The
WIildcat
ROAR
SEPTEMBER 2013
p.8
Minjoo Kim, sophomore’s publishing debut
p.10 company800 p.15 Threepeat
VOLUME XI
ISSUE ONE
WESTMINSTER CHRISTIAN ACEMDEMY
www.thewildcatroar.com
Whats Inside
Opinions Talent Talks....................................................4
Entertainment
Reverend Davis’ New Novel..........................5 Twittminster...................................................9
6
Features
The Leadership Baton......................................6 Think Pink with Minjoo Kim................................8 Company800.................................................10 The Conflict in Egypt: Hitting Close to Home..11 Summer Seminars..........................................12 The Garden Club’s Composting System........13 National Merit Semi-Finalists...........................14 Freshman Survival Guide...............................14
15 ADMIRALTY r CLASS ACTION r COMMERCIAL LAW r EMPLOYMENT LAW
Sports Sports Reeds...............................................15 Threepeat...................................................15 Tennis State.................................................15
r ENVIRONMENTAL LITIGATION r HEALTH LAW r INSURANCE LAW r PERSONAL INJURY r PRODUCT LIABILITY r PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY
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Broadcast
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Opinion
Our New Look Explained
From the Editors
I
It has taken us a while to iron out some kinks and learn a new system but now you hold in your hands a new page, quite literally, of history for the Wildcat Roar. Sixteen glossy pages of a magazine-styled print issue started off as a mere idea during one of many staff meetings. But now, we have made our vision a reality. The editors have altered other aspects of our newspaper program, changes that go beyond what the eye can see. We are taking our first steps into broadcast journalism, our website has been upgraded, we are partnering with other WCA business classes, and even the publications room looks different! Another thing we are proud of is the fact that we, as well as the yearbook staff, have been able do all this while keeping the per student cost for these publications unchanged for the 6th straight year. We are able to make these improvements in large part because we’ve been increasingly intentional about operating closer to the way professional publications do by negotiating the best terms with our publishers and supporting our program through advertising revenue. Our online presentation and glossy print issues offer advertisers a valuable format to showcase their products. Our first foray into broadcast journalism will focus mainly on athletics because of the opportunities they offer us to pick up the medium quickly. We will also cover some behind-the-scenes feature stories. We want to master one thing at a time in order to move on to bigger things and this is where we chose to start. Our videos can be found at www.thewildcatroar.com. In fact, our first one is already up featuring highlights from the WCA v. Wheaton football game. With the immediacy an online venue offers we will be working to increase our sports news coverage as well. Few things in a secondary school benefit from a quick turnaround time like sports so again, they give us the chance to cut our teeth on the immediate type of news coverage people have come to expect in this day and age. When deciding on what things to change and what to keep the same, our ultimate goal was professionalism. This year, our staff will strive to distribute products that not only look professional and elegant, but to be professional in every area of our work. The updated website may not look like much at first glance, but it is very different and we promise will only improve. Our layout is more organized, clean, and appealing. Mainly, it’s more professional. We won’t be taking on these new ventures alone. Thankfully, we are partnering with a few of WCA’s business classes to help us put out the best product possible. For now, the accounting and marketing/finance classes will be assisting us in business matters. See the story of company800 inside this issue for a more detailed look at how this will work. We are beyond excited to act as a miniature business within the walls of our school. Business and accounting classes are not the only entities we are partnering with. Minjoo Kim has agreed to use her artistic ability to design cover art for future issues. Check out our cover story for more details on how she is using her talents. Although we have made a some changes, we have not changed our own expectation of quality writing from our staff. It is our hope that the move toward a more contemporary and professional delivery will match our professional writing style.
