February 24, 2012

INSIDE

17410 Commerce Park Blvd. Tampa FL 33647Vol. 10, Issue 4

Revolutionfhs.com

15

revolutionfreedom high school

13 -14

To donate to the Haas family visit : gofundme.com

Helping Hand:

Leah Wassermaneditor-in-chief

For four years, students have been in-trigued by the growth of baby Ethan Haas. Son of two beloved teachers, Ethan has been adored by kids and faculty alike.

On November 29, the Haas family’s lives changed as a tumor was revealed above Ethan’s left eye. In December, Ethan had surgery and the tumor was completely removed. He was diagnosed with Langer-hans Cell Histiocytosis which is a disease similar to cancer that affects only five in a million kids.

Word spread quickly and the school came together to the Haas’s aid.

“It’s been amazing, the support and generosity from the community, the stu-dents, teachers, parents, friends and people we don’t even know and will never meet has blown us away,” Ethan’s father and so-cial studies teacher Brandon Haas said. “It has affected us in ways we can’t even de-scribe.”

The majority of money raised for the Haas family has been done through a web-

site created by Ethan’s mother, Melissa Haas, on gofundme.com. Students posted links to the website on Facebook and Twit-ter in an attempt to rally support. The website has raised over $20,000 so far.

“It’s been amazing with all of the medical bills and Mrs. Haas off work because we don’t know what we would have done without her home with him because he needs his mommy during chemo,” Brandon said.

Melissa may stay off work until August be-cause following six weeks of chemotherapy. Ethan still has about a year remaining.

“The doctor is being very aggressive with his treatment,” Brandon said. “Right now all the tests have come back negative for any bad cells in his body so we’re hop-ing the disease is gone.”

Ethan’s third birthday fell in the middle of all of this. He was feeling well so Melissa

and Brandon called a few of his friends for a small party.

“He has to wear a helmet when he plays so all his friends brought helmets and we

had a little helmet par-ty,” Brandon said.

The family has been attempting to mantain as much normalcy as pos-sible for Ethan.

“Whenever we did something where he could just be a kid again he got dramatically bet-ter in the next couple days.”

Seniors Ania Chee and Julian Naif orga-nized several car washes

from which all proceeds went towards the Haas family.

“Anyone in that kind of situation de-serves any help they can get,” Naif said.

About fifteen students came together to work the car washes.

“Most of the other kids had Haas, but there were a few who didn’t and just want-

Students come together in support of teachers’ son

ed to help out,” Naif said. “It brought the kids who helped together because it was people from a bunch of different groups came together to help.”

Baseball coach Andrew Leppla, along with the baseball team, decided that any money raised from their concessions at the game on Saturday February 18 should be donated to the Haas family.

“It was a great idea,” Leppla said. “We all came up with it together.”

Leppla does not know Haas personally but he has children and understands that anyone in that situation needs support.

“He seems like a really good guy and his wife seems like a really good woman and they seem like good people and I want to help them any way I can,” Leppla said.

Along with financial aid, people have been expressing support in other ways.

“We’ve got a lot of e-mails [and] a lot of people posting on the website we set up telling us to hang in there,” Brandon said.

Haas is incredibly grateful for all of the help from the community.

“Words cannot describe how much the support has meant to us.”

Donate

It has affected us in ways we can’t even describe.Brandon Haas

This photo was posted by the Haas fam-ily on Gofundme.com to thank all peo-ple that donated to help their cause.

Photos Courtesy of the Haas Family

Ethan Haas and his little brother Liam Haas pose together on February 14, Valentine’s Day, 2012.

Ethan Haas passes the time coloring while in a bed at the hospital.

Ethan sits in his car seat with his head wrapped in between trips to the hospital.

“Anyone in that kind of situation

deserves any help they can get.”

$20, 535Raised: $30,000Goal:

Courtesy of Julian Naif

Wrap ups of the seasons of all winter sports

Students sign letters of intent to respective colleges

-Julian Naif

news February 24, 20122

The PA system comes on and says, “Congratulations Freedom High School. We got a “B”.” Freedom High School is continuing on its way to excellence getting a “B” ranking for 2012 only a hair short of getting an “A”.

Grade rankings for schools have been around for many years now and are the basis of comparing one schools success to another.

“All of the criteria needed to get an “A” ranking were satisfied by the students at Freedom except that the bottom quartile didn’t make enough progress to meet the “A” requirement,” Assistant Principal Chad Pears said.

According to the Florida Department of Education, high schools are graded based on two factors with each one making up 50% of the grade ranking.

The first component is the FCAT, which has a maximum of 800 points. This part grades the school on how well the students do on the FCAT.

The second Component is the New High School which has a maximum of 800 points as well. This policy was imple-mented in 2008 and grades schools on the difficulty of the classes that the average student is taking and their success in the class, the college readiness of students, and the graduation rate for all students in the school.

The highest amount of points that you can possibly earn is 1600. The bare mini-mum to receive an “A” is 1050 points.

“We scored enough points to get an “A” but we received a penalty since the bottom quartile lacked the improvement necessary to get an “A”,” Pears said.

The first and last time we received an “A” ranking was back in 2008 and many people are disappointed with receiving a “B” for the second year in a row.

Sophomore Jacob Frasca voiced his disapproval over the “B” ranking.

“It makes me feel upset that certain people didn’t care enough about school to try their best,” Frasca said.

Junior Mo Adewunmi feels that the faculty members play a large role in the

“B” ranking stings again

The words are printed on bright pieces of paper. They vary from “symbol” to “support” to “compare and contrast”. The words of the ‘word of the week’ campaign can be seen posted in classrooms all over Freedom.

“The ‘word of the week’ are ten words that we’ve pulled from FCAT, SAT, ACT, and AP testing; [they are] words from question stems that students constantly miss,” English teacher Debbie Grimm said.

The campaign aims at exposing students to these concepts in the hopes of helping them answer these question stems correctly. The words chosen can be covered through all curriculums, and they can be incorporated in every class.

“Some English teachers got together, and thought how can we get something that is done whole-school,” Grimm said. “We’re trying to move our reading scores. We thought if kids saw it seven times a day in seven classes, that it might make a difference.”

The campaign is run by volunteer English teachers , including Grimm, Toni Guida and Lisa Reale. Grimm says that in addition, many teachers meet to talk about ways to use the words.

Grimm says she thinks the campaign will help students improve their reading scores.

“I think if I looked at a word, and teachers incorporated it into lessons, I would improve on it,” Grimm said.

Grimm says the response to the campaign, so far, has been positive.

“My kids personally are enjoying it and I’m seeing improvement,” Grimm said. “You’re always going to have people complain and not think that it’s going to work, but I try not to listen to them.”

>>Breana Pauline

fact that we got a “B” grade. “We need to get better teachers and ad-

ministrators that actually care,” Adewunmi said.

The majority of faculty and students are very optimistic about getting an “A” in the following year. Everyone at school is work-ing their hardest to ensure that they do their best on FCAT and push the “B” up to an “A”.

“We can definitely get an “A” next year. We just need to have a better sustained ef-fort with the last push toward FCAT and make sure that all the themes are covered,” Pears said.

“I think that we should offer incentives for people to succeed such as pizza parties or a fiesta day,” Frasca said.

However, some students aren’t as con-fident about the school’s ability to succeed and get an “A”.

“We are an underachieving school as a whole,” Adewunmi said.

As we set our sights on the final stretch for FCAT, we should promote self-excel-lence and work hard to restore the “A” ranking we once had.

For David Shepard Monday, February 20, was the first day of a new school year with new students, but the students who have been here all school year, and some all four years feel apprehensive about their new principal and feel like they are losing an old friend.

“It kind of sucks because I liked [Mr. Farkas],” junior Brody Flanagan said. ”But I understand why he left.” While Flanagan takes the loss hard because of his bond he had with Farkas.

“To be honest I’m not so upset that he left, but I do find it weird that he would leave in the middle of the year,” Flanagan said.

Not only are the students curious about

why Farkas left they are also wondering what Shepard will bring to the plate as he crosses from a wild cat to a patriot.

“I hope to continue a healthy rivalry between the two schools,” Shepard said. “[Being from Wharton] might be a very good thing.”

Some realize how other students may act to having an administrator from our rival school.

“I do have a strong feeling that some knucklehead is going to give him a hassle just for that reason,” senior Danny Davila said.

Sophomore Obe Amani agrees.“I personally have nothing against

Wharton. I really like how they have huge school spirit”, Amani said. “Hopefully he can help bring some of that spirit to our

school.”A m a n i i s

very hopeful that Shepard can br ing in extra spirit that our school may be lacking and Shepard has the same hopeful gleam.

“A s m u c h a s I g a ve t o [Wharton] I’m ready to give to [Freedom],” Shepard said.

As the school spirt is being brought to our school, students are hoping something else is brought over by the new principal,

Shepard aims to bring school spirit from Wharton to Freedomschool spirit, and his love of athletics.

“I would start off with a pep rally,” Flanagan said. “It would show the students that he’s about school spirit.”

Shepard’s new students are eagerly awaiting his arrival and how he will affect the school and our student body.High hopes await with the new principal’s arival.

“First of all we’re going to make sure to continue doing what Farkas did that are

working,” Shepard said.Our school is not downgrading; it is

evolving into something new, something powerful, and something to be proud of.

