For the first time ever, Penn Points is posting from the other side of the country.
Four of Penn Points’ staff members have traveled to Portland, Ore., for the National Scholastic Press Association convention. The NSPA, the world’s largest student journalism organization, has named Penn Points as a 2010 Pacemaker, one of the top online student newspapers in the country.
The editors from the Penn Points staff are learning all kinds of new journalism tactics to improve the entire layout and content of their online newspaper from the convention center workshops.
The Logo for the National Scholastic Press Association.
“I’ve learned that there are good ways to tell stories using pictures and videos,” Alex Geiger, Penn Points photo editor says of the media seminar he attended on Friday morning.
The students have been attending seminars given by journalists and design experts all morning and have heard several keynote speakers that have given them hope for the journalism field in their future, and in Penn Points’ future.
“The speakers were able to connect with us by using examples of real life scenarios and connecting them with everyday story writing,” says Rob Henry, editor-in-chief.
Not only have the students been learning new techniques for writing and storytelling, they have been introduced to new technology programs that will further improve the multi-media approach to journalism.
“Adobe has come out with a new program called Lightroom and it will help get tasks, that are usually done with Photoshop, finished faster than ever before,” says Lyta Ringo.
Lyta Ringo, left, and Abby Wilson show off their special tags as Pacemaker finalists at the National Scholastic Press Association convention. Photo by Lisa Mayo
The students are really taking in the atmosphere of the convention and are taking advantage of the opportunities that they have been given, thanks to the Penn Manor school board who approved the trip.
“It took the cooperation of everybody to succeed in the little time we had to do so,” says Henry of the immense support of the Penn Manor administration.
The students aren’t the only ones who are learning at the conference, the teachers have been given the opportunity to go to special seminars for advisers.
“The morning sessions were fantastic, I learned a lot of new ways to tell stories online. I’m excited to come back and share all of my new ideas with my students,” says Susan Baldrige, Penn Points adviser.
Penn Points adviser, Susan Baldrige, and chaperone, Lisa Mayo, plan the schedule for the convention workshops.
The students and teachers from Penn Manor are all ready to hear the results of the Pacemaker awards which will be announced on Saturday, they are one of thirteen in the nation to be nominated for this prestigious award.
“I got the butterflies going already, Abby and I are going up to get the award so I’m pretty pumped to show this town what I’m made of,” says Geiger.
Wait for tomorrow to hear the results of the Pacemaker award and the final day of the Spring National High School Journalism Convention.
Russian, Japanese, and Chinese are residing in Penn Manor classrooms, not in actual students but in their book bags.
Penn Manor hosts many students who are engaged in dual enrollment language courses with various colleges in Pennsylvania, Leigh University and Seton Hill, for example.
These language courses consist of Chinese I and II, Japanese I and II, Russian I and IV, and Arabic. A Hindi class will begin in the fall of the 2011 school year.
“It is like learning two languages because you have to learn the pronunciation and the character that goes with it,” said Logan White, a Chinese II student.
Since the college professors that teach these classes can’t make their way to Penn Manor everyday, the students take the class on a webcam where they can interact with other students and their professor.
Students use language textbooks as they study online.They can also use the laptops as an instant messaging system so they can practice the different letters or characters that apply to the language they are being taught. It is like a miniature whiteboard.Learning these foreign languages is not simple. In these classes, the students have to learn to speak, write, and read the language which could be a reason as to why it is so difficult.
“It is very hard, one of the hardest things I’ve seen students do,” said Sallie Bookman, facilitator of high school gifted and monitor of the program.
Chinese, Japanese and Arabic use characters (figures that represent words) that are unrecognizable to English speaking individuals. Students believe this is why it is so hard to learn these languages.
“Trying to differentiate all the characters is really difficult,” said Jacob Schick, a Chinese I student.
Eighteen students are currently involved in these language programs far greater numbers than in the past.
The program is growing but why is it? What makes students want to take these ridiculously hard college classes?
“Students take these classes because sometimes their families are of the same ethnicity as the language they take,” said Bookman. “Also it looks great on a college application.”
Every student does it. Crazy Taxi. Curveball. Bubble Shooter.
It’s a game of cat and mouse. Can kids get away with playing games secretly on their computer in class while they are supposed to be doing school work? Can teachers outsmart their crafty pupils and force them off these sites?
Every day is the same battle.
Kate Harrold looks out for a teacher as she plays the Helicopter game.
