Many teenagers are indifferent to the First Amendment. In a nationwide study of 100,000 high school students released early this year by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, about three-quarters of those surveyed said they either don't know how they feel about their First Amendment rights or they just take them for granted.

Every other Friday during the school year, Ben Davis High School Key Club students have a sure way to get support for their club's community service projects: They appeal to the stomach. The club's doughnut sale draws hordes of students within minutes of opening. The group pulls in $100 every time, which adds up to $1,800 a year.

Kelli Grady believes in herself and her ability to succeed. However, Grady says she gets her support from family and friends and not from Broad Ripple High School, where the 17-year-old will soon be a senior. Her mother was president of the Parent Teachers Association, and her parents stress the importance of education. Too often, teachers only seem to care about students in advanced classes, Kell

Nisreen Deeb, age 25, is not your average University of Indianapolis senior. A native of Israel, Deeb was adopted at age 13 by her uncle in Florida so she could remain in the United States. After studying at the University of Haifa in Israel for a year, Deeb came back to the United States to major in international business. Furthermore, she considers herself Palestinian and is a Maronite Christian

Last year, American teens spent $170 billion, according to ABC News. With about 33 million teens in the country, that works out to $5,150 apiece. Kids get money as gifts. They often hold part-time jobs, even if it is only baby-sitting, and some draw allowances. Many have a lot of disposable income, but what do they learn about managing their money and saving? Several programs offer money managemen

As a child, Rebecca Durnell gathered her textbooks and headed for school. However, she didn't leave her house, but rather took her place at a desk in her basement along with her six brothers and sisters. Durnell was home schooled. According to the National Center for Home Education, 1.23 million American students were home schooled in 1999. Many might believe that being home schooled puts students

Imagine you are walking in the halls of an ordinary high school. What kind of things would you hear students talking about? Larry Hensley-Marschand, principal of Southport High School, does this every day. His experiences before 1998 were often unpleasant. "A couple of teachers actually stood around the corner of one particular hallway and counted the number of times they heard the f-word in a six

More than 500,000 international students studied at U.S. colleges and universities in the 2002-2003 academic year. Michelle Sharaf, 19, joined their ranks last fall. She's from Lahore, Pakistan, and now attends Butler University. She went to an all-girl Catholic school in her home country and decided to study in the United States after visiting her sister, who lives in Illinois. In a recent interv

Lauren Knox was 15 years old when a car accident changed her life. She was riding with a friend down a large hill near her Northeastside home when the car ran off the road on an s-curve and rammed a fence. The car continued moving, and 35 feet of fence post came crashing into the passenger side, where Lauren was sitting. It crushed the side of her skull, jaw and one cheek, and she was near death w

Students in the Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps look like most Army cadets: strict, disciplined and highly trained. Their uniforms are wrinkle-free, and they stand up straight. Y-Press recently interviewed four cadets in the Army JROTC program at Tech High School. They turned out to be normal teens, very nice and funny. Seniors Stephanie McDowell and Ian Gore and Juniors Kelly Morgan and Dav

Like a teacher in a one-room schoolhouse, Dorothy Saatkamp teaches children of all ages and abilities. But she doesn't teach in a school -- she teaches at Methodist Hospital, where she specializes in pediatric rehabilitation. For school-age children recovering from an injury or illness that affects their neurological systems, Saatkamp becomes their teacher. "Most of our patients have been in an au

Children's Express is looking for participants between the ages of 12 and 18 for a roundtable discussion, where a group with similar experiences share their opinions. We would like to talk with students who have gone to both private and public schools. If you are interested in participating, call Children's Express at 921-4125 by Wednesday, February 8th.

Being a high school student in the Age of the Internet isn't always easy. While the Internet makes doing research much easier and faster, it makes plagiarism and getting a hold of inaccurate sources easier and faster, too. Y-Press recently interviewed two North Central faculty members, Kathryn Allison, head of the English department, and Sue Landaw, a media specialist, to get their opinions on Int

It's a spring day. Students are in class, but they're not complaining. They're working at five learning stations, with one station examining plankton, one examining lake sediment . . . And another steering the sailboat. For on this day, their classroom is the Inland Seas, a 77-foot steel schooner based in Sutton's Bay, near Traverse City, Mich. "It's a wonderful learning experience," said Barbara

Where can you order a shrimp burger at a two-story McDonald's? In Japan. That was something 20 students from Burris Laboratory School in Muncie discovered last year when they traveled to Japan. In the only exchange program in the United States involving elementary students, the participants prepared for several months for their weeklong stay in Okazaki , near Tokyo, where they lived with host fami

