Gabe: Copy the infor from the old Taft Live page
Put on your best tinfoil hat and get ready for some conspiracy theories! Charlotte Deremo talks about the crazy stuff that the aliens are clearly hiding from us.
http://taftlive.weebly.com/the-45th-parallel-2014-2015/conspiracy-theories
John F. Kennedy, Area-51, biological warfare, paranormal activity, and Marilyn Monroe. These are all examples of what's called a conspiracy theory....
Being a teenager can be incredibly stressful. But in the end, it’s all about finding out about yourself and preparing for the future. By Adrianna Wagoner.
http://taftlive.weebly.com/the-45th-parallel-2014-2015/teen-years-suckrock
Teenage years can be frustrating and amazing for many reasons like: making friends, losing friends, finding love, getting your heart broken, and...
My horses have taught me love and compassion, and in return I’ve been a much happier person. By Brooklyn Jhonson.
http://taftlive.weebly.com/the-45th-parallel-2014-2015/how-horses-have-changed-my-life
Some people come in to our lives and change them for the better. But animals always come and change our lives for the better. My entire life, ever...
Once a country star and now a pop star, Taylor Swift has received mixed feedback on her transition. Read more in Adrianna Wagoner’s story.
http://taftlive.weebly.com/the-45th-parallel-2014-2015/taylor-transition
Taylor Swift started out as a small town country icon in 2006. Now all the way in 2015 she has transitioned to pop music instead. Many people have...
We must have been there for hours not knowing what was going on, wondering if our siblings would be ok, or if we would get to go home and see our parents Wondering if everything would turn out alright? It’s an inside view of last month’s Code Red lockdown.
http://taftlive.weebly.com/the-45th-parallel-2014-2015/code-red
Have you ever sat in a room with 30 or more other people for two hours with the lights out and had to be completely silent? Walking into class...
School's almost out, and we have too much work left to do. By Dakota Cessnun.
http://taftlive.weebly.com/the-45th-parallel-2014-2015/end-of-the-year
Taft Live
Song lyrics can play an important role in a teenager’s life; but these lyrics can have bad effects on a person. Find out in Charlotte Deremo’s story.
http://taftlive.weebly.com/the-45th-parallel-2014-2015/music
Nicki Minaj, Drake, Iggy Azalea, and Wiz Khalifa; these are all singers/rappers that you have probably heard of before. Their songs play over and...
Would you let your kids watch something with su***de? How about magical gem le****ns? Maybe then you should hear what your kids might have seen behind your back. Brandon Erickson has the whole thing broadcasted on your screen.
http://taftlive.weebly.com/the-45th-parallel-2014-2015/kids-tv-acceptance
Since the dawn of television we have been cautious of what our kids are allowed to watch. We have been showing our kids, and what our kids have...
If you're white, congratulations, you're privileged. But don't brag about it, it's not a good thing.
http://taftlive.weebly.com/the-45th-parallel-2014-2015/white-privilege
When I lived in Saint Louis, Missouri, a predominantly white city, for two years, I started to realize some things. Whenever I would go in a store,...
Deaf in one ear? Good news; your half-broken headphones won't seem broken anymore! Bad news; you're deaf in one ear.
http://taftlive.weebly.com/the-45th-parallel-2014-2015/hearing-loss
Ever since a young age, music has been a large part of my life. I started playing piano at age 7, learned how to play violin at the age of 9, and...
Fridays were a lot different last year compared to this year. But what happened to Friday school, and why don’t we have it anymore? By Charlotte Deremo.
http://taftlive.weebly.com/the-45th-parallel-2014-2015/friday-school
Fridays; something that many Taft High students had held near and dear to their hearts. The day in which they could make-up missed work, or retake...
Ever wanted to learn the basic history of over fifty-one years of the most timey wimey shows of all time in only a page? Of course you do, so read it! All of Gallifrey is not going to wait for you to watch 34 seasons, so let Brandon Erickson take you on a journey through time and space.
http://taftlive.weebly.com/the-45th-parallel-2014-2015/doctor-who-an-almost-fifty-year-legacy
No doubt one of the strongest and longest running shows of all time, Doctor Who has been powering through over 34 seasons and 51 years of content....
