The rebranding contest was launched last November by the city of Collegedale and was open to all students and residents of the city. The designs, officials said, were to be “judged on various aspects, including creativity, relevance to Collegedale’s identity and values, versatility, and use of color and typography.”

“I experimented with dozens of color options,” says Mancia, “before landing on a natural, cohesive palette that felt professional and welcoming…I kept adjusting each color until it eventually all came together.” The fonts chosen for the design were Futura PT, “for a clean, modern look,” and Georgia, “for a classic touch.” 

When considering early concepts, Mancia credits “a marathon across Collegedale” as serving as inspiration. She says, “I wanted to make sure I fully knew every detail of Collegedale so I literally walked around everywhere. I walked the Greenway multiple times, along with Little Debbie Park, The Commons, and Imagination Station. Taking my time looking at all the details that some people may not even see. I took my camera and drawing pad to start sketching ideas.”

In addition to this field research, Mancia credits Dr. Mills McArthur, professor of history and political studies at Southern Adventist University, with helping refine ideas. Stated Mancia, “I had him [Dr. McArthur] in mind when I began my research looking through some of Southern’s archives and eventually found articles featuring Dr. McArthur and his words on the history of Collegedale. After drafting a historic summary for my concept, I met with him to ensure accuracy. His guidance helped me refine the historical representation of Collegedale and behind the design.”

Additionally, she credits Randy Craven, SVAD professor at Southern Adventist University, with helping her understand the bridge between art, history, and design. She states, “Professor Craven’s class taught me the importance of understanding history and purpose behind a design. I learned to build cohesive brand systems, brand books, and about the process from brainstorming to sketching to designing! His expertise and guidance were extremely valuable which helped me develop this logo.”

An Explanation on the Newly Designed Logo, by Laurisa Mancia herself: 

“Here are the presentation notes I used for describing the symbolism of the design: 

The badge shape represents safety and service, inspired by the city’s original emblem.

The mountains and sunrise reflect the White Oak Mountains and Collegedale’s natural beauty.

The flag symbolizes Veterans Memorial Park.

The Clock Tower stands for community and direction.

Wright Hall represents education and leadership.

The train tracks honor the city’s railway beginnings.

Wolftever Creek and the Greenway represent nature and wellness.

The evergreen tree connects to Little Debbie Park and the city’s environment.

Overall, the logo blends Collegedale’s history with a modern, timeless identity.”

“It feels like an incredible honor,” says Mancia, “Seeing something I created become part of the city is so rewarding, especially after sometimes doubting my own work. It just shows me that dedication and time can truly be rewarding if you stick with it.”

Designing a logo, or anything else for that matter, may seem like a simple thing to do. Now with generative tools like AI, it is easy to simply generate designs with prompts, rather than spending a lot of time and effort on a project. Designers like Macia. however, show us the value that is found, when an individual – artist, designer, creator – spends time and truly achieves something great and of value. Laurissa’s design is embedded with history and personal significance that make it stand out among others. Collegedale Academy is proud to have alumni, such as Laurissa Mancia, who show us that there are no limits to what you can achieve. 

Says Manica, “I’m grateful for my friends, family, and professors who supported me through this process. I’m proud of how it turned out and excited to see its future in Collegedale.”

• Personal Care! Do something you want to do. Read a book, listen to music, or maybe go for a walk and stay off your phone!!
• Maintain a healthy lifestyle! Getting good sleep, eating a balanced diet and having regular breaks can really help with this. Did you know that 1 hour of sleep before midnight equals two hours of sleep after midnight?
• Great time management! Planners can help organize your assignments so you don’t get overwhelmed.
• Seek support! Asking for help from friends and family to study can make the work lighter!
• Practicing Stress Management! When you feel yourself getting overwhelmed, you can always just pause for a moment and breathe. Get some water and do something else for a while! 

