Senior, Rena Knutson, works at a tanning salon, Suntan City, and tans around 3-4 times a week. People constantly give her a hard time for being “too dark.”

“People always say I’m too tan and I tan too much. People will always make cancer comments and say that my skin will get leathery when I’m old,” Knutson said.

Although people give Knutson a hard time, she tans anyways and avoids listening to them.

“I feel like since they’ve never gone, they would shut up if they had. They usually do when they finally go though,” Knutson said.

Senior, Savannah James, also tans and thoroughly enjoys it. She normally tans two days in a row then takes one day off to ensure she doesn’t burn. People too give her a hard time for tanning.

“People definitely give me a hard time for tanning. They get on my nerves and are always like, ‘You’re black, you don’t need to tan.’”

“But I like to keep my color,” James said.

Obviously skin cancer and other risks are apparent and there, both James and Knutson don’t necessarily forget about the risks but they don’t really worry about them either.

“The risks of tanning don’t really bother me. I’ve tanned all my life, but the risks are always in the back of my head,” James said.

“I’m not really worried about the risks because I don’t tan all year round,” Knutson said.

There are numerous reasons people tan including for prom, for personal reasons, or simply just to keep their color. With that being said, there is still two sides to the tanning argument.

“Tanning makes me feel happy and relaxed. In the winter I lose my color and tanning helps me keep it. I don’t think tanning is bad, but too much of it is,” James said.

Junior, Ashley Baily, also tans for personal pleasure and for the simple fact that it feels good and is enjoyable.

“I tan because its so relaxing, it’s warm, and it makes me feel good about myself,” Baily said.

But along with tanning comes the scrutiny and Baily has experienced it as well. Like James and Knutson, she does her best to brush it off and ignore it.

“It’s my own choice and people only talk because they don’t know how good it feels,” Baily said.

Whether it’s tanning for a school dance or just because, it seems like teenage girls are always going to have the upper hand in the ongoing tanning argument.

“People don’t realize how relaxing it is until they try it for themselves,” Baily said.

The Jungle Book pawed its way to the Denis Hildreth Auditorium May 2-4.  The play is directed by drama teacher Emily Griffin

“The play the Jungle Book is about a man cub who is taken by his parents and raised by the jungle creatures.  This presence has disturbed the harmony of the jungle and he is forced to rebalance the harmony,” Griffin said.

Sophomore Aurteamus Crow, portrayed the man cub Mowgli that was taken from his parents and raised by wolves with the help of a bear and panther.

Accompanying Crow on stage is freshman Alex Colby who played the demanding Adjutant and crazy Monkey King who kidnapped Mowgli after he was left in the jungle to hunt by Baloo the bear and Bagheera the panther.

People have their opinions on their favorite character.

“The Monkey King or Shere Kahn because they both have really random emotions,” Colby said.

“The Henchmen, because I know them personally and they’re funny,” Crow said.

If they have favorites they must also have a character that they don’t like.

“Mugger, because he’s a jerk; he killed everybody,” Colby said.

“Shere Kahn,” Crow said, “he tries to eat me.”

No matter what activity; a sport, a club, drama.  There is always a favorite part of it.

“Being on stage,” Crow said.

“That I get to meet people who like to do the same stuff I do and express how I feel on stage,” Colby said.

Looking back years from now only memories will be left of The Jungle Book and these boys know they will have some.

“The kids clinic because it got the community involved in the production,” Griffin said.

“Making all these friends and working together to create a masterpiece,” Colby said, “I’ll remember everything, the happiness, the drama (and) T.J!”

“Being the main character for the first time,” Crow said.

Even the actors have a part of the play that they like the most.

“When T.J throws the rope over Ben, (looks) back and (puts) fake glasses on,” Colby said.

“The part where I meet the White Cobra and get the fallen star,” Crow said.

Crow and Colby were asked if they thought people would leave the show happy with what they had seen.

“It depends on a persons interest,” Crow said.

“Definitely, most definitely,” Colby said, “especially when T.J and his sexy body come on stage.”

Different people may decide to audition for various reasons, some simple, some not quite so.

“I decided to audition because I feel I have a passion for acting.  I feel this is a way to jumpstart my career as an actor/singer/engineer/eccentric billionaire/entrepreneur/sexy beast,” Colby said.

“I was told to by multiple people,” Crow said.

There may be contrasting reasons as to why people will like the play.

“We have a little bit of energy, drama (and) comedy,” Colby said, “it’s a cartoon style play.”

“It’s funny at times because of T.J and Cameron,” Crow said.

Not all casts and crews get along.

“I think we’re kind of like a family.  We get along a lot of the time.  Other times we want to rip each others throats out,” Colby said.

“I would think everybody got along ok,” Crow said.

