Tribute to Richard Sprouse

      On August 8, Beverly Hills High school lost one of its most cherished teachers. US History teacher Mr. Richard Sprouse died of a massive heart attack at the age of 58 leaving a patronage of students who truly valued his teaching and cared for him dearly. Mr. Sprouse was not one who was restricted to guidelines when it hurt the opportunities of his students, but rather, he bent the rules to give his students a better opportunity to learn and succeed in life. He inspired creativity and was there for the students whenever they needed his help. Whether it was one on one work with students, or conducting AP study sessions at his own home, it is clear that Mr. Sprouse was dedicated not only to his job, but also to his students. He will be dearly missed by all of the students that he has touched and his fellow teachers including his loving wife Ms. Susan Sprouse who, through her dedication, remains teaching in these times of turmoil.

- Jim Moore
 

      The recent controversy surrounding the alleged toxins and harmful substances in the oil well at Beverly Hills High School seemed to cause quite a stir in the public. A class action suit was filed, victims made claims, testing was conducted, and the school issued several statements. In all this fiasco, little has been done to find out what the students who now attend BHHS have to say. An interview with student Julie Kluft pretty much sums up the general opinion: "If it was that big of a health risk we wouldn't be in school.... you can’t get cancer from just sitting outside or living in LA." Apparently students find the alleged high levels of benzene, radioactive iodine, hexane, xylene and other harmful chemicals present on and near campus grounds a non-issue. This is despite the overwhelming evidence including the cancer-related deaths of former faculty members. Surely some students must at least care about this topic, whether they believe the oil well presents a threat or not. Mark, another student of BHHS, has said that neither he nor his parents find the subject at all worrisome or important. He doesn’t stress over it and feels indifferent towards the issue. In another student interview it was found that students don't care about what they "don't smell" and "don’t feel." Evidently the common belief is that dangerous chemicals now have to be smelt and felt in order to have an effect on our bodies! So there you have it: students, in general, feel unconcerned about what may be affecting them severely each and every day that they are on campus. Frank Blackwell, a junior, doesn't exactly follow the general trend. He states "I don’t know if the oil well is causing cancer or not but I find it pretty fishy that the school is keeping the oil well running in spite of a 700 person class action lawsuit." The school itself is clearly biased. They earn $700,000 a year from the oil well, not a bad source of revenue. Statements issued deny any allegations that there exist any harmful substances at the site of the oil well. Beverly Hills High is generally doing a good job suppressing the story which could easily disrupt an important source of income for them. The parents are not as easily moved by the announcements, telephone calls, reports, and other such propaganda issued by the school. At board meetings parents have demanded that the oil well be shut down and some parents are even asking air quality officials whether it is a good idea to pull their children out of school. For those of you out there who feel the need to educate yourselves further on the subject, feel free to check out the links provided below. 

http://www.beverlyhillsoilwellhealthstudy.com/
http://www.bigclassaction.com/class_action/beverlyhills.html
http://www.venocoinc.com/bh/0418_bh_courier.pdf
http://www.beverlyhills.k12.ca.us/environmental/environmentalfacts.main.html
http://www.enn.com/news/2003-02-25/s_2775.asp
http://www.nbc4.tv/education/2319099/detail.html

- Lithium

Budget Concerns

         Beverly Hills High School is known across the country as perhaps the richest high school in the world. In reality however, Beverly Hills Unified School District is in a major budget crisis. Now a budget crisis is not unique to our district, with today’s economy there are many districts that are not able to buy what they need when they need it.  The difference is that in this district we have much more money than the average school district in this country.  What the issue boils down to is pointless spending. We are in desperate need of improvements to the school such as physical repairs and it would be nice to join nearly every other school in the nation and to get some kind of air conditioning system. Indeed the school has addressed the issue and tried to deal with it. The results however are hard to see. Last year 12 district employees were laid off. This year the school is advertising the hiring of 17 new teachers. This is great, but they do not mention that the new teachers have been hired to merely take the place of retired or laid-off teachers from last year. We still do need more teachers, and many critical repairs are necessary at the school. The school board often discusses the budget, and their efforts are commendable, but their plans for action have many problems. For example, the district’s new technology action plan calls for $39,000 in computers and software for the PE department. Is it really worth a teacher’s salary to get computers for the PE students to research new stretch techniques. The call for such funds to go to the Physical Education department is absolutely absurd. The board obviously has good intentions, but they just don’t get it. They don’t understand that spending $140,000 on a temporary heating system is a complete waste of money. That price doesn’t even include the price it is going to cost to have the temporary system removed to make room for the permanent system which will come sometime in the (very) indefinite future. Also included in the technology implementation plan is the allocation of $70,000 for a Versace Language Lab for the Foreign Language department. It seems that technology is a primary concern for the school board. The technology implementation plan is in fact a great method of bringing the school into the 21^st century, but critical aspects of the school have to be dealt with before the district can spend that kind of money. Even more disturbing is the oil well. Even if there was a remote possibility that the oil well is causing cancer, is it really worth the risk for $700,000 a year? Between $15,000 halftime shows for homecoming (many will recall last year's circus), $30,000 advertising campaigns for new field lights, and $145,000 salaries for the superintendent, it is clear that certain reconsiderations must be made. If the district takes a look at what is necessary and what is extra, they can actually get somewhere.  

- Zack Anderson
 

A Close One in Long Beach

        On Friday night, The Normans almost took away a win against Div. 1 Long Beach Cabrillo. After a nice first and early second quarter, where Beverly was up 24 – 7, a trick play to Chris Hill was dropped in the end zone. Hill was alone. That near TD would prove very important. Going into the Second half Beverly was up 24 – 10. The Jaguars started their comeback with fierce speed from their wideouts. The final score was 35 – 35, with Cabrillo almost stealing the win in the last 15 seconds. This should have been a win for the Normans. A depleted line played exceptionally well, due to the fact Long Beach’s defensive line had a couple 300 pounders. The line gave Quarterback Ollie Linter a good amount of time to get the pass off. Also wide receiver Brandon Rice had magnificent game, scoring 3 touchdowns, successfully filling in the shoes of last year’s phenomenon, Sonny Shackelford. Defensively Beverly successfully kept the Jaguars out of the end zone for the first half. In the second the Norman offense didn’t have much success, so the defense had to put up with the Jaguars explosive speed for longer period of time. Also in the early second half starting cornerback Jimmy Abe went down with a knee injury, which didn’t make the D’s job any easier. The Normans can walk away with this tie knowing they can handle a Div. 1 school, and this will prove to be a boost going into next week’s home game against Long Beach Wilson.

- The Walrus