New principal David Shepard replaces Chris Farkas as the school’s new leaderSamantha McCarrell

staff writer

Marc Bersonstaff writer

Lack of lower quartile improvement results in yet another “B” ranking

A. Ball/revolution

For more news updates visit:revolutionfhs.com

Word of the Week

revolution news 3

According to the school district’s at-tendance progress, the general track has moved downhill. Some say students aren’t motivated to come to school. Regard-less of the reasons, the school attendance is still subpar.

“Our attendance is at the bottom and one of the lowest in the coun-ty,” assistant principal Joseph Costanzo said.

Secretary Marsha Winters believes that parents are a major in-fluence on why students have become less moti-vated to come to school. The extra “push” to motive students attend school is a key compo-nent.

“Parents have not been encouraging stu-dents to go to school and sign their children out early all of the time,” secretary Marsha Winters said.

Administration has come up with a new plan to improve the attendance of students. The students who have perfect attendance will be entered into a raffle for prizes such as a new car.

“Last year, one of the students that put his name in a drawing for having perfect attendance won a car,” secretary Jill Alger said.

Also, there are other incentives for students to reward those who have good attendance. To emphasize why all students should make an effort to increase the atten-dance rates, these incentives are helpful.

“Seniors with perfect attendance are eli-gible to be put in a drawing to win a giftcard at the end of the month,” Costanzo said.

H o w e v e r , many of these incentives were also offered last year when Free-dom was one of the bottom in the district and the attendance rate continues to stay low.

The admin-istration is plan-ning to send no-tification to stu-dents in an effort to improve their attendance.

“They send letters to parents for unexcused absences now,”

Winters said.Updates on the school’s attendance are

shown to motivate the students to attend school. The graph in the school cafeteria shows the trend to represent how effective the new policy is working for students. Right now it shows that the school continues to be in 27th, last, in county.

“There is a board posted in the cafeteria that shows the attendance percentages for the month,” assistant principal Costanzo

said.There has been minor improvement

in the overall trend for attendance. With some strategy to improve, it has increased the rate of students coming to school. The attendance statistics has started to maintain a continual improvement from its down track.

“Last month we decreased a little bit but there is still an average increase,” Costanzo said.

Students coming in and out of the class-room are reprimanded for more serious issues now. There are also more serious consequences enforced to students that de-cide to leave campus without a pass during school hours. There will now be stricter out of area rules that can result in two days OSS

Motivation needed for improved attendenceAdministration tries new plan to increase attendence

Our attendance is at the bottom and one of the lowest.Joseph Costanzo

for the offender. This includes being in the parking lot or wandering the halls during lunch time.

“The new attendance policy is stricter on tardies and sign-ins that are unexcused,” Costanzo said.

Students have their own reasons for wanting to skip class, but encouragement by the administration has started to take a part in ensuring that there is imporvement in the percentage of students that come to school.

Costanzo sees the excessive student ab-sences as a result of the idea students have in their head about missing school.

“It has to do with the student culture in that you don’t have to go to school every day to be successful.”

Samantha Setoopinion editor

Adminisration sets up a whiteboard showing the past attendence rates and incentives to come to school. Aministation disapproved of the past rates and poor ranking in county.

M. Berson/revolution

staff writersRowan AllenMarc Berson Kelly Bonnville-SextonForrest CanadayJessi GuidryJonathan HarrisSamantha McCarrell

Staff ArtistRachel Gaynor

revolutionnews editor

Alex Ball

features editorBreana Pauline

centerspread editorBrandi Chmielewski

entertainmnent editorCristina Cordova

sports editorEmily Ball

AdviserAmanda McLean

Revolution is published by the newspaper staff at Freedom High School, 17410 Commerce Park Blvd., Tampa, FL 33647.

Advertising rates are available upon request by calling 813-558-1185 ext. 251. Advertising for illegal products, that opposes any religion or is of a sensitive nature will not be accepted.

Revolution has been established as an open forum for student expression as outlined in the Student Press Law Center’s model guidelines for student publications. The opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the faculty and adminis-tration of Freedom High School, but rather of the author or the newspaper staff and its editors.

Revolution welcomes letters to the editor on topics of interest to Freedom High School and its community. We also welcome contributions from authors not associated with the newspaper staff. All freelance material must be submitted to room 723 and bear the author’s name.

Revolution is a member of the Columbia Scholastic Press As-sociation, Florida Scholastic Press Association, National Scholastic Press Association, Southern Interscholastic Press Association and Quill and Scroll.

editors-in-chiefLeah Wasserman Erin Winick

opinion February 24, 20124

The Bad

The Ugly

As hard as it is to find a job in this economy, we really shouldn’t be complaining when a student who wants to work finds a job. Even if it’s at a restaurant like Hooter’s.

There’s the obvious argument that it’s inappropriate for a girl still in high school to work at any restaurant that markets sex appeal. The issue is a little tricky, but an important fact to remember is that no girl can become a “Hooters girl” and actually wait tables until they’re eighteen. At that time, you’re a legal adult, making your own decisions. You can smoke, buy lotto tickets, vote, and serve your country. Even though you may still be in high school, in the eyes of the law you’re just about as grown-up as you ever will be. The only other milestone to hit is the drinking age of 21, which, by the way, is the minimum age of Hooter’s girls in some restaurants.

Yes, it may be a little awkward when one of your old teachers walks into your restaurant. But is that really a reason that someone shouldn’t take a job that’s available to them? If a high school student is interested in getting job experience, good for them.

Imagine a magical world where you get to serve mediocre food to older men that have nothing better to do but tell you you have “a great personality.” But wait! You get to do all this for minimum wage. Sounds like heaven right? This is the everyday life of the infamous Hooters girl. It’s idiotic that for some people it’s a dream come true, you get to make tips off “what your momma gave you” and in return have a good time singing and dancing to offbeat melodies, with sporadic clapping.

I personally have no problem with working at such an establishment, but really ladies not in high school. I can only imagine the look on your face when you turn to serve your next eager guest and it’s your second period teacher whose motto is “age is just a number.” Better yet your face the next day in school when he comes up to you during independent reading just to say how much he admired your bright orange underwear, whoops I mean shorts. I mean it’s not only teachers that come in, its administrators, coaches, and your friends’ parents wandering through those doors.

“I hereby acknowledge and affirm that the Hooters concept is based on female sex appeal

PRO

CON

Depends on how much time

they work

Boosting ego does not

correspond to being

appropriate

Hooters may not be the first place parents want their teenage daughters to work, but it is a job that will teach responsibility, money management, and everything else you’ll learn at any other job. The only difference is the outfits, which, let’s be honest, are not that different from what teenage girls like to dress themselves in anyway.

And the Hooters restaurants may not have been the teenager’s first choice either. Less and less teens are employed these days. The Department of Labor reported that in July 2011 only 48.8% of 16 to 24 year olds had jobs. That’s a record low. The current economy makes it hard for adults to find jobs, let alone a high school student looking for their first job. In this economy, those who want jobs have to take what they can get, and that includes being a hostess at Hooters.

Girls who work at Hooters and other restaurants like them aren’t doing it for the outfits. They’re doing it for the job experience and the paycheck. In these ways, these types of restaurants don’t differ from any other workplace.

and that the work environment is one in which joking and innuendo based on female sex appeal is commonplace.” That’s right, you have to sign a contract stating that you’re ok with being associated with sex. So if your best friends’ dad comes in and says he’d like to order something “off the menu” you have to go and play along with this completely inappropriate banter, upon fingers crossed that in the end he leaves a good tip. What if this certainly awkward chitchat happened at said friends house? Secenery really does change the circumstances doesn’t it?

I got a good tip for you ladies; quit your jobs. Why would anybody want to be associated with such inept waitressing? The name itself is even tasteless, Hooters? Really? Now I know you didn’t think it got its name because the owner was an owl enthusiast.

All in all the restaurant is fine, and it is ok for you ladies to work there. There is nothing wrong making tips off your body; they don’t call your asset money makers for nothing, but is it really worth it to put yourself through these compromising encounters? I say we just wait till those after high school years to avoid such unpleasant interactions with creepy elders that just want a good time.

Breana Pauline

Cristina Cordova

Fresh Perspectives

Should high school students be allowed to work at Hooters?

The Good

New sports rivalry with Steinbrenner

Welcome to new principal

Mr. Shepard

You said:

Like us on Facebook at Revolution Media Group

Trevor Toma, 11

“No, it’s not appro-priate if you’re in school, but when you graduate it will be.”

Briana Davis, 12

Molly Chang, 10

Justin Ogilbee, 9

“Yes, girls can express what they want no matter what age they are.”

“Yes, it is appropriate if they need the money.”

“Yes, they should be able to work at Hoot-ers to make money because a ‘job is a job.’ ”

opinion editorSamantha Seto

Out of School Penalty

gives OSS

Omar Allenfreshman

Marisa Carmodyassistant principal

New Principal

Presidential Election

New Football Coach

B-School Ranking

Drop-In Observations

QA&

Sydney Olingerjunior

Adam Abadawisenior

Dania Lucsophomore

Underrated

Stupid

Don’t care

Love it

Dog

Freedom

Obama

Freedom

Don’t Care

Wharton

Bad

Obama

Cool

Nerve-recking

Cool

StupidObama

More Wins

Sad

Welcome

Unavoidable

Improvable

Obama

For someone who is a news junkie, I always find it intriguing to see the things that can get people interested and paying attention to the news cycle. I have seen that the thing that can get just about anyone to pay attention to current events is being included in them. If anyone has their picture taken, quote written or video clip used in the news, they are guaranteed to want to see it.

