Senior Year
CHACOS REMAIN POPULAR FOR STUDENT TRAVEL
April 9, 2016
Look down at the feet around Asheville when the weather gets warm and you will see Chacos everywhere.
Chaco, makers of all-purpose, single and double strap sandals, was started in 1989 in Colorado and has now moved to Indiana with manufacturing locations spreading across the globe. According to Megan S.*, who works in E-Commerce and Consumer Relations at Chaco, the footwear is well-loved all over the world.
“Chaco tends to be more of a lifestyle for people, where they pick a pair and take them wherever they go,” Megan said.
Students at Roberson have joined in the world-wide craze over Chacos, and senior Bethany Knecht and junior Ashley Lim include themselves in that crowd.
“My Chacos have held up for a long time. I have had two pairs, and I’ve had them forever. That’s another thing, they don’t really wear down,” Knecht said.
Lim, who has owned one pair since 8th grade, finds that Chacos are a necessity for warm weather.
“I start wearing them in the spring. I will wear them to school and to rowing a lot, and in the summer, I wear them every single day,” Lim said.
Lim says that she takes her pair of Chacos everywhere she goes: family trips, regattas, and even across the Atlantic Ocean. She and her family traveled to Italy in July 2015, and says that Chacos were a staple in her wardrobe during the trip because they made it easy to enjoy all that Italy had to offer.
“We went to Cinque Terre, by the Mediterranean Sea. I remember we wore our Chacos there, and we walked in the water. It was really nice,” Lim said.
Like Lim, adventurers in the world take their Chacos on their trips and leave with stories that are worth sharing. According to Megan, Chaco receives stories from customers sharing their experiences. She said that it is the little stories that have the biggest impact, since not everyone can travel to places like Nepal and climb Mount Everest.
“I received a packet not too long ago from a couple who take underprivileged children who don’t get much time or attention at home. They take them camping and teach them about life, love, and adventure,” Megan said.
Knecht recently went on a mission trip, with her Chacos in tow, to Guatemala. There, they cleaned up the village and spent time playing with the local children. She said that the trip was a life-changing experience.
“It will literally change your whole view on everything in life. Despite how small their houses are and how little they have, they are happy. We are all about the next new thing, like more shoes, but they are so happy with what they have. The here and now,” Knecht said.
In addition to travel, social media has also played a big part in the building of the Chaco community.
“We’re very active in social media. We love to reach out and respond and make the customers realize that they are Chaco,” Megan said.
With a large Instagram and Twitter presence, Chaco is able to connect to its customers as well as connect other “Chaconians.” Using tags like #Chaconation, #Chacolive, #ChacoUS, and #Chacofootwear, consumers can share photos and stories with the company.
“We get pictures of people on mountains, we get all kinds of stuff. So we actually have been everywhere,” Megan said.
Knecht agrees that using social media as a tool to boost the brand’s community is beneficial for not only Chaco, but also the consumers.
“[The different hashtags] encourage people to get Chacos and explore more and be more adventurous,” Knecht said.
Whether Chacos are used to get to the peak, complete a mission trip, or for a photo, these sandals are made for the outdoor-minded.
“We believe that life is really enriched through outdoor adventures, travel, and community,” Megan said.
Look down at the feet around Asheville when the weather gets warm and you will see Chacos everywhere.
Chaco, makers of all-purpose, single and double strap sandals, was started in 1989 in Colorado and has now moved to Indiana with manufacturing locations spreading across the globe. According to Megan S.*, who works in E-Commerce and Consumer Relations at Chaco, the footwear is well-loved all over the world.
“Chaco tends to be more of a lifestyle for people, where they pick a pair and take them wherever they go,” Megan said.
Students at Roberson have joined in the world-wide craze over Chacos, and senior Bethany Knecht and junior Ashley Lim include themselves in that crowd.
“My Chacos have held up for a long time. I have had two pairs, and I’ve had them forever. That’s another thing, they don’t really wear down,” Knecht said.
Lim, who has owned one pair since 8th grade, finds that Chacos are a necessity for warm weather.
“I start wearing them in the spring. I will wear them to school and to rowing a lot, and in the summer, I wear them every single day,” Lim said.
Lim says that she takes her pair of Chacos everywhere she goes: family trips, regattas, and even across the Atlantic Ocean. She and her family traveled to Italy in July 2015, and says that Chacos were a staple in her wardrobe during the trip because they made it easy to enjoy all that Italy had to offer.
