Will it be Cretin-Derham with their unlimited quick athletes, Armstrong with their big throws and tall offenders, Eden Prairie with their quick disc movement, Minneapolis South with their solid handlers, Hopkins whose all around toned skill has won them multiple State and National championships before, or the underdogs Como Park CAU with their big defense and good looks.

State will all be decided on which teams show up in the right mindset and what teams do not.

CAU has had a strong season so far; with victories over state champions from Wisconsin and Missouri.  They’ve squared off against the other top-tier teams taking most games to universe point (aka next team to score wins). They are the only team that has taken 2009 National Champions Hopkins to universe point.

Check back next week when we will announce State seedings and who CAU will face in the final jaunt to glory.

Mr. Erickson and Ms. Griffin applied for a grant called the Fund for Teachers earlier this year. The Fund for Teachers grant is provided by Saint Paul Public Schools to bring the world to the classroom by giving teachers the opportunity to travel overseas. Last year 14 teachers in SPPS were chosen to receive this grant and now two of our own have received this unique grant.

Advanced Placement European History teacher Ms. Griffin is choosing to use her grant to travel to Florence and Rome, Italy. From June 12^th to 24^th she will by viewing and learning about Ancient Rome’s architecture and art, as well as the history from the Renaissance and Baroque period.

“I’ve been running into it so much in my teaching that I wanted to see it for myself.”

Mr. Erickson, AP Government, AP Macroeconomics, and U.S. History teacher will be visiting China and its growing economy. Starting August 10^th, Mr. Erickson will fly out to China where he will spend two weeks in places such as, Xian, Beijing, and Shanghai.

Spending three days and nights in the center of economic activity Shanghai, Mr. Erickson will travel to Xian via train where he will be teaching conversational English as part of a volunteer program called Cross Cultural Solutions. Afterwards, he will visit Beijing to see the sights and sounds.

With his experience in China, Mr. Erickson said he will have a better of understanding of the culture and economy, political history with the Cold War, and gain an insight to teaching comparative politics and international trade. While teaching English he will learn the daily challenges students at Como face everyday with the language barrier.

“Being a minority, I’ll be the one struggling with the language; I’ll be the one struggling with the customs.”

Both teachers, Mr. Erickson and Ms. Griffin, will be learning and gaining experience as they spend their time overseas this summer. The classrooms here at Como can be defined by the walls from side to side but the experience across nations can’t be. Next year’s students of the two teachers, will have a great time being able to hear what it’s like in different parts of the world, and maybe gain an interest in study abroad and traveling in their futures.

Students, if you didn’t already know, BREAKFAST AT COMO IS FREE! Breakfast is the most important meal of the day so do not skip it! See this article for more details: http://www.comocrier.org/news/2010/03/03/skipping-breakfast-running-on-an-empty-tank/

To help encourage more kids to take the opportunity to get free breakfast, Como has introduced something new; ‘Breakfast 2 Go!’ Now when you enter the lunchroom to get your free breakfast you will get a clear plastic bag to put your food in.

Each person can get:

1 hot item or 2 cold items (only 1 cereal per student)

1 milk and/or 1 juice

1 fruit

You need to have at least 4 items for a complete healthy breakfast!

What do these little clear bags mean? Basically they mean, “Yes, you DO have time to eat breakfast in the morning” and “Now there is NO excuse to be throwing your trash on the floors of our halls.”

You are still allowed to, and encouraged to, eat your breakfast in the cafeteria.

First hour teachers have been told to make accommodation’s for students to eat their breakfast during first hour. Whether or not your teacher lets you eat in class or makes you finish up in the hall is the teacher’s decision! Students, try your best to finish your breakfast by 7:30 out of respect for your teachers.

All trash goes into your clear breakfast bag which is then thrown away in the nearest trashcan.

Now, there has been a lot of discussion over these new plastic bags being an negative Environmental burden. The waste produced would be abundant. Como Park is addressing this problem and is now in search of a new, more environmentally friendly bag to use. So, worry, need not, Como Park students.

HELP KEEP COMO PARK CLEAN STUDENTS!!!!!!

As you  already know, one month ago today an earthquake devastated the small, impoverished country of Haiti located around 700 miles from the Florida coast. The earthquake destroyed Haiti’s infrastructure and left its cities in ruins. 230,000 people have been identified as dead, while over 300,000 people were left injured from the quake. To date, the American Red Cross has raised approximately $255 million for the relief effort in Haiti, but there is still work to be done.

