issue 6 2010-2011
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Mililani High School Trojan Times Issue 6TRANSCRIPT
MHS ATHLETES EXCEL IN OIA CHAMPIONSHIPS
The student athletes of MHS’ winter sports fought their way through the season, ultimately bringing home five OIA titles. Each team over-came their own struggles, from being doubted by others, to injuries and feelings of insecurity. In the end, the teams were able to overcome their difficulties and maintain MHS’ reputation of ath-letic excellence.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 8 and 9
INSIDE
Editorial
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7
2News
MHS headed to We The People nationalcompetition
10Feature
3Trojan Life
AP Psychology stu-dents conduct ex-periments
You don’t always need to know where you’re going
Editorial
By Matthew [email protected]
On Saturday, Feb. 12, 2011, the Hawaii High School Athlet-ics Association (HHSAA) Swimming Championships were held at the Central Oahu Regional Park swimming pool. MHS par-ticipated along with 15 other school in the event, which was the culmination of this year’s swimming season.
Go online to trojantimes.org for the full story
MHS swim team competes in HHSAA State competition
Matthew Raab | Trojan Times
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Trojan TimesIssue #6 Volume XXXVIII
Members of the MHS Science Olympiad team competed and took first at the Science Olympiad Sat-urday, Feb. 5 at Leeward Community College. The Olympiad, which is a sci-ence competition between several schools, was an opportunity for students interested in science to further their knowledge in a competitive setting. “In simplest terms, the Science Olympiad ba-sically works like a track meet,” said Sophomore Evan Wilson, who partici-pated in the event. “Each person has their own spe-cific event. Each person does the best job they can at their own event, and at the very end the team with the lowest score once the places they received in every event are combined is the winner.” There are several events that the students can be assigned to. “For my partner Kyle Yamada and myself,” said Wilson, “We had the Microbe Mis-sion event, which is an hour-long event where we went to different sta-
tions in a room, and each station had some sort of topic with questions that pertained to the nature of microorganisms.” Other events included a tower constructing task, along with a competi-tion in which a car pow-ered by mousetraps had to be built and operated. Mililani took first in both of these events with the work of Chad Uyehara and Tru Dang, respective-ly. After the competi-tion, an awards ceremony was held. “We knew that only the top three schools advanced on to the state competition,” stated Wilson. “Pearl City was named third, and then they moved on to second place. We pretty much knew since months be-fore that it was going to come down between our-selves and Iolani, who are practically an academic powerhouse. Fortunately, Iolani got called second place, and after that we were called as the first place winners.” After their win at the Olympiad the team will be advancing to the state level competition.
By Matthew [email protected]
After winning first place in the We the People state competition held on Sat-urday, Feb. 5 at the Hawaii Convention Center, students from the Advanced Place-ment (AP) Government class will move on to the national competition. “We the People is a pro-gram designed to explore citizenship and constitution-alism,” said Social Studies Teacher Amy Perruso. Senior Camille Marsden explained further by saying, “Basically, it gives students the chance to participate in mock congressional hear-ings and we discuss the Constitution and how it is applied today.” The team began prepar-
ing in October and were split up into six groups, which corresponded with the six units from their text-books. Each group consisted of three to four people that specialized in that specific unit’s content. “Each unit group is giv-
en three possible questions to answer about the Consti-tution, one of which will be asked by the judges on com-petition day,” stated Senior Alan Yamaki. From there, the team has four minutes to deliver a prepared response followed by six minutes of
answering follow-up ques-tions from the judges. Perruso said, “The judg-es engage them in a conver-sation about their response, kind of to see how deep and broad their knowledge is and also to see to what ex-tent that students can en-gage in these conversations in a civil fashion.” The students com-peted against high schools across the state, including, Kealakehe, Iolani, Kahuku, Christian Academy and Is-land Pacific Academy. But in the end, MHS ranked first. “During the actual com-petition, I was so nervous that I hadn’t done a good enough job,” said Marsden, “But then when they an-nounced that we had won, I was smiling so hard that my cheeks hurt.”
Perruso was pleased with the students’ accom-plishment. She said, “I don’t really care about the num-bers or how they perform relative to other schools ... I was telling them that watch-ing them at the hearings was a really great experience for me because I spend a lot of my time like when I interact with them, trying to push them further or give them something to think about a different way.” The students also felt they benefitted from this. “One thing we all gained was knowledge of constitu-tional ideas, and experience in making good arguments and speaking professionally, to professionals,” said Yamaki. The national competition will be held in Washington, D.C. from April 28 to May 3.
By Bianca [email protected]
MHS wins first in Science Olympiad at LCC
MHS takes first place in We the People state competition
By Zora [email protected]
2 Thursday, March 3, 2011News
History Day projects make it to state competition
This year’s National History Day (NHD) theme “Debate and Diplomacy” rekindled the desire for learning history among high school students by bringing students who had advanced from the school wide divi-sion to compete in the dis-trict competition with their project. With hours of hard work invested into their projects, MHS students par-ticipated in the NHD Dis-tricts Fair held at Aiea Inter-mediate School on Saturday, Feb. 19. The teams could compete in five different categories to convey their perspective on the theme. “There were cate-gories like writing a research paper, creating a website, documentary, or exhibit or writing a skit in which you were to perform it,” said So-cial Studies Teacher Cynthia Tong. Students that made it past the first round of judg-ing at the school level start-ed improving their project. “To prepare for districts we worked very hard to perfect our documentary and work on our interview questions,” said Sophomore Victoria Roybal. “We made a docu-mentary so it was important that the music, video and
audio matched up exactly which took a lot of prepar-ing,” she continued. There were numerous difficulties that the groups faced, but the main ones were working together as a group and time manage-ment. “It was hard to coor-dinate times to meet. It was also difficult to learn how to work as a team,” Roybal said. Sophomore Karolyn Lam agreed, but embraced it as a time to bond with her group members. “The best part would have to be working with my partners, since they were at my house almost every day. Even though we were stressed out at times, we made the best of
it and had tons of fun,” she said. Though the process was troublesome, they concurred that the hard work inputted was worth it when they saw the final product created. “The best part of our proj-ect was when it was finally complete,” Roybal said, con-tinuing, “When we finally finished the project it was very rewarding to see how much we accomplished.” Roybal and 20 other stu-dents will be advancing to the state competition, held on April 9 at Windward Community College
Essay· Jessica Kawana, 11· Kainoa Eastlack, 11
Exhibit· Reid Imamura, and Brandon Quon, 10· Caitlyn Yoshioka and Viola Mocz, 9
Website· Anna Sikkink, 11· Marc Siler and Danielle Teurkina, 10· Reece Ishihara, 11
Performance· James Denzer, 9· Kara Nitta and Layne Kishi, 10· Princess Lynne De Dios, Roanne Domingo and Aina Krizelle Iglesias, 9
Documentary· Marissa Okazaki, 12· Lisa Grandinetti, 10· Megan Madeira, Victoria Roybal and Alohilani Nonies, 10
District Competition Winners
Photo courtesy of Senior Taylor Sinn
(L-R) Seniors Nicole Umphress, Jessica Preston and Taylor Sinn are all smiles after taking first place in We the People competition.
