The Spoke November 2015

ncis doll Sept. 27.

NOVEMBER 24, 2015 CONESTOGA HIGH SCHOOL BERWYN, PENNSYLVANIA WWW.SPOKE.NEWS VOLUME 66 NO. 2

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hat’s the worst decision a person can make in high school,” junior Will Youman said.

Some may assume this is about drugs, alcohol or other vices. However, Youman is referring to simply checking a box on all College Board-administered tests, which allows colleges to access students’ cov-

eted contact information.

When students take a College Board test, they are prompted to check a box to enable colleges access to their contact information. If a student checks the box, the student will be in the communication network of colleges via email and regular snail mail.

College Board’s Student Search Service debuted in 1970.

Local Elections p. 3

College p. 6

The program permits college admissions offices to buy the names of students who had previously taken the SAT and are classified as potential students.

Former Dartmouth College admissions officer and current admissions consultant, Dr. Michele Hernández states that there is a method behind college mail.

Thanksgiving p. 14

“They usually use data from the PSAT or the PLAN® test for the ACT, so they buy mailing lists sorted based on scores they are looking for, so for anyone in or close to the range for the college or a minority group, they can break down the data a number of ways. But usually they just decide whom they are going to target, and they buy

Scarting p. 17

all the mailing information,” Hernández said.

Colleges have not always relied on mass mailings to attract interest. The evolution of uninvited college mail directed at high school students has a relatively short history.

See pages 6 and 7.

Adam Lockett/The SPOKE

Fall Captains p. 22

News

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

For-profit honor society offers select benefits at a cost Cissy Ming Staff Reporter The invitations arrived in cream colored envelopes, the students’ names and addresses handwritten in blue ink across the front.

The letters promised the recipients lifetime membership in the prestigious National Society of High School Scholars (NSHSS), exclusive opportunities and an edge in the competitive world of college admissions. All for a fee of $60.

With over one million members across 160 countries and 100,000 new members annually, the Atlanta-based honor society has grown quickly since its founding in 2002. The NSHSS operates differently from traditional honor societies, which spokeswoman Jelecia Miller claims gives it greater “flexibility in serving students.”

For critics, its for-profit tax status and compulsory membership dues raise questions about its credibility.

Students who allow the College Board to send their personal information to colleges, scholarship recruiters and other organizations give the NSHSS permission to send them invitations. According to Miller, the NSHSS contacts “academically excellent” students through mailing lists of qualified students assembled based on online profiles of test takers in the College Board database.

Guidance counselor Laureen McGloin advises students to conduct background checks on questionable organizations before sending money.

2 The Spoke

“I would encourage people, if they get mailings they’re unsure of, to run it by their counselor before they send money anywhere,” McGloin said. “In general, if you have to pay a lot of money for it

“When I hear about other people and their experiences, they have such great awards and accomplishments,” Syed said.

“My GPA is good, but I didn’t expect to get something this

build useful connections for college or a career. However, Miller claims the NSHSS sets no service or activity requirements for members because its size makes enforcing such a mandate difficult. Unlike tra-

Cissy Ming/The SPOKE

Feeling cheated: Junior Ayesha Syed was recognized by the NSHSS after submitting her registration fee of $60. In return, she received a T-shirt, bumper sticker and a subscription to weekly emails. and you don’t get anything but a name, that’s not something I’d usually say is worth it.”

Junior Ayesha Syed initially dismissed the letter as “spam,” but later joined the NSHSS at the suggestion of her family. Hoping membership would help her achieve her goal of becoming a doctor, she never considered the costs. In addition, recognition from the NSHSS gave her an unexpected boost in self-esteem.

prestigious. I thought ‘wow, am I really that great?’”

Despite the NSHSS’s for-profit tax status, Miller justifies the membership fee by citing the organization’s operational costs, member-exclusive benefits, scholarships and fee waivers. Giving examples of benefits the NSHSS provides to students, she says members have the opportunity to volunteer in Africa, study abroad in Europe and

ditional honor societies, the NSHSS lacks campus chapters. Since joining, Syed recalls that few NSHSS opportunities have been available to her, either because of distance or lack of notification.

Private college admissions consultant James Yannopoulos says that for-profit honor societies such as the NSHSS profit from membership fees but only return a small fraction of the money in

the form of scholarships. He describes the scholarship selection process as a “lottery,” since many students apply from across the nation. Based on revenue calculated from dues alone, the NSHSS collected $6 million in 2014, offering fewer than 3,000 need-based fee waivers. In its promotional materials, the organization claims it has distributed over $1 million in scholarships since 2002.

According to Yannopoulos, the NSHSS’s unconventional structure should serve as a warning sign for prospective members.

Evaluating invitations “is certainly a problem for students, they’re getting all this mail, all these letters like the (NSHSS) one,” Yannopoulos said. The legitimate honor societies “are self funding, have a board made up of various people in the field of education that work with high school teachers and guidance counselors and they don’t charge a fee and do their work on private contributions.”

Based on his conversations with college admissions officers, Yannopoulos questions the NSHSS’s claim that membership increases students’ chances of admission into top colleges. He says experienced admissions officers easily distinguish for-profit honor societies from reputable organizations such as the National Honor Society or the National Merit Scholarship Corporation.

Looking back at her decision, Syed regrets accepting her invitation.

“I feel cheated since I put in money for something I thought was great,” Syed said. “That was such a bad idea.”

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

News

School board turnover: five new directors elected Allan Du Business Manager While students enjoyed a cherished day off from school, voters from across the school district elected new Tredyffrin/Easttown School Board directors. On Nov. 3, more than 8,000 citizens across the district cast their votes in the 2015 municipal election, which oversaw the election of school board members and other local and state-level offices, including court judges and township supervisors.

School board members are elected by region, with three members representing each of the district’s three regions, creating a total nine-member school board. Five out of the nine positions in the board were up for grabs this year, with two seats open in Regions I and II and one seat available in Region III. Democrats Roberta Hotinski and Todd Kantorczyk won the ballot in Region I, while Democrat Michelle Burger and Republican Edward Sweeney received the winning votes in Region II. Republican Kate Murphy secured the sole seat in Region III, whose other two seats are filled by incumbent directors.

Topics of debate in this year’s election included the district budget and tax raises, security around schools and transparency in the district decision-making process.

“I am a strong believer in the principle of more: more transparency, more public disclosure, more committee meetings convenient to working parents and more involvement of residents in the early stages of the decision-making process,” Sweeney said.

Allan Du/The SPOKE

Civic duty: Poll volunteer Allyn Plambeck casts his vote in the 2015 municipal election. Over 8,000 votes were counted in 24 voting centers on Nov. 3 which led to the election of five new School Board directors.

Property tax increases are a hallmark issue during school board elections. In Pennsylvania, school boards are limited to a two percent tax raise each year based on regulations established in Act I of 2006 by the Pennsylvania legislature. Republican candidates generally favor keeping school tax increases to a minimum, while Democratic candidates skew more towards taxing at the two percent limit or exceeding it through special requests.

An active participant in local and national politics, Debra Ciamacca is the sponsor of Young Democrats Club and has been following the decisions of the school board.

“I think we’ve been very frugal with the taxpayers’ money but that has been misrepresented by some

Michael Zhang/The SPOKE

of the candidates who really think that we’re throwing money away.

For people to honestly know what’s going on, they need to actually investigate and then they can get to the truth,” Ciamacca said.

In recent years, the school board has outsourced aides and paraeducators as well as cut foreign language and applied technology courses in elementary schools to reduce costs. Candidates in this year’s election face the effects of those decisions and must decide on appropriate measures to reduce costs while maintaining a high standard of education.

“My plan is to apply creative thinking to protect the integrity of our programs while working with the financial constraints that we have. I have three girls in the district and I think they’ve had an excellent educational experience so far, and my ultimate goal is to continue that going forward,” Kantorczyk said.

Voter turnout in the precincts surrounding Valley Forge Middle School was exceptionally high, nearly 40 percent, emphasizing the importance of the fencing issue around the school during the campaign.

The debate over fencing around district schools arose in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings in 2012. The T/E school board planned to build fences around all district schools, but the residents living around Valley Forge Middle School protested as the potential fence would come into conflict with the homeowners association bylaws of the communities surrounding Valley Forge Middle School.

“There were many valid concerns relayed by the community about the plans for the proposed fencing project and that was related to the issue of transparency because there was a feeling that the district had gone down the road quite a bit with the fencing plan before engaging the surrounding community,” Kantorczyk said.

Newly elected school board member Kate Murphy plans to ensure the district operates sustainably in the upcoming years.

“Every day, the district leadership is bombarded with new and important demands. By planning not only for tomorrow, but also for the long term, we can responsibly provide the next generation with at least as many opportunities as we had,” Murphy said.

This year’s election also marked the first time more Democratic candidates won school board seats than Republicans in the history of the Tredyffrin/Easttown school district.

“The school board’s mission is not a political mission. It’s supposed to serve as directors of a

school district to make sure we have a top-notch education system, and my experience with school board members is that they’re people who really care about public education,” said Robert DeSipio, president of the Tredyffrin/Easttown Education Association and sponsor of Young Republicans Club.

While party affiliations are sometimes necessary in order to conduct a successful campaign, the inherent purpose of school boards is to provide for the educational interests of its students and as a result party politics play less of a role during their day-today decision making.

“The school board is supposed to be a non-partisan position and my plan is to approach it in that way,” Kantorczyk said.

The school board is also responsible for selecting the courses offered within schools and directing the decisions of the district administration.

“If you elect people to the school board who are very political and have strong feelings on getting involved in the curriculum, they could change what we teach. It’s happened in other places. School board members hold an important office,” Ciamacca said.

This year’s election is referred to as an “off-year election” as no presidential or Congressional candidates were a part of the ballot. Low voter turnouts are a common feature of off-year elections, with around 30 percent of total registered voters in Tredyffrin/Easttown casting a vote in this year’s election.

Although municipal elections are often overlooked by voters in comparison to national and state-level elections, local politics still has a large impact on daily life.

“People should care about their local elected officials. It’s kind of a sin in our country that we have people who are in our military who are dying for our right to vote and to be a free country and people can’t take the time to go out to the polls to vote,” Ciamacca said.

The Spoke 3

News

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Colleges on campus: ’Stoga holds inaugural college fair Betty Ben Dor Photography Editor The first of its kind in Conestoga’s history, representatives from dozens of colleges came together in one collective space to provide students with the opportunity to look at prospective schools.

“We have a great mix of schools and we hope that every student will be able to find at least three, four, five schools that can pique their interest,” guidance counselor Brian Samson said. “Even for a student who might be a little shy, it is just a matter of picking up some materials and taking them home to learn more about the school.”

“Anytime our kids can get in front of college reps and have conversations with them, not only are they exposed to college, but they’re given an opportunity to present themselves in the best light.”

-Guidance Counselor Jennifer Kratsa On Nov. 9, spokespeople from 100 colleges and universities set up tables in the two gyms to interact with students and distribute informational materials.

Conestoga capitalized on the fact that many college representatives were already in the area for the Chester County College Fair later that evening and sent out a mass email to a variety of colleges inviting them to its event.

“The college fair process in general is helpful. There’s so much out there, between web-

sites, and phone calls and emails from colleges, that having the chance to just interact with an admissions staff member and get some key questions answered and make that determination of either crossing a college off your list or digging further and seeing what they are about is crucial,” said Pennsylvania College of Technology representative Sal Vitko.

The idea was first introduced last spring, and the planning process spanned several months leading up to the event.

Using college fairs hosted on the Main Line as a model, the planning committee, which consisted of Vice Principal Misty Whelan and guidance counselors Samson, Megan Smyth and Jennifer Kratsa, decided to create an event that would let students browse through a “menu” of colleges and receive a more face-to-face experience with representatives from the schools.

The committee met about twice a month through October and more frequently in the weeks leading up to the fair. Since the event was a completely new concept, making it happen proved to be complicated.

“It’s been a long and arduous process for the counselors, just because the first time for anything is always hard work,” Kratsa said.

“The counselors are always trying to think of new ways to give the students access to college visits, and sometimes missing class (to attend the visits) is really hard on students and teachers.”

To avoid having students miss too many classes, the fair ran from eighth period to 3:00 p.m. with many eighth period teachers bringing their classes down to the fair. Although ’Stoga has had college visits in the fall for many years, these information sessions tend to be less efficient since students have to choose between going to the visits and attending class. Here, students received direct exposure to many schools at once and had a chance to interact with college representative.

“I really like it because it’s a

Betty Ben Dor/The SPOKE

Fair chances: The fair was in the large and small gyms and ran from eighth period until 3:30 p.m. Although targeting juniors and seniors, the fair was open to all grades. lot quicker and I’m not missing as much class. It feels more accessible,” junior Daphne Conroy said.

“I have definitely considered colleges that I would not have otherwise considered.”

Although it was available to everyone at Conestoga, the fair mostly targeted juniors and seniors, who are closer to going through the college admissions process.

However, senior Nick Marcil was slightly disappointed by the some-

what overwhelming atmosphere in the gym, saying he did not actually end up having many opportunities to speak with the representatives, due to the loud noise.

