Issuu

STAFF the

Adviser Dana Baker

Editor-in-Chief Samaleh Omar Managing Editor Shravani Reddy Design Editor Ava Proehl Copy Editor Helina Wondwossen Business Editor Arnav Kumar Photo Editor Cayley Kilduff

â€œ

The caged bird sings with a fearful trill of things unknown but longed for still and his tune is heard on the distant hill for the caged bird sings of freedom. //excerpt from I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings Maya Angelou

News Editor Kaise Dualeh Features Editor Aayusha Khanal Culture Editor Emily Peacher Opinions Editor Claire Wodack Sports Editor Lydia Carpenter Staff Writers Eliza Agi Anika Akkapeddi Lauren Balser Lindsay Brisson Kayla Cooper James Czarnaski Camille Desjardins Bailey Elliott Morgan Maiden Madison Roney Kawther Said

Uncaged is the newsmagazine of Freedom High School. The attitudes, opinions, views, and ideas expressed in Uncaged do not necessarily reflect those of this staff, the faculty adviser, Freedom High School, or the Loudoun County Public School system. Uncaged follows the county and state guidelines established for student high school publications, and disclaims any liability with respect thereto the use or reliance on any such information contained in this publication. The Uncaged staff welcomes contributions and encourages the expression of students, faculty, staff, and members of the Freedom High School community.

Cover photo illustration by Ava Proehl

table of contents

[news] [features] [sports] [culture] [opinion] [back cover]

4 12 20 24 27 32

20-21

CONTENTS

from the editors Hey there free birds, Welcome to the new year! We hope you’ve had a wonder winter break! In addition to watching movies and drinking hot chocolate, we’ve been eagerly waiting for the best present of the holiday season and new year: our second issue. And lucky for you, free birds, it’s finally here! After all our early mornings and late nights editing, designing, reworking and perfecting our magazine, we hope it brings you as much joy as it brings us here at Uncaged. This second semester holds many opportunities, to set new goals, to keep all those New Year’s resolutions, and to start the third quarter on a strong note. Seniors, as you prepare for the future, we hope you only hear good news in these coming months! Make sure to keep us in the loop about all the great things you’re achieving. In addition to this new issue, the website has more stories than ever before. We’re constantly updating and upgrading the online publication, expanding coverage and adding new features. Although Uncaged is our platform, we want to remind the Freedom community that it’s also all of yours. So vote in a poll, retweet an update and contact us with article ideas. As the winter sports season ends, check out uncagedfhs.org for constant updates on how our Eagle teams are doing, including scores, standings and upcoming games. The website will always keep you in the loop! While following and reading up on Freedom sports, don’t forget to check out all the other sections.

[Photo by Ava Proehl]

letter from the editors

TWO MILLION KIDS NOT IN SCHOOL AS A RESULT OF VIOLENCE

onflict in Yemen has escalated over the past few years. A civil war has affected the Yemeni people, especially children, and has reduced their access to food, water and medical supplies. “Many of the services that a normal state would provide to its citizens have been undermined by the destruction of war and it’s especially hitting children,” said Marie Fox, history teacher and UNICEF club sponsor. “It’s getting to the point where beyond just not having schools or not having adequate water, even the medical infrastructure system is falling apart so the children are very affected by all of this.” It’s not just starvation and lack of health care that’s affecting children. CNN published an article in August 2018, where they reported a missile that was built by U.S. defense company Lockheed Martin had hit a school bus of Yemeni children while they were on a UNICEF sponsored a field trip. This event was discussed in a dual African history class by history teacher Jessica Legnini along with the relationship between FHS and Lockheed Martin. Biz.loudoun.gov published an article after the CNN article, reporting that employees from Lockheed Martin held a workshop for FHS teachers on topics such as hacking and cyber security to bring into their classrooms. Lockheed Martin was also invited to participate in senior service day. Many students were not aware of the relationship with Lockheed Martin, and also had little knowledge of what was happening in the Middle East.

“In the absence of information, attempts for children in need. students cannot make an informed Social studies and psychology teachdecision,” Legnini said. “Once they er, Rebecca Visna, came up with the have information, they can then decide idea for a penny-war style fundraiser, how they are going to deal with that where coins put in a classes jug would information. Some students [did] a lot count for that class, and dollar bills of research and decided that they did put in other grades’ jug would count feel the need to do something about it. against them. Once the information was out there, the “[The fundraiser had] been successseniors decided what to do.” ful in the past at my school where I One of those students who took iniused to work, and the way it was done tiative towards the fundraiser was senior before was pennies vs. silver change,” Emily Busic. said Visna. “Because we are in a more “The entire thing started because socio-economically advanced area, we 40 children in Yemen were bombed discussed to change it from pennies on a school bus on their way to a field and silver change to change and paper, trip that was promoted by UNICEF,” just because we thought it had a bigger Busic said. “Saudi Arabia [planned] an potential for fundraising. It’s easy to airstrike. It turns out Lockheed Martin get people to participate, because you supplied the bomb which, [is] not their can literally reach into your pocket with fault because they’re U.S. defense man- whatever you got. You can contribute ufacturers, but it just got into the wrong pennies, a dollar or a hundred dollars.” hands. So after they were coming [to Throughout the week, loose change senior service day], I set up a meeting and dollars were collected in the cafwith Mr. Fulton discussing what their eteria in jugs labeled with each grade role was going to be in the school. level. On Friday, Nov. 2, students began Some people were upset about the fact counting the money. The total came to that we were inviting this company that $3,708.26 raised for children in Yemen. just did an awful thing, maybe inadver“Teachers are always preparing us for tently, to these children.” the ‘real world,’ but this is the real world, After the meeting, students made the and it’s our responsibility to help people decision to help children affected by the in need when we can,” Arif said. civil war in Yemen. Thousands of dollars was raised to “The students lead the conversation buy medical supplies, food and water and said, ‘morally, we can’t allow this for children due to a current event to happen,’” said Lara Arif, senior class discussion in a history class. president. The decision was made to hold a fundraiser for Yemen sponsored by the UNICEF club, which would ensure the [Story and photo by Claire Wodack] funds went directly to rehabilitation

$3,708.26 RAISED FOR CHILDREN AFFECTED BY WAR IN YEMEN 5

rom Model UN to Zumba Club, there is a wide range of organizations available at FHS, and new ones are still being started. Some of these organizations are even run by students. For example, the new investment club started by junior Niklas Becker. “I thought it would be a good way to help me with [AP Econ], as well as help others learn about the stock market,” Becker said. He is planning on going into stocks or finance in the future, so the club allows him to further explore the topic. In order to start the club, he had to have a sponsor and then get approval. Becker asked his economics teacher Tim Furey to sponsor, though the club is student run. Each week, the members participate in a simulation where they are given fake money and have to invest in stocks. They have to apply increasingly more challenging techniques involving finances. The weekend before the meeting, Becker

learns these terms and techniques in his own time, and then explains them to the members. “I hadn’t done any actual investing before the club,” Becker said. “I just researched and followed along, but this gives me and opportunity to use fake money to invest in the actual stock at the moment.” In the first couple of weeks, many of the members experienced trouble with their stocks. They didn’t know how to approach the simulation or manage their money. Only three members broke profit, which was discouraging to many. However, patience is key to the stock market. “A lot of people try to sell their stocks the second they break profit, and that’s not always the best way to go,” said junior Bennett Raba . “It’s smarter to go long term.” But why are stocks and the investment club useful in life? “The stock market dictates how people view the economy,” Becker said. “If the

stock market is going down, people panic and maybe even lose their jobs.” Even the environment of the simulations themselves are beneficial. The members are left responsible for their own money and must strategize according to personalized criteria. “[Knowledge of the stock market] is a very useful skill to have, and it’s good to get the jump on it now,” Raba said. “And it’ll kind of coincide with personal finance or economics classes, so it can help you with the class as well. Knowing how the stock market works can help in order to have a more secure financial status for retirement. Awareness of the club is being spread through word of mouth by Becker, Raba, and other members, but it has been challenging because of the limited outreach. “I think it’s useful to just get to know the terms and the ways you could invest,” Becker said. [Story by Anika Akkapeddi]

