Volume 45 Number 4

8/16/2019 Volume 45 Number 4

1/19

NORSEMANVolume 45, Number 4 • May 2016

T h e B r y a n H i g h S c h o o l

www.BryanHighNoresman.com

ONLINE

SEE MORE

Faculty members honored by superintendent

We want YOUR photos!

Follow Us

BREAKING NEWS

FEATURES

PHOTOS

SPORTS

The ‘News’ category of The Norseman is the best way tostay up-to-date with the news& information at Bryan High.

Other features and news storiescan be found online. All old sto-ries can also be revisited on the web site including student andfaculty spotlights as well as or-ganization articles.

To stay up-to-date withthe latest sports scores forBryan High School athlet-ic programs, be sure to visit bryanhighnorseman.com/sports.

We want you to be a part ofBHS Publications. Share yourphotos with us and look for a

new slideshow of fan picturessoon. http://bryanhighnorse-man.smugmug.com/upload/B7X8sB/vikings

Facebook http://www.facebook.com/BryanISDBryanHighNorseman

Twitterhttps://twitter.com/bhsnorse-man

SmugMughttp://www.bryanhighnorse-manphotos.com/

3450 Campus Drive • Bryan, TX 77802

[email protected]

Jennyfer Tucker Associate editor

The 212 degree award is an award thatrecognizes employees who go above and beyond their duties. Water is hot at 211degrees, but at 212 degrees water turns

to steam which is powerful enough tomove a locomotive. This year head mon-itor Lester Banks and science teacherColleen Holmes were two of ten districtemployees recognized with this honor bysuperintendent Tommy Wallis. “Both Mr. Banks and Mrs. Holmes go beyond their daily duties,” Wallis said.“They are both individuals that put service before self and both do so much ex-tra for the students at BHS.” Principal Lane Buban agrees that

Banks and Holmes are two of the mosthard working people in the school dis-trict and that they deserve this award. “Mr. Banks gives a lot to not only Bry-an High School, but to the school dis-trict and the community,” Buban said.“He works at other campuses, he helpsaround the district, he gives up all of hisfree time to help schools and to help kids,and he’s always wanting to go above and beyond when it involves a student or akid who needs extra help.”

Just like Banks, Holmes spends muchof her free time doing things to help oth-er people. “Every time there’s a need for kids onthis campus Mrs. Holmes volunteers hertime,” Buban said. “She has done thatthroughout the 20 plus years she’s beenhere. She’s given a lot to the school and alot to kids. It doesn’t matter when it is, itdoesn’t matter if it’s on the weekends, af-ter school, or before school, she is always willing to help.”

Many educators are characterized as being seless and Holmes and Banks areno exception as every facet of their liferevolves around giving back to others.

“I feel very honored and I feel veryhumbled to receive this award. I’m gladI could help others,” Holmes said. “I justdo. My purpose in life is serving oth-ers, and if I can help anyone, then that’s what I want to do. That’s what I am com-

manded to do by God to help him serveothers.” Banks views his job as a way to helpothers but has difculty accepting rec-ognition and awards for doing what heloves. “I’m not about receiving any awards oranything,” Banks said. “I’m about mak-ing sure that kids and students under-stand that they have somebody here tocare for them. I do what I do, becauseI’ve had people do it for me. I was able

to get free education, and one of my biggest dreams and goals was to come back to the community and give back.I want people to look up to me as arole model and as a person that theycan count on if they ever need help.” In a district with many employ-ees, it is a testament to the quality of

teachers at BHS with two employees re-ceiving such a prestigious award. “I could make a long list of things thatthey do, but it’s just too much,” Bubansaid. “Out of all the people that have re-ceived this award, I think they are prob-

ably the most deserving.” Many of us look to our teachers as men-tors, guides, and in many cases, holdersof innite knowledge who we could onlyone day hope to possess. Often times weforget that teachers were once students,and have shared many of the difcultfeats we face every day. For some teach-ers, school doesn’t end with the nal bellafter nals, but instead they trade theirteaching caps for thinking caps, and takeon the role of a student once again.

Superintendent Tommy Wallispresents the 212 degree awards toscience department head ColleenHolmes and head monitor Lester

Banks.


2/19

Academic UIL

Junior Ale Reyes advanced to region with a third place nish at the districtUIL competition in Ready Writing. Senior Haven Pottinger placed rstin the prose competition at districtand advanced to region where heearned fth place.

Art Awards Art students competed at the State VASE Art Competition where the fol-

lowing students earned awards:

Grace Wall – Superior RatingHannah Charanza – Exemplary RatingJordan Garza – Exemplary RatingGenny Porras – Superior RatingChristina Jones – Exemplary RatingMegan Meade – Exemplary Rating Yadira Gomez-Reyes – ExemplaryRating Alex Salazar – Exemplary Rating &Exemplary Rating

Choir UIL Competition The choir competed as fourdifferent choirs at the UIL Con-cert & Sight-Reading contest heldat College Station High School.

•Varsity Men – Concert 1-2-1,

Sight-reading 1-1-1 (Sweepstakes) •Non-Varsity Mixed – Concert 2-2-2, Sight-reading 1-1-1 •Varsity Mixed – Concert 1-1-1,Sight-reading 1-1-1 (Sweepstakes) •Varsity Women – Concert 1-1-1,Sight-reading 1-1-1 (Sweepstakes)

Academic All-State The following softball playersearned the honor of Academic All-

State for the THSCA: 1st Team

Nicole SmithRyan Simpson (trainer)

2nd Team Morgan Chavarria

Lauren Galvan Jenna Way

The following baseball playersearned the honor of Academic All-State for the THSCA: 2nd Team Landon Miner Chase Rieger Honorable Mention

Garrett Dohnalik

News & events at Bryan High School

Around CampusPage 2 - Around Campus/Teacher Spotlight

Danica Mendes

Co-editor

Many of us look to our teachersas mentors, guides, and in manycases, holders of infinite knowledge who we could only one day hope to

possess. Often times weforget that teachers wereonce students, and haveshared many of the dif -ficult feats we face everyday. For some teachers,school doesn’t end withthe final bell after finals, but instead they tradetheir teaching caps forthinking caps, and takeon the role of a student

once again.For theatre teacher Katie Cross,

returning to school is just anotherstep in her path to obtain her goals. “I’m so excited about going back toschool,” Cross said. “I’m getting mymasters of arts in directing at Roo-sevelt University in Chicago, whichis an amazing top conservatoryschool.” The prestigious program only ac-cepts a total of 12 directors into their

school every year. Cross will spendseven weeks over the next three sum-mers studying theatre theory, tech-nical theatre, and directing classes to

obtain her degree.“I’m so excited to live in Chicago

and get to intern at professional the-atre companies there, and see amaz-ing shows,” Cross said. “I’m reallyexcited about pursuing education

and I think it’s reallyimportant for my stu-dents to learn that youcan never stop learn-ing.” For Cross, a careerin directing and edu-cation wasn’t alwaysher initial plan. Cross began her career aspir-ing to be a professionalperformer on Broad-

way, but after time andexperience with children, Cross wasable to fuse her performing dreams with new found teachi ng aspirations.

“I began to work at children’scamps and started directing thereand realized that I really enjoy work -ing with students,” Cross said. “I was working in a professional theatre gigat the time and I was like ‘you knowI love this but I love students more.’ After that everything changed, I be-

gan theatre education and neverlooked back.” Cross describes her experience inteaching as both challenging and re-

warding, and is constantly motivated by her students.

“I think it’s important that stu-dents take theatre because it’s a fineart that encompasses all the finearts,” Cross said. “I enjoy teaching

theatre at a high school level becausestudents in their high school yearshave a lot of questions, and they’researching for answers and trying tofind where they belong and theatre isa place where everyone can belong.

Cross bases her theatre programon disciplines within the field andtries to bring same rigor and inten-sity present in a college setting. “It’s really important that students

understand that they’re here to work

and to learn,” Cross said. “My goalfor my students and my theatre pro-gram is when they leave me they will be able to go to the professional the-atre world at a collegiate level.” Cross’ motivating attitude andcountless hours with her studentsdoesn’t go unnoticed. For studentsactively involved with the theatreprogram, to entry level theatre Iclasses, Cross pushes her students tosucceed in every way.

“She pushes us really hard whenit comes to us needing to get thingsdone,” Senior Haven Pottinger said.“She can usually motivate us to do

our school work and theatre work.” Cross intends to use the schoolingshe receives the next three summers

to not only better herself as a direc -tor, but to incorporate the educationshe receives back into her students

lives.“I’m excited to go learn and come

back and teach my students every -thing I learned,” Cross said. “I’malways wanting to make sure I haveup-to-date techniques and improve what can be better for my students.” Cross describes the rewarding feel-ings of seeing students benefit fromher program, and dive into the worldof theatre.

“Students come up to me and

they say ‘I finally feel like I belongsomewhere and I finally feel likeI’m accepted here where I’m loved,challenged’,” Cross said. “These stu-dents are going to walk away with anappreciation for theatre and art, andthat is a great moment.” Cross hopes her ambition and end-less effort in her own schooling andin the theatre arts program shows

students that hard work ultimatelyleads to a world of opportunity.

