The Bolles Bugle: February-March 2022 by bollesbugle

THE

BOLLES

BUGLE Iss. 011, Black History Month The Jessie Murals, pg. 12

Table of Contents

Profiles

Local

Gravity Uplifts Black Community

Keeping Up with Kennedy

Foraging for History

Kahric Shoots for the Stars

The Jessie Revitalizes Jax

Quick Recs

Diving Into A Date with a Book

Soul Food with a Twist

Breaking Down Downtown

The Talking Trees of St. Simons

More Than a Fish Store

On Campus

Op-Ed

Six on Six

A Change in Faith

Sick of the Drama, but Not of K-Drama

My Body, My Choice.

Tall Girl 2

The 3 Stages of a Netflix Rom-Com

DA Black Arts: Black Joy and Innovation

Bolles Adds Up for Math Teacher Mr. Gomez

Fletcher Finds Her New Teaching Home The Building of the Blue Crest

New English Teacher Has Story to Tell

Fluegel’s Loved Books Find New Home in Kenya

Satire

Four Compete in National Linguistics Olympiad

T&F? Now F&T!

Hair in Sports

Bolles Going Electric?

People, Stop Misplacing Plates!

Pollyana Revisted

Pre-college group chats: convenience or concern?

An Interview with Alumni Interviews

40 Recruitment 101: Navigating the NCAA, scouts, and Twitter Going Greener at Bolles

Earth Declared Not a Planet

Scholastic Award Show

Graveyard for Required Reading

Videos Bugle Breakdown: Man on the Street Edition

Valentine’s Day: Faculty Shares Dating Advice

The Bolles Bugle Staff Co-Editors-In-Chief: Su Ertekin-Taner Sarah Scherkenbach Online Editor-In-Chief: Ian Peiris Graphic Design Editor: Ava Sickler Social Media Editor: Megan Howard Public Relations Editor: Amber Bansal

Hello dear readers, Thank you for picking up this issue of The Bolles Bugle! Our focus for this publication is on straight news with an overarching theme of Black History Month. Accordingly, articles related to Black History Month have been marked with a black tab on their page. Additionally, the Bugle’s video team has put together two videos whose QR codes can be found at the back of the publication: one video asking upper school faculty for relationship advice and one video polling students on their knowledge of Black history.

Multimedia Editor: Tyler Schimpff

The feature for this month is a revisit of diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts at Bolles and can be found in our On-Campus beat.

Copy Editor: Cameron Gratz

We would also like to congratulate members of the Bugle staff for their success in the Scholastic Art and Writing contests and being published nationally in Best of School Newspapers Online.

Writing Coach: Kelly Kim Contributing Writers: Grace Albaugh Isabel Bassin Alex Boutwell Ava Cheng Atticus Dickson Elliana Emery Aisha Hasan Simran Naval Caylee Padgett Camden Pao Isabel Schimpff Raphael Sogueco Jaden Taher Daniel Waheed Sara Wasserman Kate Youell Tommy Zhang Advisor: Ms. Jacobson

Editorial Policy: The Bolles Bugle is the news magazine created by the journalism class at The Bolles School. Our publication focuses on increasing community awareness of in-school events and topics relating to the five news values: relevance, proximity, timeliness/novelty, conflict/controversy, and human interest. Content in the Bugle is the responsibility of the editorial staff and not meant to reflect the views of the school’s administration or the student adviser. Please reach out to our faculty advisor, Ms. Jacobson, with any questions or comments. She can be reached at jacobsona@bolles.org or at bollesbugleonline@gmail.com. Copyright 2009-2022, The Bolles Bugle

Editors’ Letter

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We are so excited to announce that the official theme of our next Coffeehouse will be Space Cowboy. We hope to see you at Coffeehouse on April 8, 2022! If you would like to share your talent, registration for Coffeehouse acts opens Tuesday, February 22nd. To keep up with other Bugle-related events, follow us on Instagram @thebollesbugle.

Sincerely, Su Ertekin-Taner Sarah Scherkenbach Co-Editor-in-Chief Co-Editor-in-Chief

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Gravity Uplifts Black Community Crosby ‘19 Introduces Miami-based Magazine to Highlight Black Culture Grace Albaugh Contributing Writer

“T

he name ‘Gravity’ harkens to the innate, energetic force within Black people, our culture and collective voice,” described Julian Crosby, Bolles alum and founder of the University of Miami-based Gravity magazine.

As a young Black man at Bolles, Crosby felt a lack of understanding from peers and few connections to his culture and identity. However, he describes college as “eye opening” due to having his first prolonged interactions with individuals throughout the Black Diaspora with roots ranging from Ghana to Nigeria to Jamaica.

With a focus on uplifting Black artists and elevating Black content and subject matter, Crosby emphasizes goals of not only educating his local community but providing a safe haven for creators to express themselves within the University of Miami community.

Today, however, he is the Editorin-Chief of Gravity. The recently launched magazine maintains a base of over 800 followers on their Instagram and has garnered 1700 views on all of their multimedia work posted to their website. In the last 30 days, the site has received interaction spanning from the United Kingdom to Czech Republic, to Slovakia and even Nicaragua and India. “And we’re truly just getting started!” Crosby exclaims.

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Crosby states, “It’s rewarding to see the plurality of multicultural arts clubs forming on campus. About time we took the whole table instead of just enjoying our single seat.” While the focus is the BIPOC community, the magazine is open to people of all backgrounds and ethnicities because “at the core of our mission, we believe all people are impacted positively in some way by Black culture— whether through fashion or art.”

Crosby graduated from Bolles in 2019 and stated that although he “really wanted to go to California,” the moment he stepped on campus in Miami he “fell in love with the city and the rest is history.” With a major in screenwriting and a concentration in comedy television writing, Crosby hopes to write and act in his own television comedy series. Current underclassmen remember his humor and talent when he played Troy in 2017’s High School Musical.

glorification of Black trauma and pain and instead reinforce more positive images. The effect of Gravity on campus has been prevalent in motivating students of color into direct action.

An image from an article currently on the Gravity website which discusses the return of the 80’s streetwear trends. Credit: @thegravitymagazine.com Crosby shared his motivation for starting Gravity, “It was upon meeting these people and forming friendships that I wanted to create an entity for our stories & culture.” Crosby launched Gravity magazine in August of 2020. Crosby explained that through Gravity he hoped to infiltrate a mainstream media base that seems to profit from the

While Crosby studies abroad in Europe, sophomore Nevaeh Williams temporarily acts as Editor-in-Chief. However, Crosby’s commitment to Gravity is evident as he states he intends to complete projects for the magazine during his time away. In addition, upon graduation he hopes to remain heavily involved as an online contributor and, ultimately, a financial sponsor. Crosby hopes Gravity continues after his tenure, “I would love to see what the vision becomes in someone else’s hands. There’s some aspects of my creative vision that are limited so I always welcome and appreciate fresh ideas and taste.” With college graduation approaching, leadership change feels inevitable, but Crosby knows the mission will remain. Crosby said, “The name is a reminder that nothing can hold us down. We are Gravity.”

Keeping Up With Kennedy McKinney ‘19 Brings Paradigm Shift to FAU Sara Wasserman Contributing Writer

uring her time as a Bugle staffer and editor, Kennedy McKinney ‘19 decided that she wanted to make journalism her career, but it was during her freshman year of college at Florida Atlantic University when she made the decision to start a newspaper. McKinney originally joined FAU’s school newspaper, The University Press, but after seeing that they were failing to cover the minority side of FAU, she decided to take matters into her own hands and start FAU’s first Black newspaper. It started out, really, by just asking people in my classes if they were interested in joining this newspaper,” McKinney said.

the normal, so that’s how we got the name.” McKinney said the focus of The Paradigm Press is hard news, politics, and current events, anything “affecting the minority community. “We do current-events stories that are affecting the minority community. So, anything happening in politics we do cover that as well,” McKinney said.

from editor-in-chief of the Bugle to the same role on The Paradigm Press, McKinney’s writing style and subject matter have both evolved.

In addition to their usual topics, McKinney explains that the location of FAU has given them the ability to tell especially riveting and special stories.

“Back when I was in Bugle in high school I was more interested in, like, entertainment journalism, but now that I’ve been doing journalism in college, I’m more interested in the politics side, things like that.”

“Since we’re in South Florida, we have a very rich Caribbean diaspora here, so just being able to talk about them and their history … just being able to highlight the work that they’re doing has been the best,” said McKinney. The process of creating a newspaper at her college was relatively simple. As FAU is a public campus, students can start clubs and organizations easily. While starting the paper posed no issues, maintaining it has been a bit tougher.

The staff of The Paradigm Press (McKinney pictured in center) Credit: Kennedy McKinney The group began having meetings in dorm rooms and study lounges, and eventually launched their online newspaper: The Paradigm Press. “The idea was that we wanted to be a model for the community, and a paradigm is a model or something to go after,” explained McKinney. “We wanted to serve as a model for the community, and also since it was the first black newspaper at a predominately white institution, it was a big deal, a big shift, from

Logo for The Paradigm Press Credit: The Paradigm Press

“It wasn’t that hard to start it but definitely trying to maintain it has been a struggle because people graduate, so it’s definitely hard to keep our staff fully working,” McKinney said. McKinney describes the struggle of maintaining staff through the pandemic and this year’s recovery. “It’s definitely fluctuated, we started off with like 20 staff members, but when Covid happened, that got cut down to like 10. People had to just let it go, because of their lives at home and stuff. Now we’re back to like 20 staff members, so that’s been a positive,” McKinney said. Though she didn’t see any major changes in responsibilities going

McKinney’s preferred area of journalism before entering college was entertainment journalism, but since starting her journalism major and following the Black Lives Matter movement, she has found herself more geared toward politics. After graduation, she plans on going to law school and using her degrees to become a local correspondent. “The classes wanted more serious articles and stories, so not the fluff pieces or any type of entertainment, they wanted more hard-hitting journalism, so I just started to write more political stories. Also following summer of 2020 with the Black Lives Matter movement, that also made me very interested in politics, and I wanted to start covering that side of the news cycle.” explained McKinney. Overall, McKinney’s experience on the Bugle prepared her for running her own publication, as well as her future career in journalism. Seeing a need in her community, she decided to use her skills in journalism to fill it, and deliver much-needed information and stories to her school and beyond. “I feel like everyone has a story, you just have to ask the right questions to get it out of them. And celebrate them as well, that’s the best part.”

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Foraging for History With Alexis Nikole Nelson Atticus Dickson Contributing Writer

onsider the Magnolia blossom. It is a quintessential symbol of the American South due to it’s indigeneity to the region, as well as its beauty and fragrant blooms. Now consider eating one. That’s what TikToker, author, and educator Alexis Nikole Nelson wants everyone to hold in their mind.

Nelson says her love of foraging began when she was young, “I’ve honestly felt that way ever since I was really little. I guess I just didn’t have the tools to tell anybody outside of my parents, family members, friends, anyone who I could get to listen to me in person.”

Her internet presence first came to my attention on my TikTok For You page, so when on a cross country road trip this past summer I saw that she had an episode on one of my favorite podcasts, Ologies with Alie Ward, I was pleasantly surprised.

“I’ve honestly felt that way ever since i was really little I guess I just didn’t have the tools to tell anybody outside of my parents, family members, friends, anyone who I could get to listen to me in person” — Alexis Nikole Nelson Dubbed, “Teacher of the ‘Can I Eat This? It Grew in my Driveway’ Arts and Sciences” by Ward, Nelson has maintained an Instagram page called @blackforager since 2019, where she has posted all vegan recipes featuring ingredients she forages from hikes in the woods, along the beach, or even in her own neighborhood in Columbus, Ohio.

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She also talks about how the fact that more Black and Indigenous voices aren’t “front and center” in discussions about foraging makes it difficult for many to reconnect with their heritages in the same way Nelson has been able to. “My Instagram handle is @blackforager, and that was 100% on purpose, because one, I didn’t see a lot of people who looked like me in this space, and I still don’t see a lot of people who look like me in the space.” For any readers interested in trying foraging, the QR code below has links to websites with information on foraging in Northeast Florida, but as Nelson says in many of her videos “Happy snacking! Don’t die!”

Magnolia tree in full bloom. Photo Credit: Atticus Dickson In her episode, Nelson discusses how foraging was unofficiallyofficially forbidden from Black people in the Jim Crowe South, and also the basis of antiloitering laws in some places still in place today. “In the South, immediately after the Civil War, a lot of laws were put in place to purposefully curb recently freed Black folks from being able to forage and trap to provide for themselves, essentially holding them in economic bondage to the plantations.” She attributes her love of foraging to reconnecting with her Black and Indigenous heritage, describing it as “an act of restorative justice.” “So for me to be a Black woman foraging, yeah, it feels like justice to me. It’s an act that I feel like we should begin reclaiming.”

“So for me to be a Black woman foraging, yeah, it feels like justice to me. It’s an act that I feel like we should begin reclaiming.” — Alexis Nikole Nelson

Cooking down the syrup. Photo Credit: Atticus Dickson

Magnolia Cookie Recipe Cookie attempt one (too thick). Photo credit: Atticus Dickson

I tried one of her recipes, magnolia snap cookies, a play off of ginger snap cookies made with magnolia flowers as the flavoring because in addition to its fragrance, they also have a ginger-y flavor. The process was honestly fairly simple, with the most labor intensive part being the gathering and processing of the magnolia blossoms, but that all things told was also not too difficult either. Now, there are two main types of magnolia flowers in florida. The one you’re looking for is the Chinese Magnolia, which is not actually Chinese, but rather a hybrid of two other types created originally in France. You’ll recognize it by it’s pink and white hue and it’s relatively more shrub like trees compared to the other main type, the Southern Magnolia. You should pick about a half of a standard plastic grocery bag, ideally from different trees so as to not impact the health of any individual too much. Then, remove and discard the central part, reserving only the petal for the majority, but reserve and freeze a few unbloomed, but still colorful buds to grate into the cookies. To make the syrup, combine the flower petals, water, and sugar at a ratio of 4:1:1.5, then cool the syrup to room temperature. Meanwhile, mix together 1 cup of butter and ¾ cup of brown sugar until it’s pale brown, then add ¾ cup of the magnolia syrup. When that is fairly homogeneous, start gradually adding 3 ½ cups of flour, along with vanilla extract, cinnamon, and grated frozen magnolia flower until your soul tells you it feels right. Once the dough is crumbly but still holds moisture, form them into little spheres, then flatten them out to about ¼ of an inch thick, then coat them in sugar and bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.

