Volume 89| Issue 3| December 17, 2019
SHS CLIPPER
2
2,3
Index
4,5
Involved Students
6,7
Winter Coat Closets/ Missions in Topeka
8,9
Things to do On Christmas Break
10,11
Volunteering During the Holidays
12,13
Holidays Losing the Family Feel
14,15
Centennial
16,17
Money Spent on Christmas
Page Design by Loren Baldwin
18,19
SHS Bank
20,21
Seniors Having a Plan
22,23
SVTV Redesign
24,25
Sports
26,27
Ads
Clipper Staff Loren Baldwin Editors in Chief Sami Boyles Alexis Desch Megan Carter Alyssa Flower Grace Gomel Sports Editor Isabel Grimes Tristan Fangman Jordan Riggles Ad Manager Sam Shea Lauren Hren Kaycee Tanner Web Page Designer Isabelle Vasquez Reese Lister Graphic Design Editor Camryn Turner
To submit a letter to the editorm the letter must be 300 words or less in length. All correspondence must be signed. The goal is to report school and community news and suggest ideas for improvement. We welcome your opinions, we’ll do our best to publish what you have to say. Views in the newspaper do not always represent those of the faculty or school board of USD 345. The Clipper reserves the right to edit or refuse publication of material that is libelous, obscene, invading privacy, infringing privacing of disruptive to educational process of Seaman High School. Follow us at seamannews.com for late breaking stories and all of our journalism projects!
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Student Involvement goes above average Sports:
RILEY
Basketball Volleyball
4 Page desing by Alyssa Flower
Clubs & Activities: National Honor Society Viking Peer Models Clipper SAGAs Student Council
Riley Polter, 12
Leadership:
National Honor Society: President Student Council: Vice President FBLA: Public Relations Officer
Are you stressed? “One of the biggest issues with me is that I don’t get stressed. I should be stressed out about everything in life right now, but I’m not and that’s a problem.”
How do you manage grades?
“I like to call myself a ‘finesser’ at the end of the semester. That is when my GPA jumps decimal places up increasingly. I’m a huge procrastinator so that doesn’t help.”
Sports: Basketball Track
SHARP SHARP Committee Forensics Jazz I Jazz Combo Saxophone Quartet Wind Ensemble Marching Band
Leadership: Band: Drum Major
Future Plans?
“I will be attending college on a track and music scholarship to further both of those paths and will be attending Washburn University. Then I want to work to become a performer.” Eric Patterson Jr., 12
Are you doing too much?
“No, no. I feel like I have enough to manage my time. Sure, sometimes it is a challenge, but other than that I enjoy my activities.”
Eric Jr.
Clubs & Activities:
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The Community Gears up for Winter Story by Jordan Riggles
Viking Voice
The holiday months are a time for family fun and cheer, but what happens to families who cannot afford proper winter wear for those cold months? The North Topeka community makes helping those in need a priority every year. Local places such as elementary schools, non-profits, and shelters host winter coat closets and hat and mitten trees to help keep their community members warm. “I think it’s really cool that the smallest thing, like donating your used coat, can help others after it has helped you. Winter months can be tough, and anything to keep others warm and healthy helps out a lot,” said Junior Lily Sadler, who’s family donates their old winter gear to local coat closets. “Just
knowing that I am making a difference in someone else’s life, even if it’s not directly, makes my heart happy.” Places such as Scotch, a dry cleaning company on Topeka Blvd also participate in a coat closet for those in need. Annually Scotch hosts a “Share the Warmth Coat Drive” where they encourage their customers to bring coats in good shape to be donated to the Salvation Army. “I think it’s great that companies also come together for the greater good of the community,” says senior Avery Barta. “It shows that even when you don’t have a personal connection with those in need, people still want to lend a helping hand.” Unlike many other volunteering opportunities, when participating in a
coat or mitten drive, it doesn’t matter who you are, anyone can donate. “Throughout my years in the Seaman district we always had a mitten tree where my classmates and I donated articles of clothing or supplies that others would need,” says Barta. “Donating makes me feel like I’m a part of my community and I like helping those in need, especially during the holiday season.” Donating items such as coats and other winter gear brings joy to both the gifter and the receiver. Giving back one way many celebrate the holiday season. A small gift can mean the world to someone else. Don’t forget to give back to your community this winter season.
