The Californian Paper

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Californian

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California High School

9870 Broadmoor Dr. San Ramon, CA 94583

Volume XXXI, Issue II

Monday, November 29, 2021

Vaccine mandate coming

Gov. Newsom announces all students will need COVID shot Tanvi Pandya Staff Writer

Illustration by Carol Chen

Gov. Gavin Newsom announced last month that all K-12 students and staff would need to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

California is headed toward bcoming the first state to impose a vaccination mandate for all school students and staff.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced on Oct. 1 his COVID-19 vaccine mandate for staff and students. All students in grades K-12 and staff will be required to show proof of vaccination to attend school in person once the vaccine is fully approved by the FDA for the 5-11 and 12-17-year-old age groups.

The mandate is set to take place in either January or July

2022, but Cal High administrators are skeptical of it being implemented so quickly.

“It’s a highly political decision,” Principal Megan Keefer said. “I’m only going on a hunch, but considering it is already November I don’t know if a decision this enormous could happen so quickly.”

School nurse Niko Holmes said the mandate is expected to apply for grades 7-12 on July 1, 2022, and for grades K-6 on July 1, 2023. Holmes says the rules for vaccine exemptions have not yet been determined.

A cluster sample survey conducted by The Californian

See VACCINE, page A3

Foods and activities spark holiday spirit Seasonal festvities return during the fall and winter months Trisha Sarkar and Sydney Cichitto Staff Writers The holiday season is near, stuffed with many new foods and festivities. Here are a few to look forward to over the next month.

Food Fall and winter themed seasonal foods are back in stores and family kitchens.

Cal High students and teachers are looking forward to enjoying home-cooked meals in the company of their families.

English and sociology teacher Eghosa Obaizamomwan Hamilton celebrates the holidays with food from Nigeria.

Her family’s favorites are jollof rice and red pepper stew. For dessert, Hamilton’s family eats puff puff. Puff puff can come

in different variations, but the basic ingredients consist of flour, sugar, yeast, water, salt, and oil for deep frying.

“It is deep-fried and a little ball and you just eat it with your hands,” Hamilton said. “It’s not doughnuts, but like a doughnut hole. And you gobble it up because it is so good!”

Hamilton recommends Ruth’s Buka and Miliki restaurants in Oakland for Nigerian food.

Sophomore Senia Reynaga has her very own staple foods for the holiday season. Her grandma makes the food from scratch every year.

“My family eats tamales and drinks atole during Christmas,” Reynaga said. “My family is of Mexican descent. We always eat these foods during the holidays as a tradition and have done it

News Lite

Photo by Dannika Shah

Trader Joe’s pumpkin spread is one of many items stocked for the hoidays. all of my life.”

Junior Kohen King celebrates holidays with Hawaiian food.

“I’m Hawaiian and my grandma makes kalua pork and spam with eggs,” Kohen said. “I usually eat spam and eggs when I visit but she makes kalua pork during Thanksgiving because it’s more of a food that is eaten during important events.”

King also recommends Hula

Wok BBQ for those looking to try some Kalua pork or spam musubi this holiday.

San Ramon stores and restaurants have also been stocking up for the holiday season.

Trader Joe’s has stocked hundreds of pumpkin products to satisfy customers’ craving for the iconic fall gourd. Some include pumpkin ice cream, pumpkin cobbler, pumpkin spice hummus, pumpkin-shaped pasta, pumpkin spiked seltzer, pecan pumpkin oatmeal, and many more.

SeniorAmelia Stevens-Nappi, an employee at Trader Joe’s, said her all-time favorites are the pumpkin kringle and maple streusel.

“That maple streusel bread is so good. It smells like pancakes,” Stevens-Nappi said.

“Oh man, I am hungry now.”

Winter holiday foods like almond kringles, candy cane

See HOLIDAY, page A2

Features Ticked off

Ever notice how some classroom clocks just don’t work?

PAGE A8

Photo by Dannika Shah

Substitute teacher Annalise Downey the day’s lesson plan while substituting for an English class.

Pandemic worsens substitute shortage Abhinav Purohit Staff Writer When no substitute teacher showed up for sophomore Derek Ono’s English class in October, Ono didn’t know what he and his classmates would do.

The class stayed in the room until their teacher finally showed up halfway through.

The substitute never arrived to cover the class.

“The sub didn’t show up for the first 45 minutes,” Ono said.

Cal High and schools throughout the state are facing a substitute shortage that has

A&E Drake headlines new music drops

Adele, Taylor Swift and Enhyphen are also featured. .PAGE B4-B5

persisted for years and has only gotten worse because the COVID-19 pandemic, said Cal’s Office Manager Candace Molano, who arranges substitute coverage on a daily basis.

“The pool of external subs has diminished because of COVID,” Molano said. “It’s not just our district. It seems to be statewide. There are shortages everywhere.”

The California Commission on Teacher Credentials, which oversees the licensing of subs, only issued 47,000 substitute teaching permits in 2020-21,

See SUBS page A3

Batman

The Caped Crusader has had many different looks on film over the years.

PAGE B8

A2

News

Read The Californian online at www.thecalifornianpaper.com Monday, November 29, 2021

Free lunches cause students to waste more uneaten food Students have been throwing away more of their food in the trash and around campus Anirud Lappathi Staff Writer The district’s transition from paid to free lunches has helped many students financially, but it is causing schools to see more wasted food in their trash cans.

“Now [students are] not having to pay for it, they get it free, and sometimes they just don’t like what they see,” Cal High campus monitor Tim Ford said.

Before COVID-19, Cal’s school lunch cost $4.75, but the new universal school meals program has made California the first state to offer free lunch to every public school student.

The universal school meals program was part of the landmark state budget agreement Gov. Gavin Newsom signed in June 2021. The program has been more popular than the school expected. On Aug. 11, the first day that Cal served lunch, the school ran out of meals to distribute.

While the introduction of free food has caused an influx of students to get their lunch from the cafeteria, it also has created a noticeable increase in wasted food as many students don’t see the food they receive as worth anything.

“Some kids are taking more

Photo by Ryan Syms

A Cal High student throws away vegetables from his lunch after exiting the commons. than what they should, and if it’s something that they don’t like, they just throw it away,” Cal’s Nutrition Director Elaine Esguerra said.

Every school has to serve grains and fruit or vegetables with brunch and lunch in order for them to count as meals, Esguerra said. But the fruits and vegetables provided are often what students end up throwing in the garbage.

Senior Alex Ren said that lunch ladies force the vegeta-

bles on students, which results in students wasting more food that they didn’t want in the first place.

“I come out of the line and there are people immediately throwing all their apples into the trash,” Ren said. “The lunch ladies are forcing the vegetables on the kids. I even heard one say ‘Just take it, throw it away later’, which is absolutely appalling.”

Students are often given a single bag of food for brunch. “[The brunch] bars end up in the

garbage more than anything,” Ford said. “It’s supposed to be a healthy thing.”

Custodians are seeing this first hand.

“With the whole free food for everyone thing, there’s twice as much food on the floor,” custodian Ricky Galzao said.

Students have also become disillusioned with the quality of the free lunches.

“Right now everything is packaged and probably massmade,” senior Dylan Hoang

said. “In freshman year they had Subway sandwiches that were just bread, ham, cheese, and it felt better to eat.”

Hoang has been eating school lunch since he first came to Cal and has noticed a decline in the quality of the food because the new options are undesirable.

Sides like oven-baked Cheetos and Doritos were replaced with packets of craisins and circular tortilla chips.

“The veggie salads are really dry and they’re not really that heavy either,” sophomore Sachit Ganotra said. “I’m not vegetarian, but I feel like for some people, the very limited options that they have, aren’t sufficient for a lunch.”

San Ramon Valley Unified School District’s new Director of Nutrition Zetta Reicker said the district receives $4.55 for every lunch served and $2.70 for every brunch.

“The per meal reimbursement must pay for staff, food, transportation and any other cost associated with the program,” Reicker wrote in an email.

During the Oct. 26 Den Rep presentation, assistant principal Tucker Farrar addressed this issue of food thrown on the ground around campus. Images were displayed showing spilled milk cartons and food everywhere.

“You’re old enough to know what’s right and wrong,” Esguerra said. “It’s up to the student to say look, this is my trash, I’m going to put it in the garbage.”

Features editor Daphne So contributed to this story.

Holiday festivities are back for the season HOLIDAY From page A1 Joe-Joe’s, eggnog, and even black truffle and gingerbread ice cream are also available.

Cold Stone is now selling The Apple of my Pumpkin Pie creation (pumpkin bread batter ice cream, pecans, graham cracker pie crust, apple pie filling and caramel), Almost Baked Banana Bread creation (banana bread batter ice cream, banana, pecans, and cinnamon), and pumpkin bread batter pie.

Junior Mia Ziblatt tried “The Apple of my Pumpkin Pie” creation after a long cross country run.

“It was amazing,” Ziblatt said. “It had so many holiday flavors. It was a seasonal party in my mouth.”

Salt & Straw in the City Center has created its very own ice ‘scream’ series. Senior Samantha Lawrence had two of the Halloween ice cream flavors and is a big fan of them.

“I love how Salt & Straw makes basic ice cream flavors extraordinary and fun,” Lawrence said. “[There’s] no single boring ice cream.”

Salt & Straw has released its ‘Friendsgiving’ ice cream series for November, which includes sweet potato pie with double-baked almond streusel,

Photo by Dannika Shah

Cold Stone’s “Apple of my Pumpkin Pie” is among several new varieities of their holiday flavors. parker house rolls with salted buttercream, candied walnut cheesecake, pumpkin and vegan gingersnap pie, and caramelized turkey and cranberry sauce with actual crispy bacon turkey.

For boba lovers, Teaspoon is selling the seasonal flavor, “Pumpkin King” (roasted

oolong topped with pumpkin-spice-infused cream and Biscoff crumbles).

Area Activities Typical activities teens enjoy during the holidays include traveling, meeting family, ice skating, and shopping.

“I like to go ice skating

[during the winter season],” senior Griffin Cramer said. “It’s all that I do around here.”

The City Center Bishop Ranch offers a variety of festive activities available throughout the winter season, one of which includes ice skating.

The rink is named after Kristi Yamaguchi, a former American figure skater who placed in the Olympics and the World Championships, according to the City Center website. The rink will be open from Nov. 17 to Jan. 2.

The rink is not the only festive activity offered at the City Center. As stated by the City Center website, the outdoor mall also offers visits with Santa, allowing younger kids to tell jolly old Saint Nick what they want for Christmas and take photos with him. These visits are offered on Dec. 4.

In addition, “12 Days of Giveaways” will be offered at the City Center from Dec. 1-12.

Each day the City Center will be giving away gifts through their Instagram account, @ citycenterbishopranch.

There are plenty of activities to do around San Francisco as well. Many students, such as sophomore Rayna Jindal, visit the city during the holidays. “[My family and I] generally go to San Francisco, and ice skate or see the Christmas tree

and Pier 39,” Jindal said.

The Christmas tree lighting takes place every year at Union Square. According to the Union Square website, the lighting took place on Nov. 26.

Ice skating is also offered at Union Square. The Union Square Ice Skating website states the rink will open on Nov. 3, with general admission tickets priced at $19.

There are other holiday activities in San Francisco as well.

“Every year [...] I go to the Orpheum Theater [in San Francisco] with my family to watch The Nutcracker,” junior Elise Hongkham said.

The Nutcracker will be playing in the War Memorial Opera House, starting Dec. 10, according to the San Francisco Ballet website.

Some other local activities include the Hometown Holiday Celebration in Pleasanton.

According to the City of Pleasanton’s website, the parade will take place on Dec. 4, in downtown Pleasanton. It will include floats, community groups, and marching bands, with a tree lighting shortly after.

Another local parade is the Holiday Sights and Sounds Parade in Livermore’s downtown area. The parade will include bands, local businesses, and much more.

News in Brief Finals week not actually a week Instead of finals being in one week, this year it starts on Friday, Dec. 17 and ends on Wednesday, Dec. 22. The A period final will be Dec. 17 followed by even day classes.

The rest of the finals schedule is as follows: Dec. 20 - Periods 1 and 4; Dec. 21 - Periods 2 and 5; Dec. 22 - Periods 3 and 6.

Winter break starts on Dec. 23.

Students return to school for the beginning of second semester on Tuesday, Jan. 11.

First improv show next month Mission Improvable, Cal High’s improv team, is performing their first improv show on Friday from 7 -8 p.m. in the theater. The show is free.

Holiday band concerts Holiday concerts by concert bands and jazz ensembles are on Dec. 14 at 7 p.m. The holiday orchestra concert by string and chamber orchestras is on Dec. 16 at 7 p.m.

