The Academy Times - Santa Fe Public Schools

The Academy Times
Dec 2011
Volume 6, No. 2
Tyra
represents
Can Facebook get
students at school
you into trouble?
board meetings
By Krystal Wright
So seniors, you’ve been studying hard to take your
SATs and ACTs, working hard on applying for the
college you want to get into, collecting recommendations, and you’ve made a perfect impression. Although
you might be a promising college student, you forgot
to check a few things off your check list: Facebook,
MySpace, Tumbler, Twitter, You Tube and Flickr.
This article will focus
on Facebook, but applies
to all social networking
sites, blogs, and video
sites.
I guess for teens,
Facebook is a hang out
place, a place to vent,
and a place to maintain
instant contact. It’s a fun
way to stay in touch or share photos with friends and
family. All in all, it’s just a fun way to kill time, and to
some it is a hobby.
Sites like Facebook are supposed to help you keep
in touch with your friends and/or meet new people. I
can guarantee a large number of students spend hours
a day updating statuses and profiles, sending and
checking messages, looking through other people’s
photos, making comments, playing games and more.
Some might say it is harmless fun.
Students are online sharing details with friends for
everyone to see. Are your settings private or public?
Unless you can control the privacy setting of your
Please see Facebook, Page 2
By Austin Tyra
Recently I was selected to be a student advisor for
the Santa Fe Public Schools Board. As an advisor I
sit on the board as a voting
member with two other advisors from Santa Fe High and
Capital High. Attending school
board meetings is a great experience and has taught me a lot.
Present at the meetings are
President Barbara Gudwin
Glenn Wikle, Linda Trujillo,
Frank Montano, Steven J. CarAustin Tyra
rillio, the Superintendent of
Public Schools, Bobby Gutierrez and the two other student advisors, Elisha Apodaca
of Capital High School and Emily Durham of Santa Fe
High School. Meetings are held to discuss topics that
range from the nutrition of food being served to the
potential re-location of some schools.
At each meeting the three student advisors get a
chance to discuss anything that we think is important.
This truly surprised me at first because I thought the
job would consist of sitting quietly and not speaking often, but what we students say at the meetings is
always taken into serious consideration and that is a
great thing.
At one meeting I mentioned that although computer
work is a great tool for students to work at their own
Please see Tyra, Page 4
NEWS
The Academy Times
Facebook: Continued from page1
100 Facebook friends,
and they can control the
privacy setting of each
of their 100 Facebook
friends (which we all
know is mission impossible), whatever you
happen to post on your
wall or comment to a friend’s post has the possibility
of being spread to 10,000 or more people.
Even if you have around 40 friends, “the potential
is 1,600 or more,” says Brenda Huffman of the web
newspaper, Axcessnews.com. This happens even when
you have set your privacy setting to “friends only.”
I also found out that any page you become a fan
to or any group you join on social networks is set to
“everyone” and may be displayed with your public
profile page. Huffman also says, “The privacy setting
for each comment you make to a fan page or group
is controlled by the page or group, not your personal
privacy settings.”
When you sign up on a social networking site, you
agree to their terms. Basically, whatever you share online can be viewed by almost anybody, until you delete
your content. When you delete content “it is deleted
in a manner similar to emptying the recycle bin on a
computer,” says the National Association for College
Admission counseling, an online resource for how
to apply to college. When you
publish your content using the
public setting, this means you are
allowing everyone, even those
without a Facebook page, to access and use that information and
associate it with you.
Most teens don’t think certain
things we do can have a dramatic influence on our
school work. It shouldn’t matter what we have online,
right?
Dec 2011
Page 2
This may be right! You can be a great student, no
matter what you do outside of school, but when some
of the not-so-great, possibly embarrassing, and maybe
even more personal content on your Facebook page
is online for
thousands of
people to view,
you might
want to reconsider what
you post.
You might not like this or even believe it, but I
think you should know that adults from schools, families, and even law enforcement are looking at your
pages. No matter how unfair it seems, some zero tolerance rules at certain schools make it fair to suspend
a student who posts a photo that looks as if a teen is
holding some sort of drug or alcohol. Seniors, I don’t
think any of you would want this in your college or
job file.
Here is a list of negative things that have taken
place because of Facebook:
Teachers and deans of colleges don’t just sit around
• A high school freshmen was suspended because
of provocative online photos.
• Police busted an underage drinking party after
they found invitations online.
• Swimmers were kicked off a swim team for
criticizing coaches on Facebook.
• “At least one college ap
plicant was denied
admission in part be
cause of his blog on
Live Journal. The admissions dean said the
students blog, which was
brought to his attention ,
included seemingly hos
tile comments about
certain college officials.”
News
The Academy Times
looking for your profile, but when it’s brought to their
attention, they do take action.
When I spoke with Ms. Sanchez about the subject,
I asked her how many incidents she has had where
students have been in some sort of trouble because of
a social networking site?
She replied that four students have been suspended
this year for visiting Facebook, You Tube and other
inappropriate websites during
school.
These suspensions aren’t
excessive, but imagine if
these students were seniors
and next year they planned to
go to UNM and the school officials learn that these seniors
were suspended for inappropriate use of a computer
and computer software. I don’t think any college
would like to know about that. They will probably
think you are immature and not serious about your
education if you are fooling around on these sites in
school.
So why is this such a big deal?
Colleges take these sorts of actions seriously because the students they want to accept will represent
their schools. So they should make a good impression and be professional. Colleges want you to reflect
a professional image at their
school. This also means projecting a good impression
through e-mails, voice mails,
and social networking posts.
One story I read said that an
admissions counselor received
an e-mail address from a young lady, and her e-mail
was “[email protected].” The young woman didn’t get
accepted into the college for that reason.
High schools take it seriously for the same reason.
High schools need to be more concerned about the
safety of the student body and what’s going on after
Dec 2011
page 3
school. Are students staying out of trouble? By this
I mean, they want to make sure there are no parties
where students could get seriously hurt or that no one
has drugs or weapons on them while at school.
Also they want to make sure there isn’t any form of
bullying whether it’s online or in person.
As you know our school
and many other schools
have had these social networks banned. Some private
schools have even banned
students from joining these
sites as well. In our school,
Facebook and other sites
are banned because they are
a big distraction, especially considering we work on
computers for all our classes. The school may have
blocked these sites but students find ways around these
fire walls. This can take a toll. I have seen people being banned from using the computers at this school,
which is for bad for them because now they can’t
come to school and earn credits for their diploma.
