J | The Catalyst | Volume 5, Issue 4 | November/December 2018

OPINION | Page 2

MERRY CHRISTMAS OR HAPPY HOLIDAYS?

the

ARTS & LIFE | Page 6

SPORTS | Page 7

CATALYST I SCREAM FOR SALT & STRAW

WINTER SPORTS ARE COMING

THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF NOTRE DAME HIGH SCHOOL

www.TheNDBCatalyst.com

Volume 5, Issue 4

@theNDBCatalyst

1540 Ralston Avenue, Belmont, CA 94002

November/December 2018

Camp Fire impacts Bay Area air quality

by Michelle Kleytman Managing Editor

Fires blazed throughout Northern and Southern California starting November 8 with the Butte County fire now being the deadliest fire in California history. The 153,000-acre Camp Fire has destroyed over 18,000 structures, left 88 dead and, at one point, over 1,000 people listed as missing. To the south was the Woolsey Fire that scorched throughout the Malibu area, decimating 97,000 acres, leaving three dead and 1,600 structures in ruins.

The current state of California mirrors a striking image to the Napa fires in October of 2017 and the more recent Carr and Mendocino Complex fires that occurred this past summer. With the increasing frequency of such devastations, the tragic results of the fires are becoming a fate not foreign to California residents and the second-hand-impacted Bay Area.

At one point, the Bay Area’s ranging air quality index was upwards of 300, equivalent to hazardous as listed on the Bay Area Air Quality Management District website, making it the worst air quality in the world.

Several NDB alumnae, now college students located in California, including Annaliese Divney (‘17), returned home due to classes being cancelled. “Yes, the air quality was hazardous,” says senior Caroline Divney, sister of Annaliese, “and she has been out since the 13th.

She came home Sunday [November 19] because classes were cancelled...the AQI [Air Quality Index] was over 300 in Davis.”

The Archdiocese of San Francisco cancelled school on Friday, November 16, stating, “Due to the dangerous air quality and widespread school closures in Marin, San Francisco, and San Mateo Counties, ALL Archdiocesan schools located in Marin, San Francisco, and San Mateo Counties will be closed tomorrow, Friday, November 16, 2018.”

Associate Head of School Carolyn Hutchins issued a statement reiterating the cancellation, reminding all to stay indoors. Although many were hesitant due to the See AIR QUALITY | Page 8

PAUL FRANKENSTEIN/FLCKR CREATIVE COMMONS

Imagine a world where there are Titans/Knights wins rescheduled no spirit points, just school spirit Powderpuff game, 36-6

by Parker Daley News Editor

by Kaitlyn Lopez Staff Writer

Being the class with the most spirit points comes with great “power” and bragging rights. But, what if spirit points didn’t exist? Would students still consider attending sports games even though certain sports don’t get to partake in spirit points already?

Would students still be motivated to participate in spirit point events? Should it remain how it currently is?

I personally think that many students would still attend sports games to support for their friends and classmates, but perhaps those who only attend

NATALIE BEIER/THE CATALYST

Gators and Spartans have sister class fun. for spirit points would be absent, leaving the NDB section sparse.

Spirit points shouldn’t be the only incentive for someone to attend or participate in an event.

If someone goes to a spirit point event, they should participate wholeheartedly, instead of only wanting to gain points. This leads to See SPIRIT POINTS | Page 4

Notre Dame’s acclaimed spirit point event, the Powderpuff Football game, was rescheduled for Monday, December 3 due to the Camp Fire, resulting in the Titans/Knights win over the Gators/Spartans, 36-6. Girls from every class looked forward to cheering on their sister class teams in this friendly, but fierce, competition.

Senior Ella Burrin, who played for the sophomore-senior team, said, “This year on Powderpuff has been awesome. I have wanted to do this tradition since I was a freshman, so I am so glad I got to do it

ROBERT ROJAS/THE CATALYST

Senior Mariah Davis makes a run. before I graduated.”

The freshman-junior team was coached by coach Kate Mahoney, and the sophomore-senior team was lead by English teacher Adam Currier.

The Freshman-Junior squad has a pretty good cohesiveness that will show out on the field, See POWDERPUFF | Page 4

OPINION “Merry Christmas” or Students overcommit and overload “Happy holidays”? themselves, instead of finding their passion page 2

Jean Aquino Opinion Editor @TheNDBCatalyst

December is here, and Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and other winter holidays are approaching fast.

Though a happy, joyous, and merry time, it is important for Americans to discuss what is the most appropriate season’s greeting.

Check any store. There are cards, decorations, sweaters, and just about everything else plastered with the phrase “Merry Christmas.” But, what about Boxing Day? Hanukkah? Kwanzaa? Even New Year’s sits in the green and red shadow of Christmas. Sure, the commercialization of Christmas not only takes away from the true spirit of the holiday, but it also fails to embrace the other just as important celebrations of the season.

Another thought is that many of us who have attended Catholic school have simply grown up saying, “Merry Christmas” to everyone, from one’s family and friends to cashiers at the stores to random strangers in public. Using the phrase, “Merry Christmas” as a greeting is not offensive in itself, but to someone that does not celebrate it, it can be very awkward to realize that they do not celebrate the holiday as well as insensitive to this month’s other cultural, religious, and social holidays. And, in addition, the response is limiting as one could explain that they do not celebrate the holiday or just pretend that they do.

Americans are part of the world’s biggest melting pot of cultures, ethnicities and races, and religions. The holidays are no exception as they reflect just that. Though widely popular, one cannot assume that everyone is a Christian and celebrates Jesus’ birthday. There are other celebrations, events, and holidays happening simultaneously. A broader greeting, such as “Happy Holidays,” fits the very same purpose as “Merry Christmas” and is much more inclusive of everyone.