“Often times I sit in the empty the-atre where it’s quiet and still and I just soak up the possibilities of whatcan happen there,” Cross said.

Teacher transitions back to being student for summerCrossing over


3/19

Club Spotlight - Page 3

Payton McKeehan Staff writer School fundraising, somedread selling products fortheir campaign or organiza-tion, others adore the op-portunity to do somethingfor others. Bryan High’s KeyClub sponsored fundrais-ers for the school to help thecommunity. Most recentlyPennies for Pasta, Stuck for

Bucks, and jeans and ath-letic wear passes were thefocus of the club as they toraised money for Leukemiaresearch. Key Club chose Leukemiaresearch to support studentKenzie Kelley, who was re-cently diagnosed with Leuke-mia. The Leukemia and Lym-phoma society asked Key

Club to carry out the fund-raisers over a span of three weeks. The frst week con-sisted of publicizing thefundraisers for Pennies forPasta and Stuck for Bucks, while also selling the jeansand athletic wear passes forstudents and teachers. Pennies for Pasta part-nered Key Club with OliveGarden to provide a pasta

lunch for the English classthat raised the most money while Stuck for Bucks wasthe second campaign KeyClub held to raise money forLeukemia research wherethey called on teachers tocompete to be taped to thecafeteria wall. “Club member Kenzie Kel-ley is battling Leukemia,”Key Club sponsor Melinda

Mack said. “So when the op-portunity came up to do thefundraiser the club was really

supportive. It was somethingthey wanted to be a part ofand do it in honor of Kenzie.” Key Club members utilizesome ideas offered by theLeukemia and Lymphomasociety, but work to comeup with their own ideas that would work well with theBryan Highpopulation. “All the

m e m b e r s were able tocome togeth-er,” Key Clubmember LexiDurbin said.”I really likedthe greatideas like thePennies forPasta thatcame with

the programand studentsgot really ex-cited aboutfree food.Our presi-dent cameup with theidea to tape ateacher to the wall and then jeans and ath-

letic wear passes came fromall the members since stu-dents tend to get involved when something like that isavailable.” The students nominatedabout six teachers to par-ticipate and the teacher thatcollected the most donationsgot duct-taped to the wall asthe students’ reward for con-tributing the money.

“Alex Medlock, the choirteacher, by far collected themost money so during the

lunches, we duct-taped himto the wall, which was kindof funny.” Mack said. Medlock’s students foundmuch joy in watching their beloved instructor beingtaped to a wall in order toraise some cash after win-ning the fundraiser contest.

“It was mostly fun because we got to see Mr. Medlockhanging off the wall,” choirstudent Cassidy Crawfordsaid, “He was really uncom-fortable, so it was funny to watch.” Medlock took the sufferingin stride because of his per-sonal connection to the cause which motivated him and hisstudents to donate.

“We’ve had two kids withcancer in the past couple of years, John Harden Hicks,

who passed away earlier inthe year, and now KenzieKelley who is battling Leuke-mia,” Medlock said. “My en-couragement was just to givetowards something that’sgoing to help the students’friends overcome a reallytough disease.”

The Stuckfor Bucks proj-ect raised money

before and dur-ing the wall-tap-ing by catchingthe attention ofstudents duringlunches. “We raisedabout $145 priorto the taping, butthen we raised an-other $35 while I was being taped,”

Medlock said. “I was making peo-ple pay to take apicture.” Key clubmembers cametogether to comeup with the fun-draising idea ofallowing jeansand athletic wearpasses, knowing

the students and teachers would appreciate it. “We had a committee ofKey Club members that worked on this fundraiser,and that idea actually camefrom a couple of those com-mittee members,” Mack said.“We also had some materi-als from the Leukemia andLymphoma Society of activi-ties that other schools have

done that have been suc-cessful and the athletic wearpass was mentioned as one of

those activities.” Unlike many fundraisers,the jeans and athletic wearpasses took no money fromthe Key Club funds in orderto get it going. “This type of fundraiseris benefcial to Key Club be-cause we don’t have to reachinto our current funds to getit going,” Mack said. “We’renot out any money up front

to do the fundraiser, whichis really helpful, and then allthe money raised goes to theLeukemia and LymphomaSociety. There’s nothing wehave to pay back and every-thing we raise goes to thecause that we’re supporting.” These fundraisers wereconsidered a success by KeyClub members because they were able to reach their

goals. “We raised almost $4,000for the Leukemia and Lym-phoma society from a combination of the athletic wearand jean passes for studentsand teachers, doing the Stuckfor Bucks competition andthen the fourth period Eng-lish classes competing for thepasta party,” Mack said. Key Club members were

inspired by the generosity oftheir peers throughout theentirety of the fundraiser. “I think Key Club membersrealized that Key Club canmake a great impact on thecommunity,” Lexi said. “We were able to raise over a lotof money and I think thatspeaks highly of Bryan Highstudents. Many kids didn’tthink we would be able to

make our goal, but we wereable to do that and more.”

Key Club raises money for Leukemia Lymphoma societyGiving back

Students tape choir director Alex Medlock to thewall to raise money for the Leukemia and Lympho-ma society through Key Club.


4/19

Lucy RaleighCo-editor

Most art forms live on to last life-times; paintings, sculptures, evenfilms stand the tests of time and arestill viewed and appreciated yearsafter their creation. One art formthat differs from this common char-acteristic is the art of horticulture,otherwise known as floral design. Al-though floral arrangements will oneday wilt and lose their beauty, de-

signers are no less passionate abouttheir work and still strive to createart through flowers and other plants.Senior Christina Vinson discoveredthis art form and has prospered init under the di-rection of floraldesign teacherBarbara Volk-Tunnel. “I took [flo-ral design] for

an art class be-cause I neededit to graduate,”Christina said. “Iended up fallingin love and see-ing a talent that Ididn’t even knowI had. I endedup participatingin the HoustonLivestock Show

and Rodeo because Mrs. Volk-Tun-nel saw talent in me as well.” Christina’s new found talent hasalso been recognized by her teach-ers, enabling her to compete withher floral designs. It was exciting to see Christinacompete in the Houston LivestockShow and Rodeo,” Volk-Tunnel said.“You can tell that some of your stu-dents just have a natural knack forthings like floral design, and Chris-

tina’s a creative young lady so I wasexcited when she said she wanted tocompete in the show.”

Competing with her new found tal-ent proved successful for Christinaand has also brought her happinessthrough the acquisition of a newskill. “Winning was amazing,” Chris-tina said. “I was so surprised thatI gasped and grabbed theknee of my friend nextto me, not believing thatthey said my name for firstplace. My face was full of

tears because it was such ahappy moment for me.” Christina gained not onlya first place win with her arrange-ment, but valuable time with her

friends andfamily members both inthe arrange-ment processand the com-petition.

“My favor-ite part aboutcompeting wasthe time I gotto spend withmy dad build-ing my starc o n t a i n e r , ”Christina said.“Getting to ar-range some-thing so beau-

tiful and getting to spend the day with my friends was great.” Using only natural flowers, Chris-tina was able to showcase her talent by using flowers she knew she could work with and that would look beau-tiful together. “You have to use real flowers,”Christina said. “A lot of people weredisqualified because of the fake anddyed flowers. We had to use real andnatural colored flowers, so I had the

natural colored roses, delphinium,sunflowers, and Baby’s Breath.” Floral design isn’t just throwing

pretty flowers into a pot and hop-ing for the best, it requires skillfulthinking, strategy, and method. “I just thought about the flowers I wanted and the spots I wanted themin,” Christina said. “I wanted mydelphiniums to be in the middle be-

cause they’re the tallest, and then mysunflowers kind of circling aroundthem, and then I had Baby’s Breathflowing towards the triangles of mycontainer to go with the roses.” To set herself apart from the othercontestants, Christina built her owncontainer to be unique and differentfrom other store-bought containers.

“It was a little dif-ficult to build thecontainer becauseI didn’t know muchabout building with wood,” Christ ina said. “I hadto have my dad help me be-cause I didn’t know howto build it, but it was fun working with my dad.” Many students joinextracurricular ac-

tivities in schoolto reap whatever benefits theymay provide, butsome studentsparticipate inthese activitiesto learn valuableskills while beingcreative and hav-ing fun. “These classes

and competitionshave reinforced how toget along with a group and

work together and encourage team-mates,” Volk-Tunnel said. “Chris-tina had another teammate that wasin the same competition so they en-couraged each other and were verysupportive and happy for each other when the other person won. Stu-

dents learn to be good winners and good los-ers through these typesof programs thoughChristina already ex-

hibits a lot of thosekinds of natural abili-ties.”

Christina is happy to have gainedskills within horticulture as shelooks to continue refining them inthe future.

“I’m hoping to possibly open ashop one day with flowers,” Chris-tina said. “Though it is not really mymain goal, being able to work with

flowers is kind of awesome.”

Student discovers budding talent through horticulture program

Page 4 - Agriculture Feature

“My face was full of tears because itwas such a happy moment for me.”

--senior Christina Vinson

Coming up roses

Senior Christina Vinson showcasesher arrangement from the HLSR.


