Pushing against the ban Greenhills premotes banned books
ARJUN PRABHAKAR ‘23 Associate Editor, Online DEVYN MCGOW ‘23 Associate Editor, DesignThe LGBTQ+ community, people of color, and minorities -- all topics that have been challenged in past and current societies. The challenge of these topics has re- sulted in the banning of many books across the United States. From Sept. 19-23, the school sought to celebrate and bring importance to these banned books by creating a dedicated space in the library to house “banned books.”
The process of ban ning books, and banned books alone, may be topics that many are unfamiliar with.
“Banned books are books removed from the shelf because people believe the ideas expressed in the book should not be shared with the public,” said librarian Stefanie Hali day.
Many of these bannings are com ing from groups of parents coming together to get books out of libraries they feel pose inappropriate material to readers.
ganized approach where they call libraries and ask if they have certain books and then tell them they shouldn’t for various reasons,” said Haliday. As more books get banned, more students lose access to diverse and informative literature.
Most of the time parents are attempting to ban books in fear that it will spread “bad” ideals to their children.
“It’s not just individual parents, it’s groups of parents that are banning books together, said Haliday. They use an or-
“50 percent of the books banned have intended readers that are young adults,” said Haliday. The types of books that are getting banned target multiple minority groups.
“41 percent of the books that are being banned are being banned because of LGBTQ+ content, that’s a very specific targeted banning,” said Haliday.
In addition to banning books due to LGBTQ+ themes, many books are also being banned due to race.
“40 percent of books are being banned because the protagonist or prominent secondary characters is a person of color,” said Haliday.
Often people get confused between challenged books and banned books.
“Challenged books means someone comes up to you and tells you you shouldn’t have a book, whereas banned books are books that are actually removed from the shelf,” said Haliday.
There have been many instances of challenged books, but one of the more recent instances occurred in Texas. “One of
Outside the lines and into the office
Athletic multitaskers Meg Seng and Lisa Hogan juggle more
NICK ALUMKAL ‘23 Sports StaffIt’s a crisp fall afternoon and various athetics are taking place on campus. Boys soccer is on the turf, boys tennis is on the courts, girls volleyball is in the gym, and cross country is running around the track. For all these events to occur simultaneously, athletic director Meg Seng and assistant athletic director Lisa Hogan have put in a lot of time and work, but few know how the sausage—or in this case the schedule—is made.
To understand how Seng and Hogan arrived at the posts they hold now, you have to go back to the role sports played early in their lives.
Both Seng and Hogan were three sport varsity athletes in high school, playing volleyball, basketball and softball. Seng was also a two-sport athlete at Indiana University, competing in volleyball and softball for the Hoosiers. “I’ve always been an athlete, I’ve always just loved to play and I still like to play, ” said Seng. “I would say it has been a daily part of my life,” said Seng. The intersection of sports and education continued to follow both Seng and Hogan after college. Both of them went into coaching and then into athletic administration. In late August of 1990, Seng arrived at Greenhills.
“I came as a teacher, when one of the current teachers left to take a position at one of the big public schools,” said Seng. “It was just a last minute hire and I was happy to step in. I coached a lot of different teams and I taught physical education and health here for 14 or 15 years before becoming athletic director [in 2003]. It was just opportunistic… When I was teaching and coaching at Greenhills, those were some of my favorite years,” says Seng. Hogan followed a similar path. “I started teaching in 2005, [I was] hired to teach P.E. and health in the wellness program,” said Hogan. “I coached multiple sports before I became a full time Assistant Athletic Director. I absolutely love what Greenhills offers. All the sports, all the opportunities that kids have to participate from an early age,” said Hogan. The precise obligations of an athletic director is not widely known, but Seng believes the answer is simple. “My job is to create an exemplary experience for our student athletes,” said Seng.
the legislative leaders sent a list of books out to all schools and asked them to check off all the books that they had. He didn’t say they couldn’t have them, but it made them feel uncomfortable and under the microscope for having them,” said Haliday. Many students are appreciative of the effort to celebrate these banned books.
“It’s great that we get to know these banned books and why they were banned to gain more information about why they are getting banned and censored,” said Hannah Beringer ‘24.
Sophie Lewis ‘23 has been largely influenced by her mother, Monica Lewis, English teacher.
“Banning books is disrespectful to these beautiful pieces of literature,” said Sophie Lewis. “They are being banned because they are not the norm, which is detrimental to this world.”
English teacher Danielle Conti also supports the efforts to protect banned books.
“Writers push boundaries, it’s kind of their job,” said Conti. “The humanities exist, fiction exists, to get human beings to think about people other than themselves. We are all self centered beings. Everyday we wake up and we ask ourselves, “Whose perspective am I not considering and how do I step out of my comfort zone to open myself up to new ideas and new experiences and really think about others?” That is our challenge everyday and that’s what we try to promote at Greenhills.”
She also relates on a much more personal level, through the educational field.
“As an English teacher, I think it is great because all these writers are sharing their ideas. Whether you agree with their use of the written word to explore those ideas or not, they still have the right to write,” said Conti.
than just scheduling sports
But creating the best experience for scholar athletes may look different depending on the circumstance. Seng and Hogan set plans, but each day’s tasks vary depending on the weather, absent kids, opponents, transportation, and unexpected engagements. Seng and Hogan are up to any curve balls they may face.
Disruptions and interruptions play a hefty role in their day-to-day work, but if you peek behind the curtain, you will understand their job as athletic administrators centers around scheduling and logistical work that allows Greenhills sports to happen each day for all its scholar athletes.
