Tower Issue #4 2014-2015

Tower The Masters School

49 Clinton Avenue Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. 10522

VOLUME 71, NUMBER 4

Editorial Students have a lot to be thankful for, yet often focus on the negative and complain. Deciding to live a life of thankfulness is a choice we can all make to create a more thoughtful world.

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FRIDAY, MARCH 13, 2015

TOWER.MASTERSNY.ORG

Vaccination nation: Students weigh the pros and cons YiYi OuYang Features Editor Parents in California do not have to vaccinate their children if they claim for specific religious or philosophical reasons in California, where according to CNN, more than 90 people are already infected by measles this year.

Measles is one of the epidemics that can be avoided along by taking the MMR vaccine, which is recognized by Centers for Disease C o n t r o l and Prevention (CDC).

But the MMR is also one of the vaccines that is targeted as the cause of autism by many parents who join the anti vaccine movement in the country.

“U.S. is a very advanced country, yet we have the highest rate of children getting autism. It is a paradox.” Lucero Zapata, the mother of Junior Marianna Zapata said. She also said that she has seen recent reports proving that the mercury in vaccines can affect kids and cause autism, which is why she hasn’t allowed her daughter to take vaccines since then.

Indeed, a study published by a group of Japanese scholars in 2006 said that “…the incidence of regressive autism should be higher in children given MMR vaccine,

and that, in the case of Japan, the incidence of regression in autism should have increased following the introduction of the MMR program and decreased after it ceased.”

Zapata said, “Now I’m open since my daughter is 16 already. But if I had children today, I would not vaccinate them.”

On the other hand, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “There is not a

causal relationship between certain vaccine types and autism,” Still, it is a reason many parents used in the anti vaccine movement.

School Nurse Rosemarie Corradina simply said, “Immunization protect against serious illness and spread of communicable disease and anyone concerned about the safety of vaccines should speak to their doctor.” She also said that the school follows the New York State Immunization Requirements and requires students to take specific vaccines in order to apply.

“The only exemptions are for those with pre-existing medical conditions and those with true religious beliefs against immunizations.” Corradina said.

Day student Junior Julia Sandler said that although she had already met all the requirements, she doesn’t take flu shots because she just hasn’t gotten the flu. But she also said, “I do think that some vaccines are important. And I think the risk for getting the

disease is far greater than getting autism.”

Within the dorms, the school also offers a yearly flu shot. Junior Eleanor Fortuna has been taking the shot in the dorm for three years. “I’ve taken the vaccines but I still got sick every year. But I still think that it reduces chance for it to get worse,” she said.

Corradina also said, “The effectiveness of the flu vaccine varies yearly based on what strain in flu scientists predict will be prevalent

and does not protect against all flu strains but it is still safer than not being vaccinated.”

Although many people say that there are many merits to vaccination, there are still other opinions floating around. The topic is still very controversial. Some parents insist on vaccinating their children, while others agree more with Zapata, who said, “I understand why people want to take it, but if I can avoid vaccinations and get around it, I will. ”

IN THE MAP OF the United States at left, cases of the measels represented in red, and cases of the whooping cough are marked in green.

As more people refuse to take vaccines, more people suffer from preventable dieseases.

Friday detention time pushed back leO PsarOs Sports Editor After a year and a half of Friday detentions taking place from 3:30 to 4:45, Masters has decided to push Friday detention back to 7 to 8:30.

This time was used in past years for students involved in academic misconduct and acted as a deterrent for students to act appropriately.

The news about this change of time was emailed to all students from Matthew Ives, Head of the Upper School.

The email also added teachers will be stricter about being late to morning meeting and that being late to morning meeting four times will result in a Friday detention.

Hank Kim, math teacher and study hall proctor said, “I have not seen an increase in the number of students in Friday detention because there are only a few ways to get it. I don’t have a personal preference about when detention is but I do think it should act as a deterrent.”

According to Mrs. Nunez, the change in time is because the 3:30 detention interfered with co-curriculars.

Jack Murray, Sophomore, said, “It is a little ridiculous that they changed it to that late of a time because I don’t know how I would get home.

When detention ended at 4:45 at least I could get home on my bus. To me it makes no sense that they would change it just off of the fact that the old detention time caused co-curricdidn’t want to miss your sport you shouldn’t have gotten deUntil further notice, detention will stay at its new time to act as not only a punishment but also a motivator for students to come to morning meeting and classes on time and improve academic integrity as a whole.

Fonseca passes the torch to Danforth abigail COstigan Editor-in-Chief Future Head of School Laura Danforth has been meeting with current Head of School Maureen Fonseca, along with the Head of the Board of Trustees, Tracy Limpe to ease her transition into the Head of School position for the 2015-2016 school year.

Danforth has been informed about the new strategic plan, which is an outline of the school’s future, the new mission statement, and has helped hire the new CFO, Ed Biddle.

Danforth is strong a believer in the power of relationships.

In an interview with The Riverdale Press upon her becoming Fieldston’s Upper School Principal, Danforth said, “I lead through relationships. I really feel if you have strong relationships and you work

with students and faculty and they know you care about them and respect them, you bring that love out in them.”

Fonseca echoed this, saying “She [Danforth] is very good at relationship building.” Fonseca added that relationship building is a key component of fundraising and development efforts.

Fonseca also spoke about the necessity of evolving as an institution, but also of passing on the values, beliefs, and traditions that holds Masters together.

Fonseca became Head of School in 2000, after founding and working for twelve years at St. Philip’s Academy, where she raised the student body from 10 to 220 students.

Fonseca saw similiar growth when she came to Masters. In 1999, the year before Fonseca became Head of School, their were only 66 graduating seniors. This year, there are 106 seniors hoping to graduate.

The school had just started admitting boys when Fonseca stepped in as Head of School.

This was a major change to the school, raising questions about the school’s identity from alumnae. Upon coming to Masters, one of Fonseca’s goals was to solidify the identity of the school while still holding onto tradition.

“I’m looked at as someone who does a lot of building, but I also wanted to hold onto the heart of the school,” Fonseca said.

Fonseca is “both scared and excited” about the future.

Along with finding a new job, Fonseca must also move out of her home, Park Cottage.

“It’s hard because its been a place where my children have grown up and I’ve had so many of you children [students] in. It is sad. It’s a letting go, but I’m happy to know that it will be a good place for her [Danforth] and her family,” Fonseca said.

BOB HORNE/TOWER

HEAD OF SCHOOL MAUREEN FONSECA poses outside Masters Hall.

Fonseca is unsure about what the future holds for her, but excited to face new challenges.

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NEWS

TOWER/MARCH 13, 2015

Executive Committee survey reveals student time crunch that a lot of students are choosing to load up. However, there are certainly things we can do to make students lives easier, like making things students do outside of school count as their co-curricular.”

The many responsibilities students take on can cause them to become overwhelmed. “One of the major ideas I’m championing is the ability for students to take a day off when they feel overwhelmed,” Wessley said. “Although 40% of students have never actually taken

ariel Censor Oped Editor In an attempt to get a clearer picture of what exactly the typical student’s workload is like, co-chairs Brandon Schneider ‘15 and Serena Wessley ‘15 sent out a schoolwide survey asking students about everything from the time they spent on homework to their daily commute.