1. Gift them a basket of herbs and ask, “Will you be my Valen-thyme?
2. Fill their kitchen with bunnies and paint “Somebunny loves you!” on all of them.
3. Catch a squirrel and put it in their backpack. When they open it say “I’m nuts about you!”
4. Still can’t find a date? Go to the grocery store. They have plenty of dates there!
5. Throw eggs at their house in a pattern that spells “You’re eggs-actly right for me!”
6. Invite them to your house, turn the heat up to exactly 96°F, then ask, “Is it hot in here, or is it just you?” 
7. Take them to Hawaii, make a volcano explode, then take your date to the top of a tall building surrounded by lava and present them with a giant heart that reads “I lava you <3”
8. Go to a zoo and buy all the bears. Train them to speak, then go with them to your crush’s house at night so when they wake up in the morning, you and the bears will greet them singing “I love you bearry much!” Don’t forget to teach one to play the piano.
9. Can’t find a spark? Turn on your Wifi, maybe you’ll make a connection.

I wish you all a happy Valentine’s Day. Hopefully, you have a date, but if you don’t, you might want to try out some of these ideas. 

Starting high school is a big change. A lot of freshmen have questions about how things work, and what to do in certain situations. The good thing is that there are people out there who have been through these same scenarios, and they can help. But it can be hard to talk to people, especially if you don’t know them. We asked some freshmen about what questions they have about high school, and then asked some experienced senior students about how to answer them. 

ACADEMICS

Tips on passing classes?: I made the mistake my freshman year of just not caring about anything school. I regret that a lot. I would probably say that you should study a lot more than you think you should. If you have a test coming up and you think you’re good, still study. Do not be one of those people that calculates the lowest possible grade on a test and just aim for that (I did that a lot and it’s a bad idea). Aim for the highest you can get. And if there’s extra credit or maybe a retake, definitely do that. That’s what’s been helping me a lot.

What’s the hardest freshman class?: I would probably say Algebra I.

Is there anything I can do to study better?: For me it would depend on what you are studying like, for example, math it would be just practicing, but overall just know your learning style. If you do well on one test go over what you did well on, and how you studied for it.

FRIENDSHIPS

Why don’t I have any friends?: One way of making friends is to be in more clubs and activities. That way you are already spending more time with them and getting to know them better. 

How can I make friends?: You make new friends by being open to including new people. You have to make people feel comfortable to talk to you. You might have to get out of your comfort zone a little and talk to new people. Also, a great way to make friends is to get involved. Join groups, sports, clubs (that interest you), music groups, and go to school events. People who are the most involved are going to be the ones with the most (real) friends. 

RELATIONSHIPS

How do I break up with my boyfriend/girlfriend?: It really depends on the circumstances. Were they talking to someone else? Were you? Did they say something that you can’t get over? Please just be nice to them, cause I’ve been broken up with before and you just really want to let them down easy. Unless they were cheating on you cause then you can be as mean as you want. If you need to cry then that’s fine, but please be nice to them. 

Will I meet the one that I marry in high school?: Honestly, that just depends on who you are. You have to keep in mind that you’re still a teenager, and that there’s so many people out there. If you’re going to date in high school, then you might have a higher chance of meeting someone, but if you don’t want to or you’re not allowed, then that’s really fine. You’re literally probably only like 14 or 15, so don’t even worry about that kind of thing yet. 

Will I die alone?: You are just a freshman. Don’t worry about relationships right now. Focus more on friendships and school because you still have a long time to find someone. The right person will come into your life, you just have to be willing to wait. 

The chosen speaker to open this new school year was Pastor Greg Taylor, who was accompanied by his wife Kim, the Youth Ministries Coordinator for the Southern Union. Pastor Greg also serves as the Youth Director for the Southern Union, meaning that CA students who attended previous prayer conferences were already familiar with him, as he often led out and was involved in those events. 

Every chapel during the week of prayer was opened by rotating groups of praise teams, leading the students in a few songs of worship, and singing the theme song for the week, “Heart of Worship.”

