Lily Brown | Staff Writer
December 1, 2019

Our school boasts many teachers with amazing talents. Mr. Wes Lacaze and Mr. William Ferris are avid surfers. Mrs. Sharon Stellmach makes her own essential oils. Mrs. Summer Cozzens and Mr. Lee Cooper are accomplished musicians. Featured here are three of our teachers who are published authors.

Mr. Jason Borte

“In the beginning, I wrote because I had a family and needed to make money, and I enjoyed writing so much that it never felt like work,” said Technology Foundations teacher, Jason Borte. “That’s what you look for in a career.”

Borte was 25 the first time he thought about professionally writing. 

“It always came easy to me in school, like I’d wait until the last minute to write a paper and get a decent grade,” said Borte. 

When he wrote articles for surf magazines, and they started to pay him to travel the world, he realized that it was an “incredible way to make a living.”

 “I started writing for surf magazines in the ‘90s when I finished college,” said Borte. 

His work- in addition to articles in surf magazines- includes his two books, Pipe Dreams- the autobiography of Kelly Slater, “The greatest surfer ever” and The Kooks Guide to Surfing, which are available on Amazon and in libraries. 

Pipe Dreams tells the story of six-time world surfing champion Kelly Slater’s triumph over adversity. The Kooks Guide to Surfing is a comic guide to surfing. A “kook” is “one of those guys on surfboards who just don’t get it yet” according to the book.

Borte also has a blog named, How Surfing Ruined My Life, but he hasn’t been updating it recently.

“I obviously don’t think it ruined my life; it’s still my favorite thing in the world,” said Borte. 

Borte says he has a lot of ideas for future writing, but he is finding it difficult to find time to write. 

NJROTC CWO, Ronald J McMiller Jr

NJROTC CWO, Ronald J McMiller Jr has published three books.

“My books are memoirs,” said McMiller. 

He originally started writing by accident and just kept going. 

“When you’ve got a story of your own don’t just start writing, it takes time; it’s a legacy that you leave for generations and generations and if that’s what you want to do, then write it,” said McMiller.

It took him about a year to write his first book titled My 34 Day Memoir of Haiti; he wrote it on a Blackberry telephone.

It was “day-by-day activities in Haiti during the earthquake,” said McMiller. 

My 34 Day Memoir of Haiti ended up being published in 2010 in 20 different countries. 

He also has another book called, Chicago Developed Me: The Navy Made Me a Man.

This book’s description on Amazon says this about the book: “Ron was raised by two families, his mother, and his street family." He writes about his near-life-changing events that have not allowed him to be deterred by his background with its attendant history of poverty, violence, and lawlessness.

He writes about how his battles were not of weapons, but the mind, challenging himself that nothing is impossible. His tour in the Navy made him a man as he writes about the countries, leaders, and mentors that have helped shape and mold him into the man he is today.”  

Chicago Developed Me: The Navy Made Me a Man is a memoir that hits home and shows McMiller’s true love for his country and family.

McMiller’s third book, Empowerment Through Creativity is about traveling the world which was a lifelong dream of McMiller. 

“I have experienced a lot in terms of the experiences in these countries and cities that I have visited through the years,” said McMiller. 

“Cultural awareness is one of the most important aspects that I have been able to learn and hence I have come to a realization that indeed different cities from different countries have uniqueness when it comes to art, food, sculpture, and the people. In this regard, lifestyles, and the general way of life varies from one city to the other. Empowerment through Creativity is a book of short stories and art that I have had the honor of collecting through my years of traveling.”

Mrs. Kathleen Trace

English teacher, Kathleen Trace has always loved writing. 

“As soon as I was able to write sentences, I was writing stories,” said Trace. 

She started writing her first novel in 2003 during a novel writing class at William and Mary. In 2008, she spent a summer studying creative writing at Oxford and vowed to finish the novel, which she did.

