November 2022

Goodbye Ms. Clay. Hello Uncertainty Adios Sra. Clay. Hola Incertidumbre

On the morning of Friday, October 7, 2022, Riverside students and faculty were surprised to hear that it would be Chaudra Clay’s last day serving as an assistant principal after a twelve year long career at Riverside. She is now principal of the School of Creative Studies.

This announcement shocked the Riverside community. When Hook staff went to talk with students and staff about Clay's departure, they were all eager to share their positive experiences.

“I am definitely going to miss seeing [Clay] in the hallways at Riverside for this new and exciting opportunity,” said English teacher Emily Ericson. “It truly is a testament to how hard she worked and what kind of a leader she is.”

“She’s one of the main reasons I am even at Riverside,” said EC teacher and head football coach Cory Lea. “She has been here forever and really epitomizes what a Pirate is, what our culture is, and what our school community is.”

As we interviewed numerous students and faculty members, everyone shared the same message: “We love you, Ms. Clay, and we will miss you.”

In her many years at Riverside, she has worked with thousands of students and hundreds of teachers. Her commitment and dedication to Riverside showed through her hard work planning prom, her patience with students and their issues, and positive attitude towards the community, regardless of the situation.

However, Clay’s departure means more than just losing an exceptional assistant principal. Clay is the last of the “pre-COVID” administrators, and without her, administration loses the extensive knowledge of the school that she brought to the leadership team.

As Riverside's longest serving administrator, students and staff feel anxious of the future without admins who have been committed to the school for many years. This year is an important year of rebuilding and restructuring in a post-COVID academic world, and with our last tie to the previous administration severed, our future looks more uncertain. Decisions made by administration like restricting lunch leave to the first 15 minutes of lunch, the brief removal of SMART lunch, and restricting entry to the building in the morning, leave both Riverside students and staff apprehensive. Policies like these need a deep understanding of our school, and no one knew this place better than Ms. Clay.

We will miss her generous dedication to planning school events like Senior Fest, Prom, and faculty holiday parties.

Even though we will miss Ms. Clay and her dedication to Riverside, we welcome new administrators, including interim assistant principal Elton O’Neal, who are willing to commit and support us, and are excited for her opportunity to lead her own school.

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obituary

Aliyah Thornhill died Monday, October 31, 2022 in a traffic accident. She was 14 years old.

Aliyah is survived by her father, Maurice Thornhill, and her mother, Ayonna Suttles, as well as her adult brothers, Marquise and Darnae Thornhill, her grandmothers, Rosemary Miller and Devora Favors, and a host of aunts, uncles, and cousins.

Aliyah attended Koufax Elementary School and Northwest Guilford Middle School in Greensboro, NC,

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before moving to Durham and attending Riverside. Here, she was an active member of the theater and orchestra programs, where she played Clara in the fall play, A Ghost for Rosanda, and was a violinist for the orchestra.

A song will be played in her honor during the December 2 orchestra concert and Ms. Taylor’s theater class is wearing pink ribbons in her honor. They plan to put a pink ribbon with her name on it on a tree in front of the school.

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Aliyah’s mother referred to her as a "triple threat," as a talented artist, actor, and musician. She had ambitions of becoming a fashion designer. By eight years old she was already drawing dresses and outfits.

“She had so many talents. She truly was a joy and will be dearly missed,” Suttles said.

Memorial donations can be made to a GoFundMe created by her neighbors. To visit the page, scan the QR code.

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Q&A with new assistant principal Darryl Bradshaw

By ElEna PacEs-WilEs

Where did you work before joining the Riverside administrative team?

I was at Brogden Middle school. I was the coordinator of the Innovative Partnership Grant for about 3 months. Before that I was a principal intern at Oak Grove Elementary school.

Why did you decide to work here?

A few reasons. One, Dr. WoodWeeks as a leader. She has a track record for turning schools around and developing a school culture that is academic based. She was also recommended by Dr. Logan, my principal when I was a social studies teacher.

What are your first impressions of our school?

I looked at the school as a diamond in the rough. Riverside has all of the components necessary to be a remarkable school. It's just putting things in the right place. Dr. Wood-Weeks said something this morning. She said “it's not just about having the right people on the bus, it's making sure they’re in the right seat. Because you can have like an all-star team but if they’re all not put in the right position or in the right place at the right time they’ re not gonna be as effective as they could be.”

And how do you plan to do that here?

My role here is less of an innovator. My role here is more of a facilitator. I take what my principal needs done and do it.

What is your favorite thing about working at Riverside?

I love the notion that every day builds on the next. Nothing here is separate from the end goal. From the first day of school to today, all of this is in a continuum. Everything is connected. It doesn't matter if your day was good or bad, it’s just how you put yourself in a position to be successful the next day.

What is the hardest aspect of the job?

Removing myself- having an idea on how I would like things to go, how I would like students to be and every day throwing it in the trash before I come in the building. You

have to be okay with allowing the environment to manifest success. If you have an idea of success coming into the building, you only look for one type of result. When you don't have an idea of success, you allow success to be dictated by the things that happen in the school. So really removing myself is very difficult.

I’ve heard that you’re passionate about restorative practices. How did that passion develop?

It’s personal. At 17, I knew I wouldn’t have to pay for college. I knew that my life was gonna be really really really good for the next couple of years because I had done enough work to make sure that from 17 on my life wouldn't be a problem.

But between the ages of 9 and 14, I was a very lost child.

I'm passionate about restorative practices because if I had not had educators and adults in my life that were more restorative than punitive I would not be here. I would not

have had the opportunity to earn a track scholarship in short hurdles or to be one of the top scholars in my class.

All of those things came because I was given the opportunity to figure it out. I was okay with success looking a way I never thought it could look. Most of the people in my life up until I moved to New York had an idea on what a student should look like, what a boy should be, and how I should talk. I was very hyper so I learned better when I was tapping or jumping. I was just seen as the kid who was out of control. They urged my mother to put me on medicine and that definitely would have changed my life because, like, I’m pretty dope. I like the way I am. But imagine if my brain’s chemistry was altered by a medicine when I was in fourth grade. Would I have the ability to articulate my critical thinking skills? Everything would have been completely different because

Most of our students don't have the emotional intelligence, and they also have pride that prevents them from being vulnerable. So I plan to be restorative by learning the nonverbal language by which they communicate.

Learning their language allows me to come back to the table with an understanding of what they are trying to communicate versus thinking they just want to be deviant or they want to be an anarchist and destroy everything. Even in those moments, they are communicating. I need to learn that language.

Last year, The Pirates’ Hook did an investigative project about Riverside’s bathrooms. As the head of infrastructure, how do you plan to address this disrepair?

The stall partitions are being re-nailed back to the ground. I plan to first work on the hardware issues. I want to make sure all of our toilets flush. And then start to develop different ways of ensuring our bathrooms are safer.

medicine for children who are hyper changes the chemistry in their brains so even when they are off the medicine and they are adults, the rewiring is done. I’m restorative because I was given the opportunity to find myself.

How do you plan to act on your passion for restorative practices at Riverside?

It’s difficult because restoration takes time. Human beings are social animals. It takes a lot of time to change the way students are incentivized, the way they communicate, and the way they see education. It's difficult to restore when you don't have time.

We don't have time. We don't have the time it takes to convince a child that the way they see the world is incorrect or the way they see the world is through a very narrow perspective. I have to learn the nonverbal language that students communicate with. At this age students are more inclined to communicate through behavior, not verbally, not words.

[Students] are not gonna tell you how they feel or what they want or how they need things to go or how they can feel more supported.