Of the $255 million raised so far, around $80 million has already been spent or committed into relief and recovery efforts, of which 69% has gone to food and water, 20% has gone to shelter, and 11% has gone towards health and family services. The Red Cross has distributed over 1 million water-purification sachets, spent over $30 million to feed the victims of the earthquake, and is providing temporary shelter as well as solutions to help rebuild homes.

Here at Como, the students are doing their part to help with assistance towards Haiti. The National Honor Society is organizing donations for the American Red Cross to go to Haiti, and they are accepting donations in all three lunches. Some of the revenue from the Winterfest buttons and Dance is also going to the Red Cross, so the school is filled with opportunities to support those in need. Due to the incredible response to which the American Public met the incident, the Red Cross has been able to make a monumental difference. If you care to contribute, buy a Winterfest ticket, Button, or simply donate in lunch.

On one half of the world, the citizens suffer from overeating and obesity. On the other half, the citizens suffer from starvation and malnutrition. Why is this happening? How is it even possible? How can we fix it? And why haven’t we done so already? Questions like these flood our brain when we ponder this situation. The answers are not necessarily the ones we want to hear.

More than 1.02 billion people are suffering from starvation in the world today, primarily in Asian and African countries. Take the population of St. Paul, 279,590. You would need to multiply that by 3,648 to even come close to the population of people suffering from starvation around the world. That’s 15% of the estimated world population of 6.8 billion.

Hunger takes its toll on everybody. Adults, teens, children, and babies all suffer as they battle to survive off nothing. Think of all the food we throw away in our own lunchroom. We fill 50 gal trash can after trash can after trash can. In one day we throw away more food than a village of people in Africa will probably see in a month.

And out the food that they do find, it lacks an adequate amount of nutrients resulting in the people suffering from malnutrition. Malnutrition increases your risks of getting infections and diseases. It especially puts you at a high risk for Tuberculosis which can be fatal. A lack of clean water, which is a problem in these third world countries, also increases the risk of malnutrition. Between starvation and malnutrition the chance of fatality is devastating in third world countries. Potbellied children from malnutrition line the streets of villages in Third World countries.

Poverty is the principal cause of hunger. Areas stricken by poverty lack the necessary resources needed to support healthy living conditions. Communities are forced to buy cheap food that lacks the nutrients they need. Those that do grow nutritious foods feel they get more out of selling it than eating it themselves. An example of this would be the poor in South American countries like Guatemala that grow fruit such as bananas and are forced to sell them to survive.

Obesity is rising as a deadly epidemic around the world. Especially here in our home country, the United Sates of America. It’s come to the point that Americans are stereotyped as being obese and our logo is practically the Golden Arches of McDonalds. American is the land of fast food; its everywhere. The smaller local restaurants that serve healthier food are simply being run out of town by these big corporations.

Two thirds of Americans over age twenty are overweight. One third of all Americans are obese.

Unlike starvation, obesity finds its home primarily in First World countries. Countries, oddly enough, where most of the people have the resources to afford healthier food. This is what is disgusting about human society. Obesity for most is an option. Yes there are the select few that have health problems or financial problems that cause weight to be a problem for them, but for most people its bad choices they have made in their lives that cause obesity to restrain them from living a healthy life.

There are over 341,000,000 obese people in the world today. All that could be avoided by making good decisions.

For children its not always choices they’ve made that cause obesity to be taking away their childhood and sadly their futures too. Some parents are “guilty as charged” for feeding their own children this deadly food by the bunches. We all know the typical, “Ima’ feed my baby whatever he/she wants!” off of the TV talk shows like Dr. Phil or Maury. Of course the little kid is going to want the fast food. That’s whats advertised directly to them! You don’t see clowns or fuzzy cute animals advertising healthy food. You don’t see toys being handed out every time you buy a healthy meal.

Parents need to realize that it is THEIR responsibility to watch what their kids are eating. Its literally taking years off their lives. Our generation is predicted to be the FIRST generation in history that could end up dying before our parents; the first ever. When will we realize that there is a problem here?

People in First World countries are surrounded by technology. We have machines to do almost everything for us. Rather than going out to search for something ourselves, we sit at home and use the internet. Rather than building things by hand we use high-tech gizmos to do it for us. Rather than going out and enjoying the outdoors and getting some exercise kids and adults are staying inside behind TV and Computer Screens for hours upon hours. People simply are not getting the appropriate physical exercise they need to stay healthy.

Obesity is an introduction to a handful of health conditions that can be extremely deadly. You become susceptible ideally to Type Two Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases, Hypertension, and Strokes. They’re simply risks we cannot take. We let ourselves slip away before we even realize it.