“It’s rather chaotic. It’s not that much information, it’s just showing you a brief bit about the schools, basically as much as you could see online. However, I think it’s a nice thing to have, but they should have it be less schools and more information,” Marcil said.

The school hopes it will be able to make this an annual event, to help continue providing ’Stoga students with the early exposure to college interactions.

“Anytime our kids can get in front of college reps and have conversations with them, not only are they exposed to college, but they’re given an opportunity to present themselves in the best light,” Kratsa said.

Betty Ben Dor/The SPOKE

Face to face: Students interact with a representative from University of California, Davis. The college fair provided an opportunity for students to ask questions and get information from representatives.

4 The Spoke

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

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The Spoke 5

News

Andy Backstrom, Michael Hong, Michael Li, Eric Xue, Jerry Zhu Co-Editors-in-Chief, Managing Editor, Co-Convergence Editor, News Editor Design by Adam Lockett

6 The Spoke

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Continued from p. 1 The Mailing Game After a dip in the number of high school graduates in the ’80s, higher education institutions began targeting students with direct mail, telemarketing and colorful brochures.

Since the ’90s, when high school graduation rates increased again, colleges have developed personalized electronic mailings to attract prospective applicants in a seemingly individual way.

However, schools purchase the names and contact information of students if their PSAT scores are in a certain range, which is usually broad, but the schools never see the students’ SAT scores, so the mailings’ meanings are suspect.

And while the quantity of mail has been increasing recently, so has the selectivity of schools. With more emails or brochures being delivered to students, the chances of those students applying rise. If more people apply, the acceptance rate of a school will likely decrease, making the school appear suddenly “elite.”

The University of Chicago is one example. In 2005 it boasted an acceptance rate of 40.3 percent, putting them in the range of schools such as Dickinson College, Gettysburg College and University of Miami (Fla.), according to DIY College Rankings. After increasing their marketing over the past decade, the number of applicants has risen by 331 percent, and the acceptance rate is now 7.8 percent.

Senior Connie Zhang understands the purpose of colleges’ marketing tactics, but believes that the mail can be a burden.

“Colleges want to increase their applicant pool, so they can reject more people,” Zhang said. “It’s really just about their rankings, and it is not about me, the student.”

Chair of Student Services at Conestoga, Jennifer Kratsa, realizes that the marketing strategy can be deceptive for some students, especially those who are new to the college process.

“A lot of times, I will have students say, ‘Oh, Brown is excited to have me apply.’ And they think that Brown wants them to attend their college, and Brown doesn’t know who they are,” Kratsa said.

Hernández also acknowledges this misconception.

“It is misleading to a lot of kids because they might think they have a great chance of getting in, when you know, that is their PSAT score, not even their SAT score or subject tests or APs,” Hernández said.

“They lower the numbers so they

can attract more students. It doesn’t indicate a likelihood of getting in.”

Due to the influx of mail, Zhang has established a routine practice in order to deal with her post and inbox.

“I am over it. I just throw it in the trash,” Zhang said.

Like Zhang, a majority of Conestoga students take the mailings with a grain of salt. Students have even noticed that some of the statistics on college brochures or in emails seem too good to be true.

“I get mail or email generally from colleges I never heard of, and they tell me all this amazing information: ‘We are the number whatever rank in this category,’ and that sounds really amazing but you Google this tiny little liberal arts college in the middle of nowhere that no one has ever heard of,” senior Josh Stead said.

Youman concludes that the method to improve communications with students, which has changed over the years, always returns to one variable.

The sending of the mail “is a tricky process. The whole goal is to make money, so it is the job of the consumer in a sense to realize that and act accordingly,” Youman said.

Armed with the identities of millions of students who checked the box or didn’t, the College Board and its current challenger, the ACT, as well as the organization that sponsors the Common App, have a ready-made opportunity to score in application fees. Except for those who qualify for fee waivers, most students and their parents can be expected to shell out fees as high as $80 to apply to a single college and charges for every score a student decides to send.

The College Board and ACT Over the years, the College Board and ACT Inc. have come to dominate the college admissions process. Despite both being non-profit organizations, every year they earn approximately $80 million combined. In addition, national pressures for college degrees have furthered the profits for these non-profit organizations.

Most colleges require applicants to take either the SAT or the ACT. Consequently, almost every student takes at least one of the two standardized tests.

“I don’t think we should have a test to be honest. (The SAT is) only testing math and English, and it’s not even testing history, science or anything like that. It’s not broad enough, and it’s just targeting kids who can take tests well,” senior Grace Henry said.

While students have the choice between SATs and ACTs for their main test, many colleges, such as Haverford College or any of the Ivy League schools, also require SAT Subject Tests.

In order to prepare for the main tests and the Subject Tests, many students buy practice booklets and seek professional tutoring through prep classes. Because of this, wealthier students end up having a socioeconomic advantage on the SAT and ACT.

“I think that speaks to the American education system.

It’s all a monopoly.

It seems like one company can determine the outcome of your whole life.”

-senior Grace Jumbo “People pay money to take classes on how to take the SAT so the more you pay, the better you do.

It’s really just a test of how much you can afford to practice,” senior Sophia Wang said.

In addition to the cost of preparing for these exams, the tests themselves come with registration fees.

Each sitting costs $54.50 for the SAT, $56.50 for the ACT and $26 for the Subject Tests, with an additional $18 fee for each Subject Test taken.

The College Board and ACT, Inc. “think education is a business, but it’s not,” said Neshaminy High School senior Eishna Ranganathan.

The pressures created by such extensive standardized testing have had a negative impact on students.

In one study by Joanne Locker and Mark Cropley, psychologists from the University of Surrey, students preparing for standardized tests experienced high levels of distress and anxiety, which were further amplified by the presence of factors such as low socioeconomic status and perceived academic ability.

However, after paying hundreds of dollars and spending hours of time, what do students gain?

“Many schools are saying there are other better predictors of student success and so we’d rather not even look at tests,” guidance counselor Maria Marano said.

Increasingly, colleges give less weight to standardized test scores.

Hundreds of colleges are now “test optional” or “test flexible” and no longer require students to take ei-

ther standardized test for admission.

There have also been occasions when the College Board failed to provide test security. In June 2015, the non-profit organization had a timing mistake for one of its sections. In the proctor’s manual, the instructions said to give 20 minutes as opposed to the supposed 25 minutes printed in the exam booklet.

“I don’t know how they made that one small mistake when they’ve been doing this for years; I just don’t understand how that happens. (The College Board is) testing our intelligence when they should really be testing their own,” Henry said.

To make the scores reasonable, the College Board decided to not score the affected sections. However, this received backlash from both students and testing experts.

Students were worried that the scores, which are used by colleges and universities to evaluate them for admission, would not be fairly calculated. Testing experts also questioned if eliminating the two scores would actually lead to fair scores since fewer items lead to less reliable scores.

The College Board also said they would waive fees for students who wished to retake the exam.

However, complaints were made that the non-profit organization only provided fee waivers for the next testing date, which was in October, four months after the controversial June test date.

“You could get a free (test) in October but I’m not retaking a five hour test,” Ranganathan said.

Another problem became apparent when cheating scandals started to become apparent, affecting the credibility of both the SAT and ACT exams. Because of this, the approximately three million students who take either test each year are now required to submit headshots of themselves in advance with their test application. This photo is then printed and mailed to each student and must be shown along with identification at the testing site as assurance against cheating.

Amidst criticism about scandals and profits, the belief that the College Board and ACT Inc. hold a duopoly on the American education system is becoming more prevalent as their influence continues to spill into various aspects of the curriculum already set by schools.

“I think that speaks to the American education system. It’s all a monopoly. It seems like one company can determine the outcome of your whole life,” senior Grace Jumbo said.

Continued on p. 7

News

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Continued from p. 6 Common Application Forty years ago, a collection of colleges created what would become the Common Application. Originally, it was a form that applicants to one member school could fill, photocopy and mail in to any of the others. When the Internet went online, the Common Application went digital, and expanded quickly. Initially comprising of 15 schools, the Common Application has grown to include more than 500 schools from around the nation.

Today, the Common Application is ubiquitous in the college application process. Every year, nearly one million students log in and submit more than 3.5 million applications. The Common Application, and its competitor the Universal College Application (UCA), are the only avenues for ’Stoga seniors to apply to most private schools online. For many, the convenience of the Common Application’s one form system allows for an expedited and more efficient application process.

“It’s good that I don’t have to submit that many applications to other schools because most of my schools use the Common App, and it’s also nice because it’s a good place where everything is, so you can see what’s going on,” senior Linda Ashmead said.

Yet for others, the Common App’s limited options to upload supplemental materials and generic essay prompts fail to capture the student as a whole.

“The Common Application doesn’t reflect what each activity is about. It doesn’t tell how much I was involved since it only gives you 50 or so characters to describe each one,” Jumbo said.

The Common Application has not been without national controversy as well. In particular, there have been gripes over what some might call the Common App’s monopoly on college admission applications. In 2013, Common Application Inc. was hit with an antitrust complaint. CollegeNET, one of its competitors, charged that the Common Application had been illegally constricting trade by throttling the competition. However, a federal court threw out the suit in mid-2015 after CollegeNET was unable to prove that the Common App’s market dominance harmed students and colleges.

However, for certain ’Stoga students, the monopoly that Common Application holds on the application process allows for “subliminal services” that create “frustration” and “anxiety.”

Jumbo spent 8 hours trying to submit her application for two early decision/action school on the day before the deadline.

She received little help from the Common Application despite the urgency of her case.

“The support that Common App provided was not adequate.

All they did was to tell us to keep trying. I had to rely on blogs to see that other people were having the same problems and that there was still hope that the whole website wasn’t down,” Jumbo said.

In 2013, the redesigned Common Application was plagued by glitches causing nationwide outrage. In the weeks leading up to the early decision deadline, the site prevented students from uploading forms, deleted essays and, in some cases, failed to submit completed applications. While many of the early issues have been rem-

edied, the site still suffers from a slow and unresponsive user interface. The Common App has reported 17 known issues ranging from problems importing essays to submitting teacher recommendations.

“In one of my essays, it was a topic about a cultural issue so I picked a thing about China, and I typed in a Chinese character into my essay but when i tried to upload it to the Common App, it showed up as the two boxes, so that was really annoying,” senior Linda Ashmead said.

The Common Application’s closest contender at the moment is the UCA, which counts 44 colleges as members (compared to the Common Application’s 571 member schools.) Unlike the Common Application, the UCA incorporates an auto-save feature, launches a month before the Common Application and allows submissions of additional material allowing some students to better represent themselves.

Yet even with its improvements, few students have used the UCA at Conestoga despite having the opportunity to do so.

“I understand that the Universal Common Application exists but other than that, I don’t know anything about it. If guidance offered the option and I knew more about it, I would probably use it,” Jumbo said.

Jumbo believes that the duopoly on the application system is unfair.

“There aren’t any other options so there weren’t any other services for me to turn to on October 31. I had to sit there and wait for the Common App. I couldn’t try any other website, I couldn’t try to fill out another application, I couldn’t go onto the school’s portal itself,” Jumbo said.

The Coalition On Sept. 28, a group of 83 colleges announced a plan to reverse the four-decade long application process molded by the Common Application.

Deemed the “Coalition of Access, Affordability and Success,” the consortium of public and private colleges, which includes all eight members of the Ivy League and colleges such as Penn State, is working on an alternative platform for admission applications and college guidance.

In an outline provided to guidance counselors, the Coalition announced the introduction of two different systems: an online application form similar to the Common Application and a portfolio system for students to “securely and privately store classwork, awards, journals and notes.” The Coalition plans to roll out the first version in April 2016.

But some believe that the Coalition may lean towards redundancy.

“The fact that they’re in the process of making a third ‘universal’ common application is kind of not logical. The point of a universal one is for it to apply to every school but it doesn’t apply to every school,” senior Hannah Hyams said.

At the end of the day, students look for simplicity.

“Personally, I’m in favor of every school in the country just using one thing because it would make everything a lot simpler,” Ashmead said.

The Spoke 7

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

STUDENT LIFE Behind the wheel Story and photos by Managing Web Editor Paula Miller

Wedged between statistics and calculus classrooms is a sun-drenched studio with shelves of clay pots rather than textbooks.

While beginners learn to make pinch pots, more advanced students work on the wheels.

Others wedge clay to use for a new project while those who have finished a piece work on trimming and glazing. The studio is full, but the atmosphere is calm. Everyone is focused — molding, spinning and sculpting slabs of clay into art.

The ceramics studio is home to beginning and advanced classes, as well as Mudders Club after school on Thursdays. This year, the studio has gotten a bit more crowded, with club membership up from around five people to more than 30. Ceramics teacher and Mudders Club adviser John Matthews attributes the club’s success partly to word of mouth and partly to the student leaders.

“I think we have really good leadership in our officers,” Matthews said. “Officers do more than just hold a role. If they’re good leaders, they activate a club, and the club gets a lot more done.”

Club president senior Sam Bouhdary has taken a particularly active role in teaching the many new club members to throw and build.

“I kind of see it as just a time to teach and give back the knowledge I’ve acquired,” Bouhdary said.

