were acquired from another sick person. Both the WHO and CDC believe that the virus originated in camels.

“Although camels are suspected to be the primary source of infection for humans, the exact routes of direct or indirect exposure remain unknown. Investigations to identify the source of infection and routes of exposure are still ongoing,” the WHO said.

then flew from London to Boston, arriving in the U.S. on May 1, then flew through Atlanta before arriving in Orlando. The patient was then hospitalized on May 8.

The CDC is working to identify and contact more than 500 people who were on the same domestic flights as the patient. Officials would not give any identifying characteristics about the person, including age or gender.

The Indiana patient, a man in his 60s who had been living and working in Saudi Arabia, was released from the hospital on May 9, according to NBC News.

“The patient has tested negative for MERS, is no longer symptomatic and poses no threat to the community,” Alan Kumar, chief medical information officer at the Community Hospital in Munster, Ind., said, according to the Washington Post.

The hospital talked to the CDC before releasing the patient.

The MERS virus is similar to SARS, or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, another coronavirus. It spreads through close

By Carolina SarriaReporter

ries, poems and short stories from students, as well as the occasional crossword puzzle.

In the decades to come Johnson Space Center would bring large numbers of people to the Clear Area. As Creek’s en-rollment greatly increased, HiLife stories shifted from small school stories to stories for the masses. With advent of better pho-tography and technology, more picture and better layout could be seen in the HiLife . Given that the paper was completely stu-dent run, each group of editors had com-plete creative freedom the shape the paper to their vision. This led to vastly different design styles and layouts through the years.

The HiLife would experience its biggest change, however, in 1981 when Wynette Jameson took the role of News-paper teacher and adviser. Under her ex-perience and guidance, waves of new HiLife rs were trained to be good journal-ists and produce an award winning paper.

“Being a part of the HiLife team dur-ing my high school years at Clear Creek was instrumental in my becoming a poet, a non-profit leader, and an educator. The HiLife room was my safe harbor as I swam through the eddies my own defining of what it meant to be a Vietnamese and an American, and to come to terms with that bifurcated self: a Vietnamese-American. What was clear and dear to me were those lessons Ms. J taught me about how to be responsible, how to claim one’s voice, how to live in the world. Those lessons were my signposts in my travel to adulthood, and they remain my guiding lights today. Additionally, Ms. J taught me how to be curious and ask good questions, how to research and excavate, and how to define and clarify. All of these skills are inher-ent of being a good journalist, of course, but now in my mid-40’s, I finally see how these skills are necessary to live a life of empathy and compassion - a life I am proud to call my own,” Long Chu said, Editor-in-Chief, Class of 1989 and co-founder of Writers in the Schools (WITS).

During Mrs. Jameson’s tenure at Creek, she has impacted hundreds of stu-dents for the better. Former HiLifers have

that matter to them, and that gave me the fuel to chase after a journalism career,” Al-lie Hinga, Editor-in-Chief, Class of 2009, studied Journalism at the Mizzou said.

“Working for the HiLife taught me that young people are capable of vastly more than is usually credited to them. With the patience and faith of Ms. J as a teacher and a friend, and with the unique synergy that makes our students a team, the HiLife staff not only produces excel-lent journalism, but excellent young men and women who know how to express themselves and make a difference,” Ja-cob Mancini, Editor-in-Chief, Class of 2012, studying at University of Texas said.

“People in the journalism world are al-ways so concerned with what’s current or happening now and that’s not always print publications. That being said, the HiLife by nature is subject to change. Some tra-ditions stay the same, but innovation has always been one of those traditions as well. With a new staff every year, and new sto-ries to be told, it’s always going to grow and transform accordingly. As a HiLifer, I think we just learn to follow suit, and grow and transform, too, as our time on staff and the stories we tell shape us as individuals,” Valerie Hellinghausen, Editor-in-Chief, Class of 2013 and studying journalism at the University of Missouri~Columbia said.

Following the arrival of Mrs. Jameson, the HiLife soon went through another his-toric change when in the 1980’s the staff received its first computer, a Macintosh 128k. Having only one computer, each staff member would have to take turns using the then state-of-the-art device.

Over the next three decades the HiLife would continue to evolve and shift a more digital design of the paper. Typewrit-ers slowly faded out as new computers replaced them. Film photography, how-ever, stayed around until the mid-2000’s. Many editors felt that digital photography could not compare to the quality of film.

HiLife kept advancing technologi-cally until today when it has the newest classroom of 27” Macs, digital cameras, printers and a scanner. The school has

paid for most of the equipment but the HiLife itself pays for the majority of the-actual printing of the paper. Every month more than 2,000 copies are printed cost-ing the HiLife more than $700. Printing is funded through advertisements in the paper HiLifers sell to local businesses.

Despite time constraints and the cost of monthly printing, the HiLife has al-ways found the time and money to sup-port many worthy causes throughout the world. The HiLife raised money in 2001 for the NYC Red Cross following 9/11 and created the Ray Hutchison scholarship in memory of former HiLife photographer who was killed during active duty in Iraq in 2003. In 2005 the HiLife began corre-spondence with child victims of the 2005 Sri Lankan tsunami. The HiLife has also raises money to Grace, an orphan in Nairo-bi, Kenya through school for the past five years. For several years now the newspa-per staff has also supported causes such as Invisible Children, Creative Visions, and the Cura Orphanage of Nairobi, Kenya.

HiLifers have also had the many great opportunities to bump shoulders with many inspiring people, such as the family of slain photographer Dan El-don, Neal Moore, a journalist who follow the footsteps of Huck Finn by paddling down the Mississippi and collecting local stories, Hollywood director Jon Turtle-taub and many other inspiring people.

While the HiLife has covered many historical events and sup-ported many great causes, it is by far the HiLife staff members that are the most amazing part of the newspaper.

Without the hard work and dedication from all the writers, photographers, designers and editors the HiLife would not have been able to endure ninety years of publication.

With the treasure trove of knowledge and experience that is handed down from each generation of HiLifers to the next, it seems likely that the HiLife newspaper will endure another ninety years and continue to produce an outstanding school newspaper.

gone on to be career journalist, teachers, engineers, moviemakers, found non-profit organizations and much more. Previ-ous HiLife editors had a lot to say about her and their experience in the HiLife.

“Ms. J and the HiLife taught me a lot. Specifically, she taught me to believe in myself in turn increasing my self-con-fidence. The HiLife was a great family of people that I had and I love still following what you all do. I still enjoy writing to this day; however, now I do mostly technical writing as an engineer,” Kim Hernandez, Editor-in-Chief and Class of 1999 said.

“I gained the confidence needed to launch a career in journalism. My freshman year she asked us all what we wanted to be. I said a writer for the New York Times. She believed in me enough and encouraged me to the point where I felt it could be a reality,” Chris Kirkham, Editor-in-Chief, Class of 2002, and Pulitzer Prize winner writer said.

“While I could speak forever about the HiLife, what I’d really like to say is how Wynette Jameson truly made a difference in my life. She’s an incredible woman, and her passion for helping people, students in particular, is why she has had such a suc-cessful and fulfilling career,” Josh Shideler, Editor-in-Chief and Class of 2003 said.

“I can’t talk about my experience on the HiLife staff without sharing of my love for Mrs. J. Even before entering high school I had heard about Mrs. J and her incredible way of empowering her stu-dents. Even then I knew this was a woman I wanted to learn from. When I think back on my time at CCHS my fondest memo-ries were made in Mrs. J’s classroom. I am so grateful to know her and to have learned from her,” Micah Grace Wesley, Head Photographer, Class of 2008 said.

