By Alondra Sahagun

AVID, Advanced Via Individual Determination, is an expanding program both at Cunha Intermediate School and at Half Moon Bay High School. The class has become of great interest to incoming freshmen and soon to be sophomore students. Thefirstyeartheclassisbeing offered at the high school, many students have learned to take advantage of what the program has to offer. Freshman Lilian Cahuant-zi believes AVID has helped her in many ways. "I know what I need to graduate and what colleges want from students," said Cahuantzi. The AVID class not only prepares students for college, but it helps students stay organized in their classes. It teaches them new techniques that can be developed astheyearsgobyandastheyfill

themselves with experience and practice. Junior, and potential AVID tutor for next year, Ana Morales said, "I enjoyed AVID. It made me more organized in my classes and introduced me to Cornell notes which are very useful." Morales decided she wanted to become an AVID tutor after her experience as an AVID student in eighth grade. In the 2014/2015 school year there will be two separate AVID classes available. AVID 1, which is for freshman, and AVID 2, which will be offered to sopho-mores. AVID 1 is the introduction to the program and an introduction to 10th grade, while AVID 2 takes the students to the next level and provides practice for the California High School Exit Exam, better known as CAHSEE. Counselor and AVID teacher Sayuri Buritica said, "With

each year AVID is preparing for the year to follow so that AVID stu-dents are ahead of the game, rather than behind." One key element of AVID is the practice of Cornell note tak-ing. Cornell notes help students keep their notes organized and makes it easier to study for any subject. AVID is a program that is offered to students all throughout the United States, from elementary school to high school. Generally, students who learn and partici-pate in the program increase their chances of attending college.

AVID banner hangs next to the clock in C-1, the AVID classroom.

By Porter Warrick Hess

With handbooks in hands, clusters of excited El Granada Elementary and Half Moon Bay High School students swarmed the exhibits at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. HMBHS students in firstperiodMarineEcologyescort-ed 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders from El Granada Elementary on Wednes-day, February 12th in order to serve as a resource and educational mentor for the elementary students. Each Marine Ecology student was responsible for 4-6 elementary students, a task daunting for some high schoolers. "I was slightly nervous because I wasn't sure if I would be able to answer all of the children's questions," remarked senior Tiana Spano. The duties of the high school student included help-ingstudentsfillouttheireduca-tional handbooks (provided by the Monterey Bay Aquarium for el-ementary schools as an educational resource), guiding the students through the aquarium and ensur-ing that all students stayed within their groups. A parent was included within each group of 4-6 in order to ensure safety. When asked why he decided to bridge HMBHS students with those at El Granada, Marine Ecology teacher Joseph Centoni explained, “ It enables the High School students to synthesize the information they have learned up to this point, as well as provides an extra educational resource for the elementary kids."

Overall, both High Schoolers and Elementary kids seemedtohavebenefitedfromthefieldtrip.Bothlearnedmoreaboutthe ocean, it's systems, and the organisms that comprise it, as well as developed a positive relationship with each other. "I was glad to see that the kids were having so much fun, and was surprised by how much energy it takes to keep up with fourth grad-ers. I ultimately learned a lot about marine animals from employees, parents, and even the kids," ex-pressed senior Jason Cagle. With this year as a model for years to come, Centoni and El Granada Elementary teachers hope tocollaborateonmorefieldtripsand ensure that the Monterey Bay Aquarium trip will occur for future generations of HMBHS and EGE students.

Half Moon Bay High School hmbpawprint.com Vol II, No. 5 March 2014

AVID program expands

By Brenna Carroll

The Art ll classes at Half Moon Bay High School were recently given a new assignment: to create 35 large posters for the set of the 1950’s inspired High School play,“All Shook Up,” to be completed before its opening night on March 21st. This is the second con-secutive year that HMBHS Art Teacher Larkin Evans has taken on this considerable project. Evans explained, “I agreed to take on the project because Doug McCurdy, the set designer and manager for the play, is wonderful to work with.” McCurdy has played a big role in the making of the posters, providing his own help painting and making an extensive impact on the students. “He actually teaches the class a bit about stage and set design, provides tips about how to do the project, provides step by step instruction, and continues to help to guide the students,” said Evans. Many students participat-ing in the play are also thankful for

theadditionalhelp.“Wedefinitelywouldnothavefinishedthemoth-erwise,” said junior and this year’s lead role Ian Kairos. “Stuff like this is rare and hard and takes forever. This saved us a lot of time and a lot of manpower.” Students worked every day to get the signs done, and many signs were even larger than the students who were painting them. They also used creative tactics to

give some signs the appearance they needed, like using coffee to stain the signs so they appeared old and rusted. Every year there is a lingering pressure to get all of the sets done on time for the annual play, but now members of the play can rest a little easier knowing they have some additional help from the Art Department.

Elementary and high school students unite in Monterey

Senior Mari Lehmer excitedly holds up a thank you note from the group of elementary students she had accompanied. Located on the center of the letter is Lehmer pictured with her group.

Art II lends a hand to the cast of “All Shook Up”

By Stephanie Perez and Haley James The varsity boy’s soccer team are Division 3 CCS cham-pionsforthefirstinHalfMoonBay High School’s history. On Saturday, February 8th, they battled against Burlingame High School, which was hosted by Westmont High school in San Jose. Thebleacherswerefilledwith Half Moon Bay students along with alumni and staff members. Junior Kevin Perez started the firsthalfscoringonapenaltykickwhich set the Cougars ahead 1-0. Not too long after the Cougars scored, the Panthers made a goal which set the tie and ended the firsthalf.Inthesecondhalfofthegame, the second goal was made by

junior Christian Castaneda which led the two teams into overtime with a 2-2 tie. As the adrenaline rushed through the boys on both teams and the excited crowd, they played in overtime with two 10 min-ute halves, battling for the CCS championshiptitle.Inthefirsthalfof overtime, the game remained tied but with three minutes into the second half of overtime junior Johnatan Rico scored the winning goal. The crowd erupted as Rico and his teammates celebrated their lead. After the celebration the Cougars held a tight defense against the Panthers to claim the finalscoreof3-2andtheirveryfirstCCSChampionshiptitle.