People were transformed overnight into news fanatics when Freedom was closed for swine flu a few years back and at the beginning of this year with the thwarted Cano bombing. Part of this is out of the necessity for updates. Another is just people hoping to join the club of students that get their 15 minutes of fame. They may not normally get to school early on the first day, but the chance of having your car and waving hand in the background of a reporter’s scene changes people’s routines.

Most recently the coverage of GOP debate held in Tampa drew in some students to the election world and made them more aware of the politicians and their views. It brought up questions and debates in many classes where normally they would have gone unmentioned. A sense of political awareness was prominent among students for the first time in the primaries.

I find these newfound bursts of interest in the news great. Anything that can broaden a person’s knowledge and maybe show them the positive side of journalism is a fantastic opportunity. All journalists are not trying to drudge up the dirty past of a celebrity or politician. The root of journalism is informing the public and getting the truth across. Although it is short lived, this temporary interest is better than none at all.

By getting more involved with the large issues and events of the present day, student witness and learn from what is around them. It seems that if all students were on television every day, we would have a much more informed and active student body.

Look! I’m on TV!

revolution opinion 5

One of my first college visits was to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The school quickly moved to the top of my list due to a creative tour, beautiful campus and outstanding academics. The flirty tour guide didn’t exactly deter me either. I was head over heels in love with the school. I did everything I could but the school just didn’t love me back.

UNC was my first rejection. I sat at my computer eagerly awaiting my decision that night; expecting another yes. When the first word wasn’t ‘congratulations’ my heart sank and my eyes filled with water. They didn’t want me. I wasn’t good enough for them. I stopped reading halfway through. It was a no and that was all I needed to know.

But I wasn’t sad for long. No, I wasn’t happy either. I felt a pure hatred for the entire state of North Carolina. I pulled all of the Carolina blue out of my closet and prayed that Tarheel nation never won another game.

My parents told me I had to get rejected somewhere and I just kept thinking no, I could have gotten in everywhere. The idea that a few people had looked at a few papers and condemned my application was heartbreaking.

This story doesn’t end with me coming to terms with my rejection. Any college that isn’t interested in me is never going to be viewed positively in my eyes. But at the end of the day, I got into plenty of other great school and I am sure that I will be happy come next fall. But for now, I’ll proceed to burn all of my UNC apparel and in the future, I’ll be sure to raise a few enthusiastic Duke fans.

This summer I’ll leave to attend the United States Military Academy in West Point. Eventually I’m going to get a diploma from an amazing school and do great things with my life. I can only hope that one day someone who threw my application in the ‘no’ pile in UNC admissions sees my name somewhere, sits back, and thinks “Damn, she could have been ours.”

Thumbs down to Chapel Hill

Get educated, cast a vote

The Way We See It

attention to the larger issues and not just about all thr candidates personal lives.

All student voters need to stay informed and follow the election process and pick what they believe in. For the first time in their lives they do not have to sit on the sidelines of the political arena.

Registering to vote is a rite of passage, and not taking advantage of it is letting a major opportunity go by the wayside. By forfeiting this privilege, you will be forced to be stuck with whatever the rest of the country selects for you. When you have the power to change something in a huge way, why would you let that opportunity go by without using it?

If you will be 18 by the time of the general election, are not already registered, and would like to before the big election day of November 6, all that you have to do is fill out the voter registration form on the Florida Division of Elections website by October 9. Such a simple task is definitely worth the payoff you will receive for the rest of your life: the chance to assist in making decisions for your city, state, and country.

SomethingAppropriateErin Winick

Something InappropriateLeah Wasserman

Over-due

Now that the Florida Republican primary has passed, it is time for the state’s adults to begins weighing their options and shifting their focus to the general election. Many Freedom students will be included in the electorate this year after turning 18 and should take advantage of the new opportunity offered to them. Although some students may view it as not the most exciting new privilege that comes with becoming a legal adult, it is undoubtedly the most important.

Not only is exercising your ability to vote important, but being educated about who you are supporting is just as crucial. The choices you make influence who will be making the decisions about your life and what laws will be passed for the coming years. The youth vote can make a large impact on the outcome of every level of the elections ranging from city council to president. Therefore knowing the background of as many referendums and candidates as possible is important to really see who will best represent your interests. additionally, students need to be aware of mroe than they big tabloid like news stories that cover the papers. Students need to pay

Don’t know him

R. Gaynor/revolution

features February 24, 20126

Nerd TalkBreana Pauline

Currently, it’s Sherlock Holmes.Everything about the character, really:

the original stories, the Robert Downey Jr. movies, and especially the BBC’s show “Sherlock”, a Holmes story based in the 21st century.

Right before that, it was the TV show Merlin, and basically everything having to do with Arthurian legend.

In the past, it’s been so many different things I can’t even keep them straight. Harry Potter. How to Train Your Dragon. Psych. Various books, video games, TV shows, and movies. All things that I’ve been obsessed with.

It’s not like it’s anything new. I’ve been this way my whole life. I’m used to it.

It’s a little embarrassing to admit, but it’s who I am. I have an obsessive personality. OCD will do that, I guess. When I find something I like, I latch onto it.

Eventually, the obsessions die down. But it takes a while. And half the time, they only die down because I’ve found something new to obsess over. So what’s a girl to do while she’s in the grips of something like this?

Well, enjoy it. It may seem weird to some people, and

it probably is. But I don’t mind having obsessions. I don’t obsess over things so badly that it hinders my life. The word “obsession” has a bad connotation attached to it. But for me, being obsessed with something means that I really like it, and I’m probably going to talk to you about it. A lot. I just get really passionate about things.

As I write this, I’m listening to my Sherlock Holmes playlist. Yes, I do have a Sherlock Holmes playlist. And I couldn’t be happier that I do.

I’m enjoying my Sherlock Holmes obsession, because I enjoy Sherlock Holmes. I don’t mind spending my time on it, because it’s what I’m interested in right now. It may seem like I’d get tired of it, but I don’t. When I do get tired of something, that just means the obsession is over.

And another thing, spoken from someone who wants to be a writer someday. For the most part, when I get obsessed with something, I’m impressed by it. Impressed by the characters, impressed by the plot, impressed by something in the way the story was crafted.

Writers learn from each other. And I learn from the stories that I love. I learn from their example and I use it to better my writing.

And along with mechanics, they show me what a good story can do.

A good story can excite people; it can make them laugh, or cry, or even both at the same time. It can make them feel for the characters, cheer for them, or root against them. A good story has the power to move people.

And for me, I think the best marker of a good story is its ability to make someone want to tell their own story.

That’s what these stories, my obsessions, do for me. I get excited over a show, or a book, or a movie, and I find myself wanting to create a story that inspires that same excitement in others. I want my stories to entertain people just as much as my favorite stories entertain me.

I don’t regret my obsessions. Quite frankly, they make me happy. I like having something that I can thoroughly enjoy. And if I also happen to learn something that helps me with my greatest obsession-writing-then all the better.

Obsessions

It’s something all working mothers have in common. It’s the time after a baby is born where a mother can recover and get to know the newest member of her family. Maternity leave, whether it’s long or short, plays an important part in a new mother’s life.

“As a parent, you want to make sure that you give your kid a good start to their life, and make sure that they are healthy,” guidance counselor Amber Wright said. “When kids are first born, they’re jus t so weak and

dependant on you. You want to make sure you build their immune system and get them into a routine before you come back to work.”

Wright took maternity leave earlier in the year when she gave birth to her son.

When teachers take maternity leave, they often use sick days they’ve accumulated to do so. English teacher Michelle Savage did this, and had to come back a little earlier than she would have liked when her sick days ran out. However, she liked having those days available to her.

“I’m glad that I didn’t have to leave my job to have a baby and then lose a whole year unpaid,” Savage said, “I just had to plan ahead.”

English teacher Meredith Moody is due to give birth on Mother’s Day, and she too will be taking time off when the baby arrives.

“We’re moving into a new house as well, so it’ll be nice to have that time t o get everything settled,”

Moody said. “I expect not a lot of sleep; to be very, very tired.”

Moody’s English classes are already

prepared for her absence. She says she

prepared lessons for them in advance.

“I’ve talked to them about it and tried to prepare them for it, so it

should be pretty seamless. I’m hoping it won’t be

too jarring,” Moody said. “A lot of them told

me too that they’ve been in other years where their teachers have been out on

maternity leave. I think they’re going to be okay. I think they’re most interested in the baby, to be honest with you.”

Along with the joys of being a new parent and spending time with your child, there are some disadvantages to taking time off from work.

“I think there are huge disadvantages to taking maternity leave. You definitely get behind in your work,” Wright said. “Me leaving created a burden on my co-workers that they had to pick up the work for me, which creates a feeling of guilt…that you’re making other people do your work.”

Guidance counselor Amanda Petry returned from her maternity leave on February 20th, and prior to that, her students were divided up among the other counselors. Guidance counselor Carlos Diaz says this created stress.

“It’s stressful even when we’re all here,” Diaz said. “Having the volume to deal with that we’ve had to deal with has been very stressful, so we’re looking forward to it coming to an end.”

Savage felt pressure too, but of a different nature.

“It was very stressful in trying to balance my home life and the students, but I had a fantastic time when I came back,” Savage said. “I had a great substitute, and I had really great kids, and everybody was on track and we got back into the routine very quickly.”

The time Savage was able to take off was beneficial to her and her students.

