By: Sadie Chapman

Photo by: Sadie Chapman

It’s that time of the year. The flowers are in bloom, the air is finally warming up, and juniors across the country are taking the national ACT exam. All the knowledge they have learned from the past years comes down to this one test that will determine their chances of their college admissions. So much pressure to do an outstanding job, but how can students prepare themselves for the ACT and what advice do they need to score the highest they can?

Mr.Tantillo has never taken the ACT himself, but from his experience of administering the test as our vice principal, he has gained a lot of wisdom on how to guide students to do their best. He stated, “closer to the test, it is good to practice time management and get a good grip on that, but way before the test you want to practice content into questions by doing a little at a time way ahead of the ACT.” To elaborate more, he suggested that as a freshman it is great to start doing five questions every week in a practice ACT book, because by the time of the test you will definitely be prepared.

On March 25th, our juniors at BCECHS took the ACT and many of them have opinions on the test. Jennifer Zheng stated advice for the underclassmen which was, “work on your math and grammar skills, skim the passages, and read the questions before you answer.” Whereas Jessica CarbajalMendez more so gave a heads up by explaining that due to the little time given to complete each section of the test it became more of a guessing game by the feelings of being rushed.

After finishing the ACT, students may start to wonder how submitting their scores with their college application will affect them. During the Covid-19 pandemic, submitting your ACT scores became no longer mandatory for some colleges. Mrs.Handy had advised that, “when you submit an ACT score it becomes part of your application, if you don’t submit it, then they can’t look at it and penalize you.” Therefore, she recommends sending your score if it is beneficial, but not if it is harmful. Additionally, your GPA affects this decision, because student’s with a GPA of 2.5 or lower are required to send their ACT scores with their college application. 

In conclusion, it is important to practice your skills and review content related to the ACT way before the actual test. It is never too early to prepare, but you can always prepare too late. Get ahead while you can, because policies can change and submitting your ACT score could one day again become mandatory. Lastly, do the best you can and don’t panic, it will be okay.

By: Madeline Harrison

Photo by : Caydence Tarman

 Spirit week is a one-week long time where each day, the students dress up to the corresponding prompt. It serves as an opportunity for students to grow closer together and express their school spirit, hence the name, through the different dress-up days. Friendships and bonds between students as well as teachers through Spirit Week have been strengthened on multiple occasions. 

One of the most important aspects of Spirit Week is the ability it has to unite the student body. Regardless of grade level, interests, or backgrounds, students take the time to dress up together and strengthen bonds with friends and the new ones made along the way. Friendships and bonds between students as well as teachers through Spirit Week have been strengthened multiple times throughout the years due to Spirit Week. 

Spirit Week serves as a time that an increase of student participation is seen, since there is a break using this time from the usual routine of wearing normal clothes. A day such as “Character Day” has shown students who dress up the best they can just for the purpose of having fun. This freedom of expression has helped to contribute to a more positive and vibrant school environment, giving students the opportunity to be encouraged to be themselves. 

Students are not the only ones who are allowed to participate in Spirit Week. Many staff follow along as well. This time of dressing up in a positive atmosphere has helped boost morale of students, staff, and anyone participating. Students will be more positive in going to school the next day. Being to look forward to a specific day has increased the desire to attend school the next day.

ECHS’s principal, Denise Absher, approves what is completed over spirit week. Spirit week has occurred ever since and before Ms. Absher has been principal. To her, spirit week is important because it gives students a voice and helps them to build new relationships. Spirit week allows students to have a part in planning, which creates opportunities for adding to school culture. Ms Absher believes that the purpose of spirit week is to build and support a positive school culture, allowing students to have fun. School spirit is impacted positively since it gives students of different grade levels a chance to connect with each other. An example she gave is when two students dress as the same character on character day. Students could connect over shared interests, and become friends, strengthening the firebird family. Spirit week helps, builds, and strengthens relationships. 

Nathaniel Brown, a student of ECHS as well as a member of SGA helps decide and plan spirit week. The number of ideas for spirit week are truly random. Last semester, he says there were 1-2 ideas a day, this semester, there were 4-5. What truly challenges SGA is planning the mid semester celebration that is attached to spirit week. The entire challenge of planning spirit week is determining whether or not the days will be fun or not. The main point, there is no real way to know for sure, which makes it more interesting. The SGA board members choose representatives that they try to make as diverse as possible. So, if multiple groups of people are excited about it a day, it’s likely to be a hit. There are 3 steps to approve the ideas for spirit week. First, SGA as a whole brainstorms options for each day, then the first and second picks are voted for. Finally, SGA leadership approves them and sends them to Ms. Absher for final approval. 

