Shark Attack

Passport to Success Launches in CNUSD

Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor — Thu, 23 May 2013 21:17:25 +0000

The Corona Norco Unified School District has initiated a district wide rewards program known as “Passport to Success.” Through this program Elementary to High school Students throughout the district are now earning “passport stamps” for achieving certain academic benchmarks. Depending on the school level of the student, (elementary, middle and high school) stamps range from “Outstanding Behavior” to fulfilling the A-G course requirements prior to graduation. The stamps are meant to highlight the student’s readiness for college and career success.

Students have already begun receiving their passports virtually through the Passport to Success website (www.cnusdP2S.com). Here the student is directed to a login page where they may access and view the stamps they have already earned in their grade level. So far stamps from before the program have been enacted have not been integrated into the students portal. The progress of the student will also be tracked throughout their K-12 career.

Kelly Bruce, Administrative Director of CNUSD, is in charge of the passport to success program.

“We launched the program in order to guide students towards where they need to be going for success,” said Bruce.

Santiago Junior Remaya Campbell Wins “Blacks In Government” Competition

Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor — Thu, 23 May 2013 20:37:36 +0000

Santiago junior Remaya Cambell won the annual “Blacks In Government”, “B.I.G”, Rhetorical and Website competition for region 9 of the association that consists of Southern California, Hawaii, Arizona, Colorado and Nevada. This would be the 2^nd consecutive year that Campbell has won the competition for her region.

While she failed to succeed at nationals last year Campbell has high hopes for this year’s national competition in Dallas, Texas as she has garnered an improved understanding of the competition and the rules involved. The winner of the national competition receives a $1000 scholarship.

I absolutely believe I have a better chance this year,” said Campbell “I’m ready to take home that $1000!”

Campbell attributes her success in the competion to her previous involvments in theatre at Santiago. She compares her participation in the Rhetorical competition to a performances that she would act out in her theatre classes

The organization “B.I.G” aims to encourage the advancement of African American cultures in the state and federal government. B.I.G is a culmination of 12 regions which spans across the united states.

Baseball Takes League Title After 7-2 Victory

Alec Romero, Reporter — Tue, 21 May 2013 21:23:00 +0000

The Santiago Shark baseball team played their final regular game of the season against Centennial High School May 9. This was the second time in three days the teams met after the Sharks played the Huskies May 7,resulting in a 13-4 victory for Santiago.

May 9, the two teams met again with Santiago coming into the game with a record of 16-9 (11-3 in league) and Centennial having a record of 13-13 (3-10 in league). Starting pitchers were junior Troy Hodgson for the Sharks and senior Kurt Gairing for the Huskies.

The starting line-up (in batting order) for the Sharks: Jeremy Goldenetz in Center Field, Chance Sisco catching, Michael Darr in Right Field, Trevor Millard in Left Field, Kevin Morgan at First Base, Andrew Jones designated hitting, Ryan Knowles at Second Base, Jake Baxter at Third Base and Ben Davis at Shortstop

The top of the first inning started a little rocky for the Sharks with Husky senior Jake Weston hitting a two-run home run to left field giving Centennial a 2-0 lead with only one out in the inning. However the Sharks only allowed one more hit in the inning with starting pitcher Troy Hodgson striking out two batters to get out of the top of the first inning.

The Sharks were only able to get two hits in the first two innings with the only extra base hit coming from Michael Darr hitting a double of a 2-2 pitch in the first inning with two outs.

Going into the third inning Hodgson had three strikeouts, allowed five hits and thrown 31 pitches. The infielders played great defense including third baseman senior Jake Baxter making a few line drive catches to stop the Huskies from getting more hits or runs. The Huskies went down in order with Hodgson only throwing 10 pitches.

In the bottom of the third the Shark bats started to heat up after Jake Baxter advanced to first on an error, Ben Davis getting hit by a pitch and Jeremy Goldenetz loading up the bases on a bunt. Senior Chance Sisco singled between the shortstop and second baseman on a 2-1 pitch scoring Baxter and Davis tying the game at 2. With senior Michael Darr at-bat, Goldenetz on third base and Sisco on first base, Goldenetz and Sisco ran a “trick play” with Sisco attempting to steal second causing the Huskies catcher to throw to second base throwing out Sisco on an attempted steal. However, with the ball thrown to second base, Goldenetz was able to sprint to home plate giving Santiago a 3-2 lead.

The three runs in the bottom of the third were enough to give Santiago the victory as Hodgson pitched a complete game allowing only five more hits throughout the next four innings. The Sharks bats still continued to hit for insurance runs with Goldenetz hitting a double and receiving two RBI’s in the fourth, Andrew Jones hitting an RBI single in the fifth and Ben Davis scoring for the third time in the game on a sacrifice fly by Sisco.

The game ended on an infield fly ball and a celebration at having won the league title after the 7-2 victory. After dominating the Huskies and earning sweet victory, the entire team ran to embarace Sisco and Hodgson on the pitchers mound. The team’s league title is the first since 2004 when Santiago played in the Mountain View with Corona, Centennial, Norco, Valley View and Moreno Valley.

Santiago Interact Volunteers at Relay for Life

Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor — Tue, 21 May 2013 21:21:16 +0000

May 18^th Santiago Interact Club volunteered at the Relay for Life charity walk event at Santana Park. Arriving as early as 7:00 a.m, volunteers mainly aided in setting up the children’s play area of the park. Here the Santiago students manned carnival style games such as the ring toss and baseball throw. Interact volunteers also checked kids into the area and managed the event wide scavenger hunt.

“It’s great because its fun to play with the kids and it’s for a good cause,” Said Junior Shazia Kallam, newly elected Interact president, “They’re also treating us really well here!” Volunteers were treated with free food and drinks from various stands around the event as the day progressed.

Overall the 24 hour event had 1,328 participants and raised $230,367.35

Broad Awards $160,000 to Class of 2013

Jake Collins, Reporter — Tue, 21 May 2013 20:43:38 +0000

Last year the Broad Foundation promised a total of $150,000 in scholarships to eligible high school seniors in the Corona Norco Unified School District. May 15 that promise came true when seniors Alex Joo, Cameron O’Connor, Yessenia Barron and Arleen Vazquez were each awarded $20,000 from the Broad Foundation. These four received the scholarship from the pool of 670 seniors that applied in the district, 260 of which were applications from Santiago.

The scholarships were awarded at a ceremony at the Home Gardens Academy. Eight students received $20,000 dollars from the Broad Foundation. The recipients were unaware that they were receiving the scholarship and were told they were part of a focus group for the district.

The ceremony began with a speech from the Home Gardens Academy principal Cassandra Willis. In attendance was the CNUSD Superintendent Dr. Michael Lin, district board members, city council members, Principal Reginald Thompkins, Managing Director of Policy for Broad Gregory McGinity, and other dignitaries.

Towards the end of the ceremony it was revealed that the Broad Foundation Scholarships were being awarded, which came as a surprise to the unsuspecting seniors. There were very few dry eyes in the room with most of Santiago’s recipients and audience having tears roll down their cheeks. “It was amazing to see the reactions of the students and the emotions of the parents when they started to read their son or daughters names. To see this was very emotional. Very emotional,” said Santiago counselor Johnny Campos.

Senior Yessenia Barron, who will be attending Biola University, said, “It feels so great I cannot explain it. Being raised with a single parent made it difficult, but persevering through obstacles made it possible.” All of the seniors had different reasons for achieving their award. For Alex Joo it was his “motivation to go to a good college and give back to my family.” Cameron O’Connor stated, “I realize it’s my future and to do well later on you have to do well now.”

Counselor Maritza Partida was proud because O’Conner was on her caseload. O’Conner is bound for UCSB as a biology major. Partida said the Broad program and having Santiago students get these awards “gives our kids inspiration to know that even if you stumbled as a freshman, have struggled through family issues, or gone through challenging hardships, you still can be successful.” This is part of the criteria for the scholarship. Showing that you can maintain focus on school or regain focus and continue improving are the purpose of this scholarship. Partida said, “showing progression is the key.”

A key component of Santiago’s success is the student support programs offered. The Santiago counseling department has just been notified that their Counseling for College and Career Readiness program has just won the Riverside County Office of Education’s Models of Academic Excellence Award. Other support programs that play an important role in Santiago’s student support system include AVID, Link Crew, BSU, PRIDE and Success for High School.

Two of the recipients Barron and Vazquez are in AVID, a college-prep class provided at Santiago. Barron stated “AVID helped me acknowledge college benefits, provided fee waivers for SAT’s and college applications. It helped me with AP classes and volunteering.” Vazquez mentioned, “I wouldn’t know the deadlines or tests I had to take [for college]. Tutoring helped a lot.” AVID is a four-year program that helps first-generation college students fulfill all the prerequisites needed for college as well as aiding them in the application process.

Must-See Movie Sequels

Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor — Tue, 21 May 2013 20:39:11 +0000

Finals are over and school is finally out. In the wake of the carnage that a year of school has done on the teenage mind stands the long-awaited summer break. Escape the heat this vacation in the theatre and enjoy these highly-anticipated movie sequels.

Insidious Chapter 2, the upcoming sequel to “Insidious”, extends the ghostly story as the Lambert family seeks to uncover the connection to the spirit world that was formed in the first movie. Featuring the same director, James Wan, and leading cast Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, and Ty Simpkins, it doesn’t seem like much has changed since the release of the original. After many had regarded “Insidious” as a unique imagining of the haunted house genre, only the latest release will tell if the extension will be able to haunt audiences with the same shock of unsettling images that plagued the first. “Insidious 2” hits theatres Sept. 13.

Being released the same weekend as “Insidious 2” is the sequel to the over-the-top action flick “Machete”, Machete Kills. This moviefeatures a cast chock full of stars including Robert Deniro, Jessica Alba, Danny Trejo and Michelle Rodriguez. The story follows ex-federal agent Machete Cortez (Trejo) on a mission to Mexico in order to stop a deranged arms dealer who intends to start a nuclear war. If the machine guns mounted on motorcycles, dual machete, and enormous explosions of the trailer could say anything about this upcoming sequel, it’s that it will be just as outrageous as the original.

The foodies are back with another array of food-related puns in Sony Picture Animation’s Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2. This sequel picks up where the last left off as Flint Lockwood must solve yet another disaster created from his dastardly machine which turns water into malicious food beings. The voice talents of Bill Hader, Andy Samberg and Anna Harris are returning to play their previous roles for this sequel along with a new ensemble that includes Neil Patrick Harris as Steve, Flint’s pet monkey. “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2” premieres Sept. 27.

Conclude your vacation ready to take on the new school year with any army of adrenaline-pumping Spartans in 300: Rise of an Empire. The story follows the valiant defeat of Leonidas as Xerxes continues his march upon the Grecian city states. The film is under a new director, Noam Murro. Murro abandoned his prior directive engagements on the film “A Good Day to Die Hard” in order to take on this film. While the director may be new, the art style of the film is expected to retain its gritty yet visually appealing qualities.

P Building Update

Jake Collins, Reporter — Tue, 21 May 2013 20:35:26 +0000

The new building that has been under construction since last June is almost done. The Corona-Norco Unified School District has designated the building as the “P” building instead of “U” as it was previously known. The building is set to be finished sometime in the beginning of August. The “T” building classrooms will be removed when the “P” building is ready to be occupied.

“The majority of the classes to be held in the new facilities will be science and art labs with new technology. Additionally, a new updated weight room, and a 3000 sq. ft. wrestling room will be part of the building complex,” stated J.T. Cameron, the Assistant Principal in charge of facilities.

Santiago currently has the smallest wrestling room in the district at about 1000 sq. ft., but after the new building is completed Santiago wrestling will have the largest wrestling room at about 3000 sq. ft.

“There will be two unique lecture-style health classrooms,” mentioned Cameron. These lecture-style classrooms will be the first of their kind at Santiago. New technology that students will be using includes: brand new science and art equipment, Wi-Fi built into the building, a graphics lab, an Ipad cart, and a new ceramics room, which will have a full-size gas kiln and 16 potter’s wheels.

Some of the newly vacant classrooms from the C, D, E, and F buildings will be converted into regular non-specific classrooms. Art teacher Lori Love’s room is going to be split into two classrooms for smaller classes. Animation teacher Brice Wilson’s class is going to be turned into a new media lab.

Constuction will continue on the building with the intentions that it will be ready for the 2013-2014 school year.

Dance Team Builds a Legacy

Kellie Carlson, News Editor; Abby — Tue, 21 May 2013 20:32:22 +0000

For the second time in school history, Santiago’s Dance Team took home the national title at the USA Dance Competition. They competed March 29 and 30 at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa and were able to bring home a monumental victory for the second consecutive year. Coaches Lysa Pecoy and Stephanie Elkin proved instrumental in guiding the talented dancers to further the prestige of Santiago in the world of performing arts.

The competition featured teams from across the nation and displayed a variety of different dance styles from hip-hop to contemporary. Teams who received an average score of 85 points or above in a qualifying division at a USA Regional qualified to compete in the USA Dance/Drill Nationals in the Championship division. Teams that scored an 84.9 or below qualified to compete in the Open division. Santiago took four routines to nationals, one that qualified for the Open division and three in the Championship division.

During the preliminary competition on Friday, Santiago’s extra small dance and small dance qualified for the final round that was held that Saturday. During the final round, the small dance received fifth place. Their sweeping victory came when their extra small dance took home first place in addition to another award for the top dance routine overall. The routine was a contemporary/lyrical routine featuring dance team members senior Stephanie Ha, junior Briana Markovich, junior Alexis Hood, sophomore Kourtney Cornell and freshman Felicity Hyama. The girls dedicated the last few months to perfecting the routine that was choreographed in late October by local dance studio owner Terry Schulke.

During the 2011-2012 school year, Santiago Dance Team made school history for the first time with their extra small routine in the finals division at the USA dance competition nationals. Held at the Anaheim Convention Center during March 2012, the team won first place and was awarded the sweepstakes for the highest-scoring dance routine.

“It’s always been a goal to reach first place, but when we got to the time and place last year we just danced and didn’t really worry about it. To actually get first place was just surreal, and to defend it this year made me proud,” said Ha.

The team has excelled under long-time coach Pecoy who has been in charge of the team for almost nine years. Pecoy first took over the team when her daughter, Ashton Pecoy, was on the team and has developed and shaped the team ever since. As of two years ago, assistant coach Elkin joined the coaching staff, having been a dance team alumnus under Pecoy. The duo are deeply involved in grooming the girls all year long by emphasizing skills such as responsibility, how to prioritize, the importance of hard work and respect above all else. They continue to build up the prestige of the Santiago Dance Team as they avidly prepare for the upcoming season.

Lessons Learned in High School

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Tue, 21 May 2013 20:29:40 +0000

Throughout our entire high school careers, we have been told that grades and test scores are the most important elements to becoming successful. While this is true, the fact remains that after you’re committed to college and ready to move onto the next step of your life, there are other things that hold equal importance to succeeding in school.

Once you graduate from high school, you will be walking away with a lot more than just school-related knowledge; you will have accumulated knowledge that will help you succeed for the rest of your life, including increased people skills, career goals, time management, responsibility and accountability capabilities. All these skills, whether learned intentionally or unintentionally, will help you succeed to varying degrees in your adult life.

Many high schoolers get so swept up in drama with significant others and friends that they forget that, come time for college, they will have lost touch with the majority of people they associated with. Undeniably, learning to solve problems in your personal life is something you will have to do for a long time coming, but letting petty drama affect your schoolwork and home life will only lead to frustration and discontentment.

Picking and choosing your battles, whether they be with friends, colleagues, or significant others, is something you will eventually have to learn, otherwise, your entire living environment will be toxic.

Senior Midori Kanenobu advises, “Don’t let relationships rule your life; there are bigger, more important things in life.” This means not misaligning your priorities and making your entire life about a significant other. Learning how to manage a relationship while still having fun and focusing on school and/or work will carry you further into life, when you will undoubtedly have to juggle between relationships and responsibilities.

This sense of time management also falls into line with holding yourself accountable and re

sponsible for your actions. We all know that when you don’t do your homework, there are repercussions, whether they be getting a bad grade or getting in trouble with your parents. In our minds, we rationalize our decisions and come up with the best option for ourselves at that specific point in time. As teenagers, we are able to slack off to a greater degree than when we become adults. As adults, we are solely responsible for the course our lives take, and no excuses will be tolerated. The “real world” follows along the thought process of Charles Darwin: survival of the fittest. Taking this into mind, it is vital that we become responsible for our actions at a young age and understand that there are certain things you have to do, no matter how much you may not want to.

“Throughout high school, I’ve definitely learned to become more independent and not to rely solely on other people. I have a lot more trust in myself,” says senior Mercy Akanji. Knowing yourself and what you’re capable of is one of the most important lessons you will learn in high school. When you’re confident in your abilities, you will attain the confidence needed to become someone who goes the extra mile in everything that they do.

In essence, there is a lot more than knowledge of history or grammar to take away from your high school experiences. We may never have to use the Pythagorean theorem in our adult lives, but knowing how to relate to people, to take responsibility for your actions, and to be confident in yourself, are skills everyone will need to become successful.

A Home of Scholars, Achievers and Champions

Evan Ritter, Sports Editor — Tue, 21 May 2013 20:25:36 +0000

Santiago High School has again been successful in upholding its goal of educating scholars, achievers and champions this school year. The Santiago community will finish out the year, having having gained a myriad of accolades and awards that will further establish Santiago as a school of excellence and achievement.

One such accomplishment is that Santiago has earned the rank of the 1185th best high school in the nation according to “US News and World Report” and the rank of 266 out of 2039 high schools in the state of California. Santiago has also been recognized as the high school with the highest graduation rate in the Inland Empire at the present time. The rank was given by the Riverside County Office of Education. This particular achievement is so significant that it was even recognized by the Riverside newspaper, The Press Enterprise.

Santiago is renowned for its success in the aspects of college readiness and preparation. The school has the highest completion of all A-G requirements met in Riverside County. A-G requirements which are needed to go to a University of California or a California State University. These requirements include classes designated by the UC Regents and various colleges in order to graduate from high school and attend U.C. and California State universities and colleges. Meeting these requirements has also contributed to Santiago having the highest rate of college-going seniors in Riv-erside County; more students attending Santiago are pursuing a college education immediately after graduation than students from any other high school in the area. Head counselor Catalina Cifuentes said, “a very large percentage of the students that are going to a college or university will be attending a University of California, consequently resulting in the highest amount of University of California applications submitted in Riverside County according to the last update made by the U.C. Statfinder.”

Going to a college, of course, means applying for grants and scholarships in hopes of receiving money in order to fund one’s education. Santiago seniors have applied for the most financial aid and F.A.F.S.A. grants in the Corona-Norco Unified School District and Riverside County in both the 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 school years.

Additionally, over 25 percent of the student body took at least one AP exam this year, with 1985 tests being taken by 950 students. AP courses are college-level classes that can earn students exemption from indroductory college classes if they pass the test.

In addition to that, Santiago High School has been given the opportunity to again compete for one of the most prestigious awards given to school districts around the country, the Broad Prize. Last year, the Corona-Norco Unified School District was one of the four school district nominees in the United States, chosen by the Broad Foundation for Education. They are an organization dedicated to giving funds to districts that show prowess in improving at-risk student achievement and excellence in education, with a prize of $500,000 to be used for scholarships. Santiago did not receive first place, but was still awarded an amount of $150,000 to be given to eligible seniors to help them pay for college. The district was again nominated to compete for the Broad Prize this year and if the Corona-Norco School District wins, it will mean $500,000 will be available to qualifying seniors of the Class of 2014.

“We hope to enrich and enlighten our students along the way and help them focus on their careers after they’re done with high school. What we’re looking to do is get a 100 percent graduation rate soon if not this year,” remarked Cifuentes on what Santiago aims to achieve in the future.

These achievements are significant in that they reflect the hard work and determination from all members of the Santiago community to go above and beyond.

Sharks Win in Artwork Awards Ceremony

Kirstie Quezada, Reporter — Tue, 07 May 2013 20:27:34 +0000

April 29 the Corona Public Library held the 6th annual Award Art Ceremony where four Santiago high school students took first and second place. Lacy Mendez, Ahkshay Vay, Briana Madina and Luciana Zamoa where the incredible artists who placed highly in the artwork competition and whose artwork will now be presented inside the library’s Heritage Room. Not only were these artists submitting pieces in the category of art work for the competition for first place, various varieties of media were judged, such as of designer dresses. The category for fashion design was won by Briana Madina. Anyone who is interested in seeing the artwork can look upon the artwork at the library during an time they wish.

Media: Helps or Hurts Public Peace of Mind

Kellie Carlson, News Editor; Abigail Pitts, Managing Editor — Thu, 02 May 2013 20:12:14 +0000

Tragedy and terrorism are constants that have existed throughout history. Violence has been an element of civilization since its beginning and is no different today.

The advent of media and their approach to covering violence, however, has dramatically altered the public perception of violence and has generated paranoia in the general public. It seems that there is more violence now than in previous decades due to the media’s fervent publication and near-glorification of perpetrators and their crimes. This overexposure is featured on big-name news stations in the form of video clips, interviews, sound bytes, photos, and countless dissections of violent events.

In actuality, the crime rate has declined since 1990 and is currently equivalent to the rate of the 1960s. In the past 20 years, the annual murder count has dropped by nearly half. Multiple factors have accelerated the decline of crime, but the media has presented the idea that violence is an ever-increasing threat. This constant broadcasting and amplification of violence has consequently generated an overwhelming fear and paranoia in the public. People see these publicized violent acts as omnipresent monsters that are likely to happen to them in the near future. Constant exposures to terrorist acts, such as the Boston Bombings, have robbed the people of their peace of mind.

In February, the endless news coverage of Christopher Dorner created a tremendous hysteria by encouraging the public to take part in the manhunt for a dangerous cop-killer. The media plastered Dorner’s face everywhere and painted the image that he was “a black Jason Bourne” whom people should take extreme precautions against. During the following period, numerous news stations featured endless segments on Dorner’s violent acts, troubled past, and unknown whereabouts. On top of that, the stations media spent a greater amount of time dissecting Dorner’s manifesto and disturbed past than they spent covering the families of the victims. The victims were shielded, shunned almost, while he earned a status of fame. In the social media world, Dorner earned the title of a celebrity that inspired both awe and terror. Sites like Twitter and Facebook expressed the public’s growing fear of Dorner, which was only fueled by news stations. News coverage made it appear as if the police were incapable of catching the suspect and that Dorner’s elusiveness would ultimately result in violence and destruction.

As seen in the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary in Connecticut, the media exploited the psychological state of shooter Adam Lanza and used the incident to incite fear in the parents of schoolchildren. They effectively crippled the safe-haven idealism associated with school. Not as well known, Sandy Hook housed various safety and precautionary measures that most school do not possess. Earlier this year, the school installed a new security system that required visitors to be visibly identified and buzzed in. On top of that, the school locked its doors each day at 9:30 a.m. Despite these precautionary measures, Lanza was able to force his way into the school. The incident was then manipulated to further politicians’ push for gun control, and was directly correlated with the need for firearm restrictions. Marketers sell fear to make the public invest in safety protection products and endorse political campaigns that restrict our democratic rights.

Although tragedies are isolated incidents, broadcasters used Sandy Hook to generate constant anxiety in order to accomplish a political agenda. What the media has failed to admit is this: no matter how many safety guidelines, foresight, or precautionary measures we employ, those that want to harm us will find a way to do it. Lanza found a way to enter the school on account of his sick desires to harm others; however, this does not mean that the entire nation is always in danger. These incidents are rare and far between, but because the media has access to a national audience, they make it feel like these acts of terror are happening in one’s hometown. We lost the lives of innocence and love because of Adam Lanza, but we also lost our sense of security and well-being because of the media coverage.

It took time for our nation to move on from 9/11 just as it will take time for our nation to recover from the Boston Bombings, but our regained sense of faith and free living will be prolonged in the media refuses to give up its hold on the public. Using events to further political agenda, using manhunts and terror to get ratings, the media refuses to relinquish its hold on society at the people’s expense. We as a nation want to feel safe again, to move forward, and to forgive, but it cannot happen with the media’s selfish motivations.

Senior Talent Show and Superlatives

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 21:31:06 +0000

While the majority of the school was laboring over their STAR tests, Santiago seniors were enjoying their second day of senior activities. Senior talent was interspersed with the declaration of senior superlative winners. ASB hosted the Senior Talent Show, with senior president Megan Wilkinson and senior vice-president Matt Dossantos hosting. A mock stage was set up in the gym for performers to use at their leisure.

Wayne Keller, III was the first performer at the talent show, singing the song “Betrayed” from the musical “The Producers”. He worked the gym floor with his over-the-top, comedic gestures, capturing the tone of the musical.

Kirstie Quezada sang an original song and played acoustic guitar, entertaining the crowd with her strong, passionate lyrics. Next up to the stage was Evan Ritter with his deadpan Napolean Dynamite “Vote for Pedro” dance. Ritter’s dramatic, 70s-reminiscent dance moves had the crowd laughing out loud multiple times.

Alex Padilla wooed the crowd with his adorably-awkward impressions of a police siren, a race car, and a car alarm, but ultimately won over the audience of hard-to-please seniors with his impression of “Herbert the Pervert” from the popular show “Family Guy”.

Playing her original song “What It’s Like to be Loved” was Gabby Gibson, snagging the crowd’s attention with her Taylor Swift-like performance. Elizabeth Hernandez performed the class of 2013’s graduation song, taking up the keyboard and utilizing her vocal skills. Last up to the stage were seniors Lauren Lower and Vanessa Williams, assisted by junior guitar-player Matt Rubic. The trio were unable to finish their performance, but went up to the stage with only the best intentions.