3Thursday, March 3, 2011 Trojan Life
The students currently enrolled in the Advanced Placement (AP) Psychol-ogy class at MHS took part this February, in a joint ac-tivity with Mililani Waena Elementary School and the Mililani Baptist Preschool. The activity served benefi-cial for the high school stu-dents as well as a learning experience for the children. Kindergarteners from Mililani Waena Elementary School and preschoolers from the Mililani Baptist Church came over to MHS on Feb. 7 and 8 to take part in a study that the MHS AP Psychology students were conducting. Activities that the chil-
dren took part in involved their understanding of ob-ject placements and location. “The little kids had to de-cide if an object disappeared when a blanket was placed over it, or if it was just hid-den,” said Senior John Sand-vig. They were also tested on how they looked at objects from different perspectives, such as determining wheth-er or not one glass of water was filled more than anoth-er, even though both glasses had the same amount. This activity started in the early 2000s with one class of Head Start’s pre-school students who were located on MHS’ campus and was organized by Carol Wear. Because it had positive feedback from the major-ity of former AP Psychology
students, it proved to be “in-valuable” for their AP exam at the end of the high school year. Since then, Mililani Baptist and Mililani Waena Elementary School teachers agreed to partner up with the class to make this a joint community affair. “This activity was spe-cifically designed for the AP Psychology students so they could have an opportunity to apply and understand Piaget’s concepts,” said AP Psychology Teacher Judy Taparra, “And prepare for the AP Psychology College Board exam scheduled in May,” she continued. Piaget’s theory is under-standing the development in a growing child’s brain. Students focused on cogni-tive functions and how chil-
dren understand normal life routines. The AP student’s feed-back on the issue turned out to be a positive. “Getting to see a scientific explanation in real life is a lot easier to understand it than through a textbook,” said Junior
Nicholas Shakur. Understanding subjects within an AP class can be strenuous and difficult, but by having this event, high school students were given the chance to look at a study in real life.
Taparra and AP Psychology class team up with elementary and preschool kids for a study
Banquet in the cloudsBy Aven [email protected]
The MHS Sophomore Banquet is headed up to the clouds. On March 4, 2011, the banquet themed “On Cloud Nine” will be held at the Okinawan Center. The theme for the ban-quet was thought up by the Sophomore Banquet Committee. “We actually changed the theme about three times and then we all just ended up on settling on this,” said Sophomore Kai-lee Napoleon, a committee member. Decorations for the ban-quet will be a sky like back-ground around the banquet hall. Centerpieces will main-ly be vases with bottles of drinks in them. There will also be picture taking for singles, couples and groups. “We’re just going to have a good time and it will be a really good event for the sophomores,” said Sopho-more Banquet Adviser Su-san Yamamoto. “It’s their first semi-formal event and I want them to have a really good time.” The banquet seems to have positive outlooks by the sophomores. “I’m look-ing forward to it,” said
Sophomore Ariel Beaudoin Gambol. “I’m looking for-ward to spending the night with my friends.” There were some prob-lems that were faced when planning the sophomore banquet. “Some problems that we faced were that there was a lot of people that ended up coming on the last day of sign ups,” said Napoleon. “We had a huge amount of people come at us at one time and it brought up a lot
of confusion and it ended up to be like prom. We ended up having to make a wait list for guests.” Despite the problems with seating, the banquet is set up according to schedule. “I’m hoping the kids will have a really great time and there will be no complaints,” said Yamamoto. Doors for the banquet will open at 5:30 p.m. and close at 6:00 p.m. The event will end at 10:00 p.m.
FBLA organizes retreat for better learning experienceBy Ella [email protected]
In Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA), it’s all about get-ting hands on experience in the fields members wish to specialize in. That’s why on March 25 to 26, the FBLA members and their advisers will go to the Pacific Beach Ho-tel for their retreat, to see how “real world” busi-ness industries work. This is the club’s second year doing the retreat, the first one was held at the Ala Moana Hotel. The retreat was planned to enrich and de-velop the members’ abili-ties. “I think it’s a really good experience for them to get together, and ad-ditional to that, they will be doing business related activities so they will be able to shadow people in various areas like people in jobs like the front desks, restaurants, managerial, to see what they do,” said Business Teacher Janise Kim. Seniors Lauren Saiki and Shayna Sueda orga-
nized some activities for the retreat. “There will be job shadowing, go (sic) to a business company, have a scavenger hunt around Waikiki, swimming and make a promotional vid-eo for the Pacific Beach Hotel,” said Sueda. All of the members were welcome to join, but they had to meet a certain number of attendances and participation in the past activities and events put on by FBLA. “Re-quirements to go to the re-treat will be students have to attend meetings, activi-ties and be a student of a current business class,” said Sueda. Saiki and Sueda planned the trip far in advance. “We must plan and organize a fundraiser, make hotel arrangements, plan and execute a sched-ule for the entire retreat.” FBLA believes that it would be better to have actual activity and experi-ence for their club if they are really going to pursue business as their future career, and a retreat is an alternative to the work they usually do at school.
