The Standard - Issue 4 - 2018/19

the Standard

The American School in London | One Waverley Place | London NW8 0NP U.K. | standard.asl.org

News 3-6

A global game

With the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria, a power vacuum has increased Russia’s presence in Syria, yet conversations regarding this conflict remain limited.

PAGE 4-5

Opinions 7-11

Editorial: A need to depolarize Evident by the government shutdown, contentious immigration policies and gun laws, the need to depolarize the political environment in the U.S. is greater than ever.

PAGE 7

Features 12-21 Joining the team: Sandra Madej

The security team welcomes Sandra Madej, ASL’s first female security guard who owns her own business and also works as a personal trainer.

PAGE 20

Culture 22-24 Behind the cost of winter jackets

Spending on costly winterwear has vast socioeconomic impacts that highlight wealth gaps and question the ethics of owning animal-based products.

PAGE 22

Sports 25-28

Rising water polo champion Since she was 8-years-old, Macey O’Malia (’21) has played water polo. Her rigorous practice schedule has qualified her for U.K.’s national academy.

collide When orange and green collide The competition between ASL and ACS Cobham athletics extends past sport itself, and instead revolves around the historical and contemporary relationship of the schools.

Lily Whitman | Sports Editor: Print

Quinn Whitman | Media Director

Story on pages 26-27

PAGE 25

January/February 2019 | Volume 44, Issue 4

Online

FEATURES

• Designated grade areas underscore exclusion • Tracing the rise of 23andMe • Taking on and maintaining new year’s resolutions

NEWS

• Recent Brexit votes pose more questions than answers for fate of the U.K. • Aequitas Week 2019 spurs social justice oriented discussions

PHOTO BY ALEXANDRA GERS

Students in the Courage to Act workshop, lead by Isabel Rosen (’19), Isabella Mattera (’20) and Maya Bajpai (’20), learned about the complexities of consent first in groups separated by gender, but then came together to hear a new perspective. Aequitas Day was held over two days this year.

PHOTO BY ALEXANDRA GERS

As the deadline for when most new year’s resolutions fail approaches, students and teachers explain how they stick to theirs.

Read online exclusive content... standard.asl.org CULTURE

• Netflix’s Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, an attempt at innovation or a fail?

• Les LALANNE: Where Nature Meets Home

PHOTO BY MADDY WHITMAN

LES LALANNE, the most recent exhibition at the Ben Brown Fine Arts gallery feels like stepping straight into Alice in Wonderland.

The exhibition, which ends on February 15, juxtaposes natural details with the home.

SPORTS

• Anna Podurgiel (’20) swims toward international success

OPINIONS • Why we need to stop telling girls what to wear • News outlets need to cover more world news Subscribe to our monthly newsletter at standard.asl.org.

The first issue will be distributed to inboxes Monday, February 11. @TheStandardASL

2 Online

The Standard

Nearly 285,000 French citizens took to the streets in November to protest against a rise in petrol and diesel taxes. The protets are ongoing.

LEA GEORGE

NEWS EDITOR: PRINT Protest is a word that is not foreign to the French. Having faced one of the most historically known revolutions, France is a country that often confronts internal conflict. It has recently experienced another revolution, and has been hit with thousands of strikes and protests fought by the people.

The Gilets Jaunes (translated from French to mean the yellow vests) protests started in early November with a group of French citizens protesting against an planned rise in the taxing of petrol and diesel. The origin of the phrase, the yellow vests, is due to the fact that by the French law, all citizens who own a car must keep a yellow fluorescent vest in their vehicle.

The movement quickly grew through online petitions and the coordination and labor unions.

Since its start, the movement has become national, and on Saturday November 17, a national protest day occurred; the French interior ministry estimated that almost 285,000 citizens took to the streets.

Although there has been action and steps taken to ease tensions by the government and French President Emmanuel Macron such as the national increase of minimum wage, and the withdrawal of the fuel taxes, protests have not reduced, and have grown into more than just a fight against taxes, and grown to a bigger social movement.

Describing her support and agreement with the yellow vests protests, World Languages and Culture Teacher Ghislaine Rose said, “I believe that everybody has a voice, everybody has a right to be heard and has a right to demonstrate for what they believe in.”

Having read about and researched the protests, Rose is in agreement with the protestors.“It would make a big difference if they were heard, and if some of their requests were endorsed,” she said.

January/February 2019

However, what she finds interesting about the yellow vests protests is that along with not being affiliated with one political group, it has no longer remained simply a protest regarding taxes, but rather stand to tackle a feeling of social exclusion from the decreasing middle class. “It’s the idea of feeling that you matter as an individual,” she said.

Cameron Moghadam (’19), who was in Paris for a Model United Nations conference when the protests had just begun, does not

of the yellow vests, but does see why it is occurring. Both de Taurines and Moghadam believe that the protestors have effectively conveyed their points to the French government. “The president stepping back not only for the fuel taxes but also for multiple other taxes kind of shows that they got their point across,” Gally de Taurines said.

Gally de Taurines was also in France at the start of the protests, and described that he at first did not take it seriously due to the lack of people he s a w on the streets. However, seeing what the protests

ILLUSTRATION BY LEA GEORGE

agree with the reasoning behind the yellow vests protests. However, he does believe that Macron’s implementation of the tax in the first place was a misjudged risk. “I completely disagreed with the idea of the tax in the first place, just that was meant to balance it [the taxes]out across all classes, but of course that’s going to hurt the lower class more,” he said.

Similarly to Rose, Moghadam believes that another reason for the uproar of the yellow vests is this growing sentiment of social exclusion from society of the working class. “I think the core issue is lack of government support for the lower class,” he said.

Like Moghadam, Jean Gally de Taurines (’20), is against the manifestation

have grown to become, and having a grandfather and step grandmother who live in France that have been affected by the protests, he now realizes the “severity” of the protests.

Regarding the increase in violence of the protests, Gally de Taurines blames individual anarchists. “There have been multiple cases during protests where people have taken it too far just because they can, and they have this concept of ‘oh, I can’t be seen because I’m part of this protest’,” he said.

Furthermore, Moghadam believes that the increase of violence in the protests stems from a mixture of factors. “It was just a combination of issues that were racked up over the years, and I think it’s just that frustration eventually

led to all the violence. I think the protestors thought that this was their opportunity to make their voices heard,” he said.

Rose does not believe that the violence shown on media platforms is an accurate representation of the movement, and believes that “people that are actually at the core of the yellow vests do not advocate violence.” She feels that although there have been a number of protestors who have turned to methods of violence to communicate their point, they are simply a minority in the protest.

“I think [the yellow vests in general] are trying to make a good point in trying to separate those people that are violent, and those that are truly trying to be pacifists,” she said.

Both Moghadam and Rose are satisfied with Macron’s response. Rose especially appreciates Macron’s “willingness” to hear what the people of France want to see from their government. She believes, however, that more is to be done.

“I think the idea of listening to people, having an organized platform where actually people [can] get involved, the government also making a point of listening to the requests, and being upfront with what can be done short term and longer term,” she said.

Moghadam believes that in order to avoid such large scale manifestations in the future, the French government must increase their transparency towards their people, and keep in mind how they view France.

Furthermore, de Taurines believes that by having withdrawn the proposed fuel tax, Macron has restricted his ability to implement future taxes that he deems it to be necessary, as the people have seen their ability to push the government to remove them. Therefore, Gally de Taurines advises that in order to implement any future taxes and avoid conflicts like the yellow vests protests, Macron must make sure that the majority of the French are in support of this. “I think in order to get the majority of the French people behind him he’s going to have to, if he wants to add taxes, tax the richer [people],” he said.

Rose strongly believes that the social inclusion of all citizens in a country is crucial for the benefit of all. “I believe that as a government, regardless of the government, you are there to represent the interest of the people of your country. I think everyone should be included, and that should be possible,” she said.

She anticipates the French government’s ability to work towards a society which achieves such standards. “I look forward to seeing something like that [collaboration between the public and the government] happening. Maybe not overnight, but every country and government [hopefully] moving towards that goal.”

News

A yellow revolution

PHOTO FROM THE HUFFINGTON POST

PHOTO FROM THE ECONOMIST

PHOTO FROM BBC NEWS

PHOTO FROM BBC NEWS

PHOTO FROM BBC NEWS

French protestors take a stand against the French government’s decision to increase tax on petrol and diesel.

News 3

A global game SOPHIE ASHLEY | LEAD NEWS EDITOR

ALEXANDRA GERS | DEPUTY-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: ONLINE

On December 19, President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. military would withdraw its troops from Syria, the process of which began on January 10. A surprise to its allies, the withdrawal of U.S. troops has created a power vacuum resulting in increased presence from Russia, a key supporter of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.

According to British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, he attributes Russia’s presence and support of Assad as the main reason why Assad will remain in power for “quite a while.” Despite past devastations and recent developments of the Syrian Civil War, the question still remains: Why are people no longer talking about it?

4 News

The Standard

Currently in its eighth year of conflict, the Syrian Civil War has persisted with direct international involvement from global superpowers such as Russia, the U.S. and Iran. According to the U.N., the conflict has caused the displacement of over 11 million people both within Syria and around the world.

In 2011, a series of revolutionary, anti-government movements swept through Middle Eastern countries, later becoming known colloquially as the Arab Spring. Sarah El Hadj (’09), half Syrian by birth, recalls this series of protests as the catalyst for her involvement in the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and volunteer work.

El Hadj believes that the political events, or more importantly the lack thereof, following the Arab Spring in

and change the government’.”

Social Studies Teacher Terry Gladis believes that there is one main reason why the Syrian Civil War is still going on: Russia’s allied status with and assistance of Assad. “Assad is more untouchable than Trump.

Think about it, who’s on the U.N. security council? Russia. Russia’s going to roadblock everything that the U.N. tries to do, just because they’re invested in Syria,” he said.

In addition to international interference, El Hadj believes that the turmoil has allowed for terrorist groups, such as ISIS, to move into the region, thereby intensifying conflict between the government and the Free Syrian Army, a group founded by officers of the Syrian Armed Forces aiming to overthrow the government.

leadership so there’s a vacuum,” he said. “Right now, China’s trying to fill that vacuum, Russia’s trying to fill that vacuum, and the way that Russia’s trying to fill that vacuum is spheres of influences– dipping their fingers in the Middle East, interfering in elections in the U.S. etc.”

According to the Associated Press, both U.N. and Syrian estimates believe that it will take anywhere from $250 to $400 billion to rebuild the country.

However, Gladis said, “The U.N. is refusing to send a penny until Assad engages in the U.N. peace process, but I don’t think that will materialize.”

Furthermore, Gladis believes that this power vacuum has only been exacerbated and further complicated by Trump’s plan to withdraw troops from the area.

war would last as long as it has. “At such a young age I thought I was going to be in Syria for the rest of my life [and] graduate there,” she said. “The fact that [the conflict is] still going on, for almost seven years now, is something that has just shocked everyone in Syria and it’s just caused such crazy changes in our lives.”

Although the conflict continues, Marouf no longer hears her home country talked about nearly as often as she used to, even with her own friends. She believes this decrease in discussion is due to the length of time the conflict has been going on. “People tend to focus on more relevant countries,” she said. “Since this has been going on for seven years, people don’t think it’s as relevant as before, but it’s because it doesn’t affect them.”

Gladis agrees and feels that the con-

refugee stigma,” she said. “People get immigrant and refugee confused. An immigrant is just leaving their home when a refugee needs to leave their home because of a conflict.”

Marouf noticed that the many misconstrued ideas of her home country and its conflicts stem from how it is portrayed in Western press. “People just see what’s on the headlines and they believe everything they see,” she said. “There is so much more to the Syrian situation.

But when you look up Syria, you no longer see what it was before, you just see pictures of how it’s damaged.”

El Hadj believes that the best way to help is by connecting with local Syrian refugees. She runs an appeal called “Sing for Syria” which raises money for the IRC Syria appeal, and teaches music and

“WHEN YOU LOOK UP SYRIA, YOU NO LONGER SEE WHAT IT WAS BEFORE, YOU JUST SEE PICTURES OF HOW IT’S DAMAGED.” MONA MAROUF (’21) Syria are the main reason as to why the conflict is still going on.

Because of Syria’s quasi-monarchical government, President Bashar al-Assad was able to take over the presidency from his father – former president Hafez al-Assad – and remain in power. “When Arab Springs started... [most of the countries with revolutions had their] governments switched so either someone new came in or they had elections,” she said.

“Syria was the only country in the [Arab Spring] where the government pushed back and said, ‘no, and we’re not going to do what the people want

“There’s all this fighting going on on one battleground. What’s happened is Russia and Iran are helping the government, Saudi Arabia is kind of helping the Free Syrian Army, but not enough, [with the lack of international support for the Free Syrian Army] it’s just gotten worse really,” she said.

Gladis believes that as a key ally to Assad, Russia is attempting to cultivate “spheres of influence” around the world.

Citing a quote from American political scientist Ian Bremmer, Gladis believes that we are currently living in a G–zero world. “There is no global leader. We’re at G–zero, which means there is zero

“Russia and Iran – their mouths are watering for the U.S. to leave,” Gladis said.

“The pieces of the puzzle are all over the place but you can see who wants to gain advantages and all the moving parts.”

El Hadj agrees, believing that the only way for the conflict to end is with an “international intervention” by a major global super power such as the U.S. Mona Marouf (’21), who first came to London from Syria in 2012, thought that she was only coming for a vacation with her family, but travel restrictions caused by the conflict prevented their return. Now, living here for almost seven years, Marouf never thought that the

flict in Syria has become “backpage news,” even though he believes it has the potential to grow in scale. “Syria has become even more of a chess game over the course of the last eight years and I think even though it’s backpage news, it has the potential to be a global problem because of all they players involved,” he said. “As teachers we’ve just got to keep pushing it, like in my Global Issues class I always say, what’s going on in Syria still?” he said.

El Hadj has also seen the effects of Brexit negatively impact the way Syrian refugees are viewed internationally. “Brexit hasn’t helped with

English to refugees through the organization “Ahlan Wa Sahlan”.

In order to keep the conversation about the Syrian Civil War going in a productive manner and help the refugees, El Hadj believes that members of the community should begin by contacting their MPs. “If you can start on a local level it will just kind of ricochet,” she said.

El Hadj recommends websites such as “writetothem.com” which allows members of any of the London boroughs to check the number of resettled refugees near them and email their local MPs for updates on the resettlement process.

Major events in the Syrian conflict The Arab Spring Begins 2011

2013 Chemical weapons used

by Syrian government

U.S. begins bombing ISIS 2014

2015 Russia aides Syrian government

U.S. plans to pull troops 2018

PHOTO BY ALEXANDRA GERS

January/February 2019

News 5

Breaking away from the EU As Brexit becomes a more ambigious and complex political topic, a sharper divide is seen between leave and remain supporters.

ISABELLE LHUILIER FEATURES EDITOR

Traveling outside of the United Kingdom (U.K.) when the 2016 European Union (EU). vote occured, Lucas Romualdo (’20) was able to watch the results unfold in real time. “When I was watching all the votes coming in, it [Voting to leave.] was very surprising and it caught me off guard,” he said. “It was widely expected that remain would win, probably by only a couple percent but it would still win.”

On June 23 2016, the U.K. held a referendum to determine whether the country should leave or remain in the (EU) and 71.8 percent of the population voted. Leave won with 51.9 percent At the moment, Britain is due to leave the EU on Friday, March 29.

When the U.K. voted to leave the EU, Jessica Swanson (’21) was initially strongly against Brexit.

“At the time, it was it was a catastrophe for me,” she said. However, having done extensive research on the topic since then, Swanson now feels leaving the EU is the right decision.

Swanson thinks leaving the EU will allow the U.K. to have more power over its own decisions. “The main reason for me is just democracy,” Swanson said. “In the E.U. we [the U.K.] don’t really get to elect the leaders that are appointed.”

For instance, in order for the U.K. to lower the VAT on women’s sanitary products the decision had to be approved by every other member of the EU. “Even such a small thing like that had to go through strenuous debate, and I

tions for the U.K. “It’s not a smart decision economically short-term or long-term,” he said.

