May Issue 2020 by Leland Charger Account

VY NGUYEN PHOTOS

NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 942 SAN JOSE, CA

ISSN: 2164-6996 6677 Camden Avenue San Jose, CA 95120

The Charger Account

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Leland High School

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San Jose Unified School District

Wednesday, June 3, 2020

Vol. R | No. 6

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THE CHARGER ACCOUNT

The greener side of sheltering-in-place

NEWS

Hannah Moon, Keerthana Ramaswamy and Kathy Xing Staff Writer, Feature World Editor and Opinions Editor Catching the attention of citizens worldwide, the year 2020 began with the novel coronavirus. Sooner than anticipated, it spread across the globe, halting social activities and causing widespread shelter in place. However, amidst the devastating pandemic, the environment has seen major improvements. According to Carbon Brief, carbon dioxide emissions have dropped by 5.5 percent in 2020, leading to predictions that this year will be the largest annual drop in carbon dioxide emissions since the end of World War II. Globally, there has been reduced traffic and emissions. According to the New York Times, in the US, emissions linked to cars and trucks declined in major metropolitan areas. Los Angeles no longer has a recognizable rush hour, and in New York City, emissions of carbon monoxide dropped to under 50 percent of usual levels. In China, Reuters found that pollution from nitrogen dioxide, which is emitted by cars, power plants and factories, decreased by 40 percent in major cities. In Delhi, where civilians ingest the air pollution equivalent of 50 cigarettes a day, Air Quality Index levels have consistently remained below 20 as a result of the lockdown, as stated by the Guardian. “It is upsetting that it took a global pandemic for the environment to improve. It shows that it was fully possible for people to address pollution even before the virus. This was definitely not a silver lining—if people cared about global warming as much as they did about COVID-19, the environment would be very different today,” Sophomore Anita Britto said. Aside from shifts in air pollution, the lockdown has also affected wildlife. In the Welsh town of Llandudno, mountain goats have emerged around the city square; in southern France, two fin whales were

spotted just offshore from Marseilles, a typically bustling port city; in San Jose, a video captured by a resident revealed close to 200 goats roaming free in a Silver Creek neighborhood. However, Faisal Moola, a professor at the University of Guelph,

explains that COVID-19 will only have a long-term impact on wildlife if human activity that negatively impacts species is continuously reduced. Unfortunately, the pandemic is not entirely environment-friendly. In Brazil— home to 60 percent of the Amazon rainforest—officials have announced

intentions to cut back on efforts to fight environmental crimes. Furthermore, according to UN News, the pandemic has caused an increase in medical and hazardous waste, raising concerns regarding its disposal.

international meetings relating to the environment, jeopardizing efforts to meet climate commitments that have already been made. “COVID-19 has given the environment some reprieve from human activity, but it is short-term. Once the economy is back on track, consumerism will go on as it always has, as will all human activities that inevitably cause damage to the environment,” Senior Catherine Li said. However, lessons regarding the environment can be taken from COVID-19. An indirect effect of the virus is that it definitively indicates how human activity has an impact on the environment. In his Earth Day speech, UN SecretaryGeneral Antonio Guterres referred to the current pandemic as an “unprecedented wake-up call,” emphasizing the post-pandemic period as a “real opportunity to do things right for the future.” According to the Hill, the pandemic demonstrates a necessity for preparedness and governmental action that will need to be applied to adequately address climate change, an issue that has seen a general lack of unified global action. AILEEN XIE ART “For a long-term beneficial impact on the environment, While temporarily, pollution has everyone has to make substantial changes declined, responses to COVID-19 are in their lives, such as switching to green by no means a comprehensive way to transportation, using green energy address environmental issues faced by the and imposing harsher restrictions on world. According to Human Rights Watch, businesses,” Sophomore Iris Zhou said. while environmental benefits may appear The pandemic has led to both negative as a silver lining, pollution and greenhouse and positive impacts on the environment. gases will return when lockdowns are However, with reduced pollution and gas lifted. The pandemic has postponed the emissions, it has been proven that with United Nation’s (UN) annual climate enough changes to urban lifestyle, people summit as well as disrupted various other can continue to reduce climate change.

JUNE 3, 20203

A QUARANTINED LIFE NEWS On the front lines: health care workers at the heart of the pandemic Nam Nguyen and Aileen Xie All around the world, people have been significantly impacted, in some way, by the COVID-19 pandemic. But with the increase in cases of illness and emergency, many working in the health care field must grapple with these challenges firsthand. Doctors, nurses and other health care workers are risking their own health to aid the general public, altering their lives as they adapt to this new obstacle. Elise Jung-Min Kwon, Sophomore Brandon Kwon’s aunt, is a doctor based in Los Angeles. The pandemic has impacted both her personal life and how she interacts with patients at work. “The coronavirus pandemic has brought many challenges both at work and at home. The major challenge as a physician serving under a multispecialty clinic has been not being able to have in-person visits with most of the patients seeking medical care. There have been limitations in managing patients via telemedicine, such as not being able to perform a physical exam, which is usually required to make a proper diagnosis. Many patients have been fearful of showing up to the hospital or to the clini, which has delayed the treatment of critical conditions. Also, many of the needed elective surgeries and non-urgent diagnostic tests have been postponed, delaying the process of diagnosis and treatment. As a physician, I can accept that I may become sick or die while caring for patients with the coronavirus. However, it has been quite agonizing thinking that I may cause my family members to become very ill or die from the coronavirus. This fear will still persist while I continue serving patients throughout this pandemic,” E. Kwon said. Sophomore Owen Paterson’s mother, Mary Paterson, is also a doctor serving during the pandemic. Compared to other health care workers, she finds that her personal life has been less impacted.

