Issue 6

The Student Voice focus: iran-israel face-off

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Issue 6, Volume XXVII | The Buckley School | 3900 Stansbury Avenue, Sherman Oaks, CA 91423

this is war. current standings

9 2300 Points

10 3700 Points

11 4100 Points

12

4200 Points

news 2

thursday, march 22, 2012 |

Spirit Week or weak spirit? newsin Competition is intense, noise is deafening, voices are hoarse as the annual tradition consumes the campus.

TaraBitran ‘14 assistant a&e editor One what? One Four! Sound familiar?

That time of year is here again: when spring break is just hours away, the rivalries between grade levels are at an all-time high, and the quest for senior domination reaches its peak. In other words, Spirit Week has arrived.

But what happens in-between the exciting events, the theme entrance practices, and the cheering? Where do classes and schoolwork fit in?

Some students just view Spirit Week as a hurdle to jump before school is out for vacation, only there to eliminate the amount of coursework needed to be done.

“I only like [Spirit Week] because we get to skip classes,” said sophomore Alexa Lee. Yet others think of Spirit Week as a special Buckley tradition that is beneficial to both teachers and students.

“I absolutely love Spirit Week, we are lucky that we are fortunate enough to be at a really cool school that gives everyone a chance to learn how to work together and learn socially in a way that’s not connected to the classroom, sort of like outdoor education,” said former Spirit Week judge and librarian Matthew Wittmer.

Student leaders and class advisors especially experience all the responsibility first-hand, as they must organize their grades in order to be ready for competition.

Some view the preparation as stressful, while others simply view it as “just fun.”

“Working on the junior Medieval Times theme was the craziest. We met secretly on weekends building moveable castle walls and towers. We also made matching griffin knight outfits for 72 juniors. We hid everything from the seniors. Then on set up night, we wheeled it all in and finished our set up in 30 minutes. Some seniors started crying. We knew we won Spirit Week before it even started. That rocked,” said previous junior class advisor and history department chair Robert Wright.

To most new students experiencing Spirit Week for the first time, entering the gym on the first day is like entering a whole new world of madness and competition, which can be scary.

Even freshmen who had competed in Middle School cannot wait to start the events against the Upper School, as the competition is much more intense.

Voice awarded Silver Crown from CSPA

59 responses collected 3/19/12 “I think it will be really fun to compete in our first high school Spirit Week, but we really need to step up our game in order to do so,” said freshman Samantha Frey.

Despite enthusiasm from students new to Spirit Week, the anticipation appears to be dwindling in the Upper School among both students and teachers, which is disheartening for those who cannot wait for Spirit Week to begin.

“It’s a mixed bag, and unfortunately there are some big Spirit Week haters in the Buckley house. Those that get it understand that there is nothing wrong with a little fun and see all the extra benefits that come with Spirit Week. Then there is a very bitter and unreasonable bunch that constantly complains about Spirit Week. Give me a break, you came to work at a school where this is the tradition. If you can’t handle Spirit Week, take three personal days and get some help,” said Wright.

Though most teachers enjoy the excitement of Spirit Week, the noise level can sometimes be too much for their ears to handle. Technical director Stephen Rollman annually doles out earmuffs to faculty members to ease the volume of the students’ cheering.

“I love Spirit Week, but I am honestly going deaf. I’m not trying to drown out their voices; [the earmuffs] just help me hear better and lessen the impact on my eardrums,” said Rollman.

Apathy among both faculty and students makes those that must compete in events less motivated and excited to play for their grade.

“I feel that a lot of people take the enjoyment out of [Spirit Week] by not participating,” said frequent event competitor and sophomore Sammy Siciliano.

The weak level of school spirit seems strange to some observers, as the students are generally loud and talkative when they are outside the classroom.

“Our grade talks a lot, but no one screams or cheers when they are supposed to,” said Lee. Rather than let their grades stumble into last place in the Spirit category, members of the cheerleading squad hope to liven up the crowd.

“Since practically half the team is made up of sophomores, I definitely think we should step up and help the representatives get the crowd going,” said sophomore Macaulay Aston-Nielsen.

While there may be some that are less than thrilled about Spirit Week’s advent, supporters still remain strong and are anxious to see how the events play out.

“Being a senior competing in Spirit Week feels great, but there is definitely pressure to live up to last year. Because we won, spirit, especially in our class, will be heightened,” said senior Chris Simmons.

BSC is sticking with the same events as last year, but are confident that by maintaining tradition they can hopefully live up to students’ expectations.

“The entire week is silly, but as you get older, you just stop caring and have fun with it, which is great,” said vice president of BSC and senior Alice Breidenbach.

insidenews CHARACTER ED | page 3 This year’s Character Ed sketch featured students in Performance Lab portraying adults at their high school reunion.

Voice2Voice | page 5 Dean of students Sue Sherman discusses her relationships with students as a coach, teacher, and dean.

ROBOTICS | page 32

brief

ROBOTICS | page 32 The robotics team performed better than ever in the regional robotics competition in San Diego.

The Columbia Press Association awarded The Student Voice a Silver Crown March 16 at the annual awards ceremony at Columbia University.

Fifty-six newspapers received Crowns. The Crown Awards Program judged 1,351 newspapers, magazines and yearbooks published during the 2010-11 schoolyear; only 204 received Crowns.

“I am really proud of my Sports section last year and even more proud of the 2010-11 paper as a whole. I am really happy that we won a Silver Crown because last year as assistant editor it was great working under two great editors in Jordan Bloch ‘11 and Ali Guthy ‘11,” said editor-inchief, senior Andrew Davis. “Their steadfast work ethic has inspired me to work extremely hard on the newspaper this year. But last year was definitely a very special year.”

Bloch is also proud of all the newspaper’s accomplishments.

“This award is special because of its prestige in the journalism community. But more importantly, it’s special to Ali and me because it demonstrates what an extraordinary staff we inherited. The 2010-2011 Student Voice staff was composed of individuals who were just as thirsty to see our Crown Award goal through as were were,” said Bloch.

ElleWisnicki ‘13

BMUN represents Brunei in NYC Thirteen members of BMUN represented Brunei Darussalam in the National High School Model United Nations Conference in New York City, March 6-10.

Delegates represented Brunei in committees to debate topics spanning from state-sponsored terrorism to child labor in Southeast Asia. The committees raised issues on the topics, responded to challenges, created resolutions and amendments, and later voted on those resolutions and amendments in the General Assembly.

On March 10, delegates representing over 20 countries all gathered in the United Nations building to vote on the resolutions.

Students were able to sit in the seats that each country’s official UN representatives sit in and push one of the three buttons to cast their votes on the resolutions.

To prepare for the conference, the BMUN club meets every Wednesday to hold mock debates, to work on their speaking, and to refine their resolution writing

skills.

NikaShahery ‘13

3 thursday, march 22, 2012

news opinion features focus arts & entertainment sports

Character education stresses long-term effects of high school behavior The Character Ed assembly on March 14 featured Performance Lab students. The sketch tackled the idea that “you reap what you sow.”

ShilpaMantri ‘13 focus editor Everyone has heard the famous phrase, “what goes around comes around.”

Theater III students, seniors Anthony Gomez, Emely Gomez, Savannah Fine, Natasha Super and junior Alisa Spector, raised concerns over this topic as they performed in the annual Character Ed assembly on March 14. Students discussed the problems addressed in the sketch on March 15 during advisory.

“I feel that the topic, ‘what goes around comes around,’ gets whisked away too easily.

Everyone has heard of the phrase before and they just laugh when it happens to someone else, when in fact, it can happen to you,” said Emely Gomez.

Some students found the topic to be effective and revealing of social situations at school.

“I absolutely think what goes around

comes around’ reflects what happens at Buckley. Nobody makes friends by being mean or disrespectful. That being said, most people know that since Buckley is such a tight-knit community, secrets don’t remain secrets for long. For the most part, I’d like to believe that we live by the statement ‘if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all,” said sophomore Jason Freedman.

Along with deciding on the topic for the assembly, the Theater III actors worked for a total of 20 hours five weeks prior to the performance.

“We came up with this topic by discussing day to day life mostly at school and realized that almost all of us are guilty of some lack of self-awareness that can often lead to hurting the feelings of others. Most people don’t realize or care that their actions, however small they seem, can seriously affect another’s life,” said Spector.

“I feel that the topic, ‘what goes around comes around,’ gets whisked away too easily. Everyone has heard of the phrase before and they just laugh when it happens to someone else, when in fact, it can happen to you.”

Emely Gomez Senior

Olivia Perez The Student Voice

HIGH SCHOOL REUNION: Senior Anthony Gomez and junior Alisa Spector played a couple attending the high school reuinion in the character ed sketch.

58%

relevant not relevant

42%

BSC proposes to amend cell phone and uniform policies Uniform Proposal ClaireSelvin ‘13 assistant editor Buckley Student Council (BSC) is attempting to implement new rules allowing students to wear plain nonuniform sweatshirts in school colors and white, red, or gray flats in addition to black.

“Students can wear plain Buckley colored sweaters, but not plain Buckley colored sweatshirts. It just doesn’t make sense. I’ve heard people complain multiple times about not being able to wear red or white flats.

Cell Phone Proposal TuckerHiggins ‘13 staff reporter Following more than a year of talks, the executive board of the Buckley Student Council (BSC) has brought its official proposal for revising the school’s technology use policy to administrators.

The proposed policy allows students to use smartphones on campus as long as they are not audibly distracting students or faculty during class periods.

30%

of students said they would prefer a new uniform policy over a new cell phone policy Again, it’s a common sense thing. Why can students wear red tennis shoes but not red flats?” said senior and BSC president Jonathan Friedman.

Ideas for these changes originated from discussions in BSC meetings about how to improve student life on campus.

“We frequently discuss how to improve Buckley and what students don’t like about Buckley in student council meetings. When we finally get some responses, we act on them. We won’t know how much a difference something will make until we try, so

78 responses collected 3/19/12 even something small like changing the sweatshirt policy, which we know will make some people happy, could have a real impact on student life and stress,” he said.

The proposals have not been officially presented to the student body because BSC is in the incipient phases of discussions with the administration.

“We’re really playing it by ear. It starts with a conversation with the principal, and we see where it goes. But the only real step is the first: submitting a written proposal to Mrs. Monroe,” said Friedman.

70%

of students said they would prefer a new cell phone policy over a new uniform policy

“This proposal will let students do what they’re already doing,” said BSC president senior Jonathan Friedman, referring to the prevalent but prohibited practice of using smartphones on campus.

Now is an appropriate time to implement the policy, Friedman said, because the school is looking to modernize its campus.

“It doesn’t make sense to buy a hundred iPads and build a new science building, and simultaneously tell us

78 responses collected 3/19/12 we can’t use our iPhones to check the time,” said junior Michael Ortiz-Benz.

Notre Dame and HarvardWestlake have both banned the phones, according to their student handbooks, though at Harvard Westlake smartphones were allowed until a vote by faculty in 2009.

School administrators have indicated their openness to a formal meeting with the student council, though no official date of a meeting has been set.

Character Ed sketch was a good representation of what goes on at school.

Character Ed sketch was not a good representation of what goes on at school.

59 responses collected 3/19/12

thursday, march 22, 2012 4

news opinion features focus arts & entertainment sports

Wright steps down from Social Science chair Effective in the 2012-13 year, Robert Wright will teach AP US history, International Relations, and Strength and Conditioning. The school is looking to higher an interim department chair from within.

JackRose ‘13 sports editor After eight years, Robert Wright is stepping down as chair of the social sciences department at the end of the 2011-12 school year.

“I am searching for that next phase, next step as an educator and I just do not see the department chair job in that next phase,” said Wright, who will continue to be a history teacher as well as the school’s strength and conditioning coach, a job that he will be expanding next year.

“In order to make the athletic program better at Buckley, we need to have more flexibility and opportunity for our athletes to get in better shape,” Wright said. “It’s going to make them healthier, it’s going to make them stronger, it’s going to make them safer, and that time that needs to be given is really after school.”

Wright believes that the school needs to have a supervised weight room where athletes can go to workout and be advised and trained by himself and other trainers.

He would not have time as department chair to also supervise the weight room so he decided to use the time he would be spending in meetings to be training athletes.

“I’m doing this not just for me but also for the student body,” said Wright. “I think [doing more strength and conditioning is] going to help the student body more than being department chair.”

With his tenure coming to a close, Wright is proud of the strides his department made while he was chair. During those eight years, the social science curriculum was

revamped. Three new classes were added to the Middle School curriculum and two new AP history courses and six more AP history periods in the Upper School.

“None of the changes that have fallen under my watch were possible without having great department members,” said Wright. “They are the people who have to make it happen on the ground and they have met more than the challenge.”

The administration is taking applications for the chair job and will look to hire from within.

Wright is confident that the department will continue to succeed without him at the helm; if he were not confident, he said he would not have stepped down.

“I feel that there are many good members within my department that are more than capable of being the department chair,” he said. “There are plenty of qualified candidates that will continue to do a great job, whoever gets it.”

He added that whoever replaces him will have a good foundation for the department with good members, and that “a fresh perspective is needed” and will be brought by the new chair.

Wright is pleased that he has been able to implement one final change before leaving: social science options for seniors.

Rising seniors can now choose between five classes for their social science requirement.

Among the choices are two APs and three advanced history courses. Traditional senior courses; AP Government and Philosophy, will still be taught.

“I am still trying to make the changes

“Griffintrons” from robotics, page 24 “We would make some shots, but then we would play defense to prevent the other team from scoring. Our robot was amazing at defense. If a robot goes up close to the basket I can move our robot into a high gear and ram them hard so that the robot’s position is shifted,” said Hobel.

The team also won the General Motors Industrial Design

insidefacts OnSOCIALSCIENCECHAIR • Defines the programs of the department in consultation with the principals and asst. principal • Develops courses of study that support the goals and strategic intitiatives of the school • Reviews and revises course of study for multiculturalism, inclusion and social justice • Engages in ongoing evaluation of the social science program • Works with faculty to develop their skills and knowledge through seminars, workshops, professional development activities and graduate study

Claire Selvin The Student Voice

US HISTORY: Robert Wright teaches his AP United States History class.

I believe in and I will continue to fight for those as a faculty member,” he said.

Next year, Wright will have two periods of strength and conditioning, one period after school, as well as two AP US History periods and one period of his new class, International Relations, which is one of the five senior social science options.

Award, which is given to the robot with the most efficient design in accomplishing the task of the competition.

“Our simple pneumatic tipper was arguably the best design for the challenge,” said DeCorso.

In past years, the robotics team has used Java to program the robot.

