TheOracleSept2025

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THEOraclE

District plans to implement Advanced Diploma Recognition Program by 2026-27 school year

PAUSD announced the proposal of the Advanced Diploma Program, designed to recognize students on an accelerated pathway and provide them opportunities to challenge themselves, during the Aug. 19 School Board meeting.

The proposed program requires PAUSD high schools to incorporate two pathways: the AP Capstone Diploma and the Advanced Diploma. To achieve the AP Capstone Diploma, students must take AP Research and AP Seminar — which together provide the Capstone Certification — plus four additional AP courses, and score a three or higher on each respective AP exam. For the Advanced Diploma, students must meet the criteria for the AP Capstone Diploma, participate in the Great Minds Speaker Series, complete an internship, achieve national merit, have a qualifying SAT or ACT score and create an oral defense portfolio stating their qualifications and how they are fit for the achievement.

Overall, this aims to recognize students for their achievements during high school and set them up for success in their future pursuits, according to Superintendent Dr. Don Austin.

“We want students to feel good about whatever they’re good at,” he said. “If a student is great academically, they will get a reward down the line; It could be admission to whichever college they want to attend or entry into a profession that they want. (The district) thinks there’s a little more room for us to do a better job of recognizing students while they’re still (at Palo Alto schools).”

With developments constantly emerging, according to Principal Dr. Wendy Stratton, the program is now shifting away from a simple, standardized curriculum to offering unique opportunities, reinforcing Austin’s idea of focusing on students’ achievements.

“(The board) is going through a process to determine (how to recognize academic distinction),” she said. “(The board is) more moving toward a not-so-College Board or AP-focused (program) anymore.”

According to Stratton, the administration and the rest of the district is constantly revising this new program and is gathering feedback, as mentioned in the Superintendent’s Update from Aug. 15.

If a student is great academically, they will get a reward down the line; It could be admission to whichever college they want to attend or entry into a profession that they want. (The district) thinks there’s a little more room for us to do a better job of recognizing students while they’re still (at Palo Alto schools).

Superintendent Dr. Don Austin

“(The district) is getting feedback from the high schools and trying to decide how we can celebrate students without creating a new goalpost,” she said. “We want to find more ways to (celebrate students), and (figure out) how we can make this something that reflects our values in our mission statement.”

According to Gunn School Board Representative Angelise Chang, there have been concerns about how the new program may add additional stress to PAUSD’s high school population.

emphasize that (the program) is for exceptional students and is an additional achievement,” she said. “But then, of course, within our district there’s a lot of pressure to always be at the top.”

potential challenges exist, the program would provide students with additional ways to pursue research. She highlights that the program would add on to existing programs, such as the Advanced Authentic Research course, rather than replacing them.

Harvey Newland during August 29 administration press conference, striking a balance between mental health and recognition is needed. As much as Newland appreciates the idea this program wants to promote, he is still wary about the effects.

move goal posts for students,” he said. “I understand the idea of gaining recognition for the rigor that students go through, but I think there’s a balance and a way that we need to think about this before we create a situation where students feel like ‘I have to do (certain courses) in order to compete at a certain level.’ I just get worried about creating an environment where students are pushing themselves, where in the past (without the program), they wouldn’t feel like they need to (push themselves).”

Kamhi emphasized that a major aspect of the new Diploma Program would be inclusion. Kamhi specifies that the program would include having the capstone classes that are already offered at Paly, such as AP Research and AP Seminar, offered on Gunn’s campus as well.

about making sure that if we do have this program, then it’s accessible to all of our high school students.”

mentioned that the program would aim to contribute to PAUSD’s mission of Serving and Celebrating Others, fostering a culture of recognition.

great work that students are already doing,” she said. “Certainly, we already have students who are meeting these criteria, so it would be recognizing it.”

Fall 2025

Conduct information sessions at Gunn and Paly, distribute informational resources and develop Great Minds Series with Stanford.

Winter 2025-26

Identify students eligible for the diploma or certificate this year to build out for the 2026-27 award.

Spring 2026

Award recipients of the diploma or certificate and finalize Advanced Diploma program criteria starting 2026-27.

Explore outreach to underrepresented student groups, consider districtwide capstone showcase events, and continue to monitor posthigh school outcomes of diploma recipients. poSt-2026

60.2%

oF Surveyed StudentS agree With the deciSion to implement an advanced diploma recognition program

Source: Self-selected survey sent out to Gunn students by The Oracle from Sept. 6 to Sept. 15 with 113 responses.

Henry M. Gunn High School

Eanam Maor and Vaani Saxena Features Editor and Lifestyle Editor

Dani Massarweh

California redistricting sparks debate among residents

Yael Gottesman Sports Editor

On Nov. 4, California voters will choose whether they want to temporarily suspend the state’s independent redistricting commission and adopt a new congressional map created by state Democrat leaders. The proposal aims to replace California’s independent commission-made congressional map. The measure comes in response to Republican-led redistricting in other states such as Texas, where five Democratic House of Representatives seats could become Republican.

Since 2010, California has used the independent California Citizens Redistricting Commission to draw congressional maps in an effort to stop partisan gerrymandering, which refers to manipulating an electoral district’s boundaries to favor a certain party or class. The commission is made up of Democrats, Republicans and independent voters selected through a screening process to ensure that politicians do not draw their own districts to give themselves an advantage.

The proposal — led by California Governor Gavin Newsom — would create a Democrat-favored map to counter Texas’ redistricting efforts until the duty of congressional map drawing reverts back to the independent California Citizens Redistricting Commission in 2030.

Republican House leaders, such as members of the National Republican Congressional Committee, have denounced the California redistricting effort as a “power grab” to get Newsom closer to the White House. Newsom and his fellow Democrats defend the measure as a way to protect representation of Democrats in the House, declaring at a Los Angeles press conference that California will not be pushed around by the federal government.

Stanford Ph.D. candidate in political science Jennifer Wu wrote in an email that

redistricting may cause politicians to rely on their party affiliation to attract new voters, and could also ensure equitable representation under the “one person, one vote” guideline by accounting for population shifts over time. She added, however, that redistricting can also create burdens for communities, as those who live in redistricted areas tend to have lower participation rates, meaning less of the community is represented.

“People have to figure out how to feel towards the incumbents of the new district, and also the candidates they are running against,” she wrote. “This affects already disadvantaged populations most, such as black communities. It is important to think of how we can lessen the information burden on those who are redistricted to make sure political participation does not fall.”

At least once per decade, California commission maps are redrawn, with the most recent update occurring in 2021 and the next upcoming 2030. Palo Alto Mayor Ed Lauing, via email, believes that it will have little impact on his district.

“I do not think our district will be affected. This is a safe Democratic seat,” he wrote. “There will be multiple primary candidates, but the nominated Democrat will win in the fall. I think it will increase (voter) turnout in the state for sure, but for our district, maybe only marginally. I’ve spoken directly with Representative (Sam) Liccardo, and he does not anticipate changes here.”

For junior Rania Bhalla, the ballot measure is important because the political efforts in California will reshape the way people are engaged and informed in their own districts. Since joining Model United Nations, Bhalla took an immense interest in political relations, following redistricting stories heavily.

“Redistricting really affects young people just because they have to fill out information (and) need to know if the district that they live in has changed,” she said. “I think it’s very important that we know that, because that is something that you may have to put on an application or form, it’s important to know what’s going on in your home state, and (how) it’s directly affecting you.”

Stanford set to continue legacy system for 2026 admissions

Gwen Domine Features Editor

As of July 29, Stanford University will continue considering legacy connections of students in their application process. School officials released a statement declaring that the institution would give up state funding in order to continue favoring legacy students and relatives of donors in their application process. The statement is in response to Governor Gavin Newsom’s Assembly Bill 1780, legislation intended to “protect students as they pursue their higher education” by removing state funding for schools practicing legacy admissions.

While Stanford has faced some backlash for their decision to ignore the bill with claims of it being unfair to those without prior connections to the campus, it remains beneficial for students whose parents attended, donated to or work at the university. According to the Palo Alto Daily Post, much of the funding Stanford will lose will be made up by the continuation of donations. The university’s decision to give up

of the legacy benefit,” they said. “It’s a nice perk to have if you’re working there. It’s nice to get a boost.”

However, these advantages are irrelevant to the larger applicant pool: In the fall of 2023, less than 14% of admitted students had ties to legacies or donors.

“(Stanford) can only take legacy so far,” the anonymous student said. “It shouldn’t be an overwhelming advantage.”

However, by continuing to honor legacy connections, the variety of students admitted to Stanford could be impacted, according to 2025 Gunn graduate and Stanford freshman Nia Porter.

“I do think that making this decision to honor legacy in favor of getting more donations definitely restricts or doesn’t encourage economic mobility,” she said. “If you’re just encouraging the same generations, or the same families, to go to the school generation after generation, I don’t think that really promotes diversity.”

Applying to academically rigorous and competitive schools can be daunting, exacerbated by the fact that legacies have advantages throughout the application

76.1% of surveyed students disagree with stanford’s decision to continue legacy admissions

Photo by Gavin Yeung Graphics by Azuki Radhakrishnan

Source: Self-selected survey sent out to Gunn students by The Oracle from Sept. 6 to Sept. 15 with 117 responses.

