The Meadows Sentinel March 2021

The

MEADOWS SENTINEL Volume XXV Issue 2

The Meadows School

March 2021

New COVID-19 Vaccines

The COVID-19 Vaccine - the Moment We’ve all been waiting for

Photo Cred: Google Commons

Photo Cred: Google Commons

Ins and Outs of Debate

ICE Controversy

Language Department Changes

Photo Cred: Google Commons

Presidential Inauguration

Art During COVID-19

Art by Tess Weckerly-Healey

The Crayon Drive

Photo Cred: Google Commons

Photo Cred: Google Commons

Happy 2021!

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Photo Cred: Google Commons

President Biden’s First Day at Work

New COVID-19 Vaccines

As COVID-19 vaccines become distributed, the benefits and risks become a critical discussion.

The Ins and Outs of Debate Is debate as hard as it seems?

By Karolina Davis (freshman)

By Sneha Sridhar (senior)

The COVID-19 Vaccine - the moment we’ve all been waiting for.

From March of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has rattled the globe economically, socially, and politically, putting even more pressure on scientists to create a vaccine and provide some hope. The time is finally here as multiple vaccines are now being distributed, but the debate still rages on about its effectiveness and safety.

Currently, there are two vaccines that are authorized to prevent COVID-19: Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine and Moderna’s vaccine. Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine is a mRNA vaccine, which is a new type of vaccine to protect against infectious diseases. Traditional vaccines inject a weak or “inactive” virus so that our bodies can learn to defend against that strain. mRNA vaccines, however, teach our cells how to make a particular protein that will trigger an immune response and produce antibodies against the actual virus (CDC). Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine consists of two separate shots in the upper arm taken 21 days apart. Based on evidence from clinical trials, this vaccine was 95% effective at preventing the COVID-19 illness in people without a previous infection (FDA). The Moderna vaccine is also a mRNA vaccine consisting of 2 shots taken 28 days apart. From Moderna’s clinical trials, their vaccine was 94.1% effective at preventing COVID-19 in people who had not been infected before. Another difference between these two vaccines is that each dose of Pfizer’s contains 30 micrograms of vaccine while Moderna contains 100 micrograms of the vaccine. Even though there is a big difference in the quantity, there isn’t a stark gap in their results. While both of these vaccines have been FDA approved, their clinical trials have obviously been sped up. Most vaccines take at least 4 years until they have been distributed, but for any drug to be approved, it has to undergo the same 3-4 phases of clinical trials. The COVID-19 vaccines are no different. What is different, however, is the expedited administration, production, and distribution. According to Joseph Yozviak, the LVHN Principal Investigator for the COVID-19 clinical trial, “The only things eliminated from the trial were unnecessary delays.”

(LVHN News). A standard clinical trial includes three phases. Phase 1 is when a variety of doses and versions of the vaccine are given to healthy volunteers to see if they develop effective antibodies with minimal side effects. During Phase 2, a larger amount of volunteers

are enrolled while only the top versions of the vaccine are administered. Phase 3 continues to enroll even more volunteers while verifying the vaccine’s efficacy. Both current COVID-19 have passed all three of these trials and are FDA-approved (CDC).

Despite the changes this year has brought us, the debate team has succeeded as much as usual. Through online tournaments and a hybrid schedule, they have studied and prepared in order to conquer other teams and earn high rankings. Although debate looks like pure hard work and appears to be almost as difficult as learning another language because of all its terms and strategies, it can be made possible by the Upper School debate teachers.

Mrs. Shockey waits in line for her dose of the COVID vaccine.

Many of our Meadows faculty have opted to take their first dose of the Pfizer vaccine, with small complaints of soreness. Mr. Kaempfer stated that he was “in and out of Western High School within 90 minutes” after waiting in fast-moving lines throughout the cafeteria and gymnasiums. As of late January, the COVID-19 vaccine is available to healthcare workers, frontline community support (teachers, legal staff, etc), and safety & security personnel. As the vaccine becomes more available, especially to people within our own Meadows community, the benefits and risks of the current vaccines continues to be a critically important conversation.

One factor that is still unknown is the durability of the vaccine’s protection. How long these vaccines will be effective after administered is going to take time. With periodic blood draws from volunteers to examine their antibodies, once there are enough people who are immunized, scientists will be able to gain a more in-depth analysis of its durability (STAT News).