Michelle Kleytman Managing Editor @TheNDBCatalyst

How many clubs?

Which sports? What classes? Have you built houses in Mexico? Maybe you studied abroad, or completed hundreds of volunteer hours, or helped solve world hunger. Maybe you’ve done all that. Now, you take all your accomplishments, all your successes and milestones and achievements, pick ten of them, and consolidate each one into a title, category, brief description, and the number of hours you did it a year. If this seems familiar, it should.

You spend countless hours, stressing just trying to juggle extracurriculars, on top of schoolwork, sports, and possibly any family or outside commitments and you breakdown a couple times by merely looking at what needs to be done. You build relationships with teachers for those stellar recommendation letters, you make yourself known to get that

team captain role, you dip your toes in everything that there is to possibly dip into because college admissions officers boast that they’re looking for the most “well-rounded student” there possibly is.

And, for what?

To be converted into some raw score? To be put into a stack? To be printed out, emailed, converted into a PDF file? 200 hours of volunteering, five AP scores, dozens of A-plusses, four years of your life doesn’t look like much when it’s just a couple boxes on your Common Application.

This practice breeds a loss of individualism. By senior year students aren’t doing activities because they’re passionate, they are following through with what they are “supposed to do” because they are told that it looks good on college applications.

In a school of less than 500 students, we have 45 clubs, seven boards, and

student councils of at least twelve students per class.

These opportunities make it the norm, not the exception, to have a leadership role. The culture at NDB surrounding leadership and extracurricular involvement as the default, extenuated through the Club Fair and other events, keeps the hamster wheel of overcommitment turning. At Class Day, a faculty member asks the mass of girls in the bleachers to stand if they have been involved in leadership, and every year, only a handful are left sitting.

By senior year, students have participated in so many activities that resumes can be ten pages.

But how many of these clubs, service events, academic organizations, did they genuinely care about?

Many students are signing up for extracurriculars for the sake of a well-rounded college application.

They’re going through the motions, not pursuing their passions.

This realization opened my eyes to a complete lack of time organization. I was spending more of my time committed to my social circles and playing water polo that grades for college and pure person-

al enjoyment were not even first or second but practically on the back burner of my priorities. This meant I now had much more time to fill. Without social media, the only “streaks” I maintained were consecutive days I could leave my phone home or complete recreational reading.

Transforming myself from a checklist back into a person taught me more about what I want. I loved reading, so I read. I was curious about politics, so I started a club at school and completed three internships. I was passionate about culture, so I went on trips with my family and immersed myself in the history of countries.

So for the sake of being happy, take a moment, a couple days, or sequester yourself to your bedroom for a week because you had strep throat like I did, to rethink how you are spending your time. You are not defined by a college’s ideal candidate, and if you make some much needed changes, the benefits you will reap will not only help you personally but make arguably one of the most invasive and personal processes that much easier to complete.

day. With its extension into the entire Thanksgiving weekend and its increasing popularity in American mainstream culture, it is important to consider whether or not this holiday is actually necessary.

Everyone has seen people wait and even camp outside of bix box stores days before the sales start. Those who do not often leave their homes and join the line to wait for the opening of store doors at midnight or even earlier, just hours after a Thanksgiving dinner that celebrated the appreciation of family, friends, and the less materialistic things in life.

Black Friday has also gained notoriety for the fights that break out over “door busters” and discounted items, making

this a well-known nightmare for people working in retail. And, when things sell out, it becomes harassing retail workers over what’s left. Most do not even stop to consider the irony of their actions and how little material things matter in the grand scheme of life.

Some stores do not even have bargains that would be substantial enough to wake up at 5am and taze someone for — yes, this has happened.

It is important for us as Americans to consider how deeply unnecessary having such a cosmetic and frivolous holiday is and how much more valuable it would be to live out the gratitude we express on Thanksgiving, just the day before.

The Irony of Black Friday Julia Hebrok Staff Writer @TheNDBCatalyst

Black Friday is an American “holiday” that comes on the day after Thanksgiving, known for many discounts in stores and popular for people looking to get their holiday shopping done in one go.

It was originally named Black Friday due to the chaos that would ensue on that day after Thanksgiving in Philadelphia, with shoplifting and traffic taking over the city of brotherly love.

However, once the holiday became more

popular and widespread in the rest of the country, retailers changed the history of the term to have a more positive connotation. They started selling the narrative that Black Friday is the first day of the year that stores are operating at a profit or “in the black,” rather than operating at a loss or “in the red.”

Black Friday has become a four-day long ordeal with the rise of theme days, such as Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday, and Giving Tues-

theCATALYST NOTRE DAME HIGH SCHOOL’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER

EDITOR IN CHIEF Johana Ligenberg

OPINION EDITOR Jean Aquino

STAFF WRITERS Victoria Bartels Ella Burrin Julia Hebrok Jaya Kapoor Luisa Laguisma Bella Lopez Kaitlyn Lopez Kendall Peters Feauini Saulala Daphne Sidoti

SPORTS EDITOR Kelly Nolte

FACULTY ADVISOR Robert Rojas

MANAGING EDITOR Michelle Kleytman NEWS EDITOR Parker Daley

PHOTO EDITOR Natalie Beier

ABOUT THE CATALYST

EDITORIAL POLICY (Continued)

The Catalyst is a student-run newspaper that is published eight times a year in print and 24/7 online for Notre Dame High School community.

in the Opinion section do not reflect the views of The Catalyst, NDB, the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, or the Archdiocese of San Francisco, but are solely the views of the writer.

