Oct. 30, 2019 Issue

KENNETH YANG ART

OPINIONS

VIEWPOINT

Palo Alto eliminates letter-based grading system

How virtual reality has evolved over time 5

KENNETH YANG ART

INVESTIGATIVE REPORT

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KENNETH YANG ART

Students seek support through on-campus 13 resources

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 Leland High School

San Jose Unified School District

Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Vol. R | No. 2

SJUSD moves forward with employee housing initiative

Carolyn Nguyen and Isabel Zhou

“Over the course of my eight years teaching in the San Jose Unified School District (SJUSD), I have changed roomates about every six months like clockwork. I have lived with alcoholics and people with interesting views on race and homophobia.

I had to learn to tolerate my own house and come to school with the emotional baggage of trying to care for someone who is drunk at night but wants to drive the car.

When you have to deal with racial issues or homophobia at home, you come to the classroom less emotionally prepared to deal with students. The constant moving causes me to miss many days of work,” Matthew Seymour, a third-grade teacher at Hacienda Environmental Science Magnet School, said.

Seymour and other teachers in the Bay Area convened at the Sept. 17 Santa Clara Office of Education meeting to voice their experiences on finding housing. In response to the lack of affordable housing, a town hall meeting was held at San Jose High School on Sept. 23 to discuss the future of SJUSD’s teacher housing initiative. The board members voted four to one to further investigate four sites as potential locations for affordable housing: River Glen K-8, Old Hammer (Pine Hill School), the Lot 9 Parking Lot at District Office and a site adjacent to Silicon Valley Career Technical Education.

The feasibility study released last year included the school and Bret Harte Middle School as proposed sites to build housing for employees. Although the site containing the school was not removed from the Master Plan, the board did not include it on the shortlist.

“The fact that many Almaden residents failed to consider the benefits of teacher housing is unfortunate.

Their YU YI LU PHOTO misinformed arguments were brutal. Though I am glad that the school Attendees of the meeting listen to panel and Bret Harte were presentations from teachers and school officials. not considered in the shortlisted properties, I

Last Word and Lifestyle Editors think that the method in which residents were able to get it off the list was unnecessarily harsh.

We should be supporting plans that would help reduce teacher turnover instead of slowing them down, especially when we do not have sufficient evidence to show that this plan would be YU YI LU PHOTO more detrimental than beneficial,” Junior Jenny Kim said.

The four properties considered are all near or in “urban villages” which have access to public transportation and are properly zoned.

Kelly Snider and Erik Schoennauer, the construction consultants for the project, explained that River Glen, a bilingual school, and YU YI LU PHOTO Pine Hill, a non-public Top: SJUSD Board special education school, members José Magaña, Brian will have to be relocated Wheatley and Carla Collins review details of the teacher if employee housing is housing intiative. at San Jose High School on Sept. 23.: built there. However, Bottom: Board members Nancy Alberrán, Kimberly sites for relocation have Meek and Teresa Castellanos discuss the housing plan. not been considered yet.

Continued on School News, page 2

College Board implements new AP policies Carolyn Nguyen and Jonathan Yue Last Word Editor and Staff Writer

This year, College Board introduced practice. College Board reported an AP Classroom, an online platform for increase in enrollment by low-income students and teachers that provides “a students and number of passing scores. personalized timeline, course information Additionally, fewer students compared to and all the tools” to succeed on the AP previous years decided to opt out or pay exam, according to the College Board the late dropout fee. website. Such tools include practice Although AP Classroom may benefit exam questions and students enrolled in an AP class, students other studying materials. who plan to self-study register for the test By logging into AP by joining an Classroom, students “exam only” are automatically class, which registered to take does not the test. College contain the Board also moved the preparatory deadline to register materials for an AP exam up five offered in months from March to regular AP Oct. and now charges an Classrooms. additional $40 for all test The early registration and drops deadline also GRACE LI ART after Oct. 18, instead of means that students must in spring. The school and commit to taking an AP others across the nation responded with exam in fall, instead of studying mixed opinions on these changes. during the fall semester and then signing In the 800 high schools where they up in the spring based on how prepared for tested AP Classroom last year, teachers the exam they feel . said students were more confident in their “I self-studied AP classes because they ability to take the test due to the instant were not offered here and I am interested feedback they received from additional in the subjects. While having a teacher

is best, it is definitely possible to get a thorough understanding of some subjects using nothing but a textbook, YouTube videos and practice problems. However, the changes to AP exams put pressure on us, making self-studying even harder,” Senior Cody Ho said.

Many have praised the addition of AP Classroom, but the earlier registration date received backlash from teachers and students. Jennifer Wander, a high school counselor in Wis., started a petition on change.org with over 120,000 signatures arguing that the $40 late and cancellation fees make it more difficult for low-income students to commit to taking the AP test so early on in the year.

“The new sign-up and payment system is extremely confusing and causes more people to fall through the cracks.

Since students are automatically signed up for the AP test when they sign up for AP Classroom, people who do not remember to sign the opt-out form are trapped.

College Board is going to make a lot of money from the students who forget about the opt-out deadline, but students should not be taking the class unless they plan on taking the AP test because there is no point in putting yourself through such a rigorous

course if you are not going to take the test,” Steve Seandel, History Department, said.

The changes to AP exam deadlines also affected the school administration.

The AP registration period coincided with many other school events, including the PSAT. Processing the AP exam opt-out

“The new sign-up and payment system is extremely confusing and causes more people to fall through the cracks.”

forms and requests from students to join “exam only” classes created additional work for the office.

“Changes always require adjustments.

Students needed to adjust and we as administrators need to help them make this transition as smoothly as possible. If these new policies regarding AP exams do provide the benefits the College Board claims, this will undoubtedly be an opportunity for the students,” Grace Chu, Assistant Principal of Guidance, said.

NEWS OPINION FEATURE VIEWPOINT SPORTS LAST WORD 1

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OCTOBER 30, 2019

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NEWS

SJUSD moves forward with employee housing initiative cont.

Continued from Front Page

JONATHAN KE PHOTO

JONATHAN KE PHOTO

YU YI LU PHOTO Top: Attendees discuss their perspectives on the housing crisis at the Santa Clara County Office of Education. Middle: Panelists listen to Patrick Bernhardt, San Jose Teachers Association Union President, discuss different initiatives and solutions. Bottom: Santa Clara community members listen during the panel.

The pre-development analysis of the properties would determine the estimates for costs and occupancy as well as what types of housing can be built.

According to the consultants, the cost of analysis is $600,000 and would come out of SJUSD’s building fund.

Companies like Facebook are also getting involved. Maya Perkins, Facebook’s Strategic Initiatives Manager, said that “the role of tech and the role of business is to be a partner and collaborator and to be a more active participant in the solution because it is something that impacts all of us.” Facebook provided housing with subsidized rates for 22 teachers near Menlo Park. However, this program is only planned to run for five years.

Schools in Palo Alto are also hoping to provide affordable housing for teachers. The Palo Alto School District is working with the Foothill-De Anza College District to build affordable employee housing.

The Learning Policy Institute reports that teacher housing is critical to teacher retention. Because of this, school districts are advised to provide housing incentives, such as “rent, relocation and down payment

assistance, as well as discounted homes and subsidized teacher housing.”

According to EdSource, the Bay Area has the largest gap between teachers’ salaries and rental housing costs in that area. Out of the 47 school districts in the region, the highest-paid teachers only earn enough to rent one-bedroom apartments.

Cameron Clarno, a choir teacher at Raymond J. Fischer Middle School, said that due to the gap between teachers’ salaries and rental housing costs, he lived in an R.V., “bouncing around county parks” to avoid overnight camping citations. The rest of his family had to live elsewhere because they could not find housing in Los Gatos.

“I am the first generation in my family to have to be an educator and struggle with being able to live in the community in which I work. For the past 12 years, I’ve had 11 different roommates and had to live in seven different housing situations,” Rinatta Sanchez, instructional coach for Allen at Steinbeck Elementary school, said.

The neighboring Santa Clara Unified School District was one of the first districts in the Bay Area to build housing for teachers.

In 2002, it opened the Casa Del Maestros, a complex of 72 apartments with rent 20 percent below market price. However, teachers may only live in the apartments for seven years before they must move out.

“I would be so proud for us to be among, if not the first in Calif. to build new employee housing for teachers. I worry about the whole Bay Area and our lack of quality teachers because this issue is much larger than us and our district,” Kimberly Meek, Board President, said.

Leland Bridge Night Feb. 1st, 2020 5pm to 8 pm Leland Cafeteria

Tickets Contact: chrtli2@gmail.com Our Website: http://www.lelandbridge.org

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THE CHARGER CHARGER ACCOUNT THE ACCOUNT

NEWS New Calif. bill requires app-based companies to treat workers as employees

Ansh Dhakalia, Ethan Huang and Rishab Satyakaal Companies such as Uber, Lyft and DoorDash have become increasingly popular, providing citizens with a fast and efficient method to receive transportation and delivery services. However, as the gig economy, comprised of independent workers receiving an hourly wage to carry out specific tasks, grows many issues have risen regarding how workers

Staff Writer, Sports and Entertainment Editors

Vox found that there have been several cases of drivers and independent contractors receiving pay below the required salary for workers. However, with AB5, employees at app-based companies will receive health care supplements, a $12 wage minimum, unemployment aid and insurance.