For example, during transitions we are looking to have teachers at the bathrooms making sure students are not in the bathrooms later into the passing bell, having the opportunity to grafiti or rip things off the walls. Surveillance of the bathroom is also a priority. The entrances are going to be closely guarded as well as making sure the hardware issues don't prolong. So when we have a toilet that’s not working, instead of allowing it to not work for three weeks, doing emergency orders to have it done overnight.

How does student safety play into your role in infrastructure?

Student safety at Riverside is a touchy topic because there are some students who feel liberty is the key to happiness and other kids who take liberty as an opportunity to destroy what we try to develop. So when looking at infrastructure and school safety, we must establish a safe perimeter for our students while giving the illusion of freedom. We have to make sure students are safe and we know everything that is happening while allowing our students to focus on their academics.

When you think of your hopes for Riverside, what is your most ambitious dream?

To materialize a plan that Dr. Wood-Weeks has for us.

"Every day builds on the next"

Assistant principal Darryl Bradshaw speaks with a student before first period. Bradshaw worked at Brogden Middle school before coming to Riverside.

•PHOTO BY TATE GASCH

"I’m restorative because I was given the opportunity to find myself."

Avid Returns to Riverside for the first time since 2010

ByPiPer Winton

At first glance, an AVID classroom looks similar to any other.

At the front of Julie-Lynn Borquin’s room there are math questions projected on the board. Posters hang on the walls. Students sit at desks.

But unlike many classrooms, hands are up. Kids ask questions. Pencils are moving. Everyone’s engaged.

There are no phones out, no interrupting, and no heads down. Could this really all be due to AVID?

Short for “Advanced Placement Via Individual Determination,” AVID is a college and career readiness program for students who aren’t taking honors-level classes that helps prepare them for advanced courses and later become the first members of their family to attend college.

According to avid.org almost 90% of students in AVID are underrepresented and almost 80% are from a background of low socioeconomic status nationwide. Students in AVID overcome their life obstacles and think critically and work with others in order to be successful and conquer whatever awaits them.

There are multiple ways for students to join Riverside’s AVID program. Families can learn about it in-person at Riverside events. Riverside teachers and counselors also visit local middle schools, and students’ counselors and teachers can recommend them.

Riverside had AVID over fifteen years ago, when Rebecca Stone became a social studies teacher. She saw amazing results in her AVID classes and knew she had to fight to keep it here.

In 2010 there was an economic downturn and Riverside didn’t have the funding to keep the program. Stone fought to bring it back for years.

Without AVID, teachers have had fewer opportunities to teach students skills they will use in everyday life or in college. And students had fewer resources and support systems to prepare them for college.

“Teachers have had to decide what the most necessary content is to teach students, but haven't been teaching them how to study and learn things by themselves,” said Stone.

In 2019 Stone and then-principal Tonya Williams discussed AVID returning, but their plans were

shut down by COVID-19 and the transition into virtual school.

AVID is now back, and there are currently 60 students enrolled in the program. Every year, 60 additional freshmen will join and stay in the program through all four years of high school.

AVID almost returned for the 21-22 school year but was postponed so teachers could receive more training. Some attended an in-person convention in Texas, and others did a hybrid online training program from home.

One of the main reasons AVID returned was Stone’s strong belief in the program.

community of like-minded peers is really important for students,” says Stone, “They are more likely to feel supported.”

For example, Stone says because of AVID students are more likely to speak up and say “I don’t understand what this teacher is talking about can we go over the notes together.”

The tools AVID uses to support students will help them in their other classes, too, both at Riverside and after high school.

the school day, which is something many students can't do”.

Riverside also tried a ninth grade academy during the 2018-19 school year that incorporated some of AVID’s practices.

“The reason they were choosing that opposed to AVID is because participating in the AVID program is an expensive endeavor.”

But she continued to advocate for AVID due to the fact that it is more widely available and easier to access.

students,” he said. “That is the whole purpose of the program”

Pre-calculus teacher Julie-Lynn Borquin thinks AVID will help students thrive in high school, too.

“We went to a training this summer and I've implemented a lot of the strategies they taught us to help the students work together and be able to help with their writing, even in math,” she said.

With time, Borquin thinks the many techniques she learned will help make these hopes and expectations a reality.

“I hope AVID will help students have more opportunities to attend college that maybe wouldn't have had that opportunity before,” she says.

Although the school year has just started and the overall impact of AVID for this year is yet to be discovered, teachers are already starting to see little bits and pieces of the program come together and benefit their students.

For example, as of Oct. 19 AVID students have received administrative discipline referrals, commonly called “write ups,” at a lower rate than the ninth grade class overall.

“This group of ninth graders have a little bit more of a home base,” said Stone. “They are really engaging in their work and their teachers are reporting these are really strong students.”

Nguyen and Borquin both agree.

“It’s going to help more people try more difficult classes and really thrive when they get there.”

The reason Stone is so passionate about AVID is because she knows just how much it can help the Riverside community.

“It will support kids who we know have the ability to go to college but don’t have the structural supports in place,” she said. “Having a

“Some of the skills students need in order to thrive in rigorous classes that colleges want to see on applications are skills that are normally not taught directly,” Stone said. “Students normally figure them out on their own or in middle or elementary school, but not everyone does. That is what AVID helps with.”

Stone does recognize there are other ways to prepare for college and careers.

“There are programs that exist outside of school, such as StudentU, to help students,” she said, “but the challenge is that they are outside

“I really hope that it gets more kids plugged into more classes that will help them see their full potential and actually meet their full potential,” Stone said. “I think sometimes it's even hard to know what your full potential is if you haven’t seen something that engages you in that way yet.”

Stone isn’t the only person at Riverside who believes in this program. Many other teachers are ecstatic to be involved in it and are confident that it will have a positive impact on the Riverside community.

“A lot of students have parents who want to help but don't know how,” said math teacher Jordan Nguyen. “[AVID] spoke to me because I am a first-generation teacher. My parents didn’t complete college…If I had the resources that we are trying to provide for some of these students there would have been many more doors that could have been opened.”

Nguyen said teachers understand the expectations colleges have, but don’t always have the tools to help students meet the criteria.

“AVID will help teachers help

“I've seen a dramatic attitude change,” said Nguyen. “They are engaged, they bring up different methods.I'll teach it one or two ways and a student will volunteer a different way,” he says.

“Because students are in this mindset that they are taking the AVID courses, they already have the mindset of wanting to be better and improve,” said Borquin. “They are open to trying, and improving with the new strategies, and just having that mindset has helped them be ready.”

Due to these beneficial changes, and even more changes to come later on, teachers are nothing but excited to be part of the AVID program and can’t wait to see the full impact it has on Riverside later in the year.

“Avid has a halo effect, it just lifts students up so they are more engaged and prepared,” said Nguyen.

“For our school having a culture that supports kids with intentional practices and teaches more skills will cause us to see better outcomes for students, not just for kids in AVID, but all students,” Stone said. “It’s monumental.”

“[AVID] is going to provide a more supportive learning environment,” Stone said.

• PHOTO BY TATE GASCH

“It will support kids who we know have the ability to go to college but don't have the structural supports in place.”

Rebecca Stone, AVID Coordinator

Julie-Lynn Bourquin teaches her second period math 1 AVID class. There are currently 60 freshmen enrolled in the AVID program, and more will join each year.

DPS updates dress code

By Sadie irBy, HannaH PoSner, rory o'Connor and nellie Purddy

Durham Public Schools adopted a more lenient dress code for the 2022-23 school year and beyond.

The updated dress code aims to create “equitable educational access,” avoid reinforcing stereotypes and reduce marginalization or oppression of any group.

More specifically, it allows students to wear fitted pants, spaghetti straps, crop tops, and other previously banned clothing.

Students consider costs, ethics of "fast fashion"

For many teens, clothes are a way to express themselves.

