February 15, 2012 • Volume 10 • Issue 5 Northridge High School • 2901 Northridge Road • Tuscaloosa, Al• 35406northridgereporter.wordpress.com

Review

Snow Day ConditioningPage 8Page 3

Alex HauserEditor-in-Chief

Math teachers were informed the Fri-day before the semester started that they would have to spend time at the beginning of each class doing math review with their students.

The city board created the math review curriculum, along with rules and procedure teachers must follow. Students must fold their paper long-ways, put stars for correct answers and stand up after writing a reflec-tion on each problem solved.

Casey Miller, a senior in Patsy Lowery’s analytical math class, said she likes the math review.

“I think it’s fun because it’s interactive, and it’s a break from lecture, notes, work-sheet, then test. It’s good to stand up and take a break every once in a while,” she said. “It’s good to go back and revisit this stuff because not everyone made a perfect score on the quizzes. We’ve forgotten the basics, even if they didn’t realize it. It’s good review for college or even the ACT and SAT.”

Scott Johnson, math teacher, said he is “thankful that [the central office has] stepped in to help.”

“I am happy that our central office has not only mandated that 10-12 minutes of each 47 minute period be spent on review of previously taught and assessed math skills, but they have also saved us the worry of deciding the method and structure of how this review is to be delivered,” he said.

Hannah Loper, senior, who takes Pre-Calculus, said that although the review is beneficial, there are flaws in the method.

“Sometimes it just helps to review things, [but] classes are already so short. You have to do the review in a certain way and check it and go over the answers. It gets time-consuming,” she said.

Johnson said it would be “nice if math teachers were given some ownership in the process by providing input and ideas.”

Raiha NaeemManaging Editor

With graduation ap-proaching, seniors and

administrators are working to make sure that all students meet their credit require-

ments for graduation. As a result, some

seniors have to take a short computer course for an “online experi-ence” that they missed out on if they took BTA their freshman year, and that is required for grad-uation.

Jennifer Box, assistant principal, said the change in graduation require-ments started with the

class of 2013. “It was not incorporated

into any of the subject mat-ter that [ninth grade] year, so

there’s a gap for students as far as meeting that online expecta-

tion,” she said. “Some students who took BTA as tenth or eleventh grad-

ers, or took an Access or Early College course are okay.”

Box said the addition of the online expe-rience is due to the use of technology in our everyday lives.

“Obviously, as society is shifting more

towards online and technology centered work, we have to make sure that students are prepared for working that way when they go to college or enter the workforce,” Box said.

She said the course shouldn’t be hard on students and should be finished by the end of February.

“It worked out pretty well that bonus al-lows us to not have to change the students’ schedule completely,” she said. “Our com-puter teachers have stepped up and made it possible to get these requirements done before graduation.”

Sonia Blunt, BTA teacher, is one of the teachers who has seniors come in during advisory to finish their credit.

“I can see the sense in having it because in college they have several classes online,” Blunt said. “They just want students to be prepared so they know how to use that on-line technology when they go to college.”

Charlie Gross, senior, said he was frus-trated he had to take the course even though he took BTA his freshman year.

“It’s annoying to know that a credit I was told to take my freshman year ended up not counting anyway,” he said. “Hopefully, it helps in some way.”

Walter Hall, senior, waived out of the BTA course after passing the waiver exam in middle school.

“Our senior class has been continuously [screwed] over,” Hall said. “I think it’s ab-surd that this is a necessary requirement for graduation.”

Taylor Goodall, senior, said he sees the class as busy work.

“I get on a computer, watch videos and then answer basic questions about them. It requires no thought,” he said. “I take a break every now and then to play Tetris.”

Renu PanditFeature Editor

The graduation ceremony, traditionally held on the foot-ball field, has been relocated to the Coleman Coliseum on the University of Alabama’s campus.

Jacqueline Hudgins, guidance counselor, said the deci-sion was made due to a build-up of issues with having the ceremony on the field over the years and was finalized af-ter consulting the Graduation Planning Committees at the three local high schools, the central office and the Univer-sity of Alabama.

“An agreement was made to relocate to an indoor fa-cility that could house the crowds that we have at each graduation,” Hudgins said. “Overcrowding, traffic, park-ing and weather have been major concerns for the past several years.”

Hudgins said the cost is minimal because of the assis-tance of the University.

“This fee is being paid by our board of education, so

there is no additional cost to the students,” Hudgins said. Alex Smith, senior, said she is excited for the ceremony

to be held at Coleman Coliseum since “people won’t be piled on top of each other.”

“It’s still graduation; it’ll be awesome no matter where it’s held,” Alex said. “But it’ll be kind of sad not to have one last goodbye on the field.” Alex said the new location would bring many benefits.

“People won’t be crammed; they’ll actually have good seats,” Alex said. “Girls can wear heels, which we couldn’t do before since they would sink in the grass. We won’t get all sweaty since the ceremony will be indoors, so we’ll still look good for pictures.”

However, Alex said she has a few concerns about the relocation.

