The Echo
Student Newspaper | October Issue
Coronavirus Today
Mary Courtney Finn Before March of this year, wearing a face-covering in public, keeping a six-foot distance from strangers, and spiraling into an unbridled panic whenever a sore throat or cough appeared seemed like something from a dystopian novel; however, seven months later, these things are all a part of normal life. All of this makes one thing very clear: the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the world forever. On the macro level, nearly 40 million people have contracted the virus, and over 1 million have lost their lives due to it, yet there is still no cure or vaccine for COVID-19. In March, China, Italy, and Iran saw the highest infection rates; now, the US has far surpassed any country in the number of current infections. Even though the US has the most current infections, India and Brazil closely follow behind. Unlike unified responses to global terrorism or world hunger, every country seems to be responding differently to the COVID-19 pandemic. Considering India’s massive population, it is no surprise that their infection rate is as high as it is, but their national response to the virus has been lackluster at best. The Brookings Institution reports India’s most significant weaknesses in responding to the virus include low testing rates, deteriorating healthcare, and insufficient social protection. While India was one of the first countries to enforce country-wide shutdowns in the early stages of the pandemic, their ongoing efforts have not proved as effective. As the lockdown continued, India realized its impact on low wage workers and began reopening the economy in hopes of restoring some order back into these individuals’ lives. Even though India erred on the side of caution initially, they must reform their healthcare system and testing centers to ensure a more targeted response to COVID-19. Additionally, Brazil has also seen mixed responses to the pandemic, causing extremely high infection rates. Similar to the United States, which began as a health crisis, has now turned into a political issue. The New York Times states that Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro referred
to COVID-19 as a “little flu” and has repeatedly failed to follow pandemic regulations put in place by the World Health Organization. While Bolsonaro is trying to lessen the impacts of COVID-19, opposing politicians such as Luiz Henrique Mandetta are advocating for strict social distancing and shutdowns. Due to the intergovernmental conflicts regarding the virus, it does not seem that Brazil will get their infection rates under control any time soon. Although the original countries with high infection rates seem to have their health crises under control, other countries have quickly taken their places as global hotspots. On a more micro level looking at the United States and Tennessee, COVID-19 is still causing infections and deaths for millions. Over 8 million Americans have contracted the virus, and 200 thousand have died, showing the stronghold COVID-19 still has over the US. While the United States is leaps and bounds ahead of many other countries in terms of healthcare and testing access, they are still falling behind to respond to the virus. Like Brazil, political divides due to the virus have left millions in precarious financial and health positions. Despite ample warning both from China in the World Health Organization, US politicians failed to communicate the magnitude of the virus, leading to ballooning infection rates. Even though the US saw a fair number of economic shutdowns and mask requirements, many have dissolved and left the American people vulnerable to infection. Luckily, many businesses,
Entertainment Book Reviews
Sophie Bruff Circe (5/5) In her novel Circe, Madeline Miller explores mortality and fate from the perspective of the goddess Circe, who is kicked out of Mount Olympus because of her magic and encounters heroes on their doomed journeys as they stop at her island. Circe beautiful reimagines the villain from the Oddessy as our hero, and as she grows up, and grows stronger in her power and love for mortals. This book is easily one of the best books I’ve ever read. It’s a story of resilience, empowerment, and growth as told through an exiled goddess. It explores love and loss, motherhood, and friendship. The style in which this book is written is reminiscent of the classics and shows the author’s talent for words. The central themes are woven perfectly into the narrative. If you were a fan of the Percy Jackson series when you were younger, I recommend this novel as a return to the world of Greek mythology. Our Chemical Hearts (2/5) I picked up this book after seeing the trailer for the upcoming movie based on it. The trailer wasn’t promising, and the book failed to meet my already low expectations. In a book designed to be deep and beautiful, it was the opposite. Full of cliches and poorly written main characters, Our Chemical Hearts is not a book I recommend. Aside from pour writing, it was extremely problematic. The main character, Henry Page (side note: he runs the student newspaper and wants to be a writer. He’s got little going for him, is a flat character, and low-key sucks. The love interest is described as a “manic pixie dream girl” by one of the side characters, which would have been a good setup for the author to prove this stereotype wrong. Disappointingly, the love interest does little to differ from this cliche. Henry falls in love with her, a girl grieving over the death of her boyfriend and blatantly ignores her pain. They fall into a toxic relationship where Henry falls in love with the Facebook version of her, and she only loves him when she’s drunk and thinks he’s someone else. Henry stalks her and obsesses over her so much that his student newspaper suffer. The best friends, while the only thing close to likable char-