Unsigned editorials reflect the opinion of The Catalyst.

EDITORIAL POLICY The Catalyst accepts unsolicited letters from students, faculty, staff, and alumni as well as press releases from on and off-campus organizations, but cannot guarantee publication.

It reserves the right to edit or reject submissions. The views expressed

CONTACT US Notre Dame High School 1540 Ralston Avenue Belmont, California 94002 Phone: (650) 595-1913 Email:TheCatalystNDB@gmail.com

NEWS

page 3

Students celebrate Friendsgiving

Information and photos compiled by Parker Daley, News Editor and Victoria Bartels, Staff Writer

ASL silent lunch table invites a Students welcome Advent different kind of conversation season with prayer services

NATALIE BEIER/THE CATALYST

ASL teacher Trina Licht (right) signs with Math teacher Gina Kipilman (left)

by Parker Daley News Editor

During lunch this semester, a table in the dining room has been reserved to educate students, faculty, and staff about Deaf culture. The “ASL silent lunch table” provides an opportunity for American Sign Language (ASL) students to practice their signing skills as well as allows others to be exposed to and try out a new language.

A new member of the NDB community, ASL teacher Trina Licht started hosting the table to “allow everyone to practice their signing skills in a relaxed and unstructured environment.”

When asked what it has been like to have

lunch at the table so far, she responded, “I enjoy seeing people increasing their knowledge and skills in ASL! I look forward to seeing this grow over time!”

There is a sign on the table that lists ways to communicate silently without knowing the sign for a specific word or phrase.

Some of these options include pointing to the object, acting out a motion, fingerspelling a word using the ASL alphabet, giving the sign for the opposite of that item or concept and then signing “opposite” or listing items in the same category.

The table is built on the premise that “with sign language, everyone is included.” Whether someone has proficient signing

abilities or does not take ASL at all, the table gives them the ability to communicate in a way that they may not be familiar with.

ASL is an expressive and unique language that is a key part of Deaf culture. According to the World Federation for the Deaf, Deaf culture is the “beliefs, attitudes, history, norms, values, literary traditions, and art shared by Deaf people.”

By eating and talking at the silent lunch table, not only are people experiencing a new language, but being exposed to a new culture.

For more information on Deaf culture and ASL, visit “Deaf Culture FAQ” on TheASLapp.com.

PHOTO COURTESY OF YNEZ MANALO

The Advent wreath symbolizes the four weeks that pass before Christmas.

by Editorial Staff

Last Thursday and Friday, students went with their Spiritual Life classes to the Innovation Lab for the school’s annual Advent prayer services.

Advent is a time in the Catholic church leading up to Christmas as Catholics wait and prepare for the celebration of the birth of Jesus.

The prayer service began with a video describing what Advent is and then followed with a discussion on the meaning of the holidays beyond material goods and modern traditions.

It ended with each student writing her personal goal for the season on a cutout of a leaf which were collected to create a wreath.

The prayer services were planned by the Spiritual Life department.

Its teachers hoped that students would spend the time getting into the spirit of the season and reflect on what the upcoming holidays mean to each of them.

Spiritual Life Department Chair Ynez Manalo says, “Hopefully, they will take time to reflect on what distractions they want to let go of during this Advent season, like cell phones or shopping, and what they should focus on more of, like love or joy.”

Titan Johana Ligtenberg commented, “It was interesting that it was done differently since, in past years, the reflection was a meditation.”

She also said,

“I’ve heard that writing down your goals makes them more likely to come true, so hopefully what we wrote on our leaves will help us finish out the year strong!”

The symbolic Advent wreath was featured during the prayer service.

It consists of four candles that represent each week , three that are purple to represent fasting and repentance and pink to represent joy. The wreath will be on display on the second floor next to the St. Julie statue.

This is the third consecutive year that prayer services were held in classes, rather than as a whole school.

With contributions by Winnie Saulala, Staff Writer

Titans/Knights win Powderpuff, 36-6

page 4

NEWS/FEATURE

The complications of school spirit

ROBERT ROJAS/THE CATALYST

The winning team poses after the game.

From POWDERPUFF |Page 1

and they’re pumped up and ready to go. Both teams practiced hard to work towards a victory for their classes.

ASB is still hopeful that the game will be as exciting as past years, despite being after Thanksgiving.

Kelly Nolte, ASB President, says, “I’m really excited to see not only the game itself, but also the sisterhood and spirit point competitions.”

ASB Officer Kerrianne Hines, has similar

thoughts, saying that “it’s a really good spirit point event, and always brings a ton of spirit.”

Both student leaders are looking forward to the cheering and excitement of the game, with Hines adding that “it’s super fun to cheer on each other’s class and it’s just, like, a friendly game… a chance for us to partake in a high school tradition.”

Camp Fire affects Bay Area air quality

One of the first things that every student at NDB hears is the importance of school spirit. It is an integral part of the school, from the crazy rallies (including the most unique and exciting of them all, Aquacades!) to service events such as the canned food drive. However, everyone views this participation-oriented culture differently. Many students would rather not participate, or simply don’t care that much about spirit points and winning events. This issue looks at the emphasis placed on spirit at NDB from multiple perspectives. In addition, the Catalyst found through school-wide surveys that many students feel pressured by their classmates to participate in events when they would prefer not to. Because of how important spirit is to NDB students and faculty alike, this issue wanted to present multiple perspectives on the pressures and positive aspects of this culture at NDB.

What if there were no spirit points?

From SPIRIT POINTS | Page 1

the question of whether students are there to cheer for a competition or to be in one themselves.