Those who don’t get caught fall behind in their E2020
progress.
Getting through high school
and applying to college are only
two of your problems. Your profile can follow you to your job.
National Association for College
Admission Counseling cited a
2005 study by Execunet in the
Chicago Tribute: 75% of employers use web research as part
of the applicant screening process. The same article
also said that “an employer withdrew a job offer seeing the candidate’s blog.”
Another man was fired when the CEO found out
that he was on Facebook all day messing around on
instant messaging and chatting with his friends while
Please see Facebook, page 4
NEWS
The Academy Times
Facebook: continued from page 3
getting paid for it. The CEO found this information on
his computer.
So here’s the bottom line: whatever you post, it will
never go away. The minute you put something online,
even if you decide to take it down, it remains public
information. Plus, your page can also be saved on
anyone’s computer.
Here are some tips I’ve collected to help out teens
so that it will be easier to find a job and get into a decent college while being social online:
‘
• Do not post any kind of pictures that have you
advertising any kind of alcoholic beverage or
drugs. The National Association for College
Admission Counseling suggests that you “give
it the grandma test. If you wouldn’t want your
grandma to see it then you don’t want other
adults looking at it.” This includes you or any
one else at drunken parties doing outrageous
things.
• Do not post any personal info on social net
working sites.
• Make sure your profile is private so no
strangers can view your info.
• Be cautious about the people you add, especially strangers and people who you know who
have no discretion.
References:
http://www.nacacnet.org/PublicationsResources/steps/
Articles/Pages/MySpace.aspx
http://www.thematrixfiles.net/blog/why-is-facebookso-addictive/
http:/axcessnews.com/index.php/articles/show/
id/19850
Dec 2011
Page 4
Tyra: continued from page 1
pace, anyone would have trouble sitting in front of a
computer for six hours. I pitched the idea of having
more extracurricular activities
at our school.
Another feature that all
meetings have is a public forum where anyone in the community is allowed to speak on
topics for three minutes. Any
person can speak at any meeting on any topic concerning
the schools.
Superintendent,
Sometimes people speak
Bobbi Gutierrez
simply to praise a good decision or talk about how it can benefit them, but more
often people are criticizing past decisions or problems
they are currently experiencing. The school board
must sometimes sit through recollections of children
being bullied or accusations of the school board attempting to take away the community’s free speech.
During one public forum a woman took the stand
appearing already frustrated and began speaking about
her son being bullied at his current school. She went
on to say that she attempted to contact members of the
board multiple times to no avail and accused them of
not caring.
Her time ran out and she quickly took her seat
again. I do admire the board members for being so
cool and confident under such harsh criticisms because I found myself fidgeting nervously while they
remained quiet and let people speak.
When I think about all the things that can benefit
our school it can be intimidating to discuss all of
them, but I feel reassured that I will also have multiple opportunities to speak about them. Things like
off-campus lunch, better lunch options, and using cell
Please see Trya, Page 22
Teen Interest
Dec 2011
Page 5
The Academy times
Veteran students discuss
experiences at the Academy
By Belinda Armendariz
Thanks to the Academy, we have a second
chance to do things right.
Whenever I mention to
people that I go to the
Academy, I always get
told the same thing: “Isn’t
that the school where all
the mean and troubled
kids go?” Many kids who come here are the ones who
caused trouble or didn’t work well at the regular comprehensive high schools.
What many people don’t understand is that we are
also some of the hardest working students. If we made
the choice to come to the Academy, it is because we
want a fresh start and really want to finish school.
The problem with being a newcomer to the school
is that we all come in not caring so much about the
work, mainly because we think it is going to be easy.
We slack, cause problems and just act like we don’t
care. When I first came to this school, I slacked off a
lot. I would talk in every class, and because of that,
I was always getting moved from my assigned seats.
This year I am more responsible and focused on my
work. Once a person gets the hang of the program, the
work becomes much easier and it gets easier to focus.
Now I am older and in 11th grade. Last year I experienced what it was like to be the immature, irresponsible student. Now when I see other students come in
from other schools, I see myself in their shoes. I realize many students now take advantage of the school
like I use to do.What I can say to new students is that
the teachers are very helpful and the principal is not so
bad.
The advice about the Academy is just to stay on
task, mind your own business, and worry only about
your work. Getting in trouble is not worth the time,
fighting is not worth the suspension and getting kicked
out is not worth missing school. Remember that the
Academy is giving you a second chance and shouldn’t
be taken for granted.
By Donean Carrillo
Most people come to
the Academy for a second
chance at getting through
school. At least, that’s why
I came to this school.
We all have our reasons for coming to this
school: getting expelled,
not having enough credits
to graduate, or maybe even
getting pregnant. Regardless, the Academy administration has probably heard every reason out there.
My reason for coming to the Academy is short,
simple and typical of a lot of teenagers: I ditched too
much at my former school. I hardly showed up to any
of my classes and when I did, I didn’t do any of my
work.
How did I expect to glide through school, not doing any work or going to any of my classes? This is a
question I should have asked myself before I messed
up, but I never did.
Please see Students, Page 6
Teen Interest
Dec 2011
Page 6
The Academy Times
Students: continued from page 5
Eventually I got caught red-handed. I missed too
many classes and it showed on my attendance record.
One more skipped class and a parent teacher conference later, I found myself finally making the decision
to come to the Academy.
During my first day at the Academy, I remember
not wanting to do any work. I wanted to be lazy like
I was at my other school. I was able to get through
school without doing much work, but as the year
passed I soon began to see that I was only hurting
myself.
This time I actually asked myself, how can I expect
to graduate without doing any work? After asking
that question, I knew I wasn’t going to graduate on
time. The thought of not being able graduate with my
original class immediately popped into my head, and I
began to feel like I would never graduate.
That was until one of my teachers gave me a great
piece of advice. She said it shouldn’t matter whether
or not you graduate on time. What’s really important
is that you graduate.
And she was right. Why should the date or time
your graduate matter? What should really matter
is getting your diploma and making a better life for
yourself.
Now I am working hard to graduate this year, and
I’ll be the first to admit that it is not easy. I had a lot
of classes to make up, but with time and effort, I have
been able to make up most of them. If I could give you
any piece of advice it would be, don’t slack off.
