The Merionite
Ardmore, PA, 19003
February 22, 2017
October 30, 2014
The official student newspaper of Lower Merion High School since 1929 The official student newspaper of Lower Merion High School since 1929 www.themerionite.org Volume 88, Issue 4
Alumni film featured in museum
Cherished Kobe Bryant memorabilia stolen Catherine McFarland ’18 News Editor
Ziwen Zhou ’18 It’s not a common occurrence that the work of students finds its way into an illustrious museum, but four recent graduates of LM have just accomplished that feat, as their work was exhibited in the National Museum of American Jewish History. Class of 2016 alumnae Claire Brown, Lizzy Friedman-Zayon, Emma Randall, and Bari Spector filmed a documentary, Reflections of Children and Grandchildren of Holocaust Survivors: The Ones Who Survived, as a way to pay homage to their ties with Judaism, ties shared by many other LM students. Their work far surpassed its original confines as a school assignment, and grew into a treasure that served to represent the collective resilience and triumphs of the American Jewish community. It is an significant feat, as these alumnae took a difficult and sensitive topic and created a piece of art that went well beyond expectations. The four graduates created the documentary as part of their Reading and Writing Nonfiction course in an effort to explore topics dear to them and the community. They were told early in the year by their teacher, Dr. Debra Hobbs, that they would be filming an informative and persuasive documentary, and thus had ample time to find an intriguing topic that the project mandated. In explaining how the topic was chosen, Friedman-Zayon explained, “When we all got together as a group, we realized that we had an area of commonality relating to the holocaust. My mother’s parents both survived the holocaust. Bari’s grandparents got out before the war and tried to sponsor individuals. Emma’s grandfather was an aerial photographer who followed closely behind liberators. And Claire gave us an outside perspective of how it ties into life today.” Throughout the year, these students watched many documentaries and analyzed their pros and cons in order to implement the positive elements into their own project. Technology Integration teacher Beth Hampton, as well as Hobbs, played a major role in guiding the project and providing advice and assistance. The project itself was rather tedious and difficult, irrespective of the difficulty already associated with the topic choice.
Graphic by Sam Gamberg ’17/Staff
While most LM students were watching the Superbowl being stolen by the Patriots, some precious items were stolen from our very own high school. On February 5 at 7:29 p.m., two burglars snuck into LM and stole all the contents of the beloved Kobe Bryant memorabilia display case. The two men broke in through the girls’ locker room, using a toolbar to get around the lock. They then continued over to the display case or “Kobe Shrine,” breaking the lock on the case and removing the glass door on the left hand side. In less than five minutes, the robbers stole every single item inside the case. These items included the boys’ basketball team 1996 PIAA class AAAA State Championship trophy, their 1996 State Championship net and PIAA certificate, a few game programs, a framed replica of Kobe Bryant’s high school jersey, and multiple pairs of Kobe’s line of Nike sneakers signed by Bryant himself. After placing these items in a trash bag, the two men proceeded to leave the building through the door and get into a getaway car. This robbery puzzled the Lower Merion Police and community, because not a single one of the items stolen had any significant monetary value. Since this was not the first time the case’s contents had been stolen, every item, save for the trophy and certificate, was a replica. Custodian Michael Addis
comments, “I don’t know why they would steal them unless they didn’t know they were copies.” He explained that in the old building, students stealing Kobe Bryant’s famed jersey was a common occurrence and that when Kobe Bryant played his final game against the 76ers, “Gregg Downer gave the original jersey back to Kobe Bryant” as a gift. Currently, the Lower Merion Police are investigating the incident. They are reviewing surveillance videoes from inside and outside the school. They recently released the tape, which shows the robbery being executed from start to finish through the camera facing the shrine. The Lower Merion Police described the suspects: “Actor #1 is wearing a dark colored winter hat, black or blue jacket with a scarf, dark pants and dark colored shoes with white trim. Actor #1 is wearing blue latex gloves and conceals their face with a multicolored scarf. Actor #2 is wearing grey ‘Jordan’ sweatpants labeled on the left pant leg, a dark colored hooded jacket or sweatshirt, a Brooklyn Nets hat with a pom pom on top and grey New Balance sneakers. Actor #2 is wearing gloves and conceals their face.” The police shared the video and photos on Facebook, and asked the community to also keep an eye out for these men and any items being pawned or sold online on sites such as eBAY.
Please see DOCUMENTARY on page 2
Please see KOBE ROBBERY on page 2
A look ahead to Mr. LM Claire Ochroch ’18 Mr. LM is the quintessential high school event: it incorporates dancing, comedy, singing, and lots of fundraising. Each year there are about ten contestants, each with a prepared talent, such as catching food in their mouth, playing guitar, and dancing. The fundraising, which is the main part of the event, functions partly to lower the price of prom tickets for seniors and partly for charity. Each contestant selects a charity—such as American Cancer Society, A Better Chance, and the Covenant House— and the winner’s organization is the one that receives the money. On March 1 hundreds of people are expected to gather in the auditorium to watch this exciting event unfold. There is an incredible amount of talent coming from both the junior and senior class this year. This year, the seniors participating in Mr. LM are Andreas Blobel, James Burton, Jarod Estacio, Barrett Noone, Jordan Robinson, Elad Shdaimah, and Daniel Tsai. The juniors in the competition this year are Karl Meyer, Jalyne Poles, Eric Ruffin. They all Photo by Sam Gamberg ’17/Staff have been working incredibly hard to get ready for Mr. LM, and have a unique talent that they will showcase, though the majority of them are The ten contestants pose in keeping it a surprise. costumes representing their There are many things about Mr. LM this year that will be distinct decade after practice. from years before. Emily Harnett ’17, the winner of the competition last
NEWS Protests
FEATURES
Many LM students march for rights in various protests in the Philadelphia area. page 2
year, will be directing the show. Physics teacher Nora Christman, the architect behind this event, says that, “Harnett brings an unmatched level of understanding of not only the technical aspects of running a show, but also what it takes to be a successful contestant. The cast and I are lucky to have her!” Also this year there are three MCs instead of the usual two: LM Principal Sean Hughes, Erez Potok-Holmes ’17, and Harnett, who have all been preparing diligently for the event. The pageant this year will be the most unique one yet. Each person will be portraying a different decade and will give viewers a different snapshot of history. Estacio will be embodying prehistoric times. Meyer will be the 1770s, showing off an important time in American history. Blobel will personify the 1920s, speakeasies, flappers, and all. Tsai will represent the 1950s. He relates to this decade, explaining, “probably the biggest trait of mine that links me to the 50’s is the ridiculous amount of hair gel that I put on my head every morning.” Shdaimah will represent the 1960s; Noone the 1970s; Ruffin, the 1980s; Burton the 1990s. Burton says his outfits will “be inspired by the show, ‘Fresh Prince of Bel Air.’” Finally, Poles will embody the 2000s, and Robinson will attempt to represent the future. The part of Mr. LM that the majority of the cast members are excited about is the dancing. Tsai says the thing he is most excited about for Mr. Please see MR.LM on page 2
A&E LM takes the Oscars Check out some of LM’s favorite teachers as Oscar award winners. pages 10 & 11
OPINIONS How much does a score cost?
Women in STEM
Kelsey Stanton ’18 argues that the College Board unfairly leads wealthier students to higher scores. page 5
Claire Ochroch ’18 spotlights the women in LM science and technology clubs. page 9
SPORTS Athletic alumni Benjamin Schmid ’19 details the post-LM athletic accomplishments of some of our lesser known alumni.
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February 22, 2017
News The Merionite
Political protests spring up around Philadelphia Molly Cutler ’19 Arts & Entertainment Editor CENTER CITY, JANUARY 21—Upholding a history of Philadelphian protesting, the Women’s March on January 21 garnered a crowd of around 50,000, according to Mayor Jim Kenney’s office. The March originated as a peaceful protest to the inauguration of President Donald Trump and his platform. It was fueled by several of his comments that alluded to sexual assault, as well as his anti-abortion stance and his perceived disrespect for women. However, the march was also a rally against the racism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, as well as anti-immigrant, antiscience values the protesters saw in Trump’s campaign and policies. Chants such as “this is what democracy looks like” from the crowd exemplified their stance that they were doing a civic duty by speaking out. The March was a sister march of the larger event in Washington, DC, in addition to other sister locations on every single continent. Participants marched down the Benjamin Franklin Parkway from Logan Square to Eakins Oval. Speakers included several of the organizers: the musical group Drum Like A Lady, state representatives, local community activists, and Pennsylvania Senator Daylin Leach and his teenage daughter. No arrests took place at either the
Photo Courtesy of Finn McSorley (From left to right) Juniors Kathryn Lockwood, Sarah McConnell, Molly Kaiser, and Mason Famiglio pose together and display their sign in the excitement. march. In fact, police in many locations were cheering for the protesters. This year, on the day after the inauguration, a cohesive look united the marchers—pink “pussyhats,” hand-knitted and topped with cat ears. Pussyhatproject.com says that the hats were a way to “provide the people of the Women’s March on Washington DC a means to make a unique collective visual statement which will help activists to be better heard.” Indeed, both the hats and the multitude of creative signs—“respect my existence or expect my resistance,” “you
can’t comb over sexism,” and “my rights aren’t up for grabs and neither am I” among many others—were key aspects of the event. Many LM students joined the masses at the local Women’s March. Molly Kaiser ’18, an officer of SAGE (Students Advocating for Gender Equality), felt “disappointed and angered with the outcome of the 2016 election, and the amount of hate crimes and cruel behaviors that have been exchanged between Americans.” She left the march feeling reassured that she is “not alone in the fight for equality,” having seen so many people from different backgrounds protesting together. Sophomore Marion Donoghue also appreciated the feeling of solidarity, saying that “even living in a progressive bubble like we do, you still come across people who have less accepting views on things like sexuality, gender identification, religion, et cetera. But at the march, you were surrounded by thousands of people who were all there for the same reason and who were all loving and accepting of the differences around them.” She concluded that the march made her feel “a little more like [her] voice” was being heard.
Bethany Eldridge ’18 Features Editor CENTER CITY, FEBRUARY 10—In Philadelphia, on February 10, there was a “Philadelphia March for Humanity” located at Thomas Paine Plaza; clashing against the orders, the marchers welcomed refugees into the city. The rally started off with speeches from many community members powerfully preaching acceptance of all people. LM alumna Sarah Labbad ’16 reflected on the reason she protested on February 10, noting that “these bans harm those who are most in need of help.” Labbad hoped that as the community came together, people would realize refugees need help, “no matter their political affiliation.” A student from Temple University created the Facebook event for the “Philadelphia March for Humanity” rally. Camille Carr ’18 admired the student’s initiative to create an event using social media. She remarked that, living in a suburban area, she sees a lot of talk and no action. Carr
Lena Anderson ’18 PHILADELPHIA INTERNATONAL AIRPORT, JANUARY 29—In direct response to President Trump’s immigration ban that prevented people from seven countries in the Middle East from traveling to the US, four thousand people, including a handful of LM students, rushed to Philadelphia International Airport and joined together in protest. The demonstration, which occurred on January 29, officially started at 2:00 p.m. and ended at 4:00 p.m., but many protesters remained at the international terminal beyond that. Initially the protest was isolated to outside the international terminal, but eventually, the protestors started marching down the length of the terminals, holding up thousands of signs, chanting, and singing songs such as “This Land is Your Land.” Signs had slogans such as “No Ban, No Wall, Liberty and Justice for All” and “Never Again.” A few prominent politicians attended, such as Mayor Jim Kenney and Congressman Dwight Evans. Sophomore Sophie Feinstein, who attended the protest, explains that her ancestors “came through Ellis Island fleeing anti-Semitic violence in Europe.” She says it was important to attend “because we know too well what it feels like to be strangers in a strange and not very welcoming place.” Her sister, Lily Feinstein ’18, also went to the protest because she feels “very strongly that the immigration ban is completely un-American.” Junior Heather Gebhart, another protest attendee, believes that “everyone should be treated equally and when Donald Trump put his ban in action, it infringed on that belief.” Amidst the strong passion of the protest, the presence of LM students added to the diversity of the crowd at the protest and helped increase the representation of youth voices in politics.
Documentary Cont. from ALUMNI FILM FEATURED IN MUSEUM page 1 Over forty slides had to be made—one for each scene in the documentary—and each and every one needed to be approved by fellow classmates before receiving the green light to begin filming. This project initially was meant to just be seen by fellow classmates, but Hobbs found the documentary so moving and powerful that she decided that bring up the film to the Director of Education at the National Museum of American Jewish History, thinking that the topic would interest her. To Hobbs’s surprise, the director was so interested in the documentary that she decided a special exhibition should be created for it. This led to a series of meetings between members of the museum board and Hobbs, and later on with the students, too. And after a year of planning, a date was set up for the presentation of the documentary. Those that were in the museum on January 5 were first treated to an interactive display that highlighted the stories of Jewish Americans who faced heavy discrimination, yet were able to achieve victories in the name of tolerance and acceptance. They were then shown the students’ documentary. After the screening, the students had a question-and-answer session, during which they detailed their creative process, struggles of the filming process, and also the relevance of their topic in today’s world. As Brown said afterwards, “sharing it on stage was really powerful because we had the ability to spread such an important message.” Over 250 people were in attendance to listen to Hobbs and three of the four student filmmakers talked about how their documentary came to fruition. Dr. Leslie Pratt, Supervisor of Secondary Humanities at LM, was a part of the audience and had only glowing praise for the students. “I thought that the documentary itself was inspiring. I was also deeply impressed by the poise and intellectual ease that each of the filmmakers demonstrated, both as they framed the viewing experience for the audience prior to the screening and in the question and answer session that followed,” she said afterwards. The attendees were exposed to the experiences of Jewish Americans soon after the Holocaust, and were also given an appreciation for social justice and the importance of family, two themes that were discussed extensively during the question-and-answer session. It is hoped that with these four LM alumni as an example, more students will be willing to broach difficult and controversial topics in their own lives with the same brilliance and dedication that they showed.
Photo by Sam Gamberg ’17/Staff There were many creative signs with plays on words condemning Trump and his foreign policy. noted, “Seeing people out there actively protesting and helping refugee families [was] exciting.” Carr was not the only young marcher inspired by his action. The marching part of the rally directly followed the speeches. Marchers young and old filled the streets of Center City from sidewalk to sidewalk, marching from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the bitter cold. Crowds chanted and pledged acceptance for refugees and immigrants into our “sanctuary city.” Minori Cohan ’18, an LM student and an immigrant herself, reflected on the hope that this protest gave her and the “faith that people still believe that immigrants are considered an asset to this country and not a threat.”
Enrollment Growth Grace Wei ’19
For the past eight years, LMSD has attained the second-fastest enrollment growth rate in the state. Due to this high enrollment rate, more than 8,400 students are currently enrolled in LMSD, breaking the 1970s’ record. At LM itself, the enrollment has undergone a 14.3 percent growth rate from 2011 to 2016 with an anticipated 19.9 percent growth rate for the upcoming years. In a recent statement released by Superintendent Robert Copeland, it is predicted that LMSD will obtain another one thousand students and the high schools will gain an additional 700 students each in the next ten years. As proposals for another elementary school are being considered, it is evident that the growth has already begun to affect schools across the district. Cognizant of the future, LM has started to prepare for the surge of students. With the large number of students and the variety of classes and electives, the School Board has discussed the need to expand the LM building and surrounding facilities. Their solution was to utilize the empty thirdfloor classrooms in the district’s administration building. This past summer, some vacant rooms were converted into cutting edge chemistry classrooms. More science classes will be moved to the building to accommodate the growing number of students. In response to the move, Principal Sean Hughes says that “having the space in the District Administration Building is very helpful. It enables us to house more classrooms so that we can offer all of these great opportunities.” On the effect of the enrollment growth, Hughes states, “I have been here many years and I have seen both enrollment growth and decline. The key is to be prepared as we plan for curriculum and extra-curricular activities. Our job is to provide the best education experience that we can.”