Because of these additional costs, the Washington Post reported that Uber has laid off 400,000 workers in order to afford higher salaries for

Quotebox: How would this new Calif. bill affect the gig industry? Do you think it would benefit or harm gig workers?

“Even if this bill causes initial job loss and temporary budget struggles for companies, it is still worthwhile for the average worker. Without an adequate salary and health plan, the individual’s burden only increases.”

—Sophomore John Hsu “There are lots of people that work part-time for companies like Uber or Lyft just for some extra cash. These people would be greatly affected by this new bill. The new bill limits the previous flexibility workers had with their work—time flexibility is likely what drew many to start doing gig work. As for people who use these gigs as their primary source of income, it would definitely be much better, as it provides more stable income and other employee benefits.”

—Senior Rajan Nandan “Taking into account the effect on part-time workers, the limitations on independence does make me rethink the value of this bill. However, most other workers who use gig work as their primary job would benefit because it provides them income stability.

As for part-time workers, they will simply have to deal with the changes since most employees will benefit from them.”

IVAN ZHU ART IVAN ZHU ART should be treated. On Sept. 11, Calif. passed Assembly Bill 5 (AB5), requiring these companies to treat their workers as employees instead of independent contractors with a 56-15 assembly approval.

“There are always adults struggling to meet payments, especially on the west coast, with the high prices and expensive housing costs. This bill is just a way to ensure that independent contractors receive fair benefits and standard salar. This would go a long way to lessen their burden,” Sophomore Lucas Ching said.

According to the New York Times, 10 percent of middle class workers in the U.S. are independent contractors. Many app oriented and delivery based companies classified their workers as independent contractors so they could skirt laws that protect employees.

—Freshman Alexander Guan Compiled by Edward Jung and Ansh Dhakalia, Community News Editor and Staff Writer

each employee. In response, Uber, Lyft and DoorDash have invested $90 million the International Franchise Association, into overturning the bill. Gig companies these business owners argue in their letter would have to pay $6 more that the added costs threaten per hour, leading to extra thousands of small business sums of up to triple owners’ livelihoods. the $90 million They estimate ballot, according that more than A 30 Oct. to Vice Media.

75,000 franchise Forbes locations and Senior Panoramic reported that 728,000 jobs Picture 160 franchise could be at risk.

Nov. 6 -8, 14-16 brands and 50 “Forcing Calif. business companies Fall Play owners have into setting sent in a letter higher pay rates Nov 28-29 asking for an means that Thanksgiving Break exception to be the company made. Backed by EVELYN LIU ART will not be

OCTOBER

able to provide more jobs for people who make just enough to accommodate their finances. Almost half of American workers are not qualified for better jobs and need to take gig jobs for little pay,” Sophomore Tyler Chou said.

Part-time drivers will also have to work on the company’s schedule.

This makes for a more pre-determined work day with less flexibility. Rideshare Drivers United has started making plans for a more efficient method to organize drivers into sectors to fulfill their work.

With AB5 being passed, employees must decide whether working in the gig economy is worth having a steady salary and health benefits over a stricter schedule and risk of being laid off.

Trump administration revokes Calif.’s authority to set emissions standards

Ansh Dhakalia

For 51 years, Calif. has regulated their own greenhouse gas emissions, setting strict standards on automobiles to limit pollution with laws under the Clean Air Act. However, on Sept. 18, the Trump administration revoked waiver to set its

Staff Writer

as Honda and Volkswagen, with goals of setting higher standards for fuel efficiency. Calif. Gov. Gavin Newsom said that revoking these standards “could have devastating

to combat climate change. According to the Washington Post, millions of concerned citizens marched outside government buildings

“There is very little harm in having the state preside over its own emissions, especially when the alternative does not combat the issue of climate change at all.”

“Revoking these standards could have devastating consequences for our kids’ health and the air we breathe.” auto emission standards independently from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) laws.

President Trump said that Calif. laws inhibit freedom of driving more than other states and “older, highly polluting cars, will be replaced by new, extremely environmentally friendly cars, so these stricter standards are no longer necessary.” The administration’s policy is a foothold towards backing up their statements on their stance towards the EPA’s emission laws.

In response, Calif. alongside 22 other states have filed a lawsuit against Trump’s decision and signed over 100 additional waivers for the right to monitor emissions. According to the New York Times, regional politicians, enviromental agency spokepersons and other activists who support the lawsuit have joined together alongside car companies, such

consequences for our kids’ health and the air we breathe.”

Trump’s d e c i s i o n comes while climate change movements continue to gain traction.

Students and youth organization members partook in a nationwide climate strike on Sept. 20 to advocate for policies

for stricter emission laws,” Junior Advay Basavuraju said.

Trump has slashed several of former President Barack Obama’s other climate policies. In 2018, Trump started to emphasize marine exploration using sonar

from Calf. to N.Y. “ Yo u need to take a stand in order to m a k e change.

It is vital for likeminded people to achieve results by lobbying

ALYSSA CHEN ART

as well as the need for more navy ships to patrol the east and west coasts. This contradicts Obama’s policies to improve ocean conservation by regulating human actions affecting marine life. Many senators noted that Trump’s actions are reminiscent of the 1960s, where the government prioritized ocean usage insted of preservation.

“Calif. has retained its Clean Air Act waiver for 50 plus years, making it unusual for this administation to be revoking it.

There is very little harm in having the state preside over its own emissions, especially when the alternative does not combat the issue of climate change at all.

Doing something is better than nothing,” Sophomore Vandan Patel said.

Calif.’s response to Trump’s removal of emissions standards demonstrates its willingness to enforce regulations until electric cars become the norm.

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OCTOBER 30, 2019

OPINIONS

New York injects itself into anti-vax controversy Ridge Coffey and Hannah Moon

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, Grace Li OPINIONS EDITORS Kelly Cui, Kathy Xing FEATURE EDITORS Sophia Lu, Keerthana Ramaswamy VIEWPOINT EDITORS Yeji Jeong, Evelyn Liu ENTERTAINMENT EDITORS Meghna Chandrasekar, Rishab Satyakaal LIFESTYLE EDITOR Isabel Zhou INVESTIGATIVE REPORT EDITOR Minji Kim SPORTS EDITORS Ethan Huang, Tiffany Mai Nguyen LAST WORD EDITOR Carolyn Nguyen AD MANAGER Sophia Lu

Staff Writers

On June 13, N.Y. passed a bill that The majority of states offer families Students who refuse requires all students, regardless of religious exemptions from vaccination, vaccination due to their religious or personal beliefs, to be except W. Va., Miss., Ariz. and Calif., religious beliefs are protected vaccinated in order to attend in-state which passed a law eliminating the by herd immunity—when an schools. The 26,000 students unvaccinated affected by this policy must person can still now either be vaccinated, be protected transfer to out-offrom diseases state schools like measles 100 people polled. Compiled by Muskaan Grewal. or become if they are homeschooled. surrounded by The law has enough vaccinated been met with “personal belief” exemption in people.

The backlash and has 2015. N.Y. has now joined these Oxford Vaccine sparked protests four states, a demand that may Group found from parents who be disrespectful of religious that if over oppose vaccinations, families. Although most religions 90 percent of also known as antido not explicitly prohibit vaccinations, students are vaxxers, raising the question about some sects are against them. Certain vaccinated whether states should require students to Christian denominations believe that they from an be vaccinated. interfere with divine providence, infectious disease, the rest “It should be the state’s decision, and some of the s u b s t a n c e s will still be protected. because for a densely populated place like involved in the creation of However, exemptions should not N.Y., it would be very important for kids to vaccines, like gelatin be extended to just anyone. Many of the be vaccinated.” Freshman Eric Lien said. and fetal tissue, are popular beliefs and stigmas of the antiThe law was passed in response to avoided. In such cases, vax community have been scientifically the 2018 measles outbreak which religious beliefs should be disproven. The major myth that vaccines included 1,068 cases in N.Y., respected and tolerated, cause autism, a significant contributor to according to the New and the state should the rise of the anti-vax movement in York Times. This understand that the child recent years, has been dispelled by the outbreak primarily cannot receive a vaccine.

US National Assembly of Medicine, impacted children of “While I do believe that which showed that avoiding vaccines Hasidic Jewish vaccinations have no negative effects, can in fact worsen the effect of autism on descent, a and those that are vaccinated do have an individual. community a higher chance of not getting infected Although exemptions should be given KELLY CUI ART with an by influenza, malaria or meningitis, for legitimate religious reasons, vaccines immunization enforcing vaccinations on children ultimately save lives. While vaccines may rate of less than 90 percent, compared to belonging to select religious groups can be not be for everyone, those capable of the general population’s 96 percent, seen as a violation of their rights.” Junior receiving them should utilize them to the according to the Washington Post.