Cookie attempt two (good). Photo credit: Atticus Dickson

All things told, they came out a bit crunchier and thicker than I would have liked, but that’s most likely because I didn’t flatten the first tray enough. I would recommend eating them with a cup of coffee or tea, or really any other beverage you dip cookies in. BOLLESBUGLEONLINE.COM

Kahric Shoots for the Stars Simran Naval Contributing Writer

fter Zoron Kahric and thousands of other NASA engineers poured their time, energy, and materials into a project that took 20 years to finish, the James Webb Space Telescope was finally ready to be launched on December 25th, 2021. Kahric was one of the many people that contributed to the development of the largest, and most powerful telescope. He claims that the telescope “is able to capture images that are millions of miles away. This allows us to see what space looked like a long time ago, and how we began existing.” During the creation of the telescope, Kahric and his team worked on designing the shutters for the telescope that allowed them to focus in on stars that could previously never be seen before. But the development of such a powerful and advanced telescope didn’t come without its setbacks.

An image of the microshutters on the James Webb Space Telescope. Photo Credit: NASA

An image of the mirrors on the James Webb Space Telescope undergoing cryogenic testing in an absolute zero chamber. Photo Credit: Ball Aerospace According to Kahric, “each of these shutters is roughly the size of two or three strands of hair, when sliced across. And on top of that, these shutters can only function at a few degrees above

absolute zero in order to avoid background noise and light from other sources.” So how do the NASA engineers create and test these shutters? Well, it starts with the shutters being placed in a chamber that acts as a vacuum in order to minimize the amount of sunlight and air introduced. The engineers then use a microscopic tool in order to test the shutters and see if they open properly. Kahric claims that this is the most time consuming process as many shutters became warped when they were opened and closed, forcing his group to restart their work.

The finished model of the James Webb Telescope before it was launched. Photo Credit: NASA/Chris Gunn

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And to top it off, Kahric stated that the telescope, “will be placed roughly a million miles away, on the side of the moon that has remained unexplored.”

With placement like this, the engineers have to make sure that every part of the telescope works perfectly, since it would be almost impossible to send people to fix it, after it is launched into space. Kahric reveals that sometimes millions of dollars and resources are poured into a project, before realizing that they have to completely scrap the project. And unfortunately, this happened several times when building the telescope. He goes on to say, “many times we’ve been designing things for several weeks and then we have to change one thing and all of a sudden the whole thing stops working.” However, Kahric also claims that because of NASA’s diverse range of engineers and scientists, their varying perspectives help provide a fresh outlook on every project. “I mean, anytime I need a solution to a problem, I can always bring someone from somewhere else to help me because there are always solutions.” He goes on to say that for students interested in going into aerospace engineering, “you will not become a millionaire by doing this job, and you will not have a regular 9-5 job. But what you will have is the ability to eventually say that you created something new that will hopefully help a lot of people.”

Zoron Kahric working on the James Webb Space Telescope. Photo Credit: Zoron Kahric

An image of the microshutters that Zoron Kahric and his team worked to create for the James Webb Space Telescope. Photo Credit: NASA

I tell my kids, who are about your age, that when something doesn’t work, look at this as a challenge to learn something new or find something new. — Zoron Kahric

Creation process of the mirrors on the James Webb Space Telescope. Photo Credit: NASA/Chris Gunn

The Jessie Revitalizes Jax Ava Cheng Contributing Writer

ost of us at Bolles know of the Epping Forest Yacht Club, only a few minutes away from the San Jose campus. But few know about its founder, Alfred I. DuPont, or his wife, Jessie Ball DuPont. They were philanthropists who owned properties that would eventually become organizations like Nemours Children’s Hospital and the St. Joe Paper Company. After her husband’s death in 1935, Jessie Ball DuPont went on to open a foundation in his name and build the businesses he’d begun, continuing to donate to multiple organizations, including Bolles. In 2013, the president of the DuPont Fund, Sherry Magill, suggested purchasing the former Haydon Burns Library and transforming it into a center to unite nonprofits. “We call it the Jessie because it’s cool and fun and short. It kind of keeps her name in it, because otherwise people just call it ‘the center’ and it loses her name,” director of the Jessie, Mark Walker, said.

The Jessie Ball DuPont Center is located in downtown Jax. Photo Credit: Mark Walker

“So, the first and foremost purpose is to offer below-market rental rates for nonprofits in class-A buildings,” Walker said. The goal of the 125,000 square foot building is to offer nonprofits the best possible environment to

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operate, to allow them to retain focus on their mission. The fund itself focuses on placemaking and equity. According to Walker, the fund will give out around $20 million in grants to organizations across the country this year. So how did a crumbling library become the heart of philanthropy in our community? After its purchase in 2013, the DuPont fund spent two years revamping it to build the “city hall for nonprofits” that it is today. “Sherry, the message she wanted to send was that nonprofits need to operate in the best possible environment. They shouldn’t have to scrimp and save. Let’s create an environment that says this work matters. And she did that very successfully. Across the country, conversations are happening about new monuments honoring diverse perspectives.“In the entire city of Jacksonville, prior to the work that we had done, only two pieces of permanent public art represented minorities and both were sculptures of African American sports stars. We more than quadrupled representation of minorities in the public garden that we put up that’s permanent,” Walker said. “How do we make this a space for all, and a space that all people are welcome, not just the people that come here for work or services, but someone like you or other students from Bolles?”

Murals featuring African American figures, like this one, can be found outside the Jessie. Photo Credit: Ava Cheng Bolles students, or anyone interested, can partake simply by walking around the building and observing its artwork to learn about historical figures on the African American history walk, seeing a statement about immigration from one of the biggest artists in Puerto Rico, or enjoying artwork inside the Corner Gallery. The building offers a variety of activities, including various volunteering opportunities helping with Art Walks that take place every Wednesday, or other events. “We activate the whole building. There’s usually film screening in the lecture hall, performers in the loading dock and on the porch by the Corner Gallery, and vendors and food trucks on the loading dock,” Walker said. “This month, we’re promoting black businesses. It’s Black History Month and there are no vendor fees, so everything they sell, they’ll be making profit.” “There’s many, many things that can be enjoyed, from taking in the indoor art to the performances, but also opportunities for students to engage in community conversations, because you’re our next leaders.”

LOCAL

Quick Recs Chamblin’s Uptown, located in downtown Jacksonville. Photo Credit: WJTC News

Diving Into a Date with a Book Simran Naval Contributing Writer

n a small bookstore, with books piled up to the top of the ceiling and shelves overflowing containing new novels to read, one small corner at Chamblin’s Uptown gets overlooked. A recent initiative, started by employee Louise Lee, is known as the “Blind Date With a Book.” According to manager of the Chamblin’s Uptown location, Cäri Hamoui, this small feature that was recently added to Chamblin’s is often left unnoticed, at least

The “Blind Date With a Book” program, located in the checkout corner of Chamblin’s Uptown. Photo Credit: Anna Jacobson

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until customers make their way to the checkout line and discover the small basket containing books wrapped in brown paper, waiting to be discovered by adventurous clientele. “Although many of our customers usually buy these books as kind of an impulse purchase, they all seem to really enjoy the books,” Hamoui explained. “The wide variety of genres and authors allow for just about anybody to pick up a book and enjoy it.” Despite the fact that the brown paper packaging conceals the various titles and intricate covers of the books, a small description is provided for customers to browse through, allowing them to choose from a large range of books, containing both nonfiction and fiction texts. My own experience of deciding to go on a “Blind Date with a Book,” consisted of browsing through several short summaries of books concealed in wrapping paper, before selecting a few to uncover. Even though these books were not something I would have generally purchased for myself, I was pleasantly surprised to find that they were entertaining and informative. However, the idea for the “Blind Date with a Book” didn’t just suddenly appear. “We actually

Bugle staff with their books. Photo Credit: Megan Howard originally started this whole thing out of an act of desperation. We had too many books that weren’t getting sold, and after being inspired by smaller, independent bookstores, we decided to try advertising it as a ‘blind date with a book,’” Hamoui stated. Eventually, as the “Blind Date with a Book,” initiative caught on, Chamblin’s began expanding the number of books offered in the program. Hamoui added that the program was designed in order to encourage people to spontaneously pick up a book and relax in one of the small reading areas scattered around the bookstore. “We try to make Chamblin’s feel like a home. We even play soothing music and our staff are always trying to help customers find that perfect book.” “Chamblin’s is just this amazing place where you could spend days here. With the amazing staff, cafe, and literally millions of books to choose from, it truly is one of the most unique bookstores,” Hamoui added.

Soul Food with a Twist Caylee Padgett Contributing Writer

“S

oul food with a twist,” is what Michael Boyd, owner of Boyd’s Southern Fish Fry, gives to each of his customers. Boyd came out of retirement after 30 years of working for the government to open up his own fish fry. He hasn’t always had a love for cooking but he started to appreciate it more once he went to college and his mom and grandmother were no longer there. Boyd said that people would tell him, “Hey, Michael you should do something with your cookin’.” He decided to create a fish fry in Jacksonville, Florida because he believed that people should get a real taste of Alabama-Mississippi catfish. “You can’t get a decent piece of fish here. Not catfish. You can’t get that…They had my catfish and they wouldn’t eat anything else.” All of the food he creates is his original recipes that are inspired by his hometown. Some of his cooking (besides the catfish) are unique, they include a deep-fried hotdog, fried chicken wings, and a scrambled burger.

Above is the scramble burger meat. Boyd also caters his homesmoked barbeque. Photo Credit: Caylee Padgett

Boyd gave me some of his scramble burger which is slow cooked ground beef with coleslaw. The ground beef had the best amount of a smoky flavor and the sauce on top tied it all together.

Michael Boyd first studied computer science at Alabama A&M University. Photo Credit: Caylee Padgett

Boyd has created something unique, “You don’t have too many fish fry trucks. You may have a seafood truck, but they got a lot of other seafood. Shrimp and stuff. I do have fried shrimp. But that was no southern fish fry.” Being a food truck, people can walk up all the time and Boyd’s regulars have turned into some of his friends. One of his most important regulars is Patrick, “He’s retired and well. He has nothing to do so he’ll come to spend the day with me and eat. Eat twice. He comes when I first get out here at 11. He eats about 11:30 and he’s still here by about 4 o’clock.” Boyd’s encouragement for anyone that loves cooking and is interested in starting a food truck is that “If that’s something you want to do, put your all into it. That’s how I was told I got it from the guy I bought it from. He told me if that’s what you really want to do because I mean, it’s not hard work is not easy work is just if you love what you do. You make it easy.”

Boyd’s can be found on San Jose Blvd. Photo Credit: Caylee Padgett

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Breaking Down

Downtown Amber Bansal Public Relations Editor

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Food 1

45 W. Bay Street Jax, FL 32202 Urban Grind is a local cafe that serves coffee, breakfast, pastries, and lunch. Try their Apple Cinnamo Scone and Nitro Cold Brew!

100 W. Bay St Ste 101, Jax, FL 32202 Bread and Board Provisions considers itself a mix of fine dining and a sandwich shop.Try their Season

Photo Credit of all photos: Amber Bansal

Pickle Board and Javanese-Style Salmon Bowl!

3 11 E. Forsyth St. Jax, FL 32202 Super Food and Brew is a restaurant that serves “food with passion and purpose.” Their main focus is healthy and good quality food. Try their Southwest Salad and Buddha Bowl!

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100 W. Bay St Ste 701, Jax, FL 32202 Estrella Cocina is a Mexican restaurant with a rooftop seating area with views of the Jacksonville skyline. Try their Crispy Brussel Sprouts Quesadilla and Enchilada de Esquites.

Landmarks 8

Jacksonville FL, 32202 The Main Street Bridge or John T. Alsop Jr. Bridge is an iconic feature of Jacksonville.

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James Weldon Johnson Park is the oldest park in the city and hosts “JWJ’s Hip Hop Festival.”

1000 Water St, Jax, FL 32204 The Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center is home to state-of-the-art exhibitions and conventions.

333 N. Laura St, Jax, FL 32202

10 03 N. Laura St, Jax, FL 32202

The Jacksonville Main Public Library was opened in 2005. The library is next to the Museum of Contemporary Art.

The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) houses about 1,000 pieces of art.

1000 Water St, Jax, FL 32204

N. Hogan St, Jax, FL 32202

501 W. Adams St, Jax, FL 32202 The Duval County Clerk of Courts is the courthouse of the 4th Judicial Circuit.

The Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center is home to state-of-the-art exhibitions and conventions.

Murals 12

41 E. Duval St. Jax, FL 32202

100 W. Davis St. Jax, FL 32204

115 N. Davis St. Jax, FL 32202

21 E. Adams St. Jax, FL 32202

25 W. Forsyth St. Jax, FL 32204

140 W. Monroe St. Jax, FL 32202

927 W. Forsyth St. Jax, FL 32202

Initiatives 19

622 W. Union St, Jax, FL 32202 The Trinity Rescue Mission is a homeless shelter that provides food and shelter to any homeless people in need.