“We have a lengthy to-do list every single day, and that list always gets disrupted, every single day, does not matter,” said Seng. “The majority of what we do is operations, in terms of providing a schedule for every team. That includes the transportation schedule, it includes the officials, it includes a lot of interactions with opponents, and a lot of communication. There is a lot to manage and take care of and at the same time always doing it with the student experience in mind,” said Seng.
new coaches. Each
The work of Seng and Hogan comes to the test on days where numerous Greenhills sports teams are playing and practicing around the Greenhills campus. On those types of days, they do their best to create strong planning, have people in line to help—like having people to keep score or run balls at a game—and ensure their coaches are on top of their assignments.
In the future, Seng and Hogan see the possibility of adding new sports to the offerings at Greenhills, improving the facilities and always trying to hire
Editors urge end to performative activism, encouraging physical service, engagement
Exactly two years ago today, the country witnessed President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump go neck and neck in the highly contested 2020 presidential election. Though the election had the highest voter turnout of the still young 21st century, the percentage remained to be the lowest among those ages 18 to 24. On media platforms, Gen Zs are seemingly at the forefront of social advocacy.
As society conflates likes with value, most young people turn to social media to both consume and produce political content. Surely, online activism raises awareness, but it lacks the strength to generate systematic change in real life. Performative activism only gives people the feeling that they are actively contributing to a cause. The superficial participation glosses over the real, underlying issues and turns them into passing trends. These surface-level acts are done to increase one’s social capital, rather than to truly help a cause. Take, for example, Blackout Tuesday.
On June 2, 2020, 28 million users posted a small, black square on Instagram in solidarity with Black victims of police brutality. And yet, only 13 million had signed the petition to arrest the police officers that killed George Floyd. Given the fact that nearly all petitions fail to go anywhere beyond creating a long list of signatures, the practical effect of online activism is minimal.
Between gun violence, skyrocketing price levels and racial unrest throughout the United States, it is crucial that young adults like us engage civically and stay politically informed in the upcoming midterm elections. This fall, if you are able and eligible to vote, there is no reason not to. Young people have the greatest stake in the decades ahead, but we can only sway those decisions if we register and show up to vote. As opposed to inefficiently and relentlessly posting and reposting on social media, casting ballots is a notion of using one’s voice to fight for America’s faltering democracy.
While presidential elections dictate the political climate of our entire country, local elections are just as important. Counterintuitively, they have the most effect on citi-
Let the good times roll
ANJAN SINGER ‘24zens’ daily life. For instance, voting for school board members affects policies, curriculum, and budgets of students in K-12 schools –these are siblings, sons and daughters, and families of our community. Voting for district and city attorneys could help reform the criminal justice system, address inequities in sentencing, and advocate for changes to bash bail standards. Regardless of the position, political participation allows your voice to be heard over the issues that matter the most to you, whether it is access to health care, abortion, immigration services, or tax policies. Many movements that help create federal legislation have their roots in local communities; every law starts with a small concept and idea.
It is easy to disregard social problems, to disengage in politics, but it often comes from a point of privilege. Even if these pressing issues do not directly affect your day-to-day outings, they influence friends, families, and strangers.
In the past decade, the United States has broken into an extended period of political polarization. Now, more than ever, it is incumbent upon us as future leaders to engage in civil discourse with others, to amplify the issues of marginalized groups, and to fulfill civic responsibilities like voting, donating, and volunteering. Go connect with local and state representatives. Communicate your concerns to public officials. Work at a polling station. Intern with campaigns. Assist people in registering to vote. Have political discourse with those from the opposite side. All of these are alternative forms of political participation to simply double-tapping and retweeting. While social media does serve a role in facilitating and implementing social progress, the current divided political landscape in our country calls for more. It takes one second to retweet a hashtag, a minute to post a black square, but the world cannot be changed with simply one million likes. Real change requires real effort, and it takes real-time. Months, years, even decades, but you can start right now. Your participation matters, so this time, let’s fulfill the school’s call to service with getting out the vote. Let’s put down our phones and get to work.
Sometimes things that seem like good ideas in the moment end in regret. Like that tortilla press that you bought on Black Friday, laughed about on Saturday, and forgot about on Sunday. But just because they go forgotten doesn’t mean they don’t exist.
I was reminded of this when I came into school on Wednesday. I was greeted by a hostile landscape of upturned chairs and a clutter of boxes and plastic wrap. When I looked into the classrooms I didn’t see the desks I’ve grown accustomed to, but shiny, bright, new…triangles? Wait, that can’t be right. Who would make a tiny triangular table?
Now, it has been made painfully clear to me by the Greenhills 6th grader that lives in the same house as me that these new tables are very nice, that they don’t have gum and stickers and messages scratched into the top, that in fact these tables are nicer than sliced bread, okay, they are amazing! Say it! Amazing! And that they’re miles ahead of the stoic, time tested, and, above all else, old ones I am defending. To this I say, “Nuh uh!”
I’m sure that the person that got these desks had good intentions, and we will
“I would say that abortion is a heavy topic right now and gun violence. An issue about the people themselves is getting everyone to get out to vote with the right resources and the right display of media and what is told to the public.”
-Allison Tan ‘24.
“The biggest issue surrounding midterm elections and all elections alike is the fact that a lot of people don’t vote. The main reason is because both of the candidates are bad but the thing is one of them is going to win and you are still going to be upset and by not voting, you are not contributing to the good of our state or country.”
-Isabella Rivas Ladino ‘25“The most important thing for midterm elections for me is that we get a person who wants to make change and keeps their word instead of a person who we elect and they do the exact opposite of what they said they were going to do.”
