Summer vacation is in full force, and as the barbecues heat up and the pools fill up, the staff of myGPN has decided to take the summer off. We’ll be back in August, when we will introduce a brand new element to the site — student blogging! So from the staff of myGPN, enjoy your summer and stay cool!

Contributing: Amelia Flynn, Emma Huellmantel, Caitlin Siluk & Alex Sumnik

The seniors listed below will be off to college like most of their peers next fall. However, these talented athletes will be doing more than the average college student.
This select group of seniors have already committed to their respective schools and will proudly represent their alma mater at the collegiate level.

Nikki Capizzo
Womens soccer
Savannah College of Art and Design

What are your biggest concerns about going away?
“I’m concerned with being away from home and adjusting to life by myself. I’m also a little concerned about the harder homework load.”

What are you most looking forward to in college?
“I’m looking forward to the new experiences and friends that I will make and the warm weather. Also, college marks the start of my life as an adult, so I will be picking what I want to do for the rest of my life.”

What do you think will be the biggest difference between high school and college soccer?
“High school soccer and college soccer are different because of the attitudes of the team and players and the level of play.”

Marc Palazzolo
Mens baseball
Bossier Parish Community College

What are your biggest concerns about going away?
“I’m most concerned with being so far away from my family and friends. However, it will give me a chance to be on my own and grow up quickly.”

What are you most looking forward to in college?

“I’m looking forward to the ability to wake up every day and work at something I love. I’m looking forward to the warm weather too.”

What do you think will be the biggest difference between high school and college baseball?
“I think that college baseball will be a little faster paced and will ultimately be more consistently challenging. I don’t know what I’ll prefer but I know that I’m prepared and will do well.”

Kayla Womack
Womens basketball
Saginaw Valley State University

What are your biggest concerns about going away?
“Being myself and joining the new team, as well as getting adjusted to the new school.”

What goals are you hoping to accomplish?
“Getting through my first semester of college.”

What do you think will be the biggest difference between high school and college basketball?
“The team silliness between the girls. It may be a little faster pace.”

What advice do you have for any student athletes with aspirations to play at the collegiate level?
“Make sure that you give it your all, all the time — even when you think nobody’s watching.”

Josh Richardson
Mens baseball
Adrian College

What are your biggest concerns about going away?
“I’m concerned the most about being able to balance out time for school work and practice, and really just adjusting to college life.”

What goals are you hoping to accomplish?
“I hope to help the team out and become a better player.”

What do you think will be the biggest difference between high school and college baseball?
“The main difference between college and high school baseball is there is no more bad teams or bad players, everyone that you are playing against is as good or better than you. College and high school baseball are going to be a lot different in competition and work that you have to put in for practice.”

Mike Tolliver
Football
Grand Rapids Community College

What are your biggest concerns about going away?
“As of right now, it’s just finding a place to live, finding an apartment, and the financial situation, making sure everything is paid for.”

What goals are you hoping to accomplish?
It’s a two year college, so I want going to get my associate’s degree and from there play Division I football and pursue football.”

What do you think will be the biggest difference between high school and college football?
“The speed of the game will be the most different. I was a sophomore on varsity, and the difference in the speed of the game was so different from freshman to varsity.”

Joe Scott
Mens tennis
St. Joseph’s College of Indiana

What are your biggest concerns about going away?
“The transition and the foreign atmosphere is going to be a lot different.”

What will you miss the most about playing in high school?
“I actually did not play tennis my senior year, I ran cross country to get my fitness up.”

What do you think will be different about playing tennis in college rather than high school?
“The extended tournaments in different states and just the level of play will be a jump.”

Do you have any advice about continuing sports in college?
“Just figure out what you excel at and take steps to improve it as best you can.”

By Natasha Ertzbischoff
Editor

The snake was five feet long.

