A publication of Logan County High School.
Volume XXXII Issue IV
Logan County Placed on the College Board’s 5th Annual AP® District Honor Roll for Signifi- cant Gains in Student Access and Success A Record 547 School Districts Across the Nation Are Honored Winter Sports pg. 2
“When you have
Jesus, what is there to fear” History of Santa pg. 3 -Mother Angelica
Deck the Halls pg. 4 Logan County is one of 547 school dis- tricts in the U.S. and Canada being honored by the Pumpkin Spice pg.5 College Board with placement on the 5th Annual AP® District Honor Roll for increasing access to
AP course work while simultaneously maintaining Christmas Playlist pg. 8 or increasing the percentage of students earning scores of 3 or higher on AP Exams. Reaching these “What were your origi- Horoscopes pg. 9 nal plans after goals indicates that the district is successfully iden- high school?” tifying motivated, academically prepared students “To join the who are ready for the opportunity of AP. Since air force!” 2012, Logan County High School has increased -Mrs. Andrea the number of students participating in AP while 1.) 2014 is almost over. improving the number of students earning AP Ex- 2.) Christmas Music am scores of 3 or higher “What do 3.) Thanksgiving Food Helping more students learn at a higher 4.) A new year begins. you dislike most about level and earn higher AP scores is an objective of 5.) Christmas Break. winter?” all members of the AP community, from AP teach- “Cold ers to district and school administrators to college weather!” - professors. Many districts are experimenting with Sydney a variety of initiatives and strategies to determine Mimms how to simultaneously expand access and improve 1.) Ice on windshield student performance. “What is 2.) Black Friday. In 2014, more than 3,800 colleges and uni- your fa- 3.) Cold Weather. versities around the world received AP scores for vorite 4.) Mid Terms. Thanks- college credit, advanced placement, and/or consid- giving eration in the admission process, with many col- 5.) Class Changes. food?” “Turkey.” leges and universities in the United States offering -Harley Russell credit in one or more subjects for qualifying AP scores.
November/ December 2014
FOODINI plastic printers. By: John Page The current version of In recent years, 3D printers the “Foodini” can only use 3D The Editor and Chief have become increasingly pop- printing to prepare the food to ular. Most 3D printers consist be cooked but cannot perform Katie Baker of plastic that is melted and the actual cooking process yet. reshaped, but how about a ma- Natural Machines claims that Reporting chine that prints food? Imagine eventually they will have a Staff having a full meal without model that prepares and cooks cooking or the food. Brittney Barton eating out Currently the Ashley Brinkley Kelly Carr with the item is only Kelsey Coleman click of a being of- Rebecca Engler button. It fered to pro- Victoria Gipson may be on its fessional Courtney Goad way to the kitchens, but Christa Hankins Maddie Harris market with the company Maranda Hurley recent inno- plans on dis- Madison Jernigan vations from a company titled tributing the item as a house- Lauren Macy “Natural machines.” The com- hold appliance later on. In the Courtney McGinnis pany claims to have a function- near future people could be Johnathon Page Lennon Reed al model of what they call the looking forward to healthy, Sarah Sterling “Foodini,” which can prepare delicious meals all created in Josie Thomas the food to be cooked through seconds. Ayla Vancleave a process much like that of 3D Aleigha Williams Brianna Winn Johna Winters Winter White and Cougar Blue By: Lennon Reed As we prepare our homes for the winter months, high school win- Opinions expressed in the editorials ter sports teams are also beginning to prepare for games and competi- herein do not necessarily reflect the tions. At Logan County High School, boys and girls basketball, basket- opinions of the news-paper staff, its ball cheerleading, swimming, and archery are all offered as winter sports. advisor, or its publishers. Letters to With boys and girls basketball tryouts recently concluding, our Lady the editor are encouraged. Any let- Cougars opened the winter sports season with a non-conference scrim- ters insincere, illegible, unsigned, or th inappropriate will not be published. mage against Trinity on November 15 , followed by the Blue and White Scrimmage in which our 2014-2015 basketball Cougars and Lady Cou- st VEIWS IN BLUE: is published by gars were introduced to our home audience on November 21 . the Journalism Class of Logan Throughout December, January, and February, basketball teams County High School. 2200 Bowling will have one to two games per week, while the archery, swimming, and Green Road, Russellville, KY 42276. cheerleaders continue practicing for competitions. The Logan County Ar- chery Team will participate in the NASP Regional Archery Tournament on February 7th, 2015. Also, the Logan County Cheerleaders will attend State in December, then Nationals in February. Congratulations to all fall sports players on your seasons and good luck to the players and coaches of the 2014-2015 winter sports teams.