Mudders Club is technically an extension

of studio time for more advanced students or students who can’t fit the class in their schedules. However, according to Bouhdary, more than half of the club members are beginners.

Matthews, who has advised the club for more than 25 years, says that the atmosphere changes from year to year.

“Last year it was more serious people doing more serious work. Now it’s a lot more people trying it out as a new experience,” Matthews said.

Mudders Club is “half social, and they’re not doing anything I’m telling them to do.

They’re doing what they want to do — except for cleaning up,” Matthews said.

This freedom sets Mudders Club apart from the ceramics classes offered at Conestoga. Beginning classes follow a more structured progression to develop basic skills, starting with pinch pots and coil pots before moving to the wheel. Advanced classes start with several projects, including a threepound challenge, which helps to develop throwing skills by forcing students to turn three pounds of clay into an eight-inch tall piece. The class also participates in a wood firing at Chester Springs Studio, a 24-hour process and unique experience in which “the kiln itself is a creative partner,” Matthews explained. However, advanced classes enjoy a great deal of freedom.

In advanced ceramics, students “start to

Wes Reindel: Junior Wes Reindel’s interest in ceramics began at an early age, inspired by his grandfather who retired early to become a potter. He started classes at the Wayne Art Center at 10 years old, but only really developed his skills through the ceramics program at Conestoga. Recently, Reindel bought his own wheel to use at home and between free periods, Mudders Club and his wheel at home, he spends about 14 hours a week throwing.

As Reindel continues to build his skills, he hopes to live up to his grandfather.

“I like ceramics because it makes me feel a special connection with my grandfather. I can almost feel him working with and through me in all the pieces I make,” Reindel said.

8 The Spoke

work on ideas and the clay becomes a medium rather than an assignment,” Matthews said. “I give them assignments that are more conceptually based so that their ideas come forth, and during that process, we work towards a mastery of the techniques.”

With different levels and atmospheres, the wide reach of the ceramics program at

“I think it’s a plastic medium for plastic minds.

So if your mind is flexible and you’re willing to experiment and communicate with something that has its own mind, then it’s a good medium for you.”

-Ceramics Teacher John Matthews ’Stoga allows anyone to participate. Senior Aaron Ozturk took beginning ceramics as a freshman, but wasn’t able to pursue ceramics outside of a busy schedule until now thanks to Mudders Club.

Sam Bouhdary: For Bouhdary, ceramics wasn’t exactly love at first sight. He took beginning ceramics freshman year but soon dropped out, only to take the course again sophomore year after being inspired by his older brother. Now he spends up to three hours a day spinning and sculpting, either in class, during his free periods or at the wheel in his basement. With hard work and countless hours in the studio, Bouhdary has seen his work progress.

Bouhdary plans to minor in art and design in college so that he can keep ceramics in his life.

“The thing I just love about ceramics is that it requires your full focus and it requires a certain patience and benevolence. It’s unmatched in anything else I’ve encountered.”

“I had to focus on core classes, and I didn’t have any creative outlet,” Ozturk said.

“So I said why not join — it’s my last year here, and I’ve had a lot of fun so far.”

Senior Gina Stacey had been interested in ceramics since middle school and finally decided to take the class her senior year.

She lights up talking about ceramics, and although she has yet to make a piece she wants to keep, Mudders Club is the highlight of her week.

“I never took any other art classes, mainly because I know I can’t draw,” Stacey said. “I wish I knew how to draw well, but because I can’t, I’ve found another way that I can enjoy art.”

While ceramics requires great patience and persistence, Matthews finds that a certain type of mind will ultimately enjoy it.

“I think it’s a plastic medium for plastic minds. So if your mind is flexible and you’re willing to experiment and communicate with something that has its own mind, then it’s a good medium for you.”

Bouhdary echoes this sentiment, emphasizing the broad appeal of ceramics.

“A lot of people just think that they don’t have the artistic mind or the creative mind, and I thought the same thing about myself,” Bouhdary said. “I always tell people to just try your hand at it, give your best effort and sometimes you can find something you love.”

Harvey Howarth: Sophomore Harvey Howarth started ceramics at the Wayne Art Center when he was just five years old. Now he takes the advanced class and participates in Mudders Club as an escape from the stress of core classes.

“It’s a bit like yoga, just very calming when you throw and very relaxing,” Howarth said.

However, Howarth says that ceramics also requires work, focus and dedication.

“It can be a little frustrating when you throw something really nice and then you mess it up at the last second. So you really have to pay attention throughout the whole time,” Howarth said.

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Student Life

The sky’s the limit: senior soars in plane Warren Zhao Staff Reporter Senior Michael Endres is just like any other teenage high school student — except for the fact that twice a month he goes to the Brandywine Airport, slips into a Cessna 172 and soars into the sky.

“I’ve been flying for as long as I can remember. I think my first flight was when I was around four months old,” Endres said. “Because we have family on the West Coast and in Europe, we traveled so much I eventually learned to love it. My grandfather was an airline pilot, so it runs in the family.”

Endres has flown a plane as far north as New York City and Harrisburg and as south as the Washington D.C. area.

“Taking off is one of the best Warren Zhao/The SPOKE parts. It gets pretty interesting when Plane sight: Senior Michael Endres stands next to a Cessna 172.

Endres has been in planes for as long it gets windy because the airstrip is located right in between for- as he could remember. He was first introduced to flight after traveling to meet his family when he was four. ests of trees, so you have to keep the pilot must deliberately put the lots cannot fly alone until they are proper age,) I started taking lesit under control,” Endres said. plane in a stall, either by manually 16 and cannot obtain their license sons more frequently,” Endres said.

Endres recalls that his most cutting off power to the engines or until age 17, Endres was told that There are four minimum requireexciting experience in flying was by flying at a very steep angle and it was a little early to begin think- ments for becoming a pilot in the completing a stall maneuver. In his waiting for the plane to lose lift. ing about seriously pursuing flight. United States. In addition to meetopinion, stall maneuvers are one Endres first approached the Bran“I was really eager, so I started ing the minimum age requirements of2015_HS_Newspapers the most hectic movements in dywine Airport with4:32 his PM proposition taking lessons about once a month. for solo flying and license eligibility, (10.312 x 5.843).2_Layout 1 8/11/15 Page 1 flying because, to be successful, to fly when he was 13. Because pi- As I started to get closer to (the potential pilots must also be able to

communicate in English both verbally and in written form and hold at least a third-class medical certificate.

Two types of certifications are available for pilots around the U.S. — the recreational certificate and the private certificate. Recreational certifications limit the pilot to travel within 50 nautical miles of the home base and restrict the maximum altitude the pilot can fly to 10,000 feet above sea level. Endres, however, holds a private certification which allows that he can fly anywhere in the United States, and possibly beyond, as long he complies with international and foreign flight laws.

Starting out with the typical training plane, the Cessna 152, Endres has since moved on to the popular Cessna 172 that he rents from his flight school. Both are single-engined planes that are primarily used for personal use.

Endres claims that he never gets tired of seeing all the sights when he flies. Flying around the area and seeing everything shrunk to a much smaller scale gives him a sense of exhilaration.

“I love the experience. I love being able to fly. I’m interested in engineering, so I love learning about how airplanes fly. Overall, it’s just a great time,” Endres said.

A high school senior who completes our program will receive:

“Working with Mr. Clark is like working with an insider in a college admissions office.”

Parent of a senior at Lower Merion (PA) High School, class of 2015

“The list of colleges for application you constructed fit my child perfectly.”

Parent of a senior at Great Valley (PA) High School, class of 2014

■ a personalized college planning timeline, ■ a working list of colleges for application.

For many students our program begins before the senior year.

The College Admissions Planning program is under the direction of David Clark, (Ed.M., Harvard Graduate School of Education), an independent college admission consultant with more than thirty-five years experience working with high school students and their families.

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Call David Clark at 610-642-4873, ext. 52 or email him at: david@collegesearchnow.net

For informative articles about an effective college search plan, visit Mr. Clark’s blog at www.collegesearchnow.net.

College Search Now ~ Center for Psychological Services, LLC 125 Coulter Avenue, Ardmore, PA 19003 ■ Tel: 610.642.4873 Paoli Executive Green, Suite 304 ■ 41 Leopard Road, Paoli, PA 19301 Email: david@collegesearchnow.net

The Spoke 9

Student Life

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Beard-watch: teachers and students let it grow

Warren Zhao Staff Reporter

At Conestoga, some males — students and faculty alike — shirk their razor blades for the month of November and let their facial hair grow free. They participate in a challenge called “No Shave November” in which one does not trim his facial hair during November to help raise awareness for men’s health issues.

Math teacher Matthew Miehl, who sports a long beard yearround, first found out about the movement from his classes.

“I heard about it from the students. It was mostly just something fun (to participate in,)” Miehl said.

Awareness of “No Shave November” is mostly spread by word of mouth, with males who have heard of it or who decide to participate telling their friends about it.

“I heard about it in middle school from guys who have older brothers and how it’s sort of a competition among some people,” bearded senior Rohan Gandhi said.

There are two main organiza-

10 The Spoke

Warren Zhao/The SPOKE

Fear the Beard: Senior Rohan Gandhi and science teacher Kevin Strogen sport facial hair for “No Shave November.”

The movement spreads awareness about men’s health issues. tions that are behind “No Shave November” — the Matthew Hill Foundation (the organization officially behind “No Shave November”) and the Movember Foundation. Both encourage men to put

down their razors during November and donate. Participants can sign up on the websites of each organization and start a fundraising program, where people who support the organizations can also

donate to the foundations. The funds go to causes like research for prostate and testicular cancer, mental health and physical inactivity.

“Anybody can participate, even if you can’t grow a full beard, or you don’t think you will look good. It’s not about looking good. It’s about not shaving for a month, trying to raise awareness and donating to a cause,” bearded math teacher Alexander Rives said.

Some males in the school still choose not to participate.

For example, sophomore Scott Jean could not participate in “No Shave November” because wrestlers in the school cannot wear beards during the season. Other men choose to participate in alternative beard growing events, such as science teacher Kevin Strogen.

“In the past, I have (participated in) ‘Octobeard’ more than ‘No Shave November’ because usually, I would incorporate the beard into a Halloween outfit. I never really did ‘No Shave November’ just because I grow beards periodically through the year,” Strogen said.

While sharing a similar concept and common goal, “No Shave November” and “Movember” actually have differences in the way they encourage men to grow out their facial hair. Men participating in either movement must shave clean Nov. 1, but from there differences appear. “Movember” promotes the growing of a mustache and states specific rules for growing one. It cannot join with either sideburns or the chin. On the other side, “No Shave November” tells men to grow out everything they can in November and shave it into a unique mustache when the month draws to a close.

Men commonly participate in both of these movements, but most just see it as a form of fun and camaraderie with their fellow males.

Although sophomore Alex Stigall does not sport facial hair, he still supports “No Shave November.”

“It’s a good cause, and I think it’s good to spread the idea. I still think we could do more. I mean, I don’t think a lot of people know about donating money to those organizations,” Stigall said.

Student Life

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

T eacher

F eat ur e

Spanish Teacher Ryan Palmer shares his experience on “House Hunters International,” his biggest fear and his favorite travel experiences Mary Mei Student Life Editor Where are you from?

I grew up in South Williamsport, Pa. near the Little League World Series, but I’ve never been to a Little League World Series game. For college, I went to Millersville University, studied abroad in Chile and now I’m at Villanova.

How did you decide to become a Spanish teacher?

I was sitting in my high school Spanish class, and I enjoyed it a lot. I looked at what my teacher was doing, and I said to myself, “I think I can do this.” There was only one Spanish teacher in my high school and she was really influential to me. It was a snowball effect from there. I really liked the idea of being in education and Spanish is a lot of fun.

Why do you think it’s so important for students to take Spanish in this day and age?

The world has become very interconnected, and the idea that you only know one language is so antiquated now. The majority of Europeans and the rest of the world probably speak more than one language. In order to stay relevant and in order to stay competitive, you have to know another language.

How do you spend your time outside of school?

I watch a lot of cat videos, I read a lot of books, I volunteer, I spend a lot of time with my wife and we watch teen TV shows like “Teen Wolf” and “Jane the Virgin.” I also enjoy making music — I dabble a little bit with the guitar and the piano.

I heard you were on “House Hunters International,” what was that like?

Reality TV is totally fake, but it was a really fun experience.

I was painted

out as the cool guy while my wife was the mean, cranky wife. Everything is fake on the TV show. You have to have the house before you go on the program, and you have to have everything settled. Then they show you two random properties. The hardest thing about it is that the entire time your mic is on so all of the conversations you think are private are actually being listened to by someone else. That was pretty uncomfortable.

Where did you buy the house on “House Hunters International?”

We live about an hour west of Seville in Spain.

It’s on the coast in a town called Cataya. It’s right on the water.

If you weren’t a teacher, what would your job be?

If I wasn’t a teacher, I would probably be a therapist. I like working with

people, and one thing I love about teaching is how spontaneous it is and how it changes from day to day. I think therapy would always present a new situation.

Do you have a secret talent?

I don’t know how secret it is, but I often make spontaneous songs on the guitar to my wife. I am a master punner and rhymer. I love to make puns and rhymes. I think that’s all, I can’t tell the rest because they are secret.