“Being on the HiLife staff is basically the reason I decided to major in journal-ism in college — I just graduated with a degree from the J-school at the University of Missouri and am hoping to land a job as a reporter when my internship this sum-mer winds down. It’s kind of an intangi-ble “skill,” but I learned that I really care about helping people understand issues

5News

90 year anniversary continued from page 1

Around Creek6

Rossi’s original piece Kaval makes debut at concert

May 19 marked the last band concert of the 2013-2014 school year, with an exciting performance of the piece Kaval, written by Clear Creek’s very own student Grant Rossi. The Wind Ensemble band, under the direction of Mr. Meyer, performed the piece following a speech given by Rossi.

Rossi, a junior, began working on Kaval in October of 2013. Although he had not planned on writing the specific piece, he had always wanted to write a complete work for the Wind Ensemble to play.

“I had always tried writing compositions but I never found enough time nor constant inspiration to continue or finish them,” Rossi said. “And I had always wanted to write a complete work for Wind Ensemble because I saw how moving as well as enjoyable it is to play something of that magnitude. I only hope to duplicate for others what I got to experience everyday in band and with that and new theme I created came interest in turning this in to something remarkable.”

However, the inspiration that he got for Kaval came entirely by accident.

“I was sitting at an out-of-tuned practice room piano and I played a few

flavorful pattern, I used some electric synths like throbbing bass lines that emulate those heard in the club or dance settings. Both of these old and new composition techniques help establish my style as a composer as well as create a texture that is unique to what I experience in life.”

Because Rossi wanted to watch the show instead of performing in it, Mr. Cuevas played Rossi’s part for him. Rossi also explained what it was like hearing his friends perform the piece that he had been working on for months.

“I kept forgetting that it was my piece being performed until, of course, I heard something that I didn’t like in my own writing to which I suddenly become confused, if that makes any sense,” Rossi said. “It’s a weird feeling.”

But Rossi was not the only one who was excited about having the Wind Ensemble perform his piece; other members of the Wildcat band have expressed their excitement as well.

“It was fun to work with someone who really understood what he wanted in his work and it was a really good compilation of different pieces,” Sarah Ruthven, a junior in Wind Ensemble, said. Rachel Wolfe, also a junior in Wind Ensemble, added,

“It was really inspirational working with someone so passionate about his work.”

Rachel Gaylor, a student from Clear Creek, was also very impressed with Rossi’s work and the fact that he was able to write a piece so complex.

“If I had not known that Grant had written the piece, I’d think that it was some Beethoven composition,” Gaylor said.

But just because he finished Kaval, does not mean that Rossi has stopped composing. He also mentioned the new piece that he is currently working on.

“At the moment I am writing a new piece,” Rossi said. “It’s complete contrast to this as it’s slow and infernal. I am hoping that it will be played by the University of South Carolina’s Wind Ensemble, thanks to the soon departing Mr. Meyer.”

Rossi is also interested in possibly pursing music as a career in the future, considering it a “great possibility” that could happen.

“If I get into a school that I want to get in to, there is a good chance that it will become the main focus in life,” Rossi said. “But as any junior knows, nothing is certain.”

notes in succession,” Rossi said about where the idea came from. “I played them again and then again and again. I realized that the theme created just then was incredibly catchy, and I spend the whole next week humming it over and over again.”

Despite starting the piece in October, Rossi had writer’s block in December that lasted until around the end of January of 2014. In February, he “hard-core started working” and finally finished Kaval about a week and a half before the performance on May 19. However, he continued to make edits all the way until the day before it was performed.

According to Rossi, the piece has a very “distinct Middle Eastern feel.”

“In the beginning, this feel is established by a somewhat tribal sounding chant-like solo,” Rossi said. “ It is launched into an up-tempo section that resembles more of a Bedouin life dance that persist until a slow recap section at the end. I used a lot of clarinets, as I felt that their woody texture would really bring out the Middle Eastern aspects in the piece,” Rossi added.

“However, it isn’t just old world sounding ideas that I incorporate into the piece. I also combined modern trends such as pop and R&B. In order to enjoy a more

By Jessica SielingManaging Editor

By Lisa NhanManaging Editor

Bittersweet goodbyes to Meyer as he leaves Creektwice, named Grand Champion of the 2013 Dallas Wind Symphony Invitational, and been a runner-up at the 2013 American Prize in Wind Ensemble Performance.

“The impact he’s had on this band is incredible. He took us from a last

place marching team our freshman year to the finals this year,” Dylan Way, drum major and senior, said.

Meyer faced a predicament with leaving “his kids, the program, and everything we built together”, but he was encouraged by many colleagues and friends to take the chance.

“I told him that it’s a once in a life time opportunity and he’d be dumb not to take it, but of course it’s hard watching him go,” Mr. Daniel Cuevas, Associate Director of bands, said.

For Meyer, teaching has always been a passion. His ultimate goal has always been to work at a university, like this job offers.

“Since I was six, I used to teach my stuffed animals and make my parents take math tests. When I started doing music, it made sense to do music education, because I love both of them,” Meyer said.

Wind Ensemble was the first group of students to receive the news, due to Meyer’s close relationship to them on May 1. He wanted them to “hear it from me first and not anyone else.” It occurred on during an afterschool Wind Ensemble

practice and was the “most heartbreaking thing” Meyer ever had to do.

“Everyone was really shocked when he told us. We figured we had at least one more year with him,” Grant Rossi, junior, said.

The general reaction of Meyer’s departure has been a mixture of bittersweet goodbyes and a shared sense of pride.

“Even though I’ve only had him for two years, he’s had such an impact on my music career. I feel incredibly lucky to have had him as a band director. We’re all sad to see him go, but we’re also so proud of him and what he’s achieved,” Jessica Heerboth, sophomore, said.

There has also been feeling of gratefulness for what Meyer has given to the kids and programs.

“He has the ability to not only show the kids what they need to improve on, but how they can reach their goals

as individuals. He has created a sense of family for this band,” Mr. Josh Wharton, director of percussion, said.

In addition, many of his fellow the staff members have described their gratefulness for being able work with Meyer.

“He’s one of my best friends. Coming to work doesn’t feel like work when you love your job like I do and have a friend to share it with,” Cuevas said.

This graduating class is the only class to have Meyer for all four years of their high school career.

“I feel really honored to have had him for all four years. It’s hard to imagine what my high school career would be like without his influence,” Joel Mancini, senior, said.

Others offered his their our parting pieces of advice.

“You should get a new rack of polo shirts, because the ones you have now are too uncomfortable small,” Rossi said.

Meyer took the last band concert and banquet as an opportunity to say goodbye to all of the kids.

“I wanted them to know how proud of them I am, how proud of us I am and everything we’ve built together. And what a thrill it has been to be a part of this program. I’m going to miss watching their incredible journey of growth and process as a team to create music in the end,“ Meyer said.

During this time, the students and parents also took the chance to say their farewells with parting gifts. Gifts such as a mini Jacob ‘s Ladder podium, a Texas flag that has been flown over the capitial, and a table made out of a mannequin leg were among the many gifts that Meyer will be taking with him to South Carolina.

When asked on what he would tell the new incoming director, Meyer replied with, “Keep your expectations high, be understanding. You’re teaching the absolute best kids in the world.”

As the school year ends, and goodbyes are said, a very bittersweet goodbye is on the horizon. Stephen Meyer, Director of Bands here at Creek, will be departing to the University of South Carolina in June. He will be taking the position of interim assistant director of bands for next academic school year.

“The community and kids have been so overwhelmingly supportive and excited for me,” Meyer said.

This position has always been the “dream job” for Meyer. As assistant director of bands, he will act as assistant director of the USC marching bands, conduct the women’s basketball band, supervise student teachers, conduct the USC University Band and teach an administration of school band course.