Corrections In Issue I’s “Luca Alioto’s hydrogen car is one unique ride”, the milage of the hydrogen car is estimated by Alioto to actually be 200 miles.

The Californian strives to cover the news accurately, fairly, and honestly. It is our policy to correct all significant errors.

Corrections should be emailed to californianpaper@gmail.com or bbarr@srvusd.net.

Connect with The Californian online:

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A3

How was Schoology selected?

Committee of admin, staff and students reviewed learning platforms before making decision Nicholas Harvey and Aarna Prashanth Staff Writers

With the San Ramon Valley Unified School District adopting Schoology this school year, some students are wondering how exactly they ended up using a new platform to check grades and submit assignments.

It all started in October 2020 when a committee was formed by the district to help pick a new learning management system, Christopher George, the district’s director of secondary instruction, said.

A learning management system, or LMS, is an all-encompassing platform like Schoolloop and Google Classroom used for learning and grading. George said the shift to remote learning caused by the pandemic heightened the need for a new LMS. The district wanted to use a methodical process to find one.

“We were going to need a better tool than we currently had for remote learning,” George said. “What we were seeing was a lot of school districts around us kinda hastily just ‘pick one of the shelf’.”

The district temporarily used Google Classroom and Infinite Campus together. George said Infinite Campus was difficult to deal with, so the district acquired a one-year contract with Schoolloop until the committee could find a new platform.

Photo by Carol Chen

The class interface of Schoology shows students folders with everything from class materials to announcements.

The committee included 83 people on paper as of late January, with the number of people increasing over time since the committee was formed, according to a committee spreadsheet acquired by The Californian.

Only eight students were on the committee, three of whom were from Cal High, but not all were active on the committee.

Administrators volunteered to join the committee while parents were chosen by San Ramon Valley PTA President Lisa Gross, according to Gross and the San Ramon Valley Education Foundation. Staff were chosen in collaboration with California School Employees Association, a union representing classified employees, and with San Ramon Valley Education Association, which represents teachers.

Students on the committee were referred to district staff

who led the committee by site administration.

Iron Horse Middle School eighth-grader Sofia Avila received an email in October 2020 from Research, Evaulation, and Student Support Coordinator Sarah Acosta Landry thanking her for applying for the committee. But Avila did not know she had been put on the committee.

She found out from sending a follow-up email to Acosta Landry and learned that thenvice principal Nikki Chaplan had recommended her.

Avila couldn’t attend any of the committee meetings but was involved in the sandbox phase of the LMS selection process during second semester, when teachers and students trialed each of the four finalists for two weeks each.

“I don’t think there was any one platform that I liked, and I remember I really hated School-

ogy,” Avila said. “I didn’t really like it because I thought it was hard to find things. I’d click the bell thing and then there’d be all these notifications.

“Now I like it more,” Avila continued, “but at first it was like ‘What is this, how does this even work?’”

Cal students were selected to be on the committee by administrators through site council, with the process of finding students extending past the committee’s creation in October through second semester.

“It was just opened up during a school site council [meeting],” said Cal senior Sophia Kraskowsky, who was selected to be on the committee by January according to the committee spreadsheet.

Kraskowsky had time conflicts preventing her from attending any meetings. But the first email she recieved to attend

a meeting was on March 23, at least two months after she had been placed on the committee.

The committee posted a request for proposals from companies who wanted to provide their LMS to the district in January, according to the March 30 district board presentation about the committee. District Director of Technology Greg Pitzer said the committee received eight bids.

After bids were sent to the district, an internal subcommittee of the committee narrowed the eight bids to four finalists, including Schoology. Schoolloop did not submit a request, George said.

The four finalists were Canvas, Desire2Learn, itslearning, and Schoology, English teacher Devan Manning said.

“Most of the teachers on the committee were on the sandbox so they got to test out the

platforms,” said Manning, who served on the committee.

Manning trialed the various platforms, including simulated students. One of her concerns with Schoology was that she believed parents would see assignments out of context and not understand how they were used in class.

“Sometimes it can be weird, when parents look at information when they don’t know the backstory of what was going on in class,” Manning said.

Manning evaluated the platforms and voted for Canvas as her first choice.

However, the committee aspired to use a consensus-based decision-making process.

“We did not take a vote, we just kept discussing it until the group wanted to go one direction or not,” George said.

Despite this, there were two final polls conducted to choose a LMS and Schoology won both, with 83.3 percent of the votes for the elementary poll and 78.1 percent of the secondary poll.

Schoology was chosen because it met 168 out of the 176 criteria set by the committee, and the grade book was able to provide both standard-based and traditional grading methods, as opposed to Google Classroom.

This was an important factor in determining a new LMS for the district, Pitzer said.

“I think Schoology was chosen because it works easier for all – elementary, middle and high school,” Manning said.

Pitzer said the district signed a three-year contract with Schoology for $135,000. The district purchased premium support for an additional $38,000.

The support level will most likely reduce after this first year, based on how much the students need it. The district estimates website hosting will cost about $40,000 per year.

Subs in short supply Vaccine mandates coming for students, staff

SUBS From page A1

compared to the 64,000 permits in 2018-19, according to CalMatters, a state nonprofit news organization that focuses on politics and state policy.

Cal resident substitute Preeti Gaur said COVID-19 makes the job of substituting for teachers more dangerous.

“People are scared because of COVID,” Gaur said. “[Subs] don’t meet the same set of students every day. [They] meet different sets of students, so you have more risk.”

Cal has been dealing with this shortage of subs by having other teachers cover for classes during their prep period, which is a free period teachers have.

“They would essentially follow lesson plans from the teacher, but it’s not an external sub,” Molano said. “It’s our own employees helping us cover.

The incentive for the teacher is to get paid during their prep.”

English teacher Kalise Ahern, who used to be a substitute, says the shortage of subs has always been a problem, even before the pandemic.

“Just in general, there’s a teacher shortage,” Ahern said.

Ahern said being a substitute isn’t as serious of a career, and could be considered a side-gig, but with more qualifications.

She believes substitute positions aren’t going to receive many applications, since it’s a parttime job that requires a person to have qualifications.

“Why would you sub if you [could] have a high-paying job?” Ahern said.

Most of the district substitutes are other teachers or retired teachers, support staff, and people who work in the district, Molano said.

Some departments in particular have problems finding substitutes. Qualified subs can put in their preferences for what subjects they want to cover, and they often don’t choose world language and P.E. classes.

“Because a lot of subs, in their mind feel like, ‘I want to do a good job’, but I don’t know the language,” Molano said. “Subs don’t always want to be out on a track or in a gym”.

Despite the shortage of substitutes, Molano feels there is a sign of optimism.

“Hopefully within time, things will change,” Molano said. “I just don’t know when that will be.”

Vaccine Mandate

VACCINE From page A1 on Nov. 9 estimated that 73.2 percent of students support the school vaccine mandate, with 16.1 percent of students opposing it and 10.7 percent having no opinion.

The survey included three classrooms from the main building. One classroom was randomly selected from each floor of the main building and the students in that room’s first period class were surveyed.

Fifty-six students were surveyed, using an anonymous Google Form.

Once the mandate takes effect, how it would affect students and staff would vary based on their vaccination status. For those already vaccinated, nothing will change.

For others, it could alter the course of their education.

Students who aren’t vaccinated would have to enroll in an independent study school, instead of in-person school, according to EdSource.

One Cal sophomore, who is unvaccinated because of parents’ beliefs and wished to remain anonymous, is

concerned about the mandate.

“It’s not like I have a choice,” the student said. “I don’t do as well with online school and I can’t afford to go to a private school.”

Unvaccinated students would not be able to attend private school because it applies to them as well as those in public schools. The sophomore would not be able to continue attending Cal if the mandate is implemented, and the student’s parents don’t allow them to get the vaccine.

Spanish III teacher Ivette Maclean hopes the vaccine would not force students to lose learning opportunities.

“Overall, I think I support the vaccine mandate, as long as people who do not have the ability to get vaccinated don’t get jeopardized,” Maclean said.

Others are also uncertain about how people will react to the mandate.

“I am a little nervous about the mandate because I think there is a lot more hesitancy amongst the population than evident,” history and philosophy teacher Tyler Gulyas said.

But Maclean believes that

Gov. Newsom’s mandate is for the greater good.

“There will be a struggle with accepting the mandate, because some people associate it with losing freedom,” Maclean said.

San Ramon Valley Unified School District reported that 94 percent of its entire staff was vaccinated as of early September based on a self-attestaton survey administered by the district. Emails from to the district to get updated figures of verified staff vaccination rates were not returned.

There are several arguments against the mandate. Some find the potential mandate unfair, as it isn’t possible for everyone to get the vaccine.

If the mandate is implemented as planned, unvaccinated students who want to continue attending public or private schools won’t be able to.

Junior Ronit Prakash said he wouldn’t mind the mandate as long as it’s for people’s safety.

“I would want it to be fair for everyone,” said Prakash, who is fully vaccinated. “A lot of people are already vaccinated, so I don’t think it would cause too many problems for our school.”

Many favor the mandate for a variety of different reasons.

“I don’t know if there’s any rational opposition to getting vaccinated, and I do think you are on shaky moral ground if you refuse it,” Gulyas said.

Staff and students alike say it will make schools a safer place to be in.

“Anything to keep students safe,” assistant principal Jeffrey Osborn said. “If this is a way for us to get back to ‘normal,’ and it keeps students safe, I’m in favor.”

This wouldn’t be the first time California has set measures in place to protect public schools students and staff from COVID-19.

As of September, California was one of 16 states to require masks in public schools, and many school districts, such as SRVUSD, have enforced a quarantine period if a student has any COVID symptoms.

“The biggest priority should be for every kid to feel like they belong at school, and to remain healthy and happy,” Keefer said.

A4

News

Read The Californian online at www.thecalifornianpaper.com

Monday, November 29, 2021

Students allowed to eat lunch indoors

District backtracks on indoor mask mandate for rainy days Ylin Zhu Staff Writer ‘Masks indoors!’ is a rule students have had to follow since the beginning of the school year, But with the return of rainy weather, students can now eat inside on days with rain or poor air quality.

Students will be allowed to eat inside the main and fine arts buildings on those days because the two locations are larger and have open hallways, assistant principal Jeffrey Osborn said.

“We want to provide an opportunity for students to choose to eat inside or out on rainy and poor air quality days,” Osborn said. “Students who wish to sit outside can continue to do so, those who wish to stay dry or breathe healthy air can come inside.”

The decision started with the California Board of Education at the beginning of the school year, assistant principal Tucker Farrar said. “[The decision] was then passed to Contra Costa County before they imitated the idea then sent it to the [San Ramon Valley Unified School District] and finally, Cal High was informed of this plan,” Farrar said.

While Farrar acknowledges that the exception is contradictory to what students have been practicing since school resumed on campus in August, administrators don’t have a choice in the matter. Farrar said it is up to students to do their best to stay safe while eating indoors.

“It’s based on students’ responsibility,” Farrar said. “They should take a bite [of their food], then put their masks [back] on

right away.”

Even though eating indoors is an option during bad weather days, many students, such as freshmen Suhas Balla and Benjamin Seo, would rather eat outdoors. “[I prefer eating] outside because you actually get to move around more and there is more space,” Balla said.

There are options to avoid getting wet outdoors, such as shade structures and eaves.

Several students said they also enjoy the seating choices and environment outdoors. “[The] environment is good outside,” Seo said. “It’s less packed.”

After the first announcements in October that students would be allowed to eat in the main building and fine arts buildings, students have begun to question this logic.

“It’s ironic because they’re telling you to mask indoors but then telling you to take off your mask,” sophomore Daniel Jung said.

Others agree that the policy of telling students to wear masks indoors while allowing them to eat indoors the moment the mandate becomes inconvenient is questionable.

“The concept of it is kind of dumb in a way,” sophomore Rookia Alam said. “[It] defeats the purpose of having a mandatory mask mandate at all.”

Administrators want to assure everyone that eating indoors during this time will be as safe as possible.

“The ventilation systems in our school are very efficient and effectively filter out COVID and air particles due to smoke,”

Photo by Ylin Zhu

Cal High students enjoy eating lunch outside in the quad during nice weather. When it gets too cold and starts raining, administrators told students they would be allowed to eat inside the main building despite the mask mandate indoors.

Farrar said.

Another problem that has arisen are club meetings during lunch. Many students will spend most of their lunch in their club meetings, but they can’t eat during them because they

are told to wear their masks indoors.

Still, students such as Interact president senior Cindy Zhu agree that wearing masks indoors is important during club meetings.

