November 2023 Issue

Harvard-Westlake • Studio City • Volume 33 • Issue 3 • Nov. 15, 2023 • hwchronicle.com

School reacts to terrorism

By Alex Dinh

In response to the Israel-Hamas war, the school and Jewish Club held a series of mandatory and optional speakers.

History and Middle East Studies Teacher Dror Yaron spoke to all sophomores, juniors and seniors about the history behind the conflict. In addition to the mandatory class meetings, Yaron and StandWithUs Senior Educator Charlotte Korchak have both spoken to Jewish Club.

The day after Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, President Rick Commons and Head of School Laura Ross sent an email to the school community. Commons said he and Ross decided to officially designate and recognize the attacks as terrorism.

“It was our decision that what took place Oct. 7 was terrorism,” Commons said. “Clear and simple. We decided to announce that it was terrorism and not to shy away from naming the moral wrong that had taken place and taken so many innocent lives in that horrific experience.”

In the email, Commons and Ross also wrote that the the school will be working to provide resources to students struggling with the tragedy. Head of Upper School Beth Slattery said the school’s main priorities are informing and aiding the student body.

“Schools are about education and support,” Slattery said.

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CONNOR TANG/CHRONICLE

WITHOUT FURTHER ADO: Elise Fried ’24, as Margaret, teases Jack Smith ’26, as Benedick, after finding him secretly attempting to write a love letter to her friend, Beatrice. Margaret ends up helping Benedick profess his love to Beatrice, resulting in their wedding at the end of the play.

Performing Arts Department puts on modern production of “Much Ado About Nothing”

By Mia Morgan and Hannah Shahidi

The Upper School Performing Arts Department opened the fall play “Much Ado About Nothing” to audiences Oct. 26, 27 and 28. The show follows two couples as they overcome obstacles and eventually marry at the end of the play.

First performed at the Globe Theatre in London and written

by William Shakespeare, the play is over 400 years old. The school’s production features a

Field Day Festivities: Community and Prefect councils organize a relay race, Raising Cane’s and activities for Field Day.

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them as plays that are meant to be seen and heard. This play in particular is so playful and funny and sarcastic. For me, it was sort of a no-brainer to do it in modern times because my hope was for students and our community to see it through that lens.”

The modified version of “Much Ado About Nothing” featured the traditional dialogue and stage directions with added dance numbers and songs.

“I’m a dancer and choreographer, so [the script] spoke to me to include dance,” Washburn

said. “I also think it’s a nice brain break for the audience who have been listening to this different kind of English. Watching the dance gives their brains a moment to relax and look at something new.”

The plot of the play is driven by the villain, Don Jon, who attempts to break up the intended marriage between Hero and Claudio with accusations of infedelity.

Clara Berg ’25, who played Hero, said the moral of the play can applied to modern times.

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Administration sends email about parties

IN THIS ISSUE

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plot set in the present and touches on current events, according to Director and Performing Arts Teacher Sabrina Washburn.

Washburn said she created the modern adaptation to help audience members better understand the plot.

“I wanted to do a modern adaptation of ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ because I believe that we often treat these plays like they’re some untouchable, old thing that [needs] to be revered and respected as classic literature,” Washburn said. “But I see

By Connor Tang

B4-5 School Sweethearts: Teachers who are married to each other discuss their experiences sharing homes and workplaces.

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Losing Literacy: Title Takedown: Community members reflect Field hockey defeats Bonita High School, winning the on their relationships with reading for pleasure, and the title at the Sunset League difficulty to make time for it. Tournament of Champions.

The school heightened its concern regarding student parties amid increased reports of illicit substance use, according to an email sent by Head of Upper School Beth Slattery on Oct. 30.

Multiple student gatherings in the 2023-2024 school year have resulted in the involvement of paramedics or the hospitalization of students due to drug and alcohol consumption, the email read.

Slattery also warned about the possible consequences for both students and parents who continue to engage in the distribution and illegal use of substances, at the discretion of the school.

President Rick Commons said the school is taking stronger action towards drugs and alcohol than previous years.

“The subject of student parties, alcohol and drugs before was unspoken,” Commons said. “We used to say, ‘Be safe, take good care of yourselves and don’t do anything too risky.’ Now, in the 11th year of my role, we’ve sent out warnings in the past, but they’ve never been quite as direct [pertaining] to the issues of parties and especially the safety of

students. We had not yet spoken by parents and that some have publicly to the community spe- helped plan parties for their kids. cifically about the exclusionary Commons said that involvement nature of the parties or the liabil- of parents has further put students at risk of alcohol misuse. ity laws of parents.”

“Some parents [involved with Slattery said the dangerous behavior at parties has parties] are making the deciled the school to take ac- sions,” Commons said. “They tion in keeping students safe. either turn a blind eye [to alco“This is the first year where it hol], or they actually provide it, feels like parties are ramping up on the principle [that] it’s better to pre-pandemthat [their kids] ic proportions,” drink [at a party] Slattery said. than drink at a The subject of club somewhere “It’s been hard student parties, alcohol or in some place to hear from parents or kids and drug before [this that isn’t as safe that somebody as their home. email] was unspoken.” went to the [It’s imperative] hospital, and parents — Rick Commons that it’s just really unify around President the principle of terrifying. Now, in the current keeping alcohol landscape of as far away from what we’ve already been through, student gatherings as possible.”

I wake up almost every day terriSlattery said parents have a fied to look at my phone [and see] responsibility to protect their whether I got a text in the middle children by engaging in conversaof the night [about a student]. It’s tion and not being judgemental. very emotional for me because “I understand kids are gonmy whole job is to keep kids safe.” na go to parties, and kids might According to Slattery and drink, but [it’s horrible] to Commons, the school has been know that [some] adults are notified that in some instanc- facilitating it,” Slattery said. es, alcohol has been provided • Continued on A5

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The Chronicle

A2 News

School reports f inances

Nov. 15, 2023

By Averie Perrin

The school set Annual Giving records for the most amount of money raised by an independent day school, raised teacher salaries at a higher rate than tuition for the sixth consecutive time and amassed a 13% increase in total net assets in the 2022-2023 fiscal year. The school also provided $13.2 million in financial aid, funding about 20% of students’ tuition.

The 990 nonprofit tax form showing financial records for the 2022-2023 school year has been submitted to the Internal Revenue Service but has not been CONNOR TANG/CHRONICLE finalized, according to Chief Fi- A COMPLICATED PAST: History teacher Dror Yaron speaks at a mandatory assembly for students Oct. 23. The presentations were meant to teach nancial Officer David Weil ’93. students about the broader history behind the Israel-Palestine conflict amid the Oct. 7. attacks on Israel by the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

Weil said the school has surpassed their initial goals for the financial aid budget in recent years.

“When [President Rick Commons] first became president, there was a target internally that 15% of our students would be receiving some form of [financial] assistance from the school,” Weil said. “Under his leadership, • Continued from A1 ting flash reports, so she was the Yaron’s presentation and talked how sad it is that so many indiwe have increased that target viduals have to suffer so much. supTrustees’ of Board the with “Our job is to educate people, one who had alerted me to it. By with him after about it.

“My friend and I felt that the What I’ve appreciated the most port to where we're now target- and that’s why we have had man- the time I woke up the next day, original presentation to sopho- though is that everyone has recing something closer to 20%. datory class meetings with Yaron the reality had set in.”

Sickle said his oldest child is mores and juniors was more one- ognized how evil the events of We're actually in excess of that to give some background to peoright now.” ple. And then support, because we currently serving in the Israeli De- sided,” Jasper said. “We talked 10/7 were, which has allowed for Despite the increase in aid have a number of kids, families, fense Forces (IDF) army, and said to [Yaron] about revising it to many productive conversations given to students, the school's tu- faculty and staff who are really he and his wife decided it would get views from both sides in the regardless of personal beliefs.”

Slattery said the complexity of ition remains below the median directly impacted by this, we are be best to take their younger chil- presentation to seniors. I’ve been for independent day schools, ac- trying to continue to have kind of dren to Los Angeles immediately talking to different people, and the issue has made it difficult to there are some people [whom] I've cultivate a space that supports the following the attack. cording to Commons. Commons support for them.” been trying to [tell] that I don't whole community.

“My oldest daughter's in the Former History Teacher Pesaid the money from Annual Giv“It is complicated because we ing enables the school to main- ter Sickle ’85 was on a routine army,” Sickle said. “Luckily, like Israel's government, but that have a lot of people in pain right tain a lower tuition than other business trip to Los Angeles she's in the West Bank. She was doesn't mean I'm antisemitic.”

In addition to the mandatory now,” Slattery said. “What has from Tel Aviv, Israel at the time drafted out of high school, and private schools. meeting, Jewish Club mem- been challenging for me is that for she's almost halfway into a twoof the attacks.

He and his wife “We had wonderful participation from our parents and have three kids, aged 19, 13 and year stint as a draftee. We decid- ber Edward Ward ’25 attended some people, it seems like a binaalumni in the Annual Giving seven, and have lived in Tel Aviv ed to take our two younger kids some of the optional speaker ry issue. [Like] if I say something campaign, and that supports our since 2008. Sickle said a text out. I flew from Israel to [Los events. Ward said he has been that is perceived as pro-Israel, then operating budget,” Commons message from his wife was the Angeles] on the 12th, and after a able to have productive con- that means that I'm anti-Palestinsaid. “Without Annual Giving, first he had heard of the attack few weeks we decided that it was versations with people on both ian, and if there's something that safe enough to take them back sides of the war. expresses empathy for the Paleswe would lose over 10% of our on Israel from Hamas. to Tel Aviv.”

“I've spoken with a lot of my tinian people, that means that I'm “The first I heard of [the atoperating budget. We count on Jett Jasper ’26 said he believes friends, people who have con- anti-Israel. What I'd really love is it every year, and it enables us to tack] was getting a [text] from my keep our tuition below the me- wife saying ‘We're okay’,” Sickle in a more free Palestine, rather nections on both sides of the for us to be able to be in a space said. “I thought, ‘Okay from than Gaza and the West Bank conflict, both Palestinian and where you can have support for dian of schools in this area." what?’ It was 7 a.m. in Israel and being under Israel's control. He Israeli,” Ward said. “Those con- Israel and you could have support • Continued on hwchronicle.com 9 p.m. in L.A., but I wasn't get- said he disagreed with aspects of versations have revolved around for Palestinians."

School community reacts to Israel-Hamas war following Hamas' deadly Oct. 7 attacks

Students take part in service week

By Celine Wang

Community Council hosted its annual Community Service Week from Nov. 6-10. Students made 2,000 hygiene kits, packaged Thanksgiving meal kits and drafted letters for Hope in a Suitcase, a nonprofit organization that provides children in foster care with basic essentials and comfort items. The event also featured a competition, as each dean group and faculty competed for an award based on their participation in these activities.

Community Council member Clarissa Brown ’24 said the primary goal of the week was to bring the community together through enjoyable service activities.

“The school's 12-hour community service requirement is often something that is at the back of the student body's mind," Brown said.

"We have been told it seems like a big, last-minute burden when the deadline starts coming up. We hope that by organizing events like

Community Service Week, we can help the student body and greater school community feel excited [about] community service. One of Community Council's biggest goals is to instill a lifelong passion for community service within our student body, and I think that by introducing students to a variety of service organizations, we were able to help students find at least one opportunity that they felt a personal connection to.”

Community Council member Cole Grossman ’25 said students should find ways to serve communities while doing something they enjoy.

"For community service, we always say [students should] find something that they're passionate about," Grossman said. "Not only will they feel good because [they're] giving back, but [they'll] also find something they enjoy.

Once they start to like doing that community service, it piles up, and in the end they're giving back to something they like."

Community Council member Zoe Roth ’24 said the best part of the week was connecting with outreach groups.

“My favorite part was writing letters to put in the hygiene kits,” Roth said. “I liked writing cute notes and decorating them so that the kits were more personalized to the person getting them. I also loved working with the [Los Angeles] food bank. I got to meet [their team], and I know that the meals we [prepared] are in good hands because they care so much about the work they are doing.”

Grossman said community service is encouraged given the school community's privileged position.

“The students really helped those organizations because they were in need of a lot of resources and [items],” Grossman said. “Especially in a time like this, with Thanksgiving and the holidays, it's important to recognize and be grateful for what we have. We [always] want to give back to those who are less fortunate.”

CONNOR TANG/CHRONICLE

HELPING HANDS: Students help pack kits for the LA Food Bank on Nov. 8. Community Council planned service events throughout the week.

hwchronicle.com/news

Nov. 15, 2023

News A3

Tours resume in person

By Hannah Shahidi

rity and social justice.

He said he appreciated being able to talk with major leaders in the U.S. who shared his passion for language learning.

“I enjoyed the roundtable policy discussions,” He said. “It was a great opportunity to learn about the challenges and opportunities facing language education in the United States. It was also a chance to network with other language advocates and share ideas about how we can best promote multilingualism.”

He said the event was valuable because of the crucial role languages play in society today.

“Language advocacy is important because it helps to ensure that all students have access to high-quality language education,” He said.

The Admission Office conducted in-person tours and events for applicants and their families for the first time since the 20192020 admissions season. Previous admissions events had been either fully virtual or hybrid due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Associate Director of Admission Julia Kraft said hosting tours during the school day allows applicants to gain a better understanding of student life at the school.

“It’s been nice to have people back in person to have face-to-face interactions, and to have people see campus when it’s vibrant and full of student life,” Kraft said. “Even if [applicants are] coming after school, it’s not the same experience as seeing the school when there are kids during passing periods [or] eating lunch on the Commons.

All of that was lost when we had no opportunity to tour during the school day.”

Student ambassadors are now holding individualized tours during periods in the day. These tours will follow or preceed an applicants interview with a member of the schools faculty.

In previous years, group tours were held after school in accordance with social distancing guidelines. Student Ambassador Co-Chair Ellie Whang ’24 said it is important for applicants to be able to experience the campus before applying.

“The in-person tours will just be better in so many different ways,” Whang said. “Communication is one thing, but also being able to physically be on campus and imagine yourself there, that’s something that I think about when I’m going on college visits.

It’s lower stakes when you’re applying to middle school, but [it’s] still something that is super important, as you’re applying to see [if ] this [is] somewhere where I can fit in and see myself.”

• Continued on hwchronicle.com

• Continued on hwchronicle.com

PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF BIN HE

COOL AT THE CAPITOL: Chinese teacher Bin He stands together with language teachers from around the country at an event on Capitol Hill. The event is hosted annually in Washington D.C. and serves as an opportunity for language teachers to discuss and meet with legislators.

Chinese teacher makes visit to Capitol Hill for annual Language Advocacy Day event

By Chloe Park and Grant park World Languages teacher Bin He visited the U.S. Capitol to participate in the Language Advocacy Day event hosted by the Joint National Committee for Languages (JNCL) on Oct. 16. The event invited 100 language educators from around the world to meet with several legislators on Capitol Hill and discuss advocacy for more equitable language education legislation. The event also included advocacy training, meetings with federal legislators and various roundtable discussions.

He attended advocacy training with Mark Dennin, who serves as Legislative Director for Congressman Jimmy Panetta, and participated in the American’s Languages

Caucus Briefing with various ed- Tony Cardenas and the policy ucation leaders around the world. advisor for Senator Alex PadilHe said the event was a valuable la to discuss the importance of experience. world language programs for in“My favorite dividual students part of the Lanand California It was inspiring guage Advocacy as a whole. He Day experience shared how the to see so many people was the opporWorld Language from different walks of tunity to meet Department at life come together to with federal the school helps legislators and students prepare support this cause.” advocate for for the real world.

—Bin He The event culmimultilingualism and language Chinese Teacher nated in a meeteducation with ing with Laurent language eduBill, the Ambassacators across [different] countries,” dor of France to the U.S., at the He said. “It was inspiring to see so Planet Word Museum, where He many people from different walks exchanged ideas and talked about of life come together to support creating a multilingual learning this important cause.” program. They also discussed the He also met with the legislative critical role of languages in job correspondent for Representative growth, matters of national secu-

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Community and Prefect councils organize first Field Day of the year

By Jayan Kandavel and Jack Ryan Prefect Council and Community Council collaborated to host the first Field Day event of the year during lunch Nov. 10 on Ted Slavin Field.

Field Day included a burger grill, food from Raising Cane’s, an ice cream sundae bar, picnic blankets on the field, a relay race and an inflatable obstacle course. Students competed in activities to earn points for their dean group as a part of Community Service Week.

Community Council member Nate Verny ’25 said the goal of Field Day was to help create school spirit.

“I believe field day is incredibly important, as at Harvard-Westlake, we have a school-wide and community-wide culture that I think is frankly lacking,” Verny said. “I feel events like these help

bring us together. With everybody on the field, enjoying themselves and playing sports, you feel like you are a part of a bigger community.”

Sophomore Prefect Caroline Cosgrove ’26 said Prefect Council was responsible for organizing the food and activity logistics for the event, while Community Council’s role was to organize the relay race.

“As a member of Prefect Council, I helped bring the bouncy obstacle course, the Raising Canes and worked with the cafeteria for the rest of the food options,” Cosgrove said.

“Community Council dealt with the relay race aspect of the day, and collectively we handed out the tickets and food.”

Micah Parr ’25 said he enjoyed how Field Day offered a moment of relaxation in the middle of the day.

“I feel as a whole there is a

pressure to constantly grind, and it leads to an unhealthy cycle of constantly working and expecting results,” Parr said. “We forget to take care of ourselves.

We got to have fun [during Field day], which was a nice moment to hang out together.”

Community Council member Malia Yap ’24 said she enjoyed getting to see students in different grade levels interacting and enjoying themselves through recent Community Council events on campus.

“I think field day was a great culmination of all of our hard work throughout the week,” Yap said. “Our group events definitely tied in some of the themes we’ve been discussing in Community Council. We’ve been focusing a lot on connection, especially between grade levels on campus. It was really cool to see everything come together and make an impact on campus.”

HANNAH SHAHIDI/CHRONICLE

FRIDAY FIELD FUN: Sophomore Prefect Caroline Cosgrove ’26 passes out chicken and fries from Raising Cane’s to students during Field Day.

The Chronicle

News A4

SLIDE presents to students

Nov. 15, 2023

By Alex Reisner

The affinity group leaders of Student Leaders for Inclusion, Diversity and Equity (SLIDE) presented to sophomores to encourage engagement in affinity groups Nov. 15. Affinity group leaders offered information about various clubs and promoted their own affinity groups. Additionally, the presentations included an icebreaker and an identity-based activity.

SLIDE Co-Chair Ella Jacobs ’24 said the presentations were important to foster a sense of belonging for sophomores.

“SLIDE has been so important to us, both socially and in our lives outside of the school,” Jacobs said.

“Our goal is to give sophomores a sense of how much more open [the] campus can feel when you have somewhere you belong.”

SLIDE Co-Chair and Middle Eastern Student Alliance (MESA) club leader Lila Daoudi ’24 said presenting sophomores with cultural spaces will allow them to find their own community and explore other clubs. “[SLIDE leaders] see that the biggest connection is through different organizations or opportunities to engage with people on campus,” Daoudi said. “We want to make sure that everybody feels they can have their community in which they relate to people, or even explore a new culture, [Cultural clubs] are definitely an important thing to a have on campus. We at [SLIDE] want to make sure that people are aware of the opportunities they can have, especially the sophomores.”

• Continued on hwchronicle.com

EDEN CONNER/CHRONICLE

OUT WITH THE OLD, IN WITH THE NEW: Mudd Library renovations, which began in June, will be completed in December and include a new silent study space, more group study rooms, the relocated student Learning Center and more open space for students to collaborate in.

