Author: adviser

  • Justice in the Real World

    This past semester, JUSTICE Academy teachers Mieko Harrington and Charlie Dodson have made it a point to show their students what the real world is like in the law enforcement profession.
    Charlie Dodson, the Criminal and Civil Law teacher at Poly, organized the Allstate Street Law Program where students spent two days in class working with ten lawyers and paralegals from Allstate’s Torrance office. Additionally, Harrington, the Intro to Social Justice teacher, organized seven in-class guest speakers to talk to her students about their careers.
    In the Allstate Street Law program, the students focused on two types of liability situations: sexual harassment and host responsibility for underage drinking. Then, on Wednesday, December 9, the students traveled to the Torrance office and participated in Mock Trial scenarios and interviewed all of the employees about their different career paths.
    “Participating in the Allstate Street Law program assisted me in figuring out what I want to do with my future by giving me an insight on what happens behind the scenes. This program helped me understand there’s way more to every career than you see or hear about on the outside,” said junior Jaclyn Pangelinan.
    The purpose of the program was to show students different jobs in the office, from lawyers to claims adjusters, demonstrating that you do not have to be a lawyer to work in the field. It also gave students an inside look on the day-to-day life of being a lawyer.
    “Street Law has really enabled me to see through the eyes of a real lawyer, a profession I fully intend to carry through out school,” said senior Marina Bowley.

    “The legislation that runs our government and most importantly, involve themselves in real life ethical issues that they usually don’t experience in everyday life.”
    Harrington organized seven guest speakers who represented different aspects of the justice profession. She brought in a Correctional Officer for a level four all men’s jail, a Signal Hill Police Officer, and a Long Beach Police Sergeant to show the law enforcement side of the justice system. A Parole Officer and a Probation Officer came in to speak about the rehabilitation aspect of the law. A family attorney spoke about the law profession, and City Councilwoman Stacy Mungo represented the political aspect.
    Hearing from each guest speaker is beneficial because “[students] get firsthand information from people who work the jobs, bringing in real life stories and incidences,” said Harrington.

  • Poly’s Olympians

    On Tuesday, November 17, LBUSD Adapted Physical Education and Special Olympics Southern California hosted the 2015 LBUSD Fall Games at Cabrillo High School.
    The LBUSD Adapted Physical Education is a program where physical education teachers come out to the schools to exercise with special education students throughout the day; the Special Olympics Southern California is a branch of the Special Olympics that creates inclusion in sports for everyone regardless of their disabilities.
    This is an event where the two organizations came together to have sports training and athletic competitions for the students. It gives the students with disabilities the opportunity to show off their skills and be amazing athletes as well.
    This year the event involves a six-week basketball training program geared to teach and develop fitness skills the participants will be able to use every day of their life. A lot of people were encouraged to come out as volunteers to support the athletes as they participated in the competition.
    The students were involved in many games and had a good time while they played and had fun with their friends. It was a great time for both the students and the volunteers because everyone was able to get out, be active, and have a good time.
    Julia Hasselwander, the Adapted Physical Education teacher at Poly, trained the student athletes for this year’s event. She is a very encouraging figure for the students and motivates them to do their best when they go out to play.
    This a great event for the community that has been going on for the past couple years now and, because of the positive success, should be able to continue for years to come. As students learn about the event, they were encouraged to come out and help.
    “I have volunteered in Special Olympic events before but never something partnered with the Long Beach schools,” said senior Imani Martin. “I love volunteering and helping out at the other events so it would be great to help out my own school mates.”
    Getting the word out about this event should encourage more students from the schools to come out as volunteers and support their fellow classmates.
    “It seems like it would be a great event and I would love to come out and bring the team with me next time,” said senior Ayesha Kosaka member of the girl’s basketball team. “Knowing that I am able to help out them out makes me feel good and I would be happy to be able to contribute.
    Because of such a great outcome, the two organizations are likely to partner up again in the spring for the 2016 LBUSD Spring Games.

