Volume LII
Eastern Regional High School
May 2017
1401 Laurel Oak Road
Sixth Edition
Voorhees, NJ 08043
Managing the mess at lunch See
3 1 2 1 pages
Custodian Donna Chew cleans Gym 4 after the Common Lunch
Photo by Alex Mackle ‘18
In memory of Mr. Harrison, a tribute. Page 2
2 The Voyager
Tribute
May 2017
Mr. Harrison (1951- 2017) One thing I will always remember about Mr. Harrison . . . “His wisdom and guidance.” “He used to say, ‘Star, today you’re going to do a great job!’” He also advised us to ‘steal time.’ For example, if you have five minutes before the bus arrives, take out your chemistry flash cards and study for five minutes. The idea was that you could apply the concept to the rest of your life. I’ve never forgotten his words of advice. He will be sorely missed.” “I said to myself... star!” “The way his face lit up when he spoke about topics that he was really interested in.” “He would stroll down the aisles while teaching and when he found a book bag that wasn’t quite tucked away properly, he would say loudly ‘I trip, I fall, I sue, I retire!’” “One thing that I will always remember about Mr. Harrison: his catchphrases. He would always say there are 3 rules of thumb: atomic number, molecular mass, and chocolate. Every time he said something was ‘so....’ (e.g. the gas is SO cold) the students would respond with ‘how cold?’ It got us to question things he talked about, and gave him the opportunity to make some jokes along the way. Every morning he would drink a diet coke. He had a drawer of them in the lab. ‘Aiiight!’ ‘The book falls for everyone.’” “When I had him as a student, he used to give out awards for good test grades. I still have those certificates today. I showed him when I first started working here and he seemed really touched that I would keep them.” “His classroom. He hung T-shirts of the colleges that his students attended around the perimeter of his classroom. It made for a very inviting and collegiate atmosphere.” “Proctoring his exams. Students were always anxious to take his exam and worked hard at it, but Mike would always joke with them beforehand to put them at ease and one could tell that they enjoyed his sense of humor. And the exams were extremely organized... alphabetical, stapled, paper-clipped, etc. Proctors were anxious to administer.”
“I worked with Mike Harrison from 1973 to 2004. His true love in science was teaching chemistry. With his knowledge, humor, and ability, he made chemistry a wonderful experience for the students. A summary from his former students: “We were prepared so well for college chemistry.” He always had alumni visiting to give thanks for their success with college chemistry.” - Harvey Stick “One aspect of Mr. Harrison I’ll never forget was that he kept tabs on students after they left his class. I did a lot of performing arts with the theater club at Eastern. I remember both junior year and senior year, I received emails from him, always with the subject line being the name of my character from the show from that semester. He would always come to see the plays and musicals, and sent me emails letting me know how much he loved the show, and specifically my performances in them. It meant a lot to have the support from him outside of the academic sense, as well as beyond sophomore year.” – Bhavish Malkani “The world is a little less bright without the light that Mr. Harrison brought to it. He once shared a phrase with me that he liked to use, ‘It is sometimes said that a person could cure seven days of rain.’ Mr. Harrison was one of those people. He single-handedly inspired my love of science. He took a loud theatre geek and turned her into an inquisitive, curious scientist, hungry for more. I would not be where I am today if it were not for him. I feel so blessed to have had the influence of Mr. Harrison in my life. I hope that one day his passion for science and education will translate to me so that I can inspire a new generation of scientists, as Mr. Harrison did so successfully. Rest in peace, you are so dearly missed already.” - Jess Pelland
Mr. Harrison’s first year at Eastern in the 1974 yearbook.
“Mr. Harrison always could tell when I had a question that I was too afraid to ask. He was generous with his time and honest about everything, whether he was telling me that I wasn’t performing in class or talking about his nightly glass of white zinfandel. He believed in me and told me that he thought that I could cure cancer.” – Andrea Fau (Kahn-Richiue) “Was I a great chemistry student? No. In the grand scheme of things, does that really matter? Not really. Did Mr. Harrison, with all his one-liners, inspirational speeches that usually had nothing to do with chemistry, and his wild tie-dye lab coat have a lasting impact on my life? Absolutely. His class wasn’t about chemistry at all, but rather how to live a meaningful life and engage with those challenges that oftentimes seem insurmountable. The most important piece of wisdom he shared was to believe, truly believe, in your ability to do just that . . . While Mr. Harrison taught us that the book falls for everyone, he also taught us that we can each pick it up.” – Avram Ellner
“Mike’s classroom was full of funny/silly cartoons, sayings, pictures, nicknacks, etc. He clearly had a wonderful sense of humor. Student names were posted on the wall for having achieved outstanding grades. Mike clearly filled his students with PRIDE “Mr. Harrison was a very special kind of teacher, and made his classroom a positive place for students the kind that you never forget. Every morning at 6:50 am when 0-mod would start, Mr. Harrison to learn.” would be awake, prepared, and ready to inspire a room of 30 or so students. Regardless of what the “It’s cool, it’s crisp, it’s a great day for day was like, whether it was rainy, hot, or snowing, chemistry!” “You cannot expect to be awake and alert during every single day was always a great day for the week, if you stay up late over the weekends…. chemistry. Not only was Mr. Harrison my teacher, Your bodies are not exempt from the laws of phys- but he was also my mentor. I would visit him as ics. Aiiiight... You guys look SO tired...” often as I could. Even through college, whenever I would come back to Voorhees, I would try to visit “I reconnected with Mr. Harrison through the Alicia Mr. Harrison. He motivated me, and many others Rose Victorious Foundation after his prognosis. to find our true passions, regardless of whether they Mr. Harrison came to ARVF with a donation after were in chemistry or not. He was always available he found out the results; his generosity was boundto help you, no matter the task. Even though he less. I am still very active with ARVF and was at the is gone now, his impact, influence, and inspiration office during his visit. We met two times and sat for live on through all of the students he’s had over the hours laughing and talking about teaching, as I am past 42 years. But it wasn’t the tests, homework, now a teacher myself. Mr. Harrison is the kind of or class that made him influential. He formed educator I strive to be, unapologetically himself and bonds with every student, helping them through unwillingly to accept anything but his students’ best. classwork as well as their lives outside. He wanted He taught lessons far beyond chemistry: self-worth, his students to succeed not just academically, but authenticity, positivity, empathy, determination in life. He kept in touch with many of us, and always wanted us to do well. He was the type of - Kimberly Dickstein ‘04 teacher, mentor, and person that only comes once in a lifetime.” – Amy Cooey, English Teacher
A decade later in the 1984 yearbook.
Photo courtesy of Kimberly Dickstein
Kimberly Dickstein (‘04) pictured with Mr. Harrison in August 2016.
May 2017
News
The Voyager 3
Homeroom will not return for 2017-2018 By LAUREN CASOLE ‘19 Voyager Staff Reporter
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s the morning bell rings, a swarm of unhappy and sleep deprived students sulk into their first period class. Homeroom has always been a place where kids catch up with friends, finish last night’s homework, study for a test, or eat breakfast. As for teachers, it is a time to gather their thoughts, take attendance, distribute any important information, and prepare for the day. Students and teachers alike have brought up concerns about the difficulties and advantages of not having homeroom. “It certainly was a question we had last year,” Mr. Cloutier said. “That was one of
the reasons we created the TIR rooms. It was so essential that on a need basis we could have the homerooms.” Mrs. Pagenkopf, who is a biology and chemistry teacher, said, “I would much rather use those ten minutes for instructional time.” She also stated that not having homeroom has had little effect on her day. Students come to her room in the morning for extra help or just to chat. The same environment would still occur with homeroom. Sophomore Jenna Greenwald said, “Personally, not having homeroom does not make that much of a difference, I haven’t had to make any major adjustments for not having it.” On the other end of the classroom, soph-
Take bilingual test for diploma By MEI LIU ‘20 Voyager Staff Reporter
Know another language? There’s a two-hour test, taken in your senior year, that could prove your proficiency in that language. If you pass, the results could appear on your high school diploma that you are, indeed, bilingual. “This test acknowledges those who excel in a different language,” Mrs. Holloway-Taluy said. She is a vice principal and the Supervisor for English and World Language. One main requirement to take this test is either passing the PSAT, SAT, or PARCC. English teachers and the World Language teachers help out as well. They can spot those in their class who can speak a lanuage other than English. Many don’t need to have a mother language to take this test. If they excel in a language that they learned throughout the
Teen Cancer Awareness Week is the third week of January. It just passed us by, and it is wonderful to know that Eastern Regional High School is actively working to benefit children in need. It shows the warmth, generosity, and compassion among Eastern’s faculty and student body. Supporting the Alicia Rose Victorious Foundation, members from our school community have donated fuzzy and com-
fortable socks to those in need of comfort and solace. Junior Julia Bonomo, has worked to organize this endeavor and ensure its success. The teens are glad to deviate from the normal and bland hospital socks. We all know how delightful a pair of cozy socks can feel at the end of a long and cold winter day. Imagine how wonderful it would be to provide a warm and homey feeling to those who are far from home and their families.
History Honors Society takes on DC By SAKSHI SEHRAWAT ‘18 Voyager Staff Reporter What can be a better place for history buffs than History Honors Society? HHS has a goal to eliminate the use of online courses, encouraging students to take high level history courses instead. “It’s a student driven organization” said Mr McSweeney, one of the advisors of the club. Mr. Colton and Mr. McSweeney came up with the initial idea in 2012, but it wasn’t recognized until 2015. Now more than 50 kids are involved. “We also provide the students with study sessions for AP exams, whether it’s AP History or AP Euro,” said Mr. McSweeney. To apply, you need to have a GPA of 90 or above in an honors or AP level of history. “Interested students [also] have to write an essay based on an individual in history they consider their role model,” said Mr McSweeney. Senior Jessica Weichart, the president, said it’s an amazing experience and is really honored to be a part of it. Even if it
Besides teachers and students not having a few minutes in the morning to gather themselves before the day, another disadvantage is that the spread of information has suffered. Cherry Hill East students have a thirty minute homeroom in the middle of the day, but their lunch periods are only twenty-five minutes long. “One proposal that we considered,is adding a few minutes to the end of one of the periods,” said Mr. Cloutier. These extra few minutes would serve as time for announcements and ETV could be played. Even though there were many proposals, homeroom will not be resurrected next year.
four years in high school, they can take that language test. “It shows your college that you know a different language,” Selena Jani, class of 2016, said. “That might help you get into that college.” This test grades on accuracy, accents, and fluency. There are many different test others can take to see their acknowledgement of a specific language. Eastern High School uses STAMP. The main reason is faster turnaround time. “If I was fluent in a second language, then I would take this test.” Mrs. Holloway-Taluy said. “Being bilingual is also beneficial for the work force. Many employees seek those who speak multiple languages.” “This year, there weren’t many who took this test. I am hoping next year there will be more students that will be interested,” said Mrs. Holloway-Taluy.
Sock drive for kids with cancer By SAM GORDON-PECELLI ‘18 Special to The Voyager
omore Gabby Payne said, “Having homeroom would be good, because it helps me catch up on my homework from the day before and it is hard to just go straight into morning classes.” Other schools in the area still have some version of homeroom. For example, Lenape students need to be in their first period class five minutes before the class officially starts, so that the teacher can take attendance. “We did have someone tell us earlier in the year that one of the schools we visited when we were making the investigation about the bell schedule had added a homeroom back,” said Mr. Cloutier, but he also stated that there was no truth to homeroom returning in that district.
was hard at first. “I was never the leader of so many kids before,” she said. “It was totally new for me but with the support and cooperation of my cabinet members, I was successful.” She wants the organization to grow and achieve great heights even after she leaves. They also organize fundraisers. Last year in November, they sold snacks at a Voorhees Basketball Association match and collected up to $500 in profit. The members also organize many trips, and this year they went to Washington D.C.
Robert Sundstrom ‘18 and Vincent Melara ‘18 pose in front of the Washington Monument. Photo Supplied
The crowded pit quietly chats amonst themselves and tunes up, preparing to play two hours of music. Photo by Voyager Staff
Do you hear the students?
Pit provides the music for the voices By MAANASI NATARAJAN ‘19 Voyager Staff Reporter
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lthough many have applauded Les Miserables and attributed its success to the amazing actors and vocalists, some do not realize that it would not have been possible without the hidden gem of this year’s spring musical: the pit. It can be easy to commend the actors and actresses as well as the extraordinary sets but overlook the intense and immense background symphony that needs to be played. This year’s orchestration of two and a half hours of music was phenomenal, and we have pit to thank for that. Comprised of 28 students from Eastern’s top music ensembles, Mr. Stanz, the band teacher and conductor of pit, hand-selects the pit musicians. The process for students in pit was just as grueling as it was for the actors in the show. “The music was challenging, but we got the sheet music and had to practice by ourselves for a while at home. Then, when the musical was approaching, we started practicing together and then with the vocal parts,” said junior Michelle Xu, a clarinet player in pit. Preparing for to conduct the pit wasn’t easy for Mr. Stanz, either. As soon as he found out what the musical would be, around the same time as the students, he got to work. “I spent time watching every version I could and listening to every version I could. I looked at the score. It was two and a half hours of music so it was a more extensive score study,” he said.
Although it is a challenging experience, students in pit seem to have no regrets. “I’ve been in Evita and Les Mis,” Michelle said. “I’ve wanted to be part of pit since my freshman year, I didn’t have any doubts about saying yes. And the fact that we were doing Les Mis this year, one of my favorite musicals of all time, made the decision so much easier.” Sophomore Kelvin Tai agreed. “This is my first year in pit. I was asked if I wanted to do it, and I said yes, because I knew it would be challenging but ultimately a fun experience.” Students in pit were fond of the memories made. “Like I said, this is my first year doing it, so I loved making new friends,” said Kelvin. Michelle explained that pit was closer this year than last year in terms of friendships and relationships. “I can’t name a specific memory that’s my favorite because there are too many but I guess one of my favorite parts of pit would be that we’ve all bonded over our feelings towards our iconic pianist, Paul Paulson Jr.” Overall, the musicians were pleased with their experience and pit and glad that they’d gotten more recognition than ever before this year. “Post Les Mis depression is so real,” said Michelle with a frown. “But I am extremely grateful for this experience to play the music of a musical that is very near and dear to my heart. And I’m grateful that I’ve made so many friends and that this musical has brought me closer not only to members of the pit but members of the cast as well.”
4 The Voyager
News
May 2017
Laurels for “Les Miserables” By BEN FORSMAN ‘17 and SHREYA GOWDA ‘19 Voyager Staff Reporters
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hen Dr. Molotsky, the musical director, announced “Les Miserables” at Fall Cabaret last year, waves of excitement rippled through the theater department. “It was already popular,” he said, “more popular than I knew.” Junior Vincent Melera, who played Marius, said he jumped around and screamed with great rejoicing. “I was very happy,” he said. There had been rumors since November because “we needed a rotating stage for James and the Giant Peach so we could use it for another big show in the future, like Les Mis.” “Les Miserables” is a complicated show to perform, but the cast appeared ready for the challenge. Robert Sundstrom, who played Javert, said everyone knew that it was going to be difficult, and that just made everyone work even harder, in appreciation. “A lot of the time you’ll see people just phoning it in,” he said. “But I don’t think anybody even in the ensemble did that in the show. Everybody understood that for this to be great that we had to push a little extra.” This was equally true of students making the music. The extensive score which Les Miserables is known for was performed by 28 students in the pit. In order to choose the students in the pit, Mr. Stanz, the band director and conductor, asked his students if they were interested and then hand-picked each one. “Most of the kids are from our top level ensembles,” he said.
“For high school students to prepare for this is amazing. For high school students to do two and a half hours of straight music is amazing,” Mr. Stanz said. He found out about the musical the same time as the kids, after the cabaret. With Les Miserables always being among the most popular Broadway productions, it was no wonder that this one was extremely successful. According to Mr. Friedman, who is in charge of ticket sales, the play sold 3,400 tickets worth about $35,000. Dr. Molotsky said he had always wanted to do “Les Miserables,” but was waiting for the right time. “It was the right fit for the cast we had,” he said. “I always wanted to do it. I was just waiting for the right set of kids. I felt like this was the right time.” Robert Sundstrom continued this thought. “It’s the most talented cast I’ve ever been a part of, it was extremely humbling to work with Gary [Bowman] and Bridgette [Burton] and to be on their level. Everybody from Ensemble on up to Gary of course was so talented I don’t think I’ve ever been in a show that was like that, that the talent was so strong and widespread.” However, this production was possible not only due to talent. It would not have been successful without the exceptional work ethic of all those involved. The actors faced immense preparation in order to make the show perfect, staying at the school every day from December to March for three hour after-school rehearsals from 2:30 to 5:30 PM. “It wasn’t such a burden for us because we were really driven to do this show, to put this in front of a crowd, so that was some extra motivation whereas in other years we might have dragged our feet a
Photo by Voyager Staff
Jean Vajean, played by Gary Bowman, ponders fate behind the barricade little bit,” said Melara. “But this year we had incredible drive to push this where it could be and where it ultimately went.” “This was Dr. Molotsky’s ‘Hamilton’ when he was growing up and he said he would never do it with a high school cast, always saying they wouldn’t do it justice, but at the beginning of this year he told us he thought we could do it so just to have that trust in us and our ability was really special,” said Sundstrom. Melara said this show holds a special place in his heart and is the best one he has ever been apart of. “Working with them [the cast] has been one of the highlights of my high school career,” Melara said. “Having friends in the show was such an honor to work with them because we poured our heart and soul into it and I really think it paid off.”