It is clear that Brexit will take a toll on the British economy. “Trade is relative to the distance between the two countries so now that the U.K. can’t trade effectively with the E.U. they have to try to trade with both China and the U.S. and other extremely large powerful countries just to makeup that ground,” he said. “That’s going to take time, that’s going to take a lot of politi-

cal capital that [Prime Minister] Theresa May does not have, and so there is no way that the U.K. can try to mitigate losses in the short term economically.”

trying to find a concrete safe plan to leave,” he said. “Even though a hard Brexit sounds good in the slogan, it’s not going to look good if it happens.”

Conversely, Swanson believes that a soft Brexit would be the least beneficial deal for the U.K.“I think at this point we need to do a hard Brexit or we need to remain because a soft Brexit is virtually staying in the EU without any of the benefits.

I don’t think it delivers the people what they want at all,” she said.

Although Swanson understands the fear that people, especially younger generations may have regarding leaving the E.U.,

she feels that some people are over exaggerating it’s negative implications. “People are like ‘oh, we need to store food, we need to store resources.’ I think some people are go-

love to feed into this huge fear everything’s going to go horribly ... it’s always like ‘Brexit is going to destroy this country, Brexit will cause World War III,’ a bunch of really biased and negative

things,” she said.

“They just c r e ate more pandemonium.”

However, for Swanson, a negative aspect of Brexit is the fact that some businesses may begin moving their employees out of London to European locations. She feels that this impact will be visible at ASL. “The general consensus I’ve got when I have asked around is a lot of people are saying if we [the U.K.] leave the E.U. they will have to move due to their parents occupations,” she said.

Likewise, Romualdo feels that, since many ASL families employed by the financial sector, they may be impacted if banks decided to relocate. “You see a lot of extremely important banks moving to Paris and Frankfurt just because access to the E.U. market is so important,” he said. “The U.K. government is encouraging financial institutions to prepare for a no deal, no transition Brexit, which means that I see a lot of ASL families potentially moving away.”

Head of School Robin Appleby and the administration have

different] outcomes so that we would be prepared, and we are monitoring government advice very closely,” she said. “So far, nothing they’ve given us has actually indicated anything that we think we need to take immediate steps about.”

Appleby believes the ideal Brexit outcome for ASL is one that would allow the school to continue to operate the way it is and maintain its population. “[The deal would be] a solution that will allow people to continue to have easy movement into the U.K. from other countries and will encourage continuing investment in the London area so that families continue to move here or are able to stay longer,” she said.

Due to the low voter turnout and the fact that Leave only won by less than 2 percent some Members of Parliament argue the possibility of a second EU referendum where the population could vote again on whether or not they actually want to leave, as some argue that people were not correctly informed when they voted. However, Ramualdo feels that the vote was legitimate even if some did not understand the extent of what they were voting for. “This is the consequence of that so I think people should learn to take democracy more seriously if they don’t want things like this to happen,” he said.

Similarly, Swanson feels that a second referendum would not be democratic. “I think especially because democracy is the reason I want to leave the EU I can’t disagree with it in my own country,” she said. “In the past where there have been low voter turnout people haven’t really always pushed this much for another referendum. While it’s a shame that it wasn’t explained as well as it should have been, I think at the end of the day, whoever voted voted and that’s what the country said.”

Romualdo feels that the best option for the U.K. now is to try and come up with the most effective deal. “[The

“THE GOVERNMENT NEEDS TO TRY TO FIND THE BEST SITUATION POSSIBLE WITH BREXIT, BECAUSE, LIKE IT OR NOT, THAT’S WHAT PEOPLE VOTED FOR.” LUCAS ROMUALDO (’20) am not keen on the fact that laws passed by other members of the EU that we’ve disagreed with, have been applied to us,” she said.

On the other hand, Romualdo is against Brexit and strongly believes that it will have negative implica-

6 News

Romualdo feels that a hard Brexit, where no deal is made between the U.K. and EU, would be the worst economic outcome for the U.K. “It would greatly damaged international credibility by just throwing away the EU without

ing overboard. We are not going to war,” she said.

Swanson feels a main cause of these concerns is the media publishing “clickbait” articles which dramatize [Brexit] in order to increase their readership. “The media especially

monitored the potential impacts of Brexit for ASL on an ongoing basis.

However, she feels that since there are currently so many possibilities for the final outcome, it is difficult for the school to predict anything.

“We’ve created various scenarios [for

government] started going down the Brexit road [and] they can try to back-track, but at this point they need to try to find the best situation possible with a Brexit,” he said. “Because, like it or not, that’s what people voted for.”

The Standard

EDITORIAL

Addressing the state of the union CARTOON

Every day, our lives are affected by the political, economic and social realities of the U.S. The government shutdown, political polarization, the trade war and similar crises impact all of us in one way or another. Although we live abroad and many of us have never lived in the U.S., we see the effects of the long-lasting polarization that has enveloped the country.

It is worth asking, ‘what does America stand for?’ Although the answer to this question will be different depending on one’s political leaning, socioeconomic status, gender and race, historically, the U.S. has represented liberty and independence. Whilst the country struggles to retain those values, new ones have seemed to emerge: inequality, prejudice, violence and polarization.

The Editorial Board finds it discouraging that the U.S., no matter one’s political inclination or lack thereof, is no longer able to represent and uphold the values it was once founded upon.

The U.S. government shutdown came to

ANANYA PRAKASH Editor-in-Chief PHAEDRA LETROU Deputy Editor-in-Chief: Print ALEXANDRA GERS Deputy Editor-in-Chief: Online CHRISTINA LEONARD Online Director SOPHIE ASHLEY Lead News Editor LEA GEORGE News Editor: Print JONATHAN NOVAK News Editor: Online JONATHAN PHILIPS Opinions Editor JOHN TOWFIGHI Lead Features Editor MARTHA DUFF Features Editor ISABELLE LHUILIER Features Editor NAZ OZTURK Culture Editor: Print ROHAN HAARMANN Culture Editor: Online LILY WHITMAN Sports Editor: Print MICHAEL FLAHERTY Sports Editor: Online QUINN WHITMAN Media Director EMILY FORGASH Media Editor IMOGEN WEISS Media Editor SHANNON MILLER Adviser STAFF WRITERS Taylor Anderson, Sal Cerrell, Houdah Daniels, Anna Duffy, Izzy Harris, Estee Jorgensen, Lena Levey, Anastasia Ruimy, Zainab Shafqat Adil, Didi Akintemi, Zarina Choudhari-Stewart, Polina Dashevsky, Vittoria del Balzo di Presenzano, Labeena Hanif, Raunak Lally, Isabel Link, Gabriel Menzies, Helen Roth, Cameron Spurr, Jasmin Taylor, Maddy Whitman

January/February 2019

a close on January 25. The shutdown, wich lasted 35 days, left hundreds of thousands of American citizens across the globe without pay, resulting in a large scale economic crises for many government families and individuals.

As a result, the shutdown has directly impacted the ASL community, with many members belonging to U.S. government families.

It stuns us that this was allowed to happen over the debate of a southern border wall. A wall which President Trump ran his campaign upon, promising that Mexico would pay for it. Yet, regardless of one’s political affiliation and perceptions of the wall, it is clear that this shutdown was allowed to progress for far too long. There 800,000 people whose paychecks were held hostage.

This Editorial Board hopes that we can all agree that this was an immoral and unjustified use of a government shutdown. This proves that the primary intention of a government, to protect its citizens, was not upheld. This is shameful.

The past two years have seen controversial and polarized debates over immigration policies with the travel bans for seven majority Muslim nations having been implemented, families having been separated and wall construction being debated. We find it hard to understand how a nation such as the U.S., which once preached its morals and acted as a role model for other countries, has allowed such instances to occur.

It is no longer about being liberal or conservative, Republican or Democrat. Immigration is a topic that can and should be discussed with a rational mind. It affects the lives of millions of people. Shutting down a government for the construction of a wall, preventing people from entering a country because of their nationality and separating families with infants are not rational measures.

Although ASL is host to a multitude of nationalities and languages, we are all inherently, and we always will be, connected to U.S. This is

Standard

CARTOONISTS Gaby Iwegbue, Zainab Shafqat Adil

MISSION STATEMENT The Standard staff and adviser are dedicated to creating a collaborative, open forum that cultivates productive dialogue within the School community by publishing exemplary student news media according to the strictest standards of journalistic integrity.

CONTENT The Standard covers news related, but not limited, to the School community. Issues-driven coverage that aims to explore ideas, themes, concepts, trends and recent developments beyond the campus that are relevant to members of the community are also included.

GUEST WRITERS & LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Send submissions to the journalism lab, room P-101, or to the_standard@asl.org. These must adhere to the same set of ethical guidelines that all staff content is held to, and will only be published at the discretion of the editorial board and the adviser. The Standard retains the right to edit letters or articles for length and AP/Standard style. All letters must be signed in order to be considered for publication.

EDITORIALS Articles published without a byline and presented

EGBUE

BY GABY IW

not simply because we are the American School in London, but it is because the history and mission of our school are so deeply rooted in an American education.

What is the state of the union? In our minds, it’s not promising. Although we have only discussed political polarization, the government shutdown and immigration, there are so many more issues occurring in the U.S. Federal tax revisions, gun violence, health insurance, China relations, the Middle East-post the Israel embassy move, the opioid crisis and women’s rights are all contentious topics that linger above the U.S. government and its future.

We are entering a polarized world in which we all, in one way or another, will find difficulty in understanding, working and living in.

We can hope for change and sit back whilst more chaos unravels, or we can take action and become involved, march, sign petitions, study and champion a meaningful cause.

in the same location issue-to-issue represent the majority opinion of the editorial board. They are unsigned.

of charge to students, faculty and staff in The American School in London; current enrollment 1,408.

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Editorial 7

OPINIONS

Political pressure cracks Netflix

CAMERON SPURR cameron_spurr@asl.org

“

In a country where free speech and expression are already suppressed, this decision is reducing these essential freedoms.

In Saudi Arabia, an episode of the television show “Patriot Act” staring Hasan Minhaj is no longer streamable on Netflix after the company removed it. The Patriot Act is a comedy show that explores themes that are shaping the world. In a country where free speech and expression are already suppressed, this decision is reducing these essential freedoms.

The episode contained content where Minhaj criticized Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman for covering up the murder of U.S.-based journalist Jamal Khashoggi along with other issues.

In the episode, Minhaj also examined the history and current state of the U.S.’s relationship with Saudi Arabia.

In a statement to Rolling Stone, Netflix claims that they “strongly support artistic freedom and removed this episode only in Saudi Arabia after [they] had received a valid legal request — and to comply with local law.” This local law was the Saudi government referring to a section of their anti-cybercrime laws.

They alleged that the episode had content which violated these laws.

Netflix is being hypocritical in this statement. If they truly support artistic

freedom, they would not have caved to the Saudis and censored Hasan Minhaj’s voice.

One can see that the primary intent behind the Saudi government’s request is to block dissenting ideas from being heard in Saudi Arabia. There is no other reason for their request to censor this episode besides the fact that it is critical of Bin Salman, and how he and the government have dealt with the Kashoggi murder.

Netflix had a choice when dealing with this matter. The Saudi Government merely requested that they remove it, they did not take legal action. Therefore, Netflix was under no obligation to take down the episode.

I recognize that Netflix has business interests in keeping their site functioning in Saudi Arabia. According to Statista, the streaming company is expected to generate $6.06 million from customers on their Saudi site in 2019. Nonetheless, maintaining freedom of expression on their platform is more important than the money.

Also according to Statista, in the U.S., Netflix is expected to generate $6.631 billion in 2019, far more than

they are generating in Saudi Arabia.

The U.S. is a country where a majority of citizens uphold values surrounding their rights. They risk losing customers by going against these values that their American customers (and others worldwide) hold.

Furthermore, Netflix should act on these values themselves in addition to defending them. Unlike Saudi Arabia, the U.S. maintains free speech and expression under the first amendment to the U.S. Constitution, and Netflix itself is an American company.

Minhaj was able to use the episode and the publicity from the censorship to raise awareness for the humanitarian crisis in Yemen, where the conflict has led to many Yemenis starving to death and suffering from what has been called the worst cholera outbreak in modern history. According to the International Rescue Committee, more than 22 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance. The Saudi Government and Bin Salman’s role has exacerbated this crisis.

These censorship atrocities committed by the Saudi government are exactly the sort of violations that

Minhaj, Khashoggi and others have criticized. This criticism has resulted in the censorship from the government. In Kashoggi’s case, the Saudis went further, allegedly killing the journalist to silence him.

What’s interesting is that the episode is still available to watch on YouTube in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi government has not contacted YouTube about the episode as they did Netflix that we know of.

This is not the first case where countries have requested that Netflix remove content from their sites, but there is one substantial difference in this case: A vital human rights issue is in the limelight and being taken away.

Minhaj himself responded to this controversy in a tweet on January 2.

“Clearly, the best way to stop people from watching something is to ban it, make it trend online, and then leave it up on YouTube,” he said.

I love this response by Minhaj. He is truthfully commenting that what the Saudi Government has done is providing more publicity for the episode, while not completely eradicating it from the view of their citizens.

Supreme Court term limits needed ALEXANDRA GERS alexandra_gers@asl.org

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President Trump has appointed two justices in his two years of presidency, whilst Obama appointed two in his eight-year term.

How is that fair?

8 Opinions

“Checks and balances.” This phrase, first coined by philosophers Montesquieu and John Locke, has defined the U.S. political system since its creation in 1789. It ensures that no one individual, branch or party holds power over the other. Like most other democratic governments, the three branches of government in the U.S. are not immune to the whims of democraticallyelected majorities. As a result, periods of history are defined by the decisions made under a party’s majority.

However, the judicial branch is not elected by vote every two or four years. Rather, Supreme Court justices are appointed to serve for life. While I recognize that the judicial branch is not solely made up of the Supreme Court, they are the “highest court in the land.”

When the founding fathers established the Supreme Court, Article III of the U.S. Constitution states that “equal justice under law” must be upheld. However, in recent years, the Supreme Court has become less of an opportunity for justice, and more of a political battleground to answer one question: Which party can secure more seats for longer?

The Supreme Court does not reflect the democratic wishes of the country, but rather the political leanings and panderings of the sitting president.

This branch has given presidents the opportunity to cement their legacies in the justices they nominate. For example, President William Taft, who served from 1909 to 1913, was able to appoint six judges to the bench in four years thereby securing his party ideology’s place in the court for years to come. President Donald Trump has already appointed two justices in his two years of presidency, whilst Obama only appointed two in his eight-year term. How is that fair? As a result, the Supreme Court is the only governing body in the U.S. which has the potential to rule singularly and tyrannically, demonstrating the need for term limits—and soon.

Political polarity in the U.S. is increasing significantly, and I believe that this has had the greatest impact on the function of the Supreme Court.

According to a study by the Pew Research Center in 2012, “The partisan gap in opinions on more than 40 separate political values had nearly doubled over the previous quarter century.”

That is staggering, and that was seven years ago, far before the rise of Trump.

This polarization is similarly represented by those who sit on the Supreme Court. Prior to the appointment of Judge Brett Kavanaugh, centrist Justice Anthony Kennedy was the median justice—the justice who

ultimately decided cases in the event that the votes were perfectly split along ideological lines. Now, however, the median justice has become Chief Justice John Roberts, a far more conservative judge.

I’m not suggesting that it is unorthodox to have majorities in political structures. However, I believe that due to the lifetime nature of Supreme Court positions, these majorities become far more than swings in political affiliation; they become an opportunity for singularity and lasting dominance. This court creates the potential for one ideology, whether it be conservative or liberal, to have a majority opinion on important, life-changing cases for decades.

Furthermore, when Supreme Court justices make decisions about cases regarding reproductive rights, immigration, education, gender rights, etc., they do not feel obligated to represent the desires of a group of constituents, but rather the president who appointed them. This is clearly evident by the recent appointment of Justice Kavanaugh who claimed multiple times that he believes the sitting president couldn’t be indicted for a crime.

In another vein of thought, we must also remember that Supreme Court justices are humans, not machines whose sole purpose is to spurt

out “yea” or “nay.” The Supreme Court places undue burden on its justices in times of staunch polarization. For example, in the past year, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has undergone two serious medical procedures: the treatment of two fractured ribs, and the removal of two cancerous nodules on her lungs.

There is no denying that those injuries are dangerous, especially for an 85-year-old who works ceaselessly.

However, Ginsburg recognizes that she can’t retire, and has even said, “For the country, it could be four years.