Mr. LM Cont. from A LOOK FORWARD TO MR. LM, page 1 LM is “dropping it like it’s hot in front of the entire school.” This can be attributed to the theme, which allows many different songs and dance styles from across history. Choreographer Morgan Naiberg ’17 has worked tirelessly to put these dances together, including a partner dance and a hip hop dance. Meyer says that “my favorite memory of working on Mr. LM so far has been the hip-hop dance rehearsal. It’s super fun to dance in a style I don’t have much experience with.” People across the school are excited to see their friends performing, dancing, and having fun on stage. Possibly the greatest thing about Mr. LM is that the students get to see a different side of some of LM’s greatest students. Like Christman says, “Mr. LM is the most fun you could possibly have at school. Come join us Wednesday March 1 at 7:00 p.m.!”
News
February 22, 2017
3
The Merionite
A visit from buildOn founder
Tech clubs compete
Eliza Keefe ’20
Kathy Yao ’18
After weeks of preparation, LM welcomed renowned villagers in Mali and Nepal finding their way out of poverbuildOn founder and worldwide education activist Jim ty through the education buildOn members provide. “His Ziolkowski to speak on December 19. stories and experiences inspired me to continue to serve Ziolkowski, who founded buildOn to help “break the my community,” Jackie Jaspers ’20 recalls. cycle of poverty, illiteracy, and low expectations” through He also included essential lessons he has come to receducation, has helped to build schools throughout Burki- ognize throughout his career in service. Ziolkowski first na Faso, Haiti, Malawi, Mali, Nepal, Nicaragua, and Sene- taught is that “fear is useless.” He encouraged students to gal. His work has been featured on NBC’s Today, the CBS go big and be courageous. Another lesson he emphasized Evening News, PBS, The Fast Company, and MSNBC’s is the need for unity, explaining that the cycle of poverty The Morning Joe. In 2010, Catholic Digest honored him can only be broken if students work together. as a Catholic Hero. He further explained his mission in his Following a question-and-answer session, the trek 2013 New York Times educational best-selling book, Walk team met Ziolkowski in the black box theater for lunch, in Their Shoes: Can One Person Change The World? which gave them the opportunity to ask him questions However, he had never before spoken of these accom- and further learn from his experiences. It was also an opplishments at a buildOn high school. “We’ve been trying to portunity for Ziolkowski to learn more about LM buildOn get him here for two years. We kept pestering and pester- and the service we provide to our community. ing him to the point that it worked!” explained Tom Reed, “He was so generous with his time that we had to rush LM buildOn sponsor and history teacher. him out of there to catch his train. He didn’t want to leave,” Determined to show their respect for Ziolkoski, LM Reed laughed. buildOn members stayed multiple days after school and Ziolkowski left LM buildOn newly inspired as they on weekends to cover the halls with posters, streamers, look to continue to serve their community in the new year. and photographs. Posters read phrases such as “Be the Thus far, 293 LM buildOn members have fulfilled a colChange You See in the World” and “Together Through lective 6,554 hours of service, volunteering at the Jewish Service.” Ella Catt ’20 said, “We hoped that these posters Relief Agency, Ronald McDonald House, Bethel Tutoring, would make Ziolkoski feel welcome and show him how and many other local events and fundraisers. “We’re on much we appreciate what he has done.” pace to eclipse our current school-year record of hours LM, Harriton High School, Bala Cynwyd Middle served,” Reed shared excitedly. School, and Welsh Valley Middle School buildOn chapIn addition to this local service, LM’s trek teams have ters, as well as buildOn students from Haverford High built schools in Taverne, Haiti (2012), Menard, HaiSchool, attended Ziolkowski’s assembly in the auditorium. ti (2013), Jokaiya, Nepal (2014), Las Brisas, Nicaragua As Sophia Bumbera (2015), and Samu’20 recalls, “There was el Luckwa, Malawi a great turnout. See(2016). The first-eving so many buildOn er Harriton-specifmembers made me ic trek team built proud to be a part of a school in Astruc, such an amazing comHaiti in 2016. This munity.” year, LM and HarThe auditorium was riton buildOn chapsilent while Ziolkowski ters will be traveling held the microphone, together to Haiti and explaining his inspirawill be constructing tion to “break the cycle two schools in two of poverty, illiteracy, different communiand low expectations.” ties. BuildOn memHe told inspiring ber Tessa Keefe ’21 stories of his journeys reflects, “It makes around the world and me very proud to be of the people he has a part of an organimet. He told stories of zation that has given teenagers in Chicago the chance of an edPhoto courtesy of Dan Capkin and the Bronx finding ucation to so many their lives’ calling in Ziolowski signs a copy of his book for Lena Rutzel ’20 around our world.” service and stories of and Alice Rickards ’20.
February is an exciting time for people all over the country. For most Americans, the Super Bowl is an exciting event to look forward to; for LM students, the President’s Day fourday weekend; for TSA and Science Olympiad students, the start of the competition season. On Saturday, February 11, both TSA and Science Olympiad had their first respective competitions. TSA had their regional conference and Science Olympiad had their invitational. Sixty-five LM students attended the TSA regional conference, held at Strayer Middle School in Quakertown. Regionals is the first competition of the year where students compete against other students within their region. For new members, it is the first time they get to compete against other students. Freshman Linda Liu says, “I was scared that after all that hard work, I might not go to States. But at the end, it all paid off when my team name was called out during the awards ceremony.” This year, the team’s conference was the most successful regionals that LM-TSA has had in years, if not ever. TSA officer Kelsey Stanton ’18 reflects, “Thanks to all of the hard work they put in, 62 members placed in the top five for their events!” Not only did the team collect the most awards that the chapter has ever received, but they also received the most top five finishes and first place finishes out of all the high schools at the conference. “Hopefully we can keep up this momentum for States in April,” Stanton continues. In April, forty of the 62 students who placed top five will be going to Seven Springs Mountain Resort to compete at the state level, which is much more competitive. To prepare for this, Stanton shares that LM-TSA members will “revisit and improve their events from Regionals. The officers will also be implementing event check-ins in order to make sure all events are on par for the increased level of competition at states.” Science Olympiad also performed well at the Tiger Science Olympiad Invitational at Northwestern Lehigh High School. Schools from Pennsylvania and nearby states compete in events to practice for the regional competition. In total, sixteen LM students attended the competition. The competition was extremely intense, but this did not hold back the team. The team placed third out of 36 teams and won top five medals in ten different events. The Science Olympiad team will have their regional competition on March 1 at Neumann University. The team has worked incredibly hard to prepare for the conference. As Eric Liang ’18 says, “Although the work right now is difficult, I personally think that these are our first steps to becoming a nationals team.” The competition will be rewarding in the end because of all the benefits that come with it. “I’m looking forward to seeing everyone’s hard work pay off at regionals,” Annie Liang ’20 shares, “and I also can’t wait to get to know everyone on the team better.” Both TSA and Science Olympiad look to continue their success at their upcoming competitions.
A lack of substitute teachers Julian Ginzburg ’19 Copy Editor There is an overwhelming amount of excitement from students when a sign on a teacher’s door states, “Please complete assignment on my Blackboard, class is on your own.” These types of situations happen when neither a teacher nor substitute teacher is present, and are becoming increasingly frequent at LM. Over the past few years, there has been a steady decline in the number of substitutes at LM. Daily, an average of four to five substitutes teach here. While there are no statistics concerning the number of substitutes five years ago, “the substitute candidate pool of people is lower,” according to LM Principal Sean Hughes. But this phenomenon is not unique to LM or even to the district: it’s a national problem. The district does not attribute the lack of substitute teachers to one specific reason, but rather a group of reasons “that have coalesced to create a lack of qualified guest teachers in LMSD and surrounding districts,” explains Mark Kline, the Acting Human Resources Manager for the district. Kline also noted that a significantly smaller number of teaching candidates are coming from universities in our area. He explains, “The decrease in candidates affects our ability to add guest teachers to our pool.” The Pennsylvania School Board Association recently reported that there has been a 58 percent decrease in the number of teacher certificates in the state over the last five years. Another limiting factor in the size of the candidate pool of guest teachers is the State Retirement System, which does not allow the district to hire retired teachers as substitutes. Specifically, retired teachers cannot be employed and receive pension benefits, meaning a teacher would have to forfeit their retirement pension in order to guest teach. This
impairs the district from hiring older guest teachers who would only be looking for a part-time job. A final factor is the Affordable Care Act, which requires LMSD to provide health insurance to its employees who work more than thirty hours per week. To minimize costs, LMSD has started to keep track of substitute hours to avoid paying health insurance. This in return has lessened the pool of candidates as there are “very few people who can sub on this kind of schedule,” explains Kathi Jones, a guest teacher at LM and Harriton who subs one to two times a week. Jones attributes the lack of guest teachers to the fact that “most teachers want to have full time jobs” for job security and healthcare. Carol Ryan, who guest teaches at LM three to four times a week, explains, “Many certified teachers are not taking positions as instructional aides to receive their health benefits because they hope to move on to a full-time teaching position.” Specifically, certified teachers who cannot find full-time jobs take positions as aides to receive the same benefits that teachers would receive. To help curb the problem, LMSD is now aggressively pursuing candidates for these roles. Kline states, “The rate of pay for guest teachers has increased to help attract candidates.” But, as Hughes points out, “if there is just a lack of candidates then I’m not even sure an incentive system would work.” In the classroom, the effect of the lack of substitute teachers is minimal, as hired teachers can usually cover classes during their preparation periods. History teacher John Grace believes, “The best substitute teachers come from my LM colleagues. They have the extra benefit of knowing and being known by our students.”
In addition, students in AP classes do not usually have a substitute but rather a free period when the teacher is absent. Furthermore, Hughes explains that he does not think that students are negatively hurt by the shortage of substitute teachers because of the “technology capabilities we have today.” A technological capability includes teachers who know that they will be absent and post the assignment on Blackboard or eBoard. So, most LM students rarely suffer from the lack of substitute teachers, as they “feel lucky” when they get an unexpected free, explains Grace Wei ’19.
“
Many certified teachers are not taking positions as instructional aides to receive their health benefits because they hope to move on to a full-time teaching position. —Carol Ryan
”
Though the shortage is not a pressing problem, there are some teachers that question why the district is not exploring alternative to attract more substitute teachers. History teacher Charles Henneberry offered a solution: the state should allow graduate students to be substitute teachers. Furthermore, Henneberry believes that these future teachers would have the “opportunity to get their feet wet,” and he wishes that he could have had this opportunity. Thus, while the shortage does increase coverage time and sometimes is an annoyance for teachers and guest teachers, the advanced technology that LM possesses has prevented the lack of substitutes from becoming a serious issue.
News
February 22, 2017
4
The Merionite
Community Updates Minori Cohan ’18
New Restaurants
Report-It app
Nudy’s Cafe (Ardmore) Ardmore Station Cafe has just received a new competitor: Nudy’s Cafe. The new cafe has an expansive menu, with not only breakfast foods, but a variety of soups, salads, burgers, wraps, and sandwiches as well. With twelve different kinds of pancakes and nine different kinds of waffles on the menu, Nudy’s may as well be one of the most difficult menus to order off of. A popular location for post exam food therapy and weekend brunch, Eric Hillsberg ’18 exclaims, “Nudy’s is so good! I ordered the french toast, and I was surprised that it wasn’t crowded because I went on a Saturday.” Nudy’s is a great addition to the Ardmore neighborhood.
The Report-It App lets its users report problems and mishaps around the community. Lower Merion Township has recently introduced its “Report-It” app, dedicated to providing a platform for residents to identify non-emergency civic issues (public safety, quality of life, environmental concerns) and report them directly to the township for a quick resolution. This has created an opportunity for local government to use technology to save time and money while improving its accountability to residents. Their creation is an innovative replacement to the prior reporting procedure, which was to either call the township and possibly face a long waiting period or manually fill out a public works service request form and submit it to the township. This app hopes to not only improve the welfare of the community, but to encourage more local government involvement from residents. This free app is available for download on both Apple and Android devices, and can also be accessed online. Here is how it works: you take a picture or a video of a public works problem, fill out a brief description, and then submit it where the GPS location of the photo or video will be tracked for a systemized, prioritized resolution. Once a report is submitted, feedback is provided to the user based on the action taken by the township. “This is an easy to use, key new technology for the township,” said Paul McElhaney, President of the Board of Commissioners. “It will help our residents make Lower Merion an even better place to live.” Many local residents appear to be utilizing and appreciating the app because of its five-star rating on Google Play. Report-It app user Liz Rogan praised it, saying, “Bravo! Great tool to ensure street lights stay on, and potholes are filled.” Small improvements here and there can easily make the biggest difference, so next time you come across vandalism, a traffic signal issue, or a downed electrical wire, Report-It!
Turning Point (Bryn Mawr) Since its opening earlier this year, the Turning Point restaurant may be a turning point in your dining opinions. The beverage options at this restaurant, taking up half of the menu, seem to be the highlight on many people’s experiences. The menu offers a variety of iced teas, iced coffees, shakes, smoothies, freshly squeezed juices, gourmet french press coffees, espressos, hot chocolates, and hot loose leaf teas, all totalling to 65 beverage options. Izzy Richter ’18 remarks, “The s’mores hot chocolate was the best I ever had. It had toasted marshmallow and crushed graham crackers.” There is also a wide range of eating options as well, including both a breakfast and a lunch menu.
The Wawa located on Montgomery Avenue is a popular spot for LM students to get their morning coffee fix or an on-the-go lunch, but it is currently closed for renovation and will not reopen until February 22. The Montgomery Avenue Wawa is not the only one to close for renovation, and is one of 21 Wawas to shut down temporarily. Frequent Wawa visitor Ishan Bhatia ’18 is devastated at the news, noting he is “anxiously awaiting its return.” A total of fifty Wawas across the east coast are undergoing remodelling, in both the store design and food services. Wawa says that they are investing one million dollars to upgrade to the most up-to-date features to improve efficiency and expand food and beverage options. The two things to look forward to, they say, are the new hand-spun milkshakes and the Coca-Cola Freestyle machines.
Photo Courtesy of Sam Gamberg ’17/Staff Many LM students have had to sacrifice their “daily Wawa runs” due to the remodeling.
Following the Macy’s department store’s closure in 2016, Lifetime Fitness, a luxurious health club chain, will become one of the two new tenants of the currently vacant 100,000 square foot building, with contemporary furniture store West Elm set to become the other tenant. Both are scheduled to open in October of this year, shortly after the opening of the four-story parking garage right across the street. Lifetime Fitness is part of a seventy million dollar renovation plan, much of which is spent on its one-of-a-kind, upscale atmosphere.“The aim for Lifetime Fitness is to match the amenities of a high-end wellness resort, with lavish spa facilities and upscale cafes with healthy menus, in addition to classes and exercise studios,” says founder and CEO Bahram Akradi. The four-billion dollar company offers access to a spa, salon, steam room, and saunas, and also hires nationally renowned group instructors and personal trainers. To make things more convenient, the center is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and is family-friendly, with classes just for children, such as karate, dance, and pre-gymnastics. Ardmore’s Lifetime Fitness already has a waiting list of members, who will pay roughly up to $120 a month for full access to amenities. Realtor Nina Rogers comments that Lifetime Fitness is “An all inclusive gym, offering an upscale atmosphere and a lot of amenities we don’t have in the Main Line.” The company is expecting many more memberships within the community and is hoping that it will boost traffic at Suburban Square altogether. “We love the immediate community,” adds Akradi. “That’s exactly the customer we want to serve.”
