by Cody FosterReporter

With the help of the referendum money that passed just last year, Southport will soon be undergoing construction po-tentially beginning in the fall of 2012. Of the 50 million dol-lars granted to Perry Township, Southport will be granted 24 million for the construction of a new building and renovations within the school.

The construction plan will include a new building for the blended learning school, as well as various renovations with-in the school including a new cafeteria, media center and sci-ence hallway. Because construction will be going on during the school year, according to Principal Barbara Brouwer, Southport may be a little hectic for the next few years.

“It’s going to be a mess,” Brouwer said, “We may have to move classrooms two or three times within the same year.”

All construction plans are still tentative, so administrators are still unsure exactly what is going to be done to ensure fluid-ity during the school day. Although they hope to go without it, Associate Superintendent Dr. Frank Giles says the use of trailers or other out-of-school learning facilities is a possibility.

“(In years past) we took these four classrooms and worked on them, and then moved them back and worked on the next four classrooms,” Giles said, “So could they (outdoor modules) be used? Possibly. ”

Of course, no heavy construction will be done during school hours, but rather over the summers leading up to and follow-ing the 2013 school year. The heavier construction can also be done during the two-week breaks that will be featured starting next year with the balanced calendar schedule that was recently approved.

“We get the heavy construction done in the summer, so that they could move to the inside and (teachers) could shut the door and they could still work next door,” Giles said.

Another potential problem with construction during school hours is hallway traffic. One goal of the reconstruction is to wid-en congested hallways, but to do this these hallways will need to be temporarily shut down. This could cause for some wacky routes to classrooms, which could possibly involve exiting the building.

“My guess is that there would be some class interruption throughout the day. What we will probably try to do is isolate a wing at a time, do all construction there and then go to another part of the building,” Giles said.

Overall, renovations within the school will cause some prob-lems, but Brouwer and Giles are both confident that these issues can be solved and that Southport will be able to run smoothly during the period of construction.

JOURNAL March 2, 2012 Issue 10, Volume XC Southport High School 971 East Banta Road Indianapolis, IN 46227

{newsBRIEFS}Local: Senate to vote for smoking ban

The Indiana State Senate will be considering a pro-posal to strengthen and perhaps even weaken the new statewide smoking ban on Tues., March 28. Last Wednes-day the Senate Committee on Public Policy voted in favor of the smoking ban. The House had been passing the legislation for five years previous to this, to have the bill be killed by the Senate.

The smoking ban would ban the smoking in all public places except gaming facilities, cigar or hookah bars, retail tobacco stores, private clubs and fraternal organiza-tions.

Ron Alting the bill’s sponsor said that even though the Senate is “in uncharted waters,” some sort of ban is likely to pass.

Information from www.nytimes.com

On Monday Feb. 27, a shooting occurred at a high school in Chardon, Ohio. Police reported that the gunman, opened fire with a handgun in the school cafeteria at 7:40 a.m. An adult had forced the gunman outside where he was taken into custody by the police. T.J. Lane is the suspected gunman.

Although no charges have been pressed yet, there were five victims from the shooting. They were found in three separate locations, four were injured and one was pronounced dead at the scene. The injured students were hospitalized, but another two victims died on Tues. morn-ing.

Danny Komertz, a student at the high school, claimed that Lane had specifically sought out the victims.

Information from www.indystar.com

Despite the accustomed bad news that has been com-ing from Pakistan, word of the country’s first Academy Award is celebrated by its people.

During the awards this past Sunday, filmmakers Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy and Daniel Junge received the award for best short documentary for their film, “Saving Face.” The documentary follows a British plastic surgeon who has the gruesome task of helping heal women that are victims of acid attacks.

Obaid-Chinoy has previous experience in the docu-mentary field, but this is her first Oscar win.

Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, stated that Obaid-Chinoy would be given a “high civil award” for her success.

News Briefs by Casey Smith, Katie Hinh and Rachael Samm

Global: Pakistani filmmakers win bigNational: School shooting leaves 3 dead

Get an insight to a day at Southport. Page 10the Read the points of view of Stotan participants. Page 12

Information from www.cnn.com

TransformingSouthport

Major school construction to begin next fall

{deconstructingthePLAN}

Over the course of

the next few years, Southport High School will be heavily renovated. With new classrooms and a differ-ent layout, the new blueprint can be overwhelming. Here is a quick guide to the building plan.

{buildingRENOVATIONS}

The construction will start the summer of 2012-2013 and continue over the next few years.

Time of Construction

2012-2014 Of the $50 million

given to Perry Township, South-

port High School will be using $24 million for the cost of renovations. That is 48% of the total budget.

{analyzingtheBLUEPRINT} The building plans will affect many aspects of the school. Some of the big changes are:

-Blended Learning Center-Music classes moving to 400’s-Widening of select corridors-Addition of many classrooms

Graphic by Corey Mills.Illustration by Danielle Bertram.

by Marie PrevostReporter

When Southport was originally built, the layout for the science rooms were a good idea. Class and lecture in the front half of the class and lab tables in the back for experiments. However, class sizes are bigger now than they were when Southport was originally built, so the lab area is now impeding onto viable table area. With the current projected blue prints, though, a creative plan is being put in place to fix this problem.

On the most recent blue prints the new science classrooms, which are projected to be located where the math rooms are currently located, are called ‘general’ class-rooms. The ideas for these rooms are that each room could potentially be a science, math, or English room.

“We’re building a flexible environment,” principal Ms. Barbara Brouwer said. “We’re not building science rooms that look dif-ferent from math rooms that look different from social studies rooms. We’re building classrooms and then we’ll adapt the class-room to whatever subject and department is in there.”

To make up for the lack of lab space within the classroom, Brouwer would like to have a separate room solely for lab space for the science class. On the current projected blue prints, the school is de-signed to have the general classrooms sur-rounding the lab space area, with windows so those in the class room can look into the

lab space, and those in the lab space can see into their class-room.

“The lab space is just going to be phe-nomenal,” Brouwer said. “Part of it (the lab space) being in (what was) the court-yard area is we’ll have classrooms surround-ing it, looking into the labs.”

The science depart-ment isn’t the only department looking forward to a venue change. The music department, which is currently located right outside of the auditorium, is project-ed to have a big move of its own.

Currently, march-ing band students have to walk through the hallways to get to their practice space during their march-ing season. However, with the new building plans this won’t be a problem. The build-ing plans, although still subject to change, have the entire music hallway where the 400s hallway currently is. This means

doors from the band room straight to the west parking lot. This move isn’t just for doors out to the park-ing lot, however. This move for

the music department also means more classroom and storage space.

“(A move for the music department) means a lot more space; a lot more stage space.” Principal Barbara Brouwer said.

The main theme for the additions to the music wing is more space. From office space to new practice rooms, these new plans allow for the music department to

function under better conditions. The rooms would be built to enhance sound and the over-all playing environment for students.

Although these building plans won’t be 100 percent certain until the last hammer falls, Brouwer has high hopes for the end result this music wing switch will bring.

March 2, 20122 News

by Ashlyn BridgewaterReporter

A modified block schedule was recently proposed. With a split decision, the new schedule suggestion will not go into effect for the next school year. Even though the schedule was not pushed for the upcoming year, this does not mean that the change is ruled out for future school years.

“We talked to all the teachers in the building and we’re about fifty-fifty on the split so I’m not going to push for it next year,” principal Ms. Barbara Brouwer said.

If the schedule is enforced at a later time, students will be looking at a three day rotation where classes meet for roughly 70 minutes. The days would consist of seven classes, five of which meet every day. This leaves an extra block by the end of the week. This extra class will be called “ipass.” Teachers would be able to write students passes to make up class work or tests and students will be able to leave during this period. Passes will be given at the first half of the block and then the second half.

“We (the science department) were fans of the proposed schedule because it would

allow us more time for labs ... which was a big benefit,” science teacher Mr. Chris Finkhouse said.

This modified block schedule is as close to the regular block schedule that the school can get without spending an exces-sive amount of money. Going back to a normal block schedule would mean bring-ing back nine teachers, which would raise expenses.

“Most of them (teachers) said that there are so many changes for next year, with their evaluation system and the new com-pensation model and the building construc-tion that they just didn’t want one more change. Plus they said many students have seen schedule changes and it’d be nice to have the same schedule,” Brouwer said.

Brouwer is still hopeful about the sched-ule though. After renovations and other changes to the school are made, she feels that the possibility of switching schedules will be stronger. But since teachers did not decide to switch to this proposed schedule, the school will stay with the traditional eight period days that it is currently at.

“I’ve been here for five years and since I’ve been here we’ve changed the schedule three times. I can understand wanting more

stability,” Finkhouse said.Even though Brouwer is not recommend-

ing that the school switches, the final deci-sion is up to Mr. Robert Bohannon. Accord-ing to Bohannon though, he has decided

that Southport will not switch schedules next year. There is a possibility that the idea will later be revisited after other changes to the school have slowed down.

Eight-period days to remain for next school year

Changing: Referendum money used to renovate areas of SHS

{cardinalFEEDBACK} Students and staff were informed of the upcoming building renovations and were asked one of the following questions:1. What renovations are you looking for-ward to?2. What are you dreading about construc-tion going on during the school day?3. What would you have built for the school?

1. “I’m exctied be-cause classes will be easier online.” (When talking about the blended learning center) - Sophomore Noah Knuteson

Above are the blueprints of the math hallway, which is planned to become the science hallway in the fu-ture. These blueprints can possibly change in the future. Illustrations by Kristen Clardy.

2. “There’s going to be a lot more traffic in the hallways. So if hallways get blocked off then you’ll have to go straight to class instead of stopping talking to friends. “- Sophomore Bailey Brothers

3. “Our restrooms and hallways need to be larger.” -Mr. Anthony Per-nell, Art Teacher

Other projects to be beneficial to students

{rejectedSCHEDULE}Block/ Day

1

2

3

4

5

Minutes

70

70

76

105

70

Time

7:25 - 8:35

8:41 - 9:51

9:57 - 11:13

11:19 - 1:04

1:10 - 2:20

Red

1

2

IPASS

5

6

White

2

3

4

6

7

Black

1

3

4

5

7

by Marie PrevostReporter

When construction starts, the projected starting place is the media center. The reasoning behind this is to add more classrooms there so teachers have a place to go when their classrooms are under construction. The current media center is projected to become an area filled with classrooms, while the new media center is going to be downsized. Prin-cipal Barbara Brouwer said that reference books are going to be cut back because students don’t have a large use for them.

“You guys don’t use reference books, and you shouldn’t. In my day in time we had to look at maps and atlases in a book. Those (reference books) are all obsolete now,” Brou-wer said. “When you reference things you’re going to refer-ence things on your phone, on your computer. There’s no need for that many reference books.”

Along with Refernence books, Fiction and Non-fiction books alike are going to be scaled down in quantity to al-leviate space being used, to allow for more work areas for classes working on projects.

“We think we can downsize the amount of reading mate-rial because so many students are going to some form of

electronic books. We still want to have books in the media center, but we don’t think we need the size of the collection we have now,” Brouwer said. “We still want to create spaces for teachers to bring classes in to work on projects and things like that.”

