V23 I1 - November 3, 2022

Thursday, November 3, 2022

The Student Newspaper of Greenhills School

Volume 23, Issue 1

Pushing against the ban

Greenhills premotes banned books ARJUN PRABHAKAR ‘23 Associate Editor, Online DEVYN MCGOW ‘23 Associate Editor, Design The LGBTQ+ community, people of color, and minorities -- all topics that have been challenged in past and current societies. The challenge of these topics has resulted 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 banning 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 Haliday.

Many of these bannings are coming from groups of parents coming together to get books out of libraries they feel pose inappropriate material to readers.

“It’s not just individual parents, it’s groups of parents that are banning books together, said Haliday. They use an or-

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.

“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 Graphic by Griffin White ‘23 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

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.

Graphic by Sarah Horan ‘23

Athletic multitaskers Meg Seng and Lisa Hogan juggle more than just scheduling sports NICK ALUMKAL ‘23 Sports Staff It’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.

But creating the best experience for schol- new coaches. Each year, Seng and Hogan are ar athletes may look different depending on the trying to build a more competitive athletic 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 THINK ON YOUR TOES officials, it includes a lot of interactions Interruptions play a hefty role in Seng and Hogan’s job. “We have a with opponents, and a lot of communica- lengthy to-do list every single day, and that list always gets disrupted,” tion. There is a lot to manage and take care said Seng. Both of them embrace the curveballs they face. “Every day of and at the same time always doing it with is kind of exciting,” said Hogan. the student experience in mind,” said Seng.

The work of Seng and Hogan comes to the program through the entirety of the school. test on days where numerous Greenhills sports teams “We are going to start at the midare playing and practicing around the Greenhills cam- dle school and really try to build it there pus. On those types of days, they do their best to create so that it moves its way through over the Graphic courtesy of Griffin White ‘23 strong planning, have people in line to help—like hav- course of the next seven years,” said Seng. ing people to keep score or run balls at a game—and With this in mind, the Greenhills athletensure their coaches are on top of their assignments. ic program is in good hands for years to come.

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

PAGE 2

NOV. 3, 2022

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

zens’ 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.

Community stresses importance of upcoming elections

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 “I would say that abortion is a change around here.” heavy topic right now and gun vi-Olivia Emerson ‘23. olence. 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.”

“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.”

Illustration by En-Lih Wang ‘24

eventu-Mark Randolph, -Maraki Tamrat ‘23 ally get used to them, but at least in the short term they English Teacher

Sometimes things that seem like have resulted in what I would call a state of “I think the most important good ideas in the moment end in regret. Like DEFCON 1 level alarm. “ D e m o c r a - issue heading into midterm elecAs a newly minted curmud- cy really being on that tortilla press that you bought on Black tions this election season for me Friday, laughed about on Saturday, and forgot geon, I have to say that I too would be alarmed the line and also, it is access to healthcare and makabout on Sunday. But just because they go for- if I were taking a Calculus exam and my table was trying to run away from me. Not to mengotten doesn’t mean they don’t exist. ing sure that we tion that those tables I are prioritizing have wheels and was reminded of health care as a we, probably, don’t. this when I came human right.”

I can see it now; into school on speeding chairs and Wednesday. I was -Mackenzie Hess, desks in the hands greeted by a hosHistory teacher of middle schoolers tile landscape of Compiled by Zara Mian ‘25 form a roller derby upturned chairs style arena. and a clutter of

All jokes boxes and plasaside, I liked the old tic wrap. When desks. They were faI looked into miliar, good, and just the classrooms dented enough that I didn’t see the nobody would bat desks I’ve grown an eye if there was accustomed to, one more scratch but shiny, bright, on them. They’re a new…triangles? piece of Greenhills Wait, that can’t be history, and though right. Who would they must not have make a tiny trianbeen here forever gular table? they are inseparable

Illustration by Anjan Singer ‘24 from the one I know.

