The Squire
VOLUME 4 ISSUE 1
Summer 2021
ARCHBISHOP RIORDAN HIGH SCHOOL
Classroom renovations commence this summer By William Macdonald
Grade 7, Mission Dolores Academy
and Gina Xie
Grade 6, Aptos Middle School The 2021 Riordan renovation project brings new carpets, paint, whiteboards and furniture to classrooms, something teachers haven’t had for 17 years. The project is being spearheaded by Brandon Ramsey, Director of Facilities, who helped with the Math Department remodels. He said, “After these are done, we will have completed 18 [classrooms]. We will then have eight classrooms
A worker prepares to block off the hallway for construction of a classroom.
left, plus the teachers’ lounge is another area we want to complete.” Ramsey said, “Each room will get new paint, new white boards, new blinds, and new tech. The new tech involves large TVs and an Apple TV setup so teachers can stream from their
Photos by Andrea Abraham ’24 Reporters for The Squire interview Facilities Assistant Jeff Ramirez, who was working on preparing classroom 205 for renovations. laptops to the TVs.” They have also replaced the carpets and abated (removed asbestos from) the floors. Ramsey said, “This project will be around $360,000 and this money has come from both a fundraising campaign and our own facilities budget.” Each classroom remodel takes around six to seven weeks if there are no delays. “The structure we have come up with has allowed us to get a lot of classrooms done under a specific budget. We can always do ‘more,’ but that costs more
money. Doing it this way will allow us to get all of the classrooms done in a timely manner.” He added, “This will give the school a fresh start and a better perception to potential students and parents.” The teachers like the remodels and look forward to teaching in the new rooms in the fall. “Everything is new. It is a wonderful feeling. I especially like the TV and working window blinds,” said math teacher Mary Ann Datoc, whose room was completed a few months ago.
Please see “Classroom Renovations” on page 4
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Staff
Summer 2021 The Squire Archbishop Riordan High School
Scan this code to read this issue of The Squire online, as well as previous issues.
Staff members of The Squire consisted of fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students as reporters, and Riordan students as photographers and editorial assistants.
The Squire Staff Reporters Richard Anderson Sofia Avalos Blake Breslin Patrick Ciaburro Paul Ciaburro Madison Doerner Hailee Dominguez Scarlett Doran Michael Elsbernd Camila Garcia Socorro Gonzalez Liam Harrington Myles Jaurigui Reegan Jones
Em Lombardini William Macdonald Anthony Modeste Mariah Navarro Mason Presa Xavier Reyes Gina Xie Solomon Zumbado Editorial Assistants Aaron Abraham ’22 Andrea Abraham ’24 Adviser Susan Sutton, CJE
Note: The name of the Camp Crusader newspaper was changed from The Crusader Junior to The Squire in 2018. A squire is “an attendant to a knight before becoming a knight.”
Campus News
Summer 2021
The Squire Archbishop Riordan High School
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Padawans summon The Force for creative writing inspiration By Michael Elsbernd
Grade 7, St. Brendan School
In a galaxy not so far away, students in 5th to 8th grade are learning about Star Wars, and creating their own adventures. These padawans are members of Camp Crusader’s Star Wars Creative Writing class, led by English teacher Brian Kosewic ’16, otherwise known as Master Ciwe-sok. Kosewic said, “I jumped at the chance to teach the class—I am a huge Star Wars fan, and this universe was actually hugely influential on my development as a young reader and writer.” He added, “When I was little, my mom would read to me from the novels in Jude Watson’s Jedi Apprentice series . . . I quickly progressed to writing and drawing my own Star Wars books and much of the creative work I have done since then has echoed some facet of Star Wars.” “This class is a writing clinic, a film/literary theory class, and a Star Wars appreciation club all rolled into one,” he said. “Students explore different Star Wars media—films, TV shows, books, and music—and then use those pieces as inspiration for their own writing. Students analyze the movies and stories to figure out why they are so popular and impactful and then figure out ways to use those techniques to create their own stories.” Liam Harrington, an 8th grader at St. Stephen School, said the reason he took the Star Wars Creative Writing class was he didn’t do so well in his English