Molding the Curious Student

onors classes, dual enrollment classes, AP classes all have the intention of preparing students for college, careers and their future. But more often than not, students leave high school with a false sense of confidence that is quickly diminished as they sit in their first real college class. High school classes run with a strict curriculum. Students are fed information, and though interpretation and summarization is often expected, they lack the freedom that allows them to truly become critical thinkers. This is where AP Seminar comes into play. This is the first year AP Seminar is a class offered at FHS, in fact, it’s the only school that’s offering it in Loudoun County. Despite recent rumors, AP Seminar isn’t just a revamped Senior Capstone. AP Seminar is currently run by Amanda Stephens, who has a background in history, and Carl Geisy, with a background in math. The class presents “an opportunity to focus on critical reading, critical writing, analysis

[and] argument,” Stephens said. Who believes it will do a better job preparing students for higher education than regular AP classes. All other AP courses focus on just one subject, whether it be biology, psychology, calculus or literature. In AP Seminar, students are able to “study something that [they] are really passionate about or interested in,” Stephens said. It’s a research based class, where students conduct a group research project first quarter, and individual research projects second quarter. What truly makes AP Seminar stand out from other AP classes is the lack of curriculum. Though the class is currently being run as a beta test, students complete all work and projects that Stephens and Geisy plan to implement into future classes. The class will be offered to sophomores and juniors, since the course stretches over two school years, though there are currently only 12 juniors taking the class. For the first quarter project, students were placed into three groups and given the “overarch-

ing theme of art.” Out of these three groups, Stephens said that “two groups chose the argument that there needs to be art integrated into the core curriculum of all four years of high school”. Having two groups choose the same topic to research when they were given such a massive topic is exactly why Stephens believes classes like AP Seminar are necessary. Students need to adapt to the lack of structure found in college classes. The stress put on students to have a high GPA takes away from the desire to truly learn, and develop the skills necessary for not only college, but life. Stephens says that the “opportunity to have a class like this at a high school level is very valuable and [there is] more of a focus on the learning process than on a grade.” But AP Seminar isn’t just for students who want to prepare for the future, but students with a “natural curiosity and the willingness to see where the rabbit hole leads,” Stephens said. AP Seminar is a class for the curious student. [Story by Lydia Carpenter]

Seminar] is an opportunity to “ [AP focus on critical reading, critical writing, analysis, [and] argument ” -Amanda Stephens

MAKING MUNEY MOVES T

he everyday troubles of life as a high schooler may seem trivial for Model UN (MUN) delegates when they are at conferences attempting to find plausible solutions for global issues such as climate change and world hunger. The club’s main focus is to develop students’ diplomacy skills and learn about international relations. However, winning an award is arguably equally as important, since it reflects the club and its members’ abilities to delegate. Usually, students are assigned a nation and have to express that nation’s beliefs when trying to find solutions for their committee’s topic. In junior Shashank Balaji’s three years in MUN, he has won two awards for his ability to delegate. To succeed in the club or during a conference, Balaji believes that delegates should display leadership and be adept in public speaking. According to this delegate, acquiring these skills take time. “MUN is more based on experience. [In] your first conference, you wouldn’t be as confident as you would be if you were to attend over 10 conferences,” Balaji said.

Experienced and novice members of Freedom Model United Nations attended their first-ever college conference at the University of Virginia in November 2018. Although a college conference is supposed to be equally rigorous as a high school conference, the sophistication and hastiness of a college environment created a more competitive atmosphere for its high school delegates. Students from areas as far as Ohio and Maryland traveled to Charlottesville for the conference. For the delegates who had never attended a conference before, they generally enjoyed being exposed to global issues. “It was so interesting to see so many creative solutions to the world problems presented,” said junior Ankita Somalwar. In her committee, which was the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP), they discussed finding new, creative sources of energy and weighed the effects that fossil fuels have on the environment versus non renewables sources. After long hours between committee sessions, Somalwar and her friends wandered around the UVA campus,

visiting local restaurants and familiarizing themselves with the city. Sophomore Ishan Datey, the MUN Director of Education, was glad that many members got exposure to a conference and believe that they will be more prepared for conferences in the future. Even though college conferences typically have longer hours between committee sessions than high school conferences, Datey believes that there are not many other distinctions between these two types of conferences. “While the competition, difficulty-wise, wasn’t much different from a normal high school conference, the type of people you face is different which provided a new experience,” Datey said. The growing number of students in MUN has allowed for greater exposure to global issues to students at Freedom. The experience they gained and the awareness they achieved prepares them to be educated and become leaders in their near future. New members gained experience and all members had the opportunity to enjoy a nice weekend in UVA.

[Story and Photos by Aayusha Khanal]

First Row: Wesley Do, Zara Thalji, Celine Sayegh, Emma Zimmerman and Aayusha Khanal Middle Row: Arnav Kumar, Sowmith Maganti, Preetham Madesh, Niklas Becker, Meghan Lindsey, Nicole Castelblanco, Madison Do and Ankita Somalwar Back Row: Sai Puppala, Shrivatsa Setty, Ethan Gorman, Matthew Whelan, Shashank Balaji, Vishnu Kumar, Ishan Datey and Kaise Dualeh

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Remembering Mrs. Abdullah

n Nov. 26, 2018, Freedom High School mourned the loss of special education teacher D’Andrea Abdullah. Abdullah, who had been teaching at Freedom since 2016, was an integral part of the special education department. With her teaching in various subjects and participation in many clubs, Abdullah was able to build relationships with all members of the Freedom community. Staff and students alike remember Abdullah’s cheerful and lighthearted character. “She was joyous, positive, always smiling no matter what,” said Jenna Arndt, special education department chair. Aside from her optimistic personality, Abdullah was known for providing students with valuable life lessons. Senior Noah Gorman remembers the pieces of advice Abdullah left him with, and will carry her teachings with him forever.