Schneider said, “Student workload is something we’ve been talking about in Executive Committee for a really long time. In the past, we’ve set up various homework committees and done some surveys, but a lot of our information was all over the place.” He continued,“This survey really gave us a good idea of how students are spending their time and [indicates] changes we can make to their lives easier.”

Wessley agreed. “There’s been homework surveys before, but they’ve never really been as comprehensive or detailed as we’ve wanted them to be,” she said. “The old data from past surveys also isn’t happening right now, so we decided to make our own, more detailed survey in order to more effectively make policies that can help.”

The data suggests that students are not spending most of their time on homework itself, but spend the majority of their time doing co-curriculars within and outside of school, which can interfere with schoolwork. In fact, most students spend more than 10 hours a week participating in these activities.

This time commitment can be hard to manage in conjunction

GRAPHIC COURTESY OF BRANDON SCHNEIDER

with homework. “We require students to do co-curriculars in school when they’re already spending so much time doing them outside of it,” Schneider said. “We’re thinking of ways to give students cred-

it for these activities so that some time is freed up in their schedule.”

However, Head of Upper School Matt Ives believes students have a lot of control over what activitiestthey commit themselves to.

“Especially after a student has completed the Athletic Credit Requirement, they can choose really light co-curriculars, like just taking study hall,” Ives said. “Once

80% feel that students should be able to. This is especially important for boarders who can’t just ask their parents to call in sick for them when they’re feeling too stressed out.”

Ives says that he does not support this measure and that he thinks students should try to minimize their time commitments in order to avoid situations where they feel overwhelmed. “There’s no doubt that our students are really busy; that’s what makes them such great students,” Ives said. “But if someone is feeling so overwhelmed that they feel the need to take a day off, they should look at their lives and say ‘What am I doing that I could cut out?’”

Regardless of potential policy changes that may come from the survey, the co-chairs hope that it will promote a greater dialogue between students and faculty about student workload. “I hope that teachers gain a better understanding of how much we students really do,” Wessley said. “I think often they only see us in one setting, which is their classroom, so hopefully the results of the survey can show more concretely how easy it is for students to get overwhelmed.”

Despite snow, support staff keep community safe and well-fed

Students adjourn to Jonestown for year 18 Wen-Xuan ni Editor-in-Chief For as long as most seniors have been alive, Masters students have been trekking down to Jonestown, Mississippi for a weeklong trip during Spring Break.

Director of Community Engagement Stazi Tangherlini said that the group to Jonestown has held several meetings discussing ing out forms.

A total of ten students signed sophomores will be part of the trip.

“We are planning on talking about having the correct mindset going into this project. We want to emphasize that we will be entering a space that is not our own, and very different from our space,” Tangherlini said.

According to long-time Director of Community Service, Amy Atlee, former Head of School Pam

Clark paid a visit to Jonestown and brought to Atlee’s attention the fact that the school could do an amazing program with the town. When desegregation was forced upon the town, all the white families moved, refusing to send their children to school with black students, and left their businesses to wither.

With the depletion of the cotton industry and the abandoned businesses, black residents had no stable economic development, and very few of them were able to move out of the area.

Masters has partnered with Sister Kay, who moved to Jonestown in 1989 and has been doing development work in Jonestown ever since. Atlee said, “Sister Kay has a house right in town which she opens up for residents to come for computer lessons, GED instruction, and tutoring. We stay at her house and meet with her most evenings for Atlee also said that Sister Kay helps with decision-making during the stay, such as what

JANITORIAL STAFF MEMBERS TAKE a

well-deserved break after shoveling on Thursday to keep the campus safe and ready for use. Normally the staff members work from 4 p.m. to midnight, while on snow days they come earlier for a day shift. L-R: Henry Parris, Claudio Torvisko and Saint Luc Noisette

projects need to be addressed in the community. Sister Kay tries to direct home improvement projects toward helping families or individuals who have been community leaders. Atlee said, “She holds a wealth of information and is an invaluable resource for everyone in Jonestown.”

Some student participants have proposed to visit a school and interact with people of their own age. Sophomore Phil Minton said, “The trip could go in many different ways, but I want to bring in a positive attitude and maybe more when I see the cir-

ELLEN COWHEY/TOWER

DINING HALL STAFF MEMBERS braved the

bad weather, commuting to school to prepare fresh meals for residential students and staff. L-R: Maria Rivera and Rosanna Longo WEN-XUAN NI/TOWER

English teachers Shelly Kaye and Bob Cornigans are the two faculty chaperones who will lead the group down to Jonestown.

“My personal goal is to be as useful as I can and assist in the area of greatest need. I enjoy working with children and senior citizens,” Kaye said, “I don’t possess any particular talent for building or painting, but I’d also love to work on a construction project.”

Bauer Optical 45 Main Street

TOWER/MARCH 13, 2015

OP-ED

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OpiniOn EDITORIAL

Tower

Attitude over gratitude

2014-2015

editors-iN-ChieF

abigail coStigan Sofia linden wen-Xuan ni News editors

Think back to previous Mish presentations. There have been many in the past two years about children in other parts of the world who lack a good education.

Just last week, a woman talked about her organization that donates books to children in Exuma. She described her trips that occur twice a year, and the children chanting “Books! Books! Books!” as she arrives. Another speaker this year said that the main thing she heard children dreaming for in underdeveloped countries was an education. Now think back to the number of times throughout your time at Masters, where you have heard students complain about going to school.

Students in between classes can frequently be heard saying things along the lines of “We get it, but this is a depressing way to start our morning. We hear this If we truly understood the absence of basics like food, shelter and healthcare that other children face, we would not be complaining about school so much.

Of course not all students do this. It is also important to note compassion fatigue, where one is overly bombarded with world suffering that they cannot personally solve.

The horrible circumstances others face can definitely be overwhelming or deeply upsetting, and it can often be easier to shut it out.

Instead of desensitizing ourselves to this, or getting extremely upset, we can try to take the information we are learning early in the morning to be grateful.

But how often in classes does one hear students arguing the injustice of having a quiz the SOFIA LINDEN/TOWER

Rachel SaundeRS Jake Regele

next day when the class isn’t prepared, or that they have

opiNioN editors

Other students would give a lot to have the work we have here.

Life gets overwhelming sometimes, and that is understandable.

Not everyone will enjoy every class, the company of ever classmate, or the work load in a given class.

Masters will never be perfect, but it’s a lot better than the alternatives.

Would you rather receive occaSOFIA LINDEN/TOWER sional busy work that you don’t see the point of late at night, or no opportunity ly not ideal, but could be a lot worse.

Some students complain that they Instead of thinking about how tired hate this school. That is similar to you are during morning meeting, try to students saying they hate their par- pay attention and learn, and be happy ents. That is also really unfortunate if for your peers who are brave enough to true considering that most parents pay get up on stage. Instead of just think$42,000 for their children to be here. ing about how bored you are in your No one has to love every aspect of least favorite class, think about ways your life, but if a student is here, and you can make it more interesting. No is privileged enough to receive a much one has to be content all the time; evbetter education than most, they can eryone has the right to complain occadefinitely make the most out of it. Not sionally, but the way students comonly do we learn here, but we have myri- plain sometimes sounds like they are ad nonacademic pursuits available to us. undergoing a serious travesty.