According to Meyer, he was offered the job “out of the blue” from the Director of Bands at USC. The offer came with feelings of “shock, surprise, excitement and very bittersweet” for Meyer. He first learned of this opportunity after Spring Break. He then flew out for a formal interview with the Dean later on, but the job was “his if he wanted it.”

“I wasn’t expecting to leave Creek at all. I didn’t want to leave. I have no reason to leave this school,” Meyer said.

Scott Weiss, the Director of Bands at USC who offered him the job was Meyer’s former professor at Indiana University who has been “a mentor ever since.”

Meyer, at the age of 29, has a teaching career of only seven years, with four of them at Creek. In his four short years at Creek, Meyer led the band to many successes. With Meyer, Creek’s Wind Ensemble has performed at the esteemed Midwest Clinic is 2013, been named a National Winner in the National Wind Band Honors Project

Photo taken by Deja Harrell

7Around CreekEngineering students take on zero gravity at NASA

This year students from Clear Creek High School and Clear Springs High School joined the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in collaboration with the Extreme Science element of the High School Students United with NASA to Create Hardware Program.

The Extreme Science aspect of HUNCH allows select high school engineering students from around the country to build and design a project that tests multiple concepts using the microgravity environment.

“The opportunity for our students to apply what they have learned through their educational experiences in a project evaluated and tested in an environment only a few ever experience is immeasurable,” Niki Warden, engineering instructor at Creek said. “As a teacher, participation in a HUNCH project is the best program I can offer my students.”

This year was Clear Creek’s first year participating in the program that allowed three engineering seniors Ronnie Finger, Sean Kelly and Roman Stromeyer to further their learning boundaries. Throughout the year long project, Finger, Kelly and

being tested in zero gravity,” Stromeyer said. The Zero-G was an airplane that

allowed students to enter and experience

life with zero gravity. Throughout one week

Extreme Science teams from around the country were able to test their research at NASA. While they were in the airplane they

were able to test their abilities weightless, with the assistance of a box stationed in the middle if needed, with the slightest push of anything sending them back.

“The plane goes almost completely vertical making you feel like there are two Gs on you. It then starts leveling out and before you know it you are in the middle of the cabin floating in the air,” Finger said.

For the three seniors the Zero-G experience helped them further their interest with what they wanted to do in the future. All three seniors hope to one day become mechanical engineers.

“As a child I always thought airplanes were really cool. I became interested in the mechanical components of the airplane. The engineering programs at this school really helped me figure out how different parts were designed and really sparked an interest for me,” Stromeyer said.

Although the students benefited from the zero gravity experience, the three seniors are concerned for what next year brings. Next year the program will be set in Florida and funding to send the team to Florida may be the reason future students are unable to participate with Zero-G.

“It gives an experience that most students are unable to receive,” Kelly said.

Stromeyer tested the different concepts and were able to test their research alongside NASA personnel while flying in the Zero-G

plane, commonly known as the “Vomit Comet.”

“They didn’t give us an assigned topic, so they clearly wanted us to come up with something to have a wide range of what was

By Jasmine GarzaEditor-in-Chief

Photo courtsey of Mrs. Warden

Around Creek8

Class Officers chosen to represent student body

By Carolina SarriaReporter

Cavaliers get their Vogue on with the Spring Showdecorated,” Sierra Boudreaux, 10th, said when asked what she liked most

about the show. “I also loved the senior dances.”

Throughout the show, specifically during the transitions between dance numbers, comedic theater skits were performed to entertain the audience and introduce each individual routine.

The first act of the show opened with a team performance to Vogue. The 2014-2015 New-News danced to Whirring, and the third number was the CCHS Cadettes performance to The Right Man.

Team Pom did a routine to Light ‘em Up, and only on May 1 the audience was

able to see the clinic girls dance to Ain’t No Mountain

High Enough. Next came a special guest performance from Starlight Studio, and the Cavalier officers did a jazz routine to Sassy.

The next performance was a freshman, sophomore and junior class dance to Beautiful People, and Allie Johnson performed an emotional solo to Home Again. The Jazz Company danced to Tell ‘em, and the officers performed a contemporary piece to Dark Paradise.

The next routine was a Rock and Roll remix performed by the social committee, and the first act concluded with a Runway mix by Team Kick.

Following intermission, the second act kicked off with a tap routine to Happy. Team contemporary danced to Young and Beautiful, and the officers performed a lyrical routine to I Will Wait. The senior girls and guys did a Superhero remix, followed by a guest performance from members of Elite Dance Academy.

Next, Team Jazz performed to Standing There, and several Cavalier dads did a dance to Jukebox Jam. The seniors did a hip-hop routine to a School Girl remix.

Ms. Reyes and the Cavalier officers joined together to perform a piece to This Moment, and afterwards came the senior slide show.

The seniors performed a lyrical dance to Time of Our Lives. The Cadettes returned to perform a ballet piece to Mothership, and the performance was followed by an upbeat routine from the CCHS cheerleaders.

Finally, a slideshow was presented displaying pictures of the entire 2013-2014 team. The finale, which was performed by all the Cavaliers, was a mix number titled Fashion. Ms. Reyes concluded the final show on May 3 by saying thanks to all the Cavaliers as well as parents and everyone else who was involved with making the show a success.

The Cavaliers were proud of their performances and look forward to another great year.

The long-awaited 30th annual Cavalier Spring Show, with this year’s theme of Vogue, took place on May 1-3 in the CCHS auditorium.

“Spring show is the highlight of the year’s performances, and it’s always a mixture of feelings because it’s the last time we get to dance with the seniors,” Cavalier member Josie Bivens said.

The Cavaliers are under the direction of Ms. Kristin Reyes, who has been the team’s director for the last four years. Ms. Reyes was a former captain of the Clear Brook High School Celebrities.

The Cavalier officers include Captain Allie Johnson, First Senior Lieutenant Sherri Gonzalez, Senior Lieutenants Kyly Frias and Jordyn Gallagher and Junior Lieutenants Alyssa Tindall and Katie Yates.

The social committee consists of President Sofia Escalante, Vice President Ashton Reason, Secretary Hallie Baker, Historian Morgan Bennett, New-New Liasion Elizabeth Stelly, Photographer Isabella Nguyen and Chaplain Jamie Staggs.

The Cavalier managers include Brianna Guy, Jessica McCarty, Brandyn Riojas, Katherine Rodriguez and Rachel Sasiene.

The auditorium lobby was decorated to fit the theme of Vogue, and included mannequins displaying glamorous outfits and picture collages of well-known pop divas.

“I loved the way the lobby was

Photos taken by Deja Harrell

By Emily Berthiaume Reporter

New class officers for the 2014-2015 school year were elected for the upcoming senior, junior and sophomore class during Advisory on Thursday, May 15. The newly elected officials are responsible for run-ning the student government and being an excellent example of leaders in the school.

Ryan Diaz, Ashton Duke, Ra-chel Duncavage and Rachel Gay-lor all ran for 2014-2015 senior class president, with Ashton Duke winning.

“I was happy when I learned I was president and am excited to represent the class,” Duke said.

Duke has been the president of his class every year since freshman year.

Eboni Childs, Jessica Coco, Sarah Creveling, Wade DesChamps, Micaela Roemer and Katie Yates all ran for senior class vice president, and Katie Yates won.

Laura Bedini, Mia Hayes, and

Madison Loria ran for class secre-tary. Mia Hayes won and will be the senior class secretary for next year.

For senior class treasurer, Sophia Brito, Hannah Edmunds, Ashley Prather and Ly-nell Rudd all ran, with Sophia Brito winning.

Jessica Sieling, Annie Surface and Gab-by Walker ran for historian, and Sieling won.

“Historians are responsible for docu-menting school events and recording my senior class throughout the year. It is a very exciting job, and I’m excit-ed to have been elected,” Sieling said.