Photo by Shari Douglass
Fantine, played by senior Bridgette Burton, reads a secret letter.
May 2017
First Person Perspective DECA provides an outlet for business students
News
The Voyager 5
Photo by Prithika Pal ‘18
Maestro Datis leads the Student Alliance members during practice for freshman orientation Photo by Mrs. Lowery
DECA participants smile as they prepare for the opening ceremony. By RASHI SANGHAVI ‘19 Voyager Staff Reporter People often ask, “What is DECA? What do you do as a member?” After asking some questions to students that haven’t taken part in DECA, they’ve said that they know students get to miss a day of school and to be a member, you need to take a business class. That is a very big misrepresentation of what DECA really is. DECA, otherwise known as Distributive Education Clubs of America, is an outlet for students in high school or college to experience and familiarize themselves with competition in day-to-day life using professional behavior. Every student starts from scratch and presents him or herself and ideas to judges who score based on how adequately they solve problems within a troubled business. Before the regional conference, you select the event you want to compete in and take a written test that corresponds with the event chosen. At the conference, you compete with other people in your event by doing role plays, which are scenarios in which you have to problem solve and be unique in front of a judge. Twelve people are then chosen to progress to the next conference. The state level conference for 2017 was held in the Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City. Schools from all over the state stayed in the hotel for the 3-day overnight conference. Having experience with the state conference from the year before, I prepared by bringing lots of snacks and water bottles. It was a good call since there was barely enough down time at the hotel to eat and rest. When Eastern reached the hotel on February 21st, we were able to settle into our rooms, walk around the hotel, and rest before the opening night ceremony. This year’s New Jersey DECA States was different. To keep all of the students occupied and behaved in the large hotel, DECA advisors prepared workshops to engage students more in the business world, which was a new addition from the years before.. Initially students were instructed to attend four of the five workshops on February 22nd. Ronak Thakur, a sophomore who qualified for the DECA Nationals International Career Development Conference, said, “(DECA) helps to provide a competitive outlook on the business world.” He recommends other students participate in DECA because it was interesting to see so many people with the same mindset to do their best to progress. The DECA advisor is Mrs. Barbara Lowery. B-Low, as her students call her, came into the club by teaching business courses. She has been an advisor for 10 years and in charge of the South Gold Regional conference for 5 years, and with each year her passion for the club grows more and more. Mrs. Lowery said her best experience with DECA was eight years ago at the Texas National DECA Competition. She had a group of twelve students and knew that two students were going to get called up on stage for Nationals. Both students were on stage and one of them won first place in Nationals. “I remember running down behind the stairs to take pictures, and I almost slid down the stairs. That’s how excited I was,” she said. Even teachers in our school have competed in DECA. Eastern’s TV Media teacher, Mr. Holmes, had a DECA advisor who told him and his friends to try the DECA club. He said they had to “make up a store and they were totally prepared for it.” With a team of three, they all had different responsibilities that led to them really engaging in the competition. I joined DECA in my freshman year, through taking the Marketing 1 Honors class. When I was in eighth grade, an upperclassman friend told me about how she’d gone to an overnight conference and had an amazing experience with the trip. I decided that DECA was something I wanted to participate in, so I took a business class to be able to enroll. Soon after the Regional conference, I had qualified for States. Now, I am going to do DECA all throughout high school. Not many freshmen know about DECA before they have scheduled for their classes, and I was lucky to have the exposure to it.
Student Alliance refines freshman orientation
Improvements made include earlier iPad deployment and peer bonding activities By SHREYA GOWDA ‘19 News Editor High school is often considered the hardest change that teenagers will encounter in their adolescence. With the transition to a heavier workload, higher expectations, and different social standings, coming from middle school can be challenging. That is why the Freshman Orientation, organized by the Student Alliance, was amended to help this process for next year. Now, instead of Freshman Orientation lasting three hours, it lasts three days, and lasts from nine a.m. to one p.m, and will cost approximately $50. During the orientation, students will receive their schedule, participate in bonding activities and will receive their iPads. Six teachers will supervise the week. Mr. Smart, the supervisor of attendance, student activities, technology and TV media, said one of the main reasons for the change was to help “to relieve the anxiety of high school.” One of the ways to do this is the activities that will get students to “know their peers, and know their teachers,” said Mrs. O’Keefe, one of the advisors to the orientation. Mrs. Fox, Mrs. O’Keefe, and Mrs. Bunnell-Jackson worked together along with Student Alliance members to organize this. They based it upon schools that had done similar objectives, like Washington Township and Kingsway, and based upon their results, formed the new orientation. According to Mr. Smart, another factor was several parent requests for a better transition into high school. Besides the social advantages to attend-
ing, there is also the technological advantage of deploying iPads sooner. It is “advantageous to do deployment of iPads in August so they can implement it [the use of iPads] from August,” said Mr. Smart. It will allow teachers to start using them the first week of school rather than wait for the transition sometime during the school year. The organizers of the freshman orientation have high expectations for the success of this orientation, based upon the results of other schools that have done the same thing. According to Mr. Smart, the main detracting feature was being away for vacation rather than the commitment to three days. The original Freshman Orientation will still be available for those who wish to not attend the three days.
6 The Voyager
Features
May 2017
Stage crew feels the love after long labor By JEN LE ‘17 Entertainment Editor
and ensures that everything is completed in a timely manner. However, there were certainly a few close ehind every great actor, there is an cases. equally great stage crew. “We finished it [the After all of the shows, some of peach in James and the the members feel as though they are unGiant Peach] pretty derappreciated. But with the highly acmuch the day of previews claimed Les Miserables, junior Aaron and it was awful to spin beForsman believes that the “efforts are cause all the wheels and all more clearly recognized.” The sets, comthe things that were unbined with the actors’ performance, made der it. It was rough,” said the show. Childs. Mr. Isshak, a former Eastern and stage The barricade, seen in crew student, has been advising the the Les Amis de l’ABC’s team since the performance of Pirates last hurrah, was also an of Penzance. His job is to ensure that the arduous feat taken by sets are built in a “safe and efficient manstage crew. Childs called ner.” He said that he loves stage crew, but it “unwieldy and heavy” the hours are “horrible.” - and with good reason . Every piece, every part, every portion The barricade, a heaping down to the last paint particle was not pile of trash piled against done by magic. In the beginning, memitself, posed a challenge bers stayed after school until 6:30 at comparable to one of the la- Stage crew poses on early construction. The crew night. As the showtimes for approached, garnered numerous Cappies nominations, including bors of Hercules. their hours expanded until 11:30 PM. It was separated into four Best Sets and Best Stage Management/ Crew. “I feel like people are starting to apmain platforms and took the preciate more what crew does but they entire team to carry it on still don’t understand all of the hours and ficed himself for a greater cause.” stage. The turntable it laid work that gets put into it,” said junior All of the ideas were generated by the upon sometimes couldn’t Laura Valeri. members. The only object did not wholly move under its weight. But In total, there are thir- Every piece, every belong to it was the turntable they rented. to every problem, there is a ty-three members in part, every portion This proved to be a tremendous change solution. stage crew. Among the from last year where Childs said they “We had one of the acadministrative ranks is down to the last “didn’t design anything so when it came tors, Robert Sundstrom...to junior Aaron Forsman paint particle was time to build things we were like: ‘We climb over the barricade at as master carpenter, judon’t know what we’re building because some point. So whenever it nior Cyrena Kokolis as not done by magic. there are no plans.’” didn’t move, he just pushed paint charge, seniors That all changed with the construction of the turntable along and it Maggie Higgins and the monstrous peach. Mr. Isshak coined worked.” Jenna Marchewka as assistant production it as a “test” to see whether the members Despite the barricade’s difficult nature, it managers, and junior Chris Childs as prowere capable enough to build something was symbolic for Les Miserables. duction manager. on their own. They passed it with flying Mr. Isshak said, “In the end, the barricade Childs said that his experience in this colors. Extracurriculars are supposed to was made so that Enjolras (Cameron Duyear’s stage crew has been “pretty great.” be for the students to learn something. brow) seemed crucified… You would see He started out as master carpenter and has This year, Childs noted, Mr. Isshak is him as the crucified leader of the revolusince risen through the ranks. As producmore of an advisor rather than a boss. tion. He was like Jesus, in the way he sacrition manager, he oversees the members Although stage crew is a work-inten-
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Q&A with Chris Childs
Jen Le: What got you in stage crew? Chris Childs: I was actually an actor before. In eighth grade I was in the VCS musical that I went to in uh, summer camp. It’s where they did Hairspray junior. J: What summer camp was that? C: Curtain Call Performing Arts Center. It was in Marlton, maybe? It was my former music teacher’s camp. I was Corny Collins in Hairspray junior and then I got to Eastern and found out Junior Chris Childs works on completing the barricade. the turntable this year, the guy who came in to do it told us that they were doing Hairspray and I said ‘No, I’m not getting he went in [for school] for props and ended up doing techniinvolved with that.’ Then I got involved with stage crew. One cal stuff, and now he’s installing turntables and I feel like that friend dragged me to it. would be a pretty cool job especially if I ended up somewhere J: Do you, do you miss anything about being an actor? higher up like… C: Um, some of the actors are very drama filled. This, it’s just J: Walnut Street? very - I think it’s more gratifying than being an actor. C: Yeah, that would just be really cool. Really, it could end up J: What’s gratifying about it? being a nice side job. C: Because you put in so many hours and at the end you get to J: What are some of your hobbies, besides stage crew? Or do see it all pay off. Because even though you’re not on stage, you you have no other hobbies besides stage crew? did everything on stage, all the time. So it’s kinda like you’re on C: I have no other hobbies. I don’t really do anything. stage, for the entire show. J: How many people are in stage crew? How many did you J: What background do you have for doing stage? Like hammeroversee? ing nails? I mean, do you have construction experience? C: There were like, the total including me was like 31 this year. C: Absolutely nothing before I joined. I have never even held a Last year it felt like seven people. power drill before that. J: Who had the overall idea for the set? How did that work? J; Did you have Mr. Bradley’s class? C: Even before we started work, I instantly started to look up C: After I joined. I had experience up until my third show. I was ideas. I found one really cool set that had - it was way more than master carpenter so, you learn a lot. what we did. It had like eight towers while we had four and I J: Do you plan on pursuing this as a major, or is this just a hobjust thought that the towers were a really cool idea and I wanted by? that. But I mentioned that to Ish, and then he mentioned that to C: I haven’t really thought about it. I always joked with Isshak Mo and then Mo was like ‘Oh, it’s my idea now.’ and told him that I would come back and take his job so I mean, J: Do people donate their own stuff to stage crew? that’s always an option. C: Yeah. This year we ran out of a budget. We didn’t have J: What did Isshak say to that? any money so Aaron Forsman’s step dad donated like sixteenC: He said I can have it. If he’s still doing stage crew by the time footers for us, which is like $500 worth of wood. It was very I get a job as a teacher, he made a mistake. generous of him. It allowed us to build the rake. We were actuJ: So what’s your current major then? ally going to scrap that idea. C: Uh, I want to do education, I want to be a history teacher. J: Any shoutouts? Unsung heroes? J: Like Mr. Isshak then? C: I can’t mention everyone… I’d like to mention everyone. C; Yeah. Almost exactly, pretty much. But, when we installed
Photo Supplied by Chris Childs ‘18
sive activity, it does have its shining moments. They demolished a timely spiral staircase as material to build the peach, a staircase whose legacy precedes that of Fred Bovine the Cow. Under it, crew found a time capsule filled with artifacts of stage crew’s past: tickets from shows and the names of the then-current members. “It kinda showed how stage crew is the same group of people over the years,” said Childs, “because everyone, like wrote their interests and stuff. It’s like pretty much all the same.” Stage crew is not entirely composed of backbreaking work, however. It’s more than just a team. It’s a family. “My most memorable experiences would have to be the late night gaff ball games we would play after dinner, which consisted of lots of pizza and sensational stories told by everyone in crew,” said freshman Kavya Ramesh. Junior Laura Valeri added that her most memorable experience was when she spent time with all her friends and her “freshman children that I love so dearly.” Junior Aaron Forsman also had a similar experience, “mainly because I get to do something I love while meeting great new people to do it with.” In theatre, there is bound to be some tension between the actors and stage crew. That tension was certainly evident last year, but this year, all of Stage Crew’s qualms disappeared. Some of the actors even came in and helped paint the floor. “Last year, crew was kind of very… like you had to be friends with the people in crew to be in crew,” said Childs. “I almost quit, actually last year. But this year, - one girl didn’t even know another girl and found out that it was her birthday the next day and made her cupcakes. People are just super nice this year.” Stage crew deserves all the recognition it can garner. The members in black need a little color added to their reputation, a light shedding on all the work they have done to augment the quality of Eastern’s productions. Dr. Molotsky is currently the director of the theatre club and oversees stage crew activities. He has been directing musicals for twenty years and had participated in theatre in his high school and college years. He said, “Since 2008, we’ve been doing top-level, high quality sets and we’ve maintained that standard as students graduate and as they come and go.” After years of fighting for recognition, these members have won the battle with the victorious firing of cannons. Stage crew is an integral part of theatre. “I feel our efforts are appreciated by most of the theater community,” said Ramesh. “But not everyone understands how much effort stage crew puts into the shows.”
Features
May 2017
The Voyager 7
Dropping a university t-shirt for a military uniform By KAITLIN McGEE ‘17 Voyager Staff Reporter For many, it’s Camden County College, Rutgers, George Washington, and Drexel. For others, it’s Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines. Out of Eastern High School’s class of 2016, of the 491 students 90% went to college, while 2% went into the military, according to Eastern’s guidance department. One of the students who went into the military is Noah Forsman, who graduated with the class of 2016. Forsman went into the Air Force because, according to him, he had no idea what he wanted to do beyond high school and wanted a way to earn money while he figured his life out. Forsman felt it had more benefits than other branches. Forsman is an air traffic controller who loves his job because of the people he has met. “The people you meet in the Air Force are unlike anyone else,” he said. Forsman does not regret not going to college at all, because he can “always go back to college.” Giving advice for students considering going into the military, Forsman said, “First off, go to an Air Force recruiter. In all seriousness, make sure it’s what you want to do. Don’t do it just because you don’t have any other options.” While many students have joined the military in the past, there are students currently in Eastern who plan to enlist,
like senior Logan Burns and senior Mason Laubaugh going into the Air Force, senior Adam Randazzo and senior Shweta Patel. (joining the U.S. Navy,) Patel is enlisting in the U.S. Navy, because she always wanted to do something different with her life. Patel had always wanted to serve the greater good, but it wasn’t until sophomore year that she decided the military w a s t h e path for her. According to Patel, she loves to take risks and, while the military has its own dangers, she welcomes the challenge. Artwork by Sakshi Sehrawat ‘18 When asked if she’ll miss the college experience, Patel said, “I will be having more fun while working as an Operational Specialist, diving off those huge carriers,
learning how to decode messages, and being stationed in Hawaii or San Diego — now that is the definition of fun to me.” Another student who plans on going into the military is senior Rom Katav. Unlike many American students who want to serve, Katav plans on going back to Israel to join the Israeli military, after leaving the country in 7th grade. According to Katav, he plans to join because, in Israel, it’s something they were raised to do. Israel is a country with a mandatory service for each citizen, with young adults going to college after their service. There are some benefits associated with going into the military, from reduced college tuition costs, to benefits like healthcare, and help finding a job. But there are some cons as well, like the long time away Noah Forsman ‘16 now serves in the Air Force from family and friends, demanding work, and a chance of mental or physical injury. If the risks are a chance you are willBy ANUSKA LAHIRI ‘17 ing to take Voyager Staff Reporter and you either don’t know Inside a sand-colored, and exquisitely designed stone building on what to do or the corner of Lafayette Avenue and Haddonfield-Berlin Road, chilcollege isn’t dren are singing hymns and reciting tenets. The walls are decorated the right path with cultural art and bulletins, and the coffee table offers children’s for you, permagazines, newsletters, and refugee assistance forms. haps enlisting The Voorhees Islamic Center is a place of dedicated worship. Zahida in the military Rahman, in between practicing prayers with children, gave some insight regarding how the Muslim community in Voorhees is faring in could be a today’s political climate. great option When asked about the current divisiveness plaguing America, espefor you. cially in regards to Islamic stereotypes, Rahman cited a lack of information as the primary reason for the confusion. “In the media and newspapers, when something good happens, they don’t show it. But when something bad happens, they show it everywhere.” She continues, “No religion teaches hate. If people knew Islam, I hope they would think differently about it. I wish they would see real Muslim character.” Rahman explained how the trifecta of Abrahamic religions, Islam, Judaism, and Christianity, teach the same basic principles, and stressed the importance of solidarity. “You are my brother, but I want you to think and consider other humans,” she said, when asked what she would say to Trump if she had the chance, “What legacy are you leaving?” In response to Trump’s attempted ban on Muslim refugees, she said, after an emotional pause, “We respect Trump; we hope he will understand what the Constitution says.” The controversy surrounding the Muslim community does not erode Rahman’s hope. She says good things come out of bad things, as exemplified by the handwritten cards and bouquets of tulips left by Voorhees residents eager to assure the mosque and its members that they are welcome in the area. “I hope there won’t be a Muslim registry, but Christians and Jews of the community have said to me that if there is, they would register to show support,” Rahman said. “I think people are learning more about Islam from all of this.”
