2023-24 MOR Issue 2

Mouth of the River

Publication of Oyster River High School

Mural pg. 3

Chinese Program pg. 6

Dear Readers,

Eugene Bilodeau pg. 7

Mr. Madbury pg. 9

Look at LaPast pg. 13

Mairtin Goes to Jail pg. 15

You Don’t Look Sick? pg.17

Stuck in the Middle pg. 21

All in the Stars pg.23

Guide to AP pg. 25

Opinion

(Im)prove Yourself pg. 31

We’re so happy you decided to pick up Mouth of the River’s second issue for the 2023-2024 school year!

The vibrant collage on the cover was pieced together by the talented Madeline Healey, an ORHS junior. There are a ton of easter eggs referencing different articles hidden in the design, including a nod to MOR’s 60th anniversary. See how many others you can find!

This quarter, our staff expanded on skills we learned in Issue 1 to report on a wide range of stories. You’ll notice there are an abundance of profiles within this issue. Whether it was Maeve Hickok’s coverage of Joseph Moriarty, informally dubbed “The Plane Man,” or Amelia Rury’s powerful story on an ORHS student’s experience living with chronic illness, our writers highlighted the uniquely inspiring individuals within our community.

Additionally, a large portion of this issue’s articles were multimedia! From James Li’s Genius-inspired coverage of ORHS student artists Chris and Koushik’s new single “7.0 GPA”, to Mia Boyd’s reporting on hate speech within the high school, MOR staff did an incredible job experimenting with video, podcast, and photojournalism. Some of this work– both multimedia and time sensitive stories – has been included as QR codes in the magazine. Everything else can be found on our website: mor.news.

Catch you for the next issue,

Abby Owens and Mia Boyd

Meet the Staff

Byline Photos by Micah Bessette

Mouth of the River Mission Statement

MouthoftheRiverseekstoreliablyinformthestudentbody,aswellasthesurroundingcommunity,ofinterestingandnewsworthycontentinamodern,compellingformat.Ourgoalasastaffistogivevoicetothestudents ofOysterRiver,andhaveitheardbyallourstudents.TheopinionsexpressedinMouthoftheRiverrepresent those of the writers and staff.

Abby Owens (she/her) (‘24) Co-Editor in Chief

Mia Boyd (she/her) (‘24) Co-Editor in Chief

Micah Bessette (he/him) (‘24) Multimedia Editor

Maeve Hickok (she/her) (‘24) Buisness Manager

Kevin Kell (he/him) (‘25) Social Media & Website Manager

Hannah Klarov (she/her) (‘25) Layout Editor

Delaney Nadeau (she/her) (‘24) News Editor

Amelia Rury (she/her) (‘25) Features Editor

Hazel Stasko (she/her) (‘24) Creative Manager

Martin Sweetman (he/him) (‘25) Opinion Editor

James Li (he/him) (‘24) Sports & Culture Editor

Mural Mural on the Wall

Looking through the halls of Oyster River High School (ORHS), there are recognizable blue, green, and white tiles stretching throughout the entire school from floor to ceiling. This year, the art department wants to add color and excitement to the monotony with a mural outside the lunchroom.

A mural is a large undertaking, and it was no simple task for the student artists enlisted. Throughout this process, they had to brainstorm ideas for a sketch, decide where to put the mural, decide what they were going to use for a canvas, gather the materials and project the sketch onto the canvas, and finally paint the mural. This process helped develop a variety of artistic skills and gave the artists an outlet for their creativity that will inspire students for years to come.

The process began when Maria Rosi, one of the ORHS art teachers, brought in Zach Johnson, one of her longtime artist friends and the person who painted the mural pictured on the right. It is now a part of the Oyster River Middle School. Rosi hoped that Johnson would inspire the students in her advanced classes. “It was supposed to just be a visit.”

This visit inspired a much bigger project, one that took several months to complete. After Rosi and Johnson discussed a bigger project, they decided they wanted to see if the students were up for the challenge. “We organized the day the best we could to try to get started and to get the kids invested, and lo and behold, it worked,” said Rosi

The students were excited to begin this new endeavor and were happy for the help from Johnson. “He wanted us to come up with a concept, so we had all the freedom, and he polished everything,” said Miruna Dospinescu (‘25).

Thelocationthemuralwillbefoundwhenit’scomplete.

Johnson’smuralintheOysterRiverMiddleSchool.

The students were excited to create a piece where they could work with each other, and that was part of the whole reason for the project in the first place. “We really wanted to do something collaborative,” said Maya Wilson (‘24).

Everyone was happy to work with each other, and it benefited the artists because they all have different creative minds. “It’s really nice because you don’t have to stress about making sure that you get all these parts perfect, because if something isn’t done, someone else will pick it up and finish it,” said Isabelle Alix (‘25).

Each of the eight student artists who helped with the mural gained experience from doing something that they had never tried before. Very few of them had ever painted something so large scale. “I feel like it’s more freeing to paint big stuff. I usually work on really small canvases and care a lot about the detail, and this forces you to not care too much about detail,” said Dospinescu.

Each artist was able to work on their own original technique while bouncing ideas off one another.

The key to this project was that the artists enjoyed what they were doing, and Rosi made sure everyone was having a good time. “She’s always saying that you should only work on it if you want to; she’s not going to force us to work on it. If you’re going to work on it and it’s going to make you cry, don’t do it. She wants it to really come from a place of joy,” said Caroline Allen (‘25).

Working on this mural has inspired all of the artists, and many said that they’ve developed their skills through it. “I’ve definitely become more confident with painting,” said Colin Caron (‘25).

The mural has multiple meanings, and each character pictured left is supposed to represent a different aspect of Oyster River. Viewers can interpret the art how they would like and find the meaning that is impactful to them. The artists hope that the mural positively impacts the school’s environment. “I hope the casual passerby to the mural stops to take in the sense of playfulness first and foremost. I hope then once they are engaged, they take in the story unfolding in the art. I hope they note each individual character and how they interact,” said Johnson.

The final design for the mural isn’t anywhere near the original concept. At the beginning of the process, each artist pooled their ideas together to create a draft of the sketch. From there, they tweaked it and added to it as they went. “In the first one, I think [Johnson] had a train in a castle, and then in the one that we’re drawing there’s a train, and waves, and a giant whale in the air, and it’s just really different but it all works together,” said Alix. Each of these elements can represent the school; the train can represent graduating and the water can represent the Oyster River it’s named after.

Before starting the sketch, each artist worked on their own ideas. “We all did our own little concept works,” said Allen.

Many of the artists mentioned how lucky they felt that they got the opportunity to work on a project like this, and they all hope they get to do something similar in the future. Rosi would like to see projects similar to this in the coming years at ORHS. “I would absolutely do it [again] if I had students that were willing to put in the time and the care that is needed for a project like this, and for me it’s all about the students’ enthusiasm.”

This mural will bring color to the walls of ORHS for a long time, and the artists feel lucky to be a part of that. “It’s cool that I get to help with something that could stay in the school for many, many years,” said Alix. The mural is projected to be hung outside the lunchroom across from the multi-purpose room near the start of quarter three.

- Micah Bessette

Mandarin Teacher Sparks Program Growth

zhōng wén kè

When a student thinks about world language at Oyster River High School (ORHS), chances are Mandarin isn’t the first language that pops into their head. When first observing three languages that ORHS offers, Mandarin is perceived as the “third place” option behind French and Spanish. There’s only one teacher, one class per level, and the classroom is tucked away in a small “closet” by the library. Even so, teacher Lisa Fan and the rest of the Mandarin program have been able to accept these disadvantages and find success that’s led to the growth of the program.

Before Fan arrived, ORHS would have access to teachers because of the University of New Hampshire’s (UNH) ties to the Confucius Institute, which is an education group funded by the Chinese government. These teachers would teach for a short number of years, then go back to China and be replaced by a new one. This was easy for the school,

(Chinese Class)

The students also agree that Fan plays a huge role in the class’s success. Alexander Fenton (‘25) is very pleased with how well she’s able to work with students individually and shows that she cares about teaching. “She is very open with like one-on-one time. She’s always very approachable, and she gives a lot of opportunities to an individual student that’ll help you learn the Chinese better,” said Fenton.

Sawyer Levesque (‘25) has been taking Mandarin since 6th grade and understands that he’s taking advantage of something that a lot of kids don’t. According to the US News & WorldReport’sarticle titled “Mandarin Learning Is a Must,” only 0.04% of students K-12 take Mandarin. That’s partially because most schools don’t even offer it. “Our school is fortunate because I don’t know of many other schools that offer Chinese. I try to take advantage of that.”

