The Mirador Volume 64 Issue 5

OPINION

Cohort Concerns:

Staff writer Malayna Chang calls for more awareness of other minority groups in Cohort Academy sessions (page 5).

Bias Against Asians:

Photo: Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

The Volume 64, Issue 5

NEWS ENTERTAINMENT

FEATURE

As COVID-19 cases increase in the Bay Area, many Asian-Americans have fallen victim to violent hate crimes (page 6).

Quarantine Trends:

Photo: Andre Benz on Unsplash

Looking back at the last year in the pandemic, students reflect upon their favorite “phase” of quarantine (page 13).

Mirador

Photo: Natalie Swanson

Photo: drvr on Pixabay

March 15, 2021

Teachers Union Collaborates With District

ANIA KEENAN

Across the country, school districts work tirelessly to reopen their doors for in-person learning. Negotiations with teachers unions concerning the safety provisions required to return to campus are an important part of that process. Leaders at Acalanes Union High School District and the Acalanes Education Association (AEA), a branch of the California Teachers Association worked together to create the Memorandum of Understanding.

Both involved parties chose an alternative approach from the traditional adherance to the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The MOU document establishes the rules and regulations agreed upon between the district and teachers unions to keep schools safe when students eventually return to campus.

“We approached it very differently than other districts, from what I hear from other presidents. Literally we just started a shared Google Doc and we all started talking about it and adding to it, making lists of everything we had to address,” President of the AEA Lori Tewksbury said.

Members of an MOU committee used the shared Google Doc to plan. Vice President of AEA Ken Lorge and Bargaining Chair Misha Buchel both joined Tewksbury to represent the union, while Associate Superintendent Amy McNamura and Associate Superintendent and Director of Educational Services Aida Glimme formed the district team with the occasional addition of Campolindo High School Principal John Walker.

Since school first closed in March, Tewksbury has worked with the district to put together plans for distance learning and re-open schools in a hybrid model. In addition to her position in the union, Tewksbury also teaches AP Biology and Living Earth at Acalanes. Tewksbury is grateful for her fellow staff members in the Living Earth department who help her manage her workload, as her

hours spent running union affairs have increased exponentially since the start of quarantine.

According to Tewksbury, the process of creating plans for in-person learning has been much more collaborative than might be expected given the frequency of disagreements between school districts and unions nationwide.

“We jointly created the MOU, and I don't think many other districts have done it like that. It’s normally positional bargaining that takes a lot longer,” Tewksbury said.

Tewksbury credited this non-traditional approach as

Photo: Acalanes Education Association

the reason the district is ready to re-open once the county reaches the Red Tier in coronavirus cases.

Miramonte Modern World History, U.S. Government and Economics, AP Comparative Government teacher, and AEA representative Xavier Frippiat agrees that the negotiations between his union have been a refreshing departure from the national trend and have mostly helped to calm teachers' nerves about going back on campus. “The overwhelming majority of teachers are ready to go back to hybrid with a small minority who have legitimate concerns regarding their exposure, and I hear where they are coming from,” Frippiat said.

Each school in the district has at least one AEA repre-

sentative per campus that, depending on their role, works with the school staff, the union, and the school administration to make sure teachers’ needs are met. The work of these representatives is usually split into three categories: scheduling, organizing, and grievance. As the organizing representative for Miramonte, it is the job of psychology teacher Kathryn Kim to put together activities and events for staff, administrators, and union representatives. According to Kim, she has the “fun job” but she does not do much organizing due to COVID-19 restrictions.

The scheduling representative Colleen Williams, who teaches English, is responsible for coordinating meetings for the representatives.

As the grievance representative, Frippiat serves as an intermediary between teachers, administration, and the union. In cases where a teacher has a complaint about administration or vice versa, Frippiat is called to serve as a witness to their discussion. If necessary, he is the one to bring union representation to the table.

Williams and Kim agree that of the three of them, Frippiat has experienced the greatest increase in workload over the past year. The majority of the work comes from the increased number of individual case-related concerns brought up by teachers about returning to in-person learning.

Teachers' concerns, like the ones that Frippiat screens, have informed what kind of protections the union has pushed for in the creation of the MOU and what actions the district has taken. The final copy of the MOU can be found on the AEA website, although according to Tewksbury, it is subject to frequent change based on coronavirus data.

The tentative consensus is that, despite alternative methods, negotiations surrounding the creation of the hybrid schedule and the transition to in-person learning has overwhelmingly served to bring the district and the union together, not push them apart.

New AP World History Class Implemented MALAYNA CHANG

Miramonte introduced the first Advanced Placement (AP) World History class in the district, available for sophomore, junior, and senior course selection in the 20212022 school year. The implementation of the AP World History class is a result of a petition from December 2020 with around 50 signatures created by junior Christopher Devlin, president of the Miramonte World History Club.

“I started a petition to add an AP World History class in order to bring positive change to our school. I strongly believe our history curriculum should include diverse cultures from around the world,” Devlin said. “Around 50 Miramonte students signed the petition and I collaborated with administrators, teachers, and students in the district.”

Devlin and the World History Club, which hosts cultural events and lectures every week, started an online petition via Google Docs and sent it around the school. The only world history class offered in the district, Modern World History, is a required non-AP course freshman year.

Miramonte previously only offered AP European History, AP United States History, AP Macroeconomics, and AP Comparative Government as advanced social studies options. Many students in freshman World History who enjoyed learning about other countries beyond America and Europe wanted an AP World History class to be implemented. “I decided to take AP World History to further my knowledge of the world outside of Europe. I wanted to learn more about Asian, African, and South American history, and maybe the history of Oceania as well,” junior Daniel Litwin, a prospective AP World History said.

AP World History is a college level world history

course that focuses on history from 1200 CE to the present. Students will study governments, culture, societies, and economies of various continents all around the world, including Asia and Africa, and compare and contrast various developments that occurred throughout history. Teachers

Photo: Jovyn Chamb on Unsplash

Kelly Ginocchio and Jennifer Mullowney are both interested in teaching the class. The number of periods is dependent on how many students sign up.

“We needed to have more than one teacher willing to teach the new class, and both Ms. Mullowney and I were very interested in teaching non-Western history,” AP European History and Modern World History teacher Kelly Ginocchio said.

“I hope to gain more knowledge about history outside of the Western World and how it connects to the European and American history I already learned about, and how it relates to modern events,” Litwin said.

The class will be open to all Miramonte students after their freshman year as an optional elective. “I think that an AP World History class will offer a wider variety of history classes for students to pursue their interests in history,” sophomore Amelia Chen said.

Ginocchio worked closely with Devlin, the World History Club, and the Acalanes Union History Department for the establishment of this class at Miramonte. “We submitted a course proposal and it was unanimously passed by the board. The AP World class is a deeper dive in the political, economic, and social areas of various continents around the world. Compared to AP European History and AP United States History, the historical thinking skills are the same, the writing is the same, and the AP test is the same. However, it focuses a lot more on the areas of history that we just touched on in European History and goes up to present-day current events. I think there will be a much deeper appreciation for the culture identities beyond America and Europe," Ginocchio said.

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2 NEWS 03/15/21

Mirador

Mock Trial Team Places Third in County The Mock Trial team competed in and won third place in the 40th annual Contra Costa County tournament from Jan. 26 to Feb. 16. A total of 16 schools competed in the competition held over Zoom ALEXA GUTU & MICHELLE ZHOU

Vista High School in the preliminary rounds.

Miramonte’s prosecution defeated Las Lomas The Mock Trial team, coached by local attorHigh School in the quarter finals on Feb. 8, and neys Luke Ellis and Michael Arkelian and advised went on to the Semi Finals on Feb. 11, where by science teacher Cassandra Porter, won third California High School defeated Miramonte’s place in the 40th annual Contra Costa County prosecution with a score of 1201 to 1197. tournament held over Zoom from Jan. 26 to Feb. Miramonte’s defense defeated Hercules 16.

High School’s prosecution in the consolation “At the beginning of the season, we were contrial on Feb. 16. “Overall I thought we did revinced that Mock Trial wouldn’t happen this year. ally great and I urge people to sign up next year So, everything that happened this season was a because we will be (and probably are already) pleasant surprise. Although I missed the energy the best team in the county,” Giovinazzo said. of competing in real county courthouses, I really The county hosted an awards ceremony Photo: Allison Petek appreciate all of the effort and time that so many The team smiles for a photo after the awards ceremony on Feb. 18. The on Feb. 18. Svahn won a Judge’s Choice award individuals put into this season to give us a space team placed third in Contra Costa County and received several awards. and LaVelle and senior Preston Nibley received to continue participating in the Mock Trial. Given honorable mentions. Giovinazzo, freshman typical season. “Online Mock Trial was hard to adjust to at the circumstances, I couldn’t have asked for a better Vivienne Arndt, and seniors Daniella Resch last season with my team,” prosecution attorney and senior first, it was especially sad to miss out on a lot of fun team and Allison Petek won Outstanding Witness awards. Nibactivities like going for coffee or being in an actual court ley won Outstanding Pre-trial Motion awards for both Sarah Svahn said.

A total of 16 schools competed. The trials were held house for competition,” prosecution trial attorney, defense prosecution and defense. Junior Mallika Dandamudi won on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. Each school’s team expert witness, and sophomore Michelle Giovinazzo said. an Outstanding Defense Opening Statement award and The county competition is organized by the Contra an Outstanding Defense Direct Exam Attorney award. prepared to argue a fictional criminal case from both the prosecution and defense side. Different schools’ prosecu- Costa County Office of Education and is sponsored by LaVelle won an Outstanding Defense Cross Exam Attortion and defense teams compete against each other in tri- the Constitutional Rights Foundation. This year’s trial ney award and received an honorable mention for defense als, where a judge presides and local attorneys score. Stu- case was People v. Croddy, where a popular YouTuber Lee closing argument. dents portray pre-trial motion attorneys, trial attorneys, Croddy is charged with aiding and abetting in the com“I was inspired to join the team through my public character witnesses, clerks and bailiffs. The students argue mission of first-degree burglary by another, and accessory speaking class. I knew I wanted to join a club, and after a pretrial motion, deliver opening statements and closing after the fact. a few Mock Trial meetings I knew I loved it. I have met Last year’s Mock Trial teacher advisor, history teacher many new friends here and feel like I have found a comarguments, direct and cross examine witnesses, and argue Joel Compton, wasn’t able to participate this year, so Por- munity within Miramonte that is completely unique to objections.

“I love doing examinations, especially cross examina- ter was brought on to the team. “I had to learn everything anything else,” LaVelle said. tions against the other team. I have also delivered the clos- about it. And you know, I’m a science teacher, and not a Students are encouraged to join and try Mock Trial next ing argument and rebuttal for the past two years which is law or history teacher, it was nothing I was really familiar year, and anyone interested is welcome to join the team for really fun. I get to lay out all of our arguments and apply with. Watching these kids prepare and kind of go through next year’s tournament. “You can still get that feeling of them to the criminal charges. Although being an attorney it over and over again, was really an eye opening experience competition. We’re losing a lot of seniors. I think there’s can be extremely stressful, I find it to be the most reward- for me, I learned a lot from them,” Porter said. only like five people coming back so we’re gonna need a Miramonte’s prosecution team beat Alhambra High lot of replacements. We have the whole team dynamic, and ing position on the team,” senior and team captain Evy School and Deer Valley High School, and their defense win and lose as a team. We can find a place for anybody LaVelle, who served as the lead defense attorney, said.

Students missed out on many in-person aspects of a team beat Kennedy/Richmond High School and Monte who wants to participate,” Arkelian said.

School Ranking Falls District Mourns the Death of Luis Ruiz EMMA LEIBOWITZ

According to US News and World Report, Miramonte’s national and state school rankings fell from their previous standings.

In 2019, US News ranked Miramonte as the 28th best school in California with Campolindo and Acalanes following at numbers 30 and 65, respectively. By contrast, Miramonte’s current ranking is 78th in California and Campolindo’s ranking has risen to number 22.

“This seems to be the first year that we have dropped for a while. Since our schools are all very close in performance, I see this as a normal pattern—some years we will come up a bit higher, other years Campolindo will,” principal Julie Parks said.

“I am very surprised by this drop because I know that Miramonte has always been a good school, and especially since Campolindo is still so high on the list this is not something I would have expected. Virtual learning is largely impacting students in many different ways, which could affect the schools ranking,” junior Ava Lagaay said.

US News reports Miramonte’s reading proficiency as 73 percent, its mathematics proficiency as 64 percent, and states that 74 percent of students passed at least one Advanced Placement (AP) test. US News ranks high school students using a set of statistics from the annually updated Common Core data from the U.S. Department of Education.

“A couple of years ago, we did have an anomaly dip in test scores. The most recent scores are much higher, but I believe that the current reporting reflects the year of decline. Sometimes this happens depending on the cohort of students, events that may be impacting students, or preparation.

To address the dip, we completely transformed our test preparation and it seemed to work!” Parks said.

Some students express worry about the new rankings and their potential impacts on the way colleges view the rigor of Miramonte and the validity of students’ grades.

“Miramonte’s drop in ranking does worry me a little bit, since I know that the ranking of our school is something that has been important for many students applying to college in the past. However, I know that Miramonte is still a very good school, so I am not too concerned,” Lagaay said.

Parks states that the specific numerical ranking has less of an impact on colleges’ perception of Miramonte than does Miramonte’s offering of rigorous classes, co-curricular activities, and extracurricular pursuits. “The other thing that is important is that colleges are looking at school performance over a much larger window than one year. We have a legacy of excellence at Miramonte that continues, whether we move up or down slightly in rankings. Colleges know this. Our students are only positively helped by being able to show Miramonte on their transcript,” Parks said.

Other students are not incredibly concerned with the school’s ranking in regards to college applications and would prefer the school to prioritize mental health more than anything. “To help students with their college applications, staff and administration should emphasize healthy learning practices. Making sure that students get sleep and prioritize their mental health inevitably improves academic outcomes. But even more important than college admissions, students should feel that they are learning and growing as people,” junior Tom Inouye said.

HENRY HILL & EMMA LEIBOWITZ Acalanes Union High School District Lead Groundskeeper Luis Ruiz lost a three-week battle with COVID-19. Ruiz was 32 years old and an employee of the district from November 2019 until his passing.

“Luis was an integral part of the Facilities team. He was solution-oriented and collaborative in nature. As such, I respected his experience and knowledge.

We worked well together and he was exactly the type of employee you would want on your team,” District Director of Facilities Glen Schaezlein said.

Following his passing, Superintendent John Nickerson notified district employees of Ruiz’s death. District staff members set up a GoFundMe to support Ruiz’s family. The fund has already exceeded its $9,000 goal, but donations are still needed. Ruiz was the sole provider for his mother, who is one of the beneficiaries of the GoFundMe. “This was really tough on the Facilities department as Luis was universally liked and respected. His passing has had a profound impact on me personally,” Schaezlein said.

