October 2007 - Fenwick High School

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Fenwick welcomes new business manager Homecoming traditions continue to thrive Mr. Tantillo works hard at his new position as Fenwick’s business manager. Photo by Rebecca Orr By Amanda Krug The business office is the backbone of Fenwick High School, providing valuable resources, skills, and knowledge that are essential to the successful operation of the school. One of the prominent figures, who is a new member of the Fenwick community, is Mr. Robert Tantillo, the business manager. Before taking his new job at Fenwick, Mr. Tantillo owned his own software company. As business manager, Mr. Tantillo has copious responsibilities and duties that span five departments: security, maintenance, construction, procurement & payment, and IT infrastructure. For each department he must devise policies and procedures, and then work to implement them. Within each division there are directors; Mr. Tantillo must listen to and try to understand the needs of each director, formulate a plan to satisfy their demands, and organize finances, time, and priorities. Not only is he a supervisor, but he also manages various projects throughout the school, including the organization of the new library. His primary goal is to bring Fenwick into a new age; an age that embraces the most advanced technology and makes use of all available resources. He wants to give Fenwick the chance to become a more efficient institution that provides the best education possible. Each of his duties requires the ability to solve problems, which happens to be his favorite part of the job. Mr. Tantillo must come up with solutions to fix problems that arise, and he must prioritize to solve the issues that are most troublesome to the school as a whole. With all the challenges that accompany construction, he definitely has his hands full right now. Since he is not an alumnus of Fenwick and has no previous affiliations with the school, he has no biases and is able to complete his job with the utmost integrity. He explains that a great amount of patience is needed to tackle some of the challenges he encounters. Many people do not realize that Fenwick is not only a school, but a business as well. It requires the economic and management skills of hardworking people, including Mr. Robert Tantillo. Although he is new to Fenwick, Mr. Tantillo has already had a profound impact on the school, working diligently everyday to make Fenwick the best place it can be. By Megan Hickey Tricycle races, themed outfits, beard growing contests, and color days While this might seem like a very random (and bizarre) group of events to the average student, all of these events denote Homecoming to a Fenwick Friar. When seeking information about Homecoming, there is one optimum source – Mr. and Mrs. Rudnik. The very knowledgeable biology professor started working on Homecomings with the Student Council in 1983. Though he has missed a few in, but he estimates that 2007 will be his seventeenth Homecoming. Mrs. Rudnik has been the nurse for nine years, but has helped with Homecoming far before she took the official job. There are many traditions associated with Homecoming week. Last Friday’s pudding eating contest and Tuesday’s soda chug were introduced back when Fenwick was still an all boy’s school. Tricycle racing was also initiated before Fenwick became co-ed. The Rudniks have found that the plastic scooters hold up the best under the strain of the most enthusiastic Friars. Beard growing is also in this category, and it is probably the oldest tradition, dating back to the 1970’s. Color day, theme days, and homecoming shirt day are more recent additions to the list of customs. The idea of selling homecoming shirts to wear on the Friday before the game was an idea that began about fifteen years ago. Student Council initially paid an artist to create the design, but in the past few years the shirt has been the work of a Fenwick student. Senior Greg Ryan designed the shirts that we will wear tomorrow. More recently, color day was the creation of the 2001-2002 student council. The executive board members liked the idea of having colors designated to each year, but they were struggling with the task of assigning colors. The board was predominantly girls that year, and they thought it would be cute to have all the freshmen wear pink. Despite protests from boys on the student council, the girls won the majority. The other colors were assigned at random, with the seniors getting the ultimate friar pride colors of black and white. Mr. Rudnik remembered the grumblings of the freshmen boys that year. Since then, however, many male freshmen have gone all-out in their pink ensembles. Of course the dance is one of the most important events in homecoming week. The bids and the homecoming t-shirts are very successful fundraisers for