Fan understands the uniqueness behind the class and the

“OurschoolisfortunatebecauseIdon’tknowofmanyotherschools thatofferChinese.Itrytotakeadvantageofthat.”

because they never needed to hire a teacher, but it made it difficult for the students because they couldn’t connect with the teacher. In 2021, however, due to security concerns, UNH ended the contract, which lead to the hiring of Fan.

Since Fan has been teaching, the number of students in Mandarin 4 and 5 has gone from five to eighteen. This is significant to the program, because neither of those are required classes. Colleges only require two to three years of world language. Years spent learning Mandarin in middle school can count for one of those years, too. “I feel like people are staying in the program for different reasons beyond just to complete the requirement ... I try understanding different people’s needs. So, for example, if their goal is to take AP, I try to help them reach their goal,” said Fan.

Increasing the number of students was Fan’s goal when she arrived at ORHS, and she is doing specific things to help reach that goal. “I’m always trying to communicate with students, families, and the school to help grow this program,” said Fan. She also says that word of mouth is huge, and if she tells people about the class, she knows that it will spread.

difficulty behind the language but can make it manageable for the students. “Outside the classroom, you don’t have much opportunity to use the language … I try to focus on interpersonal speaking, which gives the student the most competencies and they can use the language.”

One of the only negative things about the program that can be heard around the community is its reputation as being an “easy class” and one you don’t learn much in. Levesque believes that comes from the prior experiences from prior teachers. “At the middle school we didn’t really learn anything. Our teachers [from the Confucius Institute] were bad. But since Mrs. Fan, we actually learn things and our curriculum is way better.”

Fan doesn’t see the growth of this program stopping any time soon. “I want to bring overseas trips and fun events to add more of a purpose and attraction.” She’s also heavily involved with the program at the middle school and says that she works with the middle school teacher to make sure they are on the same page to improve the growth of the learners.

- Kevin Kell

Eugene Bilodeau: Unsung Hero

It’s a hot summer afternoon in the beginning of August 2021. Along with the rest of the Oyster River High School (ORHS) soccer program, I had already been practicing for over a month. Because we were so far into these “summer sessions” the other freshmen and I thought that

Eugene Bilodeau met Akan Ekanem. Ekanem noted that he didn’t like him at first because they were on opposing teams and Bilodeau was a “hard player.” Eventually they made it on to the same team, and then became friends.

Years later Ekanem took over as the head coach of the

“Hecanbetough,hecanbefriendly,buthewantsthingsdone hisway.Helikeswheneverybodydoestheirjobandhe’lllike yourightback.”

we had already met all the coaches. That’s until we saw a dark grey Jeep Grand Cherokee whip through the bus lane and park near the fields. Out stepped a short bald man, wearing a bright blue polo, golf shorts down to his knees, loafers, and vibrant sunglasses. He was immediately showered with greetings from the upperclassmen and was clearly a fan favorite. To us freshman though, Eugene Bilodeau was just another guy.

In 2010, while playing soccer at a Seacoast United facility,

Oyster River High School soccer team, and Bilodeau expressed his interest in helping out. “At first it was like, just come and hang out and see what you like, pick up some ideas. It went from that to ‘I’m coming back next year.’”

Goalkeeper Evan Whalen’s (‘24) freshman year was the first year Bilodeau started showing up. Whalen didn’t really trust him at first. “He started showing up and sitting by my goal; he would give me pointers, saying what I needed to work on and what I needed to get better at --- I thought it

was just a random guy.” Bilodeau started showing up more, gained trust from players and became an official assistant coach.

He quicky became popular among us players. Whalen described him as “electric” because Bilodeau always knows the perfect time to say something to hype the team up or get the team going with one of his jokes.

After “first meeting” Tommy Aldrich (‘25) this past year at tryouts (even though this is Aldrich’s third year playing in the program), he put a nametag on Aldrich’s back, which is what the coaches do with the freshman because they don’t know their names yet. Aldrich jokingly described this experience as “disrespectful” and felt he needed to “humble Bilodeau.” Aldrich ended up making the team, and they were able to joke about it. “Our relationship exploded. We started talking a lot about football, and when I was on the bench, I’d always end up talking to him.”

Compared to Ekanem and the other assistant coach, Danny Watson, Bilodeau doesn’t possess as much of a technical soccer brain. Bilodeau understands this and uses it to see what the other coaches and players don’t. Wilson Kim (‘25), whose been playing for Bilodeau for multiple years, believes this is what truly makes Bilodeau a great assistant.

“When I finished the real estate classes, I never took the test.” This quote seemed to sum up his time as a student. Bilodeau always had all the intangibles to make him a great student, but he never seemed to care.

He quickly got a job as a tax assessor, but a new opportunity came when the woman he was renting a house from offered him a job as a part time leasing agent for her property management company. He pounced on it, then later became a full-time worker. During this time, he was able to learn more than school ever taught him. He took in everything there was to know about property management.

He stayed there for nearly seven and a half years until he built up the passion to start his own business. Even with all the risks, the 32-year-old Bilodeau took out a loan and went all in on starting his company. He named it Cardinal Point, and similar to his last job, they specialize in property management. “Starting your own business is the most exciting and the scariest thing that you can do.”

As time went on, he got more and more clients, and his life got busy. Bilodeau felt he needed help. So, he turned to Raymond and asked if he would help out. Raymond saw the problems Bilodeau was dealing with and agreed. “I was getting ready to retire and I saw how busy he was, and I said,

“Startingyourownbusinessisthemostexcitingandthescariest thingthatyoucando.”

“Us soccer players analyze the game really specifically, but he points out the more obvious things that we might overlook. “We [players] might be like, we have 3-4-3, we should go to 3-5-2’ but he might just hit you with ‘you guys just don’t look like you want it. You gotta want it more.’”

Outside of soccer, Bilodeau has made a name for himself in the area too. He was born in 1979 in Portsmouth, NH, and hasn’t left the area since. According to his dad Raymond, growing up, Bilodeau was always a smart kid, but as high school rolled around, he didn’t really put the effort in. When I asked about high school, his immediate response was a brief second of laughter and then, “Probably shouldn’t go over that.” He says that a big factor of this was that he spent his time drawing instead of listening to teachers. But according to his dad, he became a “wild” kid. This included climbing on, then later jumping off buildings and trains. He kept his grades just high enough so that he could play sports. He played football and ran track, but always had a deep passion for soccer, baseball, and hockey.

As high school came to a close, what to do next became a question for him. He enrolled into what was then called Hesser College, now called Mount Washington College, and took night classes studying real estate. During the day, he worked, bouncing from job to job, with little luck in finding one that stuck.

‘I’ll tell you what Gene, I’ll help you when I retire.’” When Raymond eventually retired, he got his real estate license and became the company’s unofficial leasing agent. As time went on Bilodeau was able to hire a few official employees, who his dad would fill in for if necessary

Although Raymond isn’t officially part of the company and he’s just there to help, he spends a lot of his time with the company and sees firsthand how his son is as a boss. “He can be tough, he can be friendly, but he wants things done his way. He likes when everybody does their job and he’ll like you right back.”

Outside of his company and soccer, Bilodeau can be seen umpiring little league baseball for fun, kayaking, mounting biking, playing pickleball, trail running, hitting the gym, hanging out with the friends he’s made through soccer, property managing, and being a longtime member of the Portsmouth community. He loves Portsmouth and thinks fondly of the town it was, as well as the city it has become.

Now that “us freshman” only have one more year of soccer left at ORHS, we are the kids who start celebrating when we see the Grand Cherokee whip towards the field.

- Kevin Kell

“Mr. Madbury”

Riding home on Bus 2 as a middle school student, everyone always knew which way the wind was blowing – the orange and white windsock in the corner of the field, a clear gauge. Kids on the bus would press their noses to the window to see if the horse, fittingly named Auto, had stepped out of the barn. Little did they know the bus was driving by Madbury International Airport, established by Joseph Moriarty, who you see to the left. Joeseph Moriarty is a Madbury native and legend and has lived in Madbury for 62 years. Moriarty grew up on a turkey farm always tinkering with different machines, least favorably the manure machine. Through this, he began to develop his engineering skills. Sonn to build planes, cars, and everything in between.

This is Moriarty’s solo plane and the one he flies most often. “This is a nice little airplane; I can roll it out myself and it only burns about six gallons an hour. Going about 110 (miles per hour).” Before Moriarty began fixing planes, he was flying them. Moriarty was always interested in gliders and model planes as a kid and had his first flight experience with a military flight instructor down the road from his childhood home. “I would hear that little piper cub go up and hop on my bicycle to go down Mast Road. I’d sit on the fence, watch and wait for the plane to return. Sooner or later, he came over and offered me a ride, and then started teaching me to fly. I wasn’t even old enough to have a driver’s license at the time.” It would be a few years later when Moriarty received his own piloting license and his journey into the world of aviation would begin.

