The Epitaph, Issue 8, 2015-16

the

epitaph

HOMESTEAD HIGH SCHOOL

VOL. 60

ISSUE 8

WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016

ONCE UPON A TIME...

SEE SENIOR PULLOUT 2016

21370 HOMESTEAD RD. CUPERTINO, CALIF.

New finals schedule beginning this year Period changes cause students to need to reschedule time

By Ron Hasson Finals week tends to be the most stressful time of the school year for many students.

When the finals schedule was changed this year, students were caught off guard.

In prior years, the seventh period final was administered on Monday, third and fifth on Tuesday, second and fourth on Wednesday and first and sixth on Thursday.

However, this year, since there is no school on Monday, the schedule has been changed to accommodate.

First, third and seventh period finals on Tuesday, second and fourth on Wednesday and fifth and sixth on Thursday.

“What really concerned us was the Memorial Day that was the Monday before finals,” Principal Greg Giglio said. “We normally would have that day to prepare, so that threw an extra change that we had to figure out.”

The new finals schedule was caused by the district school

calendar, which consistantly changes every year.

HHS administration had no say about when the school year would end, but were faced with the problem of finals week nonetheless.

“We proposed a few things, and one of the ideas was to do three tests on one day, which is a concern because three tests is a lot,” Giglio said.

This is where the administration’s concerns meet the concerns of the students, as some of the students feel that three tests on one day might be too stressful.

“I don’t think you can go six hours straight,” junior Lauren Ford said. “I think one of the benefits of finals week is that you get out at 12 to go study.”

The administration considered this and strategically placed the first and seventh period finals on the same day, Giglio said.

“Most people don’t have a first and a seventh, so hopefully not very many people are gonna have three tests,” Giglio said.

For the next three years, the school will have to deal with finals occurring the week of Memorial Day. “I used to get tired after two finals, so after three it seems a little intimidating,” sophomore Vignesh Suresh said.

However, Suresh isn’t too concerned.

“It’s unfamiliar right now, but eventually it will become normal,” Suresh said.

JUNIOR YANNAH MELLE spends her time studying for finals The finals week in the library schedule for the next three years will not be set in creates too much stress, we’ll look will need to get used to this new stone. “ W e ’ l l look at it this year and see how it at it again and see if there’s a better schedule, because soon it will become a common reality. goes,” Giglio said. “If it turns out solution.”

For now it seems that students that it does not work well and it

Richard and Myrna Klockow to give $1000 at Senior Night

Substitute teacher awards scholarship in honor of late son

By Noor Baig

For the 11th year in a row, substitute teacher Richard Klokow, known as “Mr. Up” to students, and his wife Myrna will honor their late son Patrick by awarding two scholarships at Senior Awards Night this evening.

In August 2005, Captain Patrick Klokow was killed in a biking accident in San Diego while training for the U.S. Marines triathlon team. After Patrick’s death, Klokow and his wife requested that people donate to a scholarship fund in Patrick’s honor rather than sending flowers or gifts.

“Flowers and stuff... they don’t last forever, so it was a more meaningful thing,” Klokow said. “We had one at the Naval Academy, so I thought we should have one at the high school where he graduated from.”

Klokow said helping students pursue higher education through the scholarship gave the couple a sense of purpose and a way to remember their son in the time following their loss.

“When you lose a child, it’s pretty devastating,” Klokow said. “We’re not giving [scholarship recipients] a million dollars to get a full scholarship or anything, but it’s a little a bit of money support, but more kind

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Senior Pullout 7-9 10-11 Sports

INSIDE Sapnay Pg. 2 ‘Lemonade’ Review Pg. 3 of a moral support.”

Previously, the scholarship was awarded to one student, but this year the fund raised enough money for one boy and one girl to each receive $500.

Klockow said students similar to Patrick, who have an averageto-high GPA and some form of school involvement, fit the profile for the scholarship. “[Patrick] was just kind of a regular guy,” Klokow said. “After he died, one of his former roommates said, ‘Patrick always did the right thing, even when no one was watching.’ That’s the kind of guy he was, he was a neat guy. So we want a neat guy or a girl.”

Only after their son’s death did he and Myrna learn about all how Patrick helped newer members of the Marines, Klokow said.

“Patrick was a captain and an officer and he worked with the en-

listment,” Klokow said. “One son was on drugs and [Patrick] got ‘em off that and then he got other guys who were not in good shape because he was a triathlete.”

Klokow said he wants anyone interested in the scholarship to know that everyone is important, regardless of where they go after high school, and not to let their negative experiences define them.

“That’s a big thing that I’ve learned in life… I was in WWII and we got out, and we didn’t let that define us. We did it, we did our job, but then we went on,” Klokow said. “It’s a big thing I’ve sorta learned is not to let certain things define who you are. Because who you are is who you are.”

The fund is managed by the FUHS Foundation, and donations can be made through PayPal or check. Donations are tax deductible for IRA holders over 70.5 years old.

Teacher Switch Pg. 7-10 CCS Coverage Pg. 11 PHOTOS BY NOOR BAIG AND RON HASSON PAGE DESIGN BY THOMAS DENOME AND KARIMA GHIMIRE

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Wednesday, May 25, 2016

news

AP Biology final exam scores cancelled

PE teacher Paula Weismann retires

By Katie Snell and Gabriella Mrozowski

By Shauli Bar-On

No punishments for alleged academic dishonesty This year’s scores for the Advanced Placement (AP) Biology multiple choice in-class final have been canceled due to a compromise of test integrity.

All four periods of the class took their final exam two weeks before the actual AP test was administered. It was later discovered the entire test and answer key were available wordfor-word online.

“An AP released test, the 2012 released test, was being used as the final exam in the class,” long-term AP Biology substitute teacher Lawrence Laskowski said.

The old 2012 AP Biology exam was released on the College Board website and was used as the final.

The final was intended to allow students to practice with a real AP exam prior to the upcoming AP test date.

“Students were encouraged to access practice tests,” Assistant Principal Denae Nurnberg said, “and my understanding is that somebody posted on the AP Bio Facebook page, a practice test, benign in nature and kids [could] study from it.”

The AP Biology Facebook page is a private page many biology students are a part of. The page allows students to collaborate, receive help on work from peers and share learning tools.

Laskowski said the Facebook

page situation resulted in many AP Biology students looking at the 2012 test online before their final.

“The final was the first item when you searched ‘AP exam practice test,’” junior and thirdperiod AP Biology student Ryan Siu said.

The even periods of AP Biology - periods two, four and six - took the final on the following Wednesday and scored significantly higher than third period, which took the test the day before, Laskowski said. In these periods, several people scored 100 percent. Laskowski described scoring this high as “challenging, especially in AP [Biology].”

A discussion facilitated by administration led to the decision to disregard the multiple choice test scores, Laskowski said, because it was not fair to students who had actually studied to have significantly lower test scores than students who were aware the test was online.

Some AP Biology students have opposing views of how the situation should have been dealt with.

Siu said he was unaware the 2012 practice test was the actual final exam. He said he used that test to study for the final after being encouraged to look online for extra practice.

He said he disagreed with the ultimate decision to cancel the multiple choice scores, which

canceled the ‘A’ he scored. “[Students] should have a say in what happens [to their scores.]

I’m sure there’s a way to give people the points they actually deserve than just throwing it out,” Siu said.

Claire Wynne, a junior in sixth period AP Biology, said she agrees with the decision to cancel test scores.

“I think that overall it’s unfair for, whether it was an accident or on purpose, for students to have an advantage over other students,” Wynne said. “It was a good decision.”

In addition to test scores being canceled, all AP Biology classes had a discussion with Nurnberg and Laskowski regarding ethics on the Internet.

Nurnberg explained her discussions with the students were carried out to address the bigger picture.

“I wanted them to just kind of like sit with it for a moment, like ‘why am I here?’ and to reflect on that,” Nurnberg said. “I always think that test security is super important which means varying the test questions and the content of the questions from year to year, so I think that that’s likely something that can help to avoid it in the future.”

The staff said they will not seek to punish students that partook in the events described.

Sapnay show highlights Indian and Pakistani culture

38-year veteran staff member says goodbye After 38 years of teaching, Physical Education teacher Paula Weismann said she has decided to retire at the end of this school year.

“I’m looking forward to slowing life down,” she said.

“It’s been a great ride.”

Weismann began her teaching career at Independence High School, where she taught for two years before joining the FUHSD in 1976. She taught in the PE department for two years and then English for the next 21 years before returning to teach PE for another 15 years.

“I truly love this school and all of its aspects and my coworkers, past and present,” Weismann said. “The quality of education, standards and hard work ethic have been unwavering over time,” she said.

Weismann was honored as the certified staff member of year in 2014. “[Weismann has] done a ton of stuff over the last 40 years here... she’s just been a real backbone of the campus,” Principal Greg Giglio said. “Not only has she been here a long time, but she has really stepped up and made this place her own and made it better.”

Weismann has taught under 13 principals in every FUHSD school besides CHS. Over the years, Weismann has been an athletic director for 15 years, a basketball, volleyball and badminton coach, the athletic director, a spirit and class adviser, a yearbook adviser, a school site president and an Fremont Education Association representative.

Weismann is additionally

proud of herself for surviving 19 years of construction on site. “[I wouldn’t choose any] other career, started here at age 23. I wanted to be a veterinarian, but I didn’t want to do eight years of school, so I did the next best thing to working with animals -- teaching teenagers,” Weismann said.

She looks forward to visiting Homestead even after she retires.

“Like the Terminator,” Weismann said, “I’ll be back.”

Weismann said she is ready to move on to the next chapter of her life.

“It has been a long but illustrious ride here at Homestead. I am sure I bleed green and white,” Weismann said. “It seems surreal that I came in as a 23-year-old whippersnapper who was by [seven or eight] years the youngest member of the staff, to now being the old matriarch.”

The staff held a farewell party for Weismann last week, where the staff bought her a diamond bracelet.

“We’re gonna miss her, and we wish her the best and we thank her for all her years of service,” Giglio said.

IndoPak club members show off their moves and musical talents in the gym

By Shauli Bar-On The 16th annual IndianPakistani (IndoPak) Sapnay show was hosted in a packed gym on May 14.

The IndoPak club was founded with the purpose to unite the diverse cultures and talents of Bay Area youth, specifically Indian and Pakistani music and dancing.