By Reid [email protected]
A student from Mililani Baptist Preschool participates in an ac-tivity that tests his ability to understand object placement.
Photo courtesy of Judy Taparra
ASMHS President
Sharmaine Lee
Trojans, the school year seems to be pass-ing by faster and faster. We only have one more week left of school till the end of the quarter. While the quarter went by quickly we had various activities, starting with Campus Beautification on Feb. 5. A great big thank you to the school clubs, Clayton Ward of Endo Painting, Louie Gamiao of L.A. Painting, Willy Diaz of Shiroma Paint-ing, the Rotary club, Rob Man, Bud Kaku, and Stuart Harada for volunteering their time, to Dean Ford for donating the paint for the cafeteria and also to Marissa Yamamoto for organizing the event. The Olaloa Valen-tine’s Dance for senior citizens was on Feb. 11. The new member of ASMHS are President John Delos Reyes; Vice-President Shaina Saiki; Recording Secretary Nashea Carlos; Cor-responding Secretary Grace Hayashi; and Treasurer Tyler Atibur-cio. We are still looking for committee chairs, board members, and SCC representatives. Thank you to those who gave up their long President’s Day week-end to participate in the Great Aloha Run and Youth Challenge rep-resenting Mililani High School. As the quarter comes to a close I hope you’re studying hard for the finals. We’re all excited for the break and the new quarter.
Senior prom theme inspired by “The Notebook” By Jacquelyn [email protected]
At this year’s senior prom guests will be taken back to a night in the 1940s on Mar. 5 at the Hyatt Re-gency Hotel in Waikiki. “(The committee) chose the Hyatt because of the cost and the look of the ballroom. With its stunning chandeliers and elegant feel, there was no better place to celebrate our senior prom,” explained Senior Kimberly Hiyoto, Prom Committee Chairperson. The theme is named For-ever Yours. “We’re trying to pull the whole innocence of love (effect) as seen in the movie, ‘The Notebook’,” said Senior Taliya Hayes, Prom Committee mem-ber, who came up with the theme. “The unforgettable love between the two char-acters shows that the little things in a young relation-ship between teenagers can mean so much,” she contin-ued. This theme will be par-ticularly conveyed through the 1940s style of music that
will be played. “The music conveys the innocence of love through the smooth, romantic sound setting the mood,” explained Hayes. “It’s clean and very endear-ing, showing that love is so much more than what mu-sic makes it nowadays,” she added. Attendees will see el-egant colors in decorations, such as white roses and can-dles. “Our colors are ivory, black and gold, with an ac-cent of like a pale pink,” said Senior Prom Committee Ad-viser Lisa Anne Tsuruda. Along with the grandeur venue, guests can expect to see a variety of well-known performers (whose names will be kept undisclosed un-til prom night), a high-tech photo booth to take pictures in, as well as performances by MHS students. “We are lucky enough to have some seniors perform their rendi-tion of the song, ‘The Way You Look Tonight’ (origi-nally sung by Frank Sinatra) during the court’s dance,” said Hiyoto. In addition to planning this night, the prom commit-
tee also wants guests to leave with some food for thought: “When we are young, love seems to be the only thing we want to and can focus our attention on. The rest of the world’s worries are not there, and that is how I want prom night to feel like, like
anything is possible once we graduate from high school. And for that one night we don’t need to worry about anything else, just having fun,” said Hayes. Check–in for attendees will be at 6 p.m. and the event will end at 10 p.m.
4Thursday, March 3, 2011Trojan Life
By Chanel [email protected]
Almost halfway through the school year, new Japa-nese teacher Corey Zukeran was chosen to fill the posi-tion left by former Japanese Teacher Claire Ichiyama. Al-though some students may have already known him from when he was student teaching for Japanese Teach-er JoAnn Kanda, Zukeran himself is just starting to get accustomed to teaching classes at MHS. Originally from Hilo, Zukeran graduated from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. He was brought up with the Japanese language. “My grandparents baby-sat me so I spoke to them in Jap-anese, but I started taking formal lessons in the first grade,” he said. After attending a Jap-anese school from first through ninth grade, Zuk-eran sought to experience
more of his heritage. “I spent two years teaching English in Japan,” said Zukeran. “So I wanted to continue teach-ing. And because I’ve always had an interest in Japanese language as well as culture I chose to teach Japanese.” After teaching in Japan, Zukeran returned to Hawaii and began student teaching at MHS, which eventually led to him to becoming an MHS teacher. “Last semester I did my teaching with Kanda sensei and I was here when I was asked to help out and teach Ichiyama sensei’s class,” said Zukeran, continuing, “I
By Matthew Raab [email protected]
$30,000 for decorating a fiberglass cow. Sound ridic-ulous? It’s a reality for MHS students Ramil Lorenzo Gonzalez and Nicole Mce-wen. Both are participants in the Sixth Annual Lucerne The Art of Dairy “Sharing Joy” Art Contest, an art com-petition meant to promote healthy dairy snacks open to students in grades 9-12. “I’m one of 30 national finalists for the Lucerne Art of Dairy contest with the theme “Sharing Joy”, spon-sored by Safeway, and one of the 5 finalists from our region,” said Gonzalez. That region includes North Caro-lina, Western Nevada and Hawaii. As a finalist, Gonzalez must transfer his original cow shaped drawing onto a fiberglass, life sized cow. “They’re going to send us a five foot by eight foot cow sculpture as well as $250 for art supplies, and I just have to replicate my original de-sign onto the cow,” he said. This hard work has its
rewards, though. “If I fin-ish the cow and submit the pictures on time, then I get a $500 savings bond, but I also have the chance to get $1000 as one of 3 Honorable Achievements, $2500 as a first prize winner and $5000 as a grand prize winner,” said Gonzalez. The win-ner of the grand prize will also receive $20,000 for the school’s art department and another $5,000 for the stu-dent’s art teacher, bringing the total to $30,000. The first round of sub-missions was held several months ago. “The contest was actually a required class assignment; we did every-thing in class. So we had to draw out a design on a 2-D cow template that matched the theme,” said Gonzalez. “Since I didn’t hear any news I figured no one got accepted like last year,” he continued. Unlike last year, two MHS students will be rep-resenting the school in a nationwide art competition with only 30 competitors. MHS has had a strong show-ing in this competition.