Nisha Arya ’18 News Editor
Tasha Gesacion, LM’s new guidance counselor, grew up in Ohio and trained to be an English teacher originally. She taught English in Florida, but when her husband’s job moved the couple up to Philadelphia, Gesacion decided she wanted to become a counselor. She went
back to school to receive a counseling degree, and found a position at Bala Cynwyd Middle School. Gesacion says, “I was hired at BC when I was ten months pregnant! [The students from] my first class at BC are the current seniors here at LM.” Gesacion loved working at the middle school, but discovered that she enjoyed working with the upper grades more because the students “had a more mature perspective.” So, she decided to apply to the open position at LM, and was accepted. “I am really looking forward to reconnecting with my old students. I can’t wait to see how the seniors have grown and developed over the last four years. I am excited to see the familiar faces as well as to get to know
Photo Courtesy of Sam Gamberg ’17/Staff Whole Foods Market’s renovation has attracted hundreds of new customers.
Macy’s to be a gym
Wawa renovations
Meet our new counselor
Photo Courtesy of Sam Gamberg ’17/Staff
Whole Foods (Ardmore) The Whole Foods Market received a dramatic upgrade, with its own parking garage, comfortable seating areas, a tavern, and full-fledged restaurant. The newly constructed 45,000 square foot building now includes a fully utilized with a salad bar, hot bar, ramen noodle stand, pizza stand, and poké stand, it is stocked with over 2,500 organic grocery items at any given time. Halle Cooper ’18 comments, “I love shopping there with my dad. Everything is healthy, and you can easily get food there at the gourmet level.” The restaurant “Table and Tavern” is located on the lower level of the store with a brunch, lunch, and dinner menu, and it conveniently opens and closes alongside the grocery store hours. The new food services at Whole Foods is something for all to experience.
Kobe robbery
Cont. from CHERISHED KOBE BRYANT MEMORABILIA STOLEN, page 1
many other LM students too.” However, Gesacion describes that counseling at the high school is quite different from working at the middle school. “Many decisions older kids make are ‘life and death’ and carry a lot more weight. Emotions are a lot more intense in high school, and students are experimenting with drugs and alcohol for the first time. I consider my room a judgment-free zone: there are no bad kids, just bad choices. There is an air of seriousness in discussing these topics, so I want to let everyone know that I have an open-door policy. I love dealing with all aspects, ranging from school drama to academic struggles. I just want to be a source of help for the LM kids!”
Aces Nation is still recovering from this incident. While the items stolen may not have carried significant monetary value, they were sentimental gems and points of pride for the school district. This display case has also become a tourist attraction for many fans visiting from the West Coast. The school plans to replace all the items and to restore the case to its original condition. Many students were upset over the incident vandalizing a renowned alumnus’s honorary display, such as Euna Carpenter ‘19, who commented, “It’s upsetting
that someone would be so disrespectful to take stuff like that from our school.” The burglarly even made some people feel unsafe. Junior Kathryn Lockwood explains, “It’s upsetting that a safe space like a school would be vandalized, and that [the burglars] were so easily able to get inside.” Principal Sean Hughes comments, “We are saddened by this incident that somebody would vandalize our school and our community.” Hughes concludes, “As it is an ongoing investigation, we look forward to finding out the outcome.”
Opinions
February 22, 2017
5
The Merionite
The Merionite Official newspaper of Lower Merion High School since 1929 www.themerionite.org Columbia Scholastic Press Assocation Silver Crown 2013 Editors in Chief Simone Burde ’17 Deepika Jonnalagadda ’17 Managing Editor Isabella Dumitrescu ’17 News Editors Nisha Arya ’18 Catherine McFarland ’18 Dora Nathans ’18 Op-Ed Editors Michael Cheng ’18 Nina McKay ’17 Sophie Roling ’18 Features Editors Bethany Eldridge ’18 Alexandra Hummel ’17 Julia Rosen ’18 A&E Editors Molly Cutler ’19 Molly Gonzales ’17 Claire Ochroch ’18 Sports Editors Matt D’Aquila ’17 Kelly Harrigan ’17 Zack Slogoff ’18
Editorial: Vouch for us
On February 7, at the end of one of the most contentious battles over any of President Trump’s cabinet picks, Betsy DeVos was confirmed as the new Secretary of Education. Not only does DeVos lack experience attending, working in, or even sending her children to public schools, but she also has demonstrated a concerning opposition to the separation of education and religion, and has shown a particular partiality for Christian schools. Growing up, DeVos attended the Christian Reformed Church, a Calvinist sect that explicitly advocates against public schools. She was educated exclusively through private, Christian Reformed institutions, and has since singled out Christian schools as the institutions most worthy of support, praise, and even public funds. When asked whether taxpayer dollars should be allocated to Christian schools, DeVos responded affirmatively, claiming that “there are not enough philanthropic dollars in America to fund what is currently the need in education… Our desire is to confront the culture in ways that will continue to advance God’s kingdom.” Furthermore, the DeVos family foundation has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to Christian organizations that oppose public education, such as Focus on the Family, whose founder urged parents to pull their children out of public schools on the grounds that they teach “anti-Christian nonsense.” The fact that DeVos is a Christian
Web Editor Noah Rubin ’17 Business Manager Bradley Kaplan ’17 Advisor Charles Henneberry Assistant Advisor Laura Stiebitz Business Advisor Sean P. Flynn, Esq. The editors believe all facts presented in the newspaper to be accurate. The paper acknowledges that mistakes are possible and welcomes questions as to accuracy. Inquiries regarding accuracy should be directed to the editors of the paper. Editors can be contacted via e-mail at merionite@gmail.com or in Room 200A. To represent all viewpoints in the school community, The Merionite welcomes all letters to the editor. Letters can be sent via e-mail or dropped off outside The Merionite’s office. The Merionite reserves the right to edit letters to the editor for length or clarity. All unattributed images are courtesy of WikiCommons.
public schools exist in our country is certainly cause to experiment with various alternative solutions in order to increase student access to safer schools with greater resources and higher test scores. But most school choice advocates support a variety of free nontraditional educational options, such as charter schools, that are held to state standards and are legally bound to protect students’ rights. A voucher system, on the other hand, would funnel tax dollars into private, and often religious, schools that are held accountable neither for the education they provide nor for the way they treat their students. If vouchers are regarded by the government as an acceptable substitute for a traditional public school or high-performing charter schools, public funds and attention will be turned away from both, forcing some families to choose between a failing public school or a nearby private school that may subscribe to religious doctrines that are at odds with the family’s values, fail to give their child a practical education, or even refuse to educate their child for discriminatory reasons. School voucher systems therefore rob children of the opportunity to which they are legally entitled: to attend a free public school. The Secretary of Education should be fighting for this right, not dismantling it. Unsigned editorials reflect the general opinion of the staff and not the opinion of any single editor.
A new approach to gym class
Copy Editors Julian Ginzburg ’19 Kelsey Stanton ’18 Graphics Editors Sam Gamberg ’17 Vanessa Roser ’17
is certainly not a problem, but her subsequent prioritization of Christian schools over schools affiliated with other religions, public schools, and nonreligious schools absolutely is; the government has an obligation to offer students an education, not a religious conversion. The idea that public education is inherently inferior to private Christian education is extremely concerning in a Secretary of Education, particularly given that DeVos also advocates for a school voucher system. A school voucher is a tax credit or grant of public funds that a family can use to pay tuition in order to send their child to a private school instead of a traditional public or charter school, and is advertised as a saving grace for families living in failing school districts. However, many voucher schools are private religious institutions that are not obligated to offer their students certain constitutional rights, such as freedom of speech, and are not held to any sort of educational standards. Public schools are legally bound to provide a satisfactory education and to protect students’ rights, while voucher schools are free to deprive children of a practical education and have no legal obligation to protect them from discrimination on the basis of religion, sexual orientation, or parental marital status; diverting tax dollars from the former to the latter is absolutely inexcusable. School choice in general is a popular idea, and the fact that unsafe and underserved
Michael Cheng ’18 Opinions Editor The winds of change are blowing across LM, and gym class is not excluded. The PE teachers have proposed shifting LM’s normal gym routine from a system where students are assigned to gym classes by set to a system where students sign up according to the electives that they want. Under the proposed system, LM students would sign up for one of eighteen different electives, ranging from racket sports to weightlifting to kayaking. This proposal is a major improvement over the current system, and I strongly encourage the administration to endorse it. By giving students greater choice, the new
system gives them a wider variety of gym electives to choose from. Instead of assigning students by set and having them sign up for one of two or three elective options that they might not even like, this system has students register for one of eighteen different options. The new system would eliminate a common issue: students sign up for a gym set, don’t like any of the electives offered at that time, and are forced to do yoga or team sports for a semester. Instead, students would choose the gym class they want, increasing student engagement. Overall, signing up by elective allows the PE teachers to offer a greater variety of options, including water aerobics and self defense. By giving students the freedom to pick the gym elective that they want this proposal would enhance their physical education. Since students would sign up for the gym elective they want beforehand, students would no longer spend the first class of the semester sitting idly on the bleachers waiting to get called up to sign up for gym electives. Instead, students would begin exploring the kinds of exercise they want from the very first class, which would no longer be a waste of time, but rather an introduction to badminton or yoga or anoth-
er creative activity. This system also eliminates the issue where some popular gym electives fill up quickly and some students are unable to participate in those activities. If a gym elective is popular, then PE teachers will be able to offer it for more sets and thereby accommodate all of the students who are interested in that elective. The physical education teachers are excited about this proposal because it will put more emphasis on the “education” part of physical education. PE Teacher Kathleen Pisoni says that “by exposing students to more variety in a student-driven manner, this proposal encourages them to find their passion for fitness earlier on in life. We are hopeful that this will become a possibility in the 2018-2019 school year!” The new system supports students’ development of lifelong, healthy exercise habits by giving them the freedom to choose the gym classes that they would enjoy. The administration should adopt this innovative proposal because it will give students more choices and the option to have more time to exercise. As a whole, this idea bolsters LMSD’s mission of providing student-driven schools.
Letter-to-the-editor: Mislabled reporting To the editor, I’m writing in regard to December’s news article entitled “Students protest for peace and equity.” Initially, I thought the “sit-in” the article addresses was actually an anti-Trump protest, because the article and advertising of the event led me to believe that the protest was partisan in nature. However, based on further investigation, my initial assumptions were false. I first wanted to write a response to this article because it seemed to overstate the amount of support for an anti-Trump protest. However, I came to understand that the event was actually intended to unify people and be accepting of all, regardless of political perspective. The article gave a very regrettable impression, since I believe a large amount of students would support a group dedicated to unification. The initial announcement for the event on Aces Nation introduced the sit-in as an event being held in light of anger and fear due to the election results, the purpose of which was partly “to fight injustices peacefully through love and unity.” The combination of the tim-
ing of the sit-in—right after the election—and its message of fighting hate aroused my suspicions. However, I later learned from Alexandra Gordon ’17, a leader of Students 4 Peace and an organizer of the sit-in, that while the election may have “sparked our especial need for unity” because “people felt marginalized and unsafe after the election in particular,” the sit-in itself was nonpartisan. After speaking with Gordon, I learned the sit-in was a purely a “peaceful display… for solidarity and peace” and was truly open to anyone. Despite this, one did not gain this understanding from Molly Gonzales’s ’17 article. Gonzales described an actual protest that was started partly due to a realization that “high school students could not change election results.” Students created posters “in response to the election,” and this protest was supportive of “all students regardless of their socio-economic background, skin color, gender identity, or sexuality” (not explicitly regardless of political beliefs). Thus, Gonzales led readers, including myself, to infer that the protest was not as accepting as it needed to have been to achieve its goal. When I ques-
tioned Gonzales about her apparent misunderstanding, she said, “it wasn’t my intention for there to be a political intention” and acknowledged, “the purpose for the [sit-in] was acceptance.” While Students 4 Peace, the organization coordinating the sit-in, did not do the best job in clarifying that the display would be nonpartisan in advertising for it, Gonzales’s article furthered my belief that the sit-in was partisan in nature. This turned out to be a false belief; I only understood the true purpose of the sit-in after my conversations with Gordon and Gonzales. Gonzales’s article further raised suspicions of the sit-in being partisan, obscuring Students 4 Peace’s message of acceptance and unification. The display was nonpartisan, as intended by Students 4 Peace. But Students 4 Peace’s advertising combined with Gonzales’s article unfortunately didn’t convey that clearly. Gonzales’s article proves that we as journalists always need to be aware of how we present a story, or it may have an unintended and false message. - Bradley Kaplan ’17
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February 22, 2017
Opinions The Merionite
Earth’s tipping point
Caleb Shack ’19 We are destroying our creator. Earth has given us the ability to exist, yet the respect it deserves has been left far in the past. Global warming will be the death of us, and there is not much that can be done to change that. Recently, examinations of ground temperatures and satellite calculations have shown that last year was the hottest year on record. This is the third year in a row that has seen an increase in temperature, and although some may say it is the result of natural climate change, scientists would disagree. The new record set has been an estimated 0.07 degrees fahrenheit, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) overall increase and a 0.22 degrees fahrenheit increase in the Arctic (NASA). Do not let these seemingly minuscule numbers fool you, as Deke Arndt from NOAA claimed this is the highest increase in temperature by year ever recorded. Statistics show that last year was around 1.78 degrees fahrenheit higher compared to the twentieth century temperature average, rising at an exponential rate. Temperatures simply should not increase this fast naturally, and studies have proven that it is the fault of humans rather than nature. Calculations given by Gavin Schmidt, the director of NASA’s Goddard Institute of Space Studies in New York, have demonstrated that most of the record-breaking heat was due to heat-trapping gases created by the burning of oil, coal, and gas. Twelve percent of the increase, he says, is
the fault of El Niño—“the periodic warming of parts of the Pacific that change weather globally.” Schmidt stated that although El Niño disappeared last June, the effect of our human footprint alone will list 2017 as the fifth hottest year on record. Rising global temperatures create highly concerning effects on the future of the human race and the progression of nature as a whole. Natural commodities, such as the polar ice caps, are needed in order to reflect sunlight, resulting in cooler temperatures. With a decrease in ice caps, less sunlight is reflected, and it is instead absorbed by the ocean. This will
high would result in one trillion dollars worth of flood damage per year, and an increase in sea levels to 25 meters would result in the displacement of 1.4 billion people (twenty percent of the human population). If all the ice melts, however, the estimated increase in sea level would be seventy meters high. An increase this high would cause parts of the world such as the United States’ Eastern Seaboard, the West Coast, and the entire state of Florida to be engulfed in water. This will cause ocean currents to change their patterns, preventing crucial nutrients from being delivered to the organisms that
lead to a rapid increase in temperature, leaving whatever is left of the polar ice caps to be destroyed, and leading to a dramatic increase in sea levels. With a hotter planet and a rise in sea levels, oceans will diffuse into human inhabited locations, including major cities such as New York City and Tokyo. An increase in sea levels up to two feet
produce oxygen (nearly half of our oxygen is produced from phytoplankton and ocean plants). In addition, a warming will cause crops to wither. When all of these factors begin to make a difference on our planet, there is no stopping them and the result will be global suicide. This scenario may prompt concern for later years to come and a natural de-
sire for solutions. Elliot Burch, a biology teacher at LM, was able to share some effective ways to end the impending catastrophe. He surrounded his argument with the culminating idea that the “bulk of fossil fuels must remain in the ground.” Burch says we must “make a rapid switch to renewables such as wind energy, solar power, and geothermal ocean currents” in an attempt to terminate the use of these earthly products. Burning fossil fuels adds carbon dioxide into the air, which then dissolves into the oceans and makes them more acidic. Shellfish, corals, and plankton will suffer from the increased levels of acidity by failing to form their skeletons, causing a destruction of main marine food webs and eliminating the main source of protein for one billion people. Burch advises that everyone should make a valiant effort to end the use of fossil fuels because “even though some of these fossil fuels are really cheap, if we burn them all, we are definitely doomed.” There are many other solutions to prevent this catastrophe from happening, but they will only work if everyone helps out. America needs to become more European in the sense of saving light energy and reducing gas emissions from cars. Emissions could be drastically reduced by taking one less flight per year. Additionally, the government could form strong state and national policies, such as joining the Paris agreement and regulating global warming pollution. The next four years provide no hope for any change with the president being a denier of man-made global warming. During his time in office, we will be under critical years that will determine the future of the human race. Sadly, the ultimate solution for now is optimism and to hope that we will be able to survive whatever the future brings, for a destruction of our planet would not only be a failure to us, but a failure to our creator—Earth. Graphic by Amy Xi ’19
My week as a Republican
Daniel Gurevitch ’20 I have a good friend, whom we’ll call Steve throughout the course of this article in order to maintain anonymity. Steve is a Republican and a supporter of President Trump, and he’s not scared of telling anyone that, which has led to people disliking him. I disagree with Steve’s politics. I was a Hillary Clinton supporter and am a Democrat. I think a lot of the things that Trump has said and done are just flat out childish and ridiculous, and I do not believe that he will make a good President. One of the very few things that I agree with him about is that America does need some fixing. Especially after the current election, America is split right down the middle, which is a big problem. Seeing that Steve talks about Trump frequently, I thought it would be interesting if Steve had to side with the Democrats on political issues. So, a few months ago, before the election, I came up with the idea to switch political roles for one week; I did not think that Steve could survive as a Democrat, and I thought it would be pretty funny. Yet, I ended up learning much more than I thought I ever would. At first, Steve was
a bit hesitant to make this switch but after I told him that I would put ten dollars on it, Steve was all in. The Rules: 1. You must support the candidate at all times, no matter how bad it may seem. 2. You may not make sarcastic comments. (Ex. “I just love how racist Trump is.”) 3. You MUST be vocal. If anybody asks, you support the opposite party. 4. You MAY NOT tell anybody that the bet is the reason you support the candidate.