Despite spirit points promoting class unity and sister-class bonding, they have been known to tear classes apart. If someone does not participate for spirit points, there have been incidents where students have gotten mad at their classmates.

Spirit points should not be taken too

seriously, because at the end of the day they are just numbers. People should be focusing on having fun with their classmates and showing their NDB pride no matter the motivation.

However, despite the disadvantages and negative influences of these points, they promote a fun way for classes to work together to show their school spirit. The best way to show school spirit is at rallies, including Aquacades, the most anticipated rally of the year.

As a freshman last year, I didn’t fully appreciate what Aquacades was until I actually experienced it. I thought it was just a night of students screaming next to a pool. While this is what it may seem to an outsider, it is so much more than that to the students participating.

Aquacades is the loudest night of the year for NDB girls to show what they are capable of and demonstrate their school spirit.

The event takes months to plan, with students

gathering songs, deck routines, swim routines, choreography, costumes, backdrops, and more to make one special night possible.

If spirit points did not exist, there wouldn’t be as many conflicts on earning the most spirit points. Students would have a better time getting along with each other at ease without being hung up on the competition. With the points, girls will keep their competitive spirit at rallies, contests, and other events.

Q&A with the Gators Spirit Commissioner Angela Marie Fairman on school spirit

by Michelle Kleytman Managing Editor

PHOTO COURTESY OF PARKER DALEY

Smoke fills the afternoon sky in Belmont.

From AIR QUALITY | Page 1 due to the consistently unhealthy air quality, school was resumed the following Monday, November 19.

Staying indoors was at times not enough to protect Bay Area residants from the poor air quality.

The high demand of N95 masks, designed to filter out 95% of unhealthy air particles, forced several Bay Area stores, including Home Depot, Walgreens, and CVS to go out of stock.

Air purifiers similarly sold out, some being sold for upwards of $300.

President Trump made a visit to the Camp Fire, making the controversial statement that America should follow suit of Fin-

land by raking our forest floors, resulting in the prevention of wildfires. The president stood alongside current California Governor, Jerry Brown, and governor-elect Gavin Newsom.

Following the first day back from the fire cancellation, ASB sent a schoolwide email stating, “To show our love and support for the victims of the fires and the firefighters, we are selling wristbands for $5, but we are accepting other donations.

Anything helps. Purchasing a wristband allows you to wear free dress during finals. (even sweats of your choice).” Wristbands were sold that Monday during lunch and again on Wednesday.

see other people wanting to win, it makes us want to win. I think juniors have definitely tried to turn it around.

We don’t like losing and we don’t want that.

TC: How spirited do you consider yourself?

AF: The most spirited at the school, not going to lie. Like at games...I am the only one at the Dig Pink game from our school who stood up... the one who is leading everything.

TC: How important is spirit to you?

AF: It’s like one of the reasons I came to Notre Dame. I feel like it sort of helps me express who I am. I definitely have always sort of been spirited. That’s who I am to the fullest extent. Everyone is always like, “Oh Angela Marie you’re so crazy.”

TC: Have you ever felt that there is a competitiveness?

AF: Oh yeah, definitely. Everyone just wants to win but I feel like at the end of the day, win-

ning isn’t what it is about.

When we are doing rallies, I feel like it is every class for themself. We try to help our sister classes whenever we can.

TC: Do you feel that there is that connection amongst sister classes?

AF: I feel like since the Spartans are new, it is going to take a little more time to develop a strong bond. I guess you could say the Mavericks didn’t have the same for us that we are trying to provide for the Spartans. Since the Mavericks were shad-

PHOTO COURTESY OF CAROLINE MCCOY

owing over us, it never gave us a chance to shine.

TC: What impact did the Mavericks have on your guys’ spirit?

AF: From the first rally, we got second place.

That was not withheld from any of them. There was that feeling of, “Oh you’re not spirited so we shouldn’t be spirited.” A lot of people in our class were just lazy, we should just keep losing. Lose Aquacades, lose everything. But then the other half of the class actually wants to win. When we

TC: How has student council played a role in turning it around?

AF: With this year’s student council, definitely new blood helps with that. The student council is a lot more determined. We know what we want and we are not afraid of getting that. Student council should fit people who run the class, I feel like since we have a level head and have the same goal at the end of the day, it’s good. I feel like part of the reason we are turning it around and getting more spirited, is because student council is making a big difference, and they don’t want to be known as the class that loses everything.

FEATURE

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Does the competition to become the most spirited class help or hurt us?

Spirit points create healthy competition

Spirit points create tension

As spirit week came to end last month and the fall sport seasons draw to a close, it’s a good time to reflect on the positive impact spirit points have at NDB.

At this point, it is well-known that spirit point events occur throughout the year, which adds fun and some events to look forward to.

The Dig Pink game offered spirit points to the four classes and breast cancer awareness. As the volleyball team fought for a cure and a win, the court was electric, filled with not only Tigers but Serra Padres as well.

Spirit points honor the community, especially the seniors. Each sport hosts a senior game to show appreciation and love to those whose last home game it is. Water polo is not usually a sport where you can look into the stands and see them filled with fans besides your mom or dad. Speaking from experience, it is so nice to look up at your last home game and see the stands packed with people cheering you and your teammates on.

Arguably the most competitive week of the school year is spirit week. This is not a bad thing at all, however. The top athletes in the world are always competing to be number one, it makes it more fun and interesting the closer the competition is. Spirit week is five days of the most intense spirit of the year, save for Aquacades. The four theme days of dress up and lunch activities all leading to the Dingbat day rally. Dressing up for a theme is such a great way to make the school day fun and a silly. It is

As a senior, I have seen the effects of spirit points on my own class across the past four years, as well as within other classes. Ultimately, they have done less to bring us together than to tear us apart.

