Issue 8: May 29. 2020 by The Campanile

PALO ALTO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT PALO ALTO HIGH SCHOOL 50 EMBARCADERO RD. PALO ALTO, CA 94301

Friday May 29, 2020

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PAI D PALO ALTO PERMIT #44

INSIDE the edition

News. . . . . . . . . . A1-A3 Opinion. . . . . . . . A4-A5 Science & Tech. . A6-A7 Editorials. . . . . . . . . . . A8 Lifestyle. . . . . . . . B1-B6 The Woj Way. . . . B4-B5 Sports. . . . . . . . . . . B7-B8 Senior Section. . . . C1-C8

www.thecampanile.org

Palo Alto High School, 50 Embarcadero Road, Palo Alto, CA 94301

Vol. CII, No. 10

Graduation changes

FRIDA RIVERA/THE CAMPANILE

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Creative outlets

VIVIAN YANG/USED WITH PERMISSION

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Esther Wojcicki

PHOTO FROM ESTHER WOJCICKI

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D Letter from the 2020 Editors-in-Chief: The Worldwide Whirlwind

A Preface to the Senior Issue

COVID-19 has altered the way our community, and the world, receives news. Art By Miranda Li

uring the final hours of production, there’s an inherent, invigorating energy which emanates from the Media Arts Center lab that the five of us have come to cherish. Two months ago, as we all celebrated yet another successful issue, none of us could have imagined it would be the last time we would get to feel the visceral excitement of the staff during the last stretch of the cycle. As editors, we stepped into our positions ready for the challenges of running a high school paper, yet we couldn’t have been less prepared for the most eminent news story in the world. Instead, we joined the universal confusion as a sudden stillness enveloped cities throughout the nation, Palo Alto included. Stores were shut down, bedrooms became classrooms and events were canceled. But through this abrupt, almost dystopian shift, there’s a sense of gratitude present in our community for being fortunate to have largely evaded the worst effects of COVID-19. Santa Clara County’s quick implementation of safety measures such as the shelter-in-place, resulted in a remarkably low risk for our county compared to other regions. COVID-19 has altered the way our community, and the world, receives news. Now, more than ever, journalists have the responsibility to inform their readers of how the world is changing around them. The shelter-in-place order has made readers more dependent on local news sources, as most have a limited perspective of the world from the confines of their own home. The Campanile staff has full-heartedly embraced this responsibility, working to report on breaking developments within the district and our community. Many people have been affected by the spread of the novel coronavirus, and we know there are people who have much larger issues than running a student newspaper. Still we feel grateful to be able to continue doing what we love and producing content however we can. Since the start of quarantine, The Campanile has adapted to working remotely as we move class from MAC 103 to our homes. For the past two cycles, our staff have pushed out dozens of stories online, some decked with infographics and others formatted as engaging Adobe Spark pages. And we have shared these stories with you, our readers, through social media. We came into our role seeking to improve our online and multimedia presence, but we never thought it would happen as a result of a pandemic.

Top 20 Moments

KIMI LILLIOS/USED WITH PERMISSION

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For this last cycle, however, we wanted to create a special, physical issue mailed to everyone’s homes. This issue contains a Senior Section, which spans pages C1 to C8, dedicated to celebrating the Class of 2020, who have had their final year of high school abruptly cut short. While we cannot compensate seniors for a missed Prom, graduation or any other end-of-theschool-year traditions, we hope to commemorate our class through content including satiric columns, stories submitted by the seniors and a recalling of the top 20 moments from our past four years at Paly. Our last cycle isn’t how we imagined it. Knowing we will not be able to enjoy the electric atmosphere of the production process with the wonderful people who make our publication the community that it is. We will forever cherish our late nights together: infectious music thrumming through the lab, high-stakes tournaments of spikeball in the MAC, frenzied Peet’s runs, caffeine-fueled speed editing and, of course, publication-wide TikTok dances. And most of all, we are eternally grateful for the gift that Palo Alto high school journalism has brought into our lives — an eclectic mix of ideas, perspectives and people. We have experienced the joy of coming together in a community all passionate towards one cause: producing the highest quality paper we can for our students and community. We have learned the impact of student voices in sharing our stories and influencing our school or city and experienced true love and passion for not only writing about ideas but also bringing them to life. Despite our newfound challenge of not being able to collaborate face to face or enjoy each other’s company in our beloved classroom, we have found new ways to connect with our staff and the community. We are thankful for all of our teachers’ diligent work towards transitioning to online learning and adapting to a rapidly changing and unprecedented situation, as well as campus and district administrators who worked alongside parents to brainstorm viable alternatives to celebrate the Class of 2020 when it became clear that our traditional graduation ceremony would likely not occur in June. Finally, we are filled with gratitude for everything we’ve already been lucky enough to experience: our last sunny Campanile Quad day, a publication-wide beach outing or simply the joy of working alongside our dedicated staff to successfully complete seven print issues. Though we are saddened to miss being able to see our new Editorial Board carry on the passion of Campy for our last cycle in person, we know our publication is in committed, capable hands. So as you flip through our final issue, we hope to offer you a brief respite from these uncertain times to reminisce about the past while looking into the future as we celebrate the class of 2020. Sincerely, Annie Chen, Frida Rivera, Jaures Yip, Lucy Nemerov & Miranda Li

Editors’ note: The Campanile is working with Second Harvest Food Bank of Silicon Valley to aid community members who have been affected by COVID-19. Many families, particularly low-income households who live paycheck-to-paycheck, are now facing uncertainty as their incomes are being halted and savings are being depleted. SHFB will provide meals to help alleviate the rising food insecurity in our area. If you would like to help those in need during these times, please spread the word and visit fundraise.shfb.org/goto/thecampanile to donate.

Friday, May 29, 2020

The Campanile

Palo Alto Unified proposes summer school plans for next year Don Austin, school board explore alternate plans to reopen school as well as allowing students to continue summer courses By Valerie Chu Board Correspondent

uring the virtual school board meeting held on May 26, district officials covered proposed reopening plans and statistics on schoolwork among other items. In the meeting, Associate Superintendent Sharon Ofek presented her draft of logistics for reopening schools. Her slides covered six parts: instruction, technology, operations, wellness, facilities and governance, with students and their wellbeing as the main focus of all planning. “(We put) the students at the center of all of our conversations, all of our decision making, and figuring out what is best for our students,” Ofek said.

“We want to have a balanced approach to teaching and learning, so in a blended hybrid model, there’s faceto-face time and then there’s independent learning time.” Sharon Ofek

The planning covered three situations in the fall: schools reopening in full distance learning mode, schools reopening in a blended or modified in-person format or schools reopening with no restrictions. However, Ofek said the

first survey. “Somewhere, kind of that three hours or less a day is starting to win the day.”

possibility of reopening with no restrictions is almost certainly not going to be the chosen situation given the guidelines from public health authorities. For now, Ofek said the district is focusing on drafting options for blended and online distance learning.

“About a quarter or so of our families are indicating right now that they would like to come back for an online or distance learning program only and that is not atypical.”

“We want to have a balanced approach to teaching and learning.” Sharon Ofek

“We want to have a balanced approach to teaching and learning, so in a blended hybrid model, there’s face-to-face time and then there’s independent learning time,” Ofek said. Whether online, blended or in person, the district has planned on giving letter grades and taking attendance, actions that reflect a typical school environment. “We have a lot of more experience now than we did 10 weeks ago,” Ofek said. “We want to leverage that and provide some student engagement and access to rigorous learning.” The slides also presented a new in-progress draft of a fall school schedule representing the blended reopening option if public health regulations will allow it. In the proposed secondary school schedule, half the student population would be on campus on Mondays and Tuesdays while the other half would be working from home in a digital learning environment. On Wednesdays, all students would work independently, tutorial and office

Don Austin

SLOAN WUTTKE/THE CAMPANILE

Saved by the bell! Associate Superintendent Sharon Ofek presents a draft of a proposed blended schedule for secondary schools for next year. “We would have a prescribed schedule,” Ofek said. hours would be held and teacher collaboration and staff meetings would occur in the afternoon. On Thursdays and Fridays, the students attending school would reverse, and follow the same schedule as the students who physically attended on Mondays and Tuesdays. The elementary school schedule has yet to be determined. “We would have some really good professional learning and development around what blended pedagogy looks like and much more routine expectation of what students should be doing on their days on campus as well as their days off,” Ofek said. As of now, teacher rotation, school schedules, student learning groups, custodial protocols, bus protocols, class sizes and the decision of whether or not to continue to have an open campus are still being developed.

“To quote Dr. Austin from earlier around what (school in the fall) could look like, ‘this is by no means the final schedule,’” Ofek said. “(The presentation) represents a framework for reopening schools in the coming fall and the work in this presentation and that information included in our more details guiding document represent a true cross departmental effort to… determine what each of the constantly changing elements are that we need to figure out as we prepare to open up for the new school year during a tremendous amount of uncertainty.” Superintendent Don Austin also presented several slides summarizing statistics collected from a survey given to families that evaluated parents’ thoughts on their child’s homework time and thoughts on learning in the fall. “(There’s a) pretty nice break-

out of school participation by level, so we’re excited about that,” Austin said.

“(We put) the students at the center of all our conversations, all of our decision making, and figuring out what is best for our students.” Sharon Ofek

The survey received more than 3000 responses. We asked ‘how much time is your child spending right now on all the schoolwork?’” Austin said, referencing the contents of the

The results of the first two surveys showed that more than 50% of families had students spending three hours or less on all school work, and more than 50% of families thought that the amount of work their kids received was just about right. The third survey asked families whether they would prefer online distance learning or socially distanced in-person learning in the fall. “About a quarter or so of our families are indicating right now that they would like to come back for an online or distance learning program only, and that is not atypical,” Austin said. The district is still considering their next steps and looking at data collected from the family surveys and the public as well as county public health guidelines in their planning for the fall. Austin said, “It looks like families want options for an online program and we have to communicate it.”

District reconsiders credit grading Alternate graduation plans to come

Administrators explain what new rubric system will entail Administrators discuss senior graduation plans for this year

BENJAMIN STEIN/THE CAMPANILE ART BY BENJAMIN STEIN

By Valerie Chu

Board Correspondent

ollowing progress report submissions on May 6, Principal Adam Paulson asked teachers to reconsider giving a “No Credit” grade to students. In late March, Superintendent Don Austin announced that all PAUSD secondary students would transition to credit/no credit grading for their second semester classes. As a result, all progress reports submitted by teachers contained no letter grades. Instead students earned “Credit” or “No Credit” based on whether they completed their Required Online Learning Experiences.

“We are dealing with unprecedented circumstances that will have unknown impacts on people, so ratcheting down the pressure and rigor makes a lot of sense to me.” James Hamilton

In an email sent to all teachers on May 7, Paulson asked teachers to reevaluate any “No Credit” marks. The progress report submission window was consequently reopened and teachers had until noon on May 7 to make any changes from “No Credit” to “Credit” they deemed necessary. The email did not provide

teachers with any strict criteria regarding what “Credit” or “No Credit” looks like. “At this time we are looking for evidence of developing proficiency on the identified essential outcomes rather than behavioral compliance with regard to the completion of all tasks in the weekly ROLEs,” Paulson wrote to teachers in the email. “‘No Credit’ implies that you do not believe that a student is developing proficiency, and have never witnessed in any way that the student is developing proficiency.” According to Physical Education teacher Doyle Knight, his students will receive a “No Credit” if they fail to turn in their ROLEs, but many teachers are making the effort to reach out to students who may be feeling overwhelmed. “We are trying to be equal to all students and take into consideration their situations at home,” Knight said in an email. “So we, the teachers, are basically following up with the students who received a ‘No Credit’ to make sure they are OK and can get the work in.” Paulson said the progress report window was reopened to give teachers a chance to reconsider the credit/no credit distinction. “We saw a disproportionate amount of (No Credit) grades district wide and wanted to make sure we were all aligned around the (Credit/No Credit) rubric and also considering the challenges that many students are having,” Paulson said. Going forward, Paulson said in his email that staff will need to direct most of their attention

to giving more mental, emotional and academic support to students who did not receive credit. Paulson also asked teachers, in his email, to reconsider using “No Credit” entries as a motivator or measure to hold students accountable.

“We saw a disproportionate amount of (no credit) grades district wide and wanted to make sure we were all aligned around the (Credit/No Credit) rubric and also considering the challenges that many students are having.” Adam Paulson

“This approach may be counterproductive and have potentially very negative effects on our students’ self-efficacy as they adjust to this new learning environment,” Paulson wrote. While the guidance center was not involved in the decision to reopen the progress report window, guidance counselor James Hamilton said he supports the current credit/no credit grading system. Hamilton said, “We are dealing with unprecedented circumstances that will have unknown impacts on people, so ratcheting down the pressure and rigor makes a lot of sense to me.”

The school campus sits vacantly as admin continues to plan the graduation for the Class of 2020.

By Emma Todd

Staff Writer

s the end of the digital spring quarter nears, seniors around the country have begun to prepare for their “virtual graduations” which will likely consist of receiving their diplomas via email. However, this will not be the case for Paly and Gunn seniors, as Palo Alto Unified School District has decided that the 2020 graduation ceremony will be held over winter break in December when current seniors are home from college. During an April 27 webinar, Supt. Don Austin said that after reaching out to seniors, the overwhelming response was that they were not interested in a virtual graduation at the end of the year. “We also had some requests from people about doing things like drive-by and drive through ceremonies,” Austin said. “Which were declared unlawful and school districts were told that they cannot proceed in that manner. We have decided with our students that we are going to do a week-long celebration of our senior class, and we are going to have a delayed postponed graduation for some time in December.” Although the date for the December graduation ceremony has not been decided, Austin said holding it over winter break means more students will be able to participate. “It will be at a time when our students are more likely than not back from college,” Austin said. “That is if colleges have students on their campuses in the fall either. These are tough times right now, and it’s a real challenge to know who is or is not going to be on campuses.”

As holding a conventional graduation ceremony is now a logistical impossibility, Principal Adam Paulson is working with other administrators and the Associated Student Body to create alternate celebrations for the senior class.

“It will definitely be something we will have to adjust to, but I am excited at the prospect of getting to see and celebrate with my classmates in person.” Adam Paulson

“We are planning a senior sendoff week that features events chosen by student representatives,” Paulson said. “The student body was very clear that they would rather have the possibility of postponed graduation rather than a virtual online ceremony.” Paulson shows his understanding with the graduating students about not being able to walk across the stage and receive their diploma in person. “I hope that the class of 2020 will take a moment to reflect back and have gratitude about all the wonderful memories and positive moments they experienced during their time at Paly,” Paulson said. “Paly truly is a very special school.” The ASB officers working on these activities, like President Pooja Akella, are planning a special week for the class of 2020 at the end of the school year, in addition to the graduation ceremony in December.

“I think that given the circumstances, having graduation in December is the best option for our class to get the graduation we want and deserve,” Akella said. “It will definitely be something we will have to adjust to, but I am excited at the prospect of getting to see and celebrate with my classmates in-person.” Akella said that she and most of the senior class believe that having graduation in December is better than an online ceremony. “I don’t think a virtual graduation would be personal at all,” Akella said. “Which is why I am super happy that (the administration) and the district listened to the students and postponed in-person graduation. I was also looking forward to a lot of the senior traditions like beach day, no pants day, the paper toss, etc., but our senior class is working super hard to make some of those traditions happen even from home.” The seniors class’s strong opinions of postponing graduation until December is the main reason why it was initially considered, according to Austin. “The students’ survey (responses) really carried a lot of weight,” Austin said. “Once the students said virtual graduations were not attractive, everything started to take shape.” Austin believes that will be the best option for students giving the circumstances of the school’s closure. “There are no great solutions, although I trust the voice of our students,” Austin said. “I can only assure our seniors that everyone involved acknowledges that this is a tough time and they are all committed to providing the best experiences possible.”

Friday, May 29, 2020

The Campanile

Palo Alto faces $38 million revenue deficit, plans on job cuts City Council meets to discuss dwindling tax revenues as a result of COVID-19, will cut 124 jobs in effort to reduce spending By Braden Leung Staff Writer

City Council meeting on May 26 revised many of the budget cuts the City of Palo Alto is facing for its 20202021 fiscal year. These cuts were originally discussed from May 11-13, where the council first determined which city programs they were going to make changes to in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis. “Some departments will be hit harder than others,” Palo Alto Mayor Adrian Fine said. “But there will be changes to almost everything.”

“(Transient Occupancy Tax) is basically a hotel tax. And where hotels used to be 90% full, they are now 10% or less.” Greg Tanaka According to the revised budget report discussed in the May 26 meeting, all the city libraries will now remain open, “neighborhood” libraries to stay open three days a week while “full-service” libraries are open six.

The budget, which originally planned to cut $400,000 from local teen programs will now only cut $200,000. Programs being cut include the Teen Arts Council and Advisory Board as well as MakeX and the Think Fund.

“If we want to cut $40 million (in spending), it means reducing people.” Adrian Fine The fire department will lose five firefighter/EMT positions. On May 4, the Palo Alto Administrative Services staff presented the council with three scenarios for the budget year at a meeting to discuss potential revenue loss due to the effects of COVID-19. The council unanimously approved the most conservative option, estimating the loss in revenue to be around $38.8 million from the general fund. “I think part of the reason we chose the most conservative budget predictions is because we don’t know,” Fine said. “We’ve heard from a lot of big companies that they might not have their employees work until next year. We assume shelter-in-place may not be over until the (end) of the year.”

According to a graph provided by Chief Financial Officer Kiely Nose, two of the revenue bases suffering the most are sales taxes and transient occupancy taxes. “TOT is basically a hotel tax,” City Councilman Greg Tanaka said. “And where hotels used to be 90% full, they are now 10% or less. By my projections, we have a $44 million reserve, but by the end of June we will probably have less than half of that, and by the end of September we could have zero.” Tanaka said he believes part of the reason the projected cuts are so great is because the city staff proposed to raise the budget on April 20. The original projected 2020-2021 fiscal year budget was an increase of 19% from the 2019-2020 fiscal year. Members of the council have not responded to requests for an interview.

“We have more people unemployed than the Great Depression. To raise the budget 20%, what kind of insanity is that?” Greg Tanaka “We have more people unemployed than the Great Depression,”

ART BY BRADEN LEUNG

Tanaka said. “To raise the budget 20%, what kind of insanity is that?” As a result of the revenue loss, the city has made several job cuts. According to Fine, the city will cut 91 full-time jobs and 33 part-time jobs. City Manager Ed Shikada said he will take a 20% salary cut

this year and asked 235 other managers to take a 15% cut. “This crisis is unprecedented, especially for local governments,” Fine said. “Palo Alto as a city employs 1100 people, (including) fire(fighters), police (and) people fixing potholes and making bike bridges.

All of those services are provided by people, and reducing revenue is reducing people.” Instead of the City Finance Committee, who regularly reviews budgets, the full city council will review the final budget after it is decided on June 22.

Students have mixed College Board, ACT reschedule June exams opinions on ROLEs Several schools change admissions policies after COVID -19 cancels in-person tests Distance learning gets criticism, praise By Ajay Venkatraman Online Editor

aly’s shift in implementing distance learning has received both praise and criticism from students and teachers regarding the self-paced, asynchronous learning systems. Required Online Learning Experiences have provided students with online learning opportunities since April in lieu of face-to-face instruction caused by the spread of COVID-19. The current ROLE system designates three hours of work each week per course to each student. Self-paced learning is new to many students, especially for core classes. Some students, like sophomore Rowan Nag, said they feel that the new system allows for less stress and improved learning. Those who feel that they are benefiting from ROLEs attribute its success to the added freedom and flexibility students have with their learning. “Time management is very flexible; I can choose to do 100% of one class in a day, or spread it out during the week,” Nag said. “It’s also easy for me to choose to spend more or less time on school each day.” In addition, the ability to complete course work at any time during the week has allowed students like senior Benjamin Kong to better utilize time outside of school. “I am less stressed and have more opportunity to learn at my own pace, while having a lot more time to work out, cook and eat better, play, talk with family and friends, learn about or experience things I’ve wanted to for a long time and just overall focus on bettering myself for a bit,” Kong said.

“Time management is very flexible; I can choose to do 100% of one class in a day, or spread it out during the week. It’s also easy for me to choose to spend more or less time on school each day.” Rowan Nag Paly Chemistry teacher Aparna Sankararaman stated that the extra flexibility has allowed for easier communication between students, teachers, and parents. “I’m constantly in front of my laptop,” Sankararaman said. “People get my undivided attention, and I’m always available during my office hours.” Additionally, according to Paly Music teacher Gregory Miller, distance learning helps allow stu-

dents more opportunities to build certain strengths. “Having band online provides an opportunity to gain new skills,” Miller said. Students are getting more of a chance to practice and learn on their own. However, remote learning poses challenges that were not present during physical school interactions. According to sophomore Matthew Cao, the increased necessity of self-discipline in regards to work and time management is a new difficulty.