20 234 W. State St, Jax, FL 32202 The City Rescue Mission provides cothing, food, shelter, and emergency services to all. They have two locations in Jacksonville.

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The Talking Trees of St. Simons An Hour From Jax, A Magical Experience Jaden Taher Contributing Writer

estled along vast wetlands and engulfed by golden trees, St. Simons Island is home to various plants, animals, and tree spirits.

St. Simons Island’s otherworldly beauty is enhanced by a symphony of orange shades and a mosaic of Spanish moss draping the enigmatic oak trees. If these trees could speak, they would chronicle enchanting tales. As early as the 1980s, numerous carvings began emerging from various locations around the island and were attributed to a North Carolina craftsman named Keith Jennings. While not a local, Jennings felt drawn to the island because of its magnificent oaks, which beckoned to him. Through these carvings, Jennings pays tribute and immortalizes sailors who were lost at sea. A closer look, however, reveals that there is more to these depictions than meets the eye. It all started in Jennings’s backyard, where the artist transformed a damaged tree into a piece of art. Visitors were astounded by the charming tree, and soon, the tree-hugger started taking on projects for individuals and local businesses. As Jennings put it,

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“I carved an image into a tree in my backyard, and people who came to visit loved it.” The carvings became so popular that The Golden Isles Convention and Visitors Bureau invited the artist to create carvings for the public. His first public work made its debut in 1982.

“I let the trees tell me what to carve.” — Mr. Devon Jennings Legend has it that Jennings created a wooden priestess in the backyard of a tavern. Today, 40 years later, the tradition is being kept alive by Devon Jennings, the artist’s son, who is picking up his father’s chisel. The melancholic depictions exhibit the deep communication between the artists and the loquacious trees. In fact, their work is guided by the tree spirits. As Keith Jennings said, “The trees really do all of the work.” Jennings believes that anyone can connect with the trees. The artist encourages observers to interpret the spirits

independently by creating their own folklore and mythology. To the Jennings duo, imprinting the trees is more than just putting shapes into wood; for them it is a legacy passed down from father to son. It is their way of leaving a mark on the island. Jennings has created about 40 carvings, but only 20 have been found. Visitors continue to discover the island’s treasure by unearthing the hidden trees. Aside from the tree spirits, the mystical island is home to people of different cultures, including African-American descendants of West African slaves, known as the GullahGeeche. The unique culture of the Gullah-Geechee is acknowledged in the Historical Harrington School Cultural Center. For decades, this school has functioned as the primary educational center for three African American communities. Today, the institution serves as a valuable venue to learn about the Gullah-Geechee culture and history. Set your directions to the “Golden Isles Convention and Visitors Bureau”; the drive is 1 hour and 24 minutes from the San Jose campus. To access the various locations of the tree spirits, scan the QR code. Leaving a mark is like carving a tree, difficult, but everlasting.

St. Simons Island is home to over forty tree spirits, twelve of which are located on public property. The faces, carved by Keith and Devon Jennings, reflect a diverse range of cultures. The carving below depicts Cora, whose legend is eplained further in the sidebar. Photo Credit: Jaden Taher

The Legend of Cora Legend has it that a mesmerizing mermaid named Cora has resided in the seas of the Golden Isles for centuries. Cora is the perpetual protector of the loggerhead turtles that inhabit the island. Once the hatchlings reach her, Cora guides them out to the Atlantic Ocean to begin their new lives. The mermaid protects them from fishing nets, instructs them on how to be powerful swimmers, and demonstrates how to eat crabs and conches. As a result of Cora’s protection and guidance, the island’s endangered loggerhead hatchlings survive to become adults. BOLLESBUGLEONLINE.COM

More than a Fish Store Fish, Reptiles, Ponds, Coral— Cafe? Alex Boutwell Contributing Writer

loating Sea Aquatics is a fish, reptile, pond, and coral café, stationed on Old Kings Road. It seems a bit eccentric on the outside, but as soon as you enter, the atmosphere is welcoming and open. Azi Raza, the founder of the store, aims to broaden horizons for young people about marine and general wildlife. Raza says, ”This is not a business for me, rather a medium to educate children and our communities about these delicate species and their importance in our lives.”

“This is not a business for me, rather a medium to educate children and our communities about these delicate species and their importance in our lives” — Azi Raza, 2022 Their primary goal is education, and the main floor is open for free classes, art installations, and charity events. Recently they hosted a silent auction for charity, and many more public events are planned there. Raza says, “We have a group of artists now that are joined by us. And then now hopefully, they’re going to put together some kind of a program for the kids to come in.” The floor also hosts a cafe, with a vegetarian menu including soups, smoothies, salads, and

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sandwiches. Currently the cafe is briefly closed because of Covid, but the rest of the store is still operating. The store has a range of marine and land creatures, among them include salt and freshwater fish, snakes, lizards, and even a selection of coral. Many of these creatures are rescues, and if you do decide to buy an animal, the staff will give thorough information on care and how to properly own the creature. Raza says, “We are saving lives. We are also educating people to carry that on for the future.” FSA is focused on authenticity rather than retail, and reaching out to the community. Raza says, “I work seven days a week, 16 hours a day... The idea is eventually I’ll have enough good people around me that they will carry on.”

Artist’s Silent Auction Work

Tanks for Corals & Fish Photo Credit for All: Alex Boutwell

Reptile Terrariums

The Rescue Pond & Workspace

S S U U P P M M A A C C N N O O

6 on 6 Bolles Adds Up For Math Teacher Mr. Gomez

O out…”

Ava Cheng Contributing Writer

sense and was logical, and I liked the way of thinking it trains your mind to do.”

riginally I wanted to be Spider-Man. But when I saw that wasn’t gonna work

Gomez moved from Santa Rosa Valley, an hour south of San Francisco.

Around twenty years ago, Santiago Gomez switched to a math major and got his degree, deciding teaching would be a better superpower.

At the time, teachers were in short supply. “Before I even had a credential, they hired me to start working Campbell District. And I worked there until four weeks ago,” Gomez said.

Gomez began teaching homeschooled teenagers while he was in college. “It wasn’t like I loved math. I liked that it made

Moving to a new school can be difficult, even more so as a teacher moving across the country in the middle of the year.

Still, Gomez is keeping a positive attitude as he adjusts. “Bolles is great…I just came in here, met everybody and we did some non-math days because I didn’t know exactly what we were doing just yet. But the next day I figured out what we were doing, and we started doing it.” Overall, teaching remains the same for Gomez, despite a few changes. “The job itself is the same, just different classes, part of the country. It’s figuring out stuff on the back end the students don’t see. I'm always kind of working on that, but the teaching part? It’s the same thing.”

Fletcher Finds Her New Teaching Home Sara Wasserman Contributing Writer

s. Fletcher grew up in Jacksonville, on and around the water. Fletcher said her passion for all facets of biology have pushed her to grow as a teacher and a scientist. Outside of school, the new Biology teacher loves to spend time with her family, specifically her nieces and nephews. Additionally, she loves to spend time with her 14-year-old King Charles and Long-Haired Daschund mix, Vicky, “definitely the queen of her castle.” Fletcher describes teaching as an important opportunity to prepare students for the world and future. “I think the opportunity to allow students to learn how to critically think is so important ... You really learn how you can make your impact, whatever that may be” Fletcher said. “So, whether that’s becoming a journalist, or whether that is in science, or just in

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the way you interact with your fellow human beings.” Fletcher’s experience in marine biology grew at University of North Florida, where she had the opportunity to work with aquatic toxicology in her master’s program. After the BP oil spill, she took part in researching the conditions of the environment and wildlife after the spill. Fletcher said,”We actually got to see how everything functioned and how everything was improving over time.” Prior to beginning her teaching career, Fletcher worked as a state and nationally-certified pharmacist technician in college She has also worked in curriculum writing and career counseling for college students as well and enjoyed her varied work experiences. “I had the opportunity to teach college students that was a blast. I had some opportunities to write curriculum and do that kind of stuff. And that was a lot of fun.”

Overall, Fletcher’s transition to Bolles has been very smooth. “The students are absolutely excellent. And the faculty has just been so incredibly welcoming. Everybody has been so kind, and I’ve just really enjoyed it.” Fletcher loves finding new perspectives on science and life. “It allows me to find different ways to explain things and to see the world in different ways and to not only, you know, want to challenge my students, but allow them to challenge me and allow us to kind of grow together.” With all of her marine life experience, Fletcher narrows her favorite aspect of the subject down to the small factors that work together to create a big effect. “I tend to like how things work together, to see how small things build to the big things,” said Fletcher. “Whenever I can see a cycle that comes through, whether I’m talking about how fish interact to allow an ecosystem to work the way it does, or anything like that, that to me is exceptional.”

The Building of the "Blue Crest" Aisha Hasan Contributing Writer

his year our school welcomed a new art teacher, Ms. Kuonen. Aside from teaching, Ms. Kuonen creates arts for the public. Recently she built a piece titled, “Blue Steel” for a significant insurance company in downtown Jacksonville. Using aluminum and stainless steel, she built her kinetic 16 ft tall structure. From pitching the piece, to accumulating the materials, to creating the piece it took Kuonen about six months to complete the process. “Everything has its challenges, and everything has its rewards. A dear friend of mine says it's called artwork, not art hugs. Because it's meant to be hard work.” reveals Ms. Kuonen. Accumulating materials bore no easy task for Kuonen. “If you're

going to cook a beautiful meal, you still have to go to the grocery store and get the ingredients, right. And we're still living in a pandemic, so supply chains can be a little complicated right now,” states Ms. Kuonen. To stay local was an important factor for Kuonen. “It’s important that money going into this project is also funneling into the economy here. So we worked with various suppliers here for a lot of the metal components, some of them were fine to hardware components, we worked with powder, coaters and more.” With all the materials acquired Ms. Kuonen was set for building. The piece is kinetic, meaning many factors played into the making of the piece; she first started with a tabletop sized replica. “The process was making templates and scaling up their design involving a little bit of math. So

after moving into the template process, we did probably about four or five, the kinetic tests.” Explains Kuonen. For the math and physics aspect of the piece, Kuonen and her team received help from local engineers. “We had to work with actual engineers to engineer the footings at the base. So, it was just like a step by step process that was like, they do one part and then we do a part and so on.” States Kuonen. From July to December Kuonen and her team worked vigorously to finish “Blue Steel”. “Each day was like a set of tasks had to get done. To make sure we're reaching our benchmark for our planned installation date.” Reveals Kuonen. Kuonen started art a few years ks a lot of boxes for me that I really enjoy. So again, it's like, how do you continue to evolve as an artist? How do you continue to challenge yourself? Where do you find the hard work? Because that, for me, has been really important.” Explains Kuonen. Ms. Kuonen worked for six months Ms. Kuonen took six months to finish the piece. Credit: Ms. Kuonen

Ms. Kuonen sourced her material locally. Credit: Ms. Kuonen

New English Teacher has Story to Tell Caylee Padgett Contributing Writer

“I

always knew that I’d become a teacher. I just didn’t know the route that I would take to become a teacher.” Ms. Gastaldi said, touching on her teaching journey. She has gone from journalism in her hometown and Hollywood script reading, to teaching at The Bolles School. When she began as a journalist, she worked for a daily paper named, Citrus County Chronicle and later, interned at The Atlantic, in college. After this, she moved to Washington D.C. and worked as an intern for The Atlantic around the time when people were

transferred to digital platforms for news. She said that “The Atlantic was really struggling with how to define itself. Now that everyone was canceling their subscriptions, their print subscriptions, and going online. So I think that all of those news magazines and newspapers have found their way by now. But in the early 2000s journalism was sort of in disarray.” While she was working with the Citrus County Chronicle, she learned a valuable lesson in the news industry. “It really taught me what you have to be like, how much do you want this? How do you want to know what kind of career in order to be? Like, what some people would call a successful but no, not everyone would call it successful.

Gastaldi decided that journalism wasn’t her ultimate career.”You have to be tenacious and ambitious. You’re going to get the story no matter what. But I didn’t have that in me.” Gastaldi has a really great takeaway from her career as a journalist and moving to work as a teacher. “I’ll say that working as a journalist affected me as a teacher because I know how important it is to be writing, writing, writing every day, and seeing what your writing can accomplish…I know what it feels like to get useful, immediate feedback, but that is so hard to provide in the classroom is just as hard. [B]ut it can really make a difference in a young person’s life to give them really valuable feedback.”

Fluegel’s Loved Books Find New Home in Kenya The Bugle Staff Contributing Writers

rs. Chandler, History Department head, knew Mrs. Fluegel was a dedicated bibliophile from the moment they met. Chandler reminisced, “She was constantly talking about what she was reading.” Mrs. Fluegel’s passing over the holiday break was a loss to the History department and our school but now her lifelong love of reading and extensive book collection serve as a memorial and a legacy for the beloved teacher. Some of Fluegel’s books will become part of the book drive Grace Albaugh ’23 is currently organizing for Vito Moja Inc, a non-profit that alum parent Deb Maina and the Albaugh family started to support impoverished and underserved children and families in rural Kenya. In middle school, Albaugh visited and

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helped establish the first libraries there. (Full disclosure: Albaugh is a contributing writer for Bugle) KT Albaugh, Grace’s mom, wrote in an email,“Mrs. Fluegel’s books and supplies are going to this cause and will end up in the hands of teachers and students in rural central Kenya.” Fluegel’s extensive collection of textbooks and primary sources will become a valuable resource. “For perspective,” Albaugh wrote, “These kids normally share one textbook to 5-8 kids. Teachers have little to no supplies. So it’s very meaningful, Mrs. Fleugel’s materials, going to them.” Chandler and History teacher Jen Gomez visited Fleugel’s house to help Fluegel’s family. Chandler said, “I have never seen anything like this. Every wall was covered with books.” According to Chandler, Fluegel kept a blue binder where she logged her books, where she bought them, and whether or not a book was on sale. Chander said, “It was obviously a prized possession.”