THEO RACLE

780 Arastradero Rd.

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www.gunnoracle.com

Editorial Board

Editor-in-Chief

Sylvie Nguyen

Ma naging

Editors

Yu-Ming Liu

Ya-An Xue

News

Vin Bhat

Sarah Grupenhoff

Vanisha Vig

Forum

Kaylee Cheng

Claire Jittipun

Melody Song

Features

Gwen Domine

Lena Duggan

Eanam Maor

In-Depth

Roy Lao

Melody Na

Sports

Yael Gottesman

Olivia Lee

Lifestyle

Anne Dong

Ezra Rosenberg

Vaani Saxena

Social Media

Vaani Saxena

Photo Editor

Mars Ezakadan

Graphics Editor

Azuki Radhakrishnan

Staff

Business/Circulation

Eanam Maor

Graphics Artists

Vin Bhat

Hannah Jung

Kai Knutson

Sophie Kou

Michael Lu

Alexandra Liu

Sahana Mahadevan

Dani Massarweh

Nina Pankov

Photographers

Vin Bhat

Evelyn Chow

Lucas Ji

Victor Peng

Claudia

Wolff De Tourreil

Chloe Wu

Gavin Yeung

Albert Zhang

Reporters

Annabel Brown

Mayher Dulani

Athena Gao

Yuji Song

Adviser

Kristy Blackburn

Campus introduces new attendance scanning, scheduling, Wi-Fi systems

Annabel Brown Reporter

This school year, the Gunn administration has implemented several schoolwide initiatives designed for greater accuracy and efficiency, creating a new Digital Hall Pass system, shifting PRIME and Study Hall scheduling to Infinite Campus and adjusting the PAUSD guest Wi-Fi network.

As part of the Digital Hall Pass system, students must now scan their student ID barcode or manually type their ID number into a Chromebook connected to Infinite Campus to record their attendance at the start of class. Students also must digitally sign in and out of class for bathroom and water breaks, replacing the physical hall pass that was used in previous years. Plans to add new campus destinations to the computers, such as the nurses’ office, are in progress, according to information The Oracle recieved during an admin press conference at the start of the year.

According to Assistant Principal Erik Olah, the system aims to track students who are out of class with more accuracy. When a student signs out to use the restroom or get water, they are given seven minutes to come back to class and are automatically timed. Supervisors can also track who has signed out and follow up if the timer expires.

“For students that miss a lot of class, (we) can actually pull data, and it’s all in the system,” he said.

Select classes piloted the system last April, with some teachers

raising concerns about the technical aspects. These issues were addressed before the school year according to Olah, and he along with site techs Chris Munoz and Zamir Zamora worked to apply the system in every classroom.

According to French teacher Julia Angeles, admin members trained teachers on the use of the scanner during professional development.

“I’m using (the) Digital Hall Pass right now for passes, not for attendance in the morning,” she said. “So far, that has been working well for me.”

Rolling out the setup wasn’t initially flawless, though. According to Olah, during the first few days that the Digital Hall Pass was implemented, there were hurdles if the computer wasn’t set up correctly.

“If (a teacher) doesn’t realize they had attendance on, and one kid signs out to go to the bathroom, (the computer) marks everybody absent,” he said.

Additionally, PRIME and Study Hall sign-ups moved from FlexiSCHED to Infinite Campus. FlexiSCHED’s inability to sync with schedules on Infinite Campus required teachers to take attendance on both interfaces manually last year.

If (a teacher) doesn’t realize they had attendance on, and one kid signs out to go to the bathroom, (the computer) marks everybody absent.

—Assistant Principal Erik Olah

“Ultimately, with both (PRIME and Study Hall), getting everything on Infinite Campus is the goal, so it should all be (working) long-term,” Olah said.

For junior Chloe Coponen, the first week of adjusting to the new methods presented an initial challenge.

“I feel like a lot of people forget that they’re assigned to a certain PRIME where they can’t switch it easily,” she said.

Another updated system was the PAUSD Guest Wi-Fi. Assistant Principal Harvey Newland says that the Wi-Fi network was fixed in the summer due to students and staff auto-connecting whenever near a Palo Alto campus. The adjustment also now requires personal laptops and phones to log in every 24 hours.

“There were thousands of devices that were occupying this space in the servers as IP address leases,” he said. “We got rid of those and then consolidated the networks to the one (for) Chromebooks.”

INBOX

Letter from the Editor

Dear Titans, Fresh off the press, the first print edition of The Oracle’s 63rd volume is in your hands.

While Celsius energy drinks rightfully take place as the student journalist’s sixth basic food group, our appetite for storytelling remains stronger. Front to back is a highlight reel of what September 2025 looked like at Gunn and in Palo Alto at large. These pages deliver news reports, student opinion, investigative journalism, sports briefs, feature profiles and crosswords and/or comics for a little extra food for thought. Through brainstorming sessions, fact-checking hunts and careful analysis, these articles are brought to fruition for you to read. We invite you to be unsettled, enlightened and informed.

True to our way of biting off more than we can chew — but always calculated and with finesse — The Oracle is branching into other mediums. Sports will be reintroduced as its own section. Subscriber newsletters will include behind-the-scenes missives. Online coverage will be amplified by audio clips and data visualizations, distribution day countdowns on social media and multipart news packages. Supporting this growth is ethical reporting, our platform’s bedrock. We’re emphasizing media training by equipping staff with the tools and judgment to navigate complex situations responsibly. Our way forward is also through our readers who are living

through the very history we seek to memorialize. That’s why, with unprecedented importance, we’ll be asking you to engage with our feedback forms, student polls, tip boxes for scoops and an inaugural reader-contributed database of student sources. With your participation, we can continue reflecting the experiences of our community. What stories aren’t being told already? What could we do differently or better?

Just as our open doors and dialogue help shape our work, joining the staff gives you a chance to move the needle firsthand. Granted, you are also part of the Oraclian community. Each cycle, we get a little closer to a near-superhuman level of deadline-sprinting skills and pair late nights of work with sing-alongs and boba on Wednesdays. I can’t help but smile when I look back at the group photos, surrounded by the people I am beyond proud to learn from, create with and be charged by. We’re looking for the next generation of storytellers to join us. Applications to contribute as a graphics artist or photographer are open, and for aspiring writers, Beginning Journalism next year is the perfect way to break ground.

Allow us to also provide you with a comprehensive understanding of campus life through our Instagram page (@gunnoracle) or our website (gunnoracle.com). While the landscape of journalism evolves at the cusp of significant political shifts, I’ve pondered where The Oracle’s trifecta of avenues will land. After bearing witness to the tireless efforts of the staffers during this issue, my ideas are reaffirmed: Our resolve to embrace the challenge is unshakeable; our journalistic appetite is insatiable.

Vin Bhat

Photo illustration by Vin Bhat

Source: Self-selected survey sent out to Gunn students by The Oracle from Sept. 6 to Sept. 15 with 130 responses.

Source: Self-selected survey sent out to Gunn students by The Oracle from Sept. 6 to Sept. 15 with 98 responses.

Classroom digitalization harms student health, information retention, inequity

Claire Jittipun Forum Editor

Imagine juggling 20 tabs for seven classes and frantically copying notes from a digital textbook all while having to remember to sign out on a Chromebook to be able to use the bathroom. For Gunn students, this isn’t a hypothetical scenario: It’s their everyday reality. With schools nationwide embracing laptops, tablets and online tools as the future of education, students often spend more time navigating technology than absorbing lessons. However, this digitalization of students’ academic lives is actually more harmful than beneficial. It can cause negative effects on both mental and physical health while also contributing to financial imbalances and barriers, discarding the social aspects of learning.

It’s easy to make the assumption that because technology has many resources, it is okay to use it excessively. However, just the data alone refutes this claim. According to the Center of Disease Control, teens between the ages of 12 and 17 had an average screen time of four hours or more from July 2021 to December 2023. That’s 28 hours a week, practically a part-time job. This was only taking into account non-school related activities, meaning the average would’ve been significantly longer. Such extremities always have an effect on people, and in this case, it’s negative. The CDC also adds that one in four of the surveyed teens that had this amount of screen time experienced signs of existing depression and anxiety. So what does this mean for students? With schools implementing more and more digital tools in their classrooms such as district-issued devices, students are further encouraged to spend more time in front of screens, which can then amplify mental health issues.

Beyond just mental health, excessive screen exposure disrupts critical circadian sleep rhythms for teens. The National Institute of Health reports that the blue light emitted by screens at any point during the day interferes with melatonin production, resulting in delayed bedtimes, reduced sleep quality and daytime fatigue. This means that even though students may be using devices in class during the day, their sleep can still be butchered at night. The physical consequences are also serious: According to an article from Very Well Health by Kelly Burch, eye strain, neck pain, headaches and increased risk of obesity are widespread consequences of excessive device usage. So are there any benefits of using digital tools to learn? It would be expected that it’s easier to absorb information digitally as there are so many resources

available online. However, it is actually the opposite. Learning through screens may hinder one’s ability to retain information. A decade-long study at Stanford found that heavy media multitaskers scored significantly lower on memory tasks. The students from the study who were distracted during lectures — whether by texting or web browsing — showed weaker long-term retention, despite appearing to follow the material in the short term. Another study conducted by the NIH on the neuroscience behind writing showed that taking handwritten notes rather than taking them digitally activates essential parts of the brain that control long term memory retention. Because paperbased learning has been proved to be much more effective, it should be favored in classrooms over digital tools.

Furthermore, not every student has access to digital tools. While digital tools promise equality, they often exacerbate existing disparities. Districts can issue every student a device, but they can’t guarantee working Wi-Fi or power for everyone at home. According to the California Education Source Organization, around 20% of students in the state did not have access to reliable internet in 2020. The National Center for Education Statistics presented that 12% of 3-18 year old students in the U.S. also do not have access to the internet at home. This shows that remote learning or screen-based tasks are disproportionately challenging for some students. Without proper access to hardware or connectivity, these students fall behind not due to lack of effort but digital inequity, creating deeper educational divides.

But possibly the most important part of learning besides assignments and grades is social connection and collaboration. Education is more than content delivery: It’s human. Face-to-face interaction sparks collaboration, empathy and social learning. Yet, when students are tethered to screens, social cues, peer collaboration and spontaneous discussion fade away. The result is that classrooms turn silent, not from focus, but from isolation. An article from Effective School Suggestions reported that between the years of 2003 and 2022, face-to-face socializing between teens fell by more than 45%. This can be attributed to the increasingly fast switch to digital-based learning during and after the pandemic. If schools allow devices to remain essential in classrooms, teens will lose crucial aspects of social growth and awareness.