“In an in-person class, rather than students just passively listen to us tell them about (class material), you might have a more lively discussion. That element is missing.” Aparna Sankararaman “It’s been really tough getting myself to focus and actually get work done,” Cao said. “When I do, though, it is very satisfying to learn independently and at my own pace. (There is also) a great lack of guidance and checks on student learning progress.” Teachers have also experienced difficulties with ROLEs. Both Sankararaman and Miller cited a lack of interactivity in classes as problems with online learning. “[ROLEs] cover a lot of the content we think is essential, but this doesn’t hold a candle to in-person lessons,” Sankararaman said. “In an in-person class, rather students just passively listen to us telling them about [class material], you might have a more lively discussion. That element is missing. I think of that as valuable to a lot of students.” According to Miller, this problem is especially prominent in courses such as Band and Orchestra. “Band is not really band without other people,” Miller said. “Music is almost always a two way street since you’re constantly adapting to what’s around you. [ROLEs] make that difficult.” ROLEs are currently planned to extend throughout the rest of the 2019-20 school year, according to a statement released by Supt. Don Austin on April 1. The response to this year’s online learning system could be used to develop a similar option for housebound students in future years. “There are more opportunities with areas we haven’t explored,” Miller said. “We can build in more interactive material in the future.”

ALBERTO G./CC BY 2.0

Good luck! A student fills out a SAT scan-tron. Several SAT test dates have been cancelled. “It (is) hard not to worry,” junior Eve DeGeronimo said.

By Will Thomas

Business Manager

he College Board announced that it canceled the June 6 SAT in a statement sent to registered students and their families. This announcement comes after the cancellation of both the March and May tests, meaning no tests will be administered during spring 2020. “We’ll ensure that students have opportunities to take the SAT to make up for this spring’s lost administrations,” the College Board said in its statement. “If it’s safe from a public health standpoint, we’ll provide weekend SAT administrations every month through the end of the calendar year, beginning in August. This includes a new administration in September, in addition to the previously scheduled tests.” The new test is scheduled for Sept. 26. If schools remain closed in the fall, College Board announced it will host a digital SAT students can take at home, similar to the administration of its Advanced Placement tests this month.

“If tests can only be offered virtually in the summer and fall and students don’t have a quiet place at home to take the test they this puts them at an unfair disadvantage.” Barbra Rosenstein American College Testing has rescheduled their nation-wide ACT test to July 19. The cancellations have caused

unease for several students who say they spent a lot of time preparing to take tests on certain dates, including junior Eve DeGeronimo.

“Even though some colleges I am applying to may not require them, I’ve worked hard on the ACT and if I get a score I am proud of, I would want to show that off.” Corinne Burns “The whole situation was quite stressful because I didn’t know when I was going to be able to take the SAT when I found out the date was canceled,” DeGeronimo said. “It was hard to not worry about not being able to take it before applying to colleges.” Many universities have responded to lack of testing opportunities by dropping testing requirements on applications for 2021 freshman admissions. Among them are the nine campuses in the University of California system, as well as the 23 California State Universities. The CSUs will be test-blind, meaning there will be no place to submit test scores on their application. For the UCs, applicants will still have the option to include their scores. In an official announcement detailing the temporary UC admission requirements, UC president Janet Napolitano said,“The COVID-19 outbreak is a disaster of historic proportions disrupting every aspect of our lives, including education for high school stu-

dents, among others. The University’s flexibility at this crucial time will ensure prospective students aiming for UC get a full and fair shot — no matter their current challenges.” Barbra Rosenstein, an independent educational consultant and founder of Clear Colleges Choices, praised the fairness of removing testing requirements. “If tests can only be offered virtually in the summer/fall and students don’t have a quiet place at home to take a test then this puts them at an unfair disadvantage,” Rosenstein said. “Most importantly, this is such a stressful time for everyone. If a student can have one less thing on their plate to worry about that would be a gift.” According to Sandra Cernobori of the College and Career Center, it is unclear exactly what kind of role test scores will play if a student decides to send them to a test optional school.

“I understand that it can be anxiety-producing, but there are lots of kids at Paly who haven’t tested as well as nationwide and internationally, so you’re not alone and colleges get that.” Sandra Cernobori “I have needed to do research and ask a lot of questions, including writing to UC before they put out announcements,” Cernobori said. “The most important thing I have had to do is to reassure students that they are not the only

ones in this situation. I understand that it can be anxiety producing, but there are lots of kids at Paly who haven’t tested as well as nationwide and internationally, so you’re not alone and colleges get that.”

“The whole situation was quite stressful because I didn’t know when I was going to be able to take the SAT when I found out the date was cancelled. It was hard to not worry about not being able to take it before applying to colleges.” Eve DeGeronimo Cernobori expressed concern over how admissions would work if only some students were able to take standardized tests. “It’s not apples-to-apples,” Cernobori said. “If some Paly students have test scores and some don’t, it’s not a great situation.” Many students remain eager to test, hoping to strengthen their applications, including junior Corinne Burns. “Even though some colleges I am applying to may not require them, I’ve worked hard on the ACT and if I get score I am proud of, I would want to show that off,” Burns said. DeGeronimo said she feels the same way. “I still plan to take the SAT when I am able,” DeGeronimo said. “I think it might be important to have a score regardless of the requirements.”

Friday, May 29, 2020

The Campanile

Moderate and progressive Democrats should increase odds, unite By Neil Kapoor

Senior Staff Writer

f you ask most Democratic voters what matters to them come November, they’ll probably answer in two words: “Beat Trump.” That may be easier said than done. While Democratic Party heavyweights and former rivals — including our own senator, Kamala Harris — are coalescing around a resurgent former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive nominee, divisions within the party must not be overlooked. Consequently, one fact must remain at the core of the Democratic strategy to oust Trump: the moderates cannot win without the progressives, and the progressives cannot win without the moderates. That means both factions of the party must do their part to unite. Start with Biden. He proved on Super Tuesday and subsequent primaries that he can appeal to blacks, whites, women, men, those with and without college educations and even independents and moderate Republicans. And his decisive win in Michigan, a state Hillary Clinton lost to Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, a progressive icon, in the 2016 primary, means he can be a formidable candidate in the swingiest of states. But Biden must do more to unite the party. His efforts to adopt Elizabeth Warren’s proposed bankruptcy and student loan reforms marked a good start, but that didn’t get much media attention. If he picks Kamala Harris as his running mate, that’s good too, but VP picks historically haven’t significantly changed election dynamics. Biden should continue to highlight his experience rebuilding the economy after the last recession, but that might not increase turnout by much.

If you ask most Democratic voters what matters to them come November, they’ll probably answer in two words: “Beat Trump.” In particular, come November, he must explain to the party’s liberal wing, made up largely of younger, first-time voters, why he is their best bet for pushing the progressive policies they overwhelmingly support through Congress. Why must Biden prioritize securing the youth vote? Two reasons. First, because the margins that Trump won key states by in 2016 — namely Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, former

ART BY AVANTIKA SINGH

Democratic strongholds which swung red — were less than the number of Sanders supporters who voted for Trump instead. According to the 2016 Cooperative Congressional Election Survey, 47,000, 116,000 and 51,000 voters in those states, respectively, switched from Sanders to Trump in 2016. Trump won those states by 10,000, 44,000 and 22,000 votes respectively. The silver lining here is not to blame Sanders voters for Clinton’s loss — nearly 80% of them voted for Clinton, and turnout among non-Sanders Democrats was low too. But given the razor-thin margins in battleground states, Biden needs to persuade the 12% who did vote for Trump to vote Biden — all while galvanizing everyone else to turnout in yuge — sorry, large — numbers to boot. Sanders voters should be passionate about seeing progress in society, and while some of those switchover votes could have been due to sexism or “protest votes” against Clinton’s perceived elitism and Wall Street ties, Biden still needs to earn these votes — especially given how Sanders supporters frequently label him as the “status quo candidate,” just as they did to Clinton four years ago. And with Tara Reade’s sexual assault allegations, which could turn off some progressives from embracing Biden, it’s even more important he appeals to progressive issues. That tees up the second reason: while Biden has been in politics for a long time, many of his proposals are not the status quo. He is running a platform far to the left of the 2008 and 2012 Obama campaigns, one that is even more progressive than Clinton’s 2016 platform. He’d immediately be the most liberal Demo-

crat elected president in over 50 years. His willingness to adapt to the party’s left-leaning center is hardly the so-called status quo: expanded health care coverage toward single-payer, doubling the national minimum wage to $15 per hour, bold climate action, a smarter income-linked studentloan repayment scheme, capping drug prices, a path to citizenship for the undocumented, closing long-term capital gains loopholes and higher taxes on corporations and wealthy individuals while not raising middle class taxes, to name a few. Biden has another tactic that can help him: hunkered down in his Delaware home, he can use the structured nature of Covidera Zoom calls with progressive and other party interest groups to emphasize these stances. While Trump energizes his base with rallies, Biden must energize his, at least in part, with Zoom. Without the crazy noise of a normal campaign, his efforts to join forces with them won’t get drowned out or overlooked. Interestingly, most of these proposals would have been considered radical during the Obama or Bill Clinton years. But today, in the event that Democrats win the Senate and keep the House, these bills have a chance of getting through Congress, several with bipartisan support. As leading progressive journalist Jamelle Bouie notes in his March 11 New York Times opinion column, Biden should explain how he would be a more effective vehicle for getting progressive things done than Sanders — Virginia’s newly-Democratic legislature is evidence of this. Like Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam’s moderation in protect-

ing Virginia’s new blue majority — which has passed historic reforms on minimum wage, climate, reproductive rights, and more — Biden’s long history of centrist politics will make it easier for vulnerable swing members in the House to keep their seats and protect a Democratic majority. His name at the top of the ticket significantly increases the chances of winning Senate seats in states like Arizona, Colorado, Maine and perhaps North Carolina and Montana — seats that are necessary even just to begin the consideration process for new progressive proposals. Oh, and then there’s the Supreme Court. Even if progressives doubt Biden’s ability to get things done with a Democratic Senate, the prospect of young, very conservative judges replacing older liberal ones might be compelling enough to vote for Biden over Trump, or sitting out the election in protest. If Biden loses, Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 87, and Stephen Breyer, 81, could be replaced by Trump appointees, and a 7-2 conservative majority could exist for decades. Biden should campaign on this issue just like Trump does. Campaigning on these three core issues will help Biden convince some on-the-fence Sanders supporters and apathetic moderates as well. Sanders said he will support Biden, but Sanders must do more. He should explain to his supporters why Biden can still do many of the things Sanders wants to see done, and that since some progress is better than no progress, the progressive movement has a lot to gain by supporting Biden. It’s hard to predict historical parallels, but consider this one:

Assuming he can help clinch a Democratic Senate given his centrist reputation, Biden could become the instrumental figure in the Democratic Party, similar to Lyndon Johnson during his presidency. Johnson, too, was a longtime senator and former Vice President, a centrist Democrat with a distinguished career. He lacked John Kennedy’s youthful charisma much like Biden lacks Obama’s.

ery time we separate classes based on gender. With a lack of knowledge about each other’s bodies and emotions from the minute we step into preschool, a conversation about consent is less likely to occur between two people. In addition to the division between girls and boys in elementary sexual education classes, there is key information consistently left out as students partake in more mature conversations about sex in middle school,. If you can recall the sexual education you received, you without a doubt were not briefed thoroughly on homosexual sex. About 10% of the population falls under the category of gay or lesbian, and by neglecting to teach all forms of sex equally we alienate those students.

Another monumental mishap in the American sex-ed system is the lack of education on the female orgasm. I remember learning about the male orgasm, and how and why it occurs, yet the female orgasm was presented as a rare anomaly. In a moment of personal reflection after sex-ed, I became aware that I lacked knowledge of this general information about my own body. In a study by The Dutch Review, rape between the ages of 15 to 19 is three times more likely to occur in America than in the Netherlands. Why is this? From the age of four, children in Dutch schools receive One obvious reason for this is the many lessons on consistent compulsory age-

appropriate sexuality education classes students in the Netherlands receive. The main emphasis their sex-ed program has is on building respect for their own and others’ sexuality—meanwhile, in the U.S. we are often told to “not take no for an answer.” To further enhance the statistical divide, sexual education in the Netherlands is required in all schools, whereas in the U.S.,h only 27 states require sexual education and HIV education, according to the Guttmacher Institute. With the lack of universal education, we risk exposing our youth to sexual violence, unintended pregnancy, and sexually transmitted diseases at a much higher rate. In the fight for equality be-

tween women and men, we must break down the system that created the division in the first place.

His willingness to adapt to the party’s left-leaning center is hardly the so-called status quo. Yet Johnson’s ascendance to the presidency unveiled the liberal lion he was underneath the centralist skin he wore for the sake of his career. His decades-long Washington experience meant he hit the ground running on day one as president. Johnson understood the power of persuasion with Republicans and southern Democrats on then “liberal issues” without severely compromising the broader goal. His civil rights and Great Society programs were the biggest progressive shift in a generation, all from a man no one saw as anything more than a centrist. Biden and Sanders would do well to explain the historic opportunity Democrats have in November. They must also acknowledge that democracy is inherently about compromise — that’s how our Constitution was designed. But democracy also only works when you participate, and that means voting even if your preferred candidate isn’t the nominee. Only through party unity can Trump be defeated. And time is running out.

Sexual Education and transparancy in schools ought to be reformed By Krista Robins

Lifestyle Editor

t’s “that time of the month” again, and I find myself fumbling to use a tampon correctly. After talking with my friends about this issue numerous times, I’ve finally come to the conclusion that my body hates me. It wasn’t until my sister presented me with an obvious yet groundbreaking idea that I finally solved my personal puzzle. With her help, I realized the sexual education I’d received had failed me. There are about three key points I can recall from my seventh grade sex-ed class: 1. Sex makes babies; 2. Girls get periods; and 3. Do not have sex until you are 25. My experience with sex education classes makes it overwhelmingly obvious that America has it wrong.

I realized the sexual education I’d received had failed me. In 2017 we saw millions of women come forward with their stories of sexual assault and harassment, all under the twitter hashtag “Me too.” Following the mass movement, Christine Blasey Ford testified in front of Congress on the grounds that the now confirmed Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh had sexually assaulted her in high school. These events triggered a conversation about how we teach consent and sex in schools. The minute we start separating young boys and girls, we perpetuate division and gender differences. From the divided Boy and Girl scouts programs to “puberty” discussions in elementary school, we create a taboo around sex ev-

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About 10% of the population falls under the category of gay or lesbian, and by neglecting to teach all forms of sex equally we alienate those students.

Sexual education is critical for young adults, and such education should be more comprehensive and inclusive. With sexual education reform, a more positive tone of respect will be built, leading to a safer and brighter tomorrow for all.

Friday, May 29, 2020

The Campanile

Colleges ought to allow more deferrals for students By Maya Rathore

Senior Staff Writer

t’s finally happened. All your work — countless hours of extracurriculars, studying, working and grinding on weeknights and weekends — has culminated in this moment. You’ve finally comm i t ted to a four-year university and are now sheltering in place for the remainder of your high school career. Suddenly, in the purgatory that is the time period between committing to a university and graduating from high school, you get an email from your university. Fall 2020 classes will be held online. Or maybe your school is one of the few universities that has already declared fall classes will resume as normal. It’s either online college, which is college without any of the redeeming parts at the same price, or a Frankenstein mix of ‘socially distant’ college on-campus and online school — all for the sake of starting your college education in the fall of 2020. Regardless, you’re dumping tens of thousands of dollars for a sub-par experience. There’s no way to get around it — the class of 2020 has just been dealt a bad hand. That’s why, in the wake of this global pandemic, more public universities should discount tuition for online school, be more flexible with local course options and increase gap year quotas. Even with an in-class ex-

perience, classes at public universities are often similar — if not identical — to the same classes being offered at local community colleges, just with a higher price tag. Why is it that classes at public universities sometimes cost 10 times as much

as the s a m e class at a local community college? And why should that continue if all classes are going to be online anyway? No potential research opportunities, no libraries or on-campus resources, no networking opportunities and no inperson labs or experiences. And what about out-ofstate students who are still being charged out-of-state

tuition for the same online school that in-state students experience? It’s practically highway robbery. The only thing you can get from a public university going online that you can’t get from a local community college going online

campus experience, public universities should cut tuition drastically, partly because of the decreased costs that come with a university going online and partly because of the clear decrease in quality of education the majority o f

students will Y receive. OutTB AR of-state students should not have to pay out-of-state tuition for online school. There’s simply not as much return on the cost of tuition as there was NG EU NL DE A BR

is a brand name. As this pandemic looks poised to deprive students of an on-

before. According to edsource. org, students are suing California universities — private and public alike — to get at least a partial refund for their spring semester. It’s unnecessary for universities to include the costs of certain on-campus resources — such as gyms, libraries and student centers — that are closed for the foreseeable future, in their tuition. And this will continue into the fall semester for a lot of universities. According to University of California Admissions, “tuition and mandatory fees have been set regardless of the method of instruction and will not be refunded in the event instruction occurs remotely for any part of the Academic Year.” Students should be able to defer their admissions until they can reap the benefits of the on-campus resources they will be charged for, or tuition should be cut to reflect the actual cost of online education. While it’s

true that colleges are facing huge budget deficits in the coming school year and need every penny they can get to keep the lights on, it still isn’t fair that colleges are charging students for oncampus opportunities that can’t possibly be accessed

while simultaneously preventing the majority of students from deferring their enrollment so they can use those on-campus resources in the future.

Regardless, you are dumping tens of thousands of dollars for a sub-par experience.

And with unemployment rising to record levels, it’s inevitable that many families will struggle more than ever to fork out tuition. Not only will fewer families be able to pay tuition, many students and families may choose not to pay for a sub-par university experience until life returns to normal, whenever that may be. This is especially true when they can get a head-start on their degree at a much lower cost at local community colleges and then transfer later on. This pandemic is making gap years and community college an even more attractive option to many students, which could be dangero u s f o r universities struggling to stay afloat. Cutting tuition or allowing more gap years still remains a choice in the hands of universities — but if enough people decide not to attend in the fall, they may be forced to make it. With universities bleeding money in a declining economy, they will do anything to stay open in some form or another in the fall semester. The rest of the equation is up to you: are you willing to start your traditional college career during an international pandemic?

College Board should be praised for Advanced Placement exams By Valerie Chu

Staff Writer

he College Board’s decision to make major changes to Advanced Placement testing this year was controversial but an important step in the right direction. This year, exam security, equal access to resources and the time allotted for testing are some of prevalent arguments against holding AP testing. But between the three test options: cancel, postpone or keep going, the College Board chose to adapt this year’s AP tests to fit the conditions the coronavirus required.

As a result, the three major changes to AP testing include moving the test to online, allowing open notes and shortening the test. For their consideration of students, adjustments to the testing situation and valuing fairness, the College Board seems to have done its job as a testing corporation. And for that, they should be commended. After lockdowns to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus first started in mid-March, one of the first updates the College Board sent out to students registered to take an AP exam included explanations for why it would continue to administer tests in May and the options that students had when it came to AP testing. According to the College Board, they surveyed 18,000 AP students and 91% of students still wanted to take their AP exams, which urged them not to cancel them. Collecting the opinions of students and using the results of that survey to make a decision about whether or not to continue administering AP exams was an important step in con-

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sidering student opinions. That decision also paved the way for the implementation of adaptations to the normal AP test. As a result, the three major changes to AP testing include moving the test online, allowing open-notes and shortening the test. The College Board has adapted AP exams so they take only a quarter or less of the normal time. Changing the material so AP exams will test understanding instead of surface-level knowledge of facts learned earlier in the school year is a significant modification. The College Board has said that reasons for shortening the testing window

include the challenges of preventing cheating and creating a good testing environment. All over the internet, people such as college counselors and student YouTubers have criticized the change in comments claiming it is not fair for students’ mental health, international students, or online access for disadvantaged students. However, with the options they had, the College Board picked test alterations with strong reasoning behind them. These solutions have flaws such as essentially doing-over the test, but still allow students to have the opportunity to take AP exams this year.

The College Board has also done well valuing fairness when implementing these alterations. It has taken additional measures to prevent cheating and created methods to help disadvantaged students. It has said that it designed this year’s AP tests with exam security in mind and adapted the tests accordingly. The College Board also put an extra measure in place to ensure fair grading by having every student’s responses sent to their teacher for review. Letting teachers decide whether their students got the score they should have helps ensure any cheating on the part of

students or mistakes made in grading can be reviewed. The College Board has also created a survey for students who currently do not have a device to join a waitlist for receiving a testing device in June for AP makeup exams. Although the survey is already closed, this attempt to make access to testing equitable for all students deserves recognition. While the College Board’s major changes to the AP exams may not be ideal for every student, changing AP tests to fit the less-thanoptimal conditions caused by COVID-19 so students could still take their exams is a win-win. The College

Board still profits from its test and millions of students receive the opportunity to take a test that they have spent months, or even years, studying for.