“She was a very insightful woman, and taught me that not always being the loudest person in the room can benefit you in many ways,” Gorman said. “I am very outspoken, a lot of times too outspoken, so it gave me something to work on.” Abdullah was always able to dedicate her time and effort to her students’ education and well-being. Special education teacher Katie Santarelli remembers Abdullah as a quiet but fierce fighter, who loved her family and friends. “She never liked to miss work, even through all of her medical struggles,” Santarelli said. “[Abdullah] would always come to school so she would not miss time with ‘her people’.” Abdullah was a constant light and source of laughter for her friends, even through her personal and medical troubles. Being a native Texan and avid

supporter of the Dallas Cowboys, Abdullah made sure to express her opinion on other football teams to anyone who was an opposing fan. This workplace rivalry, although sometimes unwanted by the Redskins fans of Freedom, was something that many anticipated and enjoyed. “I’m a Philadelphia Eagles fan, so we had a love-hate relationship on Sundays,” Arndt said. “It was just always fun to come into work on a Monday and pick on her if the Cowboys lost, or have her pick on me if the Eagles lost.” Abdullah impacted the lives of many, and will always be remembered by her friends and students at Freedom. Whether that is for her positivity, laughter or intelligence, Abdullah’s presence and personality will be missed. Our thoughts and prayers go to her family. [Story by Helina Wondwossen]

Playwright Playing Right

enior Kensley Hess is more than just a softball player, even though she’s committed to play at Christopher Newport University (CNU). Kensley also is a pronounced writer and spends lots of her off time working to become better at her craft. During her sophomore year her passion for writing began to emerge. “Probably sophomore year. I actually learned that I liked writing in theatre. We had a play writing unit and it was super fun.As soon as it was assigned I wrote the entire think in like 3 hours because I was so excited about it”, Hess said. Once Hess found this passion for writing she started to branch out to other mediums. “I started writing plays I progressively started to branch out and write poems, short stories, and have even started to write a book,” Hess said. While writing came naturally to Hess, she still works to improve so that whatever she writes next is even better than what she wrote before. “I definitely feel like it’s natural for me, but like anything else I still have to work hard at getting better. I could write a full 5 page essay in an hour but it would still need some work. That’s why I constantly write when I’m not doing anything because then I can recognize what I did wrong and fix it for the next thing I write”, said Hess. With anything you become very skilled out there’s always a challenge that will come along the way and question your ability to be good at your skill. For Hess this challenge came when writing the script for the Freedom theater play “Alone”, luckily she was able to overcome it and was able to produce the play. “There were times where I doubted my ability as a writer because I thought no one was going to like it, thankfully lots of

them did. I think the most difficult part of the process was not only writing characters that my actors could play, but also making those characters believable. Some of the things I wrote sounded good in my head but when they were acted out they didn’t exactly translate well, so learning how to make those adjustments was difficult as well”, said Hess. All the hard work for Hess has paid off as she was able to win a VTA award along with the help from Ben Donovan. Like writing the play alone this wasn’t an easy feat to overcome, but once again she was able to overcome the challenge to win the contest with Donovan. The contest was a onthe-spot play writing competition. “Our requirements were that we had to use all the props provided, and all 7 of us had to participate. The props were a luggage cart, a hula-hoop, an easel, 5 chairs, and a serving tray. It was really fun and a great experience. Even if it was extremely stressful”, said Hess. Looking head to the future after Kensley goes to college at CNU and plays softball she still wants keep writing, maybe not to make a career out of it, but as something to do for pleasure and enjoyment. Hess feels once she does writing for a profit she doesn’t feel it will be very enjoyable anymore. “Writing is something I love to do and I wouldn’t give it up for anything. I want to be known as more than the softball girl, even if that’s what I’m known for now. I wouldn’t make a career out of it but I would like to maybe publish a book and write for fun. I feel like when my income is dependent upon writing, it won’t be fun anymore,” Hess said.

[Story by James Czarnaski] [Photo by Cayley Kilduff]

THE KIDS ARE I

YOUTHS IN JUVENILE FACILITIES IN VIRGINIA

1563 12

t was the spring break of his sophomore year of college. Just four years prior he had begun dealing drugs to his friends in school. Despite possessing multiple pounds of marijuana, when Austin Jacobs caught sight of the blue and red lights flickering in his rearview mirror he remained calm. “I thought to myself like most suburban white kids would: ‘it’s nothing, I’ll get out of this: I am white, this is the suburbs, nobody goes to jail around here,’” Jacobs said in his speech at a Loudoun County board meeting. Jacobs was charged with possession of schedule one drugs and was sentenced to five years in federal prison. Inspired by his own story, Jacobs created Reaching out to Provide Enlightenment (ROPE) a behavioral change program for at-risk youth in Loudoun County, a place not often thought of as crime-ridden. With 24 juvenile detention centers and one juvenile correctional center, Virginia is no stranger to youth delinquency. In fact, according to a press release, Loudoun County Juvenile Detention Center houses youths who have committed crimes ranging from credit card fraud to second degree murder. “Bottom line is if you do a crime, and you get caught, you are gonna get locked up,” said Eric Barbini, school safety and security officer and former Loudoun County Juvenile Detention Center employee. Although there is no single path to delinquency, The National Academies of Sciences suggests that there may be other factors that determine whether a youth has an increased chance of landing in jail such as socioeconomic status, ethnicity and family size.

However, risk factors are not syllogistic. According to The National Research Council Institute of Medicine, the risk factors cannot be used to predict which children will become serious offenders. Contrary to study’s results, Barbini did not recognize a trend in socioeconomic factors during his eight and half years employed at the Loudoun County Juvenile Detention Center. “I’ve seen kids whose parents made $500,000 a year get locked up, and I’ve seen kids whose families are on welfare get locked up and everything in between,” Barbini said. A study conducted by The American Academy of Pediatrics found that 70 percent of incarcerated youth have at least one psychiatric disorder, many of which go untreated. Incarcerated youths also have higher rates of fatal drug overdoses, suicide and post-traumatic stress than non-imprisoned adolescents. In an attempt to mitigate the effects of the posed risks, many youth confinement centers offer rehabilitative and developmental programs. ROPE offers six to eight classes that range from goal setting to anger management and criminal lifestyle prevention classes for adolescents housed in the Loudoun County Juvenile Detention Center. Bon Air Juvenile Correctional Facility offers unique classes as well, but unlike Loudoun County Juvenile Detention Center, Bon Air is a maximum security correctional center. Bon Air houses youths who have committed more serious crimes such as murder, and is the only maximum security facility for juveniles in Virginia. It is ran by the state and is comparable to adult prison.

NOT

ALRIGHT

The more common youth detention centers hold adolescents who fail the conditions of probation or are awaiting court trials and final disposition or sentence. These are run by counties and are comparable to adult jail. “The average stay at the Loudoun County Juvenile Detention center is two to three weeks unless they have commited a pretty bad crime,” Barbini said Youths at Bon Air can be imprisoned until age 21, called a juvenile life sentence. Due to the nature of correctional facilities, Bon Air offers many programs such as specialized treatments that include substance abuse, aggression management, sex offender and intensive therapeutic programming. Bon Air also has an education program for all of its residents going beyond core classes. They provide courses such as financial literacy, culinary training, service dog handling and fiber optics cabling. Recreation, religious services and volunteer programming are also provided. While there are a multitude of rehabilitation programs, preventative programs exists as well. One of the oldest schools in Loudoun County, Douglass School, is an alternative school for at-risk middle school and high school-aged students. Douglass takes a different, more

individualized approach to teaching students. “At Douglass the classes are more fast-paced, so the classes get done a lot shorter than the whole year,” said a student attending Douglass who asked to be anonymous. “The whole curriculum there is a lot more flexible than it is at Freedom.” With a maximum of 15 students per class, teachers are able to tend to each student. “The teachers at Douglass are a lot more aware of mental illness, anxiety and family problems,” said the student. “For example, I could not go up to any teacher at Freedom and tell them what’s going on at home; at Douglass I can. They are very sensitive to what the students are going through.” Although the United States has the highest youth incarceration rates, The American Civil Liberties Union reports that the number of incarcerated juveniles in the state of Virginia has decreased by 46 percent which might be due to the development of better preventative and rehabilitation programs like those in Bon Air, Loudoun County Juvenile Detention Center, and Douglass.