“Writing is a labor of love. Even if no one else ever sees your work, there is beauty in writing it,” said Trace. 

It took her 10 years to envision, write, revise, and publish her novel Have Mercy. 

The teaser on the back of Have Mercy reads: “People, their oddities and their ordinariness, fascinate Samantha. She is completing her doctorate in neuro-psychology when she takes on the clinical study of Maria, an eighty-eight-year-old woman with inconsistent personalities and no verifiable past. Sam has no idea that this patient will ultimately lead her to cheat on the man she loves, question the person she is, and kill in the name of mercy.” 

Trace also has a Non-Fiction book called A Wannabe Teacher’s Guide: Getting Hired, Having Fun, and Staying Sane. In this book, Trace explains how to survive and thrive as a fledgling educator. She says it’s perfect for college students considering a career in teaching or career switchers. 

“It’s an easy read, low key, doesn’t take itself too seriously,” said Trace. “I consider it an anti-textbook.”

Her work can be found on Amazon and the Kindle store. 

She currently has another novel, “Simmering” in her brain and is just having a hard time finding time to write it. 

“I’m pining to write a young adult dystopia,” said Trace.

Lily Brown | Staff Writer
January 8, 2020

Michael Sibelu, our new geometry and computer programming teacher, was born and raised in Zimbabwe, Africa.

Sibelu moved to America in 2003 to attend college in North Carolina at Campbell University. The transition to life in a new country was not without its challenges. He moved here completely by himself; he had no friends or family in the United States and he lacked some basic skills most Americans take for granted.

“I had to learn to become an independent person,” said Sibelu. “I didn’t know how to cook or drive and it was just me by myself.”

At first, he also had a hard time speaking and with the way he pronounced certain words.

“I would spell or say certain words in the British way and they needed to be in American English,” said Sibelu. “I would also draw out some words.”

He didn’t let that stop him though. His freshman English teacher helped him adjust and he listened to a lot of NPR.

He may have started off alone, but now he has a wife and daughter and speaks fluent “American” English although some of his students do note that he maintains an accent.

“He’s a really great teacher, in my opinion,” said freshman Kodi Charley. “You just have to understand him and what he’s saying.”

His students say they can talk to him whenever they need to, and get extra help from him, and several mentioned they enjoy listening to his stories.

“He has a really good personality and he’s funny and caring,” said freshman Teja Angelo.

Sibelu gets along with his students and tries to build relationships with them. He listens to his students and therefore his students listen to him.

“He is an amazing teacher; he is also very funny and sweet,” said sophomore Makayla Parnther.

When he first arrived to America, it wasn’t like how he had imagined it.

“I imagined it like the movies,” said Sibelu.

Even though it wasn’t exactly how he pictured it, he says he loves it here.

Lily Brown | Staff Writer
April 8, 2020

Custodian Dorothy Gilchrist was born in Norfolk, Virginia. Her grandmother delivered her. She has been working at Salem since it first opened in 1989.

“I came here when the school was brand new,” said Gilchrist.  

Gilchrist worked at Brandon Middle School before Salem, and the head custodian of Brandon at the time was asked to help open up Salem. He decided to bring his “best workers” along with him, which included Gilchrist.

Gilchrist loves this school and the people she is surrounded by. 

“I love the kids, and it is definitely a good school,” said Gilchrist. “Everybody is really sweet.”

Even though she has three grandsons and one great-granddaughter, Gilschrist loves the students of Salem High School as if they were her own.

“She treats everyone like they’re her grandkids,” said junior Abigail Huling. 

Some might have questions as to why or how one would feel that way, but for Gilchrist it isn’t that complicated. 

“I asked God for my first baby to be a boy. I asked for six kids, but he only gave me one,” said Gilchrist. “I thank him [God] for all two thousand of my kids… I love every one of y’all as my grandkids.”

She loves the students here and they love her right back. 

