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Recent study indicates that colleges should look more at the individual and less at ACT/SAT scores
BY TIM SHEDOR
As low SAT and ACT scores creep into the nightmares of hard-working high school students afraid of being denied college admission, relief comes as a simple solution: ignore the test.
According to a recent report from the National Association for College Admission Counseling, the use of standardized test scores as a significant part of the college admission process is unfair to new applicants. The report rebukes the 60 percent of colleges that attribute more importance to test scores than an applicant’s grades in all courses, essay writing/sample or class rank. It calls for other, more varied alternatives.
The report, issued late September this year, was drafted by a commission made up of members associated with colleges such as Harvard, Georgetown and the University of Connecticut. It discusses the standardized test scores used by colleges to determine aptitude of students before admitting them.
“[The scores] may not be critical to making good admission decisions at many of the colleges and universities that use them,” the report said.
For colleges in Kansas, legislature has ruled that the state schools must attain one of three criteria. An applicant must have a 2.0-GPA in 14 core classes, rank in the top third of their graduating class, or score a 21 or higher on the ACT, or above a 980 on the SAT.
East boasts the best average ACT score in the district, 24.9, a healthy 3 points above the national average.
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East enrollment on a downward trend
BY GRIFFIN BUR
Though school enrollment has dropped from 1983 to 1835 students since last year, administrators say this is not a problem.
“[East] is landlocked and so the possibility of anything like an increase is unlikely,” said Dr. Krawitz. “While we are experiencing a decrease now, I think that the enrollment will plateau here in a year or two.”
Associate principal Steve Loe agreed, saying that though suburban sprawl contributed to the drop, it’s definitely not the only reason.
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Leadership Pracicum class becomes available this year to all students, not just STUCO exec board
BY PHOEBE UNTERMAN
The Leadership Practicum class, which in previous years was only offered to officers on the Student Council Executive board, is now open to all StuCo members. Two seniors, committee chair Amy Esselman and senior class secretary Christina Beynon, are in the class in addition to the Executive Board.
According to StuCo sponsor Brenda Fishman, all the other Shawnee Mission School District high schools offer the Leadership Practicum class to all STUCO members. Fishman believes that the more kids in the class, the faster they can get their work done.
“When you have more of your officers and your committee chairs and your worker bees, then it’s a lot easier to get work done without calling on kids before or after school or on their own time to get things done,” Fishman said
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After a new Supreme Court ruling, juveniles now have a right to trial by jury
BY PAIGE CORNWELL
When the Kansas Supreme Court ruled in June that juveniles had the right to a jury trial, it changed the court system.
More judges and jurors were needed. One to two days had to be allotted for each trial alone. There was an issue of lack of courtroom space.
But for juveniles charged with a crime, the change gave them a new option.
Since the ruling four months ago, the significance of the change is still being felt within the court system. Before the ruling, juveniles had the option of requesting a jury trial, however, the request could be denied. Kansas is one of fewer than a dozen states to guarantee juveniles this option.
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SHARE chairs make the best of the construction by moving the garage sale to the fourth floor
BY ANNIE BERNARD
SHARE is the largest student-lead community service organization in the area. It has runs over 80 service projects and has six students SHARE execs and two adult directors. But what happens to the numbers when you take its largest fundraiser and relocate it to the East halls?
The SHARE garage sale is a fundraiser for SHARE that raises money by selling donated items. It has several goals, from raising money for SHARE to recycling old possessions. Many of the unsold items will go to different groups- coats go to the Johnson County Christmas Bureau and old blankets go to Pet Connect. The garage sale happened on Saturday.
Because of construction, the drop-off location for donations had to be moved from the Spirit Circle to the southeast corner of the senior parking lot.
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SHARE Saturdays give students more chances to get involved with various projects
BY ANNIE BERNARD
The SHARE Birthday Parties project is monthly. The Village Food Pantry project is twice a week. Now, there’s a project that can be as often as once a month to just one time during the whole year- it’s up to the students that participate.
A new development in SHARE this year is the SHARE Saturdays. Once a month, a new project will be arranged and is available to any student that wants to participate. Students will come to the front circle by the library the Saturday of the project. They don’t even have to sign up.
“Basically, the goal is to get kids involved who haven’t signed up [for a project] or aren’t sure what they want to do,” Pat Kaufman, SHARE director, said. “We’ll put signs up around school beforehand… They’ll get a flavor or a taste of [the project.]”
The idea came about when Kaufman heard that many freshmen weren’t getting involved in SHARE. She thought coming up with a project that would be on Saturdays would be a good idea, since it wouldn’t take away class time. Though it’s still in the works, Kaufman estimated each Saturday would be around three to four hours of work.
There are a variety of projects lined up. In September and October, it’s helping out at the SHARE garage sale, and in November, it’s working at the Westwood View Fun Run which raises money for Westwood View Elementary’s Educational Enhancement Fund. Freshman Chloe Ducrocq thinks that SHARE Saturdays are a good idea.
“People can volunteer and help out their community,” Ducrocq said. “But I could be on one more day during the week, maybe, if people can’t do it on a Saturday.”
Kaufman hopes SHARE Saturdays give everyone a chance to volunteer. If SHARE Saturdays attract enough students, they could become more frequent. “All things with SHARE are determined by the students,” Kaufman said. “…If people don’t come, we stop… But if people come, we’ll keep doing it.”
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The College Clinic will be Wednesday from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the cafeteria. Over 200 college representatives from across the country will be present. Additional parking is available at Brighton Gardens with a shuttle which will run every 15 minutes to tand from the school
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