Winter 2019

Alumna makes history as the first black woman chosen to run Harvard’s student newspaper. See page 11.

THE CLASSIC

TOWNSEND HARRIS HIGH SCHOOL AT QUEENS COLLEGE

thhsclassic.com

• Winter 2019 •

No. 03 | Vol. 35

Filtered water stations to be installed after grant win

Filtered water stations to be installed in the THHS building

By Yuri Choi, Staff Writer

Recently, Assistant Principal Ellen Fee won a grant from the Filter for the Future Grant Program. Funded by a collaboration between Brita and the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, this program aims to help the environment by reducing the amount of plastic thrown out through the promotion of reusable bottles.

The program provided THHS funding for the installation of hydration stations on the first, fourth, fifth, and sixth floors.

The stations have been delivered to THHS, and are awaiting installation.

Custodian Gary Viola is in charge of installation and will be working on a plan to put them in.

The Filter for the Future Grant Program provided a portion of their $140,000 grant funds from the Alliance for a Healthier Generation for the purchase of these hydration stations.

The stations will provide a more reliable source of water and “will reduce the need to bring heavy filled water bottles from home,” stated Ms. Fee. According to Brita, one hydration station will be able to “reduce as many as 36,000 plastic bottles a year,” a start to the 39 billion bottles con-

sumed yearly by Americans, a majority of which go unrecycled.

Sophomore Charlene Lee, president of the Save Planet Earth club, said, “By having accessible stations that provide clean water to students, it will encourage people to use reusable water bottles in exchange of costly, single-use plastic bottles from vending machines.”

THHS sought an alternative to the current water fountains because of students’ reluctance to drink from them.

Sophomore Fabiha Samiha said, “I’m always cautious about the potential lead in the water, and so, I refrain from using [school water foun-

tains].” A national EPA analysis between 2012 and 2015 showed that about 350 schools failed lead tests nearly a total of 470 times.

According to Ms. Fee, at Townsend Harris, 25 out of over one hundred faucets contained amounts of lead superseding the safe amount of 15 ppb of lead.

The kitchen’s cold water faucet had about 2,800 ppb of lead, while most other faucets contained anywhere from 90 to 300 ppb of lead.

In order to counter this problem, the custodial staff began eliminating stagnant water in pipes through scheduled flushing of water systems.

While the school has been assured that the drinking water is safe, many community members are still wary.

With the new hydration stations, students and staff will be able to obtain water that they can be confident is safe and clean.

The new stations, along with the recently distributed S’well bottles, help demonstrate our school’s contributions and efforts towards our environment and community.

“If we continue to push our school to make beneficial changes like these, we may soon be able to proudly call ourselves an eco-friendly school,” Charlene concluded.

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THHSCLASSIC.COM

The Candidates: The release of the THHS election simulation documentary

By Bindu Koyi and Amrin Rahman, Staff Writer

The Candidates, a documentary about the annual Townsend Harris High School election simulation, premiered on November 10th at the IFC Center in Manhattan.

The election simulation is a THHS tradition that has been taking place for over two decades, wherein seniors take part in a mock election and represent candidates running in state and national level elections.

The 2016 presidential election was one of the most controversial races in American history— and the drama was emulated in the election simulation for that year.

Filmmakers Lexi Henigman and alumnus Alexandra Stergiou (‘06) were present throughout the process to capture the triumphs and pains of the political system through the mock campaigns.

Alexandra remarked that the purpose of the production was “to show other people a paradigm of civil education, which is happening at THHS.” As an alumna who took part in the election simulation herself, Alexandra hoped to show the power of teenagers actively

learning and exploring their political beliefs and to reveal a different perspective to the last presidential election.

The struggle of taking on the roles of such prominent political figures was experienced by Misbah Pochi (‘17) who played Hillary Clinton, as

maker, Alexandra explained that Misbah and Daniel were forced to “grapple with [their] real-world counterparts who were the frontrunners of a dramatic and challenging election.”

One of the film’s central narratives was the difficulty that

lly upset or passionate about what I’m saying because I feel like they’re attacking me, but they’re not, they’re attacking Hillary.”

Ultimately, Jill Stein, a third party candidate, was named the winner of the THHS presidential race in the 2016 elec-

The Candidates premieres at IFC Center. | Ryla Pasaoa

well as Daniel Khaldarov (‘17) who played the role of Donald Trump.

Alexandra’s and Lexi’s decision to focus on Misbah and Daniel stemmed from the fact that they are both from immigrant families, which provided fresh narratives about the political system and served as an accurate representation of the THHS student body and Queens, showcasing the complexity of the election simulation.

In an interview with Film-

the students and faculty experienced when trying to adhere to the reality of the elections— one filled with “pussy tapes” in Daniel’s case and with a colossal email scandal for Misbah.

Over the course of the campaign, Misbah described the difficulty of accurately communicating Clinton’s stances while learning to grapple with and manage the criticism that she received in response to those views.

She stated, “There are times in the movie [when] I get rea-

tion simulation.

Raya Kazadan (‘17), who took on the role of Stein, wanted to introduce students to the ideas of a third party candidate, as they are often disregarded in favor of bigger parties.

She stated, “At the end of the day, grassroots politics and issues that we all care about are what actually make our country what it is.”

Political activism continues to be an important aspect of Raya’s college experience, and

she attributes her growth as an active political participant to her experiences as an election simulation candidate.

Assistant Principal of Humanities Rafal Olechowski reflected on the experience of seeing himself in the film; “It’s really weird because we have this persona of ourselves, but the eye doesn’t see itself. You need a mirror, a film or an actual mirror to actually face yourself.”

Misbah revealed that watching the film brought back waves of nostalgia and stated that “It reminded me of how much I enjoyed politics, and reminds [me] that I want to go back and be more active in it.”

Former THHS history teacher Alex Wood, who oversaw and guided the students in their campaigns, praised the film for its ability to realistically capture the emotions, events, and difficulties that were encountered throughout the simulation.

He described the film as “a 90-minute long narrative with really strong characters, drama and just a sense of fatigue that happens sometimes with this election simulation, which mirrors the grind of a real election.”

Guidance counselors step into students’ shoes for new initiative

By Afifa Ibnat, Staff Writer

Guidance counselors took part in the “Student for a Day” project, where they experienced the day-to-day life of a Townsend Harris student by following them through their classes.

Assistant Principal of Guidance Veronica York executed this project when she worked as a guidance counselor at LaGuardia High School and eventually transferred it to Townsend Harris.

Her reason for this was to “be empathetic humans who understood what [a student’s] day is like.” Although Ms. York did not actively follow a student, she will continue to facilitate and organize the project.

“It’s hard to truly understand what a day is like in your shoes if we never spend a day in your shoes,” she explained.

Guidance counselors selected the students they would follow in different ways.

Guidance counselors Kathleen Blakeley and Sara Skoda said they “chose a student who [they] may have had a relationship with already.”

On the other hand, counselor Jessica Graf selected her students at random. She said, “I used Google to randomize a number between 1 and 335— my total counseling caseload— and then I ran down my list of students to select the name.”

After the guidance counselors chose their students and received permission, a day was selected that best corroborated

with the schedules of the student and their counselor.

For example, when students had multiple tests on one day, a regular occurrence, the date was rescheduled.

After setting an ideal date, the counselor took a copy of their student’s program and followed it accordingly from class to class.

From there, the counselors attempted to live the life of the student as realistically as possible.

The counselors even physically moved up and down the stairs instead of using the elevators, a privilege for staff members.

Although counselors followed the program for eight full periods, they did not follow the students.

Class periods like lunch or frees were unpredictable.

Meaning, both students and counselors ran on their own schedule for that period, whether they decided to go to the library or cafeteria.

When it came to gym, counselors did not fully engage in the workouts.

Rather, they sat in the bleachers and observed the class.

In the end, this activity served as a significant learning experience for the guidance department.

When Ms. York first created this project, she said, “Whenever we are discussing a student or a problem we try to see it from all perspectives, and the student perspective is an important one in the guidance world.”

This experience shed a new light on the workload given to students.

Ms. Graf, a new counselor to the school, said “I have observed students in their classes at my past jobs, but usually for two to three periods at a time.

[However] this was my first experience following students for a full day and it offered me more insight on the wide-ranging academic information that students manage.”

“It was nice to see the different side of things. I think overall it’s a lot,” Ms. Skoda commented.

“You guys have a lot going on, your days are busy and I see that. I see that when I do this,” she concluded.

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WINTER 2019

New York Times best-selling author visits

By Sharon Lee, Staff Writer

On Wednesday February 13, American historian and New York Times Best-selling author Kenneth C. Davis visited Townsend Harris.

Davis is best known for publishing his Don’t Know Much About History series, which spent 35 consecutive weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, and the acclaimed In the Shadow of Liberty, which was chosen by The Washington Post as one of the Best Books for Adults in 2016. His love and passion for history is evident in his work as he writes

about notable historic events in an easy-to-follow and comprehensive manner for young adults.

English teacher Ms. Yan and librarian Ms. Laverde invited Davis to speak to students from Ms. Yan’s Extraordinary Endurance/Survival selective.

The visit was held in the school library during bands 8 and 9, and students were able to learn about Davis’ motivation for his most recent nonfiction book, More Deadly Than War: The Hidden History of the Spanish Flu and the First World War. The book was published in

May 2018 and explores the connection between the Spanish Influenza and World War I. Davis gave students a preview of the book by describing the rampant nature of the Spanish flu and how it was able to impact millions of World War I soldiers and many others during the era.

“It recently was the anniversary of the Spanish flu and of World War I, and because it is such an important anniversary, I thought it was a good opportunity to talk about its significance,” he explained. “I wrote this book really to exp-

lain the deep connections between a war and a devastating epidemic.

Medicine, sickness, and science go hand in hand with history, but we are not usually taught that.”

Students who were present during the author visit were able to learn and reflect upon Davis’ insight. Sophomore Katie Sie said, “[The visit] taught me that there is more to this world than what we learn in school. As he spoke about his career, it was evident that his passion for history fueled his curiosity about history.”

Sophomore Jasmine Chang said, “Mr. Davis was a very inspiring person as he talked about the fact that learning about what he was passionate and truly interested in drove him forward, and that life works in unpredictable ways.”