“I think Ms. Dorothy is a ray of sunshine,” said senior Robert Nolin. “To me, she’s one of the few people who truly love what they do and are happy to do what they do. People should know that everything she does is out of the goodness of her heart, and they shouldn’t be grouchy towards her.”

She does in fact love the school, but outside of her school life, she has her fair share of hobbies. She really enjoys fishing and going to the beach. 

“I go to the beach every day,” said Gilchrist. “Summer, winter, fall; when it rains, when it snows, I’m at the beach. I love it.”

So if she’s not at the beach, you can usually find Gilchrist somewhere in our halls brightening someone’s day.

“I am so blessed to be called a SunDevil. I thank God for y’all [the students] every day. This is what makes me come back,” said Gilchrist. 

Lily Brown and Meghan Amon
April 23, 2020

Governor Ralph Northam has declared all non-essential businesses in Virginia closed until June 10th and schools will be closed for the rest of the school year. This leaves many of us at home, isolated from friends, and running out of things to do. Here are 13 suggestions for things to do while staying home and being safe: 

• 1. Call a friend you haven’t talked to in a while. Even better skype, zoom, or Facetime with them.

  2. Watch a new movie. You can get a seven day free trial of HBO Now here. You can also watch movies for free on several different apps if you have a library card. Check out the options here.

  3. Learn a new skill like sign language or sewing. Did you know you can use your Virginia Beach library card to access all kinds of free classes on Universal Class.

  4. Solve puzzles. You could go traditional with a hands on puzzle or digital. There are tons of free puzzle apps. If you get the paper you could do the daily crossword puzzle.

  5. Meditate. If you already know how to meditate, you can go it on your own, but if you’re a beginner you might want to try a meditation book or app to get you started. Here is a link to a website that ranks free meditation apps.

  6. Organize closet/room. You can listen to Marie Kondo’s The Lifechanging Magic of Tidying Up for free with your library Libby subscription. Or you can watch Tidying Up on Netflix to find some inspiration. Make sure to recycle or donate what you can rather than just throwing it away. While you’re at it take some time to make your room resemble you. Make it a cozy place where you feel your best.

  7. Try a new workout. Have you been following Ms. Amy’s yoga videos on Schoology? If not, just check out your updates for the link. On top of that there are TONS of free websites and apps with everything from dancing to karate workouts for you to try out.

  8. Build something. Need a new bookcase? See if you can find directions online and build one yourself. Thinking a little smaller? Build your own bird feeder or compost bin.

  9. Create playlists for your COVID-19 moods.

  10. Find new recipes and try cooking or baking. Cooking is a great way to have fun and get rewarded with a delicious treat at the end. Pinterest is a great starting point for anything you might want to make. You can also share what you have created on social media. 

  11. Play board games with loved ones. Board games are a way to get away from any electronic screen, but still have fun with family. 

  12. Unplug outside. The weather is beautiful and there are still places to go to be alone and with nature. You might start with your own front yard or go to a neighborhood park. The beach is open for walking and fishing as well. Just make sure if you go to a public place you follow the social distancing rules.

  13. Get creative. Draw, paint, write, compose music, whatever gets your creative juices flowing.

Whatever you do, don’t forget to get your Emergency Learning lessons done too. Check-in with your teachers and let them know how you are doing. They want to hear from you!

If you try out one of our suggestions, post it on social media and tag @SHSPress to share your COVID-19 quarantine entertainment.

Lily Brown | Staff Writer
June 2, 2020

Ever since mid-March when schools and restaurants closed each of us has slowly found a way to a new normal.

For some, the stay-at-home orders have been a time for rejuvenation. 

Senior Brittany Smaltz believes quarantine has been kind to her and had a positive impact on her life. 

“My mental health has never been better,” said Smaltz. “Yes, I was sad at first with everything being canceled, but being in school for long hours made me stressed and sad and tired.”

Smaltz is an essential employee so she has continued to work during the crisis.

