BMX Rally

On Friday November, 19th in the manor high school gym ASA entertainment came to talk to the mhs students about living a smoke-free life. Mr. Brackmeyer felt like it was important to inform the students on how much tobacco can affect our life.
The original plan was to hold the BMX rally in the student parking lot, so that biking and talking were separate. The reason why he would have liked it separate was to be able to get the information across to the students without them getting distracted by the bikers. The reason why the BMX rally was held in the gym was because it was a safety hazard due to the high winds. The safety hazard caused the skate club not to be able to skate and show their talents.
The BMX groups came to Mr. Brackmeyer two through three months before the event was held asking if they could inform the students on how important living a tobacco-free life is. According to www.quitsmokingsupport.com , after the first puff of a cigarette it just takes six seconds to reach the brain. A cigarette contains 43 known cancer-causing compounds. Tar, nicotine, carbon monoxide, and ammonia are all some ingredients that are in a cigarette. There is twice the amount of tar in the last puff then the first. Most of the chemicals inhaled in a cigarette stay in the lungs.
At the end of the BMX rally, questions were asked about the tobacco facts that were said during the BMX rally. The student who answered the question right got a t-shirt. The last question was a three part question for the prize of headphones. Christina Villalobos also known as Lobo won the headphones. After the last prize was won the students were dismissed and got on their buses.
In my opinion this tobacco-free BMX rally can only be as effective as the student wants. You, as the reader, have the choice to read this or not. When a student is offered cigarette, they have the choice to do what they want. It is your life after all and no one can make you do something that you don’t want to do. Even though it is your choice to do what you want, you should really think about the long term affects of what you do today.

Project Mentor

Are you exhausted, have stacks of homework, and can barely find excitement at school? Then join the Project Mentor Program. The mentor can choose to volunteer at any Manor Independent School District. When school starts again the mentor can either keep or receive a different mentee, and it doesn’t matter what grade the child is in. Project Mentor is for a mentee to be a good listener and to never judge a mentee. This program is to be a role model to a youth once a week for only thirty minutes. This program also counts as community service.
When a mentor is together with a mentee they both do activities like play board games, create art projects, read, go hang out outside, play basketball with others, and become more sociable. Hanging out with different people helps the mentor to expand their patience level.
It’s a good program for everyone to join, to bond and interact with a person that’s younger than you. Being in high school can be stressful, but when you’re with a mentee it helps the mentor to interact with their childlike character, it’s important because high school can be stressful, and when around children its makes a person relaxed and help someone else with their problems. Project Mentor shows everyone that a person isn’t alone in a situation, everyone needs help in some type of area. This program isn’t to talk about deep personal situations it’s to help another person out and build a relationship. Project Mentor is about meeting different personalities and the program gives a chance for the mentor to listen to the mentee. A teacher isn’t always able to talk to an individual one-on-one but a mentor is able to be there for support. A mentee may want to share something that they can’t tell their parent or parents about, but it’s the mentor’s job to keep their personal business confidential. Together the mentor and the mentee develop a friendship that lasts for years.
Also there will be a future Project Mentor Club coming soon!

The Word

We have made it to the end of the fall semester at Manor High School, a semester that seems to have flown by so fast that all of us , the students, the teachers, and even administrators will need every bit of the two weeks of Christmas vacation just to catch our wealth, yet as fast as this semester has come and gone, and despite all of the class chaos of due dates, projects, college applications, games, plays, competition, and still have time with friends, we have made significant strides and achieved so much here at Manor High School.
From our athletes to our band to the day-to-day struggle to overcome the challenges and obstacles of the classroom. The students at Manor High School are putting in much effort and work to get their jobs accomplished. Our job is to improve Manor High School from being an academically acceptable campus to a recognized campus. In order to follow through with making this campus recognized, students should stay more focused and study more so that they would be prepared for tasks. The athletics should practice harder to improve the school records so that we have more scouts looking toward our athletics. In this issue of the word, we decided to focus on some of the major events including volleyball games, basketball tournaments, Adopt A Kid, the band,, and Grace Valladares write a article on Appreciation to the lunch ladies and genital men ,who cook meals for 1200 students and administration for breakfast, and lunch.
By: Kayla Johnson

MHS: Girls and Boys Soccer
The Lady Mustangs will try to get their second district championship in a row. With last years record of 10-3-3, you can be assured that they will improve their game. With six seniors gone from last year Coach Guerra and his team will have to make it up. When asked about this year’s success Coach Guerra responded, “Though we lost many people last year I believe we have enough to make it up…and, this year, our team is working much harder.”With new players in try-outs, new talents will be shown on the field. Coach Guerra has been coach for Manor for four years and with outstanding records. The Girls Soccer team should be successful this year as they have been before.
This year should be interesting for the Manors boys’ soccer team. Many players where unable to play due to graduation of seniors, and the UIL rules of age requirements. With half of the varsity gone Coach Rawls will have to train his team harder if he wants to keep his “make it to playoffs…there’s no excuse” motto going. The soccer team has made the playoffs in the past two years and expects the same to happen this year. Coach Rawls started the soccer team in Manor and has been coaching for seven years. Coach Rawls is pleased to have “the best job in the world” and to be able to coach these young athletes at the sport they love. The team will be young this year which will make them the bright new future of the boys’ soccer team.
Both Girls and Boys soccer team will be young and talented. Practices will be more serious than ever to focus on the formation on the varsity and junior varsity teams. You can expect a fantastic soccer season this year.
Guerra: “With the players will, I know they will leave it all on the field”
Rawls: “My players have the passion, desire, and will to play soccer”

This year a lot of changes and new arrivals changed the Manor High School Cross Country program in a very positive way. The arrival of Coach Rawls as an assistant for Coach Bohman brought with him a huge amount of enrollment from the Soccer Boys. With such a huge pool of runners and undeniable amount of talent, success to the program was more than assured. A big part of this success was due to the camaraderie and commitment of the athletes and coaches from both programs.

Varsity Boys:
At the beginning of the year, there was a sentiment of confidence from both Coaches and athletes. However the loss of last year’s senior class left big shoes to be filled and an incredible amount of competition. The Varsity Boys starting team was never settled during preseason, making every practice a closed fight for the Varsity spots. Every now and then a J.V. runner would step up and move up to the Varsity team. On the Coaches side, they made this years schedule tougher by pushing the athletes on more competitive and challenging meets. This extra effort leads the Varsity Boys to Win the District championship and their pass to the Regional Meet. At the regional meet, the Boys did an exceptional job in representing manor and finished sixth overall. Junior Juan Jaimes finished 5th place earning his pass to the so desired State Meet. Unfortunately Juan suffered an injury at the Regional Meet that kept him from participating on the State Meet. However the experience is there and it is only a reason for an even more successful season for next year.

J.V. Boys:
Success for the J.V. Boys was more than announced since the beginning of the season. With such a vast amount of talent and such a determined group of athletes, nothing less than a District Championship would be accepted. They fought at every practice and sometimes outhustled the Varsity Boys making practices competitive and effective but, not everything was competition and individual achievements. The J.V Boys knew their role was to push the Varsity Boys and at the same time get better. An atmosphere of camaraderie and friendship was developed and both teams supported each other like a family. By the time the District Meet came, the J.V. team was a team of experienced runners that were prepared well enough for the Varsity level. They Won the District Championship with an incredible advantage and brought home the second championship of the season.

