DGG November 2019

DGG Dry Gulch Gazette Arroyo High School | Volume 59 Issue 1 | Nov. 6, 2019

ents d u t s nd y taff a heir famil s t a t k A loo part from a living 5 pg. 1

Looking Back

Photo | Vivian Liu

Dia de Los Muertos altar in the Main Hall, with pictures and other items placed by students to mourn loved ones on this November holiday.

Looking Forward

Letter from the Editor Dear DGG Readers,

Looking Forward

Photo | Christopher Yalung

Schoolwide Picnic is on November 15th, bringing the school together in an act of Don Pride.

College App Deadlines

NOV 30

JAN 1-15

MAR 2

CSU/UC deadlines are in a few weeks! Make sure to get your PIQs and supplemental writing finished and evaluated by your counselor.

Private college deadlines seem far away, but it’s best to get them started now. Get those letters of recommendation!

It is important to get the FAFSA done on time and as soon as possible so you can qualify for financial aid.

So my last year of high school started. The past three years of high school have been repetitive, just being hit with a truckload of work every single day. But something has changed...our new DGG staff!

This year, DGG welcomed new staff members, many of whom are writing news articles and laying out pages for the very first time. I would like to congratulate our staff for finishing our first issue of the 2019-20 school year so efficiently!

The production process seemed to have gone by very quickly. While we might not realize it, the well-deserved Thanksgiving break is approaching. We always say that we cannot wait to spend the time with our loved ones, but who exactly are our “loved ones”?

For many people, their “loved ones” are their closest family, their siblings and parents.

With the holiday season approaching, the special feature team decided explore several unique relationships between students and their close family from pages 15 to 19.

While some family structures may be different than the traditional structure, everyone has their unique way of thriving in their familial relationships.

Trinity Mai Editor-in-chief of the Dry Gulch Gazette

2

TABLE OF CONTENTS CAMPUS

21

4 - Teacherless ASL Classes 6 - Working in High School 7 - Choosing Chabot 8 - Cost of Being A Student 10 - AP Deadline

20

7

COMMUNITY

11 - New Director of Education 12 - Student Activists 13 - Special Education Hiring 14 - Hayward Library

28

31

A CLOSER LOOK

16 - Apart. Adopted. Away.

18 - Separation

12

OPINION

20 - Keep Costs Low 21 - Make Subs Useful 22 - Get Involved

ARTS & CULTURE

23 - AP Art Class 24 - Student-Sold Merchandise 26 - Fall Play 27 - Boba

29

14

24

SPORTS

28 - Dropping Players 29 - Kurt Bryan 30 - Jaccara Winchester 31 - Skateboarding @ AHS

26

COLUMN

32 - Political Awareness

Cover Photo Illustration | Vivian Liu, Chris Yalung, Trinity Mai, and Samantha Wang

CONTENTS

3

On September 13 students enrolled in ASL came to class and were greeted by a substitute and administrator instead of the teachers they have been with since the begininning of the year.

ASL one was told that they had to get new class and ASL two classes were told that they were going to have substitute until a new teacher was hired.

Two months later some students are still feeling that they have been left...

Empty Handed Illustration | Crystal Yeung

4

CAMPUS

By Angelina Buell and Jeneen Doctor

J

unior Alyssa Hannah came to her third period class on Friday September 13 to and was unpleasantly surprised. Instead of her former American Sign Language teacher, Pamela Jenkins, she was greeted by a substitute teacher and assistant Principal Nicole Sandoval.

When Hannah came to class, she saw on the board a list of electives to choose from.

“She [Sandoval] was like, ‘choose your elective,’ and I was like, ‘No.’” Hannah felt that it was unfair that she did not have an ASL teacher. Hannah expressed feelings of anger and disappointment and she wanted to do something about it.

Hannah first expressed how she felt on this matter on her Instagram and she got 257 likes. The post talked about how important ASL culture is and how important it is to keep ASL in schools.

Hannah went to the San Lorenzo Unified school district meeting, on September 17, to voice how she felt. At the meeting she talked about how it’s unfair that students in AHS don’t have an ASL teacher. The district responded by saying if students want to get their language credits for the ASL class, they would have to go to Chabot College on their own time.

“I’m not asking for the teachers jobs back, I’m just asking to keep ASL,” Hannah said.

Pamela Jenkins and Bret Bailey, the new ASL teachers were hired at the end of last year and were released after school on Sept

TIMELINE First day of school August 21, 2019

12, 2019. The two new ASL teachers were let go because they did not have the proper teaching credentials.

The California Department of Education states that in order for your classes to count, you have to have a fully credentialed teacher in the classroom, otherwise it won’t count for college.

“This was something that goes above us in order to protect the transcripts of the students so they can get into their four year college,” Sandoval said.

The ASL teaching test is one of the hardest tests to pass according to Sandoval, who once took the English Teaching credential test.

“I was an English teacher before and there was a test every month that I can take and it was in four little sections that I could keep going till it’s done. But for ASL

“I’m not asking for the teachers jobs back, I’m just asking to keep ASL.”

Junior Alyssa Hannah said

they have to line up people because they have to watch someone so it is not offered as often,”Sandoval said. She went on to say that even people who have been in the Deaf culture for a long time have even had trouble passing the test. A lot of people who are part of the Deaf culture and are proficient in the

language will become and interpreter instead of having to get a teaching credential on top of everything.

Sophomore Madison Pomsyda joined ASL because her middle school had the language, but she didn’t have the chance to take it. This year is her second year of ASL and she had Bailey. She was disappointed to find out that her teacher was gone before the school year has even really begun.

“I was confused and I thought it was unfair,” Pomsyda explained.

The week of November 4th the ASL 2 students will start an online program to learn ASL. According to a voicemail sent out by principal James Gray on Oct. 27.

“We will have an online credential teacher to support the curriculum for edgenuity,” Gray said in the voicemail.

Edgenuity is an online video based curriculum for middle and high school. Gray continues to say that the class will have 2 sections that is divided by semester. The students will have the whole year to finish the program. The tests that are given in that class will be supervised by a procter or the teacher in the class. The after school credit recovery teacher Jeff Baughman will be available for any students that want to work on the program after school. •

There has been 54 school days since the 2019-2020 school year started. The year started with two ASL teachers and more than eight class sections. Due to credentialing issues both teachers were let go in mid-September. As of Nov.4 ASL one classes were dissolved and ASL are starting a new online program. Below is a timeline on how we got here.

Junior Alyssa Hannah speaks at School Board Meeting September 17, 2019

ASL teachers last day September 12, 2019

ASL two students start online ASL program November 4, 2019

CAMPUS

5

What It Costs To Earn Student workers face the struggle of two different work loads.

Photo | Firstname Lastname

By Aaliyah Montgomery

E

6

very weekend, junior Semhar Tesfamicael leaves her house at around 2 p.m. and does not return home until 10 p.m. at the latest. As school is for most, Tesfamicael’s main priority and focus is on her education. She created her schedule around instructional days so that she is able to take care of her schoolwork throughout the school week.

“I used to struggle a lot throughout the week when I used to work [from] Monday to Friday. I lowered it down to just weekends so that I can have Monday to Friday off, so I can focus on school,” Tesfamicael said.

According to the California Labor Code, teenagers are allowed to work up to four hours outside of school on a day of instruction and up to eight hours on a non instructional day. The maximum teenagers can work a week is up to 48 hours.

Tesfamicael believes that she benefits from working a lot. She explained how she had gained so much from working overall.

She has gained many qualities and a great learning experience while working during high school. Tesfamicael has learned how to reponsible, understand the deeper meaning to money, and encountered many helpful experiences.

“I can pay for my own stuff. I don’t have to keep asking my parents to buy me things I can easily get myself. It also taught me how to commit to something. Ownership as well, having my own responsibilities and items that I know I paid for. Learning how to deal with money. It gives me good experiences and skills that I’ll need for the future,” Tesfamicael said.

Junior Kaos Lowe also works a part time job while attending high school. He also finds earning money for getting to experience what the real world is like is an amazing opportunity. Lowe has gained many qualities as well.

“Working in high school really does help me. It’s made me more independent, in a lot of ways I’ve learned how to be a better

CAMPUS

Photo | Nanda Bean

Junior Semhar Tesfamicael working at her job at Walmart in San Lorenzo. Right now, she works weekends and focuses on school throughout the day. person. It’s kind of made a way for me to get experience in the working field. Working with others is a lot harder than it looks, you learn to cope with others,” Lowe said.

However, there are challenges for students who choose to work in high school.

For Tesfamicael, it creates a time crunch for her. Having to fit in loads of school work and work shifts on the weekend can be a struggle.

“Depending on how much I work and the time I work. Sometimes when I work early it’s a little bit better because then I can come home earlier and get some rest. When I close or when I work late the next morning I feel really lazy and at a loss of energy. I feel like I don’t want to get up and go to school,” Tesfamicael said.

Junior Paulina Rubios’s mother does not allow her to work in high school. Rubios’s mother believes it is best if Rubio focuses completely on her studies and minimizes almost all, if any, distractions. Rubios’s mother wants her to be engaged with her learning.

“My mother doesn’t allow me to work in high school, I simply do not have permission

to. She’d rather me gain all group working experience with in my school environment and stay focused on my studies,” Rubio said.

Another challenge for students who work during high school is getting work hours.

Lowe feels like this is one main problem of working in high school. He believes it can make work life more complicated because you do not receive enough hours.

“Managing my work and my school with in a long shift is challenging. Sometimes I don’t even receive work hours,” Lowe said.

