Assistant Photo Editor

 From 7 p.m. until 2 a.m. in the morning the dance club is in full swing. After 8 o’clock, the DJ begins to get a feel for the crowd and the dancing has officially started. “If you are not having fun, then the crowd is not having fun, you really have to get a feeling for what they want,” said math teacher Ernest Lane. Being a DJ at a nightclub may not seem like a typical job for a math teacher to have had, but for Mr. Lane, it is just one of many. As a constant learner himself, Mr. Lane has found an appreciation for the true value of learning.

“Being a DJ was a very fun job; there is a point in the night where you have to get the dancing started and getting there is difficult,” he said. For two and half years, Mr. Lane was a DJ at a nightclub on the north side of Chicago. “It was interesting because it was a video dance nightclub, so I would put up the music and videos to coordinate it,” said Mr. Lane. Along with being a DJ, Mr. Lane had several other jobs before he became a math teacher. He was also a real-estate agent, a credit-finance manager, and he worked in banking. “I found the jobs I did to be interesting, but I don’t regret any of the things I did,” said Mr. Lane. It was not until he was 28 years old that he decided to go back to college and pursue other career options.

Coming from a town with a population of only 40 people, and a graduating high school class of 100 made high school a less than memorable experience for Mr. Lane. “After I was a freshman in high school, I began to hate it; everything seemed so easy, I think I was more bored than anything,” he said. Seeing that there was no opportunity in such a small town, he moved to Chicago when he was eighteen years old, and it was not until ten years later when it hit him that a college degree could be helpful. Since no one in his family ever went to college, there was never any real pressure to go.

Once Mr. Lane started college, he started in a math class where they had to add and subtract fractions. “I really did start from the ground up, and I realized that I liked math and I was really good at it,” He went on to not only get his undergraduate from Northeastern University, but he also graduated from St. Xavier and is currently working on his National Board Certification. “My mission for my students is to have a better experience in High School than me, and learning to think is important. If they can think, they can survive,” he said. Sophomore Nicole Ingram said, “I like Mr. Lane’s teaching style because it shows us why certain things are important to learn.”

Not only does Mr. Lane have a passion for math in the classroom, but he also enjoys a variety of hobbies outside of BHS. He espec ial ly enjoys still mixing music. “I love all types of music; anything from Bruce Springsteen to Rihanna.” Growing up in such a small town inspired Mr. Lane to take on yet another hobby and that was traveling to get out and see the world. He has been to places such as Italy, Greece, Turkey, Morocco, Romania, Amsterdam, Prague, and France to name a few. “My favorite city is Rome. It is so full of history, it is amazing,” he said. Through his various traveling experiences, Mr. Lane has deepened his understanding of education around the world.

Although being a math teacher was not Mr. Lane’s first option for a career choice, he experienced a variety of other jobs in his life. Students seem to agree that Mr. Lane has to ability to made any of his math classes a unique and fun experience. “I like the way Mr. Lane says funny things to make math class more enjoyable,” said sophomore Eve Han.

“I found the jobs I did to be interesting, but I don’t regret any of the things I did,” said Mr. Lane.

Spanish Section/Hart Beat Editor

Senior Gaby Castillo is one of the many fans of the new upcoming band Viernes Rojo. She knows their songs by heart, and she has been to all there practices. Viernes Rojo (Red Friday) is a band that senior Crystian Martinez and his brother junior Luis Martinez started. While most band practices start in a garage, this band started practicing in their basement.

“They work really hard; I wouldn’t be surprised if they made it,” said Castillo.

The band members choose the name Viernes Rojo, meaning Red Friday in Spanish, because they were performing a gig on a Friday and there was a huge fight so they added the “rojo” to it, representing the fight.

Crystian plays the drums and sings back up vocals and Luis plays the bass and sings. The band first started playing small gigs in the summer of 2008. The band plays a mixture of rock and pop in Spanish.

The other two members in the group are Jose Martinez, their older brother and Osvaldo Garcia, a friend who joined last summer. When the band first started, it was just Jose Luis, Crystian, and Luis.

“Luis and I didn’t know anything. It took a year to practice one song,” said Martinez.

Like most groups, the band struggled in the beginning. The other two members had multiple jobs while Crystian and Luis had school and other activities going on. “It was hard to coordinate everything. We practice twice a week,” said Crystian.

Two of the popular songs are “Triste Corazon De Amor” (Sad Heart Of Love) and “Amargo Adios” (Bitter Goodbye) “People relate to our songs; music defines people,” said Crystian.

Viernes Rojo has performed at festivals like CMF (Carpentersville Music Festival) and at Waukegan Kermes festivals.

Viernes Rojo will not perform at BHS’s battle of the bands due to their busy schedule but they will be performing at a different battle of the bands in the Apollo Theatre on April 3 in Belvedere.

So far, the band has been practicing hard and they have been busy writing songs. This year they are working hard to get a CD by the end of the summer.

