Tower Issue #4 (2024-2025)

VOLUME 81

The Masters School 49 Clinton Avenue Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. 10522

From D.C. to Dobbs:

Legislation has local impact

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Flooding the zone: Trump’s orders overwhelm the system

FEB. 28, 2025

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Transgender students face uncertainty as protections revoked

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TOWER/FEB. 28, 2025

NEWS

GAGE SKIDMORE/CREATIVE COMMONS

The zone: Trump’s orders overwhelm the system Jack Bilman Web Editor

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looding the zone is a strategy developed by Trump and his team to overwhelm the Democrats with a

“flood” of executive orders and actions so that they can’t keep up.

Some of the orders may actually require congressional approval and some may be determined by the courts to be unconstitutional, but by releasing so many all at once, the hope is that many will be implemented before challenges can be mounted to them.

Constitutional Crisis AP American US History and Political Science teacher Colleen Roche defined the term constitutional crisis as, “A point when the boundaries of the constitution

are stretched in unprecedented ways.” Various actions such as the initiation of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), attempted the ending of birthright citizenship, and extending the executive branch’s power point towards a constitutional crisis. Many scholars agree with this. For example, in an interview with the New York Times, Edward Chemerinsky, the Dean of Law at the University of California Berkeley, said “There have been

so many unconstitutional and illegal actions in the first 18 days of the Trump presidency. We never have seen anything like this.”

Furthermore, in an interview with the Boston University newspaper, Professor of Law Jessica Silbey said “When people elected to uphold the rule of law and to follow the Constitution openly defy the plain meaning of laws, then yes, we’re in a constitutional crisis.”

What is an executive order?

JOSHUA SUKOFF/CREATIVE COMMONS

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP SIGNS an executive order banning transgender athletes from womens sports. He has signed 70 in his first 30 days in office, some of which will not go into effect.

Instead, he is engaging in a tactic known as “flooding the zone.”

According to the American Bar Association, “An executive order is a signed, written, and published directive from the President of the United States that manages operations of the federal government.”

Additionally, executive orders are only permitted to alter the operations of the executive branch. Executive orders also may not override the authority

of the judicial and congressional branches. These orders may also be challenged in the courts and be overturned. For example, in 2023, President Biden signed an executive order that forgave 10,000 dollars of student loan debt per borrower. However, it was shut down by the Supreme Court, making it a prime example of how executive orders can be handled by other branches.

Can he really do that?

Yes Several of Donald Trump’s Executive orders are well within his rights. For example, he signed an executive order called the Initial Recessions of Harmful Executive Orders and Actions. This executive order revokes 78 executive orders and Presidential Memorandums issued by the Biden administration that covered issues ranging from protections for trans people, climate change, immigration, criminal justice and healthcare - such as ending Biden’s rules capping the cost of some prescription drugs such as insulin.

According to the Department of Justice,“EOs (executive orders) are published in the Federal Register, and they may be revoked by the President at any time.”While this order is quite far-reaching, it is well within the bounds of an executive order. Executive orders created by a president are often rescinded by their successors. Biden, for example, rescinded almost three dozen of Trump’s executive orders during his first week in office in 2021.

Though legal, some executive orders are potentially damaging to some Americans, including Masters students with businesses. For example, Trump has threatened to place tariffs on China, Canada, and Mexico. Even though this order is legal, it could very well force foreign companies exporting to the US to raise prices, potentially hurting Americans trying to buy foreign products. It can also hurt small businesses.

Leo Koski, class of 2028, owns a small business called Coco & Nibs Coffee, and he often gets products from countries like Canada. Koski said “A 25 percent tariff on Canada could really hurt my business because I import lots of products from there.Also, some of the companies that buy my products could stop doing business with me if I was forced to raise my prices that much.”

With some help On Jan. 20, Trump signed an executive order to establish the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE for short. This entity is dedicated to cutting federal spending. But does DOGE have any real power to cut spending? Trump has also issued executive orders freezing some government spending and also has said that he will eliminate government offices such as the United States Agency for Internal Development and the Department of Education. However, under the Constitution, Congress has the sole power to create federal government offices and also control spending.

The Impoundment Act of 1974 was passed by Congress to clearly limit the president’s power to withhold funds earmarked for spending.

Legal challenges have been mounted against Trump’s attempts to cut spending through executive orders and most legal scholars believe that Trump will lose these cases. To get rid of government organizations like the DOE and USAID will likely require congressional action.

These cuts may happen because the House and Senate are controlled by Republicans who support these efforts, but Trump can’t legally do it by executive action alone.

Probably not Some of Trump’s executive orders thus far may be simply unconstitutional. Most notably, he signed an executive order ending birthright citizenship. This is largely seen by legal scholars - and the courts that have ruled so far - as unconstitutional because the Fourteenth Amendment so clearly states that “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States.” This basically means that people born in the United States, no matter the citizenship status of their parents, are American citizens. This order clearly contradicts the Constitution and has been shut down by multiple federal judges. Roche, “I can’t imagine even a conservative supreme court, which we have in place now, going along with that.”

Other executive orders may also be ruled unconstitutional. On Feb. 18, Trump signed another executive order that is largely seen by lawyers as unconstitutional.

In section seven of the executive order entitled “Ensuring Accountability for All Agencies,” Trump is seen by some as having greatly overstepped his reach. It says “The President and the Attorney General, subject to the President’s supervision and control, shall provide authoritative interpretations of law for the executive branch.” This is a complicated legal issue involving how quasi-independent government entities like the Securities and Exchange Commission are controlled by the executive branch. It is unclear how the courts will rule about the constitutionality of this particular order - but it may be another case in which the Constitution, through the courts, limits the power of the president.

TOWER/FEB. 28, 2024

NEWS

3

Hope for a better future: An Israeli and Palestinian discussion

AYANNA BECKETT/TOWER

AYANNA BECKETT/TOWER

AHMED FOUAD ALKHATIB IS a Palestinian American humanitarian activist and blogger. He grew up in Gaza and left as a teenage exchange student to the U.S. in 2005.

Justine Pascutti Editor-in-Chief

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rustrated by the way extreme voices dominate online discourse and drown out nuanced perspectives, Israeli-American educator Yirmiyahu Danzig and Palestinian-American writer and analyst Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib led a discussion at The Masters School on Jan. 22, about the history and current realities of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Organized in partnership with ConnectED, the event explored their communities’ narratives, points of agreement and disagreement, and potential pathways toward peace.

Masters is part of a cohort of 19 schools working with ConnectED, an educational platform that partners with academic institutions to foster critical thinking, empathy, and respectful discourse on the Israel-Palestine conflict, antisemitism, and Jewish history.

Selas Douglas, associate head of school for Inclusive Excellence at Masters, said that while Masters had previously hosted individuals affected by the conflict, this discussion was significant because it featured speakers with direct ties — one born in Gaza, thew other living in Israel — who had both lost family

members to the violence. He said, “It felt really important for us to be able to bring folks that are committed to that conversation to campus, not only to model that dialogue, but to help us think about how we relate to one another in our own community.”

Alkhatib shared his background growing up in Gaza, and how his exposure to Israelis and Jews outside the context of the conflict has shaped his understanding. He highlighted the internal divisions within Palestinian society, particularly between Gaza natives and refugees, and the need to separate the struggle for self-determination from extremist ideologies, criticizing Hamas for manipulating narratives to justify violence. Despite the immense personal loss he has endured, losing 30 family members in the conflict, Alkhatib remains committed to promoting dialogue and peace as a path forward.

Danzig, drawing from his experience as an Israeli and a former squad commander in Israel’s border police, discussed the widespread misunderstandings about Jewish identity and Israeli history. He criticized the way Jewish people are often portrayed in Western discourse, arguing that Israel is frequently misrepresented as a colonialist project rather than a homeland

YIRMIYAHU DANZIG IS AN Israeli Jewish rights and anti-racism activist.

He speaks Hebrew, English, Arabic, Yiddish and Guyanese Creole. for a historically displaced and perse- cussion is possible and to challenge the cuted people. Danzig argued that while binary thinking that dominates much of critique of Israeli policies is legitimate, the discourse on the conflict. it is often framed in ways that delegitiSenior Sophie Moussapour’s mize Jewish identity and Israel’s right background and personal identity has to exist. influenced her engagement with the The discussion also highlighted Israeli-Palestinian conflict and her the role of social media in shaping pub- pursuit of deeper understanding. “My lic opinion and exacerbating polariza- mom is Jewish and my dad’s family is tion. Both speakMuslim from Iran. ers expressed And so it’s been a I would’ve frustration with the hoped that more really interesting way extreme voices dynamic with the people would’ve conflict that has lent dominate online itself to my trying to discourse, drown- gone. I wish I could research the history ing out nuanced have had those of Israel and Palesp e r s p e c t i v e s . discussions with Both Danzig and peers and input from tine and how the history has escalated Alkhatib pointed and what led to Octo moderate voices other people.” being silenced by - Aaron Weinberg ‘25 tober seventh.”

She continsocial pressures ued, “I saw this within their own communities, preventing them from event as a wonderful opportunity to see publicly expressing moderate or criti- and to take inspiration from their discourse, and it’s something my parents cal views.

In their closing remarks, the are similarly interested in, so I thought speakers offered hope for a better it would be really interesting to go with future, emphasizing that change will the both of them.”

Senior Aaron Weinberg also atcome from people engaging with one another rather than relying on gov- tended the event with his parents, and ernments or political leaders. They said that in conversation afterward the encouraged students and educators to family discussed how the Israeli-Palfoster environments where open dis- estinian conflict has become a conten-

“

tious issue on college campuses and the role parents play in helping their children navigate these discussions.

Weinberg said, “One of the big things was, it’s not about force-feeding your child information, but giving them a full lens of the situation and letting them form their own opinions.”

He continued, “I think it [the event] was such a great experience.

I would’ve hoped that more people would’ve gone. I wish I could have had those discussions with peers and input from other people. I really think that the whole Masters community would have valued that talk.”

Co-president of the Jewish Culture Club and senior Taylor Marlowe emphasized the humanity of the event and how both speakers highlighted complexities and suffering on each side of the conflict. Marlowe connected this idea directly to Masters’ educational philosophy, saying, “I think it’s really great that Masters is doing this. As a school, our whole thing is Harkness, you learn from each other, you have conversations and having these conversations is how you get further. And I think beyond it, going along with our mission to bring in these speakers, I think it’s amazing that I’m able to do stuff like this and hear these types of people through my high school.”

Dobbs 16 hits the right notes at ICHSA Ella Black Lead Sports Editor

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he voices of Dobbs 16 don’t just blend, they captivate. This high-energy a cappella student group from the Masters community sings covers of songs and choreographs their own performances. They went to the 2025 International Championship of High School A Cappella (ICHSA) Northeast Quarterfinal, which took place on Feb. 9 at EMPAC in Troy, New York. This competition is hosted by Varsity Vocals, an international a cappella organization, and is one of the oldest a cappella competitions in the country. Dobbs 16 has been going since its earliest years, making it a longstanding tradition.

Jennifer Carnevale, chair of the Department of Performing Arts, and the groups teacher said, “When I was brand new here, around 25

The group has been diligent- the competition.” Morin refined the years ago, the person who was directing it [Dobbs 16] at the time ly preparing for this event through choreography over the break and, was taking the group to this compe- workshops. Sienna Morin ‘25, who when the group came back, they had tition, so I inherited it as a legacy.” has taken on the role of choreogra- a full-day workshop to learn it.

This competition also emphasizes pher, said, “How Dobbs 16 works Beyond technical skills, what sportsmanship and allows students is that, at the beginning of the year, sets Dobbs 16 apart is their bond to admire and appreciate each oth- we learn the first half of our reper- and diversity. Despite having many er’s work, even though they are on toire, and then the first half of our new members, the team’s dynamic songs, and then pick three songs for thrived due to the welcoming nature different teams.