While Chamblin’s Used Bookstory received 28 boxes of books, many of Fluegel’s books are still in her classroom and faculty and students have been encouraged to take home a book to add to their own collections. Chandler took Colson Whitehead’s novel Underground Railroad, a reading choice that reflects Fluegel’s passion for justice and equity. Gomez cherishes three books from Fluegel’s collection: The Vietnam War in American Stories, Songs, and Poems, The Last Detective, and Yoga for Dummies. Gomez, who teaches American history and the yoga elective, said, “I thought this book could provide more insight on songs from the Vietnam era.” The yoga book, Gomez felt, suggested Mrs. Fluegel may have had a secret yoga life. “All these years, she never said anything to me about yoga but she must have been interested. I wish we could have taken a class together.”

Four Compete in National Linguistics Olympiad Bugle Staff Contributing Writers “I got to skip school to go and do a bunch of puzzles,” said Max Frohman ’22, making a three-hour test on language and logic seem as much fun as a rowdy escape room. Four students competed in this year’s first round of the North American Computational linguistics Olympiad (NACLO). Julia Peiris ’22, Dylan Schwartz ’24, Malik Leslie ’24, and Frohman tried their hands and minds on 9 language and logic puzzles. “Only one person had something written down for every problem,” said French and Arabic teacher Sara Phillips-Bourass. “To get to the second round, you have to be that kind of scary ‘whoa, how does your brain work?’ kind of kid.” Phillips-Bourass proctored the NACLO competition at her previous school in Indiana. She said the Olympiad has an international reputation and is extremely popular in Eastern Europe with countries that have an interest in code-breaking. But any high-school student can sit for the test. Phillips-Bourass said, “So you’re not expected to have any previous knowledge of any of the languages. And they’re totally solvable, just using your brain and logic.” The test focuses on little-known languages so no particular person has the advantage of fluency. Students take the test on paper, proctored by a teacher. A jury of linguistics professors who organize it are available to answer questions online, live during the competition, so proctors can submit their questions to them.

This is one example of the kind of logic puzzles people taking the test have to solve. More problems and their solutions are available online at nacloweb.org/practice.

These linguistics professors come up with the questions based on their research or other people that they know and sort of interesting things have come across in the world’s languages. And they put it on as a way to promote linguistics among school age students. According to Phillips-Bourass, linguistics is an under-rated field of study that can open up the world to students whether that be through preserving the endangered languages of our world or analyzing speech patterns on social media.

over. Like, what about that one?” Phillips-Bourass describes it as “really fun for very nerdy people.” She said she could imagine having like practices where people come together, we have all worked on the same problem and could talk about it. “What would it be like to be introspective about your own language?” Results of the first round come out in February and the second round is scheduled for March.

“There’s a lot of money being made now around automatic speech recognition, and data mining and all the algorithms that like social media uses,” said Phillips-Bourass. “How the Internet uses to language to organize stuff, all of that lies on like machine understanding of written language.” Frohman said of his Olympiad experience, “You’re kind of wiped out but it’s not like the SAT. I was still thinking about it when it was

Visit the practice website here! BOLLESBUGLEONLINE.COM

T&F? Now F&T! shots of the field team doing what they do best: throwing things! Isabel Bassin Contributing Writer

Trent Carter ‘24

Breeland Madison ‘23 throwing shotput above and discus below

“It wasn’t a good throw if it didn’t hurt.” —Dylan Schwartz ‘24 (left)

“The hardest part about throwing is the mental part of it. If you feel like you can’t do it, you’re never gonna be able to do it.” —Zee Curtis ‘24 (left)

Magnolia Fox ‘24

Davian Barnes ‘25 throwing shotput

Asha Gopal ‘23 (left)

Garrison Butler ‘24

Kate Cohill ‘23 and Ella Neskora ‘23

Asha Gopal ‘23, Macy Pargman ‘24 (staged)

Millicent Fox ‘24

Hair in Sports Isabel Schimpff Contributing Writer Strong teams are just that, a team; there are no “one-man shows” or “every person for themselves.” To accomplish this, group bonding is a must. One of

the most well-known examples of this around campus is the hair phenomenon that swimmers often partake in. We all notice when the swim team bleaches and shaves their hair, and it’s a fun tradition that boosts morale and energy. Other teams also achieve a

sense of community through joint hairstyles. Of course, there’s the stereotypical mullets for the boys lacrosse team and the grown out hair of the boys cross-country team. All of these hairstyles spark conversation around the school and lead to pride in our teams.

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Bolles Going Electric? Environmentally-friendly possibilities in our near future buses all the time such as taking students to the upper and middle school, sport games, and even neighborhoods.

Elliana Emery Contributing Writer

round the campus, students might see some rounded gray devices hanging from poles but not to worry, those are just one of the few sensors Dr. Moyer and his environmental class setup. With these devices in different areas, Moyer will see the difference between high and low levels of pollution on campus within a two to four week span. If these high levels of NO2 are discovered, Moyer’s plan to discuss the idea for electrical buses will push forward. Moyer has three main motives for tracking NO2 on campus. First, he wants to promote student health: “it has been well known for decades that if you have high levels of nitrogen dioxide it’s bad for health” science teacher Dr. Moyer explained. His second motivation pertains to fewer greenhouse gasses - which means less pollution. Lastly, he hopes to reduce the cost of fuel and maintenance by buying these electrical buses.

“It has been well known for decades that if you have high levels of nitrogen dioxide it’s bad for health.” — Dr. Moyer Although Moyer is a major advocate for a healthier campus, he gives kudos to the students who are environmentally interested in switching the diesel buses on campus to electrical after attending the COP26 conference (Glasgow Climate Change) with Ms. Kervin.

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Overall, Moyer with his environmental consciousness hopes that this test he and his students are doing will help the environment. He believes that the possibility of electrical buses on campus will overall be better for our planet but also for the students. One of the devices hung above the carpool lane. Photo Credit: Elliana Emery ‘22 Kervin explained “our main take from that was small pieces of action such as our food waste, consume habits, use of vehicles, and trying to look at making small actions.” Ms. Kervin also believes the change for these buses approaches the school at a fast pace. “Some of our buses are coming to the end of their natural life anyway” Kervin explained, “so it’s now time to make that investment.” According to Mr. Butler, director of safety, security, and transportation, Bolles currently owns seven of the nine buses and rents out the other two “which get returned after five years” he explained. School buses can last a long time and “we rotate purchasing a yellow school bus or a white turtle top bus” but hopefully the school will have the possibility of buying an electrical one instead. Dr. Moyer believes that the school will phase in the new electrical buses “unless somebody brings in a big donation” Moyer said. But even with a slow change of these buses, the school will see the long-term benefits since we use

The Promise Tree This tree is an easy way students at Bolles can make small environmental promises to fulfill in order to do their part to help keep global warming at 1.5 and lower greenhouse gas emissions. A few student promises: “Turn off the lights in my house before I go to bed.” “Take shorter showers.” “I will use the washing machine with cold water and stop using plastic water bottles.”

People, Stop Misplacing Plates! A Photographic Essay Dedicated To Plate Misplacement Jaden Taher Contributing Writer

A recent Schoology announcment reminds students that plates and utensils should not be removed from the caferteia for any reasons, including decorative ones. Please help these plates find their way home.

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‘‘

“I feel hopeful. I think with what is happening recently we have a long way to go and especially with more classes coming in with more diversity and different perspectives, that will help in the future a lot.”

“It’s not a oneperson solution, everyone needs to be onboard”

- Aditi Ranjan (‘23)

- Jakhye Wilkins (‘22)

“Diversity exists, but it’s more of a thing where the school wants to make it look like we are more diverse than we are.”

- Victoria Nicholls (‘22)

“You can’t hold anyone accountable if something isn’t written down”

- Jakhye Wilkins (‘22)

“I feel like we really do fall short on our promises as a school, and that’s something that’s really disappointing, and we need to do better.” - D’yasia Ford (‘22)

Su Ertekin-Taner Co-Editor-in-Chief Sarah Scherkenbach Co-Editor-in-Chief

ne year ago, Bolles released a statement saying they were no longer going to implement the Pollyanna curriculum due to angst. One year ago, Bolles vowed to “broaden areas to strengthen our various diversity initiatives.” One year ago, Bolles promised to “revise our policies, procedures and handbooks and ensure they are equitably applied to everyone.” One year ago, Bolles pledged to “keep the community updated on our progress in an open and transparent way.” One year ago, Bolles assured they would “enhance the education of our community on all forms of discrimination, how to avoid it and how to react if encountered from others.” Now, we must evaluate the progress.

Administrative Perspective:

“This work didn’t start last January 26th; this work has been going on for a long time,” Mrs. Marks, Head of the Upper School stated regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives on the campus. The diversity and inclusion efforts of the Bolles Upper School prior to when Mrs. Twyla Ashman. was named Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion two years ago. (Four years beforehand, Ashman was operating in the same position under a different title.) Since then, the DEI initiative has broadened, encompassing the efforts of not only Ashman but faculty, campus heads, the Multicultural Leadership Team (MLT), students, and the DEI Taskforce, all varying in domain and efforts. The bulk of the DEI work falls on Ashman’s shoulders. From offering the faculty opportunities to attend the People of Color Conference hosted by NAIS whose goal is create an equitable and inclusive classroom, to creating a mentor program to match US students with alumni of similar profiles, to writing a DEI glossary, Ashman leads the DEI initiative at Bolles. The DEI Taskforce, headed by Ashman, is composed of faculty from each department. The taskforce initiated the newly implemented Safe Reporting Form for Harassment and the Bullying and Harassment Policy in the Student Handbook that reads, “Our community does

not tolerate any activity that fosters or can be interpreted as harassment. Whether harassment is in person or via any kind of communication venue, students and parents must be aware that reporting such harassment is necessary for cessation.”

heads and assistant heads, and administration of all campuses, came to an end a year and a couple months after its start.

The statement also clearly defines harassment as “displaying of offensive symbols,” “conduct or expression that demeans or degrades an individual or group based on that individual’s characteristics, color, race, or background,” “unwelcome or offensive sexual advances,” and “abusive, degrading or vulgar language and conduct.” More information regarding Bolles’ Bullying and Harassment statement may be found under the San Jose Campus School

The DEI Taskforce also reviewed a program called Diversityedu. com for the school’s use that was applied in the curriculum of a specific course— the Bolles Wellness Seminar—renamed from the original course name Life Management Skills. The program contains education modules that go into detail about bias, microaggressions, and stereotypes. As stated by the diversityedu.com website, “our online courses and management tools use our proven methodology to teach skills for building inclusive culture.”

“It’s really about examining what we are currently doing and seeing how we can complement what we are doing with voices that may not be represented”

The taskforce has not met since October of last year according to Mrs. Marks, but has not been formally dissolved. However, the DEI Committee on the Board of Trustees, whose members overlap with the DEI Taskforce, now meets with more consistency.

— Mrs. Twyla Ashman Guidelines and Procedures tab of the Student-Parent Handbooks page of the website. The work for the Safe Reporting Form for Harassment started in October 2020 and was implemented in the first semester of the 20212022 school year. The review process, including discussions with the Multicultural Leadership Team, the campus

As of now, only two reports have been submitted to the form.

The Multicultural Leadership Team on the US campus, started five years ago, recently initiated a diversity-based book group in which members suggest an optional faculty read. While last semester “Dancing in the Mosque” directed about 30 members of the upper school faculty towards developing an understanding of a Talibancontrolled Afghanistan, this semester the read will focus on disability. Teachers on all campuses partook in DEI work through a “self-study” curriculum audit BOLLESBUGLEONLINE.COM

meant to allow any given teacher to reflect back on the sources they utilize in classes according to Mrs. Marks. “It’s really about examining what we are currently doing and seeing how we can complement what we are doing with voices that may not be represented,” Ashman stated. In accordance with the curriculum audit’s procedure, teachers complete an audit form, filling in information about each unit, the DEI component, assessments, and activities. The audit is then submitted to the Department Chair to verify that it has been done, sent to Mr. Drew. and then shared with campus heads, Mrs. Natalia Aycart, and Mrs. Ashman who review the diversity and accessibility of the curriculum, as well as the ways it prepares students for post-high school life. The end result of a rigorous and effective curriculum for the school is Bolles’ accreditation.

