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Volume XIV Issue 2December 21, 2010

Northwest School of the Arts

1415 Beatties Ford Rd. Charlotte, NC 28216

In this IssueCaucasian Chalk Circle heads to NCTC and state

Page 2

New methods for creeping on FacebookPage 7

Tumblr: The new vicePage 8

Student turns in parents’ marijuana to school security guardPage 6

Cameron JohnLayout Staff

That missing part of Northwest, during the first few months of the school year was seventh and eighth grade social studies teacher, Khuanduen Toatley.

Toatley decided to join the Army Reserve to help pay off her student loans in return for her services. She left for Oklahoma late last school year to go to boot camp, where she spent the first two weeks being rushed through her preliminary procedures such as receiving her provisions and getting vaccinations.

“We were told to hurry, hurry, hurry then told to wait. They would sit us on bleachers for several hours in the sun, without the ability to speak to anyone around us,” said Toatley.

In her weapons training, Toatley was taught how to operate all of the standard American weapons and grenades. She also received survival training and learned to live off the land. Toatley said her favorite part was learning key phrases in the Iraqi language and participating in a simulation of entering an Iraqi town and interacting with civilians in a war zone. The main idea during training was “a lot of teamwork,” said Toatley. She

was taught how to effectively communicate with the people around her in a combat situation. One of her least favorite exercises was “Nick at Night,” during which she had to army crawl across a field while live rounds were fired overhead.

Toatley is now an Enlisted Junior NCO, or Non-Commissioned Officer, of the Army Reserve, as well as a 68 Echo which is codeword for someone specializing in Dental Assistance.

“I’m glad to be home, but maybe not at work,” said Toatley.

Toatley has enjoyed reuniting with her fellow eighth grade team members, Nicole Schubert

and Treva Hunt. She also enjoyed meeting back up with the entire guidance department which she has befriended.

Toatley started teaching again on October 18 and will be staying at least to the end of this year. She said after that she isn’t sure what she will do.

For Toatley, the Army Reserve requires at least six years of her service, with an additional two years if they wish. She has to attend two weeks for a leadership course to receive a promotion this April and another two weeks during the summer to prepare soldiers for deployment. For the moment, Toatley is glad to be back at Northwest.

School News 2-3 Features 4-6Opinion 7-8

Alice Wilder Copy Editor

This year’s fall musical, The Wedding Singer, was packed with reunions, from the juniors and seniors to theatre arts teacher and director Corey Mitchell and his teenage years.

Robbie Hart, played by junior Matt Carlson, is a romantic, who plays weddings with his band, until Linda, his fiancée, played by senior Lauren Thompson, dumps him. Enter Julia Sullivan, played by senior Cameron Pace. But there’s a catch: Julia is engaged. From the start, the show brings almost constant laughs, especially from Sammy, played by junior Ashton Guthrie and Holly Sullivan, played by junior Lexie Wolfe.

The Wedding Singer brought director Corey Mitchell back to his roots. “It was really, really fun…1985 was high school years for me,” said Mitchell. The show was packed with little 80s inside jokes, prompting laughs from adults in the audience. “It was 80s music without being Rock of Ages,” said Mitchell.

Junior Talbot Hall especially enjoyed reuniting with her musical theater 1/2 class of freshman year. She thought the transition from 1/2 to 3/4 was smooth, “it’s a different learning experience, more hands on. I got a chance to apply the information I learned in 1/2,” said Hall. Mitchell also enjoyed the reunion of this year’s juniors and seniors. “It was a tremendous amount of fun,” said Mitchell. However, he said the

juniors were challenged; “It’s fast tracked...the level of performance and difficulty go up…the levels of expectation become higher.”

The 3/4 class got a chance to vote on the fall musical, between Rent and The Wedding Singer. Mitchell encouraged his students to not only research the shows’ music, but if find if they are, “cast able in the class.” Junior Talbot Hall voted for The Wedding Singer.

“I felt like other schools would expect us to do Rent,” Hall said.

Mitchell however, “wasn’t surprised” with the class’s choice. “I love the music in The Wedding Singer, I thought we could pull it off,” said Hall. The class was divided at first, but according to Hall, most ended up enjoying the show, “the people who voted for Rent weren’t as familiar with

The Wedding Singer, but once they heard the music and saw the choreography, they fell in love with it,” said Hall.

Like any show, The Wedding Singer came with challenges. Mitchell said that the biggest challenge was, “synthesizing everything during production week…but if we do our jobs right it’s easy, thanks to the work of Ms. Wessleman, Mr. Knuckles and Mr. Caldwell, it was easy.”

Sophomore Taylor Griner, along with a several freshmen, was in the show because of the lack of boys in the 3/4 class. According to Griner, the show’s arduous Saturday dance rehearsals were exhausting, “we were there for many hours to learn the dances, but it brought us all together and challenged us,” Griner said.

Photo by Lacie Wallace

Musical theatre 3/4 takes on The Wedding SingerThe Wedding Singer makes its way to the Charles LaBorde Theater

Toatley comes back from National GuardAfter learning how to defend her country if necessary, Toatley is back to teach our students

Junior Renee Welsh-Noel dances in The Wedding Singer with her friends on her wedding day.

Naja RichburgLayout Staff

Northwest School of the Arts started bringing the story of the Caucasian Chalk Circle to life during early October of this year. The students who performed in this show had to each take on the arduous task of performing many roles and creating the illusion that they are a completely new person because of the desire to keep the cast small. There was a desire to keep the cast at a reasonable size so it could be easily taken to competition. The

cast stated that Chalk Circle was a very challenging show but was a lot of fun to perform.

“The most exciting part of the show process was actually performing. The school shows were sort of a practice run for our NCTC performance,” said junior Eliyas Azizy.

North Carolina Theatre Conference (NCTC) is where different schools bring their plays and compete against each other. On November 5, the cast took their show to regionals with the hope that they would make it to state level. NCTC is an intense process, Theatre Arts teacher, Bonnie Fraker, had to cut the show more than half way while trying to keep the story’s plot and flow. The cast got 45 minutes to get their show on stage, perform the show, and get the set back off.

“It was nerve racking knowing the original time of our show and seeing what we had to cut it down to. I was just hoping that the story didn’t become confusing, but we pulled it off,” said junior Sterling Frierson.

