The Index Eutαxia Swzein Dokei
Volume LXXIII, No. 9
May 2012
Haverford, Pennsylvania
Disruptions in Centennial: Serious Problem? Students and faculty have raised concerns about the behavior of Haverford students during assemblies. James Shecter ‘13 investigates. James Shecter ‘13
This year, the student body has had the privilege of being the audience for some of the most informative, intense, provocative, and flat-out brilliant assemblies and reflections in recent memory. Myriad problems are prevalent when students gather in Centennial: students can regularly be seen sleeping, eating, texting, talking, laughing, studying, slouching, and generally not focusing on the speaker. According to several faculty members and students, these issues are embarrassing for the Haverford community. The month of April saw over five special
assemblies. Some more recent noteworthy presentations include Fifth Former Max Schmidt’s brilliant personal speech, Mr. Joe Feldman’s warning against distracted driving, Dr. Gupta’s clever analyses of the global economy, and Mr. Scot Robinson’s incomparable saga. During practically all of these presentations, the student body’s level of respect was not as high as it could have been. Mr. Joseph Sweeney gives his general assessment, stating, “I think on the whole, Haverford boys are well-behaved during assemblies, and they comport themselves well… [but] some students struggle to maintain their attention when
Haverford Teachers Have Homework Too
Peter Thompson ‘13 interviews teachers from all walks of life and backgrounds to find out if they are as stressed as Haverford students themselves complain to be. Peter Thompson ‘13
The student workload is a generally accepted characteristic of Haverford. It is
and coaches JV Squash in the winter. She has been teaching English for sixteen years and has created methods of doing so that work best for her.
Mrs. Smedley works to prepare a class next to a stack of Dr. Pepper.
not rare to hear students complaining about the mix of curriculum, sports, colleges, and unrelated commitments that take up their time. But what about teachers? They certainly don’t complain as much as students, but is that for good reason? Do teachers undergo the same type of stress that students bear? The answer is yes, as will be explained in the following five interpretations of the teacher workload. Ms. Smedley teaches two sections of Third Form English and two sections of Fifth Form English. Simultaneously, she tutors in the writing center, advises the Diversity Alliance,
Also inside the Issue...
Index Staff
When asked about her personal experience at Haverford, Ms. Smedley states, “It’s a lot of work”; however, she quickly points out that she loves it. As a former boarding school teacher, Ms. Smedley has been through worse. Inherent in any boarding school job description is the ability to be available for students throughout the entire day. Ms. Smedley found herself teaching during the day, coaching in the afternoon, preparing curriculum and grading at night, as well as monitoring her respective dorm. Continued on Page 4
they don’t find the content or the delivery particularly engaging.” Mr. Sweeney also notes cleverly, “The unfortunate part is those who fail to live up to [our] standards are obvious in their failure to do so, and it might give the misimpression that this is the way Haverford school boys are.” But what exactly are these “standards”? Mr. Fifer explains, “At the beginning of the year, we tried to set some basic, simple expectations for behavior in Centennial, and they were: sit up in your seat, do not talk to your neighbor when someone’s addressing the audience, and put your phone away.”
Ms. Rebecca Smedley, a prominent student somnolencestopper, recently observed “a Sixth Former in the front and center, slouched in his seat, a sweatshirt on, no jacket, with his eyes closed, unabashedly sleeping. Right under the speaker!” This “egregiously rude” theme, to Ms. Smedley, has been recurring far too often, and she explains that Haverford folks are not the only ones to notice. After the Hallowell Lecture this year, Ms. Smedley said, Poet Paul Zarzyski addressed some staff members, including Dr. Cox. Ms. Dawn Blake Continued on Page 3
Vision Warrior Scot Robinson was one of the more recent speakers to visit Haverford.
Robotics Team Hikes to World-Class Status
Tadas Antanavicius ‘12 follows the transformation of Haverford Robotics from a small, under-funded club to the near world champions that the team members now are. Tadas Antanavicius ‘12
became the advisor.” With some help from engineers at UPenn, Once a forgotten entity, Haverford’s Haverford Robotics was finally born. Yet, Robotics program has climbed to the forefront success was sparse, partially due to the of attention. With a herd of robots, a trophy expensive nature of FIRST, a price that a small case that has begun to rival that of DECA, high school team like that of Haverford could and a banner hung in the main hallway not compete with. Eventually, for all to see, Haverford the team decided to give the Robotics is no longer the fledgling VEX program a try afterthought it once was. in 2009. It all began with one VEX was new, having student’s lofty idea. started only a few years Jason Schutzbank ’05 back in 2007. Team heads undertook an interest Mr. Gerard Rooney and in FIRST Robotics, Mrs. Connolly thought a program in which it would be better for teams spend six Haverford: it was cheaper weeks building and and the smaller nature of programming one the robots allowed more large robot to perform to be built and thus more a certain task. students became He approached involved in the Director of build process. Technology Despite an Mrs. Megan unsuccessful Connolly about 2009-2010 forming a season, Mrs. team in 2002. Connolly At first, they refused to give took part in a up. Led on by lesser, basic the “student Robotics enthusiasm” program exhibited by called students like Index Staff Botball, but Schutzbank The Cavalry achieved the title of World Division Champions this year. Schutzbank and her “own was not satisfied; he still wanted to do FIRST. learning,” she kept with it and As always, funding was an issue. Not to issued some radical changes for the upcoming mention the fact that many high schools had season. teams of about 50 kids and 10 or so mentors. She brought in two college students, Chuck Nevertheless, Mrs. Connolly recalls, “I told Glick and Andrew Adaman, with years of him I would help him if he got the $6000 robotics and VEX experience to mentor the grant offered by NASA. He got the grant, so I team. Continued on Page 5
What would the world be like if there were no restrictions on drugs? Erich Prince ‘13 insists that full legalization of all drugs would be of benefit to society. Read his opinion on Page 18.
Article Farewells Senior Projects Habitat for Humanity “From the Vault” Mr. Maley Students and Stimulants Instagram Music Marvel Movie May
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Article Page Spanish Trip (en español) 12 Language Consortium 12 Eating Froyo with Sam 13 Dancefloor Diplomacy 13 Open-Mic Night 14 Boyek’s Art 14 Student Lounge 14 Sports 15 Opinion on Assemblies 19
Page 2 The Index - Editorials
Editorials
May 2012
Farewell from the Farewell from the 2011-2012 President Departing Editor Dear Student Body,
Dear Reader,
It seems odd to be writing my final piece for this paper when I can vividly remember fulfilling Tadas Antanavicius’ request to write my first letter as your student body president. It is a nostalgic feeling, and the emotions that I have tried to keep at bay about leaving this place are no longer avoidable. This year has been more than anything that I could have hoped for, and right away I’d like to thank my classmates, my amazing teachers, and every other member of this community that has been a part of my life. This school has been amazing this year. Being at the Episcopal vs. Haverford game a few Fridays ago reminded me how proud I am to be a part of this community. The night was just a small taste of the spirit the student body has for Haverford. We showed up in force to cheer on fellow students, but more importantly, we presented ourselves with class and made our school proud. Still, we have succeeded in much more than the realm of Jake Pechet athletics. Just this past week, our robotics team made it into the final four in an international competition, and as I write this, there are students competing at the international DECA competition. The success of our students only adds to the Haverford student reputation of being talented in multiple aspects of student life, and I hope that this trend of success continues long after the Sixth Formers and I leave this school on June 8. To all of the students who will be here next year: good luck and the best advice I could ever give you is to cherish every moment you have at this place and take advantage of all that Haverford has to offer. Third Formers, you are no longer new students, and it will be paramount that you help the incoming students next year become accustomed to their new environment. Fourth Formers, you are soon to be upperclassmen. Please understand the responsibility that comes with this role and seize the opportunity to help the underclassmen and treat them with respect. Fifth Formers, in a month this school will be yours. All I can say is good luck as the oldest students in the school. Work hard and enjoy yourselves. To my class, thank you. You have been incredible friends, and I have been honored to share these halls with you for the past four years. Being your president has been one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life.
I hope the year has been kind to you; it certainly has to The Index and me. Armed with a spectacular staff and a host of talented writers, this year for The Index has been like no other. On track to release our tenth issue in the space of ten months, this Index staff has reached heights that the paper has not reached for decades. What never ceases to amaze me is that this was all made possible by volunteers. A paper like The Index coming from a private school of 400 Upper School students with no journalism class to speak of is unprecedented. Sure, there’s always the incentive of college admissions, but people wouldn’t be spending hours writing and editing articles, attending meetings, or brainstorming ideas if they didn’t find some sense of enjoyment in it all. Chris Compendio This driven nature is what makes Haverford so special. As our student body president Peter Rogers has said, Haverford is a wonderful community to be a part of. The majority of students love Haverford, and it shows in their willingness and dedication to representing the school in its various facets. Earlier in the year, I urged you to tap into this vast resource of knowledge and commitment to form the next great club or propel a forgotten one to unexplored grounds. How’d it go? If you didn’t get around to it, there’s always next year. It’s never too late to hook on to some passion of yours, infuse it with the rest of Haverford’s talent, and turn it into something noteworthy. Year after year Haverford churns out some new type of “world/national champion;” you could be the next one at the forefront of that. And when it comes time to graduate, you’ll look back fondly at what you did. After all, what good is life if you just die and are forgotten in the end? When you leave a mark here at Haverford, you are immortalizing yourself in the hearts of Haverfordians in the future. The one thing you cannot forget is that it isn’t all about you. Winning a national championship isn’t going to make future generations remember you fondly. Every true leader leaves behind a foundation upon which to build. Programs with strong foundations do not fall apart after one great leader leaves. In many respects, this is what is key to Haverford’s success: it isn’t all about the trophies and awards – it’s about the teaching, learning, and transfer of knowledge from teachers and upperclassmen to those lowerclassmen. The accolades come as a byproduct. As I write my last words as editor, I look forward to The Index’s bright future. With an expanded staff and limitless possibilities, I fully expect Grayson Sessa and Jonathan Paras to lead the team to even greener pastures. And when they do, I expect you to parallel their journey with your own passions.
l l e ew
Your President, Peter Rogers
r a F
Farewell, Tadas Antanavicius Editor-In-Chief
The Index Congratulates its New Staff for the 2012-2013 School Year Editors-in-Chief: Grayson Sessa and Jonathan Paras Head of Photography: Erich Prince News and Features Editor: Peter Thompson Arts Editors: Amar Patel and Manav Khandelwal Columns Editor: Will Tackett Sports Editor: James Shecter
Opinions Editor: Jake Pechet Politics Editors: Matt Larson and Greg Boyek Outdex Editor: Sam Bloch Web Editors: Graham Gaddes and Manav Khandelwal Faculty Advisor: Mr. Kellen Graham
The Index
2011-2012 Staff Tadas Antanavicius, Editor-in-Chief Grayson Sessa, Editor-in-Chief Erich Prince, Head of Photography Peter Thompson, News and Features Editor James Shecter, Sports Editor Amar Patel, Arts & Entertainment Editor Fisher Pressman, Opinions Editor Jonathan Smith, Outdex Editor Jonathan Paras & Graham Gaddes, Website Managers Mr. Thomas Stambaugh, Faculty Advisor
The Index is a student-run publication of the Haverford School that does more than bring news: it provides the diverse perspectives of the Haverford student body. It is an outlet for student writers to take stands on issues they deem important. It chronicles the daily struggles and accomplishments of the Haverford community. The Index also provides a forum for discussion of pertinent issues, such as student culture, academic policy, and Haverford’s place in world affairs. The Index presents new ideas and aspires to influence constructive change.
All opinions and viewpoints expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of The Index or the school. The Index is designed and produced digitally. Photographs may be retouched. Submissions and letters to the editors regarding any and all articles are welcomed at hsindex@gmail.com. The Index, a member of the Columbia Scholastic Press Association, is composed on Mac OSX, using Adobe InDesign CS5. Its surveys are conducted via SurveyMonkey and are advertised on Facebook to current Haverford students. School Publications Company of Neptune, N.J., prints 200-400 copies of each issue, and its editorial staff distributes them in the Upper School on the day of release. The Index serves the needs of a total school population of 1091 community members, consisting of 975 students and 116 faculty members. Contact The Index: 450 Lancaster Ave, Haverford, PA 19041 hsindex@gmail.com http://www.haverfordindex.com/ 610.642.3020 x. 1222 Volume LXXIII, No. 9 - May 22, 2012
Page 3 The Index - News & Features
News & Features
May 2012
Seniors Are Done With Classes - Now What? Although some assume the Sixth Formers are just relaxing till graduation, Jake Pechet ‘15 describes the Senior Project system that keeps them active in the final weeks.
somebody’s parent’s friend who is running a company, and they’re interested in interning in that type of industry.” As another school year winds down and But what about the current senior class? many Haverford Sixth Formers appear to be What can we expect to see come June 5 when in a state of listlessness, looking nostalgically they return? The ideas are varied and plentiful, back on their time at Haverford or eagerly ensuring an engrossing Tuesday morning anticipating the start of an entirely new college community period. adventure. They find themselves with one last Sixth Former Deepak Bhagat intends to task to accomplish before they can cross the reconnect with a Lower School teacher and stage, shake Dr. Cox’s hand, and receive their attend her class, but this time, as an assistant. diplomas. Every Sixth Former must create and “[I’m going to] come in every morning, complete a Graduation or “Senior” Project just like a regular school day, and help Mrs. during the three-week period preceding final Thorburn set up what needs to be done that exams. day. During the first one-two weeks, I will hold The process is designed to give Sixth more of an observer position, [but] once I am Formers an opportunity to explore various done observing the class, I will be able to offer professions that they are interested in or to a more hands-on experience in the classroom,” have meaningful experiences in intriguing says Bhagat. He plans on reading to the Third fields. Coordinator of the Graduation Projects Graders, assisting with projects, and taking and Upper School Math Teacher Mr. Rob them to Upton their arts explains, classes, “This type amongst of project other [is intended] tasks. His to give project seniors some will experiential culminate education with beyond the periods classroom... after lunch [and] make when them think he will differently “come about things.” up with From May and run 14 to June 5, Index Staff my own Sixth Formers Chris DiBello, Dan Kim, and Zach Trauger using Haverford’s scanning electron lessons for will work on microscope for their project. anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour. These their projects, logging the required 30 hours lessons will pertain to the topic at hand, and I per week. When the Graduation Project period will bring them to Mrs. Thorburn in advance comes to an end, they will have the chance to to have them reviewed.” Bhagat considers this present about their experiences in front of their a way to give back to the community that has advisories. given him so much over thirteen years. Past presentations have been notable and Sixth Former Kevin Zipf is interning with impressive. Mr. Upton recalls, “One of my a consulting firm “because it’s something [he] advisees had an interest in woodworking, but could see [himself] doing in the future.” He he’d never been able to pursue that. He went elaborates, “the senior project is supposed to be and worked with a custom cabinet maker and something that a student wants to explore and came back enthralled. It was a life-changing learn about before he graduates Haverford, and project for him. [Another] student... did golf it’s supposed to be something that embodies course design with Tom Fazio, who is one the qualities of a Haverford School graduate.” of the top golf course designers in the world. Zipf elected to intern as a consultant to “see He did a week’s work in Costa Rica and a what life is like within a working atmosphere, week’s work in Wyoming.” Yet he hastens to and [garner] a little bit of experience.” add, “Most of the projects tend to be a little Sixth Former Jon Smith also plans to intern, more centered around things at Haverford or Jake Pechet ‘15
Index Staff
Sixth Former Chris Compendio is filming a documentary about Haverford as his project.
but in a very different type of environment. He expounds, “[Dr. Campbell] works out of will be working with the Philadelphia Phillies, Brandywine Hospital, and I’ll be shadowing “with about ten other local high school him for three weeks. I’ll follow him during students, including two from Haverford.” his day, see patients, sit with him while he Smith will experience a little bit of everything. like talks to them and diagnoses them, and “I’ll be meeting I’ll be able with gameto watch a day operations few surgeries staff, working as well. I with ticket wanted to do sales, mailing this because I coordinations, think I want to [conversing] with do something the executives of with the organization, orthopedics improving the and/or fan experience, medicine and being a member I just really of the giveaway [enjoy] the staff, meeting with study of the Aramark, the food body, like and concessions anatomy and organization, biology. I and experiencing think I want a marketing to be a doctor overview session This poll of 100 students was conducted by James Shecter ‘13 via Facesome day but book during the week of May 14, 2012. among many other this project things,” he explains. The Phillies organization may be a deciding factor to see if it’s for me appeals to him “because of its emphasis on the or not. Maybe I’ll like the life of a doctor, or greater Philadelphia community. The Phillies maybe I won’t.” are a national brand, but their roots are deeply One thing is certain. Despite the unique entrenched in the local community.” Smith experiences each Sixth Former will have, they draws parallels from the Phillies’ values and will all return from their Graduation Projects “the tenets a Haverford graduate should have.” having learned something about themselves Sixth Former Connor O’Prey will pursue and what their futures hold. And this is the true his interest in medicine by “visiting with purpose of the process: to utilize the myriad Dr. Campbell, an orthopedic surgeon who lessons learned at Haverford and apply them to specializes in joint replacement.” O’Prey real-world situations.