Boys soccer makes history as CCS Champs

Nicky PyleBrenda DeJesus

Emily Yacopi

Irma Ramos

Seniors: 1stFreshmen: 2nd

Juniors: 3rdSophmores: 4th

Art II students display their completed signs to be used in“All Shook Up.”

Page 2 - News Page 3 - Student Life Page 5 - Sports

By Madeleine Croke

A daunting question has risenbetweenstudents:dofieldtripbenefitsoutweighthecons?Peoplehave questioned the topic because they have been drowned with make up work or fallen behind in lectures after repeatedly missing certain classes. Though, some refute that statement by saying they learn bet-ter with the hands-on activities. Someschoolsdon’tfindfieldtripsbeneficialbecausetheydon’t directly support the English and Math skills that are set by the standardized tests. They are also costly, time consuming, and are usually associated with fun, so they have been tacked on to the end of the year when most of the curricu-lum is done being taught.

However, at Half Moon Bay High School, teachers like Joseph Centoni have fought to keep fieldtripsavitalpartofthesciencedepartment’s curriculum. Centoni teaches Marine Ecology and AP Environmental Science, which aretheclasseswiththemostfieldtrips at the high school. They go on about9fieldtripsayeartovariouslocations. "For AP Environmen-tal,thefieldtripsarerequiredbyCollege Board, so they were a necessity," Centoni said. "But for myotherclassesIthinkfieldtripsarebeneficialbecauseitteachesstudentsaboutfieldresearchsuchas gathering information. It also is valuable to be able to see certain things you wouldn't be able to see, such as the environmental center

in San Carlos." Centoni strongly believesthatfieldtripsenhancelearning. Otherteachersholdfieldtrips as well, such as English teacher Claudia Lunstroth who is taking her AP Literature class to go see the play, Oedipus, in San Fran-cisco. "I want my students to see a new perspective on the story of Oedipus and a new appreciation for live theater." Lunstroth wishes she wasabletoincorporatemorefieldtrips into her curriculum because it is a way for teachers to expose students to the world at large, even though it is a lot of work to plan. Moststudentslovefieldtrips because it gives them a way to learn in a hands on manner, taking what they learned in the classroom and applying it to the outside world. Senior Kyle Harwood said, “The only downfall about fieldtripsismissingmyclassesandthen having to do make up work for them, but my teachers are usually accommodating about the work." Most students would agree. Overall, students and teacherscanagreethatfieldtripsarebeneficialbyhelpingstudentslearn in a different way besides just reading the textbook. It can also help them take what they like and learn ways they can apply it to the outside world. As long as they talk to their teachers and get the assign-mentstheywillbemissing,fieldtrips should not be a burden on the students or teachers, but rather a fun learning experience. They should be weaved into as many de-partments’ curriculum as allowed.

2 NEWS March 2014

By Taylor King

Projects about death are actually teaching the meaning of life for English teacher Bryce Hadley’s Advanced sophomore students from writing their own "Last Lectures" to the creation of their own obituaries. The project, known as “The Last Lecture Project” is based on Randy Pausch’s famous 2007 “Last Lecture,” a speech he delivered to the graduating class of Carnegie Mellon University. Pausch, who had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and only had months left to live, created an inspiring message about life. “[The project] was sup-posed to be on the topic of life,” said Hadley. “I think that what you learn in school is all really great in terms of what you know out of a book and how you can do on a particular test, but really, at the end of the day, what’s more important is kind of how you live your life." Hadley’s sophomore Ad-vanced English II classes are going to be writing their own last lecture speeches that they will be present-ing to the class. The focus of these lectures is for students to appreciate life and teach others to do so also. “It’s always good to be able to speak in front of an audi-ence, but I guess that’s not the real point of the assignment,” said Had-ley. “The ‘Last Lecture’ forces you to think about how you conduct yourself on a daily basis and think about values that are important to you.”Just as Hadley was touched by Pausch’s moving lecture, his students, too, have found deep pleasure in the concept of giving one’s own “Last Lecture”. “I think it’s a great way to get to know your classmates and you kind of learn something dif-ferent about them that you may not have known before,” said sopho-more Patrick Jones. “It gives you an opportunity to open yourself up to people. I think it’s a really good character building experience.”Along with the “Last Lecture” project, Hadley’s students are writ-ing their own obituaries. Though morbid-sounding, Hadley has

put some deep thought into why contemplating one’s own death and the life leading up to it is a valuable assignment. “The obituary is hopefully like goal setting in reverse, like ‘What are things I want to accom-plish?”saidHadley.“Ithinkthemost important thing is to be pas-sionate, honest with people, and tell people the truth even if sometimes it’s not always what they want to hear,” Hadley continued, “and to most importantly have fun.” The writing of one’s own obituary is not to strike fear in the student body, but to give them achancetofigureoutwhattheywould like to accomplish and how they would like to be remembered.“It’s really morbid,” said Jones, “but it’s kind of one of those creative twists that Hadley puts on things to get you to think about your life, and it gets you thinking about what you’ve done and what you want to do with your life.” Hadley devised these proj-ects to give students the opportuni-ty to express their own feelings of life, both in general and their own. These projects help to strike the realization that life is not as long as it may seem so one should not let it slip out of their grasp. “Time is all you have and youmayfindonedaythatyouhaveless than you think,” said Pausch.