We Come into school with a good atti- adolescents are known for dramatics. tude. For instance, yes, we have to People are happier when they try and wake up to be on time much earlier than stay positive, and make others happier the average teenagers natural sleep as well. Attitude is a chain affect, and cycle, but it is a small price to pay for in close friend groups and small classthe rewards we receive for doing so. es, it is hard for negative energy to not Yes, sometimes we have an catch on to others. Luckily, positivity amount of work that affects how can catch on just as quickly. Good and much sleep we get, how much we so- bad energy is not an outlandish spiritucialize or engage in other passions. al concept, but something you can obThese things are all obvious- serve and partake in on a regular basis.

Anniversary of Trayvon Martin’s killing sparks

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Features aNd arts editors YiYi (Mia) ouYang naoMi nivaR

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staFF writer

JackSon MYeRS-bRown MaNagiNg editor teddY o’connoR

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Website: Tower.MastersNY.org Facebook: /MastersTower Twitter: @MastersTower Instagram: @MastersTower

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Jennifer Munnings Contributing Writer Three years ago, a young defenseless adolescent was shot, and lost his life. His death shone light on a stewing problem in the Uniting and discrimination in the judicial system.

Trayvon Martin, armed with a pack of skittles, was walking through a residential area in Sanford Florida, supposedly on the way to a relative’s house, when George Zimmerman began following him. Zimmerman who was 28 at the time and the self-appointed neighborhood watch leader, called the police reporting a suspicious black male. There, he then proceeded to shoot 17-year-old Martin in the chest after an alleged attack.

Just one day before the threeyear anniversary of Martin’s death on Feb. 26, the Department The infamous case gained na-

tionwide recognition as protests sprung up around the country.

President Obama commented on the injustice. He said, “If I had a son he’d look like Trayvon.”

Zimmerman was not charged for second-degree murder and acquitted of manslaughter. These charges however, were widely disputed. Zimmerman got off on self-defense charges when an unarmed boy had died by gun shot.

It is no secret that there is a stereotype against black males, of Martin was a victim of his race and a bias judicial system.

Martin has become a martyr and his unfortunate death has given longtime overdue recognimany black, unarmed males are losing their lives and are not receiving any form of justice.

Zimmerman was not charged due to “stand your ground” laws that are effective in Florida. Are we to believe that a 17-year-old boy is capable of attacking a 28-year-old man to the point where death by gun shot is

Martin, Michael Brown, and Eric Garner are examples of African American men’s value to the United States. Each were defenseless black males that were killed and their offenders who were let off without murder charges.

Mass protests and demonstrations to display outrage

on the courts decisions have not altered the outcomes. These three cases over the past three years have caused an undeniable awareness among African Americans on where they stand in the eye of the law.

Innocent until proven guilty did not apply to these men, punished for simply being black.

As citizens of the United States it is our inalienable right tice, not only for these men, but for the security of all of our African American friends and families.

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Tower is hand-delivered on the day of publication to the Upper School. 650 copies are printed, and one is put in each faculty member’s mailbox. In addition, a copy is sent to each of our advertisers.

sCholastiC press aFFiliatioNs, letter poliCy, aNd editorial poliCy Tower is the winner of the Pacemaker Award for Overall Excellence, an award-winning member of the National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA), Columbia Scholastic Press Association (CSPA), Journalism Education Association (JEA) and Quill and Scroll. To send Letters to the Editor, e-mail TowerEditors@MastersNY.org. Published Tower, the student newspaper of The Masters School, is a public forum, with its Editorial Board making all decisions concerning content. Commentar-

ies and opinion columns are the expressed opinion of the author and not of Tower and its Editorial Board or its advisor. Furthermore, the opinions conveyed are not those of The Masters School, faculty, or staff. Unsigned editorials express views of the majority of the Editorial Board.

4

FEATURES AND ARTS

Features & arts Sofia Linden Editor-in-Chief Every room in the gallery is full of families, teachers and students chattering among one another and looking at the array of art before them. Pieces vary from ceramic sculptures of heads and sea creatures, to giant elaborate paintings of elephants surrounded by a wall of other animals, to self-portraits made using colored pencil, graphite, and photography, to elaborate abstract works created in multiple mediums.

This was the scene, when ten seniors’ art

SOFIA LINDEN/TOWER

of The Katonah Museum of Art “young artists” exhibit on Sunday March 1, 3:00-5:00 PM. Annually senior high school students from all over the area participate in this show that lasts a week. This year, it ended on March 8. For the second time, Masters students submitted and hung their work for Interim Chair of the Art Department, Museum 25 years ago as a visiting artist, and has worked on special projects with them and followed their exhibits and activities ever since. Hajjar is fond of the

SOFIA LINDEN/TOWER

COLUMN: WORDS ON MUSIC

Grizfolk blends rock, folk and dance for mesmerizing mix

high school art departments and students.

“It’s a great opportunity for high school students to show their work in a museum, and it gives students a chance to go and see what other students their age in the area are making,” she said. “For me professionally, I can look at what other

Jake regeLe News Editor

art programs at other schools are doing.”

Senior Seulgee Lee was one of the students whose work was hung. “It makes me really happy to see people actually looking at my work,” she said.

All the AP art students displayed one piece of work at the Museum along with seniors Amalia Mayorga and Spencer Berkowitz. Mayorga, Aaron Feniman, and Berkowitz curated the show.

Hajjar said, “The last time the school participated I let the AP students choose and curate the show and it was really tricky because of their work load.” She said that these three seniors in her Studio Art Major Class showed great enthusiasm for the opportunity to curate the show, and so she gave them the task. and Berkowitz went to a graphic design workshop at the museum to make exhibiwould advertise the exhibit. These can be found at the Katonah Museum of Art Facebook page. Then they, along with Feniman, collaborated to choose one project submitted by each of AP student to display, and hang them before the show.

Berkowitz explained that the point was not to simply pick the best pieces of art, but the pieces that worked the best together to represent our school. “The main thing with this exhibit is there’s a big sense of Masters artistic pride,” Berkowitz said.

He added that the past few years this has been very much needed. “Aaron and I have noticed that that has dwindled.”

When you hear the term “virtual economy” most people think about bitcoin, or other similar e-currencies, but with the recent explosion of games like Counter Strike: Global Offensive and Defense of the Ancients II, “virtual economies” has taken up an entirely new meaning. tiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPGs) such as Runescape. When trading in these games started it happened with in game items and currency, but as their popularity grew people began to trade accounts, gold, and in game items for real world money. Real money trading never really took off in earlier MMORPGs because most items were common enough to not have much value, the most valuable item in Runescape, the blue party hat, was only worth about $1500(USD).

In it’s earlier stages most of these trades were money the system relied solely on trusting someone to transfer money into your paypal account after you’d given them an item and vice versa.

Payments increase as games evolve: In later games such as Team Fortress II(TF2), Counter Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO), and Defense of the Ancients II (Dota2) there have been a few systems put in place to iron out trading systems.