Zukeran joins MHS as new Japanese teacher
Gonzalez and Mcewen eligible for $30,000 prize in Lucerne “The Art of Dairy” competition
think the students are really good. They’re studious and study hard and I think they also have fun.” With this being his first time teaching in the U.S., Zukeran looks forward to the upcoming year. “I hope to be able to not only teach and get students to learn the language, but hopefully also give them a little bit of a glimpse into Japanese cul-ture.” “His dedication for his students and enthusiasm (makes him a good teach-er),” said Kanda. Sophomore Kari Ike-da, a student in Zukeran’s Japanese 2 class said, “He teaches well … I like that the class isn’t too fast-paced es-pecially with all the kanji. It gives us a lot of opportunity to learn it better.” Zukeran adjusts to the curriculum, the students, and teaching the language elective, Japanese 1 and 2.
ASMHS 2011-2012 Officers
Nicole Mcewen, 12
Ramil Lorenzo Gonzalez, 10
President John Delos Reyes
Vice President Shaina Saiki
Treasurer Tyler Atiburcio
Corresponding Secretary Grace Hayashi
Recording Secretary Nashea Carlos
Jacquelyn Perreira | Trojan Times
Jacquelyn Perreira | Trojan Times
Mcewen (Above) and Gonzales (Below) sketch their designs on their fi-ber glass cows that will be entered into the Lucerne “The Art of Dairy” competition.
5Thursday, March 3, 2011 Chosen Trojans
6 Thursday, March 3, 2011Chosen Trojans
By Chanel [email protected]
At the National Junior Science & Humanities Sym-posium held on Dec. 3-5, MHS’ own Freshman Viola Mocz beat out hundreds of contestants from schools around Hawaii, ultimately placing sixth in the state competition. Considering only the top five winners were moving on to nation-als, this result would have been a letdown. But after a participant withdrew from the event, Mocz found her-self back in the competition. “When I found out I made it to the national com-petition to go to San Diego I was really happy because this is actually going to be my first time traveling on a plane,” said Mocz, continu-ing. “This will be a new ex-perience and I get to see new parts of the world.” Her project was cho-sen by the judges because it demonstrated her knowl-edge and understanding of pure science. “My sympo-sium topic was about creat-ing models of fish that could actually be used for the cre-ation of robotic fish with hy-draulic performance,” she said. Mocz experimental ro-botic fish that could swim both horizontally and ver-tically through the work of pulleys and magnetic accel-
eration. The project that won Mocz a chance at national level, had caught the judges’ attention not just because of its originality but because of its potential. “(The judges) were look-ing for projects that were scientifically sound,” said Science Teacher Nel Venzon. “Projects with possible solu-tions or contributions to the problems that we have in the community or projects that provide additional informa-tion in the sciences.” “Her project is pretty ad-vanced for high school proj-ects,” Venzon continued. “The passion of a young sci-
entist was obvious when she was presenting it because she knew what she was talk-ing about.” Regardless of her young age, Mocz continues to read scientific journals and plans on entering the Science & Humanities Symposium again in the future. “I re-ally like technology,” said Mocz adding, “I want to do something that will help the world.” Mocz, along with 240 other students across the country, will be attending a sponsored trip to the nation-al competition from April 27 to May 1 at San Diego, CA.
By Shan [email protected]
What you don’t know won’t hurt you and this proved to be especially true for Senior Tiana Ibale. Her longtime friend Senior Brandon Tacadena entered her music video into the Brown Bags to Stardom Music Video Challenge without her knowing. Her music vid-eo is now being featured on the “Brown Bags to Stardom” website along with videos submitted by other high school students in the state. “I knew Tiana had a beautiful voice and I fig-ured it would be a great opportunity to create a music video using one of her original songs,” said Tacadena. “Tiana is very humble and I knew that if I asked her to enter it in, she would have said no so I just sent it in and told her the day after,” he con-tinued. Ibale’s video featured one of her original songs, “Found.” “I feel that my song represents my faith and beliefs as a Chris-tian,” said Ibale. Tacade-na created the video and Ibale’s voice was featured in the background. Other talent featured in this vid-eo includes students Se-niors Taliya Hayes, Zach-ary Lee and Junior Titus
Strickland. “I came up with the concept of the video. It was hard to think of something because it’s a religious song and we wanted it to appeal to ev-eryone but still maintain originality. I also filmed the music video and ed-ited it,” stated Tacadena. Though Tacadena has been in media arts classes for three years, he has not previously constructed a music video. Ibale has been singing and playing instruments from a young age. “I’ve been singing since before I can remember,” said Ibale. “I play the guitar and the piano,” she continued. “I hope that she wins brown bags. I truly believe that God has given her a beautiful gift and that she should share it with the rest of the world,” said Tacadena. Ibale’s video will be showcased on the “Brown Bags to Stardom” website at www.brownbagstostar-dom.com/BrownBags/Mu-sic_Video_Challege_Vot-ing_Page.html. People voted for their favorite video from Feb. 23 to March 1 through email or by tuning in to OC16 using the Oceanic Interac-tive Controller. The win-ning video with the most votes will be announced after Mar. 16.
Robotic fish can be used to detect pollution through the use of chemical sensors.
Read more at: http://scienceray.com/biology/zoology/robotic-fish
�e first robotic fish was created in 1993 by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Mocz to represent MHS in National Science and Humanities Symposium
Ibale represents MHS in Brown Bags competition
Photo Courtesy of Science Teacher Namthip Sitachitta Mocz (left) was awarded 6th place for her comprehension and under-standing of robotic fish fused with hydraulics by creating a fish that could swim horizontal and vertically.
Senior Tiana Ibale plays her original song “Found” on her guitar. She was unaware that it was entered into the Music Video Challenge until Tacadena had uploaded it to the Music Video Challenge website. Her video can be seen on www.brownbagstostardom.com/BrownBags/Music_Vid-eo_Challege_Voting_Page.html.
