The Epitaph, Issue 6, 2015-16

the

epitaph

HOMESTEAD HIGH SCHOOL

VOL. 54

ISSUE 6

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 2016

21370 HOMESTEAD RD. CUPERTINO, CALIF.

Court rules for release of student info

Parents fight to ensure equal education opportunities for disabled students

By Gabriella Mrozowski and Elinda Xiao California courts have ruled to allow the release of student information, such as medical information and Social Security numbers, to two parent associations as of Feb. 2016.

The new law affects all students who have entered into the public school system since Jan. 1, 2008, according to USA Today’s website.

All records of these students will be accessible and reviewed by members of the California Concerned Parent Association (CCPA) and the Morgan Hill Concerned Parent Association (MHCPA) with a designated master, according to the California Department of Education.

“The judge has set up very tight parameters about who will be viewing these and how they will be handled,” Jane Floethe-Ford, director of education services at Parents Helping Parents (PHP), said. PHP is a non-profit organization that provides help to families for children of all ages with disabilities in San Jose and the South Bay. The MHCPA and the CCPA sued the California Department of Education (CDE) for the right to

access student information in order to make sure that disabled students were getting the help they needed in April 2012.

After three years of litigation in U.S. District Court Judge Kimberly Mueller ruled in favor of the MHCPA and CCPA, allowing them to view these records. The MHCPA and the CCPA are the only organizations outside of the C D E that are allowed to view this information.

The CCPA claims the CDE fought for students’ privacy rights to save money from funding the Individualized Education Program (IEP), a specialized course designed for students on an individual basis. IEPs are often chosen to aid children in special education.

Implementation of IEP costs more than less personalized alternatives, and most students lose their access to an IEP after first grade, according to the CCPA website.

According to the case summary,

provided by the United States District Court, “Plaintiffs allege the CDE has violated the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, IDEA, among other

related laws by failing to monitor, investigate, provide services to, and enforce the rights of children with disabilities consistent with its obligations under the law.”

The CDE opposed the release of student information, claiming it is a breach of student privacy.

“We have fought vigorously to protect students’ privacy rights and will continue that fight,” State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson said in an online press release from Feb. 17.

Students under the age of 18 must defer to their parents on whether or not they would like their information to be released. In order to keep their student’s information private, parents or guardians can sign a form and submit it to the CDE. “If [parents] feel like there is no way that they want their information out there, then they can make the choice that they would like to opt out,” Floethe-Ford said.

An objection form can be found

Mandatory tutorial gets off to a rocky start The tutorial check-in system introduced last year to a group of volunteer teachers yielded no substantive results, librarian Amity Bateman said.

The tutorial system was originally designed to aid teacher communication in helping struggling students get to classes in which they struggle, Principal Greg Giglio said.

Giglio referenced the tutorial check-in system that Fremont High School currently uses to attest to the potential of full implementation of the software across campus. The system at Fremont currently works successfully in helping students, Giglio said, but unfortunately has not come to fruition at Homestead yet.

“I think we’re still in the process of working out some of the kinks… because we were having some overall network

Sections:

issues,” Giglio said. “I think we’re at a point where we’re continuing to add people to it.”

Although the administration hoped full implementation of the ID scanning system would be in place by this semester, the software has still not advanced past initial testing stages, Giglio said.

Giglio said that administration and staff are still testing if the system works on a smaller scale before rolling it out to the whole school.

No clear timetable for complete implementation has been set, though Giglio said he unofficially aims for the system to take full effect by next fall.

“The idea is to keep moving up until we can test the full capacity of it so that the hope would be, by the beginning of next year, we will be up and running with this,” Giglio said.

Bateman said that because there have been technological problems with a handful of

News Opinion

2–3 4–6

Transparent Elections

“Yes, the winners are announced... but by what margins did they win?”

teachers using the software, administration wants to make sure the software and internet infrastructure are strong enough to handle widespread use within the entire school.

“There have definitely been some tech glitches along the way,” Bateman said, “and that, I think, has gotten in the way of a better roll-out to test whether this is a useful tool or not.”

Bateman said the tutorial system has not been “terribly useful” since it is still in its trial phase, and would be effective only when the whole school implements it.

However, she said the system holds promise in multiple functions in the future, such as reserving computers in the library.

“I think everybody’s goal was to do it a little bit faster, hopefully it will happen eventually,” Bateman said. “I envision it being more useful in the future than it currently is.”

Lifestyles Spread

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Want to learn more? Scan both codes for more information about the case!

INSIDE:

New tutorial system has an uncertain future

By Michael Huang

on the CDE and the HHS website.

Parents, guardians or former students over the age of 18 can submit the form by mailing a printed copy to the CDE. However, the objection form is not an “opt-out,” as there is no actual way for a student or parent to opt out of sharing their information.

“I always want [the parents] to have all the information so you can make a strong, informed decision because no one is going to be sitting next to your child or you in the years to come,” Floethe-Ford said. “So you have to be the one to say ‘I knew what I was doing and this is what I did.’”

Letters or objection forms should be mailed to the Honorable Kimberly J. Mueller c/o Clerk of the Court, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, 501 I Street, Room 4-200, Sacramento, CA 95814.

Entertainment Sports

Pg. 4

Suicide Awareness “Having good mental health can mean the difference between life and death.”

Pg. 7

Tennis Profile “Our best chance to go deep in CCS is this year.”

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Last Word

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PAGE DESIGN BY RON HASSON AND DANIEL MOSCOVITCH PHOTOS BY KARSHIN GUPTA, DANIEL MOSCOVITCH AND JEANNA TOTAH ILLUSTRATIONS BY MILA SVIDERSKAYA AND ELINDA XIAO

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news

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Combating racial prejudice

Horseshoe to be redone

Clubs hold first Anti-Racism day to bring awareness to racism

By Lily Adler

Renovating pipes to cause campus inaccessability

STUDENTS DEFINE WHAT racism means to them by signing a poster in the quad during lunch The Homestead EL program and clubs Model United Nations (UN), Fwd: love, DesignIt and Life in Focus joined together to celebrate the United Nations Anti-Racism Day, on March 21.

March 21 become the International Day for Elimination of Racial Discrimination, as proclaimed by the UN General Assembly, according to the United Nations website.

As for the event, it is the first time the day has been recognized as an on-campus event and hopes to be celebrated in the future and be recognized as an annual event.

In regard to student involvement and making the day more recognized, the event was created in an effort to teach students of the issue of racism in today’s society, senior and DesignIt club member Odette Wang said. “...We wanted to mobilize our entire student body and staff, and even reached out to the other four FUHSD schools,” Wang said.

During brunch and lunch, the clubs hosted a series of activities to promote the ending of racism across the nation and to notify students of the seriousness of racism.

During brunch, the club

members of Fwd: love and the English Language Department handed out free green bracelets with the quote “Racism ends with me” on them to students to raise awareness of the event and the day’s significance.

A poster was also put out for students to sign that detailed what racism means to them and how it could be prevented.

The festivities continued on during lunch as Life in Focus held a photobooth for students to take pictures with anti-racism quotes as props.

“So from today, I hope that the students at Homestead took a little time to reflect and hopefully be more aware of racism in their

By Rachel Hildebrand Construction aimed at improving campus infrastructure has been scheduled to begin over spring break, principle Greg Giglio said.

The horseshoe is scheduled to be trenched so pipes underneath can be accessed over spring break to begin the process of connecting utilities pipes laid last summer, then filled before students return, Giglio said.

Parts of campus will also be periodically fenced off during the remainder of the school year to allow construction access to the underground pipes, which Giglio said will have a minimal impact on student traffic.

The biggest renovations will occur over the summer when the old utilities system is shut off so the new system can be connected.

Giglio said this will cut off water and air conditioning to all parts of campus aside from the cafeteria and athletic buildings, which are on different systems.

Giglio said many parts of campus, including the staff parking lot, will likely be inaccessible for a large portion of the summer while the renovations take place.

“The [construction scheduling] is a mad dash to get ready for [HOP],” Giglio said.

STUDENTS MICHELLE DUDLEY, Odette Wang, Tej Gohkale, Maya Dhar and Koodrut Panesar pose with props used for the photobooth lives and around them so that they can take action to prevent racism,” Model UN club member senior Koodrut Panesar said.

Panesar said she was glad to see a large amount of people wearing the anti-racism wristbands that they offered to students around campus, as well as seeing students sign the poster at lunch.

For it being the first event concerning racism on campus, students said they found it both entertaining and influential.

SENIOR JASON D’CRUZ passes out anti-racism bracelets during brunch to students around the quad

However, considering the number of activities that allowed students to be involved, the turnout of students who were interested was less than expected.

Wang said she thought the event turned out well, but hoped for more student turnout in the future and at other schools in the district. “...This is the first time we’ve ever tried anything like this, and there are definitely aspects of the day that I enjoyed like the speaker and wristbands,” Wang said.