This year, they of the returning placed third, a signifmembers. Carneicant achievement, as vale said, “Being they have not placed in an a cappella in the past six years. group is a weird According to Carjob, you have to nevale, the result ofbe an individual fers the best of both and blend in at worlds: they received the same time.” recognition for their Their ability to hard work, while havsupport each othing the freedom to er and work tomove on from their gether was key to PHOTO BY DOBBS 16 their success. In competition set beDOBBS 16 MEMBERS SING at one of the oldest a capel- addition to their cause they are not strong camaraadvancing to the next la competitions in the country. In this national competition, they placed third in the country derie, Dobbs 16 round.

stands out because of their diversity, both in musical taste and the members themselves. The group is made up of students with a wide range of interests outside of singing, which adds a unique energy to their performances. Carnevale said, “They genuinely like each other, they genuinely like what they’re doing, and they genuinely like what they’re singing and that translates on stage.”

This year’s setlist included Diamonds by Rihanna, Muddy Waters

by LP and Don’t Wake Me Up by Chris Brown.

According to Morin, the group’s biggest strength lies in their sheer vocal talent, with amazing soloists and group singers. She said, “Not only do we have members who are strong in an ensemble, but we have so many individual voices that stand out, which makes our overall sound even more powerful.”

Opinion 4

TOWER/FEB. 28, 2025

OP-ED

News overload?

TOWER 2024-2025

EDITORIAL

How to drink from the fire hose without drowning

Gulf of America. Elon Musk. Federal funding freezes. The sheer volume of news makes it hard to know where to begin. And it is not as if one can only focus on the “important” stories because lately, every headline seems to cast a bigger and bigger shadow over our lives.

So, how do we approach the news without feeling overwhelmed?

Instead of agonizing over every news story, start with what matters the most to you. Not the most dramatic stories, but the ones that actually affect your life. Maybe your 15-minute bus ride is not enough time to dive into recent executive orders,

climate policy, or foreign affairs. Often, it is the smaller, local headlines – library events, town hall meetings, the weather – that shape your day-to-day life the most.

The news you read matters, but so does where the information comes from.

Social media is particularly good at discreetly embedding bias and misinformation into news posts that are not always fact-checked, working hand-in-hand with algorithms designed to keep people scrolling and reacting. Traditional media outlets, on the other hand, label and distinguish opinions more clearly, usually in an Op-Ed section. Nonethe-

less, while these media platforms are more structured, they still carry political biases that influence their reporting. Recognizing these biases is essential to staying informed.

The press is an industry like any other. But it is also a freedom, one of the first enshrined in this country, and a tool. As with any tool, it cannot be used blindly – awareness and intent matter.

Instead of passively consuming headlines, focus on what directly affects you and verify sources. If a policy or event impacts your life, don’t just read about it, act on it. Show up to a town hall and ask questions. If a

policy impacts your community, call your representative as a constituent through the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121. If you disagree with the policies of a business, boycott. If you’re upset about something, advocate. There are countless ways to engage, and it all starts with your relationship with the news.

Not every issue requires immediate action and it’s impossible to care about everything all the time. Stay informed, but take action where it matters most. Otherwise, the flood of information becomes paralyzing rather than empowering.

Carter’s long legacy unraveled by new Trump legislation Elaina Barreto Lead Opinion Editor

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ust a month after Donald Trump was re-elected as the 47th president of the United States, James Earl “Jimmy” Carter passed away at the age of 100. Carter, who served as president from 1977 to 1981, promoted environmental protection and education reform. Since his presidency, presidents, such as Joe Biden, have upheld his values, including the preservation of nature. However, as a new presidency begins, it seems the work of Carter is being erased.

Carter was a strong advocate in the fight against climate change.

During his presidency, he established the National Energy Act of 1978 during the gas and oil U.S. energy shortage, reducing reliance on foreign oil and encouraging the use of solar energy to power homes. According to Alaska Public Media, in 1980, Carter also worked to preserve native Alaskan lands and signed the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA), which expanded the size of national parks and refuges across the state.

In contrast, Trump has openly supported expanding oil and gas drilling. Just weeks before his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order banning drilling on 625 million acres of coastal and offshore waters, as stated by Fox News. As president, Trump has already signed an executive order with the goal to undo Biden’s policies.

During his first term, the Trump administration also opened up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil drilling, an area protected by the federal government since 1960 that houses the Inupiat and Gwich’in Indigenous communities.

Despite the economic benefits of strengthening America’s energy cre-

CHANA KIM/TOWER

PRESIDENT JIMMY CARTER AND President Donald Trump policies contradict each other in many ways. Here Barreto explores the differences in their approaches to education ation, the environmental impacts are disastrous. Trump is more concerned with money than the current climate crisis. He wants to strengthen the creation of American-made energy, but at what cost? A temporary economic boost at the expense of a decades-long fight to focus on renewable energy production and fight climate change?

With the climate clock ticking, why should America backtrack from the progress we’ve made so far?

Carter also had a significant impact on American education. Before his presidency, federal education programs were scattered among different agencies. In 1979, however, Carter established the Department of Education (DOE).

The DOE created access to quality education for minorities and those from low-income families, but despite the advantages of the DOE, Trump follows in the footsteps of previous Republicans: he threatens to abolish it.

As he said in an interview with Time Magazine, “We want to move the schools back to the

states…we’re at the bottom of every list in terms of education and we’re at the top of the list in terms of the cost per pupil…we’ll spend half the money on a much better product.”

Mason Dwek, a co-chair of the Election Club ‘24, warns shutting down the DOE would create disparity in the quality of education between states since the guidelines the education department requires for all schools throughout the country would be removed and each state government would establish their own schools standards.

The DOE also enforces civil rights laws and gives funding to protect marginalized people, such as disabled students. The absence of the DOE could cause varied enforcement of these laws and also reduce funding for education workers, such as school psychologists, who need certain resources to help students with disabilities.

As the daughter of a school

psychologist in the New York City Department of Education (NYC DOE), for years I’ve heard my mother describe her work assessing students to determine their cognitive, academic and social-emotional functioning and recommending the special education services they need. The funding the NYC DOE receives from the government enables her and her coworkers to purchase important assessment tools, such as standardized tests and protocols, needed to identify learning disabilities.

These assessment tools, along with the scoring software part of digital packages that the DOE provides, require periodic updates every few years. Without federal funding, it would become increasingly difficult to obtain the assessment tools necessary to classify and support students with educational disabilities.

As people become aware of how the removal of the DOE directly affects children, it’s important that parents work to prevent children with learning disabilities from a difficult future of struggling to secure high-paying jobs because of poorer academic outcomes by contacting local representatives.

Additionally, considering current children will be forced to live in whatever environmentally distressed world the “drill, baby, drill” initiative tries to create, it is imperative that people spread awareness through social media platforms of how environmental degradation impacts current and coming generations.

By reviewing and remembering Carter’s legacy of ecological conservation and educational improvement, we can construct a more secure future.

Editors-in-Chief Ellie Hise Justine Pascutti Rooke Wiser Lead News Editor: Allie Faber News Editor: Mila Benson Lead Features Editor: Neena Atkins Features Editor: Ella Liu Lead Sports Editor: Ella Black Sports Editor: Thomas McCallum Lead Opinion Editor: Elaina Barreto Visuals Director and Opinion Editor: Ayanna Beckett Illustration Editor: Jenny Xu Web Editor: Jack Bilman Social Media Manager and PR Editor Loewy Nalle Faculty Advisors Matt Ives Ellen Cowhey Columnists Alex Kritzer Eunice Wang Annadele Dyott Contributing Writers Brielle Broomes Brooke Muntner Angela Heslee Helen Gao Siena Versaci Photographers & Illustrators Chana Kim Sophia Ding Alyssa Wang Rose Yuan Jovelysa Molina Annadele Dyott Roni Barkan Colin Smith

Online Media For more information, follow Tower on the following platforms: Website: Tower.MastersNY.org Facebook: MastersTower Instagram: @MastersTower Distribution Process Tower is hand-delivered on the day of publication to the Upper School. 650 copies are printed. A copy is sent to each of our advertisers.

Scholastic Press Affiliations, Letters 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. We encourage Letters to the Editor, which can be submitted to the following email address: TowerEditors@MastersNY. org. Published approximately six times a year, Tower, the student newspaper of The Masters School, is a public forum, with its Editorial Board making all decisions concerning content. Commentaries and opinion columns are the expressed opinion of the author and not of Tower and its Editorial Board or its advisers. 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.

TOWER/FEB. 28, 2024

OP-ED

5

The Broligarchy Rises:

Tech bros, neofeudalism and the post-democratic order

Alex Kritzer Columnist

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hen discussing Trump2.0, too often we don’t put the fundamentals of American democracy first. Donald Trump himself, devoid of any coherent ideology and bereft of any clear endgoal beside the most base self-gratification, is anything but the problem.

The real threats are those select few actually responsible for his election.

Vice President JD Vance admitted he is “plugged into a lot of weird, rightwing subcultures.” He is rare among Republicans: a source of insight into the stately, institutional side of the New Right. It is composed of some central intellectuals, and more worryingly,

their followers in the tech industry.

Should the Trump regime ever truly reach the new lows of illiberalism and autocracy which the media fears, these men will be its actual leaders.

Let’s start with one theorist for whom Vance has openly declared his admiration in a 2021 podcast. Curtis Yarvin is the founder of the NeoReactionary (NRx) movement, which rejects the liberal and democratic ideals formed in the Enlightenment from a modern perspective.

Yarvin is, simply put, an absolutist-monarchist with a Silicon Valley background. He figures democracy promotes wasteful spending and corruption; that the state would fare better if it was privately owned by a sovereign “national CEO” financially invested in the valuation of his property.

Yarvin compares the basic structure of monarchy to that of the privately-owned firm, praising the efficiency of the imperial executive in streamlining the state itself as a corporate exec would their company.

Eventually, he claims, such a mode of government would mean a return to feudalism under the lordship of large, for-profit corporations with private police-state equipment. After all, there are no checks and balances in Silicon Valley: private firms operate essentially by dictate of the CEO. Yarvin’s first step to privatize the U.S. government was “RAGE”: Retire All Government Employees.

ROSE YUAN/TOWER

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP AND Vice President JD Vance sit on sofas with wires extending out of their backs, plugged into the throne where Elon Musk sits. Musk shares similar ideas about reshaping democracy into an oligarchy ruled by corporate leaders as the famous tech “broligarch,” Peter Thiel, here in Kritzer’s op-ed.

By purging the established civil service, he aimed to allow the president to install a new class of ideological bureaucrats willing to take real action against the constitutional order. The Republican think-tank class has since quietly co-opted and rebranded neoreactionary policies as the “America First” platform, from Kevin Roberts’ Heritage Foundation to figures like the Trump administration’s Stephen

Miller, Michael Anton and Russel Vought. Needless to say, a proposal extremely similar to RAGE appears in the pages of Project 2025. Now it seems the plan is being implemented.

To corporate leaders obsessed with maximizing profit, the temptation to revisit monarchy must be similarly alluring: if only the directive of the state could be administered with the efficiency of the capitalist producer

at its helm, without the poor, witless masses getting in the way. It shouldn’t be shocking, then, to learn that Yarvin has many followers in his beloved tech industry. The tech “broligarch” most infamous for his dissatisfaction with democracy is Peter Thiel, one of the Republican Party’s biggest donors. Marc Andreessen, a tech mogul involved with the Trump transition, is also a friend of Yarvin.

Elon Musk seems to have similar ideas about reshaping government in pursuit of private interests, albeit under the more mild facade of cutting waste and streamlining the fed.

As Musk’s primary threats to Republican dissenters prove, those with enough wealth can influence all levels of government. And now they’ve attained powerful positions, the forces of tech-bro feudalism are better poised than ever. For as long as campaign finance law remains as-is, the Broligarchy is real. Their hand-picked choice is already the vice president.

They already own the media platforms on which you might wish to criticize them -- and that technology of such potential for surveillance and control seems only to increase in sophistication.

As Trump’s distracting antics flood headlines, the underlying institutional issue is increasingly clear: America is entering another Gilded Age. Fortunately, we’ve defeated the robber-barons once before. The question to ask is how to do it again.

Vulcans, Hobbits and Hooligans:

the trilogy of political personas faces unbalance Siena Versaci Contributing Writer My personal favorite aspect of Star Trek (besides watching with my father) was the Vulcan people, a fictional extraterrestrial species. Each time one was in a scene, their characteristic strict adherence to logic and lack of emotional connection, was reminiscent of my mother. She is logical to a tee, and always there to provide an analytical analysis.

Other than the Star Trek species, a Vulcan is a categorization of a person’s political persona. Political thinker Jason Brennon came up with three political personas: Hobbits, Hooligans and Vulcans.

