Author: The Prospector

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College 101

Seniors! It’s time to stress out, because college application deadlines are right around the corner. Applying for college seems like a daunting task, and can definitely be confusing. To help, here is a very simplified version of what colleges require and a list of deadlines.

1. Take the SAT or ACT. Most colleges require or recommend test scores. Colleges use the scores from these tests to help them make admission decisions.
2. Fill out application forms. Most students fill out application forms online, but there are also paper applications available.
3. Pay an application fee. The prices of application fees vary in different colleges. Many colleges offer fee waivers to students who cannot pay the fee. Students who meet certain requirements may use the NACAC Request for Application Fee Waiver Form when applying. Counselors can also assist in this process.
4. Turn in your high school transcript. This complete record of your course work (GPA, classes, grades) will be reviewed by admissions officers.
5. Write the application essay. Different colleges have different application essay prompts, which can be found on each college’s website. Many colleges accept the Common Application, which can be found online.
6. Ask for letters of recommendation. Most college request or require at least one letter of recommendation.

Application deadlines are also coming up. Visit www.collegesimply.com for a full list of colleges and application dates. Also sign up for College Board and make an account to help find the college for you. November deadline dates are approaching fast, including deadlines for Universities of California (UC) and California State Universities (CSU). Be sure to ask your counselor questions or visit the College and Career Center or website for more information, including scholarships and financial aid. Good luck seniors!

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Hipsters Save The World

Cool clothes once worn by small children, expensive metal lunchboxes, a better taste in music than you, these are the telltale signs of a modern hipster. We bastardized the term, created in the 1940s by jive linguists to give Civil War veterans another thing to hate. The Civil War veterans died, presumably, so the word’s definition morphed over time to suit the culturally challenged. Today it functions as a one size fits all insult, launched at anyone who scolds television ownership or maims jeans in the name of summer heat. Detractors claim the aesthetic is soulless appropriation, irony for the sake of irony. They are blind.

So-called hipsters eschew sarcasm and mockery as primary motivators. They deal exclusively in the currency of comfort. They feel coziest provoking squirms. People are accustomed to conformity. Passionate monologues about the subtle contrast between Nordic folk music and Baltic folk music make people feel weird, and this feeling is a good thing. Comfort leads to complacency. Complacency leads to extinction. We marginalize beacons of nonconformity, those that future history books will inevitably laud as heroes. It is time we end this shortsighted idiocracy and craft the medals the hipsters deserve.

Princeton researchers confirmed in multiple studies that preferences in music and clothes correlate with different genders, races, and classes. Annoyance with hipsters stems from the tendency to dismiss different people as inferior. This solidifies the problematic nature of the designation. Hipster adds to the long list of words dedicated to illegitimizing divergent opinions and tastes. Everything is relative. Everyone is someone else’s hipster. The labeling and alienation are unnecessary, and the word retains no meaning. If someone is a jerk, let them know. If someone is being offensive, let them know. But don’t ridicule people for having a little fun in the scarf section.

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Balancing School With Sports: Advice For Student Athletes

Balancing school work on a daily basis may be hard enough, but joining a sports team could make that task even harder. Whether you’re a freshman or an upperclassmen, any student athlete can benefit from some advice. If you just joined your first sports team, you may be asking me why this advice is important. Joining a sports team may be fun and good exercise, but unfortunately, it does make your life at school more challenging. But don’t give up just yet! Trust me when I say that these tips will definitely come to good use and help you stay on top of your work!
Ian Curtis, a junior here at CKM who has played on the tennis team in the past, stated, “My best advice for incoming athletes is to plan ahead and work on assignments that might not be due the next day or to study for a test a few days in advance.” Procrastination: the dreaded word that every student has heard at least once in their academic career. I know the first thing that comes to mind when you get home from a long day of school and practice isn’t to get your homework done early or to study days in advance, but procrastination can lead to things even worse than a lot of school work. For example, unneeded stress and a lack of sleep quickly become a consequence of procrastination. Your homework time is already cut short due to the time your sport takes up and procrastination will only allow your homework load to build up. Not only will your homework load increase, but also your stress levels. Ian also said, “By getting your work done and not letting it build up until the last minute, you can truly enjoy and exceed in the sport without worries.” So, don’t procrastinate! Get your homework out of the way so it doesn’t become too much to handle.
From personal experience, I know exactly what it feels like to be a student athlete. I have played on the JV girls basketball team for the past two years and know how hard it is to maintain your grades and health. When you’re playing on a sports team, it takes up a lot of your energy. Waking up early and going to school for 6-7 hours doesn’t help either. With that being said, try to always get a good night’s rest. Again, don’t procrastinate on your homework and stay up late doing it, because you’re going to need that sleep and energy for the next day. You don’t want your health to be at risk due to your lack of sleep, now do you? Of course not. So, get your homework done and out of the way to allow yourself a good night’s rest.
With all this being said, go out there and have fun with your sport, but don’t let your busy schedule overload both your health and your academic career. Do not procrastinate and get as much sleep as you can, because you’re going to need it. Don’t be afraid to ask for help throughout the school year. Teachers and students alike are always willing to give advice or guidance, but if you can’t find anyone else, then come find me! I’m always open to helping and giving advice. If you do become overwhelmed with stress, then just take it one day at a time. Don’t focus on the big picture, but take your workload one small detail at a time so you don’t get overwhelmed. Balancing your athletic and academic life may be a challenge, but it is possible. Now, go play your sport and don’t let that homework overwhelm you!

