Issue 1 2012-2013

janTr TimesCELEBRATING

MILILANI HIGH

YEARSIssue 1 Volume XL www.trojantimes.org August 30, 2012

(L-R): Alumnae Michelle Tsuda and Rachael Ryan, Seniors Malina Reyes, Shelby Nakamura and Alumna Jacycie Ige were offered opportunities to receive feedback on their speeches from professors.

By Shan [email protected]

CONTINUED ON 2

By Ramil Lorenzo [email protected]

Despite having a smaller group compared to other schools, the Family Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) club was able to secure four gold medals out of the five events that they participated in at the national competi-tion, which took place from July 8 to 12 in Orlando, Fla. “I’m extremely proud of (MHS and) our entire state too because ... they practi-cally all got gold medals, except our event,” explained FCCLA State President Senior Malina Reyes, who received a silver medal in the Culinary category of the competition. Gold medal winners

included Alumnae Jaycie Ige and Michelle Tsuda, who participated in the Focus on Children category, Alumna Rachel Ryan, who competed in Job Interview and Senior Shelby Nakamura, who com-peted in Life Event Plan-ning. Having only five com-petitors allowed FCCLA members to be self-directed when practicing for their events. “I think they were good at working on their own, like they didn’t need a lot of guidance, so like they could do things at home, they could do things in class without me having to sit with them and work with them,” explained FCCLA adviser Karla Deguchi, to whom Reyes attributes much of their success.

Trojans impress at summer CTSO competitions

CONTINUED ON 6

CONTINUED ON 6

“Olympic” new teachers

>>> 4&5

By Ramil Lorenzo [email protected]

NATIONALLY RANKED

(L-R): Alumnae Melanie Pacpaco and Jacqueline Fry took gold in the Career Health Display category.

Summer was busy for the Health Occupations Stu-dents of America (HOSA), who had spent their vaca-tion intensely preparing for the HOSA National Lead-ership Conference (NLC) held in Orlando, Fla. from June 20 to 23. With MHS landing one gold medal and placing in the top ten in three other events, their ef-forts had paid off. “I was so glad to see that (Alumnae Jacqueline Fry and Melanie Pacpaco) took home a gold medal,” said former HOSA State President Alumna Brianna Daranciang, who was part of the Medical Reading team, continuing, “I am so proud of all of the recogni-tion that (MHS) received at nationals.”

In addition to Fry and Pacpaco’s win in Career Health Display, HOSA had placed in fourth in the Health Education and Public Service Announcement categories and fifth in Medi-cal Reading. The students had pre-pared for months, studying independently out of class all year. “All year long they’re like putting together things or researching,” said HOSA adviser Candace Chun. Daranciang added, “The day after NLC 2011, I was already starting to read the books assigned for this year’s competition. I also committed lots of time to meet with my teammates so that we could discuss main ideas together even if it meant sacrificing other plans.”

CONTINUED ON 2

Photo courtesy of Alumna Michelle TsudaPhoto courtesy of HOSA adviser Candace Chun

Junior Viola Mocz got the opportunity of a life-time this summer when she attended a trip to the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva, Switzerland from June 16 to 23. Mocz got to experience what being a real scientist feels like while rep-resenting MHS and Hawaii as a whole.

Nine students represent MHS at NHD Nationals

By April-Joy [email protected]

Mocz wins all-expense paid trip to CERN in Geneva, Switzerland

(L-R): In addition to competing, 13th place documentary winners Seniors Megan Madeira and Alohilani Nonies had the opportu-nity to tour around Washington, D.C.

Nine MHS students participated in the Kenneth E. Behring National History Day (NHD) Contest, held at the University of Mary-land from June 10 to 14. The students worked hard to polish their projects, but ultimately, only two placed nationally. “It was super excit-ing; we couldn’t believe it,” expressed Senior Megan Madeira, continuing, “It was the first time we made it to

runoffs. We never got that far before.” Madeira and her partner Senior Alohilani Nonies, who were third-year NHD participants, were awarded 13th place nation-ally in the documentary category for their film, “The 1954 Democratic Revolution in Hawaii.” NHD adviser Amy Per-ruso, who had chaperoned the trip, was proud of the students’ accomplishments. “Every year I’m always impressed by the quality of

Photo courtesy of Senior Megan Madeira

“Like” us on Facebook >>>>>

www.facebook.com/trojantimes

www.mhstrojantimes.tumblr.com

Follow us on Tumblr >>>>>

Check us out online>>>>>

www.trojantimes.org

Index>>>>News...........................2Trojan Life...............3Feature..................4&5Chosen Trojans.......6Sports..........................7Editorial.....................8