Moriarty describes how to fly a plane and the purpose of the dials and ball within the plane. He had dabbled in planes in the early 50s but took a ten-year break before getting his license. During this time, he worked for NCR (National Cash Register). He went to a specific school for computers and said, “This school was eight months long, eight hours of class time a day. The first grade below a 90 you’d fall back into the class behind you, the second grade below a 90 you got eight cents a mile to go back home. That was when I became a motivated student.”

This is Moriarty when he played baseball for Durham grammar school. As a kid he had big dreams. He remembers looking out at his grandparent’s plot of land and saying, “Someday I’m going to have an airplane and a runway right out there on that field.” As every adult does, they gave him a pat on the shoulder and let him dream. It wasn’t till decades later that he decided to follow that dream. He recalled being in the car with his wife Barbara and seeing a plane preparing to land. Barbara, knowing his interest in aviation, told him he should go get his license. It took just three months for Moriarty to receive a pilot’s license. He recieved it so quickly with help from his instructor saying, “The instructor I had in 1963 must have noticed I was counting money because it was 14 or 15 dollars an hour back then for lessons. We stopped after just making a landing and he said, ‘See that airplane it’s taxing all the way down to the end of the runway. Then it will wait in line down there. If you’d like to save a little money, we can land and take off over there.’” Pointing to the grassy area between the taxiway and the runway. So instead of getting one or two flights in a lesson, I could get six.”

Moriarty has been working on the yellow 1938 Navy aircraft for 35 years. This isn’t the first plane Moriarty has worked on. He has fully rebuilt and restored many different planes, going out to Dayton Ohio to fix planes. This Navy Aircraft was first designed and built to be lowered off a ship by crane. However, because of the hassle of putting it back on the ship it was used mostly as a trainer plane. When Moriarty bought it many years ago it was a crop duster. It had large fiberglass barrels where the fertilizer would be kept and hadn’t been flown in seven years upon the purchase. The last flight was from Rochester back to here on the third of November. That was its first flight in 45 years.

A big addition to this plane was the front cockpit, although it can be flown with a single pilot. Biplanes stopped being used regularly after the 1930s after discovering the advantages of monoplanes. Moriarty describes the biplane saying, “One of the reasons for biplanes is structural stability. When you’re flying, all the pressure on the top wing is trying to pull the plane up . The wires take all of the strain on it while flying, set to a certain tension. Then when you land you strain the wings on the bottom. Many think that with two wings you can fly farther but all the wires create drag on a biplane.” Moriarty shared his grievances with the biplane saying, “That biplane’s not very fast. It burns 24 gallons of gas an hour and a gallon of oil an hour. That thing uses oil in the winter when it’s not running.”

“I got interested in cars and girls and forgot about flying.”

Moriarty has been fixing up cars and machines his whole life, he references this Model T saying, “Believe it or not, this will start. This is the infamous Model T, which they built for many years, and it almost ruined the Ford company because they wouldn’t give up on it when the industry was passing them by.” The Model T is a finicky car with a crank in the front and no clutch. The car only has two gears, high and low. To put it into high gear you press the first pedal down and in low gear you let the pedal go back up. Moriarty is no stranger to the Model T. As a kid, he would drive along all the dirt roads in the Model T. He had always been fascinated with cars saying, “I got interested in cars and girls and forgot about flying.”

This is the 1956 Ford Thunderbird, an iconic car and one that Moriarty had been building for his mother in 1962, a car he is still working on now. It had fallen on the back burner as he began fixing up other cars saying, “I bought a parts car and was leaning against the bench with a beer and a bag of chips looking at the Thunderbird. It dawned on me; you’re fixing the wrong car, you dummy. I fixed the parts car and sold it making a nice profit. In time someone told me about another car, and I ended up fixing up about seven of them. This one never got finished.”

This is Moriarty’s most recent car project. Moriarty took this 1952 International model to Dover High School from his childhood home on Packers Falls Road. This car found off Freshet Road in Madbury, was rebuilt by Moriarty. The truck’s wooden bed was crafted from a tree Moriarty cut down himself.

Moriarty planted that tre e when he first moved into his current Madbury residence. He has been a selectman for 43 years and is the current Madbury road agent. Although Moriarty’s flying days are behind him, Moriarty is still working even in retirement. Moriarty is currently working on receiving his certification as an electrician. Moriarty has lived a worldly life but always kept his deep roots in Madbury. It’s said most people who remain in small towns are fenced in with small ideas. I would argue Moriarty saw the horizon over that fence and took to it.

- Maeve Hickok

To watch MOR dissect Chris and Koushik’s new song, scan the QR code!

A Look At LaPast

Sitting in Adam Lacasse’s classroom, you’ll see students sitting in massage chairs, plants hanging from the ceiling, and records and posters from a few of the thousands of bands he’s seen. He’s sitting at his desk throwing a stress ball back and forth with a student, talking about the time he lost his hearing for several days after hearing Motörhead or the time he saw U2 play in Rome.

As one of Lacasse’s advisees, I’ve always known he used to work at concerts, but I’ve been curious about how he started, what he learned from working at crowded venues, and how he became a teacher from there. I was also curious about some of his stories while working at concerts, and what he plans to do after teaching.

Lacasse originally went to the University of New Hampshire (UNH) for an associate degree in science and business management, where he was a part of a fraternity. It was at this fraternity where he first experienced helping plan and organize events. He liked helping with these events so much,

he applied to the Casino Ballroom in Hampton, NH, where he worked for fourteen years and ended up becoming the Director of Operations.

“When I worked in Hampton, we did anything from comedy to food shows to sit down shows to stand up rock shows to a little bit of everything,” said Lacasse on his experience at the Casino Ballroom.

Working in Hampton, Lacasse started at the bottom as a barback before working his way up over the course of the fourteen years, and he has advice as to how he did it. “When I was in Hampton, I missed three shows over the period of fourteen years. Essentially my word to a lot of people is if you want to move up in a place you’ve always got to be there and available.”

From Hampton, Lacasse moved up to the House of Blues in Boston, one of the more well-known concert venues in the area, where he worked for just under a year. He applied years prior to working there but had to turn down an offer. “They

wanted to bring me in for an interview for it, but the pay wasn’t what I was expecting so I said, ‘thanks but no thanks,’” explained Lacasse. “Several years later they reached back out to me to be the Director of Music Hall operations, and that pay was a lot more money than I was making so it was kind of hard to say no.”

As soon as Lacasse began working at the larger venue, he realized the environment wasn’t one he wanted to be in. He

explained how at Hampton, everyone was supportive of each other. “House of Blues was kind of the opposite. […] For me it was a very toxic, unorganized place where I don’t know if I was ready for them, or they were ready for me, but it wasn’t really a good strategic fit.”

He understood he had the potential to change the environment, and make it one everyone wanted to be in, himself included. “At the end of the day I was hired there to help restore it. […] When I got there, House of Blues was chronically understaffed and overworked, […] so my first thing was just to hire people. I essentially doubled the size of the workforce there within three months.”

At the House of Blues, as the Director of Operations, Lacasse was in charge of everything going on in the background, from hiring and managing staff, to coordinating events, and budgeting. According to him, he was “essentially just the man behind the scenes that made the magic happen.”

Working in concert venues has given Lacasse some unique experiences. “Not everyone gets to meet Snoop Dogg or George Thorogood, Eddie Money, or comedians like Ron White or Lewis Black.”

Lacasse has also collected a variety of life stories from working at the venue. “I was hired there, I worked there for a few months, then they told me, ‘Oh yeah on Saturday nights our shows are out at 10:00pm and from 11:00pm until 3:00am (while he wasn’t working) we turn into a gay nightclub. So I’m like ‘oh you’re telling me I run a gay nightclub too now?’ So put that into my resume,” said Lacasse.

Over the course of his lifetime, Lacasse has seen exactly 1046 concerts, his favorite being a festival with Elton John, The Rolling Stones, and The Eagles, and his least favorite being an undersold ABBA cover band. From his time in the industry, he’s gotten to meet some amazing talents, and he’s always been fascinated with how different artists compose

themselves. “Some artists stay on their bus, and they don’t want anything to do with anyone until they get up and go onto the show, and there’re some who just walk around and say hi.”