“I have been going to work and that has been keeping me sane and out of the house,” said Smaltz. “I work at Chick-fil-a.”

For others, the change has had negative consequences. 

“It’s [quarantine] negatively impacted my mental health,” said senior Jamie Lynn Cruz. “School was what forced me out of bed in the morning. Without the physical aspect of school, I’m finding it more and more difficult to maintain motivation.”

Cruz maintains connections with her friends through technology.

“I regularly keep my friends in the loop via video calls and texts,” said Cruz.

Senior Lauren Norris has found new ways to handle the emotions of this difficult time.

“I have been coping with emotions by writing them down in a journal,” said Norris. “It is the greatest stress reliever when you have no one to vent to face to face.”

Norris was laid off from her job because of the virus and stay-at-home orders, but she’s keeping busy by improving her physical health.

“I workout every day whether it is yoga, running, or random HIIT workouts I find on YouTube,” said Norris.

Perhaps you are feeling stress-free and making the most of your time at home, but if you are struggling don’t hesitate to reach out to your counselor. They are still available through email, phone calls, and Zoom.

Lily Brown | Copy Editor
January 4, 2021

Whenever something feels off or you feel a little funny do you go to the one place that holds the all-knowing information: the internet?  The article Stop Asking Dr. Google for Advice by Arun Swamintha cites that “over 90 percent of patients searched the internet for information.”

Have a strange cough- look it up, have a new sense of pain- Google it, have a random skin spot- Wikipedia; nearly everyone is guilty of it.  While some argue that medical websites are insightful and helpful, they should not replace a doctor’s diagnosis. 

“I have gone online before to check for symptoms and it has often led me to WebMD,” said senior Abigail Conant. “It usually isn’t accurate, so I’m not sure if I can trust it.”

Medical websites tend to get patients to overthink their ailments which can lead to panic and self-diagnosing every ache and pain. This can lead to anxiety which is bad for your health and can lead to even more problems. 

At the same time, medical websites aren’t all bad. They can help patients feel more in control and knowledgeable. They help people explain to doctors what they think is wrong with them and give them a sense of what to ask about in an appointment. 

“I looked on Google to find out if there were similarities between my symptoms and others,” said junior Ethan Kroener. “It gave me a better understanding because I realized I was wrong.”

Also, you don’t always need a doctor to tell you that you have a cold or that you sprained your ankle. The resources online help patients determine whether they need to actually visit a doctor or not. 

“Whenever something is wrong, I Google the symptoms to see what it could be,” said sophomore

 Anya Kohler. “I’m just trying to understand what was wrong.” 

Online resources can be beneficial when used properly, however, it should not be the only advice a person takes. These resources aren’t always reliable and any serious illness, physical or mental, should be treated by a professional.

By: Lily Brown
Published: March 25th, 2023, 7:30 pm

Norfolk, VA (ODU-TV News)- Old Dominion University’s IT office sent out a series of emails to inform both students and faculty about a recent increase in phishing attacks. Scams and other forms of cyber risks have been becoming more frequent all across campus. It is important for the community to stay aware of these attacks and to be alert when dealing with online sources. 

Phishing is when people who want to gain access to data, try to get information from other people. This could include usernames, passwords, credit cards, etc. They typically would send out an email imitating a company and requesting private information like the kind previously mentioned. Some will include a link to a page that looks similar to the actual page you would expect. They expect the user to log in as usual or provide any form of information and the attacker will use that to gain access and possibly full control over the associated account. 

Cyber Operations Concentrator, Jada Cumberland stated, “ Bad actors [attackers] have had lots of success through phishing, so they continue to use it more and more often.”

The good thing is that many of the phishing emails someone would normally receive are filtered out by their email provider- yahoo, gmail, AOL, outlook, etc- before they ever get to see them. However, it is still very important to be aware of the possibilities and what precautions can be taken to avoid scams and phishing attacks. 

