V22 I1 - October 28, 2021

Friday, October 29, 2021

Back in masks

The Student Newspaper of Greenhills School Volume 22, Issue 1

19 months into pandemic without foreseeable ending, students and faculty adapt to “new normal”

MARAKI TAMRAT ‘23

Club President

ANNA ZELL ‘22

Associate Editor of Design

“I understand why people might get annoyed [by masks], but you have to protect other people, and it’s the responsible thing to do,” said Student Council Co-Vice President Avni Mangrulkar ‘22.

With a mask mandate implemented by the Washtenaw County Health Department, the Greenhills community will at the very least remain masked until COVID-19 transmission levels reach and remain moderate for 14 days—regardless of vaccination status. The mask mandate applies to everyone when inside the building but masks are optional when outside.

“Having to tell students to put masks on correctly is one of my least favorite things to do,” said 11th Grade Dean Janelle Sterling. “I put myself in the shoes of a classmate of theirs who may not be comfortable doing that. I take on that role to make sure students feel comfortable and safe.” 98 percent of age eligible Greenhills students as well as 100 percent of faculty are currently vaccinated; the vaccination rates wane for sixth graders as they are not yet eligible to receive the vaccine. The school announced in the spring that all age eligible community members without government-recognized conditions must be vaccinated in order to attend in-person classes for the upcoming school year. Greenhills will provide a vaccine clinic once the Pfizer vaccine is approved for sixth graders, which is expected before Halloween.

However, even if the student body reaches a 98 to 100 percent vaccination rate with the Pfizer vaccine being approved for sixth graders, students and faculty still may not be able to remove masks yet.

“We hope that by the fourth marking period, if everyone is vaccinated, for us to be able to take off the masks, however, the pandemic has taught us that the virus changes and the landscape changes,” said Head of Upper School Quincy McLaughlin.

Wearing a face covering during the school day while learning, presenting, and speaking is not something that anybody is used to. This change is especially different for teachers who have to adapt lectures and lesson plans to the physical barrier of masks.

“It hasn’t really impacted my ability to teach, I got used to it last year,” said Sterling. “For the most part it’s just been nice to be back, even wearing a mask.”

Even though Greenhills has a high vaccination rate, vaccines are not foolproof. Especially with the emerging Delta variant, breakthrough cases are becoming more and more common. Despite this, Greenhills is not currently offering a remote learning option for those who wish to stay at home during the pandemic.

Greenhills holds first homecoming

Isabel Baru ‘25 School Staff

Celebrating its first ever homecoming, Greenhills witnessed its largest turnout for a school-sponsored dance in its history.

Greenhills celebrated homecoming in its own unique way. The homecoming dance was held on Saturday, Oct. 2. Unlike most schools in Ann Arbor, this homecoming did not include the traditional activities of football games and a homecoming court leading up to the dance. Greenhills does not have a football team and instead, scheduled soccer, boys tennis, field hockey, volleyball, and cross country matches throughout that week leading up to the dance on Saturday. Having these games helped produce more excitement and school spirit for the upcoming big night.

“We wanted to move it up so the dance would be in the middle of athletic season to create excitement for sports,” Dean of Students Tom Ward said. One of the signature events of the homecoming week at some schools is a homecoming court: this consists of a king, queen, prince, princess, duke, and duchess. Greenhills’ student council voted to abandon the idea of a homecoming court as part of this new Greenhills tradition.

“This helps take the pressure off of voting for a court and turning homecoming into a popularity contest,” said Monica Behrend ‘21, Student Council Co-Vice President. Student Council also wanted Greenhills’ homecoming to be about inclusivity; they felt titles with specific pronouns wouldn’t be appropriate.

Student council representative, Maraki Tamrat, said, “For the first homecoming it went well. It gave the school a chance to see everyone in a setting that wasn’t strictly educational, and we were able to talk to people from different grades.”

Around other schools in Michigan, Greenhills wasn’t the only one abandoning a homecoming court. Dexter High School usually has a court as a tradition, but this year they had different festivities. However, comparing the neighboring schools: Skyline, Huron, and Saline had a court, but Pioneer did not. These schools also all have football teams and had games the night of the dance or before, but games the day of homecoming were not widely attended. Celebrating its first ever homecoming, Greenhills witnessed its largest turnout for a school-sponsored dance in its history.

Greenhills celebrated homecoming in its own unique way. The homecoming dance was held on Saturday, Oct. 2. Unlike most schools in Ann Arbor, this homecoming did not include the traditional activities of football games and a homecoming court leading up to the dance. Greenhills does not have a football team and instead, scheduled soccer, boys tennis, field hockey, volleyball, and cross country matches throughout that week leading up to the dance on Saturday. Having these games helped produce more excitement and school spirit for the upcoming big night.

“We wanted to move it up so the dance would be in the middle of athletic season to create excitement for sports,” Dean of Students Tom Ward said.

“The hybrid was really difficult,” said McLaughlin. “On a case by case basis, we could put a microphone on the teacher, put a camera in the classroom, and a student could listen in from home.”

Greenhills used a hybrid learning system for the majority of the last school year. Many teachers felt a disconnect between students learning at home and at school. The hybrid learning option was discontinued for this school year even though the pandemic continues with similar rates of positive cases in Michigan.

“I don’t think Greenhills should be offering a remote option, there’s something lost there, I personally felt like people at home never got a great sense of the class and it’s too hard for the teachers to do both” said Sterling. Other regulations besides a mask mandate and vaccination requirements include new air ventilation systems, desk spacing, and open windows in classrooms when possible.