Delrisha Wright, an African American foster care youth worker, also came to talk about racism that evening in the Auditorium. During her presentation, Wright discussed microaggressions and racism in everyday life.

“Racism isn’t a centralized issue that focuses on one or two groups. Racism, and its elimination, involves everyone.” Wang said.

A green light to green paint

Sunnyvale mayor announces future plans for biker and pedestrian safety

By Karima Ghimire and Nicole Nobre Sunnyvale Mayor Glenn Hendricks spoke at the March 16 PTSA meeting about bike and pedestrian safety.

In his speech, Hendricks touched on his experience biking to Homestead, the school’s traffic situation and possible measures to improve student safety.

Sophomore Jeff Wortman contacted Hendricks and other members of the Sunnyvale city council last Oct., asking them to bike to HHS on a school morning in order to experience the traffic situation firsthand, Hendricks said.

“Some of the major safety hazards that I noticed [was]… the lack of bike lanes,” Hendricks said. “The other major safety things I saw were both cars not following the rules of the road and bicyclists not following the rules of the road.”

Hendricks said drivers drove too fast and did not pay attention to their actions while bicyclists crossed red lights. Bicyclists, meanwhile, did not stay within bike lanes and had a lack of reflective gear.

“I get why teenagers aren’t gonna want to wear [reflective jackets],” Hendricks said, “but I really think if kids wore more lights… as a driver, I’m going to see that more”.

For parents driving their children to school, Hendricks said he suggests slowing down, leaving early and paying special attention during pickup and drop off times.

“If a parent is driving their kid to school, it doesn’t take a whole lot to figure out ‘well that’s when everybody else is going to school, that’s when everybody else is gonna be on the road,’” Hendricks said. “Parents just have to be more aware, slow down and be more observant.”

SUNNYVALE MAYOR GLEN Hendricks spoke to members of the school community within the cafeteria regarding plans to promote pedestrian safety Hendricks also discussed measures brought up by citizens to prevent bicycle accidents with cars. After a student was hit by a car on Fremont Ave., the city received many emails suggesting green paint be added to bike lanes, Hendricks said.

Prior to the meeting, 21year resident Steve Norton sent an email to the city council of Sunnyvale, concerning the lack of bike safety.

“Our kids are being hit every week and the City Council and City Traffic Planners do nothing

to improve safety now!”

Norton said in the email.

Norton further explained how his son had been hit by a car while biking multiple times in the past four years.

Cont. on page 3

PAGE DESIGN BY ADITYA SAMPATH AND KATIE SNELL PHOTOS BY NICOLE NOBRE AND LILY ADLER

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Wednesday, March 30, 2016

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PTSA meeting

Norton said he believes many of the statistics dealing with car and bike collisions are inaccurate due to a profuse number being unreported, and a majority of these incidents occur between the streets of Homestead Rd. and Fremont Ave. “I would encourage you, if your children have any kind of collision,” Hendricks said, “stop… call 911… without any data about this, we can’t really do anything.”

Norton said he believes adding green paint would not necessarily end of all these conflicts, although it would be a start, and that there are many undeniable benefits of green paint.

Colored paint inside bike lanes increases visibility and reinforces priority to bicyclists in designated areas, according to the National Association of City Association Officials.

“Green paint is not a silver bullet to the problem, but that’s what people want,” Hendricks said.

Through the letters and emails he receives, Hendricks said accidents between students and drivers occur all the time, but are not being reported to the Department of Public Safety. ¨Cupertino paints the bike lanes green on their side of Homestead and all major routes and intersections in their city. Why can’t Sunnyvale do the same?”

Norton wrote in his letter.

STAFF Editors Editor in Chief

Rachel Hildebrand

News

Matthew Wu

Opinion

Shauli Bar-On

Lifestyles

Noor Baig Alisha Parikh

Entertainment

Donnie Denome

Sports

Michael Huang Brittany Prock

Copy Editor

Angela Wang

Business Manager

Lily Adler

Reporters Reem Abutabikh

Jacob Jiao

Karla Agudelo

Desmond Kamas

Raven Bautista

Erin Liu

Crystal Chen

CITY OFFICIALS HOPE to prevent future accidents between drivers, bikers and pedestrians by painting bike lanes green in order to increase lane visibility Green paint improves the visibility of bicyclists when used in busy and complicated areas, raises motorist and bicyclist awareness to drivers, increases bicyclist comfort and motorist yielding behavior through clearly delineated space and helps reduce bicycle conflicts, according to the National Association of City Transportation Officials website.

Sophomore Roni Lapade said she regularly bikes to school about four times a week.

Lapade said she also believes parents need to be a little bit more considerate of bikers and should

better strategize where to drop off their students. ¨I have never looked at the green paint and been like ‘wow, I feel safe,’ I just think it’s a pretty color but definitely know that the green paint is more visible to cars,¨ Lapade said.

Although Lapade said she believes painting bike lanes green in this controversy between bikers and drivers to be an effective strategy, she also acknowledged it could be expensive.

In order to help create a safer environment for bikers, the city of Sunnyvale plans to spend $1.2 million on green paint from

Cameron Logie

Gloria Cheng

Nathan Mijares

Eva Chiu Indira Cockerill

Daniel Moscovitch Gabriella Mrozowski

Yunqi Deng

Fremont Ave. to Iowa Ave., this was discussed in the PTSA meeting.

Sunnyvale is missing the funds to paint from Iowa Avenue to Washington Avenue and is currently searching for sources of funding.

Depending on size and maintenance, there would be a $50,000-60,000 extra cost per intersection along with a 50 percent of initial cost every two years.

Construction for these changes will begin by the end of summer 2016.

Nicole Nobre

Thomas Denome

Seerat Randhawa

Kira Garlick

Aditya Sampath

Karima Ghimire

Aayush Singh

Lindsay Goddard

Katie Snell

Carla Gonzalez

Tara Sohal

Karshin Gupta

Mila Sviderskaya

Ron Hasson

Jeanna Totah

Aria Hejazi

Elinda Xiao

Zainab Islam

James Zhuang

epitaph

the

FUHSD students invited to CHS

The Epitaph is a non-profit publication at Homestead High School, 21370 Homestead Rd, Cupertino, CA 95014.

IDC rally focuses efforts on donating money to select charities

expression and not subject to prior

By Jacob Jiao

Code 48907. The staff is comprised of

FUHSD schools were invited to spend a day at CHS in the IntraDistrict Council (IDC) student exchange program. The event was held on Friday, March 11, for the entire school day.

Many students had the chance to reunite with old friends and were able to see the differences between CHS and their own schools.

“Personally, exchanges gave me the chance to build connections and see other schools’ events.

It’s how I got the foundation for powderpuff and was able to build a proposal and get it passed through admin,” IDC President Johnny Kobori said.

At CHS, IDC exchangers participated in the school’s ‘Tino Gives rally.’

“The rally was lit and it was memorable to be a part of this event,” senior Omkar Brahme said.

The rally involved a wrestling match, cheer-offs and a dance-off.

“During the wrestling match, Cupertino’s leadership teacher, Mr. Morse, wrestled Solin Pearcy,

the state champion,” Kobori said.

The other key performance of the rally was the dance off. Each class had around 20 students who performed and did their own dance routine.

“The atmosphere was really enthusiastic and it felt like everyone was enjoying themselves,” senior Amit Kohli said.

Each class was assigned a

Homestead IDC Exchangee senior Omkar Brahme (right) and his Cupertino Host Aakash Adesara after the Tino Gives rally

Corrections An article regarding Quiz Bowl on page 3 in the March 2 issue incorrectly stated the History and Science Bowl clubs combined to form Quiz Bowl in 2014. The National Science Bowl Team has always been independent of Quiz Bowl.

A silhouette photo on page 10 of the March 2 issue failed to credit senior Erielle McCloud, whose profile was used in the graphic behind an article.

Homestead Journalism students. Views expressed do not necessarily represent views of the school, its staff, or the district. Editorials are opinions of the editorial board.

The Epitaph welcomes all letters to the editor but reserves the right to edit all submissions. Letters should be limited to 300 words. Include contact information. Unsigned letters cannot be published, but names will be withheld upon request. Send via homestead. epitaph@gmail.com, or drop letters in the newsroom or the office mailbox.

If The Epitaph has made an error, please send corrections to homestead. epitaph@gmail.com. The corrections will be published in the corrections box for the next issue.

To reach the Epitaph staff in C105: call (408) 522-2572 or fax (408) 738-8631

Advertising One email and you can reach nearly 2,300 students and teachers from Northern Sunnyvale to Southern Los Altos. If your target market is between the ages of 14 and 18, contact The Epitaph at epitaph.ads@ gmail.com and we can make it happen.

