Windsock

Preview to Track and Field

EMHS’s track and field team consists of eighteen students headed by Coach Lester Zook.  Twelve high school students, six junior high, five women, and thirteen men, all practice and attend meets together.  Every day for the past month they’ve been practicing from 3:40-5:00, getting ready for their track meets which start in just over a week. 

Track teams typically have three broad categories which they compete under; sprinters, jumpers, or distance runners.  EMHS is primarily dominated by distance runners, partially because people who ran cross country in the fall come out for track, and also because EMHS doesn’t have a football team, and, “Football teams are what produce sprinters,” said Coach Zook.

Lester Zook has been involved in track and field for about thirty years, running throughout high school, and then for Messiah college.  For the last twenty years he’s been the head cross country coach at EMU, so when EMHS’s previous track and field coach stepped down a couple years ago, Mr. Zook thought the job would be a good use of his time. 

EMHS has some good competitors on its team, including Lucas Blosser who finished 3rd in the state championship in hurdles last year, and Matt Layman, who’s working on a sub-5 minute mile. 

There are a various reasons kids enjoy the track team, whether it’s because they have the goal of beating their personal record on an event, or because they like the social aspect of it.  Lucas Blosser says it’s partially because, “Most of my friends are distance runners.” 

It seems, “A lot of people tend not to do track because they’ve only known running as a punishment, because in other sports, coaches make them run if they’re bad,” said Brook Hostetter who runs the mile for the Varsity team, “they look at running as a bad thing.”  She says that once you actually run because you decide to, “It’s really fun, and makes you feel good about yourself."

- Eric Broderson

The Battle is Won (for most of us)

Over the past few weeks a seasonal flu has affected most of the US.

The flu this season didn’t really become widespread until January, but has “Continued to increase in January and through the week ending February 16,” according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. 

The good news is that the flu should be on its way out.  The CDC says that “influenza activity decreased slightly” during the week of February 23, for the first time since early December.   The number of absent kids at EMHS after February 23 follows this slight decrease, and now in March the number of absentees has fallen to less than 10 for the first time since January. 

While this year’s seasonal flu “Is not a particularly bad strain this year [in terms of symptoms and number of deaths],” said Frank Stellar, local MD, "flu shots have been less effective against fighting it." 

The problem is, this year’s flu shot has only been about 40% effective in preventing the flu, compared to last year's 90% effectiveness.  The reason for this is primarily because many strains of flu virus were not the strains which scientists predicted would be dominant this year.  The vaccine used in flu shots was only closely matched with one of the two types of influenza strains which infected most people this year.

If you’re wondering whether or not you have the flu, remember that a sore throat, headache, runny nose, and a fever are the most common symptoms of the flu.  If you recognize the flu early enough, certain medication can help you get over it in significantly less time than the normal 3-5 days. 

If you think you have the flu it's better to be safe than sorry, check with a doctor and stay away from school.  Influenza goes hand in hand with many bacterial infections, and the number of staphylococcus aureus co-infections has risen significantly in the past few years. 

To make sure that the flu doesn’t kick back up again, the CDC says that washing hands regularly, covering your mouth with tissues when you sneeze or cough, and staying home when you’re sick are the most important actions you can take to prevent the spread of germs. 

February	Number of kids out of school at EMHS
1	22
5	14
6	19
7	22.5
8	24.5
11	28
12	25
13	22.5
14	13
15	25.5
18	27.5
19	23.5
20	26.5
21	15.5
25	21.5
26	20
27	16
28	15.5
March
3	9

- Eric Broderson

EMHS Looks to VRC

EMHS girl’s varsity basketball team lost 71-44 to Liberty Christian Academy on Friday February 15.

Their defeat, while not inevitable, was an uphill climb.  EMHS had not played Liberty before, and Liberty had only lost 1 game all year.

Going into the game Emily Hollen, starting guard for EMHS, noted that whether or not their team was able to, “Work well together” was a deciding factor throughout their games.

EMHS went into the game with reasonable expectations.  They knew that they were playing the number one team in their division, but they also knew that when they played well together they could compete evenly with the toughest teams. 

Their performance during Friday’s game reflected this view.  While it took them a while to get into gear, by the second half EMHS was playing so well against Liberty that they actually outscored them in the last quarter.

It was easy to tell that EMHS was playing as a team better in the second half.  Ms. Young, their co-head coach, said that working as a “Cohesive unit” really helped them come back.