What were some of the hobbies you had or clubs you were a member of in high school?

In high school I was in the chess club, National Honor Society,

What are some of the countries you have been to?

Aside from Canada, we’ve been to Costa Rica, Perú, Chile, Ecuador, Argentina, Spain, Portugal, Germany, France, Italy and England.

What were some of of your favorite travel experiences?

I really liked going to Berlin. My sister lives in Germany and we went to visit her there. We also

Ryan P a l me r Student Council and the Spanish club. For hobbies, I played too much guitar. I was one of those kids that it was like, “oh no, he has his guitar again.”

went to Machu Picchu last summer and that was amazing.

What’s something goofy about you that your students don’t know?

I’m not ticklish.

If you could have dinner with any three people, who would they be?

Walt Whitman, Frederick Nietzsche and Julius Caesar.

What’s your biggest fear?

My biggest fear that is not really a fear was, for a while, the water fountain and the part that curved.

I was afraid that whenever I would drink out of it someone would hit me, and I would hit my mouth on that part. My real fear would probably be reaching the end of my life and asking myself, “What did I do?”

If you could give one piece of advice to high school students, what would it be?

Worry less about your grades and worry more about making good memories.

Favorites: Movie: “Fellowship of the Ring” Band: Explosions in the Sky Food: Italian Hot Sausage TV Show to Binge Watch: “The Walking Dead” The Spoke 11

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Tuesday, October 24, 13, 2015 Tuesday, November

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Student Life

Ian’s Cajun Corner

A kite dancing In the wind

Ian Ong Centerspread Editor

Allison Reagan Staff Reporter

Southwest Louisiana. It’s probably the only place where you’ll find music with a mixture of ballad, blues, jazz, waltz and the shuffle, all tied together by the sound of a wailing accordion. Representing the vibe of a lost era, Cajun and zydeco music take the musical styles of medieval France and Africa and bring them to the bustling bayou. Even if they are not necessarily considered “mainstream,” Cajun and zydeco music are genres that are bursting with variety, sure to satisfy nearly any listener.

Cajun music has its origins in the music of the French Acadians, who were banished from their settlement in present day Nova Scotia by the British in 1755. The Acadians finally settled in southwest Louisiana, bringing with them their unique traditional music. These songs are still sung today, serving as the most complete expression of Cajun beliefs by including images of love, the family, troublemaking and loneliness.

Elsewhere in Louisiana, black creoles developed a new, separate genre from Cajun music: zydeco, which combined blues with similarly French lyrics. While they may not be everyone’s cup of tea, Cajun and zydeco have garnered fervent followings with their infectious rhythm and poetic lyrics.

Zydeco Gris-Gris by BeauSoleil Take the genres of jazz, blues, Tex-Mex and country, shake it all up and what do you get? You get BeauSoleil, a band that has been performing Creole folk tunes since the ’70s. This 1989 single from the album “Bayou Boogie” makes artwork of the Cajun style yet keeps traditional ties strong. The song fuses modern melodies with undeniably Cajun rhythm, and captures the spirit of the bayou through audible shouts of “Zydeco!” This piece simply screams the feeling of getting together with your buds and just having a good time. Just like the English translation says, you “can’t cool the blood that’s a’boiling in the bayou.”

Zydeco Junkie by Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp Band Released in 2010, this contemporary zydeco hit is sure to appeal to more modern ears. From the Grammy-winning album of the same name, the piece showcases Roy “Chubby” Carrier’s vision of zydeco, a syncopated tune mixed with jazzy beats that turns out to be a real earworm. The brilliant organ work and chorus are captivating enough, but what really brings the whole piece together is the care-free guitar solo, amounting to a musical masterpiece that is sure to get your feet moving. Give it a quick listen (that’s all it takes,) and rest assured: you may find yourself a zydeco junkie too.

Parlez Nous à Boire by The Balfa Brothers Roughly translating to “Let’s Talk About Drinking,” this piece pays homage to traditional Cajun music and lyrics. Released in 1967 in the album “The Balfa Brothers Play Traditional Cajun Music,” the tune captures the Louisiana soul with a repetitive yet catchy melody and a French ballad style. Cajun music is often written about an abandoned lover who hopes for their spouse’s return, exemplified in this piece as it explains the pitfalls of marriage and the dangers of love. The performing brothers, Dewey, Will, Rodney, Burkeman and Harry, combined their separate musical talents to create a song that ultimately retains its meaning today.

007 is back and just as smart, suave and sophisticated as ever. Daniel Craig returns as superspy James Bond in his fourth film in the role of England’s greatest assassin in the recently-released “Spectre.” The sequel to Craig’s last Bond film, “Skyfall,” “Spectre” falls in line with its predecessor almost perfectly — it’s raw, dark and teeming with shadowy twists. It follows many conventions introduced in the previous film, including its sinister tones and allusions to Bond’s arcane past.

A familiar cast of characters returns with Craig to MI-6. Ben Wishaw reprises his role as the technological super genius Q and Naomie Harris returns as Bond’s confidant, Moneypenny. While Judi Dench ended her long-running role as the matriarchal M at the end of the previous Bond movie, “Skyfall,” Ralph Fiennes fills the role almost seamlessly, suspenders and all.

And who would James Bond be without a gorgeous leading lady by his side? Italian actress Monica Bellucci, at the age of 50, now holds the title of oldest actress to play a leading Bond girl role. Léa Seydoux partners with James Bond, acting as the highly intelligent Madeleine Swann.

Warned by the former M in a cryptic video message that arrives after her death, James Bond is sent on a journey into his past to uncover a sinister terrorist organization wreaking havoc on the world’s major cities. M’s warning leads Bond to Mexico City on a rogue mission without the knowledge of MI-6’s new M (Ralph Fiennes) resulting in the removal of his field clearances by M. Understanding the importance of the former M’s warning, however, Bond turns rogue again and travels to Rome, where he infiltrates a secret meeting of the underground organization Spectre, the group responsible for the world’s terrorist attacks. His search then leads him to the Austrian Alps and Tunisia in pursuit of Spectre’s cruel and ruthless leader, Franz Oberhauser (Cristoph Waltz). In his race for the truth, Bond is forced to confront key figures from his past, and the closer he gets to Spectre, the

more he learns about his own dark connections to the group and its leader.

The fights and high-speed chase scenes in the film are a visual masterpiece, with every punch, shot and smash choreographed and executed with extreme detail.

Bond chases a group of kidnappers in the air on a snow-covered mountain, escapes the clutches of a killer in a sleek sports car in the tight streets of Rome and engages in a slugfest with one of Oberhauser’s goons in the dining car of a desert train. In terms of action, “Spectre” has more than enough to go around.

It can be argued that a Bond film cannot be considered complete without a comparable villain to stay one step ahead of the superspy. Christoph Waltz fills this role perfectly, drawing on both his slight Austrian accent and highly visible facial scar to

“In terms of action, ‘Spectre’ has more than enough to go around.” complete the look of the perfect Bond villain. But his hatred and long-held grudge against Bond are based on a weak connection from their past and lack the depth to sustain any plausible animosity between the two. Oberhauser’s incredibly involved and meticulous quest for revenge appears forced and not at all proportional to the damage he has caused in Bond’s life. The script lacks the strong motivations needed to make Waltz’s actions seem like anything but an overreaction.

“Spectre” is nothing less than a darkly entertaining spy thriller. The plot hits a few snags along the way, but it is nothing the superb acting and action sequences can’t make up for. Though not as brand-changing as “Skyfall” was, it certainly contains the elements necessary to place it among the ranks of the greatest James Bond films of all time.

The Spoke 13

Centerspread

THE SPOKE’S GUIDE TO

THANKSGIVING

Story by Emma Purinton Recipe by Camille Kurtz Mad-Libs by Mary Mei Design by Ian Ong and Michael Zhang

It has been a long three months since summer, and students are now starting to gear up for six continuous days away from all the English papers and math tests. Over Thanksgiving, take a break from the school stress and unwind with a few local activities compiled by The Spoke.

Watch the Philadelphia Thanksgiving Day Parade

Check out Reading Terminal

(Thursday, Nov. 26; broadcasting begins at 8:30 a.m.)

Philadelphia's own Thanksgiving parade is nothing new, but it is a seasonal event worth a visit. The parade is the oldest Thanksgiving parade in the country, with the first one held in 1920. The parade always features giant balloons, celebrity guests and performances from a variety of groups such as marching bands and dance companies. Some of last year's attractions included Verizon's Under the Sea float, N'Sync member Lance Bass and Anna and Elsa from Disney on Ice. Most of the 1.4 mile long route can be seen on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, but the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art offer a different view of the finish of the parade. For those who want to see the parade in person, recommended parking spaces include Gateway Garage at 15th and Vine St. and Autopark at 19th and Callowhill St. The parade is also broadcasted each year by 6 ABC.

(From Nov. 27-Dec. 31, opens at 10 a.m.)

Reading Terminal Market is great any time of year — dozens of vendors offer hundreds of types of food, all under one roof. But over Thanksgiving, Reading Terminal hosts another attraction: the Reading Terminal Holiday Railroad. The model railroad expands over 500 square feet and features 17 working trains. Visitors can interact with the model through buttons that activate lights and moving parts on the models.

Try Thanksgiving for lunch Although unknown to many, those who have had a Wawa Gobbler wait all year in anticipation for its return around Thanksgiving. The sandwich, made with turkey, gravy and cranberry sauce, only sticks around for a limited time. Historically they have stuck around through December. Luckily, there are plenty of opportunities to try the Gobbler before it's gone again, as Wawa has locations nearby in Wayne, Paoli, Malvern and King of Prussia.

Run (or walk) the Turkey Trot (Thursday, Nov. 26 at 9 a.m., Wilson Park, $25 to register) The Turkey Trot is the perfect event for runners, non-runners and those who just want to get ready for a true Thanksgiving feast. The 5K takes place at Wilson Park Thanksgiving morning and is open to anyone for a registration fee of $25.

The proceeds from the Turkey Trot benefit Face to Face of Germantown, a non-profit organization that protects the health and stability of the community. Face to Face provides free food, health care, social services and training to those in need. It's a perfect way to give back to the community and get in right mind-set for the big dinner that night.

Visit Longwood Gardens

Take advantage of the free parking

(On display from Nov. 26-Jan. 10) For those wishing to get a jump-start on the Christmas season, Longwood Gardens' "A Longwood Christmas" begins Thanksgiving Day. The annual exhibition displays thousands of Christmas lights, seasonal and exotic plants and Longwood's famous lighted fountain displays. Escape the cold inside the Conservatory, which will be filled with trees decorated with icicles and glass ornaments.

After the colorful fall foliage, "A Longwood Christmas" allows for winter to get its fair share of attention and appreciation.

(Nov. 26, every Saturday until Dec. 25 after 11 a.m.)

In the spirit of the holiday season, there are plenty of free parking opportunities in Philadelphia. All of Thanksgiving, as well as every Saturday until Christmas after 11 a.m., parking meters in Center City will not be enforced. Utilize the free parking while it is available, and head into the city for shopping or restaurants.

While in Center City, stop by the Rothman Ice Rink at Dilworth Park or take a walk through the Christmas Village at Love Park.

14 The Spoke

14 The Spoke

Zhang

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

THANKSGIVING MAD-LIBS

Tuesday, October 13, 2015

Make a HandSTEPS Turkey!

Turn on oven broiler. Place red bell pepper on a foil-lined cookie sheet and set under broiler. Broil pepper until exterior blackens. Rotate the pepper so that the entire pepper becomes blistered and blackened. Remove from oven and loosely tent with foil so that the pepper “steams.” Once cooled, remove the blackened skin, stem, seeds and inner membrane.

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Note: You can also use jarred roasted red peppers if you want to simplify.

THANKSGIVING HORS D’OEUVRES Roasted Sweet Potato and Red Pepper Crostini with Lemon Frisee Salad Garnish

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Roast the sweet potato with the peel intact until a fork can be easily inserted into the center of the sweet potato.

Cool. Cut it in half and scoop out the sweet potato until the peel can be discarded.

Slice the loaf of French bread diagonally into one-quarter inch thick slices. Slicing at an angle elongates the slices and looks elegant. Place the bread slices on a cookie sheet. Combine the olive oil and the crushed garlic with a little salt and pepper (1/4 teaspoon each.) Paint each slice of bread on both sides with the olive oil mixture. Place bread slices under the oven broiler and toast until golden brown. Turn slices over and toast second side. This process happens quickly (less than a minute,) so watch carefully to avoid burning your slices. Cool.

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Note: Add any leftover olive oil-garlic mixture to the sweet potato puree (see next step.)

Place the following into a food processor and puree: scooped-out roasted sweet potato pulp, roasted red pepper, tahini, maple syrup, cumin, paprika, cinnamon, salt, pepper, chopped hot peppers, remaining olive oil-garlic mixture used for bread slices and 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice. Puree until smooth.

Wash the frisee, pat dry and tear into manageable, bite-size pieces. Place in a bowl. Add the olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, sugar and dill. Toss gently to ensure the dressing coats the greens.

Spread some of the sweet potato and red pepper puree onto each slice of bread, not soaking the slice, but generously coating it. Top with a bunch of the frisee salad and serve.