Let us hear your voice If you have any corrections, concerns or

Julian Mendel

Nathaniel Wipfler

Jim Chiu

Charles Crane

Juliette Wong

Oviya Adhan

Gabriela Loeza

Donnie Denome

Katherine Fung

Stephanie Okumura

Paul Cornelius

Jacob Pageler

Kevin Saltzman

Brittany Prock

Barbara Endich

Jason Shenan

Komal Ghirnikar

Ronald Totah

Dennis Totah

Jianyou Li

Michael Wallerius

Maisun Totah

Jason Garlick

Joseph Higashitani

review, in accordance with Education

charity to donate to.

The class of 2016 was assigned to donate to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, a voluntary health organization dedicated to funding research and ensuring access to treatments; 2017, the American Cancer Society, a nationwide health organization dedicated to helping people face cancer; 2018, Free the Children, an international charity dedicated toward eliminating the exploitation of children; and 2019, second Harvest Food Bank, a network with a mission to end hunger.

According to the “Tino Gives” Facebook page, the rally was created to capture the school’s long history of giving back to the community.

“The IDC Exchange is a really awesome way to experience a different style of education and a different overall vibe. It is an important aspect of life to be able to adapt to different environments,” Kohli said.

The last IDC Exchange of the year will take place on April 1 at FHS.

Donors Audrey McClintock

The Epitaph is a forum for student

Don & Sylvia Garlick

comments about this issue...

1. Send them to homestead.epitaph@gmail.com OR 2. Bring them to room C105 ...and you might have your letter to the editor printed in the next issue!

PAGE DESIGN BY CRYSTAL CHEN AND AAYUSH SINGH PHOTO BY KARIMA GHIMIRE PHOTO COURTESY OF OMKAR BRAHME

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opinion

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Slang Transparent elections are a must word Democratic values outweigh candidates’ feelings of the month:

By Ron Hasson You just skid in your car on a rainy day.

You turned in a paper that was due by 11:59 at 11:58.

You almost stepped on a tack on the floor. A ball just whizzed passed you, almost knocking you unconcious.

But luckily, it didn’t.

There is one word that perfectly describes every single one of these situations.

That word is “sketch.”

It isn’t new by any stretch, but it’s been prevalent for many years, and will continue to be very prevalent in years to come.

“Sketch” is used to describe a time, action or other noun that can be seen as risky or dangerous in a way.

Withstanding the test of time, the word has never fallen off the map since it was first used in the 1990s.

The evolutionary track of the word isn’t clear, but it was and always has been most commonly used in California.

Over the past five years or so, the word has taken a backseat to other slang words. It has been lost a bit, but this word hasn’t left us for good just yet.

Although lately it hasn’t been as popular, “sketch” has still prevailed, and the meaning is commonly known by teachers and students alike.

It is one of the most barrier-breaking words in use today from that aspect.

Another aspect about the word is the fact that it is so versatile.

It’s a word that can be used for describing a very wide plethora of situations, which makes it so easy to use.

Not only is it fun to say, but parents and students alike understand what it means.

Not every slang word connects several generations together, and this word finds a way to accomplish just that.

So next time that you get an F, slip and fall or get dangerously close to a cliff, you’ll know exactly what word to use to describe that uneasy feeling in your stomach.

When students cast their ballots for next year’s representatives, they play a major role in deciding how the school will be run.

The same concern has comes up every year and is never been addressed by administration: why aren’t the election results displayed?

Yes, the winners are announced through a sheet of paper hung on the ASB office door.

But by what margins did they win? How many total votes were cast? How many people really voted for unopposed candidates?

All of these questions deserved to be answered on that same paper.

Unlike homecoming court, any student can choose to run for class office and ASB positions, with the exception of president and vice president (these positions require a year of experience).

The homecoming king and queen victory margin is irrelevant because it is an honor to be nominated, but voters deserve to know the election results for the next school leaders.

By making a conscious decision to compete for a leadership position, these students are accepting the burden of campaigning for themselves and the possibility that they will be defeated.

The school inadequately

Students running for office must be prepared to lead the school if they win and respect the student body’s choice if they lose. If potential candidates are not prepared to handle the outcomes of transparent elections, they should not

STAFF EDITORIAL Do you think ASB and class office candidates should know the exact number of votes they earned after an election?

355 STUDENTS RESPONDED to the survey about how elections are conducted at HHS prepares students for the real world when they decline disclosing election results due to concern for candidates’ feelings rather than allowing a transparent voting procedure.

run in the first place.

It’s not just the class officers who deserve to know how many votes they earned. The student body deserves to know the margins of victory or de-

Gabbin’:

FUHSD needs to step up and protect its students against Immigration and Custom Enforcement

By Gabriella Mrozowski

They’re not talked about often. In fact, they are a silent issue across California. Not many people know about them simply because they have no reason to.

But to the illegal immigrants they pertain to, Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) is a serious and terrifying threat.

Our district should stand together and fulfill its mission of providing every student with a safe education by banning the presence of ICE agents on campus.

ICE is a government agency that “enforces federal laws governing border control, customs, trade and immigration to promote homeland security and public safety,” according to their website. They claim not to search sensitive zones such as schools or churches. But the general threat of being raided and deported still scares illegal immigrant parents and students, according to the Los Angeles Times.

In February, the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) prohibited the presence of ICE agents on school campuses. The San Francisco Unified School

ICE AGENTS CLAIM not to search sensitive zones, but the fear is still instilled everywhere.

District (SFUSD) followed suit.

Both districts require ICE agents to check in and be cleared with the district before they can enter schools, according to the Los Angeles Times. These are the only California school districts to do so.

And illegal immigrants have a valid reason to be skeptical of this government agency.

Illegal immigrants make up 6.4 percent of California’s population, making it the largest state concentration in the United States, according to Pew Research Center. With 2.4 million California residents holding this status, it is necessary to provide protection to these families and their children.

These are our neighbors, friends, coworkers and peers.

Santa Clara County, which

includes FUHSD schools, is made up of 10.2 percent illegal immigrants, according to a study conducted by the Public Policy Institute of California.

These numbers indicate that FUHSD needs to step up and follow in the footsteps of LAUSD and SFUSD. Every student has the right to feel safe at school, and denying the children of the 10.2 percent to feel safe in an institution of education, defies human rights.

So what do Homestead students with an illegal residence status think of the policy established in LAUSD? John*, who came illegally from a Latin American country, believes he can be safe if such a policy existed within the district.

“Where I live, immigration

feat of their candidates.

The Epitaph conducted a school-wide survey in which almost 68 percent of students voiced their opinion to see the numerical election outcomes.

The Epitaph chooses to disclose the exact results from all surveys conducted as proof of fairness and equal opportunity.

People have accused the student elections of being rigged, or the administration of tipping the scale.

While The Epitaph cannot verify these claims, providing transparent election results would reassure the student body.

Implementing such transparency would be simple, thanks to the digital voting software used for elections. A simple “file, print” should do the trick.

For the sake of our school’s democratic values and for the promotion of student-administration cooperation, the Editorial Board respectfully requests the voting percentage results of each ASB candidate and class officer candidate to be disclosed to the school.

went there twice already and deported some guys that lived in front of me,” John said. “So, I got kind of worried, like ‘What if they come for us?’”

These are real student fears, which most of us can’t relate to. But to the small percentage of students that can relate, the anxiety over deportation, whether it be from home or school, is a daily experience.

“We all got opportunities. We all get to have a second chance,” John said. “We come here for a better future and they’re trying to send us back.”

FUHSD holds EL Speech Contests and other events to create an inclusive atmosphere in each school. But how inclusive does the atmosphere feel if not all students are included in attending a safe education space?

In the district’s Nondiscrimination Policy, the district says it “does not discriminate… on the basis and/or association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics of… national origin.”

The district may have proclaimed that it does not discriminate based on immigrant status, but a more powerful message would be to ensure that all students are offered the equal, safe opportunity to attend school through the enforcement of antiICE agent policy.

This isn’t a call to action just to FUHSD, but rather all of California. We, as citizens and residents of the state, have the right to attend school in a safe environment.

Only two districts have banded together so far to fight the difficult battle of immigration and students trying to gain an education. What does this show about acceptance, on behalf of our district and California, on school and college campuses?

PAGE DESIGN BY LINDSAY GODDARD AND CARLA GONZALEZ ILLUSTRATIONS BY MILA SVIDERSKAYA

opinion

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

A new age for cigarettes

Raising the smoking age to 21 is best for the wellness of teens

By Jeanna Totah

SMOKING HAS MAJOR effects on both physical and mental health, especially if started at a young age and continued throughout one’s life Ninety percent of smokers tried their first cigarette before they were 18 years old, according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Hence, the unhealthy habits teens acquire in their adolescent years often carry on into adulthood.