You have gone to school most of your life, so
what’s the point of going and not finishing? If you
want to get something done, you have to work at it, or
nothing will get accomplished.
By Devyn Duran
For a short portion of
my young life, I hated high
school. It was boring and everybody I knew went there.
I first heard about the
Academy when I was
talking to one of my friends
about where her sister attended high school.
She said that the Academy was self-paced and small. My friend immediately
had my attention when she said that.
I disliked high school because it was too big and
overcrowded. At the time everyone wanted to go to the
Academy, but there was a waiting list.
After school on a Monday, I picked up an application to attend the Academy, and I went back the next
day to turn it in. I thought with my luck I would never
get in.
Sure enough, I got accepted. I was lucky because
other people I knew had applied as well and I got in
quicker.
My first impression of the Academy was that it was
very small. There were only a few classrooms, a few
teachers and tiny hallways.
I loved it. I also immediately noticed the closer relationship between teachers and students. The teachers
are friendly and very personable. Most of them try to
crack jokes, not successfully, but it makes me happy
that they try to make me smile.
The teachers are also helpful and they try their best
to help you reach your goals. I think that the Academy
has some of the best teachers. At the Academy the
teachers are involved in what I do and they seem to
actually enjoy being teachers.
There hasn’t really been one particular teacher here
who has made a huge difference for me. It has been
the experience of coming to school here in general that
has made a huge difference in my life.
Teen Interest
The Academy Times
I have learned how to take responsibility for my
own progress in school at the Academy. Most often the
teachers will not ask you if you need help, you have to
seek help for yourself.
I have learned how to be more cautious in what I
am doing because the staff here has low tolerance and
many rules.
My experience at the Academy has definitely been
a good one. Without the Academy I probably would
have dropped out of high school because I disliked it
so much before.
By Esperanza Garcia
I began coming to the
Academy in the fall of 2009.
I got kicked out of last school
for fighting. I then got sent to
day reporting because they
didn’t want me going back to
my other school.
I stayed in day reporting for
the rest of the school year. The
following school year, I tried
getting back into former high
school, but my grades were bad. I only had a grade
point average of 0.12.
Ms. Hooper was my teacher in day reporting and
she helped me and a few other students get into the
Academy.
I first started at the Academy High School when I
was only a couple months pregnant. Being pregnant
was one of the many reasons why I wanted to come to
the Academy. At the time they had a really great child
development center that was to be just down the hall
from my classes.
Having a child and attending the Academy has
changed me a lot. Before I had Santiago I was constantly getting in trouble in school and at home.
I didn’t care about going to school at all or even
passing my classes until I found out I was having
Dec 2011
Page 7
a baby. I was just going to get my GED after I got
kicked out of my former high school, but when I
found out I was pregnant, I decided to try to get back
into high school.
I heard that the
Academy allowed
you to catch up with
credits that you
needed in order to
be on track. When I
started my sophomore
year I still had freshmen credits. I caught
up and made my way
up to sophomore credits. When I started here at the
Academy my goal was to have good grades, not get in
trouble for fighting and catch up so that I could graduate with the class of 2012.
I also wanted to come to the Academy because it is
a small school compared to the comprehensive high
schools. There are so many students at those schools,
and I didn’t get along with other girls, so I was always
fighting with them.
There aren’t very many students at the Academy so
I knew it wouldn’t be hard to actually get along with
people. For the past two years (almost three years)
that I’ve been here at the Academy I’ve made a lot of
really good friends and
for once I get along with
most of my teachers.
When you have
a baby it makes you
change your responsibilities and your attitude
towards others. It has
changed me greatly,
although I know some people stay the same with the
same attitude of not caring about anything.
My son Santiago has given me reason to have
Please see Students, Page 20
Teen Interest
The Academy Times
Being a single
mother has its
ups and downs
By Esperanza Garcia
Being a single parent
can be very difficult at
times, but it also gives
me more time to bond
with my child.
I became a single parent a couple months after
my son’s first birthday. I
love being a single mom
to Santiago even though it does get hard at times.
You have a great deal of responsibilities when you
are both the mom and dad to two year old child. There
are a lot of things you have to give up to take on those
responsibilities.
Most parents my age don’t usually take on the roll
of being both parents or even have the responsibility
of being there for their kids. Some teens either let their
parents take care of their children or they give up their
children for adoption.
My son was being raised by his paternal grandmother when he was supposed to be with his dad. I
stopped letting my
son go with his dad
because his dad didn’t
want to stop getting
in trouble to see his
son. I had given him
chance after chance,
but every time I
would get my son
Dec 2011
Page 8
back I would hear about his dad getting in trouble for
stupid things and not
even taking the time
to see his son.
It bothered me
because it was supposed to be his time
to spend with his son
over the weekend but
he would rather go
out partying and be
dumb with his friends while he left Santiago with his
grandma all weekend. Instead of sending him with his
dad, I could have been the one spending all my time
with my son.
His dad fought and fought with me to let him see
him but I found out over and over again that he wasn’t
even spending the time I gave him with Santiago.
After I stopped letting Santiago go with his dad it
caused a lot of problems between him, my mom, and
I. He began telling me he was going to take my son
from me by taking me to court.
He never did take
me to court, though,
because he knew that
my mom would win the
custody battle. Being
that I’m a minor my
mom has custody of my
son.
He didn’t take us to
court because he didn’t
want to fight with my mom. When his dad and I were
together I got some help from him for a while, but it
wasn’t long until the help I got from him stopped.
It all began when he wouldn’t come home when
Santiago and I got out of school, or he would leave
Please see Single, Page 21
Teen Interest
The Academy Times
Never take your
mother for granted
By Devyn Duran
It’s tragic to hear about anyone having cancer. Just
the word cancer is intimidating to me. I’ve heard stories about how people have lost their family members
to cancer and how horrible it felt.
My grandparents died of cancer but I was so young
when they died I hardly understood what happened.
My grandma died of lung cancer. She smoked like
a train. My grandpa died of liver cancer. He was a
drinker.
I thought I understood how sad cancer was, but I
didn’t until my own mother had a cancer scare.
I love my mom and I’ve always felt very fortunate
to have a mom like her. She deserves to be appreciated, and sometimes I do not appreciate her enough.
That’s the sad thing about people who have grown
up with everything
they’ve ever needed.
They start to forget how
to appreciate the good
things in life.
