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!!The$Echo$
!!!!!!2013&14! !
Issue!1!
THE ECHO BGA!Celebrates!125!Years!of! Character,!Scholarship,!Excellence!
BGA!News! Page%2:!Mr.!Jason!Gregg,!Director!of! Alumni!Relations,!talks!about!BGA’s! 125th !Celebration! Page%3:%Meet!Mr.!Randy!Tucker,! Interim!Head!of!School! Page%4:%Meet!Madame!Jennifer!Weir,! new!US!French!Teacher!
Sports! Page%5:!BGA!Cheerleaders! !
Page%6:%BGA’s!Cross!Country! Team!
Special!Interests!
By:!Emily!Hopkins! In!1889,!Battle!Ground! Academy!was!founded!as!an! all&boys!boarding!school.!125! years!later,!the!school!is!still!
known!as!Battle!Ground! Academy,!yet!the!differences! between!the!first!year!and! the!current!year!are! gargantuan.!
Page%6:%Profiles!of!5!“Best&Value”! Southern!!!Public!Universities! Page%7:%BGA’s!Dedication!to! Community!Service! Page%8:%Confronting!Racism!in! Schools! Page%9:%A!Long!Distance! Relationship!–!With!Your!School! Page%9:%Changes!in!Policies!at!BGA!
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The$Echo$Staff! Editor&In&Chief:!Erinie!Yousief!
Photography!Editor:!Jacklyn!Abernathy!
BGA!Happenings!Editor:!Jonathan!Reiss!
Writers!&!Photographers:!Hersheyth!Aggarwal,!Laura!Anglin,! Chad!Bramlett,!Sarah!Butler,!Danielle!Caron,!Audrey!Collins,! Stokes!Dunavan,!Miller!Fahey,!Andrew!Graveno,!Emily!Hopkins,! Bethany!Kirkpatrick,!Brenna!Kirkpatrick,!Neel!Kurupassery,! Madeline!MacArthur,!Chloe!Masten,!Michaela!Murphy,! !Grace!Whitten,!Steve!Xu!and!Reagan!Yancey!! !
Special!Interests!Editor:!Annie!Kennedy! Sports!Editor:!Nora!Scott! Associate!Sports!Editor:!Ivy!Shelton!
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!The$Echo$
!!!!!!!!!2013&14! !
Issue!1!
BGA!Celebrates!125!Years!of!Character,$Scholarship,$Excellence! By:!Emily!Hopkins! In! 1889,! Battle! Ground! Academy! was! founded! as! an! all&boys! boarding! school.! 125! years! later,! the! school! is! still! known! as! Battle! Ground! Academy,! yet! the! differences! between! the! first! year! and! the! current!year!are!gargantuan.! Recently! I! met! with! Mr.! Jason! Gregg! ‘90,! the! director! of! alumni! relations,! and! discussed! the! 125th! anniversary! and!how! BGA! has!changed!and! grown.! What% do% you% think% it% was% like% the% first% year% at% BGA%in%1889?%Aside% from%the% change%in%the%role% of% technology% in% the% classroom,% how% does% it% differ%from%this%year?% The! most! noticeable! change! is! the! amount! of! students!in!attendance!at!the!school.!!Although!the! class! sizes! are! a! large! change,! the! introduction! of! girls!into!the!school!also!contributed.! What% are% your% favorite% things% about% the% BGA% now%and%the%old%campus?% The! open&ness! and! landscape,! such! as! the! trees! and!the!creek,!of!the!new!campus!is!definitely!my! favorite! part.! ! Although! I! like! the! outdoor! aspect! of!the!new!campus,!I!do!miss!the!history!of!the!old! campus.! ! It’s! the! little! things,! such! as! the! creaky! staircases!and!floorboards.! %