“COVID-19 has not affected my home life too much. After coming home from work and cleaning up, I spend the rest of the day like I always have by filling out paperwork or holding online meetings. Even so, my work life has changed: working hours have completely shifted. I am getting twice the amount of

patients; I IVAN ZHU ART now have to manage phone calls with patients rather than seeing them in person. However, the biggest trouble I face is the paranoia surrounding COVID-19, with some people calling me out of sheer panic. With more and more health care workers getting infected by this virus, I feel more pressured at work. Despite all these odds, I am extremely happy and proud of those who are fighting this horrible virus. I am grateful that there are people who are so willing to risk

their life so that they can save others,” M. Paterson said. Other health care professionals at the front lines have also had to deal with shortages in equipment while confronting the pandemic, including a pharmacist at the Kaiser Permanente hospital in San Jose, who wishes

to remain anonymous. By March 2 5 , a l m o s t half of the patients at their San Jose hospital were coronavirus cases, according to the Los Angeles Times. “We were first trained to throw away the personal protective equipment (PPE) after each patient visitation, but now due to the shortage, we are restricted to only one set of PPE per day. The hospital then limited one pharmacist a day to stay on the COVID floor of the hospital, and we rotated between each other. Now, after the Federal Emergency Management

Staff Writers Agency got a hold of our PPE supplies to send to New York, we would reuse our PPE for up to a week. It was extremely sad to see patients coming in with acute respiratory distress syndrome fighting for their life, desperately in need of a ventilator. However, there was a shortage of them, like most hospitals, and so I had to witness the team decide who gets put onto a ventilator and who does not. Even more disheartening is the fact that such decisions are made without a patient’s family members directly around them,” the anonymous worker said. Every day, health care workers are combatting the pandemic, dedicating their shifts to treating patients in need. Despite anti-lockdown protests and neglect for the Centers for Disease Control guidelines, the International Committee of The Red Cross explains that civilians can uphold health care workers’ work by complying with government orders and not acting out of panic. While many cannot provide medical services at the helm, they can help to flatten the curve by staying home and practicing social distancing with those outside their household. “New cases have declined here at the hospital due to the stay-at-home order, so I appreciate the state government’s proactive steps to curb this crisis, as well as all the support we have received. I see a lot of thank you signs along the road near the hospital. It feels nice to be there for patients and the community. We have received handmade masks from community members and lots of free lunches from the hospital; it is heartwarming to see such gestures during these stressful situations,” the anonymous worker said.

Essential workers provide critical services during the pandemic

Cindy Zhao and Nancy Zheng

On March 19, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued the executive stay-at-home order, with the exception of continuing operations within 13 critical infrastructure sectors, including the Critical Manufacturing, Food and Agriculture Sector and Government Operations Sectors. While the majority of the general public are strongly advised to stay home and follow social distancing guidelines, essential workers are continuing to provide the San Jose community with their services. Aside from healthcare workers who directly combat the pandemic, the term “essential” covers a broad range of employees from restaurant workers, grocery cashiers and delivery workers just to name a few. According to the Calif. Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, critical infrastructure spans over any industries that are physical or virtual assets, systems and networks crucial to the U.S; the incapacitation of these infrastructures would undermine national security, economic security, public health and safety, or any combination thereof. While they can continue to go to work, employees who work under these sectors must still adhere to outlined workplace health and safety guidelines and procedures. San Jose Police Department (SJPD) Officer Duc Ngo, father

of Junior Kaci Ngo, has continued to work closely with the Norman Mineta San Jose International Airport as an Explosive Detection K9 Officer. His job entails detecting and deterring the introduction of explosive devices into the airport system. In recent weeks, although SJPD has seen a substantial decline in passenger traffic, Officer Ngo and his coworkers are still

comes into contact with someone with COVID-19,” D. Ngo said. Lori Cichon, Junior Melissa Cichon’s mother, works as a Confidential Secretary to the Santa Clara County Assessor, who is responsible for the annual assessment roll, a record of property taxes of commercial buildings and residential homes as mandated by state law. In order

NICOLE KIM ART

working to police the airport and respond to calls for service in the area. “With new requirements at the airport, officers working at the checkpoints are now required to wear masks during their shift. Officers are also required to wear masks and gloves when responding to calls for service. Our department has made the safety of officers as well as citizens a priority; we are given the proper equipment daily to perform our job and have safety measures in line for any circumstances in which an officer

to complete the roll, L. Cichon needs to physically be at work every day. “Our working environment has changed drastically. Most of our office is teleworking from home right now. They are all provided laptops to sign in to our County network. Out of the 260 employees in the Assessor’s office, there are only about 20-30 employees that come into the office on a regular basis, like myself,” L. Cichon said. Essential workers also understand the vitality of their work, which motivates

Staff Writers them to continue pushing forward during the pandemic. “As a County worker and a designated disaster servicer, I am indirectly supporting crucial social services for County residents. The property taxes that we collect fund our schools, local government, police and fire departments and critical social services programs for our community,” L. Cichon said. Restaurants and grocery stores are also witnessing changes to typical business procedures. Sophomore Vaibhavi Chamiraju’s family owns a Vitality Bowls store. Due to the pandemic, they have changed store hours and only provide to-go orders. The store’s employees also work in single shifts, where only one person works at a time. Sophomore Sylvia Zhang’s father is an engineer required to go to work regularly. In order to prevent potential contamination with his family members at home, Zhang’s father immediately disinfects himself and changes his clothes in the car before entering the house after each work shift. His workplace also ensures protection for employees by providing them with masks to wear while at the office. “People should continue to follow the requirements set by the state and county with regards to social distancing and essential needs. The more we adhere to the rules the faster we can get back to normalcy,” D. Ngo said.

