The comedy by Mark Twain is playing on November 19 and 20 starting at 7:30 in the Penn Manor High School auditorium.
The play “Is he dead?” is about an artist who is deep in debt to a usurer, which is another name for a loan-shark. The artist is unable to sell his artwork so he and his friends come up with a plan to fake his death in order to drive up the price value of his paintings. The play covers the entire scheme and all the crazy complications.
The lead role is played by senior Cody Goldberg, who plays a male and female role in the play.
Cody Goldberg
“I have a lot of respect for Cody, doing this,” said Melissa Mintzer, assistant director of the play. “I give him a lot of props for learning all of those lines and costumes.”
Crews have been working three hours a day, four days a week, since the second week of school.
The cast is made up of 15 students, there are 25 crew members and 4 adults.
The director of the play is Carol Shellenberger, a retired English teacher at Penn Manor. Assistant director is Melissa Mintzer, Tech director is Mark Dennis, and Rebecca Cotich is in charge of costumes.
How do you speak an English line with a French or German accent, when you were born and raised in America?
“Students will have to try and speak in a different accent when, maybe, they have never even studied that language before,” said Mintzer.
Mark Twain is one of the best humorous play writers that ever lived, so the school has much anticipation.
The play is roughly 2-2 1/2 hours long and is brand new, it has never been done before.
“We hope to inspire other schools to do the play in their high schools,” said Mintzer.
The play is extremely funny and the characters have to do crazy, abnormal things.
But the worst part is that, for some reason, not as many people are coming out to the shows that should.
“My least favorite part is trying to get more people to support and come see the shows,” said Mintzer. “They are always extremely good but people don’t always know that.”
This year’s play is going to be a fun and humorous one that everyone will enjoy.
Texting is the new coinciding factor to “bad behavior.”
Watch out kids, according to novel research, a plethora of texting, done in a day’s period of time, has an interesting link to sex, drugs and alcohol or bad behavior.
Texting is a way to converse with another person through text without having to actually talk on the phone. Teens all over the world prefer texting as their main means of communication.
But surprising recent studies have shown that teens who text 120 times a day or more, “hyper-texters,” are more likely to have had sex or used alcohol and drugs than kids who don’t send as many messages.
Dr. Scott Frank, an associate professor of epidemiology and bio-statistics at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, conducted a survey last year in the Cleveland area.
Texting, the new correlation to drugs, alcohol and sex. Photo by Cree Bleacher
Twenty schools participated in the survey and more than 4200 students added their help.
The survey concluded that about one in five students were hyper-texters and about one in nine are hyper-networkers, those who spend three or more hours a day on Facebook and other social networking websites.
Of all the students surveyed, one in 25 teens could fall into both of these categories.
The study found those who text at least 120 times a day are nearly three-and-a-half times more likely to have had sex than their peers who don’t text that much. Startlingly, hyper-texters were also more likely to be in a physical fight, binge drink, use illegal drugs or take medication without a prescription.
The hyper-networkers on the other hand were not comparable to the results of hyper-texters. Hyper-networkers were not as susceptible to sex but were more likely to be involved in drinking or fighting.
Hyper-texting and networking was found, in the survey, to be more common among girls, minorities, kids whose parents have less than a college education and teens from a single-mother household.
Another survey done by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project revealed in 2009 that one in three teens is sending more than 100 texts a day.
The American Public Health Association’s (APHA) said,”teens who are hyper-networkers are 62 percent more likely to be binge drinkers, 84 percent more likely to have used illicit drugs, 94 percent more likely to have been in a physical fight, 69 percent more likely to have had sex and 60 percent more likely to report four or more sexual partners.”
Texting, texting, texting. Hyper-texting is connected to bad behavior in a recent study. Photo by papamiket.com
Additionally, hyper-networking was reported by 11.5 percent of students. Hyper-networking was linked to higher odds ratios for poor sleep, stress, depression, substance use, fighting, poor academics, suicide, television watching and having permissive parents.
Hyper-texting was reported by 19.8 percent of teens surveyed. For hyper-texters, teens were 40 percent more likely to have tried cigarettes, two times more likely to have tried alcohol, 43 percent more likely to be binge drinkers, 41 percent more likely to have used illicit drugs, 55 percent more likely to have been in a physical fight, nearly three-and-a-half times more likely to have had sex and 90 percent more likely to report four or more sexual partners.
