October 2022 Issue

GEOLOGISTS DISCOVER INVER GROVE METEOR SITE

AVERY LIU STAFF WRITER

Almost 500 million years ago, a meteor with a total area of 9 miles came hurtling towards a peaceful, ocean covered Minnesota. On Sept. 15, geologists from the Uni versity of Minnesota, who were creating a geo logical map of Dakota county, discovered this meteor crash site. They found disturbances in the rock almost 350 feet below the earth’s surface. This originally led to their discovery, according to Jim Cotter, a professor of geology at the U of M. Science teacher Joe Martin, who teaches the Space Science elective, said, “These things have been floating around for a long time. So we can learn about what the ear ly solar system may have been made of and tell us about the formation of our solar system.”

The disturbances that the geologists found were samples of a differ ent type of rock called shocked quartz, which is a type of rock that needs an enormous amount of compression to form.

The disturbed site was around 2.5 miles wide and could possibly have had a total area of nine miles. The discovery of this site could potentially have an impact on find ing out more about the atmosphere and space in general.

Big astronomical events like these have a way of bringing people together.

“These [events] are among many things in astronomy that have a sense of making you feel like you’re a part of something. Not just something we’re reading about, but that its right here that something hap pened,” Martin said.

GOV. TIM WALZ (D)

ON WOMEN’S HEALTH: - supports abortion rights - offers legal protection to women who come to MN from other states for reproductive health services

ON CLIMATE CHANGE: - 100% of MN electricity from renewable sources by 2040.

GUNS: - supports background checks and removal of guns from people in crisis.

SCOTT JENSEN (R)

ON WOMEN’S HEALTH:

- said he would “try to ban abortion” with rape and incest exceptions

ON CLIMATE CHANGE: - wants to lift state bans on building nuclear plants and “clean car” rules.

GUNS: - proposed gun control bills in the legislature, but has changed his stance to pro-gun.

Midterms at forefront of Minnesotans’ minds

4.1

million eligible voters in the state

30,000

Number of election workers in Minnesota

80%

MN BY THE NUMBERS percentage of voter turnout in 2020.

CLARA BAGNOLI STAFF WRITER

Senior Lindsay Browne’s 18th birthday was exciting for many reasons; the most important for her was the ability to vote. With early voting started and the official election day on Nov. 8, candidates travel the state in full campaigning mode.

Senior George Peltier can’t seem to avoid it: “I see ads on TV, front lawns, stickers, t-shirts, online, and hear them on the radio,” he said.

But he knows campaigning isn’t always the full story.

“It is important to do research. A 5-minute Google search on reliable sites is plenty, in my opinion, to see who is running and what they stand for,” he said.

A way to help out in elections without being able to vote is at the polls by volunteering on election day. Local student Zora is getting involved for the first time this year. “I’ll be helping to check people in and making sure they understand how to fill out their ballot,” she said.

There is currently a national shortage of poll workers and according to a 2018 survey only 8% of poll workers are under the age of 25.

Rhe midterms have been at the forefront of Political Discourse club meetings at school. Senior Maya Sachs, who leads the group, knows local elections are the most import ant to politics.

“The midterms really dictate or encapsulate every other topic [we have discussed], because a lot of political issues, like all that is happening with policy, are happening on a state level.”

Fellow student leader Cassie Zirps added that “Young people: we’re gonna be around the longest, right, so we’re the ones who [the election] is most important to.”

Faculty are also involved. History teacher Andrea Sachs engages in political campaigning. “The most effective way to persuade someone is still face-to-face contact [...] it’s good to remember that a lot of people are actually psyched when someone knocks on their door,” she said.

Door-knocking is a popular form of voter outreach where volunteers or people in a campaign visit neighbor hoods and either collect data about voters’ opinions or in form citizens about candidates’ policies. During the peak of the pandemic in the 2020 election, face to face campaign ing was almost completely shut down.

“There was a lot of phoning and there was a lot of text banks, but it’s really easy to ignore a text,” Sachs said. “I defi nitely recommend [door knocking] to students.”

Voter turnout made history in 2020, with nearly 80% registered voter turnout according to the MN Secretary of State office. Vote registration can be completed even on Nov. 8 in person, and approximately 10% of Minnesota voters do this.

Mock elections, bringing minors to the polls, and volun teering are all part of informing the citizens of the future. For Sachs, “It helps develops a habit [of voting].”

All constitutional offices are up for reelection this year including Governor. Sachs encourages students to pay at tention to one specific race: “The secretary of state is the person who kind of overseas elections in the state,” she said.

“Making sure that we’re using our vote to support peo ple who protect the integrity of our system,” Sachs said. Sec retary of State incumbent Steve Simon (D) is up for reelec tion against challenger Kim Crockett (R).

HerSpace hosts annual Love Your Body Day

ELIZA FARLEY THE RUBICON

Eyes. Legs. Stomach. Hands. Boobs. These words adorn post-its on the outlined figure rep resenting features people love about themselves.

The product of an annual event, the fe male-identifying student affinity group HerSpace

BREAK THAT HABIT

do routines and behavior effect growth

success?

hosted Love Your Body Day, an event promoting body positivity. On Sept. 26. Student leaders Clara Ann Bagnoli and Audrey Leatham set up in Lower Schilling during x-period with the help of faculty advisor Nan Dreher.

While the event was going on, students of all grades and genders stopped by to put up a

post-it or two. The poster was covered in a rainbow of sticky notes by the time the event ended.

It now hangs on an inward-facing window in the upper library where students can see it as they walk through the hallway.

Dreher was pleased that Love Your Body Day attracted a varied group

SUPERSTITIONS

Salt over the shoulder? Walking under ladders? What do students believe in?

of participants. “[Body positivity is] definitely an issue that is big for women, and we’re a fe male-identifying group… But also, at the same time, [Love Your Body Day is] something everyone in the community can par ticipate in,” Dreher said.

continued on pg. 2

POST IT. Clara Bagnoli hosted the table on Sept. 26 where students stopped to write a note of body positivity.

FALL SPORTS RECAP

Season wrap up. State bids. How are the Spartans finishing in fall sports?

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION: Hazel Waltenbaugh - Information from campaign websites

RACE FOR GOVERNOR. Tim Walz (D-incumbent) and Scott Jensen (R) are the forerunners in a gubenatorial race of six candidates. Oth ers: Steve Patterson (Grassroots), Hugh McTavish (Independent), James McCaskel (Legalize Marijuana Now), Gabrielle Prosser (Socialist).

PHOTO: Eliza Farley

continued

MAP: University of Minnesota Press Release

Meteor crash site offers unique scientific information

Meteors continued from pg. 1

Even students feel more connected when something is close to them. 10th grader Row an McLean, said, “When things are connected to people, they are more in terested.”

There are fewer than 200 meteor crashes of this magnitude in the world so the proximity to us peaks students interest and gets them more in volved.

Sophomore Harper Glass Said, “If [The mete or] was in California for example, I wouldn’t re ally care. But since it’s in Minnesota, I find it pret ty cool that I live pretty close.”

There are fewer than 200 confirmed meteorite crash sites in the world, so this is an amazing way for young students to make their mark on the world.

Midterms continued from pg. 1

The most import ant issue on the ballot? “Choice,” according to Dr. Sachs.

“The Dobbs decision has had a transformative effect on this year’s races,” she said.

Students agree: “Defi nitely Roe v. Wade be cause it’s completely in the state’s hands,” Maya Sachs said.

The Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade

Love Your Body Day continued from pg. 1

Bagnoli was also ex cited about seeing all the students that came by. “I really look forward to the engagement of the community,” she said. “I really like how everyone can contribute.”

Leatham shared sim ilar sentiments: “I look forward to seeing the people that show up, whether or not… they’re in the affinity group,” she said.

Bagnoli and Leatham admitted that setting up

in June through a rul ing on Dobbs v. Jackson Women Health organiza tion. The ruling removes federal protection for abortion and leaves the issue to the states.

Abortion is currently legal in Minnesota due to a ruling by the state supreme court, but state ments from republican challenger for governor Scott Jensen cause spec ulation over if it will stay that way if he takes office.

Regardless of the out come of the midterms, post-election day, stu

the event this year was harder than in years past, especially because the group felt a bit rushed. “I feel like this year was re ally difficult, because we kind of just jumped right in,” Leatham said. Bagno li added that “tutorials have been… difficult.”

She noted that HerSpace has had to work around special schedule days and that some prospective group members couldn’t always attend because of the group’s tutorial meet ing time.

However, Dreher notes that the group has had a membership rebound

dents must adhere to the student handbook poli cies surrounding diversi ty, equity, and inclusion.

Student Secretary of Upper School Council Clea Gaïtas thinks the key to political discus sions in school is respect.

“Even if you don’t agree with the person you’re talking to, it’s al ways better to show them respect and listen than to just shut them down and argue,” Gaïtas said.

To vote in Min nesota, person must: be a U.S. citizen, a MN resident for 20 days before the election, maintain residence at the address given on the form, and be at least 18 years old. Pre-registra tion is available at 17 years old for those who will be 18 on or before Election Day.

this year compared to the pandemic era. “There’s a lot of energy and excite ment, so it’s great to be a part of that,” she said.

HerSpace meets alter nate Thursday tutorials in the ninth-grade histo ry room. Attendance is open to all female-identi fying students.

OCTOBER SNOW.

Snow blanketed the Twin Cities Oct. 14. By 1 p.m. the MSP airport reported 0.4” of accu mulation. The snow was all melted by the next day.

Minneapolis selects O’Hara as police chief in hopes to reduce crime

ANDREW LIPINSKY STAFF WRITER

Two years after the events of George Floyd and the unrest of 2020, Minneapolis has selected a new police chief, Brian O’Hara, to fix problems of policing and stop the rise of crime in Minneap olis.

O’Hara was selected out of three finalists by a search committee in ear ly September. He is still a finalist; the city council will hold a vote on wheth er or not to approve him in late October or early November.

Brian O’Hara is cur rently serving as deputy mayor of Newark, New Jersey.

O’Hara, in the new role as police chief in Minneapolis, will try to rebuild the police force and make Minneapolis residents feel safer.

“We will take the MPD from the darkness and trauma that has been ex perienced in this city and create a beacon of light for policing across the country,” O’Hara said in a recent press conference.

The current mayor of Minneapolis, Jacob Frey, has expressed his support

in voting for Brian O’Ha ra as the new police chief. Frey has pointed to O’Ha ra’s decades of experience in law enforcement in Newark, New Jersey as his main reason for sup port.

In Dec. 2021, then chief of Minneapolis po lice, Medaria Arradondo, announced his departure from the Minneapolis Police Department fol lowing the unrest and protest caused by the death of George Floyd.

While Arradondo was a trusted and beloved chief, he said, in a press confer ence that, it was time to retire after 30 years with the force. He served as po lice chief from 2017-2020 and was the first black po lice chief in the city.

Now, O’Hara hopes to take the lead.

Freshman Josh Melchert supports the idea of a force empow

ered to address crime: “The police need to be able to instate some new actions to reduce the amount of violence that has been happening in our communities.”

Melchert lives on the border of Minneapolis and St. Paul near Lake Street.

In 2021, violent crime in the Twin Cities has risen by 21% since 2020. Forms of violent crime like homicide and rob bery have seen a dramat ic increase.

Minneapolis has one of the largest increased numbers of homicides in the nation.

“It is very important that the police provide a better and safe communi ty for all of us,” Melchert said.

The police force has said that they have lost a third of their officers due to the unrest following

George Floyd in 2020. Burnout on the force has been cited as the main reason officers are seek ing a change.

Minneapolis is trying to recruit more officers to fill the empty roles in the police force.

There have been very mixed emotions towards the police in Minneap olis, with the murder of George Floyd causing public outcry and a gen eral disdain for the police.

Now, violence has in creased dramatically and people are having second thoughts on the necessity of police in Minneapolis.