For the court, it could be—I don’t even want to contemplate that.” This is far too heavy a proverbial cross for anyone person to bear– even someone as tough as Ginsburg.

While I do not have a specific term limit in mind, U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, a man who I do not agree with about much, has made the case for eighteen year term limits staggered every two years. At first an ambiguous number, the 18year term limit would allow for each of the nine justices to be replaced in order of seniority every other year.

In doing so, the Court would more accurately represent the cultural and political demography of the country, and ensure that no one party holds an extended majority.

The Standard

Challenging long-term friendships POLINA DASHEVSKY polina_dashevsky@asl.org

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Every student impacts and leaves a legacy at the school in their own individual way.

Consequently, the school can hardly ever be the same without even a single member of the community.

When I first came to ASL in Grade 5, the immense linguistic and cultural diversity seemed new to me.

It was even daunting for me, due to my poor knowledge of English and little exposure to other cultures. At first, making new friends was a challenge, but I eventually adjusted to my surroundings.

However, I was completely devastated to learn that most of those people with whom I became close friends with that year were leaving.

As a student who had put effort into trying to accumulate friends, I knew I would have to go through the same difficult process all over again.

Sadly, I have not maintained contact with my since-departed friends; thus, my friendships were lost as quickly as they were made.

In addition to it being emotionally challenging when new friends leave, there are clear disadvantages to not being able to experience long-term friendships. A long-term friendship enables one to create deep connections and memories, which may not be the case with a new friend.

Marla Paul wrote in The Friendship Crisis: Finding, Making and Keeping Friends When You’re Not a Kid Anymore, that “having longterm friendships is emotionally and physically protective. Interestingly, people have healthier cardiovascular

systems, and their chances of dying from a heart attack are decreased by a certain percentage.”

I also further that the key to longterm friendships is effective communication. Any communication barrier, such as the one caused by physical distance, is likely to weaken and separate the friendship. This is especially true at a young age when people are still trying to find themselves, they are less likely to maintain a friendshipin the long-run.

Friendships with those who move away fade due to the inability to speak face-toface. With technology, however, contacting people on different parts of the globe is practically effortless. Nonetheless, there is a huge difference between seeing a person every day and calling them once a week or even more rarely.

Maintaining long-distance relationships in any form is often a challenge.

Friends also have the potential of hiding behind the screen and coming off as more distant.

Even though schools like ASL set an environment in which it can be more difficult to make lifelong friends, there are still benefits to being immersed in such a transient com-

munity. One of the benefits is the ability to meet people from all around the world and establish life-long connections.

Generally, I don’t think that a static community, where no one leaves or enters, would be a better

environment for students. Diversity is an integral characteristic of ASL. A constant trickle of new students ensures the classroom conversation is always different year to year and class to class. It also allows students to understand different viewpoints by growing up being surrounded by different cultures.

Every student impacts and leaves a legacy at the school in their own individual way. Consequently, the school would be substanitally different without each indivudual member of our diverse community.

For over half a decade, I have observed numerous changes within the ASL community, from the construction of the Community Arts Building to the recent changes of the school’s principals.

I have also noticed the student body constantly changing. These frequent adjustments to the school have taught me to better communicate with more diverse members of the community. It also enabled me to grasp the concept of being a part of something bigger than me.

After seeing many of my own friends and teachers leave, I began to better comprehend the struggles of long-term friendships in an international school.

The rise of anti-social media

JONATHAN PHILIPS jonathan_philips@asl.org

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At a time when social media is prevalent in every aspect of life, cutting it out is a drastic but effective alternative.

January/February 2019

In the time that it took you to reach this word from the start of the sentence more than 5,000 Instagram posts have been posted. Social media pervades every aspect of our lives. The food we eat, the friends we meet and the places we go are all posted, tagged and liked on our feeds.

When we publish our lives to the extent that we do, we cease to live through our senses and instead live through our lenses. We do not live for experience or emotion, we live for the selfie and for the instant gratification that social media provides. We do not live to grow as people, we live to grow our number of followers.

All of this causes us to be in competition with our peers. In an already competitive school, where grades translate into worth, social media often exacerbates this unhealthy atmosphere.

Everyone inevitably dresses their life up with “digital clothes” to appear more glamorous; however, the reality that “everyone does it” does not assuage the feelings of inferiority that many feel when scrolling through

their feeds seeing people in far-flung beaches or Michelin star restaurants.

In turn, this sets off a pernicious cycle, a “digital clothes” fashion fight, as it were.

I am not denying that social media has benefits, for we are now more connected than ever before.

The question that we have to ask ourselves, and indeed as a society, is ‘at what cost?’

How many hours should we let social media eat out of our weeks? How many teenagers have to develop mental health issues before we recognize, and do something, about social media use? Surely, in a society as hyper-sensitive as ours, these issues should be brought to the front burner. Ironically, it seems that everyone acknowledges that social media affects us negatively, but no one does anything about it. Perhaps, we are societally addicted to its convenience or addicted to the chemical hits that it produces.

One cannot have “social media abuse” without “social media use.”

What is the distinction between the two? Sean Parker, a founder of Face-

book who left the company in 2005, said at a 2018 Philadelphia event that Facebook exploits a “vulnerability in human psychology.” When someone gets a notification on Facebook, the platform “gives you a little dopamine hit.” Dopamine is a chemical that acts as a reward for physical activity, it is one way that the human body creates routines. These routines are essential for a healthy, motivated life – eating, for example, is encouraged through chemical processes which include dopamine; however, when these primal, vital processes are manipulated for profit, human wellbeing is left in the dust.

In response to all of the aforewritten, I have rid myself of social media. Snapchat was the first to go, Instagram fell next and I have recently blocked Facebook on my computer.

This particular order was the least severe for me.

I am sure this all seems a bit radical. However, I assure you that although I may have deleted my social media accounts, I have sacrificed nothing in my social life. In fact, the opposite is true: my life is more dynamic and productive than before. I am no longer haunted by Snapchat’s yellow ghost or burned by its streaks.

In November, I wrote a Split Conscience about the benefits and drawbacks of social media. Since then, or perhaps even through the exercise of writing the column, I have decided

to take a stand against social media.

I recognize, however, that social media has its benefits. The convenience of having your social life, news and everything else on the same platform is immense. I now have to go directly to news websites instead of being prompted to keep myself updated by Facebook. I now have to remember friends’ birthdays because I do not get useful notification. I now have to make a greater effort to reach out to people.

Nevertheless, the cost of these mere conveniences is greater than benefit. I have had more time to work because I am no longer plagued by endless Instagram feeds. I finish my work faster and am usually in bed earlier. I genuinely feel better; perhaps social media is a misnomer; perhaps unsocial media is more fitting.

The moment when I deleted Snapchat was riveting. When the bubble-message comes up and says that this reaction is irreversible, well, that was the last hit of dopamine that Snapchat ever gave me. Getting rid of Instagram was harder and Facebook was even more challenging; however, through this whole process, I have learned that not everything in our culture that is “the norm,” should be accepted without question. Deleting social media is not for everyone, do what works for you.

But now I confidently give social media a big dislike.

Opinions 9

U.S. Troops should remain in Syria SAL CERRELL sal_cerrell@asl.org

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Trump’s policy in Syria is deeply flawed and mistaken on every front.

The U.S. military presence within Syria is vital to the country’s foreign policy intrests.

Stretching across the Turkish border, in the northernmost plains of Syria, lies the little-known region of Rojava. Currently, it is home to more than one million Kurds (a predominently Muslim ethnic group.)

In 2011, sparked by a growing frustration with dictatorial rule, pro-democracy movements swept across the Middle-East, in what is now known as the Arab Spring. Long-reigning monarchs were toppled in Tunisia and Libya, while many other regimes saw their power limited. In Syria, protests in Damascus and Aleppo turned violent when police opened fired, killing seven. President Bashar Al-Assad deployed the military to further quell unrest. This lead to resistance movements taking up arms, which was supported by defections in the Syrian military. The country is now engrossed in a civil war.

With major cities under threat, Assad was forced to pull troops stationed in Rojava to fend off the rebel offensive in Damascus and Aleppo.

This move created a power vacuum in Northern Syria, which the Democratic Union Party (PYD) intended to fill. They set up a system of three democratic, self-governing regions that would work as one. The government, promoted environmentalism, tolerance of political, religious, and ethnic diversity, as well as gender equality. These ideas are reflected in their constitution and shown in

governmental policy, which requires the state to have two presidents, one from each gender.

Syrian Kurds have also proved themselves to be an effective vehicle in the fight against ISIS. From 20142018, the People’s Protection Units (YPG) have retaken nearly 99 percent of the group’s territory, tearing through the caliphate it had sought to build.

This is not to say the YPG are flawless. Human rights groups have accused them of forcibly displacing residents of the territory they had conquered, and Turkey claims Rojava has become a safe haven for the Partiya Karkerên Kurdistanê (PKK), a militant group that has been at war with Turkey since 1984. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has gone so far as to send ground troops into bordering cities to prevent the rise of a Kurdish state.

Though far from perfect, the Kurds have achieved what only one other state in the Middle East has: a functioning, legitimate democracy.

They have faced armed conflict on multiple fronts, yet their drive for a liberal, independent Kurdish state has not dwindled. U.S. troops in the region have kept the Turks somewhat at bay, allowing the Kurdish dream to push forward. That has been the case, until recently On December 19, President Trump made an abrupt announcement via Twitter, that all

Progress Report SNOW DAY

BLUES

NEW ENTRANCE

U.S. forces in Syria will be returning home. This sudden twist in American foreign policy in the Middle East came just a week after the State Department’s top adviser on Syria and ISIS affirmed that troops would remain in the country until defense officials could ensure the Kurdish homeland would be protected and that ISIS’s caliphate in the region had been defeated. Between then and the announcement, neither of those two goals had been achieved.

During the aftermath, many outlets reported that President Trump was encouraged by Preisdent Erdogan to pull troops out of Syria immediately. It can be assumed that Erdogan wanted U.S. troops out, in order to invade Kurdish-held northern Syria, without having to bypass American presence. This would hand a major foreign policy victory to Turkey, and give Erdogan a lot of influence in the region. Another running hypothesis is that Trump intended to distract the media from his growing legal jeopardy, and this news provided an ideal outlet to do so.

Regardless of motive, Trump’s policy in Syria is deeply flawed and mistaken on every front. The U.S. military presence within Syria is vital to the country’s foreign policy interests. Iran and Russia, the U.S. biggest geopolitical rivals, have been keen on expanding their agenda in the region. It has also protected the

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The Editorial Board gives the first Progress Report of 2019.

10 Opinions

Kurds from the wrath of the Turkish military, who have been hesitant to further their advance into Syria, fearing a clash with U.S. forces that could risk a catastrophic conflict with a fellow member of NATO. Such an abrupt, uncoordinated shift in American foreign policy has, and will continue to have human consequences. Over the next few months, when the pullout is set to commence, troops that do not immediately return home will be extremely vulnerable to attacks from ISIS. Just two weeks ago, a suicide bomber killed 11 people, including three American servicemen, in a small Syrian town. This attack, while in no way should be politicized, debunks Trump’s dubious claim that ISIS has been defeated.

Not only should U.S. forces remain in the region, but their involvement should also increase. Troop numbers should rise. The U.S. should be working more closely with the YPG to take back territory from ISIS, conducting airstrikes on contested territory, and also provide training, weaponry and logistical support to their forces. The caliphate ISIS envisions should be wiped from existence.

Furthermore, the U.S. should impose international sanctions on Turkey, making it unequivocal that America stands with the Kurds in their struggle for a democratic state in the Middle East.

1.

No Snow Day: (C) I’m not a fan of being teased. It was extra slushy on Friday. Some could say dangerously slushy. Jon Novak

4.

2.

January Blues: (C+) Not vibing with the cold weather, lack of snow days and next to no sun. Emily Forgash

5.

Man behind the meme wall: (A++) Not all heroes wear capes. I still see you in my dreams. John Towfighi

3.

Senior Slide: (B-) Last night I watched four episodes of Suits and went to bed at 1:00a.m. but I still have a DBQ to study for. Alexandra Gers

6.

Netflix increasing their subscription price: (F) Why do people have to pay more for the same content as before? Imogen Weiss

New Entrance: (B) It’s aesthetically pleasing, but I can’t ignore that my Beatles runs are twice as long. Quinn Whitman

Post Scriptum: Naz-mas

The Standard

Speaking up, speaking loud ANANYA PRAKASH ananya_prakash@asl.org

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When I had the chance to approach my teacher, I should have spoken up.

What might seem as a joke that can be laughed off at the moment has longterm, permanent implications: internalization.

“You don’t need to conserve paper, you aren’t in India anymore.”

What appears to be just another class period with me taking hurried notes and desperately trying to keep up with the teacher’s lecture is flipped on its head. I could not begin to comprehend the words that my peer had just directed at me when looking at my page, full of my small handwriting with notes and scribbles in the margins. It was almost certainly meant to be a joke but I somehow couldn’t imagine anything less funny, and yet all I could do was laugh along.

In that split second, I knew I had two options. I could stand up for myself and be told I was being too emotional and causing a scene, or I could make a joke out of it. Still to this day, I regret choosing the latter.

While it might have been the safer option at the moment, I should have spoken up.

Microaggressions, which are generally considered statements or actions that indirectly or unintentionally discriminate against members of a marginalized group, have always been a part of my experience growing up and transitioning between schools. ASL, being a relatively homogenous community, is not exempt from this.

Ever since I can remember, these microaggressions have manifested

in my classrooms. Aside from comments–similar to the one above–being made by some peers, there are more subtle ways microaggressions have presented themselves.

Having always been on the quieter side, I have lost count of the times I have been made to be a buffer between two loud students. Particularly in middle school, I distinctly recall having my teachers strategically place my seat between two rowdier students, usually boys, telling me that I’ll “keep them under control.”

The same pattern began to emerge when we were doing group projects – by some odd coincidence I’d continually end up in a group full of unfocused and boisterous students.

What message did that send to my younger self? Is it my role to be an intermediary between boys who have not learned basic listening skills or respect? To add further complexity to these instances, I was praised for being the quiet one in a group of unruly students. This primarily reinforced the belief that being a quiet girl, and not having agency or assertive qualities, is to be aspired to.

Even in the past few years in high school, my assigned seat has often been in the back of the classroom– seemingly suggesting an expectation that I will behave and won’t need a significant amount of the teacher’s attention. Not only is my learning

compromised and never prioritized is all these situations, it has muddled my perceptions of my role in a classroom and the purpose of my education. When I had the chance to approach my teacher, I should have spoken up.

Often when expressing these sentiments, I’ve been told to not be “so sensitive” or to not make such a big deal out of it. How can I not make a big deal out of a pattern that inversely correlates to my performance and confidence at school?

What might seem as a joke that can be laughed off at the moment has long-term, permanent implications: internalization. It almost became second nature to start doubting myself and my identity after being in environments where anything outside the norm is bluntly scrutinized (“Why does your food look like that?” “Why does your family speak like that?” “What do you pronounce words like that?”).

In trying to answer these seemingly unanswerable questions as a preteen came feelings of embarrassment at anything remotely related to my nationality. I didn’t want to wear my traditional outfit for any global festival days; I didn’t want to take my mother’s home cooked food to school for lunch; I didn’t want to tell my friends I spoke Hindi with my parents. It was beyond time for me

to confront my friends, and I should have spoken up.

Not having the space to be proud of who I was and consequently having to laugh off jokes that trivialized my identity was detrimental to my personal growth and self-image, and would not have resulted if I reclaimed my sense of identity and stood up for what was right.

The underlying microaggressions that materialize as “jokes” or quick comments have had enduring impacts on my sense of self and selfworth. While I do have to choose my battles, finding strength and pride in my identity is essential in reducing the risk of internalizing harmful beliefs. I know that if I let comments slip by without questioning intentions and implications, I am simply reinforcing the microaggression and its validity.

The true impact of speaking up in the moment can feel daunting, whether they come institutionally or directly from fellow students and teachers, but it is the only thing that has given me strength and hope.

As humans we are socially conditioned to avoid imminent conflict, particularly if its costs can be psychologically damaging, but breaking the silence will have a profound impact on well-being in the long-term.

And so, find courage in your convictions, speak up and speak loud.

Later starts, shorter days are healthier VITTORIA DEL BALZO DI PRESENZANO vittoria_delbalzo@asl.org

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If school were to start later and end earlier to limit the hours of school further. Students would be able to get in the right amount sleep and most likely perform better both academically and in their extracurricular activities.

