Friday October 29, 2010

The last two days you have looked at printed and video / film examples of satire. Now comes the time (predictably) to create your on in a broadsheet / newsletter format.

DUE MONDAY NONEMBER 8

1. (This is for you Bonita): Put yourselves in groups of no more than than three people. You may also work in pairs or independently or I'll find you a partner.

2. Check out the template for the newsletter (Word 9 on the Macs or Publisher on the PCs).

3. You need to fill up your paper. In order to do this, everyone needs to write a minimum of one satirical article. As news stories these, of course, will have correct leads and include quotes. Include photos, as well. Remember the purpose of satire is to make your reader not simply laugh, but reflect on social or political issue. The article is didactic, yet not dictatorial.

4. Within your group, you need a point person, who is responsible for assembling the articles inserting the pictures onto the newsletter.

BY THE END OF CLASS TODAY: GIVE ME YOUR GROUP NAMES ; star your point person....thank you.

Thursday October 28, 2010

Not in the lab. We are looking at satirical newsclip from The Onion, The Colbert Report and a British one- good site, but rude name, so I'll forego writing it down.

Wednesday October 27, 2010

New topic: satire

Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement.[1] Although satire is usually meant to be funny, its greater purpose is constructive social criticism, using wit as a weapon.
A common feature of satire is strong irony or sarcasm—"in satire, irony is militant"[2]—but parody, burlesque, exaggeration, juxtaposition, comparison, analogy, and double entendre are all frequently used in satirical speech and writing. This "militant" irony or sarcasm often professes to approve (or at least accept as natural) the very things the satirist wishes to attack.
( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satire)
Satire is nowadays found in many artistic forms of expression, including literature, plays, commentary, and media such as lyrics.

Below you will find five cartoons, three American satirical articles and two British. On a separate sheet of paper, please write a sentence- or two- that explains what is being satirized either in the cartoons or the articles. That's ten sentences! Thank you. Please turn them in at the close of class.

1 2
3

4

Boy Believed To Be Next Reincarnation Of Regional KFC Manager Discovered In Chatfield, MN

LOUISVILLE, KY—According to sources at the corporate headquarters of fast food giant KFC, a young boy believed to be the third reincarnation of the chain's regional manager for eastern Georgia was discovered in Chatfield, MN Tuesday following an exhaustive five-year search.

The Chosen One, kindergartner Brian Thorson, was located by a special council of seven High Branch Managers selected from the most profitable KFC restaurants nationwide. In accordance with tradition, the boy will henceforth be known as Roger Purcell, the ceremonial title given to all who have previously overseen operations in eastern Georgia.

His Eminence Dan Orman, who supervises the Wilshire Boulevard franchise in downtown Los Angeles, told reporters the search for the reborn manager began Jan. 23, 2005, when the previous Roger Purcell died of a massive heart attack.

"We watched carefully to see which direction the winds would take the smoke billowing forth from the fryer exhaust fan at the Waycross, GA location," said Orman, whose council set out on a long Midwestern journey after receiving the sign. "We interviewed hundreds of boys born that Jan. 23, but only Brian possessed a preternatural knowledge of the average monthly napkin orders generally needed for the six restaurants he will soon oversee."
"Rejoice, for before us is he who is destined to give guidance and impart wisdom to all who work at KFC locations east of Macon!" Orman added.

Several High Branch Mangers confirmed the child was subjected to a battery of tests to determine if he was in fact the reincarnated supervisor of restaurants 234 through 239. As with all candidates, Brian was seated at a table and asked to choose from a wide array of objects, including a stapler, a stained necktie, a spork, and various other personal effects.

Orman told reporters the young boy's hand moved immediately to a spray can of Right Guard, the sole item before him that had in fact belonged to the last Roger Purcell.

"Brian also picked up the rubber stamp used to approve payroll as if he had been handling it his entire life," Orman said. "After he recited without hesitation each of the 11 herbs and spices in the colonel's secret recipe, there could not be any doubt left in my mind."

According to sacred interoffice memos, the first earthly embodiment of Roger Purcell was born Jim Stephens in 1957. The son of a simple insurance salesman, Stephens was discovered by emissaries traveling east on behalf of company founder Colonel Harland Sanders, who in 1960 had a dream-vision of a glimmering red-and-white Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise by the sea.

When the young Stephens was found on the Georgia shore selling buckets of biscuits for a nickel, Sanders ordered the prophesied restaurant be built on the spot and soon added biscuits as a menu item.

Like the incarnations before him, the new Roger Purcell has been taken from his family and sequestered in a regional training facility to receive instruction on how to implement revised conduct codes and limited-time-only promotions handed down from corporate. While there, KFC officials confirmed, he will be adorned in the traditional vestments of Dockers slacks and poly-cotton blend short-sleeved dress shirts that he will wear for the rest of his life.

The boy has reportedly already made his pilgrimage to a local Supercuts and received the customary hairstyle of his order: the $14 shampoo-and-trim special.

"It will not be an easy path for him," company spokesperson Rachel Klein said. "He will face many tests of high employee turnover as well as cus-tomer accusations of missing side orders. And only by intuition will he know when to order the changing of the oil in the deep fryers; that is something that cannot be taught."

Despite the new manager's youth and inexperience, followers have already gathered at KFC's eastern Georgia offices to seek his advice.

"I have traveled more than 15 miles to find answers to some very difficult questions," said Tim Cleary, night manager of a franchise in Statesboro. "I hope the new Roger Purcell can help me to become enlightened concerning many things I have often wondered about."

"Like why I have to get approval for time-sheet changes from [day manager] Beth [Reardon]," Cleary added.

What's Really in Your Halloween Candy?

Salem, MA The annual Trick or Treat tradition has been dampened by tales of twisted psychopaths doling out poisoned candy and razor-blade-filled apples to unsuspecting cherubs. Each year local media feature lurid segments about tampering and recommend herding our little ones to parties instead of door-to-door.

But is there any rational basis for these warnings, or is it just a combination of urban legend and heightened national paranoia? Let's examine the facts:

Who can you trust?

No one. It was never a good idea to leave the well-being of your children to the mercy of strangers. But the dangers have increased exponentially since Nine-Eleven. That innocent-looking apartment or trailer home may very well contain a nest of sleeper-cell terrorists.

Should you examine all treats under X-ray?

Definitely. Many communities offer a free CAT scan of your kiddie's Halloween stash. A dangerous syringe can be concealed easily in a Twinkie [evidenced below], Butterfinger, Chick-O-Stick or Jolly Rancher. It is an unfortunate fact that most candies are produced in third-world countries with little or no sanitation enforcement. Many confectioners are located near medical waste dumps.



If possible, irradiate all fruit, cheese and baked goods - cookies, cupcakes, pies, etc. Another option is to microwave the goodies. Twelve to fifteen minutes on the highest setting should do the trick. Deep-frying will also render most contaminates inert.

Chocolates and Mints:

One word: Ex-Lax. The odds are one-in-four that a "fun size" candy bar has been replaced with a powerful cathartic. It's almost impossible for the untrained eye to distinguish between a Milk Dud and a suppository.

It's common knowledge that green M&Ms are an aphrodisiac. Be sure to locate these and remove them from the package as soon as your child comes home. If you decide to store them, keep them safely hidden from curious teenagers.

Open, examine and smell all Tootsie Rolls. They could just as easily be dog or cat feces.

Hard Candies:

Jawbreakers have a 36% likelihood to explode. (Why do you think they're called "jaw breakers"?) The long-lasting pleasure of enjoying this treat isn't worth the risk of permanent facial disfigurement.

Never eat a lollipop while driving. Hundreds of people are killed or injured each year when their car's airbag deploys, forcing the deadly projectile down their windpipe.

Life Savers? The name alone should send a chill down the spine of any vigilant parent.

Bubble Gum:

Not only does chewing gum promote tooth decay, it takes seven years to pass through the digestive system if swallowed. So your child will be in college before recovering from its effects. Also keep in mind, terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden owns a monopoly of the gum arabic supply. When you chew gum, you chew with Osama.

Misc Caveats:

Little "Mikey" of Life Cereal fame died after mixing Pop Rocks with soda pop.

Some food colorants are made of ground-up insects and/or tropical bird droppings.

Is that really sugar in those Pixie Stix, or weaponized anthrax?

So-called "licorice rope" may be fashioned into a tiny noose, posing a hazard for toddlers. (It also has an unsettling resemblance to the Australia Black Python, the most venomous snake in the world.)
So keeping all these things in mind, enjoy a fun, safe and spoooooky Halloween. It could be your last.


Study: Abstinence-Only Lunch Programs Ineffective At Combating Teen Obesity
JULY 27, 2009 ISSUE 45•31


WASHINGTON—According to the findings of a recent Department of Health and Human Services study, school lunch programs that teach children to avoid all contact with food may not be an effective method of reducing teen obesity rates.

Students at Culver Junior High are taught the dangers of eating even one tater tot.
Despite the popularity of abstinence-only meal programs in schools across the country, the study found that children who were provided with no food at lunch and cautioned against eating at an early age were no less likely to become overweight than those who were provided with a well-rounded nutritional education.

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said the findings could adversely affect federal funding for all programs that tell kids "lunch is worth waiting for."

"There's no evidence to suggest that instructing teens not to chew, swallow, or even think about food is actually going to stop them from eating," Sebelius told reporters. "Let's face it: Kids are already eating. And not only during lunchtime. They're eating after school, at the mall, in their parents' basements. Pretending like it's not happening isn't going to make it go away."

"After all, they're teenagers," Sebelius continued. "Eating is practically the only thing on their minds."

Researchers tracked a random sampling of students who received an abstinence-only education, like those in the popular "None for Me!" lunch program at Woodbridge High School in Chicago, which encourages children to abstain from eating until after graduation.



A pledge to sustenance abstinence.
"Although these students were repeatedly warned about the evils of eating and made to take fasting pledges, the abstinence-only program did little to curb their overall appetite for food," the report read in part. "In fact, students at Woodbridge were nearly three times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than children who were given a portion of meat, whole grains, and green vegetables, and then encouraged to skip dessert."

Perhaps more troubling, students who completed the abstinence-only program were reportedly unable to answer the simplest questions about their own digestive systems, and some as old as 17 still believed they could catch high blood pressure from their very first Snickers bar.

"Kids need to know the truth about food," said Sue Weber, a nutritionist. "It's irresponsible for these schools to fill their students with misinformation about the devil working through trans fats, instead of just saying to them, 'Look, I know eating that entire box of Cheez-Its might feel good now, but when you're older, you're going to wish you had gone for the salad.'"

Others argue that complete food abstinence sets an unrealistic standard for the nation's hungry teenagers.

"You can't just tell kids not to eat," said child psychologist Dr. Beth Garcia. "As children grow and their bodies begin to develop, they're going to have certain metabolic urges that are impossible to suppress. We should be giving our kids the tools they need to engage in safe, responsible eating. I'd hate for someone's first time to be with some greasy cheeseburger in the backseat of a car."

Garcia also urged parents to talk to their young children about food before it's too late.

Despite the study's findings, many parents continue to support abstinence-only lunch programs, claiming that it's their right to protect their children from knowing anything about calories for as long as possible.

"It's not the government's place to step in and tell my kids about food and how it's okay in moderation or whatever," said Woodbridge PTA member Steven Bray, a father of two students. "My son's going to learn how to eat the same way I did—by watching monkeys do it at the zoo."

Yesterday, President Obama called on the nation's public school system to work together with his administration to develop a more progressive lunch program that emphasizes healthy eating and discourages late-night snacking. But it remains unclear how students will adjust to the new, more honest nutritional approach.

"I'm never ever going to eat, because eating is wrong, and I'm worth more than a chicken sandwich with asparagus and rice pilaf," Woodbridge seventh-grader Tracey Holmes said. "I heard Jennifer Hines eats all the time, like 50 times a day. I heard she eats all her ice cream upside-down, though, so she doesn't get fat. That's how it works."

"It's really hard, though," Holmes added. "I get so hungry sometimes. Especially after hours and hours of unprotected sex."


Remember that satire is inseparable from the culture in which it is produced, and by extension the language. Our American satirical tradition stems from Britain. Take a look at what’s being written on the other side of the pond.


Gene therapy to help people get totally bladdered for less money
By Gary Stanton
Experts say the discovery of a “tipsy” gene that explains why some people get drunk quicker than others may one day pave the way for treatments allowing people to get totally arseholed for less than a fiver.

The gene, known as CYP2E1 lies on chromosome number 10, but scientists stressed last night that that you don’t want to be bothered about stuff like genes and that.

Lead researcher Professor Kirk Wilhelmsen said, “Seriously, I know me and you may have had our difficulties in the past, but you – yeah you – are my best fuckin’ pal in the whole wide world you know that?”

He went on to suggest that all this science was thirsty work and to come here and give us a kiss and that if we were quick enough we could probably make it down to the Dog & Duck just in time for last orders.

Tipsy Gene
Researchers made their discovery by studying 200 pairs of student siblings who had one parent whom they would describe as a ‘piss artist’.

The students were then given a heady mixture of absinthe, WKD and Bacardi Breezer with the effects monitored at regular intervals.

Those who had the gene performed better at a range of tasks including karaoke, talking loudly about philosophy while using an ATM, and transporting a fellow student across a busy dual carriageway using a shopping trolley.

Those lacking the tipsy gene exhibited far greater tolerance to alcohol but were much less fun to be around.

Professor Kurt Wilhelmsen continued, “‘The hope is that in these straitened times, CYP2E1 type drugs can be developed ..hic.. not as a prevence.. preferential.. preventative measure against alcoholism, but as a means of getting completely arseholed three times a week for the price of a fish supper.”