Nevertheless, the COVID-19 vaccines are a vital tool to help protect against this pandemic. Already, these vaccines have been given to health care workers across the country who are working in high-risk environments.

Masks and social distancing help reduce your chance of being exposed or spreading the virus, but they are not enough. The combination of these vaccines and following CDC’s recommendation will offer the best protection against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Many people have thought about joining the debate team but have not known exactly what to expect. According to Mr. Gordon, one of our debate teachers, it is a rigorous and challenging class to take. “Unlike other classes where you may write a paper and submit it for some feedback and a grade, in a debate round you have an opponent who is actively refuting your arguments point-by-point. In many ways, it’s the most rapid-fire and rigorous drafting process you can be subjected to... We also have to support our ideas with research, which we find and process ourselves, so students invest a lot of time into preparing for these

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rounds.” While it can be challenging and is definitely different from what students typically learn in school, debate is pretty manageable, especially at the novice level. While Gordon states that “the content itself can be incredibly difficult to master,” earning a good grade in debate is straightforward as long as you participate during class and tournaments. However, winning tournaments involves more independent time and determined research.

Debate also teaches many important skills to those who decide to try it out. Debate not only teaches about the subject and all the technical ways to form a good debate, but also helps you form necessary public speaking and critical thinking skills. It teaches you to back up your views and opinions with evidence, which is a very important skill for a person and society to have. Mr. Gordon even says that “understanding information, assessing its reliability, and opening yourself up to a diversity of contentious and often contradictory perspectives is vital when making decisions that affect the lives of others.

Debate forces students to think about an issue from multiple sides and to challenge not only WHAT they think, but HOW they think.” Thus, debate challenges students to think critically, which is highly important for our society.

Debate may appear like a tough and even nerve racking elective to take, but with the help of the debate teachers, it is possible to succeed while also having fun along the way. It is an important class to take because of the numerous skills it can teach you. Therefore, if you’ve ever considered trying out debate, go ahead and take the class next year. You may end up loving it!

Hearing New Voices

Updates on the foreign language curriculum

By Natalie Vo (junior)

Communication is what allows societies to make bonds and grow with one another, making sure that our voices and thoughts could be heard. Languages provide the key to connecting to the people around you, especially to the communities who belong to different countries, cultures, and histories.

Therefore, most high schools nationwide require their students to take a foreign language, the most popular including French and Spanish. Requiring students to learn to read, write, and speak in their chosen languages, communicating allows them to build bridges and emotional connections with different people. The commonality of having to learn a foreign language highlights the importance of not only understanding different cultures but participating in them as well.

Therefore, in the language department at The Meadows School, three languages are currently being offered to the students: Spanish, Latin, and French. However, the method of teaching languages this year has changed due to a new mindset. In previous years, the world languages department tested their students’ knowledge through more traditional ways, which leads to the grade book being divided up by tests, quizzes, etc. However, the chair of the department, Señor Clement, expressed reasons for why this year’s grading is divided into categories to more language-related topics; reading, writing, speaking, listening, and engagement. He emphasized that learning a different language is not about strict memorization, but the ability to properly communicate outside of an educational speech should be prioritized. Furthermore, he also felt that students are often “nervous about upcoming tests, which leads them to not do as well.” When he replaced the test category, he quickly saw how students were performing much better now that the added pressure is off. “Languages aren’t like subjects like science and history, so it should be taught and graded differently,” Señor Clement explained.

Thus, Meadows students in language classrooms this year have been more focused on conversing and honing their skills, as opposed to preparing for the standard quizzes and exams.

The language department this year has been meeting to discuss introducing new language classes to the Meadows community, such as Chinese. However, the final decision has

not been made yet since teachers are still deciding which new language would be most beneficial for the students. After having a meeting with Mr. Gregersen, the Head of School, they have decided to proceed to follow a progression of steps to hopefully offer Mandarin next year. Although this addition to the language options is not confirmed, the process is definitely in the works. Other languages that have been brought to the table include Russian, Italian, and even German.

At The Meadows School, voices in different languages can be heard drifting from different classrooms down the hallways. Language teachers make it a fun and exciting experience every day for students who are immersing themselves in a new culture every time they take a step into the classroom. Thus, The Meadows School student body is thrilled at the chance of having more languages offered.