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Wildcat Roar Staff Editors in Chief: Morgan Koetting and Jill Coyne Print Editor: Eichel Davis Design Editor: Scott Rupprecht Entertainment Editor: Catherine Bakewell Sports Editor: Reed Montgomery Feature Editor: Mary Wynn Opinions Editor: Chrissy Talent News Editor: Megan Galvin
Circulation/Business Manager: Christian Linhoff Online Editors: Maggi Eachus and Audrey O’Neill Broadcasting Manager: John Pottebaum Photo Editor: Andrea Reed Staff Writers: Austin Benefield Chaila Dix
Becca Eis Elisabeth Harding Mary Heyl Cate Hoogstraten Juhyae Kim Ashley Klein Andrew Montgomery Bria Paxton Lauren Ramos Jake Schroeder
Opinion
Talent Talks
Extraordinarily
Ordinary
T
his summer, I went to a writing camp in California, and was surrounded by teenagers who were completely different from me--they dressed differently from me, they acted differently than me, and they believed different things than I did. I always prided myself on not conforming to social norms, and on being open about my opinions. I prided myself on not being afraid to be different. But at that camp, I did one of two things: I either completely avoided the other kids, or I acted like I agreed with them. I wasn’t comfortable hearing people disagree with me; and, because I wanted to be accepted, I nodded along and kept my mouth shut. By the end of the camp, I was acting exactly like all the other kids, even agreeing with them on topics that, at the beginning, I would’ve adamantly disagreed with. If I could’ve, I would’ve dressed like all the other kids, too. I wanted to belong. I wanted the girls at that camp to accept me as “one of their own”. I wanted to fit in, to be like them. So I made myself ordinary, just like everyone else around me. So many people--inspirational speakers, authors, even kids’ TV shows--emphasize individuality. ‘Be your own person! Be original! Be unique!’ are just a few of the thousand sayings I’ve heard on the subject. But people don’t like others who are different. Think of how elementary schoolers treat a kid who has a big nose, or who still played with dolls at age ten. They are ruthless in their mockery. A children’s show will tell us to be unique, and in the same episode show a boy getting pushed into a locker because he is just a bit too good at chemistry. It doesn’t change much when we grow up. The same thing happens in school; people hang out with people who look, dress, or act like themselves. They avoid the people who aren’t “like them”. We also hate being outdone. All too often, if someone has a talent that we do not have, we feel the need to tear them down to make them more ordinary, and to make ourselves
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feel better. “Well, he may be good at this, but he’s terrible at this,” is often what we murmur under our breath when we see someone displaying their talents. We tear them down to make them “ordinary”. I’ve seen this happen before. I knew a girl who was incredibly good at singing; and she wasn’t afraid to boast about it, either. She was quirky and wore strange clothes. And how did everyone react to her? Did they praise her individuality? Praise her talent? No. They tore her down behind her back. They saw her growing past them, saw how different and how gifted she was, and out of their envy and pride they cut her down. It’s like if a tree in a forest grows past all the other trees. Someone comes with an ax and begins hacking at its trunk. It weakens the tree, so that, even though it’s taller than all the other trees, it can be easily toppled. This is what makes us afraid of being unique. We know what will happen if we are different, if we disagree and go against “the crowd”. We saw what happened to the kid with a big nose, we heard what everyone said about the ten year old girl who played with dolls. We don’t want to be the nerd from the TV show. So we try to fit in. We change the way we act according to the people we are around. We hold our tongue, or we say thing we don’t believe. We hide our passions, and our talents. We tear ourselves down so no one else can--“Oh, I’m not THAT good at this”. We force ourselves to fit in, the same way we’d force a puzzle piece into the wrong place in a puzzle. We only let ourselves be as original as the people around us.
-Chrissy Talent, Opinions Editor
Features
Interview with the
Author
This past summer Reverend Luke Davis, upper school Bible teacher published his novel Litany of Secrets We interviewed Rev. Davis about his book, the work behind it, and the road to come for his Cameron Ballack Mystery Series. The Roar: What inspired you to write this story?
The Roar: How long has the publishing process been?
Davis: Several factors: I wanted to prove to myself I could write a murder mystery. I also liked the idea of this kind of story being done in a Christian setting while not being a “Christian” book. The Christian faith is my life tradition, but there is no doubt that some Christian environments are marked by deep flaws and—tragically—great evil. So my writing explores this brokenness, this flawed nature of faith, while I still remain loyal to the Gospel. I use my lead detective character, Cameron Ballack, to pose these issues as a skeptic who can’t bring himself to embrace faith. And the human inspiration would be our son, Joshua, who is the prototype for Cameron Ballack. They share a common neuromusuclar disorder and common quirks. Both are wheelchair-bound yet very determined souls. I wanted a story that would show people like Joshua are primarily “handi-capable”, not handicapped.