[Story by Kawther Said] [Infographics by Aayusha Khanal]

AGE OF CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY IN VIRGINIA:

18 *Statistics from ACLU.org, Voxeu.org, and the American Academy of Pediatrics

Competitive Culture

t’s no secret that Freedom High School is academically competitive. The FHS community strives for academic excellence, which has largely benefited the students by creating an environment that encourages hard work. That being said, some ask whether this academically competitive culture can be detrimental to students’ well-being. While a classroom is a place for learning, it can also serve as a platform for competition between peers. “When I do better than someone on a test I tend to take pride in that. I can get super competitive with my grades,” said sophomore Akansha Nair. “If I get a bad grade it motivates me to try harder on

the next quiz or test.” As a U.S. History and Government teacher at FHS, Benjamin Gibson offers a valuable perspective in this conversation. He claims that the socio-economic status of the FHS community is one of the main factors in the creation of a competitive culture. “Students are certainly competitive, it’s part of where we grow up. We are in the most affluent county by median income in America,” said Gibson. “It’s part of our culture.” Despite that Gibson is an educator, he does not attach much value to the numbers typically associated with public schooling such as grade point averages

(GPA). “I don’t evaluate “best” students by their grade. I often tell my students [that] I don’t have their grades memorized.” Gibson said. “To me, the best student thinks critically, is open-minded, wants to learn and has a curiosity and a drive to understand. I find it my responsibility to cultivate that.” Gibson does believe that his responsibility as an educator is to coach his students on how to earn the highest possible grade. That is not what he believes the purpose of education is. “We seem to be competitive about such superficial things,” Gibson said. “These are all things that don’t really

bring us purpose.” This competition is not limited to the classroom. The same effects can be observed in other aspects of student life, most notably, on school sports teams. “Competitive culture definitely is an issue among teenagers.” Danielle Rosnov-Castelar, a therapist at the Behavioral Health and Wellness Associates of Northern Virginia, said. “I get a lot of patients who talk about how they feel as if they are not good at what they do just because they aren’t the most talented on their sports team.” Sophomore Madeline Dailey, a player on the JV volleyball team, describes her experience with playing a high school

sport. “I did feel the pressure of always having to do my best and if I did not play well one game or something it made me upset and almost lose interest in the sport for a while.” Dailey said. Rosnov-Castelar would argue that competition between peers is more damaging to teenagers than it helps them. “It’s a definite problem that needs to be fixed.” Rosnov-Castelar said. “Teenagers need to understand that just because they are not the best at everything they do does not mean they are not good at all.” [Story by Lindsay Brisson]

BULLYING ON THE BIG AND SMALL SCREEN

o many high school students, bullies roam the halls or the classroom. Although some believe bullying is limited to physical and verbal acts, the harsh reality is that bullying has shifted from the halls onto the screens. Counselors have noticed a change in bullying as less students are coming in to tell about an issue and more to show a mean post or message on their phone. “It’s here don’t get me wrong, but it’s not that typical thing you see in an old movie where someone’s pushing someone up against a locker,” said Cristi Goldberg, school counselor. With the rise of social media, students have become exposed to a new virtual world. While social media can be used by people for making new friends, learning from unique perspectives or sharing things that they’re proud of, it is often misused by bullies with cruel intentions. These bullies post embarrassing pictures of others, say nasty things about them, and even harass their victims over text message. Students feel that they have no control when it comes to harassment online. With the stigma around bullying, it can be hard for students to stand up against the issue. A large amount of students are unwilling to come forward to share their

experiences because they fear their bully will retaliate. This allows a large amount of bullying to go unnoticed. Unlike verbal or physical bullying, this cyberbullying doesn’t go away. Even when the victim forgets, those cruel words or embarrassing pictures stay online forever. “We’ll never be able to stop cyberbullying because the internet is a place where people feel safe to hide behind their screens and bully others,” said sophomore Brooke Hartman. It wasn’t always like this for teens. In fact, many say that bullying today is extremely different than bullying in the past. “If social media was [as] accessible around my age group at the time when I was bullied, [the bullying] would have grown like wildfire and even more people [would] talk behind my back,” said sophomore Ian Suyat. “Or in this case, behind a screen.” As social media popularity rises, new methods of cyberbullying are coming with it. Things like isolation, rumor spreading and subposting are made easier with apps like Snapchat and Instagram. “Nowadays drama can spread faster than you can say corn biscuits,” said Lee. In an effort to help, social medias like Instagram have installed systems that

automatically detect bullying, but they are aware that they have much more to do to combat the issue which is rising as the apps gain popularity. With cyberbullying, it stays online permanently, serving as a constant reminder to the victims and their classmates. It can affect friendships, relationships and especially the way a person views his/herself. This leaves students feeling scared and insecure. “I care too much about what other people think and get incredibly embarrassed pretty easily because I’m worried about other people’s opinions,” said sophomore Lindsay Brisson.“I truly think if I had not been bullied I’d be a lot more carefree, and I definitely would worry a bit less about what other people think.” Schools hope that by educating students about healthy relationships and finding inner confidence, students will not be afraid to speak out against unnoticed bullying. “If we can give students that ability, even if they can’t yet do it for themselves, it’s truly empowering,” Goldberg said.

[Story by Camille Desjardins]

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very musician has a goal for their music. For sophomore Wim Tapley, that goal is to build connections with others. Tapley knew he wanted to pursue music from as early as the eigth grade, and began taking piano lessons to further his skills. As Tapley’s passion for music grew, he took on even larger projects. His most recent project being the release of his EP, “I”. “It was always a part of my life from a really young age...It’s always been something that makes sense to me and it felt like the right thing to do,” Tapley said. Patience is a big part of writing music, and according to Tapley the process can be very frustrating. Writing music is a much bigger task than it seems, consisting of writing lyrics and melodies, creating a chorus that fits with certain chords, and so on. “ I don’t know if I still believe that [writing music is the worst thing], because I’ve learned and loved the system of it,” Tapley said. “But there is a lot of frustration and a lot of sitting in silence and being like, ‘Ah maybe I can’t do this anymore.’” Not only is creating music hard, it is also unpredictable in the way that ideas can manifest at any time. Tapley wrote the chorus of his song, “If Only” after coming home from the South Riding Inn,