November/ December 2014
A Place to Call Our Own By: Josie Thomas There are now plans to build a new Area The History of Santa Clause Technology Center (ATC), also known as a Trade By: Courtney McGinnis School, on the LCHS property. It has been a vision Every time you hear the name of the Board and District Leaders for a long time, Kris Kringle, Father Christmas, Saint and many of those on the Logan County Board of Nick, Santa Clause, it brings back fond Education believe that this is the next logical step in memories of baking cookies on Christ- improving students’ education. The Trade School mas Eve and trying to fall asleep, but the will provide high-quality training that prepares stu- excitement of Christmas morning and dents to compete for jobs, learning skills needed in waking up to gifts brought by Santa today’s workforce. Students can earn college credit keeps you up. Americans got the tradition through some dual credit programs. These opportuni- of a stocky man coming down the chim- ties for students will also benefit the economic future ney of every child’s home and leaving of Logan County by training students in both busi- gifts under their tree came from Europe. ness and industry. The new building is expected to be finished in spring of 2017 if the tax increase is passed by voters in the county.
FUDGE CRINKLES By: Sarah Sterling Ingredients: 1 box devil’s food cake mix ½ cup vegetable oil 2 large eggs Confectioners’ sugar or granulated sugar for roll- ing The real Santa, Saint Nicholas Steps: was born in Turkey, 270 AD. He was a 1.)Preheat the oven to 350. wealthy man because his parents passed 2.)Stir (by hand) dry cake mix, oil and egg in a away when he was young and left him a large bowl until dough forms. great sum of money. Saint Nicholas was 3.)Dust hands with confectioners’ sugar and generous with his wealth and would leave shape dough into 1” ball. money on peoples’ doorsteps. He became 4.)Roll balls in confectioners’ and famous for his kindness, and in the 16th place 2 inches apart on ungreased century the stories of St. Nicholas be- cookie sheets. came popular in Europe. They celebrated 5.)Bake for 8-10 minutes or until St Nicholas Day on December 6th, and center is just set. the children would leave their shoes out 6.)Remove from pans after a mi- to be filled with presents by St. Nicholas. nute or so and cool on wire racks. The Dutch brought the St. Nicholas tradi- tion to America, and we have been carry- ing on the Santa festivities ever since.
November/ December 2014
Vandalism: The Bully of Today’s Property joke. These make no sense to me. The technology By: John Page and tools provided this school did not come from After four years of attending Logan teachers or County, some problems have become more principals, but clear to me than ever. A main issue I have no- the tax paying ticed is the carelessness of students when it citizens of our comes to school property. Having a school to community come to everyday is a privilege most young and state, in- people that most do not fathom. A student’s cluding parents school and its equipment should be treated of students. It with the same respect as that of an employees is our responsi- work environment. I say this because high bility as stu- school is basically a career in itself and holds a dents to utilize high importance for the future of students. these resources I have seen a variety of mistreatments instead of towards school property, whether it be carving downing our words into desks or breaking a computer as a own education.
8 Crazy Holiday Facts By: Lauren Macy 1.) In the U.S., 280 million turkeys Deck the Halls! are sold for Thanksgiving. By: Lauren Macy 2.) 20% of all cranberries consumed At LCHS, we have spirit week for such in the U.S. per year are eaten events like homecoming and red ribbon week, but on Thanksgiving. how do we celebrate the holidays? With no decora- 3.) Americans eat between 16 to 18 tions dispersed around the school, a holiday pounds of turkey each year. themed spirit week before winter break is the per- 4.) Californians are the largest con- fect way to get students in the Christmas spirit. sumer of Turkey in the Unites In middle school, we had holiday themed States. days all throughout December. Days would include 5.) Americans send 1.5 billion Christ- wearing a Santa hat, a red nose, candy canes, and mas cards annually. an ugly Christmas sweater. But when coming to 6.) 95% of Americans say they cele- Logan County, there was no holiday spirit, no tree, brate Christmas. tinsel, or twinkling lights anywhere. Having a holi- 7.) The U.S produces 1.76 billion day spirit week would give LCHS the Christmas candy canes each year, vibe that it desperately needs. Christmas is gener- enough to circle the equator ally a joyful time for many people, so why not ex- 6.7 times. press that joy with everyone. 8.) The U.S Postal Service delivers 15.8 billion cards, letters, and packages between Thanksgiv- ing and Christmas Eve.
