December 2018
PG. 17
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contents
10 04 CRACKDOWN: Admin introduces new tARDY POLICIES DISTRICT considers cutting, consolidating electives 06 07 cheer begins alternating girls and boys games winter rally postponed until january 2018 election update 08 10 annual art fair RAISES MONEY FOR ART DEPARTMENT ap angela gramlick plans to leave tam 11 12 humans behind tam: Barbara Burroso humans behind tam: Carol Craft 13 14 love, sex, and the city not too hot to handle 16 17 submerged the funnies 23 26 editorial: global warming and california fires i was his angel, now he’s mine 27 28 crackin’ and slackin’ Heard in the hallways surfs up 29 30 coaches take the flag on the play 32 34 coming up crutch
news 4-11 2 decmaster.indd 2
lifestyles 12-16
features 17-22
op/ed 23-28
sports 29-34
the tam news 12/18/18 3:16 PM
Dear Reader, In light of the recent California wildfires, our publication chose to focus on climate change and other natural disasters in this issue’s editorial and feature story. In Submerged, author Logan Little explores the impact that global warming and subsequent sea level rise will have on our local community. In our editorial, Global Warming and California Fires, we retrospectively examine the causes of the recent California megafires and the consequences of being exposed to poor air quality for extended periods of time. This issue will also include a lifestyles piece from Ava Finn, Not Too Hot to Handle, where students can find helpful tips about what to do in the event of a forest fire. It is obvious that our planet is changing, and not for the better. Extreme weather events and natural disasters are increasing in frequency, and the federal government has proven to be ineffective at addressing what is arguably the most important issue of our generation. More so now than ever, we must take responsibility ourselves for combating the repercussions of climate change. It is time that we learn from the tragic effects our actions are having on other communities, and remember that we are not immune to the consequences, despite the mentality that Marin is untouchable. With regards to logistics, The Tam News apologizes for skipping last month’s publication; school cancellation due to poor air quality combined with the timing of thanksgiving break disrupted our normal print cycle. To make it up to our readers, this issue contains additional content, as there are extra pages in every section.
Kennedy Cook, Ava Finn, & Milo Levine
news
Kara Kneafsey, Lucas Rosevear, Ethan Swope, & Benjy Wall-Feng
lifestyles
Leah Fullerton, Charlie Rosgen, & Emily Spears
features
Griffin Chen, Zoe Cowan, Ephets Head, & Niulan Wright
Op/ed
John Overton, Skye Schoenhoeft, & Josie Spiegelman
Sports
Rocky Brown, Ian Duncanson, Samantha Ferro, & Aaron Young
design
Kennedy Cook, Samantha Ferro, Logan Little, & Emily Spears
Kennedy Cook
photo
REporters Benjamin Adelson, Lukas Affeltranger, Tahlia Amanson, Scarlett Ames, Paige Anderson, Jada Andrews, Isabella Bauer, Colin Bender, Eli Blum, Nikita Bogdanov, Charles Boyle, Jessica Bukowski, Bryan Cardenas, Cooper Carroll, Chelsea Catarozoli, Olivia Chamberlain, Trysten Church, Danika Clifford, Claire Conger, Gabriel, Contreras-Mendez, Jordan Cushner, Benjamin Daly, Steviana Dunn, Joseph Duran, Emily Dvorson, Erin Edgar, Isabella Faillace, Pamela Ferretty Aviles, Luke Ferris, Claire Finch, Hudson Fox, Chloe Gammon, Christopher Giron, Stephania Glass, Samantha Glocker, Leopold Grava, Madeline Grenville, Jeremiah Griff, Zev Grossman, Charles Guice, Grace Gustafson, John Halloran, Jacob Halvorsen, Fletcher Hessel, Henry Hoelter, Julian Holden, Ian Jamison, Samuel Jefferson, Connor Jenkins, Jissell Kruse, Conor Kuczkowski, Liza Lachter, Mary Lasher, Dylan Layden, Lola Leuterio, Paloma Leuterio, Elan Levine, Tomas Ludin, Kevin Marks, Sophia Martin, Joshua McGuinness, Zion McKinley, Jake McLaughlin-Voien, Johanna Meezan, Olivia Merriman, Cal Mitchell, Nalini Mizukami, Ilaria Montenecourt, Khadija Nakhuda, Saranyu Nel, Samantha Nichols, Oona O’Neill, Sean Oliver, Katharine Owen, Andrew Parker, Ethan Parker, Isaac Perl, Cal Petersen, Toby Petersen, Colin Post, Kaveh Pourmehr, Julian Reiss, John Rosai, Ethan Rosegard, Sadie Rosenthal, Quinn Rothwell, Cassandra Ruark, Meya Saenz Zagar, Kevin Satake, Isabella Schneider, Tessa Schumacher, Camille Shakirova, Adrian Shavers, Samuel Shern, William Simonton, Mia Siskin, Olivia Smith, Summer Solomon, Marco Steineke, Benjamin Stoops, Sawyer Strain, Emily Stull, Nyima Tamang, Aura Terrell, Lauren Terry, Aidan Toole, Max Traverso, Brendan Treacy, Tenaya Tremp, Maxwell Tripp, Michael Umolu, Despina Vartholomeos, Elias Verdin, Lola von Franque, Casey Walls, Daisy Wanger, Christopher Ware, Katya Wasserman, Natalia Whitaker, Beckett Williams, Mikyla Williams, Xavier Williams, Emily Winstead, Isabelle Winstead
Tamalpais High School 700 Miller Avenue Mill Valley, CA 94941 www.thetamnews.org
Editors in chief
Volume XIII, No. V December 2018 A publication of Tamalpais High School Established 1919
The Tam News, a student-run newspaper publication, distributed monthly, is an open, public forum for student expression and encourages letters and article contributions. The Tam News reserves the right to edit submissions for length and content. All content decisions are made by student editors. The Tam News is published monthly, though dates may vary. The Tam News is nonprofit and any proceeds and contributions are used in the production of the newspaper publication and for journalism education. Additional information concerning contributions or advertising can be obtained by writing to the address provided above or through our website. Copyright © 2019 by The Tamalpais News. All rights reserved. Reproduction is prohibited without written consent.
Zoe Cowan, Camille Shakirova, & Ethan Swope
graphics
John Overton & Francesca Shearer
online
Ian Duncanson, Max Goldberg, & Rocky Brown
social Media
Benjy Wall-Feng
business team
Ian Duncanson & Aaron Young
editorial board
Ava Finn, Jissell Kruse, Elan Levine, Johanna Meezan, Charlotte Rosgen, Camille Shakirova, Daisy Wanger, & Beckett Williams
cover by
Sofia Reis
advisor
Jonah Steinhart
printing
WIGT Printing
Check us out online: @thetamnews The Tam News Tam broadcast network the tam news
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News
CRACKDOWN
Admin introduces new attendance policies by Max Goldberg & Charlie Rosgen
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n an effort to reduce student tardiness and establish a punctual culture at Tam, the administration introduced two new tardy policies in the final months of the first semester. The first initiative was announced on December 5 via the administrative newsletter. If a student is late to the same class three times in a week, or any assortment of classes five or more times in a week, that student will receive a 40-minute afterschool detention with each repeated offense building towards more severe consequences. The second new initiative involves a process known as tardy sweeps. These will be conducted as follows: on randomly selected days, teachers will be told to lock their classroom doors once class begins, preventing any late students from entering. Administrators will walk around campus, visiting each classroom to collect any students locked outside of their classes, and proceed to hand out detentions. If a student receives three of these detentions, they will receive a social suspension, a ban from school-sanctioned activities for 30 days. The first tardy sweep took place on November 14, and was announced beforehand; however, going forward, sweeps will be conducted at random and with no warning. “I wanted to establish a culture where we value instructional time and we create good habits by getting to class on time.