In spite of the challenges of working in high school, there are so many beneficial factors. Lowe believes that he made the correct choice of wanting to work in high school. He also believes that the type of student that would be successful at working and attending school is someone who is dedicated and wants the work experience.

“If you keep pushing forward and don’t give up, you would be a great candidate for a youth worker. I’m sure anyone who aspires to gain skills and be good at group work would fit swell in the work field,” Lowe said.

•

Illustration | Crystal Yeung

Choosing Chabot Students cite proximity and pricing as reasons for staying local.

By David Ye

A

ccording to data from National Clearinghouse, which tracks students after they leave high school, 314 students from the Class of 2018 and 308 students from the Class of 2019 currently attend a 2-year college, which shows that AHS students lean towards 2-year colleges.

Alumnus Kien Doan, says that he picked Chabot for its low costs and locality.

“[My] main reason is financial since I don’t get much aid, so I kinda am saving [50 thousand dollars] at least compared to a lot of other options,”

Similar to Doan, Alumnus Andrew Aquino, also attends Chabot for convenience and to use his time there to figure out where he wants to go and what to be.

“If you want to go to college, why not go somewhere where it’s cheaper than the traditional four year route?” Aquino asks. “Plus, you can transfer to your dream school while taking classes on what you want to do and spending less than the others who are there for four years.”

These sentiments are reflected in student interactions with Career Center Specialist Cecilia Adams. Adams thinks that many students who attend Chabot are uncertain of their future, and attending Chabot allows them to find out what line of work they are interested in, and are given ways

to get them started on those career paths.

“Typically, what happens is they’re not sure of their career path, and so a college education guides them and also has resources on campuses, so most campuses have career centers that are valuable to those students because it gives them an opportunity to apply for internships, develop their resume and interview skills, and an opportunity to go into interviews and apply for particular companies that they would not know about unless they have that opportunity.“

“If you want to go to college, why not go somewhere where it’s cheaper than the traditional four year route?”

- Class of 2019 Alumnus Andrew Aquino

On the other hand, though state colleges or UCs are often highly praised for academic achievements, some students of those colleges would prefer to attend Chabot.

Alumni Jamiel Sampson, currently attends

Sacramento State University. He chose to attend Sac State because he wanted to immerse himself in the college environment and live in a dorm, though living on-campus has its differences to living at home.

“...I get to make my own choices and have much more freedom.

It still is a little challenging though,” Sampson said. “I have to wake up on time and I can’t be lazy with homework.”

Although he is confident in a career in theater and enjoys Sac State and initially did not consider Chabot as a college choice, he is considering transferring in the future, like so many students tend to do. “I still do consider it for next year, just because I was making a lot of money and could have saved a lot,” Sampson said.

Thus, many AHS students prefer Chabot because of its proximity and prices.

Though the bridge from high school to college can be a hard one to cross, Doan still thinks that Chabot is a solid choice for students who plan to stay and those who plan to transfer.

“I would say yes to Chabot being a good choice; it is the same classes that I would take at a UC, I won’t have to worry about loans, and it is close to home,” Doan said. •

CAMPUS

7

In the 2018-2019 school year, a senior who went to every dance, senior cruise, senior picnic, took two AP classes, SAT w/ essay, bought yearbook, senior poraits, and cap and gown spent...

Illustration | Samantha Wang

TOTAL COST: $834.50 This is not always feasible. As a result, some students are

Weighing the Costs

24 8

CAMPUS

Illustration | Crystal Yeung

By Sara Giretto

S

enior Christie Feng feels frustrated with the prices of school events here at AHS. She is being forced to make tough decisions between what to prioritize: fun school events, or her academic undertakings.

“I feel like I am missing out on potential memories.”

Feng is an example of a problem that some students are struggling with: feeling like they are not getting the entire high school experience due to the high prices.

In recent years, school events have become something that some students are unable to afford to go to, due to expensive fees. This has created a new mentality that school activities are a waste of money and are of bad quality, overall hurting school spirit and engagement at AHS. This trend was shown recently, when senior picnic was almost cancelled, making ASB and leadership have to rally together to try to get more students to buy tickets.

The cost of student activities at AHS can be upwards of $300 when the bills for dances, yearbooks, (and for seniors) senior cruise, and senior picnic are added up.

This is coupled with the costs of academic endeavors as well, such as AP tests, SATs, and graduation apparel, which can set students back over $200. Families can find it difficult to manage such high costs, and ultimately, some students are unable to partake in everything.

However, Finance Technician Angela Cirimele believes it is important to know why school events are priced the way they are.

There are many factors that go into pricing

events, and everything comes with a cost.

“There’s the venue, cops, DJ, decorations, food and insurance. That’s where the money goes for every event,” said Cirimele.

Director of Student Activities Jennifer Rodrigues further justifies the cost of school events, breaking down the expenses of school functions, such as prom and homecoming, that aren’t held at AHS.

“You can talk to people if you are struggling with money.

They’re willing to help, you just have to be willing to ask,”

ASB Vice President Hailey Silveira said.

“When things are off campus, prices are higher. This is because we have to pay for SRO’s (School Resource Officers), and the facility, things of that nature,” Rodrigues said.

Nonetheless, the result of these prices is that students like Feng have to make hard choices about what events and experiences are worth the cost.

“I feel like with yearbook it’s different because for me it’s my last year and that’s better for memories, but with senior picnic it’s kind of just like whatever,” Feng said.

Thankfully, this is a problem with a variety of possible solutions. It boils down to a need for better communication between students

and staff, as well as more engaged classes willing to dedicate their time to raise money to fund school events.

ASB vice president Hailey Silveira was asked what misconceptions she thinks exist regarding school events.

“That they’re super expensive and that the dances are bad, but they’re only bad because students don’t participate.

There’s not enough money to spend to make the dances ‘wow!’,” Silveira said.

The funding for school events is lacking, and so, ticket prices are higher than they have to be. However, Rodrigues claims a way to solve this problem would be class-wide fundraising.

“If the classes do more fundraisers as a group, then that would help alleviate some of the costs.”

Silveira emphasized the importance of resources and reaching out when you are struggling, and not letting your voice go unheard.

“You can talk to people if you are struggling with money. They’re willing to help, you just have to be willing to ask,” Silveira said.

Cirimele remains optimistic, encouraging students to get more involved in their school events to help balance out the scale moving forward.

“You can’t just complain, you have to be involved. So go to your class meetings, if there’s a class meeting, go to the class meeting. Have ideas and think outside of the box,” Cirimele said. •

CAMPUS

259

New AP Deadline Time is running out to register for AP exams.

By Dorothy Hoang

L

ast year, senior Aira Borlongan was not planning to take the AP biology test because the cost of the exam was too much, and she had to pay for other things along with the exam. After further convincing from teachers, Borlongan realized how much effort she has put into the classes.

“The moment I realized I wanted to take the test was when I realized how hard I worked in those AP classes to just not take the test,” Borlongan said.

Students like Borlongan will not have much time to decide if they want to take the AP exam due to the new deadline this year.

The College Board decided that the date to register for an AP exam is going to be earlier this year. For AHS students, the deadline will be on the 31st of October, instead of in March, where it has been in recent years.

Social studies teacher Jodi Soares believes that the date is actually beneficial for the students’ mindset. Her evaluation of this situation is that she sees that the new due date will lead to students being more prepared for the AP exam. Since the due date is earlier, students will be able to pay and

know that there is going to be money on the line. With money on the line, students will take the test more seriously.

“Sometimes students feel ‘oh I haven’t prepared well’ or ‘oh I’m just kind of lazy and it’s towards the end of the year I don’t want to take the test’ but if you put your money up front early I think it will count down on that,” Soares said.

Biology teacher Samantha Johnson believes that the early deadline will not have an affect the students if they all register on time. However, a problem Johnson found is that students may be uncomfortable with the early deadline.

“My concern is that fewer people are gonna feel comfortable registering this early,” Johnson said. “The danger is that the first year something like this happens because there’s lots of things that we have to figure out. Sometimes it doesn’t work as well the first year as it will like next year.”

Analogous to Johnson’s point of view, Borlongan believes the new deadline does not give students enough time to make the decision of if they want to take the AP exam

or not.

“I think they should give students more opportunities as in having [the deadline] later in the year, especially if you’re a senior because you have to pay for a lot of other stuff too,” Borlongan said.

Soares’s concern about the change is that students will not have enough money by the time of the deadline. Since Christmas is just around the corner, students would have spent their money on the holidays instead of paying for AP tests.

“The only thing I am concerned about a January due date is [that] it’s the month after Christmas. A whole lot of parents have spent the money on Christmas, they might not have it in January,” Soares said.

The outcome of this change may continue take effect future AP students. But Soares hopes that there will be a takeaway from this earlier deadline.

“Kids perhaps will take the test more seriously,” Soares said. •

Tickets are $5 in the Finance Office

or $10 at the door November 14th & 15th 7:00pm **in the Arroyo High School Cafeteria

Photo | David Ye

Renne Lama attending session regarding her new position as Director of Secondary Education.

New Director of Secondary Education

Renne Lama moves from West Contra County Unified District to SLZUSD.

By Crystal Yeung

H

aving been teaching in the district for eleven years, Principal James Gray feels as if his worries are reassured and his ideas are going to made possible due to the new Director of Secondary Education.

“I feel a peace, a calming,” Gray said.