“Sapnay,” which means “dreams” in Hindi, is an annual cultural show including dancers and musicians from HHS, CHS, MVHS as well as other schools from outside the FUHSD. The music, collected and streamed by tech officers Amit Kohli and Rohan Vaidya, combines classical Indian music with modern pop songs. The dancers work to incorporate traditional Indian dance moves and modern pop culture moves into the show to engage all audience members.

Captains from each of the different genre dance teams coordinate the dances for their respective groups and manage the choreography during practices.

The day of the performance is a stressful yet rewarding, IndoPak junior officer and eleventh grader Akshay Kamal said.

“Sapnay is really tough but also really fun to put on,” Kamal said.

THE Preparing for the show may have been tough, but vice president and junior Adit Kishen said he thought the show was fantastic and was worth the stress.

“Setting up and getting everything together is extremely difficult and strenuous because we have to build the whole stage from the ground up,” Kishen said.

“The show was fantastic… it was an overall success.”

Performers begin practicing almost immediately after the tryout process is over in November, Kamal said.

“It’s really great working with officers, performers and parents because there are some really

INDOPAK RAAS dance team specializes in dance moves from Gujarat, India sweet, talented and hardworking people who work with us to put the show on,” Kamal said.

The show itself is unique for the dancers, junior and performer Samhita Kadiyala said. She said she values the informal setting of the show.

“We get to know the dancers in another dimension. The audience-to-dancer connection is very personal. It’s great,” Kadiyala said.

The Sapnay show is open to all performers, regardless of their ethnicity. Junior Yannah Melle, who is of non-Asian descent, said she joined the IndoPak Film team

two years ago because her friend was a dancer and encouraged her to take part.

This year, she said she decided she too wanted to be in the show as a dancer.

“I’ve always like watching Indian dances, I’ve always thought it was fun,” Melle said. “And then I tried out this year because I wanted to be in [the show].”

Club adviser Richard Porticos has a huge role in ensuring Sapnay goes as planned, IndoPak co-president Sonya Nadkeshwar said. “[Mr. Porticos] has been more than helpful,” an IndoPak club

statement read. “He is always there and is the person all the officers can count on.” Nadkeshwar echoed the club statement.

“We would not have been able to do it without Mr. Porticos. He was a huge help,” Nadkeshwar said.

This was the last show for the seniors, and Nadkeshwar said she was glad everything went well.

“This show is a good way for the seniors to end the year with a bang,” she said. “I am really proud of all the officers and participants.

Also I am thankful for everyone who came and we [hope] everyone enjoyed it.”

PAGE DESIGN BY ARIA HEJAZI AND ERIN LIU PHOTOS BY SHAULI BAR-ON AND SUE LARSON

opinion

A waste of paper, time and practice Why the administration failed the AP Biology students It might seem difficult or even impossible to get a perfect score on a final exam in a class as challenging as AP Biology.

But somehow, an unusually high number of this year’s students did just that.

They were able to do so by memorizing test questions from a practice test they took online.

Yes, the AP Biology curriculum builders chose to make the final exam an exact replica of an online test -- this was a failure on the staff’s part.

To accurately assess students’ knowledge, teachers must administer an exam that cannot be found, memorized and reviewed online prior to the exam.

AP classes are intended to prepare enrolled students for the nationwide AP test taken in May, and due to the schedule of the test, teachers must administer a second semester final similar to the actual AP exam, but prior to the scheduled date of the AP test.

Teachers usually use a test from an archive of previous years’ tests.

In order for students to be well-prepared, teachers often recommend taking multiple practice AP tests either by purchasing AP practice books or taking tests online.

The students of this year’s AP Biology class listened to the advice. Third period, the first class to take the final, realized the final exam was an exact copy of the most recently released online practice test they had used to study with.

The word spread. By the

STAFF EDITORIAL

next day the final exam was administered, many students knew exactly which test would would appear before them.

The administration eventually found out and decided not to include the scores from the portion of the test identical to the online version in the gradebook.

Denae Nurnberg, the assistant principal in charge of student activities and AP testing, spoke with each AP Biology class period informing them of the administration’s disappointment in regard to students’ actions.

On May 2, both Nurnberg and interim AP biology teacher Lawrence Laskowski lectured each period about academic dishonesty. In these lectures, the staff criticized students for failing to prepare themselves by memorizing answers to the final.

The administration should focus less on critiquing students and instead focus more on how students’ knowledge was being assessed, a responsibility both teachers and staff hold.

If students are recommended to take practice tests online, there

can be no complaints that the students typed “AP Bio practice test” into Google and took the first test they found, nor that students scored high on the final exam.

The only people complaining should be the students.

Teachers should be giving students an opportunity to succeed through assessments that test knowledge. As an easily accessible online practice test, the final exam did not give students an indication of their preparedness.

Yes, students who memorized answers for the sole purpose of boosting their grade cheated themselves of an opportunity to test their knowledge, but they cannot be the only ones blamed.

Questions available for student use online should not have been used in the first place.

According to College Board, the website provides “complete AP exams available to teachers, but inaccessible to students.”

Had the teacher chosen one of these tests, all of this trouble would have been prevented.

It is one course of action to criticize this year’s students for borderline academic dishonesty, but it is a much wiser solution for the administration to admit their mistakes and to reform the final exam for next year.

This year’s AP Biology final exam was a waste of time, paper and opportunity for preparing students for the AP test the following week. Let’s just hope next year’s students -- and staff -are better prepared.

WOODS AT DON Edwards National Wildlife Preserve University, 50 participants were asked to walk around the Stanford campus in one of two environments, either a natural or urban setting.

Afterward, those who walked in nature were shown to have positive results such as reduced stress and improved memory performance.

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Both of these traits are very important in a stressful school environment.

A stroll in the forest doesn’t just keep stress down. According to the New York Times, people in more natural settings are at a much lower risk for mental illness and depression than urban dwellers.

STAFF

Editors Editors in Chief

Rachel Hildebrand Shauli Bar-On

News

Gabby Mrozowski

Opinion

Katie Snell

Lifestyles

Noor Baig

Entertainment

Brittany Prock

Sports

Michael Huang

Design

Desmond Kamas Raven Bautista

Junior Editors

Karima Ghamire

News Opinion

Elinda Xiao

Lifestyles

Kira Garlick Tara Sohal

Entertainment

Karshin Gupta

Sports

Reporters Reem Abutabikh

Jacob Jiao

Indira Cockerill

Erin Liu

Thomas Denome

Daniel Moscovitch

Lindsay Goddard

Ludmila Sviderskaya

Ron Hasson

James Zhuang

Aria Hejazi

Natalie Owsley

Advisor Interim Advisor

Chad Talley

epitaph

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The Epitaph is a non-profit publication at Homestead High School, 95014.

The Epitaph is a forum for student expression and not subject to prior review, in accordance with Education Code 48907. The staff is comprised of

Taking a walk in nature can help relieve pressure

By Thomas Denome

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the

21370 Homestead Rd, Cupertino, CA

A strenuous stress stopper It’s that time of the year again.

The last month of school.

Maybe you’re finishing your end-of-the-year project or studying for finals. Or maybe you really need that A and are pushing the limits of your brain for a class. All this work creates an extremely stressful environment, even as the year winds down.

Different people have different ways and strategies for dealing with their stress. However, one of the best ways to calm down may be as simple as taking a walk in nature.

As one of the many students in this pressure-packed atmosphere, I find that a short stroll in nature is a prime option to cope with stress.

While a regular cruise around the block is fine, going a bit further and embarking on a stroll in a natural setting can be a much better escape than the busy streets of the Silicon Valley. In addition, it could be beneficial to your health.

In a study done at Stanford

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Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Homestead Journalism students. Views expressed do not necessarily represent

Additionally, walking is a great escape from the problems of life and can prove an excellent way to calm down after a tough day.

Surrounding yourself in nature is extremely calming and affords you plenty of time to think about your problems.

Scientific consensus aside, don’t forget other ways a nature walk can be of assistance. Meandering around can be an excellent way to pass some time on a long and boring break, provides a nice way to get some exercise and is a nice experience in general, especially in a beautiful area with plenty of scenery.

Thankfully, several excellent areas for these endeavors exist around the South Bay. Places like Don Edwards National Wildlife Refuge, Sunnyvale Baylands Park or the Cupertino-Los Altos foothills serve as excellent places to put boots to the ground and forget your problems, take pictures and appreciate the scenery.

views of the school, its staff, or the district. Editorials are opinions of the editorial board.

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lifestyles

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

My POV: Preparing for Sapnay

By Tara Sohal

From kindergarten to middle school, whenever somebody asked me if I participated in any sports or extracurricular activities, my answer was always a jumbled mess of trying to explain what what Bhangra is.

I remember attending my first IndoPak club meeting and being completely surprised by the amount of people there.

Everyone was so enthusiastic about trying out for different teams and performing at Sapnay, the annual dance show the club hosts.

I suddenly didn’t have to explain myself when people asked what kind of dancing I did.

They already knew what Bhangra was because of IndoPak. I’ve been on a community Bhangra team for about 12 years and on the HHS Bhangra competition team for two years now.

Despite the first hand intimidation of being one of the youngest members on the team, Bhangra practice at the end of every week was definitely stress relieving and something I looked forward to.

One of the main reasons that I never lose interest in the dancing I do is because there are so many different components to the Bhangra style, making it diverse.

One moment it’s filled with complete liveliness and intense energy, and the next all movements are carried out with grace and ease.

Preparing for and performing at Sapnay for the second time was an amazing process, unique from the first time.

From late-night practices for perfecting every move and formation to watching other acts dance during the show, it was an unforgettable experience.

All of my nervousness and doubts disappeared as soon as I stepped onto the stage.

The only sounds blaring in my ears became the roaring of the crowd and the blasting music.

With the team by my side, I didn’t once think about how exhausted I was -- the only thing on my mind was how much fun I was having, and how happy I was to be able to share my culture with everyone watching.

Slang word of the month: suh dude The laziest way to say “What’s up dude?”

By Ron Hasson You’re walking from your first period class out to the quad, heading for a class in which you will spend your tutorial. You are tired and worn out, but suddenly you spot your friend walking the opposite way.

A little spark is ignited in you, and you turn to them. But as soon as you try to speak, you remember something.

You must stay cool and hip, so instead of fully asking, “What’s up, dude?” you shorten the phrase and instead say something in the most nonchalant voice you ever have, “Suh dude.”