Senior Jordyn Abrams hand designed these Converse sneakers for fellow senior Sydney Snyderman who will be attending Alabama in the fall.
Jordyn Abrams: shoe designer By SYDNEY SNYDERMAN ‘17 Voyager Staff Reporter
As a graduating senior, the focal point of the year is going to college. Refreshing portal pages on college admission sites and running home to check the mailbox have become second nature to graduating seniors. Everyone is patiently waiting to see where they will go to college. Once committed, obtaining college apparel has become the new craze. Who has the trendiest tee shirt or sweatshirt for tailgating in the fall? Jordyn Abrams, a graduating senior and fellow classmate, jumped on the college apparel bandwagon by designing custom sneakers with college logos. From Converse to Vans, Abrams can customize any college theme and then transform your sneakers into a work of art. “I got the idea from looking at some pictures
that one of my friends posted on social media and thought it was a very cool idea so I went with it,” Jordyn said. Wearing college apparel and going all out for sporting events is a great way to show school spirit. The shoes are a great way to spice up your outfit and everyone will want a pair. Jordyn recently designed a pair of converse for a student attending the University of Alabama in the fall. The fact that she made the shoes with just a couple of markers is mindblowing. “I enjoy doing this because I love drawing and painting and coloring and doing it for money is just an added bonus,” Jordyn said. “I love the smiles on their faces when I give them the finished product.” Abrams has just started an Instagram named “madeby.m.a.j,” where she will post finished projects up on her site to show everyone what she can do. If you would like a pair made by Jordyn or to ask questions about the sneakers you can contact her via email at madeby.m.a.j.05@gmail.com.
Local Muslims encourage understanding of the Constitution and Islam
8 The Voyager
Clubs
May 2017
American Sign Language: the diversity club By CRYSTAL OSUJI ‘18 Voyager Staff Reporter
Although it’s not yet recognized as a real clubat Eastern, the American Sign Language Cohort has a turnout of about twenty plus students each week with familiar faces and new faces eager to learn the word of ASL. Junior David Clem has been trying to start the ASL Cohort since his sophomore year. Last year, the cohort was not quite ready so it had to be put on the back burner until David was ready to start back up again. David, as a child, was born hard of hearing and started his sign language journey when he was only a child. “I’ve know sign language since I was two years old,” said David. This cohort turning into a club that is recognized as a legitimate club is extremely important to David. He believes that his club can be a safe space for anyone who feels different or left out. “Now is a better time than ever to bring people to unity with language.” The American Sign Language cohort is treated more like a class than a club. The students involved meet during Lunch
mod A where they will learn simple phrases, the alphabet, and play sign language themed activities to further their knowledge. Mr. Isshak is the advisor of the ASL Cohort. Although he doesn’t have any experience with sign language, he knows that this cohort is important to David Clem and wanted to help. “It’s a nice edition to the school that a lot of people do not know much about,” said Mr. Isshak. The “club” for now is seen as just a gathering of students in a classroom, but David hopes that the club would take in the footsteps of Voorhees Middle School and also make this an official club. However this has become a challenge due to school board policy, financial issues, school rules, and the amount of clubs already in existence. “People are engaged. It has a nice following and they show great efforts to learn,” said Mr Isshak. If you are interested in join this cohort it is not too late! The American Sign Language Cohort meets every Day 1 during Lunch Mod A in 303, or Mr. Isshak’s room.
David Clem ‘18 teaches sign language to the rest of the club members.
Photo by Crystal Osuji ‘18
For those who love trivia
Jen Le ‘17, Jonathan Shochat ‘18, Diya Goyal ‘17, Aditi Kiron ‘18, and KaiPhoto Supplied by Yearbook Staff tlin McGee ‘17 discuss a bonus question. By ALEX MACKLE ‘18 Managing Editor Throughout human history, humans have had a fascination with knowledge. As a result, they would create games in order to test and build upon their knowledge. That is where Eastern’s Academic Challenge team comes in. One of Eastern’s oldest clubs, Academic Challenge has been around, in one form or another, since Eastern’s first school year in 1965 when the program was brought over from some of the sending districts. Despite its history, the current incarnation of Academic Challenge dates back to about 1980. The competitions operate like a sort of quiz bowl or Jeopardy style competition. Teams of four compete in four twenty-five question rounds; five of the questions are current events based, the other twenty being based upon general knowledge, much of which is learned in school. According to long-time advisor Mr. Lindenhofen, “Questions range from English to Math to Science [and more]. You have to have a lot of knowledge beyond that. Most of the teams that do well are students who are avid readers and take advanced placement level classes.” Due to the nature of the questions, it is imperative for the team to practice in order to remain competitive. Just like in studying for a school assessment, the Academic Challenge team practices by having structured moch competitions. They split up into into teams and play each
other, answering questions in the style of those used in the matches. The team keeps track of how many questions each student gets right and wrong, and uses this data to determine who is the most efficient at answering. Accordingly, these are the primary students who compete at the conference level. In addition to practicing the regular questions, the team stresses the importance of the current events questions, as they take up twenty-five percent of the problems, and they tend to be “very current,” according to Mr. Lindenhofen. “Students have to stay up to date on what’s going on in the newspapers,” he said. Through its many years, the team has remained quite competitive, winning the conference in 2015-2016, and coming in second place this past year with only one loss. Even with the ambitious nature of Eastern’s program, there seems to be a congenial and easygoing atmosphere. “It’s a lot of fun,” said junior Aditi Kiron. “I’ve always loved trivia…[and I] really like the format and making new friends.” This is the general response that students tend to have towards the team. “It’s not a stressful thing to be a part of,” said Mr. Lindenhofen. “Everybody likes playing Trivial Pursuit. A big thing amongst restaurants and bars is Quizzo. People love trivia. It’s fun to do, it’s low stress – we are a competitive team, we do like to win the conference. But as far as it goes, we have a great team atmosphere. Sometimes it’s funny. It’s fun. Kids get wrong answers. It’s a loose atmosphere.”
The varsity debate team poses with trophy with advisors, Mr. Kemery (right) and Ms. Kolojejchick (left).
Fear public speaking? Then do a Julian Berlin. Try out debate! By SRISHTI RAMESH ‘19 Features Editor Although many fear public speaking, it is a strength for some. It translates into the success of the Debate club. Supervised by Mr. Kemery, the club has achieved many things over the past years, including an undefeated record in last year’s JV league and the runner-up in this season’s varsity league. “The debate team is mainly student led,” said one of the captains of the team, senior Julian Berlin. Berlin, who along with his co-captain Pranav Ramesh, also a senior, run the club and are held responsible for its success. Debate, being a club that requires both skill and effort, has a lot of personal benefits. “My partnership improved because my partner and I sorted things out in the beginning and we really progressed after that,” said sophomore Jaisal Khatiwala. Another aspect of the debate club that makes them unique is the amount of research that they conduct to prepare for their debates. There is important and extensive research needed to obtain the information that the debaters need. The information gathered in debate also helps the student outside of debate. This
year, for the JV team, their focus was on diplomatic and economic relations in China. “While this topic doesn’t come up in daily conversation at our age,” said sophomore Ronak Thakur, “it is an important topic, especially considering the current events going on in the government at this time.” Berlin said he has even used debate information in school assignments. Debate club is a school activity that sharpens many important skills and expands knowledge, but, to most in the club, it is also thrilling and fun. “In debate you have two three minute segments where you go one on one with an opposing debater,” said Berlin. “These ‘cross-exes’ compose some of my most thrilling high school memories.” Ironically, Berlin started debate in an attempt to get over his fear of public speaking. “I didn’t originally want to do it because of the effort required but I found a joy out of it and was motivated to join,” said Khatiwala, who recommends others join the club next season. “If you are on the fence on whether or not you should join the team, just do it! Try it out!” Berlin concluded. “You will probably get crushed in your first debate. This is normal. Try, try again.”
Features
May 2017
The Voyager 9
A nature walk to remember . . .
Anthony’s Ad- Finding Atsion Lake By Anthony Murphy ‘17
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right and early on a Sunday morning, my friend, Carson, texted a bunch of us asking if any of us wanted to take his dog for a walk with him on some nearby, wooded trail. The trail was off of Ephraim Road in Shamong, about a 20 minute drive away. With nothing else planned for the day and rays of sunshine tempting me to make use of the beautiful day, I was the first to jump and say yes to going. It ended up being just three of us going, Carson, Nick, and I, but I was excited to see what this trail had in store and what kind of nature shots I could get along the way. I love having friends who are always itching to do something outside just like myself. Something about going out and enjoying nature for what it is gives the best ecocentric shot of positivity and really helps get your mind right. Appreciating the beauty of the world around us gives such simple yet astounding energy. It survives off of us and we survive off of it. An organic system of such is hard to look past without stopping to smell the flowers every once in a while. After what seemed like endless miles on Jackson Road, we finally turned onto Atsion Road which then led to Ephraim Road, spitting us right in the opening of the trail. We parked the cars, grabbed his dog, Petie, and started our walk. None of us knew where we were or what to expect with this trail. “I found this trail on an app. I don’t know how long it is or if there is even anything on it but it’s something new so might as well check it out.” “That’s the spirit I like,” I
commented back to Carson after telling us that we all were in the same boat in the sense of not knowing where to go on this trail. The main path led to a crossroad; the right had a sign labeled “Campsite” and to the left was a thin path behind a mound of sand leading deep into the woods. Of course we picked the path to the left. Up the mound we went and we soon became consumed in fresh, green shrubs and underbrush. The sun was breaking through the tree line, offering us a perfectly lit trail. The birds were chirping, the bugs were out, and it finally felt like spring was here. It wasn’t long before we were confronted with another crossroad on the path. Another set of two diverging roads at a yellow wood; except it was a pine tree. To the left was an overgrown winding path into a very shadowy part of the woods and the right was well lit and the light shining onto it gave us the impression that the path opened up to something. We went to the right. As we continued on the path we noticed the neatest thing. Just a little off in the distance it seemed significantly darker. We followed the path and it began to get cooler,
almost as if colder air was emanating from the shadowy section of the trees. We didn’t even have to get that close to realize that the trees in the dark area were a completely different species of pine. Within a foot stood two completely different landscapes. On one side stood spread out, light brown colored pine trees. The branches bent more outward and the trees seemed to lean in different directions. On the other side stood a dark, dense biome. The trees were darker brown, appearing almost black, and stood straight up with branches also straight and very uniform. The trees were so densely grown that it casted complete shade over the entire ground under it. Dark moss grew from the ground and the ground seemed very moist compared to the sunny area we were walking in. A slight breeze came from the dense trees and as we followed the path, we found that the darker biome led right up to a runoff river from the Atsion Lake. We followed the path blind and our senses brought us right to the open lake. From an opening in the trail we could see the line where the trees changed. Words and pictures can not do justice the surrealness of that biome change. We followed the path a little longer, avoiding little deer trails that we would have otherwise explored if we hadn’t had the dog with us.
We began to loop around and took foreign trails in hope of it bringing us back to where we came from. Petie, the dog, insisted on leading the way. Surprisingly, the unwalked paths led full circle back to the crossroad from earlier which brought us back to the main trail from the beginning. Before leaving Nick and I stopped at a rock peeking from the ground. At first glance it looked like a brick so we started to dig to see if we could uncover whatever it was. Soon we discovered that it was a plain rock and we dug up a part of the ground for nothing. “Oh well,” Nick said, “Someone else will stumble across it and see that someone had been digging there so maybe they’ll dig a little bit too, then someone else will see it and dig at it and next thing you know everyone that passes starts to pick at it all because we made it seem like something was there.” That was an attractive thought for the end of our stroll. The walk was an overall success. We explored a new trail we had never been on before, noted an extraordinary anomaly in nature, and got to check out the stunning Atsion Lake. It is definitely a place to come back to for fishing and kayaking and maybe to trek into the deep pines to see what is hiding within the intimidating and dense forestry.
Photo by Anthony Murphy ‘17
Local ice cream places open up in preparation for coming season
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By JARED GANS ‘17 Editor-in-Chief
he arrival of spring opens more than just the tulips. This is the time when favorite local ice cream places open their doors to sell soft serve, hard ice cream, water ice, or a combination to their loyal customers. Four places appear to be the most popular for Voorhees, Berlin, and Gibbsboro residents. Friendly’s, which sells diner food in addition to ice cream, recently moved to the Voorhees Town Center and is the only place which is continuously open throughout the year. Sundae’s in West Berlin was the first of the local places to open on March 3. Diane’s Water Ice, which also sells ice cream, in Voorhees followed on March 10. Rita’s Water Ice (Voorhees) opened on the first day of spring as they usually do, by giving away free water ice all day. Masso’s Water Ice and Custard, in Gibbsboro, opened March 24. Senior Alex Wittbrodt, who works at Masso’s, is very excited for the start of the ice cream season. Needless to mention, his favorite ice cream place is his workplace, where his favorite item is the mint chocolate chip blizzard. “I love mint chocolate chip. Nothing can beat that,” Wittbrodt said.
Freshman Zach Rosenberg differs from Wittbrodt in that he is torn between Diane’s and Sundae’s as his favorite place. He prefers them because of their closeness to his house and their watermelon water ice and cake batter ice cream, respectively. Junior Hannah Backal is set on Diane’s because “they have the best frozen custard and they always smile in there and have very nice service.” One thing that is not constant among customers is how often they get ice cream. Rosenberg goes once every few weeks with his friends while Wittbrodt usually goes a couple times a week after his shifts end. Overall, the season is consistently busy, reaching a high point in July. “That’s when people are usually on the move, going down the shore and getting ice cream,” Wittbrodt said based on what he sees while working. Despite their differences, Wittbrodt, Rosenberg, and Backal agree on why they like getting ice cream during the spring and summer so much. “Once they open, it’s a reminder that winter is over, and the sun is on its way,” Backal said. Wittbrodt also sees their openings as brightness in the future, both literally and figuratively. “Nothing is better than having an ice cream treat on a calm summer night,” he said.
Top Ice Cream Places Diane’s
Rita’s Yo Mama’s
Sprinkles
Mr. Softee Other
Sundae’s Masso’s
Cold Dessert Preference Gelato
Water Ice Ice Cream
Other Frozen Yogurt Soft Serve Based on Voyager survey of 98 students online
Features
10 The Voyager
May 2017
Photo of the Month
As the weather gets warmer, students enjoy lunch hour outside in the courtyards.
Photo by Isabel Begelman ‘17
Road trips are good What to do in the area in May for the soul Cooper River Park
Cooper River Park contains several activity areas for people of all ages. There is a playground and certain fields, such as softball fields, for children. There are two bike paths and a cross country course. There are also boating activities on their vast lake. There is a dog park, “Pooch Park,” for dogs and their owners. There is a stadium where lots of concerts take place over the summer when it is warmer. ~Julia Dodd ‘19
By SOPHIA TROCCOLI ‘17 Voyager Staff Reporter With Kerouac and keys in hand, I closed the hatchback door of my dirt speckled Ford. The suitcases were packed like sardines in the tin of my trunk. The July ball of fire roared down upon my face, and had me longing for cool Maine waters or the drip-drip-dripping of a rest-stop ice cream sandwich. “It’s a long ways to Ontario,” my sister called, waving an accordioned map out of the passenger seat window. And I, with a lightness in my heart and On The Road in my hand, climbed behind the wheel to set out on our voyage. In a society where the mundane can seem so claustrophobic, on an ever-spinning planet where we sit frozen, daydreaming about fresh air and sunlight in stuffy classrooms and office cubicles under artificial LED lights: road trips are good for the soul, this I believe to be undeniably true. The first road trip I ever made was to North Carolina, when my mom’s childhood friend invited us to see her new home down south. My family made a game out of trying to find all 50 states on the license plates that swished by us on the highway. We found every single one (Well, except for Alaska, Hawaii, and Utah. But who cares about those states anyway?). The second road trip I made was to Florida, when my great grandfather passed away and my mother went to separate his life into boxes. We got lost in Washington D.C. on the drive home, but navigating that GPS for my road rage infused mother was probably the closest we ever got to bonding. The third road trip I made was up through New England. By this time my parents were long since divorced, my sister was off at Philadelphia University, and I was stuck in one solitary place. When my father proposed a good old hit-the-highway adventure, my heart leapt. Like so many road trips before, I was car sick before we even cleared
Longwood Gardens
New Jersey, my little-big sister with the pea sized bladder made us stop at every shady McDonalds, and we, the ravenous pilgrims, feasted on half melted Kit Kat bars and family sized bags of Utz potato chips. It was perfection. We often allow the stress of the busy seasons to control our relationships and let it distance us from loved ones, but the camaraderie that forms during a 10 hour drive along the east coast is sure to patch that part of the soul. Give it three states before the whole car is screaming at the top of their lungs The Avett Brothers’ “I and Love and You,” each passenger an instant rockstar with their hair blowing in the summer breeze and their sunglasses sitting upon grinning cheeks. I’ve followed the flow of roads from Florida to Canada, and all the states in between. And I have found a reason to fall in love with each and every place I have encountered. Not solely for the hikes I’ve taken through the beautiful parks, or the beaches I’ve sunbathed upon, or the roadside diners I’ve patroned; but because those long (sometimes uncomfortable, but mostly wonderful) hours spent in the car with my family have brought us all closer. Every American should take as many road trips in their life as possible. The roads are the bones, and rivers the blood of America. Most people dream of vacations to tropical islands or Parisian bistros, but I fantasize about crossing state lines in a trusty old Ford. Our country has hidden treasures yet: the ones you find within yourself when you are on the road.