While the media center is being downsized, there is another part of Southport that is getting a new addition. Southport is looking to add in a new academy called the blended learning academy. This academy would be open only to juniors and seniors, and would allow those students to not only design their own schedule, but possibly take online classes as well.

“We want to create an area where you students can go and have access to computers, each other, study skills, study guides, and teachers (who can) visit there.” Brouwer said.

This will be an area added on behind where the current PLATO labs are. It would be an area open to students who are taking online, or blended learning, classes to come and work on assignments during that class period every day.

“We have small classrooms there to keep it separate from the rest of the building,” Brouwer said. “We will gate that area off from the rest of the school and we hope to keep it open late into the evening so kids can stay. We want to cre-ate a pre-college environment for students.”

March 2, 2012 3Foreign Language

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The following stories are in Chin and Spanish. For the English translations of the stories, visit www.shsnewsbureau.com.

by Paola PadillaReportera

Durante los últimos años pasados South-port ha intentado usar diferentes tipos de horarios. Para el siguiente año escolar la Principal la Sra. Barbara Brouwer esperaba que tuviéramos un nuevo horario. Brouwer dijo que el horario puede parecer un poco confuso.

En vez de tener todas las clases en un solo día, las clases serían divididas. Cada estudiante tendría cinco clases, cada uno aproximadamente 70 minutos. Habría un día rojo, blanco y negro según Brouwer. Los estudiantes tendrían sus clases dos veces cada tres días. Esto significaría que habría 14 clases en total y un período extra. Este período extra sería llamado IPASS, similar a un pasillo de estudio. Para el próximo año escolar seguiremos en el horario de ocho clases. En la escuela, los profesores tuvieron la oportunidad de decidir si aceptaban el horario o negado.

“Era mita y mitad la decisión”, dijo Brou-wer.

Aunqué votaron los maestro, la decisión de seguir con el mismo horario fue tomada por PTEC.

Brouwer también dijo que muchos profesores pensaron que ya había muchos cambios durante el próximo año y hacer otro cambio sería demasiado.

Junior Viridiana Tajonar dijo que a ella no le importa porque podría tener más tiempo para estudiar, pero realmente no le gusta la idea de estar en la clase durante 70 minutos. Aunque las clases fueran largas esto le ayudaría a conseguir mejores gra-dos.

“Me gusta la idea de tener tiempo extra para estudiar, pero no demasiado,” Tajonar dijo.

Tajonar dijo que esto le ayudaría a estudiantes que no estudian mucho, pero dijo que esto no haría tal diferencia para

aquellos que ya estudian y tienen grados buenos.

La Profesora de comercial Sra. Courtney Worley dijo que le gusta la idea de tener clases de bloque en vez de tener el mismo horario tradicional de Southport. Ella dijo que las clases que ella enseña basan en proyectos que requieren tiempo.

Worley también dijo que de esta manera los estudiantes terminarían proyectos durante el período de un día no un período de dos días. Ella también dijo que así ellos tienen más tiempo para hacer realmente el trabajo en vez de escuchar para instruc-ciones.

“Todo lo que hago es proyectos, entonces sería agradable para los estudiantes comen-zar y terminar un proyecto en un período de clase,’ dijo Worley.

El Sr. David Collier en la otra mano no cree completamente que esto sea la mejor manera de ir. Collier dijo que había tres causas principales en que él no concordó con el horario. La primera razón consistía en que la el horario sería confuso para los estudiantes para entender.

“No me gusta ver a mis estudiantes cada dos días, prefiero verlos cada día,” dijo Col-lier.

Finalmente, los horarios incluirían que los maestros tendrían un día sin un período para hacer preparaciones. Collier dijo que esto sería difícil para profesores que tienen planes de estudios suplementarios después de la escuela.

Junior Elora Frias dice que le gusta el horario, pero lo único que le preocupa es la cantidad de tiempo que cada clase es. Ella dijo que a ella no le gusta estar demasiado tiempo en una misma clase.

Aunque no todos están demasiado contentos con el horario todavía hay una posibilidad alta que pase para el año escolar del 2012-2013. La respuesta para esta pregunta todavía no es conocida según Brouwer pero pronto será conocida.

El nuevo horario de tres días para el año escolar 2012-2013 rechazado

by Biak Chin ParThawngthanhtu

Siangngakchia tam deuh nih cun nikum ah Perry Township nih referendum an awng mi kha nan philh rih lai lo. Mah referendum in khan Perry Township nih million 50 a hmuh i million 24 hi South-port sianginn pi remh nak caah a pek. Sayamah ci, Ms. Barbara Brouwer nih a chim ning ah cun sianginn construction (remh ding) cu a ra lai mi sianginn kai kum 2012, first semester in an thawk lai a ti.

A tu hnu kum thum hnu ah cun, a thar in an remh than mi nih hin Southport cu a dang tuk ah a cang ter te lai. A bia pi bik in remh an timh hnik mi cu cafeteria, music le science department. Cu lawng si rih lo in inn thar zong sak hnik an i tim.

Mah innthar an sak hnik mi cu Blended Learning Academic caah a si lai. Mah pro-gram hi a thar in tuah hnik an i timh mi a si. Mah program hi tang hlei khat le hlei hnih ca lawng ah a si lai. Siangngakchia pawl college style ban tuk in ca chimh nak hmun a si lai. Siangngakchia pakhat nih a mah te in ca ka tuah (self-study) khawh lai a ti ah cun, mah Blended ca cawn nak ah hin a mah te in a cawn kho a bia na bia ah siangngakchia pakhat nih online ah ca a cawn ban tuk he a lo lai. Class saya he lak a herh mi lawng a kai lai i mah hnu cu a mah te in mah building ah hin a um kho. Mah building ah hin rawl ei nak zong a dang te in a um lai. Cu lawng si rih lo in college ban tuk in saya te zong nih office hour (ca hal nak cawn) an ngei ve lai i siangngakchia nih hal khawh an si ve te lai.

Cafeteria zong hi a dang dih te lai hmailei ah cun. Cafeteria chung ah rest-room (zun zung nak) a um cang lai. Mah restroom an tuah hnawh nak chan cu siangngakchia pawl cafeteria kal tak lo in restroom an kal khawh nak hnga caah a

si. Cu lawng si rih lo in cafeteria lut nak kut ka (exist) tam deuh in a um cang lai. A ruang cu hallway ah siangngakchia an tam tuk ti nak hnga lo caah a si.

“Cafeteria ah puai kan tuah fa te a hmui tuk caah thlalang tam deuh in kan chiah cang lai i a ceu mi tam deuh a lut kho cang lai,” tiah Brouwer nih a ti.

Brouwer nih a chim rih mi cu music department dih lak hi kan remh dih lai a ti. Zeicaah ti ah cun siangngakchia pawl music instrument (thil ri) pawl le re-hearsal tuah nak caah a khan kua deuh an herh a ti. Mah lawng si rih lo in science khan pawl zong hi a tu math hallway ah hin thial hnik an timh. A ruang cu science khan hi a tu lio department dang khan pawl he i lo ding in an tuah hnik. A si na in siangngakchia caah lab tuah nak khan ngan pi tuah hnik an i tim. Mah khan ah cun siangngakchia vialte nih lab an tuah kho cang lai.

“A tha tuk te lai,” tiah Brouwer nih a ti,”a si na in sianginn tu cu a buai bai tuk ve te lai, inn remh pah le sak pah he cun.”

Associate Superintendent Dr. Frank Giles nih a ti ve mi cu a cheu hallway cu an kar (block) te lai inn remh pah he cun. Mah caah cun siangngakchia caah khan khat le khan khat kal a har pah te lai a ti.

Brouwer le Giles nih an ti ve ve mi cu siangngakchia safety caah cun thin phang ding a um lai lo an ti. Zeicaah ti ah cun a bia pi mi construction (remh ding mi) pawl cu summer le sianginn kar ah tuah a si lai. An pahnih chim ning ah cun, mah construction pi hi 2014 a si lo le 2015 ah cun an dih te lai an ti.

“Mah construction pi a dih ah cun, sianginn hi a dawh tuk te lai,” tiah Brou-wer nih a ti.

“Mah construction pi kan vung sak cuah mah in, zei tluk in dah siangngak-chia pawl caah a that lai hi kan hmuh tluah mah te lai,” tiah Giles nih a ti chap ve.

Southport a thlen hnik cuah mah cang

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Is your fantasy Role-Playing Game (aka RPG) missing the fast-paced action you find in other game genres? Well, no more will you have to settle for subpar gameplay in your RPG experiences. “Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning” is your typical fantasy RPG that dares to be different. “Reckoning” offers a story-driven experience along with a fast-paced and action-packed combat system.

“Reckonings” story was probably my favorite part of the game aside from the combat. Players create their character in the beginning of the game, just like a majority of RPGs you see today. Players choose from four distinct races, each with its own benefits.

Your character begins his or her story by waking up in a pile of rotting corpses. As you can imagine, this immediately caught my attention. I quickly learned that my character was brought back to life by The Well of Souls. I was tasked to find Fomorous Hugues, the creator of The Well of Souls. This was not going to be an easy task, though, because The Well of Souls is under attack by an enemy force known as the Tuatha. After a few more encounters with the Well’s Assailants, the player will find Hugues. Unfortunately, the reunion is short-lived because the tower is crumbling from the attackers. Hugues tells me that my memory died with my original

body, and that I must escape, because the Tuatha are after me. The player is again tasked with finding someone, this time a man named Agarth, who is

a Fateweaver. Amalur is a world governed by

fate- everything that happens is predetermined. Once I found Agarth, he was astonished to learn that the character is fateless. This means that the character has no select path in the world of Amalur and the character has the ability to change the way the world was supposed to work. During the rest of the main quest line, players gather allies to battle the Tuatha and change the ill fate that was supposed to befall Amalur. The main quest is jam-packed with action, awe-inspiring cut scenes and some intriguing plot twists.

Along with the main quest line, “Reckoning” gives players a wide range of side quests to partake in.

The world of Amalur is vast and varied. The environments go from lush jungles to velvet canyons and mossy swamps. The graphics are stylized and gorgeous, and my only complaint is that the character models could use some improvements.

Combat and character development is where “Reckoning” truly shines. You can choose to play the expected RPG archetypes (the warrior, the mage and the

thief ) or you can mix and match the play styles. “Reckoning” offers the player the ability to change these play styles at will, which is a nice way to encourage experimentation.

Every time your character levels up, you can put points into a variety of skills and abilities.

Along with abilities, “Reckoning” has an amazing variety of weapons to play with. Combat was by far my favorite part of this game it is quick and brutal. The controls are easy to learn and the variety of enemy types makes combat fun, fluid and very versatile. There is a combat feature is called “Reckoning Mode,” that when activated the characters’ damage output is increased dramatically. Your

character can also perform brutal finishers on the opponents during this mode.

