On Friday, May 10, Mounds View’s theater director, Matthew Van Bruggen, announced in an email to theater families that he would not return for a third year as director.
According to Van Bruggen’s message, he decided not to return last October because he found it challenging to support the theater program while working full-time as the District Performance Facilities Manager.
Principal Robert Reetz confirmed that Van Bruggen
informed him of his decision to resign in October.
Reetz explained how Van Bruggen intentionally waited to announce his resignation until after the spring musical Cinderella. “I did want him to be able to lead, and so it didn’t feel like the timing was right to announce before or during Cinderella,” he said.
In an email sent to theater families on Monday, May 13, it was announced that married couple Dan and Colin Perucco would both replace Van Bruggen. According to the email, Dan Perucco has taught English Language Arts
(ELA) at Edgewood for ten years, and Colin Perucco has taught ELA at Highview for two. “We’re looking forward to working together to direct this program. Theater has always been a passion of ours, and we are excited to put our skills to use at MVHS. Between us, we share 12 years of directing experience, 15 years of teaching experience, and a combined 55 years of theater and performing arts experience,” the email said.
“I am confident that the theater program will continue to thrive under the guidance of the talented and passionate staff and advisors who will follow,”
said the May 10 message from Van Bruggen.
“I am confident that the theater program will continue to thrive under the guidance of the talented and passionate staff and advisors who will follow.”
Matthew Van Bruggen, Mounds View theater director
“I want to express my
gratitude for your support and dedication. The memories of our productions, rehearsals, and the laughter shared will forever hold a special place in my heart. It has been an incredible experience,” he added.
Van Bruggen’s decision to resign comes after many theater students expressed their disapproval of his job leading Mounds View Theater and, as reported in issue 7 of The Viewer, the decisions made in casting the spring musical Cinderella.
Van Bruggen declined to comment to The Viewer.
Only 28% of Minnesota high schools offer computer science classes.| Graham Hanson STAFF REPORTER
In a 2023 survey by Code. org, they found that only 28% of high schools in Minnesota offered computer science classes. This is a sharp contrast to the national average, with 57% of high schools offering computer science classes. With such a low percentage, Minnesota ranks dead last in the nation for secondary education computer science course offerings.
A possible cause of low accessibility to computer science courses is that Minnesota, unlike many other states, does not require secondary schools to offer computer science classes. At least 27 other states do, and many states are currently working to pass such legislation, such as Michigan, California and Louisiana. Even with this, expanding computer science education may be difficult as there is also a lack of qualified teachers in this field. In 2018, Minnesota only had three new teachers from teacher preparation programs who were qualified to teach computer science according to Code.org.
Additionally, Minnesota is also one of seven states that does not have a clear pathway for earning a license or certificate for teaching computer science, unlike in math or science, as reported by Code.org. This is because computer science can be taught in Minnesota at the secondary level with a math or business license. “I have to be a licensed math teacher to teach math. I don’t need to be a licensed computer science teacher to teach computer science at
the moment,” said Christopher Hagel, computer science teacher. Not requiring a specific license to teach computer science has made it so that there are no official academic standards for computer science teachers to adhere to as computer science licenses are not recognized.
“I have to be a licensed math teacher to teach math. I don’t need to be a licensed computer science teacher to teach computer science.”
Christopher Hagel, computerscience teacher
In 2022, as part of the effort to bolster computer science education in K-12 schools, Governor Tim Walz signed a compact from the National Governors’ Association pushing to increase computer science education in K-12. Following that, the Minnesota Department of Education introduced the Minnesota Computer Science Education Advancement Act to add computer science coursework into the state’s K-12 curriculum according to Star Tribune. They also enlisted committees, such as the Computer Science Working Group, in an effort to promote long-term growth of computer science education in Minnesota. “Right now, the state has a special working group that’s focusing on making computer science standards, so that way, we can then have standards for high
schools, maybe middle schools, and then more course offerings could then be available in the future,” said Hagel.
The state is also looking into an integrative approach to increase computer science education by incorporating computer science standards into other core subjects or creating other computer-related courses beyond coding. Hagel believes that Minnesota should require at least one computer science class in order to graduate, whether it be a core class or elective. “I would envision that it would be a ‘you get to pick from a menu of things,’ so if you have to take one computer science class, maybe it’s CSP or maybe it’s CSA, or maybe it’s cybersecurity, or maybe it’s networking, something like that. Or maybe it’s just digital citizenship on the ethical concerns and issues that arise with social media being out there and how we use computers every day,” said Hagel.
With new measures and programs, Minnesota hopes to catch up with other states in computer science education, allowing students to take full advantage of the growing industry and future opportunities.
A multitude of school bills have recently been passed in Minnesota, here are some of the most important
• In hopes of curtailing distracted students and online bullying, Minnesota is requiring every K-12 school to have a cell phone use policy by March 15, 2025.
• As a result of school attendance rates suffering post-pandemic, the state has looked into issuing a report regarding chronic absenteeism, providing school funding to tackle the issue as well as having 12 districts focus on creating practices that will ensure student attendance.
• Book bannings across the country have increased recently, so the state is looking to fix this by banning book bans to ensure fair representation.
round the country, student journalists have exposed corruption, scandals and injustices in their community that would have otherwise gone unnoticed.
In 2017, a student journalist from Pittsburg, California, exposed their principal’s fraudulent resume claims, leading to her resignation. In 2019, a high school student from Amherst-Pelham Regional High in Massachusetts revealed his school’s use of prison labor, prompting the district to discontinue the practice. In 2021, students at Townsend Harris High School in Queens, New York, uncovered that a teacher recommended for termination due to sexual misconduct was still employed. Their investigation resulted in the teacher’s removal and was featured on the cover of the Washington Post. Unfortunately, many student publications face restrictions by their school administration when attempting to report on issues that may make the
school look bad. Some schools attempt to shut down their student newspaper entirely, like Northwest Public Schools in Nebraska, which shut down their newspaper for publishing stories covering LGBTQ+ issues, or Mountain View High School in California where their principal canceled the Introduction to Journalism class after their newspaper publishing an article about sexual harassment.
Oftentimes though, school districts will simply impose prior review on their newspapers, which is when school administrators must review content before it’s published.
This was even threatened on The Viewer in 2010 after reporting on two students who were suspended for posting a photo on Facebook of their teacher, without her knowing, while a student struck a sexually suggestive pose behind her. Take it from Martha Rush, who was the Viewer advisor during the 2010 situation which she described as “stressful”: “I think prior review causes stu-
| Maya Gjelhaug STAFFver the past few years at Mounds View, there has been a lot of contention over one major policy area: late work. When Robert Reetz became principal two years ago, I remember one of his major concerns was the late work grading policy, where students would receive grade deductions for work turned in past the due date. I remember teachers’ worries — without incentives, lazy students simply wouldn’t turn in work anymore.