Renee Lama takes up the position of Director of Secondary Education in the San Lorenzo Unified School District as of July first. Although, having been teaching for 22 years and was an administrator as a Director of Curriculum and Instruction in the West Contra County Unified District, Lama wanted to take on the position of administration she has always wanted as Jeanette Hernandez stepped down from her position to pursue teaching college, giving the baton the Lama.

Gray believes that although change is inevitable, it can be a good thing. “[A positive effect of having a new Director of Secondary Education is] new ideas. New ways of thinking about things and solving problems, and new ways of creating systems.

For instance, she’s put in a couple of things in a couple of places that will safe-gaurd us [teachers] from having to do extra work. She’s got us looking at how to establish a few more protocols with making sure when we set up systems for compensation for teachers, that we do it in a stream line of fashion,” Gray said.

Now that Lama is the new director, Gray feels that his ideas can be put forth and be achieved as he faced some communication challenges with Hernandez. Gray feels that Lama has the same thinking and vision that he has; they both have the willingness to explore options and opportunities for students, such as, working towards a paid

internship program provided to the SLCs. “[To me,] it feels like we got the right person,” Gray said.

Science Teacher Samantha Johnson shares her thoughts on the new change as well. Johnson has been teaching at Arroyo for nine years and has experienced three role changes of the Director of Secondary Education throughout her time working as a science teacher.

“I’m always optimistic when new people come in,” Johnson said. “I think that when you get somebody new, they bring in new ideas that we maybe haven't considered as a community because they aren't thinking the same way as everybody else, so I think that there’s a bigger opportunity for innovation when we bring in other people, which is good.”

As a Director of Secondary Education, Lama oversees the schooling of grade levels.

“I’m over the high schools, middle schools, and adult schools. I provide support to the principals and administration on those sites on running the programs, supporting them with instructions, curriculum, pretty much anything that happens that have to do with running a secondary site,” Lama said.

As Director of Secondary Education in the San Lorenzo Unified School District, Lama hopes to improve the consistency of systems throughout the district.

“I think we need to develop some systems that are common across the district. So what I’m finding, is the way we do things at Arroyo might be different than the way we do things at East Bay [Arts], and it might be different than the way that we do things at San Lorenzo High,” Lama says.

She plans to work on the Systems

Alignment, which makes sure the process of schooling is consistent across the district.

Johnson also shares her hopes for the new Director of Secondary Education and new district. Because she is the head of the SLCs in AHS, Johnson shares her opinion on her hopes for the SLCs. “I’m really hoping that she is supportive of small learning communities and continues to work with us to make sure that we’re doing the very best that we can to keep them as functional as possible.”

Lama further wishes to improve the relationships between counselors and students. She hopes to improve the way that counselors work with students, and the way they evaluate and respond to kids when they are not doing well academically.

“I will be working with counselors and I will be meeting with them once a month, so together, we could look at what does that look like, how soon do we know when kids are struggling, and what are the different things we can do to give support to families, to let families know kids are struggling, let kids know: ‘you’re struggling, let’s come up with a plan for how we can get up out of struggling into being successful,’” Lama says.

With her new position as Director of Secondary Education, Lama bears a big responsibility. However, with wanting to change how students in the SLZUSD learn, Lama will continue to work hard to achieve her goals for this district.

“Where I feel most comfortable is working with school sites and working with principals, assistant principals, [and] trying to figure out what are the ways we can make [education] better for the kids that we serve,” Lama said. •

COMMUNITY

11

Engaging In Activism

Students continue to participate in protests, both on and off campus.

By Sarah Amani

“O

12

ur planet is literally dying.”

Senior Delilah Martinez shares her concerns when it comes to the fate of our planet. But she is not the only one who has taken a stand over the years. The clock is ticking but our own students have taken it upon themselves to use their voices in events such as marches and clubs activities to represent their beliefs and opinions on pressing issues in order to be heard.

On September 20, a group of students from the Green Club and their advisors, English teachers Kaedan Peters and Jessica Vaughn, participated in the Global Climate Strike. They marched across the streets of San Francisco wielding posters and megaphones in hopes of invoking change among our communities to stand against climate change. Instead of attending school that day, students prioritized the march, it’s significance overriding the petty absence they would receive afterwards.

The September 20 Climate Strike is one of the few instances of student activism from the AHS community in the past few years.

Last spring students partook in the climate change awareness walkout while In March 2018 students participated in the gun control walkout as well.

“It’s really cool to see so many students come to together to see that it’s not a scary thing to be apart of.”

English and ELD teacher and fellow advisor of the Green Club, Jessica Vaughn, applauds the students who attended the march while acknowledging the amount of responsibility it holds.

“It takes a level of courage to get involved in politics in such a public manner.”

The president of the Green club, sophomore Jennifer Leung, feels that although there has been a lack of student involvement in previous years, she has noticed a gradual increase recently.

“It’s a start that we do walkouts because it shows support [among students],” Leung said. “This year I have seen a lot of clubs about student action such as our club [green club] or red cross club” Martinez states that her intentions justify her absence from school.

“I missed school for a good cause, a good reason, and many students feel the same way.”

Even though her mindset represents the positive turnout from the march, other

COMMUNITY

students may not attend for other reasons.

“People think we’re too young and may prevent others from attending by saying their voices won’t be heard,” Leung said.

Regardless of those claims, Leung calls students to push forth and disregard those accusations.

“You should show support for these issues because it makes an impact on our future,” Martinez said.

Like Martinez, Leung believes adults are the reason students are discouraged from wanting to participate in activism efforts.

“They think adults wouldn’t really consider their suggestions, even though it’s our future on the line,” Leung said.

But as of recent, our students are changing the tide in their favor to take measures into their own hands and the staff at AHS feel the same way.

Now, more than ever, Vaughn feels as though we are surrounded by a generation of students who want nothing more than to break the cycle of silence and pursue causes they resonate with.

“In the wake of both walkouts such as gun control and environmental issues, there is an upward progression happening among students,” Vaughn said.

Vaughn presumes there is another element that explains the rise in activism at AHS. “Because students today can relate to so many political issues that are really hot button topics on the news, I see more students standing up to voice their opinions.”

“I think the next step is to inform more people, make posters and tell people how they can get involved,” Leung said.

With two Green clubs followed by a surplus of other student activist clubs on campus, the future of AHS is wistfully awaiting it’s next calling as students intend to participate in marches next year as well such as the women’s march and student walkouts .

“Why not? If you believe in something you should support that.”

“My voice was heard, even though I’m just one person,” Martinez said. •

Protesting Through the Years

Students voice their opinions in walkouts and marches over the course of the past few years.

Photo | Winnie Lai

March 2018 Gun Control Walkout at AHS

Photo |Rizelle Jugarap

March 2018 Climate Justice Walkout at AHS

Photo | Alyssa Hannah

September 2019 Global Climate Strike in San Francisco

Hiring Teachers from the Outside SLZUSD looks overseas for teachers to hire to address the shortage in special education teachers.

By Vivian Liu and Nanda Bean

D

espite moving to California only recently, special education teacher Ramira Ballocamug was already up on her feet and expected to teach students of a culture she was not accustomed to.

Compared to the Philippines, California, let alone the entire United States, was a foreign and whole new experience. For Ballocamug, her first few days were the most memorable. “[It was] nerve-wracking. Of course, coming from the Philippines, it was a culture shock for us and we had different adjustments with the weather and the culture. It was pretty difficult for us, the first few days the first few weeks,” Ballocamug said.

Ballocamug was one of the two teachers that were hired from the Philippines and came to work at Arroyo as of this school year.

A total of 16 teachers from the Philippines were hired overseas in the district, and they were hired from the Alder program.

The Alder program is designed to offer teachers residency while allowing them to further their teaching career. For teachers like Ballocamug, this was an opportunity to experience the United States while teaching students.

For the past few years, there has been a shortage in teachers, particularly in the special education department. The role of a special education teacher is not for everyone as teachers must be aware of emotional states of their students as well as keep them on track with their academics. The district decided to alleviate the shortage in special education teachers by partaking in the Alder Program, and attempting to recruit more teachers from elsewhere.

Amy Capurro, director of special education and health services in the San Lorenzo district, offers insight on the shortages within the district. She believes that the shortages have been ongoing for a long time, and have become increasingly prominent in the last five or six years.

“So this year we just started our teacher residency program. It’s called the San Lorenzo USD Teacher Residency Program at the Alder Graduate School of Education.

So we’re partnering with a graduate school, non-profit graduate school, so that we are recruiting for teachers in our community.

So we’re recruiting for people that have their bachelor’s that might be interested in teaching and then they get their Masters degree and their credential in one year and

they’re paired all year long with a master teacher in our district. So we have four special education teacher residents right now. They’re in the classroom all year long and learning how to be a teacher in a practical way with one of our master special education teachers, at the same time that they are... finishing their program to become a teacher,” Capurro said.

English teacher Robert Guarino is part of the teacher union. He believes that teachers are not receiving enough benefits to keep them at schools in the district.

“See, part of the current problem is high turn-over. You know so it’s not just a question of filling vacancies. It’s long term and the only solution to the high-turnover and the vacancies are health benefits and salaries that are competitive with surrounding districts...and the money is there, so that is the greatest frustration. The school district has run surpluses now for over a decade.

So the money is there. So anybody who tells you if the money is not there is not being straightforward. They’re playing games with the budget,” Guarino said.

Assistant principal Kristian Hinz talks about the district taking action to recruit teachers from other places.