Senior superlative winners:

Best Dancer:
-Stephanie Ha
-Richard Clark

Class Clown:
-Shannon Harris
-Shawn Kalam

Best Personality:
-Taylor Hendricksen
-Brett Hendricksen

Most Likely to be President:
-Chelsey Williams
-Chad Serrao

All-Around Student:
-Vanessa Liu
-Jonathan Ang

Best Hair:
-Jillian Glenn
-Dain Zirwas

Cutest Couple:
-Brianna Paramo
-Jeremy Golenetz

Child at Heart:
-Lindsey Righettini
-Matthew Goldman

Best Dressed:
-Shelby Shamblin
-David Seguin

Most Likely to End up Together:
-Kaylee Pierson
-David Acosta

Senioritis:
-Hunter Walker
-Connor Maldonado

Most Artistic:
-Lacey Mendez
-Akshay Vig

Best Smile:
-Amanda Thomas
-Chase Miron

Best Eyes:
-Bri Paramo
-Kevin Morgan

Most Athletic:
-Amber Munerlyn
-Michael Darr

Best Friends:
-Amber Luna
-Daisy Medina

Most Involved:
-Mia Salazar
-Matthew DosSantos

Most Spirited:
-Megan Wilinson
-Jordan Evans

Most Likely to Tweet About Winning:
-Kiara Parades
-Moody Tobellah

Next Top Model:
-Cara Rimel
-David Seguin

Most Likely to Succeed:
-Grace Noh
-Byung Choi

Biggest Flirt:
-Lauren Lower
-Jordan Harris

Drama Queen and King:
-Tyler Myerly
-Sean Chaisy

Choir Goes to Heritage Festival

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 20:13:51 +0000

While most of us were out leisurely enjoying our Spring Break, Santiago’s Madrigals were securing second place for Chamber Choir at the Heritage Festival held in San Francisco, with their Treble Ensemble taking second place in the women’s category. Their overall performance earned them a “Gold” rating, which, according to Madrigals President Samantha Engler, “is the highest scoring category” a choir group can attain.

Choir traveled to San Francisco for four days over Spring Break and participated in a variety of events, including touring the famously hilly area and even visiting Alcatraz. As this was the last festival choir would compete in together, Santiago seniors were particularly sentimental about their success.

Explosions in Boston Felt by Santiago Students

Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 03:25:29 +0000

April 15, 2013 two explosions occurred in Boston during the Boston Marathon, killing three people and injuring over 130.

The explosions happened around 2:50 p.m., as runners had begun to cross the finish line, and a scene of chaos and panic immediately erupted. Various news sources have reported that there is an eight year old boy among the three killed. Hospitals have also released information stating that many of the injured are in critical or serious conditions.

According to an official statement released to CNN the bombs were about 50 to 100 yards apart on the marathon course in which 27,000 runners had participated in that afternoon. The race had been called off as the streets flooded with emergency response units, panicked spectators, and athletes. Photos and videos of the event and ensuing pandemonium poured into news stations and onto the social media network. Multiple photos depict injured civilians covered in blood and even missing limbs. Videos show people running about, screaming, crying, and searching for loved ones.
News sources have described the bombs as “crude” structures that contained shrapnel deigned to severely injure those surrounding the source of the explosion. Numerous witnesses and bystanders have explained that the explosions were as loud as cannons and shook the ground as clouds of smoke filled the air.

The person or persons responsible for the tragedy have yet to be identified but at this point, the FBI has classified the bombings as a terrorist attack. They do not know if the culprit or culprits belong to a foreign or domestic group either.

”Any responsible individuals, any responsible groups, will feel the full weight of justice,” President Obama stated in a press conference earlier today.

On a local level, many students have sent their prayers and sympathy to the members of the attack. Many of the students on Santiago’s campus are horrified and repulsed by the act of terror that sought to harm innocent people.

“You go to the movies, you get shot. You go to school, you get shot. You run a marathon, you get bombed. What’s next?” said junior Brooklyn Haggerty on her twitter account. The Twitter feed featured endless posts regarding the tragedy and the deep unsettling feeling students are experiencing in regards to “the hatred in the world’. Loving posts and prayers have also appeared on Instagram, Sharks showing their support for the victims in Boston.

Buffalo Wild Wings Impresses

Alec Romero, Reporter — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 21:39:47 +0000

It’s a Sunday afternoon with basketball in mid season, spring training baseball and the beginning of NASCAR racing season all televised. Buffalo Wild Wings with its 54-television screen shows everything from the biggest game of the day to the Golf Channel so there is definitely a “buffet” of sports to watch while you feast on those wings.

With the big Lakers game on and the NASCAR fans entering the restaurant, many customers pack Buffalo Wild Wings, but because the restaurant has a small space and bar area, many fans have to wait to be seated, with the line going out the door

As soon as you’re seated down, within a few minutes a waiter asks what you would like to drink. While waiting there are many televisions to watch. If your seat doesn’t have a good view of the game you would like to watch or it isn’t on all, the waiters or hosts change the television as soon as possible. The beverage is brought to the table pretty quickly, and when drinking a cold water or soda, it is time to look at the menu that obviously has a wide variety of Buffalo Wings sauces, nachos, hamburgers and a kid’s menu. The Buffalo Wild Wings has two different choices, which are boneless or traditional. The boneless can be ordered in 8s, 12s or more if you want to order as a group and the traditional comes with 6s, 12s or again can be ordered more if a whole group is ordering as one. The most you can get if ordering as a group is 50 from both of them. A lot of parents have been saying Buffalo Wild Wings isn’t very family friendly and they would never take their children to a sport’s bar, however in the dining room, there were many children even babies in the restaurant who seemed to be enjoying themselves.

When the waiter took my order for eight boneless mild wings about ten minutes later, I was offered a beverage refill and then continued to watch the variety of sports on the television screens. Since my seat was in the middle of the dining room I was able to get a good view of every television. The Buffalo wings were brought to the table about 15 minutes later, which was great considering how packed the restaurant was. Every wing had a great amount of wing sauce and every wing was fully cooked to perfection.

I was asked if I wanted the check while I was eating, some people may find it a bit bothering before they finish their meal, but since the restaurant was still busy and sometimes it was a bit difficult to get a waiter’s attention for a beverage refill, I decided to say “yes” so I wasn’t waiting a long time to pay or get my change back. The change and receipt was brought back immediately and because of that, I left a five dollar tip for the waiter since in previous experiences it has taken a while for my change and receipt to come back to the table. The total amount of the meal was $11.26 for an endless amount of refills and eight boneless wings, which I thought was a fair price for a sit-down restaurant and a drink.

Sometimes problems have been known from service with the waiters due to the long waits to just get a refill on a beverage, but this Sunday afternoon was a personal best experience and I give a strong recommendation to dine out on a Sunday afternoon at Buffalo Wild Wings.

Skull Island Showcase

Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 21:21:37 +0000

Tuesday, March 12 the freshman of Santiago’s Skull Island program gathered to show off the creations that they produced as a part of the class.

“Our objective was to survive and eventually escape from the island,” commented Alec Brown. “We had to make a civilization out of nothing.”

Over the course of six weeks the students had to learn to survive and adapt as if they were stranded on a desert island. The course required that they make tools such as maps and weather-reading devices to help them stay alive. They were dealt a series of cards each week falling under the categories: disaster and benefit. The benefit cards would advance their condition on the island and assist them in some way. The students had to adjust to the condition listed in the disaster card (storm, sickness, etc.) and then create a solution to stay alive.

In addition, they were required to build an actual fort out of materials that one would find on an island. Structures came in the form of tents and cabanas that reached anywhere from five to six feet tall. Forts ranged in various shapes and sizes and were completed over the duration of four days.

“The hardest part was creating the structure. Once we built it, it shrank and our group had to start over,” said Felicity Hayama. “It was still a great bonding and learning experience.”

The students were graded on how well they responded to the tasks, the sturdiness of their structure, the effectiveness of their tools, and the quality of the assignment write- ups.

“The worst part was the write-ups. The write-ups make up the 5 inch binder that is worth at least $200 worth of ink,” remarked Christopher Metcalf.

Megan Dudek Joins Jazz Band of America

Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 04:55:12 +0000

March 11 Santiago junior Megan Dudek prepares to leave and fly to Indianapolis after receiving an offer to perform as part of the Jazz Band of America. Jazz Band of America is a prestigious honor band that features various jazz students from around the nation. The trip entails three 8.5- hour practices leading up to a concert that Dudek will be featured in Friday, March 15.

Dudek received the offer during Santiago’s Jazz 1 performance at the Rose Parade Brunch held at the Langstone Hotel back in
December.

“Jazz 1 band had a really good performance,” commented Dudek. “We were really on our game.” Dudek played the trombone during the performance. Afterwards, she was approached by one of the head officials of the Jazz Band of America program. They had informed her that her performance ounted as an audition and asked if she was willing to accept the invitation to Indianapolis.

“I was elated because this was the best news I’ve heard all year. It is something to look forward to and is the first step to advance my career. I want to be a performance major and this definitely gets my foot in the door,” stated Dudek.

She initially began playing piano lessens at age seven and switched to the trombone around age ten. Dudek is also well versed in other instruments including the euphonium. She officially joined the school band program during elementary school in the fifth grade. Dudek has also grown up under the instruction of her father, Joe Dudek, who is one of the directors of Bands of Santiago Sharks, B.O.S.S.

“My dad encourages me and offers me support personally and scholarly that not everyone can give me,” stated Dudek. “It’s the reason I take music seriously; he is my inspiration. He is not just my teacher but also my best friend.”

Dudek leaves Tuesday, March 12 at 8 a.m

Sharks Dive Into Literature

Meesha Moghaddam, Reporter — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 20:03:09 +0000

From “Twilight” to “The Hunger Games”, authors impress us with their suspenseful stories. Whether it’s “The Outsiders” or “To Kill a Mockingbird”, we still read these amazing writings. We smell the scent of grey paper or stare at the screen, scrolling and desiring more adrenaline that comes in a package of inspiring words.

Everyone is different, which means not all students prefer the same genres of reading. Some like a mellow, inspirational book that they can get lost inside. Others want a suspenseful thriller that will have them craving more. There are even students that favor the types of books that send the chills down their bodies and goosebumps along their limbs. If you like calm literature, “How to Save a Life” by Sara Zarr is a book that will inspire you to take the impossible to the next level. If you’re the up-all-nighter type, “The Host” is an adrenaline-packed, out of this world novel, written by the author of the “Twilight” saga, Stephenie Meyer. The Goosebumps series may seem too much of an easy read for some, so try reading anything by Stephen King if you want chills down your spine. “The Maze Runner” by James Dashner, “Divergent” by Veronica Roth, and “Shiver” by Maggie Stiefvater are some novels that have been spotted on this campus in the hands of Sharks.

Besides the assigned reading tasks, several Sharks do not need to be told to read certain books. One example of this is “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee. Students were reading this novel even before it was assigned to be read in Language Arts Honors for freshmen. “To Kill a Mockingbird” was Lee’s only published novel. She was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and a Quill Award. Another required reading assignments include “Lord of the Flies” by William Golding. From the information collected, students here at Santiago have mixed feeling for this novel of young adult literature. Several Sharks claim that the book is well-written and has a good theme to it. Others say it is a “horrible piece of literature” and should not be recommended because it is “poorly written” or because it’s just not to their liking at all.

Teachers on the other hand, may have a different perspective on novels. Biology and Zoology teacher Caitlin Spivey from K101 says “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain is her favorite novel. Tim Perez from F211, says his favorite novel is “Fight Club” by Chuck Palahniuk. Assistant Principal Sarah Ragusa said she likes “Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley, though she found it difficult to point out her favorite. Yvonne McFadzean, also an AP, enjoys the book “Outliers”, written by Malcolm Gladwell, regarded as an influential writer and journalist.

Literature has inspired directors and producers to recreate the stories into a different format: films. Many students now view literature from a different perspective. They turn words into pictures, and pictures into actions. For example, Suzanne Collins, author of The New York Times best seller “The Hunger Games” trilogy and “The Underland Chronicles” series, has had her book, “The Hunger Games”, made into a movie starring Jennifer Lawrence, Liam Hemsworth, and Josh Hutcherson, directed by Gary Ross. “The Tale Of Despereaux”, a novel by Kate DiCamillo, is another example of a movie-made novel. This classic story of a brave mouse is loved by many who are into speculative fiction and children’s literature. The movie stars the voice of Emma Watson. Watson is also in the major motion picture series of “Harry Potter”. She worked with Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint. Some other books that have been made into movies include “The Da Vinci Code”, “The Lord of the Rings”, “The Hobbit”, “The Chronicles of Narnia”, “Percy Jackson and the Olympians”, “Life of Pi”, “Les Misérables”, “The Polar Express”, “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”, “The Time Traveler’s Wife”, “I am Number Four” and “A Walk to Remember.” Nicholas Sparks is especially known for having written novels that became films. He is best known for “The Notebook” and his most recent release, “Safe Haven”, is in theaters now.

Senior Kennedy Green favors “The Host” by Stephenie Meyer because she says it is very entertaining and creative. Senior Whitney Nixon claims her favorite book is “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho, which is currently the novel that incoming ninth graders are required to read for their honors language arts summer assignment. She also likes the literary essay “As a Man Thinketh” by James Allen. “They’re positive-thinking books and they help renew your spirit,” said Whitney. “It reflects on past experience.”

Elena Nunez, a freshman who enjoys reading, favors “Stolen by Lucy Christopher”. Freshmen Alexis Vo and Katelyn Cabrera like the P”retty Little Liars” series, or if you enjoy reading originals like Melody Platt, “Harry Potter” will still sweep you off your feet.

Our tastes not only differ by personality, but also by gender, which makes a huge difference in what we favor. Females often like the type of books that boost their confidence. Some genres they read are dark romance, adventure, fantasies, faith, and spirituality. Males are usually attentive to novels that have to do with sports, conflict, and science fiction. Everyone has their own opinions on what is considered a good or bad piece of writing. It doesn’t matter what gender you are, we all have different views no matter what the difference is. Literary creations will continue to entertain all types of students.

Study Buddies: Friend or Foe?

Gabby Gibson, Reporter — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 22:39:42 +0000

Studying with another student has its pros and cons. Some people prefer to study on their own, while others enjoy the help of friends to make studying more bearable. It helps to work with people who are equally devoted to studying and getting their work done as you are. The downside of most study buddies is that they can become chatty and social, rather than informative and educational. The benefits of having a study partner include meeting new people, sharing knowledge, quizzing each other, and bouncing around ideas to make higher quality notes.

”Study partners are a great thing because then you get two different points of views, especially for a hard class like Physics,” says junior Craig Spengler. With hard classes like Physics, it might be a good idea to have a friend to help you with memorizing formulas.

”I don’t like study partners because I learn easier, and it’s more efficient when I work by myself. I can absorb information easier when it’s quiet, and I am alone,” says sophomore Rachel Gibson. If you prefer quiet, independent time to study, working with a partner might not be the best idea for you.

At the end of the day, the issue of whether or not to take a study buddy depends on the individual and what suits them the best. Working with a partner can either end up becoming a social hour and a complete waste of time, or it could be very helpful and informative.

Smoke Detector Set Off Before School

Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 22:14:01 +0000

March 7, Santiago High School fire alarms went off before school began as two students set off the smoke detectors in the T-building bathroom through second-hand drug smoke. The alarm rang for approximately 10 minutes as administration traced the source of the problem. The students have since been disciplined and the school cleared of a possible hazard of fire.

A school-wide failure to properly respond to the situation as most of the staff chose to ignore the sirens prompted Assistant Principal Kenny Torres to remind staff through a morning announcement to follow proper evacuation procedure and assume all alarms are not false unless immediately announced otherwise.

Red Carpet Runway Fashion Show

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 21:31:36 +0000

March 2, 2013 brought Fashion Club’s annual fashion show. The theme of this year’s show was “Red Carpet Runway”, prompting the designers of the fashion club and class to design elegant, award ceremony-worthy dresses. Each designer would then be judged on creativity, craftsmanship, cohesiveness, and originality.

Santiago boasted the fact that Nick Verreos, from season two of “Project Runway”, appeared as a special guest judge. Most notably, though, was the numerous amount of professional cameras spread throughout the theater. Because of the spotlight on Santiago’s fashion club in an upcoming show on MTV called “Sew What”, MTV made an appearance in order to record the show. The crew and producers for this new show set up their own production center in Contemporary Media teacher Premila Bovie-Ware’s class in B building, complete with camera equipment and computers.

Before the show, models and designers alike flitted around backstage doing make-up, hair, and performing last minute outfit adjustments. The hallway outside the theater was crowded with students and teachers trying to prepare for the show.

The “Red Carpet Runway” kicked off with the work of Carlotta Maggi’s Fashion 1 class in a cumulative collection. Each member of Fashion 1 was graded upon one piece of work, whilst advanced fashion students were expected to complete an entire line.

Senior Daisy Medina had only been sewing since January, but came out with a beautiful collection featuring dresses with full skirts and tight-fitted tops. The next designer, junior Briana Medina, had been sewing since she was just a little girl, and the extent of her craftsmanship was obvious in her work. Her line featured glamorous, high-fashion dresses, and even a few men’s outfits.

Senior Danielle Durk, a member of Maggi’s Fashion 1 class, created her first ever line, with her inspiration being “cupcakes”. Two highlights of the show were the “Princess” duo, senior Bri Severaid and junior Sarah Izenman, whose line was inspired by the “VMA” awards. Their designs spotlighted a pair of iconic spacemen, decked out in reflective silver and showing off their muscles.

Senior Alisa Hillberg’s line was simple, clean, and elegant, while senior Shane Hibbard, the designer right after her, went for a broader, more couture approach to his designs. The theme of Hibbard’s gowns were “black, white, and red” with each dress only featuring these colors.

Senior Kyra Botshekan was inspired by the likes of Joan Crawford and Marilyn Monroe for her red carpet dresses. Each of her outfits was classy and beautiful, featuring some element of old fifties-style glamour. The last designing duo to appear onstage, senior Cara Rimel and senior Cassandra Castillo, stole the show with their beautifully crafted, elegant gowns.

After a special appearance by Santiago alumni designers Aamber Aleyna, and Tim Nguyen, as well as fashion teacher Carlotta Maggi, guest judge Verreos and Maggi spoke about the importance of the arts and following one’s dreams.

Before the show came to a conclusion, the judges’ choices were revealed. For creativity, Shane Hibbard’s couture line took the sewing box. Rimel and Castillo won for best craftsmanship, and Briana Medina won for the most cohesive collection. As the awards progressed, the prizes became more and more coveted. Aside from just winning a sewing box, the Princess duo, Severaid and Izenman, won two tickets to a fashion show that was being held by FIDM, the sponsor for this year’s “Red Carpet Runway”, due to the originality of their line. The last award to be announced was “Best in Show” with the prize including two tickets to a black tie FIDM fashion show and dinner. Rimel and Castillo won their second award for the night when their name was called for this award.

Teens and Tattoos

Kirstie Quezada, Reporter — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 16:04:15 +0000

Walking around Santiago High School, different people gather around, each with their own unique ways of expressing themselves. Tattoos are a common method of self-expression, despite their reputation of being radical brandings. They have been around since the beginning of time, and each and every person has the ability to personalize their tattoo, creating a meaning all their own.

“A cross is a symbol for Christianity, so I thought it would be a good representation of how God gives you a new life,” explained senior Suzanne Weese.

Suzanne got her tattoo, a small cross on the back of her neck, on her 17th birthday. The meaning of the tattoo, says Weese, is a constant, “reminder of the sacrifice Jesus made for me.”

Carinna Madrigal received her first tattoo the summer of 2012. She has five different sized hearts placed right behind her left ear.

“I guess you can say it does mean something to me, because there’s five hearts and there are five people in my family. Of course I love them, so each heart represents them,” commented Madrigal.

Tattoos are highly debated upon and the ethicality and morality of body art is constantly questioned.

A good tattoo tells a story; they tell you something about the person or what they believe in.

Tattooing can be considered a permanent and slightly painful art form or a senseless ink stain. Everyone has their own opinion about teens getting tattoos, but at the end of the day, the opinion that really matters is the person getting the tattoo because they are the ones that are going to have to live with their tattoo for the rest of their life.

Longtime Lakers Owner Jerry Buss Dies at 80

Alec Romero, Reporter — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 20:46:12 +0000

The morning of Feb. 18 began with sad news for basketball fans, with the passing of Lakers owner Dr. Jerry Buss who had owned the franchise since 1979. Buss, who recently celebrated a birthday Jan. 27, was 80 years old.

Growing up, Buss had a passion for sports whether it was coaching, playing or becoming an owner. After he became an owner of the Los Angeles Strings (World Team Tennis) in 1979 and turning the team into a successful franchise, Buss purchased the Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Kings and The Forum (an arena in Downtown Inglewood) for $67.5 million dollars in the same year.

Before Buss took over the team, the Lakers drafted Ervin “Magic” Johnson as the first overall pick to join fellow all-star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, so in Buss’ first year, the Lakers had high potential to win the championship with two future hall of famers.

The team lived up to their potentialduring the 1979-1980 NBA Season, winning 60 games and making it to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1973. The Lakers won the 1980 NBA Finals and this championship was the first of 10 under Buss’ ownership.

A year later Buss hired a new head coach who had assistant coaching experience, Pat Riley. Pat Riley quickly changed the offense on the Lakers, making the five men on the floor run quick plays and pass the ball constantly while on offense until a player had a open shot. This style of play is known in NBA history as “Showtime”. The Showtime in Los Angeles began to define Buss’ legacy with Pat Riley as coach, Magic Johnson with his quick passes, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar leading the team in scoring. The Lakers won the 1982 NBA Title and the second championship under Buss’ ownership.

A few years later in 1982, the Lakers once again had a number one draft pick and used it to get another future hall of famer, James Worthy. The first two years the Lakers were able to get to the finals, but were defeated by the Philadelphia 76ers in 1983 and Boston Celtics in 1984. However in 1985, Buss’ Lakers won their third championship in the six years he took over the team. In the celebration of the championship Buss held up the championship trophy and yelled, “Hey look at this!” to the media. This is one of the most memorable moments in Buss’ tenure owning the Lakers.

In 1987 and 1988, the Lakers won back-to-back titles, which were the last in the “ShowTime” era for Buss and the last titles for Magic Johnson and Pat Riley as a Lakers coach.

The 1990’s were a rough time for Jerry Buss ownership due to the retirements of Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in the early 90’s, Pat Riley leaving to go into broadcasting, and James Worthy retiring a few years later. After missing the playoffs in 1995, Buss wondered if he would ever win another title owning the Lakers.

His doubts changed after the Lakers signed star center Shaquille O’Neal and drafted future star Kobe Bryant in the summer of 1996. Jerry Buss and then general manager Jerry West both regained confidence that they would go into another dynasty with the two players, but with little support at the other positions and a coach who didn’t run a good enough offense for Kobe and Shaq, the Lakers were knocked out of the playoffs for three straight seasons in 1997, 1998 and 1999.

In the summer of 2000 Buss hired former Chicago Bull coach Phil Jackson who coached Michael Jordan to six NBA Championships in the 1990s. The Lakers won the second most games in a single season in their franchise history with 67 and gave Buss his sixth NBA title since taking over the team.

The Lakers won two more championships in 2001 and 2002, missed the playoffs in 2003 and made the NBA Finals in 2004 but lost in 5 games to the Detroit Pistons. That following summer in 2004, Buss and Shaquille O’Neal went into contract disputes and O’Neal wasn’t happy with the money offered, and him and Kobe Bryant were going through a public off-the-court feud, O’Neal was traded to the Miami Heat before the 2004-2005 NBA Season and Phil Jackson went into a second retirement

After a disappointing Lakers season with no playoffs, Buss talked to his superstar Kobe Bryant about bringing back Phil Jackson. Kobe Bryant fully went against the idea at first, but Buss wanted Kobe to trust him in hopes to bring a few more championships to the Lakers before both of them retired. In the 2005-2006 season the Lakers continued their previous season struggles but were able to make the playoffs as seventh seed. The Lakers took a 3-1 series lead over the Phoenix Suns but lost in seven games. The playoff situation was similar with the Lakers making the playoffs as a seventh seed and Phoenix as a number two, but the Lakers for the second year in a row were knocked out of the playoffs for the second season in a row in the first round.

In the summer of 2007, Kobe Bryant demanded Buss to trade him since he felt the Lakers had no potential or the right players. However Buss told Bryant they would never be able to get the equal value for Bryant and Buss promised to trade for better players or sign them. Eight months later, the Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak and Buss traded for star power forward Pau Gasol. The Lakers made the NBA Finals for the 14th time since Buss took ownership over the team, but lost in six games to the Boston Celtics, however the Lakers bounced back the next two years by winning Buss’ ninth and tenth championship in 2009 and 2010.

The 2010 NBA Championship victory over the Boston Celtics in seven games would be the last in the life for Jerry Buss. The next season after the 2010 championship, Buss started to experience medical problems and began to see doctors and eventually went to the hospital. Since Buss wasn’t able to run the team and day-to-day operations, his children Jeanie and Jim Buss assisted their father, Jim running the team and Jeanie running the day-to-day operations. The Lakers were unable to achieve the franchises third three-peat in 2011 and Phil Jackson retired as head coach.

Jim Buss had the responsibility of finding a new head coach for what would be a lockout season. Along with Kupchak, they hired Mike Brown who changed the offense and gave the Lakers a new style of play. Jerry Buss was hospitalized the entire 2011-2012 season and fans became frustrated with Jim Buss not owning the team or making big trades and singings like their father did. In the summer of 2012, fans made their new appreciation well known to Jim Buss after him and Kupchak acquired Steve Nash and Dwight Howard.

