Buffett MS 8th Grade Journalism students have been working hard to put out The Buffett Bugle each month. We have gathered information to create hard news stories. We love working together taking photos, writing, and designing the online news.

We are very excited to bring you our online format of The Buffett Bugle. The school year is almost over!! Make sure to continue to tune in to The Buffett Bugle for more monthly instalments of hard work written by Buffett Students.

Story by: Danielle Jorgenson

OMAHA NE: A new high school called Westview, will be opened for the 2022-2023 school year, located at 156th and Ida Street and will be holding around 1,500 students. This year ranging from 45% to 72% of kids will be attending Westview rather than any other Omaha Public school.

Westview has many courses that appeal to students as well as several sports and extra activities. This may be a reason why students are so drawn in. Gracie Roads, an 8th grade student at Alice Buffett Middle School had stated “Even if I wasn’t moving, this would be a great option for me. It has opportunities for my career path and it seems to be a great overall school. I can see why kids are going to it.” Westview has a great reputation so far and known to be “different, new, and loved.”

With many kids going to Westview, a small minority from Alice Buffett students aren’t going. Maurice Sherrod, an 8th grader at Buffett, is going to Central for his 2022-2023 freshman year. “Central is closer to me, but if it wasn’t I could understand why people would go there. It seems everyone is there. I think that they wanted a new opportunity that some of the schools didn’t offer. I think the schools are perfectly fine already though, only a small portion of our school is staying at the older schools.”

The students all have opinions on the school, so a teachers perspective may be important for their decisions. A counselor, like Mrs. Lewandowski, is able to help students sign up for the schools that they want to go to or help them in future career paths. “I love Westview for the students and how it’s another option. It is very helpful and all of the teachers or staff seem to be very lovely people.”

Rather students already know if they are attending, or opting into the school, it’s obvious that people share very similar ideas on the school. “I’m excited to hear about all of the amazing stories from Westview and see the school improve along time.” Principal CK from Buffett says. “It’s a terrific journey for those going into Westview and something they should be very proud of.”

Photo from OPS Website.

Story by: Emily Ferguson

OMAHA, NEBRASKA: Omaha Public Schools decided a few weeks ago in March that students and staff now are not required to wear masks while on the premises, making masks optional.

The mask mandate in Omaha, Nebraska was officially lifted by February 16, 2022. The mask mandate set for the OPS district was officially lifted sometime during late February to early March.

Many of the student and staff here at Buffett have mixed emotions on the mask mandate being lifted. “I don’t know if getting rid of the mask mandate was safe or the right thing to do, but I know many people were relieved to hear masks were now optional,” said 8th grade Student Council Member at Buffett, Emily Douglas.

Although some people are worried about the mask mandate ending, there also many people who are thankful it has been lifted. 8th Grade student, Kelly Pitts, says, “I think that lifting the mask mandate was a good thing because teachers’ redirections often disrupted the learning environment and I was excited to hear it was being lifted.”

Many of the staff and students here at Buffett will switch from wearing their mask to not wearing theirs, depending on how many people they’re around or their surrounding environment. “I wear it when I am with larger groups, like in the cafeteria. I tend to not wear a mask when I am in a smaller group setting,” says Dean of Students, Ms. Aggen.

After lifting the mask mandate for OPS, many were glad to hear that things are slowly starting to become “normal” again. Or, as normal as possible after all we’ve been through in the last few years. GATE and Magnet Facilitator, Mrs. Howe, states, “A relief because we are moving away from the stricter guidelines, at least for now.”

BUFFETT MS: In August 2021, all students reported to school wearing their mandatory masks. Fifth graders eagerly wait to enter the building on this school year's 5th Grade Day.

Photo Credit: Mrs. Mallett Smith

Story by: Alyson Kelley

BUFFETT MS: The month of March is a time to celebrate courageous and brave women. Women’s history month is a time to honor and learn about individuals who helped shape where we are today. Instead, many students at Alice Buffett believe people aren’t being respectful and are making it seem as if their mocking women’s history.

