Adios Graffiti Art: Mack Walls and Lockers Painted White, Grey, Colorless

Adios Graffiti: Mack Painted White, Grey, Bland, Colorless

Its graffiti art gave Mack pizazz. But Wednesday, a crew started painting over the bright orange, blue, green, purple, letters.
Even one teacher sighed, “I really liked the graffiti art. It was colorful, symbolic of school culture.” But McClymonds is preparing for Western Association of Schools and Colleges review of accreditation. WASC criteria passed in 2010  require that schools be “free of graffiti and clean.”

Mack Students Help With Bay Bridge Closure

Bay Bridge s-curve:  copyright photo by Benjamin Kimo Twichell

by Joy Scott and Harold Halcomb

They canvassed in downtown Berkeley and Emeryville. They stuffed and licked envelopes. And this weekend, McClymonds students were the only teens on Treasure Island, organizing and handing gear to construction crews working on the Bay Bridge.

Work progressed well. The bridge reopened ahead of schedule Sunday night.

“It was kind of exciting,” said Thoresha Branner, a senior at McClymonds, who canvassed in downtown Berkeley and near the campus for five hours and was scheduled to work on Treasure Island.

Wearing a yellow vest and name tag, Branner walked around and handed out flyers about the closure, answering questions. “Some people were surprised and didn’t know about the closure despite all the radio and TV news,” said Branner. “Others were relieved to know that BART would be running extra trains.”

Students at McClymonds were the only high school students from Oakland hired by Caltrans to canvas, stuff envelopes and work on the bridge during the closure.

Matthew Mayne, college and career coordinator at McClymonds, said that 13 students worked on the project after school. Students were paid $12 an hour.

“Caltrans was pleased with the energy and enthusiasm of our students,” said Mayne.

Over the weekend work, workers realigned and rapaved the approach from the toll plaza to the bridge, and connected it to a new detour to a widened incline section.

Workers also made cuts in a portion of the bridge deck that will be demolished to make it easier to remove.

The westbound lanes were closed at 8pm Friday and reopened at 7pm Sunday.

BART ridership was up 25 percent on Saturday.The bridge carries on average 270,000 vehicles a day.

Trendsetter: Friendship bracelets that spell something

Spell it out: love, date, special person

Photo by Gerureka Price

When Cheering Turns to Jeering

Jovi Dickens, junior, cheeleader at Mack, stayed "out of trouble"

by Joy Scott

Not all of McClymonds cheerleaders will be shaking their pompoms tonight.

A disciplinary hearing was held on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the disciplinary actions taken against McClymonds and Castlemont’s cheerleaders who engaged in a verbal fight during last Friday’s game.  Castlemont won that game 50-47.

“The meeting was about the conduct during the game and holding the culture at games,” said Jeremy Namkung, athletic program director at McClymonds. The cheerleaders had to sign contracts to follow guidelines at all future games and to conduct themselves according to the guidelines.

“It was both crowds who participated in this. They should both take responsibility,” said Namkung.

One cheerleader was banned from cheering at today’s game for refusing to sign the conduct agreement. Extra support staff for crowd control will be brought in for the game against Oakland High School.

Similarly, members of the McClymonds basketball team were discliplined for engaging in a verbal fight. The seniors will not start the game, though they will be allowed to play after the start.

“Both sides were hecka rowdy and competing,” said cheerleader Jovi Dickens, who stayed out of trouble. “People were yelling, ‘Castlemont, take that back to the East.’”

Despite the loss, McClymonds is tied for first place with Skyline High School.

Mack Family (and Friends) Celebrate Opening of Youth and Family Center

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photos by macksmack staff

by macksmack staff

It was a family celebration, Mack style.

All Oakland (and West Oakland) came together Thursday to celebrate the opening of the McClymonds Youth and Family Center, with its health center, computer lab, dance studio, multi-media lab and gathering areas.

(((more to come from student reporters)))

32 Minutes of Chaos

copyright photo of sophomore guard Gabby Gaines (out for several games now) by  Eric Taylor 1st String Magazine

stats provided by Max Preps

by Eric Gant and Stephen Vance

It’s the shortest in height, but also the scrappiest team in the OAL (Oakland Athletic League).

“Lady Warriors’ basketball is 32 minutes of chaos,” says head coach Dennis Flannery.

