Photo Credit: Mrs. Titus
Before the start of the upcoming school
ensuring the sa ety of all of the students and
ofice to help prevent the spread of COVID if a
Students have been doing well listening
trying to be understanding and give out mainly
At the last board meeting, the bid for a
Homecoming and other events will be
postponed until it is safe for us to have that many
Although it was a very long arduous pro-
cess, we are here in school adhering to the CDC
and geting through it ll togethe .

Aug/Sep

t 2020

Volume 2
	
Issue 1

STEELER Nation News

Principal Fowler on New School Safety Protocols

By MICHELLE STUBBS

In the beginning of August, still unsure of whether it would be virtual, in-person or some sort of hybrid, school administrators were sure that Farrell Area School District would be opening by the end of the month. “It was still up in the air as to which it would be for a long time,’’ Mr. Fowler said. In July, the school board voted that as long as Mercer County was still in the green phase, we would be able to go back to school in person.
A graduate of Farrell High School, Mr. Fowler has been working in the Farrell School District for seventeen years. Before becoming the principal, he started out as an Instructional Aid
then he moved on to be a third grade teacher for	Principal Fowler and Oficer Smoot checking six years. After that, he taught fifth grade for one	temperatures with the thermal scanner. year, was the Dean of Discipline for two years in
the Farrell Elementary School, and, finally, was
His hobbies include singing with his praise team
and family. He also enjoys being involved in the
sports that his kids play. Aside from the time
spent with family and friends over the summer,
he had a lot of preparations to make for the
school year.
the acting principal of the high school for a year.     warnings to students who are not socially distanc-ing and or not wearing masks properly. In the fu-ture, if students do not comply with the guidelines, the consequences will get more severe. ISS is no longer an option, so OSS and detentions will be the main punishment for students that are not in com-pliance going forward. A student's second suspen-
year, Mr. Fowler and his team were tasked with     sion will be a referral to online learning.
antine room was also installed in the nurse's
the fountain were ordered and were on backorder
staff. The schoolfhad bought a lot of masks, sani-     water bottle filler fountain was approved. Parts for tizers, and sanitizing foggers to prepare. A quar-     for quite some time. They were finally installed in the third week of September. The bottle fillers are
pared to a shared regular water fountain.
student gets sick. The schedules were also more     eficient in preventing the spread of germs com-dificult to create due to there being a twenty
student limit set for each classroom. That meant
the same friendly faces welcoming you to the
now undecided as to when it will be rescheduled.
that the electives filled up quickly. You will see     people indoors at one time. It was originally high school in the morning, but this year they are     planned to take place on Friday, October 2, but it is using a thermal scanner to check temperatures of
all staff and students entering the building. The
essential outside personnel.
district is limiting visitors to only those absolutely     guidelines. There was a lot of hard work that came from the School Board and Farrell Staff to ensure
to the CDC guidelines. The Farrell staff has been     our safety. No matterawhat, werare here learning

Volume 2 Issue 1

Inside this Issue

Student Achievers
	2
	
Mr. Folsom / Fashion & Design
	3
	
VoTech / New
	4
	
Virtual School /
	5
	
Senior Night
	6-7
	
Sports
	8-9
	
Race Survey
	10
	
Community
Connections
	11
	
Art, Culture,
Creativity
	12

STEELER Nation News Staff Writers/ Photographers

Arianna Blanchard Amirah Coleman Jacara Green Jaden Harrison Anthony Jackson, 10 Jordan Jones Kenaii King Nathan McGarry Sian Rain
Malachi Shepherd Michelle Stubbs

Page 1

Mrs. Kladitis delivers promising report of Junior High Academic Achievers:

The CDT scores for Math were very promising considering the circumstances (Covid School shut down) with which they were faced.
In Math, there were 13 students that either scored proficient or within 100 points of proficiency. I was very pleased with this considering they only had 3 weeks of 7th grade Math under them.

The Reading, Writing and Science CDT scores were also decent considering the circumstances the students were faced with due to distance learning in the spring. We antici-pate the scores to increase more during the second round of CDTs in January.
Students put their best foot forward when taking the test! Great start to the school year, Jr. High Students!

