Are you passionate about the world of science? Do you want to know more than you are being taught in your regular classes? Well you should join the Science Bowl that’s offered at Lincoln every year. Science Bowl is a team that focuses on studying different sciences: astronomy, geology, math, and other subjects as well. There are two teams that actually compete in the regional competitions: Team A and B. Non-competing students that still form part of the Science Bowl are known as the Support Crew. The competing students meet twice a week and the non-competing students meet once a week.

            Well, how do you get prepared for the competitions? “The competing students study on Tuesdays for about 2 ½ hours only in one subject; we also meet in Christmas break for three days for 6 hours,” Kathia Garcia mentioned. Kathia is one of the competing students that is in Team B. It might seem that it’s a lot of work, but it’s the most wonderful activity that science fanatics get to do.

            “When you are in Science Bowl and it’s your senior year you have the last chance to prove what you have,” Ericka Saracho stated. Ericka is also one of the competing students, but she is in Team A. Having fun and learning new things every day are advantages that are obtained by studying various subjects; just like these students that find time to prove what they have.

            The Lincoln students competed on February 27, against other regional schools in the LADWP Regional Science Bowl competition.

            Team B competed against North Hollywood’s Team A during Round 1. It seemed that this was a really rough start; Lincoln lost this round of the competition. But after this loss, the students turned on their light bulbs. Their batteries were now fully charged, and they came back by winning 4 consecutive games. Nevertheless after so much effort, a misfortune struck. The Lincoln competitors lost the last round of the competition against Marshall.

            After the morning session the teams were now in their 30 minute break. During lunch it was known that Team B would not advance. Team B had obtained a score of 4:2. According to the Science Bowl regulations a team advances or not depending on their record of winnings/losses or on their points. Team B’s record was unfortunately not good enough to advance to the afternoon rounds.

            In the morning session, Team A had obtained a score of 5:1 and as their result they had advanced to the afternoon rounds. The next competitor was Sherman Oaks CES and underestimating this competing team was one of the inaccuracies that the Lincoln students had made. They lost this round of the competition. The following team to compete against was Venice; they had a victory of 132 points. The next team to defeat was Granada Hills. A misfortune struck once again, Lincoln lost with a double elimination, which means if a team loses twice they are eliminated from the competition. At first Ericka had thought that this wasn’t the best they have done, but she was proud of her team. She thought that there was more effort to be shown by her part but nevertheless this was an exciting day to strike that inner lightning that each Lincoln student had even though it meant not winning.  Team A obtained the 8^th place out of 42 competing schools. We can be proud of the great effort Lincoln students demonstrated.

Keep rocking it, Lincoln Students.

Science Bowl Coaches: Ms. Paulson and Ms. Kaing

Team A:                                                                     Team B:

Andy Hu                                                                    Kathia Garcia

Ericka Saracho                                                          Kevin Dang

Karen Chu                                                                 Mark Duong

Ken Chhan                                                                 Qiao Kuang

Tommy Truong                                                         William Wong

Support Crew: Benjy Kwong, David Ramon, Juan Ramon, Kary Tran,

 Lizbeth Garcia, Steve Pan

Do you know Hu Andy Hu is?  Senior Andy Hu is the president of the Magnet Government.  He is seventeen years of age.  He went to Nightingale Middle School but sadly didn’t have the privilege of having Ms. Garcia as his counselor.

            In the interview Andy expressed his love and personal feelings about the Magnet program.  When asked if he’s enjoyed his four years in the Magnet, he replied, “Yes, I have, I’ve loved it, it’s been a great experience, and the teachers made it all the better.”   He also mentioned was his deep appreciation for Senior Seminar.  His Senior Seminar Project was to build an electric generator from scratch.  It was fun at times and at times frustrating, but he still found the whole process very rewarding.

            A student of the Magnet, Jeff Flores, asked Andy, “How did you become so successful in the Magnet?”  The response was heartfelt: “My parents, my family, and my friends were all very supportive and stood behind me the whole way. Also I’m very competitive, and I’ve had a lot of competition along the way.  Oh yeah, by the way, Jeff’s sexy.”  His tips to anyone who wants to be successful are to get involved with the Magnet, get to know your teachers and ask questions.

            His plans after high school are to go to college. He’s applied to four UCs, and Caltech.  He’s hoping to get accepted to Caltech; so far he’s gotten accepted to UC Irvine.