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THE CHARGER ACCOUNT

Behind the screens: the school’s approach to distance learning Aileen Xie, Cindy Zhao and Nancy Zheng

Staff Writers

On March 13, following the statewide Performing Arts teachers are challenged ban on non-essential travel and other by the fact that many students do not have COVID-19 restrictions, San Jose Unified the supplies at home required to do regular School District (SJUSD) officially closed classwork, such as art supplies, access to its campuses. To ensure distance learning digital software and musical instruments,” would not penalize students lacking proper Stacy Rapoport, Art Department, said. technology or resources, SJUSD announced Among students, opinions regarding its transition to online education, the school’s digitization are divided. consisting of optional assignments that Some have embraced it and learned to would not impact a student’s grade or appreciate the new approach to learning. credits unless at risk of failing the class. “Online learning is a more efficient Teachers are utilizing a multitude way to learn because teachers only need of different platforms and methods to hold one class for a subject instead of of communicating. For example, Anu multiple periods. Personally, it is also more Sarkar, Science Department, has been convenient and comfortable. I have realized virtually teaching her classes that educational opportunities can be through Google Classroom much broader and more flexible than just assignments, video a classroom,” Sophomore Iris Zhou said. communication platforms, However, others are losing the Remind and YouTube. motivation to complete schoolwork due “I have been to the lack of immediate consequence. preparing my students “It feels disconnected, especially for the Advanced because I do not have much of an Placement (AP) incentive to participate in online exams since the classes. I miss the open discussion first week of and group work. Lockdown has shelter-in-place already been isolating, but and have been online classes seem using resources to exacerbate that from College when we are Board as well all working on as my personal our own. I also teaching resources miss the structure to do so. My TAs of i n - p e r s o n are also available classes,” Senior to provide one-onRashi Ranjan said. one help. In addition, Despite its drawbacks, my class also runs students appreciate the efforts real-time simulations of an their teachers have put forth. online College Board exam so “The resources our that students can get used to the teachers have been giving us testing environment at home and are are quite useful, especially aware of their limitations before IVAN ZHU ART for AP classes, allowing us to they take the test,” Sarkar said. study and continue learning Google Meet and WebEx have become even in our current situation,” a staple mode of communication between Sophomore Jasper Wu said. teachers and students during the shelterAs for plans regarding the in-place order, allowing them to mimic the fall, schools in Calif. cannot face-to-face interaction of in-person classes. decide on a definitive course “I like that I am able to teach Macbeth of action yet. Plans of staggered scheduling to my students and being able to see their or limited congregation have circulated the faces really helps. Video call platforms have State Department of Education and school a lot of features and options to make the boards. Gov. Gavin Newsom said an earlier sessions secure. I am fortunate that I have start to the school year, with classes beginning mature students who are not doing some in July or early August, is a possibility of the things that I am seeing on the news, to compensate for the “loss of learning.” such as sharing the meeting information Universities are also grappling with their friends and bombing the with uncertainty. The Calif. State meetings with inappropriate behavior University system was the first to or pictures,” Annie Larks, announce its 23 campuses would English Department, said. remain closed for the These video-calling fall semester, platforms have features with the such as screen exception sharing that of essential e n a b l e labs and teachers s m a l l to emulate nursing typical c l a s s courses. sessions. For U.S. News example, many reports teachers have t h a t used screen sharing Purdue to present slideshow lectures and University, videos. Sarkar is also aiming to create Texas A&M breakout rooms, where smaller groups of Un ive r s i t y, students are able to engage in a call within the University the main class, for her class’s final project. of Notre IVAN ZHU ART Even teachers whose class Dame and subjects are “hands-on,” such as art and statewide systems in Ariz., Fla. and sculpture, are seeking out innovative N.H. are now planning to reopen. ways to instruct their students. However, most colleges plan to make “I am using Google Classroom to give official announcements in the summer. them drawing or art-related activities. I In the midst of this uncertainty, also use WebEx to deliver some instruction state officials and educators continue and hold regular office hours twice a week to think of ways to bridge learning gaps where my students can ask me questions and provide educational opportunities to feel connected to school. Specifically for for students. While safeguarding the my AP Art students, I have held a make- health and safety of the students, SJUSD up class meeting going over changes to and the school seek to provide the the portfolio requirements. The Visual best education for the student body.