Riverside students wear lots of popular brands, such as Urban Outfitters, Nike, H&M, and Pacsun. But a lot of them don’t know how their clothes are produced.

Many popular teen clothing brands offer ‘trendy’ clothing at low prices. By doing this they produce billions of dollars in revenue, but it comes with consequences for the environment, customers, and the workers manufacturing these clothes.

Fast fashion is clothing that is driven by the latest trends from social media and celebrities. They are made with chemicals and toxins that are harmful to the human body and the environment. These clothes are also made with non-sustainable materials, and the workers hired to manufacture these clothes are often not paid a living wage and are forced into bad work environments.

“93% of brands surveyed by the Fashion Checker aren’t paying garment workers a living wage.” wrote the Fashion Checker in 2020.

Many Riverside students know the industry well.

“[Fast fashion is] clothing that’s made very cheaply and not ethically,” said freshman Gwyenth Bernhardt. “It’s harmful to the environment and worker's rights.”

“[It’s] fashion that comes and goes quickly,” said freshman Braum Slaughter.

“Things like Amazon and Target come to mind,” said sophomore Quinne Rizzuto.

Is it okay to promote fast fashion brands? Students offered mixed opinions.

“I don’t know,” said sophomore Jack Gilmore.

Rizzuto said no because behind a lot of them are child labor, poorly paid workers, and terrible working conditions.

One of the biggest issues with buying better and more responsibly is the fact that, as you point out, it is a luxury for many consumers,” said chief fashion critic Vanessa Friedman in her article titled “Can I Buy Fast Fashion and Not Feel Guilty?” for the New York Times.

Her article talks about how where you buy your clothing isn’t the only thing that affects

the environment. She explains that in order for us to make our clothing really sustainable we need to only buy clothes that we need and use for many years to come.

“I think that’s what a lot of people have to buy because they can’t afford sustainable clothing,” said Bernhardt. “It’s very expensive.”

“It's not super helpful to villainize fast fashion as a whole,” said Holsonback.

For some people, fast fashion is the only type of clothing they can afford. Because sustainable clothing brands use materials that are far better for the environment and generally pay their workers a more livable wage, their products cost more. Often a lot more. And people who can’t afford them are more likely to settle for fast fashion.

Teens are the biggest buyers in the fast fashion industry because they usually want the cheapest option available.

“It would be awesome if everyone had the resources to buy sustainable fashion but that's not realistic,” said Vert and Vogue Content Manager Elsa Holsonback.

People who have the means to purchase more expensive clothes should lean toward buying more sustainable clothing. Many brands that are even more expensive and popular are not sustainable; they just use more expensive materials and manufacture them in a non-environmentally friendly way.

Some teens who are aware of what fast fashion does to the environment, have found ways to either limit how much fast fashion they buy or have found equally inexpensive ways to buy sustainable clothing.

“I usually buy from Thredup,” said Bernha rdt.

Online websites like Thredup and Depop give teens an alternative to fast fashion at a cheaper price, they are online thrift stores where people can post clothes they want to get rid of for other people to buy. These websites are good for people that can’t afford sustainable clothes and also can’t get to a thrift store.

“I normally go thrifting,” said freshman Lucy Gray. “But if I’m going to buy from a brand I buy Madewell."

“I always try to shop local,” said Rizzuto. “Or thrift stores because thrift stores are the best.”

The old dress code does not allow cleavage to be revealed or skirts and shorts shorter than mid thigh. Pants “below waist level,” and “excessively tight or baggy,” items were also prohibited.

The revised dress code does state that students must wear “fabric covering all private parts of the body” that isn't “seethrough or mesh or transparent.” It also still prohibits clothing that is “reasonably likely to create a substantial and material disruption to the educational process” and retains the general rule prohibiting articles that “depict profanity, vulgarity, obscenity, or violence” and “Gang-Related Activity,” or that “are reasonably expected to intimidate other students.”

The dress code given to Riverside’s students and staff does not include a specific policy about hats and hoodies, but according to ABC 11 news, DPS Chief of Staff Tanya Giovanni says there is a rule in place. After meeting with school administrators Giovanni states that, “hats and hoodies will not be allowed,” in Durham Public Schools.

Riverside assistant prin cipal Jasmine McKoy says that this rule stands at Riverside. To her under standing, the reason why the dress code does not state this policy is because the DPS board of education didn’t include it.

McKoy said she also hasn’t seen any changes in the policy or enforce ment while she's been working here. Most students don’t choose to wear hats or hood ies so enforcement doesn't have to be super strict about it.

McKoy agrees with the current hat and hoodie policy.

“I feel like it should be enforced to ensure that we can identify students properly,” she said.

Identifying students is a key component of Riverside and all school’s campus security.

McKoy also said hats and hoodies could be a possible distraction to students.

The changes have been met with almost unanimous support from Riverside teachers and students.

Junior Azzuri Davis is relieved to have fewer rules to worry about when choosing an outfit.

“We don’t come to school to worry about our clothes,” she said. “We are here to do our work.”

Junior Divinity Gooch likes that the new rules are more inclusive. She said she was “dress coded” several times in middle school for unintentionally wearing shorts and shirts that were too revealing. She also said the rules about hairstyles are a welcome change.

“For people who look like me and have hair like I do, hairstyles are a form of self expression,” she said.

While students began the year with fewer restrictions on clothing and therefore fewer chances to be “dress coded,” many haven’t noticed the change.

Juniors Cristal Perada and Cameron Daye said they did not know DPS had updated it. However, once they read the new policy, they both though it was better than the old one.

Perada was happy to see that the dress code was for everyone, not just girls, who are usually the targets of these rules. Daye agreed with the rules for high schoolers but said they were too moderate for middle schoolers, who should not be allowed to wear such revealing clothing.

Social studies teacher Janet Heape is also excited about the new changes and freedom.

By iSaBelle aBadie

Wholesale of socks in Tehran, Iran. Fast fashion is clothing driven by the latest styles.

• PHOTO COURTESY OF ARPOURBEDin/WIKIMEDIA

By

Riverside adds stoplight to reduce traffic

the two groups released a joint statement.

“We are shocked and horrified that this could have happened,” the statement read. “This requires immediate action.”

168 hours later, a stoplight appeared 15 feet past the stop sign at the entrance of the school.

“After a brief, 20-minute red light on all sides to allow for pedestrian traffic the light will switch to yellow, allowing all new drivers to decide whether or not to go,” School

Crossing Guard Will Okun stated in an

assembly dedicated to communicating new stoplight rules.

“Of course, the parents will be prioritized, and the students who have been on campus for eight hours already will be left to argue over the right-ofway.”

slept through the entirety of Driver’s Ed. Apparently you are not supposed to stop on train tracks?”

Principal Gloria Woods-Weeks addressed the issue in minute 37 of her announcements Tuesday morning.

exit utilized by seniors, parents, disgruntled citizens confusing the school for a drive-thru line, teachers, lost dogs, buses, and freshmen searching for the pool on the roof.

“Hopefully people will stop driving through my dining room to avoid the traffic and get to Rose of Sharon,” a neighbor said. “I can’t afford to buy a new dining room table every day!”

“Like most of Riverside’s facilities, this light will be barely functional,” noted history teacher Anna Allman.

“I don’t know about this,” said newly licensed sophomore driver, Diana Braha. “I

“We hope that the Riverside student body sees this as an opportunity to grow, change, live, breathe, learn, roll, celebrate, rejoice, and overcome,” WoodsWeeks said. “Pirates, remember: keep the main thing the main thing. Your quote of the day is from Barack Obama: ‘Growing and changing is like school where we drive fast and slow and diversity.’”

Residents in Riverside’s vicinity have expressed enthusiasm about the stoplight.

Many of these households are located along Luther Road, the

Some students have expressed confusion after a brief malfunction resulted in the stoplight prototype flashing purple during peak traffic.