This year, the team used LabVIEW, a visual code, which is more popular and easier to use. LabVIEW is meant to work with the brain of the robot, which is called the cRIO. Senior Devyne Spillane is the master behind the

• Leads the faculty in the development of cultural competency skills and 21st century teaching • Plans and holds periodic department meetings to discuss curriculum development, innovations in the field, departmnet programs, etc.

programming and used his computer to load information onto the cRIO, which corresponded input from the joystick and autonomous code (robot functioning without controls) also programmed in the robot.

“Programming is simple if and only if you’re able to think logically like a programmer,” said Spillane.

Team 1661 will participate in its next regional competition over spring break from April 5-7 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

If team 1661 wins a regional competition, the team will be invited to the championship in St. Louis, Missouri.

5 thursday, march 22, 2012

news opinion features focus arts & entertainment sports

with SalimChamoun ‘14

SUESHERMAN DEAN OFSTUDENTS As the Upper School Dean, Sherman is the enforcer of rules. Out of uniform multiple times, tardy to class multiple times -- expect to have a talk with Sherm.

But beyond meting out consequences for discipline infranctions, Sherm is the reigning CIF Coach of the Year for girls tennis, the force behind the boys varsity tennis spring efforts, and the teacher of Advanced Pre-Calculus. The Voice explores how Sherman’s career has evolved over two decades and how she balances all of her duties for the school.

voice: How did you end up as dean and is it something you always wanted or planned, or was it part of your natural evolution at Buckley? sherman: Let me think back. No it was nothing I ever planned; I think the order of the events was that I started as a math teacher and then the administration had asked me to get involved with certain aspects of different parts of life on campus and it naturally evolved into when the dean of students left they suggested that I look into it and apply. voice: How do you balance being a coach, dean, senior class advisor, and math teacher?

sherman: How do I juggle? Over the years I have learned

to adapt. It’s all about organization and time management so there are certain things I know I have to do and I have to do them at a certain time otherwise I have lost it. I leave at 2:30 so things have to get done, then I have to juggle little bit of student schedules and sometimes there are not enough hours in the day so I have to do it the next day.

voice: What is your favorite role on campus? sherman: I would say I am proud of all of them. I can’t

say being a tennis coach is the best because there are some days that being the tennis coach is absolutely the best feeling in the world and there are other days that something great came out of the dean’s office and I just can’t imagine not doing one without the other. It just makes it seem to be a complete, well balanced, and fun day.

voice: What do you see as the school’s biggest challenge in terms of student decorum?

sherman: I think there is too much of a blurry line on what they could do with the internet; I think the internet plays almost this enticing role that seems to swallow up [students]. Not to say back in my day, but back in my day we didn’t have the tools you all have, so whatever we wrote or whatever we put on paper was 100 percent what we did, nowadays you can get so much from the internet, and then how much of it is your work.

voice: Do you feel there is a decline in student respect? sherman: I don’t see a decline in student respect. I think you have teachers who are more favored by students and that has been happening long before I went to high school. I think you have groups of students that like each other better than other groups. I don’t see a decline at all.

needs me. The dean’s position is not just [concerned when] you’re in trouble. Being a senior class advisor there are issues that come up. There are students where if something is going on they come in here. Just because you see someone in my office does not mean they are in trouble. No, they have come in because they need help, from whomever or whatever. If you are in trouble you certainly will get in trouble for it, but then that is a whole other aspect of it.

voice: Are there any policies or rules that you would like to voice: Do you ever feel emotionally attached to anyone you change?

have to give bad news to?

sherman: No, I think each year the administration sits down and looks at rules and you know kind of goes through them just to make sure that the reasons we have them are for the right reasons. The rule that a lot of people seem to be bothered by, because it is a pain in the neck, is to sign out.

We ask the teachers to follow the rule as well. The problem is especially in California, if you were to have an earthquake or fire, and you didn’t sign out, then technically when everyone is on the field and because you didn’t sign out we don’t know where you are. Over the summer we revisit [the rules and consequences]. If the child doesn’t do it, here is what the punishment is. We also talk about why we need the rule and do we still need the rule. There is never a time that we go, ‘oh, we have nothing better to do so let’s make up this rule.’

sherman: Yes, I do. There are a lot of people. I mean pretty much anyone I get involved with and get to know. I want to protect [them] and make sure they are ok. So I feel sorry that you are in trouble. I was on that side of the couch during my high school career. It is part of life and we all need to have consequences to our mistakes.

voice: Do you feel rules and safety overlap each other? sherman: I think there are a lot of rules, [that have to

do with safety] like shoes for instance. Students cannot wear flip-flops, clogs, open-toe, and open-heel shoes. Why? What is the big deal? It’s California, everybody in the entire world and California seems to be wearing flip-flops. Why is it that we say you can’t wear flip-flops. It is a safety reason. Whether broken glass or an earthquake, we need to have you in shoes.

So each summer we do spend time, and we say, ‘Okay here are the rules, do we still need those rules?’

voice: What would you say is the most important part of your job?

voice: Do you stay updated and informed on student lives? sherman: I try. I don’t think I am as updated as a lot of the teachers are because they are in the classroom longer than I am. voice: How do you feel about being the bearer of bad news? sherman: It is my job; I have to do it. It’s not something that I get excited about. To tell someone about the consequences they are getting is hard. I don’t know how I can articulate how I deal with it. I think the older students know me a lot better that than younger students. They understand what I go through and respect what I do. If you make a mistake, it is not the end of the world, but you do have to pay the price for that mistake which is true in the world. Just like real life where if you forget to pay the IRS you will get a penalty. If you speed 90 miles per hour, you understand the mistake, but you have to still pay the consequence. Consequences are made so mistakes are not made again. I don’t necessarily feel horrible if you have to pay the consequence, but I do feel horrible when you make the mistake over and over.

sherman: I guess being open; being available to the voice: Thank you so much. students, whether it’s to the team [tennis] or to someone who

opinion 6 thursday, march 22, 2012 |

Staff Editorial

A call for open dialogue Throughout the year, The Student Voice has polled the student body on many topics, asking for your views. In this issue of The Voice, multiple articles call for conversations about topics ranging from diversity, to appearance, to overly sensitive attitudes. Also in this issue we report the BSC’s initiatives to change administrative policy on cell phones and uniform.

We support these calls for dialogue and these examples of exchanges of viewpoints.

As we move towards a future hopefully filled with more conversations, we ask the school to have conversations about our future.

Students, faculty, and staff, as well as administrators, must not simply skim the surface on real student and faculty issues, but have deep, thoughtprovoking discussions that address real issues on campus.

Looking at ourselves critically is no easy task, but it’s something that we

must dare to do. We must break from our current path of silence and follow a path that promotes discussions, understanding, critical thinking, and activism.

As a community, we dare ourselves to be true. But often, we do not embrace that challenge to be true to ourselves.

Having conversations about the state of our school, about diversity, about student apathy, about a lack of spirit, and about upholding the values of the Buckley Commitment will wholeheartedly promote activism, allow us to be true, and teach us to be aware, active, and responsible citizens.

If students, faculty, and administrators alike identify faults, bad habits, and unsuccessful policies, they must speak out and express their concerns.

The Voice asks that the administration facilitate ongoing discussions about the state of the school, open to anyone wishing to attend.

a note from student body president Jonathan Friedman

We have the Initiative, but where’s the follow through?

The administration has said one key tenet of the Diversity Initiative is having conversations.

When The Voice interviewed the director of multiculturalism and inclusion in November, we asked how, as a school, we implement our strategic plan, in which multiculturalism and inclusion play a large role. The root of her answer was simple: “we have conversations... deep courageous conversations about where we are and where we want to be.”

Well, it’s almost six months later, and I’m wondering where

those conversations are.

The only deep and courageous conversations about diversity that I’ve had throughout my 15-year Buckley career took place this year and were initiated not by the administration or other faculty members, but by myself and my fellow leaders of the school’s chapter of the Junior State of America.

The JSA discussions about diversity were the only open, promoted, and thoughtful discussions that have occurred since the Diversity Initiative’s inception over five years ago.

These conversations must encourage students to openly discuss what they see on campus without the fear of penalization.

We have reached a crossroads between accepting what is said to be appropriate and what is right.

The Voice views these conversations as vital to the future success of our school. An environment that not only fosters discourse, but active discourse in dealing with sensitive topics will push everyone to think and to better understand each other.

This respect for each others views should be part of the school’s culture.

Conversations about the state of our school and how to improve should be a tenet of our community.

The below opinion article represents one strong voice with the hopes of starting additional conversations. We encourage other members of the administration, faculty, and students to join us in our mission.

the student newspaper of The Buckley School Contact The Voice at: 3900 Stansbury Avenue, Sherman Oaks, CA 91423 818.783.1610 ext. 461 studentvoice@buckley.org voice.buckley.org faculty advisor Ellen Samsell Salas, Ph.D. editor-in-chief Andrew Davis ‘12 assistant editors Elle Wisnicki ‘13 Claire Selvin ‘13 design and production editor Jonathan Friedman ‘12 news editor Claire Selvin ‘13 assistant news editor Salim Chamoun ‘14 opinion editor Andrew Davis ‘12 features editor James Bernstein ‘14

Those discussions verified that students crave conversations about diversity. Unfortunately, we crave those conversations because many students, faculty, and staff alike have no idea what the Diversity Initiative is.

Our commitment to multiculturalism, diversity, and inclusion is heavily promoted at open houses and in school promotions, yet that commitment is not clear on campus. That many students do not understand the most discussed aspect of the school’s present and future plans is my

biggest concern.

I not only believe, but I know that our community wants to engage in conversations about diversity and the diversity initiative. We’d like to have the conversations that some believe we are already having every day in our classrooms and around campus, according to the administration and the school’s promotional information.

So, powers at be, give me a time and a place, I’ll be there. I bet the rest of the school will too.

Let’s lean in and have the first of, hopefully, many conversations.

“Those [JSA] discussions verified that students crave conversations about diversity.

Unfortunately, we crave those conversations because many students, faculty, and staff alike have no idea what the Diversity Initiative is.”

onthespot...

What are your thoughts on the diversity initiative?

“I think well-qualified children of all nationalities should be welcomed at Buckley. As long as a kid has what it takes, the color of their skin shouldn’t matter.”

Kayla Levy, Freshman “The Diversity Initiative is good because we are becoming a more diverse school, which will make minorities feel more comfortable because they have people of the same ethnic background at school with them.”

Nausher Walia, Junior “I think it’s great to be able to experience and have different views in different cultures and lifestyles. It servers a purpose and almost an enlightenment of diversity. The only aspect I would say needs improvement is getting a bit more people involved.”

Astin Beal, Sophomore “I think one of the initiative’s critical flaws is a lack of focus on latino students. Buckley’s lack of latino students is a glaring omission in its attempt to demonstrate the diversity of modern America, and especially California.”

Ben Beatty, Junior

assistant features editor Meher Singh ‘14 focus editor Shilpa Mantri ‘13 assistant focus editor Nika Shahery ‘13 arts and entertainment editors Alice Breidenbach ‘12 Mark Cook ‘12 assistant arts and entertainment editor Tara Bitran ‘14 sports editors Elle Wisnicki ‘13 Jack Rose ‘13 assistant sports editor Tyler Morad ‘14 copy editor Daniel Gabbay ‘12 chief photographer Olivia Perez ‘12 staff reporters Tucker Higgins, Michael Len, Billy Wilson, Brandon Edmonds, Grace McKagen, Natalya Sands, Katherine Herzer-Hansel

EDITORIALS Unsigned editorials reflect the majority opinion of the Board of Editors of The Student Voice and not necessarily the student body’s.

Signed editorials and columns reflect only the writer’s opinion.

GRAPHICS Illustrations, graphics and artistic renderings may or may not represent the opinions of the artist.

ADVERTISING Publication of an advertisement does not imply endorsement of the product or service by the newspaper or by the school. We reserve the right to refuse any advertisement.

READER INPUT The Voice values reader input via letters, guest columns and story ideas.

The Online Voice Visit The Online Voice at voice.buckley.org for more up-to-date content, and archives of print issues.

Printed on recycled paper.

7 thursday, march 22, 2012

news opinion features focus arts & entertainment sports

Spirit Week: untimely, chaotic, and stressful for short-lived results ElleWisnicki ‘13 assistant editor While Spirit Week may be well intentioned, the placement and execution can really create a capital “S” for “stressful” rather than “spirited.”

Spirit Week is jammed right before spring break, usually a time when teachers need to cram in material before a twoweek hiatus from instruction, and for me, a time when I have little energy left from a rough third quarter.

The weeks leading up to Spirit Week are wrought with the chaos of trying to learn the entrance, decide on decorations and attire, and become “spirited” as a class.

Preparing for Spirit Week takes away precious minutes during advisories, M periods and lunch, which could be used either for quick review before a quiz, or time for students to

catch a breath between rigorous classes.

The date this year, March 20-22, is exactly one month and 15 days before my first AP exam, AP Calculus AB. With spring break in the middle of that month it leaves me with little time for actual in class instruction, especially because classes are cut by five and 10 minutes each “spirit” day.

In all of my classes five minutes makes a difference in being able to finally understand a tough concept, or being able to clarify direction of that night’s homework.

While I would love to stay after school to decorate for the glorious week, teachers can’t and won’t just stop their agendas and eliminate homework for three whole days.

“Most teachers don’t like Spirit Week because students are overexcited, don’t listen, and

are noisy.

It’s difficult to teach in such an environment with students three times as distracted,” said an anonymous teacher.

The wastefulness Spirit Week creates only adds to our environment issues.

The amount of supplies used during Spirit Week is astronomical and none of it is saved. We buy clothes so that our grade can match and we waste massive amounts of tape, paper, balloons, and we throw away enumerable materials.

And for what, exactly?

I suggest Spirit Week would be best executed either during first semester in order to bond grades together early as does outdoor education, or as a oneday event. Earlier in the year, students would be less burned out, more excited about the events, and the event would not be so close to AP examinations.

Or, if Spirit Week was instead “Spirit Day,” we could have an entire day dedicated to spirited competition without classes or homework, with our sole focus being on bonding with our grade against the other grades.

When people find out I am not Spirit Week’s biggest advocate they say “What’s the matter with you” or are shocked because they believe my energetic nature is perfect for Spirit Week.

While that observation is true, I like to use my energy in a more constructive ways.

I know our school doesn’t have to have Spirit Week and I commend the idea; however, I believe the execution could be modified to reduce the stress that surrounds the week, and stress reduction has been a main goal of our school for the past two years.

#idontcare about the details Tweeters send details of their social lives often leaving excluded students feeling dejected. Is posting every little detail of your life really a necessity?

Do your followers really need to know about the new bracelet you just bought?

