THE BLAZE
ROCK RIDGE HIGH SCHOOL | SENIOR ISSUE 2022 | VOLUME 5 ISSUE 3
See pages 6-9 to hit the road with the class of 2022.
CONTENTS
4 CUSTODIAN APPRECIATION SENIOR MAP 6 10 DECA IN ATLANTA 12 SPRING MUSICAL SWAN SONGS 14 Giving thanks to our custodians in the return from COVID-19
Check out where this year’s seniors will be next year The sights and scenes from DECA ICDC RRPA closes out the year with “Matilda”
Senior members of “The Blaze” sign off for the final time
STAFF
EDITORS-IN-CHIEF BUSINESS MANAGER COPY EDITORS
DESIGN & GRAPHICS EDITOR PHOTO EDITOR MULTIMEDIA EDITOR WEBSITE EDITORS SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR STAFF WRITERS
ADVISER PRINCIPAL COVER DESIGN COLOPHON ADDRESS
Megan Hayes Megan Langsam Sruthi Sakala Nanaki Bawa Dominika Butler Rohan Iyer Shivoy Nagpaul Amelia Chen Prajna Chakravarty Zain Khalidi Mariam Abdelsayed Lilly Khalkho Alyssa Yoon Sydney Hackett Pavani Aakarapu Divya Iyer Rachel Adams Harini Kannan Karis Adnan Shreenidhi Manchala Hylay Assefa Jackson Mitchell Sarah Baig Smrithi Balakumar Aarohi Motwani Anik Mridha Nicolas Biernacki Lars Nyman James Bowles Maddie Nyman Lily Bridges Sudeepa Pasupuletti Naomi Cho Manika Porchezhian Alexis Cortes Kaleb Ryans Negron Abhishek Sharma Tanishka Enugu Abhishek Solipuram Mars Foley Rishi Sundaram Bella Gerardi Rodrigue Gomado Lucian Tiller Shaima Tora Aline Gonzalez Abby Welch Anushka Goski Katy Greiner John Duellman Front: Megan Hayes, TOC: Nicolas Biernacki, Back: Amelia Chen A total of 500 copies of “The Blaze” senior issue 2021-22 were published by School Papers Express. The newsmagazine is designed in the Bodoni, Function, and Garamond font families.
43460 Loudoun Reserve Drive, Ashburn, VA 20148
LETTER LETTER FROM FROM THE THE EDITORS EDITORS As the school year comes to an end, “The Blaze” would like to dedicate our last issue to the class of 2022. This issue starts off with a thank you to our custodial staff and a pit stop in Atlanta to commemorate DECA’s success at ICDC. You’ll then tour the accomplishments, goals, and farewells of our Phoenix seniors as they continue their journeys. Thank you to the entire staff of “The Blaze,” who have grown and worked incredibly hard this year to create top-tier and award-winning content. Thank you to the underclassmen for their support and energy, to the seniors for their lasting legacies, and finally to the teachers, counselors, coaches, and advisers who have served as our role models and will serve as the role models of students to come. As our last farewell to this publication, thank you, Rock Ridge. Sincerely, Megan Hayes Co-Editor-in-Chief
Megan Langsam Co-Editor-in-Chief
MISSION STATEMENT STATEMENT MISSION We, “The Blaze” news staff, are committed to serving the Rock Ridge High School community through student-centered perspectives. We aim to publish accurate, up-to-date information, highlighting diverse subjects and sparking conversations for underrepresented stories.
@rockridgehsnews @rockridgehsnews www.theblazerrhs.com
Photo of Christine Choung by Megan Hayes Seniors on the front cover: Mihika Bangarbale, Ryan Borjes, Megan Casas, Christine Choung, Sophia DiFulvio, Zane Hedrick, Adam Lazhar, Zoe Loh, Rohan Mathur, Julia Mola, Dylan Sams, Alexa Veneros Photos on the back cover courtesy of “The Blaze” staff and Rock Ridge seniors
THE FACES OF CAPSTONE From producing a song to shadowing a dentist, seniors participating in capstone share their goals for their projects.
COPY BY: Nicolas Biernacki, Naomi Cho, & Rishi Sundaram | DESIGN BY: Nicolas Biernacki
E
very spring, thousands of interested seniors around the county are excused from the final weeks of class to participate in a career exploration activity or community service project to gain exposure to their desired career through the Loudoun County Capstone project. Loudoun County Capstone allows high school seniors to connect with a mentor in a workplace or on a project. By partaking in their project, seniors are able to engage in a meaningful experience and acquire various foundational and workplace readiness skills such as critical thinking, communication, and collaboration, as well as be exposed to various careers. English teacher Tyler Anderson is the founder and one of the co-directors of the Capstone project at Rock Ridge. “I think that bridging the gap between school and the workplace is really important,” Anderson said. The Capstone project has attracted many seniors pursuing various career choices. “Generally, 50% of our seniors go out in the field,” Anderson said. “In the past five years, we’ve had close to 600 kids out there.” The 202122 school year has 154 participants out of 346 seniors. Although all Capstone projects may be different, these undertakings all serve the same purpose: prepare for the real world. “We’ve had students who went into operating rooms to observe surgeries, we’ve had students develop their own websites, and we’ve had students pitch during corporate events,” Anderson said. “It’s always amazing to me, the hands-on experiences the sponsors allow the students to do.”
