The Week in Pictures Gallery gives a look into student life here at JC.

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As a result of seven days off this year due to snow and a water main break on campus, March 15 will no longer be a day off for students, and March 16 will follow an “E” day schedule.

With the addition of March 15 and the fact that the Patriot Raffle’s participation did not warrant the possible March 1 holiday, “we’re all square,” said Principal Paul Barker.

However, the problem arises that “Mondays and Fridays have been whacked more than any other days,” according to Barker. Barker added that with the addition of March 1 and 15, “Mondays are recovering some.”

To combat this problem, March 16 will be an “E” day, allowing the school to “have two “E” days that week,” said Barker.

Even with the change, “That won’t entirely get everything in balance, but it’ll make some impact,” Barker said.

In addition, another problem arises as a result of the additional “E” day: “When you do that, you mess with the schedules of teachers that teach part time,” said Barker.

After these changes to the schedule, Barker and the rest of the administration plan to continue to “wait and see about the weather from here on out.”

Barker cites the next “vulnerable day” as Holy Thursday.

Sharepoint sign-in speeds up tech lab progress

In an attempt to go completely paperless, the tech lab will use Sharepoint to sign-in broken laptops.

The idea was proposed by computer and Fine Arts teacher Anne McMahon in an attempt to help the tech office staff “eliminate using the paper system because it’s cumbersome to write everything down and then transfer it to the database.”

Students now log onto Sharepoint on a computer in the tech office and document information about their broken computer. From there, those who work in the tech office can sort by username, date, year of graduation, among other options, to see if patterns are developing.

Although students cannot see the documented information view, from the link bar on the teachers’ web portal page on Sharepoint, they can access a calendar that lists when their laptops will be ready to be picked up. Students’ names are taken off of the calendar once they pick up their computers.

”There have been a few little bugs we had to work out, but so far, it’s working great,” said McMahon.

The site has been “really well received,” said help desk assistant Jane Fogarty. “We’re really thrilled with this. It’s a step in the right direction considering we are technology. It’s the way of the future.”

Services offer benefits for alumni

In an attempt to maintain close contact with graduates, efforts have been made to “reach out in ways that are meaningful to alumni,” said President Richard O’Hara, including through social events, career networking, and technology.

To organize more events, as well as connected alumni, the Alumni Association was created. It consists of “a very strong team of alumni volunteers, creating a number of committees that deal with different aspects of the alumni community,” said O’Hara.

In addition, Director of Alumni Relations Sue Greig runs a “career networking” database to help alums. “It can be used for alumni who are looking for jobs and want to know if somebody in the John Carroll family can help them, either by mentoring them or knowing a job they can interview for,” O’Hara said about its role.

In every e-newsletter, there is a note telling alums to contact Greig, “whether they want to be involved in offering a position or are looking for one,” said O’Hara, who added that he would “like to expand this” to serve more alumni.

Such a feature has been utilized recently, according to O’Hara, when an alumnus had a position open up in his law firm and contacted JC to give first preference to any alum that may be searching for a job.

In addition, Greig hopes to utilize ways to help “alumni to promote their businesses” by offering discounts to other JC alumni. For example, an alumnus who works as a salesman at the Arena Club recently told Greig about his offer of no enrollment fee for JC alums hoping to join the club.

JC is also making use of modern technology to reach out to and connect with alums. “The alumni Facebook site helps get word out much better than more traditional forms of communication. We also keep alumni informed through ‘Connections’ [the alumni magazine] and an email newsletter. [We try to] engage them; keep them feeling connected and aware of what’s going on at John Carroll,” said O’Hara.

He added, “I see it as a big part of my role to establish my own relationship with as many as alumni as possible and tell them the story of John Carroll and what we’re trying to accomplish here.”

While we were on the bus going to cities outside of Toledo, such as Madrid, we heard many American songs on the radio.  A lot of them were very old, like songs by Shania Twain, and some of them were relatively current.  The Spaniards would sing the words to the songs, even though they didn’t have a clue what the songs meant.