For the upcoming juniors, Sahar Ji-wani, Heather Kassu, Jessi Nifong, Allyson Reed, Geoffery Walker and Austin Wray ran for class president, with Wray winning.

“I wanted to show my leader-ship skills and thought, ‘What bet-ter way than to run for president?’” Wray said on why he decided to run.

He also has specific goals for next year’s junior class.

“As president, it requires me to set an

example for my class to follow. If they fol-low me, hopefully other classes will see that and try to be more like my class. It’s called setting an example,” Wray said.

Isabel Huntsman will be the vice president for next year.

Mariah Pardo and Danielle Hol-mes ran for secretary, and Pardo won.

“I want to increase school spirit,” Pardo said on her plans for the upcoming school year.

Arbera Bedini and Claire Williamson ran for treasurer, with Williamson winning.

“I’m good with money and math,” Williamson said as to why she wanted to be the treasurer.

Sheria Sowells and Erica Kropp ran for class historian, and Sowells won.

“I want to find ways to get stu-dents more involved,” Sowells said.

Diego Allison, Lauren Bentley, Nata-lie Cortes and Lexi Herd all ran to rep-resent the upcoming sophomore class. According to Allison, the president of the sophomore class is responsible for

overviewing sophomore student activi-ties and leading the way for the students.

“I feel motivated to change things in the school to have more of a stu-dent voice, as opposed to just the ad-ministration leading,” Allison said.

Lexi Herd said she felt ran for presi-dent because she “feels she’s responsible, a great leader and a nice role model.”

Lexi Herd won the elec-tion and will represent the sopho-more class as president next year.

Karina Bertelsmann, Mark Jennes, Destiny Martin and Alex Simmons, all ran for upcoming sophomore vice presi-dent, with Simmons winning the election.

Jessica McCarty, who won historian, said, “It seems the freshman don’t have as much school spirit, so I want to get photos of our class participating in school activities.”

All of the newly elected 2014-2015 officers will surely do an amaz-ing job in representing their class.

Features12

Four Students represent Creek at Special Olympics

The Special Olympics Spring Games for the Texas Gulf Coast were held at the Clear Creek field on Saturday, May 3. The Special Olympics is a global move-ment of people creating a new world of inclusion and community, where every single person is accepted and welcome, regardless of ability or disability, accord-ing to their website. They provide op-portunities for people with disabilities to participate and compete in sports, and this specific event was for track and field.

Several students with intellec-tual and development disabilities, or IDDs, from Creek participated in the Special Olympics. Sarah Keller, Chris-tian Newell, Brian Hughes and Joe Waite all represented Creek excellently.

Joe was nominated by all of the coach-es to light the official flame to start the games. He has represented Creek for 5 years in the Special Olympics, and earned

two gold medals for 23 seconds in the 25-meter wheelchair shalom and 16 seconds in the 25-meter wheelchair race. He also earned 4th place in the softball throw, and was the only student in a wheelchair.

Heather Kassu, a sophomore at Clear Creek, had the opportunity to volunteer at the Special Olympics.

“The opening was really cool be-cause all the kids from the different schools were so excited and cheering for each other,” she said of the experience.

Kassu was also impressed by Joe Waite’s running of the torch.

“The volunteers lifted him up in his wheelchair so he could light the torch,” she said. “I am glad I volunteered, be-cause it was a wonderful experience.”

Clayton Anderson, a local astronaut who attended and volunteered at the games, wrote on the Huffington Post of his experience.

“I cried on Saturday. They were not tears due to sadness. They were not even tears of joy. They were tears born of cour-age; courage so innocently displayed

that some may have missed it. Not me, I didn’t miss a thing,” Anderson said.

Anderson said he was both “privi-leged” and “blessed” to volunteer at the games. He wrote that he was not the hero that day, despite being asked to sign autographs and award medals.

“The true heroes wore the blazing or-ange colors of the Bulldogs, the camou-flage green of the Stings and the royal blue of the Falcons to name a few,” he wrote.

“Full of innocence and enthusiasm, grit and determination, the day’s he-roes made a significant impact on this American astronaut,” Anderson wrote.

The event that made the biggest impact on him was a 100-yard dash between two boys named Quincy and Drew. Even though Drew won easily, Anderson was inspired by Quincy’ determination to never give up.

“As Quincy continued to chew up yards over what many might consider a meager distance, his determination grew stride-for-stride, as did the roar of the ador-ing crowd. Crossing the finish line, Quincy

did not wear the frown of defeat; he wore the smile of victory. His brow creased with beads of sweat, he breathed in huge gulps of air, standing tall in the adulation of the fans, timers and “greeters” who jumped and cheered as his biggest fans; near-equal shareholders in his success,” reads his story.

He also shared many of the lessons he learned throughout the day, and how the experience affected him positively overall.

“I learned that while blessed with the love of a wonderful family and the success of a truly unique career, there is so much more to life. Moved beyond belief by the day’s events, I learned the true meaning of courage and love,” Anderson wrote.

There is now a large group of students from CCISD going to Arlington to represent two basketball teams and about 20 track ath-letes. These students will certainly perform excellently but most importantly, represent their district and school well and show ev-eryone how much they can accomplish.

By Emily BerthiaumeReporter

By Jenan TahaFeatures Editor

ly hear us, and it’s that push over the cliff. This is real. It’s not some fake [thing].”

The band has continued to tour along the east coast, playing with bands like Rise Against and Jane’s Addic-tion. On April 15, they released their first EP album, Charm City, which includes five songs. They also re-leased a single, I Won’t Be The One.

The band’s style is very similar to other punk rock groups with female leads, such as Paramore and Flyleaf. In their songs Bad Seed Rising, Hey Kid, Wolves At The Door, and King Kong, the lead female voice is powerful and con-sistent throughout the song. Francheska has a remarkably sophisticated and strong voice at her age and in no way do the heavy guitar and bass overpower her.

Their song Timebomb combines male vocals with female, but contin-ues the consistent mix of alternative and punk rock style. In certain songs like Hey Kid, Francheska’s voice takes on a hint of southwestern style similar to bands like The Black Keys.

Overall, the band creates honest music that includes messages relevant to their life experiences and to other teenagers like them.

Whether their dream of becoming a fa-mous rock band is fulfilled or not, the band will continue to play music for enjoyment.

Pastor agrees that she wants to “just play music, and that’s it.”

material for a full album, no doubt about it. But we really feel like the best thing to do at this point is just get them out there.”

However, the band’s main goal

is to dispel the stereotype that teenag-ers can not make successful bands and to gain as many true fans as possible.

“At first they think ‘Oh this is just a kid band.’” Peraza said. “Then they actual-

see every day,” Rath said. “It was the most competent and talented band that I’d ever seen for that age.”

Rath believes that the band has enough talent to create a full album and needs to spread the word about Bad Seed Rising.

“Our goal is to get them out there in front of as many people as we possibly can,” Rath said. “They definitely have enough

A seemingly unremarkable teen-age hard rock group, Maryland-based Bad Seed Rising rose to prominence in their small town of Frederick and across America for their extraordinary musical talent. The band members—Francheska Pastor, 16, on vocals and guitar, Louey Peraza, 15, on bass guitar, Mason Gainer, 13, on guitar, and Aiden Marceron, 12, on drums—began to express their musi-cal abilities as young as ten years old.

The band formed at the Let There Be Rock school in Maryland and practiced together in a converted construction build-ing. The three boys in the group, Marceron, Thurmont, and Peraza, grew up listening to their parents create music. Their fathers all played in the 90’s rock band Shaft.

“Now I set up my son’s drums,” Scott Marceron, Aid-en’s father, said. “It’s quite funny.”