Trojan Times
The Trojan Times is a monthly production of the Newswriting staff of Mililani High School 95-1200 Meheula Pkwy.,
Mililani, HI 96789
To voice an opinion or any concerns, feel free to submit a letter to L205 or to [email protected]. The Trojan Times re-serves the right to edit letters as they see fit. Please type your letter and clearly state your name, grade level and period one class.
The mission of the Trojan Times is to be the student
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cesses of students, promote the hard work of the faculty and capture the dedication
of organizations.
Editor-in-ChiefBianca Sewake
Assistant EditorCaitlin Kelly
Design EditorMatthew Ambrosecchio
Business ManagerJessica Antonio
AdviserMr. Christopher Sato
PrincipalDr. John Brummel
Staff
Zora HaReid Imamura
Chanel KawasakiElla MacaraigJudy Mossman
Jacquelyn PerreiraMatthew RaabAven SantiagoShan Yonamine
C&CC will be closed for Spring Break. If you need to drop off applications or scholarships, please plan accordingly. Have a fun, safe Spring Break and see you in 4th quarter!
Senior Announcments Graduation is right around the corner. Here are a few end of the year reminders:
May 1 is the universal deadline to let schools know whether you are accepting their offer of admission or not. This is not a postmarked deadline.
Turn in scholarship letters that you have received to be recognized in the graduation program.
Turn in final transcript requests if the college needs your final grades. If you are a scholarship athlete, you also need to send your final grades to the NCAA Clearinghouse. You can do this now and the registrar’s office will hold your request until your final grades are posted.
Be sure to turn in your health clearance information (TB test and MMR shot record) to the school you will be attending. You will not be able to register for your classes until this is complete.
Do not forget to thank the teachers and counselors who helped you with your college/scholarship recommendations and mid-year reports.
Still undecided about what to do after graduation? See Mrs. Yamamoto ASAP.
Junior AnnouncementsJuniors should be
getting ready for senior year. Reminders: distribute/collect student evaluation sheets, update your resume, take at least one SAT or ACT test, make an appointment with your counselor, request for letters of recommendation (if applicable) and research your schools.
Make an appointment with Mrs. Yamamoto if you need help with your college search or if you have any questions.
Fee Waivers AvailableStudents on free or
reduced lunch are available for SAT, ACT and NCAA Clearinghouse fee waivers. See Mrs. Yamamoto to pick up your fee waiver today.
College FairThe National College Fair
will be held on Thursday, April 28 from 8:30 – 11:30 a.m. and 5:00 – 8:00 p.m. at
the Hawaii Convention Center. Take advantage of this opportunity to meet with representatives from visiting schools. Free registration at www.gotomyncf.com
ASVAB Testing The ASVAB has been
scheduled for Wednesday, April 13. Testing will start at 1:15 p.m. and you should allow about 4 hours for the test.
Any senior interested in the Armed Services should take the ASVAB, however this test is also an excellent occupational test battery for those students unsure of occupations that suit their strengths.
Results will not be released to recruiters unless students/parents “opt in”. Interested students should sign up on the C&CC speaker bulletin board.
By Matthew [email protected] Recently I was visiting one of my prospective colleges. At one of the seminars, they posed a question to the students, “What will you do with your one wild and precious life?” Moving out of the high school setting, I can’t help but wonder where I am going. What’s my purpose? Where will the road of life take me? In a way it seems surreal to be considering such heavy ideals but I feel that they must be dealt with. We need to take a good look at the journey ahead and keep pushing forward even if we don’t know where it’ll lead us. I like to think of life as a road. We’re all just travelers moving down a path towards
some distant city called Meaning. Even if we’re not certain where we’ll end up there are definitely goals we’ll want to meet along the way. A high school diploma, a scholarship to college or a degree in psychology, can all be landmarks to look for down the way. And as we make it to each marker ,we’re bound to find others to take their place. As long as we believe that we’ll find an end to our road, there will always be a path to follow. That said, one of the saddest things we can do is lose faith in ourselves. Nonetheless there are times when everything seems pointless. I know I’ve lost my way a time or two; the path shrouded by uncertainty and failure. Yet no one can go through life without doubt the same way a road
is bound to get uneven. Knowing that, we shouldn’t dwell on our shortcomings or the unknown. I’ve found it better to take things as they come rather than worry about what’s ahead. That way, dealing with whatever life throws at you becomes less of a hassle and more of a dare to succeed. It’s all a matter of perspective. The challenges, obstacles and road blocks aren’t there to keep us out; they’re there to test resolve, exemplify how badly we want something. There seems to be a misconception that when things get hard or uncomfortable we should give up or turn the other way. If we always did that we’d be going in a circle, never getting anywhere. By pushing past the bounds of “I can’t” and “there’s no
point,” what you accomplish might surprise you. With the year quickly coming to a close we’ll soon pass our high school milestone. If we think the journey’s been rough so far, the road ahead will definitely be a shock. Soon the paths won’t be paved, the trails unclearly marked and obstacles more trying than before.
In all honesty I don’t know for certain where my “one wild and precious life” will lead. As my journey continues, I may find the path I once walked stray from my heart’s guide, but that’s alright. Regardless of the destination everything I learn and live will strengthen the compass pointing me to the “right” road. After all it’s not where you end up, but how you get there.
C&CC
7Thursday, March 3, 2011 Editorial
nly for now O
8 Thursday, March 3, 2011Sports
JV Baseball takes OIA C h a m p i o n s h i p t i t l e
JV Boys Basketball wins OIA Championship
Six MHS wrestlers take first place in OIAs
Top (L-R): C. Tantog, L. Dias, R. Kim. Bottom (L-R): M. Yamaguchi, J. Sanchez, P. Hicks.
