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PAGE 18A PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS THURSDAY. OCTOBER 17. 2013
Draaons’ Lair News
Volume 2 Issue 4
A publication of the Pickens High School Journalism Staff
dragonslaimews@gmail.com
Kaylee Cash
Dragons’ Lair News
I’ve never had a problem saying
what I think, or what I'm feeling. I’ve
experienced firsthand the effects
that bullying can have on a person
and I’m proud to say that I’ve over
come some things recently that I've
struggled with for years. Statisti
cally speaking, 95 percent of teens
have been or will be bullied at
some point in their lives. Here’s my
problem with statistics: they don’t
mention reality. The reality is, not
only have 95 percent of the teen
population been bullied but 95 per
cent have also bullied another per
son.
Have you ever heard the quote
by Theodore Roosevelt? “Knowing
what’s right doesn't mean much un
less you do what’s right.” The thing
about our generation is that we
don’t know what bullying really is.
We're so accustomed to throwing
the words “gay,” “retarded” or “stu
pid” around that we don’t often real
ize that they cause more harm than
we think.
Though we’re not all guilty of
stealing lunch money or giving
wedgies, we are guilty of joking
around with our friends and taking it
too far. It doesn’t take punches or
kicks to hurt someone. My com
ment on the issue of bullying: If we
can agree to treat each other with
respect, regardless of physical,
mental, and social differences or
preferences, we can achieve what
the people before us never could.
We can finally see each other as
friends instead of enemies. And I
know that sounds lame, but think of
how many times you’ve wanted to
crawl in a hole because an awful
comment was made about you. Do
you really want our children, and
our children’s children to feel like
that? You might laugh now when
you make someone cry, but you
won't be laughing very much when
you’re wiping the tears off of your
child’s face because someone did
the same to him or her.
Treat everyone the way you
want to be treated and reach out to
people that you normally wouldn’t
talk to. You never know what some
one is dealing with, and you never
know when you can be the person
to finally make a difference in their
life. To all the bullied, it will be okay.
Never forget that you are not alone
in this. And to the bullies, I hope
that someday you see the effect
that positivity can have on some
one. It is a much better effect than
negativity.
Partners Club
By Jared Pendley
The Partners Club is known for
supporting Special Olympic ath
letes in training and competition.
They also provide opportunities for
volunteers and athletes to connect
by sponsoring dances, parties,
movie nights, hayrides, etc. This
year, the club is proud to see a new
group of officers that are ready and
excited to plan upcoming events.
Congratulations to the new Part
ners Club officers: Christian
Grantham, president; Brett Cham
pion, vice president; Chase Woody,
photographer; Haley Lacuesta, up
perclassman advisor; Jared Pend
ley, historian.
Students from Cindy Brown’s Advanced Art Class
have been busy painting pillow cases, canvas and
fabric for three dimensional characters to display
the month of October at Pickens High School in the
Fine Arts wing. The scarecrow characters represent
movies, books, musicians, ghosts and vampires. On
display through Nov. l, 2013 are:
“Heisenberg” from Breaking Bad by Emily Arp;
“Michael Jackson” by Ulises Fabian; “Gypsy Spider
Woman” by Madison Garmon; “Alien” by Elissa
James; “Pocahontas” by Kelly Roberts; “Hipster
Girl” by Abigail Sawyer; “Dopey” from Walt Disney’s
Snow White by Ginny Morris; “The Cheshire Cat”
from Walt Disney’s Alice in Wonderland by Patrick
Youngblood; “Lego Man” by Gabe Spedale; “Mag
gie” the Zombie Bride by Peyton Godfrey; “Frank”
Dual Enrollment
By Haley Lacuesta
Dragons’ Lair News
More and more students are
becoming interested in dual en
rollment, but does it really ben
efit you? Research, coupled with
first-hand accounts reveals the
benefits and disadvantages of
the program.
I spoke to Mr. James Bond,
one of the school counselors, to
enlighten me about dual enroll
ment. His first question was,
“Which do you think is better,
dual enrollment or AP classes?”
