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Published:

4/13
2010

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Changes in registration reduce stress for teachers and students

By Maria Massad

Registration for classes next year has already begun.
The Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) made many changes in this process. Among these changes are MSHSAA changing eligibility requirements, as well as the counselors’ changes in the registration process.
MSHSAA recently changed the number of required credits from two and a half credits to three credits. If students want to be eligible for sports or other school-sponsored activities, they must be enrolled in at least three credits of classes per semester.
“For making appropriate progress for graduation, students need three credits a semester,” Associate Principal Dan Gutchewsky said. “Students need more than two and a half credits a semester in order to fulfill the graduation requirement of 24 credits. Two and a half credits per semester won’t have you graduate on time. Three credits do.”
Last year, registration was completed online. This year, the school counselors are using the old-fashioned pencil and paper method to sign students up for classes.
“We don’t have a scheduling Naviance anymore,” counselor Alice Morrison said. “This is because we decided to switch to pen and paper. We are comparing the two systems, and then we will determine which one is a better fit for CHS students.”
According to Gutchewsky, the online process was more complicated than it should have been last year.
“CHS has multiple courses, as well as teacher recommendations and prerequisites that just made the online registration program inefficient,” Gutchewsky said. “The sheer time encompassing every situation required more manual work than handwritten work. It seemed easier just to do it using a paper-based method.”
Junior Moira MacDougal likes the pencil and paper method better than the online system, as there were multiple problems that occurred when she used the Naviance program.
“The online system just didn’t work,” MacDougal said. “There were problems with adding honors versus non-honors, and zero-hour classes. This caused a lot of stress for me, so I’m really glad that I was able to physically plan and write out what I wanted my schedule to be next year. I need to be able to mess around and plan out my desired schedule on paper. That’s just how I work. I understand the desire to have a quicker, more environmentally friendly method of registration, but it has to be a better, more user-friendly system.”
Sophomore Xiaoya Wu likes the pencil and paper method better than the online version since she is more of a visual person.
“Although the online version was faster, the pencil and paper way actually lets you visually see your schedule rather than having a bunch of drop-down lists,” Wu said. “Since I am a visual person, it’s easier for me to see the placement of the classes when they are on the same sheet in a grid in front of me.”
Junior Gabrielle Morris is glad that the counselors made the switch to the old-fashioned pen and paper method as well.
“Online registration was okay, but sometimes it was confusing,” Morris said.
However, sophomore David Mayer takes a more neutral stance of choosing between the paper-based method and the online version, but he thinks that altogether the new method is less confusing.
“I think that using the papers instead of the online system didn’t change much,” Mayer said. “If anything, it made it easier, since one of the classes I want to take next year might be an independent study class, so I was able to write that down on paper, whereas with the online sign-up, I may not have been able to do that.”
This year, teachers were given two days to recommend classes to students, a change.
“Teachers wanted to give students all the possible options for next year,” Morrison said. “CHS has a student-run schedule. Whatever students sign up for is what the teachers teach. If a lot of students sign up for a class, we have to gear up for it. If no one is interested in a class, we don’t teach that class. Teacher recommendation day is important because it not only shows you classes for upcoming years; it also the day when students choose what is being taught next year.”
Freshman Emma Riley is grateful that CHS offers so many unique classes that are taught based on student interest; in this way, teacher recommendation day was important.
“There’s such a wide array of classes,” Riley said. “I feel like I can start anywhere. In fact, I always wanted to learn piano, and now I get to take it in school. I’m really grateful because I know that not very many schools can afford to offer students such a wide variety of classes.”
Morris is glad there were two days for teacher recommendations, because the registration process is more important as an incoming senior.
“Seniors don’t get to drop classes,” Morris said. “If they do, they have to inform the colleges and talk to the college counselors. It’s really important that the teachers give students a chance to talk about all the subjects.”
MacDougal agrees that scheduling classes is really important as an incoming senior, so she appreciated the guidance given to her by her teachers on teacher recommendation day.
“As a senior, I want a course load that is challenging, interesting, but one that wouldn’t burn me out,” MacDougal said. “I needed guidance on how much homework my perspective classes would be giving, and how challenging they were. Since I am looking to apply to very specific programs within colleges, I also need to develop a portfolio of my work. As I’m applying to colleges, I want to know that I have the perfect schedule that shows off my interests and strengths. Having the input of teachers who have gotten to know me and my needs as a student is really invaluable.”
Sophomore Marguerite Daw also thinks positively about the teacher recommendation day.
“You get to know what the best class for you is,” Daw said. “The teachers know your strengths and abilities, so they’ll recommend the best fit for you. You also get to see your whole schedule planned out, a plus.”
Mayer agrees with Daw’s view on teacher recommendation day.
“It was pretty helpful, even though I knew most of the classes I was taking next year,” Mayer said. “I was also able to learn a little more about the possible choices I had.”
Sophomore Matt Mikesic thinks differently, taking a much more neutral point about teacher recommendations and their influence in his class choices.
“Teachers already know in their heads if you are going to the higher or lower level classes,” Mikesic said. “To me, it didn’t make much of a difference in my class choices for my schedule next year.”
Freshman Hanna Park agrees with Mikesic’s neutral point.
“Teacher recommendations were something I had to do,” Park said. “They weren’t exactly helpful or unhelpful for planning my classes. I already knew what I was going to take, and my teachers were okay with my choices.”
However, Morrison warns that teacher recommendation day is important when deciding for next year’s classes.
“When students change classes, it throws off what we planned for,” Morrison said. “Students should be aware of that and plan their classes accordingly.”