A QUARANTINED LIFE NEWS

Celebrations of outreach: uplifting the community Muskaan Grewal, Ashley Lee, Nam Nguyen and Jonathan Yue

Staff Writers and Last Word Editor

As a result of the shelter-in-place that correspond to their identity. Our regulations enforced due to the COVID-19, wonderful ambassadors have gathered schools are forced to close and businesses the statements of students talking about are facing financial their Asian-American friends instability. Despite the to share out in hopes of not changes that it has brought, only spreading positivity San Jose Unified School but to also show solidarity District (SJUSD) and its against hate,” Chock said. students have been seeking To combat a different ways to help the community. problem, Juniors Sparsh Garg, Since closing on March Ranjana Raghavan and Riya 13, SJUSD has taken proactive Shukla founded the ASAWA steps to address several Meals to Medics program. concerns. The district, which Upon receiving donations serves more than 29,000 from the community, they students, partnered with the purchase meals from local City of San José to initiate a restaurants and provide them VY NGUYEN PHOTO comprehensive meal service to hospitals. By advertising Kathryn Le on social media, Meals to for families in need, providing Junior over 17,000 meals a day. delivers fresh produce. Medics has received over “I decided to donate to SJUSD’s $1,600 in donations and delivered over meal program because I wanted to 80 meals to the Good Samaritan Hospital. support families in need. I hope I can “Many restaurants—especially help provide meals and leave a positive smaller, local restaurants—are in a impact on the community during this difficult position right now because pandemic,” Sophomore Chloe Yun said. they are not receiving a lot of business. The district also provided free Therefore, during the weekdays, Chromebooks and prepaid cell phones we try to order 20 to 30 meals per with high-speed internet for students with technological issues at home. By bridging the online access gap between students, the district aims to better help students with their distance learning. Along with SJUSD’s initiatives during this shutdown, many students are taking on projects to assist the community. Seniors Courtesy of Brian Kim Sarika Sriram and Uditha Velidandla have organized a Juniors Edward Hwang, Brian Kim, Bobak tutoring program through the Almaden Pourrahimi, Parthiv Seetharamdhruv and South Asian Women’s Association’s Sophomore Dhruv Anish discuss tutoring plans. (ASAWA) youth branch to remotely teach math, English and science to restaurant. Not only does this service elementary and middle school students help restaurants, but it also helps the during school closures. Juniors Edward medical workers because most hospital Hwang, Brian Kim, Bobak Pourrahimi cafeterias have closed,” Shukla said. and Parthiv Seetharamdhruv and Also tackling the food problem, Sophomore Dhruv Anish also founded Junior Kathryn Le established Valley Tutors, a student-run service PseudoServe with her sister and friends, to provide free tutoring on a broad which delivers groceries to senior citizens range of subjects for younger students. in the neighborhood who may need “I want students to understand their services around five times a week. that even though the current situation Additionally, 10 percent of the grocery is terrible, it does not mean that prices that PsuedoServe delivers are everything is on pause. Ultimately, donated to Off Their Plate, an organization we still need to keep fighting and that provides economic relief and meals continue learning,” Sriram said. healthcare workers on the frontline. Before the shelter-in-place policies, To alleviate the lack of medical Sophomore Kaylyn Choi leads a book supplies, Junior Andrew Kang has been club for all K-8 students called the working with his mother and other Book Place. She continued the book families around the community to create club online and opened it up to a larger masks out of coffee filters, leggings and range of students. Meanwhile, Juniors wires for senior centers. Members would go to Kang’s house to drop off or receive materials and return to their homes to work individually. After three weeks, they had donated 960 masks to centers such as Stonebrook, Canyon Springs and Redwood Post Acute. On the other hand, Juniors Dheerj Jasuja and Shreya Thayaparan, as well as Sophomore Riddhi Kulkarni, started a project to provide personal protective equipment such as masks and gloves to homeless shelters. They began a Facebook page as well as a Paypal account and reached out to the community to provide for the Courtesy of Andrew Kang four homeless shelters they had chosen. Nurse at Canyon Springs Post Acute Jasuja said that they wanted to focus on posed for a photo with handmade the most at risk in our community, as the masks received from Kang family. team noticed that not many organizations Sam Chock and Anjulee Rusnak and are giving to the homeless shelters. Senior Jasmine Shao have created Even though many antagonistic the Instagram account @switch_the_ actions arose from the COVID-19 lens to advocate for Asian-American pandemic, it has also brought about solidarity after hearing about the intense many inspiring examples of individuals racism towards the Asian community. within the community coming together “Our Instagram account strives to and reaching out. Every day, people encourage people to look at others as have made the best of this situation individuals first instead of the stereotypes and left a positive impact on others.

JUNE 3, 2020

OPINIONS

Returning to normalcy

The issues we must carry in order to move on

The Charger Account Leland High School 6677 Camden Ave. San Jose, CA 95120-2142 (408) 535-6290 lelandchargeraccount.com EDITORS IN CHIEF Caroline Brew, Felisha Fan, Matthew Ho, Jason Yang COPY AND MANAGING EDITORS Eric Zhang, Yana Kouretas ART AND PHOTO DIRECTORS Ivan Zhu, Jonathan Ke NEWS EDITORS Claire Han, Edward Jung, Carolyn Nguyen OPINIONS EDITORS Kelly Cui, Kathy Xing FEATURE EDITORS Sophia Lu, Keerthana Ramaswamy VIEWPOINT EDITORS Yeji Jeong, Evelyn Liu ENTERTAINMENT EDITORS Meghna Chandrasekar, Rishab Satakyaal LIFESTYLE EDITOR Isabel Zhou INVESTIGATIVE REPORT EDITOR Minji Kim SPORTS EDITORS Ethan Huang, Tiffany Mai Nguyen LAST WORD EDITOR Jonathan Yue AD MANAGER Sophia Lu DISTRIBUTION MANAGER Carolyn Nguyen ADVISOR Stacy Dawson COMMUNITY CIRCULATION Parent Club and Leland Bridge STAFF WRITERS Serena Atkinson Jacob Cho Ridge Coffey Ansh Dhakalia Javier GomezTagle Muskaan Grewal Andrea Kuo