PHOTO BY ETHAN SWOPE
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News In my two-plus years as principal I’ve observed that getting to class on time seems to be optional,” principal J.C. Farr said. Farr explained that in order to get kids into class, they need to have a reason to be there as well as a desire to be there. “There has to be a balance between consequence and giving you a reason to care and want to come on time,” Farr said. Recognizing that there are many reasons as to why a student could be late to class, Farr said, “There is a conversation that happens when any type of sweep occurs. There’s always valid reasons whether it’s beyond their control, and I think that this doesn’t target those students, it targets the habitual, it’s the pattern that we are looking to address.” Prior to making any sweeping decisions, Farr collected data and spoke to students he thought were at risk of being negatively affected by the sweeps. “One of the first things I did before even thinking about this was to pull some data to see how many students are coming late and showing patterns. I’ve pulled data for a couple weeks,” Farr said. The administration plans to track students who fall into the category of chronic absenteeism as well as find out what is causing these students to miss so much school. “Any time you have a situation where you have students that are chronically absent or tardy, you have to unpack and get to the root causes of it,” Farr said. “Is there a transportation issue? A motivation issue? Is there a grades issue?” Tardy sweeps will not take place during the first period of a day, according to Farr, because factors outside students’ control, like public transportation, can prevent them from getting to school on time. Tardy sweeps now are at the center of a debate between teachers, students, and administrators. Social studies teacher Matthew Tierney has exercised his own means of enforcing attendance by locking the classroom door, and then proceeding to mark students tardy as he lets the late ones in one by one. But Tierney has used this system since before the new policies were introduced. He said, “What was happening was the tardies were getting out of control, and I got fed up so I started to shut the door when the bell rang.” Tierney isn’t the only teacher who has taken matters into his own hands. Science teacher David Lapp has been locking students out of class since, in his words, “the
last century.” “When the bell rings, they’re not allowed to come through the front door. If it’s three seconds after the bell and somebody walks in, I say wrong door,” Lapp said. “Because I start class immediately, if somebody walks in a few seconds late it’s distracting. Students quickly find out that if they’re tardy, they’re gonna sit out there.” Lapp believes there are better solutions to preventing tardiness than the new sweep policy. “I mean, why do [sweeps] when I can just click tardy and then electronically it sends a message to admin? They don’t have to physically round people up,” he said. Lapp talked about what policies he believed would work, and brought up his time teaching in a suburb of Chicago. “You would see kids sprinting to get to class. There was a tardy policy. If you got your third tardy, you’d get a detention, and every tardy after that would be another after-school detention for an hour, silent, and kids just hated it,” Lapp said. “This is not rocket science.”
Lapp said his means of ensuring punctuality have proven successful. “The number of tardies that I give in a day is usually zero,” he said. “Kids know there’s no leeway. And I’ve been doing it because the school doesn’t have a tardy policy.” Some students have expressed concern about the sweeps. Sophomore Derrick Moore is concerned that the new policy will backfire on the administration. “I feel like that’ll make kids be even more late to class. If they’re collecting you, and making you stay longer, you’re gonna be even more tardy,” Moore said. “We come here to learn, but with this, we’re learning less.” Farr stressed that tardies will not stop seniors from walking at graduation. “Graduation is not about attendance, it’s about passing classes, [so] I’m more likely to be flexible,” he said. “If you pass your classes then you’ll participate in graduation, but prom is a privilege reserved for those who have followed [the rules] and have been a senior in good standing.”♦
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News
District considers cutting, consolidating electives by Benjy Wall-Feng
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dministrators, teachers, and students across the Tamalpais Union High School District (TUHSD) are discussing the potential proposal of a number of costcutting changes to scheduling policies next year, according to Tam principal J.C. Farr and multiple teachers. If the changes are proposed and approved by the TUHSD board, elective classes — those which do not fulfill Tam graduation requirements for English, mathematics, science, social studies, fine arts, or physical education — will be cut unless at least 30 students are enrolled, and classes currently in a zero period will be moved into the normal seven-period schedule. In past years, there has been no official policy dictating a minimum number of students per class, and decisions in that area have been left to the discretion of the
For more on zero periods and the district budget, check out thetamnews.org/tag/ budget-crisis
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school administration. Many elective classes currently have less than 30 students. The discussion comes as the TUHSD is searching for ways to reduce its spending in the midst of a financial crisis that was brought on in part due to increasing enrollment in district schools. Eliminating or consolidating classes would reduce the number of new teachers necessary for those additional students, and save the district the cost of hiring. “Here’s the amount of students you have, here’s the total amount of employees you have,” Farr said. “It’s up to you, the school site, to make a decision on how you divide them — but you’re not getting additional money.” And moving zero period classes might prevent students with otherwise full sched-
ules from enrolling in them. Abbey Levine, who currently teaches Link Crew as a zero period class, expressed concern that if enough students drop the class because of already-full schedules, it could be cut entirely. “Essentially Link Crew would be relegated to club status,” Levine said. “We would continue to have two meetings a month, which is what we currently do, but the content and the small communities and the level of support that we provide to freshmen will be minimized.” Any new policies that the administration decides to implement will be finalized in the next semester, according to Farr. “In the spring, when we go through the master scheduling process, we will assess the courses that people sign up for,” he said, “and then decisions will be made.”♦
The cheerleading team, in back, welcomes senior Mikaere Todd onto the court. This year, cheer will attend an equal number of boys and girls basketball games. RIGHT:
PHOTO COURTESY OF JUSTINE COREY-WHITEHEAD BELOW: Mead
Theater stands empty. The winter rally originally scheduled for December 7 was postponed due to scheduling and organizational concerns.
PHOTO BY NIULAN WRIGHT
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News
Cheer begins alternating boys and girls games by Ilaria Montenecourt
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his year marks the first time in Tam history that the cheerleading team will attend an equal number of boys and girls basketball games. After two trial games cheering at girls games last year, they finally made it official when they cheered at the girls home basketball game against San Rafael, on Tuesday, December 4. After receiving a complaint by a parent this past February about a potential Title IX violation, the administration has worked to ensure that cheering will now be equally spread between the boys and girls teams. “There were hopes to have two cheers teams this year. but we couldn’t because we didn’t have enough girls or coaches,” cheer captain and senior Jordan Priest-Heck said. “Even though having the cheerleaders there was great, I still feel like we won’t get the same turnout as the boys,” junior and varsity basketball player Olivia Ali said, adding, “They really pumped us up during the game.” The cheer team said they appreciated getting a chance to attend. “The girls actually said thank you after the game, which the boys never do. So, that felt really nice,” Priest-Heck said.♦
Winter rally postponed until January by Stevi Dunn
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he winter rally scheduled for Friday, December 7 was rescheduled by leadership and Tam administration for January 18. The change of date for the event was ultimately due to scheduling and organizational concerns. Considering the events of the homecoming rally on September 28, where some student performers wore racially insensitive costumes, used derogatory language, and students in the audience threw water bottles at each other, it was important for leadership to have all future rally performances be thoroughly planned, according to senior and ASB president Natalie Bricker. “[The previous rally] has made everyone more aware of anything that could
possibly be offensive to anyone,” Bricker said, adding that the time extension for the rally date ensures maximum preparedness for leadership in knowing how the performance will pan out beforehand. An integral part of rally planning is the outlining and rehearsing of the performances to make sure they go according to plan. “The pieces just weren’t coming together and now [that the rally will be] in January, it will be better prepared for everything to go smoothly,” Bricker said. In past years the rally has been held in January, but leadership attempted to schedule it in December this year because having two rallies per semester would have been easier. Moreover, with finals approaching, having the rally instead of tutorial on Fri-
day would have taken away time for students to do homework or talk with teachers about assignments. “A lot of our individuals participating [have] this tutorial as the last tutorial before finals, right? So then it’s hard for them to choose if they should prepare for this or prepare for their finals,” social studies and ASB teacher Matthew LemMon said. ASB members were content in their decision to postpone the rally, especially with finals approaching. “It doesn’t hurt to give you guys more time to study for your finals and not have to worry about the rally, and give both the leadership class and the teachers a better [amount] of time to prepare for the rally,” LemMon said.♦
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News
2018 ELECTION UPDATE
Three of the most important local outcomes of November 6.
MEASURE J by Milo Levine & Skye Schoenhoeft
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easure J passed with 74 percent of the vote on Election Day, November 6. According to the official Marin County website, the measure “protects high-quality education with local funding that cannot be taken by the state” by implementing a levy of an additional $149 per parcel for four years, on top of the existing $293 per parcel that will expire in 2020. The projected $5.1 million earned from the levy will be used to reduce budget cuts. Tam students advocated for the passing of this measure, and on Monday, November 5, and Tuesday, November 6, held
rallies in front of the arches before school. “[Measure J] preserves activities that make this school enjoyable, like drama and arts and also helps our teachers so we wouldn’t have to make any more drastic cuts than we already have to,” senior and student body president Natalie Bricker said. “Even though most [of Measure J] won’t directly affect me, as a Tam High student it should always be my job to advocate for my school for everyone,” junior and leadership student Theo Koffman wrote in a social media post.
The specific budget cuts that will be made are currently unknown. “There will be an opportunity for community input again in the early part of 2019 before the Board makes a final decision sometime in February,” Tamalpais Union High School District (TUHSD) board president Leslie Lundgren-Harlander wrote in an email. The Fiscal Advisory Committee, tasked with addressing the budget crisis, is in the process of giving an official recommendation to TUHSD superintendent Tara Taupier, who will then make her own proposition to the board of trustees.♦
TUHSD BOARD OF TRUSTEES by Benjy Wall-Feng
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ynthia Roenisch, Dan Oppenheim and Kevin Saavedra were elected to the Tamalpais Union High School District (TUHSD) Board of Trustees on Election Day, November 6. The board will be responsible for navigating the district’s current budget crisis (see MEASURE J), and as a result financial experience was a major focus of the candidates’ campaigns.
