Best Dancer, Sean Carbonell:
It was cool.

Class Clown, Karin Moss:
I was totally thrown off guard when my name was called for class clown. I was confused because I didn’t really think I was that funny, but it brought a smile to my face. I appreciate the fact that people think so highly of me to nominate me for two awards. You guys rock!

Class Flirt, Katie Shaheen:
I thought it was really funny when I got voted class flirt. I didn’t think I was going to win, but it’ll be a fun memory to look back on in a year or so.

Class Musician, Nicole Amine:
I was actually very surprised to win class musician. I didn’t know that many people in my class knew that I sing, so I was very excited when I heard my name called!

Most Likely to Survive Dec. 21, 2011, Erin Savage:
I am really happy to be named the most likely to survive 2012. In fact, I equate it to winning the Hunger Games. However, instead of returning home with a fiancé, I got a nicely painted chunk of wood. But, hey-who cares? I. AM. KATNISS.

Dream Date Girl, Kelsey Dalzell:
I did not think I was going to win dream date girl at all. Every girl in that category is really sweet and pretty, so it was definitely a surprise. But it was super flattering and nice!

Dream Date Guy: Matt Kuntzman:
It was surreal when they announced my name for Dream Date Guy. It still hasn’t really gotten to me. Any one of the other nominees could have won over me.

Girl Jock, Karin Moss:
I was pretty excited about winning girl jock. It’s not everyday you get to jump onstage and make an absolute fool of yourself to “hammer time,” but it just means a lot [to me] that my peers would vote for me! Thanks guys.

Guy Jock, Will Yau:
I was pretty surprised to win guy jock; I was definitely up against some stiff competition. We all deserved to win. I guess running for fun does pay off!

Master Thespian, Alec LaFontaine:
When I won master thespian I was in shock, not only because I was up against other extremely talented and amazing people. [To] know that I never had to star in a lead role and yet I could still capture the attention of my peers was awesome!

Most Artistic, Rachel Lee:
To be honest, I have no idea how I got class artist. We have so many awesome artists in our grade, but I guess I got lucky! Thanks to everyone who voted for me.

Most Likely to Become Famous, Kelly Feng:
I was pretty surprised I won, but it was exciting to walk onstage and accept the award. It was fun to win something at the end of my high school career from my classmates.

Ms. Class of 2012, Kristin Shetler:
It was an honor to be named ms. class of 2012. The people at this school are so amazing, and I felt so lucky that all these amazing people recognized how much I care about them, our class, and the school in general.

Mr. Class of 2012: Austin LaDuke:
I was very honored to win Mr. Class. It’s weird to think that this is how people see and recognize you, whether it beMr.Class or whatever category. None of us went through high school trying to fit the image of one of these categories. It was a lot of fun to see who people thought should be nominated and who should win.

Most Likely to Succeed Girl, Vivian Hu:
It meant a lot to me to win because it was cool that people thought of me that way.

Most Likely to Succeed Guy, Nick Fava:
It was nice to see that so many people believe in my abilities. I’m grateful for the support my friends have given me throughout high school.

Ms. Individuality, Skye Curtis:
I’m just so thankful that my evil four-year master plot to win this award finally worked out! It would have been so awkward if my massive four-year campaign hadn’t worked out: all of those wasted costumes for nothing!

Ms. Vogue, Morgan Zander:
I was really excited when I heard my name called for Ms. Vogue because all of the girls in that category had such great style. But I was even more excited that I didn’t trip on the runway walk.

Mr. GQ, Vincenzo Julian:
I felt very happy and honored. I’m happy that people like the way I dress. I was really nervous, though! I just get nervous because of the attention. [But] I was excited, too!

The Next Einstein, Nick Fava:
I was surprised when my name was called because all of the other nominees are very smart and helpful guys. I’m happy that I’ve been able to balance academics and social life in high school. I don’t have crazy hair like Einstein, but I’m working on it.

Nicest Girl, Kristen Shetler:
The girls nominated for this category are some of the kindest people I know, so I couldn’t believe that I won nicest girl. Quite honestly, I just like making people smile.

Nicest Guy, Jeff Holmes:
All the guys up for nicest guy are really great people, so it was great to be able to win it. I always try to be nice and friendly because that’s how I would want to be treated, and it was really great that other people thought that, too. Thanks [to] everyone for thinking that I’m nice!