-acters in the novel, are overused cliches as well. I understand what the author is trying to achieve with this novel. I think they had good intentions when trying to write about trauma in teenagers but they were tasteless, and in the process romanticized dangerous relationships and alcohol use. This book is painful and uncomfortable to read. I gave it two stars instead of one because I liked Henry’s big sister, Sadie. I do not recommend this book. The Rest of the Story (5/5) Can I give more than a 5/5? I loved this book with my whole heart. An easy but captivating read, The Rest of the Story follows Emma Saylor Payne, who finds herself at the lake where her mother grew up. Her mother passed when she was little and with her, any connection to this place she called home disappeared. She did not have many memories of her mother, but she had the stories she told her about North Lake. As Emma begins to unlock pieces of her past that had been hidden away, she discovers that the lake her mother grew up at, the same lake where her father had vacationed, was drastically split into two halves,
Entertainment cont. one Lake North and the other North Lake. Throughout her time at North Lake, she learns that while she doesn’t remember the place from the brief visit when she was four, the people there remember her and that she is a part of their stories. She meets a cast of different characters, from both sides of the lake. One of the most notable is named Roo. When she makes the connection that Roo’s father was her mother’s best friend, Emma becomes more intent on discovering her mother’s former home. She finds herself split between two worlds: hers, back home where she goes by Emma and has the familiarity of the every day, and North Lake, where they call her Saylor and the people there hold the key to her past. The author’s writing style is realistic and you quickly fall in love with all of the characters, while fully transported into the story by the end. Along with Emma Saylor, the reader becomes enraptured with the need to learn the stories of her and her mother’s past. This book is absolutely beautiful, and my description cannot fully do it justice. If you have been missing summer and are a fan of YA novels that have something more meaningful in them, then this is the one for you.
Music and Movies During Covid-19
Mary Clare Jones Like almost everything else during this time, the music and movie industry have been undoubtedly touched by COVID-19. This summer, Bridgestone Arena had to reschedule significant acts, including Justin Beiber, Halsey, The Weeknd, Harry Styles, and many more. Musicians, reliant on concerts for revenue, are scrambling to find ways to release music and connect with audiences. For example, Taylor Swift released her latest album, Folklore, written and recorded entirely in quarantine. The singer’s eighth album is a turning point from her recent pop anthems. The slow, folk-sounding ballads are reminiscent of her 2012 album Red, a familiar feeling many fans craved during the pandemic. Like Swift, other artists are trying to find their “new normal”, attempting to continue a major part of music;
of music; performing. Liam Payne has been hosting online shows using the platform Veeps, a live-streaming network where artists can perform for fans for a small fee. As Joel Madden, founder of Veeps, explained to Billboard ahead of Payne’s first live-streamed show, “Ticket purchases and viewership of Livestream shows are exploding as these performances continue to prove to be an important way for fans to connect with their favorite artists,”. Payne’s tickets are on a “pay-whatyou-want” basis and a portion of the proceeds will go to The Trussel Trust, a UK based food bank dedicated to helping those in need due to COVID-19. Similarly, the movie industry has had to make significant adjustments to keep audiences engaged. Tenet, the highly anticipated film directed By Christopher Nolan, has been used as a guinea-pig for movie productions during this time, to test if audiences are willing to return to theaters. Tenet made 9.4 million dollars over Labor-Day weekend but needs over 200 million just to break even. After a five-month break, many actors and crews are returning to filming, with some new precautions. On many sets, crew members are being divided into pods, separating people from interacting when it is not necessary. Camera angles, costumes, makeup, and even actor interactions will all have to be adjusted to follow guidelines, affecting the way movies will look and sound for audiences. No matter the longevity of the pandemic, the movie industry will undoubtedly have changed from pre-virus to post-virus times.