Ruiz was a key member of the Miramonte community and worked to improve the sports fields for all the schools within the district. “Luiz was committed to making the athletic fields in our

district one of the best. He took the time to speak with coaches about their needs and he went beyond the call of duty to keep all these overbearing personalities happy,” Miramonte baseball coach Kevin Hodges said.

“His kindness, unwavering professionalism, care, and true humbleness is something I truly admired about Luis.

I will treasure the moments when I was able to speak to him and work alongside him. I strive to be the person he was and the admirable legacy he left behind. He will be missed dearly,” Associate Principal Sara Harris said.

Ruiz will be remembered for his kindness, his attention to detail, and his contributions to the community. Students, faculty, and parents can honor his memory by contributing to his GoFundMe.

QR code to the GoFundMe page to support Ruiz’s family

Mirador

03/15/21 NEWS 3

District Offers New Senior English Courses English courses Literature, Film and Media and Women’s Literature join a growing list of diverse English Selectives capable of fulfilling English 4 requirements for seniors in coming school year

ANIA KEENAN

Services Aida Glimme, the addition of these new English courses to Miramonte is part Frequent emails from counselors and a sudof an overall trend, started by Acalanes High den influx of questions related to post-secondSchool and set in motion by the amending of ary plans remind students that it’s that time graduation requirements back in 2016. again: course selections for the following school Among the revisions made in 2016 was a year. This year incoming seniors throughout the change in the district-wide definition of Engdistrict logged on to their Aeries accounts to lish 4 requirements. Under the adjusted polbegin selecting courses; they were met with a icy, seniors can take an English “selective,” a larger selection of senior-level English courses course that would fulfill the same standards as than had been available in previous years. a regular English 4 course but could be taught Following the addition of an English 4: Dethrough non-traditional mediums. The class of constructing Race course to Miramonte in the 2020 was the first set of students to graduate 2020-2021 school year, taught by Steve Poling, under these new requirements. new classes offered for the English 4 require“Sometimes these classes, depending on ment include Women’s Literature and Literawhat they are, are more accessible or interture, Film, and Media. These courses may be esting to a different group of students than a taken as alternatives for English 4, AP Engregular English class,” Glimme said. lish 4, or English 4 WISE— a class that allows According to Glimme, who oversees the students to enroll in an off-campus internship process of adding new courses, Acalanes High Photo: Chaya Tong for a semester while completing a research School spearheaded the expansion of the AP English Literature studies books like “Into the Wild”, and “Wuthering project. district English department when it added According to the AUHSD 2021-2022 Heights”. While Deconstructing Race utilizes text specifically centered senior-level classes The Mysterious, the GroCourse Catalog, English 4: Literature, Film, around race such as “Critical Race Theory” and “How to be an Antiracist”. tesque & the Fantastic, and English 4: Don’t and Media “focuses on the role of media— Tread on Me: Rebels, Outcasts & Iconoclasts curriculums that teach students how to root out ‘fake news’ film, TV, news, media, and technology in the in Literature, in the 2017 to 2018 school year. world today and uses seminal texts of literature to further and identify misinformation, and if I can introduce these Next came Las Lomas, the first school within the district same kinds of studies and critical thinking in our school, to offer English 4: Literature, Film, and Media. The class analyze media and media influence.”

The class, provides a departure from the classic novel- that will be an incredibly worthwhile endeavor,” Williams was originally offered as an elective and has been adapted based English class, has drawn strong interest from rising said. to fit English 4 learning standards required to take its new Spencer expressed her enthusiasm at the potential of- place as a selective English course now offered at Miraseniors who have provided a healthy list of sign-ups. “The visual aspect of film is something that you can’t get with fering of the course, saying that she has always tried to in- monte. books, I just love watching movies and dissecting them, so corporate multimedia elements into her classes. “Studying On average, 20 to 25 student sign-ups are needed for a bringing that into a school setting is something that I’m and analyzing the way media influences our lives is impor- class to run for the next school year. As student course rereally excited for,” junior and hopeful Literature, Film and tant and will give students an opportunity to increase their quests continue to roll in, both English 4: Literature, Film, media literacy skills. I also think that film is an important and Media and English 4: Women’s Literature are showMedia student Aidan San Gabriel said.

Although no concrete decisions have been made as to art form that also impacts our society and culture,” Spen- ing promising results. who will teach the class, English teachers Colleen Wil- cer said Across the district, hopeful juniors are selecting their Students looking to take a more traditional class with classes and hoping for their top picks. If enough rising liams and Adrianne Spencer have expressed interest in the subject. Williams, expressed her hope that the class could a spin can look no further than Women’s Literature. The seniors choose to branch out with an English selective provide the level of critical analysis needed to prepare stu- class explores societal concepts of gender as seen through course, the Miramonte class of 2022 may be the first to the eyes of female authors throughout history. According graduate with these new, non-traditional English classes dents for post-secondary education.

“Other countries like Finland have started designing to Associate Superintendent and Director of Educational on their transcripts.

Pandemic Poses Challenges for Athletic PE

ALEXA GUTU & REAGAN KAELLE

Athletic PE. Human and Social DevelopModified sports seasons started up at ment and Sports Medicine teacher the beginning of February. However, many John Grigsby offers an independent students struggle to complete the required Athletic PE program, providing rePhysical Education (PE) hours due to the lief to juniors in fulfilling their PE cancellation of the Athletic PE program in requirement before graduation. the 2020-2021 school year and inability to “I was planning to take Athletic log hours with the postponement of high PE this year. I was really stressed school sports. Furthermore, current sophoabout possibly needing to take a mores and freshmen are unable to complete PE class next year because it would the Physical Fitness Test requirements due to mess up my schedule. But the inthe distance learning setting. dependent/sports camp athletic PE “I was planning to use school sports to option presented this year has been fulfill my PE requirements for sophomore really helpful, especially since indeyear pre COVID-19 but due to the unfortupendent workouts are much more nate cancellation of my regular lacrosse and flexible in terms of time,” Bennette tennis season, I have yet to get any PE credsaid. its,” sophomore Lauren Anthony said.

“Due to COVID-19 restricMiramonte students use the Athletic PE tions, Independent Athletic PE program instead of taking in-class PE past offers an opportunity for eligible freshman year. The district requires each stustudents to record hours of activPhoto: Tomas Pineda dent to complete 20 credits of PE to graduity during the second semester to ate. Up to 10 credits of the 20 required for Miramonte junior Casey Roy gets her tempature taken as part of the safety guidesatisfy five PE Credits. Eligible graduation may be earned through Athletic lines that her volleyball team follows in order to continue practing in person safely. students must read and acknowlPE. The Athletic PE system requires paredge the Program’s Contract, make ticipants to record their hours spent at school a copy of the provided Time Log this school year and believe that continues. 9th graders are sports and get them approved by a coach, then turned in also exempt from the State Fitness test, and they are all Spreadsheet, record daily activity hours (organized or inweekly to admin. This frees up time in academic schedules enrolled in the seven PE 9 sections and we are doing PE dependent), and submit each week for verification by the and gives athletes a chance to opt-out of school-enforced in a full distance learning setting,” Department Chair of overseeing PE Teacher. I’m currently monitoring 275 stuPE. dents between both Campolindo and Miramonte, while Physical Education Sean Hennessy said.

To receive nine PE credits, students must pass five of “It’s disappointing I’m missing out on what was go- another PE Teacher from Las Lomas, monitors Acalanes six areas of the Physical Fitness Test; due to the pandemic ing to be my last season of track, but I’m glad the district & Las Lomas,” Grigsby said. the test was cut short and sophomores and freshmen were is prioritizing student and community health,” junior IsaThe program is not available to seniors or sophomores. unable to complete it. “All students need two years of PE belle Benette said. While some students still have time to “I am a little frustrated that the program is not offered to graduate, last year’s PE 9 students were exempt from complete Athletic PE before they graduate, sports cancel- to sophomores as well, I feel like we should get the same the test. Moving forward they will still need to complete lations also require students to re-evaluate their schedules opportunities to finish PE as the upperclassmen do,” Anthe second year. We have quite a few taking PE electives for the 2021-2022 school year in order to find time for thony said.

4 OPINION 03/15/21

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Editorial

Trust the Science of the Vaccine With more than 28 million confirmed COVID-19 cases and more than 515,000 COVID-19 related deaths in the U.S. as of early March, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the expanding distribution of the coronavirus vaccine brings hope to many. However, many Americans and members of the Miramonte community are doubtful of the vaccine, especially due to Americans’ tendency to spread conflicting information. The science behind the COVID-19 vaccine should be trusted by all Miramonte staff, students, and parents to slow the spread of the virus.

A Pew Research Center poll from early December 2020 reports that 39 percent of Americans say they definitely or probably will not get a coronavirus vaccination when it is made available to them.

This rate has dropped significantly to around 30 percent, according to an new Pew Research Center poll from February of this year. In a poll on The Mirador Instagram account asking if Miramonte students would get the vaccine when it is made available to them, 92 percent of voters said yes while 8 percent voted no. Essentially, the vaccines are used to promote herd immunity, a form of protection from an infectious disease that occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population has become immune to the infection. To reach this, the country needs a large enough percentage of the population to be vaccinated in order to slow the virus’s spread and protect those who cannot receive or access the vaccine. Although an exact percentage cannot be predicted yet, scientists expect that 70 to 85 percent of the U.S. population must be immune to the virus to achieve herd immunity. If we do not reach this number, vulnerable groups that are too compromised to be vaccinated will remain unprotected.

Ultimately, the decision to refuse vaccination is selfish and proves harmful not only to the individual but to countless others.

“The science behind vaccinations has been around a long time.

Simply put, vaccinations work. I can understand that some people don’t want a vaccination because they think they won’t ever get sick from a particular disease—COVID-19 in this case. However, there’s a significant portion of our human population that simply can’t get vaccinations due to legitimate health reasons. So, therefore, it is up to the people that can get vaccinated to get vaccinated so we can protect our entire population,” Living Earth and Human and Social Development teacher Manoa Koepp, who received a vaccination Feb. 18, said.

Currently, three vaccines have been authorized for emergency use by the Federal Drug Administration. These include vaccines produced by Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson. Both Pfizer’s and Moderna’s vaccines use messenger RNA (mRNA) technology, and these mRNA vaccines do not contain a live virus and do not carry a risk of causing disease in the vaccinated person. Additionally, the mRNA never enters the nucleus of the cell and does not affect or interact with a person’s DNA. Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine uses adenovirus, which is a virus that causes the common cold, modified with a gene from SARS-CoV-2 to prompt the construction of a SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and stimulate an immune response in the body. This vaccine is safe because the adenovirus cannot replicate in human cells or cause disease, and it is effective at combating COVID-19 variants.

One common concern is that the medical technology involved in creating the vaccine is rather unconventional. Other vaccines, like the one for the flu, use forms of the inactivated or weakened virus to build immunity. Contrastingly, the COVID-19 vaccines deliver mRNA to the body. This genetic coding material contains instructions on how to make a piece of spike protein found on the surface of the COVID-19 virus. The body creates and then recognizes this foreign protein and develops an immune response to it.

This mRNA technology has been effectively studied for decades to treat the flu, the Zika virus, and even cancer. Overall, any claims that doubt mRNA because of a lack of research are completely false.

“While it is true that there have been reports of rare individuals having serious reactions from the vaccine, these occurrences are of lesser magnitude compared to the many people who become seriously ill or die from the actual virus. I think that people who refuse to take the vaccine have not looked closely at the available statistics showing that the benefits outweigh the risks, or are misinformed and believe that the risks are greater than they are,” AP Chemistry teacher Jamie Bascom said.

One of the biggest arguments against the vaccine is that uncomfortable side effects can occur. The coronavirus vaccines do have side effects, but so do the majority of other vaccines. Fever, fatigue, and joint pain may cause discomfort, but these symptoms generally only occur for a short time post-vaccination and are not dangerous.

These feelings simply mean that the vaccine has triggered an immune response in the body and that the it is working correctly. If fear of the vaccine’s side effects is what’s stopping one from being vaccinated, they may want to consider the long-lasting impacts of contracting the coronavirus itself.

Some argue that the rapid development of the vaccines means that they are not properly tested. However, this is far from the truth.

According to NBC News, a major reason for the speedy turnaround on the vaccine was the decision made by the federal government to expedite its delivery throughout the nation. This decision has nothing to do with the scientific validity of the drug itself. Drugmakers were allowed to mass-produce the vaccine while simultaneously conducting clinical trials to help end the pandemic faster.

“After becoming familiar with the research used to verify the safety of the COVID-19 vaccine through the pharmaceutical companies themselves, I am confident in the vaccine and will definitely be getting it when offered the chance,” sophomore Fiona Hughes said.

Without a vaccine, unemployment will skyrocket, food scarcity will continue, and worst of all, people will continue to die. With the emergence of well-tested COVID-19 vaccination options and more people receiving the vaccine, the transmission of the disease will slow significantly and the death rates will fall. As the vaccine becomes available to more Americans, including the Miramonte community, those of us who have the opportunity must take the vaccine. Doing so will save lives, allow us to reunite with our loved ones, and give us the opportunity to rebuild society.

The Editorial Board voted 12-0 in agreement that those who have the opportunity to safely get the vaccine should choose to do so in order to help the country reach herd immunity and protect society.

Graphic: Reese Whipple

Mirador

03/15/21 OPINION 5

Cohort Academies Need Diverse Curriculum As issues of race are incorporated into Cohort Academy periods, students call for a greater variety of minority groups discussed in these sessions, and more education on different types of prejudices

MALAYNA CHANG

face discrimination in American society, as shown by the wage gap between men and women. AcThe Acalanes Union High School District implecording to the Census Bureau, “Women of all races mented the first Cohort Academy sessions in the earned, on average, just 82 cents for every $1 earned 2020 to 2021 school year. The sessions mainly focus by men of all races.” Even worse, Hispanic and Laon discussions surrounding diversity and foster couratino women make 52 cents per every $1 earned by geous conversations about race, ethnicity, and prejudice. men. Many laws and policies limit women’s rights, However, due to the repeated emphasis placed on the and currently, there is a push for an abortion ban in discrimination of the African-American community, states including Alabama. Additionally, American many other underrepresented communities have yet to women are experiencing rising sexual harassment be acknowledged. The Cohort Academy sessions must and assault rates, which limit women’s freedoms. focus on all minority communities, such as AsianThese issues pertain to half of the world’s populaAmericans and Native Americans, in order to raise tion but are ignored in Miramonte’s equity sessions. awareness of the challenges these groups face every day.

“Everyone should be required to learn about opAs shown by the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests, pression against all different marginalized groups.