Women’s history month can be a very controversial month. Many people think that everyone’s living in the past or over exaggerating the issue and problems that women has been criticized with. Others believe that women’s history is a great month to celebrate and honor the challenges and struggles women have overcome.

Many students here at Buffett are very respectful and appreciative of women’s history month. Caitlyn Bentley, an 8th grader at Alice Buffett, said, “I think it is a great time to celebrate some of the women that led our country and our world to where it is today and helped gain rights for women."

On the other hand, there are many students that think we could do more to be celebrating this month. Lily Marie, an 8th grade student at Alice Buffett said, “I believe that woman’s history month is a month that needs to be recognized more. Women are a pivotal part of our world and with the struggles and hardships that we have faced throughout history we need this month to recognize that women are powerful."

Lily Marie then said some ideas and activities that Buffett could do to acknowledge WHM. She said, “All of the lessons that we did during black history month I believe we should do for woman’s history month as well. For example blookets during homeroom, lessons during homeroom, and overall activities that involve woman’s history month in classes”

Sydney Schulze an 8th grader at Buffett agrees and said, “I feel as if a lot of people are looking over present issues about women and issues going on, so I think doing current events in social studies would be a good lesson.”

On the other hand, some students feel the month is unnecessary. Olivia Simms, an 8th grader at Alice Buffett said, “WHM doesn't make much change, but it is important to educate people about women's history”.

Some people here at Buffett mock this month by saying it’s not important. Olivia Simms said, “I think that there are people who will mock any history month, such as black history month, women's history month, etc.”

Story by: Jess Gales

OMAHA NEBRASKA: In todays society in 2022 LGBTQ+ is an important topic in our lives at Buffett Middle School 3 different people were interviewed about their view on neutral bathrooms. This may impact may people. Natasha Sysouvahh says “It would create a safer environment for those who don’t want to have an assigned gender bathroom."

At Buffett, we only have gendered bathrooms which might be a problem for some students. "I think it would be a good change for majority of the school” says Natasha Sysouvahh

Gender neutral bathrooms are not very common in around the U.S. However in Nebraska, students have the right to use the bathroom with their corresponding genders.

As far as Omaha Public Schools this district is very inclusive. “Some districts such as Omaha public schools have an anti-discrimination policy that explicitly protects gender identity and sexual orientation.” Says TransNebraska.org.

Having them would help many kids here and around the world. “It would benefit a lot of students that I work with.” say Ms. Douglas, a 7th grade teacher at BMS.

Overall people have different opinions about gender neutral bathrooms but Ace Dean-Livingston says “ yes, yes, yes”

BUFFETT MS: On April 19, Ace Dean-Livingston pauses working on the newspaper to pose for a photo. Dean-Livingston supports the idea of constructing gender-neutral bathrooms in school settings to help students avoid anxious situations.

Photo Credit: Ava Simpson

Story by: Colten Renken

BUFFETT MS: Quarantine started in March of 2020, and many people got stressed out because of the up and coming pandemic. Lots people coped with the stress by adopting a pet, because of this the adoption rates increased by 200% according to the ASPCA.

1 in 5 households adopted a pet during quarantine. A vast majority of households still have their pet they adopted, 90% for dogs and 85% for cats. This led the adoption rates increasing by 200% according to the ASPCA which is the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty of Animals.

Most students and teachers have adopted pets during quarantine or already had a pet before quarantine. Journalism teacher at Buffett, Jennifer Mallett Smith said, “ I got a cat because our old cat had to be put down because of an incident with a Christmas tree.” Most people adopt pets for all types of different reasons, but stress is one of the big factors of the increase in adopt rates.

Stress has always been affecting people but recently stress has had a big increase due to quarantine. Fahd Mohmand, an 7th grader, said the reason he had stress during quarantine is because “ I didn’t have anyone to talk to, and now that my dogs here I can express my feelings to him.”

Stress can come at any shape or size. Journalism Teacher Jennifer Mallett Smith said, “When we initially got quarantined I was at a middle school and the expectations for us to teach at home.” After all work is the most stress related activity according to the APA or American Psychological Association.