Throughout the week, Pastor Greg told many stories about his life, particularly about his growing and evolving relationship with his wife. He also drew many examples from the Bible, highlighting instances when characters realized that they would only succeed through Jesus. On Thursday, Pastor Greg and Kim gave a unique talk, naming the ten things a relationship needs to survive, from communication to a relationship with Christ. 

Pastor Chris Massengill said “It was great to have pastor Greg and his wife, Kim, here to share the messages daily but most of all, I was excited to see him regularly in classrooms and also attending sporting events with the students several times a week.” In fact, the Taylors supported CA’s sports teams, attending multiple games, engaging with students outside of the classroom.

On the final day of Week of Prayer, Pastor Greg gave an invitation to all CA students to strengthen their relationship with Jesus, passing out slips of paper where students could request Bible studies, studies for Baptism, or simply to rededicate their lives to Jesus. In total:

• 66 students requested Bible studies.
• 49 students requested studies for Baptism.
• 250+ students chose to rededicate their life to Christ.

       Ben Zepeda, Student Association President, said, “It’s great to see the school all come together for something, especially when it’s worshiping the one true God that we all believe in.”

Overall, this past Week of Prayer succeeded in bringing CA students closer to Christ.

Both chess players and the average person love to play games in some way. In fact the board game market made over 9 billion dollars in revenue last year. So for any person chess could be another way to enjoy their favorite hobby through expression. Back to Bobby Fischer he once said “ Chess is dead,” because he truly believed it had lost its way. It went so far that he made his own variation of chess called chess 960 which randomizes the pieces from the start so you can’t rely on pure memorisation. I want my players to feel like they can play the way they feel best, not just follow pre-memorized moves or rote methods. People may not think of Chess as a game where creativity comes into play, but in Chess club we’ll teach people how to expand their minds with this ancient game.

Composed of three different plays (as trilogies usually are), The Oresteia tells of what befalls the house of Atreus following Agamemnon’s return after the end of the Trojan War. It all leads back to Troy. For some context, before the Achaeans could sail to Troy and get Helen back, Artemis set the winds against them making it impossible for them to set sail. To appease her, Agamemnon, king and leader of the Achaeans, sacrifices his daughter Iphigenia. This works and the winds subside, letting the Achaeans sail for and wage war on Troy. The thing is that human sacrifice was not an ok thing to do in Ancient Greece. While Artemis demanded the sacrifice, most people agreed that what had happened was not a good thing. Above all of these critics is Queen Clytemnestra, wife to Agamemnon and mother to Iphigenia. She (unsurprisingly) is very not ok with the murder of her daughter and so while the armies are away she plans out the revenge she will take for her daughter. This leads us to the first entry of the trilogy:

Agamemnon

Agamemnon is the first play of Aeschylus’ trilogy and is also the longest. In it plays out the revenge that Clytemnestra has planned for her husband in full view, to the horror of the audience and the Greek elders who bear witness to her crime.

          The play begins with a watchman on duty relaying to the audience the position in which he is in. He has been ordered by queen Clytemnestra to stand watch for any sign of the return of the Greek armies from Troy. He describes to the audience how for years he had been facing and watching the sea, the elements all working against him and sleep threatening to betray him, but he masters his challenges and keeps watch faithfully; until he spots a sign. Far off shore he sees the ships of the Greek armies arriving, signaling their victory, so rushes to go tell the queen. 