Mudd Library renovations featuring remodeled study spaces set to be completed in December

By Amber Zhang

Mudd Library will remain closed due to construction until after Thanksgiving break. The renovations, which have been taking place since early June, will include improved study spaces and house the relocated student Learning Center.

Librarian Jessica Wahl said she believes that the library space will be much improved.

“There’s going to be more separation for a loud area and a quiet study area,” Wahl said.

“The new library is going to look updated and inviting.”

Wahl said while the temporary library in the Feldman-Horn Gallery has met students’ needs, she looks forward to the comple-

tion of the renovated library. “[The gallery] has been used well by students, but it’s more difficult because we have constant construction noise, and the ceilings are pretty echoey,” Wahl said. “[We librarians] definitely see less students than we’re used to, so we’re hoping that once [the library is complete], students will want to come in, hang out and study. That’s what we’re looking forward to.”

Hannah Biggins ’25 said she frequented the library before the renovation and is disappointed that it has not been completed.

“It is upsetting to me that the library is still under renovation despite it already being second quarter,” Biggins said. “During my sophomore year, the library was one of my favorite places on

campus. I always loved the lively feeling, the perpetually unfinished jigsaw puzzle and the [general ambiance].”

Head of Upper School Beth Slattery said with the opening of the library rapidly approaching, she is thinking of ways to reintroduce students to the space.

“It seems like it is on track to be completed [soon],” Slattery said.

“Now, we’re trying to figure out what kind of opening we are going to have, and whether it will just be a soft opening, where people can just go in, or if we’d like to give tours.”

President Rick Commons said he is optimistic that the new space will better fulfill the needs of students.

“From what I can see, it’s go-

ing to be fantastic,” Commons said. “There are going to be many more study spaces, and the learning center is going to be there.

We’ll have opportunities for the faculty and staff who are involved with teaching, learning and data science [to be] in the same zone.

It’ll be a much more useful and concentrated space, both for faculty and for students.”

Tess Rosenfeld ’25 said the renovated space will bring new opportunities for students. “[The construction] has limited the amount of time I spend on campus, because there is no space that fits my needs,” Rosenfeld said. “[However], I’m excited to have a better location to host the summer program I run, [called] Harvard-Westlake (HW) Inc.”

Prefect Council hosts annual costume contest

By Celine Wang

PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF SHAUNA ALTIERI

HANDS UP FOR HALLOWEEN: Students and faculty competed in Prefect Council’s annual Halloween costume contest on the Quad on Oct. 31. The first place winner of the contest received a $50 gift card prize.

Prefect Council hosted a Halloween costume contest during lunch Oct. 31. A panel of faculty members judged each contestant’s costume, and the contestant with the highest score won a $50 gift card. Faculty dressed up as characters from the movie “Barbie” and participated in a flash mob dance with a group of students set to “Dance the Night Away” by Dua Lipa.

Junior Prefect Ellie Borris ’25 said he was glad the event was lively and had many participants.

“It was fun not only organizing the event but participating in it as well,” said Borris. “Our main goal in planning the event was bringing fun and Halloween spirit to the Quad, which I believe we achieved.”

Mathematics Teacher Kasia Williams, who participated in the dance performance, said she appreciated the opportunity to connect with other teachers.

“I really like working with other teachers on artsy projects in general,” Williams said. “I enjoy getting to know the other adults on campus and having

fun together. Everyone was super nice and supportive. We all wanted to keep practicing because dancing makes us feel good and practice makes [us] better.”

Ryan Acosta ’26 said he enjoyed the costume contest as it allowed him and his friends to dress up as characters from the television show “Octonauts.”

“I immediately knew I wanted to do the costume contest when it was announced, as I wanted to showcase [our] amazing ‘Octonauts’ costume,” Acosta said. “I was able to convince two of my friends to join me, as it would make more sense if there was more than one ‘Octonaut.’”

Sarah Parmet ’25 was one of the student dancers leading the flash mob. Parmet she enjoyed learning the choreography as well as the energy of the dance.

“I chose to participate because I’ve always wanted to do a flash mob,” Parmet said. “I love dancing and being part of the school spirit seemed exciting.

Hank [Schoen ’24] and Arely [Monterroso ’24]’s choreography was really good, so I had a lot of fun doing the dance with them.”

Nov. 15, 2023

The Chronicle

News A5

The Party Problem Students and faculty discuss the prevalence of substance-related accidents at parties hosted or attended by students of the school.

ties due to peer pressure.”

Counselor Brittany Bronson said students who use substanc“With my own child, a ninth es often do not intend to engrader, I wouldn’t prevent her danger themselves in doing so. from going to a party, but I “Kids don’t have the intenwould want to make sure she tion of drinking or using [a made good choices. If parents substance] to the point where are having those conversations, they get sick [to the point where if at a party [their kids] where something] happens to have gotten really sick or one them medically or physically of their good friends because their body [has], [their kids] can can’t take it anymore,” call them without Bronson said. “A lot of them getting angry. times [drugs] are used The most important to relieve stress that thing in that moment they’re experiencing is [for kids] to take in school and in [life care of themselves and outside] of school.” for adults to make sure Keith*, another that happens.” student who has atL. Wood Sadie*, a student tended parties in the Brittany who has been to mulpast, said hosts’ genBronson tiple parties this year, eral intentions are for said she thinks people substances to be used prefer to be under the influence in a casual environment. because it creates a more enjoy“I’ve seen people go too craable party environment. zy,” Keith said. “[The hosts] “There’s a way for kids to sometimes provide [substanchave fun at the parties without es]. They never want people to being under the influence,” Sa- go too crazy or anything. It’s die said. “But because of peer meant to be chill, but people pressure and the atmosphere of can lead each other on and take the parties, it often makes being it too far.” under the influence seem more Keith said he has felt the effun than being sober. If the fects of peer pressure on himself kids weren’t under the influ- and others. ence at the parties, it wouldn’t “[At parties] I drink somebe different from hanging out times, but I would never put or socializing at school, so re- myself at risk of a medical sisting the temptation to drink emergency,” Keith said. “I try is really hard at par- to ignore peer pressure, [and • Continued from A1

say] shame on the people who the point that you need [to call] an ambulance.” try to peer pressure [others].”

Keith said students need to Sadie said she remains aware of her own alcohol tolerance intervene in situations where when drinking and makes sure their friends are intoxicated to a dangerous extent. to stay in control.

“Students have to genuinely “I drink responsibly by knowing my limits,” Sadie said. be proactive when their friends “To be honest, I wouldn’t re- are taking it too far and not just ally say I’m that responsible, so discourage them [from conI rely on my friends to keep me tinuing to drink],” Keith said.

“Don’t just say, in check. Based ‘Oh, stop doon experiences, ing that.’ but I’ve learned how Students have to [seriously] take to not drink over genuinely be proactive it out of their my limit.” hand and recAccording to when their friends are ognize when Sadie, alcohol is taking it too far and not it’s going way provided by both just discourage them too far. If your the hosts and offriend is about ten brought by [from continuing to to blackout the partygoers drink].” or if they’re themselves, as well. She said — Keith* throwing up, they should that parties ofnot still have ten have drinking rules put in place by hosts to the handle in their hand.”

Sadie said that creating an prevent heavy drinking.

“I was actually surprised by the enjoyable party environment drinking rules because at the end ultimately comes with risks of of the day, [the hosts] want ev- substance abuse. eryone to have fun at the parties, “It’s hard to reduce hospitalizaso there are rules to help prevent tions and those severe incidents things like alcohol poisoning and because you want your friends to throwing up,” Sadie have fun,” Sadie said. “But if they said. “For exam- don’t know their own limits, it’s ple, there are hefty hard for them to be responsible fees to those who to create their own safe environthrow up, and you ment. On one hand, [kids] have get called out if to know their own limits and [the you are getting hosts] make sure alcohol poison- to tell everyone ing or sick to that, but on the

“

other hand it’s their party and their alcohol that’s ultimately putting that person in the hospital.”

Slattery said that despite the school’s limited jurisdiction over parties, she hopes that the school’s actions will discourage unsafe behavior.

“I can’t really do anything about it if I don’t know [who organizes the parties],” Slattery said. “If I have information, my first approach would be to call the family or the kid. I’m not interested in suspending or kicking people out of school under any context, and that’s not something I take pleasure in. I mostly want to talk to [those responsible] and say, ‘Listen, that wasn’t a great choice, and you put people in danger. There are consequences to it, and you won’t be welcome on our campus if you’re not going to keep [kids] safe.’”

Commons said the school will continue its efforts to be direct with issues despite the potential for student and parent backlash.

“As we’ve come through the tragedies [of last year], the horror of the risks that students are taking now is more on our minds than ever,” Commons said.

“We’re more willing to be direct and take the backlash if [we’re] trying to keep kids safe. I know the letter didn’t make everybody happy when they received it, but I do think it will make people safer.” *Names have been changed.

ILLUSTRATION BY MEJO LIAO

N A6

T C • N. 1

Senior Independent Studies Nine seniors were selected to work on Independent Study projects this semester. Six of them and their advisors are highlighted here.

Chloe Dolkart

By S D’O

SIENNA DALL’OLMO/CHRONICLE

Chloe Dolkart ’24 is studying the relationship between COVID-19 and developing Type 1 diabetes for her Senior Independent Study this semester. Dolkart is currently working with Upper School Science Teacher Chelsea Stewart to find and analyze different ideas for her final scientific research paper on the topic.

Dolkart said she made the decision on her topic because of her own personal knowledge and intrigue in COVID-19’s effect on young people ever since the pandemic began in 2020.

“I was inspired to choose this topic because of personal experience and interest in COVID-19’s effects on the youth population,”

Dolkart said. “I am excited to learn more about the specific traits of both Type 1 diabetes and COVID-19 as well as the heritability of Type 1 diabetes.”

Dolkart said she decided on her advisor after taking Stewart’s class last year and knew she would be a supportive adult.

“I chose [Stewart] because I took her class, Human Anatomy and Physiology, last year and I knew she would be a great advisor and supportive through this process,” Dolkart said.

Stewart said she accepted the role of advisor because she found Dolkart’s observation interesting.

“I agreed to advise the independent study because I thought Chloe’s question was very intriguing,” Stewart said.

“Additionally, as a teacher, I

love to watch a student’s curiosity lead them to new questions and new discoveries.”

Dolkart said the biggest challenge in her research so far has been incorporating and tying in the new and dynamic information on COVID-19.

“I think the biggest struggle in my research is synthesizing all the information and finding current studies since COVID-19 research is continuously evolving and it is important to stay up to date on the information,” Dolkart said.

“Working with Dr. Stewart has given me another perspective on finding important points to put in my paper as well as someone to run ideas by who already has tons of knowledge on what I am studying.”

Elizabeth Johnstone

By E R Elizabeth Johnstone ’24 is studying environmental concerns and changes in water pollution policy in Vietnam-era U.S. for her Senior Independent Study.

Johnstone said she chose her topic because it matched her academic and personal interests.

“I love history, environmental science, public policy and writing, so it was awesome to be able to apply for a project like this,” Johnstone said. “More specifically, Vietnam-era America is one of my favorite periods to learn about. It was such a dynamic time, and we’re seeing very similar impetus for social and political change today.”

Johnstone said she had to

adjust her initial study to expand upon administrative responses based on her findings of public feedback.

“Originally, I set out to study how the creation of the EPA [Environmental Protection Agency] may have led to more robust state and regional water pollution policy, but after the first quarter of research, I’ve had to pivot a little to fit the literature I’ve been finding,” Johnstone said. “I’m still investigating water pollution policy, but now I’m shifting to see how specific public opinion, outcry and policy at the state level influenced federal response.”

Johnstone said she plans on incorporating past and present policies in her final 30-page paper.

“I’ll be synthesizing what I

find about the ’60s and ’70s with research about today’s water policy landscape, hopefully drawing some insightful conclusions about what policymakers can learn from what happened half a century ago,” Johnstone said.

Goedde said she is looking forward to reading about Johnstone’s discoveries in her final project.

“Just as I expected, [Johnstone] is making strong progress with her research and shaping the focus of her analysis,” Goedde said. “[Johnstone] is taking a very ambitious approach by comparing the actions of both federal and state governments in two different time periods. That requires a great deal of research and focus but promises to yield some very interesting points of comparison.”

ERIN RYU/CHRONICLE

15, 2023 • ./

N A7

Dillon Ring

By E L

EVERETT LAKEY/CHRONICLE

Dillon Ring ’24 is composing, playing and recording an originally composed jazz album for his Senior Independent Study project this semester. Ring will play all instruments for the various pieces, including the saxophone, bass, drums and piano for the songs. The album will feature some of Ring’s friends who have impacted his musical career.

Ring said the album and his songs will also include several homages to all his inspirations as a musician.

“All the songs are based on motifs from musical influences,” Ring said. “One song is called ‘To Live,’ and it’s based on Sonny Rollins. [He] is well

project. [Many] of [the puzzles] feature connections to topics like graph theory or combinatorics.”

Deshong said learning how to create and format puzzles has been a learning curve for him.

“It’s a lot more time-consuming to create puzzles than I thought it would be,” Deshong said. “The upside is that I’ve found a good mix of knowing what I want a puzzle to accomplish and seeing what kinds of puzzles a computer generates, which makes the whole thing quicker. It can also be pretty time-consuming to format all of the puzzle diagrams, but fortunately other people have found ways to input all of the diagrams.”

Mathematics Teacher Laffite Lamberto-Egan is serving as Deshong’s faculty adviser. Lam-

berto-Egan said he quickly took interest in Deshong’s Senior Independent Study due to his personal love for logic puzzles. “[Like Deshong], [I] enjoy playing games and solving puzzles,” Lamberto-Egan said. “It’s doubly enjoyable for me when I encounter puzzles which have a mathematical connection. [Deshong’s] project immediately caught my eye.”

Lamberto-Egan said advising Deshong for the project has been an enjoyable process.

“It’s been pretty fun so far,” Lamberto-Egan said. “Mainly, I just read the chapters that [Deshong] has written, listen to him describe where he is headed and make sure he is meeting his deadlines so he finishes the project in time.”

known for trio playing, which [includes] no chords. It’s usually bass, drums and saxophone.

For that song specifically, I will also play in a trio setting, and I will try and emulate some things about his playing.”

Upper School Jazz Teacher Chris Sullivan is serving as Ring’s faculty advisor for his project. Sullivan said his main role is to help Ring edit and refine his compositions.

“I have been able to help with small melodic tweaks here and there that have come from spending the past 18 years working to understand the jazz language and its different dialects,” Sullivan said. “Swing, bebop, hard bop, cool jazz, etc., all have their own language, and

we’ve worked to make the compositions as true to the different styles as possible.”

Ring said he has loved working with Sullivan since he was appointed the Jazz band director at the school. “[Sullivan] is amazing. He’s my favorite teacher,” Ring said.

“He’s been our band director for three years, and it’s been the most amazing experience. I chose him [as my advisor] because he is a seasoned expert in jazz. He’s a professional musician himself, [and] he knows everything there is to know about composition, jazz and how someone would go about doing a project like this.

It was perfect because he’s been great at guiding the entire program throughout his time here.”

Aidan Deshong

By C H Aidan Deshong ’24 is writing a textbook about logic puzzles and how they connect to larger mathematical concepts for his Senior Independent Study.

Deshong said the textbook aims to teach readers how to become better at solving logic puzzles and understand the topics in mathematics behind them.

“The textbook is a mix of handcrafted puzzles, drills or practice problems to help the reader discover solving techniques on their own and [includes] writing about how the puzzles connect to mathematics at large,” Deshong said. “It has all of the classics like Sudoku, as well as [other puzzles] that I hadn’t even heard of before starting the

COLIN HO/CHRONICLE

Chris Robertson

By N W

PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF CHRIS ROBERTSON

Chris Robertson ’24 is coding a program that predicts the molecular structure of an unknown molecule using quantum chemistry for his Senior Independent Study. By using the Hartree–Fock method in his code, Robertson will theoretically map the organization of electrons that yields the lowest total molecular energy. Robertson’s code moves the nuclei of atoms in a molecule to experiment with the molecule’s energy and predict the geometry of the unknown molecule.

Robertson said while his project’s code is often difficult, being able to actually understand the applicable theoretical aspects of quantum chemistry is

navigating a beyond complex and distinct experience that would not apply to many HW students in hegemonic groups.

Apart from this, I also explored the Black community’s generational stigma towards mental health and how it can sometimes create an unwelcoming environment to be vulnerable.”

Baffo said her independent study aims to find better ways to teach mental health topics and help Black teens with their struggles through chronicling student thoughts and experiences in a film.

“I’m going to create a documentary capturing the participants’ thoughts, experiences and background with mental health and their journey using the reflection, coping mechanisms and exercises

I will share and teach,” Baffo said.

“My underlying goal is to create lasting digital content that can be a source of representative reference for Black kids everywhere. I hope they will use these creative works to benefit their lives where these conversations may be unsafe.”

Baffo said her faculty advisor, Upper School Counselor Brittany Bronson, has been a great help to her during the process.

“I reached out to Bronson because she is a prominent therapist and counselor at the school, and she is also Black, so she may have personal experience as well.” Baffo said. “Bronson and I came up with the curriculum together, what topics we wanted to cover and what activities we wanted to do, so she helped me greatly with that.

even more challenging.

“The hard part isn’t the coding,” Robertson said.

“The hard part is wrapping my head around the topic.

The coding isn’t easy, but it’s secondary to figuring out what all of [the quantum mechanical theory] means.”

Robertson said the most rewarding part of his project has been being able to expand on his already acquired knowledge to create an accurate program.

“When I first read articles about [my topic], I had no idea what any of [the information] meant,” Robertson said. “But after spending hours and hours doing more reading, opening a new tab, looking up this random term and going through a textbook, it was really gratifying to

[understand] what [the research is] talking about. I understand stuff that I never would have understood a month ago. It was satisfying to see the program output something, even if it wasn’t the most accurate.”

Science Teacher Narae Park is serving as Robertson’s faculty advisor and previously taught him in Advanced Placement (AP) Chemistry. Park said advising such a complex project is a learning experience for herself.

“I know chemistry, but I know nothing about computer science,” Park said. “What [Robertson] is doing is very interesting because his idea is so foreign to me. I feel like [Robertson] is helping me more than I’m helping him, but it’s a good experience.”

Maddie Baffo

By A K Madison Baffo ’24 is studying mental health for Black teens for her Senior Independent Study project, and how to better support for Black students in the school and throughout America.

Baffo said she reflected on how her personal identity and stigma against it impacted her mental health, during the coronavirus lockdown, and started to think about the wide variety of causes of her struggles.

“I began to break down several factions of my life and their intersections.” Baffo said. “I learned that as a Black female student in a rigorous, predominantly white institution, I was

AUDREY KIM/CHRONICLE ILLUSTRATIONS BY EVA PARK

A Crazed Crossword

ACROSS: 1. Poetry competition 5. Is indebted to 9. Hue 14. Fire hydrant hookup 15. British slang for a fellow 16. Prohibited 17. Standardized tests out of 36: abbr.

18. Ripped 19. Microsoft co-founder Paul 20. The middle of a corridor on the Red Planet?

23. Chess.com rating

Nov. 15, 2023

The Chronicle

A8 News

system, for short 24. I, in Latin?

25. Podcast interruptions 26. Individual 28. Congeals 30. Consumed food 33. Mowing the lawn or washing the dishes 35. Opera star 36. “Dracula” author Stoker 37. “A carpet’s near the theater!”