You don’t even fully pronounce the second “d” in dude.

This phrase originated from a wildly successful Vine video that quickly spread across the entire United States. People everywhere were copying the video and doing their own impression, and it very quickly became one of the most popular phenomena in the country.

The phrase is very easy to use

and can be inserted almost any time you are greeting someone you know. It’s very simple, if you really nonchalantly say “what’s up, dude?” you will already be getting it right.

However, if you try too hard to get it right, you will most likely butcher the phrase. It’s got to be natural.

People have differing opinions about the phenomenon.

While some find it extremely funny and entertaining, others get annoyed whenever the phrase is brought up. These people tend to think it sounds irritating and is just a very lazy saying.

These people do not see the feeling of camaraderie that the phrase creates. It bonds two close friends together, who both know they don’t have to fully complete the sentence to know how the other is feeling.

So next time you hear this phrase, know that it means and how it should sound.

How we compare: diversity and more

Public schooling in California is very different from elsewhere

By Mila Sviderskaya

California is considered one of the coolest and most “chill” out of all the states. But do Cali schools live up to their reputation?

I have studied in several schools across the country, so I can attest to the statistical differences between them.

To reflect diversity, American schools are given a “diversity score” between zero and one the closer the score is to one, the more diverse the student population is. According to Publicschoolsreview.com, a diversity score “determines the likelihood that any two students are from different ethnic groups.”

California falls in the top ten states with most diverse schools. HHS has a diversity score of 0.69. North Carolina has a diversity score of 0.65 and our state average is 0.65.

The Washington state diversity is 0.61, but the middle school I attended only had a diversity score of 0.01.

The schools I went to in Washington was pretty much entirely Christian, with white staff and students. However, at HHS, there are people from all over the world, of all ethnicities and religions.

California schools are much more accepting in that category, and everyone can find students they share culture with.

Socioeconomic acceptance wasn’t all that prevalent in my previous schools. In Washington especially, underprivileged students were instantly separated from the wealthy students and teased about their social class.

Diversity is more of an oncampus interest, but something that has always been a concern for parents and teachers is what

students are up to outside of class.

One of the main problems is drugs and alcohol.

Washington beats California in every form of drug abuse amongst students.

According to Inspirationyouth. com, 14.8 percent of CA public school students reported smoking before, while according to Washington Office of Management’s

cent. Nineteen percent of 12th graders in Washington admitted to binge drinking in 2014.

In 2012, only nine percent of California sophomore students reported to having smoked a cigarette in the last 30 days, and 14.2 percent seniors reported the same, according to the California Department for Public Health.

This number has decreased

website, an average of 23 percent of high school students reported using marijuana once in the last 30 days.

I’d see kids taking walks to smoke on a regular basis and even Snapchat stories showing nothing but beer chugging on Friday nights.

The California high school average for alcohol consumption was 18 percent in 2013, while Washington’s average is 27 per-

each year since. According to the Washington State Department of Health, the number is 10 percent among sophomores and 16 percent among upperclassmen for Washington.

However, remember school quality isn’t placed on students completely. The district, teachers, education and finances play a big role.

As for what our school provides, on average California pro-

vides fewer state-paid resources than other states.

According to the National Association of State Budget Officers (NASBO), North Carolina spent an average of 24.8 percent of their total budgets on elementary and secondary education in 2013, Washington spent 23.4 and California spent 19.8.

Finally, academics. The one shoutout I’ll give to California is they have a more diverse selection for kids of different interests.

While in Washington you only have a choice between two classes for each subject, one of which would be advanced placement, HHS provides courses like American Studies, Economics or Math Analysis.

Here you have more freedom to chose whether you want to learn about world history or U.S. history or if you’d like biology or environmental science.

Out of many schools I’ve been to, I’m glad to say HHS has been one of my favorites.

Funding may be lower and spirit might be lacking, but this is the one school I was able to find a place in.

This is the one school where thanks to diversity in culture, social class and the population itself, I was able to find my group.

Depending on a person’s values -- education versus extracurriculars or diversity versus funding -- one can decide which schools are better than others.

Every school has negatives and positives. Compared to my other schools, HHS has been much better in regards to the student population, and that to me has been the most important values of all.

PAGE DESIGN BY TARA SOHAL AND KATIE SNELL ILLISTRATIONS BY MILA SVIDERSKAYA

entertainment

More sweet than sour

Queen Bey releases her sixth studio album

By Lindsay Goddard

POPSTAR BEYONCÉ PERFORMS new album at Levi’s When life gives you lemons, write a number one album.

Beyoncé released a surprise album, her sixth studio album “Lemonade,” on April 23.

She touches multiple genres throughout the album, ranging from pop to soul.

Beyoncé’s lyrics paint a picture of infidelity, and all the songs carry this theme throughout the whole album. The album tells a story which seems to speak of Beyoncé’s different stages of grief when put in a bad situation.

It starts with suspicion, which leads to pain, anger and finally acceptance. Artists featured in the album include Kendrick Lamar, James Blake, The Weeknd and Jack White.

Most people assume Beyoncé

is telling a story about discovering how her husband, rapper Jay Z, cheated on her.

Rather than preaching heartbreak, Beyoncé gives off an empowering vibe with her contagious confidence on tracks such as “Formation” and “Don’t Hurt Yourself.” The album title was inspired by Jay Z’s grandmother, Hattie White, who is also featured on the album.

At the end of the song “Freedom” a recording of her speaking to a crowd on her birthday is included which says, “I had my ups and downs but I always found the inner strength to pull myself up. I was served lemons, but I made lemonade.”

My favorite song on the album is “Pray You Catch Me,” which is

the first track on the album. The song starts out slow, creating a somber mood. Beyoncé sings this heartbreaking ballad where she introduces her first stage of grief and suspicion that sprung from a person’s dishonesty.

My second favorite song on the album is “Sandcastles.”

Another powerful ballad on the album, the music in this song is simple, with just a piano in the background, making her lyrics all the more powerful.

The album’s realness gives off an intimate vibe, but many have speculated all the stories she sings about are about made up situations.

Some say Jay Z approved every single lyric and they released the album to start cheating rumors which would increase their profits from the album, which seems to work.

Whether the story behind the album is fact or fiction, she has certainly taken a bad situation and made her lemonade. Beyoncé’s album takes you through her process of redemption, and how she has made peace by moving on without letting go.

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

On a final note

5

Choir closes out the year with a strong performance

By Elinda Xiao

Homestead’s choir has been involved in many events this past school year: the Major Works concert, the Disneyland trip and most recently, its final Spring Show.

HHS choir’s Spring Show was held on May 11 after school hours, at 7 p.m.

All of Homestead’s choir classes performed in the show.

Some of the pieces were chosen from the Disney concert, and others were from years prior.

“For the Longest Time” by Billy Joel was a song which Concert Choir had sung in Disneyland back in early spring.

“The Road Not Taken” from Frostiana was arranged for the Major Works concert.

The mixture of song genres was appreciated, from lighthearted a cappella to a dark Latin chant about demons.

The performance was very entertaining, with a wide variety of songs and a different style to each one.

Yet, there was also a twinge of nostalgia in the air, as choir teacher Dr. Morton awarded the Choir Award to Darica Louie, who had been in choir all four of her years in high school.

Following the show, Dr. Morton announced that the choir would be performing for the California Music Education Association, and in turn earned a unanimous superior from the judging panel on Saturday, May 14.

Although HHS will surely miss its graduating senior singers, returning choir students have much to look forward to for the 2016-17 year.

From a New York trip to more concerts, next year’s singers will have even more in their musical future.

“Lemonade” by Beyoncé Released: April 23 iTunes Price: $17.99 Genre: Pop, R&B Length: 45:49 Favorite Song: “Pray You Catch Me”

CONCERT CHOIR PERFORMS during the Spring Show

Keep calm and boba on

Ranking the top five boba places in the area based on taste and price

3.

Name: Fantasia Coffee & Tea Flavor: Original Milk Tea Cost: $3.50 Rating: 4.5/5

By Erin Liu

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Name: Cafe LaTTea Flavor: Original Silky Milk Cost: $4.50 Rating: 4/5

1.

Name: Ten Ren Flavor: Oolong Milk Tea Cost: $3.50 Rating: 5/5 PAGE DESIGN BY RON HASSON AND DANIEL MOSCOVITCH PHOTOS BY ERIN LIU, TARA SOHAL AND ELINDA XIAO

6

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

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SPECIAL EIGHT-WEEK SUMMER INTENSIVE COURSE Thursday 9 am to 1 pm, Monday 9 am to 1 pm, Tuesday 9 am to 1 pm, Wednesday 9 am to 1 pm

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SPECIAL EIGHT-WEEK SUMMER INTENSIVE COURSE Thursday 2 pm to 6 pm, Monday 2 pm to 6 pm, Tuesday 2 pm to 6 pm, Wednesday 2 pm to 6 pm

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O nce U pon a T ime senior pullout class of

2016 PAGE DESIGN BY EVA CHIU AND JEANNA TOTAH PHOTO BY JEANNA TOTAH ILLUSTRATIONS BY CRYSTAL CHEN AND JULIETTE LE SAINT

Spotlight

Life through the lens

By Aayush Singh Many students shoot videos for fun or entertainment, but a few students, like Jared Watanabe, post their videos on YouTube.

Watanabe has maintained a presence on YouTube through his channel “The Jared Vlogs” and has amassed 92 subscribers.

Each video is around 10 minutes long after edits made to 60 minutes of footage, and features his everyday activities and interactions.

Watanabe said he started his channel as a way to document his adventures during the summer preceding his senior year, but slowly, the channel’s focus expanded from adventures by himself to include adventures with “The White Elephant,” a rock band Watanabe formed with his friends.

“It started as a thing I did on the weekends,” Watanabe said. “Later, when my band [the White Elephant]

started gigging around, I would vlog just those days.”

Even though Jared’s channel provides a behind-the-scenes look into the band’s gigs and documents his adventures, the larger purpose of “The Jared Vlogs” remains the preservation of memories of the events of his high school life.

“If anything, it’s just for the memories,” Watanabe said.

A mission for experience

By Yunqi Deng

With so many options other than going to college, senior Alexandra Tadros is choosing an untraditional route: taking a gap year.

“There’s only one time in your life you can take a gap year and that’s after high school and before college,” Tadros said. “I figured college is only four years and what’s one year in the grand scheme of life?”