“I think the district was going out and recruiting in different places. So not just abroad in the Philippines but other communities. You know there are a couple of factors that make this complex too is the Bay Area is very expensive to live. I think that’s what the district is trying to do–expand recruiting opportunities,” Hinz said.

Although the teacher shortage continues to be an ongoing issue, Hinz believes supporting special education teachers will be a collective effort on the part of the district, the school, and the special education department.

“Can the district operate in a more effective manner to support [special education] teachers? Absolutely. Can Arroyo and the site and the administration operate more effectively to support special ed. teachers so they don’t leave? Absolutely.

Can the department itself–the special ed. department and the personnel in it–operate more effectively to support special ed. teachers so we don’t lose them and we retain them? Yes, absolutely.” •

Statisitcs at a Glance: Teacher Shortage Amy Capurro, director of special education and health services in SLZUSD, attributes the shortages in teachers to an ongoing teacher shortage crisis that is impacting the entire state of California. According to the CTA (California Teacher’s Association), here are some statistics on the issue in California.

75% decrease in enrollment in teacher preparation programs

20% new hires leave the classroom within three years

24:1 vs. 16:1 Studentteacher ratio in California

national average of studentteacher ratio

135, 000

Amount of teachers California would have to hire just to get to the national average COMMUNITY

13

New Public Hayward Library

New oppurtunity for AHS students to experience a more modern library.

By Joseph Licano

Photo | Joseph Licano

The new Hayward public library is located in dowtown Hayward. It offically opens to the public on September 14.

E

14

nglish teacher Kay Zimmerman believes in the public library’s ability to help the community.

“Library are free resources for anyone in the community, where everyone can go with no limitations,” Zimmerman said One new opportunity for AHS to students to engage with libraries is the new Hayward Public Library that opened on Sept. 14. The new library is 58,000 square feet, and has 120 thousand items which includes books, movies and music and 85 computers available to the public. The city of Hayward knew the great beneficial support that libraries provided the public, with this idea in heart, plans were set in motion to start construction of a new library which would begin in 2015. The set date for the original opening was set for Oct. 2018 however, decisions were made to push the date back so that every aspect of the library was met with a standard that the city of Hayward and the librarians thought would meet the expectations of the public.

Supervising librarian Sally Thomas gives a more detailed reason as to why there was an elongated delay to the opening of the library, one of their biggest concerns was safety.

“We had hoped to open the library in October of 2018 but construction projects of this nature is complex...We had to get all the permits so that we can ensure the public’s safety,” Thomas said.

The new library was built to take the place

COMMUNITY

of the old Hayward Library which was built in the 1950’s. On July 14, 2018, it was torn down during the construction of the new library.

Due to its age and the growing population in the city, many in the community believed it was time to have a library that was more urban.

“I think having a state of the art library like this one is really a signal to our community and the Bay Area community that Hayward is a city that really wants to cultivate learning, community gathering, and presentation of art,” Thomas said.

The new library is also a great new resource for high school students. Many new programs are offered like the new teen book group, a drop in homework support center and individual study rooms that can be reserved for up to two hours. During construction, advice from local teens were also implemented for the new teen room.

“We got a lot of input from our teen advisory group, so they spent a very inventive process with the architects and they really incorporated a lot of their ideas in making a space that was exclusive to teens,” Thomas said.

Zimmerman hopes to increase her students usage to the local libraries, just recently she took her ninth grade English class on a field trip to the San Lorenzo library.

“I wanted my students to be exposed to the public library. I wanted them to know

where it was, how to use it, and how to check out books so that they have something to read for the first semester for my class,” Zimmerman said.

Other additional programs are currently being added to the library. One area that is currently still being constructed is the Digital Media Lab which is supposed to open in the next six months or so, this program will allow people who are interested in digital media, a chance to work with more advanced computer equipment in workshops on how to use Photoshop and movie software. An audio lab is also being added into the library for people interested in sound recording.

“We are currently working on bringing people who have the skills to teach and so we can offer opportunities for college students or even high school students who have the skills or just want to learn more about digital media,” Thomas said.

“The library is just a place for people to come and pursue whatever interests them and really motivates them to aspire to improve themselves in whatever ways they want to or just be entertained...We or the whole community in general is excited about what this new library offers to the downtown area, but also to the community at large, we think its a beginning to a lot more opportunities,” Thomas said. •

Distance Staff and students share the experience of being separated from their families by distance.

Illustration | Samantha Wang

SPECIAL FEATURE

15

Apart. A Aw

Two siblings express sentiments towards their older brother in China.

By Samantha Wang

F

reshman Ewan Sun and junior Calvin Sun have met their oldest brother in person once. And went shopping together twice. And ate together three times.

And that’s it.

Video calls became the only way they could communicate with each other. It has been a long time since they first met their oldest brother, long enough that Ewan cannot recall when she and her siblings last saw him in person. It was a few years ago that they finally got a chance to go to China and meet him. Although it was the first time they met, Calvin and Ewan felt bonded.

“We only met face-to face-one time,” Ewan said. “I went to China [in 2016]. We had gotten really close at that time.”

Calvin and Ewan can only video call their brother during holidays and some weekends since their parents and their oldest brother usually have work. Due to living in different countries and having different time zone, it is hard for Calvin and Ewan to communicate with their oldest brother.

“Sometimes he is busy, so we won’t be able to talk to him,” Ewan said. “[If we can talk face to face] we will talk more than face timing ’cos we will have more time to talk with each other communicate better.”

Because of this long distance separation with their oldest brother, missing him is inevitable.

“My dad has been using [a social media app] to video call my older brother, and every time I see him, I would be so happy. But when we stop talking, I started feeling sad because it is usually the only time I get to see him— just over the phone,” Calvin said.

Although they talk over the phone, they still feel a disconnection with their oldest brother because they don’t get to know each other on a more personal level. “[I] feel like the people around me, I’m very

close to them. But with [my] oldest brother, we are disconnected,” Ewan said. “I don’t really know him as much as my older brother or younger brother. Since I don’t spend time with him, I don’t know his actions, behavior, [and] personality maybe. I might not know him fully.”

To Ewan, her oldest brother is more of a friend of hers because of the lack of interaction between her and her oldest brother.

“I feel like he is more of a friend because we are not as close, [or] I’m not as close with him as my older brother and my younger brother that live with me,” Ewan continued. “Me and my younger brother and my older brother, we tend to do things together, but without my oldest brother being here, we can’t do this type of activities with each other.”

However, Ewan believes this connection will fade if she and her oldest brother stop communicating through technology.

“When I call him [oldest brother]—with just audio—it just doesn’t feel like I am connecting with him; it’s just talking. But when I talk to him face to face, I feel more connected to him. I feel like my relationship is deeper with them,” Ewan said. “I want to keep in touch with him later in the future. I want to have a different relationship with him.” •

Students share lifestyles as ad

By Alexis May Go

I

magine adopting four children of varying ages all at once. The Touzles did just that to raise their dream family.

Junior Carlos Toulze was adopted at the age of two. He has two older sisters, an older brother, and one younger brother. Both of these brothers are his biological siblings.

“I guess since most of us are adopted that makes us unique, but like I think we’re pretty much like a normal family,” Toulze said.

Toulze claimed that he had always known that he was adopted and he liked that because he did not have the “identity crisis” of not knowing where you came from. However, he does not know why he was given up for adoption but he is well aware of his biological family. He also has two other biological brothers who live with his mother. He sees them and his grandmother occasionally but nevertheless, he believes that being adopted at an early age made it easier for him to adjust to his adopted family. For family reunions, Toulze attends the ones on his adopted side of the family and spends time with them during Thanksgiving and Christmas.

“Thanksgiving is always fun, it’s y’know quality family time, hang out, watch movies, eat… sometimes we go mini-golf, bowling, y’know, the fun things,” Toulze said.

Senior Melanie Zhen was adopted at 11 months by a Japanese father and a Chinese mother with whom she celebrates both cultures with. Unlike Touzle, she does not know where her biological parents are and had tried to contact the orphanage in which she was adopted from. Unfortunately, it has closed down along with any records or traces that she can use to find her parents. The only bit of information that she has regarding her background is that she was originally born in China and was brought to America shortly after birth. She also wonders if China’s one-child policy (that has been changed to two-children since 2016) has anything to do with her separation from her parents.

Despite this loss, Zhen defined family as being

What is your definition of family?

“[Family are] people who care about you [and] people who will help you when things are bad. ” - Senior Donte Kountz

16

SPECIAL FEATURE

p y m

s a

w s l w g o w

d w

Adopted. way.

Student shares his experience with having minority consent.

s adopted children.

s e

f d s

s a

t d e y e r e t t o e y g

w … e

s h e l e t s f d s o n g

g

By Jose Chavez people “who you let into your life… who supports you [and] loves you.” Zhen later added, “There’s so many opposites but I find it harmonious.”

Toulze had a similar definition of family and said, “Family is someone you love and care for but also someone who loves and cares for you.”

As he answered this question, his friends who were present during this interview quietly snickered right next to them and whispered, “I love you.” At this moment, Touzle joked that they were definitely not part of his family. “Not these guys, no, no. Especially not him!” He gestured to one of his friends and claimed that one of them was “alright.”

“It’s more like just us eating my mom, my dad, my brothers, my sisters just eating food, jus’ watching movies; pretty normal.” •

T

he realization came clear. At an early age he began to realize that his father’s actions would hurt his childhood.

Seeing the repercussions of his father’s actions, he took the initiative to take control of his own life.