-Cameron Elliot ‘25
“I do feel like democracy is on the ballot, the notion of free and fair elections and protecting the right to vote that John Lewis fought so hard for. [The second] thing is the woman’s right to choose and bodily autonomy. I can remember when Roe v. Wade was decided and it should have been decided law. So for me, it is very important to codify that protection.”
eventually get used to them, but at least in the short term they have resulted in what I would call a state of DEFCON 1 level alarm. As a newly minted curmudgeon, I have to say that I too would be alarmed if I were taking a Calculus exam and my table was trying to run away from me. Not to mention that those tables have wheels and we, probably, don’t. I can see it now; speeding chairs and desks in the hands of middle schoolers form a roller derby style arena.
All jokes aside, I liked the old desks. They were familiar, good, and just dented enough that nobody would bat an eye if there was one more scratch on them. They’re a piece of Greenhills history, and though they must not have been here forever they are inseparable from the one I know. They aren’t pretty or modern or new, but they get the job done. They’ve got a part for your butt and a part for your books and that’s all you really need. And as an expert in deskology I believe that I have the qualifications to say, “Kids, just say no to rolly desks”.
is important to question your government constantly to make sure that tyranny is avoided. I think a lot of people are realizing that Democrats had 50 years to codify Roe and they didn’t. A lot of people are starting to realize that we need some change around here.”
-Olivia Emerson ‘23.
“When thinking about November 8th, the right to reproductive freedom on the ballot is the most important. I think that guaranteeing the fundamental right to reproductive freedom comes in many different forms and stripping the rights away from other individuals is something we should not have control over.”
-Mark Randolph, English Teacher“Democracy really being on the line and also, it
-Maraki Tamrat ‘23“I think the most important issue heading into midterm elections this election season for me is access to healthcare and making sure that we are prioritizing health care as a human right.”
-Mackenzie Hess, History teacher
How do you plan on getting students excited about math/STEM?
“Part of what I’m doing is having students be engaged more together in the classroom, making the discoveries, and creating a classroom environment where they are essentially learning the material themselves. While creating an environment where students are happy to take risks, I have fun and look forward to being here.”
What makes this design/engineering class unique?
“By using the design thinking process, we are able to take a deeper dive into architectural design. We have done project design, by building (paper) bridges, and another project design using the laser cutter.”
What got you into counseling/enrollment/health services etc. ?
“I started as an exercise science major. I thought I was going to be a physical therapist or athletic trainer. I was a paraeducator over the summer, I worked with students who had autism, from there I decided I wanted to go into counseling. I got a second- degree in psychology. From here, I had the opportunity to co-lead an LGBTQ group at my old high school, and I could see the need for counselors. I want to be the counselor I needed in high school because having that, my career trajectory probably would’ve been different.”
What got you into enrollment at Greenhills?
“I was at another local independent school, and I felt that my potential was capped at that school. I was looking for a new opportunity, and I was excited that Greenhills had this position open.”
What got you into college counseling?
“After nearly a decade in select undergraduate admissions, and after much reflection. I wanted to empower students to navigate the college admissions process, which can often be very anxiety inducing. Knowing that I had the knowledge to share, I thought that this would be a natural progression in the work that I do.”
How do you plan on getting students eHow do you plan on getting students excited about math/STEM?
“In general, when I’m designing any type of lesson plan, I like to frame it as a story and tie it to what the students are doing in life. In student I allowed the student to both learn the material as well as what was going on in the world around them”
What got you into this position as Associate Director of Alumni Engagement?
“I’m an alum, so I went to school here and I’ve been involved peripherally. I got to know the team here even more and I’ve always been very invested in this school as an allum and a community member. I was really excited to see how I could contribute.”
How do you plan to make the history curriculum more engaging/interactive?
“ I definitely think we’ve moved away from the model of a teacher standing in front of the classroom and simply lecturing for the whole period. I think that does no one any good. No one is that thrilled about that scenario. I have been working on making sure kids feel like they are the ones answering the questions. We do a lot of source analysis and thinking sort of backwards so starting at the impact and working backwards and giving people a sense of how we got to where we are.”
How do you plan on getting students excited about math/STEM?
“In Geometry we’re going to do as many creative processes and creative projects as possible to make it interesting. And precalc using technology is going to be one way to keep things exciting. And then I’m also a mentor for the Middle School robotics so we’re starting them young and excited about the way that math and STEM are used in the world”
What are you looking forward to this upcoming school year?
“I want to make deeper and more meaningful connections with students so they can not just learn the content but enjoy it”
What are you looking forward to this upcoming school year?
“I’m looking forward to being a part of the Greenhills Community again. Being an allum, it’s great to be back and see all the changes that have happened, positive changes. It feels like I’m coming home to a family - a lot of my teachers are still here, so it’s nice to have them again as colleagues. I’m looking forward to installing some inspiration like my teachers did for me.”
What do you plan to bring to the wellness department?
“I hope to bring my background in sport’s performances and mu love for strength and conditioning, both in class and as well as our sports program.”
How do you plan on getting students excited about math/STEM?
“By matching their energy and making it accessible and trying to get rid of that fear that I guess goes with math”
How do you plan on getting students excited about math/STEM?
“Logic problems that are off topic, getting them moving with puzzles and different applications in the world and finding topics that are interesting to them.”
How would you describe your style of teaching?
“My teaching style is very student centered, I believe that art can help people find their true selves and I try to use any type of art class that I teach to help students find who they truly are.”
What
“The
How would you describe your style of teaching?
“I am very hands on and explorative”
How would you describe your style of teaching?
“I embrace experimentation, so I like to encourage my students to dig deep and think outside the square, and make sure that they are coming at things with an artistic eye. To me, it’s about openness and experimentation, where I am just the guide to the students”
How do you plan on getting students excited about math/STEM?