With the gaming industry surviving on sequels and reboots of existing franchises, it is always nice to have a change of pace. “Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning” abandons the lackluster combat common to RPGs for a fast-paced and brutal combat system, while at the same time delivering a story-driven experience,

As a disclaimer, I have never really been a listener of country music. That being said, “Home,” by Dierks Bentley is exactly what I expected from the genre and this artist. The cute, dark-haired country singer graces the cover in country style-- extremely casual clothing and a baseball cap with a bar’s name inscribed across the front. Yet, I was willing to come into it with an open mind.

The album opens with the song “Am I the Only One,” the answer to his question is no. In fact, I think there are many people out there who do want to get it on and have fun. Of course, he must have pretty respectable friends to not want to go out and party when they’re settled down. To get to the point, the lyricism was nothing to brag about. He did tell a thorough story of his wants to “throw down” and find a girl with a “rock n’ roll booty.” This song epitomizes a large part of the “young and fun” country.

The country ballad and title track “Home” was a favorite of mine for all of the raw emotion from the singer’s voice and instrumentation. After that heartfelt song, Bentley dives into a song about how buying a girl a big diamond ring will get you a wife and eventually babies. It was one of many songs that kept me engaged and listening close to stories.

Musically, the whole album is what I expected from the artist. What I found interesting were the electric guitar riffs that were thrown in to switch things up. Switching them from what I thought was the norm in country at least. Gladly, the album pleasantly surprised me. Bentley’s deep and country twang filled voice delves into different depths of emotion and tone that made the storytelling feel real. This gave the album the soul to ensure that all of the songs were unique.

To me, this was solid, very country and really overall good album that someone, who isn’t even a big fan of the genre, will keep on their Ipod.

March 2, 20124 Reviews

by Gabe Allen Reporter

When I first picked up the book “Oath of Office” by Mi-chael Palmer, I thought that it was going to be another typi-cal “find-the-killer-and-get-the-girl” book. However, I could tell that I was wrong as soon as I read the first chapter. This book is so much better than any typical mystery book.

“Oath of Office” began by telling the story of the break-down and killing spree of a doctor, from that doctor’s point of view. Even from the start I could tell that something was off about the breakdown. I was proven correct when the doc-tor’s friend, Doctor Lou Welcome, began to investigate the killing and found more and more reasons that the circum-stances didn’t make sense. However, I really became inter-ested in the story when it was revealed that Doctor Welcome had stumbled across a secret people were willing to kill to keep. It then became a race against time to get to the bottom of the secrets and reveal them so they could be stopped.

I am not a big fan of thrilling mystery novels, but this one was legitimately thrilling. There were multiple plots going on and I found myself wanting to learn how they would con-verge as the story progressed even further. Each violent turn surprised me. The word choice and phrasing of sentences were not complicated and made this an easy, enjoyable read.

This book is not Michael Palmer’s first book and though I’ve never read any of his other books, this one definitely makes me want to check out the rest of them. “Oath of Of-fice” was a really good book. The ending was pretty predict-able, but the unexpected events leading up to it were more than enough to make up for it. I just have to say that I’m glad I’m not very squeamish. There were some moments that make me recommend that people easily disturbed by death and gore do not read this book. However, everybody else should go out and get this book. It’s worth the time and money it takes to buy it.

by Casey Smith Entertainment Editor

by Cara Hinh Reporter

by Stefanie Maier Reporter

‘Home’ Dierks Bentley’s

‘The Vow’ Michael Sucsy’s Michael Palmer’s

Can you imagine what it would be like to wake up and forget the last five years of your life? Even after you’re happily married and living your dreams, what would it be like to lose total memory of all those things?

The movie “The Vow,” brings this true story to the big screen. Events in the movie depict actual occurrences of the lives of Leo and Paige Collins (Channing Tatum and Rachael McAdams) after a devastating car accident that left Paige with memory loss. The main plot of the movie surrounds the struggle between the once happily mar-ried couple. Paige can remember her ex-fiance, but is left with no memory of Leo at all,. This in turn makes it all the harder for Leo to get Paige to fall in love with him again.

One of the cool things about this movie is how real it is. The car accident on a brisk November evening in 1993 really did forever change the lives of Kim and Krickitt Car-penter. It was a miracle that Kim lived, and an even bigger one that she fell in love with her husband again.

In my opinion, I thought the movie was okay. It wasn’t painfully long or hard to follow, and the story plot was very unique and interesting. The acting was up to par and naturally, what girl wouldn’t want to stare at Channing Tatum for an hour and a half?

However, there were a few downsides. I’ll have to admit, this movie happens to be just plain depressing. The roller coaster that Leo and Paige ride through is sad, giving the entirety of the movie the same depressing effect. You have to keep in mind though that this movie is depicting true events, so there isn’t much that could be changed without ruining the actual story plot.

Overall, “The Vow” was a pretty decent movie. If you’re willing to wait out the movie theater lines and experience some minor sadness, I would definitely recommend this movie.

{volumeX}

‘Oath of Office’

by Clara Leslie

{nowPLAYING}‘Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning’ is an adventure that is more than a typical RPG

{comingSOON}

Mar.2THE LORAX Starring: Zac Efron & Taylor Swift

13ONE DIRECTION

Up All Night

Mar.

Mar.6SIMS 3: SHOWTIMEFor: Windows & Mac

11Mar.MARIO PARTY 9For: Wii

6Mar.THE MAGIC

By: Rhonda Byrne

March 2, 2012 5Entertainment

by Gabe AllenReporter

Imagine sitting down at the table with the soon to be in-laws, at a dinner soirée and then out of nowhere a dinner guest is thrown to the floor. That is exactly what happens in the spring show “You Can’t Take It with You.”

The overlying theme of the play is about living life for hap-piness and not personal gain. It has been performed in theaters all over the world, since it de-buted in 1936. This play has truly stood the test of time.

This play takes place in the 1930s. The world was a different place then because we didn’t have the spoils of the technology we have now. There was no internet, no Facebook and no cell phones, but not everything paled in comparison to cur-rent times. At the end of the roaring ‘20s, America was in a recession that carried over into the 1930s. Senior Nick Andre, who has the role of Tony, believes this similarity can make this play even more relatable to the current audience.

“The ‘30s was definitely a very differ-ent time and it’s pretty interesting to go through the script and see the differences from then and now,” Andre said. “It’s cool to get into a character from that time.”

Ms. Barbara Whitlock the spring show director believes even though the play is

over 70 years old the moral of the story still resonates with a mod-ern audience.

“The title of the show basically says it. That you can’t take it with you, meaning money and so you should live your life based on happiness,

not greed, money [or] power. You should do what you want to be happy,” Whitlock said.

The idea that money can’t make you happy is shown throughout the main plot line of the show through Alice Sycamore, and her marital situation. Alice doesn’t come from your ev-eryday family. Her Grandpa Vanderhof is the tax-evading patriarch, and his daughter

Penny writes erotic plays. The Sycamores philosophy is that you should live life to be happy, and they care little for money.

Tony Kirby is the young son of Mr. and Mrs. Kirby. The Kirby family is very wealthy. Tony’s parents believe that money is the key to happiness, but Tony on the other hand feels that the Sycamore way of life is more agreeable.

Tony and Alice are soon to be be-trothed, so Alice sets up a dinner for the two families. Oddly the Kirby’s accidently arrive early, and the result is a spectacle of embarrassing moments that end up caus-

ing Mr. and Mrs. Kirby to leave, demand-ing Tony comes with them but Tony refuses. Before the situation can progress though the house is overrun by fed-eral agents and everyone is ar-rested. Though the situation is serious, the show is a

comedy with fun serious moments that sets the show

apart from other shows.Southport’s production of “You Can’t

Take It With You” supports a smaller cast than other plays performed here. Senior Gena Clayton, who has the role of Alice, believes this makes the play proceed in a smooth manner.

“This year there is a small cast ... It is really fun with a big cast and all, but I feel like there is a better connection with a small cast.” Clayton said.

“You Can’t Take It With You” is different from other plays performed at Southport. “Night of the Living Dead” and “Get Smart” each can be considered entertaining, but these two plays lack a moral that this play has. co stage managers and seniors Becky Camp and Anna Clark believe that this show will connect with audiences because of the message and not just because it’s a comedy. Camp believes that the audience will leave the theater with more of an understanding of the plays message.

“Even though they don’t know about it, I think when they see it they will be sur-

prised by what they get out of it.” Camp said.

Clark believes this play will make the audience think and that there is a moral hidden in the comedy.

“I definitely like the show. I think there is more of a message than any real show that we’ve had before.” Clark said.

Happiness or monetary satisfaction, fun or wealth, dreams or selfish ambition are the choices life gives us. Live your life to be happy and not for personal gain: this is the lesson that “You Can’t Take It With You” teaches. It’s a moral that the audiences will relate to even 70 years from now because it will continue to stand the test of time.

{fromWHEN?}

Top: Sophomores Tyler Buckles (FBI agent) and Dalton Clouse (Donald) look toward the chaos that ensues in the Vanderhof home. Middle left to right: Senior Nick Andre (Tony) looks on as seniors Ryan Raftery (Mr. Kirby) and George Blankenbaker (Kolenkhov) have a small wrestling match during dinner. Junior Jaime Robbins (Essie) and Blankenbaker watch as their home is overrun by FBI agents. Senior Matt Lytle (Grandpa Vanderhof) sits in his character’s favorite arm chair. Bottom left to right: junior Julia Dembroski (Gay Wellington) passes out on the dining room table after a lifetime of drinking. Sophomore Alex Myers (Ed) stares toward show director Ms. Barbara Whitlock. Photos by Jesse Roller.

Universal message portrayed in show

These household objects are on the set of “You Can’t Take It With You” and make for interesting pieces of the set. Can you tell which objects belong in the 1930s?

It With You You Can’t Take

b.b.

1. Phone? 2. Calculator? 3. Music Player?

Answers: 1. a., 2. b., 3.b.

{showINFO}March 9th

March 10th

March 11th Tickets are $5.00 and can be purchased at the door.

7:00 p.m.

7:00 p.m.

2:30 p.m.

b. a. b.b.

{castLIST}

Alice Grandpa

Penny

Paul

Henderson

Essie

Ed Mr. De Pinna

Tony

Rheba

Donald

KolenkhovGay WellingtonMr. Kirby Mrs. Kirby FBI Agents

Cara HinhJaime RobbinsRobyn Garmon Westin Faulkner Louis Gregory

Alex MyersDalton Clouse

Matt LytleGena Clayton

Dan Arndt Nick Andre

George Blankenbaker Julia Dembroski

Ryan Raftery Emmalee Dixon

Ashlyn Sears, Lily Freese, Ty-ler Buckles, Nathan Taylor, Darrell Wade

a. a.

Seniors Anna Clark and Taylor Straub work on the set for the show. Photo by Cara Hinh

In Order of Appearance...

Imagine being on the other side of the language barrier-how it would feel to be sur-rounded by people who didn’t understand. My task was to experience this. I walked into the classroom and sat down in the back in order to observe. The class, a small group of only eight students, is learning vocabu-lary. The word ‘donate’ was spelled out on the smart board. It was just like any other foreign language class, except the language they were learning was English.