Varsity Girls:
The loss of crucial runners from last year left the Lady Mustangs in a very tough situation. They struggled thought the preseason having their highs and lows. However they did a very decent preseason for the type of challenges they faced against 4A schools. With one of their fastest runners injured a week before the District Meet and various members of the team with sore muscles, their season seemed to be falling apart. Surprisingly at the District Meet, the Ladies fought hard and none one of them gave up. They finished 4th overall missing regionals by one place. Although they didn’t qualified as a team, Aimee Slagle did arriving 5th place.

J.V. Girls:
The J.V. Girls had a tough season. Since most of the experienced runners were at the Varsity level, the team struggled thought the preseason but managed to stay in float and get better. Every practice was a learning experience and the enrollment increased significantly this not only helped the J.V. team but it also pushed the Varsity Girls. The day of the District Meet, The J.V. Girls stepped up and surprised everybody. The J.V. girls won District with a significant lead and earned the respect of the whole community.

MHS Cheerleaders Going To Florida

This school year the MHS Cheerleaders have been working hard on going to competition. On Sunday, November 21st the MHS Cheerleaders participated in a Universal Cheerleading Association Regional Championship Competition. The competition had competitors that were much tougher than the MHS Cheerleaders have ever gone up against. During their warm-up time one of the flyers, Angelica Muniz, sprained her ankle. With minutes to their performance the MHS Cheerleaders didn’t give up and came together as a team to make adjustments to their routine. The MHS Cheerleaders placed third in their division and qualified to receive an invitation to the National Championship Competition in Florida. This event will take place in Orlando, Florida at Disney World, on February 12th and 13th. Their performance will also be broadcast on ESPN.

The MHS Cheerleaders have already started fundraising to go to this event. They will be selling discount cards for businesses in Manor and in Austin and are also participating in a Chili’s Give Back Fundraiser on December 9th, 16th, 22nd, and 30th, and an IHOP Fundraiser on January 4th and 10th.

This event has shown the commitment the MHS Cheerleaders have to each other and to their team. The MHS Cheerleaders have shown leadership they have to make important decisions. We congratulate the MHS Cheerleaders on this great accomplishment

College and Career Center!

Written By: Haley Malone
College and Career Center
Our Manor High School College and Career Center is opening doors for the students of Manor High School to have the option to go to college or trade-school. The College and Career Center is to encourage freshmen to start thinking about college and for juniors and seniors to get ready to start applying to colleges. Mrs. Caldwell and Mr. DeLeon are the masterminds behind the College and Career Center.
I interviewed Mrs. Caldwell about her thoughts and hopes for the program. The first question I asked her was what made her exactly want to start this program at Manor High School. Her response was that she wanted to expand the students of Manor High School beyond this town and the closed-mindedness and thoughts that you have to stay in-state or pick an agricultural career. She wanted to open up doors for our students and give them more opportunities.
I asked her next how her previous job had prepared her for working as the College Advisor for our district. She told me that she’s been in education for 25 years working in teaching, coaching, and administration. The correlation of the work ethics and motivation from coaching has been great for her job as College Advisor at Manor High School. She said that being in administration helped her with leadership but that she would rather be around students. She likes to be a motivational leader for the students as well as an advocate for them. She really loves her students.
Then, I asked her what were her hopes for this program at Manor High were. She told me that her hope was to have our program nationally recognized. She wants this program to be all about the students. She stated that the Texas A&M Admissions person told her they have received more applications from Manor High School than from any other high school in the Central Texas region.
I then asked her if she likes how the program is and if she was happy with the progress. She said that the program is off to a great start and she’s happy the awareness of being able to go to college is being made more available to the students. She knows very well herself that going to college can change a person’s life. Last year about 91% of students applied to college throughout the United States.
Next, I asked her how she advertises the College and Career center to the school and she said that there are always posters and bulletin boards around. The upcoming website will also get more students to be informed. There are also announcements about the College and Career Center.
The final question I asked was if she really loved what she was doing. She said, “Of course, I love doing this for the students, to help them to open doors.” It’s what Mrs. Caldwell and Mr. DeLeon are here for.

Cross Country District Meet

Finally, after three and a half months of sweat, pain and injuries .The big day for our Cross Country Athletes came at the District Meet that took place at the Travis County East Metro Park in Pflugerville. Lots of high expectations were set. “There’s no reason why we shouldn’t take at least four district championships home today”, said Coach Bohman, head Coach of the Cross Country team.

The day started early in the morning for our athletes. The atmosphere was tense due to the big responsibility and, as the sun rose, so did the excitement and nervousness towards the big race. The District Meet was divided in different categories: Varsity Girls, Varsity Boys, J.V Girls, J.V boys, and freshman Boys. The first team to race was the Varsity Girls. The Lady Mustangs finished fourth place after a very closed race. However, Senior Aimee Slagle made it to regionals finishing 5th in the district meet.

Next up on the line were the Varsity Boys. The team was composed of Juan Jaimes (11th); Alfredo Hernandez (10th); Issai Martinez (10th); Brian O’ Hara (10th); Eduardo Bustillos (10); Eduardo Escobar (10th); and Delfino Gonzalez (12th).The boys won district with a significant advantage, brought home the first championship of the day and their pass to regionals.

The J.V. girls were up next. They knew they had a tough race to run and that their possibilities of winning district were small but not impossible. However the ladies stepped it up and shocked everybody by winning district with and getting the second championship of the day.

Next, the J.V. boys were also in a very tough race. The J.V. runners had been working hard and their level of running was almost as good as the varsity level. The J.V. boys also finished first place with a shocking advantage over all the other schools having at least 6 out of the 7 needed runners on the top 10.

Last but not least, the Freshmen Boys were up in the starting line. The freshmen team had a tough race starting with a team of inexperienced runners and a numerical disadvantage. However the young runners fought hard and shocked everybody managing to win the fourth district championship of the day.

This Cross Country year has been very successful. The Mustang Cross Country teams are where no other team has ever been and have set the bar higher for future generations. New Team, New Tradition, New Legacy.

"You're A Good Man Charlie Brown"

Manor High School theater classes have been working hard to put on a play, “You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown, “which will be played on Wednesday, December 1st through Saturday, December 4th. The theater classes have had rehearsals everyday of the week except Fridays because of the football games. The students are acting out a comic strip play by Charles M. Schulz and music played by: Clark Gesher. The cost of the play is $5.oo for adults and $3.oo for students. The director Mr. De Los Santos (producer) hopes that everything for this production goes well and that more people show up then last year’s production. The producer lowered the prices so that more people would come.


CAST:
Charlie Brown-Garrison Smith
Lucy-Ashley Wells
Linus-Jared Nelson
Franklin-Cameron Richerson
Schroeder-Luis Galindo
Sally-Cesi Jimenez
Snoopy-Mary Noble
Violet-Amanda Dailasantos
Family and friends you all should come out and get well entertained by a funny, famous well known comic strip character Charlie Brown.