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The Spoke 15 The Spoke 15

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

OPINION You get a test, you get a test, everyone gets a test Standardized tests have been an integral part of college admissions for a long time. Beginning in 1901, when the College Board administered the first standardized test, students were able to take one test for multiple colleges.

Today, standardized tests pervade the lives of not only high school seniors, but all students in general. A study by the Council of Great City Schools has found that the average bigcity public school student takes 112 mandatory standardized tests from pre-kindergarten to graduation. While we at Conestoga do not have to take eight tests a year, Conestoga students still take a sizeable number.

Since elementary school, Pennsylvania students take tests such as the PSSAs and the ERB to assess their perfor-

mance. In high school, we take the Keystones and various college admissions tests, which, although not technically mandatory, are required for admission to most colleges.

For high school students, the number of tests is increasing.

Pennsylvania is developing additional Keystone exams for government/civics and composition, which may be implemented in the future. In addition, passing these exams will be required for graduation.

As for college admissions tests, Conestoga just added an extra testing date for both the SAT and ACT. Even underclassmen are not safe from the influence of the College Board, as the changes to the PSAT and the creation of the PSAT 10 and PSAT 8/9 significantly increased the omnipresence

Pallavi Aakarapu/The SPOKE

16 The Spoke

of these standardized exams.

Once considered a test for juniors to prepare for the SAT and to earn scholarships, the PSAT now permeates to middle school.

Indeed, middle schoolers are also affected by the college admissions process. Students begin the college admissions process earlier and earlier. Some students begin review for college admissions tests in their sophomore year. Other students stress about their GPA in the first semester of their freshman year. And now, the College Board encourages eighth graders to join their empire of standardized tests.

These standardized tests cause anxiety for students.

Students tend to put too much weight on these exams and worry about the consequences of doing poorly. For middle schoolers taking such a test for the first time, the experience can be stressful and confusing.

Even in high school, competition for college admissions cause students to stress over these tests.

However, perhaps because colleges recognize the negative effect of standardized tests on students and their subpar reflection of a student’s college readiness, colleges are increasingly putting less weight on standardized tests. Instead, many colleges use a holistic approach to considering admissions, so students are not penalized for being bad test takers.

Other colleges are making the move to phase out these standardized tests, and no longer require the SAT nor the ACT for admission. However, most colleges still require these tests for admission.

But we shouldn’t let standardized tests control us. Remember that there’s more to learn in school than just math and english. You can pursue your passion in criminal justice or microbiology, even if the College Board doesn’t have an AP curriculum or a subject test for it.

From the Editor: the college mentality

Andy Backstrom Co-Editor-in-Chief People sometimes question the claim that junior year is the hardest. However, the claim is correct. It’s just that senior year is the busiest.

For my fellow seniors, you know this. All of the college meetings, guidance counselor appointments, applications, supplements and the cherry on top — seemingly extraneous homework — complicate a time that is supposed to be the denouement of our high school careers.

Whenever you try to get ahead on that next application with a deadline creeping closer, you are confronted with yet another test. Whenever you want to hang out with friends, you have to be conscious of the time you are stealing from work yet to be done.

It is flat out stressful.

But, we are a team. We are all in the same boat, no matter how many colleges are on our application lists. Everyone is going through similar trials and is attempting to overcome variations of the same obstacles. It may be useful to think in these terms.

Discussion of college can be constructive, even a relief. But complaining about the process can be selfish. For one individual, venting can occasionally relieve stress. But just as often it only serves to increase worry in both parties to the conversation. It also can inspire resentment.

It is enough of a distraction that students necessarily compete against each other for college admission. The least we can do is eliminate some of the

tension inherent in that predicament.

Teachers understand that deadlines coincide with assignments and often make accommodations. Coaches permit athletes to miss practice to prepare for and take standardized tests.

Everyone is willing to help during this time. As students, we owe each other a little space as well.

During the school day, it is better to postpone talk about college, unless it is with your guidance counselor or a friend who raises the topic for a specific reason. We are here to learn new things every day, and worrying about something on your Common Application that you cannot change until you get home is pointless as well as frustrating.

“We are all in the same boat, no matter how many colleges are on our application lists. Everyone is going through similar trials.”

The Conestoga community is known for academic achievement, but each student has his or her own personal goals. For instance, one person’s “safety school,” may very well be another’s top choice. But hearing that in the hallways really doesn’t make the day better.

In the end, when we all wear our college t-shirts in May, this will all be over. Until then, we need to work together and look out for each other. And that doesn’t mean you have to go out of your way to help others if you really don’t want to; it just means that you have to stick to your goals and remember that the kid sitting beside you in your next class probably had as hard a night as you did.

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Opinion

The Art of Scarting: how to get home friends’ Suburbans, I have developed some scarting etiquette guidelines:

Meagan O’Rourke Co-Convergence Editor

Pallavi Aakarapu/The SPOKE

Matt Soderberg Satirist CALLS ANSWERED; TV’S DELIVERED — Many called Conestoga one of the best schools in the state — even one of the best in the whole country. We had great teachers, lots of resources, awesome facilities. Yet, as students roamed the halls, they could not help but notice something missing. The issue became apparent, and students began to feel burdened and disadvantaged. Why should they be denied a simple right? Why were they chosen to suffer this inequality? Last year’s senior class finally set out to change that. The students’ pleading calls were answered, and the television drought was ended.

Adorning the front wall of the library are three flatscreen televisions. Three. In a row. We took the biggest problem facing our school district and solved it.

Remember that time when you were itching to watch C-Span during your free period? Or how you just could not handle watching CNN in standard definition?

Everyone’s been there, and from that we have been delivered by the grace of the seniors. You need not even worry if you want to watch different things than

your peers. All three are lined up consecutively on a wall, because only that would make sense!

We need to reassess our priorities here at Conestoga. The teachers here are critically overpaid and the arts overfunded.

How often we put our money into “classes” and “books” when the district will not simply put forth the money we need to keep a screen in front of us. This is the kind of injustice that leads to cut classes, vandalized materials and, most importantly, sad students.

I would argue that we have not gone far enough. Why are there only new TVs in the library? Why not in the hallways, or the gyms or even the bathrooms? We need to provide a flatscreen viewing opportunity for every student, everywhere. A TV-less hallway is a recipe for disaster. Someone might miss the latest sensationalistic cable media report or miss a vote in Congress. We have arrived at the critical juncture for our school — will we slip into irrelevance or will we plug in?

We cannot afford to miss the perfect expansion opportunity — BYOD. This revolutionary program has changed the lives of students in this school, and it is time we move it beyond just cell phones. Why stop there?

Why not provide each student with a high definition TV? BYOTV will put ’Stoga students at the forefront of technological innovation.

Those that decided on what the senior gift should be had the right idea. When you see something people need, ignore it and buy TVs.

Your club lets out, so you plop your backpack down on the bench in the lobby and hang out with the Pioneer statue. He’s not much of a talker. Your mom said she could be there in five minutes, 20 minutes ago. Then, the panic strikes as you read her last message: “Sorry, have to work late. Can u get a ride home w someone?”

Don’t fret. Just scart!

Scart*: (verb) to mooch rides off of peers, either to an event or coming home, typically from after school clubs, rehearsals or sports.

As a license-less only child of a single full-time working parent, I am a frequent scarter. I scart so often that my friends’ backseat-bound younger siblings are probably concerned when I am not invading their minivans.

At first, I felt ashamed of scarting.

I did not want to burden the local moms, dads and older sibling with dropping me off. But after years of hoisting my backpack in and out of

1. Plan Ahead If you know that field hockey practice ends at 4:30 p.m. every day, then you can develop a scarting strategy in advance. Call (yes, talking on the phone) a parent of a teammate who lives near you at the beginning of the week and ask if you could get rides home.

Don’t feel guilty. First, the adult will be very impressed that you called them. Secondly, everyone scarts. There is not one parent who cannot empathize with relying on another parent to give their kid a ride home, unless the parent is a Main Line Uber driver. Chances are, the parent will not mind driving you, and if they are unable, seek another scartee (one who gives rides home.)

2. Ridin’ Politely Once you find a ride, introduce yourself to the driver and any siblings and greet them as you enter their vehicle. You will be in the backseat — now is not the time to call shotgun.

As far as conversation goes, gauge the dynamics of the car. If the parent is clearly exhausted or if the little brother in the backseat is very excitedly telling you about the drama at Field Day, do not try to dominate the conversation. On the other hand, do not be sheepish or rudely checking your phone.

Provide clear directions if needed and don’t assume people know where you live. If the scartee knows exactly where you live and they have never been to your house, you may have another problem...

3. The Drop Off As you roll into your driveway, say thank you before leaving. The “thank you” is crucial because it may ensure rides for the future and it is a decent thing to do. Gather all belongings, and try to get your keys out ahead of time. If the scartee is extra kind, they will make sure you get in your house. You don’t want to fumble and have them awkwardly wait for you. Personally, I like to do a little wave as I walk to my door, but that is optional.

4. Scart others the Way You Want to be Scarted: The entire scarting methodology is like a fragile ecosystem, and not everyone can be bottom feeders all of the time. So, offer to give rides when you can, and don’t make scartees drive out of their way for you.

Finally, the art of the scart is not a calculated way to use fellow parents of the Main Line. It is a system built on kindness and community.

So to all of those who have enabled my scarting, thank you. Without your goodwill, us scarters may still be in the lobby, going crazy with the Pioneer statue. *Termed by junior Patrick Liu

“Have a lot of friends who you’re really nice with and normally they’ll give you a ride. I normally just ask my friends.”

- Jennifer McPhee “I’m rude about it. I’m always like, ‘Hey, you’re going to give me a ride, right? Right?’”

- Yanni Tsetsekos “Trust the people you drive with and don’t get in car accidents.”

- Caroline Brophy “Just go to a club and trust that someone will give you a ride.

You shouldn’t let your lack of rides hinder you from doing what you want to do.”

- Seyoung Kim The Spoke 17

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Opinion

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Paris 2015: through the eyes of a young Muslim

Nour Elkassabany Columnist The night the attacks in Paris took place, many of us experienced the same spectrum of emotions. Shock, followed by disbelief, anger, grief.

We watched the news that night, growing sadder with each update.

However, living as a young Muslim in the United States, dealing with this event (and others like it) has been different for me. I feel those same essential emotions, but on different levels. My heart is pulled in several directions, and that makes the situation so much more difficult to navigate.

I’ve lived in the U.S. since the summer of 2001. All I’ve known of America is the landscape after the 9/11 attacks. Because of this atmosphere, being a Muslim in America today feels like wearing that label at all times. Once people know you’re

Muslim, it seems like something integrated into their perception of you.

Being a religious minority and being a sort of ambassador for Islam puts an immense amount of pressure on me and others like me.

Before any information on the people responsible for the attacks in Paris was confirmed, I felt apprehensive, because I had a hunch about who these attackers were, and because I know what would follow. All I could think was please, not again.

I felt like there was an expectation

for me to react, like I would need to explain why this happened. I cannot explain the needless violence and the loss of life. It hurts me that there are people who hijack my religion to perpetuate their own evil. But because it’s Islam, it needs to be talked about on TV, on the radio, on social media, regardless of ignorance or lack of perspective.

It’s a problem that I felt even an ounce of dread coming to school on the following Monday, when I knew that the attacks in Paris would come

Pallavi Aakarapu/The SPOKE

up in discussions. Despite the time I spend with other young Muslims, being unwaveringly confident in my Muslim identity is something I strive to achieve. And maybe they feel the same way.

It makes me worry for my younger brother. I can hold my own when it comes to my beliefs, but he’s just 10 years old; there is a lot he doesn’t understand. He’s the one that’ll be coming home with tough questions; he’s the one that’ll be receiving mixed messages. Because he hasn’t built a strong foundation yet, he’s susceptible to growing up and not knowing what to believe, and I would hate for him to get lost swimming in a pool of misinformation.

The climate of poorly masked Islamophobia I find myself, my brother and other Muslims in today is unsettling. Whenever terrorists attack innocent people in the name of Islam, there is always a standard procedure that follows for the rest of us Muslims. After expressing grief and sympathizing with those who were affected, we are required to condemn the attacks. It is expected of us to stress that the beliefs of these attackers do not reflect what we stand for, that our religion does not promote violence. I am tired of feeling like I need to do this.

While I appreciate the non-Muslim efforts to stress that no religion condones the kind of violence we saw in the recent attacks, these people are still on the outside. They can’t understand the frustration I feel because these sort of attacks and this distortion of my religion happen far too often.

The attacks that took place that Friday the 13th pull my heart in so many different directions. I am sad and angry and sickened, but exhausted. My heart weeps for the victims, their families and the shaken residents of Paris. And I continue to worry for the Muslims around the world who will continue to suffer at the hands of bigotry and ignorance.

But had the attacks in Paris been carried out under the name of any other religion, this uneasy atmosphere would not exist. There would be no barrage of negative messages overwhelming the media. Rather than being able to take comfort in my own faith, I’ve been tasked with educating others on something that needs no explanation: evil is evil, it takes a lot of forms and my religion has nothing to do with that. Faith is meant to be something to give guidance, something to fall back on in times of need.