My immediate reply was dual
enrollment, but Mr. Bond ex
plained some things that I never
knew. For example, you must
find your own transportation
and be capable of commuting to
and from the high school. And,
some students who are in the
process of applying for dual en
rollment have complained that
scheduling conflicts between
the two places have occurred;
causing them to drive to and fro
in frustration. In addition, stu
dent fees are required depend
ing on the college that you
choose to attend. Most impor
tantly is the fact that while
many students apply for dual
enrollment to impress universi
ties, college recruiters might not
be impressed. Here is why:
College credit in an AP class
is determined by your score on
the AP exam at the end of the
year; whereas in an actual col
lege all you have to do is pass
the course itself. Sounds like a
great deal doesn’t it? But be
cause AP classes at the high
school are a year long and col
lege credit depends on your
end-of-the-year test score, stu
dents are working harder in
high school than in a university
setting. Colleges love to see as
piring students who have chal
lenged themselves and
succeeded. In your college ap
plications, recruiters do look at
the amount of AP classes avail
able in your high school, and
how many you took.
Despite these drawbacks,
many students who are enrolled
PHS Improv Theater
Suzy Price
Dragons’ Lair News
On Thursday, Sept. 26, the
PHS Drama Club did an Im
prov Theater in which they
did a number of games involv
ing improvisation acting. The
first game they did was a bit
like Who’s Line is it Anyway?
A few selected students lined
up and came up with a line
that goes along with a sce
nario given. But, it was made
more difficult when the first
word of your line had to in
clude a word that started with
a letter of the alphabet, in
chronological order.
A second game played by
the students was a version of
The Dating Game where the
three bachelorettes were
given a character to play as,
and the person asking rela
tionship questions on had to
guess who they were playing
as. Next, there was a game
that involved using random
props as something they
weren’t normally used as,
such as using a foam noodle
as a fishing pole.
There were many other hi
larious games too; including a
hats improvisation game. It
was a very interesting show
that captivated the entire au
dience, and I’m sure everyone
will return when the next
show returns on Dec. 6. We
hope to see even more people
next time.
defend the program. Upper
classmen Kaylee Watters and
Olivia LeMieux (above) have
been involved in dual enroll
ment since the beginning of the
2013 school year. They carpool
to Reinhardt University two
days a week, and explained to
an 11th grade Honors English
class the positive aspects of dual
enrollment. They appeared to
be very happy in the program.
“I've always wanted to skip
ahead to college and Reinhardt
is only 15 minutes away. What
better way is there to prepare
for college than to go to one?”
(Olivia LeMieux)
However, this is not the only
motivation for them to go to col
lege. The course itself is a strong
reason as to why the young
women applied.
“I feel like you don’t have as
much busy work in college as
opposed to a high school class.
You don’t waste time; you take
the class for about an hour two
times a week and make the most
of it. Plus, the workload is rela
tively light.” (Kaylee Watters)
One common concern about
dual enrollment is the social as
pect. Would you have to sacri
fice your life at high school to go
to college?Will you lose your
friends? Olivia LeMieux enlight
ened us on how she balances
her high school life and college
classes, shedding light on the
situation.
“I still play sports, hold offi
cer roles in many clubs and I’m
still involved in student govern
ment. Your social life is taken
away a little, but you can always
see your friends on weekends.”
(Olivia LeMieux)
Both girls explain that dual
enrollment allows them to
achieve a level of freedom and
independence. Although it took
a few days to adapt to the col
lege atmosphere, they already
have memorable experiences.
“The first day of school was
bizarre because the teacher was
nine minutes late. And I better
not text during class; his syl
labus literally says, ‘I will beat
your iPhone like it owes me
money!”’ (Kaylee Watters)
“Everybody assumes that you
are a freshman in college.
When I saw Kaylee wearing her
volleyball jersey on the first day
I said, ‘You’re not really wearing
that are you?’ Everybody must
have thought she was an assis
tant coach.” (Olivia LeMieux)
There are many pros and
cons to dual enrollment, but ul
timately it depends on you. A
hard work ethic and determina
tion are needed for any AP class
or college course, and you
should always do your own re
search on the college you want
to apply to after high school, as
well as the programs offered in
your school, before applying for
dual enrollment.
