By Paul Menke
​Controversy has surrounded itself around CollegeBoard yet again after the organization recently imposed a $40 fee for any late submitted Advanced Placement exams. There is already a charge of $94 per A.P. exam for students inside the United States, and fee waivers do not even cover half of the cost of the exam. This can be especially detrimental to poorer students that schedule to take multiple A.P. exams. Does it really pay to be smart?

The costs do not end here, however. CollegeBoard has now adopted other miscellaneous paths for increased revenue. Now, if a student does not submit full payment for the A.P. exam(s) by the November 15 deadline, the payer is slapped with an additional $40 late fee. There are not even circumstantial exceptions to the fee, even if the student or their family is unable to receive the necessary funds due to their financial situation.

By Emmy Gorman

Let’s face it. We’re teenagers in the 21st century. We grew up with cell phones and fancy gadgets, and we enjoy the sweet freedom we get with our technology at school. But at times, can it be too much freedom?

So far, the only things the school has done to control technology use is blocked Instagram from the school WiFi, placed the phone pockets in every classroom (which are not used in most), and hosted an assembly about limiting technology use in the home.

By Emmy Gorman
​Do you like being on stage? Do you want to make friends and memories that’ll last a lifetime? If the answer to either of those questions is yes, than the BFTC, or Blue Falcon Theater Company, is for you! But wait, what if you don’t like being in the spotlight? Don’t worry, there are plenty of places for you backstage, such as being on the stage crew. However, in my personal opinion, being a “theater kid” is possibly the best thing you can do for yourself in your school career. 

As an ensemble member in both last year’s spring musical and this year’s fall play, not only did I enjoy my experience, I learned a lot about what it takes to put on a great production. Some of the unsung heroes of a great production include the lighting and sound crew, the stage crew, the set designers, the prop creators, the costume designers, and certainly the ensemble. To quote Melissa Hallett, director of last year’s spring musical The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, she wrote in the program, “These students have to work the hardest because there isn’t anything written for them in the script. We truly had to make this stuff up! And in my opinion, they do a fabulous job.” 

By Peyton Dauley
Last Thursday, students entered the library to find exactly the opposite of what they’re used to: handshakes, interviewing, and frantic last-minute resume-printing. If these students were not seniors, they may have been confused as to why their couch was occupied by a local business owner. But seniors were, quite literally, on the job. 

As a part of the senior curriculum, 12th graders were required to participate in two mock interviews. They were graded based on performance and had a week to prepare their responses and attire--even required to take online courses regarding how to interview and what preparation should look like. 

By Peyton Dauley

By Paul Menke
​Is it fair to punish a student for an entire school year for one mistake?

At my old school in Shelby County, Tennessee, if a student was caught doing or having drugs or alcohol, they would be sentenced to 180 days, the equivalent to an entire school year, of In-School Suspension and a mandatory drug counseling program for repeat offenders. At Mashpee, the typical punishment for this offense is a few days of suspension, depending on the student’s history. Which strategy is more effective, and should Mashpee adopt Shelby County’s drug policy?

For those who are not familiar with “in-school suspension,” it is a punishment wherein one would report to a room at the beginning of each school day. The room would have a proctor in it, and one would be brought any work that needed to be done to their designated cubicle-like workspace. The student would be given online or written lessons to learn, and the only two reasons the student would be able to leave would be for an escorted bathroom visit and, possibly, for lunch. Lunch was brought to the student either way, so there was no starvation involved. Finally, there would be no virtually no communication whatsoever for the 7-hour school day, and multiple drug offenses would lead to expulsion.

By Tia Ladd
​Summer is getting closer by each week. The hotter the temperature gets, the less we are able to comfortably wear. But is there a point where less can be too little?

Lately many middle and high schoolers have been wearing very little clothing around school. It seems that there isn't anyone enforcing the dress code. Girls wear very short booty shorts and guys continue to have their pants sagging so their underwear shows. Maybe it’s time for the dress code to be re-established throughout the district.

By Aldona Casey
​From cigars to cigarettes to vaporizers, the world of smoking is always evolving. Making new products with different gimmicks is one way the nicotine and the tobacco industries have been able to make billions of dollars.

The latest products, vaporizers or electronic-cigarettes, are battery powered devices that have cartridges filled with a nicotine infused liquid. E-cigarettes try to create the sensation of smoking tobacco, with “smoke” (which is actually water vapor) and a design similar to that of an actual cigarette.