Let me have that.

Women’s suffrage in Saudi: don’t party like it’s 1920 But before you start the shopping list for your “Saudi Arabia Has Come So Far” shindig (mini hot dogs, anyone?), you should make another list of things that are wrong with the way that women can vote in Saudi Arabia.

Rose Kantorcyzk Columnist Saudi Arabia has a pretty bad track record when it comes to women’s rights. The country has an informal but widespread male guardianship system — women need permission from a close male relative to get an education, apply for a job or get married. It’s even illegal for females to drive. But, on Dec. 12, women will be voting in Saudi Arabia’s municipal elections for the first time — and some of the candidates in this election will be women as well.

Great! Problem solved!

Go Saudi Arabia! Yay women’s suffrage! Woo-hoo! Let’s throw a party!

18 The Spoke

1. The municipal councils, which are the only positions women can run and vote for, have very little real power. Because of this, many women feel it is pointless to participate.

2. Men and women must vote at separate polling places.

About one third of the 1,263 polling places in the country will be designated for women.

3. The Saudi Arabian government did a poor job informing women about registration procedures and opened too few registration stations.

4. To register to vote, women need to provide a valid ID card and proof of residency. This is a challenge because women are rarely listed on things like

deeds or utility bills — remember the male guardianship system.

5. Female candidates for office are barred from attending campaign events where men are present and from contacting them on social media, effectively preventing them from reaching out to the male electorate. And since few women are registered to vote (see numbers one, three, and four,) this all but ensures that female candidates will lose every election.

hot-button issues. And the registration and voting process is exactly the same for us as it is for men.

Please don’t take this privilege for granted. Both women and men should be active participants in the political process – researching candidates and their positions, being knowledgeable about the political process, and, of course, voting.

If we’re not doing these things

because we care about the way our communities, states, and countries are run, we should do them out of respect for the people who can’t exercise these rights and would kill to be in our shoes.

Being able to use our unrestricted voices and have a legitimate say in the way our country is run, no matter our gender? Now that’s a reason to eat celebratory mini hot dogs.

6. Again, women can’t drive — to registration stations, to campaign events, to polling places. So if a male relative wanted to prevent a woman from being politically active, he totally could.

Ladies, we should feel lucky that we live in a country where we can easily exercise political power. We are able to run for any position we choose, from county clerk to President. It’s so, so easy for us to access information about candidates and

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Pallavi Aakarapu/The SPOKE

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Opinion

The harsh realities of Thanksgiving, as told by Charlie Brown

Camille Kurtz Copy Editor In the words of renowned pessimist, Charlie Brown, “We’ve got another holiday to worry about. It seems Thanksgiving Day is upon us.”

As preposterously “glass half empty” as Charlie Brown is, I cannot help but notice the unfortunately relatable underlying messages in “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving.” The 70s cartoon plays every Thanksgiving, delighting die-hard traditionalists with the stressful, 30 minute struggle of Charlie Brown to whip together a Thanksgiving meal for friends that invite themselves to his house when he already has plans.

Rewatching the iconic special, what was once innocent and entertaining to my young mind has become a quotable epitome of the holiday season reality. Here are some of the most scarringly truthful moments: 1) “Anyway, why should I give thanks on Thanksgiving? What have I got to be thankful for? All it does is make more work for us at school.”

Sally Brown has a good point.

As exciting as it is to have a break from school in theory, sometimes it seems like we’re busier during vacations from school than during

regular school weeks. Between sports and instrumental practices, school projects and homework and studying for standardized tests like the SATs, breaks from school aren’t always as relaxing as we hope.

2) “I went to buy a turkey tree and all they have are things for Christmas!”

No holiday comes at a worse time than Thanksgiving. Sandwiched between Halloween and Christmas, Thanksgiving is often steamrolled in favor of kicking off the holiday season — it’s over Thanksgiving break that the movie channels begin their Christmas mania. I can shamefully admit that last year my cousins and I watched “A Christmas Story” on Thanksgiving night. It wasn’t even December yet.

3) “Gee, I never thought of it like that. You think I hurt ole Chuck’s feelings? I bet I hurt his feelings, huh? Golly, why can’t I act right outside of a baseball game?”

Thanksgiving is a time for family…which for some is another way of saying it is a time for foolish arguments and family drama. Whether your cousins are fighting over the dinner rolls and bread crumbs are flying or your mom is yelling at your grandparents to turn down the television, Thanksgiving is loud.

4) “Isn’t it peculiar, Charlie Brown, how some traditions just slowly fade away?”

Just as Lucy ruthlessly rips the football out from under Charlie Brown’s eager foot, sometimes our favorite Thanksgiving staples can be ripped away from us. New Thanksgiving dinner trends are disturbing and unwelcome — please get that kale away from my mashed potatoes.

5) “You’re holding my hand, Chuck, you sly dog.”

This quote goes out to all the unnamed, creepy “relatives” that show up to Thanksgiving that none of us recognize. They hug us, they tell us about their 50 cats at home (maybe they even bring a few,) they regale us with old war stories and all we can think is: who are you? According to Peppermint Patty, they’re “sly dogs.”

6) “I think I’m losing control of the whole world.”

Very wise words from the master of negativity himself, sometimes the Thanksgiving craziness is just too much to handle. Between worrying about straddling the adult and kids’ dinner table (do I want

deep philosophical conversation or an extra slice of pie?) and the seemingly never-ending mess of handtraced turkey pictures, “Thanksgiving Stress” should have its own entry in the dictionary.

7) “We should just be thankful for being together. I think that’s what they mean by ‘Thanksgiving,’ Charlie Brown.”

Possibly the most truthful takeaway from “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving,” the holiday is simply a time to spend with family and friends. We should forget the impending Christmas doom and the fighting over canned or homemade cranberry sauce and just enjoy ourselves and the time we have with those around us.

Report Card Facebook Photo Filters +Global support for Paris came with just a few clicks -Can’t tell who’s who if everyone’s red, white and blue

Adele’s “Hello” +Finally. a ballad for when you’re locked out -Can’t greet people without wanting to break into song

Starbucks Red Cups +Political correctness served with every cup!

-Designs are more basic than Pumpkin Spice

76ers Winless Start +Set a record...

-...as the first team in NBA history to start consecutive seasons 0-10

New Paper Towel Dispensers +No more icky handles -One pull gets either half a scrap or half the roll Pallavi Aakarapu/The SPOKE

Connie Stoga

Jeffrey Xue/The SPOKE

The Spoke 19

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

SPORTS

.

Take five: seniors working with new family Caleigh Sturgeon Co-Sports Editor All five of this year’s senior basketball players say the same thing about last year’s team.

“Everyone was friends on and off the court,” Caldwell said.

“It was the next closest thing to a family,” MJ Lezanic said.

“We were like brothers,” Lucas Yonda said.

“I’d grown up playing with the seniors last year and they were some of my best friends,” Andrew Larkin said.

“We did everything together,” Jack Baker said.

But now half of last year’s team, and four out of last year’s five starters, are gone.

And these five seniors have the job of continuing the success of ’Stoga basketball.

Darryl Caldwell As the only senior to play on varsity for all four years of high school, Caldwell brings important experience to the team. He’s the only one who played in the Central League Championship both last year and the year before, and he’s the only one who played in District semifinals at Temple two years back.

“A lot of us look to Darryl in certain situations because he’s been almost starting on varsity since freshman year so he’s the most experienced one. The rest of us are kind of just getting used to this role, and it helps to have someone like that to set an example,” Yonda said.

Caldwell has played with the best

guys at ’Stoga since middle school, and amidst last year’s seniors, he was the leading scorer in the regular season. But last year’s playoffs did not yield the results he expected of himself.

“I don’t think I played as well as I could’ve and I was disappointed. I’ll have to adjust but this year we have a lot of shooters who will pick up the scoring load,” Caldwell said.

Caldwell hopes this year’s shooters will help him bring home the Central League title that was taken from the Pioneers the last two years.

“I want to win the Central League Championship and I definitely have more motivation to win since it’s my senior year” Caldwell said.

Caldwell thinks the Pioneers might actually have more leverage this year because of the new faces on the court.

“I think some people think it’s going to be a down year, but I think that we’ll surprise some people,” Caldwell said. “I think that people like Jack Baker and Andrew Larkin and Lucas Yonda who didn’t play that much last year will really step up and surprise people.”

MJ Lezanic Lezanic may not have started on varsity all four years at Conestoga, but he has been breathing basketball since birth.

“I was raised in a basketball household. My dad was a basketball coach. He played at Bucknell and he coached at Bucknell, William and Mary and Loyola Maryland. Basketball was pretty much forced upon me,” Lezanic said.

Lezanic is still just as dedicat-

Andy Backstrom/The SPOKE

Handles: Senior Darryl Caldwell stares down his defender in the district playoff game against Wissahickon on Feb. 13. Caldwell scored six points.

20 The Spoke

Andy Backstrom/The SPOKE

Yonda accepted this role enthusiastically.

“I like the idea of coming off the bench and giving energy. It’s a good role for me because if the stars are having a lull or something I can come in and wake everybody up,” Yonda said.

Yonda’s older brother Zack Yonda was basketball captain two years ago, and Lucas Yonda has learned a certain mental advantage from him.

“Zack and I are really different players, but obviously a lot of times when we’re faced with a decision I think about what he’s done and I look up to him a lot,” Yonda said.

Yonda thinks the Pioneers are in a good position to fight the stigma of being deemed an underdog team.

“I think that we can shock a lot of teams. I think there are a couple teams who maybe think that we’re not going to be in it this year who we can upset and really make a run at,” Yonda said.

Andrew Larkin Just like Yonda, Larkin wants to make a run at the Central League Championship. But he also has a few abstract goals this season.

Buckets: Senior MJ Lezanic hits a three in the first round of District playoffs versus Wissahickon last season. The Pioneers beat Wissahickon 39-30 to advance to the next round of playoffs against Academy Park. ed today. This fall he dedicated at of teams who think of themselves least one day a week to coming to ahead of us,” Yonda said. “But last school at 5 a.m. to put up shots be- year we got overconfident and that fore school. He expects the best from won’t happen this year. We’re gohimself and he wants to continue ing to have to fight every game and what last year’s seniors started. we’re going to play from the bottom “Those guys were like my broth- every game and it’s going to give us ers. They were the guys who showed a lot more drive to win.” us what was right and what was With Caldwell, Lezanic, Larkin wrong. Us seniors this year are going to strive to be like they were last year,” Lezanic said.

Those seniors are the ones who were here when ’Stoga basketball rose to the community presence it holds today. Lezanic recounted the third round of districts his sophomore year when ’Stoga played Lower Merion at home, and the gym was sold out for the first time since Kobe Bryant played there. He believes that game encapsulates everything the seniors want to uphold this year.

“Conestoga basketball went in one year from being dead to being this entity that’s alive and well. I didn’t even play in the game, just being on the bench and watching that was just amazing,” Lezanic said.

Andy Backstrom/The SPOKE Now that he will be on the court Waiting their turn: Seniors Lucas Yonda and Jack Baker, and juniors in those big games, he wants to play Charlie Martin, Scott Shapiro, Scott Lambert and Dante Gathers watch for the crowd.

“Just to see the Pioneer Pit out their teammates take the court. It’s up to them to build on last year’s success. there on Friday nights warms my and Yonda, ’Stoga is going to be “I know there are all of those heart. There’s nothing else I’d rather more guard-oriented this year. This accolades, that’s everyone’s goal, be doing,” Lezanic said. means they will play a faster game, but this is the last time we’re going Lucas Yonda constantly running and pushing the to wear Conestoga across our chest.

Yonda thinks there is not just go- ball, and will need to stay strong on This is the last time we’re going to ing to be motivation from the crowd defense. play in front of that crowd and that this year, but a drive from within a “Lucas will be the backbone of atmosphere. It’s not a lot of time, so team as well. our defense this year. When he’s in I just want to enjoy the experience.

“We aren’t necessarily underdogs the game everyone really steps it up. And the best way to do that is to win, in the Central League as a whole, but He’ll guard the best guard on the so we’re going to work on that,” Larlast year we were the number one other team full court the whole game kin said. seed going into the season for the if he has to, and he’s relentless. He’s Last year he was forced to sit on whole league, and this year we’re just got a nose for the ball,” Baker the sidelines until the last game of the not like that. There are a couple said of Yonda. season because of a case of mono.

tim pla cr

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Sports

Following those before them, seniors take their shot Continued from p. 20 “It was tough. I wanted to be out there helping my teammates, but all I could do was root for them and be a good teammate on the bench, on the sidelines, in the locker room and at practice and try to push them to the best of my ability,” Larkin said.

But Larkin feels that he still learned a lot about playing on varsity.

“From a viewing standpoint, looking at it, it seems like I haven’t really been a part of it. But for me I feel like I’ve been a part of this team the whole time,” Larkin said. “Now on the court I want to be able to talk to these guys and pick their heads up when they’re playing.”

Now that he is back on the court, Larkin wants to play for the people who come out every Friday night.

