the courier volume 38issue 6

march 2011

news 2

culture 10radical rebel 12

inside this issue

the buzzyour schoolcommunity

world

2 march 2011

editor-in-chief:abbey borchers

news editor:heidi roberts

opinion editor:emily partida

sports editor:trevor ogborn

culture editor:jenni robinson

champion writer and editor extraordinaire:

lauren elder

staff writers:autumn hargrove

regan longgrace reader celeste renn

ian scenadanielle sheehan jordyn voegele

staff photographer:daniel bernal-rubiano

adviser:mr. friesen

the courier staff

policy

The Courier is the official stu-dent newspaper of Columbine High School.

Expression made by students in The Courier is not an ex-pression of Jefferson County Public School’s Board policy, and the school district and its employees are immune from any civil or criminal action based on any expres-sion made or published by students.

on the coverTrack, boys swimming, girls soc-cer, and girls tennis are just a few of the spring sports, which officially started began on Mon-day, March 7. photos by autumn hargrove and danielle sheehan, courtesy of sevan strait

... . . . . . . . No word in the the English dictionary rhymes with “month” . . . Every year, kids in North America spend close to half a billion dollars on chewing gum . . .

A group of Columbine students involved with STAAYH (Students Taking Action Against Youth Homelessness) gath-ered to street perform on the 16th Street Mall in downtown Denver on Saturday, March 5 to raise money for homeless teens. The proceeds, along with other funds, will be donated to Sox Place in the form of either a monetary or material donation purchased with the money. The students formed into three groups to perform on the streets of Denver with many instruments such as guitar, bass and cajon, along with vocals. Some of the students held signs for the performers so that way people walking by would realize that they were raising money for charity. The performers collected tips in guitar cases in which people left everything from pen-nies to twenty-dollar bills. “It was a really fun time and we earned a lot of money for the organization that we were rais-ing for,” said Junior Brandon Vela, who played bass guitar.“It is was just fun to jam on 16th Street Mall with a bunch of friends,” “It was my first time street performing, and I’m glad it was for a good cause,” Junior Trevor Ogborn said. “It was cold, but the compassion in our hearts kept us warm.” Junior Abbey Borchers, head organizer of this street performing event, gathered every-one interested in going downtown to her home the night before to practice and get to know each other before they split up on the streets of downtown. Then the group left on the light rail down to their event the next afternoon. The group finished the day with a total of $200.49. At STAAYH’s last street performing event right before Christmas, the total money raised was less than half of the March 5 total, so this event was a big success, and the num-ber of participants nearly doubled in size from the last time. “Whether this success was because of in-credible musical talent, luck or a mix of the two

will never be known, but no matter what, it was a blast,” said Junior Zach Lubline. “Street performing has become a really popular fundraiser within the club,” Junior Ab-

bey Borchers said, “which is why so many more people got in-volved this time and we raised so much money. It’s such a fun way to raise money and awareness at the same time!” Students encoun-tered many interest-ing people downtown. Among them were some kids from Sox Place and they ended up staying and jam-ming with one of the groups. Early in the day, one of

the groups was singing and then a young group of adults approached them around 18 to 19 years old, who were profes-sional street performers. Lubline said the young adults told them about how they had lived at Sox Place and sung them some amazing songs. “The young adults were easily out-doing any of our mediocre attempts at real music. They were inspiring, to say the least,” Lubline said. A few of the students made friends with the kids from Sox Place and bought them a pizza from the Mellow Mushroom. Sox Place is a daytime drop-in center for street youth. These range in ages from 12 to 30 and belong to the youth sub-culture known as “street kids,” accord-ing to the Sow Place website. Many have been abandoned by parents/guardians, some are victims of the foster care system, and most have been tossed aside by society. Addic-tions to drugs, alcohol, violence, and sex are a part of their ev-eryday lives. A hot meal and a safe place is provided Monday through Saturday.

During their time at Sox Place, youth par-ticipate in activities such as movies, video games, foosball, pool and ping pong. Staff and volunteers spend their time interacting with the youth and building friendships in order to pro-vide healthy and constructive relationships. Sox Place was founded by Doyle Robinson, who started connecting with the youth hanging out on the 16th Street Mall in Downtown Den-ver in 1999. Discovering their need for clean, dry socks, Doyle used this very basic need to reach the street youth gathered on 16th Street Mall, eventually earning him the street name Sox. His effort blossomed out of a desire to pro-vide a safe place for street youth to go during the day where they could truly be accepted and loved. There was no other organization or min-istry filling this need during the day. Sox Place continues today with the same heart, reaching more than 80 youth a day with dedicated staff and volunteers.

Comments? dsheehan.cc.2011@gmail.com

Tips for charitySTAAYH members street-perform to raise money for homeless teens

danielle sheehan

Sophomores Sara Philibotte and Lizzie Pittman sing for tips to raise money for Sox Place. photo by brenna hjelle

Senior Donald Ford and Junior Brandon Vela play guitar on the 16th Street Mall. Ford and Vela street performed with STAAYH to raise money for Sox Place. photo by brenna hjelle

march 2011 3

the buzznews

Spring Play This year’s Spring Play will be “Don’t Drink the Water,” written by Woody Al-len. Auditions took place from March 1 through 3. Set building began Saturday, March 5, and rehearsals began Monday, March 7. Performances will be on May 5, 6 and 7 at 7:00 p.m.

Poms ShowcaseThe Poms held their annual spring show-case on Friday, March 11 in the audito-rium. The event lasted from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. and included group and solo perfor-mances alike. The Poms showed off the moves they have been working on all year without the pressure of competition.

Spring BreakThe first day of Spring Break will be Sat-urday, March 26. Students will return to school on Tuesday, April 5.

CSAPCSAP (Colorado Student Assessment Program) Testing concluded on Thurs-day, March 10. Students should expect to receive their scores in July or August.

Instrumental Field TripOn Friday, March 11, band and orchestra students took an all-day field trip to see the Colorado Symphony Orchestra at the Boettcher Concert Hall in the Denver Performing Arts Complex in downtown Denver.

Tommy Spaulding SpeaksNew York Times best-selling author Tommy Spaulding will deliver his keynote speech and offer leadership training in the Columbine auditorium on Wednes-day, March 16. DECA students had the opportunity to hear Spaulding speak at their competition in Colorado Springs on February 27.