Lily Moseley said. advantage of all.

Poll: Do your parents believe in vaccinations?

98%

Think globally, act locally Taking action against our carbon footprint one step at a time The Charger Account Editorial Staff

ADVISOR Stacy Dawson COMMUNITY CIRCULATION Parent Club and Leland Bridge

STAFF WRITERS Ashley Lee Hannah Moon Nam Nguyen Aileen Xie Jonathan Yue 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 October 30, 2019 Vol. R, No. 2

2%

Yes

DISTRIBUTION MANAGER Carolyn Nguyen

Serena Atkinson Jacob Cho Ridge Coffey Ansh Dhakalia Javier GomezTagle Muskaan Grewal Andrea Kuo

No

“The eyes of all future generations are upon you. And if you choose to fail us, I say—we will never forgive you,” Greta Thunberg, 16-year-old environmental activist, said in her speech to the United Nations Climate Summit in N.Y. on Sept. 23. Her words reflect the voices of millions who organized movements across the world last month to advocate for environmental policies that address the growing threat of climate change.

The younger generation has been some of the most vocal and passionate activists demanding change. The firstever Youth Climate Strike, established by the solidarity of eight national youth-led organizations, united students to raise a collective voice and inspired others to step up and lead local demonstrations.

While the heart of the problem rests in politicians and corporations reforming policy, we are also capable of taking initiative in our everyday lives that reflect the conditions we advocate for. Students who can afford sustainable clothing brands and plant-based foods should utilize their privilege to purchase these more enviromentally friendly, albeit more expensive, alternatives.

Forever 21, notorious for producing inexpensive clothing in bulk to meet the demands of sporadic trends, recently filed for bankruptcy, signifying a shift in consumer preferences towards slow fashion: a movement pushing for investment in ethical clothing. The World Resources Institute reports that the fashion industry is the second biggest polluter in the world because factories

“What is important is that we are all making an active effort to better the world in our own peripheral passions.” manufacture synthetic polymers from nitrous oxide—a greenhouse gas that is 300 times more potent than carbon dioxide—to mass produce clothing. While sustainable brands are often pricier, the higher quality material allows the clothing to last longer, preventing excessive purchases. Shopping at secondhand clothing stores like Goodwill and Savers also helps mitigate the fashion industry’s carbon footprint.

Impossible Foods, a business that develops plant-based meat, has

also taken an alternate approach that promotes eco-friendly options for the planet. The company has replicated the taste and appearance of meat from the roots of soy plants, a protein that uses 96 percent less land, generates 89 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions and 92 percent less dead-zone creating nutrient pollution than meat, according to Food Navigator-USA. Popular restaurant chains like Burger King have introduced the Impossible Burger into their menus to take ecofriendly measures that alleviate the meat industry’s impacts on the climate.

Meat from agriculture is detrimental to the environment because a substantial amount of land and water is needed to raise the animals. As a result, industrial farming in the U.S. is responsible for “574 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions” released annually, according to the New York Times. With more plant-based alternatives readily available to consumers, they should opt such substitutions of traditional food to encourage the food industry to continue providing them.

It is impossible to be perfect. The person who has eliminated plastic from their lifestyle may still be uneducated about fast fashion. The person who advocates fighting climate change may still eat meat. Accusing someone of being hypocritical in their practices is unavailing; what is important is that we are all making an active effort to better the world in our own peripheral passions.

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4 CHARGER ACCOUNT THE

APRIL 29, 2015

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FEATURE: WORLD Climate change protests amplify youth voices around the world

Kathy Xing and Cindy Zhao

Opinions Editor and Staff Writer

In 2016, President Donald Trump tweeted, “I think the climate change is just a… form of tax… done for the benefit of China.” Contrary to President Trump’s claims, global warming has been a ongoing pressing issue for the past decade.

According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the current concentration of carbon dioxide particles in the atmosphere has surpassed 400 parts per million and continues to rise.

The Earth’s average surface temperature has risen 0.8 degrees Celsius since the 19th century, and the ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica have decreased notably in mass. National Geographic reports that because of rising sea levels and melting ice, animals living in the North and South Poles are experiencing both habitat loss and population decrease.

In response to these effects, millions of people are

taking to the streets, participating in climate change protests all across the world—spearheaded by outspoken climate activist Greta Thunberg. Following the Sept. 23 United Nations Climate Summit, people around the world have been inspired to participate in protests to help promote climate change.

According to USA Today, New York City excused their students from school so that they could participate in the protests.

Several thousand people marched to the Capitol building in Washington D.C., and in San Francisco, protestors gathered outside Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s local office.

“I attended the climate march in San Jose on Sept. 20. There were around 500 to 1,000 people, and many people had signs saying ‘There is no planet B.’ If we do not take care of the earth, we will not have a planet that is livable in the future.

Government policy is where change needs to take place in order to begin regulating polluting industries that do the most damage,” Jennifer Touchton, English Department, said.

Adults are beginning to join the movement, with trade unions mobilizing support and employees leaving their workplaces to participate in the protests.

However, these EVELYN LIU ART protests have not occured without backlash. According to the Los Angeles Times, some conservatives have claimed that students are overreacting to

climate change issues and believe students would be better off attending school rather than protesting. Conservative author and podcaster Michael Knowles even went as far as to call Thunberg “mentally ill” in an interview with Fox News.

“The issue with the climate protests is that it rallies around the problem rather than the solution. No one is advocating for any specific goals or policies. Those who are truly concerned about the climate threat should volunteer for organizations such as the Citizens Climate Lobby, which works for a concrete solution to climate change by getting bipartisan carbon pricing legislation passed,” Senior Adrian Rafizadeh said.

The momentum that the protests have gained demonstrates the increasing pressure on world leaders to act on climate change.

st ration mu “Our gene et n la p e th of take care t.” ns do no if politicia ark Osorio M r —Senio

“There is a huge population that either does not know, does not care or is actively blocking the climate change laws.”

—Sophomore Aaron Shih

“Climate change is a threat to our well-being; protests are the least we can do.”

—Freshman Daniel Xie

“Our government does not put in enough effort to address climate change due to pro-business policies that may harm the environment.”

—Junior Sparsh Garg

“I did not take part in the protests, but I still think that more needs to be done about climate change. They [lawmakers] need to understand that if we do not take any action to prevent climate change, the earth will be destroyed.”

—Sophomore Claire Weisaid

AILEEN XIE ART

#MenToo: the rise of anti-feminism in South Korea

Serena Atkinson, Yeji Jeong, and Minji Kim

Staff Writer, Viewpoint and Investigative Report Editors “Feminism is no longer about gender equality. It is gender discrimination and its manner is violent and hateful,” Moon Sung-ho, leader of the men’s rights group Dang Dang We, told South Korea’s National Assembly in September. Scarcely one year has passed since the South Korean spy camera pandemic, where cameras were bought and installed in hotel rooms, public bathrooms and women’s changing rooms among other public areas to record explicit content uploaded to the Internet. Since then, thousands of women have come out in furious protest according to CNN. The anti-feminist movement in South Korea is supported primarily by younger men. According to the Korean Women’s Development Institute (KWDI), 50.5 percent of South Korean men in their twenties oppose feminism, compared to 18.4 percent of men in their forties. The Korea Herald noted that most South Korean men are not explicitly antifeminist, but believe in the traditional “benevolent patriarchy” where women are naturally reliant on men. The KWDI stated that the “rapid changes in traditional masculinity” experienced when these young men were growing up may have

caused their “strong anti-feminist and hostile gender bias tendencies.”

According to CNN, these men acknowledge that women have made sacrifices but refuse to believe that women in their twenties and thirties are facing discrimination.

They also cite South Korea’s compulsory military service as a grievance; some think that it discriminates against men by preventing them from living their lives and should include women to be more fair.

Furthermore, many men fear a more competitive workforce, with women receiving more opportunities to make up for the lack of representation. As a result, they support centrist, anti-feminist politicians.

“Honestly, in Korea, a lot of guys link feminism to Megalia—a South Korean radical feminist group—and criticize it.

However, they are two completely different views of w o m e n ’ s IVAN ZHU ART rights. While men in Korea often talk about how women are “overreacting,” sexual harassment is still extremely common in the country.

Although it is hard to say whether their stance is right or wrong, I think that they just do not know the true definition of feminism,” Senior Inseon Kim said.

A few public figures have gained notoriety in the movement, such as Moon.

Many South Korean anti-feminists also support the politician Lee Jun-seok, a member of the centrist Bareunmirae party that has accused feminists of trying to steal men’s privilege, according to CNN. He was quoted by the Korea Times for saying “radical feminism [is] as toxic as terrorism.” Another well-known face of the movement is rapper San-E,

who released a song in Nov. 2018 called “Feminist” with lyrics decrying South Korea’s feminist movement. San-E referred to the country’s gender pay gap as a “fake fact” and suggested that “if you want those rights so bad why aren’t you going to the military?” Having landed himself in the spotlight and receiving immense backlash, he attempted to pass off the rap as a satire, before doubling back once more and attacking feminist groups Womad and Megalia at his concert.