His transition between concerts and teaching was a quick turnaround, and his life changed entirely within a few months because of it. He had always had an interest in teaching, and his past experiences aided him. “I was an adjunct professor at UNH at the same time I was at Hampton, so I taught Operations Management, which is my background. I also taught at the Thompson School of Applied Science; they had a business program there for a while. It was always kind of teaching. I always thought that was going to be part of who I am.”

When Lacasse realized he was ready to be done with the stress and toxicity of the House of Blues, he made a big decision and turned his career around. “When things didn’t work out in Boston, I took about two months off in the summertime with my kids and really thought back. I called my old boss at the Thompson School, and I asked her: ‘Hey, I’m looking for work.’ and she’s like: ‘I don’t have anything, but [Oyster River] High School does.’”

From there, it was easy for him. “She called me back 20 minutes later and I got an interview, second interview the next day, and then I was hired, and school started two days later.”

Lacasse is glad for the change that he made because now he has more opportunities to spend his time how he wants. “Now I have a life with my children, so that was really important to me.”

Many know Lacasse for his flexible teaching policies, many of which he learned through working at concerts. At the House of Blues, Lacasse got the opportunity to work amongst a diverse team and has learned and matured from that.

Students know Lacasse for his flexible policies on tests and teaching. Greg Caron, one of his previous students, said this has helped him move from high school to college level economics classes. “He definitely teaches more in a manner that’s

“NoteveryonegetstomeetSnoopDogg orGeorgeThorogood,EddieMoney, or comedians like Ron White or Lewis Black.”

college like, instead of high school.”

He also hopes to inspire his students to become responsible, friendly people. “I’m here to mentor people, and at the end of the day I could try to teach people something, but if I can teach them how to be a good person and treat people with respect, I think it goes a long way.”

Lacasse has been teaching at Oyster River High School since, and this is his ninth year. “Right now, I’m in a happy good place, I’m teaching exactly what I want to teach,” he said. He plans to stick around Oyster River for several years but is certain he’ll move on soon enough and see where life takes him.

- Micah Bessette

As the heavy metal doors audibly locked shut, a sense of anxiety and restlessness began to wash over me. You could tell the prison was meant to make you feel that way.

facility is. It has long corridors and very little windows; it was obvious it was designed to be a barren place and was nothing like what I’ve usually seen on TV. The stereotypical

“It’salwaysunsettling,seeingpeoplethatmakemistakes,through addictionandotherproblems.Itjustmakesyoumoreaware.”

The monochromatic color scheme of the walls, almost complete absence of natural light and narrow, long corridors all added to the effect.

ORHS social studies teacher Derek Cangello leads an annual field trip in his Citizen Education class to the Strafford County Jail. There, my class and I received an in-depth tour of the jail, and a glimpse of what prison life is like by talking to inmates and correctional officers. To many of my peers, this field trip was just that: a field trip. But to me, visiting the jail changed my life.

The prison was completely different from what I expected. I don’t think most people realize how ginormous a state

TV-style orange jumpsuits were nowhere to be seen, as most inmates wore grey or brown. The inmates are also sorted based on specific criteria: the crimes they commit, what programs they take part in, and gender.

One of my classmates, Lotta Berglund (‘25), was taken aback at how different the jail was from what she expected. “The prison’s layout is just so different than I had imagined. In Hollywood, jails are always shown with infinite, tiny, windowless cells along a hallway. Strafford County [Jail] is nothing like that.”

After the initial tour, our class spoke with two inmates who shared their stories. The main message that they spoke

“ThetwopeopleIhadbeenbattlingwithmywholelife werefinallyonmysideofthecourt, anditwasallbecauseofafieldtrip.”

about was how much they valued their family after not being able to see them for such a long time.

One inmate’s story stuck with me. His name was Doug, and he had been locked up for over a year. The only thing he talked about was how much he missed his daughter and couldn’t wait to see her. “Family is everything, don’t take it for granted,” said Doug. That moment was incredibly powerful to me, because it made me think about my family. Did I value them enough?

My relationship with my family has been a bumpy road all my life, and I often find myself arguing with my parents more often than not. I’ve always felt disconnected and not present in my parents or extended family’s lives. To combat this, I tried to paint the picture that I did not need, or want, them in my life. I began attributing my feelings of sadness and anger to my relationship with my family.

But this field trip stripped me of the entitlement I felt surrounding my parents. On the silent bus ride home, I remember thinking, Theseinmateshavenothing,not eventheirfreedom,andalltheycareaboutistheirfamily. As I was sitting there, staring at the back of a bus seat, I began to realize that it was the lack of connection with my family that was making me so unhappy.

And just like that, my idea of connection and family shifted from anger and unimportance to necessity and reliance. My main goal became rekindling long-ignored relationships with parents. It started with little things, like leaving my phone in my bedroom during dinner so we could talk as a family. I found myself planning out things to do, starting conversations, and texting and checking up on how my mom and dad were doing.

Having patience was my number one strength in trying to reconnect. I used to have the shortest fuse when it came to my family. If my mom got mad, I would get madder. But after our talk with the inmates, I noticed myself trying to deescalate and be cooperative with what my parents wanted, while still communicating my own opinions respectfully.

So, the family dinners I once dreaded became a highlight of my day. Silent car rides home from basket-

ball became filled with meaningful and important conversations. The two people I had been battling with my whole life were finally on my side of the court, and it was all because of a field trip.

To see if others had equally powerful experiences, I asked around to see what people in my class valued the most from the trip.

Talking about his biggest take away from going to the jail, Cangello said, “In all my years of going, the thing I will remember the most is probably how the people that work their treat the inmates without prejudice.”

Cangello continued: “It’s amazing when you have 75 inmates to a guard. Still showing compassion at such an elevated level of authority. I try to model that in my work and personal life.”

Wondering what my peers thought about the trip, I asked my classmate, Cole Dulac (‘25), who said, “I thought it was life changing. Seeing people without freedom truly makes your skin crawl.” Dulac talked about the attitudes inside the jail, and how hostility was always in the air. “Everyone has their guard up, trying to make themselves look like the tough guy on the block,” he said.

Berglund also thought the field trip was meaningful and was “very eye opening to have the perspective of actually being in the jail.”

Like my peers, seeing people inside the jail was what affected me the most. Knowing that with one mistake I could end up like the people behind those cell walls made me uncomfortable. “It’s always unsettling, seeing people that make mistakes through addiction and other problems. It just makes you more aware,” said Cangello.

Whether it was an experience as life-changing as mine, or just one that made some of my classmates, like Berglund, address their misconceptions of prison, this field trip was special for everybody in my class. It’s one I won’t forget, and I hope other kids get to experience this in the future.

- Mairtin Sweetman

But, you don’t look sick?

Grace Kasper (‘25) has heard “you don’t look sick” far more than the average person. She hears it when she has to explain why she’s missing school, or what she’s eating for lunch, or why she says she’s tired no matter how much sleep she got the night before.

To the average person, no, she doesn’t look sick. Not in the way they’re picturing. But they aren’t seeing the girl who spent most of her fourth grade year in the hospital. They’re not seeing the hundreds of google searches her mother made before the diagnosis. They don’t know what Ulcerative Colitis looks like.

Ulcerative Colitis is chronic disease, a form of inflammatory bowel disease, or IBD. It’s a piece of a disease trifecta, encompassing Crohn’s disease and diverticulitis. Everyone with any of these diseases experiences them differently, but in Kasper’s case it’s presented as a cycle. She’ll experience flares, in which symptoms are heightened and severe, as well as remission, when these symptoms are less present.

“I don’t think I’ve had one day this entire year where I’m 100%. There’s always something that hurts, or something that isn’t fully there. I’m tired, I have a cough, runny nose, my stomach hurts, my joints hurt. There’s always something I’m going through on a daily,” said Kasper.

Her colitis isn’t just present within the colon. Kasper’s entire body and mood are constantly changing out of her control. This is the case with many chronic illnesses. Someone’s entire life can change because of a diagnosis.

When Kasper got diagnosed, she had been sick for a long time already. There weren’t any telltale symptoms, and her family had a hard time finding out what to do. “I really didn’t understand, and honestly her primary care doctor

never even thought it was possible. She told me I was a high stress parent, and made her have anxiety. I kept saying, ‘No something’s really wrong.’ And we went to the emergency room, they were horrified we hadn’t been there sooner,” Kasper’s mother, Katrin, said.

After this diagnosis, the Kasper household was flipped

on its axis. “I scanned the internet to the point where I was frustrated that I couldn’t find a doctor who knew more than I did. I clicked every link on every study ever. I spent 16 hours in the kitchen until I collapsed on the floor in tears, just so exhausted from trying to make something she could eat. It became everything for a while,” her mother said.