All activities should stick together right? If a school is small you would think every sport and club would respect each other right? Brandon Erickson has says that just isn’t so, not this year, anyway.
http://taftlive.weebly.com/the-45th-parallel-2014-2015/undermined-musical-department
The Musical has made a great stride this year. After being gone for over three years the musical came back with Aladdin: A Parody. The Musical just...
Ever wonder why Devils Lake has the name it does. (No, it’s not Satanic.) Get to the depths of the truth in this look at the lake by Noe Napoleon.
http://taftlive.weebly.com/the-45th-parallel-2014-2015/devils-lake
Devils Lake is one of Lincoln City's various sites that attract tourists every year. Well that was probably before the lake was polluted and...
Have you ever felt like you were completely hopeless? Like you were being ripped apart and there was nothing you could do about it, and you hadn't even had the chance to live? Dakota Cessnun writes about abortion.
http://taftlive.weebly.com/the-45th-parallel-2014-2015/abortion-by-dakota-cessnun
Have you ever felt the pain of someone ripping off your arms and legs and tearing your body to pieces. That feeling of not knowing what is going on but you know there is nothing you can do about it,...
WorldCat: Online Library Network
WorldCat is the world’s largest online network of library materials and services, and it is linked to over 10,000 libraries all across the country and overseas.
WorldCat allows members of thousands of libraries to access books and other library materials all across the United States and certain foreign countries. This system resembles the one at Taft High 7-12 used to access books from Driftwood Public Library, only on a national level.
If a student at Taft 7-12 needs a particular book and it is not available in the Media Center, at Driftwood Public Library or any other public library, then they can tell one of the librarians that the book they want is available on WorldCat.
Said librarians email the Outreach Services Coordinator, who then makes an Interlibrary Loan request. This requires the student to have a Young Adult library card, which can be issued within a week at Taft’s Media Center.
There are no fees that the student has to pay for this process. They get up to 6 Interlibrary Loans a month.
The book, or other material, travels from the library that has it to the Lincoln County Library District in Newport by either the US Post or ORBIS, a library courier service. From there, the book and any other materials requested make their way to Driftwood, and from there, Taft.
“Sometimes patrons’ requests are so rare that the item has to come long distance,” Mark Irmscher at Driftwood says. “[WorldCat] is an important software tool to allow librarians to quickly search for difficult to find library materials.”
When the book is sent from another school or library and arrives at Driftwood, then the Services Coordinator brings it to Taft the following Monday. The student can then use the book and return it to the circulation desk at the Media Center.
WorldCat is not only used for finding books currently unavailable locally, but for finding obscure or rare materials, such as a book or article that has been out of print for...
Taft High School 7-12 middle school track is looking forward to a new season, with new people and new goals.
Logan Merry, an eighth grader at Taft High school 7-12, plans to do track for the first time. He plans to do long distance running, high jump and, javelin.
Logan plans to make it to state for long distance running.
Devon Lindquist, an eighth grader, is doing middle school track for his second year. Devon wants to do “jumping events, because my legs are so buff,” said Devon.
Devon doesn’t plan on making state but, he will give one hundred percent he says.
Jesse Pink Earns Scholarship
Jesse Pink, a culinary student at Taft 7-12, showed good cooking skills to get a scholarship from Prostart.
Jesse was very proud of his award. “It felt like a lot of my hard work finally paid off.”
He got help from a lot of people, but the person who really helped was Ms. Julia Westbrook, the culinary teacher.
Ms. Westbrook helped by getting people to send letters of recommendations, but that was only the first the first step. The other half was, Jesse needed to show is cooking skills so he could get the scholarship.
Jesse won the award with his great cooking and culinary knowledge, along with the letters of recommendation.
Jesse, a senior, said that he was going to Culinary Institute of America.
Culinary Institute of America is a well, known cooking college with professional cooking instructors.
2014 was a historic year for the Taft High School 7-12 soccer program, and will certainly be one to remember.
In 2014, Taft managed grab their first league win since 2009.