“I think the thing that put DEI to the forefront is more or less us communicating everything we were doing because we were doing all of those things before.” — Mrs. Twyla Ashman According to Aycart, the goal of the curriculum audit from the diversity perspective is to look at “where the global perspectives or global competencies arise in our current PreK-12 curriculum.” Marking its first year on the high school campus last year,

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the full curriculum audit took place from April-May of 2021 to December 2021. Ashman noted that she hopes to aid the process by bringing in a consultant with curriculum experience. Heads of campuses usually guide activities that affect their particular campus or iterations of activities that other campuses also partake in. For example, the middle and lower school campuses both held a Diwali presentation and are currently leading activities on Black History Month on their respective campuses. High school clubs carry out many of these tailored activities on their campus. And yet, so few of all of the above initiatives are a reaction to the @blackatbolles Instagram. The introduction of this page to Instagram on June 13, 2020 shook Bolles administration, teachers, parents, alumni, and students in a series of Instagram posts highlighting the negative experiences of Black students at Bolles from alumni that graduated in the 80s until those attending Bolles in the 2020-2021 school year. “It just brought attention that we really need to take a look at it, not that we hadn’t been, but maybe that we need to be more intentional with how we go about it,” Ashman said of the Black at Bolles “outcry.” Two initiatives, the mentor program and Safe Reporting Form, were reactions to the Black at Bolles. Both initiatives were meant to be a space to report and discuss the happenings of students of colors’ lives at Bolles. However, the mentor program, created for high school students of color to receive advice regarding their academic and

personal life from alumni that have been trained to facilitate in the Mentor Program, has been largely unused—either due to COVID or the fact that “students are not fully aware that they need it,” Ashman stated. Overall, Ashman emphasizes the evolving nature of diversity at Bolles. The Black at Bolles Instagram was a source of momentum for the DEI movement and for the communication of diversity and inclusion efforts at Bolles. On the new policy to communicate regarding DEI, Ashman stated, “I think the thing that put DEI to the forefront is more or less us communicating everything we were doing because we were doing all of those things before.” Ashman would like to keep the movement going believing that , “you can always improve in everything.” Diversity on a campus is “continuous work,” and yet much like many students on the campus, Ashman is “a little impatient and I would like for things to happen a lot quicker than they sometimes do.” However, Ashman and Marks are hopeful for the future of Bolles: they see in the future a school where every student has a sense of “belonging at Bolles.” Student Perspective:

“If we have a comfortable space for people to talk about their experiences, then we can see what everyone’s shared experiences are,” D’yasia Ford (‘22), President of Bolles’ Black Student Union, explained. “We can see where we can put a

stop to those things [acts of discrimmination] and teach.” Ford came to Bolles during her freshman year of high school and has served as a powerful voice ever since, pushing for more diversity initiatives and events to create a greater sense of cultural awareness and inclusivity in the Bolles community. Specifically, for this year’s Black History Month, she, along with BSU, organized a kickball tournament fundraiser, a Black-owned business exposition, a student-run convocation, and a Black career day. “This is not another month that you can just hang up a happy Black History Month poster,” she expressed. “No, we need to show the importance of this month. We need to all commemorate the lives that have been put forth.” Previously, she also tried to get permission to make a BSU t-shirt bearing the Black Lives Matter fist, but it never got approved after it was deemed “too political.” To Ford and other members of the BSU, that response was not unanticipated. “It’s expected for them to just sit back like, ‘oh, we tried, but we can’t really do it because other people are uncomfortable,’” she commented. “They are uncomfortable because of an experience that they don’t even understand. That’s not okay.” For Ford, the comfort of the majority isn’t the priority. “If you can’t even have those types of conversations because of fear of what people will think, then that’s a problem in itself. At that point, it’s

not about them,” she further observed. “This is something that needs to be done in order to make your school better not only for the students.” Ford believes the showing of the True Justice documentary from last year and the dialogues stemming from that were a good start, but more still needs to be done. Reflecting on recent diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, she acknowledges that Mrs. Ashman has been doing an excellent job working with Bolles’ administration to pursue change, especially with the implementation of the safe reporting form

“It’s really about examining what we are currently doing and seeing how we can complement what we are doing with voices that may not be represented” — D’yasia Ford (‘22) and the increase in faculty/ administrative conversation. However, Ford believes studentlevel discussions, possibly in the form of roundtables, could strengthen the impact of diversity efforts. When she brought the roundtable idea to the administration, though, her efforts were to no avail. “You plaster us on your buses and everywhere, but you won’t make changes to help us through what we need to be helped through,” Ford said. She often promotes the importance of conversation.

“The biggest step in things like this is having conversations about it, and making sure you understand what is going on,” she expressed. “If you are not a minority you can’t really fully understand, but there is always empathy. There are ways to be connected.” Overall, Ford’s main goal is to improve the school environment for those who come next. She recognizes that Bolles comes with great opportunities but also wants to raise awareness that there are still issues to be addressed and promises that aren’t being kept. “We need to do better,” she noted. “You can’t change the whole world, but that’s a change that needs to happen in the world, and it begins with us.” Parent Perspective:

“There are so many people in our community who do care and want to do something. On our own, we are unlikely to make change happen. But, if you gather enough of us individually together, that is huge,” Kathy Cheng, Bolles parent as well as Executive Co-Chair and Co-Founder of the Parents for Positive Change (PPC), explained. “As a group, we could be so much more powerful. If we speak up together, we have more weight.” Cheng, along with Katoia Wilkins, a fellow Bolles parent, united to create the PPC as a space for Bolles parents to discuss the school’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) BOLLESBUGLEONLINE.COM

shortly after the nation turned its attention to the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020. Their group would eventually become an official Parent Association committee at the start of the 2020-2021 school year.

in a community like ours—not just the school community but where we are located in Florida—you have a very strong voice on the other side,” Cheng brought up. “It is very reflective of the political climate we are living in.”

Prior to the establishment of the PPC, Cheng and Wilkins had both previously gone to Bolles’ administration on separate occasions to address situations their families had encountered surrounding DEI.

Before it became an official PA committee, the PPC met once a month where they put together a list of suggestions for administration and engaged in open conversations.

Cheng recounted, “As we shared that with each other, we realized that it was a good opportunity when the world’s attention and our community’s attention was on this—DEI

“The events of the last few years have given people the courage to take a stand and speak.” — Mrs. Kathy Cheng issues—that we had the opportunity to do something.” “The events of the last few years have given people the courage to take a stand and speak,” Cheng noted, which was evidenced by the 70 parents who signed up for the PPC’s parent forums last year. Cheng said these parent forums were essentially a safe conversational environment for parents to express concerns, relate experiences, and voice ideas regarding diversity at Bolles. “I think the school administration sees and for the most part agrees [that more needs to be done], but

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However, PA committee guidelines have changed the structure and frequency of PPC meetings, so the forum-style meetings have ceased. Instead, they have started “Courageous Conversations,” which brings together up to ten adults just to have difficult conversations around DEI. Their first “Courageous Conversations” session was in the spring semester of the 2020-2021 school year and involved using “race cards” from 904ward, a local nonprofit, as prompts, but they were asked by the school to not use the cards in their most recent session, which was held last semester. Besides the “Courageous Conversations,” the PPC also has been focused on organizing different events on the various campuses to raise awareness of different groups or local leaders. The PPC has “campus leads” for all four campuses, who direct these initiatives. Last year, for Black History Month, they created yard signs to go around the San Jose Campus displaying local Black historical figures and helped the Black Student Union bring in local Black-owned businesses.

At the lower schools, the PPC also organized a Latin dance performance for flag time. It is through these smaller events that they have been successful in addressing and advocating for the changes that they believe Bolles needs. “They’ve been making progress. I’ve noticed that there are certain readings that have been changed or been added that certainly weren’t there a few years ago,” Cheng said. “That was another thing that we have advocated for. As the faculty gets more opportunities to attend workshops and training on DEI, they’ve been implementing, on their own, certain changes in their classroom, and we are excited by that.” Ultimately, though, Cheng feels “cautiously optimistic. It’s hard.” Faculty Perspective:

Alongside World Religions and Afrofuturism, the 2021-22 school year featured the debut of another DEI-based course called American Journeys. The class, focusing on how marginalized communities fit into the American fabric, ran its first full semester last fall with teacher Mrs. Kimberly Dividu. “As with all school cultures, we’ve been trying to make strides and efforts towards finding various other activities, programs, course selection opportunities, individualized curriculum changes in terms of what other literature we’re offering…to incorporate more of this DEI initiative.” American Journeys was a DEI initiative largely born out of

response to student interest. Many students after taking US History in their junior year wished to deep dive into specific eras, movements, or communities mentioned in the course, and so Dividu initiated an inquiry-based class for those students alongside US History teachers Dr. Kostandarithes and Mr. Tepas. Dividu stated, “Since it was built out of inquiry, we wanted to leave a lot of room for student inquiry.” The curriculum focused on the history of seven major communities living in America including Native Americans, African Americans, women, LGBTQ+, Latinx, Asian, and the Islamic community. However, the conversations in the class always shifted to current events—which Dividu intended. She remarked, “They came to the class excited because they knew they were going to talk about things that were on their mind.” And so, the class often included weekly social media scans and “meme talk” every unit to encourage students to change their lens and think about labels and assumptions even while looking at something so lighthearted as a meme they saw on the internet. The space to talk about current events “made them think differently and it made them take a step back before being reactionary,” Dividu noted. Everyone can learn about experiences that are not their own. As the product of a multicultural household (Dividu’s mom is Indian and Chinese and her dad is Portuguese), Dividu knows that inquiry and conversation is the only way a student can learn to understand another lens. American Journeys itself

was born out of the need to “give our students the space to question without judgment, admit when they don’t know enough, be humbled when they think they knew it all, and learn to not win every argument.” While the course only ran for one semester at Bolles, its curriculum began budding a year ago and the idea to add another intriguing history elective began two years prior to now. In the 2020-21 school year, casual conversations with Kostandarithes and Tepas bloomed into heavy reading and planning on the part of Dividu. In most of the planning stages, these three teachers were deciding, “what would be the best response to the interest and to the needs of our students.”

“We need to give our students the space to question without judgment, admit when they don’t know enough, be humbled when they think they knew it all, and learn to not win every argument.” — Mrs. Kimberly Dividu Dividu spent six months diving into literature regarding marginalized communities. After the deep dive, Dividu submitted a course proposal that went through the administration and then to the Academic Council which approved it as a semester course in time for the 202122 school year. And the curriculum, according to Dividu, “was so what we

needed” because “dialogue is crucial to DEI.” Dividu had always hoped to create a DEI-centered course since obtaining a master’s degree in multicultural education, but at her prior jobs in New York, the curriculum never came to fruition, either because it “fell flat” or because it didn’t receive enough support. Dividu even stated, “I’ve had support from colleagues inside my department and outside of my department and I’ve had the support of the school.” But Dividu wants more for American Journeys and for DEI initiatives at Bolles. She hopes to expand the American Journeys class to run two semesters with more students than she initially had; she wants for American Journeys to lead the way to other courses in the same realm, and she hopes to sponsor a student-led DEI initiative as a class like a food fair or religions of the world fair. But most importantly, she wants the administration to have an open mind to new DEI initiatives. “We can’t have these ideas but then be like— ‘somebody should do it....’ Put some action to getting it done.”

Members of all mentioned diversity teams can be found as tabs of this link:

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year students to communicate with other freshmen, according to Assistant Director of College Counseling Abigail Klinckhardt.

cheerful and inviting. “If there was any negativity, those students just didn’t sign up. It was all just really exciting and positive.”

The many messages came from a group chat reserved for admitted incoming freshmen of The George Washington University.

Whether through GroupMe, Facebook, or Instagram, incoming first-years can find an abundance of social engagement possibilities within these chats, fostering connections with other students before college even begins.

For both college-facilitated chats and student-created ones, Klinckhardt believes the groups are appealing to students who want to get a head start on the social aspects of college. She said, “I think it just helps you get started and get in that headspace of meeting new people and making new friends, which can help add to the excitement [of college].”

ilesh Patel (‘22) remembers checking his phone before crew practice one afternoon. As he walked down the stairs of the boathouse, he noticed his phone repeatedly ringing, receiving text after text after text.

According to Patel, the 120-person group chat housed text threads that “bounced” from topic to topic. Though discussions were anchored to financial aid at first, Patel noticed the chat became unproductive soon after. With later conversations on the politics of Israel and others on how amazing cats are – all happening simultaneously – the pre-college group chat was “pretty chaotic and questionable,” according to Patel.

While some colleges create their own first-year social platforms, most pre-college group chats are student-created and studentcontrolled.

After all, it seemed like college was the last thing they wanted to talk about.

Klinckhardt facilitated one of the less-common college-organized group chats when she worked at Washington University in St. Louis. Using a program called Wisr, a software created specifically for these pre-college group chats, the university’s admissions office fostered student connections by leading get-to-know-you activities and managing student participation through giveaways.

And yet, despite the positive intentions of pre-college group chats, several incidents of foul language and humor on these chats have garnered national news coverage over the past decade. Most famously, a group of Harvard prospective students posted anti-Semitic and racist memes on their Facebook group page in 2017, seemingly promoting racially motivated crimes and mocking sexual assault.

Known as a pre-college group chat, the George Washington chat is one of many college messaging systems that offer an opportunity for admitted, incoming first-

“There wasn’t a ton of engagement, or as much as we were expecting,” Klinckhardt said, but she believes the atmosphere of the chat was consistently

Klinckhardt points out that these students hiding behind a screen only represent a fraction of the incoming student body, and the exposure of this misbehavior may

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actually be beneficial. “I’m glad that was brought to light, because those students aren’t a good fit then for [Harvard].” And Patel isn’t at all surprised by this event, as he witnessed similar topics – including jokes about human trafficking – within his GW group chat. “I think they kinda forget there’s someone else on the other end of a group chat or a text thread.” After witnessing members of his chat both “hating” on Israel and spreading inaccurate information about the country, Patel found the productivity of the group chat “kinda weird” and decided to leave. Yet, for Alex Breuer (‘22), who recently committed to Georgetown University for swimming, the experience of her recruiting class’ group chat has been nothing but positive. Though only containing eight or ten people, including a few experienced upperclassmen swimmers already enrolled at the university, Breuer said the chat gave her “a better understanding” of where she fits in on the team. She said, “I know [my teammates’] names now, and I know what they’re interested in and what their main events are. It makes me feel a little less scared of college.” Klinckhardt agrees that athletic group chats can generate a more positive environment, since they attract “a smaller, more niche group that have a common set interest, with similar schedules and similar things that [they’re] struggling with.” Further, in comparison to academic group chats, Breuer believes her swimming group chat is less burdened by ambition, despite being dedicated to athletics and competition. “I feel like there’s a competitiveness in academic group chats like ‘I got this on the SAT,’ whereas for us it’s like ‘I’m here to swim, and you’re also here to swim. That’s what we’re doing right now.’”

