Facebook: MHS The Student Newspaper December 2010 Volume 73, Issue Three

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

MARION HIGH SCHOOL

Deer Hunting

Page 3

New Music Review

Page 8

Crime Scene Lab

Page 5

New Teachers

Pages 4 and 7

Do you think one test should

determine your future? The

A ACT is a test that deter-

mines your college entrance.

If students don’t score high

enough on the test they could

not be accepted into colleges.

I am against using the ACT for

college entrance.

The test is nearly impossible

to complete in the time given.

The ACT is given to juniors in

select states across the United

States including Illinois. It in-

cludes math, science, English,

and reading. The reading por-

tion of the test is exceptionally

difficult. On this portion of

the ACT there are 40 questions

plus reading passages to be

completed in only 45 minutes.

Students are also required to

write a well developed essay

in only 30 minutes.

Most students take

longer than 30 minutes

to plan out and prepare

for the paper, let alone

doing that and writing

the paper in the time

given. Some people

think the ACT should be

given as a college en-

trance exam, but I be-

lieve it shouldn’t because

many very smart people

cannot finish the test in

time that’s given.

College entrance

should not be primarily

based on the ACT test.

For example, you go to

(Continued on page 4)

Student Editorials: The ACT Mrs. Richart’s English III

class recently studied editorial

writing, and some of the stu-

dents’ best compositions were

given to The Student. Unfortu-

nately, we do not have enough

room to print them all, so we

printed two of our staff favor-

ites.

This first submission ad-

dresses the issue of standardized

testing, particularly the ACT.

This is always a huge issue

around this time of year, and

Jessi Dryden speaks for a lot of

students in the following edito-

rial.

The Student

Marion High School

1501 S. Carbon St.

Marion, IL 62959

(618) 993-8196

thestudentnewspaper@hotmail.com

Page 2 THE STUDENT- ISSUE TWO, VOLUME 73

Head Editor: Jordan McBride

Editors: Sarah Anderson, Dakota

Evans, Aaron McGee

Sponsor: Mrs. Presley

Contributing Staff: Kristen Fowler, Essence Kimble, Michael McAnelly,

Hannah Nelson, Taylor Pankey, Nicho-

las Rakers

Special Thanks: Jessi Dryden, Justin Maze

The Student is a newspaper that is produced by Marion High School students on a periodic basis.

The Chameleon Generation

MHS Wins at Murray State

MHS The Student newspaper

Sociologists claim that our

generation is “chameleon.” This

means that research has proven

that we do not act in a predict-

able manner. In different situa-

tions, our behav-

iors change.

It is not neces-

sarily our fault

that we are like

this. Our sur-

roundings obvi-

ously influence

us; blame them.

We have become

accustomed to

changing our behaviors to

achieve the greatest success in

multiple situations. In some

sense, this is a really good thing.

However, we do need to be care-

ful that we do not sacrifice our-

selves, or that we don’t forget

who we are in the first place.

It’s not the fact that we are afraid to

be unique; we have extreme differ-

ences in style and individuality. What

is more worrisome is that these ex-

tremes may make us the same. Maybe

we have to

push ourselves

to the extreme,

have the

brightest hair

color, or buy

the most

unique clothes

to prove that

we are differ-

ent.

Our generation is definitely unique,

no question. We should be proud, but

never feel forced to be different. We

already are.

-The Student Staff

third year in a row, the MHS team

took first place.

The competition included a test

created by a Chemistry teacher at

Murray. The teacher commented

that his students thought that the test

was extremely difficult.

Along with a grueling

hour test, the students

were given a free lunch

to sustain their fam-

ished minds.

Congrats to the

Marion Chemistry

Team!

-Sarah Anderson

Instead of spending their Vet-

eran's Day morning sleeping in,

seniors Paige Shevlin, Katie Phil-

lips, Sarah Anderson, and junior

Nick Reim accompanied Mr. Davis

to the 40th Annual Chemistry Com-

petition at Murray

State.

Marion, along

with several other

local high schools,

brought their best

students to com-

pete. Paige Shevlin

took 2nd place in

second year indi-

vidual and, for the

Page 3 THE STUDENT- ISSUE TWO, VOLUME 73

some students believe it is not exactly fair

to ignore the everyday nature lover. To

many, a Friday off of school for

the entire student body would be a

better option. This proposal ac-

commodates for hunters without

making exceptions for them.

Still, both supporters and oppo-

nents appear to be passionate in

their opinions on the topic and the

debate seems unlikely to die down

any time soon.