  • A Leap For The Ladies

    The Long Beach Poly girls basketball team opened their season in the Beach Classic tournament at Redondo Union High School from November 30 through December 5.
    The Jackrabbits, arguably one of the top teams in all of Southern California, kicked off their season against local competitor, the St. Anthony Saints. Poly however would be missing their top 4 post players, top junior and USC commit Ayanna Clark, junior transfer Jasmine Jones, junior Kathryn Headspeth, junior Aiyanna Barnes and senior, Cal State Northridge commit Eliza Matthews. The absences of these players left the Jackrabbits undersized all week, hurting them in some games.
    “Not having all of the team definitely hurts us, but we have plenty of good talented guards that help make up that gap” said senior guard Da’Jah Jackson.
    After a back-and-forth game, Poly came up short against St. Anthony losing 44-41.
    “It was tough,” said senior guard Cierra Belvin. “It wasn’t the way I would’ve like to start off my senior year, but it’s a long season so we just have to improve and learn from our mistakes.”
    Poly reassured everyone that they are still a top team by winning the consolation championship. Poly beat North Torrance in a much needed bounce back game by a score of 52-35. The girls then played Mira Costa, where they held their opponent scoreless through the first 18 minutes jumping out to a 17-0 lead and finishing strong with a 55-37 win. The lady Jackrabbits were able to ride their momentum into their next game where they won a 58-55 thriller over Lynwood to capture the Consolation championship.
    Starting junior guard Danae Miller played well throughout the week, helping the shorthanded Jackrabbits capture a consolation title. She is the starting point guard and one of the top guards around. Sophomore center Kennedi Shorts gave outstanding performances as the Jackrabbit’s lone center. The Jackrabbits also relied on their trio of senior guards Siana Fields, Da’Jah Jackson, and Cierra Belvin. Fields, a Clemson commit, is the team leader, as a returning starter, who looks to help lead the team accomplish their goals of capturing CIF and State championships. Jackson is one of the team’s top shooters and looks to be a major offensive threat this year. Belvin is also a leader on this year’s team.
    “We are just trying to improve as a team and improve our chemistry. I’m also staying on people about coming to practice ready to work and keeping their grades up” said Belvin.
    The girls basketball team will travel to Arizona on Friday, December 18 to play in the Nike Tournament of Champions, one of the premier tournaments in the country.

  • Final Wave Goodbye

    On Wednesday, December 16, the Poly Surf Team will participate in their final competition of the Sea View League for the 2015-2016 season.
    The league finale is being held at the Huntington Beach Pier beginning at 8 A.M. and will last until 2 or 3 P.M. Participants who will compete are the top surfers from each of their schools. These schools include Poly, Wilson, Millikan, Mater Dei, Los Alamitos, and Corona Del Mar.
    The Poly roster includes the top ranked surfers in the events composed of six boys’ short board, two long board, two girls’ short board and long board, and a body board.
    The boys who will participate in the short board event are seniors Sean Love, Spencer Steffen, Chad King, Isaac Nelson, and Ellis Armendariz, as well as freshman Darren Deutsch. For each event that takes place, coaches Jeff Montooth and Jason Manack has lined up alternative surfers in case the competing surfers would not be able to perform.
    On the girls’ side, the short board surfers will be sophomores Juliana Skjonsby and Cora Fahringer, as well as other team members. The girls’ longboard will consist of seniors Eileen Sok and Gabby Cooper. The body boarders are sophomores Mitchell Rita and Jared Cox, boys’ longboard by juniors Graeme Tanaka and Kevin Miranda.
    The surfers prepared for this big event by simply going to practice every day and surfing.
    “The best conditioning for surfing, is quite frankly, surfing. The surfers knew what they needed to work on for the finale,” said Montooth.
    Although the surf team is not part of the Moore League, the Sea View League will award the surfers who will place top five with trophies. Despite the end of the surf season, the coaches are hopeful for a girls’ surf season if there are enough participants. When asked about the season, senior Eileen Sok said one of her favorite memories was when “Montooth and Manack would go into the water with these kooky looking surf caps.”
    The Poly Surf Team did well for their first season, beating Corona Del Mar just a few weeks ago.

