The Hoofprint – April 30, 2008

Upperclassmen awoke Saturday to a morning blanketed in snow, with more on the way. As the girls drove to their hair and nail appointments, and the boys drove to pick up flowers and tuxes, heavy gusts of wind carried a flurry of fresh snowflakes.

“I woke up with three texts that said, ‘Its snowing!’” said Senior Kaylynn Annis. “I was like, ‘yeah, I can see that...thanks. I was so mad.’”

Most prom goers greeted this sudden twist in the weather with exasperation and disappointment, dreading the idea of posing for pictures outside in the 27 degree weather.

“It was so windy,” said Senior Anna Steen. “My feet were frozen. I had a pea coat that didn’t clash too bad with my dress, though.”

While some chose to take pictures inside, others gritted their teeth and endured the weather.

“They [the parents] thought the snow would look pretty in the pictures,” said Annis. “So they shoveled off the deck to take pictures.”

The snow tapered off for the evening, yet the cold weather hung on well into the night.

“The parking lot at the Civic Center was really icy,” said Senior Matt Rausch. “The guys had no traction on the bottom of their shoes, and the girls had heels so that got a little slippery.”

Yet prom goers chose to overlook the spring storm in favor of enjoying the evening.

“The snow was unfortunate,” said Senior Brianna Doboszenski. “But I think most people were so determined to have a good time, they refused to let the weather ruin their evening.”

Mark Mischke, the current assistant principal of Stilllwater, will be head principal following Principal Rick Toso's retirement. After several years of being an assistant principal, Mischke is ready to step up to the plate and take control at Buffalo High School.

"I am passionate about providing the best education possible for students," said Mischke. "I am excited for this new challenge and opportunity here."

Mischke is not the only one who happens to be excited for this opportunity. Assistant Principal Brandon Prell had the chance to help select the new principal.

"Judging by how Mr. Mischke presented himself, he's one who will want to get to know the school," said Prell. "He demonstrated what the committee was looking for. He was very consistent and thorough throughout the process."

Other adult figures at the school had a say in the decision.

"He has his own flavor to add to the school. He is crafty enough to make subtle changes and smart enough to get that we have a good thing going, and this is a good place to be," said Activity Director Tom Bauman.

The student body at Buffalo High School has their own unique opinions to add about the coming school year.

"He should meet the whole school. We should have a pep fest or gathering of some sort where he is formally introduced to us and tells us his plans for the school year," said Sophomore Leah Petersen.

According to the majority of students, Mischke's plans for the school year should change only minor things, if any.

More coverage of the upcoming principal, including interviews and photos from Mischke’s current home at Still water, will be presented in the upcoming issue of the Hoofprint.

In the summer of 2009, 16 students from Buffalo High School will travel 10 hours across the world for a 12-day stay in Spain. While in Spain, the students will see the Aqua Duct of Segovia, the Prado Museum (the second-largest Museum in Europe), and get the chance to swim in the Mediterranean Sea. In Spain, the students will stay with host families for a few days in both Segovia and Granada. As all the host families speak only Spanish, students will grow in skill and experience with the language. "Going to Spain has always been a dream of mine," said Junior Becky Rein. "I'm also super excited to stay at the home-stay families and meet some 'Chico Calientes' [hot boys]." Spanish Teachers Daryl Boeckers and Nancy Eiynck are two of the adults chaperoning this trip. Both teachers took months to fi gure out which students should go by looking at applications, the grades they received in Spanish, and most of all, their maturity level. "I am really excited to hear about the students experiences with the host families,” said Boeckers. “This trip is a language trip and is really going to help the students’ progress with their Spanish. Hopefully, they will end up studying other languages in college, not just Spanish.” Although the trip is going to be full of exciting times and remarkable memories, the price tag for such a trip is little nerve-wracking. The total cost of the trip is $2,950. The total includes air fare, hotel, professional tour guides, and the home stays. The students have to pay for their third meal every day and anything extra they want to buy. For the next 14 months, these students are going to be fundraising, doing car washes, hosting garage sales, and other events. Being in a different country, there are always different cultures and ways of living. In Spain, the students will rely on public transit such as subways and trains versus cars. Dress code is an issue as well, especially when it comes to women. In Spain, women are conservative and don’t like to show a lot of skin; they wear long shorts past their knees or capris. "Our goal is not to offend anyone" said Boeckers. "We, as a group, don’t want to stick out. We just want to be accepted, and that calls for a lot of preparation.” More then anything, safety comes fi rst. Being in a different country brings a lot of stress on parents when regarding their children. Students are never allowed to get anywhere without another student or adult with them. If they are to go anywhere, they report to an adult immediatly. "Being so far away, safety is always an issue," said Junior Ashlee Styve. "But we all know that were not allowed to go anywhere without another person. Were going to be using the buddy system a lot." For the next few months, the students have to balance their excitement of going to Spain, with the tasks it takes to make the trip enjoyable. With hard work and determination, this trip will leave memories that last a lifetime.