The current federal smoking age of 18 allows teens to become addicted, allowing easy access to cigarettes at a young age.

A huge portion of smokers are non-adults, according to the CDC. This suggests that preventative measures should be taken so young adults will not use cigarettes in the long term.

The current drinking age of 21 ensures that teens have a much harder time gaining access to alcohol. Likewise, raising the smoking age would have similar effects.

Teens are more likely to smoke because of peer pressure or family influence -- meaning they live in a household with a smoker, as reported by Health Day. It is not fair for teens to be put in an environment where they are influenced to smoke, leading them to make the same bad decisions as their peers.

To prevent teens from starting to smoke, parents need to make

the effort to quit tobacco usage to ensure a long and healthy life for their children.

The American Lung Association states that there are over 7,000 chemicals in a cigarette when burned. All of these toxins are extremely unhealthy for growing teenagers to be exposed to.

The effects of these chemicals are known to have both physical and mental effects as well, many of which, if started early through smoking, can be detrimental to a teen’s future.

Smokefree.gov reports that smoking leads to poor vision, irritability, stained teeth, yellow

fingers and wrinkly skin, but the list goes on. Smoking is also the leading cause of lung cancer and can increase the risk of infertility.

However, the plethora of diseases and premature deaths as an effect of smoking are entirely preventable, according to the American Cancer Society.

Further, the CDC reports that 21.7 percent of smokers have the education level of a high school graduate, and only 7.9 percent of smokers have an undergraduate degree. The statistics consistently show that the higher level of education someone has, the less prevalent they are in the smoking community.

By raising the smoking age, teens will be more likely to continue their education and would be less likely to pick up a cigarette habit later on.

In general, smoking provides no benefits for an individual, but rather sets users up for inevitable health care costs along with physical and mental harm to one’s body.

If a Californian smoker uses one pack of cigarettes per day and cost an average of $7.81, then users will spend about $2,850 per year, according to The Awl publication.

The thousands of dollars smokers spend on cigarettes every year, not including their potential medical payments, can be better spent on education or family purposes.

It is best to eliminate smoking as early as possible to protect the well-being, academic potential and health of teens. To accomplish this, the next step in preventing teen cigarette usage is to raise the legal age of smoking to 21.

Fallacies of popular vote

Campaigning and biased media sway the electorate

By James Zhuang

With anti-establishment sentiment and extremism running high, the 2016 presidential primaries are some of the most conflictridden and divisive ones yet.

But with multiple candidates characterized by logical incompetence and/or offensive bigotry receiving a surprisingly massive amount of support, this year’s primaries bring a question to light: can “We the People” really make the best decisions for the country?

Due to the large sway that campaigning and biased media play on the electorate, popular vote may not actually result in the election of the most able candidate.

By nature, a presidential election determined by popular vote rewards the most successful campaigner, but not necessarily the most qualified candidate.

The candidates who know how to play on the emotions of the nation and muscle out opponents often perform the best.

However, governing is not about knowing what to say to whom and how to improve one’s own image while belittling others, but rather about the ability to cooperate and compromise to make progress toward the

THE ELECTORATE OFTEN makes misguided decisions when choosing a candidate betterment of the country.

On the campaign trail, candidates can say what they want, be it building a wall at no cost or offering free college for all, to win over voters and appeal to their desires.

The candidates’ steadfast claims, more often than not, oversimplify reality and come with faulty logic and little substance.

When seated in the Oval Office, though, the president will find

that the issues are much more three-dimensional than he or she would like to admit.

Conflicts with various interest groups, legislators and the full consequences of said actions, which undoubtedly come with unintentional side effects, are bound to arise.

Solutions will require a more pragmatic, compromising approach that deviates from the idealistic and brash characteristics

that swayed the electorate and gave the candidate the seat in the first place.

The media also plays a key role in the elections, serving as the primary source of information for voters who often do not have the time to devote to conducting their own individual research.

However, the media is not the most reliable and accurate source of information.

Outlets such as NBC, Fox News and NowThis often display biases against candidates through selective coverage and biased tones in their commentary.

The editorial slants influence viewers to take on similar attitudes, skewing the images of candidates in the eyes of the electorate.

With the inherent problems of the elections system and and the unreliableness of media as an information source, it is questionable whether the average voter can truly make an informed decision and choose the most able candidate.

When choosing between candidates, voters should keep an open mind, avoid bias and conduct their own third-party research to determine who would be best fit as president.

5

The BarOn Brief: Don’t take the easy path to leadership

By Shauli Bar-On

“Run for the position you can win.” That’s the common advice given to you if you’re contemplating a run for student council.

I have to say I disagree with those who offer such advice.

There should be one reason and one reason only as to why you should run for a leadership position, be it ASB or class cabinet.

Answer the following question: “Am I the most qualified person for the job?”

This question is allencompassing. All other questions you can possibly think of are unnecessary.

Can I beat my contender?

Can I work with the other winners? Can I commit the time? Do I really want the job?

If you answer no to any of these questions, then you may not be “the most qualified person for the job.”

Last Friday, those ASB candidates who answered yes turned in their prerequisite applications to the ASB office, confirming their intentions to campaign for schoolwide office next week.

Based on my conversations with students in the leadership class and potential contenders, almost every position is being contested for, meaning there will be very few unopposed candidates.

This is reassuring news.

No longer are candidates taking the easy path to leadership.

Visit hhsepitaph. com for the full version of The Bar-On Brief

PAGE DESIGN BY SEERAT RANDHAWA AND JEANNA TOTAH PHOTO BY JAMES ZHUANG ILLUSTRATION BY LUDMILA SVIDERSKAYA

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Wednesday, March 30, 2016

lifestyles

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

The unspoken issue: rising suicide rates

7

Mental health plays an important role in students’ lives

By Jeanna Totah

Compared to the overall suicide rates in California, the recent suicide clusters in the Santa Clara County accentuate the need for more awareness of mental health in the HHS community.

According to Kidsdata.org, the 2009 Santa Clara county teen suicide rate was 8.1 for every 100,000. The state rate was lower, at and 7.5 for every 100,000.

However, the average rate continues to rise every year -- the rates in 2013 were 10 and 7.7 for the county and state, respectively.

School p s y chologist Lina Chung said mental health problems can lead to students having suicidal thoughts.

High levels of stress from family and s o c i a l pressure can lead to depression and anxiety.

“Most of it

is related to ecological factors,” focus energy,” Rivera said. hopes to make sure every student Chung said, “things going on The high suicide rates among feels included. directly [in a student’s life], teens should be motivation for “People are too hard on themwhether that be a loss of a family schools to promote a positive selves and it lowers their selfmember or a significant change in learning environment despite esteem,” Fwd: Love co-president something.” the troubles students are facing,” Maya Dhar said. “We hope to Chung added reach out to evthat mental health eryone all over has a lot to do with the school and not academic success, just in the quad.” as it reflects in Chung, Dhar students’ progress. and Rivera said Challenge Day there are people organizer and everywhere who psychology major are willing to supShawnee Rivera port students and thought simiany problems larly. Rivera said they are going students in the through in or outSilicon Valley are side of school. pressured to comHaving good pete with others to mental health be “the best of the can mean the best.” difference bet“It makes kids ween life and who are of any death for some MENTAL HEALTH PLAYS a significant part in a intelligence feel students, so it like they are just student’s academic success and overall happiness is important coming up short,” that everyone Rivera said. “When in actuality, Rivera said. is treated equally and with compared to the rest of society…

“I would love... to get acceptance to ensure students do a C here is an A somewhere else.” credentialed to teach psychology… not give up on themselves.

Rivera said everyone struggles and then work that into such “Whenever things get hard, with mental health, even a program where all the kids just talk to someone. Venting herself. She said it is important are taking it because teaching is very important,” Chung said. for students to have an outlet, mindfulness is so important for “Suicide is entirely preventable.” whether that be running, dancing mental wellness,” Rivera said.

If you are contemplating or a form of art.

“We are all coming from a place suicide or know someone who “I think a lot of kids who do of pain or sadness or joy or is, please call the 24/7 National self-harm don’t understand… gratitude.”

Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1 that there are other ways they can Likewise, HHS club Fwd: Love (800) 273-8255.

“Go to your favorite spot.”

-Courtney Martin (11) “Listen to happy music and talk to friends.” -Morgan Lambert (11)

t Ho w “Snuggle with your pet.”

-Ella Lewis (11)

d ay

“Listen to music and sing along.”

-Trevor Carpenter (11)

at

o

eag v a re h

Quick tips from fellow Mustangs to improve down days

By Katie Snell

“If the weather is nice I like to go outside and be in the sun.” -Karen Thornton (12)

“I eat ice cream while watching Netflix, I swim to get my mind off of what’s bothering me, I go to wing stop and eat chicken, and I go to my bed and cuddle with my pillows.”

