You are too young to get a permit but yet too old to get discounts and child prices. You are too old to be cute yet they still ask you if you want a kiddie menu.
Old enough to get a job but not old enough to get a good job.
16 may seem close but you are still waiting at least six months more to get your license.
You can’t drive and are envious of almost anyone who can. You want to get a car, pay for insurance, and get gas, but you are going to need a job. In most cases, however, a decent job isn’t an option for a 15 year old kid.
You are of an age where people expect things of you but don’t want to give you the respect you think you deserve and the cute girl in your 3rd block won’t even look your way.
You don’t have the right friends, the right look and you’re not in the right clique.
Your parents don’t love you, your coach is out to get you and you can’t remember for the life of you what an endoplasmic reticulum is.
15 is the epitome of teenage angst and self loathing sorrow. Everybody thinks the world is out to get them and they are the target of every teacher’s cruel joke and that pimple on their nose can be seen from a Google Earth sattelite.
Well get over it. Your life isn’t over and no one is out to get you.
Yeah, you can’t drive but don’t worry you’re almost there and you will be driving your whole life. Yeah, you might not get a great job but who has a great first job. By the way, that pimple on your nose can be treated with a healthy dose of Proactive and that girl in your third block is probably going through a sexual identity crisis anyway.
Working at advanced level classes and at a grade two above where he’s supposed to be, Ben Clark is prepared for the Math Olympiad.
He has been qualified to participate in the American Math Olympiad that only 500 in the nation are accepted to participate in. All this and he’s only 14 years old.
Fourteen and a junior in high school.
Ben Clark, 14, is an accomplished math student at Penn Manor
“It’s nice, I don’t mind being in high school classes,” Clark mentioned, also saying that people treat him better here than they did at his other school.
Clark already finished AP Calculus BC last year while a sophomore, with almost a perfect score. He’s currently taking courses through Stanford, which are Multivariable Differential Calculus, Optics and Thermodynamics, Linear Algebra and Modern Physics.
He’s had several accomplishments in math competitions through the school, including being one of four that placed first out of 32 teams at the George Washington University Colonial math challenge.
Clark also has a part in the Lehigh Valley mathematics team, where they recently placed first at the Princeton University Math Competition. He also qualified for individual finals, where he placed tenth overall in the Algebra Subject test.
“I just really got involved in it when I was younger,” Clark says about his interest in math. He liked math since kindergarten, and has been taking advanced classes since his elementary days.
In the future Clark plans to go to an Ivy League college.
“Maybe Princeton,” he said while also listing several other options.
Clark plans to go to school for physics research for a future job field in the subject.
When you can live forever, what do you live for? New Moon, of course. At least some fans felt this way before seeing the second installment of the Twilight saga.
Kristen Stewart (Bella Swan) returns for The Twilight Saga: New Moon. This time, she is faced with the emotional distress of Robert Pattinson (Edward Cullen) leaving her to promote her safety after an incident with his family put Bella in danger. After they leave, Stewart dives into a role of playing a depressed character facing the difficulty of letting go, while being attached to her best friend, Taylor Lautner (Jacob Black) who ends up being as much of a danger to her as vampires. She can never seem to find a normal person to gain a relationship with.
The three characters above were what made up the movie, more particularly Bella and Jacob. Any character other than those didn’t get much screen time. There were many other figures used in the novel who seemed to dwindle away from existence for the majority of the movie. Even Edward’s time on screen was rare. Team Jacob fans must have been happy.
You can certainly tell that the movie was heavily condensed. After all, it was taken from a 550 plus page book and had to be compacted into an approximately two hour film. They didn’t use their restricted time wisely, however. The movie was rushed in any spot that didn’t involve dramatic effects. For people who enjoy romance, these scenes may appeal to you, to me, however, they cut down on the overall quality. It made the movie a little slow in spots, when I know they left out many other scenes that could have been included.
Twilight fanatics also may be annoyed by the subtle changes in plot throughout the movie. While the movie keeps the basic idea of the novel, a lot of elements were missing, and a lot were thrown in and even more were switched around and put in the wrong order.
The scenes that were tossed in, or overly exaggerated, left out more important ideas such as character personalities. After reading the books and then watching the movie, you can really feel the loss of personalities in the characters. I don’t understand how anyone that hasn’t read the books could fully interpret the characters and their true personalities and roles. Jacob for example, who was humorous and witty for a good majority of the book, seemed to share Bella’s angst too soon in the movie. Perhaps it’s more contagious when on the big screen.
I will give the actors credit. While I’ve heard a lot of critique on them, I liked them more in this movie than in Twilight. I especially liked Lautner’s role as Jacob. He fit the personality well, and fell right into his role with ease. He was certainly one of the best actors on the set, and perhaps his distinct perfection of playing his character is what makes the others seem less fitting. I just wish there would have been more of his character’s fun side, since he made the audience laugh when in his humorous prime.