In terms of positive cases, the Greenhills community has seen very few. One upper school student and one middle school student tested positive for COVID-19 so far in this school year. In response to positive cases within the community, there is a step by step detailed protocol advised by a team of medical advisors to prevent further transmission The team of advisors are also Greenhills parents: University of Michigan Chief Health Officer Preeti Malani, Infectious Disease Specialist Anurag Malani, and University of Michigan Dean of Engineering Alec Gallimore.

“I think there could be more communication between faculty and students about what’s happening with positive cases,” said Mangrulkar. “A lot of people in my grade got tested recently and even though everyone was negative, people were really worried.”

The Washtenaw County Public Health Department is consulted when there is a case or exposure within the Greenhills Community. The Malanis and Gallimore, on the other hand, are not consulted with individual cases but rather protocol decisions such as air ventilation plans.

“The medical advisors help us with big picture sort of questions, like what’s the value of testing now,” said McLaughlin.

Throughout the last school year, weekly testing of students and faculty was conducted. With just one positive case resulting from this process, the protocol was abandoned with the start of the new school year. Community members continue to test for COVID-19 on an individual basis.

“Students and families have been really thoughtful and very conservative and always thinking about the safety of the community,” said McLaughlin. “[School wide] testing did not yield a lot of useful results, we will not be returning to this.”

In the upcoming months, there are many things that the school is in hopes of fulfilling, such as a fully vaccinated school, a maskless marking period, and an increase in COVID-19 friendly school activities.

“If we’re fully vaccinated, that would be my great wish and my great hope,” said McLaughlin.

“We wanted to move it up so the dance would be in the middle of athletic season to create excitement for sports,” Dean of Students Tom Ward said.

One of the signature events of the homecoming week at some schools is a homecoming court: this consists of a king, queen, prince, princess, duke, and duchess. Greenhills’ student council voted to abandon the idea of a homecoming court as part of this new Greenhills tradition.

“This helps take the pressure off of voting for a court and turning homecoming into a popularity contest,” said Monica Behrend ‘21, Student Council Co-Vice President. Student Council also wanted Greenhills’ homecoming to be about inclusivity; they felt titles with specific pronouns wouldn’t be appropriate.

Student council representative, Maraki Tamrat, said, “For the first homecoming it went well. It gave the school a chance to see everyone in a setting that wasn’t strictly educational, and we were able to talk to people from different grades.”

Around other schools in Michigan, Greenhills wasn’t the only one abandoning a homecoming court. Dexter High School usually has a court as a tradition, but this year they had different festivities. However, comparing the neighboring schools: Skyline, Huron, and Saline had a court, but Pioneer did not. These schools also all have football teams and had games the night of the dance or before, but games the day of homecoming were not widely attended.

“We just wanted everyone to stay safe and comfortable, if people didn’t feel comfortable no one would come,” said Ward.

Due to homecoming being held in the middle of a pandemic, the dance was held outside and under a tent. Masks were required when students were in big groups and while on the dance floor. People who wanted to bring students from other schools were allowed to by filling out a form and submitting their proof of vaccination.

Due to COVID-19 protocols, the dance was moved sooner than when it usually happens, which is closer to Halloween. Because of the change, the student council struggled to find a DJ to play the dance. However, one of Greenhills’ students, Julian Toogood ‘21, is a DJ, so he was able to step in and play.

Admission prices rose for homecoming. While most dances at Greenhills cost $7-8 to enter, Homecoming cost $10 to enter.

“Because Homecoming is bigger than other dances, for this reason they need adequate funds to create the first memorable Homecoming,” said Student Council Treasurer, Kilas Gallimore ‘21.

This money was put towards decorations, food/beverages, and to be saved for years to come. In comparison, public schools Huron and Skyline charged $32.50 and $25.00 respectively.

Ward said this was the biggest turnout Greenhills had ever had for a dance: 285 students participated and roughly 85 percent of the ninth grade class came. While at the party, students enjoyed a variety of different activities, ranging from: the dance floor, the photo station, karaoke, and a movie. These different activities allowed more spacing and smaller groups

Graphic by Emma Zhang

Smart but

feeling dumb:

imposter syndrome casts spell over achedemic abilities

ANNIE STONE ‘23

OPINION EDITOR

According to the College Board, scoring a 29 on the ACT puts you in the 90th percentile nationally. If you ask a Greenhills student, a 29 is something you don’t talk about with your peers. What’s going on here?

Students at Greenhills are in no way intentionally perpetuating the harmful culture that causes students to bring each other down in the atmosphere of the school, since it was there even before they entered it. When students do enter Greenhills, though, it is nearly impossible to detach themselves from the high expectations that surround them. As a private college preparatory school, Greenhills expects its students to take as many challenging courses that they can, lead clubs and activities, and be a part of a sport. The school leaves no room for error, as its GPAs are unweighted, even one A- in a transcript will never allow them to become valedictorian. This bubble, filled with bright, success-driven students who constantly compete over who is smarter, works harder, and accomplishes more, creates a toxic culture. Students feel so strangled by the pressure that they cry over 95/100 test scores and 1500 SAT scores. The underlining drive for Greenhills students is to enter a “good” college, by which they mean a top tier college. The phrase, “I’m only doing it for college applications” is one shared by too many at this school. While there is nothing inherently wrong with wanting to be accepted by a university you want, this sentiment adds to the ongoing tension that students feel.