FCCLA Leadership
Conference
By Whitney Stroupe
Dragons’ Lair News
The Pickens High School
FCCLA chapter embarked
upon the ultimate leadership
experience this past month.
All chapter, regional and state
officers departed from Pick
ens High School for
FCCLA/FFA Camp located in
Covington, Georgia on Sept.
18.
FCCLA’s chapter officers
for the 2013-14 school year
consists of: Candra Holmes,
Whitney Stroupe, Samantha
Vick, Madi Garmon, Sierra,
Alexis, Lauren Skibba, Des
tiny Fincher and Kirsten
Cantrell. Bethany Grant is a
regional officer and Ashley
Hughes is a state officer as
well. FCCLA chapters from
all around Georgia attended
this camp to gain the knowl
edge of how to run a better
and efficient club, and how to
help their club members be
come future leaders. FCCLA
members participated in t-
shirt design competitions,
team building activities, lead
ership classes, the Statesman
test, and so much more.
Our local chapter chose to
take the Statesman Test to
question our knowledge about
the history and details about
FCCLA. To exceed the test
and earn a lapel pin, members
had to make an 85 percent or
better. Two of our members,
Samantha Vick and Sierra,
earned this lapel pin and were
awarded on stage for their
success at the closing cere
mony of the leadership con
ference. As a chapter, we
learned a lot of essential in
formation to bring back and
put to action to improve our
club. We are very excited for
the new year, and this confer
ence gave us a boost in the
right direction to be even
more successful than past
years.
from Donnie Dai'ko by Alice Zipse; “The Joker”
from Batman by Jacob Lampp; “Gladdis” the Witch
by Callie Darnell; “Merideath” the Ghost by Olivia
Lee; “Victoria” the Vampire by Abbey Hardman;
“Eeyore” from Walt Disney’s Winnie the Pooh by
Katie O’Shields; “V” from the movie Vfor Vendetta
by Kaleb Grieshop.
“Spirit week pumps
up the halls of PHS”
By Laiken Owens
Homecoming at PHS
is more than just the
game or the dance;
Homecoming is a time
for everyone to come to
gether and show their
spirit. We show our
school pride by having a
“spirit week.” This year
we had some new days
to dress up:
Monday was America
Day, everyone showed
their patriotism by
dressing in red, white
and blue.
Tuesday was favorite
Cartoon or Superhero
Day. Outfits for this day
ranged from your aver
age Batman T-shirt to
masks and Mickey
Mouse ears.
Wednesday was
Fancy Day, with stu
dents dressing in their
Sunday best; ties, high
heels and all.
Thursday was Throw
back Thursday. This
spirit day took us back in
time, from the roaring
’20s all the way to the
grungy ’90s.
Friday was the day for
students to really show
their Dragon pride;
Green, black and white
apparel filled the halls of
PHS.
Spirit week culmi
nated in a surprise pep
rally on Friday for the
football game that was
put together for the stu
dents. The pep rally fea
tured performances by
our very own cheerlead
ers, music from the
Pride of Pickens Band,
funny games and an
award that went to the
room with the best dec
orated door for home
coming given to Mrs.
Risinger’s class. This
spirit week truly showed
our school spirit and
how we can all come to
gether in support of our
favorite team.
Homecoming
Contest Winners
Haley Lacuesta
Dragons ’Lair News
After getting the most
Likes and Retweets, soph
omores Dylan Romine and
Kerrie Lee were an
nounced as the winners of
the Homecoming Dance
Twitter Contest.
The goal of the contest
was to ask your date to the
Homecoming Dance in the
cutest way possible and
post it on the student gov
ernment Twitter page. In
Dylan’s proposal, he sur
prised Kerrie with a ro
mantic presentation at
home and it surely paid
off. The couple won a $25
gift card to a restaurant of
their choice on the night of
the dance.
More Dragons’ Lair News
on page 3B
Student Editorial
Bullying
Soft Sculpture Characters on Display