          The queen orders sacrifices to be performed on altars to the gods, which gets the attention of some elders who don’t understand how the queen can be sure that the Greeks were victorious in battle. She relays to them how a messenger relayed the news to her. Later on, Agamemnon finally arrives at the scene. Queen Clytemnestra offers praise to the Achaeans, especially Agamemnon in his charge to victory. Here too we are shown the prisoner Agamemnon brought with him, princess Cassandra, daughter of king Priam and priestess to Apollo, cursed so that no one would ever believe her prophecies,even though they were always true . Here Clytemnestra challenges Agamemnon subtly by offering him compliments, and offers a sinister gift. She lays a purple tapestry on the floor, very expensive in the ancient world, and invites the king to walk over it. At first to us modern readers, we may be perplexed at this situation. Agamemnon wisely is reluctant to walk over the tapestry while Clytemnestra keeps attempting to talk him into it. Now why is this important? The tapestry, and the walking over it, is a symbol of hubris. Such displays of luxury are reserved only for the divine, and if Agamemnon chooses to walk over the tapestries offered to him by his wife, he puts himself on the same level as the gods, a transgression against them. But the queen continues persuading, telling Agamemnon that other great kings would walk on the gift. And so Agamemnon does. He then heads inside, followed by his wife. Here perhaps is one of the most memorable and my personal favorite parts of the entire trilogy, all due to Aeschylus’ writing, making the scene lifelike, and full of emotion.

Cassandra, in presence of the Greek elders foretells of the crime the queen is about to commit. She pleads and begs with them to listen to her, she cries of murder and offence and Agamemnon’s death and her own. She is then called inside the palace and goes in knowing what is to come. Screams are heard through the doors and when they open, the bodies of Cassandra and Agamemnon are seen lying on the floor, lifeless. While it makes sense as to why Agamemnon was killed, why did Cassandra have to suffer the same fate? Apart from the insult of Agamemnon bringing Cassandra home as a mistress in front of his wife, it has also been said that Clytemnestra was doing Cassandra a grim favor, sparing her from what would have been a pitiful life in Mycenae.

Aegisthus then comes into the scene claiming that it was he, son of Thyestes and lover to the queen, that devised and executed such a grand plan (even though in my opinion Clytemnestra did all the work) to avenge his father. Aegisthus’ father Thyestes, was tricked by his brother, Agamemnon’s father Atreus, into eating his two sons. And so for those crimes as well as the killing of Iphigenia, the pair impose revenge on their aggressor. The pair state their claim to absolute power of the kingdom and return inside the palace. And so the first installment ends. 

Here we see revenge played out as a way to justice. Agamemnon wrongs people in their eyes and so in return, they themselves make amends by murdering he who transgressed against them. 

This brings us to the next entry of the trilogy:

The Libation Bearers

The second play in Aeschylus’ trilogy, The Libation Bearers, like its predecessor, Agamemnon, focuses upon yet another act of revenge. It is also the shortest of all three. In it plays out Orestes’ revenge for his father, guided by the god Apollo, later haunted by his actions.

The play begins with Orestes’ arrival back in his home of Argos, at the foot of his father, Agamemnon’s grave. He is accompanied by his cousin Pylades and as they both offer their respects they see a group of women arriving at the tomb, so they hide.They see that leading this group of women is Electra, Orestes’ sister. She along with the slave women that accompany her, were sent by Clytemnestra to give libations to the tomb of Agamemnon in an attempt to stop her dreams and nightmares she has been having. 

Orestes and Electra reunite and set forth to plan out the revenge they will take on their mother, Clytemnestra, and her lover, Aegisthus. As it is said: “Blood must be paid with blood.”

So they set forth on their plan. Orestes shows up at the palace door where he is greeted by his mother, Queen Clytemnestra. He disguises himself as a stranger and tells the queen that Orestes (himself) is dead. She goes to inform Aegisthus and so Orestes enters the palace. He finds Aegisthus without guard, and so kills him. In comes Clytemnestra and Orestes is now to kill her as well, in revenge for his father. Orestes, however, is hesitant. It is only because of the reassurance of his cousin Pylades that Orestes is able to garnish the strength to kill her, and so he does. 

Orestes has now committed the crime of matricide, exceptionally egregious to the ancient Greeks. And so he is to suffer his punishment. Visible to him only, Orestes is now persecuted by the furies, who gage their heinous wrath unto his, causing him to flee from the walls of the palace. And so the second Act ends. 