Of Life and Death: Students speak out about life while writing their own obituaries

Randy Pausch delivering the famous "Last Lecture" at Carn-egie Mellon University. Photo courtesy of NYTimes.com

Field trips: Is there a burden to learningoutsidetheclassroom?

Editors-in-ChiefStephanie Perez

Haley James

DesignerJeremy MacKinnon

Staff WritersIrma Acosta

Sarah ApplegateJenna Baxter

Amanda BerkeBrenna Carroll

Mia ClineMaddy CrokeMarco GeorgeEllie Henretty

Leticia Jarquin-SanchezTaylor King

Kayla LourencoEmily Payne

Estefhany Ruiz-OrtizAlondra Sahagun

Kaelyn SattieDayna SerxnerJasmine Shaff

Lydia TellGrace Thompson

Shea UgaldePorter Warrick Hess

Emily WhitlatchConnor Whitt

Brooke Williams

AdviserAlyssa Neilson

Meet the Staff

Chet Silveria and Soleil Spigelman take water samples by Capistrano Creek for AP Environmental.

By Ellie Henretty

Becoming a licensed driv-er can be an exciting part of turning sixteen. Many sophomores at Half Moon Bay High either have their licenses already, or are patiently awaiting the day they can get it. Getting your license is a right of passage for many teens, and others a stressful process. Many teen drivers can't wait to get out on the road, and most don't pay any mind to the pos-sible risks. According to the New York State Department of Health, the leading cause of hospitaliza-tion of 16-17 year olds is driving at an unsafe speed. The only way

to avoid these possible risks is to learn and continue safe driving practices. Over the years fewer and fewer teenagers have been getting their licenses, according to CNBC.com. There are many contributing factors to this decrease in young drivers, whether it be money, tech-nology, or just not feeling the need ,the numbers are decreasing. Aside from all the ac-cidents and decreasing numbers, plenty of new drivers are getting on the roads. This time is an exciting and fantastic time for all sopho-more drivers.

Sophomores.... Start your engines

Sophomore Danielle Peterson sits comfortably behind the wheel of her car.

Junior Kennedy Arnold’s advice to new drivers: “Watch out and drive slow. Don’t go down to lunch too often because you will get cut off. For the test remember com-plete stops, look both ways before turning, and talk to the instructor because they will help you.”

Sophomore Nina Bachicha on her upcoming license test: “I am excited to take the test but I am nervous because Im a bad driver. I enjoy driving its fun.”

By Mia Cline

The Naval Academy has graduated some of the most successfulmilitaryofficersin our nation’s history, and now Half Moon Bay’s very own Broden Menzies has been accepted to the presti-gious military academy on an unconditional accep-tance. The process to acceptance is not an easy one. The pre-application process began in April of his junior year, with hisfinalapplicationdue

before the beginning of his senior year. The Naval Academy requires three letters of recommendation, not including an endorsement from a United States senator and con-gressman which is no easy task. "The process was very stressful and long. The waiting was the hardest part," said Menzies. He was informed of his acceptance by our very own congressional representative, Jackie Speier, on December 23rd, 2013 via phone call. The senior currently has a 4.5 GPA, over 250 hours of com-munity service, has taken 9 AP

classes in his high school career and has been the driving force be-hindtheAbovetheInfluenceClub.His athletic accomplishments are far above par as well. Menzies has played varsity HMB basketball for two years, as well as many years playing club basketball, and intends on joining the Cougar swim team. Senior and fellow class-mate Kyle Harwood is thrilled for Menzies. "As a teammate and a friend I'm truly proud of Brody's accomplishments, and I know he will be very successful in all his ventures to come."

By Emily Payne

English II teacher Kyle Koehler spent the break hiking, mountain biking, and climbing in Yosemite National Park in order to get out of town and reset himself. Koehler’s most relaxing moment was when his phone ran out of battery and he was no longer able to use it.

Junior Pace Farbstein went to UC Santa Barbara to visit his brother.Farbstein really enjoyed hanging out with college students and his favorite part about UCSB is that you are able to surf before and after classes.

Sophomore Becca Calman went to Florida, her favorite part of which was visiting the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Stu-dios in Orlando. Calman was lucky because of the nice weather and short lines for rides.

By Emily Whitlatch

Senior Jason Cagle is a student with dreams as big as his potential. He has been a 4 year member of the high school's surf team and has swam with the varsity swim team for the past 2 years. On top of teaching as a swim instruc-tor at local swim school La Petite Baleen, Cagle maintains a 4.2 GPA and has challenged himself to a total of 7 AP courses throughout his high school experience. As a senior, Cagle applied to multiple UC colleges and several private universities. His top 3 choices for college were California Polytechnic State University (Cal-Poly), UC Santa Barbara, and UC Santa Cruz. As the admissions deci-sion date neared, Cagle's nerves skyrocketed. "I was super nervous to hear from Cal-Poly because it was my top choice," said Cagle. Cagle's outstanding aca-

demics and involvement in extra-curricular activities landed him an acceptance to Cal-Poly for the Fall of 2014. “I'm glad I tried so hard in high school," said Cagle. “It all paid off in the long run." While attending Cal-Poly, Cagle plans to major in business. “I want to be like my sister who is studying business,” said Cagle. “I really enjoyed my Economics class; hopefully I'll be able to put it to good use in my future”. Cagle's busy lifestyle also includes his job as a swim instruc-tor for La Petite Baleen Swim School where he shares his passion for the water by teaching toddlers how to swim. "I love my job because it's awesome being able to work with kids and be a role model to my students," said Cagle, "I am going to miss their happy faces when I leave for college." Cagle is one of Half Moon Bay's stereotypical “beach bums.” He is a talented and dedicated

surfer who enjoys riding the waves at his favorite beach along the coast ofMossBeach.Caglelovestofishwith his friends whenever he has the opportunity. As Cagle approaches the finalstretchofhighschool,itcan

be said that life in Half Moon Bay has been quite a ride for the suc-cessful teen. “I’m going to miss all my friends and competing on the surf team," said Cagle, "I can't wait to see what college has in store for me."