An unknown diagnosis is especially terrifying for an elementary schooler, who just wanted to be able to dance, or go to school with her friends. But immediately, her life was completely different.

news in February of 2020, the Kasper family went into overdrive. They all started wearing masks in public constantly before the possibility of closing schools had even been discussed, and took quarantining to the highest level.

“YearsagoitfeltlikeIwasusingacursewordtosaythatIhaveCrohns.”

“In fourth grade, I was out a lot. If I didn’t have the 504, I would have been considered delinquent. I couldn’t have graduated that year,” Kasper said.

Even over seven years later, she’s still struggling with missing school, and how to manage the increased work load through high school. She said, “I find that there are some teachers that really don’t understand. I know that I have to get the work done. But how are you supposed to make up for months of pain?”

Teachers have come and gone through Kasper’s life, and she’s felt as though not many have fully grasped how to deal with a chronically ill student. The main component to this problem is the way that invisible illnesses are viewed.

“Even when I’m not in a flare, I’m never fully okay. I saw an Instagram infographic that said something like ‘a person with IBD can feel like they haven’t slept for three days straight and then ran a marathon’ and then we’re just asked to function like everybody else,” Kasper said.

Unfortunately, there’s no specific cure, and some treatments for certain pains can cause risk for bigger issues. Kasper, her parents, and her doctors have all gone back and forth through medications that target different things. Kasper said, “I’m really sick right now and my ribcage hurts when I cough and I can’t take antibiotics and I can’t do anything for that because it could affect the drug that I’m on for my IBD.”

This was just one of the times that Kasper had to be increasingly aware of her health in a way that most kids her age didn’t. “She’s had vaccines for things you’ve never heard of. Something a 70 year old person might have. She’s had bone density scans and colonoscopies and infusions and so much more goes into her days that a teenager usually doesn’t need to comprehend,” her mother said.

While there’s no way to make her pain go away, Kasper finds support in other ways. In 2017, she found out through her doctor about Camp Oasis, a summer camp established by the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation. The foundation states that the camp aims to create “A fun place for learning, playing, and healing,” with their support system and medical care for each kid.

“It’s such a unifying experience if you know that every single person there is going to get it. Every single camper, counselor, every single person there completely understands what I’m saying about my body,” Kasper said.

Camp Oasis functions like any normal summer sleepaway camp. “In the situation where everybody has IBD, it’s normal. Anyone that doesn’t have it would be the odd one out now. And that’s such a nice twist,” Kasper’s mom said.

Since that first year when she attended the week long summer session, Kasper has felt less alone in the world, and finally feels like she has a support in her life where she’s understood no matter what. She said, “If I’m ever struggling I can talk to my Oasis friends. We always say it’s the only people that actually get it. My friends who don’t have IBD always want to understand my perspective, but these people have listened to so many stories and lived through them and I think that’s so beautiful.”

When the first cases of COVID had spread through the

One of these campers is Jessica Press, from Long Island NY. “Years ago it felt like I was using a curse word to say

that I have Crohn’s but because of them I have a voice now. I can talk to my teachers and be able to communicate and advocate for myself and my body,” Press said. Press has been advocating for herself ever since. She coordinates fundraisers and participates in awareness campaigns and walks.

Outside of Camp Oasis, Kasper still struggles with how to talk about her illness. “It’s such an awkward feeling, to talk about your colon of all things. It’s not just saying ‘oh I have a tummy ache’ because everybody understands that.”

Understanding or supporting doesn’t mean you have to know exactly what she, or anyone else, is going through with IBD. Press said, “Support is what somebody with a chronic illness needs the most. In any way, even just to have someone to make them laugh or things like that. But I think other people being educated is the best way to care.”

Gabi Selig (‘25) supports Kasper through their friendship. “Sometimes it’s good to talk about the really bad days, but sometimes she just wants to be a normal teenager. So, I’ll invite her over anyways even if I know she can’t come, I’ll have a smile on my face always, I’ll check up on her,” Selig said.

Someone who doesn’t have any form of a chronic illness will never fully know what Kasper feels on a daily basis,

during a flare or not. She tries to explain and help people understand what a day looks and feels like for her, using the spoon theory.

“Every day, I wake up with a certain amount of spoons in my drawer. A spoon could be like, an amount of energy that I lose when I do something. On some really hard days, I’ll lose a spoon just by getting out of bed or brushing my teeth,” Kasper said.

Spoons might be an odd analogy, but it allows for her to describe how she views her life. Doing her math homework could take away a spoon for the day, while hanging out with her friend for an afternoon might give one back.

Seeing her own body fight through years of struggling with a disease that isn’t going to go anywhere, Kasper has learned to value herself more. She said, “I see it with every person I know that has IBD. There’s this feeling about our life and our wellness or physical health that none of us take for granted. I know what it’s like to be really, really bad.”

No, Grace Kasper doesn’t look sick. But she doesn’t have to look a certain way for her sickness to be real. KasperattendingCampOasisduringAugust2023

KasperattendingCampOasisduringAugust2018

- Amelia Rury

Teacher Book Talks

Follow Micah Bessette as he learns about your favorite teachers and their favorite books!

Eustace von Oeyen

Baver

Milliken

VanDyke

Lacasse

Stuck in the Middle

Iused to hate telling people my middle name because it would launch them into a series of questions. Questions about myself, about my family, what languages I speak, why I don’t look a certain way. I wondered if other people felt that way through their life or came to a realization halfway through.

Being able to accept your identity is a life-long process, especially when a name is the first thing people ask for when meeting or on an important document. Middle names in particular can be a connector for all sections of a person’s life, whether it’s religion, ethnicity, family, or expression. But it seems as if society has set a certain cloud over middle names, making it all under the individual’s choice of choosing pride versus shame.

I remember talking to Erinn Doherty (’25) in middle

school about our middle names one day during recess. With pride, she answered “Faith”.

Doherty is Catholic, and although she isn’t from a super-religious family, she has always felt connected to her religion through her name.

“It’s kind of interesting, because although it wasn’t my choice, it is still something that I can take pride in, like my belief system, my family’s belief system, and I think that it’s really cool that my middle name is connected to that. If they know my middle name, they can also maybe know a little bit more about me and what I believe in.” Doherty feels as if middle names reveal a part of a person’s identity, especially if it bridges to their family.

Family matters to Caitlin Lynch (’25), growing up between two different cultures. She feels as if her middle name, Mei, serves as that bridge connecting her two ethnicities,

Chinese and Irish. Linguistically, her middle name differs from her first and last name which are very obviously Irish.

Being mixed, at least from my experience, feels as if it’s less of a physical split. It’s more of a longing to belong some where, especially through family.

“Pronouncingandbutchering unfamiliar names makes us sound ridiculous.So,wetrytoavoidit.”

Lynch finds that because ‘Mei’ is after her maternal grandmother, she feels connected to her. “It’s one of the only connections I have with my grandmother because she speaks broken English and I speak broken Cantonese. So, we never really had conversations, but if we have the same name, it’s kind of like we share that.”

Connor Walsh (‘25) has a middle name that he shares with his grandfather, Stando. Stando is the nickname of his grandfather, Stanislav, who worked at a publishing firm in the Czech Republic. He later immigrated to the United States during the Cold War era.

Walsh is honored that he was named after his grandfather. He says, “I think it’s kind of cool, unique, and fun. I’d rather have a unique name, than not... In a way it reminds me of my grandfather. I’ve never met him, but I think he has a good story.”

To write a good story, Ulysses Smith (’25) goes under his alias UÆS to put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard). Wonder what the Æ stands for? Æon, his middle name of Latin origin is used in his alias.

Although it may seem like he is covering his identity through his writing, it’s the opposite. Instead, he uses it to create a more liberating space for himself, rather than constricting. He states, “This is my name in a world of poetry that I’ve created for myself. And this is who I am in this world [and] no one can take that away.” Using his initials as a mask for writing poetry has helped him develop a sense of identity through his writing, giving him power to be the writer he wants to be without any judgement.

Doherty remembers the trend in middle school, where middle names would come up a lot, usually to be made fun of and judged. She recalls, “When it came to middle school, I started to see that some people were embarrassed of their middle name. So I was like, ‘What’s wrong with your middle

name? Like, why? Why do you not want to share that?’ I definitely did have some reservations at that time, because everyone else around me didn’t, and I didn’t want be the only one who liked my middle name.”

In hindsight, I liked my middle name. It added that unique flair that names like Ann or Andrew didn’t have. But that’s also what made me wary. It was so different from what everybody was used to. It was not your typical “American” name.