By: Kayla Johnson
Edited by: Samantha Guerra

FFA National Convention

National Convention for FFA
Written by Haley Malone.
Last week on Wednesday, October 27, 14 Manor High School FFA members, including Mr. Clinard and Ms.Bartos and parents of the members, attended the National Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana. FFA is a national organization, that contributes and brings awareness towards Americas farmers. The FFA is an organization designed for people who are interested in anything agriculture such as raising and showing animals and doing youth fair projects. In addition to that, they are creating jobs. Interestingly enough, almost 60% of Americas jobs are agriculture related or in the economic fields.
On this trip to National Convention, 14 members: Mr. Clinard, Ms. Bartos, Ms.Smith, Ms. Fiebig, Ms. Reyes, Andres Hernandez, Kevin Meredith, Joseph Briseño, Ms. Briseño, Chad Smith, Christina Reyes, Brianna Ortiz, and Magen Manis. They flew up to Indianapolis around 7am and got there around noon via a 5 hour plane ride. From there, they picked up their rental vans, checked into the hotel, and then went to the National Convention at the Lucas Oil Stadium. They arrived at the Stadium to receive a 2 star Nation Chapter award at the 83rd National FFA Convention. When I asked Mr. Clinard how he felt about receiving the award, he said they all felt very proud and excited of their chapter. After they received the award, they toured the race track of the Indianapolis 500. They also toured the FFA career show. They listened to guest speakers talk and use slideshows to inform the chapter members about more awards and scholarships. The next day, they went to the award banquet where they all celebrated the award.

Getting pumped up for the game vs. Hendrickson

Manor high held the last pep-rally of the first semester on October 28, 2010 in the high school gym to get the students pumped up for the last home game against Hendrickson High. The cheerleaders cheered on the football team as they came out on to the court. All of the school teams were then recognized for all of their accomplishments. The cross country team was the first team to be recognized for their win during the district championships in four of the five divisions. There were 29 metals and 4 plaques that they won throughout the day. The volleyball team was congratulated next for their good season. The high steppers preformed one of their spectacular dances to get the crowd pumping. Then the Get Life Crew D’Lonte Lawson, Rodney Molotte, and Jr Ortiz started popping, locking, and krumping. The crowd was going wild once the first move was made.

The cheerleaders led a hilarious game that was also played by some of the staff and administration members. They had to turn in multiple circles with their head touching the end of a baseball bat. Then, they had to run back to the group. The next step was to get two members of the group across the gym on a rolly board and back. The last step was to get a frozen shirt unpacked and on the last team member, which was not easy. The cheerleaders then got together to do a cheer to get the crowd pumped up once again for the game that was being held the next day.

After the cheer, there was a fight. Yes, the fight over the spirit stick. The first round there was a tie between the seniors and juniors. The second round there was a tie again between seniors and sophomores .The last round there was only one standing class that won and that was the sophomores.

At the end of the pep rally, the drum line started a beat making every one get up out of their seats and dance. Mr.Brackmeyer then took the mic dismissing the class who won the spirit stick first. After everyone one was dismissed from the gym they were so hyped up for the last home game of the year.
Written by Samantha Guerra
Photo taken by Samantha Guerra

Manor vs. Hendrickson

The Mustangs suffered a tough loss on Friday night. With it being the last home game of the season all the seniors wanted a win as there last high school game. First half of the game Hendrickson scored two touchdowns, with Manor making one. Hendrickson made a field goal and another touchdown making it 31-21. Manor fought back in the game, scoring another touchdown making it 37-28. The Mustangs turned the ball over on the 49 yard line for the last play of the game with the score board showing 37 28. A lot was riding on this game for Manor. The game would determine there spot at the playoffs. Unfortunately that wasn’t able to happen. On another note Senior Night was a bitter sweet time. All the seniors in football, band, dance, and cheer took the spotlight for the last home game cheering with friends, teachers, and the rest of the community. After a tough season it all came to an end. We wish the Manor Mustangs better luck next year. GO MUSTANGS!!!

Breast Cancer

Breast cancer is a malignant tumor that grows in one or both of the breasts. Breast cancer usually develops in the ducts or lobules, also known as the milk-producing areas of the breast. Although African-American women have a slightly lower incidence of breast cancer after age 40 than Caucasian women, they have a slightly higher incidence rate of breast cancer before age 40
The new focus on a cancer’s surroundings, researchers say, is a major shift in thinking about why cancer occurs and how to stop it. Now we’re Celebrating 25 years of awareness, education, and empowerment. Breast cancer awareness is for women at high risk of breast cancer and MRI can help detect malignancies early and is often suggested in addition to annual mammograms, forty-two percent of such women in a new study said no to the test.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the United States, According to the American Cancer Society; an estimated 192,370 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed among women in the United States this year. One way to deal with your concerns is to get as much of information as possible.

Breast cancer is a malignant tumor that grows in one or both of the breasts. Breast cancer usually develops in the ducts or lobules, also known as the milk-producing areas of the breast. Although African-American women have a slightly lower incidence of breast cancer after age 40 than Caucasian women, they have a slightly higher incidence rate of breast cancer before age 40.
Men can also develop breast cancer. Male breast cancer is less than 1 percent of all cases of breast cancer, and is usually found in men between the ages of 60 and 70 years old.

“Get your pink on” @MHS

Adopt a kid

Adopt-A-Kid
It’s that time of the year again Manor High School! It’s Adopt -a -Kid week, when second period classes will adopt Manor ISD elementary students to give them gifts for and celebrate Christmas with Santa Claus. It’s an optional but very enjoyable for an activity for both the elementary students and the high school students in the Manor Independent school District. Each student in Adopt-A-Kid receives a $35-$40 gift from a wish list.
What do the kid’s need? (Look at Checklist)
Attention, Food, Toys, and Good Parents
Who do they need to contact?
1. Name of the classroom teacher(s)
2. Room number where part y will be held
3. Number of students you would like to adopt ( 1 or more)
4. Do you have a preference for a boy or girl
5. Could you sponsor a Spanish speaking student
6. Could you sponsor a student with special needs

When your class is able to provide information, email it or put it in the mailbox of Ms. Duffield. Student council will get information from Mrs. Rivera. Your class will be provided with the student’s “wish list” and more directions on the arrival. We are looking forward to another wonderful season with the students. If you have any questions, feel free to contact x8241.
Last Christmas, Adopt-A-Kid was one of the best things Manor High did for little girls and boys in the community. The students of Manor High brought the Christmas spirit into each and every single one of those little girls and boys’ hearts. Just seeing the smiles on their faces when they saw the things they got for Christmas brought joy to our hearts. The Manor High School students guaranteed that they had someone looking after them and giving them the attention that they needed. We shared the joy and the satisfaction that comes with giving and receiving love, the true meaning of Christmas. So it’s good to say that adopting one of these little kids and seeing them with a smile on their face is extraordinary.