The next step to a safer community is the application of this knowledge.

Ultimately, while choosing to administer the AP tests in a modified format is not a perfect solution, the College Board went with the option that had the most positive impact on the most people.

The Campanile

Friday, May 29, 2020

The Campanile

Coronavirus disrupts meat industry, lays off factory workers

Animal-based products face shortages as COVID-19 disseminates throughout factories, forcing closures, limitations By Sloan Wuttke News & Opinion Editor

he increase in popularity of plant-based living is only intensifying as COVID-19 concerns surrounding factory operations jeopardize the future of meat processing plants. Tyson Foods, the country’s largest meat processor, has been forced to shutter some of its plants — including its largest pork plant — due to coronavirus cases found within its facilities. Dozens of other processing plants have also closed due to the approximately 5,000 reported cases of COVID-19 and at least 20 reported deaths among meatpacking workers. The nonprofit group Food & Environment Reporting Network has estimated that 17,000 meatpacking workers have been infected with an estimated 66 meatpacking deaths.

“As long as the public is concerned about getting infected, there will be a reduction in food service.” Andrew Novakoic For the remaining operating processing plants, workers have spoken out about fears in the workplace. One anonymous Tyson Foods worker at the Columbus Junction processing plant in Iowa is particularly concerned with how Tyson Foods is detecting workers with COVID-19. “There was a young man that I know was still going to work even though he said he had been sick for two weeks,” the worker said in an interview with Democracy Now!. “I don’t know why Tyson didn’t de-

ART BY SLOAN WUTTKE

tect that we’re not there for them to destroy our lives or our bodies. They need to be more conscious of taking care of people. It is because of us that they are able to do what they do.” In response to these concerns, Tyson said it started addressing COVID-19 concerns in January and says it has implemented measures to protect workers through the installation of workstation dividers and more break-room space. The shuttering of plants and cutdown on operation capacity have caused a surge in demand for meat and, in turn, an inflation in prices. “The supply side worker effect has become a more prominent concern recently,” says Andrew Novakoic, a professor of Agricultural Economics at the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management. “It will be lessened with better testing

and improved worker safety practices, but it doesn’t really go away until we have an effective vaccine.”

“The public around the world is going to be extremely health concious and will take preventative measures . . . to try alternative sources of protein.” Patrick Morris In turn, meat shortages are expected to linger. “As long as the public is concerned about getting infected, there will be reduction in food service, hospitality and travel, which has a potent effect on where, what,

and how much we eat,” Novakoic said. “For some products, the switch to eating at home has been devastating, but for some products it has been a boom.” Meat alternatives have experienced a boom as U.S. sales of plantbased meat substitutes increased 200% in the week ending April 18, compared to the same time period last year, according to The Financial Times. Front-runners like Beyond Meat have reported substantial growth across the board as shares of BYND have increased 85 percent since March 18. “During this unprecedented time, we remain steadfast in our resolve to continue to provide great-tasting plant-based meats to consumers, to solidify our support to our retail and food service customers, and to continue to lead the global plant-based meat movement,” Beyond Meat President

Ethan Brown said in a statement. Novakoic said the recent surge in sales of meat alternatives may correspond to concerns surrounding meat processing facilities. “There are reports of consumers expressing a concern about meat products,” Novakoic said. “Some of this may be due to the recent spike in COVID-19 among workers in meat processing facilities. Some of it may simply be an emboldening of people who were already passionate about animal welfare.” The newfound popularity in meat alternatives may introduce more Americans to plant-based living. Almost 40% of Americans now try to eat more plant-based foods, according to a Nielsen study from 2018. Additionally, conducted studies reinforce the notion that animal products have linkages to higher rates of heart-related diseases and cancer.

Combine that with the ethics surrounding animal welfare and environmental benefits, plant-based living is on track to dominate the meat industry according to a report by AT Kearney. Patrick Morris, the CEO of Eat Beyond Global, a Canadian based Investment Fund for alternative foods, said he is optimistic about the future of plant-based living given the COVID-19 crisis. “The public around the world is going to be extremely health conscious and will take preventative measures and continue to try alternative sources of protein,” Morris said. Alternative meat brand Tofurky’s founder, Seth Tibott, agrees. Tibott said, “I do think with crisis, the deeper the crisis, the deeper the opportunity to change and connect the dots (with the meat industry and its cruelty).”

Local startup companies face challenges in the midst of coronavirus

Palo Alto businesses find new ways to cope with the shut down including layoffs, cutting back on manufacturing By Olivia Ericsson

Staff Writer

t’s been over two months since the Aurora Team began working on a remote basis. The quiet and closed facilities leaves some wondering whether Aurora will be able to continue manufacturing their self-driving cars. However, for the Aurora Team the current situation has additionally demonstrated the need for reliable and safe transportation.

“Our company remains in a solid position with the unwavering support of investors who understand the importance of continuing to make bold, long-term bets.” Andrew Novakoic In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly every aspect of society has been affected, including local startups. Headlines capture the big layoffs at well-known companies like Uber and Lyft, but startups like TripActions, Aurora Innovation and Yellowbrick Data, far from household names, have their own COVID-19 perspectives to share According to Crunchbase News, Palo Alto startup TripActions, which offers management for people with business travel and expenses, has been forced to lay off 27% of its staff due to lack of travel during the pandemic. “This global health crisis is unlike anything we’ve ever seen in our lifetimes, and our hearts go out to everyone impacted around the world, including our own customers, partners, suppliers and employees,” TripActions wrote. “(COVID-19) has had (a) wide-reaching effect on the global economy. Every business has been impacted including TripActions. While we were fortunate to have recently raised funding and secured debt financing, we are taking appropriate steps in our business to ensure we are here for our customers and their travelers long into the future.” To relieve some of the financial stress affecting TripActions, it has begun to take measures on a global scale. “We’ve cut back on all non-es-

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sential spend(ing) and made the very difficult decision to reduce our global workforce in line with the current climate,” TripActions wrote. “We look forward to when the strength of the global economy and business travel inevitably return and we can hire back our colleagues to rejoin us in our mission to make business travel effortless for our customers and users.” Palo Alto startup Aurora Innovation, which specializes in the development of driver-less technology, has started brainstorming new alternatives for their company. In a blog post by Aurora, Chief Executive Officer Chris Urmson wrote that the current situation has demonstrated a need for self-driving transportation that can move people and goods quickly and safely. “Our company remains in a solid position, with the unwavering support of investors who understand the importance of continuing to make bold, long-term bets,” Urmson wrote. “We’re fortunate to be able to employ and pay our existing team members, continue

hiring incredible people in all disciplines and advance development on the Aurora Driver. Through ingenuity, dedication and thoughtful leadership, we’re poised to emerge from this with stronger technology and a more connected team than ever before.” Urmson said that, after the closure of the company’s physical offices, its focus has been on areas where real progress can be made, such as the Aurora Virtual Testing Suite. “Our vehicle operators have joined forces with our triage and labeling teams to mine our massive collection of manual and autonomous driving data for on-road events that can be turned into virtual tests,” Urmson said. “We’re using our Hardware in the Loop pipeline to test new software on Aurora Driver hardware remotely. We continue to build and refine our HD autonomous vehicle map, the Aurora Atlas, in areas where the Aurora Driver will operate when we resume on-road testing.” According to Urmson, in addition to expanding its technolo-

gy in the Aurora Virtual Testing Suite, the business is looking beyond the pandemic and investing in infrastructure to speed up development. “We continue to build new tools, such as a new web application that will make building simulations easier and faster,” Urmson wrote. “We’re also adding enhanced features to our existing tools, many of which will also support the rapid creation of new virtual tests.” Mitigating the pandemic’s implications with an alternative tactic, Palo Alto startup Yellowbrick Data is using its platform to help researchers develop a COVID-19 vaccine. The company, which operates data warehouses, has accelerated its own research and offers free access to its data warehouse for all researchers trying to find a vaccine, Chief Executive Officer Neil Carson said. “We’re proud to offer access to Yellowbrick’s analytics capabilities to researchers who are working tirelessly to make a difference,” Carson said. “We think our inno-

vative technology can give them a powerful boost and help speed the time to insight.”

“By joining the capabilities of Virtusa and Yellowbrick, we can help customers provide real-time ingestion, faster performance and powerful analytics.” Anthony Lange Yellowbrick Data has also recently partnered with Virtusa, located in Fremont, to establish another digital strategy service company to provide access to other platforms with data, including one where companies that are working toward a vaccine can connect data from a broad range of clinical and media sources. Anthony Lange, Senior Vice

President of Virtusa, said the partnership between Virtusa and Yellowbrick is beneficial to researchers who are trying to find data that will further the development of a COVID-19 vaccine. “By joining the capabilities of Virtusa and Yellowbrick, we can help customers provide real-time ingestion, faster performance and powerful analytics,” Lange said. “Synthetic data sets available in vLifeTM significantly accelerate research and clinical trials to reduce the timeline for finding and delivering life saving drug therapies.” Carson said he hopes Virtusa and Yellowbrick’s combined data can help researchers find a vaccine as soon as possible. “We’re pleased to be joined by Virtusa in the effort to support life-saving work,” Carson said. “It’s essential that companies join forces to support COVID-19 research and trials, and we are thrilled to partner and bring together our powerful analytics engine with Virtusa’s vLifeTM platform.”

Friday, May 29, 2020

The Campanile

Teachers should accept more Praise for Santa Clara County's feedback regarding ROLEs quick response to COVID-19

he mayhem brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic has seen students and staff make the transition to distance learning, where Zoom meetings aim to substitute for in-person classes and Schoology assignments compensate for classwork.

64% of students say their teachers have not communicated with them regarding which times work best for Zoom meetings. In this time of confusion and uncertainty, The Campanile urges staff to be open to accepting feedback regarding their workload and Zoom times, and to also be flexible with students in adapting to this unusual situation. A recent survey conducted by The Campanile in which 25 random students from all grade levels participated showed that for more than 95% of students, less than half of their teachers are asking for feedback on their workload and how long Required Online Learning

Experiences are taking to complete. Additionally, 64% of students say their teachers have not communicated with them regarding which times work best for Zoom meetings. This lack of communication has led to less than optimal participation in Zoom meetings and untimely completion of ROLE assignments, as well as many students spending far more or far less time than the designated three hours of ROLE work per class per week that the district recommends. In the same survey, 36% of students said that fewer than half of their teachers are assigning ROLEs that take them three hours to complete. The unprecedented, sudden transition to distance learning has been difficult for both students and staff, but having more frequent and transparent communication between both parties would make ROLEs more effective for all. The Campanile would like to praise teachers who have created brief weekly Google Forms to assess student workload and availability and modified their ROLE structures accordingly. By providing similar avenues to collect anonymous student feedback every week, teachers can adjust their curriculum to meet the threehour requirement and increase

participation in important Zoom meetings. The Campanile suggests these surveys be kept anonymous unless students opt to provide their name — this way, students are able to honestly voice their feedback without fear of upsetting their teachers.

The unprecedented, sudden transition to distance learning has been difficult for both students and staff, but having more frequent and transparent communication between both parties would make ROLEs more effective for all. The Campanile encourages teachers to be more open to receiving feedback concerning their proposed Zoom times and course work, which will ultimately improve the effectiveness of distance learning.

mid the increasing death toll from COVID-19, it might be difficult to recall the time where Santa Clara County was at the epicenter of the novel coronavirus outbreak in the United States. As we continue to live under a shelter-in-place order, it is important to remember that the decisive actions taken by the Santa Clara County Public Health Department in the early stages of the outbreak undoubtedly saved countless lives. When Dr. Sara Cody of the Santa Clara County Public Health Department first announced the shelter-in-place order on March 16, confirmed COVID-19 cases in the county stood at 138 with four deaths. That same day, cases in Westchester County, a suburb of New York City, totalled 220 with no deaths. In the weeks and months following the implementation of this shelter-in-place order, COVID-19 has infected over 1.6 million Americans and found its way into nearly every part of the United States. During this time, the number of confirmed cases in Santa Clara has grown to 2,675 with 141 deaths, but the number of confirmed cases in Westchester has grown to 33,107 with 1,469 deaths.

The remarkable foresight displayed by Santa Clara County and counties around the Bay Area in their implementation of the shelter-in-place order weeks before other parts of the country ensured the Bay Area was one of the least affected urban areas in the nation.

It is important to remember that the decisive actions taken by the Santa Clara County Public Health Department in the early stages of the outbreak undoubtedly saved countless lives. The Campanile applauds the willingness of county officials to go to extreme lengths to protect its citizens and while setting the standards for public health guidelines during a pandemic. Steps taken by Santa Clara County officials to prevent the spread of COVID-19 saved lives

and public health officials around the country should look to Bay Area counties as a model for ways to fight COVID-19 and continue to put the lives of its citizens first.

The Campanile applauds the willingness of county officials to go to extreme lengths to protect its citizens. The Campanile also supports the using scientific data to guide the reopening of our county and hopes officials will exercise the same caution as before when rolling out new measures for reopening. The safety of the public is the number one priority for Santa Clara county, and The Campanile thinks county officials have acted effectively to protect the public in the face of overwhelming adversity. We encourage county officials everywhere in the US to use these actions as a model for how to handle their reaction to the worldwide pandemic.

Lack of clear-cut direction causing too much uncertainty regarding semester grades

hen news broke on March 25 that the Palo Alto Unified School District was implementing a credit/no credit grading system to combat the effects of COVID-19 on distance learning, the decision was immediately met with controversy and confusion. Many students didn’t know how credit/no credit would affect their hard-earned grades, and a general reluctance by the district to fully explain its decision allowed rumors to spread. While The Campanile understands that the district had limited time to formulate its approach to graded, distance-learning, we think district officials and Paly administrators should have better explained the credit/no credit grading system, including how it was selected as a solution and how it affects students.

Many students didn’t know how credit/no credit would affect their hard-earned grades, and a general reluctance by the district to fully explain its decision allowed rumors to spread. In the immediate aftermath of Santa Clara County’s order to close schools, students were able — and encouraged — to continue their learning through

optional Flexible Learning Options assigned by their teachers. Once the decision was made that grades would become credit/no credit FLOs became Required Online Learning Experience.

We would have hoped that the district had had the foresight to create an emergency learning plan that, however basic, could have been used to transition to online learning with a clear and uniform grading policy in the event of an emergency. But, often the first assignments for the graded Required Online Learning Experiences revisited content from the FLOs, putting students who had skipped the optional work behind. The grading for ROLEs is also confusing, as it differs from class to class and even within departments. For example, within the math department, some classes give assignments numerical grades and others use the “proficiency” model. In the first weeks of ROLEs, the grading system was unclear due to the credit/no credit designation. For some classes, students were under the impres-

sion that turning in what would have been C or D level work last semester would be sufficient to pass the current one, while in other classes teachers introduced a tiered credit/no credit system. Class assignments graded out of zero, one or two points, combined with some teachers’ requirement that no assignments could be skipped, created a confusing situation for students with the potential for seven different requirements for seven different classes. While The Campanile recognizes anticipating the pandemic was impossible, it is also true that California is a state with a history of devastating fires, earthquakes and school shootings.

Often the first assignments for the graded Required Online Learning Experiences revisited content from the FLOs, putting students who had skipped the optional work behind. Because of this, we would have hoped that the district had had the foresight to create an emergency learning plan that, however basic, could have been used to transition to online learning with a clear and uniform grading policy in the event of an emergency.

MAY’S TOP TEN LIST Top Ten Reasons For Second Semester Seniors to Come to School 10) Watch Florida be devoured by COVID-19 9) Get to know the FBI agent watching you from your computer 8) Install and learn to play the pipe organ 7) Stare blankly into you computer for 12 hours every day 6) Fight to the death over who gets the last toilet paper roll 5) Enjoy the fact that it is literally not possible to get "No Credit" 4) Hibernate 3) Take a shot (of Gatorade) every time someone on TV touches their face 2) Re-read The Campanile until you pass out (for best results, repeat until quarantine is over) 1) Try to make as many quarantine TikToks as you can

-ALI MINHAS & AJAY VENKATRAMAN

ART BY ADORA ZHENG

Editors-in-Chief Shiva Mohsenian • Kris Risano • Benjamin Stein Andrew Toteda • Adora Zheng Online Editor Ajay Venkatraman

Managing Editors Jace Purcell • Andy Wang

News and Opinion Editors Siddhartha Sahasrabbudhe • Sloan Wuttke

Lifestyle Editors Gianna Brogley • Krista Robins

Science & Tech Editor Austin Xiang

Sports Editors Evelyn Cheng • Ziggy Tummalapalli

Multimedia Editor Gina Bae

Business Managers Will Thomas • Emma Todd

Art & Photo Director Sasha Lehrer

Board Correspondent Valerie Chu

Emily Asher Annie Chen Olivia Ericsson Matthew Ho Neil Kapoor Leila Khan Erin Kim Bruno Klass Paige Knoblock Kaitlyn Lee Braden Leung

Staff Writers

Miranda Li Rebekah Limb Alex Liu Anna Meyer Ali Minhas Sophia Moore Lucy Nemerov Tien Nguyen Sarah O’Riordan Maya Rathore

Frida Rivera Zack Silver Aidan Seto Claire Shimazaki Avantika Singh Kiana Tavakoli Kai Vetteth Parker Wang Bill Xia Johnny Yang Jaures Yip

Photographers & Illustrators Braden Leung • Valerie Chu • Kaitlyn Lee • Gina Bae • Kiana Tavakoli • Gianna Brogley • Avantika Singh • Noa Lehrer • Declan Grecious •Tien Nguyen • Adora Zheng • Lucy Nemerov • Frida Rivera Advisers Writing Coaches Rodney Satterthwaite • Esther Wojcicki Evelyn Richards • Elisabeth Rubinfien Letters to the Editors: Email all letters to editors to theeds21@googlegroups.com The Campanile prints letters on a space-available basis. We reserve the right to edit submissions. The Campanile only prints signed letters. Advertisements: Advertisements with The Campanile are printed with signed contracts. For more information regarding advertisements or

sponsors in The Campanile and their size options and prices, please contact The Campanile Business Managers by email at campanile.ads@gmail.com. Note: It is the policy of The Campanile to refrain from printing articles that misrepresent or alienate specific individuals within the Palo Alto community. The Campanile would like to thank the PTSA for supporting the mailing of our newspaper!

Our Vision Statement: The Campanile has upheld the highest standard of student journalism for the last century by engaging the community through various mediums of storytelling. Our coverage of news, culture and athletics aims to represent the diverse perspectives of our student body.

Friday, May 29, 2020

The Campanile

Keeping Up With

Column: Why school being canceled is actually for the best By Sidd Sahasrabuddhe News & Opinion Editor

the Quaranteens Creative ways students are coping with the quarantine

s the sun peeks through her window blinds, sophomore Hana Krieger groggily gets out of bed and stumbles toward her desk. Facing a day full of isolation, Zoom calls and Schoology assignments, she sets her computer aside and reaches for her makeup palette instead. In the past two months, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to shelter-in-place orders across the U.S., the shutdown of various businesses and public spaces and closed down schools. With the increase in free time and anxiety during these uncertain times, many students have turned to various creative outlets to cope with their quarantine.

Designing a Better Mindset

rom DIY mask-crafters to participants in Billy Porter’s quarantine challenge, fashion has been a common outlet for students, with Krieger being one of Paly’s student fashionistas. Krieger said she relies on her passion for fashion to keep herself entertained and motivated by continuing to assemble and design outfits even while stuck at home. “Usually certain (clothing) pieces inspire me,” Krieger said. “I’ll take that piece and center the entire outfit around it… Having the right accessories, hair, and makeup can really put (an outfit) together. (As for design,) I typically take thrifted clothes that I think could be cute with alterations and cut them up.” Kreiger said dressing up helps her start off her day productively, especially regarding her academics. “I struggle with depression and one of the biggest motivations for me going to school is being able to wear cute outfits,” Krieger said. “It helps me be in a better mindset… (and) my brain associates dressing up with school and productivity.” Krieger said she has also been practicing new makeup looks inspired by social media and the color stories of different eyeshadow palettes. “I love playing with color and creating,” Krieger said. “I’ll either go monochromatic or complementary… I really like editorial makeup but it’s also annoying to do on an everyday basis.” Sophomore Jasmine Kapadia said makeup is a source of motivation for her as well. “I feel like a lot of the time, it’s so easy to get up and fall into the rhythm of watching YouTube all day,” Kapadia said. “So if I take the time out of my day in the morning to go through skincare and do a little bit of makeup, it’s definitely something that can change up (my mindset) and make me feel better and more motivated.”