Distractions in Centennial: An Investigation the student body’s behavior as “despicable.” Before discussing possible solutions, both “[Paul] was really quite blunt,” Ms. Smedley Mr. Fifer and Ms. Smedley offered some remarked. “He said that kids were asleep and concessions. Mr. Fifer admits that the behavior that it just took the wind out of his sails.” has improved since last year, but that “we’ve Several students as well have witnessed this still got a long ways to go.” Ms. Smedley disrespectful behavior, so it really is not just acknowledges, “I’m absolutely willing the faculty. Similar to Mr. Sweeney’s analysis, to concede there will be boring speakers. Fifth Former However,” Matt Galambos she adds, states that “the “that’s no majority of the excuse kids comport for kids’ themselves behavior.” well and Mr. Fifer are very agrees. He respectful.” But urges that he has noticed students that “some tend “get rid to nod off or of the fall asleep.” mentality And Third of thinking Former Andrew This poll of 100 students was conducted by James Shecter ‘13 via Facebook during that the the week of May 14, 2012. Gushner notices quality of the a similar problem: “A lot of kids sleep and speaker should dictate their behavior during don’t pay attention and talk… No one takes the speech.” Simply stated, “There should be a advantage of the speaker [from whom] the baseline of decorum in the space regardless of students could learn a lot.” One student, who the quality of the speaker.” prefers to remain anonymous, even describes So, how can we solve this problem? Ms. Continued from Front Page
Ms. Dawn Blake
Mr. Joe Watkins talked about the Republican primary race as the Parker Lecture speaker this year.
Smedley explains that this topic is discussed regularly at faculty meetings. One solution that has been “batted around” is to sit by advisory. “The pro of that is that you’ve got eight or nine guys with one adult whose job it is to make sure they stay awake and behave. The con of that is that kids can’t sit with their friends, necessarily, and that we can’t sit by
Form.” Another possible implementation is to spread two to three faculty members per row in Centennial, so students who are unfocused will not go unnoticed. But no further action would need to be taken should the student body solve the problem itself and show the next guest speaker proper Haverford respect.
Page 4 The Index - News & Features
News & Features
May 2012
How Do Haverford Teachers Handle Work? Continued from the Front Page She was only able to accomplish this feat through the powers of Dr. Pepper…twelve to be exact…per day. Seven twelve-packs would get her through a week, but as a new teacher she had no other alternatives. Now, after being at Haverford for eight years, Ms. Smedley has brought down her consumption to just four Dr. Peppers a day and a healthy eight hours of sleep per night. However there is still a great deal of work involved. “I don’t generally grade on weeknights,” she says. Instead, she prefers to grade all large assignments over the weekend, when she can sit down and work consistently from paper to paper or test to test. Ms. Smedley even covers the names on each of her papers in order to ensure unbiased grading. Each paper takes her roughly twenty to thirty minutes because English is inherently subjective. Although she uses a rubric while grading, Ms. Smedley enjoys getting inside the mind of each of her students regardless of time. Nevertheless, two sections of eighteen students who have all written papers that need grading can accumulate to over ten hours of work. “It can be tedious,” Ms. Smedley admits, “and it can be frustrating when kids make the same mistake...but it’s also the most important part of my job, and I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t love it.” The most exciting work Ms. Smedley does is prepare for classes; “It’s creative!” she says. Her focus is often directed towards this type of preparation while in school, “but the majority of my priorities goes to my kids,” she adds. It is rare to find her not helping a student during a free period or between classes. The act of teaching is also demanding. As Ms. Smedley describes, “it’s like putting on a play.” For this reason, Ms. Smedley tries hard to get ample rest every night. She would much prefer to be energized while teaching and have work to do later than get all of her work done in one sitting at the cost of her health. From the English Department, Ms. Smedley offers a unique perspective into the workload of a Haverford teacher. Mrs. Mateos, the native Spaniard, taught five courses this past fall, one more than the average teacher. Her classes included two Spanish V Honors, two Spanish IV Honors, and one Spanish II Honors. Mrs. Mateos finds herself working until roughly 5:00 p.m. every day. She prefers to stay until such an hour because she gets the majority of her work done during those two hours following the close of school. At night, after catching up with her husband, Mrs. Mateos prepares for classes the next day, during which time she looks for “complementary material,” as she puts it. Preparation has been a particularly large portion of her workload this year. With the adoption a new advanced textbook, Mrs. Mateos had to prep for two months before the opening of school in order to familiarize herself with the material. She continues to prep on a nightly basis as she moves her classes through each chapter. “At 9:30 I collapse,” she says. “I don’t want to be too tired when grading a paper.” An interesting component of Mrs. Mateos’ job is her native tongue. Grading papers for correctness is no problem for her. However, as she describes, “I choose to indicate which kind of mistake is being made; what is at the root of the mistake.” With this
goal in mind, Mrs. Mateos will read all of her papers twice. Although the grading portion of her job may be somewhat easier for her, she remarks, “Comments are in a foreign language.” Her day-to-day conversations, most of which are in English, can be quite laborious. In the same way that students must think when speaking a foreign language, Mrs. Mateos must think when speaking English. Still, Mrs. Mateos absolutely adores Haverford. “It is a very vibrant environment,” and although it is stressful at times, she genuinely wishes to grow as a person by being here. “I love my colleagues,” she adds with a smile; “We take pride in what we do.” During Mock Trial season, when Mrs. Mateos is at school until 7:00 p.m., she admits that it can feel as though she lives at Haverford. Still, she explains that a quick escape to a local coffee shop or restaurant for a cup of tea is all she needs to feel rejuvenated once again. The work and the stress are absolutely present in her life, but they do not deter her from loving what she does. Mr. Tirado, a first-time parent with a fouryear-old daughter, teaches two U.S. Honors History courses and two Ancient World courses. He coaches basketball in the winter, along with his present commitments, including assistant coaching JV B Lacrosse, running the Collegiate Athletic Club and overseeing The Diplomacy Society. Mr. Tirado grew up in Manhattan, where he grew accustomed to bustling city-life and constant motion. He offers a similar perspective as Ms. Smedley, because he has worked at both a boarding and a day school. The busy boarding school life appealed greatly to Mr. Tirado; however, he decided to look for something different, thus ending up at Haverford. Although he has been teaching for some time now, Mr. Tirado states wisely, “Teaching never gets easier, it gets more familiar… history isn’t applicable if you can’t make modern day connections.” For this reason, Mr.
“[Mrs. Smedley] was only able to accomplish this feat through the powers of Dr. Pepper…twelve to be exact…per day.”
Tirado leaves this long grading process for the weekend. Mr. Tirado’s plate is also filled with parenting. “I stay at school later so I can get home to my family because I like to be available to them,” he explains. If he had it his way, Mr. Tirado would stay for two or so hours after school ended in order to finish up as much work as he could. Schedules like that have him arriving home near 7:00 pm, or even 9:00 pm during Basketball season. Regardless of the work however, Mr. Tirado has a blast working at Haverford. “My colleagues are tremendous,” he says. “There is a dedicated and exceptionally hardworking group of teachers here.” Mrs. Cleffi is similar to Mr. Tirado. As a mother of two, she must dedicate her mornings to dropping off a four-year-old daughter and a seven-year-old son. She eventually makes here debut at around 8:00 a.m., at which point her busy schedule commences. Mrs. Cleffi teaches two Honors Biology courses, one Molecular Biology class, heads the Research Program, leads Prom Committee, and is a part of the Community Awareness group. A very busy day for her can include preparing labs, teaching, cleaning labs, offering help, more teaching, and then grading. With two children however, Mrs. Cleffi’s days have become even more tightly scheduled. “I have to pick up my son, so I need to leave at 4:30 p.m.,” she says. “I can’t stay until 5:00 p.m. or 5:30 p.m. anymore…I could stay as late as I wanted before I had kids.” Like most, Mrs. Cleffi tries to get the majority of her work done while in school. She prefers spending time with her family after leaving Haverford, therefore she spends every moment of every school day working at her desk. “I don’t sit in the cafeteria for lunch,” she says frankly; “every year I’ve tried to bring less and less work home with me.” At home, Mrs. Cleffi prepares dinner,
“Math, [Mr. Murtha] grants, is much easier to grade than humanities for instance. At the same time, writing an assessment requires taking the assessment as a teacher, which can be time consuming.”
Mr. Murtha works diligently in grading some math tests.
Tirado spends the bulk of his time working on relevant lessons as well as grading. Similar to English, history test essay questions are somewhat subjective, thus requiring more time per session to grade. Like most, Mr.
each night. At an average of fifteen minutes per one lab and three sections of biology, this schedule is unsurprising. Still, Mrs. Cleffi stresses the fact that she often takes an hour or so each night to simply watch TV and relax before going to bed, even if it costs her some sleep. For those unaware, Mrs. Cleffi will be moving to a part-time position next fall, or more truthfully, a two-thirds-time teacher. She will teach three classes, one of which being the Research Program, and participate in no extra-curriculars. Her decision came about after realizing year-by-year that the workload and family obligations conflicted too much. A traveling husband added to her final decision. Mrs. Cleffi concedes that she is content with her upcoming role at Haverford. “I’ll probably be a nicer teacher,” she adds with a laugh. Mr. Murtha teaches two Honors Calculus courses, one Accelerated Math I class, and one Geometry class. On top of his four classes he coaches soccer, heads math club, and is a member of Community Awareness. As known by his students, Mr. Murtha gets a lot of his work done in school, however he believes, “that [workload] varies substantially by teacher and by department.” Math, he grants, is much easier to grade than humanities for instance. At the same time, writing an assessment requires taking the assessment as a teacher, which can be time consuming. Mr. Murtha grades his tests and quizzes the same day his students take them. In fact, he is usually done grading his final exams by the end of the same day. “I think the quicker the feedback, the more meaningful that feedback really is,” he explains. His other work includes updating syllabi, assigning homework, preparing handouts, and of course, the physical act of teaching. As he points out, unlike students, there is “no extension on an 8:30 a.m. class.” Mr. Murtha received the bulk of his work in two Honors Calculus courses that he taught this year for the first time. “There are times when the water level gets pretty high,” he says, which probably fluctuates with students as well. At the end of the day though, Mr. Murtha enjoys teaching. He specifically enjoys seeing progress on a final exam, which truly demonstrates the vast knowledge a student can learn in a school year. The teacher workload is something that should not be overlooked. The eight hours each teacher spends on campus are his/her workday. While students sit in Index Staff desks and absorb information, teachers actively seek to explain new material in interesting and understandable ways. Each teacher’s situation is different; however, all of them undergo the stresses that are common amongst all Haverford attendees.
takes care of the kids when her husband is not around to help, and ultimately, maintains her household. She will grade at home and prepare for classes if she has not already done so, which lands her bedtime around 11:00 p.m.
