Sunset Times Staff

Editors: Nelli Coira

Trevor Ostaff

Web Producers: Dylan Hilliard

Siyah Osornio

Maddy Russell

Feature Writer: Alexa Spartz

Contributing Writers: Ashlyn Alcott

Ian Anderson

Ethan Baranowski

Keely Bennett

Allison Cattoor

Maci Crookes

Nicholas Dumouchel

Tabbitha Elsberry

Austin Fladung

Morgan Frame

Rhett Hahn

Michael Hellwig

Cole Lopez

Izabella Pollock

Clayton Watters

Student Advisor: Mary Vivola

SUN SET T IM ESSUN SET T IM ES V OLUME 1 SEPT . 6 ,201 3

Change brings excitement and fear, but Sunset Ridge middle school students are

prepared for anything that comes our way. This year, we will be faced with many changes

that will positively impact our lives.

The first change affects our tummies. Pizza will now be served on Fridays, not

Wednesdays. The dough will be made of wheat again and provided by Barros. Some

students are not thrilled with the change, but will adapt. Ian said, “I would rather have

pizza on Wednesdays because that means that half the week is over.” Other students, like

Michael, said, “I would rather have pizza on Fridays to end the week with a great lunch.”

Either way, everyone loves pizza!

Mrs. Boersema decided to return to the classroom as a student this year. This

move left the position of National Junior Honor Society advisor open. Mrs. Willard will

be replacing her in that role. She wanted to become the NJHS leader because she lives in

the neighborhood and wants to contribute to her community. I asked Mrs. Willard, “How

do you like NJHS so far?” Mrs. Willard responded, “I think NJHS has a lot of potential

this year, and the kids are great.” She is very excited for her first year and is looking

forward to carrying on traditions started by Mrs. Boersema and former NJHS students.

She and her students are already working on this year’s Relay for Life event.

Another change the middle school students will experience is a thirty minute

homeroom at the end of the day. Mondays and Thursdays will be reserved for a “Study

Hall.” The other days will allow the teachers to review specific skills. The students seem

excited about this time. Many of the students report that they like the opportunity to

complete assignments or use this time to study and organize materials. Some of the

students even said that it was their favorite period of the day.

Many changes are in place, but one thing remains the same. Sunset Ridge

students will use changes to continue to build their character and soar!

Volume 1 Septtmeber 6,2013

A NEW YEAR BRINGS

CHANGES BY ALEXA SPARTZ

MEET YOURMATE…

Kaylee Byerly

Kaylee Byerly: Back in Action

Kaylee Byerly is an 8th grader here at Sunset Ridge.

She plays volleyball for the school and club with AZ Sky.

She practices every Tuesday and Thursday for two hours

each session. On a scale of 1-10, she conditions as a seven

because she trains five times a week. We asked her if she

was excited for any specific opponents, but she stated, “Not

anyone specific, I’m just excited for the season.” Last year,

she experienced a back injury that caused her to sit out for

the second half of the season. She couldn’t run the mile in

P.E., and it was harder for her to play

volleyball. This year, she finally healed

up and will play volleyball and basket-

ball. Her favorite motivational quote is,

“If you lose your way, get back up again.

It’s never too late to get back up again;

One day you’re going to shine again.

You may be knocked down but not for-

ever.” –Toby Mac. Kaylee is also an

honor student and is a great role model.

She shows character all around the cam-

pus. Come and support Kaylee and our

Sunset Ridge Hawks this Season!

Written by: Maci Crookes, Morgan Frame, & Allison Cattoor

Guest Artist: Danielle Blaine

MEET YOUR CLASSMATE…

Morgan Starliper

Morgan Starliper: Super Swimmer

Morgan Starliper is an 8th grader here at Sunset Ridge. She

swims at Foothills Aquatic Cen-

ter in Glendale. She trains about

four days a week for about an

hour and a half per practice. Her

other hobbies include drawing

and running. In high school, she

would like to be on the cross

country team. When we asked her

how hard she trained on a scale

of 1-10, she rated it a 9. She

states, “We train really hard for

competitions and meets.” She

added that she isn’t looking for-

ward to any specific competitors. She’s just excited for the

season. Lately though, she has been experiencing breathing

problems while swimming. She included that it’s common

for swimmers to have this issue caused by the chlorine

amounts in the water. It could cause her to have to quit

swimming. Morgan states that her breathing has been get-

ting better. Her favorite motivational quote is, “If you train

hard, you’ll not only be hard, you’ll be hard to beat.” –

Hershel Walker

By: Maci Crookes, Morgan Frame, Allison Cattoor

Guess which Sunset Ridge staff member taught for a year in Korea? It’s Mr.Andreski. He has been a