Now, it has been

They armade painfully clear to me by the Greenhills 6th grader that lives in the same en’t pretty or modern or new, but they get the house as me that these new tables are very nice, job done. They’ve got a part for your butt and a that they don’t have gum and stickers and mes- part for your books Musatafa Zirapury ‘23 Lifestyles Editor Eva Bernstein ‘25 Alcove is a newspaper written by students, for sages scratched into the top, that in fact these and that’s all you Editor-in-Chief Associate Editor, Print Nate Burke ‘23 Lifestyles Staff Ahmad Hasan ‘23 the students of Greenhills School. All opinions, tables are nicer than sliced bread, okay, they really need. And as Associate Editor, Online Arjun Prabhakar ‘23 Lifestyles Staff Dhruv Nallamothu ‘25 views, and statements reflect those of the stuare amazing! Say it! Amazing! And that they’re an expert in deskol- Associate Editor, Design Devyn McGow ‘23 Lifestyles Staff Megan Peng ‘25 dents working on Alcove and not necessarily Fiona Lin ‘23 Sports Editor Leo Applegate ‘23 miles ahead of the stoic, time tested, and, above ogy I believe that I Managing Editor the faculty and staff of Greenhills. Alcove is Editor Sarah Horan ‘23 Sports Staff Nick Alumkal ‘23 written to inform, encourage, and expand upon all else, old ones I am defending. To this I say, have the qualifica- School School Staff Rishi Verma ‘23 Sports Staff Jack Hauptman ‘23 the curiosity of the students that Greenhills tions to say, “Kids, School Staff “Nuh uh!”

Chakor Rajendra ‘23 Sports Staff Matthew Streicher ‘24 strives to cultivate. Providing a forum for stu I’m sure that the person that got just say no to rolly School Staff Zara Mian ‘25 Photographer Annie Stone ‘23 dents to express their individuality, the Alcove Opinion Editor Anjan Singer ‘24 Advisor John Lund these desks had good intentions, and we will desks”. reminds you to always read the pine print.

ANJAN SINGER ‘24

PAGE 3

NOV. 3, 2022 Rebecca Beery, Science

Greg Huntoon, Math

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.”

How would you describe your style of teaching?

“I am very hands on and explorative”

Christina Greenfield, Math

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 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.”

Katie Sims, Wellness

Stephanie Miller, Assoc. Dir., Alumni

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 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.”

Liz Wilson-Hill, Fine Arts

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” Josh Jetton, Math

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.”

Chris Lemoine, Math

Lili Kadets, History

KJ Johnson, School Counselor

Rachel Nardecchia, Performing Arts

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” Andy Lammers, Science

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” Jill Johnson, Math

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.”

Beth Muszkiewicz, Enrollment Coordinator

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.”

Yaneli Ruiz-Buss, College Counseling

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.”

Pam Gordon - Math

Caitlyn O’Neal, Fine Arts

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” Reeti Katoch Rouse, Science

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 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.”

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”

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.”

Christine Gajar, Health Service

What got you into counseling/enrollment/ health services etc. ?

“The school reached out to me and asked if I would like to be the new health services coordinator, since it’s a new role.”

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.”

Ben Russell, Math

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.”

Karen Fowles, Performing Arts

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”

PAGE 4

Nov. 3, 2022

A sign of the times

Plum Smart adjusts amidst rising food costs, growing student population, difficult labor market ANJAN SINGER ‘24 Opinion 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.

What is your favorite restaurant in Ann Arbor?

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-

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.”

Nov. 3, 2022

ever the middle schoolers leave,” said Wang. “[For example] I would’ve really liked today’s mac ‘n’ cheese if I 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.

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.

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-

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 gies as they take additional precautions waste,” said Mays. 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 Umi Sushi order’s potential allergens from Restaurant: Umi Sushi is one of crossing onto my meal. Not my go to restaurants, and is a staonly is the food delicious, but ple of the Greenhills food culture. the serving sizes are ridiculousOverall Rating: Last year, I ly large. There is always enough would go to Umi Sushi 2-3 times food for me to be full and still a week, but recently I have been have food to take home and eat going a couple times a month. while working on homework or watchThe prices have increased signifiing T.V. cantly due to inflation; my normal Overall Rating: 10/10 meal of a Tofu Teriyaki Entree, two tofu tempura rolls, and a lemonade used to cost around $18, but now costs around $38. Along

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.”

Antipastis are the best way to start a meal, but pizzas are the

PAGE 5

To tip or not to tip?

CHAKOR RAJENDRA ‘23 DEVYN MCGOW ‘23

Prices at restaurants are soaring and even fast-casual options are starting to feel overly

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 expensive. With inflation and just a general rise in prices at restaurants, the bill when eating out into tipping more amounts of money than they see fit and that pressure surround- is higher than ever. Tipping usually goes by the percentage, and this means that the increase in ing tipping has become suffocating. However, it is important to take into account prices is even more than it seems as we are expected to tip more as well. For example if a meal how the pandemic has affected those who are continuing to show up for work and 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 therefore, receiving tips.