Tadros said she will use this time to attend Christian missionary programs in Spanishspeaking countries, including an internship at a baby orphanage in Mexico.

“I want to know Spanish fluently so when I start applying for jobs, I can have Spanish on my resume,” Tadros said.

Tadros said she has already

applied to college and received acceptances, but is choosing to defer until next year. She plans to major in nursing.

After college, Tadros said she is thinking about joining Doctors without Borders, an organization that provides medical care to impoverished countries and continuing to travel.

“I’m used to being in Silicon Valley and working constantly trying to get the best grades. Once in college, I know it’s going to be similar, especially with nursing being such a rigorously competitive academic program,” Tadros said.

“So I just wanted to take a break and step back to focus on who I am and to make sure nursing is what I want to do in college,” Tadros said.

Tadros said she was initially

hesitant to take a gap year, as she would be a year older than the rest of the students in her college classes.

She decided to take a year off when she talked with advisors and students during college visits. She said she wants to take advantage of the chance to learn about herself and leave a positive contribution to the world.

Tadros said she was worried that she wouldn’t fit in with the rest of her class. However, she realized that there are more benefits, both academically and socially, than harm.

“Taking a gap year is the first time that you’re alone, without parents and without restraints.

You’re an adult, and doing a gap year is really embracing that idea,” Tadros said. “College isn’t going anywhere anyways.”

Following his father’s footsteps

By Alisha Parikh

Rather than spend his next two years at De Anza College, Micah Guerrieri said he decided to follow in his father’s footsteps and enlist in the Navy.

“I chose the Navy because my dad was in it,” Guerrieri said, “It sounded more exciting than staying home for another two years going to De Anza.”

In order to join the Navy straight out of high school, Guerrier said he needed to take the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery test, which measures basic math and reading level.

Because Guerrieri is still in high school, passing this exam enrolls

him in the delayed enlistment program instead of active duty.

A big part of the reason he chose the Navy was because he really liked the nuclear program they offered him, Guerrieri said.

“Nuclear engineering is interesting because it’s the future of power,” Guerrieri said.

Not only does the Navy pay for his college education, Guerrieri said, “After one and a half years of military school, I can learn to take care of the nuclear engines on submarines and aircraft carriers.”

Money is an added bonus, as he said he would be earning an annual salary for his service.

“As long as I’m in the active

military with a rank, I get paid,” Guerrieri said.

His decision to join the Navy didn’t come without fears, but it wasn’t the fear of such a high commitment that scared him.

“I’m nervous about never seeing my high school friends again,” Guerrieri said, “but not about joining the military, especially as a glorified engine mechanic.”

Before making your post high school decision it is important to consider all your options Guerrieri said, “Everyone has their opportunities…don’t rush into anything.”

A recipe for success

By Nathan Mijares

Rather than spend endless nights writing numerous college essays like other seniors, Whitney Lieberman decided to spend her time writing something different: a vegan cookbook.

Lieberman wrote her book “Freshly Vegan” during her junior year and is currently selling it on Amazon.

“It’s definitely overwhelming to jump into veganism without knowing some basic recipes, so I decided that the best way to help people learn more about veganism was to provide those recipes myself,” Lieberman said.

She said she was inspired to write her cookbook after a lot of people interested in veganism and vegetarianism asked her for advice concerning their diets.

Shifting into the vegan diet was a big change for Lieberman.

“I’ve been vegetarian since first grade for ethical reasons,” she said, “but decided to go vegan for the health benefits associated with the lifestyle.”

“Freshly Vegan” includes over 50 recipes for different meals throughout the day, all made with vegan ingredients. Lieberman has sold a total of 170 books just one month after she published in April.

“I’m still shocked about how

many copies I’ve sold and all of the positive feedback I’ve received from my friends, even those who are omnivorous,” Lieberman said.

The Book Nook club recently held a book signing for Lieberman’s cookbook that many students attended.

“My friends have been so overwhelmingly supportive by purchasing my book and encouraging others to buy it,” Lieberman said.

Lieberman said she continues to make fresh vegan meals everyday and continues to surprise the tastebuds of students with her different approaches to cooking.

2

PAGE DESIGN BY CRYSTAL CHEN AND ANGELA WANG PHOTO BY ALISHA PARIKH PHOTOS COURTESY OF WHITNEY LIEBERMAN, ALEXANDRA TADROS AND JARED WATANABE ILLUSTRATION BY CRYSTAL CHEN AND JULIETTE LE SAINT

Spotlight

An aptitude for artistry

By Nicole Nobre Several graduating students will be broadening their brushstrokes by pursuing art and design in college.

Daniel Lee said he chose the Center College of Design for its transportation design program, with his goal being to create sports cars for big name companies after graduating.

“I knew that [Art Center College of Design] was ranked the highest for transportation design in the world,” Lee said.

“They only picked 10 to 25 students that applied for this major.”

Sara Di Silvestro

Rachelle Cepeda and Linda Huang will both be majoring in design at the University of California, Davis.

Cepeda said she is primarily interested in digital design after exploring different forms of art since childhood.

“I just found it so interesting that I could take something that I really enjoyed as a child and actually make a career out of it,” Cepeda said. “I’m looking forward to being able to broaden my skills and my knowledge on something that I’m so passionate about already.”

Huang said the field she will be entering is mainly digital art, but

Daniel Lee

she is also interested in working with mediums such as ink and watercolor.

“I’d like to work for… a small company maybe, and then work my way up from there,” Huang said.

“Maybe [also]... make little things and sell them on the side.”

Two seniors are going outside California to build their art skills.

Sara Di Silvestro will be attending Evergreen State College to major in Fine Arts, while Jason Pi will be traveling to the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor for a degree in Art and Design.

“I find an escape in [art],” Di Silvestro said, “It’s something I enjoy doing and not tedious work.”

Pi is working toward entering

industrial design at his university.

Although he initially thought of art as a hobby, Pi said taking art classes in high school helped him realize he could make a career out of product design.

“One place I really want to work at is Google,” Pi said, “but I’ve also wanted to have a project with a few friends in college… maybe start my own company or brand.”

Di Silvestro said that an art major will allow her to learn in a less traditional and ruleridden atmosphere where her peers and teachers are more open.

Jason Pi

Linda Huang

Rachelle Cepeda

Singing her way to success

By Crystal Chen

Lilith Sarkar’s passion for singing has always been a way for her to relate her personal experiences to music.

Ever since she began singing with her fourth grade choir, Sarkar has been interested in music her entire life, and it was because of this passion that she began studying solo music three years ago.

“To me, there is nothing else I could imagine myself

doing,” Sarkar said. “I’ve kinda always been interested in a bunch of different totally random hobbies, and I didn’t really stick with any of them. Until I started singing.”

Although she considers her acceptance into the Manhattan School of Music as the highlight of her musical career, it was her singing performances within senior homes that was special to her.

“It’s so awesome to see the way that these patients react to my singing. I mean, I stand up and I see this crowd of sick people,” Sarkar said. “And then they hear the music and they all light up.”

Not only does Sarkar’s singing positively affect her audience, it also allows her to connect with the

emotions of the musical piece that she is performing.

Sarkar’s training includes practicing for two to three hours every day for most weeks of the year, with one day a week reserved for vocal rest.

As a soprano, she typically practices singing high notes and does numerous exercises to improve breath support.

Studying the text and the background of each piece allows her to understand the music she would eventually be performing.

Sarkar said that learning foreign languages is an integral part of her studies “I took French earlier. I’m taking German right now. Next year I’ll

take Italian at school,” Sarkar said.

Sarkar enjoys singing opera, and some of her favorite pieces come from French and Italian baroque. Describing herself as a dramatic and passionate person, Sarker said the tone in the pieces allows her to personally connect with the music she sings.

“Each piece means something different to me. I usually try to relate personal experiences with whatever the text is about,” Sarkar said.

Sarkar will be majoring in classical voice at the Manhattan School of Music this fall, with the hope to be able to travel and sing opera as a career.

Committing to collegiate athletics

By Alisha Parikh

Dalton Miner

For some aspiring collegiate athletes like Dalton Miner, the committing process was unexpectedly easy, but for others like Megan Lloyd the process required hours of communication with coaches.

Miner, who committed to Olivet College in Michigan for diving had a stress free commitment process.

“So I hand them [admissions] my application and during the first week of school I sent in my transcript and got accepted into Olivet later that day,” Miner said.

Lloyd’s committing process was a completely difference experience.

“It was a stressful, stressful

process….verbally committing and finally picking a college was unbelievably relieving,” Lloyd said.

Unlike most incoming seniors who were drowning in college applications first semester, Lloyd and Miner struggled with an early wave of senioritis.

“Having committed to college super early, it did make senior year way less stressful, and that was good. The bad part was that there was no more motivation to do anything,” Miner said.

While she never imagined moving to the east coast, Lloyd said meeting a few of the people on the soccer team gave her a sense of

3

ease, because she would have an immediate friend group.

“I am not nervous about being far from home at all….I am most excited for meeting all the people from Michigan and being extremely cold in the winter,” Miner said.

Regardless of where they attend college both Miner and Lloyd agree that playing a sport in college is an important commitment to think long and hard about.

“If you really want it you gotta put a lot a lot of work in, you gotta put in the extra hours outside of practice and put as much work into it as you can,” Lloyd said.