The aspect of the wolves in the movie also made me switch from being on the vampire’s side to wanting to “run with the wolves.” The whole gang of werewolves did amazingly well in portraying their roles, and provided entertainment that the grave side of the world involving vampires couldn’t. The two forces contrast against each other nicely in this movie to provide several angles of mood.
The movie centered on dramatic romance for the majority of the time. If romance is your thing, New Moon won’t let you down. If drama is a good combination to this, I suggest you go see it. If these don’t fit your favorite categories, I suggest waiting to see it rather than spending the money to go to a theater. Even with the bits of humor, the ever soaked city of Forks left the New Moon characters in cliché romantic moments in the rain and focused on the idea that a rainy city is miserable. Overall, this movie gets 4 stars out of 5 from me, due to its rushed plotline. The characters were enjoyable, the images were excellent and the emotions, while perhaps stressed a little, were played nicely by their actors and actresses.
And no worries, if you didn’t get enough romance with this movie, there is always the release of the third installment, Eclipse in the Summer of 2010.
It’s ten-thirty on a Thursday night; most people are getting ready for bed. You however, you’re getting ready for the big sales.
Black Friday begins in a few hours.
Black Friday is known as one of the busiest retail shopping days of the year. The term “Black Friday” comes from olden days when accounting records were manually kept. Red ink indicated financial loss while black ink indicated profit, thus coining the popular fiscal terms of being “in the red,” (losing money) or “in the black” (profitable).
Penn Points has investigated local sales, and found out what’s hot this season on Black Friday.
Maddie Mull said, “I’m probably shopping for Christmas presents, and looking for sales on fun clothes and boots.”
“The mall scares me,” said Mrs. McMullen, “I will never go to the mall.”
Some Penn Manor students talked about how people get very antsy on Black Friday, because they might miss the deal they want.
One student, Tanya Luckenbaugh said, “I’ll punch someone in the face if I need to.”
Last year on Black Friday the Xbox 360 was the most wanted item. However not one interviewed student at Penn Manor had an Xbox on their mind.
While most students had simple things like clothes in their focus, a few students had high expectations for their finds.
“I’m going shopping for my car,” said Michael Schneider, “I’m looking to spend around $4,000.”
A few stores are opening as early as midnight Thursday, and many great sales are to be found.
Recycling is a simple concept. Turn your unwanted materials into something useful.
But people are getting lazy.
I can’t drive down the road without seeing a cup or a bag lying lifeless on the road. It’s sad and disappointing that even now, with the hype of global warming, people are littering mindlessly, not even giving it a second glance. Sometimes, if there is no one behind me, I will get out of my car and pick up the trash.
It’s disgusting that people think it’s ok to throw their waste on the streets, while those are many of the same people who “oppose” it. The trash we throw onto the streets have long term effects on our planet. From traveling through storm water systems into our oceans and bays, harming and killing wildlife, to having negative effects on our health by the spreading of bacteria.
Not to mention that litter looks repulsive and also takes a long time to decompose.
For example:
-Banana — 3 to 4 weeks
-Paper bag — 1 month
-Cigarette butt — 2 to 5 years
-Tin can (soup or vegetable can) — 80 to 100 years
-Aluminum can (soda pop can) — 200 to 500 years
-Plastic 6-pack rings — 450 years
-Plastic jug — 1 million years
-Styrofoam cup – Unknown
-Glass bottle — Unknown
(http://www.education-world.com)
By just dropping your junk in a green bin you can help prevent global warming, save energy and reduce the amount of harmful toxins released into the environment. Recycling also has economic benefits such as creating jobs and saving money.
So think again before you throw your coke bottle out the window, it will be there for awhile.
Penn Manor School District has one of the most lenient tobacco policies compared to other districts including Lampeter Strasburg, Hempfield and Manheim Township.
“Our policy does not crush you right off the bat but you are aware of what’s coming,” said Jason Hottenstein, high school resource officer.
There are simply bigger fish to fry at Penn Manor. That is the reason Penn Manor administrators use when referring to the school district’s tobacco policy.
The punishment at Penn Manor for the use of, possession of, or intent to see of tobacco policy is a $10 to $25 fine, with a letter sent home to parents on the first offense. The third offense results in a $25 fine, a parent conference and a three day out-of-school suspension.
Hempfield School District imposes a fine up to $50 and five days of in-school suspension. By the second offense, the district calls for ten days of in-school suspension.
For a Hempfield student, the punishment for the third offense includes a recommendation for expulsion to the school board.
Hottenstein believes the current policy that Penn Manor holds is the most fair to the students.
“The only reason I think ours is fair is because there are so many kids that do it, it would be hard to justify giving 5 days (referring to Hempfield’s policy),” Hottenstein said.
