Search Results

Following last year's state championship, the Angels basketball team has undergone a complete makeover. Having lost 12 seniors, the door has been left wide open for new players to make their mark on East’s Storied basketball history. The Angels began the season just as they had left off, winning each of their six opening games, including a win over Fort Collins who made the elite 8 of last year's state tournament. However, the team has since faced a poor run of form, only winning one of the last 8. While the Angels record has taken a hit, there are many positives to be observed. The team has shown many signs of dominance, taking control of many periods throughout the game, only missing the decisive edge in the fourth quarter. Last year's title clinching team was led by Mr. Colorado Basketball, D’Aundre Samuels. Samuels, who led the team in points, assists, rebounds, steals, and blocks could always be relied upon to perform, no matter the circumstances. D’Aundre was accompanied by incredibly reliant teammates, including Gil Gonzalez, Austin Mohr, Sam Scott, and Jack Greenwood who capped off the championship run scoring 27 points against Fossil Ridge. This year without the likes of Samuels, the Angels have had to turn to the new faces that fill the roster to perform in the difficult moments. Leading the charge is Junior James Murray, averaging 15.2 points per game, Fabian Morris with 5.4 rebounds per game, and Ehud Tesfoye who leads the team in assists and steals per game. Despite a drastic change in the players themselves, the program is still under the control of Head Coach Rudy Carey. Carey himself has quite a storied coaching career, having recently reached 900 wins, and most state titles in the state of Colorado with an individual total of ten. James Murray, who joined East in October has certainly made his presence felt on the court. Prior to the new season, the team set a goal which Murray says is “to get better every game, and that is because no one is named champion until march.” Averaging 15.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 3.5 assists, it is clear that he will be a pivotal asset should the Angels continue to reach their goal and defend their title. Murray attributes this year's struggles to the mentality of the opponents, saying “the teams that we play, if they beat us that's their state championship.” Yet despite the various challenges the season has presented, the team still feels they are in the running for yet another state championship. “I think we still have a good chance of defending,” said Murray, “I'm excited for the next 30-40 days.” With few games remaining in the season, it is make or break time for the Angles. Only three of the thirty two teams in last year's playoffs held losing records, making it pivotal that the Angels win at least half of the remaining games, the majority of which are league games. The Angels will conclude the regular season with a home against Omaha Westside on February 10th, before they will hopefully look to defend the state championship with a long run into the playoffs. With a record of ten and eight, the team will have their work cut out for them, should they look to follow last season's historic victory with another state title. However, under the guidance of legendary coach Rudy Carey and a team full of young potential, the future of the Angels Basketball program is certainly bright.

This March, East High’s Poms Dance team will be attending the National Dance Alliance Competition in Orlando Florida. This is the first time East Poms will be competing nationally since before the pandemic with a new team and head coach. With only four returners on the team this year, the Poms team is trying to establish a reputation as a competitive hip-hop team once again following their finalling at nationals in 2020. This year the team has competed at 3 regional competitions and placed 12th at State. While that may not seem like a great feat, East was amongst the top dance teams in the state and qualified in two categories to compete nationally (Poms and hip hop). Coach Angelina Morell will be leading the team for her second year as coach and comments that she is most excited “to see all the hard work that everyone on the team has put in to get where we are. It has been four years since East has attended nationals and I decided to take the team because the determination coming up to state was impressive. Although many of the girls have not competed in dance prior to this year, with all of the talent, I thought we should go to show what East is about.” Coach Morell further explained that the competition is not only a chance to place but for the school to be highlighted. She says “the competition is held in a huge hotel with over 100 teams ranging from intermediate to varsity, in small, medium, and large categories.  If we place we will win a trophy, banner, and national title. NDA is also judged by the best dance judges in the nation and the feedback is amazing.” For most East angels it is impossible to get there but the entire competition will be broadcasted on Varsity TV. East will be competing in the hip-hop and Poms categories performing two days in a row. While the Poms dancers are at every home football and basketball game, and perform at pep rallies there is little recognition for the sport. So leading up to this competition what should East students know about Poms? Senior Captain Vicky Erazo comments that one thing she wishes people knew about Poms is “ How much work we put into these dances, it takes dedication, exhaustion, and workouts. We practice year-round and practice multiple times a week but are not seen as athletes. We have worked out with Boys Baseball, Girls Soccer, and Boys Swim but many don’t know.” Vicky says she just wants people to “see what we are capable of as strong women in the sports world because dance is a sport.” Poms training includes weight training once a week, 3 additional practices, choreography camps over the summer, technique practice for tricks and leaps, as well as 6:30 AM practices in the gym for games and competition. First-year sophomore member Jada Pulsipher corroborated saying, “Poms is not cheer, it is dance. It is a different sport and whenever I tell people I do poms they ask about cheer because of the pom poms. However, we are dancers and perform hip hop, it is different from what you would expect.” Poms dancers love their sport and art form and want the East community to appreciate dance as well. Next basketball game be sure to stay for halftime to watch the team shine and tune in online for Nationals!