The show was cut and polished, and the cast won the regional level of NCTC. The cast brought back many awards including: Excellence in Acting, Ian Fermy; Best Actress, Bailey Hayman; Excellence in Directing, Bonnie Fraker; and Distinguished Play.

“It was really fun to watch other shows and see how the other schools are in comparison to us,” said sophomore Caroline Oswalt.

While they didn’t place at states everyone is still very proud of everyone involved in the Caucasian Chalk Cirlce.

Northwest cast of Caucasian Chalk Circle goes to NCTC and state

Charlotte hosts Elie Viesel Summit

Students perform at NCTC and state competitions

Northwest School of the Arts’ Chapter of Invisible Children is currently ranked third in their cluster for the Schools for Schools program, which is a competition between schools where they compete to raise the most money for schools in Northern Uganda. If the chapter raises enough money, they will win an all

expense paid trip to Northern Uganda to see their school. So far the school’s chapter has raised a little over $6,000.

To donate to on behalf of the school, go to www.s4s.invisiblechildren.com and search for Northwest School of the Arts. Be sure to donate on behalf of the school.

Help Northwest raise money for Invisible Children

Page 2 Dec. 21, 2010SCHOOL NEWS

Photo courtesy of Bonnie FrakerA judge, played by senior Colin Moore listens to sophomore Morgan Styers, a rich mother, plea in court as to why she should be given her child back from her ex-servant senior Bailey Hayman in the Caucasian Chalk Circle.

Sarah BryanStaff Writer

When a person thinks of the name Elie Wiesel, they probably think of reading his book Night. They wouldn’t be alone. It is read by middle school and high school students across the country. His name is known across the world.

Wiesel is a Holocaust survivor, Nobel Peace Prize winner and the subject of the documentary, In The Footsteps of Elie Wiesel. The hour-long film, presented by the Echo Foundation, chronicles the journey of 12 Charlotte-Mecklenburg students, including Northwest alumni Adara Blake, who retraced his life on a tour through Europe starting at Wiesel’s birthplace, Sighet, Romania. The film premiered here in Charlotte on September 21 at The Knight Theatre, and included some of the students in an on-stage dialogue with Wiesel himself.

The Echo Foundation was founded in 1997 with Wiesel serving as Honorary Chair. According to their website, the foundation “promotes justice and

inspires hope through education, creative acts of service, and the development of leadership for a more humane world.” The In The Footsteps project was launched in 2007 to honor Wiesel for the 10th anniversary of the foundation.

“It was difficult, naturally, because it brought back not only pictures but people I knew that walked and didn’t come back,” said Wiesel of seeing the film. The students, called Student Ambassadors, were chosen out of 60 high school applicants from Mecklenburg County. In preparation for meeting and talking to Wiesel himself, the Ambassadors had to study an intense curriculum.

“Meeting Professor Wiesel was surreal because of who he is, but was also so lovely,” said Blake.

The tour began in July 2007 at Wiesel’s birth home, and went on to Auschwitz, where his mother died, and Birkenau, where his father died. Adara stated that many of the students, including herself, agree that the most memorable experience was when they stopped in Hungary to

eat a late dinner. Unfortunately, the only place that was open at around 2 am had just served a wedding, so the only food for the kids was molded bread and goose fat to dip it in. To make light of the situation, they turned on music and started dancing and forgot how hungry they were. The students then travelled to Paris, France, where a humanitarian organization saved many Jews during World War II, including Wiesel. It was here that he resumed his studies and went on to be a journalist.

The tour ends in Berlin, Germany, which was the center of Hitler’s Third Reich in the 1930s.

“By far the most important thing I learned from this experience and will always carry with me is that there is beauty and goodness everywhere,” said Blake. “Because we really gave ourselves over to these experiences we discovered so many people and places that we never would have found if we weren’t being open. I want my life to be like this trip, discovering new things all the time.”

Northwest alumni meet the prominent Elie Wiesel

Holiday festivities start out with a bang at Northwest

Freezing and unsafe weather conditions lead to an accident in the courtyard

Photo by Allison Webber

On Dec. 16, the temperature was below freezing, cars drove slowly in fear of black ice and the courtyard was closed off due to an accident in the courtyard.

One student was walking through the ice-covered court-yard before the bell rang and slipped in fell on his back.

To ensure that nobody else

would injury themselves in the same way, a police line was placed around the courtyard.

The line was still there in the next morning, but was removed by the end of that day because the temperature rose above the freezing mark.

During the past week, the Northwest student body celebrated the holidays with spirit. Monday was celebrated with class for Fancy Day while everybody decked out themselves for Decorate Yourself Day on Tuesday. On Wednesday, teachers and students alike showed off their spirit with their tacky sweaters for Tacky Sweater Day. For the holiday season, everybody dressed as their favorite holiday icon whether it be with a simple Santa hat or an elaborate costume. They say it’s better to give than to receive, so everybody did their best to fulfill this by participating in Gift Day on Friday.

Although the school is without sports, there is no doubt that Northwest students have more school spirit than the average high school.

Photo by Samantha Sabin

The annual 10th grade elec-tion was Dec. 16 with Alice Wilder, Emily Mason, Danielle Hopkins, Eli Miller, Amari Brown, and Roderick Pitts-Phi-fer in the running.

The votes were close, but Pitts-Phifer ended up winning the election.

If you see Roderick in the hallway, wish him a congratula-tions.

Annual election brings excitement to sophomores at Northwest

Photo by Samantha Sabin

Krystin Skinner Business Staff

This year’s Northwest School of the Arts middle school fall mu-sical was the junior version of the Broadway production Fiddler on the Roof. The cast, originally 20 people, was doubled in order to accommodate the overwhelming 150 students that had shown up for the audition.

“The hardest part was limit-ing the cast to 42, so many of them were very talented,” said Director Sarah Buckner.

The students rehearsed over a period of two months, many of them waking up at 5 am just to make the scheduled rehearsal time at 7 am.

“It was really hard waking up so early in the morning,” said eighth grader Tre Booker who was cast as Mordcha the inn keeper.

Regardless of the early morn-ings many seemed excited to be working on the production. A member of the shows ensemble eighth grade Kelsey Parker agreed “It was a lot of fun working on the show.”