Mrs. Marsha Manning, along with transla-tor Mr. Uje Ru, teach the newcomer English Learner class here at Southport. The kids have only been here a few months and know little-to-no English. All of the kids speak Burmese, and all but one speaks at least one of four dialects of the Chin language: Falam, Zophei, Hakha or Matu Chin. Manning dictates what she wants to be said or writes on the smart board and Ru translates to the class so they understand the directions. Some have had formal schooling before, and some have not.

Grammar is taught step-by-step through a workbook, very similar to what one would see in any other foreign lan-guage class. It reminded me of when I took Spanish and how abso-lutely overwhelmed I was when the teacher wouldn’t speak any English. They learn sen-tence structure, like how to turn a statement into a question- “This is a full plate.” “Is this a full plate?” The students are very involved and are occasionally called up to write something on the board.

“The smart board is a challenge,” Manning said. “They’re not used to the technology.”

There are some very obvious cultural dif-ferences. For example, when Manning asked when the appropriate time to use an umbrella would be, a Chin student said that you should use one when it’s hot. If you were to ask an

American when you should use one, the typical response would be “when it’s rain-ing.” But they associate umbrellas with shade from the heat.

Six out of the eight students in the class have been to a McDonalds. The major-ity buy their groceries at Saraga or Chin Brothers. They have never been to the Greenwood Park Mall, and none of them own cell phones. Despite this, they really aren’t so different from us.

I noticed two Chin girls deep in con-versation, laughing about something I couldn’t understand. It reminded me of

how my friends and I must look like when we gossip. Not having any clue what they were talking about made me think about how they must feel when they walk through the halls of Southport.

I wondered why so many of the Chin students are here at Southport. After all, there are so many schools to choose from. It may be because of the large Chin population already here, making it feel a little more like home to them.

“Some of (the Chin students’) parents are worried they’re not learning enough English due to the large amount of Chin students here,” Man-ning said. “They get to speak a lot of their native language.”

To further explore the Chin culture, I went to Chinland Asian Grocery. They had a lot of things that were very foreign to me. I noticed cans of quail eggs, which aren’t a normal part of Ameri-can grocery as far as I know. There was also something called Tiger Balm, which I can only assume is a type of Ibuprofen - at least, the box said it was a painkiller. There were also rows and rows of tiny shoes that could

not have been larger than an American size 4.

I ended up purchasing a bottle of Ramuné, an Asian soft drink. It came in an interesting bottle, and I had to push a marble into the top in order to get it to fizz. I was a little appre-hensive about drinking it, but it actually tasted really good, kind of like a liquid Fruit Rollup.

In retrospect, I learned a lot from my experiences. Before this experience, I really didn’t give much thought to the culture and the struggles that they must go through. It opened my eyes, and it really showed me how it feels to be on the outside looking in through the language barrier.

March 2, 20126 Features

Reporter experiences foreign environmentTHE Journal’s

Project

{signuptoVOLUNTEER}The Journal’s English Learner Project will not be able to succeed without help from volunteers. If you would like to volunteer dur-ing the second semester, please fill out this form and turn it in to room 400, Ali DeHart or Brittany Hemphill as soon as possible.

Name: ______________________________________________

Connection to Southport (student, teacher, parent):

__________________________________________________

Cell phone number: _____________________

Students, answer the following:Study hall period _______Grade: ________

By Rachel PattersonReporter

Walking in through doors of the Chin Center, one might notice that there isn’t much inside. There are just a few tables and some chairs. This is a temporary set up, due to the ever-changing daily schedule. The inside of the Chin Center is rearranged every day, so nothing is set up permanently. Every month thousands of refugees use this center.

Southport just had a coat drive, and the coats had to go somewhere. Mrs. Amy Ped-die donated the coats to the Chin Community Resource Center, which is commonly referred to as the Chin Center. The Chin Center is a resource center where families go to get help with job searching, worshiping or even trans-lating. The Chin Center is a multipurpose facil-ity to help Chin people merge into the Ameri-can life style with a little more ease.

The Burmese Chin community mainly uses this resource center. However, there is not always someone at the Chin Center. Though they are working on getting a full time staff, the Chin center is only open when there are scheduled appoint-ments. Therefore these hours vary from day to day. Full time staff is wanted so that the Chin community can get help when-ever it is needed.

If someone were to go to the Chin Center, he or she would have to pay $15 per hour to use it. The Chin Center must charge people to get in because they fund themselves and have to make an income somehow. Though there’s a fee per hour for the use of the facility, there are multiple things going on inside. The inside of the Chin Center has a temporary set up,

because multiple activities may take place in one day.

Some Burmese people who can’t read a letter from a school or job may go to the Chin Center where someone there may be able to help them

understand it. The Chin Center will also help them find a job, prepare them for how to dress and what to say at an interview.

At the center, there’s a stage which can be used for wor-ship or meetings.

People call and get an appointment, and then based on what the appointment is for, the setup of the inside is made to correspond to it. One of the people to call to make an appointment is Mr. Paked Khengmual at the Chin Center.

“The Chin Center is open to all refugees,” Mr. Khengmual said.

The Chin Center is a place for Chin refugees to get help with almost any need. It is a place where they may worship or even schedule a birthday party.

There are about 1,000 people weekly and 4,000 monthly who use the Chin Center. Cloth-ing donations are accepted and are items that students at Southport can give to help out.

“Every time we receive clothes donations we put them in the Chin Center,” Perry Township translator Mr. Kjack William said.

When there are enough donations, a time and date is set for pickup by the Chin refugees. Anything that is not taken is then given to a place like Goodwill.

This is a multipurpose place where volun-teers can help the Burmese refugees. The cen-ter is only open when there are appointments, but there is hope to have a full time staff in the future. The Chin Center plans on growing and becoming even more resourceful to the refugees in need, day or night.

Chin Center helps community, EL students

EL Project inspires mentors

Sophomore Anna Laws did not officially sign up for the English Learner Project but has participated anyway. She has friends on

the Journal and heard a lot about the project. She knew that she wanted to get involved.

“I wanted to help with the E.L. Project because I wanted to pay it forward, by helping those who need it,” Laws said.

She went to the cafeteria during her study hall and helped tutor E.L. students. She even had a non E.L. student come up to her and ask her for help in math.

“I felt like I was making a small contribution to the school,” Laws said.

Junior Tanner Musser joined the English Learner Project during the first semester of this year.

“I had friends on the Journal and felt like it was a good opportunity,” Musser said.

He went to the study hall room during his free period and met the E.L. student that he would be tutoring. However, he was only able to participate for a few weeks because he was pressed for time. Even though he wasn’t able to do a lot, he knows the project was a great thing.

“It was really good to know that I was a making a positive difference in someone else’s life,” Musser said.

Although the English Learner Project has been in action all year, it is never too late to join. Senior Brooke Gagliola just joined the project and is

looking forward to being able to help.

“With the E.L. project, I know these kids are willing and actually wanting my help and to better themselves,” Gagliola said.

Although some motivation for her to join was for service hours for National Honor Society, she is truly excited to help tutor. She’s always been interested in tutoring, and has worked with E.L. students in the past.

“I really enjoy tutoring, or just helping others,” Gagliola said.

Sophomore Anna Laws

Senior Brooke Gagliola

Junior Emmalee Dixon

{what’sbeenDONE?}Coat Drive: Before winter break, 14 coats in different sizes and various other types of clothing including scarves, socks, hats and gloves were collected for E.L. students in need of them. The clothing then went to the Chin Center for distribution.

Scheduling Help: During scheduling week, the Journal staff helped E.L. students set up their schedules for next year. The staff helped soon-to-be sophomores, juniors and seniors make choices on their course selection sheets in order to fulfill the requirements for each diploma.

Partners: Last semester the English Learner Project had 26 English speaking mentors to 45 E.L. students (four seniors, 11 juniors, 13 sophomores and 17 freshmen). Partners and students met one day a week during study hall to help the E.L. students with school work.

by Emma HoskinsReporter

“How about you, Ironside? You riding dirty?”

Junior Tanner Musser

{thechinCENTER}2425 E. Stop 11 RoadIndianapolis IN, 46227

Ramuné is an Asian soft drink that in-volves a marble being pushed into the syrup. Photo by Emma Hoskins.

Junior Emmalee Dixon is in theater teacher Ms. Barbara Whitlock’s fourth period class. Their class participated in the

English Learner Project by inviting E.L. students from their study hall to join their class. They helped them with homework and played Just Dance.

“It felt good. I helped organize it,” Dixon said. “It was just fun to be able to help them with their homework and knowing you’re giving them a mind of ease.”

Dixon knows it was important and that everyone had a lot of fun participating in the project.

“It was a blast. It was so much fun,” Dixon said.

English Learner

Applying For College: The English Learner Project volunteers are planning on helping E.L. seniors apply for college. Many have already applied, but volunteers will be helping the students who have not applied during their study hall or after school.

Photo by Kaitlin Fallowfield.

Shorts by Donna Knight.

March 2, 2012 7Student Life

by Allison GaffneyReporter

Sitting next to senior Collin Lewis in one of his three advanced placement classes, one can often see him scribbling down lyrics to one of his rap songs in a notebook.

With many rappers singing about drugs, women and money, it is often easy for them to develop a negative stereotype. However, Lewis manages to disprove all doubts about his intelligence by maintain-ing a 4.3 GPA while being ranked tenth in his class.

Lewis has been recording his music for around a year and a half, but he has been writing since he was eight years-old. He started writing poetry and then eventu-ally moved to lyrics. All the while, Lewis challenged himself academically by being a part of the IDEA program.

The IDEA program is a specific program that is designed to challenge students academically. In order to be a part of the IDEA program, students have to test into it. Lewis has been a member since he was in first grade.

On top of rapping, Lewis also plays baseball for Southport. He explained that being an athlete makes disproving stereotypes more difficult.

“You add athlete plus listens to rap and makes rap, (People think) you gotta be bot-tom half of the class, which isn’t true at all,” Lewis said.

Lewis said that when he tells his teachers that he raps, they often think of it as a joke, but once they actually listen to his music, they can’t believe that it’s really him.

One of his teachers that has listened to his music is English teacher, Mr. Sam Hanley. Hanley explained that he did not recognize Lewis’s voice when he first heard his rap.

“(Lewis’s voice) sounded much more pol-ished as a rapper than it did as somebody trying to be,” Hanley said. “I think that prob-ably means that there is talent behind that.”

Once Hanley actually listened to Lewis’ music, he said that he felt as though some of his songs were on the edge of having

a dark theme throughout. This surprised Hanley because he said that Lewis was not really like that in his class.

Hanley said that within his class, Lewis is engaged, an above average

writer and thinker and does meticulous work. Regard-less of Lewis’s academic performance, Hanley said that he is not surprised that he is a rapper.

He explained that he felt like the confident and intelligent kids that produce

raps are the ones that are most likely to go out of their comfort zones and create music. He feels like Lewis is the epitome of that type of person.

