For a third round, Sydney returns to write for The Central Trend as a junior. During the summer, she attended the Washington Journalism and Media Conference in Washington, D.C. There, she listened to its most influential voices and experienced its fervent energy, as well as immersing herself in the world of journalism for a week straight. In her free time when she’s not working, she’s often heard complaining about Candy Crush levels—as if she hasn’t completed enough (current level: 1,403)—or writing something of some curious kind. Her mind is dancing as she drifts through the rest of high school, but she’s grateful to have The Central Trend as an outlet for her to publish pieces she’s proud of and to have the rest of staff to look to.
Greatest talents: Cracking her phone, breaking everything, misplacing her debit card, sleeping too often, and playing with her cat, Casey.
Best Harry Potter character: Hermione Granger (classic).
Forever-favorite song: “A Pearl” by Mitski—absolutely ethereal.
Weird childhood obsessions: Dinosaurs, fossils, rocks, monkeys, butterflies, poisonous animals—anything environment-related, honestly, but also Wii Sports Resort ping pong and puzzles.
Position: Speaker
Title: "Lost Moth" (spoken poetry)
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I remember seeing FHC Inspires last year, and I have not previously been super [fond] of speaking, but...
Position: Speaker
Title: "I am a Bully"
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I like to talk, and I wanted to get my message out there."
How are you feeling about speaking at FHC Inspires?
"Fine....
Position: Speaker
Title: "The Impact of Handwritten Letters"
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I don't like public speaking, but I think that would be a really cool experience, and I think...
Position: Speaker
Title: "We Are All Leaders"
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I applied to inspire people; I mean, a lot of people don't really know what a leader's like, and that's what...
Position: Speaker
Title: "How To Be A Better Liar"
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I'm not even going to lie, although I do really like speaking and entertaining, I got peer pressured a little...
Position: Speaker
Title: "We Should All Learn a Second Language"
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I applied to be a speaker because after doing my talk for the first time, I realized what a...
Position: Speaker
Title: "Overthinking"
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I like talking to people. I talk a lot, like a lot. That's why my voice hurts right now, but I like public speaking....
Position: Speaker
Title: "Your parents are your 'best friends'"
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"Mostly because I don't like public speaking. It's something that I've never really been good...
Position: Speaker
Title: "Unrealistic Expectations"
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I really hated public speaking because as a kid, there were some incidents where I was made fun of and...
Position: Speaker
Title: "Positive Perception through Celiac Disease"
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I applied because I wanted to share my story about Celiac Disease and the lessons I learned...
Position: Speaker
Title: "Power of a Name"
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I thought it was a good idea because there's not really a lot of opportunities to do something like this, so I thought...
Position: Speaker
TED Talk Title: Spoken Poetry
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I didn't really want to do it at first, but, you know, I thought it was a cool opportunity to get to say something...
Position: Speaker
Title: Spoken Poetry
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I applied to FHC Inspires because I honestly really wanted it. Ever since I learned about the TED Talks and FHC Inspires...
Position: Speaker
Title: "The Power of Embarrassment"
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"If I had heard my talk in middle school, I think I would have been a lot happier, and I truly believe...
Position: Speaker
Title: "Boredom"
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I applied to be a speaker because a lot of my friends did that last year, and I wanted to do it, and I [am] really passionate...
Position: Speaker
Title: "Never Too Late"
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I applied because I really enjoyed giving a TED Talk, and I hope to inspire other people."
How are you feeling...
Listening to the car radio whenever she could, senior Payton Vincent was destined to become a pop star like Taylor Swift when she grew up.
“When I was younger, I mean, just like I am now,” Payton...
In my (almost) seventeen years of life, I’ve escaped the universal experience of being forcibly sat in front of a TV and left to distract myself with The Wizard of Oz.
I had no idea the film transitioned...
I used to be a serious Dr. Pepper addict.
A few years ago, I randomly fell in love with the soda and became seriously hooked; Dr. Pepper was a significant part of my freshman-year life. There was...
How do you feel about being on Winterfest court?
"I'm super excited. I'm really excited to show off our lip sync. We've been working really hard. Everybody's been super nice and I'm just really happy...