“I would say I really believe in critical thinking as one of the most important things possible and so math is just critical thinking so if we can figure out a fun way to incorporate puzzles and realizing there are other things than just an equation”
What are you looking forward to this upcoming school year?
“Being new at Greenhills, the science curriculum is new for me, but it seems really well put together and an interesting science year for 6th graders. There’s a lot of handson work and science thinking. I’m looking forward to the curricular year but I’m also looking forward to watching the 6th graders grow as learners. They’re coming from a lot of different places with a lot of different backgrounds so I’m just looking forward to watching the arc of their growth.”
How do you plan on getting students eHow do you plan on getting students excited about math/STEM?
“I hope to get students excited about math by trying to break things down, and not just present things as magical formulas. In this way I hope to make things a bit more understandable.”
How would you describe your style of teaching?
“I would say I try to be innovative and try to make sure that it’s not too concrete but it is innovative enough to make sure kids are having fun and learning”
A sign of the times
Plum Smart adjusts amidst rising food costs, growing student population, difficult labor market
ANJAN SINGER ‘24Opinion Editor
Plum Smar is adjusting to higher food costs, a growing student population, and a difficult labor market.
“Lunch has gotten a lot better since ninth grade, but that’s when I don’t think there were a lot of options because of Covid and all the restrictions” said Lincoln Cha ‘24.
While some people feel that lunch has gotten better since 2020, however it’s not exactly a feat to do better than brown bag lunches of ham and cheese and Veggie wraps. Although everything is getting more expensive due to inflation and gas prices, students don’t think lunch should be affected.
“I don’t think [ingredients price] should change what [Plum Smart] get because the lunch at Greenhills is a big part of [tuition]” said Cha.
This isn’t to say that price shouldn’t be a consideration at all in what food we get at lunch.
“There are things that we can do and things that we can’t do. I can’t order filet mignon and serve you guys steak and lobster, that would be nice.” said Francine Mays, Culinary Director of the Plum Smart program at Greenhills.
There are extreme cases like filet mignon that are obviously not possible to make in a school atmosphere, but there are more items that might seem like reasonable expenses that are too expensive for the food program.
“[The kids] love the waffles,” said Mays. “The waffles are a little more pricier but it’s not like we’re doing them every week, so it’s something we can splurge on from time to time.”
At scale even a seemingly small expenditure like premade waffles can become a big deal. As Mays explained, premade food is a huge cost.
“We didn’t have a lot of staff at the beginning of the
Day in the life:
Greenhills food RISHI VERMA ‘23 School Staff
The day starts bright and early.“We get here at 6 a.m.” said Head of Staff Francine Mccoy. “We usually start preparing the meal for a certain day the day before, sometimes two.”
The lunch of the day was a Korean Beef Rice Bowl. However, they were already preparing pizza, which was the lunch for the day after.
school year so instead of getting 10 cases of fresh chicken I had to get chicken that was already somewhat processed, that’s more expensive,” said Mays Raw ingredients cost impact what food the cooks can make, like with the filet mignon, but with 700 students the value of labor, especially of highly skilled and experienced workers, dwarfs small changes in costs.
“Staffing has been an issue because in order to make fresh stuff you have to have hands in the pot,” said Mays.
It’s not just how many hands are in the pot, it’s about how adept those hands are.
“We get the bowls from a local mediterranean restaurant which caters to schools, companies and kitchens,” said Mays. “I could probably make it but they’re a lot better.”
And when the freshness and quality isn’t there, one can notice.
In contrast with Cha, “Since middle school when it first started there’s been at least a slight decline in the quality of the food,” said En-Lih Wang ‘24. That’s partly due to staffing issues, but in the time between now and then our school has grown in a way that was not even imaginable at the construction of the new cafeteria.
“At the beginning of last school year we got the double sided salad bar because the enrollment went up and it went up again this year, so we definitely needed that salad bar, and we had to get two more ovens, so for the amount of students we had the two double deck ovens was not enough for us to cook all the food, so they ordered another one,” said Mays. “I still think we could use two more”
A new salad bar and oven aren’t the only improvements the school needs to make.
“The next phase is we want to get a freezer outside because we want to turn the whole freezer and walk in cooler into cooler space and put the freezer on a slab of concrete right outside our back door, because we have to get a truck three times a week, before it was just twice, but now because we don’t have the space I have to get our main food truck three times a week.”
This increase in student population has led to some frustration.
“You’ve always been able to take as much as you want, although now that we’re high schoolers we always just get what-
ever the middle schoolers leave,” said Wang. “[For example] I would’ve really liked today’s mac ‘n’ cheese if had gotten to eat it.”
The combination of low staffing, high ingredient prices, and an exploding student population has led to less fresh food than ideal, said Mays, but they are still trying to bring a little something special every week.
“I have noticed that kids really like the Zingerman’s bread,” said Mays. “One kid said, “Oh my gosh this bread is so good” the first day we served the sour- dough bread,
-Francine Mays
and he goes ‘is their butter?’ because you just want to slather some butter on it put some jam on it. The Zingerman’s bread is quite expensive because it is so good, so we get Zingerman’s bread on Monday just to kind of change it up… Where we were getting our hamburger buns and hot dog buns from is basic, generic, [wonder bread type] white bread, it’s not that good.”
Their ultimate goal is to get lunches fresher, not just so that they’re tastier and healthier, but to keep costs down. “Our goal is to go fresher” said Mays. “The fresher you get the food the more you break down the less expensive it is.”
So after all, better food and less expensive food aren’t competing against each other, they’re one and the same. The real barrier is the people. More cooks, more experienced cooks, more retention, make better food.
DEVYN MCGOW ‘23
To tip or not to tip?