Thursday, August 30, 2012

40 YEARS

“Our advisers are re-ally good ... at training us I guess for our competitions, in my opinion, they’re one of the better advisers who take the time to train each of their students,” Reyes expressed. In addition to aid from their advisers, competitors were also able to attend speech workshops along with FCCLA clubs from other Hawaii schools, where they

got feedback from profes-sors. “The professors really give you good advice ... how they helped you and the advice they told you re-ally did make a difference,” explained Nakamura, who is one of only two returning club members. “I’m scared especially for the Mililani chapter because there was only two of us underclassmen,” stated Reyes, continuing, “So now there’s only two of us like returnees I guess, but I’m hoping that now that I went to nationals twice and now

FCCLAContinued from page 1

that I’m state president, I’ll have this experience to take on new people.” Nakamura added, “I’m hoping that our member count will go up after hearing how much fun me and (Reyes) and every-body had this year.” In hopes of larger student participation, Degu-chi has developed a class in which all students are required to complete an FC-CLA project to spark their interest in the club; however it is optional to compete.

HOSAContinued from page 1

Once the students got to Florida, the studying only increased. “(My friends) would ... stay up all night practicing,” HOSA President Brysen Pasion commented. Chun remarked, “They were just exhausted ... When they got there they stayed up kind of late, so all the days there, they’re like practicing and I didn’t know if they would make it.” Despite their exhaus-tion, four teams were able to place in the top 10 in their categories, with Career Health Display taking gold. “We represented (MHS) well at nationals by showing the rest of the nation just how determined we were to place in one of those top 10 spots,” Daranciang said. “When (the Career Health Display) team got called up for at least top 10 I was so happy,” Chun said, continu-ing, “But then when they named them as the first place gold medal winners, I mean, I just never even anticipated (that) ... For me that was the highlight.” With another year of preparation ahead, HOSA members, past and pres-ent, are hopeful and excited for the team. “This year’s team is comprised of very strong individuals who I believe have the ability to lead Mililani forward to a successful future,” expressed Daranciang. Pasion added, “I hope that our chapter this year would ... continue to be more excited and pumped about this year and would, like, do everything to repre-sent (MHS) well at states or nationals.” Chun and the rest of HOSA hope to mirror or even surpass their achieve-ments at the next competi-tion and will be diligently preparing until then.

HOSA Winners

CAREER HEALTH DISPLAY:

CLINICAL SPECIALTY:

HEALTH EDUCATION:

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT:

MEDICAL READING:

FORENSIC MEDICINE:

First Place: Jacqueline Fry and Melanie Pacpaco

Third Place: Teri Kawasaki

Fourth Place: Ashley Aczon, Jae Yun Lee and Lyanne Lu

Fourth Place: Amanda Bejerana, Fejiereich Luz Lopez, Mart Joshua Lopez and Alvin Orense

Fifth Place: Brianna Daranciang, Kerri Niino and Rachel Sakuma

Honorable Mention: Princess Lynne De Dios Myla Pereira, Tricie Steen

Honorable Mention: Kylee Ann Enoki and Toni Mitsumoto

OUTSTANDING STATE LEADER:

NATIONAL RECOGNI-TION PROGRAM:

BARBARA JAMES/PRESIDENTIAL SERVICE AWARD:

Brianna Daranciang

Kylee Ann Enoki

250+ Hours: Kylee Ann Enoki, Jacqueline Fry and Melanie Pacpaco100+ Hours: Alohilani Nonies, Rachel Sakuma and Lauren Young50+ Hours: Danica Quevedo and Tricie Steen

MHS’ SkillsUSA club participated in the national competition that was held from June 23 to 27 in Kansas City, Mo. Although only Se-nior Gabrielle Reznik placed in her division, it provided a great experience. “Just learning how big SkillsUSA is, in Hawaii it’s pretty small, but when you go to the mainland it’s a huge thing ... there were about 15,000 people there total,” explained SkillsUSA adviser Jason Tamura. Preparation for this year’s competition has already begun, as Graphic Design classes are geared to prepare students to have all the skills they need to be work ready.

