A House Divided

Sibling Rivalry Over Sports Activities

Editorial by Kelsey Lawless

   The beginning of the school year is always hectic. Students are making the transition from summer break to school all day, and it’s tougher for some families. Activities start up too, such as volleyball, cross country, and football, and every year they overlap each other. It’s a mess and it’s even worse for families like mine.

My brother, Brennan, is a cross country runner while my sister, Cayla, and I are in volleyball. Every year my parents and grandparents have to decide who goes to what event. It’s terrible! This year was the first year my mom has been to a sub-state volleyball tournament and my dad has never been and probably won’t ever go. This happens all season long too, but it never really upsets Cayla and I until sub-state rolls around. My dad couldn’t be there to watch Cayla stuff-block a future K-State player this year, and he didn’t get to watch me start in my first varsity game as setter in last year’s sub-state match. Even my Grandma, Sharon, has the same dilemma, only her’s is a lot worse because she has other grandchildren to support too. It would be so much easier if the schools could just put each event on a different day.  It would save a lot of arguing and a lot of disappointment from families in these situations.

We aren’t the only family that goes through this. Many families in Osage and across the state have to deal with this, and it’s a hard decision for parents to make.  It’s even harder for us kids because we always want everyone there to see us, but it just doesn’t work out that way. We always seem to be running around from sport to sport, but we love it. It’s something that just makes us as unique as other families.

Driving it at State

   A Single Passionate Putter Went to State

Article by Annah Hagan

   On Monday, October 21, 2013, a Lady Indian golfer traveled west to compete in the 3A-2A-1A state golf tournament in Garden City. That single passionate putter was sophomore Courtney Cooley

As one would expect, nerves were a factor for Cooley at the competition.  It was her first state golf tournament and she was only one of five golfers competing as individuals; the rest had qualified with their teams.  After the tournament, Cooley noted that at one point when she was getting ready to hit the ball, she could not concentrate with Coach Wayne Rush and fellow golfer, sophomore Kailyn Robert, standing there watching her. She ended up sending them away so she could concentrate and focus on the tournament. After that she was able to settle in, and ended up shooting a 127, only one stroke more than her regional score.  That earned her 40th place out of 86.

Despite the nerves and the big stage, Cooley enjoyed her experience at the state tournament.  “It was a great experience and I had fun representing Osage in that big tournament,” she said.  Along with Coach Rush and Robert, her parents made the trip out to support her as well.  Cooley’s participation and performance made her family, team, and community proud. 

Slow but Steady Wins the Race

   Administration is Ecstatic About Quality of Facilities Construction, Despite Slow Pace

Article by Aundrea Koger

   In the past year since the “Building for the Future” bond was approved, the Osage City community has been able to watch the development, or lack thereof, of the new sports facilities.  Construction on the football field was not as timely as had been hoped, and the new storm shelter/gymnasium looks to be behind schedule as well.  But despite the setbacks, High School Principal Mr. Tony Heward is pleased with how the facilities are turning out.

“I think the quality of work is awesome; the process just seems to be extremely slow,” says Heward.  Heward feels that the sluggish pace isn’t any one person’s fault.  “There are several entities that have to work together and communicate,” notes Heward.  He feels that because of the involvement of not just the Board of Education and McPherson contractors, but also the Fair Board, City Council, and Lions’ Club in this project, communication can be difficult, which slows down the pace of construction.  Community members saw that first hand with the delays in the building of the football and track facilities, which are just now nearing completion with the laying of the rubberized surface and advent of constructing the new concession stand (which is set to be started after Thanksgiving and completed in time for the track season).  And they are seeing it again with the fabrication of the new storm shelter/gymnasium, which will be located between the high school gym and the middle school.

The storm shelter is the next big project in the “Building for the Future” bond, and will replace the elementary gym as the location for junior varsity basketball games.  There will be much more available seating, along with the fact that gym will be approved as a storm shelter.  As of right now, the drawings for the facility are being looked over and last minute modifications are being made.  The district should get the final plans back soon.  This will allow USD 420 to bring up the bid by the end of November, get it passed in December, and start construction in January.  Again though, Heward expects the deadlines on completion to be pushed to the limit, saying, “We would be lucky to see it finished before school starts in August.”

Once the storm shelter is complete, there will still be more construction to be done within the walls of Osage City schools.  Students were promised a new weight and fitness center in the original “Building for the Future” campaign, and that is still part of the plans.  Depending on the leftover budget, administration would like to see not just weight lifting equipment go into the to-be-refurbished middle school gym, but also equipment such as treadmills, exercise bikes, and the like.  Heward hopes that these alternative fitness machines will allow students to perform rehabilitation from injury at the school, instead of having to make the trip over to, for example, Salt Creek Fitness Center, for every session.  They will also be accessible to staff, and any other student who might want to use them.