“This should be a wake-up call for parents to not only help their children stay safe by not texting and driving, but by discouraging excessive use of the cell phone or social websites in general,” said Frank.
Students at Penn Manor can’t seem to quite fully understand the correlation of the hyper-texting and networking but have their own views on the subject.
“There is no correlation because some people text a lot but don’t talk about drugs, alcohol and sex,” said senior Jeremy Vital.
“This is not true because the majority of my texts I send are about school,” said senior Bryan Buckius.
“Me texting a lot has nothing to do with sex, drugs and alcohol,” said Spencer Barnett, a senior at Penn Manor.
Science teacher, Erick Dutchess, had a lot to say about this topic. “I think the two (texting and illicit behavior) are correlated, but one does not necessarily cause the other one. I think a lot of the factors that encourage large amounts of texting (a need of acceptance, a lack of parental communication, a desire to feel affection) are linked together.
“Just because texting occurs in the presence of these negative behaviors, one doesn’t have to be the sole root for the other,” he said.
It’s ultimately up to parents, experts said, to monitor their children’s texting and networking capabilities.
Saturday evening the Penn Manor Comets field hockey team took on Emmaus in a state power house throw-down, for the second time.
Emmaus, undefeated and ranked number one in the state, proved itself to be a formidable opponent for the explosive offense of the Comets, holding them to no goals. Emmaus was one of two losses the Comets had previous to Saturday’s state playoff battle, and would become their third and end their season.
“It was a heartbreaking loss,” Matt Soto, head coach for the Comets said. “I thought we played a terrific game, but we were just unable to score.”
Matt Soto, Coach of the Penn Manor Field Hockey team, is going to miss his current senior class. photo courtesy of the PMFH Website
Despite the loss, the Comets have achieved a lot.
The Comets tore through the section, winning it by blasting Hempfield 6-0. They then took to the Lancaster-Lebanon League, defeating Lancaster Mennonite in overtime 3-2.
They then battled their way to the district finals, losing to a well respected Hershey team 1-0.
And finally, losing to a field hockey program such as Emmaus 1-0, is nothing to be ashamed of. Suffering only three losses all season, two to the best team in the state, the Comets were a force to be reckoned with and had a memorable season.
“Our overtime victory at LMH was very memorable. Going up to Crestwood and beating them the way we did was a lot of fun as well,” Soto said.
The seniors made it known that they would miss field hockey, their coach and each other.
“I’m going to miss being with everyone. We formed a lot of friendships and it’s a weird thought that I’m never going to step on the field with them again,” captain Renee Suter said.
Renee Suter, captain for Penn Manor, is going to miss her teammates.
Suter and Katie Breneman, both team captains, said they were definitely going to miss the many bus rides they had this past season.
“These seniors are a terrific group. They’re extremely fun to be around,” Soto said about his senior leaders.
Regardless of the end of this season, the Comets will continue year after year to be a standout program in the state of Pennsylvania and a force with which to be reckoned.
Apple announced Tuesday morning it has nabbed the rights to all the Beatles tunes and fans at Penn Manor are already loving it.
Every album and song available is now posted on iTunes. The songs cost $1.29 each, albums for $12.99, double albums for $19.99 and even a complete boxed set for $149.00. The boxed set includes all of The Beatles albums and a few bonus tracks.
“I am really exited to buy their music and listen to it, I didn’t know it was released, but I’m happy to hear that it was,” said senior Charles Blymier.
Charles Blymier listening to The Beatles. Photo by Kyle Hallett
“I didn’t know that that the music was released, I’m pumped to get all of their songs because I don’t have all of them yet,” said Ryan Dettrey, a fan of the Fab Four.
Dettrey is a huge fan of the Beatles and was waiting for the songs to go up on iTunes. The boxed set will be Dettrey’s Christmas gift this year.
“I don’t know why Paul McCartney didn’t have the rights in the first place,” said Adam Swift, a senior.
Swift will be buying the songs “Let It Be,” “Hey Jude” and the entire White Album.