SkillsUSA

Compiled by April-Joy McCann

Drug-free, cost-free: SPADA sponsors Freshman Dance

To welcome freshmen to MHS, the Students and Parents Against Drugs and Alcohol (SPADA) program funded this year’s Fresh-man Dance. This was not only to make the class drug and alcohol aware with the support of the Hawaii Meth Project and the Drug Alcohol Resis-tance Education (DARE) program, but also to unite the students. “It’s the beginning of the school so any kind of intimidation, I think, is gone tonight because they know this is their school too,” said SPADA Presi-dent Debbie Herrera. Because this year’s event was sponsored by SPADA, admission was free for students. With food and drinks costing around 25 to 50 cents, SPADA made sure that attendees would pay as

little as possible. “You can have a great night, it doesn’t have to cost a lot of mon-ey,” said Herrera, continu-ing, “If it’s free, that just means that more kids came.” The total number of tickets claimed by students came to around 276. As SPADA is a pro-gram that funds events to make teens drug and alco-hol aware, the Hawaii Meth Project set up a photo booth where students could take pictures with anti-drug signs with their friends. “It en-courages (us) so we won’t make the mistake down the road as freshmen,” said Freshman Kyle Chinen. An-other booth was set up by DARE, where Officer Fran-ces Maluenda showed stu-dents the effects of alcohol through impairment goggles. The students were able to entertain themselves not just through SPADA, DARE and the Meth Project’s drug and alcohol awareness booths, but by hanging out

with their friends or with someone completely new. “Since we’re dancing with other people we might meet some new people, befriend others,” said Freshman Chris-ten Madayag. Aside from funding the Freshman Dance this year, SPADA was supported by MHS to sponsor the dance in 2010 and has gained the school’s full support this year. With this support, Herrera hopes to fund the event annually. “The purpose of SPADA is to bring drug and alcohol awareness ... so any time we hold this kind of an event (it) is to give education to parents (and) students and also incorporate a good time for the fresh-men,” said Herrera. After opening up and experiencing unity through the dance, Herrera hopes that the freshmen will become independent and comfortable with their fellow classmen for the next four years of high school.

At the dance, the Hawaii Meth Project allowed students and their friends to take photos with anti-drug signs. SPADA and DARE also had booths that would help students become drug aware.

By Jessica [email protected]

Jessica Fontenot | Trojan Times

Thursday, August 30, 2012

40 YEARS

Running start, Taparra kicks off new school year with creation of MHS faculty running club

Hawaiian Language students take educational trip to Kahoolawe

Not many students take the time to appreciate and give back to the aina, however that is exactly what Hawaiian Language students did from May 23 to 27 on the small island of Kahoolawe. Students also got a unique opportunity to learn about the island’s history in person. “We know this generation is a little bit

different, so for myself I take my students up there just for labor intensive, but at the same time ... we need to figure out restoration ... We all have to give back, and that’s the main reason I take my students to Kahoolawe, to sacrifice their time to do something for the betterment of others, for humans or the island,” said Hawaiian Language teacher Kekoa Wong. During their five-day trip, students stayed at

Hakioawa on Kahoolawe and participated in community service projects such as building a pathway and harvesting native plants. “We harvested uala, which is like sweet potato and (they were) the first crops that were grown on the island, and we were the first people to harvest them so it was like super awesome,” said Junior Mazi Lucas. Not only did students learn about how to give back to the land, but

personal lessons as well. “Kahoolawe teaches you more than what books can teach you, it’s a feeling that I can’t explain. It taught me more about myself, being on the island,” said Junior Kanoelani Ackerly. “I just learned about all the different places on Kahoolawe, because when people talk about Kahoolawe it’s just, ‘Oh yeah, that old island.’ And I learned a lot about what happened there, and how significant it was, and it even inspired me to do my (National History Day) project on Kahoolawe,” said Lucas. Students and teachers also took the time to relax and enjoy the atmosphere of the island. “When you’re on the island ... you don’t think about stress and school and dramas, you’re just in the zone and working on something that’s important,” said Ackerly. Bringing back with them a renewed love for the land, both students and teachers look forward to returning to Kahoolawe.

Cisco Rewiring Over the summer, MHS’ Cisco networking was re-wired, something MHS administrators have been talking about for the past four to five years. “I think the Cisco system is moving towards something that’ll be more consistent and offer educational needs first and then the play stuff later,” stated senior class Vice Principal An-drea Moore. After two years of planning and budgeting, the new network has finally been installed and staff members are able to access the internet more easily.

Compiled by Kelsie Teves

Hey Trojans! Welcome to the 2012-2013 school year! There are a lot of exciting events that are coming up very soon, and with Homecoming Week just around the corner, I promise you’re all going to have an awesome first quarter! On July 31, we had our Freshman Orientation day to welcome the upcoming ninth-graders to MHS by teaching them everything they need to know about life as a high school student. We tried a new format this year by holding sessions that focused on a particular aspect of high school life, and everyone seemed to agree that the freshmen enjoyed it a lot more than the traditional format. Thank you to all of the student volunteers and teacher chaperones that made the event itself possible! On Aug. 3, there was our Welcome Back Assembly! I hope that you all had an awesome time watching the performances, getting energized with “Aristicha” (a council favorite) and hearing about all of our students and teachers who won awards over the summer. Congratulations again to all of the awardees; you represented your school and showed your Trojan pride incredibly well! Hopefully you have all had a great start to the school year, so let’s keep that momentum going! There are plenty of exciting events that are almost here, so get excited! See you next month!