With the luxury of using a computer in some classes, right away, teachers attempt at giving some sort of intimidating caution with this rare school-day privilege.
“I better not catch you on any game sites,” or, “Make sure you are doing your work!”
A lot of students silently scoff at these typical warnings and jump on their favorite, accessible gaming site as soon as their computer screens are out of the peripheral vision of their instructor.
Sam McCreary, a junior at Penn Manor, says, “I pull up two tabs with one tab having the site I’m supposed to be on, and the other having the game site. When my teacher comes by my computer, I just click out of the game tab.”
This double tab strategy seems to be used by many, but not stealthily enough to fool most teachers.
Social studies teacher, Lara Paparo says, “I’ll ask if I can see something quick [when kids have two tabs up on their computer], and I’ll click on their game site tab and bust them just like that.”
“It’s definitely a cat and mouse game,” says English teacher, Melissa Frerichs. “Kids will minimize their game site quickly when you approach their [computer] screen, and pull it back up when you walk away.”
Whether it’s Gold Miner, Helicopter, Tetris, or Penn Manor’s classic, Bubble Shooter, kids love the mischievous thrill of playing these hard-to-find games on Penn Manor’s limited web access that they wouldn’t normally play at home during their leisure time.
Bubble shooter may be the most popular "underground" game for Penn Manor students who are blocked from most game sites at school.
“It’s an accomplished feeling when you click out of your game when the teacher walks by you and you don’t get caught,” confessed Penn Manor senior Steven Resch.
Because the web access is so restricted, kids go as far as bringing in flash drives that have their favorite games on it.
Sophomore, Joey Jackson, who was a user of this “beat the system” strategy says, “It’s more fun [to play games] because it’s better than what you’re actually supposed to be doing.”
Jackson’s flash drive unfortunately became a victim of his washing machine, halting this subversive arcading tactic.
Senior, Aaron Frederick, who has had his fair share of times getting caught playing games by teachers says, “I usually just get on ESPN Arcade until I find another site that hasn’t been blocked yet.”
Just recently, www.grygry2.com (kids – don’t bother trying) which had arguably been Penn Manor’s default arcade sanctuary, was blocked.
Uproar in Penn Manor’s underground world of online gaming began when this site went down.
Senior, Kenneth Tomaszefski says, “Grygry2 was the sun that started my morning in my class.” Tomaszefski was an active user of grygry2 along with many of his friends.
“When grygry2 went down, my heart went down with it,” says Tomaszefski.
Head of technology in the district, Charlie Reisinger was tracked down during this secret time of despair for many of Penn Manor’s gamers.
Reisinger ended the popular notion of there being some guy sitting behind a desk watching every site students visit and stopping any distracting or inappropriate sites from being viewed.
“A computer called the 8E6 is a sort of filter that looks [at everything that flows through the districts online web], and compares each site to the districts block list,” says Reisinger. “The computer gets smarter with every site that it blocks and recognizes any future sites that are similar with prior blocked sites,” says Reisinger.
Teachers and students are doubtful the 8E6 will win this battle of man versus machine, it won’t stop kids from trying to quench their thirst for danger and having fun doing it.
Compared to other local school districts, it appears that Penn Manor’s got the big bucks. But it still isn’t quite enough.
Schools have known for years that there would someday be a major increase in the amount of money they must pay into employees’ pensions. That nightmare has become a reality for Lancaster County public schools and few of them are well-prepared, if prepared at all.
Pensions are retirement funds for employees of public schools. Each year, school districts are required to put a certain percentage of money into a pension for each employee, along with what the school employees contribute themselves. In the coming years, the percentage of school budget going into these pension funds will dramatically increase from around 4 percent to somewhere around 15 percent.
Retirement funds will be a problem for many school districts in coming years.
The increase is needed in part because, for several years, the state legislature delayed these contributions for schools, creating a big hole in what should have been regular pension contributions. Public schools will have to dig deep in their pockets for some spare change to catch up, according to officials.
Of the 17 school districts in Lancaster County, many are looking at a financially stressful future. The School District of Lancaster will need an estimated $1.7 million to put into pensions in just this year alone, and currently have no money reserved. Manheim Township and Octorara also have no money reserved.
Penn Manor’s budget, however, is looking more solid. From the 2009-10 school year through the 2012-13 school year, Penn Manor will need about $4 million for pensions. Luckily, the district has $4 million in reserve funds for this purpose, making them the most well-prepared for the “pension tsunami.”
