na pueo news
What does the third school year affected by COVID look like? Find out about COVID-19 this year.
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editorial
Is this year be more stressful than last year? Find out how you can turn your stress into motivation.
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the diamond
What was the olympics like this year? Learn about the behind the scenes.
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features
Are you coming to class fashionably and Instagram-worthy to school? Find out if you’re in dress code.
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back page
How does social media affect your life? Find out about students’ opinion.
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FACE-TO-FACE:
By Kenna Kaneshiro Staff Writer Recently, with more flexible COVID-19 regulations, school clubs have the ability to begin meeting in person. “This year we put the clubs on a big Padlet that we shared with everybody, and then students could join Zoom rooms that the clubs had opened up using that time,” said Bill Wheeler, Director of Student Activities. However, students who were not able to physically make meetings in the past have somewhat benefitted within the last year. It is easier to attend club meetings virtually and be more involved than they would’ve if there weren’t any precautions. “I joined most of my clubs last year, so I’m
STUDENT NEWSPAPER FOR MID-PACIFIC NOVEMBER 2021 VOLUME 56 ISSUE 1 NAPUEO.COM
Some clubs move in-person after year of mandated online meetings
Left: Students line up for an Easter Seals fundraiser on Oct. 26. Photo by Sydney Woolley. Above right: Easter Seals members collected many books for people with special needs to read. Photo by Jennifer Duncan.
not sure what the norm is, but I would assume that the only difference is that everyone is a lot closer together, and I guess activities are more hands on versus a lot of virtual stuff that we do,” said sophomore Sydney
Woolley, a member of MUN, Chinese Club, Easter Seals, Random Acts of Kindness Club, Study Buddies, and an editor for the Literary and Art Magazine. Some competitive clubs, such as the Math
Students, teachers adjust to new school schedule By Kayla Tom and Mehana Watanabe Staff Writers
During the current and first full year of in-person learning after being online, MidPacific made adjustments to the school schedule. “The schedule could use some work. I don’t like starting early in the morning since there’s a lot of traffic in the morning, and it takes a while to get to school, but I do like ending earlier,” said senior Kennedy Hara. Since school begins earlier, the end time is now at 2:25 p.m. every day compared to the previous years when school ended at 3:10 p.m. on odd days, and 2:25 p.m. on even days. Others appreciated the earli-
er start since the ending time is sooner as well. It allows enough time for extracurricular activities, such as practices or games. “I really like the start time and end time because after school it gives me time to get to my extracurricular activities. Last year when school ended at 3:10 p.m. I felt rushed,” said sophomore Ava Lee. For others, having an earlier end time results in student athletes missing less school time, as leaving early can be an inconvenience. “One of the key constraints is sports because when athletes leave early they fall be-
“I don’t understand why we have homeroom everyday even though we don’t have office hours ever day” - Kennedy Hara, grade 12
See SCHEDULING page 2
Team and Cyber Owls are still managing on Zoom, which is how they functioned before COVID. “The mask kind of hides your expressions and the way that you express to other people,” said junior Liana Ono, a member in Study Buddies, Future Farmers of America and Easter Seals. Larger clubs have mostly been affected, being restricted from
passing out food items and having a large number of students gathered in one area. “The biggest thing was that the students couldn’t meet in person, but this week they told us that we’re allowed to meet in person, so this week we have our first in person meeting since February of 2019,” said Michael Hangai, the advisor for Christian Club.
See CLUBS page 2
Majority of Mid-Pacific’s community vaccinated By Evan Baron Staff Writer
As Mid-Pacific proceeds with its second year of in-person classes during the COVID-19 pandemic, school administrators are making decisions about the future of physical measures against COVID-19 on campus. “With the spike with delta, we’re actually a lot more restricted right now then we thought we’d be,” said Vice President for Academic Affairs and COVID Response Leigh Fitzgerald, on the state of the schools COVID-19 policies. According to state Department of Health data, there was a 2000 percent increase in Hawaii COVID-19 cases after the relative lull over the summer break. As a result, the school has changed its course on their COVID-19 measures instead of easing restrictions. “We wanted to begin to not require masking outdoors. Given the delta variant, it became a recommendation to still mask outdoors. That could be an area where if things begin to calm down, perhaps we could relax that,” said Fitzgerald.