One of these systems is called steamrep, a third party website used to determine the reliability of traders in the community by giving them a rating, community members. Websites like steamrep can

who are meant to get rid of the “sketchyness” of real money trading.

With websites like steamrep, and an increase of value in individual items, including a CS:GO knife that sold for $23,000 (USD), and a Dota2 courier that sold for $38,000 (USD), real money trading has become a staple of many games, and even a core mechanic in games like Entropia Universe, a MMORPG with a built in withdrawal system that turns game currency into actual money.

Students pay money for game goods: Shomari Moore ‘16, plays League of Legends relgiously and has spent more than $300 on skins, which are costumes for the characters in the game.

Moore said, “Spending money makes the game more interesting and adds to the community aspect of it.”

Even with the proven real world values of many of these in game items the organizations behind them fail to accept the responsibility of regulating these trades. This lack of regulation has caused scammers to run rampant, and has even started a few betting organizations, which allow players to bet in game items (worth real money) on professional CS:GO and Dota 2 games.

Because of the lack of recognition that these in game items have real value, these betting sites bypass all online gambling laws regardless of state, country, or age; furthermore, the sites are so unreglosing a match on purpose to make money off of a bet had gone unpunished making pro players upwards of $10,000 (USD) per game. Although all other restrictions (age, state, country) are still ignored, Valve Software, makers of the games CS:GO, Dota2 and TF2, have recently banned several professional players from competing in any Valve sponsored events. This includes the entirety of iBuypower, the (previous) best CS:GO team in North America.

February of 2014, Spotify put them on its list of Artists to Watch, and indie rock phenomenon Bastille handpicked Grizfolk to open for them on their fall arena tour. “The Struggle”, the bands instant hit, introduced radio stations to the group from around Los Angeles to the rest of the country.

When I heard the song called “Hymnal”, I couldn’t help but hum along and I knew that this was the band that I would write about next. In the song, I think the lyrics are about life after prison and the effect that it has on people. Roth sings, “Outside these walls we’re criminals” and later on, “And we don’t know what we’re waiting for. And we don’t know the truth anymore.”

On March 15, Grizfolk will embark on a tour throughout the United States starting in Tempe, Arizona and ending in Richmond, Virginia. On March 11, they will hit the Bowery Ballroom in New York City. Grizfolk is well on its way.

BARE/CHICAGOSNOW

THE WILD FEATHERS IS is a rock band that formed in 2010 in Austin Texas. The band consists of Ricky Young, Joel King, Taylor Burns, Preston Wimberly, and Ben Dumas.

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The CS: GO knife sold for $23,000 (USD) is an example of an individual item that has increased in real monetary value for trading in many games.

Workers demand pay; actors command respect

Junior Games liven up campus THE JUNIOR GAMES CELEBRATED laughter, jumping, running bean-bag throwing, and most of all, it celebrated smiles. This year, 56 children participated in the Games. Above: Juniors Clara Parkus and Gabby Davies bond with junior game children. Right: Finn and his dad, Peter Finn, engage with the Cookie Monster played by Kaspar Hudak. Timing of this year’s game offered some unique challenges; set up began right after the boys varsity basketball team won the second round of playoffs. Then after the games, students headed off to play the finals,root for the team, take the stage, or watch the musical.

Bending the rules in the Dorms by gender

owen Lieber Most likely, you have never heard of this band.

My bet is that’s likely to change. Grizfolk, an alternative rock quintet, has been shot into the spotlight with their raw vocals, electronic edge, and heavy guitar and drums. Based out of Los Angeles, the members of Grizfolk hail from two different continents and backgrounds.

Adam Roth, lead singer and rhythm guitarist brought the band together after moving from Florida to Los Angeles. Alongside him stand Sebastian Fritze from Sweden who adds an electronic and techno feel to the band while playing the synthesizer and singing backup vocals. His partner, Fredrik Eriksson inputs a heavy and rock oriented sound with his electric guitar. And in the rhythm section of the band, bassist Brendan James and drummer Bill Delia hold it all together. Their sound feels like a hybrid of acoustic-based folk music and synthesizer drum driven dance music.

As Grizfolk has been getting more exposure, they have also been developing a loyal fan base.

5

Virtual splurging expands through online games and trading

Katonah Art Show: students taking art to a wider audience

Ten seniors displayed their work at the Katonah Museum of Art: Christain Corbo, Olivia Woodward, Seulgee Lee, Leyna Zniber, Anna Feldman, Amalia Mayorga, Spencer Berkowitz, Sofia Linden, Isabella Levethan, and Ariel Vasar.

The picture above shows Woodward’s photography piece titled Adidas and the picture featured to the right is Lee’s drawing titled Harvey Milk.

FEATURES AND ARTS

TOWER/MARCH 13, 2015

IN THE PAJAMA GAME, factory workers try to raise their salaries by seven and a half cents and Sid Sorokin, the new superintendent, played by Rory Maglich, falls in love with Babe Williams, head of the Grievance Committee, played

by Serena Wessely. The top left picture features a scene of Prez, the union president, played by Adam Leung talking to the workers. The top right picture captures Babe Williams being her sassy self and the picture bottom left is of Vernon Hines, a time study man for the Sleep Tite Pajama Factory, played by Asher Berskson-Gold, speaking with superintendent Sorokin.

ANAIS MAZIC/TOWER

Cloris Ruan is required to sign out everytime she leaves her room or else face a 7 p.m. check-in. The boy’s dorm does not have sign-out sheets on their individual doors, but rather a sign-out board on their first floor by the enterance.

raJan cutting Opinion Editor Members of the boarding community have been talking about fundamental differences between the boys’ and girls’ dorm. There are the structural differences, which everyone knows about. The boys’ dorms are divided between underclassmen and upperclassman whereas the girls, regardless of grade difference, live together. Despite these obvious differences people are beginning to question whether this is a cultural difference.

Both dorms instill hand out the same rules and consequences for violation of these rules on paper. The most common punishment being a seven o’ clock check-in, where students have to report to the dorm at 7 p.m. and can’t leave their room for the remainder of the night. However, there seems to be a higher number of girls receiving these penalties which is leading people to believe there might be a bias in enforcement.

Junior male boarder representative Timothy Kaplowitz doesn’t believe this means boys’ break less rules. “Even though the girls’ get punished more that doesn’t mean the boys’ don’t how the rules are enforced,” Kaplowitz said.

Junior strong proctor Khyle Richards-Corke thinks there is a possibility this cultural difference has larger gender implications, but he more strongly feels it’s because of the structure of the dorms. “The girls live with both underclassmen and upperclassman so the rules have

to include a wider spectrum of people,” he said.

Acting Director of Residential Life Tom Wethington doesn’t think there are any ly structural differences, such as the graduating classes in each dorm in and just the physical layout. From these structural differences, I think people perceive other differences that may not exist.”

The question now becomes to what extent dorm parents are at fault for this perceived difference. Is it that the dorm parents in the girls’ dorms are too strict or that the dorm parents in the boys dorm are too lax, or neither?