Anti-feminist groups have grown in several other countries, notably India with its Save Indian Family Foundation (SIFF).

SIFF works towards equal representation for men in gender-based crime laws, where many men are often falsely accused of crimes such as dowry harassment and premarital sex.

While the #MeToo and other feminist movements have been largely supported in the US, many people in countries like South Korea and India still face great backlash against the movement. This resistance is mainly a result of the misinterpretation of the feminist movement’s goal as “women against men,” rather than their intended message of “people against patriarchy.”

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ENTERTAINMENT

Teacher Feature: Nom Burger

Cindy Zhao

Staff Writer

As Wilson Yen, Math Department, and his girlfriend, now-wife, first stepped into the upscale Nom Burger, he was cordially greeted by a waiter dressed in slacks. The waiter immediately asked if the two wanted something to drink as they took a seat, and handed them a menu. Looking at the menu, Yen was intrigued with the restaurant’s fresh take on many American classics.

“My wife and I started going to Nom Burger when we first began dating.

We went to their grand opening, where they gave us a lot of free samples. To us, the service was exceptional,” Yen said.

Nom Burger opened in 2018 at a location in downtown Sunnyvale.

Every month, the owner, Regina Chan, will come up with a new idea for the restaurant’s featured Burger of the Month. Her goal is to present the most exciting flavors and combinations, to preserve personality in each bite.

“Yen’s favorite is the Pokénom burger.”

“Burgers are one of my favorite foods, and this is a burger-focused place. They are most well known for the Nom Burger, comprised of a giant patty, a crispy fried egg, bacon and onions— all on this nice brioche bun. They make their buns and patties in-house, to ensure their burgers are fresh,” Yen said.

Yen’s favorite is the Pokénom burger, featuring a classic American hamburger with chunks of Ahi tuna poké, slices of fried wonton and Persian cucumbers sandwiched between the top of the burger and the burger bun.

Chan takes pride in her unique creations. She wants to change the way people think about burgers and slowly shift the societal perspective of burgers belonging only in fast food joints. She also wishes to remove the stereotype of burgers being unoriginal and boring.

Besides the delicious food, Yen also enjoys the relaxing atmosphere. The people are friendly and the restaurant has a perfect balance of cozy and spacious areas.

“The place is very spacious, the ceiling is high and overall you feel very comfortable sitting in the restaurant. There are usually not many people during dinnertime, so walk-ins are generally fine. The staff is extremely friendly and I feel very at home here,” Yen said.

Nom Burger

(5/5) worth the bite

+ relaxing atmosphere + fresh ingredients

OCTOBER 30, 2019

Uber Air brings air taxis to reality

Jacob Cho and Javier GomezTagle

Flying cars may no longer be just a visualization of the future as Uber’s newest service, Uber Air, may make flying as convenient as driving. Although it may not make flying cars a reality, Uber Air offers an aerial equivalent of their traditional ridesharing service.

Uber Air first proposed ridesharing via air taxis in a paper published in October 2016. According to its website, the company envisions a “safe, quiet and environmentally conscious” method of transportation projected to launch in 2023.

In a statement, global head of Uber Air Eric Allison cites the decreasing sustainability of private car ownership as a motivation behind Uber Air. Uber also hopes to reduce traffic congestion and mitigate the 333 million tons of carbon dioxide released annually by American cars, especially in urban areas such as Los Angeles, Dallas and Melbourne—the first cities that will provide Uber Air flights.

Uber lists aircraft manufacturers Embraer, Bell Helicopters, Aurora Flight Sciences, Pipistrel Vertical Solutions and Karem

"That is the challenge—taking an industry of... fast-moving technology and joining that with a regulatory agency that wants innovation."

Aircraft, Inc. as partners in developing their aircraft technology. Uber Air will operate via electric vertical takeoff and

Staff Writers

landing (eVTOL) aircrafts that travel short distances between landing pads called Skyports. A recently released design shows that eVTOL taxis resemble helicopters with four passenger seats. A pilot will man the aircraft during Uber Air’s first years of operation, but in the future, there will only be a safety pilot monitoring an autonomous vehicle. This aircraft will be able to make multiple 25 mile trips within a three hour window before needing to recharge.

At Uber Elevate, a conference that discussed the future of Uber Air, the company announced that Air will initially cost $5.73 per mile. In the future, Uber plans to reduce the price to $1.86 and eventually $0.44 in order to make Air more affordable than Uber’s other services like UberX, UberSELECT and UberPool.

Although Uber Air depends on the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

of incredibly bright minds and fastmoving technology and joining that with a regulatory agency that wants innovation, but only if it can be safely brought into an urban environment,” Elwell stated in his speech at the Summit.

Aviation and economics researchers

“Uber Air presents new opportunities for the future of transportation.“

also expressed concerns. Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology professor Chris de Gruyter detailed several shortcomings of Uber Air to the Guardian, describing the eVTOL vehicles as environmentally inefficient since they are unable to accommodate more CAROLYN NGUYEN ART people than a car but produce more carbon dioxide.

“I fear that Uber Air will have a negative impact on the environment due to the materials for certification of its aircraft required to build an entire fleet of planes. design, there are reservations on New safety requirements would need to be the feasibility of Uber Air initiating within created and having many flying vehicles in the next five years. At the Elevate Summit, the air would require careful coordination, Dan Elwell, Deputy Administrator of especially in big cities with busy airfields the FAA, stated that he does not believe with substantial air traffic,” Junior Peter the anticipated 2023 launch to be “too Chong said.

Regardless of the doubts, Uber Air ambitious, but [he is] certainly not going to make any commitments," according to presents new opportunities for the future of transportation. Increasingly affordable Rotor and Wing International.

Elwell also mentioned the danger of and accessible aerial transport that will “car-sized vehicles with multiple rotors relieve traffic congestion is coming to hanging over families” in a series of tweets. reality as Uber Air lifts off.

“That is the challenge—taking an industry

Forever 21 ages out of business

Kelly Cui and Hannah Moon

Forever 21, once one of the world’s most successful fast-fashion retailers, announced plans to close 350 stores worldwide in 2020, 178 of which are located in the US. In 1984, a recently-immigrated South Korean couple Jin Sook and Do Won Chang opened clothing retailer Fashion 21. Their business model, predicated on purchasing merchandise from manufacturers at a discount from wholesale closeouts and selling trendy clothing at low prices, came to be known as fast fashion.

The fashion company, later renamed Forever 21, exploded in popularity immediately after its inception. In its first year alone, Forever 21 earned $700,000, far exceeding their sales goals and setting the stage for massive business expansion.

With a surplus of profits, Forever 21 expanded to 480 stores worldwide in the early 2010s, and reached a net worth of $4.4 billion in March 2015. The company continued to expand, peaking at 723 total stores worldwide.

However, Forever 21’s sales suddenly plummeted between 20 to 25 percent in 2018, causing the company to go $500 million in debt. Forever 21 filed bankruptcy, and closed hundreds of its stores both

Opinion Editor and Staff Writer

domestically and internationally.

According to Business Insider, the once-dominant fashion retailer lost their creative and stylish touch that had previously attracted millions of customers.

Their products instead became “cookiecutter,” or lacked originality and diversity, which began to distance them from their customer base. Furthermore, rival retailers

such as H&M and Zara and online brands such as Fashion Nova and Revolve began producing trendy, celebrity-influenced fashion at a faster rate than Forever 21.

The “retail apocalypse,” or the closing of brick-and-mortar stores since 2010 due to the increasing popularity of online

stores, was also a major reason why Forever 21 was forced to declare bankruptcy. The rise of online shopping has diminished Forever 21’s relevance in today’s fashion industry. According to Pew Research, 79 percent of Americans shop online. A study conducted by the think tank Statista affirms these findings: retail e-commerce sales have exponentially increased in the past decade, reaching $6.5 billion in 2019. As a result, physical retailers such as Toys"R"Us and Sports Authority have seen in- person retail sales plummet.

Business Insider claims that the “retail apocalypse” has already shutdown 15,000 retail stores and 75,000 more are expected to close by 2026, symptomatic of rapidly shifting trends in modern day fashion.

“Physical retailers are inherently held to a higher standard than online outlets because online shopping guarantees the availability of the desired KELLY CUI ART product. Retailers are also fighting an uphill battle, as the costs from maintaining a physical presence and clothing displays only serve to decrease profits. Unless people significantly curb their online shopping presence and return back to physical stores, this trend in retailers like Forever 21 declaring bankruptcy will only continue,” Junior Dheerj Jasuja said.