candidate who wants America to become isolationist?” While my friends made this bet difficult, the hardest part by far came when we talked about Clinton and Trump in class discussions. Most of the class would say how much they loved Clinton and hated Trump. I longed to participate in these discussions by either stating how I agreed with what they were saying, or expressing why I disagreed. However, due to the bet, I could not agree with what they were saying. And because almost everyone at LM is liberal, saying I disagree would make me
This seemed simple enough; be a Trump supporter for one week. Man, oh man, how wrong I was. What made it especially difficult was that my friends, who knew about the bet, would do everything in their power to make me crack. “Hey Daniel, how can you support a presidential candidate who wants every person who is not native-born out of the country?” or, “How can you support a
immediately hated. I was unable to voice pro-Trump beliefs without fear of ridicule. And frankly, this is a problem: I lost the ability to speak my own opinion just because I was a Republican, which is ridiculous. A school, which is supposed to be a place where anyone can voice their opinions, was prohibiting me from doing exactly that. This is not to say that the school itself and the administration are
prohibiting this, but rather the students who attend the school. And personally, I understand why this problem is happening: the reality is that if you go to LM, then you’re probably a Democrat. People like to talk about topics of common interests. So if most of the school is liberal, then most of the school will be talking about Democratic views. However, the problem is not that most of the school believes in the values of Democrats. The problem is that people in our school don’t let others with viewpoints that differ from their own share what they think. During the course of this bet, I learned something very important that I would never have thought: just because someone is a Trump supporter does not mean that they are wrong or a bad person. It’s just their viewpoint. And a Trump supporter should be able to say that they like Trump without everyone hating them immediately. People immediately scorn Trump supporters because there is a preconceived notion, in this school that if you’re a Trump supporter, then you’re a bad person and your viewpoints are wrong. Furthermore, people who didn’t already know me would think little of me because the only memory they would have of me was how I supported Trump. Through all of this, I learned that we need to be more open to other viewpoints. We shouldn’t immediately shut other people down just because they disagree with us. Plus, at the end of the bet, I had ten more dollars in my pocket. Graphic by Sam Gamberg ’17
Opinions
February 22, 2017
7
The Merionite
Less stress, more spirit
Shuli Weinstein ’18 Picture the classic Hollywood portrayal of high school: students spending hours each day after school with friends, people skipping class to reconnect with their significant other, and hundreds of fans cheering on the football team as they score a touchdown. Hollywood’s version of high school is fun, carefree, and relaxing. However, for decades now, people have entered high school only to realize two unfortunate truths—high school is not easy, and it contains few similarities to a Hollywood movie. The amount of stress that LM students have to deal with today has taken the meaning of stress to a whole new level. The pressure placed on students is not only affecting students’ health and happiness, but it is negatively affecting school spirit. Take sporting events, for example. There are dozens of pictures displayed from years past of the Dawg Pound packing into the Bryant Gymnasium bleachers like a can of sardines. Outstanding student turnouts were not only common at Friday night games during the season but for most weekday games as well. Students were proud of their school and set aside time to create these amazing high school memories. It appears at first glance that LM students in more recent years are simply not as committed to showing the special school spirit that has separated LM from many other high schools. But, when the issue is examined more closely, it becomes clear that LM students did not lose their school spirit. Rather, what has happened in the past few years is that the increased amount of pressure placed on students has made it more challenging for them to find times within their busy schedules to attend these events. For example, junior Emily Bartos shares that she spends at least three and a half hours each school night doing homework. This incredible commitment to completing assignments does not leave a significant amount of free time for LM students. Not only are students pushed to maintain stellar grades and receive near
perfect SAT and ACT scores, but they are also greatly encouraged to immerse themselves in all activities that could embellish their résumés. It is unfortunate that students cannot devote their time to activities that interest them and make them happy, rather than simply to the activities that supposedly build up their reputations. Sadly, with all the pressure that fills our school, many students find it increasingly difficult to make time for the events that they actually enjoy. After long and arduous days of many activities and hours of homework, most students simply do not have the time to show their school spirit. The overbearing pressure that is deteriorating the lives of LM students must change. To maximize the efficiency of homework, the district should enforce stricter policies for when teachers can add assignments. Too many teachers take advantage of the ability to post online assignments at late hours or over weekends. Administration should monitor strictly when teachers post homework or at least when such homework is due after posting. This way, students will not need to cram to complete assignments late at night that could have been completed earlier had they been notified at a more reasonable time. LM should also work hard to either revert back to some of their old traditions that brought out the school spirit in many students or to provide more opportunities to celebrate school spirit. For example, Powderpuff, part of Radnor Week, used to be played on the turf football field. About five years ago, the game was moved to the small field in the back of the LM parking lot. This change in location lowered the thrill of the event and may have deterred students from considering it an important part of the LM experience to attend. Additionally, LM should add more pep rallies throughout the year to excite students during every sports season, not just before the LM-Radnor football game. By having more pep rallies, spirit will continuously be reinstated throughout the year. Sure, high school may not be quite the thrill of a Hollywood movie, but high schoolers still deserve to have fun. Students should be encouraged to do well academically without being crushed by an overbearing amount of pressure. LM can lessen the pressure by facilitating a more humane assignment process and encouraging more school traditions in order for students to fully enjoy some of the best years of their lives.
Understanding religion
Nisha Arya ’18 News Editor In light of President Trump’s recent executive order banning immigration from seven predominantly Muslim countries, discussions about religion have become more prevalent at LM. Over the last few weeks, I have had numerous conversations with LM students regarding religion. While many of us do not support the ban on Muslim immigration, I have realized that many students at LM do not understand the importance of religion in many people’s lives. Before I proceed, let me be perfectly clear: this article is neither in defense of religion nor against it. It is simply a plea for LM students to understand that religion is an important part of the lives of millions of people around the world. Recently, I had a conversation with an LM student who said, “I don’t understand why people in the Middle East are killing each other over the tiny argument of who is the ‘right’ God.” Many LM students believe that fighting over the idea of God and religious beliefs is ridiculous. However, religion occupies a monumental position in the lives of many people, giving them something to believe in and guiding them in how to live their lives. As is common with things in which we believe, religion is capable of inspiring great passion. When someone challenges a religion, its followers are willing to defend and sometimes even fight wars over it. Many of us here at LM are passionate about the Black Lives Matter movement. Sometimes, Black Lives Matter protests can turn violent because some BLM followers are so passionate about their cause that they are willing to fight for it. If we truly want to understand the conflict in the Middle East, we must understand that religion inspires such intense passion in its followers that they are willing to fight for it at all costs. In classes here at LM, I have often heard students ridicule the irrationality of religion. Many of us do not see how the Virgin Mary could possibly have given birth to Jesus, or how the founder of Mormonism, Joseph Smith, could have
stumbled across golden plates written by God while traveling through the woods. However, religion is not a science: it is simply a system of beliefs. Long ago, before the world discovered science, religion provided explanations for phenomena that we could not understand. In one of the earliest settlements in America in the 1690s, Puritans believed that lightning setting a house on fire was God’s way of punishing that family. It was only upon Benjamin Franklin’s discovery that lightning was electricity, and that it could be rendered harmless by a simple metal rod, that Americans stopped viewing lightning as divine retribution. Even today, people in many corners of the world do not have easy access to a scientific education. In rural India, farmers living in remote villages still view drought and floods as punishment from God. Instead of ridiculing and mocking those who believe in religion, we need to acknowledge that it is a system of beliefs that helps people explain what they do not understand. Yet, religion is not simply a belief system of the ignorant and the uneducated. Many highly educated people, including scientists, are deeply religious. Galileo, a scientist who famously challenged the Catholic Church with his findings of the heliocentric solar system, said, “when I consider what marvelous things men have understood… I know only too clearly that the human mind is a work of God.” A 2009 Pew Research Survey found that the percentage of scientists that believe in some form of a deity or religion was higher than you may think—51 percent. In fact, these deeply religious scientists have argued that evidence is not necessary for belief, either religious or scientific. After all, have any of us ever seen an atom or an electron? What about a black hole? Nevertheless, most of us who consider ourselves to be scientific and rational do believe in the existence of atoms and black holes. Thus, we need to recognize that religion has a role in many lives, including the lives of people who are rational and highly scientific. I am not promoting religion, nor am I asking LM students to take on a religion. I am merely asking that we as students make an effort to understand why religion is so important to so many people. With the majority of wars in the world today and throughout history relating to religion, it is critical that we understand the motives and belief systems that cause them. Until we understand what motivates those who are different from us, we cannot hope to change the conflicts that drive their world and ours.
Imprisoned by stigma
Andres Bermudez ’19 Are criminals human? This is a deceptively simple question, and one whose implications seem to be ignored by many of us. The simple answer is yes, of course. However, the treatment of convicts in the United States seems to contradict this idea completely. On Saturday, January 21, the day after the inauguration of President Trump, marches took place all over the world in support of women’s rights and the LGBTQ+ community. Many speakers took the podium in a multitude of cities.
In Washington, D.C., Donna Hylton addressed the crowd and truly stood out. As a result of trauma caused by childhood sexual abuse, Hylton turned to crime at the age of twenty-one. She was involved in the 1985 abduction and murder of real-estate broker Thomas Vigliarole. She served 27 years in a maximum-security prison for her involvement. For this reason, Hylton’s speech concerning the rights of criminals was ignored; rather, attention was drawn to the fact that she was a convict earlier in her life. Hylton’s official sentence was 25 years to life for kidnapping and second-degree murder. After her release in 2012, Hylton completely shifted her life’s path. In her own words, her new occupation has “been talking to politicians, to violent abusers, to teenagers, to prison officials, to victims, and to students to tell my story.” How then, does she still find herself silenced and targeted by a sentence delivered to her 32 years ago? This story, of course, is the common narrative of many criminals, especially
those convicted at a young age. It is just been caught. We must ask ourselves why another scenario in which a number, a sen- our method of punishment is the same for tence, and a single act decide the course of all criminals. One must resist the crude the remainder of a life for a young man or generalization of those who have wandered woman. This is the heart of the issue for from the path of righteousness. Otherwise, Donna Hylton and so many like her. Even one must accept the fact that regardless of five years after her release, Hylton is fol- age, race, gender, or severity of crime, in lowed constantly by her past mistakes, and our society, every convict is assigned a life is unable to speak about the issues which sentence. concern her without being marginalized as a convict. In a country of sky-high recidivism rates, MBA-graduate Donna Hylton is an exception. But even convicts like Hylton, who have found a passion and refocused their life, will forever be seen as no more than their mistake. They will be forced to hide from the public eye, as any action that is attributed to them will be seen only as the action of a convict, and the punctuation to their every sentence will be their crime. Therefore, to us, criminals are no more than their inmate number. So truly, we must question our cultural stigma towards those who have made mistakes and Graphic by Sam Gamberg ’17/Staff
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Opinions
February 22, 2017
The Merionite
Respect other perspectives Respect is a concept I have had drilled into me since I was about seven years old, when I first began martial arts. I was taught that respect was one of the most important virtues one could learn. When people hear this, a common response is to snicker or roll one’s eyes at this idea. But I find
Lucas Barton ’17 I am white. I am male. I am cisgender. I am straight. I am even a Christian. I almost perfectly fit the description of the “average” (though in today’s society, it is hard to say that such a word could even apply) person who would defend our President’s hateful rhetoric and support policies such as the vetting of immigrants, the closure of the country to refugees, and the deportation of people of a very specific cultural background. Yet despite the fact that I fit this description quite well, I support none of these policies. In fact, I stand in strong opposition to all of them and to other policies of their kind. You may wonder what causes this significant difference between me and other people of my description. To me, it all comes down to one word: respect.
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To me, it all comes down to one word: respect.
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it extremely important and extremely differentiating. It also answers a lot of questions relating to the policies I support and those I oppose. Why would I oppose regulations banning refugees from certain countries? Out of respect for their struggle, for all of the struggles they have faced and all of the hardships they have endured before reaching the United States. Why would I oppose deporting illegal immigrants? Out of respect for what they had to go through in their home countries, the reasons that they felt the need to flee to our country seeking sanctum. The concept of respect also helps to explain why I generally avoid conflict with people on the
subject of politics and world affairs. The reason is not a lack of interest, or a lack of strength in opinion—as a matter of fact, my opinions are quite strong—but rather out of respect. I try to respect others’ opinions no matter how much I disagree with them. I may sometimes try to sway them to my side of the issue, but I make the effort to respect their positions either way. And if the time comes that I need to take a strong stance, I do so, but I do so respectfully. I do not seek to degrade others, but rather to promote whatever it is I am fighting for. Something else that separates me from many people
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Above all else, I am human. And I wish to be humane.
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of my description—that which we call “average”—is their lack of understanding of other’s viewpoints. This is not meant to insult any of those people, but rather to say that when one lacks the viewpoint of a person, it is more difficult to comprehend their perspectives and their struggles. This comes down to the basic human condition that it is generally more difficult to understand someone else’s mind than one’s own.