More options mean more languages that can open up a whole new world for students, and prepare them for future trips if they wanted to visit the country of the language they are learning. Languages also allow students to grow up to be more empathetic and compassionate people since they can better understand the value of various cultural backgrounds. The language classrooms are constantly filled with bustling foreign conversations, and the community cannot wait for more languages to be introduced down the line.

ICE Controversy

Surgery performed on immigrant women without consent

By Gia Orsini (freshman)

The Irwin County Detention Center in Ocilla, G.A. has a gynecologist named Dr. Amin who was reported to have operated on several dozen immigrant women without their consent for procedures that were not medically necessary. The common lie that Dr. Amin told these women was that he had found “abnormally large cysts or masses attached to his patient’s reproductive organs” and surgery needed to be done quickly.

Without being told about the details of the surgery or given a form of consent, the women were sent to the Irwin County Hospital and had surgery but some women, like Yuridia “a 36 year-old immigrant from Mexico,” who had expected to have surgery for her damaged ribs since she had been abused by an ex-boyfriend just before ICE took her, woke up and found “three incisions on her abdomen and a piece of skin missing from her genital area” according to the Nov. 10, 2020 Vice News. Three days later, still in pain and alone, Yuridia was deported. Left confused and violated, Yuridia did some digging and found Dr. Amin’s notes when she was sent to him but she really needed a doctor for her ribs. His notes matched nothing she told him: “Complained of heavy menstrual and pelvic pain.” In some extreme cases, Dr. Amin performed hysterectomies, the removal of parts or all of the uterus, without the consent or knowledge of his patients.

These dramatic notes are found with all of the other victims and every story has a new heart-stabbing twist to it, but the commonality is that these women were all violated and justice must be served. Not only do these women deserve compensation, other ICE detention centers should have routine checks to make sure they are treating the immigrants with respect and as they are human because many people in this country demonize them. To neglect a fellow human and to take advantage of them in a vulnerable situation is despicable. We need to bring more attention to this horrid issue because it is necessary for Meadows students to become change-makers and be inspired by the current events happening today.

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Art During a Pandemic Studio Art electives

Art is an expressive language that allows individuals to engage themselves in a way that others can not.

Every detail adds to a bigger picture; every detail matters. Despite art being a long process, in the end it allows individuals to feel accomplished. During this pandemic, others found art to be an unexpected passion and hobby. Although art comes with its challenges, it can also be inspiring to others. In Mrs. Welsing’s Studio Art elective, she allows her students to explore new things such as art techniques and styles. She encourages students and enables them to reach into their imagination and make it reality. As cases of COVID increase, it affects many factors in Mrs. Welsing’s Studio Art electives.

Mrs. Welsing found many challenges this year, and plans she made this year have not been going accordingly. Efficiency became lacking. Oftentimes, she would only get to see her art students once or twice a week. She thinks with the current scheduling due to the pandemic it “really cut everything in half in terms of what we can teach.” In October, Mrs. Welsing gave her students a set of art supplies home for future projects.

Since she does not see her students as often as preferred, she gives her students at home projects and at school projects. Mrs. Welsing finds getting projects done became harder this year.

(art by Sofia Legisima) Despite Zoom being a way of communicating with her students, she found is not any different from her students staying home and doing their art pieces since “all you can see is their head, you can’t really see their work or offer any critiques and offer any advice”. In the fall, Mrs. Welsing was hoping to host her first art show around September but was unable to due to scheduling and difficulty in with the completion of projects. However, she hopes to have an art show

Katherine Chau (freshman) around February. In hopes of keeping her students motivated in class, she changes up her curriculum each week.

Her best tip for her students is to keep up with their art in hopes of showing off her students’ art in the art gallery.

Despite an ongoing pandemic, freshman Morgan Liu enjoys taking Mrs. Welsing’s elective. To Morgan, art is an indirect way of expressing her feelings; she finds it “very fascinating, almost like a different part of me.” Art teacher Mrs. Welsing played a big role in Morgan’s enjoyment in art. Mrs. Welsing’s enjoyment for art allowed Morgan to feel excitement towards her learning experience in her art elective.