“Sadly, we’ll have to leave it there as I appear to have urinated in my trousers again.”



http://newsarse.com/
Hurricanes to lobby meteorologists for more intimidating names

As Hurricane Richard made landfall in Belize, Hurricanes everywhere have said people would take them more seriously if meteorologists started giving them more appropriate names, like Megatron, Napalm and Schwarzenegger.
Hurricane Richard is merely the latest in a long line of inappropriately named Hurricanes that sound more like guests at a middle-class dinner party than deadly storms.
As one storm expert explained, “Later this season we could have a Hurricane Paula, seriously. Sure, it might be capable of rampant monkey sex with an Aussie rock star, but it’s not the name for a storm that could kill thousands.”
“The most devastating Hurricane in living memory was called Katrina. KATRINA! Really? The most deadly hurricane in years should obviously have been called Hurricane Van Damme.”
Hurricane Names
The pro-Hurricane lobby have put together formal proposals for the reclassification of Hurricanes into groups that will finally mean something to non-weather experts.
Spokesperson Dwayne Williams told reporters, “We’ve spent months on this new scheme, so without further ado, I present the all new and improved Hurricane classification system.”
• Hurricane Simon Cowell - The most vile of storms, will pick up shit from around the country and blow it directly into your front room every weekend evening between eight and ten.
• Hurricane Katie Price - You don’t have to go looking for it, just stand around with a camera long enough and it will find you.
• Hurricane Financial Sector - Starts out nicely, helping you dry your clothes, then turns nasty and takes your house away.
• Hurricane Fritzl - A Hurricane that goes about its deadly business off the radar, with most of its damage done underground.
• Hurricane Rooney - Goes for the old people first, clean-up tends to cost at least £150,000 a week.
• Hurricane George Osborne - Has absolutely no idea what it’s doing, yet is immensely powerful. As a result is likely to cause misery for millions.
• Hurricane Daily Mail - Mainly full of hot air, will make a small number of ill-informed people disproportionately angry, but will be ignored by the majority who realise it’s completely harmless.
• Hurricane Benitez - Slow acting storm which takes several years to systematically destroy what might have taken decades to build, leaves behind a pile of crap before buggering off to somewhere much warmer.
• Hurricane Lib Dem - Dangerous storm likely to flip at a moment’s notice if it thinks it can become more powerful going in a different direction.

Monday October 25, 2010

Please write up you second interviews. They are due today. If everyone is productive, we'll add in another work day. HOWEVER, lots of folks are missing the editorial on Malcolm X, and a few have not turned in their first interview. MMMM...we have a problem here. In class, I'll have you take a look at the grades, if case I made a mistake and misplaced your assignment.

Thursday October 21, 2010

If you were absent yesterday (Wednesday), please watch the 23 minute interview with Barack Obama, conducted by Tavis Smiley. As you are watching, write down your observations. Note body language, pacing, types of questions, how organized. Who is in control here? Any rhetorical devices? This is on youtube.
Reminder: your second interview is due on Monday by midnight for full credit. Bring your notes to class on Monday to write these up.


Yesterday we watched an interview with Barack Obama conducted by Tavis Smiley, where the former noted how profoundly America has changed since the 1960's; hence, interviews freeze moments in time, and are primary documents. You, in a sense, become historians with your interviews.
As well, Smiley came to the interview prepared. Likewise, the more preparation you have, the more insightful and prescient your questions, the more interesting your interview for both you and the individual with whom you are speaking.

In class today: read over the Malcolm X interview. Like Smiley, Haley asks insightful questions and lets the Malcolm X speak. In a short paragraph of a minimum of 200 words, write a response to the interview. What have you come to understand about the man by reading his own words? Use specific words or phrases that prove your point? Think of this as an editorial; that means, while you are personalizing this, you also need to use specifics.

DUE AT THE CLOSE OF CLASS FRIDAY.

interviews

Sebastian Ospina by Willie Jones

This gray Wednesday was brightened up by my conversation with Sebastian Ospina, who is a very interesting person. Although born in Colombia on March 1st 1992 in the city of Armenia in the state of Quindío, he has been living in Rochester New York for about eight years. He currently lives with his sister on Lake Avenue where it’s quiet, no violence, almost dead for discomfort for him. This is a far cry from his old neighborhood on North Street, which “was pretty much the ghetto” and cop cars were always roaming the area, fights breaking out in the corner store all the time, and drug hustlers hanging on the block. Now his household contains him, his sister, and his niece, with a new member soon to join them in a month. He clearly loves his family a lot, and one of his life goals is to build up a good family. Family brings satisfaction and a good life. They look out for each other, emotionally and economically.
Sebastian has some interesting plans. His favorite sport is football, because he considers it the most physically, emotionally and mentally challenging sport. Similarly, those sport values apply to his life- just add in progress and education and one can have a good game. Making a lot of money to bring security is important, and doing something nobody has every done before in life on earth are also on his goal list. Sebastian is more than a city person. Just listening to sound of a waterfall brings him great pleasure most of the time. It keeps him calm during the hard tough times of his life. Friendship too is important to him; he knows how hard they are to come by. He values somebody who is loyal, understanding, able to listen, to say no and disagree with you and still care for you, and most importantly always be there for you. Sebastian is a currently student at School Of The Arts in the Visual Arts program and is hoping to attend Rochester Institution of Technology in the fall of 2011.
Sebastian Ospina is a wise person. He has had his share of struggles, but this has made him a stronger person. “In life you can’t expect anything; you got to go get what you want and work hard. Don’t let it come to you go get it.”


Chris Dake by Louis Ressel

When first sitting down with Chris Dake I noticed that he recently highlighted his hair for the school’s production of Dark of the Moon. This made me picture in my head a 13 year old Chris that I remember causing all sorts of mischief with back in my middle school years. The times seem so far away at this point, which saddens me. Senior year is omnipresent, and we are all growing into college bound young adults with each passing day.
I prepared a series of questions that would delve into deeper realms of Chris’ thoughts in hopes to paint a visual picture of his energetic personality for those who may not know him as well as me. I found it interesting to hear the answers to these questions from a good old friend, because I knew some of the responses he was going to deliver. I asked him first about his upbringing as a child. Chris was raised in a family of five, similar to me. He tells me that his parents were somewhat strict, which made him the conservative thinker he is today. It is clear that he about his actions and their consequences thoroughly. I ask him which of his family members he was closest to and he told me that he had a strong connection with his father. His father is described as being Chris’ “toughest but most influential critic”. He would not be who he is today without his dad. Since we are students at an art school, I ask Chris about his artistic side to paint a full picture of how his mind works. He tells me that he chose to audition for school of the arts “because it seemed like a different learning environment. I identify myself as an artist because I see myself as being creative, and my creative side has always been more prominent than my pragmatic side”. Growing up with Chris through middle and high school and sharing many of the same schooling experiences as him, I ask him about his personal favorite memories and experiences from his SOTA years to this point. His eyes light up and I know he is going to talk about his experiences working on many of SOTA’s productions. Chris is known as being an excellent tech major, perhaps one of the best in his year. He explains that he loved “participating in almost every production the school has put on since freshman year”. This delineates Chris’ schooling experience. I press on to more personal questions hoping to capture the essence of this kid’s soul. When I ask him what his perfect paradise would consist of, he told me it would be full of old cars, and girls, along with his good friends and good music. This shows what Chris believes are important to him – good music and good friends. What else could a person need? I smile and thank him for his time. We do our secret handshake and the bell rings signaling the class ending.







Amanda Thomas byKristian Ambubuyog

In School of the Arts, there aren’t many normal people, yet everyone has an upbeat personality that anyone can get along with, someone like Amanda Thomas. I approached Amanda with a few of questions in order to get to know and understand her, as she is one of many individuals in this school I have never gotten to meet before. As I walked up to Amanda, we both greeted each other with a smile and began the interview.
I started off the conversation on a nice, easy tempo to allow Amanda to ready herself, as it was another morning in school. I began to ask her as to whom she is in School of the Arts, as everyone is very unique. Amanda majors in Visual Arts, plays sports, and describes herself as "random," "exciting," and as a funny person. What makes her stand out more is that she has a mohawk for her hairstyle. Her main line of heritage is African-American, however as I asked if she knows anything more about her ethnicity, Amanda said that she had more than African-American ancestry, but at the time did not know if there was anything else.
Proceeding deeper into the conversation, I asked more about her family. Her parents are divorced, and she is currently living with her mother. Amanda also has two brothers; one lives with her while the other lives with her grandmother. Amanda describes her family as a "silent family" as her family doesn't really communicate much, for example, at dinner, Amanda's family doesn't usually sit together. Instead, they eat wherever they want to be in the house, as they choose not to eat with each other. The only exception to this is when Amanda eats out for food, like going out for Chinese food, which she likes because it allows her to be with her family.
All students who are seniors in high school all have their thoughts about their life during their final high school year. Amanda believes that as a senior, everything is going to fast, that “things are being rushed.” Like all students, there are a lot of things that she has to do, and Amanda is currently trying her best to get everything done in time.
Amanda also has things she likes to do outside of school, like any other student. Besides being with friends and staying in her room, Amanda also loves to take part in community service. She listed that she likes to clean, volunteer in a nursing home, working with kids, and take part in causes to fight against diseases. For example, Amanda has participated in the Walk Against Breast Cancer.
The most important question for Amanda had to answer was about her future, like her plans, who is she going to be when she puts high school behind her in the next five to twenty years? She gave it a lot of thought, answering that she would be in college by then, taking up classes in nursing and continues to participate in the sports she loves to play. Going beyond college, Amanda plans to find a good a relationship and try to get her life and a family together. All these qualities proves that she is a hard working individual in School of the Arts, which will allow her to proceed into the future.

Morghann Simms by Marina Pacheco

School of the Arts is a very unique school within the Rochester City School District. We are the only school within the district, which requires potential students to go through an audition process, in which they may have to present a portfolio, in order to be admitted into the school. SOTA offers majors such as creative writing, dance, visual arts, instrumental and vocal, theatre technology and drama.
Morghann Sims is a drama major at SOTA who is very pleased to be a part of the drama department. She claims that she loves drama because it incorporates more than just acting into the major. Drama majors have the chance to be exposed to music, instrumental and vocal, dance and even the technology aspect of theater. “If I could change my major…I probably wouldn’t!” says Morghann. “But if I had too, I would change it to theatre tech because I think I wouldn’t ever get bored with working with my hands or building stuff. Plus it’s still within the theatre aspect so I think I’d be happy.”
Morghann says that her fascination with theatre started when she was only 6 years old. She put on a play with her cousin at her cousin’s birthday party and ever since then, she and her cousin put on plays throughout her childhood. She says that the plays were a terrific “bonding experience” for her. When it was time for her to attend high school, Morghann’s parents agreed that SOTA might be a good choice for her. When asked about the teachers within the theatre department, Morghann says that her favorite teacher is Ms. Dewey. Morghann goes onto explain that she has grown very close to Ms. Dewey and sees her as a very knowledgeable person when it comes to acting and theatre.
Of course, as expected in any major here at SOTA, there are ups and downs. Morghann claims that one of the challenges that come with the major is the paperwork. Drama majors must complete character analyses, play evaluations and “Birth-to-now” which is when a student must create a back-story, or analyze a back-story, and determine what aspects of the characters past or childhood affected the way that the character acts, or the actions that the characters take, in the present. While the paperwork is difficult, Morghann says she very much enjoys the field trips and the opportunity to experience different shows. A few of her favorite shows that she has seen while in the department are “Beauty and the Beast”, “Two Trains Running” by August Wilson and “Clean House” by Sarah Ruhl.




Cady’s Future by Michael Radney

Cady Schneible, 17, is a senior drama major at the School of the Arts, who has been at SOTA since she was in seventh grade. That means she has been going the same school for six years, but all that will change soon. Like many in her senior class, Cady plans to head off to college next fall, but she’ll always hold SOTA close to her heart. “I have enjoyed most the opportunity to really get to do different kinds of art. I really appreciate getting to take tap (dance class) instead of dance; I like how after school there are always shows and so many different things to do.” Cady has been in many plays at SOTA. “I think I will miss most are the people, like my teachers and my friends, but its different; you’ll still be friends with them but it’s different because you will not see them everyday and next year you won’t see them at all.” Cady also miss her two favorite teachers: Mrs. Dewey, head of the drama department, and Ms. Schahill the dance teacher. Cady is not scared of the unknown future, because she is very intelligent and has made a plan. Step one of the plan was to figure out what she wanted to study at college and what she wanted as a career. “I plan to go to college and study nursing and then become a physician’s assistant,” said Cady with a confident simile. Step two of the plan is to determine what she wanted in a college. “I am looking at Mercyhurst, Ithaca College, and Wagner University.” Soon it became obvious that she wanted a college that was in-state, small to medium size, had the programs that she wanted and has a great educational environment. “I like smaller classes, yeah you really look to work one on one (and) I don’t think I would do very well in big classes.” The final steps is to apply to your list of colleges with all the requirements and hope that you will get a letter in the mail that says that you are accepted to colleges of your choice. Knowing Cady she will get in to a very good college.
Right now it seems like time is going by so fast that it makes a person remember the past. It makes a person think about the good times that happen and all the mistakes they made. Some people would want to go back to change the past or wish to do something different, but not Cady. “I honestly would say that I wouldn’t do anything different; I am happy in my major; I am happy with the work I have done and I think it’s time for people just to move forward” said Cady with a look on her face that said she was absolutely sure. Cady Schneible seems to have this determined spirit that it now seems very difficult to see her not become a success. In Cady’s opinion, “A successful person is someone who is hard working and lucky… that is basically me (laugh)” she said. Cady sees herself in five years in graduate school for a master’s degree in biology.