A common ailment of students is sleep deprivation. Teens need eight to nine hours of sleep per night in order to perform best.

Most students sleep less than needed, and it affects the performance of schools.

“Kids are less attentive when they’re tired,” Scott said, “They’d hate school less if they weren’t as tired.”

Senior Dzana Memic sleeps eight hours a night, and is always energetic in the morning.

“I’m always really awake in the mornings, and then I’m tired at night so I just go to bed early,” she said.

According to the National Sleep Foundation (NSF), not getting enough sleep can limit the ability of the brain to learn and solve problems. Students who get less sleep find it harder to concentrate when taking tests.

“I always either have homework, work, or just want some free time,” Scott said, “If I never did anything but school and sleep, I could get enough sleep. They expect us to do too much outside of school, there’s not enough time to do it and do what you want.”

Memic works most days, gets straight A’s, and still finds time to get enough sleep. She swears that drinking a glass of milk at night helps her get good rest.

Memic and Scott both agree that technology plays a large role in sleeping habits. Many people stay up late playing video games or playing on their phones.

“With more technology, people just use them in bed and it makes them stay up late,” Memic said.

Sleep can also affect moods; people who have less sleep can easily become irritated, apathetic or depressed. Memic says she is always in a good mood after sleeping, refreshed and ready for the day.

With lack of sleep affecting school performance, Scott believes schools should try to combat it.

“Schools should give less homework if they want us to get more sleep; its something that wouldn’t be too hard to do,” he said.

Memic believes that schools should not do anything about it.

“It’s not like they really care about it, it’s up to each person to get enough sleep,” she said.

According to the NSF, the time that schools typically start conflicts with the sleeping cycles of teens; they need alarm clocks or their parents to wake them up, and act like “zombies” getting ready for school. Schools that have later start times allow students to get an extra hour or so of sleep in the mornings, instead of going to bed earlier.

Another effect from lack of sleep is an increased consumption of caffeinated drinks and as teens get older the caffeine can turn to alcohol or nicotine. Weight gain from eating unhealthy foods, and an increased chance of acne are other consequences of sleep deprivation.

Developing good sleep habits earlier in life will allow for better concentration and improve morning moods. Sleep cannot be enforced, but student will have to decide if other activities are worth sacrificing a night of sleep.

Hall’s 17 years spent teaching science, taking charge of technology in the school and holding up the position as Department Chair of Iowa teachers is what values him as much more than just a teacher. His leadership in the school is what brought Principal Douglas Wheeler to attention in nominating Hall for the award.

“ I’ve worked with Hall before I was a principal, he’s a leader and he’s innovating in the classroom,” Wheeler said. “Every year is a tough choice because there are many great teachers I could choose from, but his leadership is within and beyond his department. And he’s been doing it for a long time.”

From a total of four annual nominations that Wheeler submitted to the Rotary Club, Hall marks the first win, bringing great honor and pride to the school and staff.  Student Improvement Leader Maureen Griffin, also in charge of the Science Department, is thrilled over his accomplishment.

“This guy (Hall) goes above and beyond his call of duty. He’s not only concerned about teaching science, he’s concerned about the teachers in his department and how they’re growing. He works every single day and he doesn’t limit himself to the classroom. The Rotary Club got it right this year,” Griffin said.

Often, teachers get overlooked to be recognized for the hard work they do. When they’re rewarded with the recognition they deserve, they have pride and honor for their hard work.

“It’s always nice to be recognized for the work you do. I think a lot of people deserve it and I like to do the best I can for my students,” Hall said.

When deciding who to select, the Rotary Club committee got together to review each application, look at the financial need, the ability to succeed, their test scores and characteristics. Considering the fact that Hall won over every high school teacher nominated in the state of Iowa makes the award even more honorable.

“It’s an amazing offer for Hoover in the city of Des Moines, I hope people notice,” Griffin said.

Hall takes the most pride in being able to strike balance between the work he does and his social life outside of school. He maintains a social life and keeps up with a doing a good job at school. Best of all, he finds ways to do it by himself.

“It doesn’t take awards to make Hall better, he’s constantly searching in his own skin to find ways to be better,” Griffin said. “He’s a quiet guy and hovers under radar, but he can’t stay quiet for too long because he’s too good at what he does.”

With the constitutionality of California’s Proposition 8 and the Defense of Marriage Act being brought to the Supreme Court, the argument for gay marriage has come to the forefront of the American people.

For those citizens who support gay rights the issue seems like a no-brainer. But for those who oppose the issue runs much deeper. The opposition often comes from deep religious feelings that have oppressed gay people for thousands of years.

The argument for equality has no negative attitude toward religious beliefs. It comes down to the fact that government is based on certain unalienable rights, legal precedent, and fairness, not religion.