The Art Departmen

October 24, 2010 was a proud moment for the Manor Art Department. Conception Olivo and Jose Moreno made “phenomenal” pieces of the Texas State Capital. State Representative Mark Strama was very pleased with the art of both talented artists. A reception was held in the capital for all artists who contributed to Mr. Strama’s office. The Manor Art Department has been invited for three years and has been accepted each of those times. Mr. Strama’s excitement over Conceptions art was surprising before meeting him saying, “Who’s is this! ...this is absolutely fantastic!”
Both Conception’s and José’s art will be held in the capital for one year in Mr.Strama’s office. This is a great accomplishment for Conception and Jose and the rest of the Manor Art Department.

Brackmeyer Interview

The Word recently interviewed Mr. Brackmeyer regarding the new policies for the 2010-2011 school year. Our first question was concerning hoodies. We asked Brackmeyer if he considered the students with financial issues when he made the rule that pull-over hoodies would not be permitted. His response was that he did think about students who may not be able to afford a new jacket or a hoodie. He came up with the rule last year, so it shouldn’t be very new to upperclassmen and only a minor concern for incoming freshman. He also said that if a student did not have financial resources to but a new jacket or a zip up hoodie that the school would provide or help pay for a new one.

The next question we asked was if there were any rules that he didn’t agree with in the district. He responded by saying that he did agree with them, and continues into further detail about how rules are made in our school and our district. He stated that they take very good care in researching why they want to make any rule that is proposed and how it will affect students both positively and negatively. The high school also collaborates with the school district to make sure that the rules they make are in line with the district policies.

The third question concerned the P.A.R room, otherwise known as the Personal Accountability Room. We felt we needed to know if the P.A.R room served a purpose to him and also know why its there. He responded by saying the P.A.R. room was for students who did not follow dress code and had excessive tardies. The P.A.R room is an intervention in our school that is used to send students a message of self discipline.

The fourth question was in regards to freshman capture. “Why did you make Freshman Capture?” His reply had to do with research they found, stating that it is more likely that students who do poorly their freshman year will end up failing their upcoming years and possibly drop out. Freshman Capture is for freshman teachers to catch the student up in classes, and to help them with study skills to make it easier for them to be able to study and take notes.

The third question from the last was “Do you consult the teachers before you make rules that affect them?” His answer was that they have a ‘Leadership Meeting’ every week. All the Department Heads go to the meeting (i.e. The English Department Head, Head Counselors etc.) and they decide based on the Leaderships’ input. Once the meeting is over, all the teachers in that department are given information, and if they have concerns, they consult the Department Head. Then at the next ‘Leadership Meeting’, they bring the information to the Principal and they discuss the rules and policies and come to a compromise.

The next question was “How was your high school and is Manor High anything like it?” He told us that his high school years were some of the best years of his life and that the rules were definitely different; he said it was a great experience for him. He also said that Manor wasn’t really how his school was but that there were a few similarities such as having dress code, fights, and people that skipped school.

The last question we had for him was “Why do we have advisory that’s fifteen minutes for the upperclassmen?” His answer was that it was basically a shortened version of Freshman Capture and that it was for upperclassmen to get their grades, makeup work, and to receive information about their graduation requirements.

What we learned from this interview is that the school doesn’t make rules just for fun, and the principal actually thinks things through and attempt to listen to the student body. We also learned that the P.A.R is to help students to realize to not make the same mistake over and over again, and advisory is for students to get caught up in their responsibilities. Through this interview, we tried to understand why Brackmeyer does the things he does for us and understand that he is a person just like us. He considers things that can help us and listens to the student body. He has a lot of things to think about and he is only doing what he thinks is best for everyone.

Haley Malone and Charelle Marshall

Ironman Triathalon

On October 17, 2010 in Austin, Texas there was a Triathlon at the Walter E. Long Park. The Austin Ironman Triathlon is a challenging course that spreads over 70.3 miles and has three baffling parts of competition. The three parts of the race include 1.2 miles of swimming, 56 miles of biking, and 13.1 miles of running.

James Cunnama had nearly a seven-minute deficit to start the run, but ran a blistering split (1:12:56) on the 13.1-mile, off-road, terrain course. Out of the water in 11th place (25:29), he fired away over the bike course, making up nine places with a ride time of 2:12:22 to come in second behind the Estonian leader Marko Albert. On the run, he was second behind Estonian leader Marko Albert and overpowered Albert at around the 1.5km mark and then didn't look back. Cunnama, the professional athlete, won the Longhorn Ironman in 3 hours, 53 minutes and 57 seconds.

Manor High School was represented at the Longhorn Ironman by the Library Club, National Honors Society, Anime Club, and Ms. Dori Smith. The Library Club wrote the athletes ID number on their shoulders, on their left hand, and the athletes’ age on their calf. The National Honors Society handed out water to the runners and bikers, directed the runners the way to go, called for help, set up food, and put water in the cups when the race was over. They were willing to work enthusiastically by encouraging the competitors while having to wake up at 5:00am to make this race a wonderful outcome.



Charelle Marshall and Haley Malone

Manor vs. Bastrop
The Manor Mustangs came out with a recovered offside kick leading to a catch by Javante Taylor and a pass by Phillip Jones making the score 7-0. Manor defense came out but couldn’t stop the Bears from making a touchdown, and injuring a player making it a tie game in the last 30 seconds. The Manor Mustangs failed in their 2nd drive, which gave the Bastrop Bears the chance they needed to lead the game 14-7. Mustang offensive line gained big yardage but made a mistake which turned into an interception by the Bears. The Bastrop Bears made a touchdown leading in a 21-7 lead. Manor punts after unable to make a first down.

Bastrop didn’t have much luck in this drive in making a touchdown. Bastrop regained control of the ball, with the Bears QB running for a touchdown increasing the lead 28-7. Manors Javante Taylor makes a touchdown with a score of 28-14. Bastrop gains yards making a field goal increasing the lead to 31-14. Manor hasn’t given up yet and makes another touchdown by LD Williams, making the score 31-21. Bastrop fails to convert points giving the Mustangs the ball back. Once the Mustangs get the ball back Cory Richardson made a touchdown catching up the Mustangs to a score of 31-28. After Bastrop gains yards, they making another touchdown. Making the score 38-28.

Right when the 4th quarter starts Bastrop makes three consecutive touchdowns leading the game with a score of 59-28. The Manor Mustangs don’t go down without a fight scoring the last touchdown with an ending score of 59-34.

Parade

After a very enthusiastic and spirit filled pep-rally the afternoon of Thursday, September 23rd ,2010, the students excitement burned like fire on a torch and then spread throughout the entire Manor Community. On Thursday evening, the Manor staff, faculty, students and community celebrated their homecoming game with a parade from Manor Downs to the field where the bonfire started.

As soon as the bell rang for dismissal, the students hustled to the Manor Downs where the parade started. Presidential Meadows Elementary showed their spirit for their school to start the procession. Some of the students in their karate uniforms, from Manor Kickboxing Center, showed off their skills to the crowd. The Sonic float came after, showing a ‘mascot’ of a Sonic Cup. The Decker Ravens came next showing their pride and their motto, “On Time, On Task, and On a Mission.” Soon after Manor Middle School came and showed their future Mustang pride.