Despite its current slide, the McClymonds girls’ varsity basketball team “has a bunch of confidence,” says Flannery, a veteran coach with 26 years of experience who suffered a heart attack four weeks ago, but is back. “Our young players just need to step up.”

Its tallest player is only 5-foot-11, with 6-foot-plus players from rival teams towering over her. The other players are even shorter, much shorter.

Off to a promising pre-season start, the Lady Warriors (14-4) hit a snag, losing its two last games to #1 Skyline and Castlemont.  The team’s slide in standing to 4th place in the OAL is due mainly to the loss of two key players, sophomore guard Gabby Gaines (who hasn’t played since Jan. 6 and averaged 17.3 points a game)  and injured senior Therica McCord, as well as the absence of  Flannery at five key games. He was cleared to coach a few weeks ago.

In the first 14 games, Mack averaged 60.3 points a game. In the last four games, it averaged 39.5 points a game.

“It’s a challenge,” adds Flannery. “This team (if everyone is healthy and plays) could go deep into the playoffs.”  This team surpasses last year’s team in speed and shooting ability, he says.

The Lady Warriors  made sectional playoffs for four years in a row –quite a feat given McClymonds’ size of under 250 students. In the last two years, the team’s GPA was 3,1 of which Flannery is most proud.

The players don’t consider themselves Warriors or Lady Warriors, says Flannery. In fact, they end the game, shouting, “We’re family.”

“Coaching at Mack is like I had died and gone to heaven,” Flannery told macksmack in an interview in early December.  Just stay healthy, coach.

How healthy are tots living near CASS in West Oakland?

Terranisha Nathaniel, Stephen Vance and Pamela Tapia received EPA awards in February 2011 for work done in identifying and fighting pollution in West Oakland.

By Stephen Vance  with reporting from San Jose Mercury-News How bad is the air near the smelter just five blocks from McClymonds? Just ask a mother. A  new pilot study sponsored by the nonprofit Global Community Monitor will test the blood of tots (children 1 through 5) who live within a mile of Custom Alloy Scrap Sales, or CASS, targeted by environmental groups for pollution issues. “We’re just starting to recruit families in West Oakland,” says Ruth Breech, program director of Global Community Monitor. A four-year project by students in the Law Academy at McClymonds found that metal particles were present in the air surrounding the school community.  They took their findings to local media and eventually, they got the attention of Nancy Nadel, West Oakland’s City Council Representative.  With her support, a number of city agencies, including Police, Fire, Code Enforcement and City Attorney came together and conducted investigations regarding CASS’ compliance with environmental regulations.   Their findings determined that CASS was in violation of a number of regulations.  Although CASS has taken steps to correct a number of the violations, they are actively seeking to move their location away from the residential neighborhood where they have conducted business for more than 25 years. After pressure by local groups, CASS is trying to relocate to vacant industrial land next to the former Oakland Army Base. Breech said a total of 70 children — 35 children from each West Oakland and 35 from West Berkeley who live near Pacific Steel Casting– will be tested for heavy metals that have been previously detected in air quality samples. “This was prompted by the community,” Breech said. “They said, ‘OK, it’s in the air, so what is in our bodies?’ “ Children who live near  CASS  will be tested for lead and cadmium. Children who live near Pacific Steel Casting in West Berkeley will be tested for manganese. The study will compare the levels of metal found in children who live very close to the plants with the test results of children living on the edge of the study area. The results will also be compared with “normal” levels of exposure to those metals detected from other studies. “We have residential neighbors really living next to heavy industry, so our question is what is too close? How do we coexist?” Breech said. The study is a collaboration with the UC San Francisco pediatric environmental health specialty unit and Children’s Hospital Oakland. Children who are selected for the study will have their blood drawn at Children’s Hospital. The family must also make their home available for a one-time dust wipe sample that will be studied for the presence of metals. Air samples will also be taken during the study. Participating families will be given the blood test and dust wipe results compared to national averages. Families will also be referred to health agencies to help them interpret the results and find ways to reduce their families’ exposure, Breech said. The study will be completed by the end of this summer. For more information about the study and how to join, call 510-233-1870 or email program@gcmonitor.org.

Mack alumn Donald Layne: what I learned in high school; what I wish I had

"Wish I'd read more books in high school"

by Angelique Villasana

His blue and yellow knitted hat may say UCLA (prank gift from a friend), but Donald Layne’s  a happy freshman at Long Beach State University, where he hopes to major in social work.