40. Drinks at a 43-Across 41. Short video on Instagram

42. Like Almond Joys 43. Tavern 44. They’re extracted from peanuts, coconuts and olives 45. Animal that’s like a butterfly but ugly and annoying 46. Famous “Honest” guy 47. NFL official 48. Degree awarded by MIT’s Sloan School of Management 51. “That Eastern European who was in the

Chron-nections

Aidan Deshong ’24 assembled the third issue’s 64 question crossword. Hint: Solve “fill in the blank” questions first. Go forth and puzzle!

movie about the stuffed bear is on a pasture!”

56. The ~ on an ñ 57. Lightly-flavored water brand sometimes in the cafeteria 58. Small earring 59. Runs in neutral 60. “And, ...”

61. Dean’s ___ 62. Common still-life fruits 63 Samuel Adams, e.g.

64. Reverberating sound

• Answers on C4

DOWN: 1. Humiliate 2. Not global, as a variable in a computer program 3. Sign reader?

4. Untidy situation 5. Number on a gas pump 6. Entire 7. ____ of Sandwich 8. Detail, for short 9. Places to buy lemonade from a kid entrepreneur 10. Suddenly ends 11. Word means the same thing with cap- added to its start 12. Go-getter 13. Hadean or Proterozoic 21. What a worker bee creates 0.8 grams of over a lifetime 22. Patronize, as a restaurant 27. Spheres 28. A pentagon has five 29. Anagram and synonym of 54-Down 30. The study of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division 31. Stretched tight 32. The “E” of EGOT 33. Word after hermit or after apple 34. Hawaiian dance 35. Battle between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr 36. French for “raw” 38. Princess in a recent Disney remake 39. Type of light switch 44. Lose sleep (over) 45. Trusted teacher 46. Venemous snake 47. _____ and repeat 49. Turn red from embarrassment 50. Strengthen, as an argument 51. Ocean motion 52. Name that can be parsed as “the” in Spanish 53. “Moby-Dick” captain 54. Anagram and synonym of 29-Down 55. Part of an archipelago 56. Bit of advice

Lily Stambouli ’24 created The Chronicle’s first Chron-nections.

To play, find four groups of four words that share a common category. Each word belongs to only one category. Good luck!

Opinion The Chronicle • Nov. 15, 2023

Studio City • Vol. 33 • Issue 3 • Nov. 15, 2023 • hwchronicle.com

Editors-in-Chief: Averie Perrin, Ella Yadegar Print Managing Editors: Jade Harris, Iona Lee, Davis Marks

editorial

Presentations Managing Editors: Kriste An, Chloe Park, Tate Sheehy Executive Editors: Jackson Mayer, Grant Park News Editor: Sammy Glassman Assistant News Editors: Jayan Kandavel, Everett Lakey, Alex Lee, Hannah Shahidi, Jack Ryan Connor Tang, Nathan Wang Opinion Editor: Jackson Tanner Assistant Opinion Editors: Eden Conner, Sabrina Hamideh, William Liu, Hana Mehdi Williams, Olivia Phillips, Max Turetzky Features Editor: Dylan Graff Assistant Features Editors: Alden Detmer, Alex Dinh, Zoe Goor, Georgia Grad, Saisha Kumar, MeJo Liao A&E Editor: Caroline Plunkett Assistant A&E Editors: Sasha Aghnatios, Crista Kim, Katelyn Kim, Mia Morgan, Olivia So Sports Managing Editor: Jake Lancer Sports Editors: Karsten Cole, Christopher Mo Assistant Sports Editors: Hailey Cho, Justin Tang, Tiffany Wang Satire Editors: Jade Harris, Davis Marks Assistant Satire Editors: Zoe Goor, Hannah Shahidi Digital Editor: Casey Reims Business Manager: Tate Sheehy Art Director: Eva Park Illustrators: Amelia Chiarelli, Annabelle Cheung, Iris Chung, Ashley Ham, Ava Hakakha, Alexandria Liu, Juana Markman, Lucia Plata, Maiya Holly, Sabrina Simek, Siena Orwitz Executive Broadcast Producer: Jake Lancer Assistant Broadcast Producers: Rohan Amin, Alexa Benitez, Hunter Bridgett, Eric Chang, Hudson Chen, Grace Coleman, William Coleman, Jack Limor, Aaron Milburn Layout Assistants and Staff Writers: Camryn Banafsheha, Annabelle Cheung, Iris Chung, Emma Cohen, Sienna Dall’Olmo, Wynne Davis, Donna Enayati, Kayla Graff, Lydia Gugsa, Tali Gurule, Colin Ho, Ella Jeon, Yuna Jeon, Lyla Kavanagh, Audrey Wage, Connor Merrihew, Max Nam, Analeigh Nava, Shiara Navarro, Alex Reisner, Andrea Ricabal, Olivia Roosa, Erin Ryu, Eila Shokravi, Aven Son, Celine Wang, Sophia Wiczyk Advisors: Billy Montgomery, Max Tash Layout Assistants: Jen Bladen, James Lane Publication Information: Founded in 1990, The Chronicle is the Harvard-Westlake Upper School’s student-led newspaper. Now in its 33rd year, The Chronicle strives to report stories accurately and to uphold its legacy of journalistic integrity. The newspaper is published eight times per year and distributed to students, parents, faculty and staff. The paper is affiliated with two school magazines, Big Red and Panorama. We are members of the California Newspaper Publishers Association and the Private School Journalism Association.

ILLUSTRATION BY AMELIA CHIARELLI

Seeking Honorable Transparency

Prefect Council sent out an email detailing several recent Honor Board cases Nov. 10. The email marked a return to Prefect Council’s pre-pandemic tradition of sending out quarterly updates on the Honor Board. For far too long, the Honor Board has been intentionally hidden from the student body; now, the Prefects are taking strides to be more transparent and enhance communication.

Confidentiality is a key part of the Honor Board, as it ensures the process is centered on reflection and growth rather than social pressure. Despite its benefits, this confidentiality has resulted in the Honor Board being enveloped in mystery.

Though Prefects present about the Honor Board to sophomores, that is the extent of information students receive — students are not given major insights on case details, how the process works or how often cases occur. Thus, the speculation quickly turns into gossip and more misunderstandings.

While this first email is a good step in the right direction, Prefect Council must commit to consistently sending these quarterly reports and expanding upon them. This does not mean that Prefect Council should publicize painstaking details about every case — students will only try and piece together who violated the Honor Code. Instead, we ask for more examples of cases, even if their descriptions are not as precise.

Prefect Council can protect students’ confidentiality while also prioritizing transparency.

Even then, this would not address the existing confusion surrounding the Honor Board’s responsibilities. Prefects should present to all grades about the role of the Honor Board to

ensure that students understand how it works and do not have to depend on presentations from sophomore year. Ensuring students understand the intricacies of the Honor Board would reduce myths about its operations, such as the popular idea that students are proven “guilty” or “innocent” like a court.

By making the standard procedure clear, students could know what to expect and the rumors about how the Honor Board runs could be eliminated.

The school also needs to clarify what constitutes an Honor Code violation. The Honor Code itself sets principles, but it is not a document that can account for every instance of cheating. In the recent email, there were multiple examples of where the standards for Honor Board judgements were unclear.

For example, it stated that “speaking negatively about another student in a public forum” is a violation of the Honor Code.

This fails to address burning questions regarding what a public forum constitutes, what speaking in a negative light means and whether this speech has to be associated with targeted bullying. For all we know, an offhand comment to a friend at lunch falls under the umbrella of “speaking negatively about another student in a public forum.” In the widest interpretation, almost all students can be in violation of this ambiguous standard.

This is not a criticism of Prefect Council or the Honor Board. Instead, our suggestions can help the Prefects follow up on their momentum to make the Honor Board more transparent. Academic integrity is core to the values of our school, and fostering greater understanding of its enforcement can help further this goal.

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The Chronicle

A10 Opinion

Nov. 15, 2023

Create walkable cities

By Olivia Phillips

I

am walking home after a long day of school, taking in the street around me. There’s a grocery store and a few cafés decorated with colorful awnings, along with several restaurants and other shops. I decide to stop at the local coffee shop to do some homework. I might meet a friend for dinner at one of my favorite restaurants; it’s a bit far, but it shouldn't be more than a 20-minute walk.

This can easily be a scene from my daily life in Spain, where virtually everything I might need is a short walk away. However, this is distinctively not a feature of daily life in Los Angeles (LA), where I grew up, alongside most other U.S. cities. Transitioning to life in Spain was quite a shock, as commuting around the city no longer required hours of free time. Living in a walkable community, one in which you could comfortably access the majority of your needs and go about your daily life on foot, is not a possibility for many Americans.

Specifically in LA, the county and even city are layed out in ways that make commuting by any method other than motor vehicle almost impossible.

Being able to walk as opposed to depending on other forms of transportation can help mitigate the cost and environmental impact of purchasing gas. Gasoline powered vehicles are one of the worst consumers of energy, with 85% of the fossil fuels escaping as 'waste heat,' according to a study by Cities Alive. Streets and cities that have become more walkable have observed sharp decreases in air pollution. It is difficult to see the impact that air pollution has on a city without experiencing the flip side — the longer I live in a walkable city, the more I notice the drastic difference that it makes on the city's overall environment.

The study also found that individuals who walked 10 minutes each day were more likely to report better mental and physical health. These results

show that if cities, including LA, were more walkable, it could lead to a happier and healthier population. Taking a stroll after meals, decompressing on the walk back from a friends' house or browsing stores on the way to my destination, walking has become my favorite necessity.

Although cities in the U.S. need to make drastic changes, each step taken toward walkability would cost local governments millions of dollars.

In Long Beach, CA, one of the most walkable cities in the U.S., the local government requested $39 million in 2023 to begin implementing various improvements for pedestrians. Thus, attempting to convert an exisiting city into a more walkable space is a larger investment than many cities are willing to make at a given time. These changes need to be made incrementally, and although they are a large financial investment, governments need to prioritize benefits over short-term expenses.

LA can benefit from creating more walkable communities given its high population density.

Most people living in LA own cars, and combined with the area's high population density, this has led to major traffic. People need to drive to school, work, the grocery store, restaurants and coffee shops. If we could create more walkable areas, there would be a smaller need for cars, helping alleviate the city's ongoing issues with traffic.

This is not to suggest that one should walk all the time — walkable cities can still allow for driving. It just means that people would not have to get onto the freeway in order to grab dinner or visit a friend. Driving around in cars has become such an integral part of Americans' lives that for many, it is difficult to picture anything else. Every day that our cities continue to grow, we have the opportunity to transform them into something that is better; not only for the lives of those who live in them but also for the future existence and prosperity of our environment.

ILLUSTRATION BY ANNABELLE CHEUNG

Waste less in the cafeteria

By Sabrina Hamideh

W

hen grabbing our lunches and snacks from the school cafeteria, it's easy to overlook the cumulative environmental impact that our seemingly insignificant decisions create. Countless pieces of plastic waste ranging from wrappers to containers litter tables on the Quad. Without ever having to think of where that waste ends

up thanks to our maintenance staff, students have no concept of the immense amount of trash produced. It is easy for community members to enjoy the vast variety of food options for every palate and dietary need. What is not easy, however, is producing correct quantities of that food daily to prevent waste. The cafeteria has tried its best to be aware of its environmental

ILLUSTRATION BY ANNABELLE CHEUNG

Start electing younger politicians to office

By Hannah Shahidi

I

was taken aback when I saw the notification pop up from the New York Times on Sept.

29. "Diane Feinstein, 90, Dies; Oldest Sitting Senator and Fixture of California Politics.” Senator Feinstein, San Francisco’s first female mayor and the first woman elected to the Senate in California, was the oldest politician serving in the U.S. Senate. Feinstein had previously taken two months off and returned to the Senate in May during which she was being treated for shingles. After her return, Feinstein appeared frail and used a wheelchair. On the day of her death, she voted in Congress regarding the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

There is no doubt that Feinstein made incredible strides in politics. However, her lengthy career and old age touch on a much larger issue in American politics — leaders in Congress are typically much older than the population they represent. The median age for a U.S. Senator is 65.3 years and has been rising for the past three elections, according to the Pew Research Center. This is significantly higher than the average age of American citizens which stands at 38.1 years, according to the United States Census.

The older a person is, the more at risk they are for conditions such as dementia, hearing loss and diabetes, according to

the World Health Organization (WHO). Politicians who are barely able to acknowledge their own health struggles should not be the people we trust to take care of our country. Mitch McConnell had two health-related episodes in the past six months. Speaking before Congress, he froze mid-sentence and had to be ushered away, according to NBC. Older generations of legislators should not be entrusted with so much power if they are unable to fulfill their duties because of health concerns.

President Joe Biden is 80 years old, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is 72 years old.

Though these politicians tend to be more experienced given their long tenures in office, their age prevents them from properly representing the younger constituents that make up our nation.

America's demographics are changing, and younger generations are starting to advocate for more progressive political change.

Of course, experience and acquired knowledge are valuable, and older politicians, such as Feinstein, possess both. Despite this, older generations often neglect to make room for younger voices and are not able to understand and represent the evolving concerns of young Americans.

Young politicians can introduce new ideas that resonate with underrepresented demographics to

the political landscape — New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is a large advocate for student loan forgiveness, an issue that resonates with many young voters. Older generations can help facilitate the change to introduce more young leaders into politics. Student loans are by far not the only issue that is disproportionately relevant to young people. Younger generations are more active to deal with issues like climate change and mental health, according to Voices of Youth.

Older politicians in office can also make room and advocate for young leaders in Congress. This ensures that politicians who will be leading our nation in the future are better equipped for their positions by making it easier for younger generations to gain experience and exposure, ensuring long-term success. Weeks before Feinstein’s death, Senator Mitt Romney announced that he would not be running for reelection in the Senate and called for a “new generation of leaders,” according to CNN. Older politicians can be following in suit, and giving more equitable opportunity to younger politicians. Obviously, not all politicians need to step down, but change will not come if it is not facilitated by those already in power.

• Continued on hwchronicle.com

consequences and plastic waste by introducing compostable utensils, metal or paper water bottles, paper bowls and repurposing excess food. However, there are still many wasteful practices that the community can improve upon, and we, as students, are the most responsible for making these changes.

After COVID-19, the need for individually wrapped items grew due to fears of germs and contamination. The cafeteria implemented plastic containers for grab-and-go foods such as desserts, fruit, salads and some hot foods in black takeout containers. To prevent long lines caused by students and faculty sharing one lunch block, this system still remains.

This practice has lead to a rise in the school's plastic consumption and subsequent increase in environmental damage. The cafeteria has already implemented compostable utensils — they can further their effort by switching to biodegradable or compostable containers made from materials such as corn-

starch, paper or even bamboo.

Upper School Science Teachers Chelsea Stewart and Ryan Ellingson bring their own reusable plates and utensils to lessen the impact the cafeteria has on the environment. Reusable dishes for students would be a difficult solution to implement for the cafeteria because there is no dishwasher for such a large amount of bowls and plates.

However, students themselves could bring their own tableware from home as many science teachers do. If there were areas on campus solely provided to wash reusable dishes, then bringing dishes from home would become a much more reasonable tasks for students to complete daily.

The school cafeteria has adapted to challenges regarding food waste. Currently, all students and faculty share just one lunch block, which makes it difficult for staff to gauge food production, therefore leading to food waste. The cafeteria has tried to solve this by reusing leftover food for other meals.

For example, if there is excess white rice on day, the cafeteria may use it in the next day's fried rice to prevent waste. In previous years, the cafeteria also partnered with a Downtown Los Angeles food bank, where they gave leftover food to those in need. But since this organization shut down, the cafeteria has not partnered with any others to continue these practices.

Getting in contact with another food bank or organization would be another step in the right direction.

These innovative solutions prove the cafeteria's efforts to be more environmentallyconscious, but if students are making irresponsible decisions, these attempts become more futile. Although the school may be a microscopic piece of the overall issue of food and plastic waste, our behavior is exceedingly important if we want to make the school's efforts count.

As our mission statement says, we can all practice "purpose beyond ourselves" with an active intent to help our environment.

Nov. 15, 2023

hwchronicle.com/opinion

Weight Advanced math classes

By Max Turetzky

H

ead of Upper School Beth Slattery announced the school would be reintroducing weighted GPAs for the 2024-2025 school year, giving students a one-point boost for Honors and Advanced Placement (AP) classes in an email Feb. 2023.

The school removed weighted GPAs in 2018 to encourage students to make more authentic curricular choices and disincentivize students from overloading themselves with difficult classes. Under the new guidelines, students' transcripts include both their weighted and unweighted GPAs, striking a fair balance between rewarding students who choose to challenge themselves in difficult classes and ensuring that they do not overload themselves with too many Honors and AP courses. Now that weighted grades have returned, however, we should acknowledge the one aspect where they fall short.

The Math Department is unique for offering “Advanced” classes, an intermediate option between regular and Honors cours-

es. Despite being more rigorous and fast-paced than regular classes, students in Advanced math do not receive a GPA boost, meaning that there is no tangible benefit to taking an Advanced course over a regular one. This means that students who are fit for Advanced courses might choose to take regular math as there is no inherent advantage to taking an Advanced course and enduring its difficult workload. But far more possible — and more detrimental — is the scenario in which students will enroll in an Honors class because of the grade boost despite being underprepared for its rigor. The idea that students should enroll in difficult Honors and AP courses to obtain a high GPA and get into a prestigious college is one that is often perpetrated given the school's competitive nature. The flaws with the current method of calculating weighted GPAs can incentivize kids to enroll in a class that is far too difficult for them.

The school can offer a halfpoint GPA boost for Advanced

I

They killed and burned forty babies, blockaded and set fire to elderly housing units and paraded female corpses through streets of cheering crowds. By the end of the day, 1,200 people were killed in Israel's deadliest attack since 1948, according to Reuters.

Israel responded to the attack with a promise to destroy Hamas, blockading Gaza and sending in the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) in retaliation. It is entirely reasonable to find problems with the Israeli government's actions but inexcusable to use the conflict to promote strong antisemitic rhetoric across America. Supporting the Palestinian people is just as important as supporting Israelis, as both suffer greatly from the conflict.

That "support," though, should not involve murdering a pro-Israel protester in Los Angeles or actively supporting a terrorist organization whose goal is to rid the world of Jewish people.

Hamas indoctrinates their

Which level of math do you take?

Regular: 31.5% Advanced: 33.9% Honors/AP: 34.6%

The school can offer a halfpoint GPA boost for Advanced math classes, creating a balance between regular and Honors courses.

Should the school introduce a 0.5 GPA boost for Advanced math classes?

Colleges, too, value GPAs in their assessments of students.

GPAs are one of the most important factors in colleges' decisions to admit a certain student. In the email announcing the return of weighted GPAs, Slattery said colleges told the school they valued students' weighted GPAs as a method to evaluate students’ “performance and rigor.” GPAs are an essential part of a student's admission profile, and it is important that the school helps ensure our GPAs are representative of our true abilities and the courses we have taken.

If the school believes that weighting Honors math is beneficial, it should do the same for Advanced classes too. The absence of a GPA benefit is unfair to students committed to challenging themselves through Advanced math classes. Transcripts should reflect the challenge of these intermediate courses in addition to Honors and AP classes.

By Eden Conner t was a Saturday morning in Venice Beach. I sat in a chair at the front of Scissors hair salon. Across the street, two women stood below a sign picturing a young girl kidnapped by Hamas in Israel. She looked to be about the age I was when I first started coming to Scissors, with the same long brown hair I saw in the mirror facing me.