Stress has affected everyone at some point or another, whether from school, work, money, or about the economy. 7th grader Fahd Mohmand, said this about his dog helping him through quarantine. “He helped me a lot, without him I would have passed out.”

OMAHA, NE: In January of 2021, Mrs. Mallett Smith adopted Beaker and Archie, two adult male cats, from Felius Cat Cafe. Mrs. Mallett Smith is among the many other pet owners who adopted new family members during the pandemic.

Photo Credit: Mrs. Mallett Smith

Story by: Cora Vobejda

BUFFETT MS: Although less strict than other schools' dress codes, many students, mainly girls, still point out problems and prejudice that come with it.

Our school dress code consists of four written rules, which are;

-No clothing with suggestive pictures or languages, offensive or obscene language, pictures or symbols, or clothing with references to drugs, alcohol, tobacco, sex, gangs, or violence.

-No sunglasses, curlers, combs, picks, and other items

-No portions of any undergarments shown

-Chains of any kind, wallets with chains, choke chains, dog leashes, and similar items.

The school also notes that this is not an all-inclusive list, and that makeup, accessories, and clothing items that cause distractions may also be coded.

Some Buffett students feel that the code targets certain body types. When asked, four different students said that girls with bigger chests or more developed girls were the students they had seen be dress coded most often. “Girls who have bigger chests have a hard time finding clothes that don’t show off some cleavage, and it's unfair to get in trouble just because the way your body is shaped. That’s not something that you can control,” said Maddie Jones, 8th grade.

It’s not only our students that have noticed this either. Around the country, students have begun to object to sexism in the dress codes, especially rules that target bigger, curvier, or taller female students. In her online article: “Take The Cake: Are High School Dress Codes Especially Unfair To Plus-Size Teen Girls?” Virgie Tovar states that “Dress codes for girls are often about enforcing modesty. Modesty, however, is not a one size fits all model. That is, a fat girl and a thin girl can be wearing the same outfit and it can be perceived differently”.

Others online have pointed out that taller girls struggle to find clothes that cover their legs properly, and have a hard time following the popular ‘fingertip policy’ that says all skirts and shorts must go below the student's fingertips. Girls with longer arms or longer legs who can't find clothes that reach this low on them are dress coded, again, simply because of how they have grown.

There are also very general rules for girls' clothes, like no tank tops or spaghetti straps, that bring forth another problem, how sexualized young girls' clothing is. Sabrina Bernadel, a fellow at the National Women's Law Center, said in an interview with New York Times that “The problem with this theme is the ascribing of ‘provocation’ to female clothing. In other words, the dress choice of females is presumed to be designed to attract attention from males.”

Students are wondering if there will be any future code changes. 8th grader Emily Douglass said, “I think that the dress code should be changed. It’s not our fault that we want to express ourselves in clothing and some items just happen to show our stomach or our legs.”

Story by: Kelly Pitts

BMS: The Buffett Middle School phone policy is a district wide expectation this year, yet it has caused some problems for the students and teachers, whether it is miscommunication, or insubordination regarding this policy.

The phone policy is designed to “Have structure, we are trying to teach kids how to have a phone out without it being a distraction to learning, getting ready for high school because there are little to no restrictions, and phones to be used as a tool rather then a distraction.” Said Principal CK

Yet, this is not necessarily followed in all classrooms, is misunderstood, or the policy is somewhat altered in some cases like “I do not have students use their phones at all in my class so if they are on it I know they are off-task.” Said Mrs. Kimball.

Some students that have their phone out, they use it for important matters and some of the teachers rules can effect communication from parents to kid. It was said that students have had to have their phone out to check for “Family emergencies, and multiple teachers didn’t even allow me to call my mom, or give an explanation to do so” said Bella Ingram an 8th grade student at Buffett. Yet, not all students follow guidelines for phones to be a helpful source and choose to play games and other off task things.

