--Joy Chen--entertainment editor

--Andrea Liu--co-editor-in-chief

New Bell Schedule Adds School Hours

FVHS adds an extra minute to each class this year

Link Crew: To Go or Not to Go?Opinions (3)

Students returning to FVHS this year will have to adjust to a changed

bell schedule that reduces passing period by one minute.

The change was announced in a statement by Principal Chris Herzfeld, who said that the reason for the shorter passing period is to give teachers more time to meet with each other for collaboration

--Alex-Quan Pham--entertainment editor

As other teenagers savored the last week of summer, Fountain

Valley High School’s Link Crew was already on campus, gathered in the school gym and prepared to welcome incoming freshmen.

Link Leaders Lend Wisdom to Fledgling Freshmen

Link Crew bonds with incoming freshmen through ice breakers and personal anecdotes.

Russell Holmes: Olympic Athlete, Baron

FVHS graduate made his olympic debut in London

--Jackie Liu--news editor

Quiet and soft-spoken, Russell Holmes seems like an ordinary guy.

It’s his appearance that gives him away. At six feet eight inches tall, he has to duck through doorways.

Born and raised in Fountain Valley, Russell Holmes graduated from Fountain Valley High School in 2001. As a Baron, he played soccer and sang in choir, but it wasn’t until his junior year that he began playing the sport that would launch him to success – volleyball.

He now plays for the U.S. men’s volleyball team, and this summer his team qualified for the London 2012 Olympics. The U.S. played well, although they ultimately lost to Italy in the quarterfinals.

Baron Banner sat down with Holmes one quiet morning to discuss his passion for the sport, his new celebrity persona, and his experience as a Fountain Valley BaronQ: How is playing for the Olympics different than just a normal competition?A: Nothing can compare to the world stage of the Olympics.

The opportunity to compete in the Olympics is something that every athlete of their discipline strives for ... and so it was with me. This is something I had been working towards for many years. Most tournaments come around annually but the Olympics, for most athletes, is a once in a lifetime thing. So naturally you cherish the experience and every moment of it.Q: When did you first decide that you could have a successful career playing volleyball?A: I think the moment where I realized my potential in the sport of volleyball was the summer after my first season with Fountain Valley volleyball. I just finished my junior year and it was also the first year I had played the sport. I was at a volleyball camp at Brigham Young University (BYU) and the coach at the time, Carl McGown, who is well respected in the volleyball world, told me I had a future in the sport. I later went on to play for BYU in my collegiate career.Q: What was your most memorable game?A: The most memorable game for me was probably our first competition of the Olympics against Serbia. It had nothing to do with the opponent or the fact

that we won. It simply had to do with it being my first match as an Olympian and having that excitement that I was there and I had made it after the many years of hard work and sacrifice.Q: What was your high school experience like at FV? Best memory at FV?A: My high school experience was amazing. No complaints. Looking back now it was such a simpler time in my life and one I will never forget. My best memory was Senior Night, after graduation. It was a great party and a great way to end high school.Q: Did you ever have any inspiring role models, coaches, teachers, etc.?A: Absolutely. I have been influenced in some way or another by all my mentors. Whether they were coaches, teachers, family, or friends, they all have had and still have a hand in my success and I am forever grateful for each one of them.Q: Why do you think volleyball isn’t as popular in the U.S. as it is in other countries?A: Men’s Volleyball isn’t necessarily the most popular sport among Americans. Our sport is just not what it is here in America as it is in say Europe or South America. I have been approached

far more in those areas of the world then I have been here. Volleyball in America has not yet had its big break. I look forward to the time when it does though.Q: What is something not many people know about you?A: I quit volleyball at the age of 19 for 2 years to serve a church mission in London, England. The

Valiant Fight from Boys Varsity Football

Boys football opens their season with a loss and a win.--Sarina Dayal--

staff writer--Andrea Liu--

co-editor-in-chief

>>First Football GameSports (4)

>>Link CrewNews (2)

>>Bell ScheduleNews (2)

After a 14-28 loss to the Foothill Ranch Knights in their first game of

Veteran Link Leader Kaitlyn Ha (‘13) was among them.