One of the many aspects of life that has been altered by the pandemic is opinions surrounding tipping. Many people feel as though they are being pushed into tipping more amounts of money than they see fit and that pressure surrounding tipping has become suffocating. However, it is important to take into account how the pandemic has affected those who are continuing to show up for work and therefore, receiving tips.
During the pandemic, there was a significant decrease in the number of people who showed up for work. Even over a year after the peak of the pandemic has hit, many have yet to return to work, leaving millions of businesses severely understaffed. During the summer of 2021, I worked at a local restaurant in my community called Rebeccas. I knew going into the job that the restaurant was going to be understaffed, but I had no idea how stressful that would make the entire work environment. During my time there I had multiple experiences in which cooks would walk out in the middle of the shift and screaming matches would break out between employees and management. Everyone in that restaurant was struggling because they were frustrated with how understaffed we were. Each day, it felt like fewer people were showing up, and therefore, more work would fall on the shoulders of those who did. After a long day of doing the work of three people as opposed to just one, it was frustrating to review a total of $5-8 in tips. believe that during the pan demic, many people got used to having food delivered to their houses, and their opinions towards eating out changed sig nificantly.
CHAKOR RAJENDRA ‘23
While working on the schedule, Mccoy found time to answer some general questions we all might have about our lunch service.
Greenhills isn’t the only school where PlumSmart does lunch service.
“We also provide lunch service at Detroit Country Day, as well as food for the Detroit Pistons Training Center,” said Mccoy.
I know we’ve all had days when we get to lunch near the end and find that there’s no more of the main course available.
“Sometimes we do run out of food or have to ask people to only take one plate, but most days we don’t.”
“The days we do, we always have the salad and sandwich bar stocked so there is always food available.”
Most food is still cooked the same day. “It’s mostly all the prep that we finish before, like cutting vegetables and meat,” said staff Amy McCullen.“Anything we cook the day before is cooled and heated properly so it’s still fresh the next day.”
No Thai Favorite Dish: The food is amazing and there are a large variety of options.
I have ordered Pad Thai, Drunken Noodles, Green Curry, and more, but my favorite dish recently is the Sweet and Spicy Chicken. Since I am a vegetarian and cannot eat chicken, I substitute fried tofu for the chicken. I enjoy the crunchiness and savory flavor of the tofu in contrast to the sauce-coated rice. No Thai is also very good at accommodating my food aller-
The salad bar is fresh everyday. “The lettuce and all other toppings are wheeled out from the kitchen every morning before the first lunch session of the day begins,” said McCullen. “That’s my favorite part of the lunch system we run: options,” said McCullen.
gies as they take additional precautions to ensure that no cross-contamination of food is possible. For example, they make sure to use a clean pan when cooking to prevent the previous order’s potential allergens from crossing onto my meal. Not only is the food delicious, but the serving sizes are ridiculously large. There is always enough food for me to be full and still have food to take home and eat while working on homework or watching T.V.
Overall Rating: 10/10
There’s a reason lunch is staggered.
“There’s only so many portions we can put out at a time. If too many people eat before their actual lunch time then we won’t have enough food ready when it is actual lunch time for other people and that food ends up going to waste,” said Mays.
This past summer I got a job at Starbucks. I felt as though this job would be a more positive experience as Starbucks a very large company with more resources to employees as opposed to a small local restaurant. I am in many of the same situations I faced last summer. Many of my coworkers believe that they do not receive enough money for the amount of work they put in. As many of you know, Starbucks is a very popular coffee shop and can get very busy. My store is incredibly understaffed and it is difficult to get all orders done in a timely manner while also taking on the work of others. For example, there have been many times when I have been on bar (the position where the drinks are made) while taking orders in both the drive-through and front register. This can get incredibly stressful very quickly. Since Starbucks is such a big company, many people feel as though they should not tip as they would be “giving the company more money.” However, the entire percentage of tips go directly to the employees and the company receives no benefit from them. Still, many argue that inflation has driven the price of items up and tipping is therefore unnecessary. Employees have no control over the price of items. We understand that $6 for a coffee can seem excessive, but the price of everything has risen post-pandemic. There is an assumption that just because we work at Starbucks, we make a good wage. However, many of my coworkers hold multiple jobs and depend on tips to support their families. I know many of them who have been forced to pick up a second or even a third job to make ends meet. Tips can make a huge difference in the total amount of money you receive from work and for many, that money goes directly into putting food on the table for their families. Being continually understaffed makes work environments incredibly stressful and it is important to take the feelings of the workers who did show up. understand how in certain situations tipping can feel as though it has gotten out of hand, but the next time you are ordering a coffee on your way to work, consider dropping a dollar in the tip jar.
Coco Bubble Tea Restaurant: Coco Bubble Tea is a fantastic place to go with your friends after school. It’s the best bubble tea place in Ann Arbor. There are a large variety of options to choose from.
Alumnus finds success as a local restaurateur
FIONA LIN ‘23 Managing Editor
Pushing open the glass doors to Mani Osteria & Bar, you are greeted by a sense of warmth: the smokey smell of wood-fire ovens, sound of wine glass clinking, and smiles of friendly servers. Mani, a local Italian restaurant owned by Adam Baru ‘89, sits at the heart of downtown Ann Arbor. As food and connection are inseparable, Mani plays a vital role in building community.
“Food has history, and we are continuing our own,” said Baru. “In Ann Arbor, you have this small community with incredible diversity. This is an incredible town to open a restaurant.”
Baru’s relationship with food spurred in his teenage years. From spending the summers in France, traveling to Italy, to later working in Philadelphia and New York City, Baru is driven by passion and curiosity.
“For me, it is about taking care of people, about enjoying food and knowing where it comes from. I like the creating aspect of doing my job. I like the fact that it is different every single day.”
