2015LOOKING BACK AT

Hillary Clinton Email Scandal. Nepal Earthquakes. Black Lives Matter. Charlie

Hebdo Attacks. Caitlyn Jenner. FIFA Women’s World Cup. Star Wars Episode 7.

Charleston Shooting. Adele’s 25. Leonard Nimoy Dies. Economic Woes for Greece.

2016 Presidential Campaign. San Bernardino Shooting. Cecil the Lion Killed. iPhone

6s Released. Thousands Protest In Mexico One Year After 43 Students Go Missing.

Pitch Perfect 2. U.S. Cuba Relations. Jurassic World. Water Found on Mars. COP

21 Summit. Syrian Civil War and Refugee Crisis. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay

Part 2. Ireland Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage. Lithuania Adopts Euro. Deadly

Summer Heat. Pope Francis Visits U.S. Planned Parenthood Shooting. Attack on

Paris. NASA’s New Horizon Spacecraft. Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao.

U.S. Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage. Ebola Epidemic Slowed. Iran Signs Nuclear

Deal. Freddie Gray Death. Serena Williams Celebrates Sixth Wimbledon Win.

Hillary Clinton Email Scandal. Nepal Earthquakes. Black Lives Matter. Charlie

Hebdo Attacks. Caitlyn Jenner. FIFA Women’s World Cup. Star Wars Episode 7.

Charleston Shooting. Adele’s 25. Leonard Nimoy Dies. Economic Woes for Greece.

2016 Presidential Campaign. San Bernardino Shooting. Cecil the Lion Killed. iPhone

6s Released. Thousands Protest In Mexico One Year After 43 Students Go Missing.

Pitch Perfect 2. U.S. Cuba Relations. Jurassic World. Water Found on Mars. COP

21 Summit. Syrian Civil War and Refugee Crisis. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay

Part 2. Ireland Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage. Lithuania Adopts Euro. Deadly

Summer Heat. Pope Francis Visits U.S. Planned Parenthood Shooting. Attack on

Paris. NASA’s New Horizon Spacecraft. Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao.

U.S. Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage. Ebola Epidemic Slowed. Iran Signs Nuclear

Deal. Freddie Gray Death. Serena Williams Celebrates Sixth Wimbledon Win.

WILLIAM J. BRENNAN

TH

E PAWPRINT2400 COTTONWOOD WAYSAN ANTONIO, TX 78253

VOLUME 6 | ISSUE 3JANUARY 2016

Hope for the Holidays

THE PAW PRINT STAFF AND SUPPORT

The Paw Print is a student-produced publication, published multiple times a year by the newspaper class at William J. Brennan High School, under the direction of Adviser Fernando Serna, with support from Academic Dean Margaret Greff. The views expressed in the stories published reflect only the opinions of the writer, and not the entire publication staff, student body, faculty, staff or administration.

Student writers and editors adhere to Northside Independent School District and Brennan High School policies as outlined in the student handbook. NISD does not discriminate on the basis of color, race, origin, age, sex, or handicap.

Businesses and organizations interested in advertising with The Paw Print should contact the newspaper adviser for rates by calling 398-1250, or emailing him at Fernando.Serna@nisd.net. The Paw Print reserves the right to refuse any potential advertisers.

Letters to the editor or letters to the staff are encouraged under the following guidelines: letters must be signed and delivered to room C110. All rights reserved.

No part(s) of this newspaper publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any fashion without the consent of the adviser or school administration.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEFAlex Czaja

COPY EDITORLidia Garza

ART AND GRAPHICS EDITORGwyneth Burgos-Deal

STAFFNadya Herrera

Martha LealBen Mantanona

Maryah ParkerErin Urbina

Jeslyn Vasquez

SPECIAL CONTRIBUTIONSLauren BarmoreMathew Roman

ADVISERFernando Serna

ACADEMIC DEAN Margaret Greff

PRINCIPALGerardo Marquez

TABLE OF CONTENTS

2

3

News

Feature

A&E

Sports

What in the World

2015 Year in Review

5 Artist at Work

6

8

WHAT IN THE WORLDBy Mathew Roman

7

Climate Change SummitThe 25 annual Climate Summit in

Le Bourget, France, a subur-ban area in Paris, from Nov. 30 to Dec. 11, included members of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UN-FCC), the United States and France focused on legislation to reduce the emissions of carbon gas worldwide, prevent a global temperature rise of 2°C and to achieve like goals around the world by 2030.

