It's a familiar scene to Uni students. Filing into Uni Gym, sitting in orderly rows, and staying still for hours as the administration recognizes and honors those who have achieved more than any of their peers. But is it the best system?

Staff Reporter Cole A. Petruzzi offers his thoughts on student reactions to academic and athletic achievements.

As the end of the school year approaches, everybody’s bogged down with what seems to be a hearty entree of test dates and assignment deadlines, served with a hefty dessert of various extracurricular end-of-year activities on the side. That’s why it’s important to step back a little bit from all the carnage.

Starting next week, many older Uni students that will begin to take Advanced Placement (AP) tests at other high schools--something that is necessary because we don't offer AP classes or even AP tests at Uni. I think it is a good thing that we don't offer AP classes at Uni, because we can get all the benefits of AP credit at Uni without sacrificing the quality of our classes.

As we all learned last week, weather in Illinois can go from feet of snow to sunny and fifty degrees in a matter of days.

I was not at Uni for very long before I realized the Student Council (StudCo) election procedures were defective. So when I heard that StudCo was introducing new procedures for the subfreshmen elections this year, I considered it a good start to addressing the issue. And when I heard that the new procedures had been expanded to include all student elections, I was even more appreciative.

More than two months ago, under president Barack Obama's orders, all American flags flew at half-mast on Dec. 14, the night of the school shooting in Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. Statuses pronouncing hearts broken with the victims, empathy, injustice, and frustrated calls for change littered my Facebook news feed. The evening's ongoing TV coverage all seemed to fall under a theme of helplessness disguised under a pretense of positive takes that one who had really witnessed or gone through the experience could not possibly identify with or find helpful.

Uni freshman Jacob Rajlich writes a guest editorial for the OG based on his well-circulated Facebook message; he covers topics ranging from the Uni administration to changes to Uni to the retirement of Athletic Director Sally Walker.

If you forget your prox card, you may be facing detention -- something almost unheard of at Uni. To some, it may even feel like prison.

This week there has been a flurry of activity on the first floor with people putting up decorations and taking them down. Gargoyle reporter Jonathan Yockey explains how this came about and how it was resolved.

Gargoyle Features Editor Lara Orlandic explains one of her winter pet peeves: obnoxious, flashy holiday decorations.

This year, negative political advertisements are more prevalent than ever before. Staff Reporter Cole A. Petruzzi discusses the issue.

Guest Cartoonist Arch Robison illustrates how poorly attended the meetings with college representatives are.

Gargoyle sports editor Jonny Yockey explains his rationale for why he is changing the way the sports scoreboard operates.

Everything is changing very quickly as senior year wraps up. Soon the Class of 2012 will no longer roam the hallways of Uni High, instead they will be roaming the world (and being a little freaked out by it all).