Photo: Melissa Nie the African-American community has started to gain The Cohort Academy Canvas module titled “Let’s Talk About We need to have conversations about consent and much-deserved awareness in society, though there is Race” features a cartoon centered around discussions about race sexual assault in a classroom environment because still a long way to go. However, there are many other it’s a rampant issue at Miramonte,” junior Anaya communities who also face prejudice and discriminaBudayr, president of the Miramonte Intersectional Area, is a very topical issue and should be brought up in Cotion on a daily basis who are not only underrepresented in hort Academy in order to educate everyone about different Feminist Alliance, said. society but also in our own academic setting.

Similarly, the LGBTQ+ community has yet to be spottypes of prejudices. As an Asian-American, I feel disregarded “The Cohort Academies tend to only discuss topics when we don’t take the chance to talk about hate that’s hap- lighted in the Cohort Academy sessions. The systemic hothrough a black versus white lens. If we only discuss racism pening so close to home,” sophomore Megan Chui said. mophobia and oppression that this community has faced and prejudice through a black and white perspective, we fail Furthermore, the Hispanic and Latino communities have is undeniable and heartbreaking. According to the Human to shed light on a vast number of people who do not fit into yet to be talked about, despite facing years of oppression. Ac- Rights Campaign, “Hate crimes based on sexual orientation those categories. We need to start talking about discrimina- cording to the Pew Research Center, 48 percent of Latinos represent 16.7 percent of hate crimes, the third largest cattion on a much more diverse spectrum than just black and said they experienced discrimination in America in 2019. egory.” Miramonte is home to its own LGBTQ+ populawhite,” junior Gracia Chen said.

Similarly, there is an utter disregard for the Native American tion, but these students are ignored in the equity and diversity In the past few weeks, violence against the Asian Ameri- and Indigenous Peoples, who have long faced oppression and sessions. can community has spiked uncontrollably, stemming from racism, despite their important historical impact.

“I believe that we can recognize and address the discrimiunderlying xenophobia against Chinese people after the “Students should learn about combating the narratives nation against minority groups without discrediting the very spread of the coronavirus. However, these incidents have only surrounding Indigenous erasure, the epidemic of missing important work we’re doing in our Academies right now. The briefly been talked about in Cohort Academy, even though and murdered Indigenous women, cultural appropriation, conversations we’re having need to expand to allow for disracist incidents against Asian-Americans have been occur- the history of Native American boarding schools, tribal sov- cussions about other minority groups,” junior Sajda Amiri, ring since the start of the pandemic in March 2020 and have ereignty and the #LandBack movement, the problem with president of the Unity in Diversity club, said. recently skyrocketed. According to a June 30, 2020, press re- Native mascots, and learning about whose land you occupy.

The world isn’t black and white. Hate crimes, racism, and lease from Stop AAPI Hate, there were 832 reported inci- Miramonte students could learn about the Ohlone and Mi- prejudice exist in all areas and among all groups of society. dents of COVID-19 related discrimination and harassment wok people, as our community is on their ancestral land, and The Cohort Academy sessions should reflect this diversity by against members of the Asian-American and Pacific Islander go from there!” Miramonte counselor Ellen Conners said. raising awareness for not only the African-American com(AAPI) community in California over a 13 week period.

Cohort Academy has the potential to bring awareness to munity, but also the many other minority groups in society “Violence towards Asian-Americans, especially in the Bay other oppressed groups, such as women. Women continue to and on campus.

Administration Must Curb Academic Pressure REESE SMITH It’s no secret that Miramonte students face immense academic pressure in their daily lives. From the rigorous courses to the heavy workloads and peer competition, students are almost always experiencing some sort of pressure correlating to their academics. In a recent poll on The Mirador Instagram of 102 Miramonte students, a staggering 93 percent responded that they have experienced academic pressure at Miramonte. While manageable amounts of pressure can be healthy and effective, there comes a point when competition and stress start to negatively impact the students. The Miramonte administration should re-examine the academic pressure students face and find solutions to reduce it, such as limiting the amount of homework given and advising students against comparing test scores, course schedules, and what colleges they are attending.

“I think Miramonte and its rigorous courses put an insane amount of stress on students. The competition with fellow students along with pressure from parents, siblings, and upperclassmen creates loads of academic pressure,” junior Grace Clark said. Competition and comparisons between students or siblings is a prevalent issue at Miramonte, and is a lead contributor to the stress and pressure students feel. Miramonte staff should make an increased effort to prohibit students from asking each other potentially harmful questions, such as “what did you get on the test?” that can damage students’ confidence and raise anxiety. According to an October 2020 article from Guide2Research, 75 percent of American high schoolers describe themselves as “often or always being stressed” by schoolwork and seven in ten teenagers name anxiety or depression as a major problem among their peers Although academic pressure is not unique to Miramonte, its intensity is amplified in comparison to other schools. “I was a former high school student at Miramonte and now attend a different high school. One of the key differences is the academic pressure and stress. At Miramonte I felt a lot of pressure and was constantly worried about my grades because of the rigorous work I had to do, which consisted of a lot of homework and tests,” Jane Callister, a junior at Alta High School in Utah who attended Miramonte for her freshman and sophomore years, said. It is clear that Miramonte students feel heightened stress in correlation to their academic performance compared to students who attend other schools. Because of this, staff members need to re-evaluate the amount of homework

given per week in order to decrease the amount of pressure students feel. However, the blame cannot be entirely put on the staff; students also need to work on time-management skills as well as only signing up for courses and extracurriculars that they can handle.

“I do think there is a lot of academic pressure at Miramonte. I see it coming at the students from all angles including the community, teachers, college counselors, and even each other sometimes. It seems like there is an unhealthy amount of pressure to both take difficult courses as well as pressure to be successful in those courses,” Geology and AP Environmental Science teacher Jyllian Smith said. It’s indisputable that Miramonte students face academic challenges and pressures in their day-to-day lives. Whether it be spending excessive amounts of time on homework each night, or having back-to-back tests each period, the pressure is definitely there, and it’s too much. The school board, staff, and students must find a way to decrease this stress by lessening homework loads, coordinating test schedules with other teachers, and discouraging students from sharing scores or other academic information.

On the other hand, it can be said that some students excel when put under increased pressure and many argue that Miramonte does a good job of allowing students to choose the difficulty of their courses. “At Dorris Eaton I was very academically challenged, which prepared me for a more challenging path at Miramonte. The nice thing about Miramonte is that you can choose how difficult your academic career is,” junior James Frye said. However, for many students, the variety of current stressors is overwhelming, and Miramonte must do its part in eliminating unnecessary anxiety from students’ lives by working with teachers to waive excess anxieties such as unnecessary projects or tests.

All in all, there is no perfect solution to this problem, but high school students should not be feeling the absurd amounts of pressure and stress that are seen at Miramonte.

Graphic: Reese Whipple The amount of academic pressure must be reduced in order to most effectively benefit the students. Whether this change be in the amount of homework given each night; in teachers communicating with each other to more evenly space out tests between different courses; or in action taken to minimize the amount of comparison there is among students about test scores, course schedules, and what colleges students get accepted to, the Miramonte administration must take steps to prevent academic pressure from controlling students’ lives.

Mirador

6 FEATURE 03/15/21

FEATURE Asian Hate Crimes Increase in the Bay Area

Photo: vecteezy.com

SOPHIA LUO & JONATHAN PHAM

In preparation for the Lunar New Year celebrating the Year of the Ox, Oakland Chinatown’s streets were decorated with strands of red lanterns and small stands selling red pockets and other hanging decorations. The overall energy was cheerful as masked shoppers prepared for the upcoming festivities of the new year. However, the cheery mood turned to a gradual rise of horror and shock as a 91-year-old Asain man, 60-year-old Asain man, and 55-year-old Asain woman were all viciously thrown to the curb in the same day by a lone attacker.

In wake of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Asian-American community has seen an increase in hate crimes and anti-Asian sentiment. This increase in racist behavior directed towards the Asian-American population sparks additional unease for a community accustomed to casual racism.

“I think that anti-Asian hate crimes are often overlooked. Racism towards Asians has been so normalized that there is no media coverage on it. Of course, many of the incidents have been reported locally, but not in a lot of national publications,” co-president of the Miramonte Asian Student Union (ASU) and senior Budae Chinzorig said.

The ASU was established at the beginning of this school year by Chinzorig and her co-president, Caleb Kim, with the aim to create a safe and welcoming environment for Asian students at Miramonte. ASU’s goal is to educate the community about the traditions of various Asian cultures and bring students of all ethnic backgrounds together to celebrate one another.

During the 2019-2020 school year, 17.2 percent of the student body was represented by Asian-American students.

In a recent poll conducted on The Mirador Instagram, 57

percent of students said they have seen or first-hand experienced racism against Asians during their time at Miramonte.

In the two weeks leading up to Lunar New Year, a time for the Asian-American community to celebrate, Oakland’s Chinatown did not see its usual influx of tourists and holiday cheer. Rather, the area was hit by frequent violent attacks and robberies with the Oakland Chinatown Chamber of Commerce recording more than 20 assaults in two weeks in Chinatown alone.

“I think these increasing attacks definitely awakened new fears for me and all Asian-Americans alike. Personally, these incidents have made me more alert as to protect myself. It is sad that innocent people do not get the luxury of feeling safe because of the actions of an ignorant few,” junior Clemens Van Dongen said.

Violence against the Asian-American community rose sharply during the initial outbreak of the COVID-19 virus.

Due to the virus’s origins in Wuhan, China, some saw it fit to use Asian-Americans as scapegoats to blame for the economic downfall and lifestyle shift brought on by the pandemic.

“Just reading about people’s lived experiences is striking and heartbreaking at the same time. I had seen a lot of stuff on social media about racism or hate incidents that people experienced which made me incredibly sad and frustrated,” intern for the Stop Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Hate Center Kailene Apana said.

The Stop AAPI Hate Center is a collaborative organization that collects reports of hate incidents against Asian-Americans particularly in the Bay Area. The aim of the organization is to gather data in order to create policies and recommendations to promote restorative justice and education about Asians in order to fight implicit bias and

racism. The center was established on March 19, 2020 by the Asian Pacific Policy and Planning Council, Chinese for Affirmative Action, and San Francisco State University Asian American Studies in the Bay Area.

From March 19 to Dec. 31 of 2020, Stop AAPI Hate recorded 2,808 incidents of anti-Asian discrimination with physical assualts making up 8.7 percent, coughing and spitting on making up 6.4 percent, verbal harassment making up 70.9 percent, and shunning making up 21.4 percent.

“A lot of the time, people don’t believe that the AAPI community faces discrimination because of the Model Minority Myth. We are trying to change that narrative to one that fully encapsulated the AAPI experience. Stop AAPI Hate gives Asian people a platform to talk about their experiences and advocate for their communities in a way that we didn’t have before,” Apana said.

The Model Minority Myth refers to the misconception that Asians are the “middle man” between white Americans and Black Americans, which implies that Asians benefit from both groups. This is an extremely harmful view because it links Asian-American success with white Americans and diminishes their struggles, putting down all other people of color in the process.

In anticipation for the Lunar New Year, a student turns on the TV to see the special programming planned for the celebration. Asian broadcasting channels usually feature particular annual shows like the Chinese New Year Gala in order to commemorate the holiday. However, watchers find that in place of a festive broadcast, there are several more reports of violence and harassment directed towards fellow Asian-Americans in their very own city. Shocked, the student watches with fear and pain for their community aching in their heart.

Students Wrestle with Student Hikers Are Hybrid Versus Online Traversing New Trails HENRY HILL

A student wakes up, pondering the tough decision he will have to make regarding a return to in-person schooling. On one hand, he would be able to return to campus and receive in-person instruction with his peers and teachers. On the other hand, he has a higher chance of bringing COVID-19 home to his family. After talking things over with his parents, he comes to a final conclusion: he’ll be attending hybrid schooling.

As Miramonte approaches a return to inperson instruction, students made a calculated decision by Dec. 15 on whether they’d return to campus or stay online. There are a variety of benefits and drawbacks for both options and students and families were faced with a difficult dilemma.

According to a report by the district, 78 percent of Miramonte students opted to return to in-person learning, which was significantly higher than Las Lomas High School (52 percent) and Campolindo High School (64 percent) and slightly higher than Acalanes High School (74 percent).

Hybrid learning may be different from the schooling that students were accustomed to before the pandemic, but it gives many the opportunity to return to some form of a familiar routine. “I wanted to have a little bit of a normal schedule again. More importantly, I wanted to see people again, I wanted to have some sense of normalcy,” junior Nathan Rigsby said.

The return to normalcy isn’t the only factor in many students’ decisions to return to campus. Online learning is mentally taxing for many, as high screen time and a lack of social interaction can lead to decreased mental health. “The main reason I’m returning to in-person school is that I think it’s really important for my mental health. Being home all day on a computer with little to no hu-

man interaction definitely affects my mental health, because I really thrive off of working with others in person,” junior Cece Cohen said.

In a normal year, school life is filled with constant social interactions between students and teachers. However, communications in a screen-centric school year prevent students from enjoying the intrinsic value of faceto-face exchanges. “Everyone is so isolated nowadays. These quarantines have instilled a widespread fear among us of not only the virus, but the people themselves. Humans are social creatures. We need to be with each other and we need to see each other,” Rigsby said.

While they may be in the minority at Miramonte, there is still a considerable amount of students who have opted to stay online.

“Personally my parents are both essential workers and I am worried that if I go back, I’m risking not only my health and safety but my parents,” junior Mikaela Santos said.

Online students will receive instruction over Zoom from their teachers who will also be teaching synchronous to students in person. Online students will still interact with the in-person class and teacher but remain over the computer. Along with safety precautions, other students simply prefer the structure of online learning. Students do not have to wake up as early to leave for school, allowing them to have more control over their own schedule. “I’m staying in online school because it allows me to work at my own pace and schedule,” junior Dominic Clerici said.

As the student enters his classroom for the first time since March of 2020, he glances at his fellow classmates who are on Zoom.

Smiling at them, he understands how difficult of a decision it was for both groups. But as he sees the faces of his friends and peers in person, he knows he made the right decision for himself.

SOPHIA ACEVEDO

Entranced by the Lafayette Reservoir’s glistening waters and towering oak trees, a student stops to take a water break. Among disheartening sports cancellations, the student decided to go for a much needed hike to explore the great expanse of nature. The Rim Trail’s steep slopes and endless hills have challenged the student and prompted them to continue on the path.

As selective sports gradually begin practice and the winter weather settles at bay, students take to another form of exercising: hiking. Orinda’s array of lush hills and hiking paths make the activity appealing for many residents. That being said, hiking has become a great replacement for students’ usual sports that’ve been canceled due to COVID-19 restrictions, and many students are on the hunt for the perfect hiking trails to fulfill their fitness needs.