But the cast was only half of

the team, Buckner directed with assistant director, senior Katy Harding,

“I’ve never really had an assis-tant director before,” said Bucker, “but Katie is just so good at what

she does.”Other members included se-

nior Kevin Caldwell, as the stu-dent technical director, dance teacher Amelia Hartsell as cho-reographer, and junior Justina

Hauss as the stunt coordinator.“It can be stressful at times,

but I like working with middle schoolers. It’s not often this hap-pens so learning with them is fun,” said Hauss.

The twist in this year’s pro-duction was the choice of genre which was traditional as opposed to the usual contemporary selec-tions.

“I try to pick a different genre each year, for instance we did Suessical last year which is more modern and animated,” said Buckner.

Some of the student’s favorite numbers include Tradition, Sab-bath, and Matchmaker. The hard work of the production team and the cast paid off, for the show premiered Friday, November 12 and tickets were sold out almost immediately.

“I am always surprised and delighted by the level of perfor-mance these students bring. Fid-dler on the Roof is an important show within the American mu-sical theatre cannon, and I was very proud of the work the stu-dents presented. Truly the mid-dle school program is an integral component to the development of young artists here at North-west,” said theatre teacher Corey Mitchell.

Dec. 21, 2010 Page 3

Match Maker, Match Maker, make me a matchFiddler on the Roof visits Northwest for middle school students perform for all to enjoy

Justina Hauss Contributing Writer

On November 7, over 200 mid-dle students across North Caro-lina stood together at Stevens Center for the Performing Arts in Winston Salem to participate in the North Carolina Honors Chorus. Among those voices was none other

than five students from Northwest. Jeremy Cousar, Mary Kathryn Ev-ans, Jelani Barber, Grace Foster and A’Daria Moffett were among almost 200 middle school stu-dents selected from over a thou-sand who auditioned.

Not only was this offered at the middle school level but high school level as well. Chosen from Northwest were senior Will Pin-son and junior Dorrie Hankins. The process leading up to this was long and arduous. Auditions be-gan in September. Students who auditioned had to learn an entire

song and know how to sight read in front of judges. From the au-dition the top 20 scores in every voice were chosen to participate, but it did not end there.

After making it past the au-dition they had to learn the five pieces that would be performed in Winston-Salem. This required spending time before and after school with choral music teachers Alexandra Sims and Heidi Hick-ox learning the material and per-fecting it. For the middle school it meant learning songs such as “Seal Lullaby,” “Laetatus Sum,” and

“Bawo Thixo Somandla.” November 6 was the first time that all the participants had a chance to re-hearse with others and with their conductor, Dr. Potter.

“It was fun,” said seventh grader Jeremy Cousar. “Great to work with Dr. Potter.”

After a full day of rehearsal Saturday, everyone had a chance to relax and get ready for the next day’s performance. On work-ing with other kids from North Carolina and the best part of the experience, eighth grader Mary Kathryn Evans said, “It’s really

cool to listen to our chorus and realize that we are only middle schoolers. It’s really cool. Anoth-er great part is the amazing fun we have with the other kids. We get to stay in a hotel and eat junk food for a whole weekend and just have lots of fun.”

After a quick rehearsal on November 7, it was time to perform. The feedback was extremely positive. Sims said, “The kids loved it. This was the best Honors Chorus I have ever heard sing, both middle and high school.”

Northwest students audition for Honors ChorusThe sound of music flying through the air leaves students in awe

SCHOOL NEWS

Photo by Allison WebberMiddle school students got a chance to showcase their talents in this year’s middle school musical Fiddler on the Roof Jr.

Helping you plan, apply, and pay for college

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Page 4 Dec. 21, 2010FEATURES

Gabrielle RossLayout Staff

Northwest School of the Arts opened in 1995, and math teacher Walter Goodwin has taught here from the start.

I have heard that Goodwin was like a Barbie doll, and that he has done, and been everything. Goodwin was in the Air Force for 29 years; he later worked for Honda as a lawyer for 10 years and has taught throughout his life.

“I’ve always been a teach-er, I even part timed in the Air Force. I part time taught at col-leges for many years, but I’ve only been a full time teacher for 16 years. I taught one year at Al-exander middle school in South Carolina, the other 15 years I spent here,” said Goodwin.

One would think Goodwin would have to love children, because he has been teach-ing so many years, however Goodwin chuckles at this idea.

“Actually, I hate kids I tell them to drop dead every day, but they keep coming back,” said Goodwin.

He came to Northwest to teach Calculus and ended up teaching almost every math there is to offer, and he has taught every grade at Northwest. Out of all the grades he’s taught, he generally enjoys teaching ninth graders.

“Ninth graders are easier to teach because they come fresh out of eighth grade not knowing what to expect from high school. They have no expectations about how high school teach-ers do things, making it easier

to teach yet fun,” said Goodwin.He also likes teaching

tenth graders because they have been exposed to high school teachers, and are not as easy to teach but just as fun.

Out of all the math courses, Goodwin has taught Calculus the longest but his favorite sub-ject is Statistics. He enjoys read-ing the studies and their results.

“Stats came in 1997. It’s my favorite math to teach because it uses real life situations. No one ever asks me, when are we going to use this in the real world. They’re real studies that real people were paid to do,” said Goodwin.

Goodwin’s biggest challenge is getting parents to realize school is not only about getting good grades.

“Parents are always sur-prised that I check homework. So many parents try to pull stu-dents out of my class because they see grades like Ds and Fs on homework. Math isn’t about get-ting good grades, As and Bs, it’s about learning,” said Goodwin.

Gabrielle RossLayout Staff

English teacher Melissa Hefner never thought she was going to be a teacher until she looked at her family tree.

“I remember in college I had this one project where I had to trace back my ancestry and it turns out they were all teachers too. Maybe it was meant to be. The average teaching expectancy is seven years; I’ve been here for 15 years, and I love it,” said Hefner.

In her time here Hefner has taught every high school English class, a seventh grade class and a sixth grade theatre class. Cur-rently, she is teaching tenth grade English and also teaches the eleventh grade AP English class.

As a student, English was never Hefner’s strong suit, but it was her favorite subject.

