Document 6435498

Cleveland High School
February 12, 2010
Volume 73 , Issue 5
Graffiti mural repainted
By Noor Tell
Editor-in-chief
Cleveland
administrators
made a decision to repaint the
walls of Cleveland Teacher Kim
Kosach’s room to cover artwork
by three Cleveland students when
Kosach requested students to decorate her room.
According to Assistant Principal Robert Rakauskus, school
policy mandates that any major
alteration to a classrom must be
approved in advance. He explained that while the students
had submitted their design in advance, the final product did not
match the original sketch.
Juniors Diego Nunez and
Eric Ramirez as well as Sophomore Eddie Moralez offered to
paint Kosach’s room using a design with a graffiti theme based
on the words, “consequence is no
coincidence,” a phrase Kosach
had used.
“When she [Kosach] said the
a distraction in the classroom,”
Rakauskus said. “Other classes [like] adult school and after
school college classes [would use
the room].”
Ramirez said it felt bad to see
the time and effort he put into the
mural wasted, but also understood
that “whatever they [the administrators] want, goes.”
“I can tell you that my room
swiftly became very unpopular,”
Kosach said. “Not everyone appreciates the type of art that had
been demonstrated in my room.”
“It is not that graffiti in itself
is unacceptable, but it is gang related,” Rakauskus said. “Some
people thought it had looked like
the graffiti on campus.”
While there were negative
reactions to the artwork in Kosach’s room, Kosach said that
there were also a lot of positive
responses. The school has agreed
to allow the students to submit
a sketch again and repaint their
INSIDE
artwork on canvas. According to
Kosach, they are still waiting for
the guidelines.
“It was a great project, but not
in a permanent way,” Rakauskus
said. “It may be on a poster, bulletin, or banner to pursue the same
goals but in a way that is not a
permanent alteration to the classroom.”
Ramirez said the new mural
will be something even better
than the first one with more colors
and a simpler design that everyone can read.
Valentine’s
Day Or Bust
Opinions
Page 2
Cavs Have Hope for Haiti: Youth In Action, Key Club, Earthbound, and Jooi Club host an event on the quad to raise
money and collect donations for the victims of the Haiti earthquake.
Campus clubs fundraise for Haiti
BY CALVIN RATANA
Staff Writer
photos courtesy of Kim Kosach
words, it [the design] was already
in my head,” Ramirez said.
All three artists and Kosach
were disappointed to learn of the
adminstration’s decision. “It was
like someone had shot their [the
artists’] dog,” Kosach said.
Rakauskus explained that
the final product received a lot of
negative feedback from various
teachers and administrators. He
said many believed the project
was “not conducive to the academic environment.”
“The final result would create
photo by Noor Tell
After news of the 7.0 January
12 Haiti earthquake hit Cleveland, several clubs on campus began lending a hand to raise money
and collect donations for the relief effort. According to cnn.com,
the quake has left at least 170,000
dead, with thousands more still
buried under rubble. More than
200,000 remain wounded, and
millions have been left homeless.
Cleveland clubs, including Youth In Action, Key Club,
Earthbound, and Jooi Club, have
initated their own efforts to help
the people of Haiti. They have
been actively heading drives to
gather medical supplies, food,
shoes, and clothing to send to the
devastated nation. The four clubs
have joined together in an effort
collect more supplies for Haiti in
addition to their individual club
fundraisers.
“We don’t get a chance to
change the world in big ways,
but in small ones,” Youth In Action Co-President and Sophomore
April Kim said. “We’re [club
members] passionate about human rights, and I feel, as a human
being, we’re all affected by their
[the Haitians’] situation.”
Coachella
Guide
Features
Page 2
Thus far, Key Club, Earthbound and Jooi Club have teamed
up to collect funds for Haiti at
nutrition and lunch. According
to Earthbound President and Junior Paula Kahn, the clubs have
collected $300, which will be donated to Unicef.
“The donation efforts have
been going a lot better than expected,” Kahn said. “My living room is full of boxes with
clothes, medical equipment, and
other basic items that will be sent
to Haiti.”
Key Club and Jooi Club have
also joined together to participate
in an event for Soles 4 Souls, an
organization that collects gently
used or new shoes from students
to donate to Haiti. At the end of
the event, Key Club President and
Junior Precious Nicanor counted
380 pairs of shoes collected from
Key Club and Jooi Club.