I myself was apprehensive. I wondered how we would be able to meet newspaper print deadlines with writers (Journalism I students) who weren’t necessarily obligated to finish assignments by those deadlines. And I would be lying if I claimed there haven’t been a few cases where a writer simply refused to complete work. But this was also true, if not more so, prior to the “no late work” policy. And I highly doubt a 10% — or even
50% — deduction for late work would have motivated those few students, most of whom hardly cared about achieving a passing grade, to finish assignments on time. The research on late work policies mirrors most contemporary research about motivation — incentives, including grades, don’t lead to higher quality, or even punctually completed, work. And this isn’t just seen in schools. The American Library Association now recommends eliminating late fines, as data suggests that fines for late returns, contrary to expectations, actually decrease the speed and quantity of book returns by borrowers. And countless other examples prove that late penalties are counterproductive when it comes to reducing late work.
Now, the way performance is assessed in schools is based on the same assumptions we use in business and parenting. But maybe instead of justifying grading policies based on those assumptions, we should question the entire system that relies
dent journalists to self-censor and not take on difficult or sensitive topics in their stories, which is unfortunate training for our future journalists and citizens. I think students value free speech more when they are allowed to practice it.”
While some may argue that prior review by administrators is necessary to ensure appropriate content in student publications, it still grants them the authority to potentially censor students. Student publications should never have to face this. During my time as a Viewer editor, Mounds View administration has been relatively supportive of us — supportive enough that I haven’t worried about them restricting us without being open to compromise. Way too many students at other schools are not as lucky.
Unfortunately, prior review from school administration is legal in most states due to the 1988 Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier Supreme Court decision. Like the other examples of censorship, the student newspaper at Hazelwood East High School in Missouri was censored by their school for “inappropriate” articles about
on incentive-based motivation.
Grading, late work policies and the like rely on extrinsic motivation — in other words, external incentives rather than a genuine desire to learn. The problem with this is that decades of research have proved that incentives are exceptionally horrible at encouraging certain habits and behaviors. According to a study published in the National Library of Medicine, smokers who were incentivized to quit using prizes were actually more likely to light up than the control group. As for students, studies have shown that rewards consistently cause children to perform worse on standardized tests and assignments while also getting frustrated more easily and employing less creative problem solving strategies.
The issue with incentivizing learning is that incentivizing something that you want students to inherently love is counterintuitive. Imagine you were told you would receive $10 for eating a slice of pizza; you would automatically assume that something is wrong with the pizza if you had to be coerced through incentives into
teen pregnancy and divorce. The angered staff sued the school, and the case ultimately ended up at the Supreme Court. The Court’s 5-3 ruling in favor of Hazelwood was a major loss for First Amendment advocates. Tinker v. Des Moines, the previous standard for student newspaper rights which established that students’ First Amendment rights are protected as long as their speech does not disrupt the educational process, was consequently overturned.
To protect student journalists from censorship, the New Voices movement, led by the Student Press Law Center, aims to pass legislation across the country that counteract the limits of the Hazelwood Supreme Court decision. Legislation that is necessary for all students to have the freedom of the press they deserve.
In 2016, former journalist Rep. Cheryl Youakim first introduced New Voices legislation in Minnesota, but it was never heard. In 2017 it was once again introduced but never heard. It wasn’t until 2019 that a New Voices bill was approved by the House Education Committee, but even then, it was never
eating the pizza. The same applies to grading. By incentivizing learning via grades, we lead students to believe that learning is bad or boring simply because we are offering a reward for it. It’s true that our entire society relies on incentive-based motivation, begging the question of whether maintaining grades is a “necessary evil.” At school, students are incentivized to turn in work on time with grades; in the “real world,” they are incentivized with pay. But I’m just so completely sick of the “we need to prepare kids for the real world.” It takes such a regressive approach to education and inevitably defeats the purpose of education — to raise a better generation of workers, scholars and citizens, not just maintain the status quo. And even if the goal is to prepare children for the workforce, this is even more reason to dismantle the grading system. For one, grades act as a barrier to one of the most important aspects of the workplace: collaboration. Grades promote toxic individualism by pitting students against each other — there are only so many As to go around without delegitimizing the
voted on by the full House.
After years of struggle in Minnesota, legislators finally passed an omnibus education bill (SF 3567), including New Voices legislation, this April. On May 17, Governor Walz signed it into law. Minnesota has now become the 18th state to adopt this crucial legislation for press freedoms by ensuring student journalists have the right to exercise freedom of the press in school-sponsored media regardless of whether they receive financial support from the school. Additionally, school districts now can’t retaliate against a student media adviser for supporting a student journalist exercising their First Amendment rights.
Passing SF 3567 is a major milestone for student journalists in Minnesota. Still, the other 32 states must continue to work towards ensuring that all students have the rights necessary to hold their administrators accountable, promote civic engagement, bring awareness to important issues and be a voice for the voiceless.
grading system. Just imagine how much better and more synergetic group projects would be without the grade incentive that inevitably leads the most “motivated” students to complete 90% of the work alone. If we want students to be critical thinkers, to take risks and actively engage for the sake of engaging, we need to remove grading policies. We need teachers to voluntarily relinquish some of their control in the classroom to give control back to students. We need to replace arbitrary letters with legitimately constructive feedback. And most importantly, if we really want to create a more equitable education system and society, we need to dismantle the cold, sociopathic system of incentive-driven learning and enable a system of empathy and altruism that reinvigorates students’ desire for knowledge.
Senior am Hagen has always liked to capture the moment. Throughout his childhood, taking pictures with old Polaroids, digital cameras and first-generation iPhones embellished his experience with photography. However, only when he found his mom’s old Canon Rebel camera did his photography journey really take off.
In April 2023, Hagen’s lacrosse friends were seeking a photographer. Having taken a photography class in school and being somewhat interested in photography, Hagen gladly agreed. What began as shooting one game for fun quickly turned into a full-blown passion for photography, with photoshoots several times a week.
Hagen’s love for sports shines through in his work. He enjoys photographing hockey and lacrosse the most due to their high-speed, exciting environments and jerseys. Being a former lacrosse, hockey and soccer player himself, Hagen feels an even deeper connection to the sports he shoots for. “I’ve always had a love for sports, just the art…that goes behind it and the way you capture it just to form stories behind images,” Hagen said. “It’s more than just a photo. It has more
meaning behind it.”
Photography allowed Hagen to remain involved with sports that he enjoyed even after health complications forced him to quit playing. “I wanted to connect with the kids and I enjoy being around the sport… especially with my senior year, so it kind of brings me back,” Hagen said.
As a self-made photographer, Hagen has developed a consistent process for each photo he takes. He first determines an angle to position his camera and then uses strategies such as the rule of thirds to build the composition of his photo. Then, he adjusts the settings of
n a warm room with sawdust in the air and wood shavings on every surface, the Intro to Engineering class meets during third period every day. With rows of desktop computers and machines worth tens of thousands of dollars, students create everything from keychains to intricate signs under the guidance of Timothy
Berndt, career and tech education teacher.
During the second week of semester two, seniors Isabelle Goldenstein and Pretti Thao, were tasked with a project more complex than they had ever done before: building an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) wheelchair ramp for junior Ian Fallgatter so that he could better use the machines and power tools in his How to Make Almost Anything class.
Fallgatter has thoracic spina bifida, a birth defect that affects the development of the spinal cord. “My brain can’t send the signal to the lower half of my body to move quite as effectively as other people,” said Fallgatter. Although this didn’t deter him from getting involved in the class, being in a wheelchair limited his reach to the taller machines in the classroom.