Because of the belief in secular law, it is not only impossible, but immoral to argue against the equality of gay people based on these religious pretexts. If we do allow our government to deny equality based on religion, should we also allow our government to enforce other religious laws like the tithe?

The other more valid argument against gay marriage is the damage of growing up in a home without the presence of a father or mother. While this argument may hold some weight the opponents seem to ignore the fact that according to the 2010 Census 27% of children are growing up in a single parent home.

Perhaps, legislators should focus on support for those millions of single parents families instead of denying millions the access to two parents regardless of the sex.

In a capitalistic society the allowing of gay marriage makes more fiscal sense than ever. In a time where the conservatives have caused an uproar over our country’s mounting debt, they choose not see the financial benefits of a gay marriage.

Studies by the Congressional Budget Office have shown that gay marriages can bring a positive boost to the U.S. economy. Federal tax’s today have a marriage penalty which would raise bring in millions of dollars in revenue through new marriages.

Another financial benefit in gay marriage would be seen in communities all across the country. Couples with children tend to buy houses and live in family neighborhoods. With millions of new families buying houses it would certainly stimulate those cities where houses are being bought, businesses are being opened, and new dollars are being spent.

Come this summer when the Supreme Court makes its decision the choice is obvious. A denial of a gay couples right to get married is a clear denial of the basic fundamentals of civil rights enjoyed by all Americans.

Some say that 8th graders shouldn’t be allowed to play high school softball or baseball but in the end it benefits the team and themselves.

“I’m going to work really hard to be on varsity this year,” Madisen said.

Even though someone is in 8th grade they can potentially start at a position on varsity if they work hard enough and that is one of Madisen’s goals.

“This year I get to practice and play with my sister and it’s weird because she’s 18 and I’m only 14,” Madisen said.

Taylor has been on varisty for 5 years because she also was on varsity as an 8th grader. She has been working her way to be a starting pitcher and first baseman, where she has accomplished both.

“I feel so much older than my sister and it’ll be so weird having to play with her on our high school team,” Taylor said.

The age difference on softball and baseball teams can be a big difference because you have seniors who are 18 and about to go off to college and 14 year olds who are just about to start high school.

“I know coach Kirt will make us work hard and it’ll be a big difference playing high school ball than little league or tournament ball,” Madisen said.

The level of competition is obviously different from middle school and it is something that the 8th graders will have to get use to but with good leaders on the team they should learn quickly.

Dedication is needed when playing sports, but especially baseball softball because they have to dedicate a lot of their summer to practices and games.

“I’ve been dedicating my life to softball already so I’m not mad about having our season during the summer,” Madisen said.  ”Having some of my summer taken away is okay with me because I love softball,” Taylor said.

Taylor is attending Northwest Missouri State next fall to play softball, it is her favorite sport and also her sisters.  Madisen wants to play softball in college as well, dreaming of playing at Iowa or Florida.

Thoughts about this upcoming season have been positive, the team is planning on making it to the state tournament, hopefully.

“This season will go well since there is a lot of 8th graders coming up and a lot of seniors are still here,” Madisen said.

“We have a good team and we should do well as long as people work hard and have a positive about it,” Taylor said.

With all that was said, the perspective on how the 8th graders will help the team has sounded like they will be an asset to the team and they plan on having a good season!

Jewett Lawn Care is owned by 18-year-old senior Kingsley Jewett.  Jewett mows lawns or cleans them up during the summer and in the winter he does snow removal.  He has his own equipment, such as his own company truck, trailer, lawn mowers and plow.

Being a senior Jewett said, “I’m going to try to keep my business going after high school.”

Doing this job, Jewett makes good money because of how many regular customers he has.  His neighbors were his first customers and what started the business and it gradually grew into something bigger than he thought.  Jewett eventually started passing out fliers to promote himself.  Now he even has his own business cards.

“I enjoy my job and it makes me good money,” Jewett said.

Jewett has all these customers but he can’t attend to all of them himself.  He hires and fires his workers.  When hiring others it is usually some of his friends or people he knows that will do a good job for him.

Senior Nik Nicholson has previously worked for Jewett and helped him.

“He pays decently and I get to work with my friend. He pays more than minimum wage so that’s always a plus,” Nicholson said.

The requirements for working for Jewett aren’t too tough, you just need to be a hard worker and someone he can count on. His crew and him go out and get whatever job needed done. Jewett Lawn Care also does some landscaping work on yards as customers wish.

“The way I see it is when they’re is snow falling, it’s really money falling and when the sun is out shining and the grass is green, I see a day full of hard work and working on lawns,” Jewett said.

Having your business be based on the weather can sometimes be difficult, especially with this crazy Iowa weather it’s hard to know what you’re going to get each week.