Nicanor says that she is
pleased with the amount of donations of shoes and money.
“Especially with the economy, some people may not be doing as well, but students are still
donating on a daily basis,” Nicanor said. “To me the most important thing is that they [Cleveland
students] care.”
“Our club members are very
sympathetic to the current natural disaster in Haiti,” Kahn said.
“They are determined to help
out.”
Recently, Key Club held
an ice skating fundraiser, which
raised $110 according to Nicanor.
Youth In Action is also selling
peace bracelets for Haiti for two
dollars each.
“Even the smallest of donations help,” Youth In Action CoPresident and Junior Alisa Baik
said.
Youth in Action has created
donation boxes, which they will
place throughout Cleveland classrooms. Youth in Action and Key
Club will also be holding fundraisers for Haiti from February
22 through February 25 through
Menchies and Jamba Juice in
Winnetka.
In addition, Key Club plans
on holding a Haiti benefit concert during early March, featuring YouTube artists such as the
Aguilar Brothers, Joseph Vincent,
Cathy Nguyen, and Jr. Aquino.
“I feel like I am obligated to
help out others in need,” Nicanor
said. “I like the feeling that even
though my effort doesn’t make
a big difference, it still makes a
positive difference in someone’s
life.”
Arsenic And
Old Lace
Review
Entertainment
Page 4
2
Le Sabre
Features & Opinions
February 12, 2010
Sweets for your sweetie: Fudge
BY JOLENA COLLAS
Staff Writer
Instructions for making the perfect treat for your valentine.
Dark Chocolate Section:
2 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup sweetened condensed milk
Dash of salt
White Chocolate Section:
2 1/2 cups white chocolate chips
1 cup sweetened condensed milk
Dash of salt
Other Materials:
Aluminum foil
conversation hearts
mini cupcake cups
Red cellophane wrap
Red, pink, or white ribbon
Dark Chocolate Section:
Prepare 8 inch square pan lined with
aluminum foil. Spray the foil with
any non-stick spray. In a microwave
safe bowl, combine ingredients and
microwave on high in 20 second intervals until the chocolate is melted.
At these intervals check the chocolate
and stir it well. Quickly spread the
mixture into the pan and even it out
with a spatula
White Chocolate Section:
Heat the white chocolate the same
way as the dark chocolate on high in
20 second intervals. Once finished,
arrange on the dark chocolate layer in
horizontal stripes. After, take a toothpick and drag the stripes in a vertical
fashion. This technique will create
a marbled look. While the fudge is
still warm, score the chocolate into
one inch squares. You can decorate
them however you wish. Conversation hearts on each square can be
made. Chill the fudge for two hours
or until cool. Then cut the fudge with
a large knife. Put around five or six
pieces on a small sheet of cellophane.
Gather the excess cellophane and tie
it with a ribbon. You can add a cute
note to this lovely gift for an adorable
valentine.
photo illustration by Eric Tran
Rocking with Coachella
BY DAVID KIM AND JONATHAN SO
Staff Writers
The Coachella Valley Music
and Arts Festival is the ultimate
gathering of indie musicians. The
festival is a three day concert that
begins April 16 at the Empire
Polo Field in Indio, CA. The
desert event has a reputation for
showcasing artists on the comeback trail.
No love, no more
BY DANIEL KOO
Buisiness Manager
Valentine’s Day: a day filled
with happiness, hearts, arrowshooting cupids, and pink just
about everywhere. Men go insane trying to pick out that perfect diamond (or pearls for the
financially inadequate) and many
women who have ‘valentines’ expect much from their lovers. Hallmark has a field day, but so does
Haagen Dazs. Amidst this bubbly aura, many are
blind to fact that
Valentine’s Day
has more cons than
pros.
First of all, the
meaning of Valentine’s Day has
taken a huge turn
especially in this
century.
February 14 should be
a day where people should show
their love and affection for their
significant others. But nowadays,
it has become a time for measuring one’s love by the amount of
money spent on gifts. This reporter has a good friend who was
dumped by his girlfriend because
she was angry that he hadn’t gotten her the earrings she wanted.