By Caitlin Kelly [email protected] Afterfighting theirwaythrough several gruelingmatches, sixMHSwrestlerscaptured first place titlesin the OIA Championshiptournament,whichwasheldat LeilehuaHigh School onFeb. 5. As a whole, the JVgirls team earned fourthplace,whiletheJVboyswoneighthplace.Boththevarsityboysandgirlsteamswalkedawaywithfourthplace. FreshmanPhairinHicksoftheJVteamplacedfirstinher weight class. From thevarsityteam,JuniorsLaurenDias,RobertKimJr., JeffreySanchez Jr., Chase Tantogand Morgan Yamaguchiplaced first in their respec-tive weight classes. “I wasreally proud of myself andI felt likeallmyhardworkpaidoff frompractice.AnditjustreallyfeltgoodformebecauseIknewIworkedre-
By Judy Mossman [email protected] Although the JV BaseballTeam didn’t do as well as theyhoped at the beginning of theseason, theycameouton top intheend.Withafinalscoreof7-3againstKaiserHighSchool,theyreceived the OIA JV BaseballChampionshiptitlethisyear. This season, the team lostgamestoLeilehuaandCampbell,yet they never gave up. Eventhough this set the team backa little at the beginning of theseason, they continued to pushthemselvestogettotheend. Sophomore Aron Okamoto,a first season pitcher said, “Wepreparementally,solikegetourmindsstraight,and justgetpre-paredforthegame.” The coaches helped preparethe players physically for eachgamebymakingsuretheywentthroughthebasicsincombinationwith thorough practices to getthemreadyforwhattheywouldfaceonthefield.“Wepracticejustgoing through the basic things,picturingthatwin.Itismoreofamentalgame,”statedOkamoto.
Head Coach Gainor Nittawas able to overcome stressfuldaysandhelpedtheteamtobet-ter their ball game with funda-mentals. “Baseball is more thanjustaballandabat. It’s90per-centmentalandtohaveastrongmindyoucanovercomeanysitu-ationthatcomesourway,”statedNitta. In a final game against Kai-serHigh School,MHSwas ableto win and take the title. “Weexpected the win. We practicedhardthroughoutthewholeweekand we felt we were ready toplay.Wealwaysexpectedtowinall of our games, because if wehadanydoubtinourmindswe’dfail,”statedSophomoreBaseballplayerTroyKakugawa. Nitta feels that team bond-inghelpedtheteamwin.“Greatteam chemistry and the sopho-more’s leadership. Itmakes ourjob easier as coaches when youhavegoodkidsthatarewillingtolearn.Tocoachthemwasaprivi-lege.” After a rough start the JVbaseball teem was able to con-quer the season by overcomingthelossestheyfacedearlyon.
By Aven Santiago [email protected]
On Jan. 24, 2011, the MHSBoysJVBasketballteamwontheOIAtitlewithalossless season.Witha62 to55victoryover theRedRaidersofKahuku,theTro-jans took home the title for the2010-2011seasonundefeated. “When we won the OIAchampionship, Iwassuperhap-py,” said Sophomore SylvesterPanoncillo, a teamcaptain. “Ev-eryone elsewas too. Thewholeteam was jumping around andcheering.” The win over Kahuku gavetheTrojansarecordof13-0with12 regular season games and 1playoffgamebeforethechampi-onship. The team took discipline toheart as they played Kahuku.“This year I think thatweweremoredisciplinedthanlastyear,”
saidPanoncillo.“(Wewere)morefocused in thegameandonourgoaltowinthechampionships.” Severalkeyplayerscameintothe game such as SophomoresBranson Funakoshi and PeterBueno. “We had a vision at thebeginning togoundefeatedandbring the championship home,”saidBueno. “The teamwasbet-ter,wehadbetterchemistryandalltheplayersknewhowtoworktogether.” TheTrojanswereable tofin-ish the seasonwithout anyma-jorproblems,whichwaskey tothe team’s success. “We had asmooth way all the way just acoupletimeswehadminorinju-ries,”saidBueno. Throughteamworkandteambonding, they accomplishedtheirgoal. “Atthebeginningoftheseasontheteamwasactuallyconfident that we would makeit that far,”saidPanoncillo.“Wehadawhole lotofchemistryontheteamwhichmadeiteasiertoplaywithteamwork.” The Trojans finished theirseasonwithachampionship,theway every teamwouldwant tofinish. The team now hopes tomoveontonextseasonandreachthesamesuccess.
at practice into preparingfor the championship. “Werantwiceeverypractice,likebeforeandafter.Andinthemiddle we worked on ourtechnique,”saidTantog. However, they also hadtopracticeduringtheirowntime.“Duringtheweekends(I)wentoutandranonmyown time and I tried to doasmuchthingsasIcouldathometoprepare forOIAs,”saidYamaguchi. After the effortput intotraining,thecoachesexpect-ed their wrestlers to placewell. “As coaches we havehighexpectations,soweex-pect the kids to perform atthehighestlevel.Whenthathappensthenweshouldex-pecttheseresults,”saidLee. Qualifyingwrestlersad-vanced to the state tourna-ment, which took place onFeb.11and12.Thegirlsteamtookseventhplacewhiletheboysplaced32nd.
ally hard at it,” saidYama-guchi. Because only one wres-tler can be entered perweight class, team mem-bers had to fight theirwayto the topbefore theywereeven allowed to compete.“Ifwe havemore than onewrestler,thenwehavewhatwecallawrestleoffandthe
continuedtotheconsolationbracket. The stakes werehigh because if a wrestlerlost twice, theywereoutofthe competition. Wrestlersaccumulated points duringtheir matches, and thosepointsaddeduptotheteamscore. Teammembersputinanimmense amount of energy
winnerofthewrestleoffhasthechoicetowrestleinthatweight class,” said HeadCoachSamLee. The tournament wasconducted in a bracket for-mat, where two wrestlerswereputagainsteachother.The winning wrestler con-tinuedon to the champion-shipbracket,whiletheother
KayshaGabay| Na Mana o Poina Ole
Mof the MonthTrojan
Freshman Kevin Friefeldt has won nu-merous age group swimming awards on the national level and is a member of the Kame-hameha Swim Club. Frifeldt is also an active member of the MHS swim team, who placed first for boys in the OIA championships. In 2008, at the age of twelve, Frifeldt placed first in all of his events at the Western Zone Championships.His success continued through high school where he place first in both of his events at the Kalani Invitational. “The nature of swimming is just re-ally fun, it really shows who has trained hard for their events and who wants to win it the most,” said Frifeldt who specializes in 100 meter butterfly and 50 meter freestyle strokes. “He’s talented and a hard worker, but his best quality is his modesty and selfless-ness,” said his team-mate, Sophomore Kyle Yamada. “He’s more dedicated to the team instead of himself,” he continued. As a student ath-lete, Frifeldt must bal-ance school as well as sports. “I really try to focus hard in school, so that I have a good foun-dation for future educa-tion” said Frifeldt. Frifeldt continues to lead the MHS swim team to championships. After placing first in his events, the MHS boys swim team won first place at the OIAs.