“I don’t think students should be allowed to eat indoors [during club meetings] because there are a lot of people indoors, and there is still the COVID issue so everyone should keep their masks on until after the

meeting,” Zhu said.

The choice is up to students.

“I feel like you have the choice to eat before or after the meeting,” junior Tyler Duong said. “But during the meeting, you should focus on the club.”

r Wh at i s yo u f av o r i te ng Th a n k s g i v i t radi t i o n?

Photos by Lili Loney

“Sometimes my birthday is on Thanksgiving and that’s pretty cool.”

Christina Denno Junior

“I love eating stuffing and watching football every year. I also like gravy.”

Aidan Camberg Junior

“Eating mashed potatoes, obviously with gravy.”

Robby Hillery III Sophomore

“Every Thanksgiving break I go to Chicago to see my step-mom and step-brothers.”

Will Calvert Senior

“I like to eat pumpkin pie.

It’s my favorite at Thanksgiving.”

Abbey Cullen Senior

“Eating with my family and making German food, because I’m German.”

Dua Sherdil Freshman

Monday, November 29, 2021

News

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A5

San Ramon Teen Council back in action

City provides teens a voice in decision making Vishwas Balla Staff Writer

Imagine representing the teen voice of San Ramon.

Well, that’s exactly what the 19 high school students – six from Cal High – do as members of the San Ramon Teen Council.

These students recommend to the San Ramon City Council what they believe would be good for teens in the city.

For example, the Teen Council may say they think a certain event would be good, or that a new facility would be helpful, said Cal junior Arpita Gupta, who is part of the Teen Council.

The Teen Council has been meeting in person since the new term began in August after meeting online last year.

“We’re supposed to be the bridge between the city council and the teens of San Ramon,” Cal senior Jenny Lin said.

“We’re supposed to represent the voices of the teens in San Ramon to voice their opinion on city projects.”

Other Cal students who are part of the Teen Council include senior Suyash Goel, senior Diya Madhok, sophomore Emily Cooper, and junior Saachi Sharma, who is The Californian’s News Lite editor.

Madhok is the only one of Cal’s six members who is not new to the Teen Council.

Each member submitted an application and was interviewed before being selected. There are 17 voting members and two alternates chosen to be a part of the Teen Council.

The group has conducted several workshops and has run campaigns in hopes of making San Ramon a better place for

Photo by Sydney Cicchitto

From left to right, the San Ramon Teen Council comprises Cal High students Emily Cooper, Jenny Lin, Diya Madhok, Arpita Gupta, Suyash Goel, and Saachi Sharma. teens.

One of the Teen Council’s more successful projects was a campaign against drugs. During the campaign, council members showed teens drugs that were hidden in plain sight to illustrate how discreetly they could be disguised. Afterwards, a police officer visited and spoke to them, Lin and Madhok said.

The Teen Council also sets up different workshops, such as career workshops to help students find what they are interested in and what they want to do in the future.

Here’s a closer look at each Teen Council member from Cal. Emily Cooper Cooper joined Teen Council because she wanted to be a voice for the teen community in San Ramon.

Cooper feels she can make an impact through the council, especially since she gets to talk

to adults, which she says can be difficult for some teens.

“I want to make San Ramon a more fun and safe place for teens,” Cooper said.

Cooper would like to make mental health a bigger priority for teens both at home and in school while she is on the council.

In her free time, Cooper enjoys listening to and playing music on the piano and bass, especially indie and alternative music. Cooper has been playing the piano for five years and started playing the bass last summer.

Suyash Goel Goel joined Teen Council after being a part of Teen Council Ambassadors in his freshman year.

Teen Council Ambassadors was a way for middle schoolers to try out Teen Council. It also allowed students who didn’t make it into the main council

to have an opportunity to be a part of it, Goel said. “[San Ramon] really raised me. We have great schools, great community, Goel said. “It really shaped who I am.”

Goel has always been interested in politics and was one of the field organizers for the California Democratic Party in 2020. He has also helped with local campaigns during the election and served as the internship director for City Councilmember Sabina Zafar’s campaign in her 2020 mayoral race.

Outside of politics, Goel also has an interest in computers and coding and has taken AP Computer Science Principles and AP Computer Science A. “Especially after COVID, [I want to] increase mental health resources for teens,” Goel said.

He hopes to help to represent the problems that the teens are facing.

Arpita Gupta Gupta hopes to make positive change through Teen Council.

“I wanted to make a tangible impact on the community,” Gupta said. “It’s a really impactful way to be able to kind of put teens opinions out there, and just kind of tell the adults that make the decisions in this city what teens want in the city” Gupta enjoys debate and often does community service and volunteer work. She is the president of the Cal High Red Cross Club.

“I volunteer for the Red Cross because they are a humanitarian organization that doesn’t discriminate based on anything and they’re impartial,” Gupta said. “They kind of just help everyone.”

Gupta is a tutor and said she enjoys it because she likes to teach younger kids. She also loves painting in her free time.

Jenny Lin Lin also joined Teen Council this year after being a part of Teen Council Ambassadors. She was another intern for Zafar, who was previously vice mayor.

“I’ve always had a passion for connecting with San Ramon and what I can do for the city,” Lin said. “I just really appreciate everyone here.”

Outside of Teen Council, Lin has run cross country and track for Cal since her freshman year.

Lin is the vice president of the TEDxCHS club, which had its first talk on Zoom last school year. Speakers at the event discussed issues both local and global in 2020.

In the future, Lin wants to major in International Relations. She is interested in the way countries work with each other and loves learning new languages, so she would also like to minor in linguistics.

Diya Madhok Madhok is serving her second

year on the Teen Council. She first joined because she wanted to find a way to get more involved with the community.

Although Madhok’s first year on the council was virtual, she still believes they were still able to make an impact.

“We were able to push out [the] Teen Ambassador program,” Madhok said. “They were working on women empowerment, ways to get involved with the community through COVID, reintegration.”

Madhok is the chair of the council’s community outreach committee and helps promote activities such as Teen Ambassadors and the Outstanding Teen Citizen award.

The award is given to a teen in San Ramon who has done something above and beyond for the community.

Madhok is also a part of the U.S. Naval State Cadet Corps where she does a lot of volunteer work and leadership building.

She is also the secretary for Cal’s American Cancer Society and co-captain for Cal’s girls lacrosse team.

Saachi Sharma Sharma joined the Teen Council in September after hearing about it from fellow member Madhok. She wanted to join because she felt her interests matched the objectives of the Teen Council.

“I love politics, I love leadership positions and I really wanted to help[the community],” Sharma said.

Sharma hopes to make a difference in the community of San Ramon and believes that being on Teen Council is one way to accomplish that.

Sharma also plays golf for Cal, participates in theatre and is a member of the school’s Speech and Debate Club. She is also the club president of the Worldwide Club.

Student on school board represents teens Ronit Batra gives student input to the Board of Education

Sophia DiGiovanni Staff Writer Monte Vista senior Ronit Batra is making history this year as the inaugural student representative on the district’s Board of Education.

The San Ramon Valley Unified School District’s Board of Education, which comprises six elected adults, is responsible for making decisions about everything from the district budget to school policies.

“I really want to make sure that the policies we make are in line with what the students want,” Batra said.

The school board had discovered this year that student input is very important to be able to do their job.

“In order for us to really know what the best decision is to make for our students, we need student voices,” Board of Education president Susanna Ordway said.

This is where Batra’s role comes in.

Batra relays information to the Board of Education from the Student Senate, which is a collection of district middle and high schoolers like Batra. The Senate was created in February.

“I can tell you that there’s been a distinct shift since he started,” Board Trustee Laura Bratt said. “He gives us a lot of information that we just weren’t getting prior to him being on the board.”

Batra’s role has helped the board make decisions that positively affect students and their everyday lives on campus.

So far, he has been able to provide insight to the board on topics such as the new free lunch program and the district’s change to Schoology.

“I continue to be impressed by Ronit,” Board Trustee Shelley Clark said. “He is so articulate and he is so in touch with what the students’ needs are.”

Batra’s involvement in the Student Senate began in May 2021, when he was formally inaugurated as the district’s student representative.

Photo courtesy of San Ramon Unified School District YouTube

Senior Ronit Batra expresses his thoughts during the Oct. 6 San Ramon Valley Unified School District Board meeting.

He first heard about this position on the Board of Education through his school, which notified students of this opportunity.

“I thought that it was really

interesting considering my interests, and just in general, wanting to advocate for the student body,” Batra said.

The selection process started

with around 60 applicants and was narrowed down through interviews, letters of recommendation and essays.

Batra was eventually notified

by his school that he had been selected to fill the position of student board member. A new student will be selected for the 2022-23 school year.

A6

Opinions

Read The Californian online at www.thecalifornianpaper.com

Monday, November 29, 2021

STAFF EDITORIALS

The Voice of California High School

New bell schedule needs later start Cal High formed a new bell schedule committee in October to provide student input for the 2022-23 schedule.

The committee provides a unique opportunity for students who joined to voice their opinions and influence Cal’s future schedule after this year’s was quickly decided by a small group of San Ramon Unified School District administrators and teachers.

Whatever the committee decides will then be voted on

by Cal’s faculty before it is implemented next August.

The Californian has compiled a list of suggestions for those on the committee to consider for its second meeting after Thanksgiving. If taken, these suggestions should make next year’s bell schedule more ideal for students.

Most importantly, school needs to start later. Moving school just half an hour later would make a tangible difference.

During distance learning, first period started at 9:40 a.m.

This meant more sleep and less early-morning hustling for students, especially when there was only a 30-second commute from the bed to the computer.

When in-person school returned in August, it also started more than an hour earlier than in distance learning. Combined with fighting the resurgence of traffic and scrambling to complete last-minute homework, waking up much earlier became a necessity.

It goes without say that sleep is extremely important.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, a lack of sleep is associated with obesity, decreased exercise, depression, poor academic performance, and risky behaviors in teens.

Moving the start of school later has been proven to help alleviate these issues and provide students with various benefits, such as increased attendance rates and GPAs. The committee also has been considering extending brunch by moving the five minutes between first and second periods and student support to brunch.

We think the students really need this.

By moving and combining the mostly unused student support break period to brunch as the committee previously discussed, brunch can be lengthened to 15 minutes without affecting class hours.

Students hardly have enough time to slog through the sluggish food line in the commons and eat, much less talk to their friends, before brunch ends.

When brunch is the only break after the 2.5 hour first or second period-student support block, this is a problem.

The brief brunch also contributes to food waste because food that students don’t have time to eat often ends up in the trash.

A longer brunch will let students relax more and enjoy their snack before diving into the rest of their day.

With these necessary changes, Cal’s schedule can become more ideal and manageable for students still readjusting to the return of in-person school.

Menstrual product equity is vital in schools Menstrual product availability at Cal High is lacking.

There are only two locations on campus with pads and tampons for students: the student bathroom in the Zen Den, aka the wellness center, and the girl’s locker room.

This leads to the question: Why are feminine hygiene products so hard to find on campus when the school can afford and freely provide other hygienic necessities, such as toilet paper and soap?

Pads and tampons should not be considered a pricey luxury when they are necessities for anyone who menstruates. Unfortunately, the apparent struggle to obtain period products expands beyond Cal’s campus.

A 2021 series of studies conducted by the feminine hygiene company Thinx and the non-profit PERIOD determined that 23 percent of students have difficulty affording menstrual products. An additional 59 percent of students reported that schools rarely supply bathrooms with feminine products.

Menstruating is not a cycle that can stop at any desired time.

Schools ensuring provisions of period materials in bathrooms would alleviate stress for anyone who is in immediate need of a pad or tampon. Females

who have trouble managing the unnecessary and restricting prices on feminine hygiene will be most at ease since school is where students spend the majority of their time.

Realizing that menstrual product equity for high schoolers is most needed on campuses led California to push for free access to period products in schools. By the 2022-2023 school year, public schools and colleges must provide menstrual products under Assembly Bill No. 367, which Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law on Oct. 8.

Advocacy groups such as Women’s Voices for the Earth and PERIOD supported this decision.

The Menstrual Equity for All Act of 2021 was approved in an effort to expand AB 367, which mandated in 2017 that lower income schools must stock pads and tampons on campus. The new mandate will enforce all public middle and high schools, and colleges to provide students with free menstrual products in almost all bathrooms.

Menstrual product equity at schools is soon to be welcomed by all who have found discomfort in handling period problems at school after years of no assurance from schools.