Hoping to build on their success in the second half, EMHS is looking toward the VRC tournament on Tuesday.  Their first match will be against Virginia Episcopal School, a team which EMHS has not played well against in the past, losing 74-46 in their last game.  Coach Young noted that Erica Lehman, their top scorer, couldn’t play in that game, so EMHS should have a closer game this time.

If EMHS wins on Tuesday, They’ll have a chance to take revenge on Liberty Christian Academy in their next game. 

- Eric Broderson

6th Grade Plans for Better Resource Management

On November twenty-eighth and ninth, Mr. Martin's sixth grade science classes collected trash around the school and at Black's Run watershed.

This clean-up day took place during a unit on rivers and river clean-up. 

This project was designed to increase trash awareness, and how littering affects the rivers; and to get the kids thinking about ways to reduce the amount of trash disposed of improperly.

The majority of the trash found around the school came from either the EMHS parking lot or close to the building. 

They collected 236 pieces of trash total, finding food, drinks, construction material, metal, paper, school supplies, plastic, clothes/cloth, and Styrofoam; with pieces of plastic and food wrappers comprising over half of the trash found. 

"I want to do this project again, but next time I hope the numbers (of trash) are different" said Joseph Burns.

After finding all the trash they could, the classes worked with percents, figuring what percent of the total pieces of trash each trash category they picked up was.

As part of their field trip the class was required to write a few paragraphs about their experience, and how they thought the trash problem could be helped. 

Ben Ghaemmaghami thought that, "Every two weeks or so, possibly on a Saturday, people could come and pick up trash.  Because people mostly like to have a reason to do something, grants would be asked for from local businesses to give out coupons or something like that when people worked for an hour or so."

Mary Zook said that, "Littering is harmful for the ecosystem and I wish people would get that into their heads.  It really makes me sad when I think of birds, squirrels, ground hogs, possums, chipmunks, moles, field mice, and all other cute, fuzzy (sometimes rabid) animals choking on some wrapper that a careless person didn't pick up.  If everyone could take 30 seconds or less to just put their garbage in the right place, the world could be 100 times better.  Our school should have a compost and recycling program."

"The world would look so much better if people recycled and didn't litter."

Carolina May wrote that, "We should place more trash cans and recycling bins outside so we are not tempted to litter, though I don't believe the litter on the school grounds was deliberately placed there. We should place the trash in our vehicles in bags, so it doesn't get brushed out when we exit.  I think we should be more careful when eating a snack outside, and immediately throw away our wrappers."

Brougan Brown wrote, "That we should put a sign up that says no littering. IT'S BAD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT!  It will remind people that littering is against the law and that it is bad for the world that we live in today."  "All we can do is encourage people to not litter."

Joseph Burns noted that he doesn't "think people are purposely throwing trash on the ground."

Kendall Dean thought we should "have a day to clean your car," or maybe, "put recycling cans outside of school entrances."

The sixth graders are going to look more in-depth at trash awareness in their upcoming mini-term.

- Eric Broderson

Warriors Incinerated

EMHS Flames: 67 Grace Christian Warriors: 39

Last night, Wednesday January 29 at 7:20, the EMHS varsity boy’s basketball started their path of destruction against the Grace Christian Warriors.

EMHS started with an early lead against the warriors, pulling ahead 20-8 by the end of the first quarter.  They seemed unstoppable with the score at 25-10, but the Warriors came back, scoring 10 points in a row. 

The Flames realized they couldn’t let Grace Christian, who they’d beat by 25 points last time, get this close to victory, so they scored 13 points in a row, bringing the score to 38-20 at the half. 

Mitchell Leap was on fire during the 3rd quarter, scoring 17 points in a row.  Lucas Schrock-Hurst finished up the scoring in the fourth quarter with two 3-point shots and a 2-pointer at the end. 

EMHS had an advantage early on, after the other team had fouled 7 times, and Mark Ferguson and Mitchell Leap both took advantage of the extra free throw.

It was a very satisfying game for the Flames, who hope to continue their victory against Fishburne on Thursday.

- Eric Broderson

Tennis Fund Raising

Many people have been spending time working on two huge projects recently. Some of the EMHS tennis team, their parents, Mr. Leaman, and former tennis coach Travis Watson and his wife have all been helping out.