when he was struck by a random spark of inspiration. “There are just little moments where you get a word, or a melody, or something and I just roll with that,” Tapley said. Tapley began his musical career by performing around South Riding, eventually leading to his now standing gig at the South Riding Inn. Although playing and creating music itself is enjoyable, Tapley’s favorite part about being a musician is connecting with others and creating impact through his music. “I remember the first time I made someone cry with a song, or friends telling me that one of my songs distracted him from a bad situation at home,” Tapley said. “As a musician and a songwriter from a consumer point you are selling a connection with other people and you’re selling bridges between gaps to people and I think that’s so cool.” Inspiration is a major part of creating and performing music. Tapley was influenced by Ed Sheeran, taking inspiration from his music and style. Tapley also believes that it is with all the support he has from people that he is able to create music in the first place. “I think he’s awesome. I am a firm

believer in the ‘it takes a village’ mindset,” Tapley said. “I think I would be stuck in the mud if I didn’t have the amount of support that I do”. Tapley has done many things with his music career, such as creating personal merchandise. While creating the merchandise itself was mainly to publicize his EP and help with money for new gear, Tapley began using his profit to help charities. For the month of October, Tapley released pink long sleeve shirts with his EP cover on them and decided to donate 25 percent of the profits to breast cancer research. Being a young musician comes with many challenges, something that Tapley had to learn throughout his career. Canceled gigs, failed recordings and uncooperative gear come along with being a performer. Despite the difficulties, Tapley has been able to remain successful in his music. His EP, “I”, just recently hit 10,000 combined streams. [Story by Bailey Elliott] [Photo by Ava Proehl]

A MORE UNIFIED

nified Sports is an inclusive athletic program for both general education and special education students at Freedom High School. Partner athletes not only train together, but are able to participate in sporting events as a team, a great opportunity for all athletes to interact and learn from one another. Although the program is new to LCPS, many students have shown interest in participating in Unified Sports. Currently, only FHS and Riverside High School have an official team, but other high schools are also looking to start programs of their own. When special education chair Jenna Arndt learned about Riverside’s program, she immediately started researching and taking the steps to develop a team at FHS. “I can see this program becoming larger when more and more students learn more about what our program is about,” Arndt said.

In their second season, the Unified Sports team has seen significantly more student interest, its membership nearly doubling. This huge increase has not gone without notice. In fact, on Nov. 27, chairman Jeff Morse, representing the Loudoun County School Board, commended the FHS Unified Sports team, referring to it as a model program. Seniors Sam Ramadan and Dylan Portelance are part of the Freedom program. They compete in all events together, including track, basketball and bocce. “When I first started Unified Sports, [Dylan and I] didn’t really know each other but after I joined, I felt an immediate connection with him,” Ramadan said. “Every time I see him in the hallways now or at practice we always have great conversation which makes me really happy. As we spend more time together, we are getting even closer and closer.” Sophomore Michael Gioe is one of the

students on the Unified Sports team, who enjoys playing basketball. “I like shooting and dribbling the ball,” Gioe said. Many students who are involved in Unified are also involved in other school organizations, such as PEER or HOPE (Helping Other People Everyday) Club, which aims to help students with intellectual disabilities engage in seasonal activities, such as dances. Sophomore Maddie Garber, who had earlier experience in a similar program, was excited for her first season on the Unified team. Garber and her partner, Luis Aguirre compete together in basketball this season. “I did the Bridges program in middle school, where we got to work with the [special education] students during our study hall, and I really enjoyed it and I wanted to jump on this opportunity as soon as I found out about it,” Garber said.

FREEDOM Juniors Emma Strohecker and Angela Armstrong have been partnered together since last year’s track and field season. This year, the pair has participated in both bocce ball and basketball. “Our relationship? Oh man, that girl is one of my closest friends, and she is so pure and happy all the time,” Strohecker said. The team has practices every week during Friday advisory. Practices consist of warm ups, which includes running laps and stretching, and running drills. “We definitely have two mini games planned. We also have an end of season banquet then we’re moving on to the track and field season, since we mimic when spring season starts,” Strohecker

said. “We started with bocce ball for the fall season, but that was more club play and we didn’t have any actual games. For basketball, we will be competing!” The Special Olympics offered a lot of support for the FHS Unified Team by providing financial support and guidance on establishing team structure. With schools like FHS embracing the program, the Special Olympics is getting closer and closer to their goal of creating a Unified Generation. {Story by Morgan Maiden, Shravani Reddy and Cayley Kilduff] [Photos by Lydia Carpenter]

WHERE’S THE MASCOT? A

touchdown is scored. The season is over, students cheer for the team’s good efforts and the cheerleaders chant, “Go Eagles!” School spirit is high, but there is one thing missing. Where is the Freedom eagle? The mascot uniform was gifted to Freedom High School three years ago, and until last year, it had rarely been used. In the previous school year, Shelly O’Foran was willing to use the uniform for the fall pep rally and a few other sporadic events. Even then, most students claim to have never seen the mascot. “I think having someone as our school mascot would increase our school spirit because it is something that is so iconic in high school,” said junior Chloe Shepherd. “It is what we are really missing in pep rallies.” Just like FHS, frequently using mascot costumes in other Loudoun County high schools is uncommon. At Champe High School, the knight suit was worn, last year, by a now graduated student and has not been seen since. The Loudoun County High School mascot has only made a appearance once this year. Mascots are a big deal in college. Everyone wants to get a picture with the figure representing the school. College mascots also have more varied options of characters. While mascots represent the school, college mascots also represent historical aspects of the area. “In college, I went to CMU, and we were the captains,” said Grace Bluefeld, history teacher. “I thought it was really fun because the captains are based on Christopher Newport himself.” To become a college mascot, students have a strenuous try out program and can even attend the United Cheer Association, the nationwide cheer and mascot camp. Mascots must be present at every home game and cannot break character. This kind of dedication is not a common case in many Loudoun County high schools. Student interest is the issue here at Freedom.

The stereotype is that being the mascot is dirty business. Mascots costumes are thought to stink, be hot and uncomfortable.Student interest in putting on the uniform would then be low. According to the survey taken by FHS students, 88 percent of FHS students want a mascot, while only 20 percent would be interested in doing it. Because of the mascot uniform’s rare use, it is actually clean and has a built in fan. “How it usually works is I tell our coaches if they want students to be involved, they need to send the information out,” said Brad Bauder, athletic director. “If someone wants to come and do it, we let them do it.” It is fairly easy to become the school mascot and the suit is well-kept. The question is, who would be willing to be the mascot and what does the task require? “Someone who is school spirited would probably enjoy just being spirited without putting a suit on and being

an eagle,” said Jason King, student council association advisor and math teacher. “I think that takes a different level of energy and it is more of a performance.” “I think it would be fun if it rotated, not putting that on one person, but allowing multiple people to take part and feel that school spirit,” said Bluefeld. Mascots are required to hype up a crowd and represent their team without breaking character. This is often tiring, so in most schools, mascots are played by a group of three to 10 students to spread school spirit more effectively. “We have a building tradition of participation in our school and community, which is really great,” King said. “As that goes along, I think students can decide whether they care about having an eagle at the events.” [Story by Madison Roney]