For many others, the pandemic makes it challenging to find excitement and ideas towards their art, despite that Liu found her way through and “was glad to have found a new hobby that I never knew I would enjoy until taking this elective.” Adjusting to the system that Mrs. Welsing had was not a problem, Morgan stated, “Mrs. Welsing made it safe for us to complete our artwork, she gives us art supplies to take home.” Although Morgan will not take her passion for art towards her career, she hopes to continue it as a hobby.

Sophomore Johann Ocampo had taken Mrs. Welsing’s art elective during his freshman year. He found that the pandemic did not affect him learning art. He is still “able to Zoom in and see how to do each project.”

He believes that Mrs. Welsing has a well organized plan in keeping her classes safe, curriculum interesting, and engaging for other students like Johann. Learning was not any different from his previous year taking art; the only difference was learning and exploring new ideas and techniques.

Art brings new ideas to the classroom environment as well as to an individual. Art takes roles in lives.

Despite an ongoing pandemic, art students at the Meadows School continue to stay motivated and enjoy taking Mrs. Welsing’s Studio Art class.

They continue to inspire and encourage others to continue to be creative.

(art by Brian Lee)

Presidential Inauguration

What does the 2021 Presidential Inauguration represent for the next four years?

By Sneha Sridhar (senior)

In the days leading up to this historic inauguration, to say I was on edge would be an understatement. Even the most base absolutes are no longer guaranteed, as I see the after effects of the Capitol riot. Maybe I was too naive to think that even in one of the most polarized states of our nation that we would have a peaceful transition of power. I truly don’t think America has a foundational definition of what our current democracy is or should be. And it is with this instability, fragmentation, and inequality, that have always been foundational to the United States, that we go into this inauguration.

However, there have been extraordinary security measures taken in Washington DC in preparation of Joe Biden’s inauguration. Businesses in DC are closing, the National Mall is shut down, and the Pentagon has authorized 25,000 troops for the inauguration (CNN). From threats of domestic violence to a heightened disregard for political sanctity, tensions are increasingly high across America and the world.

In retrospection, I think the most inspiring part of the inauguration was Amanda Gorman, the inaugural poet. Obviously, writing a poem about national unity during such a charged time in our nation’s history was no easy feat, but Gorman achieved it with elegance and power in her poem “The Hill We Climb”. As the youngest inaugural poet, Gorman set the tone for not only Biden’s inauguration but also his term, leaning toward understanding the causes of the intense polarization of America’s population, from its most marginalized and excluded voices to the most amplified issues.

However, the inauguration is truly just one day, and President Joe Biden has a lot of pressure to continue on the promises of his campaign. As he takes office, Biden will inherit a nation that is still facing down the coronavirus pandemic, economic turmoil, racial injustice, and climate change.

Photo Cred: Google Commons

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President Biden’s First-Day at Work COVID Vaccines in 2021 Welcome to the New Year!

What are students’ thoughts?

On Jan 20, Joe Biden was sworn into office as the 46th President, commencing his 4-year term in front of millions worldwide. Biden’s administration wasted no time in immediately taking action after Inauguration Day, including undoing a few of Donald Trump’s policies as well as tightening up the government’s response to the pandemic. On the long list of Biden’s new changes, some include reversing Trump’s travel ban from several Muslim-majority countries (Iran, Iraq, etc), implementing a mandate to wear masks/ social distance on all federal lands, pausing student loan payments until at least the end of September, stopping the building of the Mexico-US border wall, and rejoining the 2015 Paris climate agreement. Overall, Biden signed a total of 17 executive actions, 15 of which will be executive orders, only hours after being sworn into office.

Much of Biden’s speech was about the idea of unity, as he encouraged his fellow Americans to lower the temperature and attempt to truly hear what the other side has to say. As he sees it, we need to stop the uncivil war that the United States is currently undergoing, and learn to be respectful of opposing opinions. For example, in the Meadows community, the student body is filled with different perspectives and opinions on Biden’s new changes. When asking a junior what he thought of the new policies, he expressed specific enthusiasm about the delay in student loan payments, “I think that it is very helpful that student loan payments are paused. This will allow people time to recover financially from the economic issues the pandemic caused.” Furthermore, a senior that had a similar perspective stated that, “I think he’s doing a great job so far. I hope our country can eventually unite together and respect his policies, especially the ones that can help us end this pandemic. I also look forward to seeing his policies regarding the en-