Ashley Lee Hannah Moon Nam Nguyen Aileen Xie Cindy Zhao Nancy Zheng

PHOTOGRAPHERS Wendy Lee Rex Li Yu Yi Lu Diana Yousef Nejad Vy Nguyen Jeffrey Tan ARTISTS Alyssa Chen Nicole Kim Rachel Kim Tianshu (Kenneth) Yang The Charger Account June 3, 2020 Vol. R, No. 5

The Charger Account Editorial Staff

As we begin to embrace loosened restrictions and enjoy pre-quarantine activities again, let us not also begin to forget the adversities unmasked by COVID-19. While reopening is something to be celebrated and welcomed, we cannot allow it to re-entrench the disparities brought to the surface in an attempt to “get back to normal.” As of May 29, over 100,000 lives, disproportionately Black and Latino, have been lost in the United States. Hospitals across the nation are struggling to accommodate the influx of patients. The unemployment rate reached 14.7 percent in April—the highest since the 1930s. The government, health officials and media constantly send mixed messages over what course of action is best. Wearing a mask can be interpreted as a political statement rather than a health precaution as a result of ideological divides. The pandemic did not “break” America; it just pointed out its pre-existing flaws. The American health care system was extremely fractured prior to COVID-19 hitting the United States. Even before the crisis began, the United States had fewer doctors and hospital beds per capita than most other developed countries, according to Vox. With many uninsured and subject to high out-ofpocket expenses, many Americans are forced to choose between seeking treatment and going into medical debt;

the federal government must pursue structural reform to ensure that access to health care is not determined by one’s socioeconomic status. On the other side, health care workers risk their lives on a daily basis despite lacking the personal protective equipment and the necessary resources to complete their jobs, according to The Lancet. Additionally, essential facilities such as food processing plants and public transportation systems have become breeding grounds for the virus. When calling essential workers “heroes,”

“We are willing to and can take action to better our nation as a whole—and this behavior does not have to end when the pandemic ends.” we overlook our dependency on them and divert attention from how their plight directly results from avoidable government negligence and exploitation within private sectors. COVID-19 must serve as a wake-up call for our nation’s leaders and us as citizens to prioritize solving these systemic issues—which should have been addressed long before the pandemic began. America’s safety net is also in need of serious repair. Although Congress has increased fiscal stimulus in an attempt to blunt the effects of the recession with packages barely above the federal minimum wage, the government has largely overlooked underlying issues. When the first case of COVID-19 appeared in Los Alamitos, the San Jose

Unified School District hesitated to shut down earlier because several families rely on schools not just for education, but for services that extend beyond the classroom, such as meals, childcare, special needs therapy and medical treatments during the day. Districts across the country faced the same dilemma, as the New York Times reports that almost 30 million children depend on school lunch programs, highlighting the nation’s massive income inequality, which the pandemic severely amplified. Despite experiencing the longest expansion in years, the Washington Post reports that income inequality reached a five-decade high during this period. We cannot rely on metrics of economic growth and low unemployment rates to measure the quality of life of most Americans. The government must find ways to combat this inequality, such as incentivizing wage growth and expanding benefits. In spite of such unpreparedness, we cannot overlook the resilience and compassion individuals have shown in response. Nearly 44 percent of U.S. residents have stayed home to help keep their communities safe; millions of Americans routinely wear masks and practice physical distancing; and some have even donated their stimulus checks to those in greater need, according to the New York Times. These sacrifices are indicative of the fact that we are willing to and can take action to better our nation as a whole—and that this behavior does not have to end when the pandemic ends. We can direct our joint efforts to advocate for the change our country desperately needs.

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THE CHARGER ACCOUNT

LIFESTYLE

Top 7 activities to do during quarantine Starting new projects or hobbies “I used to be totally inept in the kitchen; I would be hard-pressed to even wash a dish. But since the beginning of the shelter-in-place, I have had plenty of time on my hands and a kitchen at my disposal practically 24/7 — the only thing that was standing between me and eating all my food cravings was a lack of culinary knowledge, so I decided to fix that. I have learned how to make a few simple dishes, mostly different types of pasta.” — Junior Noora Soroushnejad “Even though I have missed out on events that I have been looking forward to all year long, quarantine has been essential in allowing me to take the time to explore new hobbies. Lately, I have been a lot more focused on selfcare, whether that has been through painting, baking or even applying twenty different types of face masks.” — Senior Anusha Kansal

Spending time with family Students have been able to spend more time with their family due to the quarantine, and some are using this time to bond. Junior Karen Nakanishi has been going on walks with her sisters and playing games with her family after dinner, while Junior Jenny Kim has been solving jigsaw puzzles and watching one movie per day with her family.