In these chaotic political times the balance of these political characters is off-kilter. We need more Vulcans -- and fewer Hobbits.

Hobbits are people who have no interest in politics and are therefore uninformed and lacking passion for any political party. They pose a danger since they are often easily influenced by the next group, Hooligans. Brennan chose the term Hooligans because it is commonly used to describe rabid European soccer fans who know a lot about soccer but are tribalistic and biased against any other team. Politically, Hooligans are well informed on their side, much like a sports fan is informed on their team’s statistics.

Still, like any sports fan, they hold

biases and are often so passionate that they become unable to see alternate perspectives making them dangerous and uninformed by default.

Vulcans, Brennon states, are the unattainable ideal. They are extremely well informed about all perspectives and therefore are dispassionate, not having allegiance to any side. Their role is to politically inform the Hooligans and Hobbits, and therefore influence politics from the outside since they themselves lack the passion.

To be truly informed is quite difficult especially in today’s world,

given social media’s tendency to form political echo chambers: media pushed to people by algorithms based on political alignment re-enforcing certain opinions while blocking out others. Still, while being informed is not unattainable, a Vulcan’s characteristic lack of emotion and passion is an unattainable state.

Humans are not an extraterrestrial species. They cannot completely block out emotion and be entirely unbiased and logic-based. Still, this Hobbit, Hooligan and Vulcan categorization is a spectrum, making each categorization attainable.

I propose that we delve into this idea of a spectrum further. It could be said that this spectrum is actually circular in nature, meaning that people can shift their position and cross over from one character to another. If a Vulcan becomes too informed, they may become overwhelmed and switch to a Hobbit. If a Hobbit gains passion, they may become a Hooligan, not properly informed, but loud.

Today, I note a problem. With politics becoming so extreme, I am seeing the political Vulcans shifting in the circular spectrum. They are unable to remove themselves from the emotions, as they are so horrified by the extreme nature of today’s politics.

Vulcans that I know personally are disappearing and becoming Hobbits.

They can’t bear to look at the news and stay informed. My mother, who used to read every news article from all different perspectives and even fully annotated the entirety of Project JOVEY MOLINA/TOWER 2025 to learn about WHILE VULCANS LIVE IN Star Trek, they also exist in the current political the opposite side, atmosphere where they inform others about different perspectives from a is closing herself logical, and unemotional, viewpoint. Hobbits do not care about politics and are not affiliated with any political party whereas hooligans are passionate and well off from the media.

This phenomenon is informed about their party and opinions. gaining prevalence.

While this shift in the political character spectrum is natural, in such extreme and polarized conditions, society is left unbalanced. Missing are the Vulcans who are integral, for though they do not participate in politics, as they lack the passion, they are necessary to inform others in society like Hobbits and Hooligans.

Hooligans, having passion to a fault, often participate in politics.

They are the ones who will go to the streets in protest, explore the data, make the phone calls, send the emails and even engage in civil disobedience to beam light on issues. As a society, we rely on Vulcans to do their duty and inform Hooligans of facts regarding politics. Further, Vulcans can often see what others cannot. They steer society away from calamity.

We need a refresher and integration of groups. Vulcans should spend time with Hooligans and, inversely, Hooligans should hang out with Vulcans. Doing this allows Hooligans to learn about political facts and varying views, and helps Vulcans to develop passion. If you need a break from entrenchment in politics, maybe go into a Hobbit hole for a bit. Society cannot stay unbalanced for it risks further polarization and political ignorance. It is necessary that people inform themselves about their political character and explore these three personas in order to stay informed while also maintaining mental health.

Columns

6

OP-ED

TOWER/FEB. 28, 2025

Opinion

Don’t call Africa a country

Eunice Wang Tower Columnist

O

ne evening at the dinner table, a friend casually asked, “Is Africa a country?” I barely had time to process the question before another friend confidently responded, “Of course, what else could it be?”

The moment stuck with me. My instinct was to blurt out my response that Africa is a continent, but before I had time to do so, the conversation had already moved on.

I realized it wasn’t just any simple misunderstanding – the response

reflected a larger issue of how Af- second largest desert, the Sahara, one that ignores the uniqueness of rica is perceived. A quick Google and predominantly Arabic-speaking its people.

Jama, who is from Somalilsearch confirmed my concern: more nations. East Africa, where Jama is than 5,000 people search for the an- from, features towering volcanoes, and, has experienced this firsthand. swer to this question every month. lakes, and mountains. Meanwhile, He laments, “The thing is, no one Far too often, Africa is treated as West Africa is known for its rich knows about it, they say it’s part of a monolith, a single entity rather culinary traditions and music, and Somalia. We have the same language than a continent of 54 independent Southern Africa is famous for its but we have very different cultures.”

Somaliland declared indepennations, each with its own cultures, wildlife and landscapes. Yet, despite this immense diversity, Africa is of- dence from Somalia in 1991 and languages, and histories.

Senior Warsameh Jama knows ten reduced to a single narrative, has since built its own government, economy, and electhis misconception all tions.

However, too well. He testifies, because it is not of“When I first came ficially recognized here, people would by most of the world, ask me, ‘You know many people are how to eat fufu?’ Fufu unaware of its exis a really famous dish istence. This small from West Africa. country, as stated by But I am not from Jama, is not even on that area of Africa, the map. The lack I’m from East Africa. of recognition again People think we have reflects the broader the same culture, but issue of African nathat’s not true.” tions being grouped The African together without continent is dividunderstanding their ed into five areas – individual histories.

Central, Southern, The oversimNorthern, Western plification further and Eastern – each overlooking with its own disCREATIVE COMMONS/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS risks tinct characteristics. SOMALILAND, THE COUNTRY JAMA is from, is located the continent’s innovations, achieveNorthern Africa is on few maps of Africa because of the small size of the ments, and cultural home to the world’s country an its recent declaration of indepedence in 1991.

“

People think [all african countries] have the same culture, but that’s not true.

-Warsameh Jama ‘25

richness. Countries like Kenya are leading in mobile banking technology, Nigeria’s Nollywood is one of the world’s largest film industries, and Rwanda has made immense progress in economic and sustainable development. Yet, these stories rarely make it to the headlines, resulting in a one-dimensional view of Africa for many.

Thinking back on that day at the dinner table, I wished I had spoken up. I wish I had been able to confidently say, “No, Africa is not a country” and share the beauties of the individual nations.

Africa is not just one place.

Africa is a vast, diverse continent, a mosaic of nations, histories, and cultures that deserve to be recognized and understood.

Grimes produces tragic art in Visions album her dreamy, at times child-like, vocals. In “Symphonia IX (My Wait Is U)”, a favorite track of mine, Grimes layers a crunchy beat with borderline intelligible lyrics. However, with a closer listen, layered over the main vocal track, Grimes sings, almost monotonically, “Be in the dark to be in a deep mind.”

I find that artists like to produce “tragic art” for the same reason people like to consume it. The artist is able to find some solace in the thought that their audience may be as troubled as they are and the audience finally receives validation that they are not alone.

Boucher has said Visions was composed in a rut of unfulfillment, a state of constantly chasing what she didn’t have and then not being satisfied when she finally got it.

Grimes routinely makes self-deprecating remarks, ironically once commenting that anyone can do what she does, it’s just a matter of confidence. Centuries worth of tortured artists, from Van Gogh to Cobain, have long unintentionally CLAIRE BOUCHER/ALBUM ART been infusing their strongest IN DYOTT’S ARTICLE, READ how muemotions into their sic artist Grimes created the 49-minute, work, creating art that, eerie-sounding “Visions” album, and more whether they realized information on her music style. sense, except, perhaps, the notion that one must be mentally tortured to make great art.

In the process of making Visions, Grimes infamously trapped herself in a self-made quasi-bunker without food, sleep, or even another tortured soul. The result? A masterpiece. In just 14 tracks and 49 minutes, Grimes serves a slice of her mind on a titanium platter. Over synthy bass lines, punchy beats, Grimes reaches her highest register, accompanying eerily composed tracks with

Annadele dyott Tower Columnist

I

n the midst of the peplum and wedge sneaker epidemic of the early 2010s, Claire Boucher, known by most as her stage name, Grimes, released her third studio album, Visions, on Feb. 21, 2012. Grimes is likely most well known for her relationship with Elon Musk and their son so thoughtfully named “X Æ A-Xii.” Even beyond her choices on lovers and baby names, Grimes does have her fair share of quirks. In 2019, she claimed to have had a reconstructive surgery on her eyeball to remove all blue light, a surgery labeled by experts as both illegitimate and illogical. Regardless, Grimes has not once conformed to any standard set by her industry or even common

ALYSSA WANG/TOWER

CLAIRE BOUCHER, ALSO KNOWN as Grimes, locked herself into a bunker without sleeping or eating in order to produce her album Visions. The album includes creepy tunes accompanied by high vocals that convey deep, tragic emotions. it or not, could never quite be replicated. By amplifying the intensity of the creative process, Grimes produced something truly herself, something unrepeatable and forever irreplicable.

Grimes’ legacy will likely be tainted by her association with Musk, grouped in with headlines of X rants and Oval office visits. For the time being, GrOmes remains a

star, even five years after the release of her last album. She now has nearly seven million monthly listeners on Spotify and, with a couple of scrolls on TikTok, you’ll likely encounter the mystical openings of Visions tracks “Genesis” and “Oblivion” which now occupy viral status. A certified millennial, Grimes remains an icon of 21st century youth: unafraid, messy and original.

TOWER/FEB. 28, 2025

FEATURES

Transgender students

face uncertainty amid revoked protections Mila Benson & Rooke Wiser News Editor and Editor-in-Chief

I

where I’m going to end up, whether that’s at college or at grad school or at some point in my future, and what that’s going to entail eventually for New York as well,” Keith said.

n the opening month of School Response his reclaimed presidency, “When you are sitting with this President Donald Trump fear, all day, every day, it makes evhas moved swiftly to strip away pro- erything else in life harder.” said Kaci tections for transgender individuals Collins-Jordan, a transgenacross the United der teacher. “It States, casting a makes it harder shadow over the to go to school. It #: WY HB0147 community nationmakes it harder Status: Engrossed wide. For transto pay attention Summary: Prohibits gender students in class. It makes in the U.S., what it harder to have government entities should be a safe and converfrom engaging in DEI equal educational environment now programming feels increasingly uncertain as new restrictions arise.

The College Process

As the college application season draws to a close for seniors and begins for juniors, students are deciding where to spend the next four years of their education. But for transgender students, an additional, unique consideration emerges: the safety of their very existence on prospective campuses.

In six states, providing gender-affirming care for minors is a felony. Nineteen other states have restrictions that range from outright bans on treatments, such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy, to regulatory hurdles that can make care nearly impossible to access.

MILA BENS For Shadow Keith ‘25, a transON/T OWE R gender student, recent attacks have significantly influenced his college sations with search. “I friends. It makes it need to be harder to have conlooking at #: AZ SB1687 versations in class that states that Status: Introduced touch on politics.” are safe for Masters has me, states Summary: A physician long provided affinthat can may not provide irrivity groups as a space give me ersible gender-affirming for students to share access to their experiences surgery to minors the healthand, in the wake of care that Trump’s election, the I need,” transgender affiniKeith said. “I also have to make ty group, which started in 2022, sure that the schools I’m apply- has grown even more important. ing to are going to be alright “In the affinity group, we meet with my name change and that once a week, usually depending on the housing I receive is going what’s going on that week,” said to respect my gender identity.” Luke Wilde, a non-binary teacher Lydia Chioffi ‘25, another who helps run the group along with transgender student, also expressed Collins-Jordan. “It’s just a place for concerns in her college search. students to express themselves.”

“Being transgender has impact- These meetings aim to provide taned the college process in terms of gible, in-person gender validation where I look for safety,” she said. and community-building. Who Beyond logistical challeng- shows up to these meetings is also es, students also must deal with the completely confidential, giving stuemotional impact of these decisions. dents a safe space not to be outed.

“I’m definitely anxious and con“One of the things we’ll do at cerned for the future, for not only the beginning of a lot of meetings myself, but for the people around is just to talk about an aspect from me, for my peers,” Keith said. that day that felt validating to their The uncertainty extends be- gender,” Wilde said. “Then we yond college. “I’m concerned for discuss things we try to do around

but most teachers forget pronouns all of 2024, 674 anti-trans bills halfway through the year unless were introduced, highlighting the you pass as a transgender person.” aggressive legislative push intenHe added, “I’ve had many, sifying in Trump’s second term.

