December 2020

TJTODAY vol 6 issue 3 dec. 2020

thomas jefferson high school for science and technology 6560 braddock rd. alexandria, va 22312

transformation and our year of change

ABSTRACT Sophomore Nandini Shyamala poses for her school photo. Students took their photos in the Jefferson auditorium while practicing social distancing. “It felt very different because it was just me. I wasn’t able to compare pictures with my friends,” Shyamala said. “It felt very nostalgic to be back in the building for the first time since March.” Photo by Erinn Harris.

STAFF

EDITORIAL BOARD

Print & Online Editors-in-Chief Broadcast Executive Producer Team Leaders Vikram Achuthan Annika Dunneja Stuti Gupta Sonia Kanchan Anuj Khemka Pratika Katiyar

Sean Nguyen

In-Depth Editor Minjoo Song

Social Media Manager Zia Sun

Aafreen Ali Rachel Lewis Christina Lu Nathan Mo Connie Ryu

TJ Podcast Network Editor-in-Chief Whitman Ochai

Advisor: Erinn Harris tjTODAY is the official newsmagazine of Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. The staff is deeply committed

to a code of journalistic ethics that demands the exercise of accuracy, good judgment, and impartiality. The content of tjTODAY is determined by the editorial board. Unsigned editorials reflect the majority opinion of the staff of tjTODAY, but not necessarily the opinions of individual editors.

tjtoday.tjhsst @tjhsst_media

@tjtoday_news

tjTODAY

CONTENTS tjTODAY vol. 6 issue 3

dec. 2020

20

8 22

6

14

cover story 12

THE ART OF FAMILY PROGRESSION Across four generations, the Charagundla family continues to grow and transform while still finding ways to stay connected

features 04

DULL ROUTINE Straying away from a dull routine, students are able to add splashes of color throughout their day

08

18 ANSWERING THE CALL FOR CREATIVITY

Over the course of the year, different types of artists express and establish their creative talents

opinion 22 BEYOND THE LENS Digital resources have opened up more possibilities for photographers but also contributed to mistrust in the media

MAGIC IN THE MAKEUP Using makeup and skincare products, students transform themselves and experiment with new looks

The tjTODAY staff would like to thank the Jefferson communityincluding students, teachers, and parents- for coming together during these trying times and helping us better tell your stories.

A student struggles to wake up in the morning. Many students fall into the same dull daily routine, especially in the age of isolation.

PHOTO // Tao Huang

FEATURE 5 dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

dull routine

Straying away from a dull routine, students are able to add splashes of color throughout their day

by Christina Lu & Nathan Mo

After climbing out of bed and getting dressed, brushing teeth comes next in many students’ morning routines. For junior Erin Tran, cleaning her teeth is the longest and most important part.“I always floss first, then brush my teeth, then clean my retainers and use mouthwash. I basically hate my teeth feeling dirty, so i brush my teeth for more than two minutes until they feel clean. The whole ordeal takes ten minutes,” Tran said. PHOTO // Christina Lu

After making their breakfast, a student gives themselves a jumpstart to the day. Sophomore Jawand Singh believes that breakfast is vital to anyone’s day because of the multiple benefits it provides. “I think that breakfast is important because it not only gives you nutrition and energy for the day, but also is a good routine to get yourself into,” Singh said. PHOTO // Christina Lu

Readying herself for her next class, senior Minjoo Song messages her friends during a passing period.

Despite the challenges posed by online learning, senior Vikram Raghu tries to stay connected with his classmates “Online school has been more taxing in the sense that the lack of physical interaction with friends makes it harder to get through the day,” Raghu said. “I’ve been trying to maintain that connection through messaging friends and also making conversation in class, like in breakout rooms.”

PHOTO // Minjoo Song

8:05 AM

8:20 AM

2:25 PM

FEATURE 7

Students workout at home to stay in shape. With sports having less frequent practices, student athletes must hold themselves accountable for their fitness. “I work out at home in preparation for football and track since I’ve found that public gyms are too risky to be in. I usually work a four-day split by focusing on either arms, chest/back, legs, or shoulders/abs each day,” senior Eugene Choi said.

PHOTO // Christina Lu

After setting her alarm clock, a student snuggles under the covers following a long day of schoolwork. Depending on the time, nightly routines vary. “One thing I always do before going to sleep is drinking some water so I don’t wake up super thirsty. Sometimes I’ll read a book if it’s early, but usually I just turn off the lights and close my eyes,” senior Victoria Lu said. PHOTO // Hannah Lu

Practicing the piano, junior Nathan Mo attempts to unwind after a long day. Junior Sung-June Kim sees music as both a hobby and a stress-reliever.