            Hu’s hobbies include dancing and music.  Andy plays guitar and has been playing since his freshman year.  He practices three hours a week or whenever he’s in the mood and so far can play Yankee-doodle.  Break dancing is also a hobby of Andy; he has been dancing for four years now.  Dream jobs for Andy would include becoming a rock star or becoming a professional break dancer.  Even though Andy doesn’t participate in any sports, he still likes to be fit.

            So if you run into Andy, congratulate him on his success in the Magnet.  Plus wish him well on his future endeavors.

Have you ever sat through a class and just as your teacher is about to reveal her wisdom you hear a soft buzzing sound coming from someone’s pants pocket? Here’s another scenario: Have you ever been with a friend who seems more interested in texting than talking to you? What was the point of setting up a coffee date when you could have just sent her a text messege?  

I not writing this article to lecture the readers of this newsletter about the bad habit of texting and how detrimental it is for your learning and attention spam that job, my good reader is for your mother.

 I am very annoyed at how people are using their cell-phones at the most inappropriate of times. During every period there’s always a cell-phone going off, because students are receiving a text message or a phone call. This is creating a major distraction to the students that are trying to focus, and a big annoyance to the teacher. Mr. Garcia, a History teacher in the Magnet, says that “sometimes in the middle of a test you can actually hear the vibrations sound of the phones. This does not only presents a digressions to my students who are busy guessing the answers, but also brings into question if they are being honest. I have also caught some people ‘sharing’ answers during a test via text-message.” I know many of you reading this might think Mr. Garcia’s suspicions are far-fetched, but in reality, there have been events where students share their answers during a test. Who can blame Mr. Garcia? Is it not  really easy to send a text message to the person in front of you without your teacher knowing?

If classroom situations don’t seem  an inappropriate time to use your cell-phone then, what about somewhere where you want to be fully engaged, like, for example, the movies? Doesn’t it bother you when just as you’re about to have the climax reveal your attention is diverted to the shiny object two rows down? And all the commotion for what? Just for a simple “hey, wat up?” It’s just so annoying and frustrating.

Another place where people are using their cell-phone in inappropriate places is somewhere where they really shouldn’t. Many people like to text while driving. Most people would say that that’s illegal, but they are wrong. In California, it is illegal to TALK while driving unless you have a hands-free set, yet texting is not listed. People, c’mon! Let’s be honest, in your sincere opinion what do you think causes more of a distraction? An avid texter whose eyes and fingers are busy clicking the letters to spell out the words of their message, or someone who only took five seconds to answer the phone while driving? My opinion is that texting is more of a distraction. A lot of accidents have occurred due to texting. An example of a texting tragedy occurred when Eric Helm,  a senior at Jenison High School was driving west on Port Sheldon Avenue when he missed a curve and drove into oncoming traffic.  The accident occurred about the same time Mr. Helm was texting his girlfriend, whom he had planned to pick up on the way to school, according to the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department in Canada.  Was the loss of his life worth the text message that the Eric was sending? Such a tragedy could’ve been avoided if Eric was paying attention to the stirring wheel, rather than sending the typical “hey u wat up?” text?

My fellow Magnet community members, I am urging you, please stop texting during times you shouldn’t. I know it’s hard; believe me I am “one of those.” I am one of the students who sometimes ruins intimate moments with a special someone just to check her phone to check if a friend replied. I am one of those whose fingers just text without her being aware of whats going on. I love to text, but its a habit that not only distracts me from my classes, but also it can lead to being in a dangerous situation, and that should be something we all should work to avoid.

After interviewing Ms. Paulson I gained a new perspective toward teaching.   When Ms. Paulson was little she wanted to be a teacher, but she dropped the idea later in her life.   Then she was teacher’s assistant for a while, and she LOVED IT.  She loves having the opportunity to provide the support to students who were at first struggling with their ideas, but later came to an understanding because of Ms. Paulson.  She also loves the intellectual sharing of ideas between the teachers and students.  While there are  many things she loved about teaching, there was one thing she dislikes.  According to Ms. Paulson, the most painful thing to do as teacher is the grading, because she is more interested in moving forward and progressing with the students’ learning rather than being impeded by having to post the students’ progress as a grade.  She believes understanding is more important than a grade.