With Jerry Buss becoming a bit more healthy he watched the Lakers start of 1-4 in the 2012-2013 season and made the decision along with his son and Kupchak to fire Mike Brown and hire Mike D’Antoni. Buss believed D’Antoni could bring the 1980’s “ShowTime” offense back to this Lakers team with Dwight Howard, Steve Nash and Kobe Bryant, but the Lakers continued to struggle and have not had an above .500 since the team started 6-5 in late November.

Thursday, Feb. 14, the Lakers released a story that Jerry Buss was moved into an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and he had been battling cancer since last year. Just a few days later on Monday morning of Feb. 18, Buss passed away at the age of 80.

The entire city of Los Angeles felt the loss of Jerry Buss with some fans in the city putting candles in the shape of “LA” in front of their houses, many fans wearing jerseys, and ABC7 interviewed a man painting a small mural of the Lakers logo and words saying “Since 1979” in Downtown Los Angeles outside his business building. LA Live put out large pieces of paper with Buss’ pictures so fans could write a small message in tribute to Buss. The Lakers came back home from the all-star break in Houston and played their first game since Buss’ passing. The game had many tributes and a speech from Kobe Bryant who pointed to a seat in a Staples Center suite that was lit up, symbolizing the seat of Jerry Buss. The Lakers played a great game and defeated the hated and rival Boston Celtics who Jerry Buss publicly despised.

The next day, the Nokia Theatre had a funeral with many past and present Lakers in attendance. Players such as Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Magic Johnson made speeches and recounted their memories with Jerry Buss. The service ended with Magic Johnson having everyone stand up and put their hands in the shape of an “L” and pleaded to Jim and Jeanie Buss to never sell the team.

Santiago Hosts FBLA Inland Section Leadership Conference

Abigail Pitts, Managing Editor — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 21:50:54 +0000

Saturday, Feb. 23, 2013, Santiago Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) hosted the 2013 Inland Section Leadership Conference. The Inland Section of FBLA encompasses schools from southern California with FBLA chapters. Members from all of the participating schools attended.

The conference commenced with an opening session in the gym. After the president of the Inland Section, Yvonne Lee of Ruben S. Ayala High School, called the meeting to order, senior and Santiago madrigal Danielle James led the 500 FBLA members in the national anthem. Following this, senior and FBLA Parliamentarian Vanessa Liu led the students in the Pledge of Allegiance and the FBLA pledge, during which the members pledge to uphold the rules and mission of FBLA and to embody the qualities necessary to becoming responsible business leaders.

Lee then gave a short speech in which she noted that this was the largest Inland Section Leadership Conference ever, and announced the schools that were joining the conference, Walnut High School and Hope Gardens High School. Lee then held a role call of the different high schools, during which each chapter’s members cheered as their school was called.

CNUSD Superintendent Dr. Michael Lin was then introduced and gave a speech. He commented that everyone looked so professional and that he couldn’t “tell the students from the young advisors.” He thanked all of the members for their hard work, and described how the business leaders of America would be the business leaders of the world.

Liu then recognized the work of Santiago FBLA in preparing for this conference, and James, who is also Santiago’s FBLA chapter president, received a Certificate of Appreciation.

Following this, the keynote speaker Margaret Schneider of the Riverside Chapter of the March of the Dimes was introduced. She commended FBLA for helping with the March of Dimes and helping premature babies for the past 40 years. FBLA has conducted several fundraisers over the years for the March of Dimes. She spoke of different types of fundraisers and their respective difficulties, and elaborated on how the March for Babies fundraiser is a great way for members of FBLA to connect with current business leaders.

After the keynote speech, candidates for next year’s FBLA Inland Section Executive Board were introduced, starting with the candidate for Parliamentarian, Zichong Peng of Los Osos High School, who was introduced by Liu. The candidate for Historian, Santiago’s Anthony Nguyen, then gave his speech. He said that he wants members who limit themselves to the conferences and taking tests to become more involved and participate in FBLA’s charities and other beneficial operations. Even though each of these positions only had one candidate, those candidates needed to earn the approval of their peers to be officially instated on the board. The candidates for Vice President of Communications, Vice President of Programs, and President gave their 3-minute spiels.

The speeches were followed up by announcements about the times and locations of the different competitions throughout the day and where to assemble. Students were also reminded that they needed to be in proper business attire throughout the day in order to be admitted into their respective tests and interviews. Lee adjourned the meeting, and the FBLA students filed out of the gym and to their Session 1 tests and interviews. There would be two sessions throughout the day, followed by an awards ceremony later in the night.

A League of Their Own

Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 21:20:12 +0000

As the sun fell on the El Cerrito Park, kids and adults alike began to take their leave of the freshly paved basketball court. Under the cover of darkness and onto the surface of the lamp-lit court, masses of Santiago juniors inherited their playing ground. Draft day at El Cerrito for these basketball enthusiasts saw appointed team captains meeting and greeting their newly assembled teams.

Santiago junior Jerret Williams pioneered this student run basketball league from the ground up. Spread purely though word of mouth, the league picked up 57 players by the time the official draft and team captains had been picked.

“We made this league so people didn’t have to pay,” said Williams, “It’s awesome because everybody knows each other.”

Seven teams, a fully envisioned snake draft, and a packed game schedule comprise this student-created basketball league. What began as a nonchalant idea has evolved into a fully fleshed league complete with team names and player trades. While the majority of the participants in the organization are Santiago Juniors there are a few players from other schools and even a couple of siblings of players.

“It’s sick you got like 50 guys playing something they all love,” says Grayland Martin Santiago junior and team captain, “It’s cool to hang out after the games to.”

Martin expresses a special amount of enthusiasm for the league after his team was pinned as underdogs from the get go due to losing all matchups on the draft day preliminary games. His team now sits at the first seed entering playoffs.

“That’s right, best team captain right here, brought my team from the bottom,” Martin says with a laugh as he smirks at a member of a rival team.

Typical games in this league have ten-minute quarters and at least one referee overseeing the game. Benched players and any players in the league who are not presently playing a game manage time. Unfortunately, a previous hope of being able to keep statistics of individual players such as points scored, block and rebounds have yet to see fruition in the record books due to a lack of man power. If and when these stats are ever documented they will be accessible by players on the upcoming league website that is currently in development.

Games are played at public basketball courts, mosques, churches and if possible the resident court of a participating player. In the event that a team is short of players whether it be from a plague of injuries or an inability to find a ride to the game, team captains can pickup a random player from another team or a random person on the court granted that the opposing team captains agrees with the pickup.

Team captains were chosen based on passion expressed during the selection process. Traits such as strong leadership and passion were held above actual basketball skill and knowledge. These captains also double as team coaches and coordinators.

As the second semester opens for Santiago the league is now entering the start of playoffs and a couple of team rivalries have emerged from the competitiveness of the regular season. The team captains are planning to transform the league into a football league after the championship game for the basketball league is played.

Fashion at the Oscars

Annaliese Clauze, Reporter — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 20:41:21 +0000

The Oscars are over, and once again the stars went all out with their couture attire. This year’s designers have definitely outdone themselves, managing to impress the viewers.

The immediate favorite of the night was undoubtedly Jennifer Lawrence’s white mermaid cut gown. Designed by Dior, the strapless number was one of several muted creations favored on the runway this year. Another of these pale numbers was donned by Amy Adams, who wore a dove grey creation with a shredded ball gown skirt. The feminine, flowing cut of the gown fit Adams beautifully, and her subtle hairdo completed the look, giving it the true princess effect. Olivia Spencer was present in a one-shouldered tulle gown designed by Tadashi Shoji, her stylist of choice. Amanda Seyfried was another favorite fashonista in a pastel hue; her Alexander McQueen gown was covered in intricate leafy beading and cut with a teardrop slit in the neckline.

Still more lightly colored designs were worn Anne Hathaway and Charlize Theron. Anne Hathaway’s gown was reserved and simple in the front, cut in straight lines without any flashy decorations. However, the dress featured interesting crossed ties and straps in the back, making the otherwise demure dress more risque. In her own words, her dress was “business in the front, party in the back.” Charlize Theron’s ensemble was ingenious in its simplicity; it was pure white and cut in a simple pattern that complimented her pixie cut hair.

The edgier, metallic designs were another big hit on the red carpet. From Sandra Bullock to Naomi Watts and Stacy Kiebler, jewel-toned beaded gowns were a hit.

Perhaps one of the most interesting wardrobe choices was made by Helen Hunt. Her simple blue dress was shockingly ordinary and appeared to be in need of ironing. However, upon further investigation, it was discovered that the gown’s back was accessorized with $700,000 worth of jewelry, making it one of the most expensive outfits of the night.

Intermixed with these gorgeous gowns were a handful of tacky duds. Tabatha Coffey’s dress was fine from the waist up, but the skirt’s main feature was a plumage of feathers that made it resemble a feather duster. Brandi Glanville’s dress was the most shocking, cut so extremely low that it barely contained her bosom. The dress far missed its aim of sexy and became nothing short of garish. Helena Bonham Carter’s dress was extremely frumpy; its awkwardly layered skirt and poorly cut bodice made her look tired and slightly wilted, and her lifeless up-do only perpetuated this image.

Boys Basketball Wins CIF Round 2

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 22:21:43 +0000

Feb. 19 Santiago boy’s basketball played their second CIF round against the Cypress Centurions. The entire first half, Sharks struggled with their inside game and, despite their significant height advantage over the Centurions, failed to get many seemingly easy rebounds, resulting in the neck-and-neck score of 44-43 with the Sharks in the lead at halftime.

Santiago stayed in the game the first half, mainly through their competitive man-to-man defense and full court press. While Cypress seemed to be dominating in the key, Shark defense was obviously tiring them out and causing the Centurions to make small errors that cost them the lead.

Senior Markus Thompson helped the Sharks keep their small lead with his numerous 3-point shots and high free-throw percentage, and by the second half, the Shark’s centers picked up their inside game and started working hard to get rebounds and 2-point shots.

While significantly shorter and lacking many eligible substitutes, Cypress Centurions put up a hard fight and remained close in score to the Sharks the entire game. Each shot by the Centurions was met by an equal shot from the Sharks, proving that when pushed, the Santiago boys are capable of amazing things from both the 3-point line and the block.

With a lead of 4 in the final quarter, Santiago Sharks kept their heads and avoided making small errors in judgment that might have otherwise cost them the game. The Centurions, on the other hand, shot a few air balls and made senseless fouls, resulting in the clock running down significantly and giving the Sharks some breathing room.

Despite their layup at the very last second, the Santiago Sharks defeated the Cyprus Centurions with a final score of 52-49, leaving the Sharks to move onto the third round of CIF.

“Warm Bodies” Warms Hearts

Evan Ritter, Sports Editor — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 22:06:21 +0000

The zombie genre comes back to life in the new undead romance directed by Jonathan Levine, “Warm Bodies”, a tale of how love can actually spark new life in those who have been long dead. The movie is told from the perspective of zombie dreamer “R”, played by Nicholas Hoult, who longs for a change to his dull daily routine of shambling around, eating brains, and having grunting conversations with his best friend Marcus, played by Rob Corrdry.

The story follows the life, or lack thereof, of teenage zombie “R” who believes that the undead have virtually meaningless lives and he longs to feel the thumping of a heart beat again. However, during the undeads’ weekly patrol for food, they stumble upon a human scavenging party that has Julie, portrayed by Teresa Palmer, the daughter of a military commander (John Malkovich) and the very person that might give “R” what he wants. After saving Julie from his own kind, he makes it his mission to protect her at all costs. True love starts a fire that continues to spread throughout the undead, drawing them into “R”‘s own goals and showing that honest and heartfelt love can conquer all, even death.

The movie takes a witty and unconventional twist on the classic Shakespearian play, “Romeo and Juliet”. If the names “R” and Julie didn’t give it away, the rivalry and struggle between two opposing forces is a large part of the plot, but instead of two rival families, it is the fight between zombies and humanity. The two opposites face a love that is forbidden, but still find themselves drawing ever closer to each other.

The alteration of the famous play is not the only appeal of the movie, however. “Warm Bodies” appears to be a simplistic and familiar story, but the elements of horror and comedy that are mixed in serve to create an original adaptation of Shakespeare’s story. In terms of cinematography, set design, and costumes and make-up, they all combine to create a destroyed world, devoid of hope and filled to the brim with creatures only seen in our nightmares.

”Warm Bodies” isn’t a breakthrough in the film industry, however. The problems were minuscule, but they could potentially be irritating to some viewers. The acting of those portraying the zombies seemed to be a little overdone and they already appeared to be human-like at the beginning of the movie. At parts, the actions of the zombies were humorous, but at other parts the undead act didn’t seem very accurate. Another issue was the rapid pace and ease at which humans grew fond of the zombies. In one scene, Julie’s best friend, Nora (Analeigh Tipton), sees “R” for the first times and instantly accepts him with open arms. The typical response when meeting a zombie, even when believed to be harmless, is to run away screaming or at least be a little dubious about the safety of the situation.

Other than those and a couple other mistakes that have no real effect on the movie, “Warm Bodies” pulls itself together to create an unorthodox yet entertaining romance that brings along horror and comedic instances. It may not break through the boundaries of traditional movies, but its clever look at Shakespeare’s work and the appearance of the film creates a very enticing story.

Girl’s Soccer Wins Round One Against Vista Murrieta

Alec Romero, Reporter — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 21:55:11 +0000

After a 17-5-4 overall regular season record, a sixth-straight league title and no losses since Dec. 28, the Santiago Girl’s Soccer team entered the first round of the CIF Playoffs against the Vista Murrieta Broncos, who finished with a 10-5-1 regular season record on Thursday Feb. 14.
Just a week earlier, two of the girl’s soccer players, Cabria Turang and Amber Munerlyn, signed their letters of intent to Division 1 Women’s Soccer this upcoming winter. Turang signed to the University of Utah and Munerlyn signed to the University of North Carolina.

During the regular season, Munerlyn led the team in goals with 17 and sophomore Maddy Haro led the team with 13 assists.

The game began with both teams playing great defense until the first goal attempt taken by Vista Murrieta’s Sabrina Latteri with 37 minutes left in the first half that went to the left of the net. The Sharks attempted their first goal with Amber Munerlyn breaking away from the Vista Murrieta defense six minutes into the first half; the shot was saved by the Broncos goalkeeper Cheyanne Mumphrey. With 29:15 left in the first half, Haro attempted another Santiago goal, but once again the Vista Murrieta goalkeeper saved the shot.

After nearly 20 minutes completed in the first half, Haro dribbled the ball from the midway point of the field and successfully went past two of Vista Murrieta players to pass the ball to Munerlyn near the goal, who had no problems tricking the goaling on which side she will shoot on. After faking to the right and quickly shooting to the left, the Sharks scored and maintained a 1-0 lead that would hold until halftime due to great Santiago defense and two saves by senior goalkeeper Katie Smith.

Defense proved to be pivotal in the game with both goalies from Santiago and Vista having to expect any type of shot that would affect the game and their seasons. Eight minutes into the second half, Munerlyn attempted her second goal of the game, but the shot went a bit to the left and the score remained 1-0. With 30 minutes left in the game, both teams got into a scramble that led Santiago to be awarded a penalty kick. Sophomore Alyssa Alvarez kicked the ball over the defense of Vista Murrieta and went to the right of the Broncos goalkeeper to put Santiago in a great position to win the game with a 2-0.

After the penalty kick, Vista Murrieta stepped up their offense in an attempt to cut the lead in half and tie the game, but the Sharks dominating defense and sophomore goalkeeper Paige Simoneau didn’t allow a single goal. The Sharks won round one of the CIF Playoffs 2-0 and the girl’s soccer program third straight CIF home victory dating back to last season.

The team went against Troy High School in the second round of the CIF Playoffs and came out with a victory with a score of 3-0. They will play in the quarterfinals at Woodrow Wilson High School on Friday Feb 21. Woodrow is 18-4-3 and are coming off a 1-0 victory against Canyon High School.

Principal Thompkins Tears Achilles Tendon

Collin Headley, Reporter — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 21:30:21 +0000

Feb. 9, while playing in the Hollywood Knights basketball game, Principal Reginald Thompkins completely tore his Achilles tendon. Thompkins had planted his feet to lunge forward when someone, whom he suspected was an actor from the Disney TV show “Two Kings”, stepped on his heel tearing the tendon. Feb. 13 surgery was successful; however, the surgery took longer than expected when the tendon was revealed to be completely torn.

“Surgery went good. The tendon was completely torn,” said Thompkins, in an email.

Thompkins will be back Feb. 26 in crutches and a cast after a weekend of recovery.

Hollywood Knights Visits Santiago

Brianna Brower, Reporter and Evan Ritter, Sports Editor — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 21:17:06 +0000

Hollywood Knights is a fundraising company that gets celebrity guests to participate in basketball games against students and staff at schools to raise money. Feb. 9 in the late afternoon, Santiago High school had a group of celebrities playing against staff members. This whole production was also hosted by ASB, who put posters up two weeks in advance and played promo videos during third and fourth period.

On the Saturday of the game, students showed up as early as noon hoping to get an early preview of the celebrity guests.

“I really want to see Jeremy Sumpter, that’s why I came so early!” said sophomore Sarah Wood.

Even though the crowd of students that came early didn’t get to see any celebrities, they were all first in line, while more students came at 3-5:30 p.m. Staff practiced along with the celebrities before the game then went into the hall before being called out and being praised by students.

When the game began, 102.7 Kiss F.M was there to DJ and get every student and staff member pumped up and prepared to win. The celebrities were all announced: Tyler Hoechlin, Alyson Stoner, Alex Heartman, Allen Evangelista, Hector David Jr., Manny Streetz, Ser’Darius Blain, Texas Battle, Wesley Jonathan, Geno Segers, including the special guest stars Adrian R’Mante and Brittany Underwood singing the national anthem, and her new song California Wild.

During the first quarter of the game, Santiago took the lead against the celebrities until Principal Thompkins tore his achilles tendon trying to rebound a ball about to go out of the court. As the game continued, the score eventually dwindled down on the staff side.

At half time, the floor became packed with students trying to get a picture or signature from one or more of the celebs. The KIIS F.M DJ played games with the students as they watched and many celebs signed shirts, plastic balls, CDs and DVDs.

“The way things were organized could have been a lot better. In my opinion ASB could have done more with the set up because it was very chaotic.” Said junior Breanna Thornton.

The game slowly dwindled down and Alyson Stoner was dancing to her own beat and went in at the end for some baskets. At the end of the game the sharks ended up losing, however, no student was upset, they were all happy about the outcome of the celebs.

“That was probably the best night of my life because I met some of my favorite actors. I especially wanted to meet Jeremy Sumpter and Tyler Hoechlin and when I met them they both said yes when I asked them to prom with my sign. They were both insanely nice to me and it was literally a dream to true,” junior Marlo Birkman said after the game.

After the students had dispersed and the celebrities had changed, they headed to the Shark Tank for the after party along with ASB and the staff. Anyone who was not a part of those groups was blocked from entering the Shark Tank and turned away, giving the celebrities a chance to cool off and avoid the swarm of fans that had surrounded them during the actual game. Food and drinks lined the walls, and balloons and streamers dotted the room. The celebrities, students and staff all mingled as they enjoyed their food and each other’s company. The after party was not long, but it gave the players enough time to put the outcome of the game aside and finally talk.

Celebrities continued to leave from the party periodically and by 10 p.m., they were gone and the night of the Hollywood Knights had come to an end.

National Signing Day at Santiago

Alec Romero, Reporter — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 20:59:12 +0000

Students, coaches, teachers, administration and many athletes packed the Santiago theater Feb. 6 to witness 29 athletes from 12 sports sign to 28 different colleges (24 being Division 1). The stage contained a long table that held up to 9 athletes and a projector screen to show the athletes pictures, some showing them at a young age. The athletes who singed their letter of intent featured:

Girls Water Polo
Hannah Anderson-Long Beach State
Taylor Shore-University of California , Santa Barbara
Mikayla Tyler-University of Southern California
Taylor Young-Siena College ( New York )

Football
Darryl Graham-University of California , Davis
Christopher Lacroix-Jamestown College ( North Dakota )

Wrestling
Christian Pagdilao-Michigan State

Softball
Brittany Abacherli-University of Nevada , Las Vegas
Melanie David-Boston University
Adrienne Goodban-Towson University ( Maryland )
Ashlee Lynch-Western Oregon University
Ashlynn Martinez-Rutgers University ( New Jersey )
Dakota Matiko-McNeese State University ( Louisiana )
Nicole Orozco-University of Nevada , Reno
Molly Reyes-York College ( Nebraska )
Erica Romero-San Diego State
Kelsey Smith-Princeton University ( New Jersey )

Swim/Dive
Marissa Verdi-University of Wyoming
Hayden Tavoda- University of California , Berkley

Baseball
Kevin Morgan-Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
Chance Sisco-University of Oregon

Girls Volleyball
Caitlin Hellebrand-Wheaton College ( Illinois )

Girls Basketball
Chrishae Rowe-University of Oregon

Gymnastics
Danielle Ramirez-Southern Utah University

Boys Soccer
Mason Klerks-Pennsylvania State

Girls Soccer
Amber Munerlyn-University of North Carolina
Cabria Turang-University of Utah

Girls Tennis
Caroline Hall-Washington & Lee University ( Virginia )
Taylor LeFridge-Prairie View A&M University ( Texas )

The ceremony started a little after 1 p.m. with Athletic Director Mr. Mitchell giving an opening speech on how proud he was of the signing athletes and their hard work from the long hours of practices and the competiveness of all the games the athletes have played while being an athlete for Santiago High School. Principal Thompkins then walked up to the microphone and explained how he has been at schools where only two or three athletes signed letters of intent, and showed his appreciation and support for the 29 athletes who will go play college sports after representing Santiago athletics. Following his speech he asked all signing athletes to stand-up and clap for their supporting parents in attendance.

The first athletes to give their speeches were four players from the defending CIF Champion Girl’s Water Polo Team. Coach Hudson stepped up to the stage to show his support of his four athletes and introduced Hannah Anderson, Taylor Shore who scored five of the nine goals in last year CIF Championship Game against Mater Dei, Mikayla Tyler who scored the winning goal in last year’s championship game and Taylor Young. All four of them have been on the girl’s water polo program for all four years.

Coach Steinberg then took the stage to introduce the two football players signing. First he introduced three-year varsity player and team captain Darryl Graham who will attend UC Davis, and then offensive lineman Chris Lacroix who will attend Jamestown College.

The last player on the first signing table was Christian Pagdilao introduced by his coach Steve Glassey. Coach Glassey stepped up to the stage and recapped the wrestling team’s big win over Centennial High School just a week before and how Christian will attend Michigan State in the Big Ten conference which is known as the toughest Division 1 wrestling conference in the NCAA. After Pagdilao gave his speech the first seven athletes signed their letter of intent for their college sports.

After the first seven athletes signed, nine softball players set up their pictures and letters on the table. Coach Perez introduced nine of the ten seniors currently on the varsity team who will go on to play NCAA Softball. Seven of the nine girls will play Division 1. Brittany Abacherli, Melanie David, Ashlynn Martinez, Dakota Matiko, Nicole Orozco and Erica Romero were a part of the 2011 Varsity Softball team that won the CIF State Championship.

After the nine softball players signed, six athletes from four sports set up on the table. Mr. Mitchell went up to the stage to introduce varsity softball player and 2011 state champion Kelsey Smith who will sign her letter of intent to play for Princeton University. She is the first athlete in school history to sign an athletic letter of intent to an Ivy League school.

On the same signing table were swimmer Marissa Verdi and diver Hayden Tavoda. The swim and dive coach stepped up to the stage to tell his view on Hayden’s diving and how she has to travel almost everyday to a diving pool since the Santiago pool doesn’t have a diving board.

Coach De Trinidad then stepped up to the stage to speak of his two baseball players signing to Division 1 colleges. Kevin Morgan, who will play for Cal State San Luis Obispo, has played in the Santiago baseball program for all four years as a utility infielder and a catcher. Chance Sisco who plays catcher, pitcher and a utility infielder has signed a letter of intent to play for the University of Oregon, but will enter the MLB Draft this June and is projected to be a high pick in the first rounds.

After Caitlin Hellebrand and Chrishae Rowe gave their speeches, the seven athletes from Kelsey Smith to Rowe signed their letters of intent and then the final six athletes of the ceremony set up on the table.

Danielle Ramirez, who will be apart of the gymnastics program at Southern Utah University, was introduced by Mr. Mitchell because a gymnastics program is not at Santiago. Danielle practices on a daily basis and trains at a gymnastics studio in Tustin. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays she trains for three or four hours.

From the soccer teams, Mason Klerks, who will play for Penn State, played for the Boy’s Santiago Varsity Soccer his freshmen year but then made the decision to play for a national club team starting his sophomore year. The girl’s soccer team has two players going on to play Division 1 College Soccer in Amber Munerlyn, who was unable to attend the signing ceremony to train for the U20 national team at the Home Depot Center, and Cabria Turang, who has played for the girl’s varsity soccer team since her freshmen year. Amber will attend the University of North Carolina and Cabria will attend the University of Utah.

The final two athletes to sign were Caroline Hall and Taylor LeFridge from the girl’s varsity tennis team. Caroline will play Division 3 College Tennis at Washington and Lee University and Taylor LeFridge will play Division 1-AA College Tennis at Prairie View A&M University in Texas. Both athletes have played varsity tennis since their freshmen year.