Dr. Michael Leichliter, superintendent of Penn Manor School District, attributes the district’s preparedness to planning ahead.
“In 2005 [legislators and school districts] projected a big jump [in pensions] to 15%. They assumed the market would get better, but Penn Manor saw that jump, so they started saving,” Leichliter said.
Chris Johnston, business manager of Penn Manor School District, agreed.
“We have had some warning that the problems were coming,” Johnston said, “and have had some time to prepare. But no amount of preparation can help us to avoid the problems we’ll be facing.”
Funding for extracurricular activities or specialized classes may be cut in the coming years.
Although Penn Manor has $4 million set aside, there will still need to be funds generated for future pension contributions. Since taxes for this purpose can’t be increased higher than a state-mandated index, rumors have been bouncing around about increasing class sizes, charging fees for extracurricular activities, and cutting certain counseling programs.
Leichliter said nearby Wilson School District has launched a proposal to charge a flat fee of around $80 to students wishing to participate in extracurricular activities.
Leichliter said that this idea has not been given serious consideration at this time in Penn Manor, but it is not entirely off the table.
He said the money generated from activity fees would not be anywhere close to covering the increases necessary to fully fund the pension contribution. He said the majority of expenses in the school district’s budget are for personnel, so that is where the focus will need to be.
“When somebody retires, we’ll have to ask if they really need to be replaced,” Leichliter said.
Leichliter believes there could be an elimination of some elective classes that aren’t as popular as others. He said there could also be an increase in class size for some classes.
Johnston believes teamwork is what will help make the next few years less difficult.
“The key is to work together with the community and the staff to come up with a solution- there is no magic solution that will make everyone happy,” Johnston said.
Frustration has led many people to severe actions, but none can compare to leaving a baby in a dumpster.
In 2003, Pennsylvania’s state legislature created and passed a law called The Newborn Protection Act. The legislation was created so that any parent could voluntarily relinquish their child to a hospital without any questions asked.
Coincidentally, this was the same year “Baby Allison” was found.
A newborn, given the name “Allison” after her death, was found in December lying in a Strasburg Township burn barrel, according to findagrave.com.
Since then, every hospital in Pennsylvania has become a “safe haven” for newborns. Bassinets are set up in the hospitals and all a parent has to do is lay the child down and walk away; not even names or addresses are written down.
Safe haven laws aim to prevent infant deaths.
An age limit was set a few years later due to problems in some states.
“Nebraska had no age limit, and parents were dropping off their teenagers,” said Susan Savage, an advocate of the Safe Haven Program.
Infants must not be older than 28 days to be dropped off.
The child, after it is examined, is taken to a foster program. As long as the child has no signs of abuse, parents will not receive any punishment.
Since the program was developed seven years ago, the question is: why build up awareness now?
“Our goal is to prevent crisis pregnancy and rash decisions,” said Savage. “Money for awareness [of the program] has run out, but we try to get the idea out every year. The challenge is that as young people are aging, crisis pregnancies are important at certain points in their life and not at other points.”
While it is a good effort, the idea did not spread as well to everyone.
In Sept. of 2007, a baby was found in a trash bin behind the Lancaster YMCA, hidden in a canvas tote, according to findagrave.com. After investigation, it was announced that the baby had died due to suffocation.
Donations from the community paid for a heart-shaped tombstone. The community members named the baby “Mary Anne” and over 100 people showed up to the funeral.
Reverend Daniel Mitzel, who presided over the service, said the baby was like family.
“We immediately felt that baby, as any other member of the human race, deserved a burial with prayer and faith,” said Mitzel.
If you have any questions about the program visit www.secretsafe.org to learn more.
Jordynea Hill gets up at the crack of dawn every morning to have bottles and diapers ready for her newborn son. She’ll need at least 12 diapers for just one day of changing and enough formula to fill his daily needs. Hill is a Penn Manor High School senior who can no longer walk the halls during regular school hours, can’t go to any sporting events and can’t eat lunch with her friends in the school cafeteria. Hill, 17, attends Twilight (evening) school so she can take better care of her four-month-old son.
She’d be the first to say how difficult it is to be a teenage mom.
“Wait as long as you can, till you think you can take care of a kid,” Hill said to teens having unprotected sex.
Unfortunately teens across the country don’t seem to be following the advice that Hill and many other teenage parents are giving.