News in BriefNews in Brief

Talk of budget cuts has been floating around Columbine and the Jeffco school district, and now many specific changes have been formally proposed to accommodate these cuts. As a result of March 4 and 5 summit between two rep-resentatives each from JCEA, CSEA, JCAA, the Board of Education and district administration, a plan has been set in action to reduce nearly $40 million from the budget for the 2011-12 school year. Columbine Principal Frank DeAngelis served on this summit as a JCAA representative. The summit group’s plan includes, as stated by Jeffco Public Schools Superintendent Cindy Stevenson, “A three percent loss of compensation for all employees–all employ-ees will have a shorter work year by four days. In addition, there will be two days where children will not come to school and the district will be closed. In total, employees will work six days less.” The specific days and details surrounding the closures are yet to be determined. Another proposed change which will affect Columbine students is a reduction in graduation requirements from 24 to 23 credits. The summits’ recommendation involves elimi-nating the World Language requirement from graduation. Columbine students will also experience a fee for trans-portation and raised athletics and activities fees. Across the school district, facilities reductions involve closing Martensen and Zerger Elementaries, as well as Longview High School, whose students and faculty will be transferred to McLain. Overall, a total of 212 jobs will be eliminated from the

district. The job cuts will affect teachers, administrators and support staff. Called by DeAngelis “an emotional decision,” the sum-mit also decided Jeffco sixth-graders will not be able to go to Windy Peak or Mount Evans for outdoor lab. A special part of the Jeffco student experience, DeAngelis noted that the mountain programs may stay open if they can indepen-dently raise their $1.2 million operating costs. Jeffco schools’ proposals for fiscal reductions are part of a statewide belt-tightening of many school districts in preparation for the large budget cuts being proposed by Governor John Hickenlooper. On February 15, Hickenlooper proposed cutting $375 million dollars from K-12 Colorado education. In per-student terms, that means schools will re-ceive nearly $500 less this year for each pupil than in 2010-11, and almost $1,000 less than they did two years ago. Throughout Colorado, districts have been making staff cuts, charging for student transportation and increasing fees for extracurricular activities in order to save money in case the proposal goes into effect. Such measures are likely to increase in response to the governor’s plan. Besides cutting back spending, schools must also in-crease the money they take in. “You can bring revenue in,” DeAngelis said. “For example, revenue does come in for ath-letics. Anyone who participates in athletics pays an athletic fee, so you generate money by doing that. So you bring in revenue, meaning fewer cuts,” “If people want their kids to be in sports, they have to carry a big fee. I suggest we explore that model,” Jeffco Schools Board Member Paul Noonan said.

This is not the first time Colorado schools have taken a hit from state budget cuts. Last year $260 million was cut from education. If Colorado’s budget continues to decrease, money for education may continually be cut. This year only $10 million were proposed to be cut from prisons as op-posed to $375 million cut from schools. “Originally, Jefferson County Schools were going to have to cut $26 million,” DeAngelis said. “Now, because of the proposed budget by Governor Hickenlooper, it is $39 million.” With the suffering economy, parents of students don’t always have enough money to pay more for education. Many students may not be able to participate in extracurricular ac-tivities simply because they have to pay more for them. When asked if he thought this would affect the number of extra classes students participated in, DeAngelis said, “I don’t know. If they cut back staff and we have five fewer teachers, it may be we have to eliminate a program.” Other districts are also making plans for ways to deal with the funding crisis. According to 7 News, Douglas Coun-ty School Districts must cut $37 million from their $450 mil-lion budget in the next two years. The district has considered many ideas for cutting back, such as increasing class size tremendously, cutting bus routes and reducing the amount of credits required for seniors to graduate. Douglas County has also proposed a four day school week. “We are willing to study any option,” Douglas County Superintendent Jim Christensen said.

Comments? greader.cc.2011@gmail.com

grace reader

Pinching penniesColorado schools tighten their belts in preparation for budget cuts

On March 4, Columbine was officially au-thorized as an International Baccalaureate World School. Next year, Columbine will be an addition to the nearly 700,000 schools in the world who are a part of the program. “Right now we have around 20 kids signed up to be in the program next year,” Ms.DiManna, the IB director at Columbine commented. ”We are trying to get more kids by going around to honors classes and trying to get kids interested in it.” According to the International Baccalau-reate website, the International Baccalau-reate (IB) program “is a non-profit educa-tional foundation, motivated by its mission, focused on the student” and was designed to “help develop the intellectual, personal, emotional and social skills to live, learn and work in a rapidly globalizing world.” The IB program is not necessarily just for honors kids. Columbine is adding some-thing new next year that makes it so that if somebody has one class in particular they are good at or interested in, they can have only one IB class.

“If a person’s passion is music, such as orchestra or band, the school may be offer-ing a course for students whose main thing is that, so they can just take one IB course in-stead of having to struggle through a bunch of classes they don’t want to be in,” DiManna said. “This is an option for people who want to be advanced in one class in particular.” “I will be trying to do the full program, but I think [the option] a really cool idea,” Fresh-man Tyler Ponzo said of this new idea, “I’m in orchestra and that would a good thing.” The full program starts junior year and goes until senior year. For freshman and sophomore year, if the students are already signed up, there is a requirement to take all honors classes. During the course of junior and senior year, all students have to work on a 4,000-5,000 word essay which is due by the end of senior year, and is required to receive an IB diploma. This diploma is well known in many colleges, and having one will draw many colleges’ attention from both in and outside of the United States, which is an advantage for many people.

Comments? iscena.cc.2011@gmail.com

AuthorizationColumbine becomes an official IB school ian scena

4 march 2011

the buzz news

Thurs. 3/17-Spanish 4 and AP Spanish

classes to Arthur Murray Dance studio - 9:40 a.m.-1:30 p.m.

Spring play rehearsal - 3:00-5:30 p.m.

Fri. 3/18-Spring play rehearsal - 3:00-

4:30 p.m.

Sat. 3/19-Set building for spring play

- 9:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.

Mon. 3/21-Students senate sponsors

bowling night at AMF Bowling at Belleview - 6:00 p.m.

Spring Play Rehearsal - 6:30-9:00 p.m.

Tues. 3/22-Spring play rehearsal - 3:00-

5:30 p.m. Class of 2013 Tie Dye Night -

6:00-8:00 p.m.