Beyond middle names, un-American names can be looked down upon. An article by Alla Gonopolsky called, “To My Fellow Americans With Weird, Un-American Names”, describes that, “As humans, we evolved to innately gravitate toward our tribe, toward the people most likely to speak our language, literally and figuratively...While our brains love jumping to conclusions, they hate feeling stupid. Pronouncing and butchering unfamiliar names makes us sound ridiculous. So, we try to avoid it.”

“I’ve always been pretty proud of myname,andmyheritage. Myparentstaughtmetonevershy awayfromit.”

But is this avoidance more harm than it’s worth? Growing up, middle names were something that could be made fun of: A smirk slowly crossing a kid’s face waiting for a middle name to make fun of on the playground. A whole plot of a Disney show episode revolving around finding out a character’s humiliating and disastrous middle name.

With the culture that’s current now, it’s easy to be swept up in the belief that all that’s different is bad, and that those who are different, should be ashamed.

Lynch has gone against this status quo surrounding her name and her identity, with the help of those around her. She says, “I’ve always been pretty proud of my name, and my heritage. My parents taught me to never shy away from it, or never to be embarrassed of who I was. I have them to thank for that.”

- Hannah Megumi Klarov

All in the Stars

Scrolling on TikTok, colorful and aesthetically pleasing videos pop up one after another: Lip shapes according to zodiac signs. Then the next video: Dark academia vs light academia zodiac signs. Even on Snapchat, each profile has the option to show someone’s birth chart to anyone who taps on it. Is a person’s fate really written in the stars?

Zodiac signs are a cultural subset that helps those who believe find out more about themselves, the future, and everything in between. The common astrology that we see today has strayed away from its original meaning, over 3000

big of an influence they were.

Van der Waerden writes, “All pseudo-physical arguments by which astrologers try to make plausible the influence of planets and zodiacal signs upon our lives, are only disguises, the primary idea being that the planets and signs are Divine Powers. The accomplished system of astrology with its vague religious background...could originate only in a country where the stars, planets and zodiacal signs were worshipped as gods, i.e. in Babylonia.”

years ago. But are zodiac signs just fun little stories to entertain people or are they at the core, a cry for help in a meaning-deprived world?

To put it simply, zodiac signs are stories derived from constellations. There have been multiple cultures that have first sighted these constellations, but the earliest one was the Babylonians.

If cultural influence from zodiac signs is big now, it was twice as large, back then in around 410 B.C.E. – more than just a button showing you’re a Taurus on your Snapchat profile.

“History of the Zodiac”, a journal article by B.L van der Waerden, describes the direct origin of these signs and how

These stories were more than just entertainment at the core level, they were a connector between people and the higher beings they worshipped

Sara Cathey, Oyster River High School (ORHS) science teacher, can’t imagine not teaching her Astronomy class at least a little about these stories. She says, “What’s fascinating, is that different cultures have zeroed in on this one cluster of stars, and they’ve attached their different stories to it.”

Cathey introduces the concept of astronomy by explaining the differences between astronomy and astrology. wIsabelle Alix (‘25), a student in Cathey’s astronomy class, has never found the reasoning behind astrology to be logical and thinks that it shouldn’t be used to influence someone’s life. She states, “It’s just something that people did to make

themselves feel better, and the whole thing with reading your horoscope in the newspaper, it’s just you letting other people make decisions for you.”

While some people let zodiac signs run their lives, Eden Suoth, a social studies teacher, thinks about it from a philosophical perspective. “My immediate reaction is to wonder if it’s been completely co-opted by this culture to serve as a meaning generator, because we’re so starved and deprived of meaning.” Zodiac signs can serve a meaning to people’s actions, why they do certain things, just like how the Babylonians relied on the stars as gods.

Suoth also brought to light a philosophy attributed by Friederich Nietzsche, the philosopher’s most well-known quote attributing to the lack of belief in God. Nietzsche saw the world becoming more and more secular, a world far apart from once God-revolving communities. So, in his theory, we have loosened our transcendental belief around God, putting us in a “crisis of meaning.”

This theory in turn proposes that zodiac signs replace that need for believing in a higher power, something beyond us to guide people through their lives. Cathey, although not a firm believer of Western astrology, finds it interesting that people base traits, actions, and emotions on the positions of stars.

She states, “And so, is that my personal belief system? No. But I find it really interesting because what an interesting phenomenon to hang your hat on and help with your life and your actions. I find it fascinating that people do that.”

When the Babylonians invented zodiac signs, the stories were much more elaborate, compared to the current reduced tropes.

Odin Whiteley (‘25) believes that these overused stories have made it harder to believe in astrology. He says, “I think it’s a lot of coincidence and vague descriptions of basic personality traits that can fit almost anyone. But when you know your zodiac sign, I feel like a lot of people tend to act more like that as their personality.”

Since the first time the Babylonians laid their eyes on the stories surrounding the stars and started making their first horoscopes, the Earth has changed, both culturally and physically. In 2006, NASA made the discovery that our planet tilts every 1600 years, meaning each of our current zodiac signs are not our actual signs.

Paige Haug (‘25) has always been interested in zodiac signs and thinks they do have some truth to them spanning our culture. “It’s not always accurate because somebody could have the same exact [sign] as you and it totally not be accurate. They just have different personalities. Like they couldn’t answer with a bunch of the same stuff that you answer with.”

The zodiac system was set up 3000 years ago, already aligning with the clusters of stars that were there before. Cathey says, “The wobble of our planet has caused us to be out of that alignment. The physics of our planet is now saying our zodiacs don’t line up anymore. And the world basically said, ‘nope, sorry, we’re not believing’… We’re further along in our wobble on our planet, so I’m no longer an Aquarius. I’m now a Capricorn.”

But even then, what do zodiac signs represent in the bigger picture? A gap in our own perception of life? A hole to fill? Suoth states, “That’s where my unease comes from when people use these things as a way to not take a deep and honest look within their own selves. We lean more into astrology, for an example, rather than trying to figure out how in the secular world, we can make meaningful lives for ourselves.”w

- Hannah Klarov

The Beginner’s Guide to

Back in my freshman year, AP classes seemed ominous. I felt like they were for the best of the best: for the most prestigious of students at ORHS. However, thanks to my brother and friends in higher grades, I realized AP classes are less daunting than I thought. Although they are faster paced and therefore harder, curriculum in an AP class is created specifically for a test in May: only a month before classes usually end. Additionally, they serve as possible college credit, which can save lots of money if you plan to further your education.

However, AP classes aren’t for everyone, and that’s okay. This article isn’t to convince you that you need AP classes: I am just giving you tips and guides for which ones you might want to take so you can be prepared in the future as a metaphorical big brother. Treat AP classes as normal classes: never take a class just because it says AP. Be interested in the class itself.

Another thing to note is that I have not taken every AP class, so some of the descriptions are from students who have taken the class. Also, you can self-teach yourself AP classes not offered in-person and learn on Virtual Learning Academy Charter School (VLACS). You can talk to your counselor to learn more about these options.

Without further ado, here is your AP guide by James Li, listed in no particular order.

AP Calculus AB

Typical Teacher: Bill Reeves

Length: Full year

Prerequisites: Precalculus

Interested in the STEM field? Calculus is for you. It is one of the bases for engineering, chemistry, physics, and many other STEM subjects.

Difficulties: Calculus introduces many new abstract concepts, but the basis is formed from math you’velearned in previous classes. It might not feel useful, but it is, trust me.

“[Reeves] is more of a professor’s style of a teacher, because he kinda just does it. He assumes you already know and can jump there in your head.” - Maya Grainger (‘24).

James Li’s Tips and Tricks: Understand the concepts by asking Reeves or watching YouTube videos. There are also optional homework assignments which you can use to further your understanding of calculus, especially if there are specific concepts you are struggling with. Once you understand these, AP Calc and future math classes will be a lot easier.

AP Calculus BC

Typical Teacher: Bill Reeves

Length: Only in 2nd semester

Prerequisites: Taking or have taken AB

Think of the hardest math class you’ve had. Calc BC is probably two times as bad. Unless that made you think about AB, and then it’s about 1 ½ times as bad. It’s also useful in STEM.

Difficulties: Building off Calc AB, the concepts are more abstract, equations more complex, and ideas more complicated. Unfortunately, because of timing constraints, you’re never really shown in class how any of this stuff is used, which I didn’t really like.

“The beginning of [BC] is dumb. The rest of it is okay. It’s just a lot of work, which I guess you can expect but it is what it is.” - Chris Hawley (‘24)

James Li’s Tips and Tricks: Visualize it with further research. The most satisfying part of this class is being able to understand what you are learning.