One of the privileges of Lamorinda living is the proximity to outdoor recreational spaces. Many students love visiting the varied trails throughout Lamorinda to catch a break from Zooms, walk and talk with friends, and encounter faces old and new. The Lafayette Reservoir, Briones Reservoir, Grizzly Peak, and the Moraga Ranch Trail are just some of the Bay Area’ most loved areas to hike. In a poll on The Mirador Instagram, 80 percent of the 72 participants said that they had started hiking more during the pandemic. In the following poll, 97 percent of the respondents said they had hiked at the Lafayette or Briones Reservoir.

“I believe that Lamorinda has a ton of good hiking spots because a fair amount of the area is underdeveloped, so the land is too steep and uneven. The steep and uneven grounds make great hiking locations and challenging workouts. I think it’s great that more people are taking up hiking especially

since a lot of sports have been canceled due to the pandemic,” junior Becca Libby said.

Junior Apameh Berloui took her love for hiking to the next level, creating the Miramonte Hiking Club during the 2019-2020 school year. Berloui explains that she’s glad to see more people partaking in this form of exercise.

“I started the club last year because I wanted to give people a fun outdoors experience while encouraging others to make new friends and learn more about nature. Since then, we’ve tried our best to go on as many safe and distanced hikes to bring a little normalcy to the pandemic,” Berloui said. The club meets monthly on group hikes where they learn more about the environment and participate in trash pick-ups. In order to follow COVID-19 precautions, club members practice social distancing, hike on local trails, and wear masks.

“I love the idea that students are adventuring outdoors, seeking new trails, challenging their physical capabilities and tapping into their mental capacities. Many people get bored doing the same workouts in a gym repeatedly. Due to the variety of trails available in the Bay Area, hiking provides the differentiation many exercise enthusiasts are seeking and is great for fulfilling PE hours,” John Grigsby, head of the Independent Physical Education (PE) program and Human and Social Development teacher, said.

With AirPods in, running shoes on, and gravel crunching beneath the feet, the Miramonte student continues on their hike along the Lafayette Reservoir Rim Trail. After endless Zooms, the reservoir is a perfect getaway to physically challenge themselves and take a mental break from school. As hiking along the Rim Trail becomes a part of the student’s regular routine, they can’t help but feel appreciative that the coronavirus has provoked them to spend more time outdoors.

Mirador

03/15/21 FEATURE 7

Students Partipate in Local Art Competition OLIVIA RHEE

The annual Lamorinda High School Visual Arts Competition gathered a wide variety of student artwork, ranging from vibrant acrylics bulging out of the canvas, to intricate charcoals smudged and scratched across the page. Behind the strokes of paint and colored pencil shadings lies a unique story conveyed by each individual artist. As Lamorinda high school students reminisce about times prior to the pandemic, reflect on the positives and negatives of quarantine, or remember specific experiences that sparked emotion, the 18th year of the annual competition saw different inspiration from years past.

“Although this year we are all virtual in our online gallery, the artwork will still be judged by professionals and presented to the public via the Lamorinda Arts Council website. We will be doing a live awards show on March 11. So please join us in support of our student artists,” Aniston Breslin, the 2021 Visual Arts Competition chair, said. The Lamorinda Arts Council website can be accessed at www.LamorindaArts.org.

Over quarantine, many students found themselves glued to the computer or their phone for school and social purposes. Freshman Sarah Yang entered her piece named “Living It Up” which illustrates her experience during the pandemic over the past year. “The painting is of me sleeping on a telephone pole that’s caught on fire.

I want it to represent how harmful interactions only through the internet can be without us realizing it. It’s made me feel like I’m isolated somewhere high up, unable to wake up and climb down,” Yang said. Yang’s intent was to depict her thoughts in a visual aspect that relates to a more external problem. Through the process of creating her painting, Yang states, “I learned a lot about how to flesh out my ideas and concepts onto a full canvas and I also got to practice different elements of lighting.”

Junior Ruby McCabe also conveys a story behind her

important and personal memory, McCabe notes that her artwork resembles the type of artists she’s become.

“My process took about two weeks to complete. This was definitely one of my favorite pieces to finish. It’s not very often that I finish a piece and it feels genuinely ‘done’,” McCabe said.

Like many other artists, junior Nina Fontes’ artwork titled “Bonedaddy” was stimulated by a specific experience during quarantine. “I was inspired by little doodles I started doing on my hand to calm me down and help get me through online school,” Fontes said. Fontes notes that her artwork’s reference to one of her favorite movies, “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” allowed her to tie in a personal aspect into her piece.

Entering the competition for the first time, junior Jayden Thai took a unique approach with his digital art piece called “Eye of the Beholder”. After spending two weeks perfecting his sketches, Thai was excited to submit his work to the competition, noting that his work accurately represents his artistic style. “The piece’s concept is a snapshot of a scene I imagined in my head of a girl floating in a mythical space surrounded by unusual things such as an eyeball. This piece was heavily inspired by the surrealism movement,” Thai said. After completing his piece, Thai recognizes some key takeaways from his experience. “From participating in this competition, it made me step back, look at my artwork, and really assess how I want people to perceive me as a person and Photos: (Top to bottom, left to right) Sarah Yang, Nina Fontes, Ruby McCabe, Jayden Thai as an artist. It made me establish my art style and gain watercolor piece titled “Mom, the Flowers are Wilting” as confidence to put myself out there,” Thai said. she reflects back on a memorable and meaningful experiFrom artwork embellished with loud, bright colors to ence. “My grandmother passed away on Jan. 14 and my softer pieces embodying a more peaceful tone, each artist’s friend bought me some white lilies in memory of her. On work expresses a part of themselves or a part of the world the day that those lilies became too wilted to keep out, surrounding them. While these difficult times may seem I read a poem about life moving too fast and knowing to emphasize the negative aspects, some students have takwhat inevitable future agony you will be put through. It en these challenging experiences and transformed them inspired me and after talking to the author, I created this into powerful and beautiful visuals that represent a unique piece,” McCabe said. Producing a piece that embodies an perspective, an insightful message, or a meaningful story.

Yearbook Adapts to 2021 Juniors and Seniors Hope For Prom & Ball HENRY HILL & JONATHAN PHAM

A student logs onto Zoom for the 116th time this school year. They do not remember what it feels like to be in a classroom environment anymore. With half of their peers’ cameras turned off, the feeling of disconnect is even greater. A depiction of the non-existent sports games, rallies, Junior Prom, and Senior Ball, in addition to the day-to-day Zoom classes, seems unfeasible for a book meant to capture the school year in a positive light.

Each year, the Publications class compiles a collection of memories to make an annual yearbook. However, the 2020-2021 yearbook is a stark contrast to previous years, and unlike no other. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic forcing schools into a distance learning model, there is no dayto-day student life for the class to capture.

“The biggest challenge this year has been trying to fill the book with interesting content. We don’t want to fill the book with Zoom screenshots. It has also been difficult to get interviews from people because we usually have the chance to pull students out of class to interview them but now we rely on emailing and texting students and hoping that they respond,” Publications Editor-in-Chief and senior Hannah Klein said.

Although they missed out on filling the yearbook with pictures capturing memorable moments on campus, the Publications class adapted by lining their pages with student submissions and events taking place off-campus.

“We are adding pages to address some of the unique aspects of this year in lieu of some of the more traditional activities that cannot take place. For example, we are including pages about the Black Lives Matter movement, the wildfires we experienced in the fall, and the way that COVID-19 and distance learning has impacted students and faculty this year,” Publications advisor Rebecca Promessi said.

With the inability to work at school, the structure of the class has evolved. Editors rely on constant communication with their staff in order to achieve their final product in a virtual manner. “The class dynamic is much different. I feel like we haven’t been able to create the same community feeling that we have been able to foster in previous years. Being an editor this year has been a challenge because everything has to be done virtually. I am used to working with the staff during every class period but now I mostly communicate with staff through text,” Klein said.

While the Publications class works overtime to create a replica of their typical yearbook, sales have dipped. “Unfortunately, our yearbook sales are currently lower than they have been in previous years. We have been sending out emails to parents to make sure they are aware that there will be a yearbook and to encourage them to purchase one if they have not already done so. We are hoping that more families will purchase a book as the year progresses,” Promessi said.

Some students worry that the yearbook will not have enough content to justify the purchase. “I didn’t end up buying a yearbook this year because I thought that Miramonte was super excluded from activities and sports this year. I felt that there was no point because many of the students would not even end up in the yearbook,” junior Mikaela Santos said.

Despite all the setbacks and challenges the Publications class faced this year, the yearbook is still on schedule, a testament to the leadership of Klein, Co-EditorIn-Chief Caitlin Smith, Photo Editor Phoebe Schimdt, and Senior Editor Kiki Pearson. “We have been very good about meeting our deadlines so far. We have been able to submit extra pages and we have been able to submit them early.

We only have two more deadlines and the main book will be submitted around spring break,” Klein said.

CARLY HOSKINS

The senior class couples up and selects their outfits for the night they’ve been waiting their entire high school career for. They can’t wait to see the much-anticipated venue and spend the night with their friends and classmates, dancing and having fun. Just a month before Junior Prom was scheduled in 2020, the coronavirus pandemic hit Califronia, and everything was shut down and cancelled. For the class of 2021, the fate of Senior Ball is still unclear, just as the forecasted night was a year prior. For the class of 2022, COVID-19 could also be taking away their beloved Prom night. Disappointment hits them as they have to accept that they might never experience either of these prized high school dances.

For some, there is still hope of having a modified or delayed Prom or Ball. However, Leadership, administration, and the district are still unclear on whether these events will happen this spring or not. “If the numbers in a couple months permit it, we will be having as many events as we can. We will not cancel Ball, Graduation, or Prom, until we know we 100 percent cannot have it,” Senior Class President Haley Moltyaner said.

Leadership is working on exploring alternative options for the events. “On the likely chance that we won’t be able to rent buses and go to a separate location, we will try anything we can to keep the event from being canceled.

One way to do this would be to have Prom and or Ball somewhere at Miramonte, like on the field,” Moltyaner said.

Some seniors are less disappointed by the possible cancellation of Ball after not having Prom last year, focusing more on Graduation and getting accustomed to the impacts of the pandemic. “I was definitely disappointed about Prom being canceled, especially because it was coming up soon and we had already made plans and got our outfits. I’m

not that disappointed about not having Ball since we haven’t been to school in so long that I wasn’t expecting to have one anyway,” senior Lily Reiner said.

Despite the unclarity about the events, students remain hopeful of having a Ball or Prom. With COVID-19 case numbers dropping, hybrid school approaching, and some restrictions being lifted, there is hope that the case numbers will be low enough for events like these to happen in some form. “I still have hope that Ball might happen this year with cases going down and vaccinations going out. Prom and Ball are iconic moments for all high schoolers, so it would be a bummer to miss out on both,” senior Parker Hett said.

Some hope to postpone the events, so students can experience them in their true form.

“I was thinking it would be kinda cool if we have some sort of Prom or Ball over the summer or sometime in the future as a class reunion type of thing once we graduate,” Reiner said.

Even if Prom and Ball get canceled, some seniors and juniors plan to find their own way to celebrate by having small outside events with their friends to simulate an at-home and miniature version of Ball or Prom. “I would still love to see my friends dressed up, even if that means it is socially distanced or with mandatory COVID-19 testing,” junior Anna Painter said.

Seniors and juniors hope for dressing up with their dates and dancing late into the night with their fellow classmates. Whether it’s outside, in five months, or in April like usual, the upperclassmen are all wishing for their chance to experience the infamous Senior Ball and Junior Prom. Even modified or delayed dances would turn that disappointment into excitement and allow the junior and senior classes to have nights they’ll never forget.

Mirador

8 FEATURE 03/15/21

Lamorinda Mom Promotes Sustainable Future

Miramonte graduate Sandra Ann Harris shares her passion for environmental activism with the community through her book, “Say Goodbye to Plastic”, and her mission-based company, ECOlunchbox

SOPHIA ACEVEDO & SAMANTHA SCOTT

making different decisions about the types of products that you are buying,” AP Environmental Science and Geology teacher For years, Sandra Ann Harris watched Jyllian Smith said. as plastic accumulated on the Earth at a Plastic has helped make life easier and rapid rate, threatening the lives of thousafer with the production of items like helsands of animals and humans. She watched mets and seatbelts. However, an increased as plastic products amassed in her own reliance on plastic means an increase in the household as well, as the routine use of synthetic material’s impacts on the environplastic kept growing. Harris’s love for her ment and human health. The toxic chemichildren and her desire to protect the envicals in plastics can be absorbed into human ronment ultimately spurred her into action bodies through skin or through food and in 2009 when she founded her reusable drinks. Also, plastic debris in water can selunchbox company, ECOlunchbox. Miverely injure or poison aquatic wildlife. ramonte students have taken inspiration Students at Miramonte also recognize from Harris’s accomplishments, purchasthe issue of plastic waste and have made ing environmentally conscious products great efforts to reduce the use of this maand making an effort to adjust their own terial. The Environmental Solutions Club lifestyle. focuses heavily on reducing plastic waste by Plastic pollution activist, entrepreneur, pioneering projects such as Help the Enand Lamorinda mom, Harris is the auvironment and Assist Restaurant Takeout.

Photos: Sandra Ann Harris thor of the book “Say Goodbye to Plas- Harris sells plastic-free, non-toxic food storage containers and utensils through This project focuses on using fundraising tic” as well as the founder and president her company ECOlunchbox. Her book features solutions for sustainable living. efforts to support both the environment of ECOlunchbox. Harris shares a strong and local Lamorinda restaurants by donatconnection to Miramonte, as she graduing compostable takeout supplies. back to making a difference. We are also a certified enated from the school in 1984 and wrote for The Mirador vironmentally conscious California Green Business. I’m During the COVID-19 pandemic, the plastic pollution throughout high school. Harris’s two kids both graduated pleased to say that ECOlunchbox’s user community is problem worsened with the increased use of single-use from Campolindo High School. Her company develops averting the use and disposal of tens of millions of pieces medical products that cannot be recycled, such as masks and sells stainless steel silicone lunchware designed to of trash annually,” Harris said. and gloves. “It’s tough, especially during COVID-19, help reduce the use of plastic containers. The company Miramonte students have taken inspiration from Har- with all the disposable personal protective equipment and sells their products, with prices ranging from around $10 ris’s environmentally conscious efforts, prompting them single-use restaurant takeout containers. But start refusing to $50 depending on the size, directly to consumers via to re-evaluate their own choices. “Harris is definitely an plastic you don’t need, not just the plastic grocery bags but their online store, ECOlunchbox.com, Amazon, grocery inspirational figure. Her book really made me take a step the single-use plastic forks, or condiment packets,” Harris stores, and other retailers such as The Container Store and back and consider the products I use and their effect on the adds.

Anthropologie. Demand for their zero-waste, plastic-free environment,” junior Ally Smith said.