JOIN a CLUB (or 2)! FHS Clubs offer extended learning

BY: KENAII KING
Are you interested in joining any
singing at the elementary school. As a so-
choose. Science, Spanish, French, Math,
los Muertos (Day of the Dead), Navidad
high school clubs this school year? Farrell            cial club, they celebrate holidays, such as Dia de Area High School has several from which to        (Christmas), and Cinco de Mayo. This helps stu-
National Honor Society (NHS), Future Busi-
School Clubs.
French Club Advisor is Madame Kotb.
dents learn about the actual holidays and their ness Leaders of America (FBLA), and Student	significance, traditional foods and crafts. Council are included in our 2020 Farrell High	All current and former students of French who
¿SABÍAS?
way large events are run, planned, and car-
and culture, are invited to sign up. This club
Student Council Advisor is Mrs.	are interested in celebrating French language Kladitis. This group exposes students to the	includes activities such as, Tableau and Tasting
ried out. The Student Council also holds an
Event, Mardi Gras food festival, the SRU Lan-
annual 5K race which raises over $1,000 to
guage Competition, 3D monument printing in	Didyou know?
Club to the Carnegie Art Museum and Gateway
Clipper in Pittsburgh.
be used by students for charities which helps     the STEAM lab, and field trips with the Spanish	Contributedby:SenoraTorres members of the community that fall upon
brates the countless contribu-
Lock-In, and Blood
Our Science Club Advisor is Mrs. Lat-
on the morning an-
nouncements. The
hardships. This council also decides on our	Hispanic Heritage Homecoming, Overnight Lock-In, a Mini                                                             zoo. Meetings are           Month is celebratedfromSep-Drive. Mrs. Kladi-     “Students don't have to be good at        regularly announced      tember 15-October 15. Itcele-tis added, “This	this subject, just enjoy science and be
ensure that stu-
Madame Kotb advises the NHS.
ization is to encour-
students to enjoy and explore without fear.
association is to	curious about natural phenomena!!”	purpose of this organ- tions of morethan60million dents have a voice and a choice. “	age students to explore the many aspects of	Hispanic to our cultureandso-Students in 10th,11th, and 12th grade, with	science. Science club provides a safe space for	ciety.
Hispanics are the larg-
est minoritygroupin theUnited
above, are invited to apply in the month of
be curious about natural phenomena!!”
a 3.3 cumulative grade point average and	Mrs. Latzoo commented, “Students don't have February. Following a rigorous application	to be good at this subject, just enjoy science and

Mrs. Kladitis also oversees this years
and faculty council review, successful candi-
of Hispanics haveconsistently
in a formal induction ceremony. Members
dates are welcomed into this honor society	FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America).	States today,and generations

helpedmake ourcountrystrong
andprosperous. The Hispanic
host an Academic and Art Showcase, and
complete service hours.
Spanish Club Advisor, Señora
FBLA and the Student Council work together, working towards the election polls which serve the community. This organization also helps
communityhas left anindelible
based upon grades and behavior
Mrs. Latzoo also instructs this year's
Torres will be having a limited Spanish Club	with the annual 5K race. Students are invited this year. Sign-ups will begin the first week
mark in our government,arts,
culture,sports,science,and
Math club! The participants practice
and rein-
force math skills and introduce STEM careers
of October so stay tuned for that! In this club you will get to learn about how Spanish
economy.
ly a social club where students get together
is spoken all over the world. Spanish is main-	(Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math-with the French club and do Spanish/French	ematics), options, tools, and concepts.

Page 2	Volume 2 Issue 1

Photo Credit: Sian Rain
Teacher Spotlight: Mr. Folsom By SIAN RAIN

Mr. Folsom joined us here at Farrell as Elementary Technician in 2019. Currently, he is teaching High School Ro-botics, Physics and Multimedia. He is from Mt. Pleasant and attended Mt. Pleasant High School. After graduating from high school, Mr. Folsom attended Slippery Rock University. His majors in college were Ele-mentary Education and Business in Com-puter Technology also he minored in Coaching.
Before joining us, he taught at Loudoun County Public Schools in Virginia, Mohawk School and Kennedy Catholic, this will be his tenth year teaching.
While interviewing Mr. Folsom,

he described his most rewarding moment as a teacher was when his student had fallen ill with cancer. Unfortunately, the student’s parents weren’t financially sta-ble, so he helped create a fund to help.
He believes it is challenging to deal with all the new restrictions because of COVID-19. However, he thinks if we continue to follow the rules and regula-tions we will be safe.
This year’s projects for Robotics and Physics will deal with building LEGO robots, force, speed and acceleration as well as participating in the Physics Olym-pics. Mr. Folsom is thrilled about this year and is excited to teach his students.

Mr. Folsom poses with Robotics project. Welcome to the high school Mr. Folsom!

Got Style? Prove it!

By JORDAN JONES

Health/PE, middle level Math, Science, Social Studies, and English. Mrs. Bolyard is also certified as an Emergency Medi-cal Technician, Lifeguard Instructor and PIAA Oficial.

Mrs. Bolyard went on to tell me how at an early age she often sewed and created items such as upholstery, brides-maids dresses and wedding dresses with her grandmother and mother. Since then she has always had the interest to sew and create different designs.

to more than just the basics.

Throughout this year, look for more fashion news by way of my column in Steelers Nation News.

