Aquila
May 28, 2015
Volume 4, Issue 3
University Preparatory Academy
Photo courtesy of Karen Bennett The varsity girls soccer team shows off their numbers. From left: Sitara Bellam, Jamileth Lomeli, Samantha Cardoza, Gabriela Munoz, Eliana Batrez, Laney Gutierrez-Nieves, Juli Rendler, Maryssa Osorio, Angel Ortiz, Emily Butler, Diana Rendler, Naderah Zarel, Jasmine Gomez, Selena Razo, Brenna Bennett and Ileana Bautista.
Soccer Cancellation Frustrates Students
By Paj Thao
To the frustration of UPA athletes, soccer will not be offered as a sport during the 2015-16 school year. This decision was especially upsetting for students who had already been passionate about playing soccer. “To me, soccer is a chance to learn how to work together as a team, to get to know people who share your interests, and to have fun,” said junior Brenna Bennett, one of the girls team’s co-captains. “I also love the sport itself because I have been playing it for many years.” Bennett and the two other co-captains, Eliana Batrez and Sitara Bellam, knew each other before attending UPA through soccer, and the sport means a lot
to them. It also creates lasting friendships and shared experiences. Freshmen Laney Gutierrez and Emily Butler said the same. “Soccer is really significant to me; it's my way of calming down,” said Gutierrez. “It lets me forget about my problems. I enjoy every minute of it because I get to spend time playing with my team and friends and have a good time. Whether we are winning or losing, we have the pride of doing our job and playing the game.” The sport and team experience is unlike any other for players, especially when players can get closer to fellow schoolmates that they might not have met otherwise. “I'm sad that this change is going to take place because I
was looking forward to playing throughout high school and getting the experience of participating in a school sport,” Butler said. “My previous schools didn't have any actual soccer teams, so I was excited to have the chance to join and play for the UPA team.” “Many girls on the team, including me, are disappointed that soccer will not return next year,” Bennett added. “I personally would love to have the experience working with the girls again because this season was so fun.” The girls aren’t the only disgruntled ones. Junior and athlete Taiyo Hokari passionately disagrees with the administrative decision. “Soccer is truly the only international sport,” he said. “It's the most widely played sport in
the world, yet UPA is canceling it. If we are to create students who are capable of functioning in the real world, it is important that we have the opportunity to play soccer.” Hokari added, “I view UPA’s decision to cancel soccer as a failure on the part of our administration, and hope intensely for its imminent return.” However, according to athletic director William Fowler, the school board and athletics department have thoroughly looked over the circumstances. They have not seen any other possible solution. “There are two main reasons that we can’t have soccer,” explained Fowler. “The first is financial. The soccer funds for field leasing have been overwhelmed.” Because UPA is based
on the Cathedral of Faith’s property, the school does not have its own sports field. If UPA teams wanted to practice field sports they would have to lease either another school’s field or a city-owned field. This is an expensive investment that this year’s soccer teams have tried to no avail. “Even if we did have all the money for soccer, or went over our budget, which we’re willing to do, we don’t have a guaranteed field,” Fowler said. Due to discrepancies with the city, many of this year’s games and practices were cancelled. “If we had a field guaranteed for the right price for the next ten years, we would have soccer,” Fowler concluded.
Nuit de Monsieur Returns By Selena Razo
Miss America ain’t got nothing on UPA’s Nuit de Monsieur. OK, that was terrible. But at least that’s what sophomore Biren Rama, A.K.A the winner of Nuit de Monsieur, would like to think. That’s right. On Friday, April 24, University Preparatory Academy held its third annual male pageant, Nuit de Monsieur. Since its debut in 2012, Nuit de Monsieur has earned a reputation as a favorable event of UPA students. “It was pretty cool and unexpected,” winner Biren Rama said. Every year, Nuit de Monsieur is organized by a previously chosen head coordinator with the help of junior/senior counselor and teacher Sandra Trotch. With tickets priced between $8 and $10, the event itself is a fundraiser to raise scholarships for seniors heading off to college.
As another way to raise money, attendees of the pageant were also able to purchase concessions. The contestants weren’t the only ones that showed off their skills during the pageant. The pageants also consisted of a cover the song “American Boy” by Mattaniah Aytenfsu and a mini concert from UPA’s very own rap stars Brando Steel and Venom (seniors Brandon Ramon and Avinash Singh). If this event sounds like a lot of work, it was. Luckily, senior and head coordinator Makda Berhe was able to pull off a fabulous pageant. “I'm really proud of all the work I put into this because now I know I raised a lot of money to give back to other seniors as scholarships,” Berhe said. “Watching the show go smoothly and entertaining a crowd of people is such a satisfying feeling.” Had Makda not been able to pull of the show, winner Biren Rama would not have been given the chance to win the title
of “Monsieur de Nuit.” “I remember it was a good way to be on stage but not be taken too seriously,” Rama said on why he decided to be in the pageant. Rama also expressed his regrets on not giving a shoutout to sophomore Rachel Zody for lending him her shorts and junior Meklit Moges for lending him the stuffed animals used as weights in his talent portion. Junior James Hophan came in second place with senior Brandon Turcios in third place. Along with the talent portion, the contestants had a fashion portion, a Q&A, as well as a welcoming dance number. A notable talent seen at the pageant was Tiernan McMahon’s rendition of one of Jonah Hill’s monologue from the film “22 Jump Street.” May Cynthia rest in peace. An equally memorable, if not more, moment of the pageant was Biren Rama’s entrance in which he used the previously mentioned shorts. My eyes.
Photo courtesy of Jasmine Gomez Senior Brandon Turcios celebrates winning third place at the Nuit de Monsieur on April 24 in the Horton Auditorium. They still burn. Other snapshots include Brandon Turcios serenading senior Destiny Huitron, senior Ramsee Chand’s impromptu dancing, James Hopham’s rendition of the song “My Girl”, a slow dance between seniors Joshua de la Paz and Ravi Chachad, junior Collin Thrower’s cover of the song “Moon Dance”, brothers Biren and senior Amar Rama sharing an intimate sibling moment, and confusion at the randomness of senior Nerayo Tekie’s talent
portion of the show. The introductory dance number was likely the most popular favorite of audience members as it was requested to be performed a second time. “It showed a sense of unity between the boys of UPA because those who twerk together stay together,” junior Morgan Luu said. As its second year in the running, many students hope it will return again in coming years.