ASMHS PresidentEvan Wilson

This past summer, Advanced Placement (AP) Psychology teacher Judy Taparra discovered her passion for running. Upon her return to MHS, she set a running club for the faculty into motion. “I think that it’s exciting that people can motivate each other, and that people want to do this. It’s great that their intent is to be here,” explained Taparra. Each Monday and Wednesday, about 33 staff members meet at the John Kauinana Stadium track to prepare for their first event, the Great Aloha Run. The staff has been enthusiastic about the new club and many hope to complete the Great Aloha Run this year. “I used to go running and it’s usually easier for me to go with others. It’s typically easier to hold to a commitment when you have others there and it’s more fun when you go with someone,” explained English teacher and club

member Curtis Ogi. For many, this club has given them the opportunity to stay fit and to relax. “It helps promote fitness and camaraderie among the staff and give us an opportunity to take time for ourselves,” explained Ogi. The environment allows participants to exercise at their own pace. “It’s kind of neat because we make our own smart goals. You can walk. You can come for an hour. It’s kind of open,” said Science teacher and club member Iris Awa. The program also allows staff from all departments to relate with one another. “We’ve got a whole bunch of different personalities. We have a nice age range of participants, male, female. Everybody just goes at their own pace,” explained Ogi. Taparra’s consistent support and enthusiasm is an added bonus for members of the club. “(Taparra) is kind of our motivator. It’s really nice to have someone there cheering you on, and I think without her a lot of people wouldn’t go,” Awa said.

With a strong start, Taparra hopes the club will continue to grow and

be a comfortable, relaxing environment for all staff members.

Photo courtesy of AP Psychology teacher Judy Taparra

Photo courtesy of Junior Kanoelani Ackerly

By Cyanne [email protected]

By Kimberly [email protected]

(L-R): English teacher M. Tolentino, Special Education teachers S. Aruga and S. Takashima, English teacher C. Ogi.

Though this was the first time that Hawaiian Language teacher Kekoa Wong went to Kahoolawe, Social Studies teacher Amy Perruso and Science teacher Sandra Webb have taken students before.

By Cyanne [email protected]

From curriculum coordi-nator to temporary assigned (TA) vice principal, freshman class Vice Principal Robin Miller is currently going through the Administration Certification for Excellence (ACE) program. Miller feels that her current position as a TA vice principal and her background as a curriculum coordinator have had a sig-nificant impact on her expe-rience in the ACE program. “One of the things that the ACE program really pushes is instructional lead-ership, which I have been working on for the past couple of years,” said Miller. The ACE program is a two to three-year certification program in which accepted applicants spend two years taking courses followed by one year of job experience in their positions, along with taking college level courses separately. Because Miller is already a TA vice princi-pal, she is required to have two years of job experience rather than only one. As a former curricu-lum coordinator, Miller had learned about the instruc-tional part of schools. “She has a thorough knowledge of curriculum, and I think she has a passion for what she does, and she really believes in some of the initiatives that she’s pushing, like the thinking maps,” said former TA Vice Principal Brian Hirata, who worked closely with Miller last year in their shared vice principal posi-tion.

Being a TA vice prin-cipal has also benefited Miller in the way that it has allowed her to get more experience than if she were a regular ACE student. “She’s fortunate to be in a TA position; some of the people going through ACE with her are still teaching in their classrooms and they’re not getting the experience of a leadership role like she is. She’s really having oppor-tunities to learn and apply her leadership skills here at school,” said junior class Vice Principal Christine Al-exander, who is currently in her second year of the ACE program. Others also believe that Miller’s good founda-tion with the students and staff at MHS will help her become an even better ACE vice principal. “No doubt she builds positive relation-ships with the kids and her colleagues and I think that also adds to her strengths,” said Alexander. Although she has all the benefits of having extra experience, Miller feels that she still has room to grow and learn. “The instructional leadership has been easy for me, but it’s the other part, you know, the discipline and the having to deal with the other aspects of the school other than curriculum, so that is the part that I’m learning about (in the ACE program),” said Miller. With this year marking the start of her time in the program, Miller will still have two years left to com-plete after this year.