Relating this back to students’ lives, Davis did not leave before assuring students about their futures and lives after high school. “Really focus on the things you love to do,” he said. “It may not turn into a career but it will give you personal satisfaction, [and] that is all you need.”

Class of 2019 makes memories on the senior trip

By Jacqueline Woo, Layout Editor

Townend Harris High School’s Class of 2019 recently returned from the annual three-day senior trip to Honor’s Haven Resort & Spa in Ellenville, NY. After a morning of classes on Friday, January 11, a total of 151 students and 12 chaperones piled into three coach tour buses that took them to the trip destination.

Seniors were presented with countless options for how they could spend the weekend upon arriving at the resort, ranging from winter sports such as snowboarding and skiing to classic games like scavenger hunt and Bingo.

Students were able to participate in karaoke and dancing.

Many amenities were available as well, such as a swimming pool, an exercise room, billiards boards, and video game consoles.

Meals were served buffet-style in the main dining room, and snacks were available throughout the trip. There was also a campfire on Saturday night where students gathered to make s’mores and hear stories.

Senior Savion Teerath participated in numerous activities, such as basketball, hiking, laser tag, paintballing, and swimming.

Likewise, senior Julia Grygorczuk took part in hiking, ping pong, roller skating, swimming, and the winter carnival.

One popular event seemed to be the nature hike, which

senior Katelyn Chang des- dents also had to decide whom There were challenges that cribed as her favorite activity. they’d like to room with and came with organizing this trip, “I really liked [it] because you then they needed to be organi- such as submitting the necesnever get the chance to actua- zed onto buses.” sary paperwork and payments lly climb rocky terrain up a Additionally, she conferred on time and finding enough waterfall when you live in the with the nurse to sort out me- chaperones as per regulations city,” she explained. dical issues students had, such from the Department of EduSenior Kaitlyn Wu appre- as allergies and medications, cation (DOE). ciated the beauty of nature as and accommodated special Ms. Assante remarked that a well, listing “sunset and sun- dietary requests. few seniors played an “instrurise” as highlights of the trip.

Chaperones were also vi- mental” role in the preparaEven just “staying up all night tal in allowing the trip to run tion process by alphabetizing with roommates,” as senior smoothly. “Chaperones were paperwork, informing other Jessica Wang did, brought joy working the entire weekend, students about the trip via soto the tight-knit class as they from when we left on Friday at cial media, and so on. She exspent quality time together.

1:00 PM to when we got home pressed, “To them, I give a big Some seniors commented on Sunday at 4:00 PM,” Ms. thank you.” on the pricing of the trip. Se- Assante stated.

All of these efforts ultimatenior Grace Chang acknowle“They only had seven hours ly paid off, as the seniors made dged that the trip “was rea- for sleep on Friday and Satur- unforgettable memories dully fun, but I genuinely don’t day night.” They were tasked ring their time away. know where our money went with supervising the students “Overall, it was a nice expeto.” and made sure each student rience for me to spend time Katelyn added, “Some of the checked in with them three with all of my friends together activities weren’t that great, times a day to ensure their sa- relaxing and having fun insbut if you made use of the ac- fety. tead of just studying together,” tivities like roller skating, the hike, and the pool, it would be worth it. Overall, it was worth it because I got to spend time with my friends for a couple days.”

Senior advisor Maria Assante worked hard behind the scenes to plan and organize this trip. “Money had to be collected, trip packets had to be distributed and [other] items from [the students had to be] collected, [which] included THHS permission slips, rules and regulations slips, waivers or permission slips for paintball and skiing, information about what to pack, information about the hotel itself and what there is to do, etc. Stu- Class of 2019 on their senior trip at Honor’s Haven Resort & Spa | Ms. Assante

said Savion.

“There were so many activities to do that we didn’t even have time to sleep; that’s how busy we were.”

Kaitlyn agreed with this sentiment. She said, “I loved getting to spend time with friends outside of school, especially to try activities we’ve never tried before.”

Many seniors recommended attending the trip to underclassmen.“Just go,” said Jessica.

“Even if you think it’s a little too expensive, go for the experience and for the memories you’ll make. It’s gonna be your last year, so just make it count,” she advised.

Katelyn added, “It’s more about spending time doing activities you wouldn’t usually be doing with your close high school friends and having fun with that.”

4 | THE CLASSIC

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School community reacts to major change in dress code enforcement

By Danielle Amster and Isabelle Guillaume, Editors-in-Chief

At Monday’s faculty meeting, Principal Brian Condon announced to the faculty a change in the procedure for dress code enforcement. The new procedure transfers responsibility for overseeing the dress code from the dean to the guidance office. Principal Condon has asked the dean and teachers to “to refrain from addressing students directly regarding perceived violations of the dress code.” The Classic released news of this change to the student body and school community, as well as Mr. Condon’s statement on the matter, online.

Assistant Principal of Guidance Veronica York, whose office is now responsible for overseeing issues with dress code, explained the change: “We’re thinking that maybe it’s not the best way to support students to make what a child chooses to wear something that they can actually get a demerit or get in trouble for.”

Ms. York explained that the guidance department’s role is to decide whether or not the student’s choice of clothing is cause for intervention and su-

ggested that students would be more likely to be referred to the principal for demerits should their dress be perceived as offensive and therefore disruptive to the learning environment. “I don’t know at what point a demerit would be given for something for the dress code. I’m sure we could all think of something that would be extreme and outrageous…[clothing displaying images of] lots of guns and killing people… I’m sure it would be offensive enough. I don’t think it’ll be about spaghetti straps and lengths of skirts.”

Previously, Dean Robin Figelman was responsible for enforcing the dress code. Ms. Figelman declined to comment on the recent change.

We spoke to a range of teachers about the change, most of whom expressed support for the policy, which was announced by Principal Condon at Monday’s faculty meeting.

During the announcement, Mr. Condon indicated that the change is also in place to avoid interactions between students and teachers that students might find uncomfortable.

“I understand that things have changed because of the

climate that we live in, and I think that kids should be protected from teachers who are not being professional around them,” said English teacher Judy Biener. “God forbid we have a teacher around the kid who isn’t teaching them or looking out for their best interest. I know this happens, and I know that teachers need to be protected too.”

Some teachers shared this opinion, suggesting that enforcing the previous policy could be both uncomfortable for teachers who felt compelled to point out concerns over student attire and for students who felt targeted. Additionally, some teachers expressed being indifferent to the new system, as they had not viewed enforcement as a day-to-day priority.

Other teachers have expressed concerns over the change.

“The goal of Mr. Condon’s initiative, I believe, is to really create a support mechanism for kids because maybe the violations are not fashion statements, but rather indicative of some other underlying issue. And it would be best to address that at the guidance level,” said UFT Chapter leader and history teacher Franco

Scardino. “But I’m afraid that students,” said senior Tiffany this particular policy could in Li. “I’ve experienced this firsfact have the reverse effect: that thand and it can feel embarrasit’s not going to bring these stu- sing afterwards.” dents to anyone’s attention…

The Classic has reported Is guidance going to be able to on student concerns over the really address all these issues dress code for many years. An in the hierarchy of student article by Class of 2013 alumconcerns and challenges? I na Catherine Moskos has been don’t see a dress code violation referenced multiple times over rising to the top of that list. A the years, entitled “Code bekid who’s distressed about the hind the dress code: Boys maloss of a parent or an ill si- tter more.” The opinion piece bling or something like that – I declared the dress code sexist think that should be more of a and called for major changes. priority….. We’re not adding We reached out to Moskos for counselors…. When you just comment on the recent chankeep the staff the same and the ge. amount of work, it is a basic “My initial reaction to the arithmetic function: you’re not policy change is that it’s defigonna get it.” nitely a step in the right direcOther members of the school tion. I’m pretty excited and hacommunity have perceived the ppy to hear that,” said Moskos. change positively. “I think it “It also makes me proud to be is an excellent first step,” said an alumna of the school beAssistant Principal of World cause we’ve had our issues over Languages and Instructio- the years but this is definitely a nal Support Services Georgia step in the right direction.”

Brandeis. “I do think [dress “Even though the dress code code enforcement] shouldn’t itself is not changing, the chanbe in the hands of deans. [The ge in the process of giving deattire we wear] should not be a merits will definitely ease the disciplinary issue.” controversy around the dress “I definitely think this is a code,” agreed junior Arul Shastep in the right direction be- rma. cause students wouldn’t be directly called out and given a Continue reading at www.thhsclassic. demerit while in front of other com

Townsend’s annual event: The Winter Carnival

By Julia Jinu and Sruthi Manish, Staff Writers

Townsend Harris’ annual Winter Carnival took place on Thursday, January 17 from 5:00-7:30 PM in the cafeteria.

The carnival had more than 30 booths filled with activities, food, and games, including limbo from the Zumba Club, archery from the Robotics team, and henna from MSA. This year’s event had a greater turnout compared to previous years.

Senior Lucy Yang remarked, “A lot of people brought their siblings and friends from other schools.”

Freshman Sai Choudari also commented, “Some kids came with their parents and teachers came with their kids.”

One of the most popular booths at the Winter Carnival was the Girls’ track and cross country team’s karaoke booth.

Senior Patrycja Lis, the team’s co-captain, said, “The idea

came about when [one of our team members] asked in the track group chat if anyone had any innovative ideas for a carnival booth, and I suggested karaoke...the team was pretty enthusiastic about the idea.

The overall experience was nice because everyone had a fun time singing and...it was nice running a booth for the first time.”

After going to his first Winter Carnival, freshman Saad Ahmed said, “My experience with the winter carnival was incredible. I was a part of the Drama club, and my job was to help sell cookies and make some sort of profit with tickets.

I was glad to be a part of this experience and I can’t wait for next year. I was happy to be with my drama family and it was incredible to see so many family and friends come together to have fun.”

Many students agreed that the winter carnival was a great opportunity to not only provi-

de funding for their club, but to also create lasting memories.

In order to make the carnival a memorable event, there was a great amount of planning.

Club liaison Brenden Picione, elaborated on this and

Clubs, teams, and publications turned the cafeteria into a carnival. | Ava Nabatkhoran

said, “Planning for the carnival includes making a map for the floor plan, advertising with posters and flyers, and being there the day of to make sure everything runs smoothly.”