Three board seats were left open after former members Laura Anderson, Chuck Ford and Michael Futterman announced they would not seek re-election after the end of their terms this year. Barbara McVeigh, the fourth candidate, received the least votes and was not elected. Roenisch is a former attorney and high school teacher who served on the Kentfield
district board for 13 years. Saaavedra is an investment banker and was the treasurer for the Measure J campaign. Oppenheim is a housing economist. The three had shared goals and so campaigned as a slate, Saavedra told The Tam News in October, criticizing McVeigh, an environmentalist, filmmaker, and author, for her lack of focus on the district budget.♦
MARIN COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY by Logan Little
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ori Frugoli narrowly beat out Anna Pletcher for Marin County district attorney by a margin of 386 votes, determined on November 30 after more than three weeks of vote counting. Pletcher still has the option to file for a recount, although it is unclear at this time whether or not a recount will take place. Frugoli will replace Edward Berberian, who is retiring after 13 years as district attorney. He, along with three preceding DAs — Paula Kamena, Michael Gridley and Jerry Herman — endorsed Frugoli earlier in the campaign. Both the Pletcher and Frugoli cam-
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paigns emphasized reforms for restorative justice programs and the Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) in Marin. However, exactly what those reforms would have looked like varied between the two candidates. Pletcher campaigned for sexual assault victims to undergo rape kit exams at Marin General Hospital as opposed to Vallejo Medical Center where survivors are required to be tested under the SART partnership. Frugoli argued in a Facebook post that breaking down the SART partnership “would be detrimental to prosecution of
sexual assault cases in Marin and catastrophic for victims.” She later mentioned in a debate that she would be willing to consider reenacting the exams in Marin if Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) nurses were available at Marin General. Frugoli’s shift in position garnered criticism from Pletcher’s campaign. “She’s been flip-flopping on these issues,” Pletcher said to the Marin IJ. The Frugoli campaign also specifically emphasized alternatives to incarceration for drug addicts, homeless, and the mentally ill, as well as growing restorative justice programs.♦
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News
For more in-depth versions of these and related articles, check out thetamnews.org/tag/2018-election
GRAPHS BY BENJY WALL-FENG
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News
Annual art fair raises money for art department by John Halloran
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am’s annual Visual Arts Winter Faire took place on November 29-30 under a tent in Freshman Court. For two days each winter, a massive white canopy envelops the area to showcase student work from the previous semester, offer certain items for sale, and raise money in order to continue offering the school’s various art classes. The fair is organized by Patrons of the Arts at Tam High (PATH), a nonprofit subsidiary of the school that primarily fundraises for the art program. Many Tam students and touring middle schoolers visited the fair, and a few teachers released their classes early to go see it. Some art at the Faire — like studentmade pots with succulents — was for sale. The rest of it was only for display, but students were proud of the few pieces that were given price tags. Senior JayJuan Radford, an art student seated at a pottery wheel, said, “It’s cool to see my pieces being sold there.” However, art isn’t the primary way that the fair raises money. Direct donations by parents bring in most of the funds, along with inexpensive baked goods popular with hungry students. “It’s great that the entire school comes together to support the art department,” volunteer parent Leslie Myers said. Works of art decorated the right side of the tent, split between photos and ceramics. Pottery wheels were set up, allowing students to demonstrate their craft right in front of visitors. It all created a strong first impression for potential students, something PATH president Lucinda Otto stressed the importance of. “The Art Faire is a tradition that all students have come to expect,” she said. “For many touring eighth graders, it’s their first introduction to the Tam Art program.” Unlike many Tam traditions, the fair doesn’t have a long and storied history, but, acccording to art teacher Zachary Gilmour, it doesn’t need one to be successful. “This is the fifth year we’ve used the Winter Art Faire as a culminating Fall event for the entire visual arts,” he said. “It’s a great way to end the semester.”♦
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News
AP Angela Gramlick plans to leave Tam by Ian Duncanson
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ABOVE: After
one and a half years as an assistant principal at Tam, Angela Gramlick will leave at the end of this semester to become a principal at Ross Elementary School. PHOTO BY ETHAN SWOPE LEFT, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: Junior
Paige Hartquist throws clay in a live demonstration; screen printed t-shirts were some of the products sold to raise money for Tam’s art department; students admire the art gallery. PHOTOS COURTESY OF GRAY DOUGLAS, KARA KNEAFSEY, ZACHARY GILMOUR
ssistant principal Angela Gramlick will leave Tam on December 21, the last day of the school semester, to accept a new job as principal at Ross Elementary School. The Tam community was notified of the decision in an email sent by principal J.C. Farr on Monday, December 10. “I think quite a few administrators aspire to be in charge of their own school,” Gramlick said. “I’m no different. I’ve been working as an assistant principal for five years and I’ve loved the work that I’ve been doing and have gained a lot of experience and knowledge, knowing that eventually I would want to be in charge of my own school. [As a principal] you really can shape what kids are doing.” Gramlick’s choice was also based on her family life. “I am a wife and a mom, and I have kids, and working at the high school level takes a lot of time away from my family. There’s a lot of night requirements and weekend requirements, so I took that into consideration,” Gramlick said. Last year, assistant principal David Rice also left Tam to become a principal in the Ross School District. Students and teachers have expressed their best wishes for Gramlick. “Ms. Gramlick is a really important part of our administrative team and she’s also really important for many of our departments and for teachers here,” teacher Angela Hopper said. “I see her as an ally in my race and equity work on this campus, and just in terms of supporting me as a special education and Academic Workshop teacher. She’s really organized and she has a lot of follow through and that’s really valuable to have as a colleague and as an administrator. Those are big shoes to fill.” “It’s very common for administrators to move forward with their careers and I wish her well,” social studies teacher Luc Chamberlin said. The administration is working to section off Gramlick’s former students, whom she advised, to the other two assistant principals. A replacement is expected to be announced January 7.♦
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B lifestyles
arbara Burroso By ZOE COWAN
"The girl who could never get to class on time is now managing attendance.”
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ttendance Clerk Barbara Burroso has come full circle since being a chronically late student at Tam High in the 1960s. “When I first got the job, I went home to my husband and I said ‘I got the job. It’s permanent. The girl who could never get to class on time is now managing attendance.’” Burroso was a travel agent for 22 years, as well as an accountant for a restaurant, before coming back to the Tamalpais Union High School District (TUHSD) as an administration substitute. In the fall of 2016, she was offered a permanent position at Tam as attendance clerk, where she remains today. Burroso grew up in Mill Valley with her six siblings in the historic Hayes House, which also served as a hotel for visitors of the Mount Tamalpais and Muir Woods Railway. She attended Tam for two years, before moving to Petaluma with her family. Reflecting on her time at Tam, the differences between then and now are clear. “When I think about being a student here, I remember because it was the ‘60s, it was very mellow, very peace-oriented,” she said. “Even the campus was different … But I remember it being not stressful. I think now the students here have a lot more pressure on them than I ever did here. High school, for me, was very fun and freeing.” After graduating from Tam a semester early, when she was only 16, Burroso attended Santa Rosa Junior College (SRJC) where she studied art history, world history, and interior design. “I never went to a four-year college, but I did go to a secretarial college [in addition to SRJC]. It was different back then. Plus, I’m one of seven kids,” she said. Even back then, college was a lot of
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the tam news
money, especially for her large family. “I was kind of fending for myself,” she said. Her interest in interior design lead her to floral design, a niche in which she’s been working on top of other jobs for years. “I design weddings and events as well, outside this little office. I’ve been doing that for 20 years. It’s me and my girlfriends that do everything. So if an event comes our way… [we all] come together and we do something fresh and fun. It’s a great escape,” she said. Though floral design gives her an escape from everyday life, Burroso has found a happy place within the Tam community. “The people I work with are fantastic, [they’re] fabulous,” she said enthusiastically. “Admin, [are] all great people, [and] interesting to get to know. And the students. I mean, you guys are like my happy spot here.” As attendance clerk, Burroso spends her whole day interacting with stu-
Graphics by Sam Ferro
dents. As expected, this keeps the job interesting—she hears all the wild excuses students have for being late. “Well, I got a great one today, what was the one?” she said, spinning her chair around to ask the nurse who was out of sight in another room, “the moon was waning, so she had to do a dance?” “No, I thought it was about a song? I can’t remember the name,” the nurse said. “Oh right, it’s something about the sun. The sun song was on, so she had to do ‘the dance.’” She spun her chair back around, laughing to herself. “I get all kinds of excuses,” she added, “and that student actually had one of the best.” ♦
Photos by Zoe Cowan
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lifestyles
arol Craft By NIULAN WRIGHT
“The experience of having known everyone here, the different parents, staff, the different administrations, the kids... it has changed me.”