THE CHARGER ACCOUNT

Area 51: a meme that led to government action

ENTERTAINMENT

Serena Atkinson, Claire Han and Isabel Zhou Staff Writer, News Editor and Lifestyle Editor

“I sparked a movement while I was bored at 2 a.m.,” student Matty Roberts told the Los Angeles Times. On June 27, Roberts published a viral Facebook post titled, “Storm Area 51: They Can’t Stop All of Us,” where he proposed breaking into Area 51, a highly guarded US Air Force base located in Nev., in search of alien technology.

Although it was originally intended as a joke, Roberts’s post quickly gained millions of responses for the raid, which was set to occur on Sept. 20.

response. According to the Guardian, the FBI visited Roberts upon hearing of the raid. The US Air Force warned of the dangers of trying to “illegally access military installations or military training areas,” according to BBC. Residents of Rachel, the town closest to Area 51, echoed this, stating that if the event actually happened, it was likely that the government would have sent military forces to set up a blockade.

“The Area 51 raid shows how quickly the internet can spread information and how people perceive news to be “Area 51 proves how reliable. I personally thought the whole concept was hilarious, influential social media is but I also thought it would be in this day and age” cool to go to Area 51 as a joke; I do not know if I In just a month, three million would have thought Facebook users had visited the event page of doing this without and two million had responded to the raid. seeing so many memes The event became a huge topic both online about it on the internet,” and offline, and it garnered coverage on Junior Allison Wang said.

Roberts described the almost every American news source on the aftermath of the post as “a dumpster day of the raid. Roberts’s post also led to fire.”

He originally created the post to a government top “a post that proposed stealing all of Minn.’s 10,000 lakes,” according to the Los Angeles Times. Yet people truly believed that Roberts had hatched a genius plan to uncover hidden alien technology at Area 51.

Roberts’s post circulated on the internet and reached millions of people, transforming the event into something that could ALYSSA CHEN ART potentially have serious

11

consequences. Although only around 150 people showed up for the raid, the blowup of Roberts’s post reflects the growing influence of the internet on people.

The virality of the post gave Roberts the idea to host a music festival near the base. He teamed up with Connie West, an owner of the Little A’Le’Inn restaurant and inn in Rachel, KIM A to host a RT festival called Alienstock, an alien-themed music festival and celebration. On Sept. 10, Roberts postponed the event, because he was worried that the festival would cause “a possible humanitarian disaster” due to the lack of resources and infrastructure in a town with only 54 residents. Roberts stated that he did not want Alienstock to become “Fyrefest 2.0”— referring to the music festival that was supposed to take place in the Bahamas in 2017, but was canceled and eventually exposed to be fraud. The festival was thus moved to downtown Las Vegas.

“Area 51 proves how influential social media is in this day and age. People talk to each other all the time about memes circulating the internet, and the Area 51 raid was one in particular I heard a lot of people discussing. The fact that a joke event started by an ordinary guy reached millions of people shows how people, especially those of Generation Z, connect with each other via social media,” Senior Tiffany Jia said.

Celebrities replace award speeches with politics Ridge Coffey, Nam Nguyen and Aileen Xie

Staff Writers On Sept. 22, Los Angeles hosted the chided by others,” Senior Angela Shu said. during the 2016 Oscar Awards. Actor 71st Emmy Awards ceremony, nominating Other celebrities have taken advantage Andrew Garfield discussed LGBTQ issues television shows like Fleabag and Game of of their time on stage to push their when accepting his Tony for best actor.

Thrones, and actress Michelle Williams, political agenda. Like Williams, actress In the past, celebrity influence on who took to the stage to reveal her personal politics have demonstrated their ability experiences with the gender pay gap to make an impact. DiCaprio’s speech, during her acceptance speech. A growing for instance, opened many people’s trend of political acceptance speeches eyes to the recent impacts of climate comes at a time of increased nationwide change, and focused a large amount of division and growing polarization, leading attention to the DiCaprio Foundation, many to take action on the podium. an environmental charity organization.

“Receiving an award is meant to be special, and the speech that follows “Pushing a political agenda should be dedicated to thanking people who have aided you throughout your seems inappropriate for the journey. Pushing a political agenda seems setting of receiving an award.” inappropriate for the setting of receiving an award,” Junior Armin Sabanovic said.

The Emmys are meant to celebrate the Celebrities have gone vocal outside best of television, but more recently, the of acceptance speeches as well. On Oct. ceremony has become more controversial.

7, 2018, pop-music star Taylor Swift Politics have lately become a centering broke her political silence. She publiclytheme for the acceptance speeches at award announced on Instagram that she would shows. Once used to thank supporters and vote for one of two Democratic candidates colleagues, acceptance speeches have now drifted towards vocalizing grievances “Acceptance speeches have for highly political or social issues.

This Emmy season was no exception. now drifted towards vocalizing Williams, who won “Outstanding Lead grievances for highly political” Actress” for her role in Fosse/Verdon, gave a speech about the pay disparity between genders, emphasizing that she was paid in the upcoming 2020 presidential $1,000 while her co-star Mark Wahlberg election. Pop-music star and rapper Kanye got paid $1.5 million for the same scene.

West has also made his opinions known, “Actors and actresses, like all United expressing his support for Donald Trump States citizens, have the right to free and mentioned his presidential aspirations CAROLYN NGUYEN ART speech, so they can discuss anything they for 2020 at the end of his appearance on want to. However, they do have to consider the Saturday Night Live show in 2018. factors like fans feeling alienated, agencies Meryl Streep has used her acceptance As celebrities are engaging in political dropping them or other types of backlash. speech at the 2017 Golden Globe Awards spheres, their roles are influential in For example, when Chris Pratt talked about to express her political opinion about shaping the opinions of many. With his love for God in an award acceptance Trump. Actor Leonardo Dicaprio spoke millions of viewers, celebrities are speech, he was lauded by some and about the impacts of climate change spread awareness and bring change.

Losing innovation: Apple’s decline

Edward Jung Community News Editor

In recent years, Apple has steadily been on the decline, falling short to competing companiessuch as Samsung and Google. Lack of innovation is the reason. Steve Jobs long-predicted that the company would follow in the footsteps of companies like IBM, Nokia and Kodak if they moved away from the innovation that pushed them to the top.

In 1984, Apple released the Macintosh, the first mass market computer with a graphical user interface.

That same year, they spawned the idea of high-budget Super-Bowl commercials to promote products.

MP3 players were wiped out by the iPod in 2001, the first iPhone in 2007 revolutionized the smartphone market and the iPad in 2008 created an entirely new genre of electronic devices.

But what happened? In the past couple of years, Apple seems to have done nothing but raise the prices on their products. They have released a few phones, a nice watch and earbuds, but nothing is as revolutionary as their past products. Meanwhile, other companies are attempting to revolutionize the tech industry—Samsung and Huawei are devoted to foldable displays, Microsoft

“Apple now refuses to take risks in creating what could possibly be the next big thing” to augmented reality tech and Google to artificial intelligence—and Apple is slowly falling behind.

Ironically, the most recent Apple event was titled “By Innovation Only,” which showcased products that were anything but innovative: the “new” Apple Watch which lacks new features, an iPad we have already seen before and an iPhone with a slightly better camera.

They released a new streaming service that is half the price of competitors, but there is nothing notably innovative about price reduction.

Apple, however, has loyal customers that refuse to move on to other brands. Apple knows this, hence they seem to be making little effort into introducing truly “new” products. They have also created an appealing system of integration between their devices— their devices work in conjunction with one another. This integration between Apple products is partially what keeps customers from leaving Apple.

With Apple having created and popularized the electronic devices, it is quite disappointing to see this slowdown in creativity. Unlike before, Apple now refuses to take risks in creating what could possibly be the next big thing. Instead, they are settling for a safer strategy: slightly altering already succesful products.

It is hard to say that Apple is a “failing company” amidst their shortcomings in the past years. The company has a history of getting out of slumps like these. Maybe the company will once again change the world, like they had with previous products and ideas. However, if they do not pick up their pace, Apple will be outcompeted.

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OCTOBER 30, 2019 APRIL 29, 2015

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LIFESTYLE FBLA Guest Lecture: Ge Wang

Jonathan Yue

Staff Writer

Attracted by the many colorful flyers around campus, I attended the guest lecture event hosted by the school’s Future Business Leaders of America on Oct. 18.

Author, designer, engineer and artist Ge Wang is an Associate Professor at Stanford University at the Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics (CCRMA) and has a Ph.D. in Computer Science. He is the architect of ChucK, an opensourced music creation programming language. He is also the co-founder of Smule, a music app with more than 52 million monthly active users.

He began his talk with a demonstration of Ocarina, an app he developed 10 years ago that emulates the instrument with the same name.

It uses sensors built into the phone that detect users blowing into it and buttons displayed on the screen that

“Wang asserts that technology's primary purpose is to elevate human experiences” control the notes. He explains that this app does not serve any practical use but is rather a social experience for the users, giving the example of a deployed soldier in Iraq who found peace through this app. Wang asserts that technology's primary purpose is to elevate human experiences, not necessarily to solve problems.