“It was nice to be able to take a little bit of time off to recover from having a baby and to get through some sleepless nights,” Savage said. “I wouldn’t have been an effective teacher if I’d been dragging myself into school with a newborn baby at home. I wouldn’t have been able to function well. So it was nice that I was able to take that time and come back and be motivated to return [instead of having] to lose a whole year because of it.”

On the hunt for dough Jessica Guidry

staff writer

Students learn lessons on effective ways to seek jobs

Breana Paulinefeatures editor

Senior Jordan Fisher is one of many high schools students who are also employed. Fisher has worked at numerous places; including Tilly’s where she was most recently employed.

“I just fold clothes, talk to customers, get them dressing rooms,” Fisher said.

The pressure to get a job increases as the need for money and experience goes up and available work goes down.

“I pay for my own gas,” Fisher said. “I feared if I didn’t have a job I’d have no gas.”

Though jobs are more demanded than there are available, some still aim to find a specific kind of work such as senior Alicia Marino. Marino has recently begun her search and has applied to You Do the Dishes, Hallmark, and Jo-Ann Fabrics.

“I’m looking for artistic jobs,” Marino said. “I’m very artistic and like things that coincide with it.”

No matter what kind of job you’re looking for, the process of getting it stays relatively the same.

“Apply, wait for them to call and ask to see you,” Fisher said. “Some places automatically give you an interview. Then wait for a call.”

Applications aren’t always found in the stores. Many businesses are moving over to the Internet to find their new employees.

Since we live in a technology dominated age, computers have become the main source of communication for businesses.

Though it seems like a simple process of filling out a piece of paper and turning it in, there are some difficulties involved. Senior Morgan Bradley has experience dealing with job hunting and is currently working at Subway.

“You go in and ask for an application. Fill it out and turn it in to the manager,” Bradley said. “Don’t give it to the employee’s. They might throw it away.”

After the application is submitted, the first impression must be made at the interview, either individually or in a group of other potential workers.

“I like group interviews better,” Fisher said. “In group interviews, you feel pressured to be better than the person next to you. In individual ones, it’s just you and the person asking questions.”

During interviews, the interviewer asks specific questions in order to see if you’re the kind of employee they want.

“They’re looking for outgoing but responsible and respectful,” Fisher said. “And that they can do the job well.”

Since the interview is a student’s one real chance of making an impression it’s a critical step in the application process.

“They should dress nice. Not too professional and not too casual,” Marino said. “Always say ma’am or sir.”

Waiting time to hear back from a business can range from a nail biting few

weeks to a couple of minutes. “From Jimmy Johns I heard back in a

day,” Fisher said. “Tilly’s, 30 minutes.”Despite all the hard work that goes into

applying for jobs there is still the possibility of being turned down.

“Don’t take it personal,” Fisher said. “Just go find another place. Learn from your mistakes in the interview.”

Guidance counselor Amber Wright with her son. Wright spent the end of last year and the beginning of this year on maternity leave.

Senior Morgan Bradley works beind the coun-ter at Subway. Many teenagers like Bradley have struggled to find jobs recently.

Courtesy of Amber Wright

Courtesy of Morgan Bradley

Oh, Baby! Teachers take leaves as their families expand

revolution features 7

Down the aisle, down the hallTeachers remain in love at home and at school

Jessica Guidrystaff writer

Diabetes is a disease that’s almost always misunderstood. The first thing that comes to most students’ minds is sugar. More importantly, that diabetics can’t have it. However, sugar only plays a small role in the disease.

According to WebMD, diabetes is classified as an autoim-mune disease. It’s when the body’s immune system attacks the insulin-producing cells in your pancreas. Insulin is the hormone that regulates your blood sugar.

Sophomore Eddie Figueroa was diagnosed with type I diabetes at the age of 13. Unbeknownst to both him and his parents, his constant urination and excessive thirst weren’t symptoms of something as simple as the common cold.

“My blood sugar was around 600,” said Figueroa. “I had to stay overnight at the hospital, and I had to go back later because I couldn’t get my blood sugar under control.”

There are two types of diabetes: type I and type II. They might sound similar, but there is a considerable difference between the two.

According to WebMD, type I diabetes occurs when sugar

isn’t moved into the cells because insulin is not available. When sugar builds up in the blood instead of going into cells, other systems in the body must provide energy for important bodily functions. Unlike people with type I diabetes, people with type II diabetes produce insulin; however, either their pancreas does not produce enough insulin or the body can-not use the insulin adequately.

Diabetes educator Cristina Dethloff works at Moffitt Cancer Center and has to work with newly diagnosed dia-betics every day.

“Diabetes can cause either extreme high or extreme low blood sugar. Both of these could lead to a coma, called dia-betic ketoacidosis,” Dethloff said. “We try to keep the blood sugar at a safe level, which is between 80 and 120.”

Being diagnosed with diabetes is nothing short of a total change in lifestyle. Some handle it well, while others are devastated.

“I wasn’t sad when I got diagnosed,” Figueroa said. “It was just a new experience.”

Unfortunately, many diabetics don’t react similarly.“Most diabetics feel like it’s their fault. They feel like

they did it to themselves, and think they can fix it by eat-ing less sugar. Shock and frustration are two com-mon reactions as well. They don’t know how to handle it,” Dethloff said.

Among adult diabetics that have lived with the diesase for years are teen-age diabetics, who are said to have “juvenile” diabe-tes. These teenagers are more common than most would think. Senior Jona-than Horne was diagnosed

Rowan Allenstaff writer

with type I at the age of six.“I went into a coma. My blood sugar was in the seven

hundreds,” Horne said.Compared to the average, Horne’s blood sugar was in-

credibly high. Even though diabetes causes high blood sugar, the insulin diabetics receive can make it low. Fortunately, most can feel it dropping before it gets too low.

“I get weak and tired. I also get really dizzy,” Horne said. “Once, my blood sugar got so low I started walking in circles, and then I fell over. Someone gave me soda to raise it. I don’t remember it happening.”

Fortunately, Horne was prepared. Unpreparedness can prove to be fatal among diabetics. If they don’t have the supplies necessary to control their blood sugar, there could be dangerous repercussions.

Awareness seems to be lacking in society. Most are either uneducated or have misconceptions about the disease.

“Diabetes is commonly mistaken for hypoglycemia, which causes low blood sugar. Many people who are un-educated get these confused,” Dethloff said.

Diabetes is definitely not a rarity and must be recognized. Slowly but surely, the disease is making its way into the knowledge of society.

There is no sugar coating this... Students learn to adapt to the day to day life of a diabetic

1

Couples show their affection for each other in the secluded corners of the school and sometimes, unfortunately, in plain sight. But this isn’t true for all of them, es-pecially the teacher couples. We’re fortu-nate to not have to witness their PDA, but that doesn’t mean they don’t care for each other.

The Roberts (1)

Although Art and Toni Roberts have been working together since they first met, Toni recently began working at their chil-dren’s elementary school.

Married: March 16, 2001 Met: In 2000, Art and Toni Roberts met

when they were both working at East Bay High School.

Likes of working together: “You can talk about work and they know what you’re talking about,” Art said. “It adds a close-ness to our relationship.”

“Having the same schedule is nice be-cause our days off are the same,” Toni said.

Dislikes of working together: “Being in different departments, I don’t even see him,” Toni said. “Which is good because I think we’d drive each other crazy.”

What makes it work: “Mutual respect and mental banter,” Art said.

The Lewandowskis (2)

Married: July 9, 2011

Met: Gregory and Megan Lewandowski met at Freedom in 2007

Likes of working together: “If I ever need anything she’s two doors down,” Gregory said.

Dislikes of working together: “Noth-ing,” Megan said. “We’re two peas in a pod.”

2

What makes it work: They’re “compat-ible” and “easy-going”.

Pelzer and Flanagan (3)

Married: February 12, 2011

Met: Tracy Flanagan originally met Jeff Pelzer “through mutual friends in col-lege.”

To be less vague Pelzer said, “She dated my college roommate.”

Likes of working together: “If I need someone to train a teacher I’m confident in her abilities,” Pelzer said.

“He can go get me lunch,” Flanagan said.

Dislikes of working together: “Whenev-er there’s something she’s displeased with I get to hear about it to work, at work, to home, at home...” Pelzer said.

What makes it work: “There’s a lot of humor in our relationship,” Pelzer said. “We realize we’re both very flawed but we accept that about each other.”

“He actually can make me laugh,” Flanagan said. “That’s why I keep him around.”

The Derflingers (4)

Met: While working at Webb Middle School.

Likes of working together: “We eat lunch together,” Karen Derflinger said. “It’s like a little social time every day.”

“We get to drive in together,” Dennis Derflinger said. “[It] saves more fuel cost.”

Dislikes of working together: “None. All positive,” Karen said. “It gives us more to talk about; more in common.”

What makes it work: “Some how he manages to be very quiet but remain so-ciable,” Karen said. “I say enough for both of us.”3 4

Diabetes Statistics• 25.8 million children and adults in the United

States—8.3% of the population—have diabetes.

• Cost of diagnosed Diabetes in 2007: $174 billion.