Food Izzy & Dalia Review the World: Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Special The Trader Joe’s franchise is well known for its experimental seasonal flavors and foods. With Christian girl Autumn finally upon us, we thought it would be the perfect time to try out some of the unique pumpkin spice flavored food that Trader Joes has to offer. We also felt that the first chicken tender day of the school year deserved an honorable mention, so stick around for a mini bonus review at the end. Trader Joes’ Pumpkin Bread Mix Pumpkin bread isn’t out of the ordinary but, this pumpkin bread mix is worthy of a mention. It was moist, pumpkiny, and met the mark for that spicy fall flavor. The recipe is foolproof. Since it’s a box mix, all you have to do is add eggs, oil, and water. It’s pretty hard to mess it up. Was it the best pumpkin bread ever? No. However, the convenience of the box mix added some appeal and it tasted good. RATE 6.5/10 Pumpkin Curry The ability of Trader Joe’s to capitalize on the fall season is very impressive. They can take any food and pumpkinize it. That’s basically what they did with their Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Curry. In addition to the classic curry flavors like cumin and ginger, the curry contains pumpkin spice flavors. The spiciness isn’t too overpowering, so we added some extra chilli flakes. Pairs well with rice (or noodles), vegetables, and a protein of your choice. RATE 8/10 Pumpkin Samosas Just like the Pumpkin Curry, the Pumpkin Samosas did not disappoint. The best way to describe them is to take the Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Curry and wrap it in a flaky crust. Inside the samosas are the pumpkin curry sauce, chunks of cubed pumpkin, and pieces of paneer, a crumbly Indian cheese that looks similar to tofu. RATE 8/10 Pumpkin Empanadas Continuing with the flaky crust theme, next are the Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Empanadas. The empanadas are filled with a pumpkin puree type filling and are shaped into half circle turnovers. While the concept of the pumpkin empanada was intriguing, the actual flavor
the actual flavor was weird. We were expecting a more savory filling (like the samosas had) but the filling was oddly sweet. It tasted as if someone dumped pumpkin pie into a crust. RATE 4/10 Pumpkin Bisque While pumpkin bisque is not out of the ordinary, Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Bisque makes the list due to its multipurposeness. The flavor itself is nothing spectacular. The soup has that warm pumpkin flavor. However, the best part of the bisque is its multiple uses. We noticed that the bisque was rather thick. So, we put it over some pasta and treated it like pasta sauce or added some chicken stock (vegetable stock works too) and thinned the bisque a little to make it a better soup. RATE 9/10 Pumpkin Waffles The pumpkin toaster waffles were quite underwhelming, despite our high hopes for this intriguing product. In all honesty, they tasted just like any other toaster waffles that you can purchase year round. The bland flavor was significantly lacking in the pumpkin spice that the packaging promised, and the last resort addition of maple syrup simply overpowered them altogether. RATE 4/10 Pumpkin Ice Cream While pumpkin ice cream is a seasonal favorite for many other brands, the Trader Joe’s version was definitely a hit. With a smooth, creamy consistency, the pumpkin spice flavor was able to shine without being too overpowering. While it may seem like an odd pairing, we added Honey Maid graham crackers to the ice cream to contrast the silky texture and were pleasantly surprised by the outcome. We would definitely recommend picking up a pint on your next grocery outing. RATE 9/10 Petite Pumpkin Spice Cookies These mini pumpkin shaped shortbread cookies were easily the best purchase of the month. The mix of white yogurt coated cookies and orange pumpkin spice cookies balanced each other perfectly. With a crunchy and crumbly consistency, the shortbread
Current Events perfectly balanced the flavorful pumpkin icing. The mini size makes them perfect for a midday snack or on the side of some warm coffee in the cool fall weather. Needless to say, the cookie box lasted about a day before we put them on the list for our next trip to Trader Joes. RATE 10/10 Bonus Mini Review: FLIK Chicken Tenders We can all agree the best thing about Sage Dining was chicken tender day. So, when we found out that B.G.A was switching caterers, we were distraught over the uncertainty of the future of chicken tenders. After completing several weeks into the school year, our hope began to diminish. Finally, on Friday October 2nd, it was chicken tender day and all hope was restored. Expectations were high. To our relief, FLIK chicken tenders did not disappoint. In fact, one might say they surpassed Sage Dining chicken tenders. The tenders were large in size, had the perfect ratio of crispy breading to chicken, and were not dry. They even had a nostalgic element, as they reminded us of those breaded Tyson Chicken tenders you bake at home. While this glowing review might have been the tender deprivation speaking, we must say that FLIK did not disappoint.