  • Soccer Sets New Goals for 2016

    The Poly girls and boys varsity soccer teams are preparing for their upcoming 2015-2016 seasons.  Both teams have played in multiple non-league games to get ready for the soccer season to come.
    The Jackrabbit’s first non-league game took place on Monday, November 30 against Huntington Beach High School, who beat Poly with two goals, one in each half.  The boys came back to their next game ready to play and beat Crespi High School 3-0, with one goal in the first half and two in the second half.
    The girls soccer team has had a rocky start to their season with multiple ties and losses, winning only once. Although the lady Jackrabbits have not started their season as well as they had hoped, many of the players are still expecting an exciting season.  Their first non-conference game was on Tuesday, December 1, against Warren High who beat the Jackrabbits 4-0.  Midfielder Skylar Herrera was selected as the Player of the Game.  The girls also tied with both Downey High and Palos Verdes on December 3 and 7, both tied at (0-0).  The lady Jackrabbits also tied (1-1) with Woodbridge on Thursday, December 10, where senior forward Tavia Leachman was selected player of the game.
    Their most recent non-conference tournament game was on Saturday, December 12, against South Hills High School, where Poly won with a score of (1-0), pulling out their first win.
    “We are playing well and adjusting to the new formations and players.  I can tell we are going to build a strong team chemistry on and off the field.  I can’t wait to compete and do well as a team this season,” said Leachman.
    “Our team this year possesses great ability and talent.  At this point, we are working things out to make sure we are successful during the season so we can secure another Moore League title.  We also hope to make it to the finals in CIF playoffs and get that ring,” said senior midfielder Madi Brown.
    Both the boys and girls teams will soon move into the Moore League season.  Girls soccer has a home Moore League game versus Jordan on Tuesday, December 15, and boys soccer has an away, non-conference game against Los Alamitos High School on Wednesday, December 16.

  • A Brand New Bruin

    Josh Talbott, has joined fellow Jackrabbit underclassman Camren McDonald as a potential University of California, Los Angeles commit as of November.
    UCLA, a dream school for those focused on both academics and athletics, is a football powerhouse and has featured many Poly alumni on their roster, most recently including Jayon Brown and Colin Samuel.
    Talbott debuted this season as a starting safety. During his successful junior year, Talbott got a handle on the field and the competition despite Poly’s very young 2015 team. Talbott stood out on the field throughout the entire season and even competed against the Millikan Rams with a broken wrist.
    Talbott’s determination paid off at the close of the Jackrabbit’s bittersweet season when UCLA recruitment contacted Talbott with an offer.
    In Talbott’s words, “There’s nothing like earning something you’ve been working your whole life for.”
    Following his first offer, Talbott hopes that he can work towards even more offers from top-tier schools like UCLA, not only for himself, but also for his teammates and friends.  Talbott is “hungry” for more success and does not plan to stop at only UCLA.
    As for next year, Talbott believes that the Jackrabbits do not need a standout player for the 2016 season, but only an “entire team that steps it up.”
    As of Wednesday, December 16, Talbott has another offer from WSU.

  • Zoe’s Recent Rants

    Zoe’s Recent Rants

    Shootings

    On November 27, three people were killed and nine others wounded at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs. On the same day, two were killed and two wounded at a restaurant in Sacramento, CA. On December 2, a married couple killed 14 and wounded 22 at the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, CA. On the same day, one person was killed and three wounded in a shooting in Savannah, GA. Half of these were not even given attention in the news, which raises the question, Are we becoming numb to these shootings?

    Unless a shooting brings the death of a significant number of people, the media no longer cares, and shockingly, neither do the civilians of the United States. The US cannot become a country that sees shootings on the news as regularly as does a country in the midst of a civil war. But when there have been more mass shootings than calendar days in the year thus far, it is hard not to believe that is the path we are headed down.