Attending nations acknowledged the present threat of climate change and how humans have directly caused it. The summit agreement provides financial support to under-developed or developing nations, so pollution is not an ignored issue as the nations industrialize. Government leaders and people around the world applauded the agreement for being the first of many steps to reduce global pollution.

H-Bomb Test?News stations in Pyongyang,

North Korea, broadcast on Jan. 5, they successfully detonated a hydrogen bomb, dubbed the “H-bomb of justice,” created to counteract western aggression, the communist state news broadcast.

South Korea’s National Intelligence Service reported a 4.8 magnitude

earthquake, equivalent to a 6-kiloton explosive yield, 49 kilometers (30 miles) north of Kilju, North Korea. Skepticism surrounds the news as U.S. analysts concluded the explosive yield lacked that of a hydrogen bomb. The U.S. Geological Survey reported the magnitude at 5.1.

In response to the detection, South Korea bolstered its defense posture with the United States.

Other governments responded with threats of harsh and aggressive sanctions that would further devastate the already crippled North Korean economy, due to the rouge nation’s past nuclear tests. The United Nations Security Council held an emergency meeting to discuss the growing North Korean nuclear program.

Arson to Refuge OccupationThe anti-government group

Citizens for Constitutional Freedom, led by Nevada rancher Ammon Bundy, took over the headquarters of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Southeastern Oregon.

No casualties were reported, but as a result of the raid, the armed group consisting of 20 men have called for the support of militias throughout the country to head for the Refuge and the local

town of Burns, 30 miles south of the Refuge, where the group planned the raid.

What incited Bundy to travel to Oregon involves two ranchers, who were convicted of arson on federal land. And while the Citizens group in-sists they acted in support of Dwight and Steven Hammond, the Ham-monds, who turned themselves in at a California federal prison, say they did not want the protesters at the refuge.

Local authorities are working with the FBI to come to a peaceful resolu-tion of the conflict.

Obama’s Addresses NationJan. 5, as he enters he’s final year

in office, President Barack Obama addressed the nation on gun control, laying out a 10-point plan involving executive orders he would sign in the coming months.

The plan consists of new federal guidelines and restrictions to combat the loopholes in the firearm industry. The plan focuses on closing the gun show loophole, expanding back-ground checks and improving mental health care. To help process the large influx of information expected, the FBI will hire 230 new examiners. The president’s 2017 fiscal budget will include funding 200 new ATF agents and investigators.

Though the executive actions are expected to have a small impact of the industry it is drawing public attention to the highly argued issue.

2 | News

4 Holiday Hope

Top Athletes Sign

Football Flashback

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Thespians Take Dallas

News | 3

On Nov. 13, the terrorist group ISIS is credited for a series of six attacks occurring in Paris, with a minimum of 120 killed. Of the total dead, 89 died at the Bataclan theatre,where they were taken as hostages before engaging in a stand-off with police. There were 368 injuries, 80–99 serious.

ATTACKS ON PARIS

NEPAL EARTHQUAKESIn April, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck the Himalayan nation

of Nepal killing more than 9,000 people and injuring more than 23,000. Emergency personnel evacuated wounded from the rubble of Dharahara tower April 25 in the aftermath of earthquakes throughout Nepal.

SAME-SEX MARRIAGE LEGALIZED

The right to marry was guaranteed to same sex couples by Supreme Court’s June 26 ruling Obergefell vs. Hodges. Thus, 14 states with bans on same-sex marriage will no longer be able to deny gay couples the right to wed.

U.S. - CUBA RELATIONSSince 1960, the U.S. has

maintained an economic embargo against Cuba. On July. 20, President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro announced the United States and Cuba would end more than half a century of hostility and start normalizing relations.