During the pandemic, there was a significant decrease in the number of unsustainable price for diners to be expected to pay. This creates a difficult situation for people people who showed up for work. Even over a year after the peak of the pandemic who want to support waiters and waitresses but also want to be fiscally responsible. This is why has hit, many have yet to return to work, leaving millions of businesses severely tipping needs to stop being a burden placed upon the consumer and restaurants should adequately understaffed. During the summer of 2021, I worked at a local restaurant in my 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 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 en- as Chipotle or Panera, where there is minimal service being done by the cashiers. We shouldn’t tire work environment. During my time there I had multiple experiences in which have to tip when we are the ones getting our own food, drinks, and utensils from the counters. cooks would walk out in the middle of the shift and screaming matches would Tables at these restaurants are also often dirty and many times diners have to clean them off break out between employees and management. Everyone in that restaurant was themselves, usually a service tipping covers. Last week I was at Menchie’s, a fro-yo place, where struggling because they were frustrated with how understaffed we were. Each day, 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 it felt like fewer people were showing up, and therefore, more work tipping: a preselected twenty percent, fifteen percent, ten percent, and an option Polled students’ would fall on the shoulders of those who did. After a long day of for no tip. As the cashier peered over the screen while I was selecting a button, I preferred tipping doing the work of three people as opposed to just felt pressured into giving a tip for basically no reason. Don’t one, it was frustrating to review a total of get me wrong, I’m more than happy to tip a waiter or wait$5-8 in tips. I believe that during the panress at a sit down restaurant, a barber after a good haircut, demic, many people got used to having or the valet service at the hotel. The disinterested cashier food delivered to their houses, and their weighing my food? I don’t think so. opinions towards eating out changed sig Another situation born out of the pandemnificantly. ic, is the influx of online ordering and take out. Since

This past summer I got a job at restaurants closed during COVID, people started to pick Starbucks. I felt as though this job would up their food or get delivery options much more than bebe a more positive experience as Starbucks is fore. It has started to feel like tipping is expected for online orders, a very large company with more resources to support its which is ridiculous. However, it has been my experience that if no tip is employees as opposed to a small local restaurant.

However, I am in many of the same situations I faced last summer. Many of my coworkers given online, there are workers who will purposely mess up the order or the quality will diminish. believe that they do not receive enough money for the amount of work they put in. Tipping should be done after your food has been served since the whole idea is to reward for good As many of you know, Starbucks is a very popular coffee shop and can get very service. Online ordering should not come with an expectation of tip. busy. My store is incredibly understaffed and it is difficult to get all orders done During the pandemic, many people opted to get their food delivered through services such as Uber in a timely manner while also taking on the work of others. For example, there Eats or Doordash. This trend has become the modus operandi for many families now, as they can have been many times when I have been on bar (the position where the drinks are simply click a few buttons and have food at their door. The issue with these services is that beyond made) while taking orders in both the drive-through and front register. This can 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 get incredibly stressful very quickly.

Since Starbucks is such a big company, many people feel as though they makes it very difficult to tip well to drivers who deserve it as the total cost of a normal meal is very should not tip as they would be “giving the company more money.” However, the high already due to other fees.

Expecting customers to tip more and more is a way for business owners to evade 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 responsibility of paying their workers a fair living wage. I would rather have the amount reflected up and tipping is therefore unnecessary. Employees have no control over the price in menu prices (which are already increasing exponentially) than have to decide in a split second of items. We understand that $6 for a coffee can seem excessive, but the price of how much a worker is taking home that day. With the new technology of screens being used much everything has risen post-pandemic. There is an assumption that just because we more mainstream for payment and tips, social pressure and anxiety contribute to people tipping work at Starbucks, we make a good wage. However, many of my coworkers hold more than they feel is warranted. Pre-selected options with high tip amounts make it difficult to multiple jobs and depend on tips to support their families. I know many of them change the selected choice, and even more difficult to leave a custom amount to the employee. who have been forced to pick up a second or even a third job to make ends meet. With people waiting behind you and a cashier often watching the choice you make on the screen, Tips can make a huge difference in the total amount of money you receive from 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 work and for many, that money goes directly into putting food on the table for to tip for online orders, fast casual restaurants, or other uninvolved services. Restaurants need to their families.

Being continually understaffed makes work environments incredibly pay their workers the right amount and stop placing the burden on customers. I will definitely be stressful and it is important to take the feelings of the workers who did show up. I tipping well for good service the next time I go out to a sit down restaurant, but do not expect me understand how in certain situations tipping can feel as though it has gotten out of to tip twenty percent to the cashier at the drive-thru who chucks my food sloppily into a paper bag. hand, but the next time you are ordering a coffee on your way to work, consider dropping a dollar in the tip jar.

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.

“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

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.

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,

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.

“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.

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.

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.”

