Commons Chatter:
PRHS Student
(and Staff) Life
Keeping Covid Off the Court
The challenges Pinelands fall coaches and athletes faced during a global pandemic
by Daisy Nolasco
Covid-19 has been the reason why a lot of events have been canceled around the world. This virus has been the downfall of the year 2020, however, people are trying to make the best of the situation while practicing social distancing. With all the negative surrounding Covid, there still has been a positive: Pinelands Regional student-athletes still played their fall seasons.
To keep everyone safe, there had to be many new rules enforced. Coaches and spectators had to wear masks at all times, athletes had to wear their masks when they were within six feet of each other, they had to fill out a quarantine survey every day before practice, coaches had to take their athletes' temperatures, and athletes and staff had to wear their masks during bus rides.
“It was a little overwhelming. I obviously had to become more organized and sorted every kid a ball. Everyone had to be in their own pod [group]. I put tape and chalk on the court to indicate where the girls could put their stuff. Everything was six feet apart,” Coach Sarah Ervin states.
Even though these rules were put in place, parents were still worried about their children’s safety. Many student-athletes did not come back this fall season. This was the case for Pinelands' girls’ tennis team.
The tennis team lost 10 players this season, however, they gained 7 new players. The tennis team did not have enough players to have a Junior Varsity team. In addition, athletes and coaching staff had to teach 7 new players to play tennis since they never played before. Even with these conditions, the girls’ tennis team still gave it their all to have a safe and fun season.
Although these rules had been placed, there were still some Covid cases within the B-South conference. The Pinelands field hockey team had to quarantine twice during their season.
“When the New Jersey articles got sent out about fall sports, I definitely was praying literally every night to make sure we have a season this year, and I’m happy that we got to have a season this year,” Jamilyn Hawkins confesses.
The field hockey team was supposed to start their season on August 17th but were pushed back to the 24th due to Covid exposure. The girls held their heads high and worked hard through their virtual practices.
The second time these girls were quarantined was toward the end of their season. The field hockey girls had to quarantine for the first two weeks in November. The girls were not allowed to come to school or practice. They had to work on individual stick work at their own houses.
The Pinelands athletes made their fall seasons the best that they could with this new normal. This 2020 fall season was a memorable season for everyone.
This winter season is surrounded by the unknown. With the Covid numbers going up in the U.S., the winter season might not happen. All the winter athletes can do is hope for the best.
Overcoming Technology Obstacles in a World of Virtual Learning
Pinelands IT Department had a big job on their hands this summer and into the school year.
by Paul Fiorenzo
For most of 2020, since the Covid-19’s appearance in the United States, , the c country has taken many precautions to stop the spread of the disease. Most of the country has had lockdowns and mask wearing mandates, along with social distancing, as the most basic precautions that medical professionals have advised lawmakers to take. One of the major steps that several states have taken, including New Jersey, is virtual learning which has students taking their classes from home. This was devised as a way to prevent the spread of Covid-19 through schools. With this new system, Pinelands Regional staff had to entirely rework their teaching style and the IT department had to overhaul the schools’ systems to make it so that the educational process could move forward. . The IT staff had numerous challenges such as bolstering and repairing the network, distributing new and existing ChromeBooks, and installing new technology in the classrooms. The IT staff found the solutions to these obstacles so that students and staff could keep school life going.
At the very start of the pandemic, the district was closed down and virtual learning began, just not in the way it is known now. Once the school shut down, teachers began to post the work that had to be done right on Google Classroom and it had to be completed by the posted time. This had problems, like how questions could not be asked during the class from virtual and the teacher would have to be emailed directly instead. This needed a solution and by the beginning of the 2020 school year when it became certain that Covid-19 would not be a quick problem school and still had to go on. This is where the IT department came in. It was their job to set up the network and figure out how to connect a thousand students.
According to Phil Holman, part of the IT team at PRSD, the first thing that had to be done was to get more ChromeBooks and hotspots because before the start of the pandemic the school would rotate a limited amount of laptops among numerous classrooms. There were not many in the district in total prior to the pandemic, so there was no need to have a large number of hotspots to support the laptops. Holman said that these things had to be acquired to meet the needs of the staff and students. It took a large amount of effort over the summer to set up the network because the Covid-19 outbreak was unprecedented and the district was not prepared.