Mrs. Bolyard sews names on jer-
seys.
The new Fashion and Design class includes areas of studies such as clothes and fashion, the apparel industry, tex-tiles and the “science” of apparel. All classes are hands-on projects and include a weekly cooking course. Students are to create their own design of their choice and pieces throughout the year. So far, students have completed hands-on sewing projects, stitching buttons to fabric, making our own face
front, left: McKenzie Ulan 10th, Jacara
has been a new Fashion and Design
masks and a cross stitch.	Family and Consumer Science classes As some of you know, there	According to Mrs. Bolyard, the objective of the class     decorate and sew facemasks. From
Green 12th, Nathan Davey 9th, Amya
Oliver 12th, Harold Hooten 10th, Jakai
Burris 9th, and Brandon Chambers 9th.
class added to Farrell High this fall of
2020. The Fashion and Design Teach-
er is Mrs.Bolyard. Many students
may know Mrs. Bolyard from class or
from even following the delicious
smells of the cooking classes on
Wednesdays.
is to give students a taste of family, work, and career life, while providing opportunities to develop the knowledge and skills to dress and act appropriately. This is very important for young adults as we enter the real world. Knowing how to pre-sent oneself is a vital part of achieving success, especially as students experience new milestones in life and are taking actions that will impact their future.

Christian Hartley and Kamira
Brown, Seniors, hard at work in
Fashion and Design class.
Mrs. Bolyard has been
teaching for twelve years through
colleges and different schools and
twenty plus years of oficiating bas-
ketball, volleyball, and track. She has
a Master’s in Education and certified
in SPED K-12 and numerous subject
areas such as Drivers Ed/Safety,
Lastly, I would like to take the opportunity to convey my personal motivation for taking a special interest in the Fashion and Design course. I own my own clothing brand called Cocoa Apparel. My personal goal this year is to learn better techniques of stitching and creating clothes. In class, I have recently designed a plain denim jean jacket. It was the first piece I have ever made with more than one fabric. It was extremely motivating to be able to bring my ideas into creation in this way. I plan on making more pieces and even selling them. So far, the class has definitely opened my eyes

Page 3 Volume 2 Issue 1

FHS Students hands-on at Vo-tech By AMIRAH COLEMAN
Several Farrell High	her makeup line, if anyone is inter-School upperclassmen are cur-	ested you can email her at,
Photo credit: Amirah Coleman
rently spending half a school day	mwise21@farrellareaschools.com. at the Mercer County Career Cen-                        Student, Mya Coleman, a ter, enrolled in hands-on learning.	Junior, is in her first year and is also The first vo-tech was started in	taking Entrepreneurial Studies. She 1879 in St. Louis, Missouri. They	joined to learn more about how to set the foundation for modern	run a business, how to write checks career and technical education.	and make deposits.
Senior, Emandalay John-
son, student of Autobody,
dusts off project.
Senior, Nate McGarry fo-
cused on a coding sequence.
The school combined hands-on	Sa’Mya Moore, a Senior, learning with classroom learning.         is in her second year of Entrepre-Going to vo-tech is a good option         neurial Studies. She wanted to join because you can get college cred-        this class because she always want-its and it is also a great experience      ed to start a business, be her own to get to work in an area of your          boss, and learn all the techniques interest and to learn more about         of owning a business. She has a lip your future career.                                  gloss business called Kissing Eye
.
Juniors, Marissa Wise and Mya
Senior, Lakyah Burns, is	Cosmetics. Her business is under enrolled in Innovation and Entre-	construction because she is increas-preneurial Development. She’s	ing her inventory and expanding been in this class for 2 years. In	her product line. Her products are this class, students learn about	handmade, organic products. She the techniques of building a busi-	tailors to the unique needs of each
example of how to manage mon-
dent run business.
ness. The school store is a perfect	customerNathan McGarry, a Sen-	Coleman pose in front of a stu-ey and also entails responsibilities	ior, is in his second year taking
of running a real job. She chose	Computer Information Technology.	her own daycare business. I, this class because she is interest-	He learns how to build and trouble-     Amirah Coleman, am a Senior ed in owning her own business.	shoot computers and also how to	and also enrolled in Early Child-
Junior, Marissa Wise, is	set up and run servers and net-	hood Education, this is my second enrolled in Business Entrepre-	works.	year in the program and I love the neurship. The Business Program                           Lashya McClendon, Sen-	class. The class is about teaching
Sophomore, Tymere	helps students to learn how to	ior, is in her second year in Early	young children and geting them Evans whisks eggs in	build a business and it has helped	Childhood Education . She chose	ready for kindergarten, it also culinary program.	her to expand the business that	this class because she wanted to	gets you ready to pursue a career
she already has. Her business is	see what it would be like to work	in various childcare related called Glowed By Riss, which is	with kids in contemplating opening	fields.