As the weather changes and it gets closer to summer, a vast majority of seniors catch an illness. Much like the common cold, it’s very contagious and can greatly affect your academic performance. Symptoms include skipping class, not doing homework, not participating, lower grades, and worsened attitude. This illness is called: Senioritis. “I think I do [have senioritis] to a certain degree, I don’t try as hard as I probably could,” said Senior Ben Holthaus. “I just kinda go with the fl ow.” Teachers also notice the difference in their students as the year draws closer and more develop this illness. Anxious to get out and soak up the sun, students watch the time tick slowly in school. “I made new policies for the seniors because of senioritis,” said Jobs for Minnesota’s Graduates Teacher Clare Cole. “I also have a new policy for attendance. Attendance is really poor for seniors compared to my multi-year class.” “I don’t come to school, it’s horrible. I skip once a week,” said an anonymous Senior. “I’d rather sleep than come to school.” Between Juniors and Seniors there was 5,810 absences last year. For the Freshmen and Sophomore classes there were only 4,531. A 1,279 difference between the upper classmen, and the lower classmen. During the fi rst two years of high school students are more excited about the high school life, but the excitement slowly disappears when you become and upper classmen. “I see an overall attendance problem all year long. Attendance is stronger at the start of something,” said Cole. “Then it fades away.” The average Buffalo student spends 2,366 days in school from grades K-12. Obviously not every student will attend all 2,366 days. Sickness, emergencies, and skipping can make a student behind and lower their grades. “I think after four years a lot of people get sick of the routine, and I think it’s time for something new, something they haven’t experienced yet, which is college,” said Holthaus, “So they’re itching to get out of here.” Seniors that have already been accepted into college, show the biggest signs of senioritis. But too many symptoms can be crucial. Now colleges can check up on their future students’ grades from their senior year and revoke their acceptance. “They’re just ready to move onto big and better things, and want the time to go fast,” said Tech Ed teacher Troy Hanson. “They mentally zone out because they want to be done.” Change and new opportunities are gained on graduation day. On the other hand, it also means no more High School classes, friends, and sports. Graduation is the end of this curable disease. “I know I’m going to miss Buffalo,” said Holthaus. “That’s why I’m not in a hurry to pack my bag.”

A group of student activists are putting on a fund and awareness raising benefi t on May 18, which will be held here at the high school. The admission will be $3.00 for students and $5.00 for adults. A silent auction will take place at 6:00 p.m till 8:30 p.m. During the silent auction there will also be presentations and live performances until 8:00 pm, after which there will be a reception.

English Teacher Kelly Barrick has been passionate about Africa and its confl icts since minoring in African Studies in college. In January of 2003, Barrick visited Tanzania, located in eastern Africa. While she was there she fell in love with the country, its culture, and its people. “I have always been drawn to the issues that concern the people of Africa,” said Barrick.

After watching Junior Hannah Birkeland give a presentation on the Darfur issues during AAA in the fall, Barrick was inspired to help. After discussing her idea with fellow teacher Jason Geoffrion, they gathered a group of concerned students and staff who also wanted to help. Birkeland felt that helping people halfway around the world was her calling. Birkeland’s best friend Junior Sarah Ramsey has the same feelings.

“I heard about it two years ago from Hannah,” said Ramsey, “and God really put it in our hearts to get the word out.”

After watching informational movies and discussing the issues that have been happening in Darfur, the group of students went around town asking for donations to put in the silent auction for the benefi t. They also made some phone calls and got donations from places outside of Buffalo,

“I have to call everyone today,” said Junior Jesse Doyle. “It’s going to take eight hours.”

Some of the great prize donations that the studetns have gathered for this event include items such as free rounds of golf, Twins and Lynx tickets, gift certifi cates to places around town, and even some pottery made by students. All the proceeds from the event will be going to the Save Darfur Coalition.