Not only does my
mom give me a safe
place to live and the
material things that I need, she gives me love, courage,
strength, hope and the promise that if I ever need her,
she’ll be there. So you can bet that losing her would
mean losing everything to a young teenager such as
me. After work on a Friday night in October, I went to
my friend’s house to hang out. I planned on spending
the night there until my mom called me to tell me that
Dec 2011
Page 9
she had recieved bad news at the doctor’s office. Over
the phone she told me that they found a tumor in her
liver. I drove home immediately because I knew she’d
need support from her whole family. My mom always
reminds me that family comes before anything or anyone, so I had to be there for her.
When I got home my mom was sad and worried. I
could see the fear in her eyes. I could see how worried she was about me and my brothers. My youngest
brother and I still depend on her in many ways.
She decided to go to bed early that night. I went
into my room, sat on
my big black chair
and started thinking
about how I was going to handle things if
my mom was sick. I
was upset, and I kept
thinking about how I
didn’t appreciate my
mom enough.
For my entire life,
my mom has provided for me. I have always had what
I needed. I have never gone hungry, and I have never
felt alone. She is the best mother out there and if I lost
her I would be devastated.
I have always admired my mom, but now I was
starting to admire her for things that I had never before
thought about.
She has been a single mother for 11 years and I’ve
seen her work miracles in order to make things work
out for her children. My mom is invincible to me, and
this news made it apparent to me that life throws curve
balls at everyone.
When you least expect it, something tragic can happen and your life will be changed forever. How was
this going to change my life? All of these thoughts
were running through my head.
I could not sleep to save my life. I never realized
Please see Mother, Page 21
Teen Interest
The Academy Times
Relationships are
an everyday effort
By Belinda Armenedariz
Have you ever heard
a girl or a boy say, “All
girls are the same” or
“all guys are the same”?
I have, many times. I am
one of the few who doesn’t
think that guys or girls are
all the same because the
people who we identify as
the same as all the others
will be that special someone to another person. We all
eventually find our soul mates, but it is up to us to find
them. It is important to be patient and not look for the
person, but actually to let our roads merge into one.
I myself have had good and bad relationships, and
I also try to learn from my mistakes by asking myself
what I could have done differently as a relationship
ends. There isn’t one relationship that won’t have its
problems. What is very important is communication.
Communication is an important part of a relationship
simply because couples need to communicate. We
need to be able to ask our boyfriends or girlfriends
questions and tell them how we feel or what we see
going on. If we can’t express how we feel or say what
is going on, then how would we ever be able to solve
our problems?
When we do communicate it’s important to listen.
Listening will help us understand any situation much
more. Interrupting someone while he or she is trying
to tell you something is never good because it can just
Dec 2011
Page 10
lead to more problems, and it will just give you another reason to argue. Listening can help your relationship, and it will give you the respect you need.
We all know what respect is, but how many of us
actually have respect for our partners? Respect is an
important aspect in a relationship.
Partners should get respect when they’re not
around: respect their space, respect their parents,
respect their decisions, etc. When it comes to being
intimate, if the person says no, then that means no. I
can never overstate how important respect is. Simply
respect who your partner is and accept him or her. If
you don’t like who your partner is then obviously that
person is not right for you.
Trust is a major part of a relationship. We have to
always be able to trust our boyfriend or girlfriend,
unless of course they give us a reason not to. I always
like to start off my relationships with trust because
it makes it easier for me to keep calm whenever he’s
with someone else or going somewhere without me.
Having trust for each other makes the relationship so
much easier and calmer. Trust gives you a healthy relationship and one
less thing to worry
about.
Honesty is also
another important
part of a relationship. To me, if
you are not honest
then you will not
have my trust. No
matter how big or small the lie is, a lie is a lie. I would
rather be told the truth no matter what it is.
This is better than finding out through someone else
and starting to get all those confusing feelings about
who I should believe. If my boyfriend were to ask
me a question, I would rather be up front and answer
him directly, because if I lie I would probably have to
create another lie for that lie. I once had this boyfriend
Teen Interest
Dec 2011
Page 11
The Academy Times
who always told me the truth about who he danced
with at the dances, but when I asked him if he was still
doing drugs he lied and said no. Days later I found out
he was still doing drugs.
Trust eventually broke
down in our relationship
based on that one lie. To
me, no matter what situation it is, whether you
cheated or you’re just
hanging out with another
girl, I would rather be
told.
It’s as simple as knowing what you want. Treat
your partner the way you
want to be treated. A relationship is based on realistic
expectations. You shouldn’t expect what you see in the
movies or on TV shows. Forget what you see in the
movies or on television.
Real relationships aren’t anything like that. There’s
no nonstop romance,
candlelight dinners and
fireworks everywhere.
Value your partner and
appreciate the little
things. Relationships
take time and should be
treated very delicately.
It is an everyday effort.
Remember, compliment him or her, and
remind your partner
how much you care. Remember that in a relationship you should treat each other equally. No one is
more superior than the other.
I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again. If he or she
wants you to ditch school, then that person is not for
you. Your partner should want the best for you and
care about
your education. If he or
she tries controlling what
you do, then
wave good bye
and move on.
You shouldn’t
be told what to
do.
It’s still your life and you should have the space to
live your life. If your partner wants you to sneak out
your house for him or her then forget that relationship.
Your partner shouldn’t risk you getting in trouble and
disobeying your parents. Also if your partner can’t
respect your curfew then he can’t respect you or anything else for that matter.
The Academy Times
The Career Academy would like to thank the
following students and staff for their work
and effort on this issue of the Academy times:
Journalism Staff:
Belinda Armendariz, Donean Carrillo, Devyn
Duran, Esperanza Garcia, Sheree Garcia, Russell Sandlin, Krystal Wright
Contributing Writers: Austin Tyra
Copy Editors: Journalism Staff, Barbara Cate,
Cynthia Sanchez
Teacher Sponsor: Sparky Griego
Principal: Cynthia Sanchez
Fiction
The Academy Times
Idle hands
PART TWO
This story is part two of a four part series.