“Every Friday, my sister and I have a designated movie night where we make hot chocolate and popcorn and then watch an old movie from the ’60s or ’70s.” — Sophomore Rachel Qian

Working out “I have been running everyday and using the pull up bar, dumbbells and yoga mat I have at home to stay in shape for the next cross country and track session. Working out has helped distract me from missing my friends and it is a healthy way of staying mentally sane during this stressful event.” — Freshman Connie Zhou “Working out during quarantine is a great way of staying in shape and taking care of your body. Even though it is unknown whether or not colleges will open in the fall, I want to begin the next chapter of my life looking and feeling strong and confident.” — Senior Natasha Denton

Studying for AP Tests With schools closed due to the quarantine, students have copious amounts of free time, and many students have used this time to study for Advanced Placement (AP) and other standardized tests. Junior Peter Chong takes the time to practice guitar and Junior Matthew Lee has been learning about train routes, both making sure to maintain a balance between hobbies and studying for tests.

Following popular quarantine trends Students have also participated in different trends that have cropped up during the quarantine. For example, making Dalgona coffee, a type of whipped coffee made with instant coffee and sugar, was popularized by TikTok. Other trends include tie-dyeing clothes, exchanging recipes and making banana bread and cinnamon rolls. “I have been baking banana bread for years, but I have finally been able to perfect my recipe in the past two weeks. I think all of the quarantine trends are a sort of coping mechanism: seeing other people doing the same activities as you can make you feel less alone.” — Senior Sonia Savur

Hosting Facebook or Netflix watch parties Spring concerts and festivals have been cancelled worldwide due to the coronavirus pandemic. In order to help their fans cope with the isolation, musicians have been hosting online concerts through social platforms such as Instagram and YouTube. Students have also been bonding with friends and family by hosting watch parties of movies or television shows on Facebook and Netflix. Shows like the documentary series “Tiger King” and dramas such as “Ozark” have become popular during the quarantine.

#7 NICOLE KIM ART Compiled by Serena Atkinson, Ridge Coffey and Hannah Moon Staff Writers 70 students polled

Relaxing: playing video games, reading books or going on nature walks “Fueled by the need to do something productive but not motivated enough to turn to studying, I found myself turning to a hobby I had once enjoyed: going on hikes. Long walks through nearby trails and hills helped me rediscover the serenity of nature and its ability to help one forget about pre-existing troubles.” — Senior Claire Kim “I have managed to read 17 books during quarantine so far, and I plan on finishing at least 10 more. It is a really relaxing activity that has helped distract me from all the craziness in the world. I have always loved stories, and books are usually the places where I will find the most engrossing ones. With movies, the journey is usually over in less than two hours, but I am able to bond with books over a series of days.” — Junior Parker Beyersdoerfer

JUNE 3, 2020

SPORTS

Professional sports leagues take action amidst COVID-19 pandemic John Kim and Ashley Lee

Staff Writers

Due to COVID-19, all of the major sports leagues in the US—the National Basketball Association (NBA), National Hockey League (NHL), National Football League (NFL) and the Major League Baseball (MLB)—are on an indefinite leave of absence. This unprecedented halt in the world of sports has substantially decreased revenue, consequently taking a toll on athletes’ salaries. With the changes COVID-19 has brought, sports leagues are utilizing various virtual platforms to continue supplying fans with content. Unable to start their season as scheduled on March 26, the MLB worked with Sony Interactive Entertainment and the Major League Baseball Players’ Association to create a baseball video game competition with actual MLB players participating. Similar to the MLB video game tournament, the NBA partnered with the National Basketball Players’ Association (NBPA) and 2K Games to organize a NBA 2K20 Players Tournament, bringing 16 of the best 2K players in the league together virtually to determine a Champion. After winning against three of his fellow NBA players, Phoenix Suns’ Devin Booker was crowned champion of the virtual tournament. The NBPA and 2K donated $100,000 to the two charities chosen by Booker, #FirstRespondersFirst and Arizona Food Bank Network, to support COVID-19 relief efforts.

“Virtual tournaments are beneficial because they provide sports content for viewers and fundraise for good causes. I watched a Twitch Rivals game in which professional football players competed up against popular Twitch players in a Fortnite match. I enjoyed watching the tournament—it was entertaining to see NFL linebackers being defeated by teenagers,” Freshman Michael Sher said. In addition to their video game tournament, professional sports leagues are also tasked with planning for their returns. The MLB communicated with the government and medical experts to draft a plan for their regular-season games. Although fans would not be able to watch the games in the ballparks, MLB officials are hoping to begin their delayed season by early July. USA Today reported that the MLB is developing a three division league, where teams only play against teams within

their division. This shorter season would significantly reduce the amount of travel amongst athletes, ultimately reducing the likelihood of COVID-19 spreading. Although their abbreviated season has not yet begun, the MLB has allocated $170 million to continue paying their players. CNBC reported that athletes with non-guaranteed contracts received $275 to $1,000 per day, and athletes with guaranteed contracts received $4,775 per day. The NBA’s reopening is not far behind the MLB. ABC reports that the NBA has been in talks with Disney CEO Bob Chapek KENNETH YANG ART about a location

KENNETH YANG ART

for NBA games to be played as early as July. This location, the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort, is a 255-acre campus with multiple basketball arenas that could easily manage the NBA’s need for an isolated “bubble” of basketball. With players’ contracts already being cut 25% by the NBA Player Association (NBPA) due to financial strain stemming from a lack of television and media-based revenue, the NBA is looking to safely resume play this season as soon as they can. Compared to the MLB and the NBA, the NHL has a more ambitious goal for hockey’s return. The NHL will abandon the rest their regular season entirely, instead opting to skip straight to a modified playoffs. This year’s playoffs will consist of 24 teams —eight more than usual— competing for the Stanley Cup. These 24 teams will be the teams who had the best records when the season abruptly ended in March. The NHL Players Association approved this proposal in a 29-2 vote, with games scheduled to start no later than July 1st. “I think sports leagues should be under the same rules that the rest of the country are, they should not be exceptions to the orders in place. However if they do decide to continue on with games, then they should definitely play without crowds,” Junior Devon Shao said.