After an hour and a half ceremony of 29 athletes signing letters on intents to go on to the next level and play college sports, many proud parents, coaches and teachers gave a final clap for the athletes. With five of the six winter sports winning league titles this season, it is a great possibility that next year will have even more athletes playing at the next level.

Season of Make-ups and Break-ups

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 22:04:56 +0000

If you’ve been on Facebook recently, you’ve probably noticed an increasing amount of relationship status changes. It seems that as Valentine’s Day nears, the pressure of gifts and being in love is either making or breaking a couple’s relationship.

As a perpetually single individual, I have remained an observer to the onslaught of heartbreak and ecstatic glee accompanied with the Valentine’s season. Many of my friends are either entering or exiting relationships and it makes me question the sanctity of high school relationships.

While in high school, relationships seem to be taking up everyone’s time, whether it be stressing about a failing relationship, wishing you were in a relationship, or fawning over the person you’re in a relationship with. When looking objectively at high school dating, the average person has to face the facts that the majority of them will end sometime before graduation. The stress of college and the uncertainty of the future is a major hindrance in most relationships, no matter the intentions of the individuals involved. This is not to say that all high school couples will break up; I am a champion for true love, after all, but the odds are not in the favor of high school couples.

Real life has its way of destroying matches made in high school. The future is vast and holds endless amounts of opportunities that may break a relationship apart, as the majority of couples in high school are untouched by the woes of college, bills, and various other adult responsibilities.

The sad reality is that Santiago is only a small pond in the grand scale of things, and once one ventures out into the sea, they may find some other fish (or Sharks, as it were) that they are more compatible with. Odds are that among the 4000 people that go to Santiago, your soul mate won’t be one of them. But they could be!

So whether you’re one of the couples breaking up or getting together, don’t let your relationships in high school define your entire life. There are going to be plenty more chances for you to get into a relationship in the future, so enjoy your time in high school while you can with as little drama as possible.

Future Medical Doctors of America Makes its Debut on Campus

Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 21:08:02 +0000

Santiago students aspiring for a career in the medical field now have a club where they can convene with like-minded people. Future Medical Doctors of America is a new club on campus that aims to inform, inspire, and aid students who harbor interest in being a part of the medical community. The club is held in J106 on the second Tuesday and Thursday of each month and is advised by Honors chemistry teacher Paul White. Membership is free and the club welcomes anyone captivated by the medical field.

Disappointed in the fact that Santiago does not offer some kind of medical course, junior and President of FMDA Chris Squiers created the club with some close friends in hopes of expanding their knowledge of the medical field and building connections for their medical careers.

“Originally we wanted to start it as some sort of class but I realized that no teacher would actually do that,” said Squiers, “Mr. White is a great advisor and I didn’t want to ask too much of him.”

Squiers, a determined future orthopedic surgeon, is satisfied with the clubs progress and happenings for its first year status; however, he expresses concern for the lack of outreach that the club has. The club opened with few initial members, though the officers remain hopeful as the first guest speaker attracted around 50 students to the class.

Jan. 31, FMDA had their first guest speaker, emergency room doctor Anita Fears. Fears came prepared with a 25-minute PowerPoint presentation about her path to becoming a doctor and the various pro’s and con’s of being a doctor. She stressed studying hard, getting exposed, and choosing a good college, which would eventually segue into a prestigious medical school. Fears also shared her appreciation for her own sector of the medical community, emergency medicine. The packed science classroom produced a number of questions for Fears after she concluded her presentation. Students present said that Fears fueled their interest in pursuing a career in the medical field and provided insightful information about being a doctor.

“You get a really good work and life balance [as a doctor],” said Fears, “Yet there are sometimes in your life when you have to not be accessible to your friends and family.”

FMDA has another guest speaker planned for after spring break and have hopes to schedule a field trip to a sports arena where they will tour the medical facilities and speak with team doctors.

C Building Classrooms Leaking Water

Jake Collins, Reporter — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 07:04:33 +0000

Over winter break a broken water heater housed upstairs in the C building burst and flooded art teacher Lorraine Love’s classroom.

“The damage was severe, school computers, personal artwork, student art work, magazines, and other things were destroyed,” said Love. The damage was so severe that Love’s classes have been moved from their regular classroom to the library reference room until the classroom is repaired.

“It could be weeks before I can use the classroom again or maybe sooner. I don’t know,” stated Love. An anonymous source that was confirmed to be reliable has stated off the record that mold has been found inside the classroom. Since then the school has hired an outside agency to test for mold and other air safety hazards, which found that all presence of mold has been removed from the classroom.

“It happened over the holiday and went unnoticed for a few days. It must have occurred when the campus was shut down,” remarked J.T. Cameron, one of the assistant principals. The classroom is currently under repair and should be in working order by the end of the month.

Before the classroom can be utilized again the damaged furnishings will have to be replaced. Love’s classroom (C106) is going to be split into two new classrooms after repair due to the new U building being constructed. The U building will allow the classes from the T building to be moved into permanent classrooms.

Other classrooms have had trouble with leaking water as well. Dave Lofdahl’s classroom has had water leaking as well as Calotta Maggi. In both classrooms water had leaked from the corners of the classroom containing the climate control system; water had also been leaking from the ceiling in Maggi’s classroom.

“They put wood boards in the ceiling and used buckets to catch the water,” Maggi mentioned. She had been told that it was clean water that had come from the toilets. “The liquid had a strong smell. We would sometimes have to go leave the classroom,” she continued. No further information is known as to whether or not the situation in Maggi’s Classroom will be fixed.

CNUSD Schools Stay Open After Shooting

Abigail Pitts, Managing Editor — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 23:39:51 +0000

Thursday, Feb. 7, an LAPD officer was shot near the Magnolia Avenue off-ramp of the northbound I-15 allegedly by Christopher Jordan Dorner, who has also been reported to have killed a couple in Irvine Sunday and shot two more police officers in Riverside. The LAPD has launched a massive manhunt to apprehend Dorner.

Dorner is a former LAPD police officer who was discharged and wrote a multipage manifesto about the perceived injustice, which he posted on Facebook, targeting certain members of the LAPD and their families. The officer shot in Corona was checking in on one of the targeted individuals.

Police have told Corona-Norco Unified School District that its schools are not believed to be
in any danger. The district sent out an e-mail to students and parents 8:12 a.m. to tell them that school would be in session today and that they are keeping close contact with the Corona Police Department. They sent out an update at 12:13 p.m. to clarify that the shooting did not involve the school in any way. Another update was sent after school to thank everyone for their cooperation throughout the day and to say that school would be open tomorrow.

Principal Reginald Thompkins made an announcement at the beginning of the Santiago school day to assure students that they were not currently in any danger and that if that status changed, the student body would be alerted. An announcement was also made that students should be allowed to come into school late due to the closing of Magnolia because of the shooting and because of large amounts of traffic around the area.

Schools in Big Bear did go into lockdown after Dorner’s truck was found near the area.

Western Showdown

Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Sun, 03 Feb 2013 22:06:32 +0000

Friday, Feb. 1, Santiago boys and girls faced off in the Western Showdown rally in honor of winter sports. The gym, decked out in pink and blue, was crowded with Santiago students who were dressed up in flannels, boots, and cowboy hats galore giving the rally a “Norco” feel.

Special guest Jamie Bearman kicked off the first rally by singing “You Belong With Me” by Taylor Swift and opened the second rally with “Before he Cheats” by Carrie Underwood. The back up singer for Sean Kingston paraded around the floor while Santiago girls sang along to the iconic songs.

Athletic director Steve Mitchell introduced the current status of the winter sports followed by a video of the wrestling team’s match against Centennial that occurred Jan. 30. The team then proceeded onto the floor boasting their Big 8 League Championship banner that accompanied the win over the Huskies that Wednesday.

“We put down them dogs,” remarked Head Wrestling Coach Steve Glassey. “We’re not just a team, we’re a Santiago family.”

Santiago’s cheerleaders rolled out their mats and executed their usual routine of stunts, tricks, and stumbles. The crowd received their performance warmly, and responded with a generous amount of applause for the squad.

Ranked number six in the country and third in state, girl’s basketball took their turn with the microphone. Shouting their twitter usernames, the team graciously announced their title of 6- time defending champs in CIF.

The dance team came out with a stunning performance and wowed the crowd with their beautiful technique. Their turns and kicks were perfectly in time to their collaboration of songs such as “When I Grow Up” by the Pussycat Dolls and “Birthday Cake” by Rihanna.

“For learning the routine in two hours and perfecting it in another two, I’m proud of my team for going out there and having fun,” said senior dance team captain Stephanie Ha.

Dylan Roberts, captain of boy’s varsity soccer, announced the team’s competition against the previous CIF champions: Martin Luther King. The game will occur next Tuesday night and will double as senior night for the boys.

Another special guest, Clay Doh Boonthanakit, performed an extremely entertaining break dance routine in honor of the western theme. The dancer had placed second in the State Championships of 2012 as part of the dance team from Diamond Bar High School. Boonthanakit had a routine that utilized his mastery of locking and popping as well as a funny take on the overplayed “Gangam Style”.

“I love the country theme! And I love Clay!” remarked senior Bree Hyams.

Short announcements by girl’s soccer and water-polo preceded the highly anticipated hip hop team. Using songs from Nicki Minaj and Rihanna, the team’s energetic movement pumped up the crowd, sending them to their feet. The girls came out with a hard hitting and intense segment and the male hip hop dancers took home the routine with a more sensual feel.

Dorian Barnett spoke on behalf of boy’s basketball and comically requested that everyone should follow him on twitter. Bearman performed a final time, triggering roars of cheers from those in the audience that wanted the free t-shirts she held in her hand.

ASB screened a promo video for “Hollywood Knights” where Santiago staff members will face off in a game of basketball against famous celebrities. Actors like Jeremy Sumpter from “Peter Pan” and actresses including Alyson Stoner from “Cheaper By the Dozen” were named as some of the stars participating in the event.

The rally ended with the long awaited scream off between the boys and girls in recognition of the showdown. Despite chants such as “Who’s your daddy?” from the rambunctious males, the females won the contest in both rallies.

Winter Sports Recap

Rudy Garcia, Reporter and Alec Romero, Reporter — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 02:27:07 +0000

The Santiago Sharks girls’ water polo team seeks another Big VIII league title and CIF championship in the 2012-2013 season after coming off of a CIF championship over Mater Dei. Boasting a 12-win and four-loss season, the league title is within their reach. Led by senior Taylor Shore, the Sharks have managed to have convincing wins over other good teams such as Montebello and Laguna Beach as well as defeating league rivals Norco and Roosevelt. Although they lost a close rematch against Mater Dei, the team continues to show resolve in their championship endeavors. They are currently 19-6 and are coming off a 10-9 victory over the Mater Dei Monarchs.

The boys’ wrestling team won a League title, thanks to their solid and capable team. Ranked number six in the state and led by senior Christian Pagdilao, they are undefeated in league with wins over Norco, rival Corona, and Roosevelt. Pagdilao is ranked number one in state in his (145) weight division, and just recently transferred to Santiago from Centennial. Other players of note include twins Justin and Jeremy Thomas, two freshmen who have made varsity and display great talent. The team defeated the Centennial Huskies Jan. 30 for the first time since 2003.

The girl’s soccer team continues yearly success with new star freshmen coming onto the team every year to make the Shark’s one of the most feared girls soccer team in the state. Since 2006-2007 Santiago girl’s soccer has had 30 players go on to play in the college level after dominant success in the schools program. The Sharks won their fifth straight league title last season after a 10-3-1-league record (20-8-2 overall), which made them Co-Champions with Riverside Poly High School. This season the girls’ soccer team looks for their sixth straight league title, with a great start of 14-5-3 and 6-0 league and four-year varsity player Amber Munerlyn who currently has the second most goals scored this season.

Boy’s soccer looks to improve from last season’s 8-7-5 (7-6-1 in league) record with a talented team consisting of 12 seniors. The team played in the Riverside Poly Tournament in late December where they had a record of two wins, one loss and one tie. The team is currently 11-1-5 (5-0-1 in league).

Similar to girl’s soccer, the girl’s basketball team is looking to win their sixth straight league title. Over the last five years the team has twice made it to the CIF State Championship Tournament, but are still looking to win the schools first basketball State Championship. Last season, girl’s basketball finished with an undefeated league record and season of 14-0 and 31-0, but lost 71-32 against Mater Dei High School in the CIF Southern Section Tournament and lost 45-44 to Summit High School in the CIF State Championship Tournament. Last season, Oregon bound varsity guard Chrishae Rowe averaged 19.3 points, 2.5 assists, 5.1 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game, shot 80 percent from the free throw line and made 26 3-pointers. She is ranked the 67th best player and the 17th best guard in the nation by ESPN.com The team continues they’re undefeated in league play streak since 2006-2007 starting off 6-0 against Big VII teams, a 20-2 overall record and ranked 9^th in the nation.

Boy’s basketball looks sharp on both offense and defense with a roster of talented juniors and seniors. Last season, the Sharks contended for the Big VIII title late in the season but after a 53-48 loss in a big league game the team was unable to recover and were eliminated from the CIF Southern Section Tournament. The team is currently 16-7 and third in league with a 3-3 record.

JSA Debates Prostitution

Karina Stow, Editor-in-Chief — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 22:35:29 +0000

Wednesday, Jan. 30, JSA convened in the Shark Tank to debate the legalization of prostitution. The debate was in the form of a thought talk. Unlike a formal debate, a thought talk allows anyone to speak and has a much more casual format. It should be noted that sometimes members of JSA state play devil’s advocate in order to advance debate. Opinions stated by speakers within JSA may not necessarily reflect their personal views. The debate was moderated by Vice President senior Shaun Flood, but senior Megan Ahmad took over as moderator halfway through so that Flood could speak. Senior Byung Choi spoke for the pro side for the first half of the debate and the con side for the latter half.

Speakers for the pro side included Flood, sophomore John Abughattas, senior and club president Anthony McKelroy, freshman Cassie Brower and sophomore Avi Bir. “Let women and men do what they want to do with their bodies,” Flood stated. Abughattas asserted that prostitution was basically already legal, as things like “sexual therapy” and “sugar daddies and sugar mammas” are not prohibited by law. McKelroy brought up that legalizing prostitution would “eliminate the stigma” and “change the clientele”, allowing “normal people” to visit prostitutes. Brower pointed out that current prostitutes are harassed, but if it were legalized, they would have people to protect them. “I see it all as a transaction,” said Bir, calling it a “personal service like getting a massage or getting your nails done”.

“If it was legal, at least there’d be some parameters,” added Bir.

Significantly less people were against the legalization of prostitution. Speakers for con side included senior Chad Serrao and senior Michael Ghebrial. Serrao began the debate by comparing pornography and prostitution. “In the porn industry, people are tested for STDS, but in prostitution, the service providers are the only ones being tested,” said Serrao. “The clientele isn’t changing, so this abuse isn’t going to stop,” added Serrao, asserting that “the trafficking is going to continue”. Ghebrial used John Locke’s notion of the Social Contract to support his anti-prostitution stance. “With freedom, comes regulation,” he said, in summary of the Social Contract. “If it’s harmful, then we cannot support it as a society….While you’re fulfilling that need, you’re also taking someone’s mental stability.”

At around 4 p.m., the resolution that prostitution should be legalized in all 50 states was put to a vote. It passed with 21 votes to 11 votes.

Photo credit: Jake Collins

Sharks Basketball Takes First Home Game

Alec Romero, Reporter — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 22:35:03 +0000

Jan. 4, the Santiago Varsity Boy’s Basketball Team played their first home league game against city rival the Corona Panthers. The Sharks struggled with turnovers and making shots early, but defense and 33 points in the second half proved to be the difference as Santiago defeated Corona with a final score of 50-38.

Just five days earlier the Sharks played at Roosevelt High School for their second league game of the season, but lost 58-61 bringing their league record to .500 and their overall record to 14-4. Corona came into the game with the same league record at 1-1, but a 14-3 overall record after a 72-66 victory over King High School.

The starting lineup for the Sharks consisted of seniors Marvin Butler, Markus Thompson, Chima Wami and juniors Matt Herring and Jason Dickson.

Santiago won the tip to start the game, but started slow on offense, scoring only eight points and committing six turnovers as a team in the entire first quarter. Butler, Dickson and Wami all scored two points each. Corona had similarities on both ends of the floor but were led by junior Ethan Alvano scoring seven of the Panther’s nine first-quarter points, shooting 50 percent and made one of two from the free-throw line. At the end of the first quarter Corona led Santiago 9-8 with Corona committing three team fouls and using no timeouts, and Santiago committing four team fouls and also using no timeouts.

The second quarter had more consistent offense from Santiago with the Sharks improving their first half shooting percentage to 54 percent, scoring nine points, seven assists as a team, and five rebounds. However the Sharks struggled from the free-throw line shooting three of fourteen (22 percent) and shot zero of six from the three-point line. Wami added four more points to his two point first quarter along with five rebounds and only one personal foul. Alvano continued to take over the Panther offense successfully shooting his one three-point attempt and two of two from the free-throw line, helping the Panthers to a 13-point second quarter. The Corona Panthers had a five point advantage going into halftime with a score of 22-17.

Coming out of halftime the Sharks knew that more defense and less turnovers were needed to have a better second half and take control of the game. Santiago took advantage of second chance opportunities from key rebounds by drawing fouls to put the Panthers in early foul trouble. Better defense was shown by the Sharks in the third quarter with four team steals (three by Thompson) and one block a piece from Jason Dickson and Wami. This prompted the Corona Panthers to call their first timeout with 6:02 left in the third quarter. Junior Brandon Guerrero replaced Butler at guard off the bench and played with full effort to give Santiago a comfortable lead. Guerrero led the Sharks in third quarter points on two free throws and shooting one of three from two-point range along with one assist to Herring. The Santiago Sharks scored 13 points, shot three of 11 from two-point range, seven of ten from the free-throw line and grabbed seven total rebounds as a team in the third quarter. Santiago led Corona 30 to 27 heading into the fourth quarter.

The fourth quarter started off close with Alvano continuing to dominate the Shark’s defense by hitting a three-pointer to tie the game at 30 with 7:14 left in the fourth. Less than a minute later Corona senior Zachary Perez hit another Panther three-pointer to give his team the lead with 6:30 left. However on the next Santiago possession Wami was fouled while shooting a post-up shot and was sent to the foul line for the fourth time in the game and made his first free throw to tie the game. Corona was sent to the free-throw line on their next possession where junior Derek Deap made one of two to give the Panthers the lead again with 5:14 left in the fourth quarter. This was the last lead for Corona with Herring scoring on the Sharks next two possessions and Thompson scoring off a rebound from a missed shot from Butler giving Santiago their biggest lead of the game at 39-34. The Sharks would score five more points without allowing a Panther basket giving the Sharks a comfortable lead at 44-34 with 2:14 left in the game. The 11-0 run for Santiago proved to be a key difference as the Sharks defeated the Corona Panthers with a 50-38 victory.

The Santiago starters had a combined 45 points, shot 48 percent from two-point range, two of five from the three-point line, made half of their shots from the free-throw line, and all five had a combined 22 rebounds.

Deaf and Hearing Unites

Karina Stow, Editor-in-Chief — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 22:24:56 +0000

The inspiration behind Deaf and Hearing Unites (ASL) Club was none other than a cheesy TV drama. “I started learning sign by watching ‘Switched at Birth’,” says club president and founder senior Mary Alyssa Rancier. The show, which deals with the struggles of many members of the deaf community, ignited a desire within Rancier to lessen the frustration of deaf individuals by broadening the pool of people with whom they can communicate.

When this school year started, Rancier immediately got to work in creating Deaf and Hearing Unites. She had originally hoped to find an adviser who knew how to sign, but she was unsuccessful in this pursuit. Luckily, Ms. Momaney stepped up to the plate, allowing her classroom, F108, to be used for meetings every Tuesday.

Deaf and Hearing Unites was officially up and running within the first few months. Each week, members learn a new ASL lesson ranging from the alphabet to food vocabulary. Some meetings include videos that give general tips on how to communicate with deaf individuals or give an insight into some of the day-to-day troubles that deaf people face. According to Rancier, the goal of the club is to “educate people not only about sign language but about deaf culture.” Deaf and Hearing Unites meets every Tuesday in F108 during second lunch. New members are always welcome!

Who’s Snapping Up Your Pictures?

Jake Collins, Reporter — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 22:14:13 +0000

A new exploit in the popular app SnapChat allows people to screenshot the pictures sent using the app without the other person knowing. SnapChat creators manufactured the app with the intent that none of the pictures sent would be able to be saved in any way. This new method of saving the pictures sent through the app by screenshotting requires no technical knowledge at all and can be done by anybody with the app.

The SnapChat app was designed as a new way of texting, with self-deleting pictures being the primary draw. According to a study referenced by ABC News, over 2 million images and videos are shared every day using the app. It is important to remember that anything done online or via text is in “ink” and even if deleted, it could still be out there somewhere. Even if something on Facebook is deleted, it can still be found years later. In an article by ARS Technia Jacqui Cheng wrote, “Photos that users thought they deleted from the social network months or even year ago remain accessible.”

Sharks should be advised to use caution when they are online and not to trust that everything they send electronically has been deleted permanently. What is done on the Internet is not private; with this new security flaw in SnapChat, privacy and security online is at an even greater risk.

Early Lunch Release

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 21:35:49 +0000

Friday, Jan. 25, 2013, was Santiago’s first ever early lunch release for students who received an academic letter. In order to receive an academic letter, a student must have achieved a 3.5 GPA or higher the previous school year. As a reward for these dedicated scholars, Santiago decided to allow them ten extra minutes onto their lunch period.

In theory, the idea was sound and offered excitement to academic letter recipients, but in practice, not all turned out quite so well. The announcement to let students out ten minutes before lunch came five minutes before the bell for first lunch. When the announcement came on, many teachers were surprised and completely disregarded it, simply because they, as AP Literature teacher John Brasington said, “still had things to teach.” Also, the verification process to prove that students were actually academic letter recipients took far too long to make the extended lunch period worth it.

3 Unrealistic Movie Couples

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 17:23:25 +0000

For Valentines Day you might find yourself watching a romantic movie with your significant other whilst cuddling on the couch, or having a nice “girl’s night in” with some of your best friends. As you watch one movie of “epic love” after another, you might come to ask yourself, “Would this couple have made it in real life?” Most likely not. Movie couples are generated simply to appeal to their target audiences, and no one wants to watch a movie about a sensible couple, with similar goals and a good chance at living in harmony for the rest of their lives. The average moviegoer likes watching tales of whirlwind love, of the impossible coming true in order for the couple to be together, or of one character drastically changing themselves to appeal to their “soul mate”. Sorry to burst your bubble, but these couples do not make it in real life. Still don’t believe me?

Exhibit A: Noah/Allie (“The Notebook”)

This is one of my favorite love stories of all time, simply because it’s so unrealistic. Don’t get me wrong, I totally believe in true love and the fact that some people are destined to be together and are able to conquer every obstacle in their way. What I don’t believe in, however, are completely one-sided relationships. If you only have one person putting in the effort to make a relationship work (Noah) and the other person is constantly simpering in self-pity and indecision (Allie), chances are, your relationship isn’t going to last. Noah wrote Allie 365 letters, all detailing his undying love for her, built her a house, and took her willingly back into his arms, even though she wasn’t positive she wanted to be with him. Allie, on the other hand, readily believed Noah forgot all about her, got engaged to some other guy even though she still had feelings for her summer love, used Noah to cheat on said fiancé, and then had the nerve to get mad at Noah for asking her to choose between them. Where’s the romance in that? Someone with a strong personality, much like Noah’s, would never end up with someone as weak as Allie in real life. Granted, they might have been drawn to one another while they were young and naive, but a marriage between the two would have been filled with nasty arguments and resentment. Realistically, Noah and Allie’s marriage would have quickly led to divorce, as opposed to parting from this life in peaceful slumber, hand-in-hand.

Exhibit B: Rachel/Dex (“Something Borrowed”)

There’s a common saying that goes “once a cheater, always a cheater” and in the case of Rachel and Dex from “Something Borrowed”, it certainly applies. Rachel, being the lovely little creature that she is (read: annoying, hypocritical and easily influenced) has an affair with her best friend Darcy’s fiancé, Dex. Dex is made out to be this gorgeous, gallant, successful person who is the epitome of the perfect man, at least in the minds of Darcy and Rachel. The man in question is a liar, a cheater, unable to stand up to his parents, or confess that he isn’t in love with the woman he proposed to. The entire time Dex and Rachel engage in their affair, Dex reassures Rachel that it’s ok for them to explore their feelings for each other… while he’s still engaged to her best friend! Rachel, who has practically no personality of her own, willingly goes along with this plan because Dex is oh-so-perfect and oh-so-dreamy and she just can’t help herself. We’re given absolutely no reason to think Dex is the flawless man Rachel makes him out to be, simply because she sees Dex through rose-colored glasses. When Rachel and Dex eventually get married and have babies (as we are to assume all RomCom couples do), Dex will undoubtedly cave to the pressure of his family, the stress of his job, and the difficulty of maintaining a healthy marriage and family life and will go out and seek the kind of comfort that Rachel can no longer give him, just like he did with Darcy. Men like Dex will never be happy with what they have and Rachel will end up being the second woman he hurts because of it.

Exhibit C: Bella/Edward (“The Twilight Saga”)

Besides the fact that supernatural creatures don’t exist (to our knowledge, at least), Bella and Edward’s relationship never would have worked if taken out into the real world. Edward might have looked young and gorgeous, but it seems most people forget the fact that he is more than a hundred years old. Ignoring the obvious ick factor that comes with a 100-year old and a 17-year old dating, you have to wonder why, exactly, Edward is with Bella. I read the series and saw all of the movies, so I know the reason Edward was so drawn to Bella was because she was his mate, but in real life, people who have lived longer find it fairly intolerable to be around someone as co-dependent and whiny as Bella is portrayed. It’s healthy in relationships to have time apart, to have lives outside of your significant other. Bella’s relationship with Edward was built on obsession, almost bordering on mania, and if applied into a real-life relationship, would lead to a break-up.