Bake It ‘Til You Make It

aking’s recent spike in popularity can be shown through the shortage of baking ingredients and Instagram’s #quarantinebaking page of 163,000 posts and counting. With his newfound free time, sophomore Siddhant Amberkar joined in on the trend, teaming up with his parents and sister to try out various recipes. “I’ve always (liked) to bake,

but now I can do it a lot more,” Amberkar said. “I’ve taken up making sourdough bread, which is a pretty big challenge, and baking cakes. We (also) tried making pasta for the first time.” Two other student bakers are freshman Caroline Zhang and junior Edward Zhang. Caroline said she started teaching herself to bake during her quarantine. “I’ve baked cupcakes, I’ve made bread, and I’ve made crepes,” Caroline said. “(For) Mother’s Day, I made my mom a cake; it was really fun. It’s something that I normally wouldn’t have the time to do.” Edward said cooking has helped him develop more patience and contributed to his art as well. “I feel like cooking is the type of thing where you’re never gonna get it the first time,” Edward said. “You have to keep on trying over and over again. Through cooking, I realized that if you take the time to do each step perfectly, stepby-step, the outcome is totally worth all that patience. I think that’s also helped me with my art, since I’ve taken more time to just think about what to draw and what to paint, what message I want in my art… I feel like my art’s been more matured through cooking, in a sense.” Amberkar said his culinary e x perimentation h a s helped h i m relieve stress and bond with his family members. “It makes me feel better to finish making food because you can enjoy it and feel good about yourself,” Amberkar said. “That’s nice, especially without social interaction.”

Couplets, Cameras and Career-Starters

he shelter-in-place order has restricted the limits of photography, forcing Kapadia and Krieger to find creative ways to continue their hobby. “I do portrait photography, but due to social distancing, I can’t do it,” Krieger said. “Yes, there are self-timer shoots, but they aren’t the same. I don’t like taking photos of myself, (and) I’m not able to manipulate the shot… Now I’m becoming an exclusive earring photographer.” Kapadia has turned to more poetry instead. “Because I’m not communicating as much to other people, poetry is another way to express my feelings,” Kapadia said. “Instead of talking to my friends and working directly through that way, it’s just me and a piece of paper, and I’ll work through (my

Text & Art by Gina Bae

feelings) that way.” Kapadia said she combined her passion for poetry and photography with a project in which she projected her poems “mutt” and “damn,” onto herself while her mother took photos of it. She said that her poetry often involves coming to terms with her own ethnicity, which has been particularly relevant recently due to the rise of xenophobia, harassment, and hate crimes towards the Asian community brought by COVID-19. “Being multicultural, my ethnicity is always something that I grappled with,” Kapadia said. “I am Chinese, and it’s interesting reckoning with the fact that there’s a lot of racism going around right now and trying to look at my ethnicity as not a bad thing, trying to find positive things and reassure myself with (them).” She said she started the project after local poetry slams were cancelled. “I’ve always liked to perform my poems to give them another

laye r, ” Kapadia said. “Since I couldn’t do that, I decided to try working them into photos and breathe some new life into them.” Meanwhile, sophomore Colleen Wanwg said she has also been writing during her quarantine, finishing her novella, “Roses Watered by a Robot’s Tears” (now available on Amazon in both physical and digital form). “It’s set in the distant future, where humanity has progressed a lot with AI,” Colleen said. “It’s a story about a robot being allowed to learn feelings and how that affects its life and the lives of people around them.” Colleen said her main inspiration was a presentation she saw during her freshman year, which got her thinking about the future of AI. “Another source of inspiration for me to write the book was the left-behind children in China,” Colleen said. “I was thinking of possible solutions to this problem... AI (and) missing parental guidance (led to a) robot mom idea.”

Local Startups Affected by Pandemic

Small local businesses share their stories on how the COVID-19 pandemic has taken a toll on their business operations, causing budget cuts and shifting businesses' focuses to finding a vaccine for COVID-19. PAGE A7

Painting Positivity

n order to maintain her mental wellbeing and express her emotions about the pandemic, Caroline said she turned to watercolor and digital art. “I’ve been drawing my thoughts and feelings in a log, and I do it every day,” Caroline said. “The hope is that by the end of the quarantine, I can look back at how I felt during this time period.” Caroline said she decided to extend her logging method to others in the form of a website where members of the Paly community can send in their thoughts and feelings regarding their quarantine experience and have their responses displayed on the site. “Through this website, I hope people come together and recognize that we’re in this together,” Caroline said. “There’s a lot of shared feelings throughout the quarantine. A lot of people (shared) that it’s helpful to have this t i m e alone... a n d (that they) have been learni n g n e w hobb i e s and new things. It’s also like a time capsule; after this time period passes, people can go back to the website and see how people thought.” Sun said he picked up graphing calculator art, which helped him handle anxiety regarding his grades and the pandemic. So far, he has drawn art of various fictional characters and popular memes, each drawing taking about ten to 20 minutes to complete. “I was exploring with my graphing calculator during one of my breaks in between my homework sessions and started doodling,” Sun said. “I came up with a drawing and decided to make more. My process… is first getting a reference image and trying to follow the lines to make a pixelated version of the image.” Edward tried sculpting in addition to traditional art, while Colleen and Faustine have stuck to digital art. “It’s my way of relaxing,” Edward said. “I also have a lot more time now so I can focus on creating a portfolio.”

Helping the Community with Creativity

dward and Faustine have taken their interests even further, creating their own organizations to help the community through their art. Edward co-founded the clothing brand CX Apparel with two friends — fellow juniors Joyce Lin and Jeremy Huang — at the beginning of the Santa Clara stay at home order. The brand donates its profits to Palo Alto charities, including the Ecumenical Hunger Program. They’ve donated $100 so far and plan to donate $400-500 after collecting the money from their new hoodie sales. “The base inspiration was basically just coming from two things,” Edward said. “One was being part of (the Youth Community Service Club) and being able to work with EHP, (which made me realize) how important it is for a charity to exist in Palo Alto. The second thing was my friends because they’re very fashionable people, and they were the ones to give me the inspiration to start a clothing brand.” As the creative director of CX Apparel, Edward said he creates the designs and guides the company in terms of their artistic themes. Despite the social isolation, the three juniors have managed to work together from the safety of their own homes. “We FaceTime each other and talk about what’s our next theme for our next release,” Edward said. “Then we pick what (type of ) apparel we want to design ... Based on that, I start drawing designs that surround the theme. We go through each design and pick the ones we like... We (then) pick the colors… and that’s how it goes into our store.” Edward said he has plans for the growth of CX Apparel after quarantine ends. “Hopefully it is going to get bigger, because more people will feel comfortable buying our clothes and we can actually deliver them,” Edward said. “We have a lot of people who’ve bought our T-shirts who are not from Palo Alto, but we can’t deliver to them due to shelter-in-place restrictions. Once this whole thing is over, we’ll be able to actually make it bigger and donate to all over the Bay Area.” In late April, Faustine and BASIS Independent Silicon Valley senior Sasha Afroz co-founded Artruism, an initiative of student artists who are trading their art to raise money for those who are in need. “We have decided that we’re going to have a different (organization) for each month,” Faustine said. “For May, we’re donating to the National Domestic Workers Alliance, because due to the quarantine, a lot of domestic service workers are being laid off, and they don’t have a source of income. ” To support Artruism, people can donate to their chosen organization, send the proof of the donation through Artruism’s Google form and commission the artists for various types of artwork depending on the amount they donated. Artists can also join their team and help draw the commissions in exchange for volunteer hours. They’ve raised $250 out of their $1000 goal so far. “I think it’s great to know that through different ways we can help out during quarantine, even with art,” Faustine said. “Just

Design by Avantika Singh, Braden Leung & Erin Kim

SCIENCE & TECH

PEXELS / MENTATDGT

She said she plans to pursue a career as an author. “This is just the beginning,” she said. “I’m really excited to write more and probably bring it to actual printing publishers.”

Lifestyle

Spread

PEXELS / ANDREA PIACQUADIO

COVID-19 overwhelms juniors How the college admission process has changed during the pandemic. PAGE B3

Sports

THE CAMPANILE

Woj Commemoration

Reflecting on Woj and her time at The Campanile and Paly. PAGE B4-B5

s students recover from incompetently administered Advanced Placement exams and face a never-ending stream of Schoology messages, they continue feeling the effects of the deadly coronavirus from home. While school being canceled has led to unfortunate circumstances, there are some reasons why the cancelation of school is a positive. For months, the class of 2020 has complained about its senior plans being scuttled. Their anger is certainly justified. In a timespan of a few weeks, this year's senior class lost traditional events like graduation, Ditch Day and Baccalaureate (twice). While the class of 2020’s anger is justifiable, for juniors, sophomores and freshmen, never seeing the class of 2020 at Paly again is a blessing in disguise. In fact, who is to say seniors losing their much-anticipated events isn’t some warped form of karmic justice? In the past four years, the class of 2020 has shattered boundaries. They've thrown water balloons during Spirit Week, frozen eggs, christened themselves with laughable gang names and embarrassed themselves at sports games. And those are just the things that the class of 2020 can take credit for. During the current seniors’ time at Paly, we’ve had a handful of principals resign, a student activities director abdicate his position, multiple First Amendment scandals, a bell schedule kerfuffle, multiple Spirit Week fiascos, a hazardous air controversy and the current COVID debacle. I’m not saying that correlation is causation (Mr. Nguyen would yell at me if I did), but the last four years have been an eventful time in Paly’s history. While my fellow students and I will obviously miss the class of 2020, when faced with the prospect of never going to school with them again, we can’t help but say “good riddance.” This time of the year is generally marked by students preparing for finals and stress levels skyrocketing. This year? With Supt. Don Austin using his emergency powers to transition all Palo Alto Unified School District secondary schools to pass/fail grading, stress districtwide has dropped and Palo Alto City libraries have closed. Credit/No Credit classes allow time to pursue other, more worthwhile activities such as getting a healthy amount of sleep and having fun on school days. While the transition to Ridiculous Over-the-top Learning Experiences is filled with negatives, such as teachers exceeding their given mandate to assign three hours of work per week, Credit/ No Credit grading stands out as a highlight in an otherwise bleak time. At the end of the day, the best part about school being canceled, and the reason it was canceled in the first place, is safety. As our parents have been telling us, we are living in unprecedented times. As our teachers have been telling us, we are living in unprecedented times. As the President Dr. Fauci has been telling us, we are living in unprecedented times. As PAUSD refused to tell us for days, we are living in unprecedented times. Wow. You would think they’d have come up with a different adjective by now. Still, we live in turbulent, dangerous, confusing, scary and unpredictable times. School cancelation has let PAUSD students stay safe and they have been able to continue their education in some capacity through well-meaning but ultimately ineffective and pointless ROLEs.

UNSPLASH/ HOWARD CHAI

Michael Jordan

How ESPN's "The Last Dance" has changed student views on the player. PAGE B8

Friday, May 29, 2020

The Campanile

Animal Crossing gains worldwide popularity during quarantine Latest released Nintendo Switch online game, New Horizons, attracts interest of teenagers By Parker Wang

Staff Writer

ophomore Tyler Wang has escaped from the physical and mental constraints of the shelter-in place order, and has flown to a far-away island with his basic necessities. He lands and walks out of the island airport, immediately knowing that he is on his favorite island: one that specializes in fish and where more expensive fish can spawn. “I spent 30 minutes trying to catch rarer fish to get the most money out of the island as I could,” Wang said.“Towards the point that I was going to finish up and head home, I had caught a blue marlin and a tuna, which are some of the rarest fish you could catch that month, meaning I could get a much better profit just by finding those two fish.”

“I have been playing more Animal Crossing and other games because of the increase in free time.” Tyler Wang In reality, though, Wang isn’t really on an island and he hasn’t become an expert fisherman. He has, however, been playing Nintendo’s Animal Crossing New Horizons to occupy his time during the school shut down caused by COVID-19. With the current shelter-inplace order, many Paly students’ gaming habits are changing. “Before the quarantine, I had

only played it every so often, since I had been more preoccupied with school and athletics or other games,” Wang said. “I have been playing more Animal Crossing and other games because of the increase in free time.” Sophomore Clea Kuo plays New Horizons to keep in touch with her friends and to strengthen her relationship with her sister. “After the shelter in place and the cancelation of school, my schedule was more flexible and I was assigned less schoolwork, meaning that I could afford to dedicate lots of time to Animal Crossing,” Kuo said. Animal Crossing games date back to 2001, when the first installment of the series was released on the Nintendo 64. Released on the Nintendo Switch several weeks before the shelter-in-place order began, the latest and most popular Animal Crossing installment is New Horizons. According to SuperData Research, Nintendo has sold more than five million digital units in the first month of New Horizons’ release, which approximately matches the first-month digital sales of Super Smash Bros Ultimate and Pokémon Sword and Shield, two of Nintendo’s most popular games, combined. Many people see New Horizons as a unique virtual world to escape to, where fantasy and creativity come into play in designing and expanding the village. “The game’s graphics have definitely gotten much better over the times, and also I think that New Horizons is a very unique game among the Animal Crossing series because of islands,” Wang said. Being a seasoned Animal

ETHAN WANG/USED WITH PERMISSION

Whale, whale, whale ... what do we have here? Sophomore Tyler Wang, a fin-tastic fisherman in New Horizons, has caught over 50 different types and varieties of fish. Wang says, “Fishing has always been a fun part of New Horizons and continues to make the game more fun.” Crossing player, Wang said he has played Wild World, a previous installment of the series, since seventh grade. Wang says the basic mechanics of the game, including crafting and increased character customization, are new features of the latest release. Other New Horizons users like sophomore Crystal Xin say they enjoy the mechanics of the game such as terraforming, a tool that can alter the terrain of their island and customize their furniture. Terraforming allows users to paint paths for their vil-

lagers to walk on and to break down cliffs to create waterfalls, making every Animal Crossing user’s island look more distinctive and less like a deserted island. Xin said she enjoys watering and planting flowers on her island to make it look pretty. Terraforming is one of her favorite features, though. “Terraforming is really tedious and more exhausting than you’d expect from a game,” Xin said. “However, at the end, terraforming is really rewarding and the effort is worth it.”

Customization is a secondary method of decorating islands that has a much more peaceful and relaxing experience. “I like the idea of being able to customize and create your own towns from scratch, and I like the fun of being able to create your own towns and designing them however you want,” Wang said. In addition, due to the popularity of New Horizons, those who do not want to pay $300 for the Nintendo Switch, the platform New Horizons is played on, are playing more Pocket Camp, a mobile Animal Crossing game.

With the Nintendo Switch nearly sold out everywhere, people are finding it nearly impossible to purchase one. Many students continue to see the free time quarantine has opened up as a way to relieve academic pressure and to stay connected to the community. “It’s a great stress reliever to come back to after I’ve finished all my assignments,” Kuo said. “I’ve been playing more games since the shelter in place because they’re a good way to escape some of the stress in the media while connecting with my friends online.”

Mental health remains crucial during quarantine Students use Twitch for social connection By Claire Shimazaki

Staff Writer

uman beings are designed to thrive off of social activity; what happens when we are ordered to isolate ourselves from each other for months on end? A six foot gap and conversations from behind masks aren’t ideal for mingling with friends, after all. As social distancing persists and the uncertainty of returning to normal life lingers, some find themselves feeling the toll that sheltering-in-place has taken on their mental health. Mary Brayton, a Californiabased psychotherapist, said that humans have been social beings from birth. “From the very beginning of our first cells, we were born out of a relationship. We are social animals with needs to be held, fed, calmed, mirrored and loved,” Brayton said. “One of the extraordinary effects of the pandemic is although we are social animals, we are required to shelter in place.” Of each of the age groups, one of those experiencing the most distress seem to be teenagers. Although teenagers are much less susceptible to the virus’s fatal symptoms, many whose biggest concerns were Friday math tests and what to wear to school the next day are now living through a pandemic that will someday be immortalized within high school textbooks. This lockdown has caused many teens to miss out on some of the most glorified events of their youth, including prom and graduation. With feelings of anxiety and confusion resulting from these stolen memories, some students say their mental health has suffered, even within the safety and comfort of their own homes. “Personally, my mental health has gotten worse because usually I begin to feel sad or lonely when I don’t have activities to take up my time, so I’m alone with my thoughts,” freshman Kylie Tzeng said. “I think in general, teenagers were really excited at first because there’s no school, but over time we have realized how important it is (for social interaction). There is just so much free time now that I don’t know what to do with (it).” Tzeng is not alone. The Disaster Stress Helpline, A federal crisis hotline, reported an 891% increase in calls for support in March of 2020. Paly guidance counselor Whitney Aquino said that the emotional effects of lockdown vary from person to person. “In general, this experience can bring up a lot of emotions in folks, such as frustration, loneli-

By Bill Xia

GIANNA BROGLEY/THE CAMPANILE

ness and anger,” Aquino said. “It manifests in anxiety and depression. Everyone reacts differently. It’s tough for high schoolers in that during this time of life, (because) being social and connected is really important to them,” Brayton agrees with Aquino, and explained how lockdown goes against our human drive to be social.

“A lot of people are finding that they enjoy the opportunity to slow down and stop and smell the roses.” Whitney Aquino “Long-term isolation isn’t natural for us social beings,” Brayton said. “Effects are different for each person, from feeling anxious to depressed. If our basic needs are being threatened such as not having money for rent or food or car payments, this is downright scary. The effects of isolation can be quite troubling.” According to Sophomore class president Matthew SignorelloKatz, his everyday life has been changed beyond recognition. “Everything is changing, and (our disrupted) routine is having a negative effect (on us),” Signorello-Katz said. “For me, that has been very difficult –– Facetiming and texting simply aren’t the same. For a lot of students at Paly, it has had a negative mental health effect due to lack of social contact as well as school events being thrown out the door.” Signorello-Katzsaid different age groups seem to have different concerns about the lockdown. “Juniors are probably relying upon this semester academic-wise to improve their GPAs, so I think that is definitely a possible stress-

or,” he said. “For sophomores and freshman, I find that the main stressor is not having in-person interaction.” Junior Tanya Guzman explained how the pandemic affected the class of 2021. “The uncertainty and disorganization of the College Board is affecting juniors a lot,” Guzman said. “I don’t even know if I’m taking the SAT, which got cancelled around the time that lockdown first started. I think that it’s unfair for colleges to expect us to pick up a new talent during a global pandemic and turn this into another situation to compare students. It’s really frustrating that everyone’s plans and training for the SATs are getting messed up by this.” As for her mental health, Guzman said her’s has seen a decline since lockdown was implemented. “My mental health has definitely gotten worse,” Guzman said. “I don’t really want to talk to friends on the phone for more than 20 minutes or so or I start to get annoyed at them. I’ve been distancing myself because I feel like talking to friends is just a distraction from the pandemic. Social media is super toxic right now because it’s really time consuming and bad for body image. Quarantine just feels like an endless cycle of doing nothing.” Other students, like sophomore Jordan-Elijah Fakatou, say they are trying to reap the benefits of sheltering in place and use the alone time for some personal growth. “I think my mental health has gotten better,” Fakatou said. “I’ve had more time to reflect on myself and figure out how to be a better person. The world moves so fast, (and) in quarantine it’s nice to have a break from that.” Brayton said there are several ways to maintain your mental health despite the lack of routine and troubling times.

“What all the experts say to do is think out of the box, exercise, maintain virtual contact and remain positive with a notation each day of what you have that you are grateful for,” Brayton said. Aquino points out that there are bright spots in the world despite the chaos. “A lot of people are finding that they enjoy the opportunity to slow down and stop and smell the roses,” Aquino said. “We’re all experiencing this together, the whole world, and that’s something that’s connecting us.” During times where everything is focused on our physical health and wellbeing, it is important to give your mental health your attention as well. . “There’s no one size fits all answer, but I’ve been trying to keep a positive mindset,” SignorelloKatz said. This is only temporary. We will get through this.” Where to go if you need help: 1-800-273-8255- National Suicide Prevention Hotline Schedule a virtual appointment with the Paly Wellness Center How to Take Care of Your Mental Health in Quarantine 1. Find new ways to connect with others while staying safe. 2. Sign up to take an online class in something totally new. 3. Write; keep a journal of your daily life. 4. Get in touch with old friends. 5. Set small goals for each day. Keep structure! 6. Exercise.

Staff Writer

very day, sophomore Raj Bapat uses Twitch, a popular video live streaming service, to stay connected with his friends, most of whom he’s never physically met. Bapat said using the platform provides him with a break from the monotonous quarantine life. With the country shut down due to COVID-19 pandemic, many young people are hopping on their Xboxes, PS4s or computers to play video games to stay virtually connected with their friends. According to the Business Insider, the number of streamers and viewers on Twitch, a popular game streaming platform, spiked from about 1.1 million viewers before quarantine to 2.5 million in early May.