SYRIAN CIVIL WAR AND REFUGEE CRISIS

Since Syria’s civil war began, Syria’s healthcare, education systems and other infrastructures have been destroyed; the economy is shattered and 320,000 people have been killed. More than 7.6 million Syrians have fled their homes due to violence, collapsed infrastructure and children’s safety, and the numbers continue to increase. In early December, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised to accept 25,000 refugees by the end of February, but Minister of Immigration John McCallum said the number would double to 50,000 by the end of 2016.

DEADLY SUMMER HEATA heat wave in South Asia killed thousands this

June. In India, more than 2,300 people died, while in Pakistan, the death toll shot past 1,000.

SAN BERNARDINO SHOOTINGAuthorities believe married

couple Tashfeen Malik and Syed Farook pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group before killing 14 people and wounding 22 others during a gun rampage at Inland Region-al Center Dec. 2. Both were later shot to death in an intense firefight with authorities who had been tracking the black vehicle the duo used to flee the scene.

SERENA WILLIAMS CELEBRATES SIXTH WIMBLEDON WIN On July 11, Serena Williams won her sixth

Wimbledon title (this time against Spain’s Garbine Muguruza), completing her second “Serena Slam,” which happened to also be her 21st Grand Slam win. In December, Sports Illustrated named her Sportsperson of the Year.

CHARLIE HEBDO ATTACK

On Jan. 7, brothers Saïd and Chérif Kouachi forced their way into the offices of the French satirical weekly newspaper Charlie Hebdo in Paris, and armed with assault rifles and other weapons, the duo killed 12 people and injured 11 others. The gunmen identified themselves as belonging to the Islamist terrorist group Al-Qaeda’s branch in Yemen, which took responsibility for the attack. Several related attacks followed in the Île-de-France region, where another five were killed and 11 wounded.

CHARLESTON SHOOTINGA white man opened fire in a historic black church in

Charleston, S.C., the night of June 17, killing nine people, including a pastor, during a prayer meeting. Dylann Roof, 21, was arrested in North Carolina and sent back to South Carolina June 18 for what authorities called a hate crime. He has since then awaited his federal trial, which was pushed back to at least January 2016.

SAUDI ARABIAN WOMEN VOTE

FOR FIRST TIMEDec. 12 marked the first time

women not only voted in Saudi Arabia, but earned seats on local governments.

Graphics by Gwyneth Burgos-Deal

2015By Lidia Garza

The holidays are a time of year filled with presents under the tree, bright lights filling the streets and big family dinners. However for senior Afia Berko (*name changed to protect identity), this is not what she imagines the holidays to be like.

Without a home until this past year, Berko has experienced what it’s like to be homeless during the holidays.

“It was really hard because we did not have a home until this year, and all through the holidays, I would just couch hop, just sit around, figure out what am I gonna do, or I would sleep outside,” Berko said.

Berko explains that this was often the hardest time of year to find a place to sleep.

“How am I going to tell people ‘I need a place to sleep’ when they’re going to wake up Christmas morning or during Hanukkah or Kwanzaa and say ‘Oh we’re celebrating this but we don’t have enough room for you’ because family is over and I’m just an inconvenience and a burden on them,” Berko said.

SAMMinistries, where Berko and her family got accepted in October, have improved her holiday experience.

“Living in the shelter for Christmas, they really did help us out,” Berko said. “They provided us gifts…I honestly didn’t want a lot, I just wanted to be with my family.”

SAMMinistries isn’t the only shelter trying to combat homelessness. Roy Maas Youth

Alternatives also tries to provide a safe environment for kids and young adults during the holidays.

“We’ve had 60 kids (ages 5-17) come into our Bridge Emergency Shelter, and 6 young adults (ages 18-21) into our Turning Point Transitional Living program since Nov. 1,” Roy Maas employee Amanda Ireta said.

Their most important goal is that these kids and young adults are safe, which is why some have been placed with them.