Through Mani, Baru sought to create dishes that have their own personality and style locally. The restaurant offers a variety of dishes, from Antipastis – appetizers – to handcrafted pasta and woodfired pizza, there is something for everyone.
“I love the Calamari,” said Jenan Hasan ‘24. “Definitely a classic, but it never gets old. The squid is thinly sliced, which reminds me of shoestring fries. I am impressed by the sauce on top.”
Umi Sushi Restaurant: Umi Sushi is one of my go to restaurants, and is a staple of the Greenhills food culture. Overall Rating: Last year, I would go to Umi Sushi 2-3 times a week, but recently I have been going a couple times a month. The prices have increased significantly due to inflation; my normal meal of a Tofu Teriyaki Entree, two tofu tempura rolls, and a lemonade used to cost around $18, but now costs around $38. Along
with the severe increase in price, the quality of the food has gone down. Due to the increased prices, I give Umi Sushi an overall rating of 6/10.
real stars of the Mani show. Brock Merrit ‘25 is a big fan of tomatoes. His favorite entree is the Margherita Pizza topped with bufala mozzarella. Anjali Brahmasandra ‘25, on the other hand, takes a different approach; her go-to is the Cipollini pizza.
“You would never believe that all of the toppings would go on the same pizza, but it all makes sense at the end,” said Brahmasandra. “Essentially, it’s a salad on a pizza, and the arugula and balsamic make me feel healthier.”
The Cippollini is Mani’s most famous dish, and heralded as the “best pizza in Michigan.” The balsamic drizzle and bacon bits add a special touch to the thin-crusted pizza, while the greens create a unique texture.
“I am more of a pasta person, so I personally recommend the Carbonara,” said James Kluge ‘23. “It usually goes well with the Carpaccio, which is a beef tenderloin starter. Arancini is always a good Sicilian snack for a quick bite.”
Mani also accommodates various diets. There is always something for individuals with allergies and dietary restrictions.
“I have family members who are vegetarians, but dining at Mani has never been a problem,” said Sylvia Bleakley Wasserman ‘26. “My favorite is the Tartufo. The fontina cheese, black truffles, and runny egg on the top – everything is perfect about it.”
Aside from serving food of fine quality, Baru opened Mani hoping that it’d foster community. In the past decade, it has done more than that.
Favorite Drink: My favorite is the Mango Green Tea with pearls. It is a safe option for me, as there is nothing in it that I am allergic to and is also very refreshing.
Overall Rating: When ordering in person, my drink is usually done within five minutes, and when I order online, my drink is always ready when I arrive. However,
Prices at restaurants are soaring and even fast-casual options are starting to feel overly expensive. With inflation and just a general rise in prices at restaurants, the bill when eating out is higher than ever. Tipping usually goes by the percentage, and this means that the increase in prices is even more than it seems as we are expected to tip more as well. For example if a meal was ten dollars and now the new price is thirteen, at first glance it seems like only a three dollar difference but with a twenty percent tip, the total ends up being over fifteen dollars, which is an unsustainable price for diners to be expected to pay. This creates a difficult situation for people who want to support waiters and waitresses but also want to be fiscally responsible. This is why tipping needs to stop being a burden placed upon the consumer and restaurants should adequately compensate their workers in a way that reflects the raises in prices as well.
Furthermore, it has become expected that diners must tip for fast-casual restaurants such as Chipotle or Panera, where there is minimal service being done by the cashiers. We shouldn’t have to tip when we are the ones getting our own food, drinks, and utensils from the counters. Tables at these restaurants are also often dirty and many times diners have to clean them off themselves, usually a service tipping covers. Last week I was at Menchie’s, a fro-yo place, where I got my own cup, filled it up with yogurt, and chose my own toppings. When I brought it to the cashier to be weighed, they turned an iPad towards me with several options for tipping: a preselected twenty percent, fifteen percent, ten percent, and an option for no tip. As the cashier peered over the screen while I was selecting a button, I felt pressured into giving a tip for basically no reason. Don’t get me wrong, I’m more than happy to tip a waiter or waitress at a sit down restaurant, a barber after a good haircut, or the valet service at the hotel. The disinterested cashier weighing my food? I don’t think so. Another situation born out of the pandemic, is the influx of online ordering and take out. Since restaurants closed during COVID, people started to pick up their food or get delivery options much more than behas started to feel like tipping is expected for online orders, ridiculous. However, it has been my experience that if no tip is given online, there are workers who will purposely mess up the order or the quality will diminish. Tipping should be done after your food has been served since the whole idea is to reward for good service. Online ordering should not come with an expectation of tip.
During the pandemic, many people opted to get their food delivered through services such as Uber Eats or Doordash. This trend has become the modus operandi for many families now, as they can simply click a few buttons and have food at their door. The issue with these services is that beyond the delivery charge or other undisclosed fees. I have even noticed that when comparing the raw menu prices on the restaurants website to that on Uber Eats, there is a significant difference. This makes it very difficult to tip well to drivers who deserve it as the total cost of a normal meal is very high already due to other fees.
Expecting customers to tip more and more is a way for business owners to evade the responsibility of paying their workers a fair living wage. I would rather have the amount reflected in menu prices (which are already increasing exponentially) than have to decide in a split second how much a worker is taking home that day. With the new technology of screens being used much more mainstream for payment and tips, social pressure and anxiety contribute to people tipping more than they feel is warranted. Pre-selected options with high tip amounts make it difficult to change the selected choice, and even more difficult to leave a custom amount to the employee. With people waiting behind you and a cashier often watching the choice you make on the screen, there is a lot of pressure to tip high even when it’s a service that doesn’t deserve a tip. All in all, the tipping culture of today has gotten out of hand. We should not be expected to tip for online orders, fast casual restaurants, or other uninvolved services. Restaurants need to pay their workers the right amount and stop placing the burden on customers. I will definitely be tipping well for good service the next time I go out to a sit down restaurant, but do not expect me to tip twenty percent to the cashier at the drive-thru who chucks my food sloppily into a paper bag.