“We were hiking on a trail and we were coming up to what looked to be almost like a creek bed that was dry. It had rained previously, and it was probably really wet then, but over the past week you know it was really dry,” physics teacher Don Pata said. “The trail actually went around, but I was just gonna cut through. It got halfway between me and what I thought was just a giant crack in the creek bed.”

All of a sudden his wife, physics teacher Amanda Pata, started screaming “Snake, snake, snake!”

Then Don started running around, screaming and flailing about in the middle of Allegan county.

Allegan county is but one of the 83 counties the Patas have visited.

The state of Michigan only has 83 counties. And this past December they visited their last county, completing their three-year-long trip.

The Patas decided to embark on this journey through Michigan in the summer of 2007 because of their love for the state. The seasons and abundant opportunities to camp made it impossible for them to resist the call of all that wilderness. 

“We thought, ‘oh well, if we had a goal what would it be?’ And so we thought, ‘what if we visited every county in the state and took a picture in each one,’” Don said. “So, it kinda developed, it wasn’t really a thing that we set out to do. It kinda grew out of some things that we like to do.”

Oh, the places you’ll go

Michigan is no ordinary place according to the Patas. Apparently the thumb isn’t the same as the tip of the mitten or the UP for that matter.

“The western side of the state, on the edge of Lake Michigan, the lake was carved out by a glacier and then the Great Lake built up. It’s hilly and sandy. There’s some big sand dunes over there,” he said.

Not only does Michigan have sand dunes, but the southern reaches have farmland rich with corn and soybeans, while the upper west is mountainous.

And while Amanda has declared Keweenaw County to be her favorite, Don is more of a “thumb guy,” saying that his favorite is Leelanau.

They both agree that the best and the worst of times took place on their last trip in December when they finished the western Upper Peninsula. The counties making up their favorite area of Michigan were breathtaking but unfortunately they both had the flu in the midst of a snowstorm. 

So many counties, so much time

While camping, hiking, driving and other various labor-intensive activities are oodles of fun, you can only stare at the same trees and shrubbery for so long. So what else is there to do?

Geocashing.

Geocashing is a GPS-led scavenger hunt. Someone will hide a trinket inside a Tupperware container, put it out in the woods and then publish the coordinates on a website called geocashing.com. Then it is up to those up to the challenge (i.e. the Patas) to find it.

Amanda explained that “If you’re in town there will be really small containers like a 35 mm film canister or a pill container that you can screw the top off of.  Basically there is a log book you sign saying ‘I found it, good job hiding it.’”

Don concurred saying that the most you’ll find is a keychain or some army men.

“It’s not about the stuff that’s in it, it’s about actually finding it because someone hid something and dared you to find it,” Don said.

Don and Amanda say that they are goal-oriented people, list-makers. At every county they took a picture of the other standing at the sign, be it rain, wind, snow and knowing Michigan, probably some sleet.

Eighty-three counties, check. Eighty-three pictures, check. Three years of adventures to cherish, check, check.

Business classes attend Career Day at Comerica Park
Thirty-seven students from various busi­ness classes and DECA participated in Co­merica Park’s annual career day on Tuesday, May 18.

The students were excused from class and spent the entire day at Comerica Park. The gates opened at 10 a.m. and students were es­corted to a designated section of the park for a workshop. Once seated, a one-hour presen­tation discussing the park’s operations took place from the executives themselves.

“Besides the weather, the field trip was ac­tually a great experience,” junior Dustin Baker said. “The presentation helped us learn about day-to-day operations of the Tigers’ home sta­dium and gave us an insight of what it takes to put on a ball game.”

Executives from most departments such as broadcasting, marketing, sponsorship sales, stadium operations and promotions were there to give a presentation on their respec­tive positions in the Tigers’ franchise. Follow­ing the workshop, students were free to roam the park and enjoy the Detroit Tigers take on the Chicago White Sox.