Miller joins ACE programClimbing the ladder: one of the 12 qualified ISEF

students selected to go to on the trip. “I was really ecstat-ic ... I was also really hon-ored to be in such a position especially because it was competitive; all the projects that the judges looked at, the students worked hard on with their mentors and it was just at a very high caliber level,” expressed Mocz. Central Oahu Science Fair District Coordinator Nel Venzon, who had helped Mocz with her scientific endeavors, agreed, saying, “Her academic achievement, her project, her assessment, the problem she had to answer and the in-terview, all of them together gave her the opportunity to show that she was qualified to be selected.” On the trip, Mocz went sight-seeing, met with a scientist and analyzed CERN

“It was my dream. Since CERN today is one of the biggest homes for particle research, it’s really the dream of any particle physicist to go there, not just me, anyone,” explained Mocz. Mocz earned this trip through an award she won at the International Sci-ence and Engineering Fair (ISEF), which required her to complete a test involv-ing math, science and specific questions related to CERN and get all the answers correct. Along with this, each student had an on-site interview with two judges from CERN. After the long judg-ing process, Mocz was

continued from page 1CERN

This year, not only did students from MHS get nationally recognized for their achievements in the National History Day (NHD) competition, but a teacher did as well. Social Studies teacher Cynthia Tong was named the 2012 Patricia Behring Teacher of the Year. “(I’m) very surprised ... There are 50 other candidates who are all equally good History Day teachers,” explained Tong. The Patricia Behring Teacher of the Year award recognizes a History Day teacher with outstanding achievements and also comes with a monetary reward of $10,000. It is given at the National

data. With Mocz’s acceptance to the trip, Hawaii contin-ued to show its ability to compete on a national level. “I believe this represents Hawaii in the sense that we can compete on the level of mainland kids and other kids from other countries,” shared Senior Danielle Terukina, a participant from ISEF 2012. Similarly, Venzon added, “It provides our school some kind of recognition in the things that we do here ... It’s an affirmation that the entire state might not be doing (science, technology, engineer-ing and mathematical) kind of stuff but we value that education here.” Mocz plans on entering her project in the Pacific Symposium for Science and Sustainability this year but is unsure whether she will con-tinue it for the science fair.

NHD competition, which was held at the University of Maryland this year. In order to be eligible, teachers must win the state level award, submit letters of recom-mendation and write essays about themselves and their students. Much of Tong’s suc-cess is credited to her teaching style and passion. “She’s intent on preparing for students for the world in which they will live ... and (she’s) energetic; she puts all of herself into her teach-ing,” said colleague Social Studies teacher Amy Per-ruso, who was recognized with the Gilder Lehrman History Teacher of the Year award. Tong also holds a strong relationship with her students that help them succeed. “She’s been really encouraging and that really

helped me reach my poten-tial, potential that I didn’t even know I had. I wouldn’t have gotten so far in NHD competition ... without her support and encouragement,” expressed Senior Megan Ma-deira, who has had Tong as a teacher for two years and attended the NHD national competition the past three years. In order to keep students on their toes, Tong changes her activities every year. “We hardly ever do anything the same way every time,” she said, continuing, “We do a bunch of different activi-ties ... so it’s part of my ap-proach that there’s got to be something that I can hook you with.” Tong looks forward to another successful school year, not only in NHD but in teaching as well.

student work, especially for example in the performance category, and in the docu-mentaries,” she said. The nine students that advanced to this national competition had won awards of their own at the state competition, but many made drastic edits to their proj-ects before proceeding to nationals. “A lot of work went into revamping their projects,” explained Perruso, “A lot of (editing) happened before school even ended, so they had that on top of their regular AP tests and

all that going on.” These edits were done based on judges’ and teachers’ feed-back, in addition to adapting the content and presentation

to better suit mainland audi-ences. While these changes helped Madeira and Nonies place in their category, the

others were not as for-tunate. “The competition itself didn’t go as well as we had hoped. The judges complained that we had portrayed our characters too harshly so unfortunately we didn’t move on. But I know we did the best we could and I couldn’t have been more proud of our perfor-mance,” said Junior Myla Pereira, who was teamed with Juniors Alemarie Ceria and Isis Usborne for their performance entitled, “Punk Rocks the U.K.: How Mu-sic Inspired a Revolution.” Perruso echoed their disap-pointment, saying, “They had brilliant analysis, spot-on performance, and I was upset for them because they

By Reagan [email protected]

didn’t make it to the top 10.” These young historians have now returned home with a new understanding of their potential. “(NHD) gave us insight into ... how far we can go when we work hard,” said Madeira. “We now know our strengths and weaknesses when it comes to creating a performance,” Pereira commented, con-tinuing, “So there will be definite improvement. We’re ready to take home the gold.” With a renewed drive to do better, students and teachers alike are hoping for more success in next year’s competitions.

Tong named Patricia Behring Teacher of the Year

(L-R) Juniors I. Usborne and V. Mocz, Sophomore V. Gustafson, Senior A. Nonies, NHD adviser A. Perruso, Alumna S. Nishioka, Senior M. Madeira, Junior A. Ceria.