When they began the project, Goldenstein and Thao had to research the ADA ramp guidelines and
the ISO (sensitivity to light) and shutter speed on his camera, a Sony A7 IV.
In terms of editing, Hagen has developed a unique style
“It’s more than just a photo. It has more meaning behind it.”
Sam Hagen, ‘24
of photos with presets that he made himself. “Each photo has different lighting scenarios, so I have to go through each photo individually, but in the end, cli-
ents get my best work with my own editing style, which I think gives off a more unique and special look,” he said. Hagen spends several hours editing his photos, with a batch of 300 photos taking up to three hours.
Hagen now intends to pursue photography as a career, after starting his ownbusiness in freelance photography a little over a year ago. Besides Mounds View sports, Hagen has already gotten the opportunity to shoot for the Tommies and Gophers men and women’s hockey game, state wrestling tournament and the Minnesota Football All-Star Game at major venues such as Xcel Energy
follow them to a tee for purposes of safety, ease of use and installment. For example, they had to make sure that the ramp was exactly 4.8 degrees.
Afterwards came many rounds of calculating, designing and creating prototypes on the 3D printer. “I did some research on what angles the ramp needed to be out and [created] basic sketch drives, and then slowly [put] them into 3D models. And slowly, [it] became more and more than that,” said Goldenstein.
They then began to use plywood and two by fours to construct the ramp. The biggest aspect of the construction was a continuous process of trial and error. “[We’d] put everything together [and realize] ‘Oh, this isn’t the correct size or it’s too long, so we have to cut it down.’ Or sometimes, when we try to screw things in, it just won’t go in straight or sometimes it would split the wood, so we had to figure out how to stop splitting the wood,” said Thao.
Berndt intentionally took a hands-off approach in the design process, only stepping in to purchase materials or propose an idea. “For the girls, they’re hard workers, they’re very thorough,” said Berndt. “I would just do…I call them tempera-
Center, Allianz Field and the U.S. Bank Stadium. “It’s honestly unbelievable. I can’t believe how far I came in such a short period of time. Getting to shoot in an arena I would usually have to buy a ticket for, I can go in for free and shoot these smaller teams,” Hagen said.
Currently, Hagen has a website on Pixieset, a photo gallery and delivery platform for photographers who want to grow their business. He is, however, working on creating his own website in hopes of improving and continuing to grow his brand.
Besides his website, Hagen’s main platform is Instagram, where he runs an account called @shagesflicks, to regularly post his work and make himself known as a photographer. Currently, he has over 1,000 followers and 200 different sports photography and videography posts. Some of his most viewed posts have over 2,000 likes.
Hagen says he will be around next year for some Mounds View sports. He will continue his freelance business to see where it takes him. “If you want to get into it, it doesn’t just happen overnight. I’d say the more you work in it, the better you get.”
ture checks, like, ‘Hey, can I see what you got going on there?’ And then they would say, ‘Yep, we’re doing this, this and this,’ I’m like, ‘Wonderful.’ Or, I might say, if I see something, ‘Have you thought about this or that?’ and then I just walk away and…let them chew on that a little bit and then see where it goes from there.”
“I can move it pretty okay on my own, which is good, and it’s the perfect height and space for my chair to fit on it.”
Ian
Fallgatter, ‘25
Fallgatter himself had the opportunity to get his hands dirty. He came in every so often to sand things down or give feedback to Goldenstein and Thao. This meant ensuring the platform had enough room for him to turn safely, or adding grip tape to prevent him from slipping when rolling up the ramp. “When they were at the final stages of the construction, they interviewed [Fallgatter], and they came up with a list of questions, and even the
first time he went [down the ramp]…his water bottle popped out…[so we asked] ‘how can we fix that?’” said Berndt. Goldenstein and Thao worked on the ramp every day for two months. The finished product consists of a ramp that is five feet long that leads to a 2.896 x 3.417 x 0.708-foot platform. Fallgatter has been able to use the contraption several times to stain various creations. “I can move it pretty okay on my own, which is good, and it’s the perfect height and space for my chair to fit on it,” said Fallgatter.
KARE 11 even featured Goldenstein, Thao and Fallgatter’s story of the ramp on their “Land of 10,000 Stories” on May 13, 2024. Through the ramp construction, Berndt hoped to foster a sense of empathy among students, something that he says cannot be taught directly in a classroom. “I hope there’s more opportunities like [this]... where I saw a need,” he said. “Partnering with [students with disabilities] and seeing if we can do anything to better support them[…] and have students understand the need[…]and the end result, like that’s what it’s all about.”
Sam Hagen captures Mounds View Mustangs versus Spring Lake Park Panthers Football game. PHOTO VIA Sam HagenMinnesota Distributive Education Clubs of America’s (DECA) new State President, Maryam Shahkhan, was recently selected to lead the historic all-female DECA MN State leadership team. Despite most officers being elected as incoming seniors, Shahkhan is not a senior, or even a junior, but a sophomore.
Shahkhan has been involved in DECA since her freshman year, joining the club at the beginning of ninth grade and enrolling in the DECA class — which is not available to freshmen — at the beginning of this year.
DECA is composed of five business-related clusters — marketing, business management and administration, entrepreneurship, finance and hospitality — each with around a dozen different competitive opportunities. Shahkhan participates in role play competitions in both the finance and hospitality sectors. For a hospitality and tourism competition, Shahkhan had to present a sales pitch to a panel of judges. “This year [...] I was a [glam-camping] resort sales manager, and I had to sell to a CEO of a company for his or her resort,” she said. “I made this whole 10-minute
presentation, business cards, everything.” After placing in the top four at the Minnesota State Career Development Conference, Shahkhan competed at the International Career Development Conference (ICDC) in Anaheim, California this past April.
Along with competitions, Shahkhan also manages the Mustang Spirit Shop with junior Thanishka Shetty. “We do everything by ourselves, like the budgeting, everything,” said Shahkhan. This year, the duo wrote a 50-page paper about their business strategy to get the spirit shop DECA certified.
Unlike executive positions in other academic state-wide organizations, the DECA state student-run board is not elected. Rather, they are selected by DECA officials in a traditional interviewing and selection process. “For our district, what we do is have an interview, and then have these questions that they ask and then also we submit a resume and cover letter,” she said.
Shahkhan decided to apply for president out of a desire to “give back” to an organization that impacted her immensely over the past two years. She is also excited to promote representation after being selected.
“You don’t really see a lot of
people that look like me on that stage,” she said. “Because coming from my background, I feel like [...] we just want to cuddle up in our own corner. I think it’s really important that Muslim girls, and girls just in general, see people that look like them and are inspired by them.”
As state president, Shahkhan will oversee a team of officers who are each selected from different Minnesota DECA districts. “There’s sponsorships, there’s social media, there’s outreach, there’s advocacy, and my role [...] is just overseeing all of those tasks across the year,” she said.
Shahkhan has big plans for her time in office. “I want to focus on [...] doing more community service, because I know DECA seems like this business-centered competition, but something that’s really important that we say in business is giving back,” she said. As part of this, she hopes to promote more community service initiatives among her leadership team next year.
