The Wednesday Society presents The Volume XVIII w Issue 2 Waunakee Community High School whspurplesage.com November 20, 2019 PurpleWaunakee,Sage WI 53597 Twitter: @WHSpsage Opinion School pushback on vaping epidemic Student Sydney Jezik speaks to the new News Editor public library’s unavailability on More than 44,000 students nationally from Sunday afternoons grades 8-12 took part in the 2018 annual sur- wpage 5 vey of drug, alcohol and cigarette use.12th grade use alone jumped from 28% to 37% from 2017 to 2018. Vaping of each substance asked about in the survey increased, including flavored liquids, nicotine and marijuana. “Vaping is an issue at school and everywhere.” Features Senior Natalie Kazysnki Debate over whether or And, according to current trends, these sta- not to change tistics are predominantly bound to increase. mascots heightens These statistics have roots at Waunakee wpage 7 High School, too. The 2018 Dane County Youth Assessment showed a spike in youth vaping between 2015 and 2018. Waunakee students reported above-average vaping for Photo submitted by Cardlin Langheim/Whipurwauna Yearbook the county. Seniors Natalie Kazynsky and Noah Dorn perform in an anti-vaping skit at Further, while vape usage is rising, its ef- the homecoming pep rally. fects are becoming very clear. In October the where,” said senior Natalie Kazynski. “I don’t think that it’s very no- first double lung transplant for lungs diseased ticeable because the people creating [vape tools] have found ways to by vaping took place at a Michigan hospital. hide it, and that’s not okay… the numbers of people doing it will only In less than a year, the junior-grade student keep rising until someone does something about it.” Entertainment involved received serious “inflammation and Several large clubs, like Above the Influence (ATI) and Pay It For- scarring” to his lungs. ward, have come together on the issue. Students and teachers collab- As a result of the government-dubbed “na- orated to create a homecoming pep rally skit to raise awareness about The King holds tional emergency” of vaping, and of increas- vaping. Newtrue Netflix to directing movie ingly troubling local data, concerned staff and The skit required several meetings and the writing and acting of praise students at Waunakee are taking a stand. wpage 10 “Vaping is an issue at school and every- See VAPING w Page 3 First concert of the year: success Sydney Williams News Editor The first few months of the school year boast opportunities that perhaps only students and teachers fresh off the summer have the en- Sports ergy for, with highly involved activities such as Drama Club’s One Act and football’s an- Waunakee nual grind towards state. The music suite, too, football off to is busy this time of year: the Kickoff Concert state after took place on October 21st. beating This year’s concert featured many popu- Waukesha West lar songs like “California Dreamin’” by the wpage 13 Mamas & The Papas, “Believer” by Imagine Dragons, “Riptide” by Vance Joy and more. Opening the concert was a preview of the spring musical, Fiddler on the Roof. Sung by all choirs, it featured junior Reed Christion on the violin, as well as senior Samantha Hi- megarner on the oboe. Originally, this concert was created to pro- vide an opportunity for student choice, and so InDepth Spread effectively starts off the year with a line-up of music that is most appealing to students. School pushes “[The Kickoff Concert] is different because back on vaping Photo submitted by Meta Jezik of the variety of music and most of the ensem- health crisis From left to right: juniors Brian Hlathein, Allison Horvatin, Elliot Petroff, wpages 8-9 Sydney Jezik and Jonah Leland perform the Pentatonix original “Run to See KICKOFF CONCERT w Page 3 You” at the Kickoff Concert. News Sydney Jezik and Sydney Williams, News Editors Co-curricular code is being reinforced wNews Briefs Emma Nelson lost some of its gravity. Reporter “I don’t think the co-curricular code is very Student places first in effective because many students don’t care… category at NATS Students may have noticed some adminis- Nobody cares to read the email sent out with trative buzz around co-curriculars this year, the code,” said junior Sydney Grimm, who Friday, Nov. 8th, Junior Elena Paul re- such as the Google form sent out in October, competes on the varsity girl’s golf team. ceived first place in the High School Tre- to be completed by all students. This Google It used to be that there would be different ble division at the National Assocation of form had students fill out all non-sport co-cur- punishments for different types of athletics, Teachers of Singing Competition at UW Vit- riculars they were a part of, so that the school and clubs or organizations. Now, the enforce- erbo. could figure out the demographics