“I think there is a huge divide between many different people,” Carlie Erdahl said, a resident of Southwest Minneapolis. “I think there is a lot of stigma behind police of ficers. Some of it is war ranted in my opinion, some of it is not,” she said.

Minneapolis is a rela tively diverse city with 37 percent of the city being part of the BIPOC com munity.

“As a person of color, as a woman, I really feel like I have to watch my back all the time,” Erdahl said.

Erdahl is an Asian

American woman who has lived in Minneapolis for over 20 years. She be lieves that there are cer tain areas of Minneapolis she chooses to avoid.

“I feel like for me, spe cifically, I have not been able to take advantage of all Minneapolis has to of fer,” she said.

“I think it is import ant to get the input of citizens and the residents who live here, because there are a lot of people who have strong opin ions. If you only listen to one side of the argument, or one group of people, you are not getting the full picture,” Erdahl add ed.

Brian O’Hara hopes to reunite the people of Minneapolis and stop the rapid increase in crime. Many citizens are hoping that O’Hara will take all of the people’s feedback and advice instead of just asking one group of citi zens and only getting one opinion.

The people of Minne apolis are hoping for a new police chief who will unite the people togeth er, stop the rise in crime, and take all citizens into consideration.

Many are wondering if Brian O’Hara will be the one to do it.

NEW CHIEF. O’Hara transfered from his previous station in Newark, New Jersey, after the Minneapolis Chief of Police departed.

PHOTO: Department of Newark Public Safety

THE POLICE NEED TO BE ABLE TO INSTATE SOME NEW ACTIONS TO REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF VIOLENCE. Josh Melchert

“

MAPPING THE METEOR. The crash site was discovered at the edge of Washington County along the Mississippi River on the south end of Inver Grove Heights.

NEWS PHOTO OF THE MONTH

Learn more about the LYBD event at the National Organization For Women

“We are still here.” Speakers emphasize indigenous life today

THOMAS CHEN STAFF WRITER

Indigenous People’s day, a tradition that cele brates the presence of in digenous people around the world, was celebrated Oct. 10 on campus with an assembly.

Keynote speaker Sarah Wheelock is the first In digenous woman to serve on the Minnesota Court of Appeals.

She was appointed to court on Dec. 1, 2021, by Governor Tim Waltz and assumed office on Jan. 10, 2022. She is currently the only Indigenous person in her court.

Sophomores Angel Sia and Julia Taylor opened the event; they spoke about their own connec tions to indigenous roots, sharing photos, popular foods, and getting the au dience engaged by teach ing a few words in their native languages.

“After a few classes about a dark, sad, and unfortunate native histo ry, you’re on to the next. Do you see why there’s a problem with that? A problem with ending our Native American histo ry with death and defeat while people like Angel and I are still living,” Tay lor said at the beginning of the presentation.

She continued: “After recognizing the genocide of our people... we will recognize the traditions and culture we still prac tice today.”

This message set the tone for the assembly as the sophomores and Judge Wheelock empha sized the presence of In digenous people in mod ern-day America.

Julia introduced powwows, cultural gatherings of Indigenous people involving feasting, danc ing, music, and other fes tivities. Some are more formal with regalia, and some more casual. Powwows take place in many places, from school gym to outdoors.

FROM

NATIVE TRUTHS. Speaker Sarah Wheelock answers questions asked by Maya Coates Cush and Milkii Tigro during the Indigenous People’s Day assembly Oct. 10. Judge Wheelock said, “Part of moving society toward a place where we have a better understanding and respect for all people is knowing that it is our individual responsibility to learn, to ask questions, and to choose to be respectful.” Wheelock is the first Indigenous judge in the Minnesota Court of Appeals.

The next slide showed Taylor in a Jingle Dress her Tia made by hand that she wore to a PowWow. “You can basically come in with whatever clothes you’re wearing, but as long as you are together as a communi ty, that’s what makes it a pow-wow,” she said. She also showed Native bar rettes she was wearing.

Sia talked about the food of the Yupik tribe. Yupik food involves a lot of fish, and Yupik people eat almost every part of the animal.

Both shared words from their languages. Sia asked everyone to re cite the Yupik alphabet and taught short phras es “Waqaa!” (Wah-Kah), meaning “Hello!” and “Cangaachit?” (Jung-ahchit), meaning “How are you?”

Taylor told a story about how the term “Nanaboozhoo” meaning “Hello” in Ojibwe, was created. She also taught some other short phrases.

Indigenous Peoples Day is a day to respect

Native Americans and their resilience and con tributions to American Society. Ever since Eu ropeans touched foot in America, Native Ameri cans have faced assimila tion, discrimination, and genocide spanning gen erations. Columbus Day, a federal holiday since 1922, has been adapted to IDP in many states, in cluding Minnesota since the first Minnesota cel ebration in 2016; then, Gov. Tim Walz made it official in 2019 and signs the proclamation every year.

Sia, a Yupik native who grew up in a small town in Alaska, has been celebrating Indigenous Peoples’ Day for as long as she can remember. She said, “Columbus Day was not a thing.”

at

be more communication between those systems.”

She shared that this was a personal matter because her cousin went missing in 2014, and they are still searching for her.

As native women, she and others are much more likely to experi ence things such as early death, diabetes, heart dis ease, and many crimes. Some of those are sexual assault, rape, and murder.

Judge Wheelock believes that all levels of the gov ernment must work to gether to solve this issue and that the government must spread more infor mation about missing or harmed people more quickly.

One question Tigro asked was “What do you want the SPA communi ty to take away from this assembly?”

pects of his native culture with pop culture.

TARYN KARASTI STAFF WRITER

Taylor, mixed partly with Seminole, Creek, and Ojibwe ancestry, said, “It’s just really sad what happened, and what he was...isn’t something to be celebrated.”

Indigenous Peoples’ Day provides an alterna tive view from Columbus Day. Columbus arrived on Caribbean islands and explored the Central and South American coasts but never reached North America. He implement ed forced labor policies in the Americas, putting Natives to work for profit. That was just one of the many troubles brought to Indigenous people.

Wheelock opened her time by reiterating that the day is about native culture today. She shared some of Supaman’s mu sic, which combines as

online

Senior Quenby Wilson, group leader for Action for Gender Equality said they are focusing on the protest policy this fall.

AGE believes the policy is in need of reconsideration because there are many restrictions that make it difficult for stu dents to organize their own protests.

“There [has] been a rise in youth protests,” they said. “Very recently with the overturning of Roe v Wade and just with students led social justice becoming a more normalized part of our political sphere.”

Throughout her pre sentation, Judge Whee lock encouraged every one to be curious about Indigenous topics and do their research. She introduced many books, authors, and resources to learn more about Indige nous people and history.

From there, she moved to a Q&A session facilitat ed by seniors Maya Coates Cush and Milkii Tigro, who asked questions on behalf of Intercultural Club. These were collect ed from the student body prior to the assembly.

These questions en compassed her position as a judge, native culture, and the issues Indigenous people face.

Coates Cush asked, “In what ways could or do tribal and legal systems work together to reduce crimes against Native women?”

Judge Wheelock said, “I think that one of the problems is that they don’t work together very well. And, there should

In response, Judge Wheelock said, “Part of moving society toward a place where we have a better understanding and respect for all people is knowing that it is our individual responsibility to learn, to ask questions, and to choose to be re spectful.”

She shared that there are many instances of people making disre spectful comments.

“You wouldn’t believe that things like this still happen today, but yes, people ask if they can touch my hair,” she said.

The first state to re name Columbus Day to Indigenous People’s Day was South Dakwwota. Last year Biden was the first president to recog nize it officially. However, it is yet to become a feder al holiday.

Following the in terview, the assembly wrapped up. Resources were shared with faculty, including the slideshow Wheelock presented, and a number of the books she recommended are on display and available for check out in the library.

Ian leaves destruction on Florida coast

MIA COLLINS STAFF WRITER

Hurricane Ian struck the coast Sept. 10 with record breaking wind speeds of up to 200 mph in one of the worst hurricanes to make landfall in the past decade. A month later, clean up continues.

SUBMITTED PHOTO: Naomi Taylor

Genderbased groups get active in social change

... AFTER RECOGNIZING THE GENOCIDE OF OUR PEOPLE... WE WILL RECOGNIZE THE TRADITIONS AND CULTURE WE STILL PRACTICE TODAY.

Julia Taylor

“

FLICKR

Florida Fish and Wildlife

QUENBY WILSON,

for Gender Equality

MISSION

Maddy Fisher Catherine Hooley Orion Kim

Hazel Waltenbaugh Claire Kim Johanna Pierach Annie Bai Annie Zhang Eliza Farley Georgia Ross Milkii Tigro McKinley Garner Grace Medrano

Tommy Verhey Ali Browne Ivy Raya

Eliana Mann Davan Rosen Alexandra Cardwell Mariam Malik Rita Li Siri Pattison Clara McKoy Zadie Martin Nelson Wodarz Ivy Raya Alison Mitchell Marius Elias Morse

WRITERS

Encourage independence as a skill teenagers need before reaching adulthood

EDITORIAL THE RUBICON STAFF

Going out to sports games with friends, attending dances that go into the night, and becoming closer with peers; these are the moments in high school to be cher ished. But to participate in these activities, a bit of permission from parents is first needed.

High school is a time for teenagers to grow and slowly transition to becoming adults. What comes with that is an increased amount of freedom as each individual matures and becomes more responsible. However, as the years have progressed, stu dents have been faced with limited opportunities to exercise independence and re sponsibility. According to a survey done by Slate with over 6000 respondents, “The shift in going out after dark is especially dramatic. Earlier cohorts were allowed out at night in middle school, but by the 1990s the norm [was] solidly high school.” The main issue isn’t that it has become less safe; parents have instead grown to be more overprotective.

Withdrawing freedom creates no benefits beyond a parent’s peace of mind and only leads to a lack of self-management skills in the future. Without prior life expe riences to guide them, individuals will be sucked into the real world and its chal lenges when approaching the age of becoming an adult. An individual’s teen years serves as a time to make mistakes and to learn from them without having to face too harsh of repercussions. But as an adult, the con sequences grow to become more severe and the margin of error to make mistakes dwindles.

By restricting teenagers’ sense of self control in their own lives and adding unnecessary rules, it only ensures a path of bad deci sions when they become of age. It is a natural instinct when telling someone to not do a particular action, that an urge will be created to do that particular action. As Anthony Bouchard, senior writer for LabRoots states, “The behavior is purely psychological and is known as reactance, which is a type of mechanism where our brain wants to ensure that we’re free to do whatever it is that we want to do with our own lives.” When combining that with a long list of “do not” rules, teens are more likely to break those rules set by their parents the moment they become an adult.

It is noted that parents want to protect their children and may not realize the negative tolls it may take in the future, which is why it is perfectly okay to want more freedom. There is nothing wrong with sitting down with parents and asking to be more independent; and as a result, having the right amount of freedom leads to mental health benefits.

“Many studies show people with a greater sense of self-determination are emo tionally more stable, more likely to have good health, happier and more likely to have better social relationships,” Kirrilie Smout, clinical psychologist and director of Developing Minds said.

However, not all parents are understanding regarding this issue and may in turn, deny a teen’s request for more freedom. Instead, teens can create their own opportunities to be independent and encourage parents to grant them more free dom. Even doing something as simple as independently caring for a pet, cleaning a bedroom, or helping around the house can demonstrate a student’s maturity and responsibility. Although parents may believe adding restrictions to their students’ lives protects them from the real world, it is crucial to take action and learn from mistakes before it’s too late.

an opportunity to demonstrate independence and self-management skills.

EDITORIAL CARTOON: Annika Kim

of the staff agree100%

WITHDRAWING FREEDOM CREATES NO BENEFITS BEYOND A PARENT’S PEACE OF MIND AND ONLY LEADS TO A LACK OF SELF-MANAGEMENT SKILLS IN THE FUTURE.

