Author: adviser

  • 13 Reasons (More or Less) Why Season Three is Different

    The Netflix drama, 13 Reasons Why, was released in late August of this year. Season two ended with the aftermath of Tyler’s school shooting attempt, and season three picked up after the incident eight months later. While the two previous seasons focused on the main character of the show, Hannah, season three focused on the death of one of the most frustrating and hated characters, Bryce.

    The season starts out with Bryce missing after a huge brawl that took place during the homecoming game at Liberty High. Similar to seasons one and three, each episode analyzes one of a few of students at Liberty High and tries to make a connection between them and Bryce’s murder. Within 13 episodes, each of the suspects who were known to have issues with Bryce are interrogated.

    This season was a bit heartbreaking as one of the most hated characters, Bryce (hated for his sexually abusive behaviors, the role he played in Hannah’s suicide and the harm he caused to several girls), is seen trying to right his wrongs and become a better person. The show almost has you rooting for Bryce until you are once again reminded of what horrible acts he has been responsible for. He was seen trying to become a better friend to all the people he once hurt and seeking help to change who he is. As the show unfolds, each character is guilty of his death.

    Personally, I liked this season. I hated Bryce with every fiber of my being, but seeing him trying to get better was a reminder that people do have to ability to own up for their actions and actually want to change for the better. This show talks about real, raw topics such as bullying, rape, murder, and teenage social problems that are hardly addressed in the media nowadays. The show received backlash for some of the negative impacts it had, such as enabling suicidal tendencies in teens and for continuing the show. It is unknown if the show will be cleared for a fourth season but honestly, what would they even have to talk about?

  • College and Career Center Wants You!

    After a seemingly short and hot summer, school is finally up and running with the new 2019-2020 school year. Class of 2020 is now focusing on school, college, and life after school. What colleges do you want to go to? Are you having trouble figuring out how to start applying for colleges and/or financial aid? The College and Career Center has various resources and guides to help you with college and life after graduating.
    Throughout first semester, college reps will be visiting to give information about the colleges you may be planning to attend. You can visit the college and career center to sign up for view the dates that colleges will be visiting. For each visit, you must sign up prior to the fate of the visit. You must also have a pass to attend the visit unless you are unscheduled. During unscheduled periods, you may attend a visit without a pass but you do need to sign up and bring your student ID.
    Along with College Rep Visits, the college and career center will be holding different workshops to prepare you for applying to colleges and financial aid. On September 19th, there was a Financial Aid workshop at 5:30pm. On September 30th, there was a First Generation College Student Workshop for first generation college students during 7th period. Also, on October 1st, 2019, FAFSA, California Dream Act, Community College, and Cal State Applications will be open!
    Visit the College and Career Center for more information on applications, help, scholarships, and resources. Also meet the new college advisors! Stay tuned for more info!

  • New Clubs at Club Rush

    New Clubs at Club Rush

    Introducing Big/Little Club

    With the start of the new school year comes new clubs and new students, welcome freshmen! What better way to welcome our new freshmen into Poly other than having a club that is made to help freshmen feel apart of this new community. The Big/Little program is paired up with Poly PACE seniors and is designed to support freshmen as they transition into the high school environment while also learning about Poly.

    Each senior involved is paired with a freshman based on similar interests or where they went to middle school. Every month they will meet and share tips about time management and other strategies to be successful in high school. This program not only helps freshmen get acquainted with the Poly climate, it also encourages bonds to form and creates friendships. The Big/Little program was first thought of by Poly PACE senior, Kaelyn Moses, in 2019 as a way to guide freshmen smoothly into the PACE program. Freshman year can be challenging in the way that it is a new place with lots of more people and more responsibilities. With the academic pressure and the need for quick adaptation into freshman year, this program can help reduce stress for a more enjoyable start to high school.

    Welcoming FIDM

    Introducing the new FIDM Fashion Club sponsored by FIDM LA is a new club this year at Poly Highschool. President Hannah Jara, junior, and Co-President, Jailyn Lewis, senior, are bringing this club to Poly to highlight the talent and diversity present within the Poly population. The FIDM Fashion Club will feature various workshops to help students perfect their craft whether it be in texiles, styling, drawing etc. There will also be a field trip to the Debut FIDM LA Fashion Show in April! Students who become members in the FIDM Fashion Club will be rewarded renweable scholarship money if they choose toi attend FIDM. Meetings are in Room 309 on Fridays during lunch. Hope to see you there!

  • Oh, Strap!

    Oh, Strap!