Because the carnival consisted of 35 booths, it was essential that every aspect of the

carnival was well planned.

Coordinator of Student Activities Sarah Loew commented, “The club liaison has a winter carnival interest meeting for all clubs and teams.

The details are discussed at the meeting and a Google form is sent out for groups to sign up and let us know if they need any special accommodations for the booth. We also promote the carnival using flyers and social media.”

Junior Emily Tan expressed, “This year, the carnival was, to put it simply, amazing. In previous years, I either left early or did not go at all. I stayed until the end this year because it was so entertaining and engaging.

I played cup pong and failed miserably, but the experience was very fun. I also played limbo to enter a raffle to win a $20 gift card and it was also very fun despite not winning the gift card. I hope that we do this again next year and I hope others feel the same.”

Lucy continued, “I really enjoyed this year’s winter carnival. I’ve been to everyone since freshman year and this year was the third (and last) time representing Seekers at the winter carnival. All of the teams and clubs definitely stepped up their game in terms of new and creative activities and I think that that’s what keeps winter carnival so fun every year. There’s always a new game or new food to try and it’s another event that shows just how diverse our interests are at Townsend.”

As Ms. Loew stated, “The winter carnival is a great opportunity for students, friends, and family to make great memories while supporting our extracurricular activities. There’s something fun to do for every age group so no one is left out and everyone can participate.”

THE CLASSIC | 7

WINTER 2019

The Freshiors were victorious in this year’s S!NG competition. | Amanda Renzi

S!NG controversy sparks calls for change to judging system

By Daniela Zavlun and Nataniela Zavlun, Copy Editors Additional reporting by Julianna Zitron, News Editor

Since SING! was first established at Townsend Harris, it has been a passionate project of the student body, often cultivating a highly competitive environment between Semores and Freshiors. As a result, almost every year, the results and judging process of SING! have been called into question. Following this year’s final SING! performance, the Freshiors’ triumph over the Semores has been similarly challenged due to allegations of the substantial involvement of alumni from the Class of 2018 as returning judges, prompting the administration to consider revising the current judging system.

Every year, the senior class faces the judgement of graduates from the preceding class.

A Classic editorial published in 2012 highlights this issue, specifically framing alumni judges for the biased nature of the SING! judging system and alerting readers of the potential injustices that may result.

Similarly, recent events have caused this discussion to resurface, as many have claimed that having recent graduates come back only reopens old wounds.

In particular, the Class of 2018 and 2019 have a years-long rivalry because, up until now, the Semores have maintained a consistent three – year winning streak whereas the Class of 2018, partnered with the Class of 2020 (the current juniors), lost all four SING! competitions from 2014 – 2018.

Now that they have returned to

judge this year’s productions, many speculated that this had influenced their decision to vote in favor of the Freshiors.

According to Assistant Principal of Organization, Health, and Physical Education Ellen Fee, out of 100 judges, 47% were alumni from the Class of 2018, 20% were Class of 2017 alumni, 25% were alumni from earlier classes, and faculty members made up the remaining 8%. Many Semores believe that having a considerably larger number of Class of 2018 alumni on the judging panel compared to other classes may have impacted the outcome of this year’s SING!.

“We have no problem losing,” said Semore dance director and senior Tyler Conway. “We just don’t like feeling that the results were so heavily skewed because we had so many people come back from one particular grade or graduating class that would’ve thrown off the results because they didn’t want to see us win.”

Shortly after Saturday’s performance, Principal Brian Condon met with a small group of Semore directors that expressed discontent with this year’s outcome, wherein they requested to review the ballots and determine how it may have been different had alumni votes been disregarded.

Mrs. Fee explained that she and SING! Coordinator Sarah Loew do their best to ensure fairness throughout the judging process.

In the past, they would discard any ballots that seemed biased and made sure that there were no more than 30 point

discrepancies, though this was not necessary this year. She added, “Mathematically, if 47% of the judges were leaning towards the Freshiors and there were 53% of the judges that had no reason to be biased (and I think if over half the judges were fair), then the outcome is fair.”

Mrs. Loew offered to provide The Classic with records of past alumni involvement and distribution in judging but was unable to do so before press time.

She and Mrs. Fee declined to share this year’s ballots with The Classic. Mr. Condon agreed to provide them but had not done so before press time.

Nonetheless, participants from both teams agree that the current judging system is flawed and should be altered to prevent similar conflicts in the future.

“I feel like every year I hear complaints about something being unfair about the judging, either about the process or about the alumni participating in the judging,” said Semore advisor and English teacher Brian Brewer.

“In theory, the judging process is fair, but it has a lot of potential to be unfair…We were told that if we came up with an idea that would avoid these issues that the staff would be open to them,” added overall Freshior director Usha Sookai.

Students have suggested limiting the number of judges from each class of alumni, establishing a timeframe after a class’s graduation before they can return to judge SING!, or weighing votes in accordance with the time after graduation

(votes of more recent alumni are counted less), imitating the structure used for the election simulation. Mr. Condon also proposed acknowledging a winner for each category on the judges’ score sheet, including dancing, singing, props, creativity, costumes, backdrops, acting, and originality, hoping that it will alleviate tensions left after SING!. He explained, “I actually think it’s an opportunity for us to live up to our Ephebic oath, which is to leave this place a little better than we found it, and the truth is, SING! seems to be producing a lot of upset and a lot of controversy in the last two years, and that probably means we need to address it and fix it.”

Other members of the school community expressed their concerns with the current judging system. Music teacher and Semore advisor Kevin Heathwood reasoned that most recent graduates are more likely to return to their alma mater than earlier classes, and may also be more invested in their younger teammates’ success.

“When SING! team members graduate…if they were to come back and see a performance, knowing myself… I would go in with a little bit of a bias, with a little bit more forgiveness of things that maybe didn’t go quite that right because you want to will them to win, you want to will them to be better,” he explained.

“Personally, I don’t believe the results of SING! were fair this year because of the distribution of alumni that came back to judge,” said Class of 2017 alumna and returning

judge Marina Aweeda. “Usually an equal amount of alumni come back to support their respective years, which balances out any potential biases or conflicts with scoring.”

The aftermath of these circumstances has left Freshiors feeling somewhat short changed as well. “My worst fear is that all of the work the freshior team put in, the hard work of the directors and everyone else who contributed to the show, becomes discredited in the long run,” said Freshior director Angelina Jimenez.

“I think we worked hard to achieve what we did and it’s very difficult to be told that the only reason we reached our goal was because of potentially extreme unfair judging.”

Mrs. Loew commented, “I hope that students who are currently in SING! will take this experience and, when they graduate, understand that it is their duty to be fair as a judge… [students] know that they wouldn’t want to have been judged unfairly.”

“SING! is one of those times where students come together, regardless if they know each other or not, to create an amazing show,” said Class of 2018 alum Micheal Quach.

“It’s disheartening to see that sometimes personal feelings and agendas get in the way, and the competitive aspective overshadows the hard work and fun.”

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The making of FON: The leaders’ process

By Angelina Jimenez, Staff Writer

From the week after SING! to the first week of March, fifty-seven Townsend Harris students put their organization, communication, and leadership skills to the test as they lead this year’s twenty eight FON (Festival of Nations) groups.

This year’s FON leaders, chosen by the previous year’s leaders, are in charge of choreographing dances, managing practices, picking and submitting songs, and writing a short blurb for the FON program, all while being mindful of certain requirements: each FON must have between 15 and 50 members and at least 2 must be freshmen, the lyrics must be clean, and leaders must meet several deadlines regarding submission and approval.

Assistant Principal of Organization, Health, and Physical Education Ellen Fee is in charge of FON as a whole.

Ms. Fee ensures that each FON is granted fair opportunities to practice and creates all the calendars and deadlines.

Communication with her is essential, especially when problems arise.

Ms. Fee advised leaders, “Be safe, don’t yell at your peers, have fun, and inspire others.”

This process takes a lot of energy and it is important

Festival of Nations 2018 | Jairo Reina

that each leader has sufficient organizational skills and is able to manage their time and communicate with both their co-leaders and dancers.

Caribbean FON leader junior Ashley Facey said, “Leading isn’t as scary as it seems, as long as you stay organized and can communicate well with others. That means liste-

ning and being respectful even when there’s a disagreement among members.¨ FON season tends to be a time of stress for many leaders, though the end product makes all of their hard work worth it.

American FON leader Samantha Lee said, “For me, the hardest part of being a leader

right now is having faith in myself. The best part is anticipating what the dances will look like on stage.”

Bollywood FON leader Pooja Suganthan added, “The best part about being a leader is that it’s kind of like a reward after all the years you put in during previous fons. After being a part of Bollywood for so

long, it’s nice to be able to bring my own ideas to the table and create our own version of the classic performance.”

Ashley concluded, the most important part of being a FON leader is “[making] sure your dancers are having fun 25/8.”

Social media in a scramble after an eggstraordinary post

By Jessica Brite and Alyssa Nepomuceno, Features Editors

A photo of a simple brown egg against a plain white background is now the most liked photo on Instagram. The picture was posted by @world_record_egg for the sole purpose of beating the previous record of likes held by Kylie Jenner, who garnered 18 million likes after posting a picture of her newborn daughter. First posted on January 4, the egg has amassed an astounding 36.2 million likes.

The account is now verified, with the post’s number of likes growing at an “eggs-ponential” rate.

Due to the popularity of the post, the account’s owner has recently posted on their story that the World Record Egg plans on releasing merchan-

dise at the request of their followers.

Senior Joseph Zhao said that it is “the most revolutionary thing to happen to social media.”

Others, such as senior Jacqueline Valenti, however, said she was “fine with the egg until [she] woke up in the morning and saw a cringey news report.

It was from a reporter who was very clearly out of touch with social media. They kept on saying how silly they thought the idea of an egg trending on social media to be.”

Media outlets also questioned the purpose of using something as mundane as an egg.

Junior Adora Barikdar said, “They could’ve used something other than an egg. Why did they choose an egg of all things?”

Sophomore Tiffany Yeo was confused as well, saying that it was “useless, yet so interesting.”

Senior Andrea Jainarine said, “It should’ve been something sentimental instead of a random egg.”