78 percent of students face some variation of senioritis. With the second semester right around the corner, students have begun to lose motivation. Sleeping through alarms and turning in assignments two weeks after the due date has become a stressful reality for most students, especially East seniors. Is there a way to reverse the second semester blues? Here, East seniors report on their favorite methods to stay motivated throughout the second semester, especially the brutal months of January and February. East seniors Elli Busam and Avery Spreeuw spoke on early senioritis and rituals they use to delay the inevitable lack of motivation towards the end of the school year. Spreeuw started the conversation by stressing the importance of organization. Spreeuw has “notebooks for every one of my classes and a planner that I embarrassingly pull out mid-class that really helps me stay on top of my assignments.”  Spreeuw swears that “staying organized and trying to enjoy the small parts of school is definitely a huge help.” Busam and Spreeuw see eye to eye on the importance of finding winter hobbies to push them through the long three months of winter. Busam spoke of her love for “staying home and watching a festive movie. It's definitely one of the things that helps me enjoy winter and unwind from the long school day.” Spreeuw also began touching on the exciting parts of the second semester. Spreeuw is especially “excited to start planning my future. I’m definitely terrified but excited to finish up the tedious high school work we all have to do at some point.” Second semester is a stressful time but an incredible opportunity to bond with your teachers. Similarly, Busam can’t wait to “get to know my teachers better and create relationships with them.” These seniors have incredible ways to stay motivated and have a rewarding second semester. Whether it be looking forward to things like Prom, which Spreeuw is “really looking forward to,” or finding ways to connect with those in one’s community, especially teachers. With the inevitable procrastination and all-nighters, second semester has a lot to provide both academically and socially. Spreeuw thinks that “finding things that you like to do can really help the second semester be a good time.” Students who have hobbies are “15 percent more likely to be optimistic, 14 percent more likely to be happy and satisfied with their life, and 10 percent more likely to be able to regulate their emotions”. The second semester is a difficult time, but finding hobbies and enjoyment within school is possible and can easily help students stay on top of their work, along with having a positive outlook on the daunting last few months of the school year.

East High School takes pride in its diverse programs by offering dozens of courses; whether they are academic, electives, or the arts, East has it all. There are few greater feelings than taking a class that not only knocks out credits but also piques interest. If students are struggling to find a class that gains college credit but also sparks interest, Serendipity comes highly recommended. Serendipity is a writing course that allows students to be creative in any way that interests them whether it be art, photography, or writing. This course encourages all types of creativity. Serendipity has been offered at East since 1986 and is currently led by East English teacher Jonathan Clark. Clark has taught at East for eight and a half years and takes pride in the beauty of Serendipity. He loves that the class is a “flexible creative space with a lot of different voices, doing a lot of different things but we all gather together.” This describes the class perfectly. The balance between a variety of ideas and constant concepts being tossed around allows students to learn from their peers and provides benefits that go much further than the class itself. After speaking with Clark, The Spotlight was eager to gather different perspectives and hear directly from the students. To begin, a staff writer spoke with East Alumni Elin Lawrence (who graduated in 2023). Lawrence couldn’t get enough of this class and was quick to talk about how this course “prepared me for other writing classes and gave me a deeper meaning of what writing is.” She went on to discuss the opportunity this class gave her to “express myself better through writing. It has also helped me feel good at something in school,” which Lawrence thinks is important in a learning environment. Francesca Vela, a current senior at East, had similar feelings about this program explaining that she loves “doing something that I’m passionate about and working with others that have the same love for writing.” Vela also touched on the comfort this class provides to the students who feel like “family and a safe space where you will never be judged.” Serendipity allows students to express themselves academically and personally, making it an incredible program worth trying out. The diverse ideas, incredible teachers, and involved students make this one of the many incredible classes East offers.