One of Trump’s earliest acmany issues with my email… I requested [a change] freshman year tions in office was signing an execwhen I changed my name in the utive order on sex titled Defending Women school system, but F r o m I didn’t notice my Gender dead name was still #: CT HB05370 Ideology in the system… It Status: Introduced Extremtook them so long to ism and remove it, but some- Summary: Prohibit genRestoring how, it got put back der-affirming treatment & up. I’ve honestly givpromote psychotherapy for Biological Truth to en up at this point.” the FederChioffi noted minors with “gender dysal Governthe response from phoria” ment. In faculty has been inhis inauconsistent. “There gural adwere some people dress, he declared who did not adthat the U.S. will dress the election only recognize at all, and there are “two sexes: male some teachers who and female.” stopped class for The exlike a week [to adecutive order dress it],” she said. mandates that all federal agencies replace “gender” with “sex” on official documents, including passports, Social Security records, and other forms of identification. The policy has already taken effect in at least four states, where transgender individuals have been denied requests to update their gender markers on federal IDs. Chioffi also noted that the national debate is fixated on a narrow set of aspects of trans identity, often misrepresenting their reality. She noted that the focus on transgender athletes often distracts from broader systemic issues. “For example, I’m a trans swimU.S. mer, but the vast majority Departof transgender people don’t ment of participate in Education professionhas launched al sports,” an investiga#: SC S0054 she said. tion against five Status: Introduced Chioffi Northern Virginia Anti-Trans Bills Summary: Pharmasays these reschool districts, “I know that there cists may refuse to fill strictions feel claiming they vihave been a lot of anti-trans- prescriptions for mor- increasingly olate Title IX by gender bills personal and allowing al, ethical or religious suffocating. and legislation transgender #: TX HB344 passed around reasons “I wake up students to Status: Introduced the country reand figure use their out what I’m c h o s e n Summary: Prohibition cently,” Keith said. “And I know as a gonna wear in terms of safety rather names and on school instruction New Yorker, the state is than looking cute or being comfortpronouns very Democratic, and we able,” she said. “I’m feeling nervous at school. about gender identity should be pretty safe here, – not for myself because I’m 18 – I’m While or sexual orientation but I’m concerned for the worrying for the younger kids. I have theoretipeople who aren’t in states control over my body, but they don’t.” cally, MasWilde agrees that transgender ters is a safe haven for students, like New York.” However, that contransgender students say that in- cern now extends beyond state legis- minors are particularly vulnerable. stitutional protections do not al- latures as Trump’s executive orders “Transgender kids are the most ways translate to lived experiences. have begun reshaping federal policy. vulnerable because they are at the Since the start of 2025, state age where they don’t really get to Keith has faced repeated obstacles in having his identity properly legislatures around the country have the fulfillment of their rights. recognized at school. “I’ve been con- have introduced a total of 584 bills Rights can be denied to them.” healthcare, tinuously misgendered throughout targeting my four years at Masters,” Keith said. education and legal “Everybody has gotten my name recognition for transcorrectly since freshman year… gender individuals - in campus. Last year, we had an informational board and a memorial for Nex Benedict.” Nex Benedict was a non-binary 16-year-old student who died a day after being physically assaulted by their classmates.

Following the election, the school opened a processing space in the Center for Inclusive Excellence.

“With our current president, there is an obvious agenda that would impact this group of students,” Wilde said. “We did that to talk through what the election results meant to them, how they were feeling and also to plan for the future.”

Unlike public schools, private schools, such as Masters, are not bound by state or federal policies restricting LGBTQ+ rights. However, there are thousands of transgender American students in public schools whose rights are not protected. For example, the

7

8

TOWER/FEB. 28, 2025

NEWS

Asylum Seekers in Ardsley Face Uncertain Future With Second Trump Administration Neena Atkins & Allie Faber Features Lead Editor and News Lead Editor

O

n a cold December morning, families at the Ardsley

Acres Motel gathered their belongings and prepared to move out. For over a year, the motel had been home to more than 70 asylum seekers, many of whom arrived in Westchester after being bussed from El Paso, Texas, to New York City, in response to Texas Governor Gregory Abbott’s Operation Lone Star border security program.

Their departure signified the end of a temporary arrangement, as local organizations and volunteers coalesced to help them settle into new jobs, shelters and communities, and their government-authorized funding came to a close.

This moment came just weeks before the inauguration of President Donald Trump, who has pledged significant changes to U.S immigration policy, including potentially the largest deportation operation in American history and scaling back birthright citizenship.

Abbot’s program brought nearly 46,000 asylum seekers by October 2024 to New York City from the Southern border, according to ABC 13.

The influx of asylum seekers overwhelmed New York City’s shelter systems, Mayor Eric Adams said in a speech, leading to their dispersion to surrounding areas. In June 2023, over 70 migrants, primarily from Mexico and Central and South America were relocated to

the Rivertowns and sheltered at the Ardsley Acres Hotel Court.

“The majority of the people [in the Ardsley community] were very welcoming and very helpful… and understood that these were folks who were trying to find a better life,” Ardsley Mayor Nancy Kaboolian said.

Community Steps In Since then, many local organizations have stepped in to help feed, clothe and settle the families in Ardsley Acres. Niall Cain, president and founding member of Rivertowns for Refugees, a community-driven organization dedicated to supporting and resettling refugees, said, “We helped put services, such as laundry services, into place, where we paid for all their laundry for a while. We gave them gift cards for items like toothpaste.”

Woodland Community Temple (WCT) hosted the first Thanksgiving dinner in 2023 for the asylum seekers in the temple sanctuary and brought the same home-cooked meals to their farewell dinner at the end of 2024.

The temple also provided the Ardsley Acres residents with hot meals.

“A basic foundation in Judaism, a line that gets repeated over and over again in our religious scriptures, is ‘protect the stranger,’ because you were a stranger in the land of ancient Egypt.” Rabbi Mara Young of WCT said. “And, if you live in a time where you have privilege and power to do good, you are religiously obligated to take care of people who are in this similar situation.”

The Moveout In May 2023, Adams’ office entered a contract with DocGo, a mobile medical services provider tasked with caring for asylum seekers in New York City. DocGo’s contract was cancelled for New York City as a result of multiple financial and health violations.

When DocGo’s contract ended in December, 2024, the migrants at Ardsley Acres had to move out.

The DocGo representative responsible for Ardsley Acres did not respond to a request for comment.

Since leaving the hotel, some of the migrants have dispersed locally, according to Kaboolian.

They have found jobs in grocery stores, retail, and delivery and ride share services. “We are trying to stay in contact with some of the families that have been relocated in the Westchester area to continue to give them support,” she said.

Others, Cain said, are headed back to New York City shelters.

No municipal taxpayer money from Ardsley residents has been spent on housing the asylum seekers, according to Kaboolian.

Funding has come primarily from community-based organizations, many of which have financial support from the federal and state governments.

Trump Policy While the local community grappled with the challenges and opportunities brought by the migrants’ presence, the immigration debate flooded the national political landscape.

The implications of new Trump immigration policies worry local officials. Kaboolian expressed concern over the future of the asylum seekers previously housed at Ardsley Acres. “Some of them have had children

REFUGEES EXIT ARDSLEY ACRES after more than a year living there. They were bussed from El Paso TX to New York City in June, 2023. The Ardsley community, as well as the greater Westchester community, has stepped in to help them.

here. So the children here are birthright. They are citizens,” she said. “So now the question is, are you going to deport families and separate them? I am fearful of what’s going to happen.”

Since his inauguration on Jan. 20, Trump has issued orders to turn away asylum seekers before they enter the country – those already on U.S. soil are still protected as of now – and shut down the CBP One application, previously a resource for migrants navigating the U.S. Customs and Border Protection points. He has also signed off on planned immigration raids on schools, churches and hospitals in so-called sanctuary cities such as Chicago and New York City, which have laws that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

Referring to local policies, Cain said, “Ardsley, Dobbs Ferry and Hastings all have some sort of legislation on the books [so] that none of the police are proactive in seeking undocumented immigrants. But under federal law, they are obliged to help ICE [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] if they call and say, ‘We need your help.’”

The Westchester Immigration Protection Act (2018) currently protects the status of immigrants from being investigated by county law enforcement agencies.

However, as Cain notes, federal law still requires local authorities to cooperate with ICE when requested.

The Masters Angle: Touchpoint Teachers Educators at Masters are taking steps to support immigrant students and their families. Pilar Méndez-Cruz, an Upper School English teacher, and Mariah Peña, an Upper School English teacher and dean of the class of 2027, have been leading these efforts.

Last year, they led the Masters-run student volunteer trip over spring break to the Mexi-

can-American border in El Paso, Texas. On the trip, students participated in the Annunciation House’s Border Awareness Experience, where they engaged in several volunteer activities and learned about the intersections between immigration policy, culture, social justice and the border.

Lucas Camacho, a senior who joined the trip, shared his motivations for attending. “Being Hispanic American, it felt like something I could connect to on a personal level,” he said. “It was something I had never done before and I thought it would be an opportunity to learn and get involved.”

Reflecting on one impactful moment during their volunteering, Camacho said, “We were helping with some cleaning at a shelter, and afterward, we sat down and talked with a couple of people there. Hearing their stories directly was different from just reading about it. It felt more real.”

In the fall, Méndez-Cruz and Peña also spoke to the Upper School and faculty during morning meeting, offering their support to immigrants, their families and the Masters community at large.

“We decided that we would go up and just show our faces for students that didn’t necessarily know us, or students that maybe knew us but weren’t sure if this was a question they could ask,” Peña said. She explained that their goal was to create a safe space for students to discuss immigration-related concerns, ask questions and find emotional support.

Peña, whose own family immigrated to the U.S., brings a personal perspective to her work: “I experienced, as a person who was born in this country, all the privileges that came with that,” she said. “But I was also raised to be a touch point for people because my father wasn’t born here. He experienced what it’s like to be scared or confused, feeling unable to ask questions.”

Mendez-Cruz said that her

JENNY XU/TOWER

motivation for this work stemmed from observing the differences in accessible resources between her previous experience teaching a community of largely immigrant students in a Title 1 school and her current role at Masters. The El Paso trip was an effort to connect the two communities.

“The challenge of immigration reform in this country is not new,” she said. “And while the challenges that the immigrant communities here face continue to evolve and change, a need to do something persists.”

Through their engagement, Peña hopes to spotlight the personal side of the immigration conversation. She said, “We hear a lot about it in the news and in the media when we are following election topics, and sometimes it feels like a buzzword. We really wanted to remind people that there are humans behind this conversation.”

LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS COLLABORATED IN order to find the migrants who were staying in the Ardsley Acres Motel jobs in various sectors within the community.

ELLEN COWHEY/TOWER

NEWS

Village of Dobbs Ferry responds to inundation of Trump executive orders In a digital newsletter Allie Faber distributed to the residents of Lead News Editor Dobbs Ferry on Feb. 6, the Board of Trustees and Dobbs Ferry Police Department issued a statement reaffirming their commitment to protecting the rights of “vulnerable communities” – including immigrants, refugees, transgender and nonbinary kids – in the wake of President Donald Trump’s executive order deluge.

Trump’s recent orders have empowered U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to enter previously so-called sanctuary locations such as schools, hospitals and churches, asked border control agents to turn away asylum seekers and initiated massive raids in sanctuary cities like Chicago and New York City.

Some of the presidential actions have also targeted trans youth. The White House announced on Feb. 5 that the federal government would rescind funding from educational programs that permit trans women to play in women’s leagues.

“We are devastated that many of our neighbors are now living in fear,” the Board and Police Department wrote.

The letter also explained that while the Village is legally obligated to comply with immigration authorities in “cases involving serious crimes” and judicially warranted detainer requests, local law enforcement will not enforce federal immigration laws.

The Westchester Immigration Protection Act (2018) currently protects the status of immigrants from being investigated by county law enforcement agencies. However, as the Village’s statement acknowledged, federal law still requires local authorities to cooperate with ICE when requested.