Micah by Linh Truong

Micah Beckman-Leopold , 17, is a senior of School of the Arts, majoring in theater technology where his work takes place backstage. He belongs to a family consisting of his mom, dad and three sister. He enjoys being the youngest because they buy him lots of stuff, he jokes. He is enjoying high school and all the fun that is in store for him the next couple months of senior year. “It’s different than I thought, but I mean, I like it.” I was able to do an interview with him Thursday afternoon to gather information that would give us an up close look at his life in the past, future, and of course, present.
He likes the fact that School of the Arts provides him with many opportunities that other schools don’t and that the school revolves around art but still has focus on academics. One thing he does not like about it is that he can’t choose all courses. Some things he would change? More class selection and more school spirit. Micah’s accomplishments include the fact that he’s never really gotten into any serious trouble which is pretty easy to do in high school with all the peer pressure. He’s also won a soccer tournament. As for goals he would like to graduate from, of course high school and then college, get a job writing and eventually raise a family. Looking into the past, if he were to change anything he would consider cutting his long hair earlier. “It was annoying to have and when I look back at it I don’t like it.” Everything else in life has made Micah the person he is today so he would leave everything else the same.
As for the future he is looking into writing sports columns for the Chicago tribute or being a sports analyst for ESPN. I asked him why he wanted to go into writing and he explained “I like to write in general but particularly about sports.” If he wasn’t writing sports columns he’d become a lawyer. Micah sees himself twenty years from now living maybe in South California, with a happy family, career, playing soccer now and then and traveling with his kids the way his own father does. His family, as he sees it, will include a couple of kids, “hopefully they’ll be into sports like me, “ a wife, “someone who makes me happy“ and he wishes to spend lots of time with them. He feels that he’s become a calmer, nicer, more mature individual compared to the past. Today he is enjoying life, working on his work ethics and he’s become more competitive at sports.
As an adventurous individual Micah would like to do some of the following things in life. He would like to watch the world cup in person. He would also like to travel the world, especially places in Western Europe and live in a few different places to experience the different cultures. He’d also like to become fluent in Spanish or Italian and return to Italy, and go to Spain because of its beautiful weather and culture.




Merique: The Girl behind the Smile by Thomiqua Bell

Before the interview could begin Merique was already smiling and giggling, my nervousness left me and I could tell this interview would be easy. Merique is a very sweet, smiley, kind person, the type that wouldn’t hurt a fly but I wanted to find out more about the girl behind the kindness and the smile.
Merique Suliveras is 17 years old and a senior drama major at School of the Arts. Merique lives her mom and three siblings. She has an older sister that goes to Brockport named Ashley, a younger brother Daren that attends School of the Arts for visual arts and lastly she has a baby brother named Aden who is two years old and loves to dance. Merique loves her sibling but doesn’t deny that sometimes they can be a handful. However she feels that as her siblings got older they got along better. For instance, she doesn’t have the urge to tussle with her little brother as much as she use to.
Merique loves her family but her real home is the theatre. Merique’s main passion in life is acting. However to my surprise theatre wasn’t always her passion. Merique’s love for drama was not her motive for trying out for School of the Arts. She wanted to go to School of the Arts because it was a nice school. However she didn’t have a talent in order to get in. She played the clarinet but she couldn’t tryout with that so then she thought the simplest way would be drama. Merique’s dream came true she was accepted into School of the Arts and that’s when her true passion for theatre began. Now she absolutely adores acting. She likes the idea of escaping reality and getting to be someone else for a while. “I think being able to step into someone else life for a while and being able to view the world from their perspective is really cool.” She hopes to pursue it someday.
As we all know with high school comes the good memories and the. Merique’s greatest moment of high school was finding out she got in Mousetrap. At first she didn’t know she got in. Sarah told her to look at the cast list and she found out she was Molly. Thrilled doesn’t even express how Merique felt at that moment. Merique did a marvelous job playing Molly, many audience members watched in admiration. However with the great memories we have of high school there are the bad. Merique’s most dreaded memory of high school occurred her first year at SOTA. She was in seventh grade at the time and on the bus. She was standing by the middle exit door with her heavy book bag and the bus stopped. Then the door opened and out flew Merique, halfway on the bus halfway off the bus and the bus almost drove off if it wasn’t for the kids yelling at the bus driver. Seventh grade was not the best for Merique. Not only did that tragic event happened but to top it off that same year during the 10th period drama showcase she ran into a tree on stage, almost knocked it over and slid across the stage. That’s one year full of dreaded memories that makes us all glad we didn’t have to experience it.
Many say that senior year was one of the most memorable parts of their lives and that it should be cherished. However all good things has to come to an end. Merique is not that thrilled about venturing off to college. She is terrified of beginning college and leaving high school but she is ready to leave home and grow up. Also many of the colleges she is applying to colleges in NYC and NYC is a busy city. Merique will be double majoring in theatre and education. While she is excited to begin theatre she isn’t ready “theatre brats” that goes along with it. Since Merique is going for theatre she has to audition to get in and she is really nervous because she has to go to her auditions by herself, no support group will be there with her. However college should be fun. There are parties, sororities, guys and much more.
When asked of her dream guy Merique began to smile and giggle. Merique’s perfect guy has to be taller than her, funny and mature. He also has to have his life together or some kind of plan of what he wants to do with his life. She wants a guy that knows how to be faithful, which is really hard to come by these days. She also wants him to have some sort of talent and he can do drugs or have serious baggage (jail, a baby etc). In the next twenty years Merique will hopes to have found her dream guy, had one kid, a nice teaching career and to be living comfortably. Also she plans on continuing theater on the side.
We all have things in our life we wish we never done or could stop from happening. Merique had no hesitation when answering question. Without any doubt she would go back in time and stop herself from dating a guy we nicknamed “Dusch”. He was a horrible boyfriend and if anyone comes across “Dusch” stay ten feet away because he will hurt you.
After careful investigation I and now you found out more about the girl behind the sweet smile. She loves tall handsome guys, falls off of buses, don’t like jerks and we will hopefully one day see her performing across the USA.



Erin Shoemaker by Shaquille McCray

Kids that go to school now are not enthusiastic about school and they slack off or just don’t show up to school because they think it’s a waste of time. It’s hard trying to motivate kids to do well in school and make them get good grades, for parents it’s like working a second job. Attending School of the Arts is a difficult task. Many kids get rejected but Erin Shoemaker the exciting but very dry acting character was accepted in School of the Arts in 2005 and is doing amazing at School of the Arts. Students at SOTA have many different responsibilities and as I interviewed Ms.Shoemaker I learned of her as being a responsible and also being different than the average kid I asked Ms. Shoemaker a series of questions about herself that were very interesting. Being a seventeen-year-old kid going to school then going to piano lessons, babysitting her younger siblings, cooking dinner and at the end of her day “tackling” her homework. It was very interesting interviewing and learning about Ms.Shoemaker as I heard many funny and important things that many people didn’t know about her. Ms. Shoemaker is a fantastic Frisbee player as I witnessed last year as she did a great job throwing and catching the Frisbee helping the SOTA Soviets to victory. Not only is she a great athlete she manages to get good grades with being ranked 40 out of 197 students at SOTA. As she manages to get excellent grades she is in NHS (National Honors Society), which is very difficult to get, as you have to have three recommendations from teachers to get into. On her free time she loves to play music were she plays the flute and is in wind ensemble and the senior jazz band, which you have to audition go get into. Ms.Shoemaker has been playing the flute since she was only eight years old making this her ninth year playing flute as she worked hard to get into SOTA because she didn’t want to attend any other schools. As she worked hard to get in SOTA her cousin from Switzerland had inspired her to play the flute. Ms.Shoemaker relaxes and listen to Chaplin who is her favorite artist and she “looks up” to the famous flutist named Greg who play and beat box on the flute. It’s very hard to keep busy but Ms.Shoemaker manages to keep herself busy and makes it difficult to keep herself unoccupied. As I interviewed Ms. Shoemaker it motivated me and hopefully many other students to work hard and do their best academically.



Michael Radney by Cady Schneible

Everyone knows Michael Radney as the goofy charismatic guy who always has a joke. He was no different when I interviewed him last Thursday. As we prepared for the interview he had a smile on his face and was joking about the play he is acting in and general school things. When we began the interview and I asked him to tell me about his character in the play he simply described that hid character name is Marvin Hudgens, the strongest man in the whole town and loves the main character Barbara. Michael said he liked the role but it is very differnt from himself and his own personality. As Michael showed off his graphic tee I asked him about the qualities he looks for in a significant other. He giggled a little and said that he looks for a connection, similar interests; he likes people who like “sports, video games, and definitely education. He said the three people he would consider asking to prom this year would be Cady Schneible, Adrianna White Eagle, or Thomiqua, all of whom are in Dark of the Moon with him.
When just meeting Michael Radney it is clear he is a definite people person who interacts easily with others. Given this I was not surprised when he said in college he planned on majoring in either marketing or media communication. With the degree he eventually want to work in his family business of bringing the arts into public school. Something that Michael in his own education has greatly benefitted from. For Michael one serious topic, for the most part, is his family. He said that his family is his biggest inspiration stating “they help raise me, always have my back, and we all have absolute trust for each other”. Michael Radney is clearly a family man. The next question I asked Michael was what his biggest passion life was. After a long pause of thought and tapping his black Nike sneakers he finally concluded that the biggest passion in life for him is video games he believes video games it the “ best form of art ever created”. He continues to go on and say that if all the majors at School of the Arts were put together it would create a video game. His favorite video game is Batman: Arch Asylum. Because Michael is a drama major I decided to see what celebrity he felt he was most like. Without thinking Radney stated that he was most like Will Smith because Will Smith is “tall, funny and has a great name”. I guess those are all characteristic Michael feels he has himself. I also asked what play he would love to be in and his top is “Two Trains Running” by August Wilson. He also really likes the show “The Office” because Michael said for Halloween he would be a piece of paper, an idea he got off the television show.
We ended the interview with a discussion about how Michael views himself. The thing he decided he likes least about himself is his shoe size; because it is so big it makes it hard to buy. He believes his best quality is his optimism and the fact that he really likes believing in people. One thing is for certain, Michael’s ambitions and personality is going to take him to successful places in the future.


Amonee Read by Dominique Lumpkins

Getting to know Amonee Read isn’t quite hard; she’s a very nice , religious person that’s not afraid to push point across . I interviewed amonee last thrusday & asked very insightful questions which led to the discovery of many untold things that some people or those who don’t her as well wouldn’t normally find out. Even though the interview wasn’t thought out, I applaud her for keeping her answers real and not being afraid to offending others. As I started the interview I asked a broad question to break the ice and warm her up. On a normal afternoon & if amonee didn’t have a job; she would spend them doing wood art and painting, something we both have in common. After the ice breaker I started to ask more humerous questions ‘ what sparked your intrest in curious George as a child ‘ ? “um because he is cute and animated. Also the colors, I love colors , my favorites are blue and green. As a child amonee wanted to be a teacher and favorite food hot dogs & pork and beans and rice .even though amonee is a kind ,funny person she also has more serious side to herself. Five years from now she see’s herself working at her church; starting theater technology in church and as well as other areas. Amonee is very religious and loves bring with her family; for example on a normal thanksgiving amonee described those who would be seen at the table , “ my mom , grandma , aunt … shoot my family “. Amonee is also very strict when it comes to teen pregnancy. She quotes “ that’s serious, I believe that (idk ) it’s preventable ,but you cant judge anyone ; TEEN ABSENICE . Amonee is a firm believer of NOT giving in to peer pressure & being yourself, you don’t need to impress people for them to like you and obviously if your doing all that for their attention then there’re probably not your real friends.which brought us to the next question of friendship ; amonee stated that she has many associates but only considers “ certain individuals “ as her true friends . Unlike other kids at SOTA ; amonee has a future goal and see’s herself being a teacher , married ( starting a family of course ) and owning a business . She doesn’t support violence at all and believes people attitude kind of affects there action for example if a person has a bad attitude then they are most likely to engage in an act of violence. “ its where your mindset is at “ . a lot of people always judge people by their cover but I think if we just take the time to find out about them then there wouldn’t be as much violence as there is today .




Thomiqua Bell: Inside The Mind of A True Character by Merique Suliveras

When I sat down with Thomiqua Bell, a senior drama major at School of the Arts, we talked about everything from home life to where she envisions herself in 10 years. Thomiqua lives with her mother, father, and older brother who who attend RIT for information technology. She also has an even older brother who isn't married but is dating and just living his life. Growing up with only two brothers had a huge affect on Thomiqua when she was younger. She was quite the little tom boy, but she's grown out of that and has blossomed into a beautiful young lady. When reflecting on her high school years Thomiqua feels like she has become more mature. When entering high school she was way more loud and in a way immature but she's mellowed out and she feels like it was for the better. Even though high school has helped her mature it had no influence on what she has chosen to do with her life. Theater has always been a huge part of Thomiqua's heart and life. She also has a love for children so double majoring theater and education is what she has decided to do with her life. She does admit that attending School of the Arts has taught her a lot and helped her hone in on her abilities as an actresses. Building off the whole college topic Thomiqua's top three schools include Howard University, Buffalo State University and North Carolina Central University. She loves that all schools have good education and drama programs and a lot of clubs. She doesn't want to be bored on campus and these school defiantly guarantee that she will be just the opposite. She wants to be far away from home, she said “Rochester has nothing for me.” Thomiqua wants to take that giant leap and leave the nest, so to speak. She wants to be independent and to see the world in a completely new point of view. She just is ready to be on her own, but still nervous and anxious. If she could live anywhere in the world Thomiqua decided on the South. There are a lot of cute boys there and that seemed to be very important to her. She also loves that everyone is so respectful in the south, and humble and they seem to share a lot of the same values that are important to her. She wants to feel at home and she thinks the south can provide that for her. She also prefers the hot weather and the greenery that can be found in the south. She wants to get away from the city essentially. At the age of 27 Thomiqua envisions herself married to a wonderful man. She wants her acting career to still be prospering and developing. She wants to have 2 kids, a boy and girl and would absolutely love it if the boy came first. She wants her children to be close in age and she wants theater to be the main part in her life, career wise.




