by Shayla Leach and Brody Dixon

This year, the student population of Southeast Alamance had a global presence with four international exchange students. These students bring diverse perspectives from countries including Switzerland (Lisa Faeh), France (Simon Cremer), Hungary (Hilal Dizdar) and Italy (Gaia Carrara). Beyond engaging in the high school experiences at Southeast and personal growth through creating new friendships, this year's exchange students are fostering an invaluable global perspective within our local community one conversation at a time. The Daily Trot was able to discuss different aspects of the experiences of Hilal Dizdar, Gaia Carrara and Simon Cremer. (read more)

by Brody Dixon

Bring your curiosity and enthusiasm to this year’s Fall play: a theatre adaptation of the classic game of Clue. The iconic whodunit mystery from the beloved board game and 1985 movie is being performed by Southeast’s theater company. 

In the board game, players are tasked with moving around a large manor to determine who murdered the game’s victim. What weapon was used? In what room was the victim killed? These are all questions which are answered by the game’s players as they piece together clues, uncover secrets and realize which of their friends has something to hide. 

In 1985, the classic board game was adapted for the screen as a comedy mystery. The movie adds backstories to the iconic board game characters, creating an entertaining underlying story complete with brilliant comedic relief throughout the film. The film lends itself to a perfect on stage adaptation.

Rehearsals for play commenced September 8th as cast and crew. egan immersing themselves in the delightfully peculiar characters of the screenplay. In addition, the tech crew, an eager group of students responsible for building sets, designing costumes, controlling lighting and more theater technicalities started making the vision of the crew come to life. These students are hard at work creating the mysterious mansion set as well as elaborate costumes needed for a true tale of mystery. 

As an audience member, the excitement of the play is not only in watching it, but solving the mystery yourself. When asked about what audiences should expect in the upcoming play, Mrs Atkins, the theater director, stated: “I really want the audience to, while they’re watching, try to figure out who the murderer is. I definitely think that a lot of people will be surprised at the end, so I am curious about people putting their clues together to see who the murderer is.”

As rehearsals continue into November, the mystery, laughter and mayhem will only intensify as the cast and crew brings the whimsy and secrets to life in a thrilling whirlwind that will keep the audience guessing much as they did when the game was played.

Clue is live on stage this November 14th at 7:30 P.M, 15th at 2:30 P.M and 7:30 P.M as well as the 16th at 4:30 P.M. Solving the mystery is the name of this on stage game.

by Brody Dixon

Just after midnight on October 1st, the federal government officially shut down. Since then, it has remained shut down for over five weeks*. By November 5th, the shutdown became the longest in US history spanning 37 days. The last government shutdown was in 2019 which lasted for 34 days, holding the previous record. The modern budgeting practice was established in 1976. Since that date, the government has shut down 10 times, with the shortest shutdown only lasting one day.

Each year, Congress is responsible for passing 12 appropriation bills. Appropriation bills are proposed laws that allow the expenditure of government funds for national defense, homeland security, education and payments of certain subsidies. However, if those bills are not passed by September 30th, a shutdown begins. Failure to pass the appropriation bills are often due to disagreements among the political parties in Congress and the Executive Branch concerning spending priorities.  Essential employees are also negatively impacted by a shutdown.

When a shutdown occurs, there are certain government services and functions that are halted. National parks and museums are closed during this time, and passport and visa processing slows. Additionally, federal research projects are halted as well. Non-essential federal employees and businesses reliant on government services are most affected by the shutdown. Non essential federal employees include hairdressers, waitstaff, landscapers, caterers and museum workers. 

During a shutdown, certain employees are temporarily laid off and receive back pay when it ends. Services vital to national security and overall public safety continue, but are negatively impacted. Essential federal programs such as social security medicare benefits continue to operate.

Prolonged shutdowns such as this one often shift public opinion. Growing concern pressures both parties to return to the negotiating table and find common ground. The primary debate is over the extension of healthcare subsidies, which are set to expire at the end of this year. Democrats want a permanent extension of those subsidies, while Republicans favor a short term bill to address them. Both parties are set to continue meeting in an attempt to settle the dispute and end the shutdown. 

*UPDATE: As of the publication of this article, the government is currently shut down; however, there is a vote to begin to restart the government in the Senate.

by Brody Dixon

The Hawfields Civitan is presenting its 51st year of the Haunted Forest, making it the longest running non-profit haunted attraction in North Carolina. 

The Haunted Forest is an annual fundraiser for the Hawfields Civitan Club. The Forest features a haunted trail through the woods filled with thrilling scares. One such scare is a dark maze that one must get through during the eerie nighttime hours.

Addison Bennet is a volunteer at this year’s events. As a volunteer, Bennet oversees the creepy aspects of the event. “The Haunted Forest is basically a mixture of different genres of horror,” said Bennet.

When discussing the elements that make The Haunted Forest unique, Bennet expanded on her response. “Things like clowns, insane, a haunted jail, anything horror themed.” she continued, discussing what attractions are included in the forest.” she said.

The Haunted Forest is open for eight frightful nights this year (October 17, 18, 24, 25, 30, and 31st from 7 to 10 P.M), but if you want lighter experience, there are walkthroughs free of scares as well (October 18 and 25th from 2 to 4 P.M). Admission is $15.00, and $2.00 for the no-scare walkthroughs. You can find these hair-raising frights at 2115 NC HWY 119 S at the Hawfields Ballpark in Mebane. 

Bring friends, family members, or just yourself this Halloween season!