March 2014 STUDENT LIFE 3

By Kayla Lourenco

It’s that time of year, the last stretch before graduation for all the seniors. The question is, will theysurvivetheExitproject? The Exit project is a major research project given to seniors that requires more than hard work. It is a chance for them to inves-tigate and explore a subject of interest outside of school with the guidance of professionals who are knowledgeable about their subject. This project makes up over half of all seniors’ semester grades, so it is crucial that it be completed to maintain graduation status. The project has many steps that help students learn about the topic and ultimately present it by teaching it to their classmates. They are only in the beginning phases of the project, but here is a taste of what some seniors are learning about.

Senior Erica Sarabia

What is your topic? My project is on a chronic illness called SLE lupus. Why did you choose this topic?I have a personal connection. I was diagnosed with it, and I want to learn more about it so I can help myself and other people learn to cope with it.

Senior Cynthia Figueroa

What is your topic? Orthodontist Why did you choose this topic? Ifinditinteresting.Ifeelthatpeople can learn from it because not many people know about it.

College spotlight: Menzies sets sail to Naval Academy

College Spotlight: Cagle Heads for Cal Poly

Will you survive the ExitProject?

By Jenna Baxter and Leticia Jarquin-Sanchez

For many people, speak-ing in front of a group of people is adifficultanddauntingtask,butsix FFA members made it look easy when they traveled to Napa on February 20th to compete in the Solano- Alameda Sectional Speak-ing Contest. The speaking competition allows students to overcome their fear and develop speaking skills that will help them throughout their lives. The HMB FFA chapter had two students compete in the FFA creed competition, and four in the job interview category. The job interview portion of the competition requires students to create a resume and a cover let-ter. The students essentially apply forafictionaljobposition,butmust treat it as if it was real. The students are then interviewed and evaluated based on their presenta-tion, written work and the manner in which they speak. Sophomores Serena Manfro and Cheyenne Ver Linden, along with juniors Ashley Utz and Jenna Baxter competed in

this category. The creed competition requires its competitors to memo-

rizeallfiveparagraphsoftheFFAcreed along with several questions that they must answer. The stu-dents then present in front of other competitors and judges. Freshmen Damon George and Sean Reagan proudly represented the HMB FFA chapter in the creed competition. Sophomore Serena Manfro was one of the few FFA members who stood up and took thechallengeforthefirsttimethisyear. “It was nerve wracking at first,”saidManfro.“OnceIgotinthere and had the support of my FFA members, I felt more comfort-ableandconfident.” Another FFA member who competed was sophomore Chey-enne Ver Lindin. Ver Lindin com-peted in the job interview portion. "Itwasnervewrackingatfirst,butthen it was a piece of cake," said Ver Lindin. "It prepared me for real job int..erviews". These members repre-sented the HMB FFA chapter in a respectful and professional manner and walked away with some new life skills. FFA prepares it’s mem-bers well for the life ahead of them by offering competitions like these.

FFA voices speak up in competition

Jenna Baxter, pictured with Agriculture teacher and FFA Adviser Javier Gutierrez, placed 1st and will be competing in the North Coast Region job interview competition on March 21st. Serena Manfro placed 12th, Cheyenne Ver Linden placed 11th, and Ashley Utz placed 6th in the competition.

Ski weekadventures

Brody Menzies poses with his dad, repping the U.S. Navy proudly.

Jason Cagle is passionate about his work teaching swimming at Le Petite Baleen.

4 SPORTS March 2014

By Jazz Shaff

As this monumental sea-son nears its end, Cougar fans look back on what an incredible ride this basketball season has been. The varsity Cougar basketball players are 25 and 5 going into the weekend, with Nor Cal champion-ships still underway. They play Saturday, March 15, with hopes of advancingtothefinalfour. Captain and senior Rico Nuno said, "The highlight of my season has been just making it to the open division." Over the last few years, Cougar basketball has grown enormously in popularity, and the Six Man Crew shows its support through orange and black gear and loud cheers heard at every single

game, both home and away. Seniors Jordan Cariaga and Kyle Harwood say the highlight of their great sea-son "was beating Burlingame in their tournament during the preseason." The Cougars won in the firstroundofNor-Cal playoffs with a 67-38 win over Thurgood Marshall. Corey Cilia and Case DuFrane were top scorers, with 16 points a piece. The Cougars are not letting this basketball season end quietly and are hoping for the community

to come cheer for them on Saturday night.

By Brooke Williams

Senior Marcela Cordova has been on the Half Moon Bay High School wrestling team for two years and has made great strides in her career. Being the only girl on the boys wrestling team can be quite a challenge sometimes butCordovaseemsconfidentinher abilities to help the team be successful. She expressed that the wrestling team was a great chal-lenge especially since she suffered fromanillnessearlyinherfirstseason competeing.

"It takes a while to gain trust from the boys and get them to be comfortable around me," said Cordova. Recently Cordova competed in the District championships and ended up winning in her weight division. Her success didn't stop there. She then continued on to CCS making itpastquarter-finalsandsemi-finalsand ended up winning the CCS finalround. "I was able to complete all of my goals for the wrestling season and I feel like all of my hard workhasfinallypayedoffintheend" said Cordova. Being the only girl competeing against the boys can be quite a challenge but Cordova seems to have a good mind set for competition day. "It'snoteasyatfirst,therewere a couple of incidents where guys would be a little uneasy about wrestling," Cordova explained. Cordova is a great inspira-tion tostudents everywhere and shows that even if you are a girl you can still compete against the boys. " I never thought I would get this far but I am really grateful for the experience" said Cordova.