The most important event they have performed was at Festicanto in Chicago. Festicanto is an annual Latino festival where people from different cities in the United States show their talent through their band or singing. The festival is a like a Latino “American Idol.” The contestants that win the competition get promoted and get a CD made. Viernes Rojo got 5^th place in Chicago. “Music is something I really love. I love going to different places and meeting different people,” said Crystian

Crystian and Luis see themselves becoming musicians like there father. “My dad has always supported us, he taught our band how to be one.”

While they continue to work on their band, they are also going to school. Crystian is currently attending Harper Community College to become a nurse. Luis will graduate early this year, and he will be attending Elgin Community College to take automotive courses. Jose is taking courses at a studio where he is learning how to use different equipment. Osvaldo Garcia is still currently working at a club. “Even though we live in U.S. we still want to portray our Mexican roots through our music,” said Jose.

Escritora

Traducido por Sofia Carapia

Por el tiempo que el autobús pasa por su casa a llevarla a la escuela, senior Diana Calderón ya ha llevado a su madre al trabajo, se a ido a la escuela de cosmetología, y ha limpiado su casa. Son las 2:30 de la tarde.

Calderón es una de los 22 estudiantes que actualmente asiste el programa llamado Alterante Pathways Educational de BHS. Por el fin de este año, ella ya tendrá su licenansura en cosmetología y su diploma de la secundaria, como el resultado de cambiándose de su segundo ano de secundaria. Ella vino a Pathaways porque no se llevaba bien con maestros y otros estudiantes. “Los maestros aquí no discuten contigo, envés ellos trabajan contigo,” ella dijo.

Pathways esta diseñado para ayudar a los estudiantes de alta clase el resigo de no optender su diploma de la preparatoria. Se lleva acabo desde tres de la tarde hasta las seis de lunes a jueves, y ofrece cursos para que terminen sus requirementos de graduación.

En la cuarta hora, todos se reúnen para tomar Humanidades, que está enseñado por Amanda Newhalfen. “Es el lenguaje, drama, arte, literatura, filosofía…Es todo,” dijo ella de la currícula para Humanidad, que puede cumplir un crédito de ingles o un crédito electivo.

La virtud del programa no es la currícula, sin embarrgo, es un ambiente único. “La secundaria puede ser una moledora de carne”, dijo Bill Palmer, el consejero del programa. “Para los estudiantes que necesitan mas guiílla, apoyo y entreves iones, este es un programa perfecto. Es muy indevuedado.”

Junior Christina Gómez recogniza que Pathways la a puesto en la escuela. Cuando ella se embarazó el año pasado, Gómez notó que maestros se sentían incómodos.” Como resultado de su embarazo, ella se cambio de la escuela regular al programa Pathways en su segundo semestre. “Los maestros son muy ayudantes por danos una oportunidad para graduar,” ella dijo. “Ellos no rindan en ti”

Después de dar luz a sus bebe, Gómez aprecia el breve y relajado natura de Pathways. “Hay tanta gente en el día de escuela regular. Tienes que correr para ir a clases y siempre hay gente que empuja.”, ella dijo. Asistir a la escuela por ocho horas, Gómez tendría que perder mucha clase para tener tiempo con su bebe para llevarla a las citas del doctor. Aunque ella tenía la oportunidad de regresar a la escuela, ella escogió Pathways, donde Gómez siente que le dan más apoyo.

Junior Jake Anderson, no tuvo la opción de ir a la escuela regular. En resultado de estar peleando en escuela y falta de asistencia, las opciones de Anderson eran de ir a la escuela de militar o ir a Ombudsmen, una oportunidad para los estudiantes que están en el riesgo de salir de la escuela. Ellos pueden tener un GED, tomando cursos en la computadora. Cuando el se dio cuenta del programa Pathways después de empezar Ombudsmen, el decidió tratarlo. “Es probablemente el mejor alternativo de ir a la escuela,” el dijo. “Pathways te enseña a tí de que debes aprender y como lo quieres aprender.”

El ano pasado 100% de los seniors se graduaron del programa. “Si este programa estuviera aquí cunado yo fui a la escuela, no creo que yo me hublera salido”, dijo Mr. Palmer, quien atendió BHS.

Los maestros esperan que lo estudiantes en Pathways hagan un compromiso a ellos mismos para venir la escuela diario, trabajando duro, y respetar el programa, el edificio, y su potencia. Mr. Palmer dijo que no hay muchos problemas. Diana Calderón se graduara en la primavera.

Christina Gómez dijo, “Yo tenia malas notas y ahora tengo puras A’s. Las notas en Pathways estan basadas en la asistencia, el la ética de trabajo, para que los estudiantes no tengan miedo de hacer mal en una prueba o que se les olvide la tarea.

Jake Anderson no se mete en peleas. “[Estos estudiantes] han echo una decisión para tomar paso para cambiar sus vidas. Ellos ya están alejados de sus problemas,” dijo Mr. Palmer.

En un lunes por la tarde, cuando el bullido y las voces en los Pacios se van, la clase E250 se llena de estudiantes que se sientan callados en su pupitres. Están vestidos casual sin su altero libros, estos estudiantes estarán trabajando contra las probabilidades para tener sus diplomas de la secundaria.