“I enjoy the gameplay, and sometimes I play with the streamers” Raj Bapat While many gamers join streams to watch the gameplay, sophomore Max Vroemen said he enjoys watching streams for their social aspects. Isolated from the outside world, students like Vroemen have turned to technology as a way to socialize, using Twitch to help connect with each other. Vroemen said he often hops on streams to talk with friends or make new ones and said he is using Twitch about three hours per day during the quarantine. “I prefer Twitch over YouTube because I can chat with my friends and the streamer,” Vroemen said. Vroemen said he also likes that Twitch viewers can ask the streamer to play different game modes or use different weapons to increase viewer engagement.

“We have this small community of regular viewers . . . I’ve become friends with many other viewers.” Max Vroemen “Viewers who watch for long periods can also acquire points

that can be redeemed to, for example, force the streamer to complete certain challenges like using a bad weapon.

“A few other friends and I go on the same stream, and we joke around and have fun with the streamer for a couple of hours.” Max Vroemen “We have this small community of regular viewers,” Vroemen said. “I’ve become friends with many other viewers.” The tight-knit community created with Twitch is a big reason why many viewers hop on day after day for hours, according to Vroemen. “A few other friends and I go on the same stream, and we joke around and have fun with the streamer for a couple of hours,” Vroemen says. Other viewers, however, just want to see the gameplay. Hidden under his online alias, Bapat said he also watches streams on Twitch. “I enjoy the gameplay and sometimes I play with the streamers,” Bapat says.

“Stream sniping is really fun because I get to actually be on people’s stream and play with the streamer.” Raj Bapat Using Twitch, some viewers occasionally stream snipe or attempt to join the same match as the streamer. Some stream snipers intend to target or ruin the streamers match while others have no ill intent. “Stream sniping is really fun because I get to actually be on people’s stream and play with the streamer,” Bapat says. Twitch has seen rampant growth over the quarantine, as it offers a platform for friends and strangers to connect. The community fostered within Twitch has provided an outlet for people trapped in their homes to congregate and discuss interests in the gaming world.

Friday, May 29, 2020

The Campanile

Stress stemming from COVID-19 overwhelms juniors Changes in standardized testing, GPA, college admissions worry students

Column: Dear Diary

By Avantika Singh

Staff Writer

ight before school closed down, junior Ellie Wong said she felt a cloud of stress looming over the students as they walked through the huddled outdoor hallways. Even during quarantine as she takes a seat to join her next Zoom class, Wong said she can feel this same sentiment of unmentioned stress penetrating through her computer screen. According to Wong, the college admissions process has become even more confusing now than it was before, creating new stress levels for students. “The college admissions process was a toss-up before, and it’s even more of one now,” Wong said. With changes in the school’s grading system, the way Advanced Placement tests are administered and the cancellation of college tours and standardized testing, COVID-19 has added to the uncertainty of the college process, increasing juniors’ stress. Junior Mia Baldonado said she came face-to-face with these struggles when her college tours were canceled. “When shutdowns started, I had just begun looking at colleges that were of interest to me,” Baldonado said. “During President’s Day weekend, I had looked at a few West Coast colleges, and was planning on visiting schools on the East Coast during spring break.” Unable to tour colleges, juniors like Wong, who is trying to decide whether she would thrive in the suburbs or a rural environment, say they are feeling confused. “I was one of those students planning to visit colleges,” Wong said. “Obviously, the notion of demonstrated interest in college admissions will have to be redefined. Virtual tours are still available, but it’s not the same. I will likely have to reach out to alumni or current students at the schools I am interested in to gain insight into the campus culture.”

“I’m glad that grading has shifted to this system as it levels the playing field for students.” Mia Baldonado In addition to these changes, many juniors are also feeling anxious over Palo Alto Unified School District’s decision to transition to a credit-based grading system. However, both Baldonado and Wong said they were quick

SASHA LEHRER/THE CAMPANILE

By Sasha Lehrer

NOAH BALDONADO/USED WITH PERMISSION

Ah! Junior Mia Baldonado said she feels stressed out by the changes of the Advanced Placement Exams. The new exam format does not include multiple choice sections and has been revised to a 45 minute exam.“I am concerned,” Baldonado said. “A lot of sections I am better at have been cut.” to realize that credit grading is a feasible method, despite originally feeling frustrated that their hard work during the third quarter would not count toward much. “It’s a little disappointing that I won’t get recognized for my third-quarter efforts, (but) I’m glad that grading has shifted to this system as it levels the playing field for students with different at-home situations,” Baldonado said. According to Baldonado, the current switch to credit grading will motivate her to work even harder senior year for her grades to make up for the absence of letter grades this semester. And the changes in the upcoming AP exams only adds to Baldonado and Wong’s anxiety and confusion. “In AP Spanish, they have removed the reading and listening comprehension sections and writing sections, leaving only two short spoken tests,” Baldonado said. “Since I’m not a native speaker, my weakest point is speaking, so I’m really worried about how that will play out because before, my other sections would have compensated for the speaking section.” For Wong, the root for her uneasiness regarding AP tests has to do with less clarity about how the tests will work since this is a special circumstance. “I do not know what to expect for these APs, whether to be relieved or worried,” Wong said. Wong said the scariest part of the exam is that she can spend her time frantically preparing for the tests by studying in-depth material learned all year, yet only one 45-minute

question will determine whether or not students receive credit. “I think that all scores in general from this year have to be taken with a grain of salt by college admissions committees,” Wong said. While it’s no surprise that colleges have been discussing contingency plans for the fall 2020 semester, many students fear schools being closed for the rest of the 2020 year due to COVID-19. This possibility, coupled with current frustration from college students still expected to pay full tuition for a virtual education, might cause more graduating seniors to take a gap year. “Because more of the kids from high school class of 2020 will be deferring their admission to next year, there may be drastically fewer spots available at schools for prospective applicants from the class of 2021,” Wong said. Though, according to Baldonado, not all novel COVID19-related changes have caused more stress. Most colleges have gone testoptional, which is a relief for juniors who had not taken SATs and ACTs before COVID-19. “I honestly do not mind that some schools aren’t considering these scores because the SATs and ACTs put so much pressure and stress on students anyways,” she said. Wong agrees. “I hope this affects change in the college admissions process as a whole because maybe they will realize that standardized tests actually do not reflect a person’s smartness and only measure one specific kind of intelligence,”

Wong said. Juniors are constantly thinking about what’s in store for them after high school, forcing most to push themselves to limits, hoping to get into their respective dream colleges. “I still feel like everyone — especially juniors — thinks about college a lot, including whether or not we get in, what we can do to give ourselves a leg up, and a lot of the time we tie our happiness and value to this blatantly random game called college admissions,” Wong said. “I try to separate myself from this, but it’s very hard.” Palo Alto, infamous for its competitive atmosphere, is known for fostering a stressful environment amongst its students, especially around college.

“I hope this changes the college admissions process as a whole because maybe they will realize that standardized tests actually do not reflect a person’s intelligence.” Ellie Wong

“In Palo Alto there’s this expectation that everyone will be going to college and preferably a well-known one,” Baldonado said. “This creates this sort of pressure for everyone to do exceptionally when it comes to grades, extracurriculars, and just life in general.” According to Baldonado,

while the pressure may be a result of underlying parental and societal pressures, Palo Alto has done a better job with working towards eliminating unhealthy stress at school, whether that be through college counseling or mental health resources. According to Whitney Aquino, Paly’s Wellness Outreach Worker, it is important for students to find outlets to deal with their stress. Aquino emphasizes how important it is to make sure the college a student is looking at is a good fit for them. She also suggests breaking up the application into manageable steps so the process as a whole does not become too overwhelming. “During this time, it’s important to manage expectations and maintain perspective. Future plans are uncertain for everyone, so it’s especially important to recognize what you can control and try to let go of what you can’t,” Aquino said. While many of these pressures may come from other sources, much of it has to do with the pressure we put on ourselves as students. Wong said students often compare themselves to their peers and their family. To change the stigma surrounding college talk in Palo Alto, students will have to redefine success, satisfaction and their source of value to match their own terms, Aquino said. “This also serves to teach us that no matter how much we prepare for college — whether by participating in multiple extracurriculars or studying hard to get only a certain grade in school — things will happen that we never saw coming,” Wong said. “You can’t plan for everything.”

Students use aesthetics as means of self-expression Social media applications spark inspiration in fashion, enable individuality By Gianna Brogley

Lifestyle Editor

very morning, junior Amelia Lagna sits down in front of her mirror, preparing to do her makeup for the day. Before she starts, Lagna contemplates what aesthetic she wants to achieve through her look: soft and innocent, or edgy and grunge. Through social media apps such as Pinterest and Instagram, teens save photos with a common theme that they feel a connection with and label it as their aesthetic: a perfect way to experiment with the concept of artistic identity and self expression. “Aesthetics are most definitely a form of art,” Paly art teacher Tracey Atkinson said. “One often considers the elements of art, such as color and shape, and the principles of design, such as balance, unity and pattern when making aesthetic choices.” Aesthetics often reveal or represent the owner’s personal traits, making each one unique to each individual. Sophomore Saniyah Syed said her aesthetic is mainly grunge and vintage inspired and incorporates darker colors. “I’ve always been a creative person, so I like to reflect my personality with my aesthetic and style,” Syed said. Lagna said she doesn’t like to limit herself to one aesthetic so

she constantly adjusts it based on her mood. “Normally, my aesthetic is simple and cute, but sometimes I like wearing black and going for an edgier look,” Lagna said. Paly art teacher Sue La Fetra said sticking to a single aesthetic can restrict one’s artistic expression. “I think being yourself is important, but trying out different aesthetics can be freeing,” La Fetra said. “Who among us is only one type of person all the time?” Like many teens, Syed said her aesthetic is a creative outlet where she can freely express herself through fashion, makeup and art. “I tend to wear a lot of accessories, like big earrings or layers of necklaces,” Syed said. “I also like to wear a lot of colorful tops and oversized jeans.” According to Syed, her aesthetic gives her the confidence to wear clothes that are more out of her comfort zone and helps her express her individuality. “Before I started really expressing myself, I cared a lot about what people thought about me,” Syed said. “But when I focused on myself, I became much happier.” Lagna said exploring different aesthetics has opened up creative doors for her to personalize more aspects of her life. “Anything that can be artistically inclined, I like making it personal to me,” Lagna said. “I can

ART BY ANDY WANG

spend way too much time just trying to find an aesthetically pleasing Spotify playlist cover.” Lagna said she also often takes inspiration from social media and her friends when choosing her outfit for the day. “Sometimes, I’ll find something cool on Instagram and I’m like, I’m doing it!” Lagna said. Additionally, Syed and Lagna said they both add elements of their aesthetic to their own Instagram posts through cut-out images, filters, color blocking and other effects.

“When I post, I don’t really have a specific theme in mind (for my picture),” Lagna said. “I just like having fun and making an edit that I think is cool.” Lagna said conveying her personality through art and her aesthetic is important to her identity and self-image. “I think just having that ability to express yourself is so great because I’m naturally an introverted person, so the way I present myself matters a lot to me,” Lagna said. Syed said she encourages oth-

ers who are struggling to be an authentic version of themselves to find their artistic style. “Having an aesthetic is beneficial when discovering who you are: you learn a lot about yourself when you focus on your self-expression,” Syed said. La Fetra said she thinks an aesthetic can improve someone’s perspective on life and help them see beauty in the mundane. La Fetra said, “Appreciation for the simple things can make life worth living when everything else is going wrong.”

Art & Photo Director Monday, May 4 Dear Diary, I have to say, today wasn’t the best. I managed to force myself out of bed around 7 a.m.., which is progress from the early 2 p.m.. wake-up time that became routine during the first few weeks of quarantine, but I just wasn’t very happy because sometimes I really just can’t get my mind off of how difficult this whole situation is for those who don’t have the privilege of sheltering-in-place. Recently, I’ve been listening to The New York Times Daily podcast. Each episode provides me with 30 minutes of news banter. Listening to the podcast has become a daily ritual, which may be the reason for my negative attitude — to hear first thing in the morning that the president has claimed injecting disinfectants into the body is a cure for the coronavirus makes me worry about the recovery of our nation. My workout today consisted of a 40-minute bike ride around Palo Alto, where I allowed my brain to shut off from the anxiety of listening to the news. After that, I just didn’t have the motivation to get my school work done. It took me a few (distracted) hours just to write down a list of my school assignments. Come nightfall, I had only checked one assignment off my list! I had some banana bread I made over the weekend which was probably the highlight of the day. I have discovered that microwaving banana bread makes it 100 times better because of the oozing chocolate. I saw this recipe online where you make French toast out of banana bread, what a concept! I may have to try this out in the future. Tuesday, May 5 Dear Diary, Today, I managed to get a good chunk of school work done, plus, I picked some flowers across the street which I then made into a bouquet to bring some life and color to my room. I went to the park pretty late in the day, which was very peaceful because nobody was out and the moon was almost full. Seeing the moon gave me hope. In a way, I was able to take on a different perspective: even though there may be a global pandemic occurring, the world will keep spinning, and the moon will keep rising and falling every night. Wednesday, May 6 Dear Diary, At this point of the week, I am usually nearing the end of my workload, but for some reason, I still have a long way to go. For my brain break today, I decided to take my skateboard, which hasn’t seen much action in months, out for a ride. I have made it a new goal to perfect my ollie, as last summer I got pretty close but not 100% there. I have found a lot of value in skateboarding because it teaches me determination and hard work. It gives me the chance to use other parts of my brain and body that school just does not really give me access to. Outdoor activities are a great way to keep my brain working and learning rather than frying from hours of watching YouTube or Netflix. Speaking of, I started a show called “Community.” It is a lighthearted and clever sitcom with countless hours of obscure entertainment references which make it fun to watch, but not gripping enough that I will binge all six seasons and mess up my sleep schedule. What I am looking forward to the most is summer. It is only a few weeks away, yet each week feels progressively slower the closer it gets to the end of the school year. It feels weird to me that I will soon be a senior — it feels like I was cheated out of almost a full semester of high school, but I am sure it will not be that big of a deal when I look back on all of this. I cannot wait until I am looking back on all of this. For now, Sasha Lehrer

Friday, May 29, 2020

The Campanile

LIFESTYLE

Students give back to community during COVID-19 pandemic

Paly teens in quarantine dedicate time to improving lives of others by combining talents, volunteering and donating towards those in need By Austin Xiang Science & Tech Editor

hree 3D printers sit sideby-side, spitting out frames for face shields while sophomore Sam Duong assembles his daily 40 face shields to donate to frontline workers. Along with his robotics team, Kuriosity Robotics, Duong said he has been 3D printing face shields for a variety of facilities ranging from hospitals in San Diego to nursing homes in Houston. Duong said he first found out about the opportunity of producing face shields through social media, where he saw Prusa, a Prague-based 3D printing company, asking the community to 3D print face shields for those in need. According to Duong, he and his team decided it would be valuable to help the community by designing and producing face shields during the team’s offseason, when competitions come to a halt and teams stop building their robots. “We are a robotics team, so we have a lot of technical experience and machines,” Duong said. “Currently, we don’t need to build a robot, so we might as well use (our resources) to do something good.” Despite his teammates’ help, Duong said he still spends much of his free time working on the project. “I’ll spend one or two hours assembling the face shields and boxing them,” Duong said. “We’re constantly running 3D printers, so every so often there will be one that breaks and needs to be fixed real quickly.” Amidst spending the time to produce, assemble and donate face shields, Duong said he has set a series of large goals for himself and his team. As of May 4, Duong said the team surpassed the mark of donating 2,000 face shields. “We set milestones along the way,” Duong said. “The initial goal we set was actually 5,000, but if there is still a need for face shields after that, then we’ll still continue to make it.”

Producing these shields is not cheap, though; Duong said they can cost up to $2 each to produce. To support these costs, Duong said his team has set up a GoFundMe, raising nearly $7,000 as of May 7. Duong also said they are attempting to find ways to use less expensive materials such as elastic, 3D printing filament and thin plastic. “We either directly buy the materials, (or) partner with a bunch of companies locally and also all across the country who have generously supplied us with free filament, plastic and 3D printers,” Duong said. Duong said finding places to donate the shields is easy, as many organizations such as Kaiser Permanente and Palo Alto Medical Foundation have expressed a need for them. “We just search up, for example, nursing homes and hospitals near us and contact them,” Duong said. “A lot of places also email us directly asking for face shields.” Duong said this project has been a rewarding experience for him and his team, as he’s been able to use his skills to help the community. “It’s kind of cool to see us use our knowledge and apply it into the real world for a good cause,” Duong said. “It’s also kind of like running a startup a little bit: (we’re making) our own product, marketing it and trying to get it out there.” Meanwhile, sophomore Freddie Kiessling has started his own tutoring service called Palo Alto Free Tutoring to help out with the negative effects of online schooling on some students. “There’s homework, and it’s hard to understand because it’s online, especially when you are watching a video because it’s different from an in-classroom experience,” Kiessling said. “I thought it was a good idea to tutor people because I saw that my two siblings need a lot of help, and my parents are both working jobs from home so they can’t really help.” To follow through on his idea, Kiessling gathered some friends

AUSTIN XIANG/THE CAMPANILE

Helping Hands! Sophomore Sam Duong and his robotics team members have been busy at work 3D printing face shields for frontline workers. Duong said, “Currently, (our robotics team doesn’t) need to build a robot, so we might as well use (our resources) to do something good.” and began reaching out to the Palo Alto community. “We made an online website and sent out an email to different schools, like JLS Middle School,” Kiessling said. “Kids started contacting us, and right now we have around four kids that we are all tutoring.”

“It’s kind of cool to see us use our knowledge and apply it into the real world for a good cause.” Sam Duong Kiessling said it took him some time to get the tutoring service started. “For the website, it took me a couple of days to add people, make the structure or write down contact information,” Kiessling said. “In the case of teaching, I’ve done around 25 hours in the last two weeks.”

To follow the social distancing guidelines, Kiessling said that he utilizes a platform called UberConference, which has all the features of Zoom without the basic meeting time limit. “I don’t use Zoom because Zoom only goes for 40 minutes, and I normally do an hour to two hours,” Kiessling said. “I just send a link to a person and they just click on it and join, and you can share screens like (on) Zoom.” Kiessling said running this tutoring service has paid off for his students and for himself. “It’s definitely satisfying knowing that I helped a student with a particular assignment (or quiz) she was struggling on,” Kiessling said. Paly junior Tommy Hall said he is also working to give back to his community by volunteering with the East Palo Alto Boys and Girls Club food drive. “At first it was just my mom saying that they needed help, and obviously we had nothing better to do with our time,” Hall said. “But

once I started going, I really liked it because everyone there is really great, and it’s a fun environment to be in, especially when you’re doing something good.”

“The food drive was eye-opening because I was able to view what it was like for those who aren’t as lucky as I am.” Tommy Hall Hall said he and the others who volunteer for the food drive with the East Palo Alto Boys and Girls club all have the same goal. “We’re just trying to feed the hungry,” Hall said. “The goal is to be able to give food to everyone who (cannot access it) or cannot afford it themselves. (We) try and go two or three times a week, and usually spend two or three hours there each time we go.”

Hall said he and the other volunteers start serving meals at 6 p.m. to the cars coming through. “You just ask for how many (meals) they need, and you put the (number) of meals they ask for on the table in front of you, and they have to come out and get it,” Hall said. “You can’t really be (handing meals) to people because (there’s) a lot more (risk for) cross-contamination if you do that.” Hall said that in just one day the Boys and Girls Club food drive gave out over 2,000 meals, served hot. He also added that more Paly students should volunteer as the food drive could always use more help. Hall said he has learned a lot about what the less fortunate have to go through during this pandemic. “(The food drive) was eye-opening because I was able to view what it was like for those who aren’t as lucky as I am,” Hall said. “It really makes me appreciate what I have.”

Mask fashion enables creativity Celebrations held in quarantine

Palo Altans, independent companies supply face coverings for population Community commemorates special occasions during shelter-in-place

By Bruno Klass

By Ziggy Tummalapalli

Staff Writer

Sports Editor

ooks like Future got it wrong: instead of singing “Mask Off,” we’re all putting masks on. To curb the prompt spread of COVID-19, the Centers for Disease Control officially recommends that people wear facial coverings when leaving their homes for essential purposes. When the virus first broke out, people hurried to stock-up on Personal Protective Equipment, such as face masks and gloves. This stock-buying of PPE has caused its demand to far exceed its existing supply, leaving both civilians and healthcare professionals alike without access to them. In light of the lack of supply, many are sewing their own masks at home, and companies in various industries have also started producing masks. The increased individual production of masks have enabled many to use them as a creative outlet for fashion. Community members, including Mattie Taormina and Julie Taylor, have taken matters into their own hands and are giving back to their communities by donating their homemade masks. “My next-door neighbor gave me some elastic, old aprons and bedsheets she didn’t want and I made a prototype, (which) worked. Next, I made masks for her, (myself ) and my family,” Taormina said. “As the pandemic raged on, I thought this would be a way for me to help my community, so I have been volunteering my time to make these after I get off work and on the weekends.” What started out as simply making masks for Taormina’s family has since turned into a community-wide project. Taormina said she initially started out small, offering each of her 14 masks to anyone in Palo Alto who needed it. 11 minutes after Taormina made her post, all the masks were gone and had received 55 requests for more. “I’m blown away, actually,” Taormina said. “To date, I have successfully supplied 311 face coverings for people. Some of my creations have been shipped

A ART BY RAQUEL CANTANEO JOSEPH

Functional and Fashionable! This butterfly-patterned mask is one of the many homemade masks crafted during the COVID-19 pandemic. overseas to Holland. This really made me feel good that I’m helping to make our citizens feel more comfortable in this uneasy time.” Taylor, too, has decided to use her talent to help others in need during the pandemic. “I was inspired to sew free reusable masks because I was seeing in the news that many in the medical community had a need for them,” Taylor said. Taylor said she has donated her masks to her friends and family, medical clinics, Palo Alto Unified School District bus drivers and more.