Published:

3/12
2010

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Joining hockey team teaches lessons

By Jack Holds

Halfway through the school year, I found myself sitting in a locker room, 6 a.m. Monday morning, with a messy heap of gear I was supposed to puzzle together onto my body. What had started with a thoughtless decision had become reality, one I was altogether far too ill-prepared for.
Deciding to play hockey was easy; it was instant and painless. Playing hockey was the problem.
A whole host of problems unfolded quicker than I could fathom, where I was going to get gear and what I needed, waking up at 5:40 a.m. for practice, and how in the world I was going to catch up with guys who had played hockey their entire lives. Not to mention learning the rules of hockey and figuring out how to shoot a puck.
The list is endless.
After about two months since starting hockey, I can’t say the difficulties have gone away but at least I know how to put on my gear. It’s a start, albeit a rough one.
The most difficult part, by far, has been the constant struggle to perform. The first time I ever stepped on the ice fully dressed with pads, stick, and all was the first time I was asked to perform.
Fumbling with the puck, constantly falling, and not knowing what to do or where to play; it was and still is humiliating.
However, all the time I’ve invested into getting better by attending open-ice sessions at Shaw Park, called Stick-and-Puck, has paid off. All the time I’ve invested into learning the game better, watching hockey games on the bench and on the couch, has definitely paid off as well.
As a little kid, when I was 7, 8, and 9 years old, my parents made me take skating lessons at Shaw Park Ice Rink every winter followed by a casual year of speed skating when I was 10. I wasn’t completely unprepared for hockey, but it took hours of practice alone before I could get close to comfortable to skating in the gear.
In the past two months, I’ve had to learn a ridiculous amount about hockey: the work ethic, importance of strong teamwork, and everything surrounding the game as a whole. I’ve never had so much respect for hockey players in my life. From waking up three hours before school starts to spending entire evenings at late-night games. And skating tens of magnitudes better than average people while deftly working a sliding puck through whipping sticks and legs without giving the skating a thought.
It’s amazing what they can do.
It’s not something one learns overnight; it’s a lifestyle. In that regard, it’s easy to understand how daringly impossible the sport of hockey would be, and is, to pick up. It’s a commitment to say the least.
Would I consider myself a hockey player after only a short two months? Not yet, but I’m slowly getting there. I plan to stick with hockey but it’ll be another year before I’m worthy of a position in a line, a designated group of players that rotates.

Published:

2/26
2010

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CHS librarians monitor student use of library computers

By Zach Praiss
Librarians monitor student use of computers

(Ali Sehizadeh)

Big Brother is watching you.

Throughout the school day at CHS, librarians monitor the use of computers by students in Lab B of the library.  For over 10 years, this monitoring of students computers has been taking place not only at CHS but also throughout the Clayton School District, with little notice from Clayton students.

“The thing we’re trying to do is help the students,” Head Librarian Lauran DeRigne, the Head Librarian at CHS, said.  “It’s a benefit to [the students] that we keep that lab for student use for school work and that is really what it’s needed for.”

DeRigne explained how throughout the school day, students use the computer lab as a place to do their homework.   However, when the labs are full, she explained that students who are unable to work on the computers become frustrated, especially when they see kids on the computers playing games and not being productive.

“When the labs are really full, we would like to make sure that there are enough computers for kids who want to do school work,” technology specialist David Hoffman said.  “So, that’s when we are more likely to monitor and kick off kids who are listening to music, watching movies, or downloading things.”

Hoffman also emphasized how some students rely on working in the computer lab because they do not have access to a computer at home.

“There are some students who need that time here because they don’t have technology at home,” Hoffman said.  “We don’t want kids wasting time on computers while other kids need to get work done before they go home.”

With more and more students playing games in the labs and the library continuing to become a louder more social environment, Principal Louise Losos also feels the library struggles between being a place for studying or socializing.

“The library always walks that fine line between being a place where kids can gather and be social and a place where students go to do research and work,” Losos said.  “And it needs to err on the side of research and work but not so much as to make it unwelcome to everyone else…I think [computer monitoring] is just another way they try to maintain this balance.”

In addition to monitoring computers, librarians can also check a student’s schedule to see if he or she is skipping class at that moment.

“Sometimes if there has been an issue with a student, we can look to see [his or her] schedule, but we don’t use remote desktop, so that’s really not monitoring computers,” DeRigne said.  “It’s more of, we know the student and where should they be because they are not doing any work right now.”

If the librarians see that a student is skipping class in the lab, they will immediately email the teacher of the class that the student is skipping and inform them that their student is in the library.

“I think teachers appreciate that fact the librarians are letting them know [that a student] is in here, [when] he’s supposed to be in your class right now,” Losos said.

However, some students have expressed concern for their privacy since the librarians are monitoring their computer screens in Lab B.

“It feels like they are standing over your shoulder,” Sophomore Stephanie Avery said.

Likewise, Sophomore Georgina Kluser feels invaded by the monitoring as she explained that the monitoring made her feel uncomfortable when she is trying to work in the lab.

Despite these concerns, DeRigne said that all students were required to sign the School District of Clayton’s Acceptable Use Policy, which states, “The district may monitor employee and student technology usage.  Electronic communications, all data stored on the district’s technology resources, and downloaded material, including files deleted from a student’s account, may be intercepted, accessed or searched by district’s administrators or designees at any time.”

Yet, Hoffman believes that very few students are actually monitored in Lab B.

“Percentage wise, there’s very little monitoring that is going on,” Hoffman said.  “I would say out of 100 students in the lab maybe one or two, percentage wise would be monitored…We don’t sit there just to monitor to try to catch people…It’s just not that widely used.”

However, the librarians are always on the lookout for any illegal electronic activity in the student computer lab whether it is a student illegally downloading a new hit song or a popular movie.

“If we do see kids downloading movies or music, that is highly illegal and we’ll stop them from doing that,” Hoffman said.  “That could be big trouble for the district.”

In the end, Losos agreed that monitoring computers in Lab B is necessary for sustaining a productive work environment in the labs; however, for a high school with an open campus, students should know that they could be monitored when using a computer in Lab B.

“I would hope that there would be a transparency,” Losos said.  “You ought to know when you go on the computers that this is a possibility.”

