2Yearbook staff wins award

news wingspan • may 20, 2011

In Flight

• The 2010 Westwind staff recently received a Pacemaker Award from the National Scholastic Press Association at the NSPA spring convention in Anaheim, Calif. Twenty two yearbooks from across the nation were chosen for the award. Last November the Wingspan staff won a Pacemaker as well, making West two for two this year.

• At the state Hunter Safety Team Competition on April 30, junior Landon Ray placed second in archery with a perfect score. The West FFA team placed 15th overall out of 31 teams.

• S.A.V.E. Club is currently collecting old batteries, light bulbs and cell phones for recycling. Items may be dropped off in room V-6.

• The Arts for Individuals Talent Show raised $1,500 for the Monty Parker Scholarship, which will be awarded to a senior at the awards assembly scheduled for June 10.

• Senior Katie O’Shea was voted the winner of this year’s Falcon Idol competition last Friday.

• Key Club and Student Government Association members will be leading a campus clean up on May 28. All students are encouraged to help.

• The freshman class SGA officers will be host the Hayley Hustle 5K fundraiser on May 21 at 9 a.m. on the West and Rugby campuses. Students are encouraged to pick up a registration form in the office or register at the race to participate. • New inductees to the 2011 Quill and Scroll Honor Roll include juniors Alisha Carland, Amy Bennett, Ashley Heywood, Bethany Grayson, Brad Baker, Catherine Swift, Emily Albea, Jenna Duckett, Jenny Archis, Kara Miller, Kennedy Galloway, Kristina Anderson, Michael Turlington, Natalie Rice, Rachel Farmer, Samantha Sherlin, Savannah Ray, and Taylor Young.

Mariah CaseFeature Editor

Practicing her computer skills, sophomore Erin McGraw works in Jean Carr’s Computer Applications I class. The class will be replaced next year with the new Microsoft Informa-tion Technology Academy program.

Computer class changes set for next year

Computer Savvy

Ortiz (cont. from page 1)

In an mock car wreck assembly last week, junior Anna Decker stumbles out of the car with the help of firefighters. The mock crash was held for the student body during prom week to warn them about the dangers of driving while impaired.

Wake Up Call

“”

Technology keeps improving so the more you can know about technology and computers, the better.

Shannon Autenguidance counselor

Gov. Bev Perdue says she has a dream — a dream that all students from across North Carolina will have the skills they will need to have successful

careers and futures when they finish high school. One factor that will bring this dream one step closer to reality is the recent grant of $400 million from the Race to the Top Foundation. The grant money will be used to further Perdue’s “Career and College: Ready, Set, Go!” program, which is focused on improving the public education system and preparing students for the future. “In recent days, North Carolina has benefited from significant federal investments in education,” Perdue said in a press release last fall. “Now we must put those new resources to good use — quickly with the utmost efficiency and accountability, and with an eye toward our one common goal: preparing every child for their 21st century futures.” An implementation of this plan is a three-year, $803,000 partnership between the N.C. Department of Public Instruction and Microsoft. The Microsoft Information Technology (IT) Academy will go into effect in all high schools in North Carolina in August 2011 and will replace Computer Applications I. There are two sections of IT Academy: one of Word, PowerPoint and Publisher and the other of Excel and Access, all common computer programs that students will learn to use. “All of these programs, Word, PowerPoint and Publisher, are going to help you with senior projects; they’re going to help with college projects, and they’re going to help with work,” Shannon Auten, guidance counselor, said. “It’s all stuff you’re going to need in your future, so it’s where a lot of times we hear students say, ‘Oh, I’ll never need this again.’ Well, this is something you will need again. Technology keeps improving so the more you can know about technology and computers, the better off you will be.” The classes will have a curriculum similar to the original Computer Applications I course, but it will be taught using online videos. The teachers, who will earn their certifications in IT Academy over the summer,

will have activities that involve creating, analyzing and enhancing documents so the students can put to use the skills they were taught in the online portion, just like Lynn Price does for her IT Academy students at North. “The actual online course is designed for business people, and so for underclassmen in the high schools it may consume a little more than they are ready to give. Often times, underclassmen have not gotten to that point with their thinking and their motivation to complete the course,” Price said. “As high school teachers we have to come up with simulations that would simulate being in an office so that students can get practice and repetition in using the software. By the time that they get to the certification exam, it will be very simple and easy to do.” IT Academy will provide students who are enrolled in either section a Microsoft Cloud account, which will enable them to access all Microsoft programs from any