    When the British Broadcasting Channel (BBC) covered the San Bernardino shooting, reporter James Cook opened the newscast with the line, “Just another day in the United States.” The rest of the world can see it, so why can’t we? The citizens of the United States cannot become used to seeing shootings on the news every night; instead, they need to begin campaigning for gun restrictions to bring an end to this violence.

    El Salvador’s Abortion Policy

    Prior to 1998, there were three reasons Salvadorian women could legally abort a fetus: her life was endangered, the pregnancy was a product of rape, or a severe congenital disorder was detected in the fetus. However, since the Penal Code was passed in 1998, no woman, under any circumstances, can legally have an abortion.

    This has led to serious consequences. Many women are now forced to use dangerous methods including inserting metal rods to penetrate the uterus and using catheters to inject soapy water or battery acid, and often to perform these sketchy operations in their own homes.

    These techniques are often fatal or otherwise permanently injure the woman. And in situations when girls as young as ten are raped, they are now left with the decision to either have their child—which, when the mother is so young, frequently leads to death of the mother and/or the child—or attempt aborting her fetus.

    Another result of this law is that women who have miscarriages or stillbirths are being arrested for abortion when they did not abort their children. Punishing women for complications in their wanted births is adding salt to the wound, and is absolutely wrong.

    Even if you are pro-life, these stringent anti-abortion laws are anything but that. They put the lives of hundreds of women at stake and arrest women for miscarrying their child.

  • Basketball Bounces into 2016

    The varsity boys basketball team opened their winter season at the 64th annual Pacific Shores tournament at Redondo Union High School starting on Monday, November 23.
    The Jackrabbits lit up the floor in the first three games of the tournament, beginning with a (48-42) win against Campbell Hall, a (62-59) win against Inglewood, and a (55-48) win against Roosevelt but eventually fell short in the tournament’s championship round against the host, Redondo Union, with a  (64-49) loss.
    “I think we did pretty well but we still have a lot of work to do as far as building team chemistry,” said senior guard and forward Garrison Gowens. “We just have to play to win and learn how to not play for ourselves, but as a team.”
    Junior forward Zafir Williams, who lead the Jackrabbits in points, was named both Player of the Game and Most Outstanding Player for the championship game. Williams had to step up a lot to compensate for centers John Duff and Myles Johnson being out due to transfer rules and an injury. Both are expected to return in late January.
    There are new leaders on the team with captains Harrison Bonner, Drew Buggs, and Reuben Williams.
    “It feels really good to be named one of the captains so I’m just trying to improve everyday,” said senior point guard Reuben Williams.
    “I enjoy being a leader and having my teammates look up to me. This is my third year starting on varsity, my second as captain. I have won a CIF championship and I know what it takes to win so I embrace the role of teaching the underclassmen,” said senior star guard Drew Buggs.
    During Poly’s third game against Roosevelt, Buggs injured his knee leaving the Jackrabbits without one of their captains and top scorers on the court.
    “Drew is a big part of us winning but we can pick it up off at the bench and come out on top,” said Gowens.
    The Jackrabbits will be on the court once again this Wednesday, December 16, in the Tarkanian Classic tournament in Las Vegas, Nevada.

  • News Brief

    LAUSD Shuts Down in Wake of Terror Threat (or Terror Hoax?)

    On Tuesday morning of December 15th, all schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District shut down after receiving a terror threat from a ‘credible source’ according to LAUSD officials and the Los Angeles Police Department. Shortly after this news, LAUSD Superintendent Ramon Cortines stated at a press conference that the threats were against several schools in the district and involved the use of “backpacks and other packages.” According to Congressman Brad Sherman, the threat was sent by email, and the threat appeared to be sent by “an extremist Muslim who has teamed up with local jihadists.”
    However, Congressman Adam Schiff stated that the threat is actually a hoax: “Something designed to disrupt school districts in large cities. The investigation is ongoing for finding where the threat originated from and who was responsible.” After a closer look into the email, there is evidence that there is a strong sense of ignorance to the Islamic religion, such as not capitalizing ‘Allah’. NYPD Commissioner Bratton believes that the email contained references to Showtime drama Homeland because it contained several references to recent episode plotlines.
    There are approximately 900 schools in LAUSD and this potential threat required the proper procedures to maintain the safety of the staff and students in each and every school. Though this may appear to be a hoax as of writing, it is best to take these “rare” threats seriously.