Yet it is very important that we make the effort, especially those of us who have not had to face the resulting discrimination or prejudice from being of those descriptions. I freely admit that it can be quite difficult for me to understand some of these things, but I make the effort. I devote time and thoughts to these things, and do my best to see ideas from another’s viewpoint so that I may understand them to the best of my ability. There are times when I look at groups comprised mostly of white, straight, cisgender men like those seeking to ban abortion, those who discriminate based on race, and those who want to keep America looking like them, and I am ashamed. That is not to say that I wish I were different than I am, but rather to say that I dislike the manner in which they use these qualities as a weapon or as a justification of superiority. And so my resolve is this, and I encourage others of my kind to join me: I may fit the description of the “average” person in some of these groups, but I refuse to be a part of it. I choose to respect. I choose to understand. Because above all else, I am human. And I wish to be humane.
The folly of the SAT
Kelsey Stanton ’18 Copy Editor When the SAT was first introduced in 1926, it was known as the Scholastic Aptitude Test. It was the brainchild of then Harvard president James Conant, who designed the test to find the most “intellectually talented” students by examining their strengths in an equalized manner; a standardized test. The SAT provided Conant with an objective measure of a student’s
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The test once dubbed the Scholastic Aptitude Test is no longer a measure of scholastic apitude, but rather a measure of privilege.
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academic prowess, and he was thus able to begin accepting students to Harvard based on their scores from the equalizing SAT rather than accepting only well-connected candidates from affluent families. The great irony of Conant’s valiant attempt to equalize college admissions is that the test once dubbed the Scholastic Aptitude Test is no longer a measure of scholastic aptitude, but rather a measure of privilege. Data released by SAT parent company College Board show that the average SAT score for students from families with an annual income of $0-$20,000 was 1326 out of 2400, a stark contrast with the average SAT score of 1714 out of 2400 for students from families with an annual income of more than $200,000. College Board per-
petuates socioeconomic inequality by charging exorbitant fees for testing and other services as well as by employing marketing techniques that encourage students to take the exam multiple times. The registration fee for each SAT is $43, which becomes $54.50 if a student also elects to take the essay portion of the exam, which many college applications require. Similarly, College Board offers the ability for students to send score reports to colleges—at an added expenditure of $11.50 per college. And while College Board does offer fee waivers to low-income students, the fee waiver only covers the cost of up to two tests, limiting the number of chances these students have to get scores that meet their satisfaction. The AP tests and SAT Subject Tests, which are also offered by College Board, are also money-making machines. College Board advertises these exams as a means for students to showcase their individual talents to colleges, and in the case of APs, as a potential source of college credit. However, many colleges and universities require that students score a 4 or 5 on their AP tests in order to receive credit for the corresponding college classes. These high scores are rare— on the 2016 Physics 1 AP tests, as little as 4.3 percent of students scored a 5 on their exam, and only 13.5 percent scored a 4. Some schools, such as Dartmouth, have even stopped
Graphic by Sam Gamberg ‘17/staff
awarding credit for AP scores altogether. In addition, some of the material from the Subject Tests, which cost students an additional fee of $18 per test, could be included as part of the regular exam. This practice is demonstrated by the ACT, a competitor with College Board, which administers its
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It is time for us to acknowledge the facts: the SAT is a pyramid scheme that favors the affluent at the expense of the striving.
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regular exam with a science section. Thus, the Subject Tests and AP tests mostly serve as yet another ploy to gain income for College Board, rather than as a service to students. Test-prep books and materials sold by College Board provide another way for students to purchase scores with affluence instead of earning them with aptitude. While College Board recently partnered with Khan Academy in order to provide free test-prep services, it still markets “The Official SAT Study Guide,” which students are prompted to purchase after completing their SAT registration on the College Board website. In addition, the main benefit of Khan Academy is that the service links to students’ test scores in order to help them focus on the skills they need to improve for
their next SAT. In this way, the seemingly well-intentioned partnership is really a surreptitious scheme for students to take the SAT multiple times and pay College Board multiple fees. It is time for college admissions officers to shift away from using the SAT as a factor for determining which students are accepted to their schools. A recent study conducted by William Hiss, Former Dean of Admissions for Bates College, revealed that good SAT scores do not correlate to success in college. The data showed a “negligible difference in college performance” between accepted students who chose to submit their SAT scores with their applications and students who chose not to do so. The data showed that “only .05 percent of a GPA point set ‘submitters’ and ‘non-submitters’ apart, and the difference in their graduation rates was just .6 percent.” Recently, Columbia and Barnard, two of the most prestigious universities in the nation, have dropped the SAT essay and SAT Subject Test requirements in their admissions processes. These two schools, along with schools such as Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, and the University of Pennsylvania, have also dropped their SAT Subject Test Requirements. These schools have begun to realize that there is much more to the students in their applicant pools than scores from a corrupt test. College Board portrays itself as an aid for students who are navigating the college admissions process, but its efforts are actually a clandestine money-making scheme. It is time for more colleges to follow the example set by Columbia and Barnard when reviewing applicants and place less weight on the results of tests sponsored by College Board. It is time for socioeconomic privilege to factor out of college admissions entirely. It is time for us to acknowledge the facts: the SAT is a pyramid scheme that favors the affluent at the expense of the striving.
Features
February 22, 2017
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The Merionite
Claire Ochroch ’18 Arts & Entertainment Editor My freshman year Computer Science class was dominated by boys; only four out of 24 students were female. This is a theme I’ve seen throughout highschool. In my AP Physics C: Mechanics class, only 7 out of 26 students are girls. I’ve witnessed a huge gender gap in STEM classes at LM. But these problems go far beyond my personal view. The majority of the STEM classes at LM have many more boys than girls. This is a problem that starts at a young age, and is one that needs to be brought to light. Here at LM, we can change the pre-existing stereotypes by encouraging girls to join STEM classes and clubs. We can change the narrative of our future. Girls at LM and around the globe need to see that careers in STEM are real, viable options for them. They need to see that these things are actually achievable. The problem of female representation in STEM is much bigger than many LM students may be aware. According to College Board, in 2013, Advanced Placement tests from three states (Mississippi, Montana, and Wyoming), had zero girls take the AP Computer Science test. Not one. Even in Tennessee, where girls are best represented among computer science test-takers, only 29 percent of the test takers were female. Furthermore, as found in the overall statistics of the AP Computer Science exam, boys outnumber girls by more than four to one. Boys outnumber girls by more than 2.5 to one on the AP Physics C: Mechanics tests, and by nearly 1.5 to 1 on the AP BC Calculus exam. Though we are aware of them, these problems do not recieve the attention they deserve. Although we maintain more than the national average in the majority of STEM classes, girls in STEM classes at LM are still in the minority. The differences in participation between core and elective classes is stark. The higher level core STEM classes such as AP Physics C: Mechanics, or AP BC Calculus have generally much higher participation than STEM elective classes, especially in relation to the overall female population. Technology teacher Mark Piotrowski teaches STEM electives such as Foundations of Engineering Design, Robotics, Architecture, and Computer Aided Drafting and Design. He often strongly recommends his electives to his female students, taking special care to inform them of special female engineering programs and scholarships. Unfortunately, he estimates that “only five to ten percent of the students that I teach are female.” The vast majority of these girls are in his architecture class. One of his female students, Madison Murray ’18 describes her experience, “I’m one of two girls in both of my classes. I can see why the prospect of being one of the only girls in a class can discourage some girls, but it really hasn’t affected my experience in these classes.” Piotrowski adds, “In the old building, I was teaching in a tech-ed classroom, and there was only one bathroom, a boys bathroom.” This statement in itself says a lot. It’s just a given that these classes are male-heavy, and very little is done about it. He feels that STEM has a terrible history of female exclusion and works to right those wrongs in his classes. In core STEM classes such as AP Calculus BC and AP Physics C: Mechanics,
there is a much better gender representation, but it is still disproportionate. The majority of the higher level STEM classes are about sixty percent male and forty percent female. Nora Christman, an AP Physics 1 and AP Physics C: Mechanics teacher, is aware of this divide. She is the sole female out of five physics teachers, and throughout her physics career has been one out of only a handful of women. She truly make an effort in her classes to make sure the women feel like their opinions and observations have equal weight to the men in her classes. She has a large science timeline in her classroom posted with an inclusive mindset, commenting, “As you can see there are almost no pictures of scientists on the timeline. That is because it can be alienating to those of us who are nowhere on it.” As part of the minority, she understands the plight of female students in STEM. She upholds the belief that representation encourages students to pursue something more, and she wants to involve The Society of Black Engineers as well as successful women in STEM. Her belief is that groups like these can truly have an effect on those who might be interested in STEM careers, but have never seen their demographic represented in these fields. STEM clubs offer a brighter outlook on female participation in the sciences. Although Science Olympiad has only male leadership, they are seeing many underclassmen girls come into their club, and many of them are consistently doing well in competitions. The majority of the club is now female and they are looking towards female leadership in the future. In TSA, two out of the six officers of the club are female, and they also have a large female participation in their club. TSA also volunteers at LMSD STEM night and helps run the Lower Merion Jr. First Lego League, a friendly lego competition for kindergarteners to third graders. These activities are part of the club’s mission to encourage all young students to pursue their engineering interests. This kind of early intervention is crucial to welcoming girls into STEM subjects. Additionally, Dawgma has female leadership, but has had a hard time recruiting underclassmen females for their club this year. They look to try to enlist more underclassmen girls next year to foster more female leadership in the future. These clubs are great ways for students to explore their STEM interests outside of the classroom, and I encourage anyone interested to talk to an officer or teacher in charge. LM has taken significant steps to improve female participation in STEM. However, both here and everywhere in the U.S., there is a marked gender discrepancy in STEM participation. The best thing we can do to encourage more participation is to make sure young girls know about careers in STEM and have female role models in STEM to look up to. They need to know that these are achievable career paths. The earlier we start telling girls that they can have a place in the world of STEM, the more likely they are to pursue these subjects in the future. The more minds in a field, the more innovation, and the more progress. Male or female, engineers, mathematicians, and scientists, among many other careers are a crucial part of society now and will be crucial to our future. We need to do our best to encourage anyone who has interest in these fields.
Graphic by Vanessa Roser ’17/ Staff
Maya Levitan ’18 During fifth grade challenge class, Maya Levitan discovered her love for science. The class did a unit on programming, legos, and neuroscience. After seeing her brother, who was in high school, compete in Dawgma competitions, Levitan started asking her parents for robotics kits. As strategy officer for Dawgma, Levitan comes up with a scouting system at competitions, which includes taking notes and working on strategies to fight the other robots. Levitan works with her mom, who is the executive director of the JCHAI organization (Judith Creed Homes for Adult Independence). The goal of JCHAI is to help adults who are intellectually disabled and/ or suffer from autism, work towards autonomy and independence. Dawgma runs a programming and robotics class for these adults. The charity is well-regarded, and Pennsylvania Senators Pat Toomey and Bob Casey have both visited the class. Although Levitan is a female, she does not feel that her sex has ever been a problem “in an obvious way.” Sometimes she’s been hesitant from time to time to speak her mind. In general, though, it’s not an issue. Levitan hopes to become a biomedical or mechanical engineer.
Journey Byland ’17 Journey Byland, whose father is an engineer, has grown up around science. Due to this early exposure, Byland has been interested in STEM from a young age. Once she got to high school, she began her career in Dawgma, joining the club “in exchange for a lollipop.” She became head of programming her sophomore year, then co-captain her junior and senior years. Byland’s favorite things about Dawgma are the outreach programs. Every summer, Dawgma runs a summer robotics camp for children, which eleven kids attended this past year. While this camp is a fundraiser for Dawgma, this week long summer camp is cheaper than most at $150. The camp exposes children to engineering; kids have the opportunity to design and build their own robots anwd then participate in a tournament that mimics the ones that Dawgma competes in. The camp focuses on the strategy and design aspects of robotics. Byland also works alongside Levitan at the JCHAI organization, another community outreach program in which Dawgma participates. Byland doesn’t feel that her gender has ever been a barrier. “I’ve always been comfortable around guys, so I never cared.” She plans on pursuing science later in life, and hopes to be an aerospace engineer.
Cecily Rosenbaum ’17 Now an officer of Dawgma, Cecily Rosenbaum’s most significant science experience was a summer spent interning at Bard College, where she’ll be attending next year. Rosenbaum teamed up with an undergrad to investigate a local fungus that had potential medicinal properties. Together, they worked to switch out an oxygen atom with other atoms, hoping to change the properties of the fungus. While the study is ongoing, Rosenbaum has co-authored papers on this subject before even graduating high school. Rosenbaum first became interested in STEM when she was younger. Her brother, who now works as a programmer for BMW, used to hack into her computers, so she “learned to code to get back at him. So basically, I got into STEM for self-defense.” Today, Rosenbaum has a more nuanced and romantic view of scientific inquiry. The best thing about science, according to her, is that “you can be wrong about something but still have a useful finding. It’s so motivating that you can contribute even if you’re not immediately successful.” And even more, “science has been liberating.” Like many female scientists, Rosenbaum has her fair share of stories about being treated differently due to her gender. “As a female in the sciences, you’re expected to be less capable. What’s liberating is going in with a barrier-breaking mindset and proving people wrong.”
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February 22, 2017
Arts & Entertainment The Merionite
Every teacher knows how to keep control of their classroom; however, the winner of Best Director has an exact plan for their classroom and executes it to an impressive degree of precision. Señora Nemoy was the obvious choice for this award to many members of the student body. She always has a thoroughly planned-out lesson, and makes sure no student distracts from the topic at hand.
The teacher full of the most knowledge and original anecdotes gets the Best Documentary Award. In a close contest, Mr. Henneberry pulls out the win. When discussing presidents, Mr. Henneberry reveals that a previous girlfriend was best friends with Monica Lewinsky. During an early morning history lesson, he shares his horrifying experience being attacked by a giant bug. Whatever the occasion, Mr. Henneberry possesses a vast arsenal of insight and facts.
Best Picture goes to the teacher who has the overall most engaging and enjoyable classes. Mr. Mays wins this award for the most unique approach to an English class. He infuses his personality into each assignment, and has fun every day. His students note that no one knows what to expect when they walk into class. He is incredibly eloquent, and captivates listeners with every word.
The award for Best Set Design goes to the teacher who skillfully designs their classroom, using every inch of the room to show their interests and personality. Mrs. Christman’s students love her incredibly detailed laminated science timeline; her stylized, oversized roller coaster picture; and the gorgeous mobiles adorning her room. Her notorious “Batmobile” and her beloved swing were deciding factors in the decision for some.
February 22, 2017
Best Costume is for the teacher who expresses an outstanding and unique sense of style. Dr. Hobbs is awarded this title, sporting trendy and chic looks day after day. As LM’s fashion icon, she takes stylistic risks that always pay off. Tim Gunn and Anna Wintour would approve of her appreciation of color and her stylish adoption of patterns into everyday looks.
The Best Original Score award is given to the teacher who chooses the best music at the perfect moments. Mr. Brooks nabbed this award with a swooping win. He is known for his amazing music taste, and has a different Pandora radio for every occasion—he’ll blast anything from Disney Pandora to The Beach Boys. These choices reenergize his students during complex labs.