“This weather has been pretty unpredictable these past few years but we’re pretty flexible,” Jewett said.

Setting up a time to have work done on whatever is needed isn’t to hard, just give Jewett Lawn Care a call and set up a time and day and they will work with you to get things done.

“I’m always happy to help someone out and also be earning money while I do it,” Jewett said.

Senior Reanna Lewis has been running track since she was five. She has been running varsity since freshman year.

Lewis ran in the relays her freshman, sophomore and junior year. When she found out that she didn’t make the relays this year she was pretty upset about it. “Words can’t really describe how I feel because there’s so many emotions involved” Lewis said.

Finding out that the coaches didn’t even submit the times made her even more upset about not making it.

“I would’ve rather found out we didn’t make it by the times but, the fact that they didn’t even bother submitting the times showed they didn’t believe in us from the start” Lewis said.

Even though Lewis is upset about not running in the relays this year she still has the memories of running in the her freshman, sophomore and junior year.

“Freshman year it meant a lot more because I was the anchor and I was running with the seniors” Lewis said.

Lewis is planning on running in college for Iowa Central, she’s going to try to be a walk on for the team so that hopefully in her college track career she can run at the track relays with her new team.

Freshman Mammon Koko has been running track for three years, he made the relays his 7th and 8th grade year for the open 100 meter dash and the 4×1,  but missed the cut off for the open 100 meter dash by two seconds this year.

“It was tough at first when I found out I didn’t make it, I even teared up a little bit,” Koko said.

Even though he wasn’t able to qualify this year for the relays he says there’s no doubt in his mind that he won’t make it next year.

The coaching situation this year for the boys and girls track team has definitely reflected negatively on the athletes. This is the first year in awhile that none of the runners have made it to the relays.

Aren’t there many injuries? ”It is full contact without pads. The injury risk are high.” Players do a good job at preventing injuries by practicing these, ”learn how to tackle right, and learn to pass and run effectively.”

Rugby practice consist of passing, endurance, kicking and live play drills. They also play two games a week from mid March until late May. ”Come tryout a practice, it is better to see what we do in person than to explain” Leovan said.

Many people think of rugby as football but without any pads but Leovan says that they are very different. “It is an exciting sport and it is like nothing you have ever played. When you are in the field it is something different. If you like to hit people this is a sport for you.”

Leovan’s favorite thing about rugby is that its a team sport where, “anybody can score, also you can kick the ball anytime during the game.”

Hoover is use to having few numbers in sports including rugby, “We need more people to come out and play. Our problem right now is numbers; we currently have around 10 players. It would be nice to have 15-20 or more if possible.”

They need more players because it is an enduring game and with a small bench, players stay on the field for too long without breaks, ”Rugby games are non-stop having more people mean having more time to rest. rugby takes a lot of endurance.”

If interested in playing the lesser known sport of rugby contact,  ”Either me or one of the other players” Leovan said.

Senior Jennifer Ramirez lost her dog, Peanut, about a month ago. At the age of seven months, he was hit by two cars and killed instantly.

“At first I felt nothing because it felt like a sick joke, then I was crushed,” she said.

Ramirez has lost many pets throughout her life. Her parents would buy her a new cat every time one died because they didn’t want her to suffer the loss.

“You need to talk to someone after your pet dies,” Ramirez said, “Let it all out; it’s unhealthy to hide it.”

Chuck Riordan has been a vet for 35 years. On average, he deals with euthanasia three to four times a week.

“When it’s a person, you can feel however you want and nobody says anything, but they tell themselves it’s just a pet and try to push the grief down,” he said.

Euthanasia is not an easy thing to do, for Riordan it is the hardest and best thing about his job. He knows that he has helped many people deal with their grief, but it hurts knowing he has just ended a beloved pet’s life.

“Pets are part of the family. Sometimes the pet is the only thing nice to them. Maybe their husband or wife isn’t nice to them or their kids or their friends, but this pet here is and when they lose them, it’s hard,” he said.

Euthanasia is often easier than a sudden death, as with Ramirez’s dog. Ramirez was at school at the time of the accident, and did not get a chance to say goodbye.

With euthanasias, the owner gets a chance to say goodbye, and can choose to be present at the time of death. Either way it isn’t easy, but it is a part of life that must be accepted.

According to humanesociety.org, 39 percent of American households own at least one dog, and 33 percent own at least one cat. With almost 80 million dogs and about 86 million cats, death is prominent in society.

The term euthanasia is Greek for “good death”, and as Riordan says, it is his job to do a good deed and relieve pets of their pain. He constantly reminds himself of the meaning of this word, and that he is doing the right thing.

“You’ve got to let it go and just be sad,” he said, “it can hit you at any time [grief] and you’ve got to be ready for it. It’s going to take time to work out, but it brings people and families together.”