“This was my second year as a leader and I chose to become a Link Leader because I like being a part of something bigger with my friends while helping at the same

without cutting class time.“The net result will be 180 more

minutes of classroom instruction per class, per year,” said Herzfeld. “This also brings us in line with most other schools our size with a 7 minute passing period.

“The additional planning time for teachers is achieved simply by starting the meetings earlier, impacting only zero period.”

The change has been met by some resistance from students.

Jack Wang (‘14) says, “It’s the seven minute passing period that worries me since it takes time to

experiences that I had while in London taught me so much. The life lessons and true principles that I learned were priceless. My mission became the foundation by which I could build all my success on.

>>Russell HolmesNews (2)

get to class and go to my locker, but I don’t mind sitting in class for an extra minute.”

Another student echoed the sentiment, but for different reasons.

“I think it’s bad because people like to spend more time with friends during passing period,” said the student, who chose to remain anonymous. “And obviously more school hours is irritating to students.”

Other students were not as opposed to the change.

“I’m sure a lot of people will complain about having one less minute to get to class, but I don’t mind it because realistically it’s a

the season, the Barons defeated the Dana Hill Dolphins 23-17 last week.

“Our boys have been doing pretty well. I’m hopeful for the rest of the year,” ASB member and spectator Daisy Pham (‘13)

said.In the game against Foothill,

the Knights scored their first touchdown early in the first quarter but the Barons caught up with Wyatt Christensen #24 scoring a touchdown and tying the score with 31 seconds to go at the end of the second quarter.

www.baronnews.com

Fountain Valley High School

17816 Bushard St. Fountain Valley, CA 92706BARONBANNER

Volume XXXII ~ Issue I ~ August 30, 2012

OC BBQ BonanzaNews (2)

FVRR Band CampSports (4)

news2Guidance Counselors Swamped by

Student DemandsThe 2012-2013 school year starts off with chaotic new class schedules.

GUIDANCE TECH NGA DOAN WORKS IN HER OFFICE

--Dorothy Nguyen--staff writer

As the school year begins and students rush to attain their ideal class

schedule, every guidance tech faces a daunting task—act as a

personal fairy godparent to around 900 students. This entails catering to a wide range of needs, whether it be rearranging a student’s entire class schedule or placing a student into another teacher’s course, all the while adhering to the master schedule. Students

usually take their counselors for granted, but what really happens behind all that magic to make our needs reality?

Contrary to popular belief, errors in class schedules given out at registration are not the fault of our guidance techs. Our schedules – all 3,500 of them - are initially sorted out by computers at the district office according to a master schedule made by the Assistant Principal of Guidance, Nancy Peterson. It’s one big game of mix and match, and if the pieces don’t fit, then the person is placed in a different, unrequested class or left with an empty period. Because computers aren’t infallible, then this scenario happens more often than expected, particularly in the cases of upperclassmen.

What, then, does fall under counselors’ jurisdiction? Within two weeks before the school year

and two weeks into the school year, class population exceeds the legal limit. Counselors are responsible for leveling out classes within the first two weeks of school. A class cannot exceed thirty-nine students first semester or thirty-seven students second semester, in accordance with our teachers’ contracts. The harder classes to level out are not the AP classes, but the electives – the ones that fulfill the UC visual arts requirement - and college prep classes.

“We try to level the classes as much as we can, but there are some classes that will still be over thirty- nine,” says guidance tech Nga Doan. “Eventually, within the first three weeks of school, we will have to somehow bring that number down.”

If a class is just too large and cannot be leveled out, then an administrator can appeal at the district office for the addition of another class. However, this cannot happen until after the beginning of school, when class sizes are confirmed.

Counselors also deal with

fixing errors in class schedules, like moving a student from a college prep class to an AP class, or vice versa. Some of these errors are easily fixed with the click of a mouse. Some require a bit more effort on the part of the student. For example, if a student doesn’t qualify for an AP class, then that student would have to petition to the department chair for that class. Most of the time, these petitions are successful, but admittance is determined based on space availability. Some errors cannot be remedied if there are scheduling conflicts due to fixed or full classes. For example, a student in orchestra cannot take AP Art History, because both classes are only offered during fifth period. Then that student would have to drop either of those classes. The same result would come about if the student were trying to get into a class that reached its full capacity.