“I appreciate the school spirit, but I just want to get home before the sun sets,” said one student. “I might finally be able to make it to work on time. I’ve already been fired from five jobs this semester alone!”

In lieu of this new stoplight, Okun will be reassigned to modeling duties.

“Maybe this will work?” senior Kate Patillo said. “I’m going to miss seeing Dr. Okun in his cute little neon vest, though.”

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eden richman and tate GaSch

• GRAPHIC BY SADIE IRBY

Thanksgiving, Pirate Style

Thanksgiving is an American tradition, but at a school as diverse as Riverside the holiday is celebrated, or not celebrated, many different ways. Our newsroom is a cross-section of our school community, and to each member of our staff a Thanksgiving meal is a window into our families’ culture. Here are some of our favorite food traditions:

Thanksgiving isn’t that special for my family. All of us are from Brazil, a country where Thanksgiving is not celebrated.Though for many people Thanksgiving is a big holiday where extended families gather, for me, it’s a day for my direct family and I to eat some food. Sometimes it even feels a bit lonely, knowing all my friends are with their whole family, and I’m just having dinner with my parents and sister. Instead of having the classic Thanksgiving dinner, we mix some of those traditional dishes with some Brazilian dishes, and make our very own special meal. We eat ham, cornbread, mac and cheese and potatoes, but leave out turkey, gravy, and stuffing. Instead of turkey, we eat chicken or steak, much more common meats for Brazilians, and sometimes a black bean stew called“feijoada.” Drinks include anything from lemonade to a Brazilian soda called“Guarana.”The mix of cultures in our dinner is special to me, as

My family celebrates Thanksgiving in a very deep southern way, with jello salad.

We normally have both sweet and savory varieties at Thanksgiving. The sweeter variety has cream, cottage cheese, fruits, and a strong artificial flavoring, and the savory version has cottage cheese and nuts.

- Sadie Irby

Thanksgiving is very important to my family, because we’re Jewish and this is the only national holiday we get to celebrate with the rest of the country. We keep Kosher, so months in advance we have to try to track down a Kosher turkey. Most stores don’t carry Kosher meat, especially specialty items like a whole turkey, so sometimes we end up eating chicken instead. Another aspect of keeping Kosher is that we don’t mix meat and dairy, but my olive oil and margarine mashed potatoes taste just like the real stuff.

- Eden Richman

Every Thanksgiving my family makes the traditional thanksgiving meal. Turkey, collard greens, cornbread or stuffing, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes, rice, gravy, etc. My favorite dish is macaroni and cheese. It is very good and that is pretty much all I get when I go back for seconds, thirds, and even fourths. For the past

Into a bowl, I combine boiled macaroni noodles, milk, seasoning, lots of cheese, and a secret ingredient. I then pour the mixture into a large cooking dish and cover in more cheese and red pepper flakes. I let it cook in the

Thanksgiving feels like a get together for me and my family. My family eats tamales and pozole for the holiday. Tamales come from Mexico, where my parents were raised. My aunt also makes pozole, which is like soup. This soup contains chicken, cilantro and other vegetables. These foods mean family to me, which is very important to me because it reminds me of where I come from and where my family comes from.

- Jacqueline Larios-Dominguez

Ever since I can remember my sister and I have spent all of Thanksgiving day at my grandparents' house, heading over as early as possible to “help” them get ready.

Although we normally spend the day playing basketball in the yard or watching the food being made, we have always helped my grandma make rolls. We sit on the kitchen counter while my grandma puts them in the oven laughing with her and recalling memories from our childhood. After dinner we always walk around the neighborhood while my grandma sings “Swinging on a Star” by Bing Crosby.

Even as we get older, this has always stayed consistent, and I know that every year I can count on this special time with my grandma.

- Piper Winton

fewyearsIhavebeenmakingitusingmygrandma’srecipe.

Federal funding for free school lunch gets cut

By Giovanni varela Benitez

Students that don’t qualify for free or reduced lunch have to pay for school lunches again this year.

During COVID, schools around the country were giving free school lunches to students due to the pandemic. The federal government provided extra funding for schools to ensure families struggling financially would have access to meals at school, even if they had not qualified before.

Paying for lunch came back due to inflation, according to the Bloomberg News. Students can still get free or reduced-price lunch if they qualify based on family income and federal poverty guidelines.

Riverside’s lunch price this year is $3.75, and some students aren’t happy about it.

Senate seat up for grabs in upcoming election

Andrew Oakley, Junior

“It definitely makes me bring from home more,” said sophomore Atticus Kenya.

“I’m not a big fan of it because there are people who want lunch but they can't bring money to afford it,” said senior Daisy Eller.

Some students also said that they could get a much healthier lunch under $4 than Riverside’s options, but others said that they still enjoy their favorite foods that the cafeteria hands out during lunch, which include pizza, mashed potatoes,and mac and cheese.

Durham Public Schools still offers free breakfast to any student who wants it, regardless of family income. Several students believe these programs are important for the school and hope they continue to grow.

“It allows less fortunate students to get healthy and safe meals instead of nothing at all,” said junior Andrew Oakley.

“I've noticed that more students have started to bring their own lunch since they can't really afford it,” Said sophomore Jose Vargas-Baron Leon.

By Sadie allen

The North Carolina General Election is happening on November 8, 2022.

This election will determine who will take on NC specific positions like NC Supreme Court justices, NC Court of Appeals justices, NC congress, and Durham County Sheriff. The ballot also includes bigger positions like the United States Congressional representatives.

The general election also includes three bonds, two of which pertain to local education. Depending on how many people vote in favor of the bonds, this election will determine if DPS schools have enough funding to build new schools to improve older ones, like the “New Northern” being built on North Roxboro Road and local institutions like Durham Technical Community College, which plans to build new buildings to accommodate more students if the bond is passed.

Since 2017, Durham Public Schools (DPS) students sixteen years and older can register to vote as permitted by North Carolina law. This means Riverside students at least eighteen years of age can vote in the General Election. The registration deadline for this election was October 14.

Though the General election often does not receive the same attention as the presidential elections, it is still important because it determines who will represent North Carolina in the US Senate and House of Representatives. on a large scale and it establishes who makes decisions for people in Durham, NC, including Riverside students.

Why does this election matter locally?

The Nov. 8 election will also establish who makes decisions in Durham. Issues that people face in their day-to-day lives are often influenced as much, if not more, by local government than the state or federal levels. Things like struggling to find affordable housing, access to clean water, and healthcare are all directly impacted by the decisions of locally elected officials.

The People’s Alliance (PA) is a grassroots progessive organization that supports progressive political policies and candidates.

Sarah Hodges-Copple joined the PA board in January. She encourages students to participate in this election because of the important decisions being made.

“There's a lot of things related to education on the ballot,” Hodges-Copple says “There's a bond on the ballot that will decide whether Durham Public Schools gets the funding that they need to build new school buildings to improve current school buildings.

Every issue that comes up in our regular lives or things that we worry about, perhaps about our family's well being, often those can be tied to elected offices and decisions,” Hodges-Copple says. “People that we've elected are making decisions about what we experience every day.”

Education is not the only important matter this election season

“There are elections for the North Carolina Supreme Court, which has a role and saying whether legislature will follow through on providing [educational] funds, but also has say in other issues that I think might be on high schoolers minds like gun violence, reproductive rights, and discrimination,” Hodges-Copple says.

Recurring issues like NC gun laws, abortion rights, and health care could change because of the upcoming election, but new policies will depend on who wins.

For example, democratic U.S Senate candidate Cheri Beasley supports the Women’s Health Protection Act, an act that protects a woman's right to get an abortion regardless of circumstance. Republican candidate Ted Budd supports the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Act, which restricts late-term abortions.