Danielle Knick
Ellie Schubert
Danielle Knick is working with Stone Hill Middle School history teacher Alison O’Leary for her Capstone experience. Knick has known she wanted to be a teacher since the fifth grade, and she credits her teacher, Mrs. Leach, for her budding interest in the profession. “Mrs. Leach engaged and encouraged each of her students and made our class seem like a family,” Knick said. Knick has also been involved in the Teacher Cadet program for the last two years. “I thought it would be great to do Capstone with a teacher to build and practice the skills I am learning in Teacher Cadet,” Knick said. Teacher Cadet is a CTE course offered at Rock Ridge that aims to provide students with a challenging introduction to teaching, including hands-on experiences. Knick hopes to work locally as a teacher after college. “I hope to become a history teacher in Loudoun County.”
Ellie Schubert is working with audio engineer and videographer Luke Denton for her capstone experience. Schubert will be recording, producing, and mastering an original song, which will be written by another artist. Schubert is planning to study music at the Berklee College of Music and is working with Denton to prepare her for the music industry. “Even though you’re supposed to be learning and taking classes in college, when you go to school for music you automatically start in the industry, working with professionals and collaborating,” Schubert said. Due to her Capstone experience, Schubert feels more prepared for her future at Berklee and beyond. “I’m really glad that my project 100% relates to my career field, which is being a producer or audio engineer, and that is literally what I’m doing for my project,” Schubert said.
Scan the QR code for more from seniors participating in the Capstone project. Photos by Naomi Cho NEWS: Castone|02 theblazerrhs.com|03
HEROES WITHOUT CAPES
With new stresses to the school community, custodians continue to keep the school a clean environment to learn. BY: Naomi Cho | DESIGN BY: Nanaki Bawa
A
s senior senior Alexa Kim Elizabeth appreciates how the Horsttables are always man enters the spotless. “I see the school track, she custodians constantly notices that the wiping, cleaning, and track is nearly sanitizing [everyspotless. Out thing],” Kim said. of the corner “It’s always clean of her eye, she when we come to sees Custodian lunch. “I’ve seen Randolph Minor super big messes that sweeping away they still clean up and extra debris that I think that in itself had accumulated is going above and from the day beyond.” before. With the Senior Vineet track free of any Keshavamurthy even trash, Horstman sees the custodians is able to focus as some of his role on practicing her models. During his sprints without Science Olympiad As students exit the cafeteria, Custodian Randolph Minor helps wipe down lunch tables to prepare for any obstacles. “I the next lunch shift. Photo by Naomi Cho competition, they always see [Minor] helped Keletics, but he also assists the fine arts outside keeping the track clean,” shavamurdepartment. “I help Mr. CJ and Ms. Horstman said. “I think that is really thy and his Hess with the theater shows and bring awesome, because the track has nothteam clean ing to do with the inside of the school, materials in for them,” Minor said. up after From preparing the cafetebut I always see him helping [with it].” their projMinor, who grew up in Aldie, ria for breakfast to cleaning up after ect. “We Virginia, works from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. lunchtime to opening locked school had to use during the height of the sports season. doors, Custodian Shadia Gamil helps a lot of maintain a safe environment for stu“I work with anything from football materials dents. to basketball to cross country,” Minor and it was Gamil’s coworker, Custodian said. “I also go up and down trails and a super big Custodians Shadia Gamil, Fatima Valencia, also helps keep the then come inside to help Mr. Duellmess in Fatima Valencia, and Carmen cafeteria clean for students before man run the inside of the building. our science Serrano pose for a picture in the and after every lunch. Originally from lunchroom after the lunch shifts. classroom,” Sometimes I train people on how to “I admire the custodial workEl Salvador, Valencia enjoys playing use the equipment, and I have helped Keshaforce and how they are always sports in her free time and interacting Coach Patrick McNanley and Jenniworking so hard,” sophomore vamurthy with others. “Something amazing I’ve fer Virbickis work on TV stands for Sam Cho said. said. “We Photo by Naomi Cho done is working with students and [sports] tournaments.” were scared, seeing them every day,” Valencia said. Not only does Minor play a because we thought the custodians When eating lunch, big role in helping the school with ath- would get really mad, but [they] were
super nice and helped us take care of it.” As COVID-19 continues to create uncertainties, sophomore Dwij After her time as a Phoenix athlete, senior Payton So commitKudum said that the school custodited to swim for Marymount University in the fall. ans have helped prevent the spread of BY: Megan Hayes | DESIGN BY: Nanaki Bawa the disease. “They sanitize and clean everything,” Kudum said. “I think that their jobs are super underappreciated.” Q: What’s your favorite part about swimming?