“Not all of the 60 kids that have come through the Bridge during that time have been homeless; some have been removed from dangerous situations at home, some have been placed with us by the Juvenile Probation Department, etc.,” Ireta said. “All of them, however, have been displaced from ‘home’ during the holidays pending a long-term safe placement.”

While safety is a concern of all shelters, it often comes at a cost. Families often have to put down a deposit for simple things like food and shelter.

“Haven for Hope is the only free place and that place was a nightmare. People would steal your stuff; you’d have to stay up all night just to make sure your stuff was safe,” Berko said. “They would provide you meals not even a human should eat; they would mix you with the single men who were gross drug

addicts and drunks at night that would be doing inappropriate things to us; it was a struggle, and I didn’t like it.”

Berko wants people to understand that homelessness is exactly that – a struggle – not products of laziness like many people believe.

“[It’s difficult] having to hear your peers say, ‘Oh homeless people are bums’ and that “They don’t do anything, all they do is sit on the

street’, when really no one even provides us a job or won’t even give us a second look,” Berko said. “People don’t truly understand – when you hit rock bottom, you hit rock bottom.”

Berko cites that anyone can hit rock bottom. In fact, according to America’s Youngest Outcasts, the top six major causes of homelessness for children in the U.S. include, the nation’s high poverty rate, lack of affordable housing, continuing impacts of the Great Recession, racial disparities, the challenges of single parenting and the ways in which traumatic experiences, especially domestic violence, precede and prolong homelessness for children and families.

“People don’t realize you can go from the very top and hit rock bottom the next day,” Berko said.

Ultimately, Berko wants people to understand that charitable actions shouldn’t just happen during the holidays or when a person wants to feel good about them self; people should give for the sake of giving.

“We’ve been told several times at SAMMinistries that when it came down to, people wanted to spend money to feel more charitable around that time,” Berko said. “When it comes to giving, you should just give out of the sake of being generous, not out of something you would want to feel good about. You want to feel that you changed someone’s life; you made a difference, because at the end of the day, you could be homeless the very next day.

Hope for the Holidays

“PEOPLE DON’T TRULY

UNDERSTAND - WHEN YOU HIT ROCK BOTTOM, YOU HIT ROCK”

BOTTOM.”

– Senior Afia Berko

SENIOR SHARES HOMELESS EXPERIENCEBy Maryah Parker

Ph

oto

by La

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n B

arm

ore

4 | Feature

News | 2Feature | 5

Artist at Work

Setting the Scene. Tejada makes use of oil paints, her preferred material, to create the landscape of a harsh storm at sea (top far left).

An Introduction to Pottery. A series of pinch pots and ceramics (bottom far left) made by Art 1 students sit and wait to be glazed and later fired in the kin.

Thinking in Color. With the glide of a pencil, Tejada finds ease and comfort when placing her feelings on paper (left).

You can almost hear senior Frankie Tejada’s expressive paintings, like harmonies of light and dark: the howls and whistles of boys playing football in the streets, skies splashed of oranges, pinks, blues and purples, the limitations in her home life along with the warm voices of her six siblings in Yigo, Guam.

Growing up in a restrictive house in terms of self-expression, Tejada found her escape in art. Due to several complications, Tejada, along with her six siblings, became foster children.

“When I was little, my biological parents were horrible. I wasn’t allowed to speak, write etc. Instead, I would draw on whatever I can, and that was the only way I could express myself basically,” Tejada said. “It’s stress diminishing, because I’m putting feelings on the canvas; say if I’m angry I can put my anger on the piece of paper.”

Tejada earned a golden seal in the fourth division of the annual Visual Art Scholastic Event (VASE) 2014 with a self portrait using her favorite artistic movement of Realism, also used in her current painting, which will be submitted in this year’s VASE competition.

“Realism is my favorite because it’s what I can see in the real world, even if I can’t control it, it’s what’s there – it’s a way for me to capture my surroundings, plus it’s a challenge,” Tejada said.

Having experienced the contrast in her personal life, in comparison to those of some peers, Tejada can draw from the differences and similarities, working them into her art.