“I wasn’t a great writer. Actu-ally I didn’t become a great writer until I had to teach. I go back to my college papers and know I can do infinitely better,” said Hefner.

Growing up, Hefner thought she’d never be a teacher.

Hefner laughed, “I remem-ber saying I’ll never be a teacher but then I went to college, got an English degree and asked myself ‘what am I going to do with this?’ I became a teacher.”

This is her first year teaching AP eleventh grade English and its one of her favorite classes to teach. It is also her first year to teach a graphic novel, “Persepo-

lis,” and it has been fun to teach. Hefner’s favorite book to teach is “The Alchemist.” She is thinking of taking it off the summer read-ing list, so that when students read the book, it will be easier for them to understand, and they will not miss anything important.

The hardest thing to do for Hefner is grade essays. She gives out long essays and it’s hard for her to sit down and grade them. She has to be in the mood to grade them or they won’t turn out right.

“I like teaching teenag-ers, people think I’m crazy, but I love it,” said Hefner.

Tara CalhounStaff Writer

Dawn Richmond has been teaching for 15 years, the last eight of which have been at Northwest. Richmond is a middle school sci-ence teacher and students seem to really enjoy having her.

“I enjoy having her as a teach-er; she is really nice. In my class she lets us work in groups and lets us talk to our neighbors if we need help. Now she is teaching us the different types of spheres like the atmosphere, geosphere, and biosphere,” said one of her sixth grade students, Joel Odom.

Richmond went to the Uni-versity of North Carolina at Wilmington and majored in ma-rine biology. Her favorite subject in science is invertebrates, or sponges, but ever since she was younger she loved dolphins and underwater creatures. Recently, in her class she has been teach-ing sixth grade students about the metric system and seventh grade students have been learn-ing about the atmosphere.

“When I had Ms.Richmond in the sixth grade she taught us about the pollution, natural disasters and how they can af-fect the people who are affected by them and a lot of important things. Personally, I think that she is a very great teacher from what I can remember. She was

one of my favorite teachers,” said former sixth grade student La’meatrice Andrews.

Richmond used to teach at Cochrine Middle and then start-ed teaching high school students at Myers Park.

“I liked teaching high school students, but I feel like when you’re working with younger stu-dents it gives you a better chance of forming a student teacher rela-tionship,” said Richmond.

Richmond is a very liked and

respected teacher who works hard and tries to make sure that her students understand what they are learning, and if they have any trouble they can feel comfort-able coming to her if necessary.

“I like working at Northwest,

its great how the students here can feel free to express them-selves without having the fear of being judged. I’ve been here for a while and it has changed a lot for the better and I’m glad that I am able to be apart of it,” said Richmond.

Dawn Richmond has been teaching for 15 years, eight of those years she has spent here at Northwest, teaching middle school science classes.

Photo by Naja Richburg

Richmond inspires students to fulfill their potential in through their science classes

Photo by Samantha Sabin

Goodwin and Hefner still here after 15 years

Hefner has been teaching at Northwest for 15 long years and still enjoys teaching teenagers the language of literature.

From being a lawyer for Honda to being in the Air Force to teaching high school math classes, there is nothing Goodwin cannot do.

Hefner tells all about her teaching experiences at Northwest

Popular science teacher tells all about working with middle school students compared to high school students

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Lincoln FryeStaff Writer

Northwest teachers are dropping like flies. Since the school year began, Northwest has lost three theatre arts teachers, two exceptional children teachers and one school administrator.

“It has been hard on Northwest, losing all of these teachers because we are a family and it hurts when you lose a family member,” said Jane Ratcliff, one of our schools assistant principals. According to Ratcliff, Northwest lost these teachers due to the school’s lowered enrollment. “The number of teachers needed for a school depends on the number of students that attend the school,” said Ratcliff. Ratcliff also stated that “We are hoping that we can get our enrollment back up for the next school year so we can gain back some of the teachers we have lost.”

However there is no need to feel sorrow for the teachers Northwest has lost because all of them enjoy their new schools. The students and staff have welcomed them with open arms, but they still miss Northwest School of the Arts terribly.

Fortunately for Northwest, the school is not going to lose any

more staff members for the rest of this year. There is a certain period of time in which a teacher can be cut or displaced from any school due to lowered enrollment, and it has already passed.

As of next year Northwest is not in danger of closing due to lack of funds.

“Northwest is not in danger of closing because of funding, but if our enrollment drops to a certain level then the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School Board of Education could close us for that” said Ratcliff.

However, it is expected that the enrollment, not just for

Northwest but for all schools in CMS, to rise for the 2011-2012 school year. If Northwest’s enrollment does rise it will mean that more jobs will be available at Northwest so it can expect to see more new teachers joining the Northwest family next year.

Dec. 21, 2010 FEATURES Page 5

Staff cuts affect teachers

Smell the success in fundrasing

To Wiki or not to Wiki?

Joneka PercentieCopy Editor

It’s likely that you’ve heard of NoDa, Charlotte’s Historic Art District. It’s a great place to find fantastic cuisine, theatre, arts, music, and most recently, talented performers from Northwest School of the Arts.

This past October, several departments at Northwest collaborated for an event in NoDa, For the Love of Art!

Students performed at the Smelly Cat Coffeehouse, Salvador Deli, and had artwork featured in Pura Vida, and Ruby’s Gifts & Gallery.

“It was wonderful to see so many of our current and former students singing, playing,

emceeing, and acting their hearts out for the school we all love,” said theatre department chair, Bonnie Fraker.

The event raised over $400 and was widely successful. Due to the success, there are plans in the making for another one in the Ballantyne area to get Northwest’s name out in the community. With the participation of students, and assistance from staff and parents, the goal of getting extensive support from the Charlotte area is bound to be achieved.

Fraker coordinated the event along with NWSA parent Mitzi Corrigan. Fraker dealt with gathering students to perform, while Corrigan handled the technical aspects, including microphones, tables, and arranging the set. Corrigan’s

daughter, Abby, who attends NWSA as a musical theatre major, performed and felt that the event went well.

“I would perform again because I want to support my school; I couldn’t be anywhere else,” said Abby Corrigan.