Illustration courtesy of Arfa Saad

The

Californian Editor in Chief Nicholas Harvey

Managing Editor Shiphrah Moses

News Editors Andrew Ma Samyuta Tripasuri

Opinions Editor Gabriela Jimenez

Features Editors Nimisa Panda Daphne So

Sports Editors Tanner Curtis Eli Mayerson

A&E Editors Asiyah Ally Allison Cavanagh Samantha Contreras Keertana Sareekymar

News Lite Editor Saachi Sharma

Photo Editor Carol Chen

Graphics Editor Ari Harvey

Staff Writers

Dylan Allen Tyler Aronson Vishwas Balla Alexia Broughton Sydney Cicchitto Hallie Chong Sophia DiGiovanni Wyatt Golla

Evan Heinz Aniruddha Lappathi Melody Mulugeta Kaustav Pal Tanvi Pandya Aarna Prashanth Abhinav Purohit Tyler Raymond

Trisha Sarkar Hannah Shariff Kira Sidhu Jordan Vereen Katya Vial Parwaan Virk Michael Zarich Ylin Zhu

Artists Shua Lee, Judy Luo, Arfa Saad

Social Media Editor Kylie Thomsen

Photographers Erica Dembrowicz, Lili Loney, Dannika Shah, Ryan Syms

Online Editors Anika Choudhary Shravya Salem Sathish Adviser: Brian Barr Principal: Megan Keefer Printer: Folger Graphics

The Californian mission statement

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Letters must be signed and should not exceed 150 words. Letters may be dropped off in room 321 or e-mailed to californianpaper@gmail.com.

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Monday, November 29, 2021

Read The Californian online at www.thecalifornianpaper.com

Opinions

A7

Wealth disparities threaten students Keertana Sreekumar Staff writer Education has become the sole contributor to economic mobility. A college degree has become the ticket to financial stability and the establishment of generational wealth and success.

Financially affluent families have gone to great lengths to ensure that their children receive quality education, from moving to top ranking districts, hiring SAT tutors, and enrolling in expensive supplemental courses to boost their college applications.

The issue here is that as wealthier families invest in education, the greater the nations’ wealth gap becomes.

Consider the numbers and the problem becomes evident.

SAT tutors can cost more than $50 per hour, according to The Dallas Morning News. Housing prices in top school districts are astronomical – 16 percent greater than in lower ranking districts, according to Medium.

The United States Government Accountability Office reports that 40 percent of high poverty schools in California do not

offer Advanced Placement courses in high school.

Less financially supported families end up taking the hit when educational resources become monopolized.

Low ranking districts offer fewer resources which lowers students’ quality of education.

Living in a low-ranking district is often correlated with being a low-income district, which hinders the opportunity for tutors.

Additionally, financial hardship can influence a person’s decision to apply for internships, participate in school clubs, and attend college.

Students from financially affluent families don’t have the challenges that low-wealth families have, which allows them to focus on building an education that can lead to a financially stable job.

The rest of us don’t have that option.

Children from high-wealth families have a 43 percent chance of receiving a college degree, compared to the 24 percent in low-wealth families, according to the Urban Institute.

Many argue that scholarships and grants are already helping

close this wealth gap. The truth is that many of these opportunities are on the basis of income, not generational wealth. Additionally, resources highlighting these opportunities are sparse to say the least.

When grants look into factors such as academic achievement, they rarely consider the poor quality of education applicants are receiving despite this. But dismantling the educational wealth gap is complicated.

Removing property tax as a primary public educational funding resource would decrease financial class separation by requiring all districts to be funded equally. This ensures the quality of education to be standard and levels the playing field, according to United for a Fair Economy. Quite literally, we need to invest in students.

Invest in specialized educational programs and registered counselors to eliminate the disparity in resources for disadvantaged youth. Increase pay for quality teachers and provide a voice for students to express their educational concerns. Additionally, we should eradicate test-based funding that

Illustration by Keertana Sreekumar

Educational needs cause financial struggle for many students, especially those living in lower-income school districts. discriminates against low-income students.

And this is coming from someone who is enrolled in an

excellent school district located in one of the wealthiest areas in the state. Because of this, I know that finances will never be

a barrier to my social mobility.

The same cannot be said by others enrolled in our public education system.

Gabby Petito case highlights how other women’s deaths are overlooked

Alexia Broughton Staff writer

Photo by Lili Loney

Principal Megan Keefer checks students as they leave campus at lunch. Only students who don’t have a fifth or sixth period scheduled are allowed to leave because of Cal High’s closed campus.

Why do we have a closed campus?

Michael Zarich Staff writer A big change for seniors returning back to in-person school this year is the opportunity to eat lunch in the parking lot.

Although many seniors choose to hangout near the parking lot and their cars during lunch, administrators have noticed that many students are abusing that privilege and leaving campus for lunch.

While the school is a closed campus, students should have the freedom to leave campus for lunch if they want.

A main reason administrators closed Cal’s campus starting

with the 2014-15 school year was because of safety concerns. Administrators said that students were often speeding to return to campus after their 35-minute lunch period.

But most seniors would agree that students who have a license and own a car should have the freedom to leave campus as long as they return to campus safely in time for next period.

If students have the privilege to eat lunch outside of campus, it’ll help them gain responsibility and more experience about how the real world works, especially for the students about to graduate and be on their own at college.

This also teaches students how to spend and save money.

Budgeting money is a huge part of students developing maturity, so giving them as many opportunities to experience and learn how to do this now could definitely benefit them moving forward.

Seniors are near adulthood, so they should be able to make their own decisions. Cal should allow students to have an open campus because it provides more options and freedom to eat different foods. Giving students the flexibility to eat off campus can result in healthier options and healthier meals.

Allowing students to leave campus can improve students’ day because it allows them to try something new and change up their routine. Plus, another district high school, San Ramon Valley, allows its seniors to leave campus for lunch as long as they sign with their parents an agreement form. To keep this privilege, students must maintain a clean discipline record and have no attendance issues.

Why can’t Cal do this, too?

While the school may think keeping students on campus is the safest option, seniors should be able to have the freedom to leave campus at lunch.

KTVU news anchor Frank Somerville was suspended in September from his position after 30 years for covering a story regarding the publicity comparisons of white and colored homicide victims.

This point was brought up when the controversial topic of Gabby Petito’s murder case was mentioned. Petito, being a white American, raised questions in the minds of many as to why her story dominated the news cycle, and why many other stories involving female murders received minimal coverage in comparison.

The well known incident regarding Petito and her boyfriend, Brian Laundrie, recently caused a stir on social media.

She disappeared in September after planning a cross country trip with Laundrie and never returned home. This created a great deal of panic and grief among people all over the US. It is commonly believed that her case grew in popularity because of her large following on YouTube. Petito’s channel didn’t take off until after the information about the case was released and became well-known.

The story grew on its own as a result of fear and empathy for Petito’s safety and curiosity about her whereabouts.

But consider these facts.

Homicide is the third most common cause of death for Native American and Alaskan Native women in the United State.

They are murdered at a rate of 10 times the national average, according to PBS. About 21 percent of homicides reported in the state of Wyoming are Indigenous people, but they only make up 3 percent of the population, according to PBS. Families who personally experience these tragedies often feel trapped when attempting to spread the word about the situation. This is because of the lack of attention that is brought to these cases.

News anchors have the unique ability to discuss current events that matter, an opportunity Somerville used when he criticized media treatment of missing Black and Indigenous women in the U.S. One instance of a young indigenous woman gone missing or killed is the case of Trudy Gopher, a 19 year old woman who found dead on May 10, 1997.

She was found behind a school after attending a wedding in the Alberta Cree Community.

It was determined her death was a suicide. Although this was the final proposal, Gopher’s family suspects the death was a murder all along.

Thousands of women of color go missing every year, but their stories don’t get nearly as much coverage as they should. Last year alone, around 100,000 black women and girls went missing according to NPR. The media is unreliable when it comes to covering stories regarding missing women of color. It is up to the public to use platforms available on social

media to spread this information and share stories that deserve the publicity Petito received.

With social media constantly expanding, specifically the popularity growth of the app TikTok, Gen Z has become the youngest generation to become invested in the world of politics. With this, the spread of information around missing people cases has increased tremendously, and is easier than ever to find. It’s become so big that cases have been solved by individuals on social media with information online alone.

These platforms allow any case to have these benefits, but since attention is not brought to the cases of women of color, they don’t have the same opportunities as others.

Sommerville, who has a Black adopted daughter, used his platform as a news broadcaster to attempt to spread information about these issues, but he was quickly silenced by his employer.

Social media, however, is not as restrictive of various viewpoints, and everyone is able to spread information about what they believe is right. While this can be dangerous, if used properly, information on such cases could be publicized.

In order to properly make changes for the better regarding race inequality in the news, it is important for the media to report stories of all deaths no matter their ethnic background or social media presence.

Once platforms recognize the importance of complete coverage, overlooked news stories including the deaths of many Indigenous peoples will finally gain awareness and attention, not just headlines of single cases of death.

A8

ews Lite

Monday, November 29, 2021

Time for you to get a watch

When keeping time goes awry Dysfunctional clocks wreak havoc on classrooms across Cal High’s campus Jordan Vereen Staff Writer Ah, clocks. Gatekeepers of time, space, and maybe some other things, but most importantly, they’re wonderful to watch when I have an hour to do my English test. Well, at least when they aren’t failing to do their one job. They’re not being payed, so I understand the struggle.

There are multiple classrooms with broken clocks (or, at least, housing the restless spirit of a timekeeper passed on.) Some say, to this day, screams are still heard from classrooms that once housed a broken clock. Others, of course, say that I’m just making that up.

The clock problems on campus have a very long and colorful history, going back at least a month. It’s a tale as old as time, but I’m not payed by the word, so we’ll just skip over the fine details.

I also went through every history book in the school, and I haven’t found anything on this riveting chapter in the story of human existence. Evidently, somebody at the publisher has some revisionist agenda.

However, this problem is not confined to the past. There are even more weird clock things in recent times, once again proving history repeats itself, or at least rhymes as well as vacuous modern rap music.

To be honest, these clocks terrify me, man, they can’t be avoided. First, I go to Michelle Mascote’s English class, and the clock’s been stuck at 9:38 and 35 seconds for forever, I think since the Fall of Rome. Attila could’ve at least called the clock-tor after he was done pillaging.

Then, I go to Jacob Martin’s Chemistry class, and the normal clock just randomly stopped working after I thought I could rely on it, ticking and tocking the time of I don’t know where.

It still moves, but I honestly can’t follow what drum that thing marches to, maybe the Energizer Bunny. It’s like Schrödinger’s Clock, it makes sense, and it looks right, but once you look at it again it makes no sense. If you know how it works, please, don’t even try to explain it to me, I’ve spent too much of my life thinking about it.

But it’s not just my personal experience. There were incidents everywhere.

First was the event revolving around English Teacher Sean King’s clock.

The poor man could never catch a break. His first clock was as out of touch as a corporate Twitter account: it was off. It was removed, and for a while, there was just a hole in the wall with a wire sticking out, the gruesome remains of once great technology. King described it as “unsettling,” and I’d have to disagree. There’s almost no other combination I like more than teenagers and exposed wiring.

The next clock has a similar story, proving through a simile that corporations aren’t your friends and are all the same (even if their unpaid public relations intern has a spark of witticism in their downtrodden soul). Finally, King called for his clock to be set right, but the old timepiece was instead removed entirely, to be replaced by a square shaped imposter.

King remarked on how the new clock moves in rigid ticks, while the old one would move slowly and consistently.

He wasn’t sure which one he liked

Illustration by Carol Chen

School clocks develop a mind of their own as more become defective. more, but the new clock reminded him of the endless ticking of time.

Our final story revolves around AP Gov teacher Brandon Andrews. It was

just a regular day, with one exception: The clock had been sabotaged by the violent squirrels that live in colonies in the walls (I know they’re there, the voices told me so--Mr. Andrews said the reason was something else, but he’s just part of the devil’s plot.) So, the clock began to make a noise equivalent to the dying wheezes of animals, much like the very real rats in the wall at Andrew’s old school. It’s a sound that let’s us know when someone’s time was up.

The timepiece began to make a clicking noise, perhaps desperate cries to be forgiven after a life of clock decadence and clock sin. And, like “The Tell-Tale Heart,” the sound grew louder and louder. Its volume grew so unbearable that Andrews, akin to the protagonist of that old Edgar Allan Poe poem, couldn’t handle the guilt, and ordered the poor children out of the class into the freezing winds and temperatures of the East Bay in October. Might as well have sent them out to work on some Siberian roads, the monster!

While Andrews did not rip up his floorboards like “The Tell-Tale Heart” (though I have confidence he can tear through linoleum with his bare hands,) a similar story happened in Philosophy teacher Tyler Gulyas’ classroom. The difference between the two, however, is that Gulyas tore the clock straight off the wall, like the Sword in the Stone.