Here too we see the theme of revenge. Orestes, sent by Apollo, incites revenge on his father, by killing his mother and her lover. And onto him, punishment was given in the form of torturous persecution. 

This brings us to the finale of the trilogy. 

The Eumenides

So begins the third play, the finale of Aeschylus’ trilogy, when a priestess of Apollo, the Pythia, begins her duties at the temple. 

She is interrupted when she catches sight of the furies, asleep due to Apollo’s intervention, so that Orestes could get some much-needed rest after being pursued by them for so long. Orestes then flees to Athens, guided by the protection of Hermes. Shortly then after, the ghost of Clytemnestra appears to the furies, scolding them for not doing their jobs. They then go in pursuit of Orestes, all the way to Athens.

Orestes arrives in Athens, with the furies caught up to him, where he pleads to the goddess Athena for help. She then decides to set up a trial for Orestes, using him as a prototype for a new system of justice she has planned. 

The jury is made up of twelve Athenian citizens, with Athena serving as the judge, and Apollo serves as Orestes’ defense. When it is time for the jury to cast their vote, it ends in a tie. Athena however casts the breaking vote, resulting in Orestes being found innocent and set free. The furies are left angry but they are made an offer by Athena: Instead of leading savage and violent revenge, why not punish those who are found guilty in a fair court of law? They accept and are given a new name, The Eumenide, meaning. “The kind ones.” 

And so ends Aeschylus’ trilogy: The Oresteia. 

It is here that the main subject matter of the trilogy comes into fruition: Greece leaves its barbaric revenges in the past, and progresses into fair and civil courts of law. 

I find The Oresteia a fascinating look into antiquity, and a masterful way to illustrate the evolution of an idea; justice. It is no longer a matter of taking revenge yourself in a barbaric manner, but it is now a right to everyone, to be found guilty first before any sentencing. 

While I loved the subject matter Aeschylus was writing about, I found it more captivating to read and learn about The Oresteia rather than reading it myself. I do believe however, it was worth my time. I give Aeschylus’ trilogy 7 out of 10 stars. Thank you for reading.

The judge pannel consisted of history teacher Brian Arner, Choir director Holly Greer, and accountant Chad Perry, and the role of emcee was filled by none other than the great Bible teacher, Tyler Hodges.

The funds collected from the show all went towards CA’s medical mission trip, coordinated by Spanish teacher Jennifer Marquez. Fundraising helps the group buy supplies such as surgical kits, medicine and other resources needed as well as helping to provide financial support for students who wish to participate. The night ended up being very successful, and the program raised over $1500 for the mission.

In third place was sophomore Juliet Hernandez, singing an original song, “Love You,” leaving the entire audience in awe. In second place was a duet, by a sibling pair: freshman Christopher Anderson on the violin and junior Isabella Anderson on the piano, playing a rendition of “Greysville Train Purgatory” by Beth West. The pair did an excellent job of emulating the sounds of a running train with nothing but their instruments, leaving the entire audience impressed with their unique and energized act. Finally, in first place, was senior Alaina Lewis singing an original song, “A Natural Thing” leaving the audience and the judges starstruck.
The Jazz band, directed by band teacher Mr. Greg Lindquist also made an appearance, giving an unforgettable performance.

“There are many talented students at Collegedale Academy and the winners proved to show the remarkable amount of talent and dedication to their craft,” says Mr. Galera, orchestra teacher and member of the Talent Show Comittee.

Mrs. Marquez, main coordinator of the talent show, encourages all students to be part of the program. She says “God gave you that talent to you for a reason, and it’s fun to be able to share it with others.”

Gianna Eastman and Anaya Ward hosted a Black History Month Jeopardy on February 10th which consisted of questions regarding important African American figures and events, and two students from each grade volunteered to participate. Students and teachers in the crowd cheered for the comical comments and gestures made by those on stage while the questions were being answered. For questions that weren’t answered, either Gianna or Anaya took the opportunity to create a learning experience and explain who some of the figures were. Black History Month jeopardy was a favorite amongst many CA students.