In Toledo, there is a McDonald’s in the main square, but in Spain, it is pronounced “MacDonals.”  If you pronounce it as “McDonald’s,” most of the people won’t have a clue what you are saying.

Many other English words are also used in Spain.  One of the cell phone carriers there is called “Orange.” The mall in Toledo houses a store called “The Glow Store,” which has products like lava lamps and fiber optic lights.

There are brands in Spain that are equivalent to brands here, such as Nike, Adidas, and Roxy, all of which are sold in a store called Corte Ingles.

The night I got to Spain, we went to another exchange student’s house and the TV show “The Suite Life of Zack and Cody” was on.  I looked at their lips, and they didn’t match what was being said.  Their lips were speaking English, but all you could hear was Spanish.  After “Zack and Cody,” we watched the movie “Oceans 11,” which was in English.  My exchange student had a switch on her TV so the audio could be in English or Spanish.  So, we watched “Los Proud” or “The Proud Family,” half in English and half in Spanish.

Elizabeth Tauber can be reached for comment at etauber@jcpatriot.com.

In addition, according to Rawlings, “The majority of the coaching staff will remain.”

Stichel has experience on both the field and on the sideline, starting the game at age six. He played for McDaniel College, going 30-0 over a three year span to close out his collegian career.

At age 22, Stichel began coaching high school football and has been for the past ten years, becoming a head coach at Sparrow’s Point High School at 24. He was also a finalist to receive the head coaching job for the Patriots two years ago before coming on as offensive coordinator.

His decision to join the Patriots’ coaching staff was a convenient one. “It’s close to my house- – it’s four miles away from where I live,” Stichel said. “The second thing is that an opportunity arose [at JC] to coach at a higher level then what I was previously coaching at.”

Because of Stichel’s role as offensive coordinator, Dukes expects the logistics of the team to remain the same. “From an X’s and O’s standpoint, it is Stichel’s offense [the Navy offense] that we run,” said Dukes.

Senior Scott McIntyre said, “He’s one of the smartest coaches I’ve ever had.”

“The style of coaching is a little different,” Dukes said. “Coach Stichel learned a lot from Coach Rawlings. [The players will find] that Coach Stichel is very similar to the coach that they loved and has a pretty similar approach to the team.”

Senior Ian Jansing-Kaestner said, “Stichel’s coaching style is one that strives for perfection and for each player to work to be the best that he can be on the field.”

According to Stichel, “not much is going to change” in the program, as he is working to “make the transition as smooth as possible.”

The team anticipates seeing similarities. Junior Zack Frink said, “I’ll expect to see the same things from him since he was already coaching us last season.”

From his time with Rawlings, Stichel cites key lessons that he will bring into his tenure as head coach: “[I learned] how to delegate responsibility, not to take the game too seriously because it’s all about what we do to improve the kids off the field just as much as on the field, and how to develop close relationships with people.”

Stichel’s “ultimate goal” for the upcoming season is to “take our team to the next level and play in the championship because we were one game away the past two years.”

Rawlings did offer advice to Stichel: “I’d tell him to have a very strong relationship with Mr. Dukes and Coach Perry,” Rawlings said. “Those two have been very supportive of me and he needs to have that relationship with them. And win a championship.”

Dukes has positive expectations for the season following the turnover. “Coach Rawlings hired a very talented staff and put them in a position to succeed,” he said. “I’m very comfortable with the coaching staff, and once the dust settles with the boys, they’ll feel the same way.”

He concedes that “there’ll be some disappointment and transitional things to work through” because “the kids that have been in the program with Coach Rawlings will be sad to see this chapter in their lives ending.”

“It was very hard to leave John Carroll because I love the kids and the coaches and the football program. It was one of hardest decisions I’ve ever made in my life,” said Rawlings.

After two years coaching the Patriots’ varsity football team, Rawlings will opt not to renew his contract, citing family commitments. In his place, Stichel will take over as head coach, as well as continuing his play calling duties.

