Colorful trifolds that tell stories of generations, games from all over the world, kids opening their eyes and their minds to cultures they had never been exposed to. In the early October air, you can hear the laughter and awe coming from the kids as they go from region to region, gaining a more cross-cultural understanding.

With modern media like Twitch and YouTube, gameplays have become one of the biggest trends that have only continued to grow in the last decade, especially post-COVID. People our age are getting their first good gaming set-ups and deciding to stream Fortnite or their hardcore Minecraft world, hoping to make it big. However, they have no idea that they could start making it big with their gaming at school.

Our technological world is ever-presently changing. With the rise of the internet in the early 90s, social media in the early 2000s, and now the emergence of artificial intelligence. We are constantly having to face changes and adapt to those changes, so how do we know what's right and wrong?

The spotlight shined bright at the Jenks Performing Arts Center on a Tuesday night as more than 150 Jenks High School students took the runway for the 27th annual Jenks Pom Fashion Show. With this year’s theme, “Living the Dream,” the showcase blended glamour, school spirit, and Trojan pride—both raising vital funds for the nationally recognized pom program and celebrating the latest trends in homecoming and prom fashion.

You're sitting in a classroom surrounded by your fellow elementary students, but instead of the usual table groups and chatter, the desks are arranged in neat rows, and the silence is thick with worry. You're staring at a math question that looks like it was written in another language, and your heart feels like it's about to beat out of your chest. You can see your other classmates finishing the test but you are nowhere near done. Your stomach is now doing flip-flops, and the clock is ticking louder and louder. You could swear you've never seen this kind of math before. And the clock is still ticking. And you're running out of time. And you bubble in C and pray you guessed right before moving to the next question.

The National Basketball Association, better known as the NBA, has been around since 1949 with a merger of two basketball leagues that were established only three years prior, according to this link. The NBA was something new and exciting to the usual baseball and football games that played on TV. It grew to popularity during the late 70s and early 80s.

Ding. I see a notification from my boyfriend. I open it to see an invitation to an app, Underdogs. I roll my eyes already knowing the string of texts that are about to be sent my way. Regardless, I click on the link. It says that if I open an account and put in five dollars my boyfriend will receive $100. This is sports betting. A world of recycling money that never seems to end up back in the hands of the bettors. However, as the users grow rapidly how do they all claim to be “winners”?

You’re laying in bed and scrolling on TikTok when you come across a video of a girl in her 20’s raving about how this new addition to her morning routine has changed her life. Her bloating has gone down immensely, her skin has completely cleared up, and her overall mood has boosted. She goes on about how the Coconut Cult yogurt is the “fix all” for any possible gut issues and all of her viewers NEED to go out and buy their own jar. A spoonful a day will make you a whole new person.

While summer is coming to an end and pools are turning cold, the pool at the Jenks Trojan Aquatic Center is starting to heat up with many swimmers training for this upcoming season. This is where Senior Alexis Selden is staying busy motivating her teammates to return to gold.

The first day of school; for some it’s exciting, for others it’s the start of just another year. After the same usual struggle of finding parking, you take a look around, expecting nothing different, only to find two arches marking the main entrance, and construction workers putting in turf and concrete benches in tapped off areas. These small add-ons to campus are cute, but what is the reasoning behind it? 

Imagine you’re in a hot desert. The heat makes the people around you multiply, seemingly thousands of people are surrounding you. All of them go in separate directions in search of the best deal. This isn’t your average desert; this is the new Outlet Mall.

The racket swings up as the ball is tossed in the air. The whip of his wrist creates power from his body as he makes contact with the ball and skids past the opponent. The crowd goes wild. Ladies and gentlemen, meet Krishna Bhadrirju, a 9th grader at Jenks High School. Bhadrirju has been playing tennis since he was 7 years old. This is an incredible accomplishment for Bhadrirju. The #1 and 2 on our JHS team are the top 3 in the state. Being right below them as a freshman is a big opportunity. This effort has paid off, Bhadrirju is already ranked 3rd on the team lineup. The work Bhadrirju puts in clearly is represented by his rank. But when he started, he wasn’t playing competitively, he was just having fun.

As a growing generation that’s engaged in our various communities, something students may not know is that anyone has the right to speak at school board meetings. School board meetings are open to the public. Although it may not be widely advertised, if you check out the Jenks Public School Board of Education page, you’ll find information on your personal school board member, upcoming meeting dates/times, how to make a public comment or hearing of the public, and meeting minutes from the past year.

For those looking for a guide to speaking at a Jenks Public School Board meeting, this is just the article for you. I have divided this article into sections: School Board 101, Making a Public Comment vs a Public Hearing, Common Misunderstandings, How Student Voices Make an Impact, Tips for Speaking, Post Speaking, Building Relationships, and Advocacy, and “What’s Next.”

After writing an extensive article about speaking at Jenks Public School Board meetings, here is a list of 10 things to know before speaking at a Jenks Public School Board Meeting.