5/19

Agriculture Feature - Page 5

Danica MendesCo-editor Early mornings in the barn clean-ing and feeding. Watching the sun

rise over the trees no matter the weather. Taking care of livestockrequires commitment andresponsibility. Sophomore Wilsey Wendler has foundsuccess in showing steersas an activity which has been passed down fromgeneration to generation. “The commercial steercontest has five differentcategories,” Wilsey said. “It

is based on the commercialsteers and how well theygrade, the interview theygive, how well studentskeep their record booksand there is a quiz withthat, and then there is a test over themeat industry.” After years of watching her imme-diate family work with cattle, Wilseytook up the trade at a young age.

“I started showing commercialsteers in the third grade at the localshow,” Wilsey said. “Then I contin-ued to show steers in Houston when

I was in the fifth grade and commer-cial steer shows go back to when my

dad showed when he was young.”. Wilsey’s placed 4th out of 130 con-testants this year at the steer contestfor the Houston Livestock Show andRodeo. Where competitors come

from all over the state.“I was proud of myself,” Wilsey

said. “I worked extremely hard thispast year and I’m ready to go back

and win the keys to the truck for firstplace at the event.”

Her determination to get tofirst place has ensured herhard work and commitmentto commercial steer shows. “She’s learned how to workhard,” agriculture teacherBarbara Volk-Tunnel said.“She’s had to meet a lot ofpeople and interact withadults. Her father also takes

her to places in the industry tolearn and grow her knowledgein the meat industry field sothat has helped her with theinterview process.” Wilsey’s dedication in mov-

ing forward and being a leader in thechapter has benefited herself andeveryone apart of the chapter. Shesets herself up for success and workshard to pursue her future in the agri-

cultural field. “Wilsey is the vice president of ourchapter,” Volk-Tunnel said. “She’salso the sentinel for our district. She

tries to do well by setting high goalsfor herself and works extremely hardto pursue her dreams.” Wilsey’s goals for herself have ledher to become an excellent studentand have benefited herself and oth-ers in the chapter and her showingcareer in commercial steers. “Wilsey is a very eager student,”agriculture teacher Joshua Hohertzsaid. “She’s always putting forwardthe effort to benefit the chapter and

herself. She works hard with hercommercial steers and her and herfamily have dedicated many years tosteer contests.” Wilsey’s love for agriculture con-tinues to grow and prosper as she byattends more steer shows through-out Texas, including one this sum-mer at TCFA, Texas Cattle Feeders Associat ion, in the panhandle.

Ag program steers student in positive direction

Jennyfer Tucker Associate Editor Waking up early in the mornings to feed their ani-mals, putting in hours each day to prepare for thenext show, and enjoying every minute of it. That’sthe typical life of an agriculture student. JuniorHarper Langston’s dedication paid off at Brazos Valley Livestock Contest showing her goats placingsecond. “Harper recently ended her year showing goats,”agriculture teacher Joshua Hohertz said. “[She]ended with a bang and placed second in her class atthe Brazos County Livestock Show, which is some-thing many competitors strive for.” Harper took almost a year to raise her goats andplans to raise even more as she sticks to being in ag. “It took me nine months to raise my goats,” Harp-er said. “I started in July and I nished in March. Iraised two goats and I showed them this year. Next year I plan to raise and show four or ve goats.” Showing goats is not just about a single day spentin a arena, but instead requires preparation andconsistency with academic classes. “Participants have to be passing every class andthey have to take a course where ethics for animals

is discussed,” Harper said. “Participants also haveto take care of their animal and then they’re able toshow.” Although many would say that showing goats hasits own rewards it is also nice tohave hard work recognized withmonetary and other prizes.

“I won a boot bag and a sales lot where I sold my goat for $1800s,”Harper said. Agriculture is in Harper’s bloodas she is part of a family that hasgrown up around raising andshowing livestock. “My brother did it, my dad did it,and that was part of the inuence,”Harper said. “I chose to do goats because we got a new teacher andhe showed goats for 14 years andI wanted to branch out to anotheranimal and showing goats has de-nitely been my happy place.” Harper’s agriculture teacher sees the potential inher to continue growing based on what she has al-ready been able to accomplish.

“I have had the privilege to not only teach Harperin the ag shop,” Hohertz said. “She’s also been ableto push her leadership abilities, competitive nature,and drive to put a good name to Bryan FFA,”

Agriculture will continueto be a part of Harper’s life next year and after graduation as sheenjoys the activity as a whole. “I do plan to continue mycareer in agriculture as I get old-er.” Harper said. “I don’t knowthat I’ll necessarily pursue a ca-reer with goats, but I will pursueit around agriculture.” Harper’s dedication to aghas not only benetted her, butthe ag program as a whole “I feel that the greatesthonor of working with Harpernot only comes from her highplacing at county show, butfrom witnessing her determina-

tion to push our chapter to greater things,” Hohertzsaid.

Agriculture student follows in family footsteps

Sophomore Wilsey Wendler displays her awards from theHouston Livestock Show & Rodeo.

Senior Harper Langston showcase hergoat during the Brazos County Fair.


6/19


7/19

Sports - Page 7

Payton McKeehan Staff writer Standing on the pitcher’s mound, dirt blowing atthe pitcher’s feet, all eyes on him, but he’s only fo-cusing on the batter standing sixty feet away. Thecrowd grows silent, no one breathes for the game istoo intense and the pitcher needs one more strike.Senior Landon Miner carries the weight of the pres-sure with ease each time he takes the mound. Hehas the mindset of an athlete, of a leader. Landon has spent the last decade and a half work-

ing toward a single goal which was nally realized when Texas A&M offered him a scholarship for baseball. “Ever since I was little I wanted to play college baseball and being able to go to A&M is a dreamcome true,” Landon said. “Its both intimidating andexciting. I know it’s going to be hard and it’s go-ing to be a struggle, but it’s going to be fun and I’mlooking forward to it.” As Landon goes off to play college ball, his coachdoesn’t doubt his ability to play at the required skilllevel. “Landon will continue to work just as well as hehas in high school because he’s dedicated to thesport and he has the knowledge of the sport,” Base- ball coach David Powers said. “He’ll do whatever ittakes to be successful.” Junior catcher Leon Denena has stood by Land-on’s side ever since they had been introduced to thegame, creating a bond in and out of baseball. “It’s fun and easy to catch Landon because hespots his fastball well, locates his pitches, has con-trol over everything, and he knows how to run thegame,” Leon said. “He’s very good at controlling thegame.” Leon has watched Landon control the game fromthe pitcher’s mound ever since Little League. “I caught him in Little League and he was thehardest throwing kid there, so it was kind of scaryto catch him,” Leon said. “Now I watch him improveand get better and now he’s one of the best pitchersin Bryan, which is pretty cool because I was there atthe beginning and I’m there right before he goes tocollege.” Powers sees something other than just a good baseball player in Landon, he sees drive and a per-sonality that stands out among the rest.

“Landon is a young man of character,” Powerssaid. “It’s fun to have him on the team because hedoes other things besides baseball. He gets along

with everybody, he’s a good leader, a good friendand a fun young man.”

Teammates see how Landon leads by example onthe baseball eld and in life. “He’s very good at getting everybody in the rightframe of mind,” Leon said “He’s not always a vocalleader, but he’s very productive and he does well onthe eld, he gets the job done.” Through all of the years Landon has played baseball, he has learned many lesson that he has beenable to apply to his life.

“Baseball has humbled me,” Landon said. “It’s a very humbling game because you have to be ableto deal with failure. Playing baseball over the yearshas really helped me grow as a person I think I’ve become a better person because of baseball.” Baseball has also taught Landon how to deal withadversity and endurance tokeep trying harder. “The game has taught meto be able to deal with fail-ure,” Landon said. “Youhave to be able to lose, andlose bad, and still be ableto come back the next gameand play as good as you can. You always have to look forthe bright side of things andhope for the best.” Baseball is a sport wherenothing is nal until the endof the game, if one’s endur-ance can keep up with it thenthey could turn their losinggame around and win, andthat’s Landon’s favorite partabout it. “I like never knowing what’s going to happen. Ateam could be down by 10and still win a game,” Land-on said. “Being able to com-pete and never knowing theoutcome is my favorite part.” Landon has always enjoyed baseball but sees pitching ashaving its own special beau-ty.

“Pitching is like an art,”Landon said. “You have to be able to throw the ball here

and there and be able to change speeds whenever you want. I feel like that’s something I’m prettygood at and that’s why I like pitching; it’s fun tome.” Coach Powers sees Landon’s leadership skills inhow he sets an example for the rest of the team. “Landon is a really good leader, not so much a vo-cal leader as just the way he carries himself on theeld,” Powers said. “He’s a young man of characteron the eld and in the classroom.” Though playing in the majors is always the ulti-

mate dream for baseball players, Landon is focus-ing on the present and his future at A&M. “I can’t say what the future holds right now,”Landon said. “But I’m going to A&M and I’m goingto work as hard as I can, and I look forward to thefuture from there.”

From Little League to collegiate play,baseball player realizes eld of dreams

Senior Landon Miner res a the ball across the plate for anotherstrike to retire the side during a tournament.