“This really made me feel good that I’m helping to make our citizens feel more comfortable in this uneasy time.” Julie Taylor Taylor had little initial experience with sewing, and said that anyone can make their own mask. “I have a sewing machine (and some) basic sewing knowledge. I also had a stash of donated fabric, thread and time to make them,” Taylor said. “Once you know what kind of mask the organization needs, you’ll eventually streamline your process and will be able to mass-produce them at a quicker rate.”

The demand for face coverings is higher than ever, and with the national lack of medical-grade masks, people have been forced to search for new ways to stay protected. Etsy, a commerce website, disclosed that between April 4 and 6, people searched for masks on the site an average of 9 times per second, totaling more than 2 million searches in less than 72 hours. Supply on Etsy has also exploded, and the number of mask sellers on the site quadrupled in the last week of March and the first week of April. Celebrities like Billie Eilish, Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande have also made an effort to help the music community during the pandemic. These celebrities are selling cloth masks through the “We’ve Got You Covered Project,” where 100% of the proceeds go to the MusiCares organization, which helps out members of the music community by covering a wide range of financial, medical and personal emergencies. Large companies have also started producing masks and making donations. Dicks Sporting Goods, Forever 21, Amazon and Disney have all added masks to their shelves, and a new company, MaskClub, which launched on April 10, offers subscriptions for monthly face masks. Put together in four days by Trevor George, also known as the CEO of Trevco, MaskClub uses their funds to help support first responders while allowing customers to personalize their masks with characters including the Powerpuff Girls, Batman and Hello Kitty.

bout 20 cars with balloons and signs drove down Byron Street in-between Kellogg Avenue and Embarcadero Road honking their horns on April 9, all for one fifth-grader Sam Miller’s birthday. The novel state-mandated shelter-in-place has put a hold on and canceled many annual events and celebrations, however, many Palo Altans are finding alternatives for the ways they normally celebrate special occasions. The Miller family in Palo Alto came up with the idea of a drive-by birthday party for their son. “We thought it would be super fun to surprise him,” junior Alli Miller said. “She really wanted him to feel special and celebrated on his birthday even though it wasn’t possible to do something in person.” Miller said the celebration was a unique experience for the family, who normally go out and eat with their extended family and then celebrate at home with friends on typical birthdays. Despite the change in plans and despite being unable to celebrate in close proximity with family and friends, Sam said his party was as enjoyable as previous birthday celebrations. “It was really fun to see everyone I knew and it was a big surprise,” he said. “People had a ton of signs with my face on it. They had balloons and everyone was honking.” Another holiday, the Jewish celebration of Passover, is one that has gone by during the stayat-home order, leaving many families to improvise celebrations. One of these families being the Spier family, who had a large Zoom meeting with family, according to Paly junior Libby Spier. “During the meeting we had a Seder, and went through the programs each of us had,” Spier said. According to Spier, their family typically has a celebration with about 20 people that includes family friends from their synagogue. Because there

ALLI MILLER/USED WITH PERMISSION

Happy birthday! Fifth grader Sam Miller is surprised by family friends Emma and Ian Johnson and their handmade signs. Miller said, “It was really fun to see everyone I knew, and it was a big surprise.” were less people, that also meant less food, and a more miniature celebration than normal, which isn’t how it should normally be, according to Spier. “It was definitely a smaller celebration this year because it was only the five of us, and therefore was much quieter and not as big of an event,” Spier said. “Jewish holidays are supposed to be spent with people you care about and people you love so being alone as a family was sad.”

“For me, it was important for me to do something with family, just to see their faces and keep the tradition alive.” Caitlyn Evans However, despite the celebration not being what it normally is, there was some consolation found in being able to have at least some sort of celebration rather than none, according to Spier. “These times are crazy and disappointing, so it was nice to be able to have the Seder and have one thing that was somewhat constant,” Spier said. Easter also occurred during the shelter-in-place order, forcing families to have to pivot from their traditional celebration rituals.

Paly history teacher Caitlin Evans said she found an entertaining substitute for her familiar Easter celebrations. “I hid Easter eggs for the week before Easter in the garden of my house,” Evans said. “I’d move them every morning and people walking by would look for them.” Since Easter, Evans has switched to hiding dinosaurs in her yard, which has attracted numerous neighbors. “I have a handful of regulars who can’t finish their walks unless they find them all,” Evans said. “This includes a number of older couples who stop every day to look, and I’ve met some neighbors I never would have otherwise met, which is really fun.” Evans said her family normally has a big celebration on Easter with extended family and lots of food. They have a Bonnet parade and create hats and compete for prizes with each other. This year, they had to do all of these festivities through Zoom. “It was actually really fun,” Evans said. “My cousins from all over the world were there… we all got on wearing crazy hats and explained what we’d created them out of.” For Evans, a celebration that stretched out beyond her household was paramount to maintain her annual family rituals. “For me it was important for me to do something with family, just to see their faces and keep the tradition alive,” Evans said. “We’ll all remember it as the Easter we had over the internet.”

Friday, May 29, 2020

The Campanile

Local sports attempt to resume play amid COVID-19 pandemic

Several leagues planning to start practicing, competing soon with some athletes concerned about finishing their season By Zack Silver Staff Writer

aly baseball player Dominic De Feo had been preparing for the season for months, but as a result of the lockdown, his school season was cancelled, and his club season is on shaky ground. With the end of lockdown presumably on the horizon, Paly athletes can hardly wait to see if and when their sports seasons will take place. Some, like sophomore baseball catcher Dominic De Feo, will most likely have a chance to play sports again this season. The Palo Alto Babe Ruth League a baseball league for those ages 13 to 15, would normally be running from May 16 to June 23. While the league cannot begin as usual, players and coaches say they remain hopeful that they can still play the full season by delaying the league’s starting date. “I think the season will start in early July,” De Feo said. “Hopefully by then, the virus will be contained enough to allow us to play.”

"Babe Ruth League would be an opportunity to play baseball again, which I would love." Dominic De Feo Ron Fried, a team manager and a representative on the PABR league board, said he hopes to reopen the league in June or July. “Our plan right now is to try to reopen the beginning or middle of June, to have a couple of weeks of practices, with the season starting in the beginning of July and

BRADEN LEUNG/THE CAMPANILE

The Paly football field has been deserted during the coronavirus pandemic because Paly sports are canceled. Senior Kaitlin Meyer believes it is unlikely that her soccer team will get the chance to play again this season. Meyer said, "It’s a letdown, because I’ve been with this team for so long, and now we can’t have a last season together." running into August,” Fried said. But according to Fried, the league’s timeline remains dependent on the county and state. “We’re waiting for all these different groups to say it’s safe to go out,” Fried said. “The very last phase of the release is to say that team sports are OK, and then we can go out and play. According to ABC news, non-spectator sports will begin in stage three of Calif. Gov. Gavin

Newsom’s plan to reopen the state. Calif. is currently in stage two and will likely begin stage three in June. In a normal year, youth baseball running into August would be unheard of. However, Fried said he thinks participation this year will be high no matter when the league starts. “This is a unique year. Since everyone has basically canceled their summer vacation plans,

they’re waiting around for something to do,” Fried said. While players in the PABR league may get a chance to play this year, the same cannot be said for athletes in other sports. Senior Kaitlin Meyer, a member of the Stanford Soccer Club 18U team, will most likely not get the chance to play this spring. Meyer said the season would normally run from mid-March to early June, making it virtually

impossible to start playing again after the lockdown. “Even if the season were to resume right now, the majority of the season would have already passed,” Meyer said. According to Meyer, the loss of sports has been especially heartbreaking for her because this is her last year before she goes to college. “It’s a letdown, because I’ve been with this team for so long,

and now we can’t have a last season together,” Meyer said. Many athletes won't compete this season, while others will under nonoptimal circumstances. However, all these athletes share the desire for a chance to play. “I didn’t get a chance to play a full high school season because of the lockdown,” De Feo said. “Babe Ruth League would be an opportunity to play baseball again, which I would love.”

Athletes switch to online practices to adhere to stay-at-home orders Students experience the pros, cons of using online video lessons in order to comply with state social distancing guidelines By Evelyn Cheng

Sports Editor

s the clock strikes 4 p.m., junior Audrey Chu joins her daily fencing practice via zoom which primarily focuses on hitting drills on a still-target and staying in shape.

"My coach tries her best to correct my mistakes but there is only so much that she can do." Audrey Chu The Academy of Fencing Masters, the club at which Chu attends, is among the numerous sports teams that have resorted to hosting online practices in an effort to comply with the current shelter-in-place order. According to Chu, the online team practices are much less intensive than in-person practices, particularly for a combat sport like fencing. You get the most out of in-person drills and actually competing with other fencers,” Chu

said. “Online practices can only help us stay fit because the technical requirements for fencing are too high.” Chu, like many other student-athletes, has also resorted to taking online private lessons with her coach to continue practicing her craft. However, the lack of physical instruction makes addressing mistakes for coaches much more difficult, according to Chu. “My coach tries her best to correct my mistakes, but there is only so much that she can do because she is not actually giving me an interpersonal fencing session,” Chu said. “During group lessons, however, coaches rarely correct mistakes because there are so many students for them.” During her online lessons, Chu said she has noticed her coaches are more personable than in face-to-face practices. “They encourage their athletes and compliment them for attending the practices because at this point in time, self-discipline is what matters the most,” Chu said. According to Irina Chirashnya, one of Chu’s coaches, online practices are essential to maintaining fencers’ motivation, shape and sharpness. She said online

practices provide coaches with the opportunity to explore new aspects of teaching.

"There is nothing happening in them that I couldn't do myself another time." Callan Malone “Coaches are able to focus on things that they cannot focus (on) in class for many reasons, and now those elements are under a great deal of improvements,” Chirashnya said. While online practices can’t substitute in-person practices in fencing due to the need for partner drills and bouting, Chirashyna said she plans to incorporate a mixture of both online and in-person practices to AFM in the future because of its effectiveness in improving certain skills. For team sports, junior and Palo Alto Soccer Club 03G White player Callan Malone said online practices differ in that there isn’t as much of a reliance on teammates, and that online practices are more focused on foot-

XIN ZHANG/ USED WITH PERMISSION

Online only! Junior Audrey Chu participates in her club's online fencing practice. She practices by hitting a target with her épée. Chu said, "I think that online practices are not a long term solution, especially for fencing, where athletes improve by actually fencing with other people." work and fitness. “We are all on a Zoom call together and depend on each other in that sense, but I am not going to miss out on new playing strategies,” Malone said. “There is nothing happening in them that I couldn’t do myself another time.”

"My motivation is competing and getting better whereas in online workouts I'm less motivated for the sport." Kimi Lillios In sports like dance, where timing coordination are crucial, junior dancer Summer Sun said although her team’s online practices are less intense, they’re still difficult because the team attempts new combinations every week, leaving less time for conditioning and technique. And she said because of technical issues such as connection problems and lag-time with music, the chemistry of dancing with a team through the screen isn’t the same. While Sun’s dance team practices are mandatory, other sports’ prac-

tices are not, which leads to a decline in online practice attendance. Junior and volleyball player Kimi Lillios said many athletes have less motivation to attend online practice than they did for attending in-person practice because athletes are prioritizing their schoolwork. “I think part of the motivation of playing a team sport in-person is the atmosphere and being able to interact with everyone and having to rely on your teammates to build the sport,” Lillios said. “My motivation is competing and getting better whereas in online workouts I’m less motivated for the sport.” Nonetheless, Lillios said online practices are an efficient method for establishing structure in athletes’ daily lives. “There are just so many benefits, and I think people overlook the fact that even though we’re physically separated, that doesn’t mean we can’t try to uphold some of the norms that were in place before quarantine,” Lillios said. While physical practices can consist of passing the volleyball between people, Lillios said her team’s online practices focus more on strength than cardio. When practicing a specific skill for a sport, Lillios said athletes are inadvertently doing a lot of cardio, even when simply transitioning between activities. However, since there are no

teammates to train with at home, players focus more on individual improvement by turning to weightlifting and strength-building workouts. Unlike individual sports where success depends mostly on the individual, success in a team sport is dependent on all members doing their part. "There’s really no way to emulate team chemistry and connections when you’re at home alone and it is such an integral aspect to this sport that often seems to be taken for granted,” Lillios said. While online and in-person practices differ immensely in terms of what is practiced, athletes like Lillios say they will continue to make the most out of the current situation so they are prepared for when the season resumes.

"There's really no way to emulate team chemistry and connections when you're at home alone." Kimi Lillios “It’s going to be a struggle to get back into the rhythm,” Lillios said. “But I’m more excited than ever to see my teammates again and get back on the court.”

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Friday, May 29, 2020

A Legacy Transformed Michael Jordan documentary brings his career, final season to forefront of sports world

ith a sigh, junior Ethan really competitive. Obviously, I true extent of Jordan’s influ- onship-contending team, in the Jordan had more of an impact as a whole.” Cheng appreciated the detail Wong frowns as he didn’t start following basketball ence beyond basketball through modern league while Conrad had during his career than any of the his view of Jordan inESPN put into scrolls through Twitter, until after he stopped playing, so watching the miniseries. “‘The Last Dance’ emphasized fluenced by Jordan’s the documentary and comes across another Tweet I never knew the details of what and how they condebating who the greatest bas- happened each season he played Jordan’s legacy on pop culture and more recent public sports as a whole,” Cheng said. appearances. structed the narketball player of all time is. Wong, or anything like that.” " J o r d a n w a s j u s t t h e b e s t “Through watch“I knew people rative of Jordan’s who had a unique ing the show, I re- loved him, and he final season. take on the subject, and he was the alpha alized that during had a huge impact “They compile is dejected when he his career, he was on basketball,” Cona lot of clips from sees that most of of alphas." " H e m a d e s p o r t s p a r t o f t h e one of the most rad said. “But I had the games, and the debate threads prominent sports never experienced his then they also do he’s reading through a m e r i c a n c u lt u r e . " figures, and celeb- games or seen him interviews with are locked in an arrities in general, as outside of some dunk Jordan, Phil Jackgument comparing JP Conrad a whole.” show highlights and son, Steve Kerr, LeBron James and Cheng said as the crappy GM of (Scottie) Pippen, Michael Jordan. the documenta- the Hornets.” (Dennis) Rodman “I thought that Ethan Wong ry shows younger Instead, watching “The Last other candidates for the title of and other celebrities,” Cheng said. (Steph) Curry was fans how much in- Dance” helped Conrad realize the greatest player. “The directors did a really good the GOAT, because fluence Jordan had competitive level of Jordan’s op“When we look back on this job of telling his last season as a that’s when I started While neither Cheng nor outside of basketball. ponents and served a role in con- era, it’s going to be Warriors/ story but also his career as a whole watching basketball,” Wong said. “I think ‘The Last Dance’ has firming Jordan’s greatness. Spurs/LeBron,” Conrad said. and the careers of his teammates.” “He changed how three-pointers Passalacqua had seen Jordan “When the Bulls took off, he “But when you look at the ‘90s, One of the storylines of “The were used and was the best player in-action beyond classic games on changed his legacy in terms of ESPN, they both said he was the his effect on culture and society,” was outplaying Bird, Magic, Ew- it’s Jordan-Jordan-Jordan, and he Last Dance” is the tension beon the greatest team of all time.” Cheng said. “Since I wasn’t alive ing, Barkley, Malone, the Pistons, did it with the same type of talent tween Jordan and the Bulls’ genWhile Wong had an unin- greatest player of all time. Wong, though, as aforemen- during the time he played, I wasn’t the Cavs and all those other great around him as ’Bron with basical- eral manager, Jerry Krause, which, formed take, since 2016, when James triumphed over Curry’s tioned, said before he watched aware of the legacy he left on the teams,” Conrad said. “It wasn’t just ly the same amount of starpower was surprising news to more recent fans. Warriors through a miraculous “The Last Dance,” his pick for NBA or on pop culture. The way that he had Scottie (Pippen) and around the league.” the documentary is filmed and (Dennis) Rodman and Steve Kerr Whereas Conrad had his “I didn’t know very much comeback after being down 3-1 GOAT would have been Curry. However, Wong said “The told highlighted Jordan’s effect and John Paxson. It was that he opinion of Jordan changed, Pas- about the drama with Jerry Krause in the National Basketball Assoon popular culture, was the alpha on the Dream and the ciation Finals, the especially with his Team. He was respected by players on basketball world shoe line.” every other great player of the team,” has been split by Cheng also said his era and he showed up to a contentious de" J o r d a n i s t h e g o at b e c a u s e o f C h e n g "'The last dance'' has she does not think every challenge.” s a i d . bate over who the Jordan’s basketFrom what he saw in “‘The Last true greatest playh i s c o m p l e t e a n d c o n s i s t e n t changed his legacy in terms ball legacy changed “The Last Dance,” Conrad Dance’ er of all time is. much as a result of said Jordan is the greatest touchThe debate d o m i n a n c e o f t h e g a m e . " o f h i s e f f e c t o n c u lt u r e a n d “The Last Dance,” player ever. es on it over the greatest while Conrad’s view He handled himself on at least of all time, Jorsociety." of Jordan as a player and off the court with the a couple dan or James, has changed substantial- biggest influence of any bastimes per largely been split Evan passalacQUA ly. ketball player ever,” Conrad episode, by generation. Before the doc- said. “He played up to every and it was Older fans, who K at i e C h e n g umentary, Conrad obstacle. He had two, three-peats, salacqua said the documentary interesting to see all the outside began watching and Wong both said and he was the best all-around reaffirmed his beliefs. factors in Jordan’s career.” basketball in the they underestimat- player in the league: defense, scor“( Jordan) is the GOAT beConrad said that Jordan had 1970s, 1980s and ed Jordan’s impact ing, athleticism, clutch ability and cause of his complete and con- flaws, like his relationship with 1990s, say Jordan and his six championships make Last Dance” allowed him to un- on basketball, with Wong saying winning. He outshined everyone sistent dominance of the game,” Krause, but he still thinks Jordan him the greatest, while those who derstand the true scope of Jordan’s Jordan would be no better than on the court, and then he was Passalacqua said. “He went six- is the greatest player ever. “He had faults like his gamnever saw Jordan play insist that influence and eventually changed DeMar DeRozan, a player who straightforward and honest and for-six in the finals with players most agree would be best as a likeable off the court.” like Charles Barkley, Clyde Drex- bling, blowing up at Krause (and) James’ sustained excellency and his mind. “When I watched ‘The Last supporting player on a champiAccording to Conrad, ler, Patrick Ewing and many oth- getting pissed at teammates, but impressive statistics coupled with ers playing.” he was under unparalleled scrutihis historic 3-1 comeback in 2016 Dance’ and (saw) what Jordan did to the NBA and how much influLike Passalacqua, Cheng be- ny,” Conrad said. “I think ( Jordan) make him the greatest. lieved that her decision was rein- being able to withstand that while However, many younger fans ence he had, I changed my mind forced by the documentary mini having the legacy of the Jordan have now been able to witness and started thinking Jordan was A rt by A d o r a Z h e n g series. brand, the ‘Be like Mike’ (comthe Jordan experience. On April the GOAT,” Wong said. One factor in changing “Jordan is the GOAT,” Cheng mercial), the 6-0 finals and the 19, ESPN released a documentasaid. “Even though LeBron is dis- respect of all the stars of his era is ry titled, “The Last Dance,” that Wong’s opinion was the impact advantaged in a lot of the factors incredible.” focuses on Jordan and serves as Jordan had on American culture. “He made a lot of commer— some of the teams he played Conrad used to think James a chronicle of the final season of with were worse than and Jordan were about equally his Chicago Bulls cials with kids,” Wong said. “And (he) made sports part of Jordan’s — Jor- great, but no longer believes that. tenure. the American culture, through d a n won six “( Jordan) came first and he did “The his commercials and things like champ i o n - it better (than LeBron),” Conrad L a s t Wheaties and ships. A l - said. “It doesn’t really matter about Dance” Space Jam.” though this isn’t ( James’) longevity of whatever, it’s is a 10p a r t L i k e really about about the fact that Jordan was just m i n i s e r i e s Wo n g , skill, Jordan had a the best and he was the alpha of that off e r s Cheng larger effect alphas. LeBron’s still top five all younger fans discovon the cultime, but I think ‘The Last Dance’ a glimpse into ered the ture of the just makes too good of a case for the reality of the N B A and people to ignore that Jordan was NBA during Jorp r o fesbetter and will probably have the dan’s era. sional more lasting impact.” Junior JP Conrad said sports While “The Last Dance” he thought Jordan was overmakes Conrad think James will rated before watching “The never surpass Jordan, Passalacqua Last Dance.” thinks otherwise. “I thought his hype was over“If LeBron continues to adapt blown,” Conrad said. “And that he his game to his old age and conwas just a flashy athletic guy who tinues to have amazing seasons made clutch plays and didn’t have like this year,” he said. “Along with a lot of competition.” another championship or two, I Sophomore Evan Passalacqua definitely think that he could pass said the documentary helped him MJ.” see Jordan in a different light. Passalacqua said his eyes have “I thought of ( Jordan) as a been opened by “The Last Dance” fierce competitor in all facets of and thinks it has played a similar life, especially with the whole role for younger fans. cheating in card games against “ Yo u n g e r people from retirement homes,” people appreciPassalacqua said. “And the ate players like GOAT.” ( James) because Conrad and Passalacqua both LeBron is all said their opinion of Jordan prithey’ve ever or to watching “The Last Dance” seen,” Paswere influenced by the fact sathey were not able to l a c qua watch him in real-time. said. “I Junior Katie think they’re reCheng a l i z i n g just agreed. how great ( Jor“ I a l dan) was. He w a y s k n e w played in a time Michael Jordan was period with all time greats one of the best to and still made it look easy play in the NBA and to go 6/6 in the finals, so in that he won six chammy eyes I think his legacy is pionships,” Cheng greater than I knew before.” said. “And I also knew he was

T e x t & D e s i g n by S i d d h a rth a Sa h a s ra b u d d h e

D e s i g n by Z i g g y T u m m a l a pa l l i

The Campanile

Friday, May 29, 2020

Text , Desi Art & gn b y

Kaitl yn L ee

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SENIOR SECTION

Class of 2020’s top 20 moments at Paly In four years at Paly, the seniors have faced both highs and lows. Reminisce on the most notable times that have brought 2020 together as a class that will surely go down in history.