AP Physics 1

Typical Teacher: Jim Thibault (pronounced Teeboe)

Length: Full year

Prerequisites: Algebra 2/Trigonometry

Ever wondered about kinematics? AP Physics 1 is all about kinematics, or motion, basically. If you want to go further into the physics field, or engineering, this (and AP Physics 2) class is for you.

Difficulties: Physics is very math intensive, so if you don’t like math, it might not be the best science class for you.

“It’s pretty hard. If you’re not really into an additional math conceptual course, I wouldn’t take it. I can’t say I enjoyed it the entire time, but I would say that it was a good experience. I enjoy being able to understand real world scientific concepts and relate to them in my dayto-day.” - Alessandro Garofalo (‘24)

James Li’s Tips and Tricks: What helped me with the test taking was reviewing the homeworks, as many test questions are similar to homework problems. As for the homework problems, they are required but are graded by completion. My best advice for lab reports is submitting them early, so Thibault can give you feedback before you need to turn in a final version.

AP Physics 2

Typical Teacher: Jim Thibault

Length: Full year

Prerequisites: AP Physics 1

Ever wondered about electricity and magnetism? AP Physics 2 is all about electricity, magnetism, fluids, optics, waves, and more.

Difficulties: I find this class harder than Physics 1 because a lot of these things aren’t as easily visualized. For example, I can see a ball falling but I can’t see electricity flowing through a wire, or electrons being attracted to protons. Additionally, the formulas are more difficult, so study hard.

“In AP [Physics] 1 we did forces, and I feel like that’s physics. [In AP Physics 2], we’re doing electricity, and I don’t really know how that’s physics.” - Grainger

James Li’s Tips and Tricks: Because this is also a Thibault class, previous advice about homework and labs still stands.

AP Microeconomics/Macroeconomics

Typical Teacher: Adam Lacasse

Length: Full year, but Micro is 1st semester and Macro is 2nd semester.

Prerequisites: None

Micro is the study of small-scale economics like businesses and Macro is the study of large-scale economics like government trade. Although math is involved in this class, it mostly relies on economic concepts which you need to understand. This class is a good introduction to economics, so take this if you’re interested in that.

Difficulties: There are a lot of concepts, so when I took the class, we omitted one unit from both Micro and Macro. If you’re taking the AP test for this class, you will have to do some outside practice as well.

Mods are the main homework in this class, which are 10-question multiple choice quizzes about the topic you learned that day in class. Usually, all Mods are repeatable and also due before a test (which does not happen frequently).

“Econ was a very mellow class. We didn’t do a lot of work, we could retake a test... as a class, I never had to worry about it. Overall, I thought it was a pretty easy class,” said Jacob Failla (‘24).

James Li’s Tips and Tricks: Never hold these mods off until the day they’re due. Nobody wants to pull their hair out looking for past class material they’re barely familiar with, spending hours doing Mods, so you don’t get an F (I know you will probably still do this, just don’t say I didn’t warn you).

AP Spanish

Typical Teacher: Tom Hausmann

Length: Full year

Prerequisites: Spanish 4

If you are able to take this class, consider yourself lucky that more than eight people in your school like Spanish. The main focus of AP Spanish is culture, as Hausmann will require you throughout the year to study a Spanish speaking country (the theme of culture comes up a lot during the AP test).

Apart from that, there are three types of classes in AP Spanish. Reading days, cultural comparison days, and mock test days. The classes are straightforward, and the only outside homework is electronic questions and outside reading. If you’ve taken every other Spanish class, this is a good option to continue speaking Spanish in high school and also like learning about different cultures.

Difficulties: The AP already expects you to be pretty good at Spanish and doesn’t really teach you much vocab and grammar wise.

“In the actual class, you’re more preparing for the actual test. I recommend it for people that are already good at Spanish. If you’re coasting like your first few years of Spanish, I think it will be hard for you to be successful in class.” - Ben Limric (‘24)

James Li’s Tips and Tricks: If you plan on taking this class, or any AP World Language, you should do a lot of outside practice to get used to reading, speaking, and listening. Stay on top of homeworks, and you should be golden.

AP Statistics

Typical Teacher: Peter Harwood

Length: Full year

Prerequisites: Grade of C or better in Precalculus, or Algebra II and Trigonometry or Grade of B- or better in both Trigonometry and Finite Mathematics.

I don’t like Stats. You might be wondering, “James Li, I thought you loved math you nerd,” and you would be right, I do like math. However, the vision of stats which I created in my head was that it was a pure math class.

Yes, you do math in AP Stats, but the core of stats is analyzing data and creating assumptions based on that data. Compared to classes like A2/Trig or Precalc, it has more practical uses and is made clear by Peter Harwood, who is a fantastic teacher.

One of the plus sides to Stats is it’s a lot better for people who didn’t really like math in high school and for people who don’t want to struggle in Calc.

Difficulties: There are a lot of definitions and procedures you have to remember. As much as Harwood will remind you about them, you have to do outside studying to really hammer in those points.

“You do want to try in stats. Stats can be easy and hard at times. Stats is a class everyone should take.” - Failla

James Li’s Tips and Tricks: Some things to note are that the textbook is very helpful. Usually in class, we don’t go over a lot of the definitions, because there are just so many. Take the time to read about the chapter ahead of time and you should be cookin’.

AP United States History

Typical Teacher: Karen VanDyke

Length: Full year

Prerequisites: U.S. History

There are 400 years of history relating to the creation and development of the United States. And in APUSH (abbr. for AP US History), you learn all 400 of it. However, it’s not like some game show where you must know every fact, VanDyke explained.

“None of the questions are asking you to come up with a fact. It’s the application of an understanding of history. Even the multiple-choice questions are about how an action impacted, cause and effect, or long-range planning. It’s a critical thinking class, more than any type of memorization.”

This doesn’t mean you should not learn the facts, however. You’re issued a book that is expected to be read for class, and Van Dyke will also do lectures about the chapters you’ve read in class as well.

If you’re a fan of history or not a fan of STEM subjects, or you just want to improve your ability to read and analyze texts, take APUSH. In fact, everyone should take this class, says Van Dyke. “I end up seeing such growth from every student that takes [APUSH]. It might not be growth in the point where they’re going to get a five on the AP exam, but everybody that comes in grows such large leaps and bounds that I’m really proud of.”

Differences and Difficulties:

Multiple choice: Although other exams also have multiple choice, the ones presented in APUSH are different. “[Multiple Choice questions] can trick you a lot, because there can be multiple right answers to a question,” says Hayden Spires (‘24). “You just have to pick the rightest answers.”

Short Answer Questions: Gives you a question and expects a short answer.

Document Based Questions (DBQ): In this section, you expected to argue a common point based on seven documents, which all don’t have to agree with each other. To get full credit, you can either use all seven documents in your argument or use at least five but contain a summary demonstrating that you know what you’re talking about. Many students find this difficult.

Long Essay Questions (LEQs): Using your knowledge of U.S. History, write an essay answering a prompt.

Tips and Tricks: “Number one: Utilize the textbook,” says Spires. “VanDyke goes over the chapters, but she leaves a lot of stuff out in her lectures. I think it’s on purpose because we need to take a lot of responsibility.”

Additionally, Spires says to use outside resources. “There’s a bunch of good YouTube videos and YouTubers and teachers who are talking about the different units in the textbook. I really wish I did that when I was in the class.”

AP Biology

Typical Teacher: Nate Oxnard

Length: Full year

Prerequisites: Two science courses

AP Biology isn’t your typical AP class. Taught by Nathan Oxnard, this class extends on what you learned in 9th grade biology, if you even remember that. However, what’s special about this class is how Oxnard doesn’t want to spend a whole class on a lecture, but on something more applicable to the AP test and the real world. “[Oxnard] didn’t really teach many lessons, and if he did teach a lesson, it would be like 10 to 15 minutes. Usually, there would either be a lab or activity, or review day before a test. There weren’t many ‘sit and take notes;’ I don’t think we took any notes during class,” says Alja Forcey-Rodriguez (‘24).

If you are very interested in science, or like or want to improve your self-learning ability, Forcey-Rodriguez says this class is for you.

Difficulties: Because not a lot of lectures are done in-class, you will have to self-study with a textbook. Forcey-Rodriguez says that it’s important to study, as it translates to how you perform in the class. “The unit tests would really hit us hard. Some people did extremely well, but most people did pretty poorly.”

Tips and Tricks: Read the textbook. “A lot of [material] is based on the textbook. You have to read the textbook a lot, and people wouldn’t do that because they’re not really used to self-learning,” said Forcey-Rodriguez.