As a Miramonte student flips through the pages of the products is surging due to a heightened awareness of plasSeveral teachers at Miramonte share Harris’s passion book “Say Goodbye to Plastic”, they can’t help but feel tic pollution in oceans and the health risks associated with for environmental activism and remind their students of inspired. Their mind immediately turns to the products exposure to toxins in plastic. Several of her products have ways to reduce their own plastic use. “Some things can be inside their own kitchen cabinets that could be contributeven been featured in magazines, including Martha Stew- done easily like being sure to bring your own bags to the ing to plastic pollution. Sifting through the cupboards, the art Living, Real Simple, and Forbes. Harris’s book, “Say store, ask for no straw at a restaurant or no silverware if student decides to swap out some of their plastic tupperGoodbye to Plastic”, also includes ways to simplify life you are getting takeout that you will bring home. Also, buy ware for ECOlunchbox’s stainless steel products. They by re-thinking wasteful habits and decreasing plastic use. whole fruits and vegetables as opposed to packaged ones. may not know it yet, but that simple swap was a big stride “I’m a mission-based entrepreneur, so everything goes There are also a lot of things that can be done by simply towards reducing global plastic pollution.

Eating Disorder Rates Surge During Pandemic KIRSTIN PARKER

“School ended and I was able to focus all my time and energy on counting calories and what I was eating. I would restrict what I ate and would try to plan ahead what my meals Before the coronavirus pandemic, students scrambled from sports practices to study- would be.” ing for school to Friday night sleepovers. Free time was an unknown term. However, Eating disorders not only are mentally harmful, but they disrupt normal body funcafter losing everything from in-person school to normal socialization, free time became tion and can cause permanent damage. According to The National Association of Anabundant and stress became overwhelming. The lack of structure left students searching orexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, eating disorders have the second highest morfor control and comfort. In order to recreate these feelings, eating disorders surged as a tality rate of all mental health disorders. “Besides my body changing, I became really result of the pandemic. weak and my body would shake constantly. I started sleeping worse and I became really According to the American Psychiatric Association, “Eating disorders are illnesses dizzy too,” another Miramonte student who wishes to remain anonymous said. in which the people experience severe disturbances in their eating behaviors and reIf you, a friend, or a family member may be struggling with an eating disorder, there lated thoughts and emotions.” The National Eating Disorders Association has reported are many different courses of action you can take. Talking to a parent, teacher, or even a 78 percent increase to its helpline since March of reaching out to the Miramonte Wellness 2020. “Within a couple months of the pandemic we The National Eating Disorders Association Center is a great first step. “The Wellness started to see a steep rise of people coming in for Center offers individual counseling suphas reported a 78 percent increase to its eating disorders,” Summit Pediatrics Doctor Jenniport for a range of topics, including support fer Dovichi said. helpline since March of 2020.” around disordered eating behaviors, dieting Eating disorders are not restricted to a certain behaviors, or disordered eating,” Nishimi Miramonte Wellness Center National Eating Disorder Helpline said. group of people, they affect all genders, races, body

types, and weights. “You can’t tell from looking at Through a team of doctors and specialReferral: Chat: someone whether or not they have an eating disorists, a recovery plan is formulated for pader because eating disorders can affect anyone, retients. “There are essentially three people gardless of their body size or weight. It’s important on [the patients] team: the doctor, the nutri to be aware of behaviors, like excessive dieting or tionist, and the therapist. The doctor anabody image concerns, that could lead to an eating lyzes and collects data. The nutritionist is disorder,” Miramonte Wellness Coordinator Andie responsible for telling the patient what they mhswellness@auhsdschools.org Call or Text: (800) 931-2237 Nishimi said. need to eat to get their weight to go in the The Center for Discovery of Eating Disorder right direction. The therapist, who sees the Treatment suggests that a contributing factor is due to the unpredictability of grocery patients most often, helps them overcome the mental component of an eating disorder. store inventory. This can either resurface or create urges to restrict and binge.

In many ways, this is the hardest part,” Dovichi said. Finding and creating balance is one “Before going into quarantine I went months without restricting my eating. But a few of the most important steps to avoiding or treating an eating disorder. weeks into lockdown I slipped into my old habits. I’m still trying to get my eating disorFeb. 22 through Feb. 28 was National Eating Disorders Awareness week. The Mider under control but it’s harder this time because of all the other things that are going ramonte Wellness Center shared content though Instagram, ranging from debunking on right now,” a Miramonte student who wishes to remain anonymous said. common myths to sharing important information regarding eating disorders.

The pandemic turned school virtual, canceled sports and many extracurricular ac“Having an eating disorder is like being in a spiral but you just need someone that tivies, and took away socialization. “The pandemic took everything away and I lost all can pull you out of it. Confiding in my friends and prioritizing my mental health helped control over the things in my life. I found that what I was eating was one thing I was still me get through this difficult time,” another Miramonte student who wishes to remain able to control,” another Miramonte student who wishes to remain anonymous said. anonymous said.

“

Mirador

03/15/21 FEATURE 9

Student Body Elects 2021-2022 ASB Officers HENRY HILL & JONATHAN PHAM Isolated in their homes, the 2020-2021 Associated Student Body (ASB) officers plan out their vision to improve the Miramonte experience once students return to campus and look ahead to the next school year. The new officers start working immediately, eager to make up for time lost to the pandemic.

From Feb. 16 to Feb. 19, Miramonte students, excluding seniors, voted for their future ASB officers.

Juniors Jack Brun and Elena Gant ran against each other for the position of ASB President, with Brun emerging as the winner. The remaining candidates ran unopposed. The winners of the vice president, treasurer, and secretary positions are current juniors Donovan Davidson, Julia Hunt, and Anna Crinks, respectively.

ASB President-elect Brun is entering his third year in the Miramonte Leadership class and set big goals for his presidency.

Brun was the class president his sophomore and junior year and brings a wealth of experience to the most encompassing leadership position on campus. As president, he will be tasked with running the Leadership class, working with his fellow ASB and class officers to create activities for students, and acting as a bridge between the students and the staff at Miramonte. “I ran for office because for the past

two years in Leadership, I have always felt like there was a divide between Leadership and the student body. I want to make Leadership as connected and in tune with everybody on campus so that anybody would feel comfortable coming up to us, either to ask a question or give a suggestion,” Brun said.

Two-year member of the Leadership class and incoming ASB Vice President Davidson hopes to make the school a more fun and welcoming environment after a year of distance learning. As Vice President, Davidson’s role is to communicate with parents, staff, students, and other schools to plan events. “I’m so excited to be in a big role in the Leadership class and make decisions that will directly impact the school. Since we’ve had a year without being in person, I believe we should make up for that with having more dances and hosting more fun events like movie nights, water balloon fights, etc. I think it’s such a great opportunity to try and make Miramonte a fun and welcoming place!” Davidson said.

Entering her third year in Leadership, incoming ASB Treasurer Julia Hunt plans to make the 2021-2022 school year an unforgettable experience. As the treasurer for the class of 2022 the last two years, she’s learned the essentials of managing the Leadership budget and deciding how to direct funds towards dances and other activities that interest Miramonte students.

“Next year as treasurer my main focus is

to put our money towards fun and inclusive events for all of the grades at Miramonte. Some ideas I have planned for next year are to have more interactive activities like powder puff, movie nights, and lunchtime events. Prom and Ball are two of my top priorities for next year. I plan to make these events memorable in order to make up for all of the dances we have missed from COVID-19,” Hunt said.

Three-year member of the Leadership class and incoming ASB Secretary Anna Crinks wants to see students’ favorite events return while also testing out new ones.

As secretary, Crinks’ role is to run class events and write up the announcements. “I am so excited to get back to school and I want to try my best to make the year awesome for every student. Once we get back to school we are definitely going to have tons of fun events,” Crinks said.

Through deliberate planning and hard work, the incoming ASB officers plan to leave a lasting impact upon the school they cherish. Tasked with the difficult job of reconnecting a virtual student body, these officers will have a lot on their plate in the upcoming school year.

Photos (clockwise from top left): Jack Brun, Donovan Davidson, Julia Hunt, and Anna Crinks

Students Create Lifelike 3D Art at Home ELLIE BELSHAW & KIRSTIN PARKER

12 pounds of bagged clay sits on your desk alongside an array of shaping and cutting tools, a spray bottle and a small bowl of vinegar are nearby. After struggling to follow along with the instructions via Zoom, the strange shapes of clay start to form a hand. After weeks of blending,

and have to rely on pictures for work submission in terms of grading until the final product is dropped at my door, contact-free, for final firing,” Kermode said.

For most students in 3D Art, this is one of their first times working with clay. Through trial and error, many students had to learn the hard way to properly store and use clay to not let it dry out. Learning how to create

Crafts virtually. All materials used in 3D Art now live at students’ homes. Fortunately, this allows for unlimited access to their projects, beyond just class time. “A benefit that comes along with doing 3D Art, is that it takes away the stress from other subjects because I get to go at my own pace and work on it whenever,” sophomore Megan Doran said.

scoring, trimming, and shaping fine details, a finished hand presents itself. Your new masterpiece lays secured inside a plastic bag, all to be accidently thrown out by your mom, mistaken for a bag of trash in your room.

Due to 3D Art, also known as Crafts, being one of the most engaging and hands-on classes at Miramonte, students have found it extremely difficult to sculpt at home. “The hardest part about doing Crafts online is not being able to see other people’s work because then you can’t learn from it,” junior Lindsey Lucas said. Students are unable to build off each other’s ideas over Zoom, which was a very beneficial tactic during in-person school.

Gavin Kermode, Miramonte’s 3D Art 1 and 3D Art 2 teacher, has also endured the ups and downs of virtual teaching. “I divided up 4,000 pounds of clay into individual bags for pick up, ordered 140 sets of tools for each student

projects using clay relies heavily on visuals. Zoom presents itself to be quite difficult to uphold this task with frequent glitching and poor quality of computer cameras, not to mention daily internet issues.

Though faces are on the same screen on Zoom, it’s not the same as being together in person. “One of the best parts of teaching my class is the random conversations and engagement I have with the kids everyday, so I miss that,” Kermode said.

Another downside to participating in 3D Art virtually is the struggle of working at the same speed as other students. “The hardest thing is probably keeping up with the steps when making projects because everyone moves at their own pace,” sophomore Jake Disston said.

Although 3D Art isn’t quite the same experience as it would be in person, there are some benefits to doing

Virtual teaching forces teachers to think outside of the box, but in some ways, this has been beneficial. “The most positive thing that has come out of teaching virtually is that it has forced me to come up with new projects and processes for this model. The kids can’t do metal casting at home so we’ve had the time to focus on a lot more sculpture, which is my personal favorite, and I’ve been incredibly impressed with their creativity,” Kermode said.

After recovering your hand from the trash can and the countless apologies from your mom, the moment of truth awaits as you untie the bag. All the details and shaping stayed intact. A miniature celebration is held as your clay hand is placed back onto your desk. One, two, three, four… wait isn’t there supposed to be five fingers? Your mom’s face turns red and you both race back to the trash can to find the missing pinky finger.

Photos: Gavin Kermode

Mirador

10 SPORTS 03/15/21

SPORTS Mia Mastrov Instantly Excels at UC Berkeley

Photo: George Doran

After graduating early at the end of first semester, basketball star and new University of California, Berkeley women’s basketball guard Mia Mastrov has made an immediate impact for the Golden Bears CARLY HOSKINS Legs shaking and sweat dripping down her face, Miramonte graduate and University of California Berkeley (Cal) guard Mia Mastrov walks off the court as her first game comes to an end. As a high school freshman just three years ago, she never would’ve thought this is where she would be in January of her senior year. Mastrov gathers with her teammates to finish the game together and glances at the scoreboard, disappointed by their loss but awestruck by her twenty point contribution to her first collegiate game. Used to wearing green, she feels strange wearing a yellow jersey, but the feeling begins to subside as she acclimates to her new enviroment.

Committing to Cal in July of 2020, Mastrov planned on graduating Miramonte after the first semester if there was not a planned winter high school basketball season. During that second semester off, she planned to simulate a college experience to prepare her for the fall by training as she would in college, and begin online college classes to earn credits.

In late December, her coach reached out to her asking if she would be interested in enrolling early and playing with the team for the remainder of their season.

Because she was not hopeful that she would get to play a senior season at Miramonte during the second semester, Mastrov quickly enrolled in the university and joined the team.

“In less than two weeks, I had to figure it all out. It was the quickest turnaround,” Mastrov said.

Mastrov has played basketball since she was little, participating in youth leagues in the Lamorinda area.

Outside of high school, Mastrov played for the Cal Stars 17U Nike Elite Youth Basketball League, a competitive club basketball team coached by previous Miramonte women’s basketball coach Kelly Sopak. Before beginning her career at Cal, Mastrov was a star for the Lady Mats. She averaged 12.7 points and 5.5 rebounds per game in her high school career and passed the 1,000 points mark in her junior year season. Mastrov earned the West Coast Jamboree Most Valuable Player award in 2018 and was a first-team all-league selection her freshman and sophomore years. She had a standout season as a sophomore, scoring an impressive average of 16.6 points and 6.4 rebounds per game.

Being a Golden Bear runs in the family. Mastrov’s grandfather also played for Cal basketball in the 1950s under legendary coach Pete Newell. Mastrov decided to wear 21 on her jersey after her grandfather, who donned the same number in his time with the Golden Bears.

“Being able to play where my grandfather played college basketball wearing the same jersey number as him means a lot to my family and I. With his recent passing, I wear that number with a lot of pride. Every time I step on the court, I play for him and make sure to always give it my all as I know he is watching over me,” Mastrov said.

Mastrov is one of three other girls in the Pacific-12 Conference (Pac-12) who joined their college teams early. The NCAA has made accommodations for athletes that allow them to make up the season(s) they lost due to COVID-19 restrictions. “We were willing to allow Mia to begin playing with us this season because, due to COVID-19, every student-athlete gets this year of eligibility back. Therefore this year is simply a bonus year for Mia on the basketball court, and she will still have four years remaining after this,” Cal women’s basketball coach Charmin Smith said.

To earn the necessary credits to graduate high school early, Mastrov enrolled in online English 4, AP Spanish, and Economics provided by the Acalanes Center for Independent Study. Now enrolled in three college courses at Cal, Mastrov is adapting to the difference between high school academics and college academics at a much quicker pace than most, which she has accepted as just another obstacle to overcome.

“The rigor of Cal compared to Miramonte is substantially harder, but for the most part, I feel Miramonte prepared me academically so far this semester,”

Photo: Mia Mastrov

Mastrov said.

Independently adjusting to a demanding balance of school, sports, and social life is an enormous challenge, especially for a 17-year-old. However, her team is very welcoming and supportive of her transition, and Mastrov says that she is starting to settle in. “I don’t really feel younger than them. It doesn’t feel that different for me because everyone is cool and nice. I’m not getting treated like I am 17,” Mastrov said.