Davis: Longer than it has taken me to write the first four books in this series. What a lot of people see is the tip of the iceberg, when the book comes out. But there are a lot of twists and turns and false starts and heartbreak along the way of even getting someone to believe in your story. One local publisher was interested in Litany of Secrets, but when she (a) told me she wouldn’t print it until March 2015 and (b) said she didn’t find my main character [a wheelchair-bound detective] believable, I told her to forget it. From the time I finished the book to when Mark Sutherland of Dunrobin Publishing said “Let’s do this!”, it was about seventeen months. I learned a lot about patience and believing in what you produce. The Roar: Who would be your target audience for Litany of Secrets? Davis: I would say that would include anyone from ninth grade through the most seasoned adult who enjoys a great crime fiction story. It is especially enjoyable for readers who like characters to face not only crime mysteries, but also personal mysteries within themselves. Litany of Secrets: A Cameron Ballack Mystery is available for purchase for eBook and paperback from barnesandnoble.com and amazon.com.
The Roar: What was the publishing process like for you?
Follow the QR Code to the right to read the full interview with Reverend Davis on thewildcatroar.com!
Davis: Once we had a contract signed and started moving forward, it was incredibly efficient and pain-free. I had several people— including Dr. Gibson and Mr. Graham—take a look at it, so when my publisher did the editing, he didn’t have to deal with too much. And Ciarra Peters (WCA junior) did an amazing job on the cover design. In short, what would normally have been a six-month timeline was completed in less than two months. In truth, now the hard part has begun: Marketing and promoting the book is something I have to commit myself to every day…being on my Twitter and Facebook pages, my blog, and discovering new venues and places to get the Photos by Chrissy Talent and Audrey O’Neil word out.
Ciarra Peters, junior, created the cover art for Davis’ book, Litany of Secrets. Scan the QR Code above to read an interview with her!
Features
The Leadership Baton Dr. Tom Stoner has taken hold of his new leadership position and is eager to form relationships with the students. Imagine a surreal moment, where everything seems to fall into place. Dream job? Check. Amiable co-workers? Check. Walking in obedience to the Lord’s perfect plan? Check. This surreal moment is Dr. Tom Stoner, WCA’s new head of school’s, reality. Eager to integrate himself into the Westminster community, Dr. Stoner is going out of his way to get to know the student body. And it all started with the passing of the blue baton. On Monday, July 8th of this past summer, as his first day being Westminster’s headmaster, Dr. Stoner met Jim Marsh, former head of school, in his new office. “[Marsh] officially handed me a blue baton, it was a symbolic and meaningful action. He’s been handing me the baton of leader“I am surship since then,” said Dr. Stoner. prised in the Dr. Stoner sat down on his first day and tried to wrap his mind most delightaround leadership. He was given a ful way by computer and taught the logistics by Deana Vandegriff, middle the quality of school teacher. people here, “My biggest challenge was how to make a call and receive a voiceboth personmail. Then it was meeting people ally and proleft and right; every stop outside my office was an introduction to a fessionally. new person,” said Dr. Stoner. I had high Westminster has been quite the change for Dr. Stoner. Comexpectations, ing from Covenant Christian but they’ve Academy in Massachusetts, Dr. Stoner has noticed a difference in been exthe size, culture and community ceeded,” said between the two schools and surrounding areas. Dr. Stoner. “Everything at Westminster is much bigger. It’s about a six times bigger scale difference. But, when it gets down to it, [there is a great] group of parents, staff and student leaders here- that is perhaps the biggest difference. People in St. Louis are very friendly; the whole community here has been very welcoming. That’s been one of the
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Dr.Tom Stoner, head of school, greets students in the morning as they walk into school. Photo by: Jill Coyne
most delightful parts. I have a much bigger staff that is helpful and enjoyable. I have great resources of people that I previously didn’t have,” said Dr. Stoner. Dr. Stoner has been making notable efforts to acquaint himself with the student body. “[Westminster students] are why I and all of [the WCA faculty] are here. It adds so much more meaning to the job when I can know them personally,” said Dr. Stoner. The people who make up the community of Westminster have surprised Dr. Stoner the most. “I am surprised in the most delightful way by the quality of people here, both personally and professionally. I had high expectations, but they’ve been exceeded,” said Dr. Stoner. From the arts to the academics to the athletics, Dr. Stoner views the WCA student body as diversely talented. “Everywhere I turn I see students using the talents they have and doing remarkable things [with them],” said Dr. Stoner. Although Dr. Stoner’s job is no daydream, it is hard for him to grasp the reality of his present situation. “Is it real that I’m at this place with these people? It can be daunting at times, but I feel like the luckiest man,” said Dr. Stoner.