What% do% you% think% is% the% importance% of% a% school%having%longstanding%traditions?% In! my! experience,! longstanding! traditions! give! students! a! common! experience.! While! you!go!here,!a!boy!is!pulling!as!a!Plato!just! like! a! Plato! girl! from! 1983! or! a! girl! is! signing!the!Honor!Code!just!like!a!boy!from! 1934.! ! The! common! traditions! bind! the! students! together! and! make! the! Academy! what!it!is.! If%you%were%alive%in%100%years,%how%would% you%want%to%see%BGA%grow?% One!of!the!biggest!things!I!would!like!to!see! is! a! Performing! Arts! Center.! ! However,! I! hope! BGA! will! still! be! a! place! where! students! come! to! get! a! quality! education! first.! What%is%your%favorite%tradition%at%BGA?% The!Tug!! What% plans% do% you% have% for% the% 125th% anniversary%this%year?% Because! October! 5th! is! the! actual! day! BGA! was! founded,! the! Homecoming! game! will! be! on! the! 4th! and! the! dance! will! be! on! the! 5th.!! Throughout! that! whole! weekend!there! will! be! activities! for! visiting! alumni,! parents,! and! students—and! during! the! year,!BGA!will!be!hosting!numerous!events! to! celebrate! and! honor! our! 125&year! old! history,!tradition,!and!excellence.! ! ! !
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!!The$Echo$
!!!!!!2013&14! !
Issue!1!
Meet!Mr.!Randy!Tucker,!Interim!Head!of!School! By:!Bethany!Kirkpatrick! Since! his! arrival! at! BGA,! Interim! Head! Randy! Tucker! has! proven! himself! fully! capable! of! managing! the! school! for! the! year.! From! the! innumerable! rule! changes! around! campus! to! the! persistent! hGood! morning...Good! morning…h! one! will! find! walking! around! campus,! Mr.! Tucker! has! actively! made! an! effort! to! leave! his! mark! on! BGA! history.! In! a! recent! interview,! he! offered! his! perspective! on! key! issues! around! the! school,! bringing!a!pair!of!fresh!eyes!to!the!school!scene.! When! asked! about! the! prominent! features! separating!BGA!from!other!college&prep!schools,!he! immediately! pointed! out! a! contradiction! in! the! Academyjs! operation! that! actually! helps! us! along.! Noting,! hI! think! BGA! is! ready! to! move! forward,h! Mr.! Tucker! praised! BGAjs! commitment! to! advancement! in! the! role! of! technology! in! the! classroom! and! ability! to! avoid! getting! too! set! in! its! ways.! At! the! same! time,! he! appreciates! the! traditions! preserved! on! campus! that! tie! the! past! to! present.! Though! he! has! greatly! appreciated! the! student!environment!on!campus,!he!sincerely!hopes! that! we! can! find! a! more! permanent! head! of! school! to!provide!stability!for!the!Academy.! As!a!former!teacher!and!an!avid!learner,!Mr.!Tucker! also! wished! to! recognize! the! power! of! a! class! in! preparation! for! college! or! for! life.! He! expressed! his! wish! for! the! addition! of! a! world! religions! course,! emphasizing! that! hfaith! is! a! critical! piece! of! education.! You! have! to! understand! religions! to! understand! people.h! However,! he! admitted! that! he! himself!would!probably!need!to!take!the!class,!so!he! could! learn! more.! Throughout! his! years! in! education,! Mr.! Tucker! has! been! known! to! expand! beyond! the! role! of! a! headmaster! and! teach! classes!