Since when did love and mutual trust become affiliated with
one’s willingness to spend huge
amounts of cash?
Immense amounts of pressure are
placed upon people during the
days that lead up to Valentine’s
Day. Individuals don’t want to
spend little and appear cheap in
the eyes of their lovers, but they
also know the limits of their piggy banks. Relationships are often
placed on thin ice on this day. The
ugly truth is that there are people
there be one day that is singled
out during the year to show affection and devotion to a significant other? If a person really does
have passionate feelings towards
another, he will demonstrate this
love every day. Valentine’s Day
almost serves as a safety net for
many individuals, especially men.
By giving their loved one chocolate and flowers, many believe
that, for awhile, they can slack
off in regards to demonstrating
their love for
their partner.
For example,
a man that
forgot about
his wife’s anniversary believes that he
can
correct
his mistake by
getting her a
photo illustration by Holland Mervis
huge and expensive gift on Valentine’s Day.
who feel that their partner doesn’t
With all this said, there’s
love them because of the apparent nothing wrong with showing a
lack of “thought” placed into the nice gesture every once in awhile.
gift. And who can forget about But unfortunately, Valentine’s
the jealousy that arises when you Day has placed a monetary valstart to compare your Valentine’s ue on love. A simple solution: a
Day gift with what your friend re- small, thoughtful act that is done
ceived from his/her lover?
every day can have so much more
Building on this, why should meaning.
The lineup this year is packed
with tons of artists, including bigtime artist Jay-Z. He is headlining the opening night on Friday,
April 16th. Saturday night, April
17th, will be headlined by Muse,
Faith No More, DJs Tiesto, David
Guetta, MGMT, Hot Chip and
Jack White’s The Dead Weather.
Sundays, April 18th’s, concert
will close with Gorillaz, Yorke,
Spoon, Parisian electronic rockers Phoenix and dance veterans
Orbital.
The show begins at 11:00 AM
and ends at midnight throughout the weekend. The box-office
opens at 8:00 AM from Friday
to Sunday and requires matching I.D. to pick up tickets. The
lineup and set times are subject to
change, and the show continues
despite rain or shine. Parking during the day is free, but only onsite
campers are allowed overnight
parking. Everyone is subject to
search upon entry. There will be
food/beverage and other items
sold at the venue, accepting cash
only.
One can either camp out on
the grounds after getting a pass
and verification for their respective areas, or one can reserve a
room at a hotel near the grounds.
All in all, Coachella is the place
to be for indie music enthusiasts.
All fans should definitely make
time to make it there for at least
one day, if not all three.
Letter to the Editor
Re: ‘Dust piles up as custodians
dwindle’ November Issue
Hung Dang’s ‘Dust piles up
as custodians dwindle’ article
should be regarded as the wakeup call we all need at Cleveland.
Custodians are not paid to pick up
the garbage of the entire student
body. Many a time I’ve walked
past the quad to find the cement
slathered with food and wrappers. We’re all (generally) mature
students who are certainly intelligent enough to figure out that
trash goes in the can. It’s not too
difficult to get up and walk your
leftovers to the nearest bin before
you go to class. There are so many
cans around campus, it’s almost
impossible to not be compelled
to throw away what’s yours so
someone else doesn’t have to.
This is a problem that
should not need to be addressed,
especially since the district is
so low on extra help. The custodians have ample work to do
around school to keep it running
and definitely don’t have the
time nor will to play pick-up after children who aren’t responsible enough to keep it clean. Our
campus reflects our pride for the
Land. How proud are you?
- Anonymous
Corrections
Corrections for ‘Youth stand up
against truancy tickets’ in the December issue
- It’s is a 250 dollar fine and community service for truancy tickets.
- The students receive a fine, but
they are not arrested.
- Community Rights Campaign
is working for a moratorium on
tickets as they explore alternatives to ticketing.
- Tamar Galatzan withdrew her
support for LaBonge’s motion
to expand the Municipal code to
include ticketing students inside
school premises.
- The Community Rights Campaign is fighting zero tolerance
policies and the increasing reliance on school police to handle
discipline issues that target students of color or students with
disabilities.