She especially wants to address what she calls a “resource gap” between large and small DECA chapters. “One thing that’s extremely important to me is bringing DECA to, for example, smaller chapters. [...] I definitely see that there is a gap
between bigger chapters and smaller chapters of the Minnesota DECA organization,” she said. “I want to make sure that I have really good communication with each and every chapter. So I might not be able to visit every school in Minnesota, which is definitely my goal, to
get as many schools I can visit in person and see their chapters and make a personal connection with them.”
ormer Mounds View student Megan Ruan was just like any other student at Mounds View, a part of activities such as theater and speech and debate. Yet, her drive to succeed allowed Ruan to accomplish many things in her career, including her recognition in the Forbes 30 Under 30 list: a set of lists of 30 notable people under 30 years old in various industries issued annually by Forbes magazine.
Ruan’s journey through venture capital, a form of private equity financing provided by firms or funds to startup, early-stage and emerging companies, is one of commitment to inclusivity of Asian entrepreneurs and advocacy.
Growing up as a child of immigrants in a place without much diversity, Ruan felt a need to fit in, as very few around her had similar backgrounds and journeys. “It was a very long time until I met people and worked with people who
shared my experience,” she said. “Growing up in Minnesota is definitely one area where I learned that having advocates is super necessary.”
One of Ruan’s first experiences in advocacy was at Mounds View, through the Mustang Mentor program. As a freshman, she experienced the guidance and support of upperclassmen, and by her junior year, she was leading the program, offering the same support to others. “[Mustang Mentors] showed me what it was like to be on [both] sides and how meaningful it can be to be a mentor for someone else,” said Ruan.
This program not only shaped her high school experience, but also underscored the importance of mentorship, something that has profoundly impacted her in professional life. “I actually remember writing one of my college entrance essays about mentorship and the power of having somebody believe in you and be there for you,” said Ruan. “There were a few people that I met in my mentor group that later reached out and told me being mentored or having me as a resource really made a difference for them, and that was something really special and has stayed with me and in all of my jobs and roles since then.”
After high school, Ruan continued her journey at Yale University. In 2014, Ruan landed an internship at Morgan Stanley — an American multinational investment bank and financial services company — in which she ended up going full time after college. During this time, Ruan met a mentor, Valerie Wong Fountain, who connected her to Gold House. “She actually happened to be an Asian woman in a managing director role, so quite rare in the industry. She introduced me to the founder of Gold House. I learned more about Gold House’s mission of elevating the Pacific community, and I realized that there was very important and meaningful work that we could do within Gold House to support entrepreneurs and investors,” said Ruan. Today, as a leading figure in the investment world, Ruan is known not only for her awards and achievements, but also her dedication to changing the landscape for underrepresented founders. “One of the things I noticed was that most of the [investment] managers who got money… were [of] very traditional backgrounds, white and male, not a lot of women, not a lot of minorities,” she said. “So, [I] really wanted to change that.”
As a General Partner of
Gold House Ventures — a community that works to unite, invest, and elevate Asian Pacific creators and companies — Ruan embraces her role with a sense of mission, driven by her own experiences. “I’ve really seen myself as an advocate, because I have lived in so many environments now where I wished someone was there to advocate for me,” she said..
Ruan’s recognition in the Forbes 30 Under 30 list was a milestone not just for her, but for the rest of her company as well. “It adds legitimacy to whatever work that you’re doing,” said Ruan. “It was a mark of approval on the work that Gold House and Gold Ventures has done and everything we’ve built.”
As for the future, Ruan is focused on the long-term success of Gold House Ventures and the broader goal of empowering Asian diaspora and other underrepresented groups. “I think about building out our fund to obviously empower founders who are at the cutting edge of innovation and building the world that we’re going to live in in the future,” said Ruan. “There’s always something bigger out there, something to achieve, something to reach for.”
Maryam Shahkhan at the ICDC in Anaheim in April. PHOTO VIA Maryam ShahkhanIn 1969, CompuServe became the first online commercial service created by two electrical engineering students in Columbus, Ohio. The purpose of CompuServe was to sell timeshares of electronic mailing and technical support services which were accessible to few people at the time. More than 50 years later, online shopping has grown exponentially beyond the abilities of CompuServe, and as a result has had growing contributions to the fashion industry and consumer trends.
Online shopping can look very different depending on where somebody shops. For many major fashion brands, such as SHEIN, Forever 21 and ZARA, online clothes shopping involves a type of commercial technique known as “fast fashion.” Fast fashion is the “fast” production of clothing items designed to reflect rapidly changing trends and microtrends, which last for a month or less. In 2022 alone, Shein produced 700 to 1,000 clothing items per day, according to Shein’s chief operating officer, Molly Miao.
For years now — notably during the COVID-19 pandemic — as fast fashion has grown in popularity, questions of its environmental impacts have circulated social media. The different steps of the fast fashion process each have their own impacts on the environment, such as the amount of packaging used with each order, the ship
the fashion industry alone has contributed 92 million tons of waste and used 79 million liters of water to create clothing, reported by the Center for Biological Diversity.
While fast fashion appeals mainly to youth, some students think that fast fashion is wasteful and not worth the environmental impacts. “If you’re not gonna wear something more than once, or you’re not gonna wear it until it breaks, there’s not really a point in getting it if it’s just gonna lay in your closet,” said junior Kiera Schimke. 70% of 16-19-year olds say that sustainability is an important factor in consuming fashion products according to Mintel, a British research firm.
The effects of online shopping differ from in-person shopping for one main reason: it is just a few clicks away from social media users at all times. As someone scrolls through social media, they may come across a business promoting themselves with links to their website and a quick way to buy the product. For example, a teenager can scroll through TikTok and see a new trend in water bottles, whether it be the Hydroflasks of the 2019 “VSCO girl” era, the reliable Yetis and Owalas or the trendy Stanley cups and purchase those items within minutes.
TikTok Shop is an example of online shopping at its finest. As a shopping site on TikTok that anyone can apply to sell on, TikTok makes it incredibly easy for users to buy products through shoppable livestreams, shoppable videos or product showcases. When scrolling through TikTok, users may come across review videos that have direct links to the products on screen. These videos are often created to receive some sort of coupon or reward on TikTok Shop because they encourage others to keep buying products. Items such as custom-made clothing, freeze-dried
candies and chamoy pickle kits often show up on someone’s For You Page with vi ral TikTok videos of people reviewing these products and increas ing their popularity. This cycle of buying and posting allows stores on TikTok to sell their goods at a fast rate.
Some influenc ers have turned against the tide of constant con sumption of new trends and become “deinfluenc ers,” informing users of what not to buy and what is worth their money. This has led to “dupe culture,” which involves copying what is usually an expensive product and making it cheaper. At first, this seemed sustainable, but turns out it may actually be the opposite. Multiple fast fashion outlets have created fake versions of items, ranging from clothes to makeup to accessories, that have become trendy. After the trend dies down, these clothes pile up in the landfill. According to data from the United States Environmental Protection Agency, 17 million tons of textile waste ended up in landfills in 2018.
| Via Yang SPORTS EDITOR
Clothing. Makeup. Technology. Overconsumption in the digital age is dramatically changing all of these markets. As a society that engages in mass consumption, companies are creating massive amounts of goods based on rapidly changing trends. With newly emerging influencers saying what is popular and what people “should” be buying, impressionable viewers as young as eight
The popularity of online shopping has al lowed consumers around the world to engage in over consumption at high rates. Online shopping helps give companies the in centive to use business techniques such as fast fashion in efforts to expand their business and make a profit. Although online shopping has many side effects, such as its negative effects on the environment, the trend of online shopping has continued to grow among consumers.