Some 2020 TECH
By NATE MCGARRY		Recently, Elon has presented his brain implant experiment with pigs,
2020 has been a really	to the public. The words of Neil Arm-weird year. Technology has been	strong, first person on the moon equally weird. Whether it be Elon	“One small step for man, one huge Musk’ Neuralink, or Microsoft and	step for mankind,” come to mind. Sony’s gaming consoles, technology                         Imagine, instead of going is always progressing. Even in times      to Google to search for a problem, of hardship, and sometimes as a	you can connect to Google through result of that very same hardship we     your brain. In an instant, all of the experience innovation.	internet's knowledge would be right
Elon Musk, creator of Paypal,	at your fingertips, or brain stem. Tesla, and SpaceX, is working on	Many skeptics are frightened by the Neuralink. Brain implants are the	thought of a chip being implanted in medical advancement of the future	their brain. In the demonstration,

Neuralink. (2019). Retrieved September 18, 2020, from https://neuralink.com/

Elon showed pigs with the chip in their head and pigs who recently had the chip but got it removed safely. This means if you got the implant, and wanted it removed or upgraded, theoretically, you can. Well, maybe YOU cannot remove it, but it could be done, professionally.
The next generation of gaming consoles are coming soon. November 2020, to be exact. PS5 and Xbox Series X. One of the big-gest improvements is the change from HDD or hard disk drive to SSD or solid state drive. Hard disk drives are unorganized and ineficient.

With the new SSD, loading times will be almost instantaneous. Xbox is dropping two new consoles, the Series X and the Series S. The X will support 4K, 120 frames per second while the S will be cheaper but only support 1440p at 160 fps.
Microsoft released their prices with the Series X at $499 and the Series S at $299. Sony released their prices with the PS5 being $499 and the version without an optical disk drive will be $399. Xbox Series X will be released November 10, and the PS5 will be released November 12.

Wetsman, N. (2020, August 28). Elon Musk trots out pigs in demo of Neuralink brain implants. Retrieved September 18, 2020, from https://www.theverge.com/2020/8/28/21406143/elon-musk-neuralink-ai-pigs-demo-brain-computer-interface

Page 4	Volume 2 Issue 1

Virtual Learning. The good. The not so good.

By: Jacara Green
At one point or another we all wished
ing to be on a schedule while in school.”	standing of their subject. A challenge is that
to be homeschooled. At the end of the 2019-
2020 school year, no one had a choice due to
With the current virtual schooling (as of this	students and teachers don't always get that one fall term), students have to be online by 8:00	on one connection as often. The positive of
the Covid 19 pandemic. All Pennsylvania
schools closed down, and a Google Classroom
was our only platform to use for education.
for attendance just as if they were in school.	virtual school is that students are able to work Of course it is still easier because waking up	at their own pace to a certain extent, they are and geting on your computer is easier than	able to go to class and use the virtual tutor for
underway, students and parents made a choice
as to whether they would continue at home
to leave your house.
to be in bri k and mortar schools. I believe the
important and I feel like students here ave a
Now, with the 2020-2021 academic year already	maintaining a set schedule of geting ready	assistance.cPersonally, I believe students need Some cons of homeschooling	relationship between teacher and student is
There are pros and cons to both com-
ing to school, and doing online school. I ap-
would be the struggle with organization an
“virtual” learning or attend school in person.	self discipline. As we all know, technology d	deeper connection with their teachers.hHowev-can have malfunctions and this can result in	er, I 100% respect students and their families'
ple Google Classroom posts and Edgenuity
Middle school lead teacher, Mrs. Kla-
proached several students, teachers, and par-	lost work. Another issue would be the multi-     decision to stay home doing learning virtually.”