What is something you or someone you know does to help out around the community during the holiday season? “My family and I adopt a family for Christmas. My kids like to go shopping for the gifts to give to the other kids in the family.” - Mr. Pierce
6 Page design by Kaycee Tanner
“I helped out at TPAC with the annual gingerbread house making. It was great to help the kids building and see them enjoy Christmas.” - Lynde Heald
“One of my friends goes up to Children’s Mercy to give out teddy bears and food on Christmas day.” -Brooke Frisby
Topeka’s Christmas Mission Story by Kaycee Tanner
Local shelters and ministries in Topeka have already started preparing for the 2019 Christmas season. The Topeka North Outreach and Topeka Rescue Mission are two of the largest ministries in the area. The Topeka Rescue Mission, TRM, is a non-profit organization that provides shelter, food and clothing to the homeless and those in need in our community, as well as providing a variety of programs and resources to help people overcome trauma, addiction and homelessness. The Topeka North Outreach, TNO, helps the needy in North Topeka and Oakland areas. They are an organization of volunteers that have representatives from 15 churches in North Topeka and Oakland. They provide emergency assistance to help families or individuals with utilities, rent and medical expenses. “Winter is harder because more people are in need and need help keeping their utilities on, so it requires more funds to help our clients,” states Sandra Summers the coordinator for the TNO Christmas Project. Over at the TRM, Lizzie Crystal from Information and Research was able to describe what they are doing to prepare for the winter coming up. “Each year we prepare our buildings for an increased number of people seeking shelter from the cold. Often we are full beyond capacity during the winter, and we fill our men’s and women's day rooms with additional cots and mattresses. For the unsheltered homeless, we are working with Valeo and the Topeka Police Department to offer insulation for their tents and other items they might need during the cold,” she stated. Each shelter has a certain holiday
project to provide for the needy in the Topeka area. The North Topeka Outreach has the Christmas Project, where they “adopt” 55 to 70 families which is approximately 200 to 230 people, from the Christmas Bureau. Summers states that they “provide individual gifts for each person in the family, plus a food and hygiene basket, and a Bible from the Gideons.” At the Topeka Rescue Mission, each December they set up a Christmas store where the guests and members of the community can come to shop for gifts for themselves and loved ones, free of charge. These gifts are all new, unopened and donated items with staff and volunteers there to help wrap the gifts. On Christmas Day, Crystal states that they serve dinner “to around 600 people, as well as handing out more gifts and offering pictures with Santa. We want everyone to feel special at Christmas!” The holidays in general are a busy time of the year, but especially for the ministries. At the mission they face an increase in requests for help from the community in addition to the typical number of guests they serve. To handle the increased number of guests at the mission, Crystal says support and prayers from the community is always helpful. The Topeka community “is incredible at stepping up every Christmas to provide additional donations, gifts, and volunteer help,” Crystal says. During the month of December alone, the TRM shelters about 300-500 people per night, reaching out to another 100200 unsheltered homeless. Crystal notes that as Christmas approaches, many additional community members are
“in need of Christmas gifts and food. In total, we help between 3,000-4,000 different people during the month of December.” “We have an increased need for financial donations and donations of new, unopened gifts. Our needs list can be found on our website at www. tmronline.org.” As for the TNO, Summers says that, “You can help our organization by volunteering at the backpack assembly on the 1st Thursday of every month at the old Indian Creek school at 6pm, or volunteering in many other ways. You can always help us monetarily. Visit our website at www.topekanorthoutreach. org to look for volunteer opportunities or to make donations.” If interested in helping the ministries for the holidays, or any time of year, they would love to see more volunteers and donations to help those in need. Both Summers and Crystal state that they love being a part of the ministries, that there is a certain satisfaction to making a difference in the lives of Topeka community members. But Crystal says there “is something special that happens here at Christmas.” She has worked at the Mission since high school and is always blown away by the sense of family and community they see around the holidays. Crystal says that watching people “who felt like they had no one, suddenly discover many people care about them. Or when someone in need of help is given gifts for themselves and their loved ones, fed a warm Christmas dinner, and show there is a support and hope for them...” it can change everything for someone’s life.
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Students recover through holiday Travel Story by: Megan Carter and Sami Boyles
After the stress over finals has ended and the bell rings, holiday break is finally here. For many students, holiday break is a chance to recover and catch up on sleep, but for some students, holiday break means travel. Junior Kalie Kleiner is traveling to Mexico on a cruise with her family. This is the first year that the Kleiner family will be going on a cruise for the holidays. Kleiner, her mother, and brother decided that they were up for something new this year. “I am most excited to be on the beach with warm weather and lots of new food to try,” Kleiner said. Junior Makenna Addington is going to continue her family’s tradition by traveling to Colorado for holiday break. This tradition started about three years ago. Addington is most excited to go skiing and improve her technique Addington said, “My family wanted to do something when everybody had time off so we could all spend time together. That’s when our tradition began.”
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(Photo provided by: Sage Nixon)
Seniors Katie and Kelsie Lemon are going on their first cruise. The cruise will take them to Mexico, Jamaica, and the US Virgin Islands. Katie is most excited to go snorkeling in the Gulf of Mexico. Katie said, “I was so excited when my family told me about this opportunity. My uncle is a travel agent so we got to go with my immediate family and my aunt, uncle, and cousins.” Senior Katie Dehn will soon be traveling to Kassen, Minnesota to visit one of her past 4-H exchange students, Sadie Sullivan. Dehn is looking forward to seeing her friend again and being able to go ice skating together. “I am so excited to be able to hang out with Sadie again. It has been a long time since we have seen each other and it will be nice to catch up,” Dehn said. Even if students are not traveling for holiday break, there are many activities near home to enjoy. Just because you may not be leaving Topeka, you can still enjoy your break and prepare for the start of second semester.