Spring season senior athletes JONATHAN KE PHOTO Emma Caygill ‘20 scoops up the ball with her lacrosse stick.

Badminton Aditya Sundaram - 4 years Hunter Tran - 3 years Samuel Zhang - 4 years Elvan Zheng - 4 years

Softball Katie Spears - 4 years Krista Spears - 4 years

Boys Golf Cole Bushur - 4 years Matthew Ro - 4 years

Boys Tennis Michael Haswell - 1 year Edward Jung - 4 years Joseph Teh- 3 years

Boys Lacrosse Harrison Anderson - 1 year Bobby Erfurth - 1 year Andrew Gibson - 2 years Nate Gonzales - 4 years Peter Landine - 4 years Dante Marena - 4 years Brenden Matthews - 3 years Dylan McIntyre - 2 years Ryan Peterson - 1 year Zach Rios - 3 years Sebastian Royal - 4 years Ryan Tallman - 2 years Mohammed Younis - 3 years

John Kim

VY NGUYEN PHOTO

Armon Choudhry ‘20 edges past a runner.

Joshua Jamieson ‘20 delivers a powerful serve.

Seniors in Spring Sports

Swim and Dive Staff Writer

Boys Volleyball Joshua Jamieson - 2 years Jaden Dangtran - 4 years Matthew Ho - 4 years Matthew Kim - 4 years

Track and Field Girls Meghna Chandrasekar - 4 years Vibha Chandrasekar - 4 years Megan Houston - 4 years Yeji Jeong - 3 years Mavalyn Lau - 4 years Kaylin Ma - 1 year Ruoxuan Shao - 4 year Zoi Smith - 3 years Chantelle Tseng - 4 years Boys Ali Choudhry - 1 year Armon Choudhry - 2 years Shawn Haslam - 4 years Andy Hsu - 4 years Caleb Lee - 4 years Frank Lin - 4 years Ethan Maldanado - 2 years Benjamin Moskovitz - 4 years Zahid Rasuli - 4 years Michael Saunichev - 2 years Matthew Vu - 4 years Kemal Yilmaz - 4 years

Boys Jason Bump - 4 years Dante Cannestra - 4 years Dominic Fanelli - 4 years Cole Keller - 4 years Caleb Nashner - 4 years John Reid - 4 years Gabe Vado - 4 years Ryan Wahl - 1 year Girls Anna Chope - 3 years Katrina Hyunh - 4 years Alyssa Ross - 4 years Sydney Scott - 4 years Elaine Wong - 4 years

Girls Lacrosse Bethel Abay - 2 years Emma Caygill - 1 year Noelle Ngo - 3 years Sofia Olivieri - 1 year Megan Pombo - 3 years Hannah Zandi - 3 years

Baseball Matt Ames - 4 years Owen Cance - 4 years Joey Contini - 4 years Calvin Hsiao - 4 years Kekoa Lopez - 4 years Lucas Mirizzi - 4 years Trevor Soe - 4 years Joey Taddie - 4 years Carson Yates - 4 years

THE CHARGER ACCOUNT

“At least no one on the Gryffindor team had to buy their way in. They got in on pure talent!” —Hermione Granger —Ruoxuan (Jasmine) Shao “Circadian rhythm, more like circadian freestyle” —Natalie O’Rourke “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” —Carly Chan “It’s all fun and games until you board a flight and I’m your pilot.” —Lauren Thompson “Suite Life On Deck, Season 3, Episode 22, 00:20:24” —Sydney Scott “Make sure your worst enemy doesn’t live between your own two ears.” —Lucas Mirizzi “ohhh no can’t put my pants back on” —little kid I overheard in the bathroom —Emily Schulze “I usually did my math homework in the bathroom before class started.” —Armon Choudhry “It only went downhill after sophomore year.” —Joyanna Jiang “Join Key Club!” —Kaylin Ma

“iCarly was right ‘live life, breathe air, I know somehow we’re gonna get there.’” —Kaitlyn Tuck “Due tomorrow, do tomorrow” —Dennis Wang “I’ll do it for 10 bucks” —Carson Yates “When I get sad, I stop being sad and be awesome instead. True story.” —Barney Stinson —Sarika Sriram “i got the swag yuh call me swaggy” —Jaden Dangtran

Min Yu and Christy Lu

“The best is yet to come” —Sophia Satchell “Even when I fall and hurt myself, I keep running toward my dreams.” —Yu Yi Lu “One shu can change your life.” — Cinderella —Angela Shu “Now that we don’t have to be perfect anymore, we can just be good.” —Yana Kouretas “Send it”