TC Pride, John Wassel:
It felt great to be recognized as the student with the most TC pride.I try to get out to as many sporting events as possible so that I can sheer on my fellow classmates. The credit should really go to all of them. They’re the ones that put in all of the hard work, and I feel as though they deserve all of the support that they can get. We have some amazing student athletes at Troy High, and I take pride in all of them.

Unsung Hero, Regina Guerra:
I was really shocked to have found that I won. I really wasn’t expecting it! But, I was really happy and very humbled by the fact that people had voted for me for unsung hero.

Romeo and Juliet, Justin Byrne and Tarah Thompson:
Tarah: I wouldn’t say that Justin and I are the type of people who win popularity contests, so I was in disbelief when our names were called for Romeo and Juliet. I am still surprised by how loudly people were cheering. Every time I am with Justin I am so happy, and I’m glad that everyone can see that.
Justin: People have often told me how I smile a lot, but [since] I met Tarah I don’t think I [can] stop. Just being nominated was very exciting and actually being voted for Romeo and Juliet was an honor I never would have expected before. Tarah, I can honestly say I couldn’t have done it without you and I’m very happy we won this together.

Best Friends, Mike Mendola and Chris Michael:
Chris: Mike and I have been best friends forever, so it was an honor that everyone else realized the special bond we share.

Prom for him:

When senior Austin LaDuke got back from spending spring break in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, he suddenly realized that Prom was less than a month away.

“I panicked under the time constraints, made some posters, and threw them up on [senior Lauren Dietz’s] garage one night. Not as epic as I would have wanted, but hey, I’m a guy. Cut me some slack,” said LaDuke on asking his date to Prom.

However, for LaDuke, that wasn’t the trickiest part about Prom.

“I had a heck of a time trying to match her neon purple dress. In the end, I pulled it off. It took multiple trips to the tux shop though,” he said.

Senior Chris Michael agrees that “picking out a tux [was the hardest part.]” Michael asked his date, junior Becca Ress, by singing “My Girl,” by The Temptations, to her in the school cafeteria.

LaDuke began preparing from Prom about two weeks beforehand by ordering his tuxedo.

“I had to order my tux, get the [corsage], G.T.L, [and] make sure I remembered to buy the tickets and pay for the party bus,” he said.

On the day of Prom, senior Mike Kunztman prepared by mowing his lawn and taking a shower.

“My hair would not cooperate with me!” said Kuntzman, who asked junior Grace Goodrich to Prom by flying her over her house and placing nine-foot white letters that spelled out PROM on her lawn.

Senior Vincenzo Julian, who asked senior Betsy Mappilaparampil by making a scratch-off card and putting it in her mailbox, said, “I just put on my tuxedo! Some family members came over earlier to take pictures of me, my sister [senior Jessica Julian], and our dates before we left for Cranbrook to take the group pictures.”

LaDuke began his day at noon by eating a bowl of Frosted Flakes. “I then preceded to play Xbox until about three. After that, I took a shower, put on my tux, made myself beautiful, picked up my date, and was at pictures by four.

“Being a guy is easy,” he said.

Prom for her:

Best friends senior Tessa Lanzen and senior Aarthi Hari were asked to Prom on the same day—Lanzen by senior Eric Elinski who put a chocolate bar with “Prom?” written on it inside of a SpongeBob piñata and Hari by Chad Formberg who brought her a Build-a-Bear.

“Eric…got in cahoots with Chad to ask me and my best friend on the same day! So we were both kind of going crazy since we were trying to trick each other and keep secrets,” said Lanzen.

Once asked, Hari prepared by arranging a party bus, buying heels, getting her hair done, and getting her dress altered.

“Two weeks before I started eating really healthy so my face wouldn’t explode with acne,” said Lanzen.

Senior Jen Thompson, who went with senior Matt Oppenlander, began preparations for Prom about a month before the dance. She decided how they would arrive, picked a place for pictures, bought a dress and shoes, and got her nails and hair done.

“Figuring out what everyone wanted to do and keeping everyone happy [was the most stressful part],” she said.

Lanzen brought a slightly different stress upon herself: “I tried to figure out every girl in our group’s prom dress color and cut to make sure nobody had the same dress, and that was a little stressful since some people didn’t get theirs until the last minute,” she said.

Lanzen also had a last minute hair emergency. After shaving, putting on lotion, practicing walking in her heels, and “trying not to look like an ogre,” she decided to dance to music from the Backstreet Boys.

