agenda
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THE REMARKER • MAY 10, 2019
Inside 3 Issues
The effects of rising insulin prices on members of our community, 3 The school’s approach to suspensions, 4
The pros and cons of the path to Valedictorian, 5 Examining the difficulties of having limited leadership positions, 6 At what age should students be learning how to invest? 7
Discoveries
Marksmen pursuing careers in scientific fields, 8 The effects of unhealthy eating at a young age, 9
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Faculty and staff leaving the school, 10-11 Sophomore Ajay Schlehuber’s journey with a speech impediment, 12 Junior Aaron Weiser’s grandfather’s experience winning a crucial Supreme Court Case, 13
Charlie Rose photo
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THE NEW CREW Recognized for years of hard work and academic achievement, nine seniors Chase Honaker, Seth Weprin, Matthew Coleman, Joshua Kang, Robert Newman, Dylan Liu, Max Wang, Matthew Zang and Jonah Simon (front) were inducted as members into the St. Mark’s Chapter of the Cum Laude Society Apr. 24, joining ten of their classmates who were inducted into the society last year. The previous inductees are seniors Noah Carr, Mujin Kwun, Parker Davis, Sahit Dendekuri, Ruoming Fan, Shreyas Anaswamy, Conner Pierce, Richard Shen, David Vallejo and Creston Brooks (top). The ceremony marked the first time in decades that only seniors were admitted into the society. This year’s speaker was Dean Itani ’11. Itani graduated from Harvard in 2015 and currently serves as the Chief of Staff to the CEO of Aptos Reality.
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Sophomore Ekansh Tambe’s travels to the world’s borders, 14
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Diversions
Planning for the perfect Mother’s and Father’s day celebration, 15 What goes on within our alumni network? 16, 17
—SOPHOMORE SHIV YAJNIK ON HIS MUSIC CLUB “MUSICARE” STORY ON PAGE 19
In brief
18 Culture
The pros and cons of music while studying, 18 Sophomore Shiv Yajnik’s composing and performing talents, 19 Featuring a student-run music-review blog: Daily Bass and Treble, 20 Spring Play photostory: Much Ado About Nothing, 21
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Opinions
Buzz: summer waterpark preview and review, 22 Editorial: Revising ISAS schedule, 23 Are class meetings always necessary?, 24 A call for an increase in club activism, 25
26 Sports
The biased opinions facing college athletes, 26 Taylor Jenkins’ ’03 career in coaching in the NBA, 27 What are the school’s policies on running up the score? 28 The dangers of playing sports in the heat, 29 Spring sports updates, 30-31
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Back page
Youth Ninja Warrior eighth-grader Christian Youst, 32
The students who are a part of this club are gifted musicians. We receive an overwhelming response after each performance, and the residents like to tell us their stories and experience with music. Every time we perform, we get to engage with the residents.
Nationals Bound Juniors Billy Lockhart and Christian Duessel took home the gold medal in the Men’s Junior Varsity 2x Final with a time of three minutes and 47.1 seconds during the Texas Rowing Championships April 13-14. Lockhart and Duessel also qualified for the National Rowing Championships after their performance at the Central District Championships May 4. They will be joined at Nationals by two teammates: junior Jack Trajan and sophomore Blake Hudspeth.
ARTS NEWS > PLANS FINALIZED FOR FINAL COFFEEHOUSE The last Coffeehouse will be today at 5:30 in the amphitheater. There are no sports on this Friday, so the performers hope everybody can attend. This will be the final Coffeehouse. > MIDDLE SCHOOL BAND CONCERT TO BE HELD The Middle School Spring Band Concert will take place on May 16 at 7 p.m.. The performance will take place in Decherd Auditorium and will include performances from the beginning band, intermediate band and the Middle School band classes. Refreshments will be provided after the concert is over. This concert is the culmination of the middle schoolers’ hard work and determination throughout the year. > FOURTH GRADE TO FINISH MUSICAL YEAR The fourth grade musical presentation will take place May 13 in the chapel. To conclude their last year in Lower School and their first year in specific musical courses, all fourth graders will be showcasing their musical growth during the school year as members of the creative music class, orchestra or choir. Lower School music instructor Mary Ann Livengood, Interim Orchestra Director Sarah Choi and Assistant Choirmaster Glenn Stroh will be conducting the lower schoolers. > DEBATE TEAM CONTINUES STREAK Junior Sahitya Senapathy and sophomore David Yang won four of their six preliminary debates, extending the school’s 11-year streak of reaching the knockout rounds before their elimination in the round of 32 at the National Debate Coaches Association National Championship Tournament April 12-14. The team traveled to Chicago to compete against 100 teams representing 20 states. Seniors David Vallejo, Max Wang, Samir Ratakonda