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on! modern! American! presidents! and! would! ! enjoy! sharing! that! experience! with! the! BGA! community,!as!well.! Asked! to! describe! his! goals! for! his! time! at! BGA! in! a! sentence,! Mr.! Tucker! frowned! upon! the! limitation! but! explained! his! views! on! the! year! without! hesitation.! Observing! that! the! student! body! overall! demands! very! little! control,! he! said! his! hopes! were! hto! make!us!more!student&centered,h!putting!his! trust! in! the! student! body! to! make! his! venture! worth! it.! In! his! 46th! year! in! education! and! 27th! year! as! a! head,!he! has! a! clear!sense!of!the!wisdom!he!wants!to!impart! to! high! school! students:! hNever! discount! what! you! can! be,! what! you! can! do.h! Mr.! Tucker!added!that!he,!like!all!of!us,!has!been! prone! to! underestimating! himself,! but! explained! that! hsomewhere! along! the! line,! I! quit!selling! myself!short.h! He! encourages! us! to!try!and!understand!ourselves!and!then!do! the!same.! At! the! final! question,! however&&Greers! vs.! Platos&&Mr.! Tucker! could! only! shake! his! head.!He!explained,!hI!donjt!know!if!I!have!a! place,! I! know! nothing.! I! just! stand! around! and! nod,! waiting! for! someone! to! help! me! here,! throw! me! a! lifeline.h! However,! the! Friday! after! the! interview,! he! was! inducted! as! a! Plato,! bringing! one! more! eager! competitor! into! the! games.! And! knowing! Mr.! Tucker,! he! will! be! joining! in! wholeheartedly.! Special$ thanks$ to$ Mr.$ Randy$ Tucker$ and$ Mrs.$ Libby$Middleton$for$coordinating$the$interview.!
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!The$Echo$
!!!!!!!!!2013&14! !
Issue!1!
Meet%Mrs.%Jennifer%Weir,%US%French%Teacher% By:!Audrey!Collins! Mme! Weir! is! one! of! the! many! new! teachers! we!now!have!at!BGA.!She!teaches!both!French! I! and! II! and! is! now! in! charge! of! the! French! club! (along! with! Dr.! Headrick).! She! loves! the! French! language! simply! because! it! is! another! way! to! meet! and! connect! with! different! people! from! different! cultures;! and! growing! up! in! the! small! town! of! Poplarville,! Mississippi! and! then! graduating! from! the! University! of! Southern! Mississippi,! the! need! to!branch!out!and!see!life!outside!of!her!small! town!came!naturally.!So,!she!became!a!French! teacher! in! order! to! give! others! the! ability! to! connect!with!other!people!around!the!world.!! The! first! time! she! explored! and! went! abroad! was!when!she!stayed!in! France! for!a! summer! history! program! through! her! university.! ! In! the! south! of! France! she! studied! theatre! and! then!in!the!center!of!France!she!taught.!In!her! interview,! she! recounted! her! not&so&lucky! chance! to! move! along! the! Spanish! border! for! her! studies,! which! happened! to! be! down! the! street! from! a! recent! serial! killer.! ! Naturally,! she!was!apprehensive!about!the!possibility!of! having!an!unpleasant!encounter!with!her!new! neighbor.! ! The! unique! situation! made! for! quite!the!interesting!culture!shock!!! Although!she!has!been!to!Paris!and!other!big,! well! known! cities! in! France,! her! favorite! of! them!all!is!a!small!town!called!Pontlevoy.!She! describes! it! as! very! peaceful! with! local! vineyards,! cobble&stone! streets,! and! having! the! most! welcoming! people.! Even! though! Pontlevoy! can! be! reduced! to! where! she!
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worked! and! taught,! but! it! reminded! her! of! home! with! its! resemblance! to! Poplarville,! Mississippi.! ! Despite! the! language! differences,!a!small!town!thousands!of!miles! away!in!France!became!her!second!home.!!! Recently,!Mme.!Weir,!her!husband,!and!two! cats! moved! to! our! small! town! of! Franklin,! Pellentesque:! Tennessee.!Interestingly!enough,!her!mother! is! from! Australia,! while! her! father! is! from! the! southern! state! of! Mississippi.! Her! hobbies! include! reading,! cooking,! and! gardening.! ! As! she! described,! her! hobbies! are! “very! stereotypical! teacher&y! things! to! do,”! but! she! still! finds! joy! in! them.! Despite! being!a!newcomer,!she!describes! her!love!of! BGA!as!being!the!product!of!everyone!being! so! warm! and! welcoming.! She! “goes! home! every! day! with! a! smile! on! her! face,”! definitely!planning!to!teach!here!for!a!while.!! ! Welcome!to!the!Academy,!Mme.!Weir!!!