John Lennon had the rights to the catalog ownership before he died. According to pophistorydig.com, after Lennon’s death, Michael Jackson purchased the catalog by outbidding other potential investors. The money went to The Beatles recording label Apple Records, who they signed with in 1968. When Michael Jackson died, the catalog then went to his mother. iTunes got the rights to the downloads from Jackson’s mother.
Screen shot for opening day of The Beatles on iTunes
“It is very disappointing to see the Jackson family making money off of another artist’s work,” said music teacher Melissa Telesco.
Telesco has all of The Beatles CD’s so she won’t be purchasing the MP3s. She is, however, basically doing back flips because of her excitement over the music release.
So are a lot of other people.
“I have a lot of the music…however, I am going to get the rest of the songs I don’t have on iTunes,” said Alex Lombardo, a junior at Penn Manor.
In iTunes, Abbey Road is already at the number 11 spot for the top downloaded album followed by the White Album in number 12, box set at 13 and Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Club Band sitting as the 14th most downloaded album. All of the other albums are in the top downloads on iTunes and have only been accessible for a few hours.
“I will buy a few of my favorite song for the car, just because I hate CD’s and I don’t pirate my music,” said art teacher Kim McMullen.
“We love the Beatles and are honored and thrilled to welcome them to iTunes, even though it has been ‘a long and winding road’ to get here. Thanks to the Beatles and EMI, we are now realizing a dream we’ve had since we launched iTunes ten years ago,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO.
Penn Manor seniors may not be receiving their diplomas at Penn Manor High School this year.
Penn Manor and Hempfield are looking to share a facility and split the costs for 2011’s graduation ceremony. Their top choice, Franklin and Marshall College, is indoors so inclement weather wouldn’t be a problem. Students getting their cap and gown drenched in sweat also wouldn’t be a problem because the building is air-conditoned.
Principal Phil Gale and others are discussing the alternative graduation site and are trying to get a site scheduled in time.
Penn Manor Graduation 2010. Courtesy photo from http://www.pennmanor.net/blog/2010/07/06/commencement-2010/
“We are looking for a place that can host a ceremony without running into problems with inclement weather or the hot temperatures of the gymnasium,” Gale said. “We don’t want to set up two locations again.”
During previous graduations, Penn Manor set up in Millersville’s football stadium but took everything down and held the ceremony in the school gym if weather threatened.
Gale has been talking with the Hempfield principal about the new idea.
“Hempfield was looking to move as well and so I discussed with the principal at Hempfield about finding a place together,” said Gale. “We could split the cost and have a nice facility for people as well as save money.”
Gale and Dr. Michael Leichliter, Penn Manor’s Superintendent, met with principals from two other schools to talk about graduation.
“In October, Leichliter and I met with superintendent and principal of Hempfield as well as the principal of McCaskey and talked about finding a common place that all three of us could share and split the costs,” Gale said, “but McCaskey graduated at the Lancaster Convention Center last year and they are scheduled to graduate there again this year.”
Gale also went on two different tours at F&M to see the facility Penn Manor could use and to get more information.
“Myself and Dr. D’Amico went over to F&M in mid-October for a tour,” Gale said. “It was really nice because the stage was set up so we could visually see what it would look like.
We also got more information and costs,” he added. “After the first tour, I talked with the school board about the concept and ideas. I then asked for permission to go further.”
On November 8, Dr. Leichliter, the class officers and Gale went on another tour of the facility.
This is a new idea, something that has never been done before. That has students wondering if this is a good idea or not.
F&M Alumni Sports and Fitness Center. Courtesy photo from godiplomats.com
“I don’t think we should do it. It’s bad luck and I would rather have it at Millersville (Biemesderfer Stadium) like we always do,” said senior Brittany Wright.
“I think it would be a great idea to graduate at a different place, but at the same time, I want to graduate at the school that I’m graduating from,” said senior Morgan Ream.
Gale pointed out the necessity of figuring out the location as soon as possible, saying, “We should know if graduation will be held at F&M soon because we need to book a date and get things set with Hempfield.”
Hanna shares public speaking experiences. Photo By: Whitney Reno
Oh no… I have to speak in front of the whole class? My hands are shaking, my voice is going to falter, I can’t do this.
Many students feel this way and now there is a club just for them at Penn Manor.