and Wheeler Sears rounded off their debate careers with 3-3 records at the tournament. GENERAL NEWS > BLUE AND GOLD DAY KICKING OFF SOON The Lower School Blue and Gold Day, May 17, will be a half day. Some of the activities the lower schoolers will get to participate in will include tugof-war, soccer, Lion Ball and Go Ball. There are also unique activities planned by the parent volunteers such as Hockaday Hula and Don’t Dump Your Lunch. There will be a flag ceremony before the activities and a cookout and Popsicles afterward. > MIDDLE SCHOOL MATH TEAM SWEEPS COMPETITION The Middle School Math Team competed in and won the Texas State 4A math competition in San Antonio at the University of Texas-San Antonio. The team, led by Middle School math teachers Lynne Steckler, Jeffrey Hale and Liz Kraft, won first in every category: number sense, calculator, general math and science. All 25 members of the team, comprised of sixth through eighth graders, earned at least one medal or trophy. Seventh grader Kevin Lu was the state champion in number sense, calculator math and general math. > ALUMNUS AWARDED SERVICE MEDAL The Alumni Service Medal and the Young Alumni Service Citation were presented to Jon Mosle ’79 and Noah Bricker ’10 respectively. Mosle has been a constant presence as a leader here for more than three decades. He began his service in 1995 on the Alumni Board. Over the years he has been a part of countless committees, eventually becoming the Board of Trustees President in 2016. Bricker began his service immediately upon graduation as a Class Agent and became a Co-Chair for his fifth reunion. In 2016, Bricker earned a seat on the Alumni Board.
At a glance: Upper School Final Assembly What
The final gathering of the entire Upper School, in which recognitions, such as subject and book awards, are announced.
When
May 24, 11 a.m.
Where
Hicks Gym
> NO SCHEDULE CHANGE IN PLACE FOR NEXT YEAR There will be no changes to the schedule for the next school year, but changes for the 2020-2021 school year are possible. According to Interim Head of Upper School John Ashton, discussions about the schedule are currently taking place, including questions over period length and lunchtime organization. However, no decisions have been made final yet, and any plans to change the 2020-2021 schedule must be made official by February 2020, when class schedules are made for that year. > QUIZ BOWL TEAM PLACES IN NATIONAL EVENT The quiz bowl team traveled to Chicago May 3 to compete in a national competition. The “a” team, comprised of junior Nicholas Cerny, senior Connor Pierce, sophomore Ned Tagtmeier and sophomore Aayush Goodapaty, finished fourth in a field of around 100 teams. SPORTS NEWS > MIDDLE SCHOOL SPRING SPORTS WRAPPING UP Many of the Middle School teams have wrapped up their seasons. Both the middle school blue and gold baseball teams have finished with strong records. The middle school water polo team is yet to finish, but the team looks to end their season strong and will play at the Texas State Championships over the weekend. The tennis team wrapped up their season at Cistercian. > VARSITY BASKETBALL MAXPREPS FINAL RANKING In the final rankings put out by MaxPreps, varsity basketball finished ranked 20th in the state and 181st in the nation. The team also finished first among area prep schools. Junior Andrew Laczkowski and sophomore Harrison Ingram were both named AllState, and both have received D1 scholarship offers. > TAYLOR NAMED AN ALLAMERICAN
Senior Jonathan Taylor was named an All-American lacrosse player by the US Lacrosse organization. He was also named an All-State defender after coaches from the THSLL came together and voted on regional and state honors. Taylor, who will continue his lacrosse career at Villanova University next Fall, is the first Lions lacrosse player to receive the national honor since Bear Goldstein did so in 2013. Goldstein played lacrosse collegiately at the Princeton University. > JV WATER POLO TEAM WINS STATE TITLE The JV Water Polo team won their regional championship at Keller ISD Natatorium Saturday, April 20. The team started out with two games April 19, winning first against Flower Mound Silver 14-3 and then against Guyer JV 12-6. The next day, they played against Flower Mound Navy in the finals and won 8-4 to finish off their season. > MONTGOMERY REACHES DEAL WITH NFL TEAM NFL running back and wide receiver Ty Montgomery ’11 signed with the New York Jets April 11. Montgomery played in 13 games combined for the Green Bay Packers and the Baltimore Ravens in the 20182019 season before his contract expired. Montgomery hopes for a fresh start with the Jets organization and is eager to make an impact on the team. He signed for a one-year deal worth $895,000. > DIXON RECEIVES END OF SEASON HONORS Parker Dixon ’16, a member of the Princeton Tigers men’s volleyball team, was named American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Honorable Mention All-American April 29, marking his first career AllAmerican honor. Dixon finished the year with 357 kills, 407.5 points and a .290 hitting percentage, placing him fourth in kills and points and eight in hitting percentage in the conference.