Consectetuer:!
Sed!venenatis,!augue!non! varius!tempus,!metus! nibh!mollis!erat,!a! tempus!neque!ipsum!sit! amet!nisi.!Donec!
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!!The$Echo$
!!!!!!2013&14! !
Issue!1!
BGA%Cheer:%%Hard%Work%and%a%Little%Pep% By:!Miller!Fahey! ! As!many!of!you!may!know,!our!football!team!works!hard! to! practice! every! day! after! school,! and! has! been! pretty! successful! so! far.! Another! team! that! receives! arguably! less!recognition!than!deserved!and!also!spends!countless! hours!practicing!for!those!Friday!night!games!is!the!cheer! squad.! Football! season! also! means! football! cheerleading! season,!and!these!girls!work!hard!at!practice!so!that!they! can!be!prepared!for!the!games!with!all!the!proper!dances! and!stunts.! The!BGA!football! cheerleaders! are! dedicated! and! enthusiastic! about! supporting! our! Wildcat! football! team.! On!Friday! September! 6th,! after! the! Wildcats!won! their! game! 35&14! against! Goodpasture,! I! had! the! opportunity!to!talk!with!a!few!of!the! cheerleaders! about! the! responsibilities! and! expectations! of! their! sport.! Juniors! Rebecca! Herman! and! Kiana! Janbakhsh,! and! senior! captain! Caroline! Marshall! shared! their! opinions! and! expressed! their! love! of! cheerleading! to! me! after! the! big!win.!A!shared!favorite!by!all!three!cheerleaders!is!the! run! through! the! banner! at! the! beginning! of! each! home! football!game!when!students!line!up!on!either!side!of!the! cheerleaders!to!watch!the!Wildcats!take!the!field.!Rebecca! Herman!said!that!as!an!upperclassman,!she!is!relied!on!to! teach! the! cheers! to! the! younger! girls! and! mentor! them! throughout!the!season.!Neither!Kiana!nor!Rebecca!denied! that!they!get!nervous!to!cheer!in!front!of!all!the!fans,!but! said!that!overcoming!their!fears!to!do!the!sport!they!love! is!definitely!worth!it.!!! After! talking! to! senior! Caroline! Marshall,! who! has! cheered! for! four! years! now,! I! learned! even! more! about! the! hard! work! and! time! that! goes! into! having! a! successful!squad.!!She!said,!“it!takes!forty&five!minutes!to! an!hour!to! learn![a!dance],!depending! on!the!difficulty.”! Cheers! can! usually! be! learned! in! ten! to! fifteen! minutes.! The! dances! that! are! performed! by! the! cheerleaders! are! choreographed! mainly!by! their! new! dance! coach,! Coach! Megan,!but!Caroline!said!that!she!and!Lauren!Allen,!her! co&captain,!like!to!add!in!their!own!moves!as!well.!There! is! no! doubt! that! Caroline! contributes! experience! and! cheerleading! knowledge! to! the! squad,! but! she! also! displays!leadership!skills!and!helps!the!squad!to!work!as! a!cohesive!unit.!! This! squad,! while! talented,! would! not! be! where!
