Tues. May 28, 2019 Vol. 64 Issue #9
Annandale High School’s
THE A BLAST
“SHOOT THE BALL!” Boys soccer playoff run comes to an end
Informing the Atoms since 1954
4700 Medford Dr. Annandale, VA 22003 www.thea-blast.org
SPORTS 15
PHOTO COURTESY OF TIMOTHY THOMAS TWITTER
Band & orchestra end on a high note BY MANNY PRECHT Co-Editor in Chief As the school year winds down, the AHS band, orchestral and choral program are hosting their final concerts of the year. This concerts act as one last show for the year but also as a send off for all senior members. The first concert was hosted by the band on May 21, followed by the orchestra May 23 and lastly, the chorus concert will be held on May 30. The wind ensemble of the band performed “Folk Dances” by Dmitri Shostakovich, “Into the Silent Land” by Steve Danyew, “Prospect” by Pierre LaPlante and “Xerxes” by John Mackey. “We performed well and a lot of people told us that they were moved by ‘Into the Silent Land’ due to the fact that it was created in reaction to the shooting at Sandy Hook,” said junior
“I think the concert was pretty successful because we improved a piece that we played for the pyramid concert.” --NANCY CHEN
junior Zak Belkhayat. “The song was also created recently so we were one of the first high school bands to perform it in concert,” said Belkhayat. “The piece was also interesting because we were accompanied by a narrator from a local elementary school.” Next was the orchestra concert and the musicians were equally happy about their performance. The artiste orchestra performed “How Far I’ll Go” from the film Moana, “The Highlander” by Deborah Baker Monday, and “Bagatelle” by Antonin Dvorak. Junior Carter McGraw was satisfied with the orchestras performance, “I think we performed well and the concert was a great way to send off the seniors.” The final concert will be hosted by the choral department and singers have high hopes for the performance, “I’m excited for our last concert and we’ve improved and bonded with each other throughout the year,” said junior Harneet Bhullar.
BCAA to become the BSU
BON VOYAGE
Principal Tim Thomas and key staff retire, leave AHS BY SUAD MOHAMED Co-Editor in Chief As the school year wraps up, students and teachers prepare to say good-bye and leave for the summer. However, with every last day of school comes a few teachers and faculty who are saying their final goodbyes. Featured are five staff members who willl be leaving AHS once this school year ends. They shared their memories and a few parting words as they finalize their adventure as an Atom. TIMOTHY THOMAS Behind the scenes, Principal Timothy Thomas works to make sure everything at AHS runs smoothly. However, most see him as the guy who spends the school day walking the halls to talk to and greet as many students and staff members as possible. Well known for giving announcements on the loudspeaker in both English and Spanish, Thomas announced his retirement in late April after four years of being principal at AHS. Born and raised in the Northern Virginia area, Thomas worked in lanscapting before he studied Spanish at George Mason University. “I worked in landscaping for a number of years, working daily with Spanish speaking co-workers,” Thomas said. “I took advantage of that opportunity to practice the language.” Prior to his tenure here, Thomas was a Spanish and Peer Mediation teacher for eight years at Westfield HS in Chantilly. After that, he was an assistant principal at Centreville HS for two
years before he returned to Westfield to serve as the principal for an additional four years. After bouncing around a bit, it looks like Thomas found a home here at AHS. “Mostly I am going to miss the people. The students, the faculty, and staff, and all the families and their support,” Thomas said. Thomas cares deeply about the connections he has built up during his time here. “I feel like I created a lot of meaningful relationships and it’s always hard when you have met so many people that you care about, and that’s the case here,” Thomas said. When speaking of the impact that he made here, Thomas remains humble and proud. “I think my greatest impach was that I was able to develop and maintain positive relationships with all types of people in the community,” Thomas said. “At the same time, I was a problem solver.” While he gave to the community, Thomas recognizes that the community gave back to him in a reciprocal manner. “I look at what I have done here as an opportunity. I have been given the opportunity to work with students from all around the world who speak many different languages and come from even more different kinds of culture,” Thomas said. “I think that the greatest opportunity and best part of the job has been getting to know a whole new school and community.” After his time here, Thomas plans to downshift while still working in education. “I am looking to maybe get an assistant principal job in Prince William
County, since that is where I live and I want to be closer to home,” Thomas said. “I am looking forward to being able to support a school and a community in a different way and capacity.” NIKI HOLMES After 21 years at AHS, Instructional Coach Niki Holmes is prepared to switch in her red and white for the purple and gold of Lake Braddock SS, where she will also work as an Instructional Coach. Before her current role, Holmes worked as an IB Literature and Literacy Lab teacher. Along with current teacher Leslie Chekin, Holmes worked to create the IB Language and Literature course. In addition, Holmes formerly served as the adviser for the Antenna Yearbook and was a coach for the Girls Volleyball team. She was also the coordinator for the IB Diploma Program’s Extended Essay. Holmes is originally from Pennsylvania and did not always want to be an educator. “Originally, I enrolled in the University of Pittsburg with the intention to study dentistry. Then, I changed my mind, and I am really glad that I did,” Holmes said. “I transferred to Pennnsylvania State University with a Bachelor’s degree in English and education.” Afterwards, she obtained a Master’s degree in curriculum and instruction for multi-language students. “Education has been a really important part of my life. It is full of wonderful challenges. If you are not struggling, you are not learning,” Holmes said. When she thinks of her time here, Holmes will miss the relationship that she built with members of the
FCPS Chairman race heats up
BY SUAD MOHAMED Co-Editor in Chief