An even better fairytale to tuck your kids into bed with, I’d say.

Clocks are one of those things we don’t think of too much but, boy, we would all be lost in the dark without them. Too bad clocks seem to be one of the things being lost to the Information Age. We could always look at our phones for timekeeping during 50 point exams, but some teachers continue to resist the unstoppable tide of progress.

And, friends, is this form of clockwatching really the same?

Annual PSAT day fails to meet standards again College Board tests our patience Kira Sidhu Staff Writer Ahh, PSAT day. We may have sharpened our No. 2 pencils to perfection the night before, but the school seems to have missed the point.

It’s clear the district really tried to change things up this year. We can cite their brilliant idea to change the learning platform to Schoology and hand us chromebooks that range from kinda functional to ‘I-will-randomly-shutdown-during-your-math-test’, the latter coming from personal experience.

But to many, this year’s PSAT protocol and its rough execution was a new level of crazy.

Many sophomores and juniors didn’t even want to take the test, yet were forced to because there was no simple way to get out of it. Last year, students found it much easier to opt out of the PSAT because of COVID-19 and virtual learning.

Not to insult the all-knowing, omnipotent College Board or use their name in vain, but why are sophomores and juniors who are not planning to take the SAT required to take the PSAT when the test is technically optional? Why is there so much emphasis on the PSAT and SAT when UCs continue to be test blind to these standardized tests? And why are sophomores required to take it when it’s an upperclassmen problem?

Oh yeah, it’s because of the College Board’s obsession with profiting off the hard work of students wanting to apply

Illustration by Ari Harvey

PSAT day horror stories occur throughout the day as College Board accumulates more and more power. to college and their mission to make sure we all go broke in the process.

Of course I say this with all due respect, College Board. (Please don’t revoke my test score!)

Since the school knew that the PSAT/ SAT testing day was going to involve almost 100 percent of sophomores and juniors in 2021, one would think the school would be fully prepared to carry

through with it, right? Wrong.

Your personalized testing experience depended on which proctor you were assigned to and how good they were at keeping track of time, which didn’t work out great for everyone.

Although all students taking the PSAT were instructed to arrive when the testing rooms opened at 7:55 a.m., start times for the test varied from class

to class, with some classes not starting their first section up to an hour after everyone arrived.

Choose the best answer: Once the testing actually began, common themes included: a) phone alarms going off; b) tiny 5 minute breaks between the hours of testing; c) proctors running late on starting a section; d) general uncertainty and confusion; or e) all

of the above.

If you answered E you’d be correct.

When testing finally did end, the coordination between all testing rooms was definitely worrisome. Students in classes that were released early got to chill and recover from their testing experience. But some classes were released at 11:45 or later than the scheduled end time at 11:30, giving students 10 minutes or less to eat their lunch after testing for three-plus hours.

Just imagine the immense joy students felt when they got to attend three more classes instead of going home.

And as with all things College Board related, ordering a PSAT test for sophomores and juniors was not free for the district. It’s comforting to know the money was wisely spent on optional standardized tests instead of on something insignificant like, I don’t know, the quality of school lunches?

Anyways, I suppose we should all congratulate ourselves on making it through the warzone that is PSAT day.

Favorite stories from the battlefield include students bubbling in ‘B’ for the rest of the questions in a section they know they won’t be able to finish and listening to a phone alarm go off for 5 minutes straight while trying to read a story about…well, nevermind.

I’m not ready to fight the College Board over legal issues just yet. Just grab the nearest device and search PSAT memes or find a PSAT TikTok to know exactly what I’m talking about.

So hopefully when next year’s PSAT day rolls around, and our No. 2 pencils are all flawlessly pointy again, the school will be a bit sharper at planning this time honored high school tradition.

B2

Sports

Read The Californian online at www.thecalifornianpaper.com

Monday, November 29, 2021

Fall sports seasons come to a close Teams aim to find success in NCS playoffs

Vishwas Balla Staff Writer With the end of November coming around, the fall sports season is nearly at an end.

After a rather weird year of changed schedules and shortened seasons in 2020, Cal’s fall teams had a chance to get somewhat back to normal.

This fall’s seven teams have done rather well, with most advancing to the North Coast Section playoffs.

Football This has been a great year for Cal High’s football team, which wrapped a 7-3 regular season with an impressive 49-34 over Amador Valley on Nov. 5. This marked a total rebound after last year’s 2-4 season, which was cut short because of COVID-19 and saw fewer players come out for the team.

“We’re definitely better this year,” junior backup quarterback Shawn Singh said. “This year everybody feels safer here. It’s just all around better, everybody is playing as a team” After the win against Amador Valley, Cal earned the No. 5 seed in the NCS Division I playoffs.

The team exacted their revenge against EBAL rival Monte Vista, which beat Cal 2722 earlier this season, by beating them 48-21 in the first round of the NCS playoffs. They played Clayton Valley Charter on Nov. 29 in the NCS semifinals. Results were not available before The Californian went to press.

Women’s Volleyball The women’s volleyball team had a rather solid season, finishing with a 16-16 record. The

girls earned a spot in the NCS playoffs but lost 3-1 to Dublin in the first round on Oct. 26.

The team placed 6-12 and finished seventh in league, but they competed in two tournaments and won both of them. Compared to last year, the team’s fan base was also greater, especially during home games which only increased their motivation to play well.

One of the key factors to their success is how they were able to form a strong bond in a rather short time.

“Considering everyone was new to playing with each other we did pretty well,” sophomore Maneli Misaghi said.

Misaghi noted the team’s bond grew stronger as they spent a lot of time together, leading them to play better together as well. She also credited much of the team’s success to coach Brian Long and Bridgette Heins.

Women’s Golf Cal High’s women’s golf team reached the NCS Tournament of Champions this season, placing 10th out of 21 schools.

The team shot 443 at Diablo Creek Golf Course on Nov. 1 to wrap up a pretty successful season. Junior Sofia Fernando led the way with a 5-over 77, followed by senior captain Rhandy Weston’s 85, freshman Emily Zhang’s 88, senior captain Leah Keswani’s 90 and freshman Cassidy Chiang’s 103.

The team had skilled seniors this year alongside up and coming underclassmen.

“Last year we only had like four players on the team,” Weston, a four year varsity player, said.

This year, the team had nearly 20 girls on the team, 10 of whom played in at least one varsity match. Weston said that having more players on the

Photo by Erica Dembrowicz

Running back Devan Love (24) carries the ball against San Ramon Valley High during Cal’s 31-20 loss at home on Oct 29. team helped motivate her and gave the team an opportunity to switch out scores to end with a better overall score.

The team finished the season 6-12 in league and almost upset Dougherty Valley in the season finale, losing by only two strokes. Cal swept its matches against San Ramon Valley, Granada and Livermore.

Even though the two senior captains are leaving and junior Maggie Saur is graduating early, Weston believes that the underclassmen have the talent to continue lifting up Cal’s golf team.

Cross Country The cross country team has had a great year especially after returning to a more normal sea-

son, allowing for more meets.

This year Cal High’s cross country team is loaded with great runners.

“Our seniors right now are really fast,” junior Thomas Wedewer said.

The top three runners on the boys team are seniors Matthew Alm and Ryan Dube and sophomore Andrew Pruitt. For the girls the top three are seniors Madison Chavez, Jenny Lin and Carly Kern.

With many of the team’s best runners being seniors it may seem like they will struggle next year, but that isn’t true.

“Obviously losing five of your top racers is going to be a massive loss,” sophomore Blake Lemmon said. But he

believes that the younger runners are ready to move up and continue to lift the team.

The team also had a lot more participation this year compared to last which also helped give them a boost.

“A lot more freshman have taken interest in cross country this year,” Wedewer said.

Women’s Tennis Cal’s girls tennis team has also had some successful players this past season.

Although the whole team may not have done as well as they may have wished this season, they still had some stars that made it far in EBAL. Cal (4-14) had freshman Gracie Barco and sophomore Caitelyn Huang provided one of the

team’s highlights by reaching the EBAL Doubles Championship before losing the match on Nov. 5.

Barco is the highest ranked player on the varsity tennis team, while Huang is also among the top-ranked players.

Huang believes the communication between the two really helped them do well. Having fun and enjoying playing with each other also reduced stress for the both of them, Huang said.

Water Polo Both men’s and women’s water polo missed out on NCS playoffs this year.

The men’s team finished 10-14, 3-5 in league, while the women went 2-12 overall, 2-7 in league play.

Madison Chavez wraps up successful high school run Senior signs letter of intent at Colorado Springs Shravya Salem Sathish Online Editor Being team captain, qualifying for state championships, and earning a college scholarship in athletics might sound like a dream.

But for cross country runner and senior Madison Chavez, it’s real.

Chavez has been one of the Grizzlies top distance runners all four years at Cal High and recently accepted a scholarship from the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs next year.

Although Chavez joined Cal High’s cross country team her freshman year and her name has become synonymous with distance running for the Grizzlies ever since, her interest in sports stemmed from a much earlier age. And it wasn’t all running.

Chavez participated in soccer, basketball, and swimming, reaching high competitive levels in swimming as a child. But running had always felt natural to her since she accompanied her parents at triathlons while

Photo by Lili Loney

Senior Madison Chavez

growing up.

Despite the never-ending effort running long-distance requires, Chavez describes it as a sort of therapy and a productive way to spend her energy.

“A lot of people say they love cross country because of all the people they meet and the friends they make, and I love that,” said Chavez, who also runs distance races for Cal’s track team. “It’s just I love running itself, too.”

Chavez’s dedication is more than evident in her busy schedule. Practices are generally two hours long, and as team captain, she has additional responsibilities, such as being in charge of core workouts and cool downs.

“It’s a lot, but I spent four years figuring out how to manage my time with school and friends and all that, so I’ve got it down,” Chavez said.

Cross country coach Nick Shea has been a part of Chavez’s

journey throughout high school.

Although Chavez’s performance has progressed by leaps and bounds, Shea said her proactivity has been constant.

“She’s really turned into a leader, and I think some of that sparks off of her own motivation and how other people feed off of that,” Shea said.

Sophomore Rachel Choi notes that as team captain, Chavez’s awe-inspiring work ethic sets a high standard. But rather than it being intimidating, it’s been more of a driving force.

“She’s gotten a sub-18 for one of her three-mile runs,” Choi said. “That’s definitely something I hope I can increase my speed to.”

Senior Jenny Lin, the second ranked runner on the team, said that Chavez doesn’t hesitate to help her peers, whether they have no experience or are preparing to run professionally.

“Her grit and resilience has grown so much, and it inspires the rest of us,” Lin said. “It’s like we run seven miles, and we’re all tired, and Madison is still there like, ‘go, go, go!’”

Chavez has encouraged Lin both on and off the field, the latter through college advice.

The NCAA consists of three divisions, with Division I the

most challenging. Lin wasn’t sure if she had the qualifications to run in college, but Chavez wouldn’t let her drop it.

“Madison kind of opened the possibility [to me] that you don’t have to run in Division I. There’s Division II, Division III,” Lin said.

Despite all of her accomplishments, Chavez said there’s never a point where she has helped her teammates too much.

Their love for each other is what she admires most about them.

“It inspires me to do well for them because cross country is very much a team sport,” Chavez said.

This was especially true when Chavez wasn’t at the top of her game. During her sophomore year, she was discouraged as she was racked with injuries throughout the season. But she credits her team, coach, and family for uplifting her.

“I would say my coach helped me a lot during that time, because I was really hard on myself when I was injured and he just helped me to see that,” Chavez said.

She didn’t let the time go to waste though. Instead, she still attended practice to cheer and improve from observation. “[It gave] her a better sense

Photo courtesy of Cal High Cross Country

Chavez trains hard to continue her run of excellence. of spatial awareness and what it really takes to be dedicated,” Shea said.

That year, Chavez qualified for state championships and finished with the school’s seventh-best time (18.52) in the five-kilometer race. This is her best time for Cal, but she hoped to top it on Nov. 20 at NCS.

Her previous injury gave her more of a reason to commit to her passion, and now, she’s committed to running at Colorado Springs, a Division II school.

Many of her close teammates are extremely proud of this. “[Chavez] is one of the strongest girls I know,” Lin said.

“She’s a girlboss.”

Monday, November 29, 2021

Sports

Read The Californian online at www.thecalifornianpaper.com

Star duo lead Grizzlies to success

QB Booras and WR Calcagno have strong connection Dylan Allen Staff writer

For the boys in black and orange, all the blood, sweat, and tears paid off for them on the football field this season.

With a 7-3 record in the regular season, the Grizzlies kept the momentum rolling through the first round of the NCS playoffs after beating Monte Vista 48-21 on Nov. 12.