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they!are!today!without!the!guidance!and!coaching!of! Coach!Kennedy,!who!has!been!the!head!cheerleading! coach!for!four!years!now.!Coach!Kennedy!cheered!in! middle! school! and! her! two! best! friends! were! cheerleaders! in! high! school,! and! so! she! was! around! cheerleading! and! sports! all! through! high! school.! Talking! with! her,! I! gained! insight! into! her! job! and! what! it! really! takes! to! make! a! cheer! squad! run.! She! said!her!favorite!part!about!her!job!is!when!the!girls! pull! off! a! stunt! after! hours! of! hard! work.! !She! also! mentioned! that! she! loves! “seeing! their! faces! when! they! realize! they! did! a! great! job! in! a! performance.”! Coach!Kennedy!expressed!to!me!that!the!cheer!team! is!like!a! family,! and!even! with! the!stresses! of! school! and!everyday!life,!the!girls!always!give!their!best!and! continue!to! remain! positive,!which!is! all!she!can!ask! for.!!! Cheerleaders! certainly! add! an! air! of! positivity! at! football! games! and! make! them! more! enjoyable,!especially!when!performing!cheers!such!as! “B&A&double&T&L&E”! and! “jump,! shake! your! booty.”!Both! the! cheerleaders! and! football! players! work!hard!all!week!to!prepare!for!those!Friday!night! lights! and! deserve! praise! and! attention! for! their! dedication!to!their!sports.!!! Pictured!left:!In!front! –!Kelsey!Bramlett! and!Faith!Cleveland! Stunting!Group!–! Caroline!Marshall,! Emily!Becker,! Lindsay!Brown,! Sydney,!Thompson,! Rebecca!Herman!!
Photos!by:! Sarah!Butler! Pictured!Right:! Olivia!Criswell,! Kylie!Crawford,! Rebecca!Herman,! Lauren!Allen,!Kiana! Janbakhsh,! Samantha!McCaleb,! Lexi!Pulliam!
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!The$Echo$
Issue!1,!September!2013!
BGA!Cross!Country!Team!Starts!Season!Well! By:!Jacklyn!Abernathy! Since! early! July,! the! BGA! cross! country! team!has!been!running!through!heat,!mud,!and! humidity!alike.!The!team!was!joined!by!several! first! year! runners! to! fill! out! the! girls’! varsity! team! for! the! first! time! in! several! years! and! to! make! a! talented! boys! roster.! Several! first! year! runners! show! exceptional! promise,! including! senior!Fin!Sarratt,!who!was!chosen!as!one!of!the! Moodyjs!Tires!Athletes!of!the!Week!for!Sept.!9th! after! running! a! fast! 19:17! to! finish! 12th! his! first! 5K.! In! the! first! major! race! of! the! season,! the! Tennessee! Classic! on! September! 21st! at! the! difficult! Steeplechase! course,! both! teams!
performed! well! despite! a! rain! delay! and! the! absence! of! several! top! varsity! runners.! Sophomore! Matthew! Minor! led! the! boys! team! with! an! individual! top! 40! finish! against! teams! such! as!Baylor,!USN,!Father!Ryan,!and!Ensworth.! Junior! Brenna! Kirkpatrick! finished! in! the! top!30!of! 233! against! similar!competition!in! the!girls!race.! The! team! will! soon! be! tested! with! more! races! at! Steeplechase! (9/28,! 10/24,! and! 11/2)! as! well! as! at! Harlinsdale! (10/8! and! 10/15).! Several!individuals!and!the!team!as!a!whole! have! a!strong!chance!to!do!well!at!the!state! meet!this!year!as!they!face!a!new!and!more!
Profiles!of!Five!“Best&Value”!Southern!Public!Universities! By:!Jacklyn!Abernathy! Coming!out!of!undergrad!with!little!to!no! student!debt!is!a!main!goal,!for!both!graduating! college!students!and!for!students!looking!to!go! on!to!the!graduate!level.!This!leads!many! students!to!look!at!“best&value”!schools!in! addition!to!“best”!schools.!While!Tennessee!has! several!excellent!public!school!options!which!are! available!quite!inexpensively,!some!students! desire!to!leave!the!state!while!staying!in!the! South.!Below!are!the!profiles!of!five!Southern! universities!of!various!sizes!and!costs!which!will! not!ensue!bankruptcy,!but!also!offer!excellent! academics,!and!a!variety!of!majors!in!a!public! university!setting.! ! !
