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American Studies class formed to combine American history and literature

February 3, 2012

Nicole Sarquis, Staff Writer

History teachers tend to ramble off unrelatable facts about flappers, bootlegging, and the ease of life in the “Roaring 20s” during a typical U.S. History class, leaving their students with no real understanding of the subject. At the same time, English teachers’ enthusiasm over F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby” can only be understood if students reading the literary classic have a solid knowledge base of the time period the novel is set in. In an attempts to bridge the gap between literature and history studies, two teachers––Ms. Megan Kern and Ms. Anne Marie Dominguez––have paired up to teach their newly developed class, American Studies, to juniors, combining the... Continue Reading

Lumpkin’s layup helps boys’ basketball avoid upset

February 3, 2012

Matt Muenzberg, Sports Editor

“Don’t miss.” That was the thought that ran through the head of senior forward Sanjay Lumpkin when he got the ball under the basket unguarded with three seconds left in the game. Lumpkin made the layup, giving the top ranked boys’ basketball team a 67-65 win over number two Spring Lake Park. “We were just trying to get a screen and roll on the top. The ball went into the corner and I just cut back door and no one was guarding me,” said Lumpkin. The Red Knights struggled to contain Spring Lake Park’s Sean Scott, who had a career night with 36 points, 13 rebounds, and six blocks in a packed, pro-Panther gymnasium. Head coach Mr. John Moore admitted that guarding Scott isn’t an exact... Continue Reading

Rising actors partake in Les Miserables performance

Junior Shannon Galvin rehearses for the upcoming Les Miserables performance wither her fellow cast members. (Giulia Imholte)

Rising actors partake in Les Miserables performance

January 27, 2012

Emily Kline, Staff Writer

Blue Water Theatre Company, one of the Twin Cities’ top performing arts groups for youth, is taking on “Les Misérables,” one of musical theatre’s most famous works, for their winter production. Juniors Rachel Hogen and Shannon Galvin, along with sophomore Rachel Wallace, joined the cast in late November and are currently in rehearsals for the... Continue Reading

SOPA bill is ineffective, inefficient, and infringing

February 1, 2012

Nick Hillson, Staff Writer

The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) is a bill running through Congress in an attempt to curb the illegal uploading and downloading of copyrighted information and programs. Unfortunately, due to extremely vague wording and unclear definitions, the censorship proposed could extend to websites such as Facebook, various e-mails, and any other free forum. Not only is SOPA ineffective for all but the technologically impaired, but it violates our rights and benefits only a small handful of elites. SOPA works by requiring websites and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to search through sent information and to censor any infringing material. Not only does this ignore the privacy guaranteed in the Constitution... Continue Reading

Mock Trial season testifies the team’s talent

The Mock Trial team had a succesful season at several competitions due to immense practice and help from professional lawyers. (Photo courtesy of Jim Vogl)

Mock Trial season testifies the team’s talent

February 3, 2012

Mallory Hoch, Staff Writer

Beginning in October, the Mock Trial team has practiced every night from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. in room 121 in preparation for upcoming competitions. Coming to a close on January 31st, the season ended on a strong note, making it to subsections before loosing their last competition. The season commenced with general practices to help initiate new members.... Continue Reading

SportDateOpponentResultW/L
Boys BasketballFri, Feb 03 Spring Lake Park67-65 Read StoryW
Girls BasketballTue, Jan 31 Minneapolis Southwest70-38W
Girls HockeySat, Jan 28 Hill-Murray1-3 Read StoryL
Boys BasketballSat, Jan 28 North Branch82-21 Read StoryW
Girls BasketballSat, Jan 28 North Branch66-40 Read StoryW
Dance TeamSat, Jan 28 Catholic JamboreeJ: 2nd/K: 3rd
Girls HockeyFri, Jan 27 St. Francis/North Branch10-0 Read StoryW
Boys HockeyFri, Jan 27 Moorhead2-6 Read StoryL
WrestlingFri, Jan 27 Robbinsdale Cooper47-27W
WrestlingFri, Jan 27 Mahtomedi33-34L
Boys HockeyThu, Jan 26 Irondale6-1 Read StoryW
Girls BasketballThu, Jan 26 Chisago Lakes58 -45 Read StoryW
Click on any sport above to see a full schedule for that sport.
SportDateTimeOpponentLocation
Girls HockeySat, Feb 04 3:00Totino-GraceParade Ice Gardens
Boys HockeySat, Feb 04 7:30Spring Lake ParkBlaine
WrestlingSat, Feb 04 9:00TBAPine Island
Girls BasketballMon, Feb 06 6:00DeLaSalleDeLaSalle
Boys HockeyWed, Feb 08 7:30Shattuck-St. Mary'sShattuck-St. Mary's
Girls BasketballFri, Feb 10 7:15St. Louis ParkSt. Louis Park
WrestlingFri, Feb 10 6:00Chisago LakesHome
Boys HockeySat, Feb 11 2:30Totino-GraceSt. Louis Park
Dance TeamSat, Feb 11 1:00SectionsAustin
Boys HockeyTue, Feb 14 7:00Chisago LakesChisago Lakes
Girls BasketballTue, Feb 14 7:15Columbia HeightsHome
Girls BasketballThu, Feb 16 7:15WaconiaHome
Click on any sport above to see a full schedule for that sport.