SO SWIMS TO COLLEGE
PS: I really love racing. I love competition, because with swimming, you just race the person next to you; there’s not like any strategy really. You just kind of race. I think what makes it most enjoyable is having a good team that makes you have really good morale and spirit.
Q: Is there a specific moment when you loved the sport? Working aptly, Custodian Shadia Gamil, originally from Egypt, helps wipe down lunch tables and loves working at Rock Ridge. “Everyone in the school and the front office is nice,” Gamil said. “Teachers and the kids are nice too.” Photo by Naomi Cho
However, students aren’t the only ones who appreciate custodians as they help the staff keep the front office and teachers’ classrooms clean. “It’s unbelievable what custodians do on a nightly basis after students leave,” Assistant Principal Mike Fitzgerald said. “They’re keeping surfaces and door handles cleaned on a daily basis. I appreciate everything that they do to keep this school clean.” Students believe that custodians contribute to keeping school a safe environment while modeling positive behavior for the students. “I appreciate that they have a lot of patience,” Keshavamurthy said. “They show a lot of perseverance.”
PS: I think the moment where I realized like ‘I’m actually kind of good at this’ was sophomore year at regionals, which was my first regionals, the step before states. They had a relay and I was the only non-senior on the relay, but I was only in the relay because two seniors, who were very fast, didn’t show up. But I rose to the occasion and I swam super fast, like faster than the other two people could have swam, and then our relay made finals. I have never finaled before in my life, which was awesome, and we dropped more time. That was a really big accomplishment for me.
Q: What inspired you to join the swim team?
PS: I did summer swim league and it was okay but I had never done real competition. So, I didn’t know anything, but my mom really encouraged me to do a high school sport. She really wanted me to swim, so she pushed me to practice swimming and try out for the team. I tried out for the team — and this was when we still had Independence [High School] as part of our school and our team was really big and I wasn’t the best one, I was like in the middle — and I learned a lot about it, so I think that’s what inspired me to join the team; I wasn’t very talented, but I pushed myself to do it so I could have those opportunities.
Photo courtesy of Payton So
There’s something called a 100, which is technically like a sprint. I never swam a timed 100, which is four laps; I had only done a 50. I had to do my first 100 on the tryout day and I was like ‘holy crap I’ve never done a 100,’ but they timed me, and I did fine. I was actually faster than a lot of other people. And then I had to do my first 200 IM, and then I had to do my first relays, and then do my first 500, which is really scary because that’s a lot of swimming. But I think when I did that, I realized that I actually wasn’t that bad at swimming, but I could do better and I wanted to be the best on the team. That’s what pushed and inspired me to keep coming back.
Q: What are you most excited about swimming at the college level?
PS: I use swim as a way to make friends. It’ll be a great way — I’m sad to say this — [to] make a new family and new close relationships. I’m also excited to see how I’ll do, because the training schedule will be way more vigorous than what I have now. I’m kind of afraid I won’t be able to handle it, but I’m also excited to see how much I’ll progress, and if I do progress, how far I can go. Since I started so late, I don’t think my story’s over yet.
NEWS: Custodial Appreciation|04 theblazerrhs.com|05
What are the next destinations of the class of 2022? BY: Rohan Iyer, Dominika Butler, Lars Nyman, & Mariam Abdelsayed | DESIGN BY: Rohan Iyer & Megan Langsam Ali, Aaqib
Stathis, Peter
Ali, Qizar
Styles, Tamia
DUKE UNIVERSITY
Annavarapu, Samson
Uddin, Humza
BELMONT UNIVERSITY
DiFulvio, Sofia
Bangarbale, Mihika
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Cooper, Sam
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Baxter, Caden
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Poduri, Kethan
Bell, Aidie
Vonteru, Varun
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Watson, Brodie
FLORIDA ATLANTIC UNIVERSITY
Danh, Max
Wong, Neo
Aabel, Rhi
Duran, Sydney
BALL STATE UNIVERSITY
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Long, Luke
BERKLEE COLLEGE OF MUSIC Schubert, Ellie BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY-
Hirad, Hamza
GEORGE WASHINGTON
IDAHO
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UNIVERSITY
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UNIVERSITY
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Miller, Kylie
Lynch, TJ
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CHRISTOPHER NEWPORT
FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL
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UNIVERSITY
UNIVERSITY
Mathur, Rohan
GEORGIA INSTITUTE OF
Knick, Danielle
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Matthia, Tanyka
TECHNOLOGY- MAIN CAMPUS
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COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON
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Repala, Rashmith
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Yang, Carolyn
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Talluri, Sritan
Nagar, Neel COLLEGE OF WILLIAM & MARY
GEORGE MASON
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UNIVERSITY
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Josselyn, Eveline
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CORNELL UNIVERSITY
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BLOOMINGTON
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Alam, Ameena
Solipuram, Abhi
Chawla, Veer JAMES MADISON UNIVERSITY Chadha, Aleina Choi, Audrey Lleshi, Anna-Maria
“Honestly, at first, I was like ‘I’ll never do the military,’ but then I fell in love with law enforcement and I was like ‘Okay, I’ll try the military cause the basic training kind of looks fun.’ My whole family is law enforcement. I see myself [10 years later], buying a house, buying a car, maybe having a family, [I] kind of want to be a FBI special agent, and travel the world.”