A national study conducted by the Guttmacher Institute, a non-profit group that studies reproductive and sexual health, showed that the rate in teen pregnancy, that had been on the decline since the 1990’s, is now rising.
The popular teen show “16 and Pregnant” and its follow-up show, “Teen Mom,” are examples of how difficult it is to be a parent at such a young age. Even though the shows are among some of the most watched, many teens just don’t seem to be taking the consequences seriously.
Lashaya Baker, a Penn Manor senior, agrees that teens sometimes rush into sex without thinking of the consequences.
Lashaya Baker stops in the hall to talk to teacher Kathy Kirk.
“Yes, they’re doing it because everyone else is doing it,” she said,
Baker herself is six months pregnant.
In a recent survey at Penn Manor, some students said they were not certain they would always use contraception if they planned to have sex.
Randomly, 42 students were asked to take an anonymous survey about their attitudes toward unprotected sex. These students included all grades and both boys and girls. About three-quarters of the students surveyed claimed they were sexually active.
Although only less than one percent of the population was questioned, the survey results indicated some students were not concerned with the consequences of unprotected sex. Out of 42 students, only half said they were using some sort of contraceptives every time they have sex, if they were currently sexually active.
The students that weren’t sexually active were asked whether or not they would use contraceptives every time in the future. Not all said they would.
“The issue here is clearly that we have a lot of teenagers who are having sex, but they aren’t careful enough at contraception to avoid pregnancy,” said Sarah Brown, executive director of the nonprofit National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy during a recent interview with New York Times.
In the same survey, five out of five senior boys who were surveyed admitted to being sexually active, compared to two out of five freshman boys. Five out of five senior girls said they were sexually active, with four out of five on birth control. Three out of five freshman girls said they are sexually active, but out of those five, none said they were using any type of birth control.
Birth control pills are just one option to prevent pregnancy.
When teen girls were asked whether they would have sex without a condom which can protect from pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, their responses were revealing.
“Yeah, ‘cause I’m on birth control,” said a Penn Manor junior, “If you’re in the heat of the moment it’s just going to happen, you’re not just going to say stop.”
That was a similar story repeated by those in the survey – that teens often decided to have sex without any planning.
That story changed when reality hit for Brittany Scott a pregnant teen at Penn Manor.
“Now I’d probably say ‘no,’ because it’s not worth the risk,” said Scott now 21 weeks pregnant.
Out of the 21 boys that were surveyed, only 13 said that they currently use or would use protection every time they have sex and only 9 out of the 21 girls that were surveyed are on birth control.
Also, some adults in the high school were asked their views on the availability or effectiveness of sex education in school. Currently, all students in high school take a health class where reproduction is discussed but birth control methods are not.
Some felt that schools should not be focusing on just abstinence or prevention, but showing the positives and negatives of both.
“I think if it’s abstinence based, you’re dumb to think they’re not doing it so they should be taught how to be safe,” said Penn Manor health teacher, Stephen Weidner.
“Both, you should have to educate the students with information of sex and abstinence,” said Principal Phil Gale, “It isn’t only a school thing, it’s a parent and school responsibility.”
Teenage students were asked their feelings on whether or not they think people rush into sex without knowing the possible outcomes.
“I think everyone acknowledges what could happen, but I don’t think they use [their knowledge],” said junior Stef Freidman.
Couple walks the halls of Penn Manor
Tara Coulter is another Penn Manor senior who said she didn’t take sufficient precautions and is now dealing with the consequences of being a teen mom.
“Wish it came later,” said Coulter, of her three-month-old son, “People always tell you how hard it will be but you don’t know how hard it will be till it happens. It’s not cool to have a baby until you’re ready.”
“Yeah, even though we learn stuff in health class, people just don’t think before they do things,” said Scott who is expecting her baby this summer.
Paul Chismar, Penn Manor earth science teacher, agreed, “Absolutely, they’re not prepared for the consequences.”
“They think ‘it won’t happen to me’” said Cindy Bachman, athletic director secretary and cheerleading coach.
Acceptance letters may come in small envelopes, but the debt that comes with them is much greater.
Penn Manor seniors are preparing to go off to college next fall, but rising tuition rates for the majority of universities have already been causing stress.
As four of the five most popular college choices of Penn Manor students are increasing their tuition, applicants have to find more ways to earn the extra money.
But were students even aware that the cost was increasing?