Environmental crises are global: think outside the United States

MILKII TIGRO THE RUBICON

Climate catastrophes are nothing new on Earth, especially in the 21st century. Whether people believe in climate change or not, many countries are suffering from climate disasters and it’s not getting any better.

In the past month, there have been a series of hurricanes located in the southeast part of the US. This has been a dev astating event, as many people have lost their homes, were injured, or lost a sustainable place to live. We are all aware of Hurricane Ian and the damage it has caused, and states across the country have been making an effort to help their families who are affected. Although it is currently hurricane sea son, due to sea level rises, hurricanes have gotten more extreme and more dangerous. This all shows that we have enough support and resources to overcome this climate ca tastrophe solely because this climate catastrophe is occurring in the US.

However not many people know or acknowl edge the climate crisis and environmental injus tice that is occurring in other countries, especial ly third-world countries.

For example, there is an ongoing environmen tal crisis in Haiti and that has been difficult to deal with because of a lack of resources. According to the World Bank, Haiti has lost 98% of their for est from a series of hurri canes and lack of protec tion from it. Countries in the Caribbean such as Haiti and the Domin ican Republic often get hurricanes because they are located around the hurricane belt and suffer from global warming and rising sea levels. However unlike other Caribbean countries such as the Do minican Republic, Haiti has little to no resources to deal with the climate crisis and along with that, they have to deal with an extreme humanitarian crisis, as there is a huge population in the coun try.

Additionally, Haiti is vulnerable to hurricanes and huge storms at the

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT. Droughts in Somalia have had a detrimental effect on the land, people and economy. To provide resources and spread awareness for countries that are particularly affected by issues of climate change, the first step is starting discussions about environmental crises that are outside of the United States.

same time they deal with dry temperatures, all of which are difficult for agriculture and the economy. Haiti is still af fected by hurricanes that happened in the past and have had a hard time re covering from them. In 2010, there was an earth quake that killed 250,000 people and ended up costing 120% of Haiti’s GDP, and in 2016 Hurri cane Matthew damaged

one-third of Haiti’s GDP.

Meanwhile Somalia, located in the Horn of Africa, has been suffering from extreme droughts. This is a huge issue be cause the majority of Somalis are pastoralists which means they are de pendent on water to raise and sustain healthy live stock. According to the Climate Change Knowl edge Portal, agriculture contributes to 65% of

Diverse political discussions are necessary to change minds

Somalia’s GDP and em ployment in 2017. Water scarcity has resulted in a tension and competition between Somali pastoral ists that leads to political conflict and harsh living conditions.

Bringing attention to issues happening in these countries can have a great impact. It may not instantly solve both the humanitarian and cli mate catastrophes, but it

does bring attention and aid to the countries that need it more. Engaging in discussions about climate crises outside of the Unit ed States can contribute to an increased aware ness, and therefore bring change to other countries through activism. It takes all hands on deck to help each other deal with cli mate change.

GRACE MEDRANO THE RUBICON

SPA is a liberal school. That’s a point of pride with in the community. Within these walls, identity is something embraced and re spected, whether that be race, gender, or sexuality. SPA clearly works to be a safe space, with discussions about equity and inclusion. In addition, the curriculum it self draws the attention of families seeking the best for their children. Private schools tend to be more popular with liberal families due to the possibility of more child-centric learning and close student-teacher relationships. With so many liberal families flocking towards SPA and its student-focused learning style, it creates a very liberal left-wing environment.

While the liberal political environment potentially allows students who are members of minority groups to feel safer, especially when in the United States, stu

dents of color tend to feel unsafe at school, the aggres sive liberalism of SPA has one fault: there is no room for political discourse. Every two years in November, elections happen. And with elections comes the polit ical buzz of who’s running and who should be voted for, which can raise the emotions that come with such a politically charged environment.

For example, whilst the 46th President Joe Biden won the election in 2020, there was a lot of talk and hatred towards the idea that former President Donald Trump could be re-elected. This caused tension and there was no safe way to express support for Donald Trump due to the risk of ostracization. While there is logical reasoning for why Trump should not have been re-elected, it’s essential that in a school, there is room for discourse, conversation and open-minded ness. The only way to truly change minds and create a more open-minded country is to listen to each other when it comes to political views.

Increasing political discussion could help students gain a better point of view, which could help with their political correctness: with listening comes un derstanding. Understanding the other side of the argu ment can allow one to become a much better debater and actually help in swaying the discussion one way or another. It would also allow students to broaden

their political horizons, creating more interesting dis cussion possibilities.

This is not to say that harmful opinions should be endorsed or even permitted. Anything that under mines or hurts a group of people is wrong and should not be allowed. But listening to different political opinions can be beneficial. SPA needs to facilitate dis cussions about politics that don’t take one side. Politi cal discourse should not be taboo, but it takes willing ness to hear others out to change it.

PUBLICATIONS POLICIES

PUBLICATION INFO The Rubicon is published eight times a year. We distribute 750 copies of each issue to the Upper School which are available for free.

ADVERTISING The Rubicon does not accept advertisements.

ANONYMOUS SOURCES Although it is always preferable to use names when reporting, there are times when it is necessary to protect those we report

on. In the case of a student, the use of grade level as a name designation (i.e. Sophomore Student) will be the preferred method of anonymity.

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FINDING A FACTOR. Different families seek different aspects of schools. However, in liberal schools like SPA, a lack of political diversity can lead to stigma against certain groups and discussions.

... IT’S ESSENTIAL THAT IN A SCHOOL, THERE IS ROOM FOR DISCOURSE, CONVERSATION, AND OPEN-MINDEDNESS. Grace Medrano

“

FLICKR CC: UNICEF Ethiopia Mulugeta Ayene

ILLUSTRATION: Claire Kim

Engaging in consumerism requires awareness of its consequences

consumerism, there are still solutions. Within the realm of consumerism, one of the largest contrib utors to climate change is fast shipping. Custom ers ultimately want to receive their products as soon as possible. Conse quently, companies need to meet consumer’s re quests in order to com pete with their counter parts.

While fast delivery is appealing, heavy consum ers should prioritize the environment over their own short-term satisfac tion. It only takes custom ers a few clicks to find out whether a corporation uses sustainable means to produce and distribute their products. Although ethical consumerism is better than nothing, the most effective way to avoid consumerism is to hold back from it all to gether. Customers should try to limit the amount of products they purchase that are non-essential.

PHILOSOPHICALLY SPEAKING

CATHERINE HOOLEY PICKS APART IDEAS, PROFOUND AND INANE

Is life easy or hard?

CATHERINE HOOLEY MANAGING EDITOR

Life is hard. From a young age, we are taught that we will go to school for 12 years. Some will move on to four more years of education because they have been taught that it is the only way to succeed. Then, we will get a job, preferably one with high social status. This job must make enough money for us to provide for ourselves. We must be able to buy food, have shelter and transportation and possibly support a family. And then, someday, we must look back on our lives and be proud of what we achieved: it’s a lot.

According to The American Institute of Stress, 33% of Americans report feeling extreme stress, and 77% report that stress impacts their mental health. The leading causes of stress in America are money, work, the economy, family, relationships; the list goes on.

ORION KIM CHIEF VISUAL EDITOR

Consumerism is a dominant force in dai ly life and people need to be aware of the psy chological influences that materialistic value can have on their men tal health. Additionally, consumerism extends beyond customers, influ encing prevalent social issues.

Consumerism is an ideology that is fueled by a mutual relationship be tween corporations and customers. While pro duction and consump tion accelerate economic growth, they can have adverse effects on society.

While people natural ly desire more and more tangible profit, it doesn’t necessarily correlate to happiness. According to an article by the Ameri can Psychological Asso ciation, “compared with Americans in 1957, today we own twice as many cars per person, eat out twice as often and enjoy endless other commodi

ties that weren’t around then.”

Despite all these ben efits, the emotional re sults can have inverse implications. According to a study published by the Yale University Press, “Our becoming much better off over the last four decades has not been accompanied by one iota of increased subjective well-being.” Essentially, materialism accentuates individualism and self ishness rather than hap piness.

In the modern world, it’s almost impossible to avoid buying into consumerism. Howev er, there are many small actions that can prevent further damage. Along with raised awareness, large producers have been making efforts to be more socially ethical.

According to The Good Trade, “Brands are start ing to display their cre dentials on products and marketing materials so that buyers concerned about these issues can make more informed

ethical purchases.” These ethicalities include an array of prevalent real world issues.

Among the list of con sumerism faux pas is the harm it causes the envi ronment. According to an article published by the Columbia Climate School, “the produc tion and use of house hold goods and services was responsible for 60 percent of global green house gas emissions.”

Although detriments to the environment might seem synonymous with

Another social issue, poor working conditions in third world countries, provides yet another rea son for consumers to take a step back. Sweatshops, which are factories that violate multiple labor laws, have been under fire in recent headlines. While the simple solu tion might seem to avoid purchasing from compa nies that rely on labor, this won’t necessarily help workers.

According to a study performed by the Cam bridge University Press, the most ethical con sumer must purchase a product produced by a corporation that uses sweatshop labor, and then compensate for the fair wage amount. If sweatshops were to go out of business, their workers would have no way of making money. Thus, consumers should support the workers themselves.

To be an ethical con sumer requires three things: setting limita tions, raising awareness and taking action. In to day’s world, it’s easy to buy more for shrinking prices with hopes of gain ing social status. Consum ers are faced with a deci sion between ethicality and momentary gratifi cation. The more difficult path, however, happens to be the correct one.

If so many people are stressed, then it is reasonable to assume that life is hard. But, technically, life is just the existence of an individual. In that sense, life is not hard. Notice that sleeping or breathing in oxygen are not leading causes of stress. Existing takes practically no effort for humans, so what makes life so complicat ed and stressful when it is so inherently easy?

As we have become more technologically advanced as a society, the idea is that we are making life easi er for ourselves. People no longer have to hunt and gather for food, shelter provides heating and cooling systems and it has become much easier to stay alive. These developments directly make life easier for hu mans. But while staying alive may have become easier, day-to-day life has become much more complex with the addition of societal norms and expectations.

Since it has become easier to survive, humans have been able to put their focus on more personal goals. These goals come with pressure, competition and stress to succeed. This paired with the extremely high prices of living, creates a stressful environment that is easy to keep up with. For example, the average American household spends about $4,500 per month on housing, transportation, taxes, food and healthcare.

On top of that, there are social and cultural pres sures on what people should do with their life. Even if a person is able to survive, there is pressure to live a prosperous life. This could include higher education, a healthy lifestyle, romantic relationships and more. The pressure to feel like one is exceeding expectations and being successful is enormous, even though success is objective. Society has created a standard of living that can be unattainable for many to reach.

So, even if the concept of staying alive is easy, the standards and pressure humans have put on them selves to succeed make life increasingly difficult.

WITH LIFE BY THE NUMBERS

of U.S. adults sometimes feel too busy to enjoy life

of employed Americans feel technology has made their work more demanding

teens face high pressure to do well in school

CROSSING CONSUMERISM. With the scale of online shopping constantly increasing, it’s become more and more difficult to avoid making unethical purchases. However, social movements to protest things like fast fashion have also grown, acting to spread aware ness of the harmful aspects of consumerism.

ILLUSTRATION: Orion Kim

DESPITE ALL THESE BENEFITS, THE EMOTIONAL RESULTS [OF CONSUMERISM] CAN HAVE INVERSE IMPLICATIONS. Orion Kim

“

WHAT GOES INTO A POLITICAL CAMPAIGN?

On the trail: key aspects of the election process

MADDY FISHER EDITOR IN CHIEF

November: falling leaves, pumpkin pie, apple crisp… and political campaign ing. At this time of year, electoral messaging can be found everywhere. Though the countless text messages, calls, and lawn signs may appear the same ev ery election, there’s a lot of work that goes into each campaign.