“We went to Cinque Terre, by the Mediterranean Sea. I remember we wore our Chacos there, and we walked in the water. It was really nice,” Lim said.
Like Lim, adventurers in the world take their Chacos on their trips and leave with stories that are worth sharing. According to Megan, Chaco receives stories from customers sharing their experiences. She said that it is the little stories that have the biggest impact, since not everyone can travel to places like Nepal and climb Mount Everest.
“I received a packet not too long ago from a couple who take underprivileged children who don’t get much time or attention at home. They take them camping and teach them about life, love, and adventure,” Megan said.
Knecht recently went on a mission trip, with her Chacos in tow, to Guatemala. There, they cleaned up the village and spent time playing with the local children. She said that the trip was a life-changing experience.
“It will literally change your whole view on everything in life. Despite how small their houses are and how little they have, they are happy. We are all about the next new thing, like more shoes, but they are so happy with what they have. The here and now,” Knecht said.
In addition to travel, social media has also played a big part in the building of the Chaco community.
“We’re very active in social media. We love to reach out and respond and make the customers realize that they are Chaco,” Megan said.
With a large Instagram and Twitter presence, Chaco is able to connect to its customers as well as connect other “Chaconians.” Using tags like #Chaconation, #Chacolive, #ChacoUS, and #Chacofootwear, consumers can share photos and stories with the company.
“We get pictures of people on mountains, we get all kinds of stuff. So we actually have been everywhere,” Megan said.
Knecht agrees that using social media as a tool to boost the brand’s community is beneficial for not only Chaco, but also the consumers.
“[The different hashtags] encourage people to get Chacos and explore more and be more adventurous,” Knecht said.
Whether Chacos are used to get to the peak, complete a mission trip, or for a photo, these sandals are made for the outdoor-minded.
“We believe that life is really enriched through outdoor adventures, travel, and community,” Megan said.
SOUTH ASHEVILLE CONTINUES TO DEVELOP
February 26, 2016
Some big changes are happening in the South Asheville area with the addition of new businesses that are planning on calling 28803 home.
In the last month, Gerber Village experienced an expansion with the opening of three new businesses: Char Bar No. 7, Great Harvest Bread Co., and Whit’s Frozen Custard. Plans are already in place for the opening of Blaze Pizza and SkyZone Trampoline Park in the same development. Junior Sara Sipes recognizes that the recent growth could be a direct result of an influx of people wanting to live in Asheville.
“More people are coming to this area, more businesses open, which benefits for everybody,” she said.
Plans of Pulliam Properties for expansion are also moving forward, and some building has already taken place to bring in retail and office space on Long Shoals Rd. near to Lake Julian. Starbucks and Salsarita’s have opened stand-alone units near the interstate, and Bojangles and BMW of Asheville are a few of the other businesses moving to the area.
According to a recent WLOS report, Airport Rd. in Asheville is also expanding as it is the beginning stages of adding a new shopping center across from the Southridge Shopping Center, bringing in businesses including Starbucks, Culver’s, and Hobby Lobby.
Sipes has noticed an increase in traffic in not only Town Square, but also in the general South Asheville area. However, she feels that the recent developments are not all bad.
“I think it’s pretty much positive. Overlooking that it’s annoying with just a lot more traffic, it brings up more opportunities for businesses,” she said.
Senior Kayla Sessoms lives off of Sweeten Creek Rd. and says that it is one of the most congested routes she has to travel on during evening rush hour.
“Usually Monday through Friday from 4p.m. – 6:30p.m., it is so hard to get out of [my neighborhood]. At any other time of day, it takes me 10 minutes to get to work, but those days, it take me 30,” Sessoms said.
According to Sessoms, the heavy traffic on Sweeten Creek not only affects her travel time, but also it interferes with her school work.
“I’ll leave at 3:45, which means getting home from school, hurrying up and changing for work and then going right back out. During that 15 minutes, I could get reading done, but I have to sit on Sweeten Creek instead,” Sessoms said.
Plans are currently in the process for the construction of two additional apartment complexes off of Sweeten Creek, and with the recent addition of three other complexes, Sessoms feel that there is too many people moving to the area.
“My friends at church are real estate agents, and they said that Asheville is 99 percent occupied right now, which is just absolutely crazy. That’s just so many people, especially for Sweeten Creek,” Sessoms said.
With the proposal for the construction of multiple strip malls on both Long Shoals Rd. and Airport Rd. comes the removal of some of the landscape that some argue makes Asheville a prime tourist location.