  • The Problem With PE

    The Problem With PE

    As obesity rates in the U.S. are rising, it is important that we exercise. As teenagers are constantly undergoing stress and life changes, exercise is extremely beneficial and should be encouraged.

    Harvard Health Publishing said in an article that exercise releases feel-good endorphins in the brain that improve mood and help with depression and anxiety. Some even say it acts similar to an antidepressant.

    Like most schools, 20 credits of physical education is required for graduation at Poly. However, if you do not pass 5 of the 6 standards for the state Physical Fitness Test, you are required to take a P.E. class or a sport until you graduate or pass the test.

    According to the UCLA Newsroom, out of 12 schools in the district, an average of only 37.8% of students were able to pass the fitness exam; approximately one in three students. In my second year of P.E., the only girl that was able to run the mile in less than ten minutes (one of the standards required to pass the exam) was only ever able to make that time once or twice at the very end of the year. Mind you, this class had a large majority of girls. Out of about 35 students, only nine were male, so only one girl being able to pass that one standard is outrageous.

    According to the California Department of Education, the fitness test is meant to be taken in fifth, seventh, and ninth grade. It is also stated that “the main goal of the test is to help students in starting life-long habits of regular physical activity.”

    The test was not designated to be religiously standardized like an annual benchmark. There is a multitude of healthy students on campus who exercise regularly outside of school but are not able to pass. A few of them may struggle with health issues that prevent them from passing. The issue with the physical education requirement is that the traditional kinesiology class is heavily focused on ability, not participation. Your grade depends on your accuracy at throwing, catching, or passing balls; how fast you can run, or how many push-ups or sit-ups you can do in one sitting.

    There’s no argument: exercise is important for everyone. But forcing students to meet these specific standards doesn’t make them enjoy it. If we wanted to be judged on how well we can kick a soccer ball or throw a baseball, then we would’ve joined the sport instead.

  • Food Fight

    As a student, I recognize the amount of food wasted during lunch and nutrition; some food is just left on school benches. What if the food was better? How much food will be conserved and not thrown away or half-eaten?

    I think we should look into fresh and better meals for students and faculty alike. What makes it bad? I think the biggest reason why it’s so flawed with some students is that some foods that are prepared are non-nutritious or simply unappealing. We come to hear students all the time groan about school food. “Ugh I hate this,” or “I’d rather just starve and eat when I get home,” is what most students say. I think the spicy mozzarella cheese sticks and the “turkey” sandwiches are disgusting somewhat. The worst thing that they do is that they don’t prepare meals fresh, and sometimes they are left soggy and disgusting. We must look into ways for food to be prepared fresh, hot, and ready. Why don’t they hire caterers to deliver food to our school? There must be some restaurants out there willing to cater for students; which consequently will also boost and encourage people to come to their restaurants if their food is good.

  • New Admin, Who Dis?

    This school year at Long Beach Poly High School, there have been quite a few adjustments thrown around the school which highly contrasts it from previous years. High schools have switched from two principals, to one principal on site. They have gone from Co-principals (two principals) to one principal at each high school. In other words, this change has not only impacted Poly, but it had also affected all other Long Beach Unified School District high schools as well. The difference between this year and last is that the position of vice principal opened just now. Last year, our head administration consisted of co-principals Mr. Bill Salas and Mr. Quentin Brown, meanwhile the leadership arrangement at Poly now consists of our principal, Mr. Salas, vice principal, Mr. Brown, and 3 assistant principals.

    Of course along with change come impacts. There have been several people who have been affected by this change. However the main people would be the lead administration. As Mr. Salas stated, “there is definitely a sense of more responsibility for the principal”. He also mentions how there has been a change in communication. Now teachers and other staff members among the community, can now go to the one person as opposed to who is in charge of taking care of certain areas of the school.

    Overall, this has not necessarily been a good or bad change to the school or the people of the school. Instead it can be seen as a change that can help these administrators learn to navigate and be able to handle as well as manage themselves through a new experience. It’s also beneficial that there’ll only be one person whom the staff members can go to if they need help rather than two separate ones because it’ll make it easier for them to look for and go to that one person.