8/19

Page 8 - Sports

Te following girls track membersqualified for area at the district meet:•Rayla Hawkins, Quinteria Johnson,

Miranda Golden, and Jamie Kennedy -1st place in 4x100 with a time of 49.02

•Rayla Hawkins, Quinteria Johnson,Miranda Golden, and Jamie Kennedy -

1st place in 4x200 with a time of 144.3•Miranda Golden- 1st place in the 300Hurdles with a time of 46.9

•Chassidy Rusk- 1st place in shot put with a throw of 39’

•Charnell Gibson- 4th place in shotput with a throw of 32’

Te following students qualified for

region at the area meet:•Chassidy Rusk - 1st place in shot put

with a throw of 40’

•Charnell Gibson - 2nd place in the

shot put with a PR of 3’ f urther 36’•Rayla Hawkins, Quinteria Johnson,Miranda Golden, and Jamie Kennedy

- 3rd place in the 4x100 with a time of48.9•Ty’esha Foley, Quinteria Johnson,

Miranda Golden, and Jamie Kennedy -2nd place in the 4x200 with a time of

142.8•Miranda Golden - 2nd place in the

300 hurdles with a time of 47.5

Te following student qualified for

state at the region meet:•Chassidy Rusk - 1st place in shot put

with a throw of 41’1”

Te following student placed at thestate track meet:

•Chassidy Rusk - 5th place in shot put

with a throw of 40’3”.

e boys track team n-ished in 5th place at the 18-5A district track meet. Four

athletes advanced to the arearound.

Senior AJ Lawson earned4th place in the high jump

event by clearing the bar at 6’2”. Senior Dedrick Davis

placed 2nd in the shotputevent by throwing for 49’

9.25”. Sophomore Gus Hancock

repeated his 1st place per-formance in the 800m dash

with a time of 1:56.32. Sophomore Campbell

Webb advanced to area with

his 2nd place finish in the

pole vault event by clearing13’.

At the area track meet Law-son placed 3rd in the high

jump event, clearing 6’4” to

advance to region. Hancock also advanced to

the area meet with a personalrecord time in the 800m dash

of 1:55.

At the region track meet

Hancock ran another person-al record time in the 800m

dash of 1:53.67 to advance tothe state meet.

Hancock earned 1st place

at the state track meet in the

800m dash with a time of1:52.84.

Track Season Review During the winter sports banquet coaches recognized athletes for their hard work and

determination.

In powerliting, coach Robert Jesurun named Jared Spivey as the Most Valuable Lifter

for the guys and Keirra Mack for the girls.

In swimming, coach Sarah Milne named Julia Cook as the MVP on the girls side and

Marco Gutierrez for the boys.

Gutierrez, Addison Ayers, and Bethany Peterson were recognized as team captains for

swimming.

Maya Gutierrez was named as the Most Spirited girl, while Ayers took home that

honor for the boys. Jackson Thurstin was Most Improved boy and Cat Darnell was Most

Improved girl.

Boys soccer coach Tommie Allmon named Jaime Aguilar MVP. Nick Cargo earned the

Offensive MVP award, while senior Julio Navarro and sophomore Tomas Rios shared

the Defensive MVP award. The Dedication Award was also given to co-winners and was awarded for commitment

on the eld, in the classroom and for their character. The two recipients were Eric Carlos

and Antonio Abel Silva.

The girls soccer coach, Chris Gibson named Jazmine Bustos MVP, the Offensive

MVP award went to Rowdie Bright, and Defensive MVP award went to Rebecca Ad-

cock.

The Most Improved award went to Fabiola Gomez and the Heart Award to Adcock.

Wrestler Ezra Hernandez earned three statistics-based awards including the most pins,

the fastest pin, and the best record.

JaMarcus Thomas was selected Most Promising Freshman for the wrestling team

while Larry Duron was named Most Improved Wrestler and Andres Gonzalez won the

Underdog Award. Boys basketball coach Chris Jones recognized A.J. Lawson as a TABC all-state selec-

tion and the District 18-5A MVP. Lawson also claimed four of them statistics awards for

team leader in eld goal percentage, rebounds, steals, and assists.

Zach Nutall was also recognized for being the team high point free-throw percentage

leader.

Winter sports banquethonors announced

Seniors Jazmine Bustos and Kimberly Sepulveda bothsigned to play soccer at Brookhaven College next year.

Signing Day

BOYS GIRLS


9/19

Sports - Page 9

Senior shot put competitor advances to state, earns fthGoing the distance

Star Salter Staff writer Since this article was written, se-nior Chassidy Rusk has gone on towin 5th place at the state meet witha throw of 40’3”.

Up stairs. Down stairs. Windsprints. Exhausting work for anyathlete, but an average day for seniorChassidy Rusk. Though she doesn’trun in any track events, she is a part

of the shot put team and it’s muchmore than hurling an 8.8 lb. steel

ball down the feld. “It is an exciting event to see, espe-cially when you have a tal-ented student-athlete likeChassidy to watch,” trackcoach Jennifer Pittmansaid. Chassidy has been in-spired by her family and

wanted to make themproud, especially her god-parents who enjoy theevent.

“It runs in the family,Chassidy said. My auntsdid shot put in high school,and they were really goodat it,” Chassidy said. “Myaunt actually won the statemeet when she was in highschool, and my godparents

are really big on it too.”Throwing a personal best during an invitationalmeet, Chassidy has contin-ued to improve this year.

“I threw my longest of42’3” at the Temple meet,”Chassidy said. “The recordat Bryan High is 48 so it’sfar from what I’m at right now. I just

want to keep beating myself in everymeet. My goal right now is to im-

prove.” Her coaches continue to work withher and push her to keep achieving

her goals. “Chassidy has grown tremendous-ly throughout her career and has im-proved her throwing by 8.5 feet sincefreshmen year in shot put,” Pittmansaid, “Hopefully, she can add anoth-er 2 feet before the season is over.” Chassidy is a leader on the teamand serves as an example to othersteammates. “Chassidy is older thanall of us and she has more experiencein track,” junior teammate Jennyfer

Tucker said. “She knows more of what she’s doing, what we need to doand if we’re doing something wrongshe’ll show us how to do it. She’s

like another coach and she helps thecoaches motivate us.” While dominating the shot put

event this year, Chassidy has contin-ued to stay level headed as she push-es to get better at each meet.

“What separates her is that she’squiet and reserved,” Pittman said.“Chassidy is humble about her tal-ents and abilities, but she is extreme-ly competitive in nature as well,

which is a rare combination.” Chassidy stays focused on her goalsso when she does face a setback, sheis able to continue moving forward.

“Sometimes you’re not going to getthe outcome that you want,” Chas-sidy said, “but that doesn’t mean

you stop there and don’t keep trying. You have to work hard for everything you get in life and you can’t settle foranything. I could’ve settled for 39’

or 40’, but I wanted tokeep pushing harder andharder. You have to keepgoing, because you neverknow how good you can

be until you keep push-ing yourself to be the

best.”Even though shot

put is an individualevent, there is always astrong support system ofpeople behind Chassidyat each meet.

“Sometimes I feellike I’m not good enoughor I don’t work hardenough but my team-mates and coaches keep

pushing me and encour-aging me to get better,”Chassidy said. “It helpsme continue to workhard and strive to be the

best I can be in whateverI participate.”

Sometimes coachesequally as invested in a

competition as the athlete and expe-rience the same joy that comes with

victory.

“When I threw the 42’ Coach Pit-tman and Coach Beal were jump-ing and hollering like cheerleaders,”

Chassidy said. “I swear Coach Bealdid a toe touch, and Coach Pittmandid a backip. It was so great to seehow happy they were to see my suc-cess.” Teammates agree with how thecoaches view Chassidy in that she isalways focused, but never arrogant

when it comes to competition. “Chassidy’s one of the only studentsthat does shot put so that makes herdifferent,” Jennyfer said. “She is very

competitive, but she’s not really outthere bragging about it like somepeople do. Chassidy doesn’t brag;she’s not cocky about her successes.” Since Chassidy is graduating this

year and knows she won’t be withher teammates anymore she wantsto leave an impact on students thatare new to shot put. “I’m defnitely going to miss theenvironment, and I always like tosee the newcomers come in and seehow great the track team can be, be-cause people don’t really considertrack to be a big sport at the schools,”Chassidy said. “It’s always amazingto watch people come in with lowstandards and leave with high ones.That’s something I’m going to miss.”

Chassidy has a gift for shot put-ting, love for others, and kindnessthat her teammates love and adorethat makes a difference when they

win and lose. “Chassidy is really motivating,”Jennyfer said. “She has a good senseof humor and whenever we mess upshe’ll say something encouraging,

but it’s really funny so it makes usfeel better and makes it feel like it’snot as bad as it is.” Chassidy doesn’t know what liesahead of her life, but she’ll follow

whatever path God puts her on. “If God blesses me to play after

high school I will, but if not, I enjoyed it while it lasted in high schooland middle school,” Chassidy said.

Senior Chassidy Rusk launches the shot put down the feldwhile practicing for the state meet.


10/19

Page 8 - Fight Hunger Coloring Books - Page 11Page 10 - Coloring Books

Lucy RaleighCo-editor At the ripe ol’ age of 15, I often look back nostalgically on my days of school-mandated nap time, the addict-like rushof joy that comes with recess, and most ofall: insurmountable collections of color-ing books.