Covid measures have other effects aside from slowing the spread of COVID-19. They prohibit students from more quality time with their friends. “I miss just doing stuff with friends without having to worry about them being at risk, and not having to social distance while you eat and stuff, ” said junior Anabella Arzate. Although vaccine mandates are becoming more universal among governments and institutions
See VACCINATIONS page 2
news
VACCINATIONS: Owl welcomes four new teachers Na Pueo staff reporter Steven Aspera interviewed the newest members in the Mid-Pacific faculty by asking these questions: 1) Where did you originally work/ teach before attending Mid-Pacific? 2) What made you decide to come to Mid-Pacific and what is your favorite part of Mid-Pacific? 3) A) If you could be one animal what would it be and why? B) If you could travel to any part of the world, where would you go and why? C) If you could time travel, when would you go Cindy Kinnear (Freshman Dean):
1) Ms. Kinnear moved to Hawaii three years ago, and taught third grade at St. Andrew’s Priory. 2) She wanted to return to teaching high school, and Mid-Pacific’s arts program intrigued her. Kinnear’s favorite thing about Mid-Pacific is getting to know the freshmen. 3A) When asked what animal she would like to be, she said a koala since she loves Australia, loves their vibe and the fact that they always sleep.
Maria Prust (Science Teacher): 1) Before teaching at
CLUBS:
Certain things haven’t changed due to the pandemic, especially where clubs have been meeting, which are mainly in classrooms and other spaces around campus. Currently, clubs have a maximum capacity of approximately 15 people within a room, and
SCHEDULING:
hind, so starting school earlier is a bright spot. Starting earlier is preferred, even though we may lose a little bit of efficiency in the morning because our brains aren’t awake for high school,” said math teacher Raymond LaFleur, ‘04. With the schedule change, homeroom was added to the daily schedule. In previous years, homeroom was only on odd days during the mornings, and office hours would take place before and after school. In addition, office hours are now on B and C days during homeroom. At this time seniors with a minimum GPA of 2.5 have the option to leave campus. Office hours are also on A days, after school from 2:30-3:15 p.m. “I don’t understand why we have homeroom every day even though we don’t have office hours everyday. I think we should have office hours in the morning or after school so that everyone doesn’t have to stay for office hours, if you don’t need it,” said Hara.
Mid-Pacific Ms. Prust taught at a small private school in San Diego for three years. 2) She came to Mid-Pacific because it is similar to her old school and she likes the culture, administration, and the mission. 3C) When asked if you could travel in time, forward or back, she responded that she did not want to travel to the future because too much is unknown. She wanted to go back to Ancient Greek and Roman times because she really likes the culture and wanted to see the coliseum in action.
Kara Hisatake (English Teacher): 1) Dr. Hisatake taught at Sacred Hearts for two years. 2) She came to Mid-Pacific there are hopes to expand the capacity eventually allowing events that can involve both club and non club members. “For me personally I’m a part of the Easter Seals Club and what we do is on campus activities to raise money for organizations and because of Covid we haven’t been able to do much of that,” said Woolley. Others feel that having a homeroom every day is a good asset to get closer to your homeroom class. “This year I do think there’s an aspect of a homeroom community. That’s been nice. Last year and in previous years we only saw our homeroom a couple of days a week. I didn’t know my homeroom that well, but now every day you can know people’s personality more and you can talk to them more, it’s a nice feature,” said senior Julian Ibarra. The passing time this year is only five minutes instead of 10 minutes from previous years. However, some teachers excuse students five minutes earlier, to give them a 10 minutes passing time. “Some teachers don’t let students out earlier, and from far distances, it can be difficult to get to the next class in time. Back in my day our passing time was seven minutes, and I think that seven minutes is the perfect passing time, not too long, and not too short,” said LaFleur. Students and faculty also have hesitations about the new
because it is a bigger school and there were more opportunities, and it is co-ed. Hisatake said her favorite thing about Mid-Pacific is journalism. It is her most challenging class and you can discover many things about the school. 3B) When asked where she would like to travel, she said that she really wanted to travel to Seattle because her trip got canceled last year due to COVID-19.
Noa Berry (Social Studies Teacher):
1) Before working at Mid-Pacific, Mr. Berry was a lifeguard and substitute teacher at Kamehameha Schools Maui. 2) He However, Easter Seals was able to host their first fundraiser during COVID on Oct. 26 making over $40o The goal for the spring semester is to broaden the capabilities of the clubs and the activities they can do, opening up campus a little more and letting students do more in person activities.
likes Mid-Pacific because of the size of the school. He also had family that previously attended Mid-Pacific, which gave him a connection to this school. 3A) When asked what animal he would like to be, he said a moose because of their large size, and he’s been wanting to go and see one. “I expect it to improve, in the second semester, we’re hoping that we can be more open with the types of things that we do,” said Above: Scan the code for Wheeler. the padlet with all the clubs.
Sophomore students eat lunch in their grade’s designated lunch area. Photo by staff photographer Dillon Balantac.
lunch schedule. Before, students were offered 45 minutes to buy and eat lunch, and there were two different lunches for high school. “It’s simpler as far as the first and second lunch thing, that’s good,”said Ibarra. Students now receive ten minutes less to get their lunch and eat. “Although I take home lunch everyday, I think that lunch should be longer. I think we should extend our lunch time to at least 15 minutes more,” said Lee. As of the beginning of Octo-
ber, students were assigned to sit in their designated area where each grade eats together. LaFleur recognizes that the administration can’t please everyone. “No schedule will ever be perfect. There are some things I agree and disagree on, although not everyone may feel the same way. Scheduling is a very high complexity and challenging problem. It is very hard to manage all the expectations,” said LaFleur.