Wang made the point that the technology we design now largely determines our future. While good designs can change our lives for the better, ill-considered designs may wreak havoc, as seen in the famous science-fiction Frankenstein, part of the reading material for the class Wang teaches. As a result, it is essential to design well, design ethically and design “artfully.”

Wang further defines what designing means. He explains that designing is just aligning what is useful with what is beautiful. Designers need to keep the context in mind and consider how their products will be applied, which led to his advice to every student: to explore many subjects, not just a specific interest.

Wang closed with a touching video. In the wake of the 2011 Japanese tsunami and earthquake, more than 4000 users of Smule’s Glee Karaoke app sang “Lean on Me” together.

Strangers around the world joined to lend support, hope, and love through the song.

This event left me in deep thought about how technology has become such an indispensable part of our daily lives: it is hard to imagine a day without clicking on the notifications on our phones, or without checking different platforms of social media constantly.

Human interactions should be enhanced, not hindered or controlled by advancing technology.

We can build towards that future by being ethical designers ourselves at the intersection of beauty and use.

The Impossible Burger: the future of “meat”?

Meghna Chandrasekar and Cindy Zhao Over the past decade, plant-based foods and products have been making their way into consumer’s shopping carts, slowly replacing animal products. On Sept. 20, the Redwood-City-based company Impossible Foods launched its latest invention during its grocery store debut: the plant-based, but beef-replica Impossible Burger.

The Impossible Burger looks, tastes and feels just like a regular beef burger—except it does not actually contain any beef. It combines wheat, coconut oil, potato protein, soy protein isolate and heme to create a burger that closely imitates the appearance and flavor of meat. Injected with heme, a part of the oxygen-carrying protein hemoglobin found in blood, the Impossible Burger is able to bleed just like real meat.

The scientists at Impossible Foods created this burger in order to combat the global decline of biodiversity and alleviate animal suffering. They believe that a solution to the climate crisis is to heavily decrease the consumption of animal products. “We want to feed the population of 2050... in a way that does not destroy our planet,” Rachel Fraser, Director of Research at Impossible Foods, said. The Impossible Burger claims that it requires 96 percent less land and produces 89 percent less greenhouse gas emissions than its beef counterpart.

Another viable meat alternative is lab-grown meat. While Impossible Food uses plant-based ingredients, the lab-grown meat is created with stem cells harvested from real animals.

Memphis Meats, a company located in Berkeley, Calif., aims to make cultured

Entertainment Editor and Staff Writer meat sustainable. Founded in 2015 by Uma Valeti and Nicholas Genovese, the company’s mission is to produce meat that

cells to regenerate cardiac muscle after a heart attack when he came up with the idea for his company. Since then, Memphis Meats has produced the world’s first cellbased meatball and poultry.

“I think that some vegans and vegetarians may have a problem with the fact that the Impossible Burger tastes exactly like meat.

The taste may make it harder for aspiring vegans to become fully vegan, because it can make them too familiar with the taste of meat,” Senior Vibha Chandrasekar said.

However, lab-grown meat is not as controversy-free. According to NBC News, many vegetarians and vegans consider the meat not vegan, because it is created with animal cells from live tissue.

In addition, lab-grown meat, while cruelty-free, is still an animal product, which goes against the beliefs of many vegans and vegetarians.

“Impossible Foods is the future of food. As more people are realizing IVAN ZHU ART that the meat industry is taking a huge toll on the environment, it is important that plant-based alternatives are being created and placed on the market to counter the negative effects of animal agriculture. There will be a shift in the meat industry from conventional meat to these sustainable options, and the food industry will benefit from this,” Junior Lindsey Evonsaid.

Lab-grown meat, such as the Impossible Burger, while still in its early form, demonstrates how technology is healthier and more environmentally may allow society to become more without friendly than red meat for people to enjoy. environmentally-friendly, Valeti was doing research on using stem interfering with people’s love for meat.

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THE CHARGER ACCOUNT

Andrea Kuo and Grace Li

INVESTIGATIVE REPORT: Resources

Exploring the school’s academic resources School News Editor and Staff Writer

At break and lunch, the Counseling and Resource Center (CRC) bustles with activity. Students may use the computers to print out schoolwork or see their counselors about various matters including graduation requirements and college applications. Although many students utilize these services, the CRC also offers a multitude of other resources.

A primary function of the CRC is to serve as a hub of information, according to Rose Garcia, Student Services. She and the counselors all share the same goal: to help students plan for their futures by offering information about classes, financial aid packages and advice for selecting majors.

The resource center is filled with college brochures and forms for volunteer hours, sports registration and receiving online class credit.

The school offers many resources to students on campus but also a lot of services on its academic counseling website. These include information about applications for UCs, California State Universities (CSUs), independent colleges and universities and community colleges. There are also multiple links attached to help students for college: Cal Grant and the Blue and Gold Opportunity Program for financial aid and Naviance for college planning. The school’s media center website also offers students free access to academic journals such as Gale and information on homework help hours.

Another resource students use are AP test prep books. The CRC has test prep books, mainly

CollegeBoard and Barron’s, that students can borrow and check out by talking to Garica.

The CRC also provides college and career pathway planning with visits from college admissions representatives. The dates of these events can be found on the windows and broadcasted on television screens around the school. However, many students are not aware of this. 15 college representives visited in September and 16 in October. These visits are ultimately an opportunity for students to gain more insight on colleges and the unique cultures of the

“If more people knew about [college visits], students could take advantage of them to streamline their college application processes.” schools. The attendance at these visits fluctuates: schools such as Johns Hopkins University attract a big group of students, while for lesser-known colleges, the group may be smaller.

“By coming to college visits, students build a database for themselves to decide what they want out of a school. We ask a variety of colleges to speak here.

Everyone knows Yale and Stanford, but going to a fouryear institution does not suit everyone,” Garcia said.

Aside from the resources offered by the CRC, students can also find services on campus through peer tutoring. Students of all grade levels are able to sign up to receive tutoring for any subject or sign up to be tutors. Last year, the program reached a peak of 300 tutors and tutees and are currently at 100 students.

“Most peer tutors have had the teachers of their tutees in past years, so it is helpful that tutors can give advice on types of questions the teacher gives and how to prepare for tests. Through peer tutoring, I was able to ask questions that I would have been too afraid to ask my teachers. Overall, it is very engaging and helpful,” Junior Audrey Lui said.

In addition to all the college admissions resources offered, the CRC has brought in Counselor Emily Strain, who specializes in helping students write college essays. Although the service is free, very few students have made an appointment to ask her for advice on personal statements.

“Some of the college resources such as the college visits are not advertised enough. If more people knew about them, students could take advantage of them to streamline their college application processes,” Senior Megan Pombo said.

Although the CRC may serve as a quiet area for studying and a last resort for students printing out assignments for the next period, it could provide so much more. Garcia hopes that more students will recognize and maximize the opportunities provided to them, all free of charge.

NICOLE KIM ART

Ashley Lee and Nancy Zheng Senior Jasmine Shao is currently taking General Psychology at San Jose City College (SJCC), and will start Intro to Sociology next semester.

“I did not plan on taking a science class in my senior year since I had already taken biology, chemistry and physics, so I decided to fill in that extra period with social sciences that seemed interesting to me. Psychology and sociology are both about how people function on an individual and group level, and the way people work fascinates me,” Shao said.

Despite all the resources the school offers, students often seek additional academic services through websites and off-campus organizations.

Students can access countless websites online that offer free practice problems,

Students find resources off-campus test-taking tips and more. The CollegeBoard offers many resources for students, including official information about the SAT, SAT Subject Tests and the PSAT. With CollegeBoard’s new AP Classroom, students can also access practice problems that mirror the style of actual AP questions.

Partnered with the Calif. Academy of Sciences and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Khan Academy works with CollegeBoard to develop practice test questions, full-length practice tests and more.

According to The Washington Post, with just 20 hours of studying for the G ART KENNETH YAN SAT with Khan Academy, students can improve their scores by over 115 points.

Unlike test prep centers, Khan Academy is an affordable resource that all students can access to prepare for standardized tests and study for elementary to AP-level courses.