“I’m a bit worried about the guests being too far from the stage. Also, there won’t be like grass in the background

of pictures, so I’m wondering how good those’ll look,” Alex said. “And, what if I go to the University of Alabama and graduate in the same coliseum, then the pictures will be the same, and my kids will be like, ‘Mommy which one’s from high school and which is from college?’”

Dr. Isaac Espy, principal, said the coliseum is a “very nice venue.”

“There are other convenience factors, such as having UA secu-rity for all three schools’ gradua-tions,” Espy said.

Espy said graduation at the “‘old’ Central High School” was held at the coliseum for years.

“These were typically very nice events and well done,” Espy said.

Jamel Smith, senior, said he is fine with the ceremony being held at the Coliseum.

“I’m still graduating, and that’s all that matters,” Jamel said. “It’ll be great to have air conditioning though.”

Graduation ceremony breaks tradition; moves to Coliseum

‘Math review’ implemented

Seniors surprised with missing credit

JourneyThe

to graduation

It’s still graduation; it’ll be awesome no matter where it’s held.

Alex Smith, senior

Les MiserablesSports

Page 7

Illustration by: Alex Hauser

2 The Northridge ReporterFebruary 15, 2013Opinion

NSPA 5th Place Best of Show 2012 • NSPA 1st Place Best of Show 2011 • NSPA 5th Place Best of Show 2008 NSPA 8th Place Best of Show 2008 • NSPA 9th Place Best of Show 2006 • CSPA Silver Medalist (2003,

2004) CSPA Gold Medalist (2005-2011) • SIPA All-Southern (2003, 2005–2011) • ASPA All-Alabama (2003–2011) • NSPA All-American (2004, 2008, 2011) • Best SIPA Newspaper in Alabama (2003–2007) • NSPA

News Story of the Year (2005) • SIPA First Place News Story (2007) • SIPA First Place Review (2009) • Rick Bragg Feature Writing Award (2009)

Our ThoughtsGraduation moved to Coleman Coliseum

agree (12) disagree (4) neutral (2)

Northridge High School • 2901 Northridge Road • Tuscaloosa, AL 35406 • (205) 759-3734 ext. 295

northridgereporter.wordpress.com

*Denotes state, regional and national award winners

Editorial Policy: The opinions in The Northridge Reporter are those of the students and not of the faculty or ad-ministration of Northridge High School or the Tuscaloosa City Board of Education. It is the policy of The Northridge Reporter to publish all non-obscene, non-libelous, signed letters to the editor, regardless of the opinion expressed in them. Letters must be submitted to Susan Newell in room 109 or emailed to northridgereporter@gmail.com.

Editor-in-Chief *Alex HauserManaging Editor*Raiha Bajwa Feature Editor*Renu PanditNews Editor*Sarah Katherine Barnes

Entertainment Editor*Raiha BajwaSports EditorKelly BurnhamOpinion Editor*Raiha Bajwa Beat EditorMorgan DeWitt

Copy EditorsKelly Burnham, Rabisa Khan, Jared LotfiInfographics EditorJakailah CooperArt EditorKanJalla DancerArtistsCheQuita Burrell, Katie Poore

Business Manager*Raiha BajwaPhotographersMorgan DeWitt, Jared LotfiStaffJordan Hutchinson, Savren Nelson, Kayla Pate, Abby Allen, Tyler Davis

School populationStudents: 1238Faculty and staff: 90

The Northridge Reporter reserves the right to edit letters and verify allegations. The newspaper is distributed monthly.

Tuscaloosa City Board Policy: It is the official policy of the Tusca-loosa City Board of Education that no person shall, on the grounds of race, color, disability, sex, religion, national origin, age or creed, be excluded for participation in, be denied the benefits of or be subject to discrimination under any program, activity or employment.

Advertising & Subscriptions: Contact The Northridge Reporter Staff at (205) 759-3734 ext. 235 or snewell@tusc.k12.al.us to advertise in or subscribe to The Northridge Reporter.

Year after year, the senior class has shared the tradition of joining together one last time to walk across the football field to receive their diploma. And every

year attendees struggle to find parking spots, a seating space, and to hear graduates’ names over the roaring crowd.

This year the board has made the decision to move all city school graduations to the Coleman Coliseum at the University of Alabama. Northridge, Central and Bryant will all have their ceremonies on May 18 at different times throughout the day.

Many students are distraught about not getting to walk the field with their classmates one last time as it holds sentimental value. They want to take pictures with family and friends on the football field and graduate on the grounds of the school they attended.

While these are valid reasons to be upset, the numerous negatives of having graduation on the field cannot be overlooked.

Major complaints at graduation have included overcrowding at the ceremony, causing people to block up Northridge road with cars that can’t find spots in the actual parking areas. At an open field with hundreds of attendees talking, it can be impossible to hear what is being said at the podium, including the class president’s speech and the names of the graduates.

Furthermore, no matter how cautiously the weather forecasts are followed, the conditions can never be known for sure. A random shower of rain could potentially jeopardize the entire ceremony. Even without the chance of rain, May weather in Alabama means high humidity and heat, causing participants to suffer and perspire through the event.

Holding the event at the Coleman Coliseum offers some solutions to these common concerns.