One of Lewis’s baseball coaches, Mr. Scott Whitlock, has also heard some of his music. Whitlock explained that he does not typically listen to rap music because he prefers listening to country, but he felt like Lewis’s music was good.

“From the years of knowing him from baseball, no, I did not know he was a rap-per,” Whitlock said.

Lewis said that he will always make his academics a higher priority over his music because he does not really want to pursue a career in music. That is why he is plan-ning on going to Indiana State University to study sports marketing and managing.

He did send music out to a music label in Santa Monica, Calif. that he heard about through his friend’s dad. While he said that

if this label does sign him, he’ll jump at the opportunity, he only wants to do music as a leisure activity. He does not plan on depending on music as his sole source of income.

“I’d rather enjoy what I’m doing than have a huge house and a nice car,” Lewis said.

While Lewis may already be defying the stereotype of rappers not being intelligent, he also conquers the stereotype that a white male cannot rap.

He said that he thinks that the up and coming white rappers such a Mac Miller and Sam Adams opens up the field of hip-hop so much more to people. Lewis explained that he’s not setting out to be the next Drake or Lil’ Wayne. He is just going to do the best that he can for himself. He said that he enjoys proving to people that just because he is a white rapper, it does not mean that he is a wanna-be.

“I’m not a wanna-be,” Lewis said. “I’m a gonna-be, because I set out to do something and I’m gonna do it.”

He also said that being a white rapper and going into the field of music can be a risk. Lewis felt that the music industry is more critical towards white rappers, but he does not let that detour him from wanting to pursue his dreams.

“You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take, so if you don’t take a shot, what’s the point?” Lewis said. “It’s going to become too predictable. What’s the point in life if you don’t take a risk?”

by Allison GaffneyReporter

At first glance, one would have no idea that the petit, blonde-haired, junior Kellie McAllister knows how to shoot a gun.

However, McAllis-ter has been shooting

since she was six years old, and she cur-rently owns over 10 guns.

She received her first gun, a lever action rifle from her dad when she was five years old. A year later, she actually started shoot-ing. McAllister, her dad and sometimes one of her friends go to Lexington, Ind. to shoot guns.

McAllister first started making money by picking up shell casings and packing her family’s rounds.

“Most kids mow the grass,” McAllister said. “I used to have to go out and make a few rounds out in our garage because we pack our own.”

She explained that she does not advertise that she shoots guns to everyone, but when someone asks her about it, they’re often surprised to hear her answer.

No matter how McAllister looks, she en-joys going against the stereotype that girls can’t shoot guns, and she said that she will continue doing so.

by Rachael SammReporter

A hard stereotype to break is the gender stereotype. However, Sophomore Bryanna Fox broke the stereotype that girls can’t play football. Of course there are the pow-der puff football teams every year at South-port, but from third grade until ninth grade, Fox was playing football with the guys.

“I enjoy the intensity and … the atmo-sphere and play-ing,” Fox said.

Fox said she never had a hard time with people though. She claims that people around her would always brag about how she plays football and is on the team. Fox described it as

people being in awe that she actually played football.

“Usually from other teams they’d be like ‘why is she playing?’ and stuff like that but … all the other guys backed me up and were like brothers and protected me,” Fox said.

Although sometimes breaking stereo-types can be negative, Fox actually had a positive experience playing football. Fox did not play this year but because she loved the sport so much, she decided to be a trainer.

{who

’sWHO

} Need help seeing how stereotypes are mis-leading? Don’t worry.The Journal found a few students that seem to “break the mold.”

The Girly Blonde-Often characterized by bright blonde hair and a dislike of dirt and all filth.

The Girl

The Prep-Mostly thought of hav-ing no artistic ability, or any ability for that matter.

-Normally a lazy and unathletic woman who’s only exercise is mall walking.

{Q& }AThe Journal talked to author and speaker Leslie Aguilar, who wrote the book “Ouch! That Stereotype Hurts” to get the facts on stereotyping.

{daysofthePAST}Ever wonder what teachers were like before they worked at South-port? We decided to find out. We asked random staffers what clique they were in back in their “good old days.”

Science teacher Mr. Mark Dun-can was consid-ered a “lab rat” back in his high school days.

Math teacher Mrs. Christina Ferguson was considered the “new girl” back in her high school days.

English and Speech teacher Mr. David Col-lier was callled the “class clown” in the bygone days.

English teacher Mr. Brian Auger was considered a “mingler,” someone who went from social group to social group, back in high school.

Mr. Pete Hubert the athletic director, said he was the “jock” in high school, but no surprise there.

I am not a wanna-be. I’m a gonna-be.“ “

-senior Collin Lewis

Q. What is a stereotype?A. A stereotype is a simplified fixed belief about a group of people... It’s a thought process that clumps individuals together as members of a group, with no acknowledgment of individual differences.

Defying the stereotypeSenior Collin Lewis balances his love of rap music, academics and sports.

DUNCAN

FERGUSON

by Rachael SammReporter

Switching schools can be stressful enough, but when senior Angela Oaks attended Perry Meridian last semester, the students there had stereo typed her as a “preppy cheerleader” because of the way she dressed.

Oaks often wears a lot of Hollister clothes, but behind that preppy style is a girl who loves art and alternative music. Oaks said that the Perry students were quite surprised to find out what she’s really like.

“I actually got this bad girl image posted on me because of that.” Oaks said. “They thought I was some hard-core person when I dress this way and I’m not.

Oaks returned to Southport this semes-ter because she did not like it at Perry. She claims nobody at Southport really stereo-types her because she’s known most of the students here since elementary school.

Despite the ste-reotyping at Perry though, Oaks didn’t let it bother her.

“I know who I am and who my friends are so I really didn’t care what anyone said,” Oaks said.

COLLIER

AUGER

HUBERT

Q. Does everybody stereotype?A. Most people do, if not all. And, lots of times we don’t even realize we are stereotyping others. What’s clear is that in our society, stereotyping is prevalent.

Q.Why do people stereotype? A. First of all, it’s easy to do. Stereotyp-ing is a mental shortcut. We receive so much information every day that our mind categorizes and filters informa-tion. And, because there are so many stereotypes, it takes a lot of energy to consciously separate fact from fiction. So, we may stereotype without mean-ing to.

Senior Collin Lewis does not only play baseball, he also played football throughout middle school and played basketball until his sophomore year. Photo by Becca Tapp.

I want to plead the case of the murder of Kurt Cobain in April 1994. Courtney Love is guilty.

After a couple of drug overdoses and a scratchy and questionable suicide letter, most have come to believe that Nirvana’s front man Cobain brought on his own death. I’m not trying to argue if he hated himself and wanted to die, I’m point is to argue that regardless of his mental state, I firmly believe that Love brought on the demise of Cobain.

Anyone who knows the story of Cobain’s death knows that he allegedly shot himself with a rifle in the greenhouse of his home. Pumped with heroin, Cobain was immediately said to be just another suicide and therefore any chance of a ruling for homicide was denied and there was virtually no case – just some junkie who shot himself, they thought. I’ve always been an avid fan of Cobain and Nirvana. This is exactly what led me to the book “Love and Death.” The book lays out the evidence supporting the case that Cobain wasn’t just a suicide – his crazy money-hungry wife Courtney Love did it. More than just a couple of things are working against her:

1) Cobain’s autopsy reported that he had three times the lethal amount of heroin in his body. Not only could the amount of heroin in his system kill him three times over, it would cause him to be immediately unconscious,

therefore making it impossible to pack away his drug paraphernalia, line up his rifle, grip and then blast away.

2) Someone had tried to use Kurt’s credit cards shortly after his death was reported.

3) Cobain’s “suicide note” that was left at the scene was clearly all in his handwriting – all except the very end which was the only section that mentioned him wanting to die. The letter mentioned nothing except not being happy with how he was acting and wanting to change it. A piece of scratch paper was found on Love – the page was filled with marks of her practicing writing the alphabet.

4) The rifle that Cobain was found with, and the pen used to hold down his “suicide note,” had no fingerprints.

5) People who specialize in homicides know that it is always easier to stage a homicide to look like a suicide when the victim is a junkie.

6) Peers of Love and Cobain knew that Love aided in Cobain’s drug abuse. She used the drugs to control him. Love would often violently chastise Cobain for passing up extreme offers for him to perform, telling him that he was crazy for passing up the money. Love didn’t really start hanging around until the album “Nevermind” became a money magnet. “I’m going to marry myself a rock star and kill him,” a young Love said in some of her early poetry.

7) Love changed multiple stories of hers after Cobain died. A specific story being that Kurt had accidentally overdose in Rome, but after his death Love reworded her story to say that it was his first suicide attempt.

8) There was a report that a musician named Eldon Hoke said Courtney Love had offered him $50,000 to kill her husband. Hoke was given a polygraph test and passed. Hoke’s death was soon reported afterwards.

9) After Cobain’s daughter Frances was born, things started to look up for him. He was emotionally becoming more stable and was trying to devote a lot of time to the young girl. Friends reported that Cobain was even trying to kick his dope addiction – which makes the drug amount in his system even more strange.

This isn’t even scratching the surface. With all the effort that has be exerted in finding the evidence that supports the accusation against Love, it’s apparent that I’m not the only person who thinks Love was more than off her rocker. Love was delusional, dangerous, obsessive and erratic. Cobain’s friends hated her. Her ex-husband and even her own father went into hiding because they were scared of her. Cobain constantly put up with being treated like scum by the woman he thought looked like Nancy Spungen.

Nancy was the girlfriend of Sid Vicious – front man of the Sex Pistols. Love adored the idea that Cobain thought of her that way. Like Nancy, Love was just a heroin-addicted blonde rocker chick. Both Sid and Nancy later died and some believe that Nancy is the one who killed Sid. With Love wanting to live up to her Nancy appearance, what better way to do it than to blow off her Sid’s head.

It was known that Cobain had a lot of issues. He was moody and unstable. He was drug-addicted and spiraling at times. But a man that held so much influential power knew better than to blow it all away with a rifle. Love got away easy. She used Cobain’s flaws and exasperated them to her favor. It took no effort to get the police and the public to believe that Cobain had finally been successful with his suicide attempts. But for those people who believe in Cobain a little more than that, they’ll forever be waiting for the day that Love is put in prison.

March 2, 20128 Opinion

Some days you just need an adventure. People are encouraged to try new things and be bold, so I put this theory to the test. My sister and I decided to try our hand at rock climbing and though we had never been before, we figured it shouldn’t be very difficult. Twenty dollars later I was equipped with a harness, shoes and tall obstacles to conquer. Little did I know how ill-prepared I really was.

Ninety minutes had passed, and my hands were trembling with newly exposed skin, nails lay jagged and broken, cuticles split and appendages begging for mercy. I had never pushed myself past such crippling pain. I couldn’t bear the thought of quitting due to pain, so I set small goals and knocked down psychological barriers that held me back, and when I was finished, I had literally reached new heights.

Of course the repercussions of three hours of rock climbing continued for the next week, but it was worth it. By physically pushing myself out of my comfort zone, I achieved such a high degree of self-satisfaction that it was intoxicating. I had the mentality that I could do absolutely anything.