Page 5 The Index - News & Features
May 2012
News & Features
Robotics Team Attains International Success the Teacher of the Year award on the world Third Former Tim Maguire was drafted into stage was surreal - definitely the highlight of the #3 alliance (the top eight teams in the Driven by the idea of “the importance my professional career as an educator,” recalls division draft two partners, so a total of 24 of the program” and the ability “to help Mrs. Connolly. teams move on to the divisional playoffs), spread it to inspire more students using the This award placed Mrs. Connolly in the leaving 169A as the last Haverford robot still program that inspired me,” says Glick, they VEX Hall of Fame alongside Glick and in the tournament. sought a mentoring opportunity. They chose Adaman: “Haverford is the only program in One matchup after another, 169A with Haverford because of its “potential...there was the world where the entire mentor base is in its #3 alliance plowed its way through the a world-class team just waiting to happen. the VEX Hall of Fame,” Glick points out. competition. Each round consisted of a bestAn impassioned and hard working group of Soon enough, Haverford won another award of-three series, and the alliance students are enough to lure in any mentor,” – the Teamwork award. This award was given went 6-0, knocking off last explains Adaman. He and Glick went on to to the program that best exhibited cooperation, year’s world champions in the take Haverford’s program to new heights. unity, and mutual respect amongst its teams finals. The 2010-2011 season was a revelation for (known at Haverford as squads). Fifth Former This the team. Numerous local tournament wins and Evan Kuritzkes was the one who submitted an performance the team’s ascension to worldwide recognition essay for consideration of this particular award, gave them began as it sent all six of its robots to the and Haverford came away with it. the title of World Championship. Glick and Adaman Not long afterward, 169Y – composed of division were awarded World’s Mentors of the Year middle schoolers Sam Shaw, Andrew Clark, champions as a result of their efforts and the portrayal of and Chris Williams - found itself holding and a spot those efforts through the essays submitted by another Excellence award. It was one of two in the playoff last Haverford students. middle school teams to receive this award, of division champions – year Finally, 2011-2012 took on a different which is given to the team which best exhibits the final four. [when Glick mindset. No longer did the team have to all that VEX stands for: engineering practices, 169A’s alliance lost and Adaman first Index Staff experiment with what worked, but it was ready dedication, quality, and teamwork. It also the first match of the came] and we were to take full advantage of all the resources it automatically qualifies 169Y for the World world semifinal, then bounced able to better ourselves by was provided. Fourth Former Jonathan Paras Championship in 2013. back to win the second match. Alas, the battling through our hardships,” describes the beginning of the regular season The final aspect of the event that Haverford third and final match of the semifinal was offers Sixth Former Chris Compendio. as “rocky at first,” and “it took some work to found success in was the tournament itself. decided by an extraordinarily controversial call Delaney adds, “Each team was independent, create a competitive and stable design.” Third Alongside winning the Excellence awards, by the referee, ending Haverford’s season. but yet was still able to grow from ideas from Former Tim Delaney noted that the team was being tournament champion or even a “able to go to many competitions and get tournament finalist is the most prestigious title involved in the community,” notable aspects of VEX can bestow. the team’s season. To begin, the 400 high school teams were Haverford’s team, known as Team 169 – split into four divisions of about 100 teams The Cavalry, is arranged into nine “squads” each. Haverford’s three high school teams – numbered 169A-F (Upper School) and 169X-Z 169A, 169D, and 169E – were all in different (Middle School). “It was actually the middle divisions. Over the course of three days, school that qualified for the [VEX World the robots played 10 matches within their Championship] first,” recounts Third Former respective divisions for the qualification round. Ben Quan. Indeed, 169Y did this by winning After these 10 matches, 169E stood at #53 with the Excellence Award, the most prestigious a record of 5-5, 169D at #48 with a record of award given at a tournament, at the 5th Eastern 4-4-2, and 169A at #19 with a record of 7-3. PA Regional hosted here at Haverford in All three robots went through various January. mechanical failures throughout those three The team days, and, if went on to not for that, qualify three they probably more robots – would have 169A, 169D, all finished and 169E – for significantly VEX Worlds by higher. Ms. Dawn Blake winning events Nevertheless, “The Cavalry” pose for a picture after returning from their World Championship journey. such as the it makes for a Technomage good learning Even so, the Worlds experience could be other teams,” a big reason why Haverford was League experience called nothing but a success. Glick explains, awarded the Teamwork award. playoffs, in the years “Worlds this year was a ‘proving’ year in my Many may ask, “Where do you go from Pennsylvania to come. eyes. I knew we have one of the best programs here?” After all this success, is it possible to State Fortunately in the world, but I wasn’t sure if the world achieve even more? Of course, Haverford Championship, for 169A, knew it yet. Last year we weren’t known on a wishes to “expand now that it has stabilized and New the end of global scale yet, but after this year I don’t think itself with the inclusion of minds at a younger Ms. Cindy Shaw Jersey State qualifying that will be a problem... People saw what we level,” says Paras. “It will definitely become a Championship. matches was can do when everyone bands together.” Teams from around the world competed at this VEX World Championship. defining feature of the school in that its ability The season met with On the whole, Haverford Robotics to excite the mind and challenge it in unique culminated when these four qualified squads a final resolution to all remaining technical has achieved as much as it has due to the ways is unparalleled.” made the trip to Anaheim, California for the problems. dedication of Glick, Adaman, and Mrs. But what many forget is that it is not all World Championship back in April. Next came the playoffs. 169A’s squad of Connolly, and their ability to perfectly guide about the awards and recognition. It is about And so began the grueling week. 6AM Sixth Former Tadas Antanavicius, Fourth all the talent that Haverford students have to the students and where programs like this can wakeups followed by twelve hours of Formers Jonathan Paras and William Ye, and offer. “We really retained our knowledge from take them. “We are not only building well competing, troubleshooting, and building. rounded STEM thinkers, but well rounded Dinner and an early bedtime were all that people,” says Glick. remained of each exhausting day. Yet the team Mrs. Connolly says one of her goals is to enjoyed every moment; after spending a year “Incorporate robotics into the K-12 curriculum, working on these robots, there was no sacrifice so that all students are given the opportunity too great to help achieve as much as possible at to design, build, program, and drive a robot in this crucial stage. a competition,” and “recruit students that are 400 high school robots and 200 middle interested in fundraising, publicity, and video school robots had made it to Worlds from the to join the team.” overall 4,800 robotics programs in over 20 Glick is especially enthusiastic about countries. In the words of Delaney, “we all finding a place for robotics in the curriculum. came from different parts of the globe, but “I would like to see VEX and other roboticsstill shared the same love of competition and type curriculum worked into the classroom passion for engineering new things.” Paras so all students at Haverford can experience echoes this sentiment: “working alongside it… I want to start the first ever middle school members of the international community through college level program. This would towards a common goal” felt great. show that we have the skill to play on all levels As the competition continued, Haverford of competition, regardless of age. Haverford began to pile up the awards. First came Mrs. will become the measuring stick for all other Connolly’s Teacher of the Year award. As with VEX programs around the world; we will be a Glick and Adaman’s Mentor of the Year awards household name.” the year before, this award was granted to Mrs. The VEX Robotics experience leaves Connolly based on student essay submissions VEX Robotics no doubt that Compendio speaks for all the Fourth Former Jonathan Paras disputes the call that ended Haverford’s deep run in the VEX World of her superb dedication and exceptional work graduating Sixth Formers when he says, “I’m Championship playoffs, to no avail. with Haverford’s robotics program. “Receiving gonna miss this.” Continued from the Front Page
Page 6 The Index - News & Features
News & Features
May 2012
Haverford Students Build Houses in Virginia Peter Thompson ‘13 follows the history of the Haverford Habitat for Humanity chapter in the context of this year’s mission to Virginia. Peter Thompson ‘13
a real change in the neighborhood,” describes Assistant Headmaster Mr. Mark Thorburn. Habitat for Humanity is a nonprofit Citizens began to help out one another organization that has been building affordable regularly and crime rates began to drop. homes for people in need since 1976. It However, Habitat’s notoriety began to reaches out to local organizations, schools, and work against Haverford. A growing number of individuals who are interested in volunteering local schools wanted in on the action as well to help build. According to the Habitat mission, as businesses that grouped new employees “Homeowners are selected based on their need together on Habitat missions for bonding for housing, their ability to repay a mortgage, purposes. “It became increasingly difficult to and their willingness to work in partnership get time slots,” explains Mr. Thorburn. In fact, with Habitat.” President Carter brought the “we ended up having to schedule times six to organization to the public’s attention when he eight months in advance,” Ms. Loos expounds. himself volunteered throughout his presidency. For this reason, Haverford’s participation Today, Jimmy and his wife Rosalynn lead began to slow down in the local regions. As a the annual “Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter kind of “last gasp,” a Habitat team traveled to Work Project,” which includes a full week of New Orleans in 2006 after Hurricane Katrina construction in a different location every year. obliterated parts of the Gulf Coast. Jimmy and Rosalynn are currently eightyIn June, ten months after Katrina dissipated seven and eight-four, respectively. (August 30th, 2005), Ms. Loos along with two Haverford began investing time into Habitat other chaperones took nine Haverford students projects in the to the Lower mid 1990’s. Fifth Ward in In those years, New Orleans. students Their trip was would travel sponsored into West by both and North Habitat for Philadelphia Humanity and once a month AmeriCorps. in order to For nine lend a hand days, students with ongoing commuted construction. from Camp With Hope, where Alex Dawejko growing they slept, to Mr. Ressler (right) teaches Fourth Former Troy Trauger (middle) and Fifth Forinterest, the destroyed mer Trevor Atkins (left) how to use a power drill. Haverford homes of the quickly began to send students into Chester Fifth Ward. “It was quite something,” uttered County, specifically, parts of Phoenixville and Ms. Loos. “It looked as if it were a war zone.” Coatesville. It is at this time that the Haverford Daily tasks included emptying homes of Habitat for Humanity chapter was formed. It disheveled debris; they moved refrigerators dealt with fundraising, educating students, and from bedrooms and mattresses from kitchens. organizing specific missions. All work was done while wearing a mask and In 2003-2004, Haverford partnered with fully protective suit. Too much time spent West Chester University. Through collective in a mildew-infested home takes a toll on a efforts with Agnes Irwin, the Chapter was able person’s lungs. Still, the work was well worth to raise $70,000, all of which was put towards it, and the gratitude felt from the community sponsoring a house in Coatesville. The home was enough motivation alone. “People would remains there today on Poplar Street, as well as come out from behind counters and hug us,” ten or so other units towards which Haverford describes Ms. Loos. offered a helping hand. Many Sixth Formers The trip was undoubtedly successful, but actually used their three weeks allocated for it was also the last major trip to leave from Senior Projects to help build with Habitat. Haverford for the following three years. In After everything was finished there, “we saw 2009, Mr. Tirado brought with him a match to
Fifth Formers Peter Thompson and Trevor Atkins take measurements before cutting.
re-light the Haverford Habitat for Humanity experience unforgettable. The unbelievably torch. kind Habitat staff supplied not only food but After just one year at the school, Mr. Tirado also an excellent construction team, consisting led a group of students to Wachapreague, VA of Lindsay, Greg, and Mark. All participants to help build homes, and then to Treherneville, agree that this will forever remain one of VA in 2011 their fondest with the same memories of mission. This Haverford. year, Mr. Since its Tirado and conception in Mr. Ressler 1976, Habitat led yet another for Humanity group of has helped build students to the and repair over Eastern Shore 500,000 homes of Virginia. that have played The Habitat a huge part in organization helping over there, two million This poll of 100 students was conducted by James Shecter ‘13 via Facebook incorporated in people around during the week of May 14, 2012. 1988, has since the globe. completed and dedicated more than twenty Haverford has helped amass that number, and homes to working families. Haverford has you as an individual can help out next. played a role in this accomplishment. “It’s important to investigate the world On April 25th, Fifth Formers Stewart beyond our own environment,” Mr. Tirado Denious, Alex Dawejko, Eric Senior, Troy says in summary. He believes it is invaluable Trauger, Trevor Atkins, Alex Ware, James to learn via the perspectives of others. And Tarte, Decquan Freeman, and Peter Thompson one is not forced to travel far in order to see in joined the tradition of partnering with Habitat this new manner; the opportunities are “in our for Humanity when they departed from the backyard,” argues Tirado. school parking lot in the direction of Exmore, There really is nothing more fulfilling than VA. There, the team helped complete one helping others. At the end of the day, the sweat house and added to the deck and plumbing equity contributed to helping a family and system of another located in Belle Haven. the fact that someone is living in a space you The rural environment offered activities helped create is reason enough to lend a hand. such as kayaking, rock climbing, Frisbee, golf, So inquire about next year’s mission, and join paintballing, and group dinners to make the the tradition.
“From the Vault”: The International Club Broadening Perspectives (1993)
Logan Atkins ‘15 transcribes an article from The Index’s past for a look at the interests of former students. Luke Szyrmer ‘94
Over four billion people live in this world. The students at Haverford are only a small part of that global population. It is understandable that the average Haverford School boy rarely keeps up with petty day-to-day local developments in all other parts of the world, but his not knowing important events that do affect him is like shooting himself in the foot. In other words, what Djibouti’s legislative body ruled on yesterday interests few of us because it affects us negligibly; however, major international events do affect us. Even though they happen in a remote part of the globe, they send reverberations changing American economics and politics, even affecting the Haverford community. Djibouti
influences our national economy depending on how it conducts its economic policies. None of the foreign students at the school come from Djibouti, but they are from other parts of the world. They have had first-hand experience with international issues. Civil war permeates the homeland of Drazen, the Croatian exchange student in the VIth form this year. He can tell you about what is going on in Yugoslavia in a way that you won’t read in a newspaper. U.S. intervention in his country would mean sending a number of Americans to his country, and the Americans won’t be going there to learn the language. Mr. Mencin, the familiar French teacher, also comes from Yugoslavia - both of his parents were born in Slovenia. A brainchild of Mr. Mencin, the
Alex Dawejko
international club synthesizes old ideas with new directions. The school lacked a club that truly dealt with international issues, and Mr. Mencin has stepped in to fill the void. There were on-campus organizations such as the Asian Cultures club, for example, which addresses specific regional issues, and enjoys eating foods common to one or a few cultures. The international club is also organizing dinners and movies. In fact, December 3rd is the first official dinner, and everyone is invited, including students from other local area schools. The club, however, exists primarily as a forum for contemporary global issues. Having come in contact with different events, foreign exchange students discuss problems and issues, talking about not only what happens
in their homelands, but also in other parts of the world, including Asia. Personal experience shapes the discussion in a unique way because the exchange students analyze issue according to different biases than the usual American one. Discussion topics also depart from the cultural and head in a political and economic direction. Teenagers from other countries lead different lives. What you may take for granted isn’t taken for granted around the world. Every time you turn on the spigot, it doesn’t mean water will come us.123rf.com out. That is, if you have a spigot. Challenge yourself to come and find out what living in Eastern Europe means, so that one day, when you’re a wheeling and dealing executive of a large multinational corporation, you’ll know what to expect at the Zagreb conference, even though it isn’t on the agenda.
Page 7 The Index - News & Features
May 2012
News & Features The Extraordinary Life of Mr. Jamison Maley Manav Khandelwal ‘15, a current student in one of Mr. Maley’s Physics classes, profiles his most interesting intellectual interests. Manav Khandelwal ‘15
The first time I heard Mr. Jamison Maley, teacher of Third Form Physics, Electronics, and Environmental Ethics, speak, only one thought crossed my mind: this guy needs to be the head of a prestigious research company, not teaching the likes of me. Even though I have been a student of his for nearly eight full months now, I still find myself in awe as he teaches the class about some interesting, relevant topic. Surprisingly, it is not just a flow of information; Mr. Maley is one of the most entertaining instructors many students have ever had. According to Third Former Eric Denbin, “[Mr. Maley] makes a serious, complicated subject fun and easy to learn. I have learned so much this year because he breaks down the topics and allows us to have a clear understanding of every little detail. Simply, he’s taught me a lot about physics.” It’s true. From his plethora of witty statements (e.g. “No need for controversy, gentlemen” or “I guess we’re outta here like Vladimir”) to his kind reassurances and understandable explanations in the face of difficulty, Mr. Maley embodies what many students look for in a teacher. He takes basic science, a topic that usually puts even the most sophisticated students into a trance, and molds it with history, deeper content, and current news to create an enthralling course. For example, the Sixth Form Electronics class built theremins this year. Full-fledged theremins. Here is the description of the
product from a fall semester student, Sixth Former B.G. Lemmon: “The theremin is known as the only instrument that can be played without physically touching it. We
be able to create a musical instrument in the classroom. Furthermore, it was one we did not need to physically touch to play.” The electronics class also built FM Transmitters, which several students described as the most advanced project they have completed during their tenures as Haverford school students. There are numerous such examples. With his F and G period Physics classes, Mr. Maley
Mr. Maley helps Sixth Former Jake Gaskill with his electronics senior project.
used a solderless breadboard to create the theremin, and it was by far the biggest circuit we had to build. But, by the end, it was the most worthwhile as well. It was so cool to
had students build complete circuits, again on solderless breadboards, taught them about the pertinent topic of the country’s energy crisis, and had them explore topics such as terminal
velocity in fun-filled labs. Physics has become a class where students are interested in the topics they cover A lot of that student intrigue has to do with Mr. Maley’s ability to guide his class using rules and encouragement. Mr. Maley imposed a laptop moratorium for nearly three weeks during the third quarter, and now demands that all students using laptops face inwards so their activity can be monitored. He relied on trust earlier in the year, but when it became apparent that computers had a tendency to distract students from time-to-time, he was willing to take the necessary steps in order to create a learning-friendly classroom environment. However, it is not like that all the time. Mr. Maley has the unrivaled ability to keep a student feeling good about himself by inspiring him and explaining concepts clearly. As Third Former Mason Hall so simply puts it, “Mr. Maley has a different vocabulary than anyone else and the class finds this very funny. He’s a one-of-a-kind comedian and a one-of-a-kind teacher.” Lemmon also adds, “He loves sharing his knowledge with students, and not so much about forcing the subject into them. He shares his enthusiasm in such a Index Staff pleasant way that it makes it easy to be a student of Mr. Maley. For this reason, I feel that Mr. Maley has to be one of the best that Haverford has to offer.” It’s hard to disagree with that assertion.
Are Haverford Students Dependant on Stimulants? Matt Larson ‘14 discusses the benefits and potential consequences of students filling up on coffee and 5 Hour Energy, eager for the caffeine. Matt Larson ‘14
morning at home. As a result, I decided to find out about coffee. Is it safe to drink, especially as a teen? Is it beneficial, or are there negative side effects? Using a simple Google search of “coffee with teenagers,” I learned that the truth would not be very easy to discover. Within the first four results, one headline read: “The Benefits of Coffee for Teenagers”; another, “Teen Coffee Consumption Causes Concern.”
A student at Haverford is usually very busy; between homework and sports, he is not able to sleep very well and as a result becomes tired. This cycle is repeated five days a week, to seemingly no end. So, if coffee can give you a boost and make you more alert during class, why not drink it? This idea seems to be the mindset of many students throughout the school; a while ago, I was eating breakfast in the cafeteria and was amazed to see how many students made themselves coffee. And not just at school, mind you. By simply asking around, I learned that a number of my peers drink it each Henri Mattila drinks a Rockstar energy drink.
Henri Mattila
Luckily, I was able to discern what the experts know about coffee: if a teenager drinks about one cup per day, coffee can be healthy; however, if a teen drinks more than two or three cups per day, negative side effects will result. Before I can begin, what is caffeine? Coffee is known to incorporate caffeine, which is why there is concern over teenagers who drink too much coffee. Caffeine is a chemical compound (with the formula C8H10N4O2) found in various plants that acts as a central nervous system stimulant. In essence, caffeine heightens one’s “feelings of alertness,” and helps a person stay awake when they he/she is tired. In a cup of coffee, there are usually 100 milligrams of caffeine; the typical intake of caffeine for an adult is 200-300 milligrams per day. An eight-ounce cup of black coffee has just a few calories, five milligrams of sodium (around .2 percent of the daily recommended intake), .3 grams of protein (about .6 percent of the recommended daily intake), no fat, and no carbohydrates. Adding cream and sugar increase the fat and calorie intake tremendously. Coffee beans contain varying levels of antioxidants, which help to fight radicals that destroy cells. By performing this action, coffee indirectly helps prevent maladies one may encounter later in life, such as Parkinson’s disease, Type-II diabetes, liver cancer, heart disease, and more. If taken in moderation, there is nothing wrong with coffee for young people. If a teenager drinks more than 100 milligrams per day, health risks may set in. High consumption of coffee has been found to raise cholesterol levels. While one cup can decrease risk of heart disease, two or more could actually increase the risk due to a fairly common genetic mutation that slows the breakdown of caffeine in one’s body.