“It became a lot more difficult to deal with how much this person—this applies to both of my parents—[who] I’m supposed to look up to… [To] look that direction and not have anything reliable there. He was very manipulative. He was not good to the people who weren’t his kids. I didn’t think it was right, so I left for my own sake,” senior Roan Quinn said.

Quinn has lived most of his life without the help of his parents. At a young age, he was handed minority consent, meaning that he was allowed to have some freedom but still be under the control of his mother, and according to him this was a good thing.

This was caused by the lack of parental involvement in his life and an overall want to not rely on his parents for things. Then his parents had separated, and although he now lives with his mother, he does everything that his mother does not do. He comes home only to find an empty house, he does all he can to feed himself, he looks after his brothers, and he does everything for himself. He spends most of his time by himself, feeling alone and without anyone to rely on. ”It really helps to be in someone’s company[since] I’ve been soloing for so long. I spend a lot of my time out. I have a legal curfew, [but] I can pretty much go out of town and I won’t face repercussions for that.

I like to stay out of the house, mostly for my own health,” Quinn said.

Quinn feels that the school system’s assumption that every family has two parents with an education and jobs is frustrating to deal with.

“My classes like to get comparative, you

know, especially when talking about futures like what your mother or father do, how they turn out. Part of me has a little bit of pressure to be somewhat like your parents [but] not personality wise or job wise but as in this assumed status that they’re doing okay,” Quinn said.

Quinn explained to me that he acquired minority consent because his mother was always missing in his life, and that talking to counselors about the lack of parental figures helped him get minority consent. “[Minority consent] was handed to me.

There was just patterns how infrequently my mother responded to anything. With how much I would speak with my counselor about how much I pretty much took care of myself and always would have. If I really try to depend on my mother it would take weeks to get a syllabus signed,” Quinn said.

“It [was] difficult to get things signed by my mother because I don’t see her. It would always be late [or] cutting it close [with] syllabus assignments at the beginning of the year. It was a bad way to start the year. With field trips, it would always be close or else I didn’t get to go. It’s that last step, I don’t forge signatures, and it makes it real tough. [But] then again, I’m 17,” Quinn said. •

“The definition of family [is people] you don’t exactly have to be blood related [to]. In the literal term [family] is blood-related, but I think it’s people who support you and love you for who you are.”

- Junior Joey Lau SPECIAL FEATURE

17

SEPARATION

Teacher and student recount stories of being separated from family.

Photo Illustration | Jose Chavez and Sebastian Lopez

By Trinity Mai and Sebastian Lopez

A

HS resource specialist Jarisse Garcia arrived in the United States from the Philippines on August 15, 2019.

After seeing an advertisement on social media, Garcia applied to become a teacher and was assigned to an interview here in San Lorenzo. Previously living with her family in the Philippines, Garcia now has to grow accustomed to a foreign culture and become more independent. However, the ramifications of moving have been difficult.

“It’s been so sad. It's really hard, especially [since] I'm used to having someone who can cook for me [and] someone who can clean my room for me,” Garcia said. “But here, it’s all by myself...I’m having homesickness. [During] my first two weeks, I couldn’t sleep at night.”

While Garcia moved to America and separated from her family voluntarily, there are many that are forced to be thousands of miles away from their family. When junior Servando Olalde was in the third grade, he learned of his father’s legal status from his mother. Olalde’s mother, who was a U.S. citizen at the time, voluntarily went to Mexico with his father, leaving Olalde and his sister to live with their grandmother until his parents came back a year and a half later with legal status.

“I ran downstairs...and my mom just said, ‘Hey, your dad’s leaving. He’s going to Mexico for a good time.’...So he and my mom had to leave and go back to Mexico,” Olalde said.

During that time, Olalde learned to live independently and do things that ordinarily his parents would do. He learned how to take

care of both himself and those who depend on him, such as his sister and grandmother.

“It was an experience where I had to learn how to grow up. I became the man of the house,” Olalde said. “So I had to learn how to cook, how to wash dishes, how to clean up the house, [and how] to help my grandma.”

Despite the struggles, Garcia believes that being separated from her family will impact her positively. Not only did she learn skills for living independently but also gained a new mindset. With these new changes, she does not regret coming to the United States.

“I’m learning a lot, and I’m growing. I can say that I am growing holistically, spiritually, Philippines physically, emotionally, mentally, professionally, everything. I don’t regret it, it's just homesickness I am having [a] struggle with,” Garcia said. •

“My definition of family [is] just the people that you love and [are]

with me in the beginning.” - Freshman Ethan Huang

18

SPECIAL FEATURE

FAMILY WORD SEARCH

Word Bank:

Family Mother Father Sister Brother Cousin Aunt Uncle Niece Nephew Reunion Love Children Close Husband Wife Relative Together Connection Unity Bonding Couple Pets Couple Ancestors

“I feel like it’s someone you can trust and someone that you know will always be there for you. There are some people that are blood-related to you that you don’t have a good connection with, but there’s others that are really close to you.” - Junior Jackie Lacuesta SPECIAL FEATURE

19

Making Sacrifices for Sales Costs to be reduced for increased participation.

DGG Dry Gulch Gazette

By AndreaMarie Lomeli The Dry Gulch Gazette is an open forum for students and does not necessarily represent the views of Arroyo High School or of the San Lorenzo Unified School District. We want to provide our readers with entertaining, informational, and relevant stories that will be worth their time. We intend to produce accurate and unbiased reporting, and we will therefore work to correct any significant mistakes. You should contact us at AHSGazette@ gmail.com if you can find such a mistake in this publication. You may also email us to submit a letter to the editor, but we reserve the right to edit letters for length or accuracy. Letters will be rejected or published at the discretion of journalism staff.

Visual representation of how the price of events affect ticket sales.

F

rom dances like homecoming and prom, to fun filled activities ranging from night rallies and sports games, the expenses are starting to pile up for students here at AHS. The prices to attend events add on to expenses students already have to pay for, such as AP exams, SATS, and yearbooks, the list goes on. It is a crucial time to get engaged in school events but it is also expensive to be a school-spirited Don. At AHS, there are many reasons to explain why students don’t participate in events.

Students end up deciding on what events to participate throughout the year as it is more common for them to spend money on academics and yearbooks rather than dances and games.

Over the recent years, low participation in dances has been observed, not enough tickets being sold has led to cancellation.

Even if we drastically improve prices just by a few bucks, students won’t participate if they are not interested. A need for better student attendance at events because of the drastic increase of socioeconomic change at AHS. ASB needs to present reasonable and low costs for events even if it means making sacrifices. As the prices rise, student participation becomes low. When the expected even attendance drop, events get cancelled because there are not sufficient

ticket sales. It is not uncommon for Dons to see events being cancelled.

Recently, Dons have been noticing an inflation in the prices of events at AHS. As the community has changed and become more diverse, the pricing has also shifted.

A decade ago, in the 2008-2009 school year, only 22.9% of students had free or reduced lunch. Drastically, the 2017-2018 school years numbers increased, as 51% of the school can relate. As this is a school with a high percentage of low income families, not everyone can pay the full price.

The reason why prices are high are because of the quality of the event or the location. We need to find cheaper locations and alternatives. Instead of hosting dances at other venues far from Arroyo, we can start hosting them at AHS again.

If the school decides to host dances at AHS, the price of renting the venue will be decreased dramatically. Therefore, possibly decreasing the price of tickets.

Events need to be cheaper, even if that means making sacrifices, less expensive venues, and fewer amenities. If the school body lowers prices of events such as games, dances, or plays and festivals, Dons are more likely to participate. Prom would be more fun when it is with your entire senior class partying together and not because some chocolate fountain. •

Editor-in-Chief: Trinity Mai Managing Editors: Vivian Liu, Christopher Yalung

Campus Editor: Andrea Marie Lomeli Community Editor: Nanda Bean Special Feature Editor: Trinity Mai Opinion Editor: Sebastian Lopez Arts and Culture Editor: Rafael Duran Sports Editor: Che Munoz Art Directors: Samantha Wang Gazette Staff Writers: Aaliyah Montgomery,

Alexis May Go ,Alexis Quino, Angelina Buell, Claire Ramos, Crystal Yeung, David Ye, Dorothy Hoang, Elton Wong, Javier Manzano, Jeneen Doctor, Jose Chavez, Joseph Licano, MarcAnthony Ramos, Santina Davalos, Sara Giretto, Sarah Amani,

Staff Adviser: Samved Sangameswara

SECTION

20

Learning is Being Wasted High number of substitutes causes a number of problems for the school.

By Christopher Yalung

I

n eighth grade, I didn’t have a science teacher. There was nobody to teach me how gravity worked, or how different temperatures interacted with each other.

Instead, I had a substitute teacher the entire year. I thought that those types of problems might be resolved by the time that I got to high school.

But the problem still persists.

“In a day, the most subs I’ve had was four,” senior Chris-Michael Velasquez said. “We didn’t even do anything in class, like math, science, english; I didn’t learn anything,” According to Alexis Neideffer, the Absence Control Specialist for our district, we have about 50 to 70 substitute teachers working in the district at any given time. On high teacher absence days, AHS has 12 teachers working.

To put that into perspective, that’s about 14% of the teachers on campus being replaced by subs.

The problem now is that with the large amount of subs working at AHS, we will end up having more instances like Velasquez’s, where an entire day of education is interrupted.

The district needs to tackle this issue head-on before it gets worse by having quality substitutes. Though it is true that in order to work as a substitute teacher in California that you need to have at least a Bachelor’s degree, substitutes in classes should at least have some background knowledge in the area that they’re subbing in for, so that they can provide help to students who might need it.

