Some of you may not have paid for your ring yet, but Jostens will be returning to North Augusta on March 20, during your lunches for those of you who haven’t paid yet. There is a $50 deposit.

This is how you go about designing your ring:

You choose the basic ring design from the different collections.  There is the Achiever collection, which looks like a classic high school class ring.  Then there is the Heritage collection which looks similar to the Achiever collection but it has a rectangular stone on it.  There is also the Signature collection which has a bunch of different ring designs with them.  You also have the Tradewinds collection which is basically a collection of all of the collections.  The final collection is the Basic collection, which is a simple design.  After you decide which collection, you choose your type of metal. This is really where the bulk of the cost comes from.

After you have chosen your ring design, you choose your ring color and cut.  There are fifteen different colors to choose from.  You have the twelve birth stones, and then you have a white pearl type, a grey stone, and then the black onyx.  After you chose the ring color, you choose the cut.  The first cut is the premier cut, then you have the sunburst cut, the fireray cut, the india cut, and then there is the quadra cut.  Each cut has its own features to it and looks different depending on how the lights hit them.

If you choose a ring design that allows you to have a side design, then you choose your ring side.  There are many different types of sides; you have sports, activities beyond school, future careers, class exclusives, diamond dates, expressions, etc.  Basically anything that involves your life, Jostens has a ring side design for it.

After you decide all of this, you choose what kind of finish you want for your ring, if you want a smooth band or a textured band, and then the inside engraving.  After you choose all of this, you pay for your ring, and then you’ll receive it in October of your junior year.

Parents will use the excuse that you will never wear your ring after high school, so they aren’t going to pay a lot for your  ring.  Let me just say, this is not true.  I have never taken my ring off, other than to clean it or to let others admire it.  I have coworkers who have been out of school for many years who always wear their ring.  I know I personally love my ring, and recommend that everyone purchase one. If, for some reason you get it and don’t like it, you could always either change the designs with Jostens or just pawn the ring.  Senior, Stephen McDaniel says to anyone who hasn’t decided yet, “Buy one because when you become a junior, and get your ring, you finally feel like an upperclassman.”

Why are people buying class rings?  The answers range from, “I thought it was cool and my siblings had one,” answered Sophomore Shane LeDonne, to, ” ‘Cuz everyone was getting one,” said Junior Jordon Barnes.  Stephen said, “I thought it was cool and when I received it, I finally felt like a junior.”

All in all, class rings are a good thing.  Yeah, they can be expensive, but that is why Jostens offers payment plans.  Or offers rings that literally  cost only $60.  Don’t let money be the excuse to not get a ring.  You will regret it later on in life.

On January 27, 2012, North Augusta High School’s Future Business Leaders of America attended Mossy Creek Elementary School under Project TAB. TAB is an acronym that stands for “Teaching Adolescents and Adults about Bullying”. Through performing skits and presenting power points, the FBLA did just that for the students at Mossy Creek Elementary School.

It was the first school out of the many the FBLA has already attended including: Belvedere Elementary School, Hammond Hill Elementary School, North Augusta Middle School, and Paul Knox Middle School.  Mathew Larry is one of the presenters for FBLA and he describes bullying as “an epidemic that is infiltrating our schools”. He expresses that he wants nothing more than to cure this. The visits have been very successful, and the representatives of FBLA have been awarded with a lot of praise. Brandon Abbott, a keyboarding teacher at Paul Knox stated his thanks saying, “They [The FBLA students] were very well spoken and obviously did their research on the topic. I truly believe that the students of PKMS  found value in this presentation”.

Project TAB will continue to make a difference in upcoming presentations to North Augusta Elementary School, on North Augusta Service Network, and through the North Augusta Chamber of Commerce AM Connection at North Augusta Community Center. Will Harley, also a presenter for FBLA, states his personal goal for the project. Coming from a strong-built senior at North Augusta, it’s hard to imagine when he reveals that he was bullied in elementary school. Because of this background the he explains, “Bullying can have a lot of harmful effects on kids, an the idea is to inform them about the types of bullying and how to prevent it. I just want to stop kids from experiencing that kind of hurt”. Certainly the Project TAB can’t fix all the bullying problems in schools. That starts with the student. However, it’s beyond doubt that FBLA has given schools across North Augusta a brighter future.

So where is the Freshmen Academy going to be located? The good news is North Augusta has already designated an area for the academy inside the high school, so there’s no need for seniors and juniors to fret about whose parking lot will be replaced with a giant circus tent. The designated area will be set for all the classrooms on the cafeteria side of 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd hall.

“The freshmen will also have their own set of teachers”, says Mr. Bornscheuer, “The goal is to give the teachers a chance to connect with the students”. Teachers will be able to work as a team while they focus on each individual student to assist them with problems, weaknesses, and the goals they are striving for.