Creating a policy similar to Hempfield’s could be challenging at times, Hottenstein noted. “We’d have to have ISS (in-school suspension) in our auditorium.”
Manheim Township School District enforces a $15 fine and three days of in-school suspension for a first offense. The second offense doubles the fine to $30 and includes five days of in-school suspension. A third offense also includes a $30 fine, but changes the in-school suspension to ten days. With the third offense, the district will consider expulsion or a second form of excessive punishment by the Discipline Committee of the Board.
Living Word Academy contained one of the strictest policies in the county, according to their student and faculty handbook: “In the event of use or possession of alcohol or tobacco, the course of action could include suspension, probation, and/or recommendation for expulsion.”
The school also fully explains to its students that they can expect to have their locker, vehicle or person be searched if there is any suspicion. If the administration would find something, authorities are notified immediately, according to the handbook.
At Lampeter Strasburg, the first offense regarding tobacco results in three days of in-school suspension and a choice between a series of after school detentions, or a three-day tobacco education program. The second offense brings a five day in-school suspension and a parent conference. Finally, a third and final offense would result in ten days of out of school suspension and a recommendation to the school board for expulsion.
Two Penn Manor High School secretaries estimate that as many as one-third of Penn Manor students smoke cigarettes.
Another administrator at Penn Manor, Eric Howe, had this to say: “You would be surprised how money out of the pocket is a deterrent.”
“I don’t think five days suspension will stop them from smoking, no policy is in place to deter them from smoking. Once that addiction to the nicotine, they won’t leave them at home, they won’t make it,” said Hottenstein.
Whether or not Penn Manor will follow in the footsteps of other nearby school districts and increase punishments regarding tobacco is still unknown. Until then, Penn Manor smokers will not have the same punishments that many other schools in the area have enacted.
I pulled into a parking spot in the team member parking lot, fake ducks floating in the pond and the fall leaves leaving the trees almost completely bare. I fobbed past the door and began the trudge up the stairs, hung up my track jacket and walked to the time clock. Not much of a surprise to find that I was section two, yet again, I began lining the bread baskets with the tan napkins that always happen to be in twenty different shades.
Tyler Barnett
My supervisor called us for stand-up, which is a version of a two minute debrief that, in reality, turns into twenty minutes of the same repetitive reminders we all hear every day we work. But this day was different.
As usual, I stand there and suddenly I hear the six words that would forever change my life: “The Thanksgiving turkeys have been cut.” And I do not mean cut, as in the birds have been carved and are waiting for our personal enjoyment, but I mean cut, as in we are not getting one at all.
At this moment, my eyes bulged out of my head and my jaw dropped to the floor. My attention shifted, like a goldfish eyeing up the cat, which was suspiciously walking around its fishbowl.
My supervisor went on to explain that with the uncertainty of healthcare, the upper management had decided that they had to make some cuts.
They cut our turkeys.
It was obvious to me that the upper management had underestimated the ability of a Thanksgiving turkey to brighten up our lives. Like the sun to the world, the turkey is a big benefit, especially to part-time employees. A resident appreciation gift, otherwise known as a Christmas bonus, a free birthday cake, and the gift of a turkey are three benefits that employees can claim.
Days later, reality hit me like a meteor crashing into the earth.
Yes, I may be losing my twelve pound turkey, but that turkey only holds the value of twenty to thirty dollars, but the value of better health benefits to those that I work with every night is worth so much more.
Reality can be hard to accept at times. It creeps up behind us and hits like a cold cement block. But reality is something that we all must accept at some time.
While talking to a fellow employee this past Monday, I realized that her health benefits actually included a switch in their health insurance company. Needless to say, the company offered many pros that the previous had not. It is also the health insurance company that my family and I are a part of and we enjoy it quite well.
I have come under the realization that there are times that the world is not fair. Maturity allows us to realize that the world will continue to rotate around the sun, and that world does not rotate around ourselves. The feeling that you have sacrificed something that brings benefit to others is a feeling that more people should experience. And it is that feeling that I will carry in to the Thanksgiving holiday.
In 1991, a man by the name of Four Chapman took over a football team (Bishop McDevitt) that once had a championship-caliber team but by 1990 had become a non-factor in statewide competition. Chapman turned his team around in just four years and made them state champions. Two of those champions were brothers – a tandem force on offense and defense.
Penn Manor football coach, Todd Mealy, is preparing his team for Saturday's game against his broher's team, Bishop McDevitt.
Todd and Tommy Mealy, respectively linebacker and running back, accomplished something that will never be forgotten in the history of high school football. They helped Bishop McDevitt win it’s first and only state championship in 1995.
Almost fifteen years later, these brothers will meet again on the same field. This is the field on which their state championship team played its home games. This time they’re trying to lead their own opposing teams to victory as they face off for the first time since they themselves put on a crusaders jersey.