By Jeremy Mackinnon

The shot, heaved by David Parsons, a junior at San Francisco's Sacred Heart Cathedral, from 75-feet down court seemed to be only a desperate attempt to keep Friday’s Central Section Open Divisionquarterfinalsgamefromgoing into overtime with just sec-onds on the clock. But as the ball sailed through the air and careened off the backboard into the net, the Half Moon Bay fans and players jaws dropped as the buzzer sealed Sacred Heart’s 49-46 victory. Parsons had stolen the ball from HMB’s penetrator, Senior E.J. Madriaga, who was attempting to scoreinthefinalsecondsofthefourth quarter. The ending came

asastartlingfinishtoagameinwhich HMB had held a steady lead throughthefirsthalf.However,asthe 4th quarter commenced, Sacred Heart drew closer by playing strong defense, leading to the 46-46 score that was eventually broken by Parsons’ incredible shot. The play drew national attention, becoming one of the Top 10 plays of the day on Sportscenter as well as appearing on several other sports news sites, such as Ya-hoo. It’s certainly not the way Half Moon Bay would have liked to be nationally recognized. HMB’s spirited Six Man Crew, along with the Dance team, had supported the Cougars all night, cheering them on as they have done at every Cougars basket-

ball game this year, but as the ball passed through hoop, their cheers were replaced with nothing but silence as the Sacred Heart players mobbed Parsons on the court. The game was held at Piedmont Hills High School, a neutral ground for the playoff matchup. The disappointing loss blocked the Cougars from entering theSemifinals. The win for Sacred Heart will carry them to a matchup against Archbishop Mitty in the Semifinals.

Sacred Heart Cathedral stuns HMB with 75-foot shot

Cordova: Wrestling star despite obstacles

By Sarah Applegate

It is undeniable that the girls varsity soccer team had an impressive season. Being League Champions 15-1, the team thought they had made it into CCS; however it came as a shock to the entire team, as well as the student body, when it was announced that the girls would not be participating in CCS. The team was thought to havequalifiedforCCSbywinningLeague, but complications arose. Soccer teams are grouped together based off a system of A, B, and C teams. Half Moon Bay’s soccer team is a level C team. A league teams, like Terra Nova, are stronger leagues than B or C. Because of this, C league teams do not get as many CCS points for wins as A league teams do, which is a factor inthefinaldecisionofwhatteamswill be present in CCS. There was one last spot available in CCS and it came down to Half Moon Bay High and Terra

Nova. They were tied with League record and Half Moon Bay had beaten all common opponents in League. So from there, it came down to CCS points, but in the end, Terra Nova had one more point than Half Moon Bay.This was upsetting to the team since they had come so far in the season, and were the only girls soc-cer team in Half Moon Bay High’s history to qualify for CCS and win League. Senior and varsity team member Maddy Croke explained how she felt about the situation. “It’s disappointing because we worked really hard to win League, and in our division if you win

League you automatically get to CCS.” Croke con-tinued, “It just would’ve been nice to show ev-eryone that we could get farther than they think.” When soccer coach Katie Moore was asked to comment on the situation she responded, “It is very hard for a C league team to compete points-wise with A league teams. Overall though this

does not take away anything from our season.” Moore also stated, “Being League Champions for the firsttimeever…thatiswhatIwilltake away from this season. No one can take that from us.” Although the team did not make it into CCS, it is clear that they have worked hard and remained dedicated to get as far as they did. Winning League is no easytaskandbeingthefirstteamin Half Moon Bay’s history to do so is no easy feat, and that alone is something to be very proud of.

Girls varsity soccer league champions denied bid to CCS

HMB took on their biggest rivals, Terra Nova, resulting in a victory.

Basketball season comes to a close

Freshmen (from left to right) Mia O'Brien, Kiely Saunders, Hannah So-rensen, and Sophomore Allegra Spano (middle), sit by the side of the pool talking and waiting for their next event.

Photo courtesy of Shannon Henretty

Caught on camera

What is your favorite pump up song before a game or match?

Senior Harkenwalpreet Sodhi, Varsity Tennis“Power” by Kanye west

Senior Adrian Silvera, Varsity Basketball“Sweatpants” by Childish Gambino

Senior Ryan Mattel, Varsity Baseball“Oh ya” by Yello

March 2014 OPINION 5

By: Brooke Williams

Half Moon Bay High School, being the only school left in the PAL conference league, has been debating wether to change to block schedule. “I think it would be beneficialforsubjectslikeMathand English so I could get extra help from my teachers,” said Junior Lucas Hannon when asked how he felt about if the school were to switch to block schedule. Having a block schedule would mean that instead of having a regular day on Wednesday and Thursday students would have pe-riods 1,3 and 5 on Wednesday for just under two hours long and 2, 4 and 6 for the same amount of time on Thursday. Block schedule would give students a chance to see what a day of college classes would be like and help them better manage their time and prepare ahead for homework assignments. “Students would be more focused and be able to complete labs in classes like art and science,” said Principal Allison Silvestri when asked about her opinion on block schedule. In my own personal expe-rience, I had mixed feelings about block schedule at my old school. It was nice only having three classes per day because I was able to focus more on my work for those classes and wasn’t overwhelmed with all of the work. On the other hand,

having class periods that were two hours long seemed to drag on and made it hard to stay on task during school hours. Things like P.E. were exhausting and unless I had it sixth, I would be drained for the next period. “I would like it because you would have an extra day to get things done and wouldn’t be cramming in a bunch of homework the night before. It would help me space out assignments more and make sure they are how I want to turn them in,” said sophomore Serena Manfro when asked how she felt about the idea of having a block schedule. Whiletherearenodefiniteplans to switch to block schedule yet, the idea is one to think about.