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The Best Foreign Language Film award goes to the teacher with the most memorable foreign language class. Señor Capkin’s students admire him because of his passion for teaching and his genuine interest in his students’ success. He takes the time to create engaging lesson plans and form meaningful relationships with each of his students. Photos by Sam Gamberg ’17/Staff
Roxanna Pasquier ’17 The current push for identity politics colors the 2017 Academy Awards. Demand for greater representation of minorities has led to a historic number of Academy Award nominations. For the first time in history, black actors have been nominated in every acting category in one year. Films featuring predominately minority casts such as Fences, Moonlight, Lion, and Hidden Figures have all received best picture nods. However, the fight for equality in Hollywood is far from over. The Oscars are merely a microcosm of the greater cultural debate. Via writer and director Asghar Farhadi, the debates on national security and the morality of an immigrant ban have entered The Oscars arena. Farhardi’s film The Salesman is nominated for Best Foreign Language Film. The story is a modern rendition of the American play Death of a Salesman, but set in Iran. Due to the travel ban recently placed on certain predominantly Muslim nations, Farhadi’s ability to come to the United States to attend the ceremony was threatened. In solidarity, the star of The Salesman, Taraneh Alidoosti, announced her plan to boycott the ceremony. Although the travel ban is under judicial review, Alidoosti refuses to attend the ceremony. This situation proves that the actions of the White House are far-reaching. Despite increased acknowledgement of black actors, controversy haunts Best Picture favorite La La Land. The film is an ode to jazz culture, but features two white
actors in the lead roles. The film celebrates an idealized image of Los Angeles: messy, romantic, dreamy, whimsical. Unlike fellow Best Picture Nominees such as Moonlight, La La Land does not offer critique on society—instead it critiques humanity. This is the second film from director Damien Chazelle featuring jazz, the first being 2015’s Whiplash, again featuring a largely white cast. The sole black character of La La Land, played by John Legend, is a villain not only to the main character’s romance, but also to jazz. Legend’s character, Keith, lures Gosling’s character away from his dreams of owning a traditional jazz club—a culture established by African American musicians—towards Keith’s jazz-pop fusion band. Keith aims to abandon traditional jazz in exchange for lucrative tours and records. Controversy surrounding this film reflects a growing question about cultural appropriation and the awareness of race in movies. The stage of The Oscars will also become a platform for controversy. Actors in earlier award ceremonies have abandoned simplistic acceptance speeches for impassioned political addresses. The cast of Hidden Figures delivered an empowered speech about unity when accepting The Screen Actors’ Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. Additionally, Emma Stone used her Golden Globe platform to encourage “dreamers” to never give up, in a reference to her character Mia, a young woman disil-
lusioned with the world of acting after six years of unsuccessful auditions. This sentiment echoes strongly as the nation is consumed in protests. Meryl Streep offered further encouragement for dissenters via a thinly veiled attack on President Trump’s campaign rhetoric and his mockery of a disabled reporter. Finally, Mahershala Ali of Moonlight delivered an acceptance speech discussing the effects of persecution on the human psyche. He praised his character Juan for saving the protagonist from “folding into himself.” Besides echoing controversy surrounding immigration and xenophobia, the speech lauded Juan, a drug-dealer. As the nation struggles with the repercussions of an aggressive war on drugs, celebration of a drug-dealer promises controversy. Discourse surrounding the racial effects of mandatory minimum sentencing and stop-and-frisk adds a deeper meaning to Ali’s speech. The effects of political speeches are not to be ignored as actors utilize their platform to address perceived problems in society. The political potency of the 89th Academy Awards will without doubt cause major controversy. As the nation recovers after a divisive election, empathy will provide the only remedy. While diversity is celebrated at The Oscars, disagreements still surround the award show. The Oscars will provide a significant platform for Hollywood to address issues plaguing the nation.
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February 22, 2017
Arts & Entertainment The Merionite
Molly Kaiser ’18 Alongside the chilly season comes even cooler fashion! This season’s looks are a combination of chic, old-school, and sporty styles. This season, you won’t have to sacrifice warmth for style! Borg corduroys, suede pieces, faux fur, and quilted jackets are all popular styles this winter! Leopard print and solid faux furs in basic colors such as white, black, and mixed browns have become the most trendy this season. Faux fur and suede jackets are generally dressed up, while Borg corduroys provide a comfier, more casual look. For a more versatile style, pair your outfit with a quilted jacket to dress it up or down. I recommend that you pair your suede or corduroy jackets with a blouse and jeans, and your faux fur jackets with a dress.
Nike has recently released a new line of clothing entitled “Nike Air,” a revival of its 1982 styles. The newly released apparel combines eighties undertones with fresh, modern looks. Most popular in the collection is the Nike Air Windbreaker that comes in a variety of eye-catching colors such as rose pink, bright orange, and neon green. This collection also includes leggings, joggers, and tees, made of breathable materials such as mesh, luon, and fleece. These items provide a trendy look that is both sporty and versatile. Places to shop: Nike.com, Nordstrom, Journey’s, and Amazon.com
Places to shop: Urban Outfitters, Francesca’s, Free People, ASOS.com, and Forever 21
Puma creepers, which are platform-style shoes, definitely provide a different look but can make an outfit super daring and put-together if paired correctly. Creepers look best with a pair of skinny jeans—or any type of tight pant—and a dashing bomber jacket. Ankle boots are essential to any wardrobe no matter the season. Because they are so versatile, they can be paired with almost anything. Personally, I feel that ankle boots look best with jeans—skinny, bell-bottom, or boot leg—or paired with a casual dress. Moccasins are super popular this season, especially among high schoolers because of their simplicity and comfort. I’d recommend pairing them with leggings or joggers, and a tee or cozy sweater. Places to shop: Nordstrom, DSW, Lord & Taylor, and ASOS.com
Among the popular styles this season are velvet dresses, corduroy dresses, choker dresses, shift dresses, and satin dresses. While corduroy and shift dresses have maintained their popularity over the years, velvet, satin, and choker-style dresses have become newly popular. Choker-style dresses include a piece of fabric connected to the dress that wraps around one’s neck like a choker. Additionally, pairing fitted solid turtlenecks under shift dresses is a cute and unique look this season. Both of these looks draw attention to the neck and face. Jean jackets add a nice touch to any shift or A-line style dress. I’d recommend pairing your wintery dress with fun patterned stockings and Chelsea boots. Places to shop: Brandy Melville, ASOS.com, Urban Outfitters, Barbour, Nordstrom, and thrift shops
Photos courtesy of Molly Kaiser ’18
The Importance of Being Earnest Alexandra Gordon ’17
Embroidered jeans have exploded this season. These jeans generally have flowers and designs sewn on, along with patches. They provide a fun and unique look. Along with embroidered jeans, colored jeans and corduroy jeans have become prevalent among teens. Mustard yellow, light pink, army green, couture red, and taupe are among the most common colors in these jeans. Whether embroidered, colored, or corduroy, these jeans exude an artsy and hipster look.
As we welcomed in 2017 with relaxing long weekends, winter break, and midterms, LM PLAYERS was hard at work, spending copious amounts of time to bring audiences to their winter production: The Importance of Being Earnest. This 1895 Wilde play proves to be timeless, as Places to shop: Urban Outfitters, Rowen, ASOS. issues like class and gender bring forth the characcom, and Brandy Melville ters’ inner conflicts. First performed on February 14, 1895, the show takes a new stage as LM students tackle the task of recreating Wilde’s magic in our very own black box theater. The Importance of Being Earnest’s plot juxtaposes two very different lifestyles that begin to blend as Jack (brought to life by Mason Tepper ’19) accidentally leaks evidence of his secret dou- countryside and those in a high-class manor, will be catapulted nearly fifble life to Algernon (played by Joel Herbert ’18), who thinks that Jack is an upper ty years into the future. The show’s plot takes on a contemporary meaning class socialite, when he really lives a humble country-boy life. The two protago- about a world in an age of consumerism and post-World War II mindsets. nists show parallels between classes, and their families represent a myriad of ideThe PLAYERS microcosm is an ever-changing, ceaseless machine. The five als and standards that are seen even through changing times. The Importance crews— Acting, Costumes, Scenery, Lighting, and Publicity—were responsible of Being Earnest, considered to be Wilde’s magnum opus, was a play written af- for putting together a show that spoke to the audience: you. For this show, the ter word had gotten out about his love affair with another man. A frequent source Publicity crew made a few changes within its Production and Design Staff. New of conflict in the play is relationships, which are an extension of Wilde’s own positions, such as Art Director, Media Manager, and Public Relations were addstruggles; the show is a brilliantly written melodrama that reflects his own life. ed to broaden the appeal of PLAYERS and to allow any individuals who had not However, PLAYERS has put its own spin on Wilde’s original vision. The play, participated before The Importance of Being Earnest to find their niche. Find out intended to show contrast between late Victorian-era individuals in the more at lmplayers.com, and support PLAYERS in the spring for their next show! Photo courtesy of Emily Harnett ’17
Arts & Entertainment
February 22, 2017
13
The Merionite
Alumni musicians compose lasting legacy Kathy Wei ’19 managing sound production. Lundy life they choose, and it made me appreciate my abilsays that the greatest accomplishment ity to turn my love of music into a possible career.” in his career was when he “met the From there, Magner went to the University of Penn[Rolling] Stones and got to work for a sylvania and formed his band, the Disco Biscuits, who company who produced three Stones have been touring and playing across the country for shows in Philly in the nineties.” As for over twenty years. He believes that the purpose of life those who want to follow in his foot- is to positively impact the world, and those we ensteps, Lundy says, “Call up someone you counter in our lives, through music, he feels he has admire, and ask them if you can talk to been able to achieve that. Magner cites the fact that them for fifteen minutes. Meet the peo- the culture that has surrounded his band has “inple you admire and leave an impression troduced countless marriages, life-long friendships, on them. They will probably remember and business ideas, all through a mutual love of the you when you come knocking again Disco Biscuits.” Magner gives back the support and later. Don’t wait until you get out of col- encouragement he received at LM by coaching and lege or high school to start your career… mentoring young musicians to follow their passions. You can do it now. Just actually DO it.” The music programs at LM are incredibly diAron Magner ’94, keyboardist for verse and engaging, giving students of all backLM alumnus Aron Magner ’94 rocks out on the electric the indie rock band the Disco Biscuits, grounds the opportunity to advance their craft. keyboard during a concert in Scranton Pennsylvania last and advisor to LM and Harriton High There are a number of various classes offered, and summer. Photo courtesy of Dave Vann School’s student-run record label, Ace students can choose to study nearly every instruThe music programs in our school are well-re- the Ram Records, has similar advice. He suggests ment in the orchestra. Teachers at the music proputed, but few know the amazing musicians who finding the “commitment, time, drive, passion, love, grams of Lower Merion encourage creative thinkhave passed through LM’s halls before emerging as exploration, and luck” that goes into making music. ing, allowing students to flourish in the melodic arts. prominent figures in their fields. Jesse Lundy ’90 is a Magner specifically recommends playing prime example of one of those people. Lundy and fel- “music with everyone and anyone as much low LM alumnus Richard Kardon, who graduated in as possible. Study the past before pushthe late 60’s, own a company called Point Entertain- ing the envelope. Have an open mind, and ment that represents artists, finds new talents, and be kind to yourself and others.” He says books venues for concerts from all around the area. he was heavily inspired by the recently reThey co-teach music industry courses at Drexel Uni- tired orchestra teacher Thomas Elliot and versity when they are not busy programming sound, the music department at LM, since it allights, and other production-related tasks at places lowed him “the freedom to explore [his] like the Ardmore Music Hall and booking venues for art and find others with a similar passion.” popular events such as the Philadelphia Folk Festival. Magner played piano casually in his Lundy also managed a band of former LM students youth, but began to take jazz piano more called The Brakes. The band features the late drum- seriously in his teens. He cites one specific mer and LM alumnus Josh Sack ’04. You may have moment—he was playing at a Christmas heard of him before because the music technology lab party at age sixteen when a man sat with here at LM is named after him. Lundy’s introduction him and said, “I’m an accountant and I to the musical world happened when he began playing dread waking up every morning to got to the guitar during his junior year. In college, he wrote work. You get to do what you love to do, and for the entertainment section of his school newspaper make a living out it.” Magner says this expeand worked with the campus radio station where his rience “was the first time I was aware that The Brakes performing at a WXPN sponsored show duties included booking the on-campus venue, and some people are not happy with the path of back in 2007, featuring the band’s original members.
Julia Kreuzer ’19 Jazz. A unique genre through which musicians cre- the group take pride in the fact that not only have they help from Lonnie Davis ’19. Davis helps to arrange ate soulful music that evokes emotions among listen- created a truly unique group, but that they make a mu- music from popular jazz pieces to fit the style and iners. Jazz music plays a large role in many musicians’ sical statement by being part of the group. The group strumentation of the group. Through guidance from lives at LM, especially one certain group of girls. has potential to encourage more girls in our district staff and students, the group has grown to include In 2015, two then-eighth graders at Bala Cynwyd to be a part of the music department.” Cooperstein fifteen members from both middle and high schools. Middle School, Olivia Hughart ’19 and Emma Noel attends practices, conducts, and provides a practice Key of She prides itself on being open to any fe’19, harnessed their passion for jazz. male musician—no auditions are reThey noticed significantly less girls than quired for joining the group. In addition, boys participating in the school’s jazz the atmosphere of the group differs from band. Noel and Hughart wanted to inthe normal jazz band. Flute player Nespire more female involvement, leading hama Dormont ’19 describes Key of She them to create an inclusive all-girls jazz as “not competitive, and everyone seems group, Key of She. According to Noel, very comfortable around their band“[We] really wanted to inspire change, mates. It’s a positive environment and not only at BC but around the district… feels good and fun to play in.” Trumpet and we started: Key of She to take that player Emma Straton ’18 enjoys many step. Female jazz musicians are rare.” aspects of being a member of Key of She, The mission of the group is to “supincluding “playing with kids from Harport and encourage girls to play jazz, riton, Bala Cynwyd, and Welsh Valley. and further introduce jazz culture to Everyone gets to learn from each other.” girls. We hope this program will bring Since its formation in 2015, the group more girls into the music industry.” has shown diligence and dedication, The addition to the music department showcasing their talent at several LMSD received a helping hand from school events. Incoming freshmen were serstaff. The band director at Bala Cynenaded by Key of She while visiting LM wyd, Dr. Jenny Neff, helped Hughart in January for Move Up Day. The group and Noel realize their passion for jazz also performed at the TedxLMSD conferand get the group off and running. Neff ence in May 2015. Hughart is working to Founders of Key of She, Hughart and Noel with their faculty director bring extended the foundation of the group to Key of She to a master class taught Gregg Eskin, the band director at Welsh Mr. Cooperstein. by Philadelphia jazz musicians. Her fuPhoto by Claire Ochroch ’18/Staff ture goal for the group is to “get more Valley Middle School who hoped to include girls from both Bala Cynwyd and Welsh Valley. space for Key of She. Without his help, “it would be girls involved. We want to expand the group as much As the group moved its way to high school, LM much harder to keep Key of She alive and running as possible and continue working together to achieve band teacher Joshua Cooperstein became the spon- successfully,” according to Hughart. Specific jazz great things.” The future of Key of She is bright sor of the group. Cooperstein hopes “that the girls in music for the group is collected by Cooperstein with and filled with the opportunity to inspire change.