computer. The head of the Career-Technical Education (CTE) department for Henderson County Public Schools, Pam Johnson, said that the Cloud will be a benefit for the future because it will let students use their Microsoft skills even if their future work environment uses different software than Microsoft. Another addition to IT Academy will be that all of the computers that will be used to teach will be upgraded to Microsoft Office 2010. “We’ve now jumped a great hurdle here where we’ve gone from some schools teaching in (Microsoft) 2003 all

the way up to 2007, and it’s the latest and greatest version of Microsoft Office,” Price said. “It’s just wonderful; it’s much easier to navigate through.” At the end of each semester, students will have the option to take a standard CTE EOC or one of the certification exams that will allow them earn either a Microsoft Office Specialist or a Microsoft Office Expert certification. Students can take the certification exams until they pass free of charge. “Anytime you could get a Microsoft Office certification, that’s something you put on your resumes and college applications. That makes you marketable in the business industry immediately,” Price said. “Any certification you get, particularly in computer software nowadays, is a huge help for you because prospective

employers know that you already know something that they’re not going to have to spend extra money to train you when they hire you — that you come to them with a specialized knowledge that they need in their office.” Price said she foresees the state converting more programs to courses like IT Academy. “North Carolina’s children are one step closer to being guaranteed the best public education possible — something every child deserves. This grant will give us the resources to more aggressively implement our plan to ensure that all of our children graduate ready for a career, college or technical training,” Perdue said.

Phot

o b

y H

eid

i Bri

ckho

use

Phot

o b

y C

hels

ea B

lant

on

argument to someone who was 3 years old,” Colgan said. “He’s a good citizen; he has great potential and su-per grades, and he’s a nice, respectful young man. I don’t see why we would not want Santiago to be one of our American citizens.”

Spanish teacher Suzanne Perron assisted Ortiz with his fight to stay in America by circulating a petition to support his efforts to complete high school. For Perron, helping Ortiz was part of her idea of what makes a good teacher. Ortiz is an honor student and a captain on the wrestling team.

“It wasn’t his choice to come here illegally. He left Mexico before he was even in kindergarten, and he just came because his family came,” Perron said. “I don’t really think it’s fair to have one black mark ruin the rest of his future, especially because from what I know, (his fight) wasn’t completely unprovoked. Santiago has the ability to get a four-year degree, if not more.”

Misconceptions about illegal immigrants are com-mon, Ortiz said.

“There are people (immigrants) here that are work-ing hard,” he said. “They are not here to take resources or to do what they want; they’re here to build a better future because this is a country that provides opportu-nity. They’re doing it for their families.”

Ortiz said he feels like a citizen because he has spent the majority of his life in the United States. He did not realize he was an illegal immigrant until he was 11 years old. His first language was Spanish, and it wasn’t until he was 7 that he became fluent in English.

“I remember having a really hard time commu-nicating with other students because I didn’t know

English, but it was fun,” he said. “We were all just kids.” When Ortiz first realized he was in the country il-

legally, he realized keeping his secret would help pre-vent harassment and discrimination. Growing up in the United States, he has faced discrimination, including ethnic slurs and racist comments.

“I knew English, so I knew what they said. What hurt me the most was anytime my dad needed help translating, and I’d be there,” Ortiz said. “It would bother me because I’d be the only one that knew English, and you could sense when someone was mocking him and they would try speaking slower. My parents didn’t know English, and they tried learning it, and when they’re get-ting poked at and made fun of, I knew that.”

After he graduates and applies for a visa, Ortiz would like to return to attend Brevard College.

Although the judge will only allow him one more semester to complete courses for his high school diplo-ma, Ortiz said the support from his peers and teachers is what he will remember most about his struggle to stay in the United States.

“I got a great deal of support; a lot of the teachers and students went out of their way, and I’m grateful for that. My parents have told me until the end, ‘Just keep going, keep going. Don’t give up.’” Ortiz said. “They (students and teachers) really got involved. They got the petition started and all of it helped. I received a lot of help and recognition, and people have gotten to know me through this. I guess they can reflect on how things are for different people because I’m sure Coach Colgan never thought he’d find himself helping out someone in my situation.”