Manivong, Brandon Monroe, Amaya Payne, Ryan Rivero, Christopher Soricelli, Joseph
Photo by Dominika Butler
Warwick, Justin Yi, Lauren
LONGWOOD UNIVERSITY Duellman, Nicholas Moskalli, Maria
Most Popular CA Schools UC Berkeley (2) UC San Diego (2)
Berklee College of Music: Ellie Schubert Read more about Schubert’s love for music on Page 3.
Penn State: Christine Choung Read more about Choung’s passion for design on Page 8.
Threadgill, Reagan LORD FAIRFAX COMMUNITY COLLEGE Romo Villalobos, Annete LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY Lott, David
Most Popular: George Mason (43)
MARYMOUNT UNIVERSITY So, Payton MOLLOY COLLEGE Ruhnke, Karishma MONTANA STATE
Air Force: Dayana Hammond Read more about Dayana’s flight to the Air Force on Page 6.
UNIVERSITY Chepalis, Katie
Marymount: Payton So Read more about So’s swim to college on Page 5.
NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY Davis, Carly NORTHERN VIRGINIA COMMUNITY COLLEGEANNANDALE Gonzalez, Jeffrey NORTHERN VIRGINIA COMMUNITY COLLEGE- LOUDOUN Alkhal, Natalia Alouini-Beck, Soraya Aquino-Murcia, Oscar Avery, Chris Awad, Reem Aziz Jamal, Salma Bademian, Ashley Bajwa, Zoni Bolas, Basem Calderon, Gianni Caulfield, Tiernan Dean, Gifty Dewulf Opdenbosch, Stan Farley, Matthew Fathima, Sumayya Garcha, Dalveer
Haque, Tahiya
OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY
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Reddy, Rhea
Lazhar, Adam
Koneru, Saish
Sarkar, Uddipta
Krasilnikov, Nikita
OLD DOMINION UNIVERSITY
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Hayes, Megan
Mistry, Vishal
Nyman, Lars
Mola, Julia
Vallamkonda, Bhuvan RADFORD UNIVERSITY Butler, Dominika
Nabih, Maryam
PENN STATE UNIVERSITY
Ferrel-Sejas, Dayana
Nguyen, Peter
Chaganti, Ramya
Guta, Mekides
Pham, Thy
Choung, Christine
Ouattara, Shamira
Rahman, Al Shams
Evani, Sai
Shareef, Abdullah
Gopinathan, Shanu
REGENT UNIVERSITY
Sherwood, Darby
Khalkho, Lilly
Williams, Shalom
Smith, Mark
Kobla, Akshay
Yanssaneh, Khaled
Nagpaul, Shivoy
RICHARD BLAND COLLEGE
Zaheereldeen, Mina
Nayak, Tara
Hedrick, Zane
Zarabi, Salman
Patel, Shailee SAINT FRANCIS UNIVERSITY
NORTHERN VIRGINIA
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY
COMMUNITY COLLEGE-
Saha, Ishan
MANASSAS Perkins, Trevor
Cho, Naomi SLIPPERY ROCK UNIVERSITY
PURDUE UNIVERSITY
Kesler, Maddie
Chakravarty, Prajna
Tucker, Allison
FEATURE: Senior Map|06 theblazerrhs.com|07
UNIVERSITY OF
Rabbani, Preyonty
MARYLAND- COLLEGE PARK
Ravikanti, Shriya
Chityala, Aniket
Sadiq, Aleeza
Gopalakrishnan, Sathya
Semenikhina, Kate
Krishnan, Amogh
Tarafdar, Keshav
Malipeddi, Ananya
Tunuguntla, Vishnu
Moonjelly, Elizabeth
For homecoming and prom, Choung designed her dresses herself. “I’m going into design, so I’ve always wanted to make something that’s a part of me, I think the best part was looking for inspiration and putting that all into one dress. My passion [for] design is to express myself as much as I can through clothes.” Photo courtesy of Christine Choung
Nair, Eshaan
UNIVERSITY OF
Nandyala, Anish
WASHINGTON- SEATTLE
Napa, Monish
Adipudi, Vishya
Reddy, Preethi VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY OF
COMMONWEALTH
MASSACHUSETTS- AMHERST
UNIVERSITY
Langsam, Megan
Abdoullahi Beidou, Mahamadou Al-Husseini, Rania
University of Oklahoma-Norman
Alvarez, Sonique
Campus
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Loh, Zoe
Bailey, Jazz Bolisetty, Ihita
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Borjes, Ryan
PENNSYLVANIA
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Krishna, Neha
Hardesty, Alexandra Hardesty, Elle
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH
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TEMPLE UNIVERSITY
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THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE- CHATTANOOGA
UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLOR-
Burnell, Nick
IDA Ambarish, Anya
THE UNIVERSITY OF
Marijani, Aida UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH
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FLORIDA
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UNIVERSITY OF THE
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SCIENCES
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Subramanyam, Sanjana
Sams, Dylan
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UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO
Hagler, Keegan
Suazo, Brett UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
Senthilkumar, Tharini
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Smith, Samantha
Casas, Megan
Buermeyer, Ryan
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Snekeim, Ariana
UNIVERSITY OF
UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY
UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA
CALIFORNIA- BERKELEY