KIMI LILLIOS/USED WITH PERMISSION

PAGE C4-C5

agan P a c Lu

Seniors

ART BY GIANNA BROGLEY

Graduation

Seniors

ART BY KAITLYN LEE

Choosing a College

MARGARET LI/USED WITH PERMISSION

Faculty Memories

Senior opinions on alternative options to the ceremony.

How to make a life-changing choice in the middle of a pandemic.

Paly staff looks back on their most cherished times with the seniors.

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The Campanile

Friday, May 29, 2020

C2 Stop whining that it’s over, be grateful that it happened

’m not in any way sugar-coating the fact that our senior year was cut short, that we can’t walk across the stage and throw our beautifully decorated caps in the air, toss papers full of tears and dedication on the final bell of the year or say goodbye to the teachers that changed our lives and the peers we will never see again. But when are we going to stop spending all of our time dwelling on what was lost and realize how much of an impact Paly has had on us? I don’t care if you loved

Paly or hated it, it shaped us all into who we are today. We are fixating on a microfraction of our lives, a time that one day will transcend into flashes of memories, no longer depicting reality. Photographs that will eventually make their way into the trash, Instagram posts that will fade into your archives and Snapchat friends that will slowly disappear. I hate to sound pessimistic in a time of utter pessimism, but we are truly wasting our energy on being upset when frankly, we should be feeling the op-

Natalie Schilling

posite. We all attended one of the best public schools in the United States, with a student journalism program that compares to no other, one of the only glassblowing programs left, highly ranked athletics and facilities that only appear on private school campuses.

dedicated teachers who put their heart and soul into teaching their students. Teachers who could have left Paly for careers in creating NASA spaceships, working in Congress, winning Nobel peace prizes, ending climate change, writing for the New York Times or even creating a vaccine for the coronavirus. I don’t care if you Instead, they chose the most loved Paly or hated it, prestigious of them all: to teach us not only the basic it shaped us all into educational requirements who we are today. for our future, but also what it truly means to be We were blessed with a Viking. To be dedicated,

hard-working, headstrong, determined. To be curious, to self advocate, to lead and to always stay grounded to your roots.

of time to dwell. It is now time to think back on your days at Paly and how it has shaped you into the person you are today. Spread thanks to those who were a part of this growth and show them We are blessed with how much they positively dedicated teachers who impacted your life — trust me it will make their day. put their heart and Today marks the day soul into teaching that we throw sadness to the curb and start getting their students. excited about the countless memories that lie ahead of Quit being sad about us. We all have such bright senior cut day, graduation futures ahead of us because and senior sunrise, because once a Viking, always a you have had a great deal Viking.

Amid Covid-19, seniors embrace in-person December graduation Students give their opinion on the significance of high school graduation, revealing why virtual graduation will not do By Johnny Yang Senior Staff Writer

fter careful investigation and discussion, Principal Adam Paulson announced that the 2020 graduation ceremony will be postponed to December 2020, a solution that most students seem to be in favor of. Principal Adam Paulson said that the decision was made based on student inputs. “Mr. Hall and I took all of the suggestions that were made over the last couple of months and asked ASB leadership to choose their top preferences for the senior send-off week,” Paulson said. “It was clear that the students did not want any form of a ‘virtual graduation.’ Based on this, we choose to delay the event

until December 2020.” For senior Bob Zhu, graduation carries a deeper meaning than just celebrating the end of high school. “I believe that high school graduation is quite important to anyone’s memory, as some of us may never go to college,” Zhu said. “Moreover, a high school graduation symbolizes maturity, independence and adulthood as no other graduation shares the similar meaning.” As a student who immigrated from China, Zhu said graduation also represents his ability to successfully transition to this new country. “Although I’m not a person who cares about formalities, I do look forward to inviting my relatives from across the seas to witness such a significant mo-

ment of my life,” Zhu said. “For me, this graduation represents my adaptation to this new country and promises a future which I shall have here.” Senior Faisal Ojjeh said he expected graduation to be one of the most enjoyable experiences in high school.

“For me, this graduation represents my adaptation to this new country and promises a future which I shall have here.” “To me, graduation is something I have been looking forward to since locking my bike in Paly’s bike rack

freshman year,” Ojjeh said. “I looked forward to being able to sit beside my closest friends in the world and be able to make jokes and laugh at other friends going on the podium.” Earlier in the discussion, some students and parents proposed the option of having an online graduation, and Zhu said he is glad that the final decision was to postpone physical graduation instead of moving it online. “I think this (graduation ceremony) that marks the end of the protective umbrella of parents and guardians shouldn’t be taken away from anyone,” Zhu said. “Therefore I am sad to hear that graduation has to be delayed, as prom has been canceled earlier. I believe it is necessary for us to have a graduation, one that

will not live in the shadow of coronavirus, and one that should never be held online.” Ojjeh said an online graduation does not provide the same experience as an in-person graduation, which allows him to take the last chance to say goodbye to his friends. “I can’t emphasize enough how much I’d like an in person graduation,” Ojjeh said. “I (want to) take the opportunity to see and speak to some of the best classmates in the world who I may never see again.” Zhu said he understands the difficult situation the Palo Alto community is in and said he agrees that it is worth delaying the immediate experience of graduation a little bit for the well-being of the greater community.

“I understand the big picture that people are suffering from greater tragedies and problems,” Zhu said. “Therefore I am willing to wait for however long it takes for this virus to blow over and have an inperson graduation then.” Paulson, who will leave Paly at the end of the school year, said that he sincerely looks forward to a December reunion with all the students who cannot have a graduation ceremony. “The end of this year has been extremely disappointing,” Paulson said. “I know the seniors are feeling the same way. It has been so hard to miss out on all the celebrations and acknowledgments the senior year brings. I sincerely hope we are able to come together in December to celebrate together.”

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Friday, May 29, 2020

Seniors reflect on unconventional options after high school Students share reasoning of taking a gap year after graduation, revealing alternative pathways By Paige Knoblock & Anna Meyer

Senior Staff Writers

enior Ben Cohen always knew the traditional college path was not for him. The thought of plodding along on the same academic path as everyone else, as he was expected to, bored and bothered Cohen. During the summer of his freshman year, Cohen made up his mind on what he wanted to do. “I started growing a love for my country of origin and decided that when high school was over, I would serve in the Israeli Defense Forces,” Cohen said. Before heading to Israel for the two-year and eight-month IDF commitment, Cohen will spend a year serving as the International President of B’nai B’rith Youth Organization. In this role, Cohen will have many responsibilities and will travel the world overseeing community leaders in nearly 100 different places and work with local leaders around the world to improve their programs. “I’ve always thought that traveling for a long period of time with no real goal might be difficult or feel unproductive at times, but this way I’m making a difference while getting to see and meet new cultures and people,” Cohen said. Senior Zoë Wong-VanHaren, who will be living with her grandparents on Oahu and volunteering in Palo Alto on her gap year, also hopes to come away from her gap year with a better understanding of a completely different culture. “I’m really excited to be in a completely different environment from Palo Alto,” Wong-VanHaren said. “Especially since my grandparents and uncle’s

family have such different views from me, it’ll be a good challenge to open my eyes to different ways of living and thinking than what we see in this Palo Alto ‘bubble.’”

“I think by taking a gap year, I will get to refresh myself so that when I eventually do go back to school, I will be very refreshed and excited to learn.” Zoe Silver In addition to the benefit of experiencing a different culture and non-academic lifestyle, taking a gap year can positively impact one’s future success, both in college and beyond. According to the Gap Year Association, students who took a gap year have better academic performance in college, are more satisfied with their careers, and are more mature than their peers who did not take a gap year. A study designed by Bob Clagett, the former dean of Middlebury College, found that students who took a gap year generally have a higher college GPA than expected based on their academic rating from high school. Taking a gap year can also help prevent academic burnout. This is one of the appeals for senior Zoe Silver, who plans to take a gap

year but is not yet sure what she will be doing during it. “I think by taking a gap year I will get to refresh myself so that when I eventually do go back to school, I will be very refreshed and excited to learn,” Silver said. “I’m really looking forward to being able to focus on whatever I want, not what I feel I should or must do.” For Wong-VanHaren, who said she is currently unsure of what she wants to study in college, a gap year can serve as an opportunity to explore different subjects through internships and jobs to get a better idea of what she wants to study in college. The prospect of coming away from a gap year with more soft skills is also a draw for Wong-VanHaren. “I think it’ll be a great experience for me to be fully independent before adding on the pressures of college on top of that.” Wong-VanHaren said. “I’m hopeful that I’ll be a more driven, self-aware and organized person when I get to college.” As a football player is drawn

to the field or a pianist, the piano, Lavender Ledgerwood has always been drawn to the kitchen. “For as long as I can remember I have always been in the kitchen. I am always fascinated and intrigued and drawn in like a magnet to bakeries, restaurants to food and cookbooks because I want to learn and expand my horizons on the thousands of different foods and ways to prepare it” Ledgerwood said. Ledgerwood plans to attend The Culinary School of America in Washington DC this fall to pursue a career in the restaurant business with hopes of one day opening her own restaurant. Ledgerwood has planned on attending culinary school

for a long time now, as she has always known what she wanted to do.

“It’ll be a good challenge to open my eyes to different ways of living and thinking than what we see in this Palo Alto ‘bubble.’” Zoe Wong-VanHaren “It’s what I am most passionate about in life and that is why I want to pursue culinary school. We are supposed to pursue our interests. To make a career out of the things we are most passionate about to make our lives mean something” Ledgerwood said. This has been a lifelong goal of Ledgerwood as she has been in the kitchen for as long as she can remember. The draw of food has always intrigued Ledgerwood as her fascination with food has led to new flavor discoveries and recipes. “I am always fascinated and intrigued and drawn in like a magnet to bakeries, restaurants to food and cookbooks because I want to learn and expand my horizons on the thousands of different foods and ways to prepare it,” Ledgerwood said. As Ledgerwood continues to turn her dreams into a reality, what she looks forward most is finding others who share the same passion for food. “I am most looking forward to finding my people,” Ledgerwood said. “People that share my passion for food and people that understand who I am and my aspirations for life.”

Art by Tien Nguyen

Prospective students discover alternatives for on-campus visits

Seniors reflect on the importance of visiting college in person when making a college choice By Emily Asher Senior Staff Writer

enior Fiza Usman’s spring break plans were the same as many other high school seniors: visiting colleges. She was going to get on a plane, meet up with people, and see where she would be potentially attending college next fall. Those plans quickly changed. Now Usman would be making potentially one of the biggest decisions of her life thus far completely virtually. Two months ago, choosing a college would’ve entailed visiting campuses and meeting up with current students. Today, many students are left to decide where they will spend the next four years of their lives without seeing the school, visiting the town or being able to meet students and administration face-to-face. Visiting schools helps seniors choose a college by allowing them to get a feel for the school and meet other students who may be attending. However, since the current circumstances prevent students from visiting colleges, many seniors are left with a feeling of confusion and uncertainty. This was the case for Usman who was deciding between Boston College, Boston University, and a couple of the UC’s, however never got the opportunity to visit any of the campuses. “The non-visiting aspect is such a bummer for me because I have limited knowledge in the schools I was accepted into, so I am never going (to) know if I am an ideal fit,” Usman said. One way schools have been trying to combat this problem is by offering a variety of online resources.

Senior Esther Kagiri, who recently commited to Washington State University, said she received an email that had virtual tours and other facts about the school attached, which helped her decide. However, she said she did not feel that she received the same information that physically being at the school would have given her. “(The virtual tour) wasn’t that detailed and really only showed what the outside of the school looked like,” Kagiri said. “I didn’t get to see what the dorms, classes or inside of buildings looked like, meaning I didn’t get the full experience like I would have if I got to visit.” Senior Kailee Correll had a similar experience with the virtual tours, and said she was left with a feeling of doubt.

“The non-visiting aspect is such a bummer for me because I have limited knowledge in the schools I was accepted into.” Fiza Usman “I did try to do a virtual tour but found it was really hard to get a sense of the campus and school community without physically being on campus,” Correll said. “ I can’t get the feeling of living and going to school there if I’m just looking at my computer screen and not interacting with the people and getting to see everything in person. It’s been challenging to make my decision because my family and I were planning on using spring break to visit schools one last time before committing and submitting the deposit.”

Kagiri said the determining factor in her final decision was prior knowledge regarding the college. “I decided to go because I had family friends who went to the school and hyped it up a lot, so I knew it would be a fun and good fit for me,” Kagiri said. “I also went to the college visit at Paly and the representative did a really good job describing what the school consisted of and all the fun things you can do there.” Usman, who commited to Boston College, took a similar route in determining where to attend. Usman said she tried to reach out to as many people as she could to get a wide variety of opinions. “I talked to people who attend the school, who decided on going there next year, and watched a bunch of youtube videos to try and get a feel for the school,” Usman said. Although colleges have started to offer more online information for prospective students, Paly alumni Claire Billman said more could be done. Billman created a database with names of previous Paly students, which university they attend, their prospective major and their contact information, aimed at helping Paly’s seniors decide on a college. “The purpose of the database was to connect current Paly seniors to Paly graduates who are at colleges they are considering,” Billman said. “I had a couple of students reaching out to me asking about my university, and I figured there were other students who might benefit from talking to a current college student, but might not know anyone at that school, so I was trying to close that gap.”

Billman said she benefited from an on-campus visit when she was deciding between colleges and understands how stressful it may be to make a decision without one. “When I was deciding where I would attend, I was very on the fence,” Billman said. “I was going between two very different schools and really benefited from an on campus visit. Obviously students can’t do that right now, so I created this resource to reduce some of their stress. It’s something that I could do to make this transition a little easier.”

“(The virtual tour) wasn’t that detailed and really only showed what the outside of the school looked like.” Esther Kagiri Additionally some students have been reaching out to her schools for more information to help her make a final decision. “Since the outbreak we’ve been emailing admissions for my top two schools to try and get a little more information on how they are handling the incoming freshman class,” Correll said. “I’ve talked with current students to try and make up for missing out on the admitted student events and on-campus tours.” Correll said she and her family are also taking into consideration what would happen if the COVID-19 pandemic continues into her college years or experiences a resurgence. “The (COVID-19 pandemic) has made me reconsider my de-

cision because I don’t necessarily want to be on the East Coast for college if something like this happens again while I’m in school,” Correll said. “I had originally been leaning towards attending this one school the day after getting that acceptance letter, it had been my top school for the past year — but with the recent turn of events, I’ve held back on committing.” Correll said college decisions are not the only thing being affected by the current situation, as study abroad opportunities have been impacted as well. “I would have been studying abroad during my first semester and with the current situation, my family and I are a little cautious about what would happen if I were stuck in another country unable to get home if there were an emergency,” Correll said. Usman said she is considering taking a gap year due to the fact that school may not start up again in the fall. “The (COVID-19 pandemic) showed me how unexpected life can be, and while I think that college is an amazing route and something I will definitely pursue, I still would like an opportunity to transcend my comfort zones and try something new before I step into another four years of school,” Usman said. Despite all the negativity surrounding this unprecedented time, Usman said she has tried to find some positives in the current situation . “Whether it is studying abroad traveling the world, or doing internships and gaining experience, I really would like to take my life one step at a time,” she said. “Then again, this is all up in the air, but due to the hardships the virus has caused, it has opened my mind to several new paths to success.”

THE CAMPANILE

Column: Bye Campy By Rebekah Limb

Senior Staff Writer

t’s 1:30 a.m. on a school night, and I am still in the freaking MAC at Paly. I have a math and Chemistry test the next day, but instead I am here, fixing an Oxford comma on an InDesign page. Oh and trust me, nothing is worse than the feeling of attending first period the morning after one too many DaBaby songs at production and seeing blurred visions of headlines. When I first joined Campy, I couldn’t help but be intimidated by the big, scary Theeds (Our EICs. I know. It’s weird), and think Campy was some newspaper-producing factory where all the staff writers never slept. But as I’ve come to know it, even though saying, “Want to take a Campy?” a million times at brunch when no one wants it is not fun, Campy is actually not too bad, and here’s why. Production No, production is not something I made up to get out of watching a lacrosse game. It’s actually a real thing (and also a perfect excuse to not watch a lacrosse game). I love the look on other people’s faces when they walk into the lab and see 50 kids working on a newspaper while listening to eardrum-bursting rap. Oxymoron? I will never forget when we played Spikeball with Woj near midnight or when I helped a Campy prom asking, or when I inherited the aux or when I cried because a Theed gave me too many edits at 11 p.m. Oh, and I definitely will never forget that one time I asked someone to save me a samosa from Zareen’s for Campy dinner, and someone from Verde ate it. It’s been almost a year and a half, but I’ll find you. Don’t worry. Favorites My favorite thing about Campy was surprisingly not the Lucky Charms from snack time or going to Willy and the Four Boys concerts, but being able to write stories and interview people who I otherwise would never know. My favorite story had to be the Top 10 Paly Sports Moments where I got to interview state championship coaches, the girl whose mural is in the Paly gym and a Paly Olympian. My favorite way to interview is when the person I’m interviewing doesn’t feel unbearably uncomfortable when I am asking them questions, like the time someone hung up on me or when I had to be on an excruciatingly awkward FaceTime call for half an hour. But no, my absolutely favorite interview was when I was on a call for 30 minutes only to find out my phone wasn’t recording. Memories Some of my favorite memories from high school have to be whenever I was in MAC 103. Like the time Woj brought Halloween candy for everyone, and it was infested with millions of ants. Or the time Andrew drew the “little man” that wasn’t claimed for days. Or when our Theeds would show up to Campy functions. Or the longest day ever where our camping trip failed, but all the juniors had the energy of a lifetime, making us drive from the beach to a house to pho to Lake Lag. Or when I got Sophia out in Elimination on the first day during production (sorry again). Or when Neil perfected his guacamole lunch lady dollop technique. Or when someone told Gavin Newsom he looks like Matthew McConaughey. Or when the staff actually got hyped over the results of a certain Palo Alto City Council race. It’s hard to believe every midnight dance party in the lab, every yell from the Theeds, every snack time rush, every random guest speaker, every A1 mishap is finally over. To all the members of The Campanile, thank you for always saying the dumbest things, always making me stressed out about my page, always not leaving me food after practice and always making me laugh when I shouldn’t and smile when I don’t want to. My time at Paly would be incomparable without my time on The Campanile, and for that I am always going to be grateful. Oh, and one last thing, 2021. Don’t mess it up.