The word “campaign” wasn’t recorded in a political sense until the mid-18th cen tury; according to Merriam-Webster, the term’s first citation appeared in The Daily Gazetteer on Feb. 2, 1739. Originating from the Latin word for “level country,” “campaign” was a military term long before it became a politi cal one. “Campaign trail” didn’t even enter vocabulary until the late

Candidates attempting to appeal to voters has been an essential aspect of political society since the first recorded elections. Though campaigns to day vary widely in size, strategy, and objective, many of the key elements of self-advertisement have remained constant across history. For example, candi dates must distinguish their platforms and figure out the differences between them and their opponents. Identifying and consolidating a voter base is another

SPA parent Robert Richman has been working in electoral politics since 1988. Richman helped found Grassroots Solutions, a political campaign consultancy. “Imagine you’re creating a multimillion-dollar small business. You’re conceiving it, you’re building it, and then you’re tearing it down, all within about 18 months. That’s ultimately what a campaign ends up being,” Richman said. “It starts from this sort of tiny group of people sitting around a table saying ‘Okay, what are we going to do?’ By election day, depending on the race, there are tens to hundreds to thousands of people who are out

Though campaigns are run on a multitude of scales, Richman identified some key com ponents of the process, the first of which was fundraising. “If you can’t raise the money, you can’t do anything. You can’t send mailings. You can’t run television ads, you can’t hire people, and you can’t pay for literature, lawn signs,” he said. “Money is unfortunately a The second element Richman mentioned was organizing, also known as fieldwork. Organizing refers to direct voter con tact such as door knocking, phone calls, and text messages, which often involve recruit

Research and communications were other aspects he noted as essential. “Re search is a big component of campaigns, researching policy positions and issues but also doing opposition research so you understand what your opponent is for and against and what they’ve done in their past,” Richman said. “Communications and media work is another, talking to the press and doing social media and running advertising.”

STEP-BY-STEP: THE BASICS OF A CAMPAIGN

Assemble a campaign staff.

This could include roles such as a manager, a finance director, a press secretary, a field director, a campaign treasurer, and a volunteer coordinator.

Build a strategy.

Every campaign needs to be managed effectively. This can include logistics like goal-setting, marketing, and scheduling.

Communicate the message.

This includes building a communications strategy to spread the candidate’s platform. Messaging works best when the platform is simple, consistent, and strong.

Senior Maya Sachs spent about two months over the summer working for VoteRunLead, an organization that trains women to run for office. Sachs worked one-on-one with candidates running for state legislative positions, advising them on how to run their campaigns and answering questions. “It was slightly intimidating because I am a high school student and I have not run a political campaign. And I didn’t necessarily have all the answers because I didn’t have that previous experience,” Sachs said.

Despite these anxieties, Sachs really enjoyed her work. “It was extremely empowering because I was able to help a lot of women,” she said. “I learned a ton and I was able to help because I gained a lot of knowledge about running a campaign.”

Like Sachs, senior Hannah Brass is also involved in Minnesota politics. Brass works as a director of the DFL’s Senate District 33, which assists with campaigning and outreach within the community. “Basically that means that I’m a member of the Democratic Party, and that I help organize events,” they said.

Brass feels that this experience has given them a better appreciation for the mechanics of political campaigns. She also values the expression her work for the DFL allows her. “Even though I can’t vote because I’m only 17, I can still help out with politics. Because I’ve joined the DFL, I’ve been able to have a voice,” they said.

As far as what makes a campaign successful, Richman suggested that identity and cohesion can play a significant role. “I have worked on campaigns that were really well-run and lost and I’ve worked on campaigns that were really poorly run and won [...]. I think the best campaigns have a candidate who knows who they are and what they’re trying to say and has a sort of center, so that the campaign is grounded in who they are and why they’re running,” he said. “The campaign should be a reflection of that candidate and there should be a consistency in how that’s done.”

INFORMATION:

Online

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION: Johanna Pierach (posters from campaign websites)

I WAS ABLE TO HELP BECAUSE I GAINED A LOT OF KNOWLEDGE ABOUT RUNNING A CAMPAIGN

Maya Sachs

“

Building new and breaking

What are bad habits? How do you break them?

CATHERINE HOOLEY THE RUBICON

Bad habits can easily take over a person’s life. If they were easy to quit, few people would choose to continue to practice them, but that is not the case a majority of the time. For example, a study by the CDC stated that 55.1% of adult smokers tried to quit in 2018, but only 7.5% succeeded.

Another study from the CDC showed that 72.7% of high school students get less sleep than the recom mended amount they should. This bad habit is not only exclusive to adults. “I don’t get enough sleep - I might get like 6-7 hours per night. I haven’t been able to fix my sleep schedule yet. Ideally, I would like to sleep more, though,” junior Max Cooper said. Sleep schedules are something that many students struggle with because of an overload of homework and stress.

According to a study from Jama Pediatrics, teens are averaging about eight hours of screen time a day, but the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends a maximum of two hours. Teens may not identify this technology usage as a bad habit, but it has been prov en to be extremely harmful to be on screens too much.

Another habit that adults and teens struggle with is time management. “I’m bad at managing my time. I tried to use a planner once, but it didn’t really pan out,” junior Amalia Laguna said. A study from Time watch showed that 88% of workers do not have a ded icated time management system, even though about 90% agreed it would help reduce stress and increase time management.

Bad habits can be more of a personal goal for peo ple, as well. “I bite my nails. My mom tried to get me to quit when I was little. She put cayenne pepper on my nails because, in Turkey, people believe that the nails bunch together in your stomach and become a

monster that rips out of your stomach and kills you if you bite them too much. And that still didn’t work,” senior Dylan Tan said. Even with a serious reason to break a bad habit, like a monster, it can be impossible to quit. If these habits are harmful to humans, why do people continue to practice them?

Habits can form through repetition, which is help ful when it comes to good habits, but habits can also form when events trigger the brain’s reward system. This happens when people experience something en joyable that makes them feel good. This is where so

it is still achievable to break bad habits.

The first step is to set a goal. It doesn’t have to be anything crazy. In fact, smaller goals are proven to be more motivational and useful. Find a goal that seems attainable, and find motivation. It is important to have a reason to change so that inspiration is ready to go in times of weakness.

A habit has three components: a cue, a behavior, and a reward. It is important to recognize the context in which a habit is acted on. For example, waking up in the morning and scrolling through social media. The cue is waking up. Or deciding to take a nap in stead of work when getting home from school. The cue would be lying in bed.

Another step is to set oneself up in situations that will benefit them. While working on time manage ment, don’t choose an environment that is distracting. When trying to be on screens less, try to put the phone in another room and find another way to occupy the time. The environment and people that surround an individual can play a large role in their success.

many harmful habits come into play. Drug abuse, sug ar intake, media consumption, and procrastinating are all examples of habits that give people instant gratifi cation. Once the brain experiences this gratification, it releases dopamine. Dopamine, in this instance, makes the desire to continue an unhealthy habit stronger.

Habits are ingrained into the brain to the point that they are automatic processes, and most bad habits are fueled by dopamine which can make quitting even harder. But even though the process may be daunting,

This goes hand in hand with another suggestion, replace a bad habit with a good one. Missing a hab it will be lessened when something else is occupying the time. When trying to work on time management, don’t just let go of a dysfunctional routine; create a new one.

Lastly, find support. Finding people to hold an in dividual accountable is one of the most helpful things that can be done. Motivation isn’t always constant, and that’s okay, but that’s also why having a support system is so important.

How do you form new patterns of behavior?

JOHANNA PIERACH THE RUBICON

A more successful, fulfilling lifestyle can be credited, in part, to healthy habits. Through a series of simple steps, one can learn how to es tablish these habits, make them stick, and then ap ply them to virtually all areas of life.

According to News in Health, the National In stitutes of Health news letter, one must first iden tify the habit one would like to modify or estab lish. They must think about why this new habit would better their life style. Sophomore Mad elyn Moser found the habit of taking breaks to manage her homework load more efficiently.

“Sometimes you need to acknowledge that your brain needs a break and you need to social ize with friends as a way to be more productive when you do homework,” Moser said.

Freshman Lily Cur

rie established a physical activity pattern at the beginning of the school year when she noticed that she wasn’t using her time most efficiently.

“I was getting home and I just didn’t have much to do. And I was feeling very unproduc tive, just kind of sitting on my phone a lot,” Cur rie said. “I needed to do something… and so I started working out.”

Sophomore Raven Glaser also incorporated more physical activity into their routine with more frequent walks around their neighbor hood, which they began doing after a European trip.

“When I came to the US, I was like, ‘Oh, I don’t have to drive everywhere. Like it’s not as far as it seems sometimes,” Glaser said. “Sometimes it’s okay to walk for 20 minutes, even if it’s quicker to just drive.”

After deciding which habit to establish, the

next step is to outline small, reasonable goals and plan specific actions to help this new habit be come routine. For Moser, working on assignments at school was one way she decreased her overall workload.

The key between so cializing with friends and setting aside time to do homework was “...figur ing out a good balance of those two,” she said.

Moser has also estab lished a system of first finishing assignments from her favorite classes, which increases her over all efficiency.

“Whatever [home work] I feel like doing, I let myself do because I struggle with motiva tion,” she said.

It is important to re member that success is not guaranteed right away, and baby steps may be necessary. Planning for possible challenges is also crucial to ensure preparedness. A way of doing that is by modify

ing one’s surroundings or routines. Currie has developed a trick for days that are tougher motiva tionally.

peer mentors from ninth grade for helping her es tablish better homework habits and advising her on time management.

I JUST DIDN’T HAVE MUCH TO DO. AND I WAS FEELING VERY UNPRODUCTIVE, JUST KIND OF SITTING ON MY PHONE A LOT. I NEEDED TO DO SOMETHING...AND SO I STARTED WORKING OUT.

Lily Currie

“Usually, I don’t look at my phone when I get home. I go upstairs, I change, and then I just immediately start. Be cause if I start thinking about it too much, then I don’t want to do it,” they said.

Forming new habits may also become more manageable through the involvement and encour agement of friends and family. Moser credits her

Through establishing a new habit, one must stay on track even through obstacles and avoid “de lay discounting,” which is the act of discounting the more significant benefits of achieving a goal for the rush of instant grati fication. When the road becomes mentally tough, one should try to re member what prompted them to start in the first place and visualize fu

ture benefits. For Moser, establishing the habit of knowing when to take a break seems to have been worth it.

“I end up getting more work done if I allow my self to take a break. I’m more productive when I need to be and I work well under a little bit of pressure if I know that I need to get this done,” she said.

Currie also correlates their new habit of consis tent physical activity with an increased academic fo cus. “I think mentally, it’s been a lot easier to start doing my homework af ter [working out] or to start studying,” they said.

In the scope of broader achievements, it is equal ly important to celebrate the more minor victories along the way and be pa tient throughout the pro cess. Progress is the key, not perfection.

MY MOM TRIED TO GET ME TO QUIT WHEN I WAS LITTLE. SHE PUT CAYENNE PEPPER ON MY NAILS...AND THAT STILL DIDN’T WORK.

Dylan Tan Stephenson

“

breaking bad

AT A CROSSROADS. Routine is a key aspect of daily life. Junior Amalia Laguna said she views poor time management as a bad habit: “I tried to use a planner one time but it didn’t really pan out,” Laguna said. Understanding the difference between good and bad habits can be essential a successful lifestyle.

ILLUSTRATION: Orion Kim

What makes a routine valuable?

HAZEL WALTENBAUGH THE RUBICON

Habits and daily rou tines are what humans spend the majority of their time on, so it is important that those de faults are productive in terms of one’s goals. They differ from person to per son, often depending on how we were raised or the environments we are sur rounded by. Regardless, habits define lifestyles, and lifestyles define longterm success.

It can be easy, espe cially when life gets busy, to turn on auto-pilot and not question those routines. However, ques tioning is important for self-reflection, and self-re flection is an essential pathway towards growth.