This fall, Y-Press visited a cotillion class at Woodland Country Club in Carmel taught by Rebecca Malenko . Following the session, we interviewed Caroline Valentine, 14, Ben Snipes, 14, Craig Wildey, 13, and Nate Downing, 14, all third-year students in Malenkos' Supper Club. Getting started CRAIG: I found an article in the newspaper three years ago on (cotillion), and I read it and I showed it to

"Everything that can be invented has been invented." This statement has been attributed (probably falsely) to Charles H. Duell, commissioner of the U.S. Patent Office in 1899. Duell believed in innovation, as do thousands of U.S. students who participate in science fairs, hoping to discover something new. Although science fairs rarely seem to venture into unknown territory, they still can inspire

Most students have stories to share about teachers. Parents have heard their children's stories and have compared them to their own school years. Both parents and students form opinions about what makes a successful educator. According to the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education, two equally performing Tennessee second-graders can be separated by as many as 50 percentile points

You find yourself in an auditorium surrounded by 2,000 rambunctious teenagers screaming at the top of their lungs, clapping, dancing and cheering with seemingly endless energy. Are you annoyed? Intimidated? There's no reason to be. After all, you're at the National Association of Student Councils convention. The national convention, held once a year in various locations, is a chance for high schoo

Imagine going to high school with 3,210 other kids. Do you think you'd be able to find your way around in seven minutes with that many people in the hallways? Could you make friends? North Central High School freshmen share many such concerns. Panther Quest, an optional summer program, is designed to help students become familiar with the school and each other before the school year begins. To fin

"Alumni, upperclassmen and freshmen all agree that freshman year is the worst year in high school. It isn't academically the hardest year, but the transition between middle school and high school can make it hard," said Kara Findley, 15, a North Central High School freshman. Most people can remember the summer between their eighth-grade graduation and freshman year in high school as a time of nerv

The stock market means different things to different people. Some view it as using skill and wisdom to decide when to buy and when to sell. Others view it as glorified gambling, saying anything gained or lost is the product of luck. Whether one invests or not, the stock market has an impact on everyday life and the country's economy. Everything from the price of gas to the national debt is affecte

At least once a year, many Indiana high school students are herded into the gym or auditorium. Over the loudspeakers, they are warned not to stop at their locker or the restroom on the way. This is not a fire drill -- it is a drug search. While students are in the gym, police and drug-sniffing dogs search the school premises, checking cars, lockers, backpacks and purses. Such searches are common i

More than 40 years ago, a famous battle was fought in this country. It was not waged over land or money but for equal rights -- the right to drink out of any water fountain, the right to vote. This was the civil rights movement. Last spring, a group of eighth-graders at Brownsburg Junior High School had an opportunity to rethink their opinions about society's acceptance of diversity today. They ch

Twenty years ago, high school students with special needs would have been placed in separate classrooms, with limited interaction with other kids. Today, Kelly Kaser, a 19-year-old Carmel student with Down syndrome, has a totally different experience. Her school day consists of helping out at a preschool and attending inclusion classes, where she works beside students without disabilities. She pla

What's your spelling bee experience? Standing in front of the class, sweating profusely, trying to picture how to spell a word you've never heard of? Or asking your teacher to let you skip the competition because you know you'll be out in the first round? Well, there are kids who don't feel anything of the sort. Trevor Leslie, 12, and Jamie Burdeski, 15, spoke with Y-Press about their experiences

For one day, fifth-graders from Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic School ran a community. They applied for jobs, managed budgets, governed the city and worked with others. They went to Exchange City, a Junior Achievement program in Downtown Indianapolis. "I would describe it as a really fun place where you get to learn jobs," said Madeline Leahy, 11. Y-Press recently talked to Madeline and four ot

With the warmer weather, many kids will toss away their winter clothes in favor of shorts and tank tops. But not students at Raymond Park Middle School. They have a dress code. Not only are shorts prohibited for both boys and girls, so are sweatpants, cargo pants and capris, plus anything made out of denim, leather or velour. Pants must be worn at the natural waist. Sleeveless shirts are out, as a

Middle school is a time of learning, a time for fun -- and a time for getting bullied. People get teased over the stupidest stuff --the way they walk, the way they talk, the way they laugh. Everyone gets teased -- even the popular people. Two years ago, a group of sixth-graders at Craig Middle School in Lawrence Township decided they were sick of the bullying and teasing and took a petition to the