Mastrov is motivated by knowing that the obstacles in her early college career will benefit her in the long run and help her grow as both a player and person. Mastrov has come to terms with ending her high school career early, because she knows that during COVID-19, no students in the class of 2021 will have a “traditional” end to their high school experience. Instead, she has spent her energy and focus on navigating the rocky transition from high school to college academics and athletics.

“It’s super fun. It’s a lot of work, basketball and school. There is a lot more time spent in college sports than in high school, about four hours a day,” Mastrov said.

what she accomplishes in the future!” senior Mackenzie Murphy said.

Women’s basketball began their season in November, but Mastrov only played five regular season games, as she joined the team in early Jan. While the women’s team had not won a game previous to Mastrov’s arrival, Mastrov led the team to their first win of the season against Arizona State University on Feb. 21 in only her fourth game, leading her team with 12 points and bringing their record to 1-14. Though the Golden Bears’ season ended with their loss in the first round of the Pac-12 women’s basketball tournament on March 3, Mastrov’s contributions to her team in only six games displayed her immense potential. She finished fifth on the team in points per game with seven and fourth in rebounds per game with over four, both impressive statistics for the young guard.

“Mia has been an amazing addition to our program.

She brings a competitiveness and toughness that will allow her to succeed in the Pac-12. In addition, Mia’s skillset and athleticism is exactly what we needed to enhance our backcourt. She has a bright Cal career ahead of her and is going to help us win a lot of games!” Smith said.

To most high school seniors, the idea of moving out to college and starting a new life seems scary and fastpaced. Mastrov has transitioned into college in less than two weeks and already is a key player to her team, an incredibly impressive accomplishment for a 17-year-old.

Point after point, Mastrov sprints down the court, ready to play defense. She has scored 12 points already, but she’s not finished making an impact on both sides of the court. As the buzzer beeps to signal the end of the game, Mastrov bends over to catch her breath, but is quickly swarmed by her new teammates in a celebratory team hug. 40 gruesome minutes of fighting against Arizona State is immediately worth it when she sees the first win on the scoreboard. Her mind flashes back to the loud cheering and roaring student section of the Miramonte Matadome, but her mind is recentered after a strong high five from her new coach. Under the lights of Haas Pavilion, Mastrov knows that this team and this court is her new home.

“

Everyone is good, so you just have to be prepared for anything.

There’s no slacking”

Before starting Cal basketball, Mastrov managed to stay in shape and keep her mind on the game by running sprints, playing pickup games, and shooting everyday. For Mastrov, the switch between high school and college basketball is difficult to adjust to because college basketball is more competitive and requires more focus, dedication, and skill. “In games, it’s not like there is a weak link on any team. Everyone is good, so you just have to be prepared for anything. There’s no slacking,” Mastrov said.

Due to COVID-19 team precautions, Mastrov’s social life is restricted to her new teammates. Although she can’t see her Miramonte friends and family in person, she still keeps in touch with them. “Mia is one of my super good friends. Even though I don’t see her on a daily basis, we still text and chat over the phone! My friends and I are so proud of her and all of her hard work in and out of the gym and we can’t want to see

Photo: Mia Mastrov

Mirador

03/15/21 SPORTS 11

Two Way Street: Gretzky or Brady Mirador staffers Chris Morrison and Trent LarsonDeak debate the greatest team sports athlete of all time CHRIS MORRISON With 2,857 points through his career, Wayne Gretzky easily set the record for most points in a National Hockey League (NHL) career. The next highest scorer in NHL history is Jagomír Jágr, with 1,921 points. Clearly, Gretzky’s domination in the NHL solidifies his legacy as the greatest athlete of all time.

Unfortunately for Gretzky, hockey does not have the following of football and basketball in the United States, especially in California. Gretzky’s career and countless records are often overlooked. “I knew he was the best hockey player, I just didn’t know how good he actually was,” junior Ben Murphy said.

Gretzky currently holds 61 records for most goals, assists, and points in an entire career and season. Gretzky’s most notable statistic is his 1,963 assists, which is more than any other NHL player has scored total points (goals and assists combined).

“Gretzky dominated icy hockey like nobody else has been able to with any sport.

His athleticism and performance were unparalleled by anybody in his sport,” junior Samuel Quinnild said.

Students also debate whether individual

accomplishments are more valuable than team success. “For hockey, a number of goals and numbers of assists probably matter the most to me. Especially assists, because it means he doesn’t hog the puck and overall makes really smart plays,” freshman Tyler Akel said.

To further justify his position as the greatest athlete of all time, Gretzky has excelled in both individual and team success. He earned the Hart Trophy as NHL’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) nine times, the Art Ross Trophy as NHL’s top Photo: Sportscasting.com scorer 10 times, the Lester B. Pearson Award as Player of the Year six times, and the Conn Smythe Trophy as Most Valuable Player in Playoffs two times. Along with exceptional individual success, Gretzky won the Stanley Cup four times with the Edmonton Oilers in 1984, 1985, 1987, and 1988.

After all of his unmatched success, Gretzky was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1999. Although he has fewer championships under his belt than players like Tom Brady and Michael Jordan, Gretzky’s incredible success in his sport is incomparable to any other great athletes in sports history.

TRENT LARSON-DEAK Tom Brady has now won seven Super Bowl rings, the most by a single player in NFL history, and has without a doubt cemented himself as football’s greatest of all time. Now, the question stands: is he the greatest to ever play any team sport?

The threetime FirstTeam All-Pro, 14-time Pro Bowler, threetime MVP, and now seven-time Super Bowl w i n n e r, B r a d y has reinvigorated debates among fans about who is the greatest athlete of all time due to his recent Super Bowl win on Feb. 7.

Brady leaving the New England Patriots and taking his talents to Tampa Bay dislayed that he is the greatest athlete of all time. Critics of Brady claimed that he was only good in the system of the New England Patriots and under the coaching of legendary head coach Bill Belichick. The Patriots and Belichick went 7-9 in the 20202021 season in their first season without Brady. while Brady went 11-5 with a completely new team and won a Super Bowl. Tampa Bay was a measly 7-9 the

VS.

year before Brady arrived. Clearly there is a common trend with Brady and winning, regardless of the team or coach.

2007 was Brady’s first NFL MVP season, where he took his play to another level, leading the league in multiple statistical categories such as 4,806 passing yards, 50 touchdown passes, and a 148 quarterback rating, and led the league with four comebacks over the course of the season.

2010 was no different from 2007 and was Brady’s second MVP season.

Brady led the league in Photo: Sportscasting.com touchdowns and passer rating. He won the MVP again in 2017, leading the league in passing yards, passes completed per game, and player value. Brady’s has never had a losing record in his career and his dominace on a year-by-year basis is one of the main reasons why he is the greatest team sports athlete of all time.

After appearing in 10 Super Bowls, and winning seven of them, it’s hard to say that Brady isn’t the GOAT of all sports. At this point for Brady and his family, the Super Bowl is becoming an annual vacation. “I think Tom Brady is the best athlete by far. Being the best in a ruthless and difficult sport signifies greatness,” sophomore Louie Giles said.

While there are a number of incredible team sports athletes, our staff agreed that Gretzky and Brady are the two most dominant athletes in their respective sports. While a consensus was reached over the top two greatest athletes, there is a vicious debate regarding the superior athlete of the two. Gretzky stans are quick to point out his numerous accolades and unbelievable records, while Brady supporters cite his record seven Super Bowl trophies and countless other awards. While both writers have made their cases, the decision lies with the reader: who is your greatest team sports athlete of all time?

Athletes Adapt to New Recruitment Process ERIN SMITH

many teams need less players than they would have and all the rules keep changing,” varsity water polo player Lindsey Lucas ‘22 said.

As spring approaches for the junior class, the official college recruitment proAnother change to the recruitment process came alongside the increased dead pecess moves into full swing. However, recruiting this year is vastly different due to riod. Because athletes have to wait a longer time to meet with coaches, it can be diffithe pandemic, requiring Miramonte student athletes to navigate this new recruiting cult for student athletes to gauge the team dynamic and see if the school is the right fit landscape. for them. “The recruiting process is different because you can’t meet coaches In a regular recruiting year, student athletes usually have constant in person as early as you could, coaches look at you more holistically, communication with their coaches: submitting highlight tapes, and things are happening faster,” Oakland Strokes rowing athlete attending showcases and tournaments where coaches are presAni Jelalian ‘22 said. The team atmosphere and coaching style is ent, and touring their prospective schools. However, due to a very important factor to many recruits when considering a COVID-19, the National Collegiate Athletic Association school and so the increased dead period can prove to be very (NCAA) extended the dead period to May 31, a period of stressful to athletes who wish to be recruited. time where college coaches are not allowed to have any inAmid the many negatives in the current recruiting landperson interaction, including meetings or watching games scape, coaches and student athletes are forced to adapt and in person, with athletes. This makes the recruitment profind creative solutions. Due to official college visits being cess a lot harder because it is very important for a coach canceled, student athletes have met with a wide variety to see athletes play in person in order to understand their of coaches and visited campuses over Zoom. “It is nice to skillset and see if the athlete fits their philosophy and unhave virtual meetings over Zoom because I am able to talk derstand the player’s goals. “This year is unlike any other in to a number of colleges over the phone and learn a lot about terms of collegiate recruitment. The most important steps in the details of each school,” varsity tennis player Riley George the recruitment process, mainly coaches watching games, are ‘22 said. impossible because there are no games. It can be difficult to stay As Miramonte student athletes endure a different recruiting motivated and driven sometimes, however, especially under the process, many are reflecting on what they are looking for in a specurrent circumstances it is crucial to continue contacting coaches and cific college. “I have been talking to colleges and figuring out what Photo: Lindsey Lucas doing everything in your ability,” varsity soccer player Giri Mase ‘22 said. my top choices are. I’m trying to make sure that my academics work for the In October, the NCAA announced that college athletes were granted another year schools that I’m interested in and figuring out ways to possibly visit the schools if ofof eligibility due to COVID-19 restricting their season. As a result of this announce- ficial visits can’t happen. The most important thing to me is figuring out what school ment, college coaches may not be looking for as many athletes to recruit. Athletes will be the best fit,” Lucas said. are usually given five years to compete in four seasons of the specific sport they are While new obstacles make the recruiting landscape far more complicated, Miraplaying in college, however due to the pandemic, athletes have been given an extra monte student athletes aren’t alone in facing these challenges. “Even though I’m not year to compete. “The college recruiting process has been different this year because getting the chance to play in front of college coaches, I’m staying optimistic because I COVID-19 has made it so that players can have extra years of eligibility, therefore know that everyone else in California and many other parts of the country are in the changing what players a school may need. This makes the process even harder because exact same situation as me,” varsity tennis player Nishad Elias ‘22 said.

12 SPORTS 03/15/21

Mirador

California Updates Return to Play Guidelines The California Department of Public Health revised their guidelines regarding youth and recreational sports on Feb. 19, leading to the March resumption of select outdoor high school sports

HENRY HILL

soccer, and boys lacrosse will all start on April 5.

The California Department of Public While the guidelines do provide Health (CDPH) announced an easing of much-needed clarity on the status of COVID-19 restrictions regarding youth outdoor sports, Governor Gavin Newand recreational sports on Feb. 19. The som has declined to release additional loosened guidelines state that all outdoor information on indoor sports. Indoor sports, regardless of contact or chance sports will remain on the tier system, of transmission, are permitted to start meaning counties must be in the yellow play when their county is at 14 cases per tier in order for these sports to have a 100,000 people, a major shift from the season. “It’s frustrating for me because tier system that had restricted the maI also want to play football and these jority of the state from participating in sports are conflicting. Considering they high-contact sports up until this point. haven’t updated guidelines for basket“Youth sports are important to our ball, it’s forcing me to choose one sport,” children’s physical and mental health. junior Ben Murphy said.

With case rates and hospitalizations deThe announcement follows months clining across California, we are allowof protesting by Let Them Play CA, a ing outdoor competition to resume, with Facebook group of over 61,000 parents Photo: Miramonte Boosters Club modifications and steps to reduce risk, in and coaches who all advocated for an Adam Ting ‘ 21 (above) is one Miramonte athlete that will return to their sport uncounties where case rates are lower.” Caliend to the old tier system. Let Them der the updated guidelines. Miramonte boys water polo will return on March 29. fornia Public Health Officer Dr. Tomás Play CA organized thousands of ralAragón said in a press release on Feb. 19. lies across California, including ones at all sports are canceled and seasons will be shortened, Under the tier system, which assigned sports to ranging from five to eight weeks. Only an athlete’s im- Acalanes High School and Campolindo High School, a COVID-19 tier based upon its chance of COV- mediate family is permitted to attend games in-person, and delivered over 12,000 handwritten letters from ID-19 transmission, low-contact sports in the purple but the Miramonte Boosters Club purchased high-def- doctors, athletes, and parents to Governor Newsomes tier like cross country, swimming, and tennis were the inition cameras that will broadcast competitions to fans office, all demanding change to the former tier system. only sports that started their seasons, as Contra Costa at home. Football and water polo athletes will be re- After months of advocacy, Let Them Play CA’s comCounty and the vast majority of the state was in the quired to test weekly for COVID-19. Despite all these mitment to bringing back California athletics has paid purple tier. In the new guidelines, however, a county can changes, athletes are still happy to even have a season. off. be in the purple tier and still play all outdoor sports, as- “I haven’t been able to play in a game in over a year and While many aspects of high school athletics are alsuming the county meets the set case threshold. At the I was not expecting a season. Knowing that I will be tered under these new guidelines, thousands of Califortime of the announcement on Feb. 19, Contra Costa playing soccer made me very happy,” sophomore Grant nia athletes once again have the opportunity to play the County had 15.3 cases per 100 thousand people, but the Scanlan said. sport they love. county dropped to 13.9 cases on Feb. 23, which cleared “I’ve played water polo all four years and it has been The announcement immediately incited a frenzy of it for competitions. planning and the restructuring of a new schedule by the my favorite thing about high school. I’ve made countUnfortunately, however, the guidelines have led to NCS. Under this schedule, football, girls lacrosse, and less friends through water polo and have made unique major changes in the structure and logistics of high softball started on March 1, while boys soccer started experiences that will last a lifetime. Letting us play school seasons. North Coast Section (NCS) and Cali- on March 8 and track and field started on March 15, means so much to Miramonte student athletes,” senior fornia Interscholastic Federation Championships for water polo will start on March 29, and baseball, girls Charlie Cohen said.

Seniors Participate in Altered Final Seasons

CHRIS MORRISON Scrambling to find out more information, a senior student athlete checks their email to find updates about their sport. The senior becomes distressed as they see indoor sports unchanged by California’s new guidelines, meaning they will have to wait until COVID-19 case numbers decrease in their county in order to suit up for their team.

Looking forward to senior season since their freshman year, the news leaves them extremely worried about the certainty of the supposed best part of their high school career.