Budd also believes in the unrestricted right to bear arms while Beasley supports limiting gun access.

Why does this election matter to the state of North Carolina?

Sheila Huggins is a former city council candidate. She ran in 2017 and came in second out of three in the primary but lost in the general election to Vernetta Allman, who now serves on the NC General Assembly. She has over 18 years of experience in local government.

Huggins is also the co-chair of The Friends of Durham, another local political action committee that works with local government offices to make them more representative and responsive to their people.

Many Riverside students will be graduating and going to college next year, and college can be expensive. The NC Student Assist Loan program provides fixed rate and fee free student loans. It is not a federal loan, meaning that it is exclusively for NC residents and other attending colleges/universities in NC. This program was established by the College Foundation.

The College Foundation is funded by the NC Department of Education, a state department NC congressional officials vote on for funding and policy. General elections like Nov. 8’s determine who these people are.

“Students in the past have gone on to college and need student loans,” Huggins says. “Now one of the things that we've seen in this administration is loan assistance.”

For students who do not plan to go to college, these elections still matter because they affect life after high school, too. Workforce development is an issue both of the U.S Senate Candidates are addressing.

“For students going to college, at some point they have to get a job and for students who say ‘No, I'm gonna get a skill and get a job’. Everybody has to get a job” Huggins says. “We have to make sure that we have strong economic policies out there and that they're good laws in place for people who are trying to get jobs.”

Regardless of political views or knowledge on local government, everyone who is eligible to vote should take advantage of the opportunity. In the 2018 General Election, 52.98% of eligible voters cast their ballot. This was an 8.96% increase from the 2014 general election. These candidates not only decide your future, but also know you better than a presidential candidate might.

“You don't see a bunch of ads on TV for your local candidates,” Huggins says. “However, the actual great local candidate is right here. These are people that you run into. They are living with the same potholes in the street.”

“It allows less fortunate students to get healthy and safe meals instead of nothing at all."

•PHOTOS BY SADIE ALLEN

Voting signs at the Durham County Library. General election voting is in full swing at numerous locations throughout Durham.

• PHOTOS BY TATE GASCH

Riverside and homecoming - it's complicated

COVID-19 redefines what the fall traditions look like at Riverside

By Lana McILvaIne

Each year, high schools across the country celebrate homecoming at a big football game during the fall. Schools select a homecoming court where “royalty” is celebrated from each grade during halftime. Homecoming is also associated with a school dance, but traditions vary from school to school.

Riverside has not had a traditional homecoming in two years. In fall 2020, in-person instruction was canceled because of COVID-19. In 2021, schools began to reopen and bring homecoming traditions back.

Riverside wasn’t the only school to bring back homecoming on a smaller scale last year. Senior Stacy Beugnot and sophomore Sarah Klaren both attend Northern High School and described what homecoming looked like at Northern High School.

“We didn’t have a homecoming last year,” Klaren said. Northern had a homecoming game and a homecoming court, but no homecoming dance.

Students wish that a homecoming dance would come back at Riverside.

“I think it would be fun, and I think that it’s something that most other schools do,” said Riverside sophomore Calista Robinson.

“Last year we did not have a homecoming dance just because there was a lot to work out with COVID rules and everything like that,” said social studies teacher Gabrielle Minnick. Minnick is also the teacher advisor for the Student Government Association.

“When COVID came and people aren’t gathering like that so much, it changes possibly what homecoming can look like,” said science teacher Tavia Webley.

There was a football game, homecoming court and a pep

rally, but some students felt that the spirit wasn’t there. Sophomore Quinne Rizzuto, former freshman Homecoming Royalty, said the football game was fine last year, but didn’t feel like enough.

“I wish that there would have been more. It was literally like every other football game, except I walked,” they said.

In the past, Riverside’s homecoming was a large event.

“There was a lot of team spirit, in that I know Student Government Association worked hard to make homecoming week something that was memorable,” said Webley. “With the different class competitions… we used to have floats… people would drive through with interesting things. So through the years it’s been scaled back.”

Anna Allman, a social studies teacher and former Riverside student, believes the pep rally is an important tradition and was glad to see it return this year.

“Traditionally Friday, lots of school spirit ending with the pep rally,” she said. “And then a bunch of kids go to the football game afterwards. Hopefully we win the football game, of course, we honor the homecoming court at halftime. Pre-Covid there was also a homecoming dance that was very well attended as well, and I’m hoping that will come back this year.”

Homecoming is led by the Student GovernmentAssociation and the dance is run by Destino Success.

“Homecoming consists of the pep rally, spirit week, the homecoming court organization, and the homecoming court at the game,” says Minnick.

Junior Arleth Martinez is the President of Destino Success, which sold t-shirts in the past.

“In previous years, we would fundraise by throwing pies in teachers’ faces,” said Martinez.

This year, the Student Government Association worked

to make homecoming better than last year and more like it used to be.

As a result of little planning time, there was no homecoming dance this year, but school pride came back in other ways. The school boasted a well-participated spirit week, a pep rally filled with activities, and a big homecoming game win over Chapel-Hill.

“I would definitely say that we had more people participating in our spirit days then we have had in years past,” Allman said. “And I think the pep rally was definitely better than it was in years past.”

Senior Collin Phillips, the 2022 homecoming King described what the game looked like this year.

“It was really fun; there was a huge student section,” Phillips said. “And we won big, so that was very different than last year.”

(Clockwise from top left) Riverside's student section cheers during the homecoming football game. Lenny the Pirate attends the Pep Rally. The dance team performs during the Pep Rally. The football team gathers during the homecoming game. The band performs during the Pep Rally.

“When COVID came and people aren’t gathering like that so much, it changes possibly what homecoming can look like.”

Tavia Webley, Science Teacher

A Special Lottery

By ToBias Rangel

On July 9, I won the lottery.

World Cup tickets are always in huge demand. The FIFA World Cup is the biggest sporting event in the world, happening once every four years for the world to watch.

This year, it will be held in Qatar, the smallest country to ever host the tournament. For comparison, Qatar is slightly smaller than Connecticut. Space in the country is extremely tight, which makes lodging hard to find. Hotels are sold out, cruise ships are being docked and used as hotels for the duration of the cup. New accomodations, a sewage system, and even some of the stadiums are still being built. Delays from the pandemic and supply chain shortages have left workers rushing to finish construction.

Some traveling fans are also opting to stay in neighboring countries, and take a plane or ferry ship to Qatar on matchday. Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Oman, and Kuwait will all have daily shuttle flights to fly fans into the country. There are upwards of 1.7 million people going to the World Cup, in a place with a population of 2.8 million (2020).

FIFA designed a process to facilitate selling tickets to fans all over the world. In February, FIFA held a random selection ticket lottery. Fans were later informed about the outcome of their ticket request. Depending on the result, fans had around a month to purhcase a ticket.

There were three possible outcomes: the chance to purhcase all the tickets you requested, a chance to buy some of the tickets, or no chance to purchase any tickets.

Immediately after the lottery there was a first come, first served ticket window for around a week, after which the window would close. A few weeks later, the lottery reopened and the whole preocess repeated. The second window closed August 16, and there's one final last-minute sale scheduled closer to the World Cup start.

On July 9, we were told that we were guaranteed a spot at the World Cup. After the second lottery, we received an email from FIFA. We had the opportunity to buy some of the tickets we requested. FIFA gave us 15 days to pay for the tickets. We were only eligible for games during the first week of the World Cup (November 20-26), but I was guaranteed tickets for the game I really wanted; watching my home country, Brazil, open their tournament on November 24 against Serbia, in the brand new, 80 thousand seat Lusail Iconic Stadium.