“I wish I’d read more books at Mack,” he says, reflecting about his high school days.  He also wishes he’d spent more time studying for the ACTs, had taken the SATs, had written more papers and learned to type better.

What he learned at Mack that was most helpful: researching and writing a senior project; learning Power Point so well that he teaches it to his friends for free and to others for a small fee.

“College is a lot harder than high school,” says Layne, 19, who has a 3.2 GPA and takes advantage of tutoring programs, studies with friends and participates in BLC program that helps with every class.

The reason he chose social work as a major was to help the West Oakland community and other struggling communities. Once he was accepted at Long Beach State, he says he was self motivated and also ready to start his new life in college.

“It’s different, even better to be away from home,” he says. The “better” things are beaches, museums, Rosco’s Chicken and Waffles, warm weather, “people who aren’t negative” and diversity. His new friends include Latinos, African-Americans, Pacific-Islanders and Asians.

The scariest moment was….paying his own bills. Layne has $3,000 in loans and quickly learned to budget.

The Story Behind the New Mack T-Shirt: In the West, We READ

By macksmack staff

It was a bonding experience for black males at McClymonds — with an opportunity to read and be read to.

“It was inspirational,” said Shaquille Jackson, sophomore at Mack.

School administrators invited 40 professional African American men to conduct an inspirational assembly on Nov. 4 for McClymonds boys to talk about the lack of literacy among the African American community especially among males as part of the school’s campaign “In The West We Read.”  A similar program for girls will be held Jan. 7.

“An unacceptable amount of black men are behind in reading by the second grade,” said Franklin Hysten, director of Alternatives in Action.

Among the panel of professionals were Principal Kevin Taylor and Chris Chatmon-OUSD’s executive officer of African-American Male Achievement.  125 black males attended the event.

The exclusive black male event was the brainchild of Principal Taylor, who earlier this year emphasized reading and writing across the curriculum.

The assembly separated the audience into two groups and read the motivational book by Spencer Johnson “Who Moved My Cheese?”

“It’s especially important to have men read to younger men because most don’t have a memory or experience of someone reading to them,” said Hysten.

“I liked that they took their time out to come and read to us,” said Jackson.

The event focused on boys first because of the lack of Black male role models who are involved in the education of youth.

“African American boys are behind girls in maturity and academics,” commented Hysten.

Next month, McClymonds plans to conduct a girl version – in the west we read for girls.

Dancing Without the Stars: I’d Rather Spike a Volleyball

By Silvia Cardona-Tapia   Attitude, attitude, attitude. Just take me.  I’m being forced into a class that I don’t like. And it’s not even math or physics. It’s dance and I’m no dancer. In  truth, I’d rather spike a volleyball.This fall, McClymonds created a new policy to place the majority of the girls in a dance class instead of physical education (PE).   A class filled with 15 girls  — some of whom don’t want to dance –can be suffocating. “The deal was trying to build unity, sisterhood and telling a young lady what they need to know” said Lakeisha Golden, math and dance instructor. The administration might have made a serious mistake.  Corralling “drama girls” into a small class might not have been the smartest decision. “They are lucky to be in a class with 15 people instead in a class of 35-40 with me yelling at them,” said Jeremy Namkung, P.E. instructor and vice principal. But then, who really had a choice? Certainly not I. The tensions inside the dance class run higher than they would in normal PE.  Drama is in the air.  Past rivals in the same room create a hostile environment. No guys to insert humor in the situation – it’s downright catty. “We wanted to make it an all-girl class so they would feel more comfortable” said Namkung. Instead, shouting matches break out between teacher and student, and one student screams at another the words “bitch” “hoe”, “shut the f**k up”, as every curse word in the book flies across the room, faster than a pirouette. And more lethal. “It’s on them being in the dance class. Those are the same girls that complained and even failed my class,” said Namkung. For those of us who didn’t complain or fail PE ,this seems a harsh punishment.  Dealing with endless backtalk, shouting matches, and disrespectful comments in the room discourages girls to remain in the class. However, girls who enjoy dancing just ignore the drama. “I just like dancing,” said Nia Bell, a junior. Students face the problem of  an indifferent administation  that discourages the  idea  of transferring out of dance (especially since the vice principal  teaches P.E.).  It became extremely difficult and time consuming for a girl to attempt to switch dance class to PE. “It depends on the time of the year.  But some manage to switch.  It’s really based on time,” said Golden. Until I can switch back into P.E., I’ll feel like I’m in a telenovela.