“The egg was a brilliant idea, and I’m glad it topped Kylie Jenner’s post because the egg is more relevant in my opinion,” said junior Shannon Thomas.

“It was an interesting way to get millions of people around the world to like something so weird and in such a short amount of time,” she said.

Sophomore Alexa Jude Tumulak added, “This is the closest we’ll ever get to world peace.”

In contrast, senior Supriya Singh said, “I feel like the fact

The egg cracks the record | Matthew Neil

that an egg was competing with Kylie Jenner for social media likes shows how distracted society is. Why are 20 million people focusing on liking a random brown egg on a virtual platform when real people

are dying and our government is shut down?”

Trends come and go, but the picture of a plain brown egg now holds a title on one of the most prominent social media platforms in the world.

THE CLASSIC | 9

WINTER 2019

Science Olympiad takes bronze at NY Metropolitan Regional Tournament

By Adamary Felipe and Jasmine Wang, Staff Writers

Beating out 69 teams in the city, the Science Olympiad (SciOly) team emerged third in the 2019 NY Metropolitan SciOly Regional Tournament, earning medals in 19 out of the 25 events.

However, the road to such a feat was not an easy one. President senior Michelle Lee explained that “a lot of the events this year are new in rotation, meaning we don’t have a lot of resources to study from.”

In addition to this, they faced the added expense of tools needed to construct devices for specific events. “Protein Modeling is new [in rotation] and is made up of three components, two of which involve folding and building a protein,” explained Vice President senior Lucia Lin. “It replaced an event that didn’t require a build portion, and each [Protein Modeling] kit that we needed [to build

the protein] could be from 30 dollars to even 70 dollars— and that’s for three teams.”

Despite these obstacles, the team earned medals in events

Fossils, Geologic Mapping, Herpetology, Mousetrap Vehicle, Protein Modeling, Sounds of Music, Thermodynamics, and Write It Do it.

had medaled were underclassmen... I now know the future of SciOly is in good hands.”

The competition evaluates the participants’ knowledge of a vast range of topics.

Its goal is to transform the STEM field by forcing c o mp e t i t o r s to push their intellectual limits with intense and collegiate-level challenges.

Coupled with the support from fellow team members Townsend’s SciOly team won 19 out of 25 medals and placed third at this year’s NY Medtropolitan Regional Tournament | Michelle Lee and coaches, the team’s such as Astronomy, Boomile“Two of our three regio- successes were a result of ver, Circuit Lab, Codebusters, nal teams placed in the top 10 their collective growth.

Disease Detectives, Dynamic overall, which hasn’t happened “We went to two invitationals Planet, Experimental Design, in a long time,” said Miche- this year. At our first one, we Fermi Questions, Forensics, lle. “A lot of the people who all got a much-needed reality

check and began to change our approach to the competition.

Wanting to improve upon our rankings from past regionals, we set up an intensive study schedule that involved weekly testing and ample opportunities to work with partners,” said Spirit Coordinator junior Elizabeth Duchan. “I think this was the push we all needed make drastic improvements in our events.”

Their development was not purely intellectual, however, as Build Coordinator junior Ruby Wang revealed that they had “more bake sales than usual and held study sessions with separate subdivisions to promote a more collaborative learning environment.”

Although the team dedicated countless hours of studying, researching, and building to prepare for their events, Michelle explained that “being surrounded and supported by such a passionate, dedicated team is really the driving force behind [SciOly’s] success.”

Spotlight: Mr. McClary and the YDP

By Rhea Singh, Staff Writer

Within the stress-filled environment of a school, many students do not pause to address the mental and emotional strain placed on them. However, it is essential to take the time to deal with your issues, whether that be in the form of self-care or speaking to someone else about it. In Townsend Harris, Rondell McClary, the Youth Development Program (YDP) Counselor, is an individual easily accessible for students to communicate with.

The YDP provides services that are meant to “help students deal with social and emotional issues, ranging from drugs and alcohol to family issues to basically being a teenager and some of the struggles that come along with it,” said Mr. McClary.

Many students come to speak to Mr. McClary, for things ranging from referrals, or just curiosity about him and his office space. While he prefers that students make appointments in advance via email, Mr. McClary also accepts walk-in students who stop by in an emergency.

Senior Shivani Persaud, a student who speaks with Mr. McClary often, reflected on her first experience with him

this year, saying that it was very natural feeling - there were no introductions, and no backstory was needed. She said, “People have stopped caring about their well-being and their own emotions. I’m a really sensitive person, and sometimes I’d see that people are clearly not okay. But they suck it up and shut everything down[…]It’s heartbreaking and won’t heal anything.”

To Shivani, people like Mr. McClary “make things bearable when some of us feel the world crashing down upon us.”

Senior Max Kurant, who has been seeing Mr. McClary since his sophomore year, also finds it to be beneficial.

“It pains me that getting help is such a stigma, especially in our school. This is a man who is passionate about helping people and making sure that students are okay and doing well in our high-stress environment,” he said. “He really helps me make myself a priority and not just all my work and responsibilities, which I often get caught up in doing.”

In reference to Mr. McClary, Max said, “He’s very human, you know he cares when you talk to him. He remembers de-

Youth Development Program Counselor, Mr. Rondell McClary | Joshua Vieria

tails of stories I told him when we first started meeting because he cares about making those personal connections and maintaining them. He’s easily changed how I live my life and is one of the best mental health and wellness resources students can get their hands on.”

Another senior, who has chosen to remain anonymous for this article, has been talking to Mr. McClary since her junior year, and described him as a “great support system.” She said,

“Talking to him has helped me greatly, but I think the greatest change I’ve seen is that I’m able to better communicate my feelings toward my friends and my family. I feel like a much stronger person who is able to accept challenges and take advantage of the difficult experience and learn from it, and grow to become a better person.”

To students who might be hesitant about approaching Mr. McClary, he stresses that the YDP is judgment-free; students

need to understand how important it is not to suppress their feelings or thoughts, as doing so could lead to unhealthy results.

He said, “Everybody is going through stuff, whatever it is. It could be from struggling with academic issues to preparing an application for college. Don’t be afraid; I am not here to get you in any trouble! Everything we talk about is confidential and [you] should try it.”

10 | THE CLASSIC

THHSCLASSIC.COM

Should all schools have the same academic standards?

By Miruna Radu, Staff Writer

Looking for good colleges and applying to them could be stressful enough, and the last thing on your mind should be whether or not you will have any chance of getting into a college based on the academic standards your school followed.

Believe it or not, charter schools are the types of high schools that can teach using their own set of academic standards, which can greatly influence the way colleges assess students.

They are putting too much trust

and responsibility in the hands of teachers and authorities.

So, should all schools have the same academic standards?

The answer to this question may seem pretty obvious, but the number of schools that teach according to different academic standards may surprise you. Charter schools are allowed to sign contracts that allow them to choose their own standards and teaching styles to meet the individual needs of their students- but should this be allowed? These contracts exempt charter schools from

state regulations, allowing teachers to choose whichever set of academic standards is more convenient for them.

According to realclearpolicies.com, “Charter schools’ defining feature is the freedom to choose what and how students learn.” The extent of leniency this creates for teachers can be extremely effective or extremely detrimental to their students, depending fully on how prepared and enthusiastic the teacher is.

But depending on a system that can only result in these two

extremes is much more risky than having all teachers follow the same basic standards.

In public schools, the Common Core standards keep everything and everyone together. Furthermore, they set specific standards that are taken into consideration when colleges or universities assess a student. With colleges being familiar with the student’s academic standards, they will be able to better judge a student based on their personal abilities. In charter schools, however, colleges may not know why a student is,

per say, lacking in certain subject fields or areas because the specific set of standards is unclear and, ultimately, inaccessible.

Overall, there is a sense of obscurity when it comes to the standards of charter schools.

Uniform academic standards are like uniform laws. Although these standards regulate and maintain content being taught, the dynamic between students and teachers will always remain efficiently unique.

How “social belongingness” is upholding the gender gap in subject-fields

By Sarah Aguiar, Staff Writer

Gender, in itself, has been a subject that never ceases to be a topic of conversation these days. Articles upon articles are written, detailing the supposed blatant discrimination of one gender from the other, either in the workplace, in households and, in particular, schools.

The media and the rest of the world has proven that both boys and girls are disadvantaged by the modern educational system; where girls are falling behind the most in STEM and boys in humanities.

But the underlying fault of these discrepancies falls upon stereotypes that have, over time, made both humanities and STEM considered gender specific subjects, and have therefore created a stigma for those who wish to deviate from the “accepted subject” for their gender.

Townsend Harris- a humanities school- is, in fact, predominantly female. Some may argue this discrepancy exists because “guys just aren’t interested in humanities,” but is this really always the case?

A recent study led by UNSW Sydney Ph.D. student Rose O’Dea tested the grade patterns in about 1.6 million students.

They found that both girls and boys perform at similar levels in STEM, a trend existing even at the top percentage of classes.

And yet, more boys pursue STEM as a career, while more girls pursue humanities. This exhibits the idea of “social belongingness” - especially when teenagers have even admitted that they would fit better

in subjects that are more commonly pursued by people of their own gender.

Both girls and boys are taught that they would perform better in subjects that include more of their own respective gender, eliminating the amount of gender competition they experience.

Say, for instance, you’re a girl achieving high grades across the board.

You walk into your math class, and it’s dominated by high-achieving boys.

However, in your English class, there are fewer boys to compete with, and thus making the non-STEM career path not as daunMovements to encourage more girls to go into STEM fields have been arising more frequently. | Rachel Lin ting.

Thus, children are taught have premonitions in, expoThis can also be applied from a young age that boys and sing them to more of the world. to boys, who see female-domigirls must act a certain way and Programs, such as Girls Who nated fields such as humanities will, as a result, be uncomforta- Code, Black Girls Code and and choose to pursue STEM because of the lack of gender ble around those of the oppo- Girls Develop It, encourage girls of all ages competition existing there. It site gender because they act differently from them. and races to participate more has become a common trend They are not taught that di- in STEM. The same must be for people to choose the field fferences are accepted, and the- done to support boys who wish they feel they would be most refore choose to follow their to go further in humanities. comfortable, not what they own gender for the sake of not Programs are not the only way, know will benefit them.