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Features
PINK
Think
with Minjoo
Minjoo Kim’s illustrations published in the children’s book, The Pig Who Didn’t Want to be Pink Happiness can’t be bottled and used as paint. Neither can sadness, or any other emotion for that matter. There is no pencil that will magically transfer a character’s intricate personality to paper. It just won’t happen...unless a true artist is holding the brush. To capture a character and give it vibrant life with paint and paper is a feat that most lay people cannot comprehend. Without using words, an artist can uniquely convey every emotion, characteristic, and quirk under the sun using lines, colors, and shapes. This is exactly what Minjoo Kim, sophomore, did with Pinky the pig. On August 8, Kim’s illustrations were published in the children’s book, The Pig Who Didn’t Want to be Pink, written by Eva MacKoul. The story follows a small pig named Pinky who is mystified by all the colors in the world. Being quite unhappy with his own color, Pinky goes about the farm coming up with interesting yet unsuccessful methods of changing it. “The Pig Who Didn't Want to be Pink is about the pig who was the pinkest animal in the farm. He wanted to be some different colors, so he tried many different ways,” said Kim. He tries rolling in mud, rubbing himself with blueberries, sticking leaves and corn to his skin, and even weaving a rainbow cape out of flowers. However, his vain attempts always end with the original pink hue returning to his body. “Eva MacKoul asked Mr. Myers for a student who can draw the illustrations. Mr. Myers gives students who are interested in art some art opportunities and I was one of them. I couldn't believe that it was published, I didn’t even tell my family! It was so fun and wonderful, and I really enjoyed it! [But since it was a school-related opportunity], I did not get paid for it,” said Kim. Kim was a perfect match for the job with her unique style and eye-catching use of color. “Minjoo has an extraordinary talent of developing sophisticated and dramatic compositions along with a brightly colored palette. She brought Pinky to life with his expressions and numerous attempts
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to change the color of his skin,” said Lara Goeke, visual art teacher. Throughout the book, Kim’s art is proudly displayed, capturing the reader’s immediate attention. Pinky practically leaps off of the page. With Kim’s passion for art and incredible imagination, her work is a wonderful sight to see. "Minjoo is a very hard-working student. However, I think the reason she works hard is because she really loves creating art. So, the process is a joy for her, not a burden. She also has an uncommonly creative mind and she naturally understands composition,” said Ben Myers, visual art teacher. Being a children’s book, it’s especially important that the pictures pop with life and color, and Kim’s illustrations do just that. “While the
media and techniques she uses are nothing too new to illustration art, the compositions and hues are pretty original. Every page is filled with bright colors and tons of action, which will serve to hold the attention of easily distracted small children. As a sort of side-note, I really like that she let her pencil marks from the sketches show through. This gives the paintings even more movement and allows the educated viewer to see the process,” said Myers. The twenty-five page book shows several different scenes of Pinky, each filled with color and detail. “Maybe it's strange that page eight is my favorite. Here, Minjoo painted ears of corn just sort of floating all over the page. Again, I think one of her strengths is her ability to draw, so I really like her pencil marks. I am attracted to the atmosphere she creates, as the objects closest are much more detailed than the ones in back,” said Myers. “My favorite illustration is on page thirteen. Minjoo did a beautiful job of portraying Pinky's pride with his proud expression and swagger,” said Goeke. Already with her work published as a sophomore in high school, Kim has a bright future ahead of her. The young artist will have many more opportunities in the years to come with her talent, determination, passion, and character.