For Riordan, his most prominent memory of grief was of his Labrador Retriever, Rosie. It was the first time his children had to deal with the death of a pet, and he had to wait for two of his sons to return home from college before euthanizing her.

“The kids weren’t sure how to handle it and it was tough, but it brought our family closer,” he said.

Pets are members of the family as well, and it’s okay to be sad after they pass.Whether it is a high school student, or a veterinarian who deals with death on a regular basis, everyone who owns a pet must experience the grief of losing them.

This challenge brought some interesting problems that no one would ever expected. I found myself having to go about things the “old-fashioned” way. I was giving out my home phone number to the confused look of all.

My father even remarked on how strange of feeling it was to answer the house phone and have someone asking for me. The lack of contact turned about to be beneficial in some ways.

There was one day when I was sitting in 4th block contemplating on whether or not I should go to weight lifting after school. When I realized I needed to go, because that was the only way I could get in contact with my friends and figure out the game plan for that night.

The communication issues were just the ones I had anticipated. Through this week I figured out how important my phone really way. One day I sat down at a computer in Newspaper class, when I realized I couldn’t log onto my WordPress account to work on a story because I had no idea what my password was.

I found myself missing my phone the most whenever I wanted to the know what time it was. Instead of just pulling that little watch out of my pocket, I had to experience the horrors of scanning the room hoping to find a clock.

There were some interesting reactions to my challenge. One member of the staff even suggested that everyone should, “give me a hundred dollars.” Most of my friends were just plain confused by it. “Why the hell would you do that,” or “that’s just stupid.”

In the end I actually enjoyed the week. Through all the problems that occurred the week was actually sort of peaceful. I never had to worry about getting bugged while trying to sleep, or getting called into work.

I would recommend a little dose of Digital Detox to anyone looking for a week to unwind.

Hearing about the Newtown shooting in Connecticut and one in Houston, Texas, the NRA has been trying to create more gun laws, believing that maybe even teachers should always have a gun on them in school to protect them and kids.

“I wouldn’t want the responsibility with a gun because I’m simply not trained to use one,” Principal Doug Wheeler said.

Wheeler has been working here for 12  years, as a teacher and then as a principal. There has been cases where students have brought guns to school and he feels as if the school has dealt with them well.

“The best tool about these type of things would be our teachers are who observant,” Wheeler said.

After recent school shootings Wheeler went over the Crisis Plan with all of the teachers.  The Crisis Plan is a plan that is for emergencies like a school shooting, the plan is up to date and they have weekly operations to go over it.

One thing that has been a problem is the intercoms, “I would fix it myself if I could,” Wheeler said.

Things that have been keeping this school safe would be the security cameras around the building, they can even pick up on sound and can be monitored in the office.  The cameras have helped find out some misconduct around here.

“We’re staying on top of things; contacting parents, keeping the parking lot under control and making sure students have their ID’s,” Wheeler said.

Students feeling safe here is a goal the faculty tries to pursue.  They take guns very seriously to protect students rights and safety always with a reasonable suspicion.  One of our advantages at our school is that we have an outstanding SRO (Student Resource Officer) who is always updated with the newest information on how to keep this school in order and crack down on anything that would cause harm.

“Our SRO is top notch and the best we have around.  He is a great asset and especially helps with the knowledge of gang violence,” Wheeler said.

Officer Ned Chido has been working here for five years.  Being a Student Resource Officer is a lifestyle because you’re always on the job.

“I’m always in the mode where something bad might happen even if nothing happens at all,” Chido said.

Chido see’s trends with potential gangs or behaviors of students and goes to classes to have prior knowledge if anything would ever happen.  It’s always pays to network with others.

“It’s always a good thing to deal with things before they get too far,” Chido said.

Creating relationships with the students and being their friend or someone to come talk to has helped Chido solve problems faster.  Having a bond with them makes it easier to get information.

“I usually have my hand in everything and I can do my job even when I’m not in the building,” Chido said.

Students staying out of things they shouldn’t be involved in is advice that should greatly be used for the safety of the school.

“There’s always great ways to respond to these incidents but you really don’t know how to react until it actually happens,” Wheeler said.

In the past, Hoover has a had an issue with the negative portrayal of its students and the overall atmosphere of the school.

Since students make up the school, many people believe it’s essentially the students causing the negative reputation. Sophomore, Morgan Spring, believes this is the case as well.

“Students are the ones who display the school, get the grades, are in clubs, and are involved in athletics,” Spring said.

Principal Doug Wheeler’s view on students shaping the school’s reputation is different.

“We’re a high school and we deal with the same issues a lot of other high schools deal with. We live in a city and the nature of cities is that people move in and out of them. Another situation we have is that kids come here and don’t have any formal schooling prior to coming here. Those tend to cause the issues, not just one group,” Wheeler said.