The motivation to take on these projects came a few years back, when the tennis team was asking for funds to resurface the EMHS tennis courts. For various reasons they decided that it would cost such a substantial amount of money that it might be easier if they found an alternative. Mr. Leaman had past experience with resurfacing courts from his missions work in Kenya, so he and Travis volunteered to oversee the resurfacing of the courts.

The tennis team has always helped out with any work that's needed to be done on the tennis courts, from squeegeeing the courts before a game to getting wind protectors up, so Mrs. Watson organized a time for the whole tennis team to come help resurface the courts. Everyone came out to the courts a few days last year, bringing high pressure hoses, sealants, putty knives, squeegees, knee pads, and anything else they could think of.

It took many weeks to complete, but when they were finished, the tennis team has saved half the cost of resurfacing.

After having resurfaced one set of courts, and saving so much money, the tennis team was intrigued when Mr. Leaman found another opportunity for them to help resurface a tennis court. The second project started near the beginning of the school year, and took about a month to finish.

They had to come with heavy-equipment this time. A small front-end loader was required to help haul away nearly half of the tennis court before work could get started.

Once the big stuff was out of the way, though, the tennis team kicked into high gear with the many pressure-washers they had brought. In the matter of a month, they had taken half a destroyed court, and turned it into what you see above. 

- Eric Brodersen

A Nerd's Perspective

"The Nerd Herd will include all of mankind. Everyone must convert or die. There are no limits to our expansion." (Nerd Herd Manifest Destiny)

You may have heard of the Nerd Herd, or maybe you just know that Dustin is the senior class president, but just who is the Nerd Herd? The Nerd Herd currently consists of Dustin Crummett, David Jost, Aaron Huntley, Dylan Kelley, Eric Brodersen, Joe Phillips, Corey Martin, Freeman Bendfeldt, and Nathan Hershberger, all seniors.

The Nerd Herd was put together very gradually through conversations that started in sixth grade. Aaron, David, Dustin, Dylan, Eric, and Joe were the "founders" of the Nerd Herd in seventh grade, though the actual name "Nerd Herd" wasn't discovered until a bit later. The Nerd Herd obtained Corey in 9th grade when he transferred from Montevideo, lost Dylan after 10th grade to Woodberry Forest, acquired Freeman in 11th grade, and have just taken in Nathan this year.

Everyone came to the Nerd Herd for different reasons, with their own sports (?) and hobbies and interests, but they've all shared some common unifying traits during their years together.

Originally the only thing that kept the Nerd Herd together was a sense of humor at both the everyday situations they were in at school and various ironies in the news, history, or movies. While Dustin and David are the real history buffs, and Dustin is the only one who knows everything (though he doesn't always feel like showing it), everyone in the Nerd Herd enjoyed listening to and entering into conversations held in public (during lunch). This is primarily because of the way in which Dustin could word any logical incongruency in a comical, drawn-out manner, and because of everyone else's logical flaws.

As most everyone in the senior class has, the Nerd Herd has matured a bit now, or at least gotten smarter, and they are now able to focus on higher goals than immediate intellectual or comical gratification. The Nerd Herd currently has many goals which it hopes to achieve. The rebirth of the Byzantine Empire, Dustin's world takeover, the creation of the Nerd Herd videogame, and a quest to destroy the 666 levels of hell (a D&D campaign).

While one of those is a fictional goal, there are also many practical things which the Nerd Herd has been involved in at EMHS. Dustin Crummett's campaign to take over the world starting with EMHS is well underway. Dustin has obtained the rank of school dictator by default and also senior class president, for which his first act of business was to help create a place for EMHS students to recycle their plastic bottles.

While the Nerd Herd does joke around a lot, there are many issues which the members take seriously, and that's what really stands out about the Nerd Herd to me. Any group of people who know a bit of information can make fun of that information, and lots of groups do, but being part of a group in which all the members strive towards not only knowledge and humor, but also a moral life, has been my greatest experience at EMHS.

- Eric Brodersen

Homecoming Weekend

The SCO's plans for this week have all led to a big homecoming weekend. A number of events are scheduled for this weekend, October 19-21, to honor EMHS alumni.

On Friday at 8:30 in the morning there will be a golf tournament with ten teams competing, and a Founder's Day Banquet at 6:30 in the evening. The banquet will be in recognition of George R. Brunk III for the Founder's Lifetime Service Award. From 1977 to 1999 he was a dean at EMS, no, not Eastern Mennonite School but Eastern Mennonite Seminary.