Students are getting festive in February for Winterfest week as they prepare for the big dance this Saturday and the crowning of king and queen Friday, during the men's varsity basketball game. Stay tuned...
There are no words, literally none.
From an artist who has reached millions with his distinct voice and style, whose fan base surrounds teenagers who've fallen in love with what he's released, he will...
Role: Host
Grade: 12
What are your feelings about hosting?
"My feelings right now are really high. At first when [English teacher Robbin] Demeester asked me to be the host of it, [I was] a bit...
Grade: 10
Performance: "Toxicity" by System of a Down
Give an elevator pitch for your performance:
"I'm gonna be doing some very intense drumming to metal. [I'll] be using a lot of aggression."
What...
Grade: 12
Performance: "Blow Me Away" by Breaking Benjamin
Give an elevator pitch for your performance:
"Basically, if you like rock metal, I'd say it's a good performance for you. If you...
Grade: 12
Performance: "Set Fire to the Rain" by Adele
Give an elevator pitch for your performance:
"So basically, [it's] my friend [senior] Aya [Shakir] and I. It's not really [a] duet, but...
Role: Host
Grade: 12
What are your feelings about hosting?
"I'm excited. It's something new. I've never done this before. I've never been in a talent show, so I'm excited."
What will you be...
Grade: 9
Performance: Rythym video game
Give an elevator pitch for your performance:
"It's unusual. It's not the usual you would expect, like singing, dancing, or acting. I'm actually playing...
Grade: 12
Performance: "TBD" by Marissa Lunt
Give an elevator pitch for your performance:
"For my performance, you're supposed to expect singing, piano, and pretty much a song that's based...
Grade: 11
Performance: Stand-up comedy
Give an elevator pitch for your performance:
"Hopefully, I can make people laugh. I feel like people who smile [show] the best of themselves. The best...
Grade: 11
Performance: "All I Ask" by Adele
Give an elevator pitch for your performance:
"Well, it's a very strong ballad, and I have related to her a lot. So there's a lot of emotion there,...
This Saturday, Jan. 20, 2023,at the FAC, the wonders of brilliant and masterful performers are to be explored. For students and their surrounding community, FHC's Got Talent awaits the opportunity to showcase...
Grade: 10
Performance: Supersonics
Give an elevator pitch for your performance:
"We are performing, 'Holding out for a Hero,' and it's just us. We don't have any backing tracks. We don't have...
Grade: 12
Performance: Bobblemasters
Give an elevator pitch for your performance:
"It is an act with all senior girls, and it is a surprise, for the most part, but it will for sure be funny."
What...
A faultless gem casts no shadow, and still, the outline of its tantalizing foundation is overt, persistent in perpetuity.
Undisguised is she, twinkling in the darkness of those who've been invited—those...
A 2015 sunset orange Jeep is not a middle-aged man thing, yet my dad adored the obnoxiously-colored brick flying through the air.
And “flying” isn’t the correct adjective to describe it at all:...
I didn’t get my training wheels off until I was eight years old.
If you, too, had a two-track racing down a hill, you would want to go as fast as possible down it—I lived a slow eight years, having...
Getting a driver's license is a big accomplishment that Sydney has yet to catch up to. At sixteen years old, she has no desire to drive, be a driver, or engage with terrible drivers on the road already....
Like yesterday, I remember nervously untangling my knotted headphones, and quickly turning on my favorite Joji songs while on the bus or walking in the halls
Then, “Yeah Right” by Joji was the only...
John Orr—because duh
Thank you for spending that much money on me. Thank you for covering my expenses when stores don't take Apple Pay (because they really should start). Thank you for taking me to...
It’s okay that a few 2019 singles are Frank Ocean’s most recent songs. The man behind two cult-classic albums that have dynamic allure and appeals has curated a project, Homer Radio, that continues...
It doesn’t take a genius to realize that snow is about to fall.
One morning, as I made the bitter trudge from the overflow lot to the front doors of the school, the air was noticeably dangerous....
Grade: 10
Role: Professor Plum
Why do you enjoy being in the play?
"It's just a very high energy play, so it's fun to rehearse, and there's a lot of moving parts."
What made you decide that you wanted...