“I had no idea,” said senior Zach Levenson, “But I still want to go. West Chester is a great school.”
West Chester University Photo Credit to Daviscrossfield.com
West Chester University will be increasing its tuition cost from $12,229 to $12,704 this year, making a 3.8 increase.
However, Levenson has a plan.
“I’m applying for student loans and scholarships this month. Hopefully it’ll work out.”
Some seniors don’t have to worry about this increasing cost though.
“[The increase] didn’t really matter to me. My parents are paying for all of it.” said Mike Cotich.
Although, if you’re not like Cotich or Levenson, there are other ways to finding a method to pay for college.
“Financial Aid Night is a good thing to do,” said guidance counselor James Yearsley, “but there are always other things you can do.”
Yearsley recommends helpful websites such as collegeboard.com, educationplanner.org, and the guidance office’s Moodle page.
“Besides need-based scholarships, kids should take the time to go to the websites that ask for essays. That’s where there will not be as much competition, because if it takes extra work most kids will stay away.”
And Yearsley stated that this “probably won’t be changing any time soon.”
“There are extra cost of things like air conditioning in dorms, higher quality food, and even some laundry services. These weren’t around years ago, and it causes the cost to go up,” said Yearsley.
Penn Manor’s top five most popular colleges to attend are no exception.
Penn State and West Chester have already increased their tuition, while Millersville and Temple will announce their increases over the summer.
Pittsburgh University is the only school that is actually lowering its cost of tuition, in an effort to help students cope with the struggle of paying for college.
While college may be emptying your piggy bank, there’s still ways to save every penny you can.
It’s course selection time again. Which means it’s anxiety time for students trying to get what they want to fill their empty course slots. But the popularity of some Penn Manor courses frustrates students trying to get what they want on their agenda for next year.
With course selection for the 2010-11 school year right around the bend, March 9 to March 16, Penn Manor students have to take time and consider a variety of courses that could affect their future. The problem for these students is that many of the classes are extremely popular, and there are limits to the amount of students that are able to be in one class.
According to the counseling office, the Penn Manor courses which have the greatest number of students scrambling to get in are:
Social-psych
CP Journalism
Photography
Digital Photography
Criminal Justice
Ag Mechanics
Marketing and Law
Language Courses (Spanish)
Calculus
According to Melissa Ostrowski, Penn Manor guidance counselor, the way that some of these courses are out in the public could be a factor in their growth. When students see their peers carrying around rats in cages (Social-Psych) or stands set up in the cafeteria selling refreshments or merchandise, (Marketing and Law) it can really give people a new view on these courses and interest them.
In social psychology, students train rats to run a maze.
“Reading a description is one thing (out of the course selection booklet), but actually seeing what the class has to offer is a good way to advertise,” said Ostrowski.
Also, when students hear about how laid back the course photography is and how students are able to conduct their own projects and express themselves, photography might seem like an ideal course, according to some at Penn Manor.
“You have freedom to do what you want and you’re not just getting lectured the whole time,” said Kaitie Trout, a Penn Manor student about the photography classes.
When students think about their future and what courses would be best to help them be successful, language courses could really help them complete their path. Spanish, above all languages taught at Penn Manor, seems to be the most popular.
“Since Spanish is the second widely spoken language in our country, kids recognize that and take the course,” said Julie Bibiloni, a Penn Manor Spanish teacher.
Some might think that the Spain trip might add students to the Spanish class rosters, but Bibiloni thinks otherwise.
“I don’t really think the Spain trip makes kids want to take the course, but when they do go on it, the kids tend to take more levels of Spanish afterward.” said Bibiloni.
To go on the Spain trip, students need to pass Spanish I and Spanish II.
Many factors help make these courses popular and make them a lot more appealing for Penn Manor students to take. The teachers that run these classes could also have something to do with it, noted Ostrowski.
“The teachers really build up a great class, and through word of mouth, its reputation grows,” said Ostrowski.
Math courses are also on the rise in popularity. “Students have been doubling up in these courses and trying to get more experience in this field,” surmises Ostrowski. “Math courses are becoming more popular because it appears that is where future jobs will be headed.”
Calculus, for example, is a math class that is on the rise in the number of student requests for it.
According to Bookrags.com, in the U.S. the 10 most popular high school courses are:
Foreign Languages (Spanish/ French)
Painting/ Sculpting/ Ceramics
Drama
Standardized Test Prep Classes
Woodshop/ Engineering Design
Graphic Design
AP courses
International Relations
Concert Choir
Band
Only one of these classes relates or is the same as some of Penn Manor’s most popular classes, Foreign Languages, but they all are courses where kids are “building something.”