–Connie Tian (10)

“Don’t have a bad day in the first place.” -Jason Halden (9) PAGE DESIGN BY NATHAN MIJARES AND JAMES ZHUANG PHOTOS BY JEANNA TOTAH AND KATIE SNELL

8

lifest

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Unconventional thinking

By Mila Sviderskaya

h t e s n u r w f o o men n o i t o a r b h e l e c W A

Junior Brooklyn Sylve with her mother Participating in pro-women activities or going to conventions that encourage women’s involvement may not be a common thing for most girls our age, but for Brooklyn Sylve it’s an annual thing.

“Every year I go to a ‘Strong Girls, Strong Women’ convention, it’s usually almost all women,” Sylve said. “We have women that teach us about male-dominant careers and job fields.”

The convention is made possible by the American Association of University Women, and the

Sylve lives in a household with two moms, so feminism and women’s rights affect her on a whole different level. Women empowerment is something that comes to her naturally, since it has affected her family for a while now.

“My mom is on the board of women’s commission,” Sylve said. “It’s just a board of women that discuss things in the women community, and they talk about jobs and everything that women should get involved with,

Harriet Tubman 5.7% of participants

Maria Sklodowska (Marie Curie) 4.3% of participants

“I would just say go for it, don’t let anything stop you. Do what you believe is right.”

Eleanor Roosevelt - Brooklyn Sylve Santa Clara County of Women’s Policy. “It’s great, they play ‘Miss Representation’ every time, which I’ve seen like fifteen times, but it’s still good every time I watch it,” Sylve said. “It’s a really good experience and I recommend that all girls should go and support each other.”

The convention happens every year around the middle of March, which is Women’s History Month.

This year, the convention was held on March 12 at the Mexican Heritage Plaza. Around 260 high school girls came with their mothers and other female relatives According to San Jose Mercury News.

3.6% of participants

Favorite historica women from 202 students surveyed

including equal opportunities.”

Sylve not only stands up for women by going to a convention every year, but also does so in her everyday life.

“I do wrestling and I was the only girl on the team,” Sylve said.

“What gets me is being judged by guys, and their judgement on girls. But now I don’t really care about their opinions.”

She also encourages girls to go out of their way, and portray women empowerment.

“I would just say go for it, don’t let anything stop you. Do what you believe is right,” Sylve said.

Malala Yousafzai 2.9% of participants

Mic

Where do you feel most Women in the curriculum Overly represented judged for your gender? Rarely represented Equal trea 7.2% of participants

Accurately represented

14% of participants

Nowhere

Brunch/Lunch

Often missing

With friends

Clubs/outside activities In Class

25%

Social events

50%

Sports/P.E.

75%

4.8% of participants

34.8% of participants

Women and men treated equally

Women are treat unequally

Could be improved 39.1% of participants

what makes an empowered woman? By Mila Sviderskaya and Kira Garlick An empowered woman is not afraid to stand up for herself, she knows what she wants and she just goes and gets it no matter what people say.

Confidence and the ability to go out of your comfort zone, so no matter what others think of you, do your own thing.

Shaiana Davis Vivi Pride

Passion, confidence, drive and ability to withstand hardships

A woman who gives herself a choice, and is not relegated to one life or another but is constantly making a choice on what to be and what to do.

Amit Klein

What makes an empowered woman is if they have charisma, motivation to start things that others don’t dare start.

Gaya Kozakov Ed Riley

tyles

Overcoming expectations

w o n’s h rld isto ?

Junior Sahar Markovich

“I don’t think anybody’s stereotypes should affect views on people in society.

It’s all about overcoming what people expect of you and becoming your own person.”

Sophomore Lily Hartenstein

ry

“When I was younger, I was often taking leadership roles and people constantly called me bossy because in society, a ‘strong woman’ is not a good thing because she’s controlling, she’s insane, she’s bossy.”

Rosa Parks

Junior Aarushi Banerjee

“I feel like women are expected to not swear at all, and I swear a lot. A lot of people call me unladylike for that, and I think that [should not be the case].”

11.4% of participants

Jeanne d’Arc (Joan of Arc) 5% of participants

e al

Junior Jewel Milesi

“I feel like you come to school and you expect people to look a certain way just because they look like ‘this,’ but that’s definitely not true once you get to know... who they genuinely are.”

A male viewpoint

Amelia Earhart 3.6% of participants

Senior Peter Martinka Why do we need a Women’s History Month (WHM)?

“There are already eleven months dedicated to men’s history.

Because you always hear one half of the story, and the other half never gets heard.”

What should we be celebrating in WHM? “So a lot of what people celebrate on the media, they’ll have five [women] and they’ll pick from the same list of five famous women that they can celebrate. But I think what should be celebrated in Women’s History Month are all women. Like movements that have been women and women in World War II or women in China in 491 B.C. And then also talk about things like women in other cultures that need help.”

2.9% of participants

chelle Obama 2.9% of participants

ted

56.2% 43.8%

Once a semester 15.7% of participants

1978 Competitive swimmer, Olympic medalist and former world record-holder Linda Jezek graduates from Homestead

Janine Stark becomes the first female principal at HHS

2013 Women’s Empowerment Ambassadors Club is founded at HHS

19% of participants

Never happems 7.1% of participants

Women’s milestones at HHS

Daily

13.8% of participants

atment at HHS

n are

I don’t know

9

1979

By Gabriella Mrozowski

Alice Paul

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

How often does sexism occur at HHS?

Once or twice a week 16.7% of participants

2015 Amrita Venkatraman is elected first preseident of Programming Club

Once a month 27.6% of participants

I think an empowered woman knows herself well enough to be able to listen to her inner voice, because I think, and this is kind of a generalization, but a lot of women I know, and me included, are caretakers - want to please others, want to help others - so learning to say “no” when it’s appropriate for the woman, and not to take care of everyone else to their detriment is one of the best skills of an empowered woman.

Kelly Ronsheimer Voted #1 female role model at Homestead

2016 Elena Kamas placed 22nd place in the mile in the nation Laila Shadabadi becomes the first girl on the HHS football team

PAGE DESIGN BY REEM ABUTABIKH, LILY ADLER, KIRA GARLICK, DESMOND KAMAS, GABRIELLA MROZOWSKI, MILA SVIDERSKAYA PHOTOS BY REEM ABUTABIKH, KIRA GARLICK, GABRIELLA MROZOWSKI, MILA SVIDERSKAYA PHOTO COURTESY OF BROOKLYN SYLVE

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Wednesday, March 30, 2016

lifestyles

Wednesday, March 30,2016

11

From my POV: Life living without my mom

By Cameron Logie

Aréva-lution in Spanish education “Teacher of the Year” shares a day in his class

By Gabriella Mrozowski

dents have to somehow engage much about learning new things comprehension.”

The class ends with different The classroom recipe for suc- in… speaking,” Arévalo said. He as “applying what [students] have cess is a tried-and-tested experi- stresses the importance of com- learned for so many years.” The activities on each days, Arévalo ment conducted by each teacher munication and its importance to techniques he uses to practice all said. On Tuesdays and Wednesthe skills students have mastered days, he said the class ends with each day. But it is no secret that oral fluency. groups Spanish that have teacher “readings and World and disLanguage cussions Departon somem e n t thing.”

Head Paco On ThursArévadays and lo has Fridays, whipped “[Stuup a fine dents] batch of send the learning. class singArévaing, [and] lo was resaying cently rec- FROM LEFT: ARÉVALO helps junior David Gelovani during tutorial. Arévalo talks with goodbye ognized to the as HHS’s his students, juniors Dana Werlich and Nitya Tammana, after class week.”

Teacher “[Oral practices] really help test everything implicitly.

Every class incorporates talkof the Year and featured in the “The units have a pacing, and ing with and getting to know San Jose Mercury News. Like any with becoming bilingual because teacher, Arévalo likes to organize most of the time, when you learn a you may have… more vocab at the everyone in class. But overall, his schedule, but he said “not ev- language, you speak it more than beginning of the unit,” Arevalo Arévalo said he wants to “creyou write it,” senior and Spanish said. “As the unit advances, you ate an atmosphere in class where ery day is exactly the same.” go to higher levels of reading or you feel engaged and can trust Each class begins with “some student Carolyn MacDonald said.

Arévalo said his class is as watching a video or checking for people.” sort of oral routine where stu-

It was 4:15 a.m. and I was awake on a Saturday.

There was no time to be sad anymore. It was moving day and I had work. Besides, I had cried the last of my tears out on Thursday.

I hugged my mom goodbye, wishing her luck as I walked out the door.

She made her move down to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico safely, while I tied up some loose ends back home in San Jose.

It was a normal week, perhaps a bit more stressful as I moved in full-time with my dad. Throughout the week, I kept getting the same questions from people: “Why is your mom moving? And to Mexico?”