Come visit the American Versailles: Longwood Gardens. May 27 marks the fountain makeover grand opening celebration with its new $90 million renovation. Come see new lighting, fountain shows, seating areas, bridges, and paths. Experience the improved beauty of all kinds in the various gardens. Visit longwoodgardens.org for more information and ticket sales. ~Hayley Beluch ‘18
Philadelphia Museum of Art
Located at the end of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philly, the Philadelphia Museum of Art has a vast collection of must see artworks of various artists and a display of the city’s culture. You can buy the tickets online at its website, plus one tickets gives you entry for two consecutive days. It also has the art after 5, where it hosts various live jazz band events and international concert. This visit to the museum will definitely leave you with an experience worth the time you’ll spend there. ~ Sakshi Sehrawat ‘18
Oki Maki at Ritz
When a new restaurant opens up so close to Eastern, you’d have to go out of your way to not try it. Oki Maki, in the Ritz shopping center, serves both traditional Asian cuisine like dumplings and ramen, and newer dishes, like sushi burritos. And best of all for high school students- it won’t break the bank. Cheap, convenient, and good food are all major reasons to give Oki Maki a try in May. Chew Philly Food Tours The Chew Philly Food Tours allows you to choose ~ Eric Horn ‘19 from 3 different food tours: the Authentic Philly Food Tour, the Chestnut Hill Culinary Experience, and the Haunted Food Tours. The Authentic Philly Baseball Season Food Tour specializes in classic Philly foods, such Baseball is officially back. As the weather continas cheesesteaks and tomato pies. The Chestnut ues to improve, it is the perfect time to go to CitiHill Culinary Experience has food for people with zen’s Bank Park and check out the Phillies. They more acquired tastes. The Haunted Food Tour edu- will be playing 12 home games in May, which procates you about some of the town’s creepiest spots vides many chances to drive to the ballpark and and hauntings, all while tasting food from 8 differ- cheer on their young and developing favorite team. ent food artisans. The next time you find yourself The opponents for this month include the Nationfeeling bored and hungry, grab your family for a als, Mariners, and Rockies. ~ Jordan Dahan ‘17 delicious taste of Philly. ~Kaylee Braidwood ‘20
What’s Frank Eating?
Senior Frank Ziegler thinks he left his lunch in his car. “They changed the rules,” he said. “I can’t get a car pass for my lunch. I need a teacher escort.” He said he has no idea what was in his lunch. “My mom packs my lunch,” he said. “I would, but she just packs it better.”
May 2017
Comics
The Voyager 11 Sirens, A Political Reprise
Exam days are not cool and good Don’t appreciate how thick those margin lines are Thicker than a bowl of oatmeal The passages we read were like knives in my heart But like, not. We came on and slammed And were welcomed to the jam Can y’all chill for reals like seriously I want to sleep while the inevitability of death looms over me
“Fly the Friendly Skies”
Cartoon by Hayley Beluch ‘18
Apple orange mango banana tomato Are some of my favorite fruits I gotta get that Steak. Poem and Cartoon by JM Tameta ‘18
Eastern in May and June
Cartoon by Hayley Beluch ‘18
Cartoon by Hayley Beluch ‘18 Cartoon by Kylie Easterday ‘18
Panda loves the Earth
Cartoon by Kylie Easterday ‘18
Cartoon by Hayley Beluch ‘18
12 May 2017
By ISABEL BEGELMAN ‘17 and JEN GLASS ‘17 Editor-in-Chief and Voyager Staff Reporter A footprint encased in melted cheese . . . empty plastic baggies littering the floor . . . flipped-over tupperware containers full of unidentifiable substances. Brush in hand, maintenance worker Donna Chew scrubs debris from the war zone. Though she works tirelessly to clear the carnage, it’s impossible to capture all of the mess left behind. “We have to [clean] in 10 minutes,” said Chew. “That’s what they give us, whatever we do in 10 minutes, then we have to lock [bleachers] up because of gym class.” Chew describes messes as a daily occurrence, particularly in the gym. Open drinks and trash litter the floors. Some days, the trash pile is so overflowing the trash has to be swept into aisles and swept down rather than straight into bins. “They’re brand new bleachers. The gym floor was replaced just last year,” said maintenance worker of five years Greg Lefevre. “This [mess] will take us where? Eventually they’re going to ruin the gym. The gym wasn’t built for this.” Even students realize that the lunch mess is out of control. “There was some kind of sticky liquid on the bleachers for like three days before it started growing something or changing color,” said junior Kylie Easterday. Freshman Liv Nor cross sits in one of the mostly trashed areas of the gym. “I see kids carelessly leaving a mess in here everyday,” she said. As students rush to class, most forget to clean up or some simply don’t realize the mess they are leaving behind for others to clean. “I do feel bad for the janitors,” said senior Natalia Bernal. “We could be cleaner, but we take advantage of them.” In other areas of the school, clean-up is more successful than in the gym. Many students who eat lunch in the media center expressed the effectiveness of the cleanup procedure. Senior Ayla Boyd used to eat in the 500 cafeteria, but now she eats in the media center. “It’s much quieter and cleaner in the media center. Clean-up is well regulated and enforced,” she said. “[Mrs. Sobel] hands out a wipe to wipe down the table.” During lunch, Mrs. Sobel and two other teachers supervise the media center to make sure students are being respectful. “The teachers and I walk around and ask
Messy
chic
students to clean the tables and I do hand a wipe to each table,” said Sobel about her clean up process. This also includes blowing a whistle at 11:16 to signal the start of cleanup. Students have said that the intimidation of having teachers walk around and ask students to clean is effective. Sobel agrees. “[Students] have been really great and respectful of both the technology as well as the space.” Bob Hendrickson concurred that the learning center has mastered cleanup. On a scale of 1-10, with ten being messy, Hendrickson says “the learning center is a three and the gym is an eight.” “[Mrs. Sobel] intimidates us into cleaning,” said sophomore Dylan Lederman. “All jokes aside, it’s respect for those who have to clean up after me.” Principal Robert Tull thinks a lack of respect is the root of the messiness issue. “We’re asking that they [students] would apply the same courtesy here, at school,” agreed Tull, “that they would at home.” Students interviewed agreed that the lack of respect was out of control. “[Students] are lazy and they don’t realize that other people have to clean up,” said sophomore Alyssa Reavy. Other students echoed this sentiment: students are seen as lazy by their peers. “I think that we can make the school a lot cleaner if everyone just takes responsibility for their own mess,” said senior Jenna Marchewka. “We’re all young adults, so we should really act like it and clean up after ourselves.” Students have ideas for students themselves on how we can alleviate the situation. “Brown paper bags work great as mini trash cans,” suggested Marchewka. Other students discussed ideas for the school to push students to clean more. “ Maybe we can start restricting lunch in the gym,” said Norcross, “or we could not allow the kids to leave until everything is mostly picked up.” Boyd suggested to “have more trash cans closer to the table” for the less motivated of students. Janitors also have input on possible solutions to the problem. “There’s gonna have to be consequences,” said Lefevre. He recalled last year, when Mr. Westerby reminded kids to clean and push in chairs at the end of lunch. “Maybe they need to do some rhetoric like that.” Donna Chew suggests kids eating in the cafeteria and then moving to the gym once they are done to socialize. “Cleaning up is the responsibility of high school kids,” she said. There are no official punishments for leaving a mess in place. However, Principal Mr. Tull says that students caught leaving the mess can be subject to disciplinary measures per teacher’s discretion. In some cases, students have been assigned a specific lunch area to eat in once caught being messy. “We want students to be responsible for themselves and the premise behind moving to this schedule,” said Tull. “[The schedule] gives students that opportunity to...demonstrate self-regulating behaviors, and a part of that, the expectation is...if you mess up an area, clean up behind yourself.”
Journalism I students contributed to this article. Quotes are from an anonymous Voyager survey
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Opinion
14 The Voyager
May 2017
Trump increases defense Scholarship window too narrow spending at cost of much more By Hayley Beluch ‘18
T
hroughout most of senior year, the graduating classes at each high school wait restlessly for the emails that determine their future. College applications are sent out during the fall in the hope that a few might send a line out. Then the big day comes: April 1st - the day most colleges must send out their admissions decisions before. Whether a student is accepted or rejected, they know his or her wait is over. The unfortunate fact about college admissions is that for most families, acceptance is only meeting half of the requirements necessary for attending a university in the upcoming fall. The truth is financial aid and scholarships are crucial to most students’ ability to attend college. Those in the upper class can mostly afford the costs, and those in the lower class usually can receive a lot of financial aid to attend certain colleges. Those in the vast middle class, however, including most from this area, often get left behind. Therefore, it is more important for those in the middle class to be able to receive scholarships to assist in their journey for higher education. However, the students in the area were not given a large opportunity for local scholarships which could play a significant role in funding their education. When scholarships were released, ap-
proximately $50,000 worth of local scholarships were available for seniors to receive. However, the window for applying for them was only open for a brief time. The scholarships were announced on Friday, March 17, when seniors could begin to fill out their applications. The deadline for turning in the applications, with printed copies of transcripts, was Monday, March 27th. Ten days is not a very long time itself, but for about 50% of the class that went on senior trip, they only had a week. When the announcement was made that scholarships were available, the school’s website was not updated to access. The importance of scholarships with respect to college admissions cannot be overstated. With rising costs for college, it is becoming increasingly difficult to go to certain colleges which have tuitions topping between $40,000-$50,000. Lack of opportunity is hurtful to the students who have worked hard in high school to get into a college of their choice. Too many times a student gets into their top choice for college only to not go because of their lack of financial assistance. If the goal of the scholarships truly was to provide aid, more time should have been granted to allow students to prepare quality applications and not be shut out of the opportunity altogether.
Eastern Regional High School 1401 Laurel Oak Road Voorhees, NJ 08043 Editorial Staff Isabel Begelman, Jared Gans, Diya Goyal: Editors-in-Chief Alex Mackle: Managing Editor Shreya Gowda: News Editor Srishti Ramesh: Features Editor Sam Costanzo: Sports Editor Jen Le: Entertainment Editor Hayley Beluch: Art Editor Ruthie Douglass: Photography Editor Nancy Bowne: Copy Editor Lauren Casole, Karina Madrid, Sakshi Sehrawat, Jamie McCormick: Layout Editors VOYAGER STAFF Jessica Bonamassa, Dan Brown-Russo, Anthony Cutrera, Jen Glass, Aaric Hawkes, Eric Horn, Mei Liu, Daniel Merkh, Anthony Murphy, Maanasi Natarajan, Ayesha Rahman, Rashi Sanghavi, Sakshi Sehrawat, Sydney Snyderman, Lisa Traczyk, Sophia Troccoli, Layla Turner, Bob Werner, Allana Beckman, Kaylee Braidwood, Jordan Dahan, Julia Dodd, Ben Forsman, Hana Hancock, Myles Johnson-Arline, Anuska Lahiri, Kaitlin McGee, Crystal Osuji, Alexa Sanchez Walter Bowne, Advisor: Room 605
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By JARED GANS ‘17 Editor-in-Chief
onald Trump is now 100 days into his presidency and has released his plan for the next year’s budget. And not a moment too soon. Based on Trump’s $54 billion increase in defense spending, one would think we are either in a war or are having tensions with another country and could go to war at any moment. Throughout his campaign, Trump constantly focused on how much countries around the world were laughing at America’s weaknesses. But this is reality. In spite of what Trump might want you to think, the situation is not extremely dire. Unlike what Trump said, airstrikes and training for rebels under President Obama were working to drive ISIS back. Unlike what Trump said, we are not threatened majorly by terrorists described as refugees, proven by no attack happening by someone disguised as a refugee. And unlike what Trump said, we are not in a position to invade North Korea while China is still their ally. Because of these facts and Trump clearly showing no intention to stand up to Russian aggression, there is no reason for this massive increase. The effects are damaging for both the increase in defense and the cuts in other programs. In 2015, the United States spent $581 billion on defense spending, most in the world and more than the next ten countries combined. Eight of them are allies. It is not as if history has not given warnings to future generations about excessive defense spending. It is just not always welcomed. On January 17th, 1961, President Dwight Eisenhower gave his Farewell Address, as many presidents before him did and future ones continued to do. But this was one of the ones for history. Throughout most of his career, Eisenhower was a military leader, but he would go on to become one of the most popular presidents of his time. For his Farewell Address, Eisenhower had a message, but it might not be the one that would be expected from a military man. “...we yet realize that America’s leadership and prestige depend, not merely upon our unmatched material progress, riches and military strength, but on how we use our power in the interests of world peace and human betterment,” Eisenhower said. The most tenured soldier next to George Washington to become president warned about excessive military force. He said our interests in military should be for the purpose of helping people, not just to prove how strong we are. At a point, the good that we intend to do makes the world a more dangerous place. As the world’s only remaining super-
power, the United States is responsible to fix major problems in the world. However, there is a difference between protection and what begins to look like a threat. Excessive expansion of the military will only further alarm countries like Iran, which we need to further pursue diplomatic solutions with to cool tensions. Eisenhower saw this in the time of the Cold War, but the message remains today. He said, “In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power. . .will persist.” This is not to say the U.S. should back away from the world. Russia and other countries do pose a threat to peace and stability and need to be taken seriously. But our defense budget already tops half a trillion dollars, and there is no evidence that there is a problem with our military efforts in recent years. In addition, the increase in defense spending hurts our funding in other important areas, which the Trump Administration seems to care little about. Funding is being cut from twelve of fifteen Cabinet departments. Some agencies losing funding are more concerning than others. All funding for the National Endowment for the Arts is to be cut. But don’t worry, a good reason was given for this. The Trump Administration said the NEA was not helping anyone, so it was not important. An interesting fact is the country’s numbers in math and english fall, we continue to amaze the world with our creativity in the arts. The NEA is helping. Without support for the arts, we will only be denying excellence in art, music, and theatre. Without this, we will be losing a major part of ourselves which surrounds us every day. Also, Budget Director Mick Mulvaney attacked federal programs that provide free lunches for children in poverty saying they are not helping them do better in school. Basically we only keep you from hunger if you help our numbers… The biggest cut is to the Environmental Protection Agency, led by climate change denier, Scott Pruitt. Science has proven that climate change is real, it is partly man-made, and it is affecting the Earth. Ignoring the problem now will only allow it to worsen until we cannot stop it. Our national security is obviously a top priority for the United States. But it should not be at the cost of further antagonizing our enemies and losing major programs which are helping our residents. The Trump Administration believes it is sewing up our defense, but it really is just poking a hole in our culture.
May 2017
@TheVoyager
Opinion
Submit letters to The Voyager ehsvoyager@gmail.com or Mr. Bowne, Room 605
Rinaldi, good. Liberal bias, bad
Stellar services amiss in photoshoot
Your piece on Chris Rinaldi’s YouTube sensation was very well written and edited. It showed insight to his story, what he does, and how he came to be. Yet, aside from Chris’s article, the paper politically overall is not fair. Newspapers and news itself should tell the whole story, not parts of it. Politically, The Voyager is very biased. It leans very far left and shows no regard for the right. There are so many anti-Trump liberal articles. I don’t denounce your support of the left, I simply ask you to use this platform unbiasedly and let people think for themselves. - Jeremy Fulton ‘18
Love live Fred! Dear Editors, I loved the article about Fred Bovine! When I was in women’s choir, there was a lot of talk about this cow and obviously he’s very important to the theatre program. It’s very surprising that “Les Miserables” is his 15th show at Eastern. I think doing an article dedicated to Eastern’s theatre cow is a fun and interesting way to set our school apart from others. Thank you! - Sadee Gock ‘17
Punching Nazis Dearest Voyager Staff Editors, I duly commend you for bringing to light the rise in anti-semitism, and while it would be an incredibly uncomfortable topic, I’m thankful of the way you handled the argument. While I myself am not a fan of Trump, I understand that the only thing worse than a person spouting racist or sexist drabble is the sizable array of people taking statements and using them as fuel for violence. Vigilance, like a door for the men’s stall by the Media Center, is often ignored but is needed more than ever. Your article is the first step in many towards stopping the anti-semitism. It begins with words and ends with acceptance and somewhere in the middle some Nazi’s get punched in the face, but I duly hope I’ll hear witness to everything in the process. - Warmest Regards, Jan Mathew Tameta ‘18
Balanced on Bernie Dear Editors, I enjoyed reading the piece on Bernie Sanders, and I believe that it is crucial to include a politically inclined portion of the newspaper every week. This piece did not favor one side over the other, but noted some alternative ideas that were not entirely noted by our country throughout the election. Although controversy can be formed from this article, I enjoyed it. Nice job Cyrena and the editors among the Voyager Staff. - Chris Bracchi ‘18
Dear Voyager Editor(s), I would like to address the story about Rebecca Dahan’s fashion success. From the story, she seems like a talented and ambitious girl, and I respect her for that. On the other hand, her project would not have been able to garner such success as it did without the help of her peers. Natalie Powell, for instance, was kind enough to give her time on her day off to aid Rebecca in her preparation for the photoshoot. Natalie did a stellar job by providing her services for the hair and makeup. Despite her hours of work, she did not receive the same respectful response as the other people working with Dahan. Ambition is commendable and important, but so is respect and graciousness for others. Success, most importantly, is about collaborating. I recommend that The Voyager address all of those employed in projects like these, before commending only the main people involved. Thank you. -Sincerely, Léa Ives ‘18
Dilemmas + Dishes Dear Editor, While you may not have heard about Dilemmas + Dishes, I think it would be of interest to you to write about this. My initiative focuses on raising money for Amnesty International by hosting two events a year. I and my co-founder choose a country in conflict with the United States and we host a dinner and movie event to display that country’s culture while also bringing up the political conflict. Our first event was on March 24th and our focus was on Iran. At this event, we served Italian and Middle Eastern food while playing the Iranian documentary “Taxi”. We will most likely be hosting our second event in late May or early June. -Eve Penuel ‘18
The Voyager 15
This I Believe
Artwork by Hayley Beluch ‘18
A
By HAYLEY BELUCH ‘18 Art Editor
few nights ago, the stars refused to shine. The sunset had given way to the titanic darkness, and the wind blew like the breath of the north giant. I was in my bed, tears shedding down my cheeks, contemplating the pitfalls of our present society.