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*!North!Carolina!State!University!(Raleigh,!NC):! Acceptance!Rate:!50%;!Estimated!out&of&state,!on& campus!tuition:!$!32,974;!Student:!faculty!ratio!18:1;! 24,833!undergrads! *!James!Madison!University!(Harrisonburg,!VA):! Acceptance!Rate:!64%;!Estimated!out&of&state,!on& campus!tuition:!$37,199;!Student:!faculty!ratio!16:1;! 18,107!undergrads! *!University!of!South!Florida!(Tampa,!FL):! Acceptance!Rate:!43%;!Estimated!out&of&state,!on& campus!tuition:!$!31,674;!Student:!faculty!ratio!27:1;! 30,289!undergrads! *!Lander!University!(Greenwood,!SC):!Acceptance! Rate:!42%;!Estimated!out&of&state,!on&campus!tuition:! $!30,761;!Student:!faculty!ratio!16:1;!2,969!undergrads! *!Western!Carolina!University!(Cullowhee,!NC):! Acceptance!Rate:!38%;!Estimated!out&of&state,!on& campus!tuition:!$26,253;!Student:!faculty!ratio!15:1;! 7,979!undergrads!
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!!The$Echo$
!!!!!!2013&14! !
Issue!1!
Community!Service!–!Part!of!the!BGA!Experience! By:!Chad!Bramlett! ! At! Battle! Ground! Academy,! community! service! plays! a! crucial! part! in! preserving! tradition! and! honoring! the! school’s! most! valued! morals.! According! to! Keli! Kennedy,! the! Director! of! Community! Service! at! BGA,! “teaching! students! to! give! time! to! what! matters”! is! the! main! objective! in! this! tradition.! Not! only! does! Battle! Ground! Academy!honor!the!tradition!of!serving!others!in!its! community,! the! school! helps! to! shape! student! morals! and! standards,! as! well! as! honoring! those! who!go!above!and!beyond!to!help!their!community.! In! the! words! of! The! Upper! School,! “the! Upper! School! service! initiative! will! impart! the! skills! necessary!to!develop!long!term!service!relationships! and! the! opportunity! to! realize! the! benefits! of! such! relationships,! so! that! a! student’s! service! could! continue!after!graduation!from!BGA.”!! ! With! this! purpose! statement! in! mind,! BGA! puts! into! play! a! requirement! of! service! hours! for! each! grade,! holding! students! accountable! for! helping! their! community.! The! minimum! for! each! grade! is! twenty! hours! of! service! given! to! reputable! organizations! (although! certain! fulfillments! vary! grade! to!grade).! As!a!freshman,! one! must!complete! his! or! her! twenty! service! hours! in! organizations! affiliated! with! or! without! BGA.! As! a! sophomore,! one! must! acquire! ten! concentrated! service! hours! from! an! organization! and! acquire! another! ten! service!hours!from!any! organization.!As!a!junior!or! senior,! students! must! follow! the! requirements! of! sophomores,! but! may! change! their! specific! organization! to! another! organization! approved! by! the!school.!In!order!to!gain!credit!for!the!hours!they!
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served,! they! must! fill! out! a! community! service! evaluation! form.! Students! who! go! well! above! the! minimum! receive! awards! honoring! their! excellence! and! exemplary! character.! If! students! fail! to! complete! hours,! graduation! from! Battle! Ground!Academy!may!not!be!possible.!! ! After! attending! all! four! years! of! high! school! at! BGA,! all! students! will! have! at! least! eighty! service! hours! and! many! will! have! acquired! well! over! one&hundred.! With! these! hours! of! community! service! under! their! belts,! many! students! will! have! attained! an! idea! of! what!they!love!doing!and!how!they!may!be!able! to! incorporate! their! passion! into! serving! their! community.! With! these! opportunities,! students! can! explore! different! projects! and! even! career! options.! Also,! the! extensive! community! service! that! BGA! requires! attracts! many! colleges! and! universities,! making! college! acceptance! much! easier.! With! the! ability! to! see! that! a! community! can!always!use!help,!BGA!students!can!work!to! better!their!community,!as!well!as!themselves.!! ! With! so! many! options! and! ways! to! help! in! the! community! around! Battle! Ground! Academy,! it! is! not! hard! to! get! involved! in! projects!and!organizations.!With!the!leadership,! friendship,! and! other! values! that! community! service! supports,!students! are!able! to!find! ways! to! become! better! and! find! ways! to! help! those! around! them.! Through! community! service,! Battle!Ground!Academy!is!able!to!build!on!those! key!standards!of!character!and!excellence.! !