“Living here in the U.S. and seeing people who are so privileged with having a family and seeing some harsher realities pushes me to incorporate them into my work,” Tejada said. “For instance, I like to draw homeless families beside mansions, and many things like that.”

For this year’s VASE submission, Tejada will enter a self-portrait holding a between-the-lines message over how people are seen, versus what they are actually feeling.

“I want to convey that even if someone is carrying a heavy facade, there is a story behind that visage,” Tejada said.

People are what she most enjoys drawing, because of the diversity and ability to tell stories beyond what is skin deep.

“It’s just very diverse, everyone no matter how big or small – has a story,” Tejada said. “I like to capture that as I’m drawing, say if someone is sad, I know they’re sad for a reason, and I want to be able to have that show through.”

Not only are feelings important in creating the art, but the materials used play an important role in the making as well.

“Depending on how I feel, if the emotion is heavier, I would use a brush, but if I’m drawing pictures of people, afar I would use a pencil,” Tejada explains, “Different emotions require different materials.”

Determining when an art piece is completed can fall under a gray area and can be difficult for artists to decide.

“Some last for a year or even more if I feel like it’s missing something, like this (signals to painting) is missing a bunch of stuff, for example finer details in the hair and face also make it cleaner since it looks muddy,” Tejada said.

Working on one piece for a long period of time can also be troublesome, making the artist more likely to make careless mistakes.

“Ms. Conrad says to work on multiple pieces, so I don’t become frustrated,” Tejada said. “I would suggest it, so when you go back to work on something else, you see it with fresh eyes.”

Not only has the AP Art 4 class taught her how to manage her time between multiple art works, but it has introduced her to basics she didn’t know of.

“I did not know anything about color; Ms. Conrad taught me about color theory and how colors interact with one another,” Tejada said. “For example, mixing dark blue, dark yellow and dark red can create a specific looking black.”

While being atop the most recommended students of art in her class, Tejada aspires to careers unrelated. Hoping to find a career in the sciences, she shows both creative and very logical interests and abilities.

By Lidia Garza

6 | A&E

Thespians Take DallasSeven Actors Step Up to National Competition

Graphic by Mathew Roman

By Jeslyn Vasquez and Lidia Garza

Taking to Dallas for this year’s Texas Thespian State Festival (TTSF), 13 students competed for a chance to advance to the International Thespian Festival in June.

From December 3 - 5, seven students achieved this during the three-day convention, which featured not only chances to compete but also workshops, play marathons and guest speakers.

“ThesFest has been one of the greatest experiences of high school for me,” senior Rebecca Tharp said. “It was incredible to be surrounded by so many other artists. I loved seeing the plays, participating in workshops and competing in my events. I loved everything about it.”

Tharp, who was among the seven students to advance, moved on to nationals with her monologue performances of “Oh Dad, Poor Dad,” and “The Anastasia File.”

Another student to advance to nationals, junior Victoria Schulze, competed last year when she was surprised with an unexpected turn of events.

“I competed with two other guys, and we qualified for nationals, but one of the guys didn’t want to go,” Schulze said. “So we decided, ‘you know what, we’ll try it, again without [him], see how it goes’ – we had our piece prepared… but feeling tense was inevitable.”

Although she performed last year, Schulze still felt the pressure from competing against other equally talented schools.

“It was absolutely nerve-racking,” Schulze said. “We get into the room, and we have our piece all prepared, and we think it’s wonderful and then we see all these other schools ... they are just … equally talented as we are with the same background and stuff. It

was just nerve-racking to compete against them and to really put your talent to the test.”

Senior Joseph Luna had quite the opposite feeling while performing his monologues of “The Mariner” and “The Last Days of Judas Iscariot,” for which he advanced to nationals.

“I felt a rush; I’ve never performed my monologues so well, like I finally understood the pieces,” Luna said. “Reading the notes from the judges lifted my spirits so much.”

Luna, along with Schulze, knows the difficulties of reaching their goals. The two worked together and faced difficulties with cast changes in “The 39 Steps.”