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Mid-Pacific has not mandated one. Regardless, Mid-Pacific has a 99 percent vaccination rate among staff and an 85 percent rate among eligible students, per survey results shared by school president Dr. Paul Turnbull through a school-wide health email. “One side of me says it’s fine, we do have a mandate for other vaccines here and most schools do. I don’t know, it’s a controversial topic but it’s FDA approved. I’d like to see more of both arguments too,” said Mid-Pacific Exploratory teacher Gregg Kaneko on vaccine mandates. Not everyone rushed to get their vaccine as soon as it was available due to concerns surrounding the speed at which the vaccine was developed. “Well, it was mostly my parents. We just wanted to see what would happen in the future because there was no proof of any effects in the future or things like that. We just wanted to wait and see what happened,” said a student who was hesitant about the vaccine but has since been vaccinated. As of Sept. 22, people in professions that carry a high risk of COVID-19 exposure, including teachers, are eligible to receive covid booster shots. “It’ll definitely help with the level of anxiety of being out and about around people. What I’m still waiting for is to see the data for how it [the vaccine] increases the protection, especially against the Delta variant,” said Kaneko. On Oct. 25, the FDA approved COVID-19 booster shots that are different from the original first two doses. “What’s cool is that they approved the mix and match method,” said Kaneko. However, the question of whether or not Mid-Pacific will implement a vaccine mandate is still undecided. “It’s not off the table,” said Fitzgerald about a school vaccine mandate. “We want this first semester of data to see if we’re seeing any spread on campus, which thus far we haven’t. COVID-19 mitigation measures, while proven effective, are still controversial. “Anything we do, some people are happy about it and some people are upset about it, and if we did the opposite thing, it would flip. This is an impossible situation in which to satisfy everybody,” said Fitzgerald.
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Editorial page
Turn your stress into motivation
Siena Usui & Chelsee Sawai: Letter from the editors-in-chief
Welcome to this school year’s first edition of Na Pueo! We want to focus on a topic we can all relate to: stress. Can 2021 be worse than 2020? According to an article from The Brink, the number of adults with depression in the early 2020 months of the pandemic was at 27.8 percent. New research by Boston University School of Public Health revealed that the rate of depression in 2021 worsened, reaching 32.8 percent. This year, we have definitely noticed that more of our classmates have complained about getting through the year. Becoming used to being in school full time, unlike being online virtually, has been a major adjustment for many. On top of this, as seniors, we’ve been filling out college applications while balancing schoolwork and part-time jobs. It’s been extremely stressful, especially as we near the end of the first semester. Our generation has been the first in a century to undergo a pandemic during our teenage years, a time when we are most vulnerable. Don’t underestimate the toll it can take on us. If you feel overwhelmed, try to focus on getting through the week instead of the future. Setting doable goals that can be accomplished in the next few days rather than concentrating on long term ones can be beneficial to help you complete them. Although the stress of school has become a consuming
aspect in our lives as students, according to a study done by the University of Rochester, psychologists have found that college students who reinterpret their stress response as performance-enhancing are less anxious and generally healthier. This mindset is a good tool to use as we get through the stress and anxiety that comes with the job of working hard in school. We can all relate to having these feelings and know it’s hard to attain this mindset when obstacles are coming our way. We’re trying to push through all the homework we receive on sleepless nights, the quizzes that get assigned one after the other, extracurricular activities, and completing college applications. After all, there’s only so much time in the day to complete our priorities in an efficient manner. Nonetheless, the University of Rocheser study is right in that our minds are stronger than our reactions. It is up to us to determine how we react to those stressful moments. We can choose to either let the negativity consume us or rise above it and, with intent, use it as motivation to keep going. Especially during the pandemic, I, Chelsee, have been tempted to give up. However, the idea of putting in minimal effort and picturing how negatively that could go motivates me to work hard, putting me closer to my goals of excelling. Another solution to these pressing times is affirmations to yourself. Take a deep breath and say positive things such as “I am enough,” “I can do this,” and “I will not let this obstacle drag me down.” Being able to complete your tasks starts with you finding that balance when pushing yourself to your limits and being mentally kind to yourself.
Editorial cartoon by Maya Copeland
Do we still need Pride?
