by Tracy Smith, J1 Writer
Sophomore year is more than just the second year of high school. For some students, it means taking on more responsibility academically.
“Right now I’m taking one [AP class] because it’s the only one I could take this year,” says Sam Hoskins. “Plus, I felt I was working above pre-AP level, so [...]

by James Nunnley, J1 Writer
Towards the end of the school year there is a big push for teachers to have everything covered according to the curriculum.  With all of these grades being recorded, people wonder if grades on the report card and Edline really reflect what is learned.
“Sometimes my grade is bad and I’m doing [...]

by Josh Hammons, J1 Writer
Freshman John Hamby is on student council as a freshman senator. Even though John has to give up time in the morning, weekends, and after school, he plans on staying with student council. His geometry teacher testifies to his dedication.
“John is very responsible,” Heather Jenkins says.
“I think it would be really [...]

by Elaina Fox, J1 Writer
One’s name is the first impression they can make when meeting someone new. Studies have shown that how desirable one’s name is now could affect his or her grades in school.
Identical tests were given to teachers to grade and the tests of students with more “desirable names” were given better grades [...]

Megan Steely, J1 Writer
Teenage girls everywhere look in the mirror and don’t like what they see. In a recent Seventeen Magazine survey, 69 percent of girls said that models influence their ideal body shape, although many know they would never look like a model.
“Girls get depressed because they can’t be that size.” Freshman Courtney Kirk [...]

By Catherine Fox, J1 Writer
In less than 15 minutes a fire engulfs the entire roof and top floor of a three-story house.  Whatever isn’t damaged by the fire is damaged by water and smoke.
In 2008, more than 403,000 house fires were responded to, but even though fires are not a rare event only two-thirds of [...]

By Elaina Fox, J1 Writer
Queen Latifah, Madonna, Peyton Manning, Tony Romo, Michael Jordan, George Cloony, Oprah and Joan Jett are celebrities – athletes, actors and singers. But what is it that makes everyday people want a famous person as their role model?
Reasons vary widely.
Freshman Abba Naqvi’s role model is Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps “because he’s a [...]

By Cara Uhrynowycz, J1 Writer
The women’s rights movement was originally founded with the goals of suffrage, equal education and equal job opportunities.  Once those goals were achieved, the movement’s focus shifted to getting equal pay, a goal much of the public believes has been achieved.  So, some people find the movement outdated.
“The point of the feminist [...]

By Hope Roberts, J1 Writer
Recent fast-food awareness “campaigns” have encouraged people to become more aware of what they eat.
However, some students find it to still be the most convenient option for dinner.
“My family makes Indian food, and I’m not a big fan of it,” senior Neelam Vyas said.  “I get fast food about once or twice [...]

By Tracy Smith, J1 Writer
President Barack Obama is now supporting the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. This act invests heavily in education in order to provide jobs and to help children to succeed.
In order to go through with this, states and school districts will have to remove teachers whose students aren’t doing well.
“I feel like [...]