The venue is large enough to ensure a comfortable seating arrangement for all attendees, as well as a decent parking spot for everyone. It will be possible for everyone to hear what is being said over the microphone, and the available security will mean no bullhorns or vuvuzelas will sneak in to disrupt the event.

Since it is an inside setting, no matter what the weather conditions, the ceremony will not be affected by it, and no one needs to worry about the humidity.

The Northridge Reporter understands people’s concerns about moving the graduation ceremony to a new setting, but believes the change is a good idea due to the numerous pros it has.

Web MastersVictoria LoveKelly BurnhamAdviser*Susan Newell

When asked about why school administrative officials were so lackadaisical in enforcing school dress code, I was told, “You just have to pick your battles.” I asked a fellow teacher why they allowed their students to listen to music devices with head-phones (earbuds) and was told, “As long as they will stay in their seats, be quiet and get their work done, I don’t see the problem. You just have to pick your battles.”

How could it be that a student who has been sus-pended four times SINCE being placed on “disciplinary probation” not be sent to the board for an expulsion hear-ing? “If we are going to send someone over there, it needs to be for something REALLY serious. You have to pick your battles.”

Far from a courageous “bat-tle cry” these apathetic “battle whines” do little to improve student behavior or school climate. In fact, they are nothing more than band-aids and set-backs. So just what battles HAVE we picked to improve NHS? The “tardy battle”? The “absentee battle”? The “overcrowded classroom battle”? The “employee morale battle”? The “ID battle”? The “cell phone battle”? I’ve seen signs around the school about bullying. Maybe that’s a battle we picked. It would be a good one. We should be nice to one another. There also seems to

be a big push to get the underachievers to perform better. Again, a worthwhile “fight”. But who gets to pick and choose which rules and priorities are worth fighting for and which ones aren’t? Who gets to say “today we’ll just ignore Rule A and Priority

B because we have OTHER battles to fight!” How do those of us on the sideline know which battle is raging?

“Picking your battles” seems to me like a cop-out. You’re either too tired, too inept, too lazy, or too overwhelmed to take on the world. We should set our standards high for achievement, appearance, at-tendance, behavior, instruc-tion, respect, involvement, and self-reliance. Then every single “soldier” should be committed to the standards and fight the good fight each and every day. There has never been a general who be-lieved the war could be won by winning one or two bat-

tles. And there has never been a war won when the soldiers are allowed to “pick their battles”.

-C.S. Johnson

Art by: Kanjalla Dancer

Your ThoughtsTeachers must pick their battles with students

See story on the new graduation venue on Page 1

Johnson

Follow us on twitter @NHSReporter

Like The Northridge Reporter on Facebook

3EntertainmentThe Northridge ReporterFebruary 15, 2013

WHERE GOOD DEEDS BEGINEstablished 1987

To donate $10.00 text “FOOD” to “27722”

1847 Commons North DriveTuscaloosa, AL 35406Phone: (205)349-0046

Email: appointments@spabellelavie.com

Spa Belle La VieVerquita D. Scott-Conley, M. D.

Pediatrics

922 Fairfax Park Tuscaloosa, AL 35406

(205) 391-930024 Hour AnsweringFax (205) 391-9374

Abby AllenStaff Writer

Orange Leaf is a self-serve frozen yogurt bar that opened its doors to Tuscaloosa on Dec. 5 and is located on Jack Warner Parkway near Anoth-er Broken Egg Cafe.

Orange leaf is fun and modern. The perky green walls and orange and white furniture make it seem animat-ed, but the soft hardwood floors just seem to invite one in and tone down what could potentially be overwhelm-ing hues.

A blissful cashier meets one at the door and offers sample cups in order to taste the flavors.

From there, a frozen yogurt lover is in heaven, not being pestered by annoying cashiers who follow you around simply because they think they are being helpful.

Orange Leaf has 70 different yo-gurt flavors, all of which are either non-fat or low-fat and 68 of which are gluten free. Each franchise houses only a handful of flavors at a time, but switches them up regularly.

Once one has filled their frozen yo-gurt cup to their hearts content (but really because, it’s only 49 cents an ounce), they head on over to the top-ping bar, which includes fresh fruit, chocolate chips, marshmallows, and even sunflower seeds. Really, any-

thing a person can dream up.I got the white chocolate straw-

berry flavor and doused it in straw-berries. Talk about YUM. And it was even better because it was only about $4.00. I sat down on one of the comfy orange couches and indulged in my delicious concoction.

It seems that when one walks into orange leaf, life just seems a little bit happier. Less stress, more giggles.

It’s an enjoyable experience for kids and adults.

It’s open Sunday through Thursday 11 a.m.-10 p.m. and Friday and Sat-urday till 11 p.m., making it the per-fect prescription for those late night munchies.

Katie PooreStaff Writer

From the singing to the casting to the plotline, Les Mis-erables was an amazing, inspirational film of epic propor-tions.

Les Mis’ casting was surprisingly good, and it gave many household names a chance to show off singing skills the public didn’t know they had.

The producers were smart enough to keep the movie true to the stage musical’s plot, as every song was fea-tured, every character was present and the emotions were palpable. Though the movie got much criticism for its de-cision to have the cast sing live on set, the choice couldn’t have been better. It made the movie seem more realistic and honest.