By Matthew [email protected]
Against all odds, the JV Girls Soccer Team came out on top after a trying season which could only be described as “a journey.” After all, winning the OIA cham-pionships with 17 rookie players is no small feat. “It’s kind of like that every year but this year (we had 4 sophomores) the least amount of re-turnees we ever had,” explained Head Coach Natalie Hirata. Occasionally occur-ring when a large flow of upperclassmen move on to Varsity, the JV team is left with newbies. “People were saying, outside peo-ple were talking … about how this was our rebuild-ing year, this is the year Mililani is going down; it didn’t happen,” said Hi-rata. “In the beginning we were a little shaky,” ex-plained Freshman For-ward Cassandra Stetser, one of the key players in
By Jacquelyn [email protected]
For the Boys Varsity Swim Team, this season was filled with strong bonds and friendships. These outstanding friend-ships translated into their swimming, when they won the OIA champion title at the Central Oahu Regional Pool on Jan. 29. “We were all com-pletely psyched because we won by just 1 point (from second place) and 3 points (from 3rd place) and all the seniors and I were very proud of our team because this year everyone trained extra hard,” said Senior Sean Yamada, a team member. The training leading up to the meet was con-stant. The team practiced five times a week in the water and trained on land three times a week, doing things like running. “Our team has a really good work ethic and we all push each other in prac-tice, which makes us fast-er,” said team member,
Varsity Girls Soccer team takes third consecutive OIA title
the OIA championship; But as the season pro-gressed Stetser couldn’t help but notice the team mesh. “The defense got more together towards the end and we did a lot more possession and passing (than when we started),” she said. Although the team wasn’t able to repeat their flawless season last year—having no goals scored against them—the all rookie defense team held their own only get-ting scored upon 4 times. “The defense got more to-gether at the end,” stated Stetser. Marking their 11th consecutive OIA Champi-onship, the team was elat-ed to say the least. “Our team really enjoys soccer and we’re really happy,” said Stetser. With the season fin-ished, it’s hard to say where the girls will end up. “(We) really don’t know until try outs the following year,” Hirata explained. However, she seemed optimistic.
Boys Varsity Swim Team: 2011 OIA Champions
Senior Dane Kawamoto. As a result of spend-ing many hours together throughout the week, the team members grew very close. “After almost every meet, we had team bond-ing and it just brought the team closer every time,” explained Kawamoto. But during the meet, the team faced a dif-ficulty. Although their 200 medley relay won first place and broke a record, it was disqualified due to the fact that Kawamoto left too early on the ex-change. “At that point, we still knew we had a chance of winning, it would just be that much harder be-ing 32 points down,” said Kawamoto. Luckily, though, they managed to pull through and win with help from Kawamoto, Yamada, Freshman Kevin Frifeldt and Senior Kramer Ichimura. “(They) did a great job leading the team. They won the last relay which was critical for us winning,” said Coach Dustin Fukuda.
Beginners luck had nothing to do with it: JV Girls Soccer team wins OIA
easy for MHS. “Moanalua’s fast, they’re aggressive and they played well. They gave us everything they had,” said Head Coach Ray Ak-iona. A sense of achievement was felt throughout the team when the game was over. “It’s just gratifying to
In the thrilling final game of the OIA Red Division tournament, the MHS Girls Varsity Soccer team brought home their third consecutive title. The Trojans triumphed over the Na Menehune of Moanalua with a score of 3-1 on Feb. 5 at Roosevelt . Although Mililani walked away with the win, the direction of the game was unclear for much of the first half with the score be-ing tied at 0-0. “At first, the game was pretty even. We had some chances to score and they had some good op-portunities,” said Junior Tara Kamiya, center midfielder. Much of MHS’ energy was spent on defending Moanalua’s forward Senior Tiana Fujimoto, the leading scorer in Division 1. “It was tough because in the begin-ning they were just launch-
ing balls at the defense try-ing to get that one forward to beat the defender. But we man marked (Fujimoto) so she wouldn’t have space to turn,” said Sophomore Tier-ra “TJ” Reyno, forward. Reyno was able to score the first goal off of an assist from Sophomore Shyani Ter-ukina, forward. The momentum con-tinued from there, when Senior Taylor Oldani, mid-fielder made the second goal of the night off of an assist from Sophomore Tarryn Miyamura, fullback. Reyno scored yet another goal and it would be the last for MHS for the night. Though Moanalua scored a goal in the 65th minute, it wasn’t enough to close the gap and Mililani walked away with the title. “I was excited and I just couldn’t believe that we got this far,” said Reyno. The win didn’t come
By Caitlin [email protected]
9Thursday, March 3, 2011 Sports
(L-R) Seniors Cori Komiyama, Taylor Reed, Junior Kristen Fujinaga and Senior Mimi Nakagawa were ecstatic about receiving their third consecutive OIA championship plaque.
Juyoung Song | Na Manao Poina ole
see them work so hard and get a reward like this,” said Akiona. The Trojans competed in the JN Automotive State Division I girls’ soccer tour-nament at the Waipio Penin-sula Soccer Complex, where they landed a fourth place ranking.