The school also collaborates with third-party organizations off-campus such as SJCC, which offers EVELYN LIU ART

Staff Writers

courses not included in the school’s videos and also use their practice problems curriculum such as Psychology, because it helps me understand topics Japanese, American Sign Language conceptually, which is especially helpful for and Math 73 classes to students my AP classes. I also really like of all grade levels on-campus. how the website provides Outside of organizations helpful videos and that the school promotes instructional texts like SJCC, students also to practice certain take classes at community concepts,” Sophomore colleges to obtain course Audrey Wu said. credit. Many students choose Students also to take these courses over have the opportunity the summer to maximize their of taking classes with a KENNETH YANG ART education. Although these classes career-technical program are an efficient way called Silicon Valley Career of learning a Technical Education (SVCTE), which T R UI A C subject and offers off-campus courses for juniors Y L KEL passing and seniors. Their courses allow a course, students to explore potential the school jobs, such as Dental Assisting, does not Law Enforcement, Fashion advise students Design, Culinary Arts and more. to skip multiple “By taking the Veterinary classes through Science course at SVCTE, I was able these organizations because to learn about animal physiology at a it is impossible to cover the depth greater depth. Since I want to become a of the material taught in a ten- veterinarian when I grow up, this course month class in one to two months. has been an amazing opportunity for me “On Khan to expand my knowledge in the field,” Academy, I Junior Amrita Chennapragada said. watch the

OCTOBER 30, 2019

14

SPORTS

Minji Kim and Nam Nguyen

Girl’s tennis continues to build momentum Investigative Report Editor and Staff Writer

On Oct. 11, the Girl’s Tennis team played against Silver Creek High School after having won 5-2 against them earlier in the year. Tensions were high amongst the girls after their top singles player and doubles team started off their matches by losing a few games, but the Chargers were ultimately able to add another win to their currently undefeated season.

The girls defeated Silver Creek again 5-2, staying strong throughout the match, especially in the doubles matches. The number two doubles team of Joyanna Jiang ’20 and Jenny Kim ’21 won most of their games, finishing 6-0 in the first set and 6-1 in the second. The number three doubles team with Lottie Schrama ’20 and Annie Kao ’21 also helped the Chargers win the match, beating their opponents 6-3 and 6-1.

On the number one doubles team, Sarah Brew ’21 and Kaviya Veerasingam’22 both worked together to score points after falling into an early defecit. Veerasingam hit numerous pointwinning volleys while Brew consistently hit strong groundstrokes. Number one singles player Aliya Daire ’21 continued to hit fast and powerful groundstrokes

throughout her match as she worked towards winning a few games against her opponent. Although Daire, Brew and Veerasingam lost their matches, they still kept their morale high and look to improve.

“It is really important to stay mentally focused during the game.

I want to improve my mental game and my fitness this season, but I also want to focus on improving my strokes and working on my strategies when playing in matches. I also want to make Aliya Daire ‘21 sure I am having a good time whenever I am out on the courts,” Daire said.

The team’s goal is to be number one in the league and be undefeated

REX LI PHOTO Jenny Kim ‘21 launches a serve to her opponent.

until the Central Coast Section (CCS) Championships. In order to prepare for this season, the girls practiced during tryouts, playing numerous matches against each other for experience. The team also did conditioning to bolster their agility and strength for matches.

“A lot of the girls have played in the offseason and have been improving— t a k i n g it upon themselves to keep polishing REX LI PHOTO t h e i r skills. The anticipates the ball. girls have demonstrated that they love to play tennis.

They practice every day, do not complain and really like being out on the courts,” Head Coach Patrick Stoltz said.

Although the team lost many seniors last year, they now have multiple freshmen that have helped them recover from losing many valued team members. Throughout the beginning of the season, the team worked hard to make up for the loss of strong players, especially on doubles teams and also to improve their skills and build a stronger team overall.

The senior captains Veerasingam ​and​ Schrama​ have worked very hard towards keeping the team organized and moving in a positive direction. From hours of conditioning and training to planning out practice routines after school, the captains have collaborated with each other and successfully formed a hard-working group of girls.

“The team all knew that we had to step up our effort this season especially because we lost so many talented seniors, so I know a lot of girls persisted and kept playing throughout the preseason to prevent a slow start. Fortunately, we do not have to worry about our team chemistry because we have gained some very talented freshmen who fit into our team very well and who we have received with open arms,” Schrama said.

DIANA YOUSEF-NEJAD PHOTO Sarah Brew ‘21 powerfully returns the shot.

JEFFREY TAN PHOTO Sarika Sriram ‘20 watches as the ball hits her racquet.

Football finds success as they take on the 76ers Jacob Cho and Ansh Dhakalia

Staff Writers

On Sept. 27, the Chargers’ football multiple changes, with all but three of their the team’s strengths, new Head Coach team started off their Mount Hamilton coaches gone, and many current seniors Kelly King Jr. worked with the new Division season with a win over deciding not to play. In order to lineup to practice new plays. Since Independence High School, compensate for the loss of the team is smaller than the defeating the 76ers many players, the team previous year, the Chargers have 58-28, and setting had to pull up many created an offense that focuses a season-high for sophomores from primarily on the players’ points in a game. the JV team. By speed and stamina, looking to Following p r a c t i c i n g outperform their opponents the kickoff, on with new when they are all tired late in the 3rd down p l a y e r s the fourth quarter. at 1 minute during the “The coaches innovated 25 seconds offseason, our strategies and plays in into the t h e order to make the best of our 1st quarter, p r o g r a m strengths. One thing we do is Corbin Yates a d j u s t e d learn from their dedication and ‘21 made a 15 quickly and sportsmanship to become better yard run and was able to players,” Sohail Erekat ‘22 said. touchdown, prepare the However, the team’s dominance tallying the score young players on the field is not only the result at 6 to 0. Later for the season. of relentless practice. The team also in the third, Noor “A lot of meticulously studies film, Haroon ‘22 made a the older discussing how to VY NGUYEN PHOTO 50 yard run, weaving his players take down their way through defenders. Utilizing had to spend a opponents’ top their speed and stamina to their advantage, lot of time to show players and the Chargers successfully outran the 76ers the younger players devising late into the 4th quarter, resulting in a 30 the ropes and keep plays to take point victory. a lid on things at advantage Tied for first in the league currently, practice. We had of their the Chargers look to take the division title to take everything opponents’ this year despite the challenges they faced in stride, learn many flaws. early on in the year. new offensive and “ T h e Coming off of a 5-2 season last year, defensive plays and team devotes the Chargers looked to return to the how to effectively a lot of our success they had two years ago when they collaborate with the time during made a successful run in the Central Coast new staff,” Carson and outside Section (CCS) playoffs before losing in the Prescott ‘20 said. of practices to finals. However, prior to the start of this To create an offense watching film and VY NGUYEN PHOTO season, the team was forced to adjust to that would best fit with seeing how cohesively Jesse Cavanna ‘20 (left) rushes past defenders.

Jack Ryan ’22 waits for the play to start.

VY NGUYEN PHOTO the opposing teams move in order to investigate and implement their strategies ourselves. Each practice, we hold specialized drills for individual positions.

Our team places a hefty emphasis on a strong offense, primarily working with the quarterback to be able to make onthe-spot decisions about who to throw to,” Assistant Coach Ronnie Reed said.

As the team pushes towards the end of their hard-fought season, they look to continue to dominate and stay on top of the Mount Hamilton League standings.

The Chargers will use their remaining league games to their advantage by finding effective strategies and improving their conditioning and fitness, ultimately preparing them for a successful run in CCS playoffs.

Carson Yates ‘20 (right) sprints up the field.

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THE CHARGER ACCOUNT

SPORTS

Girls’ Volleyball comes out on Top Andrea Kuo & Muskaan Grewal After sailing through their season so far, the Girls’ Volleyball team pushed through with a victory in their game on Oct. 17 against the Leigh High School Longhorns. In the first set of the game, the Chargers took the lead straight from the opening serve. With the help of multiple point-scoring spikes from Joanna Yang ‘20, the Chargers took the first two sets of the match, 25-19 and 25-11.

However, Leigh made a comeback, winning both the third and fourth sets. In the tie-breaking set, Trinity Yates ‘20 excelled with multiple kills and blocked spikes for the Chargers. Combined with Yang’s strong serving performance, the team was able to take the fifth set with a score of 15-9.

“There were a lot of times in the game when we were really down in terms of our morale. Serving at the end of the fifth set was kind of nerve-wracking but I am glad we were able to pull through,” Yang said.

With a 7-2 record in league matches this season, the team is currently ranked second in the Mount Hamilton Division.

Staff Writers

“The girls have been playing strong at the right time. We just moved up into a higher division and the way they have played so far just reaffirms that we belong in this division.” Assistant Coach Brie Mattson said.

teams, the coaches want the players to play cohesively in games, and support each other after each point.

“I think that a weakness of theirs is staying mentally tough and just going after the win when the other team begins to gain momentum,” Mattson said.

In order to get experience playing against stronger teams, the team has also challenged themselves by pin tournaments.

Though they endured multiple losses in these tournaments, the competition they faced prepared them for the season.

After their win over Branham High School on Oct. 24, the Chargers have officially clinched REX LI PHOTO a spot in the Central Coast The Chargers celebrate scoring a point Section (CCS) playoffs. With only a few matches left to play in the regular To prepare for tough games, the girls began training for the season before it season, the Chargers will continue to started. In the summer, the team held try to take the first place ranking in the open gyms weekly. This was intended to Mount Hamilton Division and prepare give the players an opportunity to play themselves for the postseason. The team together before the season started in will start their run in the CCS playoffs the order to develop chemistry. With many week of Nov. 4, with the full schedule set of the girls coming from different club to release shortly.