By Skye DeCicco (freshman)

By Natalie Vo (junior) vironment.” Through this anonymous survey, it is evident that many students in the community are proud of the switch in the presidency. However, there are students who are worried, especially in regard to the cancellation of the funding of the Mexico-US border wall and the delay in stimulus checks; “I think it’s hypocritical of him to say that he cares about the people when he canceled the construction of the wall since that loses a bunch of Americans their jobs. Biden is full of broken promises.” Additionally, a sophomore criticized the reversal of the ban on Muslim-majority countries by saying that “It is dangerous to reverse it, especially during the ongoing pandemic.”

The anonymous survey was able to present different thoughts on Biden’s plans going forward, coming from both liberal and conservative views.

Since the start of President Biden’s presidency, the United States has been filled with a variety of different opinions about his new policies and plans. Some are ecstatic over the switch, while others are wishing that the election had gone differently. Here at The Meadows School, the institution fosters many young, bright minds that are forming their political affiliations. The student body is filled with individuals who are not only learning about their own viewpoints but also respecting the views of their peers. When talking to these students individually, there was a level of understanding of what the other side thinks despite their own passionate opinions. However, throughout their answers, a common thread was found. Every student ultimately just wants what’s best for our country, and on that note, we hope that the next four years will hopefully be smooth.

The Sentinel Team

Sneha Sridhar (senior editor) Macy Litt (senior editor) Natalie Vo (junior editor) Katherine Chau Gia Orsini Skye DeCicco Karolina Davis

Hello Meadows School, and welcome to 2021! All around the world countries are saying goodbye to 2020 as we move on. Although festivities were smaller due to COVID, the new year still carries high hopes. The festivities for 2020 were shockingly smaller than previous years with the streets of cities around the world left empty as people celebrated at home.

With a new year comes new possibilities, as various countries are working on a vaccine for COVID-19, and more people are respecting social distancing and following Covid restrictions. Currently there are three vaccines from three different companies.

Unfortunately, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is “The shot was 72% effective among clinical trial volunteers in the U.S., but 66% among those in Latin America, and just 57% among those in South Africa” according to STAT. In an ideal world, a pandemic vaccine could be delivered in a single shot, so supplies could be stretched to cover a lot of people. It would trigger no side effect more significant than a sore arm.

And it would be easy to ship and store.

But this is not the case for these vaccines which require two shots and are spread over longer amounts of time.

The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are the other two vaccines that are currently being produced and used unlike the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are made using messenger RNA, or mRNA, a technology that delivers a bit of genetic code to cells to make stronger immune responses. The J&J vaccine uses a viral vectored vaccine. This harmless adenovirus, which is a mix or common colds, has been engineered to carry the SARS-2 spike protein and to introduce it to the immune system, prompting it to recognize SARS-2 and protect against it. The Pfizer vaccine has been authorized for use for people aged 16+. Moderna’s has been cleared for use in people 18+, though the company is now testing its vaccine in 12- to 17-year-olds. J&J’s vaccine has been tested in people 18+, so for the time being, this vaccine won’t be available for use in children and teens under 18 either. This is a problem because kids and teens are the ones that don’t show symptoms but transferit around places.

“The Pfizer vaccine showed efficacy of 95% at preventing symptomatic Covid infection after two doses. The Moderna vaccine was 94.1% effective at preventing symptomatic Covid-19, after the second dose.” according to STAT. “The J&J is only 66% effective

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against the Coronavirus,” says STAT. All of these vaccines fall into the reactogenic category. This means that they have side-effects. Some of these side-effects include injection site pain, fatigue, headache, muscle pain, and joint pain. But others in the clinical trials have reported fever. Side effects are more common after the second dose; younger adults, who have more stronger immune systems, reported more side effects than older adults.

Moving on from Covid-19, let’s go across the globe to Australia. January 26 was the Australia day event, where many people would gather to sing, dance and have fun! Despite the fact that of the pandemic, it could mean fewer crowds at the event, this day is still very special to every Australian as a celebration of the nation.

Smaller events also occurred in cities like Melbourne, Sydney and Perth. Big parades were cancelled out of fear of another Coronavirus outbreak, but the people organized a march of 100 people, with a 10 meter distance between groups, to carryout the march while still abiding by the current restrictions.