Along with students, there is constantly media attention waiting for one thing to go wrong. Their right there waiting to jump on it as soon as something happens.

“It gets readers attention and it seems like they don’t want people to look at Hoover in a good way so they talk about us when things are bad and think it’s exciting to make us look bad also,” Spring said.

Although the media and Des Moines register are doing their jobs, they never fail to shine a constant negative light on Hoover. Frustration begins to set in when this is always the case.

“Because the role of an agency like that is to sell newspapers, sometimes I question the civic-mindedness of their decisions and their stories about the Des Moines Public Schools in general. For example, I meet with all the CIML principals such as Ankeny and Johnston and all of us have very similar problems. They have behavioral problems and they have fights but it doesn’t seem to make the papers because Des Moines is the largest school district in Iowa. They can be a very strong advocate and they can be a very strong detractor,” Wheeler said.

During the 1990′s, Hoover had multiple events that made the school spiral downhill. Events such as bombs blowing up in the bathroom, fights, and fires in the bleachers. Stressing how much the school has changed is important to principal Wheeler.

“The perception of this school is stuck in the 1990′s when the reality is we’re going to be the first International Baccalaureate MYP program for ninth and tenth graders in the state. It’s a lot of hard work that our teachers are doing and I’m proud of the work our teachers have done. We’ve got a much different focus and way that we approach things than we did when I started and that’s a credit to our teachers,” Wheeler said.

Another big contributor to the way people view us is parents. Not only parents from Des Moines schools, but parents from suburb schools. Parents talk and students talk to their parents so there is constantly opinions from them as well.

” Part of the way that outside parents view us is really based on the media. They don’t get the West Register with the good stuff. All they get is the paper with the bad stuff. The job of parents is to advocate for their students but we live in a society where if you get an answer that’s not what you’re looking for it’s automatically the wrong answer. There’s going to be times where we make a decision that the parents aren’t going to like and they might talk about it,” Wheeler said.

A lot of the parents that talk, are parents that have no knowledge of Hoover and what goes on.

“Some of the parents that do talk about us never come to conferences or don’t set foot in the building. That’s where I’m concerned. If I have a parent come to me that is here and trying to help and advocates for their kid and has questions, when I talk to them they walk away with a positive impression of our administrative team, our teachers, and our students,” Wheeler said.

Improving the school’s reputation has been a big task but definite and noticeable improvements have been made.

“I think our reputation is slowly getting better and in the past few years test scores have been higher, the football team has won a couple of games, and both basketball teams are doing well,” Spring said.

Wheeler believes without a doubt that the reputation is improving and many things have contributed to it.

“I think our reputation has improved amongst our parents and I think the reason for that is I’ve taken the philosophy of complete transparency. If I’m transparent with people, I don’t give the impression that you can’t trust me or my staff. My whole goal with this perception of students and Hoover is to build trust and you don’t do that by hiding things,” Wheeler said.

Although, the school’s reputation is improving, there is still a string of doubt. People still believe the school will have a continuous negative reputation and that it won’t ever change.

“The negative reputation will go away when people start doing what they should be doing and caring about what people’s view on their school is,” Spring said.

Everyone has a story based on their school and that’s what Wheeler wants people to know.

“The best way to get rid of the negative reputation is teachers and students telling the story of Hoover High School. It’s the people who experience it and the parents that experience it need to tell the story,” Wheeler said.

Science teacher Mark Schnurstein with the help of fellow science colleague Adam Puderbaugh oversees the students involved.  Students Marissa Van Elson. Tomas Read, Matt Murr and Dylan Mangano are the ones involved.

The Real World Design Challenge, that was orignally started to get students interested in careers in engineering, especially aerospace engineering, is a challenge sent out by the Governor to solve problems in the industry.  This years challenge was to design an unmanned plane to find a child in the woods and took place at the Science Center on January 26.

The team that wins first place receives a trophy and a trip to Washington DC to compete at the National Competition with all expenses paid.  This year the team got third place.

The team met two to five times a week, every week, and sometimes on weekend until five on the regular week days.  But before they turned in the notebook and presented they would meet until one in the morning.  They met in Schnurstein’s classroom, McDonald’s, the public library downtown and Perkins.

To get their ideas they start by doing a S.C.R.U.M.  Everyone inputs their ideas, writes them down and decide which ones everyone likes the best.

Everyone has jobs in the challenge.

“I was a writer, an organizer, a secretary is an easy way to say it,” freshman Van Elson said.

“I did a lot of the research and a little bit of math,” sophomore Mangano said.

Students enjoy different things about being involved.

“You get to learn a lot about the engineer aspect,” Mangano said.

“You learn new things,” Van Elson said.