Megan Lloyd

PAGE DESIGN BY KARLA AGUDELO AND YUNQI DENG PHOTOS BY NICOLE NOBRE AND ALISHA PARIKH PHOTOS COURTESY OF LILITH SARKAR

Destinations

Their Adve

ARIZONA 1. Arizona State University Leila Oberman Pranathi Tipparam Brandon Quan 2. Grand Canyon University Wendy Rosas 3. Northern Arizona University Jonathan Chin 4. University of Arizona Liliana Adler CALIFORNIA 5. Academy for Salon Professionals Lucas Wilkerson 6. Art Center College of Design Changmin Lee Bryan Zhuang 7. Azusa Pacific University Bryan Ralston 8.Cabrillo Community College Francesco Velez-Quilici Damian Teso 9. California Northstate University Pranav Sathe 10. Cal Poly Pomona Ashank Patil Jared Watanabe Ben Fedorov Theodore Tefera 11. Cal Poly SLO Marina Lermant Jason Dcruz Anand Rajiv Tali Pilip Abhishek Karpuram Michelle Cao Elizabeth Dupin Ankit Maurya 12. Chapman University Azuki Umeda 13. City College of San Francisco Gloria Romero 14. Claremont McKenna College Leon Ren Whitney Lieberman 15. College of San Mateo Jerome Holloway Haydee Santiago 16. CSU Chico Julia Verbrugge Elijah Seymour Dylan Remahl Jenna Livengood Lucas Nelson Scott Wilford Nick Goulet Sumi Maharjan Cameron Schindler Oliver Lynch Bryce Leone Emily Semans 17. De Anza College Zainab Islam Maya Apotheker Beira Ornelas Stormi Martin Prashid Pokharel Matt Ngai Daniel Moll Afif Nass Omar Garcia Sheila Das Itzel Murillo Amirali Hakim Jurnee Rivas-Garza Noa Pelad Kristine Nguyen Angel Meza Nick Ybarra Austin Kim George Aoyagi Michael Kenney Cyrus Chu Joseph Eliahu Jesus Coto Pavnit Kaur Christian Moreno Gresia Delgado Michelle Jaramillo LeAnn Nelson

17. De Anza College Kevin Xu Jonathen Spivey Nicole Nobre Idan Zelenko Angelica Diaz Paola Navarro Hyesun Lee Soo Chan An Nathan Switchenko Reid Yoshida Noelani Martinez Joshua Abadano Ben La Crystal Chen Salil Subedi Anshu Paudyal Odalis Martinez Madelyn Hanel Benjamin Polen Peter Pelkey Diana Cardenas Emmeline Munson Jose Rios Christopher Phan Barbara Hoang Abel Tobarf Gulab Singh Yang Liu Bailin Zou Yixuan (Jessica) Wang Subani Sijapati 18. Foothill College Bolanos Maruin Desiree Esquivel Michael Cammarata Ramona Amely Courtney Berthiume Omer Ben-uzi Ayleen Ramirez Andres Contreras-Tostado Carla Gonzalez Eduardo Cruz Will Sotir Pamela Robles Amit Ben Simhon Toni Roberts Jessica Rebollo Autumn Gonzalez Abigail Pena Deliah Perry Angela Antuna Andrew Sohn Art de la Cruz Mariano de la Cruz DeAngelo Blackwell Mai Kishinevsky Samuel Fayard Anisha Duwadi Sharon Dagan 19. Fremont College Jihai Wu 20. Loyola Marymount University Carolyn Strossman 21. Merced College Frank Hurtado 22. Mission College Brianna Espinoza Nicholas Vasquez Jessica Hernandez 23. Pitzer College Donnie Denome 24. San Diego State University Rachel Willis Keven Naderi Brian Wehner Maryam Chenna Lindsey Nishimoto Nicole Cuny 25. San Francisco State University Christina Sosnowski Maddie Fussell Alycia Harlow Brandon Tam Jonathan Ruggiero Marina Friesen Katie Fussell Evan Chu Isaish Souza Dylan Roldan Nicholas Randle 26. San Jose City College Nicky Kirk

27. San Jose State University David Lefevre Stanley Wang Anirudh Nair Varsha Ponnuraj Yatish Kamat Jared Balthazar Sogol Saradar Ghandchi Heather Huntley Laura Rose Karla Agudelo Andrew Frakes Karen Arias Timesh Patil Jessie Shek Christian Agbayani Thalia Tran Jesse Coulson

103 101 98 99 100

85 86

28. Santa Monica University Lauren Kane

97 104 102

87

29. Santa Clara University Chris Rebagliati Daniel Bao Shreyas Ramaswami Cyrus Miremadi 30. Scripps College Adeline Chin Claire Tang 31. Sierra College Jazmin Phipps Raianna Phipps 32. Sonoma State University Marielle MacDonell Emma Lainez 33. Stanford University Clementine Chou Kevin Lan Amrita Venkatraman Amit Kohli 34. UC Berkeley Michaela Chai John Andrews Peter Martinka Guy Rotstein Stephanie Huang Alyssa Hiraoka Joyce Ching Neil Sharma Adi Zimmermn Erika Gutekunst Brij Desai Isabella Muscettola Nicole Mirabadi Claire Li Nishi Juthani Michelle Zhang Davis Horeff Austin Song Wendie Zhang Rachel Lee Julie Shen Jonathan Mendelson Naomi Jung Raymond Zhou Manisha Ummadi Joshua Du 35. UC Davis Jack Abukhovski Koosha Beyk Rachelle Cepeda Dominic Faria Michael Chow Jeanna Totah Audrey Wong Linda Huang Vera Sophia Beliaev Daniel Graves Emily Bui Jay Rainton Nick Merlesena Benjamin Chia Seerat Randhawa May (Thazin) Naing Kannon Salvucci Savita Sastry Huetong Feng Asiya Bhaisaheb Cyrus Parvereshi Allisha Kojo Shriya Ghosh 36. UC Irvine Anna He Ben Bauer Taichi Ito Rohan Apte Ryan Chen

16 31 34 75 35 32 45 15 9 13 5 29 43 8 25 42 18 17 2138 22 33 26, 27, 45 1141 39 44 10 46 19 6 7 1423 37 30 12 20 28 36 24 40

96

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37. UC Los Angeles Christopher Reed Johannes Lee Waveley Qiu Jane Lee Juliette LeSaint Jena Shields Katherine Sung Shangyu Hsu Darica Louie Abby Thurm Malavika Theophilus Anirudh Shankar Selina Hsuan Julian Mendel 38.UC Merced Angel Gospodinov Julia Mathur Sang Woo Bae 39. UC Riverside Mehvish Ali Sierra Smith Hiroto Muranaka 40. UC San Diego Arun Sugumar Maanasa Kandarpa Aditya Sampath Andy Hou Kenta Asai 41. UC Santa Barbara Peggy Xu Mikael Suzano Medini Rastogi Mark Cheng Ronnie (Yunjie) Li Brandon Chen Stav Tsur Kai Kan Japheth Yeung Yuliana Petrikovska Kessie Huang Rohit Penumarti Natalie Dye Allison Auten Matthew Wu Yichen Li Karen Thornton Joe Kinderman

41. UC Santa Barbara Paul Monroy Kate Mason Derek Yang Kenneth Huang Rebecca Bronstein Sumedha Tadimeti Kay Boissy 42. UC Santa Cruz Maya Matsuoka Seungjae Lee Scott Cahill Sonya Nandkeshwar Patricia Anne Simundac Ceena Nafarzadegan Nitin Vidyasagar Nicolle Ayon Campos Yunqi Deng Erica Nguyen Alex Le Maulin Vajir Arvind Patnam Brianna Ishihara Sofia Ramos Aayush Singh Paniz Hadjian Srinivasan Ranyarajan Aditya Somasundaram Grant Skidmore Veriche Blackwell Jeffrey Yao Liuwenda Gao Andrew Liu 43. University of the Pacific Thomas Lee 44. University of Redlands Sofia Olsson Alex Ostojic 45. University of San Francisco Brian Quan 46. University of Southern California Gloria Cheng Angela Wang 47. West Valley College Christian Kawaharada Austin Compian

47. West Valley College Jillian Trinh Elad Zohar Kengo Lake Eliot Park COLORADO 48. Colorado Mesa University Anna Janson Brandon Wong 49. Colorado School of Mines Joson Ralph 50. Colorado State University Elijah McQueen Jason D’Amour 51. University of Colorado, Boulder Ryan Flynn CONNECTICUT 52. Yale University Amelia Farinas Varsha Raghavan Odette Wang DELAWARE 53. University of Delaware Sarina Low GEORGIA 54. Georgia Institute of Technology Wallace Gray IOWA 55. Grinnell College Anshul Tambay Houfu Yan ILLINOIS 56. Knox College Michelle Dudley

57. North Universit Daniel Hu Nicholas

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66. Mass of Techn Daniel Gu Adela Ya Emily Cai

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MICHIGAN 68. Olivet College Dalton Miner 69. University of Michigan Maya Dhar Lisa Gudan Yoohyun (Eli) Song Jason Pi Erika Yasuda Katie Gu MINNESOTA

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MISSOURI 72. Washington University in St. Louis Samuel Kim Carolyn MacDonald NORTH COROLINA 73. Wake Forest University Jamie Van Horne NEW HAMPSHIRE 74. Dartmouth College Kevin Yang NEVADA 75. University of Nevada Melanie Wolverton

NEW YORK 76. American Musical and Dramatic Academy Nathan Mijares 77. Cornell University Kelly Xu Elise Cording Emily Hasser 78. Fordham University Matthew Gallo 79. Ithica College Shawn Tran 80. Manhattan School of Music Lilith Sarkar 81. New York University Keren Benzion Olivia Dorsey Hannah Goh Krupa Malawade Yasaswi Pisupati 82. Utica College Nicolette Conkin 83. Columbia University Hana Mizuta OHIO 84. Case Western Reserve University Justin Wen

87. University of Portland Sarah Varney PENNSYLVANIA 88. Carnegie Mellon University Sandy Pan Xinze (Cindy) Deng Rie Ohta 89. Drexel University Nao Sugiyama 90. Pennsylvania State University Ariel Sagie 91. University of Pennsylvania Megan Lloyd Celine Lee RHODE ISLAND 92. Brown University Aayush Kothari TENNESSEE 93. Lipscomb University Esther Lucas 94. Vanderbilt University Robert Blakes TEXAS 95. Southern Methodist University Chris Hoefflinger Nicole Aufricht

UTAH 96. University of Utah Devon Matsumoto WASHINGTON 97. Gonzaga University Nicholas Klein 98. Seattle Pacific University Caroline Jung 99. The Evergreen State College Sara Di Silvestro 100. University of Puget Sound Laurel Nelson Ise Yoshimoto Grace Eberhardt 101. University of Washington Jennifer Ewanich Koodrut Panesar Leanne Liu Jinho Kum Nathaniel Wipfler 102. Washington State University Glenn Smartt Kevin Saltzman Ju Hae Park 103. Western Washington University Sam Chandler Isabella Jones 104. Whitworth University Savannah Heath WASHINGTON D.C. 105. Howard University Erielle McCloud

UNCOMMITTED

U.S. NAVY

Emmy Starcevic Ugochi Anudokem Jessica Chen Annie Wang

Micah Guerrieri Conner Ligeti Hunter Ligeti

INTERNATIONAL

U.S. NATIONAL GUARD Mark Ponce

CANADA

OTHER

University of British Columbia Cameron Bunka University of Toronto, St. George Wayne George University of Waterloo Leon Witzman ENGLAND King’s College London Cameron Logie GERMANY University of Wiirzburg Lena Kunjan JAPAN