Page Design by: Megan Carter
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Lions lend helping hands Story by Isabel Grimes staff writer
A
s the fall weather ends and the cold winter approaches, more layers are worn and heaters are turned on. Most of these things we take for granted: blankets, sweaters, winter coats, and even hot meals to fill our stomachs. But some families might not have the same opportunities or supplies to stay warm and cozy during the winter season. Many rely on donation centers and rescue missions to supply them with necessities when money is hard. One place right in our own community is helping those in need with clothing, to job applications, to an on-site food pantry. The Logan Resource Room has been open for almost a year and has assisted a couple hundred families with their needs. Kelli Hegarty, the resource room sponsor, says the room is there to help those in our own community when they fall on hard times. “We try to make sure that kids basic needs are being met by food, clothing. We feel like if they don’t have those hierarchy of needs, it makes it difficult for learning to happen,” Hegarty adds. The resource room accepts clothing from sizes 3T to adult
sizes, men and women, along with non-perishable or nonexpired food items. They are also in need of items people wouldn’t typically think to donate: cleaning supplies and personal hygiene supplies, like toothbrushes and feminine hygiene products. Along with donations, they welcome volunteers to help in the resource room. Hegarty expresses, “[Volunteering] gives you a chance to give back. It increases your self-worth; it can kind of show that there are maybe some people who are worse off than you. I think it’s just good to give back and be kind because you don’t always know what people are going through.” There are many different tasks needed to keep the room running smoothly, like washing donations and sorting them into their respective categories. Hegarty explains, “Twice a month we have [the room] open to the public or to the district, so it kind of gets messy sometimes.” The resource room is usually accessed by appointment. They are open to all Seaman students and families twice a month from 4-6:30 or 7:00, which usually coincides with an activity. To make an appointment or to inquire about volunteering, contact Kelli Hegarty through email or phone call.
I think it’s just good to give back and be kind because you don’t always know what people are going through. -Kelli Hegarty
lions den brings warmth: The Logan Resource Room has helped many families in the community who are underprivileged and in need of food, clothing, and other products. The room is open two days a month to the district or by appointment.
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Page design by Isabel Grimes
Logan Elementary School Community Resource Room Donations can be given to the Logan Elementary Front office or email Kelli Hegarty
Assisting Families With
Clothing On site food pantry Job applications Operation backpack application Free & reduced breakfast & lunch application Medicaid application Healthcare resources for parents WIC Community food resources Parenting resources Grief & loss resources & referrals Mental health resources & referrals Referrals for infant and toddler services
There are two remaining dates for the 2019 year: December 12, 4:00-6:30 and December 19, 4:00-6:30 Contact Samantha Jacobs and Kelli Hegarty if you are in need of items between these times khegarty@usd345.com sjacobs@usd345.com
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Holiday With
Cheer Friends
Near
There is so much to think about when the holidays come around; food, presents, friends, and family. Thanksgiving is generally considered a family-centered holiday focusing on being thankful for all the blessings in life. Following soon after is Christmas, when family comes together giving gifts to the ones they care about most. Both of these holidays have a main focus of family, but some teens are shifting this focus to their friends this holiday season, choosing to host Friendsgiving and Friendsmas. Friendsgiving has grown in popularity the past few years and the girls basketball team has adopted it as a new tradition. The team gets together the day after Thanksgiving and spends time getting to know the underclassmen while doing what they love most: eating. Last year was the first Friendsgiving for the team. Maddie Steiner says, “Having this together makes us stronger as a team and it’s just fun to spend time off the court.” Junior Hailey Hershey enjoys Friendsgiving because it gives her a chance to spend time with her teammates off the court. “Being able to eat all the scrumptious food with the people who I enjoy spending my time with the most is so much fun,” Hershey says. Being able to celebrate Friendsgiving does not take away from family time, however. Raigan Kramer says, “Although we take time to be with out teammates we are also having family time. I don’t think having this is making the times with my family any less special.” Another holiday spinoff focusing on friends is Friendsmas. Groups of friends get together to do a white elephant gift exchange, or get together to make cookies and watch Christmas movies. Riley Cowan shares her excitement about her Friendsmas plans saying, “My friends and I are wanting to get together and exchange presents. We want to make some cookies, sing Christmas songs, and watch as many movies as possible.” The holidays are all about spending time with the people who you love the most. Whether that includes your family, friends, or both. Hailey Minger says, “There are so many times that are the most memorable and those are always during the holidays. Being with both my friends and family doing festivities will always have a special place in my heart.” During the holidays, while spending time with family, don’t forget about the “family” that you chose. Celebrating Friendsgiving or Friendsmas is also important.