Mr. Bornscheuer speaks from experience. Before coming to North Augusta High School, he was influential in assisting to create a Freshmen Academy as Principal of Silver Bluff High School. Silver Bluff’s Freshmen Academy was the first within Aiken County Public Schools. At NAHS, some teachers have already volunteered to teach. Mr. Bornscheuer confirms that the academy will still offer the Honors Program, and the freshmen can still have the electives that are placed in other parts of the school. The academy will also have a separate administrator and guidance councilor. There is no doubt that Mr. Bornscheuer has planted high hopes on how this will give freshmen a strong start in high school.

Mrs. Carrick, a guidance councilor at North Augusta, also relays her high hopes to parents stating confidently, “I can’t think of why any parent wouldn’t want this for their children”. It’s one of the most important years for high school students. All most all administrators agree that the freshmen year has a major impact on whether an individual student will graduate.

So are there any negatives to the Freshmen Academy? It’s possible some upcoming freshmen may not be in favor of it, but it will give them a benefit they won’t regret. For upperclassmen, it will only be sad to know that witnessing the humorous scene of a senior giving a freshman direction to the swimming pool on top of them gym will now become less frequent. Until the School Board Meeting on the 24^th, the Freshmen Academy is only a proposed program, but plans have been made to make sure that once the school is given a go, they will be able to have the academy ready for next year.

If upcoming freshmen or their parent guardians would like to learn more about this benefit, they can attend the 2012 Freshman Expo on February 13^th. It will be put on by the NAHS Transition Team and the school’s Guidance Department. Besides the opportunity to learn about the Freshmen Academy, there will also be opportunities to get flyers and learn from students about clubs.

For updates on the results from the school board meeting, check this article after the 24th.

Another difference is that in lower level classes, the teachers move more slowly than the higher level classes. I took CP2 Chemistry last year. However, all of my friends took Honors Chemistry.  I noticed whenever they talked about their class, they were talking about things that I had no idea even existed yet.  Then in the following weeks, I was being taught what they had learned a few weeks before.

Now I have Honors Physics and my chemistry teacher from last year is my physics teacher.  I noticed that she doesn’t down talk to us like she did in chemistry.  She now uses “big people words,” something she didn’t do last year in chemistry class.

But if it’s just pace and workload, why do certain students take CP classes when they should be taking Honors classes?  When asked, students have said things from, “I just don’t feel like doing all the work,” to, “I just don’t have time to do the work in my busy schedule.” Junior Pete Sherlock said, “I take CP because it’s less work and I have a very tight schedule outside of school.”  Junior Christian Cox said in response, “I feel as though there’s more work to do in honors classes than in CP, and most people would want to take the easy way out.”

Some students use their extracurricular activities as an excuse to not be in a class because they don’t have time to do the work that is involved with that class. Other students look down on that particular student who really can’t handle that level class, they call them lazy.  “I feel that if students want to take CP classes even though they are smart enough to be in AP classes, because of sports then they are nothing more than lazy,” says freshman Ana Boyd.

The librarians start out the year by doing freshman orientation.  They teach freshmen about the library and how it’s set up, and introduce them to the computers and the proper usage.  They are also teach MLA to everyone.  When the English department assigns their research papers, teachers will bring their students to the media center and the librarians help to teach the students about MLA and how to cite their papers properly.  Freshman Jason Hays says, “Our library is bigger than any other library and helps me when I have a big research project.”

They also sponsor Banned Books Week.  This was during the week of September 24 and October 1 this year.  This is a nationally celebrated week and so the librarians go around and tell people all about the different reasons why books are banned, which basically boils down to banning books that go against someone’s morals.  The librarians also decorate the windows in the library and show some of the books we have in our media center that were banned in other places.  Sophomore Alicia Robinson said, “The library here has a good book selection.”

Next is the Halloween Spook-tacular, which is when any student can come and either tell their ghost stories or they can listen to others ghost stories.  This year, it was on Halloween in the media center during their lunch.

The book club also meets in the media center every month.  Students bring bagged lunches and a book they want to discuss.  It is closed to all the students except the ones who are in the club.  The librarians also supply refreshments.  “It’s a fun time to be had by all,” said Mrs. Wells.

In February, the SCASL, the South Carolina Association of School Librarians, nominate 20 books that are “really good”. The librarians host a party in the media center on a certain day and if you read three or more of them then you are invited and you go and vote on which book is the best.  The librarians give food, and you’re supposed to go during your English class.

In April, the librarians celebrate National Poetry Month by displaying poems everywhere around the school.  The librarians also team up with Mrs. DuFault’s drama classes for a dramatic poetry reading.

The last thing the librarians do at the end of the year is “Libraries Most Wanted.”  This is when the librarians post pictures of people in their windows of people who owe the library fines or books.

The librarians try very hard throughout the year to get students to come to the library and ultimately just read more.  You cannot become better educated if you do not read more and the librarians try to get more students to read and become better educated.  Freshman Seth Rozshyai thinks, “it’s a quiet place that  you can focus in.”