Besides the silent auction, other events will take place during the benefi t. Most of the performers will be singing, but Junior Ariel Harris and friends will showcase their dancing skills, and Junior Bree Wachter will perform a stomp with a group of her friends. Birkeland’s brother Judah Birkeland will sing the Beatles’ “Imagine”. While the PAC is bumpin’ with music, there will be items available to purchase in the cafeteria, including Darfur T-shirts. No one will go hungry, as the concessions will stock cookies, cakes, and pies. McDonalds also donated coffee, lemonade, and orange drinks.

For more information on what’s happening in Darfur, please visit savedarfur.org. If anyone would like to donate or requires additional information, please see Barrick or Geoffrion. Tickets are on sale in the activities offi ce and at Buffalo Books.

Earth Day, April 22, marked the 28th celebration of a holiday initiated by former Wisconsin governor Gaylord Nelson in 1970. As earth friendliness continues to grow in popular culture as a fad, Earth Day marked what should be the high-point of any person who has gone green. However, unlike zooba pants and boy bands, going green is not as simple as wearing certain clothes or listening to certain musicians. It reflects an entire lifestyle change, and though in the suburban sprawl of Minnesota it is not always possible for walking and bicycle riding to stop emissions, students can do more than they currently are.

The first, and most simple step would involve reading the labels on trash and recycling bins around the school. Every time a piece of trash is put in the recycling bin, everything it contains also becomes trash. Whether this is the result of laziness or stupidity cannot be determined, however, if trash continues to be thrown in the recycling bins they lose their purpose entirely.

The school can also do its part to encourage carpooling by offering discounted parking permits next year to students who carpool daily. This would allow students who cannot afford parking permits to pay together as well as save on emissions.

Before allowing earth friendliness to fade into trend history, students should consider the impact they can make, individually and together, on the earth. The environmental and economic idea of recycling is sound: re-using natural resources over and over again makes sense. By conserving the dwindling supply of these resources and protecting the few remaining undamaged ecosystems left on the earth, we are preserving them for future generations. Remember earth in the long run, the way the millennial generation treats earth today will affect how our children and grandchildren learn and respect earth when it becomes their responsibility. Recycling is just one way to handle America’s solid waste problems. Everyone is able to take part in recycling if they really try. Recycling is a way of life and a state of mind. We need to realize that the earth’s resources are special and wont last forever, a key to all recycling efforts is to realize the benefits of preserving the earth. Earth day is not only the one day designated to recycling, earth day is made to celebrate our accomplishments and accomplishments to come, it was made to push our earth into a political limelight and keep it there, not to make the earth a main concern for one day but for years to come.

According to T e National Institute on alcohol abuse and alcoholism, the average age when youths fi rst try alcohol is 11 years old for boys, and 13 years old for girls. T ose ado- lescents who have been drinking before the age of 15 are 4 more times likely to develop alcohol dependence than those who begin drinking at 21. Sadly enough, the average drinking age that Americans start drinking at is 15.9. Drinking maybe once a month or so with a few of your friends is not horrible. Drink- ing every weekend using every last penny of your allowance or paycheck to buy yourself alcohol to get drunk in a matter of hours is absolutely ridiculous. “If you are going to drink,” said an anonymous junior, “ you might as well get drunk.” Out of all the millions of people in the world that consume alcohol (legal and not), young people ages 12 through 20 consume a major 25 percent of the nation’s alcohol, a fi gure based on the National Household Survey of Drug Abuse. Some children can’t help how their parents consume their alco- hol, but children of alcoholics are four to 10 times more likely to become alcoholics as adults than children from families with no alcoholic adults. “When I was nine years old, my dad and I were working on a car at a garage,” said an anonymous sophomore, “and I was thirsty, but there wasn’t anything to drink except my dad’s beer. He told me to try what he was drinking, and I had never had beer before. I didn’t know what beer was, so I drank some and spit it out. My dad laughed and told me just to drink some to tide me over until we got done and got home. So that’s what I did and it was the sickest thing ever.” When teens start drinking, many don’t understand that their brain is not fully developed yet. T e human brain usually doesn’t fully develop until the mid to late 20’s. Duke University researchers scanned the brains of teens recovering from drink- ing problems. T ey found that the teens who drank a lot had a smaller prefrontal cortex than those who did not. T e prefron- tal cortex is the part of the brain responsi- ble for judgement/planning ahead/critical thinking. If your prefrontal cortex does not mature as it’s supposed to as an adolescent, it could make you become more impulsive, have poor decision making, judgement will be off , and you might not be able to learn as well as other people (who didn’t drink as an adolescent). “I made some bad choices because I was so drunk,” said an anonymous senior. “I didn’t even know what I was doing.” Knowing that students think that drink- ing is awesome and a fun weekend activity, it disappoints me to see people obsessing over getting alcohol to have fun. Twenty- three percent of sexually active high school students drank alcohol or used drugs before their last sexual intercourse. T is is just proving the point that young adults really are not until that part of their brain is fully developed because already they can’t even make good judgement as to what they are doing to themselves. Students here drink on many occasions, and may just because they get bored. What we as young adults don’t understand is how much alcohol is taking over our bodies and aff ecting our lives when we are older. We may think we have it under control, and that we can stop whenever we want. Sadly, most students can’t and won’t until it’s too late to realize what they have been doing to their body for years. Drinking may seem like the cool thing to do, but when you are older you will regret how much you drank and how much your decision and judge- ment making skills are tormented and ir- reversible. Underage drinking costs the U.S. $62 billion a year. Everyday, 9 teens die from alcohol related incidents.