THE WEAKEST LINK

s a teenager’s age increases, so does their level of play. What also comes along with intense playing is injuries, specifically ACL injuries for certain athletes. The anterior cruciate ligament, also known as the ACL, completes the connection between your thigh bone and shinbone. As a crucial component of the knee, the body relies on the ACL to complete tasks. Teenagers can experience this injury if they have extensive athletic demands. “As the growth plates close, around 14 years old in females, 16 years old in males, the ligaments, such as the ACL, become the weakest link in the athlete’s anatomy,” said Dr. David Goodwin from Arthritis & Sports in South Riding, VA. A tear of the ACL can be caused by swift movements and instances where the knee stays but the body moves forward. The movements that soccer and football players use on the field increases the risk of injuring their ACL. “I was a goalie at the time,” said senior Elizabeth Morales. “ I ran out of the goalie box, and I planted my left foot. But, I had so much momentum that my knee hyperextended to the point that it snapped and tore my ACL and both of my menisci.” Sophomore Pooja Challala tore her ACL while making a quick movement during basketball practice. The recovery process for most athletes, including Challala and Morales, is similar and follows most of the same steps in order to heal the tear. “I had to wait [three months] to get my surgery done,” Challala said. “Then, I had to go to physical therapy for nine months. After nine months, I was cleared to do sports again.” Different factors of being an athlete tied into Challala decision of choosing a different sport. Challala’s experience with an ACL injury influenced the way she played basketball along with her desire to continue playing. These injuries can also impact the athlete further than the initial tear.

The recovery process for Morales helped her not only improve physically, but inspired her to change her career path. She decided to take high school courses that will help her further study kinesiology and personal training. “I liked physically seeing the improvements I was making and how I felt so happy moving around,” Morales said. “My personal trainer was the woman who actually made me realize what I wanted to do in life.” Although there is a risk of a tear for teenage athletes, the recovery processes and treatment for ACL injuries gives the majority of athletes a chance to play competitively again. “Well over 90 percent of athletes return to sports, at their previous level whether it is recreational, collegiate, or professional, by 12 months after surgery,” Goodwin said. Junior Christian Norem also tore his ACL playing soccer and got back into playing after his recovery. The recovery process for his injury lasted nine months. “I don’t think it has affected anything [except] you’ll get nervous more when you start up again,” Norem said. “But once you start getting back into it you’ll be fine.” After tearing her ACL and meniscus on Nov. 17, 2018, sophomore Morgan Koeneke is going through the process of recovery. She is planning on making a full recovery to return to field hockey, basketball, and lacrosse for her junior year. Her injury is not stopping her from being inspired to play college lacrosse. “When I first had my injury I got really sad because I wanted to play in college but as the days have gone on my mental strength has gotten stronger,” Koeneke said. “I believe I will come back stronger [ junior year]. The various treatments for recovery allow for normal function of the ACL for everyday life and athletic activities. While ACL injuries are not preferable, they can change the athletes’ mindset as well as their outlook towards sports. [Story by Eliza Agi]

WHOSE RIGHT-OF-WAY IS IT ANYWAY?

rivers of South Riding: rejoice. The Loudoun County General District Court has taken the preliminary steps to rewrite the traffic laws of the county. No longer will the residents of South Riding be bound to the arbitrary restrictions of the road. “People say that South Riding has some of the worst drivers,” said Brenda Brendington, a local soccer mom.“What people don’t understand is that we just have a more nuanced understanding of traffic laws.” This “nuanced understanding” of the law has taken shape in the innovative approach South Riding drivers take when it comes to four-way stops. Residents have abandoned the longstanding method of determining the right-of-way. In South Riding, the right-of-way is determined solely by the will of the driver. “Why would I wait for my turn when I can force my way through?” Brendington said. “These snowflakes don’t understand that if you want something, you have to go after it.” South Riding residents have long rebuked the claim that their style of driving is unsafe or disregards the value of human life. To them, traffic

laws have a very different tone. opposition. Supporters of current “The way I see it, speed limits are traffic laws point to the case of Bill more like suggestions,” said senior Williams as evidence that speed limits Jacques Webster.“ Yeah it would be are necessary to maintain safety. Wilgreat if I could follow them, but I have liams, a pedestrian, was hit by a 2003 places to be.” Honda Odyssey going 68 mph on his Despite the clear need for speed quiet residential street. After initially limits, Webster claims that South taking legal action, Williams has since Riding residents are simply too busy dropped the charges after cracking to abide by speed limits. under pressure from MAP members. Among the list of demands made, “In retrospect, It was probably my the most desired revision to the curfault,” Williams said. “I don’t know rent traffic laws is a provision that will what I was thinking.” make stopping for pedestrians illegal. Loudoun County will serve as the “Pedestrians are some of the great- guinea pig in a new way of governest enemies facing the nation,” said ing. Instead of passing legislation Oliver Garden, South Riding resident to keep the public safe, this is an and longtime Prius owner. “They experiment in allowing impulse to don’t speak the language, they take shape public policy. Washington will up our sidewalks and lengthen my be keeping a close eye on Loudoun commute.” County in the coming months. Moms Against Pedestrians (MAP) “South Riding, as usual, is ahead have cited a Trump University study of the curve,” Brendington said. “We that found that stopping for pedesreally are the peak of civilization.” trians can add an average of 3.273 seconds to one’s daily commute. Editor’s note: This is a satirical “At the end of the day, my time is piece. The views expressed do just way more valuable than theirs,” Editor’s note: This is a satirical not reflect the values of the [Unsaid MAP President Louise Louise. piece. The views expressed do caged.] staff. Although MAP has become one of not reflect the values of the [Unthe fastest growing advocacy groups caged.] staff. [Satire by Samaleh Omar] in recent memory, it is not without [Story by Samaleh Omar]

HIP WITH THE MEMES! HIP WITH THE MEMES! DOWN WITH THE TEENS! DOWN WITH THE TEENS!

ver come across a teacher on Twitter and had your mind totally blown? Teachers like to use Twitter for both fun and educational purposes. On a teacher’s Twitter, students will see what hilarious or trending topics they post and how it might affect them during class for the school year. Since Facebook is not a tool available, Twitter provides teachers with a public platform, enabling them to communicate with students and gain a new perspective. “I feel like it gives me a different avenue to communicate with students,” said Dr. Jonathan Mason, physics teacher. “Most of what I post on Twitter is stuff that’s happened in class, like pictures of students doing a lab or ridiculous questions they come up with, and it’s less serious so it kinda makes it more accessible.” Most teachers who use Twitter to post about their students will also post inane comments and questions their students say. “[I] mostly posts things that happen in school or things that students say or

do,” Mason said. While some teachers use Twitter to talk about what their students do in class, other teachers use it as a way to follow what is going on. “It’s more about following the thought of some of the other teachers that I see on Twitter,” said Dana Maier, English teacher. “They occasionally throw out more reaction to things happening.” Some students don’t have Twitter. So, teachers do not really post assignments and reminders on Twitter. If it’s an absolute emergency, like a snow day pops up, a teacher might tweet to try to get the word out, but that’s rare. Teachers do not expect Twitter to help out their students with school work, it’s simply a fun app to use. Students explained that they did not mind their teachers being on Twitter. Students thought their tweets could be extra, or too much, but that it was cool that teachers were trying to connect with them through other sources. “I think it’s cool that teachers are getting more socially involved and