If you find yourself in a situation similar to Patel’s, Klinckhardt advises the following: Conversations including racism, sexual harassment, and any other form of discrimination should be reported to the university. Klinckhardt said, “This is all handled anonymously and would ideally prevent this type of negative behavior from exacerbating on campus.” However, in less severe scenarios, Klinckhardt suggests speaking out to the users in the group chat. “There’s a good chance that the other students could be concerned about these messages as well and were just waiting for someone else to speak up.” In all situations, though, Klinckhardt reminds students to “trust your instinct.”

When weighing the pros and cons of pre-college group chats, one of the most frequent reasons to join is the fear that meeting people in person won’t be as accessible as making friends virtually, and perhaps socializing face-toface seems impossible with the ongoing pandemic.

to actually make connections in person, you feel a little bit more confident, you feel a little bit less alone, even if you never actually meet these people in real life.”

But Klinckhardt reminds incoming freshmen that once on-campus as a first-year student, college is a new experience for everyone – even after meeting or finding a roommate. “It’s probably one of the easiest times in your life to make friends. Everyone’s trying to do that.”

In spite of what he witnessed in the GW group chat, Patel frequently considers rejoining in order to find a roommate. His friends have suggested Facebook, but he believes the members “would just be moms” – which later proved true when he found GW’s six-person Facebook group. With no other option, the group chat appears to be his last hope. “Maybe I’ll decide to [join again], based on what I’ve seen.”

Despite this, Klinckhardt sees no disadvantage in joining a precollege group chat, holding onto the possibility of an amazing experience meeting new people, while keeping in mind the possibility of not making any new friends. And even in the latter scenario, Klinckhardt sees benefits. “When it comes time

Until then, Patel reminisces on his pre-college group chat experiences by recognizing that the benefits may outweigh the detriments. “I didn’t meet any new people, but I know of people now that I don’t want to meet. And I should probably find a roommate outside of the school’s algorithm system, [so] it was pretty helpful.”

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An Interview With Alumni Interviewers Finally the interviewer becomes the interviewee. Aisha Hasan Contributing Writer

and vice versa. “It’s a two way street,” Mr. Kim added.

Jaden Taher Contributing Writer

What does the perfect student look like? “No one is perfect,” Mr. Kim clarified. “As I like to say, there is imperfection in perfection. There’s no such thing as the ideal student; it’s about the individual,” Mr. Kim continued. The Harvard interviewer believes that the most important aspect of the interview is to express your true self.

r. Philip Kim, Harvard class of 1998, has been conducting interviews for over 10 years. Although the interview process may seem complex and winding, Mr. Kim simplifies the role of the interviewer into two primary parts: Being a voice for the applicant – adding more color to their overall application by emphasizing aspects of the applicant’s interests and achievements not fully expressed in short answers or essays. Sharing their personal experience and answering questions about the school to the extent that is helpful to the applicant. To Mr. Kim, the main purpose of

“Stay true to yourself; only that way will you find the school that best suits you.” - Mr. Philip Kim the interview is to strengthen the students’ application by digging deeper into their interests, hobbies, and passions. Each interview takes anywhere between 45 minutes and one hour; a limited amount of time to get to know the applicant in depth. Since there is not enough time for the applicant to highlight all of their achievements, Mr. Kim suggests that applicants focus on one or

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From right to left: Mr. Kim and his brother, both Harvard graduates. Photo Credit: Mr. Kim two passions and interests.

Mr. Kim advises applicants not to do themselves a disservice and portray themselves as someone else – someone who they think will be liked more by colleges.

“There is a story in each and every one of those interests, but maybe there’s a stronger story in another,” Mr. Kim said.

“Stay true to yourself; only that way will you find the school that best suits you,” Mr. Kim emphasized.

“We all try to do a lot of things, but there is not enough time to do everything. It is important to focus on a few things that give more insight into who you are,” Mr. Kim explained. As for Mr. Kim, he views conducting interviews as a way to get involved with his alma mater. The Harvard graduate recalls his own interview, in which he described his passion for violin, among other interests, as well as his hobbies. Getting to learn about applicants’ unique achievements is inspiring to Mr. Kim, and he considers it a privilege to be a part of their journey to college. As a part of the admissions process, diversity is extremely important to Mr. Kim. He emphasizes that Harvard is looking for someone that brings something to the student body,

s college acceptance rates plummet, students’ anxiety skyrockets just to apply to the school of their choice. Many students work hard to be the perfect well-rounded student with zero flaws, just to barely make the college cut. Although there are many factors colleges consider in a student, a few colleges still stick with alumni interviews. Students meet with alumni of the college and hope their answers fit the bill. Dr. Duke Pao, Dartmouth Alumnus, worked in the interviewing process for Dartmouth. Dr. Pao participated as an interviewer, as well as a district enrollment director. “I did assign interviews to the alumni interviewers,” reveals Pao. "but for the alumni interviewers, responsibility was to receive the assignment of the applicant.” Pao admitted that in past years, when assigning interviewers and interviewees, he did not have much information on either. However, in recent years, the process has evolved. “They had the applicant’s interests, academic interests, and what they wanted to major in. Also the interviewers gave their interests and that is what they would use to match up.” Pao clarifies. Most students want the truth on what colleges really want and can never receive a clear answer. Pao revealed, “They asked about academic intellectual curiosity, which is one thing they look for, they look for finding extracurricular activities. They also look for character in a person.” Pao states. Pao also talks about the colleges looking for if students’ personalities are fit for the specific college. Specifically for Dartmouth, “They want to make sure that you understand Dartmouth is a small college, kind of in the middle of nowhere in New Hampshire, to make sure they think you would fit in.” Pao explains. Nevertheless, there are always red flags to watch out for. Pao expresses that every alumni interviewer views red flags differently. Dr. Pao believes

academic engagement rates are of higher importance than other topics. “So what I mean by that is I specifically remember asking a student about what they read and any favorite novels. They basically said that they don’t like to read, which in itself is not very good.” Pao expresses. Pao insists answering questions to the best of your ability with some insight helps avoid red flags for almost any interviewer. The question of what college interviewers proceed with after an interview seems to haunt students. Most students stress about the interview, while interviewers evaluate and rate their experience during the interview.

"My favorite part is interviewing the applicants and talking and learning. I really do learn interesting things from the applicants." - Dr. Duke Pao “The four different aspects on the evaluation are academics, extracurricular, character, and do they fit into the college.” Pao reveals. The interviewer fills out their opinion of each aspect relating to the student. Lastly, the interviewer rates the student on a scale of one to five. “That is definitely the worst or least desirable part of the interview process.” Pao explains. As the seniors soon leave the horror of college applications, juniors anxiously wait to begin the long, stressful process. Most prestigious colleges, such as Brown, Yale, Harvard, Cornell, the University of Pennsylvania, Princeton, and Columbia, interview students. As a piece of advice, Dr. Pao states, “ It really comes down to that the interviewer can only help and it’s your time to put your best foot forward.”

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Recruitment 101:

Navigating the NCAA, scouts, and Twitter Megan Howard Social Media Editor

Coach Hoekstra with his wife and three daughters.

“If your GPA is 3.5 or above, it’s going to open so many more doors than if you’re a great player but have a 2.6 and an 800 on the SAT - it’s a hard sell,” Coach Josh Hoekstra explained about the recruitment process. For many students, athletics serves an important role in their education. Many work to excel in their sport in hopes of continuing their athletic career in college. As soon as freshman year starts, students begin building both their academic and athletic profile. Coach Hoekstra helps lead student-athletes towards college. When he is not directing football players on the field, he is guiding students from all sports through the recruitment process. As a former college athlete himself, at Trinity Christian College and then Jacksonville University, Hoekstra offers insightful perspective on what it takes and how to become a college athlete. The recruitment process is complicated and varies by sport, NCAA or NAIA level, and academic competitiveness. “Every school is going to do it a little bit different,” Hoekstra stated, “It happens in waves and the first is going to be the top 25 programs. They come in early.” That is why, in some sports, athletes give their verbal commitment as early as freshman year. When helping athletes begin their college search, Hoekstra takes into account the whole person. He gets background on the student and how long they have been playing before they work together to build a list of target and dream schools. Hoekstra then focuses the

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Credit: Hoekstra

student on what he calls “the big factors.” He asks them, “What are the big factors? Is it location? Is it playing time? Is it cost? Is it the name of the school?” Anabella McClerren ‘22, a Stetson University softball commit, chose her school based on the same big factors Hoekstra described. McClerran described her reasoning, “It’s really beautiful including the softball fields, it’s a private school, and it’s close to home.” With the big factors, academic record, and athletic talent in mind, Hoekstra begins helping students reach out to coaches and create highlight reels or “tapes” of their performance. These tapes are then posted onto athletic sites like HUDL and social media for scouts to find and contact possible recruits. Hoekstra explained, “College coaches, at least a majority of them, use Twitter because then if they are sitting in an airport they can go through their Twitter and see a guy.” McClerren used Twitter to gain attention from scouts and show off the hard work she puts into her

craft. McClerren elaborated, “I do a lot of agility work and they see that and they like that more than just looking at the stats.” Similar to McClerren, track and football athlete Kayvon Miller ‘23 spends upwards of four hours a week managing his Twitter. He checks on his twitter around three times a day, mostly posting his tapes, but occasionally uses the site to “show I have a personality.” Camps can also help athletes gain the eye of scouts. Stetson University first noticed McClerren at a summer softball camp where many college scouts were present. Additionally, her travel team tournaments gave McClerren exposure to college coaches. Hoekstra advises, “It helps if you play on a travel team, because you play all summer and get seen by so many college coaches, as opposed to if you came to a Bolles softball game. The coaches aren’t here.” For most athletes, as they embark on their junior and senior years, offers begin to flow. Miller began receiving offers in the December of his junior year. Likewise, McClerren’s offers became more

Miller plays defensive back for the varsity football team. Credit: Miller serious in the latter half of her junior year. Through social media, like Twitter, classmates watch as athletes make posts of gratitudes to college programs that have made them offers. “The tricky part about social media is you see this guy got offers from all these schools, but I wonder if they are committable,” Hoekstra explained the nuances of preliminary offers, “You [the athlete] can turn around and say, ‘Could I commit right now and take that spot?’” Each team only has so many spots they can give to recruits. So while an athlete may have a conversation with a coach who gives a lackadaisical offer, the offer may not hold when it comes closer to signing and commitment. However, suppose the offer holds true and the athletes arrive upon the various signing days. Depending on their sport, division, and athletic ranking, scholarships vary. Hoekstra broke down the numbers, “What is important

Miller’s twitter is representative of those many high school athletes. His bio displays his physical, athletic, and academic stats.

This past January, McClerren went to Stetson with other 2022 recruits to meet her teammates, tour the campus, and explore Deland, Florida. Credit: McClerren

Credit: Miller’s Twitter to understand is that about 2% of college athletes receive scholarships and I think it’s 7% of high school athletes go on and play [in college].” Different divisions of the NCAA have varying athletic scholarship guidelines.For example, Division III of the NCAA does not allow programs to give athletes athletic scholarships, while Division I and II are allowed to receive such scholarships. Scholarships get trickier based on sport and program. Many football scholarships are all or nothing, while scholarships for sports like swimming can account for 10% or less of tuition even at the most competitive Division I schools. Hoekstra described, “If you sign at Vanderbilt [football], for example, they’re paying for everything: room, board, books, a meal plan, and a little bit of money in your pocket to spend.” Recruitment and its intricacies make the process seem daunting. When unsure, the best place to start is the NCAA’s website and a trusted coach. McClerren advised on recruitment, “Put all you have into your sport, get good grades, and make sure you give it all when you get on the field.”

Recruitment Vocabulary 1. Dead Period When schools/scouts are not allowed to have face-to-face contact with athletes, visit high schools, or watch games. 2.Contact Period The period in which scouts are allowed to meet with athletes, watch games, and visit schools. 3. Evaluation Period The period where scouts may not have face-to-face contact with atheltes but may watch games, visit high schools, and write/ speak through electric communication. 4. Quiet Period When coaches can only talk to perspective athletes on the college campus.

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Going Greener at Bolles! Kate Youell Contributing Writer

ires, tsunamis, and volcanoes, oh my! With the rise of environmental problems, modern solutions are being created. The Bolles Delegates are an innovative group of students whose mission statement is “going greener at Bolles.” Mrs. Kervin, Gracie Arnett ’24, and Eliana Emery ’22, along with Bolles students from ninth to twelfth grade, work to make Bolles overall greener. The club started on the premise that “Unless America can get on board, then the rest of the world can try all of these things, but can’t do it (combat climate change).” Kervin thought that the best way to get America involved would be to start small and get Bolles involved. Kervin spoke to her friend Lousie Hunter, CEO of SummerHouse Media, who helped set up COP26, a group that meets every four years. It’s an organization in which world leaders come together and discuss how we can bring down carbon emissions. Kervin figured out a way to involve Bolles, and with this, the club was formed. Recently the Delegates have been striving to bring down Bolles’ carbon emissions by raising money to buy electric buses. They did this by organizing a thrift sale. Mrs. Kervin, club head, stated, “(delegates) try and make it fun and funky and get everybody involved and make everybody think in a small way about where they spend their money, and what is happening and where the clothes are coming from.” The thrift sale was so successful they made over $500 in under an hour. Everyone came out to support, including Dean

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Denmark, who created an outfit that sold within minutes. Kervin commented, “And that money, then we’ve decided is going towards eliminating the emissions that a traditional gas-guzzling bus gives with an electric bus.” Other than the thrift sales, there are many ways Bolles Students are many ways Bolles students can get involved and make a difference. Mrs. Kervin and the Bolles Delegates have followed in the footsteps of Greta Thunberg by having every Friday be a designated day of service. Friday is when all students can make a small change to help the environment. From only using cold water in the washer to turning the light off in an unoccupied room, students are making promises to benefit the environment, and everyone can come out to the next thrift sale after spring break. When discussing how everyone can help, Kervin states, “And so I think if we can just make small steps, then eventually going to become big steps.”

