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Alumnus Matt Martz had, in 2008, created the Student Symphonic Orchestra of Fairfax that was made up of only Marshall students; now it has students from more than 15 different schools.

The Student Symphonic Orchestra of Fairfax is beginning its fourth performance season and the program’s season opener performance, free, is on Mar. 24 at the Redeemer Lutheran Church.

Through each performance, Martz has enjoyed watching the gradual improvements with the music.

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With the end of tryouts three weeks ago and a recent 9-0 scrimmage victory over Lee High School, the spring season is in full swing for boys tennis.

In the midst of his second year as coach, James Macindoe is pushing for a fresh strategy for the new spring season.

“I’m actively stressing some different doubles strategies in practice and the singles players have been working more on striking the ball early, taking time away from opponents and being less passive,” he said.

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Founded more than a century ago as the College Entrance Examination Board, College Board created and popularized standardized testing. Today, however, College Board has become a parasite to its clients, as its countless fees and lack of accountability to clients have grown rampant in recent years. Now, the time has come for parents and students to look for alternatives to College Board.

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Smiling, senior Austin Hoskins held up a caricature of himself and junior Danny Glass next to his face.

“Guess who’s who?” he said.

Hoskins acquired the caricature from IB Art student Rachel Frankel, junior, who was partipating in the second annual Creative Arts Festival held on March 9.

The festival welcomed all attendees to enjoy live music and events presented by the National Art Honor Society, Art Club, Photo Club and ACE Mentoring.

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DECA earned the title of Blue Chip Chapter at their state competition on the weekend of March 7. The award is the highest honor a chapter can earn in Virginia.

“This [award] is something we’ve been working towards for a while,” DECA advisor Jen Hendrickson said.

The team also broke the Marshall record for most first-place wins, with six participants topping their respective categories.

Forty-one participants qualified for the international competition, requiring a top seven or eight placement in their respective categories.

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The Envirothon team competed in the District Envirothon competition today. This two-part challenge tested students’ environmental skills and knowledge. The group competed against eight other schools and teams.

The first part of the competition took a traditional question-and-answer approach, centering on four main categories: wildlife, streams, soil and forestry.

According to team sponsor Barbara Brown, certain members were chosen to specialize in one of the categories in order to answer more obscure questions.

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Four competitors won first place in their respective categories at the regional science fair last weekend.

First place winners Annie Bryan and Emily Casey, sophomores, said they had started their project to address the deficit of pure water in Africa. The team searched for a way to transport desalinated water to African villages far from the coast lines. Bryan and Casey built an apparatus to distill water containing the same salt density as the Atlantic Ocean. Bryan said they “purified the water by 97.7 percent.”

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Marshall’s two FBLA teams placed first and third in the Regional Spring conference at the University of Richmond on March 7.

The first-place team, consisting of seniors Sandy Vo, Shannen Escobar, Nathaniel Chen, Corey Martin and James Cusack, will go on to the National Competition in Philadelphia in April.

“We had a good amount of wins in first, second and third place,” said vice president director of activities, Negin Hooshmandnia, senior.

Each team member competed in one of five categories: Environment, Health and Safety, Personal Finance, Consumer Rights and Technology.

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I love EarthForce. Every Friday after school, the dedicated students in the club spend hours sorting through your trash and recycling. It is not an easy job; we all know how much junk ends up in the recycling bin. EarthForce dedicates real time to making real change in our community and I think it deserves real recognition.

It seems like every other day that some club at Marshall is raising awareness or fundraising or soliciting donations. But how many of those activities are done for a grade in a class, for admission to a tournament or with some other ulterior motive?

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I was dubious when I walked into the theater that was showing John Carter. I feared that Disney would render the original story unrecognizable. My fears, however, were unfounded.

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As the “Boromer” meme points out, one cannot simply become a social activist by watching a 30-minute video.

However, some students believe the opposite. Ever since “KONY 2012,” a video by Invisible Children Inc. intended to spread awareness of the namesake Ugandan warlord, hit Facebook by storm, students were pledging their commitment to “cover the night” on April 20. Essentially, students will receive “action kits” from Russell’s website and then
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Several broadcast networks recently announced the cancellation of long-standing television shows with well-established audiences as well as up-and-coming shows that received a variety of reactions from critics. Among the shows cancelled are House, One Tree Hill, Blue Mountain State and Terra Nova.