November/ December 2014
Practical Time for Practical Living By: Ashley Brinkley As my senior year is approaching the half-way point, I cannot help but look back and wish I could change some things about the path I followed, or was forced to follow, to get this far. One particular thing that I wish I could go back and change is the year I took the College and Career course of Practical Living. As a freshman in Coach Duncan’s practical living class, I knew the content was im- portant, but it did not exactly apply to me at the time. Like myself, most freshmen went through his course learning the information but not truly soaking it in. Looking back, it is a shame that that class is not taken more seriously. The course presents lots of great information, just not at an appropriate time. The College and Career course would be more beneficial for students if it was a required skinny course for seniors. Seniors need practical living right before college, not humanities. Hu- manities should be required as a freshman course because the information presented in this class is not critical for an incoming freshman in college. However, for Practical Living to be more effective, it needs to be a course for seniors. As a freshman, we had units over colleges in Kentucky, interview tips, budgeting, career exploration, and more. As a senior applying to colleges and filling out scholarships, I feel like these valuable lessons would be much more beneficial to learn my senior year. To have that kind of guidance at a more appropriate time seems much more logical to me. Seniors need these life lessons during their senior year, so they do not feel totally thrown out in the real world with no kind of map to follow.
Trendy Topic By: Madison Jernigan
In the month of November, pumpkin spice lattes have become very trendy. The most pop- ular place to get a pumpkin spice latte is Starbucks. They only sell the lattes during fall and winter, so customers can purchase them for a limited time. The delicious drink in- cludes milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, whipped cream, and real pumpkin pie spices. The
price for a twelve-ounce Starbucks latte is $4, and thousands have already been sold this month.
November/ December 2014
No Makeup November By: Ashley Brinkley For the past few years, “No Shave November” has been the popular thing to do among guys. Whether they know it or not, “No Shave November” was started to increase awareness for cancer. What better way to raise awareness than to keep something that many cancer patients loose? After watching the guys have all the fun, some women decided they wanted to get involved in their own way. Rave Ministries started “No Makeup November”, a spin-off of “No Shave November”. Women do not use this month to raise awareness for can- cer. Instead, they use this month to fast from makeup, to rediscover their worth and identity in Christ. During this month girls are encouraged to spend the time they would use putting on makeup to dig into the word of God or spend time in prayer. Last year was the first time “No Makeup November” really made a presence in our school. This year, while there were not as many participants, there were still some who decided to embark on the journey. From the looks that guys give, to the comments made by other girls, “No Makeup Novem- ber” is not the easiest thing to do. But at the end of the month, all the girls who participated were all able to see how rewarding it was to take part in something that powerful.
“How would Happy Holidays one find their way into a
Office 365 punk/rock By: Victoria Gipson band in In order to help the students of the Logan County School District succeed school?” the district is, “providing Office 365 to every student free of charge,” according to Mr. Sandlin’s email to the faculty and the school website. This includes the newest Logan County version of Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote. Every child in the High School of- county will now be able to access the latest version of the Microsoft software free of charge on up to five devices. All the child has to do is put in their credentials on fers a guitar the devices of their choice, and they are able to keep it as long as they are enrolled class where it is in school in the Logan County District. possible to meet I feel like giving every child a chance to access the Microsoft programs other musicians outside of school is great idea, and it will help improve student achievement. This who may have is just a small step to the many improvements that I feel the school is making. the same inter- Eventually, the school needs to give out personal computers to all the students for use during the school year. Many teachers want every assignment typed or com- ests as you. pleted online, and it is difficult for students without a computer to accomplish it.
November/ December 2014
Jonathon Brown starred as the lead in
the play performed “Is being a senior hard, on easy, or fun?” November It depends on what you 13th, 2014. do. If you have all AP classes and other extra- curricular activities, your year will be very difficult at times. If you take all easy classes and coop half the day, you will have it very easy. However, all of your senior year should be fun, even if it is stressful.
Christmas ‘Tis the Season
Turkey Time By: Brianna Winn Christmas joy is spread through- By: Lennon Reed out the land, decorations fill even the Everyone seems to enjoy Christmas as it is a gloomiest of places, and hope is restored time to give gifts, spend time with family, and enjoy the in humanity, even if it is just in Decem- winter weather. However, Thanksgiving is my favorite ber. Whether you believe in Saint Nick or holiday of the year. As friends and families all gather just go along with the idea for the sake of around massive feasts, Thanksgiving is the perfect time the children, everyone is jolly and in an to show appreciation for all that has happened so far overall better mood. throughout the year. Also, the annual Macy’s Thanks- Whereas, Thanksgiving, provides giving Day Parade is shown on Thanksgiving morning, food and time with family and friends, which is followed by an annual Thanksgiving NFL Christmas you receive and give presents game, which creates entertainment for the day. On which not only bring you joy but the peo- Thanksgiving, families are able to come together and ple around you joy, and no amount of food could measure up to that. give thanks to each other, while eating all day long.