In theory, romantic movies are all sunshine and rainbows, but when the lives of the couples in movies are taken out into the real world, things don’t usually turn out to be so rosy. Don’t try to model your relationships after the lives of people on screen; most of these relationships are unhealthy and not as exciting as the actors and actresses portray them. This is not to say that you shouldn’t go out and enjoy movies such as the ones listed above, but don’t consider them the end-all-be-all of normal romantic dealings. Live your own life and you might get your very own, genuine happily-ever-after.

Wedding Palace Screens at Santiago

Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 22:33:15 +0000

Thursday, Jan. 10, Santiago held an exclusive sneak peek screening for the upcoming feature film entitled Wedding Palace.

Written and directed by Kristine Yoo, this Asian-American romantic comedy centers on hopeless romantic Jason, played by Brian Tee, as he tries to break his family curse by marrying a women before he turns 30 years old in age. The film ran for 98 minutes and featured a unique animated sequence that tells the tale of the family curse. The movie also features Asian-American stars such as Bobby Lee from “MadTV” and Margaret Cho from “Margaret Cho: Beautiful.”

“It was charming,” junior Dylan Prebich, “It seemed like everybody enjoyed it.” Cameras were focused on audience members during the film and recorded the reaction of the audience. The romantic comedy featured a heavy amount of traditionally Asian elements, but the students received the film well regardless of cultural differences.

“I thought it was beautiful and surprising in many ways I didn’t expect,” said Carlotta Maggi art teacher at Santiago, “I think it’s great for all types of people and family.”

Maggie said she unexpectedly felt connected with some of the characters in and recommends it to all types of people and families.

“I think it appeals to everyone and has an American kind of humor.”

After the movie audience members were asked to fill out a questionnaire that focused on their reception of the film and any critical opinions they held about it. The audience was also invited to the choir room to be interviewed on camera about their thoughts about the movie. A focus group was assembled and answered questions similar to the ones on the questionnaire for the camera.

Christine Yoo, director of the film was also present during the screening to oversee the management and chat amongst those who watched the film.

“There were a couple of good laughs in there!” said Yoo, “I couldn’t have asked for a better situation.”

An Unexpected Season of Dominance for UCLA Football

Alec Romero, Reporter — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 21:25:23 +0000

It has been a season to remember if you have been a lifetime fan of the UCLA Bruin football team. The season has been full of highlights, records and a new face for the quarterback position. The Bruins finished 9 wins and 3 losses, which is the best finish of the regular season since 2005 when their final record, including the bowl game, was 10-2.

Last season, UCLA finished 6-6 in he regular season and due to the conference championship and bowl ineligibility for the USC Trojans, the Bruins were selected to represent the South from the Pac-12. The Pac-12 is a college conference that consists of twelve teams that are from California, Arizona, Washington, Colorado, Utah and Oregon. There are six teams that play in the South division, and the other six teams play in the North division. Since they had the second best conference record, the Bruins faced the Pac-12 North champion, Oregon Ducks, in the conference championship but lost by a score of 31-49. A few weeks later they lost in the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl to Illinois 14-20 that led to a final season record of 6-8. The below-500 record and the lack of previous season success cost Rick Neuheisel the head coaching job so Jim Mora Jr. was hired to take over the head coaching duties for UCLA.

The UCLA Bruin football team began their 2012 season on Aug. 30 at Rice University. Redshirt freshmen Brett Hundley took over the starting quarterback role and he completed 21 of his 28 passes for 202 total passing yards. Jonathon Franklin, who is a redshirt senior, began his final season debut in college by rushing for 214 yards and three touchdowns. UCLA won the game 49-24 and are 5-0 all time against the Rice Owls.

The first ranked opponent for UCLA was 16th-ranked Nebraska whose starting quarterback is a potential Heisman candidate and former Centennial Husky Taylor Martinez. Nebraska was a much tougher opponent for UCLA than the previous week with Rice, but Jonathon Franklin had another stellar performance with 217 rushing yards and caught a 12-yard pass from Brett Hundley on fourth down which proved to make a difference, ending the game with a final score of 36-30. During the game Jonathon Franklin moved to seventh of the UCLA all time rushing list and the next day when the AP polls were released the Bruins were ranked for the first time since Oct 6, 2007.

A week went by and the Bruins had a massive victory over the Houston Cougars by a score of 37-6 with the defense allowing only one touchdown. The Bruins needed to play with the same offensive and defensive mentality for their first Pac-12 game, which was against the Oregon State Beavers. The Beavers were playing their second game of the season and were coming off a 10-7 victory over #13 Wisconsin. Oregon State played with a focused defensive mindset allowing only one touchdown pass for Hundley causing UCLA to receive its first loss of the season with a final score of 27-20

UCLA bounced back after a tough loss the next week defeating the 1-3 Colorado Buffalos with 42-14 point total. Oct. 6 #25 UCLA who had a record of 4-1 had high hopes for Brett Hundley and Jonathon Franklin to put up the same statistical number against the California Golden Bears. Going into the game UCLA was the Pac-12 leader in total offense for 560.4 yards and third in scoring offense at 36.8 points per game, also their pass defense was statistically ranked forth behind Oregon, Stanford and Oregon State. However, the Bruins had a losing record dating back to 1999 at the Bears football stadium and this game was no different suffering their worst loss of the season with a final of 43-17 in favor of California.

After the blowout loss, UCLA regained momentum by going on a four-game win streak before facing their cross-town college rival, the USC Trojans. In the four-game dominance, UCLA averaged 43.5 points per game, defeated the then ranked #22 Arizona Wildcats and moved back into the AP and BCS Standings with a rank of 18 which was third among Pac-12 teams (Oregon and Stanford were ranked ahead).

Nov. 17 was the day of the most anticipated USC-UCLA game since 2005 when, similar to this game, both teams were ranked. It was the first time since 2001 that the Bruins played USC and were ranked higher than the Trojans. UCLA had not beat USC since 2006 when the 41-point favorite Trojans needed to beat the Bruins to move on to the 2006 BCS National Championship. UCLA wasted no time gaining momentum when the first pass thrown by USC Trojan Matt Barkley was intercepted and rushed to the one-yard line. On the next play Brett Hundley rushed one yard to score the first touchdown on the game getting the UCLA fans fired up and gave them hope they could pull off the second win against USC in six years. USC had no answers in the first quarter only getting one first down and having to punt twice. The Bruins took advantage of the Trojans with UCLA kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn kicking a 23-yard field goal and Brett Hundley throwing a 17-yard pass to Joseph Fauria. UCLA’s momentum continued in the second quarter on another rushing touchdown from Jonathon Franklin putting UCLA 24-0 just two minutes into the second quarter. However the USC Trojans offense finally cliqued and scored two touchdowns that were both touchdown passes from Matt Barkley. At the start of the third quarter USC recovered a fumbled UCLA football in there own end zone pulling within four (PAT failed by USC). Both teams played spectacular defense the entire third quarter, but just minutes away from the fourth quarter Brett Hundley rushed another touchdown putting the Bruins up 31-20. Both teams would score one more time in the fourth quarter, but it was not enough for the USC Trojans to come back and for the second time in the last seven meetings the UCLA football team defeated the USC Trojans at the Rose Bowl.

A week later #15 UCLA faced #11 Stanford and if the Bruins defeated the Cardinal, UCLA, who already clinched a spot in the Pac-12 Championship, they would play the Oregon Ducks who were defeated by Stanford in the previous week. However Stanford came out and played to the max to make sure they didn’t miss another opportunity to go to the Rose Bowl for the third straight season. The first quarter ended with both teams scoring touchdowns, but the Cardinal put up 28 more points the rest of the game defeating UCLA 35-17 ensuring them to rematch the UCLA Bruins for the Pac-12 Championship.

UCLA dropped two ranks to #17 and Stanford moved up three to #8 for a back-to-back rematch between the two teams. The winner of this game would go on to play the Big-10 champion for the Rose Bowl game on Jan 1. The Bruins started strong with Jonathon Franklin rushing 51-yards for a touchdown to put up the first points of the game. Stanford quickly answered back on their next possession going down the field resulting with a two-yard run by Stanford quarterback Kevin Hogan tying up the game at 7. However in the final minutes of the first quarter Brett Hundley rushed a touchdown of his own putting UCLA up 14-7 before the start of the second quarter. The Cardinal dominated the second quarter stepping up their defense, showing that they deserved the better record allowing no points scored to UCLA, scoring a touchdown on a one-yard run and kicking a 37-yard field goal putting them up 17-14 over the Bruins going into halftime. UCLA had a similar performance in the third as Stanford did in the second by kicking a field goal by Fairbairn and Jonathon Franklin rushing a 20-yard touchdown putting them up 24-17 with high momentum before the final quarter of the game. Defense was going to be a main key in the fourth quarter and Stanford proved that key along with the domination on the offensive end taking advantage of UCLAs mistakes ending up with a tie going into the final remaining minutes of the game. Jordan Williamson who has been known to miss field goals in clutch field goal situations nailed a 36-yard field goal giving them a field goal. UCLA Bruin kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn missed a needed field goal in the final seconds of the game resulting in a 27-24 victory for Stanford, giving them the spot in the Rose Bowl Game.

Despite a national ranking and being just one victory away from going to the Rose Bowl, the UCLA Bruins were not awarded a BCS Bowl (Fiesta, Orange, Sugar, Rose or Championship), and instead given a pre new years battle against Baylor for the Holiday Bowl in San Diego on Dec. 27. Any chances for UCLA winning the bowl game ended quickly for the Bruins were down 14-0 at the end of the first quarter and 35-10 at the half. Although Brett Hundley still showed his next year Heisman potential by passing for 329 yards and 3 touchdown passes. The Bruins would only score 16 more points to attempt a second half comeback but it wouldn’t be enough and UCLA lost to the Baylor Bears 26-49.

The future looks good for the UCLA Bruins as they are now among teams in the Pac-12 such as Oregon or Stanford with their national rank. Brett Hundley still has to play one more year in college and if UCLA recruiting is able to find top California High School football offensive players, the Bruins have a good chance at making a national title run.

B.O.S.S. Makes Their Debut in the Rose Parade

Evan Ritter, Sports Editor — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 21:01:36 +0000

Jan. 1, Santiago High School’s band, B.O.S.S., marched in the 124^th annual Tournament of Roses Parade. Last year the band placed first at the Los Angeles County Fair and earned the right to march in the prestigious Rose Parade, which was broadcasted worldwide and seen by millions.

Throughout Winter Break, Santiago’s band practiced frequently up until New Years Eve. The week before, the band played at Pasadena Community College, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Stadium, and Disneyland, and closed down roads in order to practice marching the length of the parade route, a tiring seven miles. The band members had New Years to themselves and family so that they could mentally prepare for one of the most significant accomplishments in B.O.S.S.’s history.

“I am proud, very proud, especially to have walked beside them. It was a great moment,” exclaimed Principal Reginald Thompkins.

Most of the members, however, had no time for celebrating the coming of 2013 or to watch the countdown. Many of the musicians slipped into nervous slumber early because of their wake-up time at 3 a.m. The band arrived at Santiago at 4:30 a.m. and departed before 6 a.m.

The parade began on Colorado Boulevard and the floats and bands marched for the enjoyment of millions of people. Santiago was the 74^th unit to march the parade route, playing loud and proud. The amount of practice put into this moment was apparent as the sharks adorned in teal and black marched in step.

“At first I felt really nervous, but then it got exciting as soon as we hit camera corner. That was when the adrenaline picked up,” remarked senior Levi Jaen.

After the seven miles of marching, the band was finished and it left the crowded streets of Pasadena to return home. Their Winter Break had finally started, but Santiago’s B.O.S.S. band will undoubtedly continue to march into great things in the future.

Changing Directions

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 21:53:11 +0000

Last year, I was one of the few who saw no appeal in boy bands whatsoever. I was adamant that bands like One Direction were simply pretty boys with no real musical talent. Recently, I’ve been hit with the “fan girl” gene and feel that it’s imperative to revoke my statement of apathy towards boy bands.

My obsession with One Direction admittedly started because they’re all so pretty. Honestly, I just liked looking at their faces. My dad, ironically enough, bought me their “Take Me Home” album for Christmas and since I downloaded it onto my iPhone, I haven’t listened to too much else. Their songs may not shed light on the mysteries of life, but it’s an undeniable fact that they’re catchy and relatable.

Like many others, I was swept up into the phenomenon of “indie” music: music that had a message and was produced by a few hipsters thrown together into a band. I came to realize that music isn’t only about revolutionary, thought-provoking lyrics; sometimes, it’s just fun to listen to music that makes you want to jump around your room and scream the lyrics at the top of your lungs. Only as a teenager is it socially acceptable to listen to such sugary music, so I decided to utilize my last few teenage years and enjoy “the boys” while I still could.

Many people have argued that no one from One Direction can actually sing, and the only reason they sell albums is because they’re so darned good-looking. I won’t lie and say their looks don’t help, but there’s a reason they beat out hundreds of other acts on the X Factor UK. Granted, they didn’t win X Factor, but has anyone actually heard of Matt Cardle, the winner of Season 7? I know I hadn’t.

It’s a known fact in the world of media that sex sells, and who can blame a few young guys for using their pretty faces to get themselves through the door? If One Direction was solely good looking, they would have lost their fan base soon after the X Factor ended, but what keeps “Directioners” around is the fact that they can sing catchy songs, sing them well, and look amazing while doing it. How many people can say they possess all three of those talents?

One Direction isn’t a band that’s going to disappear anytime soon. They have millions of loyal fans that see them for the amazing group of musicians that they are. Not everyone is born to be a Directioner, but we all have those things in life that bring us some secret kind of thrill. Maybe One Direction can be yours.

Time Warp

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 21:39:56 +0000

It’s universally known that Winter Break is one of the most exciting gifts that high school students are given – whether it be the Christmas holiday in itself, the three week time period we are given off, the end of first semester, or a combination of all three.

As soon as the bell rings to signify the beginning of our three-week freedom, thoughts of grandeur enter many a student’s mind. You probably had plans to hang out with your friends multiple times a week, go to a few parties, spend time with your family, do the homework you were assigned, have a bonfire, go shopping, see a few good movies, finally get to straightening up your room, and maybe hit up a few good amusement parks… after all, we did have three weeks. If you’re anything like me, though, you lazed around the house the majority of the time in your pajamas, eating everything within your grasp and exhausting all entertainment options on Netflix.

The worst habit I’ve found myself falling into is going to bed during the wee hours of the morning and not waking up until the afternoon. By the time I’m awake and functioning like an actual human being, the day has passed me by, the time on the clock mocking me and my lack of motivation.

Contrary to popular belief, I do actually have friends that I enjoy spending time with. I did get around the seeing them quite a few times this break, but not as often as I would have liked. This can pretty much be blamed solely on the fact of my sheer laziness. I honestly didn’t want to begin the tiring process of getting out of bed and getting dressed. In movies, breaks from school are portrayed as one big party and maybe some people lived their break with the “YOLO” mindset, but I, personally, just wanted to de-stress and eat some chocolate.

Now that we’re back at school, thrust back into the real world, we’re all undoubtedly looking back on the past three weeks in a haze of “what did I spend all my time doing?” That homework that didn’t seem all that important while you were playing “Fun Run” is now looming over your head as the first missing assignment of the semester; your out-of-whack sleep schedule is more than likely catching up with you and your ability to write coherently with a pencil is severely hindered.

Ah, the joys of returning to school.

Sadly, Spring Break doesn’t roll around until late March, and by then, most of our sights will be set on summer and the end of one more year in high school. Until then, try not to fail any classes or get kicked out of school.

How to Study for Finals

Rudy Garcia, Reporter — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 03:04:13 +0000

The young Shark sits at his desk, coffee in hand and chemistry book on the table. As he turns to caffeine and faces the stress of finals, he trudges on with vigor.

Some students are perfectly fine with pulling cram sessions like these, but the vast majority of people cannot stay focused after hours and hours of packing in information and need other ways to absorb study material before their big final. As the clock counts down it becomes increasingly more important to continue to study in effective ways that will help you rather than stress you out.

First, studying in a group provides advantages that studying alone may not, such as keeping you engaged in analysis and discussion of the topic you’re studying. A friend may be able to explain a topic that you cannot understand better than a textbook or even a teacher is able to.

Another study tip is to divide your studying into chunks throughout the day and then review the material again the night before your test. This relieves the stress that comes from sitting for many consecutive hours, trying to cram in as much information as possible. Studying throughout the day assists you in that you will have the information readily available, with the nightly review allowing your brain to process the information into your long-term memory before you go to sleep. This technique is even more successful so long as you sleep for a normal amount of time and eat well in the morning.

Finally, try to study in different environments. Simply changing your area of study every so often is, according to UCLA, helpful in retaining information. Rather than spending four hours sitting at your dining room table, move to your office desk, your bed, or even go outside.

With these tips, along with a determined mindset, you can avoid a sleepless night and a disastrous final grade.

From Riverside to Surfside

Brandon Pershin, Reporter and Rudy Garcia, Reporter — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 20:55:02 +0000

You trek through the trail on your bike, lock it up as you dig your feet into the sand and study the reddish-orange sunset. The chirping seagulls and the whoosh of the tide soothes your aching nerves.

The Santa Ana River Trail (SART) has been in use since the 80s, stretching 30 miles from the Orange County/Riverside county line to Huntington Beach. Some of the sights that you’ll come across along the way include the rush of the river water, the seasonal flowers in bloom, and the finches flying alongside you as you ride. Famous attractions like Angel Stadium, the Honda Center and Disneyland can also be seen along the way.

For beginners, the ideal ride would be from Green River Golf Course to Weir Canyon. This trail stretches for about six miles and would take the average person thirty minutes to accomplish. If you arrive to Green River by car, you will need to park on the dirt along the road near the golf course entrance. You’ll see a variety of nature native to our area and you’ll have an up close view of the river.

People who considered themselves good cyclists could venture even farther, to Angel Stadium. This route is seventeen miles and takes almost an hour and twenty minutes, but many would consider this time well spent.

Advanced riders will love the whopping 27.6 miles, two hour and ten minute bike ride to Huntington Beach through the Santa Ana river trail. Once you arrive, be sure to try out Perry’s Pizza in Huntington, because after a ride like that, you’ll definitely deserve it.

JSA Debates Abortion

Karina Stow, Editor-in-Chief — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 22:45:49 +0000

Dec. 5, 2012, the Junior Statesmen of America (JSA) gathered in the Shark Tank to tackle the controversial issue of abortion. JSA typically has “thought talk” debates in which anyone is allowed speak at any time. This week, however, JSA held a formal debate that featured a pre-specified Pro and Con speaker.

Although the debate was formal, the atmosphere was relaxed and pizza, cookies, and soda were consumed by many of the eager participants. The resolution of the debate, or the statement to be debated about, was that abortion should be made illegal. Senior Chad Serrao spoke first, in favor of the illegalization of abortion. It should be noted that members of JSA do not always personally support the stances that they speak on behalf of and often take on the position of “devil’s advocate”. Serrao began his six- minute speech humorously, remarking on how boring the movie Juno would have been had its young protagonist merely aborted her unplanned pregnancy. He quickly moved into a more serious Pro-Life argument, proclaiming “No one has the right to end a life… You can’t go out and kill someone, that’s illegal.” “Everyone in this room was once a fetus,” he reminded the club.

The main speaker for the Con side was junior Zachary Squier who was firm in his belief that “abortion is a necessary factor in America” and should be “the choice of the woman.” He spoke of abortion as simply “getting rid of some cells”, quipping “No one’s ever been arrested for exfoliating!” He then yielded the rest of his time for questions; senior Montana Sudul was amongst those who questioned him. Sudul, a self-proclaimed Pro-Choice supporter, spoke up in order to clarify that Plan B is not an abortion pill, as Squier had previously implied, but a contraceptive.

Following the main speakers, all members had the option to volunteer to be a subsequent speaker. Subsequent speakers are given three minutes to make their point and could take either stance on the presented issue. Freshman Ashley Jackson provided a mostly anecdotal argument for the Pro-Life side, citing a relative who underwent an abortion and experienced intense “feelings of regret” afterwards. “I think it’s a horrible choice to have an abortion”, said Jackson, and added “If you’re stupid enough to have sex, you should be willing to have a child.” Jackson advocates adoption in incidences of rape. After Jackson yielded the rest of her time to questions, sophomore Avi Bir asked whether she believed that “feelings and stuff” were justification enough to “take away a woman’s choice”. Jackson stood by her Pro-Life beliefs.

Some other notable speakers for the Pro side included senior Byung Choi who presented the question, “What’s the difference between an infant and a fetus?” and insisted that individual rights end when they “start affecting someone else” and junior Ashley Kim who asked “What about the baby’s rights?” and claimed that “having an abortion is even more mentally scarring than having a child”.

The Pro-Choice subsequent speakers included junior Kent Kawahara and senior and club president Anthony McKelroy. Kawahara remarked that because a fetus is not viable until 22 weeks, “it is essentially a parasite”. McKelroy was first in the debate to bring up Roe v. Wade and how, despite over 40 years of deliberation, Roe v. Wade has yet to have been overturned, “…so from a legal standpoint [abortion is] ok … We need to make sure women have the right to choose … We shouldn’t disallow them that choice,” McKelroy concluded.

The main speakers were then once again given their time at the podium in order to make closing speeches and both ended with their definition of a fetus. “A fetus is a part of their body,” said Squier, who believes that women have the right to do with their bodies what they so choose. Serrao, however, defined a fetus as “an individual”, worthy of the right to live. The meeting ended with a brief vote, in which more JSA members disagreed with the resolution that abortion be made illegal than agreed.

Photo Credit: Ary Morales

Sanctity of Cinema

Anthony McKelroy, Freelance Reporter — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 21:36:30 +0000

Amidst all the commotion surrounding homework, studying for finals, finalizing college applications, I found the time to take a night off in order to attend a special screening of Quentin Tarantino’s “Reservoir Dogs”. The acclaimed filmmaker, known for his hyper-violent movies and unorthodox filmmaking techniques, held a special Twentieth Anniversary event in conjunction with the release of an eight-film Blu-Ray box set of his movies. Celebrating twenty years of Tarantino, two of the films in particular – “Reservoir Dogs” and “Pulp Fiction” – were re-released in theatres Dec. 4 and 6 respectively at participating AMC Theatres. When I heard this news, I immediately seized the opportunity to experience one of my favorite films in the theatre, after having only seen it through Netflix.

As the show time got closer and closer, I donned my black suit, white shirt, and pencil tie and drove out to the AMC at the Tyler Mall. When I entered the echoing darkness of the theatre, I could feel that this would be an extraordinary cinematic experience. The seats were filled with other Tarantino fans eagerly awaiting the start of the show. In proxy of normal movie trailers before the show, this screening featured exclusive promos about the aforementioned Blu-Ray box set in addition to theatrical trailers for “Gangster Squad”, “Stand Up Guys”, and Tarantino’s upcoming antebellum period piece “Django Unchained”. All of these movies look phenomenal, and got me in the perfect mood to watch Steve Buscemi complain about being called Mr. Pink once again. But seeing as how this was a special occasion, there would be more to this than just a simple movie screening.

Prior to the beginning of the movie, several interviews were shown in which producers, industry professionals, and other filmmakers talked about “Reservoir Dogs” and the genesis of this great movie: all the way from its simple beginnings as a low budget, black and white film, to the attachment of A-List actors such as Harvey Keitel, Lawrence Tierney, and Chris Penn, and its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. Upon release, the movie was met with very critical reception, with many applauding its unique take on cinema, and others accosting the film’s glorification of violence. Regardless, “Reservoir Dogs” is what launched Tarantino’s career and gave him the most notoriety in Hollywood as a force to be reckoned with.

Following the interviews, the audience was treated with three trailers from Tarantino’s own personal film collection that he put together just for this event. These trailers included the crime drama “Mean Streets” starring Robert de Niro and Harvey Keitel, a comedy about ambulance drivers entitled “Mother, Speed and Jugs” starring Keitel and Bill Cosby, and Ridley Scott’s “The Duellists”. While I had never heard of these movies before, I am definitely looking forward to making time to watch them as well (along with dozens of other movies on my list of things to watch before I die, but I digress).

At the end of the final trailer, the screen faded to black, the theatre darkened even more, and Mr. Brown’s famous first lines bellowed through the theatre: “Let me tell you what ‘Like a Virgin’ is all about.” The film rolled and I have never enjoyed myself more than in that moment of watching a movie. Yes I paid $12.50 to go see this movie, yes it was a movie I had already seen, and yes I sacrificed vital studying time to do so. Despite all that, it was a worthy decision. I experienced this movie the way Tarantino intended it, and I walked away with a new perspective on the movie that I probably wouldn’t have gained otherwise. Special screenings are significant due to the lucrative market opportunity involved, the new audiences to reach, and most importantly, upholding the integrity of cinema. What’s the point of even going to the movie theatres anymore when I can pay 1/4^th the price of a movie ticket and get unlimited movies whenever I want? While there are other things that theatres can do in order to keep their customer base, I believe that special theatre releases such as the Tarantino Twentieth Anniversary event are key. There is no way that I would have gotten the same experience watching “Reservoir Dogs” at home as I did in the theatres. I look forward to more of these types of events with other filmmakers like Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg; even George Romero could benefit from a special Halloween event. So long as there are filmmakers, there will be films, but with the ever-changing dynamic of entertainment and digital distribution, it’s hard to say how much the medium will be preserved in the coming decades. We can only hope that movie theatres won’t suffer a fate similar to the record store, or Blockbuster video.