The performances took place on a Friday evening at The Smelly Cat Coffeehouse, a NoDa café that graciously welcomed our students to perform outside of their business and in the parking lot. Students sang solos, duets, ensemble numbers, and performed monologues. Along with musical theatre, many other departments at the school were involved. The Jazz Band performed on the stage outside of the Salvador Deli and visual art students had their artwork displayed at Ruby’s Gifts

& Gallery and Pura Vida. “The Smelly Cat was fantastic!

It all went very smoothly and the performers were great,” said sophomore Kristian Andrewson.

Andrewson performed songs from Broadway musicals A Wild Party and I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change. Students that weren’t performing were helping out in other ways. Whether it was emceeing the show, helping set up, or handing out flyers about Northwest, students got themselves involved.

“I know that the people who saw any part of the show could tell how much NWSA means in the lives of our students,” said Fraker.

Lincoln FryeStaff Writer

Many people in CMS consider Wikipedia to be a great source , but students are still prohibited from using the site. Wikipedia, an open encyclopedia on the internet, has been deemed safe and containing accurate information under professional studies that took place in 2005 by the Wikipedia founder and Head of Britannica.

Britannica is another encyclopedia that also has a website as well as a published dictionary. The study showed which site had fewer pieces of misleading information in a certain amount of selected

articles, and in the end Wikipedia had only 162 errors in all of the articles selected and Britannica had 123 mistakes in

all of its selected articles. This is approximately 2.92 mistakes per article for Britannica while Wikipedia has approximately 3.86 per article.

“Wikipedia is a good source if you believe that there are more good people in the world than bad,” said Ms. Carol Buchanan, media specialist.

But the question the CMS officials from the Board of Education, filtering committee, and many parents are asking “is it safe to let the students use Wikipedia?” After all it does contain explicit articles and information that has been posted by other people.

A special division of people that are employed by the Wikipedia site monitors its articles and removes any false information from any article on the site and will delete any inappropriate pictures or articles that may be published onto the website. This, by CMS definition, makes Wikipedia a safe, reliable source with accurate information. Despite all of these precautions Wikipedia does to insure that their site is safe and appropriate, some people still do not trust it.

“Wikipedia is not the best website for research because anyone can post anything they want so not all the information is legitimate,” said sophomore Sally Niven

Other students agree. “Wikipedia can be useful, but

it is filled with misinformation posted by strangers,” said sophomore Christopher Eld.

CMS apparently agrees with them because Wikipedia is still listed as a blocked site for students in CMS schools. Still, many parents, students and some CMS officials hope to see Wikipedia unlocked for everyone in the future.

How has the loss of faculty members affected the remaining teachers?

Students show off their talent at Smelly Cat to raise money for Northwest

Photo by Allison WebberScience teacher Donald Koller finds it diffucult to spend time helping students individually due to the faculty cuts causing him to have bigger classes.

CMS considers Wikipedia to be a non-credible site for students to use.

While crossing Beatties Ford Rd. on the morning of Dec. 10, senior Ian Fermy was hit by a car. He just got off the city bus and was about to go to school around 9:30 a.m. Fermy did not use the crosswalk and was hit by a car going towards uptown Charlotte. Fermy was taken to Carolina Medical Center and discharged that day. Fermy did not suffer from serious injuries and plans on making a full recovery. He is only suffering a few cuts and bruises and a detachment from his glasses, which broke in the accident. Northwest wishes Fermy a speedy recovery.

Northwest senior hit by a car outside the school

Page 6 FEATURES Dec. 21, 2010

Ian FermyBusiness Staff

Hundreds of students have graduated from Northwest since 1995. As a school Northwest is suppose to help prepare its students for life beyond college. Some past students have gone on to become architects or doctors, or other professions that are not directly impacted by the arts, however some students continue to pursue artistic endeavors in college and beyond.

Devin Nystrom, who graduated with the class of 2007, went on to find success in the arts and he feels that without his Northwest experience, his endeavors would have been much more difficult.

Nystrom spent seven years of his life as a Northwest student, and some days were harder than others.

“I was a musical theatre major through my high school days, but as Mr. Mitchell or Eddie Mabry can attest…when I first started that class as a freshman, I was a mess. I had two left feet, couldn’t sing or dance for my life,” Nystrom said.

Eventually all of the hard

work paid off and he got a job working for Walt Disney World in Orlando as a dancer in their shows and parades.

“It was a dream come true, literally, and I knew that I wouldn’t have been able to achieve it without NWSA under my belt,” Nystrom said.

The greatest difference between Northwest and other schools is that Northwest accepted students for who they are.

“I am lucky to have been able to go to a school like Northwest where I was able to be myself with no fear,” Nystrom said.

Constance Stamatiou-Lopez graduated with the class 2002. She is currently a dancer with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre. However, during her seven years in Northwest she not only participated in the programs of the dance department, but also in the programs of the theatre department and the visual arts department.

“Northwest has so many great art programs, even though I was a dancer I still tried a little acting and even sculpting and I loved it. It gives you a chance to

meet others and see what they’re passionate about in the arts as well,” Lopez said.

After she graduated she was accepted into the State University of New York Purchase Dance Conservatory. She remained there for one year before transferring to The Ailey School Summer Program where she studied until she was invited to join their Ensemble Company. After two years of training with the Ensemble Company she auditioned for and was accepted into the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre. Even after these impressive feats she’s not done yet.

“I definitely feel I have reached my dreams from high school but I will never stop dreaming. My next goals are to do some commercial work maybe try some Broadway shows, so some acting, maybe even choreograph,” said Lopez.

Alumni believe Northwest School of the Arts has played an important part in the lives of students, and the training that they receive here will help in any other profession.

What would happen to drug education if Proposition 19 had passed?

Joneka PercentieCopy Editor

Elementary school—it brings back memories of recess, nap time, and the days when a crayon was the preferred writ-ing utensil, but for one Mat-thews elementary student, bringing pot to school can be added to the list. An eleven-year-old student, whose name cannot be released, brought his parent’s marijuana to school and turned it into the school se-curity office.

However, what would America be like if this incident was completely acceptable?

Many have contemplated this after California’s Proposi-tion 19. The proposition would have legalized the recreational use of marijuana. The use of

marijuana for medi-cal pur-poses is legal in C a l i f o r -nia, but

the proposition aimed to get a boost in growth and sales for California’s economy. Al-though it was not approved, it set a precedent for future elec-

tions, as another vote is already planned for 2012.