Everywhere you turn at NDB, spirit points are dangled in front of students as an arbitrary incentive to attend more sports games, to cheer louder at rallies, and to donate more money to drives. Students no longer participate in drives out of the goodness of their hearts or in school activities such as these for the fun of it. They do it out of fear of harassment from their classmates and ridicule from other classes.

With the Turkey Bowl and Aquacades routines, where spirit points are offered as an incentive to sign up, a new rule had to be established that points would be taken away from students who were chosen to participate and then decided to opt out. Why would this have had to happen, if not that students faced such immense pressure to sign up for the spirit points that they were putting their names on activities that they actually held no genuine passion for?

There is nothing wrong with friendly competition, and with some students getting more into the spirit point competition than others. However, the issues stem from spirit points representing more than just friendly competition, but a sense of being “better than,” a sense of proving to others that your class is good enough, that you and your classmates are wor-

Kelly Nolte Sports Editor @TheNDBCatalyst

also a great way to step out of your comfort zone and go all out.

The competition brings each class closer together with each other and allows for sister class bonding. Spirit point events allow for all aspects of NDB to be recognized and honored. By offering spirit points for different events besides athletics, like the fall play or the canned food drive allows all talents at NDB to be witnessed and it benefits our school. For the canned food drive, the good competitive nature of the school collecting over 1,000 cans.

We are now entering the most stressful time of the year, finals.

To lighten the mood and make the week before finals more fun, ASB implemented the first ever Christmas Spirit Week.

Much like Halloween, each class gets points based on the class percentage that dresses up.

This will be fun to add some Holiday spirit before a stressful week.

Being an ASB officer, I have a unique perspective on allocating and assigning the points. We make it so every chance to earn points can make a small difference, but is never overwhelming. As an ASB we also make sure there are events for every sport and extracurricular activity. We see the involvement of the Tigers and their excitement at events while they support their peers.

Spirit points bring students together more than they bring them apart. From supporting classmates and friends to helping communities, they help lift up students through sisterhood.

Johana Ligtenberg Editor in Chief @TheNDBCatalyst

thy. This toxic culture has led to students hounding others if they do not participate in competitions that will earn them spirit points.

Personally, I have seen my friends moved to tears after having classmates yell at them about selling raffle tickets. I have had people grab my arms and put them up at Aquacades. I have had people scream in my face at rallies. I have heard students offer to cheat to win contests, and see them do so on spirit week days.

And, the stress of spirit points has increased my social anxiety to the point that I asked my mom if I could skip school the day of this year’s Ding-Bat day rally. All of this, for a tally of made up numbers.

Spirit points do not encourage sisterhood.

They provoke stress and drama surrounding every event that they are offered at, and they drive students to tear each other down rather than lift each other up. Sisterhood would actually be strengthened at NDB if spirit points were done away with altogether.

Wouldn’t our community be stronger if we attended one another’s games not just to earn points, but to support our friends? Wouldn’t our community be stronger if we gave to those in need out of the goodness of our hearts, not out of a selfish desire to win? Or, perhaps most importantly, wouldn’t our community be stronger if we respected one another’s choices of what we want to participate in and care about, rather than assuming that our beliefs should extend to everyone else?

ARTS & LIFE Christmas concert to Review: Salt & Straw brings experimental be held at Filoli estate flavors and quality ingredients to Burlingame

page 6

Adam Currier Faculty Writer

KEITH WESCOURT/FLCKR CREATIVE COMMONS

The ballroom at the Filoli Estate in Woodside.

by Amelia Kyle Arts & Life Editor

The annual Christmas concert, themed “Say a Little Prayer,” is bound to be a fantastic show presented by the NDB choir.

It features popular holiday melodies and other famous tunes that are sure to put anybody who attends in the holiday spirit.

The Orchestra and A Capella Club will showcase their well-prepared pieces and are very eager for the rest of the school to see their efforts put into action. In addition, Serra and Mercy HSs will join in for the Tri-School Chorus pieces.

Along with traditional Christmas songs, the choir will perform classic soul tunes in honor of the late singer Aretha Franklin.

Set at the Filoli Historic House and Garden in Woodside, this magical venue is sure to bring the performances to life and excite the audience.

The concert is also a spirit point event, so it is a great opportunity to rack in some points for classes.

Please come and support fellow Tigers and watch them sing their hearts out.

Do not miss this breathtaking experience on Thursday, December 6 at 7pm with free admission for students.

The line is undeniably long. The wait time sends many curious people searching for a different way to satisfy their sugar cravings. More than once a mumbled, “It can’t be that good” has been heard as someone shuffles away.

And, they’re right without knowing it. Because Salt and Straw isn’t that good.

It’s that great.

It starts with a host of local and organic ingredients. These include a list of 13 “classics” with three vegan options that are always available, and an additional five “seasonal” tastes with one to two vegan choices that change monthly. As a result, each flavor carries a sense of rich and nuanced flavor that rivals the best ice creams available from places such as experimental flavor guru Humphry Slocombe and safe standard Bi-Rite.

In the classics, ingredients like Guatemalan fleur de sel, SoMa’s sightglass coffee, Northern California’s Arbequina olive oil, Oxnard’s strawberries, and Petaluma-based Cowgirl Creamery’s Mt. Tam

Review: “Wreck-It Ralph 2”

PHOTO COURTESY OF TWITTER.COM/SALTANDSTRAW

Salt & Straw features more than just your standard ice cream flavors. cheese (yes, actual cheese), all make appearances in flavor options ranging from the tame “Double Fold Vanilla” to the new twist on an old favorite “Salted, Malted Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough” to the out of the box “Mt. Tam Cheese with Toasted Acme Bread.”