An individual’s neigh borhood, the school they attend, their cultural background, the pets they may have, or any other category they may fall

into, can influence habits. Those who live in walk ing cities, tend to walk more. Those who live in driving cities and don’t have access to sidewalks in their neighborhoods, don’t tend to walk as much. While motivation and self-discipline are im portant when it comes to changing habits, environ ments also play a huge role in what individuals may be limited to.

Success may be de fined in many different ways whether that be ac

lack of concentration and ability to retain informa tion, lowering test scores and grades. According to The Journal of Eco nomics, students who eat breakfast in the mornings received scores that were 25% higher than those who did not eat. Further more, children who don’t eat breakfast regularly have higher chances of developing both physical and mental health issues.

So, getting enough sleep and eating breakfast regularly can improve

habits commonly practiced by teenagers include procrastinating, inconsistent sleeping, lack of responsibility, bad hygiene, talking back, poor diets and habitual lying.

of teenagers aged 16-19 spend excessive amounts of time on their screens.

ademic success, sufficient relationships with our families, financial suc cess, or an overall state of happiness. Regardless, habits play a huge role in how we get there.

Looking at sleeping habits for example: lack of sleep lowers alertness and concentration in the brain. The American Academy of Sleep Med icine has conducted re search that correlates a lack of sleep to a decrease in test scores among col lege students. So, poor sleeping habits can de crease students’ success rates on neurological lev els. The same correlation can be done with eating habits: students who don’t eat breakfast in the morning share a similar

HABITS

BY THE NUMBERS

54%

rates of academic success, as well as overall physical and mental well-being. Tangible habits such as sleep, diet, organization, and cleanliness of our spaces, are important fac tors and are often pretty well known. We know sleep is important. What is often overlooked, are the intangible habits: how we communicate, how we deal with chal lenges, and how we per ceive the world.

Communication hab its can include manners and communication styles, but they can also include the responses we have trained our brains to have. In other words: communication between the brain and the world around us. According to

the New York Times, the ability to adapt routines depending on how the world around us func tions is a habit of highly successful people. Rather than being stuck frustrat ed and upset, learning to accept and move around challenges quickly pro vides a more productive and successful outcome. Similar to mindset, the way individuals perceive the world can have a det rimental impact on suc cess. Those who have neg ative associations with school or their career, for example, are going to spend more time waiting for 3:00 o’clock to roll around rather than find ing passion and meaning in their routines. Having a negative view of respon sibilities, money, and the surrounding world, in general, is going to create a life of dissatisfaction and unhappiness.

Almost any action or skill that is repeated could be considered a habit. Checking in with where time is dedicated, long as daily routines, the way spaces are kept, and the surrounding en vironment is necessary to locate areas that are restricting success. Over time, many small or seemingly unimportant habits can add up which can be a major contrib uting factor to limiting success. Keeping track of both habits as well as overall satisfaction, can draw correlations and help identify the things that hold us back.

of girls aged 15 across the world eat breakfast every day (the percentage for boys is 62%).

of teenagers switched to healthier habits after consulting the internet.

days on average for a new habit to become automatic.

“The secret to change is to focus all your energy NOT on fighting the old but on BUILDING the new.”

- Socrates

I DO MY HOMEWORK THE DAY IT IS ASSIGNED SO THINGS DON’T PILE UP. THAT WAY I FEEL MORE PRODUCTIVE. Greta Magnuson

“

Help Your Teen Now of teenagers aged 1215 did not meet the national guidelines for physical activity.

The Washington Post Teens on Mercer Island

Healthline

Healthline

Affinity group leaders walk through meeting plans

ANNIE BAI THE RUBICON

It’s natural to want to make friends, find a community, and to feel included as a part of a group. Affinity groups have weekly meetings that allow students to comfortably discuss their common experiences, hangout, and eat snacks. But what goes into plan ning these weekly meet ings?

Juniors Baasit Mah mood, Humza Murad, and Wafa Naqvi are co-leaders of the Muslim Student Alliance (MSA). Aside from the regular meetings during tutorial, they have separate week ly calls and meetings to plan activities for their group. “It’s a lot of send ing emails, organizing events, and just trying to think about what we can do to make our reg ular meetings more fun” Naqvi said.

It’s all about finding the balance between hav ing entertaining yet pro ductive meetings, “While we want meetings to

be fun and relaxing, we don’t want to waste peo ple’s time, which is why it’s important to build all

ning a food sale that will take place sometime in October or early Novem ber. “The funds collected [will] be donated to an organization to provide aid to the floods in Paki stan, something that has been going on for a few months now. The food would be from various regions such as Egypt, Ethiopia, Pakistan, etc in addition to some baked goods,” Mahmood said.

the relationships that we can.” Mahmood said.

MSA strives to create a space where students can talk and share back grounds to make the SPA Muslim community feel like a much closer unit.

“We also wanted to make it because there are a lot of Muslim students in the middle school, and we want those kids to have a place to go to once they do eventually make it to the upper school.” Naqvi said.

MSA is currently plan

The Black Student Al liance led by seniors Ma ya-Coates-Cush, Milkii Tigro, and Maya Ketena, also aims to plan celebra tions for Black History Month and Martin Lu ther King day. Although they don’t have many members, they hope to create a strong communi ty within the group. “We strive to create a space where black individu als can feel comfortable and confident expressing themselves in a predomi nantly white institution.” Coates-Cush said.

Aside from affinity groups based on race and ethnicity, SPA also

has the Love & Grace af finity group for adopted students run by junior Nora Shaughnessy. “We hope to foster an inclu sive and comfortable en vironment for adopted students’ growth, sharing, learning, and self-discov ery.” Shaughnessy said.

She wants the group to talk about life and to be low-key about it. “My main goal for the adoptee affinity group is to help guide and un derstand students to ask those serious questions without pausing and feel ing shame.”

There are difficulties when running a group without student co-lead ers, “You have to be ex tremely patient and flex ible with the people in your group. “Last year, we thought it would be best to share a specific time for everyone to come and meet, but we’ve soon re alized that people won’t be able to join that exact time due to meeting with teachers or catching up with homework, espe cially because the meet ing takes place during tutorial time on Fridays.” Shaughnessy said. Before

the year ends, Love & Grace will host a party with snacks and games for its members.

SPA has affinity groups for all students that are looking for a place to share common experi ences or simply to just have fun and eat snacks.

What elections mean to me: seniors cast a vote in the upcoming midterm

Imagine the experi ence of stepping into the ballot box for the first time to vote in the mid term election.

In these midterms, vot ers will determine who holds several positions at the federal, state, and lo cal levels. The minimum age requirement of 18 years means that some seniors will be eligible to vote this fall.

Election Day is Nov. 8; early voting began Sept. 23.

One senior who will be casting a ballot in the midterms is Roberto Velez. “...I think it is im portant to participate in elections in order to sup port what I believe in,” he said.

Although Velez hasn’t done much research, he is “excited” to be able to

vote and plans to look more into the candidates when he has the time.

In addition, Velez keeps up with current events by listening to the news.

Senior Tuco Dixon voted in the Primary Election on Aug. 9, his eighteenth birthday. The decision to vote came at the last minute: “I didn’t even know I was going to vote until like a week be fore,” he said.

Because of the August birthday, Dixon could vote before many of his friends. “I think I was one of the only ones who voted in the primary,” he said.

Dixon registered in person, which he claims only took about five min utes.

Velez recalled a similar experience registering for the primary: “It was pret

ty easy, although I work the elections, so I knew beforehand what I need ed,” he said.

Deciding which candi dates to vote for may feel like a big deal for some, but that wasn’t the case for Dixon. “I just voted for who my parents told me to vote for. Or if they didn’t tell me to vote for a specific person, just the name I thought sounded the funniest,” he said.

As a Democrat liv ing in a historically blue state, it felt like a safe bet he said.

“In Minnesota, it re ally does not matter. It’s not like, close or any thing. It’s going to be the same thing either way.”

Though one vote may seem small in the grand scheme of an election, Velez believes that, in some capacity, it is a ne cessity to keep the scales

balanced.

“...I do think [voting] is important because if we choose to abstain from elections, we let the extremes lead to political discussion,” he said.

To Dixon, these polit ical extremes are some times inevitable. “At a certain point, it doesn’t matter who votes.”

Senior Sila Liljedahl disagrees. Though she won’t be legally eligible to vote by midterms, Lil jedahl believes voting is important, especially for young people.

“I see voting as a big

responsibility, and I’m excited to be able to vote next year,” she said.

Though she partially views voting as over-em phasized in today’s soci ety, she still believes in the powers it can hold.

“I think sometimes voting can be [used as] an overplayed solution to deeply systematic so cial issues by some po litical groups. But I also think voting people into political offices who will work to change the sys tem causing those issues themselves is really nec essary, so I would say vot

ing is still really import ant,” Liljedahl said.

Senior Solvej Graff believes in the power of a single vote and the im portance of safeguarding this right.

“Absolutely, voting should be observed as a civic duty,” Graff said. “And so too is working to ensure that voting is pro tected and made widely accessible for all in the nation.”

Though she won’t be able to vote in the up coming midterms, Graff still encourages everyone who is able to make their voices heard for the sake of democracy.

..I THINK IT IS IMPORTANT TO PARTICIPATE IN ELECTIONS IN ORDER TO SUPPORT WHAT I BELIEVE IN.

Roberto Velez

“

COLLABORATORY COOKING. Asian Student Alliance and Muslim Student Alliance team up to host a potluck for its members. Foods including jiaozi, Ethiopian flatbread, and more were brought and cooked live for members to savor.

RUBICON PHOTO: Annie Bai

JOHANNA PIERACH THE RUBICON

WE HOPE TO FOSTER AN INCLUSIVE... COMFORTABLE ENVIRONMENT FOR ADOPTED STUDENTS. Nora Shaughnessy

“

vote in a Midterm MOCK ELECTION

Sila Liljedahl

VOTING IS A BIG RESPONSIBILITY. I’M EXCITED TO BE ABLE TO VOTE.

“

...VOTING SHOULD BE OBSERVED AS A CIVIC DUTY.

“ Solvej Graff

AT A CERTAIN POINT, IT DOESN’T MATTER WHO VOTES.

“

Tuco Dixon

SUPERSTITIONS

seep into everyday life

GEORGIA ROSS THE RUBICON

As Halloween rounds the corner and fall kicks in, spookiness and super stitions are everywhere. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, a superstition is an “exces sively credulous belief in and reverence for super natural beings.” One of the most prevalent super stitions in today’s time is knocking on wood to prevent disappointment. Some trace this practice back to the ancient reli gious belief of touching one’s crucifix when taking oath. Another surviving superstition is that those who cross paths with a black cat will have bad luck. Many believe that this roots from the Mid dle Ages when cats were associated with witch craft or a disguised witch itself; crossing paths with a black cat symbolized that the devil was watch ing. At SPA, students hold

WORK LIFE

various unique supersti tions: pre-sports games rituals, beliefs about their own animals, and luckycharm sweatshirts that bring success.

Sophomore Thom as Kovarik believes that

he’s always there watch ing, but sometimes Ko varik actually enjoys the company, “I feel like I can talk and be heard when nobody else is around… at the same time some times I just want to be left alone,” he said. Mi lo’s human-like presence makes Kovarik rethink everything he’s known: “I question everything now,” he said. Kovarik wants people to know that if they’re experienc ing similar odd feelings, “they can reach out to me and I can relate with them.”

believes that this pregame ritual brings good luck. Her coach urges her to come to the game prepared, and this extra step “makes [her] more nervous.” But ultimately, it’s “comforting”, “reassur ing”, and “makes me feel ready for the game,” Ryan Bradley said.

his dog, Milo, has a hu man consciousness and thoughts. He first started to notice things this year: “I feel that there’s anoth er presence in the room with me, it just makes me feel a bit uncomfortable,” Kovarik said. Milo’s pres ence can often feel like

Freshman Clare Ryan Bradley waits to the last possible second before each sports game to take off her jewelry. This past season she had acciden tally come upon this superstition when two games in a row she was forgetful of removing her jewelry prior to the game. Oddly enough, she played very well. Now as a con sequence, Ryan Bradley

Senior Riley Erben owns a lucky sweatshirt that she wears when there is a big test or exam week. It all started in sopho more year, as she was walking into her first bi ology exam, she wore her pink tie dye patterned crew neck with a heart in the center. The exam turned out well, and she continued to wear it on important days. “People either think it’s a good idea, or it’s kind of funny,” Erben said. During stress ful times “it helps me remain calm… it’s very comforting,” she said. In the end, “you can always take a superstition too far” but it can be good

SLY DOG. Sophomore Thomas Kovarik believes that his dog has a human consciousness. “I question everything now,” Kovarik said.

when “it doesn’t affect anyone else and can act as a little mental security,” Erben said.