“Minjoo has an extraordinary talent of developing sophisticated and dramatic compositions along with a brightly colored palette. She brought Pinky to life with his expressions and numerous attempts to change the color of his skin,” said Lara Goeke, “The only thing else I can add is how incredibly proud I am of Minjoo's hard work. Day after day coming in after school and working late to get the right expression and angle. I want her to be recognized for her talent, but also, her character. She is a joy to be around. [She is a] great person and is always cheerful,” said Goeke.
TWITT As selected by the WILDCAT ROAR staff
@JonnyKinney Wow the big 18. Now I can finally buy cigarettes instead of having to go and breathe deeply at a bowling alley. Jonny Kinney
@sgruender14 Mrs Brown tried to kill trunk golf, but truck golf can not be killed. Sheldon Gruender
@CaptainKrumch Hop up out of bed, turn my (Lands End) swag on... Caleb Krumsieg
@calebhicks30 Missouri baptist radio commercial says to “close your eyes and imagine” did they not realize the people listening are all driving Caleb Hicks
@baloaney95 If she didn’t reply to any of your 20 texts, she probably just didn’t have good phone service. Definitely don’t stop texting her
Robert Loaney
@your_special_K
I've decided after every APUSH unit I will be planting a tree. Kirsten Caplinger
Features Company800 becomes WCA’s new School of Business and Communications.
Under the J mbrella
Ten subjects. Five teachers. One business. Westminster’s School of Business and Communication have been compiled collectively under one name: company800. Started by Scott Vonder Bruegge and Jonathan Horn, business and communications teachers, company800, named because of WCA’s address at 800 Maryville Centre Drive, is designed to act like an umbrella under which all of the other business and communications classes fall. “[Company800] is less about a subject area, and more about a way of thinking through education and how students learn,” said Horn. Rather than each class working strictly independently, they can contract other classes to work with them. For example, when the entrepreneurship classes are creating a business, they Students in Jonathan Horn’s business basics class present their first products. Feedback and data received were used to make improvements and determine pricing. hire the graphics design class to Photo by Morgan Koetting make the logo. In this way, students can be more focused on what they know best, and, that idea. thus, they can collaborate to “We need to get kids learning and make a better product. Not doing, but not under a fake scenario. only does this teach stu[They] need to be starting businesses dents about commuthat will be seen by people. When your nication, it also prework is on display, you take the approach pares them for the very differently,” said Horn. business world. Company800 incorporates business, design, “In business and communication, giving students a better picture basics, one of of what a business looks like. The courses that fall our projects under Company800’s umbrella are connected, each class was to debeing able to help the other. velop a Those courses include newspaper, yearbook, graphic design, mock and economics among others, totaling to ten subjects. Though compathis is Company800’s first year, the idea was practiced under ny that the newspaper and yearbook classes. Graduates of WCA sold a have commented on how helpful it was to gain real world product that experience in such environments. W C A kids could use,” said “Yearbook class was so valuable because Rachel Rogers, senior. it provided me an outlet to develop and apply The theory is that people learn best by domy love of art in a practical way,” said Sierra ing, so the lessons and framework of the classes are designed around Mathews, class of 2013.