Many other events were carried out to bring together artists, musicians and dancers to celebrate the Aboriginal music and culture. In Sydney, the Legendary singer Archie Roach performed an amazing concert at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl. “Places were hard to get ,but you could always watch on the big screen at the Federation Square!” someone said. Now for the biggest Invasion Day event was the march through Sydney. Although the march wasn’t abiding to the restrictions, the people were happily shouting, celebrating for their country, which was colonized for such a long time! “Unlike COVID, the virus of colonial racism that came to these lands in 1788 cannot be defeated by self-isolation or quarantine,” another person said.

Happy New Year Meadows School.

Have a great New Year and stay safe :)

(art by Katherine Chau)

are still having a season and I can still play with the team...I was really looking forward to going to state this year because would have been able to travel to Reno but since it’s not happening this year...I’m looking forward to spending time with my teammates.” The season may not be the same without traveling with the team and team practices. This shows that competing and winning was not the only important element in being in the team, traveling and being with

Falling Behind on Fall Sports

Season is delayed with COVID-19 Restrictions

By Katherine Chau (freshman)

This year, the fall sports season has been delayed due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Sports such as cheer, cross country, football, golf, soccer, tennis, and volleyball have been postponed until the winter instead of taking place in the fall.

Rather than having seasonal practices and games, socially distanced workouts and postponed practices, tournaments, and team gatherings have been quite successful for most athletes.

Junior cheer’s newly chosen captain, Alexanna Mouskondis, was especially disappointed to hear that cheer season was delayed. Mouskondis remarked, “Honestly, it’s super sad because we were supposed to have a game in the first week of school and it’s sad to miss out on because it’s part of the high school experience.” Alexanna was thrilled to be this year’s cheer captain and continue the legacy of past mentors and participated in cheering on the football team. Although given the current situation, the cheer team still continues to practice socially distant.

Senior football player Michael Corrigan felt optimistic and disappointed when finding out that the fall sports season had been postponed. He looked forward to playing with his friends and worked hard to prepare for the season.

Since the football season was delayed, it could affect recruiting for college football. He prepared all summer for this season in hopes to show his improvement. Michael commented, “I was optimistic about it, I was bummed at first and a little disappointed. Now I’m taking it as an extended off season to better myself… a big goal of mine is to play college football, every year I get exponentially better and so this year was a chance to send out my film of my best self.” Corrigan took this opportunity to better himself and prepare for the football season. He demonstrates his willingness to improve and his love for football.

The soccer season was also moved to the new year. Kevin Ding, a sophomore and on the soccer team, prepared during summer for this year’s season. Last year, he participated in the soccer team and had a great experience with it. His passion for football allowed him to work hard throughout the summer to improve himself for the soccer season this year. Kevin was quite enthusiastic about this year’s season. Kevin said, “I’m really disappointed that this season has been pushed back. I was really stoked to be with the other team members and play in the games. I really enjoyed playing with friends last year but overall it was

quite upsetting that this had to happen.

At least we still have a soccer season though.” Despite having the season pushed back, he still remains optimistic about the upcoming events in soccer.

The volleyball season was also pushed back to the Spring semester, and practices started January 22.

Freshmen Terra Rankin and Meher Dhaliwal were both disappointed to know that the season was put off until the new year. Both Terra and Meher were very excited to take part in the volleyball team this year as it is their first year to participate in the Meadows Upper School’s volleyball team.

Terra commented,“I was really hoping to improve my skills and work with teammates.” Rankin spent a substantial amount of her summer break honing her skills for volleyball. This shows her enjoyment for this sport and her determination in preparing to compete for the school team. Meher as well spent a part of her summer training for the upcoming volleyball season, Meher stated, “I wish that it hadn’t happened...I looked forward to working with other players and improving.” Being part of a volleyball team is important to communicate and bond with the members, although this year, the privilege was taken away, players continue to practice and compete. Both showed that they were passionate about this sport.

Cross country was also moved to later in the year. Terra Rankin who was going to participate in volleyball planned on taking cross country. Just like volleyball, she practiced for this as well, running a few times a day. She also looked forward to doing cross country.