It’s one of those things that would never happen to you. Unexpected. Driving down the road, it’s nothing new, just going home after a day of fun with friends. Crash. The music is blaring. I recognize the screams and cries. Where am I? What hap- pened? I am lying on the ground; it’s as if I can’t move. There are strangers surrounding me. What are they doing here? The sound of sirens gets closer and closer. Blood is running down into my eyes. It is warm out- side but I feel freezing cold. I’m lifted into the ambulance and rushed to the hospital. I didn’t wear a seat belt that day. The price? One broken vertebrae, a back brace, one crushed elbow, 150 stitches to put my eyelid back on, my favorite sport, and the worst memories of my life by far. I was not the only one that was affected by the crash. Far from being alone, there were four other people with me; Kevin, Hillary, Dillon, and Nick were all affected in their own ways. Because I didn’t wear my seat belt, I fl ew forward, jamming Kevin into his seat. He couldn’t get out of the truck alone, and his life was only saved with help from an amazing individual that was coinci- dentally driving by the right place at the right time moments before the truck exploded. I ended up going out his window and into the ditch. My impact on Kevin’s seat, caused him major leg injuries. His femur had torn right through his leg. He also suffered a broken arm. Hillary was sitting next to Kevin and suffered from a broken femur, arm, and nose in four different places. Dillon and Nick suffered only from minor physical in- juries, because of their smart action- they wore a seat belt. At the time of the crash, Dillon and Nick did all they could to make sure everybody was okay, and became my heroes. Adults always stress how important it is to wear seat belts whenever you get into the car. Yet according to the US Govern- ment Agency, in the northern US only 62 percent of teenagers wear them. 62 of 100 people killed in accidents weren’t wearing their seat belts. It isn’t a big deal, until you learn for yourself. That was my case. The people that haven’t learned are in denial that it would ever happen to them. Neither education, statistics, or fear of injuries are strong enough to make teenagers buckle up. I now know how important it really is. A task that only takes up a couple seconds is worth not taking that risk. Seat belts will save your life. The consequence of my action still affects my life every day in so many ways. My crash happened ten months ago, and there still isn’t a day that goes by where I’m not reminded of everything that happened to my friends and I, all because we didn’t wear seat belts.

The sound of sirens gets closer and closer. Blood is running down into my eyes. I’m lif ed into the ambulance and rushed to the hospital.

“

In the morning the library isn’t the same. You can’t hear the typing of keys or the “swoosh” of pants as someone walks by. No one hears the sound of a teacher’s, “shhh,” or someone clearing their throat. Instead you hear laughter, shouts, and discussions of epic hair, the longer the better and spiky works, too. The library takes on a shape of a social gathering place with ‘regulars’ situated into groups. The largest group takes its form in the area by the couches. They come every morning to talk with friends and fi nd Manga books to read. “I just like to be at the library,” said Sopho- more Wesley Miller. “It [acts] as a gathering place for my friends and the large selection of books and how much space there is. The library rocks.” Students don’t only like the library’s role as a gathering place because of its open atmosphere. Eight percent liked it for the wa- ter fountain. Even Senior Kory Rudenburg, who does not go to the library of- ten, uses the water fountain there to fi ll his water bottle because, it “has the best water.” Ten percent of students polled also said that they went there for its comfy chairs and couches. “The couch in there,” said Sophomore Dustin Grage, “it’s a spot where I can just relax and enjoy my book, it’s quiet too.” After school starts the staff tries to keep the noise down. This is when the library becomes a place that people expect the library to be, a place where the silence marks it quite unlike any other. “We want [the library] to be a place for quiet study,” said Media Para Judith Loberg. “A place students can come and have one quiet place in the school where they can be busy and use their time constructively.” Despite all its advantages, students still do not use the library to its full capacity. 50 percent of students said that they don’t go to the library at all during the week. “I would love to be able to use it more,” said Sophomore Maggie O’ Donnell, “But when I do it’s normally for class research.” Whether you are rarely there or come everyday, the library is something you can always count on; just like the line that forms when the printer stops working, the beeps that interrupts the silence when a friend puts a book off the shelf into another’s back- pack, and the atmosphere, described perfectly in two words by Senior Alexandra Elletson: “freedom and respect.”