Let us remember, though, that even when you feel inadequate, or stupid, or that you don’t measure up, every student at this school is extremely smart, and that is why we are here. The internal rank we make up in our heads of who is smarter than who, and the comparisons we make with our peers fuel what is known as the imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome describes the feelings of self-doubt and personal incompetence that causes a person to hold themselves up to high standards.

As students, we are here to learn. This school must prepare us for higher education, and to do so we must open ourselves up to the idea that we may be wrong, that we don’t know everything, and most importantly, that we will make mistakes. Outside of being a student, we are also maturing and growing older. Our lives outside of academics are filled with their own dilemmas and challenges that take our attention. Getting our licenses, making friends, learning what our passions are, and suffering through puberty are just a few of the challenges we face as middle and high school students. Limiting ourselves to the goal of exceeding the standards at Greenhills prevents us from focusing on the experiences we can have and lessons we’ll learn outside of school.

While the students in this school must learn to give themselves a break and try to take a step back from unrealistic standards, it is also up to the teachers to provide resources for them. Currently, though Greenhills does have a school counselor who aids any student with their issues that arise either in school or outside of school, there seems to be no change in how students view themselves. They continue to push themselves to the breaking point to reach their unrealistic goals. And even though the school has created a built-in free period so no student can take more than seven classes in one year, students still choose to juggle all honors, advanced, and AP courses all in order to look and feel intelligent. Teachers have also seen this culture at Greenhills and must find a way to aid their students.

Junior laments lack of parking spaces, blames COVID-inspired tent

ELINA PALAPATTU ‘23

Many of us have noticed the insane, hectic parking scene in the mornings. The sun in our eyes, teens’ crazy driving, it’s before 8:30 a.m., and the most daunting issue: the struggle to find parking. Ever since the addition of the new tent in the middle of the upper school parking lot, parking has been harder to find than any year before. With fewer spots and more students than ever, the morning chaos is at an all time high.

Whether you are a student or faculty member, getting to school often leaves us completely frazzled. We are all still getting back into a “normal” routine, and we are worried about things like remembering our books and not spilling our coffee. When we finally get to school in one piece, we have a million things running through our mind, and the last thing we want to have to worry about is where to park. With the new tent in the parking lot, parking fills up very quickly. In fact, if you arrive at school any later than 8:15 a.m., you will most likely have to park on the street, which also rapidly fills up.

The current solution to just get to school early seems simple, but this is not an option for every student. Students who have to catch a ride from their parents who are on their way to work may not be in control of when they get to school. Additionally, if all students and faculty arrive at school earlier, the shortage of spaces would still be a persisting issue. More importantly, though, for everyone, sometimes life happens, and students have other responsibilities that prevent them from getting to school early. This should not stop them from getting a parking spot. Although the tent is meant to help us have more usable space, it is overall an inconvenience.

Sometimes even, the tent can make the difference for if you are late to school. Having to circle back and forth to find a parking spot takes time. Currently, if you are later than 8:20 a.m. you can count on a stressful, messy parking experience. Eventually, you end up parking on a spot far down on the street. This would be just something to deal with, if there wasn’t an option to remove the tent and create many more spaces. Having a place to park is not something students should have to worry about when running late.

The intention of the tent was to encourage students to spend more time outside due to the pandemic and have a safe place to eat lunch. However, I believe that there is plenty of outdoor space without the tent in the parking lot. Even though some students choose to eat lunch in that tent, there is still plenty of space to eat lunch outside if the tent is removed. There are two tents behind the lunchroom that provide plenty of shaded space, and leave us with the parking spots we desperately need. Additionally, as we move towards winter and colder days approach, the tent will be much less usable as it has open sides (it will become an even less desirable place to eat). On the flip side, the colder it gets outside, the less faculty and students will want to walk all the way from far on the street to school. It is in the best interest of everyone to remove the tent and create more parking spots, to make more time for students and faculty in the morning.

The tent in the upper school parking lot should be removed to allow Greenhills community members an opportunity to ease into their day (and back into a routine) without the messy parking scene.

EDITORIAL: Classism permeates through college admissions process

When it comes to the college admissions process, working-class high school students are benched before the game has even started. Standardized tests and the Common Application have had an unspoken favorability towards affluent students. Such institutions hold a classist ideology: the greater the wealth, the greater the potential of a student. Unfortunately, college, an increasingly crucial rung on the ladder to success, is in high demand, but underprivileged students are not.

It is safe to say that a majority of Greenhills upperclassmen currently have some degree of stress regarding the college admissions process. Whether it be surfing “Thesaurus.com” for sophisticated words to incorporate in their essays or spending months studying for that extra ten points on their SAT, seniors are striving for a perfect application to gain acceptance into their dream schools.

With all of this effort though, many would be surprised to discover that a significant portion of their application is already predetermined. With questions on parental occupations and level of education, the Common Application asks about parents’ accomplishments in addition to the student’s. Unfortunately, the fact of the matter is that admissions officers and institutions favor affluence. According to the Greenhills College Counseling Office, of the many colleges and universities in the United States, only a small percentage is need-blind -a student’s financial background is not a factor when determining admittance. Therefore, generational wealth provides students with outside advantages in the college admissions process: not only in regards to material preparation, but also resources and connections. For instance, students with access to outstanding college counselors, such as the ones at Greenhills,

receive better guidance and attention compared to public school students, as a portion of the tuition goes towards it. A student’s family income is a prominent factor in their future, afterall.

Most high school students’ all-time favorite organization -- the College Board -- is in charge of our future. Not only has the College Board practically ruled the American education system in an oligarchy, it also has generated millions of dollars in revenue, making it a profitable “nonprofit.” According to TotalRegistration.net, the organization gained almost 100 million dollars in AP exams in 2020.