By Sheree Garcia
The sky hung heavy
with tears, and the clouds
sockets had began to cry
the coldest rain I had
ever felt. Wind sliced at
our faces like a thousand
burning knives, which
left our skin an icy red,
and gave me an aching numb feeling. I did not believe
in God, but I found myself silently screaming a prayer
anyways. Praying for strength, praying for answers,
praying everything would turn out okay, praying for
just a glimpse of hope to shine through a crack in the
icy ground. It was pointless I knew, as I looked up at
the black sky that was dressed with dark grey clouds. I
stood up, placing my freezing hands in my front pockets. I gazed around a trance-state, pathetically wondering when the sleeping sun was going to creep up.
Time was conveniently misplaced at the bottom of
alcohol bottles and cliché red plastic cups after we had
arrived here, and I had the oddest yearning to know
what the clock read. Surely morning would come
soon, and perhaps provide comfort and a little ease
upon us. We were all trying to keep a sense of composure, and the boys were probably thinking methodically of a way to save the day. Yet, we didn’t know
what was going to happen, so we stood in dense, wet
silence waiting.
Wiping raindrops off his brow with his forearm,
Dec 2011
Page 12
Craig quickly walked toward me. He peered over the
top of my head at Emily, who was soaking and probably freezing. She still had that tattered sweater covering her. Although the lighting from the moon was dim,
it shone softly against Craig’s skin, making him pale.
I imagined that his hazel eyes were open wide, filled
with wild emotion and deep wonder. His mind was
probably frantic, just as mine was, and he probably
wished he were anywhere but here.
“We need to leave. We just have to go!” Craig
spoke quickly, nervously, while looking directly at me.
Ignoring the harsh wind, I returned my gaze to Emily
who lay limp, then faced the crowd.
“I agree. She is going to freeze if we don’t
do anything. You guys put Emily in the backseat of
Craig’s car, okay?” I said referring to the boys while
wincing at the rain. I almost had to yell, due to the
roaring thunder.
“Wha- what? Why my car? Can’t we put her
in Daniel’s car?” Craig stammered scratching the
back of his head. He was shivering. His teeth chattered as he spoke.
Daniel walked by
Craig shoving him
slightly, stopping at
Emily.
“She’s right.
Just get over here
and help me!” Daniel commanded in a tough voice. Despite his objections, a timid Craig followed, and we traced our steps
back to the vehicles. The two cars we approached sat
suspiciously, finding solitude in between eerie trees
and broken bottles. The ground was muddy, and the
feeling in the air was drenched with the aching, heavy
heart inside of my chest. No one spoke, and I suppose
at that instance, there was nothing that could have
been said. The rain was persistent, and the thunder
whispered a warning that echoed in us all.
After a few minutes, the boys got Emily in the back
Fiction
The Academy Times
seat of Craig’s car. Grace, of course, went with Craig,
and Maya and I went with Daniel. The rain hit the car
hard as we slowly made our way out of the woods. Inside, the vehicle reeked of alcohol and musky cologne.
However, the blasting heater was the greatest luxury I
had ever felt. The headlights from Craig’s vehicle that
followed closely behind us casted dark and mischievous shadows along the backseat where I sat.
I wondered what he and Grace were talking about,
with Emily being in the back and all. Maya and Daniel were completely silent, and I dared not say anything. We finally reached the highway, and the lit up
dashboard read the time: 2:30 a.m. We continued on
the long road, and I finally broke the fizzy silence.
“Are we going to the hospital?” My voice was
scratchy and timid. Daniel didn’t respond to me, but
rather looked at Maya, and I
saw a smile creep upon his lips.
He shook his head and chuckled, returning his eyes to the
road. “She’s probably already
dead, Ari. No use in taking her
there.”
Maya sighed loudly. She
leaned over the seat and looked
at me for a bit before she decided to speak. “He’s
right. What would we even say? ‘Uhh, yes. We minors
got tipsy in the woods, and one girl couldn’t handle
her booze, and now she is unable to wake up.’ The
trouble we’d get into is ridiculous, especially since
we snuck her out.” She stopped facing me and turned
straight ahead at the winding road.
“So we let her die?” I asked as I sat back, wishing
I could seep into the seat. Daniel was annoyed as he
responded to me.
“No, no, no, no, no. We will take care of her. I’m
taking you both home now. Get some sleep, freshen
up. Me and Craig will be back for you guys later on.”
His voice wasn’t exactly reassuring, but I couldn’t find
the words in me to come up with a response. There
Dec 2011
Page 13
in the backseat, with the darkness and uncertainty
surrounding me, I shut my eyes. Once again, I found
myself praying to that same old God, with that same
old hope, along with that
same old wish, but lacking
any faith.
After about another
twenty minutes, he stopped
his car outside of my
home. Craig was no longer behind us. I figured
he went to drop off Grace. I was a little surprised that
Daniel had remembered where I lived. He had picked
me up earlier in the evening, but he didn’t seem like
the attentive type.
“I’ll be here early. No later than noon okay? Depending on everything anyways,” he said to me as I
reached for the door. I nodded my head and steadily
climbed out of the backseat. Maya never said anything, but I blamed that on all the alcohol she had.
She was probably sick to her stomach. The porch light
of my house was on as I had left it. I had pulled a key
out from behind a flowerpot and let myself in.
My parents were out of town for the weekend. They
had left to go visit an ill distant cousin I had never
met. I had accumulated enough trust over my 16 years,
and as a result, they let me stay alone for a few days.
Look what happens with a little trust, I thought
dimly. I immediately ran upstairs and laid in my bed. I
started to cry, although the reasons for the tears were a
little hazy. My pillow had tasted so many tears before,
but I had guessed that these left more of a bitter taste.
Under warm blankets that smothered my body, I desperately replayed all the events I could recollect of our
evening. I don’t remember falling asleep, but I know it
took awhile.
I woke up with a throbbing headache as sunlight
yelled through my window. The clock on my side table
Please see Idle, Page 20
Poetry
The Academy Times
UNDERGROUND SKIES
Dec 2011
Page 14
By Sheree Garcia
The giant sky scrapes the knees of falling gods who are Jupiter-jumping
stars on Mars like a game of hopscotch.
And their icy blue eyes were intensified as they crucified the thought of love for the youth,
Only because hope had died one too many times.
Dancing with the moonlight, the rebel did a step, tracing his beating heart on his
once breathing chest,
Searching for a way down avenues and turns.
Stars screamed lunacy as the bright moonlight burned.
Twisted stories of the illiterate who wrote words on the pillars- It seems their seams are torn,
Stiff upper lips while the serpent tongue’s whips are the base of those who scorn.
