Little snippets of other people’s lives scroll down the screen as sophomore Kylie Jennings checks her Instagram feed. She grins and feels the excitement of the updates from her favorite show and sees new scholarships to apply for. “[Social media] keeps me in the loop,” Jennings said. “It’s a gateway for us to know about the outside world and how to fix it.”  Social media platforms have become places where youth can explore and discover new aspects of themselves. Adolescents who communicate more online can better clarify their personalities. Teens find like-minded people to befriend and relate to through social media. Access to a greater population and groups with common interests prevents loneliness and increases confidence. “I used to think my hair was too frizzy and ugly,” Jennings said. “I see pictures of other girls who share the same traits and now I wear my hair all frilly nilly.” English teacher Ms. Lisabeth Bennett...

With the sounds of joyful chatter around them, Cheryl McFaddin and Scott McFaddin discuss their plans with their employees. By preparing their peers, they readied themselves for another day taking of care of the children of Neema House.  Mr. and Ms. McFaddin, Neema Houses’s Director and Financial Director, worked since Feb. 2015 to spread Neema House’s services of food, water, shelter, medicine and education to over 250 kids in Geita, Tanzania. “We would have given up a long time ago if it wasn’t for how we’ve impacted [these families’] lives,” Ms. McFaddin said.  When they joined they had less resources than they initially thought. This made for an overwhelming start for the two, even with only 20 kids in their care at the time they joined. “We immediately knew we had a lot of work to do,” Mr. McFaddin said, “[and] it was thrown at us very quickly.” Mr. and Ms. McFaddin established goals and reached out further to the...

As a child, Pamela Jo* remembers chasing butterflies with her best friend in a field behind her house. She remembers the soccer and dance trophies on the dresser across from her oak bunk bed. She remembers watching Kim Possible in her living room with its bark-colored walls and grand stone fireplace.  And she remembers the pain. The pain of seeing her stepfather. The pain of abuse.  Jo represents one of the nearly four million children who experience abuse in the United States each year. As reports of such abuse rise, victims continue to feel the immediate and long-term effects of their trauma.  “It was all I knew for the longest time,” Jo said. “I thought that was what childhood was supposed to be like. I now know that’s definitely not how it works.”  As a child, Jo watched her friend sass her mother, and felt shock when she was not beaten. Every time she witnessed “normal parents” she was confused and skeptical. Now, she continues...

The flicker of the fluorescent lights help sophomore Kate Claburn keep her eyes open. School feels like a massive feat to her, and the five hours of sleep she got does not leave her rested enough for her day. Claburn sits up straight to stay awake as her head pounds and remains foggy.  “My head [is like] a weight dragging me down when I feel this way,” Claburn said. “I just can’t function normally.”  Claburn’s homework each night takes three to five hours to complete. Three nights of the week she has band practice and doesn’t get home until 7 p.m. Claburn goes to bed at 10:30 or later making it hard for her to get up in the mornings. Claburn forces herself to go to school, despite often feeling unwell from the exhaustion, because she doesn’t want to lose her opportunity to exempt her exams.  “It’s so stressful having so much homework,” Claburn said. “It’s harmful to our mental health and having the threat of losing exemptions...

In the summer after eighth grade, senior Bailey Bednar scrolled through Instagram as she prepared to go on vacation. She planned to wear a two-piece, but could not picture herself looking any good in the pieces she saw models pull off. She wished for a body like the girls she saw on social media.  Bednar started struggling with her weight at a young age. At the start of her freshman year, she changed the habits she felt made her unhealthy. She decided to begin her journey to a healthy life. Throughout this journey, she lost a total of 35 pounds.  “It's all about what makes you happy,” Bednar said. “The way that you are perceived through your eyes. It’s all about, for me, being healthier [rather] than looking a certain way.” She began by cutting specific foods, such as fast food. When she realized cutting those foods completely did not work for her, she decided to balance out what she ate. For example, when she ate chick-fil-a nuggets for...

Graduate Christian Holt sits on the floor outside of a computer lab, red-eyed and notably upset. In an attempt to rid himself of his most recent depressive breakdown, he has removed himself from his classroom and gathered his thoughts.  “I’m closed off from others,” Holt said. “It makes it difficult to verbalize what I’m thinking.” Since eighth grade Holt has combated his depression, which progressively worsened as he left it untreated. He began taking antidepressants in November of 2012. After a suicide attempt in September 2012, Holt checked into a psychiatric hospital for seven weeks. “It was very helpful,” Holt said. “Those people understand what I was going through.” Society often perceives depression as a synonym for “sad.” Clinical depression and saddening thoughts — which everyone experiences — hold distinct differences. These cast stark contrasts between individuals who suffer from clinical depression and individuals...

Anxiety consumes freshman McKenzie Canton as she stares out the window. A white car pulls up, and an exhausted, worn-looking child gets out. Canton rushes to the door to welcome the newest member of her family. Canton’s family fosters children aging from a few months to four years. They, along with thousands of other families, contribute to giving homes to over 29,990 children in the Texas foster care system. “[Being part of a foster family] has done a lot of things. Some days it’s just so tiring, but other days you want to love on them all you want,” Canton said. “It’s definitely hectic, but in the end we know we’re doing something good, so we still enjoy it.” Ms. Canton proposed the idea of becoming a foster family to Canton in 2014. Ms. Canton took the young girl to Chick-fil-A, and as they ate, Ms. Canton began to cry. She explained the importance of showing love to kids who did not have a lot.   “At first I [thought],...

Sophomore Alex Sims unglues his eyes from his phone to listens to the teacher’s instructions. The classroom returns to silence and his eyes fall back to the small screen in his lap. Sims scrolls through Twitter as an empty feeling fills him– reminding him of the perfect life he doesn’t have.  Social media usage has increased in the past years as well as the number of teens who suffer from depression. In 2012, 50 percent of teenagers owned smartphones, then four years later it jumped to 73 percent. Alongside that, the number of attempted suicides increased 23 percent.  “[Social media] is not good for us,” Sims said. “We love it to death because we can’t get enough of each other. You never get a break from anyone unless you’re disconnected.” According to counselor James Bedwell, research proves the more time someone spends on social media the more likely they are to develop mental health issues. Bedwell suggests reaching out and seeking...

Soon-to-be college students have an abundance of planning ahead of them, including purchasing items to furnish their dorms or apartments, packing away their life into a few boxes, and, most importantly, vaccinations. Students living in close proximity dorm spaces with one, or more, students have a higher risk of contracting some types of illness. The University of Texas at Arlington’s nursing supervisor, Julia Woodard-Parker, advises students of all backgrounds to get properly vaccinated each year in order to prevent the spread of diseases within the campus. “It is important for young adults to get vaccines that protect against diseases like the flu and whooping cough,” Woodard-Parker said. “Germs travel quickly through a community and can make a lot of people sick. Even people who can’t get vaccinated should have some protection from getting sick.” The most common vaccination required by all Texas institutions, meningitis, needs to...

As a third grader, senior Joseph Castronovo had no idea what LGBTQ+ meant. He remembers getting bullied for a subject he had no knowledge of and how it affected him.  According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 34 percent of bullied students were tormented on school property, while surveys from the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network state that 61 percent of the bullied minors do not report attacks. However, for the students who do report the abuse, 31 percent said the school administration made no effort to respond accordingly. Meanwhile, a survey from 2005 states actual/perceived gender expression and sexual orientation-related bullying represents the second reason teens bully teens like sophomore Anna Smith*. “I told my mom first. She was a little upset, but she accepted it after a while,” Smith said. “I started getting bullied when I was 13. After that, things just started getting worse.” Castronovo and Smith both...