McCormack proctor Paige Titus ’16 appreciates the environment in the girls’ dorm but wouldn’t mind change. She said, “The underclassmen in the girls’ dorm constantly have the support and presence of the upperclassman and that type of community doesn’t exist in the boys’ dorm. I like that, but it would be nice to have some of the freedoms the boys have.”

Apart from their differences it is hard to say which dorm parenting style is more effective. itively say which one is better,” said Wethington.

While both sets of dorms have established different traditions and environments, the question of justice remains. Kaplowitz said, “If the primary goal of every rule is safety then as long as people are being safe there should be less enforcement. The girls’ and boys’ dorm are just as safe and the enforcement of rules should be equal too.”

WENXUAN NI/TOWER

Seniors jump through additional hoops to get projects approved that the process is a competitive one, there have been questions JackSon MyerS-brown raised about the laboStaff Writer rious screening system.

This year, some seniors have Erin Kopf was one of had an additional challenge to the students whose forface. The students who have de- mal proposal for a projcided to participate in senior ect was rejected. He and projects have been struggling to Arran Fenniman were get their projects approved, even planning on particiif it’s based on something they’re pating in Architecture passionate about and may contin- competitions as their ue in college. Many of the seniors project. “I wasn’t really who attempt to do a senior project given a distinct answer have faced rejection and difficul- on why,” Kopf said in ty and eventually had to move on regards to his rejection. from their hope of sharing their “One of the answers that was given to us was that you’re gowork.

Although seniors recognize ing to be do Architecture for the

rest of your life… why don’t you is pursuing what you want to do.” focus more on the last bit of reguIs the committee in charge being unnecessarily harsh or is it just the rigorous nature of the senior project process?

One of the answers that was givHistory teacher en to us was that you’re going to be and committee do Architecture for the rest of your head Eric Shaplife… why don’t you focus more on iro weighs in. “ the last bit of regular school?

There’s sort of a natural attrition rate,” Shapiro said.

- Erin Kopf “We were looking for something that could be shared lar school? But I think the whole with the community, something point of school and life in general somebody was really passionate

“

about, how much thought they put into preparing the project,” he also said. “It’s rigorous. It’s a couple months, once you’re approved, of work you’re going to do. We’re expecting someone self-motivated.”

Senior year is a time for students to start spreading their wings and to get ready to move into the world and senior projects are helpful to that purpose. And while there have been changes, like Shapiro taking charge instead of the very busy Chris Goulian, there are still discussions that need to be started over how to make the senior project process more accommodating.

4

FEATURES AND ARTS

Features & arts Sofia Linden Editor-in-Chief Every room in the gallery is full of families, teachers and students chattering among one another and looking at the array of art before them. Pieces vary from ceramic sculptures of heads and sea creatures, to giant elaborate paintings of elephants surrounded by a wall of other animals, to self-portraits made using colored pencil, graphite, and photography, to elaborate abstract works created in multiple mediums.

This was the scene, when ten seniors’ art

SOFIA LINDEN/TOWER

of The Katonah Museum of Art “young artists” exhibit on Sunday March 1, 3:00-5:00 PM. Annually senior high school students from all over the area participate in this show that lasts a week. This year, it ended on March 8. For the second time, Masters students submitted and hung their work for Interim Chair of the Art Department, Museum 25 years ago as a visiting artist, and has worked on special projects with them and followed their exhibits and activities ever since. Hajjar is fond of the

SOFIA LINDEN/TOWER

COLUMN: WORDS ON MUSIC

Grizfolk blends rock, folk and dance for mesmerizing mix

high school art departments and students.

“It’s a great opportunity for high school students to show their work in a museum, and it gives students a chance to go and see what other students their age in the area are making,” she said. “For me professionally, I can look at what other

Jake regeLe News Editor

art programs at other schools are doing.”

Senior Seulgee Lee was one of the students whose work was hung. “It makes me really happy to see people actually looking at my work,” she said.

All the AP art students displayed one piece of work at the Museum along with seniors Amalia Mayorga and Spencer Berkowitz. Mayorga, Aaron Feniman, and Berkowitz curated the show.

Hajjar said, “The last time the school participated I let the AP students choose and curate the show and it was really tricky because of their work load.” She said that these three seniors in her Studio Art Major Class showed great enthusiasm for the opportunity to curate the show, and so she gave them the task. and Berkowitz went to a graphic design workshop at the museum to make exhibiwould advertise the exhibit. These can be found at the Katonah Museum of Art Facebook page. Then they, along with Feniman, collaborated to choose one project submitted by each of AP student to display, and hang them before the show.

Berkowitz explained that the point was not to simply pick the best pieces of art, but the pieces that worked the best together to represent our school. “The main thing with this exhibit is there’s a big sense of Masters artistic pride,” Berkowitz said.

He added that the past few years this has been very much needed. “Aaron and I have noticed that that has dwindled.”

When you hear the term “virtual economy” most people think about bitcoin, or other similar e-currencies, but with the recent explosion of games like Counter Strike: Global Offensive and Defense of the Ancients II, “virtual economies” has taken up an entirely new meaning. tiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPGs) such as Runescape. When trading in these games started it happened with in game items and currency, but as their popularity grew people began to trade accounts, gold, and in game items for real world money. Real money trading never really took off in earlier MMORPGs because most items were common enough to not have much value, the most valuable item in Runescape, the blue party hat, was only worth about $1500(USD).

In it’s earlier stages most of these trades were money the system relied solely on trusting someone to transfer money into your paypal account after you’d given them an item and vice versa.

Payments increase as games evolve: In later games such as Team Fortress II(TF2), Counter Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO), and Defense of the Ancients II (Dota2) there have been a few systems put in place to iron out trading systems.

One of these systems is called steamrep, a third party website used to determine the reliability of traders in the community by giving them a rating, community members. Websites like steamrep can

who are meant to get rid of the “sketchyness” of real money trading.

With websites like steamrep, and an increase of value in individual items, including a CS:GO knife that sold for $23,000 (USD), and a Dota2 courier that sold for $38,000 (USD), real money trading has become a staple of many games, and even a core mechanic in games like Entropia Universe, a MMORPG with a built in withdrawal system that turns game currency into actual money.

Students pay money for game goods: Shomari Moore ‘16, plays League of Legends relgiously and has spent more than $300 on skins, which are costumes for the characters in the game.

Moore said, “Spending money makes the game more interesting and adds to the community aspect of it.”

Even with the proven real world values of many of these in game items the organizations behind them fail to accept the responsibility of regulating these trades. This lack of regulation has caused scammers to run rampant, and has even started a few betting organizations, which allow players to bet in game items (worth real money) on professional CS:GO and Dota 2 games.

Because of the lack of recognition that these in game items have real value, these betting sites bypass all online gambling laws regardless of state, country, or age; furthermore, the sites are so unreglosing a match on purpose to make money off of a bet had gone unpunished making pro players upwards of $10,000 (USD) per game. Although all other restrictions (age, state, country) are still ignored, Valve Software, makers of the games CS:GO, Dota2 and TF2, have recently banned several professional players from competing in any Valve sponsored events. This includes the entirety of iBuypower, the (previous) best CS:GO team in North America.