Holman said that several of the things that the IT staff had to do was connect 700 new ChromeBooks to the system, as well as take apart the ChromeBook carts to prepare them for the new program that the school had started. The IT staff also had to improve the network connectivity so that the internet worked with all the computers and update the routers so that they were stronger. Along with all of this the IT staff also had to set up many things again because the custodial staff would have to clean the rooms thoroughly as required by the state.
Google Classroom is used so that students can attend classes but there were actually a few problems that came with this system. One minor issue ,Holman said, was that when teachers were presenting things such as slides or videos, they were not able to view the students in class to make sure that all of them were participating. Though this was a more minor challenge, there was a more major problem at the beginning of the school year in that the staff had issues that resembled network issues but were not. Holman said it was an issue with the Chrome OS itself. This was not good news though; it was more troublesome to troubleshoot the issue with Chrome compared to just having a network issue. As of now, it was all successfully fixed and the network is in use now with few visible problems.
The more issues the IT staff resolve, the more that keep appearing and these must be dealt with swiftly so that the staff and students can continue school. Holman said that many of the bugs and issues that arise cannot be prevented but must be adapted to. The IT staff must continue to grow and adapt with the system as it continues to update and evolve, so that the challenges that appear, can be resolved. Holman said sometimes the IT staff has to replace network equipment after school and sometimes even on the fly while staff and students are currently using the system.
Holman said that for as long as the system is in use there will be issues, but the IT staff will continue to grow and overcome the challenges presented .
Don't Mean to Brag...But Pinelands is Proud of JAG
This new program at Pinelands offers seniors a jumpstart on their futures.
by Daisy Nolasco
What is JAG? JAG stands for Jobs for America’s Graduates. This state-based nonprofit organization is dedicated to supporting students in becoming successful in their adult years. In JAG’s 40-year history, they have been triumphant in delivering the best results in education while helping students who face significant challenges to help them reach economic and academic success.
JAG State Affiliates bring the data-driven, high-impact program across 1400 middle schools, high schools, and other locations in their states. One of the locations is at Pinelands Regional High School and is run by Maureen Neuner.
Neuner was already one of the Keys to Financial Success teachers at the high school. When she heard about the JAG program at a school board meeting, she instantly knew she wanted to be the one to run this program. The superintendent was already on board since Neuner had the qualifications to run the JAG organization at Pinelands.
“I really like working with kids who are having to make decisions about their life and they’re getting nervous and they’re getting scared. I really like being able to maybe make an influence in where they’re gonna end up in their career or their life or something like that. So, it’s all real life,” Neuner admits.
Neuner is well-known at this school for being kind and helpful to her students and her fellow staff members. She is ready to help and support in any way she can, which is why many people respect her. Neuner was one of the main reasons why Damien Price, one of Neuner’s JAG students, decided to sign up for this course.
Price reports, “It’s Mrs. Neuner. She’s the best teacher ever. She makes the class really enjoyable, and she teaches us very useful information for everyday life. She is also very willing to help students with all ranges of problems they may be having whether it has to do with her class or school in general or even problems they may have unrelated to school.”
Neuner’s JAG class also provides a great place for students to relax or vent about their problems and to be welcomed with open arms which proved to be extremely relieving on a student’s mental health.
The JAG organization is a great program to help students who might struggle in school, might not like school, or might not know what they want to do after school. JAG wants to help as many kids as they possibly can to do well in school, graduate, and then go into a field in which they are interested.
Club Rush
A deeper look at the many clubs Pinelands Regional High School has to offer
by Lauren Tatro
Pinelands Regional High School is known for their exceptional sports and theater programs, but the greatness does not end there. There are a plethora of clubs that Pinelands has to offer, from foreign language clubs to clubs about inclusion for all different types of students.
One of the many clubs Pinelands has to offer is the History Club. The History Club is the perfect club for someone who loves any sort of history as well as important changes in history. A notable piece created by the History Club is the whale mural located on the outside wall of the third floor. This piece takes up most of the wall and is extremely realistic. The whale mural is there as a representation of climate change and how it can be damaging. The club, lead by Mrs. Katherine Poerner, also goes on numerous trips, and even planned a trip to Washington DC to expand their knowledge on our nation's history.