     

    Paris Climate Change Summit a Success

    On Saturday, December 12, there was a Conference of the 21 Parties (COP21) summit in Paris, France to discuss the global threat of climate change. This agreement involves nearly 200 countries and is the first-ever consensus for all involved countries to cut carbon emissions. Though many world leaders have released press statements regarding an imperfect deal, “this does not prevent us from marching historical steps forward,” according to Xie Zhenhua, China’s chief negotiator. The deal calls for an agreement to keep the global temperature increase to below 3.6°F (2°C), a plan to begin by 2020 that would give $100 billion per year to finance combatting climate changes in developing countries, and an effort to reach peak carbon emissions as soon as possible. Every five years, the countries will band together to review progress. This deal will officially come to fruition when at least 55 countries responsible for 55% of global emissions have agreed to the treaty.

  • Once Upon A Hallmark Christmas

    Once Upon A Hallmark Christmas

    Fate is real. The rich are evil. New York City is the only large city in existence. There is no excuse to hate the holidays. It is wrong to want a good career. Living in a small town is the only way to be happy. Research shows that 50% of the time, engaged women are more likely to meet their true soulmates because their fiancés were actually jerks anyway. Christmas is not about presents, it is about showing your love of family and friends. If a woman is fired from her job or does not get the promotion she wanted, then she will most likely be married within six months. In order to be a complex character, a close relative to you must have died. Congratulations! You just made it through every Hallmark Christmas movie plot in existence!

    I admit that I do like some of these movies (watch Once Upon a Holiday), but I also have to say that most of them make me want to vomit because of the culmination of bad writing, predictable plotlines, and sickeningly sweet dialogue. While researching for this article, I watched ten Hallmark Channel original movies. I also smashed the television with a baseball bat, or at least I wanted to.

    I understand that nobody expects these movies to be nominated for Oscars and that any romantic movie will always have a certain level of cliché in it, but I also know Hallmark can do better. They can create characters that are complex because of their thoughts and interests, not because of the death of a family member or a bad breakup 15 years ago. Also, since none of the movies set in New York have anything to do with the actual city–no ice skating at Rockefeller Center or long walks through Central Park–they could change it up and make a movie set in Cleveland or tell the story of two college kids falling in love at Purdue University. Perhaps Hallmark could make the male lead the one who is desperate to find a partner. The writers can come up with pivotal dramatic scenes that are not caused by a misunderstanding.

    Luckily, it seems like the 2015 movies are not as sexist as the older movies. The plotlines of the old movies usually go like this: a thirty year old woman living in NYC is dumped by her jerk boyfriend, is passed up for promotion by a different jerk guy, gets stranded in a small town, falls in love with a kind man from said small town, realizes that she shouldn’t have a career or live in a big city, and then the two leads kiss and the movie ends with no real answer as to where they are going to live. The 2015 movies I watched were basically the same except the couple moved to where the girl was promoted and ended with a wedding montage. Hopefully this means progress, but I sincerely doubt it.

  • Students Get Blood Drawn

    On Tuesday, December 8th, Student Commission hosted their annual blood drive for the first semester. This year, 267 pints of blood were donated, potentially saving up to 801 lives. Medical volunteers from Cedar Sinai Medical Center come to Poly biannually to offer their service to draw blood from students donors. In addition to assuaging the fears and encouraging the donors, the staff and volunteers also offered snacks to rejuvenate those who gave blood.
    “They were very sympathetic towards the donors, and made sure no one passed out,” said Tiger Khou, member of Student Commission.
    Donors had the option to choose between receiving a complementary Lifesaver T-shirt or a coupon for a free pint of ice cream from Baskin Robbins. Sophomore Katherine Khiev, Commissioner of Welfare, organized this event. “The blood drive event had a great turn out,” said Khiev. “There was a total of 267 pints donated, therefore this season we have saved many lives. There was a lot of time and effort put into the event, but in the end of the day it was a team effort. I’m thankful for all the volunteers and donors who helped make this event happen.”
    “It’s the holiday season, and I wanted to give back to the community by donating blood and saving lives,” said Senior Andrew Sovanasy. Blood drives occur once every semester, and Student Commission urges students who have missed the opportunity to donate blood this semester to donate in the next semester. Donors must wait eight weeks until donating blood again, however.