February of 2014, Spotify put them on its list of Artists to Watch, and indie rock phenomenon Bastille handpicked Grizfolk to open for them on their fall arena tour. “The Struggle”, the bands instant hit, introduced radio stations to the group from around Los Angeles to the rest of the country.

When I heard the song called “Hymnal”, I couldn’t help but hum along and I knew that this was the band that I would write about next. In the song, I think the lyrics are about life after prison and the effect that it has on people. Roth sings, “Outside these walls we’re criminals” and later on, “And we don’t know what we’re waiting for. And we don’t know the truth anymore.”

On March 15, Grizfolk will embark on a tour throughout the United States starting in Tempe, Arizona and ending in Richmond, Virginia. On March 11, they will hit the Bowery Ballroom in New York City. Grizfolk is well on its way.

BARE/CHICAGOSNOW

THE WILD FEATHERS IS is a rock band that formed in 2010 in Austin Texas. The band consists of Ricky Young, Joel King, Taylor Burns, Preston Wimberly, and Ben Dumas.

REPRODUCED WITH PERMITION BY TDLIPE

The CS: GO knife sold for $23,000 (USD) is an example of an individual item that has increased in real monetary value for trading in many games.

Workers demand pay; actors command respect

Junior Games liven up campus THE JUNIOR GAMES CELEBRATED laughter, jumping, running bean-bag throwing, and most of all, it celebrated smiles. This year, 56 children participated in the Games. Above: Juniors Clara Parkus and Gabby Davies bond with junior game children. Right: Finn and his dad, Peter Finn, engage with the Cookie Monster played by Kaspar Hudak. Timing of this year’s game offered some unique challenges; set up began right after the boys varsity basketball team won the second round of playoffs. Then after the games, students headed off to play the finals,root for the team, take the stage, or watch the musical.

Bending the rules in the Dorms by gender

owen Lieber Most likely, you have never heard of this band.

My bet is that’s likely to change. Grizfolk, an alternative rock quintet, has been shot into the spotlight with their raw vocals, electronic edge, and heavy guitar and drums. Based out of Los Angeles, the members of Grizfolk hail from two different continents and backgrounds.

Adam Roth, lead singer and rhythm guitarist brought the band together after moving from Florida to Los Angeles. Alongside him stand Sebastian Fritze from Sweden who adds an electronic and techno feel to the band while playing the synthesizer and singing backup vocals. His partner, Fredrik Eriksson inputs a heavy and rock oriented sound with his electric guitar. And in the rhythm section of the band, bassist Brendan James and drummer Bill Delia hold it all together. Their sound feels like a hybrid of acoustic-based folk music and synthesizer drum driven dance music.

As Grizfolk has been getting more exposure, they have also been developing a loyal fan base.

5

Virtual splurging expands through online games and trading

Katonah Art Show: students taking art to a wider audience

Ten seniors displayed their work at the Katonah Museum of Art: Christain Corbo, Olivia Woodward, Seulgee Lee, Leyna Zniber, Anna Feldman, Amalia Mayorga, Spencer Berkowitz, Sofia Linden, Isabella Levethan, and Ariel Vasar.

The picture above shows Woodward’s photography piece titled Adidas and the picture featured to the right is Lee’s drawing titled Harvey Milk.

FEATURES AND ARTS

TOWER/MARCH 13, 2015

IN THE PAJAMA GAME, factory workers try to raise their salaries by seven and a half cents and Sid Sorokin, the new superintendent, played by Rory Maglich, falls in love with Babe Williams, head of the Grievance Committee, played

by Serena Wessely. The top left picture features a scene of Prez, the union president, played by Adam Leung talking to the workers. The top right picture captures Babe Williams being her sassy self and the picture bottom left is of Vernon Hines, a time study man for the Sleep Tite Pajama Factory, played by Asher Berskson-Gold, speaking with superintendent Sorokin.

ANAIS MAZIC/TOWER

Cloris Ruan is required to sign out everytime she leaves her room or else face a 7 p.m. check-in. The boy’s dorm does not have sign-out sheets on their individual doors, but rather a sign-out board on their first floor by the enterance.

raJan cutting Opinion Editor Members of the boarding community have been talking about fundamental differences between the boys’ and girls’ dorm. There are the structural differences, which everyone knows about. The boys’ dorms are divided between underclassmen and upperclassman whereas the girls, regardless of grade difference, live together. Despite these obvious differences people are beginning to question whether this is a cultural difference.

Both dorms instill hand out the same rules and consequences for violation of these rules on paper. The most common punishment being a seven o’ clock check-in, where students have to report to the dorm at 7 p.m. and can’t leave their room for the remainder of the night. However, there seems to be a higher number of girls receiving these penalties which is leading people to believe there might be a bias in enforcement.

Junior male boarder representative Timothy Kaplowitz doesn’t believe this means boys’ break less rules. “Even though the girls’ get punished more that doesn’t mean the boys’ don’t how the rules are enforced,” Kaplowitz said.

Junior strong proctor Khyle Richards-Corke thinks there is a possibility this cultural difference has larger gender implications, but he more strongly feels it’s because of the structure of the dorms. “The girls live with both underclassmen and upperclassman so the rules have

to include a wider spectrum of people,” he said.

Acting Director of Residential Life Tom Wethington doesn’t think there are any ly structural differences, such as the graduating classes in each dorm in and just the physical layout. From these structural differences, I think people perceive other differences that may not exist.”

The question now becomes to what extent dorm parents are at fault for this perceived difference. Is it that the dorm parents in the girls’ dorms are too strict or that the dorm parents in the boys dorm are too lax, or neither?

McCormack proctor Paige Titus ’16 appreciates the environment in the girls’ dorm but wouldn’t mind change. She said, “The underclassmen in the girls’ dorm constantly have the support and presence of the upperclassman and that type of community doesn’t exist in the boys’ dorm. I like that, but it would be nice to have some of the freedoms the boys have.”

Apart from their differences it is hard to say which dorm parenting style is more effective. itively say which one is better,” said Wethington.

While both sets of dorms have established different traditions and environments, the question of justice remains. Kaplowitz said, “If the primary goal of every rule is safety then as long as people are being safe there should be less enforcement. The girls’ and boys’ dorm are just as safe and the enforcement of rules should be equal too.”

WENXUAN NI/TOWER

Seniors jump through additional hoops to get projects approved that the process is a competitive one, there have been questions JackSon MyerS-brown raised about the laboStaff Writer rious screening system.

This year, some seniors have Erin Kopf was one of had an additional challenge to the students whose forface. The students who have de- mal proposal for a projcided to participate in senior ect was rejected. He and projects have been struggling to Arran Fenniman were get their projects approved, even planning on particiif it’s based on something they’re pating in Architecture passionate about and may contin- competitions as their ue in college. Many of the seniors project. “I wasn’t really who attempt to do a senior project given a distinct answer have faced rejection and difficul- on why,” Kopf said in ty and eventually had to move on regards to his rejection. from their hope of sharing their “One of the answers that was given to us was that you’re gowork.