Last summer, the band toured with fa-mous bands like Daughtry, 3 Doors Down, and Halestorm. Afterward, Dave Rath, the head of Roadrunner Records, became inter-ested in Bad Seed Rising and traveled to one of their performances. After hearing them play their original songs, he signed the band, making them the youngest band to ever be signed in the record company’s history.

“This is something you don’t

Teen rock group Bad Seed Rising releases album

Photo courtesy of GOMOXIE

Features 13By Jessica SielingTeen Interest Editor

was both deeply loved and hated by her people. But after seeing the performance, the story proved to be so much more. It showed not only Evita’s rise to fame, but also her struggles to provide for her country and play the part of the perfect ruler.

Caroline Bowman played Eva in the

production and her performance was honestly one of the most

impressive performances that I have seen on stage before. She transitioned beautifully from the ambitious young girl at the beginning, so full of life and adventure, to the older, dying version of Eva that ruled over Argentina at the end of her life. Her beautiful diva-like vocals did justice to Don’t Cry For Me, Argentina, as well as many others such

as Buenos Aires and Rainbow High. The other main lead, Josh Young, who

played the “voice of Argentina” as Che, was also phenomenal and a complete joy to watch on stage. The most impressive thing about his performance was definitely his voice, as it ranged from powerful

belts in Oh What A Circus to beautiful falsetto harmonies in Goodnight and Thank You. However, his acting was also well appreciated and exciting.

Other leads in the show include: Sean MacLaughlin, playing Eva’s husband Juan Perón, Krystina Alabado portraying the Mistress and Christopher Johnstone playing the role of Magaldi. MacLaughlin was the perfect foil to Bowman’s role, and their duet I’d Be Surprisingly Good for You was one of the most enjoyable performances in the musical for me. Alabado’s gorgeous rendition of Another Suitcase in Another Hall was also a favorite of mine.

Usually, I can tell how much I enjoyed a musical by how many times I listen to the album afterward. Considering the Evita album has been playing non-stop since I saw the production, I think it is stay to say that the performance has had a big effect on me. It is one of those

shows that I could watch over and over again and still be completely enthralled every time. I can honestly say that since seeing the show at the Hobby Center, Evita has now become one of my favorite musicals and I cannot wait to see it again.

Theatre Under The Stars has recently announced shows for their upcoming season, including The Little Mermaid, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and The Music Man.

over the years has had many revival tours. The most popular addition, however, is

most likely the 1996 movie version of the same title starring Madonna and Antonio Banderas. The film was written by Alan Parker and Oliver Stone and directed by Alan Parker, with music from the original

musical. Madonna’s rendition of the famous song, Don’t Cry For Me, Argentina, is one of the most popular versions of the recorded song.

Despite the musicals popularity, the national tour that stopped in Houston at Theatre Under the Stars was my first time seeing Evita, movie or stage performance, and learning of Eva’s complete story. Before, I knew only the basics: that Eva Perón was a famous ruler in Argentina who

Evita musical takes place at Sarofim Hall, Houston

Courtesy of TUTS

The Tony award-winning musical Evita graced the stage of the Hobby Center’s Sarofim Hall from May 6-18 in Houston, Texas. The musical tells the story of Eva Perón and her rise to power as the First Lady of Argentina. The show was riveting, with perfect moments of humor and heartfelt sincerity, that stayed with the audience long after the performance was over.

The musical is based of the life and legacy of Eva Perón, known as the “Spiritual Leader of the Nation” in Argentina. She was born as María Eva Duarte in 1919 in the village of Los Toldos in The Pampas to a very poor family, and was the youngest of five children. Despite her upbringing, she longed to be an actress and at the age of 15, she moved to Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina, to pursue her career. After her rise to fame, Eva met Juan Perón, a military officer, and the two were married in 1945. A year later, Perón was elected President of Argentina and he and Eva ruled until her death from cancer in 1952 at the age of 33.

As the First Lady, the people of Argentina named her Evita, and Evita and Perón were very popular among the country. However, even though her people adored her, Evita’s greed and ambition ultimately led to her country’s downfall and her own tragedy.

Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber, the duet famous for writing Jesus Christ Superstar, wrote the music and lyrics for Evita in 1976. The show’s debut was in 1978 on London’s West End. After that, the show made its way to Broadway in 1979 and

Teen Interest14Chris Evans reprises his role as Captian AmericaBy Emily RuthvenReporter

Hugh Jackman arrives for the 19th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California, Sunday,

January 27, 2013. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times/MCT)

The nominations for the highest honor of the Broadway stage were officially announced on April 29. The 68th annual Tony Awards, presented by The Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing, is scheduled to air on Sunday, June 8, on CBS. Hugh Jackman will host the awards.

“We know that saying ‘it’s an honor just to be nominated’ is a way to make you feel better when you lose the actual prize. But in a Broadway season as competitive as 2013-14- and as chock-full of celebrities- getting nominated truly was an honor,” Elisabeth Vincentelli from the New York Post wrote. “This was such a busy year that, by April, we’d forgotten Orlando Bloom was even here!”

Actors Neil Patrick Harris, Bryan Cranston, Tony Shalhoub and Tyne Daly are among the familiar names who received nominations. Harris was nominated for Best Actor for his performance in Hedwig and the Angry Inch, which received eight nominations, second to A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, which received ten.

Cranston was nominated for his performance as President Lyndon Johnson in Robert Schenkkan’s All the Way, which earned the nomination for Best Play.

Shalhoub was nominated for Act One, and Daly earned a nomination for Mothers and Sons.

The musical version of Woody Allen’s film Bullets Over Broadway received

Gentleman’s Guide, a musical version of the 1949 Alec Guinness comedy Kind

Hearts and Coronets, had actor Jefferson Mays play multiple roles as Guinness had. Mays previously won a Tony for playing several roles in the 2003 play I Am My Own Wife.

Gentleman’s Guide writers Robert L. Freedman and Steven Lutvak were noted for having modest roots regarding their production.

“It’s our first Broadway show, so we’re a pretty humble bunch,” Darko Tresnjak, director of the play, said. “Part of

the success of the show was that we had a three-stage p r o c e s s , ”

he said, referring to all the hard work Freedman and Lutvak did for 10 years.

The nominees for Best Play are James Lapine’s Act One which was based on the Moss Hart memoir, Schenkkan’s All the Way, Harvey Fierstein’s Casa Valentina, Terrence McNally’s Mothers and Sons and John Patrick Shanley’s Outside Mullingar.

The nominees for Best Revival of a play are The Cripple of Inishmaan, The Glass Menagerie, A Raisin in the Sun and Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night.

LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Sophie Okonedo and Anika Noni Rose earned nominations for Raisin. Samuel Barnett, Paul Chahidi, Stephen Fry and Mark Rylance were nominated for their performances in Twelfth Night.

Notable performers who did not receive nominations include Denzel Washington, who played the lead in Raisin, Inishmaan’s Daniel Radcliffe and Menagerie’s Zachary Quinto. Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen’s performances in Waiting for Godot and No Man’s Land were overlooked as well.

According to the New York Times, the biggest box-office success of the season, the revival of Harold Pinter’s Betrayal starring real-life couple Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz, was also disregarded.

Idina Menzel, known for her voice role as Elsa in Disney’s Frozen, earned a nomination for Best Actress in the musical If/Then.

It appeared that after hearing the news, the nominees were flattered.

“I’ve never been as grateful for a role,” Kelli O’Hara said. Her nomination for best actress in the musical Bridges of Madison County makes her a five-time Tony finalist.

six nominations. However, none of them were for best musical, but Allen himself was nominated for Best Script of the show.

The Oscar-winning movie Rocky, also turned into a musical, received four nominations, the biggest one being Best Actor in a musical for Andy Karl’s performance as Rocky Balboa.