ents to gain some insight from the school com-
school is a better fit for me because I can not
to go to the store, or get bored. School work
pendently.”
deadlines. Assignments can easily get lost
person s men al health due to the lack of
n with peers.
ditis summed i up like this, “During this pan-
about my respect for yours. I do respect eve
parents we all share the same "knot in our
munity. Senior, Jada Jackson stated, “Coming to	and or forgotten about, resulting in work not	demic I've saidtto family and friends, as well as stay focused at home. I either fall asleep, want	geting' done.tVirtual school can also affect a	students, it's not about my comfort level, it'sry isn't something fun that I want to do inde-	interactioThere are pros and cons to coming	parent/guardian's feelings on COVID. I think as
Some pros to doing virtual school
would be being able to work at your own pace
to school as well, however, these are things	stomach" when it comes to the safety of our we have had to deal with since kindergarten,	children during this pandemic. I am overwhelm-
Students also enjoyed being in the comfort o
their own home and not having to get dressed
routine was fun for a short while.
when we enter into the workforce.
Mrs. Armour, high school lead
unknowns, I do believe we needed to have
taken to keep the students and faculty safe. I
be a successful school year.”
Overall, the students feel as if coming
and times, providing that you are keeping up	and we will have to most likely deal with	ingly pleased with the precautions FASD has with assignments and teacher expectations. f	teacher, shared some insight from a teach-	feel as long as we ALL do our part, I look for it to to look presentable for school. This change of	er’s perspective, “In this day, with so many	to school is easier to concentrate and easier to
Another pro would be feeling well
rested. When learning at home students do not
have to be awake by 6-7 am and be at school by
options for all families during this pandemic.	get things done in a timely manner. Coming to The fact that our school has given families of	school also has more excitement such as seeing our community the option to either come to	peers, geting a giggle from a teacher, or feeling
Your thoughts reve
time as long as it was turned in by midnight.
virtual school is more on your own time and yo
everyone's needs. In my personal opinion,
One of the most important aspects of face t
can have clear communication and under-
Fowler. Students are more determined to get
naturally because we are all together and can
diate feedback.
8 am. When distance learning first started (last	face to face school or virtual is respectful of	the positive vibes from our principal, Mr. spring), students could turn in their work at any	there are positives and negatives to both.	good grades. Participation and motivation come Senior student, Mariah Hopson, stated “ I feel u	face school is that the teacher and studentso     ask teachers questions and give and get imme-can manage how you do things instead of hav-aled: COVID 19 SURVEY RESULTS

BY Arianna Blanchard

BREAKING NEWS!! You know about Covid-19 right? Yes the deadly virus that is going around that is causing us to go through months of quarantine and now back to school season unlike virtually, any other back to school ever experienced. Due to Covid-19, there have been many changes in the world around us and our surround-ings. There are many different feelings, thoughts, and ideas that peo-ple have about the pandemic and what's going on and going to hap-pen.
A recently published article in The Herald, entitled, “COVID crush”, written by local journalist, David Dye, discusses the effects that quarantine and Covid has had on people. What caught my atten-tion in this article was the word isolation. Many people tend to get mixed emotions from being isolated from the world and from others. They can feel from a range happiness, sadness, depression, anger to

Volume 2 Issue 1

many more. Being alone for a long period of time can cause a lot of unwanted negative thoughts, such as, sui-cide from being depressed and sad. September 10th is Worldwide Suicide Prevention Day. This day helps spread awareness around the world for people dealing with sui-cide and the effects of suicide.
I surveyed a variety of classmates and school faculty and staff regarding Covid related topics in order to reveal whether or not similar challenges are being faced by members of our school district.
For this survey, a total of 67 responses from grades 7 through 12 and some staff were submitted. When asked if Covid 19 had impacted their lives, 55% of the peo-ple surveyed said yes and then 37% of people surveyed somewhat. In terms of specific impacts on their lives, an

Continued on page 8

Page 5

Senior Night 2020

“Senior year is for the tears. Facing your fear, loudening the cheers. You find out how close you are to some, and how far away you are from others. You'll have your lasts and get ready for the firsts. Then you'll look back on it and remember it forever.” ~Kaitlyn Sommer

Seniors Reflect...

“It is bittersweet. We’ve been with the same kids for 13 years… and now we are about to part ways.” - Maria Haynes

“We made it to the end of the ride…” - Sa’Mya Moore

“This school year is stressful, but it will pay off in the end!” - Katay-ia Milhouse

“It took sooo long to get here and now it is going by so quickly!” -Marionna Deitz

“Face the fact that your fears are quickly approaching.”	-Kamira Brown

Photo credit: Principal, Mr. Fowler
“As Senior Year is starting, I am beginning to think about all of the memories in my old chapters, and it is bittersweet. But I look for-ward to what’s to come in my new chapter.” -Jada Jackson

From top left: Brice Butler, escorted by Mr. and Mrs. Robert and Amy Butler; Christian Hartley, escorted by Ms. Whitney Hartley and sister Kris Blue; Cameron Burris, escorted by Ms. Autumn Desomma; Amarion Odem, escorted by Mr. Anthony Pegues and Mr. La-mont Samuels; Jeremiah Butler, escorted by Mr. and Mrs. Kathy and David Shaffer; Jaden Harrison, escorted by Mr. and Mrs. Troy and Joyce Harrison; Gary Satterwhite, escorted by Mr. Gary Satterwhite II, Ms. Amber Satterwhite and William Satterwhite; Taivon, Strickland, escorted by Ms. Tina and Mr. Brandon Ward.