Learn more about Company800 on their website: 10 |THEWILDCATROAR.COM| 9.16.13
www.company800.com
Art by Minjoo Kim
The Conflict in Egypt: Hitting Close to Home
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im
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in the midst of the chaos he was able reveal a more hidden part of himself. “I am a shy guy to be honest, but in the Egyptian revolts I felt excited and fearless. Everyone from around the country walked and chanted until they reached the 33 million people in Egypt’s famous Tahrir Square,” said Zakhary. The idea of being in a war torn country was harder for the younger Zakhary at first, but she saw that it was not the start of a war but a glimpse of unity for the country. Not only was this a great opportunity for her, but she was able to feel closer to her roots. The atmosphere of the country was not what they expected it to be. “The idea of a revolution scared me when I first heard of it, but when I saw everything come to action I felt unity between the people there,” said Nora Zakhary. “Everyone bonded together during this moment. We went into Recent uprisings in Egypt have been plastered all over the news one of the revolts, led a chant, and walked several miles, waving for the last three months. Video footage of protests and rioting are Egyptian flags. In terms of atmosphere, exciting and unity are two seen regularly on the nightly news. On July 3rd, Egyptian president words that come to mind,” said Amir Zakhary. Mohamed Morsi was forced to step down by the Egyptian military For Nora Zakhary, who did not go out into the protests with her after extensive protesting by the people of Egypt. Amir Zakhary, brother, the trip offered her a chance to truly appreciate where she class of 2013, and Nora Zakhary, sophomore, were visiting relatives comes from. It was an opportunity for her to witness firsthand a in Cairo at the time of Morsi’s take down. global conflict personally and cultivate a sense of pride towards her On the anniversary of his election, June 30th, people flooded the nationality. streets demanding that Morsi step down. The Zakhary’s “This experience made me feel so much closer to my Egyphappened to be in Cairo visiting relatives at the tian background. I really feel like the country I come time. from is a strong country who won’t give up to An exciting moment for the elder achieve what is right.” said Zakhary. Zakhary was when he took to the Their relatives still reside in Cairo but streets of Cairo with his mom, are safe despite the ongoing violence joining one of the protests. For still plaguing the country. miles they marched with “Our family has been safer than Egyptian flags chanting in other families and areas in Egypt. Arabic “Go out Morsi!” The most we have heard has been Zakhary himself was able recently, and it includes things to lead a similar chant like them not being able to leave himself. He yelled out their home because of tear gas or in the crowd hoping that gunshots fired a street away,” said everyone would mimic Amir Zakhary. what he was saying. Since the Zakhary family left “I decided to lead a Egypt, more violence has erupted. chant, and sure enough After they left, the country fell everyone repeated what I said! into chaos. The Muslim BrotherIt was unforgettable.” said Zakhary. hood and other Morsi supporters have fW For Zakhary, this was more than o risen in protest against Morsi’s ousting. sy r te just a chance to be a part of history. He Division in the country seems stronger now u co ar t e r was able to break out of his comfort zone than ever, but for the time they were there, the u t a Morsi sig n and stand up for something important. He felt Zakhary family was able to catch a glimpse of the not only a sense of being closer to his heritage, but power unity has.
Photo Courtesy of Nora Zakhary
Features 1 Gettsyburg
High Point: The final camping site the select group of student leaders stayed at had waterfalls that doubled as waterslides. Also, the students bonded with each other and with their teachers while sitting around campfires chatting or playing signs, rain or shine. Low Point: The campers did not enjoy gourmet meals; rather, they survived on Ramen noodles most days.
Summer Seminars 2 Korea
High Point: Everyone adored living with a Korean family and getting to know them and their culture. The travelers experienced authentic Korean cuisine such as live octopus and hot sugar waffles. Additionally, the girls loved shopping in the markets. Low Point: Due to the time change and hectic schedule, many students were exhausted by the end.
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3 Oregon #1
High Point: Students loved white water rafting through the freezing water because their guide was fun and it was an exciting way to end the trip. They were also given the option to swim a rapid if they chose. Low Point: Many underestimate how much hiking is involved on these trips. They hiked 42 miles in four days.
4 Chicago & NYC
High Point: The students were allowed backstage after seeing the Broadway shows Cinderella and Once to meet the stars of the shows. Low Point: The Improv show the students were plannig to see was cancelled last minute.
5 France
High Point: The world travelers loved experiencing french culture, and speaking the native language with their host families. Also, 75% of the students did not get left behind. Low Point: Jack Southwell, junior, missed the train from Brest to Paris. Because trains in France wait for no one, he had to wait for the next train.
6 3
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6 Oregon #2
High Point: During the trip, two campers, Jensen Holt, and Andy Thomas, seniors, shared the same birthday. In celebration, their fellow campers filled their tents with balloons and attempted to bake a birthday cake. Low Point: Occasionally, the group had trouble finding a suitable camping spot so they were forced to hike thirteen miles per day to find the perfect place to slumber.
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4 Photo Credits: Megan Johsnon, junior, Mary Wynn, senior, Emma Bailey, senior, Anna Hagan, junior, Ms. DeVries, French teacher, and Abby Nixon, senior.