Then our stars of Manor High School came, the Manor Mustang Football Team. Cheering and screaming, they were pumped and ready to bring down the Elgin Wildcats. They were followed by their supporters, the Manor Cheerleaders, who also showed their Mustang pride. After our own football team, the Manor Middle Football team showed their Manor spirit and the Cross Country team for Manor High were just as enthusiastic for our school and their start to a very successful year.

As the parade died down, everyone made their way to the field where the bonfire was soon to start.

Pep-Rally

PEP-RALLY 2010
The homecoming pep-rally of the year 2010-2011 started with the dance team and cheerleaders hyping their fellow students on to make some noise. Once everyone was seated the Varsity football team entered the gym, to a crowd screaming and applauding. The Varsity head coach, Coach Jackson, gave a speech on the importance of the game against the, Elgin wildcats, to the student body. The cheerleaders gave a cheer to the MHS students to get them off their seat and get excited for the homecoming game that would come the next day. The Manor dance team then danced for the students twisting and turning to their routine. The contest for the spirit stick came afterwards with each class yelling their hearts out. As the contest closed the juniors were named the class with the most spirit. The pep-rally came to an end and the students left in high spirits waiting for the parade that would come the same afternoon!
- written by Jose Muniz

-edited by Samantha Guerra

Home Coming Game

On Friday September 24th, 2010, the Mustangs took the field against our district drivels the Elgin Wild Cats for the first district game, and a game of their life. They didn’t disappoint their fans it was an great game. We were off to a rough start but we made it through. The Mustangs were having a little trouble trying to get the ball with interceptions back and forth between the teams. A great interception was made by Jalen Washington #5. Middleton#14 threw a 15 yard pass to Straton Jones #7 to give Manor there first touchdown making a score of 6-0 with a miss field goal. Elgin was force to punt in there returning drive, Manor having position with having 4:27 left of the second quarter. An interception was made by #10 Elgin, which ended up in a fumble in their own 22 that was recovered by the MUSTANGS. The Mustangs ended the half with a 42 yard field goal attempt.
The third quarter begins and the Mustangs start off with a 20 yard kick return in their own. LD Williams ran it for 35 yards and got taken down at Elgin’s 25. LD Williams run’s it again for 9 yards and it is stop at the one. Touchdown! LD Williams #9 with a hard but easy slip inside score, making the score 12-0. Two point conversion by Reggie Middleton#14 up the middle now making the score 14-0. Making Elgin vulnerable and harder for them to catch up, kickoff return to #4 Sibley gets hit hard by #5 Jalen Washington at the 25 yard line. Elgin #21 runs it for 3 yard and gets his bell rung by #1 Balla. The Mustangs get the ball at Elgin’s 28. Elgin intercepts the ball that’s under thrown to #2 and into the unstirred hands of the Elgin’s line backer. Damion Sibley #4 on Elgin’s side takes it all the way a 55 yard run making the score 14-7. The Mustangs return the ball on their own 27, moving closer and closer to the house. Then a screen to #6 Terrion Williams and takes it for 45 yards home and that changes the score 20-7 keepings us on top.
In the end of the third quarter and the Mustangs put their four fingers up signalizing it’s the fourth quarter. The Mustangs kept stopping Elgin so they couldn’t do anything with the ball at this time, giving us the ball back. Pass complete to #7, close but not close enough for the Mustangs, Elgin start off at the 15 yard line but do nothing with it. Reggie starts off running through on the left side, nothing, up the middle LD Williams drags for the 1st. Reggie again but this time gets stop closer to the goal line, a huddle is called with 5:36 left on the clock. Touchdown! #14 Reggie Middleton, and the crowd goes wild as the score changes 26-7 with 5:40 on the clock. Elgin on the return for 46 yards, #56 with a great sack pushing Elgin back for a loss of 5 yards. That’s the end of the game final score 26 Mustangs, Elgin 7, an outstanding game for Reggie Middleton, LD Williams, Terrion Williams, and Statron Jones and all Manor Mustangs taking ownership of the 290 showdown!

-Josh Arnal, Jose Muniz

Cross Country

Cross Country
Results

9/27-Cameron Invitational
The cross country team had a successful day at the Cameron Invitational. The JV girls placed 2nd, their highest as a team this season. Freshman Melanie Leyva led the team and was closely followed by sophomore Riley Daniels. Yescenia Jacobo was also an individual medal winner. The JV boys continued their perfect season NY winning the team championship. Sophomore Edgar Fuentes won the race, sophomore Jason Morales finished 5th. Other individual medalists were freshman Marvin Benitez(12th) and Garrison Smith (14th). The varsity girls took 3rd place as a team. Aimee Slagle led the team with her 3rd place finish. Janette Hernandez was close behind in 6th. The varsity boys dominated the field and won the team championship. The finishing order for individual awards was junior Juan Jaimes (3rd), and sophomore lssai Martinez(6th), sophomore Alfredo Hernandez (10th ), and senior Delofino Gonzales (11th) . Sophomore Eduardo Bustillos (16th ) received the “Anchor Man “ award for being the fastest fifth man on a team. The teams are getting better and better each week. This Saturday, October 2nd, the teams will run at the McNeil Invitational at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock.



9/17/2010-Pflugerville Invitational

Because this meet was run on the course that will be used for the district meet, almost all the teams in our district attended. The girls’ team faced tough competition from teams not only in our district, but also powerhouse 5A schools from the Austin and Houston areas. Although there were no medalists on the girl’s side, they continue to improve each week. The JV girls were led by junior Aimee Slagle and senior Janette Hernandez. The JV boy’s race included all divisions and their race had over 300 participants. Manor had four runners in the top 15, which earned them a medal. Earning medals and leading the team (in finishing order) were sophomore Ray Landry, freshman Abdoulaye Diallo, sophomore Edgar Fuentes, and sophomore Francisco Martinez. The JV boys won the team championship and received a plaque for their accomplishment. The varsity team finished 4th. Other top varsity finishers were sophomore Issai Martinez, sophomore Alfredo Hernandez, sophomore Brian O’Hara, and sophomore Jesus Salas. Most importantly, they were ahead of all of the 4A teams, including those in our district. Our next meet is Monday, October 27th in Cameron.

9/10/2010-Waco Midway Invitational

The cross country team competed well at the Waco Midway Invitational. The team brought home 18 individual medals and 1 team trophy, even against tough 5A competition. The JV girls started the meet off and placed 3rd as a team. Individual medal winners were Yesy Estrada, Shaniah Dipuccio, and Gladys Sanchez. The JV boys were the second race and they put on a quite a show. The team placed first and medal winners included Eduardo Bustillos, Jesus Salas, Edgar Fuentes,Edwado Escobar,Ray Landry, and Francisco Martinez. The varsity girls team placed 3rd, and was let by individual champion Kelsey Rightmer. Other medalists were Aimee Slagle and Janette Hernandez. The varsity boys wrapped up the meet with a 3rd place finished. Juan Jaimes led the team and was joined on the medal stand by Issai Martinez, Stephen Dominguez, Alfredo Hernandez, and Brian O’Hara.