Editor in Chief: Noor Tell
Managing Editor: Judy Kim
Copy Editor: Mery Hounanian
News Editor: Jillian Goodman
Opinions Editor: Haemin Jee
Features Editor: Wendy Mao
Entertainment Editor: Ingrid Kwon
Sports Editor: Kristie Shu
Production Manager: Amanda Silver
Business Manager: Daniel Koo
Advertising Manager: Amna Waheed
Photo Editor: Katherine Zhang
Photoshop Editors: Holland Mervis and
Eric Tran
Online Editor: Sara Grossman
Le Sabre is published by the Advanced Journalism class at: Grover Cleveland
High, Room D-2, 8140 Vanalden Avenue, Reseda, CA 91335. Telephone: (818)
885-2300 ext. 3648; Fax: (818) 727-0964. The newspaper is desktop published
by the students and printed by American Foothill Publishing. Subscriptions
are $20/year. Cleveland is a LEARN school accredited through 2012 and a
California Distinguished School. Letters and guest articles are encouraged.
As the staff of Le Sabre, we strive to objectively cover the entire Cleveland
High School community, including all small learning communities and the
diverse interests of the student body, faculty, and surrounding neighborhoods.
We aim to engage and involve the student body by providing accurate information while upholding the highest standards of journalistic ethics.
Staff: Tara Atrian, Haylee-rae Averill,
Isabelle Bolla, Young Cha, Jolena Collas, Alex Hernandez, Chandler Hudson,
Lucia Hwang, David Kim, Alex Lee,
Allison Li, Jenny Luong, Sandy Mayen, Calvin Ratana, Jeila Saidi, Armand
Saroghlanian, Jonathan So
Staff Photographer: Haig Nalbandian
Adviser: Coleen Bondy
Le Sabre
February 12, 2010
Valentine’s Day
To my dear Muffin
Rocket:
Thank you for making the past year of
my life the best yet.
Are you sure I can
buy you a rooster?
- Pound Cake
Skillet and Bebot,
‘Ello loves! Just wanted to say happy
Valentine’s Day! Both of you are
amazing leaders and are both such
an inspiration in my life. I love you
girls!
-Bea
Hey Briana,
Happy Valentine’s
Day! I hope I make
your day very special
and one you’ll never
forget.
CALLING ALL
Dear Prudence:
I want to hold your hand. With a little help
from my friend, we can work it out. Girl,
when I’m sixty-four tell me why, with words
of love, you really got a hold on me. Tomorrow never knows so let it be. I was a nowhere
man, ‘till there was you in my life. I’m
happy just to dance with you here, there, and
everywhere any time at all. Don’t ever change.
Hallelujah, I love you so eight days a week.
Always and forever,
Aardvark
P.S. I love you.
VOICE BOX
Q: What are your plans for
Valentine’s Day?
“Buy something special for a girl.”
- Senior Brandon McLinn
“I’m going to see Fences at the South Coast
performance arts center
with the BF.”
- Teacher Rebecca
Williams
“Spend some quality
time with my hubby.”
- Junior Sharon Kwak
“Why bother? It’s a
made-up holiday.”
- Freshman Sarah
Rodriguez
3
!
VOTE FOR THE NEXT YEAR’S SCHOOL
CALENDAR ON FEBRUARY 16 & 17 DURING
NUTRITION AND LUNCH NEAR THE STUDENT
STORE.
The is to determine if we should change the calendar
to begin on August 17 and end the school year during
the first week of June.
*You must have a current CHS ID to vote.
WANT THE LOW-DOWN
ON THE LAND?
Check out the latest news, sports, entertainment. videos, blogs, and photos on
www.lesabreonline.com
Le Sabre
February 12, 2010
Be ‘Generes’ with your music
BY DANIEL KOO
Business Manager
When that DJ turns on those
tunes at “The Ellen DeGeneres
Show,” you can expect the host
to be movin’ and groovin’ to the
beat. Now she is giving the public
a chance to introduce her to new
genres of music.
Known to have a passion for
music, DeGeneres announced
that she will be accepting requests
from all over the world.
From Chile to Turkey to Australia, fans of DeGeneres offered
their own international music
suggestions. After looking at the
website and the thousands of responses posted, it was easy to see
that the majority of the requests
had suggestions related to Korean
Pop, Kpop, music.