“Efforts are underway to provide additional resources, including partnerships with local schools and organizations, to inform residents of their rights in interactions with ICE or other authorities,” the statement said. “This is a rapidly evolving legal landscape, but we are committed to transparency, compassion, and the continued safety of all our neighbors.”

9

8

TOWER/FEB. 28, 2025

NEWS

Asylum Seekers in Ardsley Face Uncertain Future With Second Trump Administration Neena Atkins & Allie Faber Features Lead Editor and News Lead Editor

O

n a cold December morning, families at the Ardsley

Acres Motel gathered their belongings and prepared to move out. For over a year, the motel had been home to more than 70 asylum seekers, many of whom arrived in Westchester after being bussed from El Paso, Texas, to New York City, in response to Texas Governor Gregory Abbott’s Operation Lone Star border security program.

Their departure signified the end of a temporary arrangement, as local organizations and volunteers coalesced to help them settle into new jobs, shelters and communities, and their government-authorized funding came to a close.

This moment came just weeks before the inauguration of President Donald Trump, who has pledged significant changes to U.S immigration policy, including potentially the largest deportation operation in American history and scaling back birthright citizenship.

Abbot’s program brought nearly 46,000 asylum seekers by October 2024 to New York City from the Southern border, according to ABC 13.

The influx of asylum seekers overwhelmed New York City’s shelter systems, Mayor Eric Adams said in a speech, leading to their dispersion to surrounding areas. In June 2023, over 70 migrants, primarily from Mexico and Central and South America were relocated to

the Rivertowns and sheltered at the Ardsley Acres Hotel Court.

“The majority of the people [in the Ardsley community] were very welcoming and very helpful… and understood that these were folks who were trying to find a better life,” Ardsley Mayor Nancy Kaboolian said.

Community Steps In Since then, many local organizations have stepped in to help feed, clothe and settle the families in Ardsley Acres. Niall Cain, president and founding member of Rivertowns for Refugees, a community-driven organization dedicated to supporting and resettling refugees, said, “We helped put services, such as laundry services, into place, where we paid for all their laundry for a while. We gave them gift cards for items like toothpaste.”

Woodland Community Temple (WCT) hosted the first Thanksgiving dinner in 2023 for the asylum seekers in the temple sanctuary and brought the same home-cooked meals to their farewell dinner at the end of 2024.

The temple also provided the Ardsley Acres residents with hot meals.

“A basic foundation in Judaism, a line that gets repeated over and over again in our religious scriptures, is ‘protect the stranger,’ because you were a stranger in the land of ancient Egypt.” Rabbi Mara Young of WCT said. “And, if you live in a time where you have privilege and power to do good, you are religiously obligated to take care of people who are in this similar situation.”

The Moveout In May 2023, Adams’ office entered a contract with DocGo, a mobile medical services provider tasked with caring for asylum seekers in New York City. DocGo’s contract was cancelled for New York City as a result of multiple financial and health violations.

When DocGo’s contract ended in December, 2024, the migrants at Ardsley Acres had to move out.

The DocGo representative responsible for Ardsley Acres did not respond to a request for comment.

Since leaving the hotel, some of the migrants have dispersed locally, according to Kaboolian.

They have found jobs in grocery stores, retail, and delivery and ride share services. “We are trying to stay in contact with some of the families that have been relocated in the Westchester area to continue to give them support,” she said.

Others, Cain said, are headed back to New York City shelters.

No municipal taxpayer money from Ardsley residents has been spent on housing the asylum seekers, according to Kaboolian.

Funding has come primarily from community-based organizations, many of which have financial support from the federal and state governments.

Trump Policy While the local community grappled with the challenges and opportunities brought by the migrants’ presence, the immigration debate flooded the national political landscape.

The implications of new Trump immigration policies worry local officials. Kaboolian expressed concern over the future of the asylum seekers previously housed at Ardsley Acres. “Some of them have had children

REFUGEES EXIT ARDSLEY ACRES after more than a year living there. They were bussed from El Paso TX to New York City in June, 2023. The Ardsley community, as well as the greater Westchester community, has stepped in to help them.

here. So the children here are birthright. They are citizens,” she said. “So now the question is, are you going to deport families and separate them? I am fearful of what’s going to happen.”

Since his inauguration on Jan. 20, Trump has issued orders to turn away asylum seekers before they enter the country – those already on U.S. soil are still protected as of now – and shut down the CBP One application, previously a resource for migrants navigating the U.S. Customs and Border Protection points. He has also signed off on planned immigration raids on schools, churches and hospitals in so-called sanctuary cities such as Chicago and New York City, which have laws that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

Referring to local policies, Cain said, “Ardsley, Dobbs Ferry and Hastings all have some sort of legislation on the books [so] that none of the police are proactive in seeking undocumented immigrants. But under federal law, they are obliged to help ICE [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] if they call and say, ‘We need your help.’”

The Westchester Immigration Protection Act (2018) currently protects the status of immigrants from being investigated by county law enforcement agencies.

However, as Cain notes, federal law still requires local authorities to cooperate with ICE when requested.

The Masters Angle: Touchpoint Teachers Educators at Masters are taking steps to support immigrant students and their families. Pilar Méndez-Cruz, an Upper School English teacher, and Mariah Peña, an Upper School English teacher and dean of the class of 2027, have been leading these efforts.

Last year, they led the Masters-run student volunteer trip over spring break to the Mexi-

can-American border in El Paso, Texas. On the trip, students participated in the Annunciation House’s Border Awareness Experience, where they engaged in several volunteer activities and learned about the intersections between immigration policy, culture, social justice and the border.

Lucas Camacho, a senior who joined the trip, shared his motivations for attending. “Being Hispanic American, it felt like something I could connect to on a personal level,” he said. “It was something I had never done before and I thought it would be an opportunity to learn and get involved.”

Reflecting on one impactful moment during their volunteering, Camacho said, “We were helping with some cleaning at a shelter, and afterward, we sat down and talked with a couple of people there. Hearing their stories directly was different from just reading about it. It felt more real.”

In the fall, Méndez-Cruz and Peña also spoke to the Upper School and faculty during morning meeting, offering their support to immigrants, their families and the Masters community at large.

“We decided that we would go up and just show our faces for students that didn’t necessarily know us, or students that maybe knew us but weren’t sure if this was a question they could ask,” Peña said. She explained that their goal was to create a safe space for students to discuss immigration-related concerns, ask questions and find emotional support.

Peña, whose own family immigrated to the U.S., brings a personal perspective to her work: “I experienced, as a person who was born in this country, all the privileges that came with that,” she said. “But I was also raised to be a touch point for people because my father wasn’t born here. He experienced what it’s like to be scared or confused, feeling unable to ask questions.”

Mendez-Cruz said that her

JENNY XU/TOWER

motivation for this work stemmed from observing the differences in accessible resources between her previous experience teaching a community of largely immigrant students in a Title 1 school and her current role at Masters. The El Paso trip was an effort to connect the two communities.

“The challenge of immigration reform in this country is not new,” she said. “And while the challenges that the immigrant communities here face continue to evolve and change, a need to do something persists.”

Through their engagement, Peña hopes to spotlight the personal side of the immigration conversation. She said, “We hear a lot about it in the news and in the media when we are following election topics, and sometimes it feels like a buzzword. We really wanted to remind people that there are humans behind this conversation.”

LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS COLLABORATED IN order to find the migrants who were staying in the Ardsley Acres Motel jobs in various sectors within the community.

ELLEN COWHEY/TOWER

NEWS

Village of Dobbs Ferry responds to inundation of Trump executive orders In a digital newsletter Allie Faber distributed to the residents of Lead News Editor Dobbs Ferry on Feb. 6, the Board of Trustees and Dobbs Ferry Police Department issued a statement reaffirming their commitment to protecting the rights of “vulnerable communities” – including immigrants, refugees, transgender and nonbinary kids – in the wake of President Donald Trump’s executive order deluge.

Trump’s recent orders have empowered U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to enter previously so-called sanctuary locations such as schools, hospitals and churches, asked border control agents to turn away asylum seekers and initiated massive raids in sanctuary cities like Chicago and New York City.

Some of the presidential actions have also targeted trans youth. The White House announced on Feb. 5 that the federal government would rescind funding from educational programs that permit trans women to play in women’s leagues.

“We are devastated that many of our neighbors are now living in fear,” the Board and Police Department wrote.

The letter also explained that while the Village is legally obligated to comply with immigration authorities in “cases involving serious crimes” and judicially warranted detainer requests, local law enforcement will not enforce federal immigration laws.

The Westchester Immigration Protection Act (2018) currently protects the status of immigrants from being investigated by county law enforcement agencies. However, as the Village’s statement acknowledged, federal law still requires local authorities to cooperate with ICE when requested.

“Efforts are underway to provide additional resources, including partnerships with local schools and organizations, to inform residents of their rights in interactions with ICE or other authorities,” the statement said. “This is a rapidly evolving legal landscape, but we are committed to transparency, compassion, and the continued safety of all our neighbors.”

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10

Blood on the

TOWER/FEB. 28, 2025

NEWS

: How safe are NYC rails?

Ella Liu Features Editor

A

s you were scrolling through TikTok one day this December, you may have come across the horrible news that a lady had been burnt alive on the New York subway. This incident went viral online, and in the weeks following, it seemed that more instances of violence on the subway appeared online, including stabbings and people getting pushed on the tracks. While violence in New York City, especially the subway, is not new, has it really gotten worse recently?

In truth, the subway has never been the dangerous jungle that people have perceived it as. According to Nate Silver, a statistician who analyzes elections and politics, the likelihood of being murdered on the subway in a given year is roughly the same as being struck by lightning.

Many students regularly commute to and from the city — often taking the subway to reach Metro-North stations and then the train to school, whether for daily classes or school-sanctioned trips — but how do they view the safety of their own trip on the subway or Metro-North?

Junior Lorelei Gary takes the Metro-North train to and from school every day. She said, “Sometimes if you’re taking the train late, it’s really sketchy.”

Usually, she commutes with many other classmates, which is assuring, since there is more danger to commuting alone. “If I’m going home later than

ALYSSA WANG/TOWER

WHILE OFFICIAL STATISTICS INDICATE that subway crime has declined, media sensitization continues to shape public perception, leaving some riders and students wary of their daily commutes. six, my mom actually doesn’t let me take it alone,” she said.

Gary views the recent media attention on train violence as a by-product of the COVID-19 social distancing customs. She recounts that when she was in sixth grade, her train commutes were much more crowded. During COVID itself, there were many fewer people taking public transportation.

According to official New York MTA data, estimated Metro-North ridership in late 2020 ranged from 10,000 to 40,000, while the most recent data from 2025 shows ridership increasing to between 70,000 and 200,000.

She said, “During COVID, no one was on the train, so the crime

stopped because there was no one to commit the crimes.” She believes that now, after COVID, people are still not used to sharing space like before.

There is also a difference in experience between people on the subway and Metro-North. Sophomore Dara Akinwande, a boarder who lives in the city and frequently takes the subway, said, “There’s always crazy and homeless people going around taking advantage of people.”

In response to MTA surveys, teams of police officers were formed in 2024 to remove mentally ill individuals from the subway system, by force if necessary, and help them secure needed medical treatment.

While some commuters feel uneasy about their experiences on the subway, recent data suggests a different trend. In 2024, major crime in the subway system decreased by 5.4% from 2,337 incidents in 2023 to 2,211 incidents, which is an extremely low rate considering 2024’s record number of one billion rides. However, Akinwande claims it “absolutely does not” feel like that. She further explained that different train lines have different crime rates, but on the train line she takes the most, the number two line, she believes crime has stayed the same.

Similarly, according to an NYPD MTA report, the Metro-North Railroad showed a decrease in major felonies by

23.5% in March 2024 compared to 2023, with 166 in 2024 compared to 217 in 2023.

Additionally, more police officers have been put onto the lines and Governor Kathy Hochul has recently announced on Jan. 16 every train will have two officers onboard from 9:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m.

Spanish teacher Roberto Mercedes takes the subway and Metro North every day to and from school. He reports that he has never experienced or seen violence on the subway at all.

However, he stated that his mother often worries about his safety after seeing the news.

He said, “When I arrive home, my mom is there sometimes and she is watching the Hispanic news. She says, ‘Oh my god! Be careful! People are pushing other people on the tracks.’”