  • Bye Bye Spidey: Spiderman Leaves The MCU

    Bye Bye Spidey: Spiderman Leaves The MCU

    Spider-Man is a character that everyone in the world knows about. Fans enjoy him, people enjoy the movies, and kids demand his merchandise. But Sony wants to take the rights that Marvel owns from using Spider-Man in their movies. You might wonder why this is an issue, but when Sony wants to take away Spider-Man in the middle of his story being told, fans will get angry.
    Back in February 2015, Disney, Marvel Studios and Sony announced a deal to share the Spider-Man film rights, leading to a new version of Spider-Man to be introduced and integrated for the Marvel cinematic universe. The deal allowed Sony to have final creative control over MCU films where Spider-Man is the main character, while Disney had full control over films with Spider-Man as a side character. It also stated that the character was allowed to be in five movies as part of the contract. I believe that Marvel misread the contract since they wanted to make five stand alone movies of Spider-Man, but Sony is including Spider-Man’s cameos for the Avengers as part of the five movie deal. Right now, Sony has offered to give Marvel 30% of Spider-Man rights and money that it makes from the films, but Venom from Sony’s Venom universe needs to be included in the MCU as well. It’s weird how Marvel owns this character, yet they’re fighting the rights to use it with another company. I believe that it shouldn’t even be an argument about who owns the character since Stan Lee of Marvel created him in the first place. But at the end of the day, we can say that money has a lot to do with it. It couldn’t be about anything else…that’s Hollywood baby.

    UPDATE:
    Spider-Man is reportedly back in the MCU after the studios, Sony and Marvel, reached a new deal to continue their partnership. The new deal sees Marvel Studios producing the next installment of Spider-Man’s cinematic franchise, with Kevin Feige taking a lead role in the production once more. Spider-Man will also appear in other MCU movies going forward as he has previously done.

  • Late To Class? Get a Pass

    Late To Class? Get a Pass

    Attention all Poly students! This is a quick reminder that you must be in class before the tardy bell rings. Teachers, please remember to close your doors…

    If you’ve been paying attention to the intercom for the past two weeks, then you’ve surely heard this or a similar announcement.
    Constant announcements after the bell rings for passing period is just one aspect of Poly’s new tardy policy.

    Having taken effect at the beginning of the school year, the policy intends to reduce the amount of tardies throughout campus. Tardiness has been a problem at Poly, with over 80,000 tardies just last year. This is the main reason the policy was created.

    The policy consists of the usual two minute bell during which staff members encourage students to get to class. Once the final bell rings, teachers are expected to shut their doors and not let anyone else in. If you are unable to make it to class on time then you will need to find a staff member around campus who can give you a tardy pass.

    If the policy is not followed, consequences can be expected. A student with three or more tardies is assigned lunch detention. If the amount of tardies goes up to six then the consequence will be after school detention.

    The team in charge of creating and enforcing this new policy is the Safe and Civil Committee led by new Assistant Principal Shannon Young. According to Young, teachers presented the information that the amount of people coming into class late can become a distraction and disturb teaching.

    The results are already apparent as the amount of tardies has been reduced by 33% over the same time period last year, according to Young. Students are visibly more hurried to get to class and areas which were previously known for loitering are now clear.
    Periods 1 and 2 however, continue to be the periods with most tardies. Young is not discouraged by this information.

    “We are hoping that as we continue to enforce and utilize our progressive discipline,” said Young, “we continue to see a reduction in periods 1 and 2.”

    Teachers and students views on the other hand, differ. Students believe the policy could be more understanding.
    “Instead of punitive repercussions, they could offer incentives as encouragement instead,” said MEDS Academy senior Kerah Hunter.

    “They should be more lenient,” said Brooke Coleman, a junior in BEACH Academy. Coleman points out the diversity of students who attend Poly and who might live farther away, “The school doesn’t understand the struggles of getting to school on time.”

    The unequal distribution of punishment among students, is one of the concerns of English teacher and Softball coach, Elizabeth Sanches. Sanches said there needed to be a balance between the consequences for a student who is a few minutes late compared to the one who is 40 minutes late.

    “To punish them both in the same manner doesn’t seem fair,” said Sanches. Regardless, she believes that after the tardy mess of last year, the policy is necessary.

    English teacher, Kerry Boyd, also agrees it is necessary. “Students have been more motivated to get to class on time, especially compared to last year,” said Boyd.

    Poly’s new tardy policy will continue to be in effect throughout the school year. Administration hopes to successfully continue reducing the amount of tardies and create a balanced environment for teaching and learning.

  • Girls Volleyball Spikes Success

    One of the many sports active this season at Long Beach Poly High is girls Volleyball, coached by Leland McGrath. Tryouts and training for Frosh Soph, Junior Varsity, and Varsity teams were held earlier this summer. The girls volleyball teams have matches held on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays with tournaments also taking place on some Saturdays. Junior Varsity and Frosh Soph games start at 3:00pm while Varsity begins at 4:15pm.

    On Sept. 21-22, the teams competed in the Durango Volleyball Tournament in Las Vegas, NV.