It’s Not Easy Being Green The Garden Club strives to become more eco-friendly through WCA’s new trash system. Last year, the Garden Club spent a large amount of time brainstorming about how to make WCA a more environmentally-friendly campus. The labeled trash bins seemed like one of the most efficient and cost-effective ways to do this. “We want to take care of God’s creation, and this is part of how we are doing that,” said Maren Osterholt, senior. Time, effort, and money have been put into these new trash containers. The hopes of the WCA Garden Club are high. Although many members of the WCA staff strongly believe in composting and recycling, the Garden Club members were the ones who brought this specific idea to the attention of the school. “Honestly, I was surprised by the purchase of the system in August, because I did not know that the facilities team liked the idea so much. I felt a bit overwhelmed because I felt that there needed to be more education on this before implementation,” said Brookie Moore, parent facilitator of the Garden Club. The WCA Student and Community Garden Club was new to the school last year. The goal of the Club is “to have meaningful conversations and engage in pivotal experiences as we explore ways of being good stewards of God’s creation,” as stated in the WCA Student and Community Garden Proposal for Gardening and Composting Campaign. The idea of composting started when Julie Grimm, Master Gardener at the Missouri Botanical Gardens, spoke to the Garden Club in October of 2012. She taught students about composting and even taught them to put compost on some of their plants. The club was
The state of the trash cans after lunch on Aug. 19.
One month later, after lunch on Sept. 18 (before anyone started to clean up...)
Photos by: Jill Coyne
Lance Richards, senior, watches as Brookie Moore, parent facilitator of the Garden Club, adds to the compost pile. Photo by: Mary Wynn
amazed to discover a huge increase in the heartiness of the plants as they watched more fruit grow. “Following this discovery, I began visiting other schools to find out about their composting practices. Soon I discovered that a huge majority of schools in the area did a much better job recycling and composting than WCA did,” said Moore. But after implementing the new system of waste disposal, WCA has decided to go one step further than other schools and introduce on-site composting. “The catch is this: all of the other schools have hired a service called Blue Skies to pick up their compostables. I figured that the only way to ‘leapfrog’ all the other schools on this issue is if we started composting on site. That way we are not paying for a truck to drive over to do the composting for us,” said Moore. This new system began on a whim. After discovering the importance of compost, the Garden Club felt as though it was their duty to bring this concept to WCA . Thus, they decided to increase recycling as well as implementing composting on campus. “The Garden Club threw together a little proposal and demonstration site at the WCA STEM Symposium last spring,” said Moore. WCA’s results have proved to be successful thus far. “At the present rate, compared to last year, we are keeping over a thousand yards of trash per year out of the landfill and recycling 350 yards more a year,” said Mark Jennings, Director of Facilities. WCA has been helping to preserve the earth since the implementation of the new trash disposal system. Students, parents, and faculty can help the earth by taking a little extra time by properly throwing away their trash. Still, complaints can be heard around the school regarding the new trash containers in the WCA café. As with anything new kinks are to be expected. Some confusion and bottlenecks at the end of lunch are also being experienced by students. “If people give it time, then it will get better and students will get used to it,” said Osterholt.
Features
Step Three Complete. Two Westminster Students are honored as National Merit Semi-Finalists.
Each year, juniors from across the country gather to take the PSAT. However, this is more than a standardized test. It is an opportunity to qualify for the National Merit Scholarship. To earn this scholarship, one must go through a series of steps such as taking the PSAT, becoming a Commended Scholar, then a SemiFinalist, and hopefully, a Finalist. Out of the 1.5 million juniors that participated in the test, 34,000 students became Commended Scholars. From there, another cut was conducted where less than one percent of the students qualified as Semi-Finalists in the competition. In total, about 16,000 students were awarded this honor. From Westminster Christian Academy, there were two students who achieved this award. Though there were a number of juniors who became Commended Scholars, only two students, Rachel Rogers and Jennie Albertson, current seniors, qualified as SemiFinalists. “They called us out of class into Dr. Sefrit’s office, but they didn’t tell us why, so we thought we were in trouble,” said Rogers.
Rachel Rogers (left) and Jennie Albertson (right), seniors, with Tom Stoner, head of school and Dr. Jim Sefrit, head of upper school, qualified as National Merit Semi-Finalists. Photo by: Scott Vonder Bruegge
Upon discovering her achievement, Albertson was surprised. During the first part of the test, she had gotten off track on the questions. “I’m thankful that God helped me get on back track, and it did not affect my score,” said Albertson. In order to proceed to the next level of the competition, Albertson and Rogers must take the SAT and write an essay. Fortunately, the majority of the people who are Semi-Finalists become Finalists.