Sophomore Alex Darland has had a similar experience with wake boarding.

“The thrill you get right after you hit the water and land is the greatest feeling in the world,” Darland said.

For Darland, landing unfamiliar tricks

on his wake board is an obstacle he is constantly pursuing. Failure to accomplish such feats may result in a harsh crash to the water at speeds of nearly 30 mph, so sticking the landing would leave anyone drunk with self-approval.

“Keep trying. Don’t give up,” Darland said. Now, I may fully come to understand how

deep this small saying really goes. It should course through the veins of anyone with ambitions. Continuous effort is extremely essential in reaching heights we may see as unattainable at first. It seems placing our hearts where our ambitions lie is what puts us back on the horse every time.

Disappointingly, great achievements do not develop over night. Though I’m hard on myself when I make mistakes, I try to channel it into improvement. Improvement is a frustrating, long process that may

appear as unrewarding at first. How can one expect to do something brand new without flaw? It’s a tall order for the inexperienced and the source of frustration after failure. With great effort and endurance, one can improve significantly and eventually achieve great things.

It’s easy to sit on the couch and have wishy-washy fantasies about travelling to a foreign country, being a doctor or

swimming with dolphins. Afterwards very few carve out a path to get there. I believe if one does not go beyond what is familiar to them to accomplish what matters, they’re not aiming high enough.

Although rock climbing is not an unattainable feat, it was an off-the-wall idea for a new experience. However, through that idea I discovered a new passion for a sport and daring ambition within myself. I cannot express enough how important it is to continue to try new things. Do yourself a favor. Think of something you have never done and would like to try and follow through with it. You never know where opportunity may lead you. Whether it is to a new passion or a fond memory, there is always something valuable to take with you.

Expanding horizons leads to overall improvement

by Ashlyn BridgewaterReporter

“It’s people I can’t stand.”

I discovered a new passion for a sport and daring ambition within myself.

“ “

by Kaitlin FallowfieldReporter

“Merp me? Merp you!”

Teachers. We deal with them daily. There are some we don’t always get along with and some we can trust to talk to when things get tough. Relationships like these are necessary to get through high school.

High school can be one of the most stressful times in someone’s life. Our friends aren’t always going to have the best advice for us. There are also times that we don’t want to talk to our parents about certain things. Those teachers are always there for us to talk to.

Let’s face it, even though we like to think we do, as teenagers, we don’t have the world figured out. Teachers have gone through high school and were crazy enough to come back and teach us. They, like every other adult, have gone through similar situations that we are currently going through. Teachers are sometimes the best people to talk to, since they work with our age group every day.

“(Teachers) are helpful because most teachers have been there in their experience,” junior Ben Tierney said. “and can help students with their decision making.”

Most students who are close to teachers consider them their mentor. A few examples of mentors are Mrs. Whitlock for theater students, Mr. Klopfenstein (Mr. K) for News Bureau and Journal students and Mr. Hanley for yearbook students. These are teachers that certain students see as someone they can trust to talk to about difficult things going on in their lives or talk about their

futures to. Teachers like these show us that they care about how our futures pan out. Also, they like seeing us succeed. They are people that we can go to about anything we need to. They give us advice and help us with different things throughout our high school careers.

If I hadn’t met Mr. K and took his photo journalism class freshman year, I never would have fallen in love with photography and become photo editor. I also wouldn’t have realized it is something I want to study in college. Teachers aren’t just here

to teach us. They want to help us too. They also help us find ourselves and what we want to do in life. They help us explore different possibilities for our futures.

Sometimes it’s the teachers that become mentor figures in our lives that inspire us to work to our best potential and to be the best

we can be. Sounds cliché, right? The thing is that it is true. We look up to the people who teach us throughout our lives, and they are sometimes the people that help us realize the career field that we want to go into in the future – whether that is becoming a teacher in a certain subject, becoming a counselor or possibly

becoming a principal. The way that we connect with certain teachers or administration personnel can influence the outcome in our future.

Looking forward to the future, I know that the advice I have gotten in the past three years and will get next year will help me in college and after. I look forward to getting to college, making bonds with my professors and being able to get advice and guidance from them through my college years. Lastly, I look forward to being able to come back to Southport and visit the teachers here that made an impact on my life.

Relationships like these are necessary to be successful in high school. They help us find out who we are, help us stay on track during the year and they become people who know how and want to help us.

Teacher mentors important for better high school career

We look up to the people who teach us throughout our lives.

“ “

by Becca TappPhoto Editor

“Judy Bloom should’ve prepared me for that.”

{headS

CRAT

CHER}

If you could change the mascot, what would it be and why?

-Tamara Beasley‘15

“Penguin -- because it’s a swimming bird.”

-Matt Fisher ‘14

“White tiger-- because they are white.”

-Armando Estrada ‘13

“Platypus -- because it’s a mixture of many differ-ent animals.”

-Becca East ‘12

“Bulldog-- because I never was one and dogs are cute.”

Conspiracies throughout time

Cobain’s death unjustly ruled suicide

by Ali DeHartManaging Editor-of-Content

My friend, my caregiver, my driver, my therapist, my comedian, my teacher, my role model—my mother. She provides for me in every way a person could. Having my mom as my role model has given me more opportunities than I could imagine, and her success has made my success possible. She is the ultimate role model.

DeHart of the matter is that a person to look up to is necessary in everyone’s lives. Role models provide examples of what goals we should try to accomplish, and they help to figure out what we would like to become. Good character is essential in every good mentor. I strive to be more like my mentor, my mom, everyday.

I’ve always wanted to be like my mom. I mean, who wouldn’t? My mom’s personality and how she deals with problems is what I look up to most. She never runs out of energy. My mom’s advice helps me throughout every day. I couldn’t survive without my mom.

She has taught me so much over 18 years, but the most important thing she has taught me is how to treat other people. She taught me how to be a leader, how to treat my friends and how to handle myself when I don’t really like a person that I am around.

Over my high school and middle school years, I have been frustrated with lots of people for many different reasons. Whenever I would tell her what was going on, all she ever said was “kill ‘em with kindness.” She taught me to confront everyone that frustrated me with kind words and actions. I learned that the ugly-mannered people in my life didn’t want me

to be nice to them, and that’s what would eat at them most.

From my mom’s actions, I also learned how to treat the people closest to me. Anyone that comes into the DeHart house immediately becomes a member of the family.

When I’m with my mom, I constantly become a better person by just acting like her. I am so close to her because she makes such an effort to be a good listener. My favorite thing about my mom is that she will always listen, even when she gets home from a super stressful day at work. Nothing else gets in the way of listening to her kids.

Whether it’s a teacher, a principal, a parent, an aunt or a friend, a role model will make a big difference in anyone’s life. A good role model will help you feel accountable for your actions. The key to picking a good mentor is making sure that he/she is a good influence on the life you want to live.

When you start looking up to someone, you start acting like them. This would

obviously not always be a good thing, so choosing the right role model is a big deal. A role model can teach you a lot about what you want your future to look like.

Role models don’t have to be perfect, but it is important that your role model is successful in your eyes. My mom has been an educator my entire life. She is the reason I am seriously considering studying special education in college.

Role models should be reliable and personal, like my mom is to me. For someone like me, a famous rock star wouldn’t work as my role model. I don’t personally know any famous

rock stars, so it would be kind of hard to tell them all my problems and try to be like them. Even if you want

to become a famous rock star, you won’t be able to have good, meaningful

conversations with a person that is so untouchable. A

person like a famous rock star could be a good influence, but not necessarily the best role model.

Choosing a mentor to look up to is a vital decision. It shapes how you live your life everyday

and ultimately how you turn out to be in the long run. I hope that someday I can be as much of a role model to my own daughter

that my mom has been to me.

“

“

This year, our school gathered over 1,000 pairs of jeans in order to help with Teen for Jeans initiative, which is a part of the Do Something organization. This was a new feat for Southport, as this was the first year we have participated in the program.

What started with a survey intended to find out what homeless shelters needed the most ended in a national initiative to acquire jeans for teenagers in need all over the country. Every year, Teens for Jeans happens nationwide. Teenagers from schools across America collect jeans to give to their local Aeropastalé store. The jeans are then distributed to homeless shelters and given to teenagers without a decent pair of jeans. The school that collects the most jeans is awarded $5,000.

Southport’s choir teacher, Emily McDuffee, understands how important this

project is. Beginning with her organization and help with Teens for Jeans at the middle school last year, she brought this project with her as she made her transition to the high school. She hopes to help expand the project even further next year and possibly make Teens for Jeans district wide.

“It always makes you feel good to do something for somebody else and not get paid for it, and to do something for your community,” McDuffee said.

Other than Teens for Jeans, our school offers many opportunities to volunteer, and these should not be taken for granted. Volunteering does not only help our school or our community, but it instills important values within us that are unique to anything else. It can give us a sense of accomplishment, and most of all, compassion for others, which is something

students at Southport could use every now and then.

Volunteering doesn’t have to be a one track thing. There is a whole variety of ways to help out just within our school. Best Buddies, Riley Dance Marathon, Key Club, Green Earth Society and the Journal’s own English Learner Project are all different, but all very significant to our community. Even if the programs we have at Southport don’t seem conducive, there are tons of other volunteer opportunities outside of our school. Helping out at a hospital or going to a food pantry are little tasks with a big impact. Going out there and doing our part is not difficult to do.

As we try to expand and accomplish our greater goal next year for Teens for Jeans, hopefully our student body will expand our volunteering horizons alongside of that.

{theJOURNAL}CONTACT INFORMATION

The Southport High School Journal971 East Banta Road

Indianapolis, IN 46227shsjournal@class.perryschools.org

317.789.4827

MISSION STATEMENTThe mission of the Southport High

School Journal is to inform the student body of timely events and issues that affect their lives while being a voice for the faculty, staff and community.

Journal staff members will observe the same legal responsibilities as those imposed on all news media, thus will refrain from production of material that:

1. Is obscene, according to community standards;

2. Is libelous, according to the legal definition;

3. Creates a clear and present danger or an immediate material and substantial physical disruption of the school.

The Editor-in-Chief is solely responsible for all content.

Views found in the Journal do not necessarily reflect the opinions the Journal staff as a whole, or of the staff or administration of Southport High School or the Metropolitan District of Perry Township.