January/February 2019

I find myself to be more attentive and take in so much more information when having a free period first.

Throughout the day I feel more energetic and prepared to go about my day without being distracted or in need of five cups of coffee.

School starting later and ending earlier would not only affect a student’s happiness and well-being but also improve academic performance and concentration. If classes were pushed back to start at 9 a.m., all students would be more awake, more attentive and better able to learn.

There is a lot of pressure on students to succeed and perform well.

Many students suffer from stress and anxiety which disrupts their sleep and makes them unable to productively function throughout their day.

Based on a 2018 Binghamton University study, lack of sleep is shown to cause irritability and affects relationships with others and the overall environment that surrounds them.

From personal experience I can assure that this fact is true. I find myself to be easily irritated and annoyed when in lack of sleep and when spoken to I may come across as rude or mean whilst it is not the case, I am just tired.

Similarly, a 2018 study published in the Journal of Behaviour Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry also shows that when students sleep less than eight hours a day, they are more

likely to suffer from Repeated Negative Thinking (RNT). RNT is the accumulation of bad thoughts and not being able to concentrate on anything else but negative thoughts which often leads to depression and anxiety.

It is hard to concentrate in class when you are so exhausted. Your eyes start to slowly close themselves and your head starts tilting toward the side until it drops and you wake up all of a sudden. It goes on like this until the day is over and you can finally go home and sleep. Students often sleep during their free period as they don’t sleep enough at night.

Students should be attentive and active throughout their whole day without having the need to sleep in between their classes.

According to the NationWide’s Children Hospital, research has shown that a person needs at least 8 to 9 hours of uninterrupted sleep to fully function throughout their days.

If students are given an unbearable amount of homework, on top of after school activities, sports, and extracurriculars, students will never be able to get the sleep they need. Students that are involved in a sport, club or any extracurricular activity, do not get home until 7 p.m. Still having to shower, have dinner and spend time with their family. How are students expected to do all this throughout their day and on top of that be active during their school hours?

Students should have the correct balance between personal life and work life.

If school were to start later and end earlier to limit the hours of school further. Students would be able to get in the right amount sleep and most likely perform better both academically and in their extracurricular activities. Following a system more like the British one would be a solution to students not getting the right amount of sleep, this would mean having reduced hours of school. The reduced hours of school are due to the fact that students are able to choose three or more academic subjects based on their intere s t s and the career t h e y would later like to pursue.

T h e y would only have to go in for

their respective hours and would be free to come and leave depending on their schedules.

Students have every day pressure from teachers, parents, and their peers to live up to the schools’ expectations and be involved in many other extracurricular activities. Unfortunately, with little time to do so, students miss out on the most important key to happiness: sleep.

Opinions 11

FEATURES

Taking care of mental illness

Whether it’s just a bad day, or something deeper beneath the surface, feeling supported is essential for those experiencing mental health challenges. Teachers and students reflect on the school environment and the steps taken to ensure comfort, good health and safety.

Taylor Anderson | Staff Writer

T

hroughout Calvin’s (’21)* experience with depression last year, he didn’t realize that the way he was feeling was more than just stress and that he should be seeking help. “I threw what was going on with me under the rug. I thought it was normal for a student to feel that way,” he said. “I didn’t know how to cope with [depression], so I was pretty close to losing it, or losing my life. I did some stupid stuff that could have got me killed. There were some times where I came close. A lot of the things I did were because I didn’t feel good about myself.

I didn’t feel worthwhile.”

Over 68 percent of the 182 students responding to a recent Standard survey report experiencing a mental health challenge in high school. The Mayo Clinic defines a mental health challenge as a significant period of mental illness symptoms such as: feeling sad or down; extreme mood changes of highs and lows; withdrawal from friends and activities; significant tiredness, low energy or problems sleeping; excessive fears or worries; or, reduced ability to concentrate.

Stigma and school environment eorgina* (’19) often sees a stressful environGreflected ment among students in her grade and it’s in her casual conversations with

her peers. “Someone will say they’re so stressed or so depressed and the response isn’t ‘how can I help?’ It’s ‘me too.’ That’s so normalized and it shouldn’t be,” she said.

Effie Ogino (’19) believes the stressful environment perceived by some students at ASL can often delegitimize mental illness. “Because stress and panic are so normalized at ASL, it’s hard to recognize students who actually do need help,” she said.

Head of School Robin Appleby thinks it’s important to understand the difference between stress and a mental illness. “We know that anxiety and stress are normal parts of teenage lives up to a certain point. It’s when anxiety goes over a line to impact happy, healthy, productive life that we worry about it,” she said.

Lisel* (20) agrees that there should be a clearer definition among students about the difference between stress and anxiety. “I think it’s hard for the school to notice when someone is having a real issue because so many people struggle,” she said. “So it’s hard to differentiate between when a student really needs help and when a student needs to take a free period or take some time out of class,” she said.

In September, Ogino was diagnosed with depression and decided to seek help from ASL’s support systems. “I tried to kill myself three times. I thought my problem was quite

12 Features

simple. I’m depressed, I was suicidal, I need help.

Help me,” she said.

Ogino appreciated the guidance that ASL provided on how to cope with suicidal thoughts, as well as the recommendation of an external therapist. However, Ogino felt as though some adults at the school didn’t know how to provide her with ongoing support after the immediate steps were implemented. “I think [the administration is] actually trying, but it definitely needs a lot of work... It seems like the administration and teachers were confused, were panicking along with me,” she said.

ASL has its own safeguarding guidelines, as well as legal requirements for how to assist a student who is self-harming or suicidal. Schools in the U.K. have a duty of care, which means that while a student is enrolled at an institution, that institution is responsible for keeping that child safe. This can include contacting police or guardians if the school has reason

Lena Levey | Staff Writer mental health. “We need to talk about mental health problems, and emotional health. That’s one of the branches on the Take Care tree. That needs to be addressed,” she said.

Despite having a relapse after entering the high school, Fiona is nervous to speak to a counselor about the issue. “At least for me [going to a counselor is] seen like a sign of weakness, like there is something wrong with you and [people will ask] why can’t you just be normal? Like why do you have to go to a counselor? What’s different about you?” she said.

Of the 125 students surveyed who reported having a mental health challenge in the high school, 32 percent said they spoke to an adult at ASL, and 48 percent reported speaking to a professional outside of ASL.

“THE STIGMA AT ASL AROUND MENTAL HEALTH IS SO NEGATIVE. IT’S IMPORTANT TO GIVE TALKING TO ADULTS A CHANCE.” WILLOW* (’21) to believe that a child is at risk of hurting themselves or others.

Fiona* (’22) has struggled with anxiety for most of her life, and was diagnosed with an obsessive compulsive-related disorder last year in middle school. She has not yet told her friends about her situation out of fear of being judged.

“I mostly haven’t [told my friends] because I’m afraid that when they look at me, that’s what they’ll see. Instead of me as a person, it’ll be me with that kid who has mental health problems and anxiety,” she said.

However, Courtney* (’21) does not see significant stigma surrounding mental health among her peers. She believes most students can provide good support to their friends but that conversation needs to happen more frequently. “It’s not that people don’t want to talk about it, it’s more that it doesn’t come up,” she said.

Another student, Summer (‘19)* believes that ASL doesn’t have enough conversations about

Lisel has had mixed responses from support systems when coping with depression and anxiety. “[The administration] offered me the opportunity when I came back to take classes gradually... the school was pretty good throughout that,” she said.

She said that ASL was understanding, but when her depression became more severe again she felt as if “that kind of support disappeared.”

While the administration explained that they are unable to speak about specific students’ cases, Appleby said that ASL has dedicated time to ensuring the health and safety of each student. “Over the course of last year [while planning to incorporate the Take Care theme into the 2018-19 school year], there was a group of teachers and administrators who wrote a statement about six key ways for us to ensure well-being in our students’ development,” she said. These ways are illustrated in the Take Care

tree: body, mind, intellect, engagement, relationships and purpose.

While Ogino thinks “there is enthusiasm for making the Take Care concept a reality,” she believes further steps are needed in order to improve its impact on students.

Patrice (’21)* does not see the Take Care theme as a step towards more mental health understanding. “I think Take Care will definitely help ASL with how they feel they handle mental health,” Patrice said. But she believes that among the students it is seen “as kind of a joke,” After attempting suicide, Ogino said that members of the safeguarding team encouraged her to move to Japan in order to be with her parents, rather than continue living with a friend in London, as she has been doing since April of last year. “The administration thought that the reason why I got depressed was because my parents were not here. But that was not the reality as I found out from therapists,” said. This recommendation to leave the school made her feel unwanted. “[One] reason [I think] they don’t want me here is because if I did commit suicide, there would be a lot of blame on this school, and this school’s brand,” she said.

Counselor Stephanie Oliver believes that the perception that ASL doesn’t prioritize student mental health is inaccurate. Oliver said that many people who struggle with serious mental illnesses believe that everyone is “against them,” even when that’s not the reality. In her view, when people are struggling, it can be difficult for them to “meet and talk about what would be [the best way to help them].”

Oliver explained that the school’s goal is to provide support, not long-term counselling.

“This school is limited in what it can do to treat mental illness. It’s not a mental institute; it’s a school,” she said. “However, most of our teachers are really aware [of mental illness warning signs].”

Mara* (’20), who has depression, said she received support from both counselors and teachers, who were “helpful throughout the process [of getting treatment].”

When she reached out to one of the school’s support systems, Mara said that she felt both welcomed and cared for.

Principal Devan Ganeshananthan explained that teachers are trained to look for warning signs of mental illnesses and there are a number of safeguarding initiatives in place.

Ganeshananthan said he knows of many students who have benefitted from ASL’s mental health procedures. “[The view that ASL doesn’t prioritize mental health] is not something I have heard before,” he said.

The Standard

Teacher-student connections ealth Teacher Bambi Thompson emphasizHrelationships es the importance of close student-teacher in order to aid mental health.

“Not every teacher has to be a specialist, but all of us care about the mental health of our students,” she said.

However, while Calvin acknowledges that the school may have had resources to help him when he was struggling with depression and suicidal thoughts, he did not feel comfortable asking for help.

Patrice did not feel supported by the ASL community either. “I cannot tell you the number of times I have walked around this school with mascara down to my chin, visibly crying, and people weren’t concerned,” she said.

Similar to Patrice, Georgina agrees.

“When I’m having an anxiety attack, there’s

not a single teacher that I would go to for help,” she said.

Of the 180 students surveyed, 40 percent would be unwilling to or unsure about talking to an adult at ASL about a mental health challenge they were facing. However, 17 percent said they would feel comfortable asking for help and 42.9 percent said it would depend on how well they knew the adult.

When Harper* (‘20) was struggling to keep up with school and sports, she turned to her advisor for support. He helped her rearrange her schedule and manage her time. “I’ve been in my advisor’s advisory for three years now. We had the option to switch but I chose to stay because we have a good relationship,” she said.

Courtney has also had a good experience with talking to teachers at ASL. When she was in Grade 8, she began to suffer from an ongoing low mood.

“Multiple teachers picked it up, and asked if I was OK, and I just said ‘yeah, I’m fine’.” Since then, Courtney has formed close relationships with many of her teachers, including her advisor, and has opened up to them. “I feel like I have good relationships with many of the teachers here, so I know I could go to them,” she said. She “definitely” feels cared for by many of her teachers and is willing to speak to them.

Lisel, who has been dealing with anxiety and depression for years, thinks that the administration was initially understanding. However, over time, she felt less supported. Lisel felt as though she had to completely recover or leave ASL. “As soon as [my mental illness] actually became debilitating, and there’s a real problem, the school doesn’t really want to deal with it from my perspective. [I was told] ‘your problem is too severe,

you either come to school or you’re going to have to leave’,” she said.

Willow* (‘21) thinks that every student should try to find a teacher they feel comfortable talking to, even if they don’t talk about big issues. “I feel like the stigma around ASL and mental health is so negative. I think it is important to give [talking to an adult] a chance,” she said.

Harper agrees. “If people feel stressed or have any problems going on I recommend just going to someone supportive and talking to them, because it does help,” she said.

Of the 40 students surveyed who sought help from ASL about a mental health challenge, 12 found it not at all helpful, whereas 34 found it either somewhat helpful or very helpful.

mental health issues are addressed at ASL, Calvin “wouldn’t pick anywhere else to be. I think this school is amazing.” But he believes there can be some improvement on how ASL copes with certain issues, specifically mental health. “I don’t hear enough about ASL reaching out [to students],” he said.

Patrice believes that if ASL knew how widespread the issue was, then they would take bigger steps to provide aid. Of the 180 students surveyed, 124 had reported experiencing a mental health challenge while in high school. “I do genuinely think that if [the school] knew it was this big of a problem, they would try to help. I don’t think they have any malicious intent, however, I feel like they don’t know how to handle the issue, and it’s not, in their eyes, big enough to be important to deal with or to change,” Patrice said.

Willow thinks students should be offered more than one avenue for seeking support. “I’ve

always found my dean is someone I feel really comfortable talking to,” she said. Willow believes students should be encouraged to talk to any teacher they have a relationship with.

Patrice would also appreciate more teacher outreach and thinks the mental health of a student has to be an ongoing conversation between the two. “Teachers should ask if you’d like to talk, and not just write off [symptoms] as a one-time thing. That would show that they care,” she said.

Similar to Patrice, Summer believes the high school should have more in-depth talks about mental illness. “You talk about mental health for a lot of classes, but it’s a very surfacelevel discussion,” she said. She believes with the Take Care theme this year, it could be a time to “really dive deeper.”

Courtney believes that student-teacher relationships are key to a productive conversation

regarding mental health. She further believes that more support systems are needed within the school for students to utilize.

Fiona believes having more conversations about mental health could be effective.

“Everybody is afraid of being the first [to talk about mental health],” she said. She believes that bringing in speakers who have firsthand experience with mental illness would help to de-stigmatize the topic further.

Ultimately, everybody plays a role in the conversation about mental health, Thompson explained. “It’s important for friends to reach out,” she said. Thompson wants students to know that “there are people that care. Sometimes you just need to know you aren’t alone.”

Moving forward espite her positive experience with the Dthinks school counselors and teachers, Mara there is still more that can be done to

support struggling students. “Even though I personally had a very good experience, overall what I’ve heard from other people has been mostly negative,” she said.

Summer feels as though there is not a complete understanding of mental illness at ASL perhaps because unlike physical illnesses, it can’t always be seen or named. “Sometimes there is a biological element to it. The brain is not working the way it should be,” she said.

Ogino was frustrated that following her suicide attempts, she didn’t feel as valued as a student and community member. “It’s not like I suddenly became a very troubled kid, you know? I’m still the same person that I was,” she said.

Despite his own frustration with how

January/February 2019

*Indicates that source has chosen to remain anonymous.

Features 13

Adop

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" c a n’t really pinpoint a moment where I’ve just been like ‘oh yeah, I’m adopted’,” Zoe Hearne (’19) said.

On December 10 2001, when she was almost 11 months old, Hearne was introduced to her parents in Yunmeng, China. After being left in an orphanage courtyard by her birth parents, Hearne was adopted through Pearl S. Buck International, an adoption agency which partners with governments around the world.

In 2001, a significant amount of Chinese girls were given up for adoption due to the country's one child policy. Hearne points to this as being one of the potential reasons her birth parents may have left her. “There were a lot of Chinese girls given up because people wanted sons and you were only allowed one child because of population controls," she said. "Or it could be that the area I came from wasn't very wealthy, so maybe they had more children and they couldn't afford to take care of another child."

Wanting to adopt a child, Hearne’s parents, Daniel and Linda, came to Yunmeng with a group of other American couples also looking to adopt. “The Chinese government goes through and they match the children with the parents,” Hearne said.

Marliese Rittenhouse’s (’21) parents, John and Elke, adopted her from the Hunan province in Southern China in 2004. Rittenhouse’s parents were interested in adopting a child after her aunt and uncle adopted a young girl from China.

“At that time, the orphanages were really high in rates of girls,” she said.

In order for the adoption to occur, her parents had “to prove that they’re reliable people... that they could take care of [her,] and that [she would] be in a safe environment.”