On Saturday, Robin Zook will organize a home coming road race at the EMU track, 8:30 in the morning. Facility tours are being held ever 30 minutes from 12-2 pm on Saturday, and sporting events from 1-5pm, with a reception for Jim Rush at 6:15 in the EMHS commons. Jim Rush just retired this year after teaching US Government at EMHS for 40 years. Saturday will conclude with a Homecoming Concert at the EMHS auditorium at 7:30, which Mr. Hartzler and the senior chorus have been working hard to get ready for.

Finally, on Sunday there will be a worship service at 10:00 in the morning honoring Lawrence E. Ressler, the 2007 EMHS alumnus of the year, "For 35 years of serving God's kingdom through Christian social work, teacher and administration."

A full list of homecoming weekend events can be found at emhs.net under "Homecoming 2007 Information"
An article on Jim Rush can be found here. More information on Lawrence E. Ressler can be found here.

- Eric Broderson

What is Reaccreditation?

Why is reaccreditation important to you? Going to an accredited school means your school has complied with certain standards. These standards are nationally recognized and therefore give official recognition to the students at EMHS.

Receiving your college transcript from an accredited school gives the transcipt more weight. In addition, the behind the scenes work done to keep our school accredited looks better to anyone hiring or evaluating a person's education. While it's easy to not realize all the work that goes into EMHS's reaccreditation, each of the faculty members, many of the teachers and a fair number of students and parents contribute to this lengthy process every five years.

Reaccreditation is the process by which a school, every five years, checks up to see how it is doing on the self-created goals and ideals which it and an outside committee created earlier. Of course, this whole process has to be planned out in some manner.

The accreditation steering committee, made up of Ernie Martin, Steve Yoder, Kim Johnson, Susan Guengerich, and headed by Sherman Eberly, is the committee which organizes and assigns jobs to the rest of the teachers and faculty. The teachers and faculty then look at their assigned aspect of the school. Every department of EMHS gets self studied in this very involved process.

They try to see if EMHS is up to the standards it says it's up to. Of course, outside professionals also come in and review everything, normally trying to check into every classroom, evaluating each area of the school.

The accreditation process also includes a very in-depth initial study. In this study, a visiting committee comes onto the campus for three days, meeting with faculty, parents, and students, eventually writing up recommendations for the school. This study was done last in 2002, and is a much larger event than the upcoming interim visit.

The current committee will write up informed reports based on how well they think the school is following the recommendations given by the visiting committee. The visiting committee will look at the reports, and around at the school, determining whether EMHS is doing everything that it said it would do at the initial study. The amount of writing done, just for an idea of how much work actually goes into this, is around 93 pages for this interim visit.

The committee was afraid, not too long ago, that it might have to do even more work. The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) and the Virginia Association of Independent Schools (VAIS) are both school accrediting organizations. EMHS used to only get accredited with SACS, but due to inner turmoil within the organization, EMHS didn't get listed among the rest of Virginia's accredited schools. EMHS decided to include VAIS after that, because the committee decided it was safer, just in case SACS fell through.Luckily, the workload required to get accredited by both instead of just one wasn't that much more work, only having to write one report for both organizations, so EMHS thought it would be worth it.

The amount of work done behind the scenes to make EMHS tick is truly amazing.

- Eric Broderson

Sophomore Pop Punk Christian Alternative Band

A sophomore band at EMHS, Philip Yoder (lead singer), Ashton Pease (bassist), Logan Stoltzfus (lead guitarist), and Everett Brubaker (drummer), has been playing for about two years now. They've performed both years at the EMHS talent show, have played multiple songs for friends and family, and have recently performed twice in a youth center out at Elkton.

This recent performance, which they hoped some of their sophomore classmates would show up for, was a bit of a letdown for them, since none of their classmates actually attended. However, they noted the problem presented with sophomores getting out to Elkton. "We were sorta disappointed (with no sophomores showing up)," they said.

The performance they gave last Saturday, September 8th, was one they got to by meeting a musician at a "battle of the bands" recently. The musician was in a band himself, and asked them if they'd be willing to play as an intro to his band. They agreed, and were liked so much the center asked them to play again.

The music they play consists most of original, "Pop Punk, Christian Alternative" songs, though a few of their songs, such as "Heard that Sound" by MxPx, are from other groups.

- Eric Broderson