The Pledge of Allegiance holds a different meaning for every person who recites the words. But to some, the pledge has no meaning. "Just standing and saying the pledge is dumb and holds no significance to me," said Armando Ramos, 13, who was a student at St. Gabriel Catholic School and now lives in St. Petersburg, Fla. Armando explained that he doesn't say the pledge in protest over the bombing m

"We're wearing masks not because we are afraid, but kind of for precaution and protection of other people," said Koren Sin. Koren, a senior at Sacred Heart Canossian College, an all-girls school in Pokfulam, Hong Kong, shared this sentiment during a recent videoconference with Y-Press. Many of her fellow students, all sporting white surgical masks, were eager to talk about how SARS has affected th

Walk into a classroom 30 years ago and you would probably see a teacher at the front of the room explaining the lesson in a firm but calm voice. Students would be sitting in rows, speaking only when called upon to answer a question. Things are different today. Teachers generally don't inspire the awe and fear they did back then. Many see today's students as disrespectful, but if adults listened to

True love and Carolyn Baugh brought Tarek al Basti to the United States, but they didn't live happily ever after. While in Egypt as an exchange student, Baugh met Basti. They fell in love and were married. After the couple moved to Evansville, Basti worked hard at a restaurant and eventually saved enough money to buy it. He became an American citizen. Needing workers, Basti sponsored family and fr

Indiana schools and libraries have long sought ways to encourage children to read for pleasure. Every year since 1974, the Indiana Library Federation has sponsored the Young Hoosier Book Award program, which gives students in kindergarten through eighth grade an opportunity to vote for the books they like best. Each school year, the Young Hoosier Book Award Committee nominates 20 books in each of

"I ran into the stereotype in Europe a lot that Americans never took the time to learn anything else (besides English). And I think it's nice to be able to sort of break through that stereotype," said Amy Laburda, 17. Last summer, Amy spent seven weeks abroad with the Indiana University Honors Program in Foreign Languages. Since 1962, the program has sent about 120 students every summer to foreign

Some people say high school is the best time of your life. But is it really? High school is a time for parties and dating, but also studying and homework. Seniors have the best and worst of these worlds as they make preparations for their futures. During the summer, Y-Press talked with four recent high school graduates -- Matt Willmore, Brittainy Quillin-Rangel and Nate Littlefield, from Pike High

Most high school seniors focus on such essential activities as playing sports, working on the fall play and participating in student council. But senior Blair McCarthy has added one more activity to her list: politics. "I'm very much involved in Congressman John Hostettler's 8th District campaign," she said. McCarthy's days are full at Lake Memorial High School in Evansville. Besides being on the

"For each roll of film, the photo shop charges 18 cents per print plus a developing fee. The total cost to have a 24-print roll of film developed and printed is $5.92. Let 'd' represent the developing fee for a roll of film. On the line below, write an equation that could be solved to find 'd.' You do NOT have to solve the problem." If your answer to this question was $5.92 {equals} 24($0.18) + d,

"T his whole experience has given me the confidence that what I'm doing is actually good," said Ben Clark. Ben, 15, is a Project XL winner. He received best of show and first place in original music for his song "30 a Day," about gun violence in the United States. "I wrote the whole thing in about a half an hour," said the student from Floyds Knobs. Project XL, a statewide high-school competition

"We have the chance to try the different cuisines of different cultures and (learn) how they dress and live." Charlotte Wu, student, speaking about immigrants to Hong Kong T he streets in Hong Kong have become even more crowded since the territory was handed over to the People's Republic of China in 1997 after being ruled by Great Britain for more than 150 years. Now a Special Administrative Regio

Katy O'Brian is a busy teen. "I'm doing cross country, basketball and softball. And then also, some Saturdays I go and help watch these underprivileged children. I also do Teen Court and some modeling," says the 13-year-old, who attends Craig Middle School. She is not alone, according to Connie Sivertson, a guidance counselor at Craig for seven years who sees about 500 students every year. "Over t

I n a 2002 essay in Education Digest, Minnesota teacher Rick Theisen decries the trend he sees in student councils across the country, in which students focus their efforts on planning social activities instead of addressing the broader civic responsibilities of their role. Student governments at two local high schools are part of that trend. Representatives from Franklin Central High School in so

F or some students, the decision of which college to attend is based on more than just academics and extracurricular activities; it's centered on faith. Y-Press interviewed students from Indiana Bible College, Brigham Young University and Taylor University. All had attended a public high school; they discussed their experiences at a religious college and the differences between it and a secular sc

With more than 40 colleges and universities in Indiana alone, simply deciding where to apply to college can be challenging. Visiting campuses, attending interviews, filling out forms and writing a decent essay can be even more daunting. Add to that a search for scholarships and financial aid, and many students decide the admissions process is more trouble than it's worth. Y-Press spoke with seven