Video Credit: Andrew Christianson

Film maker honored in C-SPAN competition

Elin Lantz
April 21, 2009
Filed under Student Life

Senior Andrew Christenson, a previous student of video journalism, recently received an Honorable Mention in the fifth year of C-SPAN’s national news film competition, and was nationally recognized for his achievement. “StudentCam” allows students to submit five to eight minute videos, which discuss important issues such as education, the Iraq war, or (in Christenson’s case) alternative energies such as wind power.

Christenson’s documentary, “Wind Energy: Harnessing the Power,” discussed the efficiencies and possibilities of wind turbines, and managed to finish in the top 75 films out of almost 1000 entries. “I interviewed people from the Hennepin County Environmental Service and the mayor of Medina because they are getting a wind turbine,” said Christenson. “They talked about pros and cons –– that wind energy can be a reality in the future, something we can use as an alternative energy source.”

Christenson chose this topic because of its relevance and the fact that many are not fully aware of its status, especially since it is often considered to be one of the most cost-efficient renewable energy sources. “It was something I wanted to learn about,” said Christenson. “It was a good thing with gas prices and other [current] energy issues. It’s cheaper, and it’s something we can get right here in America.”

Through his research and interviews, Christenson discovered the increasing prominence of harnessing wind energy and implemented that message into his film. “In the future there could be an energy crisis and as wind turbines keep popping up, it’s becoming more prominent in our society, something we can utilize in the future,” said Christenson.

Christenson first started the film for a final project in a video journalism class, and decided to fulfill the option of entering into the StudentCam competition. He spent about two months on the documentary and put much effort into his work. After taking a month just to get an interview with the Mayor of Medina, he struggled to pull together his documentary; he even relied upon his mother to film some of the video in which he reported to the camera himself. “He didn’t do what was easy,” said Mr. Fran Roby, teacher of Christenson’s class, “he got a hold of the right people and is a talented video editor; he is very skillful with the software, and he knows what looks good.”

Mr. Roby first offered this opportunity after attending a workshop for video production teachers three years ago. “They told us about some students who won first place here in Minnesota, and I thought our students could do that [well].” said Mr. Roby.

Yet Christenson’s film was unique in his writing and overall video editing. “He really thought through his message, wrote a good voice-over script that rolled in and that tied in different sound bites,” said Mr. Roby. “He deserves a lot of credit for the honorable mention; he had a very good film,” which can be viewed at studentcam.viddler.com/videos/watch.php?id=96d8c5f0.

Christenson garnered much attention within his community, even receiving the honor of being the subject for an article in the Star Tribune on March 25. “Lots of teachers [congratulate] me, and there was a lot of recognition. Also getting this can be helpful for my resume,” said Christenson, who hopefully plans to go into film in college.

Mr. Roby hopes to have more winners from BSM and Minnesota in the future. “Anybody can enter who likes to do video editing; they don’t even have to be in a class,” said Mr. Roby, “just as long as they send it in by December 31.”

Experiencing Christenson’s same pride is something hopefully more students at BSM will have the opportunity to know in coming years. “I’m proud of it and learned a lot about wind energy in the process,” said Christenson.

Through his win, Christenson won 250 dollars and hopes to use it for something special: “I’ll probably put it towards a tattoo.”

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