People with more confidence are less likely to get in trouble for something they are doing.  Think about it.  You see someone looking like they should be doing what they are doing, they are less likely to question what that person is doing, why?  You think, they have purpose.  They know what they are supposed to be doing.  But is that really the case?  Sometimes yes.  Other times no.  Sometimes confidence is just a facade people use to LOOK like they are supposed to be doing what they are doing, because they have figured out that the more confident you look the less likely you will be stopped for what you are doing.

Teachers are more likely to stop a student who looks less confident, because of the simple fact that they look shady.   People associate looking shady with you are doing something you shouldn’t be doing at all.  And if  someone in an authoritative position think that you are doing something that you shouldn’t be doing, of course they are going to stop you whether or not if your doing what your supposed to be doing or not.

Confidence is actually used all throughout your life.  Think about it.  You have a job.  You have a big presentation coming up.  What do you need to do well?  Confidence. You need to believe in yourself that you know what you are talking about and that you know exactly what is going on with your presentation.   “I think you need confidence to accomplish anything in life.  If you don’t have it, it could lead you to failing and not believing in life,” said sophomore Jennifer Reese.  Junior Jayson Dobson added, “It allows you to believe in yourself, and if you believe in yourself you can do just about anything.”  Basically you need to believe in yourself to achieve anything in life, isn’t that what we have drilled into our head since we were in kindergarten?  We have had confidence drilled into us since we were young, and we didn’t realize at the time that that’s what was being drilled into us.  Senior Crystal Lunsford says, “You should  have self confidence in your own uniqueness to succeed.”  What exactly is she saying?  You need confidence in life to succeed and achieve your goals.

But what do you do when you are with the NJROTC team? You are either there to be on the rifle team, to be on the armed drill team, to be a part of the unarmed drill team, or you are just trying to get out of gym.

The armed drill team is basically when the students make up a routine similar to color guard, just no flags, and they don’t twirl the gun.

The unarmed drill team is students trying to come up with a routine using only their bodies, kind of like the step team.

The rifle team is students trying to have the most accurate shot with rifles. The most recent drill team meet was the 2010 White Knoll Timberwolf Navy Invitational Drill Meet. The armed drill team won 2^nd place for squad regulations, and the unarmed drill team won 3^rd place for squad regulations.

Junior Gavin Johnson thinks, “You strive to be the best and everyone will be there.” Sophomore Celia Dunstov thinks however, “school teams usually are just for fun and don’t teach much whereas ROTC teaches discipline, strength, endurance, sight, etc.”

Senior Vanda Johnson thinks, “ROTC teaches you how to motivate yourself and others and to always be presentable and pay attention to details.”

The ROTC changed their uniforms this year.They were white shirts with black pants. The ROTC students had to tuck in their shirt wear a belt, and have a straight gig line. For those of you who don’t know, a gig line is when your shirt lines up with your pants buttons. These were the same for the guys and girls. But now there are the tan shirts with the black pants. The girls are supposed to wear the shirts un-tucked and have a gig line. The guys still have to follow the same rules. Wondering what the change is for? Well when the Navy changes with uniforms for the E-6 and below, we change our uniforms as well. So say good bye to the white shirts, they are gone forever!

A Senior member of our Student Section, James Folkert, helped explain what the student section might do to irritate umpires and enrage parents from opposing teams this season. “Baseball is a fun sport, and we’ve got some fun things up our sleeves.”

Living in North Augusta almost automatically makes the average teenager accustomed to the familiar feelings of baseball. The North Augusta Recreation Center holds one of the biggest baseball programs in South Carolina and with many youths of the town literally growing up in these dugouts, several methods have been picked up in order to mess with opponents’ heads.

1. Songs- ranging from classic chants to more modern songs belted out in hilarious accents, there is always a guarantee that stepping up to the plate with a chorus of Lady Gaga exploding behind the catcher will do something to the batter’s game. Unless, of course, the batter is into that kind of thing.

2. Umpire Manipulation- “Nice call, Ray Charles!” “Go back to Canada!” Any of these should work. However, the most effective umpire taunt is probably a well placed movie quote after a bad call. Billy Madison (or any Adam Sandler for that matter) should do the trick.

3. Conversation- Perhaps the funniest form of trickery on the diamond would be trying to talk to someone who doesn’t want to listen. The catcher usually masters this practice. It can really anger someone after they strike out when someone mutters “You play ball like a girl!”

By using these methods and a variety of hilarious techniques, winning games can now be in the hands of the students. One thing North Augusta seems to be good at is making fun of the other team. We succeed in helping other teams lose. But, then again, it would be impossible to win anyway against the NA Doomsquad.

Mike Gilman - A

James Folkert – C

Austin Scott – K

Dustin Griffin – E

Zach Anderson – T

James Miller - S

The Bod Squad is a collection of students loaded with school spirit. Their job, contradictory to most belief, is not to look good and show off theier bodies, but rather to get the rest of the student section pumped and to support whatever sport even they’re attending. It’s usually all senior males. Their job description entails going to every game, tail gating, supporting their team no matter what and getting the rest of the student section cheering the team on.