Vive le cinema!

Safe Haven

Brianna Brower, Reporter — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 22:28:31 +0000

“It’s emotionally draining,” says Bill Sellers, who has been the supervisor of the Corona Animal Shelter since the 80s. Despite the stress it causes, Sellers has always liked his job, which entails many animals being under his care.

At this shelter, the cells are filled with 30 cats, 45 dogs, two birds and four bunnies. Sellers wishes that there were bigger kennels and more office space so that when someone is adopting an animal they can sit down and relax.

The animals are fed and given water through out the day, taken on walks and given medication before closing time.

The Corona Animal Shelter (http://www.petfinder.com/CA260.html) is only open Tuesday-Thursday and Saturday due to very limited funds. Sellers says the best way to counteract the ever-increasing shelter population is to spay your animal. In order to adopt an animal out of the shelter, you have to get them spayed and neutered.

There are also many other places you can adopt an animal, including rescues which take animals from the shelters and get them homes.

“I can’t save them all, just one at a time.” Michelle Shoemaker announces.

Shoemaker is the owner of a non-profit organization called Sunny Oasis Rescue (http://www.sunnyoasisrescue.org), which is based in Riverside. She currently has 50-60 animals in her rescue, and about 20 in her personal care at a time. She isn’t like many non-profits that place the animals in cages; she lets many of them roam around the house.

It makes both Sellers and Shoemaker upset knowing the shelters are full and so many people don’t know how they can help.

Owners should know that everyone needs to get their animals licensed. This will help if your animal goes missing; the cost of one is less than the penalty of not having one and it also lets people know that your animal is up to date on shots. Lastly, the support of license fees goes to animals shelter funds.

It’s a lot of work to take care of an animal, but these two amazing people work their tails off for their jobs and they both enjoy it.

The Meddler Mindset

Karina Stow, Editor-in-Chief and Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 22:05:45 +0000

In this age of social networking, everyone believes that they have something of significance to say. We broadcast our thoughts on school, politics, celebrities, and even reveal some of the most intimate parts of our personal lives to people that are barely considered acquaintances. So when people we know fall on hard times or are involved in some kind of drama, we often reach out to them with our opinions on the matter. It turns into a problem, however, when you cross the line from offering helpful advice to becoming a meddler in someone’s personal business.

When advice is unsolicited, it often leads to arguments and can create tension between individuals where there wasn’t any before. Even if a person publicizes their life on social media sites like Twitter, they aren’t necessarily asking for anyone and everyone to interject their opinion. Just because you can see real life drama play out on your computer screen the same way you would an episode of “Pretty Little Liars” doesn’t mean you should comment upon the behaviors of real people. While it’s perfectly fine to berate Hanna and Spencer through the screen for their behaviors, chiding your peers for their actions is just uncalled for.

Our generation has forgotten the golden rule: if you don’t have anything nice to say, then don’t say anything at all. We’ve begun to treat everyday social drama as another soap opera to gossip about. Kids now feel as if it is their right to be able to scrutinize that actions and behavior of people outside their immediate social circle. It’s escalated to the point where people judge a person based on their personal beliefs and treat them as if they are a fictional character that doesn’t have any feelings at all. “Ohmygod, did you hear about….” is a common conversation starter around campus. As if gossiping wasn’t bad enough, people are now directly confronting the objects of rumors in person and on social media.

Not all those who meddle do so with bad intent. If you recognize that you might be a meddler, it’s never too late to reform. Make a concentrated effort to keep your commentary to fictional characters. There are exceptions to this; sometimes people find it difficult to admit that they need help. If you are in a close friendship with someone, don’t hesitate to reach out to someone in his or her time of struggle. When in doubt, be a shoulder to cry on, not advocate your thoughts on the issue at hand. The majority of people would much rather be listened to than talked at.

Get Your Game On

Collin Headley, Reporter — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 21:55:53 +0000

It’s Thursday and you’re debating either going home and playing the newest Assassin’s Creed or going down to GameStop to get Halo 4, but sadly you can’t because you have to wait for someone to come pick you up from school. As you sit there, twiddling your thumbs for two hours, waiting for the clock to hit 4:30 p.m., you find yourself wishing you had something to entertain your time. Instead of just sitting there, salivating for your game controller, you can head down to H103 and check out the Gamer’s Guild.

Gamer’s Guild is a club run by students every Thursday after school until 4:30 p.m. The Guild’s goal is to introduce the gamers of Santiago High School to both new games and new people to share all your gaming desires with.

The Gamer’s Guild is a successor to the Pokémon Club. The Pokémon Club had a similar concept as the Gamer’s Guild, but failed to produce the same results the Gamer’s Guild has, and was thus shut down. The success of the Gamer’s Guild is built upon the diverse personalities of the members who try to share their passions for certain games with other members.

The members may set up games along different corners of the room: role-playing board games (i.e. Dungeons & Dragons) may be in one corner, PS3 games (i.e. Marvel vs. Capcom 3) in another, or whatever they may be projecting onto the white board, like Mario Kart. The room is consistently littered with geeky people who are proudly talking about their gaming characters and personalities. These self-proclaimed geeks can be heard spewing all kinds of nerdy things, which makes the club seem more close-knit and intimate.

“Well excuuuse me princess,” freshman Devon Spangler says to a few friends, referencing the video game “Zelda”.

“That hits wood,” senior Alex Joanis quotes from “Jontron”, a popular gaming youtube channel, to the other members of the Gamer’s Guild.

Along with these reference quotes from video games and popular videos among the Gamers, these members also give helpful tips to gamers.

“You have to learn the rules of the game, then you have to be better than everyone else,” senior Janie Lynn Allen-Phelps preaches to the club.

The Gamer’s Guild also hosts gaming tournaments every month. The next tournament occurs after Thanksgiving break, but if you want to participate you’ll have to attend a few meetings or check out the Facebook page to see what game has been chosen and what day it will occur. If tournament play isn’t your thing, you can play one-on-one games with other members, or come to a meeting to play another featured game.

So the next time you have to wait for your mom to pick you up, or you have nothing better to do after school on a Thursday, you can head down to H103 (the Gamer’s Guild’s Poster is in the window) and join in on some of the fun and competition.

The Arts Take the Stage

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor and Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 20:18:15 +0000

Once upon a time… A twenty-first century, cross-dressing Alice fell down the rabbit hole and landed in the festively decorated Shark gymnasium. Theater, playing an assortment of characters from the popular animated Disney movie “Alice in Wonderland” kicked off Santiago’s first ever Performing Arts rally. As the rally progressed, their story unfolded, ending with a special farewell from the Queen.

While Santiago students piled into the shoulder-to-shoulder packed gym, band made a special performance, with every member playing music to set the mood for school spirit. Soon after the first installment of Alice’s journey, Madrigals kept with their assigned Lion King theme with the song “In the Jungle”.

Madrigals performer senior Michael Walton, commented, “It’s nice to be able to say I was involved in something brand new to Santiago. I’m glad they took time to recognize the arts.”

Cheer rolled out the mats for their medley of “Little Mermaid” songs and was followed with a “Lilo & Stitch” performance from Color Guard to the song “Hound Dog”. Santiago Dance Team, using a modern remix of the popular “Pirates of the Caribbean” theme, wowed the crowd with, what many are saying, is their best performance this year. The wildly popular Hip-Hop Team brought the mob of Santiago students to their feet with the Disney classic “Trashin’ the Camp” from “Tarzan”.

During both rallies, seniors took the crown for loudest class yell and best backboard. With these victories under their belt, they took the lead in the on-going battle for most class points., even with the sophomore’s victory in the Disney themed competition.

With a surprise performance, various Santiago teachers faced off in a dance battle, featuring various popular songs including “Soulja Boy”, “Gangnam Style”, and “Look at me Now”. Principal Thompkins wowed the crowd with his impressive rapping and a noticeable favorite was Mr. Kliss, who showed off his carefree nature with eccentric dance moves.

Ending the rally was the announcement of the 12 contestants who would be competing in the annual “Mr. SHS” contest.

Bond is Back in “Skyfall”

Evan Ritter, Sports Editor — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 21:47:37 +0000

The name is Bond. James Bond. And he’s back for the 50th anniversary of the fabled secret agents’ film career. Skyfall landed on the big screen Nov. 9, starring Daniel Craig in his third James Bond movie and Javier Bardem as the ingenious villain and ex-MI6 agent, Silva.

Due to a mission gone wrong, a hard decision and desperation take Bond off the map leaving many believing that he was swimming with the fishes. “M”, played by long-time actress of the Bond movies, Judi Dench, is placed under the blame that, because of her decision, the enemy had escaped with precious intel containing the names of every person in MI6, the agency under her command. “M” is met with a larger problem as whoever was responsible for the theft of the files begins to post five names from MI6 every week, leading to the agents’ capture.

Bond, who had been in hiding and enjoying peace, finally returns to MI6 after learning of its initial compromise, only to be tested to see if he has remained fit for active duty. Bond soon learns of the past that is haunting “M” and must put an end to the schemes of technological genius and abandoned member of MI6, Silva. Soon Bond is forced to return to his own past, as well, embracing events that had occurred in his childhood in order to save “M” from the revenge-stricken Silva. It turns into what Silva describes as a “rat-eat-rat battle” and only one can remain.

Skyfall is a pulse-pounding thriller and action movie, but it takes a different look at James Bond, delving more into the pasts of both “M” and Bond and what fear can do to people. There is plenty of action to satisfy those who love to feel their hearts racing and adore explosions, but most of the film does not focus on the fighting aspect. It instead tends to change its lens and concentrate on the psychological aspects of the characters and their pasts. Silva is driven by a strong urge to enact revenge upon those who betrayed him; “M” is weighed down with guilt, and James Bond is burdened with his troubling childhood and unwillingness to return to that place. Each character has their own problems to deal with and thus they all have obstacles to overcome in order to reach their goals.

The movie itself is very well composed, utilizing great cinematography and camera work. The cinematography boasted sweeping landscapes and a final scene that captured the dark and weary nature of the film. The acting is performed in such a manner that the characters bring you into their inner struggles or into the fast-paced scenes for action-movie fans. Daniel Craig draws the viewer into Bond’s troubling past, frequently refusing to acknowledge it and exhibiting the pain he felt clearly. The movie doesn’t just focus on charm and action, but emotional qualities as well, explaining more about the lineage of James Bond. It may have begun a little too abruptly and brought Bond back a little sooner than one would have thought, but these quick scenes don’t keep the movie from being sensational.

Skyfall is one of the better Bonds and serves to live up to the legendary agent and his past feats. 007 continues and will continue, according to the ending credits, to report for duty.

Breaking Dawn Part 2 – The Final Bite

Brianna Brower, Reporter — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 21:54:36 +0000

Breaking Dawn gave the twi-hard audience a thrill of their life. Bella (Kristen Stewart) has awakened from her near death experience to become a newborn vampire at the end of Breaking Dawn part one. Her new daughter Renesmee (Mackenzie Foy) is a very special child with the helpful power to show images by a simple touch. While Bella and Edward’s (Robert Pattison) life is falling around them they realize Renesmee is not safe, Alice (Ashley Greene) had a vision of the Volturi coming after the child.

However, Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner) has a special bond with Renesmee and is very protective over her. As the Volturi comes closer the Cullen’s go to get close friends who will stand with them if a battle is to begin. Many of them are scared of the child, which sets up another problem, putting their daughter’s life in danger to let her ‘show’ them that she isn’t an immortal child like everyone perceives her to be.

While the movie has a myriad of new special features, the best is the way they display the shape shift from man to wolf. This feature has given a better picture of how the shift is made and how quickly it can happen. Another improved aspect to the special features was the overhaul of the sparkling skin of Bella and Edward. It used to be very bright and made them look green.

This movie was one to keep you on the edge of your seat to if you’re a “twi-hard”. People who read the book will know one major change the plot of the movie made. The series have strived to keep their audience on the edge of their seats and this movie did that.

”Breaking Dawn Part 2″ has a much higher production value and better special effects than its predecessors, making the first movie look like a small production in comparison. All the “twi-hard” fans must be very happy with the outcome of this movie and can’t wait for it to be out on DVD so it can be watched over and over again along with the others.

Twilight fans will love this movie, the twists and unexpected turns will make them rant. This movie deserves an A+, although it may be confusing to follow the plot for people who have not seen the previous movies.

AVID’S Got Talent

Brianna Brower, Reporter — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 21:27:43 +0000

After the lights dimmed and the curtains were pulled back, AVID’s Talent Show kicked off with many dynamic acts including dancers, singers, rappers and even a magician.

The show’s first act was Lea Espenosa, singing “The Counting Medley”. Then a performance by a hip-hop dance crew, called G-Crew, pumped up the audience with their upbeat music and rapid new moves. The rest of the talent was equally powerful and easily entertained the large crowd that had gathered in the theatre.

The judge’s choice for Best Talent went to junior Ammon Tuimaualuga, who played his ukulele and sang a sweet love song. The audience also enjoyed the act featuring fellow junior Michael Gahbriel, who sang the song “Hallelujah”, and cheered loudly in response to his performance.

“I wanted to start off the performance by throwing my jacket off the stage, but the crew decided against it,” Malon Thompson, an AVID senior, said happily. Thompson cohosted with Amanda Blaise an AVID junior in order to raise money for the junior AVID members.

“Alumni students and students from other schools should have come to enjoy the show,” Carlos Guillen, AVID teacher for sophomores and seniors, said after applauding the last performer.

“I wish I had figured the mike was off,” commented AVID member Geyma Moreno. After Moreno started singing with the mike, it began to fade out but she kept singing despite the technical difficulty. She felt nervous, but knew that she had to go on. Even with microphone issues the AVID Talent Show continued to proceed, as more acts were yet to come.

The junior class, AVID Eleven, made over $500 towards their junior trip to San Francisco to visit colleges later this year. Kristen Harris is a junior AVID teacher and is the advisor responsible for organizing the event. She said she would love to do it again in the spring since people know about it now and it would be easier to promote.

Off-Campus Passes

Rudy Garcia, Reporter and Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 21:17:29 +0000

One of the privileges that comes with being an upper classman is the ability to obtain an off-campus pass. The ring of the bell beckons students to enjoy off-campus fast food for lunch during the school day, providing an opportunity to leave campus for a given amount of time.

Off-campus passes must be renewed every semester and can be purchased at the Shark Shop before school, after school or during lunch. They cost $15 with ASB and $10 without. Passes will be available for purchase starting the first week of second semester.

Before students can be awarded this privilege, they must first qualify for a few requirements regarding grades and attendance. All students in possession of a pass are not allowed to have any F’s. Attendance is also a factor and students who are frequently truant will be denied a pass. Additionally, if a student is caught attempting to sneak anyone off campus or abusing their pass, it will be revoked and must be surrendered to campus supervisors immediately.

Cheating is the New Standard

Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 22:37:44 +0000

Cheating is a facet of any competition-driven community. The option of dishonestly gaining a lead on your fellow students is, at best, tempting in a morally sound case and, at worst, a standard that is set by fellow students in some scenarios. With colleges admitting fewer and fewer incoming freshman and the pool of admittees growing larger, the incentive to cheat is higher than ever. Couple this with the growing ease of a cheater to practice his craft and you have a problem that is only getting worse.

Not only is it those who are struggling that use cheating as a means of survival, but also just as often it is those who cheat with the intention of thriving within a class. With this in mind, it’s no mystery that cheating occurs in every classroom, from World History to A.P Chemistry. To think otherwise would be turning a blind eye to a fire that will slowly but surely grow and consume any honest tree and shrub in site. So what is required to quell these infectious flames? In order to address the problem you must first look at its root causes and allowances.

Students have always been cheaters, there’s no denying that. However, with the introduction of smart phones and the Internet, cheating has reached a new level. In a test taking setting, the ability to call upon any piece of information inconspicuously and speedily tantalizes even the most honest scholars. These devices are often easily concealed from the supervisor overseeing the test, which offers test takers countless opportunities to search for answers or pull up class notes.

Perhaps the most frequent offenders of this aspect of the cheating world are found in math classes. Despite constructing separate versions for the same test, students are still found sharing pictures of the test and looking up notes on their hand held devices. A large factor contributing to this trend is the definitive answers that a math exam requires. An aspect not to be overlooked in these classrooms is the seemingly desensitized attitude toward fraudulent testing that some math teachers harbor.

While the teacher remains oblivious to this form of cheating or at least pretends not to see it, it is painstakingly obvious for the other students in the class who are not cheating. If the test is graded on a curve these cheaters may raise the curve for everyone else in the class. Witnessing cheating like this is extremely disheartening to anybody who is motivated to study by receiving the best marks in class. These students will also get the impression that the advisor does not care whether or not you cheat especially if the testing environment reflects this attitude.

There have also been a growing number of offenders cheating outside of the classroom. This can mostly be attributed to the ease with which one may cheat with present technology. The Internet has blurred the lines for some students as to what cheating or plagiarizing is. It’s ingrained in student’s minds that one is able to “collaborate” on homework or an essay through online communication. It’s easy. It’s fast. And it produces results.

So what’s stopping those select few from succumbing to the attraction of an easy A? A supreme respect for personal work and academic mentors is a quality often found in those who choose not to partake in immoral academics. Besides this, what keeps most on the straight path is the repetition from parents and teachers alike that cheating should not be tolerated. But alas, maybe one day students will realize that the work you put into school is far more important than the grades you get out.

How Stuff Stole the Stuffing

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 22:18:56 +0000

When I was younger I remember feeling so excited when the holidays came around. I was surrounded by my large extended family, presents and food: what could be better? Now that I’m preparing to go off to college, I find myself looking around on the holidays and realizing how much things have changed since I was a little girl. The large extended family I used to run around with and put on talent shows for is now divided between different homes, and, if we happen to be in the same house on Thanksgiving, their attention seems to be diverted between the TV and their smart phones.

Because I’m nearing adulthood, ready to go off on my own, the importance of celebrating the holidays with my loved ones has grown more and more significant to me. This Thanksgiving I found myself looking around, the fear sinking in that next year at the same time, I might be in a completely different state, surrounded by completely different people, with no money for a plane ticket to get back to my family. Just the thought nearly sent me into a panic attack and opened my eyes to the significant deterioration of my family’s holiday spirit.

I remember my aunt’s and uncles playing and actively engaging with me during the holidays, but now my younger cousins are glued to the Xbox in the playroom while their parents watch sports and gossiped in a completely different room. What has happened that has made the holidays seem so different? Maybe it’s just a matter of me being older and more aware of the reality of the situation than when I was a child, but it still seems like a more extreme difference than can be blamed on blissful childhood ignorance.

My closest fifty or so relatives used to stay at my grandmother’s house long into the hours of the night, laughing, talking and playing games. This year my Thanksgiving consisted of 20 people, most of whom left by 7 p.m. to go out and go Black Friday shopping. The time that I did spend with these family members was monopolized by which sales my aunts would be hitting, what they were going to buy, and how soon they could leave. While I’m thankful that I was able to spend the holidays with my family, I wish it had been as involved as I remembered it.

Red Cross Club Embraces Season of Giving

Annaliese Clauze, Reporter — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 22:15:42 +0000

In order to help those in need, the Red Cross Club at Santiago has generated holiday spirit by organizing a toy drive and an army care package collection. These toys and care packages will be delivered to the Children’s Safety Festival in Orange County and to divisions of the US military, respectively.

Both the toy drive and the army care packages will be overseen by Mrs. Thompson, the advisor of the Red Cross Club. Donations for the toy drive include any non-violent toy for children ranging from newborns up until age 12. Toys do not have to be expensive or elaborate; the suggested price range is $8-12. The Children’s Safety Festival will then give the toys to children of low-income families and to those that have little to call their own.

In addition to the toy drive, monetary donations will be collected; this extra cash will be used to add to the toy donations brought in by students. In the past two years that the toy drive has been put on, donations have steadily increased. In 2008 only 40 toy donations were received, in 2010 120 donations were collected, and this year’s goal is set at 300 toys. The Red Cross club will have a booth set up at the fair, as well as 16 members of the club attending. All toys or monetary donations can be brought to H105 and given to Mrs. Thompson.

The Army care packages will be assembled for deployed members of the military and shipped in time for the holidays. Acceptable donations are non-perishable food items, toiletries, and small treats. The club became aware of this program through the Fullerton College Veterans Club, whom is now in charge of collection and distribution of the packages. These donations can be brought to your fourth period classroom. As collections are scheduled to be distributed in time for the holidays, donations for the toy drive are due by Friday, Nov. 30.

”It goes to a good cause,” says senior Allison Schlieder, the Red Cross club student president. “Plus, the fourth period class that brings in the most donations will win a pizza party.”

Open your hearts this holiday season and donate to a child in need or a member of the US military.

The First Five Days of Single Life: Battling the Break-up Blues

Karina Stow, Editor-in-Chief — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 21:30:56 +0000

Breaking up is hard to do, but sometimes the days that follow can be even harder. You’re thrust into single life while you’re still nursing a broken heart. Despite what many magazines and self-help books claim, there’s no simple way to “get over it”, but there are small measures you can take every day in order to get on with your life. Here’s how to get through those first five days:

Day 1 – The Calm before the Storm

You’re not as sad as you thought you’d be. In fact, you’re hardly sad at all. Instead, you are numb. Make today a “you” day – stay in bed a little longer, lounge in your comfiest sweats, pop in your favorite movie or get lost in a good book. Do something that makes you feel like you – write a poem, jog a few miles, get on your bike or play your guitar. Remind yourself that there is more to your identity than being someone’s boyfriend or girlfriend.

Day 2 – The Hurricane of Hurt

Whether you were the dumper or the dumpee, break-ups hurt. Don’t push away the pain today. Vent to a friend, or two, or three. Let people in. Return those texts you ignored yesterday. Know that it is O.K. to be weak. Remember the bad times. Cry. Remember the good times. Cry harder. Today, you are allowed to wallow. When you’ve reached the point of emotional exhaustion, drink some tea and turn in early.

Day 3 – Kleenex and Closure

When you arise this morning, you might be greeted with a good-sized knot in the pit of your stomach. Today is the hardest day. Rather than being intimidated by that knowledge, be comforted by it. Once you’ve survived this, everything gets a whole lot easier. Meet with your ex and confirm it’s really over. Yell a little and cry a little. If you can do so sincerely, wish them the best. Give each other’s stuff back if you want to. Encourage your ex to seek solace in friendship and take your own advice. Calling your best friend after meeting with your ex will make you feel better. Resist the urge to say mean and petty words of farewell just so you can feel like you ‘won’. Newsflash: Everyone loses in a break-up, but eventually you get back up and try again with someone different.

Day 4 – Get up and Go

The fourth day after a break-up can feel incredibly lonely. Don’t cave in and go on a date with that sleazy person who made a move the second you were single. Let your best friends take you out. Put on clothes that make you feel attractive. Get dinner and talk about school and pop culture and inside jokes. No relationship drama tonight. Go see a thrilling action film or a raunchy comedy or a mind-blowing drama (I recommend “Cloud Atlas”). Avoid flicks originally penned by Nicholas Sparks. Let yourself be happy. Realize that being single doesn’t mean staying in and being alone.

Day 5 – Regaining Normalcy

You don’t get over a break-up in five days. It’s going to hurt for a while. Some mornings you’ll just wake up sad. However, today marks the beginning of moving on. Take care of the responsibilities you’ve been procrastinating on. Stop Facebook stalking and create distance from your ex; someday you could be friends, but right now a conversation will only further hostility between you two. Stop spamming your friends’ phones. You’re a big kid and there are things you can handle on your own now. Appreciate the new freedom of being unattached. Flirt a little bit if you want to, but don’t go hunting for a replacement. Don’t jump into a new relationship before you can experience being single. Cheesy as it sounds, love yourself. This break-up will eventually lead to a stronger, better, you. Cherish that.

Can you Spot the Shark in “Argo”?

Abigail Pitts, Managing Editor — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 21:19:20 +0000

Nikka Far has achieved much in the five years since she graduated from Santiago. Most recently, the alumnus reached a degree of success when she was cast in role of Tehran Mary in the film “Argo”.

Far has been an actor since she was twelve, appearing on television shows such as “The Bernie Mac Show” and “7^th Heaven”. She had to pause her career in high school when it caused attendance issues, but she participated in Shark TV, both in front of and behind the camera.

After Santiago, Far studied theater and started auditioning for and acting in independent films. About a year ago, she gained more success by being cast as the Persian Princess on “Big Time Rush”, and then acting in more Disney Channel and Nickelodeon shows. She was then cast as a Cheerio on “Glee”.

Far was cast for “Argo” in a highly unconventional manner. She went to an open casting call for Persians because her dad wanted to go, after which she heard nothing from the film for a couple of months. She then received a call telling her that director Ben Affleck had personally picked her picture for the role of Tehran Mary.

After a few more auditions, she officially earned the role, and, as Tehran Mary was a real person, set about learning all about her, including how to emulate her accent and mannerisms.

Far spent just one day on set, but much of it was focused on her. Her scene involved her speaking with many extras acting as press around her. When she heard the marker go down to begin filming the scene, Far says the moment was like an out-of-body experience. “I knew the next few moment would only happen if I did something. It was surreal.”

But everything seemed to go well, and her role just kept increasing. What was originally about five lines for Far to speak grew “into a two-page monologue.”