“How the teachers react to me needing to go on the phone to communicate with my parents makes me feel very unheard, and I need to express my needs but instead being ignored, because they think that I want to go on my phone just to be on my phone but I really do need it for family reasons.” said Bella. This can cause students to get angry and act out in this because of the ignorance.

On the other hand there are other ways that teachers have approached students not following directions and allow the students to be heard out, like when Mrs. Peacock said “Yes, but that doesn't negate the fact they aren't following expectations. I will talk with them about appropriate ways/times to take care of {the reason they are on the phone}.”

Or a students phone is taken that they had a reason for it to be out like Halima said “I have gotten my phone taken so many time that I had a reason for but teachers hadn’t let me explain why I had my phone out.”

Most students believe that the consequences of having your phone out is too extreme, “Most of the consequences of being on your phone are way too strict like going to PAC if you don’t turn your phone into the teacher even if you offer to put it away seems dramatic” said Ava Abrisz

Mr. Ck had also said that “It’s all about structure sometimes it is necessary to take the phone away if kids do not listen to redirection appropriately then the phone is a distraction but it’s about balance and having the students understand what they are doing and how to fix it.”

Story by: Taylor Kelly, 8th grade Journalism student

Mental health cases for middle school students are on the rise. According to the Adolescent Wellness Academy, approximately one in five teens between ages twelve and eighteen suffer from at least one diagnosable mental health disorder. One student at Buffett, Bella Ingram, feels that people should pay attention to this major issue. She said, “Mental illness should never be something to push away. I would highly recommended attending therapy to see if expressing your feelings will release some weight off your shoulders."

There are four many types of therapy according to Healthline. The types are psychodynamic, behavioral, cognitive behavioral, and humanistic therapy. These main types of therapy also have different approaches to there type of therapy. For example, humanistic approaches to therapy include, existential therapy, person-centered therapy, and gestalt therapy.

Many students don’t understand that therapy can be difficult to take on. “I would recommend therapy to others, but it’s not for everyone. A lot of people don’t like to verbalize their feelings and they just don’t know how, but if you think it would be helpful for you then you should definitely try it because its been helpful for many people,” Bella Ingram, 8th grade.

Many people in general have a negative opinion on some people that go to therapy. They don’t fully understand that human minds think and express things differently. “I feel like people think you can only go to therapy if you have had a significant loss or trauma, but they just kind of stereotype it, and it makes the people that feel like they need the help, hide and stuff their feelings again. It’s pretty toxic in my opinion,” Bella Ingram, 8th grade.

For therapy patients, takeaways can vary from reassurances to life changing messages. “My biggest takeaway from therapy is that someone actually cares enough to sit through it with me, and help me with my problems even when I have felt like I have no one to talk to or understand me,” Bella Ingram, 8th grade.

“Working with a therapist can help you learn new coping skills and techniques to better manage daily stressors and symptoms associated with your diagnosis, so why not give it a try,” Healthline.

Story by: Audrey Bassett

OMAHA NE: Each February, Nebraska Elite Volleyball Club host the ASICS Presidents’ Day Classic. Many Buffett students play in this tournament with their club volleyball teams. The main location of the tournament takes place at CHI Health Center, Omaha, NE, but is also held at smaller facilities around Omaha.

For many volleyball players this is the biggest tournament they play. The tournament takes place over 3 days, and is held each year during the weekend of Presidents’ Day. Since most schools have a 3 day weekend, teams from all over the country come to Omaha to play.

Since the tournament is so big, placing top 3 in any bracket is a big deal. Buffett 7th Grader Mallory Shaw is on Nebraska Elites 12 national 1s team. She said, “My team has won the tournament the last 2 years! It’s super fun because teams coming from all over bring better competition and more exciting games!”

As fun as playing is, many players enjoy the tournament for the team bonding aspect. Buffett 8th grader Ella Kanne said, “My team made gift bags to bring. Each girl brought different snacks and small activities to do in between our games, this made the tournament very fun.”

Even coaches enjoy playing in this tournament. NE Elite 141 coach, Sami Hansen said “This tournament is such a good opportunity for teams to get close to each other and play good competition. It was always my favorite tournament to play in.”