Imagine; you’re on a cruise ship, sailing home from Hawaii, in the Pacifi c Ocean. It’s hot to the point that sweat is dripping from your temples and as you look down to the cool, calm, grey-blue water, hoping to satisfy your need for air conditioning, you notice plastic bags fl oating astray, then a Nike running shoe, a tire, and fl oating nearby, a dead fi sh, next thing you know you’re looking at a giant heap of plastic products, tangled in a web that only humans could weave. Nearly 800 miles North of Hawaii in the Pacifi c Ocean an area called the North Pacifi c Subtropical Gyre is fi lling more and more every year with the one product that every human being comes in contact with; plastic. The North Pacifi c gyre is so calm that when water currents carry something there, nothing can take it away. According to Captain Moore (the man who discovered plastic oceans) in the new year of 2008 a quarter of the earth’s surface is now plastic. Imagine; you’re walking down the hall- way, lunch is over, back to class. The only thing you’re thinking of is the boring class you have to go back to. As you fi nish the remains of you’re Cool Blue Gatorade you see a garbage can nearby and toss the emp- ty bottle in, thinking nothing of it. But what you don’t know is what you’re doing to the earth by sending your plastic and aluminum to garbage plants, according to Capt. Moore; when plastic doesn’t end up in a recycling fa- cility it will some day, in a matter of months or years end up in the North Pacifi c Subtropi- cal gyre or one of the other plastic oceans in South Pacifi c, North and South Atlantic, and the Indian Oceans. This could result in fi sh di- gesting the plastic particles or the toxic plastic pellets which are used to mold plastic; those toxic chemicals are called nurdles, according to Stephen Leahy of Wired News; there are 250 billion of these pellets produced annu- ally. Twenty percent of the plastic in the ocean comes from spills off of ships, the spills either wash up on beaches or make their way to the gyre. We eat the fi sh; we lay on the beaches, what next? Buffalo High School has had and cur- rently has various programs to utilize the human capabilities to use resources in order to conserve our earth, our home. Such as the bird mounts you see in the atrium windows, which were once aluminum pop cans, or the JMNG decorated garbage and recycling cans. But do we really utilize them? In the school there are only three recycling bins for bottles, two located in the lunch room, and one in the senior locker bay. Who is going to go out of their way to throw one bottle away when they would have to walk across the entire school to do so? “For the most part, bottles end up in the trash bins, and trash ends up in the recycling bins,” said Janitor Pat Pawelk. People everywhere are becoming gener- ally more aware about the benefi ts of recy- cling, but still people think, “oh, well its just one bottle, what will it do,” as they throw their empty bottles to the side of the road and drive on. Well, that bottle could end up being one little part of a plastic sea twice the size of Texas, which you contributed to. This plastic mass will continue to grow as long as we help it. “We defi nitely have room for improve- ment,” said Principal Rick Toso,” I hope for the future that people will take on the role as advocates for improving green practices,” he continued. Imagine; 10,000 years from now a group of archaeologists are digging to learn about the people who were there before them, they are sweating from the glaring sun that beats down on their backs, one man looks down to avoid the light, hoping to satisfy his need for sunglasses. He notices a thin layer of plas- tic, which turns out to cover the entire earth. According to Capt. Moore, this is what will eventually happen if our habits don’t change; plastic particles could make their way into the food chain and will destruct reproductive sys- tems, cause cancer, and mutation, resulting in a slow, mass suicide. Remember; you’re walking down the hallway, lunch is over, back to class. As you fi nish the remains of your Cool Blue Gato- rade, you see a garbage can nearby, and a re- cycling bin, just steps out of your way, what will you do? This Tuesday was Earth day, a day hu- mans gather to plan and take action doing things to put our earth in a political limelight. Marathons are organized along with various other programs to help “save the earth” one bottle at a time. But what can our school do? Think about where your cans and milk gallons end up at home, do you recycle them or throw them in the garbage? Do you use plastic bags from stores like Target, or Wal-mart as gar- bage bags, or do you toss them? As our nation is so deprived of gas know- ing that 14 plastic bags can run a car for one mile, or recycling one aluminum can con- serves enough energy to run a television for three hours, and is also the equivalent to a half a gallon of gasoline, (www.resourcfulschools. org) should help in convincing people to step up and not just conserve for one day, but to keep the long run in mind. As it states in the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest honour given to civil- ians in the United States; “stewardship of our natural resources is the stewardship of the American Dream.”