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February 22, 2017
Arts & Entertainment The Merionite
Equal Pay in Hollywood Marli Weisman ’18 Emmy Rossum has successfully obtained a salary raise for her role as Fiona Gallagher in Shameless, an award-winning dramedy show. As a condition for the renewal of her contract, Rossum asked not only to be paid the same amount as her co-star William H. Macy, but also for a larger salary than his in order to make up for the previous seasons when she was paid less than him. Both Rossum and Macy had equal billing on the show with equally sized roles and both were popular with the viewers. Warner Brothers Television seemed to have no problem paying Rossum the same amount as Macy. However, Rossum still held out to be paid more than her co-star to account for the previous seasons of wage gap, despite the fact that when the show first started in 2011, Rossum was not as well-known and acclaimed as Macy. Presumably, Rossum prevailed in her disputes, because she tweeted “Playing Fiona Gallagher has been one of the great privileges of my life. I’m so happy to continue with my Shameless family! Back to work in May!” The discrepancy between the salaries of men and women has been a recurring problem for many women in show business through the years, but has recently been addressed and publicized. For example, actress Jennifer Lawrence recently expressed her thoughts regarding the issue in Lena Dunham’s newsletter, Lenny Letter. Lawrence’s essay addressed her frustration with the wage gap present in Hollywood. It was publicly revealed that Lawrence was paid less than her male co-stars during the Sony hacking scandal last year. Lawrence not only took issue with being
paid less, but also with how she was treated by the producers of American Hustle when she asked for an equal salary. She stated, “All I hear and see all day are men speaking their opinions, and I give mine in the same exact manner, and you would have thought I had said something offensive.” Despite her irritation, Lawrence blamed herself for not negotiating for equal pay in American Hustle. She reported, “I didn’t get mad at Sony. I got mad at myself. I failed as a negotiator because I gave up early. I didn’t want to keep fighting over millions of dollars that, frankly, due to two franchises, I don’t need.” Lawrence’s essay not only focused on unequal pay for women, but also on her opinion that the failure of women to demand that their salaries reflect the value of their jobs. It also highlighted that the inequality is spread across the board, throughout different professions. According to the American Association of University Women, women working in the United States are paid about eighty percent of what was earned by men with the same qualifications in the same job, a gap of twenty percent. The pay gap affects women differently depending on their race, age, background, and level of education. For example, Latina women in 2015, according to Median Annual Earnings By Race/Ethnicity and Gender, had a ninety percent wage gap compared to the salary of white men. Rossum and Lawrence are both great examples of women pushing to ensure equal pay not only in Hollywood, but in general. By speaking up, both advocated for women to stand up and ask for equal pay, instead of shying away and accepting the inequality.
Graphic by Amy Xi ’19
Features
February 22, 2017
15
The Merionite
We’re halfway there...
Caffeine kicks Caroline Spencer ’18
Michelle Herzberg ’17
We are all familiar with the burnt-out feeling after midterms. The extra stress and long hours of studying have used up all our energy. After taking difficult exams all week long, most of us are ready for summer vacation, not grinding down for another long semester of work. How can we only be halfway through the school year? This semester, avoid giving in to the post-midterm academic slump by preparing some fun caffeinated recipes to get you through the school day. These energizing recipes are guaranteed to pick you back up and put you on the path to success for the second semester.
Ingredients Hot chocolate coffee:
1 cup milk 3 teaspoons sugar 1/8 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 3 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder 1 teaspoon instant coffee 1 teaspoon brown sugar Pinch of salt Whipped cream and cinnamon for garnish (optional)
Frappuccino:
1 ½ cups very strong brewed coffee or espresso, chilled 1 cup milk 1/3 cup sweetened condensed milk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract ¼ cup chocolate syrup (optional) ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips (optional) ¼ cup half and half (optional) Whipped cream (optional)
Coffee toffee banana bread:
3 large ripe bananas, mashed 1 cup brewed strong coffee 2 cups all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder ½ teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon salt ½ teaspoon cinnamon ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil ¾ cup dark brown sugar, packed 2 large eggs 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract ¾ cup chopped toffee
Directions
1. Heat the milk in a small saucepan over medium heat. 2. When the milk is simmering, add in the sugar, vanilla, cocoa powder, instant coffee, brown sugar, and salt. 3. Stir until all of the ingredients are dissolved. 4. Pour the mixture into a mug and garnish it with whipped cream and
1. Add the coffee, milk, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla to a blender. 2. Add the chocolate syrup and chocolate chips, if desired for a mocha chip Frappuccino. 3. Top off the blender with ice and blend until smooth and icy. 4. Add half and half for a richer and creamier Frappuccino. 5. Serve the drink in a glass with whipped cream. 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 2. Mix together the brown sugar, olive oil, eggs, vanilla extract, bananas, and coffee in a large mixing bowl. 3. Add the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon into the wet ingredients. 4. Stir in the chopped toffee. 5. Pour the batter into a loaf pan sprayed with non-stick spray. 6. Bake for about fifty minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
With second semester upon us, it can be difficult to push through the rest of the year. With prom, senior projects, college plans, and end of high school experiences filled with closure to focus on, seniors find it especially difficult to persevere. However, there are still about four months left in our school year, so these tips will hopefully help you to stay motivated. Setting a goal might be the most significant step in order to keep trucking because it can be a common purpose to refer back to when you get overwhelmed or unmotivated. A goal should be realistic, achievable, and specific. To stay organized, creating a daily plan is incredibly helpful. Most students have homework planners, which is the easiest way to give yourself structure and manage your time. Crossing off completed items on this list is essential to feeling accomplished, even if the item you are crossing off is a small task. Any progress is good progress. The feeling of accomplishment, big or small, will make you want to feel even more accomplished, therefore leading you to more checks on your list of goals. Although it may seem like the best choice, pushing through all of your tasks at once is pretty difficult, so remember to take breaks and reward yourself. A five to fifteen minute break should be sufficient enough to relax and will lead to better concentration. Reading a chapter of a book, eating a snack, or even showering are great ways to take a short break without getting wrapped up in a long task or distraction. It is incredibly important to try to limit distractions, especially on your phone, which may have an extreme appeal over your textbook. Turning your phone on “do not disturb” is the perfect way to limit distractions. Although it’s difficult, and honestly is probably impractical, an even better thing to do would be to turn it off or put it in a different room. A the same time, sometimes elec-
Grade grubbing Alexandra Hummel ’17 Features Editor Grade grubbing. Most of us have heard of it. For our more righteous readers, grade grubbing is begging your teacher to bump your grade up when you’re just one, or two, or even three points shy of the next letter grade up. By senior year, most LM students have resorted to this tactic. Don’t take this personally! It doesn’t mean you’re a bad student. It happens to the best of us: maybe you bombed that one test, or missed that one homework grade, and it brought you down a letter grade. In these situations, you’re forced to grovel. While your fellow students will, in general, understand your predicament, many teachers have little sympathy when it comes to grade grubbers. They’ve just heard the same sob story too many times to truly take it to heart. Attitudes about grade grubbing are mixed among the LM student population. Not everyone, underclassmen especially, can call themselves grade grubbers.
tronics can be a good source of study music. Through the years, I have personally figured out what music works for me while doing homework or studying. One of my personal favorites is Spotify’s “Focus” section or rain sounds. But of course, find what works best for you. The place where you get down to work may be more important than you think. Something that I discovered junior year during a second semester slump was the benefit of switching up my study space. I found that going to a library or coffee shop to do homework and study is extremely beneficial. If you are someone who gets bored or demotivated by their house, get out and find a better space. Some great coffee shops are Starbucks, Saxby’s (my personal favorite), Green Engine Coffee Co., and La Colombe. Finally, a hidden trick to keep motivated is exercising! Studies have proven that even just thirty minutes of exercising can increase productivity. If you cannot get to the gym, find a workout video online and just do it! Lastly, take advantage of frees or study halls. For seniors especially, it is so difficult to feel motivated to get work done at home. Use frees, and of course Lunch & Learn, to your advantage so you can limit the amount of work you have left to do when you get home. Although summer may seem ages away, take things little by little, and we will survive second semester!
Graphics by Vanessa Roser/Staff ’17
Excluding that minority, however, pretty much every single student knows someone who can. The lucky few who’ve never had to resort to this strategy sometimes look down upon grade grubbers. In general, working hard throughout the quarter is a much better and safer way to secure a good grade. But if you’re in really a tough spot, it’s worth a try. First, always make sure that you’ve turned everything in; if you can turn a few zeros around, it will work wonders. Then, ask your teacher for an extra credit opportunity. Demanding free points isn’t always the best strategy. You could also ask that they shuffle some points around, giving you a boost this quarter at the expense of your next quarter’s grade. Finally, there’s one way that’s almost sure to convince your teacher to take pity on you. “I know a lot of people cry. I think that helps,” says sophomore Sofia Lake. To those of us who will be grade grubbing in the near future, good luck. And to those who have never grade grubbed before, keep up the good work!
Features
February 22, 2017
16
The Merionite
Did you want to be a teacher when you were in high school? Ms. Roeder Kathryn: In college, did you try to pursue your dream career before studying education? Roeder: No, because my dream career was being a dolphin trainer, and opportunities for dolphin trainers in PA are not especially prevalent.
Bethany Eldridge ’18, Features Editor & Kathryn Lockwood ’18
Would you reccomend the teaching profession to students currently entering college?
Did you consider the teaching profession when you attended high school?
K: Did you want to be a teacher when you were in high school? R: Yes, besides a dolphin trainer, I have always wanted to be a teacher since middle school. My Phys Ed and health teachers made a big impact. K: What kind of student were you in high school? R: Well, I was voted most athletic for senior superlative, but got great grades in college. K: Do you know anyone who is a dolphin trainer? R: Yes, I actually have two friends who are dolphin trainers at SeaWorld.
Mr. Capkin Bethany: Would you be surprised if you told your younger self you would be a teacher in high school? Capkin: No, I would not be surprised. I have always loved working with kids, and even worked as a counselor for Lower Merion Township when I went to LM. B: Would you be surprised if you told your younger self that you would be a teacher at LM specifically? C: Yes, definitely. Bethany: Did you have a previous job before being a teacher here? Capkin: Yes, I started as an elementary school teacher. B: Did you get an A in Spanish in high school? C: Yes.
What kind of student were you when you were a student in high school?
B: If you could teach a different course at LM what would you teach? C: English or cooking.
Survey of Lower Merion teachers
Ms. Pisoni
Mr. Dawson
Kathryn: In college, did you try to pursue your dream career before studying education? Pisoni: My original major was a dietitian, but my dream career in high school was to be a newscaster.
Bethany: If you told yourself in high school that you would be a teacher, would you be surprised? Dawson: Yes, probably. I thought of most of my teachers as ancient. But if you asked me in college, I would not have been surprised.
K: Did you know any dietitians or newscasters? P: I was inspired to become a dietitian from someone I knew, but I did not know any newscasters.
B: Did you have any previous careers before education? D: Yes, I was a lawyer.
K: If you could teach any other subject, what would it be? P: Elementary education. I used to be a fourth grade teacher at Penn Wynne Elementary School.
B: If you could have another job that wasn’t teaching, what would it be? D: A professional basketball coach. Having my own shooting clinic would be a dream.
Pamela Ing ’20 Diamonds. Emeralds. Pearls. What do they all have in common? They are three of the numerous gems assigned as birthstones for each month. These gems are associated with either the zodiac sign or a month of the year.
July: Ruby This deep red stone signifies wealth, wisdom, health, and success in romance. Due to their large size, rubies can be incredibly expensive.
January: Garnet Garnet is usually dark red and sometimes violet-red. This stone is said to keep eternal friendship and trust.
August : Peridot and Sardonyx The peridot is a clear lime green gem. Sardonyxes are made up of layers of sand and onyx—two types of the layered mineral chalcedony—to create a reddish zebra-striped stone with white bands. These two gems both symbolize wisdom, and intelligence.
February: Amethyst Amethyst is purple quartz and is found throughout the world. Traditionally, these stones were used on crowns and jewelry for British and French royalty. It is said to keep the wearer of the stone clear-headed and quick-witted. March: Bloodstone and Aquamarine The bloodstone is a dark green jasper with flecks of blood-red spots on it. Aquamarine is a beautiful bluish-green stone. It is considered a tranquil gemstone which imbues the wearer with calmness and a levelhead. April: Diamond The infamous diamond is the April birthstone. This stone is the densest and purest of them all because it is made entirely froma single element: carbon. Diamonds are usually associated with eternal love and commitment. May: Emerald It can range from a light to an intense dark green. These stones are said to symbolize rebirth and to infuse their owners with youth, vitality, and good fortune. June: Pearl, Alexandrite, and moonstone There are three birthstones in June: pearl, alexandrite, and moonstone. The pearls are the only gems that are products of living things. Color-changing alexandrites are often described as “emerald by day, ruby by night.” Alexandrite and moonstone have this in common. Moonstone changes its shade according to the lunar cycle (from a clear blue to sometimes even a neon turquoise). These gems are associated with rarity and purity.
September: Sapphire This gem is believed to protect loved ones from envy and harm. It is also known for its brilliant blue color, but sometimes it can also be found in orange, yellow, green, or even purple. October: Opal and Tourmaline Opals display many different shades due to microscopic silica spheres that diffract light in order to display various colors of the rainbow. Tourmaline is a mix of minerals, which lends it an iridescent property. These two stones represent faithfulness and confidence. Some believe that necklaces containing opals will repel evil and protect eyesight. November: Topaz It is a symbol of love and affection, providing strength and intelligence. Because a natural topaz would be colorless, the ones in the orange shades are incredibly valuable. December : Turquoise This gem is softer and has a greenish blue color. This stone is seen as a love charm and is attributed to good fortune and success. So you may be wondering, what does this all mean? Why were birthstones created? Some theorize that the gemstones have biblical origins, but scholars say that they originated from the twelve tribes of Israel, with each stone representing a tribe. By wearing these gems at the right time, one would receive good fortune and other benefits. For example, if an Aquarius wore its gemstone, the Amethyst, it would give the person peace, balance, courage, and inner strength. Thus, birthstones can be very important to many people and can be equally mystifying in their own ways.