Sophomore, Brinley Belding who practiced for much of the summer looked forward to participating in the tennis team, “I’m disappointed, we were gonna go to Reno this year…I looked forward to comradery with the teammates and the fun I have with the other guys.”

For much of the summer, he participated in practices at the school. Being with a team or a group of people allows students to feel more welcome and enjoy the sport with friends or teammates, because of the restrictions of the coronavirus, it has become more challenging for others like Brinley. Senior Alice Sun and the tennis team were to travel to Reno this year. Alice was disappointed that this was pushed back causing her to miss out on her trip to Reno. Despite having this happen, she still looks forward to playing and practicing with the tennis team. Sun stated, “I’m a little bit sad because I was looking forward to it in the first half of my senior year, but I’m still glad that we

other teammates was also what made it more fun and enjoyable.

Despite having the fall sports season delayed, the athletes all continue to work hard in improving themselves and preparing for their upcoming season. Most athletes are optimistic about the current situation and hope to have a smooth upcoming season.

Update (February 25): Both fall and spring sport seasons are happening after all. Stay tuned Mustangs!

The Crayon Initiative

The International Aid Club will be hosting The Meadows School’s very first crayon drive

By Macy Litt (senior)

From January 11th to the 29th, the International Aid club hosted The Meadows School’s very first crayon drive. This was a school-wide event, spanning from the beginning school all the way to the upper school. Donation boxes were available in the reception areas of the Upper, Middle, Lower, and Beginning Schools. All proceeds were donated to an organization called The Crayon Initiative.

The Crayon Initiative collects used and unwanted Crayons donated from homes, restaurants, schools and homes across the country, then melts them down and remanufactures them.

The recycled Crayons are distributed to art programs at children’s hospitals across the U.S., brightening the lives of young patients during their stay.

These Crayons give children at hospitals a creative outlet to express themselves and alleviate stress, while also reducing environmental waste. Since crayons contain a chemical called Petroleum in them, they are toxic to our environment and cannot biodegrade.

On average, over 60 million crayons are thrown away each year. Through the Crayon Initiative, the International Aid club will be contributing to the sustainability of our environment because the organization recycles and remodel the broken Crayons that would otherwise have been thrown away.

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For these reasons, the Crayon drive at TMS will be supporting both the children in hospitals and the environment.

Club leader Natalie Vo is excited to bring the school together to create a positive impact. When asking how Natalie involved the lower and beginning schools in her project, she responded, “The other club leaders and I created lesson plans to introduce the Crayon drive to younger kids.” The lesson plan involved reading Daywalt’s The Day The Crayons Quit, and discussing concepts such as recycling and sharing. The recordings of the lesson were sent to the lower and middle schools to get them excited for the Crayon drive. “The elementary school is even making it a bell competition” Natalie exclaimed. Witnessing TMS embrace the Crayon drive exemplifies their dedication to helping the community.

The International Aid Club is excited to see the school’s support in the Crayon Drive and wants to remind all students to donate. Donated Crayons can be used/broken which means that there is no need to buy new Crayons for this event.

Thank you for your participation!

Valentine Mishaps

Valentine’s Day activities gone wrong

By Skye DeCicco (freshman) Since Valentine’s Day has just passed, we asked TMS students to share stories of Valentine’s mishaps, some true, and some made up.

Can you guess which ones are true?

who it was. It was my best friend who had the worst handwriting in the world.

Her letters were the same as a history worksheet I did with her. Well, my hope for Valentine’s was crushed in a second.

Double Date Dinner

I was going on a double date on Valentine’s Day, but I told my parents that I was going out to eat and watch a movie with friends. I forgot money to pay for dinner, so my parents came back to the restaurant to give me some even though my friend offered to pay for me. We started to freak out because my parents would know that I lied to them and the night would be ruined.

So we quickly told our boyfriends to hide in the bathroom so my mom wouldn’t see them. I didn’t get caught.

Hopefully everyone had a great Valentine’s day!

Chocolate Catastrophe

My boyfriend gave me chocolates and they tasted gross, so I didn’t eat them. After school, I had a basketball game and brought them with me and gave them to my coach because he liked that kind of chocolate. When he went home with the heart shaped box of chocolates, his wife saw and got angry because she thought his secret lover gave it to him. Whoops.