Photo by The Squire staff The Star Wars Creative Writing class watches Star Wars: A New Hope. writing class in 7th grade, so His favorite character, he said, he thought it was a good idea is “Din Djarin, also known as the to improve his writing skills by Mandalorian, because he is an writing about Star Wars because uncertain character. In the mix he loves Star Wars. For example, of both good and bad, Din tries he learned to use action words to to focus on his own lane in life describe a scene. and takes care of the child, also Liam said, “I chose this class known as Grogu.” to enhance my skills and to have As for Master Ciwe-sok, “Mace fun learning, taking a topic that Windu—the greatest lightsaber I love and incorporating it with a duelist of all time. I believe he subject I am not so good at.” survived his electrocution and fall He also said he is taking at the hands of Darth Sidious in something already existing, and Episode III: Revenge of the Sith further expanding on it with and will return.” his own personal touch. He is He concluded, “I hope the writing a story called “Star Wars: students finish with a new Fight for Your Life,” about a toolbox of storytelling techniques padawan named Mill Notgnirrah and ideas and use those to create who goes on an adventure with stories that make the galxay a Master Plokoon defending the more colorful Jedi Temple. place.” Teacher’s Assistant Aaron Abraham ’22 said, “I specifically Scan this chose this class because I love code to read Star Wars and I could use some the students’ inspiration from creative writing stories. and apply it to my daily life.”
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Campus News
Summer 2021
The Squire Archbishop Riordan High School
Engineering class projects come alive with 3D printing By Xavier Reyes
Grade 5, St. Peter’s School
The Engineering Course
at Camp Crusader gives students the opportunity to design, create, and produce 3D printing projects. One engineering student, Romeo Doran, a 6th grader at St. Philip’s School, said, “I like this class and 3D Printing because I love my ideas coming to life.” Engineering teacher Frank Torrano said, “I like teaching them because I like the students putting their best effort into this course.” He added information about the 3D printer, saying, “It sends the model as a C.A.D file, then it prints on a X ,Y, and Z Axis.” Torrano said, “In the future of the course I am planning for us to do races with the cars that we have 3D printed, and I am thinking
Photos by Andrea Abraham ’24 Students in the engineering class work on designing their projects. about making battle robots that fight each other with this class.” So far, students made cars and paper roller coasters with marbles that roll down the paper coaster. Teacher’s Assistant Tommy
Galvan ’24 said, “The cars are the only things meant to be printed.” Galvan added that students choose engineering because, “I think they enjoy the feeling of creating and designing something.”
“Classroom Renovations,” continued from page 1
Engineering teacher Frank Torrano helps a student with a design project.
There have been some challenges, though, as teachers can’t fit everything into the rooms. “I cannot fit everything and I have to prioritize what to keep,” Datoc continued. Despite this, Datoc said she loves the remodel overall. Edward Macdonald ’23 said he looks forward to the remodel and it’ll be much nicer having new classrooms. “Sometimes the desks were very small and cramped. It’ll be more comfortable having bigger desks, more space to work,” he said. Overall, the remodels will be a huge improvement for the school, and a great way to kick off in-person learning this fall.
Summer 2021
Campus News The Squire Archbishop Riordan High School
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RSP teachers provide guidance for new students By Solomon Zumbado Grade 6, St. Finn Barr School
The Resource Specialist Program at Archbishop Riordan offers a summer course for incoming students with diagnosed learning differences to help them understand what they have available to them before the school year begins. The goal is to help eighth graders who are going into ninth grade learn and interact with other students with diagnosed learning differences. Megan Rabbitt, a teacher in the RSP program, felt great about working in the RSP program, as it was an opportunity to help students with learning differences. Rabbitt teaches the students study strategies and makes sure they all get the chance to learn and make friends in the program. RSP Director Stephanie Lundin also had a positive experience because she gets to help and support students in the program. Lundin, who also teaches AP Calculus, said, “I love teaching in RSP.” Max Orr ’25, a student in the RSP program, felt that after going to the RSP summer class, he learned that many more people have learning differences like him. He has met new people and
Photo by Andrea Abraham ’24 RSP teacher Megan Rabbitt helps a student navigate one of the programs needed for school as part of the summer RSP course.