• About 1 in every 400 children and adolescents has diabetes Source: American Diabetes Association

Courtesy of The Lewandowskis

Courtesy of Art Robertd

Courtesy of Jeff Pelzer

Courtesy of Karen Derfliner

8 in-depthFebruary 24, 2012

Farewell Farkas

revolutionin-depth 9

Brandi ChmielewskiCenter-spread Editor

Farkas outside of Freedom

Farkas’s parting words1. Whatisthereasonthatyouareleaving?It is a promotion, obviously. That’s a big part of it. My goal in educa-

tion has always been to have the biggest effect on the largest group of kids. So, when I went from a classroom to a school, I went from 150 kids to see-ing 2100 kids. Now I’ll have 21,700 kids I’m responsible for. The negative being that now there is a little space there.

2. Whatareyoulookingforwardtomostinthenewposition?

Working with new principals. I think that some principals lose sight of the fact that your relationship with kids and your teachers is the num-ber one thing that makes you successful. If kids like you and are willing to work for you, you get a lot more out of them than if they fear you and don’t like you.

3. How long have you been planning onleaving?

I knew about it Monday and I told you guys on Wednesday, so there wasn’t a plan. It was kind of abrupt to say the least. There was a pretty quick turnaround, so there definitely wasn’t a plan. This is a unique op-portunity and to be perfectly honest with you, I did not think that I would get it.

4. Whathasbeenyourgreatestaccomplish-menthereatFreedom?

Probably school culture. I think a lot more people enjoy going to Free-dom and are a lot more proud to wear Freedom stuff than they were four years ago or five years ago when I got here. You may see a jersey or some-

thing when I first got here and now. I think that on a regular basis, I see kids at McDonalds or the mall or things like that wearing Freedom stuff.

5. Doyouthinkitisharderleavingwiththefreshmanclassyouwereintroducedwith?

Yup. It is positive and negative. I plan on being at all the graduations for Freedom for the next three years, with all the kids. The kids that are coming in as freshman now who have only known me for the past five or

Farewell Farkas six months, I plan on being at their graduation too just because there is a loyalty factor there. With the kids I came in with, freshman and seniors, they don’t know the old principal and the way he used to be. They only know what we have had here. It is appropriate for what situation is, but it definitely makes it a little more emotional.

6. Willyoubetheonehandingtheseniorstheirdiplomas?

I’m not sure what my role will be at that time, because one important thing is finding a balance of giving my school and having someone else hired for it. I want to respect the new principal and make sure that they are comfortable with that situation. I don’t want to be the one stepping on toes and that is not really my personality anyway.

7. WhatwouldyouliketoseehappenforFreedom?

Ideally, finding someone who has a passion for kids and for how strong our kids are, in all levels - our low level kids, our advance placement kids, all of them. We have a very eclectic school. There is a myriad of econom-ics that all kind of come together at freedom. As someone who went to a similar high school, that is one of the most of the most important things you will ever experience in life. Going to a homogenous high school is not something that benefits you. In my opinion you need to be with a bunch of different backgrounds, even if you’re not friends with those people, you need to be exposed to that - people from different backgrounds people from different cultures that makes it a positive thing.

8.Whataccomplishmentareyoumostproudof?

I think that would trivialize the accomplishment more if I say a big football win or chorus performance because I think the kids are so unique. I just hope we took steps forward and that we are a better school now than we were four years ago when I got here.

9.WhatonewordwouldyouusetodescribeFreedomHighSchool?

Resilient. After all the stuff we have been through and all the press we have gotten I would have to say resilient.

Additional reporting by Erin Winick

As we warmly welcome our new principal David Sheppard into the Patriot family, we say goodbye to our beloved, former principal Chris Farkas as he heads off to his new job as the Area Leadership Director of Area Eight.

Though most of us knew Farkas as the ‘happy-go-lucky” kind of guy who loves football and the University ofAlabama, there is more to the man we once called our principal.

Although a fan of watching sports; Alabama football, Buccaneers, and Rays, Farkas actually is involved in playing sports as well. Farkas has three daughters who he plays sports with

“I’m a big supporter of sports, and I also like to play them,” Farkas said. “I play basketball and soccer mostly with my girls all the time.”

Not only does he like to play and watch them, he even taught a basketball class. He was a teacher, assistant prin-cipal and principal at Tampa Bay Tech before coming to Freedom.

“Before I worked as principal I taught both AP World and basketball, and I had a few other jobs as well,” Far-kas said. “Being principal here was a good experience.”

Farkas is also one of the many music lovers. He has a wide variety of music on his Ipod.

“I listen to a very eclectic mix of music,” Farkas said. “Bob Marley, Dave Mathews, although you teenagers probably don’t even know who those people are.”

Farkas also enjoys spending time with his family, and considers them his top priority.

Alex Ball news Editor

Q&A:

That’s why I was here, to try to make

an influence.

Chris Farkas

“My family is my favorite hobby,” Farkas said. “If I’m not with them it’s only because I’m working for them. I love them very much.”

Farkas created many fond memories for the students at school and has gained a plentiful amount of experience that he will use in his new job.

“In this job I learned you have to just try to make a positive effect on kids, as many as you can,” Farkas said. “That’s why I was here, to try to make an influence.”

The majority of us have a favorite memory with Farkas, but he has a major event he looked forward to every year as principal.

“All events are special, but especially gradu-ation,” Farkas said. “Seeing these kids grow up and go through life experiences is the best.”

Farkas wishes he could stay until graduation this year.

“I really wish I could stay until graduation,” Farkas said. “Graduation is a special time. You say bye to all of the seniors. Seeing these kids transition into a new sort of life is one of the highlights of the job.”

Leaving the people he has gotten to know here is one of the most difficult parts for Farkas.

“The hardest part is the relationships I have with the kids and with the staff here,” Farkas said. “There are a lot of strong of administra-tors and teachers that are here, some crazy ones too.”

Farkas’ time spent at Freedom will be trea-sured a long time and the Patriot family will miss him greatly.

“All in all my experience as principal here [at Freedom] has been a good one,” Farkas said. “All of the memories I have had here have made an impact in my life.”

To read about Freedom’s new principal read page 2

10 entertainment February 24, 2012

America is best known as a country of opportunity and as a melting pot of those from all over the world. Though we are a place where cultures can come together, how accepted are the clothes from the different ethnic groups that live in the United States?

English teacher Catherine Borkowski did a social experiment to test the tolerance of other cultures.

“I got a lot of things like, ‘You really are strange,’” Borkowski said.

She dressed up five days without telling her students what she was doing to observe their reactions.

“Many students came in saying, ’Miss, you are weird,’” Borkowski said.

Her students and even coworkers were very curious as to why she was dressing up.

She said that transforming herself into a woman from different cultures was not only a learning experience, but also a difficult one.

Her hardest transformation was from her normal wear to a hijab. A hijab is the common dress of women of or from the Middle Eastern regions. It consist of loose clothing with a scarf worn around the hair and under the chin.

“The hardest part of wearing the hijab had to be covering my hair”, Borkowski said.

She also said that the hajab was the most accepted of her five outfits, and one of the most comfortable. American is beginning

to fancy with Muslims and those of other cultural groups.

“I stayed in [the hajab] all day to really experience it,” Borkowski said.

On that day she took a trip to the furniture store she owns to see what it felt like for her students who wear their cultural

outfits every day. Borkowski grew up as an all American

girl, and for her, experiencing different cultural aspects was a struggle that had an upside to it.

If you take away the makeup, the well done hair, and the expensive clothes, the

only other thing there is to worry about is school and achieving greatness in school, not what social click is going to accept you.

That lesson taught Borkowski that being cultural different does not always have to contain negatives. She dressed as a woman of Greek culture as one of her many outfit choices for her week of culture shock.

“The Greek was beautiful and based on anesthetics,” Borkowski said.

She had confidence in the Greek hair piece and flowing dress she wore, that was not present in her pink hajab.

She did not limit her week of unexplained culture shock to Greek and Middle Eastern, her week also included bamboo socks for Asian culture, steam-punk boots and a punk mini skirt to represent German and finally Elizabethan to represent the Shakespeare being learned in class.

“I dressed up for a full week and didn’t tell anyone what I was doing,” Borkowski said.

This was to help her students to understand the graphic novel “The Arrival” which contained no words and only photographs.

This book did not only help give her students a different perspective on those around them and gave her an insight on a topic she had yet to shed light on.

Samantha McCarrellstaff writer

Culture shock in the classroom

To view an essay submitted by Catherine Borkowski on her experences dur-

ing her week of culture shock go to:

revolutionfhs.com

Top: English teacher Catherine Borkowski in-terascts with students outside of class. During her hajab day she got many strange looks

Top: Borkowski attempts to teach her class a lesson on culture. She used the book ‘The Ar-rival’ to show her students the importance of the differences in culture.

C. Cordova/revolutionCourtesy of Amena Thomas

Teacher uses costumes to educate and experience other cultures

revolution entertainment 11

We’re lovin’ itMcTeachers Night brings success to Freedom band fundraiser

A few months back, Disney’s EPCOT lit up with thou-sands of candles and the voices of hundreds of students from around the country. This was the annual Candlelight Processional, an event running at Disney’s EPCOT theme park from the Friday after Thanksgiving to December 30th every year.

What is notable, though, is that Freedoms chorus was among the many groups there.

“We sang in front of a huge amount of people.” freshman Kendall Nelson said.

Lately and more locally, Freedom’s chorus students have been hard at work, exercising their voices daily so the vocal ensemble will be ready to go to their Music Performance Assessments, which is essentially the “FCAT of chorus,” sophomore Alexandra Matos said.

Meanwhile, Bravo Company will compete against other

show choirs at Bloomingdale High School to also be judged on a selection of songs.