teacher for almost seven years. We were lucky to be

able to speak with Mr. Andreski

for a few minutes even though he

was very busy preparing for the

new school year. What was in-

teresting about teaching in Ko-

rea? “It was interesting because

I taught the students after school

until about eight or nine

o’clock.” What was difficult

about teaching in Korea? “It

was a little difficult teaching in

Korea because the kids were real-

ly tired.” Mr.Andreski taught in Korea from 2009-2010.

Now, Mr.Andreski is the 8th grade social studies teacher

here at Sunset Ridge! What do you like most about

Sunset Ridge? “The students are really nice and so are

the other teachers.” Do you like being a teacher?

“Yeah, it has its good and bad moments but mostly

good.” What inspired you to become an 8th grade so-

cial studies teacher? “ I have always had an interest in

social studies.” Do you like teaching 8th grade social

studies? “Yeah, I like it, it was a little bit more interest-

ing when I used to teach 7th and 8th grade Social Studies

because both classes were different.” Hope fully,

throughout the year, we can learn more about

Mr.Andreski and enjoy learning from him. So stop by

Mr.Andreski’s class, and learn how to say “Hi” or

“Hello” in Korean! 안녕하세요 is how you spell “Hello” in Korean!!

By: Ashlyn And Tabbitha

Meet A Soaring Staff Member:

Mr. Thaddeus Andreski “I liked when the teachers

were playing in the bath-

room.”-

Michael

“My favorite part was when

Mr. Strauss ate his lunch in

the lunch-

room.”-Nelli.

Man in the Hallway Question:

What was the funniest part of the

discipline video made by the SSR staff?

“I liked when Mr. Strauss

flicked carrots across the

lunch room.”

-Cole

Sunset Ridge Sports News

Girls’ Volleyball

Volleyball season is finally

here! There is much talk

about the girls bringing

home a banner this season.

A lot will be expected from

returning players Kaylee,

Nelli, Taylor and Ashley.

Newcomer, Alexa, is excit-

ed to be part of this win-

ning combination. “This is

my first time playing

school volleyball, although

I have played two years of

club volleyball.” The girls

are excited to have Mrs.

Spartz and Coach Giger to

turn to for advice. Mrs.

Spartz coached girls’ vol-

leyball at Boulder Creek

for many years, and brings

a wealth of experience.

The first home game for

both boys and girls volley-

ball will be on September

12th against Gavilan Peak.

By: Ethan Baranowski &

Austin Fladung

Boys’ Volleyball

After a long summer, the

Sunset Ridge Boys’ Vol-

leyball members are ready

to dominate! I asked re-

turning player, Luke, why

he was excited to be back

on the court. He said, “I

have great passion for this

game.” He doesn’t have

one team in particular that

he is looking forward to

challenging. Luke said, “I

take every team seriously,

and give 110% every

game.” Luke is excited to

work with his talented

teammates. He acknowl-

edged that there is a lot of

talent on the team. Luke is

going to work at improv-

ing his game, and hopes

he has a fun and success-

ful season under the guid-

ance of Coach Giger. So,

come on out and support

your Hawks!

By Cole Lopez and

Michael Hellwig

Arts & Entertainment

Dr. Kunz: A New Bond for our Band

Walk by the band room any day and

you will hear beautiful music infusing the air

under the direction of our new band director,

Dr. Kunz. Dr. Kunz has set high goals for the

members of the SSR Band. She has decided

to introduce something new: chamber music.

Chamber music focuses on small groups of

musicians performing together. Dr. Kunz will

use her experiences to improve the perfor-

mance of the band. She learned a lot as she

prepared students for a showcase in California

and while teaching in our district for the last

four years. Dr. Kunz hopes that the SSR stu-

dents continue to grow as musicians as they

move on to high school bands. Dr. Kunz’s

doctorate in instrumental performance will

help propel the band towards reaching its

goals.

Welcome to Sunset Ridge, Dr. Kunz!