“Playing piano helps me destress from each day of school and provides me with a hobby that I can enjoy, even in the toughest of times,” Kim said. PHOTO// Nathan Mo

4:30 PM

7:00 PM

11:30 PM

magic Using makeup and skincare products, students transform themselves and experiment with new looks

in the

MAKEUP

by Aafreen Ali & Rachel Lewis

PHO

FEATURE 9 With black winged eyeliner and red lipstick applied to half of her face, junior Lily Walters poses in front of her bathroom door.

Walters began experimenting with bolder makeup as a member of the Jefferson Color Guard during the 2019-20 marching season. “[The] makeup we had for my show was... green, white, and blue... like really out there,” Walters said. “I found that I really liked putting on the makeup and I liked how I looked in it.”

PHOTO // Parinaz Mirfakhraie

Pressing on the bottom of her eyelid with a finger, junior Lily Walters draws dark wings just above her eyelashes. “If you have shaky hands like me, or you have really bad eyesight like me, getting up close to a mirror really helps. I have been definitely guilty of climbing a couple kitchen counters so I can make sure I’m putting it on right,” Walters said. “Don’t be afraid of going a couple extra lengths to make sure... [your] makeup [is] a little more put together. There’s no shame in that as long as it all comes out fine.”

PHOTO // Lily Walters

dizzying array of products and colors greets you when you enter a makeup store or click the “shop” tab on a cosmetics website, each product with its own purpose and effect on how others see you. Makeup imparts power on the buyer— the power to create, change, even transform.

Experimenting with new and different makeup is familiar to junior Lily Walters.

“Recently, I bought a lot of different colored eyeliners, and... eyeshadows,” Walter said. “I was playing around a lot with those… I’m not going out so [I] might as well just try it and see what happens.”

FEATURE 11

Eyeshadow palettes with neutral and warm shades are popular due to their subtle colors. Junior Lily Walters recently bought new eyeliner and eyeshadow to experiment with looks based on the newest trends. “In pop culture… you have like the e-girl looks, like blush on the nose… different trends with how you’re gonna wear your eyeliner,” Walters said. “[It’s] just really cool to see how much you can do with it, even with the same palette.”

PHOTO // Pratika Katiyar

Stila liquid eyeshadow and a ColourPop eyeshaow palette are just some of junior Isabel Gan’s routine makeup products. Gan varies her makeup looks to suit different occasions. “One thing I like about makeup is how you can change up your style based on your look. If I’m wearing something girly, like a dress and a skirt, I’ll do a more bright floral look, but if I’m wearing more streetwear, I might do a winged eyeliner to match that kind of style,” Gan said.

PHOTO // Isabel Gan

Peering at her reflection in the mirror, junior Lily Walters dabs foundation on the right side of her face. While she sometimes uses foundation to quickly cover up acne breakouts, Walters likes to play around with different looks.

“If makeup makes you feel happy and if it ever makes you feel good about yourself, then just go for it. It’ll take maybe15-20 minutes tops, maybe more if you’re [doing] a more complex look,” Walters said. “In the end, it’s all about your own comfort.” PHOTO // Lily Walters

the

R

A T of

family

progression

Across four generations, the Charagundla family continues to grow and transform while still finding ways to stay connected

by Stuti Gupta, Sonia Kanchan, & Pratika Katiyar

“I lived with teenagers, to octogenarians, and having this never-quiet, conversation-filled household, made me more outgoing than I think I ever could have been if I had lived with just my nuclear family after my father passed away.”

After her father passed away in 2007, senior Mallika Charagundla— along with her mother and sister Teju—moved from Philadelphia into her cousins’ house in Virginia.

Through it, she connected with a multitude of direct and distant cousins, aunts and uncles, grandparents, and nieces. It is a family that continues to grow, and transgresses across generations.

T

COVER STORY 13 Charagundla’s father, Sridhar, holds Charagundla on his shoulders. Sridhar graduated in the Class of 1989 at Jefferson. “I think [this] is my favorite picture because… it shows his character. He was a happy person, and he loved his family more than anything.

He’s always there. He’s always gonna be supporting me… and it sort of represents what I keep in my heart,” Charagundla said. Photo courtesy of the Charagundla Family

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1. Holding Charagundla’s niece, Amala, Charagundla’s paternal grandfather admires his granddaughter. “My grandfather was like my father figure,” Charagundla said. Charagundla’s niece and grandfather represent a span of four generations within their family. “He was always there, he would help me with homework like math and physics, he would take me to school, and we would go shopping together.”