The process of AP tests is also one of a kind: after paying about $90 for a single AP exam, students receive the honorable opportunity to take a three-hour exam that supposedly reflects their entire year of hard work. Then, they restlessly await their single-digit scores.

After months of stress and anxiety, this glorious single-digit score, along with no feedback nor reasoning, concludes this oddly expensive process. One may ask, how can students improve after seeing that they failed their exams? Well, it seems that the only two options for students, in this case, is to either withhold the scores for $10 each per college or pray that a hacker will permanently destroy all College Board data before the upcoming college application season. The chances of the second option, however, appear to be slim at this moment.

Aside from AP exams, which are students’ biggest enemies in May, the SAT is also extremely relevant to the college application process. Supposedly, high SAT scores are earned by intelligent students who work the hardest. The Princeton Review advertisement that has been playing at the beginning of every other YouTube video claims otherwise: “the SAT only tests your ability on mastering the SAT.”

It seems that the prep organization itself recognizes that SAT scores truly depend on the amount of time and money a student dedicates to preparation. Kabir’s Prep, a locally renowned test preparation organization in Southfield, Michigan, charges $1,650 for an SAT/ACT course; though it appears that the instructors receive money for simply providing students with practice tests and answer sheets that can be found online, the prep course has been popular among parents in the area. In essence, while standardized test scores give students an upper hand in the admissions process, they also reflect more about students’ household income and parental education, in lieu of students’ intellectual abilities.

Though standardized test scores greatly reflect students’ household income, a perfect score on any standardized test still requires hard work. Many students, especially those at Greenhills, often thrive for the best possible.

In order to prevent Greenhills students from selling their souls during spring AP exam seasons and the all-year SAT/ACT grind, Greenhills could do a better job alleviating students’ anxiety and better prepare them for standardized tests (despite how abominable the tests are, at the end of the day, we cannot escape reality). It seems that the less teachers talk about the AP exam in an AP class, the more worried the students get. More structured AP classes and workshops will familiarize students with the designated rubrics and exam breakdowns, further preparing them for the “big day” and eliminating any last-minute procrastination the night before. Furthermore, the school should provide students with more support regarding standardized testing anxiety and academic anxiety in general.

It is time college institutions understand that wealth does not elicit capability.

Alcove is a newspaper written by students, for the students of Greenhills School. All opinions, views, and statements reflect those of the students working on Alcove and not necessarily the faculty and staff of Greenhills. Alcove is written to inform, encourage, and expand upon the curiosity of the students that Greenhills strives to cultivate. Providing a forum for students to express their individuality, the Alcove reminds you to always read the pine print.

Test optional schools: What you need to know

ANNIE STONE ‘23

Q.Because of the pandemic, have more students come to the college counselling office asking about test-optional schools and have considered not submitting their scores?

A:I would say that I’ve gotten a lot more questions about that. Before the pandemic, even though there were these test-optional schools, it wasn’t the norm, most places would require some standardized test scores to be submitted. There is some degree of hesitancy, which is understandable, in this question of if these schools are really test optional and if they don’t

Students transition from online to in-person school

FIZA ALI ‘24 School Editor

In 2020, students were forced to adapt to learning through Zoom, facing ongoing challenges as they had to adjust. As 2021 comes to an end, a typical school day at Greenhills looks different from how it did before the pandemic hit. In March 2020, students across the country were jolted into the world of Zoom because of the Coronavirus pandemic. As the pandemic persisted, millions of students continued learning remotely. It started off with having to learn from a screen with no normality, but now that schools are back in session, things have changed drastically.

“I have not adjusted, I am simply thrilled to be back. I am joyful, exuberant, exhilarated because teachers are performers, and when you are in front of a live audience and you get feedback, you can perform better,” said English teacher Mark Randolph, when talking about adjusting back to in-person learning.

Randolph also said the initial transition going into online learning was not as difficult for him because he has always been interested in digital tools, and in the end, remote learning helped him appreciate coming back to school in person.

Upper school Math teacher Lisa Beatson said teaching math online was much harder. Beatson said, “Online it was more difficult to teach, because of dealing with technology and going back and forth between students.

It is much better to be able to see students and their thinking processes. It is also easier to redirect them.”

Zoom also came with its unique challenges, such as being faced with technical difficulties. To Beatson, the camera being off was a form of miscommunication. She said that oftentimes in class last year, she would have to repeatedly ask her students to turn on their cameras.

Sixth graders remain unvaccinated

VIOLET WEIZER ‘25 Lifestyles Staff

Six months after the rest of the Greenhills community began getting inoculated against COVID-19, the youngest Gryphons will soon get their turn. Pfizer and BioNTech recently submitted data to the Food and Drug Administration supporting the COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5-11, meaning sixth graders will soon be vaccinated.

“I’m excited that the vaccine will soon be approved for 5-11-year-olds,” said Sixth Grade Dean, Nina Scheinberg. “Our students are excited about it as well, and I think that our community in particular has been waiting a long time for this.”

Scheinberg said that she anticipates some changes will be made to the school after the younger children are able to get vaccinated. The sixth graders will no longer need to keep social distance while eating lunch.

“Making friends in 6th grade can already be hard since many students come to Greenhills not knowing most of their peers,” said Scheinberg. “I’m excited that they’ll be able to sit next to each other soon.”

When students get vaccinated they will have a much easier time making friends without the social distancing involved, since lunch is one of the only times during school that students have a chance to socialize with their peers, said Scheinberg.