In accordance with the California Department of Public Health and the California Interscholastic Federation, outdoor California high school sports can resume once a county has a case rate below 14 cases per 100,000 people.

Indoor sports athletes must wait until Contra Costa County reaches the yellow tier, which specifies that the county must have less than one positive case per 100,000 people.

Considering basketball, volleyball, and wrestling are all indoor sports, athletes of these sports have struggled to stay optimistic about their senior season. “Basketball is definitely the biggest aspect of my life. It’s really frustrating how much [COVID-19] has affected high school and club basketball.

We have to practice outside with worse baskets, bad weather, and on the concrete which is bad for our joints. It’s also more disappointing because it’s my last year at Miramonte and they are only approving basketball once every other sport is approved, so it’s a bad situation. However, I do try to stay optimistic because it would be awesome to have a chance to play,” girls basketball player Jordan Allred ‘21 said.

Even for the seniors who are playing outdoor sports, there are many changes that are altering the experience of their final high school season. Seasons are shortened, contact between teammates outside of practice is limited, and many of the customs of a normal season are cut.

“Right now, it looks like we’ll only have an eight week season, but we’re going to make the most of it. The length shouldn’t impact our traditions, but restrictions definitely will. Some of my favorite parts of the season have been carpooling to games and practices, dance parties in the locker room before games, and silly stuff like water balloon fights.

All of that will have to change, but luckily we still should be able to have some of our important traditions despite the short season. Especially right now, it’s tough to have a good attitude and stay motivated, but it’s really awesome to see all of our players pushing themselves and showing up for each other,” senior Mina Jenab said.

Along with worrying about restrictions, dual sport seniors may face issues with being required to choose one sport over another due to the postponed and now-overlapping seasons. The district is allowing students to play two sports at once, but many of the sports in the same season have conflicts. Seniors must make decisions on what practices or games to attend for either sport. However, similarities between sports such as cross country and track and field allow the transition to feel less rigorous. “Honestly, it feels like we’re just having a normal track season but the first half of it is being called cross country. The races are a bit different which is the main thing. The combined season is happening in the exact timespan of a regular track season which is why I feel that way,” boys cross country and track and field athlete Yoav Konstantino said.

Along with the shorter season, the North Coast Section Championships were cancelled for every sport. Most athletes look forward to this tournament, hoping to compete with teams outside of their league.

“I’m bummed to be missing [North Coast Section Championships], especially after getting robbed of a season last year. We’ll still hopefully have some form of league championship instead, which we’ll win. However, I don’t plan on motivating the team any differently than in years past. I know the boys are always hungry for wins and I know we’re gonna show out,” boys lacrosse player Rigby Blair ‘21 said.

“I’m just glad to have a high school season. Even if we don’t have playoffs and the chance to win our league, I’m very excited to get the chance to play for my high school during my senior year,” boys soccer player Adrien Argast ‘21 said.

As COVID-19 cases drop and new guidelines are implemented, the senior grows more optimistic that they will be able to finish their high school athletic career with a season.

Photo: Miramonte Boosters Club

Photo: @ladymats_hoops on Twitter

Photo: Miramonte Boosters Club

ENTERTAINMENT Mirador

03/15/21 ENTERTAINMENT 13

Photo: Blogspot.com

The Mirador’s Year In Review of Quarantine REAGAN KAELLE & GRACE LIU

Sadly, the arrival of autumn also brought a new school year, and stuIt’s hard to believe that the one year andents quickly realized that it bore no niversary of the first stay-at-home order is resemblance to phase one of quarantine; almost here! Almost a year ago, the COthe relatively easy asynchronous work VID-19 pandemic hit and changed everywe had come to know and love disapone’s lives. Students were sent home from peared. A long, long day of mandatory school Mar. 13, restaurants closed, and evsynchronous Zoom classes awaited stueryday life transformed into something nodents each morning. The “Harry Potter” body could’ve predicted. Let’s take a jourseries began to dominate TikTok, or, ney back in time and remember everything more specifically, a certain blonde boy by that happened over the course of this past the name of Draco Malfoy. Among Us year — every failed cupcake attempt, viral became an overnight sensation as teens video, sleepless night, and joyous moment. became obsessed with the mafia-like PHASE ONE: Extended Spring spaceship game.

Break PHASE FOUR: Seasonal DeThe initial stay-at-home order was an pression Times Ten era of attempted self-improvement and The end of Thanksgiving break ushwishful thinking. Families were forced to ered in the fourth and most recent phase spend time with each other like never beof quarantine, which brought not only a fore, and stumbling across toilet paper in watered down version of finals but also a the store felt like winning the lottery. “My desperate level of Christmas cheer comPhotos (clockwise from top left): Comicpoplibrary.com, Natalie Swanson, Movierewind.com, Fiona Young favorite phase of quarantine was a few Baking was popular in early quarantine thanks to TikTok and extra downtime at home. plete with hot chocolate bombs. Pinterweeks after spring break because my classes People fell in love with shows such as “Avatar: The Last Airbender” and “Tiger King”. est experienced a revival as many flocked did not have any mandatory Zooms and to its aesthetically pleasing home page my teachers were chill about the situation. and discovered minimalistic cakes and summer because things were starting to open up again so I I also liked it because I was going on walks every day with had the chance to swim and play golf. I really appreciated tiny sunglasses. Curtain bangs became all the rage, and pasmy friends and spent a lot of time with my siblings,” sopho- being able to get out of the house and be active,” senior ta baked with feta and tomatoes went viral on TikTok. Demore Paige Meyers said. pression set in after winter break ended and school became Hannah Klein said.

Netflix’s “Tiger King” went viral, along with Chloe “Relax, John B” became a meme as the release of Netf- increasingly hard; either that or the entire student body Ting’s 10 minute ab workout video on YouTube. In an at- lix’s show “Outer Banks” became a teenage obsession. Tik- collectively lost motivation. Aesthetic “Galentine’s Day” tempt to cure boredom, many took to baking bread and Tok star Charli D’Amelio dyed the front strips of her hair picnics became popular, complete with balloons, cakes, and cakes, making whipped coffee, going on distanced walks pink, which sparked an era of spontaneous hair cutting and blankets spaced six feet apart. Some school sports were with friends and family, completing puzzles, and “Netflix styling. When people stopped dyeing hair, they moved to permitted to an extent, additionally, Marvel’s widely anticiPartying” with friends. “My favorite trend of quarantine clothes; tie dye was all the rage whether it be sweatshirts, pated series “WandaVision” was released. “My favorite part was definitely the baking trend. I made a lot of bread and sweatpants, or socks. “My favorite trend from quarantine of quarantine was the beginning because I was a lot more even made traditional Pierogies,” senior Evy LaVelle said. was tie dye because it was super fun and a good way to oc- productive. My least favorite part is probably right now beSchool was mostly (if not entirely) asynchronous work, cupy myself when I was bored,” Meyers added. The release cause it has been so long and I want to be able to travel and with very few mandatory Zoom calls, and spring sports of “Animal Crossing: New Horizons” made the game im- socialize,” sophomore Hannah Jackson said. seasons were shut down.

So, as the hard-to-believe one-year anniversary of quarmensely popular, and the arrival of “Avatar: The Last AirPHASE TWO: Summer of No Memories bender” on Netflix broke records, becoming the show with antine looms ahead, remember the weeks that melted into Summer was filled with high screen time and atrocious the longest consecutive run on Netflix’s top 10 TV series months, the numerous entertaining FaceTime and Zoom sleep schedules, some sports began again, and re-introduc- chart (Hello, Zuko here!). call moments, and the countless hours scrolling through ing limited social interaction was a nice change from the PHASE THREE: Back to School but Not Really TikTok with a smile. Yes, COVID-19 has changed our lives, but, just like bread, we made the most of it. ongoing isolation. “My favorite phase of quarantine was the Back to School

How to Prepare for Return to Hybrid School

LAUREN CUNNINGHAM & CARLY HOSKINS

With hybrid school starting Mar. 16, we all need to get ready for in-person classes. By now, everyone has their online schedule down, but it’s time to switch back to old times. Here are a couple things to do before starting hybrid school.

Buy Masks With Zoom classes, masks aren’t necessary.

However, with in-person learning, masks are mandatory, so make sure to stock up. Ditch the scratchy disposable masks for some new fashionable ones. Not only do they keep us safe, but masks are a great way to make an outfit even better. “I don’t have many masks and end up just finding some around the house, so I’m definitely going to need to stock up before school,” junior Will Stryker said.

Photo: Carly Hoskins

Set your alarm It’s time to start setting your alarm earlier!

We know many of you are waking up five minutes before online school starts, but that has to stop. You now have to account for getting ready and getting to school on time because you can no longer do school right next to your bed (or in your bed on those particularly lazy days). “I think having that extra time awake in the morning will help me be more present and focused in class,” senior Jenna Foster said.

Photo: Carly Hoskins

Photo: Lauren Cunningham

Backpack We know it’s buried somewhere in your garage, but it’s time to pull out your old backpack.

It’s been a while since we have used them, but they will definitely be needed for in-person classes. Your room is no longer your personal locker or backpack, and it’s time to get organized! Take out the old pencils, gum, and pieces of paper, and do some back-to-school shopping. You’ll need some actual binders and folders to stay organized and maybe a pencil or two. Think back to what you would normally do to prepare for a first day of school in August and do exactly that! “I think the last time I used my backpack was last March at school,” sophomore Petra Cherry said.

Know where your classes are It can be tricky figuring out where all your classes are on the first day of school, and with school being online there was no need to memorize the location of your classes. However, it might be smart to visit the Miramonte website and find a map of the school so you can get a head start on knowing your way around your schedule. This is especially important if you are a freshman. “Personally I don’t have any prior knowledge of where my classes are mainly because I never thought we would be going back this year,” freshman Oliver Sherwood said.

Photo: Jessica Delp on Unsplash

Hopefully now you feel more prepared for going back to school and know exactly what to do for hybrid. We don’t want to catch anyone slacking off by wearing the same mask every day or showing up to school late for the second time in a week. Get ready Mats, because hybrid school is right around the corner!

Mirador

14 ENTERTAINMENT 03/15/21

YO MATS: The Mirador’s Fresh Satirical Segment Teachers Relearn Social Skills For Hybrid ALEXA GUUTU

With the hybrid learning model rapidly approaching, students and teachers returning to Miramonte need time to relearn and adapt to the new face of social interactions. There will be adjustments for everyone returning to school.

Instructing students during hybrid learning was different after almost a year without in-person, student-teacher interaction. Even though teachers already transitioned back to campus, students returning will require major adjustments. Here are some in-person learning social and non-social interactions that students and teachers should prepare for as hybrid learning begins: RECOGNIZING STUDENTS: Recognizing students after six months of only seeing each other over Zoom will be difficult. Not only have teachers never seen most of their students in person, but masks will make it much harder to identify who is who, not to mention identifying students who have consistently kept their cameras off in class. A study by the U.S. Facial Recognition team, developer of the Apple Face ID, confirmed that identifying people with masks will be 90 percent more difficult due to the 65 percent decrease of visible facial features. If modern iPhone Face ID technology can’t recognize your face with a mask on, then how are students and teachers supposed to do so at school?

“I saw one of my teachers in person once when I was picking up books at school and I talked to them for about 10 minutes. When I was leaving my teacher called me Ashley. I don’t think she recognized me with my mask so I left, and I’m pretty sure she still doesn’t know that I was the person she was talking to,” junior Edith Silva said.

MAKING SMALL TALK: In-person classes are more interactive than Zoom classes and walking in the hallways is more exciting than walking into the kitchen.

However this produces a new challenge: making conversation with real people. This not only applies to teachers, but everyone who returns to school. According to a study by the COVID-19 Teacher Support Association (CTSA), it’s predicted that three out of five teachers will

make in-person teaching more challenging than ever. Experts predict that certain subjects such as foreign languages and cooking may take longer to learn and produce mediocre outcomes.

COVID-19 RULES AND RESTRICTIONS: Staying COVID-19 safe in a classroom, as well as interacting, teaching, or learning while maintaining six feet distance and wearing a mask, will also take time. According to the COVID-19 Spacial Awareness Committee, 77 percent of students and teachers will violate the six-foot rule within the first day of transitioning. “I get too close to people and I don’t even realize it. I was at the mall a week ago and I completely forgot to social distance when I asked where the shoe section was. The employee gave me a dirty look until I realized, I was right up in his face. I got embarrassed and left. I definitely won’t go back to that store for a while,” student Otto Reyes said. New social distancing in the classroom also won’t be the same. Students will need access to charging stations as they bring devices to school for class work. The increase in demand for charging ports due to batteries being exhausted

by Zoom will be commonplace. It will be hard to remain a safe six feet with the limited amount of charging ports in a room, especially when students are required to stay socially distanced, or in desks for the majority of the period. Attending Zooms on the same laptops for over a year has also diminished the battery life of some computers, which will require more frequent charging. The National Battery Life Coalition warns that frequent laptop use due to distance learning has decreased battery power by Graphic: Reese Whipple approximetly 30 percent. “It’s horrible learning at home with my laptop. I have to charge it like every require from two to four weeks to get used to making small talk. Seven out of 10 students will require three two hours. Zoom just sucks the life out of my computer to six weeks to adapt. The CTSA also speculated that and I think it’s stuck like that forever. I usually spend there will be a learning curve in the beginning of transi- about five hours a day on TikTok and social media, but tioning back to school due to the lingering effects of in- now, keeping my laptop charged for school requires me troverted behavior. According to a study by The United to be permanently attached to the power outlet,” freshStates Introvert League, introverted student behavior man Bailey Willis said.

Hybrid school is starting, and we’re all in for some big is influenced by the decrease in social interaction due to the year-long quarantine. Introverted behavior com- adjustments. Just remember that there will be positives bined with student opposition to asking questions, will and negatives but we’ll all get through it.

The Vaccine Doesn’t Phase These Students

KIRSTIN PARKER

In December of 2020, coronavirus vaccines started being administered. Since then, many rumors are circulating the internet claiming numerous freaky side effects. A few examples range from the vaccine altering your DNA to even giving you the coronavirus itself. While these accusations are laughably false, they did succeed in spreading fear among the population. After a viral trend on TikTok, people explained the hilarious and sometimes gross reasons why they aren’t afraid of the vaccine. If you are feeling hesitant about receiving the vaccine, here are some Miramonte students’ reasons why you shouldn’t be.

“I’m not afraid to get the COVID-19 vaccine because I’ve pierced my own ears before,” freshman Gabbi Decareau said.

“I’m not afraid to get the COVID-19 vaccine because I eat burritos with a fork and a knife,” sophomore Ethan Coover said.

“I’m not afraid to get the COVID-19 vaccine because I shared a water bottle with 10 other girls during the flu season,” sophomore Stella Symonds said.

“I’m not afraid to get the COVID-19 vaccine because I don’t question what’s in movie theater popcorn butter,” sophomore Maya Martono said.