    After a few tough matches against Wilson and Millikan the Jackrabbits started getting the outcomes they’ve been hoping for in their matches, including a  25 – 16, 25 – 13, 25 – 10 sweep against the St. Joseph Jesters.

    Thanks to a lineup change made by Coach McGrath and a change in the girls’ energy the Jackrabbits got what they were striving for. McGrath put sophomore Adonia Faumuina as one of the setters in the team’s two-setter system.

    Halfway through the  Moore League girls’ volleyball season, Long Beach Poly swept Lakewood on Sept. 25, forcing a first-place tie between the Jackrabbits and Lancers.  Poly was also fierce in a road sweep of the Lancers, winning 25-21, 25-10, 25-15.

  • Softball Gets Lessons with Living Legend

    Softball Gets Lessons with Living Legend

    Softball began their season with their new coach, Elizabeth Martin-Sanchez, who took over as head coach for the girls. She brought the girls home with many victories and even to the first round of CIF. This was actually the first in years that the girls made it this far. Losing to Grace Brethren, the softball girls kept their heads up and encouraged good vibes for the years to come. Starlynn Ramirez said, “Even though we lost I am glad to have done something that hasn’t be done in a very long time.” All of the team and Coach Sanchez believe that they have done they’re beat and considers the team as family.

    Sanchez introduces a softball clinic that allows young softball players to connect with a softball World and Olympic champion, Crystl Bustos, with this program this summer at Poly. This gives the girls an opportunity to see how dreams can be achieved and they could end up like Bustos when it comes to terms with softball. Sanchez has given out flyers that enlists that Bus- tos will be here on August 12th. The program, though, is from August 10-14. The clinic will help softball players condition and practice for their upcoming seasons. This program is free as long as the right documents are turned in and are filled out correctly.

    Crystl Bustos is known for being 3 time gold medalist for the USA olympic team in Beijing. She has become a great role model for the soft- ball community. She is originally from Southern California; she lived in San Clarita. Started her softball career in the little league in Canyon  Country. When she moved on to higher education she attended Palm Beach Community and that began her fame as a softball player. She played in the Beijing Games in 2008 taking silver and won a gold medal in three international league games. The girls this summer have an opportunity to look up for their future.

  • How Are Nazis Still a Thing?

    There’s an absurd number of Neo-Nazis in the United States today, something that just shouldn’t be possible. If they were all the grandchildren or great-grandchildren of Nazis who escaped Ger- many after the war ended and successfully sneaked into the Americas, then it would make a little bit more sense. Maybe the Neo-Nazis today were all raised with traditional Nazi values, straight from the motherland. The numbers would add up.

    However, that is not the case. Our country is infested with ignorant, hateful, Anti- American, Jew-hating Nazis, and a great number of them aren’t even directly related to Nazis from World War 2; a lot of young Neo-Nazis today

    have American parents and American grandparents, who were born and raised right here in the United States, which makes this whole situation all the more absurd, for numerous reasons.

    First of all, I can’t think of anything more Un-American than Nazism. We straight up fought a whole war against Nazis. We had tons of propaganda about how evil Hitler and his beliefs were and why everyone should’ve enlisted and done their part to put a stop to his reign of terror in Europe. Our country had and should still have very strong opinions on Nazism. During World War 2 our entire country had pretty much devoted itself to fighting it.

    Millions of American soldiers died fighting Nazis. There are still people alive to- day who fought Nazis and people who have family members who fought Nazis–this country hates Nazis. So how in the hell is there such a big Neo-Nazi population in our country today? It’s like if 50 years from now, we had a bunch of Neo-ISIS members marching in the streets–it doesn’t make any sense. How is it possible that there are so many men out there today openly advocating for a cause that’s not only dangerous and hateful, but also extremely Anti-American?

    You’d think we’d be doing more as a country to shut down movements so detestable, but we’re not doing enough. Nazis are evil, wicked, ignorant, Anti-American scum. As such, they should be scared to show their faces in public and openly express their evil ideology be- cause we as a society should be showing them the same kind of viciousness they show Jews

    and other minorities. This is a hate group that openly calls for violence upon people–there’s no room for that society. No person should befriend or love them, no employer should give them jobs, and no organization should allow them any kind of position of power.

    And I’m not saying to take away their first amendment rights-if they want to publicly express their beliefs, I say go for it. Hell, I welcome it. It’ll make it easier for us good, responsible citizens to pick them out and practice our first amendment rights to publicly detest and ostracize those Nazi scum and carry out the justice they deserve.

    This isn’t even a political issue. An ideology of hate and violence based on race isn’t a political platform; it’s not anything worth respecting or defending.