Junior Molly McClimans and Senior Sierra Hahn enjoying a dessert at their Friendsgiving. “We had a lot of fun enjoying a meal together and taking time to appreciate each other.” says McClimans.
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A group of band friends came together to celebrate Friendsgiving at Austin Feldcamp’s house this year. Planning to keep the tradition alive in the years to come with dinner, bonfires, and fun. “It was so much fun getting to spend time with my friends, we didn’t bring traditional Thanksgiving food, but did enjoy many hamburgers.” Junior, Tristan Fangman.
The 2019-20 yearbook editors enjoying their friendsgiving at Chick-fil-a. “It is really nice to spend time with my fellow editors, getting to know them better, also enjoying a great meal at Chick-fil-a.” Senior, Sami Boyles.
Seniors Eric Patterson Jr, Blake Smith, Cameron Smith, Bailey Merideth, Aleksander Westjord, Ian Filby dog piled after their Friendsgiving dinner.
Seniors Eric Patterson Jr and Bailey Merideth, and Junior Molly Mclimans are playing a game of spoons after their Friendsgiving meal.
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Seaman High l o o h c S The clubs grew a little bit as well because the ‘50s began with FHA (Future Homemakers Association), FFA, Science Club, Y-teens and Hi-Y (religious clubs), Drama Club, Band, the Boys’ Glee Club and the Girl’s Glee Club, Mixed Chorus, Pep Club, Ensemble, Bank, and Art Club. The ‘60s ended with the additions of S.A.C. club, Vi Queens, Viking Club, Key Club, French Club, Spanish Club, FTA (Future Teachers Association), VICA (Vocational Industrial Clubs of America), NFL (Debate), Math, Bookworm, Investment, Chess, Cheerleaders. Some were pretty short-lived while others continued to grow. Many teachers and staff who had been at Seaman since the beginning days retired at this time as well. People such as Mr. Burton, Mrs.Johnson, Mr. Logan, Mrs. Gooch, and Mr. Lauffer leave and are replaced. Mr. Logan’s retirement in 1960 brings along a new principal named Mr. Frank Colaw. The board eventually added in a district superintendent with Dr. Colaw, the former principal. Everything increased a little bit during this time but the most shocking of them all was the number of students who attended Seaman High School. In 1950, the enrollment for the year was at 257 which was during the time the board prompted for a new school. By 1962, 582 students were attending the school. The placement school would be settled for a while as the community would grow over time. Everything around the school was hardly developed so within several years, the high school would be surrounded by many homes. For the most part, these two decades remained smooth and fun as the fifties and sixties should be.
P L A N N I N G D U R I N G
A F T E R
A Day in the Sun: Students in 1963 take a day from the classroom. This is the first color picture displayed in any of the yearbooks.
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w e a N Constructing With Centennial Editor Madeline Gearhart
Seaman High was still growing in the 50s and 60s; the student body was increasing in numbers, and administration was adding classes and activities to the schedule. Due to such a quick increase in size, USD 345 was forced to acknowledge the idea of creating a new building. As the years went by during the ‘50s and ’60s, students and staff develo ed the ieces of the building that would become the Logan Elementary we currently know today. n , the board began lanning for a new building that would re lace the original high school building on Lyman. t too a long time to ass the bond issue that was needed as the building cost would end u being , . hey ended u ta ing bonds from of , and as ed district voters to a rove an e tra , which was later a roved in . he building was o cially constructed in 1954 and was the highschool site that Logan is at now. he current Seaman igh was not built until the s. he range of s orts available to students s yroc eted between the s and s. ootball, as etball, and rac were the s orts rovided by the school in the year of . y , there are the additions of ross ountry, Gymnastics, restling, ennis, and Golf. here was only one s ort rovided to both girls and boys at this oint which was Gymnastics, and there were lots of students who artici ated. he only other athletic club that the girls could artici ate in was cheerleading.