Anne Hathaway, playing Fantine, was perfect. Her in-credible singing seemed to catch everyone by surprise, and it’s no wonder she won a Golden Globe for her per-formance.

Hugh Jackman as Jean Valjean was just as stunning. He has a remarkable singing talent, and seeing such a well-known actor singing such emotional, notable music was slightly surprising, but it couldn’t have been better.

Samantha Barks, who also played Eponine in the stage musical, was superior. Her version of “On My Own” was one of the best in the movie.

But the best part of the move lies beyond the cast and its various talents.

Les Miserables is a story of devotion, love and sacrifice. It is a story about one man’s devotion to his God and the countless consequences that stem from it. It depicts hu-manity at its best and at its worst.

The movie has it all—from unrequited love to heart-breaking deaths to unbearable guilt. It is a moving tale that truly defines sacrifice, courage and standing up for one’s beliefs. It is eye-opening at worst and sensational at best.

Aptly translated into The Miserable, Les Mis is a tear-in-ducing story that does not shy away from matters of death and sadness, handling these issues deftly and skillfully. It is no wonder Les Mis has such a wide and dedicated fan base—the story resonates within everyone. It manages to bridge the gap between the young and the old, the modern and the old-fashioned, the French Revolution and modern-day America.

Les Miserables is an incredible, inspirational and ground-breaking tale the likes of which is impossible to replicate.

Savren NelsonStaff Writer

Another Broken Egg is a breakfast restaurant on Jack Warner Parkway next to Orange Leaf. With the view of the river walk and the Black Warrior River, who does not get hungry watching other people exercise?

The smell of coffee and the laughing of early breakfast groups hit me as I walked into the restaurant. When it’s cold and windy on the outside, Another Broken Egg is warm and cozy on the inside. With windows taking the place of walls, and a huge wrap around porch, one gets the idea of being outside, but not actually having to get frost bite or too warm.

The first time I had something to eat from Another Bro-ken Egg; I ordered the southern style beignets and two buttermilk pancakes. The friend I was with ordered the monster cinnamon roll and eggs blackstone.

The waitress was sweet and joked with us when we got the monster cinnamon roll. I know where the monster cin-

namon roll got its name because it turned me into a mon-ster when I ate it. It was gone in less than three minutes.

I then got my southern style beignets: six perfectly sized, powder sugar covered balls. On the side, I had a small cup of homemade marmalade which was delicious.

Then finally I received my pancakes and my friend got her eggs blackstone. An eggs blackstone is grilled toma-toes with two poached eggs, hollandaise sauce, chopped baked bacon and green onions.

My buttermilk pancakes were hot with a swirl of butter on the side. They were so good and fluffy, I inhaled the first one. I ate half of the second one and saved the other half for breakfast the next morning.

If one is going by themselves to enjoy a hot cup of cof-fee or a fluffy pancake, one can always sit at the bar area or go sit outside and enjoy the breeze. There is plenty of room and long tables if one were to come with family or a church group.

Another Broken Egg will accept you with open arms from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. every day.

Another Broken Egg opens new branch

rangeleaf is heaven for frozen yogurt lovers

Les Mis movieamazes fansAt the Riverwalk

Katie PooreStaff Writer

From movie dates to dinner dates, or spending time at one another’s house, there is one requirement: a way to get to these places.

For teenagers un-der sixteen, how-ever, getting trans-portation may prove difficult.

Shelby Castel-lanos and Isaac Galindo, fresh-men, are boy-friend and girlfriend. For them, the primary source of transportation is their parents.

Galindo said one of the complica-tions of dating without a car is “hav-ing to ask people to take us places.”

“The silence is the worst part,” he said. “It can be awkward.”

Castellanos said she and Galindo live in the same neighborhood, so it is not so hard to spend time together.

“We usually hang out at each other’s houses, but if we had cars, we would

Renu PanditFeature Editor

Among the masses of love-birds roaming the hallways, there are some students re-stricted from participating in the highs and lows of the dating world.

Dakota Hayes, freshman, said her religion doesn’t permit her to date at the moment.

“I’m a Jehovah’s Witness,” Hayes said. “We usually wait until we are past a time called the bloom of youth, as men-tioned in the Bible.”

Hayes said the “bloom of youth” is a time when “hor-mones are going crazy” and “people don’t really know what they want or who they are yet.”

“It usually ends in the twen-ties,” Hayes said.

Hayes said she’s fine with being unable to date.

“There’s less stress and more time to focus on more important things,” Hayes said. “It’s definitely not something I would go behind my parents backs to do.”

Nimra Khan, freshman, said she isn’t allowed to date either.

“It’s a culture thing,” Khan said. “The older generations never dated because every re-lationship was arranged, so

4 The Northridge ReporterFebruary 15, 2013Feature

they’re not really ac-customed to the con-cept.”

Khan said it doesn’t bother her.

“I don’t really mind it. Dating just means drama, and I don’t really want that right now,” Khan said.

Casey Medlock, Spanish teacher, said she thinks seri-ous teen dating is not a good idea.