Published:

2/26
2010

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Corporations declared ‘people’

By Laura Bleeke

Just before the midterm congressional elections, the 20-year old Supreme Court ruling that barred corporations from spending freely in elections was broken.
Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Kennedy, Alito, Thomas, and Scalia all voted in favor of the ruling that would allow corporations to spend freely in elections. Justices Stevens, Breyer, Ginsburg, and Sotomayor made up the minority voting against the act.
By a 5-4 vote, the court majority justified its decision by saying that the previous laws had been a violation of basic First Amendment rights, their argument being that the government cannot regulate political speech.
“When government seeks to use its full power, including the criminal law, to command where a person may get his or her information or what distrusted source he or she may not hear, it uses censorship to control thought,” Kennedy said. “This is unlawful. The First Amendment confirms the freedom to think for ourselves.”
The opposing four justices saw the ruling differently. They believed the act would weaken elections in the future.
“The court’s ruling threatens to undermine the integrity of elected institutions around the nation,” Stevens said.
According to the New York Times, the new ruling overruled two previous precedents. The first is “Austin v. Michigan Chamber of Congress, a 1990 decision that upheld restrictions on corporate spending to support or oppose political candidates, and McConnell v. Federal Election Commission, a 2003 decision that upheld the part of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 that restricted campaign spending by corporations and unions.”
“The court essentially said that corporations are legal persons for purposes of the First Amendment,” Saint Louis University Assistant Professor of Political Science and Law Matthew Hall said. “Just as they are in most legal contexts, and as such the government may not limit the money they spend on ‘electioneering’.”
Although the new ruling will greatly reshape the way elections are held, there are still restrictions on the corporate financers.
“Corporations will now be able to spend money from their general treasury on ads that influence elections,” Hall said. “But they still can’t donate directly to the candidate.”
Another law still intact requires nonprofit groups that support a political candidate to disclose certain financial backing.
The new ruling may not only affect candidates in current elections, it may also affect candidates already in office.
“Corporations not only can spend more to encourage certain policy positions,” Professor of Political Science at Washington University Bill Lowry said. “They can also threaten to spend more if some elected official takes a position that they don’t like. This could be intimidating to some office-holders.”
Many Americans are wondering how this ruling will affect the power of unions and corporations in the future. Although the ruling seems in favor of conservative businesses, it could also be in favor of liberal unions.
“Supporters of the ruling say it will lead to fuller and freer electoral campaigns,” Hall said. “Opponents say it will allow corporations to buy elections and probably give an advantage to Republican candidates. Although businesses tend to be heavily Republican, unions tend to be heavily Democratic, and the unions may now spend directly on elections as well.  So I think the effect will balance out to some degree.”
The new ruling could impact candidates’ campaigns in ways visible to the voter. With more money from the corporations also comes more money to spend on advertisements.
“If the normal American citizen thought that they were already getting an overload of ads during elections, wait until the next campaign,” Lowry said. “In addition, the potential for greater spending by corporations could impact a wide range of public policies, although this remains to be seen.”
In a speech made by President Obama, he voiced his concerns of the new ruling and how it might demean the role of the average citizen in elections.
“The Supreme Court has given a green light to a new stampede of special interest money in our politics,” Obama said in a statement. “It is a major victory for big oil, Wall Street banks, health insurance companies and the other powerful interests that marshal their power every day in Washington to drown out the voices of everyday Americans.”
The upcoming midterm congressional elections will feel the effects of the new ruling most strongly.
The Supreme Court ruling shocked many people, and it is certain that the way elections will be conducted has been changed dramatically. The court ruling remained judicial throughout the case, though, and it is obvious that the court wanted a change.
“Whatever one thinks about the implications of the court’s ruling in this case, it would be hard for someone to argue that this Supreme Court did not pursue judicial activism in this case,” Lowry said. “The case itself could have resulted in a much more narrow ruling that did not produce significant disagreements with past decisions and precedents, but this court obviously wanted to make a strong statement.”

Published:

2/26
2010

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Clayton possesses unique ‘spirit’

By Bianca Vannucci

The attendance at sporting events often gets Clayton High School criticized for lack of school spirit. CHS students themselves have accepted this as a fact, but what if it’s not true? CHS school spirit might very well be showing in a different way.
Donna Rogers-Beard has been a history at CHS for 20 years. Her previous work experience includes University City High School.
“In University City,” Rogers-Beard said. “As well as in my own high school experience, there was a more outward display of school spirit. There would be more participation at games and more pep rallies.”
“I think there are some schools where it’s tradition,” Assistant Principal Marci Pieper said. “It’s tradition for them to pack the stands and sell out, it’s always been done.”
Sophomore Jillian Sandler joined the Cheerleading Team this year with the goal of doing something about this.
“I thought the spirit was way too low,” Sandler said. “Crowds would never join in on cheers, I wish they’d collaborate a little bit more. I’m really into school spirit and I thought I’d change the squad.”
Pieper believes that school spirit is very cyclical at CHS. She remembers how 10 years ago there was a group called the Mad Hatters who would go out and they’d cheer at games.
“This year we have the Clayton Crazies,” Pieper said. “With the right people in charge [Luhning and Nelke] the Crazies have brought a lot of student participation. They do things a bit differently.”
The perception is that people are no longer attending dances and other school sponsored events. However, this year there were around 400 kids at the Peppers and Homecoming dances, maybe even 350 at the Halloween dance. That is about half of the student body.
“There’s a lot more going on than people realize,” Pieper adds. “School spirit is a lot more than showing up at sporting events. Students are proud of their high school.”
Rogers-Beard sees the pride Clayton students feel in their school. “It shows in how clean our halls are for example,” Rogers-Beard said. “It says students like where they are, they feel good about it. There is not much vandalism, posters aren’t destroyed in the hallway.”
“There’s no vandalizing or much trash,” Custodian Lidia Gollahon said. “Sometimes people are late to class, they get up and they leave, but it’s not bad.”
School spirit ultimately is the pride one feels for their school, and though we do not see outward participation there is certainly a feeling of pride.
CHS students receive many freedoms other schools do not allow their students. “Students know how lucky they are to have these freedoms,” Rogers-Beard said “and they most certainly appreciate it.”
Kelsey McFarland, a junior, doesn’t think people realize how lucky they are.
“Coming from the town I came from,” McFarland said, “it really irks me that kids don’t appreciate this school and what they have.”
It is well known that there is no-cut policy at CHS, and kids are very involved academically as well as in sports. The participation in clubs and academic activity at CHS is outstanding. Almost every single student is involved in one or more school sponsored activity.
“Some people don’t have time to cheer everybody else on because they are so involved themselves,” Rogers-Beard said.
“Our school just has a different feel than other schools, always has,” Pieper said.
“CHS is very college oriented. If a student has to make a choice between an A on a test or attending a sporting event, a Clayton High School student will always pick the test.”
Across the United States there are very many high schools that are traditionally into sports, and CHS is not one of them.
At the end of the day, CHS students should recognize the ways in which their high school is unique. Though our participation at sporting events may not be part of the tradition, it says something about our school that academics come first. It may not be a very obvious kind of school spirit, but it’s there. 