NHDcontinued from page 1

Photo courtesy of Senior Megan Madeira

Thursday, August 30, 2012

40 YEARS

Thursday, August 30, 2012

40 YEARS

Recent changes to hopefully bring strong football season

New ideas, new coaches:

Both MHS’ JV and Varsity football teams made new additions this year with nearly an entire new coach-ing staff, bringing change to both teams as each coach hopes to implement their own styles and philosophies. “We’re very fortunate to be on this staff, we just got to do our best and hope we can coach things right and win some games,” said Varsity Offensive Line and Running Back coach Tom Heffernan, who previously coached at Kahuku and Castle High Schools and Saint Louis Schools. The coaches all have a common goal of having players put academics and responsibilities first. “We really try to encourage our players to keep up with their schoolwork and their chores and everything like that ... Take care of your business before you come to football,” said JV Head Coach Michael Honda. Hef-fernan added, “First be a student, then an athlete ... Get their schoolwork down, respect their peers, respect their parents, respect their teachers, respect the com-munity.” Along with their com-mon goal, the coaches implement their own ideas into the game. Receivers coach Tito Sallas, who pre-viously coached at Waialua High School, focuses on offensive players. “I hope to bring out good athletes,” he said, continuing, “The receivers and the quarter-backs have to be on the

same page for the offense to move.” Honda tries to implement ideas from life into football. “I’ve always believed you need to teach to use sports to teach life lessons. Try and extend the hard work and stuff like that beyond the football field,” he ex-plained. Other coaches, like Hef-fernan, emphasize the team’s relationship with each other on and off the field. “Win or lose they have to stay together as a team ... They can play as a team, as a whole, as a family. You never know how far you can go,” he said. Since the new coaches’ ideas have been put into play, it has helped moti-vate the boys to play better. “Our new coaches are all really good ... They have their own style of coach-ing to bring out the best in each player,” said Linebacker and Running Back Junior Dayton Furuta, continuing, “We’re more focused and determined to win than ever. We’re going to change the atmosphere of (MHS).” Upon meeting the teams, the coaches saw much po-tential in them. “They work hard everyday, they listen, they have good attitude, they have good work ethic,” said Sallas. “This group of players has a chance to be a special group, I really be-lieve that. I think as long as we keep working hard, we’ll see how it goes,” Honda added. The boys and all of the coaches, new and old, look forward to a strong Trojan football season.

By Reagan [email protected]

Long awaited John Kauinana Stadium renovations to benefit MHS and community

Jessica Fontenot | Trojan Times

Representative Marilyn Lee recognizes Sharon Kauinana, wife of the late John Kauinana, who stood in place for her husband at the opening ceremony.

Since the start of con-struction on Nov. 11, 2011, MHS had been anticipating the completion of the John Kauinana Stadium’s new track and field. Since the stadium’s completed renova-tion in July of this year, both MHS and those who funded the project hope that the new facility benefits the high school as well as the community. “We waited a long time for this so, you know, we’re just blessed that everything went on time and we’d be able to use it for the foot-ball season,” said Athletic Director Glenn Nitta. A blessing of the field was held on July 20, where the track and field was opened to the public af-ter it had finished being renovated. “It was a thank you to those people ... that were very instrumental in getting the job done,” said Principal Dr. John Brum-

mel. Representatives Marilyn Lee and Ryan Yamane and Senator Michelle Kidani at-tended the blessing, as they were the ones who provided additional funding for the stadium. They also attended the opening ceremony on Aug. 11, held between the JV and Varsity preseason football games. The original funding for the facility had been pre-pared since 2007, when the renovations finally became a high priority for the Department of Education after the senators gave their support. “I think with the amount of youths that the stadium gets, you know, the school needs a facility that they can be proud of,” said Kidani, adding, “But the funding wasn’t enough so this (was) one of my priori-ties last year, to make sure it was there.” One of the main rea-sons the stadium was renovated was to prevent injuries that took place dur-ing rainy football games

that made the field slippery. Now, Brummel and Nitta hope that the new field will raise the spirits of MHS’ athletes and improve their performance. “It’s playing on something that’s compa-rable to Aloha Stadium ... It’s going to give them a great feeling,” said Nitta. After the blessing of the stadium, Varsity football player Senior Erren Jean-Pierre got to experience what it felt like playing on the field. “It kind of gives us a new boost ... It gives you a lot of hype,” he said. The new JV and Varsity football teams were then able to get the full expe-rience of playing on the field in their preseason and season games. Without the worry of injuries due to a muddy field, the community is now able to use the track and field, as the stadium is now open to not only MHS but various high and intermedi-ate school sport teams alike.