“Legalizing marijuana would definitely help out the economy of California and serve as major sales revenue,” said social stud-ies teacher Aar-on George.

M a r i j u a n a comes from the hemp plant cannabis sativa. It has several nicknames in-cluding weed, dope, and reefer. The National Institute of Drug Abuse, or NIDA, reports that although marijuana is not as addictive as other recreational drugs, intoxication of it can cause distorted perceptions, impaired coordination, diffi-culty in thinking and problems with learning and memory.

“Things don’t get done now. I think if marijuana was legal everyone would just go around being high all of the time,” said sophomore Frank Shultz.

NIDA also reports on the use of medical marijuana. While it is unlikely that smoked mari-juana will ever be developed as a medication, because of its negative health effects on the lungs, there are medications containing synthetic THC, the

main active ingredient in mari-juana.

These medications can be used to treat nausea in cancer patients who are undergoing chemotherapy, and to stimulate

appetite in patients with wasting syndrome—se-vere, involuntary weight loss—due to AIDS.

“Whatever’s [going to] make them feel bet-

ter,” said sophomore Michael Brodie when asked of the pros and cons of medical marijuana.

The fifth grade student men-tioned earlier turned in his par-ent’s marijuana cigarettes after a lesson in the D.A.R.E, Drug Abuse Resistance Education, program. He was applauded for his actions by the Matthews police. They arrested the child’s 40-year-old father and 38-year-old mother, and both were charged with two misdemeanor counts each of marijuana pos-session and possession of drug paraphernalia. They were not jailed and were released on a written promise to appear in court.

Whether it is believed to be harmless or destructive to soci-ety, marijuana is a controversial issue nation wide.

Classic high school movies you might have missedEverything that can happen in a student’s high school career can be seen in these films.

Realistic? More often than not. Olive and Rhiannon’s love/hate relationship is one that most teen girls have in common. Olive is forced to clean the school, partly as a punishment, but mostly because of budget cuts, something that I think we can all agree is very realistic.

Easy AWhat’s it about? Olive Penderghast, a previously anonymous teenager lies about her virginity, causing a deluge of gossip and scandal.

Why we love it: I don’t know about you,

Realistic? Somewhat, Cher falls for a gay

Why we love it: yhis high school satire is based on Jane Austen’s Emma, so it counts as studying. Every guy can take some of Cher’s fashion advice, “It looks like they just fell out of bed and put on some baggy pants ...and like, we’re expected to swoon? I don’t think so.” Plus it features Scrubs’ Donald Faison and The Hangover’s Paul Rudd as Cher’s step-brother Josh.

CluelessWhat’s it about? Cher Horowitz, a spoiled California teen, learns that there are more important things in life than shopping when new student Tai moves into town.

Realistic? Somewhat, Mean Girls perfectly portrays “girl world,” the subtle rules girls create, and how we torture each other for breaking them. But it’s not entirely accurate, take a comment at the end, “I wish we could all get along like we used to in middle school.” Let’s be honest, middle school is just as catty, if not more

Mean GirlsWhat’s it about? Homeschooled Cady Heron moves from Africa to an Illinois High School, and learns how girls interact today, in a brilliant script handed from the gods to Tina Fey, and finally to us mortals.

Why we love it: We dare you to find one teenager who doesn’t have the film memorized, plus, it features Lindsey

Alice WilderCopy Editor

Dozens of teen flicks come out every year, representing high school life, but only a few are immortal, and become a permanent part of teen culture. We at Intermission picked a few, sorting out our generation’s very best high school movies, from the 90s to today.

Lohan while we still cared about her arrest record.

so, than high school. However, Damian and Janis definitely got the high school archetypes right, thank goodness NWSA is devoid of plastics.

guy, and as ladies at Northwest, we can totally relate. However, unlike these students, we actually have to attend classes.

but I think Olive is pretty darn cool. She’s sarcastic, smart and cracks jokes about Sylvia Plath.

Former Northwest students rise to successFrom dancing at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre to performing for Walt Disney World, former Northwest School of the Arts students have made strides in their careers.

Local elementary school student turns in his parent’s marijuana after learn-ing about its effects through the D.A.R.E. program

Photo illustration by Kyle Caldwell

Alice WilderCopy Editor

The hipster is a common

specimen at Northwest. When exploring the school, it is vital to learn to recognize the typical hipster. Those Tumblr-using, Oxford-wearing, Sonic Youth-listening teens are everywhere.

In the 1930’s, “hipster” was used as a codeword at the door of the LeLane, an underground meeting hall and burlesque club. The code word’s purpose was to keep out the common people. If the LeLane was open to the public, what was the glamour in being there? There’s no fun in being part of a club that accepts everyone. The same is true for the modern day hipster and their music. Ever heard of the band Times New Viking? Good! Hipsters want to keep it that way. Even if a hipster dislikes a band, by “discovering” it the hipster feels possessive, and if too many people find out about it, the hipster is conforming to the mainstream, and therefore loses their hipster-cred.

Luckily for you, the hipster is easy to identify. Hipsters of both sexes can be spotted wearing

Ray-Bans, Keds and plaid. They’ll tell you their clothes are from Goodwill, but don’t be fooled, most are straight from Urban Outfitters. Female hipsters often wear flowered dresses, oversized sweaters and boyfriend jeans. Guy hipsters favor ironic t-shirts, skinny jeans and sweater vests.

However, hipsterdom is more than expensive clothes, it’s a lifestyle, and not all hipsters dress the same. The key to recognizing a hipster is talking to them about music. If you ask someone, “Do you like Weezer?” And they respond, “I like their earlier stuff, before they sold out,” you can be sure they are a hipster, for what they’re really saying is, “I listened to them before they were popular. While you just jumped on the bandwagon after they went mainstream.”

They can also be seen not-discussing their favorite website. Most hipsters use Tumblr, a free form blog site, which is bursting with inside jokes and photos of girls in meadows. However, like Fight Club, the first rule of Tumblr is to never discuss Tumblr, especially on Facebook. A hipster trusts their followers completely, and often reveals

deep secrets on the site. One post commands, “If I die, check my Tumblr, you’ll learn everything.” Discovering a hipster’s Tumblr is discovering their innermost thoughts, so the hipster makes their Tumblr difficult to find.