Hannah Snell Larch by Shana Harris

On a rainy Wednesday afternoon I sat down with Hannah Snell-Lerch and within a couple of minutes I could tell so much about her. The way she sat down, crossed her legs and kept a big smile on her face gave me a great introduction to her. I knew that this would be a pleasant interview. I could tell that we were two different individuals by the way she accosted her self to me. I wanted to get to know more about her, so immediately I looked down at my series of questions and found they were dull, and I quickly elaborated on all of them.
Hannah walks the halls of School of the Arts majoring in dance and also is a senior. Hannah’s life is surrounded by dance. “It’s like I eat, live and breathe dance,’ she says. She says how dance is a easy way to express her self in many different ways. Not only does Hannah dance for SOTA she also dances outside of school for another dance team, that is how much she is motivated to her talent. When she found the opportunity to audition for a school that offered dance for a major, she felt it was the best fit for her. “Now I can dance everyday and I love it!” Hannah also participates in many of the dance concerts that are provided at the school. Surprisingly dance is not what Hannah plans to pursue for a career. In twenty years she sees herself being a trauma doctor and just being successful. Hannah questioned the thought of children. If children do come along she will like to have a big family and possibly four children. She does want to be close by her loved ones still in the near future. Hannah loves to spend time with her family and friends. Hannah is very busy person, but she always leaves time to spend with her loved ones. They are one of the most important aspects in her life.
A typical day for Hannah is waking up early in the morning to attend school. After school everyday she goes straight to rehearsal for the school’s dance concert. When she is done with rehearsal the day is over, so there is nothing else left to do but go home. At home Hannah eats dinner with her family and talks about her busy day. She is left with lots of homework and studying to be done and ends up in bed late, but Hannah is always relieved to be finally resting in her bed. One of Hannah’s greatest strengths is that she is a strong leader. “If I was given a role to play that would be the best for me hands down!” Hannah says. She is good with people and enjoys to do anything that involves being around others. She loves and prefers to always be in control. One of Hannah’s weaknesses is she places a lot of pressure on her self. If she feels she could of done something differently than it was done she gets mad and can never get it off her mind. This is a weakness that she is working on everyday to improve about her self.
When time belongs to Hannah she spends it like any typical teenager, hanging out with her friends and going shopping. Hannah enjoys going to her grandparents cottage in the Adirondacks where she spends it with her extended family, who she barely sees that often. They all get together and have a great and memorable time with each other. I found it very interesting and exciting to interview some one totally different from me, and I also enjoyed every minute of it.





Ajani Jeffries by Molly Howe

When one first meets Ajani you are met with a smile and politeness, a characteristic that he values about himself. I sat down to talk to him about his life and to get to know him better than just a peer in my journalism class. We both sat with our prepared questions in hand, a little awkward at first, unable to put aside our different social circle, I eagerly awaited to know him better than I had only a day ago. Ajani plans to have fun and travel when he finishes high school and hopes to attend RIT in the fall for illustration, which is a subject he really was able to get serious about through School of the Arts. I really wanted to understand his home life, to understand the pressures and responsibilities that I do not see at first glance. Ajani has an older brother, who lives at home and a younger sister who he has to watch. His parents are divorced, and he wishes that he was able to see his father more often. But, he has a strong connection with his brother, which he enjoys. We continued talking, bouncing questions off of each other, and falling into a basic rhythm of question and answer, quietly laughing at small jokes. I could relate with the fact that he felt annoyed that he felt he was responsible for making everyone around him happy. One thing that I asked Ajani was throughout high school has he felt that he has grown, or changed, he agrees that he has, and that he feels especially that he can be himself at School of the Arts and one teacher he has connected with the most is Ms. Albring who he feels if she can always smile and be happy, he can do the same. When he told me that he wanted to travel after high school, I agreed that I wanted to travel aboard during and after college. He feels that his friends are the people that know him the best, and he can tell them things that he cannot tell his parents or other family members. I asked him what music he enjoyed listening to and how it impacted his mood, he said reggae music is music that makes his day. “It’s straight forward and has a point to get across but is also uplifting and upbeat.” He says that it is music that is relatable and helps him get through hard times something that I’m sure most everyone can relate to. The interview was ending, and I felt I knew the Ajani behind the dread-locks and confident composer, to the Ajani that I felt that I could relate to.


Jack Scardino by Tyrese Bryant

People will always have something to say about a person good things and bad and I interviewed Friday, Jack Scardino a person that’s always characterized by others, so I went to the source, Jack Scardino to find out his real character.
Jack Scardino is the type of person that has no click he’s attach to or a certain group in the school. Jack is his own man and has great thoughts on many aspects at school and life in general. Their would be no other way to start this interview with Jack with out knowing what football team he stands behind and not to be surprise the kid born in New York City stands with Mark Sanchez and his New York Jets. He’s not only a football fan but a enjoys bowling and plays sometimes. As said earlier Jack was born in NYC and travels there frequently with his family. I ask Jack what was his most memorable family outing he responded by saying the trips to NYC and a skiing trip with them.
The person Jack is reminds me of myself meaning that he has his own opinion on things. Jack may come off as that person he thinks it’s a problem with everything in life but he didn’t, he’s a fan of Jon Stewart and supports his thinking of returning sanity. I asked Jack his view on President Barack Obama he responded by saying he would have voted for the President in 2008 even though he said the President wasn’t experienced enough, which made me think well how experience do you want the man, are parents experience when they have children and are teachers experienced enough when they step in a classroom. Jack thinks the message of change President Obama ran on was lost with actions of the same. It led me to ask the question on what is the current state of are school, Jack explained that he thinks School of the Arts is a good school and he’s very happy here and he doesn’t keep up with the drama in school and the only thing that plague’s SOTA is some race division, but again as we all know race continues to play issues in our lives. I then asked Jack his view on God, which can be hard for people to discuss sometimes but Jack was very honest with the discussion of his faith. Jack was raised Catholic but wasn’t a very active catholic growing up, he knows see things in the eye of science a lot looking at the big bang theory though Jack did say he has “respect for the bible” and believes he knows where he’s going in when his life is over.
Many people wonder who the real Jack Scardino was and that is what I posed to Jack what do you want people looking in who the real Jack is, the main thing was that he didn’t follow the crowd in high school like many people tend to fall in. Jack said “ I want people to keep wondering who Jack is”, I can see and tell anyone that Jack has matured the past five years at SOTA by his willingness to be open, honest and truthful with me, Jack is the guy that doesn’t care what anybody thinks about or says about him. I can see jack as a caring friend also they way he spoke about his best friend Riyadh Barton who he simply describe as a great guy and how he valued his respect and honesty he shares with Riyadh.
I enjoyed my time with Jack I seen a caring person who will benefit life greatly and who loves life. I see me and Jack sharing one thing having an opinion, if you have your own way of thinking I believe you will go far in life and that is where Jack Scardino is heading.




Medina Abdi by Bonita Walker

The moment you meet Medina you see a quiet semi- shy girl who doesn’t really want to be involved in much. Upon talking to her a little more you can see that she is quite different then you expect. She has a temper and when it is in full flare it is very hard to get under control. Most people’s family life reflects the individual that we all see everyday. Medina has a brother and two sisters all of whom are older then her. She seems to get along with her family even though they are all very different. Her oldest sister lives with her still and the second oldest visits all the time. Her brother is always around so it is almost as if no one left home and they have to deal with each other all the time.
To get into the School of the Arts everyone had to audition, Medina is a instrumental major. She plays the clarinet and loves it to death. When asked if she would pick another major she replied.
“I couldn’t imagine being another major, I think instrumental majors are the best!”
To hit the lotto and win one million dollars would be everyone’s dream and some would spend on frivolous things that are not very important. Medina would save it to buy a car and go to college. Imagine being able to go to the college of your dreams and become something that will fulfill your life forever. Speaking of college the decision of where to go to college is big for any high school senior. At first she was contemplated going all the way to California to be where it is warm… Then summer rolled around and she remembered how hot and humid it can get and changed her mind. She is still a little bit undecided about where to go.
One of her fondest memories was the vacation she took with her family to Africa. She got to see Nile and Lake Victoria, as well as Ethiopia and Uganda. A feast where you get to pick the food you want to eat is something desired by the few, the proud, the hungry but the food Medina chose was all desserts any kind of dessert you can possibly serve her would be good. Also dinner rolls and the rice her mom makes. Otherwise she is very picky and doesn’t like to eat her veggies.
To serve ones community is not really voluntary in our school but it is with Medina it is. She helps out at the zoo sorting materials that are taken there to be recycled. She said that she did not really feel like she was helping the community out. The truth of the matter is, that she is helping out the earth and in turn her community.
Colors of a rainbow are so beautiful to look at and they are breath taking.
The color purple to Medina means happiness and hope, and the color blue is calming and fun. This proves that what you see when you walk into a classroom is not necessarily how that person really is, and the things you hear or past things that have happened between you may have changed as they grew and matured.



Corinne Elliot by Angelee Ortiz
From the moment you meet Corinne Elliot you’re met with a bright smile and long-lasting memories. When I met with Corinne on Thursday I asked her a series of random questions to find out what she was like, hoping that her answers to my questions would make others want to get to know her a little better. I am a friend to Corinne as she is to me, and these questions were asked to make me understand more about her personality side. When we sat down together for the preparation of my questions I was not only comfortable but excited when I saw her happy-expressed face.
As the interview took off it began on the topic of her start at School of the Arts. The teacher in charge of Corinne’s audition was Mr. Gabriele, who Corinne specified a very joyous yet also “on-top-of-it” person. She was taken into the back piano room where she was asked to perform 2 scales, and 1 prepared piece by her. The scales had to be 1 major and 1 minor. She cannot recall the piece she prepared for Mr. Gabriele, but she does remember it being not that much of a challenge. As you would think most kids who have to audition to get into a school would be nervous, well not for Corinne. As she quotes that “is was a very chill audition” and she also defines the audition as an “automatic-in”. Aside from her music life in School of the Arts, Corinne spends her free time with her friends. She says usually in the summer she will call up a friend to go bike-riding to the Erie Canal and up to Pittsburg. They will then go to Simply Crapes and get some “really good crapes”. After they come back from Pittsburg they will call up more friends to meet them at the beach. At the beach they host a bonfire, make smores’, and play games. These are her “Happy Times”.
When it comes too food, Panda Paws is Corinne’s all time favorite ice cream. She likes the chunks of chocolate and peanut butter taste. She defines Panda Paws as “the best combo”. Corinne concludes that out of the five humans senses, taste is the best one thanks to Panda Paws. Besides the human senses comes common sense. Her common sense says that if she were to be stranded on an island she would bring a companion. In order to keep her sanity on the island she would need a person, any person; her reason is “human beings are very social”. This person would keep her mind off the fact that they would be stuck there with probably no rescue for a while.
When it comes to family Corinne is very close, especially to her mother. The way she connects with her mother has to do with similarity. Her mom has influenced her in a very beneficial way all her life. Her mom is very open and caring, easy to talk to, and Corinne learned most things from her. Her mom used to sing to her and she was very musical, Corinne said, “I ended up following in her footsteps and I love it”. Corinne’s mother is where Corinne gets her personality from too. If Corinne were to grow up and be a rapper, she says she would like her name to be Corshizzle, who wouldn’t want to be friends with a person like that.
Along with her amazing personality and her influenced ways her favorite season also describes how she is. Fall is Corinne’s favorite season of the year, she says her birthday is her most favorite part of that season also. She loves the whole Halloween theme too, from the pumpkin carving to the apple picking. The color changing of the leaves is a beautiful sight to her eyes. Lastly she loves the temperature in the Fall, “not too cold, and not too hot”.


Nautica Lawrence by Savannah Goole
Seated behind a glowing computer, and sucking on her already wrinkled index finger, Nautica Lawrence breathes deeply, and prepares herself. Nautica is a twelfth grade Creative Writing major at School of the Arts. She admits that her career in high school has been average, mediocre, and that her grades could have been better; but Nautica has plans for her future. After a moment of sucking, thinking, “I want to work in human services, start a business. Maybe with children.” What it really comes down to is Nautica wants to help people, and she’s always had an affinity for it. Though she hasn’t always wanted to be in human services, she used to want to go into pediatrics. But, through more thought on the subject she realized that going into the field of pediatrics would be mainly for monetary gain, not for the purpose of helping. She says she enjoys being a leader, and a helper, and that this field of study will be perfect for her. I asked her if money had anything to do with her drive; she replied, “no, not really. A job is a job.”

The drive for most careers comes from your interactions at home and at school. We’ve spent six or so years in school preparing to take the next step in our lives. But Nautica says her main-staples, the counselors, haven’t really done that much. “They don’t help you with the figuring it out, but they do provide the opportunities.” She says that most kids want to go to college for money, or because they are pushed so much by their parents. When asked if credits and tuition fees strongly held kids back, she hesitated for a moment, perhaps thinking about her own reasons. “ Yes, a lot of people don’t have money, and everyone isn’t good at everything.” She also commented on how the cost of going away to school kept kids at a community-college-level, but she’s okay with that. Community college is not awful, but they are socially and economically lower, as well as their education standards.

She thought for a long moment when asked what she really looks for in college, still sucking on the finger, “I’m looking for a school with extra curricular activities, and a smaller size school. Racial mix is a thing I look for too. It would make school a lot more comfortable.” She says that her career choice will make her a happier person in life, that she can learn by helping people, though she wishes she had more time for the process of choosing a college and a career. “We need more time, we need to start earlier.” Though her career is set, and she has a goal, Nautica will try and specify her field of study as she goes through college. Though she has enjoyed the experience of high school as far as her learning, she says “it really did suck. Teaching motives of teachers were low, and the maturity of those around me.” All in all Nautica wants to pursue her education for Human Services, bettering her life and someone else’s.



