A Press Democrat Blog

Teen Life

News and opinion from local teens

Seeking equality in college admissions

Sunday, at 3:10 by

By KT BUCKLER SONOMA ACADEMY, JUNIOR, 16 In a little over a year’s time, I will be nervously awaiting college acceptance letters. I have a 4.3 GPA, am bilingual and participate in numerous extracurricular activities. These sound like the kind of things colleges are looking for, right? Not necessarily, given that my skin is white. In 2008, a white female, Abigail Fisher, was denied admission to the undergraduate program at the University of Texas at Austin. She had a 3.9… Read More »

Teen Face: Zena Hinds

Monday, at 2:14 by

By MARTIN ESPINOZA THE PRESS DEMOCRAT At New York University, Zena Hinds of Petaluma has Greenwich Village as a campus — an ideal habitat for a young artist who who dreams of one day performing on Broadway. Hinds, 18, graduated from Sonoma Academy and is now studying music and theater at NYU. She’s been singing and dancing since she was 6 and she knows success on the stage takes a lot of hard work. Although once a shy kid, she… Read More »

Soul Food

Tuesday, at 9:48 by

By Marbeya Garcia-Bermudez Many people wonder what exactly makes healthy food good for your body and your taste buds. Nowadays, the taste of vegetables and fruits can be altered and improved through new recipes. Looking at a Whole Foods bag one might be attracted to the “Top 10 ANDI”. An ANDI score is “a number from 1 to 1000 that lets you know how nutritious your food is.” Additionally, the “highest scoring food has the most nutrients per calories.” The… Read More »

Video games: State ban violates First Amendment

Monday, at 12:35 by

By JONNY MOON SONOMA ACADEMY, SENIOR, 18 I came home from school and jumped into the saddle of my American Standardbred. I galloped through the plains of the Midwest and dueled my way to fame. I shot criminals, hogtied bandits and saved a revolutionary’s wife. My good deeds saved the life of innocent people, but these actions may soon be banned, as I did this while playing “Red Dead Redemption,” an alleged “overly violent video game.” In 2004, California passed… Read More »

Video games: Children shouldn’t be able to buy violent games

Monday, at 12:32 by

By DANIEL WILLENS SONOMA ACADEMY, JUNIOR, 16 Killing innocent civilians and picking up and beating prostitutes aren’t activities parents want their children doing in their free time. Therefore, it only seems logical that minors should be prohibited from buying or renting video games where these actions occur. A California law passed in 2005 does just that, but it was immediately challenged in federal court and is being examined by the U.S. Supreme Court. The court should find this law constitutional.… Read More »