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Photos courtesy of the Charagundla Family

2. Attending her cousin Raghav’s wedding to Vini, Charagundla claps in the background. Charagundla’s family is continuously growing and welcoming new members, with Vini included in their weekly Zoom dinners amidst the current pandemic. “She’s like a sister to me now,” Charagundla said. 3. During a family trip to London in 2004, Charagundla is hugged by her cousin Govind. Up until four years ago, Charagundla lived with Govind’s family. “The reason we moved to Virginia was because my dad passed away and we wanted to be close to family,” Charagundla said.

“That’s how we got to living with them.”

4. Before Charagundla is born, her cousins Raghav, Govind, Madhav, Hareesh, and Giri attend her parents’ wedding in 1997. As one the youngest cousins in her multigenerational household, Charagundla occasionally found it difficult to find her own voice. “It was sometimes tough to assert my own opinions,” Charagundla said. “But it’s all turned into a positive because now my voice is a lot stronger.” 5. Living in the same neighborhood, Charagundla’s paternal cousins gather for a family gettogether. Four of these cousins attended Jefferson. “It was incredible to have them as guides through my own middle school and high school experiences because they also attended the same school as I did,” Charagundla said. 6.

Six years later, Charagundla and her cousins pose for the same picture. This time, there are some new additions. In the back row sit Minti (Madhav’s fiancee), Vini (Raghav’s wife), and Deeya (Giri’s wife). In his lap, Giri holds his daughter Amala. Though they do not have many set traditions, they meet often to celebrate holidays and festivals such as Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the Satyanarayan Puja. “Every Thanksgiving, we would get together, and none of us like Turkey. So, we… would get Chinese Peking duck every Thanksgiving, and we still do it. That’s actually our longest running and most consistent tradition.”

G E N 7. At her cousin Madhav and his soon-to-be wife Minti’s wedding, Charagundla stands with her sister, paternal cousins, and their wives and fiances.

Even as her cousins begin to move away, they’re able to continue to communicate. “Regardless of how busy our individual lives were every night we would congregate around our dinner table,” Charagundla said. “When they were free in college, we would FaceTime them. We would put them on the table and then rotate our phones around.”

Photos courtesy of the Charagundla Family

At the age of three, Charagundla, rests on her maternal grandmother’s lap for a photo. Most of Charagundla’s paternal cousins are older than her, while she happens to be older than most of her maternal cousins. “My [paternal] cousins are more like my guides, and the people I look up to. For the cousins on my mom’s side, I’m that person for them,” Charagundla said.

In one of her first pictures as a baby, Charagundla smiles with her mother. Their mother tongue is Telugu. “My mom was born in India [Hyderabad], but my dad was born here in Richmond,” Charagundla said.

After her first day of kindergarten, Charagundla embraces her younger sister, Teju. Charagundla is four years older than her sister, but they still find ways to connect. “The relationship I have with my sister is the most important one I have in my life,” Charagundla said.

Spending time with each other outside, Charagundla and Teju pause for a picture. Charagundla enjoys baking, listening to music, and working out with her sister. “She’s sort of an ‘engineer brain’, and likes building things,” Charagundla said. “I also like to do that with her.”

At her cousin Madhav’s wedding, Charagundla, her sister, mother, and maternal grandmother pose for a picture away from the festivities. In 2016, Charagundla moved from her multigenerational household to a new home, along with her sister, mother, and grandmother. After moving, Charagundla’s new house is only a mile away from the house she previously lived in with her relatives.

“They’re on one side of [the] route, and we’re on the other,” Charagundla said.

cre

answering the call for

by Annika Duneja & Connie Ryu

FEATURE 19

reativity Over the course of the year, different types of artists express and establish their creative talents

PHOTOS // Nazneen Ansar

Painting layer on top of layers, senior Nazneen Ansar focuses on expressing details in her river landscape in its progression. With the extra time at home this year due to the pandemic, she has been able to practice more consistently in sharpening her artistic skills, in addition to experimenting with other mediums—allowing her creativity to be more centered in her pieces, while also building her persistence in executing them. “Details add more depth to a piece but overemphasizing them can be distracting, so it is important to strike a good balance,� Ansar said.