Student Council, especially as attendance has been steadily rising since Fenwick welcomed girls. The largest attendance ever recorded was just shy of 900 students. With 876 people in attendance last year, it seems that students are trying to keep up the Fenwick tradition of success. Students active in fundraising events By Caren Petty Fenwick students are maintaining their reputation this fall as being a generous and socially-concerned community. As was illustrated in the Invisible Children assembly last week, Fenwick has been recognized for its commitment to helping non-profit organizations. Three such projects that the students will be involved in this fall are the St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital Kick It for a Cure, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Walk to Cure Diabetes, and the Making Tracks campaign. The St. Jude’s fundraiser is a continuation from what was initiated last year. During the 2006/2007 school year, Kick it for a Cure, which was organized by Aimee Regan, raised an impressive $50,000. The difference in the program this year is that the letterwriting campaigns are going to be open to all students, not just athletes. Beginning later this month, students can participate by writing letters to sponsors, who will hopefully support the cause through generous donations. The students that gross the most money will be eligible to participate in a kickball game against the faculty in April. If you would like to help out with this fundraiser, please contact seniors Caren Petty, Katie O’Brien, Kit Walsh, and Torie Frangella. The upcoming project for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation is also a continuation of a fundraiser from last year. this fall Senior Kady Helme and her team, Kady’s Krusaders, will be walking on Chicago’s lakefront in the Ron Santo Walk to Cure Diabetes on Sunday, October 14th. Kady’s team was able to raise over $50,000 last year from donations in the cafeteria and the walk. Everyone is invited to take part in the event, which is dedicated to finding a cure for juvenile diabetes. Fenwick made an impressive showing in 2006; we hope to do even better this year. For more information, contact Kady Helme or visit jdrf.org The third fundraiser this fall is the annual Makin’ Tracks 5K run/walk hosted by Concordia University, Fenwick High School, and Oak Park - River Forest High School. The walk will take place on Saturday, October 13th at 9:00 am at Concordia University. The purpose of the event is to give families in the Oak Park community the opportunity to show their commitment to good health, exercise, and a balances diet. It also supports the athletic tracks used for Fenwick sports. Workers at the event will serve as course directors for runners. For more information about Makin’ Tracks or signing up, talk to Dr. Lordan. This is a great opportunity for juniors who hope to complete some of their service hours. These three events support great causes and have been extremely successful in past years. Let’s keep up our reputation and show our Friar pride. Mr. Slajchert and Seniors Nerina DiSomma and Margaret Bauer gather on stage with three representatives from Invisible Children. The group came to Fenwick to thank students for their effort last year in the Schools for Schools program, and to encourage everyone to participaste again this year. Photo by Rebecca Orr Security Director tackles classroom disruption By Nolan Hopkinson A group of Oak Park River Forest High School students have received tickets and restraining orders from the Oak Park police department to keep them away from Fenwick. This measure was a reaction to the students’ disruption of a morning class on the school’s ground floor. History teacher Gary Richied’s period 7/8 class was interrupted a few weeks ago by a group of young men, whose yelling and swearing was clearly heard through the open windows of Room 01. Once the intruders realized that their conversation was being overheard by the class, one threw a cookie at Mr. Richied through one of the windows. Mr. Richied responded by alerting the Oak Park police and Fenwick security; he hoped this would bring an end to the problem. However, the next day, the unwelcomed visitors returned. They swore at the class and then threw an open can of Red Bull into the classroom. The visitors did not know, much to their dismay, that Mr. Jerry Ruffino, the wrestling coach, football coach, and director of security, was nearby. The junior history class saw Mr. Ruffino sprint down the hall and apprehend one of the perpetrators. The other trouble-makers got away. From the classroom the students could not hear much of what Ruffino said to the guilty student. However, they did learn that after being asked, the OPRF student quickly revealed his accomplices, who all received tickets and restraining orders to keep them off Fenwick property.