This comfort around those being alienated, when in reali- since role models do play a treof our own gender has its roots ty, these distinctions will define mendous part in someone’s life. who they are in the future.

Students should be exposed to in stereotypes as well.

We live in a society where such nonconformists--men in In Christia S. Brown’s artipaving your own path, diver- humanities, women in STEMcle, “The Way We Talk About ging from those already taken, -to help encourage them to be Gender Can Make a Big Difference,”she writes, “By having is welcomed with open arms. pioneers such as the ones they teachers simply focus on their However, this does not seem see changing the world for the gender instead of their indivi- to be the case with education. better.

Shirley Chisholm, a polidual characteristics, children Solving such issues will take time, but will require the involtician and author, said, “We began to overlook that there vement of people all over the must reject not only the stewere, indeed, individual vaworld. reotypes that others have of us riations within male or female We can start by encouraging but also those that we have of groups.” all to pursue fields they may ourselves.”

Generalizations have come to govern parts of our lives that have damaged the way we live.

They have influenced our decisions, our career choices and our futures.

They seem to be one of the only things holding us back from being what we all want to be--free from judgement, free to be ourselves. And if expressing ourselves through our education means breaking through these stereotypes, then so be it.

THE CLASSIC | 11

WINTER 2019

The Classic FROM THE EDITORS

Alum makes history at Harvard

By Isabelle Guillaume, Editor-in-Chief

Recently, Kristine Guillaume made news across the country by being the first black woman to lead the historic newspaper at Harvard University (a position held by major figures of prominence, including President Franklin Roosevelt). Kristine graduated from Townsend Harris High School in 2016.

She is both a former Phoe- Kristine Guillaume ‘16 is the first black woman president of The Harvard Crimson. | Amy Y. Lin/The Harvard Crimson nix editor-in-chief and a parts of the staff than I was,” groove and understand how former Classic reporter. To Kristine said. “In my soph- to properly do it.... Having the offer our congratulations on omore spring to junior fall, I experience of being a sports an alumna’s achievements, we got to be the Diversity and In- reporter, interacting with stuhave Classic editor-in-chief clusivity chair along with two dents every day, doing an area and Kristine’s sister, Isabelle amazing co-chairs, and that’s of reporting that I haven’t Guillaume, who shares her where I really got to work on done in college, and getting personal response to the news: different projects in the build- that alternative experience...

In her middle school years, ing, and I really liked bring- then being able to translate Townsend Harris alum ing different people together those skills of knowing how Kristine Guillaume lost all and innovating and finding to ask the right questions, her elections for office. Every new ways to improve The knowing how to approach the October, I would watch her Crimson. I think that’s what right sources, being confident prepare for her campaign by really inspired me to run.” when approaching sources, writing speeches and typing When I took Kristine’s knowing how to accurately up posters (on Microsoft place as the constant loser of report a story… knowing how Powerpoint with bland, yet our middle school’s elections, to structure a story or things pleasing, color schemes, I would see Kristine less and like that have really transunlike those of her peers’ less every year. In her fresh- ferred here to my skills at The big and sparkly posters). man and sophomore years, Crimson and have only develTruthfully, when I heard her she would blast her music oped further at The Crimson,” ideas as opposed to those of from our house’s study as she she said. her opponents, I thought she did her homework well into Kristine is the first black deserved to win; the pattern the early morning. In her ju- woman president of the faof her success— or lack therenior year, she became a co- mous publication, thus of— however, always made it editor-in-chief of The Phoe- garnering national media clear to me that her chances nix, and from that point on, coverage. Although her newwere low. she spent all her time in room ly-acquired fame is noteworWhen Kristine told me she 403, which she fondly called thy, the real importance of was running for president “the Meadow,” passionately Kristine’s becoming president of The Harvard Crimson, I running Townsend’s liter- finds its root in the impact it was foolish enough to carry ary magazine for her last two has had. “What I’ve been saythe same logic. But, Kristine years of high school. ing is that if my being elected proved me wrong.

“I think I owe a lot to my to The Crimson presidency Before becoming president, high school experience.... helps anyone bolster their Kristine worked for The CrimManaging The Phoenix helped own sense of belonging on son at Harvard University as me logistically in my past ex- The Crimson or on Harvard’s a news reporter. She was the periences here at Harvard, but campus or beyond that…, race and diversity junior beat also now will help me at The then I think that will be great reporter for the news ward, a Crimson…. At The Phoenix, I and I think that will make all position which allowed her to think I managed 100-some- the hard work that’s gotten cover issues such as undocuthing staff members; here I’m into me running into this pomented immigration activism managing 320 active editors. sition worth it,” she explained. on campus. Later, as the cenTransferring those skills, I “I think that it can be very diftral administration reporter think, will be very import- ficult... as a woman of color, as for her senior beat, Kristine ant,” she said. someone who comes from a covered the transition in Despite heading a magazine marginalized background... university presidency from of fictional literature, Kristine [to] navigate, when obviously former university president fulfilled her passion for jour- the privileged preferences are Drew Faust to current univernalism at Townsend as well by white and male and thinking sity president Larrow Bacow. writing for the sports depart- about sort of how you can “I think I really just loved ment of The Classic and taking find your place. So I think if working with people in the the journalism elective. “The it helps for people to see me building and getting to know thing about reporting is that being elected as something people who were on different it takes a long time to get your that affirms or validates their

EST. 1984

The Classic is an open forum for the expression of student views. The opinions expressed therein should not be taken to represent those of the administration or faculty, or of the student body as a whole.

EDITORIAL STAFF EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Danielle Amster Isabelle Guillaume NEWS EDITORS Nefertari Elshiekh Julianna Zitron

SPORTS EDITORS Hritamber Chakraborty Kunchaka Fonseka

FEATURES EDITORS Jessica Brite Alyssa Nepomuceno

SCIENCE & TECH EDITOR Ryla Pasaoa

OPINION EDITORS Amberly Khan Aresha Parjohn

PHOTOGRAPHY EDITORS Katrina Dydzuhn Matthew Neil

A&E EDITORS Victoria Kuzma Crystal Ngan MULTIMEDIA EDITOR Ava Nabatkhoran

COPY EDITORS Daniela Zavlun Nataniela Zavlun LAYOUT EDITOR Jacqueline Woo

MANAGING EDITORS Ilma Aamir Samantha Alzate ADVISOR Brian Sweeney own experiences, then I think that’s the big takeaway from this.”

When my sister and I were younger, my father always used to talk about how hard we would have to work in comparison to others, being black women in this society; in fact, he still talks about it today. At first, I did not really listen to him, as I wanted so desperately and naively to believe that days of racism and stereotyping were in the past.

However, when Kristine got accepted into Harvard and people saw her success as a byproduct of Affirmative Action rather than of her determination and achievements, it became evident to me that society often only accepts black people’s success if it can connect it to race.

Kristine’s being elected continues to defy that norm.

The Crimson’s board did not choose her to head on the basis of race; they picked her for her demonstrated passion, capability, and understanding of what needs to be done for the betterment of the paper.

It’s funny to think that the girl with whom I’ve had some of my biggest fights has become an inspiration to many around the world. Being the older sister, she always found a way to outsmart me; looking back on it, however, our arguments demonstrated that Kristine is someone to learn from rather than to pit oneself against.

All my life, I’ve been in my sister’s shadow.

I went to the same elementary and middle school as she, and I go to her high school alma mater now. Every time I entered a school, teachers would point me out and talk to me about Kristine, expecting me to be just like her. Initially, this irked me; it seemed to me that people saw me not for my personality and achievements, but rather as a copy of her.

Sometimes it still seems that way.

But sometimes comparing me to feels like the biggest compliment I could receive.

Sure, the comparison may paint me out to be a terrible dancer and have a terribly contagious laugh, but more importantly, it compares me to one of the strongest, most passionate, and most intelligent women I know.

If Kristine hopes her successes can validate the experience of others then she should know how much it validates my belief that I too can become something great one day and inspire others just as she has done at such a young age.

More than that, her success validates those of us who toil away at high school publications hoping for future endeavors of significance, and we at The Classic wish her the best of luck as she takes on this history-making work.

12 | THE CLASSIC

THHSCLASSIC.COM

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR REGARDING DRESS CODE COVERAGE

By Joyce Zheng, Reader

....Let’s look at the meaning and the purpose of the dress code, according to a website “School Dress Codes,” the dress code is made to promote a safe, disciplined school environment, prevent interference with schoolwork and discipline, and to encourage uniformity of student dress.”

What this definition implies is that this dress code is imposed upon students for their own benefits and to fulfill the purpose of school and education which is to “... develop students’ desire and ability to think and learn about the world around them. Furthermore, the purpose is to learn how to develop relationships that will enable students to work with their peers, throughout their schooling and beyond” stated by a mother, Stacey Kazakis Weigler of New Hampshire. This dress code implies to all genders. It is just that the fashion trend for girl clothing is more on the shorter side, but there is more than enough fashionable clothes that we can choose from. It also gives students a chance to output their creativity by mixing and matching clothing that both appeals to the student themselves and the dress code.

The statistics that you have conducted shows us that more girls get demerits and that boys have less when concerning the dress code. However, you failed to include that boys have all the dressdom to wear clothing that my violate the dress code but they don’t receive these demerits because of the fashion trend that they follow which tends to be longer. This also concerns what you wrote in your editorial “The dress code is discriminatory. It’s time for the SU to do more” which said that “Yes, female students do frequently break the code and attempt to avoid being caught; they do not do this to avoid getting demerits, they do it because the prying eyes of the administration makes them feel uncomfortable in the clothes they choose to wear.”

Reading this statement and comparing it to my own experiences and my interactions with many other firls, they attempt to avoid being caught because they don’t want to get demerits while following the popular fashion trend outside of school. Instead of blaming the dress code of being discriminatory, we cans ay that it

is outdated regarding fashion trends outside of school.

But thank you for addressing the need for change in the dress code in our school, I greatly appreciate the work you have done.

By Denise Peng, Reader

...There is indeed a need for change in the school’s discriminatory dress code especially considering the growing culture of the objectification of women. Ever since 2000 and the increase of over 20% of dress codes nationwide, it has been more so accepted that “male entitlement to your body in public space is socially acceptable, but you will be punished,” syas Laura Bates, a frequently published author and founder of The Everyday Sexism Project. Such dress codes can be detrimental to girls, especially in schools that claim to promote positive learning environments.