DanielGabbay ‘12 copy editor With every new day comes new “tweets,” and with new tweets, tweeters reveal to others their thoughts, emotions, and what they’re doing at each given moment.

Yes – teens claim to use twitter to simply stay connected with their friends and to keep everyone “in the know,” but teen tweeters tend to exaggerate the purpose of the social networking site. Instead of using it to stay connected

with friends, people constantly tweet to prove that they have a busy social life and to give the impression that they have tons of friends and are “cool.”

We live in such a “here and now” day in age where it’s so common for people to leave their footprints online; I get it – broadcasting what you’re doing and knowing what your friends are up to is enjoyable.

But what about

the kids who are left out and are excluded from other tweeters’ Saturday night? While someone’s boasting tweets may boost self-esteem, they also lower the confidence of others. Twitter has become a vehicle to promote one’s name, not to merely stay connected with friends.

Tweets like “just bought my fifth Hermes bracelet!” merely highlight a tweeter’s superficiality.

I personally think it is unnecessary to inform your one-hundred followers that you just purchased a ridiculously expensive accessory.

The common “sushi with my girls” tweet that includes seven “mentions” simply conveys tweeters’ desperate need to rub their dazzling social lives into the faces of their friends. And let’s not forget the classic “spontaneous night with

“But what about the kids who are left out and are excluded from other tweeters’ Saturday night? While someone’s boasting tweets may boost self-esteem, they also lower the confidence of others. Twitter has become a vehicle to promote one’s name, not to merely stay connected with friends.”

my crew” tweet that serves as a preliminary to the many obnoxious tweets that follow, filled with an abundance of silly pictures and hash tags, which really just translate to “look at me. I have so many friends and I’m so cool because of it” as well.

So kids, when you tweet, don’t be so self-indulgent and don’t do it for the sake of emphasizing your popularity.

Be conscious of who follows you on twitter. Of course, twitter should be an entertaining way to stay connected and to share your thoughts. But the “look at me” tweets and many “mentions” have become #enough.

APPEARANCE I primarily wear two pairs of jeans, eight shirts, two pairs of shoes, a couple longsleeve shirts, and a jacket.

I’m no fashion guru; I like what I wear and people judge me all the time for not having “enough.” I’ve had the same AC/DC shirt since the eighth grade and every time I wear the familiar article of clothing, I always am made fun of because my wardrobe is predictable.

During my sophomore year, I was really interested in this girl.

She was sweet, kind, and always knew what to say. She liked to talk to me when I looked good. I guess she wanted to be around me when others wanted to be around me – not because the quality of my character was respectable, but because she found me attractive.

But when I came back from a long weekend, I felt a little insecure because my skin had broken out quite badly. I was lucky enough to have her still acknowledge my presence when I talked to her before classes, but it was quite clear that she had lost a significant amount of interest in me. Not because my personality had changed, but because my skin was not as clear as it was the week before.

I understand that appearance plays a prominent role in how peers perceive an individual, but just because someone is fat, is short, has acne, is insecure, is indecisive, does not mean that this person should be cast aside.

I sometimes wonder why girls put on gobs of makeup before and during school even though their faces look pretty and beautiful naturally. I wonder why guys have a fixation with their muscles and facial hair. I wonder why people try to suggest that happiness comes with a nice haircut or designer-cut jeans.

Just stop, please – this fixation with appearance is getting annoying.

You do not have to think that the choices your peers make are the right choices for you – do what you believe is right and just be you.

I do not have a lot of time left at this school and what frustrates me the most about this seemingly homogenous environment is that people are afraid to deviate from the “norm” and just be themselves. We are afraid to associate, date, converse with, and be around individuals of an inferior “social status.”

We are afraid to differentiate ourselves from the masses because we are afraid of abandonment – we are afraid of conquering adversity without anyone by our side because we view company and companionship as necessities.

I’m not trying to suggest that having a strong relationship or friendship are bad methods of living, but when I see a girl depend on a male figure to alleviate, cure her own insecurities, I worry.

She can only develop the confidence to respect herself when she receives acceptance and attention from her peers – a habit I believe is unhealthy.

A week ago, my friend told me about a girl he really wants to date; I asked why he doesn’t ask her out.

“I’m afraid to let her know how I really feel because I’m not very popular. I feel like people do not notice me in the hallways.

Because I don’t have an appropriate status, she perceives me as an inferior. She doesn’t even look me in the eye when I talk to her. I wish she would because she’s missing out on a great opportunity to meet someone new.”

So student body – I have three favors to ask of you. Cut the juvenile judgment; break down these preconceived barriers; start living a judgmental-free life.

news opinion features focus arts & entertainment sports

A once-reluctant dancer embraces the genre

ClaireSelvin ‘13 assistant editor I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard a student say, “It’s ridiculous that we have to take two years of art classes.” I suppose the reasoning behind these disgruntled arguments is that we could be packing our schedules full of more solid academic classes.

However, that logic is inconsistent with the principles of creativity and well roundedness the fourfold plan tries to promote.

We are fortunate to attend a high school that embraces creative thought and artistic exploration, that offers a myriad of different classes in the visual and performing arts for which we need not audition for or test into, merely write on our course planner. Moreover, these classes range from two to four days per week, allowing for flexibility with other classes and electives.

I’m not a dancer. I don’t consider myself to be particularly

coordinated, flexible, or rhythmically in tune. Yet my school has allowed me to explore this art form in a positive learning environment that allows me to improve and grow. I’ve not only learned about how to dance well, but also about several different dance genres and techniques.

Our school requires us to complete two years of art because life is not all about graphs, essays, translations, and experiments. To be well rounded and informed young adults, we must learn to think creatively, outside the realm of exactly right or wrong, outside the realm of formulas and equations.

Our small community allows for great success in any area you choose to explore.

Utilize the tools that are at your fingertips today; in college, you won’t be so easily accepted into a specialized, small art class.

State budget cuts are devastating public schools’ arts programs so the next time you feel like venting about ridiculous school requirements, appreciate the enriching opportunities this school provides.

Remember, we are lucky to be a part of a community that offers us countless opportunities in different areas of study.

When correctness trumps a learning environment

TuckerHiggins ‘13 staff reporter It didn’t take long. Hardly a week after the publication of last month’s paper, several critics were already abuzz about the “ageism” they found in one of the articles I’d written.

The article, a fluff-piece defending the popularity of e-readers, opened as follows: “Here we go again. Every time some nascent technology is introduced that has the potential to upend a system we’ve grown used to, some oldies shuffle out of the woodwork to complain; change is scary, they say…”

You’d be surprised how much that offended people. “No different than racism,” one objector told me, invoking our community’s most emotive critique.

Well, here we go again.

First, it’s important to note that my 17-year-old opponent’s age was never under attack. I was lamenting her old thinking, relating her reluctance to accept new ideas to the physical and mental inertia that often accompany old age. I wasn’t referring to a specific age, because saying something like “all 80-year-olds hate technology” would be inappropriate and false. But simply discussing a well-documented mentality— Shakespeare’s “second childishness”—in an article about e-readers is just about as innocuous as you can be.

More importantly though is that the claim critics accused me of making—that old people are more resistant to change than adolescents —falls well within the range of academic discourse that should be accepted at a learning institution.

(See, e.g., Scientific American’s “Set in Our Ways: Why Change is So Hard”).

thursday, march 22, 2012 8

A big disgrace to my race DanielGabbay ‘12 copy editor They’re rich. They’re spoiled.

They’re Persian. … Or at least, that’s how my culture is portrayed in Bravo’s new reality television series, Shahs of Sunset.

The new show follows six Persian socialites in Los Angeles as they navigate through their daily routines and lives, deal with relationship issues, and indulge in what seems like bottomless checking accounts.

While the cast exudes a sense of ridiculous superficiality and act like complete air-heads, adding a comedic flare to the show, they ultimately send an inaccurate message to the millions of viewers who watched the program when it aired on March 11.

According to Shahs, Persians are prodigal people who are mainly concerned with owning booming businesses and getting married in their early twenties simply to have children.

The show’s central focus seems to be on its ditzy characters and their over-the-

In that way, the responses to my comment represent a lot more than a singular instance of mischaracterization and overreaction. They represent a larger trend. As we’ve begun to reward taking offense and penalize taking risks, the caliber of our discourse has disintegrated in the name of making people feel comfortable.

What we’ve forgotten is that learning requires discomfort. Discomfort is healthy; it arises when we’re presented with new ideas that challenge the way we’ve been taught to look at the world. Muscles groan when they become stronger—so do people.

That’s why we teach books like Huckleberry Finn, which, despite its use of the N-Word close to 200 times, is centered around the humanization of the African-American character Jim. A small but vocal group of critics has rejected the book as racist and lobbied for censorship; they’ve chosen to take the path of leastmental-resistance, offering blind criticisms of inflammatory keywords and refusing to think critically about the big picture.

But unlike those critics, at Buckley we’re taught to aim higher, to seek the truth by daring to be true ourselves.

We’re also taught to accept and be tolerant of all the world’s cultures.

But labels like “racist” and “ageist” help us do neither; instead, they provide us with intellectual refuge by allowing us to view a complex and confusing world in simplistic 2D. They cheapen, by association with the mundane, accusations of prejudice where it actually exists, and silence conversation that has the potential to lead to greater understanding and acceptance. To achieve that greater understanding, we must allow and encourage people to speak freely.

In “Political Correctness and Pandas” the inaugural article of The Gates, I wrote that “[B]eing offended is easy. Being silent is also easy. But daring to see other people, to rise to them and their ideas without shying away, that’s hard.” It’s a lesson that we have yet to learn as an institution.

Until we do, any efforts at cultural or generational understanding will be trivial.

top personalities. Golnesa ‘GG’ Gharachedaghi, who is portrayed as the Persian Kim Kardashian on the show, is a 30-year-old trust fund baby who uses her father’s credit card to buy designer clothing. In scenes where she isn’t shopping excessively, she arrogantly proclaims that she does not like “ugly people.” During the first episode she also adds, “I am 30 years old, and my only paycheck is from my Daddy.”

Shahs has also helped create a climate in which acting selfindulgent and conceited has become fashionable on television.

“I love being able to go out with a tall blond with implants one day, the next day with, like, a beautiful Asian girl,” says Sammy Younai, one of the show’s characters.

“That’s my thing.”

The haughty Golnesa and the self-obsessed Sammy inaccurately portray the Persian culture and the values that the majority of Persian people believe in.

I am Persian and live in Los Angeles – very near Sunset Boulevard coincidentally – and I find the stereotypes that are being used in the show to convey modern Persian culture to the public media to be not only false, but extremely embarrassing.

I don’t want to have to be compared to the unlikeable

characters in the show whenever someone is reminded of the fact that I am Persian. People must acknowledge that Persians faced many struggles and obstacles when they traveled from Iran to the United States during the Iranian Revolution. Viewers must look past the easy, carefree lives that the show’s cast lives and understand that the judgmental, selfish personalities of the show’s characters are only exaggerated, stereotypical portrayals.

Of course, it’s fair to say that Persians are interested in maintaining thriving businesses and having large families, but it’s disappointing how the show displays these values with such hyperbole, merely to generate laughs and attract viewers.

I hope that my peers do not believe what Shahs feeds them and give into the idea that all Persians act with such crudeness. I resent the show for painting Los Angeles’s Iranian-Americans as vulgar, materialistic show-offs who don’t fit in among the city’s supposedly more cultured elites. Perhaps future episodes will discuss my culture’s true moral values and the struggles Persians once faced to achieve their current, successful lives, rather than exposing a superficial gloss – but that might be a little too much to ask.

intervention is an option

NikaShahery ‘13 assistant focus editor Iran should be denied nuclear capability.

It’s that simple.

On March 3-5, I had the honor of attending the American Israeli Political Affairs Committee’s Policy Conference in Washington D.C. where I listened to a wide range of radical to conservative speakers who discussed Israel’s and America’s policy on Iran’s nuclear program.

Iran not only believes its state has no homosexuals, but also denies the Holocaust and would like to see Israel blown off the map.

Iran does not want nuclear power for the purposes of electricity, nor does it want nuclear power to enrich its medical research.

Iran is building underground nuclear facilities, developing intercontinental ballistic missiles, and manufactures centrifuges, while under the strain of sanctions in order to advance medical research. That makes sense.

In regards to electricity, Iran is ranked at having the third largest oil reserve, with over 150 billion barrels as of 2007, according to Iran Chamber Society. One can argue that alternative energy is an appealing factor, but is Iran really ready to give up its number one export and economic stimulus to help the environment?

“If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then what is it? That’s right, it’s a duck. But this duck is a nuclear duck and it’s time the world started calling a duck a duck,” said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Iran is already a nation with a highly corrupt government that continually interferes with its people’s lives. The Arab

Spring is potentially upon them, while the Assad Regime is weakening.

Israel is a nation already under ongoing threat; in its six decades of existence it has fought six wars. “Self defense is our right and obligation,” said President of Israel Shimon Perez.

Peace is always the first option, and all options are on the table except containment.

However, if diplomacy fails America and Israel are both equally ready to strike when the time arises. America’s support for Israel should remain bipartisan.

When it comes to the security of my homelands, Israel and America, and the security of the world, our country should not shy away from a fight.

Regardless of our past failures with military intervention, if the time arises when Iran can properly manipulate the fission reaction of Uranium 235, military intervention would have to be the final solution. Iran is about 18 months away.

Some may argue, however, that an attack could provoke an aggressive response from Iran. Regarding the bombing of Auschwitz in 1944 under the Roosevelt Administration, Assistant Secretary of War John McCloy claimed U.S. planes would be unable to reach Auschwitz and that attacking the mass-murder camp would “provoke even more vindictive action by the Germans.”

But what could have the Nazis have done that would have been more vindictive than the systematic genocide of over 12 million people?

Of course, there are still those who will disagree. While attending the conference every morning, I would walk by hundreds of protestors advocating for no war, a free Palestinian state, and questioning the intentions of the conference itself.

I do, like several other leaders, believe that war should always be the last option.

But I also believe that, if necessary, military intervention should be the strongest option on the table.

9

features thursday, march 22, 2012 |

JAMESBERNSTEIN ‘14

ONE

home,

Two houses of faith

I

t’s uncommon in most of the world to find a family that practices more than one religion.

Our community, however, is not like the rest of the world.

In 2000, Jewish people comprised 5.9 percent of the total population of Los Angeles (Los Angeles Almanac). Yet in an unscientific survey conducted on March 6, they accounted for 31.5 percent of the total population of the Upper School. Notwithstanding the fact that our community also contains a wealth of other religions, Christianity and Judaism remain in the majority.

But what happens when those two faiths collide? Is it possible for the marriage of a Jewish man and a Christian woman or vice versa to work out? Is it possible to be raised as both Jewish and Christian? To what extent does that actually happen?