Y
ou may know her as the woman who sold you your yearbook and your third pair of P.E. shorts, or as the woman who wears a small tiara when selling homecoming tickets. Others may know her as a campus supervisor, classroom aide, office manager, or budget secretary. However, those who really know her probably know the funny, welcoming, and friendly woman who works in the big office at the end of the hall on the bottom floor of Wood Hall. Carol Craft’s official title is Budget Secretary. She works with the Tamalpais Union High School District (TUHSD), Associated Student Body (ASB), and Tam High Foundation financial accounts. However, Craft is a jack of all trades. Since 1988 she has held many different positions across Marin County. “I just like being around education… I have always been in the schools.” she said. Craft began her educational career as a young mom doing yard duty. She then worked on the PTA and even did a stint as a bus driver. “That was wild! I did not like that,” she said. While it wasn’t exactly her calling, Craft did what she could to make it fun by playing the radio on the bus. After that, she went on to work as a classroom aid and an office manager. Craft then decided to take leap of faith and move to the TUHSD office. “[At] fifty-five years old, I lost all my seniority and I took a big risk to come down to this district. Came down to this district and two years later they had cutbacks and I was laid off,” she said. Unfazed, Craft took the first job available to her; campus supervisor for Redwood. Two years later, the job for bud-
get secretary at Tam reopened and she moved back. “I kind of felt like Goldilocks; it was just right,” Craft said about her first impressions of Tam. “This is just right! I mean, just right for me. I think it's kind of providential where you end up.” However, Craft isn't just an administrator. She is a lover of music, dancing, and lists, and is a self proclaimed hoarder. When asked what most people don't know about her, Craft replied, “I'm a pretty open book.” Craft eventually hit on the one thing that most people don’t know about her; that she binge watches. Showing her love for lists, Craft has documented all the episodes she has watched of Law and Order, Seinfeld, and all ten seasons of Friends. “I know that's what people don't know about me! I'm such a loser, oh my god, such a loser,” Craft said, laughing. While he has only known her for a few years, social studies teacher Nathan Bernstein described Craft as if they were lifelong friends. “Her sense of humor, obviously, is pretty amazing. She has a warm demeanor [and] everyone feels so comfortable with her,” Bernstein said. Craft agreed. “I’m pretty friendly. I like to make people comfortable. I always like to try to engage [with] a new person.” In fact, Craft has turned her office into a quasi teachers’ lounge where anyone is welcome to relax and interact. For a while she would even lay out puzzles for students and teachers to work on, who could also then sign their names alongside their work. “I created this space cause it felt so awful to have this much room when people didn't have a staff room or whatever and people know that they can come
in it's like a little social safe place,” Craft mentioned. “We call it the vault.” Unfortunately, Craft is considering retirement at the end of this school year. “The experience of having known everyone here, the different parents, staff, the different administrations, the kids I mean ... it has changed me,” she said. “It's gonna be sad when I leave because I wasn't really ready yet.” Originally, Craft had planned to retire in 2020 but she is thinking of leaving a year earlier due to the incentives offered by the district for anyone who retires by the end of this school year. “I'll really miss this … I'll just miss being here with all the friends I've made and all the kids,” Craft said, “I really will.”♦
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lifestyles
Love, Sex, and the city By Emily Spears
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lifestyles
L
ove, sex, and all the glory of the 2000s in the big, glamorous city of New York. What more can a rom-com lover ask for? Some might say that Sex and the City is past its prime, a way for middle-aged moms to reminisce about the fun times they used to have. But recently its comeback on Amazon Prime and the movie’s release on Netflix have brought Carrie Bradshaw’s sex column back into conversation. Sex and the City is centered around the lives of four women in their 30’s living in New York. The plot follows them through their various romantic and sexual encounters, and their experiences navigating the treacheries of friendship, aging, and their careers. It may seem like, when it comes to progressive, femaleempowering TV shows, Sex and the City pales in comparison to millenial-aimed shows like The Bold Type, Jane the Virgin, and Grey’s Anatomy. The majority of the cast is white, and it’s doubtful that the series would pass the Bechdel Test, a method of evaluating a movie or TV show’s portrayal of women in fiction (it questions whether two women talk to each other about something other than a man). But it is important to remember that Sex and the City launched in 1998—there was no #MeToo movement, and no mass rallies for feminism or pink pussy hats making waves across the world. At its prime, Sex and the City provided a nuanced, refreshing narrative that focused on the sexual, romantic, and professional
lives of four central female characters. One of the reasons Sex and the City was so revolutionary at the time was the way the plot revolved around this central group of independent, insightful women, rather than their male counterparts. A vast majority of TV shows that developed before the series’ era treated female characters as secondary, more like a never-ending revolving door of dates and sexual satisfaction for men’s entertainment. It was rare that female characters had strong, solidly developed personas, and the storylines rarely went in depth on their point of view. Don’t get me wrong, I love How I Met Your Mother and The Big Bang Theory, but women in shows like these are forced to either conform to strict gender stereotypes, or only exist as a romantic conquest for the men. In Sex and the City it is almost the opposite; the series set a precedent for women controlling the narrative, acting as a platform for the female perspective on sex and love. A huge component of the series’ appeal comes from the distinguished personalities of these four main characters: Carrie, Charlotte, Samantha, and Miranda. The show follows each of them through cocktails, brunches, dates and one-night stands as they navigate the challenges of being single women in their 30’s in New York. While the premise of the show surrounds Carrie, a bubbly, quintessential New-Yorker who authors the column “Sex and the City,” the lives of the other three women are also central to the plot. Charlotte represents the hopeless romantic, always in search of a husband, or “the marrying type.” Samantha is the sultry, 30-something criticized for living as if she’s in her 20s. And Miranda, the straight-lined successful lawyer, is the
s
natural cynic when it comes to men and the struggles of love and lust. Each character has a unique point of view about romance and the ever-fluctuating feat of dating men at their age; it is the contrasting experiences of these women that makes the show multi-dimensional and relatable to the vast population of women. With that said, the show’s portrayal of these women’s glamorous, exciting lifestyles is just enough to make the viewers jealous, but not so far fetched in its flaunting of wealth that it feels out of reach. Each episode is a buffet of designer shoes, posh (and not-so-posh) bars, martinis, art galleries, and Saturday brunches. Since each woman leads a different professional lifestyle, the show offers a glimpse of the different sides of New York—swanky, artsy, urban, and J. Crew— all rolled up in one 25-minute screenplay. While the premise of the series is on the romantic relationships of these women, what ultimately makes it so special is the friendship that these women share. It is a constant throughout each episode, and a way for these women to cope with and relate to one another about their conquests and struggles. Sex and the City normalized the way women spoke to each other about their lives. In the show, the girls have frank, hilarious conversations about their bodies, men, and society in ways that seemed too raunchy or taboo to discuss in decades past. It opened up the conversation to things that seemed uncomfortable to talk about, or weren’t commonly touched upon by other media at the time in a light, comical manner. Sex and the City is more than an entertaining dramedy, because, at least for me, watching it made me feel a little more sane, a little more understood, and a little more connected with the women of this millenia… and because everyone loves a good “tartini” of gossip, comedy, sex, and glamor. ♦
Graphics by Sam Ferro and Sofia Reis
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lifestyles
Not Too Hot to Handle
By Ava Finn
F
ocusing in on the last few years, we find that the most reoccurring issue in California concentrates itself on the fires. We see images of houses burned and fragmented toys lining the ashy sidewalks. We wonder what the thoughts were of those being evacuated. Did they know they needed to leave? Did they know what they needed to bring? How did they prepare, if it all? As we start to really dissect these questions, we can become too frightened of the possible reality and ultimately rather shy away from needed information than educate ourselves. But what if we were to find ourselves in this situation. What then? It is important to be prepared for all possible outcomes. Although it would be feasible to have a fire-ready kit, many families often lack the basic necessities that should be found in every home in the case of an emergency. We need to be talking about how to get and stay prepared. For the most part we are now, but are we getting the most reliable information?
Graphics by Sam Ferro
Five Most Important Things: • • • • •
Water: one gallon of water per person, per day for at least three days, for drinking and sanitation / Food: at least a three-day supply of non-perishable food Battery-powered or hand crank radio: to stay alert and extra batteries Flashlight First aid kit Dust mask
Fire Dos: This information was collected from the Boston University’s Environmental Health and Safety department and the National Fire Protection Association. • • • • • • •
Fire Don'ts: • • • • •
• • •
•
Know your building’s evacuation plan. Evacuate calmly and quickly whenever a fire alarm or carbon monoxide alarm sounds. Know two ways out of any building. Before opening a door, feel it with the back of your hand. If the door is hot, do not open it. Know the locations of fire extinguishers, fire alarm pull stations, and exits. Clear leaves and other debris from gutters, eaves, porches and decks. Remove dead vegetation and other items from under your deck or porch, and within 10 feet of the house. Talk to your local fire department about how to prepare, when to evacuate, and the response you and your neighbors can expect in the event of a wildfire.
Leave candles, incense, barbecue grills or other open flames unattended. Hang tapestries from walls or ceilings. Leave cooking appliances unattended. Smoke in bed. Tamper with smoke detectors, carbon monoxide alarms, fire alarms or sprinkler systems. Ignore any building alarm. Prop fire or smoke doors open. Use elevators during an evacuation.♦
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features
SUBMERGED no place is immune to climate change—and sea level rise is quickly bringing its effects to marin
I
t was an early overcast morning on December 3, 2014 and Mill Valley was gridlocked. Following a major rain storm, flooding and traffic jams extended from Marin City to Novato. A few stray kayakers and rafters resorted to paddling over what were once busy streets and parking lots. The Mill Valley-Sausalito multi-use pathway, Manzanita Park and Ride, as well as several exits on 101 were all made inaccessible under feet of rain and sea water. The situation became so dire that the Mill Valley Police Department was forced to release a statement requesting that all residents stay off the roads: “Due to heavy traffic congestion and flooding in Mill Valley everyone is advised to remain home unless they MUST leave.”