Wed. 3/23, Band trip to New YorkSpring play rehearsal 6:30pm-

9:00pm

Thurs. 3/24-Spring play rehearsal 6:30-

9:00 p.m.

Fri. 3/25- French trip to FranceSpring play rehearsal 3:00pm-

4:30pm

Sat. 3/26-Mon. 4/4Spring Break!

Need something posted? Drop us a message at

chs.pub.2011@gmail.com

Tues. 3/22-Spring play rehearsal - 3:00-

Bulletin Board

Though the offi cial ACT exam is nearly two months away, early re-sults from Columbine’s new ACT Academy training look promising. “The preliminary results are in,” said Assistant Principal Tige Asnicar, who coordinated the program. “Those students partici-pating in the ACT Academy [fi rst] week have, on average, improved their ACT composite score by two points. In some cases, students have improved as much eight points. Nice job, Rebels!” Columbine’s fi rst ever ACT Academy started on March 1. The training’s goal was to help juniors with ACT strategies. “This is the fi rst year that we did ACT Academy,” Asnicar said. “I’m excited to see the outcome.” The fi rst week of the ACT Academy had 80 percent atten-

dance and participation, and the average composite score jumped from 19 to 21. “Our kids and our community obviously think this is an important op-portunity,” Asnicar said. ACT Acad-emy is a new con-cept at Columbine meant to boost students’ scores on the state-man-dated ACT test on April 27. “ACT Acade-my began by look-ing at the average scores and the things that edu-cators are being graded and seen on,” Asnicar said. A practice ACT test was ad-ministered in students’ World His-

tory and English classes over the course of several days leading up to the workshop. Students’ results from the test were then used to

place them in classes based on their skill level. Classes were held for each of

the four sec-tions on the ACT–Science, English, Math, and Reading–and students were grouped together in each class based on their

score on the corresponding test section. On Thursday, the fi nal day of ACT Academy’s inaugural session,

students took a full-length practice exam. Students will receive their in-dividual scores from this exam by March 18, and will be able to com-pare their results prior to taking the workshop to their results after. “The ACT prep helped a lot with understanding the test and just get-ting in practice,”

Junior Lauren Bezzant said. ACT Academy is part of an ef-fort to boost Columbine students scores, as the Colorado Depart-ment of Education uses average ACT scores in compiling a school’s accountability report. Better ACT scores benefi t stu-dents as well as the school. Many colleges (including Colorado’s four-year public schools) use ACT scores combined with a student’s cumulative grade point average in

determining his or her index, which is a deciding factor in admissions. “ACT Academy was a really productive process to have this year. When we’re talking about a test that determines the next four years of our lives, it’s necessary to have that preparation,” Junior Ja-cob Anderson said. “ACT Academy helps improve opportunities for scholarships and fi nancial aid,” Asnicar said. Scholarship committees also often take ACT scores into account when making a decision about an applicant, and those wishing to play Division I or II sports in col-lege must meet certain NCAA requirements regarding their ACT scores. “Going through something like this just makes sense,” Asnicar said. “We have great kids here at Columbine High School who excel at what they do. I think this is go-ing to be a good year for us.” Many students got a lot out of the opportunity. “Even though it made us give up our CSAP days it did get us more familiar with the test, which will help on the actual test,” Junior Mikayla Greenwell said.

Comments? aborchers.cc.2011@gmail.com

InterACTive learningACT Academy debuts for juniors during CSAP mornings

abbey borchers

Students listen attentively in one of the many ACT workshops that took place in the fi rst week of March. Students learned skills to succeed on the upcoming ACT test. photo by daniel bernal

from our website coverage

You look at the movies that have been coming out lately and you have to ask yourself, is Hol-lywood doing anything original? The answer to

that is no. Most of the movies that have come out recently are either a sequel, a remake or based on a fairy tale story, comic book or a TV series that used to be popular. If it is not that, then it is something else that is predict-able. Now, I am not saying that these movies are necessarily horrible. I am just asking for a little bit of originality from Hollywood. I was looking at what movies are to come out this year and over 30 of them are a remake from a comic book or book novel. The most common ones are sequels or pre-quels. When looking at movies that are mainly sequels, are any of them as good as the fi rst?

No. It is rare to fi nd a good series of movies that live up to the fi rst. With most of these movies, you could have just ended it with the fi rst one. Then you look at movies like the “Saw” series. They are on their eighth–yes, eighth–movie of the se-ries. This is not what creativity and originality is. To be original is to be different from all the rest, or as Merriam-Webster defi nes it, having “freshness of aspect, design, or style.” The aspect or style of all of these movies are defi -nitely not original. Then look at movies like “Footloose.” By that, I mean that they are making a remake of the original “Footloose.” I don’t think that the remake can even come close to the orig-

inal because “Footloose” was and still is a massive hit today. Hollywood needs to look at all the other remakes because very few of these movies actually turn out and succeed in being bet-ter than the original. The only successful re-

make that I know of is “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.” Also, look and you can see how, when they are not original, they are extremely pre-

dictable. There is this thing called the Hero’s Journey. This is what basically all movies follow. The Hero’s Journey starts at the de-parture; this can also be known as the “call to action.” Then, the there is the initiation in which the main character goes through a series of trials. Finally, there is the return,

which is kind of like a major realization that the main character has. There are a lot of movies that do follow this pattern, which also makes the movie very predictable. Take sports movies, for example. Most of them start the same: there is a horrible team, with a new coach who has to work with them, and it takes a lot on the coaches part to improve the team. In the very beginning, the team loses all of their games. Towards the end, they win more and more games and then they possibly get to the championships and win that, too. This is what I mean when I say that all of the movies are predictable. I guess that all I am asking of Hollywood is to get some originality when it comes to movies that are being made because, as of now, they are just recycling the same ideas over and over.

Comments? ahargrove.cc.2011@gmail.com

6 march 2011

rebel yell your viewsopinion

voice. . . . A group of unicorns is called a blessing . . . A baby octopus is the size of a fl ea at birth . . . Snails breathe through their feet. . . A broken clock is right twice a day . . .