Plush green forests, snow covered mountain tops, glaciers as far as the eye can see, and each up coming season has perfect, predictable weather. That’s how we like to think of our earth. Unfortunately everyday our earth is slowly being damaged by the phenomena of global warming. But what is global warming?

It’s just about everywhere we go, but people are still unaware of what exactly it is. Global warming occurs when carbon dioxide (CO2) and other insulating gases surround the earth and trap solar heat into the atmosphere causing the earth’s temperature to rise. According to the documentary Inconvenient Truth this is normally a good thing, but because of the excessively high amounts of fossil fuels that we are burning and all of the trees that are being cut down drastically increases the amount of CO2 in the air, causing high increases in temperature.

Global warming has been widely debated upon. There is an increasing belief that humans are the cause, while others contribute the warming world to climate change. The difference between global warming and climate change is that climate change is the change in temperature to a specific region instead of a change in temperature to the entire earth.

Many believe that climate change can better explain what is happening to our world instead of global warming, while others have no idea of the different changes that have been happening to the earth’s surface.

“I haven’t noticed how it’s changed,” said Junior Ben Mayhew, “I don’t really pay attention. It’s boring.”

Instead of being aware of all the possible things that could change like rising sea levels and dramatic climate change, they see only small fractions of what the world could end up being.

“There will be less population of animals and ice will be melted,” said Junior Katie Aase.

Teenagers have been a main focus when groups, such as The World Wildlife Fund, which aim at teaching the public about global warming. One way of doing this could be by suggesting to teenagers cheap and easy ways to change habits and reduce the amount of harmful substances that are being let off into the air daily.

“Save on energy, use eco-friendly products such as those bags available at Target and Coborn’s,” said Freshmen April Purrier.

Even small changes in driving habits can help reduce the amount of CO2 in the air. According to climatehotmap.org, things such as reducing rapid acceleration and aggressive driving can not only cut an extra 125 gallons of gas used yearly but also can save you up to $250 a year.

Despite the many different theories on what is or is not happening one thing is certain something needs to be done to help save our earth and the living things that inhabit it. So whether it’s educating, recycling, buying eco friendly products or even just shutting off the lights you can do something to help stop global warming.

“Most of the ceramic pieces I make are for decoration. It’s mostly just for fun and whatever turns out, turns out.” “My favorite piece is this teapot that I made accidentaly. Now it’s gone into shows and won Best of Show, and won a jury award at another show.” “When I’m throwing [on the pottery wheel], I listen to music and just let my head free. I don’t usually start something with the in- tention of making a specifi c thing, it all just depends on how the clay feels in my hand.” Keisha is a Senior involved in the Arts Magnet Program at BHS. She has been work- ing with ceramics since fall of 2007, and creates and show- cases many of her pieces at the Minnetonka Center for the Arts.

Greeted with the sound of Social Studies Teacher Gerald Bakke chuckling in the third row, actors performed the opening scenes of “See How They Run” on Saturday.

While performing on the Performing Arts Center stage, actors like Senior Mariah LaQua noticed other familiar sounds.

“My eight year old brother probably didn’t understand the humor,” said LaQua. “But hearing him laugh at the physical comedy was refreshing.”

For the Spring performance, Theatre Director Tracy Hagstrom-Durant chose a farce, a style of comedy which relies on strong physical and exaggerated movement.

“A farce is risky in two ways,” said Senior Logan Walsh. “It makes it hard to act because the blocking is so tight. Also, because this show is risqué, and we have to be humorous and tasteful.”

The audience involvement is even more important in a comedy because the actors become motivated from the laughter.

“When we rehearse the show without an audience, the energy we produce is sent and fizzles out,” said Walsh. “But when we perform in front of an audience the energy we give out is sent back, which keeps us going.”

Energy levels aren’t the only difference between rehearsals and performances. The presence of an audience requires actors to remain in character.

“When [Junior] Amanda Burgdorf struggled on the couch while her character was inebriated, people we cracking up just at her movements,” said LaQua. “I had to stare at a flower on the set so I wouldn’t laugh.”