Guidance tech Monika Whit-man says, “It’s always busy for counselors this time of year. But things always work out for every-body in the end.”

>>Link CrewFront (1)

>>Bell ScheduleFront (1)

time,” Ha said. “I think what I’ll take most from the experience is the opportunity to connect with a lot of new people, not just the freshmen.”

Ha, like her fellow Link Leaders, was paired up with a partner and assigned to initiate a group of about 10 freshmen into high school life.

The groups played icebreakers

manageable change,” Julie Linh Nguyen (‘13).

“To be honest,” added Richard Nguyen (‘13), “Seven minutes is plenty of time to walk across campus.”

Throughout the school year, the new bell schedule will be assessed to determine if it is helping the school and its students.

Q: When you were younger, what did you want to be when you grew up?A: It’s funny because my mom had this conversation with me before the Olympics. We talked about how when I was young she would ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up and I would always say, “I want to be a professional athlete.” I feel very blessed to have a career in something I am deeply passionate about.Q: How did you train for the

>>Russell HolmesFront (1)

and games that would be helpful for freshmen as they worked their way through the euphoric highs and the inevitable lows of high school. Games like “64 Squares” allowed Link Leaders to impart wisdom by describing their own personal journey through high school, and how they countered obstacles in their lives.

Many freshmen responded positively to the activities.

“I liked that we learned what to expect from high school,” said Michelle Phang (‘16).

Olympics?A: In our gym we have practice for about 2-3 hours. It consists of working on various techniques depending on what the coach feels we need to work on that day. Generally it starts with a warm up and we do some small drills before getting into 6 on 6 competition type drills. Usually weight training follows after practice.Q: Any advice for aspiring athletes?A: Set goals. Write them down. Keep them where you can see them every day. Then go to work.

The legendary OC BBQ Bonanza took place this year from Aug. 17 to

Aug.19 at the Fountain Valley Sports Park.

The BBQ pitmasters serve the BBQ, the people of Orange County vote for their favorite. It was world-class BBQ in a competitive, yet friendly atmosphere.

The award-winning BBQ joints include Porky-N-Beans, Cowboys, Johnson’s, Tennessee Q, Howling Coyote BBQ companies, and many other humble BBQ stands as well. Among the food served were ribs, pulled-pork sandwiches, racks of chicken, cornbread, and other BBQ delicacies. Lemonade, iced tea, corn-on-the-cob, ice cream, and other simple pleasures could be found.

If you didn’t care to vote for your favorite BBQ, you definitely enjoyed the honest-to-earth food in a proud environment. If you

OC Votes for Barbecued DelectablesFountain Valley hosts its annual BBQ Bonanza contest.

--Tue Duong--guest writer

wanted to sample all the BBQ companies’ ribs for judgment, you were taking your taste buds to BBQ paradise with a slab of ribs specially made from five different contenders.

But assuming you didn’t come for BBQ, there was still plenty to do at the Bonanza. There was no way you could ignore the Ferris wheel and boutiques.

The Fountain Valley community did a great job bringing together its people through the sponsorship of this event.

opinionsLink Crew: To Go or Not to Go?Freshmen can choose to attend Link Crew where older, more experienced students show them the

ropes.- -Cecilia Chung- -

staff writer

Not all incoming freshmen are lucky enough to have an

older sibling show them the tangled ropes of high school. For those unlucky few, Link Crew Leaders act as unoffi-cial big brothers and sisters.

Link Leaders, being expe-rienced students themselves, can answer all the questions confused freshmen may have, such as “What the heck is the Media Center?” or “Where is the library?”

Link Leaders can explain that they are in fact one and the same, an evil attempt by the school to trick students into reading.

Although Link Crew attendees might be over-whelmed with their leaders’ perkiness and smiles, fresh-men do walk out with a lot of useful knowledge.