Hollywood horrors

staff editorial

Generation Why

“Lazy” is generally not a term one would as-sociate with AP and honors students. But it seems to be our teachers’ favorite word to use to describe us these days. “When you guys come across a word you don’t know, pick up a freaking dictionary and look it up! I swear, you guys are so lazy!” Oh, sorry, between a job, homework for three other AP classes, and a team dinner, looking up a word we’ll probably never see again isn’t at the top of our long to-do lists. “Would you like to know why your grades all sucked on this test? Because you don’t think! You never think! I swear, you don’t even try!” First of all, I wasn’t aware that an 89% on a test “sucked.” That’s a B. As in, “above average.” Second, I don’t know what the defi -nition of “trying” is, but I would say two and a half hours of intensive review the night be-fore is a pretty good one. “Your generation is so lazy. You expect to be handed everything in life, and that will get you nowhere.” If we expect to be handed everything, then please explain why we’re taking multiple AP classes and beefi ng up my extracurriculars. Oh, that’s right, so we can

get scholarships and won’t have to work a second job to pay for college. As we move from class to class, the in-sults and accusations sometimes just seem to get bigger, piling up on one another until by the end of the day, the best and brightest at Columbine feel like the lowest of the low. As if the stress from our already over-scheduled lives weren’t enough, we now have to worry about becoming what our teachers are now calling us: “Generation Why.” As in, “Why bother?” So we become more vigilant about our grades, checking Parent Portal constantly to see if our teachers have entered our test grades yet, and panicking when that 89% brings our total grade down from a 95% to a 93.5%. After practice and a tutoring session (for community service hours), we stay up until 1:00 a.m. fi nishing homework, then skip breakfast the next morning so we can get fi ve extra minutes of sleep. Later, realizing we for-got to study for a test, we trade the cafeteria for the library in an effort to not appear “lazy” on this test. This kind of lifestyle, of course, does not apply to everyone. But the irony is, those of us for whom it does apply are accused of be-ing lazy when we are actually the exact op-posite.

Comments? chs.pub.2011@gmail.com

Hollywood has forgotten what it means to be original

autumn hargrove

All I am asking of Hollywood is to get some originality

“No, I don’t feel like I’m ex-pected to do more than my parents or teachers because they never pressure me to; I choose to do more myself.” -Breezy Coyne, 9

“It doesn’t matter whether we do more or less as long as we do our best.” -Jamie Baumgarten, 11

“Yes, because we learn a lot more now than way back in the stone age when they were in high school.” -Josh Wagner, 12

?Do you feel like you are expected to

do more than your teachers and parents

did in high school?

SPEAK OUT

SPEAK OUT

“No, I think we do less than what out parents did–NOT COMPLAINING!” -Savannah Luebking, 10

march 2011 7

rebel yellopinion

It would take a teacher 3 full years to earn the money an NFL player earns in a single game. This means an NFL player earns a teacher’s year salary in 21 minutes of playing a professional

game. Now teachers are being forced to accept pay cuts while these NFL players are prepared to strike for more money. It is a well-known fact that being a teacher is not a high paying job. It is also well known that this fact is regularly disagreed with by most people. Teachers perform one of the most important and hardest jobs possible: educating the next generation of leaders. Next year alone school districts will have to accept up to $9.4 billion pay cuts throughout the country and the teachers feel the effect of that the most. They will have to also accept furlough days, meaning they will be forced to take days off that they will not be paid for. While that will ultimately help cut costs of school, it will make a huge negative impact on teachers. The National Football League just enacted a lockout, preparing themselves for a player strike for the upcoming season. There is a constant battle in all professional sports between the players and the owners over salaries. The own-

ers of professional franchises believe they are paying their players too much, while the players believe its not enough. No one cares when a millionaire wants more money, especially when people who work as hard and as long as our teachers are not receiving the money they deserve. The average Bronco salary is $1.98 million, while the average high school teacher in Colorado makes $44,000 a year. That means teachers get a quarter less money in ten months of work than an NFL football player gets in five months of playing once a week.

Federal and state governments and President Obama have been making it clear how important education is. It doesn’t make any sense that they are cutting school budgets instead of putting more money into it. Maybe, if we put some of that income from football games into our school system,

our education wouldn’t be falling so far behind. As for the future of America, instead of increasing the amount of school students are required to be in, it is being decreased. The furlough days that are a part of next year’s budget recommendations will force both students and teach-ers to take days off without learning and without payment. Although this will save a lot of money, it hurts the teachers who have to support themselves and their families, and it

hurts students who need to learn. Teachers perform an incredibly difficult job, and most of them do it well. The NFL players work hard to be good at their job on the field, but do 16 games worth of work give them the right to be paid 4 times as much as teachers? Prob-ably not. Teachers should not have to be accepting pay cuts while the football players can demand more. It’s not right.

Comments? jvoegele.cc.2011@gmail.com

jordyn voegele

Unfair salaries As teachers accept more pay cuts, NFL players strike for more money

Last November saw 23-year-old Blair Griffith crowned Miss Colo-rado 2011, an honor which has also qualified her to compete in the 2011 Miss USA pageant in June.

Griffith embodies all that is a pageant queen. But an adjective the media is using to describe her? Homeless. Technically. In a segment cleverly titled “A Place to Hang her Crown,” Channel 9 News recently featured Griffith, who described herself as “technically homeless”. Griffith’s mother had a heart attack three years ago and claims she is still not able to work or collect disability, and Griffith is about to lose her job at a Saks Fifth Avenue store. She and her mother have been evicted from their home, which technically gives Griffith the ability to tell 9 News: “I am currently homeless. I do not have a home to go to.” But a home is different than a house, and Griffith has a house. A nice one, in fact. She and her mother have moved in with friends who live in a rather luxurious house. Griffith gets a

room to herself, which is complete with a four-poster bed, armchair, night stand and enormous window. So it may not be her own home, but it is certainly not the cold, unforgiving streets of Denver where actual homeless people live. Homelessness is not an issue to be taken lightly, and it is absolutely not an issue to be pimped out for

publicity and sympathy votes. While Griffith is facing a little adversity on her way to becoming Miss USA, the homeless person sleeping outside a church downtown or surviving on one meal a day from a soup kitchen is

dealing with a great deal more, and probably does not appreciate being overlooked for the relatively insignifi-cant problems of a beauty queen. Griffith may be technically homeless, but she is not truly homeless. True homelessness affects millions of people every year. True homelessness is frightening and dangerous and something that Miss Colorado can never truly understand while wearing evening gowns that likely cost more than several months’ rent.