Some of the songs Freedom’s chorus will be performing include “Somewhere over the Rainbow” and Glee’s arrange-ment of The Beatles’ famous “Hello, Goodbye.”

Each of these performances are choreographed, and this year the moves were created by junior Tatiana Erickson and sophomore Marina Tweed.

“It is a chance to see what everyone is up to,” Senior Michael Hogan said.

At this gathering, each schools chorus performs and is graded on pieces that they select, both individually and as a group. Part of the assessment is a student’s ability to sight read.

“You go in front of a judge and read a couple lines of a new song and you are graded on how well you can sing it,” sophomore Obatala Amani said.

Not every school’s chorus performs the same kind of run-of-the-mill pieces, however. Among Hillsborough County’s twenty-seven schools, each choir group brings their own unique flair.

“Every school has a different style,” Hogan said. “Like Bravo Company has a pop style; another school has a jazz style…etc”

Before this event, known as the Music Performance As-sessments, the chorus is hosting its annual Honors Concert right here on March 8th. Other students are encouraged to attend to get a preview of some of Freedom’s best vocal talent.

Because they are being graded, every school chooses songs that best present their talents to judges.

“[These songs are] good for younger voices, and they’re more fun for the audience,” senior Trisha Carman said.

The event is on March 22nd and 23rd.On May 25th, the Legends Concert will take place.“The songs at Legends are more modern and up to date,”

Nelson said. In past years, the concert has proven to be popular among

other students.Chorus has also said goodbye to their director Holly

Clemmons, who taught and led the vocal ensemble and Bravo Company until February 17th of this year.

With a number of events behind them, and many more exciting ones ahead, Freedom’s chorus sings to liven up the spirits of themselves and the school.

Hitting the Right Notes

Jonathan Harrisstaff writer

Alex Ballnews editor

When thinking of McDonald’s, a five star restaurant doesn’t come to mind, but with the jazz band performing for McTeacher’s night it might as well have been Burn’s Steakhouse. McTeacher’s night was an initia-tive to raise money for local schools and the music program.

“10 percent of all the proceeds will go to not only the music program itself, but it’s orchestra, it’s guard, it’s everything that is under my umbrella,” music teacher Michael Barrineau said.

Jazz band members were excited to see Barrineau working as a crew member.

“The kids want to see me work at Mc-Donalds, its not my first fast food gig, you act like I was a teacher all of my life, I have worked as a waiter at bowling allies, sales, [at] Sam Ash music. I have never worked at Mcdonads but at Chick Fil’A” Barrineau said.

McTeacher’s night was not solely col-laboration with the jazz band, but teach-ers also worked as a normal McDonald’s employee. Such was the case of chemistry teacher Roschell Thybulle, who worked on the floor from 5pm to 6:00pm.

“It was neat. I was in charge of desserts; I made milkshakes, McFlurries, and ice cream cones,” Thybulle Said.

Students who attended were surprised and impressed with Thybulle’s effort and support for the band as they reflected on times in Thybulle’s classroom.

“It is well deserved for all the hitting with the spoons,” junior attendee Michael Simon said.

This time of year is the most important for the the music program. The expenses for the competion and maintenence is covered by the plethora of preformances.

“This time of year is what we call our heavy time of year, we got the gig at Mcdon-

ald’s, we will do a gig at the state fair, we will do a gig at hunter’s green, and then we got a gig for the New Tampa Rotary Club, in mid March,” Barrineau said. “We got four or five performances. They are what we call ‘paying gigs’, and this time of the year it goes back into the program.”

“I will bring any student that is up to play, whether in orchastra or band, you ei-ther have to make a donaton to the program or you have to feed the kids,” Barrineau said.

The turnout was good with about 20 people watching outside, and 35 more in the restaurant. Many of the spectators liked the music that was played and enjoyed the soothing ambiance that was provided by the jazz band.

“I definitely thought that it brought more people, and we got a good live per-formance,” sophomore attendee Keenan McMahon said

Many of the pieces that were played were warm ups that the jazz band used to prepare for the competition at the Florida State Fair in February.

“[The performance] allowed us to gauge whatever we need to work on, balance and sound control,” Senior jazz band member Tyler Alveraz said.

While music in high school is all to quickly declining in numbers, students, parents, and teachers showed their support for the musical arts by coming out and en-joying this event.

The McDonald’s event was well executed and an original idea. Student and Teachers alike were overall supportive for the music program. Patrons purchased tasty burgers, savory fries, and delicious desserts, while listening to the smooth sounds of the Jazz band. And they did it all for a great cause: supporting the music program at Freedom High School.

Top: Music teacher Michael Barrineau con-ducts the Freedom jazz band in one of their performances at McDonalds. The band played ‘Moondance’ along with’ Green Onions and ‘ 25 or 6 to 4’.

Bottom left: Chemistry teacher Roschell Thy-bulle gives ice cream to eager students. Thybulle enjoyed the change of atmosphere to her nor-mal teacher routine.

Bottom Right: Thybulle serves ice cream along with other terachers from the county to raise for the music program.

Bravo company and show choir hope to show their talent at competitions and performances in March

A. Ball/revolution

E. Ball/revolution

E. Ball/revolution

Left: Bravo company per-

forms at their annual holi-

day show ‘Bringing the

heat’. They use this time

to practice for their bigger

events and up and coming

competitions.

Calle 13’s new album “Entren los Que Quieran,” has 13 tracks with the same Latin feel without the crazy Reggaeton.

From his rap, alternative rock, hip hop and reggae sounds to the traditional Latin American rhythms like Cumbia and Andean music, were a pleasant change to the album.

His Polynesian sounding song “Muerte en Hawaii,” which happens to be my favorite song on the album due to the more loving lyrics was an example of such a variety of songs.

The song “Latinoamerica,” is a single that was nominated in 2011 for a Latin Grammy award in the Record of the Year category.

The album also focuses more on things like politics, death and the usage of guns. In “Latinoamerica,” Calle 13 critcizes US influences in the Americas referencing Operation Condor, a policy created in the 1970s carried out by dictatorships in the Americas and supported by the United States.

Even though Calle 13 chose to step away from the reggaeton sound and use more main stream genre sounds gaining more international interest, I still found that the Puerto Rican flavor and the Calle 13 humor that I’ve always enjoyed hearing remain in his tracks. Calle 13 will always stay one step ahead of their peers and continue to surprise their eager listener, making them want more.

>> Samantha McCarrell

entertainment February 24, 201212

Everyone’s a critic...Staffers take the time to review the latest in movies, music and literatureThe Vow

You can’t go too wrong with a chick flick featuring Rachel McAdams and Chan-ning Tatum.

Despite a great cast and cute storyline, The Vow was a disappointment. Some girls bawled their eyes out as Tatum attempted to win back his wife’s affection after an ac-cident in which she lost her memory.

I waited for the part that would make me cry like a baby but it was not happen-ing.

The movie just wasn’t all there. It was like you were always waiting for something amazing to happen but it never did.

This may have been due to all the hype created around the movie with its conve-nient debut right before Valentine’s Day.

Another ‘The Notebook’ or ‘A Walk to Remember’ was expected, but that is not what was not produced.

McAdams and Tatum do a good job. Throughout the movie, there is no doubt in the audience’s mind that Tatum is head over heels in love. You’re waiting for the perfect love story and as soon as you think it’s there, something changes and you’re without a happily ever after. The ending left a lot of viewers unhappy.

The film was enjoyable but in no way was it what I expected. My favorite part of going was seeing the preview for “The Lucky One” before the movie even began. Zac Efron in an Army uniform beats Channing Tatum in a sweater any day. If you like mov-ies with cheesy plots and a disappointing ending, then go see The Vow but don’t expect a masterpiece.

>>Leah Wasserman

The Hunger Games trilogy is full of graphic violence and futuristic cities. The books revolve around the perspective of the main character Katniss Everdeen.

Plagued by the downfall of her town and familial circumstances, she enters a battle to the death to attempt to save both of them. This book doesn’t just have action, for those of you who aren’t fans it is much more.

Katniss is stuck in a sort of love triangle between her best friend and a boy she entered the battle with. I’m a fan of both action and romance, so the books were a perfect fit for me.

Rebellion also makes an appearance, which drew me in even further.

Author Suzanne Collins developed her characters very well, giving insight into Katniss’s mind and how connected she is to her family. I’m a sucker for good fight scenes; I like a little blood but not too much gore. Suzanne Collins satisfied that part of me.

The plot was paced just right and I never got lost or confused. You know those books where you’re tired of reading the fluff on the inside and just want to skip ahead to the good parts? The Hunger Games was not one of those books. I hung onto every word and never even thought about skipping pages.

Consumed by the need to read more, it was close to impossible for me to put the books down. Most of the action happened in the first two books, and I loved every bit of it.

Collins invoked emotions in me I didn’t know I could feel for fictional characters.The third book also had action in it, but it seemed harder for me to keep interested.

Though I was slightly bored, I was determined to finish the books and find out what happened to Katniss. Impressed by Collins’ writing, I was prepared for a fantastic ending. But it didn’t come. The ending of the very last book had me disappointed, but I had no regrets.