Attention all Swifties and football fanatics: Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are officially dating. The crossover event of what some may say the century, is finally happening. Even with Taylor’s worldwide fanbase and Kelce’s outstanding career, both have gained a much larger audience. The stereotypical football fan (a middle-aged man) and Swift fan (a teenage girl), are beginning to look past their respective communities and find fulfillment in a new one. Forbes writer Brad Adgate details how there has been a 400 percent increase in Kelce’s jersey sales, placing him in the top five players in the NFL. He has also gained at least 383,000 new followers on his Instagram account and an increase in Chiefs ticket sales. Additionally, as of October 2, Kelce’s podcast New Heights is ranked first on Apple’s charts. Similarly, Taylor Swifts “Welcome to New York” has been recently used in an NFL ad starring Travis Kelce. As the chorus echoes Kelce stares longingly up to the stands (inferably, the VIP box where Swift has been seen multiple times with his mother). Additionally, her music and documentary Miss Americana have alluded to her incessant need for advocacy. Seems she's determined to give voice to young women and serve as an admirable icon. Considering how many daughters are now choosing to watch Sunday football with their dads, Swift's relationship is only furthering her mission to create empowered women. Even as a “girlfriend,” Swift has proven her impact and influence on Americans. Senior Fiona Holland notes how she “loved how Taylor Swift jumped up and down after Travis Kelce scored a touchdown—it was adorable. It makes me more interested in Chiefs games, even though I am not a Chiefs fan.” Swift’s “halo effect” has even boosted Kelce from bad boy to husband material. His questionable past of cheating scandals and dating 50 women at once (seen on TV in Catching Kelce) have seemed to dissipate in the glow of Swift. Although some fans are rooting for a breakup (in hopes of catchy break up songs), the majority seem to be rooting for Swift and her newfound beau. The couple was more recently spotted after an evening together in New York City, walking out of a Saturday Night Live after party. That night, SNL humored America with a skit about how football has turned into a pop-culture phenomenon—many are focused on Swift instead of the game. The skit starred Kenan Thompson and Pete Davidson, resulting in an uproar of laughter and heightened status of the already famous couple. On a different note, senior Leah Goodman tells The Spotlight that she “doesn’t believe they will last, especially with all of the publicity on them.” But let’s face it, the odd pairing has so far proven to be nothing but positive. Here’s hoping for a prosperous future marriage—or at least a hit breakup single from Swift. Either way, the combined fan bases will be reactive.