Football: Manor vs. LBJ

Friday night the Manor Mustangs faced the LBJ Jaguars. Manor started things off with a touchdown in the first quarter by L.D. Williams. Leading the game 7-0.The game was difficult with both teams evenly match. LBJ used a mistake made by Manor using an interception to put a touchdown of there own. Tying up the game 7-7, even with two injured players the Manor Mustangs found a way to pull out the win with a field goal winning the game. 10-7

Jose Muñiz

Football: Manor vs. Lampasas

Friday night was a game like no other-Manor against Lampasas. Manor started off strong with positive yards that led them to an early touchdown by #14 and a failed field goal. Lampasas reacted with a touchdown of their own at the end of the first quarter taking the lead by a score of 7-6.

During the 2nd quarter Lampasas caught an interception, which they finished off with a touchdown, increasing their lead 14-6. The Mustangs gained control of the ball again using combinations of rushes and passes giving them a touchdown and brought the score to 12-14.The Manor defense played their part and took possession of the ball, giving the offensive team and the crowd the energy they needed. L.D Williams made a 34 yard run that got the Mustang crowd off their seat with excitement. The 3rd quarter ended with a touchdown from L.D Williams, giving the Mustangs with a touchdown leading 21-28.

The Mustangs and the crowd didn’t give up hope giving them the lead they needed with a score of 26-21. The game seemed to be won by the mustangs with little time left on the clock. The Mustang defense pressured the Lampasas team form gaining yards. With a time-out called at the last two seconds relief blew through the Mustang side. One play would decide the victory, with one yard left to go the Mustangs did there best to protect the end zone. Curiosity caught everyone at the game, wondering if the touchdown was made. The referees concluded the game with a touchdown for Lampasas, giving them the victory 27-26.

Jose Muñiz

Mustang Cross Country takes on the Challenge

Cross country season has started and there are a lot of high expectations for both the girl’s and the guy’s teams. The Mustangs ran their first meet this past Friday August 27th, at the AISD Invitational, which took place at Walter E. Long Park. The meet was separated into two divisions; Division 1(Mostly 5A schools) and Division 2 (Mostly 4A and 3A schools).Both the Varsity and J.V. teams ran Division 1. This represented a bigger challenge and obviously better preparation for the District meet.”We’re going to be on the state meet this year”, said Coach Bohman, head coach of the cross country program.

The Varsity girls started the day running a 2 mile course on Division 1.The first mustang lady to cross the finish line was Senior Kelsey Rightmer, she finished second place with an overall time of 12:36:60. She was then followed by her teammates, Junior Aimee Slagle (13:52:36,10th place), Senior Janette Hernandez (14:39:69,21st place), Junior Yessenia Estrada (16:16:04,27th place), Junior Alma Vega (16:20:04,29th place) and Yesenia Jacobo (17:07:94,30th place).The ladies cross country finished 4th place overall.

The Varsity boys ran the 3 mile course on Division 1 as well. Junior Juan Jaimes was the first runner from manor to finish. He finished in 5th place with a time of 16:58:55. He was then followed by his teammates Sophomore Issai Martinez (18:05:92,16th),Sophomore Brian O’Hare(18:14:90,18th), Senior Delfino Gonzalez(18:22:12,20th)Junior Steven Dominguez (18:23:53,22nd),Senior Cristopher Gutierrez(18:47:77,26th)and, last but not least, Senior Garrison Smith(21:08:53,42nd).The boys ran a hard race and they also finished 4th overall.

The J.V. girls finished as follows: Senior Maria Casique (16:18.99,15th), Freshman Gladys Sanchez (16:27.38,17th), Sophomore Riley Daniels (16:30.94,18th), Freshman Melanie Leyva (16:37.59,20th), Freshman Shanian Dipuccio (17:09.81,26th), Junior Nancy Huerta(17:24.30,28th), Junior Alma Casique (17:30.84,29th), Senior Ilse Garcia (18:05.71), Freshman Cochran Shaquoa ( 18:07.58),and Freshman Monica Hernandez (19:50.91).

The J.V Boys blew everyone away starting with sophomore Alfredo Hernandez finishing first (18:36.75),followed by sophomore Eduardo Bustillos(18:56.29,4th); sophomore Jesus Salas(19:07.44,5th); sophomore Edgar Fuentes(19:08.77,6th);Sophomore Ray Landry(19:19.05,7th); sophomore Francisco Martinez (20:13.70,10th);
Sophomore Jason Morales (20:43.55,14th); and Junior Jesus Del Rio (22:52.50).The J.V guys finished first place over all the other schools.

Cross country season is barely starting and we sure can expect a lot of great things from this group of athletes who represent our school in a great way. We need to remember that cross country is more than “running”. It’s a mental sport that tests the human ability to persist and not give up. After excruciating pain and exhausting courses only the best athletes hold tight and keep running until the end of the race .As a cross country runner myself, I can’t explain the feeling of accomplishment and pride that comes with crossing the finish line. We need to support our cross country program that is only getting better and something is sure….we are barely starting….

Cristopher Gutierrez 12th

Manor Boy's Track Team

Congratulations to our boy's track team this week at the 17-4a District Meet. The boys got second place in the meet. This is the highest they have gotten in many year. These young man worked hard and deserve everybit of this award. The following boys placed in their events and those that finished in the top 3 in the varsity division will be going to region III meet in Huntsville May 3-4:

Varsity:
4x100 Meter Realay (aurie jordan, Ryan Mitchell, John Keith, Dominique Briscoe)-4th
110 Meter Hurdles- David Jackson-2nd
100 Meter Dash- Ryan Mitchell-1st
4x200 Meter Relay (Akeem Aleem, Ryan Mitchell, John Keith, Quinton Baker)-2nd
400 Meter Dash- Ray Grant- 4th(.o1 seconds from 3rd)
300 Meter Hurdles- David Jackson- 5th
200Meter Dash- John Keith- 2nd, Isaac Bell- 3rd
1600 Meter Run- Juan Jaimes- Costilla-4th
Long jump- Ryan Mitchell-2nd, John Keith-5th
Triple Jump- Ryan Mitchell- 1st, Jeremy Mitchell 3rd
Discus Throw- Brenton Watson-4th
Shot Put- Brenton Watson-4th

JV:
3200 Meter Run- Brian O'Hara-4th, Eduardo Escobar-Sanchez-6th
800 Meter Run- Issai Martinez- 6th
Discus Throw-Justin O'Neal-5th

Freshmen:
800 Meter Run- Francisco Martinez-4th, Liobardo Nunez-5th
100 Meter Dash-Bryson Davis-3rd, Marquell Davis-4th
200 Meter Dash- Marquell Davis- 4th, Bryson Davis-5th
1600 Meter Run- Jesus Salas-4th, Fransisco Martinez-5th

Thanks to all these young men who have worked extremley hard to acheive such great goals, also thanks to all the coaches for the hard work they have put in to coaching these young men!

Manor High School Girl's Track Team

Manor Mustangs girl's track team became the District 17 AAAA champions again for the fourth year in a row! This was an amazing accomplishment, and congratulations to our girl's track team!