Honolulu Pride was stuffy, loud, bright, and sweaty but most importantly, it was a place Charlize Gaudiello: where people Editorial Editor could convene and celebrate the queer community. There are two versions of “pride.” There is pride as in the feeling the queer community associates with being proud of who they are. Then there is Pride as in the parades or celebrations that take place in the queer community. Lately, I’ve noticed that people believe pride should no longer be celebrated. This is due to how rights for queer people have progressed in the United States. While there is some merit to this argument, we should not forget about the widespread homophobia and transphobia that still exists and the parts of the queer community that are still fighting for their rights. Sophomore Maile
Hirschmann said Pride provides an opportunity for growth. “We aren’t always gathered in the way that pride brings us together. I think that’s an important time for us to discuss what we can do, discuss important issues, connect to people in the community that may not have the same privilege that we do,” Hirschmann said. In the past, Pride was considered a protest because of the inequality members of the queer community faced; that has since changed. Even though Pride isn’t necessarily considered a protest now, there is still work to be done. Cris Pasquil is an advisor of Diversity-Equity-Inclusion, a group at Mid-Pacific dedicated to having open discussions with students and faculty about various issues involving race, gender and sexuality, socioeconomic status, identity, ability and more. “One of the reasons why we have pride celebrations is because of the history of discrimination and just terrible, terrible things that have
happened in the past, but still happen today,” Pasquil said. In a place where so many people don’t feel seen or safe, how are we supposed to say the “fight is over?” A lot of members in the community still face social and systemic issues, especially outside of the United States. Tyrael Goo is a junior who puts an emphasis on the celebration of global pride. “The more important thing is to continue pushing for people’s rights in those countries,” they said. “More important than celebrating yourself should be supporting each other.” To say pride should end all together is not effective. We should celebrate how far we’ve come while thinking about where we can improve.
Edited for print, scan code for full version.
-Na Pueo StaffEditors-in-Chief
Photo Editor
Chelsee Sawai & Siena Usui
Dillon Balantac
Features Editor
Social Media Editor
Josephine Brewer
Editorial Editor
Charlize Gaudiello
News Editor
Kamm Kojima
Sports Editor
Steven Aspera
Kayla Tom
Online Editor
Mehana Watanabe
Backpage Editor
Tia Shimabukuro
Staff Writers
Johnathan Aspera Evan Baron
Grant Hogan Jamie Hiremath Kenna Kaneshiro Jackson Keenan Raymond King Danika Kusumoto Archer Liang Joaquin Mejia Chloe Platt Katie Troske Kanoa Young
Adviser
Kara Hisatake
Information
Na Pueo is published by dedicated Mid-Pacific students. Personal opinions expressed by students, faculty and staff or outside guests do not necessarily reflect those of Mid-Pacific. We welcome contributions and feedback and will strive to maintain a high standard of professional journalism. Send letters, submissions and suggestions to:
Contacts:
Na Pueo c/o Mid-Pacific 2445 Kaala St. Honolulu, HI 96822 (808) 973-5000 newspaper@midpac.edu Please contact Na Pueo for advertising information and rates. All articles and photographs are copyright (c) MidPacific Institute.
features
STUDENTS SPEAK OUT:
MID-PACIFIC LIFE
Calling the new dress code ‘sexist’ and ‘outdated’
Clockwise from upper left: Junior Zoe Renee Porlas-Silva , freshman Azaliah Kekuna and teacher Jennifer Duncan show their styles. Photos by staff photographer Dillon Balantac.
By Dillon Balantac, Jamie Hiremath and Archer Liang Staff Writers
No skimpy shorts or tops. No slippers. Dress conservatively and look “professional.” Sometimes, dressing for school can feel like getting ready for Sunday church. Mid-Pacific recently loosened restrictions on the student dress code. The new changes were implemented at the start of this school year, and now students can wear shirts without collars, dye their hair and wear leggings. Middle and High School Principal Dwayne Priester played a vital role in changing the most recent dress code. The revisions of the new dress code were aimed to “stray from gender specific language” and “create a more inclusive environment, where students can express their individuality,” said
Priester. But is the new dress code actually gender-neutral and inclusive? An on-the-street poll taken by 100 Mid-Pacific students conducted by Na Pueo staffers found that 88 percent of participants believe the dress code to be “sexist.” The remaining 12 percent of participants who believed it was not sexist were all male students. Sections of the newest MidPacific dress code states: Tops - Tops that reflect a professional student learner appearance may be worn. It must completely cover the torso. This may include but not limited to Mid-Pacific logo polo shirts, Pueo Pride and Mid-Pacific tops that represent a club, team, or the school. Bottoms - May not be higher than 2 [inches] above
