November Student Culture
Giving Back for the Holidays
by Lauren Hickson
If you are looking for ways to give back during this holiday season, there are many ways you can do so.
One thing you can do is adopt a family for the holidays. You can do this by going to a local store that has a giving tree or an angel tree, or you can adopt one online at DoingGoodTogether.org.
Another option is to either volunteer at or make donations to a local animal shelter. The website of the shelter you choose will have all of the information necessary to do this; for Johnson County, go to HSJC.org.
Volunteering at a food bank is another great way to give back. At food banks you typically assist with collecting food or sorting and organizing it. Check out Gleaners.org for more information.
Lastly, you can fill a shoebox for “Operation Christmas Child.” You identify the age and gender of the child you would like to shop for, and then send it to Samaritan’s Purse for them to give to a child in need! The shoebox may include toys, clothes, school supplies, or hygiene items. Go to SamaritansPurse.org to get started!
Is a White Christmas in the Works?
by Allison Vavul
With the mild weather we have been having, people are wondering if we will have a white Christmas. I do not think that we will be having a white Christmas this year. The rain we have had hasn’t frozen and we are rarely getting below 32 degrees. According to Fox59.com, six of the past seven winters have been warmer with irregular snowfall. Although, if you remember last year, we got to the middle of February and it finally hit. According to Fox59.com, we had almost eight inches of snow just overnight. At least we may get some snow, even if it’s a white Valentines day instead of a white Christmas.
For those of you who drive, I wouldn’t take your guard down for ice on the roads. There will be some mornings when we get below freezing in the night and leave treacherous roads behind from about 5 o’clock to, at least, 9 o’clock. On your way home watch for water on the roads and be wary of those places the next morning.
With Indiana weather, you should expect anything. I am not 100% positive about this report, but with the latest weather trends and temperature averages I do not believe in the chance of heavy snowfall in the month. If you have lived here long enough then you know that it can be 60 degrees and sunny one day then 25 degrees and snowy the next. I don’t believe that we have to worry about accumulating snow this month but it is definitely something to be cautious about in the next two months.
Student Concern: School Rules
This month, some rules were adjusted to account for recurring issues amongst the student populace. After hearing these rules, some students reached out to the Student Publications team to voice their concerns.
The first concern was in regard to restroom use during IRP. They expressed health concerns associated with not having freedom to use the restroom at will. They described IRP as the “prime time to go” to the bathroom and said they felt like a “basic right” was being withheld from them because of “a select handful of students...doing bad things.”
Is there a way to meet in the middle? If you have an idea or a system that could be used, reach out to your student council members! They are there to act as liaisons between the students and administration. For more information about student council, contact Ms. Eley.
These students also expressed concern over some of the perceived changes in dresscode They feel that some of the language is paradoxical and pointed out that many dress codes stem from religion. The student publications team has a team ready to look further into the dress code and they have already started researching the topic. If you haven’t already, use this link to take our survey over our current dress code!