In kindergarten I was fond of scribblinglines of crayon into the printed outline ofDisney princesses and random zoo ani-

mals, both inside the lines and out.There has always been something

about coloring books that takes an insaneamount of focus and determination for a young child, and shoving a crayon into achild’s hand and putting a coloring pagein front of them has proven to be one ofthe most effective ways of buying parentsand teachers a few moments of silence. Even though I am no longer a young,crazy child in need of something to keepme quiet while my parents take a breath-er, I do still enjoy sitting down at a pile of blank outlines of my favorite animals andcharacters with a box of colors at hand.

As a tee nager, there may come a time

when feeling content with coloring in theTechnicolor dress of a vaguely Europeanprincess or the red and blue body suit ofan agile superhero gets a little old.

Often I would wonder about a some- what more sophisticated option than thetypical coloring book in hopes of ndingan outlet for prime time-wasting otherthan watching entire seasons of the FOXtelevision series, Glee, on Netix in onesitting.

Not soon after my thoughts of anevolved coloring book did my mothercome home with a bushel of books in onehand and two 64-piece boxes of gel pensin the other saying, “Let’s color.” With the craze of the adult color-ing book buzzing around bored house- wives and stressed civilians, craft storeslike Michael’s and Hobby Lobby haveprepared their arsenal and lled theirshelves with coloring books chock-fullof zentangles of everything ranging fromfamous cityscapes, picturesque under-the-sea and Sahara landscapes, and ran-dom circular mandalas all intricately de-signed to take up lots of time and focus

to color. Of course, some may wonder why theseadult coloring books are gaining so muchpopularity.

Sure, they’re fun to do and are a great way to kill time, but aren’t adults busyenough as it is? The truth is, these wildlypopular books are a way to destress anddistract from the crazy world that sur-rounds life while also providing a littlepiece of paradise far away from the hectic

lives of busy adults and stressed teenag-ers.

If you’re the kind of person who dis-misses any passing fad as something thatseems like a waste of time or just some-thing that kids are up to these days, giveadult coloring books a try.

Chances are that these coloring books will help with whatever crazy stress you’re dealing with at the time, whetherit’s a busy testing season or a calendarfull of PTO events, adult coloring booksare a great and creative alternative to anyother unproductive avenues of de-stress-ing.

Adult coloring books provide escape, relaxationArt of distraction

What do you do to destress and relax?

“I go to sleep at

8:00 pm everynight.” Jillian Poe, 11

“I play basketballbecause it’s some-thing I’m passion-ate about.”Zach Nutall, 10

“I meditate to

destress and it’sreally peaceful.”Toni Strasheim, 10

“I take a hot bath,burn incense,listen to music,and scroll throughTumblr.”Dawson Black, 10

“I listen to music

because it is thesoul of the ears.”Exia Isaiz, 10

“I get coffee withfriends and we allcry together.”Beth Hamilton, 9

Adult Coloring BookRecommendations

Creative Haven Dream Doodles: A ColoringBook with a Hidden Picture Twist$4.84

Includes 28 style designs which include oneor more hidden images within each of thedesigns.

Secret Garden: An Inky Treasure Hunt andColoring Book$9.57Includes 96 pages of gardens with tiny crea-tures hidden throughout.

Adult Coloring Book: Stress Relieving AnimalDesigns$8.97Includes 40 pages of animal designs. Ani-mals include: a cat, a lion, an elephant, ahourse, a dog, and many more.


11/19


12/19

Norseman staff Creating art, singing opera, and creative writingprovide an outlet for senior Lauren Bernal. Beginning in the sixth grade, Lauren found herpassion for art creating simple drawings. “She’s always had extreme creativity,” art teacherRenee Richards said. “I’ve seen her become moredisciplined and she’s improved her technique. Ithink what she tries to say is getting stronger so herideas come to fruition.” Artists face many obstacles in creating art, butLauren nds ways to overcome problems while

maintaining her sense of expression. “She’s extremely dedicated,” Richards said. “Shedoesn’t stop when she encounters something that isdifcult for her. She looks to her fellow students andsees what they have done to overcome it. She asksothers for solutions, or just powers through it untilshe nds a technique that matches her voice.” Through hard work and determination, Lauren isable to help those around her and radiate positivityin art and choir.

“Lauren is a solid artist,” choir director Alex Med-lock said. “She always works hard and stays posi-

tive. She’s always respectful and helpful to othersand an awesome girl all around.” By putting herself out there Lauren has developedher talent and personal expression. “Lauren has grown in condence this year,” Med-

lock said. “I’ve been able to see that in her becauseshe has auditioned for and received multiple solosthis year.” Lauren enjoys things that amplify her personal-ity in different medi-ums. “I enjoy singingopera,” Lauren said.“It’s heartfelt andout there. I’m pretty weird in general, soit’s really fun to sing

opera.” Even with a largeraudience, Lauren putaside her anxiety andgave a performancethat brought the au-dience to their feet. “Performing at theT e x a s - O k l a h o m astate Key Club Con- vention was a scarything for me,” Lau-

ren said. “I’ve neverperformed in front ofmore than 500 people and there was at least 1200people watching me. I got on stage and it was verynerve racking but awesome.”

Lauren’s teachers outside of ne arts also recog-nize her creative spirit. Her English teacher, LisaPrejean, also sees her creativity shine. “Lauren’s creativity sets her apart from other

students,” Prejean said. “She’s anextremely gifted artist and has acreative mind.” With all of Lauren’s creativityshe is able to apply it in a logical way to her classes that require up-per-level thinking. “Lauren’s analytical,” Prejean

said. “She will sometimes seethings that other kids don’t see.She seems to look at things froma different perspective than otherstudents.” By pouring her personality intoher artwork, Lauren creates aconnection between her and the viewer, proving that the arts havea deeper purpose than providingaesthetics.

“Lauren’s creativity is her strong

suit,” Richards said. “She looksdeeply and feels strongly and that

denitely comes through in her artwork and you canfeel that when you see her work.”

Senior utilizes creative talents for self-expression

Jack of all tradesStudent Spotlight - Page 13

Norseman staff The Viking Wall of Honor is seek-ing nominations for the second an-nual award. The goal of the award is

to honor and acknowledge employees who have served Bryan High Schooland made an impact on the studentsand school. Last year’s inaugural year honor-ees were teacher Tommie Allmon andmonitor Lester Banks.

“The Viking Wall of Honor awardis an honor that recognizes employ-ees for being consistent in what theydo and doing it well,” Coach Tommie Allmon said. “I felt honored to re-

ceive the award.” Prinicipal Lane Buban hopes thisaward will serve as a small token ofappreciation to teachers who pour

their lives into students on a daily basis.

“It is important for us to remem- ber our past and the people who have

helped the students of Bryan HighSchool and the campus be success-ful,” Buban said. “It is also importantto honor their service and dedica-tion so all who come after know whoit was who helped build this campusup.” The original idea was presented atthe Campus Performance and Im-provement Committee (CPIC) meet-ing and a sub-committee was formed. “I hope that the Viking Wall of Hon-

or will be a lasting tradition where wehonor those who have made BryanHigh School the special campus it is,”Buban said. “Futhermore, I hope that

it is a way to bring together past em-ployees with current staff.”

The committee recognized thatmany times teachers work goes un-

noticed and they wanted to bringemphasis to all their hard work andsacrices. “Many of the staff have made deci-sions to be educators because of theteachers and staff they had in thepast and beyond that many of thosepeople have come back to BHS toteach and to give back. This is a spe-cial place to work and many peopledo not know how special it is,” Bubansaid. “It’s like an old Aggie saying:

‘From the outside looking in youcan't understand ig, and from theinside looking out, you can't explainit’.”

The vision for this award is to es-tablish a tradition honoring those who have contributed to the successof students at Bryan High beyond

recognition of the Teacher of the Yearaward. The inductees will be recog-nized at the Homecoming game inthe fall of 2016. “It builds a sense of school pride as well as an opportunity for us to honorindividuals that have given so muchto our campus and students,” Bubansaid. “It is our hope that this will be-come a long lasting tradition along with the other traditions that we haveat Bryan High School.”

The committee will look at induct-ing 1-2 people this year. The deadlinefor submitting nominations is Thurs-day, June 30.

Second annual Viking Wall of Honor nominations requested

Senior Lauren Bernal won 2nd place at the Texas-Oklahoma Key Club Convention talent show.


13/19

Merc with a mouth

Gail Finch

Staff writer Breaking box ofce records for anR-rated movie by earning over $132million on opening weekend, thefriendly neighborhood anti-heroDeadpool made his Marvel moviedebut on Valentine’s Day week -end. Crashing his way onto moviescreens and into audience member’s hearts, the walking ball of sar-casm and spite made history for be-ing the rst R rated movie provided

by Marvel. The red and black clad hero-of-his-own-world character has gar-nered a fan base around him eversince he was introduced asone of many Stan Lee cre-ations in the Marvel uni- verse, so a movie was in-evitable. It took them overa decade to actually makeit and was only made be-cause of an accidental foot-

age release. The wait wascertainly worth it, as it wasone of the most anticipatedmovies of this year.