Published:

2/24
2010

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Should McGwire be held responsible for an entire era’s possible mistake? Turf Tales

By Evan Green

Lately, former Cardinals slugger Mark McGwire has been in the news following his recent admission to steroid use and the thought provoking discussion as to whether he should be allowed into the baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown is now up for debate.
The reasons that Big Mac should be allowed into the Hall of Fame greatly outweigh the detractions against him.  McGwire’s situation is only part of the problem that eventually equates to why players from the steroid era should universally be considered for the Hall of Fame, whether steroid use was proven or not.
The detractors against McGwire say that he cheated the game.  The Hall of Fame voters say his numbers were so bloated due to his use of steroids that he shouldn’t be allowed into the Hall of Fame.
Clearly the majority of Hall of Fame voters are against Big Mac right now, with the last vote only raking in about 25 percent of support for him.  Hall of Fame voting is conducted by the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA), and any player that gets 75 percent or more of the vote in that year is inducted to the baseball Hall of Fame.
With that in mind, McGwire is currently very far away from being inducted.  That was before his admission to using steroids on and off during his career, and now it will be interesting to see what the voters say next year.  In a sense, the voters’ decision on McGwire could possibly be how they will vote on the entire era’s players.
But should the voters be the judge and the jury for the whole scenario?  In my mind, they shouldn’t.  The other Hall of Fame players need to be incorporated into the situation because they are the ones that the Hall of Fame means most to, and they know the situation better than the writers.
Some Hall of Fame players point out that if former Cincinnati Reds second baseman Pete Rose and former White Sox outfielder “Shoeless” Joe Jackson can’t be considered for the Hall of Fame, then neither should players from the steroid era.   However, the problem with that logic is that while yes, those players aren’t eligible to be voted into the Hall of Fame, it is because they have been banned from the game of baseball for life.  McGwire was never banned.  He didn’t even break any MLB rules in taking steroids (MLB banned anabolic steroid use in 2002, and McGwire retired after the 2001 season).
Rose and Jackson, however, did break MLB rules by gambling on the game of baseball.  Jackson went as far to throw the World Series, which is, in my mind, the most sacred part of baseball in America and maybe even the world.  He threw away what most kids dream about achieving, yet never get a chance.
Before 1998, the season that McGwire smacked 70 home runs and became the all time single season home run leader, baseball was dead.  Following the 1995 players strike, fans did not want to come to the games and attendance was at an all time low.
But then two guys came along that made people care again.  The Cardinals first baseman combined with Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa to bring the fans back to the stadiums in droves, now excited to watch these two swing for the fences.  TV ratings not only for Cubs and Cardinals games, but all of baseball, climbed through the roof as fans were amazed by the surge of power across the league.
It is now known that some of these all star sluggers were using steroids during the height of their careers, but at the same time, it is now known that the pitchers they faced were “on the juice” as well.  From Roger Clemens to Andy Pettitte to Kevin Brown to Eric Gagne, pitchers have also admitted to their use of banned substances.
What the voters should realize about McGwire is that he put up his numbers while other players of the era were also juicing.  And at the same time that this was occurring, McGwire put up Hall of Fame numbers while many of his peers using steroids did not.
So should the man responsible for bringing baseball back have to take the fall for an entire era’s mistake?
Every era in baseball has had its controversies.  From the Black Sox and gambling scandal in the 1920’s to players’ use of cocaine and other drugs in the 70’s to the abuse of amphetamines by players in the 1980’s, and then the strike in 1995 and the following steroid use.  The other eras that were considered to be “tainted” have never had to endure such discussion as to whether their stars should be allowed into the Hall of Fame.
This in part has to do with a recent change in the sports media to report anything they see by players.  The sports media of the past was close to the players, often going out to eat after games.  The media then had a personal, yet professional relationship with the athletes.  The sports media of previous eras knew that their job was to report what happened on the field and that anything outside of the game was off limits in terms of reporting.
Now, the sports media feels it is their duty to treat athletes as if they are Hollywood actors or actresses by reporting every aspect of their lives, not just their performance on the field.  The sad part is that this reflects today’s culture.  A culture that would rather hear the off the field gossip about a big name player than read about the same player’s two home run night that they capped off with a diving catch to save the game.
The sports media is possibly the biggest culprit of what has become a travesty in terms determining who deserves to go into the Hall of Fame.
Even though many reporters knew or suspected Big Mac of some sort of steroid use in 1998, they looked away; they, in a sense, encouraged steroid usage by not speaking out against it then.  Now, those same writers are the ones that are not voting for McGwire to get into the Hall of Fame.  This is quite a show of hypocrisy in terms of their morals.  Their condoning of McGwire’s steroid use during his playing days should be exactly how they treat him now.
In conclusion, has there ever been discussion or really even much thought as to whether players of other tainted eras should be allowed into the Hall of Fame?  No, so why should there be now?

Published:

2/24
2010

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Gabe Jacus dangles way to team-high 54 points on ice

By Payton Sciarratta

The Clayton hockey team has been doing pretty well so far this season. One of the main contributors to this is sophomore forward Gabe Jacus.
Jacus has been playing hockey since he was just five years old, thanks to Clayton alumni Max Barron.

Sophomore athlete of the month Gabe Jacus led the team with 32 goals and 22 assists in just 20 games.

Sophomore athlete of the month Gabe Jacus led the team with 32 goals and 22 assists in just 20 games.