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ver the years, many parents have become lenient with their children’s screen time. In 51% of teens in the U.S. spend a minimum of hours on social media daily, according to a 2023 Gallup survey. With the rise of social media, children are exposed to products more than before. Not only can they receive targeted advertisements, but they can also be subject influencers who promote products such as clothing makeup.
Companies use targeted advertising through rithms to direct their products to their target market. These algorithms can perpetuate confirmation bias, the dency to favor information that confirms or ports previous beliefs or values. This means ple are more likely to get ads for products are more likely to buy. Social media platforms like YouTube are the main perpetrators of this sue. “YouTube constantly has ads targeted towards your watching preference or your viewing history essentially, so the ads are almost confirmation ing these kids who have no idea what confirmation bias is,” said Business Education teacher Philip Schut. He believes there is nothing inherently wrong with a company marketing their product to make sales revenue, but the problem arises when they have corrupt or misguided morals.
Around January 2024, people on social media brought attention to young preteen girls buying an obses sive amount of beauty products at Ulta Beauty and Sepho ra. These kids are referred to as Sephora Kids. At Sephora in NYC, for example, employees have noticed that young kids often rush into the store and head straight for expen sive skincare products, like Drunk Elephant, according CNN. However, health professionals are concerned cause retinol anti-aging creams like the Drunk Elephant Bronzi peptide serum are not made for kids, as it is used
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culture, which are cheaper alternatives, may play a role in society’s obsession with purchasing goods. In this spread, we explore the cause and effects of overconsumption in society today, as well as the successful and unsuccessful efforts to combat it.
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| Lillian Landberg FEATURES EDITOR & ILLUSTRATORs a cheap alternative to shopping in brand stores, thrifting has gained popularity among today’s youth. Thrifting started in budget stores, such as Goodwill and Salvation Army, that sell used clothes at a cheaper price. As styles shifted from the 2010s to 2020s, older looks went viral. This included baggy jeans and faded sweatshirts encapsulating the look of thoroughly broken-in clothes. Not only did this create a trend, but it also caused other thrift stores to pop up that catered to vintage clothes rather than low
These trends not only affect kids who were allowed to use social media growing up, but also those who go to school with them. In some cas es, kids who do not follow the trends for the lat est items, makeup and outfits are peer pressured or bullied into it. “My younger sister has gotten bullied for this kind of stuff, for not having this or that, or not having this toy or that item, not having a phone,” said sophomore Jadyn Heath-Hlavacek. “I see my little brother always begging my mom for stuff like a phone when he’s six years old. I feel like it’s gotten really out of hand.”
Some kids are even social media influencers themselves. For example, @evelyngrwmofficialk on TikTok is a 13-year-old girl with over 270,000 followers who posts videos of shopping sprees or talks to her followers while using various makeup products to get ready. Her beauty videos set an example for other young girls by encouraging them to buy more beauty products to improve their own appearance or risk feeling left out. “The fact that it’s on social media makes kids feel that if they don’t have what everybody else has, they’re a lesser human being,” said Child Psychology & Development teacher Julie Coopet.
Some critics think that parents should put more restrictions on their children’s technology use or be a better role model by staying off of their own phones to prevent children from being so influenced. “It’s not just kids. I see adults driving with their phones… and I’m like, you’re not being a good role model,” said Coopet.
Others think parents cannot protect their children from things that their classmates show them at school, given the prevalence of social media among youth, and that this is a societal problem. “Our son just turned six and we are already fighting the screen time battle. He has friends, he’s in kindergarten, he has friends who have phones…it falls on everybody’s shoulders to some extent,” said Schut. Either way, social media continues to be a driving force for influencing youth in their purchasing habits due to its prevalence in their lives.
With clothing trends quickly moving on, brand stores did not catch on to older trends until a few months into a new look. Even then, they could not capture the realistic look of faded Carhartt jeans or the frayed sleeves of a starched hoodie. These aspects of old clothing can only be found authentically from the wear and tear of old clothes over the years. Recently, thrift stories have seen an influx of fast fashion. As more people buy excessively from cheap brands like SHIEN and Fashion Nova, more clothes end up in thrift stores. Clothing from hauls that has never been worn and fast fashion left behind from the last trend can all end up in a thrift store. This can also drive up the prices as thrift stores need more workers to sort through clothes without getting overwhelmed. It also leads to buyers finding fewer quality pieces in the store.
Despite this, many thrift stores also contain well-made older clothing, since companies used to create pieces that were made to last before they began to use large industrial ma chines that quickly mass-
produced clothes. Although clothes at thrift stores can sell for higher prices than they were bought forty years ago, they often remain relatively cheap yet high quality.
That is why thrift stores popularized the trends of worn clothing and thrifting became a hobby for many younger generations. Many people have even found their “one in a million” pieces through thrift stores. “I guess one of my favorite thrifted pieces are my jeans. I love my jeans, and they were just sitting on a rack and our eyes met. I fell in love … they were only four dollars,” said senior Sam Culhane.
In addition, apps like Depop have gained traction as people found thrifting specific pieces of clothing difficult. Depop is a platform for people who want to sell clothes instead of donating them. This aspect appeals to people who have clothes that are expensive and good quality but do not fit them or their style. Sellers post pictures of their clothes on the app with a price, and shoppers bid on the items. Starting prices go from $5 to hundreds. The shipping costs increase the price, and that money goes straight into the seller’s bank account. For people looking to make a profit on clothes they don’t wear anymore, this app can be useful.
However, for others, Depop has become a platform to resell thrifted clothes. Depop resellers go to thrift stores that
and wait for people to bid on the items. This can guarantee a profit for that seller, but arguably defeats the purpose of reselling clothes in thrift stores. Instead, it may further contribute to overconsumption. “I think that thrifting and Depop are both products of overconsumption because if we didn’t already buy so much clothes that we don’t need, there wouldn’t be such a push to go and get these old clothes that people have neglected,” said junior Julia Gronert. Shipping prices on Depop depend on the seller. Theoretically, the farther away the seller is from the buyer, the more they should increase shipping costs. This is not always the case. Since the shipping depends on the seller’s preference, some try to increase the price as high as possible to create a larger profit. “I have a love-hate relationship. Like I can find some good stuff on [Depop] for pretty cheap, but the shipping is always insanely expensive,” said junior Karin Hoyt. This tanks Depop’s reputation as a buying and selling platform, with many people seeing the main users as money-hungry thrifters.
Still, with over 700,000 downloads, Depop prevails as a propagating site for thrifters and buyers alike. Even if these fast-moving fashion trends end up in thrift stores, the clothes are reused by people all over the world. The rise of thrifting both fostered a new connecting hobby for generations and provided an effective alternative to overconsumption.