Photo by Annie Stone ‘23

PAGE 6

NOV. 3, 2022

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 Staff

With 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 or around In contrast to students that live 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 g r a n d p a rents’ house during the week and I’ve made trip the hundreds of times [to Ann Arbor],” s a i d Emara.

“It’s to t h e

point where some of the border guards recognize me.”

The bulk of the students at Greenhills live Ann Arbor, which proi n vides some of them with an option to walk to school. a fine walk but it’s a bit rough “ I t ’s 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.”

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.”

city.

“I live out in TayStudents who live in cities other than Ann Arbor are more impacted lor,” said Abe Fayad ‘23. “Since I drive myself to school, I typiby the commute of others within their city, however. Many stu- cally wake up around 5:45 a.m. to get ready for school.”

More than just distance, there are other factors that make dents’ travel to school is affected by the hectic early morning traffic this journey tedious. and the hustle of other students to arrive at their schools on “The gas prices are ridiculous to deal with as a high time as well. schooler,” said Fayad. “Don’t even get me started on the roads “I live in Canton off here [in Michigan].” of Beck and Ford road,” said In an effort to help with transportation, the school offers Andrew Fletcher ‘23. a morning bus service for students that live in Plymouth, Canton, Charter “Canton Northville, Novi, and surrounding communities at a handful of Academy is right off stops. of Ford road, so traffic The first bus stop is from 7:34 to 7:38 a.m. at Five Mile is pretty crazy whenevand Sheldon Road in the north central parking lot, while the er I leave.” second is from 7:46 to 7:50 a.m. at the CVS parking lot off of D u e Sheldon/Ann Arbor road. to unpredictable traffic, “They’re consistent 99 percent of the time, even during students face the problem of being bad weather,” said former bus rider Jenan Hasan ‘24. “There tardy to class. t h e were a few times last year when the bus just never “When I go to school by showed up and no one was notified.” highway we Although the bus is efficient in sendget held up ing students to school early, other students sometimes,” are also negatively affected by the bus said Wren Gawa not arriving without notification.

‘25. “It makes “The bus is always early, which a ten minute is great,” said Sabine Zebib ‘25.

ETA differ“But sometimes it just doesn’t ence.” show up at all and then my inThis mom has to drive me to conveschool which is inconvenient.”

Despite its shortcomings, no new reforms have yet been nience results put in place to imin some stuprove the bus system. dents leaving However, according their house an to other students, the hour early. flaw in the bus system live “We isn’t the only issue in Saline, so that needs it’s a good 20 to be actminute drive,” ed upon.

Ry k e n s y a s The limitVivekanand ‘26. “If we leave before 7:20, ed parking the traffic is fine, but if we go after the trafand space fic is super congested.” roundabout dropSome students who live near each off system are congested every other outside of Ann Arbor also gain mutual day, holding up the traffic and students waitbenefits. A handful of students resort to caring to be dropped off. Students argue the pooling together to school for convenience. parking lot should be expanded so morning “Because my parents don’t have to drop-off can be made easier. drive me to school every day, there’s less gas “My mom and dad drive me to school, usage.” said Shannon Chang ‘25, who lives in and traffic in front of the school is very crowded Canton.

Graphic by Megan Peng ‘25 most of the time,” said Lia Aghssa ‘25. provides a carpooling Although “Even though we live five minutes away, it’s great option for saving time and money, because the transportation is reliant on other students, a delay or absence of one 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 easistudent, or their parents, may affect many.

To curtail this, “We create a schedule at the beginning of er.”

As students continue their path to education, “I hope the week so everyone knows when my parents or her parents are things will be improved,” said Aghssa. 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

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.”

Jonah Kaplan ‘26 “I either leave a little bit before 8:00 or a little bit after 8:00 depending on who’s driving carpool.”

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.”

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.”

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.”

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.”

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.”

Briefs compiled by Eva Bernstein ‘25

Graphic by Griffin White‘23

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.

Briefs compiled by Eva Bernstein ‘25

PAGE 7

NOV. 3, 2022

The growing queue-(cumber) to play Pickleball LEO APPLEGATE ‘23 serving. A set lasts until a team reaches 11 points, Sports Editor with a two-point cushion, similar to tennis.

NICHOLAS ALUMKAL‘23 Within the point, there is a Sports Staff non-volley zone on either side of the net, There may be disagreements about that is distinctly dubbed ‘the kitchen’. where the name comes from or speculation about Pickleball rose to national prominence through the its unusual play style, but there is no doubt that COVID-19 pandemic as it offered a Pickleball is one of the fastest-growing sports safe, socially distanced sport, but was in the world and among Greenhills faculty. popularized by all ages for its modFounded in 1985 on Bainbridge Island, Wash- erate amount of exercise from less ington, court to covby three How to play pickeball in 30 seconds: er and slower m i d pace than the dle-aged • likes of tennis.