GAP YEAR David Hammer Alexandra Tadros Helen Bond Alandra Arciniega WORKING Eva Chiu Cristian Rodriguez Marc Godinez Noah Abrahams Omar Colima Ochoa UNSPECIFIED A’gust Toussaint Sushant Chaudhary Victor Gonzalez

Waseda University Masatoshi Tanemura

MILITARY ISRAELI DEFENSE FORCES Dorene Friedman Ari Berman Eli Berman U.S. AIR FORCE Xinyu Zhai

PAGE DESIGN BY DONNIE DENOME, ZAINAB ISLAM, NICOLE NOBRE AND SEERAT RANDHAWA BORDER DESIGN BY CRYSTAL CHEN AND JULIETTE LE SAINT

Senior Superlatives Best Dressed

Veriche Blackwell

Ari Berman

DeAngelo Blackwell

Azuki Umeda

Erielle McCloud

Aviv Aloni

Best Hair

Most Likely to Go Viral

Most All Nighters

Most Artistic

Jason D’Cruz

Christopher Reed

Cameron Logie Medini Rastogi

Daniel Lee Dominic Faria Eli Berman

Kevin Yang Amit Kohli Christopher Reed

Cutest Couple Jennifer Ewanich

Leon Witzman

Most Likely to Win an Academy Award

Lilith Sarkar

Cyrus Miremadi

Best Sneeze Cameron Bunka

Elise Cording

Carolyn MacDonald

Eliot Park

Best Smile

Laura Rose

Most Original

6

Kelly Xu

Amrita Venkatramen

Best Laugh

Class Parents

Erika Yasuda

Ari Berman

Money Makers

Class Clowns Aditya Sampath

Alyssa Hiraoka

Best Twins

Jennifer Ewanich

Megan Llyod

Most Likely to be President

Dylan Roldan

Most Likely to Get Married

PAGE DESIGN BY GLORIA CHENG, CAMERON LOGIE AND ADITYA SAMPATH PHOTOS BY CAMERON LOGIE AND ADITYA SAMPATH

Refelections

High school do-overs Seniors share advice on what they would do differently if they could go through high school again “When I was a freshman ... I was hesitant to join different clubs. It doesn’t matter if you like it or not, just try it for a little bit.”

“I think you should make use of the time you have in school. You never get lost time back… ”

Derek Yang

Alex Ostojic “Don’t procrastinate on the big things like talking to your parents and teachers and on the things that matter the most.”

-- Pokharel

Elijah McQueen & Prashid Pokharel

Silvia Delgado

“Never compare your success to others because we all have our own abilities.”

“I wish I could’ve interacted with my teachers more.”

Ramona Amely

Meet the Senior Epistaffers Top row from left: Aditya Sampath, Lily Adler, Alisha Parikh, Matthew Wu, Angela Wang, Donnie Denome, Cameron Logie Middle row from left: Gloria Cheng, Jeanna Totah, Aayush Singh, Nicole Nobre, Crystal Chen, Karla Agudelo Front row from left: Eva Chiu, Zainab Islam, Carla Gonzalez, Nathan Mijares, Yunqi Deng, Seerat Randhawa

7 PAGE DESIGN BY LILY ADLER, CARLA GONZALEZ AND ZAINAB ISLAM PHOTOS COURTESY OF KARLA AGUDELO, EVA CHIU, CARLA GONZALEZ, RACHEL HILDEBRAND, AND JEANNA TOTAH

The Journey of the Class of 2016

Jan. 2013: HHS campus goes into lockdown for Code Red

Aug. 2012: Class of 2016 attends HOP

April 2014: Students petition against the enforcement of the new dress code

Dec. 2013: Quad is refurbished; historical tree is cut down

Aug. 2015: Senior Sunset kicks off an amazing last year

Feb. 2015: Juniors win Battle of the Classes

And they graduated happily ever after...

8

PHOTO COURTESY OF SARA HANSEN, EDMOND KWONG AND NBC BAY AREA

BY NATHAN MIJARES AND AAYUSH SINGH

special feature

T EACHER

ST UDENT

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Alyssa Robins

SW IT CH

T hroughout the past couple of weeks, T he Epitaph organized a student-teacher role reversal . For one day, students became the teachers while the teachers became the students. T his is a compilation of their reflections on the experience.

Kelly Ronsheimer

Reina Marie Reyes, Sophomore When I read Mr. Giglio’s email inviting teachers to shadow students, I immediately responded with a resounding electronic “Yes!” I was very excited to see how much Homestead had changed since I was a student there from 1993-1994. I wanted to better understand my students, better understand Reina. She was my chosen form and I would be her shadow.

Our day was an adventure beginning with sharing French projects, followed by the purchase of a cookie after waiting in the long line snaking into the cafeteria.

Next, we trudged up the stairs of the C building to Ms. Suth’s World Literature class in which we read a selection entitled “Dead Men’s Path” in preparation for a common assessment. I read, began to fill out my graphic organizer and even looked up a word to make sure I had it right.

Humbling for a former English teacher to pick up a dictionary in the front of the class. I was already stressing about tone and symbolism as Reina discussed the meaning behind what we read.

Kelly Ronsheimer, French Teacher

She really knew her stuff. I was impressed.

Next, we hurry through the halls all the way to the upper B building for World History with Ms. Jacobs. WWII, notes and lots of cool pictures. I have a hard time keeping up. Next, lunch. I couldn’t believe how hungry I was. We walked to Nick the Greek.

So many cars. So fast. No time to waste.

While we eat, I ask them questions about what makes them stressed or if they feel rushed like I did. Finally I asked, “What can we as your teachers do to help alleviate or lower your stress level at school?” One of my students in French 4 honors who happened to meet us at the restaurant answered with “Nothing. The stress comes from within.”

This is the heart of why I wanted to shadow Reina; I wanted to see what it was really like. As a teacher, I have stress, but I wondered how it might differ from that of a student. Truly, I’m just an older version of Reina, doing my best to make the most of a busy but great life.

After lunch, Chemistry with

Mr. Porticos. I have no idea how to even answer one question.

Next, String Ensemble with Mr. Burn. Reina perks up on the walk over. I can tell it’s her favorite class. Watching her play the bass is truly amazing.

Today her hands have shown a French project, busily scribbled notes and annotated a story, danced over a keyboard, stuffed her mouth with feta-topped fries and now they held a bow and plucked with perfection on the bass she held tight. Her favorite moment of the day.

Finally, math. Geometry with Mr. Burroughs. I was in a group next to Reina – so thankful for group work. My group totally helped me understand what was going on and when I knew one question, I felt like I’d had a huge success.

Thank you for this experience.

My teaching is forever changed by the lessons Reina has taught me.

When I arrived home, I collapsed with fatigue. Props Reina. I don’t know how you do it. How any of you do it – your ability to switch from subject to teacher to friend to phone to instrument to sport to sleep… it’s truly incredible.

7

“If students are enthusiastic, the class is more fun and productive, and that enthusiasm takes some of the pressure off of the Mme. Ronsheimer is a hard act to follow! Her classes are fast-paced, filled with energy, and remarkably instructive.

Because of this, I began the day curious both about what teaching was really like, and if I could rise to the challenge.

Luckily, I didn’t have to worry; both Mme. Ronsheimer and her students were very supportive and encouraging throughout the whole experience.

It quickly became clear to me that teaching is very much like an

oral presentation: material to be covered, a set time in which to cover that material, and a surprisingly discerning audience (students know just how professional you are or aren’t!).

Getting to step into Mme. Ronsheimer’s shoes for two class periods was an outstanding opportunity to learn what its like on the flip side of being a student at Homestead.

Something I learned very quickly was that organization is key. Running a class, especially one as complicated as Mme. Ronsheimer’s French 2, is a slightly frantic exercise in advanced multitasking. There’s a lot to do in 90 minutes!

I quickly understood the value of keeping the “housekeeping” invisible—taking attendance and handing out quizzes and worksheets behind the scenes, so that students never have to wait around with nothing to do.

While I was teaching, I paid attention to what I could do as a student to help classes run even better. What I found was that enthusiasm is key! If students are enthusiastic, the class is more fun and more productive, and that enthusiasm takes some of the pressure off of the teacher.

Shadowing Mme. Ronsheimer has changed the way I approach classes, and I have a greater appreciation for how hard teachers work to make classes as interesting as they are informative.

Mme. Ronsheimer sometimes talks about how she goes over a class in her head after it’s over, wondering how it went and what she could have improved. It was something of an a-ha moment to realize, even days later, that I was doing the exact same thing!

“Your ability to switch from subject to teacher to friend to phone to instrument to sport to sleep… it’s truly incredible.”

- Kelly Ronsheimer

PAGE DESIGN BY MILA SVIDERSKAYA , KIRA GARLICK AND DESMOND KAMAS PHOTOS BY MILA SVIDERSKAYA PHOTO COURTESY OF KELLY RONSHEIMER

8

special feature

Wednesday, May 25, 2016 “It was hard for me to turn off my teacher brain.”

-Zenas Lee

Steve Regala, Junior

Zenas Lee, Biology Teacher

Zenas Lee and Steve Regala Words from a biology teacher

April 28 was my first day as an American high school student. I attended middle school and high school in South Korea, so I never experienced high school in America through the eyes of a student.

My first period was AmStud, where I got to see my first DIVE presentation. The topic was minority experiences in America.

It made me really happy to see that our students were engaging in difficult issues that affect society, especially since I sometimes feel that as a science teacher, I don’t get the chance to have students dig deep into important issues like structural racism.

It was hard for me to turn off my teacher brain; I kept thinking about ways that the students could be pushed in their thinking. But I thought back to my high school years and reminded myself that my consciousness and understanding of social issues at that time was less mature than these students’ were.

Third period was Pre-Calc Honors. I had spent quite a bit of

time studying the night before for our quiz on transcendental functions, as I hadn’t really done this kind of math since high school.

Math class was the one that really took me back to high school.

It was a lot of trying to follow what the teacher was saying and trying not to look stupid.

Even though the teacher told us it was okay for us to be wrong, I couldn’t get rid of the nervous feeling that I might be called on and would not know the answer.