The story follows Wade Wilson, better known asDeadpool, on his journeyto nd the man responsiblefor turning him into whatlooks like a freak of naturein an attempt to cure hiscancer so he could face his

wife once again. Although the plotinitially sounds very serious, Dead-pool’s humor and sarcasm coupled with his total disregard for thefourth wall make this movie unique. The casting choices for this movie were a given in some respects, suchas Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool,the man in black and red suit withthe functioning pockets. Reynoldshad been pushing for the movie to be made for a long time, so it was

quite the honor to play his comic book not-so-hero. His co-stars alsodid their part in making the movie

come off the comic book pages with

talents of Ed Skrein Ajax (evil Brit-

ish dude) and Morena Baccarin as Vanessa (love interest). Not only did they do a good jobcasting, but they really kept true toDeadpool’s original character, fromthe design of his suit to his person-ality and inner motives. The movieshows that Deadpool is not just allfun and games, but also has a seri-ous attitude when necessary Being the rst Marvel movie

to have an R rating was kind ofshocking to some people, as mostpeople think of the Marvel moviesas a more family friendly option.

Deadpool holds nothing back, as itshould be, with certain words andscenes that should not be seen by young eyes. Does that stop parents?Of course not, but unknowing par-ents who took their kids to see themovie were in for a very interestingsurprise. When the trailer was released,it took just about everyone by sur-prise. The advertising for the movie was even better. Movie posters that

had blatant sexual innuendos onthem, to billboards that had peo-ple confused and wondering what

“Skull Poop L” was. Ryan Reynolds

even joked that Fox entertainmentdidn’t have the guts to use that par-ticular ad, but he was apparentlyproven wrong on that one. Theydenitely did a better job of advertising for this one in contrast to Ant-Man’s tiny billboards. In the movie’s hilarity, it had quitea few jokes that had everyone in thetheater laughing. Anyone and ev -eryone was made fun of in this mov -ie, even the members of the crew,

the script writers, the directors,and even the entire studio itself atone point. My favorite would haveto be Deadpool’s jab at the budget

in reference to thereonly being two peoplein the X-Men house,saying: “Wow, this issuch a big house, butI only ever see the twoof you here. It’s likethe studio didn’t have

enough money forany more X-Men...” It’s not a Marvelmovie without an endcredits scene, though.Devoted fans waiteduntil the lm stoppedrolling for theirglimpse at a new mov -ie, or even a sequel, but all they really got was a gladly received

insult from the masked anti-hero,as well as possibly a hint as to whatthe next movie would entail.

Despite my many praises for thismovie, I only really recommend itto people who aren’t offended eas-ily. Reason being: there is a lot of violence, crude humor, and thingsthat almost got the movie an NC-17 rating. Aside from all of that, themovie was a true breath of fresh-airfrom the usual Marvel movie fare,

and I’m more than excited for thesequel coming out next year.

Marvel movie makes mark at box ofce

Page 14 - Entertainment

Who’s yourfavorite

superhero?

“My favorite superherois Batman because he is a man who fghts crime

like a boss.”Cade Sandel, 11

“My favorite superherois Super Woman because

she’s one of the onlyfemale superheroes.”

Keaton Hare, 10


14/19

Entertainment - Page 15

Divergent series diverges into gutter with part 1 of 2 nale Danica Mendes

Co-editor

Allegiant, yet another novel from Divergent tril-ogy by Veronica Roth, hit theaters March 18. Fansanticipated the lm and hoped it would surpassthe disappointment of the last movie. With hopefulhearts, while secretly preparing for the worst, drovesof fans attended the premier as they had anticipatedthe movies release since it was rst announced as aseries. I went to go see Allegiant a week after it hit the-aters. After the terrible performance of the last mov-ie, I wasn’t too stoked to see the third lm. I thoughtthe theater wouldn’t be packed because of the way

the last movie tarnished the Divergent series name.However, while waiting through the previews beforethe movie started, people kept ling in lling themovie theater to its capacity. I was shocked that thenew movie continued to sell out even after a week intheatre.

After the movie began I noticed many changes inthe characters, Tris’ hair grew, the characters lookedolder, and didn’t look as serious as they had in therst movie. I began to also notice that the landscape wasn’t the same as it was in the rst and the sec-ond movie. The movie is based in Chicago, but these

people are going through a war between the factions, but whenever someone thinks of war they may thinkof bullet holes in buildings, nobody on the streets,

and shooting all the time. However throughout themovie it looks like there is no war and that every -

thing is ne, or maybe I was overlooking the scen -ery. Most people know that they changed directors forthe second movie. Robert Schwentke directed Insur-gent which wasn’t a goodmovie at all. However,Schwentke split the nalinstallment of the seriesinto two parts. The rstpart that most recentlycame out was seeminglyor necessary. It was just

an add on to the previ-ous movie with someadditional informationthat audiences would’vefound out in the futurefourth one. This moviecould’ve easily have beenleft as one, but like mosttrilogies in Hollywood, the dollar speaks and protsreign as king. I devoured the rst book after the rst moviecame out, and I binge read the rest after the rst

one. However, that was two years ago and I onlyremember main parts of the book, allowing me tohave fresh eyes and to focus on the movie and not

compare it to the book as much. However, there were still parts that bothered me. In the previous

movies had various advanced technologies, but inthis movie the director blew these technologies outof proportion. I didn’t enjoy that aspect because itmade the movie look unprofessional and as if a child

with an over a drive imagination had di-rected it. With the movie being as popularas it was two years ago, I’ve never been sodisappointed in the way that Schwentke blended the three movies together. It waspoorly done and it made me upset know -ing that had I directed it I could’ve done a better job.

Overall, the movie was anotherdisappointment because I envisioned themovie differently. The movie is good if youhaven’t read the books, but otherwise au-diences will probably be as disappointedas I was. However, I’m still anticipatingto see how the next movie is going to turnout because of what most fans know at

the end. Hopefully they don’t change directors thiscoming movie because it would defeat the purpose.Schwentke might as well end the movie because he’salready done the last two. At least there won’t be

much of a gap difference between the rst and sec -ond movie.

Star Salter

Staff writer

Robyn Fenty, better known as Ri-hanna, is an international pop singer

and songwriter from Barbados. Ri-hanna rst entered the music industry by recording demo tapes under New York producer Evan Rodgers in 2003. In January 2005, Rogers landedRihanna an audition for Def Jam Re-cords in front of the legendary rapperJay-Z. Jay-Z was every bit as wowed by Rihanna’s commanding presenceas Evan Rogers had been two yearsearlier, and Jay-Z signed her on thespot. Eight months later, in August

2005, Rhinna released her rst single,“Pon de Replay”, a reggae-inuencedclub track that reached No. 2 on theBillboard singles chart and turnedRihanna into an up-and-coming popstar. It was at that time that the reg -gae sounding artist began the journey

to creating original albums. Her rst album, Music of the Sun, was released later that month, andmade it to No. 10 on the Billboard al-

bums chart, but her next album wasthe one to capture audiences every - where. Rihanna released her secondalbum, A Girl Like Me, featuring majorhits singles “Unfaithful” and “SOS”.Her next album that was released in2007, Good Girl Gone Bad. This album is where audiences started seeingher change into her own form of artist with her smash hit single “Umbrella”,featuring Jay-Z. “Umbrella” toppedthe Billboard singles chart and earned

Rihanna her rst Grammy Award forBest Rap/Song Collaboration. In 2010 she released her single “ManDown” which became my favoritesong, because she explains how a manthat she loved played with her mindand her heart. She thought he was

the one for her until the man startedto get physical with her, which madeher want to turn into a killer. I con-nect with this song because I once felt

similar emotions. My favorite verseof that song is “What started out as asimple alterca-tion turned intoa real sticky sit-uation me justthinking on thetime that I’mfacing makesme wanna cry.”This is my favorite verse be-

cause I couldrelate to it onan emotional level. Now in 2016, the pop star releasedher popular song “Work” off her newalbum Anti. Many people complainedthat her Barbadian accent was too

strong and that no one could under-stand what she was saying, becausethey think she mumbling. This songhas become my favorite especially

since the video was released. The songfeatured Canadian rapper Drake and

audiences didn’t like his dancemoves, which are the samemoves he did in Hotline Bling.The video had so many graphicscenes, so her fans started com-menting on YouTube abouthow she needs to dress and howthe video needs to be able to be viewed by her younger fans, butto me she was perfectly dressed

for the type of image she wastrying to create for the song.

Over all I will always love Rihanna, because she has an apathetic attitudetoward her “haters”. She will continueto shine and stand out from the rest ofthe superstars.

Musician makes it ‘Work’: Rihanna continues to top charts


15/19

Page 16 - Opinion

Would you like to buy some GirlScout cookies? If not, maybe you would like to know more about the GirlScout program and what lies behindthe caramel coated, toasted coconut;

a program that builds character, truegrit, and important lifelong skills thatturn girls into strong women. Thoughit may not seem like it, Girl Scouts ismore than just an operation sneakinginto the hearts and stomachs of Amer-icans everywhere through sweet cook-ies and even sweeter smiles. Often connected to petty sleepovers, silly hair braiding, arts & crafts,and cookie sales, Girl Scouts is stuck with a whole set of stigmas and stereo-types. Sure, we do lots of arts & crafts, but only because everyone loves arts& crafts. There are typically tons oftroop sleep overs which are not onlyreserved for watching chick-icks andeating leftover thin mints, but also working on badges that require mas-tering skills ranging from sewing to business management to social com-munications. There is, of course, moreto Girl Scouts than meets the eye. As what many would consider an

older Girl Scout, I’ve been able to see what being a part of such an organiza-tion is like and what it can do for girlsinvolved. Not only have I seen myselfgrow as a young woman through the various activities we do to build skillslike money management and even baby-sitting, but I have seen the youngergirls of our “super-troop” of 30+ girlsmake best friends, learn new things,and grow as individuals.