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Meet Annika Masaki

Meet Annika Masaki, a freshman who has been playing basketball since kindergarten. This year Annika is on the McClatchy Lady Lions Junior Varsity team where she currently plays shooting guard. Her favorite shot is the free throw. Annika has really enjoyed getting to know all the rest of the girls on the team as they condition together after school, and crush all the other high schools in their many victories this season.
Before joining the McClatchy team, Annika has had a long history of playing basketball. Thanks to her dad’s side of the family, which had lots of basketball players, Annika started off playing for the Sac Buddhist Church against other leagues. She played in that league all the way through sixth grade. Then, at Sutter Middle School, Annika played on the girls’ basketball team in both seventh and eighth grade where her team was undefeated her entire eighth grade year. She’s excited to continue her basketball career for the next four years at McClatchy.
Throughout her life, Annika’s father has always been there to push her and encourage her in basketball. “I’m really grateful for my dad because he’s really knowledgeable in basketball so he’s always able to help me,” says Annika. Her dad is constantly helping her improve her skills, and she’s appreciative of the fact that he’s there for her to practice with. No matter who her coaches may be, she knows her dad is always there to turn to.
Not only does Annika enjoy playing the game, she also enjoys the benefits that come with being a basketball player. She feels that playing basketball is something that she has in common with lots of other people, so it helps her be more socially interactive, find friendships, and connect with others.
But Annika’s life isn’t all about basketball. She has several other hobbies as well. At Sutter, she was on the speech and debate team and the Mathletes team. She has also joined the Mathletes team here at McClatchy. In her free time, Annika loves listening to music and reading. Her favorite genre is fantasy fiction, but she always tries to keep an open mind and read different things. And one more fun fact about Annika: she loves wearing beanies! Rainy days are her favorite because they give her the perfect excuse to wear one.
Annika is super friendly and always willing to lend a helping hand. She’s looking forward to her next four years at McClatchy as well as many, many more years of basketball.

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College And Career Map

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Kings Arena Continues as Scheduled

By Shradha Singh, Staff writer

“The bigger they are, the harder they fall.” This is certainly not applicable in the case of the  Downtown Plaza. Little more than three months after the city finally made the decision to start construction of the new Sacramento Kings arena in late July, the declining shopping center the stadium’s replacing has already been reduced to little more than bare, smooth earth. All the buildings along L Street, including the Macy’s building, have been demolished, as well as the  structures along J Street and  the north side of the mall.

This stage of construction, which was completed in early October, has set the stage for the building of the Sacramento Kings arena’s foundation, which began recently. Once this is done, vertical construction of the stadium will begin around February or March. Onlookers can expect to see the shell of the arena start to take shape by next spring or early summer. Like the one before it, the new arena, with its 17,500 seats, will be among the smallest seating stadiums within the NBA. However it will be made with profit in mind, with more seats in its lower bowl, driving up ticket prices. There will also be more “premium” and VIP seats available, another way of boosting revenue. The building will also be among the most Wifi connected stadiums in the country, which is sure to please Internet lovers. And, at 745,000 square feet, the new arena will be about 70 percent bigger than Sleep Train.

So far workers have reported no issues in construction, and the project has continued smoothly. This comes as a clear contrast to the years of conflict regarding the placement of an arena in downtown Sacramento that started in 2002. It  was originally proposed to be constructed in the empty railyards. However, the continued reluctance of the city to finance such an expensive venture delayed plans, which only came to fruition in late 2013, after threats to take the team from Sacramento to Seattle. Strong protest from fans, a change in ownership, and the promise of a new arena in the heart of California’s capital were the only things that kept the team from leaving. And despite the addition of other problems, including the city’s successful eminent domain suit against Macy’s to seize much needed land for the building, plans for the arena have still gone on and the team has stayed. Still the danger is not yet over for Kings fans, as the $447.7 million structure needs to be completed by October 2016, or the team will be moved by the NBA to Seattle, as agreed to by the city. Meanwhile, lawsuits are still pending on the $255 million subsidy the city is expected to put forward for the arena, and whether or not the issue ought to be put to a vote on the upcoming June ballot. Only time will tell whether this obstacle will also pose a problem to the stadium, or like the ones before it, this too will pass.