Fifth period was Spanish 4 Honors. I already knew that this would be the hardest class because I took only a year of Spanish, and the class was conducted solely in Spanish. We had a quiz on the book El Alquimista, and I’m pretty sure I failed it. (I read SparkNotes the night before.)

Although I wasn’t actually getting a grade in that class, I asked some classmates about how much this quiz was worth. I found out that they didn’t really know how much this quiz would affect their grade. That was interesting to

me because as teachers, we want students to understand how their grade is determined so that they know how to improve.

One day is not enough to fully understand the experience of being a Homestead student, but it was still interesting to see Homestead from a different perspective.

It reminded me a lot of my high school experience, even though it is 10 years, a large ocean, and a culture apart.

I still had to worry about studying, was nervous about being called on in class, used SparkNotes, and cared about my grades. It was helpful to be reminded how my students may feel in my classes.

But my day as a student also confirmed for me that high school is still the beginning of one’s journey and that there is a lot of life ahead, so I hope students reading this will worry less and embrace this fleeting moment.

Matthew Guevara What were your expectations going into the day?

I expected a lot of walking, so I had my hiking shoes on and a backpack full of stuff… I had to lug that around. I expected, since it was a Monday, really short periods and a lot of walking.

What were classes like?

Spanish was first period (with) Mr. Arévalo, he threw me right into the class. I don’t really speak at all, and I was expected to basically have conversational Spanish with people… that was pretty exciting.

Classes were super fun. I realized the students sit a lot except Spanish class, you kinda move around a lot to talk to people.

Most of the time we were at a desk to work. I can’t sit at a desk for long periods of time, I didn’t really expect that.

Was the experience different from what you remember high school was like?

I went to an all-boy’s catholic high school, so that’s different. It’s been a long time since I’ve been a student switching classes.

in my classroom. It’s good to see other ways to teach concepts from my professional point of view.

What was the biggest surprise or takeaway?

I realized the students do a lot of sitting, and that kinda invites them to tune out a little bit.

I need to get my students more active for things.

Were you surprised by how some teachers taught their class?

“It was a good experience for me... I do math all day but following Karen around, I realized she has to switch gears.”

Different teachers have different teaching styles. It’s good for me because I actually never get to see people teach, I’m always just

Karen Rivera I was not expecting to teach AVID on Friday at all. I walked into the room and Mr. Guevara just kind of said, “Hey, you’re the teacher today.”

I was caught by surprise and I was really nervous. I’ve spent every day of high school so far with these students but I was still scared. I expected the class to give me a hard time, but they did not. They were quiet and listening, although some people were not.

It was hard for me to scold someone or take charge of the situation because these people are my classmates and I did not want to seem like I thought I was

higher than them.

Overall, I had a lot of funmany people told me I would be a great teacher, which is nice since that’s what I want to do.

The life of a student differs, though it’s almost the same as a teacher. Both have a responsibility to fulfill.

Students should have homework done and pay attention in class while teachers should have plans for the year and on top of that they have to grade everything and have attendance submitted on time.

I really enjoyed teaching AVID and hope I get to do it again.

Matthew Guevara, Algebra 2 and AV ID teacher

Karen Rivera, Sophomore PAGE DESIGN BY KIRA GARLICK AND DESMOND KAMAS PHOTOS COURTESY BY STEVE REGALA AND KIRA GARLICK

special feature

Nicole Delano Student turned math analysis teacher Originally, the idea of teaching a class seemed intriguing. It didn’t stress me out much until the weekend before I was to present an entirely new lesson.

On Friday, Mr. Auten went over the slides with Anthony Metrulas and me. It seemed simple until Sunday, the day before, when I tried to reteach the lesson to myself. I found myself feeling anxious the day of and as a result, I found myself hesitating while teaching.

Going up in front of the class

to present wasn’t the main issue, but when I attempted to interact with the students, no one wanted to raise their hand and I had not accounted for that.

Mr. Auten likes to stamp homework so we know which ones to turn in on a certain day. As the bell rang for second period and everyone started to rush out of their seats, I frantically misstamped people’s homework.

This experience has really opened my eyes as to how hard it must be to teach a

math class, especially early in the morning. It encourages me to raise my hand more and to participate. To add on, teaching the lesson helped me understand the concept, and made me enjoy the class more.

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

9

“T his experience has really opened my eyes as to how hard it must be to teach a math class, especially early in the morning.”

Nicole Delano, Junior

Gary Auten What surprised you most about the day?

Jack Ambach, Junior

Gary Auten, Math Teacher

There was a larger social aspect to Jack’s day then I thought there would be. I will have conversations with teachers during the day, but most of it is work related and it comes in pieces. I also spend a fair amount of time in my room preparing for and teaching classes. It felt like Jack and I were constantly moving and/or engaged in some sort of conversation. I’m not saying it should be any different; it is just that the dynamic of a student’s life is not as content/academically centered as I had anticipated or as focused as a teacher’s day.

What were your expectations going into the day?

I thought it would be difficult for me to sit down during classes. I like to keep moving or stand. I was afraid I would be bored and stiff. I also thought that the day would be mostly focused on academics.

What surprised you most about the day?

The biggest surprise was the high level of engagement between the students and the teachers and the quality of the content that Jack received during the day. It was fun to learn about all of the different subjects. I didn’t expect to learn much or to be as intellectually stimulated by the discussions as I was. It was fun.

How did the day differ from your expectations?

We moved around quite a bit during classes. It usually took us about 4 minutes to get from class to class, absolutely no time to waste. We were more active physically than I had anticipated and all of the classes were stimulating in some way. Seeing all of the students and teachers in different environments made me realize the level of excellence of the staff and the commitment of the students toward their own success. I was surprised by the degree to which socializing was a part of the day. In most classes, there were periods for short exchanges and discussion. The day wasn’t all about academics.

What did you think of your student’s schedule? What were the classes like?

The schedule was varied and relatively difficult but diverse. Jack has six classes, all of them, including my Math Analysis class, with a varying level of rigor. The content of the classes was also varied. I learned about optics in physics, read National Geographic clips in Spanish, watched Jack struggle with his ceramic Tiki project in ceramics, got Scott Wilson’s predictions for Andrew Jackson as a topic for the AP US History test, and listened to some good discussion in Ed Riley’s class about human interaction. Almost made me want to be a student again :).

Were you surprised at the way some teachers taught classes?

Every teacher handled their classes differently but professionally. Some seemed more relaxed about how students completed their work. Every teacher was very prepared and I was able to learn something for my own teaching practice from each lesson.

What was homework and studying like?

Let’s just say that I am glad I am a teacher. It is not a matter of workload; I would prefer to have more control over my environment. I guess this is a privilege that I have earned.

PAGE DESIGN BY DESMOND KAMAS AND JAMES ZHUANG PHOTOS BY JACK AMBACH AND NICOLE DELANO

10

sports

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Player of the month

Junior swimmer Caitlyn Koo succeeds in CCS

By Gabriella Mrozowski Even though the spring season is coming to a close, junior Caitlyn Koo continues her spectacular performance on the swim team in CCS. “It’s fun to know that I can contribute to the team in a significant way [at CCS] by having the times,” Koo said. “It’s more exciting to me when my teammates get CCS cuts because I know they worked really hard for it too.”

In the water since the age of two, Koo notes that swimming became more enjoyable when she became decent enough to “float across the pool.”

This same passion has led the swimmer to participate in competitive swimming for over ten years now, she said.

Currently, she holds a personal record time of 24.30 seconds in the 50-yard freestyle and 57.06

seconds in 100-fly.

Koo recognizes that swimming is a heavily mental sport. She credits her accomplishments and her ability to overcome roadblocks to her parents, teammates and coaches. “[They] had a key role in making sure that I continue swimming because even though I was struggling, deep down, swimming was something I really liked to do,” she said. “It teaches me more about myself, how to be persistent and also to be a hard worker.”

She also credits swimming for teaching her that success can’t be achieved without hard work.

She has achieved great success which can be seen through her great balance of school work, high school team and club. Timemanagement is a skill that Koo needed to master from a young

HHS at CCS

Tennis

Volleyball

Boys tennis concluded the regular season and qualified for CCS with a 15-4 overall record and a 9-3 league record.

They came into CCS as the 6th seed. After a first round bye, they were defeated by Menlo Atherton in the second round of CCS 5-2.

Adit Kishen, who qualified for CCS singles by placing third at SCVAL, lost in the quarter finals with scores of 4-6, 6-3, and 3-6.

Boys varsity volleyball lost in a hard fought 3-0 sweep against top-seeded Saint Francis High School on May 12, closely contesting Saint Fran-

By Karshin Gupta

age as swim is a year-round sport.

Her strategy consists of creating a constant schedule.

“As long as I stick to that schedule, it’s very simple. I swim in the morning, then I go to school, then I go straight to practice again,” Koo said.

In addition to high school team practices, Koo is an active member of the Santa Clara Swim Club, where she also attends practices daily. The past three years with Koo’s club have taught her the definition of working hard, something she recognizes in other aspects of her life.

Whether it be in a high school or Nationals swimming pool, Koo puts her all into whatever work she has to do. It’s the general experience of swimming that keeps her going.

“I can’t imagine my life without swimming,” Koo said.

By Michael Huang

cis in losing only by two points in the last two sets.

The team qualified for CCS because of their overall record of 18-16, placing 5th in the division one league. The Mustangs went on to sweep their first round opponent, Leland High School, but lost in the second round.

Softball

By Aayush Singh

After a hard-fought and undefeated season, varsity Softball endured defeats in very close games against Los Altos and Los Gatos; 2-3 and 3-4 respectively, accord-

Track and Field

By Noor Baig

Of the six CCS qualifiers, only juniors Lindsay Allen, Miranda Zinola and sophomore Elena Kamas qualified for the final round next week. Allen will compete in the 3200m and 1600m and Kamas will compete in the 1600m and 800m and Zinola will compete in discus.

Badminton

By Noor Baig

The varsity badminton team finished the regular season with an 8-4 record this while JV had a 5-7 record.

Junior Primo Mu tied for 9th place and senior Shangyu Hsu tied for 17th place at SCVAL championships on May 5 to May 7 at Wilcox. Junior Gokul Kalyanasundaram took the second place spot and was the only HHS player to advance to CCS. He placed first in CCS for the second year in a row.