“Max Barron used to come to my house and get me to play street hockey and then he eventually got me to play ice hockey,” Jacus said.
Playing hockey as a child paid off in the long run, as Jacus began playing on the varsity Clayton team during his freshman year.  That season, he scored 1.5 goals per game.  Jacus dangled his way through the club season as well, and has now established himself on the St. Louis hockey scene.
Being one of the best players on the team, Jacus tallied a team-high 32 goals and 22 assists, showing why he plays on the top line. He has had three game winning goals this year alone.
So far this season, Jacus has scored half of the team’s game winning goals. Even though the team is 6-16-1, he still has a strong passion for the sport.
Jacus receives a lot of emotional support from his teammates as well.
“He is really fun to play with,” sophomore forward Will Rosenfeld said. “He scores a lot of goals and is tough.”
This season alone, Jacus had 47 penalty minutes, showing his phenomenal toughness on the ice.
In the last game of the playoffs, Jacus managed four goals and an assist in an 8-5 loss to Fort Zumwalt South.
On a better note, the Hounds’ first Ladue game was one of the team’s best because of their dedication and hard work on the ice.
“Our team was able to win without a full team,” Jacus said. “A lot of individuals stepped up their game, and that was fun to watch.”
Even though Jacus is dedicated to hockey, he seems to be very relaxed when it comes to setting personal goals for the season. This year he didn’t make any set goals for himself; however, he did want to score as many goals possible.
Jacus doesn’t have his heart set on any college just yet, but if the opportunity arose he may just take a scholarship.
“If a good offer came up from a school, then I’d think about it, but I have no problem just going to a school and having fun,” Jacus said. “I’ve got a lot of time to think about it, so I don’t worry too much.”
At this point Jacus is exceeding in the sport and may, in time, have an opportunity to make this a profession.
“For a while that was my plan, but a lot changes over time,” Jacus said. “It would be great, but the sacrifices you need to make and the dedication you need to have is just ridiculous.”
Jacus plans on playing hockey throughout high school and may eventually turn his love of the sport into a career.

Published:

2/24
2010

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NCA accreditation team to visit CHS

By Jocelyn Lee

The North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement (NCA) will send a visiting team to CHS on March 2 and 3. The team will evaluate the school based on the organization’s seven standards and present a report of their findings.

History teacher and CHS Academics Director Josh Meyers reviews the School District’s 2009-2010 budget in preparation for NCA’s March 2 and 3 visit and evaluation. (Eve Root)

History teacher and CHS Academics Director Josh Meyers reviews the School District’s 2009-2010 budget in preparation for NCA’s March 2 and 3 visit and evaluation. (Eve Root)

CHS has been accredited by the NCA since 1914. The school chooses to go through the process of accreditation once every five years, although it is not required to do so. The state only requires that CHS participate in the Missouri School Improvement Program (MSIP).
The NCA accreditation process has two basic parts.
“First, we complete a report called a Standards Assessment Report (SAR),” CHS Academics Director Josh Meyers said. “This report, based on the seven standards, is the guidebook for the visiting team. The report for this cycle was 57 pages and was started by the entire faculty.”
Over the past year, CHS has been preparing for the visit.
“It began December of ’08, when we invited stakeholders, such as parents and students, to join the faculty and central office folks to review our mission and guiding principles,” CHS Principal Louise Losos said. “This year, we’ve spent a part of every faculty meeting working in small groups to prepare the SAR.”
The preparation process, not just the team’s visit, serves as a time to look critically at the school.
“Under each standard there are indicators,” Losos said. “Under each one we assess whether we are anywhere from the bottom, emerging, operational, or highly effective. There are some areas in which we are operational, which means we’re doing it, but it’s not really systemic, or emerging, where we just started working on it.”
According to Meyers, it is a time when light is shed on both negative and positive aspects of CHS, aspects that might otherwise have gone unnoticed.
“We have discovered some important things we can improve on, like being more effective users of data, and consistently examining and communicating school improvement results,” Meyers said. “More significantly we have affirmed a lot of things we are doing well, primarily in the field of ‘teaching and learning’. By having the entire faculty examine the seven standards, we really are conducting an internal audit of everything significant about our school.”
The second part of the process comprises the visit. Meyers said that after examining the SAR, the visiting team will come to CHS and examine artifacts, conduct interviews with stakeholders, including students, and observe in classrooms and hallways. There will be minimal disruption for the students.
“There will be eight members of the visiting team,” Losos said. “They will spend one full day, maybe a day and a half, interviewing people – teachers, support staff, students, parents, board members. They have a very prescriptive interview – they have specific questions that they ask, so we know what’s coming.”
The NCA team will present an oral report of its findings after school on March 3.
“They will report to the faculty a) whether or not we’re accredited and b) level of accreditation,” Losos said. “I am fully confident we will be accredited.”
Paul Hoelscher, CHS history teacher and chair of the African American Achievement Task Force, said accreditation benefits CHS by confirming the school’s hard work. However, he said he does not know that the preparation process is as helpful as the overarching goals the faculty has been working on for the past five years as part of the NCA work.
“We have three goals right now,” Meyers said. “The fourth one we finished three years ago – that one is the writing one. The three current ones are African American achievement, technology, and building community, which is more of a staff goal, instead of a direct student goal.”
Ideally, these goals are determined by examining student data, such as test scores, according to Meyers. In addition, he said faculty and staff input is a major contributing factor. The writing goal, building community goal, and technology goal were faculty-chosen, although some data was used to determine them, too.
In terms of the overall impact on students, Meyers said the faculty is trying new teaching strategies in classrooms and doing a lot of behind the scenes work at meetings in order to develop improved ways to teach students.
“[Students] may not know it, but the North Central work is impacting them all the time,” Meyers said. “And tangentially, it is a source of school pride, being able to say that we have this certification.”
After the visit, CHS will receive a formal written report containing praise and recommendations. The school must then follow up with the recommendations and send its results to the NCA’s parent organization, Advanc-Ed, or it could risk losing its accreditation status, according to Meyers.
When the visit is over, CHS will celebrate, as well as focus on areas that require improvement.
“It’s a very self-reflective time, where we say ‘what is it that we’re doing really well?’ and ‘where can we perhaps be doing better?’” Losos said. “Clayton High School is a great school, but it doesn’t mean we can’t improve.”
According to Meyers, the school benefits because the visiting team brings an outside set of eyes to look closely at what faculty and students see every day.
“Fresh eyes and fresh minds can provide fresh ideas,” Meyers said. “I also think it benefits us because it says to the community that we are an institution of excellence. We have been accredited through North Central since 1914, and we are the only school in the district that has that accreditation. That is something CHS is very proud of.”