Guidance Counselor Stephanie Oliver was also adopted, but was a domestic adoptee from California. Her birth mother became pregnant when she was 17 in high school. When her parents were trying to adopt a child, they came into contact. “She was pregnant and she was best friends with my parents' neighbor’s niece. They were in high school together. My neighbor knew my parents had been trying to adopt a child and he just said ‘look, my niece’s friend is pregnant and she wants to give up her child for adoption’,” Oliver said. “It was arranged through social services because at the time and still to this day, women have a say in who their child goes to.”

PHOTO COURTESY OF MARLIESE RITTENHOUSE

Rittenhouse with her four siblings, John ('09), Katherine ('10), Sophie ('13) and Will ('14).

14 Features

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Similar to Hearne, Oliver “was always told from the time [she] was a little girl [that she was adopted], ever since [she] can remember. There wasn’t a moment exactly."

However, unique to Oliver’s situation is that her adopted brother is also her biological brother. “My birth mother got pregnant again five years later and she wanted to give him up for adoption as well and so she just called my parents and was like, ‘I’m having another child do you want him?’ and so I was raised with my half biological brother, we have a different dad,” Oliver said.

Oliver believes that there are pivotal moments in the lives of adopted children and young adults when they realize their desire to know their bloodline.

“I woke up one day and thought, ‘I do not want to die and not know where I came from,’ I just had this overwhelming urge to know,” she said.

Oliver proceeded to reach out to her birth mother and hire a private investigator to find her birth father.

She discovered that her birth mother had left her because “she was a child of poverty and she did not want to raise another child in poverty.”

When Oliver met her birth mother she describes the event as “meeting a long lost aunt... it wasn’t like I thought it was going to be. I thought there was going to be this really strong connection," she said. "I felt like I was

meeting a relative but more like a really fun aunt. She brought a big folder of all of her childhood and family pictures which I thought was really nice and we just talked about her life and my life. She was really respectful of my boundaries.”

Through this meeting, Oliver found new information about her cultural background. “I found out that I was half Portuguese, that my father’s family is from the Azores, a small island chain, and then the other half from my mother's side was a quarter Basque,” Oliver said. “So I was really surprised because I thought ‘oh I have this cultural heritage,’ but I don’t really have it because I wasn’t raised with it.”

However, Oliver was initially hesitant to meet her birth mother. “[My brother] had a desire to find our birth mother and I was kind of shutting it down saying ‘don’t think about it, it doesn’t matter,’ and then later on I was the one who ended up actually finding her," she said.

"It’s been a good thing to go through together, navigating it together, we are definitely closer because of it."

Unlike Oliver, Hearne has not met her birth parents, and has no intentions to. Hearne rarely thinks about the fact that she is adopted. “It's not something I dwell on a lot or think about. It's just normal for me,” she said. On the contrary, Rittenhouse often thinks about how she is adopted.

“I do think about it a lot, even every single day when I come home... I'm not sad about it, I always knew that

PHOTO COURTESY OF MARLIESE RITTENHOUSE

Rittenhouse with her father, John, after the adoption.

I didn't look like my family. And I'm ok with that,” she said.

While Rittenhouse finds it unlikely that she will ever meet her birth parents, she is interested in finding out more about her heritage. “I do hope to go to China again. I'm taking Chinese right now and hopefully I can become fluent soon and go back and be comfortable there, not feel like an outsider,” Rittenhouse said.

When Rittenhouse was younger, she didn’t realize that she was adopted. “Even from a young age, I knew every time I looked at my four siblings and my two parents... I didn’t quite look like them. I don’t think it clicked in my brain that I was adopted, I just thought, 'oh I just look really different from them',” she said. When she was around eight years old her parents explained how they came to China to adopt her. Rittenhouse points to this moment as finally understanding why she looks so different to her family.

Despite not having a desire to meet her birth parents, Hearne is also curious to find out more about her bloodline.

“I've done the 23andMe,” a company which offers DNA testing for ancestry, “to find out if there are any diseases I need to be watching out for.” Rittenhouse also took the 23andMe DNA test to find out more about her personal history. “It turns out I have a lot of second cousins, four times removed or something on the website," she said. "I think I would like to find out more, but I don't know who to talk to."

A c w e

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Stephan

January/Februa

ption in retrospect

members of the ASL community, their childhoods and upbringings ple. Adopted children tell how they came to be adopted, their circumstances and when they were introduced to their families.

Martha Duff | Features Editor

Oliver cites resources such as the Adoptees Liberty Movement Association (ALMA), as an organization which helps adopted children uncover their heritage and past. “[ALMA]

“

I woke up one day and thought, 'I do not want to die and not know where I came from.'

Stephanie Oliver, Guidance Counselor

believes that everyone should have a right to know their past because there are a lot of laws in place that prevent people from obtaining their original birth certificate and prevent people from knowing where they came from,” she said.

Rittenhouse believes that there are certain times when people treat adoption as a taboo topic. “People saw me walking next to my blonde mom, and they were like ‘what’s the relationship here? Do you know this woman?’ and I’m like ‘yeah, she’s my mom’,” Rittenhouse said. “People just seem surprised and no one really assumes that in the first place.”

Oliver’s experience with her family was different. “As a white child

PHOTO COURTESY OF STEPHANIE OLIVER

nie Oliver with her half brother.

ary 2019

Phaedra Letrou | Deputy Editor-in-Chief: Print

adopted by a white family we could sort of ‘pass’ as a natural family and that was certainly the way my family operated. So I believe that when you try to [pass as a blood related family], parents miss some of the special needs that adopted kids have,” Oliver said.

Oliver explained that in adoptive households, there are many characters, such as the birth parents or potential siblings, that all create this one family but might not be in the picture which “researchers and people interested in adoption call 'ghosts'… the ghost kingdom of people who are in the house but who are not talked about."

In terms of stigmas associated with adoption, Hearne does not believe that there are defining prejudices. Since she was adopted at a time when many Chinese girls were being adopted by American families, she believes she “personally hasn’t faced any stigmas.”

However, she credits this to the fact that adoption has become a more normal topic to discuss and has strayed away from being a delicate topic. “I know that 10 or so years ago, people were definitely facing stigmas… but I think that now, just in terms of being a Chinese girl who’s been adopted, it’s such a big group... it’s not that unusual,” Hearne said.

Rittenhouse agrees with Hearne and believes that when she was younger, there were certain prejudices associated with adoption. “When I was younger, kids would joke around about me being ‘unwanted',” she said.

“I just hope that people keep an open mind about [adoption].”

Oliver believes that there are different contexts involved with adoption and that there are stigmas which only reflect certain circumstances.

“Before I worked at ASL, I worked at a mental health clinic where a lot of my clients were teenagers who had been adopted later on in life from families where there was severe trauma or drug abuse,” Oliver said.

“In those situations, there are a lot of stigmas because those kids are coming in with baggage, and the assumption from their teachers and communities is that they are going to be crazy and have a lot of behavioural and emotional issues. A lot of times they do have those issues because they have been through a lot [of ] what we call attachment issues, and that’s a totally different context than being adopted at birth or when you are three.”

Oliver also mentioned that an adoption affinity group has been created at ASL, where both students and teachers who either adopt or are adopted can find a community. “This was driven by a few parents who are adoptive parents... they are also just curious if there is any need at ASL for having this group,” she said. Additionally, Oliver mentioned that she “would be really interested in working with students who are adopted...

We have a different way of looking at the world and it would be cool to get together and talk about those things.”

PHOTO COURTESY OF ZOE HEARNE

Zoe Hearne and her brother, Noah Hearne ('17).

PHOTO COURTESY OF MARLIESE RITTENHOUSE

Rittenhouse with her mother, Elke, after her adoption.

PHOTO COURTESY OF ZOE HEARNE

Hearne's father, Daniel, signs legal documents at the orphanage.

PHOTO COURTESY OF ZOE HEARNE

Hearne's mother, Linda, signs legal documents at the orphanage.

The Standard

Another side of the school Tucked in the hallways of Middle Red is the Advancement office. Home to an array of staff, the department works behind the scenes on jobs like communications, fund-raising and alumni outreach.

Zarina Choudhari-Stewart | Staff Writer

T

he work of the Advancement and Communications office is vital to the functioning of the school, yet is rarely seen by students. On a day-to-day basis, Communications is responsible for the school’s website and general relations between faculty, amongst other things.

Advancement focuses on community giving and alumni relations.

Associate Director of Advancement for Communications Wendy Robinson has worked at ASL since 1992 and remembers a time when Advancement and Communications were under the umbrella term “Development Department.”

Robinson is now one of the three members of the specific Communications team alongside Associate Director of Strategic and Digital Communication Liz Allen and Communications Coordinator Lydia Condon.

In 1994, the formalized Communications/Advancement program was made. “Going from those humble early beginnings where there were probably three people in the department, we evolved and are now 11 strong,” Robinson said.

While Robinson works with brand management for the school and does copy editing for the website, Allen primarily handles the school’s online presence. “I work with the Media Department and am the webmaster for the school’s website. I am also the community manager for all of our social media presences,” Allen said.

For Allen, her job overlaps and connects with Robinson’s in different ways, similar to “a yin and yang” or a “venndiagram,” she said.

It isn’t a true day in the office until schedules have been switched around.

The communications office never follows the same routine - it changes daily, if not hourly. “The challenge is I have to be as flexible as possible around whatever might come into my inbox or through my office door, which is fun, but it’s also challenging because there might be something that I’d have to do that day,” Allen said.

In addition to social media, Allen and Condon work on the ASL website.

The two recently redesigned the site, and Condon explained how she is in charge of maintenance and regularly updating things.

Condon also takes the lead role of photography and videography for the site. “I try to be present around campus a lot so I can then capture things that are happening. I then do little news stories and blurbs which go onto social media and the ASL website,” Condon said.

Although the communications team works on seperate projects, Allen said that “we’re very collaborative so we keep each other in the loop on the different things we’re doing. Even though we

PHOTOS BY EMILY FORGASH AND QUINN WHITMAN

Left to right: Marika Ison (’07), Liz Allen, Margaret Pringle (’91), Lydia Condon, Sandy Mateus, Dervla Flynn, Beth Crutcher.

16 Features

might, each be responsible for different projects, we work together a lot to make sure that again, we have consistency.”

A major part of Condon’s role is preparing Take Note, the weekly letter for parents, faculty and staff that comes out every Thursday afternoon. “I spend a lot of time on Wednesday putting it together because I get contributions from around the community. It’s a lot of copy editing to get it into place and to check everything,” she said. “Then on Wednesday night I get it signed off by many people and on Thursday I’m making the edits from the sign offs.”

Associate Director of Advancement for Annual Giving Margaret Pringle (’91) is the director of the Annual Fund and works to get money to fund all of the programs that ASL has to offer. “[Each year we] ask parents, grandparents, alumni, parents of alumni, faculty and staff, past faculty to give back to the community in a way that’s meaningful to them,” Pringle said.

Pringle always had a feeling that she would come back to working at the school, and now is involved in expanding the Annual Fund online so that it can reach as many former students as

Allen finds that having the different perspectives of working in a team allows them to question the way that they go about their job and how they can ultimately improve it. “We all bring unique aspects and opinions to projects,” Allen said. “We’re each coming at it from totally different angles because we have completely different backgrounds.”

In addition to the Communications Department, the Advancement Department plays another role in keeping the school running and involved with the community.

possible.

“We’re looking to digitize it more and to sort of bring in a personalized touch with people so that they will feel like they are making an impact,” she said.

Senior Associate Director of Advancement Services Dervla Flynn manages the work that helps make plans like these possible. “[My] role is really around all the systems and the processes that support communications, alumni relations and fundraising.” she said. “It is kind of the foundational piece that is not seen - in the background work - that’s just so critical in helping my colleagues do what they do so beautifully.”

Throughout Flynn’s time in the department, she feels that the vast improvements in technology have made her job change rapidly. “How technology has evolved has forced not just our team, all teams across education institutions who are in

advancement roles, to really have to adapt,” she said.

Another face of the office is Associate Director of Advancement for Alumni Relations Marika Ison (’07), who has worked at the school for five years and changed jobs within the Advancement Department several times in order to fulfill specific needs. She is currently covering for Associate Director of Advancement for Alumni Relations Libby Jones, who is on maternity leave.

Ison said she really enjoys all the different roles that she has taken on. In her current role, she spends time responding to emails, mostly from alumni, and plans for international alumni events. “We want to make sure there are meetings lined up for people who live where the event is because we want to meet as many people as possible,” she said.

Within the school, Flynn enjoys seeing the progression of education and student success, and how her job fits into that. “I think we’re really lucky because we get to see all the exciting things [students] do down the line, and we get to meet these amazing students who have gone out and made such differences in the world,” she said.

The Advancement and Communication office is fast-paced. It can be challenging, yet the staff in the office are energized rather than fazed by it. “This is the beauty of advancement and communication work. It’s so crazy and it’s always changing,” Ison said. “You need to be the type of person who is ready to deal with anything that’s thrown your way.”

The Standard

Sustaining support Garnering financial support from the ASL community is an essential role of the Advancement Department. The process of fund-raising is complex and requires different facets of expertise, yet is a rewarding project for those involved.

John Towfighi | Lead Features Editor

B

ullet proof glass surrounds the sleek wooden benches and smooth finished concrete that make up the new Waverley entrance. Unveiled in January, the innovative design is an example of the essential role that philanthropy and fund-raising play in supporting the development of the school.

Projects like the new entrance are important for the community, yet what is often overlooked is what goes into turning these projects from ideas to reality. This occurs in the financial realm, where staff in the Advancement Department work alongside parent volunteers to solicit donors and meet necessary funding goals.

There is a five percent gap left in the budget after revenue from tuition and other sources of income like extracurricular trip fees. This gap takes the form of the Annual Fund. Spearheaded by the Advancement Department, specifically Director for Annual Giving Margaret Pringle (’91), and shifting parent chairs, the Annual Fund is a vital part of the school’s operating budget.

The Annual Fund’s goal for the 2018-19 year is to raise £1.85 million.

Meeting that goal is necessary for the education of the schools 1,408 stu-

dents, and Director of Advancement Beth Crutcher explained how the task of reaching it and gathering community contribution is approached with strategic thought. “It’s all about building relationships and educating,” she said.

“Just saying why this extra five percent on top of tuition revenue helps us to do that much extra for the school.”

Annual Fund co-chairs Larry Small and Irene Zia (P’28), explained that

January/February 2019

the fund-raiser is indispensable to the school as it is incorporated directly into planned expenditures. “It’s not an additional set of items, they’re not ‘nice to haves’,” Small said. “It’s actually embedded within the way the school budgets.”

This process of fund-raising to provide for education and resources not fully covered by tuition cost is based on a “typical American independent school model,” Crutcher explained.

A key part of supporting the fund is informing families about why this model benefits the community. “An email is first sent to our new families … it talks about different ways to get involved and giving,” Crutcher said. “[This model] might not be as familiar to some of our international families or some American families that might come from a public school so [the email] describes why it’s important.”

For Senior Associate Director of Advancement Sandy Mateus, this information for families about the importance of donations serves as the foundation for the Annual Fund. “We want to make sure we are taking a thoughtful approach with our families to educate them about the fund-raising initiatives and projects,” she said. “We want to make sure [families] don’t feel any pressures.”

Head Librarian Karen Field, who has experienced donation solicitation from a U.S. school her daughter attended, feels that the outreach from

Advancement is done in a conscious manner to avoid unwanted conversations about giving. “From a parent’s perspective, especially depending on people’s financial situations, it can be really annoying to hear from a school ‘we need more money,’ but I actually think Advancement is very cognizant

“

To see how well supported the Annual Fund is by our faculty and staff, that speaks large volumes to the whole community here.

Sandy Mateus, Senior Associative Director of Advancement of that,” she said. “I think that there are some limits in asking parents, as well as [coordination] with different organizations within the school asking parents for money, so they try to be [aware].”

Furthermore, outreach includes showing potential contributors where their gift will be applied, whether that’s salaries or construction. Statistics on where revenue is spent are public on the ASL website, and Pringle explained that the department works to clarify any questions along the way. “Donors nowadays really want to know more about where their pound is going.

And we’ve tried to demonstrate more transparently and more effectively where that money is going,” she said.

This strong understanding of who’s behind the project and what the final objective is proves to promote participation from the public. For example, chairing the Annual Fund did not push Small and Zia into a position of uncertainty, as the reputation and identity of the cause

had already been solidified throughout the school. “The annual fund started more than 25 years ago,” Small said.