One woman tore the poster off the street post. The other ripped it down the center.

People in the salon yelled in protest, but the women only stared at us as they dropped each half of the missing girl’s photo into a nearby trashcan and walked away.

Hamas, the terrorist organization currently in control of the Gaza Strip, attacked Israel by firing rockets and sending militants into Israeli territory on Oct. 7. Hamas terrorists killed hundreds of young Israelis at a concert and shot parents at point-blank range in front of their terrified children.

STATS AND FACTS

math classes, creating a balance between regular and Honors courses. This adjustment would reward and recognize students for tackling more challenging coursework and bar them from enrolling in easier classes for the sake of an A.

Fight antisemitism amid Hamas war youth to hate the Jewish people.

The Hamas Charter claims that Jews have fomented all historical wars and were even behind World War II. Its antisemitic roots make clear Hamas’ mission in Israel is not a fight for freedom against its so-called oppressors or colonizers, but an opportunity to kill off a race their publications describe as “blood suckers” and “human pigs.”

One can protest against war and the loss of civilian life, but when that protest turns into attacking and calling for the death of Jewish people, it is no longer protest.

The worldwide response for most previous cases of terrorist organizations killing citizens is an overwhelming support for the peoples attacked. Following the violence, however, demonstrators across the country joined pro-Palestine rallies, and at Harvard, thirty student groups signed a statement holding Israel responsible for all of the violence. Jewish students were verbally and physically harassed by pro-Palestinian protesters.

At New York University, Jewish

Opinion A11

Yes: 56.7% No: 43.3%

Do you think Advanced math classes are closer in difficulty to Honors or regular math classes?

Honors: 51.6% Regular: 48.4%

*205 students polled

Assistant Opinion Editor Eden Conner discusses how political discourse has been weaponized to promote antisemitism following attacks on Israel by the terrorist group Hamas. students had to be barricaded in a library as protesters pounded on the doors and shouted. One can protest against war and the loss of civilian life, but when that protest turns into attacking and calling for the death of Jewish people, it is no longer protest. It is active hatred of equally innocent human beings. Jewish protesters fill the streets to call for the protection of their homeland's citizens and fight against overt terrorism. To commit violence against them is to further silence and scapegoat a people who have for so long been blamed for the world’s problems.

A swastika was found spray painted on the side of a truck in St. Louis, Missouri. A protester in New York at a pro-Hamas rally wove a swastika flag. A group of protesters outside the Sydney Opera House were caught on video chanting “gas the Jews.”

Many are using the incident in the Middle East as an opportunity to deepen worldwide antago-

nism of the Jewish people rather than as a chance to destroy a terrorist group harming its own citizens and neighbors. This is not a debate over Palestine and Israel. Hamas has made clear their ultimate goal is not to “free Palestine” by using their civilians as human shields and refusing to release 150 captives to give their people access to food, water and electricity again. This is a reminder that protest is a platform to express objection, not extermination of an entire people. There should never be another day where supporting a cause means tearing down a sign spreading awareness for a toddler held captive by a terrorist organization. Whatever political side one leans toward, the world needs to come together in the face of hatred against a people. That little Jewish girl who sits waiting for rescue in Israel and the one who prays for her at Scissors from across the globe cannot do it alone.

ILLUSTRATIONS BY LUCIA PLATA AND MAX TURETZKY

Community The Chronicle • Nov. 15, 2023

DAVIS MARKS/CHRONICLE

COMMUNITY COLLABORATION: On Nov. 8, the L.A. Planning and Land Use Manangement Committee hearing regarding the school’s River Park athletic facility commenced.

The hearing took place at Los Angeles City Hall. Throughout the meeting, any member of the Studio City community was able to give feedback about River Park in the form of short speeches.

LA City Council committee approves River Park

By Max Turetzky The Los Angeles City Council’s Planning and Land Management (PLUM) Committee unanimously approved the school’s proposed River Park project at a public meeting Nov. 7. The project will move to the City Council for its final determination. Head Prefect Bari LeBari ’24 and Head Prefect and Print Managing Editor Davis Marks ’24 spoke in favor of the project.

LeBari said he appreciated being able to hear various opinions on the River Park project.

“I got to hear a lot of different perspectives both in favor and against River Park and they’re all very insightful,” LeBari said. “Obviously, I came here

in support of River Park but I also got to hear some of the arguments against River Park and even though I disagree with the people, it was still formative to hear exactly what they had to say about why they didn’t like River Park.”

LeBari said he is excited by the opportunities the new campus and facilities will provide for students and the Studio City community as a whole.

“I agree with the decision, although I won’t be one of the students who [gets to] experience River Park, as it won’t be ready until after I graduate,” LeBari said. “So although the decision doesn’t really affect me too much, I think it’s great for the future of Harvard-Westlake,

for the future freshmen, middle schoolers and future applicants to have this amazing facility, not only for that but also for the community, so that Angel City Sports and other nonprofits can use it as well.”

Upper School Dean Sharon Cuseo said she appreciated that LeBari and Marks were willing to speak on behalf of the school.

“As the school works to get River Park approved by the City Council, it’s really important to feature the student perspective,” Cuseo said. “Because ultimately, River Park will change the lived experience of students at the school. The City Council does not want to hear that River Park will make a bunch of adults happy by expanding Harvard-West-

lake’s footprint, as that does not improve the lives of the students in a meaningful way. [Marks] and [LeBari] speaking about how River Park will benefit students is what truly resonates with the City Council and shows them why they should approve River Park.”

Marks said he appreciated that diverse sections of the school community spoke in favor of River Park, but also recognized the perspectives of those who opposed the project.

“Hearing from administrators, teachers, alumni, coaches, parents and local community members about all the unique ways River Park will benefit them made me proud to support this project,” Marks said.

“There were also many people associated with Save Weddington who had opposing views.

Many of them were worried about losing access to Weddington’s golf and tennis facilities, as River Park will be a schoolowned facility. However, I think the school has been really cooperative with our neighbors, and have committed to allowing the community to have access to much of what River Park has to offer. Many people also pointed out the history and community significance of Weddington, which I understand. Change is hard and Weddington definitely means a lot to them, but I think River Park will eventually be something all community members appreciate.”

Starbucks Coffee renovation ends

By Nathan Wang The Starbucks location on Ventura and Alcove was temporarily closed for renovations from Oct. 22 to Nov. 11. The renovations, led by PR Construction Inc., featured changes to the store’s bar location, tiling and storage system.

The recent renovations were a response to the high number of thieves in the area, according to workers at the store. The location reduced the number of seats inside, becoming a grab-and-go coffee shop.

The Studio City property crime rate is in the 65th national percentile, according to CrimeGrade. Frequent crimes have compelled other shops to take similar action. The Vineland and Ventura Starbucks Locations planned similar renovations in an attempt to deter thieves and combat the rising crime rate, according to CBS Los Angeles.

Starbucks barista Beatrice Roque said the renovation has provided employees with more space to make drinks.

“[The renovation] helped us because one of the biggest struggles we had [before it] was our space issue,” Roque said. “It [made] us crowded, and we couldn’t function properly as a store. Now that we’ve been given all this space, we can be more organized.”

Roque said though business has been slow since the reopening, she hopes that old customers will return soon.

“The [foot] traffic has been soso,” Roque said. “[It is] nothing too crazy. I feel like [the community is] still getting used to the idea that we’re open. But hopefully when the community sees that we’re here now, and that we’re here to stay now, [they will] come back.”

Aviv Pilipski ’25 said he frequented another coffee shop during the renovations and that it has now become his go-to place for drinks.

“Prior to the renovation, Starbucks was my top choice, both because of its physical proximity to the school, and because it was just the default hangout spot among my friends and [I],” Pilipski said.

“During the renovations, however, I found myself going to Philz instead and enjoyed it much more.

Philz is a bit more of a trek from the school, but I will continue to be a loyal customer post-renovation.”

Studio City Alfred Coffee Barista Michael* said foot traffic increased to Alfred while Starbucks was under construction.

“We realized [there were] more customers coming this way, [and] more traffic,” Michael said.

“We’re a new store [on Ventura], and we have another store located not too far from here. A lot of word is getting out about this location, so that helps a lot. Since the Starbucks is closed, it is helping us a lot.”

Ralph’s Employee Robert* said the newly-renovated store lacks the coziness and warmth of the former store design.

“It was cozy,” Robert said. “That [Starbucks] is one of the first ones I’ve been to, because I don’t really go to Starbucks. [The old Starbucks] was very convenient, too.” *Name has been changed

NATHAN WANG/CHRONICLE

READY TO REOPEN: Alcove and Ventura Starbucks employees serve guests Nov. 11, the first day back after a three-week long renovation.

Features The Chronicle • Nov. 15, 2023

easy A

• Continued on B2

ILLUSTRATION BY LUCIA PLATA

B2 Features

The Chronicle

Nov. 15, 2023

Members of the school community and alumni discuss the evolution of cheating and its repercussions on students and faculty.

By Hannah Shahidi

“It was a very tense year versus other years at the school,” Krumpe said. “It afContent Warning: this article con- fected the teacher population because they tains the usage of homophobic slurs. felt like their trust was broken, and they felt On a cold afternoon in February 2008, violated in the way that they had to make Matthew Krumpe ’08, a senior at the sure that doors [were] locked when they’re time, had just finished dance class in lower making a photocopy. There weren’t any Chalmers. Feeling ready for track practice, major cheating incidents the rest of that he changed in the bathroom and walked year, but plagiarism was still big. I knew up to the Quad. This was a normal day kids who copied papers from previous for Krumpe — he had done this routine people. There’s a pressure cooker environhundreds of times. However, the moment ment at Harvard-Westlake. Some people Krumpe stepped foot on the Quad, that can’t handle the pressure, so they’re gonna afternoon was set apart from all the oth- stoop down to things like trying to cheat.” ers. Immediately surrounded by 20 angry Prefect Council wrote and implementsophomore boys, Krumpe froze. He said ed the school’s current Honor Code in he eventually realized these were the kids the late 1990s. One part of the code states he had unknowingly reported for cheating that students are not to “steal or violate on their history midterm that January. others’ property, either academic or ma“In my head I was like, ‘What is go- terial.” Upper School Dean Sharon Cuing on right now?’ Krumpe said. “They seo said teachers became more cautious were all like, ‘What the f**k man? Why about cheating following the scandal. did you do this? You already “There was less trust on the got into college. You don’t part of the faculty after [the need anything.’ I got a lot cheating scandal],” Cuseo said. of, ‘You’re just a f****t. You “For the most part, unless they’re shouldn’t be coming back to given a reason to be suspicious, school. Nobody wants you teachers are not that suspicious. here.’ The whole time, I was Immediately after that, [howevjust confused. I didn’t know er], teachers were not willing to what was going on, and then I let students take tests by themwas like, ‘Wait a second. These selves or let one student take a L. Wood are the kids who cheated.’ The test before another class did. The Eric Honor Board was watching incident had an impact on trust.”

Olson this whole thing go down. The According to a Chronicle poll, kids admitted in public that they cheat- 40.5 percent of students have cheated at ed, and that’s when [the school] started least once during their time at the school. giving out suspensions and expulsions.” Cuseo said most students do not make Weeks after the test was adminis- premeditated plans to cheat on assigntered, Krumpe, Peer Tutor, was helping ments, and cheating often happens when Hayley Boysen ’10 study for the same a student feels that it is their only option. exam since she had been absent during “Anybody under the right circumthe testing period. In one of their tutoring stances could make a bad decision,” Cuseo sessions, Boysen revealed to him that her said. “The hard part for [a] Harvard-Westfriends offered her the compromised copy lake student [who cheated] to understand of the test. Krumpe said he advised her is [that] in a moment of desperation, [they] to report her friends, which he assumed took a shortcut and gained an unfair adwould be the end of his involvement. vantage . They think, ‘What I did couldn’t “I said to her, ‘What I recommend that be cheating because I’m not a cheater. I’m you do is tell your friends to turn them- not [going to] make a plan to steal a test.’ selves in,’” Krumpe said. “Regardless, the But [cheating] usually happens late at kids who cheated were gonna get caught, night because they’ve procrastinated, and but if they [turned] themselves in, maybe that’s when they realized that they needthey’d be suspended, not expelled. We ed something that wasn’t authorized.” all know how serious the Honor Code During the COVID-19 pandemic, is. That all falls apart if people are cheat- the school conducted classes online, and ing. I ran into her about seven days later students took all assessments at home. at school, and I said, ‘How are you? Did Cuseo said the school noticed a rise in you do it? Did you talk to your friends?’ students cheating, causing stuShe looked me in the eye and said that she did, but I just knew she was lying. Her history teacher was my history teacher, and I felt obligated to tell him.

That’s when the s**t show started.”

Krumpe reported the incident to Upper School History Teacher Dror Yaron Friday after school a few weeks later. On the following Wednesday, the story was printed on the front page of The Chronicle.

Weeks of investigations and Honor Board cases followed, resulting in the expulsion of the six directly involved students and the suspension of 12 others who used copies of the test. The story received attention from several major news outlets across the country.

Krumpe said trust between teachers and students experienced a large shift following the scandal.

ILLUSTR ATION BY EVA PARK

dents to become distrustful of their students. they just found out and then they hauled “The thing that broke all of our hearts me in. They basically sat me down and a little bit during the pandemic was [the] didn’t know the full extent of it, but I lack of moral clarity,” Cuseo said. “The came clean. I kind of justified it to myself opportunity to cheat was there, and it as something funny, like a harmless troll. was too tempting. There was so much It proved not to be harmless at all. I think cheating, particularly with math. We after the first couple of days, it was just had a rash of Photomath situations be- part of my routine. And then obviously I cause it was right there, and no one was realized in retrospect how bad it was, but watching. After COVID, teachers in all at the time it didn’t really cross my mind.” departments thought when given the opWhen a student is caught breaking the portunity, a lot of kids might cheat. Now, Honor Code, their case is dealt with by we have more of a problem with people the school’s disciplinary body. The Honor not showing up on the day of a test.” Board is usually comprised of both Head In Spring of 2022, Advanced Placement Prefects, two prefects from each grade, (AP) Statistics classes took a one question Dean of Students Jordan Church and varmultiple choice quiz daily called the Prob- ious faculty members who decide on punability of the Day. The quiz was taken on ishments for violations of the Honor Code.

The Hub for 45 days, if a student got 30 The process is meant to focus on rehabiliof them correct, their lowest test score tation rather than purely on punishments, would be changed to a 100. Kendrick*, according to Head Prefect and Print a sophomore in college, Managing Editor Davis said he helped a majority Marks ’24. Kendrick of his classmates cheat on Anybody under said he was grateful that the quizzes by posting the his peers were decidthe right circumstances ing on his case because answers on Instagram. “[The Probability of could make a bad they were able to underthe Day] was the same stand his perspective. decision.” question for everybody, “Part of one reason so same numbers, same —Sharon Cuseo why I didn’t get severely prompt, literally the same Upper School Dean punished and [Massachusetts Institute question and [the hub] of Technology] never would tell you the answer found out was because [after] one attempt,” Kendrick said. “I was someone who liked stats I think having my peers, faculty, kids in and did well in stats. I don’t remember how the grade below me and kids in 10th grade I justified doing it to myself, but I realized sitting in humanized the process a little that I could help everyone in AP stats by bit,” Kendrick said. “They understand doing the question and getting it correct. what it’s like to be a teen and what it’s I put the answer in my Instagram bio, and like to make very impulsive decisions bethen I disguised it as a Bible verse. I end- cause you think they’re funny or because ed up ruining the entire Probability of the you think you’re helping your friends. So Day for everyone because [the school] had I was thankful that [students] sat on [the no way of telling who actually [cheated].” Honor Board] and I think it was a really Kendrick said he admitted the truth good and important part of the process.”

Last year, the English Department after he was questioned by his teachers.

“The stats teachers got wind of me do- made the decision to get rid of take ing it, or they heard from someone talking home essays due to the rise of ChatGPT. about it on the quad,” Kendrick said. “I This year, all English essays are taken in never asked [how they found out] because class and written by hand. Upper School English Teacher Eric Olson said there it really didn’t matter at are reasons besides ChatGPT that act h e time, but count for the department’s shift away from take-home essays.

“Since I’ve been here, there has been an ongoing conversation about how we make sure we’re getting authentic work, and it’s only gotten harder in the last year,” Olson said.

“It is not a fair process if we have students who are getting tutors to help them write papers at home, and we have students whose parents can barely afford to keep them in the school [and] are doing the best they can, and I’m assessing each paper the same way. What we’ve done this year with getting rid of take-home essays has been a long time coming.

ChatGPT is just the straw that broke the model of what we were working with. The idea that we could give students the chance to go home and write on their own was thrown out the window.”

“

• Continued on hwchronicle.com

*Name has been changed

Nov. 15, 2023

hwchronicle.com/features

Features B3

A Friendship for the Ages

Four alumni reflect on their lives after graduating from Harvard School and the close relationships they continue to sustain with each other by giving back.

By Alden Detmer

“[Farr] was the fastest guy in our class,” Similarly to Thrall, Minchin was interested in giving back because of the trust he Chumbook said. “Sports was something On a warm afternoon in 1977, an- built with his lifelong friend. He was also that we connected through because I actuticipatory whispers filled the air as a mob interested in combining his expertise in ed- ally joined Harvard in eighth grade and had of eager seventh graders gathered for their ucation with Thrall’s knowledge of energy [already] gone through a little bit of what first football team meeting. Scanning the to help support underserved communities. [Farr] went through. If you don’t know these room, Monty Minchin ’83 locked eyes with Minchin said their plan was jumpstarted people and didn’t grow up with them, it [is] tough to fit in. I sensed that he struggled Larry Thrall ’83. Following an initial small during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We had asked our partner in Nigeria, with fitting in, and that was the genesis of chuckle, the two began conversations about their previous schools and other activities. [Pastor] Isaac [Komolafe], ‘What’s going on our relationship.”

Farr and Chumbook both attendMinchin said football, a shared interest, there with COVID?’ ” Minchin said. “He helped him form a strong connection with said, ‘People are starving since no one can ed USC. After graduating, Chumbook leave their homes.’ They didn’t have the med- worked in life insurance for nine years beThrall throughout high school.

“We might deny it, but we were friends ical infrastructure [and instead] just shut ev- fore transitioning to a career in consulting. from seventh grade,” Minchin said. “We erything down. We started by getting [Komo- In 2015, Chumbook’s life took an unexboth played the same three sports — foot- lafe] and the people food which he distributed pected turn when he was diagnosed with ball, soccer and volleyball — with half a through his clinics, schools and churches.” stage four metastatic bone cancer. ChumMinchin and Thrall have since expand- book said though the news devastated him, dozen other guys. Because it was an all-boys school with only 120 boys in each class, we ed their operation into a non-profit called he found support in his friends and family.

“They gave me three months to live,” formed very close relationships. We [were] This Little Light Africa. The duo opened Chumbook said. “At that time, up a brand new school all knuckleheads, so we did a lot of I had been raising my daughter in Niger this year and knucklehead things together.” from age six, predominantly on has been running a After graduating from Harvard my own. When they came out program that pairs U.S. School in 1983, Minchin attended and said, ‘You have to get immedischools with schools the University of California, Los ate chemo treatment’, I was obviin Nigeria to help parAngeles (UCLA), and Thrall went ously blindsided. But I said, ‘You ticipants learn about to rival University of Southern know what, I’m going to fight so their respective cultures.