Comments? aborchers.cc.2011@gmail.com

abbey borchers

Technical foulMiss Colorado claims she is homeless

Letter Guidelines: Please limit your submission to 200 words. Letters may be edited for space and inaccura-cies, and The Courier reserves the right not to publish any letter. Please submit to the Publications Room,

Mr. Eric Friesen’s mailbox in the main office, or e-mail to chs.courier@yahoo.com

How’s your REBEL YELL? Want to comment on an

important issue? Send your opinion to The Courier.

THE O-SHOCK REPORT WHERE MY REBELS AT?! It’s getting down to the wire, and seniors, we are almost done! So what are we going to do to be remembered? What is our legacy? There are so many things that are going to be happening in the next few months that everyone can take part in. Day Without Hate is on April 29 this year, and it is going to be amazing. We are having another assembly with some great speakers, so get excited! Shirts are on sale now and you will each be getting an order form in your English class. They are still only $5 and quite the fashion statement, so buy one! Relay for Life is also coming up on May 14 through May 15! This is such a great event that is so easy to jump into and participate. We will be having

meetings to help you get a team started and learn about what it takes to get in-volved, and we will be answering any questions you might have. Relay for Life truly is an event where you can make a difference and get in-volved. Our goal this year is $30,000, so we need your help to try to end cancer and have more birthdays! With so many ways to get involved it should be easy to “leave our mark”! Seniors, we have about two months left, so I leave you with this question: how do you want to be remembered?

Keep it classy, Columbine.

Olivia Leyshock

An NFL player earns a teacher’s year salary in 21 minutes of playing a professional game.

Homelessness is not an issue to be pimped out for publicity.

As spring sports begin to kick into full gear, student-athletes begin to take on the challenges the new season brings. For Junior Hannah Kuhr and Freshman Austin Miller, it is a transition time where they trade their winter gear for spring, just like they did from fall to winter. Many students find it difficult to balance one sport and school. Both Kuhr and Miller, however, participate in a sport every season which can be a huge challenge. These two are just a couple of the growing number of students who have taken it upon themselves to juggle three seasons of sports on top of their school work. For them, free time is no longer an issue–it’s the last thing on their minds. Miller, who participates in football, wrestling, and la-crosse, knows how hard it is to keep up with three sports and school. “Once one season is over I have to prepare for the new season by training in different ways,” Miller said. “My body is constantly working and I have to balance all of this with school, friends, family, chores–and girls.” Miller said that sports have helped him become a bet-

ter person. “It gives me the opportunity to be the best that I can be. That’s what I look forward to before every sea-son,” he said. Kuhr, who is involved in volleyball, swimming, and la-crosse, said that she plays so many sports to keep from getting bored. “I just get really bored when I don’t have anything to do. I like to keep myself busy,” she said. Both Miller and Kuhr enjoy being involved their sports and both thrive alongside their teams. Kuhr feels that be-ing with her team in any sport is the best part of being an athlete. “Even in swimming we cheer each other on and spend lots of time together,” she said. “Making new friends and pushing myself in every-thing [is the best part]. It makes me stronger as a person,” Miller said. It can easily get tiring to be involved in so many things. “Some days I’ll be so beat from practice mentally and physically that I don’t want to do anything,” Miller said. “I try to block out the thought that I’m sore or tired from practice and instead think about school.” Even though he is trying his best to focus on school, he admits his grades suffer. As a junior, Kuhr has had more time to learn how to balance everything. “Being in sports actually improves my

ability to manage time,” she said. For any student-athlete, time management is key to being successful in both sports and school. Athletes can’t let their grades slip lest they risk becoming ineligible for their sport and lose out on that aspect of their lives. Even with so much on his plate already, Miller said he would add a fourth sport, basketball, if he could. “It con-flicts with wrestling so I’ve never been able to play it.,” he said. His desire to add a fourth sport, however, goes to show how dedicated he is to athletics. Although Miller and Kuhr each play three sports, they also each have their favorite. Kuhr “loves to do them all, but enjoy[s] the team aspect of volleyball and playing with a team that has been together for about five or six years.” For Miller it’s “lacrosse because it is fast-paced and it is the sport [he] excel[s] at the most.” Both hoping to win state for one of their sports, Kuhr and Miller have already achieved a lot in the sports they play. They both also plan to play a sport in college but nei-ther have any set plans. As for now, both enjoy the experiences they get from participating in Columbine athletics.

Comments? jvoegele.cc.2011@gmail.com

jordyn voegele

in motionyour teams

healthenergy

. . . Abraham Lincoln was the tallest president, standing at 6’4” . . . Dorothy’s ruby red slippers from The Wizard of Oz were sold at an auction for $660,000 . . .

8 march 2011

For love of sportsBalancing school and one sport is hard enough–these students do three

QUESTIONS5 COACHFOR THE

Q: WHY DID YOU GET INTO COACHING?

WHAT WILL YOUR BIGGEST CHALLENGE BE THIS SEASON?

DAWN SELINH, TENNIS

Probably because I play and all of my daughters play. At the time I started coaching, my oldest daughter was on the team and her first year I watched her and knew the “then” coach who asked me if I would like to assist him the following year.A:

Q: HOW DO YOU MOTIVATE YOUR PLAYERS?I believe I motivate my players by really understanding and liking them. I encourage them, give them positive feedback, and provide a fun environment. I hope this makes their experience great!A:

Q: WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT COACHING AND WHY?I love being with all these teenage girls. I think they are so fun, full of life. I guess it makes me feel young and like I am back on a team!A:

Q: WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO ACHIEVE THIS SEASON?This season I am hoping to win the league. I really believe we can and also repeat in taking more girls to state.A:

Q:The biggest challenge will be “swinging volleys”!!! We have some heavy hitters!!A:

Some students In Jefferson County are earning their physical education credit in front of a computer screen. Virtual Academy is Jefferson County’s online public school which allows students to take classes online should they need a more flexible schedule to acquire needed credits. Acquiring gym credits is an option for one of these online courses. There are three different courses that students can choose from for gym: Recreation Sports, Health and Fitness and Event Training. “Some of the reasons students take online gym is they don’t like ‘traditional’ gym classes,” Mrs. Erholtz, the Event Training teacher for Virtual Academy, said. “They are either competitive athletes who travel a lot, students who are work-ing full-time and still need their PE credit, students who need an elective for something different or students who are just independent.” Event Training is a course that promotes lifelong fitness and health. Over the course of the semester, students train for a 5K, 10K or half-marathon by following a training plan they have selected and designed with help from the instruc-tor. There is also the option of training for a triathlon. The final in this involves an actual completion of an event with “chip” timing, for example, a road race or triathlon. Recreation Sports classes give students an opportuni-ty to gain the knowledge and skills to participate safely in

outdoor activities such as skiing, snowboarding, rock climb-ing, mountaineering, kayaking, mountain biking and hiking. In conjunction with these outdoor activities, students learn about wilderness survival, outdoor equipment, first aid and reading a map and compass. Health Fitness is a course designed around six units of study: mental and social health, nutrition, lifelong physi-cal activity, substance abuse, injury prevention and personal health. According to the online course catalog, “Students who complete Health build the skills they need to protect, enhance, and promote their own health and the health of others,” Erholtz said. “In each P.E. (and all courses, for that matter) course requires a student to spend 5-7 hours per week in their course,” Erholtz said. “This is a combination of the time spent training (exercising) and the completion of discussion board, training logs and assignments re-volving around goal-setting, nutrition and general fit-ness. In some aspects, online gym requires more ‘work’ than a typical PE class as there are written assignments in addition to the daily exercise. The courses are a full semester in length,” In addition to the weekly training logs students must submit, there also are written assignments. The training logs have required elements of fitness–frequen-cy, intensity, time, and type of exercise–that must be de-tailed each week. Parents are contacted if there is any

question as to whether or not a student is actually exercising, and, as mentioned above, the final in the course is register-ing for and completing a real-event. A student’s name must show up in the results to prove completion. Though there are many advantages to taking an online gym course, students must sacrifice the experience of taking a live, interactive gym class offered by the school. “I find that working out or exercising when the routine is designed for me is easier and much more motivating than working out alone,” Mrs. Branch, Physical Education teacher, said.

Comments? crenn.cc.2011@gmail.com

march 2011 9

in motionsports

Breaking a virtual sweatStudents now have the option of taking gym onlineceleste renn

How long have you been swimming? How long have you been swimming for Columbine?

I’ve been swimming since I was 5, on club teams, and for 3 years with Columbine.

What is the best part of swimming? The hardest part?

Best part about swimming is the team–most diverse personalities ever, but we all get along so well. Hardest part would have to be team 50’s. Someone always breathes on the fourth set.

How do you balance swimming with school, friends, and other activities?

School is obviously always a top priority. Our team is very tight-knit so I am hanging out with friends whenever I’m doing anything swim-team related. It takes a lot of time managing and some late nights.

How do you prepare before a meet?We have team dinners where we fuel on carbs and have a good time.

Any plans for college yet?I hope to got to either CU or Colorado School of Mines to study chemical engineering.

What advice do you have for freshmen swimmers?

Stick with it, guys. Kristi, as you’ll come to find, is the THE BEST COACH EVER! You will learn so much from her and every year is a blast!

Favorite motivational quote: “Winning doesn’t always mean being first. Winning means you’re doing better than you’ve ever done before.” -Bonnie Blair.

Favorite pump-up song: “Speak of the Devil” -A Day to Remember, “Johnny, I hardly knew ya” -Dropkick Murphys, “Drunken Lullabies”-Flogging Molly, “Sticks and Bricks”-ADtR.

How long have you been playing golf? How long have you competed for Columbine?

Since I was little. My dad would take me to the golf course before I could really hold the clubs. This will be my third year golfing for Columbine.

What is the best part about golf? The hardest part?

The best part is being able to play the sport I love, which includes playing in the world. The hardest part is the fact that golf is a sport which is individual and it’s up to you to hit the ball right.

How do you balance Golf with school, friends, and other activities?

I have no idea. I just focus on one thing at a time.

How do you prepare before a competition?

I get a good night’s rest and follow my pre tournament routine. I usually go chip, then go to the driving range, and then I practice putting.

Any plans for college yet?I’m not sure where I want to go yet, but I know that I want to try and play golf for it.

What advice do you have for the Freshmen golfers this year?

Go out and have fun! Enjoy every moment of the season. It goes by faster than you think it will.

Favorite motivational quote:“It’s not the will to win, but the will to prepare to win that makes all of the difference” - Bear Bryant“You can do all things through Christ who gives you strength” - Philipians 4:13

Favorite pre-game meal:An egg salad sandwich from Starbucks with a sugar-free Monster

Favorite pump-up song: I’ve got a whole playlist of calming music like Bob Marley or Jack Johnson.

She said He saidathleteprofile

sevan straitsevan strait

jennifer brownriggjennifer brownrigg

compiled by trevor osborn

culture shock...Nails are the second thing strongest only to diamonds.... . . Turtles can breathe through their butts . . . A pregnant goldfish is called a twit . . . Blonde beards grow faster than darker beards . . . A duck’s quack doesn’t echo . . .

your stylescene

idea of fun

10 march 2011

Junior Amy Bowman is getting ready to embark on an ad-venture to the mountains this Spring Break. “My favorite part of traveling is spending qual-ity time with my family,” Bowman said. Amy Bowman is just one of the many students here at Colum-bine that are busy making plans with anticipation for the week off of school from March 26 to April 4. Some students stay in Colora-do where they can relax and be at home with their family. Others de-cide to take the more adventurous route and go out of state, whether it is to have fun or for other rea-sons, such as college visits. “I am going on a road trip to Texas to see different colleges,” Ju-nior Natalie Sherman said. Popular vacation destinations include places like California and Lake Powell. Junior Sarah Dahlin’s favorite place to go is Lake Powell. “It’s so cool to see all of the ruins, knowing people lived there so long ago,” Dahlin

said. Some even go out of the United States to explore new cultures in different countries. Traveling is great for those who like to explore other than what is just in their backyard.