Pickleball is played on a badminton-sized fathers, Pickleball court: 20’ x 44’ Pickleis generally asServe the ball diagonally (starting with ball is • sociated with a cross older playthe right-hand service-square) between • ers due to its Players on each side must let the ball tennis, smaller court bounce once before volleys are allowed, p i n g and slower and there is a seven-foot no-volley zone p o n g , pace of play and badcompared to on each side of the net minton • Points can only be scored by the side that other sports. played However, serves with a data reveals that this is The server continues to serve, alternating not the case. According plywood • paddle service courts, until he or she faults. The to the Sports & Fitness and a Association first side scoring eleven points and leading Industry perforat(SFIA), roughly 40 perby at least two points wins ed plascent of pickleball players Pickleball can be played as a doubles game are under the age of 35. tic ball. • Since 2018, the numor singles game When it ber of players has more comes to than doubled and there where the name “Pickleball” comes from, the truth are an estimated 4.8 million players nationwide. becomes a little unclear. Some say it derives from Greenhills has experienced Picklethe founder’s dog, Pickles, who would always run ball Fever, as several teachers have even beaway with the ball in his mouth. While others be- gun to play the sport, including history teacher lieve the name is a reference to Pickle Boats—the and college counseling associate Lili Kadets boat in a race that is composed of leftover crews “It was all the rage, and I was curifrom other teams—quite similar to how the game is ous to see why so many people were so exa patchwork of various sports combined into one. cited about it,” said Kadets. “I don’t play The basic aim of pickleball, like any other rac- very often, I have been playing with famquet sport, is to hit the ball over the net and ily members, which has been really nice.” prevent the opponent from hitting it back.

An aspect that drew Kadets to the It can be played in singles or doubles, sport is the laid-back nature of the activity. indoors or out on a court that is roughly the size “On a day when you don’t want to do of a badminton court or half of a tennis court. a very intense type of workout, it’s a nice way Players serve underhand, crosscourt, and may to be outside and still move around a bit, withonly win points when they are serving—if you out feeling exhausted afterward,” said Kadets. lose a service point, then the other team begins The city of Ann Arbor has felt the growing s

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popularity of Pickleball, with Pickleball lines painted on tennis courts at parks and recreation centers around town. People can bring their own portable nets to the courts and are able to play the sport in their free time.

For more competitive players, Wolverine

Pickleball opened a facility just west of Ann Arbor that will offer year-round professional-grade Pickleball. They are making plans to build a 37,250-square-foot facility that will offer additional Pickleball courts.

Outside of Ann Arbor in Chelsea, Michigan, and in the theater rather than the court, Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actor Jeff Daniels premiered a play titled ‘Pickleball’ on Sept.

30 that will run until Dec. 17, 2022, in Daniels’ theater. The play is described on its website as: “A wild comedy about America’s fastest growing sport, four below average players must overcome their own limitations in order to achieve greatness in a game that has nothing to do with pickles.”

Daniel’s notable roles include Harry Dunne in “Dumber and Dumber”. Daniels’ most recent role was starring as Atticus Finch in “To Kill A Mockingbird” on Broadway from 2018-19 and then reprising his role when Broadway re-opened in 2021.

Greenhills has a massive tennis culture as the varsity team captured the Division Three state championship title in two of the last four years. Eric Gajar, the Greenhills men’s tennis head coach, voiced his opinions about the sport.

“It [pickleball] is great because it’s

cross-generational — you get young kids out there with their grandparents,” said Gajar. “The sport’s been growing like crazy, it’s really taken off, or taken over a little bit.”

However, Gajar is quick to point out that not everybody in the tennis community is as accepting of this new pastime (and its similarities to tennis).

“There are some purists in the tennis world who are l i k e , ‘ N o !

K e e p that thing a w a y f r o m Graphic courtesy of Griffin White ‘23 m e ! ’ , but I like it because it gets more people out on the courts,” said Gajar. “Of course, I would prefer it if they would eventually move from pickleball to tennis or do both.”

There lie some practical differences between the layouts of pickleball and tennis courts, as pickleball courts require different, smaller boundaries to play on. This difference increases tension among tennis and pickleball players.

“What people don’t like is that they [pickleball players] are painting over tennis courts with pickleball lines,” said Gajar. “What people would prefer is if they set separate facilities aside- if you go to a place where they have both [lines] it’s very confusing. People will always play on the courts without the pickleball lines if given the choice.”

