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ROYALTY
Take a gander at the
elite display of royal
family trees from
countries around
the world, pages #6-7
Volume 84 No. 5
Grimsley High School
801 Westover Terrace
Greensboro, NC 27408
January 27, 2010
mghLIFE
The war
on drugs
has
proven to
be a
corrupt
and superficial waste of
tax dollars. Meanwhile,
the focus should be
directed to more impor
tant issues like hunting
down mass murderers
and sex offenders and
sending them to jail.”
Mila Smith
p. #3
News
Get close and
personal with three
new teachers who
recently joined the
Whirlie Dream Team.
page #2
OpinTon
Should the US
government cease
wasting precious tax
dollars in its war on
drugs?
page #3
Features
Check out the
“A-list” of warmest
and most stylish coats
of the season for
students on a budget.
page #8
Sports
Obesity among NFL
players causes concern
as coaches, trainers,
and physicians notice
poor health of players.
page #11
Ifidex
News
2
Opinion
3-5
Spread
6-7
Features
8-10
Sports
11-12
Whirlie Team acquires new players
BY LINDSEY STADLER
Reporter
Three new additions to the
Grimsley High School staff in
clude Vonia Crowell, Kandace
Wright, and Katherine Connor.
Crowell is teaching Honors
World History, Wright is in
structing Exceptional Chil
dren, and Connor is teaching
both Honors Civics & Econom
ics and Honors World History.
The staff welcomes these new
educators since the teachers
and students have experienced
such over-crowded classes.
"I have a passion for what
has happened in the past and
desire to change the future,"
said Crowell, who attended
Winston-Salem State Univer
sity and completed her student
teaching at R.B. Glenn
High School in Kernersville.
"Student teaching was a
learning experience."
Crowell commutes from
Danville, Virginia. Her outside
interests include reading, espe
cially about history. What con
fuses her most about the school
is the computer program
NCWISE, but she claims her
new colleagues have been very
helpful to here.
"I like the change in sched
ule mid-week and enjoy extra
time to plan. Change is good,"
said Crowell on her thoughts
about Whirlie Wednesdays.
EC instructor Wright at
tended North Carolina Central
University and holds an un
dergraduate degree in psychol
ogy. She has previous experi-
K-
Hi
Joining the staff this winter are one new teacher for Exceptional Children and two new teachers in
the social studies department. Staff and administration formally welcomed them at a November
staff meeting. Left to right: Vonia Crowell, Katherine Connor, Kandace Wright. Kirkman photo
learning experience with a
great mentor teacher. I was an
assistant coach for the
women's varsity soccer team,
too. It was a lot of work, but
well worth it."
Assistant Principal
Misty.Walker and social stud
ies teachers Sam Westbrook
and Larry Williamson have
been most helpful to her.
"The opening weeks have
been challenging, but also re
warding," said Connor.
She has lived in Greensboro
most of her life and attended
Northwest High School. One of
her outside interests is coach
ing the Northwest High School
swim team.
Trying to learn all of the rules
and regulations is a challenge
for any newcomer on campus.
"Tm just waiting for a prac
tice tornado drill or lockdown,
so that I can see what I actu
ally need to do," said Connor.
ence in sales, marketing, and
human resources.
"Grimsley is a great school
with really outstanding teach
ers and students," said Wright.
"Since I was very young, I have
been working with individu
als who have a variety of spe
cial needs. I initially chose Psy
chology because I wanted to be
a Child/Family Therapist;
however, that is not the road
I followed."
Wright enjoys spending
time with her family and
friends, reading, writing,
playing Scrabble and travel
ing. She has never lived
in Greensboro. She grew up
in Elon and currently resides
in Burlington. Wright previ
ously lived in Maryland,
Georgia, Virginia, and even
South Korea.
"Teachers here all have high
expectations of their students.
They are really good at what
they do and how they do it,"
said Wright, who observed
four teachers on Wednesday,
December 9. "The majority of
studenfs seem to enjoy being
at school, and from what I have
observed, have been actively
engaged in their classes"
Wright is thankful for her
colleagues who have been ex
tremely helpful and welcom
ing to her. Like Crowell, she is
still learning the system, claim
ing that she will "get the hang
of Whirlie Wednesdays soon."
Connor, the second of two
new social studies teachers,
attended UNC- Chapel Hill.
"I participated in the "We
The People Competition"
about the US Constitution in
high school, and that basically
set my decision to earn a his
tory and political degree," said
Connor, who completed her
student teaching at Chapel Hill
High School. "It was a fun
MUGS embraces diversity, friendship
BYMILA SMITH
Features Editor
Student activities and clubs
are integral parts of every good
school's program since they
provide opportunities for the
young people to express them
selves, to learn respect for the
rights of others, to work to
ward common goals, and to
interact with peers.
Whirlie organizations focus
on everything from special in
terests like art, languages, and
photography to community
service. These programs pro
mote essential characteristics,
such as leadership, self-control,
respect, and moral courage.
The lengthy list of the 64 clubs
offered on campus recently ex
tended once again.
Mixing Up Grimsley Stu
dents (MUGS) is a newly estab
lished club on campus encour
aging students to interact and
become acquainted with peers
they have not yet met. Seniors
Rachel Swier and Katherine
Phillips started MUGS to pro
mote cultural awareness and
diversity aihong members of
the student body.
In a new era when flexibil
ity and creativity pave the
way to success, both cultural
awareness and the answer to
"Why is cultural diversity im
portant?" ring very large bells.
Cultural awareness reinforces
simple morals like honoring
the beliefs and differences of
others. Encouraging students
to interact will facilitate un
derstanding, cooperation, and
productivity. Most impor
tantly, it brings about a true
spirit of camaraderie; thus,
new connections emerge, re
sulting in endless possibilities
for the school's population.
MUGS will formulate its
goals for the year by choosing
dates when students will make
an effort to mingle during lunch
with new acquaintances and
begin new friendships. Other
projects include developing a
pledge, making banners and
other advertisements, and vis
iting middle schools.
"Although we are a very di
verse community, there are
clear separations between
races and gender, which breed
intolerance. As a club, we hope
to learn more about each other,
help Student Council develop
a 'Mix-It-Up Day,' and ulti
mately to build a community
free of bias, bigotry, and rac
ism," said Swier.
MUGS is currently
working with the National
Conference for Community and
Justice (NCQ) in efforts to orga
nize events and programs for the
dub. According to their website,
http://www.nccjtriad.org, NCCJ
is a "human relations organiza
tion that promotes understand
ing and respect among all cul
tures, races and religions
through advocacy, education
and dialogue. NCCJ does not
advocate for any particular
group or philosophy, but works
to build mutual respect among
all people—regardless of race,
culture, sexual orientation,
gender, socioeconomic back
ground or faith."
No spedfic requirements ex
ist for students to join the club;
anyone interested is welcome.
One can find additional insight
regarding MUGS through
its Facebook group called
"MUGS Grimsley."