It’s complicated.

For example, some students’ parents were raised in different faiths but then one converted to their spouse’s religion in order to keep the family united under one ideology. Thus, junior Maddie Baldi, whose Roman Catholic dad converted to Judaism at marriage, had a confusing childhood.

“I was always told I was Jewish growing up but I did celebrate Easter and Christmas. I never understood that those had religious meanings. I always thought they were about Easter bunnies and Santa Claus and that’s what it meant to me as a kid,” said Baldi.

Baldi always knew that Passover, Yum Kippur and other Jewish holidays had religious meanings growing up but it was not until she “started becoming aware of the world” around her that she grasped the true nature of her family heritage and the meaning of Christmas and Easter.

“I’m Jewish. I don’t go to temple every week and all that but if someone asked me, I’m Jewish and I would want to raise my kids that way,” said Baldi. “But Christmas is my favorite holiday. There’s something about the holidays that just brings everyone together. There’s something about Christmas that’s very commercial, it’s everywhere. And, everyone’s nicer during it. It’s a time to be with everyone.

Not to celebrate my Christianity, which I don’t have.”

Our school takes off for and recognizes the biggest Christian and Jewish holidays, including Rosh Hashanah, Yum Kippur, and Christmas. These two faiths are the most commonly practiced by students. Well, at least the holidays are.

Sophomore Katrina Cymerman, like many students, comes from a family with a mixed religious heritage. Her dad is Jewish, her mom is Roman Catholic and went to school with nuns as a child, and most of the rest of her

family is atheist. Cymerman doesn’t go to church, temple, or practice either faith in any religious way.

But she likes the holidays.

“We do a Christmas dinner, light candles on Chanukah and say prayer, and I open eight of my Christmas presents for Chanukah. That’s pretty much it,” said Cymerman. “It’s hard to say what my background is.”

With Passover and Easter coming up, between five and twelve percent of students will be exposed to the doctrines and traditions of two faiths, both alike and different. If you ask 100 students just what the relationship between the two is, you will receive 100 different answers.

Sophomore Ben Miller considers himself Jewish, but also celebrates Easter. His mother converted to Judaism after her first child was born so that everyone in the family would be Jewish.

Although his family celebrates the traditional elements of Passover, Miller has known Easter his whole life to be about hunting for eggs.

“It’s not the biggest part of our lives, but we all enjoy faith. Christianity is obviously a larger faith, so like other people we take comfort in just the larger aspects of that.

But I went to a Jewish day school all my life and I have embraced my inner-Jew,” said Miller. “I love being Jewish.”

When trying to determine if a student is Jewish, other students will often refer to the rule that whether someone is Jewish is determined by whether his or her mother was Jewish. Miller’s family practices Reform Judaism, which allowed there to be no question of him being Jewish even though his mother wasn’t raised Jewish. Sophomore Tara Bitran and her family, however, share a different opinion.

“When I was younger people would say: ‘you are what your mom is: Catholic.’ And I would say: ‘well, I celebrate what my family celebrates and practice what I would like to practice. I have no problem celebrating both religions,” said Bitran.

When Bitran’s Roman Catholic mom and Jewish dad got married, they decided they would not pressure their children into practicing either religion more closely than the other. Now, her parents have gotten used to each other’s faiths pretty well. Her mom has even taken classes on preparing Jewish food for Passover and other holidays and sometimes even attends temple without Bitran’s dad because she enjoys the rabbi’s charisma.

“If I chose one religion, I would feel that I was abandoning one whole part of me and I don’t want to do that. So I practice both religions,” said Bitran. “My mom wishes we could go to Church more and my dad wishes we could go to temple more, but they understand that I don’t want to block out either part. They are so supportive.”

How would you describe your parents’ religious faith?

32% 39% 12% Both 8% None 9% Other

How would you describe your own religious faith?

33% 35% 5% 16%

Both None Jewish

32% Other Christian 73 responses collected on March 6

thursday, march 22, 2012 10

news opinion features focus arts & entertainment sports

CADET x53976

by Andrew Davis

W

hen Cadet Private Eric Isaac Murray ’11 received his high school diploma at Walt Disney Concert Hall on June 11, 2011, he had just 16 days before he would call United States Military Academy, West Point: his home for the next 47 months.

“They call it the 47 month experience at West Point; it’s a very clear cut progression,” said Murray. “I started off in basic training six weeks right off the bat.”

If West Point were the regular Army, basic training would be 11 weeks long. West Point takes all the training the Army does in those 11 weeks and squeezes it down into six for all new cadets (name given to freshmen at West Point prior to acceptance into the corps of cadets).

“My daily schedule consisted of waking up at 5 a.m. and [doing] physical training – it was very regimented and rigorous. We [Murray and his classmates] all formed up and we either had running intervals, run groups, or MSE [muscular strength and endurance]. On MSE days, we’d run down this enormous hill and then do pushups ad nauseum, sit-ups until we reached muscle failure, [and] pull-ups – this was all in intervals. They killed our muscles, and then we would form up and run back up this gigantic, enormous hill – cross-country definitely helped,” said Murray.

The purpose of the cadet basic training is to stress out the new cadets as much as possible.

“They want to make you leave if you can’t take it. They have a set attrition rate. During our basic training, we had 30 people leave; three people actually quit the very first day,” said Murray.

But Murray stuck with it despite all the uniform changes, the physical exhaustion, and the full accountability he had to have for his rifle.

“I named mine Betsy. It’s not loaded – I even know its stock number, 3799,” said Murray.

After physical exhaustion from

morning workouts, cadets have to go into the barracks and up to the fifth floor, recover their rifles, and get dressed with the appropriate uniform and then go back into formation.

“The uniforms are very nice and you need to look good. It’s white, it needs to be ironed, and you need to have your name-tape in the right place over your right breast. If everything is not in order, you will get in trouble and they [the upperclassmen called ‘cadre’ during cadet basic training] will let you know loudly,” said Murray.

According to Murray, the upperclassmen will “smoke” cadets by making them do pushups or another exercise until they reach muscle failure.

While some are exceptionally good at pushups, like Murray’s friend Cadet Holmes who can do an excess of 100 consecutive pushups, Murray was not as fortunate and capped out at about 45 on a good day.

first responder] training, which is first aid on the battlefield, care under fire, tactical field care, placing IVs on each other, and using nasopharyngeal tubes.

We need to know this. How to treat bullet wounds, arterial bleeding, sucking chest wounds, traumatic wounds, losing limbs,” said Murray.

Because people are going to get wounded in the Army, Murray and his classmates went through simulations where they had to stabilize dummies, pull security, clear the enemy out of an area then call a chopper by sending up a “nine line” on the radio.

Murray was also trained to be qualified on his rifle and was surprisingly qualified with his M4 in two days. Not only did he have to hit a sequence of targets in the shooting range, he also had to clear a jam in his rifle, continue engaging, make a magazine switch, continue engaging, and then clear another jam to reflect a real life situation

AT WEST POINT CBT Private Eric Isaac Murray USMA Class of 2015 1st Regiment, Hotel Company Photos courtesy of Eric Murray

After a 7:15 a.m. breakfast, cadets then had an assortment of activities Monday through Friday. From getting ready to go into the field, to going to professional military ethics education (PMEE) class, to attending briefings, to going to issue points, cadets are kept busy throughout the day.

A lot of the training Murray received during the first six weeks reflected what was taught in PMEE. “They [the cadre] taught us about the honor code and what it means to be in the Army. We also had SFR [soldier

on the battlefield.

“I had never shot a single round of ammunition in my entire life before West Point, and when I got there I was a little above average,” said Murray.

On the last day of basic training, acceptance day, Murray and his classmates were accepted into the Corps of Cadets.

But after the fun parade and celebration, Murray went straight into the academic year the very next day.

Classes start at 7:30 a.m. and end at 4:00 p.m. Murray is taking five classes

this semester and is making the Dean’s List with a 3.70 GPA (3.67 or above, no weighted classes at West Point).

Murray is on the border of the top 10 percent of his class. Because he had participated and successfully completed nine AP courses and one post AP course, Murray had to meet with the dean in briefings about validating classes (testing out of them), and validated seven courses and does not have to take a single math class because he took a differential equations course, which was his last core mathematics class, last semester.

“I want to complete an honors major and I want to graduate while staying on the Dean’s List. I won’t settle for anything less,” said Murray.

Murray has 40 lessons per course and 40 lessons per semester; he plans to major in Arabic and minor in terrorism studies.

“The Arabic culture is so different than United States culture; I’ve become absorbed and obsessed with it. I want to spend a semester and a summer abroad probably in Morocco to develop my interest,” said Murray.

Despite the physical development and education Murray is receiving at West Point, Murray recognizes a change of perspective and attitude the Academy has instilled in him.

“You can call it toughness, you can call it honor, you can call it whatever you want. I’ve become more accountable for what I do and have greater respect for what other people in this world have done,” said Murray. “We represent ourselves, the Army, and West Point all at the same time wherever we go. In this interview, I’m representing myself and everyone else who has ever gone to West Point.”

When asked if he would mind being thrown into a life or death situation, Murray looked at me and confidently said: “I intend to. I intend to be faced with that situation and I’m seeking out the opportunity to excel in that situation.

Right after West Point, I intend to branch Infantry [the boots on the ground] and then go into the Military Intelligence branch for two years.”

11

arts & entertainment thursday, march 22, 2012 |

insidearts&entertainment

our town

tri-m | page 11 Tri-M music honor society presented a benefit concert for ETM-LA at Vitello’s Restaurant.

tri-m

our town | page 14 Our Town cast members grapple with the profound message and tough emotional scenes in each performance.

Ovo| page 15 Copy editor Daniel Gabbay ‘12 reviews Cirque de Soleil’s new, insect-themed show.

ovo

katy

katy | page 15 News editor Claire Selvin ‘13 reviews Katy Perry’s newest pop single and Andrew Bird’s recent alternative album release.

Tri-M presents “Beautiful Noise” at Vitello’s ElleWisnicki ‘13 assistant editor The Tri-M Music Honor Society headed by president, senior Greg Sliskovich and vice president, senior Andrew Saltman presented “Beautiful Noise,” a studentrun performance at Vitello’s Jazz and Supper Club March 12 from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m., featuring 24 student performers.

“We did this for students. We have 303 students in the Upper School, and we want to develop a program where students can come enjoy themselves to music they know and love,” said Sliskovich.

Tri-M club advisor and director of performing arts, Vincent Houser, choral teacher John Hendricks, Saltman, and Sliskovich held auditions and collaborated on the selection process.

“We wanted students who enjoyed their music, were musical and had a message,” said Houser.

Saltman and Sliskovich chose senior Jonathan Friedman, BSC president, to MC the event.

“Jono Friedman is a personality the whole school recognizes, he is also active in the arts, being part of the choir. We felt like bringing

him on was the right thing to do,” said Saltman.

Vitello’s has featured other private schools in the area including Buckley’s Tri-M chapter two years ago, and contacted Houser a month before the event.

“It was not another performing arts department concert. This is something our students did for themselves,” said Houser.

The night featured ensembles such as Lightspeed as well as 17 soloists with a senior performance to close the night.

The Lightspeed performance included senior Brandon Wong, guitarist, freshman Calum Campbell-Watson, singer Saltman, and drummer, senior Alexander Silverman.

“I liked having a senior piece because it represents the closesness of the class of 2012. It’s special to bring different people in our grade to play together especially because I love the song “Secrets,” it’s just a beautiful song and perfect with our ensemble,” said senior Jonathan Weiss.

Saltman, Weiss, Friedman, Silverman, seniors Matthew Zidell, Cyrus Nury, Brandon Wong, Frankie Clarke, and Andrew

Davis, performed the senior finale piece “Secrets” by One Republic arranged by band teacher Thomas Marino.

“It is impressive that these kids came out of their way to perform. It can be intimidating to perform in front of your peers, and it was great to see diversity of not only musical talent but also musical style,” said Sliskovich.

The club sold tickets for $10 at the door, making almost $1,200. Half of the proceeds will be given to Education Through Music – Los Angeles and the other half to further the club’s success.

“The night was truly representative of the entire school,” said Houser.

PERFORMERS: (Top, from left) Seniors Matthew Zidell, Cyrus Nury, Jonathan Weiss and Andrew Saltman perform “Secrets” in a senior number at Vitellos.

(Middle) Senior Francesca Clarke jams with freshman Calum Watson and fellow senior Brandon Wong while performing original songs

by Lightspeed. (Bottom left) Junior Alexa Benudiz sings “Your Song.” (Bottom right) Senior Alexander Silverman slams away on the drums.

Photos courtesy of Elle Wisnicki The Student Voice

12

The Stud March

iran-israel f “ ” “ ” I’m hopeful that the two countries can come together in peace talks. I’m not sure if that will happen, but I hope Israel doesn’t attack Iran. That would be a World War III situation.

CYRUS NURY, SENIOR If the situation escalates the only choice for Israel is to send the Israeli Air Corps to destroy the nuclear facilities in Iran the same way they destroyed the nuclear reactor in Iraq carried out in 1981.

Ties to Iran a hit at the potential c

Israel has The U.S. should

The U.S. sh

AVIGDOR NOSRATI, SOPHOMORE

I R A N Has the right to build nuclear capability Has the right to stop Iran’s program ISRAEL

by James Bernstein ‘14

When you walk around campus, you don’t find students openly debating about the conflict between Israel and Iran.

That doesn’t mean students don’t have distinct opinions, and even concerns, about it.

Senior Cyrus Nury has cousins and grandparents in Tehran, Iran. They were right at the heart of the rioting and protests that surrounded the most recent presidential election, but, Nury said, things are calm as of now. Everything he and his mother, Spanish teacher Afsaneh Nury, hear on the news, however, causes them concern.

“We visited last year and everything was fine. It all worries me a little bit but I’m hopeful that the two countries can come together in peace talks,” said Cyrus Nury. “I’m not sure if that will happen, but I hope Israel doesn’t attack Iran.

That would be a World War Three situation.”

According to Afsaneh Nury, her family, like most of the people in Tehran, is not concerned with Iran’s nuclear weapon development program, but with day-to-day matters, such as traffic, the economy, and the air quality. Her parents have been able to travel between Tehran and the U.S. because they have stayed under the radar of the Iranian government.

“What’s really a concern for them at the moment is just the economic situation over there because there’s hyperinflation. Things that they used to be able to buy relatively easily now cost double or triple the amount. It’s because of the crisis. But if people have a stand on nuclear power, they don’t talk about it. I know they don’t support the government, that’s for sure,” said Afsaneh Nury.

Not everyone has stayed on Iran’s good side however.