For the first time since the fall of 2007, the East Angels Football team is 3-0. The Angels opened the season with an impressive 55-19 victory over league rivals Westminster followed by a 36-0 shutout victory over Smoky Hill, setting the Angles up for a showdown with bitter rivals Denver South. In last year's game against South, the Angels were taken off guard by multiple factors away from the field. Merely 10 minutes before the team was set to depart for the stadium, Coach Ruempolhamer was informed that two starters, as well as another key player had been suspended. The team was then forced to confront a cyber bullying incident occurring the day prior disrupting the team mere minutes before taking the field. In this year's meeting with the Ravens, the Angels dominated every aspect of the game, resulting in a 31-13 victory to keep their perfect start to the season. On the defensive front, East pulled off an impressive 8 turnovers, including four interceptions and four recovered fumbles holding the Ravens to under 200 yards. Coach Ruempolhamer praised the players' recognition that “Glamour doesn’t take care of business” and the collective buy in “to go down into the trenches and do the work”. Coach Ruempolhamer attributes the bright start to the immense strides the team made over the summer. On a daily basis, the team is reminded to “Do the work, do what it takes, and eliminate shortcuts.” With a collective understanding that talent is not enough, the team had the opportunity to attend a camp at Colorado State University, where many of the younger players from last season's team were given the opportunity to mature on the field. Led by Senior Landen Holloway, the defense made significant improvements in defending the run game. Four games into last season the Angels had given up 13 rushing touchdowns, while this season they have only conceded 3. The ability to stop the run has allowed the team the chance to compete on both sides of the ball, getting the defensive unit off the field, and the ball into the hands of rising star Declan Macdonald. Though he is only a sophomore, the young quarterback has already embraced his role as leader and a trustworthy passer. Declan attributes his leadership abilities to those around him, and in particular “the help from my coaches and the help from the quarterback last year”. The important figures around Declan have taught him “what it means to be a leader, and how you have to keep your head up in all the situations that are pretty tough”. Despite the struggles in recent weeks, Declan is confident in the team's ability to regain their early season form. “Little things stopped us from playing to the level we should have. We know that it all comes down to discipline and working harder week after week.” Following the game at Pine Creek, the Angels have their bye week where they will re-evaluate themselves and look to finish out the season on the front foot. Despite the positive start to the season, the Angels still have much to prove. As the season grinds on, the Angels will focus on a long awaited return to the playoffs, having not appeared since the fall of 2018. By focusing on each individual game, the team has set their sights on winning the conference, as well as a deep run into the playoffs. As expectations continue to rise, the Angels will turn to themselves for positive results. Knowing not every game will be easy, Coach Reumpolhamer emphasized the team’s understanding that “the way we compete, and understand that the games will be dogfights, we will be coming out victorious.”

As Seniors head into their fourth year of high school, they realize that Senior year is not just fun and games. There are countless tests, homework assignments, and classes ahead of them- not to mention college applications.” It seems like I'm always behind on something” Senior Sofia Savedra confesses. “I enjoy being out of school more than being in school and it's hard to make myself go home and do homework.” Saavedra is not alone. Seniors tend to forget that the Common App is not their only responsibility. They also have to deal with the classes they signed up for last spring. As we begin our fifth week of school and with college deadlines coming up, Seniors' stress levels are at an all-time high. So how are Seniors coping with anxiety? Some students have found healthy ways to deal with their stress…while others have not. Saavedra explains that her coping strategy is developing a serious Starbucks addiction. “I get a chai and I switch up what I put in it right now it's pumpkin, in the winter it will be peppermint, and in the spring: vanilla.” One has to wonder how much money Sofia spends per week on Starbucks, and her answer:'' around 20 dollars a week”. Anna Boyle on the other hand copes with her anxiety in another way. “ I do yoga once a week at Carla Madison. It helps to center me.” When asked what her favorite part of the yoga class was she responded saying “ I like the meditation at the end.” Seniors are faced with extreme pressure. “It feels like there is not enough time in the day” Ashylne Barringer complains. Seniors are often trying to balance a bulk load of work at once. Classes, athletics, work, college, family, and countless other activities can lead a senior to feel overworked and overwhelmed. Hazel Harp has developed her strategy of keeping herself grounded “I create digital planners on Google Sheets so I don't get overwhelmed, it keeps track of all my deadlines.” She believes that by following her planner she can get herself through the year. “As long as I follow my deadlines I will be fine, '' she says. Nathan Taylor recommends “staying focused in class and clearing up any questions with teachers at school so you can use time outside of school to finish college apps.” It seems that the best way to get through the year is to use your time wisely and keep yourself organized. However, that is easier said than done. Some of the seniors have had a harder time than others getting through the year. Amelia Birner confesses that she has been staying up until two in the morning to finish all her homework and common applications. As stress and homework trek upward, sleep is her last priority. A student who would prefer not to be named confesses that they “have been smoking weed daily and it's been great.” Whatever helps I suppose. Other seniors like Tatum Blaksley are less confident in handling senior year. “I'm not going to get through the year.” While it can feel as if you are the only one struggling, it's helpful to remember that all seniors are in the same situation. We are all trying to make it through the year. So as we look towards graduation, remember that while stressful, Senior year will come to an end so we must make the best of it.