Although seniors recognize ing to be do Architecture for the

rest of your life… why don’t you is pursuing what you want to do.” focus more on the last bit of reguIs the committee in charge being unnecessarily harsh or is it just the rigorous nature of the senior project process?

One of the answers that was givHistory teacher en to us was that you’re going to be and committee do Architecture for the rest of your head Eric Shaplife… why don’t you focus more on iro weighs in. “ the last bit of regular school?

There’s sort of a natural attrition rate,” Shapiro said.

- Erin Kopf “We were looking for something that could be shared lar school? But I think the whole with the community, something point of school and life in general somebody was really passionate

“

about, how much thought they put into preparing the project,” he also said. “It’s rigorous. It’s a couple months, once you’re approved, of work you’re going to do. We’re expecting someone self-motivated.”

Senior year is a time for students to start spreading their wings and to get ready to move into the world and senior projects are helpful to that purpose. And while there have been changes, like Shapiro taking charge instead of the very busy Chris Goulian, there are still discussions that need to be started over how to make the senior project process more accommodating.

6

ADVERTISEMENT

TOWER/MARCH 13, 2015

TOWER/MARCH 13, 2015

OP-ED

7

School policies leave out non-binary people Leo Psaros Sports Editor

in middle school classes has been around for a long time, with numer-

From gender-based co-chair positions to gender-split classes in the middle school, Masters bases many of its

that say men and women process information differently and it’s very

students are used to the idea of boys and girls having separate bathrooms, club positions, and acapella groups such as Dohters and Naturals, but some stu-

sure it is correct opposed to girls who

gender may feel excluded by gender-spetion of whether it’s possible to live in a gender-neutral society, and how much

boys at this age are more impulsive and tend to make teachable moments out of their impulses while girls think ing without getting interrupted by the ration of classes gives both genders a comfortable environment to work in

Senior Basil Lillien said, “I believe that Masters is extremely entrenched in the gender binary, and that didon’t think it’s problematic that the majority of the people here are going to identify solidly within that binary, where they were assigned at birth,

attributes that a given society considgender, and not ELLEN COWHEY/TOWER SCHOOLS ACROSS THE NATION have started introducing gender neutral bathrooms. This is one of the many attempts to ensure non-binary people are acknowledged as valid parts of their school communites.

my view, is when those that do not same level of safety, comfort, visibilirefers to gender as the “socially constructed roles, behaviors, activities, and

biological and physiological charac-

people are uneducated about the terms and pronouns for those who are non-binary, or don’t identify with the two tra-

In the Middle School, classes sixth through eighth are separated by gen-

Before researching this topic, I was unaware there was a difference be-

we should educate our students about the different ways people can express

opposite sex during morning meeting, break, lunch, and language class-

Masters has many ways to improve its relations with non-binary students and to educate its students about those who don’t identify with ample, a non-binary student and a

Socioeconomic status affects social enviroments make as much money as their friends’

Teddy o’connor Managing Editor Every student on campus shows their socioeconomic status in some orders Scap’s regularly, wears expensive name brands, or cannot afford to go to the movies with their friends,

Enrollment and Director of Financeive help paying for weekend activi-

RACHEL SAUNDERS/TOWER

STUDENTS MAY SLEEP PAST their alarms due to staying up late doing work. The school has implented a stricter lateness policy which doesn’t excuse lateness, unless it’s because of weather-related issues or other special emergencies.

Latenesss policy unfairly punishes students racheL saunders News Editor As morning meeting starts, and Serena and Brandon begin making announcements, students are still the faculty enforcing a stricter lateness policy, I could feel myself and

same time and are both marked late

the morning and those who are just

For the students who need to be driven to school every morning, the new lateness policy is uncompromis-

given a detention and are expected to report to the lecture hall Friday -

storm can cause a student who would otherwise be right on time to be more

Although I knew that there was a policy, it was upsetting to see the students who go to sleep late doing homework and wake up early to get

In addition to distance, headaches and physical fatigue is enough to make anyone slower, but, for boarders, there is no parent to call in and allow them to sleep until they feel up

for giving in to their body and sleep-

be in their seats, without any wiggle

Students come from all over, but the student travelling from New York City and the student from Dobbs Ferry are both expected to show up at the

trouble for teachers and advisors is distinguishing between students with

to make the trip that night, but when a student whose parent cannot make the trip to Dobbs Ferry from, let’s say, Nyack gets a night detention, it get to school at 8 am, talking to an concern for the lateness policy always

dent lives from the school, the faculty members who are marking them as

“health and wellness are within your reach”

Cary Brosius Acupuncture 63 Main Street Dobbs Ferry, New York 10522 914-595-1641

a small percentage of the students teract with their friends socially im-

count from which they can draw money to help pay for weekend activities, such as going to the movies, Gormley on an exact dollar amount, he did say the cost of the ski trip would wipe out

mission sponsors a message of inclusion, and every time a student invites another to a costly event without considering whether the other student will be able to pay, such as ordering food instead of eating in the dining hall, Each time a student casually remarks about their latest or upcoming extravagant vacation, they are shedding As a community, we may be making students who are not from privileged backgrounds feel unwelthat we begin to ponder on why that is; why students feel excluded due to his or her socioeconomic status, and what can we do to change that?

Due to the low percentage of stuters students can relate to being hardship because many don’t ever think about it; they never have to second guess whether they are truly are

get and reduce the price point of the reduce each student’s tuition by more than $7,400, bringing a day

Gormley added, “Some use every penny and some don’t ever use

we are committed to be diverse, and that includes being socioeconomically

a badge of honor and some are embarrassed that their families can’t -

ability to educate a wide range of minds, and would tag Masters as

Everyone should feel included no

It is time now that we start to really think about how disadvantaged so many people are simply because their parents have jobs that do not pay

It is saddening that in today’s world, a student can fall through the cracks simply because their parents do not

Everyone must learn to be more

8

SPORTS

TOWER/MARCH 13, 2015

SportS

Varsity basketball repeats as FAA champs Rajan CuttinG Opinion Editor The gym grew silent. With less than a minute left on the clock, freshman Chris Childs lines up at the game away. After a long backand-forth battle Childs makes his gets taken out of the game and looks to the crowd in celebration of an anticipated win. For the second year in a row they won the FAA championship and the FAA regular season.

After barely beating the Bruns-

Hopkins school in New Haven, CT to compete for the championship. did the boys win the title again but, for the second time in school gland Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) tournament.

Senior Captain Mike Jurzynski could not have been happier with the team’s season. “There were times when I wasn’t entirely sure how the season would turn out but it feels really good to win it two times in a row,” he said, “Now I’m hap-

py to show New England we have talent, and what we are all about.”

Winning both the regular season and the championship last year did not make the season any easier, in fact it added more pressure to the team. “At times I felt everyone expected us to win. I felt if we didn’t win everyone would have cared but if we won it wouldn’t have been as big of a deal,” said sophomore guard Brandon Randolph.

Senior Brandon Grant believes being defending champs made winning games harder. “Teams played harder against us because they played as if they had something to prove. Every team wanted to be able to say they beat the defending champs so they played with more passion.”

Nevertheless the team wore their accomplishment - being defending champs - with pride. “I think Coach [Al] Pratt said it best before the game, ‘The title is ours to defend.’