In the Iranian Revolution of the 1970’s when the Islamic Republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini overthrew the monarch Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, sophomore Gabby Esmailian’s family was forced to flee Iran, leaving behind wealth and possession, moving to the United States in order to escape persecution mainly because of their Jewish heritage.

“My family owned a lot of property and they were well known by the government and, and they were Jewish. When the government changed, they had to leave or else they would have been executed,” said Esmailian. “We know that

their intentions are bad and you can tell they are making weapons because they are testing new uranium and because of the lack of evidence they are showing to the [International Atomic Energy Agency].”

The results of a student survey conducted March 6 showed that the majority of students (33.8 percent) said that they “strongly disagree” that Iran should be able to develop a nuclear weapon. More than half of students disagreed at all with the aforementioned statement, and roughly 18 percent supported it. Thirty percent of students reported that they have no opinion.

“I don’t think Iran has the guts to detonate a nuclear bomb. Our media exaggerates a lot, and even if they do have the technology, they are a far weaker power and they will be screwed,” said Cyrus Nury. “I think they [the people in power in Iran] like to just mess around and scare people.

They like to be seen as a tough regime that will take over the world. I don’t see them succeeding.”

Junior Jonah Zarrow, however, whose sister and cousins live in Israel, is concerned about Iran’s motives for developing a nuclear weapon.

“I’m scared and so are they [my family]; Iran is definitely an aggressive nation and it’s not good to have an aggressive nation that hates a smaller nation like Israel, and probably having nuclear weapons,” said Zarrow. “I legitimately think it could happen, but nowadays it’s probably not going to be very soon.”

Esmailian has no confidence that Iran will restrain itself from using nuclear arms against the U.S. or Israel.

“We have to go into Iran now and stop them before it becomes a bigger problem because I do feel that if they create this weapon, which they are on the verge of doing, they will use it, whether it’s on the US or primarily Israel,” said Esmailian.

In The Voice survey, more than half of the students agreed that Israel should be able to launch a military strike against Iran in order to prevent it from developing nuclear arms. Only 28 percent disagreed and nearly 20 percent reported no opinion.

While Cyrus Nury understands that Israel needs to be

able to protect itself, he hopes that it won’t be the one to start a military conflict.

“The people of Iran don’t want a nuclear war or to bomb Israel. People of Iran think it’s all propaganda. It’s the last thing that’s on their mind. Democracy is on their mind,” said Cyrus Nury.

But those who fear Iran’s uncertain intentions believe military involvement on Israel’s part to be the only option.

Sophomore Avigdor Nosrati’s grandparents and many cousins who live in Israel are used to constant conflict, but nothing this threatening.

“If the situation escalates the only choice for Israel is to send the Israeli Air Corps to destroy the nuclear facilities in Iran the same way they destroyed the nuclear reactor in Iraq carried out in 1981,” said Nosrati. “My [family] hasn’t been directly affected, but almost every house in Israel contains a bunker and they might need to stay in it if the situation gets worse.”

Nearly half of the students in the survey said that the U.S. should support Israel in a military strike against Iran.

Only 34 percent disagree with this approach.

Because Israel is our ally, Esmailian argued, and because of Iran’s unstable, tyrannical leader, the U.S. should get involved in a military conflict with Iran.

“It is necessary to go in there and stop them because they are basically just cranking out these weapons that can easily be used on us and our allies so we have to go to war with them before they go to war on us. Once they get those nuclear weapons, they will use them on Israel. I mean they don’t want Israel on the map, so Israel being one of our greatest allies we should attack them now,” said Esmailian.

Cyrus Nury supports the U.S.’s decision to put pressure on Iran, but not launch a full-on attack.

“I think the United Nations is doing the right thing and they’re not invading Iran and putting military troops in, or Iranians would be opposed to that,” said Cyrus Nury. “I think pressure on Iran right now is the only thing they can do because Iran’s government is not willing to do any peace talks. All we can do is just sit and wait and hope it settles down.”

13

dent Voice 22, 2012

face off

n and Israel and taking e gas pump bring the crisis close to home.

s the right to strike Iran support Israel in striking Iran

3/19 $4.38

49%

hould not help ATTACK Iran

34%

73 responses collected on March 6

Tension fuels jump in gas prices

by Shilpa Mantri ‘13 Because of skyrocketing gas prices, many students now drive to conserve.

“It’s ridiculous how much I have to pay every time to fill up my tank. Because of the gas prices being too high, I don’t take my car over a certain amount of revs in order to conserve gas,” said senior Daniel Azadegan.

Eighty percent of the price paid for a gallon of gasoline comes from the wholesale price of crude oil, which is refined to make gasoline and other petroleum products. Five years ago, the price of crude oil averaged $30 per barrel while today it averages $106.

“Of course, personally I think the prices are too high, but we all need to conserve energy, and perhaps the higher prices encourage conservation,” said English teacher Nancy Booth.

Only 20 years ago, gas cost 80 cents per gallon. Now in California, where gas is more expensive than anywhere else in the country, a gallon of regular gas costs $4.85. Some analysts predict that average prices could approach $5 a gallon in California and $4.50 nationally.

Along with the Israel and Iran conflict and potential military action, America’s refusal to import gas from Iran causes high oil prices. Right now, Iran is the world’s third largest oil producer,

2012 California weekly regular gas prices

“I commute from Pasadena every day. Gas prices are a big concern for me. Mrs. Rike and I try to carpool as much as possible. I have a Gas Buddy app on my phone and I also go to Costco for gas because they usually have the cheapest gas prices.”

Brooke Yoshino associate director of college placement

producing over four billion barrels of oil a day.

Without that substantial oil production in the world market, barrels of oil could potentially increase by $50.

According to President Barack Obama, there is no “silver bullet” to decrease the cost of gas.

America needs to focus on sustainable energy solutions like wind, solar, and biofuels to make homes, offices, and vehicles more fuel-efficient.

Since some students, like junior Gideon Saidara, don’t have the burden of paying for gas and instead rely on their parents for money, they don’t make an effort to drive less.

“Since the gas prices have gone up, I haven’t been able to drive as much as I would like to,” said junior Kenneth Kang. Other students, however, try to minimize their driving.

“I definitely stop and think about the shortest route and try to carpool, bike, or walk more. It’s very frustrating,” said junior Michaela Murphy.

Regardless of the drivers’ ages, the increase in gas prices frustrates all drivers, even teenagers who just received their license.

“I am both scared and angered by the prospect of their increases. There must be something the government can do to help this,” said junior Jonah Zarrow.

3/12 $4.38 3/05 $4.36 2/27 $4.29 2/20 $4.04 2/13 $3.84 2/07 $3.76 1/30 $3.75 1/23 $3.71 1/18 $3.70 1/06 $3.67 Source: U.S. Enery Information Administration

thursday, march 22, 2012 14

news opinion features focus arts & entertainment sports

Our Town enlightens audiences

George AliceBreidenbach ‘12 a&e editor A cast of 24 students, led by Neil Nash, director of theater, delivered five performances of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town from March 7-10 in the Disney Family Pavilion.

Nash felt confident about the production.

“I felt great [about the performances]” said Nash. “As a director of actors, what you want more than anything is for the performers to take the material further than you rehearsed. The students definitely did that and it was great to see. They took it to a

marriage new, unplanned place.”

Senior Grace Cartwright, who took on the lead role of Stage Manager, also felt proud of the shows.

“I felt that [the performances] went very well,” said Cartwright. “It’s a hard play to rehearse because it really needs an audience, to interact with audience members. So it was great performing it in front of people.”

According to Nash, the play, which deals with the themes of love, death, and, ultimately, the fleeting nature of life, provoked strong reactions from some audience members.

“The people that I spoke with seemed

emily profoundly affected by the play,” said Nash.

“I think this play moves audiences on a level that most plays do not. And it helped that our students trusted the material. I didn’t get the sense that the actors were trying to make it funnier or more meaningful that it was.

They were just living the story and it was great to watch.”

Senior Michael Cook, who assumed the roles of Howie Newsome and Sam Craig, felt that the timing of the performances made them more relevant to audiences.

“I think that the play went really well.

It allowed the audience to connect with the message of the play and connect as a

community,” said Cook. “And because of the recent tragedies in our school community, I think it could have helped those who were seeking guidance.”

Nash agrees that the timing of the play helped audiences further connect to the play’s powerful message: to not waste one’s life.

“I feel like it was the right production for the right time,” said Nash. “Next year it may not work and last year it may not have worked but because of the choices we made and the nature of the performance it all felt in tune with each other and our community,” he continued.

George: Grover’s Corner’s young baseball star, George Gibbs (junior Ben Beatty), sits gazing out his window. marriage: George Gibbs (Beatty) and Emily Webb (junior Jordan Neely) bond through love, harmony, and loyalty. emily: One of Grover’s Corner’s most intelligent young girls, Emily Webb (Neely), sits at her window staring at the moon.

fAMILY

family: The morning of the wedding, George pays an unwelcomed visit to Mr and Mrs. Webb (senior Mark Cook and junior Gabriella Selover). gossip: Mrs. Webb (Selover), Mrs. Soams (senior Sophie Korchek), and Mrs. Gibbs (senior Savannah Fine), talk about the drunk Simon Stimson.

CHOIR

graveyard: The deceased sit patiently in their graves, “weaning away,” from their previous lives. soda fountain: George and Emily realize their love for each other over strawberry phosphates. choir: Simon Stimson (junior Anthony Garcia) conducts the choir through weekly rehearsal.

GOSSIP

stage manager: Senior Grace Cartwright as Stage Manager, provides a layout of Our Town for audience members.

Photos courtesy of Laura Bamford The Buckley School

graveyard

SODA FOUTAIN

stage manager

15 thursday, march 22, 2012

news opinion features focus arts & entertainment sports

reviews

soundoff ClaireSelvin '13

Fat Possum Records

Andrew Bird break it yourself

It takes a certain kind of music listener to appreciate Andrew Bird’s quirky style and odd lyrics. Those who like his edgy instrumentals and melancholy voice will not be disappointed by his seventh solo album, Break It Yourself. Those new to his music will be entranced by his new album’s mysteriousness. Break It Yourself is the perfect meeting of mainstream and distinctly folksy qualities.

Throughout the album, Andrew Bird’s love for his songs and music is apparent in his vocal commitment: he always exudes the emotion of the lyrics. In addition, the album has great sound diversity, with instruments ranging from violins to acoustic guitar to drums.

katy perry part of me

Island Records

The album also includes solely musical interludes between a few songs, which allow the listener a calming break from the sometimes overwhelming whole songs.

A great song on the album, “Danse Caribe,” incorporates both slow and calming acoustics with a Celtic flute and violin combination. This meeting of instruments creates a very ethereal and other-worldly sound. The lyrics of the song are rife with natural imagery: “Here we go mistaking clouds for mountains, oh, here’s the thing that brings the sparrows to the fountain, oh…” The middle of the song includes a beautiful violin solo that combines modern and old folk music.

My favorite song on “Break It Yourself,” “Lazy Projector,” begins with faint singing and drawn out violin notes, setting the stage for a melancholy song. Throughout the song, Andrew Bird continues to lament, in his most sorrowful voice, “that forgetting, embellishing, lying machine,” which controls the dull, disappointing lives of humans. A soft, steady drum beat and whistling with the beat, that Andrew Bird’s songs so often include, add to the dejected nature of the piece.

Hardcore Andrew Bird fans will see Andrew Bird’s unique methods across many parts of “Break It Yourself,” while new listeners will discover a new facet of traditional folk music. I admire Andrew Bird’s fearlessness in composing instrumentals and writing song lyrics – he truly takes folk music to a new, and odd, level.

Katy Perry’s new single, “Part of Me,” is a fun, upbeat addition to her already vast collection of songs.

I’m a big fan of Perry, and I don’t see how you can’t be. I find her catchy beats and sometimes humorously provocative lyrics irresistable.

“Part of Me” is no exception to Perry’s sequence of hits: it’s spunky and perfect for dancing. Perhaps inspired by her recent public breakup, the song is infused with undeniable confidence and power.

Katy exclaims in the chorus: “This is the part of me that you’re never gonna ever take away from me.”

Her pride comes across in her forceful vocal delivery. You can’t help but admire Perry’s boldness in releasing a song so blatantly directed at her recent ex-husband.

The song is perfect for dancing or getting energized. If you’re looking for a new pop song to liven up your playlist, “Part of Me.”

Ovo stuns audience with superhuman stunts

Creative Commons

DanielGabbay ‘12 copy editor “ ow!”, “outstanding,” and “one of a kind” are only a few words you can use to describe Cirque du Soleil’s latest spectacle. Ovo, which means “egg” in Portuguese, is a new insect-themed show that takes place in a dream-like, Brazilian rainforest.

While all Cirque shows leave audiences bewildered and amused, Ovo also leaves its viewers smiling.

The show’s buzzing energy, comedic flare, light-heartedness, mind-blowing dances, and colorful atmosphere all add a sense of whimsicality to the production (think A Bug’s Life combined with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory).

But what this show does most successfully is transport its audience into another world; the dazzling show abandons the literal world and enters a realm of dreams.

Viewers get to witness butterflies twirling and juggling fruits with their feet, lady bugs dancing with grasshoppers, and many acrobatic acts that will leave you breathless – did I mention they fly?

Ovo, written and staged by Brazilian choreographer Deborah Colker, debuted in 2009 in Montreal and is now touring North America.

Like other Cirque productions, it features a relatively intimate seating configuration in a large tent that enhances the audience experience through proximity to the performers.

The show’s location right next to the Santa Monica Pier also adds a feeling of playfulness and amusement for viewers.

The music, composed by Berna Ceppas, is performed live and deserves special mention for its ability to unify all of the show’s acts under an umbrella of festive folk-pop-samba-influenced tunes.

The show saves its most buoyant number for the finale.

Nearly twenty performers dressed in green and red bodysuits use trampolines to hurl themselves up into the air in a sequence of coordinated moves that bring together dance, acrobatics and wall-climbing in seamless fashion.

The athleticism of the performers is mind-boggling because they seem to break all of Newton’s laws of gravity at once. With its dazzling sights and

W

Creative Commons

Creative Commons

CIRQUE: (From top to bottom) Acrobats dance in unison and climb up tall, colorful trees; a dancer takes center stage and twists her body like a spider under glaring lights and fog; a stage full of gymnasts dressed as insects juggle fruits - and each other - with their feet.

"...Ovo also leaves its viewers sm iling.