OMAHA, NE: Each year the Presidents Day Classic brings teams to Omaha to compete in a 3 day tournament. “This is my favorite volleyball tournament I have ever played. I can’t wait until next years.” said Kambry Kachaturian

Photo taken by: Audrey Bassett

Story by: Richard Nguyen

BUFFETT MS: A lot of the students at Buffett play sports. Most of them wanted to play sports in 5th and 6th grade but they had to wait until the 2022 school year.

Playing sports at a younger age can keep kids in shape, and have a higher self esteem. A lot of kids want to play sports at a younger age because they want to be like their parents.

Jackson Tufte, a local 7th grader said “my dad played football and rugby”. He also said that “I do think they should let 5th and 6th graders play sports but they should be in their own league. Like 5th and 6th grade play each other and 7th and 8th grade play each other.”

Mr. CK, the principal at Buffett even grew up playing sports. “In elementary, I played baseball… and in middle school I played football, basketball, and baseball.”

In an interview, CK said “I feel like 5th and 6th grade would love to play sports. OPS would definitely allow 5th and 6th grade to play sports. But it would be Buffett against Buffett. And it would be like a silver team and a navy team. Something like that.”

So from what has been said, some people and even the principal do think the lower grades should play sports. “I do think that they should let 5th and 6th grade play sports.”-Jackson Tufte

OMAHA, NE: April 5, 2022, Scooters Coffee Shop is raising prices fast.

Scooters is raising prices of their drinks by the minute. Many people went to scooters because it was more affordable than other coffees shops but now people aren’t too sure. Scooters website states their smoothies are now, $4.50-$5.90 a pop. They use to be $3.20-$4.00, they went up by a whole dollar!

Riley Dungan is an eight grader at Alice Buffett Magnet Middle School. Riley said, “I liked scooters because of how affordable it was, but now that I’ve seen they raised their prices, Starbucks prices don’t look any different.”

Hannah Rombergher is an employee at Scooters. Her opinion on the prices raising is “outrageous”. She says, “I’ve been watching the prices drastically rise up and it think it’s ridiculous. Every day we’re losing more and more costumers by the minute. Scooters need to keep the prices because the drinks aren’t even that good.” She also says, “Scooters is only raising their prices because other coffee places are.”

Many people aren’t very happy about how scooters is raising the prices of their drinks. Maybe Scooters will notice not as many people are coming in and lower the prices back to their original, or maybe they will keep the prices the same regardless.

Story by Amaiyah Coleman

At Alice Buffett Middle School Target is a very popular for students and teachers, students tend to like the beauty section and clothing section. 8th Grade student Madelyn Stolinski goes to target often, and she says “ it's just fun to go to” she goes to target around twice a week. Her favorite item that they only sell at Target is their body’s sprays, “ It’s very underrated and not that many people know about it which I guess is good for me”. We covered her favorite item but here favorite section must be the clothing section, Madelyn doesn’t like wearing t shirts but when she does her favorite ones are from Target, she recommends their 5-dollar crop tops in all colors the have regular ones or v neck, but she likes the regular ones best. There is a huge debate on whether Walmart or Target is better and Madelyn's opinion on it is “ I think Walmart's better if you're going grocery shopping but if our just going to grab a few things target for sure.” Everything needs improvement even Target Madelyn thinks target should improve on restocking in stuff more often, she really like the Strawberry Guava Celsius and every time she goes, they never have it.

Brady Wilson 6th grade Buffett student isn’t fond of target just because he doesn’t want to leave the house, he goes there about once every couple week not very often, but if he does go, he spends most of his time in the gaming section. Although Brady isn’t a huge fan of target, he thinks they should add a place where you can just sit down so that when he’s forced to go, he has “ somewhere I can go so my mom isn’t bothering me while she shops.” Brady's opinion on the Walmart vs Target is “ as long as I get what I asked my mom to buy it doesn’t matter where she shops.”

There are two very different opinions on how Buffett Students feel about Target. It is a very popular store and very recommend trying out if you choose to listen to Madelyn.