The Burlingame location has been open for three months and has seen three of the “seasonal” menus specifically built for Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. This is where Salt and Straw separates from other ice cream parlours. With no concern for convention or the faint of heart, more elaborate offerings have been “Creepy

Amelia Kyle Arts & Life Editor

“Wreck-it Ralph”, Disney’s 2012 hit movie, caught the attention of all ages, and continued Disney’s streak of enjoyable, heartwarming movies. After seeing the second movie, I am pleased to say it exceeded my expectations as a fan of the “Wreck-it Ralph” series.

The first movie ended with an unlikely friendship of Ralph, the villain in one video game, and Veronica, the glitch in another. To understand the sequel, there is no need to see the first movie!

The movie begins with the same iconic friendship between Ralph and Veronica, which still proves to be as entertaining and problematic as in the first film. Ralph, in attempts to make Veronica’s game more exciting for her, ends up accidentally destroying the game. In order to save the game, they need to buy a new steering wheel from eBay, and this is how the journey begins.

In addition to the exciting storyline, the attention to detail is amazing. The focus on creating a detailed universe within the internet was done excellently as well, including accurate adaptations of

“Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald”, the newest film to be released within the Harry Potter universe, is the highly-anticipated sequel to the fan-praised Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, and continues the story of Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) and his loyal group in their efforts to take down the evil Gellert Grindelwald (Johnny Depp). With a star-studded cast and an impressive first film, “The Crimes of Grindelwald” had many excited for its release. Sadly, the film does not live up to its expectations, disappointing both fans and critics alike.

While the movie has a lot of action and excitement, its plot quickly becomes difficult to follow due to it having multiple fast-paced storylines and too many characters to keep up with. Since there are so many new characters introduced, there is a huge lack of character development amongst the both the original protagonists and the newbies, making it hard for the audience to connect with the heroes on screen.

It felt as if the movie-makers were trying to cram too much information and plotlines into a two-hour time

popular websites, such as Fortnite and Amazon.

It is the first disney movie to include every Disney princess, and it represents each of them very well. They are all featured throughout the development of the story, which is where their true personalities are shown, and are all essential to the plot.

As the movie ended, I did not even realize I had been sitting in my theatre seat for two hours

as the film went by so fast, and was a truly exciting experience for me.

Spartan Jorja Fox agreed, saying “They had everything on point. It was current and they were able to include things like adds on the side of the internet.”

I highly encourage you make the time to see this movie, because of its funny and feel-good tone, and its ability to keep the audience constantly engaged.

flavors as they want, with a smile and attitude that never makes the customer feel awkward or rushed.

At five dollars a scoop, I don’t recommend the long wait to just buy one. I recommend waiting in line, trying as many flavors as you like, and then picking up a pint ($11) or two of your favorites from their stock of both classics and past seasonals. My freezer currently stocks “Christmas Peppermint Bark Cocoa,” “Strawberry Tres Leches,” and “Thanksgiving Sweet Potato Casserole with Maple Pecans.”

Scared of a line?

Remember that great things come to those who wait.

Review: Fantastic Beasts 2

by Kelly Nolte Sports Editor

PHOTO COURTESY OF WALT DISNEY STUDIOS MOTION PICTURES

Crawly Critters” with chocolate covered crickets and toffee brittle mealworm; “Salted Caramel Thanksgiving Turkey” complete with turkey brittle and turkey fat caramel ice cream; and, this month’s vegan offering, the dairy-free, eggfree “Cinnamon Coconut Eggnog.”

What sets Salt and Straw apart is their attention to customer service.

They don’t want you to just buy a flavor. They want you to love your flavor. The line isn’t long because scooping ice cream is a time consuming process. Rather, each server attends to one customer at a time and allows them to try as many

PHOTO COURTESY OF WARNER BROS. PICTURES

period, which led to several plot holes and inconsistencies.

Although the movie itself is poorly made, many of the performances of the protagonists are bright spots, and actually make it bearable to watch.

Redmayne and Jude Law (Albus Dumbledore) keep the film entertaining, which is why is it such a shame that their screen time felt so limited. On the villain side, however, Depp

was clearly a poor casting choice, as he gave a bleak performance that was incredibly unconvincing and sometimes cringeworthy.

His performance made the film far less enjoyable, and gave the audience a boring, one-dimensional villain.

Overall, “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” is a poor continuation of the series, and will leave Harry Potter fans everywhere disappointed.

SPORTS page 7 Winter sports preview: Basketball is coming Spirit squad earns first with new Head Coach Samantha Rossi place in season opener

by Victoria Bartels Staff Writer

As winter approaches, the crowd welcomes back its beloved basketball season. The rhythmic thump of dribbling balls will soon begin to echo throughout the Moore Pavilion along with the laughter and cheers among teammates. The girls’ flushed cheeks will glisten with sweat from the mental and physical strain they exert during practice.

There is no doubt that this year’s varsity and JV teams are cut out for greatness.

Varsity player, Senior Alexandra Gatt says, “On our team, nothing is guaranteed. This pushes us to be the best basketball players we can be and fight for everything.”

While each player brings an exceptional talent to the court, everyone is curious to see how former Assistant Coach Samantha Rossi will step up to lead her team as the new head coach. Rising to the occasion, she challenges the players to compete for strength and positions.

When asked about Rossi, Gatt said, “With Coach Sam as our new

PHOTO COURTESY OF TWITTER.COM/NDBATHLETICS

Alumnae return to play in the annual alum basketball game.