Even though pickleball is rising in popularity much quicker than any other sport, pickleball and tennis will still be able to coexist in the sporting world.

“It’s not very hard for me to adjust [to pickleball], like racquetball to tennis- that’s a very big adjustment, but pickleball? Not so much,” said Gajar.

Behind the wheel at age 14: Eighth-grader racing to the top

EVA BERNSTEIN ‘25 “There’s the championship on the line, hasn’t been driving well, he just got replaced so childhood bedroom.

Lifestyles Editor so obviously there’s some competitiveness and he’s not driving next season, but he’s the most “Growing up in Spain, Formula One For most Americans, race car driving is a new seriousness to it, but there’s also lots of fun,” likable person ever.” was a permanent feature,” Salcedo said. “Races phenomenon thanks to the Netflix series “For- Webster said.

Conti got into F1 through “Formula 1: are at three p.m. on Sundays, typically, so we mula 1: Drive to Survive”. For Sam Webster ‘27, He raced competitively three times this Drive to Survive”, a Netflix docudrama. would watch them after lunch. In the early 2000s, however, it has always been a big part of his life. past summer at Jackson Speedway and hopes to “The show gives American viewers that Fernando Alonso won two world championships Webster grew up watching his dad race, and he increase that number this upcoming season, with sense of competition, which got us into a sport and all of a sudden Formula One became very started racing when he was ten. more races in Indiana. that so many of us knew nothing about,” Conti popular in Spain. Now it definitely seems like it’s “I would always see race cars in the ga“A lot of people think that Michigan is a said. catching on in America.” rage, and I thought it was so cool,” Webster said. big racing state, but it’s really not,” Webster said. After binge-watching the first season per her husWebster has noticed this increase of in“I went to band’s suggestion, by the next terest in the sport recently, which he credits to Road Amerilive race, she was all in.

Drive to Survive. ca to see him “I was tracking the drivers,” “It grew because a lot of people saw the drive a sports Conti said. “I followed them on celebrityness of these young drivers,” Webster car. I was so Instagram so I would know how said. “They saw how much work it is, how inamazed and I they would prepare for each race tense it is, the backgrounds of how hard it is to wanted to be a and I started to learn that certain get into racing, how the teams work, they learned part of it.” drivers take up certain social about the different race tracks, and the drama, a From causes.” whole lot of drama.” then on, WebConti’s favorite driver is Lewis Because there are not very many kids ster began racHamilton, who race, ing with his a popular Webster apdad. choice, as preciates that “ I t ’s he has the his friends really spemost wins have startcial,” Webster in F1 histoed talking said. “He got ry. about F1 and me into rac“ L e w i s watching the ing and we get Hamilton show. to learn from a l w a y s

each other makes a “I have about our statement some friends cars, about the who talk Photo courtesy of Sam Webster ‘27 when he’s track, and we ZOOM! Sam Webster ‘27 races in his black micro sprint at Jackson Speedway. “I was really proud about how i n t e r about Forcan also have my car turned out asI have put a lot of work into it, and it certainly has shown its effectiveness, even in my first race.” v i e w e d , mula One,” fun together.” which riles Webster said.

Webster races at Jackson Speedway, a “ There aren’t many tracks here, but in Indiana, people up, but I love that “They’re incar racing track in Jackson, in a micro sprint with there’s one in almost every county.” he’s taking a stance on social terested in a shifter and a 150 horsepower, four cylinder mo- Webster hopes to eventually have a career in mo- issues.” it and they torcycle engine. torsports as a team owner for either Formula One, Actions like these know a lot.

“It’s [the four cylinder engine] not like NASCAR, or IndyCar. One of his inspirations is make fans feel more conIt’s pretty your normal V12,” Webster said. “It’s not as fast Rick Hendrick, the winningest team owner in nected to their favorite drivcool how statistically, but on the track you fly because it’s NASCAR of all time. ers, which draws more and the sport is so light.”

“He’s done a great job and I want to be more people to the sport. growing in Webster takes care of his micro sprint like him because he’s truly inspiring,” Webster “Sports have a way DUSTING THE COMPETITION Sam Webster ‘27 post race the U.S.. Due to at Jackson Speedway. “It was my first race so I was really himself by cleaning it the day after a race and said. of building community,” nervous, but I came out on top! After the race I got to cel- Drive to Survive, making sure everything is running smoothly. CarAnother inspiration of Webster’s is CEO Conti said. “I wouldn’t nec- ebrate by doing donuts on the track which was awesome.” they’re having ing for his car has its benefits on and off of the of McLaren Racing Zak Brown. essarily define myself as a races in Miami, track.