“Once you graduate you go different places and change a lot as you grow up,” Medlock said. “Thinking you’ll be to-gether forever is a bit ridiculous because, well, you won’t. It’s kind of a dismal per-spective.”

Medlock said that while dating is a re-ally good way to learn more about yourself, it also has side effects like “broken hearts and drama.”

“I definitely think that if parents put a dating re-striction on their child they need to sit down with them and explain why it’s not something they need right now,” Medlock said. “Restrictions are kind of pointless if the kid is just going to date secretly.”

probably go other places,” Castellanos said.

“His [Galindo’s] mom sometimes talks to me in Spanish in the car. It’s kind of fun-ny, but I understand her.”

Malone Johnson, a sophomore who is dating Witt Waddell, said she gets rides from her parents and Waddell’s.

“It’s harder be-cause we can’t see each other as much. Most of the time we’re at each other’s

houses,” Johnson said. “I would want a car because if I had one, we would go more places, but since we don’t, it’s harder to go anywhere. [If I had a car] I wouldn’t have to rely on my parents or wait on them.”

Christian Hicks, senior, said he doesn’t understand why people date before they have a car.

“Y’all can’t really hang out if no one has a car,” he said. “I think it’s stupid. I would want a car [to date], so I can take people places.”

The silence is the worst part. It can be awkward.

Isaac Galindo, freshman

Teens unbothered by restrictions

Lack of car serves as major obstacle in the dating world

S.S. Relation

Young

How to love

The

When did you go on your first date?Middle School Freshman Year Sophomore Year Junior Year Senior Year

70 students polled. Information compiled by Renu Pandit. Desgined by Renu Pandit.

Do you think teens should date in high

school?

Yes

50 students polled. Information compiled by Rabisa Khan. Desgined by Renu Pandit.

All artwork by Renu Pandit.

Rabisa KhanCopy Editor

From running out of gas on a stray road to letting out some unexpected gas on a first date, some have experienced what it is like to have an embarrassing and worst date.

Scott Johnson, math teacher, said his worst date took place in 1976 when he was a 17-year-old se-nior in high school.

“On our way out to dinner, I had a flat

tire,” Johnson said.Johnson said he had to get out and

fix it, and the girl “didn’t really help at all.”“Once I finally fixed the tire, we were

on our way to dinner again, and two miles down I ran out of gas.”

Johnson said living out in the country in Tennessee didn’t really help the situation.

“Now realize this was pre-cell era, so there was no one we could ask for help on that country road,” Johnson said. “In order to get gas, we had to walk about three miles to the nearest gas station.”

Johnson said by the time that all transpired, it was time for his date to go back home.

“I was trying to make a good impression,

Abby AllenStaff Writer

The mood of a date is set with the first

hello when the couple meets at the front door.

The awkwardness, however, is set with the

first step out the door. While some high school

daters are sophisticated, oth-ers try to be economical.

Maryam Azam, sophomore, said she thinks a date should be a night she will never for-get.

“If I was a boy, I would be the best boyfriend ever,” she said, “I would get a yacht.”

Garret Nichols, sophomore, said he wondered why women never do nice things for men.

“I’m taking a stand,” Nichols said.

“Instead of wasting gas, go on a romantic walk. When you go to a restaurant, tell her she can get anything on the menu and then you order a salad and water because

5FeatureThe Northridge ReporterFebruary 15, 2013

and I didn’t think I did at first, but she was the girl I eventually took to prom.”

An sophomore said, “One time my boy-friend farted on our date. He seemed really embarrassed which made me feel the same way,” she said.

The anonymous student said that made the rest of their evening extremely awk-

ward and strained.“Another time,

my date to the dance followed me around the whole night like a puppy,” she said. “….even to the bath-room.”

S t e p h e n B l a c k ,

Spanish teach-er, said his worst date was more disappointing than embarrass-ing.

“I went on a date with a girl who went to my high school and was older than me. We went to have dinner at IHOP, and later she wanted to go to Target to get something,” he said.

Black said that while at Target, the girl was acting really strange.

“After she got what she needed, she sort of just said she needed to leave now and just left. I never saw her again,” he said.

Black said he expected her to in-vite him over or for them to go see a movie, but “she just walked away.”

you know she won’t eat more than you. When you are fin-ished, your bill is six dollars tops. Voila,” he said.

Katie Hauser, sophomore, said that if somebody asks her out, they need to be polite.

“If they don’t pay for my food on the first, second and third dates, dump them,” Hauser said.

Trey Cauthen, sophomore, said he thinks a date should be charming and well-designed.

“Make sure you have a res-ervation to somewhere. When you get to your table, pull out her chair for her, and then scoot her up to the table. You should have funny conversations and make them interesting,” Cau-then said. “When you leave to take her home, make sure you paid for everything and walk her to her door.”

“If you take her on a date, then she’s worth the money. Rent a limo and drive down to the river where you rented a nice boat with butlers. Have romantic music playing as you cruise down the river,” Cauthen said. “If I had a girl, I would treat her like a queen.”

I was trying to make a good impres-sion, and I didn’t think I did at first, but she was the girl I eventually took to prom.

