![The cross country team poses for the camera after finishing the district meet. The varsity boys, JV boys and JV girls all placed third and the varsity girls placed fourth. “Coach put in the right training for us for this season, so I think we will be peaking this week and the next couple of weeks,” varsity runner and junior Nathan Kukla said. “The chances of making it to state are very high, but we don’t settle for the lowest and there is always going to be that chance, so [we] race for the best.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Heidi-831-1200x900.jpg)
![Sucking in a breath of air, freshman Lily Pope competes in the 200 yard individual medley. On Oct. 25, the swim team competed in the AISD Swim Invitational. Overall, the girls team took second place and the boys team came in eleventh. “My favorite stroke is butterfly because I do the best in that stroke,” Pope said. “I feel like [butterfly] can test how [your ability] to convince yourself to keep going. The hardest part of swimming is convincing yourself to stay strong and keep pushing during a hard race [when] everything is tired.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/POPE-1200x804.jpg)
![Smiling at the camera, Author Ehigbor Okosun, members of Page Turners, and other students reflect on the author's visit. “I thought the visit was great,” Senior Amia De Leon said. “It was interesting talking to her and [getting to know] her process and her thoughts and books in general. But I think the reason it went well [was that] people got to ask questions. I'm glad that she said so much in response to the questions and it wasn't just one and done. [The author’s responses] felt very articulate.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Sebastian-5-1200x800.jpg)
![Standing in front of the field at a freshman football game, cheerleader freshman Jacob Gaudreau along with teammate freshman Bella Gibson pose for a photo during halftime of game. “[Cheer has] definitely given me a much more outgoing personality,” Gaudreau said. “I used to be very introverted, so it's definitely made me more extroverted towards people.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Ingrid-204-1200x800.jpg)
![Holding a wooden pizza toy, senior Taylor Peterson plays with small children in Bucaramanga, Colombia. During the summer, Peterson traveled to Colombia to help build an elementary school that only had two classrooms but five or six grades with one teacher. “We add[ed] two more classrooms,” Peterson said. “It’s kind of hard when you have two or three grades in one classroom and you only have one teacher. It’s very hard to actually get some beneficial learning. [The extra classrooms will give the students] a better quality of education because they’ll actually have a place specific for their learning.” Photo by Taylor Peterson](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Taylor-P.png)
![Swinging with his arm extended, senior Nolan Park hits the ball smoothly over the net and to the opponent’s side. Park is one of four varsity tennis captains and helped the team win district championships. “Winning district champs was a pretty awesome feeling,” Park said. “We had lost to Liberty Hill a couple of weeks before, but when we played them [again], we came out and really took care of business. We took them out and it was just a really awesome night.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Kassidy-419.jpg)
![Standing proud, varsity senior athletes Rafael Escobar, Griffin Jacobs, Jakob Martin, and juniors Jackson Springer and Jack Morris pose with their newly earned medals. The varsity team finished third out of 14 teams on Sept. 25. “The team's primary goal is to win the district championship,” head coach Cody Price said. "We're confident that with our action plan in place, we can accomplish this mission. [For the next tournament], our preparation involves assessing our strengths and weaknesses, celebrating milestones and creating individual development plans." Photo courtesy of Cody Price](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/golf.jpg)
Several new traffic and public safety laws went into effect September 1, 2009, many of which affect Cedar Park students.
Previous laws, regarding the use of cell phones while driving, forbade minors from any cell phone use during the first six months of driving. The new law extends upon this one, disallowing cell phone use (talking or texting) for minors until age eighteen.
“I think it should be texting only that’s banned, because it requires two hands and your eyes,” Arizona Dabrusin, sophomore, said.
In addition, the other restrictions that originally only applied to minors during the first six months of licensure, have been extended to one full year. Such restrictions include limited night driving and transporting a limited number of passengers.
“I hate it because six months is long enough,” Jessi Gutierrez, freshman, said. “We already have to wait six months after we get our permit to get our license.”
House bill 2730 requires minors that apply for licensure after September 1 to take and pass a driving skills exam before receipt of their license, as opposed to the old system of receiving a license without being tested.
“I think it’s good to have someone watch how you drive before you’re licensed because some people get by knowing the facts but they can’t actually put those facts into action,” Savannah Lee, freshman, said.
The same law also requires that a provisional (minor’s) driver’s license or instruction permit expire on their eighteenth birthday, but removes the requirement that a provisional driver’s license or permit be renewed annually. It also raises the fee for those licenses to fifteen dollars instead of five dollars.
In addition, minors are required to have 34 hours of behind-the-wheel driving instruction instead of 14, but that law will not go into effect until May 1, 2010.
All drivers are now prohibited from using cell phones in school zones, unless they are employing a hands-free device or the vehicle is stopped. Fines may be up to 200 dollars, but cities or counties that want to enforce the law must post a sign at the beginning of each school zone to inform drivers of the law and warn them of the fine. Many cities, such as Houston, will not be able to enforce this law due to insufficient funds for the signs. LISD schools are in several cities and two counties, so policies will vary from school to school.
“It’ll probably be safer but it stinks because you don’t have a means of communication while you’re driving,” Brooke Wilkinson, freshman, said.
Other laws now in affect include HB 558, which allows minors to be charged with public intoxication, and another law requiring everyone to wear seatbelts, regardless of age or location in the vehicle.
Many students are upset about the restrictions, but the laws were put in place for public safety, and will hopefully benefit the Cedar Park community.