The nominees for Best Musical include After Midnight, Aladdin (an adaptation of the 1992 Disney film), Beautiful- The Carole King Musical and A G e n t l e m a n ’s Guide to Love & Murder. Aladdin, Beautiful, and G e n t l e m a n ’s Guide were n o m i n a t e d for best script, while Aladdin and Gentleman’s Guide are both up for Best Score.

By Carolina SarriaReporter

2014 Tony Award nominations announced

Chris Evans, left, and Scarlett Johansson in “Cap-tain America: The Winter Soldier.” (Courtesy Marvel

Studios/MCT)

Marvel recently released the highly anticipated sequel to Captain America: The First Avenger. The new movie, titled Captain America: Winter Soldier, has earned 224.8 million dollars domestically and 420.3 million dollars internationally since its approximate month of release. The Winter Soldier also earned an impressive $95,000,000 on opening weekend. With Captain America: The Winter Soldier’s hefty production budget of 170 million dollars, the movie has more than doubled its profit.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier is centered around an attempted world take-over by a group that proposes that they can do the most good by removing freedom from the world. Captain America is determined to fight for what he believes is right: defending the rights of those who are too weak, or unaware, to defend themselves. While those in control of newly created “defense” weapons plan to use those weapons to gain control over their own population, Captain America creates his own plan, and team, to overpower this attempt. The plot twists and turns through revelations of which side certain key players are on, keeping the moviegoer on the edge of their seat. The movie ends in an all about battle for the freedom of millions of Americans. Captain America defends his own honor against propaganda, as well

Four also earned a sequel in 2007, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier earned an impressive score of 8.2 out of 10 stars on IMDb and 89 percemt on Rotten Tomatoes. Renowned critics have

been praising the blockbuster film.

“A movie that is, in the best sense of the word, a Marvel,” Christopher Orr of The Atlantic said.

Other critics have been applauding the movie’s classic feel.

“Beneath the expensive, computer generated busyness of this second Captain America installment is a bracing old style conspiracy thriller made extra scary by new technology and the increasingly ugly trade-offs of a post 9/11 world,”

David Edelstein of The Vulture said.Captain America: The Winter

Soldier has been praised for its summer blockbuster-ness while still intriguing the audience.

“The best kind of blockbuster comic-book movie, tweaking the brain while dazzling the eye,” Peter Howell of the Toronto Star said.

However, despite all of the positive feedback, some critics were not impressed with Marvel’s newest film.

“There’s too much going on: The Marvel Universe stiff, the WikiLeaks-ish paranoia stuff, the video game-ish CG visual effects stuff, the epic John Woo-ish everbody-pointing-a-weapon-at-everybody-else-face-off stuff,” Steven Rea of the Philadelphia Inquirer said.

Some critics complained that Captain America: The Winter Soldier suffered the same disappointing fate that many other action films do.

“Like many others of its type, it gets off to a kinetic start only to lose

steam before blowing everything up,” Manohla Dargis of the New York Times said.

Marvel plans to release Guardians of the Galaxy on August 1, 2014, The Avengers: Age of Ultron on May 1, 2015, Ant-Man on November 6, 2015. Marvel has plans for the Marvel Universe films past 2028.

as the honor of every American citizen.The star of Captain America: The

Winter Soldier, Chris Evans, has had a history of appearing in marvel movies. Before appearing on the big screen as the famous, crowd-pleasing, Captain America,

Evans played the role of Johnny Storm, an immature, cocky young bachelor who, through a space accident, gains the power to combust into flames on command in the movie, Fantastic Four, debuting in 2005. Fantastic

Teen Interest

Teen Interest Teen Interest 15They Came Together movie to come out this summer

Amy Poehler arrives at the 65th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards on Sunday, September 22, 2013, at Nokia Theatre, L.A. Live, in Los

Angeles, California. (Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times/MCT)

This summer comes a romantic comedy to make fun of romantic comedies. They Came Together is a parody of all the rom-coms and chick flicks that make up people’s favorite guilty pleasures. It stars well-known comedic actors Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler as the unlikely couple that came together.

It began it with at first sight for the two. They Came Together follows the cliché love story of Molly and Joel. Joel owns Corporate Candy Company, which is threating to close down Molly’s hipster indie candy shop. Despite Joel still having feelings for his ex, they two fall in love. Through this plot, they explore the common clichés that come with every rom-com. The film is one that “doesn’t contain a serious or realistic bone in its body,” as described by Sam Fragoso, a movie reviewer for Roger Ebert.

“Rom-coms are inherently safe, and so a rom-com parody needs to be dangerous. They Came Together rips away the security blanket of meet-cutes, work-life balance, easily resolved conflict and grand gestures; does horrible, unspeakable things to that blanket; and then laughs manically as it burns the security blanket in front of a weeping couple,” Matt Goldberg wrote for the Collider describing the goal of the film.

The cast is made up of many familiar comedic actors. Amy Poehler stars as Molly. Poehler is known for starring in Parks and Recreation, and her work as a former cast

the film in light of its recent promotion.Some critics thought the films attempts

to make fun of the common storylines were failed.

“The film’s weak double-entendre of a title should tell you there’s nothing subversive going on here; every joke is pretty obvious,” Travis Hopson wrote for the Examiner.

H o w e v e r other felt that the parody was done well.

“A film that’s as funny as it is silly, twisting every cliché in the rom-com cannon to impressive effect, so much that you’ll never be able to look

at a Katherine Heigl movie in the same way again,” Chris

Tilly wrote in a review with IGN Movies. Overall it reached a 73 percent on Rotten

Tomatoes with the previews from the critics. The film is directed and written by

David Wein. Wein has also directed and written the 2012 American Comedy Wanderlust, which also starred Paul Rudd. Michael Showalter helped to co-write the script. Showalter and Wein co-wrote Wet Hot American Summer.

“I think we liked the title They Came Together because it was a combination of that sort of innocuous set of words that so man of those rom-coms are and also with a double meaning,” Wein, during the Sundance Festival, said on picking the title.

They tired their best to include all of the well known plot types and characteristics of the rom-coms people have come to love to hate.

“This movie’s a little different because this story could not possibly have happened anywhere else, and therefore New York is like another character,” Wain, in an interview with Crave Online, said. This itself is also a spoof of the countless romantic comedies that have followed idea.

Like every good romantic comedy in New York, Amy Poehler’s character had a wardrobe montage. According to Wain, it was only of the most difficult shots of the movie due to time.

“We threw in every element: the opposites-attract story line, the Jewish-but-not-too-Jewish funny leading man, the klutzy woman whom you kind of love, the sassy best friend, the black best friend, the wise old grandmother. Anything we could think of, we found a place for it in there,” Wain, to Entertainment Weekly, said.

member on Saturday Night Live. Paul Rudd will play Joel. Rudd received his fame from starring in works such as Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy as Brian Fantana and other popular films like I Love You, Man, and The 40-Year-Old Virgin. Cobie Smulders portrays Tiffany, known for playing Robin in How I Met Your Mother. Tiffany is the beautiful ex-girlfriend of Rudd’s character Joel. Kenan Thompson, Jack McBrayer, Max Greenfield, Ellie Kemper are among the star studded list. Fellow SNL star Bill Hader will star as Kyle.

It is scheduled for release on June 27, 2014. It had its first world premiere at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival which took place in January has been rated R. It was here at the premiere many reviewers gave their opinions of

By Lisa Nhan Managing Editor

By Emily RuthvenReporter

This year’s Billboard Music Awards ceremony has certainly proven to be one of the most surprising in recent history. With unpredicted winners and a special performance from Michael Jackson, viewers were captivated by all of the surprises.