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2/24
2010

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MSHSAA changes eligibility rules regarding zero-hours

By Madeline Bullard

Sports and extracurricular activities are continually offered at CHS as a chance for students to have fun, work with a team, and engage in spirited competition.  But this year, the Missouri State High School Athletic Association (MSHSAA) has put in place a new rule which may bar some students from participating in these activities.

(Dee Luo)
(Dee Luo)

Recently, the member schools of MSHSAA voted on a new regulation that will change some students’ eligibility.  The new rule states: ‘Extra’ classes taken beyond the normal school day shall be excluded from all consideration (i.e. credits achieved in the ‘extra classes’ shall not be considered either for or against academic eligibility).
Some Clayton students might remember changes to the eligibility requirements that were made within the past few years.  Namely, the requirement was raised from 2.5 credits per semester to 3.0 credits per semester.  Principal Louise Losos was involved in the original decision to raise the amount of credit.
“The reasoning behind it is the state had just raised their graduation requirement from 22 to 24, and at 2.5 you could be eligible every semester and not graduate on time, which seemed almost educational malpractice,” Losos said. “It just seemed wrong that you could say to a kid, you can play sports every season but not graduate on time.  So we voted to raise it to 3.0.”
MSHSAA executive director Kerwin Urhahn was also involved in the passage of the new rule for eligibility standards in the 2009-2010 school year.
“The increase in academic eligibility standard, By-Law 213, moving from 2.5 units of credit or 70 percent of courses offered, whichever is greater, to the new standard of 3.0 units of credit or 80 percent of courses offered, whichever is greater was voted on and approved in the Spring 2007 Ballot,” Urhahn said.
Member schools vote on new rules for athletic eligibility each year.  The democratic process usually makes sure that schools are aware of all components of the rules they vote on.
“The proposed changes to the MSHSAA Constitution require a two-thirds approval, and By-Law change requires a simple majority,” Urhahn said. “All rule changes are voted on by the member schools… There are 578 member schools and 81 percent of those schools voted on last year’s ballot.”
MSHSAA gave the member schools time to acclimate students to these new requirements, so that no student was left behind in the shift towards more credits.
“It did not go into effect until the 2009-2010 school year to ensure that all students and schools were aware of the change and would not get surprised by the increase,” Urhahn said.
Losos also made efforts to spread the news of the changes in eligibility requirements.
“We were given a full year’s heads-up on it,” Losos said. “We tried to make sure the students knew, and there were still some students who missed it, that you needed to be enrolled in 3.0, and you needed to to have passed the prior semester 3.0.”
However, a few Clayton students were not able to retain their eligibility after the new rule was instituted for the 2009 fall semester.
“We feel really bad about the kids who are ineligible,” Losos said. “I feel horrible.  We have second-semester seniors.”
Losos plans to utilize new computer programs to help catch students who are currently ineligible.
“In the end, we did a lot of education with the students, and we didn’t have enough institutional safety checks in place,” Losos said. “So we’ll be putting those in place.”
Urhahn advises students to be sure to take more than enough classes to satisfy the requirement, even without counting zero-hour classes.
“I would suggest they take at least the minimum requirement during the normal school day to maintain their bona fide student status (for a 7-period day, they would need to be enrolled in at least 6 classes each worth a half a credit),” Urhahn said. “Also, I would make sure those students were aware they had no room for error.  They would have to pass all their classes.”
For the spring semester, Losos and other faculty have already put checks in place which will take into account the jump to 3.0 credits.
“Right now for this semester, we’ve checked all kids’ schedules to make sure they have the 3.0, and we checked all kids who had 3.25 and down, or 3.25 to 3.0, to make sure that… one of those 3.25…wasn’t forensics or jazz band,” Losos said. “We don’t want kids to be ineligible because of a mistake.”
New attendance and enrollment reports will help in the process of screening each student for eligibility.
“Moving forward, because of what happened first semester, we’ve put some new protocols into place that will increase our safety net,” Losos said. “The technology folks at central office have created a report that they can now run… that can tell us students who are enrolled – how many credits are they eligible for.”
Unfortunately, however, some students will probably not be able to participate in sports this semester due to the requirement of 3.0 passed courses.
Additionally, the new rule’s definition of “normal school day” is rather unclear.
“A normal school day is where a school says a student should achieve a minimum number of credits and offers the student the ability to take the corresponding number of classes,” Urhahn said. “Therefore if a school normally has a 1st hour through 7th hour, then the normal school day would be 7 half credits per semester.”
Some students disagree with the new rule and feel that zero hours should be counted towards eligibility.  Elle Jacobs, a junior at CHS, plays tennis and participates in jazz band.  Although she attends jazz band in the early morning, it does not count towards her eligibility.
“It is not fair for MSHSAA not to count zero hour classes for sports because students wake up extra early and still have a 46 minute class period, so zero hour classes should be counted equally as any other class during the day,” Jacobs said.
The member schools voted to eliminate zero hours in the spring of 2009. Losos and the Clayton Athletic Director, Bob Bone, attended a rules meeting after the new rule was voted on.  It was at this meeting that they heard for the first time the details of this new eligibility standard.
“At that time, Mr. Bone and I were made aware that the new rule stated something to the effect that it was 3.0 earned during a regular school day,” Losos said. “They explained, at that time, that that meant zero hours wouldn’t count.  That was the first we had heard of that.”
Since she had not known this was part of the language of the rule, Losos was indignant after the meeting.
“Mr. Bone and I left that meeting rather angry, to be honest, because I fully supported raising it to 3.0, I thought that was completely appropriate, but that the reasoning given for why zero-hour classes wouldn’t count, I felt, was specious, and rather shortsighted,” Losos said.
According to Urhahn, the reason for the new rule was merely a simplification of eligibility requirements for member schools who had complained about too much complexity in the system.
“It was introduced last year due to the increased number of schedules and classes taken by students where administrators had to calculate each student’s academic eligibility on multiple schedules,” Urhahn said. “Many schools have more than 800 students participating in sports and activities that meant they could have 800 different schedules as they worked through the academic eligibility.”