And teachers, you need to make these days with subs more productive. If you planned days when you are absent ahead of time with lesson plans, students wouldn’t have wasted days like Chris-Michael had.

If substitutes are going to be present on campus, they should at least be doing something to help with the students education. After all, it’s our future that’s affected. •

Illustration | Rafael Duran

OPINION

21

Do Not Ignore, Participate More Students should advocate for more choices that will better their futures.

By Nanda Bean

Your voice is important!

Speak out!

Illustration | Vivian Liu

I

22

n September, students across the Bay Area organized multiple protests against our local politicians to acknowledge that climate change is real. Students skipped school to go to their nearest cities or towns to protest with signs of hope and voices of need to get our government to listen to us. This protest was the most impactful, as it showed that the protesters were mostly young teens.

However, out of all the teens and adults that joined the protest, only ten students and two teachers who chaperone them were from AHS. Our fellow students from AHS in the Green Club went to a march in San Francisco to join other students to let our local government know that we care for our future and surroundings. The ten students and two teacher advisors should not just be the only people from our school to join this protest.

There must be more participation so our voice will be heard with other students who want our policies to change, so everyone’s future will be better.

These proud environmental organizations were created by the efforts of young students

OPINION

who care about what their future looks like.

The Green Club, took the opportunity to join a protest with organizations like this and it was worth their time, getting excused from school to join this cause because these students care about what their future looks like. These students have great courage to go to these protests as this was also an important choice they all made because it makes an impact on us, nationally.

Other students should participate with these students to acknowledge the fact that “our planet is literally dying” and we tell people, to get others to help us. Paying attention to our surroundings is part of the participation and we shouldn’t be blind with these issues instead, we should control our future. Advocating for climate change is one example of an issue that students felt very passionate about. Multiple issues we should stand up to, including minimum wage, gender violence, LGBTQ rights, etc.

These issues will always be debated against by adults who oppose our rights, look down on us and who believe we are still too young to understand politics. We must maintain

a strong commitment of proving to these lawmakers that we have control of our future.

Last year, AHS created two protests, one for gun control and another for climate change.

These protests were successful because of the participation of students that joined the fight to get their point through. These were both worth their time and it is a good thing that students joined together to make a point that they all want the policy to change. The logical point to if we all participate in making a point to we want change to happen now, we all must participate.

With all this participation, we should first join a march. An upcoming march is the Women’s March, next year in January 2020.

We all must participate and join this march to not only support women who are oppressed everyday around the world, but to expand a positive cause to the injustice and to have our policies change. We all should participate in changing our policies, we can have control with our future to help others. •

Curriculum Change AP art has changed to make it easier for students.

By Rafael Duran

Photo | Rafael Duran

AP students seniors Otoniel Burgos (bottom left), Michael Nava (bottom right) and Emma Purves (top right) are working on their College Board project.

A

mong the students, there is a shared AP art teacher Trenton Smith believes [Last year, the College Board] required you sentiment that beginning their College students who have a theme for their project to show all the things you know… painting, Board project, drawings consisting will have a far easier time. He also states that drawing, charcoal, watercolor... all these of a connecting theme which are called students in AP art will no longer experiment different techniques. We had to prove to them “Focus”,early is beneficial to the quality of with new mediums and it is expected that the you could use them,” Smith said. their work and especially for their stress. For students wil already know what mediums For students who are not sure on whether senior Otoniel Burgos, it is beneficial for time they will use. they want to take the AP tests, they can show management since in addition to having their skills in a different way. Senior his classes he also works.

Michael Nava has been working creating “It’s obviously less stressful ‘cause we the artwork for his comic instead of the have the time to come up with an idea work for the College Board. rather than ‘Here’s a certain amount of “I haven’t been doing [my artworks], time to come up with something and I’ve been doing on my comic, Smith is just make it happen.’ Also being able cool with me doing that, “ said Nava •15 Focus •10 Focus to manage my own [time] since I’m a Although Burgos and Nava are •15 pictures of the •10 Breadth student worker, [so] it is much better,” working on differents aspects of art, they drawings •15 pictures made Burgos said. both have expectations for takeaways of AHS alumni Taliilagi Agatupu also the class. Burgos-Duran expects to be •5 drawings sent to of a mixture took AP art. The class for her was fun, developing more artistic skills and to •5 drawings sent to College Board but creating art with the deadlines was just enjoy the rest of his year in the class.

College Board extremely hard. “[I look forward to] pick[ing] up a ”Time was a problem for me because couple more skills for the drawings, [but] I was rushing to just [get my artworks other than that, not really. I’m already done] instead of putting time and effort to “I think it is going to benefit students who enjoying [the class] more than enough,” said make it look like how I want it to. [S]ome of have a [a ‘focus’ idea]. If students already Burgos. • the deadlines seemed like it was going to be know what they like and what inspires them, impossible,” Agatupu said. they are probably going to get more out of it.

AP Art Curriculum Past

Present

ARTS & CULTURE

23

Bedroom

Business Students branch out into selling handmade merchandise.

By Santina Davalos

Photo Illustration | MarcAnthony Ramos

J

unior Lorenzo Souto has become his own boss. Over the past six weeks, he has made around $500 from selling his own apparel.

Souto is one of a number of AHS students who sells things that they make themselves.

Senior Emma Purves and senior Karill Alfonzo-Yumul are two students who also run their own brands. These three students sell their merchandise throughout the campus to students and online.

Purves explained why she decided to begin selling her art and how her friends influenced her decision.

“I’m always drawing in class and a lot of people said they would buy it, so I decided I should start selling stuff.”

Souto was influenced to start his brand

Senior Emma Purves

tYPefACE : • stickers

-($8 bundles, $3 each)

• prints

-($7 each)

after he saw the outcome from other students.

“I was in business class and one of the old students came in and explained how he did it. It inspired me, and I wanted to try it myself.”

Alfonzo-Yumul has been selling clothing from his brand throughout the past year and reflects on the first time he sold one of his products.

“It was actually pretty nice because when I made my first sale, I took a picture with him and the hoodie. Seeing him around campus wearing it, and repping my clothing line was fun.”

Purves described some frustrations she experiences during the process.

“The most challenging part is definitely

Senior Karill Alfozo-Yumul

attnskrs : • hoodies

-grey hoodie ($30) -black hoodie ($40)

when people ask for free stuff. I don’t do it for the money, but it’s annoying when I put in a lot of time, thought, and my own money into what I make.”

Souto also explained how at the moment, having his own brand is short-term.

“I don’t really see myself doing it for a long time. Right now, it’s just a fun side business.”

Alfonzo-Yumul talked about why he contines despite challenges.

“Someone representing your own clothing line feels really nice.” •

Junior Lorenzo Souto SSC :

• hoodies

-($40 regular, $50 custom)

• shirts -($25)

@happyem on depop

@attnskrs on instagram

@strictlysinglecabs

on instagram

ARTS & CULTURE

25 25

Photo | Che Munoz

Performers rehearse choreography for a chant that takes place in Peter and the Starcatcher. Of the 17 students in the production, eight students are new to drama.

New Kids on the Block

Peter and the Starcatcher features new editions to the drama club.

By Claire Ramos

F

26

reshman Logan Houghtelling has loved drama since a very young age. After seeing AHS drama perform Urinetown in April 2019 he decided now would be a good time to begin acting again.

“Ever since I was like four or five I’ve always wanted to do something related to the film or theater industry. First it was backstage then it was on stage. And now I want to go back on stage,” Houghtelling said.

Houghtelling is one of 17 students in the AHS Drama Club’s fall production of Peter and the Starcatcher. Of the 17 performers, eight are performing in their first show at AHS. Peter and the Starcatcher is a spin off of the classic, Peter Pan. It explores the backstory of several characters from Peter Pan using humor, drama and music. It will premiere on Nov. 14 and will be shown again on Nov. 15 at 7 p.m., in the AHS cafeteria. Tickets are $5 in the finance office and $10 at the door.

Director and drama teacher Jill Jacobs expresses excitement regarding all the new students joining drama and why it will only make the drama program and community stronger.

“This year I had so many faces that I had never seen before and so many underclassmen come in and take huge roles. [...] It bodes really well I think for the future

ARTS & CULTURE

of the arts at AHS and we are continuing to build a really strong base,” Jacobs said.

Jacobs explains that Peter and the Starcatcher has an ensemble cast meaning everyone has an important role, and everyone is on stage a majority of the time which made it ideal for AHS drama club. Among these roles are Peter, Captain Hook, and Tinkerbell.

Houghtelling is playing Peter who is

“...and the beautiful thing about drama is that everyone fits into it. [...] There’s a place for everybody,”

Director Jill Jacobs said.

adventurous, whimsical, and young at heart.

Houghtelling explained some reasons they felt inclined to audition and among these reasons was the desire to perform since early stages in his life. Houghtelling also explains what they are liking about drama so far and what is challenging. Although there’s a lot of commitment that comes with the play, which Houghtelling finds challenging, being a part of the drama community is worth it. “...I enjoy just being able to be myself,” Houghtelling said, “There’s a lot of people

like me, were all crazy,” Junior Gabryellie Garcia has became involved in drama for the first time this year.

Her role in the fall play is a crew member.

Garcia has always wanted to be involved in a drama class and when the fall play came around she realized this would be a good opportunity to step outside of her comfort zone. The excited discomfort is one of the aspects of drama that appeals to Garcia the most along with the drama community.