I realized the celestial bodies that once shone on us—as do spotlights—surrendered to the guilt and shame that accompanies support of such a disgraceful race. I couldn’t bring myself to reopen “Jane Eyre.” How could I focus on Rochester’s warming heart when it seemed our world had surrendered its own to the vast nothingness that acts as liquid nitrogen, slowly freezing our love until it splinters with chaotic debris? But then, I saw a shard of the moon pierce open the nebulous shame and illuminate my sheets and I knew, that, despite the stars’ departure—despite the wars, the genocide, the prejudice, and the executive orders—the moon had recovered some shred of humanity worth enlightenment. I picked up Jane and read through the white political noise snaking through my vents from the lower levels, my pages lit by the moon. I now see our present society as one marked by the love and compassion of individuals rather than the hate and wars that scar populations. I believe firmly that the human race is no longer cast off to the blaze under our feet; rather, the minorities of compassion coalesce to form Orpheus, the savior whom will pull us from the depths which we have chosen to descend. I cannot give up hope, so long as the moon has not given up hope. I’ve seen some of the beauty and benevolence that plagues the reign of abhorrence and atrocity. I’ve seen the hairline fractures extend into cracks, and I can no longer see the world as homogeneity of hate. There’s love: love that extends further than the trenches, love that overpowers the nukes, love that refuses to remain fettered to the generalizations we make about the distaste on our earth. I’ve worked extensively with Key Club, a service organization dedicated to spreading immunity from the pestilence of obscenity and abuse. As a district board member, I interact daily with other servant leaders of all races, of all backgrounds, of all political views, of all sexualities, and of no political affiliation who are dedicated to bettering the world despite the differences that may arise between us and our views. I’ve seen and held the vials from vaccines that eliminated the scourge of maternal and neonatal tetanus from over 40 countries. I’ve seen students from all over the world at international convention work to establish relations with the Thirst Project to provide clean drinking water to families who otherwise would be forced to send their wives and children miles away. I’ve seen the thousands who walk to save the lives of millions of future premature babies. I’ve seen the power of service and the resultant lustrous beacon of hope that emerges from the filth. And there’s more that I have yet to see that the moon gleams for. The Peace Corps, Doctors Without Borders, refugee hospitals, peaceful protests against unfair treatment of minorities, and men like Desmond Doss who not only save their fellow soldiers, but the ‘enemy’ as well—they’re there if we look hard enough, following the radiance that the moon still leaves for us to find. The earth is not a body of hate overcoming the peace; the stars are not being enveloped by the darkness of the sky, but rather are piercing through the violent abyss that tries to silence and handicap them. I would not stand so firmly with my convictions if it weren’t for the realization that night. Our world may be marred by hatred and abhorrence, but for every murderer there are multitudes that oppose the violence. For every crime committed, there are more acts of peace through service and shared humanity. For every flame extinguished on this earth, there is another willing to shine. I now, too, realize, that the stars did not turn their backs on the earth that night when I noticed their absence from the sky. The stars came down to earth to lead us toward the radiance that accompanies the peace that we will one day achieve. This I know to be true. This I await. This I believe.
Commentary
16 The Voyager
May 2017
Trump needs to learn: interventionist economic policy does not work A
By ALEX MACKLE ‘18 Managing Editor
fter less than three months in office, Donald Trump is already facing an uphill battle. Between the anti-Trump news cycle and the general disdain emitted by the most vocal of Americans, President Trump has had a difficult few months. Despite the myriad issues as of yet, the Trump administration has done some good – from the nomination of constitutionalist judge Neil Gorsuch to some attempts at weakening the influence of the federal government on the average American, Trump shows promise of potentially revealing a classically left-wing streak. Regardless, it is important that Trump strays from his potentially interventionist policies. Throughout the grueling 2016 campaign, then Republican candidate Trump discussed a series of problematic economic policies. Suddenly, the idea of becoming a protectionist nation was brought to the forefront. Trump has taken important trading partners, such as Mexico and China, head on, whilst threatening to end the free trade that the United States has relied on to keep goods inexpensive for consumers. These policies certainly have their appeal at first glance – more American manufacturing jobs does sound like a potentially fantastic triumph for the economy. The thought being that more jobs kept within America’s borders will stimulate our economy and benefit all. In fact, the opposite may be true. One cannot deny the fact that the percentage of American jobs that are in manufacturing have declined over the past fifty years. According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the percentage of American jobs in manufacturing peaked around 1950 and has declined by about 15% by 2010. Despite this seemingly daunting fact, the percentage of jobs in manufacturing has increased more than 20% in the same time period. It is a fact of economic development that jobs that are in demand fluctuate. One can observe that no one complains over the decline of the percentage of Americans who are farmers. In the past 100 years, this number has declined over 30%, yet people are
not putting up bizarre road blocks with intentions of saving America’s agricultural workforce. Also, it is incredibly harmful to prop up failing industries. Industry must be allowed to sink or swim on their own. Protectionist policies may help a business in the short term, but this is typically only delaying the inevitable. Take a hypothetical look at an industry, such as steel. A producer of steel outside the United States (such as China) may be able to make steel less expensively than American industries. The United States’s industry, unable to compete with China’s low prices would be forced to shut down. A tariff could go about “lowering the playing field” for these American industries, but this is ultimately toxic to the economy as a whole. One user of steel, the automotive industry, no longer has the capitalist choice to buy the less expensive Chinese steel. This causes the cost of production of the automobile to rise, which is ultimately harmful to both the American consumer and the automotive company itself. For instance, if German and Japanese car companies are able to buy steel without a tariff and thus produce a lower-priced automobile, American consumers would be more inclined to purchase one of these cars. In response to this, even tariffs can be introduced on cars, sending the nation into an endless spiral of tariffs and other protectionist policies. Donald Trump must look back on some of his predecessors, Herbert Hoover and Franklin Roosevelt, to prove that the government needs should not meddle with the economy beyond loose regulation. Herbert Hoover ascended to the presidency from a decade of prosperity. Unfortunately for Hoover, the roaring twenties would not continue as they had under predecessor Calvin Coolidge. In 1929, the economy had taken a turn for the worst. The October 29, 1929 stock market crash worsened things, causing a chain reaction that eventually led to the Great Depression. Following this economic correction, Hoover had to make an important decision on whether to leave the problem alone in hopes that the free market would sort itself out, or attempt to fix the issue with government intervention. Hoover went on
A letter to our readers
I
t is impossible to deny the inherent bias in any publication. No news source is free of a prejudice– not the New York Times, not the Wall Street Journal, not “60 Minutes.” Accordingly, The Voyager is no different. There has been some discussion about the recent two-page section in the March edition about the Women’s March in Washington. As the staff, we made a mistake of not featuring any opposing viewpoints to the general narrative featured in this section, but this presents a greater issue. The editorial staff constantly hears through word of mouth and letters to the editor, that much of the student body finds an underrepresentation of conservative voices in the newspaper, especially in the commentary section. We do acknowledge this as a staff, although there are great efforts made to feature conservative voices. Being that the student body comes from a blue state youth population, there is a significantly greater volume of liberal voices. We have gone to great lengths to include more conservative pieces, and typically do feature at least one per edition, but the issue is a lack of resources. In essence, we cannot publish what we do not have. The staff encourages students from all political persuasions to submit works for publication. Unfortunately, we have run into the issue of individuals who do not want to put their name aside a written opinion piece. As a publication, The Voyager will only publish signed works. Regardless, it is important that all political stances are represented within a student newspaper so that the student body can be given a fair picture. Please feel free to contact Mr. Bowne in room 605 with any questions. Sincerely, The Editorial Staff
to pick the latter. One early blunder was the Hawley-Smoot Tariff, which only hurt the nation’s international trade. Another problem was attempting to correct the nation’s economic woes by acting as a precursor to the New Deal policies of his successor. Herbert Hoover’s economic policies are, in many ways, a smaller scale version of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal policies. Hoover sponsored major public works projects, such as the Hoover Dam, in order to keep Americans at work. He also urged business leaders to avoid laying off workers and to keep wages high (not unlike the current president). Like economic progressives that preceded him, Hoover advocated for labor unions over business, and even attempted to use government power in order to raise wages across the country. These policies certainly sound effective on paper – the government stepping in to prop up a troubled economy sounds like a fantastic plan. The only issue is that this interventionism clearly did not fix the Great Depression. The Depression lasted twelve years, and the United States did not truly get back on its feet until it mobilized for war with Japan and Germany. Those years were marked by New Deal interventionist policy, but the market seemed unaffected by these measures. Recessions occur periodically, and that is just the nature of an economy. It is important to find an appropriate balance between government regulation and laissez-faire capitalism. The free market is a powerful thing, that will eventually sort itself out. Though the nation would have had to endure a few tough years, the economy would have been better off if Hoover only utilized weak regulation. It is imperative that Donald Trump keep the hand of the Federal Government out of the free market as much as possible. It is the free market and free trade that ultimately brought about the great freedoms celebrated in the West. If he simply looks at the failures of the past and recognizes the dangers of protectionism, the United States could potentially enjoy great economic success under the Trump Administration. It is imperative that Trump embraces the full potential of the capitalist system.
Psych Speaks: Overcoming Distractions
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By DIYA GOYAL ‘17 Editor-in-Chief
s AP exams begin this week, many of frantically rushed to either get a head start on studying or frantically rushed to cram all day before the test. Whatever your study pattern, you are sure to get distracted in the future, whether it be procrastination or the excuse of having busywork from other classes. This distraction may come in the forms of various cat videos on YouTube, or Netflix binge watching. But this begs the question: why do these small distractions pose such a big threat to our study habits, and what can we do to avoid them? Attention is a limited resource. Every time you focus your attention you use a measurable amount of glucose and other metabolic resources. Studies show that each task you do tends to make you less effective at the next task, because the amount of glucose you have available has decreased. According to David Rock, author of “Your Brain at Work,” “distractions are not just frustrating; they can be exhausting. By the time you get back to where you were, your ability to stay focused goes down even further as you have even less glucose available now. Change focus ten times an hour and your productive thinking time is only a fraction of what’s possible. For example, if you’ve been studying for a
solid hour straight, heading straight into the next topic might not be the wisest idea. Instead, try taking a small break to reduce your chances of becoming distracted during your next hour of studying. Another great way of reducing distracted studying is to remove any temptation that hinders a successful study sesh. Turn your phone off and put it away; close irrelevant tabs on your computer; have a parent periodically check on you to make sure you’re actually studying. As adolescents, our minds are even more prone to wandering thoughts. You could be thinking about calculus one moment and then suddenly about Danny Phantom the next. As frustrating as this tendency can be, it’s normal and it tends to stay this way through life. “One reason for your wandering attention is that the nervous system is constantly processing, reconfiguring, and re-connecting the trillions of connections in your brain each moment. The term for this is ‘ambient neural activity,”’ wrote Rock. “If you were to look at the electrical activity even in a resting brain, it would look like planet earth from space with electrical storms lighting up different regions several times a second.” So don’t worry, you’re not alone. In fact, adults have this issue as well so definitely go to them for advice on what can be done to keep distractions away. Just stay focused, take breaks, and keep temptations away from you. And remember, after you’re done studying you can watch all the corgi videos you want.
Commentary
May 2017
The Voyager 17
Media shows a clear liberal bias P
By JESSICA BONAMASSA ‘19 Voyager Staff Reporter
olitical satire has been around since the formation of government and politics. The first and oldest form of documented satire is Aristophanes and was headed by Zeus. This satire targeted top politicians and attacked fundamental and sacred values of faith. Satire is present across the globe wherever there are organized governments, like in Britain, France, Germany, and the United States. Arguably now more than ever, political satire tends to be at the peak of controversy. Since the election of 2016, disunity in America has climaxed. The divisive perception that faces our country is a problem that must be solved. Without question, conservatives and liberals are two different extremes; rarely are there moderates. Love or hate prevails towards President Trump, typically without an in-between. The left wing has been crying out and protesting about Trump, claiming he’s intolerant, among other things. Their protests are spreading hate throughout America; degrading people for supporting our president and calling them uneducated, racist, and ignorant. Liberals protest hatefully and violently, igniting riots all across the country. Their continual violence and prominent hate towards President Trump displays them as the leading cause of disunity and intolerance. Satirical skits, like those seen on Saturday Night Live, seem to encourage protests, furthering the destruction and separation in the United States. It’s a disgrace that people are afraid to publically support the president in fear of being targeted or attacked. With lots of mainstream news stations and dozens of newspapers being overwhelmingly biased and left-leaning, information and news is distancing itself further and further from the truth.
CNN is a democratic run news station that shows one-sided news. CNN dedicates lots of their resources on coverage that degrades Trump and belittles his accomplishments. It determines a liberal hate for America because of the quickness to portray hostility towards Trump, pick at unimportant and irrelevant flaws, and start protests instead embracing our democracy and all it has to offer. It is rare to ever see CNN applaud our President for his achievements or show any of his positive contributions during his administration. They managed to prove that they’re fundamentally incapable of covering Donald Trump fairly, as we have all seen during campaign season and even currently. Donald Trump tweeted “CNN is so embarrassed by their total 100 percent support of Hillary Clinton and yet her loss and a landslide, they don’t know what to do,” after he saw their coverage on him. It’s news stations like this that cause manipulation of the people. Some who watch the news are uneducated on certain politics. By news stations having political persuasion, and the facts of a story become replaced with opinions, begining the generation of fake news. People are led to believe fake news because lots of media sources have been contaminated by liberal ideologies. Satire, politically influenced news stations, and biased newspapers are rapidly corrupting and poisoning society. People watch the news and read the paper daily to stay informed on recent happenings and government information, not fake news. Biased writers have a way of convincing others to share their same beliefs. People claim that Trump hands shows like SNL skits because of how he handles himself and how he reacts to certain things. However, he reacts just as any normal person would. Donald Trump sees the schemes and unfair practices of
Washington and is just one among thousands who won’t tolerate any more nonsense from people like Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. Americans are disgusted with working countless hours to feed not only their families, but the thousands of people collecting welfare, meanwhile having their pockets drained by politicians. Democrats disturbingly believe that finding equally funny mockery for someone other than Trump satire is difficult because people like Hillary have “solutions to pressing problems, normal habits, and rational policies.” Completely brushing off the thousands of secret and illegal emails she sent, and her strong history of dishonesty, she is still seen as a righteous candidate qualified in the eyes of many Democrats. Instead, she was a perfect example of a dishonorable, nefarious, and unethical candidate, which is exactly why Trump came out on top on November 8th. This election was a wake up call for American politicians and a call to end political corruption. Democrats swear that they’re accepting and tolerant towards all people even when they’re physically and verbally attacking Trump supporters. They’re so accepting and tolerant when they not only stand behind, but agree with, Hillary Clinton who calls half of Trump supporters deplorable, racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, and Islamophobic. We were able to see during campaign season the exact leader each candidate was made out to be. Hillary drained millions of dollars in the first few weeks of campaigning, owed countless amounts of money to special interest groups , had the single strategy of telling people what they wanted to hear, and belittled her opponent to make herself look even more of a fool. Trump proved to be a leader, a voice for the people, and the change that millions wished to see in America.
