New Reward Needed

By Kira Yates ’16 Every March, students who have achieved Honor Roll and/ or Straight A’s, are granted a small token in first period, a ticket to miss third and fourth period.  During this time, students are supposed to go the Ertzman to watch some songs from Rock’n’Roll.  In between every few songs, the Educators of America Club chooses audience members … Read More

Snow Plows Could Have Done Better

Meghan Proctor ’16 The snow plows could have done a better job clearing the roads after last month’s blizzard. After the snow stopped falling, there was more than two feet of snow to clear from the roads. However, many main and residential roads did not get the help that was promised, and much of the snow was placed in areas … Read More

A Creative Outlook

By Maya Koeppen ’17 Every high school student in MCPS is required to take a credit worth of art, but quite frankly, it should be a little more than that. The average student spends hours in a single school day listening to lectures and reading from textbooks, all the while absorbing the thoughts of others rather than cultivating their own. … Read More

No Limits, No Personality

By Ryan Deal ’16 Everyone knows of Twitter, the hugely successful social media site that connects people worldwide all in a “Twittersphere.” Twitter largely came to be known for its brief “tweets,” publicly displayed messages from a user that capped off at 140 characters. The character limit was unique, and these quick-hitting messages provided a speedier fix for today’s hyperactive … Read More

Lack of Motivation Is Bad

By Madison Dymond ’16 With exams coming up, there is one thing that is vital to ensure students’ success: motivation. It is the thing they need the most and the thing they can never seem to get. The brain capacity of a student means nothing if they are not motivated to learn and study the material. Exams are memory tests. … Read More

The Emoji Language: at a Loss for Words

By Isabella Pilot ’18 If you could describe 2015 in one word, what would it be? For the staff of the Oxford dictionary, the words lumbersexual, refugee, and on fleek came to mind, but the “word” that triumphed over them all isn’t a word at all. With over 171,000 words in the English language, the ‘Face With Tears of Joy’ … Read More

Solving the Crisis: Developed Persian Gulf States Should Take Syrian Refugees

By Josh Averbach ’18 With a refugee crisis in the Middle East, wealthy Persian Gulf states should accept refugees to alleviate the vast amount fleeing to other countries.   Syria’s ongoing civil war has prompted more than 11 million people to flee the war-torn nation, according to the humanitarian organization Mercy Corps. Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey have received more refugees … Read More

Social Media’s Negative Effects

By Kira Yates ’16 Many young adults claim that sites such as Facebook and Instagram are harmless towards one’s health. However, as much as millennials and others want to believe social media is not harming them, it is. From lowering self-confidence to having adverse mental health effects, the reality of social media is that it has countless negative consequences on … Read More

Dislike the Users, Not the Site

By Milan Polk ’16 Social media generally gets a bad wrap. Teachers, parents and anyone else with an aversion to technology often roll their eyes when social networking is mentioned. However, most opponents fail to recognize the benefits of these online communities and would rather focus on the negative. Popular social media sites such as Twitter, Instagram and Facebook are … Read More