Background on Louise Hunter This is CEO Louise Hunter. Photo credit - Inverclyde

- CEO of SummerHouse Media - Events coordinator for global events - Currently working on the Democracy Forum - Responsible for Climate Hub at COP-26

The Bolles Delegates meeting for the online COP-26 confrence. Photo Credit: @TheBollesSchool on Facebook

FOLLOW THE BOLLES DELEGATES @thebollesdelegates

This is a picture from the Bolles Delegates in preperation for the second sale. Photo Credit: @bollesdelegates

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was raised what I like to call “semi-Muslim.”

But reciting my prayers was much easier when I had the time for it.

My family somewhat educated me on Islamic holidays and observations like Ramadan and the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad, told the stories of the Quran, believed in Allah, prayed in an Islamic manner (hands folded in a cup-like position on the ground reciting the request of Allah), could recite the Allahim Yarabbim prayer, didn’t eat pork, and kept the Quran in our library.

As I grew older, the time for prayer, religious stories, and recognition of traditions faded into to-do lists, after-school play practices, and never-ending academic duties. Insatiable wolves of thought gnawed at my mind during prayer and increasingly, all that I cared about was success in my fast-paced life, or at least as fast a pace as is possible for a pre-teen vying for valedictorian.

But by the time I turned 18, I had only been in a mosque a few times.

In haste, I rushed the recognition of Allah in my prayer and muffled all the usual parts of prayer that my mom had made me include regarding my health and that of my family. What I really wanted to pray for was academic success. I wanted to stack my A+’s in piles, build my extracurriculars up like towers, and most importantly,

My grandparents and their parents and even their grandparents were Muslim, and I was too young to be a breaker of traditions. So I recited and listened and recited back again.

Why We’re Losing Faith in Faith Religion is dying. Religion actually has been dying for the past decade, if not longer, as a result of political polarization, the rise of a fast-paced life, and the expansion of science.

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According to The Guardian, church membership has been declining, especially among selfidentified Democrats and independents who have begun to sense religion has a strong tie to political conservatism and the Republican Party. With the adverse taste of political polarization in

to inflate my resume to colossal heights…or for Allah to smile down on my carefully curated resume, of course. And so I became agnostic in an era in which religion was already dying. Behind the scenes of a world with defined ethnicities and primary religions exists a growing group of agnostics like me. Agnostics understand the ideals of religion, but rarely have the time, energy, or overcredulity to support them. But filling the gap of belief is spirituality, distinctly different from the institutionalized and structured practices of religion. It promotes a personal set of beliefs and practices for the search of one’s purpose. Spirituality could be a private, personal practice of religion, but for me it was the surrender of Islam, perhaps due to

their mouths, these groups refuse to identify as being religious, associating it with the Republican Party because many Republican voters have strong religious beliefs. For this reason, the number of Democratic church members declined by 25% and independent church members declined by 18% over the past two decades.

Types of Spirituality Manifestation, the act of dreaming your goals into a reality, utilizes the spiritual laws of attraction which claim that positivity and ambition attract positivity and ambition. Basically, if you dream it, you can achieve it. In manifestation, you must make your intention as specific as possible, speak your intention out loud, and then start working towards your goals. Part of the attraction towards manifestation is the act of co-collaborating with the Universe. While you attempt to achieve your goals, the Universe will push them along, allowing them to come to fruition in the future.

my growing skepticism. The emergence of my fast-paced life, now filled with three-hour internship meetings, two-anda-half hour play practices, a courseload of AP classes, and other self-imposed tasks like writing poetry and children’s books in my free time, decreased my desire to take another hour away from the limited hours of the day. It is true that with an increase of age comes an increase of responsibilities, so I now worship in a more time-sensitive, selective way: I might manifest a future of college acceptances, clutch my breathing stone to calm my anxiety before an important Zoom call, or practice breath control to center my body before going onstage as Ursula. As I shifted further from group practice of religion, I found

The emergence of a fast-paced life prevents the average working American from attending church, temple, or mosque for hours at times on Sundays. With an increase of age comes an increase of responsibilities, which last longer and require more physical or mental labor. This ongoing labor translates to fatigue by the time it comes for an

Healing crystals, also an element of spirituality, promise to heal the mind, body, and soul as long as you utilize them correctly to promote the flow of good energy around you. Crystals are largely a pseudoscience, but this fact rarely stops the spirituality enthusiast from collecting the clear quartz, sapphire, or moonstone placed strategically throughout a Bohemianstyle apartment. Who would swat away the opportunity to heal the energetic system with clear quartz or prompt inner strength with moonstone for just $5 a pop?

solace in the fact that I could rely on myself and myself alone to believe. Private belief is just as strong as public-practiced belief, I learned— no matter if you believe in the defined values of Allah or the undefined nature of a greater power in the world. I grew up thinking religion was a big part of society. And it surely must be for some people, considering within three blocks of my house are a total of four churches and a temple. But an organized belief system was not one for me. I deserted the institutionalized set of religious beliefs in my family for a belief system more personal and more private: belief in the universe’s inclination towards goodness, and a belief that if you project positivity, it will boomerang back to you.

8 a.m. church or mosque service. Instead, Americans now prefer worship of a more private manner and in a more time-sensitive, selective way.

The advent of skepticism further undermines religiosity. Perhaps, the skepticism started with Deists. Thomas Jefferson, a committed Deist, even created the Jefferson

Perhaps I was selfish to create my own set of exclusive beliefs, but in the modern, chaotic world, institutionalized religion didn’t fit in my schedule. I know that all the effort I put into my future is another sort of devotion— devotion to myself for the time being. I may not fold my hands like a cup, but I use them to write poetry for emotional relief. I may not recite prayer from memorization, but I memorize the derivatives for my academic success. I may not read the Quran, but I read Turkish history to uphold my family’s roots. This is the form my prayer takes now. While I might explore Islam once again, I now know I am whole as I dedicate myself to my future.

Bible, carving the miracles out of his original copy. Modern agnostics and atheists reason that walking on water, talking to the spirit of Allah, and splitting a body of water are not possible in this modern world, nor are they possible through extreme commitment to faith. Small scientific inconsistencies in the Bible, Torah, and Quran erode religion altogether.

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Sick of the Drama, But Not of K-Drama Kelly Kim Writing Coach

iewership of award shows like the Grammys and Oscars decreased, with the Oscars’ audience dropping around 56% in 2021: a new low for the ceremony. It is believed that Hollywood’s growing habit of making these shows opportunities to discuss politics has been a major reason, with Hollywood typically expressing liberal views. However, some of today’s most popular K-dramas have an equally strong political stance. What these Korean dramas have in common in addition to their addictive quality and popularity is their unique ability to discuss political issues in a non-controversial way that relates to the whole world. Within just twenty-eight days of its initial release, the popular K-drama Squid Game received

an astonishing total of 1.65 billion hours on Netflix: the most any Netflix show has ever received within the same time frame. While the superficial aspects of the show like the green tracksuits and dalgona candy became ultra-popular, underneath lurks a strong stance regarding the complex political issue of capitalism and the growing wealth gap which not only prevalently exists in South Korea, but around the world. The drama’s plot centers around an organization that invites those in debt to play a series of childhood-turned-deadly games for an extremely large cash prize. The mysterious, masked Game Maker and those who are known as the VIPs simply sit back and watch the players hurt each other as entertainment, while the VIPs bet on who might win. Despite the fatal danger these games impose upon its players, the obsessive desire to continue

The K-Drama, Squid Game, has resonated with audiences all around the world, sparking not only the making of costumes and fan merchandise, but a workers' protest in South Korea that fought for a higher minimum wage and more job security.

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risking their lives just to win the monetary prize showcases not only the desperation of those who are struggling financially, but the power that the wealthy possess over the working class. The show calls out South Korea’s high poverty rate of 17.4%, and an astonishing 43.8% for adults sixty-six or over. This is all despite the fact that South Korea is one of the most wealthy nations in the world. As a result, Squid Game’s influence inspired a massive union strike that took place in South Korea, as workers protested and fought for more job security and a higher minimum wage. The futuristic, dystopian plot of The Silent Sea, another popular K-drama on Netflix, addresses a similar political issue, focusing more on the negative division that economic hierarchies inevitably cause within society. The show depicts a worldwide drought and a system of various statuses and classes in which the higher one’s status is in society, the more water one can receive. Strikes for more equality regarding water distribution not only emphasize how economic hierarchies pit people against each other, but it addresses the issue of those in the middle and working class not having the opportunity to even afford basic necessities as they struggle to earn enough money to live. Professor and the Head of Theater and Performance Studies, who also researches East Asian Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles' School of Theater, Film, and Television, SukYoung Kim, said Squid Game’s worldwide popularity is largely due to its commentary on social class, describing it as “a story of people who are desperate financially and psychologically" and “something that we can all

Political Stances in Korean Film

n 2020, the Korean film Parasite became the first non-English film to receive the coveted Best Picture Oscar. However, this is only one of four Oscars the film took home that night, which include Best Director, Best Foreign Language Film, and Best Original Screenplay.

The Silent Sea is a newer K-drama on Netflix that emphasizes the importance of fighting for equality and the division economic hierarchies can cause within society. relate to, especially having gone through this extended period of pandemic.” Jin-Wook Shin, a professor at Chung-Ang University in Seoul, believes that the issues Squid Game exposes are not unique to just Korea, for “the worldwide popularity of the Squid Game certainly suggests the opposite.” It is arguable that these dramas resonate with audiences in America because they call out economic inequalities that are also present here. The United States has a 17.8% poverty rate, which is almost identical to that of South Korea’s. Also similar to South Korea, wealth inequality has been on the rise. A 2018 study done by the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development found that the top 10% of society owns 79.5% of household net wealth while a mere 2.4% percent is owned by the bottom 60%. These K-dramas’ calls for economic fairness and equality shine through without it feeling forced. They seamlessly fit in with the heart of the stories,

which have drawn in millions of people from all over the world emotionally. Instead of attacking or calling out certain political figures, parties, or organizations, K-drama makes it about finding ways to showcase issues in a way that resonates with the audience and does not divide society or bring them down, but sparks change and inspires people to get involved the right way, with intentions of not division, but unity.

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Like the K-Dramas Squid Game and The Silent Sea, Parasite also includes a strong political stance in its plot that audiences Korean and non-Korean alike relate to. The film is about how the Kim family, who is struggling due to poverty, works for the wealthy Park family. The film emphasizes the consequences of class division and how the wealthy live with ease as the working class work tirelessly beneath the upper class. There has been some debate as to whether the wealthy Park family or the lower class Kim family is considered the “parasite” in the film. Some say the Kim family is clearly the “parasite” in this situation because they are the ones coming into the house of those who are much richer than they are. Parasite Director Bong Joon-Ho reminded his audience, however, that it could be seen the other way, stating, “if you look at it the other way, you can say that rich family, they're also parasites in terms of labor. They can't even wash dishes, they can't drive themselves, so they leech off the poor family's labor. So both are parasites." Either way, the film depicts how class differences can pit society against each other and cause drastic division.

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My Body, Amber Bansal Public Relations Editor

espite the fact that abortion is protected under the 14th Amendment of the Constitution, recent controversy over Roe v. Wade has sparked drastic changes to abortion law throughout the United States. And there may be more changes to come in Florida in 2022. “In 2017, 71,050 abortions were provided in Florida… abortions in Florida represent 8.2% of all abortions in the United States,” said Guttmacher Institute, a research-based think tank. Florida public opinion on abortion in 2014 shows that “39 percent of Floridians believed abortion should be illegal in all or most cases, compared with 50 percent of Texans that same year,” said the Washington Post. But, no polling has been conducted since then to provide evidence of a change in opinion. As of January 1, 2022, new restrictions on abortion were put into place in Florida. These began with the dramatic proposal of a “heartbeat bill,” similar to a law passed in Texas requiring doctors to perform an ultrasound to detect a heartbeat. But with much less fanfare, bills promoting other policies, including state-directed counseling, limiting insurance coverage, requiring parental consent before minors can obtain an abortion, and a deadline of 15 weeks, have been proposed and may well pass.

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For each woman, the decision to abort or not remains a highly personal choice. We recognize this is a controversial issue. Regardless of your stance, we hope you consider pros and cons of the following topics:

about abortion, as well as clinic or provider information, and a woman can explore her feelings and any reservations she may have about abortion, consider and discuss all of her options, and know that she is not alone.”

State-directed counseling: According to the Guttmacher Institute, state-directed counseling is required for the main purpose of discouraging patients from getting an abortion and making them rethink their decision.

Limited insurance coverage: Under the Affordable Care Act health plans in Florida, insurance only covers abortion when related to rape, incest, or life endagerment. However, by purchasing an optional rider at a cost, abortion could be covered by the individual’s insurance. When abortions are the result of rape, incest, or life endagerment, currently the state offers public funding.