Kristian Ambubuyoy by Amanda Thomas
Yesterday evening I saw Kristian Ambubuyog, a senior at school of the arts, and felt he would be a very interesting person to ask him a few questions about his views in life. His smile told me he was very pleased. Firstly, I asked him who was his hero, and his response gave me insight into his complex nature. He paused, and said he was unsure but then he said his mother. Then we talked about his hobbies and what he enjoys outside of school. it seems that web and and facebood hold a lot of fascination for him. Maybe he should friend me, I thought. Then I asked when do you feel your at your best. Academics are clearly important to this guy, and he relishes the feel of "acing a test", and when he works hard it makes him very accomplished. Kris has a clear path in life for the next ten years that include having, of course, finished college and be working, but there is no rush for marriage or kids. Stability and a solid foundation are what's needed. Don't think that Kris isn't a fun person; he enjoys parties "to the max". Maybe that's why he doesn’t have the passion for playing sports, but will watch some on TV. Our conversation moved onto his family, which includes a 13 year-year-old brother and a 27 year old sister. When he mentioned his dad, we shared a laugh at how uptight parents are about practicing driving with Kris, who has his learner's permit. "Be careful" is their mantra. Kris's food tastes are eclectic. He loves steak, potatoes, pizza, lobster & crab, and at that point, my grumbling stomach had him stop. Kris has dreams of travel that include Japanese and Spanish culture, as well as our own California coast. Finally, I was curious about what qualities he values in someone who is his friend. That "coolness" was a priority summed it up, both for his friends and for Kris.


Shanay Baxter by Rachel Tobin
Shanay Baxter is a fellow senior at School of the Arts and is 17 years of age. This is probably the extent of your knowledge without being friends with her. In fact, she says that she is afraid that people might judge her if they do not know her well. Here we will learn a little more about Ms. Baxter.
Shanay is a violin major here at SOTA. She lives with her mom and dad. Her other family members are her two sisters, out of which she is the youngest. She has one nephew and another soon to come. She says that her home life is indeed enjoyable, and she definitely likes her neighborhood because it is quiet rather than “loud and obnoxious”.
Her extracurricular activities include keeping score for the girls’ varsity volleyball team. She currently is not employed, so she has time to take score. According to her, she was supposed to make the team but when she did not hand in her requal sheet in time, she settled for keeping score. However, she does play softball in the spring. Shanay also quite enjoys music. Her favorite musical artist is Drake. She feels that he has a large range and can listen to him for any mood.
When asked about her feelings on Rochester, she said, “Rochester is kind of boring, we don’t have many teen things [to do] that I know of.” We discussed the city and decided that the age ranges for the activities are limited- there are many things to do for little kids and for adults, but not much for teens in the middle school-high school range.
After high school, Shanay wants to go into college for psychology. Her first choice is Genesseo. The reason that she wants to go into psychology is because she enjoys talking to people and has a fascination with getting into other people’s minds; finding out about why people do things and why certain decisions are made.
Her biggest flaw, Shanay says, is being “gossipy,” or talking about other people, not necessarily in a bad way, she more so observes. She’s afraid that people may think she is rude and get the wrong impression, because she is actually quite a nice person. “It makes for good conversation, though,” she says. She feels that maybe if she put herself in their shoes, maybe that would give her a different perspective on her gossip.
To conclude, Shanay is a great girl. She loves the movie The Wood and quite enjoys a nice plate of chicken Alfredo. She is a good person to be friends with, and a good example.



Most people know Zach Minier as a tall, lanky senior when they see him walking down the hall, but not everyone knows much else besides that. When we sat down together last Friday, I had hopes of uncovering a bit more. Zach thought about his responses before he talks, getting to the point – blunt and direct – and I could tell that no matter what I asked him, he would give an honest answer, whether other people liked that answer or not.
Popular culture is just one of the things that Zach is bluntly straight-forward about. Due to technology and sources of quick communication, such as texting, many young people in today’s society are losing or just plain not using the fundamentals of spelling and grammar. Zach said that he thinks of this as just another part of the already rampant gradual increase of stupidity among the general public.
One of Zach’s favorite things about Rochester is the punk music scene, along with all of the really good pizza places. “Oh, and the Garbage Plate.” If he had the chance to travel to anywhere in the world, though, he’d go to San Francisco “’cause it’s at the other end.” When I asked Zach if he honestly liked his family, because so many teenagers nowadays don’t, and why he said he felt that he could safely say that he liked his family because he liked them more than he liked other people’s families. However, he didn’t elaborate much more on the subject.
Being the fantasy nerd that I am, I was interested in Zach’s view of mythical things, so I asked him what mythical creature he would be if he had the chance and why. He said that he would be most into being a Greek god because “the general idea of them was being very massive, powerful things.” That was something that he could see himself being into.
Zach is an instrumental music major here at SOTA, but it is obvious that music to him is much more than something for him to do in school. An artist he most admires is jazz musician John Coltrane “because he understood that there’s a lot of discipline involved in what you wanna do. Just because it’s something you’re choosing to do, it doesn’t mean you can’t work hard at it.” His ideal job would be to receive a comfortable income through the music he makes without being pressured by others to change what he does to please the public. While Zach may not be one to elaborate on much, he certainly says what he needs to in order to convey his point.



Tyrese Bryant's strolls into the classroom before the bells rings, and moves towards his seat. It's a time like any other, and so, it's a time to be easy-going and comical as he turns into a total character, playing, just toying with the teacher. The teacher laughs. Everyone goes to work.
If you had to guess Tyrese's major, you'd probably come up with "drama," and you'd be right. Tyrese has been interested in acting even before auditions for School of the Arts, calling himself the '"go-to guy" for acting and musicals at #16 grade school.
How SOTA students approach their major changes with age, he says. Some kids lose their passion within their first couple of years after getting in, but many get back into it by ninth grade.
Tyrese uses himself as an example, saying that he cares more now than before. He doesn't plan on a career in acting after graduating, but he sees another, more important aspect to having a SOTA education. "There is a need for it because it benefits in life," he says. So, it's not purely a specified field of study, but a manner in which you can look at the world that SOTA can give.
Thinking like this has driven Tyrese to many others things throughout his high school years as well. He is currently the president of SOTA's own student government. This, he says, was his chance to make the school "the place to be," which is something that Tyrese believes is no longer a label for his school. "It's really a great school," he says," [but] it's lost its spirit."
Tyrese believes that this stems from a lack of student involvement not just with society, but even as far as interacting with one another. It's no question that every kid is making friends, but at a certain point, Tyrese believes, there is an unsettled ground that isn't crossed.
This isn't to say that there are huge lines of division through the school. Obviously friends tie it together quite strongly, but not to the fullest and most engaging extent. Tyrese believes that a tough and outgoing president can bring the people together. Being outgoing ("popular" as he more accurately describes it) is usually what drives the campaign as well. "It's 100% a popularity contest," Tyrese explains. "But you have to put yourself out there."
Nevertheless, Tyrese assembled his partners with a common understanding that they were after something, that they could actually achieve something given those positions. "We got together because all four of us are different, but all of our ideas together can work to change."
Does every candidate in every election everywhere care about the job they're after? "No," says Tyrese. "Some might do it just to get popular, some just for their résumé." His question is, "Can you really help?" Even if they do seem to care, do any group of administrators or representatives see what the people want and fight for it?
"I think right now, I'd give the Obama administration a five out of ten." Tyrese sits back with a bit of a shrug. "We're not necessarily in the 'right' direction...He needs to be tougher. He could be the greatest president ever if he was tougher. I'm doing the best I can, but I lack toughness too." Tyrese is especially prophetic in the interview as he connects large political issues to local concerns and personal beliefs. "It's the hardest thing."
He hates the idea of "say one thing, do another," an unfortunate reality that is so often the case in politics. At the same time, Tyrese says that he and his panel are struggling to establish groups such as Black History and Hispanic History performances and after-school programs for students in search of personal academic assistance. These ideas things together with his own approach to SOTA spirit are aimed at unifying the school's attitude and atmosphere.
But it's certainly not easy. The job of class president requires more than 20 hours a week, and that's all-the-while knowing that the school can only move forward in baby steps. "We don't want to not do what we wanted...but the administration keeps us on a tight leash." It's also the lack of student involvement that hinders his ability to move the school forward. "It's the same 12 black seniors at every one of those government meetings. My number one focus is student government," he says. But at the same time, he admits, "I'm not God."
Toward the end of the interview, he apologizes as he has to take a short phone call from his boss. Tyrese has been working at Wegmans for over two years. When he first started, of course, his schedule was not as full and demanding, but the responsibilities of his job, academics, sports teams, and of being class president have added up as a senior, and they cost him much of his time. "I work my ass off out there," he says, and the phone calls that come to him in the middle of the day (asking him to work that evening for a new, higher position, as it were) only show the seemingly endless activity and business of his schedule.
But Tyrese come from a family that always worked hard. This outlook, along with other religious and political influences, carried with him. "My mother came up here from the South to get a better life, and I'm very happy with my life."
He wanted money, so he got a job. "And I like working," he says. Tyrese knows that none of his problems today compare to those of his parents and grandparents years ago, and he feels so blessed to have what he have. Nevertheless, the problems that he faces are still real to him, from the personal to the social. But it's well understood that they can be conquered with determination.
"Something that my brother said: 'if you can take it, you can make it,' and I believe that." In high school, there are plenty of things to worry about, and with Tyrese's schedule, not a lot of room to lose focus. But Tyrese expresses his determination, closing the interview by building on his brother's strong words of wisdom:
"If you can get past high school -the rumors, the lies, the ups and downs, the relationships- you can make it." High school comes with these things, and teaches you to sense them out and work through them. So, regarding any subject or group of people, Tyrese professes a reason to pay attention during this time, and always work hard with what you have. Sometimes, that requires comic relief; other times, pure focus.
"I can make it," says the man.




Atinuke by Eliza Barnes
Atinuke Adedeji's full name, Atinuke Adebike Oluwa Dami-Lohun Abake Adedeji, represents her unique nature. While her name stays true to Nigerian roots, she calls New Jersey home. Only a short drive away from New York City, Jersey has molded Atinuke into a true city girl. The wilderness is not the place for her, camping being one of her least favorite activities. Simply looking at her is proof that she has great taste for all things artistic. Her major at school is visual arts and her art interests don't stop there. After high school she plans on going to either FIT or SCAD to become a fashion stylist or a fashion "buyer". When asked about the details of her potential career paths, it was obvious that she knew her stuff.

Her ideal vacation would be to attend Milan Fashion Week, showing her consistency and love for fashion. She described Milan as a "vibrant, beautiful city" with an event that is "much different than other fashion weeks". Even though she can't attend fashion week events at the push of a button, she is satisfied with frequent shopping trips. In her opinion, the best place to go shopping is the Willow Brook Mall in Jersey. Add in a few friends, Starbucks, and her father's credit card and she has a perfect day.

Although Atinuke is a leader, she finds strength in women role models. She respects Tyra Banks not only as a model, but as a woman who has "redefined beauty". Tamia, a vocalist, has created music that Atinuke can completely relate to. She is comforted to know that "each of her albums have a song for every mood".
Whether she is spending time with her tight knit, loving family or working towards an exciting future, Atinuke has a relaxed and optimistic outlook on life. Her beaming personality shined throughout our interview, making it clear that she has the potential to handle anything life throws at her.




Ashley Stevenson by Sage Cruz Feld
The moment you meet Ashley Stevenson you are met with a smile and a genuine kindness that is often hard to find in today’s fast and impersonal culture. I met with Stevenson on a Thursday afternoon to ask a series of questions. These questions would hopefully offer those who are not quite so acquainted with Ashley a chance to see her as more than just another peer and a get to know an individual unlike themselves and their close friends. Although words between Ashley and I are few and far between as I sat down with her I did not feel uncomfortable asking personal questions mostly do to her warm and inviting personality. As we sat for the first couple minutes preparing for the interview I had a sense that the prepared questions would not be enough but I was also aware that I would have the possibility to ask for elaborations and delve deeper into topics than I had previously imagined.
As the interview preceded it began on a somewhat light and humorous topic. Stevenson begins every weekday morning to the sound of an alarm as many do myself included. The very first thing to come to her mind every morning is how annoying that alarm is and how badly she would like to go to sleep again. Fortunately for her she is able to go back to a blissful sleep until her second alarm comes on five minutes later. The previous luxury is now no longer possible and she forces herself to get up and begin to prepare for school. The house that Ashley Stevenson calls home contains three other family members beside her. Her mother and grandparents also occupy the house. Her family loves and Ashley and treats the only child as the princess of the house. She shares the love with her family but at times wishes that there were sometimes less concentration only on her.
Of the five senses that all of us human being share taste and hearing are the two that Stevenson enjoys most. Taste would come before hearing only because she loves food and her favorite dish, rice and beans, conquers all. Reggaeton is the sole reason that she enjoys hearing. “Reggaeton makes me feel like I’m closer to home. Even though I was born here I did live in Puerto Rico for a big part of my life so it hits home.”
As the interview continued the questions and Ashley’s answers began to reflect more of her character. She spoke about how being with a group of friends makes her feel powerful as well as being the leader and being looked up to. Being able to make decisions for a group of people is one of her strengths. The times she feels most weak are when she does not fit in with a group of individuals as well as when she cries in front of people. Ashley gets a number of qualities from her family as well. For instance both her and her mother tend to procrastinate and be stubborn at times. Others though that are more useful come from her grandparents who are patient, caring and always compassionate.
As I talked with Ashley I asked her what activities she does now could she see continuing doing all of her life. She answered saying that volleyball and dancing were important physical activities to her but she would also like to continue making Reggaeton music. No matter what Ashley Stevenson decides to do with the rest of her life the many great qualities she has will be sure to help to take her there. It was pleasure learning about yet another individual among the hundreds in our school.