The one group whose fans
swamped the website with requests was Dong Bang Shin Ki,
DBSK, also known as TVXQ.
Truly a group for all kinds of people, this experienced quintet that
debuted in South Korea in 2003
has truly taken Asia by storm this
last decade. Their music ranges
from hip hop, electronica, to acapella. Other excellent KPop
groups that also frequently turned
up on DeGeneres’ site were Big
brought up on the website. Tokio
Hotel, a German rock band, have
been gaining popularity in Western Europe and they too touch
base on various music genres
like punk, alternative, and pop
rock. Another band that came up
was Sigur Ros, a group that is
admired because of their relaxing and touching flow of their
music.
Lastly, Ahmir, an AfricanAmerican quartet whose music
would fall under both pop and
gospel, was suggested. Ahmir began recording songs on Youtube,
one of today’s best free advertisers through which many groups
find their roots through the internet community, and peaked the
interest of DeGeneres’ viewers.
Music comes from all corners of the world, and there is always something new that can apphoto illustration by Eric Tran
peal to one’s musical taste buds.
Don’t forget to share your
Bang, 2NE1, and SS501.
Although the suggestions own tunes with DeGeneres since
were mainly composed of Kpop, she might be dancing to someother equally fantastic artists were thing on your playlist.
Smooth tunes for Valentine’s Day
“Elevator Love Letter” by Stars
“Somersault (Danger Mouse remix)” by Zeroes
feat. MF Doom
“Waters of March” by Anya Marina
“She’s Got You High” by Mumm-Ra
“Romantic Comedy” by Stars
“Heart Skipped A Beat” by The XX
“Real Love” by Regina Spektor
“This Modern Love” by Bloc Party
“VCR” by The XX
Quirky humor slays audience at
‘Arsenic and Old Lace’
BY HAEMIN JEE
Opinions Editor
Cleveland High School’s
own Drama Department put on a
performance of “Arsenic and Old
Lace” on January 30, but nothing
was poisonous about it.
Directed by Drama Teacher
Bennett Berkowitz, the play was
a success, in part due to a splendid pair of actresses, Seniors Skylar Evans and Jessica Patterson.
They were able to portray a
pair of eccentric but kind spinster sisters, Martha and Abby
Brewster so easily and nonchalantly that the characters seemed
to fairly spring with life. The only
uncouth thing about the aunts is
well, a habit that kills. Literally.
But you cannot help but love the
pair, despite their murderous hobby of poisoning lonely old men
that they believe will be better off
in the afterlife.
The topic should be gruesome,
but murder has never been so hilarious. Maybe it appeals to us
because we all have the one black
sheep in our family. This is a family of black sheep. Although this
production could have potentially
been a disaster without the right
comic timing, the cast succeeds in
making this a believable performance. There were few awkward
pauses and missed lines, but not
enough to be noticed by most of
the audience.
Senior Iain Lampert, as
Mortimer, the nephew of the two
quirky aunts, provides just the
right amount of comic indignity
as he tries without much success
to try and take care of his aunt’s
problems (murders).
Unfortunately, the rest of the
cast does not quite live up to the
talent of Evans, Patterson, and
Lampert, but they still have their
moments. Especially surprising
was Sophomore Evan Lowell’s
performance of Dr. Einstein. Although the German accent was a
bit too heavy at times, it still provided good laughs for the audience.
This performance was just another piece of evidence to support
the importance of arts education
at public high schools.
Hopefully, with this great effort by Cleveland students, drama
and theatre will continue to be an
important part of the culture on
campus. “Arsenic and Old Lace”
was just the right dose of drama
for one night.
Entertainment & Sports
4
Player Bio
BASKETBALL
Name: Jason Johnson Jr.
Birthday: April 16, 1992
Height: 6’2”
Position: Small guard
Favorite TV show: The Fresh
Prince of Bel-Air
Favorite color: Red
Favorite subject: English
Favorite high school moment:
Game-winning shot against
Reseda last year
Dream car: Corvette
Plans after high school: Play
college basketball
Favorite song: ‘Remember the
time’ by Michael Jackson
Favorite movie: Friday
“I can’t live without... my
phone.”
Favorite pick up line: “Hey girl,
you know karate? Cause your
body’s kicking.”