The Voice of God
Merkh Factor: RINOs Control GOP
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By JEN LE ‘17 Entertainment Editor imping slowly to a rundown shelter, a man with a mottled brown bandana clutched a cracked radio in his hands. All around him, tumbleweeds dance across the barren land, the only things stirring the stale air. In the distance, the broken tips of skyscrapers pierced the clear blue sky - an abandoned city left to rot under rust. Nothing was left there besides the prowling zombies. The man crossed the dilapidated metal fence and encountered a tall, rectangular box with a hole covered by a sliding wooden block. Behind the box laid another fence, this one bearing rows of barbed wire on the tops and guards patrolling the perimeter. As the man approached, the hole opened to reveal a pair bloodshot eyes. “Name?” the cracked voice said. “Jacob Turner.” “You got any wounds on ya?” “If I did, I wouldn’t be here.” “Enter, then.” The entrance swung open and Jacob stepped into the compound, navigating through the straightlaced streets and ducking under several weeping roofs, where in the center, laid the nucleus of it all. It was a dome shaped building composed of scrap metal, wood, and other things the survivors managed to pillage from the fallen city. “Jacob!” A woman wearing a patchwork dress embraced him with open arms. She smelled like petroleum and rose perfume. “I’m so glad you came back! Did you manage to get it?” The man gently pushed her off his chest. “Indeed I did!” He went towards a group of neutral-colored dressed people, offering them the radio like a sacrifice. “Behold! A gift to hear the voice of God!” Instantly, they dropped their ongoing conversation and turned their heads around. All around him, excited whispers drifted through and others gathered around, intrigued of the commotion. “You actually got one!” said one of the voices. He dropped down to his knees, admiring the archaic device. “Well, c’mon then! Turn it on to channel 111. It’s almost seven!” Jacob obliged. He turned the knob back and forth, sifting through the static and news reports until he stumbled upon an over enthusiastic voice: “Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen! You’re listening to Buzzfeed, live from the doldrums of the Los Angeles! We’ll be starting with ‘Your Zodiac Sign Will Reveal How you Die,’ followed by ‘How to Dress for Success When You’re Killing Zombies,’ graciously provided by a former haute couture designer…” As the announcer listed off its content, the content was either met with approving comments or unsatisfied grunts as the audience rated the accuracy of the list. “Sorry Buzzfeed, I’m an Aries but I’m allergic to everything nature. How am I supposed to die of poison berries if I never go outside?” “Well, I guess I’m leaving someone to die whenever they’re too slow.” The audience listened to the reel, enthralled, and accomplished nothing that day.
By DANIEL MERKH ’17 Voyager Staff Reporter onald Trump has been an enigma since he announced he was running for office. Trump switched political parties multiple times. He compared himself to Ronald Reagan, who began a Democrat and became one of the most conservative presidents of his time caused by a slight by the communists of Hollywood. Reagan transformed the Republican Party into one that championed small government and patriotism. Under Trump, it has degraded into modern social conservatism and xenophobic policies. The modern Republican ideology took shape in economy-centered ideas, when Warren Harding demanded a “return to normalcy” in 1920. During the Great Depression and for 20 years after that, the Democrats forced the Republicans out until 1952. Dwight Eisenhower’s conservatism included a strong foreign policy again communism and a mix of big and small government intervention. Richard Nixon’s policies included environmental measures. Both of those brands fell to Ronald Reagan, when he burst onto the national stage in 1976, giving a speech at the Republican National Convention. In contrast, Reagan’s conservatism favored small government, rollback of communism, extravagant defense spending, lower taxes, interventions in Latin America and the Middle East, and a repudiation of the 1960s counterculture’s effect on social values; Reagan has been criticized for looking to oil and coal industries as sufficient sources of energy, slowness to address the AIDS epidemic, and variously recycled (and debunked) myths that his economic plans actually did America more harm than good. In 1981, he signed a 25% tax cut, the largest in United States history. Reaganomics took a few years to change the effects of the Carter policies, but turned successful with the creation of 20 million of jobs and unemployment down to 5% by 1989. His aggressive foreign policy was ignited through Soviet aggression against the Taliban and the Iranians taking Americans hostage in Lebanon, which caused an illicit arms-for-hostages deal with Iran. His interventions in Latin America were solely driven by big business instead of preserving democracy; while a number of these actions were illegal, he is still idolized in the Republican mind and is received favorably by the American people. After the Cold War ended, America turned its attention again towards the Middle East with President George Bush II’s policy of “compassionate conservatism.” This variation lauded oil companies
and served as a major justifier in the 2003 invasion of Iraq that destroyed the country’s society and government and the reason why 9/11 happened. Iraq was the easiest to subdue because it was the weakest of the “axis of evil” - Iraq, Iran, and North Korea. The Bush domestic and foreign policies damned his presidency by 2007. In that year, a bubble in the stock market that had been building for years in the housing industry finally burst. With the Republicans to blame, Democrats seized the opportunity to place Barack Obama in the nomination to stop the Great Recession. The Republicans responded with nominating John McCain who espoused Bush era principles; the unpopularity of the war in Iraq, the Great Recession, and irrational desire to set first records caused him to lose in a landslide of Obama’s 365 votes to McCain’s 173. Mitt Romney tried to take the White House, proposing new reforms that would stabilize the ailing economy, in 2012. Obama won the election again, despite the failure of his policies. How did Donald Trump become the new spearhead? He appealed to what pundits called the ‘Archie Bunker’ vote - the brand of extreme rightwing reactionaries who had voted for Nixon and Reagan in the 1970s and 1980s. Conservatism in the 1980s is now actually considered a “liberal” brand by the RINO Establishment of the Republican Party, who live in this cloud that politics must remain “the art of the possible.” Politics is born by the blood of one’s life story. Hillary Clinton grew up with a sexist father, which formulated her penchant for secrecy and privacy. Trump grew up under a detached businessman who sent him to military school, where his overtly excessive exposure to Playboy taught him about women and gave him his partial emotional backwardness. Republicans have never won states like California, New Jersey, New York, or Massachusetts since 1988, when George W. Bush ran for President under Reagan Republican conservatism. Trump Republican conservatism is not real Republican conservatism; it is a reversal back to Wilsonian right-wingism that advocates racism and discrimination. I personally support some of the elements of President Trump’s agenda and what his ideals stand for at this present time, but I disapprove of the bearer of the responsibilities for dispensing such ideals. The Party needs a new spokesperson and I’m not talking about Big Brother as a possible replacement.
Commentary
18 The Voyager
May 2017
Is another “gate” scandal around the corner for President Trump?
Comparing Trump to Watergate must not be taken seriously
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By JESSICA BONAMASSA ‘19 Voyager Staff Reporter
t is understood universally that anybody running for political office will be scrutinized by the press and the public. To maintain balance on both sides of the political spectrum, Democrats and Republicans are able to speak freely about one another. A journalist’s job to investigate, especially on government actions, is extremely important to ensure no scandals or corruption takes place. The art of journalism brings justice to victims and to provide the people with knowledge. Richard Nixon was elected President of the United States in 1968 and took office in January of 1969. Watergate was the largest political scandal that took place in the twentieth century, and was carried out under Nixon’s administration. With Nixon’s knowledge and approval, several of his administrative officials broke into the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington. Both the Federal Bureau of Investigations and the Central Intelligence Agency were insiders of the scandal. The Attorney General, the Presidential Council, President Nixon, and the Financial Counsel for the Committee for the Re-election of the President made contributing efforts to cover up the scandal. The main objective of the Watergate break in was to sabotage the Democratic name and keep the Hughes-Rebozo in secrecy during the election campaign. A current topic flooding the media is a journalist’s use of anonymous sources in their articles. Anonymous sources are used too often in articles that lack true significance. In that sense, a journalist can use, and sometimes do use, anonymous
sources to spread false information about any given topic. Anonymous sources have been used since the dawn of time and have extreme importance in media. In a sensitive discussion whether it be political, professional, or criminal, a person typically won’t disclose information in fear of being targeted, which is where anonymous sources come into play. Significant information can be revealed if the source knows that their name will not be disclosed. People turn to the press when certain policies or institutions aren’t functioning as they should, such as a school or a public office. A primary instance that exemplifies and highlights the importance of anonymous sources is Watergate. Some people claim Trump’s authoritarian attitude and distaste for the media is just like Richard Nixon’s during his presidency. By comparing the two, people begin to assume that Trump is involved something in the nature of Watergate. Nixon didn’t like media because they were uncovering his criminal involvement, as well as his administrative officials’ involvement, in Watergate, whereas President Trump media because he believes that much of it speaks “not for the people, but for the special interests.” His aversion also lies within the national media for being “biased, self-serving, and malicious myth-makers”. Trump campaigned enthusiastically for 18 months nationwide and swept the primaries, most of them by astounding numbers against his opponents. While the Democrat’s main campaign strategy was a personal degeneration of him, and to create and spread fake stories, such as the golden- shower fraud .The fail of media to predict his political rise resulted in their loss of credibility.
Trump scandal reminiscient of the Watergate scandal of 1970s
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By ERIC HORN ‘19 Voyager Staff Reporter
hen the Watergate scandal broke in the 1970s, the American people were shocked. A similar reaction has been produced out of the early stages of the “Russiagate” scandal that is currently haunting the Trump Administration. Throughout both events, the media has played a central role in the uncovering of corruption in the government, received criticism for their comments, and their claims have been denounced by the Heads of State. The implication of Nixon and Trump in scandals threatened their reputations and careers, and Watergate actually forced the resignation of President Nixon. While the full details of the “Russiagate” scandal are not yet fully known, the potential corruption occurring inside Trump’s government could potentially be a bad or worse than Nixon’s government. When Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward of The Washington Post published their articles on the Watergate Scandal, they revealed that a slush fund of the Nixon Administration had been used to pay criminals to burglarize, spy on, and sabotage the Democratic Party. When other journalists revealed that Trump’s National Security Advisor, General Michael Flynn, had been communicating with the Kremlin in Moscow, it became impossible to ignore the similarities between the two events, and even brought on the “Russiagate” name. Unfortunately for Nixon, the corruption didn’t stop at the slush fund; it went all the way up to the FBI, which Nixon instructed to conduct spotty investigations of the suspects in the scandal. When Trump ordered the FBI to take down stories that criticised his administration for the “Russiagate” scandal, it begged a question for the American people to ask: How far up does the corruption go?
Richard Nixon, in a last ditch effort to remove himself from the Watergate scandal, attempted to discredit Woodward and Bernstein’s attempts to expose the truth about the Nixon Administration. This was ineffective, and didn’t prevent the impeachment proceedings that would lead to Nixon’s resignation. This is a striking parallel to the frequent comments by Donald Trump about “fake news.” Trump’s denouncement of well known media outlets like The Washington Post and the “failing” New York Times, in which he also asks for his supporters not to believe what they hear from the press. The use of anonymous sources was integral to the Watergate investigation, and could potentially come into play at some point during the “Russiagate” investigation. Unsurprisingly, Trump has discredited anonymous sources and asserted that the media “shouldn’t be allowed to use sources unless they use somebody’s name.” Without the anonymous source known as Deep Throat, the Watergate investigation would have never been as effective, and had Mark Felt not been allowed to go on the record anonymously, he would have likely never come forward at all. Is Trump’s FBI or Administration as corrupt as Nixon’s? Is there a secret slush fund that Trump used to win the 2016 election? Is the New York Times really failing? In reality, there’s no concrete evidence to prove any of those points. However, it is impossible to ignore the similarities between the early stages of Watergate and “Russiagate,” and Nixon and Trump themselves. After all, Carl Bernstein himself said, “Trump’s attacks on the press are more dangerous than Nixon’s.” Will we see the end of the Trump presidency come through a resignation, or even impeachment? Considering the overall oddities throughout the election of Trump as well as during his tenure as President, “Watergate 2: Political Boogaloo” doesn’t seem impossible.
Protecting First Amendment freedoms in today’s America By SYDNEY SNYDERMAN ‘17 Voyager Staff Reporter
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ophomore year I was sitting at my lunch table with my friends just enjoying lunch. Lunch is a time I look forward to because it is a break from learning, a time to talk with my friends. Out of nowhere, I received a message. At the time, I didn’t think anything bad would come of it. I was airdropped pictures of Hitler, a Swastika, the KKK, and photos of Jewish people being burned. My first reaction was to look around the cafeteria. Who would send such horror? I was offended, angry and scared. All of these feelings came into play because I am Jewish and I didn’t think anti-Semitism would ever happen to me. I never found out who sent those pictures to me, but if I ever found out who did it, I would tell that person how much they hurt me. I felt violated. I told my parents about what happened to me. They urged me to tell the school. The next day I told Mrs. Holloway-Taluy to see if she or anyone could help me figure out what to do in this situation. The police were called in to investigate. I was told this was called a hate crime and usually are never solved. Something like this could happen anywhere and to
anyone and I am disturbed this happened to me. Especially at school, a place where I am taught that everyone is equal. Freedom of religion, one of America’s sacred privileges is becoming a big problem in our world today. People should be able to practice their religion openly without prejudice. Donald Trump, our 45th president, banned people from certain countries entering into America because of what religion they practice. I understand that Trump is trying to stop terrorist from entering into our country, but this is discrimination and disrespectful to the innocent people of this religion. One thing I truly believe in is freedom of speech. Having the power to speak about what is on your mind is such a free feeling. If I wasn’t allowed to say what I felt about a certain topic or speak my mind on how I felt that day at lunch I would be distraught. Isn’t America known as the home of the free and the land of the brave? People should have the right to say what they honestly feel. Some countries don’t have the freedom to speak what they feel, and Americans take this for granted. For example, North Korea and Libya are countries where they don’t have the right to stand up for what they believe or practice their religion. Whereas, Cuba, Syria, and Uzbekistan have a censorship of what they can say. When I think about freedom of speech I think about
how we can peacefully protest what we feel and not get in trouble for doing it. I remember watching something on the television with my parents one night and thinking about how innocent people are being locked away for speaking about what was on their mind. Watching Trump speak about keeping our country safe and hearing about people protesting and not being allowed into America is not a way our country should behave. While watching the Women’s March protest that took place around the world, it inspired me to not be afraid to speak out for what I believe in. I currently am on the teen board for the JRA, which is the Jewish Relief Agency and we deliver food to Jewish needy people. It is a freeing feeling to give back to people that truly need it. We need to get as many people as we can involved in giving back to our community. We talk about how this inspires us to be great and do great things. This is another example of practice your religion and not being judged for doing so. I feel amazing after delivering food to underserved individuals and knowing that I put the smile on their face. The people are so grateful with tears and hugs. They cry of happiness and appreciation that we gave up an hour of our free time to provide them with food to survive. Freedom of speech and religion are a way of living and a way to be free.
Entertainment
May 2017
The Voyager 19
Try not to panic at a Panic! At the Disco show By SRISHTI RAMESH ‘19 and MAANASI NATARAJAN ‘19 Features Editor and Voyager Staff Reporter
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here’s nothing subtle about Panic! At The Disco’s frontman Brendon Urie. Between his charismatic personality, impressive vocal ability that ranges from a Michael Jackson-like falsetto to a jazzy Sinatra-like baritone, and flashy style consisting of leather pants and sequined jackets, it’s no surprise that he performed to a sold out Wells Fargo Center for the Death of A Bachelor Tour on February 28th. On that rainy Saturday night, Urie and his touring band took the stage for roughly an hour and a half, following two opening acts performed by Saint Motel and Misterwives. The concert opened with Saint Motel, an indie pop band. They had quality music to share with the already excited crowd. On top of the vocals and catchy songs, the band had two saxophone players, adding an underlying jazz feel to the guitar and drums. They succeeded
in exciting the crowd with upbeat songs like “Move,” “My Type,” “You Can Be You,”and “Born Again.” Misterwives was a band composed of primarily men, but surprised the audience with an eccentric frontwoman with a powerhouse voice, Mandy Lee. From ballads like “Oh Love” and upbeat songs like “Our Own House” and “Machine,” Misterwives surprised the crowd with their artistic range, not to mention Lee’s soulful cover of “Same Drugs” by Chance the Rapper. Soon after Misterwives left the stage, the countdown to Panic! At The Disco began. After ten minutes of patient waiting, Panic!’s lead singer, Brendon Urie, burst onto the stage, adorned in a gold sequined jacket, singing one of the most popular songs off of the Death of a Bachelor album, “Don’t Threaten Me With A Good Time.” Thus followed an array of well-known Panic! At The Disco songs, most from the new album as well as few from previous records, including “Golden Days,” “LA Devotee,” “Vegas Lights,” “Miss Jackson,” “Crazy=Genius,” “Let’s Kill
Tonight,” “Nicotine,” and perhaps the most popular, “I Write Sins Not Tragedies.” His piano version of “This Is Gospel”and a cover of “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen brought nearly the whole stadium to tears. His cover of Billy Joel’s “Movin’ Out” appealed to Brendon Urie tickles the ivories at the Wells Fargo Center Photo by Gabby Innamorato ‘19 fans with an older stage. It went down well with those close taste in music. A true crowd-pleaser was enough to see him, but not so much for his performance of “Girls/Girls/Boys” a those in the nosebleeds. tribute to the LGBT community, along The energy of the crowd changed with with a mashup of its songs from early the tone of the song and it is unlikely that 2005, an ode to the band’s first studio alany fan walked out of the venue without bum, A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out. a sore throat from screaming out lyrA highlight was when Urie, while perics. While the line for merchandise was forming the title song, “Death of a Bachtragically long, everything was worth the elor,” made his way through hundreds of first-concert experience. fans to get from the center platform to the
Band on a Budget: More fun on less dough
By JEN GLASS ‘17 Voyager Staff Reporter tudents may gripe about a lack of activities in Voorhees, but the music scene directly surrounding the town would provoke jealousy from much of middle America. With BB&T Pavilion hosting great larger shows and Philadelphia housing a multitude of venues, affordable concert tickets are at the fingertips of broke high school students. Radio 104.5, the local Philadelphian alternative station, is one of the best resources for affordable concerts for teenagers. Their annual birthday show has grown into a two-night event, hosting both more well-known alternative bands and a stage for discovering new talent. Lawn tickets start as low as $35. May 13’s show features bands such as Kings of Leon, Bastille, and The 1975, while June 11’s show features names such as The Killers, Foster the People, and Bleachers. For an incredibly cheap price, students can get an all-day, festivalstyle experience. This is a fantastic way to start off the summer. For those not into the alternative scene, country fans can see the youthful and exciting Florida Georgia Line for as cheap as $27 on June 17. Taking advantage of the lawn at any show is a great way to see music on a budget. For those looking for a more intimate experience, Philadelphia is home to an array of smaller venues. These venues often offer unbeatable prices and provide an incredible viewing experience unparalleled at larger arenas. The Theater of the Living Arts, more colloquially the TLA, is hosting comeback favorite Mike Posner on April 25 for $20. Only 1,000 concertgoers can fit within the venue, and if a show doesn’t sell out, the experience can be much more intimate. Union Transfer is another popular venue, intimate with its standing-room only approach. On May 5, the venue will be hosting Bishop Briggs in conjunction with SHAED and Manatee Commune. For fans of indie-pop, all three will be a welcome entrance. All are uniquely synth-dominated and full of electronic elements; for those looking for a lesser-known alternative to pop, this is a great opportunity. Additionally, Bishop Briggs and SHAED are female-fronted acts in an alternative space, a rare and welcomed departure from the norm. Tickets range from $17-20. For another indie-pop, feel-good experience, concertgoers can look to the more traditional-sounding COIN. They will be playing at the Foundry, a subset of the Fillmore in Philadelphia, on May 5 for $15. The biggest advantage of the Foundry is the incredibly small venue size; the venue, housed on the second floor, only holds 450 people. The experience is unlike the BB&T or Wells Fargo Center. For a cheap and fun activity, the Foundry and the boyish sound of COIN is a great option. There are concert options for everyone. Make sure to look at all your options, stay safe, and have an incredible time.