Sage Cruz Feld by Ashley Stevenson

Interviews can be either nerve-wrecking or comfortably casual depending on the person (or people) you're interviewing and whether you're well prepared or not. Fortunately, I was able enough to have a nice tete-a-tete with fellow classmate Sage Cruz. Having the ability to get to know him better was both an honor and disappointing, due to the fact that afterwords I wished I had tried sooner. The process was short, sweet, and to the point, beginning with broad-genre questions, leading down to more personal-opinionated ones.
When choosing a school, more students are likely to have a reasoning for choosing a specific school than not. Interested in art and new to the Rochester area, Cruz was interested in practicing art in high school and found SOTA to be the perfect fit, if he got in, that was,"...it offered classes that I wouldn't be able to get anywhere else," he stated. He remembered the audition process to be a long one, but interesting. He pondered long about this and continued by telling of how he remembered waiting in a long line with his portfolio and walking into the room full of the art teachers and thinking they were nice. Now as a senior visual arts major, he does recognize the flaws of his major such as versatility. I questioned him on what he meant, and again he put much thought into the answer and concluded his thinking process with stating that how they learned things occurred in an almost never-ending pattern; they would be given an assignment used to teach a specific set of technical skills, but never truly got the opportunity to precisely learn the skill, and then be graded on it. He also mentioned how the school used to have print making and glass blowing, two incredible classes that most everyone would be interested in taking, but yet the school no longer offered for unknown reasons.
Deeper in on the subject, and after expressing his dislikes of his major, I proceeded to ask to what other major would he have liked to be a part of and why. Thinking I had him stumbled, Cruz thought long and hard at an answer and just as I was getting ready to crack a joke he affirmed that his second choice would be theater technology for the simple reason that he would feel accomplished knowing he made something with his own two hands.
Switching up subjects, I decided to ask about his involvement in politics. Hoping to hear of his many admiration's on the subject, instead he sadly admitted that he really didn't know what was going on, currently, but that he was able to catch some election advertisements on television.
For a big close to the interview, I decided to ask questions that would seem taboo to ask someone whom one did not know well. It was also a method of mine to see how well he was under pressure, or an awkward situation. To my disbelief, Sage was kind, cool and smooth during the last two questions of the interview. The first of the two dealt with his thoughts on teen sexuality and he stated, "It's healthy and natural." However, he couldn't stress enough that though it is healthy and natural, he believed that, "Teens should be educated and responsible no matter what they decide to do sexually." No one could have worded this any better, and many would be sure to agree with this, I thought to myself as I began to conclude the interview with my final question. Finally as I finished writing my notes, I noticed a sense of relief and accomplishment coming from Cruz as I asked my last question dealing with abstinence. This of which was also answered exceptionally well as he stated that though many are true to it and willing, it cannot be expected out of everyone to do this.
Crazily, I was beyond amazed at how well my interview went with Sage, and was again, honored to have been able to learn more about him. To my astonishment, he was more like me than I originally thought and was glad I had the opportunity to get to know him, just a little bit better.





Cady Schneible by Michael Radney

Cady’s Future

Cady Schneible, 17, is a senior drama major at the School of the Arts, who has been at SOTA since she was in seventh grade. That means she has been going the same school for six years, but all that will change soon. Like many in her senior class, Cady plans to head off to college next fall, but she’ll always hold SOTA close to her heart. “I have enjoyed most the opportunity to really get to do different kinds of art. I really appreciate getting to take tap (dance class) instead of dance; I like how after school there are always shows and so many different things to do.” Cady has been in many plays at SOTA. “I think I will miss most are the people, like my teachers and my friends, but its different; you’ll still be friends with them but it’s different because you will not see them everyday and next year you won’t see them at all.” Cady also miss her two favorite teachers: Mrs. Dewey, head of the drama department, and Ms. Schahill the dance teacher. Cady is not scared of the unknown future, because she is very intelligent and has made a plan. Step one of the plan was to figure out what she wanted to study at college and what she wanted as a career. “I plan to go to college and study nursing and then become a physician’s assistant,” said Cady with a confident simile. Step two of the plan is to determine what she wanted in a college. “I am looking at Mercyhurst, Ithaca College, and Wagner University.” Soon it became obvious that she wanted a college that was in-state, small to medium size, had the programs that she wanted and has a great educational environment. “I like smaller classes, yeah you really look to work one on one (and) I don’t think I would do very well in big classes.” The final steps is to apply to your list of colleges with all the requirements and hope that you will get a letter in the mail that says that you are accepted to colleges of your choice. Knowing Cady she will get in to a very good college.
Right now it seems like time is going by so fast that it makes a person remember the past. It makes a person think about the good times that happen and all the mistakes they made. Some people would want to go back to change the past or wish to do something different, but not Cady. “I honestly would say that I wouldn’t do anything different; I am happy in my major; I am happy with the work I have done and I think it’s time for people just to move forward” said Cady with a look on her face that said she was absolutely sure. Cady Schneible seems to have this determined spirit that it now seems very difficult to see her not become a success. In Cady’s opinion, “A successful person is someone who is hard working and lucky… that is basically me (laugh)” she said. Cady sees herself in five years in graduate school for a master’s degree in biology.





Micah Beckman-Leopold by Linh Truong
Micah Beckman-Leopold , 17, is a senior of School of the Arts, majoring in theater technology where his work takes place backstage. He belongs to a family consisting of his mom, dad and three sister. He enjoys being the youngest because they buy him lots of stuff, he jokes. He is enjoying high school and all the fun that is in store for him the next couple months of senior year. “It’s different than I thought, but I mean, I like it.” I was able to do an interview with him Thursday afternoon to gather information that would give us an up close look at his life in the past, future, and of course, present.
He likes the fact that School of the Arts provides him with many opportunities that other schools don’t and that the school revolves around art but still has focus on academics. One thing he does not like about it is that he can’t choose all courses. Some things he would change? More class selection and more school spirit. Micah’s accomplishments include the fact that he’s never really gotten into any serious trouble which is pretty easy to do in high school with all the peer pressure. He’s also won a soccer tournament. As for goals he would like to graduate from, of course high school and then college, get a job writing and eventually raise a family. Looking into the past, if he were to change anything he would consider cutting his long hair earlier. “It was annoying to have and when I look back at it I don’t like it.” Everything else in life has made Micah the person he is today so he would leave everything else the same.
As for the future he is looking into writing sports columns for the Chicago tribute or being a sports analyst for ESPN. I asked him why he wanted to go into writing and he explained “I like to write in general but particularly about sports.” If he wasn’t writing sports columns he’d become a lawyer. Micah sees himself twenty years from now living maybe in South California, with a happy family, career, playing soccer now and then and traveling with his kids the way his own father does. His family, as he sees it, will include a couple of kids, “hopefully they’ll be into sports like me, “ a wife, “someone who makes me happy“ and he wishes to spend lots of time with them. He feels that he’s become a calmer, nicer, more mature individual compared to the past. Today he is enjoying life, working on his work ethics and he’s become more competitive at sports.
As an adventurous individual Micah would like to do some of the following things in life. He would like to watch the world cup in person. He would also like to travel the world, especially places in Western Europe and live in a few different places to experience the different cultures. He’d also like to become fluent in Spanish or Italian and return to Italy, and go to Spain because of its beautiful weather and culture.






MeriqueSuliveras by Thomiqua Bell
Merique: The Girl behind the Smile

Before the interview could begin Merique was already smiling and giggling, my nervousness left me and I could tell this interview would be easy. Merique is a very sweet, smiley, kind person, the type that wouldn’t hurt a fly but I wanted to find out more about the girl behind the kindness and the smile.
Merique Suliveras is 17 years old and a senior drama major at School of the Arts. Merique lives her mom and three siblings. She has an older sister that goes to Brockport named Ashley, a younger brother Daren that attends School of the Arts for visual arts and lastly she has a baby brother named Aden who is two years old and loves to dance. Merique loves her sibling but doesn’t deny that sometimes they can be a handful. However she feels that as her siblings got older they got along better. For instance, she doesn’t have the urge to tussle with her little brother as much as she use to.
Merique loves her family but her real home is the theatre. Merique’s main passion in life is acting. However to my surprise theatre wasn’t always her passion. Merique’s love for drama was not her motive for trying out for School of the Arts. She wanted to go to School of the Arts because it was a nice school. However she didn’t have a talent in order to get in. She played the clarinet but she couldn’t tryout with that so then she thought the simplest way would be drama. Merique’s dream came true she was accepted into School of the Arts and that’s when her true passion for theatre began. Now she absolutely adores acting. She likes the idea of escaping reality and getting to be someone else for a while. “I think being able to step into someone else life for a while and being able to view the world from their perspective is really cool.” She hopes to pursue it someday.
As we all know with high school comes the good memories and the. Merique’s greatest moment of high school was finding out she got in Mousetrap. At first she didn’t know she got in. Sarah told her to look at the cast list and she found out she was Molly. Thrilled doesn’t even express how Merique felt at that moment. Merique did a marvelous job playing Molly, many audience members watched in admiration. However with the great memories we have of high school there are the bad. Merique’s most dreaded memory of high school occurred her first year at SOTA. She was in seventh grade at the time and on the bus. She was standing by the middle exit door with her heavy book bag and the bus stopped. Then the door opened and out flew Merique, halfway on the bus halfway off the bus and the bus almost drove off if it wasn’t for the kids yelling at the bus driver. Seventh grade was not the best for Merique. Not only did that tragic event happened but to top it off that same year during the 10th period drama showcase she ran into a tree on stage, almost knocked it over and slid across the stage. That’s one year full of dreaded memories that makes us all glad we didn’t have to experience it.
Many say that senior year was one of the most memorable parts of their lives and that it should be cherished. However all good things has to come to an end. Merique is not that thrilled about venturing off to college. She is terrified of beginning college and leaving high school but she is ready to leave home and grow up. Also many of the colleges she is applying to colleges in NYC and NYC is a busy city. Merique will be double majoring in theatre and education. While she is excited to begin theatre she isn’t ready “theatre brats” that goes along with it. Since Merique is going for theatre she has to audition to get in and she is really nervous because she has to go to her auditions by herself, no support group will be there with her. However college should be fun. There are parties, sororities, guys and much more.
When asked of her dream guy Merique began to smile and giggle. Merique’s perfect guy has to be taller than her, funny and mature. He also has to have his life together or some kind of plan of what he wants to do with his life. She wants a guy that knows how to be faithful, which is really hard to come by these days. She also wants him to have some sort of talent and he can do drugs or have serious baggage (jail, a baby etc). In the next twenty years Merique will hopes to have found her dream guy, had one kid, a nice teaching career and to be living comfortably. Also she plans on continuing theater on the side.
We all have things in our life we wish we never done or could stop from happening. Merique had no hesitation when answering question. Without any doubt she would go back in time and stop herself from dating a guy we nicknamed “Dusch”. He was a horrible boyfriend and if anyone comes across “Dusch” stay ten feet away because he will hurt you.
After careful investigation I and now you found out more about the girl behind the sweet smile. She loves tall handsome guys, falls off of buses, don’t like jerks and we will hopefully one day see her performing across the USA.




Rodrique O'Flaherty by Meredith Gaylor
As I sat down with Rodrigue O’Flaherty to start the interview, it was clear that he was going to be completely open with me, and that he was not ashamed to express his views and share his deeper feelings and memories with me. He told me about his educational plans first, how he plans to attend Monroe Community College for two years and then attempt to go to the Culinary Institute of America. Although he already works at California Rollin, he wants to open his own restaurant someday, and pursue a career as a chef. It was easy to picture him doing this, he has the friendly personality you would imagine in a restaurant owner and although he is easygoing, you can tell that he’s ready to work hard to pursue his dreams. His full name is Rodrigue Lauzon O’Flaherty, and he said that many people think his name is of Spanish origin, though it’s actually French Canadian and Irish. He is named after his Grandpa and his Uncle, and besides being French Canadian and Irish, he is Scottish, English, and Mohawk as well.
I briefly ask about his clothing style, which is not particularly unique or strange, and he classifies as “skater.” He said, “My style categorizes me with certain people. I don’t think it will affect my career though.” He laughed about how he knew he would someday outgrow this style. I felt that this was a statement that showed a lot of maturity.
Rodrigue probably has gained a lot of maturity from dealing with the death of his father. He lost his father when he was only 9, and describes one of his most treasured memories as “watching the 1997 Super Bowl with my dad, which was the last game we ever watched. “ We sit quietly for a minute and I ask him how he gets through when things are difficult. He said, “If it’s an issue involving a person, I usually talk to them. I think things through and listen to music.” This person could be his girlfriend Chelsea, who he started dating last year at school, after meeting her on the Frisbee team. She now attends Syracuse University, and he talked about how difficult it is only seeing her once or twice a month. I ask about if he thought the relationship would last, and he told me “I don’t really know, right now we’re just trying to make it work.”
I wanted to delve deeper into his family relations, so I ask what a typical family meal is like. He described the meal as having “A LOT of food, turkey lasagna, salad, dessert, peach cobbler, and more. He told me that his family is “loud and there are typically twenty-five of us squeezed into one house.” He also laughed and told me “There’s usually a fight or two.” On this lighter note, we ended the interview and headed back to our class to work on things. I couldn’t help feeling great that I now knew this friendly young man just a little bit better.