“I really like him,” Webster said. “I was sports fan, but F1 feels different (...) the base for Las Vegas next year, they have a track in Texas, “I’ve learned about how a tire pressure adjust- in California this past summer and I got to meet the driver or the team is so large and so present maybe Indianapolis at some point.” ment can change everything,” Webster said. “It him. I told him I race and he was super nice.” on social media, especially now [since Drive to Because each new season of the show changes the way you race and how it feels.”

Because of this experience with Brown, Survive came out] that it builds a sense of com- takes a full year to film, F1 fans watch the racBecause the nearest race track is forty McLaren is Webster’s favorite Formula One (F1) munity where if you didn’t feel like you were a es live, waiting to get a peak behind the curtain minutes away, Webster does not get to practice in team. part of sports, it makes you feel like you’re a part when the new season drops. person everyday. Instead, he uses a simulator and “I like their colors, I like their logo, and of something.”

“Now I’m in my third real F1 season plays racing video games like iRacing or F1 for at I like their drivers,” Webster said. “My favorite Science Teacher Alvaro Salcedo, who and I understand even what a chicane is and least an hour each day at home. driver is Daniel Riccairdo. He’s a goofy guy.” has been a F1 fan his whole life, has always felt which tracks are harder, or easier, or better for Webster uses this practice to help him in English teacher Danielle Conti agrees. that sense of community. Salcedo had a poster of certain cars,” said Conti. “I’ve become a fluent his competitive races.

“Danny Ric is one of my faves,” Conti said. “He F1 racer Mario Andretti racing in the ‘70s in his F1 speaker.”

PAGE 8

Nov. 3, 2022

In a league of their own

Girls swimming transforms from co-ed to competing in state as own squad MATTHEW STREICHER‘24 Sports Staff

mate to the new year between swimming and homework.

With the beginning of a new school year comes a huge change to the girls swim team, who is looking to move away from the existing co-ed system. The girls would not only compete as their own team, but would move their season to the fall, which would allow them to compete in the girls state meet for the first time in their history.

The transition is not a complete one, however, as not every girl has to compete in the fall if they don’t want to. They can elect to stay with the coed team if they do not want to have to drop their current fall sport to do swim.

“It will eliminate that need for anyone to drop their sports, and it should smooth itself out over the next few seasons,” said Athletic Director Meg Seng, who orchestrated the change with other schools in the area, like Whitmore Lake and St. Catherine. “When I asked, there was always some resistance between the fact that some girls would be forced to drop fall sports, and also because many liked the camaraderie of the coed team.”

The change was orchestrated by Seng, who recently asked the team about any interest. Maya Comer ‘24, a member of the team, said that she’d be interested, and others followed.

“I think it’s positive in terms of equality, because we get to compete against other girls at the meets,” said Comer. Equality seems to be a huge part of the shift, both in the fact that the girls are not sharing a pool with the boys anymore, and that they are now sharing one with Whitmore Lake and St. Catherine of Sienna, an all girls school. “On the co-ed team, girls had to make the boys’ qualifying times to compete at championships, and they

This huge step for the swim team was not a short process.

Photo by Leo Applegate ‘23 SWIMMING INTO ACTION Sophia Hazzi ‘26 swimming freestyle at the Oct. 11 meet at Whitmore Lake High School. “It’s nice being on just a team of other girls, it really feels like we have our own team and makes competitions and practices more competitive.

“I think it’s hard going from 0 to 100 what with starting swimming and school at roughly the same time, but a fall season also makes it easier to meet people earlier in the year,” said Comer.

The team itself has also been greatly impacted socially.

As, with a smaller team of all girls, it is easier to socialize and form relationships with teammates that were harder to form last year.

“Last year I think it was harder for some people to fit in

Over the past few years, Seng has been wanting to move the team in a non-coed direction. However, there seemed to be an issue with the transition every year, whether that be no interest in the change, or not having enough numbers, or even just simply not having a reason to. This year, everything finally fell into place.

“I approached the team and asked multiple times over the years if they wanted to compete during the girls season. And every year, they said no, until this year when Maya Comer finally said that she would like to have a chance to compete in the state meet and compete during the girls season,” said Seng. “The timing was just right this year, and so we decided to do it.”.

Coaching was also a factor that played out perfectly.

“We have a great head coach who teaches over at Whitmore Lake, and who helped with the coed team last year,” said Seng. She is really familiar with the community and the team, along with the assistant coach, who teaches at St Catherine.

With this latest change to the team, the school’s only coed teams are track and cross country, besides those who choose to stay with the winter swimming season.