Former East principal, John Youngquist, is running for the Denver Public School Board at-large this November 7th. Mr. Youngquist has dedicated his career to Denver Public Schools and is committed to bring, as he explains in an interview, a “culture shift” to the school board. Mr. Youngquist values integrity and in that, he will one, accomplish what he pledges to accomplish, and second, ask for his fellow board members and school community to hold him accountable. Mr. Youngquist states, “I will do what I say I will do”. After a drain of hope in last year’s school board, Mr. Youngquist strives to rebuild trust among the Denver Public Schools. Mr. Youngquist understands that the results of a decision or policy are unpredictable. However, he explains unpredictability is not an excuse to impede progress when, “our community needs us to support them”. He wants to hold the school board to a higher standard and foster responsible leadership that gives people confidence in their representatives. Mr. Youngquist states that there must be an expectation to “change things that need to be changed”. Mr. Youngquist believes that trust derives from transparency, especially when it comes to allocations. Mr. Youngquist explains that the Denver Public School Board is budgeted 1.3 billion dollars a year. Various schools have shut down throughout the years due to a lack of resources. And yet, parents are in the dark when it comes to how much money is left in their district, or simply where the money is going. Mr. Youngquist believes that the Denver community should be able to ask questions and receive an honest response from the school board. In terms of policy, Mr. Youngquist was one among 17 other Denver public school principals who made a request three years ago to keep School Resource Officers in the buildings because the school board “had not developed another plan for what they would do instead.” Mr. Youngquest explains, “I am sort of pro school resources officer along with the context that we are supportive of all the needs students have and beyond.” Mr. Youngquist strives to create a baseline of support that sets students up for success and helps them in times of need. As for youth violence in Denver Public Schools, Mr. Youngquist explains that to have really strong restorative justice programs is to get, “a lot more support earlier in their experience” and to have, “consequences of behavior”. He believes students should have the opportunity to “restore commitment and trust with the school, but there is a balance.” In creating this balance, he seeks to bring more teacher, counselor and administrator employment that will bring easier accessibility to student support. Muddled in last year’s derangement, the school board needed a mediator to keep peace in official meetings. When asked how Mr. Youngquist would handle conflict, he explained that he would find compromise no matter the animosity surrounding a decision. He explains that his biggest priority is to “every single day, focus on learning.” Youngquist affirms that personal disputes are beside the point when your job is to serve a community you have committed yourself to support. Mr. Youngquist pledges to respect his fellow board members for who they are as a person, and to respect the opinions they bring to the table. When asked about lawsuits that may arise against numerous school board members in the next year or so, Mr. Youngquist understands that this may cause distraction. He explains, “Whenever you have really hard times, it's like an earthquake, there is one big shake followed by several tremors.” Mr. Youngquist acknowledges that there will be tremors, but “you cannot let them shift you away from your effort.” With this, Mr. Younquist strongly believes that outside complications should be separate from the board and its focus on education. Mr. Youngquist vouched that as a school board member, he will have, “Challenging conversations”. He explains, “We will not get better without challenging conversations.” Mr. Youngquist strives to bring the change and accountability Denver East has been looking for.