Marching down as his veins pulsed bright blue with a funky fusionary,
Not wanting to be a part of the revolution, but wanting to be the revolutionary.
So the scums he sought scar up the subway because that’s the place where no judgment is passed,
Down there your equivalence is to stained walls and rats.
So they pass on the nickels because all they want is change,
Perpendicular raindrops drip them drenched in dry pain.
The rebel named by society spit splinters out of his sinister smile,
Stating cleverly:
“The clock ticks while you talk. You had just better hope your time lasts a while. You accuse our generation of
destruction and despicable ways; just don’t lose sight that our generation is the one yours raised.”
So he hangs in space laughing with the stars at the jokes cracked at Uranus,
Staring down at Earth with tearful eyes that only searched for cracks where the air was painless.
He pissed down a rainstorm, shooting down from orangish pink skies,
Hoping the people didn’t lose their senses and when rain hit them,
They would be reminded that they were alive.
The wild wind remained tameless and sinful eyes remained the stitches,
That replenished burned bridges and gave the moon itches,
And gave the sun shivers and iced up the rivers.
He cut out the sky with a pair of red scissors.
Poetry
The Academy Times
No one noticed though, only him, riding on the whim while being tangled in the wind.
But all the while they told the rebel, to please turn down his noisy treble,
That came from the drumming of his running feet.
He stayed standing though, refusing the tempting and comfortable seat.
He spoke to the deaf man and convinced his stubbornness to listen,
And smiled at the blind girl, showing her life isn’t about all that glistens.
He laughed with the mute man, refusing the idea that the old and wise can’t take a joke,
Then he pulled out the sun, and took the lazy crippled boy outside for a morning stroll.
He never moved a mountain, but that was never his intention.
He paved the cracking streets with broken hearts and made them a part of
something again.
He re-assembled the shattered mirror that looked back into the grim Gestapo
and natural havoc,
And made the restless rest in the warm swaying hammock.
The rebel was not a rebel because he tagged slang on the back of buildings,
But because he scribbled stories on walls and gave them meaning.
He danced to the beat of change while the world silently fell asleep,
As the starlight kissed his skin, he gutted the earth a million feet deep.
Leaving his scar upon the heaving ground,
He left the universe screaming, without ever making a single sound.
Dec 2011
Page 15
Music Revealed
The Academy Times
The beginning
and end of a
Sublime sound
Dec 2011
Page 16
How It All Started
Eric Wilson was born in Long Beach, California in
1969. He grew up in a small neighborhood along with
Bud Gaugh.
Gaugh never actually
knew how to play drums
until he met Eric Wilson’s
dad, Billy Wilson, who not
only taught him how to play
drums but how to read music, too.
By Donean Carrillo
When they got into high
school, Gaugh and Wilson
How do you begin to describe the sound of the band formed a small band called
Sublime? To me, they sound like a group of friends
The Juice Bros. It was
doing nothing but jamming out in their back yard and
Dummer, Bud Gaugh
around this time that Eric
having fun.
Wilson met Bradley Nowell.
Yet Sublime isn’t just your typical backyard band.
They hung out and played music together while they
Consisting of only three members, Bradley Nowell
were still in high school, but Nowell didn’t join the
(guitar, singer), Eric
band till he was in college. Wilson introduced Nowell
Wilson (bass), and
to Gaugh during one of Nowell’s breaks from college
Bud Gaugh (drums),
and the three formed the band Sublime.
Sublime has taken
On July 4, 1988, Sublime played their first gig in
music where no one
a small club in Long Beach, California. Their unique
has ever taken music
sound of reggae, mixed with albefore.
ternative rock and indie supposOver the years, they
edly started the “Peninsula Riot,”
Sublime
have produced songs
a riot that led to several arrests.
that are not written on
They played in small clubs
the usual subject of love. Badfish, for example, is a
and at house parties every weeksong written by Bradley Nowell about his own personend and eventually became a
al heroin abuse and how he couldn’t kick the habit.
well-known band all along the
This song is one of their more mellow songs. StartWest Coast.
ing off with just the sound of Nowell strumming the
Sublime’s rise to fame escalatBassist, Eric
acoustic guitar, the song has a soft, steady beat to it
ed, and they landed huge gigs as
Wilson
that isn’t too energetic but isn’t depressingly slow eiopening bands for bands like The
ther. This song makes me feel like sitting on the beach, Butthole Surfers and The Stone Temple Pilots.
relaxing in the sun and doing nothing.
In 1992, Sublime produced their first album, 40 oz.
to Freedom, with Skunk Records, a recording company in Long Beach that was partly founded by Bradley
Nowell in 1990.
Music revealed
The Academy Times
The album quickly became popular and the band
sold over 30,000 CDs
on there own in just two
years.
They didn’t even
have a distributer to
sell their CDs for them.
Instead, they sold their
CD themselves along
the coast. According to Sublime
Bradley Nowell, Sublime practically distributed their CDs out of the trunks
of their cars.
Death of a Lead Singer
Bradley Nowell was born in 1968, in Long Beach,
California. He grew up surrounded by music, his
mother being a singer and his father playing the guitar.
When he was younger,
he would spend hours with
his father and grandfather,
playing the acoustic guitar
at family events or on holidays just for fun or to make
music.
When Sublime formed,
Nowell was already addicted to drugs. His wife, Troy,
blames his drug addiction
on the Ritalin he was given
as a child for having an atGuitar player and
tention deficit disorder. But
singer, Bradley Nowell she also thinks he did a lot
of drugs because it completed his “rock-star image.”
By the time Sublime was touring, Nowell was heavily addicted, but he did, at one point, quit and go to
rehab. He stayed clean for a few years after that, but
eventually he went back to his old habits, his addiction
even worse than before.
Dec 2011
Page 17
On May 25, 1996, Bradley Nowell died in a San
Francisco hotel room due to a heroin overdose. His
unexpected death came just seven days after he got
married to his wife Troy Denkker, and in an instant, a
great band was no more.
Sublime after Death
Nowell probably couldn’t have died at a worse time
in his career. After his death Sublime became increasingly famous. The
band was just in the
midst of becoming
more and more popular across America.
Half a year after
his death, their CD,
Sublime, hit number
one on the Modern
Rock charts along
with their song,
CD Cover
What I got. That same
album has sold over 6 million copies over the years
and features most of their well known songs: Santeria,
Wrong Way, and Doin’ Time.