Safety: Cole Lopez moved all the backpacks

so students and teachers could move around

the room safely.

~Mrs. Clarkson

Responsibility: Seth Pavo waited outside

the classroom until he was given permission

to enter and retrieve a personal item.

~Mr. Strauss

Achievement: Amber Rush scored a 1536 on

the SRI assessment. That was the highest

score in 8th grade!

~Mrs. Vivola

Opportunity for Respect: Kyle Perry is always

on task and engaged in learning!

~Mr. Andreski

8th Grade Soaring Hawks

Responsibility: Cameron LaRose moved

away from his table in order to focus on his

reading!

~Mrs. Jenkins

7th Grade Soaring Hawks

Safety: Kiana Guanino always says

thanks!

~Mrs. Hamilton

Opportunity for Respect: Ben Blair invited

all the kids to sit with him at lunch!

~Mrs. O’Halloran

Achievement: Brekin Morton helped another

student with his assignment!

~Mrs. Shreeve

Arts & Entertainment

Here are the 2013 VMA winners:

Video of the Year: Justin Timberlake, "Mirrors"

Best Hip-Hop Video: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis feat. Ray

Dalton, "Can't Hold Us"

Best Male Video: Bruno Mars, "Locked Out of Heaven"

Best Female Video: Taylor Swift, "I Knew You Were Trou-

ble"

Best Pop Video: Selena Gomez, "Come & Get It"

Artist to Watch Presented by Taco Bell®: Austin Mahone,

"What About Love"

Best Collaboration: P!nk feat. Nate Ruess, "Just Give Me a

Reason"

Best Video with a Social Message: Macklemore & Ryan

Lewis feat. Mary Lewis, "Same Love"

Best Rock Video: Thirty Seconds to Mars, "Up in the Air"

Best Art Direction: Janelle Monae feat. Erykah Badu,

"Q.U.E.E.N"

Best Choreography: Bruno Mars, "Treasure"

Best Cinematography: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis feat. Ray

Dalton, "Can't Hold Us"

Best Direction: Justin Timberlake feat. Jay-Z, "Suit & Tie"

Best Editing: Justin Timberlake, "Mirrors"

Best Visual Effects: Capital Cities, "Safe and Sound"

Song of the Summer: One Direction, "Best Song Ever"

Opinion

Siyah is an 8th grade student at Sunset Ridge.

Miley Cyrus has been the topic of every magazine and

talk show. Her risqué performance with Robin Thicke

has sparked a social media frenzy that criticizes her

appearance at the Video Music Awards show. Her

“performance” was ridiculous and repulsive! It was

offensive and difficult to watch and lacked any real tal-

ent or originality.

FASHION REPORT

HOT OR NOT

We asked, you replied.

Heart Shaped Sunglasses

60% NOT “I personally think that they can only

look good on the right person”, says the seventh

grade Social Studies teacher, Mrs.Shreeve.

Headwraps

70% YES “I think they are really cute, and you can

wear them with like anything.” - Morgan Frame

Flower Crowns

85% YES “They are a cute girly accessory that

adds a little sweetness to an outfit.” -Kate Beall.

By: Keely Bennett and Izabella Pollock

FASHION REPORT

Punk Rock Chic

These essential pieces help complete that rocker girl chic look

you’ve been noticing all summer!

A new fashion trend that is spreading around the valley is “punk

rock chic,” which can be rocked with some high-rise studded

shorts. You can easily make these shorts yourself. Visit your local

Goodwill Store and purchase an old pair of grandma jeans. Cut

and style to make them your own! Or you can go to stores like

PacSun, Urban Outfitters and Tilly’s to get this essential piece. To

add a little classic feel, you can sport some high tops to emphasize

this look. Head wraps look good with any outfit; just add a basic

graphic tee to add simplicity. To tie the whole look together, add a

pop of sparkle and color by using Too Faced Pretty Rebel eye

shadow palette from Sephora.

High Waisted Studded Shorts-$50 JeansOnly Etsy;Customized

Hightops-(price depends on the styling) Converse; Bandana Head

wrap-$19 Urban Outfitters; Too Faced Pretty Rebel Eyeshadow

Palette-$46 Sephora;Killin It top-$18 Brandy Melville; Too Faced

Pretty Rebel Eyeshadow Palette-$46 Sephora