For Clayton students, the new rule has a direct impact on those who take zero-hour courses.
“Jazz band, forensics, lab jazz band, do not meet during the school day at all,” Losos said. “So right now, those will not count towards eligibility.”
Several other member schools from MSHSAA argued that Clayton’s wide, varied course offerings gave students an unfair advantage because their schools weren’t able to offer zero hour courses.  However, Losos disagrees with this reasoning.
“It’s an equity issue because some school districts can’t offer it,” Losos said. “My response is twofold.  One is, they can.  They choose not to because it’s too expensive, or too logistically difficult.”
Losos does acknowledge that Clayton is a unique academic community; in fact, she cites that very fact as the reason why the zero-hour rule should be eliminated.
“We offer classes that other school districts don’t offer,” Losos said. “We offer AP Music Theory.  How many schools in the state  offer AP Music Theory?  My guess is that you could probably count them on two hands.  Certainly far less than a majority of the schools.  Does that mean that we shouldn’t be allowed to count that?”
Other schools have also argued that the students’ option to take eight or even nine classes in one school day is only giving them an opportunity to fail more classes.  Losos counters this argument as well.
“Part of the response is, so we just want to be able to let kids fail more classes,” Losos said. “That’s not it.  If you’re really worried about a failure model, then MSHSAA should pass a rule requiring a minimum GPA to play, or no failures.”
Additionally, Losos recognizes that students who take more classes than are necessary usually do so because they are genuinely interested in the subject, and not because they want the opportunity to fail a class, yet still be eligible for sports.
“Our kids who are taking eight and nine, it’s because they want to get more classes, it’s not about getting more credit,” Losos said.
The zero-hour courses that do not meet at all during the school day aren’t meant for students who are struggling with academics.  In fact, they are enriching academic opportunities.  Furthremore, according to MSHSAA, “Participation in high school activities is a valuable educational experience and should not be looked upon as a reward for academic success.  Students with low academic ability need the educational development provided through participation in activities as much as students with average or above average ability.”
Ability, therefore, should not be the deciding factor in whether a student should be allowed to participate in sports or other MSHSAA activities.
For some students, participating in these other activities is quite significant.  For example, students enrolled in forensics do not receive credit for that class, but many participate in debate tournaments, which is a MSHSAA event.  Junior Sagar Yadama has taken forensics, and is an active participate of the Clayton Speech and Debate team.
“MSHSAA activities are not only sports related but include debate as well as band statewide contests,” Yadama said.  “Thus, this rule not only alienates those that do compete in debate and band, but also devaluates the classes that are not counted. This rule is a twofold malediction on Missouri schools.”
Many students who participate in zero-hour classes, however, are also high-achieving students in general.
“So this isn’t kids who are trying to get by,” Losos said. “The zero-hour classes are not remedial.  These are classes that kids would not be able to take if we had to offer them during the school day.”
Students themselves can attest to the demanding nature of zero-hour classes.  Junior Ian Miller agrees with Losos’ statement, and contends that zero-hour classes are some of the most challenging offered at Clayton.
“Zero hours require just as much, and possibly more, personal drive than classes during the day,” Miller said.  “It takes some serious motivation to sacrifice and hour of sleep every day.  I’d also say there is tangible evidence of the accomplishments made in zero hour classes, and it seems arbitrary and somewhat belittling to exclude them from filling credit requirements.”
Urhahn and Losos met to discuss the new rule, and Losos tried to convince Urhahn and other member schools to see things from Clayton’s perspective.
“We contacted the MSHSAA executive, Kerwin Urhahn, and talked to him,” Losos said. “Because we have an open campus, our kids don’t necessarily have a traditional schedule.  If they don’t need to be in seven classes, sometimes they’re not.  The world that we’re moving towards is pushing schools to be more and more flexible in how kids earn credit.”
The meeting was a success, and Losos cautiously hopes that the “normal school day” part of the eligibility rule might soon change.
“We had a very good conversation,” Losos said. “We sort of made an appeal explaining that some of our kids start early and end late, that we might have kids start at 7:30 but end at 1:30, or start at third hour and go until later.”
In fact, Losos was surprised by the positive response from MSHSAA.
“We’ve heard from the state that they actually listened to our scenarios,” Losos said. “They are looking at language to potentially to state in there that a school can sort of set what is a standard school day, and a kid could go zero to six, two to nine, if we said our day was a seven-period day, so long as it was sort of your standard school day.  That’s still in discussion.”
Urhahn also predicts that MSHSAA may change the rule in the near future.
“I believe there is a good chance that the item will be on the annual ballot to allow schools to establish their normal school day requirements,” Urhahn said.
The horizon may hold changes in the rule, but for now, Losos plans to continue her current strategy by educating the student body as much as possible to make sure there are no mistakes in eligibility requirements.
“I would say I am cautiously optimistic, but we are working this semester as if that’s not going to change,” Losos said. “If we get word, sometime in the spring, then we will rejoice.”
Losos recognizes that had the eligibility requirement been kept at 2.5, the zero-hour issue would not seem to be as big of a problem.
“In all honesty, when the credits were 2.5, the fact that we had this kind of schedule didn’t really matter,” Losos said. “In a seven-period day, you’re unlikely not to be enrolled in 2.5, and if you were, you’re probably a senior, and you have a really light load, and someone would talk to you about that.”
Losos also admits that there are alternative interpretations of the rule, and Clayton could potentially use those alternatives to circumvent the purpose of the rule.  But she also insists that the best way to deal with an eligibility problem is to be honest.
“These are the rules, we are a member, we live by them,” Losos said. “We could ignore the rule, and say, they’ve earned three credits, we interpret it differently…I’d rather have us live by the rules and be upfront about it.”
Should the changes occur, Losos will be much more satisfied with the credit requirements than she is now.
“We will  have moved past it and got a rule that I actually think is appropriate,” Losos said. “You should have to have 3.0 credits to be eligible, and we have many ways for you to gain those 3.0.”