Despite the slow pace of construction, Heward and other administrative members are very happy with the way the new facilities are turning out.  They feel that the additions and modifications that have been, and will be, made to Osage City’s facilities are well worth the wait.

Photo courtesy of http://www.usd420.org

Top 10 Things to do on Halloween

1. Carve a pumpkin
2. Dress up as yourself
3. Ding-dong ditch (although this isn’t advised if you want candy)
4. Have a picnic… in a cemetery… at night
5. Hide in the bushes and jump out to scare little kids
6. TP someone’s house
7. Hit up a haunted house (and bring extra pants)
8. Fork someone’s yard
9. Stuff your face with your siblings’ candy
10. Be the person who hands out candy to trick-or-treaters…  or just eat all the candy before they get there

***Disclaimer: The above list is only intended for humorous entertainment.  The OCHS PowWow and anyone associated with USD 420 does not encourage any of the suggested malicious activities.

Picking Up the Slack

My Thoughts on the Government Shutdown and it’s Looming Effects

Editorial by Aundrea Koger

   The United States of America, once a great superpower, has established itself as the laughing stock of the world as it just now is looking to come out of the 16 day government shutdown.  During the shutdown that closed national parks, furloughed thousands of government workers, and cut funding on many programs, citizens across the country gaped in disbelief at the nerve of our representatives from both parties to sit there and argue, point fingers, and twiddle their thumbs.  I, along with many others, can’t believe their stubbornness that nearly led to what might have been our demise.

   Despite the fact that our representatives in Congress finally decided to compromise and pass a bill to reopen the government and narrowly avoid a default on debt that would essentially stop the government in its tracks completely, we’re not out of the thick of things. The temporary raising of the debt ceiling that was proposed in this bill is only supposed to last until next February, and then what? Will we have another shutdown? Are we going to just keep raising our debt “ceiling” so that we don’t have to confront our true problems? And how exactly are we supposed to cut spending to avoid another shutdown if the two parties can’t even get a proper budget put in place?  Our representatives can all agree on one thing though, and that’s the apparent “need” to avoid the debt default.  Everyone is so afraid of the default, and with good reason because it would wreak havoc on our country’s economy and on the standing of the United States amongst nations of the world, but just think about how much more serious the consequences could become if we continue to put it off.

   Even though the past two and a half weeks were only a partial shutdown, the people of the United States still noticed the effect.  The closing of national parks and other lesser federal agencies was really more a nuisance than a legitimate trouble, but just stop a second and try to picture the ENTIRE government shutting down because we defaulted on our debt.  It wouldn’t be immediate, but basically the government would no longer have any money or any credibility to borrow money from other countries.  There would be zero funding for Social Security, Medicare, Welfare, and even our President’s precious Obamacare, not to mention all the other federal programs that help make our lives as comfortable as they are. And most worrisome of all, there would be little to no funding for our military.  Being the most formidable fighting force in the world, it seems unlikely that our military could ever grow feeble, but when you take away over $600 billion in funds that our armed forces thrive on, according to usgovernmentspending.com, things deteriorate quickly.  And let’s just say, there are nations in the world who would not be afraid to take advantage of our vulnerability.  There’s also no way the government could earn (or borrow) any money outside of taxes, because trade and borrowing capabilities with other countries would be void, which would throw not just the United States, but also the rest of the world, back into a recession. Within the United States, according to nbcnews.com, investments would disappear, banking would freeze, and inflation and unemployment would be rampant.  And there are surely many other side effects that are still unknown to us.

   After learning about the multitude of consequences resulting from our government’s inability to budget and cut spending, there is definitely cause for alarm.  But it’s not too late to start changing things.  So when will this stop? When is someone going to start picking up the slack and actually govern us without the incentive of a crisis looming over our heads. Who will be willing to start dragging us out of the $17 trillion hole that we’ve dug ourselves into. With financial crises occurring more and more often within our federal government, change will have to happen soon. Someone is going to have to step up to the plate and actually face the true problems instead of just kicking them down the road to deal with later. And the common populace is responsible for making that happen.  We have the power to vote in representatives that will play a better part and actually do something productive in Congress without holding a fire underneath them.  Now, I must admit, it is difficult to find a group of politicians who don’t want to keep spending the money we don’t have, but change will have to start somewhere, no matter how adverse, if we want to prevent the United States of America from crumbling.

Crowded Crutch Filled Halls

As the Fall Sports Seasons Come Closer to an End, More Injuries Turn Up

Article by Annah Hagan

   As the fall season sports are starting to come to an end, the halls seem to fill up and become over crowded. It’s not exactly due to the amount of people in the halls, but actually it is due to the people who keep getting hurt and being put on crutches. The poor, injured students can’t help it, but their hobbling along just slows people down getting to their different classes.