Graphic by Chrisopher De Santis ’20
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17
February 23rd, 2017
18
Sports
February 22, 2017
The Merionite
A day in the life: swim edition Sophie Roling ‘18 Opinions Editor
Photo courtesy of the Enchiridion Justin Do ’18 comes up for a quick breath during a race, exemplifying the endurance the team is trying to maintain this season. “Caaaaaaalvin… Cooooolidge… Caaalvin… Cooolidge…Calvin! Coolidge!” Most of LM’s students are unaware that Calvin Coolidge is commonly referenced by one of the school’s sports. However, one team’s long-standing tradition of repeatedly shouting the name of America’s thirtieth president captures the attention of anyone within earshot. The source of this excitement: an LM swim meet. A typical meet begins around 3:45 p.m., as the girls’ and boys’ teams collect to recite iconic cheers. The girls gather on the bulkhead to shout their chant. Simultaneously, all of the boys, except for one, gather in a circle in the shallow end of the pool. The boy who is not in the circle waits patiently on the bulkhead, his back facing the pool. The whole natatorium falls silent as the athletes begin to slowly whisper “Calvin Coolidge.” As the cheer goes on, the phrase is repeated at an increasingly louder and faster rate. After an abrupt yell, the lone
boy on the bulkhead back-flops into the circle, and the their fellow swimmers in individual events, especially team suddenly goes quiet. After he breaks the surface, in close races. The more excitement in the natatorium, the whole team erupts in cheer. Despite the repetition the more prompted the swimmers are to go faster. As a of this cheer, not one boy on the team knows the signifi- whole, the team prioritizes the encouragement of every cance of chanting “Calvin Coolidge.” That fact is only re- swimmer in every race. Based on where the swimmer vealed to seniors after they graduate, by the boys’ coach, places in their heat, they can earn points for the team. Although swimming is an individual sport, LM’s swim Paul Speicher. Once the spirit of the team is elevated, the competing team wins meets together. Every race counts to make a swimmers prepare for the first event—the medley relay. difference in the team’s overall placement. So far this year, LM swim and dive has had a winning Since it is a relay, there are four swimmers in each lane, as each one swims a different stroke. A feeling of nervous season for both the boys and the girls. For the first time excitement bubbles inside all of the swimmers and spec- in over twenty years, both teams have won more than tators as the girls’ heat steps onto the starting blocks. half of their meets against teams in the Central League, A blanket of silence covers the natatorium. The starter and this LM team is only getting stronger. The athletes buzzes. Immediately afterward, the pool deck erupts in look forward to involving more LM students in the exciting events of the swim meets in future seasons. cheers. After a few events have been completed, the meet pauses for diving. This session of the meet is by far the Photo courtesy of the Enchiridion quietest; the divers need complete silence to focus. Each diver competes for a total of six rounds, but can perform a mix of different dives. The attention of the crowd is fixated on the pool. As the divers begin their flips and twists, the crowd quickly becomes infatuated. Following the conclusion of the diving portion of the meet, the swimming events resume. Alternating between girls and boys, the individual events of all strokes commence. Then, six of LM’s distance swimmers partake in the longest race for the high school level: the 500-yard freestyle. Ranging from approximately four to seven minutes in length, this event requires a great amount of physical stamina and mental focus. Each swimmer has a counter, who places a number set into the pool for each lap. The counter can shake the numbers to remind the Roxanna Pasquier ’17 dives head first into the swimmer to stay on pace or to prompt them to go faster. water to start her heat. Throughout the meet, the entire team cheers for
Boys swim makes a splash Emily Barson ’18 Following a rather successful 20152016 season, the LM boys’ swim team was ranked fifth overall in the Central League. The athletes began this season with a more challenging goal in mind and ended up finishing the season with a 7-4 record. They spent the season continuously preparing and trying to surpass their achieved goals from the previous season. Under the leadership of Coach Paul Speicher, the Aces were able to sustain their rank from last year. After last season, Speicher circumspectly reflected on the techniques used to train his swimmers and made improvements accordingly to strive for further victory this season. Speicher makes sure all of his players endorse working collaboratively with one another and together as a team. If working together leads to success in the Central League, that is a plus, but Speicher also would like individuals to succeed.
The Aces are trying to surpass their past run at states this year. Mackenzie King ’17, a backstroke swimmer and one of the team captains, states, “our 400 free relay, with Colin Shea ’17, Max Roling ’17, Brien Coghlan ’17, and me held us from achieving our goal of states” last year. Using past disappointment as motivation, the Aces have grown as a team as well as improved in individual competitions. With adjustments to their style and approach to the meets, the Aces have hopes of actually making it to districts. Each Ace has made a contribution to the team’s overall success. Looking to the future, Chris Harris ’18 reported, “we already have a few district qualifiers right now: Roling, Shea, and Coghlan. All the hard work, practice six days a week, and averaging over 5,000 yards a practice will allow more Aces to compete in the Central League and possibly states.” The postseason seems open to endless possibilities.
Photo courtesy of the Enchiridion The team huddles up in the water before an important meet. This has become a ritual for the team this season, symbolizing the theme of unity shared by the swimmers.
Boys basketball takes Central League title Sam Oshtry ’19 Photo courtesy of Tom Weishaar
The team celebrates after securing the monumental win against Strath Haven. The Aces are the kings of the Central League. LM put on a convincing performance on Valentine’s Day, downing Strath Haven 82-60 to capture the 2017 league championship -- their fifth in the last nine years and first since 2014. In their biggest game of the season to date, the Aces played like champions from start to finish. LM led 13-11 after the first quarter and exploded on a 15-4 run to start the second quarter and seize control of the contest. Big threes from Jack Forrest ’19 and Matt O’Connor ’19 ignited the Aces’ charge. At the half, LM led 3022. The Aces had perhaps their most dominant quarter of the season in the third. For eight minutes, LM literally could not miss, driving and finishing around the rim and kicking out to red hot shooters for a remarkable 13-13 shooting performance from the field. Steve Payne ’19 had 15 of the team’s 31 points the quarter. The final frame was no different; Strath Haven attempted to press, but the Aces broke it quickly and efficient-
ly, tiring out the Panthers and finding easy baskets in transition. LM’s sophomores led the way in their first experience in a title game. Payne tied his career-high with 26-points in an outstanding performance. Forrest was huge throughout the game finishing with 18 points. Darryl Taylor ’19 added 14 points and three steals. Terrell Jones ’17 had 12 and Noah Fennell ‘17 scored 4. O’Connor came in off the bench and hit two big threes for six points. Harrison Klevan ’18 (2 points) rounded out the scoring. With two minutes to go, seniors Jones and Fennell checked out of the game to a standing ovation from a raucous Dawg Pound, celebrating with teammates and coaches their second league title in four years. Entering the season, the Central League was up for grabs in a deep and talented field of teams. After a 4-5 start, few people expected the Aces to win the league title, but determination and a “refuse to lose” mentality kept them in the hunt and put them in position to win a championship.
Sports
February 22, 2017
19
The Merionite
Aces basketball’s new anthem Zack Slogoff ’18 Sports Editor Not all of the athletes necessarily agree with their teammates’ actions, however. Some of the players still choose to stand and support the anthem. When asked why he chooses to stand, Harrison Klevan ’18 stated, “I stand to honor and respect the men and women fighting overseas who serve to protect our freedom and give me the chance to not just honor the anthem, but have the opportunity to play in the game that follows the anthem.” The team’s many conflicting opinions are made evident whenever “Oh say can you see” is first heard. Players and coaches met with Principal Sean Hughes and Athletic Director Don Walsh to come up with a solution to display a unified front during their home game on February 7 against Upper Darby. The team donned shirts with the powerful words, “I am a Muslim. I am a refugee. I am an immigrant. I am an American. I am an Ace.” Along with the shirts, the team has released a statement that was handed out before the game to all spectators, which stated “no
Photo courtesy of Tom Weishaar Although they have different opinions, Klevan and Walker-X still are soundly unified on the court, displaying the solid front of a team undivided. Over the past few months, a wave of peaceful protests have traveled through the LM student body. Controversy surrounding the inauguration of President Donald Trump has in turn created much turmoil within our student body, and students have felt the need to stand up and speak out. This movement has made its way onto the courts, as many members of LM’s own boys’ basketball team have joined up in protest of the recent immigrant ban, as well as many other racial and economic issues that have come up throughout the season. Aces basketball has always been a hot topic around the area, but the team has been making headlines in new ways that do not even involve the game. Some members of the team have been sitting or taking a knee during the national anthem for each game, causing plenty of community members to turn their heads. Led by seniors Najja Walker-X and Terrell Jones, a group of players have chosen to use their varsity status to make a statement to the community. “We feel disenfranchised and ignored,” says Walker-X, “African Americans make up thirteen percent of America’s population, yet 37 percent of America’s prison population. How can I stand for a country that claims to be the land of the free when so many of us are in bondage?” Many of Walker-X’s teammates seem to agree with his motives because, as the season prolongs, more and more players have joined the protest. Almost half of the team sat during the anthem at a recent away game at Penncrest.
Photo courtesy of Tom Weishaar Jones pulls up for a jumper during the Kobe Bryant Classic held over winter break. Jones has been a huge advocate of the recent anthem movement, as well as a leader on the court.
Photo courtesy of Harrison Klevan ’18 Pictured above is the shirt worn during warmups by the team members. After high demand, sales have been opened up to the student body.
Freshman Karli Yenal
Sophomore Anya Silbert
What sport(s) do you play? Ice Hockey
What sport(s) do you play? Cross country and swimming
What is the best Valentine’s Day gift you’ve received? The best gift I have received was a small bag of chocolates and a cute card.
What is the best Valentine’s Day gift you’ve received? A really nice card from Ann Gamble ’19 or a singing Valentine.
Would you rather have a year-long winter or spring? I would definitely rather have a year-long spring.
Do you prefer skiing or snowboarding? Skiing. I skied in Utah for a week over winter break in Park City and Deer Valley.
If you could be on a professional sports team, which would it be? It would be the Flyers because I would love to be in the NHL and their team has a lot of fun players.
matter where you come from or who you are, you deserve to be heard.” This strategy proved to be useful, as the team pulled together as a unit to win the game by thirty points and show that in America, regard-
If you could be on a professional sports team, which would it be? The Phillies because I like baseball.
less of what your opinion is, it deserves to be heard. Recently the shirts have attracted national attention, proceeding the teams Central League Championship victory on Febuary 14. The shirts went viral on many Philadelphia media websites, with Senator Bob Casey even giving LM a shoutout, tweeting, “Congrats to Lower Merion on the champonship. You inspire me with your talent, but more importantly your strength of character.” The important message surrounding this controversy is not whether you choose to sit or stand; it is that no matter what background you come from, we live in a country where you have the right to choose to protest, or not, in any way you please. That is what is special about the United States of America, and that is what is special about Aces basketball. Although the team is constructed of students of different ethnicities, religions, races, backgrounds, and opinions, they still find a way to unite on the court. The team hopes to continue their success and amity in the upcoming district playoffs.
Junior Romaine Rhoden What sport(s) do you play? Indoor track and track and field
What is the best Valentine’s Day gift you’ve received? A bag full of candy because I love candy. Would you rather have a year-long winter or spring? A long spring because I like warm weather. If you could be on a professional sports team, which would it be? 2002 Lakers because it would be cool to have an NBA championship ring.
Senior Noah Fennell
What sport(s) do you play? Basketball What is the best Valentine’s Day gift you’ve received? Chocolate because I love food and it’s the best candy. Do you prefer skiing or snowboaring? Snowboarding If you could be on a professional sports team, which would it be? Sixers, Trust the Process.
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February 22, 2017
Sports The Merionite
Following our athletic alumni Benjamin Schmid ’19
Hundreds of thousands of student athletes have passed through the halls of LM over its ongoing history, but only one has become a household name. We all know one alumnus that has attained fame in the athletic world, yet there are so many other Aces that have made athletic history beyond the collegiate level. Let us take a look at some of the notable alumni athletes from LM. Joseph Conwell, class of 1979, played football for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill after graduating from LM. The offensive tackle was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers, but ended up playing for the Philadelphia Eagles for two seasons (28 games). After retiring from professional football, Conwell went on to co-found a real estate company where he currently works as a Senior Vice President. Another former LM student that went on to play professional football is Bernard Pierce. Pierce transferred from LM during his high school career and actually graduated from Glen Mills High School. After earning state honors in both football and track for Glen Mills, Pierce attended Temple University. The running back was originally drafted by the Baltimore Ravens and played for them for two years (2012 to 2014), before playing for the Jacksonville Jaguars (2015), and the New York Jets (2016). Pierce recently signed a deal to join the Denver Broncos. As for alumni who went on to play other professional sports, Matthew Snider, LM class of 1994, was LM’s top football player who also shined on the baskwtball court. Voted co-MVP with Kobe Bryant for the LM basketball team his sophomore year. He then went on to graduate from the University of Richmond with a degree in Sports Science and Health. Following his college graduation, Snider signed with the Carolina
his professional football career. Snider currently lives in San Diego and is a personal trainer for private clients. Mark Gerban, who was a Lower Merion senior in 1998, graduated from Drexel University with a triple major, where he became a multiple America East Conference Swimming Champion. He went on to be the first rower in history to represent the State of Palestine at the World Championships and had the highest place finish at the World Championship for a Palestinian athlete in any sport Three years later, a renowned LM lacrosse player graduated from our high school: Johnny Christmas. Christmas picked up high honors as a high school lacrosse player and later went on to lead the University of Virginia Cavaliers to win the 2003 NCAA Division I Men’s Lacrosse Championship. After college, he played for the Philadelphia Wings and Boston Cannons of the National Lacrosse League and Major League Lacrosse, respectively. Whether you hear someone yell “Kobe” in the halls or see the giant letters of “Bryant Gymnasium” above the doors by the bus circle, people naturally know it’s referring to the NBA star Kobe Bryant. He definitely has significant meaning to the LM community. Bryant’s long list of achievements include being an eighteen-time NBA All-Star, receiving the 2008 MVP award, winning five NBA championships, and winning two Olympic Gold Medals. Though the LM women’s basketball team has had a few pretty notable alumi in their own right. Sarah Lowe ’02 was both successful on and off the court. As a senior she was a McDonald’s All-American and recruited to play the University of Florida. While in college she was an Arthur Ashe Female Sports Scholar of the year and 2-time Rhodes Scholarship finalist.
play basketball professionally. Brogan graduated from West Virginia Wesleyan College and went on to play 121 games for the San Diego Clippers. He is currently a public speaker and runs the JB Academy, a program devoted to providing individualized programs which works with participants on their basketball skills. Despite the fame of Bryant, Henry “Hap” Arnold, class of 1903, has left quite the impression on our high school as well. If you have ever wondered why we call the LM athletic complex “Arnold Field,” this man is the reason. Arnold graduated from LM and was preparing to attend Bucknell University to pursue Baptist ministry, but entered the United States Military Academy at West Point instead. He played for the varsity football team, was a shot putter on the track and field team, and displayed much talent in polo. Fighting for our country in both world wars, Arnold is the only officer to earn a five-star rank in two different divisions of the United States Military Services. Arnold did not just leave his mark on LM; the Arnold Air Force Base in Tennessee and the Arnold Engineering Development Center, along with the Henry “Hap” Arnold ROTC Award which is awarded to the top senior cadet at each college or uni-
The ubiquitous Kobe Bryant has his LM memorabilia around the school. Unfortunately some of these relics, like the signed uniform shown here, were stolen on Sunday Feburary, 5.
In addition to being a legend in a variety of sports at LM, Arnold went on to become an honorable officer in the military, leaving behind an extensive legacy. versity with an AFROTC program, were all named in his respect. Additionally, he learned to fly from the Wright Brothers, and remains an influential figure in the history of our country. As we have seen, there have been many LM alumni that have gone on to further their athletic careers professionally. This is only a list of those who have gone past the collegiate level. Some of those LM athletes have achieved high honors at that level, and some have even come back to teach us their talents. While alumni have accomplished many honorable things, history is still in the making, and I am sure current LM students will be added to this list in the years to come.
Bernard Pierce played two years of football and track at LM before transferring to Glen Mills. He is now a professional running back for the Denver Broncos. Panthers in the summer of 1999. He played two seasons with the Green Bay Packers and four games with the Minnesota Vikings, but was then released. At the time, the fullback was one of the first ten players ever signed by the Houston Texans, but the team released him before the season started, which ultimately ended
A decade before Lowe was Alison Cohen ’92, who had a lot of success establishing the LM girls’ basketball program. She had the record for the most points in a single season (1,266) in LM basketball history, male or female, until Kobe Bryant broke it a few years later. Currently, Cohen still persues athletics. This year she will attempt to break the Guiness World Record “half-marathon while pushing a stroller” time. Though Kobe Bryant is commonly recognized as the most famous LM alum to go on to play professional basketball, Al Bonniwell (class of 1930) and Jim Brogan (class of 1976) paved the way for him first. Following his time at LM, Bonniwell was an All-American basketball player at Dartmouth College. He then played for the Akron Firestone Non-Skids, which was a team in the National Basketball League, a league that would later merge into the National Basketball Association. Called to serve in the US Army in both World War II and the Korean War, Bonniwell earned the Bronze Star. In 2010, he was posthumously inducted into the LM Basketball Hall of Fame, as he was the first alumnus to
Looking in... -Boys and girls swimming season reviews p.18 -Aces basketball’s new “anthem” p.19 -Check out the new Faces! p.19