-Hannah Nelson

Editorial: Deer Hunting

Senior Spotlight: Tre Martin

Looking back on his time at MHS, senior Tre Mar-

tin said, “My favorite high school memory would

have to be Senior homecoming. The float building,

the atmosphere, everything was just great.”

Tre is very much enjoying his senior year thus far,

participating, as he has done in the past, in HOSA

and Jazz Choir.

His time outside of school is spent at his job at Tar-

get.

Tre’s favorite class “would have to be Medical Ca-

reers junior year with Mrs. Mummert. Meeting the

out of town people was great, and the clinicals were

always fun.”

Mrs. Poole is one of Tre’s favorite teachers, al-

though he admits, “we don’t always see eye to eye on

this whole Research Writing thing.” Tre added, “We

still get along.” Another of Tre’s favorite teachers

was former English teacher and sponsor of The Stu-

dent, Mrs. Neal.

-Jordan McBride

It is another beautiful Friday, the leaves are

shining in a glorious multitude

of colors. This is a perfect day

to explore the local wilderness.

Sadly, those who do not own a

hunting permit can only view

the outdoors from behind a

classroom window.

Hunters are allowed a day

away from school to pursue

their much loved hobby, while

the remainder of the school is

confined indoors. Though the

hunting of deer is very impor-

tant for population control,

How do you feel about the school year being halfway

over?

It’s mixed feelings. I feel excited and a twinge of sadness.

Is it crazy to think that your high school career is basi-

cally over?

Yeah, time just flew by. I still think I should be a freshman.

Any New Year’s resolutions you are going to make?

I don’t really have any for the time being.

Were you worried for your first finals as a freshman?

Were they as hard as you expected?

I was a little worried, but they were not as bad as I expected.

What is your best memory from this year so far?

I’d have to say my AP Bio trip to Kentucky Lake or going

to Indianapolis with the FFA.

Do you still get excited for Christmas now that you’re a

senior?

A little bit. I like seeing my family.

-Kristen Fowler

Senior Spotlight: Patrick Johnson

Page 4 THE STUDENT- ISSUE TWO, VOLUME 73

New Teacher: Gulley

Student Editorials: The ACT (cont.)

Mrs. Gulley is among one of the newest teach-

ers at the high school. Her classroom is located

in the trailer disconnected from the school build-

ing, where she teaches health careers during 6th

and 7th hours. This is her first year teaching in

the classroom everyday. Before

this year, she had been a school

nurse for Unit #2 school district

since 1997, during which she

would provide training on vari-

ous topics to faculty and staff, as

well as provide presentations on

various health related issues.

When beginning her schooling,

she acquired an Associate Degree

in Nursing at John A. Logan Col-

lege. Then at SIUE, she received

a Bachelor of Science in Nursing.

Finally, she obtained a School

Nurse Certification from the University of Illi-

nois Chicago. Now, she is currently working on

a Masters Degree of Science in Nursing as a

Nurse Educator at the University of Southern

Indiana.

Her favorite part of teaching

high school students is their

creativity and energy. She has

also found that MHS students

are caring, compassionate, and

more than willing to help those

that are in need.

Mrs. Gulley enjoys scrapbook-

ing and reading with her chil-

dren—Braden, who is a fresh-

man this year, Rylah, who is

four years old, and Braylan, who

is one and a half.

-Taylor Pankey

school for 12 years, but almost everything

is based on one test. So basically 12 years

of school doesn’t really count for anything.

Some people can have a high GPA, but

they may not be very good test takers under

a lot of pressure. This also has a bad effect

on the test. Some people say that if you

have a high GPA you should do fine on the

ACT, but these people are wrong because it

is a very difficult test to complete because

of the time that’s given and the pressure

that a student is under.

(Continued from page 1) T Therefore, the ACT is a very hard test

that college entrance should not be based

on. It is nearly impossible to complete in

the requested time. This is why I am

against using the ACT for college entrance.

As members of the college board, it is your

job to outlaw the ACT for college entrance.

-Jessi Dryden

Page 5 THE STUDENT- ISSUE TWO, VOLUME 73

A Murder in the Library?! Lab Science, better known as

Forensics, conducts the annual

“Crime Scene Lab.” For those

who don’t know, the “Crime

Scene Lab” is a teaching aid for

forensic students.

The project allows students to

conduct a full murder investiga-

tion, complete with blood sam-

ples, fingerprints, hair follicles,

and fierce motives.