“Once everyone’s vaccinated in sixth grade things will be better, and we will be able to sit closer together,” said Renna Bunek ‘28. “Also I want to get the vaccine so I can hang out with my friends, and family more often.”

As of now, the sixth graders must follow COVID-19 protocols, and social distance during lunch to ensure their safety against the virus.

“So far this year, they’ve had to distance themselves during lunch, which isn’t conducive to helping them build connections with their classmates,” said Scheinberg.

Tai Singal ‘28 is excited to get the vaccine, and thinks that other people should get it too. For Greenhills students the vaccine is mandated, so the vaccination rate will end up being close to 100 percent. Singal also said that he is “not scared” of the vaccine, and the only side effects in his family were stomach aches, and sore arms.

“I think that it is good that Greenhills is trying to keep their students safe. I think that schools should mandate vaccinations so they can keep their schools open, and not have to be remote,” said Aarav Vummidi ‘28.

A few of the sixth graders plan to celebrate after getting the vaccine.

“I will have a family dinner to celebrate after getting the vaccine,” said Bunek, while Vummidi said he wants to celebrate by taking a family vacation.

The FDA will have public meetings over the course of three days to make decisions on whether to authorize Pfizer and BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use authorization in children, and booster shots for adults who’ve already received two doses of Moderna or the “one shot” Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

“I have conflicting feelings about booster shots, but I’m glad that in the United States we have the resources to keep the most vulnerable members of our society safe,” said Scheinberg. “On the other hand, I’m disappointed that the vaccine rollout has been so slow in other countries. I wish that the U.S. could do more to help with the rollout, but I also know that coordinated efforts at this scale are extremely challenging, and many countries don’t have the resources necessary to store the vaccine.” According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the COVID-19 vaccine is a messenger RNA vaccine, a new type of vaccine designed to protect against infectious diseases. mRNA vaccines teach our cells how to make a protein which provokes an immune response that produces antibodies that protect against the virus. The benefit of an mRNA type vaccine is that it protects us from the virus without the risk of getting COVID-19 from weakened or inactivated virus cells.

“There is no comparison than looking someone in the eye, not having to worry about cameras being off,” said Beatson.

Over Zoom, constantly having to worry about students’ participation was something that concerned most teachers. Keeping students engaged online was a complicated task.

Choir teacher Benjamin Cohen said, “In the choir field, I am much happier seeing people in the room, but it is still hard singing through a mask because the restrictions are limiting.”

Singing through a mask is challenging, but Cohen also said that something is always better than nothing.

When asking whether or not there is anything from online school that would stick with the teaching techniques in class today, Cohen, and most teachers, mentioned that there is nothing that they would incorporate, besides posting more assignments online.

Pfizer and BioNTech conducted a clinical trial that included 2,268 children between the ages of 5 and 11. They were each given two 10 microgram doses of the vaccine, 21 days apart. The results showed the vaccine was well tolerated, and produced high levels of antibodies, according to Pfizer and BioNTech. As of now, the Pfizer and BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine was approved for ages 16 and up, and ages 12 to 15 for emergency use authorization by the FDA. The vaccine for ages 5 through 11 years has not yet been approved by the FDA.

About a third of parents want to vaccinate their children ages 5-11 “right away” when the COVID-19 vaccine is available to them, according to a survey conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation. 24 percent said they would “definitely not” vaccinate their children, 32 percent said they would ‘wait and see”, and 7 percent said they would vaccinate their children only if required.

Photo by Violet Weizer ‘25

LONELY LUNCH Sixth graders dine socially distanced in a separate lunch period. The older grade levels, fully-vaccinated, eat lunch together in the dining room, a change from the plexiglass partitions that greeted students attending classes during hybrid learning last school year.

Graphics by Amanda Chen and Ridhi Gupta

Test optional schools, what you need to know

ANNIE STONE ‘23 School Staff

As college applications swarm the thoughts of seniors and juniors, many questions arise for them. Since the pandemic has changed the application process entirely, the help of experts are desperately needed. Cora Chester, a Greenhills college counselor, answers the most important questions about test-optional schools.

Q. When did test-optional schools first come across your radar?

A.This is my fifth year now at Greenhills, and before that I was in college admissions at Duke University. At the time, Duke was not test-optional, but I was aware of it even then. There were a number of schools that mostly were small, private liberal arts schools that had an option where you can apply and choose to include standardized testing. Not just the SAT or ACT, but also AP exams, and in some cases, though extremely rare, PSAT scores or PACT. So, in terms of my work with college counseling, [test-optional schools have] become more of a concern over the years. You started to see an uptick of schools over the years, even leading up to the pandemic. One of the banner notices was when the University of Chicago went test-optional, and they were one of the biggest names to do that. A lot of the colleges’ stated aim in doing this is to promote equity for students who may not have as easy access to standardized testing, or the same kinds of test-prep resources, sort of even the playing field and not access students based on this number. There’s lots of data that shows standardized tests have lots of demonstrated biases.

Q. What’s your opinion on test-optional schools?

A.I think that places going test optional is a really good move. Though with the pandemic, almost every college I can think of, off the top of my head, went test optional. Going into this year, a lot of places are still test-optional.

There are a number of schools that say that, ‘oh, we are going to continue to be test-optional, even after the pandemic’, while others are saying, ‘we’ll wait and see’. I expect that a lot of schools will remain test-optional, because it will give universities one fewer thing in the way of admitting students. It gives them more flexibility in their decision making.

Q. What do you recommend to students who will not be submitting their test scores to bolster their application, as they will be competing with other applicants who may have great test scores?