>>Rowan Allenlisten

The Hunger Games

S E E I T S K I P I TS E E I T S K I P I TS E E I T S K I P I T S E E I T S K I P I TS E E I T S K I P I TS E E I T S K I P I TS E E I T S K I P I TS E E I T S K I P I TS E E I T S K I P I TS E E I T S K I P I T S E E I T S K I P I T

watch

read

Entren Los Que Quieran

The Chronicle-SEE IT“It is good but weird at the same time.”-Rowan Allen

This Means War- SEE IT “This movie was awesome and much better than the pre-views.”-Jessi Guidry

Star wars 3D-SEE IT “Double edged light-saber? I think yes.”-Alex ball

The Woman in Black- SEE IT‘It has Daniel Rad-cliff in it..”-Brandi Chmielewski

One For the Money- SKIP IT“One for the money, two for the show.. really though I give it a two.”-Cristina Codova

Sherlock Holmes 2- SEE IT“More mystery, more action, and more bromance. You can’t go wrong with a Holmes sto-ry. ”-Breana Pauline

Beauty and the Beast 3D- SEE IT“It is like reliving a childhood memory.”-Samantha McCarrell

revolution sports 13

Practice pays off for wrestling teamJessica Guidry

staff writer

The wrestling team placed sixth overall at the county championships among 27 other schools, with senior Chris Saintilien placing third and sophomore Tyler Gilmore plac-ing sixth, on January 27.

This meet marks the near end of the wrestling season as all the practice and hard work of the team pays off.

“Captains have shown a lot of growth in practice and on the mats,” Chevalier said.

One of the captains, senior Pete Zaragoza, felt that it was the coaches who really improved them.

“We got a good coach. He really sticks to us,” Zarago-za said. “Ever since coach stepped up, our cardio has im-proved.”

Chevalier gives much credit to the exercises the team

does for conditioning.“We have a very intense practice,” Chevalier said.

“We’ve been to other schools and noticed their intensity isn’t the same.”

The students at our school often have the misconception that because some of our school’s sports aren’t doing so hot, that all of our other school sports aren’t doing well either. However, there is one sport that is reaching high expectations; the hockey team. With a great record of 13 wins and only 3 losses the hockey team is definitely surprising our school.

“A lot of people don’t even know we have a hockey team,” goalkeeper Thomas Kilker said. “We’re having a lot of success this season, but football always gets all of the recognition.”

It is obvious that the school is trying to help arouse excitement for the games too. Student government (SGA) recently pro-moted a game by hanging up posters and persuading fellow classmates to come out

to the games.“SGA advertised for the hockey team,

because we felt our school tends to lack in spirit when it comes to any other sport be-sides football,” Student government mem-ber Sara Hill said. “We felt that the hockey team, just like the other sports, deserved recognition for their commitment and hard work too.”

The advertising techniques of the stu-dent government seemed to have worked too.

“There were fifteen people at the game we advertised against Wharton, which is a good ten more than the usual,” Hill said. “You could tell the team was appreciative. As an athlete myself, I definitely feel that fan support is a crucial thing to any sport, and they should be able to rely on their school for that motivation.”

The Hockey team has a lot of apprecia-tion for the student government and fans

They score on the ice, but not with fansBrandi Chiemelewski

centerspread editor

To also further their training the team is also planning on doing extra practice session over the summer.

“We get practice while no one else is. We’re also getting to travel,” Chevalier said.

Despite all their hard work there was still some loses.“We lost to Blake who we’ve never lost to before,” Che-

valier said. “Since then we’ve been more self driven.”After a long season of ups and downs, the team placed

6th at districts at Alonso High School on February 4th. Three of the wrestlers advanced, one of them being the first district champion in three years, Chris Saintilien. Re-gionals were held at Brandon High School on February 10th and 11th.

“Chris Saintilien took second,” Chevalier said. “Hope-fully we get a state qualifier so we can keep the tradition of taking people to states each year.”

Their hopes became a reality as Saintilien placed 5th in state tournament on February 17th and 18th.

that show dedication to their team too.“We appreciate the support,” Kilker

said. “It’s nice when we get a little recog-nition and many of the SGA students came out and supported us when we beat Whar-ton, which was great.”

Not only has the team beat Wharton but also many other great teams.

“The competition has been good,” Kilk-er said. “But when we play one of the top teams we step up our game.”

The team has even beaten the top 5 teams in their league by at least three points

every game.“We played Gaither and Sickles, who

were the state champions,”Kilker said.” We were losing 2-0 after the 1st period but rallied with 5 unanswered goals, winning 5-2.”

“Our goal as a team is to win districts and then win states,” Kilker said. “It’d be nice to have some support out there when we do that.”

The boys place sixth in county championship

Hockey team rises in the ranks

J. Guidry/revolution

Freedom wrestler pins down opposing Warrior. The team lost to Steinbrenner 15 to 53 but placed sixth overall in the county cham-pionships.

Left: Freedom Hockey player Budd skates down the ice. Bottom: Kleespies tries to put one in against Wharton. The Patriots beat the Wildcats 7-0

E. Ball/revolution

E. Ball/revolution

sports February 24, 201214

Erin Winickeditor-in-chief

Emily Ballsports editor

For his first season coach Cedric Smith had one goal: to develop his young team to create smarter, stron-ger basketball play-ers. A 7-13 record and three player suspensions was not exactly what Smith had in mind. Despite these set-backs the team was still able to make a strong run in the district playoffs placing second after losing to Chamber-lain.

The impact from the suspensions was felt during the dis-trict run. During the Strawberry Crest game late in the season three players were suspended after an altercation on the court: Michael Keller, Brandon Patchan, and Scott Patchan.

“No punches were landed but Brandon threw a punch that, the rules say, is a level one suspension,” Smith said.

Scott and Keller received level one sus-pensions which prevented them from par-ticipating in two games. Brandon received a

Long road ahead for new coachlevel two suspension preventing him from participating for the rest of the season.

“I think it was just two guys competing and I think it got a little physical,” Smith said. “I think the guy from Strawberry

Crest took a cheap shot at Brandon and Bran-don took offence to it, got up, and reacted.”

Although Scott and Keller were able to return in time for the playoffs, Brandon had to sit the bench.

“We are only as good all of our play-ers playing together. When you have a missing link in the chain, it’s not very strong.”

Brandon led the team with 72 total field goals and 68 de-fensive rebounds.

Although the team did not accom-plish their goal of win-

ning the district title, Smith is still pleased with the progress they have made.

“I think from the beginning of the year to the end of the year we progressively got better,” Smith said. “By the end of the year you could see the guys coming together and playing how you always imagined them playing.”

Strong record not enough

After a season full of injury, the boys soccer team stepped up to win five games in a row during the final games of the regular season, placing themselves in the number one seed for the district tournament.

“The season has been filled with lots of injuries, but whenever we have had our starters on the field we have performed pretty well,” defenseman Bryan Grubbs said.

Forward and midfielder Jett Wright has just returned after an injury

“I missed hanging out with the guys and playing with them,” Wright said. “They were really nice to me and gave me a warm welcome.”

Wright has seen the close bond help the team.“We have come together as a team and bonded,” Wright

said. “Now we are starting to play together. After games and practices we go to Jersey Mikes or Steak N’ Shake to-gether and bond.”

The boys overtook Steinbrenner for the number one seed after Steinbrenner was disqualified for having an

Unfair loss in the regional quarterfinal leaves boys soccer outragedErin Winick

editor-in-chief

After winning districts last year, the girls looked to repeat and advance through regionals. Unfortunately the Lady Patriots (18-11) were stopped by the Steinbrenner Warriors (22-3) in the district finals, losing 51-39. Both teams advanced to the regional playoffs where they both were knocked out in the first round. Freedom lost to Clearwa-ter 41-39 and Steinbrenner lost to St. Peters-burg 42-39.

Every year teams gain and lose players as they (hopefully) graduate. This year the team will lose three crucial seniors Kalea Lake, Shade Williams, and Sarah Decosta.

“Each one of them brings something unique,” said head coach Laurie Pacholke. “I think because of what each one of them brings individually it makes us that much stronger.”

Williams alone had 64 steals and racked up an impressive 82 field goals. Losing the backbone of the team will be hard but it will also be the first year that coach Pachol-

ke has had a group of players since they were freshman.

“They know exactly what is expected. There are no questions.” Pacholke said. “It will be tough to replace them but I am pretty confident in the group that I have that they will step up and take care of busi-ness.”

Among the returning class is Bianca Igwe and Taylor Emery, two emerging freshmen. Igwe, a strong force for the team, lead the girls with 14 blocked shots and 89 rebounds. Emery lead the team with 83 steals, 209 field goals, and an 82% shot ac-curacy.

“All of our freshmen overall made an impact,” Williams said. “Normally you can’t put in three or four freshman on varsi-ty and expect them to do anything but our freshmen actually held their own against seniors from all over the county.”

Although the girls did not accomplish their goal of passing through regionals they had some major accomplishments, beating Jefferson, number two team in the county, 40-38.

Emily Ballsports editor

After a big win in the first round of dis-tricts, the girls soccer team suffered a close loss to Steinbrenner for the district cham-pionship. With a strong winning record of 11-3-2 during the regular season, the girls were knocked out of post season play by ESPN’s number three ranked team in the nation, Lakeland George Jenkins.

Despite the loss in the district champi-onship coach Jenna Ball saw that game as the highlight of the season.

“Even though we didn’t win they left it all on the field and I was just really proud that night to be their coach,” Ball said.

Captain Alyssa Daniello has no regrets

Winter Sports Wrap-UpDespite failure to repeat district title, hopes lie in rising freshman

ineligible player, and consequently dropping to the number six seed. Although they boys lost in the first round of dis-tricts to George Jenkins, they were credited with the win after George Jenkins was disquali-fied for having an ineli-gible player.