From left to right: During dress rehearsal, Senior Mariah LaQua rehearses her dialogue with Junior Amanda Burgdorf. The Spring Director Tracy Hagstrom-Durant chose a physical comedy by Phillip King. While seated on rented furniture, Senior Taylor Evans listens to Sophomore Viktoria Magno. The department cut costs by reusing and renting props. Senior Logan Walsh glares at the many vicars. “The plot involved some people all acting like they were one person, and then they all end up in the same room,” said Walsh.

All of the actor’s costumes are rented.

All reusable lumber is organized, stored, and later reused. For the recent play, “See How They Run”, the department saved approximately $1,500 by recycling lumber.

"We don’t blare the full stage lights as much anymore," said Durant. "We rehearse in regular fluorescent lighting. I have great kids that shut off lights after themselves."

"We haven’t thrown away a lot of things. They come in handy for future shows. It saves us so much time and money," said Hagstrom-Durant.

“We made it back to state after 13 years!”

“Winning the Mississippi 8 conference was the best part of the season.”

“We got 20 wins again.”

“We were in the top 3 for defense in the state.”

“State was something we all wanted to see happen.”

All-Conference Girls Hockey Boys Hockey Girls Basketball Boys Basketball Wrestling Boys Swimming Mikaela Mohoney, Allison Malecek, Andrea Parsons, Brittany Fruend, Rachel Steveson Jon Zitur, Zach Blaisdell, Cole Meyer, Luke Marty, Mik Ortenblad, Josh Gaughan Miranda Speckel Jake Duske, Erik Olson, Dee Broadnax Dan Maghrak, Matt Jeska, David Baker Nathan Engfer

Note: All Conference Honorable Mention Athletes are not listed

Out of the hundreds of assistant coaches in Minnesota Coach Leroy Erickson re- ceived the Minnesota State High School Football Association Assistant Football Coach of the Year award this past month. “He really deserved this award, because he is a great coach, intelligent guy and it’s was nice to see him receive this honor,” said Head Football Coach Gerald Rohl. Erickson has been coaching for 40 years at Buffalo High School, along with teach- ing in the Social Studies department. “I have always enjoyed working with young adults and seeing them grow,” said Erickson. “Working with them as always been apart of my life.” Players of Erickson’s have expressed that he coaches differently than all the others coaches. “Erickson loves his job and he is pretty laid back,” said Senior Danny Maghrak. “He has fun while he is coaching.” Erickson played football all through high school and college, gaining many years of experience to his background. “I have always loved the sport, its going to be part of my life forever,” said Erick- son. With Erickson’s many years of coaching he has learned different ways and tech- niques to coach. “He wants to have a relationship with each player so that he can help them at their level,” said Junior Bruce Manz. “He truly cares about the players and their success.” Erickson will be retiring at the end of this year but plans on coaching until his wife retires. “I stay around for the coaching staff and the players,” said Erickson. “I have built relationships with so many people and I don’t think its time to stop yet.”