With crutches lining the halls, the pace for going to and coming from classes slows down, because it causes otherwise avoidable overcrowding in the hallways. The majority of uninjured people try to make sure they don’t just run over the multitude of temporarily impaired students, even though it gets pretty frustrating. Junior Hawk Goad commented about how the traffic is slow and is not convenient for people trying to go from class to class. “Sympathy wise I feel bad for them because they did not want this to happen to themselves, but if you happen to be friends with them it is less convenient because they want you to help them with getting their stuff and getting from class to class. So you have to then get a pass from their teacher to give to your own teacher to explain why you are late.”

Those on crutches or in walking boots try their hardest not to be inconsiderate by impeding the flow of hallway traffic, but it doesn’t help their case when there is such a rush of people speeding through the halls. This year the injury count has seemed to be growing more than it has been for a couple of years.  Unlike last year, where the girls were the ones who were the majority of the injured population within the halls of Osage City High School, it is being dominated this year by the boys. Another difference this year is that last year was just, for the majority, simple injuries like sprains and strains; this year’s injuries have been injuries that required crutches and/or walking boots.

Yet, after a few weeks the crutches seem to be slowly disappearing, which people say they are relieved for. Especially since that means the traffic pace can go back to normal. So slowly the halls are not living up to what has been the normal name for the halls this fall, the crowded crutch filled halls.

“Who Are You When I’m Not Looking?”

Behind the Scenes of a Teacher’s Life

Article by Amy Stromgren and Kelsey Lawless

   Many students may think teachers were born boring, and that instructing is the only thing they do. But the OCHS PowWow conducted an investigation aimed at turning that stereotype around. Journalists asked several teachers how they grew up and how they came to be the way they are today.

Our educators and the main part of our high school experience. Students spend close to 80% of their days with them, whether it is in school or practice, so shouldn’t the student body know them better than just typical teachers?

PowWow- “Where did you grow up?”

James Bellinger- “Wellsville, Kansas.”

Donna Crane- “Greeley, Kansas.”

Luanne Jacobs-“Denver, Colorado.”

Dennis Fort- “Paola, Kansas.”

Matt Marple- “Wakarusa, Kansas.”

PW- “What kind of kid were you in high school?”

JB-  “Smart. I had a 3.9 GPA and I was also sort of a jock.”

DC-  “A goody-two shoes and a good student.”

LJ-  “Shy.”

DF-  “A jock.”

MM-  “A farm kid.”

PW- “What were you involved in while in high school?”

JB- “I was the SADD (Students Against Drunk Driving) president and  KAYS (Kansas Association for Youth) treasurer, and was also involved in yearbook, football, basketball, and track.”

DC- “Band, choir, the school play, pep club, and FHA (Future Homeowners of America).”

LJ-  “Pep club.”

DF- “All sports, band, and FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes).”

MM- “FFA (Future Farmers of America) and football.”

PW- “What are the perks of being a teacher?”

JB- “June, July, and August, weekends, and holidays.”

DC- “It keeps me young and it keeps my hope alive for the world.”

LJ- “Getting summers off.”

DF- “I get the same vacation as my kids.”

MM- “It keeps you young, you have a routine every day, and you always have a new problem. With other jobs you always have the same problems.”

What is your pet peeve when it comes to students?

JB- “When they talk when I’m talking.”

DC- “I hate it when they just don’t care.”

LJ-  “When they are absent and then they come in and ask if they missed anything.”

DF-“When the kids don’t try.”

MM-  “Kids just not caring.”

PW- “If you could pick any other job, what would it be and why?”

JB- “I would have my own fantasy football talk show on ESPN, after I retire from being an undefeated welter weight champion UFC fighter.”

DC-“I can’t imagine doing anything else, but if I had to, I would work in a book store or edit novels.”

LJ-“Geneticist, circumstances in my life would have been better if I had known.”

DF-“Farmer, there is just something about putting a seed in the ground and watching it grow I guess.”

MM- “Ranching, because I love cattle.”

Now that students have been given the chance to get to know some of their teachers, maybe students will start to see them as real people with legitimate life experiences, not just as the people that teach things thought as unimportant. Students will carry the advice that they acquire from the teachers for the rest of their lives.

Let Them Eat Cake!

The Debate Team is Working Hard with Some Great Goals in Mind

Article by Kailyn Robert

   With great success at two-speaker state last year, this year’s debate team has some large shoes to fill. But despite some extra pressure, this year’s team is doing incredibly well. Ms. Donna Crane, the debate coach, stated that her novice, or new, debaters are filled with enthusiasm and excitement to learn about the activity.

“They’re all just very excited to go out and compete,” says Crane. “Even when they lose, they come back fired up and they use their experiences to practice.” Ms. Crane isn’t the only one who thinks that, either. Sarah Peterson, a junior and experienced debater, noted how hard the novices have been working. Peterson, who placed second at state debate last year with current senior Haleigh Peterson, is also working very hard to reach her goal this season.