Page 6	Volume 2 Issue 1

Senior Night 2020

"My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to, your dreams stay big, your worries stay small." — Rascal Flatts, "My Wish"

Photo credit: Principal, Mr. Fowler
From top left: LaShawn Williams, escorted by Mr. Theodore Williams II; Jada Jackson, escorted by Mr. and Mrs. Jason and Cassandra Jackson; Katayia Milhouse, escorted by Ms. Kendra Odem; Kamira Brown, escorted by Mr. Randy Jones and Ms. Ronalda Brown; Jacara Green, escorted by Mr. and Mrs. Jacob and Yolanda Green; Samya Moore, escorted by Ms. Yvonne McKeithan; Makyah and Lakyah Burns, escorted by Mr. and Mrs. DeWayne and Tolanda Burns; Marionna Deitz, escorted by Mr. Isaac Chapman, and Ms. Amanda Deitz; Toni Austin, escorted by Mr. Tony Austin and Ms. Angela McKnight; Kathleen Dean, escorted by Mr. and Mrs. Ernie and Kelly Dean; Maria Haynes, escorted by Ms. Naomi Brown and Mr. Michael Haynes; Mariyana Amos, escorted by Ms. Danielle Dallas and Mr. Melvin Amos.

Volume 2 Issue 1	Page 7

Coach Amp opens up on COVID sports season

BY JADEN HARRISON

You can call this a crazy sports season, huh?! Unprec-edented cancellations, due to Covid 19, have and are being experienced across all sports, from local to college to profes-sional. I caught up with our Athletic Director / Head Coach, Anthony Pegues, and asked him about the fall sports’ seasons during Covid-19.
He pointed out that first, there are new rules across all sports. This year, players have to bring their own water, coaches are not allowed to provide the kids with water at all.

Livestream (screen capture above), led by STEAM and Physics Teachers, Mr. Lewis and Mr. Folsom, made safe viewing possible as in person spectators were limited at the Friday, September 18, match up.

On the sideline kids and coaches have to be spread apart for football games. They made the sideline bigger to make that possible. In order to keep the equipment clean, custodial personnel are helping by using disinfecting spray and going up and down the rows to spray pads in athletes’ lockers.
The spectator situation has been a heated debate for months. So far, football players, cheerleaders, Golden Girls, and band members get two tickets for their families to attend in person.
On September 2, The Herald front page article, “Governor Wolf blasts GOP response to court ruling,” Finnerty explained that the governor does not like the plan for the sports seasons taking place, let alone having fans. However, “U.S District Court Judge William Stickman ruled Monday that Wolf’s limit on the crowd sizes of 25 people indoors and 250 people outdoors violates the First Amendment.”
When asked how the Steeler Football Team looked coming out of the first quarantine, the coach answered, “Their energy actually helped a lot.” With the departing seniors from last year he feels there is no change, if anything, the football team has gotten better. The only difference being, the offensive and defensive lines, not the skill level.
With a couple games down, he feels the new Coronavirus rules don't affect the season at all. He says that it feels like normal games, just without the fan energy. The Sharpsville game really set the tone this year, showed mistakes they made and holes that they need to fill.
He cites that his best experience as a coach and a father has been watching the kids that he taught grow up to be successful in life. So, I asked him what's the most challenging thing as a coach, father and A.D., he said, “A busy man doesn’t think that anything is challenging, if you know you’re up for the task.”
Finnerty, J. (2020, September 16). Gov. Wolf blasts GOP response to court ruling. The Herald, pp. 1-20.

Covid 19 Survey Continued:

overwhelming majority response was that it limited their activi-ties. This is not surprising because Covid-19 and the safety en-forcements caused a lot of activities to either be banned or shut down. About 32% of others answered that they are trying to be extra cautious by handwashing more often and social distanc-ing.
This next survey question, a highly debated topic, is the origin of Covid 19. Many of us seem to believe that Covid came from China. Considered to be a conspiracy theory by some, pop-ulation control, was the most common response, with a total of 33%. Then only a few percent of people answered that Covid-19 came from bats from China that they were experimenting with then they either released them purposely or accidentally.
Some of the precautions that students are taking to stay healthy are that 88% are choosing to wear face coverings. Next came 43% of people wiping and cleaning off their cellular device. 40% of the survey takers said that they do not share any classroom materials with any of their peers to help to stay safe. A total of 41% of people said that they keep themselves quaran-tined as a way to stay away from people to obviously help pre-vent the spread of anything that can lead to contracting the virus. 31% of people responded that they make sure that they

Page 8

wipe down their assigned seat in their scheduled class. Finally, others said that they use hand sanitizer more often and change clothes when they return home from school. When it comes to following school safety protocols, a total of 74% of people fol-lowed the new protocols with a total of 23% of people saying that they do somewhat.
There are many things that Covid has been preventing people from around the world from doing. Some of the activities that you feel you can no longer do because of Covid would be watching sports, playing in sports, any kind of physical contact such as hugging, sharing food, traveling, geting a part-time job. You can no longer go see relatives, go shopping, go to the movies, and hang out with friends. For this survey question people chose many of these activities listed above, but the largest category se-lected was “limiting travel”.
When asked if survey participants would still attend school if one of our fellow classmates had become diagnosed posi-tive with Corona, about 69% of people surveyed yes or maybe they would return to school physically. 66% of people felt that you should not be permitted to play sports if you do not attend physi-cal school.
DYE, D. (2020, September 10). “Covid crush” The Her-ald, pp. 1