Coming down to a 3A school level, proved to be a healthy change for THS, bringing a much more competitive aspect to the team’s play.THS finished the season with a 9-8 overall record and even qualified for the round of 16 of the 3A state championship tournament where unfortunately their season ended. It left the team hungry for success next year.
“Our goals are to improve individually from our 2014 season, and then come together as a team and work toward team goals which we will set at the beginning of our season.” said head coach Justin James.
“I want to beat Delphian and Blanchet Catholic and we must get back to state and win it.” Justin continued.
With each new season comes change. New players, new leaders, and the chance to stand out.
“I am really hoping and expecting big things offensively out of Sophomore Cesar Fajardo.” Justin is also expecting a few other players to stand out: Sophomore Joel Maldando, Senior Angel Cortez, and Sophomore Sammy Islas.
To prepare the team for the upcoming season, Justin hosts open fields on Friday evenings to expose new people to the sport, as well as keep the returners fresh and in shape for summer training.
Summer training is when Justin plans to kick things into high gear and find out exactly how he will run his offense and defense for the season.
Mason Aguirre, a senior at Taft High 7-12, could be one of the most dedicated players in track.
He’s set high goals for himself and some wonder if it won’t be as difficult to meet them since the whole track team is in a new league.
The Taft high 7-12 track team is in a lower division this year, now being in 3A but with 4A division experience.
”I think every division/league is different and has its ups and downs, But I don't think it'll be easier. I don't care what anyone says about us moving down to 3A,
“Every division has its challenges and i'm ready to take those new challenges on,” Said Mason.
Mason has set high goals for himself since this is his last year and the last sport he’ll participate in.
“As this is my senior year of track & field, I plan on giving it my all and just really enjoying every second of it. High school sports are awesome and I think are something I'm really going to miss.
“Like always, I aim to run my heart out and thats still my plan for this year!” Said Mason.
Motocross has been around since the 1970’s and was very popular, and is still popular 45 years later.
Many people like motocross, but some people live on motocross. “When I was probably seven years old I got my first dirt bike, I always liked racing, watching it on TV. after all that it kind of just kicked off,” said Tanner Kingston, eighth grader.
“I try to ride as often as possible,” said Tanner, who has lived here his whole life. “But living in Lincoln City, there’s a lot of rain.”
“probably the best thing about riding is going to the track. There’s girls everywhere, usually not wearing much,” said Randy Herndon, Senior, “ Nothing but fast bikes, and its always a party after a race.”
There aren’t many places to ride in Lincoln City, but there are places around that area that are very popular. Some including Sand Lake and Albany Race Track. Some people like to ride on their own. “Probably going to my own property on Bear Creek or going up to Albany to the dirt bike track.” Said Randy.
Since there aren’t many places to ride around here, you don't see many dirtbikers. You just hear about them.
Mason Aguirre, a senior at Taft High 7-12, could be one of the most dedicated players in track.
He’s set high goals for himself and some wonder if it won’t be as difficult to meet them since the whole track team is in a new league.
The Taft high 7-12 track team is in a lower division this year, now being in 3A but with 4A division experience.
”I think every division/league is different and has its ups and downs, But I don't think it'll be easier. I don't care what anyone says about us moving down to 3A,
“Every division has its challenges and i'm ready to take those new challenges on,” Said Mason
Mason has set high goals for himself since this is his last year and the last sport he’ll participate in.
“As this is my senior year of track & field, I plan on giving it my all and just really enjoying every second of it. High school sports are awesome and I think are something i'm really going to miss.
“Like always, I aim to run my heart out and thats still my plan for this year!,” Said Mason
Driftwood/Taft Library System
Taft High School has a library system that allows students and teachers to access thousands upon thousands of books previously not within reach, expanding horizons and enriching education.
A new system was introduced to the media center that allows access to not only to the books in the library, but also all the books in the Driftwood Library. It’s a process that allows all students and staff at Taft have access to more books than previously possible.
To be able to use this system, one inquires about it to one of the librarians in Taft’s media center and fills out a paper requesting a phone number, student ID, and parent approval. The paper is then given to Driftwood, where they process it and issue a Young Adult library card for Driftwood.