Some superstitions develop into success techniques, and others are used for support. Ul timately, when kept in check, superstitions can be useful tools to help navigate life.

COMMON SUPERSTITIONS

Breaking a mirror causes seven years of bad luck.

Rabbit’s feet bring good luck.

Knocking on wood wards off bad luck.

INFORMATION: NBC News

Jean Strohmyer offers an inside look into interior design career

HAZEL WALTENBAUGH THE RUBICON

Jean Strohmyer is a senior designer at White Crane Design:Build who works with clients and their visions to remodel and redesign homes. Her job can look different from project to project, depending on the clients, the house, and the stage they are at in the process.

“My beginning part of the week is typically meeting with new cli ents. I have to go to what we call home consulta tion, to meet with [the clients] at their house for the first time to talk about what they want,” Strohmyer said.

Even before home consultations, Strohmyer will spend time on the phone with potential cli ents, where they will dis cuss the initial ideas first.

Then, Strohmyer and her team will meet in person with the clients, measure spaces, take photos of the home, and further dis cuss plans for the remod el.

“Thursday and Fri days are our bigger client meeting days where I am presenting plans for con

struction contracts. A lot of meetings internally to prepare for our bigger meetings. And then just miscellaneous,” Strohmy er said.

Another big part of Strohmyer’s job is sourc ing materials and work ing with other businesses to pull the whole proj ect together. Strohmyer helps clients pick out ma terials, paint colors, fix tures, countertops, tiles, etc., while furniture is left for the clients.

Between talking to clients and meetings, Strohmyer is in charge of pulling together 3D mod els of the client’s visions

in a program called Chief Architect software.

“I measure at the home consultation and then I draw that up in the computer. It’s a great pro gram to really create that 3D model. A lot of times it’s interactive and we make changes with the clients during the meet ings”

Strohmyer has been using the Chief Architect software since her first internship eight years ago. She said she has got ten comfortable with the software, and it typically only takes her about an hour to draw up an ini tial design for most spac

es. Exterior spaces and house additions tend to be more complicated.

Growing up, Strohmy er was always interested in interior design and architecture. In college, she studied more of the architecture side of de sign before realizing she had more of a passion for smaller-scale interior spaces.

“I was always rear ranging my room. I was always interested in paint colors and any remodel ing that my parents were doing. I went to school for architecture think ing I was gonna do more commercial and bigger scale projects, and it just wasn’t really my thing,” Strohmyer said.

In the spring of her sophomore year in col lege, Strohmyer got an internship and spent a semester in Italy design ing outdoor spaces with a nonprofit organization. After studying abroad, she decided to apply for an interior design intern ship, not knowing she would be accepted.

“I never changed my major or anything, I continued through and kind of realized that it

was good background information. So I knew about structures and that sort of thing but taking it more back to the resi dential side. Having it be more personal, working with homeowners in

being able to listen to her clients is another huge piece of her job. Being able to take notes, and work with clients’ visions and ideas in a way that is catered towards each in dividual project is an im portant skill Strohmyer highlighted.

“It’s almost more im portant to just be a good listener and hear what clients are wanting. Let ting them explain what they’re wanting versus just coming to them with your own ideas. Understanding exactly what they need, and then putting it all together,” Strohmyer said.

stead of corporations or something,” Strohmyer said.

As a project manager and designer, Strohmy er’s role at White Crane is to work with clients to create what they are en visioning. In order to do this, another part of her role is to work with trade partners and subcon tractors for things such as demolition, concrete, electrical, and so on.

Communication and

Strohmyer encourag es students to go out of their comfort zone and take chances that may feel like a stretch.

“When I was looking at internships I thought, oh, I’m not gonna get an interior design intern ship because that’s not what I’ve been doing. But I found a connection and instead of just canceling my major I was on and completely switching gears, I found kind of what I felt was a slight tweak away from that,” Strohmyer said.

I WAS ALWAYS REARRANGING MY ROOM. I WAS ALWAYS INTERESTED IN PAINT COLORS. Jean Strohmyer

“

DETAILED DESIGN. Strohmyer works for White Crane Design:Build, which both lays out the plan for clients’ remodel projects and completes construction. “It’s... im portant to just be a good listener and hear what clients are wanting,” Strohmyer said.

FAIR USE: White Crane Design:Build

[WAITING UNTIL THE LAST SECOND TO REMOVE MY JEWELRY] MAKES ME EXTRA NERVOUS. Clare Ryan Bradley

“

SUBMITTED PHOTO: Thomas Kovarik

SPARKS Swim and Dive captains focused on support

MADDY FISHER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

The SPARKS Swim and Dive team, a co-op with Highland Park Senior High, has had a strong season this year with a record of 3-1 go ing into conference.

Junior Ayla Rivers swims the 50 and 100 freestyle races for the team. According to Riv ers, the team’s biggest ob stacle has been adjusting to a new coaching staff.

“It’s a little bit of a challenge with the new coaches,” Rivers said. “They’re still figuring out how to give us good sets and how to do meet entries.”

Captain Linnea Cooley also found this change challenging: “It’s been difficult being a captain during coaching turnover because we had to figure out a lot of stuff for ourselves over the summer and during our preseason.”

Cooley mainly swims sprint freestyle events.

Rivers appreciates the culture of swim and dive.

“The SPARKS swim team has a really good sense of community. I think the captains put in a lot of effort to try to make the team fun,” she said. “We cheer a lot for each other at meets and having that constant pos itive energy while you’re doing something difficult is very helpful.”

Dive team captain Ele

na Sjaastad finds culture to be an important part of her experience, too. She describes the divers as “chaotic and support ive,” she said. “There’s always a lot going on, but we always have a good time.”

Though the diving and swimming teams are technically separate, they compete at the same meets and practices occa sionally overlap, so inter action is not uncommon. “I’ve really liked getting

to work with the swim mers more because that’s something I haven’t been able to do in the past,” Sjaastad said, “given the pandemic and separation and everything.”

As for her own team, she said, “I’ve really liked working with the middle schoolers... helping them learn and grow.”

“It’s been a really great season,” Cooley said. “We love each other and we

Cross Country wins IMAC conference

ORION KIM CHIEF VISUAL EDITOR

Winning. A word synonymous with competitive sports that undermines a more meaningful value: im provement.

This word drove the cross-country team to new heights throughout all levels of competition.

Despite individual achievements, including beating his own personal record for the five-kilo meter race four times, junior Ford Reedy’s fa vorite memory pertained to junior varsity.

“We had a meet that only our JV team was running and every single member achieved a new personal record. It was awesome for them but also awesome for the var sity team to cheer them on,” he said.

The girl’s achieved an outstanding feat: win ning the Independent Metro Athletic Confer ence Championship.

For sophomore Taylor Barkwell, this milestone was a result of a season of discipline.

She said cross country is about finding “the discipline to put in the

work when it’s not easy. To show up every day and give it your all. To continue to improve upon yourself.”

Along with setting re cords, the team adopted traditions to encourage runners to improve their times.

For captain Violet Benson, this came in the form of a pun: personal record tiaras, or P-R-aras.

“This season, I wanted to find a fun way to recognize and celebrate when people got person al records. Then one day, I saw these cheap little tiaras and with a little

bit of glitter glue, I made the P-R-aras. The prac tice after a meet, the people who ran PRs got to wear their crowns,” Benson said.

Cross-coun try exhibited the will to improve and progress, whether racing against their own time or for the champi onship.

Volleyball “grit” is ageless trait

ORION KIM CHIEF VISUAL EDITOR

“Grit” is the word volleyball captains Riley Erben and Natalie Vogenthaler used to sum up the season.

After overcoming an unprecedented age gap between the younger and older members of the team, they rose to the challenge and ended the regular season with a respectable 6-8 record.

Instead of taking the easy route and forming two separate groups, the team capitalized on ac tivities around town and

built a unique culture.

“At the beginning of the season, it was difficult to mend the gap, because the [age differ ence] was so large,” Erben said.

One frequent tradi tion they started was going to Baker’s Square after practices or games.

“We went there so often that most of the team had the entire menu memorized and all the servers knew our names,” Erben said.

While this season brought adversity, the upper schoolers still pri oritized the future of the

volleyball program.

“As the season went on, we took the age gap as a leadership opportu nity,” Vogenthaler said. “It’s been a great experi ence to lead the younger girls so they can lead the team when we leave.”

Seventh grader Louise Mahoney was the young est player on the team, yet she felt just as much a member as her older teammates. “They taught me about time manage ment, and that I should keep looking towards the next play,” she said.

Mahoney learned a lot from her captains who

pushed her to stay positive.

“Especially as a younger player, you’re going to have ups and downs, but you just have to look forward,” she said.

For Mahoney, one spe cific moment stood out. In one of the first games of the season, the team trailed 2-0 to South Saint Paul. “We came back to win 3-2. I think this helped us as a team on and off the court because a close game like that re quires a lot of teamwork and patience,” she said.

have a lot of team tradi tions which make it fun. We support each other.”

CENTRAL RIVALRY.

SPARKS swimmer performs the back stroke in a meet against Central Highschool.

RUBICONLINE PHOTO: Alison Browne

RUNNERS PREPARE THEM SELVES. Members of the girls cross country team get into possition before their race begins.

SUBMITTED PHOTO: Johanna Pierach

SERVES UP. Senior Solvej Eversoll leaps up to serve in GVV’s game against Breck on Sept. 16.

De spite the age gap, the team built trust with one another and most importantly, they remained ‘gritty.’

SMB Wolfpack finds camaraderie with rival schools

ELIZA FARLEY THE RUBICON

The SMB Wolfpack is celebrating victories both big and small this season.

With a 4-3 season re cord, a definitive victory over a difficult opponent from last year, and enjoy able team bonding expe riences, players and fans alike are feeling good

about the direction the season has been going.

Defensive back Con nor Overgaard has state championship ambitions for the Wolfpack: “The first round of the playoffs is [Oct. 25], and we hope to make it back to the Bank this year,” Over gaard said.

To do this, linebacker and captain Joey Stolpes

tad noted a few points the team had to work through; he said they need to “play well on both sides of the ball and get first downs.”

Both the state semi finals and the 4A State Championship are held at the U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.

The year hasn’t been without challenges:

“We’ve been overcoming a few injuries to key play ers,” Overgaard said.

Despite this, “the season has been good so far,” Stolpestad said. He’s glad the team won against Park Center High School this year.

“Last season they destroyed us during our senior night,” he said.

Their game score this

year was 24-14.

When the team is off the field, their bond remains strong. As a co-op with three other schools—Blake, Min nehaha Academy and SPA—the Wolfpack’s cohesion is a finely crafted thing, and players appreciate the connec tions they’ve made.

“Its nice to have a

bigger team,” Overgaard said. “It makes the rival ries in other sports more fun when you’ve been on a team with the players on the other team.”

IBID PHOTO: Sophia Bietz

INTO POSITION. SMB Wolfpack takes on North St. Paul on Sept. 23 for the Homecoming game.