reaching out through more social media platforms,” said sophomore Claire Jarwa. “It improves the opportunities for communication and gives the students many more resources, so I appreciate it.” “I think they are extra,” said sophomore Julia Najjar. “I think Google Classroom is better designed because I can post assignments, announcements, and study guides for things and all of that can be done on Classroom,” Mason said. “Twitter isn’t designed for that. You use Twitter for what it’s best at, and you use Google Classroom for what it’s best at,” Mason said. “In my opinion, Google Classroom, as far as an educational tool, is one of the best things that we have available to us.” Teachers are not using Twitter to tweet about assignments, Google Classroom is still the go to resource for that. Twitter is a way to learn a little bit more about a teacher. It is another way teachers have to communicate. [Story by Aly Nichols]

ach year, Merriam-Webster adds about 1,000 new words to its online dictionary. As of 2018, that means we can subtweet about hate-watching that bingeable reality show, rave about how guac and tzatziki are our faves and hope for bougie, Instagrammable holiday presents… all without having to deal with that awful red squiggle underneath our typed words. This official acknowledgment of slang is just part of the constant evolution of the English language. According to linguistics author and professor David Maurer of the University of Louisville, slang typically develops from a conflict in values, either superficial or fundamental, or the need to describe new ideas, emotions and phenomenon. Starting out as a subculture or counterculture, these words first increase in popularity, enter the mainstream and eventually, the traditional dictionary. Hailing from professional societies, political organizations, the Armed Forces and sports teams, they extend their large impact to the Freedom High School community. In fact, senior Jenna Thalji sometimes doesn’t even realize their prominence. “I feel like most people use [slang] to go with the flow because everyone is saying it. It’s more foreign and out-of-place [to use new slang words] in the beginning, but becomes a habit over time,” Thalji said. “You don’t even realize the words you’re saying don’t make sense outside of your social group.” Sophomore Maddy Garber, who uses a lot of slang popularized by Youtubers, has faced this problem with some of her teachers. Now, even some of them have adopted her alliteration. “Whenever a word I’m about to say starts with an ‘s,’ I always say ‘sister’ before it, which is the catchphrase of beauty guru James Charles,” Garber said. “It was really confusing to some of my teachers and they thought it was strange before I explained it to them.” The trendiness of specific slang words within the teen social group is also con-

stantly changing. Using popular words from even last year might actually make the speaker seem unaware or unsavvy. “I think it’s really interesting how quickly the popularity of something evolves,” said senior Brittany Hendrickx. “A couple years ago, everyone might be saying ‘swag’ and ‘YOLO,’ but now those are the words you absolutely don’t want to use. As for today, I tend to hear a lot of ‘bet’ and ‘lit’ in the hallways.” However, distinct slang culture is not a modern phenomenon. As she was researching 1840s Britain, history teacher Jessica Legnini stumbled upon an unclear scenario: a young woman who had been arrested for shouting strange phrases, disturbing the peace in the wealthiest part of London. “She was in front of the judge, who also didn’t know what this meant, but she continued to find it hilarious. Now, as a historian, I’m looking at this and I don’t know what it means either,” Legnini said. “I’m ‘um-ing’ and ‘uh-ing’ over this and one day, I realized that ‘Does Mr. Ferguson live here?’ doesn’t actually mean anything.” During the time period, this phrase was slang belonging to the youth of the English lower class. Like a meme or viral tweet of today, her phrase didn’t necessarily have a significant greater meaning, but was part of a larger phenomena of developing teenage culture. “This is actually a very interesting type of power relationship; it signifies the ‘in-group’ and the ‘out-group’ and in [this young woman’s] particular case, the ‘out-group’ was authority and power,” Legnini said. With the start of 2019, Merriam-Webster will again start reviewing hundreds of new slang words to add to its dictionary, as well as deciding which archaic terms to permanently retire. Although we might have to part with some of our favorite sayings, there will indefinitely be even more rad, Gucci, popping ones to replace them. [Story by Shravani Reddy]

TOXIC MASCULINITY RUINS THE PARTY

am 13, sitting at a restaurant in New Mexico. I take a wrong turn into the bar area and a drunk old man blocks my path. He stumbles a bit, almost grabbing my shoulder, and I swerve out of instinct, receiving a cold look from a waiter as he nearly drops his tray. I think that maybe the man is just drunk and he was falling; I try to apologize for running into him, but the old man begins slurring about how pretty I am, how mature I look, how I am somehow different than other girls my age. The restaurant is suddenly too crowded, the sounds too much, all I smell is what I can only guess is whiskey, and it is hurting my head. The same waiter returns and notices how I am shrinking as the man continues to flirt with me. He swiftly tells the man his table is ready and ushers him in the other direction. I nearly cry as he disappears into the sea of people and the waiter asks me if I am okay, the scent of alcohol still in my nose. We sit next to his family at dinner and I grimace every time he ruffles his granddaughter’s hair. According to a 2007 study in the Journal of Criminal Science, by the time students are done with high school, 81 percent have experienced some sort of sexual harassment. This includes female and male students. A study conducted by the American Association of University Women 8th through 11th grade students found that 83 percent of female students and 78 percent of male students have been sexually harassed. When females harass, it is often ignored because a man should “be a man.” When males harass, it is often dismissed because

“boys will be boys.” If a woman is harassed or assaulted at a party, society says it is due to her drinking or her how she was dressed. Even worse, if a man is a harassed or assaulted at a party, regardless of anyone’s sobriety or lack thereof, society says he should have enjoyed it. This idea is manifested in what is culturally known as “toxic masculinity.” Teaching Tolerance, an organization dedicated educating the general public on societal issues, defines toxic masculinity as the “cultural ideal of manliness, where strength is everything while emotions are a weakness; where sex and brutality are yardsticks by which men are measured.” Whether it is the normalization of “locker room talk” or of women playfully hitting their boyfriends and telling them to “man up,” the idea of men having to be tough is constantly perpetuated. This is an issue in all aspects of life, but it is especially prevalent when male sexual harassment goes unreported because a man feels that being harassed is too feminine. The expressing of emotions is considered to be feminine trait, and toxic masculinity contributes to the perpetuation of this stereotype. No specific person is responsible for this phenomenon, but we can begin taking steps to reduce the effects (and overall perpetuation) of toxic masculinity. Remembering that women and men can both be harassers as well as victims is a step in the right direction. Women can harass and be harassed; men can harass and be harassed. Saying otherwise would be hideously ignorant.