Prank or Real Love

Hello, this is a story about me on Valentine’s Day last year. On February 14, the most heartful day of the year, I got a box of chocolates and a love letter from a random person that I did not know. I read the letter quietly.

“Hello, I know this is very weird to say but I love you! You are so beautiful!

Love, your secret lover.” My brain was working so hard to figure out this puzzle. Was there another clue I missed?

Who is this “Secret lover”? Why do they love me? How did they get my locker code? HOWWWW!!! My brain was just confused. Then I decided to open the box of chocolates. There was a note there, too. It said “You might be thinking ‘Who are you,’” but I had a feeling of who it was. I created a list of boys and girls that I was suspicious of.

Yes I said “girls” because maybe it was a prank or something. But then an hour later I got another letter, this time in a more sloppy handwriting. Now I knew

(art by Katherine Chau)

Insurrection at the Capitol Day of and What Came of it

Opinion by Gia Orsini (freshman)

Leading up to the insurrection at the Capitol building, Donald Trump’s supporters were fueled by several tweets telling them to “Be there, will be wild.” Donald Trump had a rally on January 6th at the East side of the Capitol where he said, “You can never take a country back with weakness, you must show strength.”

The reason that Donald Trump and his supporters were motivated to invade the Capitol was because they were upset by Congress’s certification validation of the election since there was speculation around the legitimacy of the electoral college votes. The goal of the rioters was to stop Congress from making these votes legitimate and ultimately keep Trump in office. If they believed that the election was rigged, and that Trump should have won, it would seems like an intrusion on the most important American value, the right to vote and be heard.

However, there is substantial evidence validating the fact that the election was fair. The rioters were upset because Trump told them that he was so sure that the election was rigged, creating a lot of distrust in our government.

Before Trump’s rally speech even ended, his followers started to stream towards the Capitol, becoming agitated and more violent as they got closer. Just a block before the Capitol, the Republican National Committee Building was hit by a pipe bomb from one of the rioters. 20 minutes after Trump’s speech was when all the rioters started to head towards the Capitol and at the same time, Congress had begun the joint session. At that point, there were only fences around the Capitol and a few guards, a feeble defense against the thousands of people to come. The rioters tore down the barricades with ease.

Many wonder why the guards seemed to react more peacefully towards these rioters versus the BLM protesters, especially since these rioters were trying to take over the nation’s Capitol. It is also argued by minorities and allies that had Photo Cred: Google Commons

Native Language Letter

I liked this boy and someone dared me to write a love letter in their native language that they can’t read, but my friend gave it to him. Nothing happened, I was just humiliated, but I don’t know if he ever liked me.

He probably thinks I’m weird though.

Double Date Dinner - True Chocolate Catastrophe True Native Language Letter - True Prank or Real Love - Fake

the Capitol rioters been Black, Muslim, or any minority, the outcome would have been a massacre. Primarily, the Capitol rioters were Caucasian and many belonged to white supremacy groups like the “Proud Boys.” It is important to note that during the 2016 election, 84% of police officers voted for Donald Trump (New York Times), which could have resulted in a more bias and peaceful response to the Capitol rioters. Contradictory to these rioters who have in the past said that they value the police force and their importance in society, they incited a physical engagement with police officer Brian Sicknick, resulting in his death due to severe injuries. Many other police officers were physically injured by the mob.

Members of Congress who were inside the Capitol, voting on the legitimacy of electoral college votes, were not aware of the angry mob outside. Just as Ted Cruz began arguing that the votes were illegitimate, Chief Steven Sund requested immediate back up from the D.C. National Guard. But as this cry for help was made, on the east side of the Capitol, officers removed a barricade to let the mob in after a “violent confrontation.” Around the same time, part of the mob got past the barricades on the west side while Congress continued the joint session. Two minutes later, the rioters got inside the building, just steps away from the joint session while Congress continued to debate. Soon, Congress took a recess, but rioters were chasing police officers inside the Capitol building and vandalizing its walls. It took three hours to announce that the building was secure.

The majority of Democrats and a few Republicans agree that Donald Trump incited the insurrection and impeached Donald Trump for a second time, but the Senate acquitted him again. This act of violence is an embarrassment to our country, but more importantly, it exposed an already ugly chasm of divide and misinformation.

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