Going to a Brazil game is an honor for any Brazillian. That honor is multiplied when it is the World Cup, where Brazil is the most successful country in history of the tournament. As someone who has been following the sport for almost all my life, there is no event more important that I could go to.

The only other Brazil game I ever went to was a 2016 Copa America match against Haiti. That in itself was an honor, and it wasn't even the biggest soccer event of the year. There is nothing more important for a soccer fan than the World Cup. The whole experience is to be cherished, from my excitement of when the tickets were confirmed to the trip back home after the cup. It is an experience very few people can say they've had, and I could not be more excited for it.

I will also be watching Senegal vs. Netherlands on November 21, and attending the FIFA Fan Fest, a watch-party open for 40 thousand fans per game.

I am very fortunate to have the opportunity to be there, and am excited to be able to witness the biggest sporting event in the world. Stay tuned for more on-location coverage from the Pirates Hook!

Watch, Don't Listen

Lil Baby's World Cup song is lame

By Jacqueline laRios

The World Cup is one of the most popular international sporting events in the world.

Dominguez views. That’s a pretty weak response. “Waka Waka” got 3.2 billion. “We are one” got 847 million.

Before the event begins every four years, a song gets released to promote the World Cup.

Ricky Martin sang ¨La Copa Vida¨ in 1998 for the World Cup that took place in France. One of the most popular songs was ¨Waka Waka (It’s Time for Africa)¨ by Shakira and Freshlyground for World Cup 2010 in South Africa

Following that was Pitbull, Jennifer Lopez and Claudia Leittie released ¨We are One (Ole Ola)¨ for World Cup 2014 in Brazil.

All of these songs have one thing in common: they are the type of songs that you can get up and dance to. That’s the spirit of the World Cup

This year, Grammy Award-winning artist Lil baby composed the song for the World Cup 2022 in Qatar. On September 23 ¨The World is Yours to Take¨ was released and only got 861,000

Many things have contributed to the difference in these numbers. One is that this year's World Cup is in November and not June, like previous years. Students don't have school during the summer. It’s hot outside and most viewers pay attention to it because there isn't much going on in the world.

In November there’s a completely different vibe. It's colder, kids are in school and different holidays around the world are coming up that take the attention away from the World Cup.

Another thing that could be making a difference is that in the previous songs, there were multiple artists coming together to make one song. This year Lil Baby collaborated with Tears for Fears, a British pop band that's been around since 1981 ("hype" isn't the first word people think of when their music comes on). This might mean that he just isn't as recognizable as other artists. And it can't reach across certain

genres to drive big audiences like other musicians can.

The biggest thing that separates this year's song from the others is that it's genuinely not a good song. It doesn't fit the vibe or bring the hype necessary for it to be a successful World Cup song. Lil baby is a good rapper and an amazing artist. He has awards to prove it, but the song doesn't give much. No one’s going to turn it on at a party like the other ones. "I think I left all my feelings at home, it’s okay won't be using them anyways,¨ is one of the many boring lyrics. What’s that got to do with the Cup? This song left all its hype at home. Many lyrics are unrelated to the Cup, and even and the few that are, such as ¨losers just lose while winners get worshiped," are just boring.

This year´s song doesn't have the excitement that everyone associates with the event. Two weeks from now, I hope the games capture the spirt of the World Cup better than the song. This song is overall just not good.

THE PIRATES HOOK WORLD CUP BRACKET CHALLENGE

• GRAPHIC BY AMORY PÉREZ JUÁREZ

The Pirates Hook will be hosting a World Cup bracket challenge for students and faculty. Prizes will be awarded to the winner!

World Cup 2022

The FIFA World Cup is the biggest sporting event in the world. Every 4 years, people gather to watch 32 countries battle it out on the soccer field. Only one team will take home the prized trophy.

Will Mexico finally end the curse?

by William rodriguez-ayala

With the World Cup around the corner, Mexico’s chances to win the World Cup are not that high. Today I look at Mexico and see how they can get out of the Group Stage and potentially win the World Cup by looking at some positives, negatives and the squad.

Mexico is one of the most consistent teams to make the World Cup. They haven’t missed out on the World Cup since 1990, because of a scandal with overage players at a U20 World Cup. The main thing right now is that Mexico made the World Cup for the seventeenth time, and there are reasons to believe Mexico can and cannot win the Cup.

The positive for this Mexican National Team is the experience on the squad. With nine players who have been to the World Cup before and youth that can help us desperately, there’s enough talent and support on the roster to lead us out of the group stage and potentially end the Round of 16 pain that we Mexicans have had since 1986.

But there are a lot of negatives on this team, with them winning just two out of seven friendly matches and being inconsistent in the World Cup qualifiers. One of the main reasons for them being so inconsistent is coach “Tata” Mar-

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tino. The Mexican fans put most of the blame on Martino's terrible tactics and picking the wrong players. He didn’t pick players that are good at the moment. Instead, he picked his favorites, and in doing so left Mexican star Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez off the roster.

The roster hasn't come out officially, but I have an idea of what it’s going to look like. The team will consist of 26 players with 8 or 9 defenders, 6 midfielders, 8 attackers, and 3 goalkeepers.

Let’s look at the defenders which are, Hector Moreno, Johan Vasquez, Cesar Montes, Nestor Araujo, Jorge Sanchez, Gerado Artega, Jesus Angulo, Julian Araujo, and Kevin Alvarez.

This group is very solid, with a mixture of young and experienced players. The back line will be certain and composed against Poland, Saudi Arabia, and Argentina attacks.

Now let's look at the midfielders, which are Hector Herrea, Edson Alvarez, Andres Guardado, Erick Gutierrez, Carlos Rodriguez and Luis Chavez. Their success is going to depend on how the games go. This midfield can be great, but then sometimes they are not that great when they ball watch and don’t mark the areas they are supposed to and the team crumbles.

Last but not least, the attackers will consist of Hirving Lozano,

Diego Lainez, Alexis Vega, Henry Martin, Raul Jimenez, Santiago Gimenez, Uriel Antuna and Orbelin Pineda. They are solid when they pass the ball around the final third, but when they don’t they are non-existent.

Next, let’s look at the competition in Group C. People are saying it’s not a hard group, but I think they’re wrong because anything can happen in the World Cup. This group consists of Argentina, Poland and Saudi Arabia. Argentina is the toughest and most complete team in the Group. Messi & Co. hasn’t lost in 35 games and are favorites to win the World Cup. I believe it will be a hard match, but we will pull through.

Poland and Saudi Arabia are decent teams with good forwards that, if Mexico is not playing well, will strike. These are two winnable games for Mexico, but if they are not awake they will lose.

I believe that Mexico will get past the group stage and potentially go far in the World Cup if they don’t get in their heads too much. Fast starts will be key, because during many of the games leading up to the Cup they didn’t start playing until the second half.

I believe that this team is done hiding. Mexico will show up at the World Cup, surprise everybody and end the Round of 16 curse.

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Pirate women run, kick their way into the record books

Healy wins regionals, breaks five school records

By PiPer Winton and tate Gasch

When you think of Riverside’s most successful athletes, who pops into your head? If it’s a burly football player, tall, powerful volleyball player or soccer star, think again. A five-foot-five, 15-yearold belongs at the top of your list. With five school records, and two city-county championship cups, sophomore Elizabeth Healy is one of Riverside’s most successful athletes.

“The biggest key to success for me has been consistency,” Healy said. “Training throughout the summers and just never stopping.”

Cordell makes RHS football history

On Friday, September 9, sophomore Zoe Cordell made Riverside history.

With 18 seconds left and the Pirates leading Person High School 32-18, Cordell kicked a 25-yard field goal and became the first female to play for the school’s football team.