Brianna Klaver by Leah Gardiner
Brianna Klaver, a senior visual art’s major at School of the Arts and a longtime acquaintance who I went to Denise’s Dance Connection with, met with me last Thursday afternoon to answer a series of question I was required to ask. When you first meet Brianna she seems like a very shy, quiet, and hardworking girl but after really sitting down with her I got to see a bigger and more in depth side to her.
When Brianna was a child she lived in the city of Rochester and later on moved to the suburb of Irondequoit where she seems to enjoy living from the soft tone in her voice. After graduating this year in June, Brianna plans to take a year off from school to go to Ecuador to do missionary work and also because she’s always wanted to go there and thinks it’s, “a really cool place!” she said with great emphasis. After spending her year in Ecuador Brianna was very undecided about what she would like to major in college, “At the moment I’m undecided but I think I’d like to get into cosmetology I’ve been looking into it.” As she said this I could tell she was very confused on what she wanted to do as a career.
We continued our conversation moving on to the topic of qualities in a person. I asked her what she admired in a person and she hesitated just slightly like she had to think about it for a second. After gathering her thoughts she stated, “I like people who are funny, I enjoy humor and honesty is key.” We shared this in common and laughed a little. Afterwards we kept going with this topic but switched it to the qualities that she finds distasteful in a person. Once I asked this it took her absolutely no time to think about it, “I hate douche bags, tools, fakes, liars and people who are jerks and don’t seem to enjoy life and in turn ruin it for others.” I could tell she felt strongly about this from the stern tone in her voice.
After we talked about that topic for a while I asked Brianna where she would love to go in the world. Her eyes started to glow and a big gleaming smile crept on her face as she said, “Italy! Just because my great grandmother was from there and when she immigrated to the U.S all her records were lost and she changed her name. I want to see if I can find anything about her and I just love the idea of being in Italy.” She told this story with such passion I could tell she would end up there one day which led to my last question about where she saw herself in ten years. It took her a very long time to answer this she looked very confused and unsure. She kept starting and stopping her answer. Finally she told me she didn’t want to be in Rochester anymore and she’d like to be married but doesn’t want kids! After a few more moment she told me she’d like to travel Europe and become a professional dermatologist. We laughed a little more and end our conversation with a smile as the bell rang and the class period was over.


Leah Gardiner by Brianna Klaver
On first meeting Leah Gardiner you are impressed by her over all happiness, although most would not know on first meeting Leah that she has endured her own amount of trials even being only 17. Many people have their own opinions as do we all, however when describing herself in terms of strengths and weaknesses. She herself believes that she is adequate academically and physically fit. When it comes to dealing with people however she feels that she is seemingly “too nice” and hates herself for the things she’s lets go when they are really the things that bother her the most. For all the things she regrets, there are others that she is proud to pronounce she accomplished especially in high school. As a senior dance major at school of the arts, she is ecstatic to be one of few accepted to perform in a piece choreographed by Daniel Gwirtzman. From her own personally perspective this is one of her most major events in her life, it seemed to make her shine brighter to tell a happy story. She first leaning about school of the arts was very excited, since she has been dancing since she was three years old. At first she “jumped on it “however as several other students her passion was extinguished. Now the purpose of being a dance major is less important, still she has the love for dance she keeps up with her classes to keep herself fit. Though Leah is a seemingly happy person, and truly is, there is a deeper more in-depth person underneath the smiles who has endured some pretty heavy times. When I asked Leah what the most major even that impacted her life, I truthfully didn’t expect to receive such a sincere answer. She was strong enough though to tell that her mom has had a battle with cancer for quite some time, after going into a remission up to three times it returned again. This has a very strong impact on the entire family, through it all Leah had a very hard time struggling to live at home. In her own words she described it to be, “weight on our home “. Despite this Leah did point out has made her a stronger individual on her own. With more than the usually responsibilities then the average teen, she has gone to greater lengths to make sure that she takes “ better care of herself “ in all aspects in life. In light of this I inquired as to what was the happiest in life she recalls being. She responded saying, “Probably when I was younger, when there were no problems or responsibilities… back when everything was easy… it was all taken care of for you… can’t even remember then.” In view of the future she is striving to become a Vet Tech, and eventually opening her own animal shelter. Even if she is not married within ten years, and engagement she explained would be great. Leah simply wants to be happy living her life to the fullest. Talking to Leah made it possible to see that she will defiantly accomplish a lot.





On Kristina Hiler by Joe Gleason

Kristina has been going to school of the arts since 7th grade, and like all of us she has grown during her years at SOTA. When asked why she chose SOTA she showed a bit of her competitive side when she described her reason as “I wanted to get in before my sister.” Who was not accepted in middle school. Kristina describes how she wanted to do something better than her older sister. “I become very competitive” she said but “I am generally easy going” she added.
Despite her competitive side she says she is unsure about what she wants to do when she leaves high school. She is interested in the Communications and advertising field because “Someone will always need to sell something”
Since coming to SOTA Kristina had grown a lot. She says that one of the biggest ways that she has grown has been becoming a nicer person “I used to be mean in a passive way…I try to fix that” she says. “When you hurt someone they remember forever.”
When asked what was one of her biggest influences she said was simply the people around her and she has become more self reliant and independent. She could not think of any one person whom she looked up to the most. She says that she tried to be self motivating and self determined. “I need to be my own big person” she said “my own role model”.
During our high school experience we all have our highs and lows. “it has been a roller coaster” says Kristina “my high point would probably be senior year and getting good grades” she added. She is a dual major in visual arts and voice. She started out as a visual arts major and picked up voice. Having the responsibility of two majors is a challenge. “I like creating art” says Kristina “it’s me and my mind in paper”. She came into music late at SOTA and has been involved at the Eastman School of Music for voice which was a major reason for her picking up another major. This is clearly a person with a lot of ambition. hopefully the experiences that have shaped her at school of the arts will serve her in the coming years.

Shawn Powell by Malka-Fox-Epstein
Sitting down with Shawn Powell II is no easy task, as he would rather dance than sit and chat. However on Thursday afternoon, I was able to ask him some questions about his life. Shawn’s enthusiastic personality provided me with a chatty and uplifted conversation, even when talking about more serious subjects, such as slavery. Shawn says that if he could change one thing about the United States, it would be to “go back and prevent slavery.” As an African American, Shawn wants every person to be equal, and by traveling back to pre-Columbus times, he would show the world that slavery is not the way to handle situations. Shawn’s wish for equality in the world isn’t the only thing that Shawn wishes he could change, and when asked about going back five years in his life, he would have channeled his talent more. As a dance major at School of the Arts, Shawn wishes he took classes at an earlier age so that he could be even better, and have more discipline. Although he wishes he took more classes to improve himself, Shawn says, “I try to live life with no regrets.” Living without regrets isn’t easy to do, and when Shawn was 7, his parents were separated. Leaving his mom and moving in with his dad was a sudden decision, but Shawn has found the good side to this situation, as he says “it felt right. It made my dad and me a lot closer.” Shawn says that he needed more than a mother, and really built a relationship with his dad. This relationship has allowed Shawn to expand his world, as a dancer and hoping to pursue a career in the entertainment arts field.
Shawn’s unique personality isn’t just from his family and life, but his friends have a huge influence on who he is. Shawn tries to surround himself with people who he views are better than him, who push themselves to be the best that they can. By knowing people like this, Shawn is constantly reminded of how he can better himself, and there is always room to improve. This optimistic view Shawn holds is helping him in life, and when asked to explain himself in two words, he picked ambitiously loyal. Shawn said he chose these words because he has “big dreams, and a lot of drive.” Being surrounded by people who influence him in a positive way makes him want to have long term friendships. These long term friendships show his loyalty, and he says, “In a bad situation, I always try to be there for my friends.” Shawn’s loyalty shines through when I sat down with him, as he took time to answer each question truthfully and honestly. Ambition will carry Shawn far in life, especially as he pictures such clear dreams that he wishes to make come true.




Shana Harris by Hannah Snell-Larch
Shana Harris is the kind of girl who captures your attention when she enters a room through a kind of confidence that shows she knows exactly who she is meant to be. Being a teenager in high school and having such confidence and determination shows that she’s only going to grow from here. Throughout the interview Harris’s crossed leg bobbed up and down moving her Ugg boots from side to side. When asked about choosing School of the Arts rather than other city school, Harris states with dimples in her checks that she wanted the challenge. She wanted a school where she could pick something she was good at and grow from it. Harris choice, although she thought every major would have been suitable to her was Creative Writing. Harris began to explain her neighborhood all the while using her hands to emphasis her point. She describes how much more she likes her back porch to her front. She explains this, through telling about family barbeques her family has on the back porch. Harris lives with her mother and two brothers; another brother does not live under the same roof as they do. Harris says with a smile that she is the youngest, so naturally she was spoiled. The family barbeques which Harris wishes was always fish also involve numerous nieces and nephews, making her family dinner complete. Harris describes her home in a quiet neighborhood, with the occasional party from her neighbors who are older then Harris. She portrays her neighborhood with large houses, flowers, but not enough children. Harris explanation for this is that all of the kids have grown up leaving her street full of older people. She remembered that kids used to play around outside and on the playground, now it’s just not that same she stated. Harris has her plan for after high school all designed. With a confident voice she describes a four year college, not far from home, with her majoring in either business or marketing but she makes clear that her major is still not definite. Her goal for college and after she says with conviction, is to be successful. When asked who affect her most in her life, Harris sits thoughtful for a moment making sure the answer she is about to give is truthful to herself. She then replies assertively her older cousin, the reason she states is the things her cousin went through and how she over came them. Harris describes her cousin as a great role model who taught her everything she knows today. Harris then says with some loss in her voice that she and her cousin are not that close anymore. When asked is she had ever traveled out of the country, Harris said no with a glint of dissatisfaction in her voice. Harris then stated with desire that she would love to travel to either France or England. When asked why those places in particular, she exclaimed it was because they were way different from how we live. That England or France was a change that she would not be able to see here in the United States. Harris is the kind of girl who knows who she is meant to be in life and has no question about the kind of person she is.


Conor Foley by Shaniqua James
Conor David Francis Foley, a senior at the School of the Arts, is a passionate young man with a warm hearted, mellow, welcoming personality. He does not care about the materialistic aspects of life, but is thankful for the things he has and for the people that he cherishes that is blessings in his life. Most people may not know Conor personally, but this interview will give you insight on him physically, mentally, and give you in depths look at the person he really is.
Conor David Francis Foley was born in Rochester, NY at Highland hospital on May 21, 1993 as a Gemini. When he was younger, he used to Irish dance to keep in touch with his Irish roots. Conor later used this experience to audition and be accepted into the School of the Arts as a dance major. He says, “I had to switch my major because I wasn’t going to do ballet”, as he shakes his head in disagreement. Conor then changed his major to theater technology. “I like theater technology because it’s the most unique major, the teachers are cool, and the things we make are cool.” Conor’s favorite thing that he took part in making was the Beauty and the Beast play set.
The things that he likes mot about school are, “Friends, education, and sports,” he says as his eyes wonder in deep thought and he begins to giggle. The cons of school include having to drift away from the friendships he has built as he goes off to college.
As a determined senior, ready to graduate and enter the real world, Conor has started his search for the college he wants to attend. He absolutely knows that college is in the near future and does not plan on taking a break like some students do. Conor’s top five schools that he wants to attend are, “St. Bonaventure, St. Johns, R.I.T, Brockport, and Merci,” He says as he toys with his hands and makes hand gestures. These colleges appeal to him because he knows people who attend them like them, their locations are perfect, they are not too costly, and they have fairly good sports teams. Conor’s back up plan is to apply to GCC (Genesee Community College), which is a two-year college, to study respiratory therapy like his deceased father.
Connor is very big on staying active and playing sports, just like any typical boy would be. Sports are essential to him. He is active year round playing every sport imaginable. One of his favorite sports is basketball. He has been playing with his brother since he was younger. He says, “My brother taught me how to play; now I’m better than him. It’s fun.” Another favorite sport of his is baseball. He plays center out field and explains, “It gets lonely being out there all by myself”. I don’t worry about the crowd. I prepare myself mentally by blocking everything out and focusing on the ball and physically by stretching. The team is like family because of loyalty and obligation.”
Family is very important to Conor although family life may get complicated. In Conor’s case, the loss of his father began this unlikely turn of events. On Halloween his father will have been deceased for a year. Since his father’s death, his mother has become, “Bi-polar” because of it. He likes the fact that family will be there no matter what happens and cherishes that characteristic in a family. Family is and always will be Conor’s first priority; therefore he does not want to move to far away from them. They are sort of his security blanket and they comfort him.
Conor feels that he is most like his brother in an aspect of not wanting to be like him because he dropped out of school. He does not want to end up like him, so his brothers’ mistake gives him drive to do better and give all he has to school. He is like his dad in the same way because his dad died form driving, prescription pills, and obesity. He does not want to have the same issues so he takes his dad’s mistakes to learn and live better. He is also like him because he listens to Irish music.
Conor grew up as a Roman Catholic. He used to attend church every Sunday, but now just on Christmas. Because of this his values have decreased. He believes, “You don’t have to go to church every Sunday, to believe in God.” When he was younger he used to be an alter boy, and keep the book on his head for the priest. Now that Conor is older he has a confirmation name, which is George. This name was given to him by the Roman Catholic Church. It signifies his coming of age, maturity, and becoming a man.
As you can see, Conor is a very complex individual. He is a friend of mine and now that you know him, a friend of yours.