I told them about her depression and anxiety, how Puerto Vallarta was a place she loved and that it was really just a transition that would have happened in six months anyway when I leave for college.

Then I visited her [ soon after the move]. It was evident from day one, when I was eating a 10-peso taco (about 50 cents), sipping on my (not-so-virgin) agua and watching the sun set over the shimmering ocean, why my mom moved down there. Life is truly better in Puerto Vallarta.

The people are nicer, sleep is more abundant, days are warmer, food is better, beaches are cleaner, relaxing is easier - I could keep going on and on. My mom and I joked about the questions I received all week, as she asked me, “Why wouldn’t you move to Mexico?”

I came back home so I could finish up high school, and life has been good. It’s different not living with my mom, but I’m glad that she’s happy.

I’m glad Puerto Vallarta is her new home, that I had the chance to live there for a week and that I can visit anytime. I’m thankful that even though my mother lives in an entirely different country, I’m able to maintain a strong relationship with her.

Life is different now that she’s gone, but sometimes we have to make a few sacrifices for the ones we love, and I’m certainly not regretting this one.

PAGE DESIGN BY ZAINAB ISLAM AND TARA SOHAL PHOTOS BY GABRIELLA MROZOWSKI AND CAMERON LOGIE

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Wednesday, March 30, 2016

‘Zootopia’ hops past expectations

Disney’s movie is comical yet moving

By Tara Sohal On a Sunday afternoon more than a week after opening day, I visited my local Century Cinema 16 theater to see “Zootopia.” The employee at the ticket booth informed me that the movie was sold out all day. I rushed to another theater to see if I could make a different showing, only to find that they were sold out as well.

This chaotic experience is what made me realize how popular this movie really is and made me increasingly want to see why. The next day, after reserving seats to avoid the previous mishap, my question was answered.

The movie premiered on March 4 and is set in the buzzing city of Zootopia where all animals, predators and prey, live together in supposed harmony.

Main character Judy Hopps (voiced by Ginnifer Goodwin) becomes the first rabbit ever to enlist in the police force.

She is continuously motivated to prove her capabilities to everyone who thinks she is incapable and is so determined that she tackles an obscure case of missing animals.

In order to solve the puzzle, Hopps is forced to work with a witty fox named Nick Wilde (voiced by Jason Bateman), whom she befriends along the way on their adventure of humor and catastrophe.

Disney has outdone itself in the remarkable animation of “Zootopia.” Realistic factors in the film establish a great sense of setting comparable to those of Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Diversity is thrown in and seen in the beauty among the fascinating biomes of the city including “Tundra Town” and “Sahara Square.”

Character development played a key aspect in “Zootopia.”

The personalities, pasts and insecurities of Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde were revealed to the audience progressively throughout the movie. By the time the film was over, I felt like I directly knew them in reality.

“Zootopia” can be enjoyable for anyone to watch, but it is no doubt a family movie.

The comedic and emotional relationship between Judy and Nick had the audience in laughter and tears. Yes, I mean real and physical tears. The mom sitting next to me was hardcore sobbing while her little daughter was trying to comfort her.

Multiple thematic ideas of courage, tolerance and teamwork were shown throughout the film.

Additionally, the concepts of looking past stereotypes and how stereotypes can discourage individuals were stressed to the audience.

Overall, the movie left a bigger impact of messages behind its storyline.

entertainment

Not so modern

Modern Baseball strays from current sounds

By Brittany Prock

Of the 12 tracks, my favorite is easily the track titled “@ chl03k” due to how it hints at our generation’s unhealthy obsession with phones and social media.

It also touches on how humans tend to distract themselves with people and things in order to let go of the past.

“You’re Gonna Miss It All,” came out on Feb. 11, 2014, and also consists of 12 tracks.

One of my favorite tracks from this album is “Fine, Great” because the lyrics are about how the future is difficult for some people to think about and how they would rather worry about

As younger generations of artists are moving more towards R&B and pop sounds, there are still a few bands and solo artists who embrace the indie rock side of the music world. Modern Baseball is one of these bands.

Since forming the band in 2011, members Brendan Lukens, Jacob Ewald and Sean Huber have released two EPs and albums.

According to Genius.com, an EP is essentially half of an album, or when an artist or band releases a group of songs that are too small to constitute a full album, but is more than one song.

Indie rock is a very open genre of music. It consists of alternative rock, some electronic and also some folk.

Indie rock bands typically tend to have MODERN BASEBALL, AN indie rock band, performs at Greene a bit more freedom Street Club in North Carolina on April 10, 2014 when it comes to The title of the track seems to everyone around them then worry their personal sound and the type of music they produce actually be a Twitter handle that about themselves and I feel that because they do not need to spells out “Chloe,” but includes the lyrics can connect to a lot of numbers and silent letters. people. sound like a mainstream band.

The track is also a great In general, the band uses lyrics Modern Baseball released their debut album, “Sports,” in example of how indie rock bands that are relatable if they are given do not need to produce “perfect” the time to understand. While the November of 2012.

The album consists of 12 music because the track sounds sound of the music may not be for everyone, it can definitely be tracks that range from 55 rather choppy and has raw lyrics.

The band’s most recent album, beautiful and very raw. seconds to almost five minutes.

‘Allegiant’: a mixed performance Special effects do not overshadow flaws

By Rachel Hildebrand

A fitting adaption to the novel, “Allegiant” offers fans two hours of action and romance. While parts of the plot lack in depth, the compelling nature of the film makes for an enjoyable young adult movie.

Shailene Woodley and Theo James star as Tris and Four, respectively, in this third installment of the four-part “Divergent” series. The movie adaptation of the novel is split into two parts, with the final installment “Ascendent” set to be released in June 2017.

The movie picks off where its predecessor, “Insurgent,” left off: Evelyn (Naomi Watts) has taken over a war-torn Chicago following a successful rebellion against Jeanine’s (Kate Winslet) totalitarian government, leaving her to decide the fates of Jeanine’s accomplices. Evelyn decides to keep the inhabitants of Chicago locked inside the walls surrounding the city, sparking Tris and Four to break out with a small band of renegades.

Upon escaping, the group is picked up by the Bureau of Genetic Welfare, a group of researchers who inform them that their city is actually an experiment to see if genetically ‘damaged’ humans can be made ‘pure’ following a nuclear

war. Tris is revealed to be the only ‘pure’ one of the group, setting up the rest of the movie as she battles with whether she can trust the Bureau and the dilemma of saving Chicago which has once again begun descending into chaos.

For fans of the series, “Allegiant” provides excellent special effects and the focus of rebellion against categorization that the first two installments provided. Yet, as the plot gradually slows, audience members lose interest in the film.

Tris and Four’s romance is downplayed in the film, taking away a major draw for its target audience. The pair’s encounters are either antagonistic or at most a semi-passionate kiss. Any hint of the emotion that carried the first two movies was absent.

Without the context of their relationship, many of the choices the couple make that are extremely important in the novel seem pointless in the movie.

To make up for the lack of romance, multiple perspectives are explored to capture the plights of Tris, Four and the state of the entire post apocalyptic world.

Even with the long run time, the number of focuses makes connecting to the characters difficult, a struggle the entire series has dealt with.

The acting was mediocre at best

for some characters, including Woodley, who seemed about as tired of the franchise as Tris did leading yet another rebellion.

James, on the other hand, has his best performances yet, being one of the only leading characters who seems to still truly enjoy playing his part.

Above all, “Allegiant” is an entertaining film. The special effects are the best the series has seen, and the deeper questions the plot alludes to are intriguing for those who take the time to appreciate them.

For young adult fans, the much-loved dystopian setting and romance-action backbone is perfect for the genre. In the way of eye candy, James, Ansel Elgort (Caleb) and Miles Teller (Peter) add extra appeal for the largely female fanbase.

While this film may not be the best for those looking for a highly gripping movie, it is perfect to see with friends or a date. It may have it flaws, but these can easily be overlooked in pursuit of a fun afternoon.

The Divergent Series: Allegiant Run Time: 2 hours Director: Robert Schwentke Rated: PG-13

PAGE DESIGN BY EVA CHIU AND KARIMA GHIMIRE PHOTO COURTESY OF LIONSGATE ENTERTAINMENT, WILDLIFE BILDAGENTUR GNMB, AND WWW.WIKIPEDIA

entertainment

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Time to freak over Nick The Greek

13

The opening of a new restaurant replaces the old Starbucks

By Tara Sohal

The phrases started as rumors but quickly were confirmed: “Oh my God, free food?!”

“Where?!”

On Feb. 25, Nick The Greek opened their third location on Hollenbeck Ave., leaving students buzzing with curiosity.

The restaurant had a line out the door and onto the sidewalk. Students all around campus were spotted with Nick The Greek boxes while munching on their pita bread, sandwiches and fries.