This next part is very important; never call a hipster a hipster. This can result in mild injury (luckily for you, the hipster is not very strong). They will deny their hipster-ness, although they secretly revel in it. This is because the hipster is obsessed with not conforming. While listening to Animal Collective, sophomore Catherine Toney, a known hipster, commented, “the flute solo coming up is so deck.”

Clearly, they do conform by listening to so called “challenging music,” (aka, music without a discernible tune) such as Beriut, Animal Collective, or Velvet Underground; that they really take no pleasure in. However, the hipster is permitted to “ironically” listen to 90s pop.

Hopefully, with these tools, you will be able to safely navigate the sea of hipsters that is Northwest School of the Arts.

Vintage tie

Dapper sweater vest

Being late is so mainstream

Shoes made from grass fed cattle

Body language defys authority

Retro glasses

Hipsters roam freely at Northwest School of the Arts

Samantha SabinEditor-in-Chief

In fifth grade, the norm was to ask your friend for their house phone number, call that number later and just ask for the homework. Texting originated as a fad as early as sixth to seventh grade. But Facebook trumps all. With over 175 million users, Facebook has dominated the Internet, but because of Facebook’s new features it has users coming down with a common case of “Facebook-creeping.” From the newsfeed to the new “see friendship” button, the different features rank variously on the “creep scale.”

“What’s on your mind?”Just type the answer in the box

located at the top of the homepage. Go ahead. It won’t bite. The share button, although simple and small, can be intimidating. Once the user presses that small, blue button, his or her entire network of “Facebook friends” can read it, comment on it, and/or like it. This is how people keep each other in the loop.

Status updates deserve a 1 on the “creep scale.” It’s at the user’s discretion what is posted for his or her network of friends to see. On the downside, some people “update their status” every five minutes, allowing everybody (including that one person they’ve only met once and don’t plan on every talking to again) to see what they’re doing and thinking every day.

Facebook thinks you might know this person

They’re small and typically located on the right of the home

screen. At the top it says “People You May Know,” followed by that person’s picture and the “send request” button. Facebook generates a list of people a user might know based on their network and the friends of their friends.

The “People You May Know” feature on Facebook deserves a 2 on the “creep scale.” Unlike status updates, the “People You May Know” feature is not voluntary; Facebook controls it, only supporting its creeper points.

Introducing the News FeedWhen the news feed was

established, members originally felt that it as creepy and stalker-ish, according to CNET, a media company based in San Francisco. The news feed allows users to see their friends status updates, photos, events, relationship status and any other material the user wishes to see. Ticking off members with the news feed launch was a risk the company had to take in order to make such a big step in the social networking. To please its users, the company added some privacy controls so that members could opt to not share certain details of their Facebook habits on their friend’ home pages.

The News Feed deserves a 3 on the “creep scale.” It allows the users to post whatever they want onto the feed using their own discretion and privacy settings. But, this device, like the status updates, allows everybody to see what everybody is doing—from the change in a relationship status to the addition of the hometown on their profile.

Facebook knows where you are now

The FindMe Application is accessible through any smartphone and is used to let a user’s Facebook friends know where the user is at anytime. Every time the user changes locations, the application updates the user’s profile. By simply inserting a zip or postal code to the location, the FindMe application can show everybody a map and directions to where the user is. The application does not require GPS or any additional hardware, just a phone and a Facebook account.

The FindMe Application deserves a 4 on “creep scale.” This device allows any user’s Facebook friends to see where they are at all times. The application comes with some privacy settings, but the fact that the application exists puts it at the top of the scale.

All friendships are Facebook official

The “see friendship” button has replaced the popular “see wall-to-wall” function. The “see friendship” button brings the users to a new product called Friendship Pages which show users all the content and connections shared by two people who are friends, including photos they are both tagged in, wall posts and comments between them, events they both RSVP’d to, and their mutual friends and Likes. By aggregating mutual content, Friendship Pages give users an in-depth look at relationships.

These Facebook pages deserve a 5 on the “creep scale.” This new feature allows all Facebook users to see which events, photos, likes and other mutual content they share with their friends. Now, Facebook has the power to govern everything.

Status updates only deserve a 1 on the “Creep-o-meter” because when used in excess, they allow people to know what users are doing and thinking at every mo-ment of every day.

The “People You May Know” feature on Facebook deserves a 2 on the “Creep-o-Meter.” Unlike status updates, the “People You May Know” feature is not volun-tary; Facebook controls it, only supproting its creeper points.

The News Feed deserves a 3 on the “Creep-o-meter.” It allows the users to post whatever they want onto the feed using their own discretion and privacy settings. But, this device, like the status updates, allows everybody to see what everybody is doing—from the change in a relationship status to the addition of the hometown on their profile.

The FindMe Application deserves a 4 on “Creep-o-Meter/” This device allows any user’s Facebook friends to see where they are at all times. The application comes with some privacy settings, but the fact that the application exists puts it near the top of the scale.

The “see friendship” button and the Friendship pages that come with it deserves a 5 on the “Creep-o-Meter.” This new feature allows all Facebook users to see which events, photos, likes and other mutual content they share with their friends. Now, Facebook has the power to govern everything.

Photo Illustrations by Kyle Caldwell

Does Facebook creep you out? Dec. 21, 2010 OPINION Page 7

Facebook is put to the test with the aid of the “Creep-o-Meter”

The common specimen is found in students and teachers alike throughout the hallways

Straight leg pants are a must

Photo Illustration by Kyle Caldwell

Allison WebberLayout Editor

Tumblr has become the new addition to a world full of vices.

Although people only hear of the hipsters and scene kids using Tumblr, a variety of people across the world use this lovely micro-blogging website to express thoughts and emotions, show off art, or just to rack up followers.

Most Tumblr users became obsessed with the site the first time they figured out how to actually use it. After gaining followers and starting to follow more users, they fall in love immediately.

“At first I was kind of weirded out because it seemed like Twitter, but now I log in all the time to share my artwork with people around the world,” said senior Kaliope Bambauer.

It allows users to personalize many aspects of their Tumblog. The Dashboard (main screen) can be customized with different themes, through an Internet application with different backgrounds and icons, along with your actual tumblog. Watching the artsy photography, movie quotes and stills, funny quotes and just plain great things to reblog pop up on your Dashboard is nice to see.