“We actually began the process last year, and it was pretty difficult having to compromise with everyone’s schedules and our own personal lives,” Luna said, “but I’m proud of our cast and that we pulled it off together.”

The play revolves around a man named Richard Hannay (senior Dakota Arguijo) who becomes involved in an international spy ring

related to the mysterious “39 steps,” a spy organization. Shortly after meeting agent Annabella Smith

(sophomore Amanda Stehle), Smith is killed in her apartment. Now a suspect in a murder case,

Hannay must steer clear of the police, while trying to stop Professor Jordan (Joseph Luna) from sending secrets out of the country. Hannay is assisted by Pamela (senior Bailey Jones), an unwilling accomplice who discovers the truth.

Arguijo, who plays Hannay, only had a week to practice due to a changing cast.

“Last year I auditioned for the role, and I did not get in the show. About a week before the actual performance, I got put back into it,” Arguijo said. “I ran the show twice before actually performing it. It was pretty interesting to pull it off in that short amount of time.”

Despite the large cast confusion, the theater department was able to make a successful comeback.

“While having a few hardships, we did manage to put on a really good show even with everything that happened,” Stehle said.

Luna, Tharp and Schulze along with seniors Bailey Jones and Manuel Canales and juniors Allyson Hackworth

and Brianna Nicole Yanes will advance to the national competition in June.

– Senior Joseph Luna

“I FELT A RUSH; I’VE NEVER

PERFORMED MY MONOLOGUES

SO WELL, LIKE I FINALLY UNDERSTOOD.”

News | 2News | 11News | 2News | 11News | 2Sports | 7

Top Athletes Sign

Colleges

“After meeting the coaches, hearing their goals and plans for the team, seeing how they loved and respected their players and seeing the players feel the same, I knew it was a fit for me as far as a basketball program. But then I started to look at the school academically; it was a no-brainer. They had an admissions rate of less than 28 percent and a graduating rate that continues to increase year after year at almost 70 percent, so that was huge for me as well. Plus, let’s be real, I mean it’s San Diego, Calif., that’s an amazing place to go to school!”

MONIQUE TERRY – SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY

BRIANNA VEGA – THE UNIVERSITY

OF NEW ORLEANS

ARABELLA HALL – SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY

“I felt like I was comfortable there, and my mom, my dad and my grandparents went there. My cousin is going there with me. I had a lot of offers from other places, but it just felt like home to me, and it’s in Louisiana where I grew up.”

Commitments to

“They offered me a good scholarship, a good amount of

money, and I really liked the campus.”

On National Signing Day, Nov. 11, 2015, five female athletes signed their National

Letter of Intent to top colleges and universities, playing on the school’s

team in exchange for a scholarship. Brianna Vega signed to the

University of New Orleans, Arabella Hall signed to Southern University, Monique Terry signed to San Diego State

University, Courtney Cook signed to the University of

the Incarnate Word and Bailei Hubbard signed

to Prairie View A&M University.

Football Season Flashback

Swerve and Run. Trying to escape a tackle, senior Ta’veon Tolefree runs the ball at the Judson game. “For me, [my motivation] was just my brothers and then just playing for my teammates,” Tolefree said. “[I like] just being able to play with the people I’m closest to; I’ve been playing with them for four years.”

Pumped Up. Junior Kavonte White is overjoyed on the sidelines. For him, the best part of the season was when “I got two or three sacks against Stevens,” White said. “It was our rivalry, and it was on homecoming.”

All Smiles. Senior Devante Warren happily walks out of the end zone. “Playing Steele, that was probably the biggest game we’ve had of our lives,” Warren said. “Just playing with my brothers was probably the biggest [highlight].”

8 | Sports

Photo by Diamond Cruz

Photo by Ulyssa Phachansiri Photo by Nathan Revilla Photo by Nathan Revilla

Photo by Diamond Cruz

Breakthrough. Sophomore Jahmyl Jeter breaks the tackle while running the ball. “My linemen were blocking for me, if it wasn’t for them I wouldn’t be getting all the yards and touchdowns,” Jeter said.