Image provided by: West Linn High School; West Linn, OR
About The amplifier. (West Linn, Oregon) 1921-current | View Entire Issue (April 1, 2009)
I V Sr OC o LL The debate over Facebook continues— should it be used for education or only for social networking? if) LU cc -J b < HI H Rachel Pricer, senior, has her accomplishments recognized by selling her art to an art collector. Boys' and Girls' Basketball teams advance to the second round of State playoffs. 1- HI cc HI 1- Z LU - page 3 Guitar All Star showcase exceeds expectations; Mark Hanson, Grammy winner, headlines. if if) HI o I— o Outdoor School . counselors mentor sixth, seventh and eighth graders from Three Rivers Charter School. CL - page 14 Official Student Publication of West Linn High School Published Since 1921 >- < - page 16 April 2009 - Volume 97, Issue 6 Junior Mock Trial team advances to Nationals u A dam H olmes _______________ preparation," Kellogg said. This year's case for the Editor-in-Chief Earlier thisjmonth, the junior Mock Trial team, also known as the "Green" team, won first place at the State competition at the Portland Federal Courthouse. As a result, the junior team will attend the 26th Annual National High School Mock Trial Championship in Atlanta, Ga. from May 6-10. This is the second time a West Linn Mock Trial team has attended a National competition, the first being the 2007 senior team. "I'm really happy for them. They worked really, really hard. I'm proud of them," Madeline Benoit, senior, and a member of the team said. JK "Mr. (Matt) Kellogg was " so confident that we were going to make it to Nationals that he preemptively produced a card that said, "CONGRATULATIONS," and contained our first practice date inside," Neelou Etesami, junior, said. The junior team composed of Hannah Bradford, Kelsey Bradshaw, Colleen Douglas, Nathaniel Earp, Etesami, Rachel Heisterkamp, Alexandra Mink, Zack Mueller, Lucy Walker and Valorie Wallace, juniors, managed to defeat its counterparts from Hermiston, St. Mary's Academy, Riverdale and West Salem. This continued the streak of victories that started during the Clackamas Regionals Competition on Feb. 28. "One of the judges said that the reason they won is because they don't have one person that just stands out. Everyone stands out," Kellogg said. "It's really exciting that we won, but at the same time it's a bit more work," Douglas said. Students are chosen to join Mock Trial by first taking the Honors Law A course which is taught by Kellogg, Mock Trial adviser and social studies teacher. After the students finish the class, Kellogg asks certain ^4(P(iplary students to join ; \e team. has a specific role in the case, which varies from giving the opening or closing statement, delivering a direct or cross examination, or acting as a witness. Each trial lasts about 90 minutes. Opening and closing statements are five minutes, direct examinations take 20 minutes, and cross examinations last 10 minutes, with time added in for objections or speculation if a piece of evidence should be entered. "The preparation process is boot camp-esque. After breaking down the case and establishing some basis to work on, we write our drafts. There is no such thing as a fin a l d ra ft. T w o h o u rs of The junior Mock Trial Team of Neelou Etesami, Colleen Douglas, Valorie Wallace, Alexandra Mink, Kelsey Bradshaw, Nathaniel Earp, Lucy Walker, Hannah Bradford, Zack Mueller, and Rachel Heisterkamp gather before the Championship round of the State competition. The team won the competition and will Photo submitted by Faryar Etesami vie at Nationals in Atlanta, Ga. from May 6-10. The students are then given a case to study, either criminal or civil, and are given about three months to prepare for the case. Practices are held after school four days a week, with some practices lasting until 10 p.m. "We have about half the time we normally have to prepare, so we'll be practicing four nights a week plus weekends for juniors at State involved a high school track runner who died from steroid use. His mother sued the school, but the boy's coach persists that his parents encouraged him to use steroids. Each student every night are devoted to doing run-throughs, having our drafts ripped apart by local attorneys and judges, and crying. I don't sleep," Etesami said. The senior team, composed of Benoit, Jonathan Binswanger, Brianne Cochran, Veronika Jonsson, Katherine Millage, Alex Otey, Ryan Nesbit, Henry Prentice, and Kristy Wilkinson, seniors, also performed at the State competition, placing 11th. Symphonic Band heads to State; Orchestra wins League u B rittany P eterson __________ Staff Reporter For years West Linn High School has been the band to beat, and this year is no different. Under the direction of new teacher Kevin Egan, worries ran high. Would this year's band program be everything it had been? The Symphonic Band has dashed these concerns as it qualified for State, crushing the 27 other bands that were competing. They received the second highest score with 89 out of 100. The qualifying score is 75. "1 wasn't concerned at all, there is an incredible amount of talent in this group," Egan said. The band then went to George Fox University to compete in another qualifier, just for the practice on March 10. Once again their scores were just as high as then- expectations, especially those of Egan. is comprised of musicians up to 22 years of age. In April, the band will Association which then sends those tapes anonymously to music professors around 1 ? I V| sJ- . ... • > ' ' * ♦ Vi 4 e > ■ m * The Symphonic Band performs at the Winter Band Concert on Jan. 7. They qualified for State, and if chosen, will compete for the State title in May. Photo courtesy of Phil Brooks "He motivates you to work harder," Emma Davis, sophomore said. Davis is the principal flutist in Symphonic Band and also the principal in the Portland Youth Philharmonic, an audition only symphony that play for yet another panel of judges, but this time more is on the line. The band with the highest score automatically goes to State. The other top scoring bands then send in tapes to the Oregon School Activities the country who score them. The top 20 bands chosen will compete in May for the State title. Symphonic Band_____________ j continued on page 2