Students repair and rebuild small engines in ag mechanics.
In all of these classes (Penn Manor’s most popular courses) the students aren’t just sitting there taking notes. They are all very interactive and that could be a contributing factor as to why these courses are so popular. They also help get students ready for their future.
Principal Phil Gale agrees.
“I’m glad that students are exploring the elective areas so they can prepare themselves for life after high school,” said Gale.
For students who can’t get into these classes, Gale gives advice.
“If students can’t get into a class one year they should just apply for it the next year.” said Gale.
WARNING: This article contains images that may be deemed disturbing or offensive to some. Viewer discretion is advised.
Chew, Chaw, Snuff, Dip- all words for chewing tobacco, all part of Penn Manor’s underground world of dip.
Cigarette smoking among teens declined from 36 percent to merely 20 percent from 1997 to 2007. However, smokeless tobacco use is growing among high school teens across the country.
Penn Manor is no exception.
Students here estimate the use of smokeless tobacco by their peers ranges from 15 to 50 percent of male students in the high school.
Smokeless tobacco use rises among American teens.
According to a representative of the American Cancer Society, national statistics show “more than 13% of all the boys and more than 2% of all the girls surveyed had used some form of smokeless tobacco.”
While the real total may never be known, school officials are not convinced it is a problem.
Penn Manor Principal Doug Eby said that “(chewing tobacco) is not a major problem,” and that he has “only had to deal with it a handful of times this semester.”
Students who use smokeless tobacco, however, are so secretive with their practices, it may be masking how widespread the problem really is. Students spoke to reporters with the request their identities remain anonymous.
“Best way to hide it is to put it in the side of your mouth. It needs to be a small dip,” said one user.
“ I dip in school and spit on the floor,” said another regular chew user.
They are not the only ones at Penn Manor who have used chewing tobacco but managed not to get caught with it. And despite the health risks, many students say the benefits they get from “chew” outweigh those risks.
Students say they use chewing tobacco for different reasons, such as not smoking but still getting that nicotine kick in school.
And there are other reasons.
“I dip because my friends do,” said one student.
“I caught my brother chewing so I started,” said another Penn Manor student.
“I started when I was at (a sports) camp,” another noted.
One student also said that he started dip to try to quit smoking cigarettes, even though chewing tobacco cans clearly warn that chewing tobacco is not a healthy alternative to cigarettes.
Students seem to be able to acquire chewing tobacco despite the age limit on buying it. Photo by Damien Oswald
Chewing tobacco can lead to lesions in the mouth, which can lead to mouth and throat cancer, say health officials.
“There are many terms to describe tobacco that is put in the mouth,” said Daneen Baird, a spokesperson from the Lancaster branch of the American Cancer Society. “Spit, spitless, oral tobacco and snuff tobacco. But the use of smokeless tobacco by any name can cause cancers of the mouth, throat, esophagus, pancreas, gum disease, pre-cancerous spots in the mouth and nicotine addiction.”
Rick Bender, former baseball player and cancer educator, shares his story at UVSC of surviving oral cancer caused be chewing tobacco. He lost part of his jaw to surgeries and chemotherapy to eliminate the cancer. April 5, 2006 Photo by Stuart Johnson
It seems even the deadly diseases that may be caused by the product aren’t a deterrent to dippers at Penn Manor.
“I just don’t care (about the effects),” one student remarked.
“I’m not scared of cancer,” said another chewing tobacco user.
That disregard for the dangers of dip and chewing tobacco follows a national trend documented by Legacy Health, a national reporting organization which has followed tobacco use among youths for the last 35 years.
According to Legacy Health, the perceived risk of using smokeless tobacco products also has decreased in all grades– a troubling trend indicating teens are not fully aware of the harm smokeless products can cause and are also not aware they are not a safe alternative to cigarette smoking.
While kids may think smokeless tobacco is a healthier alternative to cigarettes, it is not. In addition to cancer risks, according to the American Cancer Society, the use of smokeless tobacco also has been linked to heart disease and stroke.
After being shown a picture of a young man with his jaw removed because of chewing tobacco, many users at this school still didn’t have a change of heart.
“I think that (photo) is funny,” said one student.