“Coed contracts are only two years long, and at the end of those terms, we reevaluate to find out if we need the system or not,” said Seng. We don’t really like coed teams, because they are meant to be used as a life support for programs before they get enough players to Photo by Leo Applegate ‘23 go alone. The less we have, the more it shows that we PHOTO FINISH Morgan Mathis ‘24 (right) swimming the 100 meter butterfly at the Oct. 11 meet at Whitmore Lake High School. “It’s nice having our own team now, the competi- have high participation in sports tions are definitely a lot closer now,” said Mathis.

Even though girls are allowed to choose to compete in either the fall or winter season, they will not be able to were close to impossible to achieve. Now, we have our own qual- because of the guys. I know some of them were new to the co-ed compete in both, so have to choose accordingly. ifying times, and it’s much easier.” thing and the girls felt pretty uncomfortable,” said swimmer Mor“This is a great way to give girls opportunities that Now, the swimming season for the girls starts at the same gan Mathis ‘24. “I think from what I can tell the girls are more weren’t available to them on the coed team,” said Seng. time as the new school year, not allowing for much time to accli- comfortable in that it’s just girls.”

The Gryphons versus their adversaries A closer look at fall sports rivalries JACK HAUPTMAN ‘23 Sports Staff Greenhills is in a battle; after school you’ll find sticks clashing, balls soaring, rackets swinging, players taking on their rivals for the honor and glory of victory and their school.

In the fall, the school offers students various sports including soccer, tennis, volleyball, and field hockey. Greenhills has had a lack of fans turning up at their games. However, some games are more important than others.

If fans want to make it to a game to show their support and to show their spirit, then the best place to do that is at a rivalry game.

Due to the fact that the school offers several sports in the fall, rivalries may differ from sport to sport. In terms of the soccer team, if fans really want to show spirit for their games the most important games are the ones against their rival, Father Gabriel Richard.

“We’re really close to FGR (Father Gabriel Richard) so that helps the rivalry.” said Varsity soccer co-captain Jay Vijan ‘23 “They like to talk a lot, but can’t really back it up.”

The varsity soccer team has already played Father Gabriel Richard twice this season and won both of their games four to zero.

The soccer team is not done for the season, as they are going to go against Father Gabriel Richard again later this season. If fans want to show their support for the soccer team and the school, then that is one of this year’s most important games to show up to. Thanks to its close proximity, FGR is only a five minute drive.

Similar to the soccer team, the field hockey team has also built up a rivalry against Father Gabriel Richard. Not only because the

schools are close, but because unlike soccer, Father Gabriel Richard’s field hockey team is renowned for their strong win record and skill amongst the Catholic league.

The field hockey team has played Father Gabriel Richard twice this season so far.

“There was a game where we beat them in one thing and then we lost to them later in the season,” said field hock- e y player Lizzie Foley ‘23. “We are really hoping to redeem ourselves.”

The last game they played against Father Gabriel Richard was the catholic league finals on Oct. 1, where they lost to them 3-0.

Although the field hockey team will not play Father Gabriel Richard again this season, they will battle for redemption next season.

Unlike the soccer and field hockey teams, the tennis team’s rivalry is against Cranbrook High school. Cranbrook is forty minutes away from the school, so it is understandable that the away games can be hard to get to. However, both Greenhills and Cranbrook have exceptionally well scoring tennis teams.

T h e

onto the court we get competitive. Words have been exchanged during matches multiple times.

There is lots of bad blood in between the two tennis programs.”

The Greenhills team will potentially play Cranbrook in a tournament later this season depending on how the two teams do against other teams. If fans and supporters want to support our tennis team against their rivals look out for the Cranbrook game.

The volleyball team’s rivals differ from the other sports.

“We don’t really have rivals for districts,” said volleyball captain Ella Thorne ‘23.

However, Thorne identified their strongest opponents.

“In the season opener we played Cardinal Mooney Catholic, they’re the toughest competition in the Catholic league,” said Thorne.

“The last time we played them we won by a very narrow margin, which was a big win after losing six seniors last season.”

Graphic by Megan Peng ‘25 If a fan is interested in attending games tennis team plays but has a busy schedule and can’t show up to Cranbrook potentially many games, they should find a time when they four times this fall sea- can show up to a team’s most important games son. Greenhills won two games against them in a and show support when it matters most. tournament earlier this season as well at a home “The best games of the year are always game Sept. 28. the ones against our rivals,” said Carvette.

“The Cranbrook players are not the nicest people in the world,’’ said tennis player Dylan Carvette ‘23. “Cranbrook is a strong rival, off the court they are friendly, but once we get