There was no kicker for the first football game of the season, forcing the team to resort to two-point conversions in lieu of kicking for an extra-point after touchdowns. During a conversation at a men’s soccer game between Riverside’s athletic director, Robert Duncan, and the school’s sports media president, Collin Phillips, the topic came up.

After returning to the stands of the game, Phillips mentioned it to some Riverside students and asked if anyone would be interested in trying out for the position.

A varsity soccer player, Cordell expressed interest. Phillips, pleasantly surprised by her ambition, immediately drove home to get a football.

Cordell, her friends, and Phillips took to the field after the game and practiced kicking field goals far after the stadium lights had been turned off. Senior soccer players Ian Langston and Reese Compton assisted in holding the football as she practiced.

Using their phone flashlights to light up the field, they took videos of her kicks to send to the head football coach.

Cordell attended her first practice eight days later.

“I had played [football] for fun,

but never, like competitively,” Cordell said. “I was nervous because it was basically like a tryout, but all the guys were really nice.”

As a sophomore, a club athlete, and an AP student, Cordell was already facing a busy year.

By the second home football game, Cordell was on the field in full uniform.

“I was really nervous but I knew those first-game jitters had to come eventually,” she said.

With the Pirates in the lead and the team threatening to score again, Cordell took to the 15 yard line.

“I honestly can’t remember anything besides talking to the holder,” she said. “He asked me if I was ready and I said yes. I guess I kicked it, and then everyone was around me. I felt really happy; the guys were all really supportive.”

While Cordell is Riverside’s first female student athlete to score for the varsity football team, she hopes she will not be the last.

“I didn’t realize it would be such a big deal until it happened. I was all over instagram,” she added, blushing.

Cordell appreciates the recognition but doesn’t want people to overlook the rest of the team.

“I did not win the game,” she said. “The boys played great, it was a team effort. I think that goes unrecognized because I had a three-point kick.”

Cordell tells any girl interested in playing football to give it a try.

"Even if you're scared," she said, "YOLO!"

growth and to place higher in the state. I’m excited to see Riverside’s running program develop.”

Of course, besides the team, the best part of Riverside’s cross country program is race day. When the time comes, Healy has already gone through her whole pre-race

the pigtails with a ribbon in each one. One purple and one white.”

Lastly, a key component to her pre-run routine are the warm up drills. High Knees, karaoke, open the gates - the stranger the name, the more essential they are to Healy's success.

“My key racing strategy right now is ‘you can’t win in the first mile, but you can lose in the first mile,'” she said.

That’s not the only strategy she uses while racing, though.

“The thing that is always running through my head while I race is ‘you gotta want it’,” Healy said. Clearly, she did want it.

Whether it's 30 degrees outside or 105, if there's rain, snow, or drought, you will always be able to see a blur of blonde braids and pink Brooks fly by.

There is no slowing down Elizabeth Healy.

Unlike her friends who went sightseeing and relaxing at the beach, Healy spent her summer running, whether she was in Durham, Alabama, or Iceland.

Healy admits that staying consistent isn’t always easy, but that doesn’t make it any less necessary. With her mom as her coach, she has constant reminders and motivation to help her stay on top of her runs and workouts.

“Especially in the summers when we are traveling it would be hard for me to stay consistent without the support of my family,” she said.

“My biggest inspiration is my older brother, Taylor,” she said. He encouraged her to start running and has been one of her biggest supporters since the beginning.

For Healy, family doesn't stop at just her siblings. The whole cross country team and coaching staff stand by her side, cheering her on at every race.

"Elizabeth has that internal drive and power that we look for in a runner, which makes it so easy to support her," said her coach Shaun Thompson.

Even though Healy feels ecstatic crossing the finish line in first, nothing puts a smile on her face like her team.

“My favorite moments are whenever we go out to dinner as a team after practice,” she said.

“I’m really looking forward to watching our team grow,” she said. “We have a lot of opportunities for

Elizabeth Healy, Sophomore

routine and is completely prepared to run her heart out.

“The night before I always eat pasta,” she said. “Any type works, just nothing with too much dairy.”

When she wakes up the next morning there are a few more steps in order to be ready for her race.

“Doing my hair gets me most into the race mode,” Healy said. “I do two pigtails and then braid

“As soon as I turned into the home stretch, I saw the clock and I knew I was pretty close so I finished hard,” she said. “I was pretty excited but the finish line was just all these girls throwing up so…”

Healy did finish strong and ran about a 6:15 pace, making a new personal record of 18:47.

She wants others to know that there’s nothing magical about her consistency, support and routines; anyone can be successful.

“I think people should just know if you work hard for something it can come true,” Healy said.

By PiPer Winton and tate Gasch

Zoe Cordell smiles before the Homecoming football game.

• PHOTO BY TATE GASCH

Healy braiding hair before the City County Championship. She led her team to their second win in two years.

•

PHOTO BY TATE GASCH

"The thing that is always running through my head during the race is: 'you gotta want it.'"

Winter Sports Preview

Men’s Basketball

By Collin PhilliPs

Men’s basketball started off strong last season before struggling in the second half of conference play.

They expect four juniors to return who accounted for 56% of the team’s scoring last year. However, they lost last year’s leading scorer, senior Jared Merchant, who now plays basketball for Methodist University.

This season, the Pirates' first three games come against teams with a combined record of 6718 last year, so getting one win would be considered a success. They follow a tough start with games against DA, Green Hope, Orange, and Green Level.

The team will likely turn to last year’s reserve point guard Flash Hairston or assist leader Xavier McQueen to replace Jared Merchant as point guard. Junior Nnamdi Ogboko and his younger brother Ekene' are expected to man the center position after the departure of previous senior Javion Johnson.

By Collin PhilliPs

Women’s Basketball Winter Track

By Collin PhilliPs

Pirate Athletics Media

Building community through sports

By Collin PhilliPs

There is nothing I love more than a silent gym.

Men's & Womens's Home Bball Games:

Following a successful Cross Country season, many runners will look to replicate that success in Winter Track.

Last year, the Pirates saw plenty of success in the 4x800 meters relayrace. The men’s 4x800 relay team lost three seniors; Henry Hasse, Flynn Meadows, and Winston Gasch, all three of which are running for their respective colleges. The 4x800 team is expected to feature Conner Tyrell, Phillip Blum, and freshman Justin Lawrence, but expect the team to fluctuate throughout the season due to the number of talented runners available. The women’s 4x800 team returns Elizabeth Healy, Tate Gasch, and Ellie Deskins, but lost Anika Rayburn, who is expected to be replaced by Lucy Morris.

Swimming and Diving

By isaBelle aBadie

Last season, six Riverside athletes went to states. They expect to return four of them.

Elodie Mitchell, Asa Grenard, Otto Schonwalder, and Vivian Brennan placed in the top 25 in their events. The men finished fourteenth in the men’s medley and Elodie Mitchell finished eighteenth in the 200 freestyle.

This year, new coach Brooke Bauer hopes to bring more structure to the team and help each swimmer achieve a new PR.

Last season, women’s basketball finished fifth in the conference, and were led by all-conference senior Jenny Gomez Hernandez. Finishing 8-16, the Pirates had two pairs of wins against Northern and Enloe, plus a big win over East Chapel Hill. They will look to replicate some of that late-season success, back with Coach DeEarnest McLemore

This year, the team doesn’t expect to have any seniors, so they will have to rely on multiple underclassmen to step up. The Pirates open their season at home against Cleveland, and watch for it to be a potentially close game. They follow that with a few opponents that return plenty of experience before a number of good games in December vs Green Hope, Northern, South Granville, and Fuquay Varina.

Wrestling

By Collin PhilliPs

Wrestling anticipates a big season this year after ‘22 graduate Luke Fogleman won conferenceWith the departure of Fogleman, who now wrestles for Grand View State University, seniors Wesley Shepard and Valerio Luftig, along with junior Daniel Dickerson , son of former Riverside wrestling coach Brock Dickerson, will have to step up for the Pirates.