Recently, Far has been doing interviews promoting the film and auditioning, in addition to a job as a post-production editor for Deluxe, a company which edits movies and shows such as “Twilight”, “The Walking Dead”, “Breaking Bad” and “Dexter”.

Mike to Mike

Alec Romero, Reporter — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 22:43:22 +0000

Over the course of one weekend, the Los Angeles Lakers fired a coach, changed their offense, won two games and hired a new coach.

Friday, Nov. 9, Lakers fans were surprised to find that former head coach Mike Brown, who was just beginning his second season with the franchise, had been fired. Despite the off-season acquisitions of eight-time all-star and two-time MVP point guard Steve Nash and six-time all-star and three-time defensive player of the year center Dwight Howard, the Lakers have experienced a winless preseason. They started 0-3 for the first time in franchise history since 1990. One victory came against an 0-3 Detroit Piston team, and the last coaching game for Mike Brown was a 86-95 loss with the Lakers shooting under 40 percent as a team Wednesday, Nov. 7, against the Utah Jazz.

The Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak addressed the media Friday morning explaining how he fired Brown at 9:30 a.m., told reporters that there wasn’t any input from the players on the firing, and didn’t want to take a chance with the Princeton offense Mike Brown was playing with. Mitch told a reporter, “he saw no progress from the winless preseason and he didn’t care about what the players said about being patient, it’s all about wins and losses.”

Mike Brown was initially hired to replace the coaching position of 11-time NBA champion of coach Phil Jackson. Brown was hired May 25, 2011, just 17 days after the Lakers were swept by the eventual NBA champion Dallas Mavericks.

A little over a month later, the NBA went into a five-month lockout that ended Nov. 26, 2011, allowing Mike Brown to start his duties as head coach by changing the offense that preferably required a quick point guard. The Lakers front office made a successful three-team trade that sent four-time all-star Chris Paul to the Lakers; the Lakers 2011 Sixth Man of the Year Lamar Odom to the Hornets and three-time all star Lakers power forward Pau Gasol to the Rockets. However, since the Hornets were then owned by the league, the trade was vetoed by NBA commissioner David Stern due to several complaints from other owners, so the Lakers were left without a quick point guard and had to start aging NBA veteran Derek Fisher in the position, which affected the tempo and Brown’s offense in the two preseason games against the Clippers in 2011.

Browns first season was very rocky, causing many fans on social media sites to call for his replacement. March 16, 2012, Brown had a chance to quell the public’s doubts when he fully utilized his offense with the quick point guard tempo by starting Ramon Sessions who was acquired in a trade a few days earlier. The Lakers finished 14-9 with Ramon Sessions as their point guard and earned the third best record in the Western Conference.

Many fans anticipated going into the playoffs and were curious to see what Mike Brown could do with this team since he coached the Cleveland Cavaliers to the NBA Finals in 2007 with LeBron James on the team. Unfortunately, the Lakers were unable to make it past the second round of the playoffs for the second straight season after losing four out of five games to the eventual Western Conference Champion Oklahoma City Thunder.

There was much speculation that Mike Brown would be fired during the offseason and replaced by a more veteran coach who could base the offense of the two 7-foot big men in Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol. Mitch Kupchak and Lakers part-owner Jim Buss put an end to the chatter and told reporters of espn.com and lakersnation.com “don’t expect any big changes from coaching or players.”

They contradicted their claim before the 2012-2013 Lakers season by adding a new style of play called “the Princeton offense” which was designed to get every player involved and is based around the center and power forward. Also Dwight Howard was acquired in a four-team trade that sent the superstar center from the Orlando Magic and former Lakers center Andrew Bynum to the Philadelphia 76ers. Steve Nash was acquired via sign and trade.

Due to the dramatic changes, the Lakers were expected to blow out their opponents in several games and have one of the best records of all time, but the 0-8 preseason and the 1-4 proved otherwise. The terrible start season cost Mike Brown his job and the Princeton offense was eliminated, wasting a full training camp spent learning that style of play.

The Lakers were scheduled to play the Golden State Warriors the night of Mike Browns firing and Mitch Kupchak gave the temporarily coaching duties to assistant coach Bernie Bickerstaff who had previous coaching experiences. Since Bickerstaff’s temporary take over as head coach the Lakers gained two blowout wins over the Warriors and Sacramento Kings, but one loss in a close defensive game against the San Antonio Spurs.

Since Friday, the Lakers front office has been doing interviews and phone calls looking for a head coach that will be able to coach the Lakers deep into the playoffs and eventually win a championship. Many sources close to the Lakers and from ESPN explained to reporters there was a 95 percent chance the 11-time NBA champion Phil Jackson was coming back for his third stint as the Lakers head coach. Phil Jackson had many health issues which he overcame since he retired for the third time in May 2011, but the walking and getting around while the team was traveling was going to be an issue.

Jim Buss and Mitch Kupchak met with coaches Phil Jackson, Mike D’Antoni and Mike Dunleavy who all have experience coaching superstars in the postseason.

Phil Jackson, who seemed to be the most likely candidate for the job, released a statement saying Mitch and Jim asked if they could meet with him at his home in Los Angeles on Saturday (Nov. 10) to talk over the coaching position. Jackson stated “after an hour and a half meeting with the two there was no formal deal or verbal agreement I told them I will speak to my agent and make my decision Monday”.

At 1:00 a.m. Monday morning, ESPN and Yahoo Sports broke the story stating Mike D’Antoni a former head coach for the Phoenix Suns and New York Knicks was chosen for the head coaching job to replace Mike Brown. A source from ESPN.com explained “D’Antoni gets a three-year deal worth $12 million with a club option in the fourth year” and the deal was reportedly signed around 11:30 p.m. PT Sunday night.

Jackson told a league source he was “stunned” when he received a phone call from Mitch Sunday night telling him they chose D’Antoni to be the next Lakers head coach since Jackson and his agent were prepared to take the offer Monday if everything was negotiated well.

Sources close to the Lakers reported on ESPN.com “Jackson’s triangle offense was seen as a benefit to Bryant andPau Gasol but not as conducive to the rest of the players on the roster — namely point guard Steve Nash and centerDwight Howard. Another strike against the triangle was the fact that this Lakers team struggled mightily to pick up the similarly complicated Princeton-style offense being instituted by Brown”.

Mike D’Antoni has coached three current Lakers players (Steve Nash, Jordan Hill and Chris Duhon) and his offense brings the main plays of the pick and roll from the point guard and the center. Steve Nash, who played under D’Antoni for four seasons, making the playoffs in all of them, will get more control offense compared to Phil Jackson’s triangle offense where his control was limited. D’Antoni’s offense has the potential to bring back the same type of tempo that the “Showtime” Lakers had back in the 1980’s with Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and James Worthy.

The negatives that come from the new offense under D’Antoni include the limited amount of shots for Kobe and Dwight since the main players in the pick and rolls and gives and goes primarily involve the two forwards and the point guard.

The Lakers still have over 70 games to play and the two games with the Warriors and Kings have shown some momentum change with the team. A championship is still a possibility, but the winless preseason and the 1-4 start will be hard to overcome with teams such as the San Antonio Spurs or Oklahoma City Thunder.

Junior’s Chill out for Spirit Week

Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 21:24:32 +0000

Wednesday, Nov. 14, saw the quad decked in green as the junior class embraced their slot in Class Color Week. During the lunch time festivities free ice cream was offered to juniors with an ASB card, and a game of water balloon toss was held between any class of 2014 participants who were not afraid to get a little wet.

Par usual, ASB enlisted in the aid of their iconic loud speakers to play a number of musical selections and orchestrate the festivities via microphone.

“Water balloon tosses are really a lot of fun!” said Junior class president Alyssa Salazar, “It’s great when it’s hot and everyone can have fun.”

Winners of the water balloon toss were tag teams Mitchell Perdomo and Alyssa Alvarez, and Chris Brown and Adam Connette.

Centennial Takes Rimpau

Alec Romero, Reporter — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 21:29:38 +0000

School spirit exploded around campus Friday, Nov. 2 as students hyped up for the football match between Centennial and Santiago; music played in the quad both before school and lunch, a ten minute rally was held in the quad between first and third period, and video promos from Shark TV and ASB aired during the week.

Both schools entered into the game with undefeated league records, which happened for the second year in row (both had 2-0 league records before the game against each other). This was the sixteenth time Centennial and Santiago have been matched up, and the closest Santiago has come to winning “The Battle of Rimpau” was in 2005 when the final score was 28-26.

With all the hype during the school day, Santiago expected a close, hard-fought game from both sides; however, injuries became a major factor and Centennial scored 70 points, the most ever scored by the Huskies against Santiago.

The game began with the loud crowds and filled bleachers from both sides. The Husky and Shark offenses both scored on their first possessions of the game, making the score 7-7 with 7:16 left in the first quarter. Santiago scored touchdowns on two of their first three possessions, ending the first quarter with a 21-14 Centennial lead.

The Sharks looked strong on the offensive end going into the second half, but the defense was struggling, allowing Centennial to successfully convert their first eight third downs. The second quarter was dominated by the Centennial offense which scored on all of their possessions and the defense which forced Santiago to punt for the first time. Even with the quick, no-huddle offense and tough defense line from Centennial, the Sharks were able to keep their own pace and avoided a blowout before halftime. However the biggest hit to Santiago was an ankle injury to senior quarterback Michael Darr, which ruled him out of the game. Darr finished the game, completing six of his eight passes, 167 passing yards and 32 rushing yards. Sophomore quarterback Blake Barnett took over the position and scored a touchdown with 1:17 left in the second quarter, bringing the score to 35-21 until halftime.

Centennial came out of halftime with the same momentum from the first quarter, scoring three touchdowns, intercepting two passes and holding the Sharks offense to just 15 rushing yards and 19 passing yards. The third quarter ended with a score of 56-21.

The Sharks pulled out their starters in the fourth quarter to rest them for the CIF first-round playoff game against Rancho Cucamonga. The offense of Santiago scored one last time from a pass from Barnett to junior Jon Judson making the score 56-28.

Santiago finished with a 4-1 league record, which is the best record finish for the Sharks since 2005 when they also finished 4-1. The Sharks finished the regular season with 221.7 passing yards, 178.4 rushing yards and averaged 33.9 points per game. Michael Darr led the team in passing with 150 completions, 2031 passing yards, 16 touchdown passes and six interceptions. Darr also led the Sharks in rushing with 103 carries for 781 total yards and 14 rushing touchdowns. Senior Dorion Barnett led the Sharks in receiving with 51 receives for a total of 681 yards and six touchdowns.

Stylish Shark of the Week 11/8/12

Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 21:01:21 +0000

Senior Hayden Tavoda coins her style as casually indie with a girly flair. Her outfits vary from cute kitten tees and large sweaters all the way to classic high tops and leather jackets. Her style is simple yet trendy because Tavoda is always on the run due to her busy schedule as a Santiago diver.

Shark Attack: What is your favorite winter accessory?

Hayden Tavoda: Either my boots or my jean jacket.

SA: What is your favorite store to shop at?

HT: Urban Outfitters for sure!

SA: How would you describe your style?

HT: Indie style, I guess.

Stylish Shark of the Week 10/29

Evan Ritter, Sports Editor — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 19:41:20 +0000

Senior Chris Ordinario is frequently clad in neon colors and his handcrafted Italian Ray Bans. His fashion is inspired by his want to look out of the norm and create his own unique fashion sense. His style can be described as slightly hipster, but leaning more toward the urban side fashion.

Shark Attack: What is your favorite fall accessory?

Ordinario: My lanyard, glasses and back pack would probably be my favorite fall accessories.

SA: What is your favorite place to shop?

Ordinario: I like to shop at the mall most of the time, but I like to go to Tilly’s too.

SA: What is your fashion inspiration?

Ordinario: My friends or celebrities that iI think dress good or wear something that I like.

Local Music Venues

Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 03:57:40 +0000

Music is a staple in the everyday life of the average teenager. Problem is, most students don’t have the time to scour the area for the best places to enjoy live music. Great music venues are often just around the corner and sadly these gems are often overlooked and never visited by young music aficionados. These underground hotspots cater to a variety of different genres; whether it be Indie or hardcore, there’s something for everyone just around the corner.

The Observatory- Santa Ana. This relatively small venue stands in contrast with the bigger names that it tends to attract. With diverse acts ranging from AWOLNATION to The Misfits, this intimate venue offers something for nearly every music enthusiast. Along with the main stage for headlining acts, the building contains a second venue inside known as the Constellation Room. The architectural design of the building allows for two shows to be booked on the same night, an added benefit which ticket buyers of both events can take advantage of by switching between the two shows. Whether your goal of the night is to get shoved off stage into the pit by security or you’re just looking to sit back in one of the booths to enjoy one of the best live acts around, the Observatory offers a wide variety of means in which you can spend your visit. Upcoming shows include: GWAR ($20), Wacka Flocka Flame ($28.50) and Walk the Moon ($20).

Maya’s Café- Corona. Along with authentic Mexican food, this hardcore hub of Corona is a host to many local hardcore/metal/punk bands, although the venue is expanding in its musical genre offerings. The modest, some would call cramped, floor space ensures an up-close-and-personal connection with the bands performing. Maya’s Café is the place to be if you’re looking for an intense dancing, mosh pitting kind of night. Upcoming shows include: Bad Antics, Spring Break 95′, Plagues, Barking Backwards, and Media Blitz. ($7)

It’s a Grind-Corona. Bask in the cool night air and enjoy a fresh cup of coffee as you indulge in the evenings offering of music and poetry at the weekly It’s a Grind’s open mic night held every Saturday.

North Point Church-Corona. With the introduction of a new youth pastor, a growing number of hardcore shows have been allowed to be held within the church. These shows are the epitome of the D.I.Y attitude, independent bands being accountable for the booking, equipment and price of their shows, that surrounds the local music scene in Corona. North Point will be hosting an upcoming benefit show to raise money for the youth ministry’s on Nov. 7. Tickets are priced at $3 and the show will feature local hardcore bands Spring Break 95′, Xenoth and Zissou.

UCR Barn- Riverside. Originally used as a barn when it was opened in 1912, the UCR Barn is now used as a destination for music and performance on the college campus. This venue was host to a number of legendary acts which include Blink 182, No Doubt, Bob Dylan, Sublime and Rage Against the Machine. Upcoming shows include Omar Rodriguez-Lopez Group ($20) and Saul William ($5).

Invisible Children Holds Screening

Brianna Brower, Reporter and Evan Ritter, Sports Editor — Mon, 29 Oct 2012 20:19:52 +0000

Oct. 25, Invisible Children held a screening of the new follow-up video of the “Kony 2012” video that raised so much controversy last spring, “Move”. After the presentation, guest speaker and Uganda survivor Quito told the tale of his arrest by police, and his release leading to his escape to America. Quito answered questions about the present situation in Africa involving the child soldiers and Joseph Kony, and presented banners that would be sent to both President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney in attempts to get America’s leaders to provide more aid for the efforts in Africa.

“Enough is enough, we need to come back home, and that is what my song is about,” expressed Quito about the present situation and how it ties into the song he wrote titled “Come Back Home”.

Stylish Shark of the Week 10/25/12

Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 21:01:07 +0000

Junior Precious Anyanwu has a style that is fueled by her need to stray from the clothes and general fashion that most people would chose to avoid. Her eccentric and imaginative outfits mirror her personal agenda of “wearing things that other people won’t wear.” She is often found sporting dresses and tops with unconventional patterns and prints. “Thats what sparks my inspiration,” Said Anyanwu, “People look at you first, they aren’t going to judge you by your personality.”

Shark Attack: What is your favorite fall accessory?

Precious Anyanwu: “Either scarves or boots”

Shark Attack: Who is your biggest fashion inspiration?

Precious Anyanwu: “I guess you could say my older sisters Stephanie and Samantha, but its mostly from myself because that’s how people view you.”

Shark Attack: What sparked you’re interest in fashion?

Precious Anyanwu: “Well when my sisters started dressing really nicely I wanted to too, and I like to buy things that make me feel good.”

Grilled Meat on Campus

Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 20:02:10 +0000

“Finally real meat!” exclaims Steven Trinh, Junior at Santiago, as he takes another bite out of his recently grilled meat patty, sandwiched in ketchup, cheese and wheat bun.
The introduction of the new school year has seen a savory new addition to the lunchtime choices. Hamburger patties and hot dogs freshly grilled on site with a propane-fueled grill are now being offered to students buying lunch on campus.
Found at D building, the new hamburger patties replaced the previous hamburger option, the “colossal burger.” While the colossal burger does stand as the bigger of the two, both pack the same amount of protein and feature wheat buns.
“They taste a lot better,” said Kevin Palomino, Junior, “they make me not want to leave campus, even though I’m a Junior now.”
The new lunch items have gained popularity on campus, evident by sporting the lengthiest lines in comparison to the other food option lines. The successfulness of the patties and hot dogs had the administration tripling the amount of meat that is served during lunch from the start of the school year.
In order to accommodate for the high demand and need to grill outside an assembly line type system has been implemented to serve the students. First the students wait in line at the D building windows where they acquire either the hamburger or hot dog buns. They then proceed to the grilling station located adjacent to the building where lunch staff serve them their respective meat.
Students have been found to exploit this new system according to Jennifer Smith a lunch lady in charge of grilling the meat.
“A few kids get their meat and then eat it and leave the bun,” Said Smith, “They would then comeback and get another one with the bun.”
Another problem with this arrangement of serving food is that it forces the lunch lady’s on the grill to be exposed to the hot outside temperatures, a problem that will be remedied as the cooler months arrive.
The grilled food is expected to be served throughout the entire school year.

Twist and Shout

Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 19:08:55 +0000

Friday, Oct. 9, the Homecoming court ended their week of festivities with a massive game of Twister and a banquet fit for a king.
ASB set up three giant sheets spray painted with the classic Twister circles so that the entire court could spread out and enjoy the activity. The court laughed as the game progressed and struggled to position themselves around the mat without falling over.
Court members Kayla Duarte and Malia McGrath won the first round, decked out in their black and teal gear. Duarte then moved on to win the second round, becoming champion of the Twister match.
“I think this was a really good experience, probably the most memorable experience I’ll have from high school,” remarked McGrath. “I love the homecoming court and everyone on it. Not a lot of people had the opportunity that I had.”
ASB ended the first lunch with barrel races and a photo scavenger hunt where the court had to pair up in order to complete the activity. Although Kevin Morgan and Jeremy Goldenetz took the lead in the races, they fell short in the scavenger hunt and consequently placed third. Mia Salazar and her partner, McGrath, won first place with Natali Hernandez and Matt DosSantos coming in a close second. Court members Darryl Graham and Matt Perez served as spectators for the final events and sat on the sidelines as their friends ran hysterically around the quad.
“This week was been interesting, fun, and hectic. I’m very happy and I feel closer to the school,” said Graham.
During second lunch the court was awarded a banquet where they were given Panera Bread and were allowed to relax after the long week. The court talked and chuckled, spending the last few hours of the festivities bonding and having an all-around good time.

Child’s Play on Disney Day

Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 02:47:31 +0000

Thursday, Oct. 18, the homecoming court dressed in their favorite Disney attire while competing in classic child games such as charades and hide-and-seek.
The court was split up into two teams and faced off against each other in several rounds of each game. Team one consisted of court members Kayla Duarte, Mia Salazar, Shannen Harris, Darryl Graham. The remaining court members, Jeremy Goldenetz, Kevin Morgan, Malia McGrath, Natali Hernandez, and Mathew DosSantos, served as team two.
Both teams took turns hiding in places around the quad, as the opposing team attempted to search them out. Team one emerged as the winners of hide-and-seek when their fellow court members were unable to find Salazar. She had been hiding by a friend in the lunch lines and happily strode back to the quad, donning her crown and pink Minnie t-shirt.
“Waiting for the results is nerve- wracking, but I love being on the court and meeting new people,” commented Salazar.” “This is where all of the fun is.”
The homecoming court then moved into rounds of charades where each team had to guess the correct Disney scenes that their team members were portraying. Sporting a cowboy t-shirt from the Disney movie “Toy Story”, Goldenetz proved to be the champion at charades as his team correctly guessed his imitation of the clock in “Beauty and the Beast”.
Graham from team one earned major points for his team with his reenactment of “Tarazan”, simultaneously sending up waves of laughter from the entire homecoming
“I’m so thankful to have the opportunity to be on court. It’s not about winning anymore and it has been cool hanging out with these guys for the week,” said DosSantos.
DosSantos successfully guessed fellow team member Morgan’s impersonation of a dog from “101 Dalmatians”.
“I’ve had fun on court, so whatever happens, happens,” remarked Morgan.

Wet N’ Wild

Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 21:28:41 +0000

Wednesday, Oct. 17, the Homecoming court got wet ‘n’ wild in a series of water balloon games during the weeklong lunchtime activities in honor of Homecoming.

ASB began by having the court compete in the traditional water balloon toss. They added a twist by making the court toss the water balloon over their heads and to their partner behind them. Kevin Morgan and his partner Jeremy Goldenetz emerged as the victors after a close battle with the second place winners, Shannen Harris and Matthew DosSantos.

The group was then corralled together in a game of hot potato, or hot water balloon, where the person who held the balloon when the music stopped was pelted with water balloons by their fellow court members. Kayla Duarte fell victim to the game after she had been soaked by a water balloon thrown by court member Darryl Graham.

“I’m so cold!” laughed Duarte as she wrung the water out of her hair.

A final showdown occurred between the court members when they were broken into groups to compete in a blanket toss. One member of each team stood in the center of the quad and attempted to chuck a water balloon into a blanket held by the rest of the team that was waiting below in the grassy area. A toss would only be counted if the team caught the balloon successfully in the blanket without dropping in onto the grass.

In round one, Goldenetz led his team to victory but was defeated by Morgan in the second round. A friendly competition emerged between the two after Morgan boasted their winning score of 5-4.

“We’re great rivals,” remarked Morgan. “Jeremy had been talking a lot of smack so it’s awesome to get this win.”

“Come at me bro,” responded Goldenetz and the two charged after each other, water balloons in hand.

And Your Homecoming Teacher is…

Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 21:21:55 +0000

ASB held teacher elections in the quad during lunch Wednesday, Oct. 17.

Although elections for our senior court will still continue, one male teacher and one female teacher will be awarded the title of Homecoming King and Homecoming Queen along with the seniors during the halftime game this Friday.

Students were allowed to nominate their favorite teacher, or any teacher they wanted to see out on the field at halftime. Although, the table was not extremely popular, students were allowed to submit their vote in the ballot box at the booth run by ASB.

“We’re trying something new this year,” said ASB member Shaina Jones. “There’s only one round of voting and anyone can vote.”

Cross Country Runner Breaks a Milestone

Alec Romero, Reporter, Brandon Pershin, Reporter — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 18:21:20 +0000

Senior cross country runner Robert Lopez accomplished a major feat by breaking a three mile school record with a finish time of 14:59 at the Woodbridge Invitational, beating the previous record by three seconds. He competed with the Big VIII competition from Roosevelt and Corona High School along with notable Southern Calif. Cross country programs such as Long Beach Poly and Claremont High School. “I placed seventh in the race overall, but from our school and league I placed first,” Lopez said; who finished twenty-seven seconds behind the first place runner.

Lopez was unable to compete in any of the races last season expect in prelims and CIF due to his diagnosis of mononucleosis; however that spring he returned to his third year of varsity track to get back on course with long distance running.

>In seasons past the Sharks’ cross country team has usually ran in the Dana Hills Invitational for their second race of each season but Lopez explained how the new coach hired in the off-season, Coach Hernandez, wants to take them to “big-money” meets and where the best competition is at. “I like Woodridge better. The people really know what they’re doing, there’s better competition and it just feels like more of a cross country race,” Lopez exclaimed.

Lopez’s first race after the breaking of the record was five days later at the Big VIII League race in Chino Hills, Calif. And he finished with a time of 16:33. He also hasn’t forgotten about his Shark teammates who have also competed in the races alongside him. He explained how they’re a lot better of a team than last year and have great leadership, but they are going to have to fight to win league and get to CIF.

Messy Trivia

Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Tue, 16 Oct 2012 20:57:26 +0000

Tuesday, Oct. 16, the 2012 Homecoming court faced of in a game of trivia that ended with a messy twist.

The court was split up into teams, boys versus girls, where they were given a series of questions from two categories in honor of the homecoming week. A court member would select a question that regarded either sports or the 1920s and would have to answer the question correctly in order to save them from receiving a pie in the face.

These pies consisted of a nasty concoction of chocolate syrup, ketchup, caramel syrup, whip cream, spray cheese, and ranch dressing. Every time a homecoming court member answered a question correctly, they earned one point for their team in addition to escaping the icky, sticky mess.

Since the boys had won the lunchtime activity on Monday, they were allowed to select a female court member that would receive a pie in the face without having to answer a question. Football player Darryl Graham selected ASB President Mia Salazar as the first victim and smashed the tin pan into her face with out any hesitation.

Scandal hit the court when Graham attempted to ask his own set of questions in the following round, so the girls demanded that he receive a pie for cheating. Salazar took her sweet revenge on Graham and was allowed to make her own pie where she used extreme amounts of ranch and whip cream.

“We’re all friends and it’s all fun and games, but it felt so good,” said Salazar. She made sure to cover Graham’s entire face with the potion, sending up howls from their fellow court members.

Silliness aside, the court battled it out with the boys staying in the lead until the last round. The girls managed to tie up the score 2-2 thanks to court member Kayla Duarte.

For the remainder of the lunch, the court ran rampant trying to use the rest of the pies and hit each other in the face. Sauces and syrups flew through the air as the court chased each other all over the quad. Matt Perez emerged as the last man standing after he took the liberty of throwing the final pie in fellow court member Shannen Harris’ face.