There’s plenty of food and a variety of restaurants near school. Ranging from Chinese to Mexican food, there are always options for students to go off campus and eat.

A place that serves Greek food is a unique new choice for people to try and enjoy.

“It is so great that it opened so close to school so that people can open themselves up to new foods and new cultures,” David Pilip, a sophomore, said. Pilip visited

NICK THE GREEK’S flavorful specialty fries covered in feta cheese, garlic, spicy yogurt and meat of your choice is sold for $6.95 Nick The Greek three separate times on its opening day.

A huge part in favorability of a restaurant is its environment. In this case, Nick The Greek partially attracts people by offering a

clean and stylish setting with a comfortable atmosphere.

“Other Mediterranean places are mostly old-fashioned, but this place is more modern, they had popular music playing and the

environment was overall great,” Pilip said.

A more o b v i o u s factor in a restaurant’s allurement is plainly their food.

Nick The Greek offers a variety of pita bread sandwiches with your choice of m e a t , tzatziki s a u c e , tomatoes, onions.

A m e a l includes a side of fries

and a soda.

“Our choices are on the healthier side of fast-food chains,” Nick Tsigaris, a current employee at Nick The Greek, said.

“The meats we use are all on the lower calorie count and the sauce we make is a yogurt sauce so there are not as many fatty components,” said Tsigaris.

Despite Nick The Greek’s tasty food and trendy environment, its affordability is an issue. A meal at McDonalds costs around $5-6, while a meal at Nick The Greek costs $11-12.

Michelle Bekuu, a freshman who has gone to Nick The Greek twice for lunch agrees.

“The prices are a bit high for students,” Bekuu said.

Nick The Greek Opened: February 25 Average Price: $7.95 Favorite Foods: “Nick’s Fries” “Chicken Souviaki Pita”

Artist spotlight: The talents among us Students showcase their unique skills Gallant

By Karla Agudelo

By Aria Hejazi

S ron Came

nd

i ch

Tom Windish of Windish Agency bookings, after Udell heard one of Gallant’s performance in a Los Angeles studio.

In an interview with the Baltimore Sun, Gallant described how his interest in music first began GALLANT’S UPCOMING ALBUM is in middle school when he began due to release in April. recording songs Rhythmic guitar strums, for friends and family everyday synthesized drum kicks and a after school in his hometown of pulsating falsetto largely define Baltimore, Maryland. the sound of breakthrough Gallant said his early music electronic artist Gallant. His inspirations were R&B artists unique blend of energetic such as Babyface, Brandy and instrumentals and an R&B-esque Tony Braxton. voice have earned him much Since signing with Mind of success since the release of his a Genius, Gallant has reached first popular single “Weight in immense success as a rising Gold” in summer of 2015. new artist, and was designated The warm reception of “Weight “Breakthrough Artist of 2015” by in Gold” on the Internet by music music magazine Billboard. hallmarks such as Pitchfork and His music has been acclaimed Billboard led to manager Jake by music greats like Seal, who did Udell earning Gallant a deal with a duo cover of “Weight in Gold” management agency Mind of a with Gallant and cited himself Genius, the group responsible for as “Gallant’s biggest fan” in an managing enormous names such interview with music magazine as Zhu and THEY. NME. While “Weight in Gold” is Gallant now has a series of live commonly referred to as Gallant’s shows planned for the next few best song, my personal favorite months, first accompanying Mind is “If It Hurts,” due to the soft of a Genius labelmate Zhu on background guitar strings tied his Neon City tour, then heading together with his periodic vocals. to Indio Valley to headline his Gallant was discovered by Jake own stage at Coachella. Gallant’s Udell, founder of TH3RD BRAIN upcoming album “Ology” is due to talent management agency and release in April.

Senior Paniz Hadjian said she has been singing since the age of four and began playing the guitar in eighth grade.

“I was always very music oriented. My family is really into music so to be able to continue playing guitar and singing, and maybe try and perform in the future -- it’s really awesome. I really want to do it. Since middle school I’ve always wanted to [try

out for the talent show] but I didn’t really get to [until this year]” Hadjian said.

She sang Hallelujah by Rufus Wainwright.

Spanish teacher and judge Paco Arévalo said, “After Paniz’s performance I feel that I am a better person.”

Paniz Hadjian

i le r M , Ja d n red W anabe a at

Senior Anna He played the song “See You Again” by Wiz Khalifa on the Chinese harp.

She said she did not think she could participate in the talent show, but was excited to find out she would. She said she finds playing “fun and relaxing.” She began playing the harp in middle school because there are “not many people that play it in this area.”

White Elephant is composed of lead singer Jared Watanabe, guitarist Mikael Suzano, bass guitarist Cameron Schindler (all seniors) and one sophomore, drummer Ýoel Feinberg from Los Altos High School.

Suzano said the band will break up when the seniors go to

ka el Suz ano

R&B singer Gallant sends waves through electronic music industry

college but will have reunions now and then. Suzano said they began the band two and a half years ago, and the three seniors have remained while switching drummers, names and sounds until The White Elephant was formed.

For the majority, each member has been self-taught and truly embraced their talents when the band came together, Schindler said.

To view more talent show profiles, including the winning group Kali, scan the QR code with your phone

Anna He

PAGE DESIGN BY ARIA HEJAZI AND ZAINAB ISLAM PHOTOS BY KARLA AGUDELO PHOTOS COURTESY OF AVADELLAIRA.COM AND MOXIE

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Wednesday, March 30 , 2016

Kyle Schryver Player of the month Varsity Volleyball

49 Kills

Kill Chance

12.6%

3.5 Kills/Set

32 Digs

Nat. Rank 199th CA Rank 152nd

Volleyball star Kyle Schryver serves up a storm

By Michael Huang and Daniel Moscovitch With the season in full swing, junior volleyball player Kyle Schryver has already shown sparks of brilliance.

In the 14 sets he played, he has had 49 kills, according to Maxpreps. com. With a rate of 3.5 kills per set, Schryver has been a consistently dangerous threat on the court.

Though shining brighter than ever, he attests much of his success to his teammates.

“I’m surprised, and I feel that my teammates really make me look superb in games,” Schryver said, “so I have to thank them.”

Playing on the varsity team since

freshman year, Schryver has experienced the greatest peaks and the lowest valleys

o the

f

sport.

In his freshman y e a r , Schryver said played alongside m a n y experienced seniors in their successful CCS campaign, finishing third overall. However, the next year, Schryver played on a weak 10-16 team that failed to even qualify for CCS.

In his junior year, Schryver looks to recreate the legacy of the 2014 team. In order to do so, he spent his time in the offseason preparing for his junior year campaign.

“I did a lot of agility and jump training during the past club volleyball season,” he said.

Schryver also recognized that in order to be a truly great player, his mental self is just as important as his physical attributes.

“I have been working to have a better, more supportive attitude on the court,” he said.

The team started off league with an even 2-2 start, facing formidable teams like Cupertino. Schryver feels that though the team has yet to fully develop, it has tremendous potential for the future.

“I play it for enjoyment and the competitive environment, and plan to continue playing it just for fun in college,” Schryver said.

Stats courtesy of Maxpreps.com update as of 3/24/16

Boys tennis team thrives

Volleyball holds youthful potential

By Karshin Gupta

By Michael Huang

Varsity team excels in league

ANDY HOU SERVES in a match against Milpitas The boys tennis team, a month into their season, are now 10-2 overall and have suffered only one loss in league at 5-1. The team exploded into a win streak of five games, defeating FHS, Palo Alto, Gunn, CHS and Pinewood. The first losses of the season only came afterward against Saint Francis and Saratoga. The team defeated MVHS and Santa Barbara to win the Boys California Classic in Fresno on the weekend of March 4 and 5.

The team attributes much of their early success to their double’s players performances, specifically seniors Andy Hou

and Aravind Patnam, Lucas Bandarkar said.

“We’ve been doing really well so far, the best since Nick [Woo] and I joined the team. We won Division One at the Boy Tennis Classic in Fresno,” Bandarkar said. “The doubles have really improved since last year and are winning, which makes a big difference.”

Another reason for success this season is the overall depth of the team, according to junior Nick Woo. “I think this will be the most successful season that I will be a part of because of all the pieces we have in place and the overall depth of the team compared to previous years, where the team wasn’t as deep,” Woo said.

The team has high expectations on CCS playoffs performance this season, setting their goals for at least semifinals, Bandarkar said.

This season provides a good chance to advance far into CCS, according to Woo. “Our best chance to go deep in CCS is this year, because we have a lot of seniors who won’t be here next year, so the team will look very different, especially in the doubles,” Woo said.

The boys tennis teams carries on high hopes for the season and believes they have what it takes to go far, according to Bandarkar and Woo. “What separates our team from others is the team spirit we have despite the fact that tennis is an individual sport,” Woo said.