“I understand so many people want to live here, but I hate how busy Asheville has gotten. I just think that there is way too many people, and a lot come here because of how beautiful the scenery is. They are chopping down all of that scenery and polluting the air with all they are doing, and it’s going to ruin Asheville,” Sessoms said.
The Roberson district is also feeling the effects from the growth of the South Asheville area.
TIMS Specialist for the Buncombe County Department of Transportation (DOT), Donna Banks, says that the recent growth is affecting the entire area of districts in southern Buncombe County, causing the department to make changes in the districts to better accommodate the influx of people.
“We have noticed a major growth. Last year, we had to change part of the district line towards the south end of Sweeten Creek Rd., moving part of the Estes Elementary area over to the Glen Arden area,” Banks said.
According to Banks, the Buncombe County Schools Department of Education is constantly working to improve and balance attendance within the schools. With the large amounts of families moving to South Asheville, bus routes have had to change to be more accommodating.
“We have had to move some buses around, and have had to take roads off of specific bus routes and give them to other buses to accommodate the count,” Banks said.
The Roberson district alone is assigned about 15 percent of the buses in Buncombe County, and to keep up with the expansion, many of the buses have had to add more routes to their schedule.
Not only is the DOT concerned with bus routes, but it is also heavily focused on keeping its students safe as they make changes to adjust to the growing numbers of students and the multiple new apartment complexes in the area, according to Banks. “Some of our developments have actually had to give us permission to come into the development to make a bus stop because there is so many children waiting at the intersection. We want to make sure the safety of the kids is our priority,” Banks said.
Some big changes are happening in the South Asheville area with the addition of new businesses that are planning on calling 28803 home.
In the last month, Gerber Village experienced an expansion with the opening of three new businesses: Char Bar No. 7, Great Harvest Bread Co., and Whit’s Frozen Custard. Plans are already in place for the opening of Blaze Pizza and SkyZone Trampoline Park in the same development. Junior Sara Sipes recognizes that the recent growth could be a direct result of an influx of people wanting to live in Asheville.
“More people are coming to this area, more businesses open, which benefits for everybody,” she said.
Plans of Pulliam Properties for expansion are also moving forward, and some building has already taken place to bring in retail and office space on Long Shoals Rd. near to Lake Julian. Starbucks and Salsarita’s have opened stand-alone units near the interstate, and Bojangles and BMW of Asheville are a few of the other businesses moving to the area.
According to a recent WLOS report, Airport Rd. in Asheville is also expanding as it is the beginning stages of adding a new shopping center across from the Southridge Shopping Center, bringing in businesses including Starbucks, Culver’s, and Hobby Lobby.
Sipes has noticed an increase in traffic in not only Town Square, but also in the general South Asheville area. However, she feels that the recent developments are not all bad.
“I think it’s pretty much positive. Overlooking that it’s annoying with just a lot more traffic, it brings up more opportunities for businesses,” she said.
Senior Kayla Sessoms lives off of Sweeten Creek Rd. and says that it is one of the most congested routes she has to travel on during evening rush hour.
“Usually Monday through Friday from 4p.m. – 6:30p.m., it is so hard to get out of [my neighborhood]. At any other time of day, it takes me 10 minutes to get to work, but those days, it take me 30,” Sessoms said.
According to Sessoms, the heavy traffic on Sweeten Creek not only affects her travel time, but also it interferes with her school work.
“I’ll leave at 3:45, which means getting home from school, hurrying up and changing for work and then going right back out. During that 15 minutes, I could get reading done, but I have to sit on Sweeten Creek instead,” Sessoms said.
Plans are currently in the process for the construction of two additional apartment complexes off of Sweeten Creek, and with the recent addition of three other complexes, Sessoms feel that there is too many people moving to the area.
“My friends at church are real estate agents, and they said that Asheville is 99 percent occupied right now, which is just absolutely crazy. That’s just so many people, especially for Sweeten Creek,” Sessoms said.
With the proposal for the construction of multiple strip malls on both Long Shoals Rd. and Airport Rd. comes the removal of some of the landscape that some argue makes Asheville a prime tourist location.
“I understand so many people want to live here, but I hate how busy Asheville has gotten. I just think that there is way too many people, and a lot come here because of how beautiful the scenery is. They are chopping down all of that scenery and polluting the air with all they are doing, and it’s going to ruin Asheville,” Sessoms said.