A.It’s hard to give a general answer, because each case is unique. Just as a baseline, we recommend that all Greenhills students sit for at least one standardized test before it’s time for college applications, whether that’s SAT or ACT. That’s not a strict requirement, but it is a recommendation because if you have a good score and want to record it, that’s great, that helps your applications. If you get it and you don’t do as well as you hoped, and you don’t want to spend all your time focusing on standardized tests, then you don’t. If you don’t submit test scores, focus on putting extracurricular activities on the Common App, putting thought and detail into your essays. In the absence of testing, it means that the admissions officers are going to look at the other existing metrics a little bit more closely and weigh those a little more heavily. The transcript, in terms of rigor of curriculum and grades has always been, and probably always will be, the main determinant of a student’s success in an application. Make sure you focus really well on your classes, make sure you’ve done your homework when it comes to writing why you want to go to a certain college, and pay attention to the parts of the application that you can control. You may also be able to submit artistic supplements in acting, music, anything, even if you don’t plan on majoring in that.

Q. What is the difference between test-optional schools and test-blind schools?

A.So, test optional means if a student chooses to submit testing, then that would be fair game as a part of their academic evaluation. Depending on what those are, that could go well for that person, it could be a neutral factor, or could be something that could be a potential barrier. If you’re on the fence for if you want to submit scores, take a look at the middle 50% of test scores of the most recent entering class, and if you find yourself in that range or above, it’s probably safe to submit, if it’s below, maybe you shouldn’t. Test-blind schools, on the other hand, will ignore testing even if you submit it. Many of them will say that they don’t want any level of bias to enter into their review.

Q.Because of the pandemic, have more students come to the college counselling office asking about test-optional schools and have considered not submitting their scores?

A.I would say that I’ve gotten a lot more questions about that. Before the pandemic, even though there were these test-optional schools, it wasn’t the norm, most places would require some standardized test scores to be submitted. There is some degree of hesitancy, which is understandable, in this question of if these schools are really test optional and if they don’t submit test scores will they be admitting that they didn’t do well. It’s interesting to see, since you can’t see behind the curtain to see how well or not they are sticking to their word about how they evaluate these things. To be fair, a lot of colleges seem to be sending out mixed messages that say they are test optional, but imply heavily that if you do have test scores, that they want to see them. We tend to trust the word of those schools who were test optional before the pandemic or had announced to be test optional in the future. If it’s a place that historically has weighted standardized tests very heavily in their ratings, and are now saying they are test optional, but will see how things are going to be in the future.

As always, Chester always recommends that for any questions or concerns a student may have, they should reach out to their counselor.

A return to in-person learning: teachers re-think classroom decor

EVA BERNSTEIN ‘25 School Staff

Posters, art, and trinkets -- teachers consciously decorate their classrooms. Coming back to in-person school after being at home all year doing virtual classes is a big adjustment, and teachers are eager to decorate their classrooms to make school a welcoming and uplifting place for students, especially because it is the first “real” school year since 2019. However, while some find stimulating environments enjoyable, others can feel overstimulated, being counterproductive to the teachers’ original intentions. “It’s nice because I don’t know if there’s any posters in there, it’s pretty blank but in a good way,” said Parker Probst ‘25, when talking about a personal favorite classroom, Global Perspectives and AP American Literature Teacher Danielle Conti’s room. Walking into Conti’s room, you are greeted by pink, green, and white lanterns hanging from the ceiling, a color coordinated bookshelf, and past Evergreen Literary Magazine covers, which she is the advisor of. It has been some time since Conti has gotten to decorate her own classroom to her liking, as her previous school rotated classrooms, and the past year was mostly virtual.

“I want students to walk in and feel inspired, and feel like they can settle in a little bit and let their shoulders fall,” Conti said, who took inspiration from Eighth Grade English Teacher Becky Randolph’s room. “She has these amazing lanterns, she has a window, and plants everywhere, and it just feels very welcoming.”

AP US History Teacher Mackenzie Hess’s room has a similarly inviting feeling. The walls are covered, but not cluttered by posters that she refers to daily in class. She has also displayed some Bucky the Badger decor from the University of Wisconsin, Hess’s alma mater, around the room.

“I think having a space that matches at least a little bit of what you are focusing on in class is important, just because it kind of sets the stage and the mood for class,” said Hess. “Also making sure that it’s useful, making sure that it’s bright and happy and feels like a nice space to come into helps me, and I think helps others also.”

“There are a lot of posters around Hess’ room and I can learn a lot from that,” Yousif Ogaily ‘24 said. “You can learn a lot from the stuff around the room too. Stuff about the class that could help me benefit in the class, I think that’s the best.”

While decorations can be nice, and in some cases, beneficial, they can also negatively affect students’ ability to learn.

“ [If I decorated a classroom it would have] a few posters, but not like the wall is covered in them, because it can be overwhelming (...) if there are too many words it can be difficult to actually think about something, because you just end up reading what’s on the poster, same with too many colors,” Probst said.

“I think striking the balance between making sure that there are helpful cues around the room, like things that I use and refer to everyday like those posters on the back wall or our map or the timelines, (...) having enough on the walls so that it’s not just a blank space, but having enough that if you want a distraction for a minute, there’s something to look at,” Hess said.

For students, especially ones with ADHD (Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder), having too many distracting decorations can be harmful to their ability to learn. Conti recently had a student explain how clothing with a lot of colors or patterns can be distracting. This got Conti thinking about her classroom and if it’s decorations could be doing the same thing.