“I got my hair done and then danced around my house and it fell out a little,” she said.

Prom for both:

Thompson was so pleased with Prom that she couldn’t help but give a shout-out to the STUGO juniors who helped to pull it off.

“[The] juniors did a great job putting it on and deserve a ton of credit for the dance going so well!” she said. “Everything was very nice!”

One thing the juniors decided to add to Prom this year was a photo booth.

“Lauren and I stopped at the photo booth, which [was] actually quite hard to figure out. Our first two pictures can attest to that. Then we hit up the dace floor,” said LaDuke.

Other than the photo booth, the chocolate fountain was a main draw.

“[I] attacked that chocolate fountain like it was my job!” said Lanzen.

In between photo-ops and chocolate dipping, Prom-goers danced to songs that ranged from “Respect,” by Aretha Franklin, to “Shots,” by LMFAO.

Senior Jessica Julian’s favorite thing to do at Prom: “Dance!”

After his initial confusion with the photo booth, LaDuke said he really enjoyed the evening. “All in all Prom was an awesome time. It was a lot of fun seeing everyone get dressed up and just come to have one last bash before we graduate. With a perfect date, great friends, and some chocolate fountains, the night couldn’t have been better,” he said.

From April 16-20, Activist Week, which is hosted by STUGO, gave opportunities each day for students to benefit the community. Donations for different charities were made through ways other than collecting money, thereby giving the benefactors the name “activists.”

With posters plastered in hallways and STUGO members wearing t-shirts with non-profit organizations written in Sharpie, Monday Awareness Day eased the students into Activist Week. A competition of the most abudnant children books collected was held on the next day. Letters and care packages for soldiers were collected on Wednesday. Both jeans and shoes donations were collected on Thursday,  as well as the Senior Citizens Prom. Lastly, canned foods were donated on Friday.

“Activist week was a great success this year. We exceeded our goals and expectations, and we are looking forward to expanding and having an even bigger impact next year,” said Maggie Smith, public relations officer of STUGO.

Unlike typical charity events, Activist Week approaches charity donations in a more active and broad perspective. Not only do the donations go to mutliple non-profit organizations and charities, but the process of writing a letter or taking time to look to for jeans shows more thought and sincerity as to handing over a green bill.

“Donating money is probably the most passive thing you can do for charity: here’s my dollar and now I’m done. But by asking people to bring something in or take an action of writing a letter to a soldier, it’s a more active way of giving,” said Ryan Werenka, Student Government advisor.

Of the many goals reached, the book drive was one of the most successful. A goal of 400 books was excessively met with an approximate 1,109 books collected. The incentive of a bagel party helped science teacher Megan Sermo’s class win. On April 30, Charolette’s Wing, the non-profit organization, came to collect the books students raised.

“They just picked them up today and the woman in charge was completely overwhelmed at how many we collected. Her eyes were just bulging. So she was very very excited about that,” said Werenka.

Because every year Student Government tries to mix up the events for Activist Week, they may try to have an expo next year, bringing in people involved in non-profit organizations and charities. But no matter what new way to fundraise or donate, Activist Week remains the same with the goal to do more than the originial. Werenka said, “The idea that we have so many different options, we can connect to someone with something.”

When I look back at prom, I don’t have to tell my kids about my awkward date; I’ll tell them about the amazing time I had with 22 of my friends. Since I only had to look good for myself, I didn’t have to worry if my hair stayed perfect all night. I didn’t have to focus all my attention on one person. It was less pressure. I didn’t even get my dress until the Wednesday before, which would have been a nightmare if I had to match with someone. My parents bought me a corsage, and before you think, “how pathetic,” let me tell you: there’s no shame in that. I thought it was really sweet.

The real shame is that so many seniors didn’t go solely because they didn’t have a date. It shouldn’t matter at all. You can have a good time both ways. I’m not saying going single is necessarily better—I’m sure lots of couples had fun at prom, too—but going alone was just as unforgettable.

I heard a lot of “prom sucked” and “the music was horrible” on the Monday after, and most of those speakers had dates. I had a great time at Prom, and I’m not “uncool” for thinking that. I think I did have such a good time because I knew that prom wasn’t going to be perfect, and I just had a positive attitude going into it. I enjoyed every moment, because I can count the days left of being a Troy High School senior on my fingers and toes. I hope that high school won’t be the ‘best time of my life,’ but there definitely won’t be another time of my life exactly like it. I’ll never forget toasting with sparkling cider in our white Hummer stretch limo, eating Rice Krispy treats at the chocolate fountain, or signing my friends’ photo cubes.

