Ashley & Serina Wei Ashley and Serina Wei’s favorite thing to do together is shopping because they can get trustworthy feedback from each other. With normal friends, people tend to censor frank critique to avoid hurt feelings. As twins, however, the two can be honest with each other and thus get more valuable advice. Like other twins, the girls enjoy similar hobbies. They share the same fascination for music and dancing. The twins’ fondest memory together is a comical one. They both attempted to conquer the cinnamon-eating challenge together, “but failed and coughed it up all over each other,” said Ashley Wei.
Elin & Ethan Chee Elin and Ethan Chee are both in cross country and share other extracurricular activities. Elin Chee said, “we experience a lot of the same things and help each other go through hard stuff together.” They have their twin moments, such as bursting into song—the same one—simultaneously. “We get along surprisingly well,” said Ethan Chee, “It is relaxing to hang out with [Elin].” The two are different from the Babins in that they share fewer things in common. Other than their mutual passion for soccer, their preferences, such as taste in food, music and hobbies, differ. Despite these differences, and though “they may not read each other’s minds” according to Elin Chee, they understand each other extremely well, more so than normal siblings.
BY JANE JUN
With multiple pairs of twins in this year’s freshman class, reporter Jane Jun gets to know four sets of twins a little better.
Alice & Evita Babin As both best friends and sisters, the two girls say that they “can tell each other anything.” The twins have moments after dinner when they laugh together so hard that they test their parents’ patience. The Babins just moved to the Bay Area from Israel and did not attend Miller Middle School, so they are in the process of acclimating to the new environment. “Having a twin really helped me [adjust] because on the �irst day or so we didn’t know anyone. But each of us already had one friend,” said Alice Babin. The most remarkable aspect about their relationship is their level of communication. So quickly they understand each other, the girls say they can often tell what the other is thinking. A word is enough to express a longer thought.
Jim & Anna Sussenguth The Sussenguths say that they like to bring humor into their relationship and always treat each other with mutual kindness. Though they may be fraternal twins, Anna and Jim Sussenguth both enjoy similar hobbies and share similar interests. They both like to stay active and enjoy activities such as Taekwondo and long distance running. Anna Sussenguth says that her favorite memory with Jim is when they went on a luge for the �irst time during a vacation in Europe. “Basically a luge is a cart on a metal track in a hill. It was amazing! We had a blast!” she said.
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY FEATURES SECTION
LHS welcomes new staff members JOEY LI — EPIC
NEW FACES ON CAMPUS | Lynbrook welcomed seven new teachers this year. From left to right: Patrick Kitson, Jennifer Griffin, Brad Fulk, Stephanie Wu, Mitch Basin, Jennifer Taylor-Smith and Jason Lee.
BY PRACHI LAUD & RANI MAVRAM Patrick Kitson: “I’m a different kind of guy,” said new Special Education teacher Patrick Kitson. Kitson enjoys motorcycle riding in his free time. He also built a cottage consisting of an of�ice area and bedroom. Kitson majored in History at UC San Diego. “I was interested in the stories of the people of the past,” he said. His teachers at UCSD in�luenced him to pursue a major in educational leadership at San Jose State University, and he previously taught for nine years at Fremont High School. He looks forward to sharing his adventures with his students for years to come.
Jennifer Grif�in: Physical Education teacher, Jennifer Grif�in, is a Lynbrook alumnus. This is her fourth year at Lynbrook, but her �irst as a teacher. This year Grif�in is teaching PE 9 for freshmen. Grif�in studied at San Jose State University and majored in Kinesiology for her undergraduate degree. “This is what PE is, human movement, physical activity
and how it impacts health and quality of life,” said Grif�in. “Teaching gives me the chance to work with students everyday while doing something that I really enjoy,”
Brad Fulk: What did the little acorn say when he grew up? “Geometry!” For any student taking Brad Fulk’s Geometry or Java this year, this joke might be familiar. “I’m goofy for a math teacher,” he said. Fulk originally chose to pursue a career in Electrical and Computer Engineering, but having enjoyed coaching high school sports, Fulk chose teaching computers and math as a profession. “I’ve always been kind of a computer nerd,” said Fulk, chuckling.
Stephanie Wu: Challenged by students who dislike math, Algebra 2, Trigonometry and Pre-Calculus Honors, teacher Stephanie Wu wants to help every student succeed in math. As she found during her teaching career at Dorsey High School and San Jose Downtown College Prep, students “have a history of struggling with math,” said Wu.
Her policy is not to abandon students, but to aggressively help and encourage them. “I can’t read their minds,” said Wu, “so I need them to talk. I want them to discover the belief that they can succeed in math,” she said.
Mitch Basin: “Jack of all trades, master of none” is a saying disproved by the new teacher at the Voyager Program, Mitch Basin. His career began with a four-year enrollment into the Marine Corps, leaving him with a respect for discipline. After that, he managed a home for the mentally disabled while he worked toward a graduate degree in Psychology at the University of Nevada, but he eventually left that job because, “It was just too demanding,” said Basin. Basin’s goal is for students to learn. “If I have to use me as an expense for them to learn,” he said, “I don’t mind.” Basin hopes to bring his experiences into the classroom and challenge students to be their best.
Jennifer Taylor-Smith: Originally from the Bay Area, Jennifer Taylor-Smith is work-
ing as a Special Education teacher this year. She studied at Santa Clara University, majoring in Sociology. For her masters and teaching credentials, Taylor-Smith went to Notre Dame de Namur University. She was inspired by her cousin, “who has severe special needs, and we got along really well. I never thought I would end up as a teacher, but I wanted to try it out.” Jason Lee: A student teacher last year, Jason Lee is back this year as a science teacher. After majoring in Marine Biology at UC Santa Barbara, Lee worked at marine labs. “I got to play with various marine organisms when feeding and cleaning their tanks and serving as a tour guide for �ield trips,” said Lee. Lee was inspired to teach because of the enthusiastic AP Biology teacher in high school. When asked why he chose to major in Marine Biology, he replied eagerly, ”Honestly? Finding Nemo.” Lee enjoys teaching so much that he said, “I hope to be teaching Improv on a cruise ship in the future.”