The team was led by the senior duo of quarterback Teddy Booras and wide receiver Jake Calcagno, dubbed ‘Can’t Guard Cags’, who have combined for some of the best numbers in the North Coast Section this season.

With a 49-34 win against Amador Valley on Nov. 5, Booras ranked eighth in NCS in total passing yards with 1,921 and sixth in total passing touchdowns with 25. On the receiving side, Calcagno is now tied for first in total touchdowns among wide receivers with 18 (17 receiving, 1 rushing) and is first in the NCS with 1,238 receiving yards.

These two have developed a chemistry that is second to none, and this year it has absolutely skyrocketed. More than 58 percent of Booras’s 134 completions have gone to Calcagno (78 catches). Calcagno also has been on the receiving end of more than 64 percent of Booras’s total passing yards and 68 percent of his touchdowns.

How did these two, who met freshman year, become so dialed in with each other that they became one of the best duos in the NCS? “Really, we’re just always together,” Calcagno said.

“Whether it’s working out,

Photo by Samantha Contreras

Quarterback Teddy Booras (9) and wide reciever Jake Calcagno (4) sit on the sideline during the San Ramon Valley game. running routes, swimming, playing video games, or hot tubbing, we’re always hanging out. We have made a lot of memories together, both on the field and off the field.”

The two best buds became friends back in freshman year.

“We met on the football field, and it was one of those things where we could tell we were going to be friends,” Booras recalled. “We actually knew about each other before high school, through baseball and stuff, but we didn’t officially meet until freshman year.”

Through high school, they have been on a lot of teams together, playing football during their four years at Cal and baseball during their freshman year. But their connection

really started to show during the shortened COVID football season of 2020.

“We’ve always both felt we’ve had a lot to prove, and it’s resulted in us playing with a chip on our shoulder,” Calcagno said. “People have always doubted my size, our offense, and our school and that’s one thing that has really motivated the both of us.”

Calcagno and Booras started playing football freshman year because they wanted to try something new and thought it would be fun. Back then, the Cal offense was slightly different than how it is today.

“When we both made it to varsity, we were introduced to the veer offense,” Booras said.

“Over COVID, Coach Cal in-

remains important for athletes to get vaccinated to control the spread of COVID-19 and set an example for people who look up to them.

The biggest example of this is Brooklyn Nets All Star guard Kyrie Irving, who has refused to get vaccinated. This decision has resulted in him missing the NBA season. Unless he is traded or vaccine mandates change in New York, Irving will most likely miss the entire season.

New York currently has a vaccine mandate to enter indoor buildings. Because Irving isn’t vaccinated he isn’t allowed to enter any of the team’s facilities including the Barclays Center, the Nets’ home arena. That means Irving can’t play in any home games or practice while he’s unvaccinated.

Irving is also being prevented from playing in road games, despite the fact that vaccine mandates don’t apply to players from the away team. But the Nets front office has suspended Irving from any play for the team until he gets vaccinated.

“I chose to be unvaccinated, and that was my choice, and I would ask you all to just respect

that choice,” Irving said on a recent Instagram Live.

While Irving hasn’t gotten the vaccine he has strained his relationship with the Nets’ front office, his teammates, and the fans. Irving has also lost a lot of money. If he continues to sit out he will lose $35 million.

Irving isn’t the only example of an athlete having issues with the vaccine. San Jose Sharks forward Evander Kane submitted a fake vaccine card to the NHL, which suspended him 21 games. The NHL has no vaccine mandates but does have steep repercussions for those who refuse to get vaccinated.

The most recent example of an athlete refusing to get the vaccine is the Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who tested positive for COVID on Nov. 4. Before the season Rodgers told the media that he was “immunized”, but never stated that he was vaccinated.

This was because he never got the vaccine and was taking an experimental treatment.

ESPN’s Packers reporter Rob Demovsky said what Rodgers was getting is called a homeopathic treatment which is

stalled the spread offense and it allowed us to really open up the offense by basically throwing the ball more.”

Coach Cal is Jake’s father, Danny Calcagno, who was brought in last season after coaching Chabot College from 2003-2016.Coach Calcagno replaced longtime coach Eric Billeci, who led Cal’s football program from 2009-2019.

When Billeci stopped coaching, Coach Calcagno took the offense and completely flipped it on it’s head, installing the spread and allowing it to open up for Booras and his recievers. With a shortened COVID season, this 2021 campaign has been the year where they have been fully able to learn the offense.

“Teddy has done really well in this offense and I’m super proud of them for not complaining about a thing and taking the time to really study it,” Coach Calcagno said. “I believe this offense has really allowed them to excel and grow as players.”

From a numbers standpoint, it really has allowed them to improve and create a lot of trouble for opposing defenses.

Their teammates have had to go against them in practice and know just how dangerous the duo can be to try and guard.

“It’s really difficult,” senior linebacker Nathan Quimby said, “They have a lot of chemistry and it makes it really hard to line up against them because they have that connection.”

Along with the difficulty,

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Quimby added that the two never stop working.

“They are always going 100 percent, so it pushes you to go 100 percent as well because you don’t want to get exposed,” Quimby said.

The Booras to Calcagno connection has experienced some great moments the past two seasons, but one stands out.

“Definitely the game winner at home against Clayton Valley,” Booras said. “There were 15 seconds left and I threw a corner post to Jake and we won the game (19-18). It was an awesome feeling.”

Cal lost last year in the final minutes against Clayton Valley, so this became a revenge game, and to win it in that fashion after losing a heartbreaker last year was something special.

Moments like these have created special bonds and memories, for everybody involved.

“As a father and coach, it has been incredible,” Coach Calcagno said. “I’m extremely proud of these boys and the strides they have made both as football players and as young men. I’m just very grateful to be able to watch them and help them mature along their paths and see where they go.”

It has been a crazy season up to this point for the Grizzlies, but they are hoping they can string together some magic for their last ride as seniors. Booras and Calcagno are both looking to play football in college, but know their paths will most likely take them separate routes.

Through playing football together, they have been able to learn a lot about each other and know they will take a lot away from the experience.

“Through thick and thin, we’re always going to be there for each other. We’re always going to be friends no matter what,” Calcagno said. “We are brothers now.”

Vaccine mandates cause ripples in sports world Athletes and coaches punished for not complying Tanner Curtis Sports Editor COVID-19 has impacted sports in a big way over the past 20 months, resulting in no fans in attendance for games and forcing leagues to play in quarantined bubbles away from the rest of humanity.

Thankfully, sports have started returning to normal mainly because both athletes and fans have been getting vaccinated.

The vaccine has solved a lot of issues in the sports world, including quarantine for close contact athletes, coaches and staff to being forced to wear masks, and stadiums and arenas once again filling with fans.

While most fans and athletes have gone along with the new COVID guidelines surrounding the vaccine, some have refused to do so. This has started a large conversation around athletes getting vaccinated.

With the pandemic continuing to go through waves, it

Photo courtesy of Michael Wa via Flickr

Kyrie Irving, star point guard of the Brooklyn Nets. designed to raise the antibody count in a human. Rodgers petitioned to get the treatment to count as being vaccinated, but the NFL denied his request.

In the NFL’s eyes he has been considered to be unvaccinated

for the entire season.

According to NFL Network’s Ian Rappaport, Rodgers has been following the protocols for unvaccinated players inside the Packers facilities. This turned out not to be completely true as

Rodgers and the packers have both been fined for violating the NFL’s COVID protocols.

Rodger’s has spoken out about why he chose to be unvaccinated using many reasons like being allergic to ingredients in the mRNA vaccines and a fear of becoming sterile.

The vaccine has also caused some people, mostly coaches and staff, to lose their jobs, including the former Washington State University football coach Nick Rolovich, who was recently fired because of his decision to not get vaccinated.

He applied for a religious exemption but was denied.

Rolovich decided he would rather lose his job and hurt the players he coached because he wouldn’t get the vaccine. Many consider this to be the worst situation of them all because Rolovich is supposed to be a leader of his team.

Irving, Kane, Rolovich, Rodgers, and many other athletes and coaches are feeling the repercussions for their refusal to comply with vaccine mandates.

It also impacts their teammates, which is the most frustrating part for a lot of people.

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Features

Drake is the kind of guy...

Anika Choudhary Online Editor Drake is a renowned musician who has won 192 awards, including four Grammys and the Billboard Music Awards’ Artist of the Decade award.

He is a man with many talents, but his biggest talent is his ability to do anything and become a meme.

Drake returned from his three year musical hiatus on Sept.

3, with his album “Certified Lover Boy”. The album had a lot of buzz surrounding it, but the majority of the attention was directed toward jokes and criticism.

The 12 pregnant woman emojis used for the album cover took the internet by storm when Drake gave fans a sneak peek at the artwork prior to the album release. The unique art created discussion across Twitter and people quickly made a meme out of it.

“When he first posted about the album cover on Instagram, I thought it was a joke or made by a three year old,” sophomore Hiranya Malladi said. “But then I realized that was the actual album cover and then I was concerned.”

Drake became the center of meme culture once again following the release of his album.

The song “Girls Want Girls” captured the internet’s attention because of the lyric, “said that you a lesbian, girl me too.”

“I think the line is pretty stupid, like people waited for this song just to hear that line be a part of the lyrics,” said freshman Vaishnavi Suresh. “It’s meme material though.”

Shortly before this, the world was sent into a frenzy after a mirror selfie of Drake and an Instagram Boomerang of him crouching over with his hands on his hips went viral. The viral images sparked speculation of Drake potentially getting cosmetic surgeries, earning him the

title of “BBL Drake”.

“It’s really weird because it’s obviously not true,” junior Arianna Oliquiano said. “It’s just really random.”

BBL Drake is the reigning king of TikTok and Twitter as people’s timelines continue to be flooded with “Drake the Type of Guy to:” memes.

“I started seeing the memes like two weeks ago on my For You page,” freshman Sophia Chen said. “It’s like they showed up out of nowhere.”

Every couple of years, the rapper’s followers like to kickstart the craze of thinking up the kind of things Drake would do, such as saying “oopsies” after dropping something or clapping when a plane lands.

“It’s so funny to see,” freshman Niranjan Prem said. “He doesn’t really do anything but people just make fun of him because it’s hilarious.”

Drake’s one-of-a-kind personality makes him a consistent trending topic, but it also allows him to stand out in the rap industry.

“The way he acts, like his brand of being a loverboy, is pretty funny so a lot of people tease him about it,” senior Mikal Mulugeta said. “But I think there is toxic masculinity in the rap industry so it’s good that Drake is not afraid to act like himself and defy the boundaries of the industry.”

Though most of his online presence is defined by his susceptibility to being memed, Drake became a household name because of his successful rapping career. Many fans were looking forward to the release of his new album, and the memes contributed to the hype around it.

“I was looking forward to it because it’s been a long time since he dropped something and he kept dragging the album release,” Mulugeta said. “I definitely turned it up the moment it came out.”

Read The Californian online

Illustration by Shua Lee

Drake promotes his new album “Certified Lover Boy” by posting a selfie to instagram, sporting a fresh fade.

Memes and popular media culture surrounding Drake are not limited to this past year, and have been a constant in his career.

“Drake is a very influential figure so a lot of his actions end up being memed,” sophomore Trenton von Sosen said. “Like when he released ‘Hotline

Bling’ a few years back, people were making fun of it then.

Drake has been a long running joke throughout his career.

A reason for that may be the absurd headlines posted about him daily, the most recent of which was in reference to him allegedly suing the creators of the show “Degrassi”, where

Drake got his big break. He’s upset the show made his character disabled because he thinks it makes him appear too soft.

“I think it’s a sign that he is sick of the jokes,” junior Melina Kamranifard said. “But hey, it’s keeping him relevant so it works.”

Even after being in the enter-

tainment industry for more than a decade, Drake has managed to remain relevant in both the music industry and in social media culture. He has a very unique brand of cheesiness that can’t be found anywhere else.

Drake is many things, but he is not the type of guy to let people be unentertained.

Becker said it’s annoying to see Swift put down time and time again, when she has worked so hard to get back the music that belongs to her.

“She has a right to [her] original albums,” Becker said.

Jelwaliker believes that the music industry did Swift dirty and it was a combination of how the industry treats women and who Swift was surrounded by at the time helped cause the issues.

“A lot of this whole contract thing comes down to misogyny,” Jewalikar said.

Swift owning the publishing rights to her old songs has turned out well. She remade her 2008 album “Fearless” with the new title of “Fearless (Taylor’s Version)”, which was released in April.

Freshman Addie Mobarak feels that Swift remaking her old albums is exciting.

“I think it’s a really good move and it’s really smart,” Mobarak, a childhood fan of Swift, said.