Todd Mealy became Penn Manor’s head football coach in May of 2007 and helped turn a program without a winning tradition into a team with young, talented players who are playoff contenders.
This past Friday, Penn Manor played at South Western and came up with a big victory to make it to the third round of playoffs for the first time in team history.
“The win was big for the program,” Mealy replied “In the past three years, Penn Manor established a program of consistent winning, and making it one step further than the 2008 season is special.”
Never successful in post-season play, Penn Manor has no experience with this kind of football.
“We have taken this program into uncharted waters,” noted Mealy.
According to Mealy, this year’s senior class for Penn Manor might be the biggest one yet but it also will be one that will be remembered for its courage to never give up or throw in the towel when winning didn’t come easily.
“This is not about me and I don’t want it to be about me, its about our 45 players who put in the long hours and put themselves in this situation,” said Mealy. “One of my biggest concerns is that I want our kids to play at their best, play at their maximum.”
Meanwhile with big brother (Touchdown Tommy) back in Bishop McDevitt as an assistant coach, Tommy is trying to add another district title to the seven that his team already has.
This might seem to be a version of the David And Goliath story. With multiple district championships and a state championship to its credit, Bishop McDevitt towers above Penn Manor in its post season experience.
But even with the lack of playoff experience, Todd Mealy isn’t afraid of facing his brother in competition.
“Whether playing basketball in the driveway, football in the back yard or going after the same girl, we have always been competitive,” Todd Mealy said.
“A competitive relationship is important, helps one grow as an adult and professional,” he added.
Thanksgiving dinner this year might be a little out of the ordinary since the two coaches won’t be able to talk about their game-time situations.
The most difficult thing this Thanksgiving weekend will be which side of the football stadium, the Mealy parents will sit on and which son to cheer for. That alone might stir up some competitive spirit between the brothers as they munch on turkey and yams.
But Mealy is focused on the future as well as the upcoming game.
“I’m grateful to be in this situation, to lead young men onto success. I’m happy with the fact that this coaching staff is giving these kids something to remember for the rest of their lives.”
The Penn Manor vs. Bishop McDevitt District III Semi-final football game will be played this Saturday at 1:00 pm at Harrisburg High School’s Severance Field, 2451 Market St., Harrisburg, PA, 17103. Tickets will be on sale at Penn Manor High School Tuesday and Wednesday from 9-11am and 1-3 pm in the High School Main Office and 11 am – 1 pm at lunch. Ticket prices are $5 adult and $3 student. All tickets will be $5 at the gate.
No matter what the policy, students will always keep their cell phones close at hand. It may seem to the school board that they can do something about the ongoing texting spree that occurs in classrooms of high schools all across America, but the students feel differently. Right now Dr. Leichlieter is examining the cell phone policy and considering loosening the rules on cell phones in school.
Texting isn’t necessarily the most dangerous thing students can be doing in their learning environment. Being a high school student, I know that I am perfectly capable of learning while texting. I do agree that while a teacher is speaking it may be rude to pull out your phone and text, but that isn’t the only time that texting is taking place. Many students walk in the halls, and in order not to be rude by pulling their phone out during class, they wait until the opportune time between classes. However, even though these students have attempted to be kind to their teachers and wait, the teachers will just turn around and snag your phone from you will while you’re walking in the hall.
Is that really necessary? Is it really that big of a deal that students may have something to say to each other while between classes? After all, our generation is known for being the most adjusted to technology, so this shouldn’t be taken away from us. Technology is definitely a large part of my life in many aspects. I know that many adults may look down on texting, or not approve of it in some sort of protest on the dependency on technology.
But many of us are well-aware that texting is not the only use of a cell phone that students may be taking advantage of. Many cell phones have a calculator or calendar that will come in handy during class time. There have been many times where I haven’t had a calculator but I’ve had my cell phone right in my pocket, and I’ve attempted to use it. Some teachers understand that this is not big deal however other teachers act as though you’ve just committed a felony and the world is going to end when they see you slide open your phone and press a few keys.
Technology is coming into schools from all angles, from the smart boards, to new computers, and new software available to students. It would only be logical to allow a high school student’s favorite technology to be allowed into their school. There are many advantages to cell phones, especially many of the newer models, and having them in school may be beneficial. Cell phones include applications such as calendars, calculators, timers, the internet and its many sources, and video recording (which could be used during an experiment in a science class or any other important events).
Personally, I think that if students were granted the opportunity to use their cell phones in school, they would not exploit the new privilege. I believe that many students would still be somewhat respectful and not go completely crazy with the new rule. The administration might as well recognize that no matter what they do, students are going to text in school, it’s just the question of whether or not they have been allowed to do so. Until Penn Manor decides to lighten up on their cell phone policy, they will be stock-piling cell phones in the office until the end of time.