We might have been going to their house, but they still had to take it from us,” said Assistant Coach Tom Wethington. Much of the team’s success can be attributed to the support received from the community. In fact senior Captain Max Ishmael, after winning the championship, said at morning meeting, “This one goes out to Panther Country. You guys don’t understand how

ANAIS MAZIC/TOWER

BOYS VARSITY HOOPS SQUAD celebrates their 60-49 win at The Hopkins School to claim the FAA title for the second year in a row. The victory came after a dramatic 80-77 home win against the Brunswick Bruins. big of a role you play. We thank you for all the support in the season.”

Finally Head Coach Matt Kammrath said, “I’m really proud of the whole team, especially the

Lax no longer lacks head coach facilitate hard work and change the attitude of the team. We have been lackadaisical and not really into playing games anymore,” said Ciacci. “I hope the

Gabby Davies Sports Editor As the spring season rolls into action, the boys’ lacrosse team gets to know their new coaches. After Rich Podlovitz, former weight room and boys’ lacrosse But history teacher Charles Sliter came to the rescue. Before coming to Masters, Sliter spent 7 years coaching and playing lacrosse in England and then another 7 years coaching lacrosse at a Catholic school back in America. “I have been involved with lacrosse for probably 25 years, I started playing when I was a little kid and then in high school, college,” Sliter said.

Junior Andrew Ciacci has played on the lacrosse team since freshman year and is looking forward to the upcoming season. “I hope the new coach can

hope he can propel us more to do better in the season.”

Sliter will not be the only boys coach this season. Last years’ assistant coach, Associate Director of Admission Tim Custer, will be joining the team again. “I think the new season is going to be great,” Custer said. “Coach Sliter has tremendous experience with lacrosse from both his high level playing days back in high school and college and on the coaching side both here and overseas.

I think he brings a ton of experience to the team.”

As the team and the coaches both prepare for the upcoming season, players are excited to work with the coaches. “I’m excited to work with Mr. Sliter, he seems jazzed to be coaching us,” Ciacci said.

leadership from the older guys.

Everyone bought into the idea of winning another championship and worked hard. We played each game as if it was our last.”

MAAC expands options sofia LinDen Editor-in-Chief With new facilities come new activities. Our school has never had squash or swimming as competitive or non-competitive sports before, but now with the addition of the MAAC, we will welcome both of these sports next year.

“The Athletic Department is growing,” said Athletic Director Kevin Versen. “What’s good about it growing is it provides opportunities for kids. When I was a kid you had to play football.”

Both squash and swimming will be Winter sports, with separate boys and girls teams. There will be four squash courts and one pool. Versen says that FAA is working to add swimming into our team will be independent, competing against schools such as Brunswick and Rye Country Day School.

For both teams, coaches are still up in the air. With swimming especially, there are multiple details to work out, such as outside groups practicing on campus and working in time for free swim. The hope is that there will be a club team for students to practice with.

Versen is working out and plan-

GAVIN KOEPKE/TOWER

MALE LACROSSE PLAYERS LISTEN to their coach intently during a break in an away game. Now that former weight room coach and boys lacrosse coach Rich Podlovitz has left the school to join the NYPD, Charles Sliter will be leading the team this year. He is new to the school but not the sport.

of the NEPSAC tournament to the St. Marks School, but nevertheless had a successful season.

squash team. He knows that he will need someone to run the pool and full-

were one possibility. Versen is looking at clubs in Westchester for coaches, but a coach won’t be approved until the new on board March 30.

One coach is for sure. Middle school san Greally coached swimming at Hackley for eight years. She has also coached a team in White Plains called the Middies for 13 years. She will pick it up again next year here at Masters.

Greally’s children started swimming at a young age and she would sit and watch practices. “I got bored and decided to be a ref. After I became a ref I wanted to do more. I wanted not just to do meets but work at practices,” she said.

Greally said she will be happy to once again coach swimming. She said, “You get to see [the swimmers] go from not being able to swim one lap competitively competitions.”

Versen sees a myriad of possibilities for continued growth in the athletic deexpanding into the outdoor areas where it is possible, and maybe having a scuba or kayaking class.

Sophomore John Epley plays squash outside of school. He said, “It’s really exciting for me because I’ll get the opportunity to play on a team for my school rather than just for myself. Access to courts at school will allow for more training time.”

Sports teams go the distance for competitive balance naomi nivaR Features Editor It’s 2:50pm on a Wednesday, midweek, and the boys’ varsity basketball team gathers in the gym full of anticipation for their away game. They pile into the bus and are left cramped the whole ride all the while trying to mentally prepare to play the big game. Whether they win or lose, they dread the long bus ride back as well.

Athletics are an integral part of our community but few of our athletes know the reasons for why we are in the league we are in, and the lengths that we take in order to play.

The Fairchester Athletic Association, (FAA) is the league most of the Masters athletic teams participate in. Aside from the (ISFL) for fencing,

and the occasional New York State Association of Independent Schools, (NYSAIS) or the New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) the FAA is the main league our sports teams compete in for all three seasons.

Masters’ athletic program joined the FAA years ago, before our current population of students and even before being co-ed in 1996. Recently, teams have been taken out of the FAA and are now in independent leagues with games coordinated individually.

Kevin Versen, the Athletics Director, said he wonders if there is still a valid reason to continue in the FAA with a school atmosphere much different than years ago. Some sports teams, the FAA while others don’t.

hockey, boys and girls lacrosse, and baseball from the FAA. He said, “Some sports teams in the FAA are very strong and we are strong as well but for our weaker sports it is not conducive nor productive to keep them in that program.” He added, “You can’t build a program if you’re always struggling, we want to have a program where kids can compete and enjoy playing.”

The FAA requires sports teams to play independant schools that are distant. Versen said this might be bewe saw ourselves more as a boarding school than a private NY prep school.

As far as leagues like NEPSAC, we play the most southern NEPSAC league teams and the closest distance to these teams is about an hour and a half. Versen said, “I like us playing

teams that are closer but I also like playing teams that we can compete against.”

Kyle Reynolds, the JV 1 boys basketball team coach said it is an hour and a half to Hamden Hall which he said is long ride for just one game.

Sam Rusoff, a day sophomore on the varsity girls basketball team expressed the same thoughts. She said, “For Hamden Hall, we were on the bus longer than we were playing.”

Rusoff is expressed the inconvenience of having games so far away.

She said, “It’s hard on my parents, with three daughters in three different sports teams, traveling is hard and pick up times are hard.” For those parents who want to support their games. Chris Childs, a freshman on the boys varsity basketball team, is

a boarder who lives nearby and unparents make it to all of his games.

He said, “My mom has always been my number one fan and this year it make it to all of my league games.”

Versen said another reason we partake in the FAA league is because Masters has similiar kinds of students on campus and our philosophy to that of the schools we play. To play public schools for example, we would have to abide to public school rules, like not having 5th year seniors, in order to play them. Currently, Versen said, “we’re looking at other options closely for our kids to compete in lieu of the FAA.” He also added that he hopes there will be some szchanges with the new head of school in regards to the athletic program.