Mercedes said that his friends also often warn him of danger on the train, but when he asks them if they saw anything, they usually say they heard something on the news or online.

Despite the official statistics reporting very low crime rates and a further decline recently, the popular perception is very different. This is due to high-profile cases of crime that cause an idea that crime is much more frequent than actuality. Officials even say that the increase in law enforcement is to align the perception of transit crime with real life.

“Stats don’t matter if people don’t believe they are in a safe environment,” Mayor Eric Adams said during a press conference in March 2024.

TOWER/FEB. 28, 2025

FEATURES

11

The Rise of the Tradwife

Women embrace 1950s domesticity, reflecting broader conservative shift has popularized the idea of the nuclear family while Neena Atkins condemning elements of the Lead Features Editor sexual revolution and divorce. open TikTok and Interestingly enough, his see a video of a wife, Usha Vance serves as a blonde woman with counterpoint: a Yale-educated a 1950s-inspired bob, wearlawyer and former Supreme ing a floral apron over a vinCourt clerk who resigned tage blouse. She’s cooking from her progressive law firm and cleaning while smiling after Vance’s nomination for brightly, saying she is proud Vice President. to “live her truth.” No, this Kritzer highlighted how is not a clip from a retro film he grew up with the ideals of – it is content from Estee the “nuclear family,” and how Williams, a 26-year-old from in early education children are Virginia, with over 200,000 often taught about traditional followers on TikTok and family dynamics and what 116,000 on Instagram. makes a family. “They [nucleWilliams is part of a ar families] probably are the growing online subculture backbone of our society. But of ‘tradwives,’ short for trait’s not worthy of forcing peoditional wives, who celebrate ple into any sort of mold.” He domesticity, submission to continued, “The whole point their husbands, and a return of a constitutional system is to traditional family values. that you’re not forcing people ROSE YUAN/TOWER Dictionary.com defines the into that social structure.

THE TRADWIFE MOVEMENT BLENDS vintage aesthetics with conservative ideals, promoting a return to term “tradwife” as “a married You’re affording them the traditional gender roles. Some women claim it is empowering, while others argue it reinforces patriarchal woman who chooses to be kind of freedom to parse it norms under the guise of choice. a homemaker as a primary out.” occupation and adheres to or In an interview with the ballerina to embrace Mormon farm but they’ve been taught this is what Many openly express embodies traditional femininity BBC, Pettit described her routine life in Utah with her husband. they’re supposed to do.” their conservative political and female gender roles, often as “submitting to spoiling her Now a mother of eight and She discussed how the beliefs. For example, “Woke up associated with conservative or husband like it’s 1959,” emphaa homesteader, Neeleman has social validation that tradwives this morning. Baby on my hip. alt-right political values.” sizing that she amassed 22 million followers receive online, especially from Making some fresh sourdough.

When always fixes across TikTok, Instagram, and men, reinforces these roles My husband is hot. Trump is discussing her her clothes and YouTube.

She rose to fame after and stimulates a feedback loop the president of the U.S. Life Woke up this definition of the lipstick before a video went viral showing her perpetuating traditional gender is good,” said tradwife Jasmine morning. baby term, Williams he comes unboxing a gift from her husband. norms.

Dinis in a TikTok video. on my hip. making home, because In the clip, she jokes that she is stated in a The tradwife trend began to Despite criticisms, the trad2022 TikTok some fresh sourdough. “tracksuits and hoping the gift is tickets to Greece popularize online in 2020, as the wife trend continues to dominate video, “We greasy hair” – only to reveal that it is an egg pandemic Instagram and Tikmy husband is hot. [tradwives] isn’t a good apron, a present she accepts with led people Tok feeds. Perhaps trump is the president believe our look for wives. apparent satisfaction. to find I get the appeal of it is not about a purpose is to be of the u.s. life is good.”

The Nelleman’s content showsolace in widespread desire having a stable homemakers.” impact of cases everything from homemade domestic and monogamous to live this way, but The - jasmine dinis the tradwife mustard-making to shepherding routines. rather the spectalifestyle blends movement is her flock, all presented with an Tradwives existence, but it’s cle and aesthetic vintage aesthetnot confined to air of calm and grace. She even often draw totally different than appeal, much like ics with deeply rooted ideals of social media platforms. Junior and graced the cover of EVIE Magainspirasubscribing to this reality television. gender roles. While Williams and political enthusiast Alex Kritzer, zine, what the New York Times tion from 1950s-revivalist stuff” Greenfield others frame their choices as em- commented on the broader cultural described as a “Cosmopolitan for 1950s-era noted, “Of course, powering, critics argue that the implications of this trend for his conservative women.” Neeleman American the tradwife trend - alex kritzer ‘26 tradwife phenomenon is tied to a generation. He said, “I get the exemplifies a tradwife lifestyle culture, doesn’t destroy the resurgence of conservative, and appeal of having a stable and mogrounded in family-centered Christian feminist movein some cases alt-right, politics. nogamous existence, but it’s totally values. values, and ment, but it causes damage by Consider Alena Kate Pettitt, different than subscribing to this However, not everyone conservative politics, with some filling a lot of people’s feeds with founder of The Darling Academy, 1950s-revivalist stuff.” views the tradwife trend through blending choice feminism and content that is anti-feminism.” a platform dedicated to traditional The appeal of this traditionrose-colored glasses. neopaganism, a modern spiritual The allure of the tradwife domesticity. The self-described al lifestyle – part aesthetic, part Senior Ella Greenfield, movement inspired by pre-Chris- may not lie in the lifestyle itself traditional housewife from the ideology – has brought figures like co-leader of GALS, the feminist tian beliefs, into their narratives. but in the fantasy that it repUnited Kingdom has decorated Pettitt and Williams into the limeand women’s rights advocacy group Nonetheless, the tradwife moveresents – a curated, idealized her Instagram with posts celelight. Yet, they are far from alone. at Masters, said, “I think in a lot of ment also reflects a larger-scale version of domestic bliss that brating housewifery, often using Hannah Nelleman, known online those [tradwife] cases, it’s a bit of cultural and political shift toward contrasts sharply with the comhashtags like “#MakeTheHouse- as “Ballerina Farm,” left a prominternalized misogyny. Of course, conservatism. plexities of modern life. wifeGreatAgain.” ising career as a Juilliard-trained you can’t just say, ‘they’re to blame,’ Vice President J.D. Vance

I

“

“

Trending Tradwife Hashtags #tradwife - 100K posts

#traditionalwomen - 22.6K posts

#traditionalwife - 22.6K posts

#housewife - 1.6M posts

#traditionalmarriage - 1K posts

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TOWER/FEB. 28, 2025

FEATURES

Saturday Night Live hosts a monumental 50th anniversary Loewy Nalle Social Media & PR Manager

L

ive from New York it’s Saturday night!

The iconic, live, televised sketch-comedy show Saturday Night Live (SNL) celebrated an unforgettable milestone– its 50th anniversary. Notable stars packed the seats of NBC Studio 8H to commemorate, laugh and reminisce during a three and a half hour special that JOVEY MOLINA/TOWER aired at 8 p.m. on February 16th.

SNL CELEBRATED 50 ICONIC years with an anniversary, bringStarting in 1975 under creator ing together generations of stars, sketches and musical perforLorne Michaels, it has featured countless comedians, actors, singers, ath- mances in one historic night. letes and even politicians on the show. musical guest, two performances). “Lawrence Welk Show” parody from Many stars got their start on SNL, Before watching the 50th spe- eleven years ago with many former including Chevy Chase “Vacation”, cial, Ellie Barancik, a former recep- cast members. The viral “Domingo” Tina Fey “30 Rock”, Adam Sandler tionist at 8H and a former SNL Script sketch returned featuring Martin Short, “Grown Ups”, and even a current cast PA, had numerous expectations for Molly Shannon, Pedro Pascal and Samember, Bowen Yang “Wicked”. the special. “I think it’s going to be brina Carpenter– just to name a few.

In 2015, SNL hosted a three- star-studded with lots of surprises.

Amy Poehler and Tina Fey held a and-a-half hour long 40th anniversa- They’ve got a lot of ground to cover.” staged Q&A in the audience, answerry special with appearances, tributes It was indeed a star-studded ing questions from Tim Meadows (their and montages. For example, during spectacular. Instead of a typical polit- Mean Girls castmate), comedian Nate the Weekend Update segment, an- ical open, music legend Paul Simon Bargatze and musician Keith Richards. chors paid tribute to Chevy Chase, sang “Homeward Bound” alongside During “Weekend Update”, Bill Murthe very first anchor back in 1975. Sabrina Carpenter. After, Steve Martin ray, a former anchor, ranked the other On the musical side, Miley Cyrus, entered the stage and delivered a com- anchors, putting Colin Quinn at the Kanye West, Paul McCartney and ical monologue. “The monologue is bottom and Norm Macdonald at the top.

Paul Simon were all featured as mu- the weakest part of the show,” he joked.

Montages were also featured. sical guests, which is vastly different The first few sketches reprised Molly Shannon and Emma Stone infrom the typical layout of the show (one iconic past segments, including the troduced a silly montage of “physical

comedy” which showed a huge compilation of comedic falls and dances throughout the show. Tom Hanks began an “In Memoriam” montage spotlighting all of the old sketches that were undeniably problematic.

Alongside “Homeward Bound”, Miley Cyrus and Brittany Howard sang “Nothing Compares 2 U” in tribute to the late Sinéad O’Connor. Lil Wayne and The Roots performed a medley of his hits. Adam Sandler sang a humorous song called “50 Years” that celebrated the show and Lorne Michaels.

Paul McCartney closed the show with “Golden Slumbers,” “Carry That Weight,” and “The End”, the last songs on The Beatles album “Abbey Road”.

Since it has been 50 years, it is important to note how the show has changed since 1975. From new and diverse cast members to the types of sketches, it has evolved.

“There’s always a new audience to fall in love with it,” Barancik said.

“Back then, in 1975, if you didn’t see it live on Saturday night you missed it. Now, there’s a huge evolution with the show right there just with social media and TikTok, and that’s how many know the show,” she continued.

A new generation has risen that loves the show: Gen-Z. Many sketches have targeted Gen-Z this season such as “Domingo,” (featured for the third time this season during the special) which consists of cast members do-

ing a funny parody of “Espresso” by Sabrina Carpenter, “HOT TO GO!”

by Chappell Roan, “Defying Gravity” from Wicked, and “You Belong with Me” by Taylor Swift. These songs mostly appeal to Gen-Z, but can have an impact on any generation. During the sketch, Martin Short’s character jokingly yelled, “Oh my God it’s Taylor! I think she’s doing Taylor!”

“SNL has definitely started to pander more to Gen-Z and millennials as opposed to the older generations, which definitely will start to ostracize them a bit more,” sophomore Lena Paull said. “However, especially during Season 50, their political bits were pretty well received by older generations making it an even bigger community of fans,” Paull continued.

Barancik has also noticed the difference in generations watching the show currently. “As you get older, people tend to be a little bit more critical and there are a lot of people out there that say the show hasn’t been good since 1975.”

“It was so special to see so many amazing people both on stage and in the audience, and it was so cool to see how SNL celebrated 50 years of sketch comedy,” sophomore Estela Ostrom said, recapping her positive experience watching the special. “I loved everything, especially how they celebrated all the different aspects of comedy we know and love on SNL.”

Books are back: New reading trends take shape five years post-COVID NEENA ATKINS/TOWER

Ellie Hise Editor-in-Chief

A

s the COVID-19 pandemic confined people to isolated Zoom calls, bedrooms during quarantine, and Door Dashed meals, people began to look elsewhere to occupy time and expand their world.

The solution quickly came to be reading. But while reading levels and book purchasing generally increased during 2020, according to polls done by Independent UK and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in person bookstores and libraries were struggling. According to the American Bookseller Associa-

tion, around 20% of independent bookstores faced imminent risk of closing, and for the first year, one closed each week. But five years later, bookstores and libraries are seeing much more use, and reading itself may still be on a general rise.

Through a survey for libraries conducted in March of 2020, the Public Library Association found that 99% of respondents had closed and been forced to switch to online programs and digital catalogs. Because of this transformation, the use of audiobooks and ebooks grew by 25%, according to the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Because of this very successful shift to ebooks, digital catalogs have become

a large part of library material even five years later. Now, digital materials comprise around 60% of public library collections.