STAFF LISTEditor-in-Chief

BRITTANY HEMPHILL ‘12

Managing Editor-of-ContentALI DEHART ‘12

News EditorJESSICA DE LA CRUZ ‘13

Student Life EditorKATIE HINH ‘14

Entertainment EditorCARA HINH ‘12

Features EditorANDIE REINHART ‘13

Opinion EditorCECILIA SALAS ‘12

Sports EditorMATT LYTLE ‘12

Photo EditorBECCA TAPP ‘13

Staff ArtistCLARA LESLIE ‘13

Business ManagerNOELLE STRAUB ‘12

Advertisement ManagerZACK HARTMAN ‘12

Graphics EditorCOREY MILLS‘12

StaffASHLYN BRIDGEWATER ‘12

AUSTIN ANDRY ‘12CODY FOSTER ‘12JACKIE SMITH ‘12

ALLISON GAFFNEY ‘12MARIE PREVOST ‘12BIAK CHIN PAR ‘12

EMMA HOSKINS ‘12GABE ALLEN ‘12

GABRIELA CAPOTE ‘12RACHEL PATTERSON ‘13

TAYLOR DEHART ‘13KAITLIN FALLOWFIELD ‘13

PAOLA PADILLA ‘13JAKE JOHNSTON ‘13DONNA KNIGHT ‘14

JESSE ROLLER ‘14DERRICK GRAY ‘14CASEY SMITH ‘14

STEFANIE MAIER ‘14RACHAEL SAMM ‘14NICK HOLLAND ‘15

AdviserMR. MIKE KLOPFENSTEIN

PrincipalMS. BARBARA BROUWER

ARE YOU OPINIONATED?Students, staff and community members

are welcome to write a letter-to-the-editor that will be published in The Journal when space is available. Letters-to-the-editor must be received five days prior to publication date. Submissions should be short and concise, not exceeding 300 words. They are subject to editing for content, grammar and length. All letters must be signed. Personal or unfair attacks of businesses or individuals will not be published. Bring all submissions to room 400 or address an envelope to Mr. Mike Klopfenstein and take it to the Main Office. Submissions also may be e-mailed to shsjournal@class.perryschools.org.

The Journal reserves the right to reject any advertisement or Letter-to-the-Editor. Anonymous letters will not be published.

March 2, 2012 9Opinion

Headline FontByline FontPosition Font

Body

Volunteering benefits community and students

Role models necessary for success{DeHart} of the matter

{journalADDRESS}

Let it all Out: The Journal picked two students to voice conflicting sides on a specific topic.

Next year, Southport will have a new balanced calendar. It will shorten summer breaks but lengthen breaks during the school year. This issue, sophomore Kaitlin Watson and junior Tanner Musser tell how they feel about it.

“

“

Honestly, when I first heard of the balanced schedule, I was all for it. However, that was before I realized we would be starting July 31st instead of August 12th. I wouldn’t mind the earlier start if we’d had more warning. I know I’m not the only one who had plans during that time overlap. So now, rather than going on a two week vacation to California for my brother’s wedding, I am forced to return a week early and still miss a week of school. Sure, the week of absences will be excused, but there’s so much I’m go-ing to be missing. The new calender would work, but only if they would have warned us earlier.

{thumbsUP}

*These are opinions of the Journal staff

{thumbsDOWN}

- Tanner Musser ‘13

The balanced schedule will better our lives as high school students next year. Students this year are constantly complaining about how tired they are, and their tiredness affects their school work and how they behave. Kids in my classes fall asleep all the time. Breaks help with that. Often, the only thing that keeps people going is knowing that a break is com-

ing up. The longer the break that’s coming up is, the better. Breaks make students happy, and sometimes, happy students actually work. The long breaks that will be caused by the blanced schedule will allow our brains to take a vaca-

tion, and we will come back feeling more refreshed than ever.

Jeremy LinLin-destructable.

Health No fryer Fridays!

Building ChangesSopo at its finest.

Spring SportsGo team!

vs.

- Kaitlin Watson ‘14

Bria Michelle Wright@briamichelle10I love you mom. No matter what.

{re- weeted}Our favorite retweets...

Alex Ruble@alexrubleYou’ll never shine if you don’t glow #nw

Jaime Robbins@jrobbs13All I do is tweet tweet tweet no matter what, got twitter on my mind i can never get enough.

T-SwiftYou’re not that good, girl.

Parking Lot I just want to turn left :(

Wi-fiStop derpin.

PosersWhy you so fake for?

March 2, 201210 Photos

1. Senior Ashlyn Allanson does an inward summersault during dive practice after school. Allanson placed 3rd at the Falcon Invite. Photo by Caitlyn Jones. 2. Students walk into the school from the buses through door 16. Students are released from the buses every morning at 7:10 a.m. 3. Juniors Ryan and Greg Salyers work on their project for Honors U.S. History in 8th period. They are both Panamanian Americans. Photos by Becca Tapp. 4. Seniors Van Vu and Viktoria Lyngstadaas work in their chemistry class during 3rd period. Vu and Lyngstadaas are both foreign exchange students this year at Southport. 5. Ms. Kelly Parker rings up a student’s lunch during 6th period. The lunch ladies have to help around 2,000 students each day. Photos by Jesse Roller. 6. A pre-school student (Austin) waits for his lunch at Early Childhood Academy during 4th and 5th periods. Other kids like Austin spend school days at PTEC and Southport students help out. Photo by Marie Prevost. 7. Senior Ashley Lee paints with water paint during 8th period. This class is not based on the number of paint-ings turned in. It’s based on the quality of the art. Photo by Emma Hoskins. 8. Students cheer in the cheer block at the boys basketball game after school. The team lost to Lawrence Central, 60-42. Photo by Becca Tapp.

Hundreds of things happen at Southport every day from class

activities and tests to sports prac-tices and games. Out of the 180 days in the school year, this was

just one of them. February 17, 2012.

2.

3.4.

5. 7.6.

8.

1.Student-submitted photo by freshman Caitlyn Jones.

“6th lab table in Lewis’ room.”- Junior Katie Sadler

Where is the best place to get a signal?

“Intersection of the math and the health hallway.”- Freshman Brynn Stebbe

What is the most crowded place/hallway?

“Mr. Sam Hanley.”- Sophomore Stephen Averitt

Who is your coolest teacher?

“Anything that is somewhat edible.”- Senior Michael Hart

What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch?

“I have nothing against pencils but I just love pens! ... They’re smooth and I love them.”- Junior Jamie Robbins

Pen or Pencil?

“Health ... It’s so warm.”- Freshman Isaac Tierney

What is the best period to sleep in?

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8clas

s

clas

s

clas

s

clas

s

clas

s

clas

s

clas

s

clas

s

sophomore Daniel Hnin

senior Johnathan Devoss

Mr. Glenn Carlstrand

Robbie from Adv. Child Development

Audrey from Adv. Child Development

junior Dyllan Bethel-Brown

Mr. Nathan Fishel

Ms. Mary Cairns

All in One Day

{southportstatistics}

Photo by Kaitlin Fallowfield.

“Yearbook-lasting memories forever!!.”- Senior Abbey Maitland

Journal or Yearbook?

“Definitely Whitlock’s office.”- Junior Anna Clark

What is the scariest place in the school?

“I don’t carry my books.”- Sophomore Ashlyn Sears

How do you carry your books?

Photo by Jesse Roller.

Photo by Kaitlin Fallowfield.

Photo by Kaitlin Fallowfield.

Statistics about Friday, Feb. 17.

Number of new studentsenrolled in the school:One

Number of students who withdrew from the school:None

Percentage ofstudents present:95.48 percent

First personin the building:Mr. Sponsler - 5:04 a.m.Mrs. Powell - 5:05 a.m.

Last teacherin the building:Mr. Hubert at 10:30 p.m.

Number of tickets sold at the boys basketball game:312 tickets

Statistics about Southport.

Number of students enrolled in 2010-2011:2,189

Number of teachers in 2010-2011:100

Number of teachers in 2011-2012:104

Number ofmonths in the school year:9 months

Number of weeks in the school year:37 weeks

Number of days in the school year:180 days

March 2, 2012Sports 11

Striding into the new season

The girls relay team practice relays on Monday, Feb. 27 on the track. Photo by Jesse Roller.

A feel-good story that could fade in a LIN-stant1st and 10 with Taylor DeHart

Jeremy Lin’s stats (21 games in the

‘12 season)MPG: 24.1

FG%: .47

3P %: .33

FT %: .76

High hopes for girls trackBoys track feeling confidentBy Nick HollandReporter

“Compete, perform and earn it.” It’s the one message that head track and

field coach Mr. Nathan Fishel preaches to his young team of athletes.

The team is looking to bounce back after losing what could be one of the best track runners in Southport’s history last year, Ivan Neshkov.

Last year, then-senior Neshkov won the Conference Indiana title in the 400m run in his first year ever running track.

“We have some new guys coming in that aren’t as fast as (Neshkov),” Fishel said. “But if they get some experience and we coach them up, I think we could definitely be on our way.”

The newcomers that Fishel is talking about are sophomores Emmanuel Mas-saquoi and Sanchez Miller. Massaquoi is a “very strong and really quick kid” accord-ing to Fishel. But Miller is a new student this year, and after a few workouts, Fishel is confident in his abilities as a runner.

“(Miller) is very fast,” Fishel said. “We are confident that we can develop him into the best runner possible.”

Fishel also hopes that freshman Kevin Wagner can help displace the void left by last year’s graduating class. Wagner ran a sub-minute 400m in 8th grade. Fishel says that Wagner can improve his numbers further.

Even with all of the lost talent, the team still has plenty of returning athletes all areas around the sport.

Senior field athlete KeWan Davis and senior sprinter Cameron Turner are both looking to return and improve on what they did last season. Turner is especially hopeful for the season now that he is healthy.

“I feel great,” Turner said. “I’m hope-ful that our team can do well with all our new and returning talent. I’m really excited about the season.”

Davis and Turner are joined by sopho-more distance runner Clayton Bowie as important key returners to the team. Fish-el hopes that these athletes can lead their individual teammates to a sectional title, a conference title and maybe even further. He says the potential is there and that his expectations are high.

“There is a thing about this year’s team,” Fishel said. “We are a very young team but we are also a very deep team com-pared to other teams. We have 60-70 guys coming out for the team this year and they are all very talented. We just have to compete well in practice, so that we can compete well in big meets. If you compete well in big meets, then your team will have that confi-dence that good teams must possess in order to win in this sport.”

The team looks to pick up where they left off last season when they travel to Indiana Wesleyan for the Marion Invitational tonight.

By Nick HollandReporter

“We’re a well-balanced team,” head track and field coach, Mr. Nathan Fishel said. “I believe that will help us develop.”

The team is returning a lot of upper-classmen with varsity track experience.Fishel says that seniors Juanesha Byrd and Abby Springer were both important sprint-

ers for the team last season. Junior sprinter Ja’breena Gardner, dis-

tance runner Taylor Zorman and shot put and discus

thrower Kortney McAtee also were large con-

tributors to the team last year and look to pick up where they left off.

The Lady Cards have retained most of their core talent from last season. Fishel believes that since there are so many return-ing players, the team can develop the experience necessary and be

successful. “We have a lot

of upperclassmen,” Fishel said, “but the

remaining players that we do have are not as

experienced as I would like them to be, but experience

comes with practice and prac-tice helps us develop experience to

compete well in big meets.”

But even with the team’s many return-ing stars, there are still spots that need to be filled. But who is going to fill them? Fishel hopes that the freshmen he has coming in like Shelby Shook, Alle Musser and Brandi Ford, can really make a differ-ence.

“We have wildcard athletes coming in,” Fishel said. “The kids that are really good at one event but can compete and do well in other events too.”