Coronavirus cont.
schools, and communities have taken necessary precautionary measures to ensure they were not held accountable for increasing infection rates. In Tennessee specifically, mandates and regulations vary drastically across region and county. In Williamson County, economic closures took place during the early months of the pandemic, but now nearly every local business is open, some with mask requirements. However, there are plenty of privately owned businesses and schools who do not comply with regulations and cautionary measures, leading to the infection rates in Franklin and surrounding cities. While Tennessee is not as big of a hot spot as other states like Florida, Texas, and California, if the same trends continue, Tennessee will be stuck in a less than desirable position. While COVID-19 has been an inconvenience for many, it is still a global pandemic and one that has shown its potential to kill. Because it is impossible to know every person that is at risk for the virus, continue to follow CDC guidelines set in place for communal safety. These guidelines were not put into place to spite people; they were put into place to ensure everyone can see their family members and friends once the pandemic passes. Do your part for the greater good of the community.
Opinion BLM at BGA Sydney Carroll Many of us can say that we never could have guessed the course that the past seven months of our lives would take. However, the COVID-19 pandemic is not the only major event since lockdown began. Across the country, after the senseless killing of George Floyd, millions took to the streets to protest police brutality and demand equality in all spaces. However, many weren’t just fighting for national change but also seeking change in their smaller communities. When a movement as large as Black Lives Matter permeates our collective consciousness, it can certainly be difficult to grapple with the fact that many of us have had moments of racism or bias in some form. However, it can be even more challenging when we realize the faults of the communities we belong to - specifically places that we feel ownership of. That’s why, when the Black Lives Matter movement began to resonate more this summer, members of the BGA community took a closer look at our school’s past, and more importantly, our plans for the future. • According to BGA’s strategic plan, one of the newest pillars of BGA’s educational model is to “Elevate Our Model of Diversity and Inclusivity”. This, according to the document, includes: • Develop a common framework of diversity and inclusion relevant to all constituencies • Provide robust student and family support in both people and programs • Sharpen our external community focus Now, while those are all certainly good goals to have in place, they don’t provide tangible actions to diversify and create equity within our community. As such, earlier in the school year, I spoke with both Mr. Griffin, Head of the Upper School, and Dr. Arnold, BGA’s Head of Equity and Inclusion, to get a sense of the direction in which BGA’s diversity initiatives were headed. “It’s been a very challenging six months,” Dr. Arnold began, “but [when the protests began] I just knew that I had to provide support for our students of color and any other students who may be dealing with strong emotions as a result of the ongoing protests.”
As a result, Dr. Arnold, Mr. Griffin, and other members of the faculty and administration opened their doors to any students who may have been struggling to grapple with the racial inequities that had come to light over the summer. However, a consequence of the national shift towards anti-racism initiatives was both BGA alumni and current students looking to BGA’s administration for actionable anti-racism policies on our campus - which led to uncomfortable yet necessary conversations across our community. Mr. Griffin believes that these moments may have been some of the more valuable ones our community has had in recent years, commenting that, “I think that ultimately, backlash or pushback can often be a positive… it shows that people in our community are emoting and that they genuinely care about others. It provides us who are creating these plans and frameworks to have input from our community on what they want to see reflected in this community.” After these inital conversations were had, it was time to put them into action and to create a plan to foster equity and inclusion at BGA. Dr. Arnold felt a sense of urgency over the summer, reasoning that, “the Strategic Plan is a five-year plan, but it became clear that some things were a top priority on a shorter timeline.” As such, BGA began creating more actionable public priorities, which, as Mr. Griffin described, consisted of everything from diversifying the books we read in our English classes to having a more diverse group of guest speakers at assemblies. A top priority of the school over faculty in-service training before the beginning of the year was discussing how BGA can become a more inclusive environment, and according to both Dr. Arnold and Mr. Griffin, these difficult conversations led to greater growth and understanding amongst the administration and staff as to how to diversify our school community. While these initiatives by the administration will hopefully make great strides in equity and inclusion on BGA’s campus, both Dr. Arnold and Mr. Griffin stressed how important student involvement is in making this cultural shift. As Mr. Griffin explained, “In the past, the way I’ve seen diversity and inclusion initiatives be the most successful in schools is when the students feel as though they have a license over
Community the changes being made. My ideal campus would be one where those who are passioinate about an issue can engross themselves in that issue, but even those who don’t share that passion have respect for others’ identities.” Dr. Arnold shared this view, providing that she hopes to bring more opportunities to the school community to become involved in equity initiatives: current affinity groups such as Prism (LGBTQ+ students and allies) and the Students of Color group, the new Student Diversity Leadership Committee, as well as new ways for our community to diversify our perspectives which are currently being developed. While many of these issues of equity, diversity, and inclusion may seem difficult to grapple with for not only our community, but our nation as a whole, ultimately Mr. Griffin believes that these issues truly boil down to one idea: “The question we have to ask ourselves is, how are we treating each other, and how could we treat each other?”. While we as a school may pride ourselves on academic and athletic success, college acceptances, and accolades our alumni have received, the way we as a community respond to issues like those presented with the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement is what will truly define the education our school provides. No education is complete without education in empathy, a diverse perspective, and a constant need to better our community - which is the education BGA is working to provide. It will take the work of not only the BGA administration and faculty, but also every single person on campus, to ensure that every member of our community truly feels as though they are heard and seen.