November/ December 2014
“The Best of Me” By: Ashley Brinkley On October 17th yet another Nicholas Sparks movie hit the box office. Starring Liana Liberato, Michelle Monaghan, Luke Bracey, and James Marsden, “The Best of Me” has proven to be equally as successful as his other movies. In this movie two young lovers drift apart only to be brought back together after a dear old friend of theirs passes away. After tensions are relaxed, the two realize that neither one of them has forgotten the love they once shared. While they find their way back to each other, issues which arose when they were teenagers continue to pose a threat to them. While all Nicholas Sparks movies and novels are predictable and parallel in some aspects, this movie included more plot twists and unforeseen controversy than the viewer would expect. For a “chick- flick” this movie encompasses a harsher family dynamic and more tragedies than others that have come across the screen. After watching this movie, I was pleasantly surprised that I did not walk away thinking that that movie was predictable. I also appreciated that the ending was not at all what one would expect or want. This movie made me wish I could go back and write my own ending. It is a movie I could watch over and over again and never get tired of it.
“Christmas” makes them more modern without losing their holi- By: Lauren Macy day vibe. This is my favorite Christmas album and Christmas is a Christmas themed album re- it is the perfect album to put you in the Christmas leased on October 25th, 2011 by Grammy award spirit winning singer Michael Bublé. This album features many Christmas classics such as “Jingle Bells” “White Christmas” and “Silent Night”. The album was number one on the Billboard 200 chart for the week of December 10, 2011. Bublé re-released the album on November 26th, 2012 which features four additional tracks. Since release, the album has sold over 8.5 million copies worldwide. Even though this album was released in 2011, it still holds up to being one of the best Christmas albums. Michael Bublé has an amazing voice and this album just shows how great it is. This album brings many classic Christmas songs and
November/ December 2014
Close The Deal By: Brittney Barton Logan County High School held a luncheon for their seniors called Close the Deal. At the luncheon there were several guest speakers such as Senator Whitney Westerfield, Dr.Hub, Mayor Stratton, and State Representative Martha Jane King. Each speaker had wise advice to give to the students and did a great job of encouraging the seniors to further their education. Also, seniors were able to have “table talk” with other in- dividuals and representatives who attended the luncheon. I believe that the table talk was beneficial and al- lowed seniors to have many questions answered. The one downfall I saw with the luncheon was that it was held too late in the year. Most of the infor- mation learned at the luncheon would have been more beneficial to know before college deadlines were com- ing to an end. Although the information received today allowed seniors to learn more about what to expect in college and how to prepare. Overall, I believe that the Close the Deal luncheon was a success and should be continued for many years to come.
“Jarhead 2: Field of Fire” “We Are The Shepherds” By: Lennon Reed By: Courtney McGinnis
Jarhead 2: Field of Fire, se- The beloved Johnny Cash ordinarily quel to 2005’s Jarhead, is a dramatic writes songs with themes of ruefulness or sor- American war film, which was re- row, but you may not be aware that he wrote an leased in August of 2014. More enduring Christmas song that really puts you in modern than its prequel, Jarhead, the Christmas spirit. “We Are the Shepherds” by Jarhead 2: Field of Fire covers the Johnny Cash reminds us of the true meaning of war in Iraq and Afghanistan. As a the season and Cash’s deep voice gives you the team of United States Marines plan sweet feeling of to resupply a remote outpost located Christmas. Though in Taliban- controlled territory, they not as known, “We run into conflict with members of Are the Shepherds” Taliban, while also struggling to will warm your connect with Corporal Chris heart this cold Merimette, who had only one day Christmas season. prior been selected as Team Leader If you are in the of their squad. Starring Josh Kelly, mood for a classic Cole Hauser, Danielle Savre, and Christmas song, Stephen Lang, Jarhead 2: Field of “We are the shep- Fire fits November perfectly as Vet- herds” by Johnny eran’s Day has only recently passed. Cash should be #1 on your list.
November/ December2014
Aquarius- Gemini- Libra- You begin to You are more You desire to question your observant than take the lead. Do goals and needs. Take this active but more so in a respectful way. time to look within to strategic and deliberate Channel your excess en- learn about your desires. when you do take action. ergy into constructive and productive pursuits.
Pisces- Cancer- Scorpio- You have a close You may feel like You tend to friend who is feel- others are direct- communicate in ing discouraged. ing your life. Believe in a direct manner. Be care- Connect with them by en- yourself and shape your ful that you don't come couraging them to follow own life. across as insensitive. their own dreams.
Aries- Leo- Sagittarius- You seek a higher You are more You have a meaning to your motivated to get strong desire to life. Seek out new things done. be independent and experiences that take you Don’t let this you’re protective of the beyond the mundane de- stress you out. values by which you tails of day-to-day life. live.
Capricorn- Virgo- You’ve You’ve become Taurus- become busy this You are strong less focused on month. Take a structure and or- and bold in look at your daily your beliefs and ganization, but have an activities and decide what increased imagination. convictions, and others might be preventing you tend to naturally follow from growing as a person. your lead.