San Dimas High School

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Around the Horn with Bill Plaschke

Last month, the HS Insiders had the amazing opportunity to go to USC Annenberg and participate in many fun activities. This version of Around the Horn was recorded with HS Insiders debating Bill Plaschke himself.

-- Alison Switzer

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Teens and sleep; it's like oil and water

It's no secret that teens don't get enough sleep. They are practically notorious for their nocturnal behavior. Bleary-eyed and half asleep is how most teachers would probably describe the students in their high school classrooms at any given time. But is it really so that all teens like to stay up late? Or is it that there is something keeping them from getting enough shut eye?

I decided to ask around my school to get to the bottom of this sleep debacle. I asked a multitude of people from around my high school a simple question: How many hours of sleep do you get a night? What I found out is that the answers were around the same number.

It is recommended that people get a good, solid 7-8 hours of sleep a night. However my findings were that students in my high school got closer to 4-5 hours a night. When I asked them to explain why this was I did not get the answer I was expecting. Little to no one answered with the expected "I just really like staying up late!". I found that the more common answer had to do with the amount of homework that needed to be completed, and the early waking time that is required with classes starting at 7:30 a.m.

Many students said that on any given night of the week they will have at least 2-3 hours of homework to complete. It sounds crazy, and that's just the minimum. Not even counting if there is a report or project to go along side it. As students we have to understand that homework is a part of school and we cannot get around it. But what if there was a way that we could get all of that homework done and still have time to relax and get a full night of sleep?

School ends at 2:30 and from there students start their downward spiral. Many students have extracurricular activities that take up to four additional hours after school ends. This puts the student at home extremely late. If they were to return home at 7 p.m., then eat dinner and converse with family it would be at least 9 p.m. before they would be able to start their homework. After finishing their homework it would be 12 a.m. if not later. And with a rising time of 6 a.m. the student would have to head straight to bed after finishing their work just to get a mere six hours of shut eye.

And while there is nothing that can be done about the work load, there is something to say about the starting time for classes. Should classes start later? Maybe 7:30 a.m. is too early for teens to be able to absorb the knowledge they are given. So I asked the question to some of my peers: What time do you think school should start? Most students gave answers around 8:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m.

Maybe they're right, maybe a later start would give teens the time they need to have a proper nights rest and be alert in the morning. Or maybe they would just continue to push and extend their nights even further. Who knows what could work? All we know currently is that bags under the eyes is the biggest trend in high schools everywhere. 

--Mariah Wilson

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The art of saying what needs to be heard

Justice. A tale as old as time, and one of the foundations the United States was built on. Seems like a simple idea, right?

As you may have heard, a court ruling in Oregon last week cleared a man for taking cell phone pictures directed up the skirt of a 13-year-old girl in a Target. The defense confessed, but claimed it was not technically illegal. The court agreed.

When I read this story, my initial understanding was that a young boy took the pictures. Reading on and finding out the culprit was actually Patrick Buono, a 61-year-old man, my stomach dropped.

I was speechless, and even I realize that as a 14-year-old girl that doesn't happen often. Buono allegedly followed the minor into the Target, then "surreptitiously creeped up behind her and stuck a camera up her skirt," Deputy District Attorney Paul Maloney said, according to the Oregonian.

After Buono confessed, he was charged with two counts of invasion of privacy and two counts of attempted second-degree encouraging child sex abuse. Defense attorney Mark Lawrence said that although his client has confessed, "he's not saying it's moral or right."

"He's very empathetic and feels bad," Lawrence said.

What does empathy have to do with it? Is there truly any doubt that this is not moral or correct? Would he still feel empathetic if he had not been caught? When was the last time empathy, sincere or not, solved a problem? While being empathetic is all good and well, it doesn't address the issue.

You can break and shatter a priceless vase, maybe even try to repair it, but it will never be the same.

Now here comes the real kicker. Judge Eric Butterfield, while labeling Buono's behavior as "appalling and lewd," acquits him of all charges, adding that the girl was wearing underwear and therefore not technically nude. Oregon's invasion of privacy statute requires there to be nudity for a conviction.