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Sana, Anvi
Steiner, Lorelei
Goel, Abhinav
Vanteru, Tvisha
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VIRGINIA POLYTECHNIC
UNIVERSITY OF MARY
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INSTITUTE AND STATE
WASHINGTON
Kamath, Aditya
UNIVERSITY
UNIVERSITY OF
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Chong, Charlie
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Ward, Ryder
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Djan, Christian
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George, Janinna
Munipalli, Dheemanth
Gopavarapu, Kesava
Amin, Nader
Jaiswal, Vihaan
Amiri, Sarina
Kapoor, Aditya Kesarinath, Ananya Keshavamurthy, Vineet
Anand, Julianna Avula, Sri Babu, Aditya Baker, Christian
Mhatre, Sahil
Barakat, Yasel
Nzolameso, Zoe
Bathula, Atri
Onwona, Malachai
Bawan, Daanish
Salur, Divya Singh, HS Vangaru, Sriniketh
Best, Bryton Boina, Nihal Bowen, Nick Burgio, Makena
WAGNER COLLEGE
Cannon, Tre’
Cantwell, Maggie
Chada, Raahi
WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY
Chippala, Sravya Conrow, Tatiana
Mihika Bangarbale Save Your Tears (remix) // The Weeknd (with Ariana Grande)
Effs, Mikaylin Engen, Oskar
Wright, Tim
Fabunmi, Ayanna Fagan, Kaia
UNIVERSITY Hackett, Sydney
Marina Ashurkoff Hard Times // Paramore
Gahche, Elias Gavili, Sri
Tharini Senthilkumar So Done // The Kid LAROI
Gillani, Hassan Gould, Jack Harode, Anika
AIR FORCE
Henderson, Connor
Bey Williams, Jada
Hourani, Anas
Hammond, Dayana GAP YEAR Cedillos Cornejo, Gabriela
Sierra Matheson Save Me // BTS
Hourani, Aya
AJ Patel Pursuit of Happiness // Kid Cudi, MGMT, Ratatat
Huang, Charlize Jaiswal, Vasu James, Dan
Bobby Krishnan Two Words // Kanye West
Jayaraman, Ram Kakay, Demajeo
WORKFORCE Harris, Geremy Scheefers, Grayson
Kim, Alexa
Jazz Lowe Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy // Queen
Krishnagiri, Rahul Krishnan, Akhil Kufour, Ashley
Ellie Schubert Anything Could Happen // Ellie Goulding
Kulkarni, Akshay
AS OF MAY 18, THE
Leang, Martin
FOLLOWING STUDENTS WERE
Lowe, Jazz
UNDECIDED OR DID
Maul, Daniel
NOT RESPOND TO OUR MULTIPLE ATTEMPTS TO CONTACT
Class of 2022
Chakraborty, Brishti
Tucker, Jacob
WESTERN KENTUCKY
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Mehta, Aakash Mian, Sabbar Mir, Ruwaid Mohammed, Khadar Moore, Thomas
Abdallah, Mahmod
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Naeem, Zoha
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Namjoshi, Atharv
Aguado, Calek
Nangia, Shlok
Akalwadi, Neil
Narayanan, Shruti
Akenou, Kay
Niazy, Alina
Allugubelli, Abhiram
Panyam, Ankush
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Pasuparthi, Advik Patel, Ajay Pathepuram, Sunaina Pillai, Shritha Powell, Nathaniel Pruiksma, Elizabeth
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Sitchet, Andrea Stevens, Gavin Strokes, Tyler Tiwana, Parveen Trieu, Tai Tyson, Sam Veligeti, Rohit Vernon, Lucas Vu, Nhan Waters, Tyler Yella, Pranay Zarate, JJ
FEATURE: Senior Map |08 theblazerrhs.com| 09
DECA BREAKS ICDC TOP 20 DECA members traveled to Atlanta, Georgia to compete at the International Career Development Conference where juniors Rohan Misra and Shruta Thum’s project scored in the top 20 worldwide. BY: Megan Hayes, Megan Langsam, & Alexis Cortés Negrón | DESIGN BY: Abhishek Sharma
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uited up in official DECA blazers, DECA members set out for the International Career Development Conference, or ICDC, in Atlanta, Georgia on April 22. Among those attending were competitors who placed at the Virginia Beach State Leadership Conference (SLC) in early March. Competing alone or in teams of two or three, these aspiring professionals spent the majority of the school year working on their research and presentations. Of the 40 Phoenix competitors who advanced to ICDC, juniors Rohan Misra and Shruta Thum made it into the top 20 of their category. DECA, or Distributive Education Clubs of America, is an association for marketing education where students are given learning opportunities through marketing classes to work with businesses in the community and create projects specific to marketing, finance, hospitality, or management. From competitions and interactions with businesses, members network and gain a deeper understanding of these different aspects of running a business, preparing them for college and future careers. Junior Emily Lam joined DECA to build her resume, but continued to participate for other reasons. “I saw how it benefited my ability to public speak and I saw how it would benefit my future, as I want to minor in business,” Lam said. Lam went to ICDC with her partner senior Lauren Yi after the team placed fourth in the “Project Management Career Development” category at States. Together,