Many nd it odd for a teenager to

still be a part of Girl Scouts. In mycase, I have only been in Girl Scoutsfor ve years, starting in the sixthgrade. As I’ve been a Girl Scout, I’veseen girls come and go, especiallyonce they feel as if they’ve aged out. At a certain age, girls feel like there’snothing left for them in the program,since Girl Scouts seems like it’s largelycentered around the younger girls. It’simportant for girls to realize that theyhaven’t burned out, and that there isstill so much that Girl Scouts can offerolder girls. Contrary to popular belief, as girlsage in the Girl Scout program, themore opportunities arise and the morethings they get to do. If I were a GirlScout in the fth grade the coolestthing I could do would probably be go-ing to NASA, but as an older member,I get to go to Washington, DC for theFourth of July with the four other highschool girls in my troop with the mon-

ey raised from cookie sales. Not onlyare there trips available through thetroop, but also through the Girl Scoutsthemselves. Girl Scouts offers girlstrips around the globe, from China to Australia to South America to Switzer-land, and beyond.

Although trips abroad are excitingand provide great experiences, that’snot the only benet from theprogram for older partici-pants. As I’m sure stu-

dents have heard, beinga Girl Scout looksgood on collegeor volunteerapplications.This is some- what true, but only ifgirls are ac-tive in theprogram. Atthe very top ofthe scouting awardhierarchy sits the Girl ScoutGold Award, above becomingan Eagle Scout through the BoyScouts. Now before people get all upin arms believing that nothing is moreprestigious for a teenager than becom-ing an Eagle Scout, know that thereare requirements for attaining suchawards. Both awards require tons ofhours logged for processes like plan-ning and the execution of the project,

but also ask for aspects like commu-nity service and a lasting impressionon whomever the project is executedfor, like building trail maps at a localcampground or creating a tness regi-men for the local ice rink. Both awardshighlight what it means to be a Girlor Boy Scout, and recipients are oftenpraised for their hard work and dedi-

cation, catching the atten-tion of college admission

ofcers and volunteer

coordinators by dem-onstrating theskills syn-

o n y m o u s with GirlScoutinglike out-of-the-boxt h i n k i n g

and truec o m m i t -

ment.Now if you’re

looking for an organiza-tion where you can work

on character and spend time working with peers on new, fun and

interesting skills, Girl Scouts is alwaysaround. It’s never too late to becomea part of or support such an amazingprogram, whether it be by being an ac-tive member, adult volunteer, or even buying enough boxes of cookies to last you until the next cookie season.

Lucy Raleigh

Co-editor

Like a girlScouting program builds strong young women while learning new skills

What have you learned from the scouting program?

“I’ve learned thatpeople love mebecause I sell girlscout cookies.”Emily Hubacek, 11

“I have learnedleadership quali-ties and responsi-bility.”Melanie Wertz, 11

“I have learnedmultiple skills likecamping, survival,how to managemoney, and how tocontribute to thecommunity.”Maddie Green, 10


16/19

Opinions - Page 17

Online courses have be-come a popular alterna-tive to physically attendingclass. This is good for somepeople like single workingparents trying to go backto school, foreign students

who can’t leave their coun-try, or disabled students who have difficulty leavingtheir home. However, thecommon factor of lazinesstakes over many Americansin abusing this luxury mak-ing generations less social or

independent. Manypeople make excusesfor themselves sothat they don’t have

to make an effort toleave their houseto attend a class.In result, more andmore people sign up

for the online course optionto ‘fit their schedule’ wherethey procrastinate to thedeath, wasting their moneyand never learning anythingfrom the course they signedup for.

Physically participating ina course is a big part in tak-ing a class because humaninteraction is an effectivepart of one’s learning expe-rience. Being present is easyand makes a huge difference because students are forced

to be around people ratherthan a computer screen andthat face-to-face learning ex-perience can’t be replicated.

People have to socialize, likesmall talk with your neigh- bor or even making eye con-tact with someone across theroom. These simple humaninteractions keep people civ-ilized and familiar, whereas being alone in your home without unfamiliar faceskeeps one awkward and un-aware of other human be-ings. With the students and

the instructor in the sameroom, conversations are ableto flow freely as there can begive and take with questionsand answers. Online courses are typi-cally available at any time, which sounds convenient,

but most people take ad- vantage of that and neverprogress in the course due toprocrastination. When there

is a scheduled time and datethat students have to attend,it becomes routine and isconsidered a requirementto pass the course. Students believe they will do it later, but they frequently neverget around to it at all. Cer-tain courses are always bet-ter taught in a classroomthan online due to the levelof difficulty and ability to

comprehend the material.Physics and mathematicsare courses where it would be hard to actually learn thematerial online because oftheir complexity. Learningsuch new and strange infor-mation is hard to digest and

retain without one-on-oneinteraction. When having the choiceto take a face-to-face course

versus an online course, i t istypically better to pick theold fashion way and attendthe class in person. Certaincourses are best to take ina classroom setting ratherthan online because theyare different than anythingthat was ever taught to them before. When students arephysically in a classroom,they experience and learn

more than just what thecourse is meant to provide.They could learn simplepeople skills and keep gen-erations from having heavierties to technology so thathumanity can continue to besocial.

Payton McKeehan

Staff Writer

Online classes sacrice social interaction, creates lazy lifestyle

Throughout students years in gradeschool, they are usually asked what

their goals and plans are after theygraduate. Teacher usually ask thequestions at the beginning of the year so the teacher can know moreabout the students. Many students will write that they want to be a doc-tor, a lawyer, a police ofcer, or anyother profession they look up to, butas time gets closer to the end of theschool journey into the real world,many have done nothing to take thenext step into becoming what they

say they have always wanted to be.It’s more something teens just say,instead of actually making an effort

to do. Student apathy shines through

in how they choose to do things daily,or rather how they choose not to dothings. A lot of students live their lives without consciously setting pri-orities. Some say when they turn 16they’ll get a job or their license, yetthey are 17 or even 18 with neither ofthem. Many use the excuse that theydon’t have the time, but what couldthey possibly be lling their time with? Most students are lazy, merely

ticking away hours at a time on theirphones or Netix without consider-ing the impact it will make on theirfuture. Looking for a job and takingdriving classes are things that dotake time, but most things worth do-ing take time. It’s easier to get thingsdone now with a good support systemin place at home and school, because when people procrastinate whilethey’re young, it becomes a habit asthey get older. It would be better to

kick the bad habit now, and make it agood one by being timely and focusedon a goal. Teens need to be aware of

how they spend their time.

Teens seem not to care generallyabout anything and it’s consideredan apathetic generation that is in-uenced by social media, but verylittle take any action. People will postquotes that have to do with beingsuccessful, but from behind a screen where they are sitting on their buttdoing nothing. Another sign of apathy in teens isthat they are unable to budget. Evenif a student has a job, they should

learn how to save, but instead theyend up blowing it on things that don’teven last. Some students have to buytheir own car, pay their own rent,and their own phone bill, but runinto a problem, because they don’thave enough after spending it onother useless things. Saving moneyand spending wisely should becomesomething teens get used to, becausethey’re going to have to do it one day,and it teaches responsibility. It helps

them learn how to separate moneyfor the things they want and savingand spending on things they need,

or sacricing what they want and get

their necessities rst. Doing all of these things will teachmany lessons to teenagers that areactually doing it. The ones who are working on making steps to the next big thing and their goals will be taughtmaturity, responsibility, and then ap-preciate it more because it’s some-thing they were able to overcomethemselves. These students chose togo a route and make their dreams areality.

Many adults tell younger people toenjoy their teenage years, but teensdo not realize that enjoying theirteenage years doesn’t always meanpartying every weekend, staying uplate, and being with friends all thetime, it could mean making a livingfor themselves, nding their happyplace, or even learning new things. Being apathetic towards things thatmatter have its consequences, so Isuggest if students complain about

what they don’t have, it’s better to goout and get it, because it will not justhappen overnight.

Jennyfer Tucker

Associate editor

Generation of apathy nds diculty in becoming adults


17/19

Societal standards for both men and women have become a growing issuenow in the day and age of social me-dia and television.

A man can run around with hisshirt off, but if a woman does it, it be-comes indecent. If a man cries, he’s

a sissy, but if a woman does it she’s just a normal emotional woman.