By Jessica [email protected]

Shrock starts from scratch: Blue volleyball welcomes new coach

The girls Blue volley-ball team recently welcomed their new Head Coach Jeff Schrock. Since their first practice on Aug. 2, Schrock has worked on building the team’s skills from scratch. “Since we are a new team he makes us work on everything. He makes sure that we know all our posi-tions and what to do on the court,” explained team mem-ber Senior Sierra Carlos.

During practices, Schrock makes sure that each player is proficient in the basics of volleyball like serving and passing. When giving instruction, he tries to make it easy to follow. “What I like about his style is that he breaks down the funda-mentals of the game and makes sure that each girl gets taught the proper skills for volleyball,” explained girls Varsity volleyball coach Piimauna Gora. Schrock also emphasized the importance of teamwork

by having his team do dif-ferent icebreakers. “We did an exercise where we had them write their name and number and each player puts down a positive comment about the player on paper plates and they pass them around to be reminded how important they are to the team,” explained Schrock. Other than improving the team’s skills, he has also been working on the mental-ity of the players. “I learned to adjust to everything that happens, because volleyball

is an unexpecting game and whatever happens you have to deal with it and pull through,” said Carlos. After their preseason games, Schrock hopes to improve their defensive and offensive strategies. While preparing for their first season game on Aug. 29, the team tried out different play formations. “(We were) trying to get everybody involved and not be too pre-dictable on offense. I think we really have a good base right now and we can build

upon that. I know we are a very defensive team and we can keep a rally going pretty well,” he explained. As the season goes on, Schrock looks forward to building and improving the team. “We got a great group of young ladies that are willing to work hard ... I’m looking forward to a great season; I think we’ll do well,” he said. As the team progresses, they hope to improve their skills as well as become closer friends.

By Nathan [email protected]

Thursday, August 30, 2012

40 YEARS

Letter from the editor

My long anticipated senior year has finally come with full force, quickly overwhelming me with a never-ending list of things to be done. I know that what I should be feeling is a constant buzz of excitement and motivation; however, between a part-time job, AP classes and college applica-tions, sometimes all I feel is burnt out. I’m sure many of you have heard this feeling of burnout referred to as “senioritis,” however, what

fuels my lack of motivation towards school is not merely due to the year I’m graduat-ing. I, like many of you, have spent three years stack-ing my schedule with Hon-ors and Advanced Placement classes, pulling all-nighters and entering every academic competition I could. In my underclassman years I was a grade-crazed point junkie who would do anything and everything, all for a high final grade. Looking back, I can’t help but feel slightly disap-pointed in myself. I didn’t care about the means in

which I got the grade or the award, I only sought the recognition and something else to add to my transcript. This is the cause of my so-called “senioritis.” It isn’t just that I’m biding my time before graduation, putting in the least possible effort to do so; it’s actually quite the opposite. What I’m tired of is all the emphasis placed on high school achievements and how they only relate to college. I’m tired of the mindset that if you don’t get into you dream univer-sity, all your hard work and time was in vain. I’m tired

of having my achievements define me. I’m not saying that I won’t apply to college, write my essays and apply for scholarships like any other person would but that is no longer my motivation. What motivates me now is my self-definition. I want to leave MHS not as one who won many awards or who had the most talent but as someone who always tried their hardest without incentive. And more importantly, I want to enter college as more than what’s written on a piece of paper.

By Shan [email protected]

C&CC Welcome to a new school year! We look for-ward to working with the seniors and everyone else who wants information about their post high school plans. The College and Career Center (C&CC) is open to all students, parents and staff of MHS. Services of-fered through C&CC include post-high school planning, processing of college ap-plications, information on financial aid and scholar-ships, providing opportunities for computer services from Career Kokua and coordi-nation of college speakers, ASVAB and PSAT.

General Announcements:Communication: Keep up-dated via the C&CC Bul-letin on Edline. Available scholarships, announcements and upcoming speaker ses-sions are also published in the C&CC Bulletin.

Career assistance: Ms. Kato is available to help you with occupational/college searches, connect you to a military recruiter and will help you with scholarship information.

C&CC appointments: Mrs. Yamamoto is available to discuss your college options. It is difficult for her to see every student therefore, be proactive and come into the office to make an appoint-ment. Everyone is welcome.

College speakers: All stu-dents are welcome to at-tend our speaker sessions. If interested, sign up on the bulletin board outside the C&CC office. Fill out the information on your stu-dent planner. On the day of the session, check into

your class for attendance and have your teacher sign your planner. The teacher has the option of not allow-ing you to attend and you are responsible for all work missed. C&CC will stamp your planner to verify that you attended the speaker session.