Scott Johnson, math teacher

Worst date memories cause nostalgia, reflections on past

Ettiquette, expectations of perfect date debated

S.S. Relation

Voyage

How to love

of

Do you think teens should date in high

school?

No

= 250 students polled. Information compiled by

Rabisa Khan. Desgined by Renu Pandit.

For an additional dating story visit northridgereporter.wordpress.com

6 The Northridge ReporterFebruary 15, 2013News

Physicians:Raymond Poore, M.D.

Ingrum Bankston, M.D.Omar Smith, M.D.

John W. Duffy III, M.D.Gregory Broughton, M.D.

Nurse Practitioners:

Sharon Allen, CRNPJohn Chambers, CRNP

1780 McFarland Blvd. N.Tuscaloosa, AL 35406

Office Hours: Mon-Fri 8:30 a.m.-5:00p.m.

Phone: (205)345-7351 (205)487-4405

Fax: (205)345-8476

Tuscaloosa Urology Center

UNIVERSITY ORTHODONTICS

Robert C. Haraway, Jr., D.M.D., M.S.

CHILDREN & ADULT ORTHODONTICS

University Orthodontics, PC

641 Helen Keller Boulevard

Tel: (205) 553-2524

Fax: (205) 553-6617

rharaway@dbetch.net

Victoria LoveStaff Writer

Students taking AP Biology next year will have less time to cover material be-cause their classes are being shortened.

Currently, students taking the class are taking up two periods of the seven period day for the class, so they have enough time to do the labs and learn the material.

Next school year, they are shortening the class, so it only takes up one forty-five min-ute period.

Marilyn Stephens, AP Biology teacher, said the new class time will really im-pact students.

“I think it will im-pact them in a bad way because they have so much to cover, and it is not possible to do the AP labs in 45 minutes,” Stephens said.

She said the students will be rushed and will have to cram the material they need to know.

Adrianna Green, junior, takes Stephens AP Biology class.

Jared LotfiCopy Editor

The second amendment of the Constitu-tion of the United States states that citizens have a “right to bear arms” in the case of a “well-regulated militia,” but do individu-als really have that right? When the issue arose in 2008, the Supreme Court said “yes.”

The case District of Columbia v. Hel-ler, affirmed that the second amendment does protect an individual’s right to own a firearm irrespective of service in a militia. However, in light of recent events, many are looking to lawmakers and asking what can be done to prevent another Paducah, Jonesboro, Columbine, Red Lake, Nickel Mines, Virginia Tech or Sandy Hook.

Senior Maia Wade said that Americans have formed major misconceptions as to what comprises a right.

“I think America has a distorted idea of personal freedom. Our daily lives wouldn’t be greatly impacted if guns weren’t as available,” she said. “All the fear and rage stemming from talk of gun control is pret-ty unfounded. We don’t live in a society

where a civilian militia is necessary.”In Alabama, there is no waiting period

for firearm purchases.Tyler Pizzato, senior, said his father beat

the rush for weapons and ammo following the Sandy Hook shooting.

“My dad went to Woods and Water and bought a Colt AR-15 .223 with another thirty round clip to add to the ones we al-ready own,” he said.

“He got the last one in stock, so the peo-ple behind him in line were offering to buy it for double what he paid. Ammo flew off the shelves like bread, eggs and milk be-fore a snowstorm,” Pizzato said.

History teacher Denton Bowling said that while citizens are able to purchase fire-arms that do not necessarily have a practi-cal use, the abolishment of those firearms would harbor its own negative effects.

Bowling said there is not an individual in the world who has a need for high volume magazines, but the continued ownership of guns in general provides a balance between citizen, criminal and government.

“I am of the belief that if you outlaw guns, then only outlaws will have guns,” he said.

Rabisa KhanCopy Editor

Think Community is a new service program

which began in January. David Wilson, senior at

the University of Alabama, Northridge Alum and cre-ator of the program said, “The program only applies to sophomores and juniors. We wanted the freshmen to have a year to get acclimat-ed to Northridge before get-ting involved, and wanted to make sure students who began community projects have an opportunity to con-tinue their project which is why seniors are ineligible”

Wilson said he began createation of Think Com-munity when he was a freshman in college with the purpose of “making high school students take

community initiative.”“This is an opportunity

for students to show lead-ership in and outside of the school setting,” Wilson said.

He said members of Think Community meet during the 30-minute ad-visory period on Tuesdays and Thursdays this semes-ter.

Katie Plott, freshmen at the University of Alabama and Northridge Alum, is helping jumpstart the proj-ect.

Plott said she has always looked up to Wilson, and the fact he chose her to help him has been “extremely rewarding.”

“Think Community is focused on students learn-ing about the different as-pects that make up a com-munity, from public policy

to culture, even healthcare. From there, students will start their own service proj-ect in whichever field they choose,” she said.

Plott said she believes teens today don’t often real-ize that they are old enough to make a difference.

Elizabeth Tiley, guidance counselor, is the faculty sponsor.

“Getting the opportunity to learn from college stu-dents and meeting other figures in political, educa-tional and state politics will encourage students to take an initiative in their com-munity,” Tiley said.