The Roberson district is also feeling the effects from the growth of the South Asheville area.
TIMS Specialist for the Buncombe County Department of Transportation (DOT), Donna Banks, says that the recent growth is affecting the entire area of districts in southern Buncombe County, causing the department to make changes in the districts to better accommodate the influx of people.
“We have noticed a major growth. Last year, we had to change part of the district line towards the south end of Sweeten Creek Rd., moving part of the Estes Elementary area over to the Glen Arden area,” Banks said.
According to Banks, the Buncombe County Schools Department of Education is constantly working to improve and balance attendance within the schools. With the large amounts of families moving to South Asheville, bus routes have had to change to be more accommodating.
“We have had to move some buses around, and have had to take roads off of specific bus routes and give them to other buses to accommodate the count,” Banks said.
The Roberson district alone is assigned about 15 percent of the buses in Buncombe County, and to keep up with the expansion, many of the buses have had to add more routes to their schedule.
Not only is the DOT concerned with bus routes, but it is also heavily focused on keeping its students safe as they make changes to adjust to the growing numbers of students and the multiple new apartment complexes in the area, according to Banks. “Some of our developments have actually had to give us permission to come into the development to make a bus stop because there is so many children waiting at the intersection. We want to make sure the safety of the kids is our priority,” Banks said.
Junior year
FAIRS, CULTURE HIGHLIGHT LOCAL AUTUMN EVENTS
October 25, 2014
With the weather cooling down and the leaves beginning to change, Asheville becomes the perfect backdrop for many of the local festivals. Asheville festivals give locals and tourists a chance to see and experience the culture of the city in the middle of the beautiful Appalachian Mountains.
The North Carolina Mountain State Fair is just one of many events locals look forward to when the fall season comes. Not only does the fair provide guests with many exhilarating rides like the Cyclops, which is my personal favorite, but it also gives visitors the option to see the different forms of art that are popular in Asheville.
This year, entertainment at the fair included performances by local cloggers from the Asheville Clogging Company, who bring a different side of dance to both well-known hits and traditional bluegrass. Local musicians also shared the stages, performing original songs about summer sweethearts and good times.
And as the fall season settles in, the Lake Eden Arts Festival, or LEAF, makes its second debut each year. LEAF comes to the Asheville area in both the spring and fall seasons, and each attract large numbers of locals and tourists to experience its unique atmosphere.
Located in Black Mountain, LEAF has a goal of “connecting cultures and creating community,” and brings in musicians and artists to display their talents to the thousands of guests each year.
The most recent festival was October 16-19 and was sold out for the weekend. Many guests opt to camp out at Lake Eden on the weekend of the festival to ensure they experience every moment they can.
World-renown musicians performed this fall, including Delhi 2 Dublin and The Mystical Arts of Tibet. The festival also offered many interactive activities for guests like healing arts, which showed guests different ancient healing techniques. Culinary arts and poetry are also highlighted at LEAF.
Festivals are constantly happening year round in and around Asheville, but during fall is the only time when you can experience Asheville culture and the color of the Blue Ridge at the same time. These events not only allow us to enjoy the uniqueness of this city from fellow locals, but it also gives us the opportunity learn about what makes Asheville extraordinary.
With the weather cooling down and the leaves beginning to change, Asheville becomes the perfect backdrop for many of the local festivals. Asheville festivals give locals and tourists a chance to see and experience the culture of the city in the middle of the beautiful Appalachian Mountains.
The North Carolina Mountain State Fair is just one of many events locals look forward to when the fall season comes. Not only does the fair provide guests with many exhilarating rides like the Cyclops, which is my personal favorite, but it also gives visitors the option to see the different forms of art that are popular in Asheville.
This year, entertainment at the fair included performances by local cloggers from the Asheville Clogging Company, who bring a different side of dance to both well-known hits and traditional bluegrass. Local musicians also shared the stages, performing original songs about summer sweethearts and good times.
And as the fall season settles in, the Lake Eden Arts Festival, or LEAF, makes its second debut each year. LEAF comes to the Asheville area in both the spring and fall seasons, and each attract large numbers of locals and tourists to experience its unique atmosphere.
Located in Black Mountain, LEAF has a goal of “connecting cultures and creating community,” and brings in musicians and artists to display their talents to the thousands of guests each year.
The most recent festival was October 16-19 and was sold out for the weekend. Many guests opt to camp out at Lake Eden on the weekend of the festival to ensure they experience every moment they can.