Grade: 12
Role: Colonel Mustard
Why do you enjoy being in the play?
"I enjoy being in the play because it gives me a new creative outlet to put my energy into. It's a medium that allows me a...
Grade: 10
Role: Yvette
Why do you enjoy being in the play?
"I love being a part of the play, because then, I get to hang out with my lovely cast every day and get to know them really well. I...
Grade: 12
Role: Mrs. Peacock
Why do you enjoy being in the play?
"I think a major part of my love for the play is the friends and family I have made so far. I have never had such a fun and...
The videos circulate on social media every year: Arizona residents frying eggs in their driveways due to the ultimate heat index of it.
Despite the fact that Arizona is located in the desert, I am still...
The beginning of June; it's the official start of summer, and my birthday month, but some will argue it's technically late spring—a disrespectful "no," in my opinion, because I'm a proud summer birthday—right...
For it being smaller than Michigan, in terms of total area, United Kingdom news has been circulating the world excessively in these past few months between the controversies surrounding ex-British Prime...
In the past, Advanced Marketing teacher Kristen O'Brien kept running into the same small issues with the old-school apparel store and decided to close it, relocate, and restore a certain piece of pride...
During the fall months, senior Kami Koetsier loves to rummage through each article of clothing on the racks at Goodwill and shop for big grandpa sweaters in the men’s section.
Once she has selected...
One day, I was finally buying a plane ticket, flying me across the Atlantic and landing in my dream city. In pictures live the aerial views of all the monuments that stand, but in my dreams, they burned...
What was your reaction when you heard your name called?
"I was so shocked and did not expect it at all."
Why do you think you were nominated?
"I think I was nominated because I try to talk to...
What was your reaction when you heard your name called?
"Hearing my name, I was honestly more excited than I thought I would be."
Why do you think you were nominated?
"I feel it’s pretty typical...
What was your reaction when you heard your name called?
"At first, I was slightly caught off guard, because I wasn’t expecting it and especially not being called down first, but when I heard my name,...
What was your reaction when you heard your name called?
"My initial thought was just how I was going to get around all the people in [the] bleachers, as I was sitting in the middle. However, my reaction...
Grade: 10
What excites you most about Improv Central?
"[I'm excited to] really be able to connect with a small group of people and just build my social skills a lot better. A big part of it is...
This Saturday, October 1, Improv Central is back and performing a show at 7:33 p.m. Tickets are $7 at the door and $6 if you purchase your tickets during the week. Check out these Q&As with the cast...
Grade: 12
What excites you most about Improv Central?
"These are some of my friends, and I love to play games and just have fun with them. A lot of practices I leave just crying because I'm laughing...
Where the fragile pair raked piles of leaves for dollar bills, they swam through each brown crunch just to have scraps of twigs and brush in their hair, leaving littered in the dirt particles. Trees in...
With senior Sarah Bethel’s strong commitments and novel aspirations for her last year of high school, she knew well before something in her schedule had to give, having to juggle a social life and swim...
It’s truly miraculous how shoving single-use plastic into another single-use plastic is considered “sustainable.”
A major point of living sustainably is reducing the usage/consumption of plastics,...
Scaling in elevation, searching the earthy, serrated edges of stones on steep mountains; seemingly, my summer no longer stood its heave. It’s July, now. Summer’s progression remains unregistered, vacant...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• May 23, 2022
A specter in our eyes, the omniscience of its nature,
We suspire for the sake of supererogation.
Mislaid in jurisdiction and
Usurped in competency,
Fundamentals...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• May 23, 2022
Name: Eva VanTil
Position: Speaker
TED Talk title: Addiction
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I applied to speak because I want to spread awareness about addiction. It is a topic I'm passionate...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• May 23, 2022
Name: Sofia Hargis-Acevedo
Position: Speaker
TED Talk Title: How to get over a fear
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I applied to FHC Inspires because I decided that I didn’t want to...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• May 23, 2022
Name: Molly O'Meara
Position: Speaker
TED Talk Title: Why everyone should learn ASL
Why did you apply to be a speaker?
"I wanted to share my cousin’s story. He is mute, and not many people...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• May 23, 2022
For the fourth year, Honors English 10 students will be presenting their personalized speeches at the Fine Arts Center on May 31, 2022. FHC Inspires begins at 7 p.m. at no cost!