However, it has been challenging for her to adjust to the amount of performances.

“I get nervous really quickly, easily, and this experience has helped me become stronger as a public speaker and actress,” Garcia said.

Jacobs is excited for the new students starting drama, especially as underclassmen.

Jacobs said she cannot wait to see what they will continue to do as they build confidence and gain life skills through performances.

“Drama is consistently, it has been this way for me in my life, it is a place where people go when they don’t know where to go,” Jacobs said. “They don’t always know where they belong. and the beautiful thing about drama is that everyone fits into it. Introverts and extroverts, they all fit in. There’s a place for everybody,” •

Bubbling Up Interviewing students on the rising popularity of boba

By Javier Manzano

J Photo Illustration | Javier Manzano

“Bobafitt in Union City has the best boba in the Bay Area. It’s sweet and soft and their marketing team is super creative with the names of the items on their menu. My favorite drink from that place is their ‘Bubble Bea’.”

Junior Ashley Bernados

Photo Illustration | Javier Manzano

“Sharetea because it’s one of the closests in the area, it’s not expensive, their boba is the best in my opinion, they have the best toppings... their ‘ice cream one scoop’ is bomb. The workers are extremely nice, the service is super quick, even if it’s in a rush [it’s] 3 minutes tops for your tea.”

Junior Joniel Reotutar

unior Latrell Aquino drink boba tea five times a week. That’s 80 ounces of tea in just one week. That’s over 100 boba pearls, and Aquino loves every single one.

Aquino is not alone. In the last few years, boba shops have been popping up left and right, increasing the popularity all around the country, including the SLZUSD district. Most of our interviewees have known about it for quite some time, so why is it getting more popular now? In 2016, Sharetea opened. In 2017, iTea. Most recently, in 2018, three different boba shops opened up in the SLZUSD area. Two of those shops were in the Greenhouse, blocks away from AHS. Aquino is one of the many boba enthusiasts at this school. When asked about why he likes boba, he states, “Because it’s good, the flavor pallet is pretty diverse, especially on the menu, and also boba’s just nice, its chewy, and stuff like that.”

When asked about his history with boba, he says, “Well, I’m Asian, so I found out a very long time ago, probably when I was around four or five.”

Why is there so much hype? “The boba boom is mainly just a side effect of the general Asian culture boom around the world. I think that’s actually a good thing, because now people get to experience this good ass drink.”

Junior Joneil Reotutar also drinks boba religiously. He discovered boba in freshman year and was hooked. Reotutar said, “It tastes good, the texture…

I just like tea in general… I like the fruity taste.” “[I found out about boba] by my sister, freshman year.”

When asked about the benefits of boba, Reotutar said, “tea is apparently an antioxidant, so it makes you look healthier.”

Aquino goes more in depth about his love for the drink, he says, when asked about whether it’s worth the money goes, “Hell yeah, hell yeah, I would indefinitely say it’s worth it.”

When asked about whether he has ever gotten ill, he says, “Never, never. And I don’t know if that’s genetics or just a streak of luck, but I hope I never get sick from boba.”

Junior Ashely Bernados is another bobaholic at AHS, but her knowledge on the subject is greater since she works at a boba shop. When asked about why she likes it she goes, “I just like the overall taste of the mini pearls and I guess caffeine is just my go-to drink for everything.”

Bernados’ first experience with boba was over five years ago, she says, “My first experience with boba was going to Tapioca Express in San Leandro after my karate practice when I was about 10 years old.”

The benefits of boba is that it is a “good way to hang out with your friends, it’s just a go-to place for all of your friends to hang out and just be happy drinking your favorite drink with others.”

The diversity of boba possibly plays a role in the sudden rise of the tea. Bernados says, “If you’re lactose and you can’t drink milk, I wouldn’t go for a milk tea but fruit teas are always your second option.”

Is buying boba worth it? “At MLKY, the boba place I work at, we sell 24oz. Cups only, and they’re pretty large, but it’s good, the price is good for what you’re buying so it’s worth it.”

Working at a boba shop, when asked if she has seen the rise in popularity, she says, “I think boba started trending when I was in middle school, so seventh grade, because that’s when more boba shops started to open in the Bay Area, and pretty soon we had like hundreds and hundreds of boba places in California… social media tends to promote a lot of things that go around, in social media, a lot of people record themselves with their friends at these shops, and they all unite and have a little get together and hang out, so this drink kind of connects people.”

Would you ever give it up? Bernados replies with, “[A]bsolutely not, never in a million years. Boba has become a part of my life along with my identity. I wouldn’t want to abandon something that constantly makes me happy.”•

ARTS & CULTURE

27

Dropping Players

There are low numbers in football, and injuries might be the cause.

By Alexis Quino

O

ver the last 10 years, the participation rates in AHS football has been on a slow decline. In 2009, the varsity team had a roster of 34 players. five years later, they dropped to 27 players. Last year, the team went back up to 31, and this year, it dropped again to 22 players.

Field injuries are very common in high school football, and the AHS team is no exception to that. The Mercury News says that there’s been a 12.14% drop in participation since 2011 and as of 2018, there was a 3.16% drop. The nationwide decline is most likely due to the high risk of injuries.

As much as players love the game and people love to watch, there is no denying how dangerous football can be. According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, knees are the most common site of injury with high school football players.

Senior Chris Michael Velasquez has been playing for AHS for two years, his freshman and senior year. Due to an ACL injury during a practice his junior year, Velasquez was unable to play for the rest of the season.

“I was doing a one-on-one drill and when I planted my foot sideways, my knee got stuck and rotated. The person I went against fell on top of me and I couldn’t get my leg out,” Velasquez said.

Another player who is no stranger to knee injuries is Junior Demarcus Smith.

He’s been playing for AHS for two years, his sophomore year and this year. Smith’s recent injury had him out for 2-3 weeks. “[S]omeone hit me the wrong way as I was going out of bounds,” Smith said.

When players get injured, there’s a certain ‘protocol’ that needs to be followed in order to make sure the student athletes receive the proper care. Coach Mikal Dace

Two SLZ players tackle an AHS player at the Helmet Game on October 26th.

28 28

SPORTS SPORTS

and the rest of the coaching staff always try to err on the side of caution when it comes to injuries, especially concussions.

“Concussions are dealt with as they are reported or observed...we make the suggestion to the parents and at that point it’s the parents’ decisions to take the child to the hospital,” Dace said.

Concussions are the second most common injuries in football, composing 47.1% of football related trauma, as stated by the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

Sophomore Giovanni Pantoja has played two years for AHS, and has already received two concussions this year, and four in his total years. The tell-tale sign of a concussion is amnesia, and Pantoja has experienced it first hand after getting hit last year.

“But apparently they were all saying I didn’t know my parent’s name, where I was, or what day it was so I had to go to the hospital.”

Despite the multiple concussions, Pantoja hasn’t really thought of quitting football.

“I like the experience, it’s fun to play, and you have a whole family with the team…”

Pantoja said.

With an athletic trainer at the sidelines, the players receive quick medical attention if they’re injured. Lawrence Vanhook, AHS’ athletic trainer for football, has been in his field of work since 2014. In his five years of being an athletic trainer, he’s seen countless field injuries and at least 50 concussions.

“I’ve seen some pretty bloody things,” Vanhook said, “But the concussions are the most severe, at least in in terms of long term damage.”

The worst concussion he saw was about a year ago, when a kid got hit in the head and continued to play because he didn’t know he was concussed. “[W]hen he came out, I saw he was a little bit dazed and he didn’t know what his

name was. He didn’t know a lot of the basic information that he should’ve known, but it’s mainly because he didn’t come out and got hit again,” Vanhook said.

Even San Lorenzo High School’s Grizzlies have seen a little decline. 10 years ago, SLZ had 29 players. Last year, the roster increased to 37 players; this year, the numbers dropped to 25. Multiple high schools throughout California have seen a decline.

With a decreased interest in 11-player football, there’s been an increase of popularity in 8-player football across a few high schools in the states. Other school’s have adapted by merging their teams with another high school that also has low numbers in football.

With our team dwindling in numbers, the football staff has to adapt.

“Those who are interested, are going to be interested,” Dace said. “As far as recruiting on campus, I promote it as more of a learning opportunity.”

Injuries aren’t the only components to the decline in participation, Dace believes the team’s performance is also an underlying factor.

“Winning doesn’t hurt...when we start winning, then we’ll have 90+ people coming out.”

Although football is a risky sport, there are precautions and protocols in place for the safety of the young athletes, as well as a coach that has safety concerns.

“I often try to reiterate to these student athletes that they have to use that body for the rest of their life,” Dace says, “and remind them that they’re only 14, 15, and 16.” •

Photo | Alexis Quino

Kurt Bryan during the 2018 fall season, coaching up his team during an offensive period. Bryan made sure that his players had a deep understanding of the plays they ran.

Photo | Daniel Grafil

The Big Switch

Former AHS coach transitions to coaching the Oakland Panthers.

By Che Munoz

A

fter 28 memorable years of coaching high school football, a life long goal has been achieved by former AHS varsity coach Kurt Bryan. This coming spring, Bryan will take up the position as the new head coach of the newest addition to the indoor football league, The Oakland Panthers.

Kurt Bryan was the head coach of Arroyo’s football team for the 2017 and 18 seasons. Bryan also spent some of his years at Piedmont high school. Bryan is well known in the football community for co-creating the A-11 offense. This offense is well known in most levels of amateur football. Bryan used this offense in his two years at Arroyo. Within Bryan’s 28 year career, Bryan believed in one main thing that every player, no matter who they are, is valued.