About his decision, Rawlings said, “This was a decision around God, family, [and] football. We follow God in what we do and serve God all the time. Family was before football here and that’s the bottom line.”

This was made clear, according to Dukes, from the time of Rawlings’ hire.  Dukes said, “His intentions were to coach his kids in high school or at least always be available to watch them play.”

Rawlings’ sons are attending St. Paul’s for high school, staying in the St. Paul’s system. “It was logistically not going to work for him to coach here and see all of his children’s sports,” said Dukes.

Added Rawlings, “At the end of the day, my family’s got to come before John Carroll football and if I was here doing football, I wouldn’t be able to see my kids with their football.  It was really based upon my family.”

However, although the agreement was made apparent, Dukes “believed that [the hiring of Rawlings] could have been a very long relationship. It would have been a logical place for his sons to come to high school.”

Rawlings added, “I planned on staying here for twenty years, but unfortunately it wasn’t in the cards.”

Even with the risk, “I knew what he would bring to John Carroll and was willing to take it,” said Dukes.

Part of what Dukes saw in Rawlings was his “passion for his commitment to growing these boys into young men, his passion to development off the field, and his passion to build a winning football program. He accomplished all three.”

Rawlings has not officially taken a coaching position at St. Paul’s. “There will be coaching opportunities there. What they are is not defined yet,” he said.

“Some are disappointed,” Rawlings said about the reaction of the players to the change. “When you have a great relationship [between the] players [and] coach, it hurts. People don’t like change.  It hurts me; my reaction was bawling my eyes out telling them I’m leaving.”

Junior Zack Frink said, “I’m really sad about it. I was looking forward to finishing out my high school career with him as head coach. He does all that he can for our team and then some. I respect how he puts God and family before football, [so] I guess at the end of the day, you have to do what you have to do.”

What the school loses from Rawlings is not just on the football field. Dukes said, “The biggest thing we lost is a genuine person of integrity whose priorities in life are what we try to teach all of our students. He walks the walk in everything he does. It’s hard to find people that bring those qualities, and when you do find someone like that, they will surely be missed.”

From the experience of coaching the Patriots, Rawlings will take with him “a lot of great memories.” He added, “I’ll treasure some of the experiences that we had together, [like the] times at Tall Timbers [football camp]. They are special memories that will never die.”

Rawlings also doesn’t expect to leave campus all together as a JV game between the Patriots and St. Paul’s is scheduled for September in which Rawlings’ oldest son will be playing.

“I’m five minutes down the road; I’m not going anywhere,” said Rawlings. “Once they play for you, they’re always your players. I’ll help my players in any way I can: jobs, college, whatever.”

As a result of the close relationships he developed with his players, Rawlings hopes to maintain contact. “I told them [the players] if it’s a true relationship, it’ll last forever,” he said. “I hope my relationships with the players meant something to be and I meant something to them will last forever. And I truly believe that. If you care about somebody, you always care about them.”

Rawlings knows that the football program will go through a transition period in 2010, but hopes that the fans stay behind the team. “We hope that the parents and alumni will continue their efforts to support John Carroll football and embrace this change in a positive matter and show up at all the games,” said Rawlings.

Click for more information about Rich Stichel.

Kate Froehlich can be reached for comment at kfroehlich@jcpatriot.com

The medals that Evan Lysacek, Shaun White, Lindsey Vonn, Apolo Ohno, and the USA hockey teams won top my list. Lysacek had big competition over the Russian Evengi Plushenko, and there was definitely an air of rivalry between the two.  Despite the hard-core edge that Plushenko tried to put on, everyone watching the event knew that he was worried about the Americans. Lysacek took the ice with nothing to lose and captivated everyone’s hearts.  He was able to put on the best routine of his life and defeat the Russian snob that had been in his head since he stepped into Canada.

Shaun White is not human.  After scoring not only one, but TWO nearly perfect scores (46.8 and 48.4 out of 50), he took gold in the Men’s Halfpipe Snowboard event.  White didn’t even stop with great scores.  No, he had to put on a show.  White was able to complete a Double McTwist 1260 on his final run and completely blow the snowboarding world’s mind. He’s only 23–years-old at this point, what else does this kid have in mind for the rest of his life?