This year’s scenes are scandal-

ous affairs. In one scene Ben

Moore is executed by his first

girlfriend, leaving the scene cov-

ered with blood and powder. In

the other, Jake was killed by his

best friend Marcus over drugs and

a girl.

The two crime scenes were

located in the library temporar-

ily shutting it down in that sec-

tion.

Christina Stone, a forensics

student, said, “It was a fun and

a great learning experience.”

Ms. Grant (to be Mrs. Robin-

son next summer, Congratula-

tions!) the lab science teacher,

said, “I hope that the students

like it, and have fun with a new

learning experience, and be-

come future crime scene inves-

tigators.”

-Nicholas Rakers

Student Editorials: Lower Taxes When is the last time you

heard someone saying they want

lower taxes? Taxes are what

helps take care of our grandpar-

ents, yet Americans don’t realize

those taxes take care of the eld-

erly and that those taxes pay for

those programs. We as Ameri-

cans expect Medicare patients to

have the best healthcare, but by

lowering taxes we’re giving

them fewer options for their

care. As a community and as

Americans we can do better. The

tax problems for Medicare for

our senior citizens are just one of

the many obvious problems we

are facing in our healthcare sys-

tem. Doctors are actually

“ditching” Medicare patients due

to Medicare cuts. Our obliga-

tions are all wrong. The way we

provide health care to the elderly

empowers us to change the foun-

dation of our lives. The reason

why we passed Medicare cover-

age was to help the less fortu-

nate, and now we’re ready to

pretty much throw it away in one

generation. It is our moral obli-

gation to help people who cannot

help themselves.

Now is the time to fix our tax

system and get rid of the fraud

and waste. History shows us that

we, as Americans, in order to

move forward, have to take care

of all Americans. As of now, if

we make more cuts in Medicare,

Medicare patients will not be able

to afford the medication they need

to survive. Some Americans think

that lowering taxes is a great idea

because they will have more

money in their pockets. But these

same people when they get older

want to have Medicare provided

to them. We need to provide all of

the necessary prescriptions and

care our senior citizens need.

Hospitals all over the U.S. have

made progress in establishing

good health care for Medicare

patients, and have done so within

their budgets. As we know, these

(Continued on page 8)

Page 6 THE STUDENT- ISSUE TWO, VOLUME 73

THE STUDENT

Once again, the Marion High

School football team produced a suc-

cessful season. The Cats finished

with a 9-2 overall record, were the

South Seven Conference champions,

and made it to the second round of

the IHSA state playoffs. They man-

aged to excite crowds at every game

with an explosive offensive front as

well as a defense that continually

stalled even the best of drives.

Senior Captain and offen-

sive lineman, Matt Griffith,

commented on the season,

“This past year had its share

of ups and downs, adversity

and victory, but the greatest

legacy we can leave behind as

a team would be that we never

let adversity control how we

played as brothers.” As we

leave this season behind us,

Football Season Wraps Up

Bowling Season Off to a Great Start

the thoughts of next fall are

already brewing in the minds

of many here in Wildcat Coun-

try. Let’s just hope those Wild-

cat’s coming up never forget

that in order to achieve their

dreams they “gotta be 11.”

-Aaron McGee

The MHS boy’s bowling team

began their season last Tuesday

with a win against Massac

County. They followed up Tues-

day’s win with a victory over

Carbondale last Thursday, mak-

ing the boy’s record a promising

2-0. Jeremy Johnson coaches

both the boy’s and girl’s bowling

teams.

The girl’s team begins their

season this Tuesday with a home

match against Massac County.

All home matches and prac-

tices for both teams take place

at Marion Bowl.

When asked about the up-

coming season, senior Chris-

tina Stone said, “We’re ex-

tremely excited; we’re going

to do great this year! Hope-

fully we’ll either go to state as

a team, or as individuals.”

Stone added, “We had some

people come extremely close

last year.” This season looks to

be an exciting one for both

teams with the boy’s team off

to a great start and the girl’s

team poised to do the same.

Good luck to all of our Bowl-

ing Wildcats!

-Jordan McBride

Page 7 THE STUDENT- ISSUE TWO, VOLUME 73

New Teacher: Damron Mrs. Damron is another one of

the many new teachers on staff

since August 2010. In room F101,

nearly five minutes away from A-

hall, she teaches something she’s

been teaching almost all her life,

sewing. In that category, she is

proud to be teaching Consumer

Economics, Clothing I & II, Fash-

ion Merchandizing, and Life I & II.

