From the Classroom
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Opus’s Coffee House proves to be modest success
By Charlotte Dobry As with anything, the Opus Coffee House had its ups and downs in coming together. A subcommittee of the Opus staff, composed primarily of people in the business, marketing and music departments and headed by music editor Sandra Bocharnikov, had a lot of work to do, culminating in what I believe can [...] -
Inside Oakton’s Drug Community: Part 4
“Don’t have to look like a pothead” John* doesn’t stand out too much from the crowd. He plays a varsity sport, takes multiple AP classes and maintains a decent GPA. What his teachers and peers would probably be surprised to find out, however, is that he distributed marijuana for over two years. “[Selling] was such [...] -
Inside Oakton’s Drug Community: Part 3
Alex doesn’t remember much about his last day at Oakton, but he knows that the Cha Cha Slide had something to do with it. “I took some amount of Percocet, and a couple Soma… and then they mixed to form some sort of terrible combination that made it very obvious that I was intoxicated in [...] -
Inside Oakton’s Drug Community: Part 2
“I had one night where I think I had done cocaine, Oxycontin, Xanax, and I was drunk. And then every time I would snort a line of cocaine, I would throw up like two seconds after… I did that for like eight lines before I was like ‘this is probably bad,’” recalled 18-year-old Alex*. “Then [...] -
Inside Oakton’s Drug Community: Part 1
For many students, the high school years are all about the focus on academics, sports and clubs. For a portion of the student body, however, these years are all about pushing physical, biological and chemical limits. This In-Depth section focuses on the drug network underlying Oakton’s prestigious reputation. by Erica Wohlleben and Katie Smith, with [...] -
FCPS advisers distinguished at Portland Conference
At the 2010 Adviser Recognition Luncheon, three Fairfax County Public School teachers were recognized for their efforts in the education and journalistic fields. -
OMG Treks to Portland for JEA Conference
Trekking across America, students from Oakton Media Group travelled to Portland, Oregon, to attend a JEA/NSPA Student Journalism conference. The group attended conferences regarding their respective journalistic interests, listened to the inspiring keynote speaker Nigel Jaquiss in his story regarding the power of journalism, and competed in write-offs and various contests relevant to their publications. [...] -
Voodoo Donuts Weds Editors in Chief
Juniors Zoe Mitchell and Vipin Reddy were married to the newspaper in Voodoo Doughnuts, achieving the positions of Co-Editor-in-chief. The rest of the trip members crowded around as a Voodoo employee performed the marriage. Additionally, the “reception” included a game of foosball against the two previous EIC competitors, and a game of foosball between Mitchell [...] -
Morning Announcements: April 16th
Movie Night has been postponed from this Saturday. A later date will be announced. Attention all rising seniors: if you are interested in picking up a parking application for next year, they are now available in the main office. Did you apply or sign up to be part of Cougar News, newspaper, or yearbook staff [...] -
You Are What You Eat
Nutrition Facts Athletic Trainer Paul Rupp talks about a healthy diet for an athlete Breakfast of Champions “You want a more complex carb,” Rupp said. “You want fiber to your breakfast. Oatmeal or cereals are good. There’s nothing wrong with eggs, bacon and sausage, once in a while.” Snack Time “Athletes should shoot for 5-7 meals a day,” Rupp said. “Consider everything you eat a meal. Just a sandwich and banana is a meal. Stay away from simple sugars” Stay hydrated “[Energy Drinks] are horrible. There not good for a growing heart and body,” Rupp said. “Chocolate milk is the best recovery drink.” what has he been eating? a look inside of the fridge of an athlete that uses a nutritionist to aid performance For dinner Jamie makes sure he’s eating carbs and proteins by eating chicken, pasta and steak. To drink Jamie has water and gatorade but tries to stay away from soda. For lunch Jamie eats a tuna sandwich and fruit such as an apple -
Sounds of Gray: humble beginnings
By Andy Reed As the cacophony of the sounds of my heart beats out of my chest, the crowd and the roar of feedback mixed together to form one moment: the beginning of “Dark.” I started to count the beats in my head as the guitar played the intro. I hovered one stick over the [...] -
Next year’s schedule provides a second “home” for homework.