 Ms. Paulson believes the joy of teaching resembles the economy where in some years it is really pleasant, while in others it isn’t.  The joy of teaching has its ups and downs, just like a piece of stock.  What really helps with making the school year great is having great pupils.  She reports that one year really stood out where the hard working vibe and yearning for knowledge was contagious; it had spread throughout the students.  Those students had qualities of an ideal pupil.  According to Ms. Paulson, the four ideal qualities of a pupil include: 1) someone who is not afraid of asking questions, 2) someone who is open to information, 3) someone who is hungry for knowledge, and 4) someone who is dependable.

The highlight for Ms. Paulson this year so far is the process of her senior seminar class. At first, students struggled in gaining knowledge on their project.  However, over time it was amazing for Ms. Paulson to witness their determination and hunger for knowledge that led them to gain an understanding with their project.  When this happened, Ms. Paulson acquired a sense of satisfaction because they were finally in a state of confidence and “getting it.” This understanding is the beautiful gift that teachers have to offer.

By: Dolores Marie Alvarez

Pizza, laughs, and fun!

Imagine, your standing on top of the table with you’re friends practically throwing money at you so they can own you. Imagine, your friends are trying to place the higher bid of money on you. Imagine, you get to find out how much you’re really worth?! This is part of the exciting activities we do at our Night Outs.

Lincoln’s first Junior Night Out of the school year took place at Shakey’s in Alhambra on October 26, 2009. The fundraiser was successful in many ways. About 50 or more of our students attended, our junior class was given donations, and of course, we all had fun! Junior Night Out is a time that you can spend with friends and also family outside of school grounds. You can always meet new people and become closer to your classmates; it also gets you involved with school.

You should attend our upcoming Junior Night Out events that will occur throughout the year. One that just came up was a bowling night out at ABC bowling in Alhambra on December 4, 2009. That event was the last of 2009, but there will be many more coming soon. It is a fun experience to attend school night outs due to the laughs and memories they bring; anybody can join our night outs. Having fun is what Class of 2011 is all about.

By: Ericka Saracho

The staggering economic crisis across the nation has had profound effects for California education. So far Lincoln has had its share of losses and sacrifices.

Some of these effects were first noticeable last summer when many students were prevented from taking classes to get ahead because a lot of summer classes were not available. The same is true now for the Wilson-Lincoln Adult School; the teachers will now cut students that are absent three days consecutively because there are many kids on a waiting list for the limited space for after-school classes.

Lincoln is far from immunity when it comes to job losses. Four secretaries worked their last Friday here at Abraham Lincoln on October 30. And during the summer the custodial staff was decreased from eight to four. Sometimes a staff member is let go even if their position has not been cut, as is the case for some teachers that have been fired to be replaced by teachers from other schools who have more seniority. (Seniority is the amount of years that a teacher has been teaching over all.)

“We’re a little lucky,” though, says Mr. Wong, a social science teacher here at Lincoln. Mr. Wong is referring to the amount of money that the school receives from the Quality Education Investment Act (QEIA), a program for schools that perform poorly. The funds that Lincoln got have been used this year for more counselors.

The large amounts of retirees last year can also be traced back to the economic crisis. As most people know, a teacher’s pay increases as their seniority increases; therefore, the district gave a couple of nudges to motivate those teachers close to retirement to do so last June. Those incentives included one time offers of a little extra cash. Like one teacher noted “the district can pay almost two new teachers with my payroll.” By spending a little more on retiring teachers now, the district is saving quite a lot of money in the long run. Even though this is helping the monetary aspects of the school, how is this loss of experience affecting Lincoln?

The teachers and students are going to have to pick up the pieces and learn how to cope with the transitions. Although Mr. Wadsworth still oversees the cheerleaders and Mr. Shapiro also works with the softball teams, their presence is sorely missed on campus during school hours.

And speaking of teams, the separate basketball teams for freshmen and sophomore have been combined due to the lack of money that is available to pay for the buses when the sport team goes to games. Not only will this prevent many boys from participating in an awesome sport, but they are essentially missing out on a chance to grow leadership and basketball skills that are always needed when they are old enough to play on the Lincoln’s Junior Varsity and Varsity basketball teams. Money for buses is also falling short for academic field trips.