nazneen ansar

ananya bagai

PHOTOS // Ananya Bagai

FEATURE 21

r

gai

PHOTOS // Vivi Rao

Junior Vivi Rao goes through the motions of making cinnamon buns, from mixing the dry ingredients, to adding the eggs, rolling out the dough, and finally baking the finished product. She has turned towards the culinary arts as an outlet for her creativity, choosing to experiment in creating her own recipes. “Baking has turned from reading instructions off a list to understanding ratios, textures, and food better,” Rao said. With more time on her hands, she bakes often, using it as a way to connect with others by sharing the food she makes with her friends and family.

vivi rao

Senior Ananya Bagai captures her imagination brought to life in her abstract painting from a variety of angles to convey unique perspectives through her photographs as well. She appreciates the genuinity she is able to pour into her art and finds having time specifically allocated for her art effective in clarifying her intentions and hopes for her creativity. “Taking the time to think through my ideas and organize my thoughts has progressed my art significantly, simply because it means more to me,” Bagai said.

Deep in concentration, senior Forrest Meng gets ready to snap a photo. However, whether digital tools such as Instagram are the best means by which to share photos is a source of concern for many photographers.

PHOTO // Maria Abramova

BEYOND LENS FEATURE LEAD ED 25 23

the

T

elling a story has never been easier.

With more modern technology comes a slew of new resources available for everyone, especially photographers.

Digital media not only creates more platforms for photographers to share their photos and gain recognition, but it also improves accessibility to stories. For example, photos shared on digital platforms such as Facebook receive 53% more likes, 104% more comments, and 84% more clicks than posts with just text, according to a Hubspot study.

These digital outlets allow photographers to exercise creative license over their work and add to the individuality of their work.

In 2017, 85% of the 1.2 trillion photos taken were taken by smartphone, according to Business Insider.

This shows that readily available smartphones enable more people to explore the photography field.

While this advances photography as a whole, it can be detrimental to individual photographers who may grow complacent with the tools available and won’t focus as much on improvement.

Additionally, it can hinder the credibility of photojournalism as more people try to create more sensationalist photos. This is more prominent because with the increase in availability of digital tools comes the potential for misinformation. The use of filters and applications like Photoshop can tend to create unrealistic standards for social media users and consumers who are unable to identify when a photo has been altered. While in some cases it can be clear that a photo has been altered, it’s harder to recognize subtle changes, such as the cropping out of a person or the use of a realistic filter, that have the potential to change the narrative.

Social media platforms in general have allowed for photography to become a medium to promote social causes that would otherwise not receive much

Digital resources have opened up more possibilities for photographers but also contributed to mistrust in the media

attention. By capturing protests and strikes, photographers have been able to capture history, something made possible by the growing variety of digital tools available. However, in the age of social media, the tendency for photos to go viral has led to misunderstandings and a loss of credibility for photojournalism. Staged photos and angles of photos that show only one side of the story, may create distrust of the photographer.

Through an experiment, two Danish photographers showed that one angle could depict civilians standing six feet apart from each other in a line, in accordance to social-distancing guidelines, while with another angle showed the civilians standing seemingly much closer to each other. Both in Denmark and the United States, photos have been referenced by news outlets and politicians to prove that proximity guidelines are being violated during the current pandemic. The reality is that those photos may not tell the whole story.

To combat this issue, it is important that both sides come together with a mutual understanding.

People consuming media should understand that it is just “one” picture, while photographers should be prepared to provide more context to their work.

Rather than staging photos, they should focus on the raw story and utilize captions to enhance others’ understandings of the photo.

The rise of digital media has unquestionably contributed to the expansion of photojournalism. Nevertheless, the need for photographers to be ethical with their photos and for the public to remain informed has become clearer than ever. To bridge this gap, it is important that both groups work towards a mutual understanding and that photographers don’t become complacent in their photography skills.

Both these steps will ensure a future filled with possibility for photojournalism.

THROUGH THE

LENS OF JOHN

“

When I was younger, I used to hate taking photos with my family, whether it be a normal occasion or even a special occasion. I now understand that these photos represent the memories that I’ve lived. Without capturing a moment and having these photos for me to view, it’s hard to relive these stories.

It’s easier to capture photos and take photos of nature, because I feel like there’s not a burden that I need to prove my skills or prove my worth to somebody else. With nature, I can try and experiment around with what I want to do.

PHOTO by Sean Nguyen REPORTING by Sean Nguyen

WHAT I’VE LEARNED

Junior

John Kim

“

We try to hold a lot of events, not only to fundraise but also to let our class celebrate their high school years. So, as a class historian, I try to make sure that I encapsulate the emotions that these people are going through highs and lows.

When people see photos, they see a final result. Yet, they don’t see what goes into making that photo. Most of the time, being able to put all that effort into the process and make it turn out how it did is really rewarding for me.