“In my 11 years prior to this job as a head coach, so three previous stops, two at Piedmont and one at Arroyo, that is being able to make sure you find a place for every player on the team. That is why we played every player in every game.”

As of the 2019 season, he has left the position as head coach of the Arroyo Dons football team. Mikal Dace, Bryan’s assistant coach at the time, would go on to fill his position. Bryan had informed his players that he was offered a job that he could not refuse.

In order to take this job, he would have to give up his position as head coach.

“As things moved forward and I got offered the job, my concern was two fold” Bryan said, “My concern number one was obviously taking care of myself and my family and then

number two, Arroyo. Even though I didn’t have a signed contract yet, I had to figure out a way to navigate through the process where, I could step away from Arroyo after everything was set up for 2019… So I stepped away from Arroyo two months before I signed my contract. So I could’ve been out on both ends, but I had faith in it.”

Bryan’s leave was very impactful to the team. Not only to his former players, but to his former coaching staff as well. Mikal Dace, former JV head coach of the Dons football team was given the job of head coach when Bryan announced his leave. Dace described feeling an abundance of emotions when given news of Bryan’s new job offer.

“It was like a life flash before your eyes kind of moment. You think of the players who have left, you think of the players that are still here, and how to make the transition as easy and seamless for them as possible. I was left in a good position, we had our off-season coach meetings, we had a chance to decide on a play book, we had a chance to do some hiring, get coaches hired and put in place, so I had a pretty good situation” During Bryan’s time at Arroyo, he saw two classes of seniors graduate from the football program. When asked about Bryan’s every player plays policy, Arroyo graduate and former varsity football player Erick Olguin gave his take, “I think he really stuck to that…

The other day I went to a football game for my little cousin… My cousin never touched the field. It sucks, you at least want to get in the game. So I appreciate that he (Bryan) put everyone in the game.”

After 28 years of coaching high school football, he was finally ready to move on.

“I always wanted to be a pro football coach if it was right for my family.” Bryan said, “Back in 07, 08 and 09, kind of the A-11 era, I had a lot of neat opportunities presented to yours truly, but they weren’t the right fit or I would’ve had to move my family and I didn’t want to do that. When this came calling, it was too good to pass up.”

Bryan and his team know that soon, they will be one of the only teams left in the Oakland area. Bryan plans to use this opportunity to impact the communities he’s been a part of on his 28 year coaching journey.

“With the Raiders leaving and the Warriors moving across the bay, there is a big void, and there are lots of high schools and youth programs that would love to have a player or coach come to their fundraiser, speak at a banquet, talk to the team or the school.

What we’ve done is, my coaching staff, and the quality control interns, they’ve all been assigned target team markets. Each coach has somewhere between 10 to 20 high schools where they are in the process of introducing themselves, and starting to engage with their team market in the community and so we feel that over the next six months to a year, they’re gonna know us very well, and we’re [going to] help them as much as they can. And Arroyo is one of mine.” •

SPORTS

29

Going for Gold Alumni takes the gold medal in Women’s Wrestling Championships.

By Elton Wong

C

rowds cheered as Jacarra Winchester faced off against Nanami Irie in the 2019 World Wrestling Championships.

With the final takedown, Winchester won the match 4 - 3. Winchester triumphantly walked home with a shiny new gold medal along with the title of World Wrestling Champion.

“It feels good that I did what I said I was going to do, which was to come back and win,” Winchester said.

The Wrestling World Champion graduated from AHS in 2010. In her time at AHS, Winchester has consistently maintained her position of varsity in the men’s wrestling team. She even made NCS(North Coast Section). By her senior year, she became the wrestling state champion.

After high school, Winchester attended Missouri Valley College and made it into TeamUSA. Now, she was making a name for herself in the wrestling community. She placed fifth in 2018 World Championships, 2018 and 2019 Final X champion, and 2018 World Team Trials Challenge Tournament champion.

Now a World Wrestling Champion, she continues to train hard for future goals.

Practicing at a rate of four hours daily along with a multitude of physical recovery, Winchester sets her sights on her next competitive target.

“Next plan is to train for the Olympics,” said Winchester. •

Photo | The Arroyan 2010

AHS alumni Jacarra Winchester (background center) poses with her team for the Arroyan 2010 yearbook.

JACARRA’S IMPACT Athletics Director Andrew Waranoff “She was one of my students actually, [has] an infectious smile, great athlete. “

Photo | Elton Wong

Senior Wrestler Alia Abushi “Her wrestling is amazing. I look up to her. She is a really big inspiration. “ Photo | David Ye

30

SPORTS

TIMELINE 2010 Jacarra Winchester becomes Wrestling State Champion.

2018 Jacarra Winchester places fifth in 2018 World Wrestling Championship

2019 Jacarra Winchester wins the title of World Wrestling Champion

Skaters on Deck

Skate speak on the rise in skating popularity at AHS

By MarcAnthony Ramos

S

enior Richy Villanueva lives on his skateboard. You will never see him without it. He skates to and from school daily, and after school you’ll likely see him skating around the neighborhood just to pass some time.

“It’s just easier. Easier to get around, easier to get places quicker, It’s small enough to fit in my locker, It’s just more economical”. Villanueva said.

Villanueva is just one of a number of skaters on campus. Everyday before school, after school and even during lunchtime you can catch groups of skaters either somewhere on campus or across the street at the skatepark at Mervin Morris Park.

Junior Kaos Lowe also skates and has also noticed a rise in skating at AHS. He thinks it’s because people want to be a part of the skating community.

“I think there’s been an increase in skaters because a lot of people like to copy waves, someone sees a collective

group doing it, people might want to join in”. Lowe said.

Johnathan Davis is a local skater and employee at Orbit Skates, a local skate shop in San Leandro. A skater for over two decades, he also noticed that skateboarding’s popularity comes in waves.

“A lot of friends were skateboarding around that time, it was the year where we were transitioning from elementary to middle school. It was kind of the fashionable thing to do. The skateboard slowly went from a fashion accessory to a lifestyle.” Davis said.

English teacher Nathan Embretson, has been skating over 25 years. Even though he doesn’t skate as much as he used to, he still see’s being a skater as a part of his identity.

“Skating kinda defined my high school and college years. I’d skate to class, skate with friends, skate on the streets.”

Embretson said. “I used to be crazy, jumping off stairs and ledges and stuff, but now I just like to go to the park and flow around the park.”

Embretson thinks that skating never really dies, the popularity just comes and goes in waves, with each new style that is being introduced. Embretson believes that the thing that gets people into skating tends to be the community.

“The friendship aspect… that really close camraderie with people who were also into skateboarding, I became super close friends with them, I’m still friends with them today”. Embretson said.

Looking to the future, Embretson hopes for skating to become a part of AHS’ identity. He would like to see student skaters at AHS do more to build the culture here.

“If there’s one thing I want for modern skateboarding, it is a return to more DIY ethic and having fun, so if that means starting a club, I think that would be an awesome thing to have here at Arroyo”. •

Photo| MarcAnthony Ramos

SPORTS

31

We Can’t Wait

The youth is wasting oppurtunities by being quiet in politics.

By Sebastian Lopez

T

32

he day after 17 people were injured and 4 people died in Gilroy, I went to work at Congressman Swalwell’s office where the fear and disbelief was felt throughout the day. As an intern, my duties included manning the front desk and taking calls from constituents. Countless calls came in from terrified people, horrified that this is what our country has come to and more surprisingly, calls also came in from people defending guns, even after such a tragedy. In front of the front desk was a TV that displayed headlines flooded with news about the shooting and politicians arguing on who to blame. After being in what felt like the center of the action, I went to talk to my friends about what they thought about the issue. But instead of intellectual conversation, I was met with disinterest and inaction. The following week, two more shootings happened, more calls came in, more politicians argued, but still, there was nothing from my peers.

Not an insult to my peers, but it is not entirely their fault. Political engagement in the youth is just not as prevalent as it should be, and it has consequences in the long run.

According to a study done by the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, only a meager 39% of young people eligible to vote actually voted in their local elections in 2016. Only when more young people started to see and experience the colossal issues in our government after 2016 did that number rise. According to a Pew research study, both Generation Z and Millenials outvoted the number of Boomers and seniors in the 2018 midterm elections.

It is even estimated that the number of Generation Z voters could rise to a significant 10% of the polls in 2020.

While the future may seem optimistic, what I see on a daily basis bothers me. Especially in a time where the federal government seems to have a huge new scandal everyday, no one in our age group is really paying attention.

Student ignorance has even gone to the point where some students today still can’t name the current Vice President of the US. Even if students have not had Government as a class yet, it should not be an excuse for not being aware of the problems going on. But, I don’t think it’s entirely the youth’s fault. A widespread misconception is that people in our age group are not “mature” enough to be involved. This is especially apparent when you consider that the voting age is still 18.

COLUMN

However, I found this to be false. As an intern at Congressman Swalwell’s office at age 16, I found out that I was more capable than I believed anyone my age would be in politics. Even as someone who was invested in current issues beforehand, I was able to learn what real government was like and was able to keep up with the more experienced staffers. I was able to learn about gun control, the military, immigration, and presidential

controversies to the point where I could keep up in a knowledgeable conversation. By age 16, or hopefully even before that, we know right versus wrong, and if younger people were to apply that to politics and real world issues that also greatly affect them, the youth would finally reach the potential that we have always held. •

Photo Ilustration | David Ye