We spend a ridiculous amount on money on dealing with the costs of obesity. In the United States alone, Obesity health care costs the country about $3,000 per second and about $240 billion annually.

All together only about $30 billion is being spent of attempting to end world hunger, when here in America we spend $240 billion annually on Obesity related health conditions!

40,000 children die each day to hunger. That’s CHILDREN alone! 40,000 of them a day. In seven and a half days just as many Children alone die from starvation and malnutrition as Americans die from Obesity in one year. That’s one week compared to one year. Children compared to an entire population young and old.

Obviously, the epidemic of Starvation and Malnutrition is affecting an exceptional amount more people, over an exceptional amount more countries around the globe than Obesity. Yet, we see a massive difference of where money is being spent. Only about 12.5% as much money is going towards ending World Hunger.

If more people are being effected by this crisis why do we see 87.5% as much money going towards, not just any other problem, but the exact opposite dilemma?

Starvation and Malnutrition are not a choice. They are not based off decisions they have made for themselves. They are something they have to live with whether they like it or not. Unless they get the help they need from others.

We all wish it would be as easy as taking food away from the obese and giving it to the those suffering from Starvation and Malnutrition, but it’s not. We cant put our leftover food on a plane and fly it around the world to the hungry.

But, if you choose to, and encourage others to, avoid the unhealthy tendencies we have and keep yourself and others healthy then we wont have to spend $240 billion on Obesity a year. The healthier a population we can be, the less money we will need to spend on health care costs to cover up the bad decisions we make. That money can then go towards situations that are in need of more support, such as World Hunger.

There is nothing more than mass benefits, for everyone around the world, from staying healthy.

You can make a difference.

       Close-Up is a national organization that brings high school students from all over the United States together in Washington D.C. to study U.S. politics and government. It was founded in 1971 as a nonprofit organization that educates and inspires young people to become informed and engaged citizens.

       Some highlights of their trip included seeing monuments and museums such as the Lincoln Memorial, the Air and Space Museum, and the Washington Monument. The students enjoyed learning about the key points and events in their nation’s history, but also sharing their thoughts and beliefs with other students from all over the country. This group was privileged enough to meet with Minnesota’s Senators Al Franken and Amy Klobuchar, and Representative Betty Mccollum. They asked them questions about the rising cost of college tuition and the debate on the health care bill.

       After this trip, the seniors have a greater understanding of how complicated their government is, but also how beautiful and historic the district of Washington D.C. really is. They all said that they would love to return to D.C. someday, maybe even as a Senator or a Representative of their state.

Late last month some of you drivers might have seen a warning note stuck to your car windshield. Some of you even received a citation! Students are pushing buttons on teachers who are finding it harder and harder to find places to park. Students are parking far too close to school. Give the teachers a break! The complaints went to the school police officer and not only were students parking in teachers’ parking spots, but were parking without a permit.

For those who don’t know what permits are, they are a $25 sticker to place in your car to ensure you are allowed to park in the Como lot. The citations were given out after a strict warning, and unfortunately they cost about $40. Make sure you pay your fines and buy your permits. The officers have seemed to be lenient about parking, but when the students of Como Park invade the space of the staff things get pretty serious!

So remember, park in the space provided for students and buy the permit sticker to stay out of trouble and save money on the annoying cost of citations!

More than 1.5 million people have been displaced by the quake, which destroyed at least 500,000 homes. The earthquake shook major cities all over the area, while Tsunamis caused by the earthquake ravaged coastal towns and cities. So far 723 people have been reported dead, and thousands of others were reported missing. 160 people have been arrested for looting between March 1^st and 2^nd, and 10,000 Chilean troops have been sent into the affected areas. At first the Chilean Government declared that they did not require international aid, but they have now opened up to assistance.

An recent announcement had been made that our neighboring High School St. Bernard’s would be closing at the end of this school year. St. Bernard’s celebrated its last anniversary for the 119 year old school on February 22, 2010.

St. Bernard’s has fallen short $350,000 to keep the school running for this year. It still has a $279,000 deficit for the 2010-2011 school year. St. Bernard’s has a total debt of over $4 million dollars. If St. Bernard’s were able to raise at least 1.5 million dollars, that would cover not only the losses for this year and next but for the following two to three years as well.

So far, a group that has been formed to save St. Bernard’s has raised over $500,000 in pledges. Even if the school and parish officials decide the funds have been raised, its’ still the Archbishop’s decision.

If your interested in helping St. Bernards reach its substantial goal go to http://www.savesaintbernards.com