A ccording to a 2003 Brookings Institution study, homework loads for American students in kindergarten through 12th grade have not varied much in the past 50 years, with one exception: After the Soviets launched the Sputnik satellite in 1957, homework doubled. The study also noted that American children have one of the lowest homework loads in the world; most do less than an hour a day. Yet one of

W hy would someone pay for public school? Classes are large, teachers are overworked, rules are inflexible, and nobody knows your name. Those are the stereotypes. But many public schools attract out-of-district students because of their wide range of academic and extracurricular opportunities. Katie Meneely, 17, and Allen Taylor, 16, pay to attend North Central High School in Marion County's Washi

Many educators, parents and students were alarmed at the results of a recent survey on the First Amendment. The study commissioned by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation High School Initiative wanted to see how thousands of high school students and faculty viewed the First Amendment in a post-9/11 world. The findings from the "Future of the First Amendment" survey, released Feb. 1, showed t

Most high-school seniors seem so self-assured -- after all, they've mastered the school routines, know many teachers and are on a first-name basis with the guidance counselors. On top of that, many schools lavish them with privileges, such as prime parking spots, separate dining rooms and early dismissal from classes. But many seniors do not feel that they are mistresses and masters of the univers

Many people visiting a foreign country have experienced the discomfort of adjusting to a new culture, religion and especially a new language. For them, such adjustments are temporary. But for the many immigrants who come to the United States each year, it can be a lifelong process. Katia, 10, Edgar, 12, and Giovanni Quebrado, 14, were born in Mexico and have been in the United States about nine ye

I n June 1964, three civil-rights volunteers disappeared in Philadelphia, Miss. In early August, 44 days later, police found their bodies buried in an earthen dam. The activists -- Michael Schwerner, 24, James Chaney, 21, and Andrew Goodman, 20 -- did not share a final resting place. In the '60s, no cemetery would take both blacks and whites. The three were part of the 1964 Freedom Summer, an effo

Many kids ride the bus to school every day, but they may never think of the vehicle's impact on their community. They might know that some motorists get annoyed if a bus gets in their path, but who would ever think a bus could affect someone's health? Until 2002, Katy Dean did not give much thought to the school buses in her hometown of Utica, Mich. Dean, a junior, was sports editor of her high sc

M any youth eagerly participate in community service projects, whether spearheaded by church groups or with a nonprofit organization whose mission matches their interests. But sometimes "community service" gets a bad name when mandated by schools, especially when used as a penalty for some infraction or as another layer of requirements for graduation. The Indiana Department of Education would like

S aturday, thousands of teenagers will wake up before 8 a.m. That alone is news to anyone who's spent time around teens on Saturday mornings. These students, however, are getting up early so they can report to local testing centers at 8:15 a.m. to take the new Scholastic Aptitude Test, the dreaded college entrance exam. The revised exam, first administered March 12, is radically different. A writi

J ohn Lennon's pop hit "Give Peace a Chance" became one of the anthems of the 1970s, but these days it often seems like peace is the last thing on anyone's mind. Violence prevails in music, movies, video games and television programs, which often romanticize crime, gang violence and inner-city life. Under the force of such a barrage, how can kids today learn to resolve conflicts peacefully? That's

E ach year, many eighth-graders have to make a decision that will affect the next four years of their lives: Where will they go to high school? Several factors must be considered, such as the size of the school, distance from home, friends' plans, extracurricular interests, parents' wishes and academic challenges. Y-Press talked to four eighth-graders from St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic School o

Y-Press F or most students, high school is a place where they take classes that might help them decide on a college major, which then might lead to a future career. For students at the Indianapolis Metropolitan Career Academies, school is a place where they can directly try on various careers. "Why waste four years of college just to decide that it's not what you want to do? This is giving us a ch

For some middle-schoolers, ripped Hollister jeans, American Eagle graphic tees and big earrings are part of a look that defines personalities and are worn to impress their peers. Some might be able to wear such clothes to school, but not these private-school kids. And they don't really mind. Two Northside private schools enforce student dress codes, but with different criteria. At St. Richard's Sc

Contract disputes are not unusual in workplaces. Affected employees may grumble more than usual, and they might perform their jobs half-heartedly, but this dissension rarely is seen outside of the company. But when the workplace is a school, employees' unhappiness can be seen -- and sometimes felt -- by many beyond the feuding parties. Teachers in Lawrence Township and Carmel Clay Schools have rec