Boys varsity has high hopes for CCS

THE VARSITY TEAM huddles after winning a hardfought point Coming off an unsatisfactory season, the boys volleyball team hungers for a CCS berth this upcoming season, facing tough rivaling teams along the way such as Monta Vista and Cupertino.

“I think the league’s weaker, besides a couple of teams,” junior Kyle Schryver said, “so we can do top three in league, hopefully.”

The team is mainly composed of sophomores and juniors, a change from the volleyball team that got third place in CCS in 2014, Schryver said. The younger team is less confident than the one containing more seniors.

“I remember when we had a lot of seniors on the team [in 2014] they were

help players train, but don’t necessarily help them connect as a team in the off-season.

“I have done a lot of training in club volleyball, which really helped,” Schryver said. “I think I definitely improved a lot over the last club season and I’m sure my teammates did, too.”

In addition to club training, there are many returning players that bring more experience to the volleyball team. This experience gives the team great potential to succeed as the season progresses.

“Even if we might not get a high rank this year,” Chiu said, “we have a really good chance of doing really well next year, because a lot of our starters are much younger.”

Chiu has high hopes that the boys volleyball team will return to the glory it achieved two years ago, recovering from the dreadful 10-16 season last year.

“We’re not doing great, but we have a lot of potential,” Schryver said. “A lot of people have improved from last year.”

really confident, and they really supported each other a lot, and I think we need more of that because right now on the team,” Schryver said. “We aren’t bonding a hundred percent.”

“We haven’t had a person who goes above and beyond to help our team,” junior Justin Chiu said. “We do have people who lead, but it’s not as close as it was in my freshman year.”

Volleyball is, perhaps more popularly, played outside of school in clubs like Mountain View Volleyball JUNIOR DANNY WONG Club. Schryver said these clubs against Los Gatos

wins a point

PAGE DESIGN BY JACOB JIAO AND ERIN LIU PHOTOS BY KARSHIN GUPTA, MICHAEL HUANG AND CRISTINA SCHRYVER, ILLUSTRATION BY RAVEN BAUTISTA STATISTICS COURTESY OF MAXPREPS.COM

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Wednesday, March 30,2016

“ I n high jump, you basically jump over the bar as the height keeps increasing. You get 10 minutes of practice before the event starts. Then you get 3 tries to jump over the bar at each height. If you don’t make it in 3 tries you’re out. In most cases the bar moves up 2 inches after every round.

I do high jump because it’s fun and I love the feeling of landing on the mat after jumping over the bar.”- Daniel Dabel (12)

“ I do shot-put and discuss. I spend more time in the weight room as a thrower to work on building strength. typically I alternate between my events. every other practice so I can focus more on technique. It took me awhile to decide which event I would choose. It was between sprints and throws. But I didn’t want to put too much stress on a previous hip injury so I ended up choosing throws. I pretty much decided on the first day of practice.”Joanna Fung (11)

“The 400-meter is probably the hardest event I run because it’s so exhausting. By the end of the lap every runner’s legs are dead and every one has to dig deep to finish fast. I really enjoy running the 400-meter because I like the feeling of working hard and sprinting the last 100 meters of the race.”- Kyle Kolda (10)

Scoreboard Badminton 3/8 3/10 3/15 3/22

Varsity

JV

20-10 W 17-14 L 21-9 W 28-2 W

12-3 W 12-3 L 8-7 L 11-3 W

Baseball Varsity

@ Fremont vs Milpitas @ Mt View vs Santa Clara

3/9 3/11 3/15 3/16 3/18 3/23

7-1 L 13-1 L 9-3 L 11-4 L 5-9 L 7-15 L

Varsity

Varsity

235-213 W 201-182 L 223-217 W 203-199 L

vs Mt View @Palo Alto vs Mt View vs Gunn

2/29 3/2 3/7 3/15 3/16 3/21 3/23

Swimming JV

3/11

Boys: 95-90 L

Boys: 106-76 W

3/17

Boys: 119-67 W Girls: 94-91 L

Boys: @Los Altos 139-41 W Girls: 142-42 L G

Boys: Boys: 107.5-75.5 L 101-82 W

@Los Gatos

@Monta Vista

2/23 3/1 3/2 3/4 3/8 3/15 3/16 3/17 3/22 3/23

Track and Field

3/8

3/17

Varsity

JV

Boys: 80-47 L Girls 74-53 W

Boys: 73-54 L Girls: 79-47 L

vs Milpitas

Boys: 92-35 L Girls:

Boys: 66-61 L Girls:

@Palo Alto

Diving Varsity

JV/FROSH

3/1

Boys: 4th Girls: 5th

Boys: 2nd Girls: 2nd

3/17

Boys: 3rd Girls: 3rd

Boys: 1st Girls: 1st

3/27

Boys: 1st Girls: 2nd

Boys: 1st Girls: 2nd

JV

2-1 L 9-3 W 1-0 L 6-0 W 13-1 W 8-2 W 10-2 W

vs Capuchino @Woodside @Aragon vs Mills vs Santa Clara vs Westmont @Monta Vista

Boys Tennis

Varsity

3/24

vs Los Gatos @ Los Gatos vs Prospect vs Milpitas @Milpitas @Palo Alto

Softball

Boys Golf

3/2 3/15 3/21 3/24

JV

Varsity

JV

7-0 W 6-1 W 5-2 W 4-3 W 6-0 W 7-0 W

7-0 W 6-1 L 7-0 L

6-1 W 7-0 W

5-2 L 6-1 L 4-3 L 5-2 L 5-2 W

vs Fremont vs Palo Alto @Gunn Fresno Tourn vs Cupertino vs Pinewood @St. Francis vs Saratoga vs Lynbrook vs Milpitas

Boys Volleyball

2/23 2/25 3/9 3/11 3/16 3/18 3/23

Varsity

JV

3-1 L 3-0 W 3-1 W 3-0 L 4-1 L 3-2 L 2-3 L

0-2 L 2-0 L 0-2 L 0-2 L 2-0 L 2-0 W

@Leigh vs Pacific vs Saratoga @Monta Vista @Saratoga vs Mt Vew @Cupertino

Gymnastics @Saint Francis @Los Altos

Coming in April

@Monta Vista

Eptiaph Sports Section PAGE DESIGN BY KARSHIN GUPTA AND INDIRA COCKERILL PHOTOS BY NOOR BAIG, KIRA GARLICK , KARSHIN GUPTA, MICHAEL HUANG, GABRIELLA MROZOWSKI AND AAYUSH SINGH PHOTO COURTESY OF ALLISON AUTEN, PETER MARTINKA, JOSON RALPH

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the last word

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

March Mahem

3/10 Powderpuff

HHS successfully established its first year of the powderpuff football in which girls from each class played in a flag football tournament. Class teams of boy cheerleaders also participated in the spirit and performed routines to support their class. Juniors defeated the sophomores in the final game and stole the win for the best football team.

By Gloria Cheng and Cameron Logie

3/7-3/11 BOTC week

In the week of competitive spirit and heated class rivalry, the senior class did not back down from the challenge of school spirit against the junior class. Each class put forward their best Mustang spirit in dress-up days, coin wars and the rally to culminate the week. The class of 2016 took home the win for the second year in a row.

March 1

7 10 Students, staff and teachers came together to take a stand against racism.

Students shared what anti-racism means to them, and sported wristbands that read “Racism stops with me.”

21

3/21 Anti-Racism day 3/23 Boys varsity tennis The boys varsity tennis team has had a remarkable start to the season with a sweep in a recent match against Milpitas High School. The team has high hopes to continue its efforts on the way to CCS.

23 The students of HHS showed their skills off at the annual talent show. This year featured: dancers, rappers, singers, yoyoers, bands and a Chinese harp. Anna He won the judges’ hearts while dance group Kali wowed the crowd, taking home the audience favorite award.

25

3/25 Homestead’s Got Talent 3/28 Multicultural week

In this week celebrating the diversity, students shared what countries they are from on a world map in the quad and enjoyed cultural performances during brunch and lunch.

Scan here to see full coverage of Multicultural week

Upcoming in April 4/7 ASB elections

Students will be running for next school year’s ASB leadership positions. Watch out for this week of campaigning to vote for your top candidates.

4/11 Spring break

Look forward to this last week of break before summer vacation and graduation.

28

April 1 7 11

4/18 Art Showcase FUHSD-selected student art will be showcased at Vallco Mall in Cupertino.

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PAGE DESIGN BY GLORIA CHENG AND MILA SVIDERSKAYA PHOTOS BY LILY ADLER, NOOR BAIG, YUNQI DENG, KARIMA GHIMIRE, KARSHIN GUPTA, GABRIELLA MROZOWSKI, ALISHA PARIKH