“It’s just Big Me”| David Anton Golridge & Maya Gjelhaug STAFF REPORTERS
endrick Lamar Duckworth and Aubrey Drake Graham (Drake) have a complicated history, and their back and forth dissing spans over a decade. The beef started when Future and Metro Boomin released “We Don’t Trust You” weeks ago, and Lamar-featuring song “Like That” included some not-so-subtle reference to Drake’s recent album and a blowing diss towards both Drake and J. Cole: “Motherf*ck the Big Three, it’s just Big Me.”
Soon after, Drake retaliated with “Push Ups” and later “Taylor Made Freestyle,” an A.I.-voice troll, taunting Lamar to respond. And respond he did. Beginning with “Euphoria,” Lamar hilariously annihilated Drake, who is a co-producer of the notorious HBO series. Even though Lamar was saving the big guns for later releases, he targets the Drake ghostwriter claims, cleverly flipping Drake’s “20 v. 1” to “1 v. 20” to call out Drake’s reliance on minions. Throughout the lyrics, Lamar also plays off of Drake plastic surgery allegations and Drake’s insecurity in his racial identity. Lamar perfectly combines creative, Genius interpretationworthy lyrics with clearcut insults like “I hate the way that you walk, the way that you talk.”
Going back-to-back with “6:16 in LA,” Lamar nods to Drake’s own timestamp-named tracks with vicious attacks on Drake’s reputation, far exceeding the caliber of “Euphoria.”
Lamar plays off of theories that Drake’s own label, OVO, and his ghost writers are conspiring against him with: “Have you ever thought that OVO is workin’ for me?” and “If you were street-smart, then you woulda caught that your entourage is only to hustle you.”
After a weak “Family Matters” release by Drake, Lamar responded with yet another backto-back duo: “Meet the Grahams” and “Not Like Us.” On “Meet the Grahams,” Kendrick shifts his tactics to addressing the whole Drake family, including his son Adonis, mother Sandi, father Dennis, an alleged “hidden” 11-year-old daughter and “Aubrey” himself. And then Kendrick pulled out the “no-return” sex offender implications, directly comparing Drake to Harvey Weinstein and outright calling him a “predator.” To “any woman that be playin’” Drake’s music, Lamar says, “Know that you’re playin’ your sister.”
Lamar was the clear lyrical winner before the rap beef even started. It’s genuinely mind blowing that anyone would choose to listen to Drake’s lyrics
in the first place — the never-ending mumbling and mind-numbing word choice make his music objectively bad. If anything, Drake is more of a celebrity than an artist. Drake should’ve known better than inserting himself into a diss battle with one of the most talented lyricists — evidenced by Lamar’s 2018 Pulitizer prize — of the century.
But what really solidifies Lamar’s victory over Drake is the sheer gravity and execution of Lamar’s allegations against him. Of course, Lamar could be making false accusations. But receipts and documentation have never been a requirement in rap beef, and allegations are supposed to be taken with a grain of salt. The difference between Drake’s allegations and Lamar’s is that Lamar’s accusations have more basis in Drake’s past strange behavior, from his questionable friendships with underaged girls to dating barely legal girls, including then-18-yearold model, Bella Harris in 2018.
Drake deserves credit for stepping up to someone with the lyrical caliber of Lamar, but it looks like this decision could prove fatal to Drake’s entire career. In the words of Lamar in “Meet the Grahams”: “F*ck a rap battle, this a long life battle with yourself.”
“Don’t wake the demon up”
It’s important to recognize that Drake wasn’t the one who ignited the beef — that one goes to Lamar who had the first diss with “Motherf*ck the Big Three, it’s just Big Me” in his feature on Metro Boomin and Future’s “Not Like Us” album. That doesn’t necessarily mean that Drake was attacked unprovoked, but it does add some important context — Lamar had time to prepare for an attack while Drake had little time to prepare a defense to defend his honor.
Yet, “Push Ups,” Drake’s first release after “Not Like Us,” was still an impressive counter to mounting pressure after Lamar’s diss, especially considering the time crunch. Unlike Lamar’s allegations towards Drake in his releases, most of Drake’s in “Push Ups” can be easily verified. For example, Drake’s “Numbers-wise, I’m out of here; Moneywise, I’m out of here” can be verified with a Google search — Drake has over 300 Billboard top 100, Lamar has under 80; Lamar’s net worth is also estimated to be over $100 million
Nikhil Kulangaroth & Maya Gjelhaug | STAFF REPORTERSless than Drake’s. Drake ends “Push Ups” with a not-so-subtle warning to Lamar that he would be wise to take seriously: “don’t wake the demon up.”
After Lamar’s back-to-back releases of “euphoria” and “6:16 in LA,” Drake retaliated with “Family Matters,” a “trilogy” of essentially three different songs in one. A risky move, Drake takes on defending himself from Lamar’s shots — calling out false allegations with “You better have some paperwork or that sh*t fake tea” — while simultaneously taking on Metro Boomin, Rick Ross, The Weeknd and A$AP Rocky.
Drake really takes off the gloves in this one, blatantly alleging that Dave Free, longtime friend and creative partner of Lamar, is the secret father to one of Lamar’s children. Later on in the track, Drake even accuses Lamar of hitting his wife and high school sweetheart, Whitney Alford.
Lamar responded with another back to
back, one in which he claims Drake has a secret 11-year-old daughter. Even Drake fans must admit that Lamar’s “Meet the Grahams” was a diabolic diss, yet the caliber of the song is completely tarnished after Drake revealed that his team planted the incriminating information Lamar used to attack Drake, including the bit about the secret daughter. In “The Heart Part 6,” Drake’s most recent diss, he unveils that “We plotted for a week, and then we fed you the information.”
The truth is this debate is not as one-sided as the media makes it out to be. It’s certainly true that Lamar’s lyrics exceed almost anything written by Drake. But lyricism is only part of what makes music worth listening to. Drake’s stage presence, commercial success and his overall influence on the industry has Lamar beat. Really, we should be acknowledging the immense talent of each of these artists and appreciate the masterpieces each of them is contributing to the industry.
The ACT standardized test is the most commonly taken test in Minnesota with about 68% of the Minnesota graduating class taking the test in 2023, according to ACT Inc. The ACT was first introduced in 1959 by Everett Franklin Lindquist, a professor from the University of Iowa, beginning a rivalry with the SAT which began administration 33 years earlier in 1926.
The ACT and SAT were created with very different purposes in mind. As an aptitude test, the SAT was created with a focus on assisting Ivy League admissions in identifying the most talented applicants, while the ACT was originally developed as an alternative for students who were interested in less selective colleges and for measuring high school proficiency. However, both tests have evolved to become more similar, and the SAT no longer measures aptitude.
Historically, the SAT was most popular in the East and West Coast, while the ACT was most popular in the Midwest.
This is largely because each test originated in those respective regions. This trend still holds true today, as in the East and West coast, about 35% of students report taking
the ACT, compared to about 73% for the rest of the US, including the Midwest and South, according to a 2022 report from College Raptor.
At Mounds View specifically, the ACT is the dominant standardized test. In 2012, ACT Inc. proposed to Mounds View the idea of administering the ACT for free to students during the school day,
according to Mary Stobb, director of research, evaluation, and assessment in the Mounds View school district. Mounds View accepted with the hope that this would increase students’ access to the ACT.