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• May 23, 2022
Some weeks ago, I was messing around with the Weather app on my phone as one does on occasion. After checking the temperatures in cities I’ve never heard of or cared about, curiosity led me to check...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• May 15, 2022
Kendrick Lamar has spoken once again.
Already, it has been five years since DAMN reoriented our lives, and I've never met somebody who resents "HUMBLE." or "PRIDE." Ranging from young teenagers to...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• May 9, 2022
I’ve rewritten this column multiple times in the past few weeks. Each time with different leads and ideas, memories to include, and cover photos, but this is as good as it is going to get.
But the...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• May 8, 2022
There’s a voice that haunts a specific era of TikTok for me. Immediately, I hear the “And here’s *two nail taps* the m*ther f*kcing *two more nail taps* tea..” shrieking in my head, but there’s...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• May 3, 2022
I had a recurring fear that the sun would stop hovering over Earth and specifically plummet on me. As young as I was, I spiraled into crying fits about the outside, expecting the sun to poison my turbulent...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• March 28, 2022
In the fourth grade, my class had a chance to tend a tank of salmon. When the salmon were old enough to be independent, we set them free in the Thornapple River. Periodically, an assigned group of students...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• March 21, 2022
Current Joys, a notoriously depressing band amongst teenagers, released an album recently. Just shy of a month ago on Feb. 25, 2022, Covers From Across the Sea appeared on new release radars, but what...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• March 16, 2022
Name: Zach Guikema
Grade: 12th
Role: Lord Pinkelton
Why did you decide to try out for the musical?
"I decided to try out for two main reasons. One, I've had past experience doing theatre all...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• March 16, 2022
Name: Kenzie Davis
Grade: 12th
Role: Stepsister (Charlotte)
Why did you decide to try out for the musical?
"I thought to try some new things and joined the musical."
What are you most excited...
Name: Gia Monterusso
Grade: 10th
Role: Stepmother
Why did you decide to try out for the musical?
"Well, I did the musical last year, and I did the play this fall. I just wanted to keep doing...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• March 15, 2022
Name: Russell Baird
Grade: 12th
Role: Sebastion
Why did you decide to try out for the musical?
"Honestly, I've done the previous shows, and I have a lot of friends who were doing it. So actually,...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• March 14, 2022
I hear the whispers waning, softening, searching for new and meaningless drama to voice. Octaves from the different speakers intertwined with each other. Oh, so sonorous and gorgeous, but it is nothing...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• March 7, 2022
A familiar, discernable voice has graced my Browse page on Apple Music for the first time since quarantine. In April 2020, there was one song that was always in the MiniPlayer window: “Tommy’s Party.”
Neil...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• February 28, 2022
My toxic trait is attaching myself to everything in my life—but more specifically, my computer. I am in a dire need of a new one, but I can’t give Fran up.
Fran’s extensive list of issues started...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• February 22, 2022
Adventure unfolds in peculiar ways with Alt-J’s new album, The Dream. The typical psychedelic and wavy synthesis of Alt-J’s music has always attracted listeners and piqued their curiosity. The British...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• February 13, 2022
Once upon some interminable time, a stage was left empty. She wasn’t the only soul to strike the beautiful hardwood, however. She made friends with dainty dust bunnies that would sometimes escape their...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• February 7, 2022
Laurel Hell: Mitski’s reappearance into the music world and her wave “hello” to fans after a long four years dormant.
This album might’ve never been an album in the first place, and for that,...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• February 3, 2022
For years, senior Madie Weaver has immersed herself in the many forms of music.
Whether that is a written song or one of the four instruments she has learned to play, music is Madie’s escape from...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• January 31, 2022
A trend that wavers every now and then has graced my TikTok For You Page—Korean skincare. As the name suggests, it is skincare from South Korea that is supposed to help fight acne on skin like mine,...
Sydney Race, Public Relations Assistant
• January 27, 2022
Musical and lyrical genius Earl Sweatshirt released a one-of-a-kind throwback album that others could only attempt. A necessarily nostalgic memento from the now disbanded rap group, Odd Future, was taken...