By Marco George

Ever since I was young I have tried to think of ways that I could improve the world and then it hit me. Cannabis. Now before I continue, I'd like to make it clear that I am not talking about the recreational uses of cannabis, but rather about the ways this plant has been grown and utilized by humans forthelastfive-thousandyears. Cannabis is a highly fibrousplantthathasbeenbestknown for its ability to produce hemp, which is used to make an assortment of byproducts, predomi-nantly rope and textiles. Cannabis wasfirstgrownonalargescalebythe Chinese around 2800 B.C. and since then humans have discovered many more uses for cannabis such as fuel, food, paper products, and building materials. Now some may say,"Howisthispossible?"Letmeexplain. WhenHenryFordfirstdesigned the Model-T, he designed the vehicle to run on clean burn-ing ethanol fuel. This ethanol fuel used to be produced from Ford's personal farms; farms on which he grew cannabis. Ford had realized the potential for using vegetable and seed oil as a biofuel, and with cannabis producing more bio mass per acre than any other plants, why notuseit?Ontopofthat,usingthistype of fuel is safe for the environ-ment and does not contribute to sulfur dioxide, air poisoning, or other emissions such as carbon monoxide. In the instance of an oil spill, it is biodegradable and becomes fertilizer, unlike the BP spill. We must remember that when talking about an energy source we cannot be short-sighted, but must also think to the future. Drilling for oil cannot provide for us forever, but hemp can. Far too often we take for granted our abundant amount of food. We eat and drink and think nothing of it. Sadly this is not the case for everyone. Approximately 1.5 million people die every year

from hunger. We can change that or at least greatly reduce that. See, out of all the possible uses of cannabis, food is the most viable. Second onlytothefiberofcannabis,istheseeds (not intoxicating) which are abundantly produced on the can-nabis plants. After fully maturing, the seeds make up for 75 percent of the plant’s total weight, which on a 16-foot tall plant is a lot of seeds. Not only are they abundant but extremely nutritious in fatty acids, omega 3's, proteins and all 21 amino acids including the nine es-sential ones. Its an incredible seed

no doubt but if you're not willing to just eat the seeds raw then you may enjoy bi-products such as cereal, milk,tofu,oils,flour,proteinpow-der and ice cream. We use a lot of paper. Paper made from trees is a resource which is not only the less viable choice for making paper, but is also harmful to the environment. To produce paper you need cellulose. Trees are composed of 40 to 45 percent cellulose. The problem is that we have better resources to use that do not only produce better products, but are better for the environment. One of these resources is cannabis, composed of up to 85 percent cellulose. This in turn makes it easier to make paper with less land. 1 acre of hemp can produce as much paper as 2-4 acres of trees in less amount of time. To top that off, cannabis requires less toxic chemicals to be changed into paper whereas trees require a great

deal of chemicals to be changed into paper.Lastly, building materials. After thefibersandseedshavetakenoff,the cannabis plants core remains; this core can be used to produced fiberboardandhempcrete,whichare substitutes for concrete and ply-wood. Fiberboard is not only stron-ger than plywood but also lighter and is of course safe to use for the environment and easily recyclable. Same goes for Hempcrete. It is also better for the environment and is a far better product to use rather than concrete. Cannabis is not just a drug; it is a plant and a resource. If you believe its use only has nega-tive consequences then you have been mislead. It was not made ille-gal simply because people wanted to use it for recreation, but because big corporations were threatened by it's potential as an alternative resource. During the 1930s there was a man by the name of William Randolph Hearst who had invested a huge amount in the lumber and newspaper industries. With the rise of hemp, as stated by Popular Science magazine, "Hemp was the new billion dollar product." Hearst and his business would have been damaged greatly, so to avoid this he used his newspapers and his money to put out propaganda about a new drug called "marijuana". With this came movies such as "The Devil’s Harvest" and "Reefer Madness," which portrayed the use of mari-juana in a negatively dramatized light and made no reference to its industrial uses. This led to an ex-treme change in public opinion and to the illegalization of “marijuana" and hemp. Today cannabis is still too often viewed as solely a drug, smothering its wonderful potential and denying us of a world-chang-ing resource that is both more vi-ableandefficientthanmanyoftheresources that are currently viewed as acceptable.

By Shea Ugalde

Choosing classes each year can be tough, especially with the pressure that some of us feel to pick challenging classes. I have always felt like I had to take all of the AP classes I could get into, but isthatreallyalwaysagoodidea?Itdefinitelyisn’tforme. I tend to get pretty tired of constant work, and I can honestly say that I have “forgotten” about a few assignments. I know this doesn’t apply to everyone, but there have to be some other students who feel like they are obligated to take tough classes, or feel like they won’t get into a good college without any, but just can’t handle the massive load of homework. And the thing is, you really don’t have to take a million AP and advanced classes to get into college. My coworker, Half Moon Bay High alumni Marissa Jankows-ki, didn’t take a single AP the entire time she was in high school. She got into every college she applied to, and ended up going to Univer-sity of Washington.

I asked a few students if they felt that they needed to take AP classes to get into the college that they wanted to go to, and three outofthefivesaidyes.Analterna-tive to torturing yourself with APs is to do a lot of extra curricular stuff, like volunteering, doing an internship or being on sports teams. Making yourself appear as dynamic as possible is a great way to go about it. The general idea is to challenge yourself in order to im-press colleges, and make them feel that you would be a valuable asset to their student body. While this is definitelytrue,itmaynotalwaysbe necessary to take classes that are beyond your limit. In fact, having an AP that you ultimately don’t have a good grade in, can poten-tially do more damage to your GPA than doing well in regular classes. I am well aware that there are plenty of students who have little to no problems with their AP classes, but for students who aren’t readyorwilling,therearedefi-nitely ways to get into college than rigorous APs.