It’s clear that the digital shift brings real harms: health hazards, cognitive decline, equity gaps and social disconnection. That’s why schools need thoughtful reform, not rejection of technology. Examples of this could be reintroducing paper-based learning such as handwritten notes and printed assignments. Technology in class could also be limited. For example, restricting screenbased instruction to just 30 minutes daily could preserve attention and reduce fatigue.

Unnecessary technology use could also be eliminated from students’ school life such as digitalizing assignments that could be written on paper instead. All in all, these ideas can help educators reclaim learning, not from technology, but from our dependence on it.

Choose

wisely: don’t let algorithms control you

Vin Bhat News Editor

Think about the online media you consume in your day-to-day life: Netflix greets you with curated rows of shows labeled “Top Picks for You” and “Because You Watched,” Spotify offers you dozens of custom playlists, TikTok extends endlessly and Instagram floods your feed with a continuous stream of Reels. Together, these platforms create an illusion of boundless choice — personalization packaged as freedom.

But those choices aren’t actually yours. An expansive body of research shows that recommendation algorithms don’t simply offer options. They nudge, narrow and funnel them in a way that shapes, and sometimes limits, our autonomy.

For instance, a 2024 qualitative study from Psychological Studies by Laura Romero Meza and Giulio D’Urso conducted 12 interviews with Netflix users, revealing a paradox: While people trusted recommendation lists, they also reported prolonged searches, higher effort to find content, moderate satisfaction and limited content diversity. One participant even described frustration stemming from lack of appealing suggestions despite abundant recommendations.

At the same time, having so many options to choose from can be overwhelming. Psychological research shows that “choice overload” plays a part in narrowing our perspectives. When decision paralysis hits, people immediately revert back to the comfort of the familiar, preventing them from actually expanding their perspective. Interface designs add to the issue. Even layout shifts meant to personalize experience — like repositioning rows — can confuse users trying to find familiar shows, increasing cognitive strain. Then, there’s autoplay, which queues the next media selection almost instantly. A 2024 University of Chicago study found that disabling autoplay shaved 21 minutes off daily watch time and made sessions 17 minutes shorter on average. This is a prime example of how seemingly benign features — also called dark or deceptive patterns — steer us away from our natural media consumption. While autoplay can have its benefits, such as potentially discovering content that whets your appetite, the pros are inevitably outweighed by the cons. Just like having too many options, it drives us towards specific viewpoints, albeit for a different reason. Autoplay’s algorithm wants to keep you engaged, meaning that it will queue up content similar to what you’ve previously consumed. This naturally leads the homogenization of online experiences.

Beyond entertainment, personalization can trap us in filter bubbles — a state of intellectual isolation caused by personalized searches and past clicks. Caught under these algorithm-driven silos, we feel an innate sense of comfort that prevents exploration. So, is infinite choice online really freedom? Superficially, yes. The options exist. But algorithms curate the surface, influencing what we notice and ultimately choose. We trade the burden and gravitas of making decisions for the comfort of guided selection. At the end of the day, it’s our decision to “doomscroll” through Instagram or watch YouTube on autoplay. It’s our choice — if we dare call it that — to be apathetic and ignorant to the “choices” made for us. I choose to keep choice. Do you?

Commodification of self-care fuels capitalism

Sarah Grupenhoff News Editor

For many teens and young adults, the term “selfcare” brings to mind face masks, bubble baths and 12step skincare routines. However, this modern concept is not true self-care, but instead a commodified version of a vastly different concept originating in the 1950s — one that involved far fewer purchases. Society’s current version of self-care is ultimately more beneficial to capitalists than it is to consumers.

In its earliest definition — as stated in an article by mental health content strategist Martha Tesema — self-care was a process for institutionalized patients, consisting of mindful acts of preservation to strengthen and sustain their self-esteem and sense of independence. These acts could include basic habits like exercising or getting chores done: They were never about buying your way to happiness, as it is in the status quo. The Climate Leadership Initiative reports that this original self-care process went on to become a powerful tool used by 1960s Civil Rights activists to avoid burnout while fighting for justice. It was also a prominent topic later on in the 1980s, with renowned activists such as Audre Lorde framing self-care as political action. In other words, by nurturing oneself and taking care of personal well-being, a person reinvigorates their capacity to involve themselves in community causes — a quality that modern forms of self-care lack. Today, the industry fuels and capitalizes on a different trope most familiar to youth: Self-care is merely a supplement for superficial growth. The practice has

been repackaged as expensive rituals and superfluous purchases, culminating in a $450 billion industry that is expected to exceed $1 trillion by 2030, per a 2024 report by business developer Nicole Jackson. It relies on successfully convincing consumers to constantly focus on themselves and putting a price on even the most basic skincare formulas and wellness services, such as mindfulness apps, that are now embellished with flashy packaging and advertisements. The industry primarily utilizes social media marketing methods like popular influencers’ endorsement or posts following trends that prey on insecurities, continuing to profit from money spent by victims stuck in the very cycle of consumption that it actively encourages.

Granted, this version of self-care has placed wellness practices and wellbeing at the forefront of trends. However, visibility alone does not equal benefit. When publicity for commodified self-care grows, youth become attached to this unspoken, unsustainable and unhealthy routine of purchases. People should not reject self-care goods entirely, but rather take on the role of a consumer: to question the motives of corporations

and to recognize that no purchases alone can guarantee well-being without also including authentic self-care at face value. Keep a journal, go on walks or revisit an old hobby. After all, self-care was never meant to be an end in itself; its radical roots reveal that the most profound self-care comes from using our nurtured energy to enable involvement in something other than ourselves, ultimately continuing the work that gave self-care its original power.

Tanning culture burns skin and self-esteem

The minute that students arrive on campus for the first day of school, they’re greeted with the unofficial measures of summer success: a classic farmer’s tan, an unmistakable sock line and streaks from swimwear. Though seemingly harmless, this focus on bronzed, tan skin reflects a broader culture that encourages risky and unhealthy practices in pursuit of an aesthetic standard.

This obsession over tan lines can contribute to teens developing an addictive relationship with them. A 2017 study conducted at Georgetown University found that

photos showing their skin, often lighter or paler, in winter. Contrasted by subsequent summer photos focusing on their tanner skin with captions like “Summer, Tan Happy.” With these labels and posts, teens link pale skin with lethargy and tanned skin with energy. Over time, these repeated associations solidify and impose unrealistic standards of comparison for year-round bronze skin, often achieved with tanning sprays or tanning beds. Failure to get a good tan, especially in the winter, can contribute to the manifestation of seasonal depression in teenagers.

One of the most concerning physical effects of tanning is an increased risk of skin cancer. According to a study performed in 2022 by Clio Dessinioti and others, tanning exposure in a tanning bed or the sun for extended amounts of time can raise a person’s chances of developing melanoma, the main type of skin cancer. According to the Worldwide Cancer Association, over 80% of skin cancers are caused by overexposure to

Severe second-degree sunburns from excessive tanning can even damage nerve endings.

A common misconception is that tanning instead “helps” teens as it provides more vitamin D exposure. However, the type of ultraviolet ray that produces vitamin D actually gives less sun protection compared to other types of rays and is different from the type that stimulates melanin production.

Without stronger awareness initiatives to debunk myths and promote safer routines to tanning, it’s easy to see why teens might engage in risky practices, even when aware of the surface-level health risks. Of course, progressive strides have been made over the years to protect youth. In 2015, the Food and Drug Administration proposed a rule that would prohibit minors from using beds and booths, but it is not enough to ban only certain age groups as tanning is harmful to all. Students need to actively question the pressures and associations that give tanning its appeal.

Mayher Dulani Reporter

Graphics by Hannah Jung

FEATURES

Recognizing Dedication

From demonstrating labs and chaperoning annual Great America field trips to reading countless Claim-EvidenceReasoning paragraphs, physics teacher Laurie Pennington has been a pillar in the Gunn science community since 1993.

Outside her classroom, as an outlet for community engagement with youth and her colleagues, Pennington has participated in multiple choir-staff musicals.

“I think the thing I enjoy about all of the choir shows is that we have hardly any practice, and we get it together at the end,” she said. “It’s always fun, and it’s really great to be on stage with the students and see them in a different light.

Throughout her decades teaching, Pennington has observed shifts — not only in curriculum and technology, but also in how students approach learning.

“One of the things I’ve noticed in recent years is that students feel they just have to ‘do school,’” she said. “Some, especially with AI, try to figure out the system to get through it rather than focusing on what they’re supposed to learn or enjoying the process. More and more, school feels like a hurdle they need to clear just to reach the next step.”

In 1994, English teacher Paul Dunlap stepped onto the Gunn campus excited to begin his first teaching job. 32 years and 14 different English courses later, he has become a staple in both the English department and the school community.

“I knew I wanted to do something with my life that was more than just about me, that I wanted to help people somehow,” he said. “English felt enjoyable, so I thought if I could find a way to show people what I love about reading and writing, that’s what I should do with my life.”

Throughout his career, Dunlap’s teaching philosophy has stemmed from the advice of one of his mentors from his early days at Gunn: “Being a good teacher is idiosyncratic.” Dunlap has experienced this first hand in the classroom, always showing his authentic self, no matter what.

“I’m not afraid to laugh at myself,” he said. “I’m not afraid to challenge people’s ideas or to have mine challenged. The best compliment I got from a student was (that) ‘other teachers talk at us, (but) you talk with us,’ and that I think is (what I) try to bring to the class.”

For Dunlap, one of his favorite parts of his job is assisting and observing as students participate in exploration.

The choir room has welcomed generations of students over the years, but one figure has remained a steady presence: choir director and music theory teacher Bill Liberatore. Now in his 37th year at Gunn, the school has shaped much of who he is.