There is no specific criteria for determining whether a theme can be used or not, but an important part to Nathenial, as an SGA board member, is being familiar with school and district policy. So, it's pretty easy for him to tell when something can be pushy, inappropriate, or not the right fit for spirit week. However, SGA operates under a three person executive board so that debates can be easily resolved. Organizing spirit week itself is quite simple according to Nathenial. Once the days are solidified and approved, SGA makes posters and announcements to the school. However, events tied to spirit week can be some of the biggest challenges. 

On October 28th, 2024, we went on a school sponsored trip to one of North Carolina’s many colleges, ECU. It was for a Journalism Convention which I felt gave great information for everyone who attended. Whether it was experienced, or amateur writers. A writer is made into a writer, a poet is made into a poet, but a journalist is a barrage of things. A journalist can be a reporter, a photographer, a writer, and everything in between. A journalist is so many jobs at once and this experience showed me this bright insight of the progress a master journalist could even improve on.

There were 3 sessions,  a lunch break, and 6 hours combined of bus riding. This trip wasn’t to critique every journalist. It was to help spread the world, to get a bigger insight on the true meaning of Journalism. I personally have one experience I remember the most vividly. The 3rd session, which had this man teaching us about writing “killer headlines”. He had a contagious laugh, and he was very critical yet informative. One of the things he said that stuck with me, is how “you need to know your audience. You need to know who it is you’re projecting your claims to.” And from that, my perspective is that a narrative can never be generalized for everyone. If you are going to have any report written, know your audience. That is what this convention taught me. And as I looked at everyone who attended, I was starting to visualize that my demographic cannot be everyone. It had to be people of my niche, people who interpreted writing deeper than the words itself. 

We were provided with lunch, which was Chick-Fil-A. It was good, it was catered from one of the many places on the first floor. There was a Raising Canes, an ECU Bookstore, a Panda Express, a Starbucks, etc. Everything was overpriced, since these were on campus so they were like cash cows for the university. But the kicker was an introduction to me. In North Carolina, there is an organization that is crucial for journalists. It is called The North Carolina Scholastic Media Organization (NCSMA)

 This organization originated in 1936, in Chapel Hill NC. This organization evolved to be part of one of UNC’s Journalism branches, and serves scholastic journalism. It also exemplifies the 1st amendment, specifically freedom of the press. This is shared through the use of workshops, which is exactly what was hosted at ECU. ECU was one of 4 schools that had this event in October. ECU (Greenville) was for the southeast/northeast journalists, UNCA (Asheville) was for the southwest/northwest journalists, NCSU (Raleigh) was for the central journalists, and QUC (Charlotte) was for the southern central journalists. These workshops were vital for any high schooler, admiring the diligence of a true journalist. Yet this convention taught me that within that workshop, we were all journalists. We had dreams of aspiring goals that we wrote down in magazines, websites, yearbooks. We all had a united goal, just through different approaches or audiences.

Overall, I do not regret going to this event. At all. This was a wonderful experience, and I am honored to have been a part of it. I did not just learn a lot about the meaning of Journalism itself, but I learnt about the meaning of it philosophically. We all have a united idea with different approaches. We all have different niches yet a similar goal. To spread our ideas, our motives, and this workshop encouraged me to keep pushing to do so.

On October 29, 2024 at 6pm, Prom Club at BCECHS hosted the Golden Gala Homecoming Dance. The event was held at the Event Center in the Odell Williamson Auditorium. Close to 200 students and guests attended. This was the biggest Homecoming at BCECHS yet! The theme was 1920’s Gatsby-esque. Prom Club spent much time and effort in making this event beautiful and it shows. 

The Royal Court was elected as well at the dance. Each position had nominees. The King and Queen were reserved for upperclassmen and the Prince and Princess were for underclassmen. Mack Hewett and Rachel Danford were voted King and Queen. Ryan Glazebrook and Jennis Day were voted Prince and Princess. The King and Queen had a special dance to Lana Del Rey. 

Overall, there were positive thoughts of the Golden Gala. The gala included food, drink, fancy silverware and glasses, popping music, and a dance floor. Students were dancing, laughing, and seemed to enjoy the event.

Junior Peter Petchrakrai states, “The dance was fun. The food was decent, but the slices of fudge were yum, yum, yum! My least favorite part was how there were not enough tables.” 

Junior Kaitlyn Malpass states, “The music was pretty broad and inclusive and the food was good!”

Prom Club Advisor Erika Foster states, “The Golden Gala was a huge success! Students enjoyed dancing, eating, and drinking sparkling juices!”