Artists such as Justin Timberlake, Robin Thicke, Imagine Dragons, Luke Bryan, and Miley Cyrus took home several awards. For example, Robin Thicke’s hit single earned the titles Top Hot 100 Song, Top Digital Song, Top Radio Song and Top R&B Song.

Justin Timberlake also won many awards. Some of them included, Top Artist, Top Male Artist, Top Billboard 200 Artist, Top Radio Songs Artist, and Top R&B Artist. Timberlake also earned awards such as Top Billboard 200 Album, and Top R&B Album for The 20/20 Experience.

Imagine Dragons walked away as a Top 100 Artist and Top Rock Artist. Imagine

Song and Can’t Hold Us by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis Featuring Ray Dalton won Top Rap Song. Top Christian Artist went to Chris Tomlin and Top Christian Album went Alan Jackson for Precious Memories: Volume II.

The thing people could not stop talking about is the mysterious Michael Jackson performance. A dancing, and singing Michael Jackson hologram performed Slave of Rhythm from his new album Xscape.

Viewers are divided among their opinions. Some believed that the performance was amazing, while others just thought it was down right creepy and wrong. This hologram technology also brought celebrities such as Tupac Shakur, Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley.

“Turns out this Michael Jackson hologram is just as confusing and uncomfortable as we imagined,” Trevor Morgan, a recording artist tweeted.

Many people have wondered about the future of performances since

the Michael Jackson controversy.“The Jackson hologram raises

some questions: Is this where we’re headed? Long after Madonna is gone (or perhaps, as with Jackson’s hologram, not that long), can we expect to see the Material Girl performing Holiday in a Grammys tribute, suspended in digital formaldehyde, just the way she was in 1983? And if so, what good are music videos?” Assata H. of Buzzfeed.com said.

Despite the controversy, this jaw-dropping performance has the full support of the Jackson family.

“When he started walking and dancing, I was teary-eyed. It’s hard to please Michael’s fans and Michael... I’m telling you it’s amazing,” a Jackson family member said.

With all of the exciting performances, awards and surprises, the 2014 Billboard Music awards will be one that will not be soon forgotten.

Dragons’ debut album, Night Visions earned the titled Top Rock Album and their hit single, Radioactive, was named the Top Streaming Audio Song. Luke Bryan was named the Top Country Artist and his album, Crash My Party, won Top Country Album. Miley Cyrus’ viral music video, Wrecking Ball, won Top Streaming Video Song and Cyrus won Top Streaming Artist.

Lorde won two awards. They were Top New Artist and Top Rock Song for Royals. Top Female Artist and Top Digital Songs went to Katy Perry while Top Dance/Electronic Artist and Top Dance/Electronic Album for Random Access Memories were earned by Daft Punk.

Bon Jovi won Top Touring Artist and Eminem won Top Rap Artist and Top Rap Album for The Marshall Mathers LP 2. Top Latin Artist and Top Latin Song for Vivir Mi Vida went to Marc Anthony.

Avicii’s song Wake me Up! Earned Top Dance/Electric Song, Florida Georgia Line’s song Cruise won Top Country

Billboard Music Awards recognizes famous artists

16 ARTS

My name is Mako, I am a shark.My eyes are small, beady, and dark,My bite is much worse than my bark.

I swim all day and eat what I like(Yes, sometimes I’ll eat a bike),Being a shark is an easy hike.

But... what if I’m not a happy shark?What if, sometimes, I wished I was a lark,Or that I had four legs and a loud bark?

Most fish assume that I’m less than I am.They don’t even try to understandThat I’m not the worst thing beyond the sand.

I swim all day, but I swim alone.The sea is dark not far below, But fear cannot grip at my bones, For I have none. I am all cartilage.

Anatomy aside, I am indeed scared.The ocean is large and friends are scarce.

My name is Mako, I am a shark,And I’m afraid of the sea, deep and dark.-Lexi Rose

Graduation Day

Whoever you areWherever you are going

Know that this momentwas made for you

Wear your cap as a crownAnd your gown as a cape Because you are graduating from the class of “We Made It.”

You are the image of success Don’t let anyone tell you that you are lessbecause your education is just preparation for a bigger destination

This is the moment you have been waiting forAll of your sufferings were worth it because they led you here

In the pastYou were the one picked lastYou were the one that failed the testYou were the one that didn’t fit in But todayYou are a survivor

Leave your past behindBecause a new day is dawning And your future is shining on the horizon

Whoever you areWherever you are going

Know that this moment was made for you-Chelse Tillman

“I cut the pieces out if nickel-silver, brass, and copper; connect-ing them togeth-er with rivets. I then set the onyx cabochon in the center. I finally wove a Viking-knit chain out of wire an attached it to each side of the piece.” -Collin Freeman

Would you:

Dare to question all you believe,Or doubt the images you clearly see,Or have someone crush your hopes and dreams,Or watch your life rip at the seams?

Could you:

Stand to be torn away from all you cherish,Or listen to someone ask for you to perish,Or suffer through the agony of being called selfish,Or withstand claims from others who deem you devilish?

How can you:

Spout out words in a venomous tone,Or laugh gaily as everyone else hurls stones,Or blindly, pompously, arrogantly condone,Or ignore the truth of what you’ve been shown?

Such partiality is a brand,Coming from someone who won’t lend a hand -Do nothing, say nothing, believe nothing;Just carelessly drift along with the flow,While they feel from your indifference the stinging, burning.You bat your eyes like you care, but you’ll never knowThe cruelty,The injustice,The ridiculeWe face for being what societyCan never accept.

-Frenci Nguyen

“I really love Doctor Who and I thought it would be really cool to do this por-trait for my pen and pen-cil project.”-Kisey Sadler

“This piece is about my relationship with my mom, and all the things we share. It was working in fibers and experiencing a new media, one very different from the usual 3-D materials I’m used to working in.”-Marley Foster

“The project was a collaboration of kid drawings and high school stu-dents were filling in the blanks.” -Caitlin Scheuring

“My love for hunt-ing and fishing inspired me to draw Phil Robert-son. I included fish and feathers as a symbol of his appreciation of the hunting and fishing sport. In completion my drawing repre-sents both of our passions.” -Brian Hickman

ARTS 17“She’s a fantastic art teacher who encourages students to challenge themselves.” -Sarah Kaplan

Mrs. Foltz-Fox

Mrs. Henning

Mrs. Lienhart

“Mrs. Lienhart is kind, patient, and very helpful when it comes to helping students out with their artwork.” -Swan Miller

“Mrs. Lienhart is one of my favorite teachers I have had, and I’ve really enjoyed being in her class for the past two years! She is an awesome teacher!!” -Natalie Pardivala

“Some of the best times I’ve had in high school were in Mrs. Fox’s class and I feel truly blessed to have had her as my art teach-er for the past few years.” -Collin Freeman

“This art program, and my art teacher, changed my life. Really. In all four years of being in Mrs. Fox’s classes, I’ve been allowed to explore types and media of art, finding my own style, developing skills, and finding and developing myself as a person. Some of my very best friends have been made through this art program; I’ll always look back on memories of my art family, Mrs. Fox in-cluded, and smile. It’s been a great four years, Its weird to see an era come to an end.” -Marley Foster

“I’ve been with Mrs. Fox for three years, she has been a major influence in my life and of course my artwork. Now that it’s come to the end of my highschool years I can Mrs. Fox I trust you.” -Sarah Neely

“Mrs. Fox thank you for the knowledge you have passed on to me as an individual.” -Josh Servellon

“Thank you Mrs. Fox for everything you have taught me during my two years of art with you. I have not only learned techniques for jewelry, but also how to be a good person” -Kirana Bercich

“I’ve grown up with a passion for art but lacked in skills and never had the oppor-tunity to gain it. I’ve had Mrs. Henning for

all four years now and with all of her tech-niques and support she has inspired me to go on and do amazing things with my art-work.” –Arday Carter