Mat
thew
Raa
b |
Troj
an T
imes
Hawaii ranks
fifth in the na-
tion for meth use
by people ages 12
and up
“The Hawaii Meth Project is a prevention campaign whose purpose is to signifi-cantly reduce first-time Meth use in Ha-waii Teens.”-Program Manager Jennifer Phakoom
By Bianca [email protected]
think the meth problem in Hawaii is not good.” 90% of federally sen-tenced drug cases and 48% of drug-related treatment admissions involve the use of meth. Reasons for people to start taking this drug vary. “There’s so many outside
factors like things that may be going on in someone’s fam-ily,” explained Phakoom, “Or peer pressure or even peo-ple that don’t know the side effects that this drug has.“
Other common reasons people take meth include, to lose weight, have more en-ergy and feel a sense of hap-piness. While meth users can experience this, the ad-diction it creates and its long term use can be harmful. “I think that it is im-portant for people to know, especially teenagers, how
While Hawaii is viewed as paradise, that is not the case for all of its residents. One problem that many of us may not be aware of is that Hawaii ranks fifth in the na-tion for methamphetamine (meth) use by people ages 12 and up. Also known as “Crank”, “Ice” and “Speed”, just to name a few, it is considered one of the more dan-gerous drugs that can down spiral a user into an unhealthy lifestyle. “It (can) start at 12 years old, which is middle school age. I think it’s a significant problem,” said Hawaii Meth Project Program Manager Jennifer Phakoom. Council Member Kelci Quinabo agreed, saying, “I
badly this drugs affets your body, your family and your life and how it can change everything,” stated Phak-oom. But with its easy access to the ingredients that make up this drug, some users “cook” it in their own kitch-en with the help of common household items, such as lithium (found in batteries), acetone (found in nail polish remover) and over the coun-ter drugs. These tox-ic chemicals, however, are harmful. “It’s not like any oth-er addiction ... where you can try it and if you don’t like it, you won’t do it it again. It can have a long term detrimen-tal effect,” said Phakoom. Some side effects include hallucinations, paranoia, de-pression, violent behavior, tooth decay, increased blood pressure, hyperthermia,
Photo courtesy of The Hawaii Meth Project
tremors, and in extreme cas-es, death. Recovery from this drug is possible, but will be lengthy and requires profes-sional help. So in attempt to prevent people from experiencing that, the Hawaii Meth Proj-ect group formed their “Not Even Once” campaign in June 2009 to reduce first time meth users.
“The Hawaii Meth
Project helps to counteract this problem by spreading the word through media,” explained Quinabo. “Me-dia consisting of advertise-ment commercials, radio ads and posters throughout the state.” They also give pre-
sentations to different high schools across the state. Although the problem can’t be stopped entirely, there have been positive chang-es. “What we have found is that there is a shift in atti-tude,” said Phakoom. “Teen-agers are saying there is more of a risk. More teenagers are saying that they would dis-courage their friends from using it, which is significant psychologically because a
shift in attitude is usually followed by a shift in behav-ior.”With the feedback they re-ceive, mem-bers of the H a w a i i Meth Proj-
ect hope that the students also help spread the word by telling people they know. As part of their continu-ous campaigning, the Ha-waii Meth Project will visit MHS health classes April 1.
Meth:
10 FeaturesThursday, March 3, 2011
A problem in paradise
Thursday, March 3, 2011 Interactive 112
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Across1. What JV team had all Rookie players?6. What club will have their retriet at the Pa-cific Beach hotel?
8. NHD Districts was held at Aiea _____ School.
(Stop where you are!
Come quietly and we will not
shoot!)
(NO. I will stay here
and distract them.)
(Stop talk-ing!)
(it’s too late for me. not for you, no. you can still make it. run
for it. just remember, i love you. I promise,
we will meet each other soon.)
how is “Epic love story:
the most dramatic Korean drama”
related to math?
(We can still make it to the
airport! quickly, we--)
it’s so Beautiful
You better take care ofyourself, there’s a cold going around
Say “I told you so” and I will cough on you ...
Ha! Me get sick, like that’s going to happen!
Last Week This Week
3to5days By Jayna Kitazaki
By the bell By Matthew Ambrosecchio
Aries
Build a rocket ship out of old trash can lids. Don’t forget to bring your own packed lunch when you go out to space, aliens are horrible cooks.
(March 21 - April 19)
_Taurus (April 20 - May 20) You’ll be feeling that urge to see that new Justin Bieber 3D movie. Be sure to maintain your manliness by smashing cans against your head.
`Gemini (May 21 - June 21)
You’ll be feeling bright-eyed this month. Skip merrily to all of your classes and hum show-tunes.
(June 22 - July 22)a CancerCows moo, dogs bark, ducks quack. Come up with your own animal sound and screech it throughout campus.
(July 23 - Aug. 22)bLeo If you’re feeling a little cranky this month and suddenly have the longing to play late-night bingo, congratulations, you’re getting old.
dLibra (Sept. 23 – Oct. 22)
Impress your friends this month with tongue-twisters. Recite “she-sells-sea-shells” or “how-much-wood-can-a-woodchuck-chuck” to show off your superior alliteration skills.
HOROSCOPES
eScorpio You’re a certified trend setter this month. From now on everything you wear will become mainstream. Beware of hipsters.
fSagittarius(Nov. 22 - Dec. 21)
Be a kid again. Play with Pokemon cards, build pillow forts and indulge in chocolates and sweets.
g Capricorn (Dec. 22 – Jan. 19)
You’ll be feeling moody this month. Write depressing poetry and wear dark colors to embrace your misery.
cVirgo(Aug. 23 - Sept. 22)
This month, that song you absolutely hate will be stuck in your head. Avoid its horrific catchiness by covering your ears and running away.
h Aquarius(Jan. 20 - Feb. 18)
Clean up that room of yours. Peel off that crusted layer of pancake syrup and gym socks from your floor and organize that closet.
i Pisces(Feb. 19 – March 20)
Take on an accent this month to maintain the air of mystery. Speak in a British or a even a Southern accent.
Compiled by Chanel Kawasaki [email protected]
(Oct. 23 - Nov. 21)
Down2. Name of the movie that inspired the Senior Prom.3. Who is the new Japanese Teacher?4. The Science ______ Competition was held at LCC on february 5th. 5. Who is the adviser for the Sophomore Banquet?
6. What are the cows for the Lucerne art contest made out of?7. What was the JV Basketball’s season re-cord?