“I’m never eating ketchup or ranch again because it was in my nose,” remarked Harris.

A Cheesy Club Meeting

Karina Stow, Editor-in-Chief — Tue, 16 Oct 2012 20:12:37 +0000

Monday, Oct. 15, 2012, French Club drew its largest crowd of the year thus far as it held its annual cheese tasting. Room D201 quickly filled up with students after school and the festivities lasted well after 4 p.m. Cheese wasn’t the only thing on the menu; French Club members brought in a selection of sodas, sweets and crackers to cleanse the palate between cheeses.

The meeting began with club president senior Samantha Engler leading the students in a pledge, spoken in French, which stated that all students would not waste the cheese. Club officers took turns distributing 11 different kind of cheese. Each student charted the appearance, scent, taste, and texture of the cheese, as well as their own rating of the cheese. Much laughter was heard throughout the room as people ate, chatted, and mused about what type of cheese they believed they were eating. It would appear that a good time was had by all.

“It’s a very good way to indulge in the French culture,” remarked club vice president junior Lea Espinosa.

The names of the cheeses were not revealed until the end of the meeting. Chevre with blueberries seemed to be the most popular cheese and baby Swiss seemed the least popular.

Boys Beat Girls in Homecoming Baseball Game

Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 20:38:53 +0000

Monday, Oct. 15, the 2012 Homecoming Court faced off in a game of baseball for the first day of the week-long activities. The court faced off, boys-versus-girls style, in what would be a victory for the Homecoming princes.

The activity was a modified version of the game with no bases where the winner would be determined by the number of hits a team could complete after 3 rotations. A member of the court would pitch to a fellow team member in attempt to hit the ball in the area where the opposing side was waiting. Three Fouls would result in the rotation of the batter and the round would continue until three outs were reached. An out would be obtained if the opposing team caught the ball without dropping it in the arena outlined by tape.

Although the girls put up a good effort, they were no match for the boys, who beat them during both lunches. Most of the boys on the court were a part of a sports team on campus and were able to win the game with ease: Matt Perez plays on the varsity soccer team, Darryl Graham is on varsity football, Kevin Morgan plays on Santiago’s baseball team, and Jeremy Goldenetz has experience in both baseball and football. ASB’s Matt DosSantos also played a crucial role in the lunchtime activity, resulting in the boys’ lead during first lunch.

Once ahead, the boys showed off by continuously hitting “homeruns” and sending the ball flying across the campus. The girls laughed and played along, ultimately falling short due to their lack of competitive drive. ASB announced that the victors would then have an advantage in the lunchtime activity that will take place tomorrow.

The Investigation of the Black Tie Scandal: Homecoming Court Announcements

Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 20:17:17 +0000

Monday, Oct. 15, a huge crowd gathered at the foot of the quad in order to see the announcement of the 2012 Homecoming Court. ASB set up an elaborate scene that included a beautiful cityscape, a pseudo-vintage newsstand and street signs, as well as several other decorations that fit the 1920s time period.

Music played while ASB members, dressed in full flapper attire, waited for the limo containing the court to pull up behind the skyline backdrop in preparation for the announcements. Once they arrived, Kayla Clark and Leonard Malone took turns announcing the nominees.

First to be announced was Natali Hernandez, who was nominated by AVID.

“I was so surprised,” said Hernandez. “Now I can’t wait for Friday.”

Jeremy Goldenetz served as the first boy to emerge down the runway. Nominated by cheer, Goldenetz was excited to have the honor of being on the court.

Shannen Harris, sporting a Steelers jersey in honor of the spirit day, represented her girl’s varsity tennis team. Representing baseball, Kevin Morgan was announced next, and then was followed by Malia McGrath who was nominated by volleyball.

ASB’s very own Matt DosSantos and Mia Salazar also made the court. The pair seemed excited to be out from behind the scenes this year.

“I’ve always been involved in a lot of things,” said Salazar. “I’m really trying to make the most of it.

Darryl Graham definitely brought liveliness to the court with his loud personality. Nominated by football, the outgoing individual enjoyed every moment of being on the runway.

Kayla Duarte was nominated by softball and took her place on the stage. Apparently choosing not to participate in the first spirit day of the week, she chose instead to wear a cute fall ensemble. Last but not least, Matt Perez took the final spot on the court thanks to girl’s soccer.

“It’s kinda cool. I didn’t put up posters or anything, so I didn’t think I’d make it,” remarked Perez.

The 2012 court will now compete in a series of activities all week before the winners are announced on Friday.

Stylish Shark of the Week 10/11/12

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 22:48:24 +0000

Vanessa Liu, Santiago senior, is someone to look up to, not just because of her impeccable grades, but also for her fashion sense. Vanessa’s style is an eclectic mix of preppy and urban that seems to come naturally to her. She layers her outfits to make them more than just one dimensional and boring, instead transforming them into works of art through her almost unconscious use of textures and patterns. The elements she incorporates into her everyday wardrobe make her outfits unique and inspiring.

Shark Attack: What is your favorite fall accessory?

Vanessa Liu: “My boots, because they make me look taller, first off. You can’t really wear boots in the summer because they’re not really classy with shorts. In the fall, boots make any outfit cuter. They just feel like fall.”

SA: Who is your biggest fashion inspiration?

VL: “There’s a girl called clothesencounters on YouTube who does thrifting hauls, but at the same time she buys mainstream wear from H&M and Forever 21. She combines the clothes she gets from thrifting and the clothes from trendy stores into a sort of BoHo, preppy, diverse style. I like that because I’m not one type of style, either.”

SA: What is your favorite store?

“I have several. I like Forever 21, even though everyone goes there, but Foreign Exchange is my favorite. They can be pricey, but they have some really good sales that make it worth it. Their clothing is really classy and is better quality; they last a lot longer than clothes from Forever 21.”

Hype About Homecoming

Karina Stow, Editor-in-Chief — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 20:49:48 +0000

Anyone who’s been on Facebook or Instagram these past few days has been flooded with images of gleeful girls clutching bouquets of their favorite flower and chivalrous boys holding up a sign with a special question. An outside observer might scratch his head in confusion and think, It’s not prom season yet, is it? Are these marriage proposals? No, this question leads to a different day of fine dining and formal attire and… the school gym as the location. That’s right, ladies and gentlemen, all this popping-the-question fuss is over Homecoming. Sure, the unique Prohibition-era theme ensures that the dance will be a blast, but since when did asking someone to accompany you to a $20 event necessitate a grand romantic gesture?

Somebody forgot to forward me the memo. I secured my Homecoming date after a quick exchange with my boyfriend. “We’re going to Homecoming, right?” “Yeah.” I’m sure some of you reading this are pitying me, questioning his love for me, even. I can assure you that he is no stranger to romantic actions – the roses, brownies, and balloons he got me for my birthday can attest to that. Both of us were simply unaware that Homecoming was an event worthy of a proper proposal.

In my parents’ high school years, Prom didn’t even require a formal asking. Now, people form flash mobs, attack cars with Post-It notes, and serenade the object of their affection. One has to wonder why all of a sudden the question is nearly as important as the event itself.

I blame social media. It’s not enough to get asked to a dance or a date. We live in the generation of “Pics or It Didn’t Happen”. The common mindset seems to be: if your love isn’t documented online through photos and status updates, it isn’t real. I know far too many couples with entire Facebook albums devoted to pictures of the two of them together, sometimes going as far as to post multiple shots of their lip-locks. Too frequently, one half of a duo will coo on their status about the surprise Starbucks their beau gifted them or the lovely date the two of them shared. The publicity of the act has become more important than the act. Social media has become the extremely welcomed third wheel.

When something like Homecoming rolls around, the Internet becomes abuzz with adolescent romantics channeling their inner John-Hughes-protagonist and an unspoken game of one-upping occurs. Girls’ anticipations rise and boys nervously contemplate the extravagant plans of action that are expected of them. Some guys forgo Homecoming altogether for fear that their premeditated question will be met with rejection. And then there are the guys like my boyfriend who don’t give in to the societal pressure of a huge gesture and then have to sweat about whether they’ve just pulled a real Neanderthal move.

I’m not trying to rain on the parade of anyone who asked or was asked to Homecoming in a fabulous way. Rather, I’d like to assure all of those who did not ask or did not get asked in some remarkable fashion that it’s okay to not treat Homecoming like Prom or a marriage proposal. It’s also okay to keep the amazing (and the unfortunate) details of your relationship off my newsfeed. If the men of Santiago weren’t constantly pelted by photos of flowers and chocolates and art projects with signs inquiring “Homecoming?” perhaps they wouldn’t feel the need to participate in the trend. While I don’t especially mind this fad, I worry about the direction it’s heading. Will a guy have to shout his love from the rooftops if he wants to see the latest Liam Neeson flick with the girl he likes?

Photo Credit: Katie Foster and Darren Saari

A Black Tie Bash

Annaliese Clauze, Reporter — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 20:23:48 +0000

Oct. 20, Santiago High School’s ASB will be hosting this year’s homecoming dance, The Backroom: A Black Tie Scandal. ASB has announced that the theme is centered on the 1920s.

It will be a semi-formal event, featuring a DJ, lounge furniture, pool tables, and the most anticipated surprise of all: an oxygen bar. Sweets and treats will be provided to the bash by the Hollywood Candy Girls, a very reputable company who has catered for many Hollywood parties, including American Idol. The results for homecoming king and queen will be announced at the football game the night before, and the winners will celebrate their victory at the dance.

Ticket sales will be funding all decorations and are on sale at the Shark Shop. Remember to buy tickets early and to use ASB cards for a discount.

New Schedule Blues

Evan Ritter, Sports Editor — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 20:35:52 +0000

   It looks like trouble is coming in threes this school year. Santiago High School has recently instated a new assembly schedule that serves as a prison of confusion and chaos for not only myself but also several other students and teachers. I have been through enough of high school to be used to the familiar schedule that Santiago once used, but now that it’s been changed, I find myself pondering if I am heading to the right class.
  Let’s start by asking you a question: On the triple 1-6 days we now have, have you found that you were piled high with homework? Due to this schedule, I realized that I was getting homework from my each and every one of my teachers and only having that night to do it all rather than the two days that we usually have. I spent countless hours working on homework that could have been manager better time-wise or that I could have done much more efficiently if I had been given just a day longer, but instead I had to rush to finish it all so that I wasn’t hyped up on caffeine at 3 in the morning.
  Has disorientation embraced you as you desperately tried to figure out what classes you needed to head to? I have narrowly escaped being tardy several times because I had no idea what the schedule was like for that particular week. Just this week, I barely made it to my second period class because I was somewhat unaware of the fact that the week would start with a 2-4-6 block day and end with a 1-6 assembly day.
  “For student learning, I don’t like the new schedule. For the math classes that are Algebra 2 and above, I don’t like it because there is not enough time for instruction and practice before students leave. But for Algebra 1 and Geometry, daily practice would be good for them instead of every other day. I do prefer the block schedule though, especially for AP classes,” said math teacher Mr. Luscher.
  However, I do agree with the fact that the multiple 1-6 days could be helpful in some aspects: number one being that certain classes are getting the work or practice that they need. Also if you have a block day with three classes you just can’t stand, it gives a small break to the monotony of having just those three classes every other day and lets you bear through it knowing that you have the classes that you do like.
  I still find the new schedule to be a fairly large annoyance and would like to return to the familiarity of the school in past years. Trying to cram in work, lectures and homework into small periods of time is not working out the best for me and other students, and the new schedule is clearly not appealing to some of the teachers on campus like Mr. Luscher.
  The new assembly schedule is not worth the disorientation and risks of insomnia and I wouldn’t hesitate to return the way things used to be. Let’s just hope the students of Santiago can grow used to the new law of the land and continue on like normal.

PSA on PDA

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 19:32:57 +0000

As children we were expressly told that if we had any contact with the opposite gender, we would get cooties. As we grew up, the concept of cooties gradually began to fade from our minds as our hormones simply took control. Now that we’re in high school, more teens are involved in romantic relationships. For many, their newfound desire for physical contact is handled discretely, but there is a certain percentage that lack common decency. Everywhere you look, there is a couple furiously making out and/or groping and honestly, no one wants to see it.

PDA (public displays of affection) is only adorable in limited doses: kisses on the cheek, hugs, chaste mouth kisses, etc. My motto has always been: when the tongue comes into play, things stop being okay. This could stem from the fact that I am just single and bitter about it, but from years of observation, I have learned that no one except the couple in question seems to be accepting of advanced quantities of PDA.

Quite a few people think that physical affection is an important factor in maintaining a healthy relationship between couples. The problem becomes when couples seem to be unable to control themselves around the rest of the population. The majority of the people making out in public seem to think they look way cuter than they actually do. In my opinion, particularly amorous couples always look like fish taken out of water: awkwardly gasping and writhing.

Couples appear to engage in excessive amounts of PDA at the most inappropriate times. Guys, I promise that after you drop your girlfriend off at class, you will be able to see her in only another two hours. You don’t need to start going at it in front of the classroom door with your classmates awkwardly pushing past you and avoiding eye contact at all costs. Also, try to avoid getting frisky in front of other people’s lockers. There is nothing more uncomfortable than having to ask a couple currently attached at the mouth to move out of the way.

Basically, what it comes down to is being tactful. For the consideration of others, can you please keep PDA to a minimum?

666 Park Avenue Falls Flat

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 22:08:47 +0000

The concept of a Faustian bargain is intriguing, to say the least: selling your soul to the devil in order to have your deepest desires actualized in the form of talent, money, love, revenge, fame and power. Sadly, the new television show on ABC, “666 Park Avenue” didn’t use the idea in an original or interesting way. ABC gets points for branching away from their usual dramas, but with the cheesy graphics, corny dialogue and predictable plot, the new show doesn’t live up to its potential.

The main characters, Jane (Rachael Taylor) and Henry (Dave Annable) are hoping to land the coveted job of business manager for The Drake apartment building in New York. The two aren’t used to the extravagance that comes with life on the Upper East Side, but quickly become enraptured with the lifestyle when they land the job and the privilege to move into the luxury apartments. The owners of the building, Olivia Duran (Vanessa Williams) and Gavin Doran (Terry O’Quinn) are manipulative and malicious, working the lives of the people around them to their benefit. Although the show doesn’t explicitly tell us, viewers get the idea that Gavin is the devil himself, setting the residents of The Drake up to make Faustian bargains and then sabotaging them when the time comes for him to collect his payment. “You’re only renting this life, make the payment” Gavin is quoted saying to one of the residents.

“666 Park Avenue” has all the makings for a good drama with cheating, lies, and murder, but each aspect is ruined with formulaic dialogue and rigid characters. For instance, in the first fifteen minutes of the show, Olivia comments on a necklace Jane is wearing, and not long after, the necklace is commented on again and Jane mentions that it is an antique. The notion of using jewelry from long dead ancestors as a way to insert supernatural elements is an often used convention of this genre.

The acting in “666 Park Avenue” is anything less than realistic; the characters aren’t believable or relatable and are dramatized to be almost painstakingly unassuming. Jane is a doe-eyed, hopeful girl from Queens whose quiet optimism will undoubtedly be tarnished by the big bad members of the Upper Crust. In fact, the creators seem to go out of their way to make the characters awkward and normal, in opposition to the supernatural aspect of the show. The main characters, Jane and Henry, are given the most average names and Jane is dressed in drab, boring clothes to show her almost physical separation from the other, richer characters. Apparently, when you aren’t a millionaire, you don’t know how to dress without the help of a team of stylists.

The idea of a group of individuals all living in one place is reminiscent of “Melrose Place” and “The LA Complex”. The only interesting element is the devil’s bargaining, and even that is ruined by corny graphics, including flickering lights, and stereotypical eerie music.

All in all, the show has a high potential for greatness, but its follow-through was lacking and unoriginal. Hopefully, the producers step up their act the next episode, or “666 Park Avenue” will just be another entry on the list of shows that were cancelled this year.

Fire in E101

Brandon Pershin, Reporter and Karina Stow, Editor-in-Chief — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 20:06:48 +0000

Sept. 25, 2012, a small electrical fire broke out near noon in room E101. No injuries were sustained. According to security, it occurred when a student plugged in his phone charger into an outlet on the floor.

“Something other than the phone charger caused it”, says Dave Lopez, a maintenance electrician for the school. Lopez theorized that there “might have been a piece of metal” stuck in the outlet prior to the incident.

At the time of the fire, substitute teacher, Ms.Beckman, was managing Ms. Lincolns room “It all happened really fast,” says Beckman. After the fire alarm sounded, students either evacuated to the baseball fields or the football field. Students stayed on the fields until fifth period began.

Stylish Shark of the Week 9/27/12

Abigail Pitts, Managing Editor and Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Thu, 27 Sep 2012 21:03:31 +0000

You could say that senior Stephanie Ha has a style that can be defined as the perfect combination of mod and classic chic. She loves to pair solid basics with edgy blazers or match a pretty blouse to her iconic editor shorts. When she’s not in her dance team uniform, Ha makes her own fashion waves on Santiago’s campus.

Shark Attack: What is your favorite accessory?

Ha: Purses or earrings.

Shark Attack: Who is your biggest fashion inspiration?

Ha: I like Christina Aguilera’s shoes. Her shoes are amazing. I don’t know, I guess I pretty much get it from everywhere.

Shark Attack: What is your favorite store to shop at?

Ha: Forever 21 is one. I go to Love Culture a lot too. I shop everywhere.

Catching Senioritis Early

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 21:38:29 +0000

Seniors are gradually becoming lazier earlier in the year and the question is posed: how do you prevent Senioritis early on in the year?

As soon as juniors become seniors, they automatically develop a sort of entitlement about being the big people on campus. High school becomes pointless; just a way to pass time until we can move onto bigger and better things out in the real world.

In order to avoid Senioritis, it is important to think about all the repercussions of not doing your schoolwork, homework, and ditching class altogether. Colleges may focus on your junior year of school, but if your senior year grades and attendance are poor, it can influence their decision. Colleges reserve the right to take back their acceptance letters if your recent grades aren’t up to their standards. For most, the threat of not going to college is enough to scare them into maintaining grades.

The main problem seniors face when it comes to doing their schoolwork is that they get distracted. Most Santiago students can drive by the time they reach their senior year and many would rather drive to go get food or hang out with their friends over doing their Government homework. The usual factors come into place as well: listening to music, social media, watching TV and texting. For some people, these things aid their learning, but for many it is a hindrance. In order to improve your learning environment, designate a certain amount of time for you to work before you let yourself do something fun. That way, after a particularly vigorous math problem, you can reward yourself with a few minutes of TV, or another diversion.

Setting a schedule for yourself is extremely important. Put due dates in a planner and know what days and how long it will take you to complete the assignment. Keeping organized ensures that you don’t forget when assignments are due and it never hurts to be constantly reminded of what you have to do.

Honestly, no one can force someone to do their work, but seniors have to act their age and be mature enough to realize that doing their homework and going to school can only help them. Soon enough, we’re going to be thrust into the real world and we are going to be forced to be responsible adults. Taking accountability for ourselves now is good practice for when we are out of high school.

Stylish Shark of the Week 9/20/12

Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor — Sun, 23 Sep 2012 00:08:27 +0000

Junior Lea Espinoza is this weeks Stylish Shark. Her style can be described as spunky and vintage. She prides herself on her collection of necklaces and bracelets. Her top-frame-only glasses accentuate her thrifty style. With a healthy combination of high waist shorts and floral print tops and dresses, Lea aims to stay comfortable yet fashionable. “I used to be really shy with what I wore but over the years I’ve come to embrace lots of different clothing styles,” said Espinoza. When asked about the future of her style, Espinoza predicted that her style will “mostly stay the same.” She later added, “When I grow older I’ll sway away from my Disney sweaters and dress more formal.”

Shark Attack: What is your favorite spring accessory.

Espinoza: “Probably my pocket watches.”

Shark Attack: Who is your biggest fashion inspiration?

Lea Espinoza: “My sister. When I was younger she would lead me to things more suitable for my tastes.”

Shark Attack: What is your favorite store to shop at?

Lea Espinoza: “Thrift stores because there are always clothes their that most people don’t have and it’s cost efficient.”

Battle of the Classes

Kellie Carlson, News Editor — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 21:20:24 +0000

Friday, Sept. 21, school spirit overwhelmed the gym at Santiago’s annual fall rally. Students boasting their class colors brought the madness into the gym, performing, cheering, shouting, and just taking part in the fun.

Santiago’s Black Seamen opened up the rally with a special performance where they recruited audience members to dance along with them. Exploding out of black boxes, the group members had the audience on their feet with excitement as they took the floor.

“I feel like I’m the boss of the school,” said Nader Sobh, a junior part of the Black Seamen.

Performances by, cheer, dance, and hip hop sent roars through the crowd who loved the dub-step tributes given by each of the teams. A small group of tribal dancers made their debut and featured a student who executed a routine where he juggled flaming torches. Crowds cheered as he threw them up in the air, tossed them under his legs, and even held the torch on his tongue.

“It was my dream to lead these rallies,” said senior Kayla Clark. “Last year they were smaller, but now we’re back and the rallies are bigger and better. This year is just a lot cooler.”

Seas of blue, green, red and orange overflowed from the bleachers and onto the gym floor getting progressively louder and more rambunctious when it came time to participate in the class yells.

All the classes competed in the yells in order to achieve the most class points. The class with the most points at the end of the year will be awarded with the highly coveted Class Points Trophy. The trophy stands six feet tall and was the motivation behind the fierce competition between the classes.

“I was proud to be a freshman, but it really sucked when we got boo’d” said Stephanie Matheson. The cheerleader continued to show her school spirit despite the ritual booing that freshman receive every year.

Seniors pulled into the lead in the first rally during the class yells with the juniors right behind them. In the second rally the seniors tied with the juniors, both earning a score of 121. However, the upperclassmen were disqualified when they passed the boundaries and entered on to the center of the gym floor that was off limits to spectators. With a score of 117, the sophomores were named the champions of the class yells, winning by default. Extreme rage followed where juniors and seniors abandoned their differences and came to together shouting “sophomores suck!”

Animals and Alliances

Aren Chaturanyakoon, Entertainment Editor and Abigail Pitts, Managing Editor — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 20:16:15 +0000

Spirit week continued with Animal Day Wednesday, Sept. 19, as students wore animal print clothing and embraced their inner beast.

ASB member junior Parker Mandujano felt that the spirit day went very well, commenting on the many “girls wearing cheetah print pants.” There was lots of participation

At lunch, ASB served banana splits to anyone who brought a banana, or who bought a banana for $1 with their ASB card. The event was placed on this day due to the association of bananas with monkeys. Mandujano saids that there will likely be another Bring Your Own Banana event, and that “everybody should buy one.”

Thursday, Sept 20. was the forth day of Santiago’s spirit week and had students and staff seeing double as Alliance Day, or twin day, called for everyone on campus to dress in identical clothing as a group or with a person of their choice.

Notable participants of this day were the Best Buddies who all wore Best Buddies shirts and jeans.

There were no lunchtime activities for this spirit day and music was not played at the quad.

Raving About Revolution

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 04:04:37 +0000

As of late, post-apocalypse themed shows have been all the rage. For a while after the Twilight Saga took off, television producers seemed to be focused on vampire dramas, but it seems their priorities have changed in a direct parallel to popular books the younger generation is interested in. For now, our interest is in the gritty, gory drama that encompasses the end of the world. Most of our interest with this post-apocalypse type story-telling stems from the rising popularity of the Hunger Games trilogy.

Recently, the new television show Revolution debuted on KNBC at 10 p.m. The show presents an interesting dilemma: how would the world function if electricity ceased to work? The cause of this worldwide blackout is unknown, but the effects have made themselves ever present even 15 years later. The world in which society was accustomed to living in before the blackout is gone, and now everyone is living off the land, much like they did one hundred years ago.

The show is shot through alternating perspectives and various time jumps, juxtaposing the current world with the old world and the good guys with the bad. Excluding the consistent flashbacks to the day the blackout occurred, the show is centralized around the life of Charlie (Tracy Spiridakos), a young girl who is frustrated with the claustrophobic life she is forced to lead in the town in which her family has settled down. The outside world is dangerous, but Charlie is eager to go out and explore. Her wish is granted when situations force her to leave her comfort zone and venture out into the deadly unknown, with enemies lurking just around the corner.

The world in which the show revolves around is riveting and realistic. Society is literally forced to fight for their survival and at times; even the villages who have banded together to form a tight-knit community can be dangerous places. The show is unique and is based on a premise not often seen: not just the apocalypse, but a world without any of the technology we have become so reliant on.

Many great TV shows have come crashing down because of bad actors and terrible plot lines. Revolution will not be one of these shows, at least based on their debut episode. The characters are real and appropriately flawed; you can’t help rooting for the good guys and loathing the bad ones. Granted, not many of the actors are well known, but they are talented and fit the characters they are portraying.

With Eric Kripke (Supernatural) as the creator of this new drama, there’s no way they can go wrong.

“Aloha” to Island Day

Alisha Pagano, Features Editor — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 21:24:54 +0000

The week of Sept. 17 was spirit week for Santiago Shark students. Tuesday was “Island Day” with the intent being for everyone on campus to dress up in their best island themed clothes – Hawaiian shirts, leis, hula skirts and pooka shell necklaces.

ASB senior, Francis Juloya, commented, “I’m really disappointed with the turnout today. Hardly anyone dressed up.” This is flummoxing, due to the fact that in Southern California, island themed clothing isn’t exactly a rarity.

Unlike Monday (Tribal Day) there were no lunchtime activities. On most spirit days, music is at least played in the quad, but today no such thing occurred. Hopefully, today’s lack of enthusiasm won’t become a trend for the rest of the week.