“We aren’t really starting from scratch, we’re standing on the shoulders of all those who have gone before us.”

A part of maintaining this good relationship with the community has been knowing when and when not to cross certain lines with initiatives.

“You really can’t twist people’s arms,” Crutcher said. “They have to want to support the school.”

Echoing Crutcher, Zia noted how instances of overreaching in solicitation seldom occur due to the wilful nature of the parent community. “The school provides state of the art facilities and the parents understand that these facilities need to be funded,” she said.

Parents contribute both financially and manually as well, with more than 100 volunteers each year helping with soliciting and organization. “I think our work [as Chairs] is to support them, and to add our own personal touch to what they’re doing,” Small said.

As well as parents, Mateus noted how numerous faculty and staff consistently give their own donations to help keep the school running. “When our parents see how well supported the Annual Fund is by our faculty and staff, that speaks large volumes to the whole community here,” she said.

For K-12 Performing Arts Department Head Gordon Graham, supporting the fund and setting an example for parents is something he is willing and able to do. “The message we get from the school is that it is not so much the amount of money that a faculty or staff can contribute, but it is the fact that we do,” he said. “When [potential donors] hear that 85 percent of employers are donating to the school, it tells them something about the institution, that we value working here, and that might be enough to encourage them to donate.”

Seeing the school environment for students and the kind of learning that goes on also motivates Graham, Field and other

teachers to continue their support and contribution. “[You can think] I’d rather give my money to an underprivileged school, but in many ways you know we potentially have future leaders here, and we want to make sure we can help our students who are going to influence people in the world later on,” Field said.

Tackling a new goal each year, the Annual Fund relies on cooperation from many areas of the community.

For Small, when it all boils down, the fund represents the general agreement among parents and educators alike that the school is something worth sustaining. “I think we’re very fortunate to be part of a community of like-minded adults who believe in education in general and they believe in the education their children are receiving at ASL in particular,” he said. “And, they’re very generous.”

Six aspects of the school supported by the Annual Fund.

Features 17

Finding the limits of free speech Isabelle Lhuilier | Features Editor

Lea George | News Editor

One of the oldest rights in the U.S. is freedom of speech.

However, there has been growing contention as to whether hate speech falls under the same definition.

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he First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution states that all speech is protected by law unless it actively insights violence. Therefore, all hate speech is legal in the U.S. unless it is specifically encouraging violence against a group of people.

Similarly, in the U.K., freedom of speech does not include and protect words that incite violence or threat towards another person or group of people. Moreover, as stated in Section four of the U.K. Public Order Act of 1986, one can be prosecuted for using “threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour that causes, or is likely to cause, another person harassment, alarm or distress.” Over time, this has grown to include phrases that insult race, religion, one’s sexual orientation and also phrases that provoke terrorism.

Natalie Vann (’20) defines freedom of speech as “the ability to speak one’s mind without being afraid of consequences.” She believes that free speech applies not only to verbal speech, but also protesting and all forms of writing.

Furthermore, Vann believes that hate speech should be separate from free speech, and should not be given a platform to be expressed. “There is the idea that you have to respect others’ ideas and others’ view, which I totally agree with, but when those views hate or invalidate someone's life I think that there shouldn't be room for them,” she said.

In line with the First Amendment, Isabel Rosen (’19) believes there are different degrees of hate speech that extend from generic hurtful comments to direct incitements of violence.

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To her, the former should be free from prosecution while the latter should be brought to trial. “When it transitions from general hateful speech to an incitement of violence and a continuing perpetuation of violence that's when the line should be drawn,” she said.

Similar to Rosen, Rohit Venuturupalli (’21) believes that there must be a limit on free speech at the point where it endangers or threatens the life of another. This is when he

[a] dangerous situation,” he said. “Telling someone to ‘go and kill someone’ when they actually might kill someone, that’s also a form of speech that should not be protected.”

However, Hamama feels that in all other instances, speech should be protected even if it is hateful. “Let’s take Charlottesville for example [a white supremacist rally which took place in August 2017] . ‘Jews will not replace us’, as terrible as that chant is, it still should be protect-

“REPEATEDLY SAYING SLURS AT SOMEONE WITH THE INTENTION OF HARM IS VERY DIFFERENT FROM ACCIDENTAL HATEFUL SPEECH.” ISABEL ROSEN (‘19) believes speech is no longer protected by the first amendment. “I think you should have free speech to the extent where people aren’t getting hurt. It’s not getting your feelings hurt, it’s if people are feeling threatened, they’re feeling attacked,” he said.

Hamama believes that speech should only be regulated if it’s explicitly and directly causing violence. “For example, you can’t scream ‘fire’ in a crowded room because that literally is causing

hate speech is free

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ed because there is no direct causation between saying Jews will not replace us and going and committing violence against Jews,” he said.

Regarding free speech at ASL, Venuturupalli feels that although the community is a liberal majority, and he may be criticized at times for his conservative viewpoints, he is still generally able to express his true beliefs around a specific topic.

Conversely, Hamama believes that expressing certain conservative opinions at ASL would be

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18 Features

The Standard

“IF YOU LIMIT SOMEONE TODAY, THAT GIVES THE GOVERNMENT THE RIGHT TO LIMIT SOMEONE ELSE TOMORROW.” LIAM HAMAMA (‘20)

viewed negatively by the general student popultion. “For example, supporting something like [U.S. President Donald] Trump’s administration, being against abortion at ASL, being against LGBTQ+ rights,” he said. “I’m not saying [that I agree with those views], I’m saying that in ASL a lot less people are able to express those opinions.”

On the other hand, although some topics hold more controversy than others, Vann feels that she has the right to free speech at ASL. “I think that ASL does a pretty good job of letting people say what they want to say and letting people respond how they want to respond,” she said. “If someone says a controversial statement about their political beliefs, they are allowed to say it, but people are allowed to say ‘I don't agree with you’.”

Like Vann, Rosen feels that everyone has freedom of speech at ASL because she has never seen instances where the administration has gone after anyone for holding a certain opinion. “I think that [some] people like to pretend that, because there is a general [political] consensus among the students, that their speech is somehow being oppressed, but I just don't see the actual persecution and action done by the admin,” she said.

Despite this, Rosen does not feel that hate speech is protected at ASL because it is a private institution. “It's different from hate speech out in the public because in school we have all signed the Code of Conduct and have agreed to treat each other with respect,” she said. “If what you are saying is actively not respecting someone then I think that there is grounds for the school to take issue.”

Hamama believes that in any setting it’s important for every individual to feel like they

can express their own opinion. “If someone has an opinion that you see is wrong, personally, I believe that it’s better for them to say that opinion and for you to respond with why that opinion is wrong and explain to them why they are wrong, rather than just getting mad at them as a person for having that view,” he said.

The basis of free speech is exemplified at ASL for Hamama as he feels people can say what they want but acknowledges that, like in the outside world, they will also face judgment by other members of the community. “If, in ASL, you were to walk in wearing a MAGA (Make America Great Again) hat, you’d suffer the consequences of that but you’re still allowed to go into ASL with a MAGA hat,” he said. “So I think free speech is allowed in ASL but there’s more of a risk of suffering the consequences of expressing free speech in ASL than there is … just in regular society.”

Similarly, Venuturupalli feels that ASL’s more liberal environment may lead to unintentional limitation on some students’ freedom of speech. “Not just conservative opinions, there’s a lot of opinions in general that go unheard because of the fear of backlash they’ll face. And whilst of course you can’t straight up threaten someone, I still feel like there could be some more leniency regarding free speech in this school,” he said.

However, he does believe that he is able to speak hid mind at ASL. “I have verified free speech. I have free speech until I cross to the extent where I am now infringing on someone’s safety,” he said.

In terms of punishment for hateful speech at school, Rosen believes that it should be on a case by case basis and should relate to how much offense was taken. “If someone is repeatedly saying slurs at someone with the intention of harm than that's very different from someone maybe accidently, or from a place of ignorance, saying hateful speech,” she said.

In the professional world, should one voice racist, homophobic, sexist, or any other form of discriminatory comment in the workplace, Venuturupalli believes that their employer has a right to fire them, and that they are no longer protected by their First Amendment rights in that scenario. “You fall under the laws of that country but that’s their workplace, you follow their guidelines. Now, if you break their guidelines, of course action must be taken,” he said.

On the other hand, Venuturupalli feels that it is crucial to remember that it is possible for someone to make an honest mistake. “Sometimes we forget that we’re all humans, we all slip up, and sometimes when expressing our opinions, they’re not articulated as well as they could be,” he said. “I think sometimes we miss the line and when we hear a racial slur we instantly think, ‘they’re racist, they’re not a good guy’.”

Regarding free speech on social media platforms, Social Studies Teacher Becky Mason believes that laws can become slightly harder to apply as, when people have anonymity, they feel as though they have the liberty to say whatever they wish to say without facing

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consequences.“We have laws about intimidation and assault and we should use those then,” she said. “In [public] you wouldn’t have people yelling like things like, ‘I think your kids should die’ or ‘you deserve to be raped.’ I don’t think people do that face to face, but I think when they’re sitting at home on a computer, they do it and they’re anonymous so no one knows who they are.”

Mason feels that speech like this is hard to control as social media companies such as Facebook and Twitter are private. She believes that speech on these platforms should be held to the same standard as public speech, and more government regulation is needed to achieve this. “On social media we don’t necessarily control it and [know] who controls it,” she said “So then we have to raise [companies] to the level of government. It’s such a new thing that I think we haven’t really figured out how to do it.”

Although she disagrees with it, Vann would not change the First Amendment to make hate speech illegal, as she does not believe the government should be able to dictate speech. “Free speech is so important especially [in difficult] political times. People should still be able to speak their minds and say what they believe is right. If the government gets involved with that it stops the flow of knowledge,” she said. “[Criticism] is very important and if that's shut down you paint a perfect picture when in reality that's not the case. people have the right to know what the truth is.”

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January/February 2019

Features 19

Sandra Madej joins the team ASL’s first female security guard Sandra Madej, comes from Poland,owns her own interior design company and is a personal trainer alongside her security jobs.

Emily Forgash | Media Editor

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iery is the first word that comes to mind when thinking about ASL’s first ever female security guard Sandra Madej. She is ready for anything and looks for challenges to overcome, constantly pushing boundaries. “I want to see how far I can push myself. I like variety, I like doing interesting things,” she said. “I’m full of energy, always ready.”

Madej’s reaction upon learning that she would be surrounded entirely by men on the security force was overwhelmingly positive.

“Brilliant. Fantastic. I used to work for 11 years as a personal trainer, so I’ve been working in a male environment all the time. I feel very comfortable,” she said. “[It’s] very straightforward... no drama.”

However, Madej’s life leading up to her position at ASL has been anything but a straight path. Her story began in Poland, where her mother lives today, and she moved to London at the 16. She also lived in America for a short period of time. “I moved to New York in 2009. I was there for six months, then I went back to London to do my [studies],” she said.

Madej has attended three universities, one of which was the Open University of London, where she earned a business degree.

Madej has worked in many professions, almost too many to count.

After university she started and ran her own luxury interior designs company. “On the side, of course, I had my personal training business. I also run my mom’s company - she’s a famous artist in Poland,” she said.

“I decided I wanted to try security [jobs] just to expand my horizons and to see what’s going to happen.”

Madej started her security career at clubs in Mayfair, and then got the job at ASL. “The team is fantastic, the guys are really professional and I’m learning a lot. [I’m] kind of [challenging] myself just to see what I can do,” she said. “Anything with America I’ll do. I absolutely love the culture itself and... work is great.”

Madej’s optimal work environment is filled with people. “I like working with people, that’s my thing. I’m not the type of person to sit behind a screen or a computer. As a project manager I was like, ‘I can’t do this anymore... it’s just too boring,’” she said.

20 Features

Head of Security Roi Yefet attributes the fact that there has never been a female security guard at ASL to the fact that they were not specifically looking to hire female guards and just hadn’t found the right one yet. “[This is the] first time we’ve found the right person. She’s great,” he said.

Yefet estimates that around 20 women have applied for a security job at ASL in the past few years. However, “a majority of them [were] looking for more of a reception job [which we don’t have at ASL], not external, physical security,” he said.

When looking for a security guard, Yefet does not hire based on gender, but rather experience. “All my guys are ex-army or ex-police

“

I like working with people, that’s my thing. I’m not the type of person to sit behind a screen.

Sandra Madej, Security Guard

PHOTO BY EMILY FORGASH

combat unit. I’m looking for a very experienced person, regardless of female or male, it doesn’t matter for us,” he said.

In Yefet’s eyes, adding a woman to the ASL security force has not had a negative effect on any logistics. “Not at all. Completely not at all,” he said.

Solenne Jackson (’21) hadn’t done a lot of reflecting on female security guards or the lack thereof at ASL until it was brought to her attention that the first one was recently hired. “I think I just always inherently assumed that security guards would be males, and walking into ASL every morning it’s never fazed me that there are no female security guards,” she said.

However, Jackson believes that the addition of a female security guard will be positive. “It would be great if there were [more] female security guards. I think it would counteract a lot of stereotypes that people make,” she said.

Madej’s next steps in life are still career based. “As a career progression, I’d like to move into close protection, that’s the next step,” she said.

However, Madej believes she will stay at ASL as long as she continues feeling inspired. “I think it’s a privilege [to work at ASL],” she said.

“The guys are really professional and I’m learning a lot.”

The Standard

Forming student–teacher connections When students reflect on their relationships with teachers, they often think about their ability to earn a certain grade or visit them after class. However, students and teachers frequently attest to the benefits of forming lasting friendships.

Houdah Daniels | Staff Writer

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efore coming to ASL, Lucas Achkar (’19) attended a French school in London where his class size was just shy of 40 students; There was one teacher and a teaching assistant to cater to all the students.

When Achkar arrived to ASL in Grade 8, he was shocked to discover that an average class often had fewer than 15 students.

This change let him see the individual care teachers were able to give to their students in a more exclusive environment. “I actually saw, for the first time, the empathy and sympathy of teachers if I wasn’t able to solve a problem,” he said.

Similarly, Maya Bajpai (’20) shares Achkar’s appreciation for teacher accessibility at ASL, and recognizes this as a key difference between the American and the British education systems. Prior to arriving at ASL for her freshman year, Bajpai had attended Ibstock Place School, an independent British school, her whole life which had an average class size closer to ASL’s– around 20 students.

Nevertheless, in the British school system, Bajpai still experienced independent learning methods but with less teacher connections. “I was used to having to do everything by myself and so there [was] a lot of pressure on you as an individual to try and learn all this content,” she said.

Bajpai recognizes that her experience at ASL has allowed her to maintain the independence she gained in

nize what he would later understand to be a benefit of building relationships with teachers. “In the beginning I didn’t really have those bonds with my teachers because I was more keen on making friends, especially as a new student,” he said. “It’s the first thing you do, you make friends from people in your own grade [and] you don’t really see teachers in that same way.”

Prakash urges students to break any mindset that the teacher is there only in a utilitarian way.

“Sometimes [teachers] give hints [of themselves] in their classes, they share small parts of their personal life… so I guess [be] a bit more attentive and [be] a bit more aware of those things,” he said.

“Especially if you do actively want to get to know a teacher… you just pick up on stuff that they’ve said that resonates with you.”

Achkar too finds it beneficial to spark conversations with teachers.

“I always try to distance the acaLucas Achkar (’19) demics away, now I don’t know if that’s a good thing,” he joked. “But January 17, 2019, positive emotions you know, I tend to ask them how are key in a learning environment as their day was, what they’re doing, they assign value and care to the top- try and see any common themes beics students learn. tween my life… and theirs.”

Although he initially struggled to Hannah Thier (’22) was new at do so, Shaurya Prakash (’18) recog- the start of this school year and has nizes the benefit of settling into cer- noticed that most adult-student relatain teacher’s styles. As a new student, tionships tend to blossom based on Prakash prioritized making friends teacher initiative. “On the whole it with his peers and thus didn’t recog- really does depend on the teacher,” she said. “There are some teachers who really do seem to have a good connection with the students and there are others who seem to kind of just appear in the classroom and teach their subject.”