Other side effects include anxiety and trouble concentrating due to the caffeine. Caffeine can be addictive; if a teen drinks more than one cup per day and suddenly stops, he/she can experience headaches and other side effects. Using sugar in excess when preparing a cup of coffee can have negative ramifications, for it could make a person receive more than 10 tablespoons of sugar a day, the recommended intake. But coffee is not the only stimulant being touted on TV and radio. Recently, there has been a new phenomenon: 5-Hour Energy. The commercials all advertise the fact that there is “no sugar, and only four calories,” which provides an instant boost for “hard working people.” If there’s no sugar, how on earth would it give anyone a five-hour boost? 5-Hour Energy uses caffeine. The commercials downplay the amount of caffeine inside the 5-Hour Energy shot, saying that “it contains about as much caffeine as a cup of the leading premium coffee.” This claim now appears to be untrue. ConsumerReports.com ran a test on a bottle of normal 5-Hour Energy, and it was found to have 207 milligrams of caffeine; FAI Materials Testing Laboratories found one bottle to have 157 milligrams of caffeine. While it may not seem like much, that is one and a half to two cups of coffee; teens should only have at the most one per day. If students at Haverford find themselves overworked, unable to receive the necessary amount of sleep, and in need of a boost, one cup of coffee will do. Adults that drink more than one eight-ounce cup of coffee per day need not be concerned; even 5-hour energy would not affect their overall health very much. For teenagers on the other hand, drinking coffee or having a shot of five hour energy in excess will negatively affect their health.
Page 8 The Index - Arts & Entertainment
Arts & Entertainment
May 2012
De Libris: No Longer at Ease by Chinua Achebe
Haverford’s Hairspray Production wins Cappie
Niticon Davis ‘13 is back with another book review; this time he writes about the sequel to a novel read in Fourth Form year, Things Fall Apart.
Manav Khandelwal ‘15 explains the tradition of, nominations for, and ultimate Haverford winners of Cappies in 2012.
Niticon Davis ‘13 We returned to our places, these Kingdoms, But no longer at ease here, in the old dispensation, With an alien people clutching their gods. I should be glad of another death. Chinua Achebe bases on this quote, from T.S. Elliot’s “Journey of the Magi,” the sequel to his most famous novel Things Fall Apart, No Longer at Ease which was published in 1960. The plot of the novel follows the protagonist Obi Okonkwo, the grandson of the famous Okonkwo, who through the contributions of many people in his village is sent to England to receive a collegeeducation and returns to Nigeria to work in the civil service. Upon his return, Obi’s exposure to Western culture leaves him feeling detached from his village members, and he is faced with many challenges such as temptation, bribes, and the advances of women seeking to exploit him. Obi is barely able to manage all of these problems, and he is eventually overtaken by them, and his world comes crashing down around him. Achebe’s purpose in writing this book was to portray the flawed system of colonization in a British-ruled Nigeria, and also, more importantly, to show the rift that can exist between younger and older generations. By
juxtaposing the Western-educated Obi in his old Nigerian village, he also attempts to show the struggle between progress and tradition. Moreover, Obi’s struggle to do the right thing highlights the battle between principles and pragmatism. One of the major themes in the novel is a feeling of alienation or disconnection, especially from his parents’ generation, which is definitely a relatable topic for Haverford students. Achebe does a very good job of showing the divide that existed through the dialogue with Obi and his father Nwoye. The lack of warmth in their conversations showed they were never very close. I also especially enjoyed Achebe’s use of “Pidgin English,” a dialect of English native to West Africa. It gives the book a purely Index Staff authentic feel but does not take away at all from its accessibility. In my opinion, this is an even more accessible novel than Things Fall Apart, and I would actually recommend No Longer at Ease over it, due to the simple fact that it is more relatable and approaches many topics that Things Fall Apart does not even touch. However, this is not a book that I would recommend to just anyone, but if you enjoyed Achebe’s first major novel, this is a novel in which you would definitely be interested.
Manav Khandelwal ‘15
Mercy Junior), Best Choreography (Toney Goins), Best Featured Actress in a Musical (AIS Senior Alicen Davis as Prudy Pingleton), Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Mike Green as Mr. Pinky and Jail Guard), Best Dancer (Sixth Former Dave Harris as Seaweed J. Stubbs), and last but not least Best Comedic Actress (Lower Merion Sophomore Sarah Schieffelin as Penny Pingleton). At the actual Cappies reception/ awards ceremony, known as the Cappies Gala, Toney Goins earned the award for best
For those of you who were not able to see The Haverford School’s production of Hairspray, it was a treat. From AIS Freshman Nile Harris’ passionate representation of Motormouth Maybelle, an African-American female DJ trying to end segregation, to Sixth Former Rémi Yang’s comical portrayal of Edna Turnblad, the over-weight, self-conscious mother of the protagonist Tracy, the ensemble and leads meshed well to play out the story in an exciting, fun-filled Index Staff way. Toney Goins makes a short speech as he goes up to accept his Cappie Award. The Cappies are a critic and awards program for high school choreography, an impressive feat for a Fourth theater, and the Philadelphia branch is known Former. For the first time with Mr. Cloran as the Cappies of Greater Philadelphia. Critics as head of the drama department, a student from other schools attend the performances of took the initiative to choreograph most of their peers, rate them, and then submit their the numbers. Goins created the dance moves opinions to the Cappies. In short, they can be to songs ranging from Run and Tell That to called the high school version of the Tonys. Welcome to the 60s, energetic, upbeat numbers This year, Haverford received nominations that had the audience swaying to the beat and for its Critic Team (Lead Critic Mike Green mesmerized by the explosion of dance. ‘13; Marcel Logan ‘12; Dave Harris ‘12; Congratulations are in order for all of the Toney Goins ‘14; Maddy D’Angelo, Merion cast of Hairspray, especially to those who Mercy Junior; and Mariana Capizzi, Merion were nominated and eventually won awards.
Is The Use of Instagram a Worthwhile Pursuit? Chris Wong ‘14 When you’re worth $1 billion, people tend to notice. With 30 million users on iPhones alone and the recent release for Android, a small start-up cleverly named “Instagram” took the world by storm. The founding of Instagram, which would be later sold to Facebook, created a firestorm of debates on the issue of creativity vs. conformity. Although $1 billion is a little less than a drop in a bucket for Facebook, why did a Goliath company spend almost double the
valuation for a company that generates almost no revenue? In the last two years the idea of social media sharing was changed for better or worse due to one simple and seemingly
connected, and sharing with friends. The idea and popularization of quick photo sharing began with Facebook Mobile Uploads (Muploads) and continued on to things like Twitpic and Yfrog, all which aimed to allow you to share photos quickly with friends. Enter Instagram, a free photo sharing service that allows you to apply digital filters and effects easily. Founded by two Stanford University graduates Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger in 2012, and offering simple effects like “black and white” to significant techniques like applying classic film looks, many flocked to Instagram for its “artsy” approach to pictures and its simplification of posting to multiple social networks at once. At this point opinions begin to diverge. The majority of Instagram’s users utilize this app for its effects while a minority uses it for simply sharing unmodified images. The debate surrounding Instagram stems from its use of filters to “enhance” images. “If Instagram filters are your definition of democracy, I’m hanging a portrait of Karl Marx in my home” - Chris Ziegler: The Verge. Although overly dramatic, this statement speaks to the main problem with Instagram. Just because filters can be used, it does not mean you should. The main argument against Instagram is not that its users should not use filters all together, rather that the subject of the image should have some meaning or interest to it without a fake effect. There is no reason to take pictures of arbitrary blenders, cement sidewalks, and cups just because you can make them yellow with an annoying filter. Even if pictures are occasionally edited to enhance contrast and color balance, taking meaningless photos just to add an effect is irresponsible and pointless. To again draw upon renowned tech journalist Chris Ziegler, “There is nothing more elitist than an artificial vignette.”
No.
insignificant app. For anyone still holding onto a 2000era flip phone, let me quickly run down what Instagram is, and why it is popular. Everyone wants to be artistic. Even as a broad generalization, this ideology holds mostly true. Devices like the iPhone, websites like Picnik, and apps like Twitter thrive around our constant need to be social,
allthingsd.com
Paul Addonizio ‘14 While Instagram’s plethora of filters can be a cause for criticism, Instagram in itself is not a useless application. In fact, it allows users to capture and share moments quickly while adding their own personal touch. Although pictures taken using Instagram will likely never end up in a museum or other venue, the pictures are undeniably art. Art is not something that can be classified into two groups, yes or no, black and white; art is something that is appreciated for what it is by the beholder. Instagram allows its users to create their version of art quickly and easily, which can then be shared and reviewed by several people in a common forum. Instagram’s filters and other features allow its users to create pictures that they would never have been able to create before and share the pictures quickly with others. For this reason, Instagram should be used for what it is, a fun app that allows its users freedom to create beautiful pictures that they never would have been able to create before (without knowledge of complex editing software).
Yes.
This poll of 100 students was conducted by James Shecter ‘13 via Facebook during the week of May 14, 2012.
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detroitmusicnotes.com
Mr. Kolade’s Music Recommendations English teacher Mr. Luqman Kolade continues his regular music reviews. Take some time to listen to his picks. Mr. Luqman Kolade
Robert Glasper Experiment – “Always Shine ft. Lupe Fiasco & Bilal”: This soulful track from the band’s eclectic, genrebending Black Radio is a clear standout on an album that does it best to change people’s perspectives. With a verse from the always-insightful Lupe Fiasco and a chorus from the enigmatic Bilal, “Always Shine” makes the listener pause and think while the accompanying music reminds
one of a progressive and entertaining jazz performance. Lupe even provides a spoken word interlude, accompanied by a sparse piano, to invoke the feeling of being in a smoky jazz club even further. The band, led by jazz pianist Robert Glasper, does a great job of joining hip-hop, neo-soul, and jazz with the resulting mix being refreshing and quite different. 4.bp.blogspot.com
Micahfonecheck – “Girls in America ft. Kendrick Lamar”: Despite possibly having the worst name of an artist that I have seen a in a long while (a somewhat phonetic spelling of “Microphone Check”), this newcomer from California delivers a definite head-nodder. Honestly, the only reason I even gave this a chance was because of the Kendrick feature, and I am glad that I did. This ode to American girls is ironically backed by tribal drums and some sort of ritualistic chant, yet once the beat comes in, do not be surprised if
you start dancing in your seat. Kendrick delivers more quality bars here and shows just how talented he is at catching any beat, no matter how “out there” it may be. Even though Kendrick performs as expected, he does not outshine the crooner. It is a big gamble to put someone on your song that is known for stealing the spotlight, which is why many artists avoid it. Micahfonecheck successfully met this challenge head on. I look forward to more from the young artist, but I would not be surprised if he changes his name first.
Avicii – “Levels” (RebelRebel Disco Remix): Is there anything better than a good remix? There is something about taking a song that everyone already knows and giving it that extra “ummph” to make it different. While “Levels” is not new by any means and has been remixed to death, the Rebel Rebel touch makes the song a bit more “poppy” with a nice hint of disco. Completely changing the style of Avicii’s hit, this tune makes revelers dance and fist
pump just a bit harder than they might have for the original. Also, this version utilizes the Etta James sample (the “ohhhh… sometimes I get a feeling” from her song “Something’s Got a Hold on Me”) well, making it sound just a bit more epic. All I know about Rebel Rebel is that like Avicii, the band is from Sweden, and with a remix like this, they are definitely worth keeping an eye out for.
61-66-hypetrak.voxcdn.com
beatmyday.com
Will Tackett ‘14 Gives a Recommendation Providing a fresh taste in music for The Index, Will Tackett ‘14 compiles his own list of favorite, but yet unknown, songs. Will Tackett ‘14
The Minutemen - “Corona”: The purpose of music recommendations is to introduce readers to a piece of music never heard before. Still, you have most likely heard “Corona” in some capacity. Although few people know the song or the singer who performs it, its first few jangly chords are the familiar theme to the MTV show Jackass. The song is much deeper, however, than the antics on that show,
both musically and lyrically. The song begins with the jangly riff that has merits by itself (for example, the bass-line is classic Johnny Cash), but then shifts into the verse, where the melody is different, moodier. The country riff remains, but a chord progression is added that matches the serious content of the lyrics: the quiet observation that America (or at least some people in it) takes wealth for granted. northeastunderground.files.wordpress.com
detroitmusicnotes.com
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Marvel Chris Compendio ‘12
Iron Man Main actor: Robert Downey Jr. The film that started it all is probably the best out of the pre-Avengers movies. Directed by Jon Favreau (Elf, Cowboys and Aliens), this movie follows the original story of Iron Man as Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.), the brains behind a weapons manufacturing company who is kidnapped by terrorists in Afghanistan and forced to build himself a suit of armor to escape. Afterwards, he begins to develop a new, sleeker suit of armor, and the truth behind his captors’ motivation is revealed. The movie’s strengths are its humor, fast pace, and special effects. While the action scenes are very well done and entertaining, the dialogue is the strongest part of the movie. The dialogue sounds very natural, and the characters seem real because of a great script and the improvisational skills of Robert Downey, Jr. While Downey, Jr., is the strongest actor of the film, he is also buoyed by a great supporting cast of Jeff Bridges as the film’s villain, and Gwyneth Paltrow and Terrence Howard as his close friends. The only criticism I would give is the relatively short and not-very-thrilling final action sequence. But regardless, this is one of the best modern comic book movies and should be a required watching for any movie fan.
Marvel Studios began an ambitious project in 2008. Rather than simply giving the rights to a character to a big movie studio, Marvel began producing their own movies, beginning with 2008’s Iron Man. After completing the film, the filmmakers left a little Easter egg after the credits with an appearance from Samuel Jackson as the character of Nick Fury, who indicated to Tony Stark that he was now part of a bigger universe. This began a series of films all set in the same, shared Marvel Cinematic Universe with Iron Man, 2008’s The
Rating: 4 ½ out of 5 Avengers Easter eggs: The introduction of S.H.I.E.L.D and Agent Coulson; a brief appearance of Captain America’s shield; Nick Fury’s appearance after the credits
Thor Main actor: Chris Hemsworth This film was directed by Kenneth Branagh, whose biggest film project before Thor was a 1996 242-minute long adaptation of Hamlet, which he directed and starred in as the title character. It turns out that his experience with Shakespeare made him a good fit for this film, as it features family drama and very Shakespearean dialogue between the characters. Starring Chris Hemsworth (Star Trek, The Cabin in the Woods) as Thor, the God of Thunder, and Tom Hiddleston as his jealous brother, Loki, the God of Mischief, the film follows Thor as he is banished from the realm of Asgard by his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins) after potentially starting a war between Asgard and the Frost Giants. Thor finds himself powerless on contemporary Earth, found by astrophysicist Jane Foster (Natalie Portman). Meanwhile, his hammer is found by Agent Coulson (Clark Gregg) and S.H.I.E.L.D. As Thor adapts to our world, and attempts to retrieve his hammer, Loki plots against his father after finding out his true heritage. This film feels like two different movies, one a fantasy film with elements of Shakespeare, and the other a film grounded in reality in contemporary New Mexico, with humorous elements surrounding the Asgardians’ fish-outof-water nature. The middle of the film constantly switches between the two environments, which seems jarring at first. The dialogue between Thor, Loki, and Odin can sometimes be unintentionally funny, as they are almost overacting at some points. Branagh’s visual style contains an absurd amount of tilted angle shots. But when you adjust to all of these elements, you will find a very good movie underneath all of this, one that is stylistic, both dramatic and funny, entertaining, and action packed. Rating: 4 out of 5 Avengers Easter eggs: S.H.I.E.L.D and Coulson’s presence in the film; mention of Tony Stark; indirect reference to Bruce Banner; a cameo from Hawkeye, played by Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker, The Town); Nick Fury and the Tesseract in the postcredits scene Captain America: The First Avenger Main actor: Chris Evans As I said when I reviewed this film back in September, this movie had the potential to be very silly. But thanks to the direction by Joe Johnston (October Sky, Jurassic Park III) and the very human performance from Chris Evans as Steve Rogers/Captain America, the movie works. This film follows the origin story of Captain America, as he eventually leads the fight against the Red Skull, played by Hugo Weaving (Agent Smith from The Matrix) and the organization HYDRA, who utilizes an object known as the Tesseract as an energy source. It is a film that uses its cheesy comic book origins very cleverly, as showcased with a scene in which Steve Rogers goes on a USO tour wearing the silly costume from the comic books. While the film takes place in World War II, the film adapts a more adventurous tone, like the one found in Indiana Jones, rather than the grittiness and realism of Saving Private Ryan. The special effects and the sometimes-rushed pace are the weak points, but strong lead performances, solid action scenes, and the overall direction made this an entertaining watch.
