Black History Month Must Progress

Now that Black History Month has come to a close, perhaps it is time to reassess its origin and significance in today’s society.

In 1926, Dr. Carter G. Woodson created Negro History Week, which later became Black History Week in 1972. By 1976, the whole month of February was dedicated to assure Americans, both white and black, that African-Americans had a substantial role in history, and thus deserved the freedoms of their emancipation. The second man to receive a PhD from Harvard (W.E.B. DuBois was the first), Woodson was dedicated to encouraging the success of the black race for years to come.

In the days of Dr. Woodson, blacks suffered what Martin Luther King, Jr., once called “the unspeakable horrors of police brutality.” Jim Crowe was a way of life, where signs that read “white only” were a common part of the scenery. Read the rest of this entry »

News

Pepsi Throwback Returns

The Throwback line of Pepsi products, which are made with real sugar rather than high-fructose corn syrup, are back again for a limited time.  The first batch was available in April 2009 and was discontinued only two months later.  PepsiCo brought the soda back for a limited time in 2010.
PepsiCo chose to focus on Pepsi [...]

Despite Fierce Debate, WCPSS Changes Leesville Back to One Calendar

On Feb. 23, Leesville parents and community members met with the WCPSS school board to argue for or against year-round schools.
Each speaker had two minutes to address the school board members, and participants were encouraged to talk only about year-round schools, not the highly controversial diversity policy or Del Burns’s resignation.
Three years ago, Leesville Elementary [...]

Obamas Campaign to Tackle Childhood Obesity

Tuesday, February 9, 2010 marked the first official day of First Lady Michelle Obama’s new nationwide campaign to wrestle childhood obesity in America. Obama’s “Let’s Move” crusade hit the ground running when President Obama signed a presidential memorandum sanctioning the first lady’s efforts.
The memo established a ninety day preparation, starting a task-force to provide [...]

Booster Club Hosts Sixteenth Annual PA Café

On Friday, Feb. 26, the Leesville Choral Department Parent Arts Booster Club hosted its sixteenth annual Performing Arts Café.
With what Diane Covington, choral director, predicted to be the “the best PA Café yet,” tickets were sold out and the cafeteria was packed.
At 2:45 p.m., volunteers transformed the school cafeteria into a circus themed setting.
Decorations included [...]

Features

Marrying for Money

With the remnants of Valentine’s Day still in the air, the topic of love resonates in the minds of many Leesville students.
However, as many students ponder future relationships, the initial “head over heels” feeling of romance is disregarded, and money is slowly integrated into the equation.
According to Smart Girls Marry Money: How Women Have Been Duped [...]

For Stars, Rehab Now the Preferred Apology

Before making a televised public apology for all of his indiscriminate extramarital debauchery on February 19, and following months of public perturbation, Tiger Woods was discharged from inpatient services at the Pine Grove treatment center in Hattiesburg, Mississippi where he had been treated for an alleged sex addiction. The word “addiction” seems to be tossed [...]

A Day in the Life of a Lunch Lady

Every weekday morning at 5:15, Jennifer Buck, cafeteria manager, wakes up and comes to Leesville in order to prepare pounds of food for the student body.
With about 725 mouths to feed, there is a lot of food preparation needed. “We use about 6-7 cases of French fries each day, and each case is 30 pounds. [...]

Coming-of-Age Books Destined to Seem Irrelevant

In the movie The Polar Express—in which Tom Hanks lends his voice to every major role—a group of children become friends while touring the North Pole on Christmas Eve while all the other kids sleep restlessly in their beds and dream of sugar-plum fairies. They discover that Santa does exist and even get to meet [...]

Opinion

Black History Month Must Progress

Now that Black History Month has come to a close, perhaps it is time to reassess its origin and significance in today’s society.
In 1926, Dr. Carter G. Woodson created Negro History Week, which later became Black History Week in 1972. By 1976, the whole month of February was dedicated to assure Americans, both white and [...]

LRHS Improvements, from a Junior’s Perspective

After nearly three years at Leesville, I feel like I know my way around and know how things work.  For the most part, the school day runs smoothly, and the students and staff are happy with the way things are.  Nonetheless, I feel like there are certain matters that are constantly complained about, but never [...]

Bachelor Finale Review

On this year’s Bachelor finale, bachelor/pilot Jake Pavelka made an unexpected choice by choosing this season’s villain, and my personal favorite, Vienna, as his bride.
All season long, Vienna was the girl that everybody loved to hate. Her brutal honesty and over-competitive attitude drew many mean words from the other girls, and plenty of girls were [...]

The Blind Side a Story of Staggering Achievement

The Blind Side is about an under-privileged, under-educated teenage boy who finds hope in a wealthy family who takes him in.
The story follows Michael Oher, (played by Quinton Aaron) an African American high school boy whose height and weight earn him the name “Big Mike.”  Michael is from a broken home and does not have [...]

Sports

Indoor Track State Championship Meet

On Saturday, Feb 20 the Leesville Track team traveled to UNC-CH to compete in the Indoor State Championship meet.
Since qualifying standards are so difficult to meet, only seven athletes competed at the State level: Aaron Smith, Brian Jackson, Stephen Ryan, Bilo Hoese, Christian Klute, Peter Ficalora and Lauren Strapp.
Bo Burns, Will Woodhouse and Andrew Byrum [...]

Hockey Play-Offs

The Wake County High School hockey Championship Tournament was held Feb. 6- 7 at Dreamsports in Apex. The tournament was set in a double elimination format, and Leesville entered the tournament as the second seed.
In the first round Leesville faced Apex, a team who had beaten Leesville in the regular season. Leesville started off slow [...]

CASL Seniors Celebrate National Signing Day

On Feb. 2, CASL(Capital Area Soccer League) seniors celebrated National Signing Day, legally committing to play soccer in college.
Erika Lenns, senior, verbally committed to Gardner-Webb University in July of 2009. Gardner-Webb is a small, Christian institution located in Boiling Springs, North Carolina. “It is a great school for education,” said Lenns. “I will [...]

Basketball Seniors Recognized on Senior Night

Leesville’s Varsity Basketball senior night was held Monday, Feb. 8, versus Sanderson High School. To recognize the senior ladies, jerseys were placed on the wall of the base line with their last names and numbers. The senior men wore pink socks or pink colored shoes to honor their last home game as well as support [...]