Thier recognizes that not every teacher is adamant about creating personal relationships with students and understands that they would prefer to keep teacher-student relationships solely professional. However, Thier does acknowledge that building relationships PHOTO BY ALEXANDRA GERS with teachers is imOften spending long hours after school in the Make Innovate Learn Lab portant. “If you have a (MILL), students on the robotics team, like Theo Longboy (’19), have the teacher that you don’t opportunity to develop relationships beyond the classroom with the team have a good relationmentors, like Registrar Grace Conteh.

January/February 2019

the British system, but through selfadvocacy instead of independently learning and memorizing material.

“There is a lot of pressure academically, [so having someone you know] makes you relax,” she said.

Furthermore, studies have shown the positive impacts of learning from those you have a positive connection with. According to an article published in the New York Times on

“I actually saw, for the first time, the empathy and sympathy of teachers if I wasn’t able to solve a problem.”

PHOTO BY QUINN WHITMAN

As part of the mission team, students like Cloe Tchelikidi (’20), who work on social media and fund-raising for the robotics program, often are mentored by Associate Director of Strategic and Digital Communication Liz Allen, who oversees the program. ship with, it can totally mess up your classes and mess up how you feel about school,” she said.

As head of the fitness center, Fitness Instructor Lucia Glonekova’s has the unique perspective of being able to see faculty and students interact outside of the classroom and beyond the walls of the hallways. “The students have really close relationships with teachers, you know, and it’s more open and friendly,” she said.

Glonekova remembers her own experience in school, and feels “like the teachers are more accessible, students have better access to teachers,” she said.

Social Studies Teacher Michael McGowan has taught at ASL for five years, and at a boarding school for several years prior. From his experience at boarding school, McGowan understands the foundation of strong student-teacher relationships to be quality time, which is “understandably” limited within the realms of a day school. At boarding schools, “students and faculty [spend] more time together outside of the classroom, for exam-

ple eating meals together,” he said.

One way McGowan believes these relationships could be enhanced is through maintaining the upkeep of faculty-student common spaces, such as the Learning Commons and the subject pods. “If we [maintained] really nice, clean inviting common spaces… I think a lot of great discussions could come out of just mingling together,” he said.

Another idea McGowan had was infrequent yet mandatory lunches, where students and faculty who wouldn’t normally cross paths, would be able to converse. “It’s just a way to get to know teachers and students you normally wouldn’t come across,” he said.

Furthermore, Prakash urges students to find “commonalities” with teachers in order to build relationships. “When you talk to teachers, they’ve had various different backgrounds, they’ve lived longer lives [and] they’ve had so many more experiences,” he said. “It broadens your mind, really.”

Features 21

Culture

Beyond the price tags of designer winter outerwear Students express their views on the socioeconomic and environmental impacts of buying expensive winter coats.

Naz Ozturk | Culture Editor: Print

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sure to buy something like this they shouldn’t really follow it... It’s much more important to have your own style and dress your own way,” he said.

Gualandri expresses that although these highpriced jackets are made from high quality materials, they aren’t a necessity as “dressing well and dressing in a composed way doesn’t have to be expensive.”

Kablawi agrees that owning coats from popular brands is not essential as there are many other options to choose from. “[Designer jackets are] definitely not a necessity, but I think that people can wear what they want,” she said.

She further expresses that within the ASL community, these expensive outerwear products

do not create a visible socio-economic barrier as “people don’t get judged if they aren’t wearing designer jackets.”

Quinn Link (’20) believes that a decent winter coat is a must for the winter months. He argues that the high demand for jackets such as Canada Goose and Moncler is due to the correlation between the price you pay and the quality you get, as these jackets are often made to suit colder climates. “The community at ASL is all about designer this and designer that, so it would make sense for them to choose these high-end coats,” Link said. Nevertheless, Link acknowledges that these expensive brands are not the only options for high-quality winter gear.

Brands such as Canada Goose and Mon-

“DESIGNER COATS LOOK LIKE ANY OTHER JACKET EXCEPT THEY HAVE DESIGNER LOGOS.”

cler, however, have recently been under attack by envoironmentalists as consumers question their sustainability and the ethics of owning animalbased products. A number of these brands use fur and animal products for part of their jackets, especially Canada Goose with their use of coyote fur lining and goose downs. In result, protests by animal rights activists periodically take place outside of the Regent Street Canada Goose flagship store. “There’s a lot of anger, specifically towards Canada Goose, and I think that’s valid, but at the same time a bit narrow-minded because there are a lot of other problems in the fashion industry that you could address,” Link said.

Science Teacher and Sustainability Council Advisor Marisa Wilson describes animal products as being greatly detrimental to the environment if they are not manufactured properly. Many of these fashion brands raise the animals for furs themselves and the breeding of the animals can result in the increase of greenhouse gas emissions – a leading cause of global warming. “Basically, [the companies] need to feed the animal off another piece of land or another animal. It’s not very efficient and it’s a waste of land,” Wilson said.

However, Wilson recognizes that not all animalbased products have the same level of damaging influence on the environment. Wilson acknowledges that Canada Goose uses goose feathers in their coats that are a by-product of the food industry; thus, the brand is not raising the geese specifically for the purpose of making jackets. “[Canada Goose] are making sure they are sourcing [feathers] in the best way they can. If you are going to wear a down coat, which many people do, I guess this is the best way to do it: by making sure the feathers are coming from the right source,” Wilson said.

However, Wilson asserts that consumers can still be more efficient in reducing their harmful effect on the environment by sharing the sentiment that “the more that we can eat and live lower on the food chain, the better we are,” she said.

BISSAN KABLAWI (’22)

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ur covered hoods, fashionable structures and valuable fabrics. It’s that time of year again when a reasonable number of wealthy Londoners bundle themselves up in voguish and often expensive winter jackets: from brands such as Moncler to Canada Goose. These jackets, however, commonly have a cost beyond their sometimes four digit price tag. In the past few years, these well-known brands have caused turmoil for their detrimental socio-economic and environmental impacts.

A few weeks before Christmas, Woodchurch High School in Birkenhead, U.K., passed a school dress code that banned expensive winter jackets.

The school’s attempt at banning these jackets directly correlated with their goal of lessening the socioeconomic disparity that the jackets symbolized between the students, primarily to lessen the social anxiety often associated with being unable to purchase one of these coats.

Edoardo Gualandri (’20) doesn’t agree with the notion that owning expensive clothing can create an uneasy social environment. He refers to these well-sought after items as “just jackets.” Gualandri further explains that “if any problems result from these jackets, it’s not the fault of people buying the jacket; it’s the fault of people thinking what ideals [expensive jackets] bring,” he said.

Similarly, Bissan Kablawi (’22) doesn’t buy into the hype of the jackets and views them as ordinary pieces of clothing. “[The designer coats] really look like any other jackets, except they have the designer logos,” she said.

Furthermore, Kablawi believes that these trendy jackets do not promote individuality or a “person’s sense of style.”

Although Gualandri establishes that in well-off communities, such as ASL, people buy popular and expensive items to fit in, he doesn’t believe that there is pressure to join the designer jackets bandwagon. “Quite a few people at ASL do have the income to spend money on things like this, but if someone has any pres-

22 Culture

The Standard

PHOTOS FROM TIME OUT

Cover pages of culture Examining how “Time Out: 50 Years, 50 Covers” documents the rise of culture journalism while illustrating London’s history.

Quinn Whitman | Media Director

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alking into the Museum of Brands, Packaging and Advertising just off of Ladbroke Grove in West London, I was unsure about what I would experience. From social media, the museum seems like a place where viewers feel as if they travel back in time when viewing artifacts dating to the Victorian era. But how might a teenager make the same connections with these historical pieces?

The exhibition,“Time Out: 50 Years, 50 Covers,” undoubtedly bridges one’s experiences both in observing London as a resident and seeing the city’s history through journalism.

The exhibition documents the journey of the lifestyle magazine Time Out since its founding in 1968 through displaying a history of cultural events in London and issues occurring to Londoners.

Local journalism, focused on a specific audience and on events in a specific area, has faded into the background with the rise of global outlets such as The New York Times and Washington Post, and I felt it refreshing to see how a local print publication has retained its ethos through starting franchises around the world, in cities such as New York, Tokyo, Sydney and Barcelona.

The first issues of Time Out from 1968 were made from a single A2 paper folded into several A5 pieces, which cost customers 1 shilling (approximately 90 pence today.) Now, Time Out is made of almost 100 glossy pages and is free, demonstrating the accessibility of the magazine to everyone.

January/February 2019

A January 2000 issue of Time Out, titled “Cheap London” highlighted the issue of inflation and how people could neither eat out nor be entertained for a reasonable price. The cover is styled like an advertisement page in a newspaper, but this edition of Time Out functions as the exact opposite of that. Advertisements in a newspaper are often flipped over in a failed attempt by companies to get people to spend their money, however, this cover of Time Out demonstrates to the public that out of everything happening in the city, the publication knows where the hidden gems of London are and why they are worth spending money on.

Time Out is also able to highlight the important theme of unity. Issues like “Our City: London Carries On,” published in July 2005, brings everyone together in a simple, unapologetic message following the July 7 2005 (7/7) bombings on public transport. During a vigil at Trafalgar Square, people held this cover up to stand in solidarity, showing that events like this could not shake London’s core. “London Carries On” exemplified a contemporary twist on a time-tested mantra. How Londoners reacted to 7/7 showed that they could still “Keep Calm and Carry On,” 66 years after the motto was first coined.

A call for unity amongst Londoners is also seen in the “Dear World” issue published in July 2016.

Following a polarizing Brexit vote, this Time Out cover reiterates what London is, and always has been: a diverse melting pot of cultures and stories.

The cover, which is simply a letter with a silhouetted skyline highlighting contemporary and classic landmarks, demonstrates that London has a history of being a place for everyone and that if someone has a problem with that, then they “aren’t a real Londoner.” The cover was a way to reiterate that the identities of every reader may be different, but that is what makes up the fabric of London.

Throughout the exhibition, it is clear that the magazine also serves as a time-tested medium to cultivate discussions on taboo topics. The magazine was the first non-gay U.K. publication to dedicate a front cover to an LGBTQ+ issue. A June 1979 cover, which depicted the Pink Triangle, which was a sign from the Holocaust to mark

“

Time Out is a snapshot of London before it becomes history. gay people, was a means to give airtime to what had happened in the 10-year period since the Stonewall Riots, which were demonstrations by LGBTQ+ people in the Grennwich Village area of New York. The symbol further affirms that some gay people who once felt the need to hide this as part of their identity, now felt that they could express themselves more openly and freely.

As the publication has only existed for the last 50 years, Time Out hasn’t shied away from put-

ting contemporary issues on their front covers. In May 1994, an issue titled “The Highs and Lows of Drugs” focused readers’ attention on London’s drug culture, the breadth of its presence across the city and how it was seen as both dangerous and glamorous. The publication also uses photography to describe the Brixton Riots of 1981, which were caused by frustrations racial discord and systemic oppression. This is done by showing a mass of police officers on a street following a riot, all in their uniforms, this time bearing riot shields. People who were once seen as watchdogs for the people had taken on a different persona as a group that was feared by everyone.

When the magazine was struggling to sell, it became free: a September 2012 issue with “Take Me, I’m Yours” emblazoned in white writing on a red cover. Below that, Time Out reiterates what their mission has always been and will continue to be: to give the readers a candid, unfiltered view of London. This garnered unprecedented success for the publication, bringing circulation from 55,000 to 300,000 in mere weeks.

Because of this exhibition, the next time the magazine is being distributed at a tube station, it is important to understand that Time Out is part of the fabric of London. Instead of ignoring the distributors who hope someone will walk by and grab a copy, it is vital to take one and read it, as Time Out is a snapshot of London before it becomes history.

The exhibition runs until March 3 and costs £9.

Culture Commentary 23

‘Queer Eye’ promotes self-care How self-acceptance and self-care, cornerstones of Netflix’s hit reality show, can be applied to everyday life.

Isabel Link | Staff Writer

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“ t’s not vanity, it’s self-care.” At least according to Jonathan Van Ness, Queer Eye’s designated grooming expert. Netflix’s hit show, Queer Eye, has launched me on a journey of self-care. For months I have been meaning to take on a selfcare routine, but it was this program that finally encouraged me to do so.

Queer Eye is an American makeover T.V. show in which five experts in design, food, culture, grooming and style aim to transform the lives of people nominated by their family and friends. Those who are deemed as lacking in confidence or who are ‘stuck in a rut’ are potential candidates for the hit show.

In each episode, the Fab Five, Bobby Berk, Antoni Porowski, Karamo Brown, Jonathan Van Ness and Tan France, take a new person under their wing. As promised in the program’s tagline, they receive “more than a makeover,” often times saying their lives are changed forever at the end of the week-long transformation.

Witnessing such an extreme change or renewal of a person’s life inspired me to examine my own. For me, my main focus is on academ-

ics; my life as a student is centered around tests, projects and deadlines.

But personally, I feel that I’ve become more aware of how I spend my time based on advice I have embodied from Queer Eye. I take breaks from homework and after finishing my assignment from each class, I remind myself to say “well done.”

Last year, I was putting immense pressure on myself to finish all my work at once and be the very best. Yet, what I needed to realize was that I can only strive to be the best version of myself. But, that was not going to happen if I didn’t give enough thought to my well-being and stress management.

Taking the idea of self-care, I learned that I must maintain a careful balance between my academic career and my life separate from school.

I started by devoting a portion of my day to doing things that I like such as listening to my favorite music, baking, going out with my family or even something as simple as taking a few minutes for some deep breaths.

Along with this idea of treating yourself and making yourself happy, Queer Eye is all about embracing yourself and everything that comes along

The reality T.V. show, Queer Eye, will be airing its third season this year on Netflix.

The show stars: Antoni Porowski, Jonathan Van Ness, Karamo Brown, Tan France and Bobby Berk.

LEFT PHOTO FROM NETFLIX.COM RIGHT PHOTO FROM PROSALIVRE.COM

with you. Anything from hardships in your past to struggles you face currently to your family history - you must accept yourself. This self-acceptance is part of self-care. After hearing candid confessions from the Fab Five about their struggles, as well as those of the contestants of Queer Eye, I understand the importance of loving myself for who I am.

Now, I can look forward to season three, set to premiere sometime this year.

Curating a collection Zainab Shafqat Adil | Staff Writer

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PHOTOS FROM ASLPAC.BLOGSPOT.COM

Top: collage by Kyle W. Bottom: painting by anonymous.

Right: detail from a painting by Patrick K.

24 Culture

n the red staircase alone, there are 17 works of art hung above the steps.

The Permanent Art Collection includes student work selected by art teachers and was originally started to fill the empty walls of the school.

Choosing a piece of artwork for the collection is a group decision made by the members of the art department near the end of every school year.

Each teacher shows a few pieces their students created throughout the year which they feel deserve to be put in the collection. From there, all of the art teachers select a couple pieces of art from each division of the school.

Visual Arts Teacher Jennifer Thomas said there are certain questions the teachers will ask to determine if a piece of art should be made a part of the permanent collection. “How is it an exemplary piece of art? And how does it stand out from anything else that was produced in that year?” she said.

“We look for something that makes it exemplary...distinctive.”

A piece of art chosen for the collection must meet the criteria that has been set out by the art department. Once a few select pieces have been chosen, the student who created the artwork and their parents are asked permission to donate the art to the school. Thomas said that permission is important because “the student is then donating the piece to the school forever.”

The collection has been accumulating since the 1970s. In past years, 14 pieces of art have been chosen –one from each grade level – but now that there is less space to fill in the school, that number has been decreasing.

Art from the permanent collection is all over the school, lining the halls, stairwells and offices. Because of that, there’s a certain significance associated with the collection. “It’s lovely ... it’s the most wonderful way to celebrate obviously exemplary student work, and to then keep it as a legacy,” Thomas said.

The Standard

A passion for playing water polo

Macey O’Malia (’21), who has been a water polo player since age eight, describes playing the sport in London, and her rigorous practice schedule.

Michael Flaherty | Sports Editor: Online

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pending five hours a day four times a week, takes a significant portion of time out of a High School student’s schedule, but for Macey O’Malia (’21) it is a common place. With water polo being a relatively uncommon sport in London, so she needs to spend three hours traveling round trip for each practice. O’Malia knows that this is what comes with the commitment to a sport such as water polo.

O’Malia began playing water polo when she was eight-years-old because a family friend was starting a team and she “had a lot of energy” as a kid, so the coach asked her if she wanted to play. This has led to a huge change in her life as she now spends so much of her free time playing the sport. “To get my work done I need to stay up after practice and I get home at 11 p.m. and I’m staying up until 1 a.m.”