Swift released her version of the 2012 album “Red” on Nov. 12. Fans were eager to hear the highly anticipated “Red (Taylor’s Version)”.

Jewalikar was one of the many fans who couldn’t wait for the album to drop. Their favorite song “All Too Well” will be 10 minutes long.

They believe that it was such a powerful move of Swift to re-record her albums. “[She] taught me how to deal with people who don’t like you in a mature way,” Jewalikar said.

Swift has influenced so many people as a person and artist. She has shown so many young people to fight for themselves and perservere through life’s challenges.

Taylor Swift rises above contract controversies The re-release of ‘Red’ shines a spotlight on her past problems Asiyah Ally Staff Writer

Photo by Erica Dembrowicz

Fans of Taylor Swift at Cal High create a shrine in her honor located in the first floor all-gender bathroom.

“Trouble, trouble, trouble.” Taylor Swift said it best.

She has been dealing with contracts and record labels that have indeed caused a lot of trouble.

At 15, Swift was signed to Big Machine Records. The contract included ownership of the masters of Swift’s first six albums. A master is the first audio recording of a song.

Although Swift did not own the masters, she did own the publishing rights to her songs as the main songwriter. With Swift being the main songwriter, this allowed her to re-record songs

in the future.

After Swift’s contract ended with Big Machine Records in 2018, talent manager Scooter Braun took over. Swift and Braun are not on good terms. Braun bought Swift’s original recordings of her first six albums and sold them for more than $300 million to a company called Shamrock Holdings.

“Essentially, my musical legacy is about to lie in the hands of someone who tried to dismantle it” Swift wrote on a Tumblr post.

Swift fans Jaden Becker, a freshman, and Anushka Jelwalikar, a sophomore, share similar sentiments that Braun is a bad person.

“I hate him,” Becker said.

at

Features

at www.thecalifornianpaper.com

B5

Courtesy of TV Ten Youtube Channel

Enhyphen members from left to right: Ni-ki, Jake, Heeseung, Jungwon, Sunghoon, Sunoo, and Jay line up for a picture after winning a Top Ten Award for Top artist in the first half of 2021.

Enhypen dashes to stardom Hallie Chong Staff Writer

The seven member K-pop boy band Enhypen (pronounced “en-hyphen”) has made a comeback with their first full album after a year since their initial debut.

“Dimension: Dilemma” features eight songs, with two of the most popular ones, “Tamed-Dashed” and “Go Big or Go Home” being performed on Korean music shows. Another two called “ Intro: Whiteout” and “Interlude:Question” have a

more audiobook vibe rather than traditional music and are sung by members Jake, Jay, and Heeseung.

The album received a lot of recognition from Enhypen fans, known as Engenes, before its release with 910,000 pre-ordered copies and 800,000 copies purchased after its release on Oct. 12.

“Dimension:Dilemma” ranked No. 11 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart with its first entry, surpassing their previous highest ranking No. 18 with their debut EP “Border:Day One”.

The title track on “Dimension: Dilemma” “TamedDashed” has been multiplying in popularity along with “Go Big or Go Home”. My personal favorite would have to be “Tamed-Dashed” and “Just A Little Bit”.

Enhypen continued to carry their dance-pop style into their title tracks with “Tamed-Dashed”, which brings in the summer vibe with a rugby themed music video, filmed in an outdoor lively setting.

At first listen, the song grabbed my attention. The

track immediately started off with an upbeat bass and melody that gets listeners into the vibe. The chorus and bridge are the stars of the track, with a catchy melody that gets stuck in your head and annoyingly can’t get unstuck “Go Big or Go Home” starts strong with its dance style instrumental. Then, just as there is a build up getting ready for the beat drop, the song hits listeners with an anti-drop, which is the perfect addition to the song.

The album as a whole gives

different tastes of genres from the artist. From dancepop to ballad songs, even a collaboration song with another K-pop artist,Engenes have been waiting for the group’s first full album and it seems as though it has been satisfactory.

“Dimension: Dilemma”

by Enhypen isn’t just a song, it’s a cultural reset, it’s the oxygen you breathe, it’s a lifestyle… the first gift you open on Christmas, a hug from a loved one,” a review on Google says.

Although the album is

getting high ratings and a lot of satisfaction, I would rate it a 7.5 out of 10 as it does have a wide variety of songs and its title track is a huge hit. But I would not listen to the majority of the album again because the style of majority of the songs is something I won’t listen to on a daily basis.

Engenes have been on a rollercoaster with three singles, an EP and their recent full album all within one year. Fans can only wonder what Enhypen is planning next.

Adele says ‘Hello’ with iconic comeback British pop singer breaks her six year hiatus with record-breaking new music with album ‘30’ Melody Mulugeta Staff Writer

Whether you’re a rap fanatic, ’80s rock lover, or a heavy metal listener, Adele is most likely sitting somewhere in your playlists.

Adele has been gone from the industry for too long.

But we are finally seeing the light. After her six-year hiatus, the superstar is back like she never left.

Prior to releasing her latest single “Easy On Me”, the singer left us with her 11-track album “25” in 2015.

With tracks like “Hello” and “When We Were Young”, it’s safe to say that the album alone had enough hits for us to survive the recent Adele drought.

Much like her older projects, Adele has always stuck with her original sound: passionate, emotional, and traditional ballads that never

get old.

“This recent single sounds like it could be on any of her other older albums” senior Adrian Casiano said. “When it comes to female artists, I feel like they have to reinvent themselves often. But for Adele, we allow her to stay the same. And it works for her.”

Casiano said “Easy On Me” exceeded his expectations, especially because the song followed some old fan-favorite singles.

“A lot of her music is really depressing, but they all slap,” senior Miles Vetrovec enthusiastically said. “It doesn’t even seem like she left for six years.

She has really good music and I’m excited to hear more.”

Vetrovec, a singer himself, also expressed how Adele even helped him discover the lower range in his voice. It is quite visible that her impact is pretty undeniable.

Social media undoubtedly loves Adele. But the internet’s love for her grew even larger once they read into the lyrics of “Easy On Me”, discovering the meaning behind the beautiful song.

In an interview with British Vogue, Adele told the magazine that her upcoming album titled “30”, which was released Nov. 19, is for her son, Angelo. More specifically, she created the project to be an explanation for her divorce with ex-husband and Angelo’s father, Simon Konecki.

“I just felt like I wanted to explain to him, through this record, when he’s (Angelo) in his twenties or thirties, who I am and why I voluntarily chose to dismantle his entire life in the pursuit of my own happiness” Adele told British Vogue.

The record-breaking single debuted at No. 68 on the

Courtesy of Kristopher Harris

Adele performs live in Nashville in 2016. Her new album was released earlier this month.

Billboard Hot 100 Chart after just five hours of tracking and sales. After it’s first full week of tracking, Adele took her well-deserved, and expected, seat at the No. 1 spot.

The song easily broke Spotify’s record for most

global streams in a week, garnering more than 84 million listens. With the looks of it, it doesn’t seem like Adele’s leaving the top 10 anytime soon.

Luckily, Adele won’t have fans waiting too long

for more.

The release of the album on Nov. 19 gives fans a lot of listening to do. One can only hope Adele doesn’t go back into a hiatus after dropping the banger that is “Easy On Me”.

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A&E

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Monday, November 29, 2021

‘Squid Game’ isn’t playing any games Netflix’s popular new series surpasses all records while reaching worldwide auidience Sophia DiGiovanni Staff Writer “Squid Game” is sweeping the nation.

Released on Sept. 17, the show became No. 1 on the Netflix charts in only four days.

Racking up 111 million views in the first four weeks, “Squid Game” surpassed shows such as “Bridgerton”, “Stranger Things”, and “Money Heist” in popularity.

The success of creator Hwang Dong-Hyuk’s show lies in its unique plot.

This South Korean thriller/ drama follows a man desperate for money. Joining others with a similar situation, they play five children’s games to win a total of 45 billion won ($38 million US dollars), allowing them to pay off their debts.

The popularity of “Squid Game” has brought massive amounts of attention to the actors.

Seoul native HoYeon Jung portrays the character Kang Sae-byeok, Player 067, in her first ever acting job.

“Kang Sae-byeok is my favorite character,” junior Si-

enna Lewis said. “The reason why I and so many others love her is because she has a great character arc.”

Jung had around 400,000 Instagram followers before the show aired. After only two months, her likeable persona has pushed her following to more than 20 million.

Anupam Tripathi had small roles in TV shows before taking on the role of Ali Abdul, Player 199. He’s credited in Netflix’s “Space Sweepers” and the TV adaptation of the Korean webtoon “Hell Is Other People”.

Abdul moved to South Korea to pursue his acting career.

His selfless and kind-hearted nature in “Squid Game” caused his character to become a fan favorite.

Additionally, the characters played by these actors have been a major part of the show’s success as well.

“I like how all the players had different backgrounds and different reasons why they were in the game,” said senior Hana Snyder, whose favorite character is Ali. “He was the only one that treated everybody fair and didn’t betray anybody.”

Illustration by Ari Harvey

The “Squid Game” logo is the first thing viewers see when they watch the series.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Hwang explains that his goal as director and creator of “Squid Game” was to reach an international audience with the show, which he undeniably has achieved.

The show discusses inequalities and the strain of money in the lower income households while the wealthy unfairly advance in

affluence.

This topic is one relatable to people around the world.

“I like the way that [“Squid Game”] kind of backhandedly represents the economy and how humanity comes into play when it comes to the economy,” junior Bonisha Maitra said.

Hwang even based the show on some of his own experiences

growing up in a lower income neighborhood of South Korea.

“I had a time when I wasn’t able to make any money and I was supported financially by my mother.” he told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview.

According to an article from Independent News, “Squid Game” has generated nearly $900 million for Netflix. De-

spite this revenue, Hwang hasn’t made the amount of money most people would expect.

“It’s not like Netflix is paying me a bonus,” he said in an interview with The Guardian.

“Netflix paid me according to the original contract.”

“Squid Game” is still No. 6 on the US charts, despite the show being released two months ago.

HoYeon Jung steals the hearts of many

Daphne So Features Editor As of Oct. 18, I have 186 HoYeon Jung-related posts saved to an Instagram folder.

You might be thinking: Are you crazy? She’s some random model who was in a Netflix show. What’s so great about her?

I ask you this: What about Jung isn’t great?

The “Squid Game” actress and model has captured the hearts and minds of millions around the globe. Jung has gained 20.1 million followers on Instagram since Sept. 17.

Hundreds of Jung fan accounts have been created on Instagram and Twitter, some amassing more than 35,000 followers.

I am not alone when I say Jung is an absolute specimen.

Her stunning beauty and joyful personality are all simp-worthy causes, as the kids say. For the boomers, a simp is someone who shows an excess of affection or adoration toward another person who doesn’t reciprocate their feelings.

I mean, have you seen her on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon? Captivating, show-stopping, and wholesome are all words that come to mind.

Jung is a diamond in the

rough. Before “Squid Game”, she was mostly known for placing as a runner-up during season four of Korea’s Next Top Model in 2013. But after her performance as North Korean defector Sae-byeok Kang, the whole world was alerted and enchanted by her charm.

But what makes her so enthralling?

For one, Sae-byeok’s character tugs at your heartstrings. All of the “Squid Game” characters are in debt for various reasons, but Sae-byeok owes money because she’s trying to get her mother out of North Korea to join her and her younger brother in South Korea. Her brother has been left at an orphanage and is waiting for her to become financially stable so they can live together.

Her goals for the money are family related, and viewers who have mothers and younger siblings can understand how heart-wrenching it is to be torn away from family. Of course Sae-byeok has no choice but to enter the games. Her motives are pure, especially compared to the other players.

In episode six, titled “Gganbu”, Sae-byeok talks to her partner, Ji-yeong, about what they want to do with the money if they win. Sae-byeok tells her about her family and says she wants to go to Jeju Island, part of South Korea.

She’s almost childish in this aspect. It’s basically the equivalent of wanting to go to Disneyland as a California resident. This provides a stark

Photo courtesy of Vivian Killilea

HoYeon Jung poses at the premiere of “Squid Game”. contrast to her otherwise stoic behavior.

All of these qualities (and more!) contribute to why people like Sae-byeok’s character.

She’s a strong, female lead who softens up to her partner.

Aside from this, we have no choice but to acknowledge the other elephant in the room.

Sae-byeok Kang is attractive.

Nay, not just attractive, but beautiful. Her striking bone structure and sunken eye-bags make us viewers feel some type of way. Her quiet, calm nature makes her occasional smile that much more amazing. It’s like a shooting star: brilliant and rarely occurring.

