“The beauty of a book” Despite health

New techniques warnings, teen

inviting IT teens to
read show promise
Ariel Lopez
Staff Writer
Something is seriously up at Indian Trail
High School & Academy’s library.
The number of books checked out has
been on a steady climb since 2015, when
data was first reported.
September checkouts from the circula-
tion desk have jumped from 925 in 2015 to
2,039 in 2019.
And the increase has occurred even
while enrollment at Indian Trail has de-
clined from more than 2,400 students in
2015 to about 2,100 students reported for
the 2019-20 school year.
Kenosha Unified School District’s li-
brary circulation statistics show in the most
recent completed school year, 2018-2019,
Indian Trail students checked out 9,564
books.
In just the months of September and Oc-
tober this year, a staggering 3,369 books
were recorded as checked out.
So why is reading and checking out
books becoming more common among IT
students?
School officials point to several initia-
tives that Indian Trail has pursued to in-
crease reading, from book blurbs hung on
stalls in the bathrooms to book clubs meet-
ing after school and at lunch.
But one initiative stands out as the most
effective.
Source: Kenosha Unified School District
“I think a big thing that is causing an
increase is a lot of the teachers attended a
training where they really focused on what
happens to students when they are inde-
pendently reading. So, they started bringing
their classes to the library more,” said IT
librarian Jennifer Lindsay.
English department chair and teacher
Allison Walton is one of those teachers.
“More and more English teachers are
bringing students to the library and build-
ing classroom libraries of their own. Both
are fantastic ideas,” Walton said.
“Allowing students some choice in what
they read is a way to help even the most
reluctant readers appreciate the beauty of a
book,” she said.
The initiatives at Indian Trail come at a
time when teen reading skills nationally are
lagging. National statistics show that fewer
Illustration by Angelica Gonzalez
than 40 percent of students are reading at a
college-ready level in the 12th grade.
“Research has shown that most students
only read an average of seven minutes a
day while they are in school,” Lindsay said.
“Those sufficient in reading are probably
those who are reading more.”
According to youngreadersfoundation.
org, reading can create many social and
learning benefits that can be relevant in
future references. Reading develops criti-
cal and analytical thinking skills, improves
memory, broadens perspectives on topics,
improves focus and concentration, and
helps develop empathy and emotions.
“No matter what you do in the future,
you will need to know how to comprehend
what you are reading and how to articulate
your own ideas. The more students read, the
stronger communication skills become,”
Walton said.
energy drink
market continues
rapid expansion
Yessica Banda
Staff Writer
Since Monster and Red Bull first
appeared on store shelves in the early
2000s, the consumption of highly caf-
feinated energy drinks has increased
significantly in America with no signs
of stopping.
Consumption will increase by $84.8
billion by 2025, states Grand View Re-
search, a U.S.-based market research
and consulting company headquartered
in San Francisco.
And teens are projected to make up
a growing share of the energy drink
market.
“High schoolers are continuously
feeling more pressure to take on more
rigorous coursework, causing a loss
of sleep, causing them to turn towards
energy drinks to make them feel en-
ergized when they didn’t get a lot of
sleep,” said James Oscar, an Indian
Trail High School senior in the Medi-
cal Science Academy.
Teen customers battle the drinks
boost performance and help them be
more conscious of their surroundings,
noting the main ingredient in these en-
ergy drinks is caffeine.
See Energy, Page 2

How well are they prepared?

Alumni praise education received at Indian Trail, but wish high school offered more practical courses
Wyatt Garlow
Staff Writer
High school can feel like the
lottery to some teens. They put in
so much effort, only to receive so
little back.
It isn’t uncommon for high
schoolers to finish feeling unful-
filled.
About 47 percent of high school
graduates don’t complete either a
college or career-ready course of
study after high school, accord-
ing to national education-based
surveys by the Hechinger Report,
at Columbia University in New
York.
But how do Indian Trail High
School & Academy students and
alumni feel about their experi-
ence?
Scout Testard, a 2019 IT Gen-
eral Studies graduate, said that the
Business Academy senior Andrew Vela restocks the refrigerator Kenosha Unified School District
at the Hawk Shop during 5A lunch earlier this month. theatre program is amazing and
Photo by Madison Cowart has taught her some of the skills
she’s learning right now at Co-
lumbia College in Chicago.
The Advanced Placement
classes at Indian Trail also receive
high praise from alumni, who say
the coursework is similar to their
college classes now.
According to Matt St. Martin,
Indian Trail’s vice principal, Indi-
an Trail’s preparation of students
is a two-fold process.
“The one avenue is the aca-
demic side of things. If you look at
our high school compared to other
high schools near it, academically
we’re preparing students to a high
degree,” St. Martin said.
From after school clubs, sports
programs, student internships, to
KUSD’s theatre program, Indian
Trail offers many opportunities
for students to pursue something
they may want to do after high
school.
Yet some students believe
that not enough practical skills
are being taught. Teens are con-
cerned about learning how to do
their taxes, buy a house, and even
change a flat tire.
Angela Freeman, a 2017 Gen-
eral Studies graduate from Indian
Trail, said that there should be
more home economics classes in
high school because some stu-
dents in college aren’t able to take
care of themselves properly.
Indian Trail does offer home
economic classes, but they aren’t
required for graduation.
The Business Academy does
require financial literacy course-
work. Every fall and spring those
finance students host a “Reality
Check” event and experience a
day of real world situations with
a persona they assume for the day.
See Reality, Page 2