The team will not be moving to the upper league of SCVAL this year, as was the hope of coach Gumaro Diaz, but they will continue to work toward their goal in the 2017 season, Kalyanasundaram said.

Swimming

By Michael Huang

Diving

Gymnastics

By Kira Garlick

Boys varsity diving had a strong showing showing at CCS with senior divers Dalton Miner finishing 9th place, followed by David Truong in 20th, Bryce Leone in 22nd and Adrian Nakic in 27th. Varsity girls placed 28th and 37th with sophomore divers Anna Dupin

ing to hhsathletics.com.

The team qualified for CCS with a league record of 10-2 and an overall record of 19-6, placing second in the De Anza League.

By Erin Liu

and Julia Clark. The diving team placed 6 divers in CCS, being one of the schools with the most competitors. Both the senior boy’s team and sophomore duo Dupin and Clark had a great showing at League Championships.

In its first year as an official gymnastics team, the Mustang gymnasts have been competing on a hectic schedule and are flying to competitions. With one of the girls injured in the small team, the girls continue to shine at several meets. At the Cupertino meet on Tues. Apr. 5, seniors

Emily Hasser and Amelia Farinas placed 7th and 9th out of 36 competitors, respectively.

On Mon. May 2nd, the girls took 3rd place out of 6 teams at the meet hosted by Twisters Gym in Sunnyvale.

Just recently at the South League Finals hosted by Gilroy High School, HHS took 5th place out of 8 teams, scoring a total of 143.7 points.

Homestead swimming had a strong showing at CCS. Notably, the boys swims team had a top 16 finish.

Senior Houfu Yan qualified for State Championships for 100 backstroke, according to hhsathletics.com.

Also, Yan, junior Corbin Jee, sophomore Zach Birrer and senior Davis Horeff set a school record in the 200 yard Medley Relay, finishing at 1:38.09, according to hhsathletics.com. They placed 9th overall and narrowly missed State qualifications.

The girls swim team also placed well, finishing at 18th in CCS. Player of the month, junior Caitlyn Koo, moved on and qualified for the state meet for her event 50 yard freestyle, according to CCS. The swim team looks forward to continuing their CCS success at the State Championship later this month.

PAGE DESIGN BY LINDSAY GODDARD AND KARSHIN GUPTA PHOTOS BY LINDSAY GODDARD, AAYUSH SINGH, KIRA GARLICK, SEERAT RANDHAWA AND MICHAEL HUANG

sports

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

A ‘Roaracle’ at Homestead Great season, A bigger crowd can lead to more fun at HHS

By Daniel Moscovitch

HHS CAN BE the high school equivalent to the home of the Golden State Warriors Oracle Arena - the home of the fascinating Golden State Warriors - is also known as ‘Roaracle.’ The name is extremely fitting, as fans attending games can hear and enjoy the loud roars of the loving crowd.

The Warriors enjoyed an energetic home court throughout their record-breaking historical season, losing only two games at home.

Many of the Golden State players credit the Warriors’ success to their loyal fanbase and consistent game-time audience.

HHS prides itself in its sports programs. It is a school that gets great attendance at football games, but that is about it.

Other sports on campus are left out by students. Even the most exciting basketball games lack loud screams or cheers. Even the greatest volleyball games do not hold reasonable crowds.

The sports programs in this school are so strong and exciting, but no strong and exciting environment is present.

Basketball fans across the world love watching Stephen Curry weave through defenses.

They love sitting on the edge of their seats as Klay Thompson pulls up for a three-point shot.

Fans love reading the stat sheets as Draymond Green continues to pour triple-doubles.

Those are only some of the reasons why people love watching the Warriors play so much.

People go to watch games for the atmosphere.

There is nothing better, nothing more fun, relaxing and entertaining than standing up on your feet and cheering your lungs out. Nothing beats hugging and high-fiving random strangers, who love the game just as much as you do, after the league MVP hits a ridiculous three.

So no, HHS does not have the world champions playing in a 20,000-person crowd. It does not have millions of dollars to spend on free shirts, nor does it have the best players from across the world playing in one arena.

But it does have DeAngelo Blackwell rising for the dunk.

It does have Ugochi Anudokem reaching for her 35th rebound in one game. It does have Eli Berman shooting goals at an incredible rate. It does have Kyle Schryver going for the kill. It does have Adit Kishen serving up aces.

This school is full of exciting athletes competing in exciting games. A huge reason for Golden State’s success is its loving crowd, which boosts financial value and in turn the experience the time of their lives during every game.

Why not create such an atmosphere at HHS? There are no disadvantages in attending games - it is cheap, captivating, fun and supports campus sports.

bittersweet ending Boys golf qualifies for leagues but fails to make CCS

By James Zhuang

SENIOR JOSON RALPH practices golf on the field After breaking a 13-year streak of failing to qualify for leagues, the boys varsity golf team finished the season on a somewhat sour note. Unlike in previous years, none of the golfers qualified for CCS. The team as a whole did relatively well, placing fourth at leagues with a team score of 408. Overtaking third place Los Altos High School would have allowed the Mustangs to qualify for the next round.

Individually, the players felt disappointed in their performance.

“Each player seemed to have a weakness that day, whether it was their putting,

5/2-5

Varsity 408, 4th

SCVAL

4/21 4/27

JV 5-2 L

Boys: 4/29 5/14

Varsity JV 4th place 1st place 16th place

SCVAL CCS

Girls: 4/28 5/14

JV Varsity 7th place 4th place 18th place

SCVAL CCS

4/27 4/29 5/4 5/10 5/12

vs Gunn vs Menlo Atherton

4/26 4/28

JV 1-2 W 2-1 W 2-1 L

5/5

1st - Ananya Verma 2nd - Emily Hasser Team 3rd overall

JV 28-8 W 1-10 W 12-0 W 8-9 W

@ Saratoga vs Wilcox vs Los Altos @ Milpitas vs Saratoga vs Los Gatos vs Los Altos

Varsity 19-11 W 14-16 W

JV 9-6 W 6-9 W

@ Los Gatos vs FHS

Baseball

vs LHS @ Los Altos vs MVHS vs Leland @ St. Francis

4/22 4/23 4/27 4/29 4/30 5/4 5/6 5/11

Gymnastics

Track and Field Time 2:20:17 - 800m CCS 5:04:04 - 1600m Lindsay Allen 5:10:65 - 1600m 11:21:96 - 3200m Miranda Zinola 113-05 - Discus

Varsity 3-2 L 3-2 L 3-0 L 3-0 W 3-0 L

Varsity 4-0 W 5-4 W 3-2 L 9-1 W 5-6 W 3-2 L 5-4 W

Badminton

Boys Volleyball

Swimming

Overall 5/21 Elena Kamas

4/25 4/27 4/29 5/4 5/6 5/11 5/21

Boys Tennis Varsity 5-2 W 5-2 L

their irons or shots off the tee,” junior Julius Buonanno said.

Another contributing factor to the team’s difficulties at leagues was the fact that they had not played at the course, located in Santa Teresa, for over a year.

Senior Joson Ralph, who had previously qualified for CCS three years in a row, reflected that there were still some positives in their overall performance during the season.

“We played our hearts out the whole season, and making it to leagues as a team was a huge accomplishment,” Ralph said.

“We may have not played our best, but there are many positive things to take away from this season.”

Softball

scoreboard Boys Golf

11

Varsity 6-4 L 12-1 L 5-2 L 9-10 L 5-0 W 5-3 W 1-6 W 7-0 W

JV @ CHS @ Westmont @ Los Altos vs Los Altos @ FHS SCVAL vs CHS SCVAL @ CHS

SCVAL @ Milpitas

Diving Boys:

Dalton Miner - 9th David Truong - 20th Bryce Leone - 22nd Adrian Nakic - 27th

CCS

Girls:

Anna Dupin - 28th Julia Clark - 37th

CCS

@ Twisters Gym

PAGE DESIGN BY INDIRA COCKERILL AND DESMOND KAMAS PHOTOS BY NOOR BAIG, KIRA GARLICK, KARSHIN GUPTA, MICHAEL HUANG AND AAYUSH SINGH PHOTOS COURTESY OF BRYCE EDWARDS, LINDA KAMAS, ELLA LEWIS AND JOSON RALPH

20

the last word

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

HERE COMES THE SUN!

By Katie Snell

The sun is shining and you are in bed watching Netflix. Sound familiar? Here are some suggestions for different ways to spend your limited sunny days. All within close to an hour radius from Homestead, these locations are great for exploring and getting out of the house.

Big Basin: The Big Basin redwood forest is an incredible place to appreciate nature. The breathtaking redwood trees and refreshing atmosphere of the Santa Cruz area create a relaxing and enjoyable environment for those in Big Basin.

Jelly Belly Factory: Satisfy that sweet tooth with a trip to the Jelly Belly Factory in Fairfield, California. The entertaining tour of the factory gives you insight on the delicious candy and its history, all while you indulge in some jelly beans.

Winchester Mystery House: Check out this tourist attraction that is located nearby! Supposedly haunted by spirits, Sarah Winchester added strange extensions to the Victorian-style house until her death in 1922.

Mystery Spot: The Mystery Spot is a Santa Cruz classic if you’re in the area. The California Historical Landmark has perplexed visitors since 1940. Take a tour of the wacky structure with crooked doors and floors that has puzzled so many before.

Coyote Creek Lake:

Coyote Lake in Harvey Bear Ranch Park is a gem to find and explore in Gilroy. The large lake offers fishing, boating and other water sports, while the area surrounding the lake has campsites and hiking trails.

San Francisco Farmers’ Market: Take a drive down to the San Francisco Ferry Building and enjoy buying some fresh, local food items.

Grab a bite to eat or ingredients for dinner and take a walk along the water in SF.

Stanford University Coffee Shop Jazz: A coffee shop on Stanford University’s campus hosts jazz jam sessions on most Monday nights. Grab a cup of coffee and enjoy the music!

Nearby Sporting Events: The Bay Area houses some great sports teams, such as the San Francisco Giants, San Jose Earthquakes and more! Any of these make for a great day. Find cheap tickets online and enjoy a game!

Half Moon Bay: If you want to go on a beach trip, take a drive to Half Moon Bay. It’s a fun location that provides great beaches and places to eat. If you’re feeling extra adventurous try to find some tide pools!

Twin Peaks, SF: Possibly one of the most wellknown San Francisco lookout points, Twin Peaks has one of the best views of the city if you’re willing to take a short hike.

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