Different people have different things that they enjoy about the competition.

“Presenting it, the feedback, knowing your idea could help save lives.  My fave part is the problem solving.  You learn a lot about planes, not things you learn about everyday,” Van Elson said.

People involved have favorite memories.

“Last year when I went to the national convention we took the kids to then Smithsonian hangar where they have airplanes from history.  They applied what they learned from the competition to the planes hanging there,” Schnurstein said.

There may be different reasons as to why a coach would head a team.

“It’s fun, I’ve always been involved in aerospace and airplanes.  In all actuality it gives me my plane fix.  Since I moved to Iowa I don’t get to play with planes like I used too,” Schnurstein said.

Between the different genders, both have different view on which is the better at designing.

“I think both, it doesn’t really matter,” Van Elson said.

“Guys do it smarter, but the girls think about it a lot,” Mangano said.

“I think they both are because they have different perspectives.  That’s why it’s important to have both on the team, I’d like to get more students on the team.  They think about things differently.  Boys have more background knowledge because they play with trucks and planes more, but girls think about it more, they notice smaller things.  They pick up things faster,” Schnurstein said, “It’s important for girls to know they have a place in aeroscience.  Science and engineering need them badly.”

To help encourage students to join next year, a couple of the members have a few words for the students.

“We need more people next year and also it’s a good experience and we learn a lot,” Van Elson said.

“It’s a good experience for the stem careers,” Mangano said.

So next year try taking a chance and do something new.

While most kids just accept a grade for a project, a model student takes it to th.e next level. Sophomore Susan Stacy, 16, published her first children’s book. January 22, originally written for a book project in child development class..

Stacy was 15 when she wrote the book for a project assigned by sewing teache.r and Student Council advisor Tracy Levang. The class did an entire unit on .children’s books and studied how different messages could be conveye.d through books.

“I had them write children’s books for a project because it lets them explore di.fferent areas of development that matter most. Plus, it gives students the option .to choose what they want to write about,” Levang said.

Stacy decided to write The Talent Machine. The book is about two main charac.ters; an inventor and a curious child that wanted to see what he would be wh.en he grew up. So the inventor created a talent machine that would tell the. child what his career would be based on his talents and abilities.

“I have n.o clue where that idea came from,” Stacy said. “I was going to do something .entirely different but I guess it just kind of grew on me and I ended up writi.ng The Talent Machine.”

Stacy clai.ms there was no inspiration to writing the book, but she did focus on sendi.ng a strong message; which is to stick to something if you really like it and have. the passion to do it.

“I chose th.at message because I feel, and this may go for other students older and young.er than I am, that when students are overwhelmed by school work, extracurric.ular activities, jobs, etc., we are faced with the question ‘What is the future. going to bring?’ ‘How am I going to utilize all the skills and interests I’ve acqui.red?’. The message of the book is to simply take advantage of your t.alents. Don’t let them go to waste. Life offers us opportunities; it is a .choice to pursue them,” Stacy said.

Stacy’s close fri.end since second grade, sophomore Erin Atchison, 16 was the moral suppo.rt behind the publication of The Talent Machine. Similarly, Stacy has A.tchison’s back when she experiences something big as well..

“I was there for Susan with moral support, but the work was all her. She’s .helped stand by my side in my jewelry making business as well,” Atchison said. “After watching Susan experience this, I’ve learned that you should .always support your friends though everything.”

But. here’s the driving force behind Stacy’s book publication—it was Levang t.hat recommended her to publish the book. As soon as she finished grading th.e project, Levang shared her strong belief on Stacy going above and beyond to. make her schoolwork the real deal.

“It wa.s a great book and you’ve got to take a leap, even if it’s risky. I want Susan. to be recognized for her talent, and not just for a letter grade,” Levang said.. “But my mere suggestion for her to get the book published wasn’t much.; it was all her work.”

Now, St.acy took the big leap and is hoping for success. Everything was exciting for he.r but she admits there was uncertainty and fear in sending the story in, as we.ll as stressful paperwork and deadlines to deal with. In the end, the hard work i.s done and she’s glad she has her name on something.

“I never tho.ught this would happen at my age, but I’m glad I made it and I’m happy my sk.ills got me there,” Stacy said.

Levang, Atch.ison and Stacy’s family were there for full support and showed Stacy that. she should follow her dreams and abilities, just like she expects kids to do .after reading The Talent Machine.

“I just hope this. story provides inspiration to others who may think that they’re not good eno.ugh, or their work isn’t good enough. Students need to realize that it takes jus.t one risk—and you can do anything if you put your mind to it,” Levang said.

When asked why he proposed to her so early Fritz said, “She’s the one”.

His fiance lives in Van Meter so he only gets to see her on days he is off of work, but they make it work.