My favorite thing about this school year is definitely Con law. When I first signed up for the class, I was intimidated by the summer homework and the initial workload of biweekly essays and reading guides. I even considered dropping the class for fear that I couldn't handle it but when we started to work with our panels toward the actual competition all of my doubts went away. Throughout the year we worked in a group of five with our coach Justice Melissa Hart and our teacher Ms. Hostetter to study the Constitution, case law, and government functions. We prepared statements and evidence for our state and national competitions that consisted of mock hearings. We met as a panel 2 times a week and rehearsed after school and on Sundays. While it seems like a big time commitment, all of our meetings were fun and interesting so I didn't even think of it as a task to do. Conlaw for me means way more than a trophy or a resume builder, it has truly enhanced my knowledge of the US government that I didn’t know I was lacking. Throughout my time at East, I have often been confronted with wanting to make policy changes after something unfortunate happened. While speeches are a powerful part of making change, knowledge of how federal and state policy works as well as the processes for legislation changes are social justice skills I would never have known without con law. It’s genuinely not a boring history class but something competitive and fun that teaches useful information for the future. Not only is the content and public speaking good for everyday life, but the people within the program are some of the kindest and most intelligent students I’ve ever met. I interviewed my panel members from this year to hear what they thought about con law. When asked why he joined the class despite the workload, Junior Reid McCarty said that he, “stuck with it because I find it fascinating and I wanted to go hang out with my friends in DC.” Additionally, another of my panel members Merle Hezel said that, “I would recommend the class to others because you get to learn a lot and have fun, also the stuff I learned is important to the world ya know.” One thing about con law that I found intimidating and I’m sure other students as well, is the exclusivity of con law. So I asked students what they thought about it. Merle Hezel said that “it’s not actually exclusive in terms of who joins the class but it is exclusive in the sense that people who don’t want to work don’t join or stay in the class.” I would agree with this as I think the exclusivity in terms of who is willing to join the class and take on the workload is a good thing. He also commented that “everybody has to keep up the work equally but the goal should be to include as many people as possible”. Another of my panel mates Lila Brimah also agreed with this saying, “Because not everyone can handle the class, not everyone should take it, it should be small.” Reid also said, “I think that it is good, everyone should have the opportunity to apply but I think people should self-select based on how much work they're willing to do.” Overall con law is a great program that I feel is truly not exclusive in a negative way, so I encourage anyone who has an interest in government, law, or social justice to take the class and stick with it.

As the 2022-2023 school year draws to an end, we wave goodbye to Sammy and Hadley, our graduating head angels, and look to the future. Student Council elections took place on April 27th Head Angel positions were announced the following day. As the loudspeaker crackled to life, Noah Vong, Junior Vice President, was glued to his seat. When his name was announced, he stated, “All the emotions were released, relieved, happy, confused.” His fellow head Lily Bujanda, Junior President, explained that “her heart dropped.” She adds that she has wanted this opportunity for so long and that when she heard the loudspeaker, it was truly liberating. Before we get into their plans for next year, let's meet our Head Angels. Noah Vong is the leader of APSA and has been a vital part of the Student Council since freshman year. He is known for his wide assortment of bucket hats and his love for green. Lily Bujanda is a Poms dancer and part of LSU. Both love the East community and can not wait to give the East Community, specifically the class of 2024, a fantastic upcoming year. What are the plans for next year? As our new Head Angels Lily and Noah have many plans for the upcoming 2023-2024 school year. Lilly Bujanda explains she wants to “turn the year around after a hard year we have had, as well as go all out for pep rallies and dances.” As a dedicated part of the student council for the past three years, she has watched the last Head Angels' successes and failures and believes she can follow in their footsteps to make a difference within the school. She says that “Sammy and Hadley really inspired me going into next year.” Noah's goals include “Making the 2024 school year good and improving safety at East.” Noah is an approachable person who is edited to work hard and represent East High School. The future heads plan to make Pep rallies and dances exciting for East Students. How are you going to increase morale at East after the difficult year we have had? After this school year, many in our East Community fear they are no longer safe within the East building. When asked about addressing safety concerns within our school, Vong said, “Tragedy has brought us closer together; it will build our spirit and unity.” Noah plans to build a connection with the SROS and stay in touch with the school board. He believes that as a school, we will recover and show why East truly is the best high school in Denver. Lily Bujanda wants to “rebuild the foundation that East stands for '' she believes the first step is keeping the safety policy “consistent” Bujanda spoke on how pep rallies and school dances will rebuild the morale in East High School. Are you excited to work with your fellow Head Angel? Both of the head angles are ecstatic to work with one another. Lily says, "Noah and I have wanted to be heads ever since being elected next year.” Noah adds that “Lily and I are really close. She is president, and I'm vice president, and we are strong leaders, and we both really care about the community.'' Each is thrilled that they get to work together as representatives of the East community. I personally am excited to see what they do next year and what change they will bring to East High School. What is your favorite song? It is no surprise that our head angels have an excellent musical taste. Lily Bujanda says her favorite song is “Hasta Cuando” by Kali Uchis, whereas Noah's tastes steer more to the music of “ I thought you want to dance” by Tyler the Creator. Talk to them at any time if you want to exchange songs! Our new Head Angles are excited for next year and cannot wait to support the student body and make changes at East. Lily Bujanda says, “We are that angel nation, and next year is going to be amazing for all of us!”