Th e show's buzzing energy, comedic flare, light-heartedn ess, mind-blowing dances, and colorful atmosphe re ally add a sense of whimsicality to the production..." instances of magic, Cirque du Soleil’s latest production will leave audiences with their spirits high and their jaws hanging low. Ovo is definitely something worth buzzing about.

thursday, march 22, 2012 16

news opinion features focus arts & entertainment sports

Apple introduces the new iPad JonathanFriedman ‘12 design and production editor Apple released a new version of the iPad on March 16 after unveiling the product, dubbed simply “the new iPad,” at an event on March 7.

Several faculty members rushed to get the new model, including social science teacher Michael Petrella and Middle School dean of students Michael Pourciau.

Featuring a high-resolution display, a five-megapixel camera, and a faster graphics processor, the new iPad looks physically identical to the now-outdated model, the iPad 2.

“I don’t understand why [anyone] would spend the same amount of money on the exact same thing,” said senior Kiara Gitlin.

Another feature in the new model is 4G-capability. The iPad, available in wifi-only and 4G models, can connect to LTE networks, which are significantly faster than the fastest 3G networks.

Students seemed underwhelmed by Apple’s announcement.

Junior Ashton Nahai echoed Gitlin, saying “It’s kind of the same thing, just a little bit improved.”

Nahai added that “if you don’t have an iPad 2, you should get it.”

Apple announced record pre-orders for the device and had lines of customers waiting in line for the product’s launch at every Apple Store.

Some students were excited about the new iPad’s display and graphics performance. “[Developers] can do some pretty awesome stuff with games,” said senior Mansour Al’Sheikh.

The device’s screen contains more pixels than an HD television; in fact, the size of each pixel is so small that the human eye cannot discern a single pixel unless held closer than a few inches to the face.

Along with the advanced screen, game developers have already begun to take advantage of the advanced graphics capabilities. In fact, major publishers like Electronic Arts and Namco have already released games that take advantage of the new iPad’s features.

Prices for the new iPad begin at $499 for the 16 gigabyte wifionly model and reach $829 for the 64 gigabyte 4G model.

Apple will continue selling the base 16GB models of the iPad 2, but at $399, $100 cheaper than its initial retail price.

Most students agreed if you have an iPad 2, upgrading isn’t necessary, but if you don’t, the new model is a great purchase.

Courtsey of Apple Inc.

1 2 3

SPECS ON THE NEW IPAD

Retina Display With four times as many pixels as the iPad 2 (and a million mroe than an HD TV) the new iPad’s display is clearer than ever before.

Battery Life With an improved battery, the new iPad maintains up to 10 hours of battery life, even with its improved retina display.

Improved Camera The iPad’s 5-mega pixel camera allows users to record 1080p HD video and, with the iPad’s face detection software, take detailed, beautiful still images.

Snapchat

The newest app fad on campus may seem rather strange... Snap. Chat. Send. Three Seconds. Gone.

ShilpaMantri ‘13 focus editor The new popular app that most student have on their iPhones, Snapchat, allows for taking pictures and sending them to people to view for a limited number of seconds.

Users of this app can control how long they want their viewer to see their picture for, from one to 10 seconds, and after that the picture disappears forever.

“I use Snapchat because I can goof off with my friends without leaving a trace and send funny pictures to them,” said junior Sammy Breen.

Snapchat is free and allows students to send limitless pictures to their friends.

“I use Snapchat as a

way to communicate to my friends. Since I have been introduced to Snapchat, I noticed I have been using Snapchat more frequently than I use my mssage app on my phone; such a change baffles me,” said sophomore Gian Ignacio.

Snapchat is useful for its speed, according to Ignacio.

“In iMessage, it would take about three to four minutes for a photo to reach its receiver. In Snapchat, however, photos can be sent in seconds,” he said.

For people receiving a picture on Snapchat, the screenshot feature allows them to keep the picture forever by pressing the home and power buttons simultaneously in the

given number of seconds.

When someone takes a screenshot, Snapchat also notifies the sender.

“I don’t take screenshots very often, but I think it’s appropriate that it sends the sender a notification that someone just attempted to take a screenshot just because the entire point of Snapchat is that the photos are gone forever,” said sophomore Ben Miller.

Most iPhone owners use this app daily for entertainment.

“I use it several times a day because not only do I find it hilarious but also I find myself talking to people that I wouldn’t normally text with over Snapchat,” said Miller.

INSIDE SNAPCHAT

Courtsey of Apple Inc.

Courtsey of Apple Inc.

Courtsey of Apple Inc.

17 thursday, march 22, 2012

news opinion features focus arts & entertainment sports

sports 18

thursday, march 22, 2012 |

Leadership guides boys to strong start in league competition

it’sgame

time

Working on conditioning and consistency has helped the boys varsity tennis team steadily improve throughout the season.

ElleWisnicki ‘13 assistant editor With a record of 6-2 (2-0 in league), the boys varsity tennis team has one main goal for the season: to beat Viewpoint.

“We go into every season with the goal to beat Viewpoint, the number one team in our league, and entire the division.

We want to prove to CIF that we can beat great teams like Viewpoint, and make it all the way in CIF,” said captain, junior Blake Resnikoff.

In a re-match March 20, the boys beat Milken 11-7.

All three singles players: sophomore Billy Wilson, Resnikoff and freshman Spencer Schifino

won each of their matches.

The Griffins shut out New Community Jewish 18-0 March 15 giving them a lead in the Liberty League.

The team started Liberty League competition strong with a 16-2 win against Yeshiva.

The team won every singles match and only gave up two matches in doubles.

Resnikoff, Wilson, and Schifino represented the Griffins in singles-play.

“Spencer has been such a great addition to the team. He offers a match tuff attitude that goes along with playing United States Tennis Association (USTA) tournaments, which myself and a few others on the team benefit from playing

Courtesy of Sue Sherman

TOUGH MATCH: Freshman Spencer Schifino walks off the court after battling a tough opponent.

baseball april 10

vs Viewpoint

april 11

vs New Roads

april 17

at Lancaster Baptist

boys tennis Courtesy of Sue Sherman

HIT: Sophomore Billy Wilson keeps his eye on the ball down for a solid back-hand. in,” said junior Evan Drapeau.

The team won three non-league matches: 12-6 against West Ranch, 14-4 against Hart, and 16-2 against division I team Notre Dame.

“We had a deeper line up than Notre Dame did, we were not expecting the win, we never expect it, I think on any given day anyone can win,” said head coach Sue Sherman.

The team lost two non-league matches 7-11 against Milken and 5-13 against division II team Valencia.

“We fought hard against Valencia’s deep lineup and although we came up short, it showed us how hard we need to work this season to get ready to play big teams in CIF,” said Resnikoff.

The team used the Valencia match as a learning experience to grow from.

“Our number one issue against Valencia was consistency, we gave too

many points away, on four stairs, and that is what we worked on from that day.

We need to recognize that every shot is important, and not take any shot for granted,” said Sherman.

Sherman encourages her players to go back to the basics by reading themselves mentally before each shot.

“Coach Sherman pushes us to be the best we can be and to always make sure we are working our hardest every single point,” said Resnikoff.

“During practice, she has us do a lot of conditioning drills, so we will be in the best shape and will be able to play longer during matches.”

Resnikoff added that Coach Sherman knows how to win and knows exactly what the team needs in order to win the CIF championship.

“We plan on working hard to go farther than we did last year in CIF, and we are always looking at a ring for our CIF goal,”

said Resnikoff.

According to Sherman, each player has improved significantly since last year.

“Evan went from a player that didn’t make a statement to someone that dominates the court, crushes his serves and can really be a game changer,” said Sherman.

Sherman added that Drapeau takes each a situation and changes the momentum.

“He got stronger mentally and physically from pure determination on his part,” said Sherman.

The captains, seniors Brandon Afari and Daniel Azadegan along with Resnikoff encourage their teammates to stay fit and make sure to put in the work outside of practice.

“We have become closer than ever this year after losing one our brothers and teammates, Steven Yampolsky, and we have fought every single match we have played for him,” said Resnikoff.

april 10

vs Oakwood

april 18

vs Yeshiva

april 20 vs Viewpoint

boys golf april 10

vs Yeshiva

april 12

vs Rolling Hills Prep

april 17

at Providence

swimming march 22

vs Crossroads

april 12

at Brentwood

insidesports

april 17

vs Sierra Canyon

softball club swimmers| page 19 BASEBALL | page 23 Team readies for Viewpoint and other league rivals. sammy | page 20 Sophomore sensation leads softball squad.

baseball | page 23

sammy | page 20

CLUB SWIMMERS | page 19 Griffin swimmers balance club swimming outside of school.

april 9

vs Manual Arts

april 17

Southern California Showdown

april 24

at Hoover directions and times on school athletics website

19 thursday, march 22, 2012

news opinion features focus arts & entertainment sports

SWIMMING

Team readies for league finals and CIF competition JackRose ‘13 sports editor With broken records in their wake, the boys swim team is back to full strength after losing their first two meets to Milken and reigning league champion Viewpoint.

Griffins dominated New Community Jewish March 20 with all of their swimmers consistent and healthy.

The Griffins first home meet was March 15 against Milken, where the team provided food and drinks as well as a Hawaiian theme to attract fans.

Against Milken, the Griffins suffered a loss because of their small team. Despite winning more races than the Wildcats, the Wildcats had more swimmers place (finish in the top three of races) than the Griffins and were thus able to accumulate more points.

“That goes to show how talented the team is, and how well each of our swimmers performs individually,” said captain, junior Jess Walia. “We just don’t have enough volume to compete point-wise with bigger

Andrew Davis The Student Voice

SPLASH: Varsity Boys Swimmers dive into the water March 15 at their first home meet. schools like Milken or Viewpoint.”

The team’s 200 meter medley relay got a CIF consideration time, meaning that although they were not fast enough to automatically qualify for CIF, their time was in the second tier of times. The second tier is “consideration” times that can qualify a

swimmer/relay team for CIF if there are not enough automatic qualifying times by the end of the season.

“The closer you are to an automatic time, the better chance you have of going to CIF,” said Walia.

Due to school related trips and events,

the Griffins were missing multiple swimmers at Viewpoint.

Nonetheless, the team had its best opening meet in recent memory, breaking school records and reaching CIF levels March 6.

“We had a great showing,” said Walia who was not able to attend the meet.

“Sophomore Austin Wilson broke the school record for the 100 meter backstroke, and we qualified for either CIF consideration or automatic times for CIF in six events.”

Viewpoint has a large team in comparison to the Griffins, and thus accumulated more overall points by racing more swimmers, just like against Milken.

However, neither team has to worry about winning the league championship until the end of the season when the title will be determined at league preliminary finals and finals.

In order for the Griffins small team to accumulate enough points to win league, Walia says they need to perform better individually.

“We have to get everyone up to first and second places. We need every swimmer to contribute as much as they can to get first and second places, and prevent other schools from gaining those points; but even then, having a relatively small team is a big disadvantage,” said Walia.

TYLERMORAD ‘14

Swimmers balance club and Griffin responsibilities

Austin Wilson

Daniel Primachenko

Nelly Schmuel

Dianne Jahangani

“We train year round unlike Training in and out of the pool, two to three hours a the other high school swimmers day, seven days a week, year-round, club swimming is who just train for one season. Our endurance is a lot higher, which one of the biggest commitments of any club sport. tremendously in longer “The club swimmers really bring experience to our helps races,” said Wilson. team. They are looked upon for advice and models for good stroke technique as well as stamina and race Daniel Primachenko mentality,” said captain, junior Jess Walia.

Junior Daniel Primachenko is

after school from 5:30 to 8 p.m.

“Having swaum club since Middle School, I’ve learned a lot about time management. Our coach stresses the importance of balancing swim with schoolwork, but expects us to attend all practices,” said Schmuel.

Impact on school swim team: Swim coach Keri Hehn stresses the importance of having club swimmers on the school team because other swimmers can look up to them for advice and techniques.

“They [club swimmers] have the endurance base from swimming year-round and also more confidence when racing because they have more opportunities available than our short 3 months,” said Hehn. “Our club swimmers are also great with spreading their knowledge with the beginning swimmers and

are willing to take time to show them proper technique, turns, and starts.”

Austin Wilson Sophomore Austin Wilson swims for the Los Angeles Swimming Club (LASC). He is in the water two and a half hours on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, three hours on Friday and Sunday, and he must attend two dry-land practices on Monday and Thursday at 5:45 a.m., before school, and two one hour weight sessions on Wednesday and Saturday.

On top of all this, Wilson must also attend a minimum of two practices per week for the Griffins.

“Balancing school with swimming is not easy. It means that I usually have no weekend and I have to be very productive when I am working; I try to save things for weekends and try to do stuff early so I am not going to bed late [during the week] but a lot of the time I do end up having to stay up late and study, which is really hard after I have swum,” said Wilson.

Wilson must eat a lot to replace the calories that he loses in the water.

“I am supposed to eat 7,000 calories a day, which usually means I will eat two dinners and a lot of snacks and protein shakes after every workout with a lot of water during the day,” said Wilson.

Wilson has one to two out of school meets per month, but when

Sara Wilson

he has a really important one, he must shave, eat less, and exert no physical activity except for swimming.

“Club swim is year-round, which will give you an edge over other teams that may not swim club year-round, but it also makes it hard to really be part of the school team, which I feel badly about but still try my best to be part of the team,” said Wilson.

Sara Wilson Freshman Sara Wilson practices two and a half hours every day except Wednesday.

On Sunday, she has a morning practice at six a.m. In addition to swimming, Monday, Thursday, and Saturday consist of strength trainings for an hour in the morning.

Wilson looks at her rigorous schedule positively.

“Swimming helps me organize my time and get my work done quickly because I know I have to go to practice. It’s especially hard when I have a lot of tests or quizzes because I don’t get home until 8 or 8:30 p.m.,” said Wilson.

To maintain her weight, Wilson must eat 4,000 to 5,000 calories a day.

Wilson believes club swimming helps keep her organized and fit.

in the water two and a half hours every day except Saturday. He swims three hours on Sunday and has one-hour dryland workouts on Monday and Thursday in the morning.

“I have taught myself through experience how to balance swimming and school by preplanning how long my work will take me and how that conflicts with swimming,” said Primachenko.

Primachenko’s meal schedule consists of a breakfast of a bagel and yogurt, two lunches with a lot of carbohydrates, and a dinner after practice, usually a large bowl of pasta or steak and vegetables.

Without the rigorous club schedule, Primachenko believes that he would not be improving at the rate he is.

“Instead of swimming for less than an hour four times a week for two trimesters before the season, I can swim even more all yearround and continually improve myself. With this advantage, I can swim better times for Buckley,” said Primachenko.

Dianne Jahangani Junior Dianne Jahangani swims Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday for two and a half hours, Friday and Sunday for three hours, and dryland two times a week from 5:45 to 6:45 a.m.