Quiz Bowl team places in nation’s top 50
The Quiz Bowl team competed in the Na­tional Academic Quiz Bowl Tournament May 28-30 in Chicago at the Hyatt’s Regency O’Hare Airport. The competition hosted 200 of the nation’s top teams and North finished in the top 50. Final results are pending. The compe­tition had 15 elimination rounds, weeding out nearly three-fourths of the teams. North lost its final match to Chaska High School from Minnesota after co-captain Matthew Vengalil left for Prom.

Team members Matthew Vengalil, Stephen Morrison, Tyler Gibson, Andrew Remenar, Mi­chael Kain, Katie Murray, Meagan McCuen, and Roxanne Illagan have been preparing for the event since September. The team’s strong subjects included U.S. history, geography and science. Greek mythology, however, gave the team trouble throughout the year.

“We also need to improve on our sports trivia,” faculty adviser Michael Rennell said.

Team members will be studying all summer in preparation for next year’s tournament.

“We had a great year. I was most proud when we beat Detroit Catholic Central in the state championship. This was the first time we won state championships. We exceeded expectations and peaked at the right time,” Rennell said.

North Pointe editors earn $3,000 prize
Sophomore Sammy Scoggin and senior Mi­chelle Ewart were named the national grand prize winners for their in-depth report on the dangers of texting while driving, earning a $3,000 award from the Allstate Insurance Foundation.

“You should be quite proud of the hard work and effort you put into writing about this important topic and hopefully your published article has already made a positive impact within your community,” Allstate representa­tive Laura Connor said.

More than 300 articles were submitted to the foundation and will be used in education­al workshops with more than 250,000 high school students around the country.

Scoggin, a sophomore, is the North Pointe’s managing editor. Ewart, a senior, is the co-ed­itor. She is attending the University of Michi­gan in the fall with the goal of becoming an English teacher.

Jazz band to perform in Village this week
The Jazz Band will kick off the Village’s annual concert series this week with a per­formance on Thursday, June 10. Admission is free and bringing chairs is recommended. The joint event with musicians from South High School starts at 7 p.m.

Thursday May 27, La­ree Gardener stayed at home wait­ing for a call that would tell her if she would spend her summer half-way around the world or not. The phone rang, and once she picked it up she dis­covered that she had not received the award. She was the runner up.

Gardener’s skill in sci­ence put her up for the Weizmann Award, which is a prestigious champion­ship medal for science.

“It sponsors a trip to go to an institution in Israel.When you’re there you get to use labs of a specific division that you choose, Chemistry, Biology, etc. and for three of the weeks you are there you have these labs available to do a research project and once finished you get to pres­ent it,” Gardener explains. “Also for the last week you go on a hike through the desert, it’s really cool.”

Most might expect Gar­dener to be upset when she received the news that she did not win.

“I was kind of relieved because I was nervous to go all the way to Israel for so long right before I go off to college,” Gardener said. “At first I really wanted to go but the more I thought about it the more scared I became. I mean if I had won I definitely would have gone but I would have to work on the home sick thing first.”

So this summer Gar­dener will spend time at home with her family just anticipating her future.

Next year, Gardener will carry out her love for sci­ence at Wayne State.

“I think I’m going to major in Chemistry engi­neering,” Gardener said. “Wayne state has a good science program and it’s close to home, that way I don’t have to worry about getting home sick.”

Although she is not positive about her major, Gardener is sure that she will stay somewhere in sci­ence. But for now she’s not too worried that. She’s just waiting to see where the world of science will take her.

Athletes are held to a higher standard than our president – our class president, that is. This is all because of the athletic code of conduct.

The Michigan High School Athletic Association requires all participants in athletic activities for their high school to sign an athletic code of conduct. The athletic code of conduct includes attendance procedures, identifies behavior expectations and disciplinary consequences for all high school student athletes. It says that any student who makes the decision to act in an unacceptable manner is disciplined by the school system as set forth in this code of conduct and is offered rehabilitation as indicated.

The first offense of this behavior results in the suspension from 20% of games. The second offense of this behavior results in the suspension from 40% of games. Then finally by the third offense the student is suspended from participating in any of the athletic activities for the rest of their high school career.