June 1, 2008 marks a historical day for Minnesota bowfi shermen. At 12:01 A.M. on June 1, bowfi shermen all over Minnesota will be able to shoot rough fi sh at night on se- lected lakes. Wright County holds two lakes on the probationary list for 2008, Buffalo Lake and Clearwater Lake. There are roughly 70 lakes throughout the state that are on the list for night bowfi shing from June 1 until August 31. The Land of Lakes Bowfi shing Association (LLBA) worked extensively with the Min- nesota DNR to get these rules changed. This year is acting as a probationary year for night shooting. “Having some form of a night season is a step in the right direction” said LLBA Presi- dent Brian Petschl. “The stance of the LLBA is to have most MN waters open to night bowfi shing in MN. And we will continue to work with the MN DNR to increase opportuni- ties.” Turn in Poachers has a toll free hotline* for turning in people seen shooting before and after the night season is ended and on lakes that aren’t designated for night bowfi shing. “Illegal activities are up to the cops and DNR to handle,” said LLBA Vice President Patrick Kirschbaum. “Just give the law the info for them to make the arrests also give the bad apples a friendly reminder that the will have the boats, bow and vehicles confi scated, too.” The new night season is designed to see what the benefi ts of night bowfi shing are. Carp and buffalo fi sh churn up water towards the bottom of lakes and rip up aquatic plants; these habits make the lakes water clouded and takes oxygen out of the water. The lack of oxygen in the water chokes out and kills game fi sh. The DNR will be looking at the water clarity of each lake and will compare it to what it was last year. “Rough fi sh, like carp, come into the shallows more at night, and are less spooky than they are during the day,” said the Bowfi shing Association of America’s points chairman and former BHS student Brady Miller. “So harvest of rough fi sh could expect to be at least four times as many fi sh with a night season. This is very benefi cial to our waterways where carp have become the dominant fi sh.” A lot of people are excited to see these new rules in play. Bowfi shermen are excited to not have to stop shooting just because the sun goes down. In the past, bowfi shermen in Minnesota could only shoot from ½ hour before sunrise to ½ after sunset. “I’m really excited for this summer,” said Junior Drew Levendoski. “Being able to shoot carp at night is going to give me more time on the lake and will help clean the murky water up some.” Although there are many benefi ts to night bowfi shing, there are still some drawbacks. Noise from generators is a concern of the DNR and LLBA. They set a generator noise limit on how loud generators can be. The other down side to night bowfi shing is the refl ection factor. The generators are running spotlights that can be brighter than car headlights. “It is us, bowfi shermen, who are responsible for being courteous to property owners,” said Petschl. “Be sure not to light up homes or cabins. Make sure your generator is below the 84 decibel rating that the DNR has set for night time noise levels. Loud talking will carry across the water like you would not believe, no hooting and hollering. We must all work on making this a success so we can move on to making this state wide.” To some, the good things that night bowfi shing does outweigh the bad. “I don’t think I’ll mind people shooting carp at night,” said Senior Logan Walsh. “It’ll clean the lake up a lot and it shouldn’t stink as bad. Also, there’s a highway right around the lake so the noise shouldn’t bother most people.” Turn in Poachers hotline: 1-800-652-9093

With spring sports started, events are coming up quick. Because of late snowfall, the teams have all been huddled inside. But will the teams be ready? “We can’t play on the fi eld and get the best practice, instead we’re stuck inside,” said Sophomore Lacrosse Player Monica Shoberg. Being stuck inside makes it tough for all teams. In the case of baseball, players have to practice hitting in the batting cage, which leaves them with no idea of how far they can really hit. “If we weren’t all squished in the gym I probably wouldn’t of hit my brother in the head,” said Sophomore Taylor Zook. The track team is having a hard time with too. Throwers have only been able to work out in the weight room because they have no where to go. Pole Vaulters have to bring their mats over to the middle school because there is no room left for them in the BAC. The runners have to stay inside on the track which is different from the one outside. “We get sorer inside. It’s hard on my feet, the turns are sharper on this track,” said Junior Taylor Vick.

Have you ever wondered who really looks at your college application and what they are looking for? A University of Wisconsin- Eau Claire Recruitment Coordinator, Heather Kretz, says there is a team of admissions officers and counselors who split up among different High Schools to look at each individual application.

“At our school we have several people, usually two to three, who all individually go through each application,” said Kretz. “Then as a group we go through all parts of the application and review in it its entirety to make a final decision.”

A majority of schools use “overall assessment as a primary way for admitting students. The team will look at all aspects of the application, instead of a single part to make their admittance decision.

“The decision for admittance is very competitive because we receive so many applications,” said Assistant Director of Admissions of the U of M- Twin Cities Sarah Sterns. “We start out by right away accepting the top students, and then leaving a certain number of open spaces for other students to later be accepted,” says Sterns. “Each application is reviewed individually and decisions for acceptance are determined by the number of applications received and the number of spaces available for that year.”

Most schools have the same primary factors for acceptance. Factors include: high school rank percentile, grade point average, f ACT or SAT scores, and the strength of curriculum through high school graduation. Colleges especially look at courses taken y that exceed the core requirements and any advanced courses (honors, AP, CIS, college level). y

“No single factor will automatically reject or admit an applicant,” Sterns said. “But there are ways to increase your chances for admittance.

The final decision for acceptance can take a number of weeks or months, depending on the school. But usually the sooner the application is sent in the sooner a decision is made.

“Students’ applications that are sent in by the school’s first deadline are looked at first and usually have better odds,” says Sterns.

Evidence of exceptional talent or ability in artistic, scholarly, leadership, or athletic performance all weigh into the decision, as well as being involved in the community. Patterns of improvement in academic performance throughout a student’s high school career will also be taken into consideration. The less competitive schools are more lenient on such grade point averages and test scores to allow more students to go to college.

“At our University, about half of the number of students who apply are accepted,” said Kretz.

First Place: Sophomore Joel Morehouse Second Place: Senior Rickey Smith Third Place: Sophomore Tyler Schenk

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