Cumberland stated, “be mindful of how your email is being used when you enter it into apps and websites; read the Privacy Policy! If your data is being sold to external actors, it may result in more scam emails in your inbox.”

Some things to look out for include bad grammar, punctuation, if the email is asking for personal information, or lack of personalization. One small thing that could make a huge difference would be to simply check the email address. 

“Most scam emails look very similar to the company they are trying to replicate,” said Cumberland.

If the email address is not associated with the company they are trying to pass as, then it should definitely be disregarded- or at least looked into. 

 If you or someone you know receives a phishing email on your ODU account, you should forward it to phishing@odu.edu to help ODU prevent others from becoming a victim of these cyber attacks. For more information on cybersecurity visit www.odu.edu/safecomputing. 

By: Lily Brown
Published: April 16th, 2023, 8:30 pm

Norfolk, VA (ODU- TV News)- ODU Rep has done it again. With the semester coming to an end, it was time for a final production, but with a twist. Instead of doing a musical like ‘Cinderella’ from last year, The New Playwrights Festival revolves all around student-made productions.

“The New Playwrights Festival revolves around students and them making their own pieces,” said writer and actor, Tahji McCombs.

It seems as if Artemis, I started a trend with the Greek myth projects because the first one act of the festival is also a modified version.

“The play was an adaptation of a Greek Story,” said director Carolina Conte.

McCombs stated, “’Another Side of Love’ revolves around like Greek tragedy, but more for modern.”

 “Is very much the story that is origin, you know, for ‘Cinderella’ and ‘Romeo and Juliet’ the romantic couple of sorts,” Conte continued, “has a little spin on the fairy tale of the boy meets girl and they fall in love.”

The New Playwrights Festival includes the two workshop productions, “Another Side of Love” written by Lela Hernandez and Directed by Carolina Conte, and “Time’s Up” written by TréVeon Porchia and directed by Derrion Hawkins. There is also a series of solo pieces written by Orion Posey, Tahji McCombs, Lakasia Moore, and Amaya Wills along with a staged reading written by Leila Bryant.

It is also important to note that there is a strobe light warning for the second one act, “Time’s Up.”

"The ‘Time's Up’ show takes the audience through the journey of a guy named TJ,” said McCombs, “He goes through depression, and you get introduced to these three subsets of characters- different personalities."

Opening night was showing the one acts on March 30th at 7:30 pm at the Goode Theatre on Monarch Way. If you missed the opening night, don’t worry. It’ll be showing through April 1st. Then, for April 5th and 6th, the solo pieces and the staged reading will be up. The festival will then come to an end on April 7th and 8th with the one acts once again.

“I feel like these shows will teach the audience about love and knowing that there is always someone to care about you,” said McCombs.

For more information on The New Playwrights Festival or ODU REP stop by the Goode Theatre at 4601 Monarch Way or visit the website oduartstix.com.

By Lily Brown | ODU Student Journalist

Born and raised in New Orleans, Blaine Stewart always knew the career path he wanted to take: broadcasting. He expressed that for as long as he could remember, he has always wanted to have a career in the broadcast industry. It was just something he was simply drawn to from an early age. He stated, “When I was a young kid, I’m talking third grade, I was, every night at six o’clock, in front of the TV watching the news.” 

Eventually, still at a young age, he had an epiphany and decided that it would probably be a “cool job.” Ever since, he knew that’s all he wanted to do. “I want to be on the news, I want to be a reporter,” said Stewart.

Breaking out into the industry for him was essentially him taking the right chance. He started his career back in his hometown while he was attending school at The University of New Orleans. He got a part-time job while in school as an entry-level person in the newsroom of a local station. “It's my first day and I’m like ‘aww this is it, this is definitely what I want to be doing,’” said Stewart, “and it just so happened that I was able to work my way up at that station to where I put school on hold for a semester.”