community. “After 21 years, it has been a little less than half of a lifetime for me,” Holme said. “I am going to miss the students. I am going to miss lots of colleagues, who are now friends. Annandale was really fun, and shows a snapshot of the world. I will miss learning about different cultures.” HASSAN MIMS Also amongst those leaving is Resource teacher and Girls Tennis coach Hassan Mims. Before his current role, Mims began working as the AHS Dean of Students in 2009. Mims previously taught Social Studies and History for nine years, as well as serving as the Students Achieving More Program (SAM) coordinator & teacher, PTSA-to-AHS liaison, OnTime Graduation Coordinator, and Apex Credit Recovery Program coordinator. “This is the third school I’ve worked in. Annandale High School has the best school community I have worked in,” Mims said. “This is the best school community that I will always miss.” When reflecting on his time here, Mims remains positive, even about the rough times. “About 6 years ago we were about 500 students over capacity, so that was tough. Also families in this community have more needs than they used to. Some of those needs are basic needs aren’t being provided,” Mims said. “However, we got through it.” Along with the tennis team and interacting with students daily, one of Mims’ favorite things about AHS was the togetherness of the community. CONT. Page 5
Class of 2019 graduates BY SUAD MOHAMED Co-Editor in Chief
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY MANNY PRECHT
As the Black Cultural Awareness Association ushers in a new group of officers, the club has also decided to revamp itself as a Black Student Union. The plan was formulated by future President Kadijah Janneh, Vice President Laila Elbahy, and Secretary Abby Kitila “Everyone agreed that there needed to be some sort of change. Before elections two weeks ago, we were trying to come up with ideas for the future of the club, and changing into a BSU was at the forefront of all of our plans,” Janneh said. One benefit of changing into a BSU includes the fact that there would be more organization. “While there is a bigger, national BSU organization, there is no such thing for BCAA,” Kitila said. Additionally, members of the future BSU would be able to obtain a cord for graduation, while the same could not be done for BCAA. “It’s going to be nice to have some sort of recognition at the end of the year to show all the hard effort we put into the club besides a t-shirt and a group picture,” Elbahy said. Along with these changes come others. In order to better align the ideals of the faction at AHS with those of the national organization, there will be more changes on who can join the club. “Since there are cords involved, we are in the talks of making changes such as raising the GPA requirement so as to ensure that we have the best of the best serving as members,” BCAA’s sponsor Phil Harris said. “In addition to that, we need to add more community service opportunities to help people in the community and to have a purpose.”
Principal Timothy Thomas poses with Safety and Secuirty specialist William Tippins and alumnus and musician Dave Grohl. Thomas announced his retirement in late April.
Chairman Board of Supervisors candidates Ryan McElveen, Tim Chapman, Alicia Plerhoples and Jeff McKay.
Democratic candidates campaign for Chairman BY MANNY PRECHT Co-Editor in Chief On June 11th, four candidates will be completing for the FCPS Chairman, Board of Supervisors position in the Democratic primary. Candidates Tim Chapman, Alicia Plerhoples, Jeff McKay and Ryan McElveen have been well on their way in the campaigning process. Slogans such as #NoHairForChair have been a major part in McElveen’s widespread campaign. Additionally, candidate Tim Chapman has been running under the ticket of more affordable housing in the county while candidate Alicia Plerhoples has been pushing for economic growth at the local level and increased access to a preschool education. Back in late January, it appeared
that Fairfax County Supervisor Jeff McKay might coast to an easy victory for the chairman position. McKay had been groomed by longtime board chair member Sharon Bulova, following the trend of chairman races being more like successions rather than elections. Due to the fact that Fairfax County is an overwhelmingly blue county and that McKay was “chosen” as Bulova’s successor, it seemed as if the race for chairman was no contest. However, since then, other candidates have tightened the race. A surge of progressive candidates have combated against McKay’s moderate democratic ticket. Promising improved economic and educational opportunities, liberal voters are attracted to progressive change. Candidate Ryan McElveen is arguably the most popular candidate among the younger generation and his platform incorporates positive change for the county. According to his campaign website, McElveen aims to create “The best education system in the country,” “An innovative and sustainable infrastructure,” “Opportunity for all,” and “Fiscal
discipline.” Additionally, opposing candidates have attempted to label McKay as part of a county leadership that has lagged in dealing with some of the region’s most pressing issues, such as affordable housing and overcrowded schools. McKay responded by disregarding comments and saying he hopes to “hit the accelerator” on fixing problems within the county. McKay’s platform has also been criticized by fellow candidate, Tim Chapman. Chapman announced on 5/21 that he is pursuing an ethics complaint against McKay which accused the McKay of benefiting from a quid pro quo relationship with developers. Chapman claims that McKay helped engineer the 2016 rezoning of a portion of the Kingstowne Towne Center as part of a deal on his home purchase nearly a year later. Despite the close race junior Mitchell Eggert would like to see McElveen elected. “I want him to win because his progressive platform will ensure a bright future for our county and he’s shown well he can work well with the community.”
After four years of participating in classes, sports, and extracurriculars as Atoms, the 2019 seniors are prepared for graduation and starting a new chapter in their lives. On Thursday, June 6 promptly at 7:00 p.m., seniors will walk across the stage at DAR Constitution Hall in Washington D.C. They will finally be able to collect the diploma that rewards them for over 12 years of schooling. This moment will simultaneously marking the start of their lives as high school graduates. “I am super excited to graduate because I am ready to go to college and move on from high school and with the next part of my life,” senior Maisha Maliha said. While most will be attending universities and colleges around the world, others will be working, completing technical training, enlisting in the armed forces, or completing some other adventure beyond high school. “I will be attending New York University in Abu Dhabi to study something in science, and I plan on minoring in Arab crossroad studies,” Maliha said. However, along with being happy, seniors share some sad sentiments as well. “Even though I am ready to graduate, I am going to miss my friends and family a lot,” Maliha said. “But at least in the next coming week, I have a lot of moments to share with them.”