Winter Play of the Same Issues
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o VOLUME 52, ISSUE 4. JOHN HERSEY HIGH SCHOOL, FEB. 28, 2020 Deaf Students Struggle to Communicate in Sports, Could Benefit from Further Accomodations BY AMELIA ZOLLNER AND SERGIO CORTES Although Hersey has proudly shown off its This communication barrier not only im- deaf ed program since 1978, in recent years, pacts students’ ability to perform well in sports enrollment numbers have dwindled, likely due but also affects students’ social involvement in to increased use of cochlear implants. This de- teams. “[If my interpreter isn’t there,] I try to cline in deaf enrollment has caused many deaf read lips and, if I can, write back and forth with students to face communication difficulties someone,” freshman Adriana Guerra, who is when participating in sports and extracurricu- also on the track team, said. “It makes me ner- lars. “I’ve heard kids say that they get together vous because I don’t understand what’s going for their pasta parties and they don’t necessar- on.” ily feel included, or the conversation is going Because the vast majority of hearing stu- so fast that they can’t really keep up,” social dents don’t know sign language, deaf students Lopez and Guerrero bike together during track practice. worker Bonnie Koss, who works with NSSEO can often end up feeling left out. “There’s still a ZHAKLINOVA TEODORA BY PHOTO to provide equal opportunities to deaf students, communication barrier because you’re a teen- noted. ager, you don’t want to go talk to another teen- to deaf students. “I think the time should be Because many sports feature auditory ele- ager through an adult,” Koss mentioned. “You’d placed on a big [screen] and tell you when you ments, such as verbal announcements in swim- rather talk to a teenager directly. Our kids tend can go and come back,” Finnegan said. ming and starter pistols in track, deaf students to be intimidated to talk to the hearing kids Although accommodations like this have to often have to rely on alternative methods of and the hearing kids tend to already have their be made on an administrative level, Koss urges communication. All deaf students are given hearing students to remember that there’s al- interpreters that accompany them to practices ways something they can do to help: learning and meets, but in sports that involve long dis- even a little bit of sign language. “You have to tances, like swimming and track, interpreters meet them halfway,” Koss said. “If we could do can’t follow students around, causing students a little crash course at the beginning of a sport- to find themselves in situations where they ing event, or if everybody learned a little bit of can’t effectively communicate with the rest of sign language, that’s the best accommodation.” the team. Sophomore Brianna Finnegan, who was a member of the swim team, had to take her cochlear implant off when she’s in the water, Sophomore Belinda Lopez and freshman Adrianna so her coach and interpreter had to find oth- Guerrero stretch together during track practice. er ways to communicate when she’s across the ANNETTE BY PHOTO WHITE Recap: pool. “It’s a little hard because [I] have to rely on a small whiteboard,” Finnegan said. friends.” Deaf students in other sports face many Many deaf students have suggested various Winter Play of the same issues. Sophomore Belinda Lopez accommodations that their sports could include is in track and can’t always hear the starter to make them more accessible. During swim BY NATALIE WOZNY pistol. “It’s tough when I have a race; I have to meets, start times are typically announced know when to start,” Lopez said. via a beep, something that's largely unhelpful This February, the theatre department put on its annual winter play. However, this year, roles were reversed. For many years, Kyle Marquette Foreign Exchange Student has directed the winter show and Matthew Mi- chelin has been the tech director. This winter, things changed when Michelin stepped into the Shares Differences directing position and Marquette announced he was going to be designing the set. The show, These Shining Lives, takes place Between U.S. and Denmark in the 1920s and is centered around four young BY MICHAEL SOMARY women working in a clock painting factory that PHOTO BY CONNER BY PHOTO KREBS used radium. The story jumps between Catherine Donohue’s life at home with her husband and her aren’t a part of schools in Denmark,” Bak days at the factory. Within a matter of time, the Grosen said. women begin to get sick due to the ingestion of The intensity of athletics is also much higher radium from their jobs. The company refuses to in America than Denmark. “Sports practices take responsibility; eventually the women decide are only two to three times a week in Denmark,” to take action and go to court. Bak Grosen said. The four women were played by senior Anna He was also surprised to find out that it Gorrill, junior Joanna Malec, junior Natalie Wo- is colder here than it was in Denmark. Bak zny, and junior Ava Dudick. Catherine’s husband, Foreign exchange student Gustav Bak Grosen works on Grosen felt that there was a lot more nature in Tom, was played by sophomore Nick Cwickla. The an assignment. Denmark than here in Illinois. girls really connected to their characters, which He noted some differences between social made the winter show experience more person- Junior Gustav Bak Grosen came to Hersey in life in America and Denmark. For example, al. “We all seemed to find parts of our characters the fall to experience American culture as part Bak Grosen said, “Americans say, ‘Hi, how are in ourselves and were able to use that in our line of a foreign exchange student program. Bak you doing?’ to strangers, but that just doesn’t delivery. It was fun to play almost ourselves but Grosen left Denmark the fall after he finished happen in Denmark.” as proper 1920’s women,” Dudick said. “The best 9th grade but was regarded as an 11th grader “I don’t have any regrets about coming here. thing about the show, for me, was getting to play at Hersey. I really like it here,” Bak Grosen said. a fictional friend group with some of my best Gustav sacrificed a lot by coming to America. He returns to Denmark on June 23 and is friends. I also liked learning the history of the ra- He left his family, friends, and sports clubs, and looking forward to reuniting with his family dium girls.” took a gap year in school because none of the and friends. credits he is receiving at Hersey transfer to his high school in Denmark. To learn more about Bak Grosen, To watch a broadcast of the winter play, One of the biggest changes Bak Grosen noticed in American high schools was the CLICK HERE! CLICK HERE! combination of education and athletics. “Sports FEATURES OPINIONS Students Speak Out About Dress Code BY JENNY AN Was the Winter Formal Worth $20? In January, the deans and the divi- by asking students to not wear certain Not all students share the same styles, BY JENNY AN sion heads for student success, safety, and clothes during a time when students are at leading to the problem of defining the dress wellness sent out a dress code survey con- the age of finding a sense of self, students code. There is not a dress code that would The night of the Winter Formall certain- some mixed opinions about the music played gettable night. cerning student and staff opinions on the feel restricted from being expressive and make all students and staff content, but stu- ly made an impression. The first aspect of at the formal. Some people loved the music Even though some things about the dance current dress code. As said by Dean Matt comfortable. dents think that the dress code should ac- the dance that was a bit questionable was that was played, whereas other people hated itself could have been a little better, the Norris, “Our dress code is old; It was a dis- Sophomore Claudia Jarek stated, “Cloth- count for the new standards of fashion in the cost. The Winter Formal tickets cost it, which is no surprise since there is noth- dance created a night that provided an out- trict decision—it is something to look at and ing line companies are making clothes that society and the type of clothes stores are the same amount as the Homecoming tick- ing that can completely satisfy everyone’s let for students to release stress and tension update. The survey was the beginning of it are in style, and we want the freedom to selling. ets, twenty dollars. Twenty dollars is what I preference. in their day to day lives. Twenty dollars, [a change]. The likeliness of a change, long dress how we want, especially since it’s Freshman Zoe Stephanie said, “Each consider to be a pretty hefty amount of mon- But the choice of songs did not seem to be when looking at just the dance, could surely term, is, I think, possible.” something we’ve always been doing. Since person has their own opinion on the dress ey, especially for students with little income. the problem. The problem seemed to lie with be put to better use, but when looking at the The student and staff handbook states the times are changing, so is the clothing, code because each person draws the line To work for about two hours at a minimum the DJ.