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Don’t fret: everyone looks bad in school pictures
14 |THEWILDCATROAR.COM| 9.16.13
Page by Scott Rupprecht and Morgan Koetting
SPORTS REEDS Performing Enchancing Drugs
in
Sports
Sports
It’s a long journey. It takes countless hours of work and sacrifice, but if you make it, you will reap the benefits that almost all professional athletes receive. The road towards becoming a pro-athlete is filled with many ups and downs, but in today’s age many athletes are trying to avoid the struggles that all athletes face by using performance enhancing drugs (PEDS). On August 5th, Major League Baseball (MLB) came out with a list of 14 players that were suspended for their use of illegal PEDS. Unfortunately, MLB and steroids have been linked in the headlines for quite some time now, but the sad fact is that baseball players are not the only athletes that use PEDS. Steroids have been a problem for a wide variety of athletes for a long time, including high school athletes. A fairly recent study at the end of 2012 was featured on Fox News that said about five percent of middle school and high school athletes use Anabolic steroids to put on muscle. Of course, most high schools do not drug test as fervently as MLB does and many high schools will not test at all. But just because a high school student will most likely never get caught for steroid use doesn’t mean he or she should use them. After all, it’s cheating, and that is not the only problem with abusing PEDS. While steroids definitely enhance athletic ability for a limited time, the long lasting effects of these drugs are great and costly, especially for a teenager. If a high school athlete uses steroids, he or she will face many short and long term problems. While some athletes might be willing to face the short term effects such acne, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol in order to get an edge in their sport, they may fear and ultimately decide against peds due to the greater effects they can have on one’s body later on in life. These more detrimental effects include liver failure, cardiovascular problems, stunted growth, ligament and joint injury, and neurological issues. So how should high school athletes look at steroids? For one they should realize that using these drugs is cheating. Teenage athletes that aspire to become pro-athletes have to put in more hours of work to reach their goals than many realize. These athletes have to eat healthy, workout constantly, train mentally, and perfect their sport as best as possible. It is tempting to take the easy way out, but the same is true in everything people do, whether it’s sports or school. Ultimately, those that do it the right way and earn their “pro-athlete status” through hard work and determination will be more satisfied in their accomplishments than those that also made it big, but cheated to do so. It is also important to remember that there is a consequence for every choice and for those that don’t say no to peds, the price can be costly. The choice between taking steroids and staying clean should not be a hard decision for athletes in my opinion. It comes down to this: do you want your legacy to be like that of Alex Rodriguez, a baseball player whose great accomplishments in the sport will always be overshadowed by his steroid use, or like that of Stan “the man” Musial, one of the greatest baseball players ever that was known as a better husband, father, friend, and over all man than he was a baseball player.
CONGRATS! By ReedMontgomery
Derek Bell joined with Bailey Merkel to bring home the first tennis state championship for Westminster last spring. The doubles team had to take out two talented John Burrough’s teams on their way to history. In the championship match Bell and Merkel showed composure and great skill as they took down the team that had taken second place the year before in straight sets, 6-4 6-4.
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The Westminster Baseball team did it again, achieving the coveted threepeat. The Cats won 2-1 when Shane Benes batted in Bryce Bell on a long taking home the home run. Tyler Catlett made the game ending catch. “My first reaction to winning was to throw my glove, and get to the dogpile,” said Jorden Smith, senior. Ben Lovell pitched his last high school game finishing with one of the best careers in Missouri history. Brennan Hehner, Senior, emerged as a hero for the teams state run, pitching the Cats out of two jams, in two post season games. The team will be back on the diamond next season to compete for the sacred Fourpeat. By EichelDavis
Three Peat Photo By: Heidi Hehner
ATHLETES
of the
TYLERCatlett total YARDS: 81 TOUCHDOWNS:1 REC: 4(2nd on team)
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TRISTANBecker
Total goals: 3 Assists: 2
JessicaDreesbeimdieke Best score on 18 holes: 66 Biggest strength: Putting Average Drive: 280 yards
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