Lindsey Vonn wasn’t even sure that she was going to be able to compete in the Olympics a few days before the event because of an injury with her shin.  Although she was only able to score gold in one of her events, Vonn was happy to even be able to get down the slopes.  But hey, if you’re going to go, you may as well go hard, and Lindsey sure did.  Lindsey took home gold in the Ladies’ Downhill Skiing, and a bronze in the Ladies’ Super-G.  For having an injury that almost took her out of the games, I think she did pretty well at making America proud.

Apolo Ohno has gone down in history this year as the most decorated Winter Olympian ever, although he didn’t win gold this year.  After being a big star in the last Winter Olympics, Ohno had a title to live up to.  He didn’t crack under the pressure.  He exceeded his limits and is now going down in the Olympic Hall of Fame.

America was able to take silver in both men’s and women’s ice hockey.  While everyone was focusing so hard on the men’s games, I feel like the girls got a little overlooked.  They had just as tough of a match as the boys and still were able to make a good showing in the final game against Canada. 

The men’s team was in the spotlight the entire time.  Canada was the enemy from the beginning with NHL star Sydney Crosby boosting the Canadian moral. In one of the most intense games ever, America was able to defeat the Canadians in their first match up.  For the entire tournament, goalkeeper Ryan Miller was astounding.  Not a thing was getting by that man.  Miller, a veteran on the USA team, was a strong center and a confidence booster.  America seemed to be a little frantic in the final game and Canada was able to come back and beat us for gold.  Regardless of the fact that Canada won, we all know that Crosby has to come back to the good old US of A to make his living. 

In the end, we all know that we are Americans.  We were able to band together and support one team, sporting red, white, and blue.  We came out as winners.  And we are proud.

Allison Siegel can be reached for comment at asiegel@jcpatriot.com

“A lot of good questions were asked [about my address]. I hope it was a report that showed both our strengths and didn’t equivocate on areas that require ongoing attention,” said O’Hara.

O’Hara’s  report rates 22 areas of the school, using color coding to show what is in need of progress (red), where change is underway (purple), and where goals have been achieved (green). This year, seven areas showed improvement, with only one seeing a decline.

Under the category of “safe, healthy, inclusive, [and] purposeful climate,” O’Hara cited progress because of “ the brand, particularly [the word] considerate,  our strong consequences for wrong behavior by taking a stand on it in a compassionate way, our careful monitoring of student health, [such as] H1N1, [and] our stance on drug [and] alcohol involvement.”

Specifically about the “inclusive” aspect of this area, O’Hara mentions that JC is becoming a “more diverse environment.” Only six percent of the class of 2008 consisted of students of color, a number which has doubled in the classes of 2011-2013.

O’Hara noted improvements in a “growth-oriented professional culture” as a result of students evaluating teachers through surveys. He added, “[We’ve] seen more evidence of the importance the faculty places on professional growth.”

The administration as a brand and mission-driven group has also moved in a positive direction, specifically after, O’Hara said, “new additions to the administration, because it is good to get new ideas in.”

Marked improvements have occurred in the field of “sufficient technology and information systems.” O’Hara said, “We have laptops for all [students] and we’re past problems [we had with the laptops]. We’re also planning to upgrade the wireless network to make it faster to help with teaching and learning.”

Catholic identity has seen “the most progress in any area,” according to O’Hara, as a result of both the branding and the completion of the strategic plan.

Another improved area is that of “facilities [that are] well maintained with [a] plan for [the] future.” This happened after, O’Hara said, “[We] outsourced our cleaning operations. Folks feel the building is cleaner. We also have a new addition in [Director of Faculties Stewart] Walker.  [Finally], the school is moving ahead in conjunction with the master plan.”