Quay Hanna, known as Penn Manor’s “Redneck,” because he runs a group to ease racial tensions and increase understanding at the school, has started a Speakers’ Club, designated to helping students improve their public speaking skills.
Hanna is a member of the Philadelphia Chapter of the National Speaker’s Association (NSA) and was appointed to offer the club as a way for the Association to contribute and give back to the community and high school students.
Quay, along with other public speakers, will be coming to visit the students in the club to give them tips on how to better their public speaking skills.
“It’s top notch advice to students for free,” said Hanna.
“These are skills that would have helped me when I was 17 or 18,” said Hanna.
Once a month Hanna will invite anyone to come to his office, located in the faculty lounge in the cafeteria, during Tuesday club to listen to the presentations. The topics will include how to write a presentation, deal with hecklers and business speaking.
Hanna said he feels that this will be beneficial to anyone with any background, no matter what field of work they want to pursue.
“If you can communicate, you will stand out,” Hanna says.
Hanna says he has found some difficulty in getting this club started because it’s available for anyone so he is unsure of what to expect.
Student's attended the Speaker's Club on Nov. 16. Photo By: Whitney Reno
He said that anyone who is interested in this club should sign up in the office.
He hopes to gain a core of people that come to every club, so eventually there can be a competition involving the skills they’ve learned. All student speakers will give a five minute presentation, and the winner will hopefully receive a cash prize.
Hanna’s hopes are that they can develop this core of people who come to each club, but says he “tends to think too big.”
This Tuesday, Nov. 16, Hanna shared some of his experiences while giving a presentation.
Next month’s presenter will be the president of the NSA who will tell the students about marketing their speaking and branding, or what you’re known for as a speaker.
Ally Emmert, a senior attended the first presentation.
“I think it’s going to be really beneficial because public speaking is something you can always use,” said Emmert.
Big changes are in the works for students, teachers and administrators after the Thanksgiving holiday.
Penn Manor has been seeking ways to help students improve academically, according to school officials. Penn Manor’s administration considered several options until they came up with a plan they think will work.
But hang on, it may seem a bit complicated at first.
Instead of having homeroom days only Tuesday and Thursday, Penn Manor students would have a homeroom period every day of the week. On Monday, during the homeroom period, students would go back to first block for more instruction in that subject. On Wednesday they would go back to second block during the homeroom period for additional instruction in that subject area. Fridays, students would go to third block during this homeroom time. The following Monday, students would go to fourth block and so on.
Principal Phil Gale explained a new schedule for Penn Manor High School. Photo by Christa Charles
On Tuesday and Thursday, students would have their regular homeroom period. On Tuesday, students would either go to their regular homeroom or tutoring. On Thursday, students would either go to homeroom, tutoring or their club.
Not all Penn Manor students are in favor of this idea.
“I’m not going to be able to wait for lunch that long everyday,” complained junior Lauren Anderson.
‘We are 99.9 percent sure that this will happen unless someone has a good reason not to do it,” Penn Manor’s principal Phil Gale said.
“We plan to have the schedule change after Thanksgiving,” he added.
“I don’t want that at all. Seniors should not have to anyways,” Senior Joey Carlyle said.
Gale said the reason Penn Manor is doing this is because of decreasing scores and other academic challenges.
One senior student thinks the idea is a good one and wishes he would have had several years with the changed schedules.
“I heard about it from a couple teachers,” said Patrick Jones, a Penn Manor senior. “It’s not too bad. It’s better for kids to help them understand what they’re learning. I think I would have liked the schedule if they started it earlier. You could work on a lot more stuff for your classes.”
Gale indicated he believes the new schedule will help boost scores, including PSSA scores, PSAT scores and SAT scores.
He said he is not pointing fingers at any particular class or sub group but the changes are aimed at boosting academic achievement across the school.
You may have seen large, grizzly men lumbering throughout the halls of Penn Manor, but don’t be afraid, there hasn’t been an invasion of Wookies… it’s just November.
Although the original target of No-Shave November was young college males, the concept has morphed over the years to include even the most peach-fuzz-less freshman.
Senior Tyler Wilson proudly shows off his rugged beard. Photo by Ben Embry
The idea of going a full night without shaving one’s facial region was started by college students to raise awareness about men’s health issues. The main focus of the month was centered on prostate and testicular cancer.