I usually end up paying around six to seven dollars for my drink, which I find to be a little expensive. Overall, I would give Coco Bubble Tea a rating of 9/10.
schifo,’ which means ‘this is the only place that does not stink.’”
Kluge also dines there with his family about once a month, often for special occasions. He celebrated Ferragosto, an Italian national holiday, at Mani this past August.
“My family dines at Mani on Saturday nights,” said Jenan Hasan ‘24. “We bond over our love for authentic Italian food in the most cozy environment. Mani brings us closer to each other.”
Mani is a place for building connections, whether it is between family members, friends, or partners.
“Mani has a lovely atmosphere,” said Brahmasandra. “It would be the best spot for a first date.”
In 2021, Mani was given the title “Best Romantic Dinner in Ann Arbor” by The Michigan Daily. Alumni Office Liaison Bruce Zellers has been in contact with Baru for years. In 2011, he attended Mani’s pre-opening night tasting.
Poke Fish Sushi
What I order: My favorite dish at Poke Fish Sushi is Hibachi tofu. It is a bowl with crispy tofu, rice, vegetables, and a savory and spicy sauce. I usually order the bowl at spicy level 2 out of 5, with fried rice, no vegetables, and ask them to not put egg in the fried rice. The flavor of the fried rice enhances the taste of the dish and contrasts well with the crispy tofu and sauce. I usually
order from Poke Fish Sushi at least once a week and spend around twelve dollars per order.
Overall Rating: The staff is very friendly and even greets me by name every time I walk into the restaurant, even giving me extra tofu once in a while without charging extra. I strongly recommend trying Pokefish Sushi if you haven’t already and give it an overall rating of 10/10.
“It’s a mix of people who come here every single night and they make magic,” said Baru. There is diversity in and out of the restaurant. From high school students, full-time workers with no education experience, people who don’t speak English, to students from the University of Michigan, Washtenaw, and Eastern.
“When areas start to gentrify, food goes in first,” said Baru.
“Restaurants are the center of communities. They pull people and create vitality.”
“My wife and I have been there ever since Mani was a daydream,” said Zellers.
Zellers’ Mani essentials include Isabela’s Meatballs, Bolognese, Carbonara, and Gelato. When he served as a class principal years ago, it was a Greenhills faculty tradition to dine at Mani after graduation.
Mani’s success is unexpected. Initially, Baru did not expect the place to become so popular with teenagers. Nevertheless, he loves seeing young people of different backgrounds work and dine at Mani.
“It’s such a young and vibrant community. I love having young people here taking care of other people,” said Baru.
Antipastis are the best way to start a meal, but pizzas are the
“Mani’s food reminds me of my old home in northeastern Italy,” said Kluge. “I often bring my Italian friends from Udine there when they visit. Mani Osteria is the only Italian place in Ann Arbor that they approve of. In their words, ‘questo è l’unico posto che non fa
Indeed, food has been a universal act that facilitates cultural understanding in all parts of the globe. It cultivates community, as the implications of meals transcend beyond the taste.
From crossing the street to crossing the border Students’ commutes to Greenhills vary in length and mode of transportation
AHMAD HASAN ‘23
Lifestyles Staff MEGAN PENG ‘25 Lifestyles StaffWith students stemming from multiple places, and school starting at the same time for everyone, many forms of transportation are necessitated, from a two minute walk to an hour drive across the U.S.–Canadian border. The school harbors students from a multitude of cities, including Ann Arbor, Canton, Taylor, Whitmore Lake, Saline, Northville, and even Windsor, Canada. Although each student chooses what is most efficient for them, every-day traffic and the schools’ transportation infrastructure and parking systems limit the efficiency of student transportation.
In contrast to students that live in or around Ann Arbor, Ziyad Emara ‘23 lives in a different country, a situation that’s not seen frequently in the U.S..
“I live in Windsor, Canada, but I live at my grandparents’ house during the week and I’ve made the trip hundreds of times [to Ann Arbor],” said Emara. “It’s to the point
where some of the border guards recognize me.”
The bulk of the students at Greenhills live in Ann Arbor, which provides some of them with an option to walk to school.
“It’s a fine walk but it’s a bit rough with no sidewalks in my neighborhood,” said Caleb Lee ‘23. “The landscape near Greenhills truly reflects suburbanism and America’s increasing dependence on cars and the snuffling of any sort of transportation.”
Students who live in cities other than Ann Arbor are more impacted by the commute of others within their city, however. Many students’ travel to school is affected by the hectic early morning traffic and the hustle of other students to arrive at their schools on time as well.
“I live in Canton off of Beck and Ford road,” said Andrew Fletcher ‘23.
“Canton Charter Academy is right off of Ford road, so traffic is pretty crazy whenever I leave.” Due to unpredictable traffic, students face the problem of being tardy to class.
“When I go to school by the highway we get held up sometimes,” said Wren Gawa ‘25. “It makes a ten minute ETA difference.”
This inconve -
nience results in some students leaving their house an hour early.
“We live in Saline, so it’s a good 20 minute drive,” says Ryken Vivekanand ‘26. “If we leave before 7:20, the traffic is fine, but if we go after the traffic is super congested.”
Some students who live near each other outside of Ann Arbor also gain mutual benefits. A handful of students resort to carpooling together to school for convenience.
city. “I live out in Taylor,” said Abe Fayad ‘23. “Since I drive myself to school, I typically wake up around 5:45 a.m. to get ready for school.”