Lam and Yi formed “Elevate,” a club to help student entrepreneurs at any level through newsletters filled with helpful information. While senior partners Shahaan Bashir and Prince Amarante didn’t go to ICDC this year, the group placed first in the “Entrepreneurship Events” category at SLC for their project, “Loudoun Pickup Soccer.” LPS, a registered LLC with Virginia, hosts free youth pickup soccer games on weekends and during the summer. “We implemented it into the community and it has helped a lot of people, and I think that made us unique,” Bashir said. “Our goal was to communicate to the judges that we made a significant impact in the United States and the Northern Virginia area, as youth soccer is so expensive.” Junior Ananya Cheela, with partners junior Nina Lal and senior Elizabeth Hortsman, sought out feedback from a number of people on their presentation to prepare for Atlanta. “From States to ICDC, we used our judges’ feedback, teachers’ feedback, any additional help to revise our papers, change up the content a little bit, and also change up the presentation to fit the guidelines better,” Cheela said. The group placed sixth in the “Integrated Marketing Campaigns” category at SLC for their plan to modify and introduce new services for the ski company “Encompasse Tours.” Reaching ICDC hasn’t been an easy feat. “In complete honesty, it was really hard transitioning back to in-person DECA,” Yi said. “Last year we were all online, and technological-
ly speaking, it was a lot easier. Now deadlines are more rushed, there’s more pressure.” Members had to not only readjust to the world of in-person school, but also from online DECA to the in-person skills they would need to reach ICDC, including communication and perseverance. “Initially, my partner and I had practically no communication, so we got nothing done; it was not productive,” Yi said. “DECA has taught me to stay thorough with everything I do and the outcome is always good.” Misra, who placed fourth at SLC with Thum, also developed communication skills Junior Rohan Misra and during the conjunior Shruta Thum celebrate ference and was DECA success at ICDC. even nicknamed Photo courtesy of @rrphoenix_deca “The Networker” by his fellow competitors. “Anyone I could meet, I would talk to them,” Misra said. “I feel like I made really strong connections that can go into next year’s ICDC and beyond
if I plan to run for the national level is pin trading,” Lam said. “So, by the [DECA executive board].” Misra also end of the conference you try to trade hopes that the skills with everyone and he’s developed in try to get as many DECA will transfer different pins as into a career in corpopossible.” Misra said rate law. that his “proudest Despite the achievement” was duo’s success, they are earning 16 pins fairly new to the game. from different states -Senior Lauren Yi Misra has only been in as well as a bucket DECA for two years hat from a Wisconand Thum is a first year member. “I sin team. remember presenting for the first time, The pins that are traded from and I was not expecting to get anystates and countries across the world thing out of it because it’s my first year not only add a unique element to each in DECA—I did it for the memories competitor’s blazer, but also were a key and to have fun,” Thum said. “I was part of the experience that multiple definitely surprised to hear our names DECA members were looking forward announced [in the top 20].” Their to. In addition to being a fun activity, project focused on finance operations trading pins with as many people as for improving employee experience at possible gives members the ability to “Citigroup,” an investment banking both network with international and company. national competitors and discuss their DECA culture spans far projects with students. beyond tri-folds and business proposAlong with networking, fosterals. “Something that they do at ICDC ing communication and public speaking
“DECA has taught me to stay thorough with everything I do.”
skills, and competing with their improved projects, Misra came to Atlanta with another task at hand. “I am going to ICDC both as a delegate for Virginia as well as a competitor for Finance Operations Research,” Misra said. At SLC, Misra was elected as a Vice President to the State Action Team, or the state leaders for DECA, enabling him to serve as a delegate at ICDC. “We represent the state of Virginia,” Misra said. “But as a State Action Team leader, it’s all about enhancing what Virginia is doing in DECA right now.” As the school year comes to a close, the DECA Phoenix continue to reflect on their experiences from Virginia Beach to Atlanta and look forward to the next year of research, competition, and camaraderie. Cheela admits that DECA “can be really stressful at times” but encourages others to “appreciate and take in the experience throughout the journey” so they can “have fun at the same time.”