It’s become quite popular at Penn Manor.
“It’s awesome, I like not having to shave,” Bo Perez, a junior, said. ” I think I can make it to the end without shaving. It’s so itchy.”
The objective of No-Shave November is, well, pretty much self explanatory. One must go, or at least attempt to go, the entire month of November without shaving their face. Students sometimes can be overheard toward the beginning of the month boasting about their goals, but few get to accomplish them.
“Oh yeah, I’m absolutely going to finish the month out this year,” said Nick Weidinger, a senior at the school.
Bo Perez shows off his wild side. Photo by Ben Embry
“I am pretty sure the tradition started when lumberjacks started to get cold and needed a way to keep their faces warm against the cold wind while they cut down trees,” said Tyler Wilson, while sporting what is arguably one of the best non-adult beards in the halls of Penn Manor.
“Of course I’m finishing the month,” Wilson insisted. “I finished the month last year without shaving.”
Wilson even shared some insider tips.
“The trick to battling the itchiness, he said, is to use conditioner on the beard in the shower.
“Works like a charm,” he said.
This writer lasted about three whole days without shaving, but the pressure proved too much. But it must be pointed out, if only to save this writer’s ego, many others caved as well.
Patrick Miller, is a senior at the school but a first time No-Shaver had nothing but eagerness on his maiden voyage into unrestrained facial hair.
“I am very excited to do this,” Miller said. “No-Shave November is a fun time that all young men should enjoy taking part in.”
Whatever the underlying reasons for shying away from the razor blade, one thing is certain with all the enthusiasm witnessed for growing facial hair, No-Shave November is here to stay.
For another voice on this issue, check out David Mohimani’s opinion essay.
These are the most basic defense skills of martial arts.
A little known form of martial arts is called Capoeira, a Brazillian martial art that was brought to the U.S.
These Capoeira students learn more than just defense skills; they learn how to sing in Portuguese, dance, and many other things.
Penn Manor junior Selena Hasircoglu goes to Quest Total Fitness on Tuesday and Thursday nights for her Capoeira class.
She, along with Russell Thorsen, are the only Penn Manor students to go to the class. Hasircoglu said that, at the most, about 15 people participate in her Capoeira class.
“If you want to do it, you need to train hard, ” Hasircoglu said. “It’s a bit like dancing and f
Selena shows off a Capoeira move. Photo by Sarah Gordon
ighting combined.”
Hasircoglu saw a demonstration in Lancaster City and said she could see herself doing it.
In May, she met someone who took classes and watched another Capoeira demonstration during First Friday. Soon after, Hasircoglu began taking classes.
Hasircoglu says she gets what she wants out of it.
“It’s a lot more than just physical work and cool moves,” Hasircoglu stated. “It’s also peaceful. The mind you set going into the circle and fighting is invigorating.”
She said in class a warm-up is always the first activity. After, they practice sequences, different combination and moves. Later, they do handstands and various acrobatic moves. The class then circles up and fights or the students sing to wrap up each class.
In September, Hasircoglu went to her first Batizado or baptism, where the students would receive their first cord or advance to the next cord.
She passed with flying colors and received her green cord. A cord is like a karate belt with the green cord as the first belt. For each cord, the students add the color of their level onto it. For example if someone is a level two, then the cord will be green and yellow.
Hasircoglu and Thorsen are always available to discuss this little known art.
Penn Manor Marching Unit has the whole world in their hands.
While most of us were enjoying the last few days of air conditioning and days without school this August, the Comet’s band and color guard began preparing their 2010 field show in 90-degree heat.
The logo for this year's marching band show.
And this year’s show is out of this world.
“Our theme [this year] is Earth. We have three movements [that display] land, water and air,” said trumpet section leader Kelly Herr.
After weeks of learning and practicing the show during the summer, the hard work quickly paid off at competitions.
“We’ve been doing pretty good this year. We have three 1st places and two 2nd places, “ said Herr.
The band currently sits in a respectable second place in their division with a score of 88.75.
The band will end their season with a performance at Cavalcade Championships at Hershey Stadium on November 13, but not without a few more days of preparing.