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H O W
T O
S A V E
M O N E Y
O N
Having a budget Setting a certain limit will make sure you don't go over
Tracking spending Tracking your expenses shows how much can be spent
Shop early Finding hot, decent discounts all year round never hurts
Make Presents If you want to give something personal and memorable
Saving bank accounts during the holiday season Story by Isabelle Vasquez
When going Christmas shopping, there is always a bunch of options to take into consideration. There are always decent sales that tend to be going on at just the right time. But how do you know you’re getting your money’s worth? During the holiday season, some people seem to push all of their shopping towards the last final days. When doing this, the more stress is being built up, the more time is starting to get wasted, and a lot of the hot deals are no longer going on. Recognizing the right time to get all the gifts people need takes a decent amount of planning. Planning is a really good way to help save money during the holidays since people can really focus on the present they need or even want to get a loved one rather than overspending due to the stress of last-minute shopping. When planning, people can go to the store and easily leave with the items they planned to get without all the further stress brought upon them. Knowing what to get for people will also help make sure no one is left out on the gift list. Making a simple list of who is all on the gift list, and who all is getting one gift is another idea to put into consideration. Discounts are also an effective way to save a pretty good amount of money. However this can be a bit more difficult, since there are often limitations on what you can buy with
the discounts. Some discounts will even trick customers into buying items by increasing the discount percentage and allowing the purchase price to increase. Therefore, it’s really important to notice when a store is using these types of tricks so people don’t spend over their set budget. Another really simple way to save some money is to try to avoid personal purchases. Many people seem to struggle with this simply because they become distracted by a discount on something they want rather than focusing on the others they are attempting to shop for. Remembering to track your spending and having a budget is very important. These two simple things can easily save money by setting a spending limit and keeping track of every purchase to keep yourself from going overboard. Having a set, determined budget will help by making sure going to far over just isn’t a choice. Giving fewer gifts is also an option. Knowing and understanding that not everyone needs a gift is important. Narrowing down your gift giving list just a little can really help save a couple or dollars. Ultimately shoppers should remember, the thought behind the gifts is way more important than the price tag that’s attached.
Page Design by Isabelle Vasquez
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A day in the life at the Seaman High Bank Story by Reese Lister
The Seaman High School Bank was founded in 1927 by Fred Seaman as a way for students to gain experience in the banking field. The bank is the first school-run bank in the nation and the Seaman High School Bank is one of only a few student-run banks in the world. It handles all finances for the school such as club accounts as well as helping the students. Having the bank at Seaman High School is very beneficial in many ways. “The ease of access for all the students. You can go pay club dues, get change for a $20 or create your own account. Also for the club sponsors, they have less of a responsibility when it comes to taking care of their money as we handle everything that comes in and out,” President, Andrew Patton said. Not only is the bank beneficial for the school but also the students who run the bank. Students chosen to take part in running the school bank are professionally trained in most banking positions and have an easier time obtaining a job at a bank or credit union. The students chosen to work in the bank are picked carefully to ensure they will have the best qualities to run the bank efficiently. “Every spring the interviewing process takes place so the sophomores have to apply like a job if they are interested in being a part of it. Then from the application process we interview and then based on the interview we select anywhere from 8 to
10 incoming juniors” Kevin Hoffmans, bank sponsor, said. Once the students are selected, they start the different jobs required to keep the bank running. There are two different types of jobs in the bank. First are the daily, two-week rotation jobs that both the juniors and seniors take part in. Those job positions include the three cashiers, the two bookkeepers, the two posting officers, personnel, and the auditor. There is also the president; however, only the seniors are considered for that position. “The president position writes checks for the school, the auditing position audits the bank operations from the previous week to make sure that the whole bank is functioning properly and balances, the cashiers do the customer work with whatever the needs are for the particular customer that comes in, the personnel position does some cashier work as well as delivers whatever our banking needs are to the school, the bookkeepers process all of the business from the previous day through ledgering, and then the posting people do the same on the computers and they double check the bookkeepers work,” says Hoffmans. The second type of job are the year long jobs and only seniors qualify for these positions. President, Vice-President of Administrtion, Vice-President of Operations, Vice-President of Marketing, Vice-President of Customer Relations, and Vice-President of Technology are
1929
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Page Design by Sami Boyles
assigned to the seniors when the school year starts. Other than the President and Vice-President of Administration, there are two students for each of the jobs. Current Bank President, Andrew Patton believes that with many amazing times such as solving an issue to balance there are also difficult times as well. Many of the bank students believe that the chapter tests after reading the bank books are the most difficult part of bank, but learning how to function within the bank is also a challenge for newcomers. “The hardest part of working in the bank for me is taking the chapter tests. The tests may not be hard, but you have to will yourself into taking a test and that is extremely difficult. My favorite part of working in the bank is how satisfying it is when you solve an issue. We can be trying to balance for 20 minutes and then you realize one of the numbers is messed up and then you tell the head cashier you figured it out and it is an amazing feeling,” Patton says. As we head into a new century for Seaman High School we inch closer to the bank’s 100th year. The creation of the bank was ground-breaking for both Seaman High School and for future schools; it gave new opportunities to students and staff across Kansas and across the United States. The Seaman High School Bank hopes to continue to make many great leaps with improving the bank as well as giving students the best opportunities.