NEWS: DECA Makes Top 20 at ICDC|10 theblazerrhs.com| 11
SENIORS TAKE A FINAL BOW IN “MATILDA”
The class of ‘22 closed the curtain on their illustrious careers at Rock Ridge Performing Arts with “Matilda” as their final show. BY: Divya Iyer, Abby Welch, & Nicolas Biernacki | DESIGN BY: Bella Gerardi & Nidhi Manchala
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fter four years of uncertainty and triumph, the class of ‘22 took the stage for their final show as members of Rock Ridge Performing Arts. “Matilda” follows the story of a brilliant and gifted young girl (junior Mary Kate Connor) who struggles with her parents not understanding her or her interests. She goes to school alongside students Lavender (sophomore Maggie Miller), Bruce (senior Stephen Hudson), Nigel (sophomore James Madamba) and more. They face challenges with headmistress Trunchbull (junior Alexander Ruhnke), but eventually learn how to stand up to her. “Matilda” was both a beginning and an ending for many seniors. Senior Maggie Cantwell, who plays the Acrobat and Ms. Honey, is excited to continue her performing arts career at Wagner College studying musical theater. Cantwell shared her role with junior Julia Freeman, which was a big adjustment for her. “I not only have to focus on the track that Ms. Honey takes on, which is a lead role, but I also have to take on the track of the Acrobat,” Cantwell said. “The Acrobat performs in opposite scenes as Ms. Honey, so there’s always something going on that myself or Julia has to work around.” RRPA has created a lasting sense of community for its members. “My favorite part [of RRPA] is being around everyone—everyone brings something to the table and the energy is always there to lift you up even if you’re not the best or confident in what you do,” Hudson said.
Junior Alejandro Montano agrees that community is his favorite part of the program. “We spend a lot of time together so we get to know each other, and it’s a really great set of friends,” junior Alejandro Montano said. Hudson, like Cantwell, was pushed outside of his comfort zone during “Matilda.” Hudson plays the role of Bruce Bogtrotter, who is overweight. Hudson runs track and is a physically active person, which made this role an adjustment in personal space. “I used a pillow as a fat suit [for this role] and I had to embody something that was never natural to me,” Hudson said. Hudson encourages the next generation of Rock Ridge performers to come from the shadows into the spotlight. “I didn’t know about theater until freshman year, and since “Newsies” [Hudson’s first show], I don’t regret
a thing, so if you want to try it then go for it,” Hudson said. The COVID-19 pandemic has been a big part of high school theater for the class of ‘22. RRPA has had to adjust to the challenging circumstances they found themselves in, but Hudson was happy to be back on the stage. “[Performing again after so long has] been good, we’re all still trying to get back to normal and trying to get back into the old habits we used to have,” Hudson said. The pandemic still affects RRPA to this day. As a result of a sharp incline in COVID-19 cases following opening weekend, the upcoming dates were postponed to May 13 and 14. Miller, who played Lavender for the first week of shows, had to switch to that role when its original performer tested positive for COVID-19. Miller has been involved with theater since el-
Bruce, played by senior Stephen Hudson, stands up to deliver a line with a large belch, made possible by Rock Ridge Performing Arts tech crew. In order to execute this burp, the sound crew overlaid a pre-recorded audio that Hudson lip-synced to. Photo by Abby Welch
ementary school and was more than ready to take on the role. Her professionalism was prominent, as she only had two days to learn and rehearse her lines. RRPA is in good shape following in the footsteps of this year’s senior class. “I love being part of RRPA, I’ve made a lot of friends through it and I’ve really grown as a person,” junior Alexandra Krasilovsky said. Krasilovsky found her passion at RRPA and plans to continue performing in college and even to make a career out of theater. Junior AJ Ruhnke plays Miss Trunchbull in his first leading role. Ruhnke takes a relaxed approach to performing. “Unless the rehearsals are a trainwreck, I’ll be fine,” Ruhnke said. Even Miller, who has been performing longer than almost anyone in RRPA, gets nervous during auditions. “I get a little nervous during the auditioning process but I know that everybody else is nervous as well, so that calms the nerves,” Miller said. “Matilda” is sure to delight audiences, and maybe even scare them a little too. “My favorite scene in the play is when I get to throw a dummy, which looks like a child, which is pretty funny,” Ruhnke said. Even though the class of ‘22 has signed off, RRPA is poised to deliver exemplary performances for years to come. (Pictured above) Senior Ryder Ward, who has been doing silks for four years, landed the role as the aerial acrobat in Rock Ridge’s “Matilda.” To prepare for this role, Ward perfected his part. “I have private silk lessons every weekend, as well as I [practice my part] during my study hall block.” Photo by Divya Iyer
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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT: Spring Musical|12 theblazerrhs.com|13
BITTERSWEET: A FINAL WORD FROM THE SENIORS Senior staff members reflect on breaking their routines and creating something new in their final pieces of high school. DESIGN BY: Alexis Cortés Negrón
MEGAN HAYES | EDITOR IN CHIEF
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s cliché as it is, knowledge is power. Knowing how masks can prevent the spread of diseases can save lives. Knowing a politician’s views on important issues can change world events. To quote my government teacher, Joshua Dobbs, “the most important office in America is the office of a citizen” (which I’m pretty sure he stole from Barack Obama, but I digress). So, as with my final words to this publication, I leave you with this: do something different, do something more...