See FASHION page 5
Alumna shares behind-the-scenes look in clothing industry By Siena Usui and Danika Kusumoto Staff Writers Rolls of colorful fabric dangle from the walls of Ten Tomorrow, a small clothing business located in Kaimuki. Summer Shiigi, ‘03 Mid-Pacific alumna, owns Ten Tomorrow. She founded the shop in 2013, which specializes in modern resort wear that is locally sourced from Hawaii. “Our workspace is upstairs while our shop is downstairs, so customers can come shop and also kind of get a sneak peek behind the scenes of what it takes to run a fashion brand here locally,” said Shiigi. Shiigi had a history in retail before starting her own business, reaching out to friends as potential coworkers. “We’re friends and she knew I was working for another company and was able to offer me a position here, and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to work for a smaller company and to be able to work with somebody who is really hands-on,” said Nikki Tanaka, store manager. Tanaka said an average day at work involves the staff arriving and first opening the store before checking the inventory on the floor. “We make sure that everything is restocked, cleaned, and just ready for customers to come in,” said Tanaka. After graduating from Mid-Pacific,
Shiigi attended University of Hawaii before ending up at University of Southern California and graduating with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology. “I think what was great about Mid-Pacific was it really felt like a school that had well prepared me for college, and I felt like my personal skills, work ethic skills, all of that was kickstarted by Midpac,” said Shiigi. Shiigi said she started in the fashion industry as a stylist and began a company called Summer’s Style. It involved her setting up contracts with stores or designers and taking the clothing to create a luxury shopping experience for customers at their home or office. “I think just naturally from building Summer’s Style and getting to know the local fashion scene,” Shiigi said. “It piqued my interest to see instead of just styling, if I could branch out into the actual design and making. I was just curious at what it was like and what starting a brand would take, and then I never looked back.” Mari Nakamura joined Shiigi’s team as a production manager at the very beginning, and explained how she helps out with the many different pieces. “We work with a couple local factories, so just managing where everything is, fabric ordering, and working with our vendors to make sure we have enough fabric. We always have to plan ahead for our collection,” said Nakamura.
Ten Tomorrow founder and Mid-Pacific alumna Summer Shiigi works inside her store. She began in the fasion industry as a stylist. Photo by Ten Tomorrow. See ALUMNA page 5
features
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Fashion trends on campus Collage and Photos by Dillon Balantac
Short shorts Left: A trend of the past has resurrected to capture the attention of men. Something that was deemed as a more feminine look in recent years has taken a turn for the better. Short shorts highlight your legs and boys are taking every opportunity to show them off.
White shoes, boots and platforms
ALUMNA:
Summer Shiigi measures a new length of cloth for her clothing line. Photo by Ten Tomorrow. For students interested from the university level in pursuing a career in the as well as a few ambitious fashion industry, Shiigi high schoolers. has a few pieces of advice. “I had a great mentor “I would try to when I got “I had a greater started, and I reach out to the brand that speaks mentor when I got think it’s those to you, see if you started, and I think relationships can just shadow it’s those relation- that have cartheir work, get ried me through ships that have today,” Shiigi an internship, carried me through said. work for them, today.” -Summer whatever it takes Shiigi said just to get a sneak she felt very Shiigi, alumna peek. And any supported by work experiMid-Pacific, ence you have here will comparing it to the translate if you do want to unique and beautiful aloha branch out to something spirit. bigger on the mainland,” “The great thing about said Shiigi. Mid-Pacific was it really Ten Tomorrow norfostered creativeness and mally accepts interns on the arts, and I think that a regular basis, with the stuck with me this entire majority of them coming time,” Shiigi said.
Left: The brave and bold are strutting around in bright white and big platforms. Regardless of the sore ankles and blisters, girls and boys are showing up to school ready to catwalk. Shoes are no longer there complete an outfit and maybe steal the show.
FASHION:
Oversized sweaters
Above: Oversized tops continue to provide an effortlessly cool and comfy look while making the wearer feel it, too. The morning time is difficult and putting together an outfit can make things more grueling, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Almost every store sells some variation of a big sweatshirt or oversized T-shirt making it available to buy and wear. Whether the wearer matches a baggy top with pajama pants from the night before or a nice minnie skirt, the looks are endless.