Once we get past the societal roadblock that is toxic masculinity, we can start to solve issues like sexual harassment and assault, both after graduation and in our schools. We can approach this issue one of two ways: by either ignoring it when it is most prevalent (high school) or by relentlessly fighting it head on when students are already being taught everything from the Pythagorean Theorem to the effects of the Magna Carta to the mitochondria being the powerhouse of the cell. I am sure that “Proper Consent” and “How to Not Sexually Harass Others” could be squeezed somewhere into the national curriculum. If we instituted a course on proper consent and sexual harassment and assault, the chances of sexual assault are proven to decrease. According to a 2015 study, the likelihood of committing sexual assault was 73 percent lower for men who had completed a training about consent, sexual assault, toxic masculinity. The majority of sexual crimes happen before graduation– a course of this nature would drastically decrease the number of assaults, therefore decreasing the overall amount of sexual harassment. Education is a cornerstone in stopping sexual harassment— it might not fix the problem overnight, but it gets the process started. When we start to treat sexual harassment like a serious issue, as opposed to a common part of people’s lives, we can disrupt the status quo that toxic masculinity has set in place. [Editorial by Lauren Balser]

Doubting Self-Deprecation

ou are scrolling through your Instagram feed. You stumble upon a friend’s post with the caption “lmao I hate myself,” and you simply like the picture then continue scrolling. Sound familiar? This self-deprecating content is extremely prevalent in the forefront of teen culture. I, for one, have experienced both ends of this scenario. I noticed that engaging in self -deprecating humor may be a short term fix for reducing feelings of self-doubt and low self-esteem, but in reality it worsens those feelings in the long run. However, having said this, it is difficult to simply not engage in this behavior. Self-deprecating humor is so deeply rooted in our culture, it is nearly impossible to avoid all together. It is increasingly seen being used in daily conversation, television, and especially social media. Due to self-deprecating humor being so frequently used in various platforms, it is even harder to steer away from it. Not only is self-deprecating humor practically impossible to avoid, but it is also addictive. (From my own experience,) I noticed that by engaging in self hate masked

by “humor”, I was only perpetuating my negative self-image. Despite this, I still I continued to speak of myself in this way both online and in real life. As I continued to fall into this trap, I quickly began to lose the humor aspect of self-deprecating humor. My posts and conversational comments became increasingly negative, to the point where my friends and family were concerned about my sense of self. By engaging in this type of twisted humor, responses from others are likely to arise. Interestingly enough, I noticed that feedback from others, depending on the platform, greatly affected how often I shared my self-deprecating comments. When I received feedback on an instagram post, I often felt more inclined to overshare my feeling and attempt to mask them. However, after receiving feedback in person from a friend or family member, I was less inclined to use self-deprecating humor as often due to personally seeing how my actions were a cause for their concern. More recently, I have noticed that there was a trend in my behavior with oversharing self

-deprecating thoughts, especially on social media platforms. The combination of negative thoughts about oneself and unfiltered sharing can easily turn into a vicious cycle. The more often I received feedback perpetuating my self -deprecation, the more frequently I would continue to speak of myself in that way. For me, this cycle added to a larger issue of worsening self -image, causing me to fall deeper into unhealthy self-deprecating thoughts. The larger issue at hand is that by overusing this humor, it can possibly become harder to focus on positive ways to deal with negative emotions. Self-deprecating humor in of itself is negative and unnecessary. The only use for it is to degrade oneself with the greater intention of calling out for help. Rather than using this humor to further feelings of worthlessness, it is far more productive to practice expressing feelings in a positive manner, whether that be talking to someone you trust or seeking guidance to work through such emotions. [Editorial by Kayla Cooper]

THE PROBLEM ISN’T ACTION, IT’S INACTION

e live in the richest county in America. We sit by and watch events such as shootings, natural disastersand health epidemics happen around the U.S. and the world and yet what do we do? Nothing. In the beginning of the school year, I attended the “Light the Night Walk” for the Lymphoma and Leukemia Research Foundation with some of my friends. One friend had recently had a family member pass away and we were walking in honor of him. She had posted on her Instagram that people were more than welcome to join the walk team or donate to the cause. Her post got 127 likes, and yet none showed up to the event. In some situations, social media can be used for as a way for us to show our sympathy and learn about different issues, but it has also become a platform where people just blindly comment and like. If the same 127 people who had liked the post had all donated

$20, it would have almost doubled the donations their campaign brought in. But instead, we just like, scroll, and assume that we’ve done our duty. Many of us are educated on some political issues. We read the news and we’ll have discussions, but a majority of the time our debates never lead to action. It’s time for us to stop sitting around and just talking about issues, we need to take action. Last year, after Hurricane Maria, I wrote about how tweeting with the hashtag #PuertoRicoStrong wasn’t going to actually help the victims. The same goes for politics. If there’s an issue in politics that you don’t agree with, don’t just sit around. Write a letter to your senator. If you’re too young to vote, you don’t have to sit around and complain, remind your relatives and older friends to vote. The March For Our Lives initiative was lead completely by a group of teenagers who saw something tragic happen are were done

with the inaction. They organized walkouts, they talked with their elected officials and organized the March For Our Lives in 2018, which had around 200,000 in attendance according to CBS News. One of my personal mantras is nobody got anywhere by doing nothing. I know that often we feel like we don’t have any power, but if there’s a political issue that you’re passionate about, it’s your duty to do more than just discuss it. Take action to make change. You have the ability to write to your senators, you have the ability to start a club, you can go to marches and support organizations that support the issues you are passionate about. Go to your town meetings, work at a campaign, and above all else, don’t even sit back and say “someone else will probably do it.” We have such an ability to influence the world, it’s now time for us to step up. [Editorial by Ava Proehl]

hroughout the beginning of 2019, high school seniors around the country will receive their college decisions. In recent months, scrutiny has been placed on the college admissions process, specifically on what factors admissions counselors should consider when they sit down to decide which students will be accepted. While the Students For Fair Admissions v. Harvard University case that’s currently in federal court will answer the question of whether it is fair to consider race as a factor in admission, there is a less discussed aspect of the process that needs to be put under the microscope. Legacy applicants–those who have at least one parent or grandparent who attended a particular school–have a massive leg up in the college admissions process. According to The Harvard Crimson, Harvard University legacy applicants have an acceptance rate that is over five times higher than that of non-legacy applicants. A survey from the U.S. News and World Report found that 29 percent of Harvard’s class of 2021 has

a relative who attended Harvard, and this trend is not exclusive to this school either. The same report also found that many of the nation’s premier higher learning institutions have a similar trend, with legacy students making up anywhere from 10-20% of the student body. At Princeton University, the acceptance rate for legacy applicants has been around 30% for the past five years, strikingly different compared to the mere 7% acceptance rate for non-legacy students. A study from Princeton sociologist Thomas J. Espenshade even suggests that being a legacy provides a boost equivalent to 160 points on the SAT when looking at ten of the most highly selective schools in the US. So why would colleges give such a big advantage to legacies when it comes to getting in to their schools? The answer is simple: money. Colleges want to give alumni donors more incentives to donate, and accepting their children helps solidify their relationship to their school for life. Trying to get donations is not inherently bad, I could even argue that some of this money might be going to finance scholarships and financial aid for accepted students of a lower socioeconomic status. However, colleges would have to provide records

of how they are using alumni donations to verify this, and the chances of that happening are very slim. Using legacy as a factor to break a tie in a case where there are two closely matched applicants so that the university has a chance to receive higher donations is understandable. They need to turn a profit. The problem arises when less qualified students get into a school because of the achievements of their parents or grandparents, and kids who have worked harder to succeed are rejected as a result. Legacy students have, in most cases, been afforded every opportunity to succeed. They do not even need the advantage legacy status to be in contention for spots at prestigious colleges. So while we continue the search for an effective way to support the less fortunate in college admissions, we should also look into abolishing this system that overwhelmingly benefits the wealthy. [Editorial by Kaise Dualeh]

[Illustration by Julia Morgado, 12]