MEGAN LANGSAM | EDITOR IN CHIEF
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have clung to my routines and my need for structure for so long that the idea of living and branching out and embracing the unknown is downright petrifying. When all you know is to never stop working and get those grades, leaping into uncertainty feels like you’re climbing up a mountain, but someone uncliped your harness and shoved you off the edge. You’re plummeting and it takes until you almost hit rock bottom to feel the safety net catch around you. With pain comes an increased reliance on the people and tools that can catch you if you so much as trip. So what happens with your ability to cope with that fear, pain, and anxiety when you move away from your safety net and find yourself falling?...
DOMINIKA BUTLER | A&E COPY EDITOR
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itting outside on a warm, sunny day and eating away alone with my favorite school lunch item, macaroni and cheese, I began to adopt my loneliness. Although I loved laughing with friends over the quality of the school lunches or bonding over how great something tasted, spending time with myself outside was a great way to take a breather. Yet, the prickling sticks of judgment from students at other tables got under my skin...
SHIVOY NAGPAUL | SPORTS COPY EDITOR
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ophomore year, the score became 2-0 against my favor. I was struggling the whole year, I didn’t have an identity. I cared too much about what others thought of me, and I wasn’t doing well in the classroom. The failure to put myself out there, especially when it came to participating in fun high school activities I liked, such as singing karaoke in front of people at a talent show or asking someone out to homecoming or prom, really had an effect on my self esteem. The pandemic saved me in a way, because I didn’t have to deal with anyone or anything anymore, but it threw everything off outside of school for me socially and mentally...
PRAJNA CHAKRAVARTY | PHOTO EDITOR
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f I were to meet myself four years ago, I would have still felt the same nostalgia, except for different reasons. I’d be nostalgic of my years in India, for the people I had called family for the previous 13 years. I’d be nostalgic for those Indian monsoons, which began with the smell of the earth, and those morning assemblies at school that I spent laughing with my classmates. No matter what stage of life I am, I have come to realize that I am always looking back to the good old days and I never realize I am actually living through them...
SYDNEY HACKETT | STAFF WRITER
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n order to succeed, you have to be able to learn from your mistakes and move on from them. One bad test isn’t going to be the end of your life. It won’t even be the end of your grade in the class. That’s how I live my life. I forget the bad things because they will only carry doubt and fear. Instead, I focus on remembering the good things: hanging out with my friends, being insanely competitive playing games with my family, and playing golf 24/7 are all things I love to do and they bring me lots of joy...
HARINI KANNAN | STAFF WRITER
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n my freshman year, I walked into this building knowing nobody in any of my classes and barely knowing where my classes were. The unfamiliarity was terrifying; normally, I felt at peace knowing everything about the people in my life. And here I was, not knowing anything at the beginning of the year. It didn’t stay that way, though. Slowly, I managed to get out of my comfort zone and try to make this building a place I wouldn’t dread...
LILLY KHALKHO | WEBSITE COORDINATOR
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hen I look around the halls, I see the faces that I have grown up with for my whole life. The faces of the people I have come to know so well, all of their talents, shortcomings, and experiences. I know their favorite colors (usually none), their ex-best friends (we don’t talk about them), and how they lie (I see right through you). I have been surrounded by this bubble of people for my whole life, and now I’m expected to burst right through and enter a new one filled with responsibilities, strangers, and the harrowing possibility of failure...
NAOMI CHO | STAFF WRITER
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ooking back, I remember how unhappy I was throughout my first two years solely because I believed that more was always better. Balancing a variety of random activities I didn’t enjoy quickly burned me out. It wasn’t until quarantine when I truly realized that I wasn’t grounded into these activities. Slowly but surely, I soon gravitated towards the things I could feel good about: student council, cross country, track and field, and even the newspaper. If you had told my introverted and judgemental freshman self that I would become president of the school, I would’ve snorted in your face...
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