Though the event is four hours long and much of the day is spent on awkward icebreaker games and exer-cises for the leaders’ amuse-ment (dressing the freshmen up in various silly outfits),

the final tour of the school is well worth the wait. The new students are shown around the school - where their classes and lockers will most likely be, the fastest lines for lunch, and where to go for tardy slips. All of which will be a great help when school starts. Not to mention being rewarded with otter pops for surviv-ing the day.

And Link Crew is not just a passing experience; it’s one that you’ll remember even as a senior.

Victoria Duong (‘13) remembers her Link Crew experience, explaining, “It helps with nerves.”

So if you’re wondering if you made a mistake in choosing to sleep in the day of Link Crew, the answer is yes. It’s an opportunity that is worth waking up early for and one that every incom-ing freshman should attend if they don’t want to be the lost duckling on their first day. And if you need help, blue-shirted big brother(s) will be watching out for you.

Amanda Schoon: “I’m excited about starting to go to football games and cheering.”

Margaret Crowley: “I’m excited about finally see-ing a ton of my friends and hopefully meeting new friends.”

Jason Stentz: “Anima-tion. I’m excited about taking animation classes because I really love to draw.”

Tori Morgan: “I’m excit-ed about all the activi-ties. I think it’ll be excit-ing to meet new people and to get involved with everything. Like it’s so much more than middle school.”

3Freshman Roaming Reporter

Baron Banner asks a few incoming freshmen what they are most excited about high school.- -Andrea Liu- -

co-editor-in-chief

Allyson Peffers: “Just the whole high school experience and meeting new people.”

Douglas Nguyen: “I’m most excited about ce-ramics.”

4 sports

PHOTO CREDIT- Tue Duong

>>First Football GameFront (1)

Foothill scored again in the third quarter but Fountain Valley’s Chris-tensen caught up with another touchdown, keeping the score tied go-ing into the final quarter.

However Foothill’s strong offensive line brought them two more goals in the fourth quar-ter ending the game with a score of 14-28.

Despite Fountain Val-

ley’s loss in their first game of the season, the crowd cheered, “We still love you,” reminding the Baron players of the constant support that will carry them through the season.

“The games are going to be much bigger this year,” said ASB presi-dent Jessica Le (‘13).

The next varsity foot-ball game will put the Barons against the Coro-na Panthers at Westmin-ster High School.

Barons Welcome New CoachAllison Renth joins FVHS as the varsity field hockey coach.

After a decade of service from former varsity coach Kerri Mar, this

year the Baron family is welcoming new head varsity coach for field hockey, Coach Allison Renth. A fresh-out-of-college, longtime field hockey player, and 2007 FVHS alumni, Renth was inciden-tally also taught by former coach Mar.

Renth played for four years at FVHS and another four years at Chico State. With her experience and spirit, Renth has brought to the varsity team spirit-boosters such as call-outs, which help players find their stronger and weaker points in practice, and “quotes of the game” to boost morale.

With two weeks to the first pre-season game of the year and try-outs on the very last week before school, returning and new players are eager to see how this season will play out.

With an entire new coach-ing staff on board, this season can be either off to a clean start or a disadvantage for the Barons.

Baron Banner took the op-portunity to sit down and ask Coach Renth a few questions about coaching and the up-coming field hockey season.Q: How does it feel, coming back as a graduated Baron, and teaching a team that you used to be a part of?R: It feels awesome! Field Hockey was such a big part of my life while being at FVHS and still is, so I’m excited to coach and hopefully have as big of an impact on their lives as it did on mine.Q: What made you come back to accept the coaching posi-tion? And was coaching ever a part of your plan?A: When asked if I was inter-

- -Jessie Le- -staff writer

Cross Country girls are back!Girls Cross Country trains for their upcoming season.

- -Tiffany Tran- -staff writer

Girls cross country has been working harder than ever this summer

to prepare for races.The team has pushed their

mileage to its highest in the past couple years, running 10 to 12 miles every day and 15 to 20 miles once a week .