the knee. “Completely cover the torso and no higher than two inches above the knee. Who do you think they’re referring to?” asked senior Emi Dubrawski. The reasoning behind this ruling is not to prevent revealing clothing from “distracting others,” but rather to ensure the “standards of appropriateness” are met, Priester explained. “If I came to school dressed in shorts, slippers and a t-shirt, it would change the way people see me—I would be less of an administrator,” said Priester. A survey taken by 150 MidPacific students conducted by Na Pueo staffers found that 98 percent of participants don’t care if students wear “revealing” clothing, such as crop tops, spaghetti straps and tube tops. “The term ‘professional attire’ is outdated and sexist because it does not address each gender equally,” said senior Karlee Tanaka. “Girls get dress-coded for way different things than boys.” Tanaka struggles with finding attire that is true to her style and fitting for a five minute passing time on a hot day. “This year, I’ve noticed a lot of teachers, who didn’t care about dress code before, have been calling out female students for the smallest things like showing a
little bit of shoulder or stomach,” Copeland. “Being professional is said Tanaka. “But boys can not defined by the way you look.” wear short shorts and lift their For a truly inclusive dress shirts up all the way up to ‘cool code, one might look at what is themselves off,’ while girls have not included in the new policy to explain themselves for wearguidelines. The current rules ing attire that is just as or less fail to address any ban of hate revealing to feel comfortable on speech tailored clothing. Under a hot day.” “headgear,” there is no mention Many students feel that the of any exception for religious dress code does not take into head coverings, such as a hijab or account the heat of Hawaii’s kippah, to be worn indoors. weather. “It’s assumed,” said Ochiai. Do we even need a dress It’s not just about the dress code? itself, but “Being professional is not code “Dress rather, how the code is defined by the way you look.” dress code is a way enforced. - sophomore Maya Copeland “Teachers to show respect for shouldn’t be where you are and who you are allowed to confront students around,” said math teacher Caro- about dress-code in a way that lyn Roscoe. “I wish we would publicly shames them,” said practice modesty.” junior Charlie Leung. “I’ve seen Like Roscoe, many adminisit done before.” trators agree with this conserLike Leung, students are askvative view on dressing for an ing the administration to prohibacademic setting. it discriminatory enforcement, as “Mindset is dictated by how they find it an “unnecessary” and you dress . . . Look presentable, “unfair form of punishment.” professional, neat and formal,” The current dress code, said junior Dean Rene Ochiai. however, is not final. Priester is “You want to present in a way putting together a committee of that people will have confidence students and adults to decide on in your ability.” new standards for a dress code But some students disagree. that “truly represents our com“I know some teachers who munity.” come to school in jeans and a “If you claim to have an sweater. I still respect them as ‘inclusive’ dress code, then make teachers and don’t think any less it inclusive,” said Dubrawski. of them because of the way they “Practice what you preach.” dress,” said sophomore Maya
the diamond
MID-PACIFIC SPORTS
Mid-Pacific alumni work behind the scenes during the Olympics By Kamm Kojima Staff Writer
In early August, skateboarding, surfing, sport climbing and karate debuted at the Summer Olympics. Images of athletes who competed in these sports were televised all around the world. However, most don’t know what goes on behind the scenes. Before the Olympics began, Yoshi Sasakawa, ‘07 English Learning Development student and Board of Trustee member, helped form karate as an official Olympic sport. “When it came all together, I didn’t know what to say. It was just amazing that we actually had it because, at a certain point, I’m not going to lie, I thought it was going to be canceled,” said Sasakawa. Franklin “Tripp” Tokioka, senior and former karate athlete, appreciated that a Mid-Pacific alumnus helped to normalize non-western sports. “A lot of people will sort of become more accepting and be sort of curious about other sports out there, besides more western sports. I think people over time will become aware of non-western sports, and I ultimately think it’s a good thing,” said Tokioka.
With karate now an official Olympic sport, Sasakwa’s responsibility was to help host karate. He arranged temporary residence for athletes from around 200 countries. “When you have all these athletes coming in [from] about 200 countries, you [athletes] need a visa, you need to arrange where they want to stay in the Olympic Village, but some countries have a little more budget than others, so they’re like ‘I don’t want to stay in the athlete village, I want to stay in a four-star hotel,’ so we have to arrange that,” said Sasakawa. However, due to COVID-19, the Tokyo Summer 2020 Olympics was canceled. Sasakawa, also Vice President of Media Relations for Japan Karate Federation, said it was challenging trying to handle the media as the Olympics was in the news daily. “The hardest part was fighting against the negativity that we had against the media and the public,” said Sasakawa. When the announcement came out that Tokyo Olympics 2021 was scheduled, he and his team had to regroup. “We had to really, pretty much go to ground zero. Why are we doing this again?
Mid Pacific graduate Yoshi Sasakawa ‘07 stands in the arena where Olympic Karate events were held. This past summer the Olympics occurred in Tokyo, Japan after being postponed in 2020. Photo by Yoshi Sasakawa. What’s the purpose?” said Sasakawa. Most volunteers were trained virtually. “There was a lot of logistics to it, and they were all very, very organized. They did a lot of training for it on site, online
More relaxed regulations for water polo By Johnathan Aspera Staff Writer
Water polo games looked a lot more like they used to this season, with games played against other teams and new, more relaxed COVID-19 rules. COVID-19 has had an enormous impact on school sports, including stricter rules, social distancing, having to wear a mask, and getting tested before every game or getting fully vaccinated to play in games. When COVID first hit, most sports were cancelled or very limited. COVID-19 affected water polo to the point where they couldn’t have a single game against another team. “Last year we only had a few practices and no games, just a couple of scrimmages against ourselves,” said senior water polo player Kama Higa.