This poll of 100 students was conducted by James Shecter ‘13 via Facebook during the week of May 14, 2012.
Rating: 4 out of 5 Avengers Easter eggs: Odin and Asgard are mentioned when the Tesseract is discussed; Howard Stark, Tony Stark’s father is a big supporting character; Nick Fury appears at the end of the film
Read about Marvel’s “One-Shots”
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Movie May Iron Man 2 Main actor: Robert Downey Jr.
Incredible Hulk, 2010’s Iron Man 2, and 2011’s Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger. This month saw the major characters from all of these films all come together in The Avengers. But did this ambitious experiment pay off in the end? I’ll take a look at each film one by one. Considering that I would recommend all of these films anyway, I will deviate from my usual system and give a rating out of five stars.
Directed again by Jon Favreau, and starring the same cast (with the exception of Terrence Howard, who is replaced by Don Cheadle in his role of James Rhodes), this movie is not nearly as strong as the first. It follows Tony Stark after publicly revealing his identity as Iron Man. This movie is full of subplots: the revelation that Stark’s suit is found to have major side effects to his health, the government constantly pressuring him to give up his technology, Ivan Vanko (Mickey Rourke) seeks to avenge his father, weapons manufacturing rival Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell) plots against Stark as well, his secretary Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) is made CEO of his company, Nick Fury, Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), and Agent Coulson (Clark Gregg) of S.H.I.E.L.D appear to intervene, and his relationship with his father is explored. As you can see, there is TOO MUCH going on in this movie. But the main problem is that the sequel tries too hard to replicate what made the first movie great to watch. The director and actors are trying to make the dialogue natural and witty, and the results are mixed. Some scenes also have tonal issues; the racetrack action scene is a prime example. The situation is meant to be serious and intense, but visual gags and the chaotic nature make the scene confusing and hard to watch. By the time you get to the end of the film, it feels like the purpose was to set Tony Stark up for The Avengers rather than advancing his character. Rating: 3 out of 5 Avengers Easter eggs: S.H.I.E.L.D and Black Widow’s presence in the film; Agent Coulson points out Captain America’s shield in Tony Stark’s lab; the Tesseract drawn in Howard Stark’s notebook; Thor’s hammer in the post-credits scene The Incredible Hulk Main actor: Edward Norton This is known as the “dark horse” of the Avengers movies, mainly because the actor portraying the Hulk (Edward Norton) does not reprise his role in The Avengers; he is replaced by Mark Ruffalo. This also has a vastly different style than the rest of the films. While the other films have some sort of technological or magical element that give them a distinct feel, this film has a more gritty and realistic style. Directed by Louis Leterrier (The Transporter, Clash of the Titans) and starring Edward Norton (Fight Club, American History X), as Bruce Banner/The Hulk, this film follows Bruce Banner on the run from the army as he tries to find a cure for his condition. Norton carries the film, and the best parts of the film are when you see his techniques to control himself with his condition and also the action scenes in which he becomes the Hulk and smashes everything in sight. The major criticisms I would give would be its weak supporting cast, and the final sequence, which while long and brutal, is tiring to watch. However, this is still a very underrated movie that is still worth a watch for the visual storytelling, the solid action sequences, and Norton’s performance. Rating: 3 ½ out of 5 Avengers Easter eggs: Mentions of S.H.I.E.L.D, the use of the super soldier serum from Captain America, Tony Stark’s appearance at the end of the film
theavengers2012-movie.com
The Avengers Main actors: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Samuel Jackson, Tom Hiddleston
After a build up of five movies, major and supporting characters from all of these movies came together for what is my favorite movie out of this bunch, and one of my favorite superhero movies of all time. Joss Whedon, who is experienced with writing for and directing big casts such as this one, directed this film. Whedon’s only film before this (as he mainly works on television) was 2005’s Serenity, a film based on his sci-fi series Firefly. That movie had a great ensemble cast, humor, great action scenes, and special effects-heavy sequences. The Avengers features all of this on a grander scale, and more. The Avengers contains all of these characters that have already been established in their respective movies, meaning that watching the five movies beforehand is a must in order to understand the characters and the various references made. The plot involves Loki, once again played by Tom Hiddleston, who steals the Tesseract from S.H.I.E.L.D, and plans to use it to summon an alien army to help him conquer Earth. Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D assemble a response team, including Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, Bruce Banner, and Thor. Scarlett Johannson also returns as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow and Jeremey Renner returns as expert archer Clint Barton/Hawkeye. All characters have their strong moments (except Hawkeye, who’s backstory is barely touched upon), and the cast meshes together very well. Tony Stark is snarky and witty as usual, and Thor’s dialogue is much more tolerable after having adjusting to it from his own movie. Steve Rogers is a natural as a man out of his time, and later, as a great strategic leader. Black Widow’s backstory is expanded on in scenes with her and Hawkeye, along with a very dark scene between her and an imprisoned Loki. And newcomer Mark Ruffalo plays a very sarcastic and hyper-aware Bruce Banner. His Bruce Banner is different from Norton’s in that he is now more accepting of his condition, and has devoted his life to helping people. And every scene in which the Hulk is involved is golden. Hiddleston as Loki has improved, with a dark and subtle performance that is on a lever near Heath Ledger’s Joker. This film has tons of humor, and very memorable visual gags, and not once does the humor feel out of place. The action sequences are masterfully directed, and are never incoherent like the action from movies like Transformers. The dialogue is a strong part of The Avengers, with the aforementioned humor, but also the interactions and tensions between the characters. However, some characters are given more to do plotwise, such as Tony Stark, while Thor is given little to do after his big entrance. The musical score by Alan Silvestri is easily the weakest musical score out of any for the Avengers films. Despite these weaknesses, this is an entertaining film from beginning to end. The first half is slow set up, but the movie is never boring, as the dialogue will always keep you interested. It is a satisfying movie to watch, one that has its own distinct style rather than borrowing from a previous movie. Yet all of the elements from the past movies work together very well. But this all means nothing if you haven’t seen the previous movies before. Rating: 5 out of 5 Easter eggs: Stay during the credits for two scenes, one during the credits that possibly sets up any possible sequels, and one bonus sequence after the credits are over. It’s worth the wait.
and the future of the series on Page 12
May 2012
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A Taste of Spanish: Foreign Language Piece Connor Fairman ‘13 writes - in Spanish - a personal reflection on a Haverford Spanish trip to a museum in New York City. Ask a Spanish student to translate! Connor Fairman ‘13
Estudiantes de español visitan un museo en NY El 23 de Febrero fui con mi clase de español a Nueva York para visitar el MoMA y el barrio latino de Nueva York. Tomamos el largo viaje en autobús partiendo de nuestra escuela a las ocho y media de la mañana. Durante el viaje en autobús, estaba seguro que íbamos a tener una experiencia profunda y nueva. A pesar de que por lo general no me gusta el arte moderno, soy un admirador ávido de arquitectura interesante y por suerte para mí que tengan una exposición muy grande de arquitectura en el MoMA. Después de chequear y entrar en el museo mis amigos y yo fuimos a la exposición que nos había traído aquí originalmente: la exposición del pintor Diego Rivera. Ya habíamos visto sus obras en la clase de español, pero sus murales son más increíbles cuando los ves en la vida real y de cerca. La obra maestra de Rivera sin duda (mi amigo Sergiu está de acuerdo) es “el guerrero jaguar.” Me encanta este mural porque representa perfectamente la lucha de los aztecas contra los conquistadores. La emoción que es sentida por el guerrero cuando está matando al conquistador con el puñal es mostrada por Rivera en la figura del jaguar. Sus ojos rojos, sus dientes puntiagudos, y la postura del guerrero jaguar me hace entender el miedo que un mural me puede hacer sentir. Después de andar por la exposición de Rivera,
navegué entre los grupos largos de turistas europeos para ver la sección de arquitectura. El arte moderno obviamente es muy popular en Europa porque había más europeos que estadounidenses. En la sección de la arquitectura vimos los diseños
todo hecho de tarjetas de apuntes. Realmente, a mi no me gustan los cuadros de pintores modernos por lo general, pero me encantaba la exposición de la arquitectura. Demasiado temprano, tuvimos que salir. Sin embargo, el viaje no había terminado completamente. Hacía veinte minutos que manejamos en autobús cuando llegamos al barrio latino. Después de desembarcar del autobús, el señor Poolman simplemente dijo: “tienen una hora. Hasta luego.” Dijo algo así. Yo y mis amigos teníamos mucha hambre, así que decidimos buscar un lugar limpio donde podríamos almorzar en paz. Encontramos muchos restaurantes interesantes, pero no estaban abiertos. Por último, terminamos nuestra búsqueda cuando vimos “El águila.” Es un restaurante muy auténtico y que sirve comidas buenas. Compré un burrito y lo comí alegremente. Oh. Casi se me olvidó. También compré zapatos de baloncesto Jordan en una tienda pequeña llamada, “ropa Sergiu Prodan casual.” Mis Jordans tienen muchos colores Andrew Weiner, Connor Curry, Jack Kling, y Connor Fairman cerca del MoMA. diferentes como azul, rojo, verde, y amarillo. de casas debajo del agua y los diseños están hechos de Es claro que estoy contento con mi viaje con la tarjetas de apuntes. Me gustaría que fuera tan talentoso clase de español a Nueva York y dormí durante la parte como los arquitectos que hicieron el arte de las casas, posterior del viaje.
Main Line Students Gather...To Analyze Poetry Grayson Sessa ‘13, a recent participant in the Language Consortium, explains the gathering to other students who may be interested in participating in later years. Grayson Sessa ‘13 It is very common to see students from a variety of Main Line schools playing sports with each other. But on a recent Wednesday evening - April 4th - area students from Baldwin, Shipley, Agnes Irwin, and Haverford joined together to work on a particularly intellectual pursuit: analyzing “The Wasteland,” an esoteric poem written by T. S. Eliot. Held on Shipley’s campus, one of the primary goals was to analyze the literary allusions stored in a small, 15-line chunk of the 434-line poem. Students had access to Mac laptops and a number of suggested websites to help them get started. Fifth Former Niticon Davis thinks that these supplies made the task manageable, as he explains, “The resources provided by the consortium made the abstruse poem completely accessible.” Even though the groups were only looking
at tiny parts of the opus, it was still very daunting in the beginning. New English Department Chair Mr. Thomas Stambaugh, one of the faculty members invited, calls the poem a “highly allusive text, which often employs snatches of many different foreign languages.” Despite the difficulty, Davis thinks that “The Wasteland” was the “perfect choice.” Similarly, Shipley student Abbie Spector calls it “challenging yet fun,” noting that students “were able to take intellectual risks in a relaxed, collaborative environment.” The participants split up into four groups: two groups analyzed one chunk of the poem, the other two focused on the final lines of the poem. Interestingly, the approaches to analysis varied: the two groups focusing on the end of the poem joined together whereas the other two groups focusing on the same lines opted to stay independent. Spector explains, “While we were undoubtedly overwhelmed, we also felt
Jonathan Hayes
incredibly accomplished when we were able to understand and string together different pieces of the poem.” At the end of the session, after all the student groups had presented their ideas, the faculty members there had the opportunity to get involved, sharing their own thoughts on the poem. Mr. Stambaugh says, “The poem reminds us of what we already know - despite our various belief systems, we all hunger for meaning in a sometimes incomprehensible and unforgiving world.” Spector says that the high point of the night was “definitely when Mr. Schoeffel, Shipley’s Head of Upper School, did an impressive dramatic interpretation of ‘The Wasteland.’” Davis looks forward to the next session, commenting, “I enjoyed the different ways in which each group interpreted the same part of the poem, and I’m looking forward to seeing the next work that will be chosen.” Fifth Former Alex Dawejko agrees; “I think the Consortium is a great opportunity for us Haverford students to intellectually interact and connect with our counterparts at Shipley, Baldwin, and AIS.”
Miscellaneous Addendum to Marvel Movie May Continued from Page 11 Marvel One-Shots: Marvel included two short films as DVD extras for Thor and Captain America. The first is The Consultant, which features a conversation between S.H.I.E.L.D agents Phil Coulson and Jasper Sitwell in a New Mexico diner after the events of Thor. The agents discuss the aftermath of the events of The Incredible Hulk, and the scene with Tony Stark at the end of that film is explained. The second film is entitled A Funny Thing Happened on the Way To Thor’s Hammer, and features Agent Coulson stopping by a gas station during a robbery. Both are very entertaining, the first for its clever dialogue, and the second
for featuring a side of the Coulson character audiences haven’t seen. I’d recommend that you look for these three-minute films on the internet if you have any interest in this Marvel Cinematic Universe. The future: The Avengers clearly isn’t the end of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Several productions by Marvel Studios are confirmed to be in development. Iron Man 3, which will be directed by Shane Black (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang), will be a “Tony Stark-centric film,” meaning none of the nonsense with S.H.I.E.L.D, and multiple characters that Iron Man 2 suffered from will not be present. The release date is May 3rd, 2013. Thor 2 is set for
later in 2013, Ant-Man, with Game of which has Thrones director long been in Alan Taylor development taking the reigns. by writer/ It will take Thor director to “new worlds,” Edgar Wright and will once of Shaun of again feature the Dead, the principal Hot Fuzz, cast members and Scott of the first Pilgrim fame. film. A Captain And Black 2.bp.blogspot.com America film set Widow, in modern times Hawkeye, Agent Phil Coulson is the star of Marvel’s One-Shots. is set for 2014, and Ruffalo’s along with a secret film set for release that Hulk have the potential for their own films year. My bet is on a film about the character now. Look for Avengers 2 after all of this.