Would students benfit from block schedule?

Block schedule: Pros and cons

A case for cannabis

APs, not for me

By Grace Thompson

As Americans we have grown accustomed to certain un-alienable rights, rights which make our country among the greatest in history. Why is it that these rights are stripped from us when we enter school doors, school doors we are forcedthroughbylaw?Freedomof speech is only reserved for those with views that “don’t offend” anybody and freedom of the press is non existent. The 1988 Supreme court case Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier said that administration is allowed to edit or silence an article or opinion of a young student journalist. The 1st Amendment allows us to say whatever we want, as long as we don’t threaten harm to a group of persons or person, so why do we suddenly lose our rights when it comestoeducation? Not only are students silenced, but shockingly in thou-sands of school districts across the country, students can still legally

be beaten in school. Ingraham v. Wright (1977) states that corpo-ral punishment is legal in school, although most states and school districts do not allow it. For some reason, the Supreme Court ruled there is nothing wrong with that outdated and cruel practice. “The controversial practice of corporal punishment in schools is still very much alive and kicking in the United States,” said Rebecka Klein, reporter for the Washington Post, in her article regarding Ingraham v. Wright. 17 states still allow this practice at the teacher’s and admin-istrator’s discretion.

Though students now-a-days do retain some rights, students havehadtofightforyears.Publicschools can not exclude any po-litical or religious student interest groups regardless of the nature of the club, but that policy was not implemented until the 1990’s and the right to protest in school was not won until 1969. While this nation’s educa-tion system isn’t exactly North Korea, how are we, the students, to stop it from getting that far when everyday it seems like are rights arediminishingbeforeoureyes? Many federal and state educational policies are unpopular with students across the coun-try. I spoke about this issue with senior Adrian Silvera, who elo-quently concluded, “We still live in America. Our rights should never be infringed upon regardless of age, ethnic background, gender or whether or not we are students.”

Studentsarecitizenstoo,right?

?3 out of 5 students said they felt pressure to take AP classes in order to get into college.

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6 ENTERTAINMENT March 2014

By Kaelyn Sattie As prom approaches, girls begin the search for that perfect prom dress. Here at HMBHS we don’t have to worry about having the same prom dress as some-one else, thanks to senior Soleil Spiegelman. This year is the sec-ond year she has set up the “Prom Dress Dibs” page on Facebook. “I was shopping over the hill with my girlfriends and we met these girls in the store who asked us to take their photos for their own school’s page,” said Spiegelman. Thus the idea was born; a place set aside for girls to call dibs on their dresses. Prom night is not a night where you want to have to compete in a “who wore it best” competition. On Prom night, you want to be shining brightly in a dress that is worn only by you. “I thought this idea was so cool because every girl wants to shine in her own way, and hav-ing the ability to stand out in your individualdressandfeelconfidentwithout comparing yourself to oth-ers is a really empowering feeling,” remarked Spiegelman. Why do some girls care so much about not wearing the same dress?Well,girlsliketobeorigi-nal. Its as simple as that. You want to wear something that is truly rep-

resentative of yourself, especially on such a memorable night. As Spiegelman says, “It’s just a method that promotes cre-ativity and not just picking a dress because its on page one out of three hundred on the Promgirl site.” On top of it being help-

ful to know who’s wearing what, this year many students have posted their old dresses up for sale. Spiegelman wasn’t expecting this to happen, but thinks it is a good idea. It is a cheaper alternative to buying a brand new dress and it is resourceful. “Dresses are expensive

and the styles have been so similar year to year, so its not a big deal to wear someone’s dress from a previ-ous prom,” said Spiegelman. This year, however, some new trends have been appearing, suchaslotsmorelaceandflow-ers. White is big and most of the dressesarefloorlength.Therearenot as many patterned dresses and not nearly as much bling. This year’s page is more well known than last year’s and if you are going to prom, your dress will probably be posted up on the page. “We’re getting a lot more underclassmen or girls from other schools that will be attending our prom contributing their dresses,” stated Spiegelman. Overall the Prom Dress Dibs page seems to be bringing our girls closer together and giving us the opportunity to all look unique. Positive feedback and advice is exchanged, and sometimes money is even made. Hopefully this will be a long lasting tradition here at HMBHS. If you are a girl who’s planning on going to prom and hasn’t been added to the list, talk to someone who has and they will add you right away!

By Irma Acosta

In the world that we live in today, seeing visuals is much more interesting than reading a good book. But the question is, do the movies actually compare to the bookatall?Inmostcasesno.Alot of the time movies exclude key points and parts about the book that are crucial for the development of the story later on. Personally I have both read and seen Suzanne Collins’ New York Times Bestseller : The Hunger Games. It’s both an amaz-ingbookandadecentfilm,butthedirectorofthefilmchangedimpor-tant aspects for the movie version. For example: the absence of Twill and Bonnie. Early in the book, Kat-niss meets Twill and Bonnie during a hunting trip to the woods. They have run away from their district, and are seeking refuge in District 13, which Katniss believes no lon-ger exists. These characters have been eliminated entirely from the film.Thisisimportantbecausethepossibility of the existence of Dis-trict 13 is only revealed at the end ofthefilm,butTwillandBonnie’srevelation in the book provides a little bit of hope for Katniss. She eventually realizes that the Capi-tol is using old footage from that

district in their news reports — a foreshadowing of its existence. The Hunger Games is just one out of manyfilmsthatinmyopinionhavebeen executed poorly compared to the book. Sometimes changing the story can do the book a favor and make it a little bit more interesting, or it can completely just make it worse. Junior Angelica Acosta said, “Iwasdefinitelysurprisedbecausethey changed a lot of stuff about the book, and some of the stuff was crucial to the whole plot.” Acosta continued,“Idefinitelythinkitcould have been better.” Produc-ingafilmofapopularbookcanberisky because fans of the book have already imagined the whole world in their head, and it is hard to live up to these expectations. Readers including myself are both excited and scared for the upcomingfilmsTheFaultinOurStars and Divergent, which are both based on New York Times Bestsell-ingnovels.Bothfilmsaresettopremier early this year; Divergent actually comes to theaters Friday March 21st, while The Fault in Our Stars is to hit theaters during sum-mer time on June 3rd. These are both exceptional books and deserve an exceptional movie to go with them.Doyouthinkthey’llliveup?