AP Chemistry

Typical Teacher: Jennifer Wainwright

Length: Full year

Prerequisites: Chemistry and Algebra 2

Chemistry: The bane of sophomores. You might be glad to hear that there is not much workload outside of class, which is reading the textbook(s) and taking notes. Then why does Olaf Woodall (‘24) think this is the hardest AP at ORHS?

Difficulties: “If you’re not good at memorizing stuff, do not do AP Chem. It is a lot of content and a lot of knowing the content,” says Woodall. In fact, there are two books for AP Chemistry which you use throughout the year and when Woodall took the class, they even had to omit one unit because of the overwhelming content.

Additionally, it doesn’t present itself as a difficult class. “Some people mistake AP Chem for being an easy class at the start of the year because there’s really no homework, and then you get a test. One time, I thought there wasn’t much workload for [AP Chem] and I fell behind – didn’t do well on the test,” continued Woodall. He also mentions that there are a lot of math concepts you have to use as well.

I then asked Woodall about the other aspects of the class. “You do labs once in a while. Some of them are good, some of them are pretty boring. You can’t expect too much fun stuff to happen,” he said.

Also, he said titration is hard. I don’t know what that is.

Advice from Woodall: Woodall reinforces the idea of having good chemistry with your peers. “I had a really good group last year; I think everyone liked each other. We had a fun time. But if you have a bad group, I can imagine it being probably the worst class.”

Additional advice:

“Do not slack off in AP Chem.

Don’t do what I did: I didn’t take a single page of notes

all year for the class.

Don’t play chess on your computer, pay attention during class.

Enjoy electrochem. If you don’t enjoy electrochem you’re just bad at chemistry.

Do not underestimate the class,” he said.

AP Precalculus

Typical Teacher: Lisa Hallbach

Length: Full year

Prerequisites: C- or better in Algebra 2 with Trigonometry, B- or better in Algebra 2, and a grade of B- or better in both Trigonometry and Finite Mathematics

In the near future, AP Precalculus will be the only Precalculus class offered at ORHS. Although this sounds bad on paper, it’s because AP Precalc and Precalc are the same class. The curriculum is the same and the speed of the class is the same. Lisa Hallbach, the current AP Precalc teacher, noticed this while teaching a class where half were taking AP, and half regular.

“They’re taking the same test. They’re doing the same material. It just didn’t make sense to have two courses that were just the same thing, where one crew is taking a test and another is not,” she said.

Differences to Precalc: Other than a test you have to take in May, AP Precalc has a greater focus on graphing using calculators, which is a good skill to have for the future.

James Li’s Advice: Don’t get too alarmed when you only see this on the class selection list for precalc: it’s the same class. If you don’t want to take the AP test, then don’t. Do what feels right for you.

Those are the AP classes offered at ORHS. I hope I’ve inspired you to challenge yourself and take an AP course, and if I haven’t, that’s fine. Just remember, the CollegeBoard will always find a way to take your money.

- James Li

Hate Speech at Oyster River High School

October 5th was the first date marked on a long list of incidents involving hate speech and graffiti at Oyster River High School.

On November 30th, the “N” word was found carved into one of the school elevators. Scan the QR code to read more.

NaNoWriMo: National Novel Writing Month

Ever wondered what NaNoWriMo is? Check out the QR code to read our story about the experience of students writing during November.

(Im)Prove Yourself

Ithink my first introduction to self-improvement was when I was in elementary school. I was in my local library, and my eyes suddenly fell on the cover of a thin book, titled, A (Smart) Girl’s Guide to Starting Middle School. It was published by American Girl.

I remember re-reading that book at least five times before I actually got to middle school. And I took the advice that was written in there, word for word.

While other girls my age were forcefully gifted these types of books, I willingly checked them out from my library ten times each. I knew deep down that the ideas behind some of these books were stupid, but I didn’t care. And when that improvement didn’t happen, I thought what I was doing wasn’t enough and that I should try harder. These self-help books existed for a reason they were bound to work, right?

Self-improvement is a crucial part of everyday life. Especially with the New Year, many people are scrambling to achieve their dreams, as it provides them with a fresh start, setting goals one after another. But that fresh start is often already doomed from the beginning by a negative mindset. And in the long term, are the goals being set worth it?

Countless New Years have passed by, and for the most part, I’ve stayed relatively the same in the areas in which I wanted to improve in. While I have all these ideas circulating in my brain like an endless carousel, I rarely ever carry them out. Especially when it comes to setting goals and going through with them.

Jaclyn Jensen, my Psychology teacher at Oyster River High School (ORHS), has seen people going under the un-

necessary pressure of wanting to change, that often times isn’t needed to make an effective change in a person’s life. Jensen states, “Just because you want something doesn’t mean that it’s enough to help you execute the [goal]. I feel like it’s a self-defeating mindset because people set all these goals at the beginning of the year, and they don’t follow through with them. It’s the approach to making the change that’s flawed, not you as a person.”

New Year’s is the holiday that promotes change. It’s as if people specifically wait for the new year, even if they have a quarter of the year left to start working toward their goal. All that waiting for the “perfect time” is useless. A journey to self-improvement is almost never perfectly linear.

This same ideology can be seen in the culture of resolutions. One popular resolution is losing weight. A study titled, “New Years Resolutions to Lose Weight – Dreams and Reality” by Dr. Sophia M. Rossner analyzed data from 12,000 women spanning a year.

Forty percent of those women start dieting in January, but the number drops halfway in February. Rossner says in the aftermath of the study, “Lack of self-confidence was a common reason. Many of these women seemed to start in a negative spiral never believing that they would succeed, yet at the same time being desperately anxious to do anything if only weight loss and maintenance thereof could be achieved.” Along with the lack of patience for results, the focus group had a negative mindset to begin with.

Caitlyn Savage (‘26) recognizes that the holidays are a stressful time already for many people and setting unat-

tainable resolutions can add to that. She states, “I also think keeping yourself up to such a high standard probably causes a lot of burnouts for people. And then having that added pressure of ‘Oh, I’m going to keep myself on this one thing, probably doesn’t help.’” She also says that there is a peer pressure aspect of it. Everyone is asking each other what their new year’s resolutions are.

Like the study showed, the reason why many of the women stopped exercising and dieting was because of their poor mindset. They were trying to improve from a state of lack, not from the positive desire to grow.

When trying to self-improve, it’s crucial to start from a stable base, one that is ready for positive change. Jensen emphasizes the importance of a positive mindset when first starting out with a goal. “You can never insult or degrade yourself into a better version of yourself. You have to see your strengths and what you’re capable of. Value yourself and believe you are worth these positive changes that mind-

subconsciously and consciously. The brain is literally creating new pathways for a person’s day-to-day life, overriding old trails.

Willpower and dreams can only do so much in terms of accomplishing goals. They can motivate you, but if you don’t do anything to achieve that goal, there’s physically nothing to motivate.

There’s a reason why people only start self-improving in January and drop it, best case scenario when the calendar changes to February: they don’t have anything else to motivate them except the start of a new rotation around the sun.

Through her experience of setting resolutions, Savage has found that long term goals are a lot more sustainable in the span of the new year, both physically and emotionally. “There’s more of a positive and healthy energy to it. Instead of saying, I’m just going to get all A pluses, I could say I’m going to get A’s and B pluses. So, it’s more like I’m working towards it instead of I need [to do] it right now.”

set is really important.”

This semester, I’m taking Jensen’s Psychology class. We’ve done a lot on goal setting, focusing on both how it affects our external actions and what’s happening inside our brain. Many of the habitual actions that we confide in are the cause of a release of dopamine, a chemical that is released in moments of happiness and contentment. Especially if the action is repeated multiple times, like going on your phone every night before you go to sleep, it may be harder to get rid of.

It won’t happen overnight. However, using cues, friction, and context can help someone be more inclined to follow through with their goal. Cues are used as triggers to move the brain’s focus to the goal. Context is the environment that the goal is surrounded in, whether it be people or the resources available. Friction can be a wall to stop on-going habits, something that makes it harder to continue.

Creating new habits to replace the old is a lot of work

This type of goal setting can be more motivating as it comes more from the heart, as a person is willing to invest in themselves, rather than a resolution.

Because of this, people may give up on their resolutions because it doesn’t match up with who they want to be and what they’re actually working towards. Jensen says, “Maybe you did have a goal that was a little more superficial. If you understand that [goal] was your motivation, then you get the mindset that you had. It can reinforce a more empowered mindset[ like saying], I’m making a choice about what’s best for me.”

Knowing what’s best and making a change towards that can be uncomfortable at first and sometimes scary. But that fear is needed it shows that this goal is right for you, it’s just slightly out of reach.

And that fear can be that little push that we need.

- Hannah Klarov