“I’m most excited to play in front of the Pioneer Pit because the last few years I feel like we’ve created an atmosphere where a lot of people want to go and watch Conestoga basketball and last year I kind of missed that. Just the crowd and playing for them and playing for each other is going to be a lot of fun,” Larkin said.

He also thinks that in the same way that fans make the sixth man for ’Stoga at home games, the bench will

be there at away games to provide the same support.

“Little things are going to be huge for us because they swing the momentum of the game at vital points. And I think our bench will be really loud and really rowdy and root for us to keep us mentally tough the entire 32 minutes of play,” Larkin said.

Jack Baker Baker is one of the reasons ’Stoga’s bench was renowned as impassioned last year.

“I loved being the hype man on the bench. I loved getting everyone going and I loved the guys playing the game so I wanted the best for them all the time,” Baker said.

Now it is his turn to get cheered on, but it was not so easy for him to get there.Following in his brother’s footsteps, Baker transferred to St. Joe’s freshman year. There, as a slightly chubbier, slightly shorter, slightly less talented and slightly less committed basketball player, he was cut from the basketball team. After this he started to work on his game.

“It really motivated me to change my game and progress more instead of just be okay with mediocrity,” Baker said.

Andy Backstrom/The SPOKE

End of the bench: Senior Jack Baker cheers on his teammates.

Baker took on the role of bench “hype man” after seeing his brother take on this role for St. Joseph’s Preparatory School football.

Baker got to start playing with the mer and fall of sophomore year. But kids who he had been playing with then around late October he started since first grade again, and continued to lose weight, get dehydrated, run to improve his game through the sum- slower and face a multitude of other

adverse health effects. After making the JV basketball team at ’Stoga, he finally went to a doctor, who told him that he had type 1 diabetes.

“It was really kind of shocking because you always hear about diabetes and you think of 85-year-old grandparents, and then it happens to you, only yours isn’t going away and you’re not dying in five years,” Baker said. “It was a moment of speechlessness.”

Diabetes took Baker’s sophomore basketball season away from him too.

“I was a step behind everyone. It was like I had a weight on my shoulders the whole time,” Baker said.

But then last year Baker finally got the chance he had been waiting for.

“Coach Troy really gave me an opportunity to prove myself. He really allowed me to show what I can do when I’m healthy and can play to my full ability,” Baker said.

Now that he has earned a starting spot on the team, he wants to pick up where last year’s seniors left off.

“We can’t just have it dead because four or five players are gone now. We really have to do it for them and fill in the void because they taught us so much.” Baker said.

Birdwatching: where the spectator is the player

Ashley Greenberg Staff Reporter

People don’t always think of birdwatching as a traditional sport — it’s hard to lump it in with football and basketball. Regardless, birdwatching is classified as a real and competitive sport. Birdwatchers are true athletes, at least in terms of passion and commitment. They just traded in their lacrosse sticks and soccer balls for pairs of binoculars and books of birds.

Birdwatching is a form of wildlife observation in which people study various species of birds. Although the sport can be practiced in a leisurely manner, some students at Conestoga, like seniors Liam Gallagher and Yusuf Romaine-Elkhadri, practice the sport competitively. They are part of a team at the YMCA that goes to the World Series of Birdwatching in New Jersey every year.

Gallagher and Romaine-Elkhadri first got involved with birdwatching in middle school when they were members of an environmental program called Earth Service Corps at the YMCA. “At first I thought it was kind of silly. It started out as something we would just do because we were bored and it ended up being some-

Betty Ben Dor/The SPOKE

Up in the trees: Seniors Liam Gallagher (left) and Yusuf Romaine-Elkhadri (right) spot a rare bird while on a birdwatching outing. The two will be competing in the World Series of Birding come January. thing that was really fun,” Gallagher many species of birds as they can in “I think being in the car or van said. the time period. Yusuf and Liam’s with my friends and having the sense The YMCA team’s offseason team start their quest at the Great of teamwork and camaraderie as we is from May to January, although Swamp National Wildlife Refuge all work together fluidly just really once January approaches, the team and slowly make their way across feels good,” Romaine-Elkhadri said. gears up to prepare for the World New Jersey throughout the course The 24 hours are filled with inSeries of Birding in May. The moth- of a day. The team doesn’t seem to tensity and competition and particier of all birdwatching tournaments, mind the intensity or the exhaustion pants must have a great amount of it’s a 24 hour continuous contest in they feel throughout the day. Ro- concentration as well as patience. which birdwatchers, ranging from maine-Elkhadri enjoys it, especially “In soccer and football, it’s a full teenagers to elders, try to find as when he’s with his teammates. game [that they play] but it’s kind

of short compared to a full day of running around and birdwatching,” Gallagher said, contrasting the physical component of the World Series of Birding with competitions of other sports.

The finish line is at The Grand Hotel in Cape May, N.J. The score is calculated by how many species each team has identified and the team that finds the most species wins. Although trophies and plaques are awarded to the winners, the focus of the World Series is, in part, a program to monitor migration patterns and population levels of birds within the state.

Gallagher and Romaine-Elkhadri have grown to love birdwatching and they find a lot of joy in being birdwatchers, even though they didn’t engage at first.

“I think it’s a really special moment when it’s the first time off on your own and you hear one of the calls that you were memorizing and listening to and you actually realize ‘Oh, wow that’s a Canada Warbler’ or something and you get excited.

It’s a really rewarding experience,” Gallagher said.

Birdwatching is a great activity for people of all ages and can provide elements of fun and friendship, just as it does for Gallagher and Romaine-Elkhadri.

The Spoke 21

Sports

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Story by Staff Reporters Elizabeth Billman and Kyle Nicholson Leading a team into battle is not an easy task and is not for everybody. A leader needs to be confident, focused and trustworthy to be able to spark a win and inspire after a loss. Conestoga sports captains not only possess these qualities, but they strive for unity within their team — and they strive to win. Each team has their own styles of leadership.

Pictured: senior Jack Mitchell

Angela Nguyen/The SPOKE

Golf The boys’ golf team sustained a communal leadership system to aid their lone captain. Along with other sports, their roster had to reload following the loss of seniors, but they embraced it. With only one captain, all of the seniors stepped in and ran the team together.

“Captains and upperclassmen lead the team pretty similarly. The younger kids look up to [the] older and it is important to set a good example for them to follow,” senior captain Jack Mitchell said.

Angela Nguyen/The SPOKE

Pictured (from left to right): seniors Casey Allen, Kate Billings and Caroline Coladonato

Field Hockey

Senior field hockey captain Caroline Coladonato loves influencing and supporting her younger teammates.

“I like being a role model for the younger girls and being someone they can talk to,” Coladonato said.

Senior captain Casey Allen loves being in a supportive atmosphere with other strong leaders.

“I knew I was ready for it and I really, really love this team and I really wanted to be in that position to help everyone but there are so many good seniors and kids on our team that whoever got picked there would be someone strong to lead the team,” Allen said.

Angela Nguyen/The SPOKE

Pictured (from left to right): seniors PJ Murray, Johanna Näsman, junior Aidan Lake, sophomore Dominique Shultz, seniors Theo Roberts and Lila Holmes

Cross Country Cross country has a more democratic system. The runners individually and anonymously vote for captains, with a brief explanation for their respective selections.

“Every captain has a different job,” junior captain Aidan Lake said.

“There will be someone who will keep everyone in order, someone who is a big spirit person leading the cheers and the stretches, and in general all the captains need to make sure the team works together and any problems that occur within the team get sorted out.”

Senior Lila Holmes, one of the girls cross country captains, always hoped to be a captain and enjoys being close to her team during the season.

“I really wanted to be a captain and I’ve been running varsity since freshman year, so I have had so much experience with it and being on the team so long I knew senior year I wanted to be captain,” Holmes said.

22 The Spoke

Angela Nguyen/The SPOKE

Pictured: (from left to ice Regan, Melanie Haughey

right): and

seniors AlJules Horning

Girls Soccer The girls’ soccer team has a different way of approaching their leadership. With three senior captains, there are three different personalities running the team at all times.

“This year we have three captains, and we all play different roles.

Jules (Horning) is our goalie and is good at getting the team focused and is loud on the field while directing the players. Melanie (Haughey) was the more quiet captain who always was there for everyone, but was really nice and cheerful. And then I was the louder one and wouldn't be afraid to just tell people what to do and when to get it done,” senior captain Alice Regan said.

After the loss of last year’s senior class, the girls decided to promote smooth interaction between the team, and through this they made themselves open and approachable.

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Sports

Betty Ben Dor/The SPOKE

Pictured (from left to right): seniors Emma Brown, Liz Lawton and Jasmine Boyer

Volleyball

Angela Nguyen/The SPOKE

Pictured sabany,

Tennis

Volleyball captain Jasmine Boyer enjoys receiving respect from her team and her duties as captain help her to become more involved in teaching the team.

“I really like that I know I have the respect of my teammates and I like having the responsibilities because I feel like I’m doing something for my team,” Boyer said.

Boyer also feels important to the team when she can lift them up after a hard loss.

“That is probably the toughest part of being a captain. We usually work on what we needed to do to win and build that confidence back up,” Boyer said.

(from left Hanah

to right): seniors Nour Ashton and Julia

Senior Julia Herman, one of the captains of the tennis team, enjoys the creative aspect of her role, including picking spirit days, team bonding and creating the uniforms for the team.

“We finally get the authority during practices and matches to lead the other girls and show them how the tennis team works,” Herman said.

Senior Hannah Ashton, also a captain of the tennis team, loves to be involved in the team bonding and helping the coaches pick the teams at tryouts. “ We pick out the uniforms and organize the banquet. Also during matches we announce the teams and we also make sure everyone is involved and the team is close,” Ashton said.

Betty Ben Dor/The SPOKE

Angela Nguyen/The SPOKE

Pictured (from left to right): seniors Mason Sellig and Will Smith

Boys Soccer As undefeated Central League champions, District One finalists, and State semifinalists, the boys’ soccer team has rejuvenated the sport of soccer at Conestoga. Part of its success is dedicated to head coach David Zimmerman.

“My relationship with Mr. Zimmerman is very close. I feel free to talk to him about anything with the team,” senior captain Will Smith said.

“I’m lucky to have that kind of relationship with a coach.”

But captains Mason Sellig and Will Smith also played a large role in the team’s success. They worked together to foster a team dynamic that propelled the Pioneers to the State semifinals.

ElkasHerman

Pictured (from left ning, Tim Miller,

to Peter

right): Jean,

seniors Corey Manand Dima Ackerman

Football Football captains Corey Manning and Tim Miller were both inspired by past captains to lead their team on the field. Miller speaks of how past captains such as Martin Dorsey and Tyler Knight inspired him to be a captain.

“I really looked up to those guys, the example they set and how everyone looked to them as a leader and I thought it would be really cool to be a captain,” Miller said.

Manning explains how it is to lead his team, and why he enjoys his job.

“It’s really great being able to lead a group of individuals and showing the way after you’ve been in the system for a while and getting your chance to step up,” Manning said.

The Spoke 23

Sports

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Explosive: Conestoga athletes work hard at C4 Matt Paolizzi Co-Sports Editor It takes a lot to make a successful athlete. They have to deal with seemingly endless practices, strict diets and rigorous workouts, above a host of other burdens. It helps to have a place where you’re comfortable — at Club La Maison in Wayne, many Conestoga athletes have found just that.

C4 Performance was founded in June by Charan Chadha. He and his wife have been running their physical therapy business, Bounce Back, out of Club La Maison for over 15 years.

Chadha himself was a physical therapist for more than 20 years, though he originally wanted to be a doctor. But his desire to have a family was stronger, so the more balanceable field of physical therapy was opened. While working at Bounce Back, Chadha began to notice a bad trend.

“I was seeing kids that would get better from an injury that had no place to go. If they went somewhere else, they’d get injured and come back to me. I said, ‘This is crazy. I’m just going to create a business,’” Chadha said.

Club La Maison was undergoing renovations in late spring and Chadha asked a space to be constructed next

to Bounce Back to serve as the workout areas for C4 attendees. Chadha said he created the new business for three specific reasons.

“One, I wanted kids to have a place to go that was safe and where they could recover from an injury.

Two, I wanted to help kids who haven’t had an injury prevent one. And three, we wanted it to be fun and hard,” Chadha said.

Workouts normally consist of a mix of speed, strength and endurance training. Various drills, stretches and exercises are implemented depending on what sports the athletes want to focus on. The program is open not just to student athletes. Anyone interested in working out and improving various physical attributes are welcome.

Mike McGee and Nick Drozd are the two trainers at C4. Both have been working there since its opening last June. McGee has been working in the area as a physical trainer for more than 26 years. Drozd graduated from West Chester University and, fresh out of college, appreciates McGee’s guidance.

“Mike’s awesome. He’s definitely one of the most knowledgeable people in this area, in terms of working with the kids. He just been doing it

Matt Paolizzi/The SPOKE

Warming up: Junior Liz Scott streches out before starting her workout. She has been working out a C4 since the begining of the school year and has noticed much improvement. for so long, you just learn things that composure and abilities.

“Liz is one of the hardest workers they don’t teach you. Just coming out of school, it’s nice to be working with you will ever meet. She honestly sets someone with that much experience,” the tone for the other kids when she comes into class. She likes to have Drozd said.