Athletes are not the only role models at our school. For example, our class president is definitely a role model, yet could have an M.I.P. (Minor in Possession) with no punishments related to student activities.

Participating in athletic activities is a privilege, but so are clubs and any other student activities. Are we not all equals?
This code of conduct should not be limited to just athletes of our high school. Everyone at our school represents North, not just the athletes.

“I can tell you that if my child had to sit 40% or more of their season they would quit the sport,” a parent of a student participating in athletic activities said.

The parent then continued, saying, “The most unfortunate thing about suspension from sports is that playing a sport is the one thing that’s going to keep them out of trouble.”

Sports have been proven to help students stay out of trouble and get better grades in school.

“I do think each group should have some rules or policies but not one in general,” athletic director Carmen Kennedy said.

I participate in sports at North and I think it’s only fair this code of conduct should apply to all students that belong to North High School.  I don’t understand why I can be suspended from my sport for unacceptable behavior when the president of my class can do the same thing and not have any punishments related to their extracurricular activities.

Excuse me, but what ever happened to a certain core democratic value called equality?

Standing in the gym, he directs rowdy students to the door. With a smile and laugh, he guides them out with a gentle hand upon their shoulder.

He stands tall and bright in his lime-green vest. He is a dedicated father, hus­band and a recovered alco­holic. He is a security guard at North. His name is Jim Qualls.

After 20 years of work­ing for the Bud Company, Qualls was laid off due to the factory closing. He se­cured a job at North and has been working here ever since. After dealing with adversities such as alco­holism and losing his job, Qualls feels that his life is finally on the right track. He has been working for five months.

“I wish I went to school here. I went to Detroit pub­lic schools, and we had to share books (because)there weren’t enough to go around,” Qualls said.

Qualls received a lot of support from his wife of 20 years while trying to overcome his addiction. She positively influenced his life and helped him through his personal strug­gle. She helped give him a second chance.

“Marriage keeps you grounded,” Qualls said, “Drinking wasn’t good. It was alright for a while, but I think God sent me an an­gel, and that was my wife.”

He says he enjoys his new job. He likes the people and cleanliness of it. He likes patrolling the hallways, day after day. He likes wear­ing the bright green vests and working with high schoolers. He does all of it with a smile on his face.

He opens the gym door. With one foot on the threshold, and an earnest smile, he advises students to stay in school.

A nice chunk of cash, $500 per person to be exact and an asteroid named in their honor. For senior Laree Gardner and junior Stephen Morrison, as well as South High School senior Genevieve Wang, these are the perks that come with receiving second place at the International Science and Engineering Fair in San Jose, California in the astronomy team’s category.

“Money is always nice. Anytime you get money you’re happy about it, but just to know there is going to be an asteroid named after me is awesome because it will always be there even when I die,” Gardner said.

Despite living the fantasy of having your name written in the sky and becoming $500 richer, the process wasn’t easy. From 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. the team stood by their project, in which they described their technique in finding the one real planetary nebula (dead star) out of the seven they observed on a telescope at the Kipp Peak National Observatory. Throughout their findings the team faced some difficulties, but that did not slow them down in the least.

“There were some very ugly times and some very rewarding times while working on it. That is the joy of it because we can pull everything we learn from our different backgrounds into this project,” Gardner said.

Aside from their differences the team came together to produce something not many can achieve. Along this journey they also experienced life changing lessons where they met people from as far as Brazil and Saudi Arabia.

“This experience was really cool. We’ve been working on it all year, every week for about three hours each time we met. To see how much it paid off was exciting,” Wang said.

Not only did they have each other, but they sought guidance from another scientific figure that let them in on what to expect throughout the week. This was earth science teacher Ardis Herrold, who has worked with 10 different teams in the past.

“It’s very exciting for me as a teacher to experience. I’ve never had a second place winning team, until now,” Herrold said.