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Fantine (Bridgette Burton) is pummled by a fellow worker (Miranda Pilato).
Photo by Shari Douglass
Les Miserables: a beautiful, well-executed call to action
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By VICTORIA KLINE Special to the Voyager The Academy of the New Church
o you hear the people sing? They are the students of Eastern Regional High School, whose recent production of Les Misérables: School Edition proved a powerful testament to a turbulent time. Originally a French novel by Victor Hugo, Les Misérables has taken many forms. It premiered as a musical in French in 1980, and in English five years later. Since then it has become a classic, translated into twenty-one languages and re-adapted into a film in 2012. This masterful musical of intricate plot-lines and complex themes tells the story of a time full of hardship and revolution, through the lives of the people of Paris. The story begins and ends with Jean Valjean, an escaped convict, played phenomenally by Gary Bowman. Bowman’s emotive acting combined with incredible vocal talent captured the internal journey to redemption Valjean must ultimately make. His rich tone and pure falsetto moved the audience to tears. Robert Sundstrom provided a perfect foil as Javert, a police officer obsessed with finding Valjean. His robust and merciless voice lent itself not only to the harsh rhythmic melodies of the officer, but also to his tragic and beautiful soliloquy.
Notable among the rest of the incredibly talented cast were Marius and Cosette, two young lovers played by Vincent Melara and Chelsea Chaet who complemented each other with clear vibrato and youthful energy. Kayla Kantakusin looked on as Eponine, proclaiming her unrequited love for Marius with passionate vocals in “On My Own”. Also memorable were Monsieur and Madame Thenardier, played by Caleb Schneider and Lindsay Cohen, who provided constant, conniving comic relief with catchy tunes such as “Master of the House.” The chorus brought a revolutionary energy to the performance, transforming a high school stage into early 19th century France. Their desperate and defiant voices blended to capture the upheaval and unrest of the era in a powerful way, backed by a marvelous pit orchestra. Fortifying the stellar cast were brilliant technological aspects. Colors reflected characters’ moods, and the spotlight stayed ever true. A newly built turntable added dimension to haunting scenes on the barricade, and a student designed set perfectly portrayed the toughened Paris streets. Although a few microphone issues occurred, the cast forged through without hesitation. A compelling tale of passion and justice that is extremely difficult to pull off, Eastern Regional’s Les Misérables was a beautifully executed call to action: a call to fight, to live, and to love. – Review from Greater Philadelphia Cappies
Entertainment
20 The Voyager
May 2017
No rest for the ensemble of Sunday in the Park
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By ALEX MACKLE ‘18 Managing Editor
unday in the Park with George, which opened on February 23, is making its second showing on Broadway in ten years, this time as the premier show to the revamped Hudson Theatre on West 44th Street. And what a show to open a new theatre– the new production of the Stephen Sondheim musical from 1984 is one to be remembered. The show focuses on a fictionalized version of Post-Impressionist French artist George Seurat (Jake Gyllenhaal) and the process of painting his 1884 masterwork, A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte. Along the way, George encounters a plethora of colorful characters while engrossed in his painting. Playing George’s love interest is Annaleigh Ashford, who performs splendidly opposite of Gyllenhaal. Though she splits off from George to go to America with another man, the two have a child, who Dot, George’s mistress, brings with her. After a top notch first act, which concludes with a physical imitation of A Sun-
day Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte by the actors, the setting shifts. Now, rather than France in the 1884, the setting is Chicago 1984. At the Art Institute of Chicago (the modern home of the painting in question), George and Dot’s great-grandson (also named George and played by Jake Gyllenhaal) is unveiling an artistic piece of his own, which is a sort of light machine operated by various pulleys and wires called Chromolume 7. Following this, George ultimately makes a connection to George Seurat through his 100-year-old grandmother (the daughter of Dot and George). This harkens back to the beginning of the show, where many of the earlier characters reappear for the young George to interact with. One important piece of the puzzle with this revival is the total competence of all the actors. Yes, all actors on broadway are typically exceptional, but one is bound to find a weak spot. Every single member of the ensemble only adds to the aura, especially given the difficult musical nature of Sondheim’s material. Challenging melodies and unusual harmonies were no match for this cast. Additionally, the set, though minimalistic, fulfilled its purpose quite well. There
was little in the way of truly major set pieces, besides from a slab covering most of the stage. Rather, the show’s setting and scenic design came through the use of projection. The orchestra was located onstage, with a translucent drapery in front of them. Alongside the projections, this created an interesting effect. Lighting and audio design were also quite effective. Despite the occasional issue of light bleeding, everything lent itself well to the mood and atmosphere of the production. All in all, Sunday in the Park With George was an incredibly strong production, and is certainly worth seeing. It is interesting to note that the director, Sarna Lapine, is actually the niece of James Lapine, who wrote the book for the show. This is also not her first experience with Stephen Sondheim’s work on Broadway, having assistant-directed the anthology show, Sondheim on Sondheim alongside her uncle. James Lapine actually convinced Stephen Sondheim to come out of retirement to write Sunday in the Park with George. After the previous show of his being a total flop, Sondheim decided to quit writing musicals. It was only after James Lapine was inspired by George Seurat’s painting
Dressing up in a “A Doll’s House” By JEN LE ‘17 Entertainment Editor
T
here is something satisfying in having control over your life. Everything is exactly where it needs to be, and nothing is out of place, including yourself; you are living in a doll’s house, where you are merely there for someone else’s entertainment. Such is the life of Nora Helmer, whose husband enforces tight constraints onto her individuality and her freedom in the play “A Doll’s House” by Henrik Ibsen. For its time, “A Doll’s House” was considered a feminist piece of literature due to the relatively happy fate of its female characters. Some relationships are broken, some renewed, but all the characters are dynamic. Unlike other works at the time, or past works, the women in “A Doll’s House” are given personalities and a goal to achieve. They are not simply objects to be toyed with by the other characters. Their presence serves a purpose, a purpose illustrating that women are not to be owned like a pretty vase. Ibsen, a 19th century Norwegian playwright and poet, championed feminism compared to his fellow writers, portraying it realistically and showcasing a woman’s turmoil of being repressed through Nora. In his other works, Ibsen commented on society’s moral values, on how it scorns a woman’s troubles. Nora, the protagonist in “A Doll’s House,” is trapped within her own home. Her identity is a mystery to herself, but she does things independently, even if she does not consider the consequences. Nora is a fool at times, when she impulsively spends money or bases her decisions on selfishness. But, who could blame her? With financial power falling in her hands, she is free to control it and she decides to spend it on her husband’s life. Her husband, Torvald Helmer, derives delight from the domi-
A Disappointing Outing at Outback
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nant position he holds over Nora. He calls her pet names like “lark” or “squirrel,” almost like he owns her, and becomes frustrated when she doesn’t follow his orders like a circus animal. Nils Krogstad, for the first half of the play, can be considered the antagonist. Krogstad knows of Nora’s sin, and threatens to reveal it to her husband if she doesn’t secure his position at the bank, which Torvald owns. Mrs. Linden is Krogstad’s prospective replacement but like everything in “A Doll’s House” her relationship with Krogstad is deeper than it seems. The first act starts rather slow, but it establishes the relationship between Nora and Torvald, along with the conflict between her and Krogstad. Each scene with the characters reveal something that changes the audience’s perspective on them, and constantly maintains the audience’s attention throughout this three-act
play. A power switch or equilibrium is reached among the men and the women for an exciting final act. “A Doll’s House” female characters exemplified independence. It questioned gender roles in what women can and cannot do; although written over 200 years ago, its theme still remains relevant today. The issues remain the same. Women around the globe are still oppressed and are seen as dependent as their humans. The Women’s March is an example of this, a march against the restraints that women have endured for so long. “A Doll’s House” is represensative of their struggles. At the penultimate event, the “Doll’s House” is finally mentioned between a long restrained feud between Nora and Torvald and leaves open answers for the questions that remain. Who represents the doll in the house? Is it the deceptive Nora, or the dense Torvald?
that Stephen Sondheim came out of retirement. It’s fortunate that he did, as the duo ended up winning the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for their collaboration. It is fortunate that this work has found such success in the years since its inception; it has exposed new generations to a form of musical theatre that really makes you think. Sunday in the Park with George is a limited engagement, running through April 23, 2017.
By HAYLEY BELUCH ‘18 Art Editor
ith a pad and a pen, I made my way to the Outback on Route 73 for a meal. The meal began with bread and butter while I awaited the Bloomin’ Onion. The bread tasted like nothing special, bland with an excessively flaky exterior. The butter provided meager flavor. In a few minutes, the waitress presented the appetizer: the Bloomin’ Onion. Without a doubt my favorite item on the menu, I was immediately disappointed when it came out. It was about half the size of a normal Bloomin’ Onion. Not only that, the fried exterior was blackened and shriveled on about half of the round, indicating the cook was having some fryer issues. Still, I dug in, being careful to avoid the overcooked side. The rest of the appetizer was cooked well - the onion was soft (albeit a little oil sogged), and the breading still left a tug on my tongue. The Bloomin’ Sauce wasn’t up to its normal standard either, as it left too much of a horseradish tinge that overpowered the other aspects of the sauce as well as the onion. Eating half a Bloomin’ Onion for a full price was disappointing enough, but it was frustrating when the waitress merely laughed at our dismay towards the food. What’s the point of asking a quality control question if one won’t actually listen to the answers we give? And in that moment, we lost our chances to have a non-overcooked appetizer. Skipping a salad to get to the main course, I ordered a Bloomin’ Burger with sides of onion rings and Steakhouse Mac & Cheese. After a few burger mishaps on the part of our waitress, we began to eat. Immediately, I recognized quite a few problems. For one, I ordered my burger medium, yet there was no millimeter of pink anywhere in my burger. Secondly, the cook did not give me any bloomin’ sauce to put on my Bloomin’ Burger. Thirdly, the tomato was over half an inch thick and unripe. And fourthly, the Bloomin onion that was supposed to be on my burger was nowhere in sight. Instead of onion, it seemed as if they shredded chunks of breading instead. However, despite the overcooked burger and the lack of onion and sauce, Outback meat proved to be delicious. The burger meat was incredibly fresh, and the roll was soft and acted like a sponge to absorb the sauce (that I had to take from the appetizer). Immediately upon seeing the onion rings, I and a few of my tablefellows commented on their appearance. New to the menu and only available for a limited time, the onion rings were breaded and fried. And fried some more. The darkened breading of the rings reflected the same fryer problems that showed face with our Bloomin’ Onion. The onion ring in the interior was perfectly softened, however, which would’ve made for a perfect, albeit somewhat blandly breaded, ring. Then came the Steakhouse Mac & Cheese. The portion size was huge for a side, most likely because its add-on price was the highest of all the sides. The cellentani pasta was coated in a tasteless cheese sauce that contributed nothing to its flavor. However, the garlic breadcrumbs that adorned the center of the plate were incredibly pungent, and when mixed with the remainder of the pasta, contributed everything to the sharp and unique flavor of the macaroni. With little regard to the fryer and or cooking problems, the meal in its entirety was enjoyable and mostly appetizing. That being said, it is a famed local restaurant, and therefore should not have so many problems within one meal.
Entertainment
May 2017
The Voyager 21
Get out and see “Get Out” By CRYSTAL OSUJI ‘18 Voyager Staff Reporter
Jordan Peele, mostly known Mad TV and Key and Peele, has now branched out into the directing world with his blockbuster hit movie, Get Out. Get Out stars British actor Daniel Kaluuya, mostly known for the hit British television show Skins. He plays Chris, a young man who is getting ready to go towards his girlfriend’s parents house for the weekend. Rose, the girlfriend, played by Allison Williams can also be seen on the hit HBO show Girls. Chris is worried that Rose’s parents will not approve of their biracial relationship, being that Chris is a black man and Rose is a white women. Rose “reassures” him that they do not see race and her father would “have voted for Obama a third time if he could.” During this weekend with the parents, Chris notices that something is strange with the family and the people associated with the family as well. Get Out is a horror/thriller movie with aspects of comedy. It keeps the audience on their toes while laughing at subtle jokes planted throughout the movie. “This is a movie you have to see twice to really get it,” said director and writer Jordan Peele. In the second time around, everything started to click. There are easter eggs, or hints, from the first scene of the movie to
the last scene. All movies have an underlying message and Get Out has a clear one. This film brings light to the conservation of cultural appropriation and racism between whites and blacks. Of course, the cultural appropriation in this film is extreme and unrealistic, but it finally makes the conversation less uncomfortable. Jordan Peele is the first black director to reach $100 million at the box office opening weekend. This is a huge milestone for Peele because he is branching into the directing world. He also expressed his interest in making more films in the same Get Out universe. Get Out so far has been a favorite of all moviegoers in the past two months. It has all the components of a good and memorable film has to offer: a funny and smart leading actor, a good and detailed plot, and a great unpredictable twist. Get Out isn’t just a movie for black people who have been caught in awkward situations with white people. It’s for everyone that has subconsciously made awkward remarks or who
Roman Empire: Reign of Blood
have been the victim to them. Jordan Peele has created a great film, however its runtime is short and the producers could have developed the world and granted the audience more time with the beloved characters. The plot can be too complex at a glance, and can be seen as confusing if you do not give it your undivided attention. With such a high rating and box office turn out, it’s not hard to say that many nominations and awards will be seen for Get Out and its talented actors.