Buono's lawyer compared this incident to the iconic pictures of Marilyn Monroe's skirt being blown in an updraft. According to him, this comes down to the first amendment; he argued that in public, no one can expect privacy.

To this I must protest. How are the insides of your clothes, your underwear, public materials? As far as Marilyn Monroe goes, not only had she previously posed nude for Playboy in the past, she was an adult woman at the time who knew what was happening and did the act for publicity, not a girl in middle school who was trying to shop with her mom.

Have we completely forgotten that there are laws prohibiting photographing minors without parental consent? Stalking? The entire ruling of this case absolutely disgusts me beyond belief, and as a female, as a human being, I am absolutely ashamed to call these people our authorities, our leaders. There is no justice here.

--Alison Switzer

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San Dimas students demand change

How do you think your food choices affect you? This is a question that San Dimas students have been hard at work answering this month. These particular students are being granted the opportunity to be the first "test drivers", if you will, for a very special project. 

The project? Changing the very food served to them at school. 

Now, the first thought that comes into your head when you think of school lunches is probably not very appetizing or healthy sounding. This is the very fact that these students are inquiring to change. It is estimated that at least 32% of your life is spent at school and working. While the workspace is a little bit more independent with food choices, most schools and universities still serve food that is very unhealthy and expensive. 

 For the past few weeks, students have been approaching the Bonita Unified School District for change. The food itself as well as attitudes at the school cafeteria have already improved just by the attention drawn to it. The only thing I can see from this fact is that until now, very little attention has been drawn to it at all before. Hopefully, the push these students bring to the table will shed a bit more light on the often overlooked struggle of students everywhere. 

 - Alison Switzer

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Asking students about police wearing body cameras

This week, I asked students at San Dimas High their opinions on police wearing body cameras. This topic has been greatly debated recently following the highly controversial deaths of Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and Tamir Rice. Their responses:

"Police officers have the capability of covering up negative actions they do. Cameras on them can help resolve issues and catch officers who are abusing the power they have." -Alex, 17

"I think it’s good that police officers have cameras on their body because it avoids any false accusations." -Cameron, 14

"It could either be good or bad. There could be the issue of them turning it off maybe not even attempting to wear it." -Tai, 15

"It could be good or bad. they could help a lot or they could be an invasion of privacy." -Carly, 14 

- Alison Switzer

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Asking Students About Sony

This week, I asked some students at San Dimas High about the ongoing Sony/North Korea incidents. Here are the opinions of five students.

"It’s very hard to get your mind wrapped around it. If they were to make a movie about assassinating our president, people would be outraged."

"I understand why North Korea got angry, but I don’t understand why they went to such extremes, causing us to shut down their entire country for over nine hours. They know we are more powerful and have higher technological advances."

"This movie proves that no matter where you are in the world, people get irritated when one puts down another nation. People need to realize the consequences of each action we take because it can result to a severe impact."

"I think that it wasn’t a good idea to put the movie out in the first place."

"I agree that it wasn’t a good idea to put a movie like that out about such a controversial subject. The movie could be seen as racist and enforces stereotypes and promotes misconceptions of North Koreans and Asians as a whole. I promise you we’re not all crazy dictators who want nuclear war with the U.S."

-Alison Switzer

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Interview: head coach Bill Zernickow

This week, I had the opportunity to speak with Bill Zernickow, the head football coach at San Dimas High School. In the ten years he has coached, two CIF championships have been won. Retiring this year, Zernickow can easily be called one of the greatest coaches the school has ever had the pleasure of knowing. Here are some answers about his career, his success, and his overall brilliance as head coach these past years.

Q: How long have you been a coach?

Zernickow: 20 years, ten at San Dimas.

Q: Why retire now?

Z: I have little kids that I want to see and grow up a little bit, you can’t get that time back. When they continue to grow up or they want me to start coaching again, I will.

Q: What were some high points of your career in coaching?

Z: Just seeing the kids grow, seeing some kids mature. Some kids that are freshmen that don’t think they’ll ever be a good player, and all of a sudden become a great player, it’s good to see that kind of growth in the guys. That was always a high point.