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features
The city, of course, eventually recovered. Traffic flow returned to normal, fallen branches and other scattered debris were cleared, and people again left their homes to go back to work and school. However, according to multiple studies on the Marin coastline, climate change-induced sea level rise (SLR) could cause a permanent increase in the ocean’s water level and as a result, flooding like this could become a constant reality. On a global scale, sea level rise is primarily caused by the release of greenhouse gases that prevent heat from escaping the atmosphere. The trapped heat is absorbed by the ocean, and as the temperature of the water increases, the water expands, leading to
Emissions sources in marin
“People realize that there is a huge amount of climate change, but continue to drive gas guzzlers. It’s seen as an issue on the horizon … in reality it’s imminent.” SLR. Overall, the National Ocean Service has tracked about 1/8th of an inch of sea and level rise each year mostly due to this process. According to the 2014 Richardson Bay Shoreline Study conducted by Marin County Watershed Program, the sea level in Marin County is predicted to rise 1-12 inches by 2030, 2-36 inches by 2070, and 3-60 inches by 2100. Although the Richardson Bay study acknowledges that exact values cannot be precisely determined due to the numerous variables affecting SLR, other estimates like the Marin Bay Waterfront Adaptation and Vulnerability Evaluation (BayWave) have predicted similar ranges in growth as well as similar impacts to infrastructure.
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GRAPHIC BY GRIFFIN CHEN
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“It’s hard to quantify exactly how much infrastructure is at risk or precisely how high the sea will rise in the bay,” Chris Choo, the Marin County water resources principle planner, said. “But, you’re talking about transportation and parking, and if 101 floods it affects [those] regionally. It impacts fire, police, and our schools. It’s not a good situation.” Choo also argues that regardless of prevailing climate change denialism, Marin residents can find common ground in already apparent flooding. “It’s a very liberal area, but there definitely are folks who don’t believe in the science and resent the fact that we’re spending money on this issue … But, we already see Manzanita flood 30 times a year and plenty of other flooding which we need to address anyway. So we can work with them on that. I think that’s more useful than arguing.” Just an increase of sea levels by a foot, which could come in less than two decades, would flood the salt marshes in front of the multi-use pathway next to the Tam field. This would destroy the habitat for species like the San Pablo Song Sparrow, Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse, and the flowering plant Point Reyes Bird’s Beak, all of which are already at risk of becoming endangered. With 36 inches of SLR, much of the southwestern end of Miller Avenue in front of the athletic fields would be flooded, cutting off the primary way to access Tam from Tam Valley. Five feet would inundate the whole of the school’s athletic fields including the football, softball, and baseball fields. If annual storms resulted in water level temporarily rising even higher Gus Gym, the front parking lot, and the boys locker room could be indicated by half an inch of water. In addition to Tam, the Mill Valley to Sausalito bike
features
path, the Redwoods Retirement Community, the southern part of Sycamore avenue where Mill Valley Middle School is located, and resident housing could be flooded—provided no infrastructure is built to protect them. Marin City shopping center and nearby segment of Highway 101 are also at risk. The county has begun to take steps to educate about and reduce the impact of SLR in Marin. The Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 requires that the state to reduce its greenhouse gas emission to the levels they were at in the 1990s by 2020. As a result, the Marin Climate and Energy Partnership (MCEP) was created to target the county’s emissions. So far, by setting up community education programs like Resilient Neighborhoods, adopting a 100 percent renewable energy program known as Deep Green, and installing solar panels on government buildings, the MCEP has managed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 17 percent since 2005 when the county was producing 1,944,365 metric tons of greenhouse gases. As well as countywide projects, individual clubs and student groups are working to fight climate change. “We are working on implementing a compost program at Tam,” junior Megan Engelbrecht, president of the Environmental Club, said. “By doing this we’ll reduce the amount of food waste in landfills, which is known to cause the release of methane gas and other greenhouse gases that have contributed in climate change.” Although Engelbrechten said her club had not yet discussed sea level rise or made plans to address it in particular, she hopes to bring it up in a future meeting. Another student activist group, Generation Our Climate, a
“There’s so many horrible things happening right now that it’s yet another thing that adds to cynicism and stress for my generation. We feel really powerless to do anything about it.”
projected Sea Level Rise in Marin
GRAPHIC BY GRIFFIN CHEN AND SAMANTHA FERRO
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Pictured here is potential sea level rise in Richardson Bay and the surrounding Marin area, according to a 2014 study conducted by the Marin County Watershed Program
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PREDICTED EXTENT OF FLOODING DUE TO SEA LEVEL RISE 1 FOOT 2 FEET
GRAPHIC BY SAMANTHA FERRO
3 FEET
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features group of young adults from San Francisco and Marin County, have worked with many municipal governments throughout the Bay Area encouraging them to adopt climate change mitigation policies. “Our goal as a youth organization is to inspire, empower, and mobilize a generation to take positive action on climate change,” freshman Mimi Lawrence, a member of Generation Our Climate, said. “As a group we’ve testified in front of local governments to make our voices heard to politicians. I testified in front of the Mill Valley City Council three times and urged them to choose “Deep Green” for town business and they did.” Although there are many groups attempting to fight SLR and climate change, there’s still a question as to whether individual Marin residents are working to reduce their own environmental impact. “I think probably still the predominant response [to
climate change] is procrastination,” Doug Wilson, the 2nd Vice President of The Marine Conservation League, said. “People realize that there is a huge amount of climate change, but continue to drive gas guzzlers. It’s seen as an issue on the horizon … in reality it’s imminent.” According to the Marin Climate and Energy Partnership, the largest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions in Marin are the residential (22 percent) and transportation (53 percent) sectors which are made up of mostly county residents. Senior Cal Kuhn believes that inaction extends to students as well. “I would say that there is a very small portion of my peers who actually do anything in their life to help mitigate climate change. The majority of them care, but talk is cheap,” he said. Sophomore Emily Kavanaugh believes that this phenomenon, at least in young people, is due to them feel-
GRAPHIC BY GRIFFIN CHEN
projected Temperatures in 2100 66.55°f 69.75°f
if greenhouse gas emissions if emissions are moderately continue at current rates reduced ing overwhelmed. “I think everyone’s too scared to fully think about [climate change]. Older generation people may just not believe it, but in general my peers are very tired. There’s so many horrible things happening right now that it’s yet another thing that adds to cynicism and stress for my generation. We feel really powerless to do anything about it,” she said. However, even if climate change and SLR seem unmanageable for younger generations, city officials and global warming groups argue that there are small steps everyone can take to combat the issue. “We really need help from the students to reduce excess driving in the community,” Mill Valley Mayor Stephanie Moulton-Peters said. “Carpooling, taking the bus, walking and biking [are important] from students as well as the adults. If you have to drive, drive an electric
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vehicle.” Additionally, Lawrence believes that taking part in community groups can also help to fight climate change. “The best thing one person can do is to be a part of a movement or organization. Set goals and do them. Get houses to choose renewable energy or create bike to school programs. Make it cool to be green. We need to make changes now because our future depends on it.” Peters emphasized making small daily changes, instead of becoming overwhelmed trying to fix the whole of SLR and climate change issue. “A lot of us don’t know what we can do individually. But we have to be willing to take a look at our own carbon footprint. Pick a couple of things you can do each week and change them. You can’t deal with everything all at once. There will have to be a lot of changes, but we have to go on and keep trying anyway.”
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opinion/editorial
A collection of humor pieces to send you into winter break.