The final section that O’Hara marked as having progressed is in the engagement of students. He said, “It’s more of a gut feeling and the feeling that last year, I judged too conservatively. We also have high numbers of those that participate in activities beyond the classroom [as well as a] range of activities.”

Only enrollment saw a decline, as was expected. This is, “in part, by virtue of the large senior class, [as well as] demographics, the continuing factor of students going to Baltimore schools, [and] competition from the public schools,” said O’Hara.

The competition from other Catholic schools is noticeable, as, according to figures from the Archdiocese of Baltimore, 439 students within a six to 10 miles radius of campus have gone to competitor schools, with the largest number going to Calvert Hall College and Notre Dame Prep.

The demographics of Harford County reveal that from 2000-2009, the population of students ages 14-17 increased at a rate of 9.15 percent, while, from 2009-2014, the growth will be at 1.59 percent.  Likewise, during the same time span, the percentage of the population in high schools will drop from a growth of 19.17 to 4.51 percent, according to statistics from the EASI/NAIS Trend Report and Analysis for 2009.

Across the board, Catholic schools are seeing a decrease in students; from 2000-2009, the percent growth of men in Catholic schools was 18.46 percent and for women, 16.97, while from 2009-2014, the growth is expected to be 1.55 and 1.26 percent, respectively, said the EASI/NAIS Trend Report and Analysis for 2009.

O’Hara added, “[Enrollment] is the red sore thumb that’s sticking out there. Despite some improved and enhanced efforts to personalize the recruitment efforts, it is still a huge challenge for us.”

Following his presentation, O’Hara expressed pleasure with the “interaction the report led to” and “the discussion it generated,” with the hopes of seeing more green in his presentation next year.

Kate Froehlich can be reached for comment at kfroehlich@jcpatriot.com.

Release Date: Friday, March 12

Rating: PG-13

Genre: Drama, Romance

Info: Tyler (Robert Pattison) is a rebellious young New Yorker who has a strained relationship with his father (Pierce Brosnan).  Ever since “the family tragedy,” he believes no one can understand what he went through— until he meets Ally (Emilie de Ravin) through a twist of fate.   Love was never an option for Tyler, but this all begins to change when he starts to fall for Ally.  However, the same twist of fate may split Ally and Tyler apart.  What will Tyler do?

Movie times on Friday at the Bel Air Regal: 11:45 ; 2:20 ; 4:55 ; 7:25 ; 10:10

2. “She’s Out of my League”

Release Date: Friday, March 12

Rating: R

Genre: Comedy, Romance

Info: Kirk (Jay Baruchel) has a below average job as an airport security agent.  Then the impossible happens: a gorgeous and successful girl (Alice Eve) falls for him.  Kirk is stunned and so are his friends, family, and even his ex girlfriends.  As Kirk tries to make this relationship work, he must try to rule out the lingering feeling that she is way out of his league.

Movie times on Friday at the Bel Air Regal: 12:15 ; 2:40 ; 5:20 ; 7:50 ; 10:15

3. “Our Family Wedding”

Release Date: Friday, March 12

Rating: PG-13

Genre: Comedy

Info: Lucia (America Ferrera) and Marcus (Lance Gross) are getting ready to be married.  Now all that is left to do is to tell the parents.  As soon as the parents are introduced to one another, Lucia and Marcus realize that both of their fathers (Forest Whitaker and Carlos Mencia) are very competitive and could end up ruining the couple’s special day.

Movie Times on Friday at the Bel Air Regal: 12:10 ; 2:30 ; 4:50 ; 7:35 ; 9:50

Hilary Weidner can be reached for comment at hweidner@jcpatriot.com

This is exactly what I had felt upon arriving at the First Mariner Arena on Wednesday, March 3 to see one of my favorite bands – Muse.

As shameful as it is to admit, I first started liking Muse when I had heard their hit, “Supermassive Blackhole,” on the soundtrack of the infamous movie “Twilight.”

When I heard this song, it immediately struck me as a new, different type of alternative music.