“I always try to get the [school] work done when it’s given to me; I have learned postponing anything is the worst idea possible.

My main key is to just stay focused and dedicated,” said Jahangani.

Jahangani believes that it is not necessarily how much she eats, but what she eats.

“Having a good and healthy meal is always important for my ability to swim well,” said Jahangani.

Nelly Schmuel Although senior Nelly Schmuel has two days off during the week, Wednesday and Saturday, she has double the amount of swimming on Monday and Thursday. She swims before school from 5:45 to 6:45 a.m., then

Courtesy of Sara Wilson

BREATH: Freshman Sara Wilson swims breast stroke in a race for her club team, the Los Angeles Swimming Club.

thursday, march 22, 2012 20

news opinion features focus arts & entertainment sports

SOFTBALL

Multi-talented Siciliano solid on the mound Playing multiple sports , filling multiple roles, and dedicating herself, sophomore Samantha Siciliano achieves excellence in balance.

MeherSingh‘14 assistant features editor “I’ve just enjoyed it and played it so much that it has become a part of me.”

For eight years, softball has meant something special to sophomore Sammy Siciliano. The life-long friends and memories from her 18-and-under Gold team, the California Waves, as well as the Griffin varsity team have added up to being an integral part of Siciliano’s life.

“My first softball coach saw athletic

ability in me. The first year I started softball I made the all-star team. I wasn’t the best, but I worked hard and eventually got good at it,” said Siciliano.

But softball alone isn’t even close to describing what sports mean to the multitalented Siciliano. She has played on a varsity team every season since fourth grade, including basketball, softball, and volleyball- the only female athlete to achieve this feat.

Siciliano names softball as her best and

Claire Selvin The Student Voice

DELIVERANCE: Sophomore Sammy Siciliano winds up to launch a pitch on Gilley Field.

“My first softball coach saw athletic ability in me. The first year I started softball I made the all-star team. I wasn’t the best, but I worked hard and eventually got good at it.”

Samantha Sicialiano Sophomore

favorite sport due to the number of close friends that she has on her team.

Most of the year Siciliano sacrifices weekends playing college showcase tournaments as the Waves’ second baseman.

“It’s a lot of dedication, but it’s definitely worth it,” said Siciliano.

Siciliano is one of the few posterchildren for female athletes at school where the number of female athletes has dropped over the years.

“The tough workload might turn people off from playing sports, though I also think that a lot of people have performing arts commitments,” said Siciliano. “I also think girls look upon sports as more masculine.”

Siciliano admits that there is a fine line between femininity and athleticism, as being a female athlete does have “drawbacks.”

“I like being an athlete, but I like to be just a girl as well. So I enjoy it but I just also want to have that girly side. It’s hard balancing the two; I think I have started becoming more girly when I started high school,” said Siciliano.

Balancing those two sides of oneself is just one of Siciliano’s balancing acts.

Committed to athletics, Siciliano also stays top of her studies.

“I focus really hard on schoolwork while I am at school and I use my time wisely. I use my free periods to do homework and I have a set routine when I get home. I eat, and then do my homework before I get on the computer and get distracted,” said Siciliano.

Coach Marie Philman, who has coached Siciliano on the girls varsity basketball team for two years, admires Siciliano’s work ethic.

“She is definitely one of the hardest working females I know. Although she is not very vocal on the court, she leads by example,” said Philman. “I think that it is amazing that she plays so many sports and I hope other girls follow.”

Most recently, Siciliano was the cocaptain and played shooting guard for the basketball team this season.

“I would describe myself as a quick, defensive player. That comes more naturally to me than shooting,” said Siciliano.

“Although Kobe is my favorite player, when I was younger I would compare myself to Derek Fisher — he was definitely sturdy and reliable.”

The team reached playoffs and was

eliminated in the first round.

“It was a lot of fun being captain, though I don’t feel I was the leader in terms of scoring and things like that, but I work hard. But it was nice leading a team that did so well,” said Siciliano.

Siciliano is also a leader on the softball team this season.

“There is a major difference between the team I play for outside of school and the Buckley team in terms of experience and skill level,” said Siciliano. “I think we [girls softball team] are going to do much better than last season, since we have a year under our belt.”

The difference in skill level and experience have also determined Siciliano’s role on the team. She is accustomed to playing second base and shortstop out of school, but since pitching requires a higher skill level and more practice, she has become the pitcher for the team.

“On this team I play more of a leadership role because I am more experienced, but otherwise outside of school I’m just a middle-of-the-road player,” said Siciliano.

It may come as a surprise that Siciliano has no desire to pursue her talents to the Division I or professional levels.

“I want to play [softball] in college, but Division III, so that it doesn’t take over my life,” said Siciliano. “You really don’t get much for being a female athlete.”

Instead, Siciliano is keener on sports management or becoming a teacher, like her mom, Laura Siciliano, second grade teacher, who was also an athlete.

“Both of my parents were athletes. My mom played volleyball and basketball in middle school. My dad could play all sports and is a good athlete but never pursued them,” said Siciliano.

But not pursuing athletics professionally does not lessen the motivation and dedication that Siciliano has towards sports.

“I still have goals for high school. I want to reach playoffs, I want to get better,” said Siciliano.

Siciliano will always have a soft spot in her heart for softball.

“The best feeling is hitting a homerun over the fence and getting to see it go over the fence. You feel so accomplished and get to jog around the bases instead of sprinting,” said Siciliano. “I just really enjoy playing.”

Neither late start nor coaching changes has stopped girls softball from succeeding Despite a rough start to the season with small numbers, new coaches, anxiety and uncertainty, the girls softball team has overcome every obstacle previously in their path thanks to strong leadership and dedication.

Elle Wisnicki The Student Voice

SPRINT: Junior Emily Irani runs to first base after hitting.

MichaelLen‘14 online staff Despite starting the season with many questions and changes, the girls softball took the field and came away with a hard fought 9-8 win against Sierra Vista; they followed that with a victory over Malibu High School 20-5.

“We may have won against Sierra Vista, but we did get a lot of walks. Our opponents were trying out new players.

Our captain Liz [senior Elizabeth Plumb] did make a really good hit,” said pitcher, sophomore Sammy Siciliano.

The team has only lost one match, that coming against St. Genevieve, who is in a higher division.

According to captain, senior Lauren Halperin, the new coaches have motivated the team to improve.

“The coaches have really improved the teams batting and also confidence on the field,” said Halperin.

Halperin and Plumb lead the team as captains both offensively and defensively.

Junior Emily Irani has an optimistic perspective of the season, and is confident in her teammates.

“Sammy can throw a nice curveball and of course a great fastball. We have a strong outfield as well. Our catching and throwing has grown significantly since last year and we can throw accurately short or long distances,” said Irani.

Irani has observed the members of the team growing into their own roles.

“Essentially, everyone on the team is crucial. Sammy is our pitcher and she has fantastic aim and coordination.

Elizabeth and Lauren also provide a lot of leadership to our team and unite us. Everyone has a unique skill that makes our team special. I can’t really name everyone because we are all crucial parts to one fantastic team,” said Irani Because the girls were in playoffs from their winter sports teams the squad had to delay practice for almost two weeks. Siciliano said that due to the late start, the players have a lot of room for improvement.

“Well to be honest I’m not sure what our strengths are yet. I think that our senior captains are really strong and they bring a lot of enthusiasm,” said Siciliano.

“Everyone has a unique skill that makes our team special. I can’t really name everyone because we are all crucial parts to one fantastic team.”

Emily Irani Junior

21 thursday, march 22, 2012

news opinion features focus arts & entertainment sports

Elle Wisnicki The Student Voice

POWER AND PASSION (left): Freshman Sara Wilson breathes. DIVE (right): Senior Nelly Schmuel leaves the block at the start of a race against Milken and Archer March 15.

Girls in pursuit of CIF berth ElleWisnicki ‘13 assistant editor Following two challenging meets, the girls varsity swim team beat New Community Jewish March 20 at home.

The team had all of its girls healthy and won almost every race against opponent New Community Jewish March 20.

After coming second to Viewpoint in their first meet March 6, the squad placed third against Milken and Archer March 15.

“When it comes to winning a swim meet it’s all about the numbers. We have a team of exceptional swimmers; however, we lack in numbers, only having seven girl swimmers,” said junior Nika Shahery.

The girls lost to both Milken and Archer March 15; however, freshman Sara Wilson and senior Nelly Schmuel received CIF consideration times putting them into the second tier to make it into the CIF

individual race.

The 200-meter freestyle relay team consisted of Wilson, juniors Alexia Saleh and Jahangani and Schmuel received a CIF consideration time March 15.

Wilson, juniors Emma Jacobs and Jahangani, and Schmuel, the girls 200-meter medley relay team swam a CIF consideration time at the Viewpoint meet.

“With Sara joining Dianne, Emma, and I in the 200 IM [backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, and freestyle] relay, we have a really great chance of qualifying for CIF,” said Schmuel.

Saleh and Jahangani swam the 50-meter freestyle races, Schmuel swam the 100-meter butterfly and backstroke races, sophomore Gina Ahmar, Saleh and Wilson swam the 100-meter freestyle race. Both Jacobs and Wilson swam in the 100-meter breaststroke race. Jahangani also swam in

the 200-freestyle race.

Wilson was the only Griffin to swim in the 500-meter freestyle race and qualified for CIF. “The best way to get myself to swim fast is to really focus on the race and keep my mind in the right place because swimming is as challenging mentally as it is physically,” said Wilson, who has been swimming club for five-and-a-half years.

Wilson, Jacobs, Schmuel, and Ahmar participated in the 400-freestyle relay race.

“My first race was exhilarating, this swim team is so welcoming so it’s very fun getting used to being a part of a new team,” said Ahmar.

According to Schmuel, Ahmar and Wilson have been integral to the team, especially because of their small sizes.

Not only have new swimmers strengthened the team, but the leadership of head coach Keri Hehn has also made a positive impact according to team members.

“Coach Hehn has helped me so much with my breaststroke by teaching me how to

get my tempo up without completely ruining my technique. She has also helped with my flip turns. I used to just glide into the wall and turn, but now she has taught me to kick all the way to the wall, making my turn so much more powerful,” said Wilson Wilson said Hehn balances fun with hard work, paying very close attention to everyone’s stroke and making minute corrections that pay off in the long run.

Although the girls team shares the boys captain, junior Jess Walia, the team has three club swimmers whom they look to for leadership: Wilson, Jahangani, and Schmuel.

The entire team has one goal in mind: to qualify for CIF. “Personally, my biggest challenge will be qualifying for CIF in my individual events this season,” said Schmuel.

Members of the team believe they can qualify because of the encouragement they receive from each other.

“We are a family. Everyone is so supportive on the team, it’s definitely a home away from home,” said Jahangani.

thursday, march 22, 2012 22

news opinion features focus arts & entertainment sports

JV athletes take a stand Junior varsity athletes strive for recognition and respect on a daily basis as some in community do not recognize their hardwork and accomplishments.

JamesBernstein ‘14 features editor On a junior varsity (JV) team, you are competing against multiple opponents. You are not only competing to win; you are also competing with your teammates to reach varsity. On top of that, you have few fans attending your games and if you are a junior on a JV team, you face mocking from other students.

There are five JV sports on campus this year: boys basketball, boys tennis, boys soccer, boys cross country, and girls volleyball.

Basketball also has a “freshman team” comprised of freshmen and sophomores and is even lower on the food chain than JV. Freshman James Yoder knows the downside of playing on a freshman team.

“I feel disrespected because I put in so much work on freshman [basketball] and I have like two students coming to my games while varsity has the whole school,” said Yoder.

Still, some people do believe there are pros to having JV teams, including more playing time and experience in game situations for players who would not be able to play on varsity.

“If you’re a freshman on JV, you get to be with your friends because not a lot of freshmen make varsity. Also, you get more playing

time and that’s a good thing for freshman trying to make varsity,” said freshman, JV basketball player Josh Rosen.

Many JV athletes, like freshman JV basketball player Jesse Paul, look to varsity athletes for help in hopes that it will boost them up to the varsity team the following year.

“I know a lot of the varsity guys. I’m friends with them. So, they treated me well because they just wanted me to get better. I’m a little jealous about the letterman jackets, of course. But, they earned it, so they deserve it,” said Paul.

Yet, some JV athletes are simply at peace with their varsity counterparts on the mutual understanding that they will eventually follow in their footsteps.

“On the soccer field, the [varsity athletes] know we need some help, so they try to lead us.

They help us get better so that we can take over their sports when they graduate. One day, I’ll probably get a [letterman jacket],” said freshman soccer player Joey Song.

Most varsity athletes don’t think they mistreat JV athletes, and they think JV teams help build up varsity programs. But, they do believe that JV (and freshman) athletes are prone to laziness, and that if they worked harder they could make the varsity team.

“I don’t think we treat them badly, but they haven’t accomplished as much as the varsity players so we expect more out of them. Everybody should be working hard no matter what level you’re playing at, but I feel like some JV and freshman players slack off,” said varsity basketball captain, junior Tyler CoppinCarter.

Competition between athletes of different sports has led to bragging and accusations. Sports with JV teams often criticize other sports, especially golf and swimming, as “not being real sports, but hobbies.”

“You know who didn’t deserve letterman jackets: golf team. I feel golf is a complete joke and they didn’t earn it. Almost anyone can make that team,” said freshman basketball player Maurice Roberson.

Varsity golfers and swimmers usually brush off and ignore these claims. But at times it reaches a breaking point, and they do retaliate, taking advantage of the JV title in their rebuttals.

“I feel like they’re just trying to offend [us]. They seem not to understand what the definition of a sport actually is, because [golf] is. They’re just trying to be funny; that’s the main reason. If someone’s on JV and they’re embarrassed, it’s possible they might do it,” said

Do you think that JV and Freshman athletes receive enough support and recognition?

15% 22%

Yes No, they should not get more support and recognition No, they should get more support and recognition

63%

78 responses collected March 19

senior golfer Ryan Cohen.

JV athletes don’t let that one go.

“As a JV captain, I take it personally when other athletes insult my team. However, only a handful of people actually put us down. I have found that the people who insult us are usually insecure about their ‘sport’, whether it be golf or swimming,” said junior JV tennis captain, junior Andrew Bernstein.

Although there are multiple JV boys sports that vary each year, there is currently only one girls JV sport: volleyball. According to Byrd-Newman Milic, director of athletics, many girls enroll in a dance class, which counts as a full P.E. credit, instead of playing a sport or taking a P.E. class.

“If dance wasn’t a P.E. credit, more girls would want to join a team rather than P.E. [class] even if it was a lower [JV] team,” said Milic.

English teacher Masami Hansen was the assistant varsity head coach for girls volleyball this year, but also helped out with the JV.