Phone Games by Ben Daly
I
hate phone games. Phone games are the worst thing you can do with your time, and they’re even worse than regular games. What do I mean by regular games? Games where you sit down, you have the controller, or the keyboard, or the joystick, or the zapper, or the trackball, or the forehead suction cups, or the codpiece, or whatever—you’ve sat down with the intention to play something. You’re—I dare use this filthy vernacular—gaming. When you play phone games, you’re not gaming, goddammit. You’re on your phone. At least with regular games, you accept that you’re going to have your time wasted in a well-constructed manner. Phone games are a chaotic evil. They waste your time without precedent, and for no discernible reason. They are designed to keep you glued to them, a slave to their bland, grueling, gutter-scraped entertainment. Phone games have no shame. Even the most insidious, dollar-sucking, walletburning non-phone games usually have some kind of fiscal humility to them— you’re going in knowing you may spend a little money, and if you have to, it’ll be on more varied gameplay, or a wider breadth of experiences. Regular games (usually on consoles or PC) are more complete experiences, with better graphics and actual narratives: You’ll be happily taken to an imaginary world of action, emotion, or maybe even immersion. And if these regular games have microtransactions, they likely won’t be too intrusive. Phone games, on the other hand, cheat you out of this assurance. They are predators luring a child with candy (which in some cases they do in more ways than one). They promise a game you’ll enjoy at zero cost. This is a proverbial free lunch,
a dupe, and if you take a bite, you’ve sold your soul to the devil. Immediately they push the dollara-piece costumes on you (Crossy Road comes to mind). Then they make you buy credits that shorten the waiting periods (Clash Royale), or give you extra lives (Jetpack Joyride), or God forbid let you advance through the game immediately. That’s right, you little sheep: Your hardearned money is a gameplay mechanic, and they’re going to wear that sucker out of you until you’re broke. Everything you see is soulless, the design of which is perfected so you’ll download it and make them money. We’ve come full circle, back to the quarter-stealing arcade machines of the 1980s. God, phone games are so bad. I’d rather play Wii Sports with my racist uncle for eternity than drag my finger lethargically across a glass screen with dark, brooding thoughts, as I torment myself with Game of War: Fire Age. Despite all this, I cannot resist temptation. I still play games on my phone. Rather, I am the one who is played, and for a fool, no less. ♦
Santa Baby by Jordan Cushner
T
he majority of the Tam community loves Santa. I mean, who isn’t charmed by the idea of an overweight old man delivering free presents to you? Because Christmas is unequivocally great, and Santa is undoubtedly the best if you overlook the events behind how he,
“knows when are sleeping and know when you’re awake,” Santa enthusiasts are born, bred, and made. These enthusiasts take the liberty of monopolizing the entire month of December with their “Christmas spirit,” decorations, festivities and such. Despite this, if you take the time to look past the excitement of Christmas you will see that it has some flaws, and one of the very biggest flaws, and absolutely the biggest problem, is Santa. When most people take a look at Santa, they generally see an overweight man with kind eyes. While I have also observed these characteristics, I also see what’s beneath this facade, which is a ruthless and entitled criminal, who has a reputation of making individuals work without pay. When hearing this, people may be shocked and instantly come to Santa’s defense, asking me why would I ever think this of a man who is so entirely jovial. But fierce may his followers be, I can assure you that I have plenty of reasons to think Santa is this way. As mentioned, Santa has a bad habit of stalking Christians. For someone who is so old and round, he is awfully cunning. While Santa sightings have been slim, he has a reputation to be in your neighborhood regardless if it’s day or night. The classical and beloved “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” song it captures Santa’s creepy behavior perfectly. “He knows when you are sleeping, he knows when you’re awake!” These particular lyrics in the song blatantly admit that Santa is always watching you. Personally, I’d be a little uncomfortable to hear that a round, sneaky old man is always stalking me. Despite this uncomfortable fact, the song forbids you from feeling any negative emotions towards Santa and commands that “you better not cry” because god forbid a stalker makes you feel uncomfortable enough to do so. Additionally, Santa takes the liberty of deciding whether kids are good or bad. He has a ruthless reputation of labeling misbehaving kids “naughty” while the rest of their peers recieve their presents Christmas
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Ode To Passing Periods by Milo Levine
by Griffin Chen and John Overton
O
As the period commences The masses are filled with glee. Oh how fun passing period is Of course, unless you’re me. I try to take a leak, But all the Juulers harsh my mellow. What is that on the bathroom floor? It looks kind of wet and yellow. So I decide to grab a drink instead Although the water fountain tastes like lead. I give up as I hear the bell Passing period is my living hell. As students cluster on the stairs They really don’t seem to care That there is no space for me to pass And all I want is to go to class. I finally am almost there Exhausted from the endless stairs. My backpack weighs at least three tons And a pigeon just crapped on me. ♦
day, these “naughty” kids are rudely given lumps of coal instead. Who is Santa to determine who’s good and who’s bad? Why does Santa have the power to be the judge and jury for our actions? Besides, no child can be evil enough to deserve the threat and burden to conform into Santa’s supposed “good behavior.” We are a country that prides itself in democracy, so why are we letting Santa dictate? Not only is Santa cruel, he is also a criminal. He annually breaks and enters into thousands of homes with no punishment whatsoever. This is a direct violation of our right to privacy and the law. While you might think these actions of Santa are harmless, they make him a bad role model. He is proving that breaking the law can come without consequences, his actions even celebrated. I mean, if Santa can break and enter and get away with it, why can’t we do the same? Regardless of Santa’s good intentions, he is clearly a criminal and we reward him with cookies instead of giving him jail time. Lastly, Santa rules over a brainwashed
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Designated Juuling Rooms
cult of indentured elves. While the rest of the U.S. has grown and moved on from these cruel dehumanizing times, Santa clearly has not. In the North Pole, he keeps a mass of indentured elves who tirelessly work for Santa without pay. Year-round, the elves participate in manual labor in order to get Santa’s dirty work done. While people might argue that the elves have nowhere else to go, and Santa is being kind by taking them in, these people are mistaken. Just because the elves are not human, doesn’t mean Santa has the right to round them up, enslave them, and coerce them into working for life. While Santa advocates for good behavior, he obviously cannot be applying this to himself, because in that case Santa would be “naughty.” ♦
n Sunday, June 3rd, J.B. Near and the administration announced the newest addition to Tam’s campus in the form of designated areas for consumption of vaporized nicotine products. “Addiction is a disease, and these students need a safe space to use without being judged by their teachers and peers,” Near stated in an email. “I’m sure parents and teachers alike will be happy to hear about the creation of rooms for the use of Juuls and other vaporizers.” These rooms will be placed throughout the grounds for easy access. According to the plans published by Tamalpais High Union School District, each will be tiled, well lit, as well as containing a sink, paper towels, toilets for maximum convenience, and of course stalls meant to feature vandalization. They will replace currently unused facilities on campus which already contain these amenities and currently labeled as “bathrooms”. Most students support the new areas. “I think this is a really positive addition to our school,” said Senior Nicholas Atine, “Nothing gets me through Spanish class better than a catching a fat dome in the Juul room. And now with the Juuling rooms, my Spanish grade has never been better.” Another student, who asked to remain anonymous, shared Atine’s opinion. “Yeah dog, taking fat tokes just isn’t the same when I have my math teacher breathing down my neck,” the student said, “Now I can rip in peace.” But a minority of students do not support these developments. “When I think of a designated juuling area, I think of a classroom full of students supervised by a watchful teacher,” said another student who has requested to be anonymous. “The constant threat of getting in trouble is part of the reason that I like juuling,” they elaborated. Nico Tinelli, an avid Juuler and hunter, told Tam News reporters on Monday, “If I was given a designated juuling space, then I wouldn’t have an excuse for ditching class. What’s the point of doing something illegal if I’m not gonna get in trouble for it?” Despite mass student approval, parents are skeptical about the addition. “I’m not sure about this,” said Tam parent Emile
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Haque. “Are the rooms really nice enough? I don’t want my child juuling anywhere other than the safe environment of the home.” Bernie Lungzo, another parent, agrees with Haque. “How can students be called Mill Valley Residents if they are not entitled to the best of the best? At least [the Administration] could incorporate ipads and speedy wifi.” Some parents have joined forces on social media platforms, such as Nextdoor, and have organized a walkout to ensure the highest quality of the juuling areas. The walkout, referred to as “The Walkout” will require participating parents to leave their houses at the beginning of tutorial, and march to the Equator Coffee Shop on Miller to complain about people who don’t own hybrid cars. At a press meeting on Wednesday, Near was questioned about the recent budget deficits and how the juul rooms would affect cuts. “We have several incredibly important educational programs that we need to devote money towards, such as our new Vaporization Rooms,” Near said. “We need to prioritize our budget according to the needs of our students. I’m sorry to announce that we will have to cut the English department, but the need for these rooms far outweighs any kind of positive influence that English has.” When asked if he thought these cuts were necessary, Near reportedly nodded and replied, “Yes. Vape on brah, Juul is life.” ♦
There are actually two different SUV models manufactured by Porsche, the Macan and the Cayenne, the Macan seems to be the most common with it being Porsche’s best selling car in the U.S. They look exactly the same except the Cayenne is $15,000 more expensive with a somehow worse gas mileage, 20 miles to the gallon, even compared to the bleak 22 mpg that the more compact, supposedly updated, Macan gets. The only things these cars are good for are hit and runs on road bikers. A looming issue with owning one of these tasteless, gas-guzzling SUVs is their size, especially here in Mill Valley. The Cayenne is the chunkier of the two, coming in at a nearly 200 inches in length and almost 80 inches in width. It can barely fit in a highway lane, much less down one of the narrow, windy, backstreets of Mill Valley. It’s almost not the driver’s fault if they happen to accidentally nudge a pesky cyclist off the side of the road to their untimely death. The car is so wide that there’s no room for anyone else to drive or even bike by without catching a scowl from the driver. It actually makes a lot of sense that Americans love this car so much. We as a people love to flaunt all the nice things we have, and what’s the best way to do that? Driving around your rich suburb in a massive SUV you might see scaling the Appalachian Mountains or traversing the Sahara
opinion/editorial Desert on TV. The harshest challenge most of these SUVs will ever encounter is a road with potholes or the occasional drunken swerve a small child. I wonder how the designers and engineers behind these cars feel now because all that comes to my mind when I think of a Porsche Cayenne or Macan is white privilege and the monotony of suburbia. ♦
GRAPHICS BY FRANCHESCA SHEARER AND SAMANTHA FERRO
The SUV Wave by Cal Petersen
T
he Porsche SUV is an enigma wrapped in a $600 Louis Vuitton scarf. Owning one of these cars manages to say, “My spouse is never home and this is gluten-free vodka in a $30 water bottle,” while simultaneously saying, “Lucas needs to get to lacrosse practice before two.”