“I think this is a safe place to stop (...) I don’t need to put any more color on the walls for that reason,” Conti said. Students and teachers have both come to the conclusion that having a minimal and mood boosting space is what’s best for both teaching and learning.

The show must go on

Faced with COVID-19 precautions and inspired by modern culture, Greenhills’ upper school play returns

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BREAK

Props in hand and masks on faces, the cast of Antigone rehearses for a play that meets the moment of mask-wearing in school due to COVID-19 protocols. “We are just so happy to be back,” said

From dreams to reality

Mert Oral ‘22 reflects on his tennis journey

SOPHIA RICH‘23

Sports Writer

In his time as a tennis coach, Mark Randolph said he has never seen a player who has embraced the true values of tennis like Mert Oral ‘22.

The longtime Greenhills tennis coach knew Oral was gifted a few years ago when he was just starting off his journey on the men’s tennis team. Now, in a little less than a year, he’ll be seeing his star player play his first match in a University of Michigan uniform.

Oral started playing tennis when he was five years old. At first, it was no more than just another activity; in fact, he only started playing because his older brother did. Now he joins the handful of Greenhills athletes to commit to a D1 athletic program.

“It was always a dream [to play tennis at Michigan]. For a long time I didn’t think it was possible,” Oral said. “I had some good results entering high school, and then I realized that college tennis may actually be a realistic possibility, and that’s when the goal of Michigan tennis came a lot more into focus.”

Oral has quickly become the center of attention in the Greenhills community ever since his athletic commitment to Michigan was officially announced.

“When the offer from Michigan came in, it was really hard to resist, it’s been a dream for such a long time,” said Oral.

Oral grew up in Ann Arbor, where the University of Michigan campus is located . His contact with current Michigan Tennis coach, Adam Steinberg, has helped to cultivate a relationship with the entire tennis program at Michigan, making the whole recruitment process a lot smoother.

“The current Michigan coach had his eye on Mert for quite some time. He sees another level or two in Mert that Mert himself can see, and it’s truly exciting,” said Randolph.

The Greenhills tennis program has been known for its regional and even statewide successes, but it’s not often you see a Greenhills athlete commit to play a sport at an institution such as the University of Michigan.

“Greenhills has not been known to produce division one athletic talent. We’ve done it some but not often,” said Randolph. “We’ve had a number of players who could have played D1 but

A season of change and success

ARJUN PROBHKAR ‘23 Sports Writer

With 19 wins and 14 losses, the women’s volleyball team continues one of its best seasons in Greenhills’ history. The team, led by captains Maddie Rodgers ‘22 and Lana Kouatli ‘22 has bounced back from a season cut short due to COVID-19 and come out motivated and strong.

During the 2020-2021 season, the volleyball team was unable to practice until mid to late September due to the COVID-19 guidelines restricting any events indoors. Due to these restrictions, their season was significantly shorter than those of past years. Only playing ten matches and having a limited number of practices in their previous season, the team struggled to bond and perform to the best of their ability.

“The team was just not the same as other years. We were not even allowed to perform our traditional celebration after winning a point where we huddled up and congratulated each other,” said varsity player Alex Hummel ‘23.

The ten matches were solely dual matches -- meaning the volleyball team was not able to participate in any quads and other tournaments. This removed a crucial part of the season as the tournaments and quads often contain highlights of their season.

“Despite the many hardships faced in the previous season, the girls were able to persevere and come out strong this season,” said varsity coach Tiffany Willard.

Coaching her twenty-first volleyball season, Willard believes that this team is among some of the best she has coached. “The way they mesh and play together is unique and special,” said Willard.

Due to the shortened season last year, the volleyball team has been motivated to work harder and make the most out of their season. They arrive to practices and matches energetic and ready to put their best effort into every drill and point.

“We want to take advantage of the great team we have and make sure that we do not end the season with any regrets,” said Kouatli.

have chosen to focus on academics instead, and that’s fine too. We’re always glad when we can send someone to the highest levels, but what we really want is people to integrate tennis into their entire life, and that is exactly what Mert has done.”

Aside from Oral’s time spent playing national tennis tournaments with the United States Tennis Association (USTA), he has dedicated a lot of his time to the Greenhills’ men’s tennis team.

“We just love spending time with each other,” said Oral. “The season is the highlight of the year. We practice hard everyday, then fight like hell for each other during matches, and then after, regardless of what happens, we just go out to eat and just have a good time being together.”

Oral has taken on a leadership role this year, being named captain of the team.

“It’s definitely different being a senior. I was the only freshman on the team, so I was used to being the young guy and coasting along and enjoying things and worrying about playing without having any of the leadership responsibilities. This year I’ve had to step up and lead by example. It’s been a great learning experience,” said Oral. His teammates have taken to his leadership style and embraced him as captain.

“Mert is a really good tennis player, but more importantly he’s a great leader,” said Arjun Prabhakar ‘23, a member of the tennis team. “Seeing Mert play at such a high level encourages us to work that much harder.”

Oral recently acquired his fourth individual state championship the rest of the season, leading the men’s tennis team to a Division III win. Following his last high school season, Oral will be able to focus on preparing for the Michigan season ahead.

a member of the Greenhills faculty. This new addition allowed the volleyball players to practice directly after school instead of the traditional 6-8 p.m. practices, allowing the players to be more energetic and focused. This also meant that the varsity players prac-

they lost in 3 straight sets. Due to this loss, the team finished second in the Catholic League. Most teams would be affected mentally after such a loss, but this was not the case for the Gryphons. In the following match, the volleyball team competed in the Green-

Along with drills and scrimmages, the team trains to ensure every person contributes equally during matches and practices. Whether a team member is giving their all on the court or cheering for their teammates from the bench, every teammate is making an impact on the match.