IBID PHOTO: So phia Bietz

RECAP

Spartan Soccer girls approached season with flexibility

CLAIRE KIM THE RUBICON

Spartan Girls Varsity soccer has held their own within the IMAC con ference with a record of 6-5-3. With tough games against Minnehaha, Providence Academy and Breck, and clear

like the game against St. Agnes, the team has maintained a strong bal ance going into upcom ing section matches.

The main obstacle the team faced this year was the number of injuries sustained.

Captain Lindsay Browne said, “We have had...to adjust our lineup and strategy a little bit, but I think the team is doing well at adapting

to the changes.”

Switching coaches also required the girls to learn a new program approach. “Everyone is being very flexible, which I think is great and really helps us move past any difficulties,” Browne said.

For Browne, who described her experience as a senior feeling the shortness of the season, a highlight from the year was the 3-2 win against Breck.

“It is always a super competitive game against them, so it was really exciting to get the win,” she said.

Attacking mid and forward Clare Ryan-Brad ley agreed that the game with Breck was a high point of the season, as well as the team’s efforts to play each game better than the last. “I think we improved over the season, like from the first time we played Minne-

haha to the second,” she said.

Overcoming struggles also brought members of the team together to support each other.

Midfielder Lucia Gonzalez appreciated the upperclassmen’s encour agement throughout the season: “I think I learned that it’s really helpful that upperclassmen say hi and talk to the under classmen.”

As a new freshman at the school, “it was really

nice to know that I had people to go to if I need ed help,” Gonzalez said.

With team bonding activities like an over night trip to St. Cloud, midfielder Sonia Khar banda felt the connec tions between the team were crucial to their experiences playing.

“I think we’ve gotten a lot closer… I also think that closeness has helped us improve as a team,” Kharbanda said.

Tennis seniors focus on team unity

CLAIRE KIM THE RUBICON

EYE ON THE BALL.

Freshman Lucia Gonzalez keeps the ball away from a Mounds Park Academy defender. SPA SMUG MUG

SMACK WITH THE RACK. Senior Au tumn Spaulding reaches back to send a serve over to her. RUBICON PHOTO: Annie Zhang

DRIBBLE TO THE GOAL. Sophomore Ezra Straub dribbles the ball up the field in BVS’ game against Minnehaha Academy. RUBICON PHOTO: Hazel Waltenbaugh

SAILORS ASSEMBLE. The sailing club line up during their regatta before the race starts. IBID

PHOTO: Sophia Bietz

on a

heart-breaker; however, Georgia Ross continued onto individual sections, and the duo of Nellie Larson and Autumn Spaulding played in doubles.

Although difficult past years cast doubts on the potential for success at season start, the team grew closer and kept up a high winning streak.

Senior Anna Nowa kowski said, “Coming into this season was hard because the year before, we weren’t super success ful as a team [...] ” some thing we did really well this year was working

together.”

The team maintained traditions to encourage connection.

Junior Audrey Sen aratna said, “The juniors traditionally plan senior night and this year, we had seven seniors - over half the team - so it was an exciting day. We all decorated the courts before the match and everything turned out really cute.”

She expressed grati tude for the seniors’ help throughout the season. “They were such a big part of my tennis expe rience [...] I will always

cherish the time I got to play with them,” Senarat na said.

As a new student at SPA, freshman Nellie Larson appreciated the welcoming environment of the team created by the upperclassmen.

“They made sure that you knew you were a part of a team,” Larson said.

After several difficult seasons of readjusting to what’s normal, girls ten nis proved to themselves and their competitors that they were a force to be reckoned with.

Soccer sees no “I” in “team”

MADDY FISHER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Spartan boys entered sections as the #1 seed after placing second in conference with an over all record of 10-3-3.

The team had a lot of away games, something captain Yash Kshirsagar thought was especially challenging.

“After our first few games of the season,

we played like six away games in a row. It can be pretty brutal with all the schoolwork and time driving. Everyone was mentally exhausted and that took a toll that showed in our results,” he said. “Playing away versus home really does have a big difference.”

Senior George Peltier found that dealing with injury had a big impact on the team. “We had a couple of injuries and... people got sick,” he said. “That can be a challenge for any team.”

BVS did not win the conference, but that didn’t stop them from remaining competitive

heading into sections.

“We were still able to take the first seed spot in sections, which was a pretty big win for us,” ju nior Humza Murad said.

He appreciated the strength of the team’s culture. “I really like how connected everyone is and how we are able to both be a friendly team and a serious one on the pitch.”

Kshirsagar and Peltier attributed much of the team’s success to its camaraderie. The team initiates many out side-of-practice activities that “Allow for team bonding and really bridge the grade dispar

ity in the team. I think that makes the team more united and makes everyone feel like they’re included and welcome,” Kshirsagar said.

“Everybody just wants to play for each other, win for each other. [...] I think that contributes a lot to our success,” Peltier added. “No matter what the result of each game is, I look forward to coming back to practice, to play with the guys and I look forward to the next game because we’re competitive against any team.”

Fall sailing club wins regattas through communication

ELIZA FARLEY THE RUBICON

The sailing club has managed to have an enjoyable (and success ful) season, qualifying for regionals in Chicago this fall.

In contrast to how other sports compete, the club goes to regattas, which are sailing events made up of separate

races. Each race has mul tiple teams competing in it, and doing well in the races helps a school do better in the regatta overall.

Races can be cold and frustrating at times, but also serve as great team bonding opportunities.

Rower Evan Holmes enjoys the collaborative aspects of sailing most of all.

“Verbal and non-ver bal communication is essential [in sailing], and as a result, you have to be pretty close with who you’re sailing with,” Holmes said.

During a particularly windy practice, Holmes recalled finding retro active joy in the way he worked together with his teammate after their boat capsized: “Having to

right the boat upwards, while hyperventilating from the cold, was defi nitely not enjoyable at the time, but convinced me that Paul [my team mate] and I could work quickly and effectively together in difficult situ ations… it also felt great sitting in front of the heater back on shore.”

Although in years past the club has struggled

with membership, team captain Wyatt Tait said that there have been more sailors recently.

“We… now have a few middle schoolers on the team, which gives me hope for longevity after I graduate,” he said.

Tait said his favorite team memory is yet to come because he “hop[es] to prolong the season and do as many

big regattas as [the team] can.”

With the Great Lakes Championship coming up in Chicago Nov. 1113, the sailing club will have one more oppor tunity this fall to make some amazing memories before the season begins again in the spring.

In one word? The season has been “a whirl wind,” Holmes said.

APPLE WINS:

VS

“Sweet pumpkin pie, and Fall.”

- Juan Miguel Adams, 9

“Pumpkin pie with family.”

- Alyssa Ebert, 12

“When I was glutenfree a few years ago, my aunt made this glutenfree almond flour crust pumpkin pie. It was so good.”

- Shefali Meagher, 9

“I love the pumpkin coolers at Caribou.”

- William Hanna, 9

“Going to the apple orchard in White Bear [Lake] with my family and getting apple pies and apple juice.”

- Ethan Peltier, 10

“Orange leaves and cider.”

- Annalise Atkinson, 9

“Apple cider reminds me of camp fires with my family in late October.”

- Jane Higgins, 11

“Apple pie is a win.”

- Greyson Sale, 9

of students prefer apple

participating students, grades 9-12 of 400

Of students favorite fall treat is apple cider

APPLE or PUMPKIN? It’s the great flavor debate

ANNIE BAI THE RUBICON

Picture this; it’s Novem ber 24th, and you’re sitting at the table with the entire family admiring the annual Thanksgiving dinner spread. You’re told that either apple or pumpkin pie will be served. Not both, it’s one or the other. Hard choice, after all, these two flavors have been fall favor ites for centuries.

Apple pie was made into a nostalgic dish during World War II. According to Arcadia Publishing, “an image of a pie on the windowsill in the 1930s indicat ed a family was well-off during the depression, and the phrase “for Mom and apple pie” became a com mon refrain of soldiers headed into World War II.” Now, the phrase “as American as apple pie” has taken root, “Today, like hot dogs, baseball, or a cheeseburg er, apple pie has become a symbol for the United States, and the American Dream.”

As explained by History.org, “By the early 18th-cen tury pumpkin pie had earned a place at the table, as Thanksgiving became an important New England re gional holiday.”

So what makes these flavors taste so good? Well, ItsFoodTastic states that “Pumpkin pie has a warm and cozy aroma that will make you think of friends and family.”

Sophomore Leila Mosenfelder said, “When I think about pumpkin in the fall, I think about the pump kin butter that I get when my dad, my brother, and I go apple picking in the fall.” The combination of condensed milk, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg creates a sweet comforting smell.

Freshman Bea Moore said “My parents and grand parents would make pumpkin bread and pie for spe cial occasions, or sometimes just because. My grand ma’s pumpkin pie especially are very good.”

Aside from pies, popular pumpkin pastries in clude pumpkin bread, cinnamon rolls, and muffins. Junior Carys Hardy said. “Personally, I am a big fan of pumpkin. I think it is more versatile and can be put in practically anything like breads, cakes, muffins, pancakes, etc whereas apple is more commonly used in pie.”

As for apple pies, there are a vast variety of apple types and crust combinations that can greatly affect the flavor of the pie. The proportions need to be pre cise to get the desired flaky crust and crunchy apple pieces.

“The apples can be sliced thinly or cubed, so there’s plenty of opportunity for variation and dis play of a chef’s personal skill. Apples turn soft and almost jelly-like, sometimes with the slightest tooth

in the center of each chunk,” junior Oliver Zhu said. “Objectively apples are superior. It’s sweet, tart, crisp, and floral. The texture is superior to that of pumpkin on almost any occasion. In a pie? God Forbid you have chunks of pumpkin in your pumpkin pie. If that were socially acceptable you’d see them at the HyVee at least.”

Other pastries and popular variations of the flavor include apple cider, cobbler, turnover, crisp, fritters, and caramel apple suckers. Senior Allison Mitchell said, “When I was younger and my mom would have friends over in the fall she would always put a big pot of cider on the stove in the kitchen and it would make the whole house would smell like apples and mulling spices.”

Nihca.org states that in terms of pure nutritional content, “The pumpkin pie wins on calories, saturat ed fat, protein, and calcium. But the apple pie takes the cake when it comes to fiber, sugar (both total and added), and sodium.” Comparing these two flavors is no small feat, while the pumpkin spice flavor tends to invoke feelings of nostalgia, apples have more ver satility.

Iris seeks a “latte” poets for fall inspired writing contest

GRACE MEDRANO THE RUBICON

It’s October, and that means contest time begins for the Iris Art and Litera ture Club. The group, which hosts community engage ment activities, sees the contests as a way for students to partake in creative writing and art, without neces sarily committing to the club; plus, entries come with the chance to win a $10 Caribou gift card.

The theme of this month’s competition is Fall writ ing: “Pumpkins, Poems, and Prizes.”

Co-President Poppy Ploen said “It [the submission] can be anything pertaining to Fall. Poetry, short sto ries, things like that.”

She also explained that any 9-12 students can par ticipate in the event, regardless of experience.

The club designs the art and literature magazine each spring; Iris: Art + Lit is a way for students to get involved with a school-sponsored magazine.

Ploen said, “We’re a magazine that people can par ticipate in... it’s a way to get involved with student publications.”

Co-President Eliza Farley said, “Submitting to Iris is low-stakes and super easy to do. Plus, you can win a gift card if you send in a poem to our event.”

Faculty adviser Andrew Inchiosa said the Iris club is “a chance to do some creative writing outside of class es. That might be a huge part of what you’re doing this fall, but it might not. It’s a chance to do some creative writing with your own inspiration and motivation.”

The event run through Oct. 31 and work can be submitted through @irisartlit.spa on Instagram or e-mailed to irisartlit.spa@gmail.com. One winner will be announced on Nov. 11.

Poems and Pumpkin Spice: Submit work here for a chance to win a $10 coffee gift card

FALL WRITING TIME. Writers can submit a story that expresses

feelings

thoughts about Fall.

be anything pertaining

fall,” co-President Poppy Ploen said.