Head Coach, I feel like there will be a positive outcome. She holds us to a higher standard than before, but I know in the long run, it will make us that much stronger.”

Returning players have been vigorously training for months now and are dedicated to their respective teams. They are challenged to do more weight room workouts than previous years. They also had to do long distance runs, oneon-one games, and boot camp with Coach Kate Mahoney.

Rossi takes pride in this season’s strong senior leaders. Even though there is a majority of re-

turning players, the coach says a lot will change. Incorporating lots of competition in every practice, she shared, “We switched up our offense this year, which make things more exciting.”

Much like their new offensive lineup, practices have been altered as well. The players work through intensive drills to prepare for games and work on overall execution and strategy.

Consequently, the girls are learning to utilize skills such as leadership and communication on and off the court.

For example, Sophomore Mia Adao says

she became more social and confident through playing basketball in the past.

“I’m looking forward to earning my spot, playing more, and showing that underclassmen are just as prepared and conditioned,” says Adao. She wants to continue playing as a defensive guard.

The athletes encourage all kinds of support and hope to see their sisters cheering in the stands at all home games.

So, do not forget to check out the team schedules to see a game and wish them good luck for the upcoming basketball season.

Featured student-athlete: Ava Cholakian, Soccer

by Kelly Nolte Sports Editor

Senior Ava Cholakian has been a member of NDB’s varsity soccer team since her freshman season in 2015. For an athlete that plays at least fifteen hours a week, there needs to be a dedication, love, and passion for the sport. Cholakian’s comes from her desire to improve.

She says, “I love making a good first touch or scoring a goal that wasn’t meant to be one. It reminds me why I put in so much work.”

Cholakian has been playing for a long time, deciding on soccer when she was in the third grade and made it onto her first club team.

Her hard work through the year has finally paid off, especially through the competitive college recruiting process. She began to feel discouraged when she did not get the attention of any of the big division one schools during her junior year.

With her mother, she visited the University of Puget Sound and fell in love with the school, especially its beautiful campus.

Cholakian said, “I wasn’t interested at all until I actually saw the campus.

It’s stunning. It’s very old

NATALIE BEIER/THE CATALYST

PHOTO COURTESY OF CELESTE CREWS

The cheer team poses with their award.

by Ella Burrin Staff Writer

In early November, the cheer and pom teams both took first place at their first competition of the season in Tracy, California. Their wins at the United Spirit Association (USA) regional competition really showed that the spirit squad is here to win, and pom is especially excited to maintain their national champion title.

Senior Abigail Rossi is the co-captain of the pom team. She has been a member of the team for all four years of high school, so she was especially ecstatic to see just how far this team has come since starting with them in 2015. She sat down with the Catalyst to explain how the scoring process works, and why she, along with co-captain, Senior Kerrianne Hines, are so proud of their team.

Rossi says, “This is a special team, and we can see that already after this first competition. At the awards ceremony portion of the competition, our team got first with a score of 84 out of 100. This was outstanding considering it was only a point off of our national score, which shows us that we are in a great place.”

Senior Emma Sponsler, along with seniors Celeste Crews and Abigail Silk, captain the cheer team and lead them in practices in order to ensure that the girls are always competition ready. Like Rossi, Sponsler has been a member of the team for all four years of high school.

Sponsler spoke to the Catalyst about the pride she has for her team. She says, “I’m so proud of my team! We have been working so hard at our practices every week and trying to improve our routine everytime we all get together to practice. This win made me confident that we are going to have an amazing season!”

Both the cheer and pom teams practice separately twice a week. Cheer practices every Monday and Wednesday, while Pom practices every Friday and Sunday. Pom is so dedicated that their Friday practice is on-campus from 6:15am - 8:00am. They also collaborate on Thursdays from 3:30-4:15pm to go over “Game Day” cheers since they cheer for both NDB and Serra HS’s athletic teams.

Having wins for the first competition of the season bodes well for both teams as it shows that all the work they have been putting in is paying off. As both seasons go on, they will continue to compete in hopes of earning a place at nationals, a competition in Anaheim, California.

Here, pom will compete to maintain their national champion spot, while cheer fights to bring home another banner for the Tigers.

As her coaches watch, Ava Cholakian kicks a ball during practice. and has a lot of brick buildings.”

She reached out to the university’s soccer coach, and he attended a showcase to watch her play.

Cholakian says, “I called him the Monday after the weekend, which he told me he wanted me on his team and could see me playing my freshman year. I told my parents.

They happily agreed with my decision to go there, and I called him back on Wednesday to verbally commit to his team.”

While it was difficulty and she faced some disappointment, she trust-

ed in the process, and it all worked out in her favor.

However, we cannot expect her hard work to stop here. When asked about expectations for this season’s NDB soccer team, she answered, “A lot of hard work. We’re not the best team, but we work the hardest. Hopefully we’ll have a lot of goals, as well as being the fittest team in the league.”

Cholakian continued, “I’m looking forward to winning league and hopefully winning CCS as well.”

As she enters her last season at NDB, she

wants to savor every moment, specifically with her teammates.

She said, “We grow so close and it makes the bond and team so much stronger.” She added that playing as a team and becoming closer friends is her favorite part of soccer.

As she and the team continue to put in the hard work, one can hope it pays off throughout the season. Cholakian is so excited to have the chance to play at NDB and is grateful and excited to have the opportunity to play in college.

PHOTO COURTESY OF ABBY ROSSI

The pom team poses with their award.