A study conducted by the American Psychological Association concluded that “the over-sexualization and objectification of women [leads] to a host of negative emotional consequences, such as shame, anxiety, and even self-disgust,” which lowers “self-esteem, causes depressive symptoms, and diminishes sexual health.”

In the long run, dress codes compromise academic performance and lead to the development of anxiety and eating disorders. Alexander Brodsky who is the cofounder of Know your IX, an advocacy group that informs students of their right to education without gender discrimination, states, “that targeting, humiliating and disciplining of female students could constitute a hostile environment” and that “if women are missing out on opportunities to learn [by being pulled out of class], that looks like a violation [of Title IX].” In 2014, two hundred students in Tottenville HIgh School in Staten Island, NY, 90% of which were girls, were pulled out from class and given detention slips. Additionally, according to a 2018 National Women’s Law Center report, three in four D.C. public high school dress codes assert the right to remove students from the classroom in the condition of dress code violation, lowering academic performance. In both cases, as well as various other throughout the nation, there is a clear trend in that dress codes target women which

causes them to lose precious learning time they could use to enrich their futures. Kayla Patrick, an education policy expert, states, “This sends a disturbing message to all students: What a girl looks like is more important than what she learns and thinks.” The rise of social media influence and movement such as #MeToo and #IAmMoreThanADistraction have raised awareness of the demand for change. Thank you for addressing the issue of the school’s discriminatory dress code.

By Samantha Sestak, Reader

To expand on your editorial regarding the discrimination immanent in the school’s dress code, it is also necessary to bring into conversation the larger cultural context and sexualization of women in modern society.

According to the American Psychological Association, sexualization occurs when “a person’s value comes only from his or her sexual appeal or behavior, to the exclusion of other characteristics” of if “a person is sexually objectified, that is, made into a thing for others’ sexual use rather than seen as a person with the capacity for independent action and decision making.”

The cultural norm of sexualization is brought back into light when schools justify their restrictive policies on girls’ clothing with the excuse that they serve as a “distraction” to male classmates. What this shows is that the dress code communicates that girls’ bodies are dangerous and for this reason, sexual harassment is inevitable. Laura Bates, a gender scholar, states that dress codes are “teach[ing] our children that girls’ bodies are dangerous, powerful, and sexualized, and that boys are biologically programmed to objectify and harass them.”

Furthermore, the dress code indirectly suggests that boys’ education is valued over girls’ as it is more important for a male student to not be distracted than it is his female classmate to be pulled out of clas to change clothing and face humiliation. Dress codes are in many ways “perpetuating rape culture when they make no attempt to discipline boys’ inappropriate behavior,” choosing to place the blame and responsibilities instead on female students. This connects to the current #MeToo movement and how it is the victim’s

fault when she is harassed for arousing and stimulating inappropriate behavior in her male counterparts. Lynne A. Isaacson, a professor of sociology, argues that this “preoccupation with physical appearance based on sexualized norms disrupts mental capacity and cognitive function and such preoccupation may be incited when your physical appearance is called out by an administrator or student in a classroom setting.”

Therefore, dress codes have become weapons of social control used to place the blame on women.

By Julia Wojtkowski, Reader

.....I have been discussing the topic of dress code with my mother ever since I started attending middle school, where I was first introduced to a uniform.

I had always been able to find points for boths sides of the argument and had never been able to decide my overall stance on the topic; my mother, on the other hand, has always been pro dress code and pro uniform—in fact, she had stated multiple times that my middle school’s decision to have a uniform was the main factor in [her] choosing of the school. It not only saved me time in the morning when getting dressed, but it also saved her money as she just needed to buy me five pairs of shirts at the beginning of the year, a sweater, and slacks; all to be found in one place for a reasonable price.

After beginning to attend Townsend Harris High School, I often brought up the point that the dress code was pertaining mostly to girls in the school; “Dresses, skirts, and shorts must be no more than 3.5 inches above the knee… shirts must cover your shoulders, back, and chest. No tank tops, camisoles, or spaghetti straps. Your midriff must be covered,” as stated in the THHS planner purchased by every student. All these points seemed to describe the items you would find in every girl’s closet. And the fact that on each Founder’s Day we see a group of boys walking across the stage at the auditorium breaking all these rules and not getting punished for it further proves how these policies are only in effect for girls. I do not agree with the fact that schools are blaming girls for the fact that boys get distracted with our bodies; our bodies are not something to shame,

or to be embarrassed about.

However, my mother had always brought up the same points you had made in your article; in a professional environment, you should have respect for yourself, for others, and for the work that is being done there. I didn’t quite understand this until I had talked with a close friend of mine (who does not attend our school) on the dress code policies that she has to respond to: none.... [She and her friends] walk around in material that is see-through and in shorts that don’t cover nearly enough.

These 15-year-old girls are deliberately putting their bodies on display for the sole reason of, and I quote, “wanting attention from a guy.” They didn’t respect themselves, the learning environment, or their friends.

I realized that what makes up a professional environment is the way that people represent themselves. In fact, “12% [of people surveyed] have complained about a co-worker’s attire to human resources” because they weren’t dressed professionally, as stated in a survey conducted by the new station “Today.” Because of this, in just about every workplace, there is a dress code put into place. And to be honest, I don’t mind the current dress code. I am able to express myself and my values by dressing appropriately and fashionably.

The point I am trying to make it: we shouldn’t get rid of the dress code. We can instead tweak it so that it affects both genders equally and we must educate boys on the importance of respect to women no matter what they are wearing.

If we are able to engrave this in the minds of our generation, there won’t be a need for a #MeToo movement in the next one.

By Jessica Graf, Guidance Counselor

Kudos to the editors in chief for their thoughtful, necessary reporting in “Demerits & distractions: Sexism in schools”. Debunking the implicit bias of a dress code that penalizes gendered items of clothing is an essential cause that can help to establish a more equitable learning environment.To quote Chancellor Carranza, this sort of advocacy will be “one of those cornerstone pieces interms of how are we going to continue to transform this immense system to really, truly serve all students.” (The Wall Street Journal, August 2018)

THE CLASSIC | 13

WINTER 2019

Echos From the Plantation sending echoes through Townsend Harris

By Yamilia Frej, Staff Writer

Various events at Townsend Harris expose the student body to new cultures and ideas. Annual cultural exhibitions like the Festival of Nations are native to our school, but this month introduced a new ethnic display.

On Friday, January 18, an intimate screening of the Guyanese documentary-drama film “Echos From the Plantation” was held from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. in the auditorium, and was open to the public.

The word echos is intentionally misspelled to represent a single resonating echo instead of a group of many echoes. The film commemorates 180 years of Indians in Guyana, narrating a rich history taught from generation to generation until it reaches a young Indian Guyanese girl.

The film has been praised in the academic world since its world premiere in April 2018, including an invitation to the Charlotte Asian Film Festival at the University of North Carolina. Townsend Harris sealed a viewing through the collaboration of senior Shivani Persaud and music teacher Dr. Sato.

In the summer before Shivani’s junior year, director Kishore Seunarine asked her to play sitar for the original movie

Left to Right - Dr. Dharmendra Ramdehal, Anjali Paray, Shivani Persaud, Kishore Seunarine, Dr. Sato, Shivani’s sister and mother. | Shivani Persaud

soundtrack. After several months working as part of the production, Shivani always knew she wanted to share Echos with Townsend Harris. “The Caribbean is a region not often studied in official curriculums, and given that we have a significant Caribbean and South Asian population, I felt that it was somewhat necessary to give a piece of ourselves to the community in this way,” Shivani said.

However, it wasn’t until a chance conversation with Dr.

Sato that a movie screening at THHS became a real possibility. The two were discussing immigration and history from the film when “[Dr. Sato] almost immediately asked about screening it at Townsend,” Shivani recalled. After a period of planning, Seunarine was all set to make his visit.

The screening was followed by a Q&A session between production team members and inquisitive students. In addition to Seunarine, lead actress Satwika Reddy and featured

singer Anjali Paray sat on the panel, supported by Dr. Dharmendra Ramdehal, a prominent member of the Guyanese community.

Senior Sarah Deonarain described the Q&A as “fantastic and insightful.” She added,“I learned a lot about my culture and how to approach it. I gained a sense of pride and learned how to deal with issues of racism, self-loathing, and superiority in my culture.”

“I was impressed with the level of attention that the au-

My visit to Earlham College

By Jeremy Wang, Guidance Counselor

Located in Richmond, Indiana, a small city that is roughly a one and a half hour car ride from Indianapolis, “Earlham College is a member of the proud circle of liberal colleges in the Midwest that includes Beloit, Grinnell, Kenyon and Oberlin, to name just a few. Less than half the size of Oberlin and comparable to the other three, Earlham is distinctive for its Quaker orientation and international perspective.” Earlham is also a member of a special group of colleges referred to as “Colleges That Change Lives,” or CTCL. I was honored to be among a group of college counselors/ advisors from all over the nation to visit this pretty and proud liberal arts college on December 7, 2018. Since I have heard of Earlham for many years, and I am a fan of liberal arts education, when the invi-

tation to visit Earlham came, I registered without hesitation.

December 7 was a cold, but sunny day in Richmond. We started the day by attending a presentation called “All about Earlham” by Dr. Jay Roberts, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs. Though a marketing piece, it was a genuine and honest presentation about Earlham. To his students, he is Jay, not Dr. Roberts.

That is a unique phenomenon at Earlham: students address their professors by their first name. This habit is consistent with the Quaker commitments to social justice, experiential learning, egalitarian and informal interactions, and embracing ambiguity (both; and). The Quaker principles also include “respect every individual, act with integrity, pursue peace and justice, seek consensus, and to live simply.” Jay explained that an Earlham education

dience was paying,” Seunarine noted. “Everyone was attentive, and no one was on their phones - which you would expect with a youth-oriented event.

The true appreciation of the event from the audience came with their participation in the Q&A panel and the conversations during breaks.”

Attendees left the film with their own emotional echoes and personal insights, regardless of their ethnic background.

