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The School Newspaper of Southwest Career and Technical Academy.

Southwest Shadow

Southwest Shadow

Southwest Shadow

Solving practice questions for her ACT prep, junior Lizeth Ontiveros starts early preparation for testing. Since the way the ACT is administered will change, the junior class may be split into three groups, each testing on a different day. “If all goes well next month then hopefully SWCTA’s schedule will run smoothly,”  Ontiveros says. “However, if cases rise again and it’s unsafe to proceed with the exam this year, then I hope juniors will be able to reschedule for our senior year or later this year.”

ACT testing plans underway, despite distance learning

Juliana Borruso and Aila Pasic
January 20, 2021
Expected to test from Feb. 23-25, juniors are going to take the ACT in person.
Hoping to finish the year off strong, students are preparing for final exams and teachers are wrapping up course content work. “After all the hard work everyone put in this year, I think everyone is excited for summer,” sophomore Luke Gil said. “So many things were different and we are looking towards a break.”

School operations closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Gurleen Swaich
January 15, 2021

In observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, classes will not be held until Tuesday, Jan 19.

School board members met last night to discuss several topics, including whether or not CCSD schools should reopen in any capacity. Ultimately, they decided to let principals choose groups of students that require guidance and have them physically visit their schools and receive extra help. ”Our recommendation is to allow our principals, they know their communities, to invite small groups of students to their campuses on a voluntary basis,” Deputy Superintendent Dr. Brenda Larsen-Mitchell said. “We know that we have students that need social-emotional wellness interventions and academic screenings that need to be done.”Photo Credit: Screenshot of Board Meeting

CCSD School Board votes to allow struggling groups of students to volunteer for in-person assistance

Monserrat Mendieta
January 15, 2021
Board members touch on immunizing staff, inequities for first steps to reopening schools, and academic information in new plan.
Starting after winter break, adding new teachers has allowed for smaller class sizes for core classes. After a large intake of freshmen, many classes were larger than normal. “I love it at Southwest,” Whitney Lopez said. “Coming into the distance format, the biggest challenge was how do I adjust all these things that I know we used to hit on, but also, do I need to make adjustments so that I can kind of lighten the load a little bit, so that it’s not so overwhelming all the time.”

New faculty joins Southwest for second semester

Juliana Borruso and Hanae Furugaki
January 14, 2021
The addition of two new English and a science teacher have aided in reducing course sizes.
Tomorrow at 5 p.m. the CCSD School Board will be continuing their discussion on the possible reopening of schools. Photo Credit: Clark County School District

School board meeting tomorrow to discuss possibility of inviting small groups of students to school campuses

Ahmed Ahmed and Monserrat Mendieta
January 13, 2021
COVID-19 mitigation strategies, new recommendation, and elected trustees.
For 2021, the Student Council is putting more emphasis on making the online environment less bleak by finding different ways to host events for everyone. “Our goals for this semester is to focus on school spirit, teacher appreciation, and student recognition while also coming up with fun virtual alternatives for our usual traditions,” Student Council President Michayla Sumabat said, “Each committee and commission are working on something different for our community and all I can say is that it is going to be great.”Art Credit: Monserrat Mendieta

Student Council makes small changes for the beginning of the semester

Monserrat Mendieta
January 12, 2021
New events incoming, applications opening up and switching board positions.
On January 6th, the U.S Capitol was invaded by an angry mass of Trump supporters while Congress was verifying Biden’s victory. "Chemistry Lab Yellow" by klar_rocks is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 .

Breaking: Trump incites insurrection at Capitol

Ahmed Ahmed and Monserrat Mendieta
January 8, 2021
Capitol Hill invaded, fatalities confirmed, call for removal and more.
Jon Ossoff, an investigative journalist, has won his election for the U.S. Senate and has guaranteed a Democratic Majority in the United States Senate. Jon Ossoff After a Campaign Speech © John Ramspott, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

BREAKING: Democrats take control of the US senate as they win both seats in Georgia, one party rule in Washington eminent

Ahmed Ahmed
January 5, 2021
The Southwest Shadow has called the 2020 Senate Election for Democrat Jon Ossoff, securing a Democratic majority in the Senate and a Democratic trifecta in Washington.
BREAKING: Raphael Warnock wins 2020 Georgia Senate Special Election

BREAKING: Raphael Warnock wins 2020 Georgia Senate Special Election

Ahmed Ahmed
January 5, 2021
The Southwest Shadow has called the 2020 Georgia Senate Special Election for Democrat Raphael Warnock.
School operations closed for Winter Break

School operations closed for Winter Break

Gurleen Swaich
December 18, 2020

In observance of semester exams and Winter Break, the regular posting schedule and school operations will continue on Monday, Jan. 4.

Working on her laptop from her usual Google Meets spot, sophomore Heron Yonas works on a PSA project to raise awareness about the harmful effects of reusable plastic masks. For the project, members took pictures of masks they found around the neighborhood and compiled them together in a video. "I love how this club keeps us up with the new environmental issues," Yonas said. "Honestly, if it weren't for this club, I would be completely blind to everything going on." Photo Credit: Heron Yonas

Environmental Club studies COVID’s impact on non-reusable products

Hanae Furugaki
December 10, 2020
Environmental Club members take steps to change their lifestyles and raise awareness to help the environment during the pandemic.
As sophomore Mia Sibal works on her collection project, she draws out ideas for each of her designs. Students are supposed to make a fully realized fashion collection inspired by historical fashion silhouettes and the deadly sins. “I want to prepare for this project by writing out what I'm going to do exactly with the collection like which deadly sin would go with which decade,” Sibal said. “I also want to start by sketching some of the designs I'm not sure with so the final product comes out as best as possible.”  Photo Credit: Mia Sibal

Seven Deadly Sins take over Fashion II

Hannah Paine
December 8, 2020
As their semester exam project, Fashion II students are using their knowledge of historical fashion to create a collection inspired by the seven deadly sins or heavenly virtues.