Elephants on parade By Sam Murray The 2008 Republican campaign is an especially interesting and contentious one. This is partly because it is the first presidential election since 1928 in which neither the incumbent president nor vicepresident has run for the office. The field of candidates is wide this year, but four main contenders seem to control the media and voter attention the most. These toptier candidates consist of Rudy Giuliani, the former mayor of New York City, John McCain, the senior senator from Arizona, Mitt Romney, the former governor of liberal Massachusetts, and the dark horse Fred Thompson, former Senator from Tennessee, and current star of the popular television show Law and Order. Rudolph Giuliani’s greatest claim to fame is the spotlight which shone on him during the terrorist attacks on his city, New York, on September 11, 2001. In those tumultuous days, the city and indeed the country looked to Giuliani for comfort and leadership. Accordingly, much of Giuliani’s campaign is based on images of him as a source of comfort during that time, and the foreign policy experience that he gleaned from it. His policy goals can be clearly seen in his plans for the nation of Iraq. He opposes the popular plan for a withdrawal of troops from the war, seeing tumultuous regions such as Iraq and Afghanistan as minor fronts in the “larger war on terror.” One criticism he makes of the current administration is the amount of debt it is incurring. Republican voters tend to shy away from large amounts of government spending – a fact that Giuliani and other candidates are capitalizing on. He espouses a plan of controlling spending, and cutting wasteful programs, lowering taxes, and decreasing the marginal tax rate. He has already promised that in the event that he is called on to select a Supreme Court Justice, he will choose a constructionist Justice – one who will follow the laws of the land and not delve into personal interpretations. He supports the citizens’ right to bear arms, claiming that crime prevention lies in the prosecution of criminals, not the elimination of deadly weapons. He maintains the definition of marriage as a union between a man and a woman, but holds that homosexual Americans still have rights, and supports “domestic partnerships that provide stability for committed partners in important legal and personal matters, while preserving the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman.” Giuliani’s most controversial stance, however, is that of abortion. He supports the woman’s right to choose, but places “reasonable restrictions” on it, such as parental notifications for teens, and a ban on partial birth abortions. All you need to know about the leading Republican Presidential candidates government. One of the major issues that McCain’s name has been heard is the issue of immigration. He famously sponsored a failing immigration plan in Congress, saying , “I have always believed that our border must be secure and that the federal government has utterly failed in its responsibility to ensure that it is secure.” John McCain also supports the civilians’ rights under the Second Amendment, strongly backing gun rights, and fighting a bill that would make gun manufacturers responsible for deaths caused by their weapons. He stresses the importance of technological advances in energy, and methods such as conservation, fuel efficiency, and alternative fuel sources to decrease our dependence on foreign oil. By Sam Murray After a several-year hiatus, the opportunity to participate in a Model United Nations Assembly held at the University of Chicago is once again available to Fenwick students. This particular Model UN is one of few in the country that is sanctioned by the real United Nations. The members of this club represent various nations in the role-playing competition held over a four-day period at the Palmer House. Participants come from over 100 different schools in the United States and all around the globe, including high schools from England, Tokyo, and Singapore. Each high school that takes part in this event represents a different delegation from nations around the world. The better a high school has done in previous years of the competition, the more prestigious the country they are assigned. The greatest honor for any high school is to represent the delegation from a Security Council nation. Fenwick’s role in this competition started ten years ago, when Fenwick graduates studying at the University of Chicago informed moderator Dr. Lordon of the program. Fenwick started out as former Soviet satellite Kyrgyzstan. That group was awarded the prize of outstanding Muslim delegation, and the program grew rapidly from that point onward. There was, unfortunately, an issue John McCain is attempting to set himself as the candidate with the most foreign policy experience. He is a military man and war hero. In the United States Senate, he has gained valuable foreign policy experience, and is running his campaign on that experience. His weakness in popularity is the issue of the Iraq War. He pledged his full support to the President’s military plans for the region, and even