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Eating with Sam: Great Froyo Near Haverford Sam Bloch ‘13 reviews Kiwi, a frozen yogurt dessert shop right outside of Haverford frequented by many Haverford students. Take time to check it out. Sam Bloch ‘13
A few days ago I sat down at my computer to write my column, and I decided that I needed some Froyo to inspire me. So, I got into my car and drove to Kiwi to get some dessert. About two bites into my frozen treat, it hit me that I should write an article about Kiwi. Frozen yogurt is the new ice cream on the Main Line. New Froyo joints are opening up on what seems like a monthly basis, but none can compare to Kiwi. I have found that Kiwi is simply in a league of its own. When I go to Kiwi, I usually get a cup with cookies’n’cream and creamy peanut butter flavored yogurt. If I am feeling a little freaky, I sometimes add in another flavor, like milk chocolate. I am having trouble putting my finger on the exact reason why I like Kiwi’s yogurt more than the yogurt from other places like Whirled Peace. I think that it is a combination of many things. The flavors at Kiwi are spot on. The cookies n’cream flavor tastes exactly the same as a good cookies n’cream ice cream does. The peanut butter flavor is actually smooth and creamy like peanut butter. I feel like I am eating ice cream, even though I am eating a
healthier food. Sometimes healthier foods do not taste as good as their less healthy counterparts. Kiwi manages to break that trend. The toppings at Kiwi are also second to none. Kiwi offers roughly thirty-eight different toppings for your Froyo. They pay a lot of attention to the freshness and quality of the toppings that they serve. The fruit toppings are always fresh and the cookie toppings are never stale. What impresses me most about the toppings is the thought process and effort that Kiwi puts into selecting which toppings to put out. A few weeks ago I read on Kiwi’s Facebook page that they were changing the brand of peanut butter cup topping that they were using, because the chocolate to peanut butter ratio was off. I had tried the topping, and I have to agree that there was too much chocolate and not enough peanut butter in the cup. The people at Kiwi care about giving the customer the best product possible and making sure that every frozen yogurt is a good one. The thing that I enjoy most about the Kiwi experience is that it is quick and affordable. My cup of frozen yogurt costs between $5 and $6 depending on exactly how much yogurt I put into my cup. Kiwi charges a little less per ounce than a normal ice cream place, so you
A Kiwi frozen yogurt.
get more bang for you buck. As someone that hates lines, I love the self-serve yogurt scene. Kiwi makes it as easy as possible for you start
Alumni Form Rising Band
Alex Dawejko ‘13 profiles the musical interests of alumni, K.J. Rothweiler ‘09 and Jakob Welljams-Dorof ’07, who have started a band called “Dancefloor Diplomacy.” Alex Dawejko ‘13 “WOW.” The top comment on Dancefloor Diplomacy’s “We Are Ready” captures the natural reaction to someone’s first encounter with “collage music.” Haverford graduates K.J. Rothweiler ‘09 and Jakob Welljams-Dorof ’07 are the backbone of this innovative band that strives to create a unique form of music that is original…without a single original note. “We both emerged,” Rothweiler said, “as outcasts of our respective grades [at Haverford], with this idea of constructing new pieces of music made entirely out of old ones – ‘quoting’ little bits and pieces of music from all genres, from all time periods, to be the ultimate celebration of music.” For the “We are Ready” video, Dancefloor Diplomacy took an eclectic group of songs ranging from “Toxic” (Britney Spears) to “Seventeen Years” (Ratatat) and put them together in a way that redefines the typical mash-up genre of music. The band utilized 38 songs and 20 musicians to create an epic tale of something; something that you cannot put your finger on, but you know it is there and that it is important. While watching the video one might wonder, “Why are people roller-skating around wearing bed sheets?”; or “Is that really a man running through a field, without a shirt, wielding a torch?” When asked what their goals were for the video, Rothweiler stated, “This video was mainly built to introduce, as vaguely and mysteriously as possible, the broad spectrum of what we plan to do with this new way of constructing and
composing music.” Many will enjoy the mystery of the video, but the weirdness factor could possibly scare some potential viewers away. One might wonder why they do not simply make “original” music and not go through the hassle of creating an entirely new genre of music. Dancefloor Diplomacy believes that there is no longer any original music. Rothweiler said, “Nothing is truly new anymore. Everything is recycled. Everything. We are just choosing to be a bit more up front about it.” Fans will have to wait for more background information about the band. The limited amount of information on the Internet about Dancefloor Diplomacy is all part of their plan. They want their Internet buzz to build from the mystery and the new idea of collage music. Rothweiler and Welljams-Dorof form the creative center of the group, but they chose to make themselves barely visible in the video “to retain some mystery about just who this band is and who is making it all happen,” Rothweiler said. “The project is about unity and celebrating music as an art form in of itself.” In the near future, we can expect new songs and videos that will help to further define this nascent genre . These Haverford alumni are gaining popularity and have the ambition to create a genre of music. It is inspiring to know that in a few years it could be members of the current student body with unique ideas that could revolutionize whatever setting we choose. According to Rothweiler, “Haverford gave us the drive and the confidence to pull this off.”
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Dancefloor Diplomacy performing in their Youtube video. K.J. Rothweiler ‘09 is the second from the left.
get your yogurt and start eating it. At my last Kiwi visit, I walked in the door, got my yogurt, and paid, all in less than two minutes. Now, that is efficiency. Part of that efficiency is a result of the friendly Kiwi staff that includes our very own Sixth Former Ray Hollman and Fifth Former Darren Watson. Next time you drop into Kiwi, make sure you say hello to Ray and Deuce. Overall, Kiwi is just a great dessert place. It is quick, affordable, and, most importantly, quite tasty. I am at the point where I would much rather have a nice cup of Kiwi frozen yogurt over a cup of Maureen Seitz ice cream from any local ice cream place. Kiwi’s Froyo tastes just as good as the ice cream, it is cheaper, and it is healthier.
May Poetry Corner Payton Cuddy ‘12 obscure moon lighting an obscure world
Hey! What’s an echo to a whispering pine? I’m the innumerous stars dotting the river of late. Guess what? I can pick out the parts of your hair I don’t like! I’m slamming a door! I am slamming into a wall. Truly, I jest. Truly, I stare back in reply! Truly, the park is closed right now, but have your picnic tomorrow! Where are your shoes? Hey! These are your instructions for the route to the home. That’s a green field. I’m a moon wishing for an orbit. Boo, says Roddy Doyle—and the dialogue is there for now. I’m H-Y-P-E-R-I-O-N. That’s a pitcher filled with rainwater. This list is doing kinetic things with my poetry. I’m neither Hobart nor William Smith! This is a campus in its own right. Look at your bear, look at your hands. I’m your father’s crashed 1998 Mercedes. I’m running from a fearsome opponent. Are you there, kid? It’s me, god. An exchange is ruining my telephone (I don’t like what’s being said). I’m a tightrope walker (slowly? or maybe quickly) losing the will to live. The sun is long ago set—the clubhouse, therefore, is dark. I’m a blind lunch date you dress up for. I’m circling the drain with charcoal. This clinic is for ants only. The beach is emptied of sand. I’m a bottle filled to the brim with emergency liquids. I’m neither a casual or engaging Mexican cuisine experience. On the other hand, I am the world’s greatest underground rapper (hear my vocals & rhymes echo through the caves). A hand extends beyond the door, but no one touches it. I’m a trail of cigarette smoke. A man I don’t know is watching me fade.
This poll of 100 students was conducted by James Shecter ‘13 via Facebook during the week of May 14, 2012.
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The Index - Arts & Entertainment
Arts & Entertainment
May 2012
Open Mic Night Says Goodbye to Sixth Formers If you missed the last Open Mic Night of the year, make sure you check out Haverford TV’s highlight reel of the night. http://vimeo.com/41350964
Louie Brown (Form III, left) dazzled with his stand-up comedy, Charles Mueller (Form VI, right) touched with his deep poetry, and The Final Steps (center) brought down the house.
Boyek Checks Out a Philly Orchestra Performance Greg Boyek ‘14 goes back to the Philadelphia Orchestra and reviews a second concert. Read his commendation below. Greg Boyek ‘14
The pairing of virtuoso conductor Simon Rattle of the Berlin Philharmonic with the incredible Philadelphia Orchestra made for a spectacular performance of Brahms, Webern, and Schumann. Rattle conducts with intensity and each gesture he makes is intentional and demonstrates a mastery of the music. The orchestra brought power and depth, and Sir Rattle brought a sense of flow and expression. The Brahms work which opened the concert was his complex and richly-shaded Third Symphony. The first movement seemed to resonate particularly in Verizon Hall as if it were built for this work. The orchestra mustered a powerful and deep sound for the opening of this piece. The symphony continued with the simpler but still dramatic second movement which maintained a sense of organic breathing thanks to Sir Rattle’s brilliant leadership. Rattle and the Berlin Philharmonic have a longstanding relationship with Brahms. According to a 2009 interview with EMI
Classical Records, Rattle says that “Everything about Brahms is complex … If there was one word which Brahms would have used more than any other it would have been ‘and.’ [The music is] never just one thing … It gives this music an extraordinary lilt.” Indeed it does. With Rattle’s conducting, Brahms’ music comes alive and develops into a breathing organism of its own. The intonated and stormy finale of the symphony works its way to a dramatic conclusion which echoes the opening movement and leaves the listener with a sense of catharsis and completion. Anton Webern’s Six Pieces for Orchestra comes at a direct contrast. Dark, atonal, and startling at times, the composition is a collection of six seemingly unrelated pieces. The piece was composed in response to the death of the composer’s mother. The prevailing emotion is that of disaster and loss. Although the composer wrote this in 1913 regarding a personal disaster, the sounds seem to almost precipitate the First World War. The composition’s eerie strains alternated with explosive bursts of percussion suggest a ruined
landscape of trenches and craters punctuated darker quality which invokes a theatrical flair, by concussive bursts of artillery. accentuated by Sir Rattle’s skillful phrasing A welcome The finale has relief to this a sense of general sobering piece rejoicing and was was Robert a happy ending Schumann’s for an incredible Third Symphony concert. Rattle’s “Rhenish,” the brilliant conducting final number combined with the in the concert. strength and precision Schuman’s style of the orchestra is dignified and brought Brahms and filled with solemn Schumann to life. pageantry. The I am looking first movement forward to reviewing is noble and more Philadelphia bombastic. In Orchestra concerts particular, Rattle in the 2012-13 stressed the season, including timpani, which Verdi’s Requiem gave the piece a and Beethoven’s robust and royal Third conducted character. The by Christoph von Leslie Poor second and third Dohnanyi. In addition, Boyek at a Philadelphia Orchestra concert. movements are Bach’s St. Matthew’s dreamy and invoke a waltz-like character. Passion will feature the Westminster Choir These pieces, according to Schumann himself and the American Boy Choir. The season when he wrote to his publisher in 1851, “reflect will be brought to a close by virtuoso pianist a bit of local color,” conjuring an image of Lang Lang conducted by a return of Sir Simon life on the Rhine. The Fourth Movement has a Rattle.
Scales’ Scales: The Student Lounge Henry Scales’ ‘13 column updates articles printed earlier in the year. This month he takes on the student lounge. Henry Scales ‘13 So what happened to the promised student lounge in the community room? Last spring during the elections of the student body president, each candidate talked about his unique and well thought out plans on what it would look like, how it would be funded, and every detail he could think of to include. However, as this time of year comes around again, we ask the questions: “what happened to these detailed plans?” and “where is the execution?” The lounge was supposed to be a place where students not doing homework could go to relax and talk with no restrictions; a way to turn the library into a place strictly
for work and quiet. The librarians especially liked this proposal because they would no longer be taxed with the duty of kicking out talkative and disruptive students. This idea would also support the students who try to do work in the library by removing the common distractions that are seemingly always present in the current library. In order to fully understand the plans and the execution, the previous state of the community room must be observed. For those of you that were here mafiatoday.com during the years of ping-pong and beanbag chairs, you remember it well. No matter how much free time you had, you were in the community room either playing or watching the heated match-ups. The
room consisted of collegiate beanbag chairs under the excess weight. All activity was surrounding pushed to one two Pingtable for a Pong tables. period of time Beanbag until that one chairs were too suffered the first the same things to go. catastrophic Although injury. comfortable Because to sit on, they only student were used council and the too often as administration weapons. know the full Still, the fun details on continued the matter, with the we are left to Index Staff ping-pong speculate at The empty “community” room. tables alone. their reasoning Although they were not taken away, anyone and rationale. could observe the abuse Maybe they did not earn enough money they received day in and from dances and other events in order to day out. Mr. Fox put up accomplish everything they desired. Perhaps a valiant fight for them, they had other goals in mind that were more trying whenever he could important, leaving some unfinished at the end to tell people not to sit on of the year. the tables or hit them, but Regardless of the reasons why a student his efforts were in vain. lounge has not yet appeared, everyone would Mistreatment eventually enjoy the addition nonetheless. All politicians, resulted in the collapse of including students, do not fulfill every one of the first table; the support their campaign promises. However one should bar, built to hold the weight not hold his breath in anticipation of a student of the table alone, broke lounge, as witnessed in these first attempts.
“The lounge was supposed to a place where students not doing homework could go to relax...”
Page 15
The Index - Sports
Sports
May 2012
Baseball to Be Competitive in Tournament Joe Solomon ‘13 recaps the best and worst moments of the 2012 baseball season so far. The team looks forward to competing in the Independent Schools Tournament. Joe Solomon ‘13
losses to Episcopal and Penn Charter and nonleague losses to Neumann Goretti and Marple After a promising start to the season and Newtown. a solid 9-2 win over Penn Charter, the Fords The Fords ended the skid with a 12-5 win Baseball team looked to continue against Delco Christian, its success into Inter-Ac play. but they followed up with a The Fords fell with back-to-back championship-killing loss tough 4-3 losses to Germantown at CHA, 6-7, in which CHA Academy and perennial power scored three runs in the last La Salle. The Fords then won inning to walk-off with the their next five straight, including comeback victory. The Fords’ a 2-0 Inter-Ac win against CHA. overall record currently stands Next, Haverford met Malvern, at 17-13 with a league record the Inter-Ac powerhouse who of 2-6. The Fords have five was undefeated in the league games remaining on their at that point. The Fords had an regular season schedule Erich Prince early lead, but an onslaught of including rematches against Sam Henderson (Form VI) throwing. late offense by the Friars gave Malvern and Episcopal. Hopes them the win, 10-1. Following a quick rebound for an Inter-Ac title have vanished, but the win against Monsignor Bonner, the Fords Fords still have a chance to compete in the offense hit a skid, and the Fords dropped their Pennsylvania Independent Schools Baseball next five games, including devastating league Tournament.
A group of Haverford’s players warm up.
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Tennis Caps Off Phenomenal Season James Shecter ‘13 recaps Haverford Tennis’s astounding season, marked by success after success, including those on a regional level. James Shecter ‘13
No number of superlative adjectives can be used to describe the recent performances of the 2011-2012 Varsity Tennis team accurately. They have clinched the Inter Ac for a third consecutive season with a perfect 19-0 overall record (10-0 in league matches). Within their flawless record are an unreal 14 match sweeps, meaning that the squad defeated their opponent school in all seven matches. And as if local prowess were not enough, Haverford Tennis placed second among twenty top tennis schools from the entire Northeast in the NEMA tournament in Baltimore the weekend of April 28. With their current record and recent second-place finish at NEMA, the Fords tennis team is making Inter-Ac history. The usual line up for the Fords is as follows: Fifth Former Jordan Lieb, and Third Formers Zach and Ben Lieb, respectively, at first, second, and third singles; Sixth Former Dan Brennan and Fourth Former Sam Kendall at first doubles; Fourth Former Naryan Rustgi and Third Former Nathan Kidambi at second doubles; Fifth Formers James Shecter and Bradley Scherer at third doubles; and Fourth Former John Zipf and Fifth Former James Tarte closing out at fourth doubles. The reserves are Sixth Former Andrew Han along with Third Formers Andrew Gushner and Jackson Simon, and Sixth Former Kevin Zipf is the team manager. The team’s depth is its imposing factor. Tarte frankly observed, “Any one of our doubles players would definitely play singles at any other Inter-Ac School… or any school in the area, for that matter.” Since the April 7 Index, the Fords have dominated the competition. On April 11, the team traveled to New Jersey to square off against Lawrenceville, a school to which many nationwide tennis phenoms are recruited. Despite their opponents’ formidable reputation, the
they had to suspend their matches mid-play against Episcopal Academy on April 18 due to inclement weather conditions. The next week, the Fords attained a feat they had been dreaming of since the season’s start: they topped Conestoga easily by a score of 6-1. Following the Fords’ toppling of the state champions, Head Coach Mr. Antonio Fink urged the team, “We need to stay focused. We can’t let this victory get to our heads. The motivation and focus we had leading up to this match, we need to carry that with us for the remainder of the season.”
mentioned, Haverford placed second overall only behind The Beacon School of New York, which recruits heavily for tennis. Episcopal finished at a distant third place behind Haverford, but they remain our chief competition in the Inter-Ac. After NEMA, the Fords swept Lower Merion for their 12th sweep of the year. In the conclusion of the postponed match versus Episcopal, held May 1, Haverford was able to pulverize the Churchmen 6-1. Early in May, Haverford swept both Malvern Prep and Chestnut Hill, notching their 13th and 14th sweeps. On May 10 was the final match of the
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JV Players Fitz Tepper (Form VI) and Ibe Bey (Form IV) shake hands after a match.