“It is different, but a good type of different.” -Octavio Hoglund ’25 has also got the support to help him, including tools to help students learn while dealing with stress. He also gets support from the teachers by asking for extensions so he can understand more. He said, “I feel happy for the support.” Octavio Hoglund ’25 said that
RSP is a program that helps him feel good about his learning difference. For him, it also helps him with testing and assignments. He also said, “I met new people that I would have never met. It is a very helpful program and it is different, but a good type of different.”
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Food Review
Summer 2021
The Squire Archbishop Riordan High School
Campers dine on variety of lunchtime meals By Patrick Ciaburro
Grade 5, St. Cecilia School Last Wednesday in the cafeteria, Epicurean served teriyaki chicken, white rice, and cooked broccoli. The soy sauce had no impact on the teriyaki chicken, so it did not add much flavor to it, but if you put the soy sauce on the white rice, it tasted delicious. By itself, the white rice had its own unique flavor, and so did the broccoli. The broccoli was cooked well, and has become a common sight on the lunch trays at Camp Crusader. This dish was also served on the first Thursday of camp, as the cafeteria rotates the lunches from week to week, but there have been slight differences even if it looks like the meals are almost identical.
A variety of fruit was also part of the daily lunches at Riordan.
Photos by Andrea Abraham ’24 Teriyaki chicken with white rice and broccoli was one of the meals prepared for the Camp Crusader students for Session 1. Although the teriyaki chicken, white rice, and broccoli was also prepared the first week, the flavor was different this time, which shows the chefs take care in preparing the food. The refreshments available at Riordan’s Chaminade Hall are water and sparkling water, both of which were optional. Campers can also choose to take a piece of fruit, if they want, like bananas, apples and maybe even oranges. When eating, there are many
options where campers can sit. They can either sit on the stairs or in the courtyard. But, those in Camp Crusader’s 4th grade always eat on the right side of the cafeteria. Hearing feedback from fellow campers who have been here for a couple of years, they said the food is something they look forward to. I can’t compare it to previous years, though because this is my first year at Riordan summer camp.
“If you put the soy sauce on the white rice, it tasted delicious.” -Patrick Ciaburro
Summer 2021
Movie Review The Squire Archbishop Riordan High School
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Dragon tale inspires trust for audiences of all ages By Sofia Avalos and Socorro Gonzalez Grade 7, St. Finn Barr School
“Raya and the Last Dragon,” available on Disney Plus to all subscribers, came out on March 5, and so far, between 1.4 to 1.8 million people watched the movie, which got a 4.4 rating. The movie takes place long ago, when humans and dragons lived together in harmony. But, sinister monsters known as the Druun turned people and dragons into stone so the dragons sacrificed themselves to save humanity. The dragons got rid of the monsters, but all the dragons that turned into stone stayed as stone. In the future, 500 years later, the monsters have returned and it’s up to a young warrior to track down the last dragon and save Kumandra. The movie teaches the audience about trust and forgiveness, which is great for young kids and adults to learn. “Raya and the Last Dragon” offers the richness of Southeast Asian culture through a lovely story of action and adventure. The voices of the characters were well chosen and done really well by the voice actors. The plot was very creative and interesting. The special effects throughout the movie were admirable. The animation was very detailed, and realistic with the movements.
“Raya and the Last Dragon” is available on Disney Plus. Reegan Jones said, “The movie was good and I liked how adventurous it was. I liked that the main character was a strong girl. Also, I loved how the movie taught you to trust others instead of not trusting anyone.” Socorro Gonzalez, one of The Squire’s reviewers, said, “I would rate the movie a 3 out of 5. It was
a bit too predictable and it felt like a basic action movie that you’ve seen before. But I still liked the plot and the special effects, as they were creative and imaginative.” Reviewer Sofia Avalos said, “I would watch this movie again because the story is good. I liked the movie because it has a strong and brave character.”
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Sports
Summer 2021 The Squire Archbishop Riordan High School
Smashball game scores a hit with campers By Camila Garcia
Grade 7, St. Finn Barr School
Hailee Dominguez
Grade 5, St. Anthony Immaculate Conception School
Mariah Navarro
Grade 8, St. Peter’s School On Friday June 18, the Civics and Sports Medicine classes played a game of smashball against each other on the Mayer Family Field. Both teachers, Ed Beteta ’85 (Civics) and Anthony Rissotto ’17 (Sports Medicine), said that the reason behind the games was to give the students a break from their everyday classes and have some fun.