Volume 2, Issue 1

Girls’ Volleyball

From left: D’Eryah Stewart (11), Toni Austin (12), Gabrielle King (10), Demaris Crowder (10), Makyah Burns (12), look to the flag as the National Anthem is played to being the match ver-sus

Toni Austin (below) passes the ball to set-ter D’Eryah Stewart. Girls showed hustle and teamwork throughout the month of September but hop-ing to improve their record in the second half of the season.

Lakyah Burns (above) passes the ball to setter D’Eryah Stewart.

Volleyball Photo credit: Maria Haynes and Keyonna Lockhart

SENIOR Night 2020

Photo credit: Principal Fowler
Back left: Makyah Burns, Kathleen Dean, Amarion Odem, Back right: Jeremiah Butler, Mid-dle left: Maria Haynes, Cameron Burris, Gary Satterwhite III, Jaden Harrison, Brice Butler, Taivon Strickland, Christian Hartley, Samya Moore, Katayia Milhouse, Lakyah Burns. Bottom left: Jada Jackson, Lashawne Williams, Marionna Dietz, Kamira Brown, Mariyana Amos, and Jacara Green.

Volume 2, Issue 1	Page 9

Community Connections School Wide Racial Perceptions Survey:
Results reveal Farrell participants open and eager to converse about race.

By ANTHONY JACKSON

Many people have been contemplating the meaning of racial equality in light of the current events of this past summer. Here, in Farrell High School, we are a predominately black school and race is a very sensitive and important subject for us. As an African American student body, students find it necessary and important to be able to grapple with sensitive topics about racial inequality and injustices because these are issues that we face everyday, it is who we are.
As a journalist for the Steeler Nation News, I set out to open up this discussion by surveying students, staff and faculty concerning their perceptions of three main topics: racial equality, police and community relations, and current events.
When asked about race relations and whether it is geting better or worse in the United States, only 14% of people think it is improving and the remaining 86% think that it is geting worse. About 61% of participants believe that the change of pres-ident would improve race relations in the United States .
To go into a little more in depth and get a feel for whether or not the problems experienced on a national level are being resonated here in Farrell, I asked if people trust their local police department. Responses revealed that 25% of people do not trust the local police department whereas the remaining 75% strongly or somewhat trust the police department. When asked if the local police department made them feel mostly safe or mostly anxious answers were split down the middle 50/50.

Addressing the current events and Black Lives Matter movement, participants were asked about how much news that they follow. Only 6% of people said they never keep up with BLM, about 40% said from time to time, and the remainder were split between daily and once a week following. Attendance at BLM Rally was relatively low with only 23% responding that they had attend-ed.
Opinions as to whether Black Lives Matter rallies and pro-tests were achieving the goals of increased awareness and justice varied. 43% of the people who surveyed said yes, awareness and justice are both increasing, while 7% said that it is not changing anything. When asked whether or not survey participants agree with the mission of BLM, an overwhelming 90% strongly agree or agree. A final question addressed the riots (looting and destruction of property) during the BLM protests. The majority (42%) of the votes were ‘undecided’, and felt that it may have brought neces-sary attention to the movement, but it was mostly negative and possibly caused more harm than good.

Various answers were given when asked what police could do to build trust with the community. Many wanted to see oficers interacting in positive ways with the community. One anonymous survey participant eloquently summed up their feel-ings in the following words, that SNN felt important to publish in its entirety below:

Survey participant offers insight and personal experience...

All occupations that deal with the public, such as the police, need to have sensitivity training on a regular basis. The police need to know the community and its people. I am sensing that Black people want the police to do their job, "Serve and Protect." Unfortunately, our confidence and trust that it will be done fairly, is not there.

Personally, I, start shaking and have cried whenever I am pulled over for a speeding ticket or if a police officer appears that he may be approaching me and I don’t know why. The narrative we give in our family to our educated, respectful men of color; is to always keep their hands on the steering wheel, keep their car information above the visor, talk slowly, clearly, respectfully and steady when talking to the police. Explain any moves they may have to make and the biggest most important thing is to always have their phones fully charged and camera ready.

I think that the only reason true attention has been brought to police brutality is because of cell phones and the very public, unfortunate, death of George Floyd and countless others. There have been many protesters and movements that have been screaming for years that something wasn't fair. The protest have always been "our problem” and the fix has been to "throw us a bone" and we'd be happy. When we were all stuck in our house because of Covid and could not run from the “in your face” injustice that has been happening for years is when many of the "unaware, not wanting to know, privileged people” could not run from the reality that was on every news station. When we could not look away from the horror as a police officer so cavalierly put his knee into a man’s neck until life was taken from him is when much (not all) of this country woke up and said "Oh, this is what you've been talking about!?"