RUBICON PHOTO: Grace Medrano

TEAM PUMPKIN TEAM APPLE

POLL: What do you love about pumpkin or apple?

Koua Mai Yang showcases Hmong art

CLAIRE KIM

THE RUBICON From war to displace ment, the history of the Hmong people resonates deeply in Minne sota, one of the locations the dias pora spread to. Hmong American artist Koua Mai Yang creates works centered around her identity with in America, with a greater focus on invisibility, bicultural identity, and women’s experiences. Her cur rent project Hnav HMoob (Wear HMong) continues her theme of identity by questioning culture, gender, and sexuality through the art form of ancestral Hmong cloth ing. Just from the name of the proj ect, her focus on Hmong represen tation is clear.

Yang said, “HMong is used in stead of Hmong to bring awareness and embody the two common di alects in the Western Hemisphere: HMoob dawb or white Hmong and Moob leeg or green Mong.”

As a completely visual gallery, Yang’s current exhibit consists of several walls covered in decorative chains and variations of tradition

al clothing hanging from the ceil ing. The clothing pieces connect to both Yang’s personal history and the greater history of the Hmong people, representing her vision of what it means to be Hmong. “The velvet shirt in the gallery was from an outfit created by my grand mother for my mom,” she said. “I added scraps and adjusted the shirt, so it fits my body.”

Yang also combines many ma terials used in historical Hmong clothing to create her pieces, es pecially upcycled materials. “For the small shirt at the front of the exhibition space, I wanted to con tinue to work in tandem with the bright colors often found in our clothing and through camouflage printed fabric, I wanted to connect visually the invisibility of women’s and children’s experiences of the American War in Vietnam,” Yang said. In the nineteenth century, the Hmong diaspora spread from Chi na to Laos, Vietnam, and Thailand; later, many Hmong migrated to countries such as the United States and France. Hmong artisans origi

nating from different areas often use different elements of bright textiles, embroidery, and batik de signs in traditional clothing, which is apparent in Yang’s work.

While the gallery may seem most representative of the strug gles of the Hmong diaspora, it ex tends even beyond their history to Yang’s own experiences and vi sions. “Digging even deeper, I be long to a history of forced migra tion and displacement where my ancestors had to move from place to place, carrying only the most es sential items,” she said. “These bits of pieces of history have greatly in fluenced my practice; one example is that I create art with materials that can expand and collapse and be easily stored.”

Yang hopes her project causes viewers to walk away with ques tions and curiosity about the exper imentality of art. Yang will be on campus for an artist talk on Nov. 7 in the Driscoll Commons during X-period. Her exhibit will be in the Harry M. Drake gallery from Oct. 7 through Nov. 11.

CULTURAL CLOTHING CELEBRATION. Koua Mai Yang’s art, focused on the clothing of her Hmong heritage, is on display in Drake gallery. “These bits of pieces of history have greatly influenced by practice” said Yang.

Costume creation: Quenby Wilson finds power in fashion

FALL FASHION ICON.

Quenby Wilson makes their own costumes every year, taking joy in the process. “It made me feel powerful.” Wilson said.

GEORGIA ROSS

THE RUBICON

In the sec ond grade, Quenby Wil son got their first taste of cos tume design. For Halloween, they wanted to recreate the skirt worn by Queen Susan from the book series ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’. At first, costume design was a call for independence, “it made me feel powerful,” Wil son said. But now, the costumes she intends to wear are too “ob scure or nebulous to find storebought” so hand-making them is the only “cost-effective option”.

The process starts in the mid dle of September as they assem ble various materials, links, and photo inspiration. When Wilson needs to track down a particular pattern, they find them on on line shops such as Esty or eBay and contact the seller. Over the

MOVIE REVIEW

course of October, they acquire all of the little pieces of the cos tume, such as jewelry, tights, and accessories, and plan their hair and make-up situation. With two days remaining before Hal loween, they hurriedly begin to assemble the costume as they re alize that the “most labor-inten sive piece isn’t even started.” Two days later before the big event, “I emerge, miraculously, victorious an hour before my Halloween plans are supposed to start,” Wil son said.

Over the years, Wilson has ad vanced in her techniques. For ex ample, “I no longer hand-stitch skirts right-side-out with thread that doesn’t match the fabric,” Wilson said. They have become more ambitious as well because they’ve learned how to read stitching patterns. “As long as I

have a pattern, I can make what ever it is I need,” Wilson said.

One of their biggest inspira tions is Nina Hagen, a german punk rock singer, songwriter, and actress from the 1970s. Wil son is especially inspired by 80’s punk rock and historical occult figures in her costumes and dayto-day fashion. “Ceremonial garb is so opulent and recogniz able, and I’m a big appreciator of symbology,” Wilson said. While their costume is pin-pointed for this Halloween yet, they are in the process of pulling inspira tion from figures and archetypes like Aleister Crowley and Leila Waddell, various Goetic demons, and Cornelius Agrippa. Wilson highlighted that their favorite part of the process is try ing on the costume for the first time. “[It] is always so satisfying

Hocus Pocus 2 offers nostalgic Halloween fun 29 years later

because it’s the first time I can see the project coming together, which motivates me to keep go ing,” Wilson said. Fashion, adorn ment, costumes, and the way that they present themselves is an important aspects of their ev eryday life. “My goal with every thing I create,” Wilson explains, “is to perform myself as authen tically as I can.” The process of creating clothing and accesso ries is one way Wilson finds they “don’t have to rely on the man ifestation of someone else’s vi sion to accurately portray [their] own.” Wilson takes the cultural tradition of dressing up one day of the year on Halloween and turns it into a daily exploration of fashion, self-expression, and authenticity.

MILKII TIGRO

THE RUBICON

Hocus Pocus is a Disney film directed by Anne Fletch er and is about three sister witches named Winifred (starring Bette Midler), Mary (Kathy Najimy) and Sarah Sanderson (Sarah Jessica Park er) of Salem who were resurrected centuries later by a teenage boy named Max Dennison, a virgin who lit the candle. When the Sanderson sisters came back to life, they were committed to taking as many children as possi ble in order to gain their youth and beauty back.

Classic films unify our childhood. They are a key part of our memory and lifestyle that allows us to escape reali ty. People often watch classic films out of pure enjoyment and entertainment while also feeling nostalgic without analyzing the film itself. Halloween is right around the corner which means it’s time to watch Halloween classics such as Hocus Pocus.

Hocus Pocus is back with a sequel starring once again Sarah Jessica Parker, Bette Midler, and Kathy Najimy as the Sanderson sisters and new actresses such as Whitney Peak playing Becca, Lila Buckingham playing Cassie, and Belissa Escobedo playing Izzy.

In the second movie, the Sanderson sisters are brought back to life once again, only this time, they were brought

back by a teenage girl named Becca, another virgin who lit the candle, but Becca is also a witch. She doesn’t dis cover that until towards the end of the movie. Sadly once again, the Sanderson sisters were once again defeated by teenagers.

The first one was rather an excruciating but yet aston ishing film to watch due to the lack of plot and develop ment in the characters. Throughout the entire movie was three old women chasing kids around a small town all within one night. I have to say they had drive and moti vation, but unfortunately not speed because they could not catch those kids for their life. When the Sanderson sisters came back to life, they never got more powerful, if anything, they got weaker because they never tried to gain more power from the spell book and instead went straight to chasing kids. Instead of focusing on eating chil dren’s souls, I think they should invest their time in de veloping the ability to fly since they can never catch those kids without their brooms. The Sanderson sisters gave a bad representation of witches because they let some little kids destroy them in the end.

I believe most people will enjoy watching Hocus Po cus 2 because the movie revised some of the mistakes of the first one. It humanized the Sanderson sisters more,

giving a deeper dive into the Sanderson sisters’ backstory and how they came to be. The movie focused on sister hood and getting revenge on Salem as an act of justice for the way they used to be treated. Hocus Pocus adapts to the culture now, especially the modern glorification of witches. We no longer have negative connotations about witches, but rather we see them as misunderstood femi nist icons. This would be a great movie for generation Z to watch.

RUBICON PHOTO: Claire Kim

FAIR USE: Disney.com

RUBICON PHOTO: Georgia Ross

MAGIC MAYHEM. The Sanderson Sisters, played by Kathy Najmy, Bette Midler and Jessica Parker.

NOW

PUMPKIN CARVING PAST AND PRESENT

Lifers anticipate annual tradition

PUMPKIN FUN FACTS

The first Jack-oLanterns were made out of turnips

Each pumpkin contains about 500 seeds.

Atlantic Giants are the largest variety of pumpkin. They can grow 50 pounds in one day.

Pumpkins originated in Central America. Now, they are grown on every continent except for Antarctica.

Of all the states, Illinois grows the most pumpkins per year.

Every part of a pumpkin is edible, including the stem, leaves, flowers, and skin.

As autumn kicks in, the kin dergartners and seniors await the annual pumpkin carving day that bridges the one mile distance and 12 year gap between the two. Every year, seniors are partially dismissed from classes and head to Goodrich Campus where they spend time with the kindergartners slicing the tops off pumpkins, removing pumpkin guts, and as sisting in carving various designs.

To LS principal Beth Nelson, pumpkin carving “[...] is a beautiful illustration of the scope of our K-12 school,” she said. “It brings Upper School students to the Goodrich Campus, many of whom attended the Lower School, and they have the chance to reconnect with former teachers, and familiar spaces.”

Some of this year’s seniors have been at SPA since kindergarten and remember their own experience during the annual pumpkin carving. For these lifers, this tradition serves as a reminder that they’ve be come the seniors their kindergarten selves thought

they’d never reach.

“I was so intimidated because they seemed so old,” senior Leni Nowakowski said. “My older sister at the time was in fourth grade and I thought she was so old so the idea of seniors was scary at first, but once I start ed talking to them and they started helping me carve the pumpkin I totally warmed up to them and ended up having a bunch of fun,” she said.

Senior Mikey Barshack had similar thoughts. “It was cool because we really looked up to seniors back then, like they were leaders. And they really inspired me,” he said. “Honestly, I’m just excited to give the low er schoolers the same opportunity that I had. It means a lot to me.”

Nelson emphasized the power of this inter-campus connection. “Our kindergarten students truly love op portunities to connect with and learn from older stu dents. They are just starting to understand that there are older students at our school that are on a different campus,” she said. “Working collaboratively with old

friends and new, builds stronger community connec tions and creates lasting memories.”

Nowakowski especially remembers her pumpkin design. “I carved my pumpkin into a smiley face. I remember I never wanted to make my pumpkin too scary,” she said. “The thing I enjoyed the most about the experience was that in my mind the seniors felt really cool. It felt really special to have these people hang out with me.”

Senior Shobin Ansite distinctly recalls giving a send off to the seniors. “I watched them drive away. That was pretty cool… that they could drive,” he said.

“Looking back on the pumpkin carving it feels like it was a million years ago and it makes me remember all of the other seniors who I interacted with, whether it was my ninth grade mentor or a member of the ten nis team,” Nowakowski said. “It is kind of weird to be a senior this year. It makes me feel really old.”

ANNIE ZHANG THE RUBICON

INFORMATION: Barton Hill Farms

CANVAS CHOICES.

The kindergartners deliberate over their pumpkin selection in 2018 with the assistance of the fifth-graders.

FACE-TO-FACE. Kindergartner Francesca Sentz carves her Jack-o-Lantern design in 2019.

PUMPKIN PLACEMENT. The kindergarten room awaits the arrival of the pumpkin carvers. This photo was taken in 2017.

PHOTO: SPA SmugMug

PHOTO: SPA SmugMug

PHOTO: SPA SmugMug

ARTISTIC PROCESS. The seniors (class of 2017) and kindergartners remove the seeds from their pumpkin as they prepare to carve.

PHOTO: SPA SmugMug