The “reblog” button is your best friend. To reblog something means to take someone else’s post and put it onto your blog so that your followers can see it and do the same. There’s a simple “reblog” button on each post for that, along with a heart

which “likes” posts. Liked posts are for your benefit and are kept under a link on the Dashboard so that you can go back and look at them again. Reblogging posts that intrigue you will provoke reblogging from followers. This gets your name out on Tumblr to

catch more followers’ attention. “I even get an ego boost

because of people reblogging my art,” said Bambauer.

When followers reblog posts, more followers end up following the user. Most Tumblr users that follow this technique will gain

over 100 followers within a few months. Quality means quantity.

Good posts rack up followers, and uninteresting posts do not. Followers don’t just follow people: They follow rules.

Tumblr isn’t just fun and games.

Memberships on Tumblr also include various unspoken rules. One rule of Tumblr is to never speak of Tumblr. Tumblr is forbidden knowledge to Twitter and Facebook: it should only be talked about via word of mouth. Also credit should never be taken off of photos or any other media uploaded on Tumblr. People become really angry when their credit is taken from their photos, quotes or any other type of posts. Going out of your way to take the credit off not only takes too much time, but it’s just plain rude, and the Tumblr karma will come back to bite you.

Tumblr is the new obsession racing across the computer screens across the world. It’s what keeps some people going and cheers people up on their worst days. Tumblogs are everything to some people.

“I check it every day, and I can even check it from my phone,” said Bambauer.

Tumblr is the new addiction to humanity.

Followers don’t just follow people: they follow rules

Page 8 OPINION Dec. 21, 2010

Kyle CaldwellOnline Editor

Our country’s music was founded on rural (bluegrass), folk, and jazz roots. Today, there are not many artists that perform in these genres. Mumford and Sons, an English folk-rock/bluegrass band, is creating a

musical revolution. With roots in bluegrass and classical music, Mumford and Sons created the album Sigh No More.

The song, “Sigh No More” references William Shakespeare’s Much Ado about Nothing, with the lines, “Love it will not betray you, dismay or enslave you / It will set you free / Be more like the man

you were made to be.” The song “Winter Winds,” is featured on ABC’s hit show “Grey’s Anatomy.” The song show’s the band’s spunkier side with a rollicking banjo that conjures a musical picture of a littered London that is full of broken hearts.

The album is full of amazing songs; “Little Lion Man” was named “Hottest Record in the World Today,” by a recent Radio One show. It is about regret and an unsolved heartbreak – “Tremble, little lion man / You’ll never settle any of your scores / Your grace is wasted in your face / Your boldness stands alone among the wreck.”

The last track “The Storm,” was the only song n the record produced in the studio. It stands an incredibly moving final track to an incredibly moving album - the story of a man scared of what’s behind and what’s before

This album is one of my favourites and I would recommend this album to all.

Mumford & Sons are: Marcus Mumford, Country Winston, Ben Lovett, and Ted Dwane.

A Musical Review Sigh No More by Mumford & Sons

intermission 2010-2011 staff

Editor-in-ChiefSamantha Sabin

Business ManagerRene Vanek

Layout EditorAllison Webber

Layout StaffSaeshan CarterKayla JacksonCameron JohnNaja RichburgGabrielle Ross

Photo StaffKyle CaldwellChartu Lopez-WhiteAllison Webber

Business StaffIan FermyKrystin Skinner

AdviserTommy Phillips

Staff WritersTara CalhounNick DelgadilloLincoln FryeNachelle Fullins-LovellReagan Parker

ContributorsJustina HaussLexus HootenBarbara Wesselman

The opinions expressed in Intermission do not necessarily represent those of the school’s faculty or administration, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School Board or its administration. Intermission is a public forum for student expression.

In compliance with federal law, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools administers all edu-cation programs, employment activities and admissions without discrimination against any person on the basis of gender, race, color, religion, national origin, age or disability.

Photo by Allison Webber

“It’s a blue, 1992 Cabriolet, and it’s all mine”Samantha SabinEditor-in-Chief

It’s older than me and can’t protect itself from the rain. It waits for me outside of school every day. It has decorative magnets, such as one that says “I’m only speeding because I really have to poop.” It’s a blue, 1992 Volkswagen Cabriolet, and it’s all mine.

It took my mom and dad all summer, from June to August, to find the perfect car in their price range. They searched everywhere

on the Web from Craig’s List to eBay. I did not know what I wanted, which didn’t help much. All I knew was that I wanted a small sedan, not a large SUV, like my dad’s car. Do you know how many small sedans there are in the country? Too many. Day in to day out, in her spare time, my mom was committed to finding the perfect car, even when she didn’t want to look anymore. She finally came across a red, convertible 1992 Volkswagen Cabriolet in perfect condition.

My dad was supposed to contact Ken, the owner, of the

beautiful vehicle. Eventually my dad made the call, but he forgot what number he was calling from. “Hi Ken, this is Dave. I’m calling to ask about the car you’re selling. Just call me back at 503-87, oh wait, that’s the wrong number. 704-962, wait wrong number again. 704-658…. That’s it.” Needless to say, Ken never called back. We started our search for a different 1992 Cabriolet the day after the embarrassing message.

My mom and I searched for the perfect car 24 hours a day. It took another two weeks before we found another 1992 Cabriolet.

It isn’t perfect, there are few kinks. For one thing, the roof won’t go up, and the heat refuses to cooperate, but we bought it anyway. Our search was over for the low price of $1,000. We were done searching for the car, and we just needed find a mechanic to work out the kinks.

The morning rides to school are the worst. My body is to the point where it refuses to get cold; it has learned to just suck it up. There is a supply of Snuggies and blankets in the trunk for the people I take to school with me. When it rains, I put garbage

bags over the seats, so they don’t become soaked, and put a car cover over the entire car. I can’t drive anywhere when it rains. I simply wait until it stops.

I can’t blast the radio, because a part of the stereo blew out, and the rain is inconvenient, but this roof-less 1992 Cabriolet is all mine. Whenever I need to go somewhere, I can just leave without assistance from my parents. Every day it waits for me outside of school, decorative magnets and all.