“I did step away for one year (to conduct musicals in San Jose), but I knew after a month that I had done the wrong thing,” he said. “For the rest of my teaching career, I never doubted that (Gunn) is where I wanted to be.”

Whether he’s guiding students to discover their musical abilities or organizing performances with a large group of students, Liberatore finds fulfillment in the everyday meaningful moments.

“It’s the day-to-day things that make you feel like coming back the next day,” he said. “The rewards are constant. When you’re able to show students that they’re capable of more than they imagined before, that’s pretty rewarding. (Likewise), when you can corral a whole bunch of kids together into one piece of creative expression that really works, that’s pretty rewarding.”

Supporting students goes both ways: Liberatore has also received aid from the community, helping him bring

Pennington sees differences in learning as opportunities for growth, both for students and for educators. She credits her colleagues for helping her navigate obstacles, working together to help adapt and better the science department.

“Most of the challenges we’ve met while I’ve been here have been great learning experiences,” she said. “(These challenges) push us to do better in the future, to really consider what we’re teaching and how we’re supporting students, instead of just teaching what we think is great.”

As a teacher for over 30 years, Pennington’s personal teaching philosophy is anchored with her commitment to ensuring her students leave the classroom with confidence to take on what comes next, whether it be a worksheet on Newton’s Laws or the next chapter of their lives.

“My main job isn’t necessarily teaching physics — though I expect them to learn it,” she said. “My main job is to make sure that when they leave my classroom, they have the confidence to move on. I really appreciate the relationships I’ve had with students over the years because of that.”

—Written by Lena Duggan

“I love facilitating discovery (and) I love setting the situation where people can enter into risk, have conversation and learn some things,” he said. “You’re at the perfect age to test boundaries, to try new things (and) to challenge authority.”

Through efforts such as daily thankfulness practices and being the advisor for ROCK, a mental health awareness club, Dunlap strives to equip his students with the tools to positively shift the community.

“When people talk about the Palo Alto bubble and they express some shame, I say, ‘No shame, you’re just starting a little ahead of others, and because of that, you can help others.’ Use your privilege to help others.”

After all of Dunlap’s years of teaching, connecting with students and giving back to the community remains the highlight of his time at Gunn.

“I had some mentors who I knew understood me and challenged me in the best ways, and I think that’s really valuable to have an adult who believes in me,” he said. “So, (I hope) I can do that to other people too.”

—Written by Eanam Maor

larger projects to life. When he organizes big international events or trips every year, such as the Choir Spring Tour, the support makes them feasible.

“I could do these big musicals or big international trips, and the community really supported me when I needed to raise money for kids who couldn’t travel,” he said. “I felt very supported here.”

Although 37 years’ worth of special memories makes it difficult for Liberatore to choose just one, a favorite was when the choir visited the New York Heritage Festival.

“I have too many,” he said. “But last spring was a great memory. We sang at a festival in New York, and the judges were so blown away by the choir’s performance. I’ll remember that for a long time.”

Ultimately, if there’s a single constant that’s kept Liberator at Gunn for nearly four decades, it’s the students who have anchored him here.

“I was lucky to get here and stay here,” he said. “Who wouldn’t stay in a school district with these kinds of students? It’s the kids that make it (worthwhile).”

Albert Zhang

Claudia Wolff De Tourreil

Lena Duggan

Inconsistent recreational vehicle difficulty of implementing

Anne Dong and Roy Lao Lifestyle Editor and In-Depth Editor

The longstanding issue of homelessness in California has recently intensified, causing cities like San Jose to reconcile two contrasting challenges: the humanitarian crisis of tending to a growing unhoused population and the pressure to implement policies that address the displacement of recreational vehicle dwellers. Indeed, the number of people experiencing homelessness has increased by 8.2% in the past two years, according to Santa Clara County’s 2025 Point-in-Time Count.

San Jose is in the midst of a long-term undertaking, towing vehicles to new parking sites from different areas of the city in an effort to clear the streets of lived-in vehicles. Last month, it started clearing its largest homeless encampment, causing an outward radiation of action regarding the unhoused across Santa Clara County.

In Palo Alto, the California Department of Transportation’s El Camino Real paving project, which although allowed for increased bike safety, had the unintended consequence of displacing many of its long-time RV dwellers.

The issue of unhoused residents is not limited to the Bay Area, though: In Aug. 2024, the Southern California city of Norwalk banned homeless shelters and low-income housing projects, and only a year later did the state of California force the city to back down.

San Jose, Palo Alto and Norwalk serve as just a few of the visible city responses to homelessness and RV displacement. Governments all around the country are doubling down on restrictions and bans while others are undoing them, displaying that efforts are uncoordinated and messy.

Homelessness is largely a human-centered issue, but discussions of the topic are generally watered down to talks of policy, politics and economics. People who live in vehicles are a special case — their uncertain position in the eyes of the government and the people make them all the more downplayed in discourse.

Operations Manager of Martha’s Kitchen Trish Garcia, whose organization serves food-insecure community members, witnesses this silencing firsthand.

“People that work in nonprofits (in other cities) say, ‘The city won’t listen to us. They’re not hearing us. They don’t care, they’re just bussing people to different cities,’” she said. “At least the city of San Jose and the County of Santa Clara allow us to have a voice for them. They can’t really go out and get that voice themselves, but they can come to us and allow us to (represent them), and they listen when we talk.”

Recreational Vehicle Developments

On Aug. 25, the Palo Alto City Council’s Policy and Services Committee held its first public hearing on RV parking complaints following a recent spike in homeownerreported issues. The hearing came after resident pushback in neighborhoods where the number of parked RVs have increased on residential streets, including East Charleston Road. Some major complaints included hindered sidewalks, improper waste disposal, safety concerns and overuse of public parking. According to Policy and Services Committee Councilmember and City Councilman George Lu, a number of residents and RV-populated street-side businesses have highlighted similar, persistent dissent.

“I think the most challenging and important ones are about public health and access, where RVs might impede a bike lane or dump sewage into the streets, and those are obviously deeply problematic,” he said.

nuanced and conditional.”

Lu anticipates mixed reactions from both the communities of RV residents and the housed on the actions being taken and how fast they are being made.

“I would just ask for patience, because this is a societal problem,” he said. “We can’t just ban it from our city or we make it worse for everyone else. We need to come together and think about a broader solution. This issue is analogous to climate change or really a whole range of political issues, where I think it’s irresponsible if we rush into the solution that some people in the community do want.”

Housing Affordability

Much of Palo Alto’s plans are informed by nearby cities’ experiences implementing various solutions. However, Lu has yet to find an ideal example.

“I think successes are hard to find (in other cities), unfortunately, and I think it’s still early on in understanding what cities are doing recently for RV homelessness,” he said. “How to actually handle this at scale is a new problem — there’s some promising things, but no clear successes yet.”

The local regulations on RVs generally lean in the direction of bans. For example, Menlo Park earlier this year banned all RVs throughout the city except a three-mile stretch along which they can park. San Francisco has also begun banning RVs, though incrementally and with buyback programs.

“I think it’s good that we have a lot of examples to learn from,” Lu said. “I think it is tough, though, that the recent trend is to ban RVs, and when that happens, that just reduces the options for everyone else. If every city and every community takes some of the load, we might be able to handle it. If every city bans RVs, then the RVs will potentially have nowhere to go and be less safe or transition into street homelessness.”

City Manager Ed Shikada estimates that the number of RV dwellers in Palo Alto has doubled since 2023. Palo Alto’s goal for a long-term solution to RV overpopulation, therefore, is to transition as many RV residents as possible into permanent housing. Currently, there are several housing options in Palo Alto — some at a low fee and others completely for free.

The first major strategy the city is implementing is the construction of new interim housing units, such as the Homekey Palo Alto shelter on San Antonio Road. This housing development — constructed in partnership with homelessness nonprofit organization LifeMoves — will include supportive services and offer temporary 88 housing units with showers and restrooms for families.

“I think (Homekey) can make a pretty big impact,” Shikada said. “If we assume we’re in the couple-hundred RV range, 88 transitional units is pretty good. We won’t be able to fill all 88 transitional units with just folks from Palo Alto — I understand that the county will also place some people in there, but if we can incentivize people to accept the interim housing, I think it can make a pretty good dent.”

Community Impact

Mobile homes and interim housing projects like Homekey help reduce the effects of homelessness, but they also highlight how limited and fragile the available options can be for those seeking residence. Even families who find space in such units often face overcrowding, unstable tenancy and long waits for permanent housing, according to junior Richard de la Garza, who attends the Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic Church.

97.6% of students believe that palo alto housing is unaffordable

Source: Self-selected survey sent to Gunn students by The Oracle from Sept. 6 to Sept. 15 with 128 responses.

Source: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration homelessness has

the federal government has cut funds for harm reduction activities and health initiatives

vehicle bans shed light on widespread policy changes

larger family dynamic.”

Along with the church, de la Garza works to foster an inclusive group of people who do their part in helping the displaced.

“The goal of the mass — the goal of the church — is to create a sense of community without judgment,” he said. “The church does that beautifully, offering food after every service every Sunday, (with) lots of social gatherings, picnics and barbecues.”

Furthermore, the city is taking action to mitigate the effects of RVs that will remain on the streets despite additional affordable housing. Although the recent trend in the Bay Area has been to ban RVs, Palo Alto is not looking to place a strict block on RV street parking overnight.

“We are looking at providing mobile sanitation services, like pumping for sewage and things like that, though we’re not sure how successful those efforts would be,” Lu said. “We are also looking at parking restrictions, but the details really matter here. Right now, we aren’t looking at banning all RVs across the city overnight. We are looking at whether we can provide designated areas for RVs to park, preferably in a safe parking lot with resources, or, in the worst case, potentially on specific streets.”