“The whole team makes a difference, not just the starting six players,” said Willard.

At the beginning of the school year, Willard was hired as

tice alongside the junior varsity (JV) players, allowing the two teams to bond and inspiring them to work harder.

As of Oct. 21, the women’s volleyball team is 19-14 overall and 7-1 in the Catholic League. Their only loss in the Catholic League was in a match against Cardinal Mooney where

hills Invitational against Whitmore Lake and Mason Erie. Eager to bounce back, the team for victory and won in three straight sets against Whitmore Lake and in a close five setter against Mason Erie. “You learn more in a loss than you do in a win,” said Willard.

Photos by:Annie Stone ‘23, Sophie Chen ‘25

SLICE IT Tennis captain Mert Oral ‘22 prepares to hit his trademark forehand slice, which helped propel him to secure the regional title in One Singles. He went on to win that regional finals match 6-0 6-0, ultimately helping his team to win the regional championship. “It was a goal [to win Regionals] that the whole team had been working towards,” he said.

BUMP IT Maddie Rodgers ‘22, Peyton Feeney ‘22, Anna Zell ‘22, Alex Hummel ‘23, Riya Narayan ‘23, and Amanda Chen ‘24 huddle up after a point. The team was unable to huddle up after points during the previous season, but due to changes in the COVID-19 guidelines, the team is now able to resume this volleyball tradition. “It feels great to be able to huddle up after points again,” Hummel said. “The team is now able to bond better.”

Fall sports come to a strong finish

NICHOLAS ALUMKAL ‘23 Sports Editor

Girls Volleyball

Season Result/Season Ahead: Catholic League Runner-up; Won 1st

Round of Catholic League Tournament, into Quarter Finals

Captains: Lana Kouatli ‘22, Maddie Rogers ‘22

Season highlight: “Our win on Monday (October 18th) against Shrine was a huge highlight because they are in the league above us. We weren’t technically supposed to win, but we advanced,” said Varsity Volleyball

Captain Lana Kouatli ‘22.

Still to come: “I am looking forward to Districts and continuing to spend time with the team. We have done really well this year. We are just polishing up a couple of things and then playing Districts,” said Kouatli.

Boys Soccer

Season Result/Season Ahead: T-4th in Catholic League; District Champions, Heading into Regionals

Captains: Adrian Bardwell ‘23, Nico Pasquariello ‘22, Cale Piedmonte-Lang ‘22, Pranay Shah ‘23, Jay Vijan ‘23

Season highlight so far: “The improvement from day one to winning the district final. The entire team was able to make a big step from where we started to where we arrived,” said Varsity Soccer Coach Lucian Popescu. Still to come: “There are three things I continuously emphasize: outwork the opponents, defend as a team for the entire game, and take advantage of our

Girls Field Hockey

Season Results/Season Ahead: Lost in Postseason Play-in Round of State Tournament

Captains:Maddie DeWalt ‘22, Elina Palapattu ‘23

Season highlight: “The captains did a really commendable job leading the team; we are a pretty young team, so we are only graduating two Seniors,” said Varsity Field Hockey Coach Liza Ruggiero.

Take Away from season: “We are hoping to build the program. We see the younger players starting to mature and continuing to develop their skills. We looking to just have a little bit more depth,” said Ruggiero.

Boys Tennis

Season Results: Catholic League Runner-up; Regional Champions; 3rd place at States; Players Recognized: Mert Oral ‘22: Singles #1 Regionals and State Champion; Rishi Verma ‘23: Singles #2 Regionals and State Champion; Chakor Rajendra ‘23: #3 Singles Regionals and State Champion; Kabir Rajendra ‘25: #4 Singles Regionals winner and States Runner-up.

Captains: Mert Oral ‘22 and Ryan Wang ‘22

Season highlight: ”Winning the Regional Championship on our home courts was certainly a highlight. It was a team - (Detroit) Country Day - that had beat us a week earlier. It was a pretty good feeling. Everyone was in good spirits. It was nice to capture that win against a good team in front of a home crowd,” said Varsity Men’s Tennis Coach Eric Gajar.

Coed Cross Country

Season Results/Season Ahead: Catholic League Championship Friday 10/22; Regionals 10/30 at Willow MetroPark

Captains: Sonya Zacharek ‘22, Simrin Sahota ‘22, Georgie Branch ‘22, Lincoln Cha ‘24

Season highlight so far: “Our annual Gabriel Richard (meet) was a big turning point for us entering the postseason. More than half of our team either SR’d (season record) or PR’d (personal record). Having multiple athletes do that on the same day is a big motivational boost and a testament to their training,” said Varsity Cross Country Coach Sara LeBlanc.

Still to come: “Trust the process. We call it getting comfortable with the uncomfortable.

Girls Golf

Season Results: Regional Champions; 7th at State Championships; Mia Melendez ‘25: Regional and State Individual Champion

Captains: Sabeen Malik ‘22, Aanya Seth ‘22

Season highlight: “A season highlight was winning Regionals. We went from being almost an unknown team to getting second place in the Catholic League and winning our Regional,” said Varsity Girls Golf Player Sarah Horan.

Take Away from season: “One thing I learned is to enjoy everything while it’s happening because there will be a point in time where I look back and miss those busy nights - even those moments where I really did not want to wake up early to be at the golf course,” said Horan.

Photos By: Devyn McGow ‘23, Annie Stone ‘23, James Schapiro