More than just distance, there are other factors that make this journey tedious.
Much to the envy of others, living close to school can also provide students with a convenient trip back to their house, should they forget any school materials at home.
“I feel like it’s a great advantage,” said Sara Raoufi ‘25. “Though sophomores don’t have the privilege of leaving campus, knowing that in the worst case scenario that I can sprint home to grab my homework gets rid of some stress.”
Jonah Kaplan ‘26 “I either leave a
Sydney Rosenberg ‘23 “I have a really long commute from Jackson, so when I’m coming from there, I leave my house at 7:30, and when I’m at my condo here I leave at about 8:27, and I actually end up being late more often when I’m here which is funny.”
Luke Baron ‘24 “I leave for school at 7:50 because I live in Dexter, so I have to leave then if I want to be on time, but even then I can be very close to being late and I will have to go straight to class and not to the forum first.”
Math Teacher Greg Huntoon ‘07 “I leave my house between 7:30 and 7:45 so I can get to school before the busy rush.”
“Because my parents don’t have to drive me to school every day, there’s less gas usage.” said Shannon Chang ‘25, who lives in Canton.
Although carpooling provides a great option for saving time and money, because the transportation is reliant on other students, a delay or absence of one student, or their parents, may affect many.
To curtail this, “We create a schedule at the beginning of the week so everyone knows when my parents or her parents are driving to school,” said Chang.
Students that live farther than the neighboring cities of Ann Arbor are even more affected by the traffic of their respective
“The gas prices are ridiculous to deal with as a high schooler,” said Fayad. “Don’t even get me started on the roads here [in Michigan].”
In an effort to help with transportation, the school offers a morning bus service for students that live in Plymouth, Canton, Northville, Novi, and surrounding communities at a handful of stops.
The first bus stop is from 7:34 to 7:38 a.m. at Five Mile and Sheldon Road in the north central parking lot, while the second is from 7:46 to 7:50 a.m. at the CVS parking lot off of Sheldon/Ann Arbor road.
“They’re consistent 99 percent of the time, even during bad weather,” said former bus rider Jenan Hasan ‘24. “There were a few times last year when the bus just never showed up and no one was notified.”
Although the bus is efficient in sending students to school early, other students are also negatively affected by the bus not arriving without notification.
“The bus is always early, which is great,” said Sabine Zebib ‘25. “But sometimes it just doesn’t show up at all and then my mom has to drive me to school which is inconvenient.”
Despite its shortcomings, no new reforms have yet been put in place to improve the bus system. However, according to other students, the flaw in the bus system isn’t the only issue that needs to be acted upon.
The limited parking space and roundabout dropoff system are congested every day, holding up the traffic and students waiting to be dropped off. Students argue the parking lot should be expanded so morning drop-off can be made easier.
“My mom and dad drive me to school, and traffic in front of the school is very crowded most of the time,” said Lia Aghssa ‘25. “Even though we live five minutes away, it’s very hard to get to school when I’m late. I think the parking lot should be expanded so students can arrive at school and park easier.” As students continue their path to education, “I hope things will be improved,” said Aghssa.
Sabine Zebib ‘25
“I was in drivers ed and they overpacked us so there were three kids and one instructor and the guy sitting next to me was vaping in the car and playing video games on his phone and just as he pulled out the vape, the girl driving hit a curb and some dude flying past us flipped her off. Then our instructor wanted to get groceries, so we drove to Kroger and I bought a vanilla cake, which the instructor ended up asking me for but I didn’t give it to him.”
Sara Raoufi ‘25
“I was on my way to Whole Foods to get myself a scrumptious red velvet cupcake and I was driving with my mom because I only have my permit. I was at the entrance pulling in to park and this red Toyota Prius came in and crashed into the grille of my car. Now, what does one do when they’ve hit someone? You go see if the person in the other car is okay, but absolutely not. This man just hit my car and left.”
Hasib Quddoos ‘23
“I was driving in Texas, it wasn’t my car, and I didn’t see the bump in the road coming. We had chips and snacks like drinks open and the car had white interior. We hit a bump and the back of the car popped up and everything fell on us and the white interior was ruined.”
Maraki Tamrat ‘23
“My friends struggle so much with parallel parking that whenever we go downtown I either drive us there or we have to switch when it’s time to park.”
Elina Palapattu ‘23
“I thought that my trunk was closed so I started pulling away but the trunk was actually open and things started falling
out.”
Meezan Hamzavi ‘23
“It was my first week of driving and I was in a hurry going to practice. I was pulling out of the garage and I was pulling out too fast and I heard a crash and I was like, ‘Oh, where’d the side mirror go?’ I stepped out of the car, the side mirror was on the floor, and my mom was outside and she was like, ‘What?’ and then we just taped it up and drove around because we only had two cars at the time but I wasn’t allowed to get a car for a couple more months.”
Lizzie Foley ‘23
“I was driving on a highway and I couldn’t see what was beyond this turn, and all of the sudden I was approaching a metal trash can. There was a car next to me and a car behind me so I couldn’t go around it, I had to go over it. I heard scraping sounds from underneath my car and I had to pull over on the side of the road. Then the police came up and I was sobbing. Top ten worst experiences of my life.”
Teddy Staebler ‘25
“My car was smelling pretty bad one day so we went to look and we saw a disgusting sandwich bag that my brother had left in there for three months.”
Jacob Resnick ‘24
“I went for a drive with my friend and my car’s brakes and gas stopped working. We started going down a hill and I was freaking out so I decided to go uphill to lose momentum, but ended up rolling back down and came to a complete stop. We thought my car was broken and I had to restart it a ton of times until it started working.