You can meet new people and see attractions that you could never see here in Colorado. “It’s fun to be in a different place with different people for a little while, but it helps you to appreci-ate what you have at home,” Dahlin said. While traveling, some students find it exciting to go see the amaz-ing sights the place has to offer. “I hike, swim and get lost in any city I am in to see what’s there,” Junior Samantha Nunez said. Trying new foods in different places is yet another joy of travel-ing. “The best thing I have ever eat-en was chicken terriyaki at Blowfish Grill in Vancouver! It was the best chicken terriyaki I have ever tasted,” Freshman Alexandra Jackson said.

Often, students choose to bring back souvenirs from their trips, whether they are for themselves or friends and

family. “The best souvenir I have ever gotten was sand from a beach in Mexico because I got to bring a little bit of a great place home with me,” Bowman said. While traveling outside of the state is a blast, staying in Colorado over spring break can be just as fun. For those who stay home, it sometimes can be even better. Many students are doing things like going up to the mountains to ski or snowboard. “The best part of staying home is going skiing, and hanging out with friends which is the best,” Sophomore Kelly Cline said. Other students go visit with relatives or earn some ex-tra cash. “Over Spring Break I’m going to be house-sitting,” Sophomore Cierra Abbruscato said. Most students also en-joy sleeping or just hanging out with their friends. Here in Colorado, there are still cheap, fun things to do over break. For example, there are big skiing and snow-boarding deals in Estes Park. There are winter rates for the park lodge in Estes which began January 11 and goes to May 20. For those who don’t ski or snowboard, and for those who do stay in town, there are always activities such as con-certs. For those who like country music, George Strait and Reba McEntire are in concert on April 1 at the Pepsi Center. For music lovers with different taste, Three Days Grace is coming on March 30 at the Ogden Theater.

Comments? ahargrove.cc.2011@gmail.com

autumn hargrove

Take a break and get out of townStudents make travel plans in anticipation of Spring Break

The Melting Pot of Littleton has a unique premise: food that is essentially cooked at each individual table using quality ingredi-ents. Since it’s a popular location for special events, and Prom is fast approaching, I de-cided to finally indulge in some fondue dur-ing restaurant week, which offered a four-course menu for $52.80. It’s apparent that at times getting into the Melting Pot can be difficult. Reserva-tions are generally recommended, and if the reservations are less than 24 hours away they can’t be made online. One must also call for parties larger than 6 or to do just dessert, and confirma-tion numbers are given. For those who are interested in taking advantage of the Melt-ing Pot, make sure you plan ahead. The restaurant itself is beautiful. Housed in what used to be a library, the old brick building has been transformed into corridors filled with booths on several different floors, decorated with water features, glass art and

romantic ambiance. The restaurant is dimly lit and spread across different levels so for those ladies wearing uncomfortable shoes, make sure you watch your step, as it can be difficult to navigate. Because we had come determined to pay $52.80 for our meal, the menu was predetermined. We were getting 4 courses: cheese fondue, a salad, meat, and chocolate fondue for dessert. The particular cheese fondue we received was Boston Lager Ched-dar which was made at our table with the server throwing in various ingredients into a pot that rested on burner built into the table. It was all too easy to spoil the rest of our dinner with apples and bread drizzled in cheese; the first course was delicious. I then had a California salad which was covered in excellent vinaigrette dressing. It was more of a filler between courses while the broth one has chosen to cook their meat in is brought to a boil at the table. Unfortu-nately, our burner decided not to cooperate. While it was a bit of an inconvenience to wait

an extended amount of time for the main course, the staff was great about quickly fixing the burner so we could continue with our meal. The meat course, which was a combi-nation of raw chicken, fillet mignon, teriyaki steak, and salmon (we skipped the shrimp), is meant to be skewered and cooked by guests at their table. The cuts of meat were great, especially the steaks, but we couldn’t help but feel like we were paying to cook our own food. Finally, the dessert arrived. “The Choco-late Turtle–a combination of melted milk chocolate, caramel, and pecans which we were told by all the staff was the best thing on the menu–really lived up to its reputa-tion. We had an assortment of ingredients to dip or drizzle in chocolate: strawberries, bananas, marshmallows, Rice Krispy Treats, and even cheesecake. Overall, The Melting Pot of Littleton is a great place to go for some excellent fondue. The food we had was high quality and deli-cious, and the service was excellent.

The downside is that the establishment is very expensive–we received a discount at $52.80 for two people during restaurant week, which is still quite pricey. This did not include drinks, tax, gratuity and tips for the valet. The bill for the Melting Pot could end up well over $100 under normal circumstances or for larger parties, which frankly is over-priced for fondue. If you want an upscale place to go for special occasion, though, Melting Pot is about as good a pick as you could make.

Comments? lelder.cc.2011@gmail.com

Melting heartsDowntown Littleton’s Melting Pot offers a uniqe, popular option for Prom

lauren elder

Nestled in downtown Littleton, the Multing Pot offers a unique setting for a memorable meal.

Top Ten places to travel over Spring Break

#1-- Cancun#2---Aruba, Dutch Antilles #3-- Europe#4-- St. John, Virgin Islands #5-- Bahamas#6-- Jamaica

#8-- Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands #9-- Amsterdam#10-- Dominican Republic

Information courtesy Away.com

march 2011 11

culture shockentertainment

Back in the day...

this...

Adding up to aPERFECT PROM

______ ___

Food

+ Attire

+ Getting a Date

+ After Prom

A Great Night_________

The parts that make up fabulous night by Jenni Robinson

Food

+ Attire

+ Getting a Date

+ After Prom

A Great Night_________

A fun part of any pre-dance preparation is going out to eat at a fabulous restaurant. “Last year we went to the Cheesecake Factory and they put us in this really big, pretty, separate room and it was really cool,” Senior Maria Gotay said, when asked about her pre-prom meal. While some prefer restaurants such as the Cheesecake Factory, others enjoy indulging in more exotic food choices. Junior Megan Osborne recommends going to “P.F. Chang’s because it’s delicious and it has a gluten free menu!” Although many enjoy going to fancy restaurants in their dresses, a more casual approach can also be a lot of fun, not to mention less expensive. “Casual restaurants are fun because people give you weird looks for being all dressed up and you get to eat good food!” said Junior Kristi Ayre. Just be careful of your dress when digging into that double bacon cheeseburger!