Stewart eventually decided to focus his time and energy on the job he had at his local news station. He never exactly finished college. “I have exactly one semester from college and that's it…” Stewart stated, “So, right place, right time, on-the-job training.” 

About four years into his career, in the year 2000 he was working at a station in Mississippi. He was the producer for the 6 and 10 o’clock news; he would essentially write all of the scripts. There was only one anchor and she was the “face of the station.” One evening she got a phone call about her daughter getting really sick and had to take her to the hospital. Stewart and everyone else wondered who was going to be doing the news that night. 

Stewart explained, “Of course my dream was to be on air and I always had a suit with me, so I just called the boss like ‘hey, Diane had to leave, what do we do?’ he says, ‘do you got a suit?’ ‘yeah.’ ‘go sit out there and do the show.’” 

It was literally all by chance for him; an amazing chance. The following day he was told that everyone wanted him to “do that every night.” He finally made it on air by being at the right place at the right time. “Oh wow, this is real, the dream has happened,” said Stewart. 

While Blaine Stewart did start off his career in his hometown, it still took him a little while before he finally made it here to Hampton Roads. In the newsmaking industry, it is almost a guarantee that you are bound to move around. For Blaine Stewart, it was a given. “Starting out, you are going to move around a lot and that’s what happened with me…” stated Stewart.

To sum it all up, Stewart worked in New Orleans as a behind the scenes producer for a couple of years and then he got his first on air job in a small market in Mississippi and was there for a couple years as well. He has worked in Georgia for about six years before he finally made it to Virginia back in 2007. He has since been with WTKR News 3 for 16 years. “I couldn’t imagine doing anything else,” said Stewart. “I thought I was going to be here for two years and then move onto something else…” said Stewart, “this is home now, I wouldn’t want to be any place else.”

Blaine Stewart is very passionate about what he does. A lot of the reasoning behind him doing it for so long is because he loves the flow of it; there is always something new in store. “It's never the same thing twice and it's always something new, always learning something different…”  said Stewart, “It's exciting, it's crazy, it's wild.” He would rather much be doing what he loves- this- than be sitting behind a desk all day at a “boring job.”

There is never a dull moment in Blaine Stewart’s life. In fact, when he isn’t in the newsroom, he’s still broadcasting. If he isn’t on camera, then he is on the radio. “Radio was always sort of like a first love as well,” said Stewart, “and I was able to hang out with a local DJ one day when I was in high school.” He instantly found a new passion especially since it was still broadcasting. 

So, even though he has had different interests throughout his life, broadcasting was always a part of his journey. There was never a time when he doubted becoming some sort of broadcaster; there was never an alternate career path in his mind. He knew what he wanted to do, so he went for it and others should too. “In every TV market I’ve worked in, I’ve also done radio on the side to just keep my hand in that,” said Stewart. 

With television news being Stewart’s lively hood, it is only fitting to dig a little deeper into what exactly goes on when the cameras are off. On a normal day Stewart says the alarm clock goes off at 2:00 am and then heads into work by 3:15 am. This leaves him with about 90 minutes to go over any scripts that were written overnight. He takes some time to see if any changes are necessary, get into make-up, and do any other prepping before the show starts at 5:00am up until 9:00 am with “non-stop news.” 

When they end at 9:00 am, he typically goes into meetings for about an hour where they discuss topics or what’s planned for the next stories. “The cool part is that I’m done by noon, so if I’m awake I have my afternoons free to do whatever I want or I could get a nap,” said Stewart. 

Making connections and going after your passions gets you far in life and Blaine Stewart is a prime example of that. “Always learn every job in the building,” said Stewart, “because the more you know how to do, the more likely you are able to keep a job and not get downsized or laid off.” What you may know does have a key factor in where you end up, but so does who you know. 

Being and staying curious is also really important. Blaine Stewart said it's good to “be curious about everything.” After all, being curious is how he ended up where he is today.