Precious Clarke by Vincent Rosetano

Precious Clarke, 17, is a senior drama major who attends School of the Arts in since 7th grade. It was only a week before school started that she would know that she would attend SOTA, after being enrolled to go to Wilson Foundation Academy. She has always wanted to come to this school as a young child in elementary school. When asked about her audition, a process which all students must partake in before becoming a SOTA student, she said that she was very confident after doing it. Being a self-proclaimed “Drama Queen,” she knew that her acting skills would get her into the school.
When asked about what makes her stand out from other people, Clarke says that she stands out from other students from her big imagination. She has a “different vision on life,” as her personality is vibrant and often unique. People often call her an oddball due to her personality, which she stated has a world of its own, named “caramel island.”
What constitutes as a friend according to Clarke must have loyalty and originality. They can’t be an exact carbon copy of her, or have the same exact likes and dislikes that she has. They must be attentive to what she says and understand what she talks about. A friend must be educated, to be at the same or greater intellectual level. They must be adventurous, which is what she enjoys doing a lot of being, as she loves to travel. Mental strength, not physical, is also what she enjoys in a friend. A friend cannot be internally weak [i.e. depressed, lack of self-esteem, etc.].
After graduating from School of the Arts, she sees the school no longer as the distinctive school it currently is. She sees it becoming a school with an increase in fights and other misbehavior, much like other schools in the Rochester City School District. “The audition process should become more rigorous,” Clarke said, from not just an audition and essay explaining why a student wants to come to the school, but also have a part of the audition that demonstrates to teachers the true behavior when the student auditions. She said that more kids are wasting their time going to the school and raises the question as to why kids are going there in the first place.
Clarke believes that in order to achieve success, People should start living their life now. They must envision life in the future and stick to those goals. The chances are very slim, but the gambles must be taken in order to gain success. Currently she is a hostess for live broadcast radio. Her plan is to go to college and into the medical field, where she will become a registered nurse. When asked how she would envision life in 10 years from now, she said that she plans to move away from urban Rochester and move into one of its suburban neighbors, already having at least one child, a pet and a nice house. She wants to expose her kids to everything that she was never able to see before. “I want to expose my kids to as much stuff as possible, because I was never able to do certain things in my life as a child.”



Shaniqua James by Conor Foley
After meeting with Shaniqua James, I’ve finally began to understand her. She has an outgoing personality and she is also very relaxed. She is very ambitious about school, and is very consistent as well. Shaniqua does the work early so it’s on time and so she won’t be deducted any points for lateness. Her timeliness is impeccable and she has the right mind set for school.
It’s foolish to come to school and not do anything. By messing up in high school it’s basically ruining your life. To me, education is key into becoming a successful person. Shaniqua always aims above a 3.5 grade point average and if she is lower than that she gets angry. She doesn’t get angry at the teachers, she gets angry at herself because she knows she could have done better. Shaniqua takes Journalism and English 4. She manages good grades taking two English classes and also participates in sports. English 4 is Shaniqua’s favorite class and Mr. Gentile is also her favorite teacher. According to Shaniqua “ you can express yourself however you want in Mr. Gentile’s class.” Overall Shaniqua found that high school was not a challenge but some classes were difficult to her.
Shaniqua does plan on going to college and she is interested in Gannon University, D’youville, U of R, and Lemoyne. Shaniqua is favoring D’youville because it’s small and not that far from home. D’youville is in Buffalo, Lemoyne is in Syracuse, and Gannon is in Pennsylvania. She obviously wants to stay close to home and she also plans on returning to Rochester after college. D’youville caught Shaniqua’s eye because they have this room called the gross room. In the Gross room people cut the dead bodies. They can practice on operations which gets you prepared for the hospital if you plan on working in the medical field. She plans on becoming a pediatrician since she grew up watching kids she wants to go into a career helping children. Shaniqua said “ the stench of the dead bodies would get to her but, she will eventually get used to it.” D’youville is not a SUNY school but should be less tuition than U of R. In 5 years Shaniqua plans on still being in college, working hard, and paying off debt. Also in 20 years she plans on being married, having kids, and living in a house she designed. She wants her house in a nice part of the city and if she can’t find the right spot she is willing to move to the suburbs. She does plan on living in Rochester in the future because most of her family lives here.
Overcoming life obstacles isn’t always the easiest but Shaniqua overcame a large situation. Her parents separated 5 years ago and she is now stuck in the middle of things. Her parents don’t really talk but this year they have to because it’s her senior year. Shaniqua spends more time with her mother than she does with her father. Shaniqua expresses her spirituality by going to church every once in a while and by listening to gospel music with her mother. Shaniqua also has been playing the clarinet for 9 years. She got inspired to play by her sister and her cousin, she looks up to them playing. Most days in band class for her our fun.
Shaniqua is also very active in school sports. She plays volleyball, used to run track, and has played softball since 9th grade. This is her first year playing volleyball and she plays anywhere in the back row. When she is in game she is relaxed and focused on the ball. She also doesn’t pay attention to the crowd. To her beach volleyball would be more tiring because of the sand. In softball Shaniqua plays 3rd base. I asked why she liked softball so much and she replied with “it’s just fun.” She always stretches before the game so she doesn’t pull anything. Also she does not find it foolish to have a crowd of teammates pump her up for the game.
In the future I know Shaniqua James will be successful because of her determination and passion. She is good with kids and she is planning on going into a field where she can help kids. She is on path for the right life.



Linh Truong by Micah Beckman-Leopold


A person is often more than what meets the eye, Linh Troung a senior at School of The Arts is at first reserved and soft spoken but when I recently had the privilege of interviewing this individual I found out that she has as many layers as an onion. Due to her major at SOTA being that of visual arts, Linh is obviously an extremely creative soul and anyone who speaks with her gets this feeling. When asked to tell about how her family has influenced her in her life she immediately began to talk about her father being an artist and how he has been a huge influence in her love of art and her grandfather being an architect she credits to further aiding her artistic mind. When I inquired about what major Linh would want to change to if she could she simply said she wouldn’t, while some SOTA students aren’t wholly invested in their major Linh clearly takes deep pride in what she does. The furthest change she could make from visual arts was doing more photography to try and help her hopes of becoming a fashion designer.
Linh’s creativity really became apparent to me as the interviewer because when I inquired about what animal she would like to be if she could turn into one she said a bird because of the freedom and “not being tied down”. Many people would say an animal that they like and that be the only reason but Linh looked at what she would be able to accomplish by being her animal of choice.
Due to this being Linh’s senior year of high school I asked her questions relating to this year and her past at SOTA. I asked about what she thought her greatest moment at SOTA was and she said spending time with her friends because of the “care free moments”. While many struggle to have great friends that they can truly depend on during high school Linh has been lucky enough to have a group of friends that she truly has been able to depend on and she said that they were her “biggest influences in high school”. It is undoubtedly Linh’s kindness that has aided in her being able to keep these friends. Following up on the high school idea I asked Linh about her college applications and if she had started or not, she hasn’t yet started because she is waiting to take her SAT’s however she is also deciding her top five or six to apply to although she does know her number one choice is Fashion Institute of Technology.
My final two questions for Linh I asked at the end because I felt they were the one’s that really would allow me to get to know exactly who she is as a person. The first was what her greatest fear is; I asked this because I felt this truly tells about people, Linh’s answer truly took me surprise and yet another “onion layer” was peeled back. After thinking for a second Linh said spiders due to their legs, darkness because she cannot see and the one I found most interesting was a fear of being separated from those we love. Almost all people would have this as a fear but few would think of it and Linh’s awareness of this proves just how much those who she loves mean to her. My final question during our talk was if she had just one day to live what would she do with it, her answer was thought out and interesting. Showing her kindness, Linh would tell everyone she loves that she loves them, she would tell the truth about any and all lies, she would write letters to people to remember her, she would go take pictures and finally go on a walk just to walk. While many people would look to spend their last day trying to things for them, Linh looked out for those who she loves and her kindness was confirmed to me.

Marina Pacheco by Morghann Simms

“This is Marina Pacheco and this is my stuff!” says the very joyous Marina Pacheco as she began to answer the questions that unravel her life. Pacheco as a “tiny tike” until her freshmen year has lived in Albion, which is a very small town, where she received her first learning experience, at the Albion elementary, middle school and high school. Her parents worked in Rochester at the time and she spent much of her time with her “Abuela” and “Abuelo”. Every morning at 5am, little Pacheco would wake up to go to her grandmother’s house to prepare for school, while her parents traveled to Rochester for work, which is about an hour away. There she learned the taste of zesty Hispanic foods and Hispanic dancing, her favorite being the “lavadera” washing machine, listening to Bolero, very loud old school Spanish music. While telling about her childhood life, Pacheco stares out the window as if she was placed back in time, by her grandmother side, watching her do various things around the house. To Pacheco that was her home away from home, and she absolutely loved it there with her grandparents. As Pacheco grew older she would visit her grandparent’s house less frequently and began to take the bus home to school, where she was alone and was able to think more; the start of her young adult hood life. Being at home alone meant more to Pacheco than being able to watch herself, but to have a place where deep thinking could take place. Being raised as an only child, things could be lonely. Never having that one true companion can really make a person long for one. Even though Pacheco received a lot of love from her mother and father, a close sibling was always well kept in the back of Pacheco’s mind. Yet that doesn’t mean Pacheco is literally an only child; but having and older brother that doesn’t have similarities in personality and living in different homes, could be hard to communicate with. So Pacheco made it up in her mind that after college to either R.I.T. for film productions, or N.Y.U. for Theatre Technology, she would have a husband of her own, and two kids around the same age. Preferring the two children close in age, so that when one of them is in trouble the other will always have their back, and can never say “I’m alone”. With such an interesting personality as Pacheco, friends are never too far from her. Her usual greetings to her friends are “freaky weird” and funny, so they can always catch a laugh. Pacheco wants everyone to be happy and live life to the ultimate fullest, and with that there is no room for gloomy days. When ask if she was given the chance to create a holiday, she declared she would create “El dia de Paz” , The Day of Peace, where all nationalities from all over the world would come together and share plenty of various foods from all over, and there would be a never ending night of joy and laughter. Just like Pacheco herself, non-stop living life on top, with her head held high, with a smile to show for. If she was ever given a personalized trophy it would big tall, gold, and detailed with diamonds, that’s labeled “Best in Show”, summing up Marina Pacheco to the fullest.




Taaquia Morrow Article by Spencer Plenninger

When you first meet Taaquia Morrow, you are visciously assaulted by her kind and gentle personality. I met Taaquia Morrow in first grade at Charles Carrol elementary school and was aware of her personal drive and the way she challenges herself to succeed, but was not entirely aware of other aspects of her and her life. A twelfth grade vocal major at school of the arts, there is a lot to learn about Taaquia Morrow.
Taaquia is an A+ student who surrounds herself in equally outgoing friends who share her passion and her drive to achieve the goals she has set forth herself to succeed. Ever since a young age Taaquia has had an interest in cooking and the culinary arts and plots to pursue these interests by going to Monroe Community College for two years then possibly switching over to another school. With eyes like caramel, Taaquia recalls her first job as a job at a bakery which not only brought in a good amount of income, but gave her a large amount of enjoyment as well! As Miley Cyrus once said “you get the best of both worlds” and this quote directly pertains to Taaquia’s situation.
Taaquia’s role model is none other than her mother. A woman of good values and good heart, this “Softball mom” watches over Taaquia and her two sisters with great intensity, keeping them on the road to success while maintaining the ability to have some fun. Even though Taaquia is the youngest, she doesn’t get all of the attention! Taaquia said “If I could choose anyone to be my role model it would be my mom because she pushes through all of the stress I give her.”
Taaquia has a very large family on top of it all. With two sisters in college, two step sisters and two step brothers from her dad’s side and three step siblings, family gatherings can often bring about a lot of hullabaloo.
Aside from the passion for cooking and her majoring in vocals, Taaquia plays Sota Volleyball and also associates with Sota softball. Though she says these are not quite as important to her as cooking, she does take great interest in both sports. In a long off topic conversation, we discussed the importance of taking interest in sports you play opposed to sports you don’t play. As she plays volleyball and softball, she takes more interest in watching both sports than I do, as she does not take as much interest as I do in watching soccer.
Taaquia Morrow, Volleyball and Softball superstar, soon to be cooking legend, and shredding vocalist has just been entered into Spencer Pleninger’s top “People you should be friends with” list. An A+ student with good morals, a great smile, and a totally rockin’ personality, you better get to know this girl before it’s too late.


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Angelee by Corinne Elliot

Angelee Ortiz-Palermo is a 17 year-old energetic and ambitious young woman. After she graduates from School of the Arts, she plans to attend a college in Boston, Massachusetts and study physical therapy. Her ideal job opportunity would be to work as a physical therapist for a sports team, preferably the Boston Celtics. Angie is both excited and nervous to dive into this new place in her life. She is ecstatic to be graduating from High School, yet with this excitement comes the nervousness of becoming independent. Her plan is to take one step at a time and let each decision she makes, map out her future.
If Angie were to go anywhere for vacation she would choose to be located in the Keywest. The combination of the sandy beach and the pleasant feeling of the sun on her skin describes Angie's view of the perfect vacation. Along with a pinacolada in hand, there can be nothing better than that! One of Angie's many hobbies is playing softball. "It's a way of relieving all the stress from school and from my family" Angie confesses. She not only enjoys the activity and joy of playing the sport but also enjoys practicing with her father. Over the years Angie has bonded with her father in this way and wants to continue to play softball throughout her life. Angie's face immediately lights up when asked what her favorite childhood memory is. She proceeds to explain how when she was little her and her older sister had an extremely funny and memorable day. Her older sister was thirteen years old and tried to put her legs all the way over her head; resulting in her getting stuck and Angie bursting with laughter. Later on in the day Angie's fond memory continues while she explains how her sister dropped her glasses in the toilet! These fond memories make Angie continue to smile and illustrate her wonderful smile. Another hobby of Angie's is saxophone. She auditioned at School of the Arts with saxophone and continues to play. It wasn't the instrument she was most interested in at first but she has learned to like it and has enjoyed playing it at School of the Arts.
Talking with Angie makes one realize how much one can learn about a person just from a few questions and how those questions are answered. Angie will hopefully become that physical therapist who lives in Boston and works for a big sports team, yet time will tell. There are many more years ahead of her and with her ambition and drive, not much can stop her.