When Colin was kneeling at the start of a football game it was called “disrespecting the flag,” never once did the people who called him and his fellow players horrible names ask him why he was kneeling or gave him a platform to publicly speak on the issues. His narrative was changed so that his reason had no meaning. Now, after the summer of 2020, the world has to admit that there just might have been a reason why this man did not stand and that his reason really had nothing to do with the cloth but with the unfairness of the lyrics that were being spoken.

When John Lewis spoke of "Good Trouble" he was not referring to burning and looting. Such acts bring the wrong message and give fuel to those who do not want to see justice or change. “Good Trouble” is not trouble at all, at least not for the person who is bringing the "trouble". The only reason it is called "trouble" is because it brings an uneasiness to the oppressor, the blindly privileged. An uneasiness that, just maybe, will make them look at themselves and admit some unfairness and in some cases some wrong doings. The “trouble” comes when we all are made aware, yet again, that the playingfield is not even. That judgement is given too quickly, that I am to be in the shadow seen and heard only when it is for a specific purpose. The “trouble” comes when I have the audacity to ask for the same exact thing that my oppressor is getting and not just be satisfied with the "crumbs" that have fallen to the floor. Me having "the nerve" to ask for sameness is where, "Good Trouble, Necessary Trouble" comes from. And yes, this "trouble," this uneasiness, is absolutely necessary.

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Community Connections

“If you do what you need to do, it’s easier to do what you want to do.”

- Representative Harris offered this wisdom imparted by his mother.

Local WWC Member Goes on the Record with SNN

On Friday morning, September 25, Repre-sentative Harris addressed Junior High Stu-dents. He discussed overcoming a tough upbringing in Southwest Philadelphia, earn-ing a teaching degree, passing the “Clean Slate Act,” and being elected to office at the age of 27.

“I see what’s possible when we recognize that we are one American family, all deserving of equal treatment.” - Presi-dent, Barak Obama

WFMJ Big 22 Contenders Top left: Brice Butler, Gary Satterwhite III, Bottom left: Anthony Stallworth and Jaden Harrison have all been named contend-

ers for the annual, prestigious “Big 22” award.

Volume 2, Issue 1

By MALACHI SHEPHERD

As the Black Lives Matter movement gained momentum this summer our local organi-zation, We Want Change (WWC) has been actively spreading their message of equality by hosting friendly rallies. As a SNN reporter, I reached out to Ms. Danielle Richardson, active member of the WWC movement. She explained that group is made of up of racially, culturally, religiously di-verse, people that share a common goal of chang-ing the world for the better.
When asked for Ms. Richardson's opin-ion about local participation and support of the WWC organization, Ms. Richardson responded that the movement is largely ignored or some-times unfairly judged because people feel threat-ened. This negative image leads people to believe that the values of the organization are wrong or that members set a bad example for their chil-dren. Their intention is just the opposite.
She believes that people from our local community often fear the backlash of speaking out, so it is easier to say and do nothing. She add-ed that the younger generation (referring to stu-dents) do not have a very clear understanding of the organization nor its motivations.
Ms. Richardson believes that the cur-rent, tense political climate has led to sharp divi-sions. She feels that many tweets and other pub-lic comments from President Trump, that fail to take a firm stand against racist actions, tell the American people that it is okay to keep doing them. She feels that this hurts our country on the whole.
Ms. Richardson pointed out that the Public School System of her generation let down African Americans by omiting so much of our history. For example, our current African Ameri-can History class in Farrell is in its 5th year, before that our history was a very small portion of the American History course. The importance of this course to our students is obvious as it is often a favorite class among students that have taken it.

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Farrell High ‘pops’ with art, culture and creativity

Art students, from left (above), Toni Austin, Demario Norris, Naveah King, and	Marcus Green show off Pop Art Self Portraits. Students studied a history of the Pop Art move-	ment with Art Teacher, Mrs. Munnal, including masters, Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein and Romero Britto (among others) and then created their own in this eye catching style.

Le Saviez-Vous? Did you know?

Top: Jaden Harrison and Ra-mon Oatis, Left: LaShawn Wil-liams, Bottom left: Kolden Peace, Curtis Coleman, Zaire Brown, pose with self pro-pelled LEGO robotics projects created in class.

Of the approximately 300 million French speakers worldwide, almost half live on the continent of Africa! French students, Keyonna Lockhart and Khalil Matthews model Egyptian garments. Egypt is one of Africa’s many members of the Fran-cophonie Organization. A group of 88 member states that celebrate French language and culture throughout the world!

Page 12	Volume 2, Issue 1