“Worst case scenario you die... but who knows, maybe you won’t.” —Cayde-6 —Richard Feng “No, I did not get a perm.” —Vineet Byakod “We didn’t drop out of high school, high school dropped out on us.“ —Elizabeth Kraus “I didn’t mean to offend anyone, I’m just bad with names.“ —Matthew Ho “I take back what I said when I asked for school to be over.” —Andy Hsu “I will find my way, I can go the distance. —Hannah Zandi “Rick and Morty, Season 1, Episode 1, 03:25” “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. I read that one —Claire Kim on a can of lemonade. I like to think it applies to life.” —Andy “The only thing to do now is just to keep living forward.” Dwyer —Sonia Savur —Emily Tablak “Running five miles is more fun than it sounds.” “classic.” —Mavalyn Lau —Nainika Narayanan

—Robert Erfurth

Calvin Hsiao

“Work for the world as it should be.” —Caroline Brew “Your challenges and failures don’t define you. It’s how you handled it and grew from the situation that matters.” —Katherine Clarke “Well, I may be stupid, but I’m also dumb.” —Aditya Sundaram “Everything happens for a reason.” —Serafina Alhadad “Good-Bob! I hope we same place again, very now!”—The Good Place —Melian Bilello-Rodriguez “I am very small and I have no money. So you can imagine the kind of stress that I am under.” —John Mulaney —Harini Sridar “When I President, they see.” —Kevin Malone —Adrian Rafizadeh “I peaked in tenth grade when I got a 6 on the WPA.” —Preeti Makaram

Carson Yates and Joseph Taddie

“Eat a beaver save a tree” —Reyyan Agboatwalla “And that’s it...” —Lucas Coan “cool. cool, cool, cool.” —Bruke Wossenseged “I’m tired. Let me go for a run.” —Chantelle Tseng “Live life like someone left the gate open!!!” —Devina Naik “yur cool :)” —Bethany Yur “Yea ok” —Kailyn Xu “Opportunity never knocks twice!” —Felisha Fan “I have the power of God and Anime on my side!” —Eric Zhang “Screw them if they can’t take a joke!” —Mamma Mia —Lotte Schrama “I once tried to catch a falling fork and stabbed myself. College, here I come!” —Anusha Kansal “To the person reading this: Try not to worry and try to live in the moment. Everything will turn out okay.” —Uditha Velidandla

IVAN ZHU ART

“My time has come.”

Bruke Wossenseged and Lucas Coan

—Samuel Zhang

“Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” —Matthew Ames “Now that we’re men, we can do anything, we’re invincible, we’ll get to new journeys, get our crowns, make friends proud, and ace the class.” —Julian Rodriguez “I’m so good at sleeping, I can do it with my eyes closed.” —Alex Chang “It’s my mom’s!” —Ho-Hsin Wang “Ding! Fries are done! :)” —Allen Chang

VY NGUYEN PHOTOS

Behind the Scenes

EVELYN LIU ART

Ms. Dawson, thank you for coming in as our advisor so that we can continue our program and keep providing news to the student body. We really appreciate you for learning so much about this new role and tolerating and handling all the hectic changes that we have experienced this year. From surprise visits from Jude to your witty remarks, journalism was never boring with you.

Ms. Ngo, thank you for assisting Ms. Dawson with looking over our pages and keeping us company during our long print nights. Your input greatly helped us complete our pages, improve our writing quality, and speed up the printing process. We greatly appreciate your presence in J-5. We hope you will come by next year and continue to provide company and wonderful insight.

Jason, your eye for aesthetics and content guaranteed that Viewpoint and Opinions were always eye-catching and informative. Because of your ideas, we had some of the most interesting Viewpoint pages yet! Thank you for bringing your knowledge from Stanford writing camp to us and for reminding everyone that the Editors-in-Chief outrank the Copy Editor.

Caroline, your diligence has always been evident: thank you for always editing our articles to perfection and holding the fort down during print nights. Learning style guide was a struggle at the beginning of the year, but you always took the time to work with page editors to guide them through the process. We appreciate the exceptional dedication you show for journalism.

Matt, your reliability and adaptability always ensured that your pages would contain quality work, especially during crunch time. No matter how late you received your content, you always carefully and efficiently edited them to perfection. Most importantly, we applaud you for your ability to tolerate Sophia and humbly appreciate all the car rides you have provided.

Felisha, your passion for your work is unmatched, and it was evident to everyone. Whether it be soaking R+R papers in red ink or spending hours on a single page layout, there is no denying that your efforts played a crucial role in the immaculate quality of our publications. We wish you the best in college and apologize for how many pens we made you use.

Yana, your patience and kindness helped the paper and classroom run smoothly throughout the year. You went above and beyond your responsibilities as managing editor, helping out with the editorial column, editing pages and more all while running back and forth between J-5 and the soccer field. Thank you for everything that you have done for the Charger Account.

Eric, your goofiness and comedy provided some muchneeded energy on our long print nights. This combined with your overall talkativeness made journalism a much more enjoyable experience for all of us. From your kindness and creativity to your amusing attempts at TikTok dances, your overall enthusiasm for journalism and life in general will be greatly missed by all.

Jonathan, your commitment to ensuring that the newspaper had the highest quality photographs made each issue fun and exciting to look at. Thank you for going out of your way to accompany the photographers at various events to assist them in capturing the moment. Your excellence as a photographer is only surpassed by your excellence as a leader and mentor.

Ivan, your dedication to the art of the newspaper proved crucial with how many art assignments you ultimately took on each issue. Your willingness to take on these assignments and make so many last minute adjustments was vital to our ability to finalize each issue on time. The Charger Account is lucky to have you, your artwork and all of your sass back for one more year. JONATHAN KE PHOTOS