Many students at East High School are familiar with Advanced Placement classes. At East, eighty-two percent of the student population has taken at least one of the AP classes. The driving point for most high schoolers who sign up for the class is that it will make them “college ready.” Students prepare all year for a difficult exam that corresponds with their class. Due to the diligent studying students complete before the AP test, one would imagine that the test would commence without a hitch. This year it was far from true. Two AP exams were interrupted by fire alarms which led the tests to be canceled, and the students were forced to take the test the following week. Fire alarms are a sad reality at East. We seem to hear the alarm go off every week, mostly due to vaping in the bathrooms which sets off the smoke alarm. However, now the problem has gone too far. Not only disrupting AP Seminar but AP World. It raises the question, does the administration at East high school no longer have control over the student body? Ally Carrier, a junior at East, says, “East Administration has to get a grip over the kids vaping in the bathrooms.” She and the East community are frustrated with the constant fire alarms disrupting class and even our AP exams. Ashlyne Barringer, a junior at East who plans to take five AP classes next year, asks, “I wonder if this is going to continue to be a problem next year.” Not every student is blaming the East Administration. Reid McCarty, a student who experienced the disruption of the AP Seminar class first hand explains that the fault lies with College Board. College Board switched most of their AP classes to digital exams using the Bluebook app in 2022-2023. McCarty narrates his experience saying at the beginning, there were problems with the exam as the Bluebook app would not work for some of the students. He even said that they “probably would have finished the exam before the fire alarm went off if setting up the test had not taken as long.” He then explains that halfway through the test, the alarm went off. Since the disruption was over ten minutes long, the protractors had to call College Board and the exam was canceled. McCarty voiced his frustration over the fire alarm but disagreed with the statement that the fault lies with East. He believes it was an “unfortunate situation, and fire alarms just happen.” Mrs. Rich, a teacher of AP U.S history and AP Seminar, agrees that fire alarms are “frustrating, but an everyday occurrence.” McCarty and Mrs. Rich believe that the solution must come from College Board. Rich states, “The College Board needs something in the digital system that allows us to pause the test.” She argues that the College Board needs to be aware that fire alarms will inevitably go off in a high school, and they need something in their system to deal with it. What are our future steps? If fire alarms continue to be a problem in AP testing, how can we remedy the situation? One option is going back to paper testing. While an annoyance and causes significantly more hand cramping, paper tests are easier to work with and do not have the unfortunate track record of digital exams. The other option is that we hope the College Board alters Bluebook the following year, making the system run smoother and allowing the proctor to pause the exam.

On Thursday morning, the day after hearing the news of classmate Luis Garcia’s passing, hundreds of east students gathered in silence around a memorial made of flowers in front of the building on the ‘E’. They stood for almost an hour in silence, and then the following morning, those same students made sure that they were heard loud and clear as they made their way down to the capitol. On Friday the 3rd, a student lead walkout meant to advocate for legislation against gun violence, began bright and early here in front of East’s campus and ended 2 miles west on the steps of the capitol. The event began with speakers, which consisted of fellow classmates, administration, and words from Luis’s teammates on the boy’s soccer team. Not long after the speeches ended, the crowd started to make their way down 16th on foot, with picket signs in hand. News coverage showed a sea of red as hundreds of students, teachers, parents, and other community members marched closer to their destination. Once finally at the capital, even more students were given the opportunity to grab the mic and shed light on the heartbreak they’ve felt over recent events. Some students were even able to make it inside the building and sit in on conversations about the issue at hand. With emotion and power, students spoke up on the injustice students and teachers alike continue to face every day in our schools, and how the time has come for change.