Public Health

The unhousing question has further been exacerbated by recent developments at the federal level. In July, President Donald Trump, in his “Ending Crime and Disorder on America’s Streets” executive order, crippled harm reduction programs that aided the medical care of the homeless. His order included cutting federal funds from a range of public health initiatives, disproportionately impacting cities with large unhoused populations.

Nonprofit organizations have specifically taken a hit.

“We’ve run into a lot of financial issues due to the federal government taking away a lot of funding, and so that’s putting a strain on everybody,” Garcia said. “So now we’re going to the local government, like the city of San Jose and the County of Santa Clara. Funding is stretched, and everybody’s feeling it. The funding is not there, the staffing is not there and I don’t think — unless the city can find more money — we’re going to be able to cure the crisis.”

Additionally, Garcia underscores the drawbacks of spending county funding on the construction of more temporary homes rather than investing in mental health resources. According to the National Institute of Health, it is estimated that 76.2% of homeless individuals have a being alcohol use disorders, drug use disorders, schizophrenia

omelessness in santa clara county has increased by 8.2% since 2023

were put into affordable housing, they might not be able to sustain that, because they’ve got underlying issues that need to be worked out,” she said. “I think that the city should spend more money on fighting the mental health deterioration that’s going on in our county and cities and spend more money on rehab so that when they get these people mentally healthy, they can get them physically healthy, and then they’ll be able to become productive members of society.”

De la Garza encourages those who are affected by the issue to keep an open mind and see all perspectives before passing judgment.

“An empathetic voice is a necessity, especially if you’re complaining from a place where you don’t understand their viewpoint,” he said. “Whatever conditions you live in, they’re definitely not the same as the next person. It’s not as simple as ‘make more money’. To be complained about and treated as if you shouldn’t be here, it’s quite hard

empathyisthekeytoperceiving another’ssituationfrom theirperspective,fostering amorenon-judgemental community

the city of palo alto plans to implement new interim housing units for the unhoused population

Source: Santa Clara County Point-in-Time Count

Graphics by Nina Pankov

Azuki Radhakrishnan

Balancing Multicultural Worlds: Hispanic AND Latino American students, staff Navigate multiple expectations

While Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 is dedicated to celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month, many community members, especially those with multicultural backgrounds, navigate deeper questions of identity. Battling through generational value differences, language barriers, and pervasive stereotypes — often culminates in the feeling of not being “Latino” or “American” enough, according to sophomore Stephanie Rischmoller.

“There’s a (common) phrase: ‘You’re not Hispanic enough’ or like, ‘Oh, you don’t look Hispanic,’” she said. “You shouldn’t say that to someone, because it’s a part of their identity.”

According to a 2024 study by the Pew Research Center, nearly all first-generation immigrants from Latin America identified as Hispanic. However, by the fourth generation, only about 50% of individuals with Hispanic ancestry continued to identify that way.

Freshman Lukas Ortiz-Sy, a second-generation immigrant, carries the weight.

“Half of my family is Asian, and half of my family is Black and Mexican,” he said. “So I fought through those cracks a lot.”

For students like Ortiz-Sy, the question isn’t which culture to embrace. It’s how to embrace all of them at once. As generations of Hispanic Americans grow up in the United States, the tension between trying to simultaneously fit in and preserve their culture intensifies.

Rischmoller experiences this balancing act with her Peruvian mother’s traditional parenting, affecting experiences with friends.

“Because my mom grew up in Peru, she has different values from the parents who grew up here,” she said. “(This) kind of causes my friends not to understand why I can’t stay out late or go out on a certain day.”

English teacher Thalia Rodriguez, a first-generation Mexican-American, articulates a similar duality. Despite being born and raised in the U.S., she finds herself identifying more with her Mexican heritage than American traditions and values.

“I very much value family, taking rest, prioritizing your mental health (and) just being a person before you put everything into work or school,” she said. “I think (work) is something that’s very much valued here, whereas I think I live by my Mexican values much more than anything else.”

Rodriguez’s words reflect a deeper truth: For many bicultural individuals, identity is not a binary choice. It’s a constant negotiation, one that many individuals have to deal with throughout their lives.

Legacy Of Language

One of the strongest bridges connecting generations to their heritage is language. A 2023 study by the Pew Research Center found that Hispanic Americans who strongly associate with their ethnic identity are more likely to emphasize future generations learning Spanish. In other words, celebrating identity is linked to pride in knowing one’s cultural language.

For Ortiz-Sy, speaking Spanish is a vehicle for learning about his roots.

“I’m most proud of my Mexican culture,” he said. “At school, I learned Spanish, and I learned a lot more about my cultural heritage.”

However, speaking multiple languages can become a source of anxiety, especially for those who feel pressured to switch between tongues or accents to fit in, a practice known as code-switching.

“When there’s a word (to be read out loud) in English that can be said with a Spanish accent, I don’t know if I should add the accent or just say it like English speakers would say (it),” Rischmoller said. “It just adds a little anxiety when I see words like that.”

Even fluency in a single language isn’t always enough. Despite her proficient command of Spanish, Rodriguez admits feeling like an outsider when her relatives use regional slang or informal phrases that she doesn’t know.

“Even just speaking Spanish to my great grandma, I get really nervous, and then I almost feel like I don’t know the language at all,” she said.

Rodriguez, whose first language was Spanish, recalls the educational pressures that distanced her from her linguistic roots. Using her experience as a learning model today, her own pedagogy in the classroom ensures students reclaim their cultural voices while recognizing systems that undervalue it.

“In my experience, schools did a very good job at dividing me from my family just to make me believe that I am going to be more successful because I could speak English and talk more formally or write in a standard way,” she said “Now I try to push a different narrative with my students. I even tell them (to) write the way you speak because it’s the voice that matters most to me.”

Language challenges and cultural dissonance are compounded by societal prejudice, threatening the celebration of multiculturalism. A 2022 study by the Pew Research Center reported that 53% of Latinos

say they have experienced discrimination or unjust treatment based on race or ethnicity.

Rodriguez felt this firsthand in her predominantly white college.

“I experienced a lot of people making me feel invisible, (like) if I was talking, they would talk over me,” she said. “Even if I was just standing in line, I’d be cut. It was like I was less of a person to a lot of the people there. That was the only time where (my culture) was something hard to navigate. I realized: Is this something I should be ashamed of?”

—Freshman Lukas Ortiz-Sy “ ”

I’m most proud of my Mexican culture. At school, I learned Spanish, and I learned a lot more about my cultural heritage.

These encounters aren’t isolated. In 2021, the Pew Research Center reported that over half of Latinos faced at least one of eight forms of discrimination — most commonly, the assumption that they were less smart.

“A lot of stereotypes I’ve encountered (are when I’m) just speaking Spanish, and then, for some reason, that means you aren’t likely to be as successful or you aren’t likely to also get into these top universities,” Rodriguez said.“It’s almost like people assume you’re gonna be dumb or not as intelligent as everyone else.”

Stereotypes also dissolve the diversity within the Hispanic community itself. Rischmoller said many people incorrectly assume that all Hispanics are Mexican. In breaking these assumptions, she hopes to broaden the cultural conversation.

“I feel like me being Peruvian serves as a reminder that there (are) other Hispanic people out there,” she said.

Striking a similar chord for cultural pride, Ortiz-Sy learned to celebrate his heritage in the face of adversity.

“I pushed through (discrimination), and I didn’t let it change my mood about being Hispanic,” he said. By challenging identity, language and prejudice, the three voices reveal what it takes to stand proudly in a world that too often pressures different cultures to assimilate to a single dominant idea.

“I started surrounding myself with people who are a part of the same culture,” Rodriguez said. “It’s really thanks to them that they taught me how to be proud of (my culture). (Now), even if no one else in the room is Mexican, I’m happy to be that (one).”

—Written by Athena Gao

PhotosbyLucasJi.PhotoillustrationbyNinaPankov

Student music groups build unity through melodies

A garage door hums as it closes. Listen for the “testing, testing 1,2,3” of a microphone, the tuning of a bass, the strumming of a guitar and the pounding of a drum. It’s dim in the garage, but much darker outside. Inside the garage, four people play their instruments, causing music to bounce off the walls. Here sits the four members of the Sticky Rice Band: Gunn students sophomore Gabriel Lopez and senior Sarina Reed, as well as American High School students sophomore Milie Lu and sophomore Nicky Cheung.

Last November, they created the band and began holding weekly practices in Lopez’s garage. Since then, the group has hammered out songs, but chase the bigger goal of one day producing their own album.

Lopez is the lead guitarist and does backing vocals, while Reed plays the bass. Lu is the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist and Cheung plays the drums. Together, their performances at places such as Red

later, they brought Lu and Cheung into the mix. Outside of practice, the four band members bond with each other over calls, time spent together and Roblox game nights.

For Reed, the process of getting to know one another helped bring all the members closer together.

“It was awkward getting to know each other at first,” she said. “It was really slow and, honestly, we didn’t sound that great, but I feel like getting to know each other and just having that connection on a personal level really brought our sound out. It really just made us better as a group.”

Lopez has a goal of creating another outlet for Gunn students to play or showcase their musical skills and plans on making that possible by funneling his experience and skills from Sticky Rice Band into his club, the Audio Arts Collective.

“Through our band and through our club, I want to bring more of that sense of community of music and artists to Gunn,” he said. “You really get to know a person on a much deeper level. I want that for more musicians at Gunn.”

these sounds fill the practice room where senior Elijah Leppert rehearses with his jazz-themed group of six: the Dome Combo. Coming from Gunn and Paly, student musicians are featured on the bass, guitar, drums, piano, saxophone and trombone.

Since Leppert joined as a member a few months after the group first began, Dome Combo has continued to run for over a year. Playing among others with diverse musical knowledge, he has found, brings out a variety of musical tones and textures that can be overlooked in solo ventures. The combination of qualities and chords also strengthens his connection to the music.