A New Look for Homecoming Sarah May
To maintain some tradition amidst the challenges of COVID-19, the Class Officers have worked with the Administration to create a special Homecoming week. With spirit days, class competitions, and a Friday tailgate, Homecoming can still be celebrated with appropriate guidelines in place. Every student loves to have a week without uniform, so the Class Officers planned unique spirit days in hope of bringing joy to campus. The days follow: Monochrome Monday Once Upon A Time Tuesday: Disney Day Woke Up Like This Wednesday: Pajama Day Throwback Thursday: Decades Blue and Gold Despite the unfortunate loss of a traditional Homecoming dance, the Homecoming tailgate will be a great opportunity to socialize with classmates. Along with the week being filled with competitions between the 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th grades, the tailgate will have outdoor activities, music, and food trucks. That evening, October 23rd, the football team will face Spring Hill. Additionally, Homecoming court will be presented at halftime. Even though we must stay masked up and six feet apart, October 19th- 23rd will be a time to celebrate the traditions and importance of community at BGA!
Community dents. [She loves] how warm and welcoming the BGA community is to people who are new to the Grace Rook school and has felt like a part of the community from the beginning. Last, [she is] encouraged by the Syd Lindblom thoughtfulness and care the school put into their Classes: English 1, English 2 approach to campus life this fall, and thrilled that we This is her 6th year teaching. She is excited to be teaching at BGA because it seems like a great commu- are able to be learning together on campus.” nity to be a part of, she likes schools that bring people Nathan Johnston Classes: Freshman Speech, Business, Communicatogether around a center of learning, and because tion, AP Human Geography there are a lot of young adults who seem ready to go This is his 8th year teaching. and make changes in the world. Mr. Johnston is excited to be teaching at BGA beLuis Zuniga cause he competed against BGA in Speech and DeClasses: 20th Century History bate during his high school career, and also because This is his 1st year of teaching after working in marhe is glad to back with his close friends and family in keting for 20 years.He is excited to be teaching here because he loves the culture of BGA, because everyone Tennessee. Steve Iannuccilli is very committed to learning and seems very interClasses: College Prep and AP Biology, Human Anatoested, students have a positive attitude and everyone seems to like being here, and because everyone is very my, and Upper School community service director This is his 15th year teaching at independent high welcoming and helpful to him as a new teacher. schools. Dr. Jenn Demers Classes: Honors Chemistry, Intro to Computer Science, Programming Ching Ching Zhang This is her 5th year of teaching high school. 10/21 She is excited to teach at BGA because she gets to Homecoming Spirit Week: Woke Up Like This teach students through the whole range of grades, and Wednesday spark interest in computers for high school students, 10/22 since BGA has not extensively taught programming Homecoming Spirit Week: Throwback Thursday before, she is able tor to “find [her] niche and grow.” 10/23 Clay Stafford Homecoming Spirit Week: Freaky Friday Classes: Creative Writing 7:00pm Homecoming Football Game vs Spring Hill He has been teaching for about 40 years. He is excit10/24 ed to be teaching at BGA because as an author and Soccer: Girls Varsity - Game (TBD) VS TSSAA State involved member in the humanities, teaching creative Tournament writing forces him to articulate why certain things 10/29 work in his profession and why others do not. Cross Country - Game (Away) Middle/East Region Heather Cornett Tournament Classes: Honors World History, US History 10/30 This is her 5th year teaching. Mrs. Cornett is excited Soccer: Girls Varsity - Game (TBD) VS TSSAA State to be at BGA for “a whole host of reasons. First, she’s Tournament excited about the opportunity to teach at a school 7:00pm: Football: Varsity - Game (Home) VS Lipthat focuses on innovation and creativity allows [her] scomb Academey to design and implement lessons that will ignite the 10/31 intellectual curiosity of [her] students. Second, [she is] Soccer: Girls Varsity - Game (TBD) VS TSSAA State impressed by the focus and engagement of the stuTournament
New Teacher Spotlights
Caldendar