California (USC). The two also reI can walk my daughter down the “The sister school mained close with their peers from aisle and do something to help program is cool because Harvard School throughout colhw archives hw archives change the world for the better.’ ” it creates a relationship lege. Minchin said he remembers Rob Glen Following six months of cheto learning about the the games and bets they had with Chumbook ’77 Farr ’77 motherapy, four weeks in the culture,” Minchin said. each other as college students.

“We used to have a bet on every [college “Sometimes it’s more environmental-based, hospital and multiple surgeries, Chumbook football] game between USC and UCLA,” like cleaning up trash, or sometimes, it’s survived. In 2022, Chumbook traveled back Minchin said. “Whoever lost the bet had learning a subject together. There’s also a vid- to LA for an alumni reunion. At the event, to put [the winning school] on their license eo with 10 questions each school has for each Chumbook opened up about his cancer plate for the whole year. You can imagine other which culminates in an online meeting. experience and the Lone Warrior driving around UCLA with a USC license The final part is that they will raise money for Foundation, a new foundation he plate. It was brutal because the teams were some part of that school. We’ve put in new had created to help support single desks and added bathrooms [in a school with] parents experiencing life-threatpretty even back then.”

Following college, Minchin began man- only two bathrooms for 3,000 students.” ening illnesses. Several classmates, Like Minchin and Thrall, Rob Chum- including Farr, recognized Chumaging restaurants. A few years later, however, he decided to shift industries and work in book ’77 and Glen Farr ’77 met through the book’s passion for helping others marketing and sales for Western Internation- school football team. Three weeks before the and began to support the foundation.

Farr said he reached out to al Media, an advertising company. Minchin start of 10th grade, Farr, who recently relosaid he was not happy with his work and be- cated to Los Angeles (LA), had just agreed to fellow classmates and encouraged gan teaching history and coaching rugby at attend Harvard School after being admitted them to support Thrall’s foundation.

“I wanted to do something special from the waitlist. Farr said he made an inHarvard-Westlake in 1999.

Meanwhile, Thrall began a job consulting stant connection with Chumbook at his first for Rob, so I said, ‘You know what, I [should] just start asking other classin renewable energy finance, after 20 years in football practice four days later.

“He was just one of those people that was mates to join in,’” Farr said. “I had international trade. When he realized that one of his clients, Foursquare Church, had a large always nice about welcoming a new kid,” Farr this idea that I would write a group following in Nigeria, Thrall became interest- said. “No one was mean or bullying me, but letter to the entire class to support ed in expanding renewable energy interna- it was just a matter of whether people were the foundation. I shared the letter tionally. Thrall said Minchin’s father inspired going to be friendly or just wait and see how with a few classmates one-on-one, him to give back to the global community. the new kid [was]. Rob was a big deal on the and no one told me no. Some peo“I had lunch with [Minchin’s] father in team since he was four inches taller and 50 ple Venmo me monthly or send my late 20s or 30s about my career, and he pounds heavier than me, so it was nice to have a Sprouts gift card with stories said that he wanted to dedicate a third of his one of the better players being supportive.” from high school on the back. The Chumbook had also transferred to Har- beautiful thing about this Harvard life to philanthropy,” Thrall said. “I’ve always aspired to do that. My mother has been in- vard School, coming from the East Coast in School group is that I’ve only had volved with philanthropy all her life. I’ve eighth grade. Chumbook said that playing one person ghost me.”

Farr and Chumbook both said been surrounded by kindness and friendship on the football team allowed him and Farr to become close friends. their friendship has had a positive and realize how important it is.”

effect on their lives. Though most Americans consider friends an essential part of their lives, close friendships have been on the decline in recent decades, according to psychologist and friendship expert Dr. Marisa Franco. Nearly half of all Americans said they have three or less close friends in 2021 as opposed to a quarter of Americans in 1990, according to the Survey Center on American Life.

Chumbook said he is grateful for the influence Farr has had on his life. “[Farr] is a very sensitive, caring and loving man,” Chumbook said. “He is a very special man like few others. We’re both caring and loving people, and that’s obviously shown with what he has done to help me.”

ILLUSTRATIONS BY AMELIA CHIARELLI PHOTOS PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF GLEN FARR, MONTY MINCHIN AND HW ARCHIVES

The Chronicle

B4 Features

Nov. 15

From School Bells Teachers who are married to other teachers reflect on the story of their relationship, the benefits and drawbacks of office relationships and their teaching-life balance.

By Zoe Goor and Saisha Kumar In 1998, after an extensive interview process, Jon Wimbish, now the Head of the Middle School, was hired as a teacher in the middle school English Department. During the process, he said he met every member of the English Department except for a second year English teacher — Amanda Angle. Despite her short tenure at the school, Angle was assigned to be Wimbish’s teacher mentor, helping him navigate his first year at the school.

There is some speculation that former Middle School English Department Chair Ellen Erlich strategically placed the two young professionals together as part of a matchmaking scheme, Wimbish said.

Over the summer, Angle reached out to Wimbish to introduce herself and suggested they get coffee or go for a hike for their first mentor-mentee meeting. Angle said Wimbish later told her that her outdoorsy suggestion made an impression on him.

“He was like, ‘Go for a hike?

Who suggests that?’” Angle said.

“So he thought I was a little odd that way, but I grew up in New York and was loving that California outdoor stuff.”

After their first meeting, Wimbish and Angle said they became fast friends. Wimbish said they started seriously dating around four years into their relationship, and, over time, students began to catch on to their chemistry.

“We had students [who] become interested in teachers’ lives, [and] we had students who would kind of tease us from time to time, like, ‘Oh, I saw you having lunch with Ms. Angle,’” Wimbish said. “One [student] in particular, who we

both taught, was like, ‘You guys Wimbish worked as an Upshould try to figure this out.’” per School Dean before taking Wimbish proposed to Angle on the administrative role of on a July night in Vermont in Head of Middle School, which 2003, and they got married in Wimbish said changed his proSun Valley a year later. The cou- fessional responsibilities. ple now have two children — “My coming back to the midFranklin Wimbish ’25 and Lila dle school was a step into adminWimbish ’26. istration, but it also meant that Interoffice relationships, like whatever professional distance this one, are not uncommon — we might have had was coming over half of working Americans to an end,” Wimbish said. “[This have caught feelings for a co- was] complicated by the fact that worker, and over a quarter have I’m technically her supervisor. acted on The school and these feelings I are very clear It’s kind of like, we’re about certain to have a just doing our math, and non-platonic supervisory relationship, he’s there doing his math, roles that I do according to not [have] with and I’m doing my own my own wife.” the Society separate math.” for Human Teacher reResource lationships, —Amy Stout Manageas a subset Upper School Math Teacher of workplace ment. In some workromances, ing environare relatively ments, there are regulations as to common at the school, as well who can date whom, but at the as in the broader educational school, there are no strict rules community. Marriages between for employee relationships, Di- elementary and middle school rector of Human Resources Clif- teachers are the most common ford Hahn said. marriages between two people “We recognize that this is a of the same profession, accordreally amazing place and that we ing to Bloomberg. have a really great community,” Upper School Science TeachHahn said. “So, it’s not surpris- er Ryan Ellingson is married to ing that people might meet oth- Middle School Science Teacher great people here and decide er Daniella Ellingson. He said that they like one another. We teachers often work long hours, don’t have a policy against rela- and their professional duties do tionships for adult employees. not stop when they leave the We do expect that those indi- office, so having a partner who viduals would disclose their re- understands their commitments lationship. The folks that work is beneficial. here are professionals, and we “[My spouse’s profession] expect them to act profession- is helpful because we underally. We would expect that that stand each other’s situation,” relationship wouldn’t create any Ellingson said. “I’ve heard othissues then for them or students er teachers talk about their sigor anyone else.” nificant other being frustrated about how often they have to do school things because in other professions, they don’t understand what teaching is. There [are] a lot of professions where you go to work, and then when you go home, work stays at work. Teaching is not one of those [professions].”

Likewise, Angle said it is helpful to have a mutual understanding of each others’ work lives.

“Overall, it’s just someone who gets it,” Angle said. “We don’t have to explain. Usually, a spouse has to give the whole backstory and what’s going on at work.”

Although there are benefits to marrying within the profession,

“

workplace romances can offer their own challenges. Working in the same department or even feet away from one another can sometimes make a work-life balance challenging to achieve, according to Forbes.

Angle said it can be difficult at times to refrain from talking about work, especially because her entire family is involved at the school.

“I have to say the bad part is we have to really work at times to not always be talking about things that are Harvard-Westlake-related because it’s consumed both of our lives so much and [as well as having consumed] our children’s lives,” Angle said. “You have to have a little bit of another life as well.”

Upper School Math Teacher Amy Stout is in her first year of teaching at the school, where her desk in the math department is close to where her husband, Upper School Math Teacher Andy Stout, works. She said she enjoys how convenient their proximity at work is.

“It’s fun to be able to see him interact with his students,” Stout said. “It’s always been kind of abstract in terms of what he’s like at work, so [now] I get to see another side of him. That’s always nice. If something comes up at home, I can easily kind of address it faster than if I have to call him at work. It actually reminds me of grad school when we were both there, and I would see him all the time there. It’s kind of like, we’re just doing our math, and he’s there doing his math, and I’m doing my own separate math.”

Upper School English Teacher Jocelyn Medawar said she and her husband, Upper School English Teacher Jeremy Michaelson, enjoy working together because their jobs have been a central part of their relationship.

“I think there are some couples that thrive because they work apart,” Medawar said.

5, 2023

hwchronicle.com/features

Features B5

to Wedding Bells “Their days are separate, they have their own thing, and then they come together at the end of the day. Because we were friends and colleagues first, I think we really get a lot of good energy from doing the same job.”

Similarly to Wimbish and Angle, Michaelson and Medawar met when Michaelson started at the school 27 years ago. The couple were friends for a long time, but they became romantically involved a few years before their marriage in 2020, Michaelson said.

“We had been friends for so long,” Michaelson said. “We kind of looked at each other. And we were like, ‘Wait, I think we can make this work.’ We just came to that naturally and then decided to give it a shot. It wasn’t like one of us was scared to ask the other out. It didn’t really didn’t work that way, because of the nature of our

longstanding friendship.” right now, and we’ll go out Michaelson and Medawar and take a walk or we’ll watch were married over Zoom by a movie or go to a museum or the Santa Barbara Courthouse, just have lives that have nothing with Michaelson’s stepmother, to do with school.” his daughter and her boyfriend While Michaelson and in attendance, Michaelson said. Medawar sometimes have to “[The wedding] was some- take a break from work at thing that we had to throw to- home, they never leave their gether because of the exigent love for reading at the door, circumstances of the pandemic, Medawar said. but we both agreed that mak“I guess one would probably ing it happen in those circum- walk into our house and guess stances made it really roman- that we were English teachtic,” Michaelson said. “So even ers,” Medawar said. “There are though I cringed to look at my books in bins. There are books wedding pictures, because this on shelves. There are shelves is pre-any haircuts, I’m delight- with books three, like three ed that we made the effort to stacks. Even when we purge a go through with it and did it whole bunch of books, more despite the fact that there were just grow. Books everywhere.” a lot of obstacles.”

Michaelson and Medawar As students and said they also enjoy alumni of the school watching and reading heard that the couple things together. had made it official, “We had this big Medawar and Michaelpuzzle that we were son began receiving working on and we well wishes from past decided to rewatch and present students, ‘Pride and Prejudice’, Medawar said. the six hour BBC “The outpouring version,” Michaelson L. Wood of student support said. “We’re sitting Jeremy and love and care was there doing the puzzle Michaelson delightful,” Medawar and reciting the lines said. “The notes and as they’re happening. beautiful sentiments that were And then Ms. Medawar just expressed [by alumni] were re- starts cracking up. And I’m ally nice. People just seemed like, ‘What’s up?’ She’s like, happy for us. [It was] so sweet.” ‘This is exactly what our stuNot only do their students dents think we do at night.’” care deeply about them, but When Michaelson is not Michaelson and Medawar also discussing, or watching adapcare deeply about their stu- tations of, the works of Jane dents. Medawar said that, while Austen with Medawar, he often she and Michaelson do talk conducts culinary experiments. about students at home, they Michaelson said he has to avoid do so in a professional manner cheese in his cooking because to best serve the student.

Medawar dislikes cheese.

“We do have some students “The one place where we do in common,” Medawar said. “It not intersect in terms of tastes would be unnatural not to talk [is that Medawar] hates cheese,” about the students at home in Michaelson said. “[It] is a borthe same way that [students] talk derline deal breaker but we manabout teachers. But honestly, aged to endure despite. So whatwe don’t talk about students as ever I make, it has to exclude much as one might think. But in cheese under all circumstances.” the same way that you might go Both Michaelson and to any colleague, we’ll ask each Medawar separately described other because it’s just part of do- one another as being each othing a good job.” er’s “person.” Michaelson said Medawar said her and Mi- that he loves Medawar, so, chaelson’s love for reading means when asked what his favorite they do not always need bound- time with her was, he said he aries between the professional could not choose just one beand personal, but they do like cause he enjoys spending time taking breaks from work. with her so much.

“We love talking about “When it’s your person, it books, so that means we love doesn’t really matter what you’re talking about our jobs, but there doing,” Michaelson said.”We’ve is still that work-life balance,” done a lot of fun things. We Medawar said. “And there are shared a lot of great memories, those times where we need to but to pin it down to just one is not be thinking about school kind of impossible.”

ILLUSTRATIONS BY AMELIA CHIARELLI AND IRIS CHUNG

B6 Features

The Chronicle

Nov. 15, 2023

GENERATION UNDER FIRE Students and faculty discuss the rising issue of gun violence and how it affects their lives at school and in the world. threat from ever occurring on campus.

As ex-law-enforcement officers, the team receives information about past Everyone is in Taper Gymnasium. shootings. Crawford said security comIt’s an all-school assembly, and stu- pletes extensive research to ensure the dents are packed on the bleachers: highest quality training for students sophomores and juniors on one side and faculty.

“We investigate every shooting that of the gym, and seniors on the other. Head of Upper School Beth Slat- happens in our country and even look tery moves toward the microphone to into the ones that happen [internationmake an announcement as the chat- ally],” Crawford said. “We track the periter dies down. Before she speaks, she ods of time when the school shootings are surveys the room. There are two doors happening, school pressures and social on either side of her that students media. We research all of those things. could use to escape, and another set We train our guys and then students on the far side of the gym. She won- with that information. We take the best ders how students would get down practices from the [Federal Bureau of Infrom the bleachers fast enough. It is vestigation (FBI)] and from other school shootings — what [security] did a Wednesday morning, and wrong, what they did right — as Slattery is making a rouand we tweak our program for tine speech, she is thinking the absolute best practices.” about a potential school As a new teacher, Upper shooting. Slattery said School Math teacher Amy Stout these intrusive thoughts are said the school feels much safdeeply troubling. er than past schools she has “I resent the fact that worked at. [students] have to do shooter “When I’m here on camtraining and that I have to L. Wood pus, the guards we have seem get alerts on my phone [about Gideon pretty tough, so I feel safe shootings],” Slattery said.

Evans ’25 here,” Stout said. “With the “Every single time we are all together, I think about what I will do if school I was coming from, the security someone comes through the door. It just was more lax, and there would be peomakes me super angry that [students] ple shouting through the gates. In the have to live like that and that I have to back of my mind, I always knew where my scissors were in my classroom. I’d live like that.”

Gun-related incidents are the lead- make sure I would pass them out to the ing cause of death among American students if I ever needed to.”

Shootings have heightened security children and teens according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Fol- nationwide, with schools in the U.S. lowing the Columbine High School spending an estimated $3.1 billion on massacre in 1999, gun violence in security products and services in 2021, schools across the country rose expo- according to market research company nentially. Columbine became a mod- Omdia. Slattery said the many chalel for future attacks, with more than lenges students have to deal with today 357,000 students experiencing gun were not on her radar when she was in violence in school since, according to high school, and they are only amplified by students’ access to social media.

The Washington Post.

“I grew up in a time when [school As the country experiences greater numbers of school shootings, students shootings] were unthinkable and you also have increased access to information never worried about your safety in about the shootings. Junior Prefect Gide- school,” Slattery said. “Growing on Evans ’25 said although seeing shoot- up, I could read the newspaper or ings occur at other schools can be alarm- not read the newspaper, and I could watch the evening news or not watch ing, he feels safe at the school.

“I feel this sense of community and the evening news. connection at Harvard-Westlake,” Evans said. “I’m a part of something. I trust the people around me. I love the people around me and I’m glad to be here every day. Of course, there’s always that thought that [a school shooting] could happen, but I think the most important thing is knowing what kind of security team we have here and everybody who works here to protect us and to keep us safe.”

The school was one of the first high schools in the nation to implement shooter safety training directly after Columbine, according to Head of Security Jim Crawford. The school's security team flew to Texas, where local police officers led one of the earliest high school shooting safety training sessions. Following the seminar in Texas, security implemented Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter and Evacuate (ALICE) training — an active shooter response training that focuses on counterattack and evacuation — for all grade levels.

In addition to teaching students protective measures, the security team studies every national school shooting to prevent a

By Eden Conner And Georgia Grad

Whatever I read or watched was more ence are the sort of things that you do objective. The way [social media] al- to make sure people don’t feel like [the gorithms work is if you hover over school is] a target.”

When ALICE training first began, something about school shootings long enough, they’ll give you more of the the security team showed a PowerPoint with pictures of past school shooters and bad news.”

A mass shooting occurred in Lewis- conducted a realistic shooting simulaton, Maine at a bowling alley and restau- tion. Crawford said the old PowerPoint rant, killing 18 people and injuring 13 on often made students paranoid because of Oct. 25, according to CBS News. This how much the shooters looked like their shooting also caused many campuses in fellow classmates, and training has bedifferent parts of Maine to close down come less emotional over the years.

“We had the pictures of the students temporarily. Bates College, located in Lewiston between the bowling alley that actually did these shootings, and and restaurant, enacted a shelter-in-place they look like [students],” Crawford order for over 24 hours following the said. “Our school community was lookshooting, according to WBUR. Bowdo- ing at this going, ‘He looks like so-andin College, only 20 miles from Lewiston, so. She looks like so-and-so.’ We got away from the Powensured all school builderPoint and wanted ings were locked, requirI don’t believe that to do more handsing a key card to enter. there’s nothing we on training. We had Evans said that he has noticed, in many cases, can do about the easy a couple of students and even faculty that the shooter has undiagaccess of automatic didn’t react well to nosed or unregulated weapons.” the [first] training. mental health issues, and it is important as a com—Beth Slattery The first training really scary, and munity to stop the probHead of Upper School was we had teachers crylem at the source.

“We have to recoging and leaving the nize that some people room. We scared a are dealing with [mental health] issues, whole bunch of kids. We’ve changed the and we have to try and prevent it before program over the past few years so it’s tragedies happen,” Evans said. “This isn’t more of an educational thing.” a racial issue we’re dealing with. This isn’t The threat of a shooting does not exa political issue we’re dealing with. This ist solely for students. Stout said as an is a human issue. We have people who educator, she feels more apprehension in are struggling and think the only way to sacrificing herself for her students due to fix it is to hurt other people. We have to the potential effect it would have on her prevent that by helping those people and own children. coming together.”

“I always struggle as a parent,” Stout The school has increased its mental said. “How do I balance the responsibilhealth resources this year by hiring new ity to the kids in my classroom versus counselors. Slattery said she hopes all of my kids at home? I have to make a decithe help available on campus will create sion to give up my life for my students. a safe school environment.