Solomon Zumbado of St. Finn Barr School swings for the fence. “Mr. Beteta and I decided to play these friendly competitive games as a way to congratulate the students for making it through the week,” said Rissotto. Both teachers pointed out that
Photos by Andrea Abraham ’24 Teacher and coach Ed Beteta ’85 high fives Socorro Gonzalez of St. Finn Barr School as she crosses the plate for a run.
they had their fair share of good players. “My team (Sports Medicine) collectively performed really well, as we were able to battle back and make the game a tight scoring one,” Rissotto said. “First basemen Blake (Breslin) and Patrick (Ciaburro) caught everything thrown at them. Paul (Ciaburro) and Mason (Presa) also played a really good defense,” Beteta said. In the end, both teams played a very good game and the score was close. The ending score was
4-2 after an hour long game, with the Civics class winning. “I knew going into the game under the leadership of Mr. Beteta it was going to be a good fight,” Rissotto said. “Chances for my team (History Nerds) were excellent being that we were clearly the superior team in all facets of the game: Hitting, fielding, running, intelligence,” Beteta said. The following week, the two teams met up again for a kickball game. The Civics class won with a score of 4-1. Camp Crusader teacher’s assistant Andrea Abraham ’24 said, “It was fun because I scored.”
Summer 2021 The Squire Archbishop Riordan High School
Sports
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New ways to play football bring new opportunities By Anthony Modeste and Liam Harrington
Grade 8, St. Stephen School A reduced football season in the spring has brought about new ways to play the game. Some of the different versions of football include seven players and nine players on each team. Many people enjoy the idea of playing football over the summer. JC Campos ’22 stated, “It’s important to start conditioning for football in the summer because as soon as school starts in the fall, so does football season, so if you are able to get in shape and work out during the summer, it helps make every player be conditioned for football season. It also helps build connections with players.” The idea of this nine on nine style of football, more commonly
Photos by Norman Yoshida Michael Gormley ’22 runs downfield in a game against St. Ignatius.
known as Real Nine, was created by coach George Rush, a coach at San Francisco City College before COVID in 2019. “Even though the idea started in 2019, it never got off the ground once COVID started,” Mark Modeste, head coach of the varsity football team, stated. The only difference between regular football and Real Nine is that instead of having five offensive linemen, there are three, and in Real Nine, players tackle using two hand touch, which means instead of tackling someone they just need to get two hands on them. Seven on seven uses the same Zachary Jones ’23 catches the ball principle of two hand touch. As one-handed in an impressive play. a safety precaution, players are required to wear soft shell pads for
Real Nine and it is recommended for seven on seven games as well. Even though Real Nine football didn’t emerge until now, it is making a strong start. Many high schools, such as SI, Sacred Heart Cathedral, Serra, Terra Nova, and of course Riordan are taking part in local tournaments, and youth leagues include 5th-8th graders in the game. Coach Modeste said, “It’s a great all around experience and we will be ready come August.” Similarly, Cameron BevanAbel ’22 (defensive end/tight end) said, “We hope to take each game one week at a time and not get distracted by any upcoming obstacles brought to us each week.”
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Sports
Summer 2021 The Squire Archbishop Riordan High School
Next generation of Crusader baseball players on deck By Blake Breslin
Grade 5, St. Stephen School and
Paul Ciaburro
Grade 5, St. Cecilia School After only one full season on Mayer Family Field, the Crusader baseball team is still adjusting to playing on an all turf field, and coaches and players had similar opinions about the progress. Coach Jeff Ramirez said that the turf is affecting his players, and making the infielders feel like they do not have to work as hard, but overall, it is helping the players with their game. But, they have to adjust when they play on traditional grass and dirt. Coach Ramirez said that they do not have a “best player” because they are a team. Baseball player SeanPaul Bruemmer ’24, a first baseman, said during the first game, the defense gave up a couple of runs but the offense saved them the next game. He added that the last game was really good, as they were able to score a lot of runs and they won. In regards to next year, he said if they work together and try harder, they can win
Photo by The Squire staff A Crusader baseball player demonstrates how to execute the perfect bunt.
