Newspapers / North Carolina School of … / Nov. 1, 2010, edition 1 / Page 6
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november 2010 features the stentorian | ncssm So you want to go to college? Some current seniors give advice to matriculate, but according to Ryan O’Donnell this decision should not be made until senior year. “Don’t reject a college until senior year and don’t expect to know your tastes for now,” By Nathaly Lemoine For most seniors, college applications are just one thing that can either be frustrating and time-consuming or stress- relieving and fun. Perhaps. However, as seniors are experiencing the beginning stage of a hopefully enriching process, many are learning along the way how to better manage time to work on applications or deal with potential senioritis. Take Charlotte Ke, for example. Even before this school year started she was almost done with all of her applications that she started over the summer so that she could focus more on school. Ke states, “I’ve had senioritis all throughout high school but not this Seniors Dolly Adelekum and Eni Ojo express first trimester. It’s teachers or any trusted adult. This includes talking about what colleges one is interested in. For Obanor, her college list used to be extensive until she sat down with her parents hitting me.” Her advice to juniors: start the process as early as possible, even in the summer because there’s no way to find time otherwise. Durant Carter, on the other hand, is more relaxed about applying to college. “A whole lot of people do early action and decision, and I don’t understand why people stress so much. It will get done,” he says. For him, it is about taking time and just sitting down and doing it. If that is hard to do, he advises setting up a reward as motivation to work on college applications on those days when focusing is hard to do. Juniors might feel pressured to know right off the bat exactly where they would like O’Donnell suggests. For some, knowing exactly which colleges one would like to attend is part of the self revelation associated with the college process. Before starting the process, however, O’Donnell was set on applying to Notre Dame but later changed his mind: “I was focused on grad school before undergraduate.” In other words, it is important to focus on what one wants to do as an undergraduate and make the best of it before looking too far into the future. Go for the means rather than the ends. And if one has no idea of where to start, senior Osaro Obanor recommends talking to counselors, advisors, parents. Photo by Jaehee Yoo stress over applying to college. and narrowed it down to a few schools. Obanor says, “I shortened my list by talking to my mom and researching it. There were a lot of schools that I didn’t know about that [NCSSM] showed us at College Eve.” One piece of advice that many seniors support is to start as early as possible on college applications, so juniors, anytime soon is a good time. During the school year, on extended weekends, or during the summer, do your research and look into potential colleges and scholarships. The earlier you begin the less stress you will have to deal with senior year, and that will make your final yearatNCSSM much more enjoyable. Are NCSSM Students Vampires? By Olivia Truax The amount of time that students at NCSSM spend outside is becoming a problem. Because of the way that buildings are set up, many students have the potential to go through an entire day without setting foot outside, and when weather is bad, many of them do. “Some days, because of my homework and the tunnels, I realize at eleven [p.m.] that I haven’t ever been outside. I just don’t have time to,” said one junior. Of the 30 male junior and senior students polled, 34 percent spend less than 30 minutes outside every day. 56 percent of the 30 junior and senior girls polled said that they spend less than 30 minutes outside. “I’m outside all the time because of tennis. [After the season ends] I’d like to spend that much time outside, because I really love being outdoors, but it’s unlikely.” Said Abigail Armstrong. “The reduced amount of time that girls spend outside each day is a concern. I would like to look into it, hopefully by asking more questions to evaluate the issue through the fall, winter, and spring.” said Joan Barber Vice Chancellor of Student Life. Barber is planning a more extensive survey to be conducted in the coming months. “Being outside has always been really important to me so I think that that is really sad that our students are inside so much. It would be good if people were able to spend at least one hour outside each day,” said Marlene Blakney, Assistant Director of Residential Life. According to the Norwegian Institute for Air Research, to get the required amount of vitamin D, people in the Durham area should spend at least 20 minutes outside. In December this number will rise to 45 minutes. Photo by Jaehee Yoo NCSSM Students are spending very little time outside. New instructor Dave Thaden on NCSSM By Seon Kang This year, NCSSM has welcomed several new members to the academic community. One of them. Humanities Instructor Dave Thaden, shares some of his experiences from his trimester here at NCSSM. Instructor Dave Thaden comes to NCSSM from his fifteen year position as Principal of East Chapel Hill High School. Thaden received a B.A. in English with a minor in History from the University of Michigan and has also received an M.A. in English. Thaden taught American Studies during first trimester. Q: How has NCSSM measured up to your expectations at the beginning of the year? A: I arrived both nervous and excited, and it has been fun to ^et into the swing of things with a group of 11th graders who are sort-of in the same boat. The students are as hard working as I expected them to be, but I feel like we all run up against the limits of time when we look at how much there is to learn. I have also been grateful for the amount of help that the faculty has given to me. The staff is both very talented and very generous, and I have enjoyed getting to know folks. Finally, I didn’t anticipate having to wrestle with the logistical task of having so many different teaching partners. Dr. Miller’s absence has been a challenge, but 1 am very glad that he is so far along on the road to recovery. He is a very important part of the school, and he has helped me Photo by Jaehee Yoo Dave Thaden joined the NCSSM faculty from East Chapel Hill High School. settle in tremendously. Q: What do you like and/ or dislike about NCSSM so far? A: The list of things I like about the school is very long. Two things that stand out include first the flexibility and logistical challenges that the “daily schedule” and how time is never a static element in my week and second the willingness of students to ask questions about difficult material instead of just letting it “pass them by.” If I dislike anything, it would be the fact that our classroom Beall 5 is always so cold. I wish that there were a more consistent way to address the students’ concerns about the room’s temperature. Having had lots of experience with different buildings’ heating and cooling plants, I know that this is not an isolated problem to NCSSM. Q: How do you feel about your experience with the students so far? A: It has been positive across the board. I even had super study in the cafeteria on a Tuesday night, and all 83 of the students came in and got right to work. Very impressive. Q: Any other thoughts in general? A: I wish that I could be a little more connected to some of the extra-curricular activities that happen at school. I live a good distance away, and coming back is difficult. I have been impressed with the quality of the cultural arts activities that go on at school, and the fall sports teams have definitely caught my interest. I have students involved in many things, and it is pleasant to see them succeed—good luck to that [then] undefeated soccer team!
North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics Student Newspaper
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Nov. 1, 2010, edition 1
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