Freshman water polo player Tama Alo believes water polo suffered even more when a coach left the team. “It sucked because we couldn’t play in games for like a whole year and one of the coaches quit and started their own club [Lokahi] and a lot of the Mid-Pacific players go there,” Alo said. This year the water polo team can compete against other teams. However, there have been some new COVID-19 rules. Last year players had to socially distance six feet apart in and out of the water. This school year, players only have to socially distance three feet. Aside from social distancing rules, mask rules have also changed. Last year players had to put their mask on right when they got out of the water. This year once athletes get
out of the pool they have time to shower and then should have their mask on. Players seem to like the new rules. “This year there wasn’t really any rules for when you’re in the water, like you don’t have to social distance or wear a mask,” said freshman water polo player Rylind Butler. When the COVID-19 cases spiked the rules became a lot more strict. The players had to get tested before every game or have gotten fully vaccinated or else they wouldn’t be allowed to play in games. The pandemic has had an enormous impact on sports, especially water polo, but this year it has gotten a lot closer to “back to normal.” Players look forward to a better season next year. “It’s basically normal water polo except when you’re outside of the water,” said Alo.
now with COVID-19, so they didn’t have too much in-person training,” said Trent Yamada ‘07, volunteer for karate. On Aug. 4, 2021, volunteers, organizers and athletes were a part of karate’s debut in the Olympics.
“That was just amazing, I mean, of course being at the first time of any sport, I’m sure the participants or the karate people were very, very, stoked to be there. They have been
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ILH athletes face choice: get the jab, or take test By Jackson Keenan Staff Writer As of Sept. 24, 2021, athletes in football, competitive cheerleading, and water polo had to decide to receive the COVID-19 vaccination or get tested for COVID-19 24 hours before competition, according to the Interscholastic League of Honolulu. “In order to play in competition every player must be fully vaccinated or negatively tested within 24 hours of each competition,” said Athletic Director Scott Wagner. As fall sports start up the conversation about COVID-19 vaccination requirements rages on. “You should be able to play even if you’re not vaccinated, just that you should test be-
fore,” said varsity Pac-5 football player Daymian Lapitan. Unlike the Department of Education, which mandated that all athletes be vaccinated in order to play, ILH allows everyone to play sports with or without the vaccine, creating a middle ground supported by most students. However, some students think the test should not be mandatory. “If you don’t have to test before school you shouldn’t have to test before sporting events. There are more people in school than at sporting events and we have to wear a mask,” said sophomore baseball player Keola Young. For athletes who have not gotten the vaccination, Mid-
See CHOICE page 7
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Sports
The mental game: althletes and emotional health By Katie Troske Staff Writer
Naomi Osaka and Simone Biles are two huge names in sports that have brought light to prioritizing mental health in athletes this year. Connections with others and improvement in health are just two of the many benefits athletes receive from participating in school sports, but it’s easy to become distracted and make a dangerous mistake. In order to fully utilize abilities, it is important to make sure players are protecting themselves physically and emotionally. Knowing how to maintain a healthy mindset can prevent injuries and help improve performances. As many sports seasons start, students become stressed in preparation for tryouts. “Athletes have an outlet and it helps with their mental health, but there’s also that added pressure,” said MidPacific Counselor Catherine Juliano. Many people don’t realize that anyone can be affected by mental health, whether in a big or small way. “Mental health does not discriminate at all, and it affects every single population no matter who you are,” said Juliano.
CHOICE:
Pacific will provide a free antigen test 24 hours before competition so that all athletes will be able to compete. “I think it’s okay because it gives athletes the option even if they are not able to buy their own test two, three times a week,” said senior varsity PAC-5 cheerleader Nikki Fujii. Although the COVID-19 tests are free, some people argue that Magnus Health, the health tracking app the campus uses, does the job. “I think that Magnus is good enough because it’s been good enough for the past one and a half years and there hasn’t been any spread in the school,” said Young. Last year, baseball, softball, and girls’ volleyball seasons had no vaccine or testing. Magnus was used to verify players had no symptoms, without COVID-19 spread. Besides the three sports, ILH hasn’t made a decision about other contact sports during a certain season or overall such as basketball,
Most athletes become overwhelmed with pressure, which can interfere with their sport. Being able to manage and cope with these feelings is essential to a player’s health and safety. “You can’t focus on protecting yourself and giving your best if you have something else on your mind,” said Mid-Pacific Counselor Rachael Brewer. According to Juliano, the mind and body are very connected. For example, the body is preparing to perform when nervous by raising heart rate and adrenaline. Taking care of the body physically by drinking water, getting enough sleep and stretching can improve mindset and put athletes in a better place to perform. Some ways for players to create a positive mindset are to first identify the problem and know what’s creating the stress and weight on their mind. “If you can name what emotion is going on, then you’re more able to cope with it,” said Juliano. Next, players can talk to coaches and teammates about problems. Building a support system on a team can help players know they’re not alone in whatever they’re feeling. “Having that strong relationship in the beginning creates a