Also, congratulations to Coach Robbins and the entire girl's coaching staff for doing an amazing job coaching these girls to victory and continuing their reign as the elite track program in Central Texas.

Manor goes to college

Manor High School's AVID, College Forward, and Talent Search students had an experience like no other at the College Fair in the Austin Convention Center on April 13. It was an event where colleges and universities from all parts of the world came to advertise their campuses. Besides the chaos and heat strokes, every question was answered thoroughly; which made the students more eager to go to college. Students were also able to attain information from financial aid representatives, as well as scholarship educators. This event will hopefully give the students a more open-minded perspective regarding where they want to attend college and what they need to pursue in order obtain that goal.

UIL goes to Regionals!!!

Saturday, March 27, the UIL team had a meeting in San Marcos, in which we had two teams advance to Regionals. The two teams who placed 1st place were the Calculator Applications team and the Current Events team. The Calculator Applications team consists of the following team members: Ashely Ferry (won 1st place), Khoa Vu (won 6th place), Angel Pena, and Liezyl Hinayon. The Current Events team consists of the following team members: Saul Cantu (won 3rd place), Rae'Nesha Hall, Omar Dominguez (won 7th place), and Mike Denson. Ashely Ferry also won 6th place in the News Writing event, as well as Riley Daniels who won 6th place innthe Speech competition. The UIL teams are striving for success and winning the top places in the UIL competitions. For those successful vicories we'd like to congratulate all of the UIL members and sponsors, as well as wish them the best at regionlas. "Go Mustangs!!!"

Soccer

The soccer team continues to courageousley drive forward in round four of playoffs and there are 32 teams left. We will be playing against Humble's Kingwood Park, who are 22-0-1 and we are 16-3-2. However, they have never see our speed or strong offense yet and we will prove to them that we are nothing to be taken lightly. If we win this game we will be in the sweet 16, and our next opponent will be the winner of Houston Lee OR Del Valle at the Regional Tourney this weekend.

U.I.L Meet

Last Saturday, March 6th, Manor High School's finest students competed against many Austin schools to prove themselves academically. Congratulations to Ashley Ferry, getting first place in Calculator Applications. Also congratulations to Rodrigo Arteaga, getting fifth place in Ready Writing.

Participated:
Brianna Williams
Riley Davis
Delylah Brown
Omar Dominguez
Rae'Nesha Hall
Alejandra Fuentes
Khoa Vu
Ashley Ferry
Liezyl Hinayon
Dykhrysta Kennon-Bailey
Raeneka Hennigan
Da'jare Fontenette
Mike Denison
Rodrigo Arteaga

Coaches:
Mrs. Foster
Mr. Wyrtzen
Mr. Nettles
Mr. Osborn
Ms. Reitberger
Ms. Enriquez
Mr. Methisen
Ms. Schmidt

Did You Know? (Follow-Up to "From Daughter to Mother in High School???")

* Manor ISD provides services to the pregnant teens in our district. Those include medical services, counseling services, parenting classes, and transportation to and from school.

Once the baby is born, the moms are entitled to homebound services for a period of 6 weeks. At the end of 6 weeks, MISD will provide transportation for the mom and the baby to school. The mom can attend school while the baby is in daycare.

We want those of you who become pregnant and have a baby to finish school and get your diplomas. This will prepare you to be able to support your child and take on the responsibilities of being a parent.


* Over the last 2 years, there has been an increase in the number of pregnancies among teens.
Pregnant teens are at high-risk for dropping out of school. They are also considered a "high risk" pregnancy. They have a greater risk of delivering premature babies, low birth weight babies, and babies with other "medical risks".

This is more than enough information to make those of you who think you're ready for a child take a step back and realize what you are risking for not only yourself , but an innocent child.

(You can contact the Manor High School Health Services at (512) 278-4093 for more information and/or help.)

TAKS COMPETITION!!!

TAKS is here and its time to compete for a day in Six Flags Fiesta Texas!!

I know all of y’all want a day at Six Flags! How do you win? Try your hardest and do your best on your TAKS and the winning class will spend an entire day at Six Flags. I know all of you can do it. It just takes some drive, but if you want to go to Six Flags, study hard.
This competition helps all of us. It gets us going. It gets our scores up and it earns us a day to play. Work hard, play hard.

Who’s going to win? Who has what it takes? The Sophomores? Juniors? Freshman? Or is it going to be the Seniors?

You decide!

Congratulations to MHS Band!

Congratulations to MHS Band for their excellent scores in Saturdays UIL solo and ensemble contest. On Saturday, February 20th, 13 members of the MHS Band went to Elgin High School to perform their heir hearts out in front of UIL judges. All the students were practicing for months before, very hard every day in preparation for this contest. Again, congratulations to you all.
Scores and Name:
Marcos Esparza (2)
Shuntre Clark (2)
Riley Daniles (1)
Kelly Shelton (1)
Megan Thurmond (3)
Heralio Cortez (2)
Stephanie Nonmacher (2)
Bianca Lopez (2)
Regina Reynoso (1)
Catherine Barbosa (2)
Ryan Rightmer (2)
D’Lonte Lawson (2)
Jesse Samaripa (1) {**Advancing to State**}
(Ratings - 1=Superior 2=Excellent 3=Average 4=Poor)

Manor Mustangs soccer team makes history!

The soccer program was started six years ago by Adam Q. Rawls, M.Ed. The Mustang soccer program has overcome many obstacles and continues to courageously fight to win district! We have won 15 home games STRAIGHT and haven’t lost a district game at home in 2 years. We have won 11 games STRAIGHT this season alone. We have a record 6 shutouts. We are 10-0 in district and currently stand in first place, just 3 points over our rival Del Valle. We face Del Valle there on March 5th and need all the support we can get. Angel Reveles who is Central Texas leading scorer who has 24 goals continues to lead the team to more victories.

Lady Mustang Basketball

It is unfortunate to say that our Lady Mustang basketball team has come to an end so soon. Although, there is no doubt that they worked hard and were more than elated to make it as far as they did they fell short in the playoff game against Willis High School last Tuesday, February 16, 48-41. However, they held their heads up high and were praised for their Manor pride! Let us all congratulate our Lady Mustangs and commend them for all their hard work this season.
Remember Mustangs, you can only become better so let's do it RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!

National Pancake Day

All around this great country people are setting aside a day just to celebrate one of the most popular breakfast foods, PANCAKES! This delicious, fluffy breakfast food has become so popular it now has its own day out of the year! Pancakes were first made in the 1970's in France and are now eaten all over the world to this day!

From daughter to mother in High School???

Written by The WORD

(The following article does not in any way reflect the beliefs or views of Manor High School or the Manor Independent School District.)

A lot of teens see pregnancy as the new fad. We say this because girls are getting pregnant at a younger age and are exploiting their pregnancies themselves with no problem. In other words, teenage pregnancy has become a commonplace in most of America’s high schools. According to The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, "three out of ten teenage girls in the United States get pregnant at least one before age 20 -- that amounts to 745,000 teen pregnancies each year." Moreover, the United States has the highest teenage pregnancy rate of all the industrialized nations. Our rates are double those of England and Canada and eight times those of the Netherlands and Japan.

