'Some students are surprised that missing couch signs have yet to appear on milk cartons. Our beloved piece of furniture has been stolen from our library but not our hearts. 

Couch Confusion

The previous librarian’s furniture was taken away when she left, meaning when Shanon started working here, she had to buy new furniture with the library’s budget. But it appears the cycle continues.  The couch in the library was a staple, making the space a warm welcoming environment. “Without it…”, one student describes, “the library feels cold.”. When Mr. Grant was asked to talk about the couch for the article he refused, saying not to “make a big deal out of it”. The only comment he supplied about the disappearance of the couch was, “Some students were sleeping on the couch so it was removed.”.

It’s important to address the way the couch was removed. During spring break the couch was taken away. Shannon was provided with no explanation or warning to the removal of the couch. She had realized the couch was missing when senior Andi Tisdell asked Shannon where it was. Shannon knew as much information as Andi did, and was not able to provide her or any other student with an answer. “There was no communication,” Shannon stated. It raises the question on why there wasn’t a conversion between the two before hand on how to solve the issue. The lack of communication had students interpret the action as a threat. 

Why We Should Keep the Couch

Many students are adamant that this hasn’t affected the amount or frequency of their peers’ siestas. Kids don’t just fall asleep on comfy furniture, senior student, Mia Smith stated, “I’ve fallen asleep in every class I’ve taken.” Other students have been spotted countless times sleeping anywhere but a comfy place since the couch’s absence. They sleep on desks, the floor, and even curled up on stools. As senior student Anna Isselhardt asked, “Are you going to take [away] every chair a kid is sleeping on?” Clearly, the answer is ‘no’. It is no question that there is a problem with students struggling to stay awake during school, but why would the course of action to prevent these kids from napping be taking the couch away?

Some students have free periods and are caught up on their school work, so they use their free time to catch up on some ‘z’s. Other students take advantage of the space because they desperately need more sleep. Every student has homework, but paired with hours of sports, extracurriculars, chores, and/or other unknown home-life obstacles, make it difficult to get the required amount of sleep each night to be healthy. Adolescents need eight to ten hours of sleep each night, and some kids simply can’t get that at home. So it should be considered to allow kids to be able to use the couch as a place to rest. But if the school feels strongly about having a separation of home and education then they should try a different approach. Instead of punishing everyone by taking the couch away, they should try to address the problem at the root. One student suggested we implement five minute breaks into each class period like we did during COVID. Another suggestion was to talk to the students who show recurring sleep problems and create a solution with that individual to help improve sleep and better their health. 

Action Equals Change

The library is a safe space for many students. The presence of trusted faculty makes the students feel secure. Taking the furniture away from everyone without notifying them was taken as a threat by some. However one student has taken action Mia Smith made a petition titled, “Petition to Return the Couch to the Library: Student Mental Health Matters” It has filled the front and back of the page with signatures. This petition then started a conversation between Mr. Grant and Mia that resulted in the agreement to take the couch back as long as it is respected and not taken advantage of. If students need to sleep then they are recommended to use the nurses office.

REFERENCE:

Orr, Derek. “Does Your Student Sleep in Class?” Oxford Learning, 23 Mar. 2023, www.oxfordlearning.com/should-teachers-let-students-sleep-in-class/#:~:text=It%20may%20sound%20counterintuitive%2C%20but,academic%20performance%20and%20overall%20health. 

Emotional Support animals help people feel safe and calm if they are afraid or anxious. Emotional support animals (ESAs) are companions that spend time with their owners and help their owners cope with the challenges of emotional or mental health issues (such as depression, sadness, anxiety, and feeling scared which are phobias). They help by making the person feel more comfortable just by being there. Just like sometimes you need someone like a friend or parent to just listen and be there for you.

For example, owning a pet might ease a person’s anxiety or give them a focus in life. If a person is afraid of big spaces or small spaces the dog might help them feel less scared. The dogs can be of any age and any breed.

Mental health professionals, counselors, and therapists prescribe emotional support animals under the law, this means a doctor figures out that a person needs a support animal to feel better. It is important to know that according to Psychology Today's reporter Dr. Hal Herzog, Ph.D., in 2022 the very first study was done at the University of Toledo Ohio through the Social Work Program. There were only eleven participants, but they found that “After a year of living with their ESAs, the participants had considerably improved anxiety, depression, and loneliness scores."

Emotional support animals are not service and therapy dogs because they are not expected to perform specific tasks, like helping a blind person cross the street and they do not need to be trained. They really need to be happy, mellow dogs that don’t mind being held.

Emotional support animals just need to be there to help their owner. ESAs are not allowed in public places. On January 11, 2021, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) moved to no longer require airlines to take emotional support animals. 

The Fair Housing Act does require that most housing units accommodate emotional support animals with appropriate documentation from a doctor.

A service dog, like a guide dog or psychiatric service dog, is allowed anywhere the public is allowed; ESAs are not. For example, ESAs generally cannot accompany their owners into restaurants or shopping malls, but service dogs and therapy dogs are allowed.

This writer knows what it is like to have an emotional support animal. One day I was crying and my dog Pippa came up to me and kissed me to make me feel better. She stayed close to me until I stopped crying.

Student Sentiment Around the Closed Door Policy

Concerns Students Think Should Take Priority

Siblings Charlie and Harper travel from Vermont to North Carolina for a dirt bike training camp.

Charlie brings his friend Hayden along. They’re lining up to practice gate drops. At the start of the race, the gate just drops. 

Gate drops are the hardest part for most people. You have to shift into gear. If you go too soon, you hit the gate. A lot of people crash going out. Everyone is going at once. The beginning of a race is super important because you’re out in front. If you get a bad start, you’re with everyone else. 