“We started pretty informally, kind of just finding more ways to play music together with others, because music, if you’re just playing by yourself, can be a little bit boring sometimes,” he said. “But playing with other people, it’s a lot easier to have fun and to learn a lot more about how to play music well.”

Now, Dome Combo dabbles in a variety of jazz styles, including swing, classic, ballads and Bossa Nova.

While Dome Combo doesn’t formally advertise its performances, the group has played at flea markets, Paly’s second Sunday event and even on television, where the set list included one of Leppert’s favorite group pieces, “On the Sunny Side of the Street” by Jimmy McHugh.

“There was a film class going on for a bunch of graduate students in Mountain View, and they needed a group to film for the final project, so they invited us to play,” he said. “We were in a giant recording studio, the four of us playing for that gig, and we played three songs.”

Dome Combo’s members come from across grade levels, and Leppert enjoys the time they spend together. The future of their shared music space after graduation, however, is on the minds of the group’s current seniors.

“We’ve definitely talked about coming back and doing rehearsals together, or maybe one performance over winter break, and definitely over the summer,” he said. “I think we’ll continue (performing), but we’ll see what happens.”

With the rest of the year still ahead, Leppert looks forward to every chance to perform — no matter how big or small.

“If you want to have a jazz band play at one of the events that you have, I think we’d definitely be open to having more opportunities to play, especially with

Notes For All, a student-led music group and nonprofit organization based in Palo Alto, was founded in August, 2023. Originally a small group of friends playing music together, Notes For All has grown into a much larger organization that brings chamber music to the wider Bay Area.

Notes For All performs at senior centers, neurodiversity events and in underprivileged communities. Their vision is to spread joy to local communities through their volunteer music concerts.

The small organization quickly expanded into a community of high school students from Palo Alto, Los Altos, Mountain View, San Jose and other areas in the Bay. One difference between Notes For All and other music groups at Gunn is their goal of bringing chamber music to the wider Bay Area.

Co-Executive Director junior Vincent Tsai highlights some of the aspects he finds beneficial and

pieces,” he said. “You can choose who you play with. You get to perform for a lot of different (types of) people and that’s very nice.”

The music group is also home to some smaller programs, such as a community of composers and jazz groups. All of the group’s members volunteer their time and energy playing traditional music and exploring individual choices for performance.

Another one of the four co-executive directors, sophomore Tey Lee, enjoys the time she puts into practicing for Notes For All performances as well as spending time others.

“My favorite part of being in Notes For All is probably rehearsing with my friends because honestly, it’s pretty relaxed,” she said. “Everyone can enjoy what they’re doing instead of being forced to do it.”

—Written by Ezra Rosenberg

Sticky Rice wins first place for their performance of “Goodbye Tender” by Koyori. They participated in Tri-City Nightingale’s The Ultimate Showdown Competition.

Courtesy of Sticky Rice Band

Courtesy of Notes For All

Photos courtesy of Dome Combo

Notes For All volunteers to play a one-hour program at retirement community Vi Living. The organization regularly plays chamber music for local elderly members.

Top: The band plays music for Palo Alto Friendsgiving. Bottom: Dome Combo poses in the studio as they prepare to perform for local TV station KMVT15.

SophieKou

Athletes travel for international competitions

Senior Alessandro

Splish splash. Senior Alessandro Faraboschi’s hand glides through the water as he freestyles his way to victory. For the past four years, Faraboschi has dedicated his summers to swimming; training and competing in Italy with the swimming club Genova Nuoto, where his older sister trained as well.

“My sister originally swam with (the team), and we’ve always had a connection with the coach—we’ve known him for many years,” he said. “Every year, we go to Italy, so I ask if I can train and compete with them. They always say yes, since I help contribute points to the team.”

For Faraboschi — who swims year-round, competing for both Gunn and his local club team Palo Alto Swim Aquatics — this international experience has broadened his perspective and elevated his skills.

During his time in Europe, he has encountered unique opportunities such as swimming with members of the Italian National Junior Team.

Beyond Faraboschi’s training and competitions, spending time in a foreign country has highlighted the cultural differences in team dynamics.

Freshman Caroline Beery plays soccer in France

Authentic “pain au chocolat” for breakfast every day and scoring soccer goals next to the Eiffel Tower sounds like a dream to many. For freshman Caroline Beery, this became her reality. In April, Beery traveled to France with the United States Club Soccer’s id2 National Selection girls team, where she trained with and played against elite French teams.

“(My team) got to play some really good teams, (such as) Club León, which is a really impressive team and just playing with some of the best players in the country (was a lot of fun),” she said. “It’s crazy because usually (we are playing) a team in California, but playing with players from around the world was really cool.”

Besides training and competing on the field, she enjoyed

“I’d say the team is closer together,” he said. “I noticed that in the U.S., people are thinking about themselves only and (focused on) their goals. In Italy, they try to support each other more and (try to) help you reach the goals that you have for yourself.”

While hours of training at the pool are what push the team to succeed athletically, it’s also the teamwork they build outside of the water that helps carry them through competition.

“We’ve hung out and gone to the beach (and) played basketball,” he said. “It is really fun to do something that’s not (related to) swimming (with my team).”

Experiences like these help strengthen the team’s bond, fostering new friendships that transcend distance as the summer comes to a close.

“I think it’s really important to get to know the people you’re training with, the ones you see every day or even multiple times a day for hours,” he said. “You get to know not just (others’) swim goals, but who they are as a person.”

—Written by Lena Duggan

sightseeing. The team visited popular landmarks including Champs-Élysées, the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame. Being in a foreign country for two weeks without family was difficult for Beery, but it pushed her to learn more about time

“I think being conscientious about my decisions, (such as) what I ate, when I went to sleep, how I handled my homework (was difficult),” she said. “Making those decisions based on how I felt and what I felt comfortable with rather than what other people would be doing (was an important

After this experience in France, Beery is now focused on improving specific skills to reach her ultimate goal — qualifying for the U.S. Soccer Youth

“(I want to) work on my communication, leadership and the way that I handle myself on the field,” she said. “A goal for myself is to make the U.S. Youth National team. That’s a big goal, but performance-wise, (my goals are learning to) be calm and learning how to handle myself on

Softball field renovated to enhance performance, safety

After years of pouring rainouts, slippery turf and messy practices, the softball team received news that the softball field’s longawaited renovation is in motion. Expected to be completed before the spring season begins, the construction aims to not only enhance safety by preventing hazards, but also elevate the overall game experience.

To address the issue of slippery turf, the project will replace the existing natural turf with synthetic turf, along with an upgraded subsurface drainage system designed to improve the teams’ performances all year-round. The field will also include upgraded foul poles, outfield fencing, netting and stormwater infrastructure.

Players are already looking forward to the change, with junior

softball player Katie Fitzhugh noting the new precautions on the field.

“I think it will benefit (us) because our old field had many holes in the ground and we couldn’t play when it rained because the field would be flooded,” she said.

Softball team head coach Alan Lundberg is equally optimistic for a new injury-free season of smooth home runs.

“We’d absolutely love it,” he said. “I think it’s a great asset to us — having a good solid place for our pitchers to warm up.”

—Written by Yuji Song

The softball field is currently filled with bulldozers, gravel and construction tools, but by the spring season, it will include upgraded foul poles, outfield fencing, a new subsurface drain system and more.

Globes by Dani Massarweh Airplanes by Sahana Mahadevan

—Written by Vaani Saxena

Lucas Ji

Alexandra Liu

student athletes prioritize club sports for greater exposure, higher competition, individualized training

When people think of a typical high school student-athlete, the image of high school practices and matches with fellow athletes comes to mind. However, in recent years, this mindset has shifted for many student-athletes. Rather than playing on the school team, they now prioritize pursuing their sport through outside team clubs and sports programs.

This shift in priorities reflects a broader trend that is evident in various high schools and across youth sports. High school sports teams used to be the baseline for all athletes from all different levels, divided into two teams, junior varsity and varsity. Now, these student athletes compete for club programs that promise higher levels of intensity and competition, more individualized training and more opportunities for advancement that would not be available at a high school level.

For many, the biggest appeal of prioritizing clubs over joining high school teams lies in the opportunity for exposure. Club programs are often designed around recruitment, with different college coaches attending tournaments and matches to recruit athletes. For students who hope to play beyond high school, this benefit is crucial.

Senior Matthew Crothers has followed this idea, as he has been playing soccer competitively for a club since he was six-years-old.

“I chose to play club soccer instead of high school because the level is much higher and there’s a lot more exposure to potentially play at a collegiate level or even professionally,” he said. “The only downside to not representing my high school for my sport is that I don’t get to play with some of my closest friends, who I’ve known for a big portion of my life.”

Club sports may offer stronger competition

community aspect of school athletics. However, for many athletes, their decision to join club sports is rooted in personal growth rather than the enjoyment and community found in school athletics. While school teams provide a sense of belonging and spirit among like-minded students, club programs offer an environment where athletes are pushed to compete at a higher and more personalized level, developing more advanced skills. For these students, the decision lies in being challenged and shaped into stronger competitors, even if it means sacrificing the school pride that comes with representing their school.

Sophomore Geri Schwartzman faced this exact decision when choosing between cheerleading for Gunn or a club. She was previously on the varsity cheerleading team in her freshman year, but ultimately decided to join and stay on a club cheerleading team, Gold Star All Star Cheer, for the rest of her high school career in order to become a better cheerleader overall.

“

I chose to play club soccer instead of high school because the level is much higher and there’s a lot more exposure to potentially play at a collegiate level or even professionally.

Senior Matthew Crothers

“While I had a very good time in school cheer, it just didn’t suit my level and desire for cheer practice,” she said. “I needed a team that would challenge me, one that would shape me into a better cheerleader and be able to get stronger.”