Jillian McCoy, a Masters librarian since 2021, explained that in 2020 the previous librarian switched many materials over to a digital database, to give students more access to resources.

Senior and leader of the creative writing club Emerson Riter said, “I probably take out books [from the library] once or twice a month. For the most part, they are digital, but every once in a while I’ll get a physical one when I find myself there.” She also explained that her library card was connected to her Kindle through apps like Libby, which enables users to

take out books from any library they have a card for. According to research done by Libby, more users are taking out audiobooks and digital texts now than during the pandemic.

McCoy, another Libby user, said, “For the public library, I use ebooks because I can check them out instantly, but then I do check out print books from [the Masters library].”

Bookstores are making a comeback as well, but rather than being because of the rising consumption of ebooks, it is due to the appeal of traditional books.

Riter prefers a traditional hardcover or paperback, and so does Stacy Van Beek, an Upper School English teacher. She said, “I love

physical books. I tried so hard to like the Kindle, because it’s so efficient. Efficient and environmentally conscious, and if you’re traveling you can take five books with you in this tiny little package.

But I simply hate the physical experience.”

She also appreciates the distance it creates from screens. “[With physical books] there’s not the possibility of having seven other tabs open calling me to check on them, which I know happens when I have my phone around.”

Continued on page 13

TOWER/FEB. 28, 2025

FEATURES

13

Enriching or interrupting: WinterMission’s pros and cons Thomas McCallum Sports Editor During the week between the first and second semesters, some students walk outside and learn to extract maple syrup from trees, while others practice CPR in Fonseca Center. These activities are part of WinterMission, a mini-term in which students take a single week-long class outside their normal curriculum. Some students and faculty believe that the break from school is beneficial, while others see the logistical and educational issues caused by this break as too great to

ELLA BLACK/TOWER

IN THE RADICAL JEWELRY Makeover wintermission led

by Cheryl Hajjar and Elizabeth Merrill, students soldered, cut, and filed their own jewelry.

Books are back: cont. from page 12 Ellie Hise Van Beek led a Wintermission course in January called “My Analog Life,” where she and her students spent much time engaging in activities that were deviceless, one of which was reading long books for pleasure, without the analysis of English classes or access to phones. Van Beek was inspired by a similar university class in asceticism, or the self-restriction of indulgences,

overlook.

WinterMission was introduced in 2022-2023 through the efforts of Dean of Teaching and Learning Jason Hult and Head of School Laura Danforth as a way for students to have a break between the two semesters of the year to learn something new and fun.

Hult said, “Before I worked at Masters, I worked at a program called Cityterm, which was a lot like WinterMission. Every week, there were three days where we’re in the classroom and three days a week where we were in the city doing stuff, and there were no specific courses.”

While working at City Term, Hult was approached by Danforth. He said, “Ms. Danforth was really excited about the idea of a mini-term at Masters and asked me to join the school in order to help create WinterMission.”

The idea behind WinterMission is to create a unique learning environment where students can focus on something they are really interested in.

This opportunity to learn something new and fun is much appreciated by many students.

Nathan Beckman, a junior, said, “It was really great to have a bit of a break from the academic year to learn something fun.”

Elizabeth Merrill, a biology teacher in the Upper School said, “Wintermission is a really great idea.

It allows students to explore topics and areas of interest that they wouldn’t normally get to experience, so in that

sense it’s a great idea.”

Another benefit of WinterMission is the opportunity it provides for students to get to know one another.

Hult said, “I think it’s really valuable for you as young people to be required to try something new and join a new group.”

Even when the prospect of being forced to take a class with new people is daunting, Hult still views it as extremely beneficial. He said, “I also hear from students who are really nervous and terrified about WinterMission, in part because they have to meet a new group of students and a new teacher. And so I think for those students, WinterMission is really valuable.”

As the program has developed since its founding, some drawbacks have

but specifically where students would swear off their phones for a few weeks and engross themselves in long books. According to her, the school didn’t believe the class would gain any traction, but it actually ended up garnering a waitlist. “There seems to be a hunger for just reading a big book and immersing [oneself] in it,” she said.

Bookstores offer an additional experience of going to a store and browsing books, that some people prefer to simply shopping online. Riter said, “I like to go to bookstores and make it a thing, I’ll get a coffee or something and walk around.” Riter will also go to the bookstore with her friends.

The largest age group that reads print books is the 65+

group, but the second largest is the range 18-24, says Test Prep Insight, based on a verified survey.

The Copyright Agency has found that most teens prefer print to electronic books. McCoy has been trying in the past few years to expand the library’s print book collection. She said, “I appreciate having the ebook collection and we have access to the Westchester library system through Sora, that’s great, but I know that our students prefer print books.”

Riter notes that Gen Z has largely grown up around digital devices, so ebooks aren’t as novel.

She said,“I think our generation is looking for things that aren’t on our phones. It makes sense to me that people want more physical,

ELLEN COWHEY/TOWER

STUDENTS LOOK THROUGH DONTED clothes to repurpose in the WinterMission “#MeMade@Masters” led by Ellen Cowhey, Allison Eggleston, Penny Peng and Ilona Shinkar. emerged. One specific topic of controversy is the impact that WinterMission has on AP curriculum.

Merrill said, “In my advanced classes, the schedule is very, very, tight.

We just don’t have enough teaching hours, and I think that impacts learning in a negative way.”

She continued, “Logistically, given our schedule, it’s very difficult to take a whole week out of very limited time and devote it to something entirely different.”

Some students find WinterMission interferes with their ability to focus and stay present in their classes due to a lack of continuity.

Zach Stewart, a sophomore, said, “A major con of WinterMission is that it’s hard to hit the ground running again after having the week off like that.

I find myself starting slow and feeling disorganized in a lot of classes.”

Merrill seconded that point, saying, “I think it really takes away from the continuity of learning for kids. For deep, meaningful, learning, kids have to have consistent sessions, and WinterMission detracts from that.”

Merrill said that despite the issues, she believes WinterMission is a good concept, but the scheduling issues pose a big threat to the success of students’ learning, especially in rigorous classes.

Hult acknowledged the scheduling issues, but argued that the break provides benefits to students’ academic performance. He said, “Because of where this (WinterMission) lands, it is an amazing moment for students, I think because they have a bunch of assessments, usually at the end of the first semester, and so it’s kind of nice to have a breather between semesters.

Having that break sometimes makes it easier for students to refocus for the next semester.” The total loss of class time, in his view, is not too large.

“Advanced placement classes have two extra missed days of school, and so that there’s definitely a cost to that.

I don’t want to pretend like there’s no drawback to that, but it is on par with a severe winter storm that would take two days out. And for me, the benefits are worth it, both for faculty and for students.”

RONI BARKAN/TOWER

ARE PEOPLE READING EBOOKS more, print books more, or both? Although different age groups have their own reading preferences, post-COVID reading rates seem to point towards a general positive trend.

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TOWER/FEB. 28, 2025

SPORTS

Track captains help their team soar to the top

“

before her to start thinking about

I’ve always kind the position for her junior year. of been a runner. “I wasn’t one-hundred percent Contributing Writer sure, but I was kinda secretly I’ve been running he Masters Co-Ed hoping that I would be chosen Track Team has been since I was a kid.”

Zadie Collins

T

working its way to the top, preparing for a potential victory at their NYSAIS (New York State Association of Independent Schools) competition today, on Feb. 28. Alongside their six captains, three for the girls, and three for the boys, they are training vigorously.

The Girls Track Team captains for the 2024-25 school year are seniors Anna Shub and COLIN SMITH Sarah Christie, and junior Scout SENIOR NICHOLAS MOUTSATFishkind. The Boys Track Team SOS SPRINTS down the track during the spring season. He is com- captains are seniors Nicholas Moutsatsos, Brian Wolfson, mited to run at Amherst College. and junior Jamie Milward.

Being a captain for a sport that one is passionate about is an athletic goal for many. For Shub, who has been running since she was young, it was an accomplishment.

“When you’re younger, you always look up to the captains before you, and you want to follow in their footsteps.” She continued, “I had so many captains over the years that really made my experience, that I hope to continue that on.”

Though Shub does not plan to continue competitive running, she still plans to enjoy it recreationally. She said, “I definitely want to COLIN SMITH continue to run more casually.”

SENIOR BRIAN WOLFSON STARTS Christie began her track jourhis race at The Armory Track in Deney out of fear of not being able cember, during the winter season. to out-run animals. “I started track [funny enough] because I got chased by a rooster the summer before ninth grade,” she said. She stuck with the sport because she found being a part of the track community to be rewarding, but never considered herself worthy of the role. She said, “I never thought that I was fit for a captain, but I’m not upset with being a captain, but it wasn’t ever my intention.”

Fishkind started running to follow in her father’s footsteps.

She said, “I started track freshman year because my dad is a very serious runner and I’ve COLIN SMITH always admired his dedication JUNIOR JAMIE MILWARD RUNS to the sport.” Sophomore year, the Steeple Chase, which includes she became inspired by captains jumping over a big fence.

-Nicholas Moustasos ‘25

“

When you’re younger, you always look up to the captains before you, and you want to follow in their footsteps.”

-Anna shub ‘25

“

I started track [funny enough] because i got chased by a rooster the summer before ninth grade.”

-Sarah Christie ‘25

“

i wasn’t one hundred percent sure I would be captain, but i was secrretly hoping that i would be chosen.”

-scout fishkind ‘26

for it.” Now a junior, her secret hope has come true.

Starting to long for a captain’s position his junior year, and receiving it in his senior year, Nicholas Moustastos has been recruited by Amherst College to continue his running journey. In regards to the future, he said, “I have four more years in college.

We’ll see where it goes from there, but I have at least four more years.” He added, “ I might, COLIN SMITH if I’m good enough, I might SENIOR ANNA SHUB ROUNDS the go pro. I don’t know, but we’ll curve of the track during the spring have to wait and see for that.” season.

Relating to the start of his journey, Moustastos said, “So, I’ve kind of always been a runner.

I’ve been running since I was a kid, really.” He began competing once he got to high school, and from then on, he was hooked.

Wolfson became enveloped in the world of Track and Field through soccer training. He said, “Initially I started with track because I was really interested in just getting in shape for soccer and becoming faster.”

He, similar to Moustastos, had his eyes set on being captain his junior year, but prior to that, he was intimidated by the responsibilities that came along with it.

COLIN SMITH However, he said, “I’ve learned SENIOR SARAH CHRISTIE LEAPS that it’s really not too difficult the long jump at The Armory. based on how everyone is just helpful and wants to help out.”

Milward began track as a way of following in the footsteps of his older brother, Charlie Milward, who graduated class of ‘24. “I thought, ‘You know, might as well try it out’ and that was way back when I was in like seventh or eigth grade.” He used his inspiration from his brother as a way of fueling his newfound passion.

“The reason I kept running is ‘cause it became a part of my life.”

Being a captain for any sport you are passionate about is exciting for many. Regardless of whether you plan to make a long-term commitment or COLIN SMITH not, it is rewarding to find a JUNIOR SCOUT FISHKIND RUNS passion that comes along with the 5K race this fall during cross hard work and accountability. country.

TOWER/FEB. 28, 2025

SPORTS

15

The pain beneath the jacket:

How varsity epee fencers deal with bruises

of another school. bre and foil.

Fencing is widely regarded as In epee, fencers aim to stab Helen Gao a moderate and safe sport with few the opponent’s body with the weapContributing Writer injuries. Indeed, fencers practice in on’s tip; whoever gets to five points first wins. Though professional fencthe blades have uch!” A star- ing studios with “I don’t think there’s no sharp points tled sophomore, layers of protecany fencer that or edges, fencers April Wang, tive gear: a chest yelped from the bruise suffered protector, under- has fenced and not got still concentrate the weight of their during the first match of the fencing arm protector, bruised.” entire body toward season. When the opponent’s blade and a white jacket. struck Wang like a sharp spear, However, -COACH ShOMARI MOORE a single vulnerable point, delivershe bowed her head, clutching her fencing’s intening wincing pain wound with a trembling hand. Bear- sity hides behind ing her pain, Wang kept fencing seemingly thick and solid jackets. through a direct shot to the chest until the bouts ended. When she Fencers quietly suffer many daunt- or occasional whack on the forearm. Thus, bruises are common. finally lifted her shirt, she exposed a ing bruises.