Men and women are held to suchirritating social standards that aren’tfair to the opposite gender, it makesit hard to tell what’s exactly wrong orright. Double standards in society havecreated a toxic environment for ev-eryone, no matter how advancedsociety gets. Society asks so much ofpeople that sometimes the pressure

can be too much. Women and men aren’t paid the

same amount of money for the sameamount of work, and men aren’t al-lowed to like things deemed as thingsfor ‘girls’ and vice versa. Women have had social stan-dards imposed upon themsince the rst patriarchalsociety was established. Forcenturies, women did nothave rights and were seen as

property belonging to men. As a society we’ve come a

long way in that women aren’t viewed that way anymore, butthere’s still an issue with the waymost people think of a woman. It’snot enough that women bring lifeinto the world, because they alsohave to keep up to impossible stan-dards. Women have to t into this cookiecutter envisioning of what society

thinks they should be. They haveto be a Barbie doll, always perfect.It’s not just in looks, either, the way

a woman acts is also a part of it. Ifa woman stands up for herself ordoesn’t take any unnecessary non-sense from anyone, she’s seen as un-

approachable.Masculinity is so fragile, if they

look at a daisy they immediatelyhave to punch something to feelmanly again like it’s a girly thing toappreciate a daisy. Men aren’t al-lowed to be emotional creatures, asit’s been beaten into them that theyhave to be big and tough. Many actas though they don’t even have tearducts. All of these stereotypes and

standards have been held up forso long because of media. Thereare so many archetypes of bothmen and women in movies andtelevision that reinforce differ-ent meanings and impressions.

There’s the ugly nerd girl no

one likes until they take off her glass-es and ponytail for a dance, there’sthe jock boy who falls for nerdy girlafter the makeover, there’s the icequeen executive, and there’s the overcondent coworker who only likesher for her looks.

There’s a small percentage of

strong female characters, and eventhough there have been more in re-cent years, many protagonists of

movies are men who have the samethree personalities with the samethree personality traits. All of thesepaint the genders in mostly nega-

tive ways that no one can ever really break away from because it’s so en-graved in our society. Over the years the social system

has gotten bet-ter when itcomes to the

wholedouble standardsthing, but whenpeople start in-stilling these kinds

of things into thefuture generation

of adults is wherethere’s a problem.

For the longest time,little girls have had adults

dismiss boy’s pulling their hair andicking boogers at them as signs ofaffection, but if a girl does any of thatthey get in trouble, or told that it’snot very “ladylike.”

Same thing goes for boys, though.There are certain things girls dothat when a little boy does it, it’s not

“normal”,such as playing with Bar- bie dolls, or dressing up in a tutu andprincess tiara.

There’s a severe issue with the di- vision of genders, so much so thatit takes wounding a few people’sprides and burning a few bras to get

anything done for the whole genderequality discourse.

Yes, men and women are biologi-cally different from one another.

Men and women have differ-ent hormones in their bodiesthat make them act differentlyfrom one another, and grow

different things in differentplaces. That shouldn’t au-tomatically mean that theycan only do certain things

based on their gender.Gender issues don’t

just exists here in theU.S., though, as manyplaces across the world have manyproblems of their

own, most involving women.

In some places in theMiddle East don’t allow wom-en to leave the house without

a man to escort them, and inIndia, the family of the womanin a marriage is still required togive a dowry. If a woman refus-

es a man in any of those coun-tries, they have the threat of gettingacid thrown in their face, disguringthem signicantly. The populationin China is mainly men, because ofthe infanticide of girls starting in themid to late 20th century and the onechild policy being enforced up until

recent years.Saying something is strictly for

one gender, or imposing impossiblestandards on another, has dug a holefor society that is so deep that, it’sgoing to be hard or nearly impos-sible to get out of it. With where so-ciety stands now, it will be a while

before anything gender related will be xed. The social system is taking baby steps to a better environmentfor both men, women, and everyone

in between, so not all hope is com-pletely lost.

Gail Finch

Staff writer

Inequality, double standards still exist despite progressPage 18 - Opinions


18/19

Opinions - Page 19

It’s understandable that high schoolteens don’t have a desire to read any-thing other than the text messages andtweets on their phones, because manyof the reading requirements set byschools and English teachers are clas-sic novels that aren’t relatable or eveninteresting to their generation.

This has caused a decline in interestfor reading, as many high schoolersdon’t understand its true benets. De-

spite the apathy students demonstratetoward reading, they need to learn thatit is one of the most important skillsthey need to survive and succeed inadulthood. Knowing how to read opens teensup to important skills such as writingand speaking properly. Simply readinga book or an article in the newspapercan improve your vocabulary by addingmore words to a student’s personal ar-senal.

The ability to speak and write intel-ligently is important in a career setting because no one wants to hire a person

who uses “then” instead of “than” whencomparing something in a sentence.Being able to carry on a conversationin an intellectual way is also integral toobtaining social and career goals. Being well read isn’t just aboutsounding intelligent, it’s also about being informed about what’s goingon in the world. One cannot just relyon social media like Twitter and Face- book for all of their information and

expect to pass it on without raising afew brows. Sources may often times befalse and can lead to things like callingsenator Ted Cruz the infamous “ZodiacKiller”, or believing that Demi Lovatohad a twin held captive in the basementnamed “Poot” whom allegedly had the voice of an angel.

Reading is important to become suc-cessful in life, and being aware of what’sgoing on in the world. It’s vital to eachstudent’s future and beyond even that

it should be an enjoyable activity thatprovides an escape from the real world.

- The Norseman Staff

Literacy leads to learning

Adviser

Rebecca Dominy

Co-editor

Danica Mendes

Lucy Raleigh

Associate editor Jennyfer Tucker

The opinions expressed are those of the writers and are not reective of the

administrators, faculty or staff of Bryan Independent School District.

Submissions to the editor are welcomed, but must be signed and should not

exceed 300 words. The editor reserves the right to edit submissions in the

interest of clarity and length or to not print a letter at all. Letters containing

obscene or libelous material will not be considered.

Bryan Independent School District does not discriminate on the basis of race,religion, color, national origin, sex or handicap in providing education services.

http://www.

bryanhighnorseman.com

http://www.twitter.com/

bhsnorseman

http://www.facebook.com/BryanISDBryanHigh-

Norseman

Staff writers

Gail Finch

Payton McKeehan

Star Salter

NORSEMAN

Whether it’s writing, play-ing sports, or making goodgrades some people ndthings easier than others. Ind small talk difcult. I justcan’t chit-chat with people,if there’s not a real topic, theconversation soon devolvesinto awkward staring. Somepeople just nd things easierthan others.

However, just becausethings seem easy to somedoesn’t mean it’s easy for

everyone. When I’m

playing tennis, hit-ting the ball backand forth might seemeasy, but keepingfocus is the hardestpart.

Players can’t justsimply hit the ball,

they have to hit the ball cor-rectly, which takes both prac-tice and dedication.

Athletes spend hours prac-ticing and working on theirskills to perform at the high-est level possible. Even whena player has natural talent,they still must work to get better.

This problem doesn’t justhappen in sports, but also ineveryday life.

As some students bubble

in their scantron struggling

with each question while an-other student nishes the testquickly declaring “the test was easy”. This is more thana little discouraging. Or thattime when one friend failstheir driver’s test, while an-other friend passes becausethey said it was easy. A person may that thinkthat everything is hard isgoing to always be that waymentally because that’s howthey were conditioned.

I believe everything is hard;even if someone gives mea worksheet and it has veproblems about what I likeabout myself I think “omgthis is so hard”, but in reality,it’s just a mental thing that I just can’t let go.

Even the simplest of task

can be difcult if a studentgoes in with the mind-set thatthey can’t do it to begin with.

Even doing simple taskssuch as jotting down notesin class or copying two sen-tences from the white boardseems like a violation of myhuman rights.

I end up making copies ofthe class notes, even if I at-tended the class. For mostpeople, taking notes may not be a big deal, and is seen as afairly easy task.

Like many of my peers, Ican study all day and knowevery single question, butsomehow end up failing. Ican train and condition allday and when it comes downto the event, I lose.

I can try, but try and never

be as good as I want to be.Some things I know, but I just can’t do it even if I putmy mind to it because I knowhow much I can take before Icrack.

Students wonder if they’retalented enough to do sports,complete class work, hold a job, or do other things thatseem simple in life to many.

Time is the key to be-ing able to succeed whethersomething is hard or easy. Ihave to push through, even when I want to give up oneverything, but I know in notime things will get easier. And for the people who dohave everything come easy,know that others are trying.

Star Salter

Staff writer

More than meets the eyeOrdinary activities not always easy, take hard work, dedication


19/19

4th Exam 8:15-9:40 85 min5th Exam 9:45-11:10 85 min

6th Exam 11:15-12:40 85 min

Lunch 12:40-1:15 35 min

3rd Exam 8:15-9:40 85 min2nd Exam 9:45-11:10 85 min

1st Exam 11:15-12:40 85 min

Lunch 12:40-1:15 35 min

1st Period 8:15-9:00 45 min2nd Period 9:05-9:50 45 min

3rd Period 9:55-10:40 45 min

4th Period 10:45-12:40 85 min

A Lunch 10:40-11:10 30 minB Lunch 11:10-11:40 30 minC Lunch 11:40-12:10 30 minD Lunch 12:10-12:40 30 min

5th Period 12:45-1:25 40 min6th Period 1:30-2:10 40 min7th Exam 2:15-3:40 85 mi

Volume 45 Number 4

Documents

Transcript of Volume 45 Number 4