  • Is Marching Band A Sport?

    Is Marching Band A Sport?

    1. Yes, Marching Band Belongs on the Field 

    According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a sport is “a physical activity (such as hunting, fishing, running, swimming, etc.) that is done for enjoyment.” By that definition, marching band is as much a sport as football.

    Many people view marching band as the activity done by musicians who aren’t physically fit enough to play soccer, baseball, or run cross-country. Although that is often true, marching band is in fact a physically trying activity.

    Two weeks before the school year even starts, the marching band is at school rehearsing for six hours each day learning drill, memorizing music, and practicing technique.

    Marching band is a complex sport that involves breaking down music into pieces and arranging it to constantly changing formations. Coupled with some heavy instruments such as the tenor saxophone, baritone, and sousaphone, marching band is serious physical activity. If you believe marching band isn’t difficult enough to be a sport, you are very wrong.

    People will often argue that since marching band is not competitive, it can’t possibly be a sport, but, although this may be surprising, marching band is a competitive sport. The Long Beach Poly Marching Unit participated in four competitions within their league, and placed eighth within its division (4A) of the Southern California Judging Association (SCJA).

    Some people contend that marching band is not a sport, but instead is an athletic event, which, when thought about, is a rather circular argument. Sports are events where athletes compete, and an athletic event is an event where athletes compete. So, arguing a difference is illogical.

    Marching band requires skill and a certain level of physical fitness in order to succeed, just like any other sport. It has rules and regulations that have to be followed and traditions that are faithfully practiced by members. Although marching band obviously doesn’t have the physical contact aspect like soccer, hockey, and football, it does call for the same dedication and practice.

    Marching band in many respects is more labor intensive than some sports that are regularly covered on the sports page of the High Life, such as golf. Members of marching band receive physical education credits like other sports, so there is no good reason marching band  shouldn’t be labeled a sport.

     

    No, They Should Stay in the Stands

    Marching band is a classic icon at high schools, playing pieces during Friday-night football games and competing in weekend band tournaments. They provide an important vibe to the high school atmosphere. There are many people who voice opinions stating that marching band should be considered a sport. I, however, disagree and think marching band does not constitute a sport.

    My criteria for a sport is a competition focused on athletic ability that has impartial scoring to determine a winner. This rules out activities such as math team or competitive fishing.

    Marching band’s main focus is playing instruments together, and is an act of showmanship. For sports, the main focus is to compete against others and be the best. Marching band’s focus is to support the football team, provide encouragement for the crowd at games, and represent the school at public events like parades.

    There are a number of activities that require physical strength to participate in, but not all these are considered sports.

    There are a number of activities that require coordination and hand-eye coordination to excel at such as brain surgery and cutting vegetables, and, incidentally, marching while playing an instrument.

    I am not denying the hard work required to be in a marching band. Marching bands practice for more hours than some sports and is very demanding, but it is a performing art, not a sport.

    Marching band has competitions and involves scoring and beating other teams. However, this alone does not constitute it as a sport. Spelling bees are scored competitions with winners, but are not a sport.

    There is a difference between sports and athletic events. I am not denying that some athletic competitions require more physical strength than sports, such as gymnastics and cheerleading, but they still do not constitute as sports. Marching band has judges who critique technique and musicality, but who do not enforce rules. This is similar to other music competitions where judges base the winner on who they like better, rather than simply who does the best.

    Marching band is not a sport. This does not detract from the intense physical components of being in the marching band, but it simply does not count as a sport.