That’s the assumption [for teachers], and “The biggest thing I’ve thought about it’s harder when you have young kids of is how [to] create an environment where your own.” people feel safe and feel a sense of belongWhile Americans can buy a gun in ing,” Slattery said. “I think our increase less than an hour, many nations require in counseling months of background check, accordand in training ing to The New York Times. Hannah for what to do if Carbunaru ’24 said there needs to be it did happen and more regulation on who can buy asour security pres- sault weapons to combat the exponential growth of school shootings.

“We definitely need to reform gun laws regarding how people are able to get guns,” Carbunaru said. “It’s so easy to walk into a gun store and just buy one. If you’re not in an issue where you need a gun to protect yourself, then you shouldn’t need to carry it around.”

Slattery said the issue of guns is continuously growing and needs to be addressed as it directly relates to the Second Amendment.

“I’m not opposed to people owning firearms, but I do think that we have prioritized the Second Amendment over the safety of humans,” Slattery said. “I don’t believe that there’s nothing we can do about the easy access of automatic weapons and the fact that we allow that to happen in this country. I’ve never understood why we don’t try. I don’t think that the Second Amendment was intended to allow people to have automatic weapons. It wasn’t something the Founding Fathers were thinking. The words ‘well-regulated militia’ are in there and right now, it feels barely regulated.”

“

ILLUSTRATION BY EVA PARK

Nov. 15, 2023

hwchronicle.com/features

Features B7

Save our SpirI pirIt t The school community and students from other independent schools discuss the effect of varying levels of school spirit on student bodies

By Alex Dinh and Nathan Wang

“It [was] a big risk to do a theater-based Fanatic fest, but it shows effort, initiative and drive,” Vartany said. “We’re a comIt is Community Time on a Friday munity that’s ready to take risks, and that’s afternoon, and the entire Upper School what brings Harvard-Westlake together.”

Fanatic Fest recently departed from student body floods through the entrance of Taper Gymnasium. While students their usual theatrical performance. Dewould typically use this period to do spite the lack of spirit in the newly-forhomework, get food from the cafeteria matted Fanatic Fest, Head Fanatic and or spend time with their friends on the Football Safety Boaz Maydew ’24 said Quad, this Friday afternoon was filled he is optimistic that future Fanatic Fests with anticipation for Fanatic Fest ahead will be more spirited, especially with the of Homecoming the following day. Al- move to more traditional pep rallies.

“This year we [moved] to a story with though the mandatory Fanatic Fest was anticipated, students and fanatics alike comedy [and] commentating,” Maydew left Taper with disappointment in the said. “This year was the trial run of our supposed pinnacle of the school’s spirit. first real pep rally, so I think everybody Eric Vartany ’24 said many of his peers in the gym was confused. Our chants felt that attending Fanatic Fest was an weren’t the best. They were last minute, obligation rather than an exciting event. but as years go on, the future Fanat“To be honest, my friends and I weren’t ics will learn to perfect our pep rallies, looking forward to Fanatic Fest,” Vartany and school spirit will only get better.”

Of 205 students surveyed, 63.9% said said. “It felt like it was forced upon the student body, and in the gym, you could we lack school spirit compared to other schools in the area, accordsense that people were eager to ing to a Chronicle poll. One leave. Part of what disappointed of the Fanatics Committee’s me was the lack of excitement goals for the second quarter from the student body. If everyis to increase student spirit one around me was really excitand participation in spirit aced, it would be a lot easier to [be] tivities, according to an email excited during the Fanatic Fest. ” sent to Upper School students To plan the Fanatic Fest,

by Prefect Council. While the the four Prefects on the Falack in school spirit can be natics Committee collaboratL. Wood attributed to the school’s ined with the maintenance staff, Eric tense academic environment, the drumline team, the Spirit Vartany ’24 Louie said he believes if more Squad and the Head Fanatics. Sophomore Prefect Fanatics Com- people start to exhibit school spirmittee member Robby Louie ’26 said it, then others in the community will planning Fanatic Fest was lengthy. be more comfortable in participating.

“It’s like a domino effect,” Louie said.

“It was a long process,” Louie said. “We had a summer intensive, which is [when] “It’s part of Harvard-Westlake’s culPrefect Council meets over the summer. ture to not engage in [spirit activities].

[We] started meeting with the adminis- If we, as a school community, can be tration, and that’s when we first got our more [spirited], there are ways to still committees. We also talked with [Per- have extracurriculars and still engage in forming Arts Department Head Aaron] school spirit. If some people start doing Martin every week. Then, the week of Fa- it, more people will do it. It’s not going natic Fest, we had some dress rehearsals.” to [happen] all at the same time, but it’s Vartany said he enjoyed previous something that we can work [toward].”

Polytechnic School is located in Pasayear’s Fanatic Fests, which were more similar to a performing arts play because dena and universally recognized as an acit showed Prefect Council taking a risk. ademically demanding school, according

to Niche. Polytechnic student and Junior at the football games, the school’s Spirit Katie Sam said the competitive academic Squad is at every home and away game environment at Polytechnic distracts many to get the fans excited. Cheerleader Mel students from participating in spirit events. Ho ’25 said it is often difficult to get ev“[Polytechnic] is a very academically eryone excited if there is low attendance rigorous school,” Sam said. “The stress or a lack of energy from the crowd. of academics isn’t on the administration, “Sometimes, it feels like we’re not dobut it’s on the students that go here. The ing our jobs [well] enough, but we have to students want to do well and go to good realize that at the end of the day, we need colleges, and that’s really important to to smile and be cheerful no matter what,” understand because it does contribute to Ho said. “No matter how the crowd rethe lack of school spirit. We have an [As- acts, we still need to keep our jobs up, so sociated Student Body], and their job is [the crowd’s energy] shouldn’t affect us. If to bring spirit to the school. We are [or- the crowd doesn’t feel spirited, then we’ve ganizing] more [sports] rivalries through- been doing the most that we can do. We out the year and more fun things to get always try to be cheery and smiley, so if people de-stressed from the academic rig- the crowd isn’t spirited, that’s on them, or at [Polytechnic], which has been really and that’s the job of the Head Fanatics.” important and also fun to participate in.”

While school spirit is often associated Maydew said fans at the games with athletic games, it can also be based play a vital role to the players. on student participation in other school “Spectators don’t really realize how activities. Head of Upper School Beth important they are to the athletes on the Slattery said aside from sports, other field,” Maydew said. non-athletic events “That’s why, all season, cultivate a sense you’d see me out on of school spirit.

Spectators don’t the Quad telling people “I understand to come to our games really realize how important that people usualand trying to get peoly think of school they are to the athletes on ple invested in our team spirit in terms of the field. That’s why, all just as much as [the just athletics, but I players]. We’re a part season, you’d see me out on wish more people of the school, and we went to the play the Quad telling people to love when we see all of and to the musicome to our games.“ our friends out there.” cal,” Slattery said.

Compared to the — Boaz Maydew ’24 “A lot of people are school’s student body’s trying to do things general apathy for athto create [a sense letic games, at Crespi Carmelite High of ] community around that. The theater School, student attendance and energy are department has started having shows higher, according to Crespi starting Quar- on Thursday afternoons so that more terback Masyn Harvey. Despite ending the kids could go. It’s not like we have bad football season with a record of 2-8, Harvey school spirit, but it hits and misses.” said student spirit is always present which Avery Kim ’25 said it is ultiencourages his performance in games. mately on the student body to cul“There was a lot of school spirit at tivate a culture of school spirit. the games,” Harvey said. “It was al“The most important thing to emways packed. When we did themes, phasize is that school spirit can’t be artipeople [dressed accordingly]. It was ficially induced,” Kim said. “There are great to have all of the fans there measures you could take, [but] in the supporting the team. I love play- end, it’s up to the students if they want ing home games strictly for the fans.” to [be spirited] or not. [School spirit] is Even if not that many students are just something that either is there or not.”

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ILLUSTRATION BY ASHLEY HAM AND JUANA MARKMAN

B8 Features

Nov. 15, 2023

The Chronicle

Reclaiming Narratives In celebration of Native American Heritage Month, students and teachers discuss the inclusion of the Indigenous community at school.

By Zoe Goor and MeJo Liao I’ll say, say, say, I’ll say, say, say, What is the United States if not a clot

were written about, and it [said] ‘Comanches were’—because we are so often in the past tense—‘an obstacle to white progress.’ That’s how we were being presented to an entire generation of leaders. We’re obligated to tell our story.”

of clouds? If not spilled milk? Or blood?

If not the place we once were in the millions? America is Maps—

Native Americans make up less than one percent of the population of America.

0.8 percent of 100 percent.

Maps are ghosts: white and layered with people and places I see through.

O, mine efficient country.

- Natalie Diaz, “They Don’t Love You Like I Love You” On the land where students now huddle in groups on cold winter mornings to prepare for history tests, native Tongva (Gabrieleno), Chumash and Fernandeño Tataviam peoples once ruled. Where students now speak English phrases, the languages Chumash and Kizh were once spoken, according to Native Land Digital. The land the school sits on was ceded to the U.S. under Cession 286, a part of Royce’s Schedule of Indian Land Cessions and an indication of the broader systematic attempt of Indigenous erasure perpetrated by the federal government on June 10, 1851.

139 years later, the U.S. Federal Government designated November as Native American Heritage Month.

University of Oklahoma Professor of Native American Cultural Studies Dustin Tahmahkera said a recent national increase of tribal recognition has heightened conversations around Native American presence in modern-day society.

“It is very much an Indigenous-led shift,” Tahmahkera said. “We’re taking the time to say ‘Yes, we’re still here, Native peoples are still here. We come in all kinds of skin colors, heights and hair, and we have all kinds of traditions and languages. But yes, the bottom line is we’re still here.’ There’s such a wellspring of support that’s happening now, and the tide is changing.”

Tahmahkera said his experience as a student and citizen of the Comanche Nation led him to believe that there should be proper representation of Indigenous peoples in education.

“The schooling that my generation went through was settler colonial history, and oftentimes, it was celebrated,” Tahmahkera said. “When I was an undergrad, I flipped to the back [of my history book], and I saw that there was Comanches in the index on only one page, page 156. I [went] to page 156 to see how my people

ILLUSTRATIONS BY SABRINA SIMEK

I do not remember the days before America— I do not remember the days when we were all here.

- Natalie Diaz, “American Arithmetic” The Native American population is 14 students, less than 1% of the student population at the school. Last year, a Native American affinity group was offered to students for the first time. Native American Student Alliance (NASA) co-founder and co-leader Spencer Casamassima ’24 said the club objectives are to build awareness around issues affecting Indigenous people.

“The goals of our club are to provide a space for Native American students,” Casamassima said. “We’ve got a very small percentage of our student population that is actually Native American, so it’s mainly about finding allies for the community and being an educational resource.”

Upper School English Teacher and NASA’s faculty advisor Lucas Gonzalez said his goal for the club is to create an environment where Indigenous students feel seen and heard.

“We need to honor and acknowledge the fact that there are Indigenous identifying students in our community who don’t necessarily have the sense that there is a safe space to talk about those issues,” Gonzalez said.

“The goal is to identify as, to be and to find community as Indigenous identifying people [and] to raise awareness both within the community and in our larger world about what it means to identify as an Indigenous person. [Our goal is] for there to be both a safe space to build community but also to integrate the different things that Indigenous people are struggling with or trying to achieve in the world. ” NASA co-founder and co-leader Cutter East ’24 said he created the club in order the highlight the prominent role Indigenous peoples can play in a modern

society given how their contributions are often overlooked or outdated.

“I am a part of other affinity groups where I feel very welcome and have a great time,” East said. “However, I wanted to be a part of a group that celebrates my culture and heritage. I assumed that although there are not many other Natives on campus, they probably felt the same way. My goal with NASA was to create a welcoming space where I can celebrate and learn about my culture with both people who identify and with people who are interested and supportive. Most importantly, the goal of my club is to highlight the Natives of today. Native culture is [often] thought of as a thing of the past, but I want to be able to highlight Natives today in the media and who contribute to today’s culture, whether we know it or not.”

I dig. We are vanishing lines in history books, treaties; laws do not protect us. I dig until mud and earth find home underneath my fingernails. I’ll plant something new in the absence burn vanish underreport - Tanaya Winder, “Missing More Than a Word” The History Department changed Advanced Placement U.S. History to Honors U.S. History for the 2023-2024 school year and beyond, a decision that was made to allow teachers more flexibility in their individual curricula. Upper School History Teacher Erik C. Wade said the change in course designation has not affected how he teaches the class because he was already highlighting Indigenous narratives in his courses.

“Students were so intellectually and emotionally stuck on the idea of the AP, and we wanted to center them on the discipline of history,” Wade said. “I’ve worked on centering [Diversity, Equity and Inclusion] since I began as a teacher back in 2010. It’s always been at the core of what I teach.”

Wade’s students are assigned excerpts written by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, a historian who focuses on Indigenous history.

Wade said Indigenous histories, like those of many marginalized groups, are often lost due to language barriers.

“The challenge for [the] Latinx [community], the African diaspora, Asian diaspora and Native Americans is that things are either lost in translation or are just lost,” Wade said. “So many languages were lost, and now, people are

trying to piece them together. This is true for Native Americans all across the nation and beyond. If those stories, which were often oral histories and told in their language, are lost, it’s hard to actually convey the past experiences that people were having in order to make sense of what’s happening today.”

Gonzalez said finding Indigenous works to incorporate into the English curriculum takes extra steps because of historical practices of erasure and a lack of Indigenous representation in the literary mainstream.

“There is an extent to which history has elevated certain voices and suppressed others,” Gonzalez said. “It’s not only finding work that’s out there. It’s also finding work that’s teachable students. There’s also the extra framework of the historical context in which those pieces are written, and [we should be] doing them justice rather than just putting them out there.

The work is out there, and an intention for discovering those voices is rewarded, even though so many of those voices are still working their way into the canon.”

Numerous books written by Indigenous authors are taught in the English Department. Upper School English Teacher Stephanie Chiang said she hopes to incorporate Indigenous voices into her curriculum so students can hear from minority voices and feel represented.

“I’m new to this school, and [with] the kind of curriculum that’s been set, I feel like [there’s] not enough minority voices,” Chiang said. “If you look at the demographics at Harvard-Westlake, we have such a diverse group of students, and literature is a way for you to find meaning and see through another person’s perspective. Reading is a way to learn how to write [and] analyze, but what if reading could be a way for you to experience a sense of belonging? If we had different voices, we could understand other people more, and we could also finally experience that sense of belonging through our readings beyond our physical space.”

Assistant Head of School for Community and Belonging Janine Jones said she feels that the school incorporates diverse perspectives in curriculum, but needs to focus more on Indigenous experiences.

“It has been one of the places that has evolved the least [compared to] some of our other groups, but it still has evolved,” Jones said. “Something that we did in the 2020-2021 school year was to have an equity audit for every single course that is offered at Harvard-Westlake. They were looking at it through a lens of DEI.”

• Continued on hwchronicle.com

Arts&Entertainment Much Ado About Nothing The Chronicle • Nov. 15, 2023

Students and teachers share insights on their experiences with viewing and participating in the modern adaptation of “Much Ado About Nothing.”

• Continued from A1

“I saw parallels between modern justice and Hero’s trope because of what we hear, what we believe and the conclusions that we jump to,” Berg said. “Although it is dated, and some of the language and the ideas are over 400 years old, [the play] being presented in a more modern way helped audiences connect it to the modern world around them. One of the main lessons was how rumors spread. One of the meanings of [the title] is gossip and how we should not trust everything we hear. That is relevant our within our school.”

Berg said the mature themes in the production were portrayed well because of their similarities to the daily lives of teenagers.

“The main themes of romance, betrayal and sex were handled well because it was all consensual, and we had a safe rehearsal space with workshops and support,” Berg said.

“Putting it in modern terms and [relating it to] what you would see teenagers on the Quad or at parties doing in real life helped make everyone feel more comfortable. We weren’t teenagers in the play, but making sure that it was appropriate and realistic made it more friendly [for] our target audience.”

The show included several stage kisses between couples in the show. Berg said there were different factors in the production process that made her feel more comfortable with the inti-

mate scenes.

“There was a little bit of awkwardness about the kisses in the play, but [the actors had] an intimacy workshop which [worked] on proximity and being comfortable with the other person,” Berg said. “One thing that I appreciated was [Washburn] letting us have control and making sure that everything was tightly choreographed and [that] there was no improv. I liked that when I had to do some more smooching near the end, I didn’t actually have to kiss my partner, [instead] I just kissed my thumbs.

Communicating with my partner and finding substitutions that [worked for me] on stage made it a lot more comfortable.”

The production also featured Visual Arts Teacher Reb Limerick, Performing Arts Teacher Rees Pugh and English Teacher Jocelyn Medawar as members of the neighborhood watch. Medawar said though she did not expect to act in the production, she enjoyed being part of the cast community.

“I had offered to help students learn their lines and understand what they were saying because Shakespeare can be hard,” Medawar said. “Before I knew it, [Washburn] had sent an email asking me, Mr. Pugh and Mx. Limerick if we wanted to be in it. I hadn’t thought about that, but it sounded like fun. I didn’t expect that I was going to

have so much fun. I was so nervous to memorize my few lines and so petrified that I would forget them.

It was such a wonderful surprise to start having so much fun.”

Medawar said she was welcomed by the student cast backstage during the show.

“I was a little worried that we’d be stepping on the students’ toes and that they wouldn’t like having us backstage,” Medawar said. “But what I really loved was how welcomed I felt, the spirit backstage and that the students seemed happy for us to be there. That meant the world to me.

Ms. Washburn is creating a beautiful space for students. Theater is a space where students come together and create real community. The fact that she brought the three of us into it was special, and I will treasure it forever. I’m very grateful to her.”

President Rick Commons said more students should have attended the play to support the cast members.

“I was blown away by how every single actor on the stage made the language come alive,” Commons said. “Their gesturing and acting was a [very] beautiful thing to behold and I was just a little disappointed that more students didn’t come to see it.

We all collect ourselves in the gym to watch the girls volleyball team or the boys basketball team, and I felt like the team on the stage deserved that kind of support.”

Assistant Director Zoe Roth ’24 said having the teachers backstage was a comforting presence for the cast during the performances.

“The teachers added both a sense of maturity and silliness to the show,” Roth said. “They warmed our community and made us feel more comfortable.

They sang along to the songs in the show, recited the lines backstage and were also helpful. Ms. Medawar helped with translations for the [language] which was really helpful for everyone.”

Roth said one of her primary responsibilities during rehearsals was to help the actors understand their monologues.

“I did a lot of mono-

logue work with actors sat down with a Shakespeare to make sure they under- Dictionary on my phone and stood what they were saying,” looked up all the words in my Roth said. “I looked up what monologues and lines to make the words meant and then de- sure I [understood]everything. termined which words were I sometimes looked up what other people said to me to make supposed to be emphasized.”

Unlike other plays the school sure I got it.”

In the play, Benedick is sehas recently shown, this year the cretly in love with Beatrice show featured dance numbers and spends the majority of the and singing. Isaac Tiu ’24, who show trying to hide his feelings. played Claudio, said the modern Smith said he connected with dance numbers made the play Benedick during his comedic easier to understand. moments in the show.

“I enjoyed the dances, even “I love Benedick,” Smith said. though we “He’s super funhad a hard ny and witty, but time with I was blown away he’s also serious at them, just by how every single times. The best because they way I found of made the actor on the stage connecting with play feel more made the language Benedict was to modern,” Tiu bring joy [to] come alive. ” said. “I also everything I did had a lot of —Rick Commons with the characteachers and President ter. [I also had to students come connect] with his up to me and love for Beatrice say that our modern take on , but it was just having fun Shakespeare really made it easwith [my acting choices that] ier to understand the plotline. made me connect with him.”