Nick Fairbairn, junior, is a member of this program.

“Think Community is just the spark students need to jumpstart their large-scale impact on the world,” he said.

“We use every bit of time, sometimes we even run over,” Green said. “We won’t have time to do a lab and learn if the time is shortened.”

Green said grades will go down, “and you won’t have time to ask questions. You can’t cram everything.”

“I think the grades will go down because they will have to cover the material so much faster and do fewer labs,” Stephens said.

She said without labs students won’t get to

fully cover the topic and won’t understand it well.

“Doing fewer labs will decrease the understanding that students have of the concepts,” she said.Kaitlyn Dunn, an-

other one of Mrs. Ste-phens’s AP Bio students, said

that even with two periods they sometimes have to finish the labs for homework.

“We wouldn’t get through all the stuff, so the exams would be bad,” Dunn said.

Gun possession becomes issue

AP Biology changed to one class period

New club aims to make impact

Think! Cynthia Almond, city councilwoman and mother of sophomore Lee Almond, answers questions from members of Think Community in the food lab on Thursday, Jan. 31.

We use every bit of time, sometimes we even run over... We won’t have time to do a lab and learnif the time is shortened.

Adrianna Green, junior

For more stories on the science department visit northridgereporter.wordpress.com.

Gordon C. BryarsHarvey A. EdwardsStephen E. AllenMyron S. Chwe

Elizabeth C. EmigJ. Sid Smith

Thomas A. RosenstielJoanne C. Myers

2751 Hospital Dr.Northport, AL 35476

Phone: (205)-339-3039Fax: (205)-339-9908

OB/GYNOf West Alabama

Custom T-Shirt design and printing for your business or organization

Officially licensed wholesale Alabama apparel and accessories

Full art service, warehousing, delivery

205-758-0678 www.campuscollection.net

7SportsThe Northridge ReporterFebruary 15, 2013

Buy a Large Big Mac Extra Value Meal and get a second Big Mac sandwich

FREE when you bring in this ad! (Only available at Rice Mine location)

GO JAGUARS!!Locally Owned and Operated by

Rick & Mary Ellen Hanna 4840 Rice Mine Road NE

Tuscaloosa, AL 35406 205-345-0045

Jordan HutchinsonStaff Writer

Why can’t soccer be the top sport in America?

People say it is a “sissy” sport. If it’s a sissy sport, then why do players get injuries like a leg that is twisted the wrong way? German midfielder Edwald Linien had his leg cut open showing tissue and bone after sliding in to a tackle.

People say soccer is not entertaining. Maybe if you watched the sport without personal assumptions based on American football, you would enjoy it.

American football has shortened our at-tention span when it comes to sports.

Ignorant people say no one plays soc-cer. Soccer is a popular sport. “Fútbol” is played everywhere else in the world, so why can’t we just embrace it?

Some say you only play soccer for 90 minutes. First of all, 90 minutes is an hour and a half.

Second of all, it is a constant 90 min-utes. The only stoppage is halftime, which

Morgan DeWittBeat Editor

Pre-season conditioning for tennis, soccer, baseball and softball has begun as the teams prepare for their seasons.

The tennis season started on Feb. 5, the soccer season on Feb. 11, the baseball season begins Feb. 18 and softball begins on Feb. 19.

Abby Abston, sophomore, said the softball team spent their off season conditioning and working out.

Abston said the softball team has been working on fun-damental drills and practicing situations.

“Pitchers have been warming up and getting better. Out-fielders and infielders are getting lots of fielding practice. We’re mainly focusing on our technique,” Abston said.

She said people wonder why baseball and softball have to condition.

“Everyone says, ‘Y’all run 60 feet, why do you have to condition?’ Yeah, we don’t get physically tired that fast, but when you play up to seven innings per game and have four to five games on tournament days, you’re mentally exhausted,” Abston said.

Abston said the team practices every day for three hours and works out during seventh period.

“Softball is your life once the season starts.We are sched-uled to play close to 100 games this season,” she said.

Reagan Wallace, junior on the softball team, said condi-tioning helps the team compete better overall.

“It makes us stronger and prepares us better, helping us grow as a team,” Wallace said.

Kennedy Buettner, junior, said the tennis team condi-tions after school for about an hour and a half.

“[We do] simple tennis workouts like suicides and gas-sers, which are running drills where we run the length of four tennis courts and back,” Buettner said.

The soccer team prepared during pre-season as well. Walter Hall, senior, said the team has been working out

in the weight room for the first time this year, “which has really helped.”

“The coaches always have a busy conditioning sched-ule, whether its sprints or long distance or stadiums or plyometric workouts, which is basically aerobic workouts. I think all of this is going to lead to our best season since I started playing in seventh grade,” Hall said.

is five minutes. Americans are not used to constant ac-

tion. They are used to time outs and end of quarter breaks plus halftime. Americans cannot understand soccer therefore soccer is viewed as inferior.

America does have a league for soccer, and it is followed by many fans, but obvi-ously, not enough to actually broadcast it on ESPN. For example, instead of showing soccer games in America, the people that choose what events they show to the Amer-ican public showed us cricket in India.