While club sports are often more suitable for higher-level athletes, they come at the cost of higher time commitment. High school teams typically train for the duration of a single season, which is around two and a half months, and practices are often scheduled to fit around the school day. However, club programs are much more rigorous, requiring higher commitment since they often have frequent and longer practices and therefore, leave little time for other activities and academics. While this intensity for club programs can be overwhelming for some, others are more motivated to work under the pressure that club programs bring. It all depends on the kind of person the athlete is and what their ultimate goal for their sport is: Some people thrive in supportive, schoolcentered environments where the focus is on representing their school, while others feel more motivated and fulfilled in the high-pressure and competitive environments that club programs often provide. Their choice reflects not only their athletic goals, but also their priorities on whether they value community and connections or personal growth through demanding training. Tennis player and junior Serena Martin explains how the decision is personal and unique to each athlete. She originally played for the varsity tennis team, but decided to quit her sophomore year to focus on outside tennis programs.

“I think doing the sport outside of school is important for people who have decided that they are set on putting their all into their respective sport,” she said. “I believe that struggle is inevitable, and it’s up to each athlete to choose what it is they want and

Sophie Kou

LIFESTYLE

students engage in bay area urban exploration, experience thrills, discover history, build bonds

The phrase “urbex” — short for urban exploration — didn’t always look like scaling graffiti-covered walls, hopping fences and running from the police.

Urbex has roots dating back to the late 18th and early 19th century, when the Romantic movement, which emphasizes the beauty of ruins as the subject in artistic and literary pursuits, took off. Victorians called this frenzy with decaying manmade monuments “ruin lust,” from the German term Ruinenlust — meaning an irresistible attraction to ruins, decay and abandoned places.

Some of the first accounts of urbex take place in Paris, in the city’s famous underground Catacombs. The story of how Philibert Aspairt in 1793 wandered into the Catacombs and never returned became a cautionary tale that attracted many adventureseeking visitors. These rebellious cataphiles became the earliest examples of what we consider urban

The Bay Area has seen a rise in the urbex trend in recent years, specifically during and after the COVID-19 lockdown. This phenomenon has been fueled primarily by viral social media influencers who document their exploration with YouTube videos, TikToks and Instagram Reels documenting their exploration.

For sophomore Max Hernandez, his first memory of urbex was when he lived in Ithaca, New York and saw a TikTok of someone exploring abandoned subway stations in New York City. After moving to Palo Alto, he continued Googling abandoned places in the Bay Area and discovered locations such as deserted asylums, schools, grain silos and more.

According to Hernandez, there are different branches of urban exploration that specialize in different locations such as tunnels, sewer and storm drains, construction sites and his specialty, abandonments.

“At first, I just

really wanted to see these places,” he said. “It’s almost like an adrenaline rush because you’re not supposed to be in there. But it’s also this idea of, ‘well, I get to see this place that most people will never get to see.’”

Junior Julius Bach is also very motivated by the thrill of urbex.

“I’m a big adrenaline junkie, and I love doing things that give me that feeling of being on the edge,” he said. “You never know what’s going to happen, even in a slightly more controlled environment.”

In order to capture the unseen beauty and intrigue of his topics of exploration, Hernandez found interest in photography, immortalizing urbex memories on film.

“My favorite part of urban exploration is taking a look at places that most overlook and forget about,” he said. “You get to see these amazing, amazing views, even if some of them are heartbreaking. I remember when I was visiting an abandoned school in West Oakland, there were school assignments left on the ground and student science projects among the trash.”

“It’s almost like an adrenaline rush because you’re not supposed to be in there. But it’s also this idea of, ‘well, I get to see this place that most people never get to see.’”

Sophomore Max Hernandez

Both Hernandez and Bach plan and execute these trips with friends and have made friendships through fellow explorers they’ve met.

“I like going solo — sometimes it’s a good way to clear your head and just get out of the house into the world,” Bach said. “But it’s always fun because there’s a really good social aspect to it. If you bring people who’ve never done it before, they might be like ‘Wow, this is actually really fun,’ and maybe they get into it as well.”

Even though urbex is often characterized by its spontaneity, there is a lot more happening logistically

in a day of exploration than it may seem. The first challenge: finding a location. Since Hernandez’s urban exploration relies on finding abandoned places, it can be difficult to find locations that urbexers have both heard about but also remain secluded. For this reason, urbexers are reluctant to share locations for fear of them being vandalized or parts of the location being trashed and destroyed.

“Sometimes, many people prefer trading,” Hernandez said. “If I have a spot and they respond, I give them my location and they give me their location. The thing is, when I first started, I didn’t have any spots, so I would have to comb through Reddit threads, TikToks, Instagram, ChatGPT and anything I could think of.”

Once they’ve decided on the who, where and when, their next task is figuring out transportation, packing supplies and attire.

For Bach, who has gotten cut by scrap metal on an expedition, he prioritizes wearing durable and protective articles of clothing like good walking shoes with thicker soles, working gloves, durable pants, a shirt layered underneath and hoodie over top. Other supplies to bring include a small backpack, flashlight, portable charger, first-aid kit, camera, granola bar and spare cash. Bach always makes sure he does his research about the location’s safety.

“You always want to be considerate of things like what the weather is going to be, what the risks are and how many sharp objects you’re going to be around that you would cut yourself on,” he said. “You just have to be very, very aware because anything can always happen.”

Despite the risks, teens around the Bay Area, and around the world, continue to participate in urban exploring.

“Urban exploring, to me, is amazing, heartbreaking, hopeful and scary,” Hernandez said. “But it’s really fun.”

‘Performative male’ social media trend reinforces gender stereotypes, increases waste from overconsumption

Matcha, Labubus, feminist literature and even corded earbuds have been on the rise as a part of one specific trend: the “performative male.” This concept consists of men on social media engaging in activities and interests that are typically considered feminine and being labeled as “performative” for “acting” to gain social or romantic validation.

While this trend can seem harmless, the impacts run deeper than a decrease in Airpods sales: Classifying men’s interests in stereotypically women’s activities as only for the female gaze — which focuses on behaving in ways that draw positive attention from women, generally because they feel understood — leads to the devaluation of these hobbies. For senior Aman Solanki, this trend introduced a new stigma to things he enjoys himself.

“I feel like my friends and I lean into things, like certain types of music or aesthetics, and we’re not just doing it to be performative — we genuinely like them,” he said. “It’s definitely mocked as fake or as trying to be a girl. On the other hand, it is breaking away from strict masculinity while embracing more feminine interests.”

Specific to many microtrends, the sudden increase in specific demand for items such as matcha and Labubus creates a cycle of mass production and consumerism. The materials used in production create unnecessary waste and environmental harm, as it leads to overconsumption due to the purchasing culture surrounding online trends.

Senior Riya Chaudary, president of Gunn’s Green Team, recognizes the long-term environmental effects that short-term trends create. This detriment extends beyond just the performative trend: The perpetration of one trend often leads to another, creating a succession of unnecessary waste for a fad that lasts only a few months.

“The performative trend has definitely contributed to

the increasing cycle of micro trends,” she said. “People who don’t even enjoy (matcha) are going out to buy it and this has resulted in matcha shortages in Japan, which are already worsened by climate change.”

Not only does the increased demand lead to supply chain issues, but it also leads to viewer-starved influencers creating food or product waste in order to gain popularity.

“People throw (drinks) on the floor for a funny video, or they pour it into purses so it looks cool,” Chaudary said. “So obviously there’s a lot of waste in that way.”

While interests go viral quickly, and often for a good reason — who doesn’t love a good matcha? — there are often much more meaningful effects. Although it may seem like a simple joke about one’s interests, this trend fundamentally affects both the environment and the participants.

The performative trend can serve to reveal deeper, longstanding issues with gender stereotypes. Tradition dictates what is considered masculine and feminine, and when something goes against the norm, it’s not immediately accepted as genuine.

“The fact that guys feel like they have to do this as a trend shows that even when men embrace more feminine interests, it’s framed as performative instead of being

—Written by Gwen Domine

Mars Ezakadan

—Written by Kaylee Cheng

Azuki Radhakrishnan

THE ORACLE’ S SEPTEMBER

1. Extra paid features 7. “Do I need to have a ___ your parents?” (2)

“The Lion King” warthog

Person temporarily held in custody

Local boarding school Woodside ___

Canned fish 19. They split highways and pools

A gentle touch 21. Might have come before the chicken

Nuts and ___

Gather crops

Mojo dojo ___ house

Once mistaken for mermaids

Michelangelo painted his creation

Starts in the top left corner of a crossword (2)

Don’t get on your teacher’s (2)

Opposite of fall 38. Civilian military force 39. Quantities, abbr.