of students ment is consistent within the types of co-cur- in certain clubs and activities. riculars. Teacher recieves This activity attached to a similar, but less As said by Borowski, “we have nearly Distinguished Service Award visible, movement, taking place in sports and 1,100 students involved in co-curriculars in co-curriculars, and both are happening because some form or another.” Beginning this year, Retired Waunakee middle school teach- of a rewrite of enforcement of the Co-Curric- all 1,100 students will be held to the same er Steve Ryan has recieved an award from ular Handbook. standards regarding their participation. the Wisconsin Athletic Director’s Association “[There were] no changes to the rules. The When asked why the rule enforcements for 40 years of teaching and coaching at rules have been in place long before I was were implemented, in the first place Borows- Waunakee. here,” said Principal Brian Borowski. “The ki said, “They were implemented to eliminate -compiled by Sydney Jezik and Sydney Williams key aspect is enforcement of the rules to ensure possible inequities within the system where that all students are being treated equitably one group of students could face penalties for formance groups such as jazz band, choir or with the Co-Curricular Code. Athletes should their grades, behaviour, actions... while anoth- a capella, is held to the first three standards. not have a harsher punishment than other stu- er group was not held to the same standard. Category C, which encompasses the rest of the dents who represent the school in their club/ Any student who represents Waunakee Com- organizations that are usually considered clubs organization… it should be the same. So the munity High School in sports/clubs/orgs (de- (i.e. French Club, Art Club, National Honor important aspect is holding all students who pending on which Category they fall (A, B, or Society and many others), will be held to the are involved in Athletics/Clubs/Orgs to high C)) will be held to the same standard. Short first two standards. standards.” answer, to create accountability as well as fair- Section one, behavior, applies to all catego- ness.” ries and discusses sportsmanship, honesty and “[There were] no changes to the As stated in the co-curricular handbook, moral consideration. Section two, attendance, there are four sections for participants to fol- also applies to all categories and discusses rules... [just] enforcement.” low. Section one is behavior, two is attendance, weather cancellations and excused absences if three is grades and four is WIAA expectations required by instructors. Section three, grades, Principal Brian Borowski (Code of Conduct/external expectations/ran- applies to A and B and mandates a certain dom drug testing). grade level — less than one F for every six All of Category A is held to all four stan- classes — for co-curricular eligibility. Finally, The rules for those involved in co-curricu- dards. This includes WIAA sports, and com- section four, WIAA expectations, applies to lars have not changed for a long time. Some petitive co-curriculars such as Forensics, One A alone and mainly covers physical physical students report that, as a result, the code has Act, etc. Category B, which includes per- exams. Scholarship opportunities benefitting Waunakee students arships created by counselors in the guidance right then and there. With more knowledge be- Aly Kinzel office. This list is accessible on both the coun- hind this topic, there’s little doubt that students Reporter seling department website and the Waunakee will embrace these opportunities. homepage under the counseling drop bar la- Whether it’s freshman year or senior year, beled ‘Scholarships.’ college will continue to be a relevant up-and “It’s quick, painless and scholarships are coming-obstacle students can’t simply avoid. posted throughout the year as they become The thought of it can be scary, but with solid available,” says guidance counselor and schol- preparation and the right mindset, it doesn’t arship coordinator Megan Bunkleman, the have to be something to procrastinate. creator and manager of the website. “The old system wasn’t super accessible, so we recre- “Scholoarships are posted... as they ated it as a stream line to better help students. There’s a breakdown of every type sorted by become availiable.” due date, and it’s a good new way to find local options.” Counselor Megan Bunkleman Another great resource that the school of- fers, Fastweb, is set up in a similar manner. Many people are unaware that Waunakee After setting up a free account, the website actually offers many opportunities through a retrieves scholarships that would best benefit variety of websites to influence the usage of a student based on their strengths, interests scholarships and financial aid.