Students call dibs on prom dresses

Books turned movies Dotheyliveuptoexpectations?

Did you know...By Connor Whitt

Well, its that time of the year. The time of year when anoth-er wave of high school juniors are forced to take a pointless test called the SAT in which they have to do geometry prob-lems and correct grammar errors for 4 straight hours. I personally just took the SAT the other day, and it was straight up hor-rible. You basically are sat down in a classroom in which you can’t talk, eat, or move from your desk, except for during the three 5 minute breaks that they give you. The test itself is even worse. It’s pretty much just 4 hours and 45 minutes worth of geometry and algebra word

problems, grammar correcting, and the worst part, reading comprehen-sion. The part about the SAT that makes me even more angry about it is the fact that in 2 years

they are going to remove the es-say portion of the test, and get rid of the guessing penalty, which is when they take a quarter of a point off for each incorrect answer. So that means that whoever takes the

SAT in 2 years from now will have it 2 times easier than everyone who ever taken it. As much as I hate the whole SAT, my least favorite part is the essay portion. In the essay portion, you have to handwrite a 2 page essay based on a dumb, boring topic that they give you. Even worse is that you only have 25 minutes to complete the essay, which makes it a billion times harder to think of what to write. All in all, the SAT is basi-cally a STAR test from hell, and will destroy your brain.

The SAT is terrible

Senior Soleil Spiegelman posts a status to get the page started.

Marissa Glosecki, 9th grade: "I can bend my thumb and pinky at a 90 degree angle."

Emily Whitlatch, 12th grade: “I won a trip to Disneyland for 4 people by correctly guessing the weight of a baby cow.”

Maddy Croke, 12th grade: "I used to have a lisp and I had to do speech therapy."

Addison Walling, 9th grade: "I can put my foot behind my head."

Virginia Dussell, 10th grade: "I live on a duck farm."

Morgan Tomberlin, 11th grade: “I am deathly afraid of feet and cats.”

June Murray, 9th grade: “I have a tortoise named Percy.”

Gracie Thompson, 12th grade: "I have a Mexican citizenship."

Dayna Serxner, 12th grade: "I'm actually a red head."

Lillah Ferriera, 9th grade: “I was born in England.”

Anthony Obester, 12th grade: “I taught myself how to play the piano.”

Alex Doncov, 12th grade: "I can speak Rus-sian"

He said, She said: Prom Edition By Jazz Shaff and Lydia Tell

Who should pay for prom?

“ I think the guys should pay for the tickets at least.” -Junior Case Dufrane

“The guy should pay if you’re dating, but if you aren’t then ticket price should be split.” -Senior Rico Nuño:

“The guy should pay.” -Junior Alaina Nashir

What is your favorite kind of dress?

“I like long dresses with straps.” -Junior Jordan Reagan

“I like high low dresses.” -Senior Jordan Cariaga

“Strapless dresses and ones with really intricate backs.” -Junior Darragh White

What comes to mind when you think of prom?

“That it hopefully doesn’t suck.” -Jordan Reagan

“I’m excited to chill with my friends.” -Rico Nuño

“After prom.” -Alaina Nashir

“Dancing with Rico Nuno”Maddy Croake

Angelica Acosta preferred The Hunger Gamesbooktothefilm.Whichdidyouprefer?

To fully grasp the im-mensity of this epidemic, I decided to talk with some of the infected to see how their lives have been affected. First I decided to head towards the art building. Once inside I cautiously walked down the hall, careful not to touch any surface that may be covered with the virus. I stopped at a classroom where upon entering and making my purpose clear, two students of the senior class approached me in eagerness to tell me of their struggle. ThefirstoftheInfectedto speak was senior Brodie Miller, who told of how his grades had dropped over the last couple semes-ters. When asked what he might do to better cope with the virus, he proclaimed, “Focus more on my grades and not slack off as much.” Miller is truly an inspira-tional student that would push him-

self even in the face of adversity. The second infected senior, who goes by the name of Connor Pope, showed me how truly detrimental this virus can be. I asked him if he felt he had been affected by this virus, to which he responded “Yes”. Intrigued, I con-tinued. I inquired what his thoughts were as to how he might combat this virus. He responded “Yes”. I stood there in utter shock of how greatly this virus had affected the seniors of Half Moon Bay High School, some even to the point of not being able to speak in full sen-tences. Nevertheless, being as all my questions had been answered, I began to leave, but Connor turned tomewithsomefinalwords,“Work hard, play hard and eat a balanced breakfast everyday. That will probably cure your senior-itis.” To all upperclassmen who are infected with this virus, keep your heads up it will all soon be over. The struggle is real.

An epidemic has spread across the Half Moon Bay campus. This virus has affected the majority of the senior class, ruining grades and attendance records. The virus is senior-itis. It’s symptoms include ditching, missing assignments, and extreme apathy. It would appear that lower classmen are immune to this virus, but some fear newer and stronger strains of the virus are developing, and they too will be infected.

Areyoufeelinitnow?By Marco George