This second-place-winning team plans to carry this experience for the rest of their lives, or even for eternity due to the small rocky object honoring their name. The biggest aspect that made it happen was teamwork, which in their case is inevitable.

“If you take one thing that everyone can work hard at and you put us all together it’s an amazing aura,” Gardner said.

Formspring.me, the new Internet phenomenon, allows users to ask and respond to questions posed by others. These can be posted anonymously or with a user name attached to it. The intent of the site is for questions such as “What is your favorite color?” and “Why did you name your gerbil ‘Minty’?” but recently, many people have begun to take advantage of the mask of anonymity to harass users:

Why are you ignoring Marie?

What’s your bra size?

Why r u wasting ur money on lady gaga tix? its auto-tuned crap that belongs in a bonfire.

Pretty much every engineer is an arrogant, self-righteous jerk. So in other words, you were born to be an engineer.

Nowadays, anyone who clicks “register” is just asking for harassment.

It didn’t used to be like that. When I joined in December, my inbox was filled with normal questions about my likes and dislikes, political preferences, and opinions on recent events –  questions that I don’t mind answering.

In mid-January, the insults started. I was flooded with “questions” that outright criticized and insulted my beliefs, my friends, and myself as a person. All of them were submitted anonymously, and the consistency of the comments could be legally constituted as harassment.

Formspring’s fatal flaw is that you don’t have to register a user name or log in to ask a question. There aren’t IP addresses or user names to submit to authorities, there are no punishments awarded for the grief caused to myself and my friends.

And of course, I’ve never received any comments that are even close in nature to the libel of Formspring, in person. People seem to be incredibly daring when they know that their comments are anonymous.

But in reality, it’s really nothing but cowardice if you feel that you can only insult another person without your name attached.

And while some people have enough self-respect to shrug off the insults that stare at them from their computer screen, for many others, that is not the case.

It can’t be escaped –  with the popularity and necessity of technology these days, it’s near impossible to completely remove yourself from the harassment without packing up your bags and moving under a rock. Like that take-home test that you didn’t do last week that is keeping your grade at a D+ and your mind in a state of chaos, constantly being on the receiving end of libel whittles down a person’s self-esteem.

In several cases, cyber-bullying has even resulted in suicide. Would you like to be responsible for that? I didn’t think so.

Before you hit “submit,” take the extra two seconds to think about what you say.

“The survey was planned and organized by the district’s central administration at the direction of the Board of Education,” Assistant Principal Matt Outlaw said. “This data will be used to develop district goals, to determine fiscal priorities and to identify areas of need.”

But don’t you think it may be a wee bit difficult to identify “areas of need” when no specific areas are actually identified?

All the survey will provide is a broad spectrum of areas most students probably found neutral due to different experiences.

For example, one question asks “How well is your high school preparing you to understand science?” Let’s say one of your science teachers is the one of best teachers you’ve ever had, while another may be one of the not-so-great teachers in your career as a student. Really, there should have been an “it depends” option for an answer, which we would imagine to  appear in an overwhelming majority on the answer sheets of students.

“How well is your school preparing students to appreciate the fine arts?” We would say “that depends.” If a student is in a fine arts class, they probably appreciate all the hard work they put into their studies. But those not in the specific class may not realize the effort that goes in, and therefore may not appreciate it.

“Without (students) being surveyed, this process would be incomplete,” Outlaw said.

We appreciate being asked, but process is still incomplete because the data collected can’t possibly be accurate with such broad ideas and questions.

A few questions weren’t too bad, such as “I am rarely bullied at school” and “Learning expectations at my school are reasonable.” The data collected from those could be beneficial in the areas of discipline and stress management. But still, “My teachers give me extra help when I need it” can provoke an ambiguous answer. While one teacher may, another teacher may not. How are students expected to answer that?

“Surveys can always be improved, but the topics given will help to advise those in a position to make decisions,” Outlaw said.

Hopefully next time the survey might even morph into something more useful where the students actually write detailed and beneficial responses designed to help improve our school.