1988 1968
special guests. Bank adviser Mr. Kevin Hoffmans shows off the bank to a guest. A group from Neodesha High School came to observe how the bank was run. (Photo by Lauren Beavers)
Photo provided by Candace LeDuc
double checking Junior Molly McLaughlin spends time balancing the account books. Students must balance at the end of their hour every day. (Photo by Hailey Minger)
2019
Seniors planning the rest of their lives
What was the hardest part of planning your college experience? Future University:
Story by Alexis Desch
Students are often told that it is not necessary for them to have their lives after high school figured out by graduation. However, as seniors begin hearing about scholarships and deadlines, they realize the stress of figuring out their life plans is hitting full force if they don’t have at least a sliver of an idea. Senior Kimberly Hulsether said, “At the beginning of your senior year you definitely need to have mostly what you want figured out. That way when it comes to the middle of the semester you can start acting that plan out so you’re not just sitting at home in your parents’ basement not knowing what you’re doing.” As students prepare to enter the “real world,” the biggest decision they must made is what career field they want to pursue. This decision could be considered the ripple effect of more decisions including which degree the student should, and wants to, study in order to reach their career goal. Depending on what degree the student chooses as their best fit, they must then also choose which college to attend. After making these three major decisions, students are tasked with what feels like a million smaller decisions such as what type of housing they want to live in, who their roommates will be, what classes they will take, if they will work during college, how they plan to pay for tuition, and much, much more.
Having had the experience of helping students through this tough time of lifelong decision making, guidance counselor Steve Alexander said the hardest part for students when making these decisions is that they are indecisive. “They just want to be in the moment and then all of a sudden they panic when it’s November of their senior year and they haven’t taken their ACT exam but they want to go to college, and they haven’t applied to colleges, or filled out the FAFSA form. There’s a lot of things they need to do. I really think it’s the thought, ‘if I don’t think about it or do anything then it’ll never come.’ But, May is coming and so students have to think about it sometime.” While a four year post graduation plan by senior year is not mandatory, it begins to feel impossible to make these decisions without a set plan in place. Alexander’s piece of advice to seniors still looking to decide on their plans is to simply “start talking to people and start making decisions.” Although planning may be stressful, there are people and resources there to help aide along the process. Talking to parents, students, teachers, counselors, and college representatives will help students decide what the best path is for them. Students can also simply search the internet to find all possible options before they decide to finalize any major plans.
Christmas Wishlist for soon-to-be College Students
University of Arkansas
Plans of Study:
Marketing or business finance major
% Sure of this Plan:
90% Ryan McNeely, 12 “...right now it’s definitely finding a dorm roomate because I’m going out of state. I don’t really know anybody so I’m trying to meet people so I don’t get some weird roommate.”
Future University: University of Kansas
Plans of Study:
Chemical Engineering major
% Sure of this Plan:
McKenzie Szopinski, 12 “...definitely finding out which college I wanted to go to based off what kind of programs they had. It’s a little difficult picking off of a program just because I was scared to change my mind.” 100%
Future University: Barton Community College
Plans of Study: Undecided
% Sure of this Plan:
Hunter 100% Hesseltine, 12 “...what school to go to. I had to take into consideration the amount of playing time I would get and who was offering me the best scholarships since I’m signed for baseball.”
Electronics
Kitchen Appliances
20 Page Design by Alexis Desch
Learning how to cook adds to the stress of moving away from home for the first time. Having appliances and tools that assist in this process will make cooking so much
No matter what classes you take or what school you attend, stuents need laptops and/or tablets to complete school work... or if nothing else, you can binge Netflix between classes better on a laptop than on your phone
Students use waived finals time to begin winter break early Story by Alyssa Flower
The end of the year is approaching quickly presenting students with some important decisions to make. Students have to decide which finals to study for first, plan what they will be doing over winter break, and finalize schedules for next semester. Washburn University offers a dual credit program through high schools in Topeka. This gives high school students the opportunity to take a college-level classes for partial cost with credit that transfers to most other colleges. Juniors and seniors who elect to take dual credit courses then follow an enrollment process through Washburn. On their own, through an independent study, students have also enrolled through Highland Community College and Allen Community College. This gives students the opportunity to lessen their college costs by entering college with more credits while allowing them to learn information on a more relaxed level. Senior Ashley Sadler says, “College classes have prepared me for after high school since they have given me a glimpse into what kind of work I am doing and how hard it will be.” Students often carry their normal classloads on top of college classes and any extracurriculars. Another benefit students gain from dual credit classes is having excused
Subscriptions
Along with your new electronics, you need something to do on them. Too bad there’s not enough free time in college to watch every show on every streaming platform and listen to every song on Spotify...