One last time for Wolverine By JORDAN DAHAN ‘17 Voyager Staff Reporter
Marvel continues to count massive profits after Logan opened in theaters on March 3rd. It was highly anticipated because it was Hugh Jackman’s final time acting as the hot-tempered mutant with metal claws known as the “Wolverine.” He is a fan favorite, becoming the face of the franchise after seventeen years of portraying the role. Deadpool’s success paved the way into making Logan an R-rated movie as well. This allowed the audience to view the furious and vicious fight scenes that the Wolverine is known for without being watered down by a PG-13 rating. This is by far one of the most emotional Marvel movies due to how people relate to the characters and the plot. The story begins with Logan as a struggling old man who doesn’t identify as the legendary Wolverine anymore. He is working towards purchasing a boat and escaping his troubles by voyaging on the seas - his own version of chas-
ing a dream and the pursuit of happiness. Meanwhile, Logan is caring for his close friend Charles Xavier, formerly known as Professor X, who is fighting a degenerative brain disease. There are plenty of people that help their aging parents and know what a difficult situation it is. Most importantly, the theme includes legacy. Logan had been through so much physical and mental pain. Yet, he presses forward and gives fans a classic scene in which he unleashes all the rage he has stored inside him; this time, it’s for a young girl with a similar affliction as him. This is an intense film, not the typical “super hero/ comic book” adaption. Director James Mangold sets the bar for these types of movies in the future. It is unique in how its main focus is about the people and their very real situa-
The six episode Netflix series “Roman Empire: Reign of Blood” is a show about the reign of the emperor, Commodus, whom many attribute the fall of the Roman Empire. It is less dramatic and more based on historical facts, although it leaves out some information which would drive any history buff crazy. - Kaitlin McGee ‘17
Daredevil
Netflix’s debut Marvel series, Daredevil, is electrifying for die-hard Marvel fans and newbies alike. The show follows Matt Murdock, a man blinded as a child, who uses his heightened senses to give justice - by day as an attorney and by night as a vigilante. Fighting enemies of Hell’s Kitchen following the destruction outlined in the latest Avengers installments, Murdock tries to balance his contradictory lifestyle and keep his identity secret while improving his city. - Hayley Beluch ‘18
Gossip Girl
A must watch. It’s about a bunch of rich kids who go to a private school. Gossip Girl is a blogger that spreads rumors and such throughout the school, causing drama. Serena the main character comes back to New York and that’s where the whole plot line begins. Throughout the seasons there is always some new drama coming in keeping the show interesting. - Ayesha Rahman’20
That 70s Show
One of the best Netflix TV shows to binge watch in your free time would be That 70s Show. With 8 seasons and plenty of episodes, you don’t have to worry about getting through the show too quickly. The show is extremely hilarious and can even pull your heart strings at times. Instead of scrolling through Netflix trying to find a new show to watch, take a blast to the past and start That 70s Show. - Kaylee Braidwood ‘20
Scrubs
Always a great show to watch, Scrubs, a NBC, and later ABC, product is the perfect humorous show to watch while still being heartfelt at times. A faux hospital drama, it combines the seriousness of Grey’s Anatomy with comedy that makes the show enjoyable to all age groups. Whether it is watching JD’s increasingly insane daydreams, his feud with the hysterical janitor, or interactions with the new patients every episode, Scrubs is the perfect show to binge watch. Except the last season. Skip that. - Ben Forsman ’17
A Series of Unfortunate Events
tions. The main characters endure, feel, and try to persevere. It is different but clearly audiences appreciate what was without a doubt the highest quality X-Men movie ever made. For those concerned with the opinion of critics before deciding if a film is worth the time and money, Logan currently has a 92% on Rotten Tomatoes and earned a box office of 535 million dollars globally. This is due to in part the outstanding quality of acting from the lead roles, including Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, and Dafne Keen. The actors truly embraced the raw emotions, illustrating it on full display on screen. In its two-hour run time, Logan assumes his superhero persona of Wolverine one last time with a grand flourish.
A Series of Unfortunate Events follow the lives of recent-orphans Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire, whose parents had just died in a mysterious fire as the show begins. The show is based off the book series that have the same title. Violet is best at using her surroundings to create whatever her mind can think of at that time. Klaus is all brains who could read a book in a day and just suck up the information it contains. Sunny is the baby with strong teeth who can communicate with her older siblings. The three soon find out that there was more to their parents death than they had expected, they were a part of a secret society. The show is a Netflix original that has only completed season one, but season two is on its way. - Julia Dodd ‘19
TURN: Washington’s Spies
Somewhat of a hidden gem in the Netflix show inventory, TURN: Washington’s Spies is for every history buff. We all know about the war that won America her freedom, but what most people don’t know about are the spies that gave us the upper hand and contributed to our victory. Based on Alexander Rose’s book by the same name, the show follows Abraham Woodhull, who was a real-life spy and modest farmer living on the coast of New York. He finds himself entangled in General George Washington’s spy ring. Along with a cast of Abe’s childhood friends, one in the Continental army, one a rough-andtough liaison, and the other a former lover, this ragtag group will capture your attention and keep you watching. - Hana Hancock ‘18
22 The Voyager
Sports
May 2017
Kendall Bromley breaks swimming records By HANA HANCOCK ’18 Voyager Staff Reporter
tween her sister’s own swim practices gave Bromley the impetus to finally just jump in. Nowadays, she has swim practice for “I’ve had my eye on the Breastroke rethree hours every day after school from 4 cord all four years…” PM to 7 PM. Not to mention, the once a Senior Kendall Bromley, a varsity swimweek hour long practice before school at mer all four years at Eastern, was finally promptly 5:30 AM. To get there on time, able to make that dream a reality. Not she has to wake up by 4:30, a time that only did she break and set the record for would silence most kid’s whines concernthe 100 Breastroke (1:05.73 versus the ing the first bell at 7:30 for school. But previous holder’s 1:06.28) she was also that’s not it; on weekends Bromley pracable to break the 500 freestyle record tices from 6:30 to 9:30 AM. (506.60 versus the previIn the fall, Bromley Bromley said the most diffious 509.17). will be attending cult thing about swimming is The Breastroke record the University of “the time and energy it takes. was previously held by the Pacific, a DiviYou’re there for three hours afBromley’s own assistant sion I school where ter school, plus I take four AP coach, Jacquie Ward. she will continue classes, so it’s a lot of balanc“Holy crap,” Bromley her swimming ing and not enough sleep while said of her initial reaction career. also making sure I’m staying to finding out that she had healthy and succeeding.” broken the nearly ten-yearBromley doesn’t just swim old record,“It was like a ‘finally’ mofor Eastern. She is also a part of a club ment.” team, and said that most of her best events “{It was} kind of like a relief. I was so aren’t even the ones that high school stuhappy I could go after it and have the opdents can swim in competitions; There’s portunity to be in that position,” she said the 200 breastroke, the 1000 freestyle, of the 500 freestyle record that she evenand of course, the 100 breastroke and the tually broke as well. 500 freestyle. Occasionally, she’ll swim Bromley has been swimming for 10 the one mile. years. It all started with the pool in her “It can be grueling, but someone’s gotta backyard. Bromley’s parents said she’d do it,” she said. have to learn how to swim eventually. In the fall, Bromley will be attending That coupled with her being carted be-
Track: more than running By ERIC HORN ‘19 Voyager Staff Reporter
When people hear “track and field,” images of Usain Bolt and Mo Farah breaking records come to mind. While sprinting and running are very important to the world of sports and their stars are to be appreciated, it’s easy to forPhoto courtesy of Mr. McAleer get about the other events that make up a track and The winter season wasn’t officially over until the All South Jersey banquet. Great time honoring an field competition Mr. McAleer, coach of All SJ selection in high jump with a great group of the boys Track and Field at upperclassmen. Eastern, said “Many folks a time of 23.84 seconds. In distance rundon’t realize the extent ning, the mile is the ultimate test for and depth of track and field. We compete Eastern track stars. The standout of the in 16 individual events, 9 running events mile run is Senior Joe Passaro, with a on the track, 4 jumping events including time of 4 minutes and 40 seconds. long jump, triple jump, high jump, long According to Coach McAleer, “Certain jump, and pole vault. We have 3 weights ‘unsung heroes’ don’t get the recognievents or ‘throws’ which include shot put, tion I believe they deserve because they discus, and javelin. We also compete in may not be the ‘glamor’ events of track multiple relays.” This opens up opportuand field… However, it is in my opinion nities for all who have the dedication and that we have one of the best field teams motivation to compete in track and field, in the state and our jumps and throwers regardless of size or gender. “Track and deserve accolades.” These events, unlike field is the number 1 participated sport in sprints and distance running, usually are the country for girls and number two for “jumps” or “throws.” In the high jump, boys.” Junior Kasso Peaks has managed to soar Through track and field, many students to a height of 6 feet 4 inches. In the comcan further their careers academically. plicated pole vaulting event, Junior JorFor some, athletic scholarships are the dan Klingner has reached 11 feet even, only viable option for procuring a coland shows no sign of falling off anytime lege education. Thousands of athletic soon. One of the more well known throws scholarships are made available for track is the shot put, in which Senior Mykhel and field athletes every year for Division Oppon-Kuntu has thrown the heavy proI and NAIA programs. In addition, track jectile 46 feet and 4.75 inches. As Coach and field can bolster a student-athlete’s McAleer said: “It is a sport that is much overall physical condition, improving more objective to judge compared to oththeir performances in other sports in ader sports because the times, heights, and dition to teaching lessons about work distances don’t lie. As we say, you can’t ethic and proper methods of training for hide on the track and the field.” athletic events. With a bright future and many starts just “The sprints are very popular as well as hitting their prime, Eastern Track and the 1600,” said Coach McAleer. At EastField has some high expectations for this ern, the leaders of the sprints are Junior year and the next few to come. The seaAidan Murphy and Senior Vinnie Paduson begins on April 1st, and after taking la. Both run the 55 meter dash, in which home the team title at the Moorestown Murphy posted a time of 6.74 seconds, Relays in 2016, the team will attempt Padula 6.94 seconds, and Murphy also to repeat as champions in the next few runs the 200 meter, in which he posted weeks.
Kendall Bromley officially commits to University of the Pacific (D-I) on November 10th, 2016.
the University of the Pacific, a Division I school where she will continue her swimming career. For now, Bromley is focusing on her last year swimming here at Eastern, her last
pasta parties, and cherishing her last high school team. “The team is amazing. There’s really no substitute for the girls and guys that are apart of it.”
Chris Townsend thrives in track after leaving football with a concussion By HARRISON BROWN ‘17 Voyager Staff Reporter Chris Townsend has come a long way since his freshman year. In 2013, Chris was a member of the football team, playing undersized tight end and safety. Townsend played football his entire freshman year having one INT. Early in his Sophomore year he suffered a severe concussion, sidelining him for the season. After taking necessary time off and intense rehab, Townsend returned his junior year. But unfortunately once again, Townsend suf- Chris Townsend typically runs 45-60 miles a fered another concussion. week. Photo supplied After his junior year of rework hard all summer just for the same covering, Townsend was at a thing to happen right before the seacrossroads in his career. Having two mason started...can’t put into words how jor concussions within the past 2 years, devastating that was.” Townsend said. it was time to hang up the cleats. But as All of his hard work has obviously a pair of cleats were hung, a pair of runpaid of this year. In his first year with ning shoes were put on. the track team, Chris “I joined the cross has made varsity and country team this past “I joined the cross has been performing fall because I decided at an extremely high country team this past that attempting to play football again could fall because I decided level. Chris set a personal record in the 400 have long term health that attempting to play Meter race this year, consequences. I wantfootball again could with a time of 54.07 ed to try something have long term health seconds. This blazing new,” said Townsend. time was able to get consequences. I wantAfter taking most of him 5th place in the his junior year to fully ed to try something race out of 27 particirecover from his connew,” said Townsend. pants. cussion, Chris began “I wouldn’t quite training spring of his c a l l myself a junior year. s u c cess yet, He would go for a run every day after but I couldn’t have run as well as I did school, wowing some of his classmates this season if it weren’t for Joe Passaro. with the distance he was running. Without him I wouldn’t have pushed “The concussion definitely put a myself nearly as hard to be successful. damper on not just my athletic caAlso, Coach Mac was always there to reer but my overall well being,” said support me,” Townsend explained. Townsend. He explained, “It was bad Townsend is planning on running for enough that I had to miss my entire Camden County College’s cross country sophomore season of because of one. team this coming fall, and will finish his But then to come back recommitted and senior year this spring on the track.
May 2017
Sports
The Voyager 23
Boys chase title with heavy hitters By ALLANA BECKMAN ‘17 Voyager Staff Reporter Victory is predicted to bloom on the baseball fields this spring, especially title chasing. After last year, where Eastern finished 21-7, the Vikings are feeling optimistic as they step up to the plate for the 2017 season. Head coach Robert Christ said the baseball team takes great pride in being the hardest working team in South Jersey. “We believe that we are more inclined to win because we have invested so much time and energy,” Christ said. According to the Courier-Post, the Vikings are ranked second in New Jersey. The coaches expect to be ranked top-five in the state to start the season. Last year, the Vikings won four championships, including the Diamond Classic, the Camden County Championship, Olympic Conference, and the Bill Campbell Classic. “We have won the conference in three of the last four years,” Christ said. “We won the state championship in 2013. We won back-to-back South Jersey Championships in 2013 and 2014. We were the first school in over 20 years to accomplish that. We’ve done well.” The Vikings have won games against Sterling and Bishop Eustace, but lost to Washington Township at home on April 5th. They are now 10-3. Christ holds high standards for his team, including winning the conference and additional championships. The Vikings set the same goals every year, due to Christ’s philosophy of setting high goals and driving hard work with passion into the sport.
Junior Jack Herman smacks the ball in a game against Washington Township Despite the confident predictions for this spring, pitching seems to be an area the Vikings are lacking on the field. “Pitching is our lowest point, but our hitting and defense are strong,” said Davis Schneider, a varsity senior. The Rutgers commit is a right-handed hitter with a fast swing. Eager with goals for the season ahead, Schneider said the team wants to win every game and every championship. “The team is almost like a family,” said senior left-fielder Lou Priolo, a Rider commit. “We all work hard and push each other.”
“Jack Herman is by far the best baseball player I’ve ever played with or watch play. Just playing alongside him just makes everyone else better,” said Priolo. Primary outfielder, Jack Herman think’s the team is starting to come together this year, different from previous years. “We are starting to come together as a team this year and play together. Last year we started off really slow and we were playing as individuals and this year we are starting off a little slow again but, I can tell everyone’s coming together as a team.” Herman committed to University of
Photo By Alex Mackle ‘18
Maryland for baseball his freshman year. For Jason Mazza, Eastern Baseball is one of the hardest working teams in the school. From workouts to games, Vikings baseball stays fit and ready to compete. “Our workouts start earlier and earlier each year because people just want to get in and go after it. It really translates onto the field as well. The team is smart too. I think our baseball IQ is very strong. Everyone knows what to do and where to go in any situation. It’s actually phenomenal,” said Mazza. “When you see a kid wearing an Eastern Baseball shirt, you know that person is a very hard worker,” said Christ.
Lacrosse careers continue Costa, Pham, Nowell, and Joyce at University of Cincinnati New records for swimming: By MYLES JOHNSONARLINE ‘19 Voyager Staff Reporter
A new milestone was achieved for the Eastern Regional high school swimming team. In the 200 medley relay, swimmers Jon Costa, Andrew Pham, Max Nowell, and Jerry Joyce made history. The four boys Senior Jerry Joyce dives in during a relay Photo supplied swam the 200 medley relay in a time of 1 minbeat it,” said Costa. ute and 40.17 seconds, Swimming the fourth and final leg was beating the previously held record, 1 minsophomore Andrew Pham, swimming ute and 43 seconds by a whole 3 seconds. freestyle. “Swimming the fourth leg, I The team celebrated as they realized they knew I had to put my head down and hold had achieved above and beyond. my breath for two laps to finish out strong. Max Nowell led off for the Vikings as We all swam our hearts out knowing that the backstroker. the record was definitely in reach.” said “We were swimming against the fastest Pham.”It feels amazing knowing the efkids in the state, and I went all out and fort payed off when we broke the record.” swam my best time for my part of the “Balancing life as a student athlete is relay. So when I finished my leg, I knew hard, but if you just stay consistent with that everyone was bringing their A game” your practice, the items will come.” Jerry said Nowell. “And I knew this would be Joyce said, “I knew we could break the reone of our best relays yet.” cord since last year, everyone on the relay After Nowell, senior Jerry Joyce was up was coming back stronger and faster than next. Breaking the record was an extraorever.” said Costa. dinary achievement for Joyce. “It was the A fantastic milestone achieved by four best possible way to end my last year of boys who worked together to achieve swimming,” said Joyce, “and will surely their goals. The difficult task was connever forget how fast our relay was.” quered with nothing more than a team Swimming the third leg was sophomore effort. That’s why, according to Max Jon Costa, who swam butterfly. Nowell, “the relay records are even more “It felt relieving after we broke the respecial than the individual records.” Team cord, knowing that we have been chasing effort achieves success. that record for a year now and we finally
By ANTHONY CUTRERA ‘19 Voyager Staff Reporter
lacrosse, the two now sophomores stood out. Accardo recorded 9 goals and 2 assists while Mlkvy finished her freshman season with 13 goals and 10 assists. Accardo and Mlkvy both expressed excitement for the upcoming season. “I’m excited for everything and just playing with my team. Night games are the most fun, so I’m looking forward to them. Hopefully we can make it to the postseason this year” said Mlkvy. Accardo followed up by saying, “I can’t wait to get on the field from our first game to our last game with my team this year…our exciting and tough conference games, our night games, and hopefully, our postseason run.”
Tori Accardo and Dani Mlkvy have both verbally committed to the University of Cincinnati to continue their lacrosse careers—and they are only sophomores. Accardo announced her commitment on February 26th. Just 8 days later on March 6th, Mlkvy announced that she also would be joining Accardo as a member of Cincinnati’s class of 2023, joining the lacrosse team as well. “I chose the University of Cincinnati because it has everything I was looking for in a college. The campus and facilities are perfect, the coaches and players made me feel at home right when I got to the campus, and it has so many degrees to offer academically” Said Accardo on what made her chose Cincinnati. Mlkvy responded likewise saying “I chose Cincinnati because I love the campus. They also had a good lacrosse program. I’m familiar with the school because my sister goes there right now. They also offered a lot of programs that I am interested in studying. Distance was the only thing standing in the way. When I heard Tori committed, I knew it would be easier to go that far from home having a close friend with me.” Accardo has been playing lacrosse for 6 years while Mlkvy Sophomores Dani Mlkvy and Tori Accardo has been playing for 9 years. pose for a photo in their Cincinnati gear Photo supplied In just one year of high school
24 The Voyager
Junior Prom
May 2017
Photos by Nancy Bowne ‘19