Fords aced Lawrenceville 6-1 in a stellar team-wide performance. After beating Chestnut Hill 6-1 two days later, the Fords faced Harriton, which had beaten the defending state champs Conestoga a few days earlier. Thanks to powerful shots and immeasurable focus from the whole line up, Haverford was able to sweep the Harriton Rams 7-0. The Fords swept Malvern later that week, and
Similarly, Assistant Coach Dr. Mark Gottlieb reminded the team, “If you quit, you lose.” The week leading up to the Baltimore tournament saw three more 7-0 sweeps over Penn Charter, Council Rock South, and Germantown Academy. Then it was tournament: the top-five positions (first singles through second doubles) traveled to Maryland to participate in the New England Mid-Atlantic Tennis Invitational, better known as NEMA. Jordan Lieb placed fifth overall in his first singles flight, and Zach Lieb placed second in his. Ben Lieb triumphed in his third singles flight, winning several hard-fought, captivating matches on his way to first place. Both first doubles (Brennan and Kendall) and second doubles (Rustgi and Kidambi) finished fifth in their respective draws. Overall, as previously Mr. Jim Roese
season against Episcopal Academy, and it held an enormous amount of importance. The task of beating EA on their own courts, as the squad knows, is not easy, as the Churchmen are always gnawing at the tails of the Fords and consistently receive fan support. That said, Haverford banded together as they had in the face of challenges all season long, and they demolished EA 6-1. With that win, the Fords clinched outright ownership of the League title, as stated, for the third consecutive year. If the Fords and Churchmen split their season series (which they did last year), the Inter-Ac title would have again been shared. Dan Brennan also ended his fouryear Haverford tennis regular season career in the EA match. “I love this team,” Brennan remarked. “I’ll never forget what we did this year... really amazing.” To this point, the Fords have won 123 out of 127 total matches – an astounding feat. With leadership and captaining from Brennan, Jordan Lieb, the other upperclassmen, and the coaching staff, the team has accomplished their goal of an undefeated season.
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The Index - Sports
Sports
May 2012
Ultimate Frisbee Team Performing at High Level Still a relatively new sport at Haverford, the Frisbee program’s success this year has brought it new attention. Nate McManus ‘14 explains. Nate McManus ‘14
As described in last month’s Index, the season opened with a devastating loss to Penncrest High School (15-4). Since then, Coaches Mr. Stephen Kim and Dr. Andrew Fenton have been working on the team’s speed, endurance, and throwing. These efforts contributed to a six-game winning streak against teams like Saint Joseph’s Prep by a score of 15-3, Devon Prep 15-7, and the always-challenging
Haverford High School 15-9. The squad’s most recent win was at home against North Penn. This was a rematch for both teams, where previously, Haverford won a 12-10 nail-biter. The festivities started with Fourth Formers and co-captains Christman Henderer and Nate McManus flipping the discs to get the game started. In the beginning, it was a lock at 3-3 until North Penn called a timeout. It was clear that both teams were exhausted from the heat, but the game continued at a
Fourth Former Josh Klein reaches for a disk.
Index Staff
Sixth Form Captain Andrew Helber prepares to catch the disk.
high intensity level. By the half, it was 8-6 in favor of Haverford, and as soon as the second half started, the Fords blew it wide open. With stellar performances from Sixth Formers Andrew Helber (Captain) and Toby Blumberg, Fifth Formers Henry Scales and Pat Somers, and Fourth Formers Henderer, McManus, Josh Klein, Aaron Lankford, and Max Gold, the Fords ended up winning that game 15-8. Lately, however, the Fords have suffered a couple of losses at the hands of Cardinal O’Hara and, again, Penncrest High School. The O’Hara game started off poorly - the Fords were down 8-1 come halftime - and the team was unable to dig itself out of the hole, losing 15-6. The Penncrest matchup started off similarly: again the Fords saw themselves down 8-1 at halftime. Nevertheless, this time it was different. The Fords put together a furious comeback at the hands of players such as
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Helber, McManus, Lankford, and Henderer to tie it up at 14-14, creating a win-by-2 situation. Alas, the Fords ultimately lost 17-15. This six-game winning streak along with significant improvement against Penncrest has not only brought more attention towards the sport, but it has also proven the efficacy of conditioning during practice. Henderer remarked, “It seems as if the running in practice has paid off.” Even though most players do not enjoy the running, one can clearly see an evident change in the fluidity of the Ultimate Teams’ offense. From running down during the kickoff, to making defensive plays, to sprinting to catch the Frisbee, it is quite obvious this team is a completely different squad from when they started in week one. With just a few games left in the season, things are looking good for the Fords going into the playoffs.
THS Crew Team Excels in Stotesbury Regatta Jack Henderson ‘15 reviews the 2012 Crew season and explains the competitions that await the team in the coming weeks. Jack Henderson ‘15
The crew team has prepared for the biggest races of the season: City Championships; the 86th annual Stotesbury Regatta, the world’s oldest and largest high school rowing competition; and Nationals. The team shone in the Manny Flicks, pulled out many top finishes, and refined its skills as the most prestigious races of the season come around. Fourth Formers Eamon Glavin and Chet Bickhart, together making up the JV 2x, won 2nd place in one of the Manny Flicks. The Lightweight 4x, consisting of Fourth Formers Colin Adams, Beauchamp Zirnkilton, R.J. Meiers, and Gavin Adams, also pulled out a 2nd place finish. The Freshman 4x, made up of Third Formers Eric Petersen, Jordan Siegal, Kyle Bowman, and Jack Henderson, showed their encouraging potential as they came in 1st place, beating the 2nd place boat by almost 20 seconds. Fifth Former Colin Meehan, along with Captains Sixth Former Pat Meehan, Fifth Former Max Freundlich, and Sixth Former Jake Gaskill pulled out an impressive 3rd place finish in the Varsity 4+. The Freshman 4+, composed of Third Formers Curran Browning, Greg Kirwan, Cheyse JohnsonBurrus, and Ricky Rodriguez, won 3rd place in their race. As Manny Flicks came to an end, the big races began. The City Championships regatta is always the first of the most important races of the season. Held on the Schuylkill River, the City Championships regatta is the biggest race for Philadelphia schools. This regatta is like the first round of the playoffs. Teams have been working to peak at this most important
moment. The various boats’ performances in the City Championships are often a telltale sign of what boats will accomplish at Stotesbury and Nationals. This year the crew team performed very well in almost all of their boats. The JV Quad, consisting of Fifth Formers John McMichael, Wick Egan, Gerard Hoeltzel, and Jack Kling, finished in 4th place overall, an outstanding achievement considering the immense competition. The Lightweight Double, made up of Glavin and Fifth Former Sam Blitzer, pulled out 4th place. The Lightweight Quad, composed of Fifth Former Michael Maggio, Meiers, Fifth Former Mario Maggio, and Bickhart, also received 4th place in a very competitive event. The Freshman Quad, led by Siegal, Petersen, Johnson-Burrus, and Henderson, pulled 4th place overall. And finally, the Varsity Four, comprised of Colin Meehan, Pat Meehan, Freundlich, and Gaskill, received 5th place. The next race was the aforementioned Stotesbury Regatta, which is held annually in mid-May over two days,
drawing teams from all over North America. There are many different events with teams pulling for various titles and trophies. There is tremendous history and tradition behind the Stotesbury Mr.
Jim
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This poll of 100 students was conducted by James Shecter ‘13 via Facebook during the week of May 14, 2012.
Regatta, and every rower is honored to row in the regatta. There is nothing quite like the raucous and passionate atmosphere produced by the intensity of the rowers, coaches, and spectators. The Haverford School fielded all of their boats in this regatta. All boats were
privileged to compete in one of the most cherished and historic events in the entire sport of rowing. It was an incredible experience for all who performed or spectated. The Senior Four, including Colin Meehan, Pat Meehan, Freundlich, and Gaskill, received 8th place out of 47 boats in their event. The Lightweight Double, comprised of Glavin and
Blitzer, pulled 5th place. The Junior Quad, made up of McMichael, Egan, Hoeltzel, and Kling won 5th place. And finally, the Freshman Quad, composed of Siegal, Petersen, JohnsonBurrus, and Henderson, pulled out 4th place. All boats performed very well under extreme pressure and showed high levels of maturity and talent. And finally, Nationals, the last race of the season, which is held in New Jersey, brings everything to a conclusion. All the grueling practices after school, on
weekends, and in the off-season will finally pay off. Each boat’s combination of chemistry, power, and speed comes together for one race. The winner takes home a gold medal and is considered the best boat in their event in the nation.
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The Index - Sports
Sports
May 2012
Checking for Cancer: Annual Lax Tournament Connor Atkins ‘15 explains the goals and history of this prominent annual Haverford sports event. Connor Atkins ‘15
On Saturday, April 14th, the Haverford lacrosse team supported a cause that affects thousands of men throughout the world and even within the Haverford community. Haverford hosted the fourth annual Checking for Cancer Tournament, which brings together the best high school lacrosse teams in the greater Philadelphia area. However, this day is not solely about watching great lacrosse, it
Erich Prince
A Haverfordian fends off a check from an opponent.
is about supporting a cause that is extremely important to Haverford and all the competing teams. The day brings attention to prominent cancers, while at the same time raises money to donate to the cause. Lacrosse Coach John Nostrant, a cancer survivor himself, explains the true meaning of the day, commenting, “We don’t nickel and dime families or teams, charge fees, ask team members to raise money, or do anything like that. We just want people to give because they want to give.” The point of the day is not to pressure people into giving money or make them feel that it is a necessity but instead to bring attention to cause that is close to the teams and players. What most people and players do not see is the
work that is being done behind the scenes to make Checking for Cancer possible. As Coach Nostrant stated, “It kind of evolved just out of a meeting with a bunch of lacrosse parents four years ago and has elevated to one of the best tournaments in the country.” Every year, the Haverford lacrosse parents come together and take time out of their days to organize this amazing event. Without these helpful volunteers, the day would not even be close to as productive as it is. Coach Nostrant explains, “The first three years I say we raised over $80,000... Hopefully this year we were in the $30-40,000 range.” This money goes straight to patients in need of
operations or medicine and could change someone’s life. When asked some of the goals for Checking for Cancer in the future, Coach Nostrant responded, “I would like to continue to make
money and to continue to alert people on how to take care of themselves and how to detect male cancer early on... If we could do that, it would be great.” The overall goal for the future is not only to make money to help people in need but also to bring attention to cancers that can be
prevented if caught early enough. As for the lacrosse, there were ten boys and girls lacrosse games throughout the day. The day began with an overtime thriller between La Salle and St. Augustine, in which both teams never let up. Neither team could take the lead in the regular time, but a couple of minutes into overtime, St. Augustine got the ball and got the win, trumping La Salle 1110. Soon after started the game that has been highly anticipated by both teams all year. Conestoga, previously unbeaten this season, took on Garden City, both arguably the top teams in the country. As the game went on, neither team could pull away, but Garden City gave Conestoga their first loss after defeating them 12-11. Finally, the Fords took on Lawrenceville. The Fords were clearly ready in their Checking for Cancer blue jerseys, and the team all believed in the cause for which they were playing. Jumping out to an early lead, the Fords never looked back as Sixth Former Henry Blynn led the team with five goals. The Fords finished the game 10-3, a result that showed great work all around from the entire team. It was clear to the fans and supporters that Checking for Cancer means a lot to them, and by doing their best, they helped raise money and support for the Checking for Cancer cause.
Mr. Jim Roese
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Haverford Lacrosse huddles before heading out into the game.
Track Team Competes at Huge Penn Relays Described by Coach Chris Avery as the “biggest sports audiences most Haverford athletes will ever compete in front of,” Lucas Elek ‘13 details the team’s performance. experience of running at Penn Relays. This year, Haverford had two relay teams run at Coach Chris Avery once said that unless Penn Relays. The first relay, the 4X100, was you play for a major Division One program run by Brendan Purcell (Form VI), Andrew or you go pro, you will never again get the Wiener (Form V), Chris Morgan (Form V) and opportunity to compete in front of 50,000 Geoff Bocobo (Form VI). The relay was run people. He was talking about the epic in a time of 44.74 which put the team in the top one third of finishers; a commendable feat. The second relay run was a 4X400. It was run by Wiener, Morgan, Bocobo and Lucas Elek (Form V). The 4X400 is special because the race is known as the Inter-Ac heat. The Inter-Ac heat at Penn Index Staff Relays is the A group of pole vaulters at practice. oldest race in Lucas Elek ‘13
Fifth Former Lucas Elek prepares for a practice sprint.
Penn Relays’ history. The 4X400 team ended up finishing well at second place with a time of 3:27.51. The next big event after Penn Relays was Inter-Ac championships at Germantown Academy. The Fords finished at a strong third place and several highlights. Bocobo scored 12 points (1st in 110 Hurdles, 2nd in the 400 and 4th in 300 hurdles), and two other superstars that day were Wiener (3rd in 400, 3rd in 200, and 2nd in the 4 x 400 relay) and Purcell (2nd in 300 hurdles, 4th in 110 Hurdles, and 2nd in the 4 x 400 relay) both scored 7. Other
Index Staff
highlights include Alex Kim (Form III) who set the Haverford freshman mile record with a superb time of 4:48. Morgan also placed second in the triple jump with a distance of forty one feet ten and a half inches. Matt Galambos (Form V) also scored in shot put with a distance of 45 feet and one and half inches scoring him third. While the team’s performances in both these events were fantastic, they went on to go above and beyond in the State meet - read more about that in the final issue of the Index after a few short weeks.
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The Index - Opinions
Opinions
May 2012
Prince: Drugs Should Be Legalized Erich Prince ‘13 writes a compelling piece, arguing that the principles of the free market dictate that all forms of drugs should be legal.