Prior to this first year at Marion

High, she attended school at Rend

Lake College where she studied

interior design . Then, after going to

John A. Logan College, she later

transferred to Southern Illinois Uni-

versity where she received her

Bachelor’s Degree in Education.

She taught three years in Herrin

schools. She has also taught college

classes in computer and construc-

tion at John A. Logan. She’s cur-

rently working

towards her Mas-

ter’s degree at

S.I.U.

Damron is a

proud mother of

four. She loves

teaching, and ob-

viously loves her

job, looking for-

ward to each day

with her high

school students.

Her hobbies are

New Teacher: Stearns Education in School Leadership/ Ad-

ministration. After that she returned

to Middle Tennessee State Univer-

sity, and received an Educational

Specialist Degree in Curriculum De-

sign and In-

struction.

Mrs. Stearns

says that her

favorite part of

teaching high

school students

is that they sit

still (most

days), because

she is used to

teaching hyper

middle school

students.

Among several of the new additions

to the English department is Mrs.

Stearns. She moved this year from

Nashville, Tennessee, but she is origi-

nally from Eldorado.

She is teaching English I, English

II, and Individualized Reading for

Marion High School. She has been

teaching for four years. At her last

school in Franklin, Tennessee, she

taught 7th grade Language Arts.

After graduating high school, she

attended SIUC, where she received

an Associates Degree of Science.

Then she transferred to Murray State,

where she received a Bachelor of Sci-

ence. She then moved on to Middle

Tennessee State University, where

she obtained a Masters Degree of

cooking, sewing/crafts, and

hiking. Her husband teaches

welding at John A. Logan.

She’s ultimately in love with

her only grandchild,

two-year-old, Ab-

bygale. I hope you

get a chance to

meet her and have

best wishes for her

first year.

-Essence Kimble

Her favorite hobby at

the moment is decorat-

ing the new house she

bought this summer.

Mrs. Stearns is cur-

rently pregnant

with a boy, who

is due on Febru-

ary 25th of next

year.

-Taylor Pankey

Page 8 THE STUDENT- ISSUE TWO, VOLUME 73

Student Editorials: Lower Taxes (cont.)

Punk Goes Pop: Vol 3 Review Punk Goes Pop Vol. 3,

the third entry in the

Punk Goes Pop series,

features a great variety of

punk bands covering

popular songs. The al-

bum includes a good di-

versity of punk bands

ranging from Asking Al-

exandria to Of Mice And

Men and even The

Ready Set covering hits

by artists such as Lady

Gaga, Akon, and Justin

Timberlake.

Most songs take on a whole

new shape and sound, such as

on Akon’s “Right Now (Na Na

Na)” performed by Asking Al-

exandria and Jamie Foxx’s

“Blame It” covered by Of

Mice And Men.

One of the best renditions on

this album is Cute Is What We

Aim For’s acoustic version of

“Dead And Gone” (originally

penned by T.I.). My Favorite

song on the CD is Woe, Is

Me’s hardcore cover of “Hot N

Cold” by Katy Perry. This is

by far the best album in the

Punk Goes Pop series. I would

recommend it to anyone who

loves punk or pop. I give it a 4

out of 5 stars.

-Nicholas Rakers

programs are popular among

senior citizens, but they are

not popular among the youth.

Right now the Medicare tax

rate is at 6.2%, so the govern-

ment takes 6.2% out of every-

one’s check. Younger Ameri-

cans think that is a big chunk

taken out of their checks.

Then the youth are like, “I do

not need Medicare, I’m

young. So why do I have to

pay for a service I am not

even using?” The answer is

when you get older you will

appreciate that little 6.2% tax

taken out of your check. Then

(Continued from page 5) you will wonder how people

can have the audacity to want

to lower these taxes. It is ab-

surd that people do not care

about this issue. We cannot

lower these taxes and expect

to cover all of these senior

citizens. We also cannot have

the mentality that if you did

not make something of your-

self and if you cannot afford

healthcare as a senior, then

you are out of luck. We need

to step up as Americans and

know that it is our moral obli-

gation to help our seniors and

if it wasn’t for them we would

not be here. Also, if we ex-

pected them to take care of us

as children because we could not

take care of ourselves, then what

makes them any different.

On my behalf and the behalf of

seniors and seniors to come, I am

asking all Americans to not lower

taxes because lowering these taxes

affects more than your pocket book,

it affects people’s lives. There are

consequences for our brazen actions

we take as a nation. It is about

something bigger than yourself.

-Justin Maze