Riverside hosts two big tournaments, one over Thanksgiving weekend and the Silver Fox tournament later on in the season. With the coaching staff and five seniors returning, look for wrestling to find quite a bit of success.

Setting up the gym during fourth period before a big game, anticipating the excitement that is to come. The issue was, in 2020, it stayed silent. Fans, including parents, were not allowed to attend games.

I certainly didn’t enjoy this silence. I knew I wanted to build a student section, but as a sophomore in the middle of a pandemic with no foreseeable ending at the time, It didn’t seem very possible during my time at Riverside.

One day before the Hillside game, Coach Strickland told me that he wanted to buy a radio station to broadcast our basketball games. To be completely honest, it was all I could do not to laugh. I responded something along the lines of “That would’ve been a great idea twenty years ago. Uunfortunately, most of our student body probably doesn’t know what a radio is.”

I thought about it more during the game and proposed that we use social media to provide live coverage throughout the 2021-22 basketball season. This was the plan going into our interest meeting. I talked about my vision for Pirate Athletics Media, Strickland talked some, and he said something about covering all sports live. This was never my intention, but I was willing to give it a try.

We started with just game coverage for football, soccer, and volleyball. While we had hoped to expand to other sports, and did this year, we simply didn’t have enough people at the time. We broke out some new ideas for basketball season, including themes and halftime games. The spring season presented some challenges. All of our members played sports, so 90% of the spring coverage was done by myself or Ben Rizzuto. I knew that wasn’t a sustainable plan, so we recruited new members for this year.

Almost everything we have implemented up to this point comes from Coach Strickland. Multiple times per week I receive a text saying “swing by my room I have an idea.” That’s where most things start.

Once in a while, I’ll go to him with some crazy idea of my own, like a 3v3 basketball tournament that the whole school can attend at lunch, and somehow convince him and Coach Duncan to convince the administration that it is a good idea. Everything we do boils down to my mission behind starting this: Build community through sports.

That’s why I love our football student section. Everyone is crowded in chanting and supporting Riverside. My hope is that we can continue to build that into basketball season and beyond.

I can’t wait to see what the future holds for Pirate Athletics Media. As Coach Strickland always says, “why worry about being the best in Durham? We want to be the best in the state.”

That is my hope for the future of Riverside and Pirate Athletics Media: To be known for school spirit and social media presence, and to stand out among all other schools, every season.

Over the summer and as the year began, I selected two juniors to be co-vice presidents and take over when I graduate. Tate Gasch is the co-president of SGA and certainly has the most Pirate Pride at Riverside. She’ll continue to get people excited about events and keep our school spirit up.

Lauren Powrie creates over half of the content you see on the account, so it only makes sense that she’ll run the content and posts side of things next year. She’ll continue to implement her own ideas and sense of humor.

Two years later, the gym is far from silent on gameday and the stands are full for every football game.I'm looking forward to building our student section for basketball games this season and sustaining the school spirit that was seen on campus this fall.

Xavier McQueen finesses his way through the defense for a layup.

Last year's Riverside swim team at the 2021 regional swim meet.

• PHOTO BY BENJAMIN MEGLIN

RHS runners compete in 2022.

• PHOTO FROM RHS TRACK

Dear Lenny,

How do I know if my relationship is toxic? If it is, what do I do?

Sincerely, Anxious

You might be shocked to know this, but my entire long pirate life I’ve been a single man, and never settled down with one gal, so I don’t feel like I have the expertise to answer this question. However, my good friend Mr. Thompson has, and is happy to offer advice:

If you aren’t able to spend time with your friends, or do the things you previously enjoyed, or always feel anxious because you need to check each of your actions with your partner, those are clear signs that your relationship is toxic. A healthy relationship is one in which both partners are supported and grow. In a healthy relationship, partners encourage each other in their individual pathways as well as building things

Dear

Lenny,

Pleasehelpme!I'msuperstressedout

tryingtobalanceeverythingwithcollege apps, schoolwork, and life. Do you have any advice, so I don't lose my mind?

Sincerely, Stressed

one partner exerts control and directs the actions of another. It could be seemingly innocuous, like always choosing where to eat lunch or who you eat lunch with regard less of what you want to do. It could be as severe as dictating who you can be friends with and how you spend all your time, or requiring constant check-ins.

Your partner should appreciate and like you for who you are, not who they make you into.

In my experience, it is hard to identify your own relationship as toxic because your partner may have warped what you view as “normal” and healthy. Often a toxic partner tries to drive a wedge between you and your friends or support group. Luckily, it is your friends who will notice first that your relationship is toxic. They notice that you are not your usual self. They notice that you pull back from them more instead of finding a balance. They notice that you always seem restless about your partner and what they may think of you.

If you need help or think there is a problem, reach out to a trusted friend for help setting boundaries with your partner, or separating entirely if that is going to be what is best for you. It can be very difficult to remove yourself, especially if your toxic partner has already pushed your friends away. But your friends will be there for you if you need them because they want what’s best for you, and you will be better in the long run without that toxic partner.

Good Luck, Lenny

Dear Stressed,

I reached out to Ms. Schmaltz, our college advisor who was happy to answer your question:

A LOT is being asked of you right now! It’s easy to feel overwhelmed, but it’s im portant that you don’t let it keep you from making progress.

My advice? Break everything down into small, attainable goals; take things one at a time. It’s important to keep your priorities straight during this time. If an important deadline is coming up (like the early action for your dream school), make that your priority! You can always catch up on your work or personal lives right after.

Staying organized (using a google sheet or doc to track as signments and deadlines) helps you focus on tasks rather than having them all float around in your brain at once!

Deep breaths, Lenny

Great Question! I’ve reached out to my dear friend, who is the communications director of Ipas, a global non-profit organization for reproductive justice, to provide you with some information:

Abstinence is one way to protect yourself from pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) but not the only way. Comprehensive sex education should include information about puberty and reproduction, abstinence, contraception and condoms, relationships, sexual violence prevention, body image, gender identity and sexual orientation.

But let me get back to your question. There are lots of kinds of birth control, and some work better than others:

Condoms plus another form of birth control is the best way to avoid pregancy and prevent sexually transmitted infections

Implants: 99% effective. Inserted in arm and last approximately five years.

IUD: 99% effective. Tiny device inserted into uterus and lasts about 12 years.

Pills: 93% effective. Taken once a day

*effectiveness is reliant on consistent adherence to schedule and medication interactions. 93% effective. Small flexible ring fitted in the vagina. Replaced monthly. 93% effective. Worn on the body and changed weekly. 96% effective.

Administered every three

Consult with your doctor to find the best fit for you. Find what’s right for you, and be safe!

Safety first, Lenny

Dear Lenny, I have nothing to watch on TV! What are your recom- mendations?

Sincerely, Bored

Dear Bored,

It's good to immerse yourself in what interests you, and for me, that's myself, so I've got a vast collection of treasures you should look into. Anything involving Pirates will always be a reliable choice. My favorite movie franchise of all time is Pirates of the Caribbean. This series was so good… I was hooked! I’d also suggest Disney's animated “Peter Pan,” though I was a little hurt that the true hero, Captain Hook, was portrayed as a villain. I guess the pirate lifestyle is a little too much for wimps like Wendy and her brothers. I hope you enjoy these suggestions, though you’re really required to. After all, you are a Pirate!

Have fun! Lenny

Do you want to see your question answered in the next issue of The Pirates' Hook? Fill out the anonymous form by scanning the QR code or visiting: bit.ly/dearlenny

Dear Lenny, We are only taught abstinence in health class, what are other methods of contraception?

Sincerely, Protected