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News opinion/editorial
EDITORIAL: California Fires and Global Warming
O
ver the past two years, neighboring communities have been ravished by devastating wildfires. While Marin County has been relatively unharmed by these fires, it is important to understand that one day, our lovely green county could be engulfed in flames and even before then, the plummeting air quality could leave us and our relatives with chronic heart and lung disease. As the next generation, we need to understand how global warming has increased the likelihood of these fires. Last year, fires tore through Sonoma and Santa Rosa devastating the community and infrastructure. Even today, they continue to rebuild what once was. While smoke from those fires filled the sky and resulted
in the Tamalpais Union High School District canceling school for a day, many residents in Marin were only slightly inconvenienced. This year, the Camp Fire in Butte County covered our skies with a gray smoke and left a burning sensation in our eyes, noses, and mouths. One of the largest concerns of the effect of forest fires is the health problems that comes with smoke inhalation. Across the week of November 7, air quality hovered around 260-280 on the air quality index, which is listed as unhealthy to very unhealthy. Now the air quality stays at a fairly constant and healthy 30. The most deadly part of this smoke is the incredibly
61%
Of California IS in a drought
fine particles of burned plastic and other chemicals that can penetrate deep into the lungs and stay much longer after the air quality returns back to normal. Not only have these fires impacted the air quality, but the land on which we live has been damaged as well. The Camp Fire burned through roughly 153,336 acres; one of the largest and most destructive wildfires in California history. Making sure that everyone can properly protect themselves from smoke damage is not enough. We must address the root of our problems; we must change the way we combat global warming. The megafires that burned last year and earlier this year are becoming the rule, when they should be the exception. With an increase in global temperature, California specifically is facing harsh and long lasting droughts. As of December 2018, 61.4 percent of California will be considered in a state of ‘moderate drought.’ “Climate change has exacerbated naturally occurring droughts, and therefore fuels [wildfire] conditions,” Scientific American wrote back in 2016. Climate change has impacted our rain cycles and weather patterns across the country. Drought, caused by low levels of rainfall in California, has contributed to an increase in dry brush, which burns easily and quickly. Global warming is a major factor behind these fires, but what is equally as concerning is our lack of preparedness in case of emergency. If we, as a state and as a community do not start to understand the less obvious, long term effects of climate change, our children will live in a world where raging forest fires are nothing but seasonal. A world where faces must be covered by a mask.♦
GRAPHIC BY SAMANTHA FERRO
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News opinion/editorial
I was his Angel, now he’s Mine by Jada Andrews
I
t has been said that “time heals all wounds.” I do not agree. After time, there will always be a scar as a reminder of what happened. For me, my scar is my dad’s urn of ashes. It was late August 2015 when my dad was admitted to Kaiser for a liver filter surgery due to his liver cancer. This was a planned surgery; he was going to go into the hospital then come right back out. Unfortunately, during the operation, he had a heart attack. Being the strong man he was, he survived and was transferred to the intensive care unit, where he remained for a week and a half. Almost every night after my water polo practice, my family and I would visit him. He even spent his last birthday in the hospital. A couple days later, he had heart complications and was put on life support. On September 1, 2015, I got a text from my brother saying, “We need to leave school … something happened to Dad.” At that moment, my heart stopped. Lunch came to an end and I met my brother in the back parking lot. We drove to Kaiser in San Rafael, our nervousness creating complete silence. The entire car ride it felt like my heart was going to burst out my chest. My hands were sweating. I could not stop thinking about the voicemail my dad had left me the week after he got diagnosed. The voicemail had said, “Daddy’s not going anywhere, he will get cured don’t worry.” My brother and I pulled into a parking spot, not stopping to notice that we couldn’t park there – it was for handicaps. The hospital doors opened and as we entered my dad’s room I saw my sister holding my dad’s hand. He was unresponsive with a tube down his throat. My mom, with tears running down her face, told my brother and me that he wasn’t going to make it. At that moment it felt like my world had come to an end, like I was in a nightmare I couldn’t wake up from. As I was in the waiting room, my thoughts spiraled. I never imagined that at fourteen I’d be saying goodbye to my dad forever. My turn came, and as I sat on the small baby blue chair, I stared at a face I
did not recognize. Blank with no expression. I saw a piece of my heart go when I knew there was nothing I could do to help him. . If you knew my dad all he did was help others and put people before him. When I looked at him I felt like I couldn’t return the favor. I held his hand with tears rushing down my face and asked him why he was leaving me. Knowing I was never going ever to get an answer, I told him I was sorry. I said goodbye and told him I loved him so much. I kissed him on his forehead and left. Just like after every death there was a funeral. All our friends and family came to pay their respects. I had been to a couple of funerals before, but this was the first where it felt like my own pain to have to look at a family member in a casket. As we drove over to the church where my dad’s service was held, I peeked outside the car window and saw a swarm of familiar and unfamiliar faces waiting outside. We got out of the car and headed inside. That was the last time I ever saw my dad. Today, I am better at handling grief. I’ve learned that over time it gets a little bit easier to deal with. Grief can hit me out of nowhere; some days I will just break down, but other days I am okay. No matter my mood though, the glimmer from my dad’s necklace that hangs in my room gives me the security I need to move forward. It’s the little things that matter. I joined a support group here at Tam that helps with kids who have lost a loved one. The group has helped a lot. I get to connect with high school students who have gone through similar experiences as I have and learn how they have dealt with the pain and hurt they are forced to confront. Still to this day, it is hard not having a father, and will be for the rest of my life. Since this happened my freshman year in high school, it made a significant impact on my academic life. I never felt like going to school, and the only thing that made me want to go was my participation in water polo for tam. It was a distraction and a place where I could get my anger out. One of my favorite quotes is by Alicia Taylor, and it reads, “Sometimes you must hurt to know, fall in order to grow, and lose in order to gain, because most of life’s greatest lessons are through the pain.” I hurt in order to know what it feels like to live without my dad in my life. Knowing he’s not going to be here physical anymore and
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not being able to hear his voice. I fell apart the first year it happened because I didn’t know what else to do, but I continue to grow from that and have started to become stronger. I have lost my dad, but I have gained a mentality that has given me a second look on life. Today, I am doing better in school because I know my dad would want me to succeed. Losing my dad hurt, and always will, but this loss has made me the strong woman I am today. Nothing in this world could change the way I look at things today. ♦
4 tam the the newstam news27 12/18/18 3:19 PM
Heard in the hallways Giving the People what they want.
By the Opinion Staff
I love Obama so much I wish he would marry me and not Michelle
emergency I finally got an lights for my break and head car!
out OMG I just found lize Be in be to g we’re goin at the same time!
invite Why did you ock trial me to your m dinner?
I advocate b ullying, it promotes ch aracter
Crackin’ and Slackin’ Wait, Hamil ton wasn’t president?
As a Jewish, I permit you to play Christmas music
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Sports
P U S ’ SURF
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by Max Tri
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sports
BOYS SOCCER
BOYS BASKETBALL
“Our expectations coming into the season were that we wanted to compete in every game but now that we are four games in and are a lot better than we expected our hopes and expectations are that we get to playoffs and are competing at our highest level come playoffs. I think this we have more soccer players than last year, more kids who play on their own outside of Tam and the high school season is really draining and goes over the holidays and sometimes you lose players and its cold and kids get sick so honestly for us it’s just like can we maintain a high level using different players to get us to the playoffs.”
- Head Coach Spencer Stanton
by Kara Kneafsey
“Get healthy. We’re a little banged up, got the injury bug right now, but I like the makeup of the team right now. We got a lot to learn, and a lot of work to put in. We’re replacing 10 seniors and about 95 percent of our scoring from last year, but this group really is committed to each other and putting in the time, the work...they are scrappy, are tough so we’ll play fast style looking to put a lot of pressure on defense.” - Head Coach Tim Morgan
COACH’S TAKE . .