DIANA YOUSEF-NEJAD PHOTO

DIANA YOUSEF-NEJAD PHOTO Trinity Yates ‘20 steps away from the net to spike a ball.

Joanna Yang ‘20 jumps upwards for a powerful serve

Quotebox: How do the Chargers practice for their games?

“My field hockey team has been trying to improve our practices by changing up the drills. They allow us to fix the problems we encountered during previous games, helping us play cohesively as a team while also preparing for future games.”

—Aarna Garg ’22, Field Hockey “Cross country practices usually consist of a mile warmup, a team meeting discussing our previous meets and a 5 mile run. My coach always finds a way to push my team to our mental and physical limits.”

—Melissa Cichon ’21, Cross Country

Compiled by Ashley Lee | Staff Writer

Muskaan Grewal

Athlete of the Month: Ryan Wahl

After contributing to multiple appearances in the Central Coast Section (CCS) finals, Ryan Wahl ‘20 hopes to cement his legacy for the Chargers’ Boys’ Water Polo team, by earning another CCS Championship for the school. In addition to his goals in water polo, Wahl is also preparing for his final season on the baseball team, as well as working on getting into college.

“It can be hard to manage all the school work and practices yearround, especially with multiple AP and Honors courses. I had to start utilizing any free time I had to get work done,” Wahl said.

As a 6’0” freshman, Wahl came into high school well-suited to play multiple sports and played on the JV water polo team, the JV basketball team and the JV baseball team. Now standing at 6’5”, Wahl no longer plays basketball for the school, but focuses on water polo and baseball only.

“A lot of people questioned my decision to quit basketball, especially because the two sports I picked over it offered me no advantages for being

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tall. I still enjoy playing basketball with my friends, but I just felt like it was too hard to balance playing three sports and schoolwork,” Wahl said.

As a key player on the water polo team, Wahl uses his size and strength to work his

Aside from being a leader on the water polo team, a large portion of Wahl’s time is currently dedicated to working on his applications for college. As a student Wahl challenges himself with multiple advanced classes and hopes that his work in school will help him get into the colleges he hopes to attend.

“Right now my main concern is finishing my college applications. I want to attend a school in southern California and major in business management or something similar to that,” Wahl said. “My goal is to eventually start my own business, likely something that is still connected to sports since it has always been such a big part of my life.”

Being a multi-sport athlete is challenging for Wahl, with practices YU YI LIU PHOTO and games often consuming the majority of his time outside of school.

Combined with his rigorous way into better positions in the pool. Wahl academic routine, Wahl fully embodies is able to use his height and long arms to what it means to be a student-athlete frequently make goal-scoring plays and to and looks forward to college, where the intercept passes from the other team. So endless opportunities will allow him to far this season, Wahl exceeds the national actively continue his passion for sports. average in goals, assists and steals per game.

Sports Controversy Should the NCAA compensate college athletes?

Sophia Lu

Feature School Editor

During his junior year of high school, basketball star Lamelo Ball made an unprecedented decision to drop out and take his talents overseas to Lithuania with team BC Prienai.

He also signed a contract with his family’s company, Big Baller Brand, receiving a signature shoe amongst many other benefits. By making these two choices, Ball effectively put an end to his National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) eligibility.

However, a new statute signed into law by Calif. Governor Gavin Newsom could have potentially reinstated Ball’s ability to play college basketball.

The newly passed legislation or Fair Pay to Play Act gives college athletes the ability to profit off of endorsement deals. In other words, colleges are no longer allowed to punish their athletes for making money from their athletic talents. Over the past few years, there has been an increasing number of high school basketball stars who have skipped college because their family was financially challenged. These players are often the sole bread winners for their families.

Passing the legislation will not only ensure the continuation of competitive college basketball, but will also provide athletes with an opportunity to obtain higher education. Several basketball players have been directly drafted from high school, but some of them quickly fizzled out of the NBA due to a lack of maturity. In a league where the average career lasts a mere 4.8 years, basketball players also need to learn essential skills that will keep them financially stable and productive, even after they finish their careers.

Even though the law will not be implemented until 2023, the NCAA has already filed a barrage of complaints against Newsom. The organization claims that the bill will lead to the deterioation of college athletics because it will give Calif. an unfair advantage in recruiting. While this may initially occur, several other states are also moving forward with passing the law. This means that within the next few years, the playing field should be equalized, thus resolving the NCAA’s main concern.

The most troubling detail is that the NCAA is using a small logistical hurdle to continue to deny compensation for college athletes. In 2018, the NCAA reported $1.1 billion in revenue, yet not a single dollar went to pay athletes for all of their hard work. College athletes sacrifice much of their time and health into helping their teams win, which generates an extraordinary level of competition at the college level.

The endorsements and benefits that athletes will receive come solely from third-party sponsorships like Nike or Chipotle. Not only does the NCAA already generate billions of dollars of revenue, but there really is no detriment for them to accept the new act because colleges will not even be forced to pay their athletes.

FOREIGN LANGUAGES SUBJECTS MATTER: GET SCHOOLED Early learning of foreign language bolsters communication skills

Serena Atkinson and Ashley Lee

Staff Writers

Before coming to the school, Sophomore Victoria Nguyen attended an McNabb said that many CEOs elementary and middle school where every student was required to take of big companies like the FBI and CIA Spanish annually. As Nguyen continued her education in Spanish in high value employees that speak foreign school, she expanded her understanding of linguistics and diverse cultures. languages. Additionally, “Learning foreign languages prior to high school would allow students the University to understand new concepts more easily during school, compared to if of Denver finds they were exposed to it in high school or college because speaking the that learning language would become second nature over time,” Nguyen said. foreign languages The Pew Research Center reports that only 20 percent of U.S. causes people students learn a foreign language in primary or secondary school. to become more However, learning a foreign language at a young age is crucial to sensitive and reaping the benefits of fluency in a second language later on. understanding of Due to their age, younger children learn “in the most other cultures. natural ways, play and exploration,” according to Blue There are also Linder, founder of the Sonrisa Spanish Curriculum. long-term benefits In fact, a study by the American Council on to fluency in a second language. the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) Mayo Clinic reported that people who routinely found that third-graders who were taught speak more than one language experience a delay in the conversational French for 15 minutes daily onset of Alzheimer’s disease, compared to others afflicted were more fluent in French than high school by the disease. students with equal instruction after one year.

Despite these benefits, school districts often refrain “Of course students should start learning from implementing these classes in primary school due foreign languages earlier, especially to a lack of funding. The New York Times reports that the because it is a skill that you need cost of fundamental classes such as English and Math nowadays in the global economy. prevent many districts from funding the annual $175,000 Overall, learning a world language required for foreign language classes. shows tolerance toward other cultures The only foreign language option in San Jose and all the perspectives of the world, Unified School District (SJUSD) elementary schools is which makes us better the Two-Way Bilingual Immersion (TWBI) program, citizens,” which is offered at Willow Glen, River Glen and Trace.

Mireille Students are taught in both English and Spanish from McNabb, kindergarten to at least fifth grade.

Foreign Most middle schools in the district offer Spanish and Language high schools offer at least one foreign language class, including Department, Spanish, French, Portuguese and Italian. San Jose City College also offers said.

American Sign Language and Japanese.

In many “Even though I only started learning French in my freshman jobs, being year, knowing the language has become extremely useful, bilingual is an especially when I went to France on an immersion trip last summer. asset. If a company I was better able to understand my host family as well as the culture, and I has branches abroad, finally realized the impact that learning foreign languages has on my appreciation knowing a foreign of other cultures,” Junior Sophie Lee said. language allows for easier communication with people.

Infographic: Foreign languages that students speak None: 48

Hindi: 10

Bangla: 2 Cantonese: 5

Maylayaam :1

German: 1

Mandarin: 50

Tamil: 1

Farsi: 11

Korean: 24

Hebrew: 3

Russian: 5

Spanish: 17

Swedish: 1

Italian: 1

Marathi: 1

Arabic: 1

American Sign Language: 1

Japanese: 3

e: Vietnames

10

Compiled by Serena Atkinson, Staff Writer 200 students polled

Quotebox: Will you use foreign languages in the future?

“Foreign languages are very important due to our increasingly global and interconnected world. With new innovations and technology, it is now easier than ever to contact someone an ocean away from you, and the ability to communicate is an invaluable skill needed to thrive in society. I will definitely use my skills in languages other than English in the future. Learning different languages is inherently useful, as the process of learning provides you with a different viewpoint and a deeper understanding of cultures around the world. I would definitely encourage everyone to learn a foreign language, even if it is not mandatory.”

— Senior Angela Shu

“I would continue to practice Spanish in the future because I know I am going to meet a lot more diverse people, and my foreign language skills will help me communicate with them. I hope students are not learning foreign language at school for graduation requirements only. More foreign languages should be available at school for students to have more opportunities to appreciate a wide variety of languages. I would encourage other students to learn foreign languages because students are able to engage in communication, listening and writing. ” ­— Junior Rebecca Ahn Compiled by Cindy Zhao, Staff Writer

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