@theNDBCATALYST

FEATURE Q&A with Dina Cunha, NDB College Counselor

page 8

by Johana Ligtenberg Editor in Chief

The Catalyst sat down with College Counselor Dina Cunha and talked about her work with the upcoming college app season.

The Catalyst (TC): How long have you been a college counselor?

Dina Cunha (DC): Since 2003, technically. So, that makes it 15 years. I’ve been in education since 1996. I was a history teacher before that, so five years of teaching, then moved into counseling.

TC: What aspect of the college admissions process have you been a part of?

DC: When I say 15, 16 years, I mean working back and forth between high schools and universities.

My first job out of graduate school when I got my masters was working at NDNU in the admissions department… Eventually I moved up to the University of California, so I worked at Santa Cruz. I did two years there as well as a full time senior admissions counselor.

TC: Have you noticed any changes in the way that students approach college apps over the years?

DC: The biggest change I’ve seen is the amount of

colleges added to their college lists... The accessibility is a big deal because now you have the internet which means you can go onto an app site like UC and just apply to all nine with one app. Common App is the same thing. But, because they have so many more apps, they have to deny more, which means the admissions rates have gone down, and it’s gotten what students see as more difficult to get in... The internet has a lot to do with that, so there’s a lot more denying, which causes even more anxiety. That’s the other thing, too, the anxiety levels have gone up with students because I think it all feeds into itself. It’s a cycle.

TC: What is your favorite part of your job?

DC: Working with the students. For me, it’s just a better fit. I like the students.

If I could take away everything else and just work with the kids, that’s actually the much more, I think, rewarding part and seeing them through the cycle and through the process, and how they grow… I think that’s why I work on the school end, rather than just on the university end.

TC: What is one thing that you wish you could change about your job?

DC: It’s how do we get

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the information out there where the students will see it. Because we’ll put it on our website, we’ll put it in the student college guide, and we’ll put it in a college presentation, but they’re still not hearing it.

TC: What is one piece of advice that you think that every student applying to college should know?

DC: Half the battle of being college-ready is, as long as you can make your deadlines and follow instructions, you’re halfway there. So, whether it’s following instructions on

how to do a college app, or when to turn in the senior questionnaire, or if it’s instructions or deadlines within a school or a university, if you have that sort of “as long as I hit the deadlines and read all the instructions,” you’re halfway there. If you just do that, you’ll do probably okay in college. And, teachers will probably agree with me on that. Just whatever you do, just follow the instructions and read the deadlines, and you’ll get there. You will get there.

Why popping the question: “So, where are you Q&A with a NDB alumna and future LMU grad applying to college?” isn’t the best idea

by Michelle Kleytman and Johana Ligtenberg Editors

“So, how are college applications going?” is the excessively asked question that high school seniors know all too well.

Many of them will agree that the formula is as follows: enter a conversation, get asked some variation of “So, where are you applying to college?”, robotically rattle of college names, make a joke about how stressful the process has been, and then desperately try to change the conversation topic to avoid follow-up questions and comments like, “Well, that school has a party reputation. Are you sure you want to apply there?” or “What are your SAT and ACT scores like?” or, possibly worst of all, “Which one is your first choice?” followed by “Do you really think you’d get in?”

While these questions tend to be asked by loved ones and people who have our best interests in mind, the truth is that high school students put an immense amount of stress on themselves, and

by Robert Rojas Faculty Adviser

Christina Chu graduated from NDB as a member of its class of 2015, the Gladiators. She is now a senior at LMU, majoring in Communications and minoring in Women’s and Gender Studies. The Catalyst visited Chu and asked her to reflect on the college app process four years later.

NATALIE BEIER/THE CATALYST

Seniors review their college essays in an English class. the excessive questioning does more harm than help.

The college process is remarkably stressful for students because this is the time where many of us learn we may not be able to attend the school of our dreams, that our ideal school is financially out of the question, or perhaps out of every college we’ve looked at, we can’t envision ourselves anywhere.

As high school seniors, we struggle to plan the coming years of our lives, work to come to terms with our likely options, and hope that after weeks of waiting, we

will get the acceptances we believe we deserve.

However, as we struggle to grapple with these stark realizations and hopes, we kindly ask that our loved ones respect our privacy during this time.

There will be instances where we want to flesh out our ideas or discuss the college process, but these conversations should be instigated by us.

The college process is a very difficult one filled with high-highs and low-lows. The best thing you can do to show that you care and support a high school senior is to let them

know you are always willing to talk to them about the college process, will only voice your opinions when asked, and most importantly, will celebrate all of their acceptances with genuine elation.

As high school seniors, we have a lot on our plates and kindly ask our loved ones to refrain from talking about our college plans unless we choose to bring them up. We really appreciate your concern, but ultimately, we are the ones who will be attending university next fall and the school we choose will be the best choice for us.

The Catalyst (TC): What do you remember about the college app process?

Christina Chu (CC): I think I applied to around 15-20 schools. A good chunk of those were CSUs, and they didn’t require any essays. I applied to quite a few private schools, and those have essays.

TC: What did you think of the essays?

CC: If you take the time to dedicate yourself to writing them, it is worth it because, as someone who was not a strong test-taker, I liked that I could really pour everything into essays and portray an authentic version of myself.

TC: What do you think of

ROBERT ROJAS/THE CATALYST

people who apply to 20 to 25 schools?

CC): As someone who was really unsure of where I wanted to go and do, I’d try to narrow it down to schools that I really had an interest in or enjoyed.

TC: As a college senior, what is your advice for a high school senior?

CC: Foster your working relationships with your teachers. I’m in a small institution now, and I have the ability to form relationships with professors and go to their office hours. I think I took that for granted in high school. Your teachers are there as a resource.