What is her goal exactly? To win the championship! Senior Devin Trout, her new partner, placed third last year at state debate with graduate Shelby Marquette. With both of their skills working together, Peterson believes that they can do it. Ms. Crane believes in their potential also, and she would be “absolutely delighted” if they were to win. Peterson’s reaction might be a little different, though. Despite saying that when they win, “it’ll be crazy,” there’s still one thing she’s looking forward to the most. “Ali Bolyard (a senior from last year) promised to bake us a cake, so that’ll be yummy,” says Peterson. Cake or not, winning state debate would be a huge accomplishment for the debate team, and they’re working hard to achieve it.

Baby Steps

Some Guidelines to Start Your College Journey with Confidence

Article by Mariel Robert

   As the first quarter comes to a close, it’s hard to believe that this year’s senior class will have already completed 13 quarters of high school. What’s scarier is the fact that we only have three more quarters to prepare for what comes after those short 27 weeks. Most seniors know that they want to go to college, but many don’t know where they want to go, what they want to do when they get there, and most importantly, don’t know many of the important steps to get to college. So here are some simple steps for the scared seniors of 2014.

The first step for most seniors will be to take the ACT. According to the ACT official student web page, ACT stands for American College Testing and is commonly used across the country as a standardized test for academic success in high school. Just about every college or university requires your score from the ACT to be considered for acceptance.

Secondly, go visit some colleges. Colleges spend thousands of dollars on advertisements just so you will come see their school. Most college visits are free, and provide valuable information about their school’s programs, whether it be athletic, theatrical, or academic. Also, when you go for your visit, most colleges will have a financial advisor sit down with you and discuss tuition costs and scholarship opportunities, which can be very helpful if you are worried about paying for college. Lastly, when you go visit a college, they will ask you to apply. Unless you really hated the college and the vibe it gave off, it’s smart to apply while you are there for many reasons. One, because your personal advisor can help you answer some of the confusing questions on the application. Two, many colleges waive the application fee if you visit – which could save you up to $35! Third, the application asks if you are applying to other schools – if you mark yes (and list the other schools) that college can offer you more financial aid in hopes of persuading you to go to their college and not their competitors.

Third and foremost, apply for any and all of the scholarships that you can! Even though writing the same essay five different times is time consuming and possibly even aggravating, free money is free money. A good motivator for getting your scholarships done is to think about how much you’re being “paid” an hour. If a scholarship is worth $500 and it took you a total of two hours to write the essay and fill out the form, that’s like being paid $250 an hour. And no high school job can compare to $250 an hour.

If you have any other questions, Mrs. Camarena knows plenty about different college requirements, local scholarships, and can set you up with meetings with specific college advisors.

Early Mornings and Late Nights

The Marching Indians Work Hard for High Ratings

Article by Cassidy Robinett

   Summer practices and early mornings were a regular occurrence for the Osage City Marching Indians, but their busy summer schedules and lack of sleep reaped its benefits when the marching band earned high ratings at marching competitions.

A lot of work goes into a marching performance. This summer, band students went to band camp for five days and played their instruments and worked on marching formations for their first show from 8 a.m. to 12 in the afternoon. Summer band and other band activities did go much smoother for now second year band teacher, Mrs. Melissa Askren.

When asked what she’s learned since last year, Mrs. Askren simply answered, “I know everyone better. I have more of a head start since I was here and now I know what school events are, like homecoming, I knew what to do.” Not only that, band students agree that morning practices were less frequent this year, and much to their appreciation, the intensity of band decreased.

The band proved it didn’t need as many morning practices because at the first competition at Emporia State University, the Osage City Marching Indians brought home a two rating, one of the best you can get.

Shortly after the marching festival at Emporia State University, the band headed to Washburn University to compete at the all evening event, which kept band members out until 11 p.m.! The small 3A band competed against much larger schools, including 5A Seaman High and 6A Washburn Rural. The band sections were split up when earning rankings. The Osage City drum majors, seniors Mariel Robert and Kaitlin Swindale, and Junior Kaleigh Majors, earned a one rating, the best you can receive. Percussion received a three, only .1 away from earning a two.  The color guard and band overall earned a two.

On October 16, the band competed at Mission Valley and took home a 1+ rating, the highest score you can earn. One more performance is left, Mass Band, which includes 6-12^th grades. After the Junior High is done performing with the high school, people are wondering if anything big is in store for this year, similar to last year’s light show. Senior Tristan Carlson thinks there will be. “I think we’re going to do a light show again, only bigger and better!”

Time will tell. The band continues to march onward with high spirits. As for now, until the last note is played, the band will continue its hard work in order to achieve excellence.