And when I tell my children about prom, I won’t tell them “I went single” sheepishly. I’ll tell them proudly, because there is no shame in being single.

In most farewell columns, writers write about the great experiences they’ve had on their staff, what they’ve learned, what they’ll miss, and what they hope for in the future. Instead, I’d like to dedicate this column to my co-editor, Carolyn Gearig.

When we first began this journey in 2010, Carolyn and I were not the biggest fans of one another. Looking back, I’m not even so sure as to why: it probably had something to do with the fact that we were so different, we didn’t understand each other.

I was loud; she was quiet. I was a sophomore; she was a freshman. I wanted to live in New York; she wanted to live in London. I wanted to be Katy Perry; she wanted to be the fashion editor of Vogue.

However, as we started working together, we realized what a great team we made. I was the writer; she was the designer. I was the talker; she was the organizer. And we both had a vision for what this newspaper could become.

We bonded over our mutual love of the newspaper—and let’s face it, our mutual love of Ms. Vettraino—but other than that I honestly couldn’t tell you what we really have in common, still.

What I do know is that Carolyn is, nevertheless, one of my best friends.

At the beginning of this year I was nervous as to how The Independent would carry on without me. I (as well as Carolyn) had been with it from the beginning, and I couldn’t imagine leaving it in the hands of anyone else.

Now, I have no doubt that the legacy will continue for years to come, with Carolyn at its head next year, fully capable of training a leader for when she too has to leave.

Carolyn frequently asks me what she will do without Alice Liang, Melanie Fodera, and me to guide her through her days. And to that I say, firstly, that she will never be completely without us. We will always be there when she needs us, maybe just not in the same room.

Secondly, I say that she will be just fine. She is Carolyn Gearig, editor-in-chief of The Troy Independent. She actually was the one who thought of “The Independent,” and that’s what she will be. She will be independent. She will be her own woman.

And even if she doesn’t know it, I do. She’s got this.

The basic rules are as such: pay ten dollars to enter, form a team of five seniors, square off against another team, and try to get them out of the round by squirting them with water. In this bracket-style face off, the winners get all the cash collected. If a team loses a round, they have one opportunity to buy their way back into the tournament for five dollars. The tournament started precisely at 3:00 pm on April 30 and will carry on throughout the summer until a team wins it all. The entire competition is organized by one random senior each year, this year being Katie Brakora; there are 31 teams participating.

According to participants such as Claire Shabet, a member of the team, “Wet and Wild,” the competition is not just an average water fight. “You chase people around in cars, stalk them to work, and wait outside their houses; people do crazy stuff,” said Shabet.

Every participant has their own story about the crazy lengths people will go to win. “One of my teammates, Shalin Shah forgot to lock the trunk of his Sedan and got cornered into a culdesac in my neighborhood by an opposing team. They opened the trunk and started squirting him with water gun,” said Sahab Grover (Team Asian Invasion), whose team had to buy their way back into the tournament after Round One. He explained that a common tactic is to invite a person to someone’s house and attack him or her upon arrival.

Shivani Rishi was on the team against the Asian Invasion and explained how her team took out Dev Singhal. “We had Lauren Dietz’s brother go up to Dev Singhal’s front door with a baseball bat, and Dev’s car was parked in the street so Jason, her brother, was like ‘Hi, I accidently hit a baseball through your car window on the driver side.’ Dev got suspicious but walked outside and our team ran out from the behind the tree next to his front door and Betsy [Mappilaparampil] sprayed him with her water gun,” explained Rishi. She also said her team attacked an opponent as she was coming out of the tanning salon.

Eric Robertson of “The Dream Team” recounted his experience against an evenly matched team. “We eventually had to do a tie breaker. It can be anything that the two team captains agree on; ours was playing video games. We lost and had to buy back in.”

Some seniors, such as Alyssa Cabelof, did not enjoy the tournament as much as others, due to a constantly changing set of rules and general disorganization. “People just cheat a lot, say they didn’t get hit when they did, or that they hit someone when they didn’t, and people just make up the rules as they go,” said Cabelof.