“Mrs. Lienhart is a teacher that I will never forget. She’s helped me grow tremendously as an artist and I thank her greatly for that. I will really miss her and her patience and help when I have many questions to ask about art. Thank you Mrs. Lienhart for an awesome two years!!!” –Caitlin Scheuring

“Mrs Henning is an awesome teacher. She helped get me through art pieces that I would rather trash than continue with. And she is an awesome person! Although I have only known her for two years, it’s been a great journey to learn and grow in art. Thank you Mrs. Henning for being an awe-some teacher!” –Caitlin Scheuring

“From my first painting class freshman year to my last AP draw-ing class this year, you’ve taught me so much, from techniques to concepts. Thank you for being such a great art teacher and inspiration!” –Alex Guillen

“Thank you so much for believing in my talents and helping me improve them. I’ve learned so much in your classes since sopho-more year, and with your help I’ve been able to become a better art-ist.” –Alex Guillen

“I never thought id be able to work three dimensionally, but I’ve been able to expand and improve my skills with your help. I hope to one day be as artistically diverse and skilled as you are!” –Alex guillen

Dear Fox, thank you for show-ing me my true potential, you have been an excellent mentor. I really couldn’t have hoped for better. Enjoy your Asian grand babies,Sally. -Sally Shroyer

I have never trusted anyone as much as I trust you Mrs. Fox. I even trust her when she asks me do you trust me enough me and cuts my clay head in half” -Dayyane Bueno

“Mrs. Fox:I have learned so much more in two years than I thought possible. You taught me that I am a valuable artist, and to keep working until I finish, regardless of how frustrating the project is. We are all going to miss you so much when we move on from high school but all of your students have one superior thing in com-mon; we had a teacher that truly loves us not only as students, but people. You are one of the best role models I’ve ever had, both artistically and as a genuinely great person”-Maggie Oxman

“Even though I may have often annoyed you by working at my own pace, you were still an amazing art teach-er and Iearned so much under you. Thank you Mrs. Fox for showing me all you could and letting know when I couldn’t learn anymore in an art class.” -Arlen Addison

18 SportsBy Brendan HudspethReporter

Houston Texans’ selection for the 2014 NFL Draft

With the 26th pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, the Houston Texans selected Whitney Mercilus. This year, the Texans seemed to continue a theme, drafting Pittsburgh QB Tom Savage with the 135th pick. It was too late to draft a quarterback, having expected a first or second round pick to be the Texans’ future signal caller.

The Texans kicked off the draft by taking South Carolina Defensive End Jadeveon Clowney, a player who has been pegged for the pick since 2012, before he was even eligible for the draft. Clowney will likely be used as a linebacker in new defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel’s defense, a traditional 3-4.

The 3-4 relies on using big, 300 pound defensive ends like JJ Watt, a 350 pound nose tackle, and four linebackers. Wade Phillips also ran a 3-4, but used Earl Mitchell, now a Dolphin, as his NT. Mitchell was undersized for what Crennel wanted.

The Texans traded their fourth and fifth round picks to get the Eagles’ third round pick, and selected Louis Nix, NT from Notre Dame. Nix is known as being

Including you,” said Nix after the game.The Texans also selected Jeoffrey

Pagan, Defensive End from Alabama, Andre

Hal, Cornerback from Vanderbilt, and with the last pick in the draft,

Lonnie Ballentine, Safety from Memphis.

On the offensive side of the ball, Houston opened the second and third rounds with Xavier Su’a-Filo and C.J. Fiedorowicz. Su’a-Filo is an offensive guard from UCLA, ranked as the best in the draft, and Fiedorowicz is considered the best blocking tight end.

With the Su’a-Filo pick, the Texans showed they wanted to shore up the offensive line, but this may not have been their original plan. Many expected Houston to take a quarterback early, especially after taking Clowney first overall. As the first round progressed, Louisville Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater remained available, with only the Super Bowl champion Seahawks left to pick. Seattle was not looking for a quarterback, but instead traded their pick for the Vikings’ second and fourth round picks.

Had Bridgewater remained available, he certainly would have been an option for the Texans. Instead, the best quarterback available for the Texans’ second pick was Derek Carr, former David Carr’s younger brother. David Carr fell to the Raiders in the second round, where he will presumably back up Matt Schaub.

a bit of a comedian, especially after Notre Dame’s spring game, in which he lined up as QB, and ran in a two-point conversion.

“That’s what all teams need to be scared of. All teams need to be scared of ‘Irish Chocolate.’ Everyone.

Georgia Tech’s Jeremiah Attaochu holds on to Pittsburgh quarterback Tom Savage (7) for a sack in the fourth quarter

at Bobby Dodd Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, on Saturday, No-vember 2, 2013. Georgia Tech won, 21-10. (Johnny Crawford/

Atlanta Journal-Constitution/MCT)

Sports 19

Photo courtsey of FIFA.com’s Press Release Room

Brazil has daily riots over FIFA World Cup budget

With the FIFA World Cup football tournament less than a month away, preparations for the international competition continue, despite the deadly riots being held frequently in Rio de Janeiro and other large cities in Brazil—the country chosen to host the 2014 games.

Millions of Brazilians have taken to the streets almost daily ever since the FIFA games decided on its host country for 2014.

Several aspects of the games have triggered the riots, but one of the central complaints is that billions of dollars are being spent on the construction and renovation of luxurious stadiums—12 in all—while millions more Brazilians live in the squalid favelas of the outer cities without daily amenities like running water. Brazil has begun to spend more money on preparing for the World Cup than improving public institutions and infrastructure.

Although the budget for public improvement is not being used for the games, the workers needed for the improvement programs are, which slows the progress of public improvement. Many projects to build better bus stations, metro lines and other means of transportation will be slowed or postponed due to stadium construction.

One would usually assume that the games would bring in money and benefit the host country, but Brazil seems to have spent more than it has brought into its economy, and the extravagance

what’s going to happen during the cup.”The public outcry was also fueled by

rising bus fares in order to pay for World Cup building projects. The Brazilian

g o v e r n m e n t has already

mismanaged the country’s economy by its failure to stem rising inflation. The upsurging prices only add to the tension.

While some protests are peaceful, many have become increasingly violent.

Residents of a Copacabana slum rioted in the streets after Brazilian police mistakenly beat and killed Douglas Rafael da Silva Pereira, a 26-year-old male dancer. A popular local figure in a Rio slum was also shot, and the residents retaliated by throwing explosives and glass on an avenue in Rio’s tourist center.

At least one other man was killed during protests by police.

The police brutality demonstrated in these situations is another reason why Brazilians continue to protest the World Cup games. According to Amnesty International, around 2,000 people are killed by the police in Brazil every year. Authorities are trying to flush drug dealers and criminals out of Brazilian slums before the games start, but are becoming increasingly brutal in their methods, killing many innocent residents.

An anarchist movement, Black Bloc, is determined to protest the games on opening day and throughout the tournament. Other groups have also made similar promises.

Luiz Felipe Scolari, coach for the Brazil team, is worried that the protests will ruin the chances of Brazil winning the cup.

“Everyone has the right to protest,” Scolari said. “But I don’t know if it’s the right time. We could have done a better job…to prepare everything that was going to be needed, from airports to roads to education, but we lost time and now we are out of time.”

The FIFA World Cup will begin on June 12 and continue through July 13.

required to host such a tournament seems to be more than Brazil can handle.

“For the Brazilian people, the cup meant lots of public spending, a lack of lasting

infrastructure, a lack of social projects, but for the government a successful cup means something completely different,” Tostão, retired football player and World Cup winner, said. “We’re all in doubt right now because we just don’t know

By Jenan TahaFeatures Editor

Photofinish20