“Practice is five to six days a week, so we run close to 70 miles a week, if not more,”

senior Linsey Tran said .In addition to regular prac-

tices, the top 16 girls received an invitation to Mammoth Camp, an intense training program that lasted four days. Even with all the running, it was a bonding experience for all.

“Mammoth Camp was re-ally hard due to the weather, courses, and high altitude, but it was also a lot of fun. We went to practice like we usually do in

PHOTO CREDIT- Linsey Tran

FVHS Royal Regiment begins trainingBand gears up for their season with two week long

camp.

On the clear morning of August 13th, members of the Fountain Valley

Royal Regiment began their first day of a two week long field camp for the 2012 season.

For six days a week, mem-bers rehearsed through heat and humidity to learn and refine their 2012 field show entitled “Fire,” a musical and visual representation of the dif-ferent characteristics of fire.

Igor Stravinsky’s “Firebird Suite” and Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire” are just a couple of the musical selections for the program.

“It’ll be quite the hot topic in a month or so,” said Alex Quan of the brass line when asked about this year’s show concept.

The FVRR has been work-ing very hard this summer to bring a great show onto the

field for the 2012 season. Every day members rehearsed tire-lessly from 9:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., working on marching technique, choreography, and musical perfection.

“We’re doing a lot better than last year,” says tuba sec-tion leader James Elder. “We’re learning drill and music faster, the show design is great, and the rehearsal etiquette is a lot better.”

On August 18th the Regi-ment unveiled the musical aspect of “Fire” to friends and family at the annual Office Depot performance. Seven days later, the group performed the program on the field for the first time in front of hundreds of attendants.

The FVRR will compete with the very best of California in the upcoming season. Keep an eye out for “Fire” later this fall during halftime at home games.

- -Alex Graff- -staff writer

PHOTO CREDIT- Sarina Dayal

ested in coaching I thought what a great opportunity it would be and I couldn’t pass up the chance, even though coaching was never part of my plan. I had thoughts of maybe coaching one day, but I never thought it would actually hap-pen. So it’s very exciting to be doing this.Q: Since you just graduated from college, are there any plans to coach full time or isthis just a side job for now?A: I would love to continue to coach field hockey full time, but right now I don’t know what the future holds.Q: Since you have plenty of playing experience, have you ever taught or coached field

hockey before?A: I have never coached field hockey, but I have volunteered with teaching field hockey in middle school PE classes while playing at Chico State.Q: What do you plan to bring to the team this season as well as in the long run?A: I’m hoping to bring in new dynamics. I had a great set of coaches at Chico State so I’m planning to bring the skills and knowledge I developed there and implement the fundamen-tals I learned here at Fountain Valley. In the long run I’m hoping to bring a constant flow of new girls wanting to play and have a love for the game.Q: With a whole new coaching staff this season (with Fountain Valley alumni Nancy and Tay-lor as JV coaches) do you think this puts you at a disadvantage or is this a clean start?

PHOTO CREDIT- Tyler Ratzlaff

the morning, and then each day we did something different,” sophomore Melissa Valle said.

All this effort is being made in preparation for Cross Country’s vigorous fall compe-tition schedule. Races begin in September and continue every weekend until the end of the season.

“There are many different races that we will compete in, but all levels are trying to focus on the league at the end of October, while Varsity is also looking beyond that to CIF,” Tran said.

Their daily practices have resulted in high spirits and dramatic improvement. The entire girls team feels more determined and confident than ever before.

“We really want to make this year better than last year, so we’re trying to make the team more responsible and loyal as well as in-shape, and I definitely feel that we’re more prepared than we were last year,” sophomore Hayley McClements said.

A: Unfortunately, being a first time coach at Fountain Valley, just meeting the girls, and not being able to have seen them play puts me at a disadvantage. On the other hand, the girls learned skills from Coach Kerri and now they have the chance to learn new skills from me.

Overall, field hockey is ready to take on the up-and-coming games even with a coach who is pushing them hard to start a new and im-proved season and deepen their passion for playing.

“They’re intimidating at first, but the coaches make us work hard and hopefully we’ll play good during season,” said Kathy Hoang (‘15).

Coach Renth sits with Taylor Merickel and Nancy Mendez.