Since Nowell’s death, Sublime has become one of
the biggest American rock bands around. Forming
from only a small garage band in Long Beach, California, they have risen to the top in the music industry,
even without their lead man.
Eric Wilson and Bud Gaugh are still playing and
have formed another band featuring a new lead singer,
Rome Ramirez, called Sublime with Rome.
They have already released an album called Yours
Truly, which features a hit song Panic that has risen to
the top ten in the music charts since its release. According to Ramirez, Sublime with Rome is expected to
release a new album within the next year.
References:
http://sublimespot.com/sublime/
http://sublimelbc.com/
http://www.lyricsfreak.com/s/sublime/biography.html
Sports
Dec 2011
Page 18
The Academy Times
Tebowmania
Denver’s new sensation is
quickly becoming a legend
By Russell Sandlin
In 2009, I was watching
a college football game in
my living room. In this game
I saw the quarterback Tim
Tebow play with the Florida
Gators for the first time.
I was surprised by the
talent that Tebow brought to
the game. He ran all over
the other team. He passed
for 232 yards and ran for 109
yards on 22 carries. I was
thinking to myself, “Who is this guy?”
Now Tim Tebow is the most talked about player in
the National Football League. People either love him
or hate him.
The critics love to talk about how Tebow is not
ready for the NFL, or how he is not the best passer and
cannot read defenses.
Analysts pick apart his every mistake in a more
negative way than any other player. When Tebow
makes a mistake everyone jumps on the subject to try
to prove that Tim Tebow is not ready for the NFL.
“Critics such as ESPN’s Merril Hoge have called
him “embarrassing” and have insisted that he “can’t
play” in the NFL,” says Word Press.Com
Tebow has some high expectations from his fans,
coaches, and fellow players. He was one the best college football players in college football history. The
following are his passing and rushing statistics from
his pre-NFL career: Career Passing Statistics
Year
2006
2007
2008
2009
Totals
Att
33
317
298
314
995
Cmp
22
234
192
213
661
Yds
358
3,132
2,746
2,895
9,285
Pct. Int TDs
66.7 1
5
68.5 6
32
64.4 4
30
67.8 5
21
66.4 16
88
Career Rushing Statistics
Year No.
Yds Avg. TDs Long
2006
89
469 5.3
8 29
2007
210
895 4.3
23 25
2008
176
673 3.8
12 26
2009
217
910 4.2
14 55
Totals: 692 2,947 4.3
57 55
He won the Heisman Trophy as a sophomore in
college as a Florida Gator. Also, Tebow and his gator
teammates won the BCS national championship in
2009. Coming into the National Football League with
these accomplishments
holds a high standard
for Tim Tebow.
Then there is
Tebow’s style. Tebow
does not have a pretty
throwing motion.He
does not have the same
form as your traditional pocket passing
Tebow turns on his jets to
quarterback.
Tebow is still learn- defeat a New York defender.
ing how to read defenses better and get rid of the ball quicker to the open
receiver. With the help of Denver’s strong offensive
Sports
The Academy Times
line, Tebow can hold on to the ball longer and delay
the decision to throw or run.
He does not consistently complete back
to back passes, perfect
spirals, or touchdown
passes. However he
makes huge plays when
he needs to.
What he does know
is how to win. Tebow Tebow wears down the
never gives up and his Cheifs’ defense.
fourth quarter magic
helps win football games.
For example, Tebow and the Broncos were down
0-15 late in the fourth quarter with 5 minutes to play
against the Miami Dolphins.
Tebow rallied the Broncos to a touchdown to improve the score to 7-15.
Then the Broncos recovered an
onside kick to
give Tebow the
opportunity to
march down the
field to score another touchdown.
Then, the
Broncos
capitalTebow runs for a touchdown
ized on a two
against the Chiefs.
point conversion
that tied the game, taking the game into overtime.
Once in overtime Tebow again drove his team
down into field goal range. Denver’s kicker finished
the game for the Broncos and gave his team win.
This is one of the two comebacks led by Tebow this
year.
In addition, Tebow has a unique attitude towards the
game that motivates his teammates. Tebow does not
have appealing stats, but he is exciting to watch.
Dec 2011
Page 19
He has a complete percentage of 45.5, and passer
a rating of 80.5. Tebow is hanging on his job title by
winning football games, not by his passer rating.
In his professional start Tebow has taken the broncos to a 6-1 record.
Kyle Orton the
previous Quarterback’s record was
1-4.
Tebow and our
improved defense
have taken over
and have brought
the Broncos back Tebow kneels the in the
in the race in their endzone, now called Tebowing.
division with a
record of 7-5.
Tebow continues to play better every week. Also
the coach for the Broncos is modifying the style of
their offense to revolve around Tebow’s skill set, running the football.
The option package is a college style offensive
game plan that Tebow knows from his time in Florida.
Since he has started for the Broncos, Tebow and the
option package, plus the help of the running backs
Knowshon Marino and Willis McGahee, the Broncos
went from twenty third to first in rushing in the league.
References:
http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/
recap?gameId=290080201
http://www.gatorzone.com/football/misc.
php?p=tebow/bio
http://www.timtebowfans.org/
http://www.denverbroncos.com/
http://monogrammedtweezers.wordpress.
com/2011/10/31/media-and-nfl-should-emulatetebows-example/
Teen Interest
The Academy times
Dec 2011
Page 20
Idle: continued from page 13
Students: continued from page 7
told me it was 9:27am, and for some unknown reason
it annoyed me. I climbed out of bed and went into my
bathroom to wash up. The reflection I looked at was a
sad one, a pitiful one. I winced at the sight of myself,
but I stared anyways.
I had the softest sadness in my eyes, but
at the same time, they
were glazed with
an icy glow. I still
couldn’t believe that
was me.
As the grogginess
wore off, I remembered last night. As impatient as I
was to meet up with everyone and see Emily, I hoped
I would have a chance to freshen up a bit. I washed
up, brushed my hair, and then went to retrieve my cell
phone from my bedroom side table. I picked it up and
called Daniel.
After about the third ring he answered. He sounded
different on the phone, less intimidating. “Yeah?” He
answered as if he didn’t know why I was calling.
“Where are you?” There was silence. He didn’t
speak for about ten seconds.
“Maya already left for you. See you in a bit.”