In the years following that, Minnesota Statute 120B.30 determined that all high schools had to offer a college readiness exam
to juniors (and seniors if they did not participate as a junior) and pay for the testing fees for all students eligible for free or reduced lunch. Schools were then able to make the choice of which college readiness exam to offer students. As Mounds View had already begun administering the ACT during the school day before any requirements, the
school continued to do so as their chosen college readiness exam. Students in the Midwest do take the SAT, but at much lower frequencies. According to the Min-
“Mounds
View has about 2-4 students take the SAT during each individual administration.”
Mary Stobb, Director of Research, Evaluation and Assessmentnesota Office of Higher Education, only about three percent of Minnesota high school seniors take the SAT.
Minnesota students taking the SAT often do so under the circumstance of hoping to be admitted into highly selective colleges or schools in different regions of the country.
Overall, the reason Minnesota favors the ACT comes down to its history in the Midwest and the availability for taking it here. When it comes to college admissions, most colleges have grown to accept either test today, and students should take the test they feel is best for them.
Next year, with the approval of some course proposals, Mounds View is introduing a few new courses to their course catalog. By doing so, teachers and administration hope to provide next year’s students with more opportunities for those who are interested in learning new topics or to delve even deeper into the subjects that students love at Mounds View.
For example, ToyBuilders is a new semester-long course in the engineering and technology department next year. It will consist of students using fundamental principles of mechanical engineering to create their very own toys, bringing their ideas and imagination to life.
Timothy Berndt, a career and tech education teacher, proposed the course and is looking forward to teaching it next year because of the freedom it provides students. “I am really excited to be able to offer this toy-making class because I think there should be more play in school, and what we do in these types of engineering and technology classes down here is [that] we try to figure out how things are made,” Berndt said. He also aims to broaden students’ perspectives through hands-on activities and creative projects, so that they do not take the way things are for granted.
This course doesn’t require a prerequisite and is open to all students from grades 9 to 12. “I welcome every single student in this building. There might be some misconceptions [that] these classes are not for [a particular student]… And I don’t want that to be a barrier for wanting to sign up for classes like this,” Berndt said. So, for those of interest, there will be two sections next year.
For social studies, Holocaust & Genocide Studies will be a new opportunity for students to further explore historical atrocities. Since this course was previously taught at Irondale and recently added to the Minnesota Department of Education standards, there was no need to go through the long process of preparing a course proposal and getting it approved. During the span of the course, students can expect to learn about various case studies of atrocities around the world to help answer the question of why these events continue to occur.
Kristin Heinz, social studies teacher, hopes to look at the holocausts and genocides around the world at an in-depth level. “I feel like none of the courses here have enough time to do a genocide justice. I’ve taught US History, AP World, regular world history, and I can touch on them, but I can’t get into them as much as they deserve. All those people who suffered through something like that, I think [they] deserve
more time, and I think their stories need to be told,” Heinz said. In addition to the historical aspects, Heinz wants to talk about the psychological causes by understanding what makes a person vulnerable to committing these crimes.
Although the overall topic is grim, Heinz wishes to include uplifting stories as well. “I know it sounds incredibly depressing. But I’m going to try not to focus just on the atrocities but also on the people who have really acted heroically and gone out of their way to be upstanders and to save people because I think there’s a lot of inspiration in those stories, too,” Heinz said. Overall, she is very grateful for the opportunity to teach this course and has already started preparing for it by getting materials from the Illinois Holocaust Museum.
In addition to this class, AP comparative government will be offered at Irondale, in which students will learn about political life outside of the United States by examining the political and government structures, policies and challenges in the following six countries: Great Britain, Mexico, Russia, Iran, China and Nigeria.
These are a select few courses that are being offered at Mounds View next year. When registering next year, the registration course guide, deans and friends are a great resource to learn about the opportunities offered at Mounds View.
The Minneapolis-Saint Paul area has a vibrant food scene, with pho being a favorite for many, so I decided to try the classic pho tai, a mix of broth, rice noodles, herbs and meats, at three popular restaurants: Pho 400, iPho by Saigon and Phoever. I rated the restaurants based on their atmosphere, service and taste.
At this restaurant, the food took around 15 minutes to arrive, which was not bad as I went with three other people. The noodles themselves were quite bland, so I added sriracha, which amplified their taste and the broth in terms of spice. The dish contained beef that was cut into lean pieces, which enhanced the flavor of the broth. I ordered the soy milk to pair with the pho because the sweetness balanced the spiciness of the pho, since it was a bit too spicy for my liking. The restaurant was close to full capacity, but it was also fairly quiet. I rate Pho 400 a 4/5.
This has got to be the place with the best pho in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area. The beef and the broth felt lighter compared to the other restaurants, which I preferred since the other restaurants had massive serving sizes, and I had no difficulty in finishing this. I could immediately taste all the vegetables in the broth, as it was much stronger here than at the other restaurants. There were also more beef pieces compared to Pho 400, which added more flavor to the noodles. I tried the chili oil for the broth instead of sriracha, which wasn’t as spicy but did have a little kick to it. The service was really quick even with the restaurant full. Just make sure to keep your menu at the end of the table when you are ready to order so you don’t waste 10 minutes like I did. They had an open sandwich bar which I didn’t try, but it was aesthetically pleasing. Overall, I would rate iPho by Saigon a 5/5.
In terms of atmosphere and how it looked, this restaurant was the best. It had great lighting with quite a few paintings hung up on the wall. The server was quick with my order, but the food did take an extended period of time to arrive. This was the longest wait compared to the other restaurants — around 20-30 minutes. The restaurant ran out of beef so they replaced it with brisket, which I did not enjoy because the flavor of the brisket was stronger in the broth than the beef at the other restaurants. My dish had a similar serving size to iPho and was a bit bigger than the dish at Pho 400. Perhaps I would have enjoyed this dish better if they did not run out of beef. Overall, because of the meat choice and poor service, I rate this restaurant 2/5.
After trying these restaurants, the best place to get pho tai is iPho by Saigon. It comes down to the quick service and flavorful broth. In terms of price, the pho was similar among the restaurants at $15. Each restaurant was good in their own way, but if you are looking to have the best pho experience, iPho by Saigon is the place to go.
ivil War” is a 2024 dystopian war film written and directed by Alex Garland. The film centers on a team of journalists traveling across the United States in the midst of a nationwide conflict involving an authoritarian government and several regional factions. The cast includes Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura, Cailee Spaeny, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Sonoya Mizuno and Nick Offerman.
“Civil War” opens with a series of familiar images of American protests and war torn cities. Garland has clearly crafted this film as a response to the polarization of American society. The conflict is kept vague, and from everything I have read about the film, this seems to be by design. I understand the intricacies of the conflict is not a focus for Garland or his team, but it would certainly help my investment with the story if the actual conflict was more flushed
out. It’s anyone’s guess if the central conflict is economic, social, or political, and that harms the quality of the story considerably. The messaging of the movie is pretty uncertain: Is it about how journalists view tragedy? Or is it only about the divisiveness of America? After seeing and enjoying both “Ex Machina” and “Annihilation” it is no surprise to me that Garland leaves the audience with more questions than they started with.