backed the tremendously unpopular “surge.” To this day he supports increasing the number of troops in Iraq to an even greater number. Even as recently as a year ago, McCain was poised to be the overwhelming favorite for his party’s nomination, and also for the presidency. But such gaffes as claiming it was safe enough in Baghdad to take a Sunday stroll have sent McCain plummeting through the polls to the point where he is not only an underdog but a long shot to even compete for the nomination. McCain follows Giuliani’s plan for fiscal responsibility to a T. wants to draw some attention to what he sees as unacceptable lobbying and breaches of ethics in M o d e l U . N . r e t u r n s with behavior, and the activity was stopped. This incident is the reason why interested members must have their parents attend a meeting to discuss participants’ behavior during the competition. There was an attempt to resurrect the Model UN program last year, but potential applicants did not return their permission slips and paperwork on time, and so there was no opportunity to participate. It is important that this year everyone gets their necessary papers turned in on time, or else the return of Model UN might be delayed once more. The four-day event will be held during the last weekend in January, and there is a $250 fee; the entrance fee is $50, and the hotel room is $200. This program is a wonderful opportunity, and any student who is interested in a future in political science would benefit greatly from participating. Every high school group that represents a nation also serves on the committees that the real nation sits on. Students will be given the opportunity to debate real cases that face these committees, research important issues, and write papers to support their case, a valuable skill for those students who will face college-level courses all too soon. Any students who are interested can read more about it at www.MUNUC.org, or talk to Dr. Lordon. If you are worried about not being involved enough extra-curricular activities, this could be the perfect solution for you. Mitt Romney’s first obstacle to the Republican nomination is religion. In a party dominated by Evangelical Christians, Romney is a Mormon. While he has taken many positive steps towards gaining the support of the main fundamentalist Christian Republican base, he still has some distance to go before he can really rise in the polls. Breaking with the Republican candidate tradition, Romney is basing his campaign platform on health care. He disagrees with liberal politicians that the best way to deal with the health insurance problem in America is through larger government involvement. Instead, he plans to expand access to “affordable, portable, quality private health insurance.” Many of the Democratic candidates such as Barack Obama are espousing similar if not identical plans. Romney follows the pack nicely on the subject of fiscal discipline. He vows to lower taxes, simplify the tax code and cut spending. In foreign policy, Romney argues an effective strategy will involve both military and diplomatic actions to support modern Muslim nations. He plans a tough and well-defined approach to Iran. His plan for immigration reform is to secure our borders, implement a mandatory biometrically enabled, tamper proof documentation and employment verification system, and increase legal immigration into America. Fred Thompson entered the race very late, which has turned some Republican voters off. Many accuse him of dissembling for too long, and missing his moment to enter the race. There have also been many accusations that his wife is managing the campaign more than he is, and there have been numerous scandals involving advisors quitting his campaign. On the issue of national security, Thompson has followed John McCain’s lead, pushing for a larger military, and growth in the intelligence community. He also stresses the importance of strengthening global alliances, in the wake of the Bush administration’s unsuccessful foreign policy. He wants to open up the federal budget to the public and make it more accessible, to act as a deterrent to pet projects and earmarks. Again, similar to other candidates, he plans to cut spending, taxes and entitlements and bring about the “dissolution of the IRS as we know it.” His healthcare plan mirrors Romney’s, calling for affordable, fully accessible, and portable private health insurance. He sees a need to modernize the outdated system. Thompson says that America is a “nation of immigrants,” and calls for greater border security and increased methods of legal immigration. He promises, like others, to appoint constructionist Justices, uphold gun ownership rights, and increase alternative fuel sources. Other than his TV star status, it is not clear how Thompson will be able to stand out when so many of his policies are similar or identical to those others have already established. Sketches by Pat McMahon; McCain photo by Chuck Kennedy, MCT; Romney photo by Brian Baer, MCT
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October 2007 - Fenwick High School

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