GIRLS SOCCER
WRESTLING
“We are looking forward to an exciting season and hope to contend for the MCAL championship. eight players are returning as starters and another 10 players are returning varsity players.” - Head Coach Shane Kennedy
“We beat Redwood for the first time in 15 years last February, and we look to be MCAL champions for the first time in school history this February. Tam wrestling is bigger, tougher and more talented than it’s ever been.” - Head Coach Preston Picus
GIRLS BASKETBALL “The Tam Girls Basketball Program has been the most dominating program in MCAL’s the past three years … We are very optimistic about this upcoming season as we return seven players from last year in addition to a talented group of new players. “ - Head Coach Michael Evans
BY THE NUMBERS . . . BOYS WATERPOLO
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WINS VS 4 theNCS tam news REDWOOD decmaster.indd 30
BOYS BASKETBALL
GIRLS WATERPOLO
63-30 14-12 TAM’S WIN VS SAN RAFAEL
WINS NCS VS ALAMEDA
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sports
...
Photos by Ethan Swope, and Niulan Wright
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FLAG ON THE PLAY
sports
Tam High senior portrait. Photo courtesy of Tam Football by Lukas Affletranger, Cooper Carroll, Khabib-Munson Karcs, and Max Goldberg, representing the Tam High Football Team
T
am High Football was shocked to read a Tam News article that made unfounded assertions, stating the football team perpetuates misogyny and discourages members of the Tam community from participating solely based on their gender. These misdirected shots in the dark, from the article “Girls can have Balls Too” (published in the November issue), are a twisted attempt to put down an entire group of students based on generalizations and stereotypes. Contrary to the author’s beliefs, Tam High Football is full of intelligent, open-minded individuals who feel attacked by the harmful generalizations written in the article. The argument here is not a rebuttal to gender equality in sports, the article’s main point, but a critique of certain written statements in the article that misguidedly blame the Tam football team for issues of which we are not to blame. The author begins their piece with, “Football. That is what it is called when men play it. Powder Puff is what it’s called when women play it because god forbid women are taken seriously enough to play a sport that is technically co-ed.” The author claims that women aren’t taken seriously enough
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to be a part of our program, and therefore are discouraged from participating. This is false. The lack of female representation in high school tackle football at Tam is not due to some player-run campaign in which members of the organization patrol campus demanding that female students not participate; it is caused by a greater societal wound originating from outdated and disappearing mindsets of older generations who grew up in different social climates. Our team is not technically co-ed, it is officially co-ed, and this is embraced. We are working hard to overcome centuriesold stereotypes and gender norms that have circulated our sport, but this becomes difficult when articles such as “Girls can have Balls Too” continue to perpetuate them. It seems as if the article gets its information from an 80’s high school movie where the big dumb football player in the letterman jacket shoves the nerd in the locker. This year the football players worked alongside staff and the student leadership to change the title of the tradition from Powder Puff to Football Fest. In an article pushing for change, it apparently fails to recognize the change that has already happened in high school culture and is continuing to happen. The second claim that we find disagree-
able in “Girls can have Balls Too,” is written as follows: “...I just don’t have it in me to deal with the continuous misogyny that comes from not only the school but even from within the locker room.” Following up this sentence is an analogy, with the purpose of comparing our organization to the “Pussygate” scandal, which involved President Donald Trump bragging about sexual assault. This piece is attacking the entire group of students who choose to play football at our school only based on stereotypes, in an article denouncing stereotypes. To call the piece hypocritical is an understatement. The cheer team is “technically” a coed varsity sport, yet there seems to be no male representation. Are the cheerleaders to blame? The article’s claims are unreasonable and illogical. The cheerleaders and the cheer team as a whole are not at fault. Historically, society has condemned male participation in cheer, primarily because of homophobia. Similar logic applies to our situation. The problems that persist are only there because of historical flaws that are in the process of being ditched by modern society, especially in Tam culture, not because of Tam football players, which is what the article is arguing and why we felt we needed to rebut. Football and most other historically maledominated sports have tainted pasts that have
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sports been fading out of their culture, but nevertheless they persist. The macho persona portrayed in the media, the misogynistic locker room jokes, the individuals participating in a sexually harassing manner, are stereotypes that still haunt school sports organizations today. But it cannot be stressed enough that today’s Tam football organization is doing their best to distance themselves from these unacceptable behaviors. This type of activity is heavily discouraged in our organization. Head coach Matthew LemMon would never tolerate such acts, and actively seeks to improve player’s mindsets and instill progressive values into the teams culture. The anger in the article is misplaced and singles out football players as the enforcers of misogynistic values on campus. The football team would always appreciate more female participation, and we highly encourage any student wishing to play to get out and do so. This year we were grateful to have a female player, but we are not go-
ing to parade her around as some sort of token woman, because she is much more than that to our organization. She is a teammate and a family member and is treated and looked upon in that way and no other. There is nothing that Tam football players are actively participating in that is holding any female student back from participating. Our head coach describes our team environment perfectly when he said, “When you put pads on, everyone pretty much looks the same.” We as student athletes know what our program truly stands for. We understand the author is entitled to their opinion. As a football team, we plan to take her perception into consideration to continue working towards a more inclusive program. If any student at Tam should take interest in playing football, our organization welcomes you with open arms. The article’s byline reads “Time’s are changing, so should sports.” Times are indeed changing, and our organization is proud to be changing with it. ♦
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COMING UP CRUTCH
News
by Logan Little
A
ccording to official National College Athletic Association (NCAA) rules, Division 1 coaches can begin contacting girls basketball athletes to start the recruitment process on September 1 of their junior year. This year, a few weeks after that critical date, Olivia Ali, a junior and varsity basketball player, tore her right anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) during this year’s Football Fest in September. “I was really upset, not because it hurt, but because I knew that my season might be over,” Ali said. “That was really hard on me because over the summer I trained really hard. I really wanted to play and I really wanted to start. It was a big deal.” Since undergoing surgery to reconstruct her ACL, Ali has had to wear a knee brace and has been unable to participate in any physical activity. She is not expected to recover and return to basketball until June. As a result, she’s worried about how her future might be affected.
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“Just the thought that they’re all getting better in the nine to 12 months I’m gonna be out, and I’m getting worse. It’s not a good thought. A lot of girls on my team [Amateur Athletic Union] have already been talking to colleges and coaches … it’s hard to see that and think that ‘man, I could be there,’” said Ali. Despite her concerns, she’s still determined to contribute to the team and return as strong as possible. Ali does physical therapy exercises twice a day, attends an ACL therapy class, and has meetings with her physical therapist once a week. “I go to every single game and every practice,” Ali said. “I help out some of the new girls on the team who don’t have a lot of experience. I try to be sort of a leader off the court helping them out with plays if they don’t understand it. I try to do my best.” Emma Bowser, a sophomore teammate, believes that Ali’s efforts have paid off. “She has a personal relationship with everyone on the team because she cares about all of us as people and players. And it is so refreshing to have a leader on the team that isn’t ‘me, me, me’ and is all about the team. We want this team to go all the way for her and it says a lot that the whole team wants to win for Olivia,” Bowser said. Ali has been playing basketball since fourth grade at the Catholic Youth Organization of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church and made varsity her freshman year. She largely believes her father sparked her interest in basketball. “[My father and I would] always watch Warriors games together and I always loved it,” Ali said. “Me and my dad have always had basketball. We’ve always trained together and it’s like our thing. ” Her father’s experience as an avid basketball athlete made him especially concerned with her injury. “...When I got hurt it was almost like a part of him was almost taken away. At first, my dad was really mad [when he learned about my injury]. He was really upset, but I think he was more sad than mad and just didn’t know how to express it. When he was in high school he tore his meniscus and he was out for his whole junior year. And because of that he’s always told me not to hurt myself and try to be careful,” Ali said. Regardless of all the hardships she faces, Bowser is confident that Ali is strong enough to push past them. “I understand her concern about physically not being able to play,” said Bowser. “But she still has another year, and knowing Olivia she’ll be back sooner than expected and better than she has ever been because that is who she is—a hard worker.” ♦
Photo By Ethan Swope
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THANK YOU Abby Lesher Alex and Annika Emblad Alex Mortenson Amy Besford Amy Finn Anika Sanda Ann Colman Anthony Rago April and Howard Solomon Banett Nichols Barry & Jody Conybeare Bethany Conybeare and Emery Mitchell Bob and Ashley Sterfels Bor Tijssen Brian & Janna Conybeare Brost Bruce & Elyce Goldberg Bruce R. Katz Calvin Rosevear Carrie Emison Catherine Ainsworth and James Long Catherine Cox Cathy Marhefka Chris and Rena Chase Chris Wilmoth Christine Wichman Claire Muirhead Claudia & Ethan Moeller Cori and Ian Boyd Cynthia Samson and Alan Cowan David Finn David Spiegelman & Maki Daijogo Dawn Dobras and Eric Swergold Denise Halloran Derek Moore Diana Williams Drake High School Eileen and Michael Spitalny Elizabeth Brown Finn Partners Fiona McDermott Gina Brown
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The Tamalpais News 700 Miller Ave. Mill Valley, CA 94941 Return Service Requested
Non-Profit Org. U.S Postage PAID San Rafael, CA Permit No. 139
Volume XIII, Issue No. IV - December 2018
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