More importantly, however, teenage pregnancy is one of the leading causes of high school drop outs. Fewer than fifty percent of teenager mothers graduate form high school, barely two percent graduate form college before their thirtieth birthday.

Ultimately, teens should practice abstinence; but for those that don’t, they should take into consideration that they’re not the only ones affected should they become pregnant.
Parents are affected both when their daughters become pregnant and when their sons get a girl pregnant. Most parents feel an intense sense of worry and frustration asking themselves what they might have done wrong as parents. They feel that somehow their choices or actions as parents might have been the cause for their child’s carelessness or premature decision to have a child. Did they forget to cover a certain topic with their kids or should they have been more aware of what was going on in their lives?

There is a lot of time spent by the parents wondering if their daughter or son will ever finish school. Being that their children are now having children of their own, the parents now have to worry about having to provide financially for another child; the mental and physical toll of helping to take care of the baby; and dealing with the reputation and gossip that surrounds their child and their parenting among many other concerns. Although there is much to worry about and take care of, there is still that bundle of joy that they can call their grandchild.

When the mother-to-be is a teenager, unmarried, and without the money to support herself or a child, life can literally implode. A baby changes lives. There is no doubt, when the mother first finds out about being pregnant, there seems to be a never ending rampage of thoughts going through their minds. They worry about if their baby’s father will still love them, want them, or even care for the baby. They also have to face the inevitable late nights staying up with the crying baby, not being able to hang out with their friends as much, and having to face the gossip behind their backs at school.

The biggest obstacle teens should think about
is how they will finish school as teenage mothers with their baby. When a community discusses teen pregnancy it is usually in the form of statistics. These statistics include the number of drop outs, divorces, shot-gun weddings, abortions, adoptions, etc. Teens should know that their futures are not yet written, except for one part – the baby will always be part of their lives. Teen mothers should also know that they are not just statistics and the obstacles they face can be overcome.

The first thing a teenage father would think is that, because they only had sex one time, there’s no way he could be the father. However, it only takes one time for a baby to be conceived. When the reality of his early fatherhood hits him, the thought of actually being a father can be very hard to accept. He will begin to ask himself if he’s ready to commit and be tied down or how he will handle this new responsibility without a job. Although this is a huge step for a young teenage father to have to take, he must be willing to put all selfishness aside and think about the mother of his child and the baby she carries. In reality, only two out of ten fathers marry the mother of their child.

If babies could express themselves they would wonder why they were brought into the world if their parents were not ready to be parents. The baby’s main priority and fundamental need is to be loved. The baby has the right to be taken care of and provided for. The parents can say that they are ready a million times, but the person who really needs to be taken into consideration is the baby! Sure, the parents say they’re ready to be the parents of the baby, but is the baby ready to be the child of teenage parents? Many teenagers follow in their parents’ footsteps. Unfortunately, it doesn’t come down to the baby having a choice of what parents it has or what life they lead; but, being its own person, the baby can grow up to make and learn from its own and it’s parents’ choices. However, a baby needs both parents to be there as he/she grows up. When the parents are apart, the child is five times more likely to be less successful than that of the child that lives with both parents at home. At times, the daughter of a teenage mother is more likely to follow under her mother’s footsteps and become a teenage mother herself. As for the sons of teenage mothers, their chances of ending up in prison are twice as high of those whose mothers didn’t have them as teenagers.

When a teenage girl becomes pregnant, not only does it affect her life, but it affects her parents, friends, the man involved, and the baby. It is very difficult for teens to take care of themselves, much less a baby. Therefore, a big consideration needs to be focused on practicing abstinence.
Nonetheless, behind every statistic is an individual. Whether it is a parent, friend, teacher, sister, brother, aunt, or uncle, we should all stop contributing to the negative factors that make the situation even more difficult and give all we possibly can to assist and care for teenage mothers and parents as they strive to create a better world for their child.

Heads Up About N.H.S

by Coleman Peavy
If you are very academically focused, strive to do your best in all your classes, and love to challenge yourself, then the National Honor Society might be just the thing for you. The N.H.S. is a very prestigious organization that looks very good on college applications. Your must have a 3.0 GPA or higher to apply. The N.H.S. leaders will be sending out applications to join sometime before spring break. You can expect a lot of fun, a lot of hard work, and a lot of community service, which also looks very good on college applications. M.H.S. teachers and a few students will be deciding on who will get in and only the very best students will rise to the challenge.

Manor Sports!!!

By Renee Vallego
As basketball season comes to an end our own Mustangs are looking forward to going to the playoffs. The boys and girls have worked so hard for this moment. The Lady Mustangs held onto their hard earned playoff spot as they finished the season 7-5, making them 3rd place in district. The boys wrapped it up ending the district season 8-2 and runner up.
The Manor High soccer teams have kicked the season off with a great start. The Varsity boys are undefeated with a 6-0 record. Although the girls have fallen short in some games, there are no doubts that they will soon begin to rise back up and dominate.
What a way to start softball season with all this rainy and cold weather! However, let’s not let the gloomy weather fool us because our Mustangs are fully prepared for a great season. Softball has been the talk around the school and the participants have been more than elated to begin the season.
Support and dedication for our Mustangs is always welcome! Come out and cheer them on!

Ba-Bye Old...Hello New!!!

by Gabriela Aguirre and Coleman Peavy
Say good-bye to the old, and hello to the new!!!
Welcome to the second semester of MHS’ 2009-2010 school year. Last semester we experienced several accomplishments, as well as disappointments, but we cannot let that bring us down. This new semester should be all about achieving our goals, and pursuing our dreams.
From foolish fighting to organizing fundraisers to help Haiti, there is no doubt that we have come a long way together at Manor High. We had our times of failure; but we got back up, dusted the dirt off our shoulders, and we are now moving forward together. As of now, we are on a roll to becoming better as people, both personally and academically. This semester we’re striving to pass TAKS, to become a RECOGNIZED campus, and help those who are in a desperate need of help both in Manor and around the world.
To the eyes of several people we are already failures, which is exactly why we have to prove them wrong. We have been given a fresh start; let’s not let it go to waste. Let’s do our best, strive for success, and accept nothing less!!!

MHS Lady Mustangs Soccer Team

Last night at the soccer game our lady mustangs played against the LBJ jaguars. J.V. unfortunately lost by a score of 3-0, but their effort was sure shown on the field. On the other hand, Manor Varsity Girls tied with a score of 0-0, the game was almost a win thanks to two of Dulce's tries, but it didn't work that way. Never the less, the girls were extremely great, they gave it all they had, and even if it wasn't a great victory, at least we didn't loose it all......Keep it up Lady Mustangs!!!!!!!!

The 2010 Rose Bowl

So the 2010 Rose Bowl was a dissapointment for all the Longhorn fans out there. It was a hard game withought our starting quarter back who was out for the game due to a shoulder injury on the fifth play of the game. We played hard all the whole game but in the end we couldnt quite pull off the victory over Alabama.