40. Similar in petiteness to (2) 42. ___ Miserables

43. Bring into one’s own possession

44. Dame un ___ 47. Tribe known as “Children of the Middle Waters” 49. It’s ___ country (when defending oneself) (2)

51. Appear in patches in the fall

Singer Grande

Given princess treatment

56. You can do this to tallow and computer graphics

57. Rents long-term to someone (2)

58. Common people, “the ___”

1. Doctor Repellent

2. Hair protector

3. Privately talking on social media

4. Double-reed woodwind

5. Maker of Creamy Concealer

6. Verbalize

7. Stats for purchased visible music (2)

8. Diamonds, spades, clubs and ___

9. Not moving (2)

10. Bits

11. Nintendo Switch predecessors 12. Place to stay 13. Golf peg

14. ___the guy to ask

20. A group of witches

22. Steep

23. Distances from center of a circle

24. Carne ___

25. Things you call people by

26. Greek god of the Underworld

27. Alphabetical order from ___ Z (2)

28. Throws out a line

29. Lesson of a story

30. Japanese cartoon

31. Bird homes

34. Simone ___

35. __ fair in love and war

36. 24 horas

38. Gets by (2 words)

40. Take in case of fire

41. Fridge decoration

44. Diploma receivers, abbr.

45. Singer-actress ___ Rapp

46. Multiple backsides

47. Slang for people who don’t wish you well, abbr.

48. ___-Ball (arcade game)

49. Square footage

50. Fish propellers

51. Folks, abbr.

52. Where Dubai is, abbr.

53. Fighting sport, abbr.

54. Sleeve filler

TEACHER TRIVIA: Guess the teacher by their Classroom poster

It’s Monday, first period, and you’ve been blessed with a short 45-minute prep. Some might use it to study or caffeinate (obviously with Celsius). Not you. You’re headed straight to the beach. Yes, getting to Half Moon Bay is literal torture, but don’t let that discourage you. With proper planning, you can hit the surf, wax your board and catch exactly one wave before sprinting back to campus dripping saltwater onto your Analysis homework. Take Assistant Principal Harvey Newland as inspiration — he managed to surf before school almost daily (granted, his school was by the beach). Pro tip: Wear your wetsuit under your clothes to save time, although you may receive odd looks in class when you squeak against the chair. Bonus: the salt in your hair doubles as hair gel. Drawback: the scent of “eau de kelp” lingers through the rest of your classes. Still, nothing screams “I maximized my prep period” quite like returning from Half Moon Bay with sand in your shoes and a spiritual connection to Poseidon. Surf’s up, grades down, but vibes eternal. Ah, a 3 or 4 period prep — the most inconvenient prep on a Monday. Don’t be a Debbie Downer,

though: It’s the perfect time to confront that 200-page chunk of “A Tale of Two Cities” you swore you’d read over the weekend but instead replaced with TikTok scrolling. With only 45 minutes, you must evolve into a literary superhero: an incredible speed-reader. Step one: Stack your books (“Of Mice and Men,” “Great Gatsby,” “Romeo and Juliet”) in descending order of guilt. Step two: Master the art of diagonal reading, where you scan words like “alienation,” or “tragedy” and hope that’s enough for your reading quiz. Step three: Strategically dog-ear pages you’ll later quote to seem like a peak intellectual in class. Example: “I found Steinbeck’s use of foreshadowing here fascinating” (even though you only read half a sentence). The clock ticks louder with each passing minute, a reminder that Charles Dickens is either laughing at you from his grave or rolling around in it. By lunch, you’ve highlighted enough random lines to pass as insightful. Sure, you won’t actually know what happened in Chapter 23, but you will know how to fake it till you make it. By late Monday, everybody is slogging through biology labs. But not you. You have a short prep and a bold plan: become a cemetery

tourist. Alta Mesa Cemetery, conveniently close by, houses the resting places of both Steve Jobs and Shirley Temple. This means your 45 minutes of freedom can be both educational and weirdly inspirational. The trick is timing — Google Maps says it’s a six-minute walk, which leaves you with roughly 33 minutes for grave-hunting and six minutes to rush back, out of breath but spiritually enriched. If you manage to find Jobs’ gravestone, you can meditate on innovation: “What would Steve do? Probably invent an iGrave with a sleeker design.” At Shirley Temple’s site, practice your tap dance moves in tribute (though cemetery staff might not appreciate it). Don’t forget to snap a selfie as proof, because no one will believe that you actually spent your prep period hanging out with history in the flesh. Or, if anyone asks where you’ve been, just smile mysteriously and say, “networking.” After all, nothing honors a prep period more than a little morbidity mixed with celebrity sightseeing.

—Written by Vin Bhat

—Crossword by Melody Song

Graphics by Kai Knutson and Sahana Mahadevan

Graphic by Michael Lu. Photos by Yael Gottesman

Answers (left to right): Kate Weymouth, Jacquelyn Silverbush, Warren Collier, Laurel Howard

Michael Lu

Viewers shift from hollywood to international film

From the tenth “Fast and Furious” to another Marvel sequel, Hollywood’s biggest recent blockbusters have left many viewers feeling uninspired. With franchise fatigue settling in, many turn their attention abroad, where international films like Justine Triet’s “Anatomy of a Fall” and Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s “Drive My Car” have secured multiple awards and inspired audiences all over the globe.

Senior Daniel Schwartz credits this trend to Hollywood’s lack of creativity.

“Hollywood is so uninspired now that it’s just a bunch of sequels,” he said. “It just seems like every movie is getting repetitive. Every movie is too predictable. There used to be more effort into the plots with crazy ideas and unique twists.”

On the other hand, international films offer a cultural perspective that can feel more original. Junior Van Calvert, whose father majored in film, has followed their shared passion, accumulating a list of over three hundred movies watched and currently taking the Film Literature class at Gunn.

“A lot of the movies that I’ve seen domestically are pretty action-like, so it’s just people going around and doing stuff,” he said. “But in international movies, I think (they) have a lot more themes and are visually interesting.”

Global cinema is also a platform for diversity in mainstream media. With parents who immigrated from Israel, Schwartz feels personally connected as many of his childhood favorites are Israeli musicals and films.

“They brought in all the special things about the culture, and that affected who I am now,” he said. “It’s about representation.”

Film Literature teacher Justin Brown explains how economic pressures have further fueled this shift. As streaming platforms gained dominance, mid-budget films shifted online, leaving studios to focus on highbudget blockbusters and, therefore, recycle big-screen characters.

“Everything Hollywood studios are making are $100 million movies, and if they’re going to make a $100 million movie, they want assurance it’s going to make

$200 million,” he said. “That means fewer risks, fewer chances for originality.”

Calvert relates the increase in new technology to the necessity for unique and eye-catching content in movies.

“In the 80s, (movie producers decided) that they were going to make super dazzling movies, like “Jaws” and “The Exorcist”, and everybody (went to) watch them,” he said. “As time progressed, the things that (people could watch) on their phones (became) more interesting than the movies that you can see in the theaters, so Hollywood has to adapt to that.”

With six years of experience creating film projects, junior Johnny Na believes that although international and American films are different, neither is superior.

“A lot of American movies, since America is such a melting pot for cultures, have diversity, and there’s a clear difference between them,” he said. “People need to appreciate how much hard work goes into both types of movies.”

—Written by Yael Gottesman

K-Pop idols charm audiences, raise unhealthy comparison concerns

Stadiums across the United States glitter with thousands of fans waving light sticks as K-pop idols energetically perform intricate choreography in flamboyant outfits. On Spotify, South Korean boy-band BTS — one of the most recognizable K-pop groups — has surpassed 80 million followers, becoming the first Asian group to do so. Now, the United States is experiencing a cultural phenomenon that resonates worldwide: a mainstream obsession with the K-pop industry, including the idols themselves.

This wave of growing fervor comes as part of the rise in global recognition for all South-Korean media, termed “Hallyu” — which translates to the Korean Wave. Beginning in the 1990s and spiking with artists such as BTS and Blackpink, K-pop popularity has been encapsulated by the trending 2025 Netflix film “KPop Demon Hunters.”

However, the influx of fans and attention has raised concerns about the industry and toxic fan behavior, specifically idolization, or excessive admiration for a person or object. Marketing and communication on social media platforms such as TikTok and X have fueled America’s obsession with K-pop stars, creating a continuous loop of fan-idol interaction. While these apps can aid in building closer emotional ties to their audiences, delusional fantasy is fed. As pop icons constantly post personalized content like vlogs, they indirectly foster a false sense of familiarity with fans, who might feel obligated to keep up with their idol’s private life.

Junior Yash Chaube has witnessed this unhealthy behavior. As a four-year fan of K-pop boy group Stray Kids, he enjoys listening to his favorite band and appreciates the diverse range of emotions that their music evokes. However, Chaube notes the balance between finding belonging in entertainment and losing touch with reality.

“I definitely see loss of focus overall in the media,” he said. “You call it ‘stanning’ when you overly support a group or person. Extreme obsession can lead to having an almost mono-personality where it’s just your whole life (that) revolves around that group or person.”

As part of these parasocial relationships, where a fan forms a one-sided bond with a public figure, a competition to show dedication to their idols becomes full blown. This commitment is a reflection of participatory culture, where individuals actively spread and create media. Fans may spend money and time creating social media accounts and videos, competitively streaming music and buying merchandise or fundraising to increase media attention. In some extreme cases, fans may even go as far as

engaging in stalking behavior or online harassment, sparking concern for a lack of idol privacy and toxic fandoms. Although most fans show their support through harmless ways, the blurry boundaries can quickly spiral into hostility or emotional distress.

With such large numbers and enthusiasm in fandoms, peer pressure is a prevalent issue. The idea that others are all doing the same thing heavily influences and reassures fans certain behavior, whether innocuous or harmful, is acceptable.

“In the early stages, I was kind of concerned, like ‘am I supporting enough or am I supporting too little,’” Chaube said. “That kind of thought just kept popping into my head at first. I definitely want to support them, but in general, I don’t feel the need to support them, like people getting tattoos. I’m not at that level.”

Compared to the Western market, the K-pop industry has captivated a variety of audiences with its fusion of music genres, synchronized dance moves and unique fan service. But embedded in the aesthetics and talents, idols undergo hours of disciplined training, restricted diets and the pressure to maintain public image. For example, freshman Leland Liao, an avid 3-year K-pop listener, believes that the K-pop industry promotes excessive plastic surgery and constricting diets, creating beauty standards that are unattainable naturally.

“I kept comparing myself to people who are under the perfect lighting, who have had surgery done to have the perfect facial structures (and) who have undergone seriously unrealistic diets to be able to maintain a certain body shape,” he said.

Portrayals as flawless figures can lead fans to turn to unhealthy habits in hopes of emulating these futile goals. Unintended consequences include feelings of inadequacy, insecurities, body dysmorphia and frequent comparisons.

Even so, sophomore Claire Sim, a four-year K-pop fan of the band Seventeen and the K-Pop Club president, highlights that one can consume K-pop content simply for enjoyment. She has found a positive healthy community to explore the different styles of music in.

“Being a K-pop stan, you don’t necessarily have to do all the things that you see online,” she said. “Just listening to their music and enjoying the community with the idols are what I think is a great way to enjoy your life as people like any other artists.”

—Written by Yuji Song