“I’m quitting right now,” he said as he looked at the gruesome picture.
There were a dozen students interviewed for this story who were not occasional users but who “dipped” at least once a day.
“I use a can a week,” said one of those users.
“A can will last me 3-4 days. The hicks in our school probably think I’m a [wimp].”
“ It takes me two days to kill a can,” another chewing tobacco user said. “ I dip as often as I can.”
School Resource Officer, Jason Hottenstein, explained the school’s consequences for the use of chewing tobacco are the same as for cigarettes. There is a $10 fine for having the product and a $25 fine for use of the product.
Apparently the fine does not seem like a steep price to pay for a kick of nicotine to many students.
“I don’t give a [care] about getting caught, I need my buzz,” a student remarked.
Hottenstein explained that officials have various ways to catch students with smokeless tobacco in school.
According to another medical website, www.cancer.org, while chewing tobacco is less lethal than smoking, it can still be deadly. Tobacco use was the number one preventable death along with high blood pressure. More than 800,000 people died in 2005 of tobacco-related causes.
The facts are out there, yet kids are in Penn Manor have not been deterred.
Would dipping ever come to a halt at Penn Manor?
Said one confirmed dipper, “It’s not going to stop. I can guarantee that.”
With their signature, 16 of Penn Manor’s finest student athletes are on their way to bigger and better competition.
“We are very proud of that and I think it shows where our athletic programs have come and gone,” said Penn Manor Athletic Director Jeff Roth.
Feb. 3 was national Signing Day for high school seniors all around the country. This is the first day senior student athletes can sign the letter of intent that tells the university or college that they are accepting their scholarship to play athletics at that school.
Andrew Hershey signing letter of intent to play baseball at York College Photo by Cody Straub
National Signing Day has grown over the years. ESPN devotes the whole day to recruiting. Many Division 1 athletes let the public know via national television what school they will be attending on that day.
National Signing Day has become a big day for Penn Manor seniors as well.
The first year Signing Day was held at Penn Manor, there was only two participants. This year 16 student athletes participated in the ceremony, second only to the 2009 class which had 17 students sign to play college sports.
“Last two classes have been our best classes,” said Roth.
The class consists of five Division I, five Division II and six Division III athletes.
The recruiting process for most of these athletes started a couple of years ago.
“When we go to big tournaments or get really far in the season like districts or states, a lot of coaches come and watch you,” said field hockey goalie and future University of Shippensburg student Carenna Neely, “You have to be at least a sophomore and they (college coaches) can send you letters, and then right before your senior year they are allowed to call you.”
For baseball player Pat Welsh, who will be attending Division I School Marist College in New York, college athletics became an actuality for him when high school started.
“It doesn’t really start to become a reality until you hit high school and you realize people are watching you and it can really happen,” said Welsh.
For some athletes like Andrew Hershey, who signed with York College to play baseball, they have to get the ball rolling to start the recruiting process.
“It started when I took the initiative and filled out a recruiting form online,” said Hershey.
Hershey had a dilemma though.
“I have (wanted) to go to Pitt all my life, but York gave me the opportunity to study and play baseball at the same time, I just couldn’t pass that up.”
16 of Penn Manor's student athletes signing their letter of intent to play athletics in college Photo by Cody Straub
For Welsh though, he knew Marist was the place for him.
“It wasn’t a tough decision just cause at Marist I felt comfortable, they have a good baseball program, and very good academically, I feel like it was a good fit for me,” said Welsh.
All high school senior athletes have to take into consideration academics, when deciding what school they want to attend.
“I’m good but I’m not sure I’m going to go pro, academics are my fallback,” said Hershey.
In addition to Welsh, Neely and Hershey, the following students signed to play athletics at college:
Pete DeLuca, Jacksonville University, Lacrosse
Jill Witmer, University of Maryland, Field Hockey
Kelly Harsh, Lock Haven University, Field Hockey
Nancy Stehman, West Chester University, Field Hockey
Rachel Hess, Shippensburg University, Soccer
Brittany Lapp, Shippensburg University, Soccer
Ashley Vellucci, Shippensburg University, Soccer
Derek Sauder, Shippensburg University, Football
Forrest Lovett, Colby College, Basketball
Megan Harris, Lebanon Valley College, Field Hockey
Taylor Eichelberger, Alvernia University, Field Hockey
Nikki Kremer, Penn State Berks, Soccer
Shannon Henry, University of Mary Washington, Soccer