What makes this band even more likable is the fact that they are British.  Who doesn’t love a British accent?  The word “Baltimore” never sounded so beautiful.Muse has a mix of an R&B and alternative sounds that makes them different from most bands. To satisfy their many fans, they’ve opened up their tour for 2010.

The Silversun Pickups opened for Muse. Do not get me wrong, they are a good band, with a different type of sound and a good lead vocalist.  But to be honest, who are they?  I’d never heard of them until I saw them in concert.

They did a good job.  They had nice vocals, nice guitar riffs, and nice kick and snare, but I was not pumped up by the end of their performance. Even though I have downloaded their one song, “Panic Switch,” I was left feeling a bit disappointed.

After the Silverstone Pickups were done playing, there was an intermission, making me even more anxious to see Muse.

Finally, when the lights dimmed and my heart was pounding almost out of my chest, the “Intro” started.

The stage had three tall city-like buildings placed on it.  And as Muse started their performance, the windows of the buildings began to light up.  Once they were lit, you could see the outlines of people going up the stairs in the buildings.

It was absolutely astonishing.  I was in complete awe, with my mouth open and everything.

But after a couple minutes, I started to wonder:  Where is MUSE?!

Then, I heard a woman saying  “Destroy…..Destroy….Destroy,” and as the people starting falling, the sheets covering the buildings were removed.

There they were.

They immediately began playing another one of my favorite songs: “Uprising.”  By now, everyone was bouncing up and down and moshing out of pure and utter excitement, while screaming the beloved lyrics.

As they moved from one song to the next, a mesmerizing light show moved to the beat of the music.  I did not know what to watch, the lights or my idols.

The next song on the line up was “Resistance,” which slowed the show down a little bit.

The next four songs that Muse played were “Supermassive Blackhole,” “Hysteria,” “Undisclosed Desires,” and finally, “Starlight.”

Each song was performed beautifully and I was in shock throughout the whole concert.  The lead singer, Matthew Bellamy, has an astonishing and gorgeous voice.  It is even better in concert, which is something you cannot say about many other bands.

The bass player and back up vocalist, Christopher Wolstenholme, did a remarkable job on all of his solos.  In addition, the drummer, Dominic Howard, was also crazy— in the most proper fashion.

The buildings would move up and down to allow the band to play on the stage or be suspended on the buildings, keeping me guessing as to what the band would do next.

One of the most memorable parts was that the music would never stop playing. There would always be incredible guitar solos between each one of their songs.

All in all, the concert was breathtaking.  My hands were shaking after the concert because I had truly just witnessed the greatest live band of all time.

Hilary Weidner can be reached for comment at hweidner@jcpatriot.com

Colleton County, South Carolina – A nine year-old girl attempted to poison her fourth grade teacher, according to Sheriff’s Deputies. A substitute teacher overheard the girl, whose name has been withheld, telling others students that she had “taken care” of her teacher and that teacher would not be coming back to school.  After the girl was confronted, she confessed to crushing up prescription medicine and pouring them into the teacher’s water bottle. The poisoned teacher said that she began to feel ill that day, but waited until the next day to go visit a doctor. Once at the doctor, the teacher took a toxicology test, which came back negative. The girl has been suspended, and, if convicted, will serve a sentence under house arrest.

Read more at live5news.com.

Boulder, Colorado – A Boulder Catholic school has refused to re-admit a preschooler because the student has two lesbian mothers. The Archdiocese of Denver issued a statement saying that “parents living in open discord with Catholic teaching in areas of faith and morals unfortunately choose by their actions to disqualify their children from enrollment.” Around 24 protesters were present for Sunday’s Mass at the Church which runs the school.

Read more at thedenverchannel.com.

Amsterdam, Netherlands – A 41 year-old Swedish man was arrested at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport for forgery and flying without a license moments before he was set to fly a commercial jet with 140 passengers on board. The man, whose name has not been released, was previously charged in Sweden with flying without a license, but authorities were forced to drop the case because he left Sweden.

Read more at cnn.com.

Collin Hoofnagle can be reached for comment at choofnagle@jcpatriot.com.