Jung has done a fantastic job playing her character. This

is even more evident when looking at her Instagram (@ hoooooyeony) and seeing the astonishing dissimilarity between the model-turned-actress and the character she plays.

And speaking of her Instagram, she’s amassed an average of 4.3 million likes and 10 thousand comments per post, according to followerstat.com as of Nov. 18. Her Adidas commercial on Youtube has more than 1.2 million views.

It’s safe to say that she’s become an international sensation.

But what has made her so violently popular?

Jung is popular for the same reasons other celebrities are.

She is beautiful and talented.

One could compare her fanbase to a cult. Once indoctrinated, it is difficult to leave.

She posts regularly on her Instagram, with behind-thescenes photos of her modeling shoots and “Squid Game” post-filming group shots. People, me included, love seeing her soulful brown eyes and bright smile bless their feeds.

This following is very similar to “stans”, or obsessive, overzealous fans of celebrities, according to Oxford Languages.

Video edits and fancams, or videos made by fans that have focal points on an idol, have been made of her by such stans, usually put to music.

In fact, almost half of the posts I have saved in my “HoYeon Jung appreciation” folder are such videos.

Additionally, the LGBTQ+ community has been raving over

her performance and on-screen chemistry with co-actress Yoomi Lee. Many fans have headcanons, or personal story arcs, that the characters they play would have been lovers.

Archive of Our Own, more commonly known as AO3, is a popular fanfiction website that has 251 stories under the Jiyoung/Kang Saebyeok tag alone. I would consider that a win for my fellow gays.

Who among us wouldn’t want to indulge in reading some innocent fanfiction?

And the moment you’ve been waiting for: Why do I, Daphne So, like Jung so much?

I’ll tell you this. It’s not just because of the way her character looks like she could kill me in one blow, or how her hands are really attractive (although those are contributing factors).

The real reason why I love Jung is because she makes me feel alive. I love to see her do things, literally anything. I would applaud her for waking up in the morning. I think she’s an absolute goddess.

Am I idolizing her? Yes. Absolutely, 100 percent. I talk about her with everyone I meet.

I say the words “HoYeon Jung” about 10 times a day. My friends will not stop asking me to shut up about Jung.

But have you ever been an obsessive fan over something?

Whether it be sports, celebrities, books, or something else, everyone has a passion.

It just so happens that mine is Louis Vuitton’s Global Ambassador.

Monday, November 29, 2021

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‘Dune’ rides the sand to sucess

Film version of cult-classic scifi book receives positive reviews Alice Oh Staff Writer

With excellent cinematography, eye-catching graphics, and eerie music, the production of “Dune” exceeds expectations.

The plot and character development, however, are shallow in comparison to the film’s intricate visual aspects.

Leading stars Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, and Rebecca Ferguson, the long-awaited film “Dune” based on Frank Herbert’s novel “Dune” finally hit theaters last month.

Directed by Denis Villenueve, the film follows a young prince, Paul Atreides (Chalamet), on a journey to save his kingdom as he navigates his true identity as possible savior of Arrakis.

As son of Leto (Oscar Isaac) and Lady Jessica (Ferguson), Paul has a big responsibility in his hands: the future of House Atreides.

When Paul travels to the desertland of Arrakis with his family, the Fremen, inhabitants of Arrakis, suspect that he is the prophesied “chosen one”.

Faced with attacks, betrayals, and threats from the Fremen,

Photo courtesy of Javierblas

The Wadi Rum desert in Jordan served as one of many filming locations for the science fiction film, “Dune.”

Paul is left to fend for himself and pave the way for his destiny.

Science fiction films call for expert CGI and impressive scenery, aspects that Villenueve expertly delivers through direct filming at the dunes of Abu Dhabi. Through brilliant portrayals of fictional spaceships

and otherworldly kingdoms, the film’s visuals do not disappoint.

Hans Zimmer’s dramatic and intense soundtrack enhances the creeping atmosphere of the film.

Interestingly, the lack of sound and music in select scenes also present contrast that never leave the audience bored.

But despite the exceptional production, the plot is relatively unclear and difficult to understand. The rules of magic and mysticism are not explained in the least bit, leaving the audience to make far-fetched assumptions throughout the film.

As for the characters, the

cast elicits multiple responses.

Chalamet, known for previously starring in “Call Me By Your Name” and “Little Women”, is an unexpected choice to bring to an action packed science fiction film. Though his image is fit for the role of a 15-yearold prince, Chalamet’s fighting

scenes are somewhat awkward.

Unfortunately, his casting may have been to attract young fans.

Frustratingly, Chalamet is not the only big name used for publicity. Zendaya, while appearing in virtually all promotions for the film and being showcased as a main character, only receives seven minutes of air time as her character Chani in the ambitious 2 hour and 35 minute film. Short clips of Chani in Paul’s visions seem like randomly inserted perfume advertisements.

But the film’s plot raises questions as it follows a search for a precious resource in Arrakis, a planet designed to evoke Arab motifs. The plot draws close comparisons to the search for oil in Iraq. But after taking a closer look at the messianic themes of the film, a worrisome aspect arises. With Paul paralleling Muhammad, the story turns into a White savior narrative and raises controversy over possible cultural appropriation.

As the film covers only about one third of Herbert’s novel, it comes to an abrupt conclusion, leaving the audience feeling unfulfilled. “Dune” serves almost as an introduction to the future films in the recently-announced series. Though the film may be lacking in depth, its external characteristics are enough to draw crowds in and keep them for the following films.

After all, this is only the beginning.

It’s been a crazy year for comedian John Mulaney Rehab, divorce, pregnancy and more give Mulaney a rollercoaster of a time Allison Cavanagh A&E Editor John Mulaney’s relevance in the news lately has been evident, with his name stretching headlines of articles and websites for what seems like longer than a year.

You may have seen his standup specials on Netflix, his appearances on SNL, or even heard his voice in shows like “Big Mouth” and movies like “Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse”.

Junior Anika Passi says Mulaney’s personality is of someone who truly enjoys making people laugh.

“You can tell this through his stage presence, he always seems connected to his audience,” Passi said.

But the latest press about him isn’t for the greatest reasons. Quite contradictory to his cheery demeanor, Mulaney has found himself at the center of much drama and criticism.

Mulaney and his ex-wife, Anna Marie Tendler, were a duo loved by many. He constantly referenced her in his standup performances, often giving her his praise and appreciation.

They met in 2010 and both wrote about that night on their website in the third person, writing “They were not dating at the time, but Anna knew they would soon be after.”

Their love story continued when they were married by

a friend of theirs, comedian and actor Dan Levy, in July of 2014. The two often showed each other off on their social engagements and shared the exciting announcement that they were working together on Mulaney’s Broadway show, “Oh, Hello”, which ran for 138 performances from 2016-2017.

Tendler, who traveled with the cast, described the experience as “the most rewarding thing that I did in makeup in my entire makeup career.”

The pair and their beloved dog Petunia seemed like the perfect entertainment power couple.

Thousands of people’s hearts were broken when it was announced in December of 2020 that Mulaney would be returning to rehab for the second time. After 15 years of sobriety, he personally checked himself back in because of alcoholism and cocaine addiction. He stayed for 60 days in a treatment center in Pennsylvania.

“I think that he’s responsible for checking himself into rehab,” said junior Zareena Mann, who had heard of Mulaney recently. “Recovering from addiction is a rocky road and it’s good he’s self aware.”

Tendler noticeably unfollowed him and deleted all her social media accounts prior to his time spent in rehab.

It was in May that after six years of marriage, Tendler revealed her divorce from

Photo courtesy of EJ Hersom

John Mulaney performs at the 75th Anniversary USO show in May 2016. His life has been a roller coaster since then.

Mulaney.

“I am heartbroken that John has decided to end our marriage,” she said in an announcement. “I wish him support and success as he continues his recovery.”

“I feel bad for Anna and him and how the divorce was so publicized,” said junior Tarini Raj, a fan of Mulaney.

In June, the same month their divorce was publicized, Mulaney’s relationship with actress Olivia Munn was confirmed.

As quickly as this hit fans, so did the rumors of a pregnancy

with Munn.

Mulaney himself spoke on his rollercoaster of a year in an interview a few months back on “Late Night With Seth Meyers”.

“I went to rehab in September, I got out in October, I moved out of my home from my ex-wife, I host ‘Saturday Night Live’ on Halloween, I relapse after the show,” he said. “I’m told I took a job here… then I continued using drugs… I went to rehab again, this time for two months. I got out in February, I lived in sober living for another month and a half, then in the

spring I went to Los Angeles.”

He continues his recap by mentioning this is where he met and began to date Munn. Dating Munn right after recovery he jokes is a “reverse catch”, but expresses his gratitude toward her and her understanding of nature during the rough times he’s going through.

He confirmed the rumors that he and Munn are having a baby together. “ I found the pregnancy with Olivia a little unexpected since he was in a marriage for a long time, but I think a child would

be great for him!” Passi said. “I think he would be a great dad and having a child could help him strong through recovery.”

In July, Mulaney announced the dates for“John Mulaney: From Scratch”, his first live tour since rehab. This surprised everyone, as it came with no further notice. This tour first began in Boston in August and traveled to several states in the United States. His most current show took place in New Orleans on Nov. 4 to a sold-out crowd.

All of his upcoming dates are sold out.

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Monday, November 29, 2021

Illustration by Ari Harvey, Carol Chen, Shua Lee and Judy Luo

BATMAN THROUGH THE YEARS

Caped Crusader gets his latest portrayal in upcoming film Tyler Aronson Staff Writer One of the most iconic superheroes of all time will be receiving a new film on March 4.

Batman has made a cultural impact on the big screen over the years, being portrayed by six different actors in nine films and a hit TV show.

As fans wait for the release of the next installment, it’s appropriate to look back on the previous films, the different portrayal of actors who portrayed the masked vigilante, and the different directions that were taken in each story.

From 1966 to 1968 the TV show “Batman,” starring Adam West as Batman and Burt Ward as Robin, followed the dynamic duo defending Gotham City from a variety of super-villains.

The series was known for its silly, campy style, hit theme song, and humorous simplistic morality. Its trademark comedic style aided in its success and its popularity has continued for decades.

West continued to reprise this role in several animated films and shows of the hero. He also did multiple guest appearances as side characters.

From 1989 to 1992, the Dark Knight was played by Michael

Keaton in Tim Burton’s “Batman,” and “Batman Returns”.

Burton’s films broke numerous box office records and received multiple Academy Award nominations. Despite Burton’s success, Warner Bros. was disappointed with “Batman Returns” box office performance, as it earned less than its predecessor.

Many believed that this was to be Keaton’s last performance as Batman, but it was recently announced he would be reprising his role in DC’s upcoming film “The Flash’’ in 2022.

In 1995, a new era spawned for the hero with the release of “Batman Forever”. Joel Schumacher replaced Burton as director and Val Kilmer replaced Keaton. The movie received mixed reviews from critics. Some praised it for the

action, and visuals, while others criticizing the CGI, costume designs, and the decision to go beyond the dark tone presented in previous films.

Kilmer’s performance was considered mediocre, and it would be his only film as the character.

Unfortunately in 1997, came the abomination known as “Batman and Robin,” once again directed by Schumacher.

George Clooney replaced Kilmer and his performance was an absolute trainwreck.

Upon release, it was met with polarizing reviews for bad writing, over the top action, and the campy approach that was similar to the ’60s series.

“Batman and Robin”received numerous Razzies, a parody award honoring the worst in movies, and it’s ranked as one

of the worst superhero films.

Thankfully from 2005 to 2012, Batman would return to the big screen with The Dark Knight trilogy: “Batman Begins” (2005), “The Dark Knight” (2008) and “The Dark Knight Rises” (2012).

All were directed by Christopher Nolan and starred Christian Bale as the Caped Crusader.

Combined, all three films made $2.4 billion.

The trilogy has been considered to be one of the greatest of all time.

After The Dark Knight trilogy, Ben Affleck was cast to play Batman in “Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice” (2016), “Justice League” (2017) and “Zack Snyder’s Justice League” (2021), the director’s original cut.

Originally set to star and di-

rect his own standalone movie, Affleck decided to hang up the cape and cowl because of concerns of his alcohol addiction, and the poor performance of “Justice League”.

Similar to Keaton, Affleck will reprise his role one last time for “The Flash”.

In 2022, a new era of Batman will begin with actor Robert Pattinson playing a younger version of the character in the upcoming “The Batman”, directed by Matt Reeves.

Upon the trailer’s release, it became clear that fans are eagerly awaiting the movie’s release in the spring.

“The Batman” trailer became the No. 1 trending video on YouTube after it was posted in August. The film will provide fans with the 10th appearance of the iconic hero on the big screen.