According to senior Max Kurant, “[Echos] brought tears to my eyes at multiple parts when I watched it. It was able to invoke such heavy emotion in me.”

Junior Dropati Sanichar found that the film “brought back nostalgia and cultural familiarity from my visits, but watching [Guyana’s] history brought me almost to tears and I personally felt the sorrows of my ancestors that impacted me deeply, seeing what we went through.”

Max summed up the sentiment: “More than anything, this movie felt very genuine, the event was very well put together, and it’s an experience that I know I won’t forget.”

This event was made possible through a collaboration between The Phoenix, Caribbean Club, Anime Club, Asian Cul-

emphasizes “experiential” Another unique phelearning. Following the innomenon of Quaker troductory presentation, we institutions (includvisited and interacted with ing Earlham) is that some of the college’s highthere is no proctor lights – its center for social at tests because stujustice; center for entrepredents are supposed neurship and innovation, to “act with integrity.” and center for global health.

In terms of the soAt lunch time, I had the cial environment at opportunity to take a few Earlham, the following pictures of the student caf- Earlham College is a liberal college in Richmond, Indi- answers may address ana. | Jeremy Wang eteria. Though the Quakers some of your questions. plication process, personal exbelieve in simple living, they What are some also believe in offering choic- periences and their interaction scholarships and opportunies for all. There are at least five with their peers and professors. ties for students of color and Throughout their presen- underrepresented choices of cuisine at each meal. students? tations, I heard clear themes: That is a lot for a college with A few scholarships availan enrollment of approximately they have much autonomy able include the Cunningham 1,100 undergraduate students. in their learning, and they Cultural Scholarship, BonI found the student pan- have been engaged in some- ner Scholars Program, and el presentation to be the most thing creative and experiential. Quaker Fellows. A few OpThe panelists explained portunity Programs include interesting part of the visit. that their professors are very LIFT and McNair. The LiAt the presentation, the stuinvolved and dedicated to brary Immersion Fellowship dents were open and genuthe students’ learning and Team (LIFT) is a program ine with their experiences.

They shared how they were attend to the students’ ac- for first-generation students introduced to Earlham, their ap- ademic and career needs. in their first year at Earlham.

14 | THE CLASSIC

THHSCLASSIC.COM

Netflix’s You leaves people checking behind their backs

By Dino Mulani, Staff Writer

Since December 26, there has been a major buzz on the most trending new show on Netflix, You. The story is told from the perspective of a bookstore manager, Joe, who falls instantly in love with a stranger, Guinevere Beck. Joe starts off by having a crush on Beck. The closer Joe gets to Beck and the more his love for her grows, the more sinister his actions become.

Sophomore Nejra Barakovic said, “It was incredibly fascinating how there were 10 [40-minute] episodes, yet I finished the series in 2 days, and the storyline never bored me.”

Junior Daniel Shi said, “I really liked how the story was told from the perspective of Joe because many of his actions seem cruel and illogical, but since it was told from his view, they seemed justified. In some ways, Joe can be considered a hero.” Sophomore Nejra even said, “We get a rather different perspective than in a “regular” show since it is sort of a soliloquy/monologue, in which the main character, Joe, speaks his thoughts only to the audience and we know things that the other characters do not.” Meanwhile, Junior Tasnimul Taher said, “Joe is a straight up psychopath and seeing

How many hawks?

By Crystal Ngan, A&E Editor MOVIES Aquaman (4/5 Hawks): “I saw Aquaman and I thought it was a fun movie to watch. It’s kind of cliche, but it doesn’t take itself too seriously, and I think anyone would be able to enjoy it, even if they are not a fan of superhero movies.” - Senior, Jesse Anderson MUSIC Members Only, Vol. 4 (XXXTentacion) (3.5/5 Hawks): “The album itself had some good songs, such as “Gassed Up!” or “Touch Eem Body”, but there were also more underwhelming songs than there should have been.” - Senior, Marsad Kabir

Netfliz debited You on December 26 and has been blowing up ever since | Matthew Neil

his perspective did not make me feel any sympathy for his despicable behavior.” Freshman Elsa agrees, saying, “Joe’s personality is very abusive and he needs to be put in prison.”

Joe has to overcome many obstacles in order to have Beck become his one true love.

In his quest to get Beck to fall in love with him, Joe uses social media such as Beck’s Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook to find out her location and information about her entire life. Joe follows her to bars, restaurants, and even her house. His intention was to care and protect Beck from any

harm, however, this was not always the outcome. In society, social media makes us put our entire life story available to the public and it can lead to stalking. Junior Rachel Zheng believes the show helped her realize “how easily social media can turn dangerous. It feels like an exaggerated version of something women typically face frequently.”

The thriller shows how there should be some caution when viewers post on social media as a safety concern. With things such as dating apps connecting strangers, there is always a sense of fear, as peo-

ple lie or tweak their information online. Author Stewart Stafford had said, “Stalkers have an obsessive over-identification with their unwilling target but also a latent envy of their talents and/or beauty, If they can’t possess the person totally, they will destroy the victim’s qualities that they can never have.”

With a 91 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes and season 2 slowly approaching, You continues to keep viewers on edge. Junior Ashley Facey recommends the show to all, saying it is “definitely worth the watch.”

thank u, next (Ariana Grande) (3/5 Hawks): “I think that the best songs on her new album were the singles she already released. The rest of the album was disappointing to me. I feel as if Ariana Grande didn’t meet her voice’s full potential and her songs all ended up souding pretty similar.” - Senior, Kathryn Kwon PLACES TO GO Flushing Ice Cream Factory (4.5/5 Hawks): “I believe that their quality of ice cream and service is superb. The ice cream has a very creamy and fresh texture. In addition, there are many unique and exotic flavors that are offered, which is why I would definitely recommend everyone to try out the ice cream.” - Senior, Joseph Zhao

The rise of the teddy coat

By Navjit Bajwa, Staff Writer

A coat you could wear to any occasion that pulls any look together while being cozy. It sounds too good to be true, but that’s why everyone seems be wearing the Teddy coat, which has taken this season by storm. Countless celebrities have been spotted on the streets in this look that has turned into a staple in any closet. Warm and comfortable are just the initial takeaways for this coat. The Teddy Bear faux fur adds a soft touch to any outfit whether you pair it with jeans, or dress it up for the season.

Countless seniors have added this staple piece to their own collection and it can even be considered an upperclassman trend because of the influx of jackets you see on the third floor of THHS. Senior

Jacqui Valenti said, “I fell in love with them because the style is so baggy and oversized, but it also looks like something you can wear to bed which I love.” The teddy look offers versatility and comfort, “Teddy jackets go perfectly with a lot of outfits and give a

super comfy and messy-butcute look.”

Senior Nabiha Zaman added, “My favorite thing about the coat is that it keeps me warm since I often find that the school can get a little cold.

Since the coat is oversized it helps to tone down certain ou-

Teddy coats are the new fashion wave. | Matthew Neil

tfits and give off a more effortless look.”

If you’re thinking about making the purchase and adding a teddy coat to your own collection, Nabiha says, “There are various price options if you take your time looking online. If you want to invest in

a good quality coat that doubles as a fashion statement and protection against the cold, there are some pricier options but there are also a good number of affordable versions online as well.”

The teddy coat fits just about anybody’s closet and clothing style. Senior Sammi Zeng calls it “exactly what everyone is looking for… This jacket became the latest fashion statement, so it caught my attention and I knew that I would get a lot of use out of it.”

Freshman Maimuna Muntaha, one of the few underclassmen who also wears the Teddy coat, says she enjoys the comfort and style of the jacket.

She got hers from Forever 21 in comparison to others who ordered it from online websites such as Zaful, Shein, and Honeybum.

THE CLASSIC | 15

WINTER 2019

Not so “subtle asian” pages attracts attention

“Subtle Asian” pages on Facebook gain attention internationally | Matthew Neil

By Crystal Ngan, Jessica Brite, Alyssa Nepomuceno, A&E Editor and Features Editors

Originally meant to be a place to share jokes and memes about the Asian experience, a group of teenagers from Australia unknowingly created an extensive network that has spanned to all corners of the world.

The Facebook group titled ‘Subtle Asian Traits’ began as a way to connect the Asian community through memes, tweets, and relatable content and currently has 1,139,435 members.

“I think it’s blown up so much because it’s the small

things in life that many people have in common,” junior Tina Chen said.

“When people see posts about those subtle Asian traits, they probably feel the need to tag their friends on the post to see if they can relate to it and very often, these tags can generate very interesting conversations,” she said.

Senior Chloe Chan said, “There have always been Asian memes but the community has never been as big as this one.

It’s amazing how even people who don’t even use Facebook know about Subtle Asian Traits and how it has even reached famous news platforms. The best part is [that] I feel more

connected to my culture in a way.”

“The page is directed towards second-generation immigrants,” said senior Helen Lin. “The jokes/memes are relevant to Asian [descendants] living in English-speaking countries [since] the lifestyles of Asian descents [in some ways] differ from Asians living in Asia.”

Since then, the page has inspired several others sporting the Subtle Asian branding, such as ‘Subtle Christian Traits,’ ‘Subtle Asian Mates,’ and ‘Subtle Asian Leftovers.’ Of these spinoffs, one in particular has quickly gained traction since its founding.

‘Subtle Asian Dating’ began

as a group where friends would jokingly “auction off ” other friends in hopes of finding them a significant other in the Asian community.

Reaching 336,110 members as of January 2019, the group is continuing to grow quickly.

Junior Emily Tan said, “The posts usually play on the stereotypical Asian standards of a good college, a high-paying job, and being fluent in innumerable languages.”

Senior Joseph Zhao said, “When you actually look at the way that people auction off their friends, you can tell that the entire page is merely a joke. The comedic captions that people will ‘gas up’ their

friends [are] very entertaining to me because the entire caption will be filled with sarcastic phrases and emojis,” leading him to believe that “[it] is more for comedic purposes rather than acting as an actually dating page.”

Joseph jokingly added, “One of my friends asked me to find her a prom date on SAD, so I’m also trying to do her a favor by going on the page.”

Ramen Hood debuts on the streets of SoHo

By Annie Lin, Staff Writer

Originating in the Grand Central Market of Los Angeles, Ramen Hood is a 100% vegan ramen bar that has made its way to the streets of SoHo. This popup eatery is situated in Chefs Club Counter until January 19.