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!The$Echo$
!!!!!!!!!2013&14! !
Issue!1!
Editor’s!Thoughts:!Confronting!Racism!in!Schools! By:!Erinie!Yousief! Minority students continue to be disproportionally impacted by the educational landscape of America. To graduate, these students must study the lives and works of white authors, white kings, white poets, white artists, white philosophers, and white scientists—and at the same time, gaze silently on as the immense legacies of Africa, Asia, and pre-colonized America are condensed into a small bundle of note-cards. Equally frustrating for minority students, however, is the impact misrepresentation has on their white counterparts. Though few privileged children actively delve into the darker shades of offensive tendencies, they, at the very least, continue to benefit from it—and (as a result of having an overwhelmingly white-washed education) they are oftentimes unaware of these benefits and are subsequently unaware of how to approach historically oppressed minorities. For instance, two Grit Days ago, a group of young boys came dressed with shirts thoughtlessly wrapped around their heads, carrying a Moroccan flag. When Mr. McElroy asked them what, exactly, they were, they answered in unintelligible shouts, beating their chests and jumping in a blatantly primitive manner. The assembly eventually gathered that they were “Arabs.” Though the Middle East is essentially the birthplace of civilization, these students still felt that it was accurate to portray the culture in a primitive light. Not only did they have the audacity to dress as a race not their own, they went as far as to purposefully play into the culture’s stereotypes; stereotypes that have, for decades, been the source of discord, distrust, and destruction. More saddening than this grotesque display of ignorance, however, is the reward granted to them by the school; indeed, though the white boys dressed as “Arabs” severely lacked a sense of tact and style, they were somehow among the winners for the best dressed. A similar incident occurred last Jamboree Day when another group of students again took a religiously significant aspect of an oppressed minority’s culture and exhibited it in a cold, childish costume. Rather than “turbans,” however, this group opted to mimic Native American headdresses; they wore “feathers” made out of construction paper.
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Regardless of intentions, it is wrong for the privileged to do “impressions” of the underprivileged; these impersonations rudely echo the centuries of tyranny imposed on minorities and these costumes mock the religious features of diverse cultures. They ultimately prove that many children of European descent have a fleeting fascination with the “otherness” of non-white customs…but are not interested enough to actually see past the allure and study the history. To combat these offenses, schools must enforce guidelines of political correctness; whenever students are out of line (by imitating racial stereotypes, for example) schools should certainly not approve and reward the students—they should rebuke them. It is not a question of freedom of expression; it is a question of freedom from oppression. Moreover, classrooms throughout America must nourish their curriculum with a healthier outlook on diverse religions, customs, diets, literatures, and history. And although the nation has a long way to go before it achieves this feat, here, at the Academy, progress is in the making: in my experience, Ms. Handelsman and Mr. Medlin’s English courses do well in introducing nonwhite characters and authors, exposing the classroom to new dimensions of perspective and ultimately assuaging the potential damage of having a totally white-washed reading list; Mr. Blair’s AP course spends well over two weeks analyzing the Civil Rights movement, and Dr. Fulwider’s World History class places a significant emphasis on history of Islam, each greatly helping to bring down the overtones of ignorance in our society; and Dr. Headrick’s AP French class has wholesome discussions of French colonialism in North Africa and its subsequent effects; the list goes on. Though the U.S. currently has a non-white president and a significant number of laws supporting non-whites, bigotry continues to exist—and it all begins in the classroom. Thus, it is imperative that schools confront racism head-on, and to not stay silent when acts that stem from prejudice occur. After all, the ultimate goal of education is to teach: and there is no better or more important lesson to give than that of acceptance.