“I’m not afraid to get the COVID-19 vaccine because I held onto the BART railings as a kid,” junior Ava Christofferson said.

“I’m not afraid to get the COVID-19 vaccine because I ate food off of the floor all the time as a kid,” junior Mia Schraith said.

“I’m not afraid to get the COVID- 19 vaccine because I ate playdough as a kid, specifically orange,” sophomore Cameron Panzera said.

“I’m not afraid to get the COVID-19 vaccine because I’ve eaten Miramonte’s cafeteria food,” sophomore Emi Ross said.

“I’m not afraid to get the COVID-19 vaccine because I eat raw green beans,” sophomore Thomas Wilson said.

“I’m not afraid to get the COVID-19 vaccine because I’ve worn the Miramonte flag football belts during P.E. my freshman year,” junior Bridget Meagher said.

Mirador

03/15/21 ENTERTAINMENT 15

Fun COVID-19 Safe Activities in San Francisco SOPHIA ACEVEDO

Challenge Yourself to a Hike Up to Coit Tower If you’re looking to fulfill some fitness needs while exploring the quaint neighborhoods atop Telegraph Hill, I recommend hiking up the stairs to Coit Tower. In order to reach the tower, which is unmistakable in the city’s skyline, climb Telegraph Hill’s eastern slope via the Filbert Street stairs or the Greenwich Street stairs. Either way up includes 400 to 600 steps, so grab a mask and a bottle of water. “Climbing up the stairs to Coit Tower is definitely challenging but the view is so worth it. You can see the entire city and bay,” junior Frances Pope said.

Photo: Ronan Furuta on Unsplash

Take a Drive Down Lombard Street While you’re in San Francisco, drive down the infamous Lombard Street that’s labeled as the “most crooked street in the world”. If that title already makes you nervous, walk down it instead!

The street, located just one block south of Russian Hill Park, is lined with quaint houses and flights of stairs to accompany the steep road. The drive will definitely be impressionable and offers a spectacular view of more buzzing San Francisco streets.

Take a Masked Stroll Through the Palace of Fine Arts Built around a small, artificial lagoon, the Palace of Fine Arts is home to the gorgeous ruins of Renaissance and modern art. The beauty of its architecture and landscape is impressive and is a mustsee when you’re around the Marina District. With detailed architecture and a glistening pond, the palace remains one of San Francisco’s most popular sites to take photos at. I would highly recommend stopping by the Palace of Fine Arts for an enchanting view and enjoyable outdoor experience.

Photo: Nischal Malla on Unsplash

Photo: Jamie Say

Helpful Tips for Spring Cleaning AMALI CHATTERJEE Having a clean and comfortable living space is crucial, especially with our lives centered at home during the pandemic. With spring approaching, it’s time to declutter. Spring cleaning can be rejuvenating, yet a long and painstaking process. The Mirador has gathered some tips for organization, cleanliness, and overall peace.

Tip #1- Clean bedding

Keeping your bed fresh and clean is very important, as it’s the place where we spend a third of the day. It may sound weird, but sprinkling some baking soda on your mattress is very beneficial. This will freshen it up and get rid of odors, dust mites, moisture, and dirt. After, vacuum the mattress and sweep underneath the bed for dust bunnies. Try to wash your sheets once a week. This will help keep bedding clean and free of dirt.

Tip #2 - Letting go of unnecessary items

Now is the time to let go of some of the items causing clutter. Clean out your desk, closet, and other cluttered places in your room. This will leave you feeling accomplished and your room more spacious. The Salvation Army is a great place to donate your unused household items. There are a few locations in Oakland where you can drop it off or schedule a free pickup from your home.

Tip #3 - Giving away clothing

When you are having difficulty fitting new clothes into your dresser, you know it’s time to give away some clothing. Now’s the chance to let go of those jeans that don’t fit you anymore and that old shirt you’ve kept for no particular reason. “Out with the old and in with the new” as they say.

Donation bins can be found all over Lamorinda, including the Chevron gas station near the Moraga Safeway and the rite-aid in Orinda.

Tip #4 - Cleaning your devices

Device use has become more prevalent, especially now with more time at home. But with use, comes germs. Since we take our phones everywhere, it’s just as important to clean our devices as much as our hands. Use some distilled water and 70 percent isopropyl alcohol. Mix a one-to-one ratio of them together and pour it into a spray bottle. Take your phone out of your case. Use a microfiber cloth and lightly spray the mixture on to the cloth. Clean the front, back and inside of the phone case.

Play Spike Ball at Baker Beach For a quick road trip into the city, stop by Baker Beach, a Miramonte student favorite, and enjoy the gorgeous views of the Golden Gate Bridge. While you’re at it, whip out a spike ball net and compete with friends while socially distanced!

The mile-long beach is surrounded by the rugged cliffs of the Presidio shoreline and provides a panoramic view of the Marin Headlands and infamous Golden Gate Bridge. The landscape is perfect for taking pictures and enjoying company while wearing masks and taking safety precautions.

“Baker Beach is definitely one of my favorite places to go in San Francisco. I always play spikeball there with my friends and it has one of the best views of the bridge,” sophomore Carson Dennis said.

Photo: Aiden Bowen

Have a Picnic in Chrissy Fields Chrissy Fields is the perfect destination to enjoy a relaxing picnic and nice getaway from the screen. From the lush green fields to the inviting shores, Chrissy Fields is a great spot for tossing the frisby around and soaking up some sun (or in some cases, a lot of fog). “I always enjoy stopping by Chrissy Fields with my family because the views are great and my dog Lola loves to play fetch there,” junior Giri Maise said.

Take Photos at the Marin Headlands Lookout You may wonder why this particular spot looks familiar; it’s because this picturesque view of the Golden Gate Bridge can be found scattered across various Miramonte student Instagram pages (and for good reason). While it isn’t located directly in San Francisco, this breathtaking lookout spot is perfect for enjoying the beauty of the bridge and capturing an impressive photo. You can access this stunning lookout by taking the twisty and scenic Conzelman Road.

Thankfully, there’s plenty of room to gaze at the view while distancing from others and keeping your mask on!

Photo: Lila Hill

Photo: Lanie Pritchard

“The Story of Stella: a Memoir” Review CAYDE SCHMEDDING

March 2020 the coronavirus changed the lives of everyone worldwide as restaurants hung their “closed” signs, families quarantined at home, and schools moved to online learning. In the unending months to come, each individual experienced the shelter-in-place and the looming presence of the virus differently: some enjoyed the time of solidarity while others battled loneliness in the face of isolation.

Lafayette Elementary School student Stella Ciarlantini, daughter of Miramonte drama teacher Heather Cousins’, recorded her personal struggle and feelings of anxiety after schools closed their doors. Her deeply personal and honest retelling of her experience in the spring and summer of 2020 not only reflects the unique experience of elementary school students, but also serves as an important reflection for high school students. Don’t be fooled by her being only 11 years old, the honesty of her writing allows Miramonte students who are teetering on the brink of adulthood to think back to a simpler, more innocent time and perhaps understand their own internal feelings. Regardless of age, “The Story of Stella: a Memoir” will teach you something about yourself. The memoir is available for purchase on Amazon.

“Stella, I’m an 80-year-old grandma and I learned from you. When I taught school I loved fourth grade best of all so I can understand your sense of loss completely,” reader, Carol Gilbert said.

Ciarlantini begins before the coronavirus, giving a stark contrast between life before and after, shifting then to the first outbreaks in the Bay Area and the weeks when the coronavirus only seemed a minor nuisance rather than a worldwide pandemic. The rest

of the memoir focuses on moments throughout the online school year and summer of 2020. From mental breakdowns comforted by her mother, to selfactualization and triumphs over sadness, Ciarlantini displays a wide range of emotions and complexity.

The level of emotion is so honest and powerful that it’s impossible to not become more deeply engaged with every turn of the page. After facing the cancelation of her school musical, not being able to see her friends, and not taking their summer vacation to Italy to see her grandparents, Ciarlantini maintains hope and becomes stronger for it.

“Writing was a great way for her to focus on something very positive and it really seemed to help. If writing the book could help her in some way, then reading the book might help other kids understand that they weren’t alone,” Cousins said.

Jamie Whaley, Ciarlantini’s fourth grade teacher who appears often throughout the book, first suggested she write the memoir.

From there, Ciarlantini worked on her book throughout the summer and school year. Her mother wasn’t allowed to read it until it was completed and the results were shocking. She also designed Photo: Stella Ciarlantini the cover art and made the decision to publish her memoir on Amazon.

Outside her impressive accomplishments with writing, Ciarlantini likes to read, especially historical fiction, act, and participates in swimming and track.

Like her mother, Ciarlantini is an accomplished actor. As mentioned in her book, Ciarlantini got the leading role in her school musical, “Mary Poppins,” and is the youngest to attend a theater intensive summer camp.

Ciarlantini hopes to one day write fiction and perhaps pursue a career in journalism—and we know The Mirador would love to have her! We know she’ll achieve more than she can imagine.

16 ENTERTAINMENT 03/15/21

Mirador

Which Zodiac Signs are the Most Compatible?

ELLIE BELSHAW

SCORPIO & PISCES (Oct. 23 - Nov. 21)(Feb. 19 - March 20)

AQUARIUS & Libra (Jan. 20 - Feb. 18) (Sep. 23 - Oct. 22)

Scorpios and Pisces are immediately drawn to each other. There is a significant amount of trust between these two signs, because they feel they can tell each other anything.

But, things may become out of hand easily if drama or bad habits come to play, so communication between these two signs is key. On the other hand, Gemini is one of the least compatible zodiac signs with Scorpio or Pisces. If one of these signs were to start a relationship with a Gemini, things would seem great at first. But later on, their differences would make it very difficult to obtain a long term relationship.

Aquariuses and Libras are a dynamic duo! They balance each other out; with a Libra’s energetic, contagious attitude, and an Aquarius social butterfly, these two make a great impression on others. Aquariuses enjoy doing what makes them happy, even if they aren’t following the rules. Libras have a great influence on Aquarius because they are very idealistic. However, the sign that would have the worst influence on either of them is a Virgo. Libra’s goofy personality would drive a Virgo out of their mind. Also since Aquariuses tend to get distracted easily, a Virgo’s efficient work schedule would just not be enjoyable for either sign.

CANCER & VIrgo (June 21 - July 22) (Aug. 23 - Sep. 22)

SAGITTARIUS & ARIes (Nov. 22 - Dec. 21) (March 21 - April 19)

Reliability and trust is key when it comes to Cancers and Virgos. They both go out of their way to make sure the other is excelling. Although fun and social, personal time is important to both of these signs. If they don’t get enough alone time, they can become grumpy and unenjoyable to be around. A sign that both of these two should avoid is Sagittarius. If a Sagittarius were to be paired up with a Cancer or Virgo, they might find themselves going crazy. Their drastic difference in personality wouldn’t last long, as they would view Sagittariuses as careless and wild, a sharp contrast to their calm, loving nature.

Both Sagittariuses and Aries are incredibly spontaneous and fun, which makes it easy for them to get along. Aries tend to be very straightforward, and Sagittarius3w are crazy, so their personalities greatly complete and balance each other out and Aries keeps Sagittariuses in check. Sagittariuses may become out of hand sometimes, but it isn’t a problem when they have an Aries to calm them down! Cancers are signs that shouldn’t get mixed with either a Sagittarius or Aries. Cancers can become easily offended by Aries’ straightforward comments, which makes it difficult for them to become friends.

TAURUS & CAPRICORN (April 20 - May 20) (Dec. 22 - Jan. 19) Tauruses and Capricorns are a very harmonious match. Both Earth signs are strategic and have a valid thought process behind everything. They are also both realistic which comes in handy when trying to solve a problem. Capricorns view Tauruses as their role models because they are fond of their work ethic and perseverance. Their transparency with each other improves their stability and mindset, which can greatly benefit them in their future careers. A Leo is the worst zodiac sign to pair up with a Taurus or Capricorn. Leos have a bubbly personality, and enjoy receiving compliments regularly. A Taurus will not provide this type of satisfaction, which makes it difficult for these two to get along. If a Capricorn can’t handle a Leo’s fun and wild personality, they will feel like they have nobody to rely on and make them second guess their stability.

LEO & GEMINI (July 23 - Aug. 22)(May 21 - June 20) Together, Leos and Geminis are the life of the party! Their entertaining personalities immediately click when together. Creativity is one of their strengths, causing them to be very collaborative when it comes to working together. Support is the most important aspect of maintaining a healthy relationship between these two signs. In order for neither of them to feel like they are being taken for granted, they must provide recognition towards each other. The least compatible sign for Leos and Geminis would be Tauruses. Taurues are no match for their energy and quick thinking. Since Tauruses are more laid back and slow-moving, it would be very difficult for Leos and Geminis to get along with Taurus for a long period of time.

Photos: Freepic.com

Ranking the Best & Worst Girl Scout Cookies MICHELLE ZHOU

It’s Girl Scout cookie season and although COVID-19 puts a halt on many traditions, it hasn’t stopped the sale of cookies this year. And with that, comes the inevitable arguments about which cookies are actually the best. The Mirador has created a definite ranking of the best and worst Girl Scout Cookies.

Tagalongs- 4 / 5 This classic combination of peanut butter and chocolate is perfect for anyone and you can hardly go wrong, well unless of course, you have a nut allergy! The smooth chocolate coats the inner creamy peanut butter, balanced out by the crispy cookie. Although these are a great option, not many people can eat these cookies and some argue that they are too sweet.

Thin Mints- 5 / 5 Vegan? No problem, thin mints are a great option. Stick them in the freezer and in an hour, they are the perfect cold, crunchy treat. These cookies have a unique blend of a subtle mint flavor and chocolate. These are hands down the best Girl Scout cookies because of their interesting flavor combination along with the crunchieness you recieve in each bite. “I like Thin Mints because they are tasty and vegan,” sophomore Phoenix Dennis said.

S’mores- 2.5 / 5 After this cookie came out in 2017, there were some mixed feelings that came along with it. While the idea of a s’mores cookie is creative, the sweetness is a bit too much and the marshmallow’s texture does not resemble a traditional marshmallow. You will probably not be able to eat more than three cookies all in one sitting as compared to your other, more bingeable options.

Samoas- 4.5 / 5 Biting down, you are immediately hit with a crunchy toasted coconut flavor. It compliments nicely with the milk chocolate beneath it and not to mention its one-of-a-kind ring shape. “Samoas are my favorite because they’re very different from all the other ones,” sophomore Hanna Nguyen said.

Trefoil- 3.5 / 5 This is a straightforward shortbread cookie. It’s the simplest flavor in the collection and perfect for anyone who doesn’t like overly sweet things. With its satisfying crunch and buttery soft texture, it is a popular choice. And while it isn’t the worse option, there are definitely better flavors out there.