Fritz proposed to her seven months ago at Badger Creek in Van Meter. They were driving around and there was a big rain storm going on that night. They were standing outside in the rain with the lightning and thunder going on around them. Fritz timed it just right between the lightning strikes.

“The lightning flashed, I was gone and then it flashed again and I was on my knee,” Fritz said.

Once Brenna, his fiance, saw that he was down on his knee, she was shocked. Of course she said yes and she cried. Fritz was laughing because it was so adorable.

He hasn’t yet talked to her parents to get there blessing but they plan on doing it soon. Over Thanksgiving, Fritz finally told his family that he is engaged.

Most of them said congratulations and hugged him and gave him high fives. There were a select few that didn’t approve at all and were being judgmental, but Fritz didn’t care because he isn’t that close with them.

Most of the students here don’t believe Fritz when he tells them he is engaged. “It’s hard to prove that I am engaged because she doesn’t go here, she’s an hour and a half away,” Fritz said.

Dixie Pederson, the “head chef” of the cafeteria, said, “I come in at around six in the morning and make sure that we have enough breakfast sandwiches, orange juices and fruits for the students for that day.  This is usually based on how many sandwiches and things that we served the day before.”

“We get five deliveries a week, also based on what is served the previous time we had that meal option for lunch.  Two frozen deliveries on Monday and Thursday, two cook-chill deliveries on Tuesday and Thursday, and one dried delivery on Fridays.” Pederson said.

“Each person in here has a different job.  We have runners that make sure that the food is still hot and fresh,” Pederson said.

“Barb Parker and Susie Pangburn are split between here and Meredith,” Pederson said.

Tina Lawerence, manager of lunches at SCAVO, Meredith, King, Samuelson, Monroe, and Hoover, said, “Kids who are on the free/reduced lunch waiver, get food, and give it to their friends are committing fraud.”

“Our lunches served has almost doubled in two years,” Pederson said.

“Two factors that play a big role in that are, the ladies keep the kitchen clean as best they can and the arrangements of the tables,” Lawerence said.

“This can be a job for someone who is a mom,” Barb Parker said.  ”When your kids are out for breaks, you’re off work and get to hang out with them.”

“Some meals that we had last year have completely disappeared due to the government pushing for a healthier America,” Pederson said.

Conner Daza, senior, said, “At the (high school) level, it doesn’t make that much of a difference.”

“We’re still gonna eat the junk food,” Daza said.  ”On the other hand, for elementary, it was a good idea because that’s what they eat.”

“I personally think that it is a good idea because it is healthier and because the United States is known for obesity,” Jose Amaya, junior, said.

“The only reason people shun the idea is because they don’t know a whole lot about nutrition themselves,” Amaya said.  ”Really what this does is it gets the students in the habit of a healthy lifestyle.”

“Before this, Iowa was considered on the ‘fat states’,” Emily Davis, freshman, said.  ”By changing the menus, it gives us (students) the chance to make healthier choices.”

Many students have noticed that a lot of meal options have disappeared since the government pushed for a healthier America.

When I woke up that morning I never thought that my life would change the way it did. My mother Lisa was diagnosed with stage one breast cancer and in a matter of seconds I felt like my life was over.

I didn’t know what to do so I cried.

I cried until I felt like everything was closing in on me. After that I quickly realized that crying about the situation wasn’t going to make the cancer go away.

She’s all that I have and now she’s fighting for her life. I never thought that cancer would hit so close to home, but it did.

All I can do is be there for her and make sure she continues to be healthy. Once she had surgery I knew it was time for a change.

In a very short amount of time I found myself cooking dinner every night, cleaning and staying up through out the night to make sure that my mom was OK. Play time is over. It’s time for me to step up and take my mother’s role in the house.

I went from worrying about my next hairstyle to worrying if my mother remembered to take her medicine. I told myself that my mom is in a war with cancer, so I felt that I needed to be there with her for every minute of this battle.

After the surgery, her doctor informed us that the cancer was completely removed. I felt so relieved. I felt like everything was back to normal and now all we had to do was get through the Chemotherapy and Radiation treatments. I thought I would have it easy, but I was wrong.

Right now my mother is going through her third chemotherapy treatment and I can honestly say that it’s one of the hardest things to go through. Seeing my mom in pain and being mentally, emotionally and physically drained feels like a stab in the heart.

It makes things even harder with her not being able to keep solid foods down for the first four days. I make sure she has foods that she can eat; protein shakes so she can still get all of her nutrients, and fresh cut fruits and vegetables in her own mini refrigerator.

I try to do as much as I can to make her feel comfortable. I am a full time student, part time employee and a full time care giver. Every day I thank God for allowing her to wake up and I pray that he continues to give me the strength to continue this journey with my mother.