If someone enjoys learning about other cultures, the French Club is a great option. In this club, they look deeper into French and European culture and even celebrate French Holidays. Both of these clubs, as well as the many others Pinelands has to offer, make learning and awareness on important topics fun and enjoyable.
Deirdre Gardner, the French Club adviser says “being able to share [her] love of French culture with students” is her favorite part about being involved in this club.
Pinelands students have amazing experiences within the clubs. Being in Pinelands clubs allow them to be involved in school activities and fundraisers, as well as being active members in the community.
Kenley Pivola, an active member of S.A.D.D. for almost four years, reports, “At meetings, we focus on anti-violence, anti-drug use, anti- drinking, no drunk driving and how to help people dealing with addiction.”
Service clubs (like S.A.D.D) focus on these things and create fundraisers and other activities to help the community put an end to these issues.
For a full list of clubs at Pinelands, please visit Student Services.
Biting Bullet Opinion: Episode 1
Duel of the Fates of our Kids
by Shawn Laning
Disclaimer: The opinions in this article are from one 17-year-old kid who has an active imagination. These views are not the views of the Wildcat Roar or the Pinelands School System.
When this assignment hit my screen, to be honest, I was puzzled by how I could be impartial in an article that directly affects me, as a student. It turns out I couldn’t, so the first installment of B.B.O .comes from the dark, dank, primordial cesspool that is my brain to tackle a complex question. Are the expectations of students by teachers too high and do they negatively affect mental health, or are teachers asking the bare minimum and getting sullen fury by asking for accountability? Is there a happy medium? In this episode of B.B.O, I will attempt to tackle this conundrum and get it down to the 3 counts, brother!
Let’s start with a typical dilemma. In many films which are held up as classic coming of age films like The Breakfast Club, 10 Things I Hate About You, and Grease, there’s a bad boy. Whether James Dean or Brad Pitt, trouble makers are usually the protagonists, despite their bad boy reputations. The reality is that most people who are bad boys in real life are just lazy jerks who would rather ogle an iPhone than work. On the opposite side of the spectrum, kids lashing out could very well be in trouble at home or have mental stuff we all deal with at one point. With so many kids in one school and everybody being special in their own special way, how do you accommodate so many youths? With the hard-working force of teachers willing to spend their time on this earth educating and inspiring the children of today to be the heroes of tomorrow pitted against the culture of school being soul-draining and, by some accounts, pointless, plus with the addition of the teaching of a kid by their mom or pop a kid can truly be anything and it asks the question: is somebody getting a bum deal?
In all honesty, I don’t think picking a winner over who gets it worse is helping anybody because we’re all just people. Nobody should tell you how you feel. Whether teachers feel like no one cares about how dedicated and caring they are, some little street urchin hates them no matter how much time is dedicated to him. Or if you're a kid who tries your damndest to be the best student you can be, who could still get demoralized by one teacher writing your whole class off as miscreants and failures. School is hard for everyone and we shouldn’t fight over who's a “victim. School is not one kid, one teacher, one class. It is the system in America designed to prepare the next generation of citizens for the troubles of life. Though it can always improve, and sure the fries are pure grease and disease, a dialogue is the only way we improve life in school, even in America as a whole. No kid can change the world, but there’s only one world and with the help of a lot of kids, a lot of teachers, and a lot of good people we make the world better.
At the end of the day, no matter what your opinion is, you’re allowed to have it, but, everybody else is too and with dialogue, nothing ever gets done. An eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind. Your opinion is your eye and respect everybody else’s eye. Remember to open a dialogue with your teachers to make sure they're okay in these hard times and let them know if you need help because (in the famous words of Ripley, “Believe it or not!”) most teachers really care.
This is the biting bullet opinion. I’m working on a catchphrase to end it, but until then in the famous words of Walter Cronkite...
"And that’s the way it is".
Congratlations, Senior Fall Athletes! Well Played, Wildcats!
Photo credit: Kamryn Barr
Congratulations, Wildcats of the Year!
Mrs. Sherry DiMeglio
Teacher of the Year
Mrs. Susan Raylman
Educational Service Professional of the Year