absences from that hour after the final has been taken. Each Washburn final is administered just over a week before the normal high school finals. Since the class is considered done, administration allow students and parents to sign a waiver allowing the student to either come in late or leave early from school. As a cross country and track participant, Senior Chase Morstorf says “I plan on being able to run earlier now and be able to take a nap” . Senior Ellie Kee’s plans are a little different. “I plan to be around my friends and people that make me feel happy to ease the stress that the finals caused,” says senior Ellie Kee. Seniors offer some advice to underclassmen looking into taking college courses while in high school. Morstof says, “Take the classes now because they are worth it even though they may be a bit tougher” even adding that preparing for finals is not very different and is similar to preparing for high school finals. Kee adds, “If you are going to take college classes then you need to take it seriously because it is way better to take it here than to take it in college. Throughout my high school career I just kind of slid through and did whatever, but now I worry a little more about my grade and the work I produce.” With many of the college classes
Homemade Cookbook
You could be leaving the house soon and need to know how to cook without burning the place down...what better way than taking your mom’s homemade cooking on the road with you as
falling at the beginning or end of the day, students are able to use their time for work, catching up on other homework, or just trying to get some more sleep. As a second semester senior, the opportunity to take a shortened schedule is offered. Students who have finished all required credits and have parental and counselor permission are also eligible for shortened schedules. Mornings or afternoons can be taken off and students participating in sports are required to take just five hours of classes their second semester to be KSHSAA eligible. Morstorf says he plans to take a shortened schedule so he can sleep in, while both Sadler and Kee are taking this opportunity to work mornings at their jobs at Boys & Girls Club. Sadler adds that she will be taking an additional course through Allen County Community College and working on any homework that may come up for her high school courses. Kee hopes to have some extra money to take with her as she continues her education after high school. With the availability of dual credit courses and shortened schedules, students are able to receive college credit at a lowered price and in a more relaxed environment and utilize their time in different ways as second semester rolls around.
Money
Between paying for gas, groceries, fees, emergencies, and general entertainment while out with friends...you’re gonna need some money.
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On the air: Senior Chase Johnson and sophomore Jake Hilliard prepare to film the Seaman Viking Television daily show. During the remodeling process, DiLeonardo and the SVTV staff made use of corners in the design by relocating and downsizing the anchor desk. (Photo by: Amy Riley)
Out with the old, in with the new: From left to right the SVTV set transforms from a darker, larger set to a lighter, modern, more streamlined set. Mr. DiLeonardo and his students began work on the set transformation at the end of last school year completed the design and the construction themselves. (Photos provided by Louis DiLeonardo)
Lights, cameras, action SVTV undergoes redesign project for around five months now and still do not expect it to be done until ith the beginning of a January. new decade, broadcast “The problem is now, getting the journalism teacher lighting and installing the lighting, so I Louis DiLeonardo guess by January I should be 100% done decided that it was time to give Seaman with everything,” estimated DiLeonardo. Viking Television’s filming studio a more DiLeonardo and the students have unique look, in an inexpensive way, done all of the work themselves which with the is why the help of his studio has students. longer You want to always improve taken S i n c e to complete. July 2019, and you want to make things “ I DiLeonardo emailed Mr. and his better than you found them Mo n a gh a n students and asked have been him if he -Louis DiLeonardo working would pay hard to for this. I try make the SVTV Studio comparable to to source things so it’s cheap, and no one professional news sets. ever tells me how much money we have “In February we received new in the budget,” DiLeonardo said. equipment that allowed us to broadcast To save money, DiLeonardo had the in HD. We noticed that if we’re able to tools and the knowledge to do this and broadcast in HD, the old set looked very used a lot of extra supplies that were dark and plain, and not interesting,” donated by others. said DiLeonardo in response to why he DiLeonardo explained, “You want to wanted to rebuild the set. always improve and you want to make DiLeonardo and his broadcast things better than how you found them, students have been working on this so you know the sky is the limit.”
W
story by Kelcie Dudding
What is your favorite part about the new SVTV set?
“I love using the new green screen because it allows me to create weather forecasts up to par with the industry standard.” Josh Duncan, 12
“My favorite thing about the new set is how modern and professional everything looks.” Ali Reed, 11
“We are able to have new colors and textures which will be a lot lighter and will look so cool.” Aaron Magill, 12
Two teams UNITED as one Story by Tristan Fangman
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he game goes into overtime with a tied score of 24 all. The Vikings feel the pressure as the clock counts down. Then, eighth-grader Jacob Wheeles makes a basket scoring two points with time to spare. Using the excitement from the two pointer with their strong defense, the Vikings protect their basket taking the gold and going 3-0 in the championship tournament. Vikings United is a unified sports team for middle and high school students that is run through the Special Olympics. The goal is to have competitive teams that include all students regardless of their abilities. The Vikings United red team took home the gold during their Basketball Championship Tournament at Shawnee Mission East and the blue team took the bronze. Every sports season of Vikings United involves at least two tournaments. “The first tournament is the regularseason and the second term it is the championship round of the season so we
had tournaments this year at Washburn Rural and Shawnee Mission East,” explained sponsor Randall Crome. At the beginning of each season, athletes (special needs students) and partners (regular ed students) are ranked with skills tests, similar to those used during sports tryouts. “It puts you in a classification,” says Crome. “It’s basically like the 1A through 6A school classification. The United sports are classified as a level one team with modified rules through a level three which is pretty much full-fledged competitive basketball.” Partners are matched up based on who works best together. The higher ability level team was the championship winners. The win was exciting for both the red and blue teams. Junior Veronica Martin joined Vikings United as a partner during their soccer season last year. She was a bronze medal recipient. Martin said, “blue team did not win any games but we still put in a good amount of effort and I’m so proud. It’s really neat seeing them able to achieve
something such as making a basket and scoring a point and it is the best part because I’m seeing them happy.” Senior athlete Andrew McLinn has been a part of Vikings United throughout his high school career. According to McLinn, basketball is his favorite because “I get to score. I don’t usually score a lot but it’s fun!” Crome encourages everyone to join the team. He says, “If you’re interested in having fun and helping people and want to be a part of our school community and like getting together with friends and making new friends and really feel like you are doing something positive, come join us for Unified sports. We meet every Tuesday during our seasons from 3:15 to 4:15.” Senior partner Jeremy Burd said he joined for the basketball season because “I got to meet a lot of new people within the school and working with the athletes was also rewarding. The next sport is Bocce ball which starts on December 10th with room for everyone to join.