Epee fencers get bruises most Epee head coach Shomari large, ugly, purple bruise, swelling more and more with each second. frequently compared to the other Moore said, “I don’t think there’s Wang then lay in the health center two types of fencing, which are sa- any fencer that has fenced and not got bruised.”

Wang said she has at least fifteen bruises on her arms, elbows, and thighs. She admitted the pain and shared, “After you get hit, it is painful; you’ll be conscious of the scar, even though I wear everything while fencing.”

Freshman epee fencer Crystal Niu said, “I get at least one bruise every week. I purchased several bottles of pain relief lotions.”

Wang received her worst bruise during the season’s first away game. She reflected, “I could feel bleeding while fencing that last bout. I was nervous but I knew I had ELLEN COWHEY/TOWER to push through. There is no stopGIRLS EPEE FENCER CRYSTAL Niu trains with boys epee fencer ping in epee.”

Nico Khoury-Levy. The Girls epee fencers have been hard at work While physical bruises are this season, honing their skills and performing well in competitions. visible, the mental toll is a quieter

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struggle. “I was frightened last year after fencing for the first time. Fencing’s intensity exceeded my expectation,” Wang said.

Every evening after a shower, Wang would stare at her bruises in the mirror, recalling losing matches to older fencers in shame. Yet, these frustrations motivated her to become a stronger fencer.

Despite the brutal nature of the sport, fencers’ persistence, Coach Moore’s guidance, and the inclusive environment enables new fencers to overcome their physical and mental bruises.

Through arduous training and determination, varsity epee fencers transform pain into strength, and see their bruises as badges of hard work.

When wearing sleeveless dresses in the summer, girls on the epee team are not embarrassed to expose their bruises, which reminds them of the winter combat when they put their blades up high.

Wang shared, “I will actually show the scars and tell people my fencing stories. I treasure them as part of my honor and body, though it may be troublesome for those who want flawless skin.”

Wang shared, “I was forced to adapt because every teammate is making progress while bearing these pains. If you are stuck in pain and lose concentration, you will get lost and get hurt harder the next time.”

Moore’s ruthless coaching style further helps new fencers develop mental toughness. “The way to overcome fear is to put yourself in scary situations over and over again,” he said.

Niu said, “The older team members are excellent mentors for me. They don’t even stab me hard.”

This “extra care” not only supports new fencers but also ensures the positive growth of the fencing team.

ELLEN COWHEY/TOWER

Dylan Fernández boosts JV2 with energy and defense

the floor, where he is regarded as a top defender on the team.

His teammates and coach all emphasize his defensive prowess, with Head Coach Rocco Gutierrez hen the game is on highlighting Fernández’s “good eye the line, Dylan de for the ball” and his ability to “get a lot Jesús Fernández of steals.”

Blanco ‘27 isn’t just on the court— Fernández’s offensive game is he’s everywhere, locking down op- also impressive, with teammates like ponents, grabbing rebounds and ig- Joey Rodriguez Aponte noting that he niting his team with relentless energy. has been “4-for-4 in threes” this seaOriginally from Costa Rica, Fernán- son. Although Fernández’s primary dez started playing basketball in strength lies in defense and reboundfourth grade and has since developed ing, his ability to hit key shots and fainto a versatile and reliable player. cilitate offensive plays has made him a His journey began in his home well-rounded contributor to the team. country, where he Sebastian Guzhoned his skills we wouldn’t be as man ‘27, a teammate on competitive good of a defensive and also a shootteams and gained team if it weren’t for ing guard, admires recognition for Fernández’s high enhim.” his outstanding ergy and aggressive performances playstyle, stating, -Sebastian Guzman ‘27 against opponents “The team would in countries such honestly be a lot less as Mexico, Panama, Nicaragua, and energetic without him. He applies a El Salvador. Fernández’s past experi- lot of pressure to the ball, and I feel ences, combined with his dedication like we wouldn’t be as good of a deto improving his skills, makes him a fensive team if it weren’t for him.” standout athlete on his current team.

Off the court, Fernández is Fernández has played vari- known for his positive attitude and ous positions throughout his career, leadership. He’s always encouraging including small forward, point guard, his teammates, keeping their morale shooting guard and power forward. high even when shots aren’t falling or He plays most as a shooting guard, games aren’t going as planned. known for his energetic defense and Rodriguez said, “He pushes evleadership qualities. Despite only be- erybody to work harder. In practice, ing 5 foot 7 inches, Fernández com- he’s always encouraging people to pensates with an intense work ethic keep shooting the ball even after they and strategic approach to the game, miss.” He continued, “He’s always particularly on the defensive end of running straight to the ball, getting

Angela Heslee Contributing Writer

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a rebound, and always hustling back on defense. He really improves everyone’s work ethic.”

Gutierrez said he believes that Fernández’s strong mentality and supportive nature are just as valuable as his physical skills. He said, “When Dylan is on the floor, it’s hard not to have him. He’s always making sure everybody’s happy, making sure everything’s good. He’s supportive when someone’s having a bad game or is in a slump. He guides them and reminds them to keep trying.”

As a player, Fernández still has areas to improve. Gutierrez said, “Something I would want Dylan to work on is ball-handling, and his drive to the basket. He’s a great shooter, great defender, but somebody like that, if you’re a great shooter and teams are pressing up on you, if you’re able to blow by them, then you’re an even better player.” These improvements would open up even more opportunities for Fernández and the team, giving him a chance to further elevate his already impressive skill set.

Rodriguez said, “He’s always encouraging everybody to be the best they can, he’s always paying attention. He’s a real good role model for the team, and I feel like the position the team is in right now, I think the team really needs that. He makes practices a lot better, and he really shines on the court.” Whether he’s defending, making a crucial shot, or lifting his teammates’ spirits, Dylan Fernández’s influence on the court is undeniable.

ALEX CHO

SOPHOMORE DYLAN FERNÁNDEZ ENTERS a Boys JV2 Basketball game. Fernández has made a big impact on the JV2 squad after joining this year. His teammates and coaches credit his energy and defensive effort.

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Sports

TOWER/FEB. 28, 2025

SPORTS

Ayalah Spratt

From player to mentor:

Marce Marquez’s impact on the squash team

Brielle Broomes Contributing Writer

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magine stepping onto the court of the Pan American games, knowing that you are about to face some of the top squash players in the Americas, needing to fight for each point and push the limit of your abilities. One of those fierce competitors is now a Masters Squash coach.

For the past two years, Marce Marqez has been head coach of Girls Varsity, Boys Varsity and Co-ed Squash teams where she trains some of the top players in the Squash Independent School League.

Marquez is fairly new to the Masters Community, but this year she has balanced her roles as an Upper

School Spanish teacher and coach.

She started playing squash at the age of 13, in her hometown, Aguascalientes, Mexico. Marquez harnessed her training and experience as a competitive squash player to help her players improve their skills and learn to love the sport.

She said, “I first started playing squash just for fun with my friends. Then I played my first national tournament, and I placed either third or fourth, then I started to get more into it.”

As she sharpened her skillset, she eventually started playing collegiate squash at Hobart and William Smith Colleges for the 2019 to 2023 season. She said, “I played in college for four years, so I’ve been pretty competitive for all of

my life. Even in Mexico, I went to the Pan American Games, and represented my country there.”

She said, “One of my favorite things from coaching, and also teaching, is the community that we have here; All the support, the students, the players. It makes me feel like I belong here, and there is a lot of respect, love and passion in the community.”

Freshman Rio Imanishi has had Marquez as a coach for the past two years. She said, “I have known Marquez since eighth grade. She is the type of coach and person that you want to be around and this is why I have gained so much confidence while playing this sport.”

Michele Dennis has been the assistant head coach of the Girls Varsity

Squash Team for five years.

She has seen the impact that Marquez has had on the girls when she became coach. Dennis said, “With the girls, she drives them hard, but also supports them well. In the past, we had other coaches and they were very good, but they were more individually focused. They weren’t necessarily good about building the team dynamic, so I think she’s building culture here amongst all three sports teams.”

Senior and Co-Captain, Anna Moscato has been playing squash throughout high school.

“One thing [Marquez] always says is to just start by trying to get one point, rather than focusing on a whole match. We face challenges like playing a team that’s a lot better than us,

because there’s a lot of really good teams in your league, so she makes sure to remind us of that.”

Marquez hopes to use all of her squash experience, in order to help her players enjoy the sport, and possibly pursue it in college as well. Marquez said, “Mostly, I want them to give their best, even if we don’t get the result that we want.

F r o m my journey of travelling from Mexico to going to different international tourna-

ments, I had to overcome a lot of challenges to become who I am right now.”

She continued, “I always tell them that they need to be patient with themselves and with their game because it’s a long journey.”

ANNADELE DYOTT/TOWER

MARCE MARQUEZ, GIRLS VARSITY Squash coach, stands on the court, ready to guide her team.

From the block to the top:

Eighth grader Jules Jorsling dominates the pool

Brooke Muntner Contributing Writer

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hrough years of hard work, intense training and a true passion for swimming, 14 years old Jules Jorsling has been able to thrive in the pool early on in her swimming career.

Coming from a family with a love for swimming, it’s no surprise that Jorsling, just like her sister, who is in ninth grade, Jisella Jorsling, was welcomed with open arms to the Upper School Girls Varsity Swim team this season despite being in the eighth grade.

She has had an incredible season, putting her unmissable stats all over the board this winter season.

Starting off her swimming career at the

age of seven, she joined the team solely due to her parents. “My parents saw Serena Williams and wanted my sister and me to do that, but tennis wasn’t our thing, so they decided on swimming,” Jorsling said. Now, with extraordinary talent, Jorsling swims for herself.

She said, “I am doing it for myself because when I progressively get better, I feel like I have higher goals now.”

She swims for her teammates, too, who have become like family and have become her motivation to show up each day and give it her all.

E v e n though she is still in middle school, it does not s t o p Jors-

SOPHIA DING/TOWER

JULES JORSLING, SMILES WITH confidence as she takes on the challenge of competing at the varsity level.

ling from wasting any time.

She is an exceptional athlete, dedicating years of hard work that paved the way for her well deserved promotion to the Upper School Girls Varsity Swim Team.

When describing her transition up to this competitive level so early on, Jorsling said, “It was definitely nerve-racking at first, I didn’t know anybody, but I have really gotten to know my teammates and the coaches have given me really nice opportunities.”

Whenever she feels intimidated by this new and older team she reassures herself by saying, “I just think about how much I have worked to get here, and that keeps me going.”

Jorsling’s,weekly schedule consists of swimming for the Badger Swim Club in Larchmont on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings for an hour and a half before school. On top of this, she swims for two hours every weekday night at Masters.

Despite intense training,

Jorsling remains determined as she pushes herself to achieve her goals.

She has high hopes that she will be able to follow through on her dream to continue swimming throughout her whole high school career, and one day, in the Olympics.

Jorsling has a whole stand of supporters that help drive her to success, with her mother, Joann Diazz, always spotted in the front row at each meet, supporting her daughter.

To get Jorsling in the right mindset, Diazz challenges her, asking, “You’re gonna quit, back down? You’re not gonna try? You’re gonna be a quitter?” She pushes Jorsling to give everything her all and said she could not be more proud of Jorsling’s execution.

According to Diazz, Jules is focused and determined to achieve her goals, making the job as a parent easier. She said, “I am proud of her hard work and dedication to the sport.”

Her swim coach, Jacob Bobson, said, “If you are not having fun, then what

SOPHIA DING/TOWER

JORSLING COMPETES IN THE breaststroke, surfacing for a breath while maintaining strong technique. is the point? You want to compete and have that competitive rush and mindset, but you also want to have fun while doing it.” This aligns with what Jorsling values the most, team dynamic. It plays a major role in her excitement to get into the pool every day, and fuels her confidence when it’s time to compete.

“I feel motivated to go to practice and just having someone to talk about my day with and everything that happened, [it] makes a huge difference towards each practice.”

In her first year on the team, she has marked her name all over the scoreboard, with her unbelievable times. In her first ever home meet on the team this season, she broke the overall record for the 100-yard backstroke, with a time of 1:04.72. Jorsling feels incredibly proud of what she was able to achieve.

Even at a young age, Jorsling has already made a name for herself, leaving many excited to see what she will achieve next.