Est. 1958 September 3rd, 2020
millsthunderbolt.com
Facing Online Learning’s New Challenge: Zoom Bombing O
By Anjuli Niyogi, Editor-in-Chief
n Tueday, August 18th, Serena Arge’s 6th period Art of Video class was interrupted by a Zoom bomber’s racial comments. While giving a personal example for a get-toknow your classmates slideshow assignment, Ms. Arge described her life on the shared screen with an illustration of her African-American significant other. The Zoom bomber appeared with the name “Ritchie Ahuma.” repeating the phrase, “All n****** matter.” Jeshua Ambrosia (11) told the Zoom bomber to stop, explaining that “this is a classroom” environment where this kind of behavior is not appropriate. Several other classmates responded by recording the incident on their cell phones, hoping to ensure that the perpetrator could be identified later on. Shaken up by the statement, Ms. Arge told the Zoom bomber to stop, but promptly ended the Zoom call when they did not stop. The class reconvened roughly 20 minutes later and Ms. Arge sought to address the inappropriateness and injustice of the racial slurs, possibly triggered by her husband’s illustration. Shortly after, Ms. Arge informed all Mills administrators and the Dean of Students about the incident. She was able to speak to Vice Principal, Lyndsey Schlax the same afternoon to give her the details of what happened and share the login data of the Zoom bomber. While the investigation is still going on, Ms. Arge informed her class that “it looks like 2 people logged in and we are trying to identify them.” To combat these risks of online learning, Mills High School is now requiring all of its students to join zoom calls via their student SMUHSD accounts. Ms. Arge is also now requiring that students enter a designated password to join every Zoom class with her. Ms. Dusyznski came to the next day’s class on Wednesday (August 19th) to talk about the racial trauma that was felt by all the classmates and to applaud those who stood up against the commenter. In an interview with Ms. Duszynski, she stated; “I do want to say that I’m proud of the upstanders in this class who took quick action to confront this racist act.” Efforts have been made by administrators to ensure that the perpetrator is found and receives disciplinary action. It appears that this Zoom bomber potentially logged in with an alias account, not associated with a Mills student. Administration is also asking for students to submit an anonymous alert with any information leading to the identification of this person.
Fireside Chat With Principal Duszynski By Leanna Yu, Editor-in-Chief Story is a shortened article with main topics covered
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fter the first week of distance learning, Principal Pamela Duszynski revealed insight on coping with distance learning and Mills’ future endeavors for starting the academic year online. As students and staff work from home, Principal Duszynski remains hopeful that the Mills community will be able to return to campus soon–– “I am hopeful and encouraged that
we are doing the right thing in terms of distance learning, so we can bring kids and staff back as soon as possible this semester.” The first week of school was organized by Ms. Dove, the Student Activities Director, in a two day school wide orientation to (re)learn Canvas, adjust to the new online platform, and develop a sense of community. Principal Duszynski commented that the first week of school went really well: all teachers had a working Zoom link on the first day of school, despite learning the new technological features 4-5 days prior. Another concern of hers was having a drop in attendance due to distance learning, but found good participation the first week of school. With the success of the beginning of school, Principal Duszynski claimed that school activities and events will be figured out once students have adjusted to the new schedule, distance learning, and flex. Clubs are still encouraged to meet virtually during office hours with their club advisor present. The school still has visions for virtual town halls in every grade level and the annual club fair. Additionally, Mr. Hudelson has plans for an audio performance of The Crucible to substitute for this year’s fall play. During this digital learning period, Principal Duszynski touched upon how the Mills community is continuously growing. “I would like to see us continue to do what we’re doing–– discovering new ways to connect with one another. In some way, we are becoming closer to one another.” This is seen in increased attendance in PTO meetings and students reaching out to their teachers. “We are a school that’s about much more than just the curriculum.” Principal Duszynski would like to say to new students, “You are not alone. Even though we are not physically together, we are still very much a part of your support network. You are our inspiration, our hope, and define the reason why we do this work everyday.”
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THE FUTURE OF CIF SPORTS
By Madison Wong, Opinions Editor
S
ports, alongside many other school activities, are rituals that many students look forward to participating in throughout the school year. But sports this school year will look different due to the impact of COVID-19. The California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) has altered the schedule for sports of all seasons in the 2020-2021 school year. The new schedule was last updated on July 20th, but is still subjected to change due to the unpredictability of the spread of COVID-19. While schools in the San Mateo Union High School District (SMUHSD) have opened the academic school year with distance learning, athletes may still condition together under certain circumstances to prepare for the new seasons. The CIF has stated guidelines that schools may follow when allowing students to begin training and conditioning. In what the CIF says to be “Phase 1” (not to be confused with the term used by state and local county agencies on the reopening of workplaces, travel, and public activities), students must follow their local county’s guidelines, remain at a distance of at least 6 feet from each other, and workout in “pods” consisting of the same 5-10 people who meet on a weekly basis. In “Phase 2,” the same guidelines apply except up to 50 people may gather for an outdoor workout. On August 13th, the SMUHSD Athletic Directors had a town hall meeting, via Zoom, sharing updates and answering questions regarding the athletic programs in the 20202021 school year. The Athletic Directors explained that if San Mateo County is off of the state’s watch list for at least 14 days before September 14th, then sports may begin conditioning, under certain circumstances. All workouts must be outside and there is going to be a rotation schedule in which small groups of students in a team will have to take turns using the SMUHSD outdoor athletic facilities. The Mills track will not be open until around October, so Mills students will have to go to other SMUHSD campuses for conditioning when allowed to do so. Other precautions directed by the district include having temperature checks before entering any facilities, limiting participants allowed in one place at a time, having specific entrance and exit points, and requiring everyone to be socialSports | Page 2