Two of the standout Conestoga fun but when she’s ready for an exerathletes that have been training under cise, there’s no nonsense. She really Drozd and McGee, junior Liz Scott wants to lay it all out there and get and senior Sondra Dickey, are both it as good as she can possibly can,” on the girls’ lacrosse team. Both have McGee said.

Like Scott, Dickey also apprecinoticed improvements in their perforates the idea behind C4. mances. “[It’s had a] pretty big effect on Scott started working with C4 in September and is happy with my quickness on my feet. Me and her results, enjoying her work with Liz had a lacrosse tournament a couple weeks ago after being here for a McGee. “I feel twenty times faster than I month and we both noticed that we did in August. My shot percentage just felt faster on the field,” Dickey has gone up immensely. I’m just feel- said.

McGee also loves coaching Dicking much more confident all around,” Scott said. “[McGee] treats us really ey. He has worked with Dickey’s well. He’s like a father figure. It’s the parents and they have a trusting and respectful relationship. best part of my day, hands down.”

“Sondra is one of the best athletes McGee seems happy to be able to work with Scott and admires her I have ever worked with. She moves

so effortlessly — everything she does she makes look so easy. It makes my job a lot easier in terms of not having to work on the finite stuff I have to do with other kids because inherently it’s just in her system,” McGee said.

Overall, McGee is excited to have the chance to be able to coach and mentor so many talented athletes from Conestoga.

“We’re really looking to help as many kids as possible through the Conestoga program. We know that they have a phenomenal reputation in the PIAA of great athletic teams and we just want to be a part of that cog to help them to continue that trend,” McGee said.

Freshman Mason Carty has also been working with C4. He started the C4 program in October and appears satisfied with the program as a whole.

“I love the program and the atmosphere. I’ve introduced a few friends to C4. The only possible thing I could think of [to make it better] would be to make the classes longer,” Carty said.

Carty also enjoys working with McGee and Drozd.

“It’s [been] working great. Coach McGee and Coach Drozd’s program has a balance of speed, strength and flexibility training,” said Carty.

C4 Performance has made quite a niche for itself. Through work and keeping a good mindset, Chadha, McGee, Drozd and everyone else at the business appear dedicated to making athletes better. Chadra seems to have grand goals for the future.

“I think that it’s important for every athlete and non-athlete to understand that getting to the next level in anything in life is hard work.

It’s knowing that you have the right team on your side that can help you get through those challenges,” Chadha said. “Although it is a business, it’s also a culture. We want to change the foundation of the way that [students] not only start to understand the challenges of life in sports, but in other aspects of life.”

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Courtesy C4 Preformance

24 The Spoke

For the kids : Coaches Nick Drozd (center), Mike McGee (right) and the owner of C4 Charan Chadha (left) have all been dedicated to making sure that Conestoga athletes succeed by using their program. They look to build the company up for the future.

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

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The Spoke 25

Sports

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

The jockstonian democracy

Caleigh Sturgeon Co-Sports Editor

Jockstocracy (noun): (1) the rule of a school society by a few high-ranking athletes; (2) the members of the most revered sports teams at a high school.

The classic high-school-based movie depicts a hierarchy of students composed of social groups: the nerds, the band geeks, the theatre kids, the skater dudes, the foreigners, the nobodies and the popular kids. In nearly every one of these typical high school movies — from “Mean Girls,” “A Cinderella Story” and “The Duff” to “John Tucker Must Die,” “17 Again” and “Bring It On” — there are thick lines of division between these social groups, blocking interactions between members of different groups.

And at the top of this social hierarchy lies a group of barbaric, unintelligent and good-looking jocks. These jocks hail from the most celebrated of high school sports: the classics usually considered football, basketball and baseball. And these athletes are often depicted as narrow-minded meatheads with a knack for dating lots of stuck up yet eager girls — cheerleaders typically.

So does Conestoga fit this mold?

In terms of social groups: yes.

Conestoga has students who work very hard in school, students with great musical and theatrical talents, foreign exchange students and of course athletes, but students often have interest in many of these activities. There are not strict lines barring actors in this year’s production of “Taming of The Shrew” from hanging out with the boys’ soccer team. Athletes at Conestoga work hard in school and pursue a multitude of activities out of their sports arena.

Looking at Conestoga’s culture, it actually seems a bit ridiculous to categorize students into any one social clique.

So athletes here are not just athletes. If a movie were to be made about Conestoga, I don’t think a camera could zoom in on different lunch tables in our cafeteria, identify each group as a certain thing and end the montage of lunch tables with a slow motion shot of some jocks depicted as kings. The videographer could, however, zoom in on the Pioneer Pit and find a thriving reverence of Conestoga’s sports culture and a prospering admiration for its jocks.

So how about a question a bit more applicable to Conestoga: do we blindly revere the athletes of the typically acclaimed high school sports?

Indeed attendances are greater for football, basketball and baseball than for soccer, ice hockey, tennis or any girls sports. But our football players don’t walk around the halls in varsity jackets everyday, smashing nerds into lockers, and if they did I don’t think people would be okay with it just because they’re celebrated jocks.

Our students have recently tended to flock to the games of whatever sports teams are win-

ning. Boys soccer, with an undefeated record well into Districts this year, received attendances that rivaled that of a few football games, especially our homecoming game. Students from all different supposed social groups come together around ’Stoga athletics, including typically dominant high school sports. Going to a basketball game isn’t about worshiping the guys on the court; it’s about supporting Conestoga — both its great talent and its camaraderie.

So in essence a jockstocracy only dictates at ’Stoga to a small

Liz Lawton/The SPOKE

degree: the actions of our jocks bring the community together. A lot of our school spirit and pride comes from the endeavors and achievements of our athletes, and the ways in which students with all different sorts of interests support them. I believe this to be a beneficial schema — possibly the only one — of the classic high school movie’s jock-centered profile. The Pioneer Pit itself encapsulates the spirit idealized in these movies, and fortunately the Pit doesn’t have separate sections for the nerds and skater dudes.

Sports vs. School: the eternal struggle

Avery Maslowsky Staff Reporter School comes first.

I've heard that saying over a hundred times in my house.

Over and over again every time I get a "bad" grade within a sporting season. But in today’s time, most student athletes, including myself, are being forced by our sports coaches to put school aside, and completely dedicate our days and nights to athletics.

Sports for children and teenagers are just too demanding time wise. ’Stoga sports, out-of-school sports or training groups are extremely serious about getting college recruitments.

Teams, more so now than ever, desire the publicity and

26 The Spoke

idea of having college scouts watch and recruit their players. Because of this, practices are not usually leisurely and easy going. Varsity, and many junior varsity, sports have a practice or a game almost every day of the week during the set season and even games on the weekend.

The same goes for leagues and groups separate from school, which can require complete dedication to their association.

The average practice for a Conestoga sports team lasts two to three hours. On game days, players usually must dedicate at least three hours of their already packed day. This does not including the special games, like Conestoga volleyball’s senior night.

JV and varsity players, excluding the seniors them-

selves, had to stay immediately after school to set up, until around 9 p.m. that night and even later for a few additional players.

One can’t just miss a practice or game if they don’t feel well enough or have too much homework, for there are strict

Liz Lawton/The SPOKE

repercussions to such actions.

Not being able to participate in the following game, or suffering shortened play time was apparent on the JVB field hockey team throughout the season.

It is not just Stoga sports that are demanding hours of students’ days, but clubs and groups outside of the district, which suck students’ already minimal hours away, too.

Most sports players on varsity and JVA either play the sport actively outside of school with a club or they participate in an association meant for the purpose of keeping in shape like the C4 Training group, which many students at ’Stoga participate in.

Freshman Malcolm Roeder, the new varsity ice hockey goalie, misses Conestoga practice every day because his outside league requires his complete attendance and the two practices conflict with each other. Such activities like this last throughout the year, not for just one season and are continually taking time away from school.

It’s not unusual for the

members of these teams to not get home until 8 p.m. or later on a weeknight. But with a set schedule like this, when is there time to do all that homework? When is there time to study for the big test next week? When is there time to even take a break?

In this day and age high school sports are just too demanding time-wise, at ’Stoga and in the country. Especially with the high standards that we experience here at Conestoga, how can athletes balance good grades and sports? Sure, there may be exceptions, but even for the smartest of athletes it must be a hassle.

For most students, it’s their grades that will be leading them into college, not sports.

And even for those teenagers who make it, they are most likely not going to play again once they graduate college, so what is the purpose of forcing extra hours onto something that should only last about two a day and allow for students to actually have some free time?

This is high school, not the Olympics.

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Sports

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

SportsLine: beyond the Central League Andy Backstrom Co-Editor-in-Chief Last fall, Conestoga possessed seven Central League Champions. The drop to only three this year — boys soccer, volleyball and field hockey — was largely due to the loss of last year’s incredibly talented senior class. Regardless, ’Stoga’s presence in District One and in the state is still notable.

Boys Soccer A strong senior class, complemented by a now-developed

junior class, which is poised to make another run next year, ran the table during the regular season, finishing as undefeated back-to-back Central League Champions. A strong and stingy defense helped a great deal in the team’s success. The team continued to cruise through the District One Playoffs until they faced Central Bucks East in the final. Conestoga fell 2-1, but nevertheless had already qualified for the PIAA State Championship Tournament. The team made it to the state semifinals where it played the team respon-

Angela Nguyen/The SPOKE

Running the clock: Senior Casey Allen looks for the ball during ’Stoga’s blowout 8-0 victory over Harriton on October 20. The team clinched the Central League title with the win.

Sam Bouhdary ’16

School: Michigan University Grade: 12 Sport: Lacrosse Position: Defender Why Michigan?

“It was a perfect fit for me. I always wanted a big school. I also wanted an environment that was kind of free minded and just kind of liberal in general and that’s exactly what Michigan had.”

What ’Stoga Lacrosse taught him: “‘Our win against Upper Dublin. It just can’t really be described in words really.

It’s just something the team felt. It was just a crazy win in overtime.”

Favorite ’Stoga Lacrosse Memory: “There’s been so many talented players to have come before me — they just taught me how to give back.”

sible for their loss in the District One Final, Central Bucks East.

The Pioneers still could not overcome its opponent and lost again 2-1.

Girls Tennis Similar to other Conestoga teams this September, the girls’ tennis team came into the season forced to adjust to a roster full of youth. Despite the inexperience, underclassmen made their way into the varsity lineup to aid the resilient seniors in becoming undefeated Central League Champions and second place finishers in District One. The girls then returned to Hershey for States, but were knocked out in the quarterfinals by North Allegheny — last year’s State Champion, and the eventual State Champion for this season.

Cross Country After qualifying for the District One Championships, neither the boys’ or girls’ cross country teams clinched a spot in the State Championship race. However, seniors Johanna Näsman and PJ Murray and sophomore Dominique Shultz placed 18th, 17th and 23rd in the District One Championship, individually qualifying them for States.

Volleyball After being one of the only teams not to make it to the post-

season this previous year, the volleyball team clinched a spot in the District One Playoffs. Even though they were defeated in the first round by Downingtown East, the Pioneers, led by seniors Liz Lawton and Olivia Schappell and junior Lauren Harris, made massive improvements from last fall.

Field Hockey Coming off of last year’s State playoff run, the girls earned another Central League Championship title. As the fifth seed in the District One Playoffs, Conestoga made it to the semifinals, qualifying the team for States, before losing

to Neshaminy. The girls were bounced by Downingtown East in overtime in the quarterfinals of the State tournament.

Golf Conestoga was unable to capture its fourth consecutive Central League title, but several golfers qualified for the District One Tournament. Freshman Samantha Yao, sophomores Alex Cook, Ryan Tall, Michael Hamilton, Caleigh Sturgeon and Emily Centofante and senior Jack McPherson all played in the District Tournament. Yao was the only member of the team to then compete in the Regional Championships.

Courtesy Hannah Ashton

Swinging back: Senior Hannah Ashton fires back at her opponent during the tennis team’s quarterfinal match against North Allegheny. The team would go on to lose the match.

COMMITMENT CORNER

Monica Borzillo ’16

School: Cincinnati University Grade: 12 Sport: Lacrosse Position: Attack Why Cincinnati?

“It was a great school. It has a great starting lacrosse program, so I’ll get a chance to play. It has great academics and coaches.”

What ’Stoga Lacrosse taught her: “How to be a team player and how it feels to be in a family with a group of girls and compete together.”

Favorite ‘Stoga Lacrosse Memory: “Probably getting to the championship and winning the Central League. This year we’re going to win it all though!”

Check out an extened interview with Bouhdary on Spoke.news read.spoke.news/1MCwuWT

The Spoke 27

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INSIDE: Returning Basketball Seniors p. 20 Playoff Update p. 27

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Kicking it into high gear Earning an undefeated regular season, a second consecutive Central League title, second place finish in the District One Playoffs and State Semifinal appearance, boys soccer one-upped last season’s success.

Neil Goldenthal/The SPOKE

Senior Will Smith prepares to send a kick into midfield against Council Rock in the first game of the district playoffs. Conestoga boys soccer went on to become the runner-up for the District One Championship and made a run in the state playoffs before losing to Central Bucks East 2-1 in the semifinals.

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