Harvard economics professor Jeffrey Miron, in an interview with the Cato Institute, observed, “Legalizing drugs would save roughly $41.3 billion per year in government expenditure on enforcement of prohibition. Of these savings, $25.7 billion would accrue to state and local governments, while $15.6 billion would accrue to the federal government...drug legalization would yield tax revenue of $46.7 billion annually, assuming
as expanded by the Necessary and Proper Clause -- have no meaningful limits. Whether Congress aims at the possession of drugs, guns, or any number of other items, it may continue to appropriate state police powers under the guise of regulating commerce.” The constitutionality has been further challenged on the grounds of “substantive due process,” which affords the judicial system with the authority to restrict legislative and executive
“noble experiment” was higher than in 1920. Since Richard Nixon first declared on the “War on Drugs” in 1971, the inefficiency and In 1991, Nobel Laureate in Economics enormous cost of enforcing drug laws have Milton Friedman was interviewed as a part of been widely criticized. In the Pursuit of “America’s Drug Forum”: “I see America with Oblivion, Richard Davenport-Hines notes, half the number of prisons, half the number of prisoners, ten thousand fewer homicides a year, “10–15% of illicit heroin and 30% of illicit cocaine is intercepted. Drug traffickers have inner cities in which there’s a chance for these gross profit margins of up to 300%. At least poor people to live without being afraid for 75% of illicit drug shipments would have to be their lives, citizens who might be respectable intercepted before the traffickers’ profits were who are now addicts not being subject to hurt.” becoming criminals in order to get their drug, It is time to recognize that the “War on being able to get drugs for which they’re sure Drugs” is impossible to win. When a of the quality. You know, the same thing government attempts to enforce an happened under prohibition of alcohol as is unenforceable law, the populace loses trust in happening now.” Commenting on the pragmatic inefficiencies the integrity of law, or in the words of Montesquieu, “When the laws have ceased to of drug prohibition, Friedman went on to bossip.com be executed, subsequently Would these crack pipes become more prevalent in a state of legalization? as this can address the ethical legal drugs were taxed at rates comparable to dominance, along with being in violation of only come considerations of those on alcohol and tobacco.” both the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments. If from the government Theory aside, Portugal, as the first nation to the prohibition of alcohol required a corruption of infringement on fully decriminalize the use of drugs, has constitutional amendment then why not the republic, individual liberty, witnessed a significant reduction in usage as restrictions on other substances? the state is “If he’s caught, he addicts are encouraged to seek treatment rather Government must represent the breadth of already lost.” goes to jail. Now is than be punished. In 2001, Portugal began a opinion of the governed. It must account for People will that moral? Is that different “noble experiment” as the nation the minority and the majority. To disregard the use drugs proper? I think it’s replaced incarceration with the variations in thought within the populace regardless of absolutely recommendation of therapy for citizens found begins the progression towards totalitarianism. their legality disgraceful that To emphasize the opinion of the majority and to attempt in possession of illicit substances. In the our government decade following, the number of addicts rather than to holistically balance the aggregate to change that should be in the seeking treatment doubled while the rate of thought of society undermines government’s is futile. position of consumption fell most essential qualities: Friedman converting people dramatically. objectivity and equal remarked on who are not According to a 2009 protection. Being in the prohibition’s harming others exposé in Time magazine, unique position to protection of into criminals, of uchicago.edu Portugal now has the initiate violence legally, drug destroying their Milton Friedman, the 1991 Nobel Laureate in Economics. lowest lifetime usage of government is only trafficking, lives, putting them marijuana in the intended to execute that “You look at the drug war from a purely in jail. That’s the issue to me. The economic European Union at 10%. right under the threat of economic point of view, the role of the issue comes in only for explaining why it has For comparison, the rate physical harm. Ayn government is to protect the drug cartel.” those effects. But the economic reasons are not Rand describes the Referring to supply and demand, prohibition of in the United States is the reasons.” The economic ramifications of 39.8%. The use of any phenomenon in Atlas drugs reduces supply without lessening prohibition merely serve as an indicator of the drug in teens fell from Shrugged: “The only demand. Free market, legal competition in the lapse in morality perpetrated by an oppressive proper purpose of a drug market is replaced by drug cartels marked 14.1% to 10.6% as new government and are subservient to the cases of HIV in drug government is to protect by bloodshed and political corruption. Thus necessity of freedom. users were reduced by man’s rights, which entrepreneurs have the impetus to earn high A government exists to protect the 17%. Rather than means: to protect him profits by selling drugs beneath government governed. That alone is the reason that citizens imprisoning people with from physical violence. restriction: as Friedrich Hayek wrote in The forfeit their autonomy; the government is drug problems, the A proper government is Road to Serfdom,“the unscrupulous and therefore not responsible for providing government recommends, only a policeman, acting uninhibited are likely to be more successful in morality. The burden of ethics falls upon the not mandates, treatment as an agent of man’s a society tending toward totalitarianism.” wikipedia.org individual. Echoing the principles of John Ayn Rand, the author of Atlas Shrugged. to address addiction self-defense, and, as Dealers encourage children, especially in Locke’s Second Treatise of Government, while also emphasizing such, may resort to economically challenged neighborhoods, to which delineated the natural process of preemptive education. Instead of punishment, force only against those who start the use of revolution to end unjust practice and ensure the experiment with illicit substances. By the priority is rehabilitation. Prohibition creates force...but a government that initiates the encouraging addiction, dealers ensure a empowerment of the individual, The United distrust between the government and the employment of force against men who had consistent income stream and give rise to the States Declaration of Independence famously population; drug addiction must be treated as a forced no one, the employment of armed next generation of addicts. This environment declares, “all men are created equal, that they health problem and those inflicted must be compulsion against disarmed victims, is a creates a cycle of faltering education, rising are endowed by their creator with certain encouraged to get better and become nightmare infernal machine designed to crime, and a lack of economic productivity. unalienable rights...life, liberty, and the pursuit functioning members of society rather than to annihilate morality..such a government of happiness.” Locke, the enduring advocate of The underground nature of the drug trade clog the prison system. substitutes for morality the following rule of promotes violence. Lacking a quality empirical knowledge, affirms that a man must In his dissent in the 2005 case Gonzales v. social conduct: you may do whatever you derive self-awareness and thus purpose through regulation by the government or legal overseer please to your neighbor, provided your gang is experience. Such a pursuit is individualized bigger than his.” and open to a breadth of experiences. If the individual chooses to alter his Acknowledging that understanding is arrived consciousness, perception of reality, it is not at through a variety of happenings, the the concern of the government to tell him government must not interfere with the quest that such an action is unethical. Foucault’s of the individual to substantiate the value of his assertion in Madness and Civilization that, “the life unless his actions directly endanger public possibility of madness is therefore implicit in safety. In a nation grounded in the individual’s the very phenomenon of passion” relates the unique pursuit of happiness, how can the mind and body as he questions the veracity of United States government seek to restrict what society’s historic label of insanity. Uniqueness a citizen chooses to put inside of his own in existence is not to be infringed upon. The body? consumption of drugs is not a threat to public Prohibition is ineffective. Not only did the safety; however, the illicit trade resulting 18th Amendment of 1920 and subsequent from their prohibition is the cause of much crusade against alcohol fail to deter its violence and social ill. Even assuming a lens consumption, but it gave rise to organized of utilitarianism, legalization benefits the noncrime. A recent study by the University at user as it reduces taxpayer cost and violent Albany illustrated the penal consequences as crime. The government is not responsible violent crime increased by 13%, federal prison This poll of 100 students was conducted by James Shecter ‘13 via Facebook during the week of May 14, 2012. for the restriction of an individual’s right of population increased 366%, and total Raich contesting the medicinal use of cannabis, expression but rather should provide the means of transactions, competing dealers often resort expenditure on the prison system increased by to physical coercion. If a consumer fails to pay, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote, “If the Federal to empower it. Although to overthrow the 1000%. The statistics reflect the sudden Government can regulate growing a half-dozen status quo and pursue such drastic change is a dealer’s only recourse is violence as he lacks incentive to sell banned alcohol. More cannabis plants for personal consumption (not arduous, individual liberty must be preserved. the security of a judicial system. Repealing convincing though is the fact that people because it is interstate commerce, but because Prohibition has been tried, and it has failed to prohibition not only removes the incentive to continued to drink. Acknowledging that it is inextricably bound up with interstate solve America’s drug problem. sell drugs but it also provides a taxable market alcohol use fell briefly in the early stage of commerce), then Congress’ Article I powers -It’s wrong and it doesn’t work. for the government. prohibition, consumption at the end of the Erich Prince ‘13
Page 19
The Index - Arts & Entertainment
Arts & Entertainment
May 2012
Sense of Entitlement Fuels Assembly Behavior J.J. House ‘13 argues that students in assemblies need to remember that they are not the center of the world and should not let their boredom become a disruption. J.J. House ‘13 For those of you that were there, you probably do not remember the only time I have ever been on stage in front of the whole Upper School in Centennial Hall. If you do, that is very impressive, but I am going to bank on the fact that pretty much no one but I remembers my brief time on stage. During EA Day week, last year (my Fourth Form year), the different Forms did comedic skits, poking fun at various aspects of Haverford while also rousing everyone to get ready for EA Day. The main point of my Form’s skit is not crucial to this anecdote, and the overall skit was pretty dumb anyway. However, I will never forget my role in the skit. While writing the script, I elected myself to play the role of Mr. Matt Deasey, specifically to make fun of hic “MC-ing” of the Halloween assembly a month before. I had two great punch lines written up, sure to bring laughs from people in the audience. I was to walk out on the stage, pretending to be Mr. Deasey on the phone apologizing to some guy for poorly MC-ing his daughter’s bat mitzvah. OK, it was not funny, but Fourth Form J.J. and his friends thought it was quite the kneeslapper. So I had my lines down pat. Or at least I thought. Then-Fourth Former Roby Burch had just gotten finished grunting while impersonating then-Sixth Former Grove Stewart, so it was my time to come out on stage. I walked out with my swaggin’ “Mr. Deasey the MC” walk, hand loosely clutched on the phone. I said half of my line, still looking at the floor of the stage, but when I looked up, mid-line, I froze. The entire school was in front of me, and I felt every eyeball digging into me. I was instantly terrified. Only after 10 long seconds did Mike Green snap me out of my petrified state when he prompted me my line. I was able to recover and halfdecently deliver my lines and the show continued as smoothly as before. Yet from that experience, I am now always aware of the difficulties one can face on stage. It is hard to be on stage, because although you have the floor, you are still subject to the whims of the audience. When I was impersonating Mr. Deasey, the audience was not at all disrespectful; it was a non-formal occasion to begin with, and it is not like any tomatoes came flying at me or an oversized cane dragged me off. But there are a lot of situations at Haverford where someone is on stage, and although they are beyond stage fright, it is still tough for them because of a cloud of murmurs radiates from the audience or someone, somewhere loudly says something obnoxious. Trust me, it does not just bother the faculty members. As an audience member it is tough sometimes because I may be interested in
hearing something someone has to say, but if one little thing happens during the presentation then a wave of noise instantly arises in the audience, and it makes listening to what the person has to say difficult. It is as if everything they are saying is shielded by some sort of fog of commotion, which makes paying close attention to what they are saying difficult, and completely destroys any type of hook the speaker may have on attentive audience
of any person that may be trying to tell us something. It is this state of mind that I just mentioned which is the root of all improper behavior during our assemblies. All bad audience behavior is an appendage to our negative state of mind. Every single disruptive action is the result of someone in the audience deciding in their head that they are in some way more entitled than the speaker or that the speaker must not be that intelligent and therefore they are not worthy of the audience member’s full attention. Understandably, the subject may be very uninteresting to a lot of audience members, which is perfectly fine. I do not have a problem with people who choose to completely remove themselves from assembly. The kid two rows down who has passed out from shear boredom means absolutely
Ms. Dawn Blake
Paul Zarzyski, this year’s Hallowell Lecturer, was not impressed with Haverford Students’ decorum
members who want to hear what they have to say…. Phew. Thank you, Mr. Fifer for calming us all down. I do not know what causes the entire Haverford audience to erupt like they do because usually it is the result of something really minor, such as someone pronouncing someone’s name incorrectly. We all know that his name is “Chris Vattima,” not “Chris Vahtihm-ahh,” so if the speaker says it incorrectly, no one needs to react because all you are doing is making it uncomfortable for the speaker and disrupting the general flow of the presentation or speech. I do, however, know the root of what we, as Haverford boys, need to make improvements on. It is very simple: we need to change the way we view ourselves, the audience members, but we also need to change the way we view the speaker. As teenagers, we are naturally questioning of authority, and that innate tendency mixes with our sense of “entitlement” that we have because we are “superiorly educated and intelligent young men who go to one of the best private schools in the country.” This is not an attack on Haverford’s principles or “The Establishment” or anything, I actually agree: we are a special group of boys who are all highly-engaged individuals in one way or another, and we deserve a lot of the credit we are given as a school because we really accomplish a lot in many different fields. However, I still feel as though there is some underlying sense of privilege in our subconscious, which is strengthened by our being teenagers, that just creates this foul and constantly questioning view in our heads
nothing compared to the conscious kid who decides that he is so bored that he cannot handle it anymore and begins to chit chat with his equally-bored neighbor about how bored they are. Honestly though, just
on in the audience member’s head or what is going on in their immediate surroundings is more important than the speaker. I guarantee it is not; it is not important at all. It is absolutely not as worthwhile as hearing the speech someone prepared for you. If you feel targeted because you are someone who is generally not interested in any of the assemblies that is good because hopefully you look at your own behavior and work on minding your own business during an assembly. Just know that you are not the only one. A few assemblies ago, when Dr. Gupta from the University of Maryland was telling us why China’s and India’s economies were going to surpass the U.S.’s in the next 25 years, I was constantly distracted because two Cum Laude students were behind me bickering the entire time about why everything Dr. Gupta was saying was false. The two students loudly whispered for almost the entire time. It was apparent that the two were only half-listening to Dr. Gupta because they were busy whispering to each other, which instantly makes anything they were whispering baseless and stupid banter because they were not even listening to everything the doctor had to say. The disrespect and state of mind that we Haverford students are the most intelligent beings on planet Earth, hands down, no argument possible, extends to all the types of students. There is a very simple solution to the problem: awareness. It is a simple thing to ask. The next time you are in an assembly, right when you walk through the doors of Centennial, be aware of where you are. You are in an auditorium, you are supposed to sit and listen to someone. If you do not want to, then just sing “Call Me Maybe” to yourself over and over in your head until you can not take it anymore, and you would rather hear what
Ms. Dawn Blake
Adam Taliaferro spoke to the school about his experiences on Honors Day this year.
leave a sleeping kid alone, he will not bother anyone, and although he is disrespecting the speaker, the speaker probably does not even notice until the sleeping kid jolts upright after being slapped on the back of the head from a peer who was instructed by a faculty member to do so. This issue is when audience members are disruptive, and the disruptive behavior originates in the belief that whatever is going
This poll of 100 students was conducted by James Shecter ‘13 via Facebook during the week of May 14, 2012.
the speaker has to say. But seriously, just be aware of where you are and your purpose as a part of the audience and acknowledge the fact that there are a lot of people around you that would very much like to hear what the person on stage has to stay, and the person on stage would very much like to think that you are all interested in what they have to say. Just be aware and be courteous of others. Doing so is your duty as a Haverford student.
The Outdex
Page 20
The Index - The Outdex
May 2012
Recently at The Haverford School... Summer schedules for the Guys tour has been planned….but you aren’t invited. The Haverford Track Team has won first place at Independent States. Even with this accomplishment they will still lose all of their funding to the robotics team. Have a conversation with Jason Tabas. Warning: May last far longer than you wanted and have bizarre subject matter. Next year’s Signet Society is planning on doing even more than this year’s. To do this, they will actually plan more than one Reflections, which will be a drastic improvement from this year. It’s been a whole school year and your Student Council representatives are still searching the nearest IKEA for a “cost effective” couch for the Student Lounge.
http://blogs.ubc.ca/
Luxury retail.
Chris Vattima and Ethan Brown have Twitter. Have they not made that abundantly clear to you? In response to the opening of President Rogers “farewell address,” Mr. Fifer rebutted with,”If three days isn’t enough advance time to prepare a speech, maybe you shouldn’t be the President.” The Cappies just took place, complete with a red carpet and golden awards. DECA is jealous. The Notables are taking a summer trip to Bermuda to spread their music to as many people as possible. Interesting how they have to travel to the sunny beaches of Bermuda to do this. There certainly aren’t any places in the United States where one could travel to sing, but then again we don’t allocate the budgets for school clubs. Every senior project being undertaken is completely legitimate and not an excuse to take off of school for three weeks. The Philadelphia 76ers are in the NBA playoffs. Since they’re in the playoffs, tickets are being sold at the high price of $20 a seat, a huge markup from their usual $3.50 price.
http://philly.cities2night.com/
When they’re bad, they’re awful. When they’re good, they’re still awful.
A stunning visual of the State Champion Track squad.
Index Staff
Farewell from the Outdex Editor/Writer Jonathan Smith ‘12 We needed to fill space with this issue, but instead of making a series of barely funny jokes, we decided to take a more serious route than usual. This is the funny side of The Index, so if you choose to stop reading now, we won’t take it personally (we will). Just take
a minute and bear with us. One thing we’ve learned while doing this, if you can’t laugh at yourself, you’re taking yourself way too seriously. We live in a politically correct culture where everyone is terrified of offending someone else. Be respectful and know the line, but don’t be afraid of putting
yourself out there. Haverford is great because we’re comfortable enough to joke with our friends and teachers and have a good time. However, there’s a time for joking and a time for being serious. Talk to each and everyone of your classmates and learn about each other. It’s said again and again, but
we’ll repeat it; make the most of your time here. It goes by much quicker than you think, one minute you’re making a joke about Harry Rosenberg (because who doesn’t) and the next, you’re seeing him graduate. Have fun, joke around, but appreciate each other. Good luck.
The Outdex is The Index’s humor page and its content is neither true nor intended to hurt or offend anyone. Please contact hsindex@gmail.com with questions or concerns.