Along with the unclear plot and vague message, the film is noticeably short. I believe a story like this deserves a larger scope, and it is not even two hours long. As a result, the action feels weightless, and it was more difficult for me to care about the characters and the situations they found themselves in. It was entertaining throughout, but that is because the pacing is lightning fast and sacrifices a lot of impactful moments in order to move to the next set piece. The production
design of “Civil War” is occasionally very striking, with the destruction mostly appearing very real. Yet, there are a few set pieces that looked staged, and it took me out of the story.
Kirsten Dunst has the standout performance of the film. She is the only one whose performance does not feel put-on or fake, and her quiet, reserved energy counters the abrasive energy of the film brilliantly. Dunst feels like the only consistent part of the film, as the tone fluctuates frequently
between over-serious and depressing to light-hearted and shallow. I think that given the subject matter of the film, there should have been a clear vision for the tone beforehand, and it did not feel like there was. When I was sitting in the theater watching this, I felt like I was begging for Garland to come up with more bold images than what I was seeing. In terms of war-torn destruction, it does not hold a candle to “Saving Private Ryan” or “Apocalypse Now.”
“Civil War” feels like a more di-
gestible version of either one of those movies, and it feels painfully safe. The violence in this movie feels almost unnecessarily gratuitous because there was no political motivation behind any of it.
“Civil War” is certainly ambitious but often falls short of that ambition thanks to a lack of a clear vision. There are bright spots throughout, but it cannot save the film from feeling either aimless or misguided. It is certainly entertaining, but as the credits began to roll, others and I looked around in confusion and asked ourselves “what’s the point?”
College: University of Memphis
Sport: Rifle
Senior Megan Jaros had a rough introduction to rifle as a sport. “I’ve been around rifles and guns for pretty much my whole life, and rifle safety was a pretty huge thing that people taught me,” she said, “[but] when I first started [rifle], I didn’t really like it.” However, after two years, the rifle community and traveling competitions became a highlight of her high school career. She has enjoyed many aspects of rifle, from attending rifle proms to learning mental toughness. When she first joined the team, Jaros felt excluded from the other members. But after becoming captain her junior year, she wanted to change the dynamic of the team. “I tried to start including all the new shooters and people who weren’t as included because I didn’t want them to feel how I did,” said Jaros. While there are a few paths to rifling professionally, Jaros hopes to follow one of them with her goal of going to the Olympics.
College: University of St. Thomas
Position: Kicker and Punter
Since childhood, senior Benjamin Hoiland has been heavily involved in basketball and soccer. However, football was the last thing on his mind until the summer before his junior year, when his friend senior Ryan Litecky convinced him to join the football team as a kicker, where he started playing almost immediately. “It was really nerve wracking at first but [I] just kept pushing through,” said Hoiland. He spent the next year practicing at many kicking camps where he quickly built his skills to a collegiate level and met the St. Thomas coach. Hoiland said that the coach took interest in him because of his potential to learn after having played for less than a year. Hoiland tells aspiring athletes to take risks. “Being a kicker, at first it seemed really scary, [...but] look what it turned into,” said Hoiland. “I tried it and I loved it.”
College: University of Wyoming
Position: Wide Receiver
Growing up in an athletic family, senior Tyler Nystrom has been playing football since he was a child. His dad has been a big factor in his motivation to play. Nystrom has set great achievements in his football career, including breaking the single-season receiving record and being an all-conference athlete. This past year, although Nystrom did not get the season he wanted because of an injury, he advises others to continue and pull through hardships. “Always keep going, even when things aren’t going your way, it will get better,” he said. Nystrom hopes to pursue football professionally.
College: California Baptist University Position: Forward and Middle
Senior Anya Westlund began playing soccer at four years old and started playing competitively for a club at seven, where her dedication for soccer only grew. One of Westlund’s most impactful memories during her sports career was winning third in the state tournament during the 2022-23 Mounds View girls soccer season. “Being able to play in the U.S. Bank Stadium was an experience that I’ll never forget, and being able to create those memories with some of my best friends was amazing,” she said. One of Westlund’s most important lessons learned through soccer was resilience, especially after breaking her arm twice in one year. “Being resilient has helped me bounce back from setbacks and it’s helped me to not let failure define me,” she said. “Recovering quickly from difficulty or hardships has not only benefited me through soccer, but it’s also benefited me in my daily life.”
College: West Point Academy
Sport: Track and Cross Country
A driven cross country and track and field runner, senior Emily Mehta began running during COVID-19 on her own time but soon joined the Mounds View cross country and track team.. Upon joining, Mehta immediately felt connected to her teammates. “Every race in cross country is about each other. We train together and are in everything together and that just creates a bond that is unmatched. When it comes to racing we are constantly thinking about each other and how we can work together to the best of our abilities,” she said. She credits much of her growth to her teammates and her coach who she believes helped her appreciate running in a healthier way and instilled confidence in her before each race. In a sport where progress is not always linear, Mehta has continued to persevere and train almost every day. “Stick with it and just trust that you’re capable and that your training is paying off,” said Mehta.
College: Providence College
Position: Setter, Outside Hitter
After falling in love with the game at first play in fourth grade, senior Audrey Kocon decided she wanted to pursue volleyball at the collegiate level just three short years later. Her volleyball career really began to take off when she joined the Mounds View Girls Volleyball team in eighth grade. “I loved every moment of it and playing for the crowds and the people,” Kocon said. Her aggressiveness on the court and calmness with her teammates have led to stellar performances that won her the St. Paul Area Athena Award, which honors outstanding female senior athletes. Kocon graduated from Mounds View one semester early to train with her college teammates at Providence College where she follows a diligent training schedule. “I wake up at 6:30 every other day and lift at 7 am, then I go to class for the day and then come back to have practice from 4-6pm,” she said.
1. University Megan Ruan attended after high school 2. The first online commercial service
4. The brand of camera Sam Hagen uses 5. State working to pass computer science legislation
7. State where Professor Everett Franklin Lindquist taught 9. One of the sectors Maryam Shahkhan participates in
3. Song released by Kendrick Lamar after “Push-ups” leak
6. Last name of directors replacing Van Bruggen
8. New semester-long class proposed by Timothy Berndt
10. Last name of “Civil War” director
11. Sport that Megan Jaros is committed to after high school
12. Call sign of the news channel which interviewed Isabelle Goldstein and Pretti Thao
14. Pho restaurant rated 2/5
Across
3. Song released by Kendrick Lamar after “Pushups” leak
6. Last name of directors replacing Van Bruggen
8. New semester-long class proposed by Timothy Berndt
10. Last name of “Civil War” director
11. Sport that Megan Jaros is committed to after high school
12. Call sign of the news channel which interviewed Isabelle Goldstein and Pretti Thao
14. Pho restaurant rated ⅗
1. University Megan Ruan attended after school
2. The first online commercial service
4. The brand of camera Sam Hagan uses
5. State working to pass computer science legislation
7. State where Professor Everett Franklin Lindquist taught
9. One of the sectors Maryam Shahkhan participates in within DECA 13. The Viewer advisor in 2010