Once given the card, students and teachers can go onto the Driftwood Public Library website and set up a library account with their card’s barcode and PIN. They then have the freedom to explore the choices and put the title of their choice on hold.
Every Monday, library cards are delivered to Taft, along with books being picked up and dropped off.
Taft librarian Julie Morris says, ”I love it! The public library has a lot more access to materials than we do because it’s not just one public library; it’s a whole system of libraries.”
“Additionally, they are able to purchase more materials more often and stay more current with popular trends,” she says.
Vicki Lott, also librarian at Taft’s media center, says, “It is a wonderful program that expands the availability of media resources to our students a thousandfold. It's better than our old system because it expands student's horizons, giving teachers and students access to thousands more titles, both fiction and nonfiction, than we can provide.”
Students can now access college texts and important books essential for research through Inter Library Loan, or ILL.
In addition to Driftwood, Taft has the opportunity to check out books from...
Taft High 7-12 baseball has a shot to make it to state this 2015 baseball season, but with a conference change, it might be difficult .
Matt Hilgers is the new pitching coach coach for Taft High 7-12 . “I feel like we have a good chance of making the playoffs this year and making a run.” Mr. Hilgers said.
“With baseball and the state playoffs it is all about If we work hard and show up to play every day. We can put ourselves in a position to win some games and hopefully make a run towards the end of the season.”
Still, he thinks the new conference is a difficult unknown,
“I think we will hold our own this year. But dropping down to 3A and entering a new conference presents some new challenges for us as a team.”
“We will have a metaphoric bullseye on our backs and teams in our league are going to be gunning to beat us.” Mr. Hilgers said.
Trip to Orlando
The culinary students at Taft High 7-12 are going to get a hands on experience from well trained teachers from Le Cordon Bleu in Orlando, Florida.
They will be learning how to cook food from Asia, Europe, North America, and Africa.
They will also learn how to make their dishes look better. Presentation is a key thing in cooking.
The program runs for five days, between the dates of May 13 to May 18. The culinary students that are going are excited and ready, too. “Yeah, I’m definitely excited, this is an amazing opportunity,” says Wesley Clanton, a culinary student.
“I get to learn new techniques and hang out with my friends,” he said.
This experience will make the students more aware of all the type of food they can make without having to leave the country.
Taft High School 7-12 track star Mason Aguirre is ready for the new season, new league, new coaches, and he is ready to make it all the way to state.
THS has it’s fair share of stand out athletes; having many of their athletes place top four in their events at the district meet in 2014. Last year, THS sent Joshua Wright, a sophomore at that time, to state for the one hundred meter dash.
Also In his third year doing track, senior Mason Aguirre has come a long way and is ready to reach his goal of going to state. At the district competition last year, he was just shy of reaching his goal, taking third place in his three thousand meter run; first and second place qualify for state.
The team is facing many changes this season, but Mason is confident in his own ability and is ready to take on any obstacles.
“I’m excited to have new coaches and ready to learn from them.” Mason said. The new coaches are Lonnie french, Karl McShane, and Britney O’connell, who will be Mason’s long distance coach along with returning coach Kalvin “gramps”.
He also said, “I’m expecting a competitive season as always. I’m not sure if dropping down a division will make a difference, but I’m sure there’s plenty of talent in 3A.”
Mason is a very dedicated student and athlete. He is always looking to improve in every way he can, and he always expects himself to perform at the best of own ability.
“I want to get under a nine minute 3K, but I'm not sure how that will go. It’ll take a lot of hard work and dedication but I think I’ll be able to do it if I push myself.”
The Caravan of Glam is coming to Taft for the LGBTQ talent show to support local GSA clubs on Saturday, March 14th.
Not only will the Caravan of Glam be coming to Taft to perform but Taft students and staff will also be participating in the show.
The Caravan of Glam was created in July of 2013 when Justin Buckles, owner of Justin Buckles Productions, realized there was a need for more LGBTQ community events in smaller cities throughout Oregon. Shows are now being booked in Northern California, Idaho, and Washington State, as well as doing fundraisers, including ours.