Having those instances of freshSmith said he enjoyed spender music and dance [aspects] ing time with the crew in the made the play more relatable to weeks leading up to the show. people watching.”

“My favorite part was being Jack Smith ’26, who played Benedick, said in order to un- with everyone in the last few derstand the language he spent weeks before the performances,” Smith said. “Everyone was time looking up the meanings incredibly nice, and it was fun of his lines. to run through the show. It’s “I honestly just spent hours such a joy, getting closer to evmemorizing,” Smith said. “I eryone in the cast.”

“

ILLUSTRATIONS BY ANNABELLE CHEUNG, PHOTOS WITH PERMISSION OF CONNOR TANG AND AVERIE PERRIN

The Chronicle

C2 Arts & Entertainment

Shelving the Books

Nov. 15, 2023

Students and faculty reflect on the reasons why their overall reading for pleasure over the past few years has decreased.

By Sasha Aghnatios

what first comes to mind when open style,” Gonzalez said.

Gonzalez said the decline in he thinks of decompressing reading for pleasure can be atStrolling back to her car after from school.

“When I come home from tributed to people seeking less her shift at Chevalier’s Books, a local bookstore in Larchmont school, my sister and I like to taxing stress relievers.

“I remember watching a Village, Mina Lavapies ’24 de-stress by watching ‘Gilmore passed by a few bustling shops. Girls,’” Borris said. “It’s sil- video where they interviewed She thought about the book- ly because I could be reading high school students about store and reflected on a con- during that time, but when we how many books they read [for versation she shared with her watch together, I get to spend pleasure],” Gonzalez said. “I co-worker who had expressed time with and talk to my sister. think the average was beReading requires so tween zero and one book that concerns about the much focus. I would [students] actually read cover noticeable decline in never be able to have a to cover. My experience tells customer traffic at conversation with my me that that’s not the case at the store. Though sister and read at the Harvard-Westlake, but I do Chevalier’s Books is think that we live in a world same time.” smaller in size, she reSavannah Mahoney with more distractions [than membered when the ’25 said she likes to in previous years]. It requires shop once swarmedread before bed be- a certain amount of attention with visitors. Lavapies cause it helps her to to read horizontally.” said it is now rare for L. Wood Despite this, Gonzalez take her mind off her more than a quarter of Mina said he is trying to prioritize daily life. customers to make a Lavapies ’24 “I normally drink reading because he is someone purchase, even during some herbal tea and who appreciates literature. the shop’s peak hours.

“I feel like the amount of “People come in somewhat read a few pages of a book before often,” Lavapies said. “We get bed,” Mahoney said. “I usually time that I spend on my phone more people on the weekends, can’t get whatever is happen- doesn’t always help my brain but a lot of people come in ing in my life out of my head for tasks that require more atwithout buying anything. We when I’m trying to go to sleep tention,” Gonzalez said. “That’s have some regular customers, at night. Reading transports me a battle that I’m always having: but a lot of people are just to a whole different world, and making sure that I stay true to wandering around Larchmont. it relaxes me in a way nothing my values as somebody who loves to read and is nourished They see the colorful display in else does.”

Sorgen said reading is im- by reading [as well as] somethe window and decide to take portant for nurturing students’ body who enjoys the distraction a peek. ” of a screen.”

Less people are reading for writing abilities and character.

While he thinks reading can “Reading transfers into your fun, according to the Pew Research Center. A recent study writing skills,” Sorgen said. often be a challenge, Gonzalez found that the number of “[It] can define who you are and said it is one of the more rewarding aspects 13-year-olds who read for fun [be] informative of his life. decreased from 35% in 1984 about humanity “Reading to 17% in 2020. In fact, 30% and life.”

I’ve noticed that always occuLavapies said of these 13-year-olds said they I’ve been reading less pies the mind the decline in never or hardly read for fun.

Jasmine Sorgen ’25 said the leisure reading these past years. I know in a way that feels stimulatamount of time she spends is resulting in a that if do start reading, ing,” Gonzalez reading for pleasure has dwin- general decrease in creativity.

I’ll be into it, but it’s said. “I know dled as she has grown older.

“In general, that the most “I’ve noticed that I’ve been impossible to start.” [who satisfying reading less [these] past few people —Jasmine Sorgen ‘25 insights and years,” Sorgen said. “I don’t do not read] using emotional exhave much free time anymore, aren’t periences come and when I do have free time, their brains as it [takes] too much energy to sit much,” Lavapies said. “This from reading. Because we live down and read. I know that if I means that people aren’t as cre- busy lives it is just a bit easier to do [start reading], I’ll be into it, ative and open-minded which fall back on something that is limits the creative and under- less work to process.” but it’s impossible to start.”

Borris said though he prefers Ellie Borris ’25 said though standing capabilities of people spending time reading over difhe loves to read, he has found it as a whole.”

Reading for pleasure can min- ferent mindless activities, such as to be too taxing of an activity to imize grammar mistakes in peo- spending time on social media, it do with limited time. ple’s writing, according to the is often more worthwhile to enjoy “Reading had always been University of Waterloo. Read- life firsthand. one of my go-to activities,” ing can also result in expansion “I never feel bad about not Borris said. “But these days of vocabulary, diversification of reading unless I’m doing somewhen I’m stressed and want to knowledge and increased focus thing obviously useless like take a break from homework, and critical thinking skills. scrolling through TikTok,” Borit feels like a lot of work to Upper School English Teach- ris said. “But I never really feel pick up a book. Reading is so er Lucas Gonzalez said he sees bad if I’m going to the beach gratifying, but it takes mental the effects of this decline in or hanging out with my friends effort and around 10 minutes reading as students’ language instead of reading. Reading is nice for me to get into a reading has become increasingly casual. to get insights into new situations, groove. Sometimes, I don’t “I’ve seen the range of lexi- but it is a lot more gratifying have more than 10 minutes for con change from what’s con- to live through those different a break, so it seems pointless sidered a more formal style of types of character-building for me to read.”

Borris said reading is not writing to a more colloquial and [experiences] firsthand.”

“

ILLUSTRATIONS BY ANNABELLE CHEUNG

Nov. 15, 2023

Arts & Entertainment C3

hwchronicle.com/a&e

Tha nksg iv ing Thoughts

Chronicle staff members share their opinions on all things Thanksgiving.

A Turkey Trot

Pumpkin Pie Flavors

By Saisha Kumar

By Crista Kim

Thanksgiving morning, for my family, entails getting up just before 8 a.m. to run 3.1 miles in the annual Turkey Trot. While I always enjoy running alongside my friends and family, my favorite part of every Turkey Trot is out-kicking my relatives at the end of the 5k. By the time I finish the race, I’m already craving mashed potatoes and gravy.

Let’s, be honest: not all pie is good pie.

Pumpkin pie is basically baby food in pie form (sorry).

Its only saving grace is that it can be doused in a fluffy white mountain of whipped cream, and suddenly, it’s the best thing ever. It’s also visually less appealing than most pies with its plain, flat, orange blob-like shape.”

A Peanut’s Thanksgiving

Any Turkey Can Tango

Two Turkey Facts

By Everett Lakey

By Sasha Aghnatios

By Olivia So

Although “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” is not as iconic as the Peanut’s Halloween or Christmas specials, it is still a heartfelt love letter to the holiday. I especially like all the scenes that focus on preparing food, as that’s my favorite part of the holiday and I think the film represented it well.

Not everyone associates Thanksgiving with dancing, but, for the special few who do, the first song that comes to mind is “Any Turkey Can Tango” by Silly Sally. I first heard the song in my elementary school’s dance class. We did the Turkey Tango every year, and, while I don’t remember the steps anymore, I will never forget the fun I had doing it.

1. Turkey’s heads change color with their emotions! They can go from red, blue or white based on how excited they are.

A Guide to Thanksgiving Sides

2. Turkeys can see three times better than humans! They can see in color and their peripheral vision covers 270 degrees.

Thanksgiving Debates

By Mia Morgan

By Max Turetzky

Side dishes are an essential part of the perfect Thanksgiving feast. However, choosing which are worth the real estate on your plate can prove to be a difficult endeavor. That’s why I am here to guide you through the ins and outs of sides this season. Mac and cheese takes the prize as the best side. It is delicious and also offers the best of both worlds: a carb and protein. On the other hand, creamed spinach is the worst choice this holiday season. The texture is gross, the color is ugly and the dish is clearly nothing more than a failed attempt to add a twist to an already boring vegetable.

Being a debate kid at Thanksgiving gives me mixed feelings, as the dinner table becomes both an arena for high-stakes political discussion and a terrifying reminder of the state of the country. As Grandpa Ted complains about the estate tax, Cousin Bob proselytizes about how golf has gone woke and Great-Uncle Jerry provides irrefutable evidence that Bill Gates is a lizard person, I realize my pleas for reason fall on deaf ears.

Each retort increasingly sours the cranberry sauce, escalating the tension faster than you can say “Indigenous People’s Day.” ILLUSTRATIONS BY MAIYA HOLLY

Grace Coleman’s Guide to Caramel Apple Bars

By Grace Coleman

per: a rich, salted caramel 6. 1/4 tspn salt sauce and a showstopping 7. Spices (go heavy on these): 1 tspn ground cinnaAs the leaves turn slightly crumb topping. mon, 1/4 tspn ground nutless green and a chill sets in meg, 1/4 tspn ground allthe air, it’s time to embrace The Crust & Topping: spice. If you have it though, the annual charm of fall the cinnamon, nutmeg and baking. While the season of- 1. 3 cups all-purpose flour all-spice can be substituted ten brings to mind beloved 2. 1 cup granulated sugar for one tbspn of pumpkin pumpkin recipes, we are 3. 1 tspn baking powder pie spice, which is a mixture 4.

1/4 tspn salt here to show you that there’s of all three spices. more to autumn treats than 5. 1/4 tspn cinnamon 9. 3/4 cup salted caramel meets the pie. Welcome the 6. 1 cup cold unsalted butsauce (homemade or, if you ter, cut into small pieces new star: Caramel Apple are lazy, store-bought) 7.

1 egg, lightly beaten Bars. This modern twist on an old classic is a surefire 8. 1/2 tspn vanilla extract Directions: way to outdo your relatives The Apple Filling: this holiday season (because 1. Start by greasing a 9×13let’s be honest, Thanksgiving inch baking pan in butter 1.

5 cups peeled and diced dinner is a competition and or vegetable oil. Pro tip: if apples (Granny Smith or we’re here to win). With a have any leftover butter Honeycrisp are both firmer touch of salt and a flavorful and crisper than other apple you wrappers you can use them crumble to set off the bright, varietals and work beautiful- to grease your pan. fresh flavor of Honeycrisp ly in baking) apples at the peak of their 2. 1 tbspn fresh lemon juice 2. Next, gather your ingrediseason, these Caramel Apple (you can use store-bought ents and preheat the oven to Bars are a showstopper. The but I’ll judge you) 375ºF. recipe begins with a buttery 3. ½ cup all-purpose flour crust, then a layer of spiced 4. 1 tspn cornstarch 3. For the apple filling, peel apples, before the showstop- 5. 1 cup granulated sugar and dice your apples and

mix with the fresh lemon juice. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, sugar, salt and spices.

Gently combine the apples with the dry ingredients and set aside.

4. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon to form the dough mixture.

Mix in the cold, cubed butter, using either a fork or a pastry cutter until the butter is in small chunks, before adding the egg and vanilla. Use your hands to shape the dough and add a tablespoon of water if the mixture feels too dry.

5. Pat half of the dough into

the greased pan and spread the apple mixture evenly over the crumb crust before generously drizzling with the salted caramel sauce.

6. Crumble the remaining dough over the apple and caramel layer and pat gently until no filling is visible.

7. Bake for 45 minutes, or until the top is golden brown. Let it cool on a wire rack and cut into squares.

8. For the perfect addition, serve these bars warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and an extra drizzle of salted caramel sauce.

9. Enjoy by yourself or earn some brownie points by sharing your treats with family and friends.

ILLUSTRATIONS BY MEJO LIAO

Satire The Chronicle • Nov. 15, 2023

Senior First Quarter Grades Chronicle juniors graded the Chronicle seniors based on their first quarter performances. Each grade was assigned by averaging the letter grades each senior received based on a 4.0 scale. Goat emojis were weighted as 4.0s.

Crossword Puzzle SOS (save our satire section) Solutions

By Zoe Goor and Hannah Shahidi

Dear Devoted Chronicle Satire Section Readers,

1) Parts of an English Essay Context, Evidence, Conclusion, Claim

2) HW Instagram Accounts Confessions, Parking, Overheard, Quad 3) Directed Study Classes Yoga, Slam, Bioethics, Greek 4) Things Hosted in Rugby Play, Assembly, ALICE, Teaser

1. We prioritize the highest quality journalism by publishing untruthful reporting. We also repeat jokes. If you got this one, then you’re clearly a dedicated reader of this section.

2. We give Harris and Marks another extracurricular to put on their college applications.

4. We are against censorship.

5. *reason retracted due to sensitive content 6. There are so many Erewhon references in our Satire articles that we’re worried Erewhon, and subsequently the entire Studio City economy, would collapse without our publicity.

WITH SATIRE

Chron-nections Solutions

THE SATIRE SECTION IS UNDER ATTACK! That’s right.

Your worst nightmare is coming true. We should have seen this coming. Print Managing and Satire Editors Jade Harris ’24 and Davis Marks ’24 made too many demands in their “Letter from the Satire Editors,” and now, the Editors-in-Chief are getting rid of the crowning jewel of their paper. Harris and Marks are on strike (they didn’t get the memo from Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and think they’re part of the broader labor movement), so we have taken it upon ourselves to avenge the legacy of Satire Section Founder Georgia Goldberg ’23. Here is a list of fifteen reasons why satire should not be cut from the Chronicle.

3. We’re the only section whose articles can’t be written

by ChatGPT.

7. We were planning on publishing the Early Decision spreadsheet next issue. People would finally be interested in the Chronicle. Now, everyone will just have to wait until the Chronicle publishes the matriculation sheet in May.

11. None of us juniors have social lives. How do you expect us to get out there if not for the junior dating profiles that will be coming soon?

12. Having satire gives us an even six sections so that the sweatshirt design looks balanced.

13. We’re the only section where the oxford comma is acceptable and encouraged.

14. We urge the administration to make necessary changes (see: Prince Harry to Replace Commons as Head of School, Swiftie Flex Day).

15. We’re the irreverent voice of the student body. We will not be silenced.

In the words of our founder, “please don’t kill the [satire] baby.”

8. We fight against censorship of student journalists by publishing fake facts and playing them off as jokes. Oh wait, is this similar to the first reason?

9. We give our senior editors a much needed break from the heaviest topics (the Starbucks Renovation).

10. According to very qualified Chronicle data scientists, Madhappy sales rose by 420% since we published a photo of Harris and Marks, in which Harris wore Editor-in-Chief Ella Yadegar ’24's sweatshirt.

Without Satire

ILLUSTRATIONS BY AMELIA CHIARELLI

Sports The Chronicle • Nov. 15, 2023

PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF LILY STAMBOULI

G O I N G FO R G O L D

By Justin Tang As the time on the clock winded down, Goalie Lily Stambouli ’24 struggled to contain her excitement. She could hardly focus on the ball being passed among her teammates as her gaze flickered back and forth to the dwindling game time. Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Stambouli couldn’t believe it — she remembered her first game against Huntington Beach High School when she allowed seven goals, feeling helpless each time she dove to block the ball. Six. Five. Four. Her mind flashed back to cold afternoon practices as she endured the biting wind.

Three. Two. One. She remembered how though she hated field hockey as a junior, she now loved every second of it. Stambouli sprinted across the field with an unprecedented speed. Before she knew it, she had achieved her high school dream: winning the Tournament of Champions (TOC).

Stambouli said celebrating the championship title was a special moment for the team.

“I remember feeling a huge rush of relief when the clock hit zero,” Stambouli said. “Everyone ran over towards me, and we celebrated as a team. All the seniors started crying because we were all so happy. Last year was a little rough for field hockey, [so this championship] meant so much to us. [It showed us] that we’re a good team, and we’re able to win. It was [an] awesome moment.”

The field hockey team defeated Bonita High School 2-0 in the 2023 Sunset League TOC final Oct. 28. The victory marks the team’s eighth TOC title in program history. The team finished the season with a total record of 14-2-1 with a league record of 7-1.

Head of Athletics Terry Barnum said

the team’s championship title adds to the past success of the school’s field hockey program.

“I am extremely proud of our team, [Field Hockey Program Head] Sue Hodgkins and her staff,” Barnum said.

“Winning another championship keeps the proud legacy of our field hockey program alive and well.”

Stambouli said there was a significant improvement in the team’s dynamic compared to the previous season.

“Last year, there was just a lot of negativity on the team between the coaches, the administration and the players themselves,” Stambouli said. “This year, our team meshed so well together, and we were able to connect and have that team bond early on.”

Midfielder Margaux Schlumberger ’27 said she appreciates the close relationships she formed with other players on the team.

“I’ve cherished the connections I’ve made with my teammates, even the ones who are going off to college this year,” Schlumberger said. “I’m so grateful to have gotten to spend this time with [my teammates].

Playing a sport with somebody [is] so much more than a common friendship, and I’m so glad to have made so many friends this season.”

Many of the team’s starters during the season were freshmen, including midfielder Val Ganocy ’27, who scored both of the Wolverines’ goals during the championship game and won Most Valuable Player honors. Schlumberger said she admires Ganocy’s dedication and love for field hockey. “[Ganocy] is one of my best friends and one of the most amazing people I

have ever met,” Schlumberger said. “It 100 percent effort. I had a big mindset is such a joy to play with her. She brings swap. I went from saying, ‘Yeah I don’t so much enthusiasm, and she is con- really care about this. I’m just here to stantly energetic. She’s always running, show up and ride the bench,’ to wanting and she’s always willing to go that extra to win. I wanted to give it my all because mile to get the shot. It has been so fun to the team depended on me.”

Jordan Park ’25, who passed away grow with her, especially watching her come off of an injury and work so hard earlier in March, played on the varsity to return to absolute sheer amazingness team for two years. Defender Glory Ho ’24 said the team was able to come closafter that injury.”

Hodgkins said the team’s talented and er together as a group after the loss of a dedicated freshmen class has the potential cherished teammate.

“Last year, we lost someone who was to become outstanding.

“They’re all great kids,” Hodgkins truly hardworking and motivational,” said. “They’re really talented [and] hard- Ho said. “While I don’t want to speak working, and they love field hockey. for everyone, I think those who knew They all have a bright future in field her and played with her tried to keep hockey, and they’re all excited to get bet- that spirit she brought to practice alive.

In general, the theme of community was ter in the offseason.” really emphasized this season.

Compared to other fall Our Head Coach organized a sports, very few fans attended field hockey retreat over the the field hockey team’s home summer that helped us bond, games. Hodgkins said the lack and we started new traditions of fans usually did not affect this season, such as having a the team’s performance.

“It’s nice for the kids to have player give a speech before evtheir families there,” Hodgery game.” kins said. “Of course they apHodgkins said the champil. wood preciate when their classmates onship was especially meaningGlory come, but we’re only playing ful given Park’s recent passing.