Friday, May 29, 2020

The Campanile

Column: Last day on campus

encapsulates high school experience By Max Rosenblum

Guest Writer

f you’re like me, your last day of high school is built up to be a big deal. It will be the culmination of everything you’ve built throughout your time at Paly. The pitch-perfect ending to four years of growth, love, laughter, tears and friendship. A day of celebration with your best friends and your class, many of whom you’ve known since elementary school. Or it’ll be a random Friday. My last day of high school started with AP Lit, where I definitely talked too much during a discussion. I can’t help it — I love talking about stories, and I want Mr. Rodriguez to think I’m smart. He’s one of the many inspiring teachers I’ve had at Paly whom I was always eager to impress.

A good portion of my time in high school was spent taking on overly ambitious projects that I definitely was not prepared for, only halfsucceeding and learning that doing that was better than never tackling the project at all.

Then I had a prep that led into lunch, during which I told myself I was going to do work, but, of course, ended up wasting time in the library and wandering around Town and Country with some friends. I always kicked myself for not being more productive during my preps, but in retrospect, I think I usually made the right choice. That was also when it was officially announced that school was out “until after spring break.” Ha. Seeing as this announcement came before the shelter in place order, there was a crackle of excitement in the air as we planned to make the most of a massive break right in the middle of second semester senior year. Whether at a spirit rally, a dance or a game, the collective excitement of Paly students is uniquely electrifying. My last class at Paly was InFocus, where we put together a show around the breaking COVID-19 news. Given the sheer amount of work that goes into making each show, we’re always running right

Column: School community allows Class of 2020 to thrive By Ben Gordon

up against the wire. But seeing as news was coming in constantly, we were basically putting the show together as it was airing.

Guest Writer

he students who make up Palo Alto Senior High School’s class of 2020 have all been taught to treat others the way they want to be treated. For many years, the Golden Rule has held steady as the strongest factor in our decision making. As we grew older, we learned to push the boundaries and break the rules. Our mindset changed from “What will others think of me?” to “Will I get caught?” The confidence we gained from becoming experts in analyzing risk factors led us all to enjoy our four years at the best public high school in the country. I wish I could say we did it on our own, but we didn’t: and I would like to offer respect to those who did their part.

I’m actually glad my last day was unexpected, because it allowed me to spend it honestly, without worrying about it being special in any way.

It certainly was not a perfect show — there were several technical errors — but even so, I’m proud of the work we did. A good portion of my time in high school was spent taking on overly ambitious projects that I definitely was not prepared for, only half-succeeding and learning that doing that was better than never tackling the project at all. At Paly, I found the resources and collaborators I needed to try, fail and try again. I’m endlessly grateful for this. I discovered many passions and completed many projects I am proud of. So even though it was a little anticlimactic, in a lot of ways my last day at Paly was a great encapsulation of everything I’ve gained in these four years — friendships, passions and procrastination skills. Sure it wasn’t perfect, considering that I didn’t get to see a lot of friends who I consider to be essential to my high school experience, but the expectation that any one day will serve as a completely satisfying conclusion to four years is unrealistic. I’m actually glad my last day was unexpected, because it allowed me to spend it honestly, without worrying about it being special in any way. If you’re feeling down about our time at Paly ending as unceremoniously as it did, I encourage you to do what I did and look closely at that last day. You will probably find everything you loved about your time at Paly was there, perhaps without noticing it. And while that day was the last day of classes, our time as Paly students is not over. We will bring the friendships created, the memories made and the skills gained with us to college, careers and beyond.

The confidence we gained from becoming experts in analyzing risk factors led us all to enjoy our four years at the best public high school in the country. I wish I could say we did it on our own, but we didn’t.

Our teachers have never let off the gas pedal, pushing each student to do their best. We are all thankful for this. Reese, Carl and Berkson worked around the clock to keep our students in class and out of trouble, and I commend them for this. The fabulous Wellness Team had our backs day in and day out and provided all students the opportunity to safely communicate authentic feelings and emotions. Our after-school activity advisers ensured we found time to play after a day’s worth of hard school

Art by Noa Lehrer

Design by Kai Vetteth Design by Anna Meyer

work. And it is important we acknowledge the role our community played in our success. They intervened when we needed it, but most often, they stayed out of our way and let us be kids.

As we head off in separate directions, whether that be for school, work or military service, I will always hold this community close to my heart. Our community continuously supported those with big hopes and dreams, and that will play a huge role in our futures. It is hard to admit that you’re selfish, but it is important that we, as a class, acknowledge some of our many selfish decisions. We were selfish with the volume of our music on Friday nights after home football wins, the times we woke our neighbors with endless laughing past midnight and trashing the city with eggs (for legal reasons, I was not in attendance). But it was these moments that brought us to where we are — apologies to those we upset along the way. As we head off in separate directions, whether that be for school, work or military service, I will always hold this community close to my heart. Our community continuously supported those with big hopes and dreams, and that will play a huge role in our futures. I am thankful for you all sticking with us this far, and after all the years and kids who came before us, you can finally have some peace and quiet on the weekends. It won’t be nearly as rowdy as it has been in the past. Enjoy it while it lasts. Many of us will be raising our kids in this town soon enough. I am honored to call myself a member of Paly’s Class of 2020 and, speaking for the entire class, we are all thankful to those who supported us both on campus and in the community. We are a talented group of young adults, and we are going to make you all proud. All good things must come to an end, but with all my heart, high school forever.

The Campanile

Friday, May 29, 2020

Faculty recall their favorite memories with Class of 2020

Teachers reminice on some of their best moments ranging from makeshift graduation to celebrating math holidays

Deanna Chute:

“(On Friday March 13) There was some talk about how this could be their last day of high school which seemed preposterous to me at the time — how quickly things change! Now they were going to miss prom and graduation, etc. etc. I said, “Then, let’s have a graduation!” “Really?” “Yes!” The kids made graduation caps out of construction paper (which had trouble staying on because it was so windy that day!). We went out to the senior deck and had ourselves a graduation ceremony, complete with a processional to a recorded Pomp and Circumstance, speeches and a fake diploma distribution with fist bumps. It was comical. It was heartfelt. It was a classroom community coming together and finding comfort in each other in the face of the unknown.”

Margo Wixsom:

“In September I took my AP and Advanced Photography classes on a landscape photography field trip to Don Edwards National Wildlife Refuge in Newark as part of the #Writeout National Parks appreciation project. It was such a delight watching the marvel and wonder on the faces of the seniors who had never been to this amazing national refuge — when it was only six miles from Palo Alto. Many of them drove back on their own time to take friends and family to the amazing overlooks and vistas that this park provides of the South Bay.”

Stacey Kofman:

Misha Stempel:

“Asking where they applied to college and finding out where they are going to end up. How utterly happy Tom Galetti was for his brother in the first swim race of the season.”

“Celebrating holidays (“Derivagift”!) and birthdays with 6° Calculus. Their caring and supportive spirit for each other and those around them.”

Kate McKenzie:

Chris Eggert:

“I loved being with my class. They were intelligent, funny, sassy, warm, hard working and talented. They were also kind and supportive with each other.”

“Watching INFOCUS with them and discussing current events and their travel plans for the summer.”

Grant Blackburn:

“I always love the first day of school. It is the first time I meet many of you, and when we do the penny drop game in class and we jump right into Economics, I can see the look on all of your faces as we dive into this new adventure together. Everything is still fresh and new and exciting. What will I miss the most: I will miss all of you, my students and those of you who I have worked with and gotten to know, even outside of class. You are the reason why I love my job so much, why I get up in the morning and come to work and why I am always so excited to teach and work with you.”

Text by: Emily Asher Art & Design by: Kiana Tavokoli Design by: Paige Knoblock

May Deng:

“Being in their Biology classes and Academic Planning classes to help them with learning Biology concepts. The class had fun playing the Biology Kahoot games. Some of the students made the Biology activities really funny. I had a great time working in their classes. When some of the Class of 2020 students were middle school students, I worked as an Instructional Aide for a few years at Greene Middle School, which used to be called Jordan Middle School. When they came to Paly, I came to Paly too. I got to see them grow up here. I will miss many of the students that I have known, since they were middle school students. I will also miss seeing all of them. I hope that they will have a great time wherever they are and will keep the memories of Paly with them.”

Alternative graduation suggestion: large-scale puppet show

Commencement changes leave seniors disappointed, sparking creative, new ideas for traditional ceremony By Naomi Jecker

Guest Writer

o the staff and student body of Palo Alto High School: In the 20 years of solitude that have passed since the mid-March shutdown of Paly, our lives have been fundamentally re-shaped. Prom and graduation have been euthanized like an aging tiger in an Oklahoman roadside zoo, leading to a permanent tear in the fabric of the senior year experience.

I’m suggesting that someone fashions 500 puppets, each pasted with the likeness of one of our graduating seniors in order to simulate our graduation digitally. There is no way, in spite of their wisdom and dedication, that

our administrators will ever be able to give the Class of 2020 the traditional senior year experience that we lost due to this pandemic. But if the seniors can provide administrators with a roadmap, born out of our collective consciousness, our brave champions of education can hardly fail to provide an adequate substitute.

I mean, help put on a puppet show. And that is why I write. I submit for your approval a proposition. Let us not mince words: I want a simulated graduation experience, enacted through puppetry. I’m suggesting someone fashions 500 puppets, each pasted with the likeness of one of our graduating seniors, in order to simulate our graduation. For those who question whether such an endeavor would be worthwhile, or perhaps even feasible, allow me to reassure you. A senior graduation puppet show, done tastefully, would be more in-

clusive and far more glorious than any normal graduation. Rather than waiting hours in the cruel heat for the underwhelming sensation of hearing our names called microphonically, we would participate through our puppet avatars, capably controlled by our revered teachers, and we could watch as passive appreciators of our own sparkling achievement through a Zoom call. Surely there are two teachers who are ready — no, eager! — to lay waste to such a challenge. I have no question that faculty members of such noble constitutions (I’m looking at you Radu Toma and Grant Blackburn) exist.

These will be mounted onto individual popsicle sticks and will proudly display cutout visage of a graduating senior. The task is a daunting one to be sure. Yet I say, let our faculty

have this honor.

The tribute teachers would lovingly craft these puppets, giving each the same careful attention to detail that those teachers have invested in their students. This would only require a tribute of two willing teachers of unquestionable regard (Toma and Blackburn, please answer your call of duty) to design a cardboard recreation of the Quad. They will produce 500-or-so green gowned student templates cut from construction paper, crowned with a cap and tassel. These will be mounted onto individual popsicle sticks and will proudly display the cut-out visage of a graduating senior. As our individual puppets gracefully take the cardboard stage to accept our diplomas, our friends and

family members (young and old, immunocompromised and immunocompetent) can observe us participate in an improved version of this traditional right of passage from the safety of their homes. The tribute teachers would lovingly craft these puppets, giving each the same careful attention to detail they have invested in their students over the last four years. As for a new graduation anthem to carry us forward into a post-COVID-19 epoch, I propose “Dance Monkey,” the musical embodiment of our monotonous techno-dystopian reality.

There is no way, in spite of their wisdom and dedication, that our administrators will ever be able to give the Class of 2020 the traditional senior year experience. My only question is to you,

Class of 2020. Are you brave enough to step forward and sign my petition supporting this idea? In times like these I think of these immortal words of YouTube personality Lele Pons: “Crisis must be wrangled into opportunity and dominated for the benefit of the ruling class.” Let us wield the sword of social distancing and carve away the opulent excesses of a boomer past. Let us step cavalierly forward and seize the moment history has afforded us. Let us not be the puppets of fate but the puppeteers. Rise up, comrades, and overthrow the ruling cla– I mean, help put on a puppet show. Simply sign the petition entitled, “Petition for a Puppet Show Graduation*” and we will banish the blight of capitalism to the trash heap of history– I mean, have a chance to celebrate together. HAGS! Naomi Jecker *Signing this petition signifies your unwavering support of Naomi Jecker to be your ruler for life.

Friday, May 29, 2020

The Campanile

‘sea’ ya later, seniors

What’s next for the Editors—in—Chief of The Campanile?

here will Theeds20 be? Holding the Editor-in-Chief position of the renowned high school newspaper The Campakanillé is an experience not many people understand. This year, the ragtag group of five who made up the editors, or Theeds as we like to call them, had their fair share of ups and downs as well as a few lefts and rights. After an (almost) full year of dealing with the staff ’s shenanigans, let’s take a look at what happened once the Brady Bunch escaped the incessant wrath of Chez MAC-103. To begin, let’s examine the fruitful life Annie Chen has led. After a virtual graduation, Chen decided her path to fame should begin early, so she dropped out of Wharton to realize her dream of stunt-doubling for actress Lana Condor in the third installment of “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” but failed miserably. The producers rejected Chen because she had too much potential and instead suggested she become TikTok famous to fulfill her passion of entertaining others.

the biggest jokester of the group, Lucy Nemerov, concluded her life needed a stark change. She dyed her hair bright purple, packed her bags and moved to Italy to find a place to indulge in as much gnocchi as possible. Nemerov’s gnocchi consumption snowballed into an increasingly laissez-faire lifestyle, and she became a hand model for her extremely soft palms. “I decided to put my genetics to use,” Nemerov said. “My secret i s shea butter.” While Nemerov w a s

at a hand shoot, a photographer from Cosmopolitan approached her and said she had the ‘perfect face for live television,’ and introduced her to his marketing team. Soon after, Nemerov landed a gig on Ellen then started her very own sitcom where she mimics foreigner’s accents and tries to speak Spanish with little kids on air. A f t e r graduating from NYU with a PhD, Miranda Li felt disconnected from her roots, so she returned to Silicon Valley and opened up her own boba parlor “Boba Ti by

“I just wanted everyone to be happy ... and the plants they looked thirsty.” Miranda Li

Li.” Li was so generous to her employees that she paid them twice the minimum wage. She also decorated the entire store with indoor plants but watered them so much that the floors began to flood. “I just wanted everyone to be happy,” Li said. “And the plants, they looked thirsty!” At some point, Li’s business went bankrupt, so she went abroad and wrote a memoir about it. Li now lives off the copious proceeds of her international book tour — as well as her business’s flood insurance payout — writing new short stories infrequently from the spider-style position she assumes in her conventional office chair. Not too far away, we find Frida Rivera galavanting across Europe in her hand-crafted outfits and biodegradable sandals. Because her food Instagram account took off at age 19 and put her on the top of everyone’s charts, Rivera quit

Text by leila

“They wanted me to take my hair out of my ponytail, but I wouldn’t do it,” Chen said. Currently, she is taking a break while icing a spinal injury from “throwing it back” too hard for her fans. After memorizing the history of every piece of art on Earth,

her studies and began traveling the world to critique frittatas. She is a food critic by day, mad-man seamstress by night. “I couldn’t decide between my two career options, so I will pursue them both,” Rivera said. During a stressful week of embroidering, she reverted back to her carnivorous ways and is now awfully content with her choice. Last but not least, during her time in New York, Jaures Yip landed an entry-level job at The New York Times and eventually became a column editor in 2025. Yip spends most of her days strolling through Central Park, perching herself on a rock with a loaf of bakeryf re s h

rye for the ducklings, waiting patiently for a story to unfold. One day, a small child began singing Yip’s favorite 2000s song but incorrectly recited the chorus. In fury, Yip yelled at the child to leave the pond and learn the lyrics to the song or else she would publicly shame him for being so uncultured and rude. “I was whispering, I swear,” Yip said. “The kids, they just never learn.” She finally found a story when a few parents in the park ushered their children away from where she sat and called park security. Clearly, Theeds20 carried with them their Theedlike expertise after leaving high school, and we are ever so proud of their accomplishments in the newspaper world and beyond. Check back in 10 years for updates on this story.

“They wanted me to take my hair out of a pony tail, but I wouldn’t do it.” Annie Chen

khan

a guest column from your asb President ear Class of 2020, I hope that you and your families are safe and healthy in these crazy times. And, before I continue, congratulations to us. We did it. Like many of you, I vividly remember my first day at Paly like it was just yesterday. I had confidently ridden my bike to school, somehow making it through the chaotic Churchill/ Alma intersection, was wearing my new navy Converse sneakers which I bought to commemorate the start of high school, and was on my way to the first of many “riveting” advisory sessions. And that’s when I got caught in a menacing sea of seniors—tall, proud, and dressed in camo, marching onto campus to the beat of music blaring from a giant speaker. To put it bluntly, I was terrified. Yet, at the same time a large part of me couldn’t wait for my turn to do the

same. Though after four years, since I still look like a freshman, it’s safe to say I didn’t do much of the intimidation. Just as I was beginning my journey at Paly, my older brother was approaching the end of his. I got to see the college admissions process, long-standing senior traditions, a serious case of senioritis, and, ultimately, the highly anticipated baccalaureate and graduation ceremonies

No Pants day and bringing in tons of water balloons to school for Beach Day. I had even decided on the incredibly punny Instagram captions that would accompany each picture m e m o r y. How 21st century of me. At that point, the most intriguing part about graduation was not the independence or freedom of going out into the world but rather

“I can’t wait to see you all in December when we toss those welldecorated caps.”

Pooja Akella

through his eyes, the eyes of one of those terrifying seniors I had run into. And, not surprisingly, my overactive imagination kicked in. I was excitedly raiding my dad’s closet for

Design by sophia moore and maya rathore Art by tien nguyen

getting to decorate my own graduation cap. (Priorities!) I had the rest of high school mapped out, and I was ready to start living it. A lot has happened between that first day at Paly and today in each of our lives, from sports to academics to our per-

sonal lives and to post-graduation plans. Some in accordance with what we had all mapped out and some the farthest from what we dreamt of. Along the way, if I’ve learned anything from my time at Paly, it’s the importance of knowing how to problem-solve. I think we can all agree that while Paly is a wonderful school that offers incredible opportunities, it is, in no way, perfect. In ASB, the first thing I remember learning was the notion of “adapting, overcoming, and improvising.” And as many say, the only certainty in life is uncertainty. Very reassuring, I know. But, I think there’s a lot of merit in this saying—recognizing that things will not always go your way is important, but knowing that how you respond to these unexpected events and overcome the barriers they toss your way is the best marker of one’s character.

This is a lot of big talk for an unaccomplished 18 year-old such as myself. I mean, what do I know? I guess, the first hand experience of living during what is likely the defining event of our adult lives—COVID-19. And, what it has confirmed for me is the firm belief that experiential learning is one of the best forms of learning. We’ve had to

problem-solve more during these last couple of months than likely ever before. Or, for that matter, any graduating class that has exited the hallways of Paly. And while the circumstances in which this learning has happened is incredibly unfortunate on a global level, it’s made us incredibly strong and empathetic human beings. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still mad at the universe for handing us what seems like a raw deal. I wish I had known that March 13 was going to be my last day as a student on campus. I wish I had known that that day was going to be my last opportunity to say thank you and goodbye to all of the teachers and staff members who helped me along the way. I wish I had known that my plans for the fun part of senior year were about to go out of the window. But I also recognize that I am incredibly fortunate that not experiencing the ideal senior year is the biggest of my concerns right now. In some senses, this situation has served as a blessing in disguise, which it certainly doesn’t seem like right now. But it will. Trust me. I can talk to my friends daily, I can experiment with cooking and baking frequently. I can listen to and make music every day, and, most importantly, I am safe. I’ve always dreaded the moment in which I’ll have to say goodbye to my family before heading off to college, and while I’ve spent perhaps a bit too much quality time with them of late, it will make the

goodbyes a lot easier to handle when the time comes. At the end of the day, this is not the senior year we had envisioned or that I had dreamt of soon after I ran into those menacing seniors four years ago. This is not the 2020 anyone even remotely expected. But it’s also a year we will never forget. It’s a year that we are experiencing as a class together and one that will leave us as trailblaz ers in our own right. Who else can say they graduated in December? Woo hoo! We have gotten more attention this year than other graduating classes. Though I’m not complaining; thanks, Krispy Kreme!. While I have complete faith that we will all be rockstars in spite of this situation, I am even more excited for us to celebrate all of our amazing accomplishments with this community that we’ve together built. Class of 2020, we’ve always been a unique class (shoutout to Spirit Week 2018) and will always continue to be one. Thanks to each and every one of you for contributing to an amazing four years together. I can’t wait to see you all in person this December when we toss those well-decorated caps and celebrate this major milestone on campus.

“This is not the 2020 anyone even remotely expected. But it’s also a year we will never forget.”

Pooja Akella

Lots of Love, Pooja Akella asb president

editor’s note: this is a preview of akella’s speech that she’ will deliver in december

Issue 8: May 29. 2020

Articles inside

Fight to the death over who gets the last toilet paper roll

In this time of confusion and A recent survey conducted by of students, less than half of

Get to know the FBI agent watching you from your computer

Stare blankly into you computer for 12 hours every day

Install and learn to play the pipe organ

Take a shot (of Gatorade) every time someone on TV touches their face

Re-read The Campanile until you pass out (for best results, repeat until quarantine is over

Try to make as many quarantine TikToks as you can