When O’Malia moved to London, she continued her passion for the game by joining one of the only water polo teams in London: the London Otters.

“

“Recently, I was selected to join the National Academy which feeds into the England Team, and then the all U.K. team.”

Macey O’Malia (’21)

This team has brought O’Malia’s water polo career to a more competitive level, as in Virginia she played more recreationally, but now that she

lives in London the team is older and has different goals in the pool.

The goals of the London team are to win games and to improve as a team. After being a part of this team O’Malia hopes to progress to the next level in the U.K. and she has taken the first step to doing that. “Recently I was selected to join the national academy which feeds into the England team and then the all U.K. team,” she said.

O’Malia recognizes the great privilege that she has to be able to travel across Europe to play the sport. “We went to Hungary this summer [for a camp] because [water polo] is huge there,” she said. She also mentioned that if she makes the England team she will start travelling more frequently. Currently, however, most of her games are in and around London with a few exceptions where she will travel to Wales or northern England for the weekend.

Leading the way for young athletes Captains are one of the main sources of leadership and strength on sports teams, and can be instrumental in helping ASL athletics function smoothly.

Cameron Spurr | Staff Writer

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eadership is a quality that is necessary in almost all aspects of life, especially in sports. Aside from coaches, leadership on a sports team usually comes from the team captain. Director of Athletics John Farmer believes that “any chance [where] we can, as a school, give students leadership opportunities [are] important opportunities.”

Athena Lambropoulos (’20) is one of four captains on the ASL varsity swim team this year. Lambropoulos comes from a strong swimming background: she started swimming for a team when she was nine years old and is now swimming for Camden Swiss Cottage Swim Club outside of school. She emphasized that using this experience is helpful to her as a leader within the team. “I know what it’s like to be new on a team, and not the best,” Lambropoulos said.

Lambropoulos recognizes that levels of skill vary quite drastically on the ASL swim team as it is a no-cut sport. However, she acknowledges that skill levels vary across the board for all teams at ASL. This is another factor that captains must consider as part of their role. “I just want to help bring [our team] together and be a

January/February 2019

good leader for people who may not have all of the experience,” Lambropoulos said. “You don’t have to be the best [swimmer] on the team to be on the swim team.”

Nic Halsted (’19) co-captained the varsity soccer team this year along with three other teammates. Similarly to Lambropoulos, he found past experience helpful to him as a captain.

“I think seeing the team last year and seeing how captains last year did things was helpful,” Halsted said.

“

“I just want to help bring our team together and be a good leader.”

Athena Lambropoulos (’20) Lambropoulos tries to bring a positive outlook to her teammates in her captainship. This positive impact that captains bring also helps team coaches.

Head Swimming Coach Apostolos Mitrakos said he is “100 percent sure”

that his captains have made his coaching job easier. “The team captains are the people between the coaches and the swimmers… The first way to give advice to the whole team is through the team captains,” Mitrakos said.

Farmer agrees. He sees the role “as being a very important one, a student liaison between the team, both referees and officials as well as with the coaches.”

A captain’s role during practice can vary from team to team, but Lambropoulos and her co-captains, Jackson Olin (’20), Anna Podurgiel (’20) and Ally Larson (’19) often run relays and games during their practices. “Training is very challenging and hard, and by adding activities, it just gets you more comfortable and just a lot more relaxed then it usually is,” Lambropoulos said.

Furthermore, this is Mitrakos’ first year coaching at ASL. Because of this, the swimming captains have had to expand their role and help to organize gear, team dinners and more for meets that require overnight trips. As the swim team has 41 students, the largest number of student-athletes on a winter sports team, having four captains helps Mitrakos run the team.

There was a specific process for choosing swim captains this year.

Athletes who wished to be a captain sent an email to Mitrakos with their statement of how they are going to help and bring the team together. The entire swim team voted for which applicants they wanted as their captains.

By policy of the Athletics department, one of the captains on a team needs to be voted into the position by other members of the team.

Therefore, the first captain has some level of respect and admiration from their fellow teammates. After this first captain is elected, coaches can appoint another captain.

Farmer runs a Captain’s Council for captains of all varsity sports teams. This is an open forum where each captain can share any struggles within their team, what’s going well and more. Halsted found this resource helpful to him as a captain.

The position of captain is not strictly functional. There is a social aspect which captains can use to improve the team morale and chemistry. “I think having the ability to

interact with everyone on the team was really important,” Halsted said.

However, It can be difficult to maintain this camaraderie when there are students from multiple grades on the same team. “Honestly, for younger [players], I would joke around a lot with them. Not so much in training but on the tube and on the way to training and in school,” Halsted said.

Halsted made sure to be serious when necessary, but also create a comfortable environment as well. “[Joking all of the time] is going to be bad but if it’s [being serious all of the time] it’s also going to be bad. It’s good to have a combination of both,” he said.

The varsity boys soccer team had a period of six or seven games where there was a negative attitude amongst the players. Halsted and his co-captains, Ray Leavenworth Bakali (’19) and Thomas Cassidy (’19), were able to solve this issue “through a lot of discussion, us as captains speaking together, then us speaking with the coaches and some of the other players individually. We saw where the issues were, and then we addressed them. It was mostly a negative attitude that was bringing us down.”

Sports 25

A culture of competition The ASL and ACS Cobham sports rivalry has existed for more than 20 years.

Students and teachers explore what makes the rivalry so competitive and the controversies surrounding this competition.

Lily Whitman | Sports Editor: Print

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hen Director of Athletics John Farmer (’97) thinks about the start of the rivalry between ASL and ACS Cobham, he remembers his experiences playing basketball as a High School student at ASL. “Cobham was definitely on the rise and they weren’t the powerhouse that they are today. In my sophomore year, we lost to Cobham. My coach said, ‘don’t ever forget this, you are the first team that has ever lost to Cobham’,” Farmer said. “[Cobham] brought the whole team out, they took the scoreboard down, they wrote ‘ASL’ next to visitors and they posed for the photo to capture this moment in history where they had beat us for the first time ever.”

On the Cobham side, one of Grade 3 Teacher Phil Tiller’s (’91) memorable moments from being a

student at Cobham was seeing the rivalry play out. “[A] memorable moment of the rivalry was during a pep rally when I was in high school.

Someone was running around with an ASL t-shirt on a pole trying to stir up the crowd before an ASLCobham basketball game. I remember students were booing and yelling. It really got a response from the crowd.” he said.

Tiller, who has been a student, athlete, teacher and coach at both schools still isn’t able to pinpoint where the rivalry began. “I wasn’t sure where all of the animosity started from but [I] just knew from the moment I entered ninth grade that the ASL rivalry was strong. There was a lot of interest and desire around those games and races because ASL were our biggest competitors. I didn’t understand it though, because every team benefits from competing against strong teams.

I think without ASL or Cobham fielding strong teams, both teams would have suffered and neither would have improved,” he said.

Michele Lee (’21) arrived at ASL from Cobham this year. Lee,

Quinn Whitman | Media Director

who played varsity volleyball as a Cobham student and now as an ASL student, agrees with Tiller. She believes the tension between Cobham and ASL meant a heightened, more serious game. “At Cobham we would all get more serious. We would all say, ‘don’t joke around on the court,’ because at Cobham, we wanted to uplift our name,” she said. “We didn’t want other people to take the win away from us.”

For Lee, sports rivalries are created when schools are “[brought] together in the name of competition.” Lee finds that in rivalry games, more people will support each team.

“There is a unified front and you will be supported not only by your teammates, but by your friends and family,” she said. “You feel you are the better team.”

Tiller echoes Lee in that the teams feel that there is a higher level of competition when playing against their rival, which subsequently increases game attendance. “As a Cobham student and later as a coach, I would always see the parents come out more frequently for those games or races. The students were also there to cheer on their teams and their classmates,” Tiller said.

Farmer agrees with Lee and Tiller.

He has found that the ASL and Cobham communities express an interest

in wanting to see their students compete against each other. “Parents on both sides are very invested in their school’s teams and thus, come to the ASL-Cobham games,” he said. “I have spoken to Cobham parents who don’t go [down] to see TASIS and Hillingdon, but they will always make the trek to come [to ASL] because that is the one worth traveling for.”

Similarly, varsity basketball player Jack Wilkin (’20) believes that competition is brought on by past games or matchups between schools. Rivalries stem from the “history of competition between two schools, something that goes back a long time,” he said. “Generally there is some event in the past that has led to a long lasting rivalry.”

Wilkin believes that Cobham is ASL’s biggest competition within all sports. “Cobham is the first team that I think of when it comes to ASL’s rivals,” he said. “I think it is because we are both international programs and we are both in the same division, so it tends to usually fall that way.

They are our biggest competition, therefore our biggest rival.”

Farmer believes that the prowess of both Cobham and ASL in the ISST tournaments is what has caused the rivalry to become what it is today. He specifically cites the Eddie Hufford Award, which is given to the school that wins the most ISST tournaments in a school year. “ASL [and] Cobham are always the top two, and there is a huge gap to the third place school in terms of the overall finish,” he said. “It is remarkable how much of a two-horse race it is.”

The last time a school other than ASL or Cobham has won the award was in 2011. In the Spring 2018 ISST tournament alone, ASL and Cobham placed first and second in four different tournaments.

Lee believes she is more motivated when she plays against Cobham rather than against ACS Hillingdon or ACS Egham. “[Rivalries] make [games] a lot more fun and energetic and it changes the atmosphere so much. If we were going to play TASIS or ACS Hillingdon, we would just be like, ‘let’s just win’,” she said. “But when we play Cobham, we feel a sense to show ourselves off while we try to win. There is really a sense that this is the game that causes tension, but in the end, there will be a lot of fun.”

Similarly, Wilkin believes there is more pressure when playing rival teams. “You want to come out victorious. It adds to the pride of winning that rivalry. It is a bit shameful to lose ... so there is definitely pressure,” he said.

Madeleine Ashton (’21), who runs on the varsity cross country team, echoes Wilkin and Lee in that the competition intensifies when playing against the rival, be that ASL or Cobham. “I think I am more motivated when I am competing against the rival team,” she said. “I always want to help contribute to the feeling of us winning.”

Like Lee, Ashton moved from Cobham to ASL this year and also not only noticed a rivalry between the two schools, but also a difference between the culture and pressure surrounding competition. “I find it different that Cobham has a lot more

Left to right: A boys varsity soccer player dribbles around a Cobham defender in the fall 2011 season. Aboudi Al-Qattan (’12) shoots a freethrow in the final second of a game against Cobham during the winter 2011-2012 season. Hadley Bridges (’21) prepares for a hit against Cobham in the fall 2018 season. Lina Destin (’21) runs in a cross country race in fall 2018. Drew Erdei (’21) swings at a ball against Cobham in a baseball game in the spring 2018 season. PHOTOS FROM THE STANDARD ARCHIVES

26 Sports

The Standard

“THE RIVALRY IS PART OF THE FABRIC OF OUR ATHLETICS PROGRAM, OUR COMMUNITY AND OUR CULTURE.’” DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS JOHN FARMER

hate for ASL than ASL does for Cobham now. I do cross country here and I did it at Cobham, but at Cobham we would always go into practices thinking that ‘we have to beat ASL.’ Here it is a lot more relaxed and we are more focused on winning as a team,” she said.

When Tiller ran track as a High School student at Cobham, beating ASL was seen as a specific goal. “I used to race against a top distance runner from ASL when I was a junior, and he would win all of the races. He had a shirt that he wore before races that said ‘eat my dust,’ which was him saying he would outrun the competition.

So many days at practice or before a race, I would be asked by my coaches and teammates, ‘is he going to eat your dust this week?’,” Tiller said.

After transitioning to ASL, Lee found that she can use what she learned from her former teammates to propel the ASL team. “I think that now playing volleyball at ASL, it is more fun, since I see the other team and I know what they do and where their strengths lie,” she said. “When I went [back] to Cobham as part of the ASL team, I saw my friends and they were supporting Cobham but I was on ASL, so I think it made it a lot more personal and it felt a lot better to play.”

Lee believes that the competition between ASL and other teams is beneficial. “I think that competition is healthy when you don’t get that physical. I think competition on the court or field is what drives the motivation to win. When there is competition and a rivalry, the pace of the games

pick up and everything becomes more entertaining,” she said. “Competition is necessary and will make the atmosphere very energetic and the team will become much more unified.”

Ashton thinks that something else that contributes to Cobham’s heightened sense of a rivalry is the proximity of the schools and games.

When she was a student at Cobham, she could walk out of the school building and within minutes, be watching her friends compete. “I think the idea of a campus is really important, because if you want to watch a game [for ASL], you almost always have to go somewhere, rather than at Cobham, you just walk out and you are on the field.”

Agreeing with Ashton, Anna Costello (’19), who is a part of the varsity soccer, basketball and track and field teams, believes the rivalry with Cobham is born out of competition, talent and proximity. “I think that the main factor why they are [our] main rival is because they are the closest school to us. However, I also feel like it is their level of skill in sports and their successes. That is a huge factor in the rivalry because they are good athletes and they are better than TASIS, Hillingdon and Egham, and the fact that they are the closest makes them our biggest rival.”

Costello thinks that those factors were able played into the fallout of the 2017 ISST girls varsity soccer final, where ASL secured a gold medal against Cobham in penalty kicks. Following this, members of the team got together for a post-match dinner. As part

of the event, some of the team took part in burning a Cobham ribbon, which was filmed and posted on social media.

Costello feels that because the video was uploaded to social media, “it blew up into a big situation and it affected not only ASL’s reputation but it also affected another school’s students,” she said. “It became a very big deal, and it was.”

Natalie Vann (’20), who was also a member of the 2017 girls varsity soccer team, but was not at the team dinner, believes that the incident was fuelled by the competitiveness between the two schools. “It was not meant to be a personal or direct attack. It kind of got construed as that, when it truly was in the name of the game,” she said.

Costello agrees, and feels that the incident has allowed the team to reflect. “All of us have accepted that this is something that we have done, we have moved forward and we will continue to move forward and try to make amends for it,” she said.

Vann believes that the spirit of the game has allowed both ASL and Cobham to move on positively. “I think that what has been really amazing, is how hard the team has worked to come away from that, and

how this team and others can still enjoy a good game” she said. “It has been really great to be a part of the post-incident team because we still play just as fun games against Cobham.”

Costello thinks that the team has become stronger as a result of this incident, and Cobham will now be seen as more of an opponent instead of a rival. “The Cobham incident was a big peak of the rivalry and so was the fallout from it,” she said. “We are trying to view them as another opponent, as opposed to the earlier idea that this is a school that we need to beat because we hate them.”

Vann believes that through games, ASL and Cobham athletes can get to know each other as opponents. “You get to know these girls, you recognize them, you

know their numbers. It becomes fun, you look forward to playing them, not because you want to crush them or because you have anger towards them, just because it is fun to get hyped up,” she said.

Farmer is excited about the future of the ASL-Cobham relationship. “I love the fact that our community is working hard to cheer on our teams and think positively about competitive games and how it can be a great test for a team’s improvement or strength or commitment,” he said. “It is part of the fabric of our athletics program, our community and our culture.”

Left to Right: Gray Koyanagi (’19) throws a pitch against Cobham in the spring 2018 season. The varsity softball team shakes hands with the Cobham varsity softball team after a game in the spring 2018 season. Anna Podurgiel (’20) wins gold at ISSTs in the winter 2016-2017 season. Boys varsity basketball tips off against Cobham in the winter 2011-2012 season. Olivia Campili (’19) cheers on the ASL basketball teams.

January/February 2019

Sports 27

Sports

Homecoming clean sweep T

he bleachers were filled to almost full capacity during the Homecoming basketball games on January 11.

The boys and girls varsity teams as well as the boys JV team played Lakenheath High School. In the alumni game earlier in the afternoon, faculty beat alumni. The JV boys team won their game 55-26; the varsity boys team won their game 54-46; and the varsity girls team won their game 51-17. The varsity dance team performed during the basketball games as well.

Coverage continues on the Standard’s social media @TheStandardASL

Timmy Demetris (’19) adds to the 54-46 win for the varsity boys basketball team against Lakenheath High School on January 11.

PHOTO BY EMILY FORGASH

28 Sports

The Standard