At first glance, no one would assume that the chefs behind the counter use flavorful sunflower seed broth as a basis for each bowl of ramen. The menu offers a range of broth flavors, from original to smokey, and even a rice bowl option. In addition to this, each bowl comes with bean sprouts, scallions, bok choy, king oyster mushrooms, nori, and chili threads all for $12, which is an affordable option for students, especially compared to other dining locations around Manhattan.

Another item that this restaurant is renowned for is its vegan

Vegan ramen bar popup appears in Manhattan during January. | via @ramenhood on Instagram

egg, of which the white and yolk of the egg are made of soy and nutritional yeast. Not only does the yolk pop out of the white, but it also has a runny consistency when poked open.

Additionally, there are a number of $6 small plates, including banh mi poutine (thrice-cooked

fries with hoisin gravy, pickled vegetables, sriracha, daiya cheese, jalapeños, and cilantro), ahi ‘tuna’ crisps (spicy tuna beets in a crispy rice shell with yuzu avocado puree, sesame seeds, and chili threads), and the modern American favorite, avocado toast.

Inside, the setting was a bit unexpected. While other restaurants around the city are usually bustling with crowds and long wait lines, finding seats here was an easy task.

For a total of $15.24, I ordered the spicy ramen with the vegan egg.

Experiencing the broth’s richness first-hand, I was shocked when I found out that that it was sunflower seed-based.

Considering how a measly sunflower seed has little to no taste, the number of flavors that were incorporated into the broth was more than I could comprehend.

The noodles had the right thickness and chewiness, with the same consistency and taste of your typical egg noodle. I also enjoyed Ramen Hood’s use of king oyster mushrooms as a vegan alternative to meat. Unlike the crispy exterior of the mushroom, the inside was soft and

tender.

As the name indicated, the ramen was indeed spicy, but it had just the perfect amount of spice, not too little and not too overwhelming.

While its embellishment had completed the whole look of a regular bowl of ramen, the vegan egg was a novelty I was unprepared for.

The chefs behind the “vegan egg” definitely nailed the runny “yolk” concept, but upon trying it, the taste was foreign and honestly, one that was not for me.

However, it was still a solid attempt at recreating that of a real egg and definitely worth the experience.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this limited-time restaurant to vegans and non-vegans alike, or to any student on a budget who is simply around the SoHo neighborhood.

16 | THE CLASSIC

THHSCLASSIC.COM

Meet Townsend’s champion athletes

By Esther Dai, Staff Writer

With the conclusion of this year’s victorious fall season, two teams in particular, the girls’ varsity volleyball team and the boys’ varsity badminton team, stood out. However, the reason that this fall season was so impactful for Townsend was not the overall standings of both teams, but because of two of the top players from each team. Sophomore Zoe Tylipakis and Junior Andy Ng held high positions in the whole city.

Zoe is a starter and the official setter of the volleyball team, with 160 assists in 10 games. She tied with senior Trinity Young from Middle College High School at LaGuardia Community for the 4th best setter in the city. In the top 10 spots for the setter position, Zoe was the only underclassman, making her the youngest to be in the highest ranks.

Andy is captain of the badminton team, and is currently ranked number 1 in the city

and number 2 in the nation for junior badminton player.

Notably, he won the 1st Singles Champion at the NYC PSAL Boys Badminton Individual Championships 2017-2018.

Both players were inspired to play and influenced by their fathers’ passions towards their sports. Andy said, “As I kid, I always followed my dad to a local recreational center to watch him play. Seeing my father play with his friends and having fun games inspired me to do the same thing. I wanted to feel the same joy and intensity my dad felt on the court.” Zoe had a similar experience. She said, “I started playing volleyball when I was nine years old and my biggest influence was my dad, because he played volleyball in high school. I always saw how passionate he was about the sport and then I grew to love it just as much as he did.” Consequently, what started as their fathers’ dreams turned into their own.

When asked what Andy feels about being the top in the city,

he said “It feels great!” With the honor of knowing he’s achieved so much, he feel more confident and proud of himself. He also said, “Representing Townsend Harris and putting my school’s name on the top of the sport of badminton makes me hope that badminton will be a more popular and appreciated sport in our school.”

Zoe explained that she still can’t believe she’s ranked so high. After the Hawks’ second game with Bayside High School, her dad showed her the stats, with her coming in at first place. She stated, “I always considered myself to be a good volleyball player, but I guess I never realized I was capable of being ranked that high.”

Both athletes have high hopes for the future of Townsend sports and their careers.

Andy said, “Following nationwide tournaments, I aim to hopefully represent my country and play in the 2024 olympics.” Zoe is excited for the next season because the varsity team is going to have the same

Andy Ng and Zoe Tylipakis gain city championship titles. | Min Shin

members, aside from one senior. She stated, “It’s not just the skill that makes this team so special, it’s the chemistry we have on and off the court that really help us to grow and play our best. Our coach, Ms. Avivi, really pushes us to our limits and I hope we can continue to improve and make it to the end next year.”

This year’s girls’ varsity volleyball team performed outstandingly, reaching up all the way to quarterfinals. The team defeated long time division champions, Benjamin Cardozo High School, for a spot as a top team in the “A” Division. For the first time, Townsend was

able to secure a spot as Top 10 in New York.

The boys varsity badminton team also held out its own against the formidable champions, Bronx HS of Science and Hunter College of High School.

The team did better than they did in previous years, placing 3rd in the division.

With their skill, determination, and love for their sports, Andy and Zoe are aiming to establish a career for themselves.

These are just two of Townsend Harris’ bright athletes, and in the upcoming seasons, other Harrisites will be showing their abilities as well.

After losing multiple star players from last year, the boys’ varsity basketball team is working harder than ever this winter. Captain Dillon Cortes said, “We lost a lot of our main scorers so we need new players to pick up the slack, which is our main issue.”

These new players include freshmen who just finished tryouts for the team. Freshman Brandon Jaquez said, “Going into tryouts I was just trying to be the best player I can be and showing the coach that I can be useful for the future.” Regarding their overall goals for the season, sophomore Dylan Samuel said, “The team hopes to win the division and have a deep playoff run.” In order to achieve this, they stress and value their practice time. Rookie of the year Jahdon Jerome said, “During practice, we want to run and go over plays that would help us score in the game…we want to practice so we get familiar with each other [on the court].”

The team is about halfway through the season and hope to go on a strong playoff run.

The girls’ varsity basketball team had an impressive season last year, advancing to the third round of the playoffs and losing by only five points to Longwood Preparatory Acad-

emy. Rookie of the year Xandria Crosland said, “Our goals are to always try our hardest and help our players be the best they can be. Hopefully, we remain undefeated and win the championship this year.” These goals are achieved through grueling practices which include agility drills and stimulation plays to prepare them for new aspects of the game.

“Last season, the majority of our points came from either mid-range shots or 3 pointers,” said senior Kimberly Lau. “This season, we changed our offense by penetrating the defense more and attempting more shots from the inside. Doing so kept the defense on their toes and gave them more players to be afraid of.” Coach and Athletic Director Lauren Caiaccia commented, “This year, one of the things I would like to see us improve on is post play, meaning our forwards down play.”

Overall, the team’s effort and dedication will hopefully lead them to the finals this season.

Through developing new players, hard work, and playing with tenacity, the Hawks are on the road to success. Be sure to check out upcoming games taking place throughout the rest of the winter season!

A look into winter sports

By Ariana Vernon and Kristen Zhao, Staff Writers

The 2018-2019 PSAL winter season has started and winter athletes are immersed in the grind of their respective sports.

Townsend Harris sports fans are gearing up to follow their favorite teams, from girls’ indoor track to boys’ varsity basketball and a host of other sports in between to make this an exciting season.

In 2018, the girls’ indoor track team finished the season placing 2nd in the Queens Borough Championship, but captain senior Patrycja Lis believes that improvements can still be made. Last year, the team was plagued with injuries that she felt were preventable. This season, she hopes they will make improvements in punctuality and allow time for proper warmup and cooldown sessions, resulting in fewer injuries.

Although the girls have team goals, they also have specific individual goals to motivate them throughout the season.

Freshman Chloe Munoz shared that she would like to work on her form and try all the new events that indoor track has to offer. As for Patrycja, “My mindset this season is more on how best to make sure ev-

eryone is happy… so that everyone improves as a team.”

The boys’ indoor track team is in the middle of their winter season as well. Although the Hawks have been successful as a team, each runner wants to achieve individual goals, similar to the girls’ indoor track team. Freshman Jake Chang said, “I would like to be one of the ‘best freshmen’ in the city in my events.” Sophomore Balraj Chahal also shared that “ he would like to qualify for City Championships in two events and win the Queens Borough Championships as a team…

Better attitudes toward running and wanting to improve is what will help a team thrive, which is what we strive to do.”

This season, the girl’s table tennis team welcomed a number of new players and hopes to find strength in numbers. “The team is striving to be at the top of the division and make it into quarterfinals [of playoffs],” said co-captain Chloe Pan. Co-captain Jaime Tran added, “(quote) that one of their major goals is to beat Francis Lewis, one of their biggest rivals. Before the team can achieve these goals, however, they must overcome several obstacles. The main challenge is the loss of key seniors. “We lost two of our sin-

gles players, who were both really good,” Jaime said. “I know that we might not be as strong of a team as we used to be, but I think that it’s also really good that we have a lot of freshmen and sophomore beginners who have the potential to improve.”

With the growing number of players joining the team and the confidence displayed by the captains, the girls’ table tennis team has high hopes this season.

The co-ed wrestling season is midway complete and the team has their sights set on the championship. Captain senior Steven Ramkissoon and sophomore Benjamin Babaev share similar goals, both looking to become individual city champions and bring home the blended banner as a team. In order to achieve this, the team must rely on each other to perform to the best of their ability.

Sophomore Rachel Chai said, “To improve, we just need to keep our heads in the game and attend practices frequently.” In the end, as each wrestler strives to meet their individual goals, their team dynamic ultimately betters their performance.

Steven added, “It really comes down to being a team sport as the strength of the wrestler is the team and the strength of the team is the wrestler.”