Q: What were some challenging points?

Z: We overcame a lot of obstacles in terms of our size differential, we tend to not have the biggest guys here at San Dimas, but we had the team that played the hardest. Overcoming that kind of adversity week in and week out was always something we’d laugh about after the games.

Q: Were there any players you liked coaching in particular?

Z: Oh, several. Josh Avila, who graduated last year, was a great one to coach. There were so many guys…I can’t even name, there were so many fun guys to coach. I had some good ones.

Q: What are you looking forward to now that you’re not coaching?

Z: I’m looking forward to not being on a schedule. To be able to do what I want, maybe do some hobbies that I’ve been wanting to do. I’ve never had a Labor Day off in the last thirty two years, because I played and as soon as I was done playing, I started coaching. So being able to go on a Labor Day holiday vacation, being able to go on a Memorial Day vacation, being able to go to a college football game during football season, doing those kind of things.

Q: What are some of the challenges of coaching in general?

Z: I think things are changing quite a bit now. I think there’s a big push for the me generation, people really want to be noticed and it’s about the scholarship, so a lot of programs are starting to coach towards a scholarship and not the championship, which is kind of a sad thing because we want to produce people that are team people in society, because for people in society to succeed they need to work as a team, so that’s kind of a scary thing right now.

Q: What’s the secret of your success in CIF?

Z: Good coaches, good players, in terms of people who know what’s going on. I think longevity is very important to the longer you’ve been doing something, like the freshmen do exactly what varsity has been doing, so once four years hit they’re experts at doing it and they’re going to be successful.

Q: What’s the buildup to the CIF like, with the pressure and the preparations?

Z: I don’t know if there’s a lot of pressure, it’s the most fun part for me, cause it means the most. The preseason games are kind of like “hey, let’s find out what kind of team we have, where we have to go, and what we have to do to improve”. When you’re in league, you have to prepare yourself to get to that spot. It’s the fun part because it’s where it matters.

Q: Do you have any advice for the next head coach?

Z: My advice is to enjoy every minute of it. There will be ups and downs, but if you stay consistent, you will be successful.

- Alison Switzer

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Football: San Dimas vs Baldwin Park CIF 11/14

Protecting the progress towards the second consecutive title of CIF Southern Section Mid-Valley Division champions was the goal, and the San Dimas Saints succeeded against the Baldwin Park Braves last Friday. With the final score 59-20, the Saints have shown potential to become one of the best teams in the district. 

By the end of the first quarter, the Saints had leaped ahead 14-0. Their first touchdown was a 25 yard pass to Josh Aguilar from senior quarterback Andrew Avila. Taking the Saints nine plays to get to the end zone, Manny Elizalde capped the drive with a 33 yard run. Carrying the ball 14 times for 113 yards, Elizalde was not backing down. He scored three touchdowns as the Saints rushed 438 yards throughout the game.  

Spirited by the band, some in the crowd were just as energized as the players themselves. Speaking to band director Daniel Sandt, he said how Saints coach Bill Zernickow told him he wanted the band playing "all the time."

The Saints forced four turnovers in the game. The Braves were able to score on a 12 yard pass from Antwuan Ayers to Raymen Barraza just before end of first half.

-- Alison Switzer. 

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San Dimas High School athletics history

Location: San Dimas

Mascot: Saint

Colors: Blue and Gold.

Notable alumni

Jamie Dantzscher, Olympic Gymnast

D. J. Hackett, former NFL receiver

Athletic history

Baseball

1-A Champion, 1985

Div. IV Champion, 2009

Boys' Basketball

Div. III-A Runner-up, 1992, 1993, 1994

Div. III-AA Champion, 1999

Girls' Basketball

1-A Runner-up, 1985

Football

Mid Valley Champion, 2009, 2013

Girls' Soccer

Div. 6 Runner-up, 2011

Softball

Div. IV Champion, 2001

Div. V Runner-up, 2009

Boys' Track and Field

2-A Runner-up, 1991