House, a medical drama about Dr. Gregory House (Hugh Laurie) and his unconventional methods, has aired on Fox since 2004. According to Fox president Kevin Reilly, Laurie and the producers of the show decided that the show had run its course and it was time to call it quits.

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In three days, the internet did what it took two decades of genocide to do: it made Joseph Kony famous. Nevertheless, with the objectives of the “Make Kony Famous” movement so unclear, this man will soon be forgotten. However, there is a way for the millions interested in stopping Kony to help Ugandans, not by a death warrant for mass murder but by connecting with and investing in the individuals of Uganda.

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As softball players retire to the benches after a grueling batting practice, new head coach John Reina entertains the exhausted girls by cracking jokes. Reina’s amicable personality is something he shares with other new coaches Brian Germain, Harry Wilkes and Dorothy Brown.

According to JV softball player Lindsay Charters, sophomore, Reina “has a different coaching style.”

“Coach Reina is more involved,” Charters said, adding that he regularly attends JV practices in addition to coaching varsity.

Wilkes, the new boys varsity soccer assistant coach, expressed similar sentiments.
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In response to concerns over theft of student ID numbers to pay for lunches, the cafeteria administration has installed new picture verification technology in each lunch line. Under the new system, if a student is caught using someone else’s ID number, he or she will be formally charged with theft.

The new technology uses touch-screens, which have every student’s school picture uploaded. When a student ID number is put in, a picture of the corresponding person will come up on the screen.

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The following is an edited interview between Paloma Guzman and Rank & File talking about her role on the ABC Family television series Pretty Little Liars.

Rank & File: How did you get involved in theater?

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Smiling, senior Austin Hoskins held up a caricature of himself and junior Danny Glass next to his face.

“Guess who’s who?” he said.

Hoskins acquired the caricature from IB Art student Rachel Frankel, junior, who was partipating in the second annual Creative Arts Festival held on March 9.

The festival welcomed all attendees to enjoy live music and events presented by the National Art Honor Society, Art Club, Photo Club and ACE Mentoring.

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The spring season is ushering in a newfound attitude of player responsibility and a strong sense of teamwork for the boys varsity soccer team.

“The players are taking much more initiative,” senior goalie Jason Warren, senior, said. “After practice or a game people post on our Facebook group what needs to be worked on.”

Warren added that “there is a lot more closeness among the team [and] people talk more outside of practice.”

Captain Filip Gouglev, senior, attributes the new attitude to a difference in determination among the returning players.

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As softball players retire to the benches after a grueling batting practice, new head coach John Reina entertains the exhausted girls by cracking jokes. Reina’s amicable personality is something he shares with other new coaches Brian Germain, Harry Wilkes and Dorothy Brown.

According to JV softball player Lindsay Charters, sophomore, Reina “has a different coaching style.”

“Coach Reina is more involved,” Charters said, adding that he regularly attends JV practices in addition to coaching varsity.

Wilkes, the new boys varsity soccer assistant coach, expressed similar sentiments.

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Grand Theft Auto, the National Rifle Association, the Second Amendment. One of the foremost issues of our national consciousness is that of guns. But while most public debates on the topic involve guns in everyday life or in the media, Marshall’s archers, hunters, skeet shooters and paintball players believe that their shooting sports can help them to grow as people, contrary to the common perception of the sports as violent.

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While the hallways are filled with people complaining of lack of sleep, tests and in-class essays, these concerns are rarely addressed by the administration or teachers unless you enter your counselor’s office. Stress Free Day is an exception and an excellent idea. However, if the administration is serious about what Stress Free Day represents, it needs to make some serious changes.

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In school, English teacher James Macindoe said, he and his friends were bullied.

“I don’t think we thought of it as bullying at the time,” he said. Macindoe cited petty incidents in elementary school and times that he saw physical violence between his best friend and upperclassmen in high school.

“My best friend played on the soccer team and every day after school one of the seniors on the team would beat the crap out of him,” he said.

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Directing instructions to the driver of the tractor trailer pulling cement and bricks near the back entrance of the school, Dilip Sheth navigated through the rubble and demolition with an air of familiarity.

Sheth, whose job is to oversee the construction and assure FCPS that the process is going within the allotted time and budget, said that this familiarity was hard-earned.

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