World-renown musicians performed this fall, including Delhi 2 Dublin and The Mystical Arts of Tibet. The festival also offered many interactive activities for guests like healing arts, which showed guests different ancient healing techniques. Culinary arts and poetry are also highlighted at LEAF.
Festivals are constantly happening year round in and around Asheville, but during fall is the only time when you can experience Asheville culture and the color of the Blue Ridge at the same time. These events not only allow us to enjoy the uniqueness of this city from fellow locals, but it also gives us the opportunity learn about what makes Asheville extraordinary.
INCREASE IN CLASS SIZE FORCES ADJUSTMENT
March 9, 2015
The North Carolina Senate passed the NC Public Schools Budget Flexibility Act in 2013, which ultimately put an end to the limit of class sizes in grades 4 to 12. The bill grants local administration use of the available teaching positions to “maximize student achievement.”
According to “U.S. News & World Report,” high schools are ranked based on a three-step process for their annual awards. The process includes evaluating reading and math results on a school’s proficiency tests and comparing them to the average student, then comparing the results of disadvantaged students. Finally, the number of students taking Advanced Placement classes is taken into account.
Currently, Roberson offers 16 AP courses to students both in the classroom and online, and has a participation rate of 41 percent across the school.
To stay ahead of the competition for class rank, many students decide to take APs and higher classes to stand out on college resumes.
“To be competitive, students need to add additional academic classes to show that they are ready for a rigorous college curriculum,” freshman counselor Natalie Anderson said.
Over the past three years, Anderson has seen more freshmen each year wanting to take advanced classes. Freshmen have two electives available, and many choose to double up in subjects like math and science in order to take AP’s sooner.
“In order for them to fit in their science classes for AP classes, they have to start earlier to get the prerequisites,” Anderson said.
Freshman Addison Skigen is currently taking biology honors and agrees that a definite level of competition in academics with college exists in students’ minds.
“I feel like it’s good to have variety and it’s good to show that you can handle taking bigger classes,” Skigen said.
Due to students like Skigen who are deciding to take advanced classes sooner, traditionally upperclassmen classes have seen jumps in student enrollment. Chemistry teacher Lisa DellaGuardia had an above average class size at the beginning of the new semester with 35 students enrolled in one of her classes.
DellaGuardia’s class has now been reduced to 27 students after she, along with the administrations’ approval, asked for volunteers to consider taking the class at a later time.
“It brings up a lot of safety issues. To maintain more than 32 students in a lab is too unsafe, and it compromises the course. My main job is to keep students safe,” DellaGuardia said.
The North Carolina Senate passed the NC Public Schools Budget Flexibility Act in 2013, which ultimately put an end to the limit of class sizes in grades 4 to 12. The bill grants local administration use of the available teaching positions to “maximize student achievement.”
According to “U.S. News & World Report,” high schools are ranked based on a three-step process for their annual awards. The process includes evaluating reading and math results on a school’s proficiency tests and comparing them to the average student, then comparing the results of disadvantaged students. Finally, the number of students taking Advanced Placement classes is taken into account.
Currently, Roberson offers 16 AP courses to students both in the classroom and online, and has a participation rate of 41 percent across the school.
To stay ahead of the competition for class rank, many students decide to take APs and higher classes to stand out on college resumes.
“To be competitive, students need to add additional academic classes to show that they are ready for a rigorous college curriculum,” freshman counselor Natalie Anderson said.
Over the past three years, Anderson has seen more freshmen each year wanting to take advanced classes. Freshmen have two electives available, and many choose to double up in subjects like math and science in order to take AP’s sooner.
“In order for them to fit in their science classes for AP classes, they have to start earlier to get the prerequisites,” Anderson said.
Freshman Addison Skigen is currently taking biology honors and agrees that a definite level of competition in academics with college exists in students’ minds.
“I feel like it’s good to have variety and it’s good to show that you can handle taking bigger classes,” Skigen said.
Due to students like Skigen who are deciding to take advanced classes sooner, traditionally upperclassmen classes have seen jumps in student enrollment. Chemistry teacher Lisa DellaGuardia had an above average class size at the beginning of the new semester with 35 students enrolled in one of her classes.
DellaGuardia’s class has now been reduced to 27 students after she, along with the administrations’ approval, asked for volunteers to consider taking the class at a later time.
“It brings up a lot of safety issues. To maintain more than 32 students in a lab is too unsafe, and it compromises the course. My main job is to keep students safe,” DellaGuardia said.