Ho ’24 to meet our own challenges “All of these girls were in and goals, so the crowd is secondary. We some way connected to Jordan, whether don’t play for that. It’s nice to have [the they played with her last year or played crowd], and they appreciate it, but we with her club,” Hodgkins said. “Having never really play for that.” this be the first championship that we’ve Stambouli said although she had won together since we lost Jordan made it contemplated quitting field hockey as a special for sure.” junior, she found a new passion for the Ho said playing field hockey has sport in her final year. taught her to persevere.

“I was so close to quitting,” Stam“I started playing in seventh grade bouli said. “I was having a conversa- as a joke,” Ho said. “I’d tell younger tion in the middle of the Quad with my players that despite the challenges, I coach, saying field hockey doesn’t make was able to win a championship. I’d me happy anymore. But finally playing tell them to keep an open mind. I never on varsity as the starting goalie and be- thought I’d love field hockey so much ing captain of the team gave me the love that I’d play it through senior year, but that I really had for field hockey. I was I’ve come to find that in life, the things also playing well. I felt good about prac- that became [the] most special to me ticing, and I was giving [field hockey] a are the ones I [had] least expected.”

D2 Sports

The Chronicle

Nov. 15, 2023

Girls' golf cut from playoffs

By Hailey Cho

The girls' varsity golf team ended their season with an undefeated league record of 7-0 and an overall record of 11-1. The team won backto-back league titles and placed in the D1 Championship, however, the team finished in sixth, a couple places away from qualifying for the Southern California Finals.

Throughout the season, the team remained undefeated until their last season match, where they lost to Notre Dame.

The team placed second and fourth in two of the top invitational tournaments during the season.

Additionally, the team set several records, including achieving a total team score of 167 in a nine hole match midseason and 349 in the 18 hole match in the final league.

Individually, Kaydence Kim ’25 and Elynne Park ’25 set a school record of 31 for nine holes.

Park said her commitment to practicing helped to achieve the school record.

"I honestly feel very, very proud of being able to represent girls golf and most especially the effort that went into being able to achieve that record," Park said.

Kim said she remained dedicated and patient in order to improve her game.

"Setting the record for the lowest nine hole score makes me feel like I’ve made progress," Kim said.

"Every time I play, I try to set realistic goals for myself and that day, I wanted to break 30. Although my game was a little off, I still managed to shoot 31, which shows that my practice has paid off."

Girls' golf Program Head Branden Augustus said he is extremely proud of the team's performance.

“This was by far our best season since I’ve been Program Head," Augustus said. "The [Junior Varsity (JV)] team was outstanding as well, going undefeated and beating several varsity teams. We also had JV players join the varsity lineup on several occasions in which they really helped the team by contributing good scores."

JUSTIN TANG/CHRONICLE

STRAIGHT SHOOTER: Attacker Alex Heenan '24 legs up on a five-meter penalty shot against Newport Harbor in the CIF semifinal Nov. 8. The team was tied in the fourth quarter in the final play when a Newport Harbor attacker scored a goal that was past the buzzer but still ruled valid by referees.

Boys' water polo loses to Newport Harbor in semifinal due to missed call in final seconds

By Justin Tang

time the [shot clock] went off, and I'm furious because that was our The boys’ water polo team lost season. That was our game. We had to Newport Harbor High School a special group and we deserved to 12-11 in the California Interscho- be in that championship game, and lastic Federation Southern Section that Newport team doesn't.”

Attacker Aidan Romain ’26 (CIF-SS) Open Division semifinal said he would not compromise Nov. 8. In the final seconds of the game, with the score tied 11-11, his moral character to gain an unfair advantage.

Newport Harbor At“We took a two-and-atacker Connor Ohl half-hour drive all the way scored on a power down to Orange County, play to win the game. and nobody's on our side,” Although scored afRomain said.

“Nobody's ter the final buzzer with us, and we go out according to video there and we kick their footage, the officials butts. Nobody, including deemed the goal valid the referees, wants to see to end the game. The L. Wood that happen, so they deWolverines finished Jack cided to try and make a the season with an Shapiro ’26 change. They did what's overall record of 19-7 in their power to make and a league record of 4-0. that change and there's nothing I Attacker Jack Shapiro ’26 said can do about it. But my big thing is the final call ultimately cost the fairness. I want to be a good player, team a spot in the championship. but I also want to be a fair player. If “I'm furious,” Shapiro said. I win ten championships in my ca“There's video evidence that the reer by cheating, I'm not going to ball was in [Ohl’s] hand by the be satisfied. With the amazing way

that we played this game, we were robbed by the referees of a chance to play in the championship."

Romain said he was proud of the senior class' ability to come together as a team against Newport.

"I was really happy to see [the senior class] shine,” Romain said.

“Unfortunately in their last game, but more importantly when the moment really mattered. Everyone was on the same note and everyone was executing, even when others weren't executing. We had people covering for each other. It was just really impressive to see the senior class perform in their last game.”

Boys' water polo Program Head Jack Grover said both referees have professional backgrounds and should not be blamed for the loss.

“Anybody who wants to complain about the referees needs to understand that there is no harder job in a high school game than refereeing,” Grover said. “We're not talking about two guys who just started refereeing. We're talking about [Toni Karaman and

Robert Matosic], who have done excellent jobs on many, many games. [Matosic] was excellent in our game against [Loyola High School], so I think to say that the outcome was their fault is unfair."

Grover said many players have grown significantly over the course of the season. “[Alex Heenan ’24], for example, is someone who really cared about scoring his goals,” Grover said. “And in our last possession of the game, [Heenan] making that last entry pass as someone jumps out to him is everything to me.

Putting aside what might make him feel better and doing what the team needed is everything that you can ask for as a coach.”

Grover said the loss was a painful way to end the season.

“It's just super bittersweet,” Grover said. “The entire team, but the seniors especially, had so many things stacked against them, and they just went out there and said, ‘Let's be all in together for this one thing.’ And it was a fairy tale game except for the result.”

Girls' tennis loses CIF team matches

By Alex Dinh

The girls’ tennis team lost 13-5 to Westlake High School in the first round of California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section (CIF-SS) Open Divison playoffs Nov. 3. After starting the season off 2-3, the team won nine matches in a row to finish 11-4 overall and 8-0 in league play.

Singles player Sunny Lu ’25 won the Mission League singles tournament, and doubles team Mimi Rhee ’25 and Tanya Anand ’24 finished second in the Mission League doubles tournament.

Lu, Rhee and Anand will compete in the CIF Individual Playoffs starting Nov. 20.

Program Head Jelena Durisic said the team had a strong season, despite the loss in the first round of the playoffs.

“The season as a whole was a good one,” Durisic said. “We improved from the beginning towards the end. Obviously, in the CIF tournament, it's a bit of

a disappointment when you lose, but the girls grew. They got better, they learned and they're going to be motivated going into next season.”

Lu said the team lacked intensity at the beginning of the match against Westlake, and as a result, their performance was negatively impacted.

“All of us lacked a little bit of energy in the first round, which brought down our score,” Lu said. “As we went into the next rounds, we realized that our energy brought us down. We had to hype ourselves up, and we did better than our first round. We realized that having more energy off the court is what brings our best game to the table.”

Anand said she looks forward to the Individual Playoffs with Rhee because they have developed chemistry playing together.

“I’m really excited for individuals because [Rhee] and I are a really strong team together,” Anand said. “We've been playing together

for the last two years on the team, and we really learned each other's game styles and are really in tune right now.”

Lu said she has to stay mentally sharp in order to have success in the CIF playoffs.

“I definitely need to put my winning Mission League aside, because I don't want that to get to me,” Lu said. “There's a lot more competition to come, so I need to focus on how to improve my strengths, as well as just stay in the zone and not try to get distracted by winning Mission League.”

Durisic said she is excited about the future of the program.

“The team is already talking about what they need to do in the offseason,” Durisic said. “The junior class going into senior year next year are really excited about being leaders. They're already asking me, ‘What do you want from us?’ Overall, it was a good season, and I'm proud of the girls. Going into next year, we're just going to continue to build.”

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STRIVING FOR SETS: Mimi Rhee '25 prepares to return an serve an opponent's serve in a home game against Westlake High School Sept. 13.

Nov. 15, 2023

hwchronicle.com/sports

Sports D3

Boys’ basketball hopes to build on past success

By Justin Tang

ing great depth and some really talented players is that we have The boys’ basketball team an opportunity to put them out looks to defend their title as there, provide them experience California state champion this and see what they do. [Hugcoming winter. In the previ- gins] had four offensive reous season, the Wolverines won bounds a game for us last year, their first California Interscho- which is four extra possessions lastic Federation (CIF) State a game. That needs to be made Open Division championship up somewhere.” in school history. According to Khamenia said he looks forMaxPreps, the team is current- ward to stepping into a new role. ly ranked fourth in the country “I’m excited,” Khamenia said. and first in California.

“I feel like I have the trust from Although the team my teammates and is centered around coaches. I’ve worked a frontcourt trio of for [this position] guard Trent Perry ’24, throughout the sumguard Robert Hinton mer. I’ve also worked ’24 and wing Nikofor it throughout the las Khamenia ’25, fall, so I’m just excited the forward positions to take it on.”

Rebibo said the team are yet to be deteris focusing on improving mined after forwards L. Wood from each game rather Jacob Huggins ’23 David than just winning. and Brady Dunlap ’23 Rebibo “We approach evgraduated last year. ery game trying to get Head Coach David Rebibo said the team will look better,” Rebibo said. “There are to their younger players to fill mindsets and approaches that we have to have game in and game these positions. “[Forward Dominique Ben- out, as we prepare and move on tho ’26] is going to have a great through the season. Every game opportunity, as well as [Forward for us will be a challenge. The Barron Linnekens ’26], [Forward mindset of whether we think a Bryce Williams ’26], [Wing Isa- team is good or not is irrelevant. iah Carroll ’25] and Khamenia,” Whether we think it’s winnable Rebibo said. “The beauty of hav- or not is irrelevant. We’ve got to

ALEX LEE/CHRONICLE

BUILDING A LEGACY: Head Coach David Rebibo speaks in a team meeting after a preseason practice. The team looks to repeat as California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) state champions, currently ranked fourth in the country. get better [as a team] if our ultimate goal is to become the best team come January.”

Perry, who recently committed to the University of Southern California (USC), said he is specifically focused on gaining strength and athleticism in his senior year.

“I want to be more explosive, keep getting bigger and stay in the gym,” Perry said. “I know at the next level we have to get stronger, to make sure that we have the skills and tangibles just to be able to work around a

scout that’s implemented on any one of us.”

The Wolverines finished the previous season with an overall record of 34-2 with a league record of 7-0. Hinton said the team hopes to win every game this season as well as the championship.

“That loss to [St. John Bosco High School] still stung us, even to this day,” Hinton said. “The first few weeks after winning the state championship, our team was insanely happy and proud of ourselves.

But right when we started get-

ting back into those preseason practices in the summer, every single practice ended with our coach telling us that we didn’t win it all. The whole goal this year is to win every single thing that we get in position to win.

We all have that fire in our belly this year to win every single thing possible and put up an extra banner in our gym.”

The team’s next game is against Palisades High School in the Westside Tip-Off Showcase at Westchester High School on Nov. 16.

Boys’ soccer to defend Mission League title

By Nathan Wang

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THREADING THE NEEDLE: Striker Vicky Pugh ’25, who is committed to play Division 1 Women’s soccer at Vanderbilt University, looks to make a pass during a game against Chaminade High School on Jan. 18.

Girls’ soccer prepares for new season

By Eden Conner

It was hailing in Marietta during the 2023 Girls’ Soccer Mission League playoffs. Despite the freezing temperature, Head Coach Richard Simms said he was confident of his team’s ability to win.

“The team made a deep run last season because we built an incredible mental toughness,” Simms said. “We fell behind, we gave up late goals and we went to penalty shootouts, but we kept finding a way to win. I felt last season that no matter how difficult the circumstances were, we were going to find a way [to win].”

The team finished their season with an overall record of 16-7-3.

Layla Anani ’26 said because of the number of freshmen on the team this season, leadership roles on the team may not be limited by grade.

“I think that a leader needs to

be on the team, but it doesn’t necessarily have to be a senior,” Anani said. “Someone besides the coaches should take initiative. Leadership was really central to [last] season.”

Dani Lynch ’23 and Alex Astalos ’23 were last year’s co-captains. Simms said leading this year’s team will not be difficult given the group’s talent and motivation.

“We lost the leaders [Astalos] and [Lynch], who were the vocal leaders, spiritual leaders and energy leaders,” Simms said. “We have so many great kids that [leadership] will happen somewhat organically over the next few weeks. The group is so motivated and so energetic. It’s not like you need a miracle worker who’s going to turn it around or create something that doesn’t exist.

It already exists. It just needs to be cultivated and encouraged.”

Jaida Pryor ’24 said because there are only four seniors on the

team this year, she is looking forward to seeing the underclassmen take on a larger role on the team.

“Our team is very young, and we have a lot of talent in the younger grades,” Pryor said. “I feel like [the seniors] had a really important role last year, but a lot of our players are going to step up and fill in for them.”

The team will travel to Arizona this winter for their first out of state tournament since before the pandemic. Ashle Reese ’25 said she is looking forward to bonding as a team on the trip.

“I’m most excited for the Arizona trip,” Reese said. “It’s going to be great team bonding. Making sure we intermix ourselves with the new freshman and make an effort to know everyone is so important for the team’s success.”

The team will face Punahou High School on Nov. 29.

ed,” Erush said. “A lot of them have aspirations to play at the next level.

The boys’ soccer team is look- This group of seniors is not satisfied ing to improve this season with the with the success last year because new leadership of seniors and the they want to create their own legarising talent of its freshmen class. cy this season. I always tell my guys Last season, the team won its first that we’re not trying to win it. We Mission League title since 1998 are going to win it. That’s what I’m trying to instill in them.” with a record of 12-0-1.

Erush said the new freshmen Defender and Team Captain JT Federman ’24 said last year’s suc- on the team will have to adapt cess was partially due to the team’s to the competitive high school soccer environment. strong bond.

“There are going to be two “Our team bonded, and our team chemistry was really strong freshmen,” Erush said. “For me, by the end of [last] year,” Federman it’s how fast can they understand said. “We knew how to play with what high school soccer is and each other, and that all worked to- how fast and physical it is. It is gether on the field. That’s why we about adapting to high school [soccer], because it’s different had a lot of success.”

Federman said he is confi- [from] club soccer.”

Striker Theo Ottoson ’25 dent that Head Coach Michael Erush’s emphasis on defense will said although he is proud of the team’s success, help the team. they should not “It’s probably be complacent. the most im“It’s always exIt’s going to take portant thing for citing going into [Erush] to have a a lot of work these next the new season strong defense,” couple of weeks to get because whatever Federman said. you did before, ready, but I’m confident “He emphasizes you have to put in our defense. ” how important behind,” Ottoson defense is in the said. “You can’t —JT Federman ’24 Mission League, go in thinking and because of that you’re althat, we work on defense a lot in ready going to win the [Mission] practice. [During] our first prac- League just because you did it last tice, we [did] one-on-ones and year. We won Mission League, two-on-twos, and that’s [Erush’s] and obviously, we’d love to resignature first practice back. It’s peat it. But we’re [also] looking important to be a good defensive towards [winning the California team. It’s [going to] take a lot of Interscholastic Federation], espework these next couple of weeks cially with the new open division to get ready, but I’m confident.” trial for boys’ soccer. It’d be great Erush said the senior group is to qualify for that and have a committed to building upon the deep run in that playoff.” success from last season.

The team’s first game of the “This group of seniors is even season is against Westlake High more talented and more dedicat- School at home Nov. 21.

“

D4 Sports

The Chronicle

Nov. 15, 2023

WOLVERINES ONLY

BY KAI HARLESTON D

ance is something I’ve done ever since I can remember, and it has always played an integral role in my life. From the moment I stepped into the dance studio, I knew it was something I wanted to pursue.

Having had three brothers all on the football team at Harvard-Westlake, I’ve grown up spending countless Friday nights watching their games. While the whole crowd watched the clock in hopes of the Wolverines scoring a touchdown, my 7-year-old self counted down the seconds until the cheerleaders performed their halftime performance. I remember the excitement I felt when I watched them leap through the air with big smiles on their faces and wondered if that would ever be me one day.

I began dancing at a very young age recreationally. It was something I could do with my friends to have fun and become more comfortable dancing. I remember when my mom put me in my first dance class; I cried the whole way there, but left beaming uncontrollably. That was the moment that I knew dance was going to be with me forever. As I grew older, my relationship with dance shifted: it was not recreational anymore, but it was all about competition. At my first dance competition, I remember the feeling of everyone’s eyes on me as I walked on stage with a panel of judges sitting in front of me, watching and scoring my every move. To me, competitive dance felt like it was about being the best, and your quality of dance was based on how many awards you received from the judges. I found myself stuck in a cycle of self-doubt and was constantly comparing myself to others. I placed tremendous pressure on myself to become as good as the girl next to me and found myself dancing to win, rather than dancing because I love it. This competitive aspect took the fun of dance away from me, and I began to fall out

of love with it. I felt like it wasn’t providing me with the same joy I felt as a little kid.

During the pandemic, I had to dance on Zoom, which disconnected me from the community that I loved so much. Dancing with ten tiny squares on a computer screen in my room for hours on end was not the same as dancing with my friends in person.

Throughout quarantine, I danced less and less, but I realized that what motivated me to dance was not competing with others, but connecting with different people through dance. In the fall of 2020, I got a phone call from my friends who had all planned to go to cheer tryouts the next day. The possibility of becoming a cheerleader excited me, as I was finally getting the chance to become who I looked up to as a little girl. But I had some doubts too. I hadn’t danced in about 6 months and was afraid I wasn’t good enough to make the team. I got over my fear and went into tryouts with my head held high, thinking of the team I saw on the field that night as a kid, all dancing in solidarity and truly cherishing their time together. I jumped up out of my seat when my phone buzzed with an email stating that I made the team. Looking back on it, this moment was one of the best of my life because it brought back my joy for dance.

Being a member of the Spirit Program has provided me with many opportunities to better myself, which I am forever grateful for. At my first Homecoming game in tenth grade, I remember feeling my legs tremble beneath me as the crowd roared and we hit our starting position for our halftime performance. We had practiced for months, and I didn’t want to let the team or myself down. But as soon as the music came on, I immediately felt safe.

Dancing with my team that day was special. I fed off of the energy of my teammates and felt connected

PRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF KAI HARLESTON

to them while we danced. That feeling has never stopped and as co-captain of the team, I want to ensure that the newer members of our team feel that same sense of connection and comfort when we all perform together.

Throughout my four years on the team, I rediscovered my love for dance. I am constantly surrounded by incredible individuals who inspire and challenge me each day we practice or even just around campus. Being a team member has redefined what dance means to me: a way of connecting with others that you might not have without your shared love for dance. I have created such strong bonds with each of my teammates and know I can count on them to encourage me to keep working or laugh with me when practice gets tough. Looking back on my four years on the team, I’m super grateful to have found a group that understands and supports one another, on and off the field.

Wherever life takes me after my time at Harvard-Westlake, I know that my memories as a member and co-captain of the Dance Team will stay with me forever, motivating me to continue dancing. But it all hit me so fast that this is my last season on the Dance Team, which has provided me with so much comfort and the space to grow as a dancer and an individual. As I begin the start of the end of my time on the team, I want to lead by example, working to promote a space where members of the team can feel supported.

I feel so grateful for the coaches and the girls on the team, who have believed in me even when I didn’t believe in myself. Being a part of the Dance Team has been such an incredible experience that I would never trade for the world, as it helped me discover so much about myself and those around me through dance.