PSAT Testing: The PSAT will be administered here at MHS for students in grades 9 through 11, on Satur-day, Oct. 20 beginning at 8:00 a.m. Registration will begin on Tuesday, Sept. 4 through Friday, Oct. 5. The cost is $5 for juniors and sophomores, and $20 for freshmen. Checks should be made payable to Mililani High School. Students must bring their ID and fee to C&CC before and after school, or during recess and lunch. Space is limited. Re-funds will not be given, so plan accordingly.

ASVAB Testing: Grades 10 to 12 only. We will be of-fering the ASVAB (Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery) on Wednesday, Nov. 14 at 1:15 p.m. This is an excellent assessment tool, even if you don’t plan to join the military. Sign up on the bulletin board outside of C&CC.

Announcements for Seniors: Senior English Class Visits: Mrs. Yamamoto will visit all senior English classes in August. If you don’t have an English class or missed the presentation, stop by C&CC for information.

College Planning: Please make an appointment to see Mrs. Yamamoto if you have

questions or need help, es-pecially if you are applying to mainland colleges.

How to Apply to Colleges: Most colleges may have an “apply online” option or provide an application that can be downloaded and submitted in the traditional manner. Even if you do apply online, you need to submit some parts of your application in paper form. For example, teacher and/or counselor recommendations, transcripts and sometimes essays or resumes must be submitted by mail. Applica-tion fees may need to be sent by check if not paid through a credit card. SAT/ACT scores may need to be sent directly from the testing agency instead of on your transcript. So paper or electronic, the choice is yours. Com-plete your applications care-fully, answer all questions asked, write and edit your essay, submit all documents requested and meet all deadlines. Keep a copy of all applications sent and the dates they were submitted.

Testing for Seniors: Sign up immediately! Test dates/sites will close up due to the volume of seniors test-ing in the fall. Don’t forget our CEEB Code, 120-197. Send your scores directly to your colleges. Keep in mind that MHS does not have the “score choice” option. If we send your test scores with your transcript, we will be sending all of your scores. If you are on free or re-duced lunch, fee waivers are available for you. See Mrs. Yamamoto for more informa-tion.

Application deadlines: Ex-cept for those with earlier deadlines, most transcript re-quests or applications should be turned in to C&CC by Dec. 1. Keep track of your application deadlines! A few merit-based scholarship deadlines are in October and many have Nov. or Dec. 1 deadlines. All college ap-plications and/or transcript requests should be turned in to C&CC. We will add your senior schedule and the MHS Profile to your appli-cation packet.

Financial Aid: Continue to check either Edline or the scholarship bulletin board for any scholarship announcements. Use FAF-SA4caster to get an early estimate of your eligibility for federal student aid, and get an early start in the financial aid process. When you are ready to apply for financial aid, much of the information you enter in FAFSA4caster will populate the FAFSA (Free Applica-tion for Federal Student Aid). Go to www.fafsa4cast-er.ed.gov for more informa-tion. FAFSA will be avail-able online starting Jan. 1.

Important Upcoming Dates:Sept. 13: Pd. 4 - University of Hawaii HiloOct. 10: Pd. 4 - University of Hawaii ManoaOct. 20: PSAT at MHS Oct. 23: Pd. 3 - Hawaii Pa-cific UniversityNov. 14: ASVAB - 1:15 p.m. at MHSNov. 16: College/Career Fair at NBC

Compiled by Career andCollege counselorDenise Yamamoto

Editor-in-ChiefShan Yonamine

Managing EditorCyanne Ito

Design EditorJessica Fontenot

Copy & IllustrationManager

Ramil Lorenzo Gonzalez

Video & Photography Editor

April-Joy McCann

Opinions EditorNathan Park

Sports EditorReagan Paz

News EditorKimberly Yamaguchi

Business ManagerStephanie De Juan

AdviserMr. Christopher Sato

PrincipalDr. John Brummel

StaffRisa AskeroothLauren BarbourJacob Balatico Kiana CarantoIreland CastilloAlemarie CeriaTimothy Leoncio

Russell OmoNatasha Parowski

Kelsie TevesMakanalani Yamanoha

The mission of the Trojan Times is to pub-

licize events, share in the successes of students, promote the hard work of the faculty and capture the dedication of organizations.

The Trojan Times is a monthly production of the Newswriting staff

of Mililani High School95-1200 Meheula

Pkwy., Mililani, HI 96789

To voice an opin-ion or any concerns, feel free to submit a letter to L205 or to [email protected]. The Trojan Times reserves the right to edit letters as they see fit. Please type your letter and clearly state your name, grade level and period one class.

Trojan Times