Coach Ramirez said they do not have a “best player” because they are a team. more, especially if they focus more on teamwork. They work harder with every practice. If they continue to work hard and focus on teamwork, then they will win more of their games. Patrick Ciaburro, a 5th grader at St. Cecilia School, said every time he watches the practice, it gets better and more efficient. Both Coach Ramirez (San
Diego Padres) and Coach Tom Harlan (Pittsburgh Pirates) have years of baseball experience, and were both drafted by professional baseball teams. The players and coaches are looking forward to next season, following an uplifting season played under COVID restrictions. The team has good chemistry and positive sportsmanship.
Sports
Summer 2021 The Squire Archbishop Riordan High School
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Basketball Camp prepares future hoopsters for success By Mason Presa
Grade 8, St. Thomas More School and
Myles Jaurigui Grade 8, All Souls School
One of the sports camps that Riordan offers is basketball, and future Crusaders are improving their skills by learning from high school coaches who have a lot of basketball experience. The improvement comes with lots of practice and advice from coaches. As summer began, students were eager to get out of the house after a year of COVID restrictions. One of the options for outdoor activities is basketball, along with many other sports. Riordan basketball player Khalil Jones ’24 said that the basketball camp can help create bonds with many kids, and it can give them chances with what they want to do in the future. Coach Alex Smith said they have “been teaching the basics of basketball, as well as some more advanced skills for more experienced players. However, we’ve been working on ballhandling, shooting, passing and defense with all of our campers. More general skills like communication, teamwork and leadership have been a big emphasis as well.”
Photo by The Squire staff Coach Alex Smith guards a student during a dribbling drill.
There are approximately 50 students in the basketball camp, girls and boys, from 5th to 8th grade, from various schools around the Bay Area. Jones said adding new teammates next year is “exciting because they might have experienced a lot about basketball in different ways, and you might experience new things if you get new teammates” and he hopes to teach and learn new strategies to use in upcoming games. Smith agrees, saying, “Playing with and against new teammates teaches our campers new styles of play, moves and strategies. This
will definitely help them when they go back to play for their school team.” Jones said that the coaches “are really funny and they inspire you to do better and learn new things.” This is reflected in what inspires Smith, who said, “I’ve always loved the game of basketball. I love the competition, teamwork and how it’s good exercise. It’s a great way to make friends and I have many lifelong friends from my 20 plus years of playing basketball.” Finally, Jones said, “It’s like a brotherhood and they take care of each other and no matter what, they will have each other’s back.”
“[The coaches] . . . inspire you to do better.” -Khalil Jones ’24
Features
Summer 2021 The Squire Archbishop Riordan High School
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Birds don’t give a hoot about fake owls By Madison Doerner, Reegan Jones, and Em Lombardini Grade 6, St. Brendan School The fake owls on top of the school building are meant to keep the birds away from the school so they don’t leave their droppings on the building and bring trash up on the roof. But, the owls have been mostly failing at their job. Riordan biology teacher, Colleen O’Rourke, confirmed that the decoy owls do not work as intended. She said, “So just like we can look at a plastic owl and realize it’s fake, they’re [the birds] going to realize the same thing as well—probably sooner than we do. Basically, plastic predators only work for a temporary jumpscare.” But, plastic owls do prevent the birds that do not have enough time to stop by and realize the predator is just a statue. “I noticed them before and I never knew why they were there, but I knew they were fake,” said camper Socorro Gonzalez, a 7th grader at St. Finn Barr School. The birds tend to figure out the owls are fake in about one to two weeks.
Photos by The Squire staff As one crow sits next to the fake owl that was meant to scare it away, another flies nearby, looking for somewhere to land.
Director of Facilities Brandon Ramsey said, “If I had a team of guys, I could have them move them around weekly. But, unfortunately we just don’t have enough staff to keep up with that.” Once the birds figure out the owls are fake, they will fly on to the roof and continue leaving droppings. The school’s facilities staff has access to the roof, and they could get more owls for $20 each, which is cheaper than cleaning the mess because the sides are hard to reach without a lift. By comparison, the lift costs
$600.
O’Rourke said, “Plastic predators won’t scare away all the local birds, but they might help slow down new birds from deciding to move in.”