So a sport based in the U.S was beat out by a sport that probably most, if not all of the American population, has not even heard of.

If soccer does come on TV, it is usually on ESPN 2. It rarely makes ESPN.

On Sportscenter’s Top Ten Plays, soccer makes it about once a month; even though it was the best goal of the season in that country, it was number ten to America.

That is all it will ever be because Ameri-cans are ignorant when it comes to soccer and won’t even try to accept the sport.

Chandler Morgan, junior, said the baseball team’s prac-tices consume a lot of his time, but he thinks they are needed.

“Right now we’re just throwing to get our arms back in shape. We’re going through a lot of fundamentals, so when we get bats, we can hit the ground running,” Morgan said, “We practice every week day and most weekends. I basically have time to eat and get homework done after practice.”

Freshman questions America’s love for soccer

Conditioning gets students in shape; prepares for season

Glory Bound: Seniors Montell Dent, James Cox and Tim Rutley signed with West Alabama, Southern Mississippi and Miles College on Feb. 6 to play football.

A Proud Moment: Cox is interviewed after signing with Southern Mississippi.

Opinion

Spring SportsBaseball

Girls GolfBoys Golf

SoftballSoccerTennisTrack

vs. WinfieldWest Alabama Classicvs. Hillcrestvs. Sipsey ValleyMetro Tournamentvs. County HighJaguar Invitational

2/192/253/072/21

2/13-162/203/16

Photos by: Kim VanHorn

For an indepth story on girls soccer conditioning visit northridg-ereporter.wordpress.com.

February 15, 2013

Volume 10

Issue 5

northridgereporter.wordpress.com

.

8B

eatThe Northridge ReporterFebruary 15, 2013

Morgan D

eWitt

Beat Editor

Winter

storm

Helen

blew

its w

ay through Tuscaloosa on Thursday, Jan. 17, hindering traffic flow

through the school.The storm

began with a cold front m

ov-ing in from

Mississippi on W

ednesday night, Jan 16.

Jake Evans, freshman, said he didn’t

think the snow w

ould fall at all.“I

woke

up this

morning

thinking, ‘Jam

es Spann was w

rong again.’ I checked radar, and I saw

a big wall of snow

clouds that w

as supposed to be coming around

10:00 [a.m.]. I never expected it to be like

this, though. This is crazy,” Evans said.B

y 8:00 Thursday morning, sleet began

cooling the ground, and the snow w

as falling beginning around 9:45 a.m

., caus-ing students to w

onder if and when school

would be let out. “I heard that N

orthside was let out. I

also heard County H

igh pulled their fire alarm

, and everyone had to go outside into the snow, and then they w

ere dismissed

at 11:30 a.m. It just keeps com

ing down

harder, and it doesn’t look like it’s going to let up for a w

hile,” Evans said.B

y 10:00 a.m., the snow

was falling

harder and harder, bringing the students to a frenzy to be in the courtyard. Security personnel struggled to break up snow

ball fights after second and third lunch shifts.

Mary R

uffin Moore, English teacher,

said she was surprised by the student’s

reactions to the snow.“I’m

astounded by how am

azed my stu-

dents are with [the snow

]. They wanted

to go play in it, and so I let them,” M

oore said.

Traci Watson, English teacher, said she

thinks the students reacted the way they

did because they don’t get to see snow

very often.“It w

as similar to kids in a candy store!”

Watson said.Students took full advantage of any op-

portunity to make it outside and into the

snow. Mallory Steiner, junior, said som

e students w

ent to extreme m

easures.“O

ne of my friends clim

bed out of the w

indow of our classroom

,” Steiner said.O

ther students weren’t lucky enough to

make it into the snow

during the advisory period. Payton H

amby, junior, said her

teacher wouldn’t let them

out.“She [the teacher] said, ‘It probably

won’t stick, so it doesn’t m

atter,’” Ham

by said. “Som

eone pulled the string on the w

indow to try to escape, but our teacher

stopped her.”N

icoletta Versace, sophomore, said her

advisory didn’t make it outside either.

“By the tim

e we w

ere allowed outside

to change classes after advisory, all of our friends had gotten their fill of the snow

and had gone inside,” Versace said.

At 12:45 a.m

., word got out that all

Tuscaloosa City H

igh Schools would be

released at 1:15. Mary C

aitlyn Wilhite,

senior, said the fourth lunch shift went

crazy.“Everyone freaked out! They scream

ed and cheered,” W

ilhite said. “I was so ex-

cited!”

Synteria Pearson,

senior, tw

irls through

the snow

during

advi-sory.

“I felt

reincarnated in

a new

life,”

Kathleen

Kennedy, junior,

said.

Let It Snow

Ashlin Shuttlesw

orth, senior, and Mon-

tez Bell, sophom

ore walk through the

snow. “O

nce we could go outside, it

was fun,” Shelly Parks, freshm

an, said.

Mal ik

Ervin, sophom

ore, w

atches as

students enjoy the snow during advi-

sory. “It was great at first, then I got

frostbite,”

Dylan

Smith,

senior, said.

Snow day creates excitem

ent, traffic through school

Photo by Abby A

llen

Photos by Kim

VanHorn