Unlike many other states, Florida currently does not require patients to take multiple trips to the abortion clinic or wait for a specified waiting period between counseling and the procedure. This measure disregards that a woman knows what is best for her and her body and also the idea that a person seeking an abortion has already made her decision. The AMA Journal of Ethics stated, “it is unethical to steer a person toward a choice that reflects a clinician’s or organization’s beliefs when those beliefs are not presented during the time when the patient is making an important decision.” However, Good Therapy, a website of best practices for therapists recommends preand post-abortion counseling, stating it can be beneficical if “an unbiased therapist or counselor will generally be able to provide accurate information

While this seems generous of Florida, with limited insurance coverage, some women will not have the ability to pay for the procedure. Thinking abortion is only needed in cases of rape, incest, or life endangerment is both ignorant and foolish. Abortion is needed when a woman decides it is needed, if she knows she cannot provide for the child, take care of a child, or whatever the case be, abortion should be covered by insurance. Parental Consent: Another new provision may require minors who seek an abortion must notify their parents or guardians to get consent. However, Niger Innis, national spokesperson for the Congress of

My Choice. Racial Equality, shared that many parents feel a lack of parental consent denies parents agency and authority, Innis said, “One mother said, and I quote, ‘The government is taking away my rights as a parent to be involved in the medical decisions of my minor child.’” Parents believe they should have the final say about medical decisions concerning their children, But some parents don’t have their child’s best interests at heart. “According to the NARAL Pro-Choice America Web site, the reality is that more than one million teens become pregnant unintentionally in the United States each year, and only 61 percent of them notify at least one parent. Most who do not are victims of domestic violence, sexual abuse or incest. It is precisely their parents to whom they cannot turn for support,” said Ramona Edelin, scholar and vice chair of the Black Leadership Forum. Deadline of 15 weeks: The 15 week abortion ban was recently introduced and “unlike abortion bans in several other states…the Florida bill materialized without fanfare, introduced a few hours before the filing deadline, with no news conference to mark its introduction,” said the Washington Post. Additionally, the Post wrote “DeSantis did not talk about

the 15-week ban in his opening address to the legislature on Jan. 11, mentioning the legislation only when asked about it by reporters.” Florida women would have a strict deadline to make a decision. Florida lawmakers have said that since most abortions occur well within the 15 week period, or first trimester, and therefore, the ban would have little effect on the abortions already performed in Florida and is a very generous proposal.

or fostering, and many women choose those options, whether through public or private agencies. But women should be able to make decisions for themselves based on their personal needs and personal values, not have their decisions limited by laws that treat women like children.

After Week 15, abortions are only legally performed if the pregancy is a matter of health or life endangerment. Exceptions do not include rape or incest. If Roe v. Wade is overturned completely, many analysts predict Florida to be a state that would likely ban abortion all together. If so, North Carolina would also be the nearest state without an abortion ban, a 575-mile driving distance, possibly too far or too dangerous for some women.. My body, my choice. Words that seem so logical, yet are debated so widely across the country. To some they seem logical when talking about wearing a mask, but so outlandish when talking about abortion. Abortion has become a political point to win votes rather than a topic focused on protecting women. Yes, there are alternatives to abortion, such as adoption

Scan this QR code to view the sources for this article. Credit: Amber Bansal

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Tall Girl 2

Photo Credit: Netflix

It’s a stretch Sarah Scherkenbach Co-Editor-in-Chief

et’s be honest… Tall Girl (2019) fell short.

The internet destroyed the main character, Jodi Kreyman, a sixfoot-two high school junior, for arguing that nothing is harder than being an abnormally tall teenager. And this was on top of the movie’s lackluster plot and occasionally downright laughable scenes. So, given all of the criticism surrounding the first movie, expectations for any Tall Girl sequel were not very high. Nevertheless, Netflix released Tall Girl 2, directed by Emily Ting and starring Ava Michelle, on February 11, 2022, and the film follows Jodi through her spring semester. Surprisingly, it wasn’t that bad in comparison to the first movie, and there was more character growth in it than other mainstream Netflix rom-coms, such as The Kissing Booth or the To All the Boys trilogies. While Jodi auditions for her school’s spring musical, Bye Bye Birdie, the teacher in charge of casting addresses what critics complained about with the first Tall Girl movie: there are worse things in the world than being tall. Jodi’s response fits perfectly. “It’s just sometimes it feels like it is, but I know that it’s not. It just doesn’t make all the bad things that have happened to me every day for my entire life any less real.”

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People are really quick to judge, but everybody should be able to relate to what Jodi said to some extent, and it was reassuring to hear. We all complain about our lives and say things are “the worst” when we know they aren’t, especially as teenagers. The fact that a situation isn’t actually the worst doesn’t lessen the problem in any way; it doesn’t make the problem any less real or any less of a problem to that person.

“You think your life is hard? I’m a high school junior wearing size thirteen Nikes. Men’s size thirteen Nikes. Beat that.” - Tall Girl (2019) Other relationships develop as well. Stig (Luke Eisner) and Dunkleman (Griffin Gluck) become friends. Kimmy (Clara Wilsey) and Jodi reach an understanding. Jodi’s parents find ways to constructively support her. It was refreshing to see the movie highlight relationships other than the one between Jodi and her love interest.

Plot-wise, however, Tall Girl 2 followed the same second-movie cookie-cutter structure as The Kissing Booth 2 and the To All the Boys sequel, P.S. I Still Love You. It usually goes as follows: Girl and boy from the first movie have been dating for a while (cue some kind of montage). Girl and boy argue. Girl meets second love interest (often cast as POC, whereas the main love interest is usually white). Girl and new love interest kiss/flirt, but then the original love interest finds out. By the end, the girl and the first boy are back together. You get the point. It wouldn’t surprise me if Tall Girl 3 were to come out, only for its plot to center around Jodi’s college ambitions-- following the precedents set by other Netflix rom-coms. Tall Girl 2 even sets up for it with Jodi’s parents discussing the possibilities of her admittance to Julliard, despite her having few credentials and almost zero qualifications. Again, differing very little from other rom-coms. Overall, though, if you have an abundance of time and find comfort in the typical Netflix rom-com, Tall Girl 2 was better than its prequel. It surpassed my low expectations, and it was nice to see a character fill such large shoes—size 13 Nikes to be specific—with so much potential.

The 3 Stages of a Netflix Rom-Com (The order may vary a little bit.)

Sarah Scherkenbach Co-Editor-in-Chief

In the first movie, the female main character usually grabs the attention of the “main love interest” in an unsurprising and cliché manner, whether it be by

starting a kissing booth, accidentally having your love letters sent out, being super tall, etc. The love interest and the girl get together. There is some drama along the way, but it resolves by the end.

L ara Jean and Peter enter the third stage in their final movie

Photo Credit: Netflix

The second movie introduces a new love interest for the main character. The main character and the original love interest get into an argument and then the new love interest and main character share some kind of “moment” that creates more problems with the original love interest. Problems resolve between the main

Elle and Noah from The Kissing Booth start to fall in love Photo Credit: Netflix

character and the love interest by the end.

The final installment of a typical Netflix rom-com trilogy focuses on all the characters’ college admissions

process. Often, they are trying to get into an Ivy League with little to no qualifications. In the To All the Boys trilogy, Lara Jean tries to get into Stanford, and in The Kissing Booth trilogy, Elle applies to Harvard (and is unrealistically accepted). Then, the main character faces conflict with the love interest because they want different things in terms of college. The series finishes with the main character following her dream in some form.

Love by the Foot: Height Records Paulo Gabriel da Silva Barros and Katyucia Hoshino Barros are the shortest couple in the world, having the combined height of 5.9 feet. James and Chloe Lusted won the Guiness World Record for largest height difference with a 2 foot 5 inch difference. The world’s tallest couple goes to Sun Mingming and Xu Yan with a combined height of 13 feet and 11 inches!

Raphael Sogueco Contributing Writer

Cameron Gratz Copy Editor

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DA Black Arts Black Joy and Innovation Atticus Dickson Contributing Writer

he show opened with a beautiful four-part harmony arrangement of Jacksonville native James Weldon Johnson’s “Lift Every Voice and Sing.” The Black Joy Arts Showcase at the Douglas Anderson School of the Arts was two hours long and it flew by. The performances flowed from one to the next, like the lines of a poem. They balanced each other well so that the showcase never felt too heavy, but also maintained an element of gravity. According to Kaysyn Jones ‘22, one of this year’s executive directors and performers,“We picked Black Joy in order to switch the narrative of Black Arts in general. Instead of focusing on pain and trauma, we wanted to focus on the power we find in a joyful community.” My personal favorite act was the performance “Black Joy," by Aja Monet, performed by Niveah Glover '24, Erica "Zaneta" Lockwood '24, and Ta'Nivea Kinchen '23. It was originally a poem meant for the page, but the performers broke the poem down into three separate voices running throughout their performance. The two other acts that most caught my attention were a small theatrical scene following the narrative of a black couple meeting when they were 11 years old, and following them to an older, but non-specified age, likely around their 70’s, as well as a slam poem about a man in a red fedora on a bus describing the true nature of jazz.

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Nocturnal Black Arts rehearsal attracts a crowd. Photo Credit: Kaysyn Jones After viewing the show, I had the privilege of speaking to Jones. Her primary art form is creative writing, and she particularly enjoys writing poetry, which is evident in her cadence, as all of her words are precise and descriptive with strong images, exactly like a poem. According to Jones, Black Arts has existed in some iteration or another at Douglas Anderson for over ten years. “We’re still trying to piece [the history] all together.” According to Jones, DA Black Arts is also a one-of-a-kind program. “We’re the only club of our kind anywhere in Jacksonville, at least.” This is in part due to the fact that the vast majority of administration and direction is student run, “Each year, students choose the new executives, choose the arts area directors, [and] the theme. A lot of the work is original [as well].”

Transitioning scenes during rhearsal. Photo credit: Kaysyn Jones

Although Jones says DA is not devoid of problems, it is constantly changing to reflect the student body. “We had problems in the past, sometimes with how race was handled on campus. But honestly, things have just gotten better and better.”

Earth Declared Not a Planet Disclaimer: This is a work of satire. Cameron Gratz Copy Editor

n August 2006, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) declared that Pluto was not a planet, arguing that it failed to “clear its neighboring region of other objects.” NASA scientists, on February 12 of this year, finally decoded a message from the outer reaches of our solar system. A copy is included below:

Greetings Earthdwellers (derogatory), We are a planet, and we have decided that you are not. You can kiss our posterior regions. Oh wait, you can’t. You’re too far away and haven’t even developed lightspeed travel yet. Losers. Worst wishes and unkind regards, Hijguf Blokkin, Assistant to the Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs, Great and Most Excellent Parliamentary Republic of Pluto The message originally

received little response aside from some nervous chuckles from government officials, but has recently spawned a new trend by which people simply declare anything that may be irritating, bothering, or otherwise antagonizing them “not a thing.”

“Your honor, I hereby declare myself not guilty of all charges,” he stated matterof-factly, interrupting witness testimony.

For example, on the new season of The Great British Baking Show, contestant Ivana Winn struggled to make a successful chocolate lava cake. The cake kept collapsing into the chocolate center, forming something of a lumpy chocolate swamp. To avoid a negative review, she borrowed a tactic from the Plutonians.

The bailiff seemed in no mood to argue, and Tarrian left the courtroom a free man. Good for alligators and Subway franchisees, bad for pretty much everyone else.

“Chocolate lava cake is not a dish,” she announced suddenly. “Saying something doesn’t automatically make it true,” responded a confused Paul Hollywood. “I didn’t say it. I declared it. That makes it true.” The showrunners promptly scrapped the lava cake round, and Ms. Winn redeemed herself with a delectable lemon meringue pie. Last Tuesday, in a Florida courtroom, inmate Vej E. Tarrian stood trial for feeding an alligator precisely 12.25 Subway footlong sandwiches. He had been conducting what he called “super serious science,” investigating how the number of sandwiches influenced “you know, the coolness. Like the general awesomeness of the alligators.”

Presiding judge Willie S. Cape looked exhausted. “You heard him, bailiff. Let him go.”

Now I know this is a satire piece, part of my usual satire column, but I’m feeling serious today. I hereby declare this article not satire. It is now a piece of Very Serious Journalism to be taken exactly as written. Everything that happened in this story is true, and absolutely Not a Joke. Everyone involved is a nonfictional Totally Real Person. There is positively no irony to this whatsoever. Not one bit, iota, gram, or mole. None. So try it out, why don’t you? Running up on a project deadline? Declare the deadline not a deadline. It’s due whenever you want it to be due! Next month? Next Year? When you’re 35 and living with your parents? Sure! Or better yet: declare the project not a project. Now you don’t have to do it at all. So go ahead, eliminate all distinctions, categories, and identities in your life. Climate change isn’t real and neither is COVID. What could possibly go wrong?

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Congratulations to our Scholastic Writers and Artists !

Book Banning

The Dangers of Putting Literature to Rest Grace Albaugh Contributing Writer

Alex Boutwell Contributing Writer

This is a cartoon that depicts the dangers of banning books, a growing trend throughout schools recently. This cartoon shows the different aspects of life that are effected by banning books such as critical thinking and empathy. This is shown with the image of a graveyard because by banning these books the school systems are killing the stories and the lessons they provide. These books are crucial to teaching

students various life lessons and by banning them kids are sheltered from difficult topics they need to be exposed to. This cartoon also shows a man digging a grave while the Tik Tok logo is on his back. This shows how social media is a larger problem for youth than the books being banned.

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Bugle Breakdown Man on the Street Edition Tyler Schimpff Muiltimedia Editor

Camden Pao Videographer

Raphael Sogueco Contributing Writer

Tommy Zhang Contributing Writer

Kelly Kim Writing Coach

The Bugle decided to take to the sidewalks of campus and test some students’ knowledge of Black History. Here are the results!

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Valentine’s Day Faculty Shares Dating Advice Megan Howard Social Media Editor

Isabel Bassin Contributing Writer

Isabel Schimpff Contributing Writer

Tommy Zhang Contributing Writer

Scan this QR code to watch exclusive interviews of teachers giving us all of their best dating advice just in time for Valentine’s Day and Winter Formal!

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