Photos by Alyssa Boos
24 Page Design by: Tristan Fangman
Buffer week BENEFIT or DETRIMENT Story by Sam Shea and Tristan Fangman
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mong all the student athletes at Seaman High School (SHS), double season athletes are more common than one would think. Double season athletes are athletes who go from either cross country, football, volleyball, tennis, or soccer to basketball, boys swimming, wrestling, or bowling, with only about a week to rest. That week is KHSAA-mandated and called the buffer week. Buffer week is a time for athletes to recover and prepare for the upcoming season. This year’s buffer week was from November 11th to November 15th. “I love buffer week. It gives me time to sleep and get caught up on schoolwork,” sophomore volleyball and basketball player Drew Baxter states. Furthermore, Baxter does not have a large transition in her training from one sport to the next. “I feel like I’m doing a lot of the same stuff when I train for volleyball and basketball, so I don’t really have to change anything, but I do use basketball to stay in shape for volleyball,” explains Baxter. Buffer week can be somewhat controversial, however. Some consider it unnecessary for the double season athletes and believe it has no impact on the turnaround on students’ performances from sport to sport. The
Boys varsity basketball coach, Craig Cox, questions the necessity of buffer week. “I do not believe the buffer week is beneficial. If it was, then they would have a buffer week between winter and spring sports,” Coach Cox explained. There is no buffer week for winter to spring athletes like junior, Reid Cowan who goes from football in the fall, to basketball in the winter, to golf season in the spring. Cowan gets no rest between basketball and golf, and depending on how basketball season goes, Cowan’s seasons could possibly overlap. But, with the football season ending in the beginning of November, the football players have had a bit longer than a week to prepare for the upcoming athletic season. Senior football player and wrestler Landon Willard took advantage of the three week break after playoffs to focus and get ready for his senior wrestling season. “I try to stay in shape as much as possible before the season and make sure I’m down to my weight,” Willard states. Along with football players going into wrestling, junior Nathan Zeferjahn went from the football field to the basketball court. Zeferjahn ended his junior season with a bang at the playoffs game, but he could only rest for a few days as the upcoming basketball season was on its way and Zeferjhan had work to do, both mentally
and physically. “I train and recover during this week. I like to take my first few days to rest because it’s been a long season then I’ll get back into working,” says Zeferjahn. Zeferjahn must shift his training as he transitions from football to basketball. “You do heavy lifting because football is a contact sport and when you switch to basketball you change those lifts to ones that use more leg strength and do more cardio,” explains Zeferjahn. Winter sports practice started on November 18th, coaches have high hopes for their athletes this season. The girls’ basketball team is coming back this season with the state tournament in sight after making it to substate last season. Coach Matt Tinsley says the team has high expectations for the season. “We are determined to improve on a daily basis,” Tinsley states. As for the boys’ basketball team, Coach Cox has one simple goal for this season; to improve in every aspect. As the wrestling season begins, Coach Kelly plans on everyone having fun and creating a lifetime of good memories. Boys swim and dive also has high expectations to meet with a goal at the beginning of the year to earn personal bests at each competition. With or without a buffer week, the Viking athletes competing in winter sports are prepared to meet goals and break records this season.
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26 Page Design By Lauren Hren
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Which of Santa's Reindeer Are You? Start
When is it acceptable to listen to Christmas music? All year long!
What are you looking forward to most on Christmas? Being with family.
Presents for sure.
In the month of December.
Favorite Christmas Movie?
Elf.
The Grinch.
Shopping for others or yourself? Myself!
Christmas Cookies or Hot Chocolate? Hot Chocolate
Christmas Cookies.
Dasher! Being Dasher means you are the stud, everyone around you adores you so much. You are the go-to person.
Are you able to sleep on Christmas Eve?
Do you wake up early or sleep in on Christmas? Sleep in for sure.
Dasher
Others for sure.
Rudolph Rudolph is the outcast, you tend to be the outlier and hang by yourself. You are content and very independent.
Early bird gets to open the first present.
Vixen Vixen, school is where you thrive the most. Whenever somebody needs help they come to you firs.t
Yes, I sleep my best.
No, never!
Cupid Being involved in a relationship is your hobby. Having someone by your side is something that you love to do.