“It’s unfortunate that JV players are sort of the athletic stepchild of the varsity program, but it doesn’t have to be that way.

If JV programs are seen as a way to build your overall athletic program, it’s a great boon to have one,” said Hansen. “To have a deep JV roster is great for any program, so you can establish a culture of competition and really have a lasting program to build on, rather than just ‘JV, it’s not Varsity’.”

Hansen believes that JV and varsity teams should be united to form one large program in order to achieve the most success. Right now, however, she recognizes that JV and varsity teams on campus are split.

“I’m sure some JV athletes feel bad [about the letterman jackets], but isn’t that the point of recognizing Varsity athletes?

Do the losers really wish they got a trophy too? Yes, I’m sure they would have loved to win. Now I’m not saying that the JV players are losers, but it’s something to work for. The letterman jackets are, more than anything, an incentive,” said Hansen.

oN JV ATHLETICS LACK OF SUPPORT

VARSITY

NOT BEING GOOD ENOUGH

“Lettermen’s jackets are defined as being for all varsity upperclass athletes. As a junior on the golf team, I have been on a varsity sports team for three years, and am also captain.

For that, I and other golfers deserve a jacket just as much as anyone else.”

Jack Rose varsity golf captain

“People are busy and if they had to choose they would go to a varsity game because that’s the level that is more entertaining.

I always want to support the athletes that clearly work harder and are more talented in games.”

Michael Vanhal varsity soccer captain

“I definitely think junior varsity teams deserve support because they are the future for our athletic teams and as a community we are obligated to support each other regardless of [which] team [it is].”

Brandon Afari varsity tennis captain

JV

LETTERMAN JACKETS

“I don’t really mind that junior varsity players don’t get letterman jackets because having a jacket denotes a status that only varsity players deserve.”

Michael Feldman junior varsity tennis

“It’s not fair when people say we’re not good enough because junior varsity teams are mainly underclassmen and we just don’t have as much experience as varsity teams, but we are still good players.”

Paulina Vokulich junior varsity volleyball

“Junior varsity teams should get more support. Most of them are underclassmen and have barely any experience, but they really do need school support because they are going to be on varsity later and they need that encouragement to keep working hard.”

Jose Lopez junior varsity soccer

CAC hosts fourth annual doubles tournament today ElleWisnicki‘13 assistant editor Today Covering All Care, formerely Cancer Awareness Club, in association with the boys and girls tennis teams is hosting its fourth annual mixed doubles tournament at Balboa Park in honor of Steven Yampolsky.

“I’ve played the last three years, but this year is very different because of our loss.

We are trying to bring as many people as possible out to the tourney and we want to raise a lot of money for the club,” said girls varsity tennis captain, senior Hadleigh Glist.

The tournament costs $20, and each fan will receive a black tennis shirt and purple wristband. All proceeds will be donated to Covering All Care in Steven

Yampolsky’s name. According to head coach Sue Sherman, the club hopes to raise $3,000 this year.

“The mixed doubles tournament is a way to associate fun with a serious topic, which allows people to handle it easier.

Everyone knows someone who struggles with cancer,” said Sherman.

Sherman added that the tournament unites the girls and boys teams for an important cause.

The tournament will feature a total of 11 co-ed doubles partners.

The captains of each team: seniors Brandon Afari and Daniel Azadegan and junior Blake Resnikoff, along with girls captains, Glist and senior Natasha Super,

chose the doubles pairs.

“This is new to me and I’m really excited to play in the tournament but even more excited to play for an amazing cause and to play for Steve,” said Azadegan.

Last year the club raised $780 for Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles.

“It’s so surreal because last year, Steven was at the tournament with us and it was his last time playing tennis,” said Glist.

23 thursday, march 22, 2012

news opinion features focus arts & entertainment sports

Boys defeat New Jew, swing to top of league standings

TylerMorad ‘14 assistant sports editor After a slow start to their season, the boys varsity golf team (3-4, 3-1) defeated rival New Community Jewish High School on Tuesday to move into first place in Liberty League.

New Jew is considered the Griffins biggest competitor for the league title.

“We beat them by 12 strokes, which is a comfortable victory,” said captain, junior Jack Rose.

“I am confident that we can beat them again and win leage.”

On March 13 in league play, the Griffins squeaked past Rolling Hills prep in a close match of 216225.

“The back end of our lineup did not play very well that day, which gives me confidence because we shot a pretty good score, despite a mediocre performance at the back end, and we were still able to beat one of the top teams in our league,” said Rose.

On March 12 the squad ousted Yeshiva by over 30 strokes without junior Adrian Freyermuth.

The squad lost their first league match in two seasons against

Hillcrest Christian Thousand Oaks (HCTO) by only one stroke. They were missing three of their top seven golfers that day due to other commitments. Only two players, Rose and captain, sophomore Sam Aronoff shot under 45.

“We didn’t play badly; they had one very good player and the rest are not very good. We are a much better team than them. We should not be missing 3 of our best players in any match. If we had one of those missing players against HCTO, we would have won by five or six strokes,” said Rose.

Rose believes that they are not reaching expectations due to the lack of key starters at each match.

“We haven’t been at full strength for a single match and no one has been playing as well as they should have. We have 10 players on the team and we should never have our number 10 playing in a match and that has already happened this year. From now to the rest of the season, we should have our full team,” said Rose.

Because the squad does not have the same caliber of players as they did last year, they must work even harder in order to make CIF.

“Last year, we had enough talent top to bottom. Unfortunately, we do not have that skill level this year. We are a young team. Until next year, we have to play as well as we can in order to win league,” said Rose.

Even though most of the competition this season is very inconsistent, according to Rose, the squad’s top competitor, New Jew, is very consistent and it will most likely come down to head-tohead matches between the Griffins and New Jew. “Since we are already 0-1 in league, we don’t have second chance. If we lose to them [New Community Jewish] once, we might not make CIF because of that loss that we suffered,” said Rose.

The Griffins pick up league play again April 10 against Yeshiva.

They face New Jew at their home course in their last match of the season.

“The next New Jew match is vital,” said Rose. “I do not expect us or them to lose between now and then, so the league title should come down to that final match. If we play well, we will win.”

topgolfers MATCH RESULTS BOYS GOLF vs NEW JEW Sam Aronoff

Courtesy of Leon Freyermuth

TEE-OFF: Sophomore Sam Aronoff watches his drive sail down the fairway at Encino Golf Course March 20. The Griffins beat New Jew 212-224.

Baseball picking up steam as league play draws near The Griffins face Viewpoint April 10 in their first Liberty League game at home after losing six of their first nine non-league games. The boys play Windward at time of publication.

Jack rose

Adrian Freyermuth

Score

37

Score

41

Score

42

Place vs New Jew

1st

Place vs New Jew

4th

Place vs New Jew

5th

Average Score

37.8

Average Score

40.8

Average Score

42.3

Average scores taken from all matches through March 20

JackRose ‘13 sports editor Awaiting their first league game April 10, the boys varsity baseball (3-6, 0-0) team got off to a slow start this season, losing five of their first seven games despite strong pitching performances. ““We just need to get all the mechanices worked out before the season starts,” said junior Kevin DeCorso. “I have a lot of improvement, but now we just need to get the new players experienced with hitting against high school pitchers, it’s a lot different than middle school.”

Against the Manual Arts Toilers on February 29, junior pitcher Kevin DeCorso threw a complete game one-hitter while limiting the Toilers to only one run. DeCorso walked only two batters and did not give up the run until the final inning. The Griffins won, 5-1. “[Sophomore pitchers Gabriel Esmalian] and German Rojas are really stepping up and improving to be great pitchers,” said junior Jarret Weiss, the Griffins’ number one starting pitcher.

“They are continually getting better at hitting spots since they aren’t particularly power pitchers.”

Pitching was a concern for the team going into the season, but these early strong performances on the mound have put the focus elsewhere.

“I think [we have been losing] mainly because of the tightness our team plays with,” said Weiss. “Once people start to get looser and have a good time on the field, [winning] results will follow because we have the raw skill.”

Weiss attributes the players’ “tightness” to the players’ early season nerves and says that they will settle into playing

more consistently as the season goes on. Recently, they have been conducting practices differently than they were at the beginning of the season.

“Instead of taking endless groundballs, we play in real situations with live hitting,” he said. “There definitely has been improvement from where we started.”

Weiss also said that fielding has been an issue, leading to multiple errors in early season games.

“Our pitching has been great so far. Our fielding however has been slightly lacking, which is not a result of lack of skill but again because of not being relaxed during games,” he said.

In the hitting department, DeCorso and junior Reid Womack have led the way, with DeCorso batting .500 in five games and Womack .476 with three doubles and four runs scored in seven games. Sophomore Ben Shahar leads the team in RBI, with five.

“We could definitely be doing better hitting wise, which really just results from continued practicing,” said Weiss.

“Having such a young team, we can’t expect to show up and get 20 hits, so we have to play small ball like good bunting and base running.”

The team has tallied 20 steals in its first seven games.

The team’s goal remains winning league and defeating rival Viewpoint, two obstacles they can start working towards in their first league game April 10 when the Patriots travels to Gilley Field to play the Griffins. “[To beat Viewpoint we have to] just take baby steps from now until the first league game. We need to come up everyday to practice with the intention of getting better,” said Weiss.

Andrew Davis The Student Voice

INTENSITY (left): Junior Kevin DeCorso fires a fastball. MAKING THE PLAY(middle): Junior Ross Esse stops a grounder. FOCUS (right): Sophomore Ben Shahar turns a double play.

robotics 24 thursday, march 22, 2012 |

Team 1661 teaches old “Dog” new tricks AndrewDavis ‘12 editor-in-chief When the school’s robotics team, Team 1661, aka “the Griffintrons,” traveled to the San Diego Regional FIRST Robotics Competition from March 2-4, they were hoping their robot, Dog, would prove itself in the preliminary rounds and thus

Senior Ethan Hobel wires up the NI CompactRIO (brain of the robot). persuade one of the top eight teams to pick them to join their alliance for the double elimination bracket. But instead of placing 34th, 28th, or 19th, the team placed second out of a total of 56 teams.

The challenge, “Rebound Rumble,” was played with four baskets at different heights at each end of the court. Teams had a total of two minutes and 15 seconds to try and score as many baskets as possible using foam balls.

The challenge also included three bridges at center court that can hold almost 1,000 pounds. At the end of the two minutes and 15 seconds, teams had to try to balance their robots on the bridge.

“There is a red and blue alliance – three robots versus another three. Two platforms are devoted solely to the red and blue teams, but the middle platform is called the ‘cooperation bridge,’ which can be traversed by either team,” said robotics cocaptain, senior Ethan Hobel.

Hobel explained that during the preliminary rounds, the team focused on balancing in the middle for two seeding points. The more seeding points a team has, the higher chance the team has at making it to the next round.

“We went for cooperation points [blue and red teams balancing together] and got a high place. We

Juniors Kevin DeCorso, Jack Breen, and Daniel Primachenko drill holes for structural supports.

were successful many times because we talked to the opposing alliances saying ‘let’s work together’,” said Hobel.

A total of 10 preliminary rounds were played.

Team’s can either get zero, two, or four points.

Two points are given if the team wins the round and another two are given if the team can cooperate and balance with the opposing team.

“We were ranked first a majority of the competition,” said co-captain, junior Kevin DeCorso.

“We ended up in second place [at the end of the preliminary rounds]. It was amazing. I never imagined that our team would get to do the choosing. The top eight teams get to choose to other robotic teams, which means we had the second pick,” said Hobel.

Alliances help compete in the quarterfinals, semi finals, and championship rounds (if an alliance can win and make it to the semi finals and championship).

Team 1661 understood that its robot was not the best shooter, but that the robot could potentially lead in balancing three robots on the bridge. For

roboticsrankings

2012: 2011: 2010: 2009:

2nd 28th 34th 19th

balancing one robot, the team earns 10 points, 20 points for balancing two robots, and a whopping 40 for balancing three.

In the quarter final round (best two out of three), Team 1661 played a talented alliance and devoted its time to balancing, not shooting.

“After a lot of movement [and] a lot of position changes, our three robots balanced. I thought we had won but I was driving on the left side of the court and could not see that the side of our robot was partially touching the railing and was not fully supported by the bridge. So the refs counted it as a two robot balance instead of three which is a shame because I could have easily moved it,” said Hobel.

“They took the first win away but we came back and balanced three robots quickly and won both the second and third rounds.”

“The judges said they thought it was an impossible feat [balancing three robots] and the crowd went wild,” said DeCorso.

“We were the only team in California to balance three robots and effectively go over the bridge each time. The judges said we were the most dependable robot on the field,” said robotics mentor and science teacher Richard Edelen.

Team 1661 made it to the semi finals where it played an alliance with excellent shooters. The opposing team scored 58 points in one round and eventually defeated Team 1661 and its alliance.

Nevertheless, the team was happy with

their performance in what was the school’s most successful performance at a robotics competition ever.

“Our school is one of the few schools that simply relies on the kids to produce the robot. A lot of other teams, if you make it to events, have adults in the pit working on the robot,” said Edelen.

The robot has six wheels and the two wheels in the center are dropped an eighth of an inch, which allows the robot to turn easily.

“We can turn easily and have great pushing power from the traction the wheels have. The robot has super shifters [gear box] that have two ratios: you can use the high gear which makes the robot drive faster but lessens the pushing power, or you can use the low gear which increases pushing power but makes the robot move slowly. The good thing about the low gear is that it keeps the robot stationary on the bridge which I believe is another reason why we were perfect on the bridge,” said Hobel.

Because the bridges are elevated and tilt with additional weight, the team needed to find a way to tip the bridge down so that the robot could drive up it. Team 1661 used a giant pneumatic cylinder, a piston powered with air, that moves at an appropriate speed and angle. This feat took three days of math to figure out the angle and height of each end of the pneumatic cylinder so that the piston would not damage the bridge and push it down in the appropriate direction.

Co-captain, junior Jack Breen used a software called Autodesk Inventor to design the shooter.

The shooter is made of two fly wheels that spin in opposite directions at around 4,000 rpm. It works just like a pitching machine. The shooter can be adjusted to increase compression by moving the wheels closer together. The more the foam basketball is compressed, the farther it shoots.

Team 1661 leads a triple balance in the final round of the quarter finals for 40 points.

It can also be adjusted to change the angle of the shooter, which changes the arc of the shot.

“Having sponsors feels great and was really important this year (earned over $6,000 from sponsors). Our sponsors provided us with materials, services, and funding. Industrial Metal Supply was one our most important sponsors. They provided us with aluminum tubing and made a custom made part for our shooting mechanism,” said Breen. see “Griffintrons,” page 4