Shook won a city championship in mid-dle school last year and believes that she has really improved over the offseason.

“I think I’ve gotten faster,” Shook said. “I’ve improved some of my other skills too. I’m really looking forward to competing this year. I think it’ll be a new experience for me.”

While Fishel agrees that the level of tal-ent is much different from middle school to high school, he still thinks Shook and the other freshmen can adapt and con-tinue their successes at the next level.

Before the team can continue to im-prove and hopefully reach their expecta-tion of the Sectional title, they have to fix what went wrong last season.

“We got scared,” Fishel said. “We lost because of our inexperience. But I think that if we compete in big meets, then we will get that necessary experience so that when the sectional meet comes around we won’t second guess ourselves and falter.”

The team is heavy with “auxiliary ath-letes,” those athletes that can do multiple events very well and they help complete a team. Fishel hopes that these athletes can play an even larger role in the successes of the team this season.

The Lady Cards look to showcase their skills in a positive way when they head to Indiana Wesleyan for the Marion Invite.

Key Meets (Boys and girls)

In the past few weeks, America has been taken over by a so called “super-hero” NBA player. He has been compared to possibly the greatest point guard to ever step on the court, Magic Johnson. He has his own ticker news spot every day at the bottom of ESPN’s screen.

Jeremy Lin went from sleeping on his brother’s couch on the east side of Manhattan to sleeping cozily in his new condo in White Plains after his $762,195 contract became guaranteed. He came extremely close to not even getting the opportunity to show off the Linsane moves that he has.

To say he has had an impact on the NBA along with America is by no means over the top. Take for example espn.com. There is a section on ESPN in which you can rank your favorite nickname for Lin.

The point is, America loves a feel good story. But the true question that everyone wants to know is, how long will this last?

One reason that feel-good stories do not last is because the media overplays them.

Take Tim Tebow for instance. Tebow was, and to me is, still a feel good story. But after months of coverage, America got tired of all the publicity, comparisons and constant talk about the so called “phenomenon.” Not only did they get tired of him, they started to criticize every move he made, no matter if he was playing great or playing as well as a

12-year-old. To me, he was not criticized because of his play. He was criticized due to the fact that people were extremely tired of hearing about him.

But, both Lin and Tebow both are crazily im-pressive feel-good stories. There is no doubt that they had to work possibly harder than anyone in either sport to get to where they are now. They are feel good stories because they continue to improve their game, and continue to move on even when people say that they are not good enough.

The reality is that in America, there are not that many true feel-good stories.

Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds are a prime example of this.

Clemens, who was once referred to as one of the best pitchers in MLB history is now possibly facing jail time. All of his champion-ships are not taken into consideration while

in front of the grand jury. Clemens is most likely never going to be end up where his career stats should have led him: into the Hall of Fame. He completely ruined his chances of being a fan favorite and a first-ballot famer by shooting up.

Bonds is the home run king. He is known as one of the most feared hitters in the history of the game. Fans would sit in the cove outside AT&T Park to just get the chance to dive in the water to get one of his famous home-run balls. He just escaped jail time for lying about his drug issue. He is never the same to

the U.S. public after he too k the drugs. These two guys will not ever live the same

life that they once lived because they abused drugs while in the spotlight. Although it is unlikely that Lin has or will take steroids, anything could knock him completely off the radar just as fast as he was put on it.

Although there are multiple people who really do put shame to the so called feel good stories, there are still some that do follow through.

Cal Ripken Jr. started out as the face of the Orioles franchise and never was

dethroned. He has never been involved in any drug talks or any talks of cheat-ing. He is truly a good guy who did nothing but help the city of Baltimore.

The point is, Lin just needs to enjoy it. The Ameri-can society thrives on stories like Lin’s. Al-though I do think that Lin is one of the greatest stories in sports that I have seen, it could be short lived just like any other story in sports just like his.

Junior Taylor Zorman and senior Rachel Vidito practice their distance running on Monday, Feb. 27. Photo by Jesse Roller.Coach Mr. Ryan Geller picks up the boys track

team as the run inside at practice on Monday, Feb. 27. Photo by Jesse Roller.

The track teams look to build momentum and start off the season hot.

APG: 5.8

STLPG: 1.5

PPG: 14.4

RPG: 2.8

Saturday, April 21: Southport relays.

9:00 a.m. @ SouthportFriday, April 27:

Conference Indiana. 5:00 p.m. @ Pike

Thursday, May 3: Warren Central relays.

9:00 a.m. @ Warren Central

Thursday, May 17: Sectional meet.

5:00 p.m. @ Ben Davis

By Derrick GrayReporter

Every year the boys swim team embarks on a hair style expedition that overall draws the team closer together.

From the beginning of the swim season in November, the boys are constantly work-ing towards future success at sectionals. As sectionals draws closer, the team begins to do two things. One is tapering, which is the slow digression of distances swam at practice. The second is their old school hair ritual.

Near the end of January the boys begin their tradition by dying the entire team’s hair blonde. The guys rock this look for two weeks, making it obvious to tell the swimmers apart from everyone else in the school.

“It brings the team together because we all look like idiots together,” sophomore Alex McSwain said.

After their blonde hair, the boys move on to their unique, buzzed-up cuts. Every year certain freshmen are selected to be buzzed into

some of the most absurd hairstyles, including the swirl and the dart heart.

According to sophomore Justin Barringer, the tradition helps out more the following season than the season they are currently in. Barringer also says that the experience al-lows the swimmers to create a trust with the younger guys.

“If you can trust someone to cut your head then you can trust them with a lot of other things,” Barringer said.

Once the guys are done with funky cuts, they finally finish up their tradition by going completely bald.

“I think this tradition will be continued because it helps the team come together and gives us something fun to do together,” Bar-ringer said.

March 2, 2012 Sports12

Brutal Tradition

Senior finds success in the alley

Changing hairstyles brings swimmers together

By Jake JohnstonReporter

Carb party has been a tradition not only at Southport but for most schools with cross country teams. For most athletes it is frowned upon when he/she drinks a soda or puts anything unhealthy in their body. For runners, it is a team rule.

Throughout the boys’ cross country season, the runners are not permitted to drink any sort of carbonation. All season long they usually only have water and juices to drink. According to head coach Mr. Dennis Bruce the no carbonation rule keeps the body in top physical condition and decreases the chances of cramps and maximizes training efficiency.

At the end of every season after their

last meet, the guys get together and have a carb party. This is a celebration of the season where everybody drinks a ton of soda. The night typically starts off with a 21-shot salute of various sodas, and this is where the puking begins. Next there are freshman races, in which all the fresh-men have to run sprints after chugging solo cups of Mountain Dew. The rest of the night people play different games like soda pong and flippy cup.

“It’s just an epic time,” said senior cross country runner Ethan Hawes.

The main idea is to drink as much soda as possible, and most people will vomit. However, besides the drinking, this is the last team function the seniors will have as a cross country runner. There are meaningful speeches given, bonding time and awards are handed out.

Junior David Candler’s third season with Southport High School baseball is approaching fast as he looks to earn his first var-sity letter this spring. Candler has pushed through two Stotans prior to this year.

“(My favorite part of Stotan) is feeling accomplished at the end of the week and the breakfast on Friday.” Candler said.

Candler says he is somewhat intimidated by Stotan each year, and he does not look forward to it at all. Although it is not his favorite thing to do, he says it is definitely necessary. Throughout the Stotan week, there are circuits, sprints and team building exercises. According to Candler, Stotan weeds out all the kids who aren’t meant to be there. He says if you aren’t going to work hard every day and give it your all, then you don’t deserve to be there.

“It gives you a good perspective on how to approach things in life,” Candler said. “Even if the task is difficult you can mentally persevere through the pain.”

Senior Casey Domek is coming up on his fourth year with the South-port baseball program. He is a two year letter man and has now completed

Stotan four times.“It is not something I look forward to,” said Domek. “Everyone goes through

the same experience and pushes each other. It builds teamwork.”Although Domek does not look forward to the week full

of early mornings, he knows it brings the team together and shows which guys will step up. Head baseball coach Mr. Scott Whitlock mentions that in the past he has seen guys step up to be leaders during Stotan that he wouldn’t expect to be a leader.

Stotan is meant to be hard. It helps guys get quicker and forces them to stay mentally strong. According to Domek, the second you start to look down is the second you start to struggle.

Whitlock wants guys to become comfortable being uncom-fortable, and Stotan really pushes kids out of that comfort zone. Domek says he keeps a positive mentality throughout the week and tries to stay mentally strong.

Sophomore Wyatt Cullom played freshman baseball last year and has ran Stotan once so far.

“Freshman year I didn’t know what to expect,” Cullom said.” All the upperclassmen told story after story about how

it (Stotan) was a struggle.”Cullom says his goal this year is to try his hardest and improve his times from last year. He says Stotan helps bring the team

together because everybody knows what everybody is going through. The circuit days consist of a total of 9 stair laps, a series of exercises on the floor, 21 reps of just about everything in the weight room and

cardinal sevens by class. Cullom mentions that you just have to work hard and do it.

“I absolutely do not (look forward to Stotan),” Cullom said. “It is just something you got to do.”

Every year, the baseball team goes through a week of extremely intense workouts called Stotan. Here are four participants’ views about the...

Freshman Dennis Maxey played middle school baseball, has not played any high school baseball and hasn’t completed Stotan, yet.

The freshman who played for middle school coach Mr. Jack Williams already have a decent taste of what playing for the high school coaching staff will be like. They know what is ex-pected at practice and they are prepared to play at the freshman level. However, they are unaware of how far they can actually push their selves.

To most freshmen, Stotan can be intimidating because they are the youngest guys there, they don’t really know what to expect and it can be nerve racking. Although Maxey says he has been looking forward to the Stotan week because he is determined to make the team.

“No (I’m not intimidated),” Maxey said. “The upperclassmen have told me about it and I think I can do it.”

Maxey is excited for the team building exercises because he is ready to stay positive and encourage his teammates. Also Dennis’ has his own personal goal to be the first freshman to complete the Monday and Thursday circuit.

‘No (I’m not intimidated).’

‘You can mentally persevere through the pain.’

‘Everyone goes through the same experience and pushes each other.’

‘I absolutely do not (look forward to Stotan). It is just something you got to do.’

The baseball team and coach Mr. Dan Jones run down the stairs on Monday, Feb. 27. Photo by Kaitlin Fallowfield.Shorts by Jake Johnston.

Other Southport sports team traditions

Fizz means fun for team

Senior Dustin Baker works on sophomore Joe Morris at the “hair cutting” of the swim team. Photo contributed by Bill Bueckers.

Senior Jake Lauster prepares to dive into the pool at Conference on Saturday, Jan. 28. Photo by Kaitlin Fallowfield.

The boys cross country team celebrates the 2011 season’s ending at the traditional Carb Party . Photo contributed by Rachel Dishman.

The activity names and days

of StotanMonday: The Circuit.

Tuesday: Stotan Olympiad.Wednesday: Team

building drills. Ironman.Thursday: The Circuit.Friday: For Those Who

Dare.