The tone in his voice was hard to decipher, and I
wondered what he was thinking. Just as I hung up the
phone, I heard a knock at the door. I ran downstairs
and saw Maya. She had a frantic look on her face as
she pulled at my arm, not even saying a word. So I
stumbled out behind her, closing the door behind me,
and walked with the girl out toward the burning sun.
responsibilities and has made me more mature. Knowing that I was pregnant made me change my whole
perspective on school and finishing.
I wanted to get back into school because I want to
have a better life for my son. I felt that if I did finish
high school I would have more job opportunities.
While I was pregnant I hadn’t yet decided if I
wanted to go to college because I didn’t think I would
be able to make it in a bigger school.
I still have worries that I won’t get to pursue my
career the way I want to. Other schools assign a lot of
homework and I am not a homework person.
If I would have turned in all my homework assignments at my former school, I probably would have had
good grades. I actually always did my homework but I
would never turn it in because I was always forgetting
it somewhere or losing it.
I am glad that I had my son because he gave me
reason to come back to school and have hope for my
life. I didn’t learn much at my former school but I
have learned a lot since I’ve been at the Academy.
The teachers here actually help the students and
they want to see all their students finish school and do
well. If I didn’t have Santiago I probably wouldn’t be
in school right now writing this article.
Since I’ve been here I have been doing really well.
I am getting good grades and getting along with teachers for the most part. Although a couple of my teachers and I have gotten in arguments here and there, I
haven’t actually been suspended for fighting with them
and I plan on keeping it that way until I graduate
To be continued in the next
issue of The Academy Times.
Photos by Esperanza Garcia, Belinda Armendariz,
Sheree Garcia, and Naomi Flores
Teen Interest
The Academy Times
Dec 2011
Page 21
Single: continued from page 21
Mother: continued from page 21
when we got home and wouldn’t return home until the
middle of the night.
The most financial
help his son got from
him was a couple
packs a diapers and
maybe a few outfits.
Other than that he
didn’t help support my
son in any way.
When he had
money, he wouldn’t tell me and he would spend it on
who-knows-what when he was with his friends. When
I would ask him to buy
diapers for Santiago, but
he would make such a
big deal out of it that I
had to ask my mom if
she could help me out.
I shouldn’t have to ask
his “father” to buy diapers when he can clearly
see that he needs them.
Now Santiago doesn’t go with his dad or his grandmother at all. Although my mom has custody of Santiago, I’m the one raising him.
My mom just helps me support
him financially because I don’t
have a job, and I’m still in school.
If I weren’t in school I probably
wouldn’t have as much help as I
do from my mom as I do now.
I’m glad I have the support and
help that I do because without my
family I would be struggling doing
it all on my own.
how safe my mom made me feel until that night. I
was extremely lucky to have a mother like mine, and I
never appreciated it more than I do today.
My mom’s last appointment finally came and this
was the day we would find out if the tumor was benign
or malignant.
I happen to think that the worst feeling in the world
is the feeling of not knowing something. It was scary
to wonder whether my mom was going to be safe or
unsafe.
I had to wait until 9pm when I got home from work
to find out the results. When I got home, I sat in the
living room to wait for my mom to get home from the
store.
That day felt like it was the longest day of my life.
When she got home, she told me that the tumor was
benign, meaning it
was not harmful to her.
When I heard the news
that my mom was safe
and healthy, I got a
strong feeling of relief
and happiness.
I learned a huge lesson from all of this, and
that lesson was that I
needed to appreciate the little things as well as the big
things that my mom does.
I needed to start appreciating how comfortable and
safe she has made my life. My home is safe and quiet.
I have everything I need whenever I need it.My mom
is the best mom there is, and she deserves to feel appreciated.
Appreciate what you have now that you have it.
Photos by Esperanza Garcia and Naomi Flores
Principal’s Corner
The Academy Times
Dear Academy at Larragoite Community:
It is hard to believe that the first semester is almost
complete. The Santa Fe Public School District Annual
Winter Break will begin on Wednesday, December 21,
2011, and continue through Tuesday,
January 3, 2012.
As we prepare for the Winter
Break it is important to remember
that statistics show that student
grades and attendance tend to decline during this time of year. While
we want our students to enjoy and
celebrate the many holiday events, it is important for
students to remain focused on their academics and attend school on a daily basis during this time of year.
This next semester our students can look forward
to a few changes at the Academy at Larragoite. First,
beginning in January, four-square activities that focus
on math and language arts will be implemented in all
first and fourth period classes. Second, several of our
students will take a second semester math formative
assessment to measure their mathematical progress.
Third, the mentoring advisory students will coordinate with teachers to develop an activity period for
students to celebrate the end of the first semester.
Fourth, make-up class schedules will continue to be
implemented on Fridays to assist students with their
progress on E2020. Finally, all students will be given
a final grade for their E2020 classes in May, meaning
that classes will not carry on to the following academic year.
As we approach the Winter Break, I would like to
take this time to offer you our warmest wishes for a
peaceful and happy holiday season. We hope your upcoming break proves to be a restful and reflective time
as you celebrate the holiday traditions meaningful to
you and those you love. We look forward to seeing
you on Wednesday, January 4.
Sincerely,
Cynthia L. Sanchez
Dec 2011
Page 22
Tyra: continued from page 4
phones during school are all
things we are concerned about
as students.
Although I am not sure
how long a process of getting things like these passed
could take, I do have faith that
the board will make a decision that best benefits us, the
students.
School Board
Even though the board
President,
members must work together, Barbara Gudwin
they often find themselves at
odds with each other, and many times a decision cannot be reached so easily. During the meeting on November 17, the Superintendent began to speak about
hiring a new outside consultant to assist the district in
their decision making.
Although a few members agreed with the decision,
others began to speak that they were not involved in
the decision to hire an outside source. The argument
continued about clearance for such things and who
was rightfully informed.
Meetings can continue on well past 10pm even
though they begin at 5pm. I suppose that this is one of
the many sacrifices board members must have to make
in order to keep the order in public schools flowing
with minimal problems.
I have only been able to experience a handful of
these board meetings, but each one is more informative than the last. I am still in awe about how much
power the student advisors have as part of the board.
I want to thank Ms. Sanchez (as well as the boardmembers themselves) for giving me the opportunity
to be a part of the meetings. I’m sure soon we will see
necessary changes take place in order to further benefit
our school.