“The [player] was in school for five years and were only allowed four,” coach Dennis Derflinger said.

Captain Connor Limburg has seen massive improve-ment since last season.

“It’s like night and day,” Limburg said. “Last year we didn’t play as a team and played pretty poorly and this year we are playing a lot better and beating really good teams.”

Grubbs has also seen improvement.“This season if, we count regular season, we are 10-5-

about how the team played.“They did end up beating us but they

thought they could walk all over us, but we proved them wrong,” Daniello said. “I have never been so proud of our team.”

The girls did have opportunities, but were not able to take advantage of them.

“I feel like we had a lot of chances and we should have won, but we didn’t put away our chances,” sweeper Alessandra Diioia said.

Diioia sees teamwork as the key to reg-ular season success.

“I think we have been doing really good,” Diioia said. “We have been playing good together as a team and we have been winning most of our games.”

For next year’s season, Ball feels a bit more is needed to make it past the first re-gional game.

“We kind of ended up with the same result as we did last season, so I think it shows us that it will take us a little bit of an extra nudge to get us to the next level and not end in the first regional game like we did the past two years,” Ball said.

The final game for the girls was in the first round of regionals and was a 4-0 loss.

“Once we were down a couple goals it was hard, mentally, for us to come back af-ter that,” Ball said.

Even though we ended up losing we had an excellent season and it was just great. The girls played well and I’m just looking forward to rebuilding for next year.”

1,” Grubbs said. “But last year we had a losing record.

Last season the team had a record of 5-6-2 and didn’t make it to the re-gional level.

In addition, a school record was set this season.

“In goal, keeper Nate Brown set a school record with .986 goals against average,” Derflinger said.

After the Wharton tournament, the team went undefeated for the rest of the regular season. The game that started the streak was against Gaith-er.

“The Gaither game where we won 1-0 that was defi-nitely a big confidence booster,” Limburg said.

Around this time injured players began to return, mark-ing the turning point of the season.

Derflinger feels the season met his expectations.“We finished strong, but we started off with lots injuries

on key players,” Derflinger said. “We worked hard and in the end got to regionals quarter finals.”

Guard and point guard Taylor Emery shoots a free throw against Spoto. Emery lead the team with 82 percent shot accuracy and 83 steals.

Outside midfielder Chloe Stokes goes for the ball against Steinbrenner. The game ended in a loss in double overtime.

Junior Brandon Patchen rebounds the ball. This game against Spoto ended in a win 40-27.

E.Ball/revolution

Evan Kruk shields the ball in a game against Wiregrass.

E.Winick/revolution

revolution sports 15

Signing day secures futuresThree athletes participate in National Signing Day as others commit

Cristina Cordovaentertainment editor

The month of February brings many things; groundhogs, chocolate filled hearts and African American history are all a ca-sualty.

Most importantly though, on the first Wednesday of this month, athletes find themselves in a room where they will write down their name, and make a decision that alters their life.

Soccer player Emily Ball verbally com-mitted to the division one school, the Uni-versity of South Carolina, her junior year. Accompanying her in commitment now are football players Larry Thorpe and Kurt Schaller, runner Ashley Smith and cheer-leader Nicole Seybold.

“I have always wanted to go to college in Georgia,” Smith said. “If I didn’t get a scholarship from Augusta State, I would have ended up going to HCC.”

Thorpe and Seybold also plan on leav-

ing the sunshine state. “I am going to the University of Oregon

for Acrobatics and Tumbling,” Seybold said. “It’s a great oppertunity for me. The scenery is so different; there’s mountains everywhere and the campus is just pretty.”

Thorpe had a different reason for leav-ing florida.

“I admire this team, they’re like fam-ily to each other, helping each other out,” Thorpe said. “They dominate and I’m ex-cited to be a part of it.”

Some athletes had the hope of a schol-arship toward the beginning of their high school career.

“I have planned on getting a scholar-ship since freshman year,” Smith said. “My dad let me know about Augusta State and told me I should check them out, and take a visit.”

For Seybold, she didn’t have the oppur-tunity of choosing a college early due to the fact that her sport is brand new.

“Only a couple of schools carry tum-bling,” Seybold said.

“They won the national championships

last year, so I’m glad to be accepted to their team.”

For Thorpe, the start of high school didn’t seem to foreshadow a positive end-ing.

“I have always gotten in trouble in school,” Thorpe said. “Once they threat-ened to suspend me, that is when coach Blount stepped in and told me I should join the football team.”

Though the football team didn’t see the stats they hoped for this year, Thorpe has no regrets and has confidence for the fu-ture.

“I hope to show the coaches what I got,” Thorpe said. “All my hard work will end in pay off.”

Smith hopes to bring the same speed, fun, and laughter that she brought to the freedom track team to Augusta State. As for Seybold, she hopes to bring her positive attitude to Oregon.

“I want to thank all the people and fam-ily that have supported me,” Thorpe said. “If it wasn’t for them I have no idea where I would be right now.”

Over the past three years the football team has had four different head coaches, and next season another will be added to the list, current hope teacher Todd Dono-hoe. Previous head coach Tchecoy Blount understands the recent shift in leadership.

“In the business of coaching it’s all about wins and losses and in my two years of coaching my losses were greater than wins my first year. The first year we went four and six, this season was two and eight,” Blount said. “Whenever you go backwards the administration wants to move forwards; I wanted to move forward as well.”

Although the team was not as success-ful as they hoped on the field, they were

able to make several gains in the class-room. Raising the team GPA closer to a 3.0 and graduating 100 percent of the seniors were two of the team’s achievements that were reached last season. Two other objectives were to compete for and win a district ti-tle and to have a winning record at home games.

“We accom-plished the academic goals but we failed to accomplish our football goals,” Blount said.

Junior Isaac Tanner feels that Blount

strived for his athletes to become well rounded individuals about the prior coach.

“He really cared for his kids and doing what’s best for us and putting us in the best position,” Tanner said.

Sophomore Andre Folkes agrees.

“He cared a lot about the team and the players. He wanted us to succeed off the field as much as on the field.” Folkes said. Even with a new coach-ing staff Blount hopes

for his teachings to stay with each player. “Football is a sport and you play the

game to have fun, it’s also a sport that demands respect and discipline,” Blount

Forrest Canadaystaff writer

Another year, another coachBlount leaves his post satisfied with academic improvements

Top: Kurt Schaller blockes out against Durant. Freedom lost to the Cougars 36-0. Bottom: Nicole Seybold is honored on senior night with her parents. As captain, Seybold lead tohe team to place first at Western Conference.

said.Although the future of the team is still

unknown, coaches and athletes alike are hoping for a positive outcome. Senior Kurt Schaller shares this optimism for returning players

“I see the future getting brighter,” Schaller said. Blount believes that regard-less of who the new coach may be, the team will be successful in their endeavours. “The next coach at Freedom will inherit a good team of athletes,” Blount said. “If ev-erybody stays together and the kids don’t transfer out it will be an excellent team.”

Blount still sees himself coaching later in his career despite his recent departure from the squad.

“I’m a teacher first so that’s what I got into first, coaching to me is also teaching,” Blount said. “I plan on coaching this spring. It won’t be at Freedom but I will be coach-ing.”

4,135 minutes played261 saves29 goals against

93 recieving yards

31 yards per catch

81 total tackles

11.6 tackles per game4 punt returns for 33 yards

40 punts for 1,678 yards

averaged 41.95 yards per punt

1600 Meter Run 5:34.37Three Mile Run 19:28.40400 Meter Dash 1:05.485000 Meter Run 20:02.04800 Meter Run 2:27.80

8th place in districts

11th in regionals

67th at states

Larry Thorpe’s career stats: Ashley Smith’s personal best:

Emily Ball’s carrer stats

0.56 goals against average36 shutouts69 shutout percentage

etc. February 24, 201216

classroom confidential

2.0Where is room 101 located?

a. b. c.d.

main office above the football field in the gym at the softball fields

Where did Principal Sheppard work last?

a. b. c.d.

Wharton Liberty Plant Chiles

2

Do you need a license to drive a tractor in agriculture?

a. b. c.d.

yes no if you’re under 18 only on Wednesdays

3

What is the newspaper website?a. b. c.d.

freedomnewspaper.com revolution.com revolutionfhs.com fhsrevolution.com

4

When was the bulletin board outside the cafeteria last updated?a. b. c.d.

Februay 2012 January 2009 August 2008 August 2011

5

What department has the most teachers?a. b. c.d.

Math English Social Studies General

6

March 2012

31 2

11

211

14 6 8 105 7 9

11

211

11

11 17

11111118 20 22 2419 21 23

11

11

111

25 27 29 3126 28 30

Baseball & Softball vs Wharton

Home, 7:00 PM

Track: Steinbrenner Invite at USF

Chorus Honors Concert

OrchestraMPAs

Baseball & Softball vs

SteinbrennerHome, 7:00 PM

Track CountyQualifiers

Flag Footballvs Lennard

Home, 7:30 PM

Spring Break

Flag Footballvs Gaither

Home, 7:30 PM

15141312

1. b 2. a 3. b 4. c 5. c 6. b

Talent Show

End of Grading Period

16

1

l.wasserman/revolution

Want more updates throughout the month in between issues?Follow us on Twitter: @RevolutionFHS

Like us on Facebook: Revolution Media Group