positive connection, and then the athletes will let you care about them,” said Mid-Pacific girls’ intermediate and junior varsity volleyball coach Jamie Makiya. A safe environment on a team can help the players feel better about asking for help and support if they need it. The pressure and responsibility of playing a sport can be really overwhelming, and it can lead to a player not enjoying their sport anymore. “A lot of the time, winning and being the best is the ultimate focus and goal, but then they often forget about why they started in the first place,” said Makiya. Practicing coping mechanisms individually and with teammates can improve the way a team performs. Setting aside a time before, during, or after a game to do a mindset check-in is a way to improve the team’s morale and help everyone perform better. “For sports, everything seems physical, but you need that balance between the mental and the physical in order to perform at your best level,” said Makiya. Often, a player’s mindset is overlooked because their physical state is considered more important, which can be harmful to the athlete’s safety
soccer, wrestling and judo. It is expected that they will receive the same protocol. The DOE disagrees, imposing a vaccine mandate on all athletes. This could have huge implications when it comes to ILH athletics, especially smaller teams such as PAC-5 football which only has 36 athletes. “It definitely will negate the team Senior Aiden Morris takes a shot on goal against Iobecause we have lani defender. Photo by Taro Tsuji. such small num“I’m kind of in between both bers and everyone sides. I mean the mandate is really makes a difference,” said only to protect the athlete and Lapitan. coaches. But I also see the Even though the conversaother side where people don’t tion between vaccinated want to be forced to have to and unvaccinated stays red put something in their body hot, teammates attempt to that they’re not too sure of and understand both sides of the I feel like it’s important to be argument and not let this heard,” said Fujii. COVID-affected season split them apart.
Two seniors share an encouraging fist bump while playing baseball on May 1. Photo by staff photographer Archer Liang. and performance. Many athletes will feel alone if they have mental health struggles and they could be pressured by the demand of helping their team and performing well, which may cause them to bottle up their emotions and ignore them. Athletes need to know they’re not alone in anything they feel. Many athletes around the world struggle with various mental health disorders. In a survey done by the National Collegiate Athletic Association in 2020, 35 percent of athletes will deal with a mental health crisis at some point during their career, and after the COVID-19 pandemic, those numbers were up 150 percent to 250 percent higher than they previously were.
Talking to trusted people, taking care physically, and doing frequent mindset checkins can improve mindset and make stress easier to manage. It’s also important to remember that athletes aren’t alone. Many struggle with mental health, and it’s okay to reach out for help and support. If you’re a student-athlete struggling with stress and pressure, send an email to hccf@midpac.edu and set up an appointment to talk with one of the counselors. You can also refer to many online resources, like Athletes For Hope. You aren’t alone.
KARATE:
“Even without spectators in training their whole lives for that the stands, you could sense just very moment, so being able to the intensity of the competitivebe part of that was just a dream,” ness of the athletes and even said Yamada. the coaches in the stands. They Once the just have so much Olympics began, passion. They want Sasakawa said to see their athletes his job became win, and you could easier, but it was really, really feel difficult to find that emulating work for their from the crowd. volunteers to I couldn’t even help with. imagine if the Volunteers stands were full, like Yamada that would have were tasked to been insane,” said regulate who had Yamada. access to watch Although from the stands. Sasakawa could Even though not earn a medal, there weren’t that many people, his experience in organizing he said he was grateful for the such a huge event gave him the opportunity. strength to believe that he could “I didn’t feel bored or anything. do anything. I was just really appreciative “It was a very, very, very difto have been able to join this, ficult project that got extended, be part of the Olympics,” said which made the difficulty even Yamada. worse. It’s mentally draining, Watching karate unfold before but since I went through this, I his eyes, Yamada witnessed the feel like I can do anything at this energy in the gymnasium. point,” said Sasakawa.
“You could just sense the competitiveness of the athletes and even the coaches in the stands. They just have so much passion” - Trent Yamada, ‘07
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DigitalDistress
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Impacts of social media
83.5% of Mid-Pacific Institute students use social media, and 28.2% think it has negatively affected them Followed by Benefitsofsocialmedia, 96 others “It can be addicting, sometimes you just can’t stop looking for satisfaction.” Sophomore Meryem Kurdu
“I use social media to keep up with everyone’s lives and keep in touch with everyone.”
“It’s addicting because AI tracks what you’re interested in and shoots out media of your liking.”
“I don’t think social media will completely replace in person interaction.”
Senior Carly Recarte
Junior Ethan Chang
IB Psychology teacher Henry Hail
Benefits:
Disadvantages:
Builds relationships
Cyberbullying
Makes communication
Invasion of privacy and
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easier
Helps news travel faster
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identity theft
Suicide and self-harm
To prevent disadvantages: Limit time on social media ... Be aware of how it makes you feel ... Remember that things posted aren’t always real
Infographic art by Rell Uehara, reported by Raymond King and designed by Tia Shimabukuro