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!!The$Echo$
!!!!!!2013&14! !
Issue!1!
How!to!Survive!a!Long!Distance!Relationship!–!With!School! By:!Madeline!MacArthur! Every!day!at!5:00!A.M.,!my!alarm!goes!off,!telling! me!to!get!out!of!bed.!By!6:00!A.!M.,!I!leave!the!house! and!head!to!school—I!could!leave!later,!but!that! would!run!the!risk!of!traffic.!My!early!departure! subsequently!leads!to!my!early!arrival;!I!usually! grace!the!halls!of!the!Academy!no!later!than!7:00! A.M.! Living an hour’s drive away is hard, but it can be done. One must first accept, though, that two hours of each day will be spent on the road. And if an accident takes place, another half hour of that beautiful day could be swallowed. When such a delay occurs, I recommend turning on some good music, relaxing, and—if someone else is in the car—studying. Furthermore, one must also accept the idea of losing sleep. For me, a good day consists of six (or seven) hours of sleep and a normal day consists of five. After-school activities have become a struggle; though I would like to
be more involved, it is sometimes just not possible. I suggest that once the pressure to attend practice, complete homework, and find sleep become too much, one finds a friend’s house to crash at. It is better to sleep on an uncomfortable floor than be on the road putting one’s self and others in danger. Sadly, the biggest struggle is hanging out with friends. Sometimes I physically cannot hang out due to sleep deprivation or not wanting to drive an hour to a friend’s house, hang out for an hour, and drive an hour back home. It is therefore essential that one makes the most of one’s time at school: take advantage of lunch, break, and study hall to relax and chat with friends. It is hard living far away, but the situation could be worse. The only way to get through the drive is to find someone to carpool with, find good music, and stay awake.
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Changes!in!Policies!This!Year! By: Hersheyth Aggarwal Since Dr. Griffith left BGA last year, the school has been scrambling to find candidates to take his place. Until such a candidate is found, however, an interim head is needed to keep things running. Fortunately, BGA was able to find a suitable one in Mr. Randy Tucker. Mr. Tucker, will thus, temporarily, assume the role of headmaster. Since he will stay for only a year, he faces no real danger of being fired as a result of extreme policy changes. And lot of change has come over BGA. One of the biggest transformations has occurred inside the classroom itself. Now, regular classes are only allowed 30 minutes of homework per night, honors classes only 45 minutes, and AP classes are only granted an hour. Personally, I like this a lot since it gives me more free time to develop my other interests. Also, this will encourage people to take harder classes since they will not have to worry about getting swamped with a lot of homework. However, this comes at a price. Especially in AP classes, it may become more difficult to finish the course in time before the AP exam. Also, if it becomes easier to maintain a higher GPA at BGA with less
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homework, in the long run BGA will be less accredited in the eyes of colleges. Testing procedures have also changed. Previously, teachers could have tests on any given day. However, this created a lot of conflict with the rule that no student is allowed to have more than three tests per day. Therefore, each day of the week has a particular subject assigned to it. For example, math day is Monday. Teachers can only have tests on the corresponding days. While this solves the issues regarding number of tests on a given day, it creates a new issue. Tests now do not directly correspond to the material. Since a teacher can only give a test on a particular day, that creates the potential to have a week’s worth of extra material to test on because a teacher is not going to stop teaching days before the test. Although this extra material will not show up on the test, it can be confusing to not have a test based on what was recently learned in class. Looking past these minor setbacks, however, I believe the system is ultimately beneficial; it is modeled very similarly to how a college operates and BGA is a college preparatory school, after all.
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