The fate the annual Mammoth trip in June is still uncertain. There has been a massive loss in Magnet because, according to our coordinator, Mr. Bustillo, the annual budget that we receive for being a Magnet school has been depleted by 66%. And on top of that, the money that Magnet gets for each gifted student has dropped from $50 last year to $25 this year. Right now, we are trying to decide how to cope with these staggering losses and determine if we could somehow pull it together so we can still go on our Mammoth field trip. Efforts include several teachers asking for grants from outside programs and resources.

There are a number of ways to blunt the effects of such a harsh economic downturn. Look forward to a couple of ways you can contribute in the next newsletter.

by Kevin Ov

Once upon a time in a land far far away, there lived a young man named Arthur. He was very poor and uneducated. He couldn’t even finish reading a short novel. He had very few friends, and even those friends soon left him by himself to pursue their own goals. All alone, Arthur felt that he was left behind and needed a goal for himself, so he prayed to God for help.

One morning, while Arthur was going about his business, he felt the earth shake and the sky thunder. He looked up at the sky and there was something massive descending down from heaven. God spoke then spoke to Arthur, “Arthur I have heard your prayers and have decided to test you, you shall pursue this goal like your life depends on it. If you fulfill this task I will grant you all of Britain to reign over. You must enter College. Note you will face many Dangers and Tests along the way, such as the SAT and the ACT, but know that you will be rewarded greatly if you complete your task.” Arthur in very frail voice replied, “But my holy king, I am but a poor uneducated lad all by himself in the world. How will I ever be able to complete such a task?” While ascending back to heaven, God said, “You will have help along the way, only do not don’t give up,” and then vanished in the clouds.

Stunned from the sudden visit from God, Arthur barely noticed the presence of a handsome figure right in front of him. The figure spoke, “Hello, Arthur, I am Ayala, the Wise college counselor sent by God himself to assist you in your quest for college. I shall grant you one wish. Now what will it be.”

Now Arthur had the chance to wish for all the riches in the world. He could have even wished for the quest to be finished, but he asked the counselor, “Wise college counselor, please show me my fate.” With a wave of his hand Arthur’s surroundings changed.

Arthur saw a vision of him in public library studying for classes, such as History of the Royal Family and Peasant lifestyle, then switched to a scene of him combating the SAT and the ACT with his pencil, Excalibur. After that Ayala showed a scene where Arthur is filling out an enormous stack of applications for college with his worn out pencil. Before the fairy could show Arthur anything else Arthur shouted, “Stop that is enough these tasks do not interest in the least bit, now be gone.

Arthur being lazy couldn’t stand doing any of the things he saw in that vision. He gave up on the quest and went on with his life. He got squashed by a cow a few weeks later, and died. If only he went to school and studied, Arthur could have lived happily ever after.

By: Felipe Aguilar

Have you ever seen a teacher walking in the halls looking like a teacher one day and a skater the next? Have you ever confused him for a student? His name is Mr. Yom, and he’s a teacher in the Magnet program, not a student.

Mr. Yom was a Palisades Dolphin in high school and both a UCI Anteater and UCLA Bruin in college. He graduated from UC Irvine with the class of 2004 and moved on to UCLA for grad school in 2006 and 2009. He majored in economics and ICS (Information and Computer Science). During his years in college, he not only studied for his classes, but he was able to travel to different states like New York, Washington, Massachusetts, and Tennessee.

Back then, Mr. Yom didn’t think about becoming a teacher. He considered being a finance broker or programmer, but they didn’t suit him. Until one day when his mom mentioned becoming a teacher that he finally thought about it. He had also tutored privately in the past, so the idea stuck. One day, Ms. Paulson called him up because a Magnet teacher retired, and they both thought it would be a good fit for him to be a Magnet teacher. He has now taught in the Magnet for five years and says, “I really like my students (kids) and appreciate their kindness.”

Mr. Yom has a lot of hobbies and interests. He really loves to skateboard, snowboard, and listen to music. Some of the music he loves to hear is hip-hop and alternative rock. And most of all he likes to work out during school breaks.

And for the people who always wanted to know how old Mr. Yom really is, you have to ask him when you graduate.