Another huge component of Prom are the expensive dresses, nice suits, fancy shoes, hairsprayed-stiff updos, limousines and just the general extravagance of it all. Many girls spend hours at the mall searching for the perfect dress. For Prom, the usual dress style is long and fancy (as compared to the shorter, more casual dresses girls often wear to Homecoming and Winter Formal). “I like shopping for dresses at little boutiques and stores that not everyone goes to, so I can be original,” Junior Mikayla Bortolini said.

With all the other havoc and shenanigans Prom entails, it’s easy to forget one of the most important components: fi nding someone to go with! Getting a date by asking in an elaborate way is one of the big tradi-tions of Prom, which puts a lot of pressure on the asker to come up with a cute, creative, not-wallet-crushing way to ask, and hopefully avoid embarrassing public humiliation. Junior Brooke Mercer suggests, “Dressing up in a suit, write a song or do something super cute in front of the whole school with a bouquet of fl owers,” while Junior Jamie Baumgarten thinks it would be cool if the asker “put puzzle pieces in balloons so the askee can pop them and use the helium as they desire.” “I love thinking of a really funny and embarrassing way to ask so she is scarred for life. My hope is that at the reunion she will have horrible fl ashbacks,” Senior Gary Miller said. Regardless of the approach, it’s important to spend Prom with people you enjoy being around.

After all the craziness of Prom preparation, dinner, and the dance, students may go home to wind down or go to parties, but many attend after-prom. After Prom takes place back at the school and is run by parents. At After Prom, students get free food, play games, and hang out with friends. “After Prom is something fun to do after the dance to hang out with your friends, play games, eat free food, and win prizes! It is an enjoyable time,” Senior Vinny Sonderby said. Teachers also come to help out at After Prom with the parents. “After Prom is a great way to hang out with everyone after the dance, and it’s fun to hang out with the teachers who come to help out!” Senior Molly Rogers said. Some students even decide to skip Prom and only attend After Prom because it is so fun.

When there are so many things that go into Prom being a great night, people can sometimes lose track of what they really like about the dance. Senior Bre Jackson said the best part of Prom is “just being able to be with people who are fun and have a good time. This is our last dance as a Senior class, so live it up!” Junior Natalie Sherman said, “Basically, I’m just excited to tear it up on the dance fl oor and bust a move or two with some cool cats.”

12 march 2011

top tenkizzle & tizzle

rebel yell

radicalebel

Rebel Yell: Only 10 days until Spring Break!

Rebel Hell: We’ll be bringing bag lunches from now until Prom to be able to afford to go.

Columbine Salutes: Charlie Sheen for being the best anti-drug commercial ever made.

Celebrity Secrets: The only drug that Charlie Sheen is on is “Charlie Sheen.”

On this day: March 15–National Peanut Lovers Day

Paula or J-Lo? Simon or Steven? Randy or . . . Randy?

K: I have to go with Steven Tyler. He adds personality, experience, and a great example of what stage makeup can do for a person. Did you see his abs?

Kizzle & Tizzle

What happens to America’s Next Top Model winners after they win?

T: Usually a horrifi c eating disorder.

Favorite Yogurtland fl avors?

K: Yogurt begins with a Y. Y would you eat yogurt? Y would you waste perfectly good toppings on yogurt? Yogurt is fermented milk. Isn’t alcohol fermented? Therefore, yogurt is bad. Yogurt is the gateway drug. Say no. Rise above!

T: I have three: Turkey and Gravy, Liver and Onions, Bacon and Eggs.

What will you be wearing for St. Patrick’s Day this year?

K: Business Casual.

T: A green kilt and a “Kiss me, I’m Italian” button.

I think I would repulse you. “Not the other way around . . . I promise.”

Uh . . . uh . . . the dog ate my homework! “Don’t worry, it’s relevant.”

I have to pet my cat that night. “Monsieur Fluffy is quite demanding.”

Only if you also use State Farm. “Otherwise I can’t fi le damages.”

The voices said it’s not a good idea. “They know what’s best . . . for everyone.”

Only if I can wear my Spandex pants. “They’re tight, yo.”

You won’t go with my outfi t. “It’s way too pretty.”

Hey, look! A distraction! “Wait, where’d she go!?”

Sorry, you only meet 99 of my requirements. “Women have standards you know!”

Top Ten

4

98

1

32

10

7

56

things to say to turn down a date to Prom

I’m actually holding out for Spiderman to ask. “I’m only into the web-slinging type”

and the number one way to turn down a date to prom:

HORRORSCOPE: PISCES (MARCH 11 - APRIL 18)ASTROLOGIST: LAUREN ELDER

MONTHLY PREDICTION: CONGRATULATIONS ON NOW BEING A PISCES! WHILE INDULGING IN SOME MUCH-NEEDED RELAXATION ON THE BEACH THIS SPRING BREAK, EXPECT TO RETURN HOME 3 SHADES REDDER, NO LONGER SPEAKING TO YOUR FAMILY AFTER HOURS OF TRAVEL, AND WITH THE NEWLY ACQUIRED RIGHT TO SAY YOU WRESTLED A SHARK. IF TAKING A SKI VACATION, REPLACE SHARK WITH YETI.

WHERE YOU’LL BE IN 10 YEARS: YOU WILL MAKE YOUR RETURN TO INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION AFTER FINALLY RECOVERING FROM A FREAK CURLING ACCIDENT THAT LEFT YOU THE SOLE SURVIVOR OF YOUR TEAM AND CURSED WITH A DEEP-ROOTED FEAR OF BROOMS. AFTER MONTHS OF TRAINING AND THERAPY, YOUR READY TO MAKE ANOTHER TRY FOR OLYMPIC GOLD.

Who should be nominated for a Tony award for their performance in “Bye, Bye, Birdie”?

K: I’m going with “Pipes” McGilchrist!

T: The entire cast. That show was awesome. Donald was built “Ford Tough.” Alex showed that it was always “Miller Time.” Perkins showed that Crocodile Dundee isn’t the only great thing from Down Under. Tucker was the Albernator. Leo and Kevin were cast perfect as total dorks. Sonderby and McCombs screamed, “Papa don’t preach” while O’Dell and Kiera Marsh were better moms than June Cleaver. Cierra Taylor and Lauren Marsh were hilarious old bats and Harrell and Lubline were unbelievably sexy Conrads.

What are the Kardashians famous for?

T: Epic levels of stupidity surpassed only by Snookie and Charlie Sheen.