The Staff Editorial is the official opinion of the Outlook Oakton is eliminating Break. That prized 13 minutes set aside for students and teachers to socialize, snack and study. Idolized and appreciated by all, Break has become an institution in Oakton’s schedule so important to students that should not be tampered with lightly. But could [...] -
Chew On This: Athletic Mouth Protection
Athletes imprint their teeth into a material that forms a mold. Square, plastic sheets are the base material to create the mouth guard and must be melted down. A machine is used to heat the previously square plastic sheets into melted, malleable plastic that can be pressed into the mouth molds. Excess plastic is re-used by melting them back into squares. A lever presses the melted plastic into the mold of the original imprint. The edges of the mouth guards are sanded down to eliminate excess plastic and rough portions. The final mouth guard can be customized with name, number and choice of color. -
From the VHSL to the NCAA
Senior athletes reflect on upcoming collegiate athletics while alumni athletes share current experiences Cross Country and Track Name: Andrew McCullen Oakton Grad: 2010 College Choice: North Carolina State Chose NC State because “they have a good running program and a soild math and science school.” Major Accomplishments: 2008 Cross Country Team Title, Running 14:48 for 3 miles, a top 10 all-time performance at Burke Lake Runs 50-55 miles a week Name: Joe LoRusso Oakton Grad: 2008 College Choice: Villanova University Chose Villanova because “it’s a really good school academically, and there were better opportunitites to run post-collegiate.” Major College Accomplishments: Ran a 4:06 mile and made Big East Cross Country Team Runs 70 miles a week Womens Soccer Name: Erin Reynolds Oakton Grad: 2010 College Choice: University of Mary Washington Chose Mary Washington because “it’s a competitive DIII program, and it’s a good school.” Future goals: “I definitely want to play freshman year; I plan on playing all four years. I hope to continue playing in some form after college.” Practices 14 hours a week Name: Jenna Cahill Oakton Grad: 2009 College Choice: Radford University Chose Radford because “I liked the size of the school and I knew some of the people there and I could play soccer.” Future goals: “I want to continue to do well in my classes and graduate with a degree in athletic training.” Practices 24 hours a week -
Texas makes radical right changes to student textbooks
By Matt Steele A part of the Texas State Board of Education voted to make radical right-wing changes to their textbook curriculum on March 12 by a 10-5 republican majority vote. In some areas of the textbook, one of America’s most influential and important philosophers, Thomas Jefferson, has been removed and replaced with French Christian [...] -
Trainers need more space to provide athletes care
By Alex Straton Waltzing in at 2:10 p.m., thinking I had ample time to ask trainers Rupp and Cowdery a few questions about my recent injury, get treatment and make it to practice in time, I poked my head into the training room. I didn’t expect to see both hot and cold tubs already filled [...] -
Eight period added to schedule: ‘Cougar Time’
With the hectic schedule changes resulting from the “Blizzard of 2010,” students have finally begun to fall back into the pattern of a normal school week. But before they are able to become too familiar with the current school day, the faculty has decided to change the typical seven period day once again. “Starting the [...] -
Health needs an updated curriculum to impact students
By Becky Singerman Look around you. How many kids do you know, sitting within five feet of you now, who do drugs? Too many. The health class curriculum is clearly an ineffective and obsolete way of keeping students from experimenting with drugs and alcohol. Outdated videos are not effective in detering students from drug and [...] -
Morning Announcements: April 15th
There will be an Octagon Club meeting after school tomorrow in room 111. Attention Seniors-If you are interested in being Master or Mistress of Ceremonies for graduation, or the speaker of “A Look Back,” “A Look to the Future,” or the presenter of the class gift, then stop by the Burgundy office from now until [...] -
Morning Announcements: April 14th
There will be an Octagon Club meeting after school tomorrow in room 111. Leadership will be hosting an Outdoor Movie Night on Saturday, April 17th. There will be 2 movies shown, The Blind Side and Sherlock Holmes. The first movie begins at 7:30 and admission is only $1, so come out and enjoy the show! [...]