The crowds roared as the orange-and-black #7, Caleb Cabrera, made the final touchdown before the clock ran out, bringing victory to the Lincoln Tigers against Eagle Rock! After the mayhem ended, our players and performers emptied the field sporting huge grins, and left to get ready for the next chapter of the exciting night, the Homecoming Dance. Meanwhile, gorgeous women and sexy men made their way to the school cafeteria, strutting their stuff and taking glamorous photos on the lit-up red carpet. Inside the heated cafeteria, pulsating music and flashing lights mesmerized the newly transformed Hollywood stars as they lost themselves to the infectious beats and captivating lyrics. A variety of songs were played, from hip hop to reggaetón, but a slow song was played only right at the end. Regardless, everyone had a lot of fun, so if you missed out, be sure to go to the next dance, the Winter Formal!

Homecoming Court

King – Michael Cardiel

Queen – Amanda Rodarte

Junior Princess – Britnie Ramos

Junior Prince – Jose Velasquez

Sophomore – Alexandra Ocampo

Freshman – Jennifer Galvez

Homecoming Game Details

Lincoln Tigers vs. Eagle Rock Eagles

21        to         15

Touchdowns made by:

#7 Caleb Cabrera

#15 Alberto Oliden

#4 Carlos Duran

By: Ivonne Nieto

On October 9,  Lincoln Students Ivonne Nieto and Angelica Reyes accompanied by Lincoln teachers Daniel Alamo and Justin Baker discussed with the media (channel 34 news and La Opinion) the effects the lack of access of high quality groceries stores such as Ralphs, Trader Joes, Whole Foods, and Vons has on our community.

Daniel Alamo, a history teacher, talked about how the lack of high-quality grocery stores has an effect on his students. “My students come to school eating hot Cheetos and soda. Then, when we are having group discussions, they seem drowsy and lethargic. This is unacceptable, because how am I going to teach when my students are falling asleep?” When asked why didn’t his students just go and buy healthier food at their local supermarket, Daniel stated, ” How can my students buy healthier foods, when the only thing that is available for them are liquor stores?” Mr. Alamo also stated that he even tried to teach his students about healthier eating when he gave a lecture to his students about Industrialization. The students learned what exactly was in the food they so frequently consumed. The students were so disgusted  that they decided to improve their eating habits by consuming organic vegetables. These students then went home and shared the knowledge Mr. Alamo had given them, only to return to him and say that it was impossible for them to access organic foods, because the problem was that there weren’t any organic stores close to home.

Ivonne Nieto, a senior in Lincoln, shared her experience about living in a community where the access to high quality organic foods was within a four-mile radius. “It was easy,” recalls Ivonne. “If I needed to go buy a missing ingredient to cook for my sister, I could send her out without hesitation. It was close and accessible.” Ivonne then described how everything has changed since she moved to this part of Los Angeles. “When I moved here, I could no longer afford to miss an ingredient when I was cooking, because if I gave myself that privilege, I could no longer go and send my sister to pick up the ingredient. If I face that situation now, I have two choices: either work with the limited resources that I have or completely change the menu.

The community tour also discussed the effects of the closing of the VONS had on our community. “The moment Vons closed,  many job opportunities were also lost,” stated Ivonne. “This left many of our community members to find other jobs farther away from home.” Our representatives also mention how now instead of having a nice grocery store to replace the one we had lost, we got a bigger version of a warehouse: Smart&Final…EXTRA! “Well, at least it carries some sort of fruits and vegetables,” stated Angelica Reyes, another senior in Lincoln High. “Uh, I mean c’mon.. that’s an extra,” joked Justin Baker, another Lincoln history teacher. Along with the comic relief that was offered by Angelica Reyes and Justin Baker came more serious matters.  They both discussed the reason why many of our community members have chronic disease like diabetes or heart promblems is because of the lack of good grocery stores. “These families are being taught about healthier alternatives in food , but when they try and change their ways they can’t. Why? Because these families don’t have healthier groceries stores close to home” Mr. Baker stated.

Our community representatives did such a great job at this press conference, that major media channels showed the story at their networks. These personalized stories caught the attention of our community leaders and further action will be necessary. So much that now our school’s teachers Mr. Baker and Mr. Alamo and students Ivonne Nieto and Angelica Reyes will continue to defend our right for high quality foods in an upcoming hearing.

Author’s note: This article is a follow-up to the article called “Scarcity Resolve,” and it gives the run down of what happened that day.