“I’m excited that the baseball field is going to be new and have a good infield” – Junior Jacob Strong

The bond will not only help sports, but other aspects of the school will benefit as well. The theater and music departments will be upgraded in the near future.

“I think all the updates will benefit the theater department greatly. The add on with the dance department will open the orchestra room for just orchestra kids, I think that will also have a really good positive effect so that each of those classes can have their own space” – Freshman Sydney Mischke

Students are pumped to go into the 2016-17 school year with these new improvements. Many believe that it will improve their overall performances, whether it be athletics, drama, or music.

On Friday, March 18, 2016, Mr. Mischke called everyone’s home saying that Mr. Onell, a very dedicated teacher, had passed away unexpectedly. This could not be true. He was so full of life every single day, how could he be gone just like that? That weekend was filled with tears, thoughts, prayers, and memories. To be honest, I dreaded coming back on Monday.

As I approached the room, I saw flowers and posters with notes from students. When I entered A-215, there was an uncomfortable silence that filled the room, the only thing breaking it were the muffled sobs coming from various kids with their heads down on the tables. I noticed the boxes of Kleenex placed on every group of tables and the pieces of paper lying there. Tears slid down my face as I remembered the fun we had with Mr. Onell. They are all happy memories, but how could he be gone? No one could get over the fact that he was not going to walk in. Class would never be the same.

Mrs. Eiynck, our substitute for the week, stepped to the front of the classroom and read a note from the family explaining how he had passed away on Friday. It was impossible to get through that note without crying. As we were utilizing the Kleenex boxes, Mr. Mischke came and talked to us about this tragedy, and assured us that if we need anyone to talk to, there are many people in the building that would be more than happy to help. All of the students were thankful for the support from staff members, but it would not bring Mr. Onell back to us. Nothing would. To finish out the day, we doodled our favorite memories of him on the sheets of paper.

For the rest of the week, Mrs. Eiynck worked on Spanish with us, and we proceeded to take a test on that Thursday before Spring Break. We all wondered what teacher we would have for the rest of the school year. Mrs. Eiynck told us that she had no idea, and that we would find out after Spring Break.

After Spring Break, we walked into the room and saw a teacher — Mr. Stoesz. Mr. Mischke introduced him and turned the class over to him. Mr. Stoesz is a short man with grey hair. He was a Science teacher in previous years, but has had extensive Spanish experience.

As of now, we are adjusting to our new teacher’s style and giving forth our best effort in memory of Mr. Onell, a person who impacted so many lives in such a short amount of time.

Buffalo High School has a very lenient and almost non-existent dress code. We can wear hats, short shorts, and carry around backpacks all day with us to our classes. This sense of freedom is not a common occurrence for the schools around us. Maple Lake High School has very strict rules. For example, the guideline of no sagging jeans, or handkerchiefs hanging out of pockets are just a few of the the restrictions that you will find in the Maple Lake Student Handbook. Orono, on the other hand, has a similar dress code to Buffalo, however short shorts are prohibited. If you visited Rockford High School, short shorts and hats are nowhere to be found.

Maddy Bremel, a Rockford Junior, commented on her school’s current dress code by saying, “The handbook says it’s strict, but they don’t really enforce it much.The one thing that they really don’t like are hats and inappropriate messages on shirts. Otherwise, they don’t enforce the other rules.”

When asked if she would want to change Rockford’s dress code to be less strict, she said, “No, it doesn’t really affect me because I wear sweatpants and t-shirts everyday and don’t understand kids who wear hats inside. It seems unnecessary.”

It would be interesting to see the standardized test scores from the above schools to see if a sense of free will, as seen in Buffalo, helps the learning environment or if it takes away from the focus of students.