Published:

2/24
2010

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Public figures wrong in placing fault on Haitians for tragic earthquake

By Caitlin Kropp

The human capacity for love is simply astounding. It continually amazes and inspires us. Somehow, the world is able to put aside their differences, for however brief a time, and simply contribute. Man reaches out to fellow man, and both are lifted into a new level of understanding and, above all, love. So, it comes as no surprise that, mere hours after a devastating 7.0 magnitude earthquake left Haiti in ruins, the world came to their aid. There was determination, there was friendship, there was hope…

Radio broadcaster Rush Limbaugh prepares to inform his audience about his controversial issues about the relief to Haiti. (MCT Campus)

Radio broadcaster Rush Limbaugh prepares to inform his audience about his controversial issues about the relief to Haiti. (MCT Campus)


And then some people had to go and screw it all up.
But, really, should this come as any news? Shouldn’t we have expected something at this level? After all, there will always be the cynics, the people in the crowd who choose to go in the opposite direction, whether it is to make a point or just to fulfill some personal vendetta. It’s a tried and true fact that there will always be those who willingly stand up and let hateful drivel flow from their mouths.
I guess I was just being naïve when I thought this wouldn’t happen with Haiti.
How could anyone, seeing the daily-increasing devastation, knowingly attempt to broadcast his or her own, narrow-minded and hateful ideas? Who could look into the tortured, broken faces and sneer? How is it possible that someone could watch the news reports and not see the tragic loss of human life?
Apparently, it’s possible. Since the earthquake that shook Haiti to its core, a different kind of aftershock has been felt across the globe: that of the insensitive comments made in the face of the tragedy. They range from the stupid to the truly cutting, inserting religion, politics, and even personal ire into a situation that definitely does not call for such remarks.
The day after the earthquake, Rush Limbaugh made some not-so-savory comments about Haiti on his morning radio program. He brazenly attacked the relief organization set up in the White House, encouraging listeners not to donate to the fund. As he so eloquently put it: “You already give to the Haitian relief- it’s called the income tax.”
Of course, this ignited a firestorm amongst relief groups and Limbaugh criticizers, who accused him of promoting the message that there was no need, or point, even, to donate to relief funds (and yes, it did sound like that). Limbaugh, of course, was quick to defend with the statement that he was, instead, attempting to get people to donate to funds run by the Red Cross and the like.
He might have scraped by with that “support”, but other comments are a bit harder to take back, aren’t they, Rush? In the same radio program, he also claimed that President Obama and his cabinet would use Haiti as a way to get closer to the “light-skinned and dark-skinned black communities in this country.”
Oh, so that was the reason Obama went to Haiti’s aid. Not because thousands of people were suffering, but for a political agenda. It all makes perfect sense now. Just ignore the fact that the majority of America supports him; ignore the fact that relief organizations within the government have worked together before: this is clearly all to do with support ratings. No offense, Rush, but I think Mr. President has a little more on his mind right now.
Unfortunately, Limbaugh’s comments only scrape the top of the heap. Below his on the rung of insensitivity (and complete lunacy, to tell the truth), lie the comments of a Pat Robertson, who proved that anyone, anyone can insert religion into a completely non-religious issue if they just try hard enough. My hat is off to you, Mr. Robertson.
On the same day as Limbaugh’s commentary, Pat Robertson decided to make his views on why this happened to Haiti known. And, boy, did he have some good ones. Robertson claims that Haiti, as a whole, made a “pact with the Devil” in order to escape French colonial rule, and so have been plagued with misfortune ever since. Yep, the Devil made them do it.
Before we get to the actual statement, let’s look at the facts, ones that Pat probably could have learned a lot from: 80 percent of Haitians identify themselves as Roman Catholic, followed by the Protestants at 16 percent. Now, am I going crazy, or was a main focus of those religions to stay away from the Devil? Did I get hundreds of years of Christianity and Catholicism incorrect? Or is there another kind of Catholicism, and Protestantism, that only Pat Robertson knows about?
I’m going to lean towards a no for the answer. And, so, the issue comes back to why anyone would even consider making such a blatantly idiotic and insensitive remark? If it’s not bad enough that Haiti just experienced a major national disaster, it also turns out it’s all their fault. Kick ‘em while they’re down, eh, Pat?
But the final indignity comes in the form of Pat Shirley, a former NBA player who felt the need to not only comment on the Haiti disaster, but also to write a letter to all Haitians. Pat Shirley, you get my award for the most insensitive pinhead to roam the face of the Earth. Shirley penned a long letter on Jan. 26, detailing just how he felt about the Haiti situation.
He begins with firmly stating that he will not donate any money to the Haitian relief, and begins to list his reasons for doing so. His arguments basically consist of him blaming the Haitians for their situation, and for relying on the rest of the world to help them out. Shirley argues that Haiti should be able to pull itself out of the hole, while the world looks on.
That’s just wonderful. You really emphasized the collectiveness of man there. Who cares if we have a lot of money and resources? Why should we have to help some other country attempt to live? Survival of the fittest, right? Anyway, if they fail, that’s one less country we have to worry about.
The blows keep coming, however, when Shirley pens a letter directly to the Haitian people, applauding them on “developing the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere.” And it only gets worse. After encouraging Haiti to build fewer shantytowns, Shirley also recommends “maybe using a condom once in a while.” He signs off as “The Rest of the World.”
What?! What?! How dare he! This has got to be the most offensive, the most insensitive letter ever written to anyone. Hang human compassion and understanding; just criticize them to within an inch of their already fragile lives! It appears that it is just too much to ask that people simply help these people trying to rebuild their lives. I know that there are those who always feel the need to get a comment in, but enough is enough. A couple of lessons on self-restraint, and, yes, empathy is in order here.
And then, of course, he has the audacity to sign it as the rest of the world. It shames me that anyone will even have to see this letter, much more to assume that this is some kind of twisted world opinion. Just because you don’t have a caring bone in your body, Pat Shirley, doesn’t mean that the rest of the world can’t care and attempt to help those less fortunate.
In the end, the results are all the same: disgust and humiliation. I don’t care who you think you are, mocking people in this kind of situation, in any kind of situation below yours, is never right. Shame on all those who perpetrate such lies and insensitivity and hatred, for lack of a better word. It is our duty, as a world power, to help those who are less fortunate than us. I don’t care how you think it should be run, why you think this happened, or any of that. Keep your mouth shut, and turn off the idiocy and insensitivity factories that seem to have replaced your brain.
No one, I repeat no one, has the right to mock tragedy, incriminate the victims, or thwart relief attempts. No one has the right to play judge when faced with a disaster of this magnitude. Perhaps you should have thought before you spoke.