One student who is performing in the show is Corey Rogers, a sophomore, and he is showing off his abstract art skills in the show. “I wanted to have people see my art,” said Corey.
One of the teachers in charge of the show is Ms. Abi Kurfman, an english teacher, who is also planning to read a poem in the show. “I've seen what the students in the talent show can do, and I'm thrilled to say it will be fabulous, quirky, and entertaining!” said Ms. Kurfman.
“Additionally, the Caravan of Glam will be performing and emceeing -- I haven't seen them perform, but I can't wait to. They travel around the northwest performing and they did a similar talent show fundraiser in Bend,Oregon to support local GSAs there,” said Ms. Kurfman.
“Between our local talent and their polished experience, it will be an extraordinary show,”
Mr. Barton Howe, journalism teacher, is also in charge of the show and is performing “Let It Go” with his four year-old daughter.
“It's exciting that every student at Taft is going to have a chance to perform. Sometimes, when they can't get into the musical, or have the ability to take a music class, they can't do that,” said Mr. Howe.
“I think it's also important that this is an LGBTQ+ talent show. I feel like we have some acts that might not normally come out for a school talent show because they know the audience and participants are supportive of who they are,” Mr. Howe said....
With Christmas just a couple days away, people are rushing to get their Christmas shopping done and checked off before the best time of the year is here.
Luis Osuna, a freshman at Taft High, says, “I really don't desire anything for this upcoming Christmas, except a little bit of cash so I can go to the mall and buy the stuff I want instead of my parents getting me a surprise gift.”
Angelo Gamboa, a sophomore, says he is pretty excited for Christmas even though he’s not going to receive any gifts. He said already got what he wanted for Christmas which was a PS4 and clothes. He said he’s still going to go visit his family in Beaverton.
Americans plan to spend an average of $704.18 on gifts and seasonal items this year. The average American will spend $403.26 on kids, while $68.23 will be spent on friends, $21.06 will be spent on co-workers, and $23.39 will be spent on other gifts, according to ChristmasInsider.com
Average shoppers plan to complete 36% of their holiday shopping online. In fact, the number of customers reaching retailer sites through mobile devices went up from 6.45% in 2010 to 15.2% in 2011. For more information visit to-christmas spending at businessinsider.com
On Halloween, it’s mostly little kids that dress up, but even high school students dress up for fun.
“I enjoy Halloween even though I am in high school,” says Karl Wohlwend, a ninth grader. Karl plans to dress up as something scary, like a zombie or a werewolf.
Karl says his favorite place to go trick or treating is Holmes Road. He thinks other people would like going there as well, because one house sometimes gives out full sized candy bars rather than the miniature versions.
Seventh grader Devin Bolan said, “I am going trick or treating because I get candy and like the exercise.” Devin wants to dress up as a football player this year for Halloween, and also plans on going trick or treating at Holmes Road.
There are many places to buy a Halloween costumes, but the best place to look is Goodwill. They have a section in Goodwill that is dedicated to Halloween costumes, and employees estimate there are more 400 costumes you can choose from.
The Taft High 7-12 2014 football team has made position changes on the defense in order to better play against different teams in the 2014 football season.
Zach Lutz is a senior at Taft High 7-12 who plays on the varsity defense. “There is no one that is on our defense that is new to it. We have pretty much been running the same people on the defense since Coach Mick has been here, although some of us have moved to different positions.”
Zach has been switched around on defense. For varsity he went from nose guard to a defensive end and then back to nose guard for Coach Mick’s defense.
In the 2014 football season, Taft has played these new teams: Santiam Christian, Dayton, Amity,Willamina, and Sheridan/Sheridan Japanese Charter. Taft has a 5-3 win-loss record as of Oct. 27.
Just a few days before school is out and it seems most are so excited they could just shout - but not all.
With summer closing in, many students at Taft High 7-12 are struggling to get passing grades by the end of the final week before they vegetate during the hopefully sunny and warm summer.
Some students have only one “I” left and they're excited. Miranda Rose, a sophomore, has just one “I” and says “It's exciting because of how hard I've worked and how close I am to passing all my classes this semester.”
