Issue 13

April 21, 2006

PSSA New Requirements
By: Stephanie Jolivert, Staff Writer

Many of Reading High students are in jeopardy of graduating. Reading High seniors are required to pass the PSSA, or do extra work if the PSSA is not met with certain requirements in order to graduate.
In total, there are 692 seniors at RHS; 237 seniors, (about 34%), completed their requirements for      graduation while 455 seniors, (about 66%) must        complete extra work to graduate.  Out of those who need to do extra work, 42% of them must complete an English computer program to graduate, and 163 must complete a math packet to graduate. Then, 250 students must    complete both the math and English portions to      graduate.
I interviewed some seniors from reading high and I asked them what they think about the PSSA being a    requirement for graduation.  Many said that it shouldn't have been a requirement during the ending of the third quarter.  Also, there's not enough time for some students that haven't done anything, and have to get started with the PSSA at the last minute.
Other students said that they didn't take the PSSA serious during there junior year because at the time they took the PSSA it wasn't and requirement and now     coming to find out that it is.

Ms. Clevenstine
by: Jamie Raver, Op/Ed Editor

If you were to ask this year's sophomore class what their favorite part of the day was,        almost any advanced placement student would tell you AP World History with Ms.    Clevenstine.  Open-minded, quirky, and just plain fun, Clevenstine made a point of making sure each day with her was different from the last.  Unfortunately for the class of 2008, Clevenstine departed Reading High on March 31^st to serve the rest of the school year on military duty.  She'll be returning in September, just in time for the class of 2009 to           experience her upbeat teaching style. 
September 2005 began Clevenstine's 4^th year teaching at RHS.  Her list also stretches to  include teaching Night School at Northwest Middle School, Pottstown High School, and a federal prison.  Once upon a time when she was a student herself, Clevenstine attended Owen J. Roberts High School, the University of South Carolina, the University of Arizona, and Kutztown University.  With all that experience, one has to wonder why she would choose to teach something as ordinary as AP History.
  "World history is becoming more relevant now than ever before," she says.  "India is       becoming America's back door, China is our competition in communications, and Russians and people from the Balkans are immigrating every day."
"History repeats itself" as the cliché goes, and with the each new day, we pave another part of our future with the bricks from our past.  But why choose Reading High as the place to influence America's youth?
  "We have an outstanding mix of kids and some tremendous course offerings," says  Clevenstine.  "Couple that with our sports programs and the energy and talent evident among the student body, and wow…what a place."
Clevenstine is more than a teacher, however hard that may be to believe.  Like most    teachers, she transforms into an actual person once she leaves the castle walls.  "I love to spend time with nieces, nephews and friends.  I also enjoy mountains biking, reading books, trying new foods, and going to concerts.  My most recent love is golf, which is quickly        becoming an obsession."
As the 2006 sophomore class ends the school year under the tutelage of long-term          substitute Miss Powers, studying for the AP World History exam has become the number one priority.  Though she's stationed on the other end of the world, Clevenstine reminds her students that life isn't all about keeping your nose to the grindstone.
  "Work hard, play hard," are her words of wisdom.  "Always remember that you are the heart of soul of this school and that RHS's best students are the best students anywhere."