Those who enjoyed the tournament generally said that it was just a nice way to end high school on a fun note. “Grades after us should definitely keep doing Water Wars. I think it’s just a fun way to end our four years at Troy High with all of you friends even though you are paranoid most of the time that people are following you,” said Rishi.

Stencel finished as a state champion in the Quick Serve Restaurant Management division of the State conference, held from March 9-11 in Dearborn. This qualified her for the international competition.

In Salt Lake City, Stencel took a 100 question test and completed two role plays where she took the role of a restaurant manager asked to resolve a problem. With 10 minutes per role play, Stencel came up with a solution and created visuals to explain her idea. Out of 200 competitors, Stencel qualified as one of 20 finalists. She completed one more role play and that combined with previous scores earned her first place.

“I was in disbelief when I heard my name called,” said Stencel. “I was shaking and I didn’t know what to do.”

DECA, which stands for Distributive Educational Clubs of America, is an international organization of students and teachers of marketing, management and entrepreneurship in business, finance, hospitality, and marketing sales and service. Troy’s DECA chapter is advised by Ms. Heide Rosenberg; to join, you must be enrolled in a marketing class. 38 students are in DECA with 12 qualifying for the international competition. DECA meets once per week and also requires an out of school commitment.

“I don’t even know what to say,” said Rosenberg. ““It’s amazing. Jen was so gracious. It’s a hard competition.”

“The whole experience of DECA has been exciting and life changing,” said Stencel. “It’s not even so much about learning business and life skills as it is about meeting new people and gaining new experiences.”

While in Salt Lake City, DECA members attended a minor league baseball game and saw Eli Young Band in concert.

Additionally, Kelly Feng and Snigdha Banda, seniors, placed in the top ten of the categories, and Noah Rice and Akhil Ganesh, seniors, placed in the top twenty.

The depth of each episode is oceanic; they generally involve multiple plot lines in which all the people intersect in the end, somehow. It’s very creative on the writers’ part.

Ironically, the problem with this show is the writing. The whole point is that Jake never speaks, yet Martin continuously asks Jake questions as though he expects a reply. Not all of their communication is bad: Jake has to do illogical things like running into the middle of the street in order to get Martin’s attention, so an exasperated cry on Martin’s part there is probably ideal. However, when Martin repeatedly asks Jake what he wants, it seems a little ridiculous. He’s not going to answer.

That said, the acting is superb. On top of not speaking, Jake refuses to be touched, and I have never heard anyone scream louder than Mazouz when his character comes into physical contact with another human. And even though not given the best lines, Sutherland says his with just the right amount of confused hopelessness combined with the sheer need to help.

Due to the enthralling concept, I have faith that the writers will adapt and the show will improve. Besides, most of America is so excited to have Sutherland back on TV that I don’t see how it would be possible for Touch to fail.

tommy, i made a few changed to this, but good job! we will publish this after the print issue comes out

Many colleges use the Common Application. “Common App helps a lot with the process because you have one form [that allows you to apply to many schools],” said Annie Xiao, senior, who applied to 6 schools and will be attending the University of Michigan.

Instead of filling out many different applications, students can fill out their information once on the Common App, and then complete school-specific supplementary applications. This year’s Common Application will be available on August 1.

So what kind of information does the Common App ask for? As Edgar Wang puts it, “It’s a chance for you to express who you are, what you believe in, and what you dream to become. The Common App is not merely a document that proclaims your SAT/ACT scores, AP scores, date of birth; it’s a document that mirrors the true self you’ve molded across the years.” Wang will attend Princeton University this fall.

Students can choose to apply early action, early decision, regular action, or rolling decision. Distinguishing between the many types of deadlines can be a useful strategy. Early Decision is binding; if accepted, one must withdraw all other applications. Early Action guarantees a non-binding decision or deferral usually in December. Regular Action results come out in the spring; rolling decision allows for applications to be submitted any time during the school year, and acceptances are on a first-come, first serve basis.

In a pool of extremely competitive applicants, how is it possible to stand out? “I think the essay really helps you out. Writing an essay that’s not typical or cliché is very important. Don’t submit an essay you don’t feel confident in or you don’t think reflects your best work,” said Xiao.

Wang advised, “Just hope that your character and your passion shine through on your application and convince that admission officer to stamp ‘accepted’.”

Rolland He, who will study at Stanford University, summed it up by saying, “The joy of getting into one’s dream school makes the huge amount of effort spent into writing and perfecting the essays and all the nights spent fretting over the issue of colleges all worth it.”