Following jeopardy, the Culture Club sang “Revelation 19:1” on Friday the 14th. Then, on February 24th, the history teachers did a presentation on African American inventors as a means to raise awareness about other unsung historical figures.

As the Culture Club continued celebrating BHM, they hosted a “guess the song” game on the 27th where participants heard a snippet of a song from a Black artist and then had to name the title of the song and the artist. On this challenge, the sophomores took the win. As the Culture Club started wrapping up the events for Black History Month, they planned a spontaneous musical performance on Friday, February 28th. Culture Club members sang the iconic song “Oh Happy Day” by the St. Francis Choir.

For the completion of the celebration of Black History Month, Anaya Ward says “I think we did almost everything that we wanted to do this month.” On the final day of February, the Culture Club members gathered after school and enjoyed a hard-earned meal that everyone contributed to. Anaya Ward continues saying, “We just thought of things that we’ve always wanted to see done at CA and made up a few things as we went along. I think that me and the rest of the club are very satisfied.” The club was satisfied at the the fruition of the efforts to provide an educational and exciting Black History Month at Collegedale Academy.
“We chose to do poems from influential Black people because we wanted to do something small to keep reminding people throughout the week that it was Black History Month,” Anaya shared.

Senior Gianna Eastman says: “The culture club was inspired by the lunches that past seniors would host. Everyone who came would bring a dish and we would eat in the life skills room. As a freshman that moved from an area where seeing people like me was more common, being invited to a lunch that included mostly minorities felt like I had a sense of belonging. It felt like I wasn’t alone and [was with] other people [that had also experieinced] ignorance and isolation in the school. So junior year, Bindershka with the help of Anaya and I took the petition to start the club. We came full and ready for this year and made actions to celebrate our history, Black History Month. The goal is for everyone in CA to feel like they have a community…And I feel that can improve our mental health and self esteem.”

~*~“Give them some freedom! Let [them] play around outside, like in the street, near a cliff, or near wild animals. It’s ok to take breaks. If you don’t feel like feeding your child, it’s ok to say “Not today!” or if you don’t want to change their diaper, it’s ok to say “Not today!”. Let them eat adventurously. It’s good to establish a diverse taste in food from a young age, so if you see your child eating something like a battery, a rock, a tide pod, or any other non-digestibles, let them try it! If they don’t like it then they’ll know next time. :)”

~*~“I think the best piece of advice is to teach your kids to respect and have good boundaries, as well as teaching good values and morals.”

~*~“Toddlers are basically tiny drunk people—they trip over nothing, make terrible life choices, and suddenly hate the food they couldn’t get enough of yesterday. Just go with it.”

~*~“Treat your kids (if you plan to have more than one) equally. One of the biggest complaints among kids who have siblings is parents showing favoritism so try to treat them as equally as possible.”

~*~“Just be prepared to wake up in the middle of the night to either baby screaming or toddlers wanting to lay in bed with you; and a lot of attitude.”

~*~“Have fun with your kids, even if you’re having a rough day, because soon, they’ll be all grown up. Enjoy the snuggles, first words, and even the mischievousness of it too. Like when they’re toddlers and just learning how to walk. :)”

~*~“Name your child something funny and they will be talked about in the news someday.”

~*~“You can NEVER pack enough diapers. Projectile poop happens.”

~*~“Make your kid feel heard and wanted. Especially during their teen years. You might think they’re rebellious throughout that period of their life. Just think how you would feel at their age if no one made you feel heard.”

~*~“Formula is NOT the way to go, it’s Dr. Pepper.”

~*~“Invest in a pair of earplugs.”

We hope that these words of wisdom will help you along your new journey. Whether there be bumps in the road, or smooth sailing, always remember that your kids have a Heavenly Father there to help them grow.