Many students who are passing all their classes have to stay on track, though. “I get a little lazy at the end of the year,” says Aaron Blackstocks, admitting his grades get a little low as June approaches.
Assistant Principal Nick Lupo is leaving.
Mr.Lupo has found a new position as a principal at Taft Elementary so this will be his last year at Taft. Many are upset that Mr.Lupo is going to be leaving but are happy for him that he will be moving up position wise.
Mr.Lupo said “I got a chance to stay in Lincoln City and become a principal of a school. This will be a great opportunity for me to help students and teachers at the elementary level.
I look forward to preparing them for Taft 7-12. I am excited to be in Lincoln City for another year and will continue to visit and support the high school any way that I can.”
William Borges, Taft sophomore, said “I think Lupo was an awesome staff member and it’s sad he has to go.”
Sayonara Seniors!
With the seniors already graduated, Taft High 7-12 seems a little smaller to some of the students, where most are sad to see the seniors go. “I think the seniors left a good atmosphere here for the final week of school,” says Parker Payne, a junior at Taft High 7-12.
“I’m going to miss seeing all the seniors for these final couple of days, some of my friends were seniors.” says Jonathan Siefer a Junior at Taft High 7-12. Many students are now parking in what used to be the seniors parking spots.
Also, now the small senior commute by truck in the morning has vanished, which consisted of a couple seniors standing in a group with some lower classmen by their trucks. “Now the lowerclassmen will take over. ” says Michael Parker, a sophomore at Taft High
ASB elections are here for 2014-2015, and there are lots of changes.
ASB will have a different form of election. Instead of everyone speaking in front of the school only those running for president, vice president, and senior class president will. Everybody else will participate in a panel election.
¨A panel election is where there is an interview by an administrator instead of a speech in front of the school,¨ said Ms. Kelly Hart, advisor of ASB. For most positions, other than the ones mentioned above, students will interview with a panel.
“The most outgoing vice president and president from the coming year and this year will be assigned the panel election. The panel is a bunch of interview questions and we interview (my self and one other staff) whether the nominee is self oriented or not, mostly if they are fit to be the position. We have not gotten rid of any offices just added” said Ms. Hart
Giving a speech in front of the school often scares kids so much that they are not willing to participate. To get a broader range of student voice and input, ASB leaders decided to change it.
“It is scary for someone to speak in front of the school. For us to grow and have more opportunities we need to feel comfortable.” said Mrs. Hart. She hopes not having to speak in front of the school will encourage more people to participate.
In addition to a different type of election, there are also different offices.
“The new positions that will be opening are Spirit Director, Technology Director, Activities Director, Assistant Activities Director, and Service Project Coordinator” said Mrs. Hart.
“The reason ASB is changing is because so we can grow, the whole point is to grow. Instead of having one person each time volunteer (for every project) we have one person for each category to make it less complicated.”
ASB officers for the 2014-2015 school year:
ASB President- Sam Taylor
ASB Vice-President- Breanna Poureetezadi
ASB Secretary- Dylan Givargiznia
ASB...
People are taking pictures of themselves and sending them all over the place, the modern terminology being called “selfies.”
Some would differ in how many they want to take in a day, at least depending on their mood, either they’re excited, sad, or angry. Still, why do the people in Taft take pictures of themselves?
Freshman Jenna Richards likes taking selfies because it was a way for girls to gain easy attention. She says, “It’s just something that girls do when they think they look good that day and they want as many people to see them looking good, so they take a picture and post it.”
Sophomore Samuel Taylor thinks it’s a good idea to take selfies, but not all the time. “If you’re a guy...you never take more than four to six because otherwise you cannot be masculine in my opinion.”
Freshman Sam Shott believes selfies are just not as impressive as most people say they are, and finds them annoying to do. He says, “I think selfies are annoying because everybody is constantly taking pictures of them. And I find it really annoying when people take ridiculous photos such as like duck faces or whatever. Its okay once in awhile but every day it just really annoying.”
Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Taft Live posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
Send a message to Taft Live:
Want your business to be the top-listed Media Company?