Concussions are very likely to happen while riding dirt bikes. It's important to wear all the correct gear while riding to prevent concussions and other serious injuries. Concussions temporarily interfere with the way the brain works. After a concussion, kids should rest from both physical and mental activities until their symptoms allow them to return. 

While you’re riding in 90 degree weather, you’re wearing so much gear, it adds so much heat. 

You’re wearing a jersey, a chest protector and another jersey over. Then there’s the pants. 

Staying hydrated in the 90 degree weather while training is important.

Students all line up and listen to Jimmy. He covers gate drops and the importance of being focused. Doing it properly, doing it right means preventing injuries for yourself and others.

As the calendar flips to April and the weather warms up it’s time to look at the NHL postseason with less than a week away. The regular season ends on April 14, 2023, with the playoffs starting three days later. 

There are four Divisions: Atlantic, Metropolitan, Central, and Pacific. The teams listed below are the top seeds in their Division.

Atlantic Division- Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Tampa Bay Lightning, Florida Panthers 

Metropolitan Divison: Carolina Hurricanes, New Jersey Devils, New York Rangers, New York Islanders 

Central Division: Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild, Winnipeg Jets  

Pacific Divison: Vegas Golden Knights, Houston Oilers, Los Angeles Kings, Seattle Kraken                        

ATLANTIC DIVISION  

The Boston Bruins are the number one seed of the Atlantic Division. The Boston Bruins have pulled off the President's Trophy for the best regular season. If they win this Stanley Cup this would be their seventh time winning. The years they won are (1929, 1939, 1941, 1970, 1972, and 2011).

The Toronto Maple Leafs are in second place in the Atlantic Division. The Toronto Maple Leafs are eyeballing to stop one of the longest-lasting and wacky title droughts. They last won the Stanley Cup in 1967. The other years they have won the Stanley Cup are (1917,1921,1931,1941,1944,1946,1948,1950,1961,1962,1963 and 1966).

The Tampa Bay Lightnings are in third place in the Atlantic Division. Tampa Bay is looking for their fourth cup. After having their two-year streak. on the top of the NHL destroyed last season by the Avalanche. They have won the Stanley Cup (2004,2020, and 2021). 

The Flordia Panthers are in fourth place in the Atlantic Division. They have never won a Stanley Cup. 

METROPOLITAN DIVISION  

The Carolina Hurricanes are in first place in the Metropolitan Divison. They have won the Stanley Cup once (2006).

The New Jersey Devils are in second place in the Metropolitan Divison. They have won the Stanley Cup three times (1995, 2000, and 2003).

The New York Rangers are in third place in the Metropolitan Divison. They have won the Stanley Cup four times (1928, 1933, 1940, and 1994).

The New York Islanders are in fourth place in the Metropolitan Divison. They won the Stanley Cup title in (1980, 1981, 1982, and 1983). 

CENTRAL DIVISION  

The Colorado Avalanche is in first place in the Central Division. They have won the Stanley Cup for three years (1996,2001, and 2022). 

The Dallas Stars are in second place in the Central Division. They have won the Stanley Cup once (1999).

The Minnesota Wild are in third place in the Central Division. They haven’t won a Stanley Cup yet. 

The Winnipeg Jets are in fourth place in the Central Division. They Haven’t won a Stanley Cup yet.

PACIFIC DIVISION

The Vegas Golden Knights are in first place in the Pacific Division. They haven’t won a Stanley Cup yet. 

Houston Oilers are in second place in the Pacific Division. They won five Stanley Cups in (1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, and 1990). For their success in the 1980s, the team has been honored with "dynasty" status by the Hockey Hall of Fame.

The Los Angeles Kings are in third place in the Pacific Division. They won two Stanley Cups in (2012 and 2014).

The Seattle Kraken are in fourth place in the Pacific Division. They haven’t won a Stanley Cup yet.

The Western and Eastern Conferences are scheduled to begin on April 17th, 2023. Stay tuned for future updates.

The project has been pared down to three drilling pads instead of the previous five due to recommendations from the government. This was to keep development out of the caribou migration trails and yellow-billed loon nesting site.

The Willow project is controversial for several reasons. One reason is that this is the biggest oil extraction project under consideration in the country according to consulting firm Wood Mackenzie. Climate change activists are trying to stop major oil investments like The Willow Project to push the world away from oil and gas consumption. With the Willow Project being on federal lands and needing federal permits, there is room for a lot of public interference.

The project's plan is to have hundreds of miles of pipelines and roads, a gravel mine, airstrips, and a new processing facility in the center of pristine Artic wetland and tundra. It's estimated to put 239 million metric tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere during the project's 30-year lifetime. This is tantamount to 1.7 million gasoline-powered cars a year. This means if the Willow project didn’t proceed, then there wouldn’t be any other oil producers who would pick up the slack.

Activists have also been protesting The Willow Project because of Biden's great promises to prioritize environmental protection and to stop drilling on public land. Administration officials said that the law that controls NPR-A and the leases that ConocoPhillips has held since the late 1990s (before the Biden administration took office), limits what they can do to prevent the project. 

Some people for the project think it's a great idea for the economy too. The project can create billions of dollars of tax revenue and economic activity in Alaska. The project can also provide people with jobs. Although some Alaskans think are more concerned with the enviormental factor.

When students and faculty in Peoples Academy High School were asked about The Willow Project, most of them have heard of it, and even more thought it wasn't a good idea. One person said, "As I have family members living in Alaska that rely on the stability of the ocean ecosystem and survival of fish populations this worries me as it could deplete a source of income for many families in Alaska as the fisheries and native species face possible pollution and industrialization."