International Dateline - November 2020 Edition

Washington International School

3100 Macomb St. NW Washington, DC 20008

November 17, 2020

www.wisdateline.org

MASK ON!

PHOTOS BY ROSE BOEHM, NAOMI BREUER, JULIA DELL’ARICCIA, CLARA MELLO, ZACHARY ROBERTS, AND REBEKA TATHAM/INTERNATIONAL DATELINE; PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY SAUL PINK

Students return to Tregaron as WIS moves to hybrid model the cohort system pages 4-5

Biden victory brings excitement, relief for WIS students

By MAIA NEHME, 2023 and SAUL PINK, 2021

country, WIS students continued their routines: going to school in-person or on Zoom, Rose Boehm, Abigail Bown, doing homework, and spending Naomi Breuer, Julia Dell’Ariccia, time with their families. NoneMia Sampson, and Jonas Tom- theless, the race between forkin contributed to this report. mer Vice President Joe Biden n the days after this year’s and President Donald Trump presidential election, when loomed over the community.

“Halfway through class…I’ll votes were being tallied in battleground states across the go check the polls or the map, or whatever. It’s definitely been on my mind, like 24/7,” freshman Martina Tognato Guaqueta said just minutes before Biden was projected as the winner on November 7.

On the Saturday morning when many major media outlets called the race for Biden, students were caught off guard. Junior Derin Ogutcu was watching “Dawson’s Creek” when she saw a notification on her phone, while junior Yasmine Oueijan

I

was in Dupont Circle when cars started honking and Connecticut Avenue turned into a parade.

Senior Gaebriel Tafara was in the Netherlands, where he has been living during this semester. “My family was going crazy in the house but there was no large reaction [although] people did know what was going on,” Tafara said. “No parties like what was happening in D.C.” Most WIS students supported the now President-elect Biden—WIS, and the D.C. area as a whole, is overwhelmingly Democratic. In the primaries, sophomore Sumner Hood supported Senator Bernie Sanders over both Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, but he feels hopeful about a Biden-Harris victory. “I think that under them, things could change for the better, but under Trump, things couldn’t. So I may disagree with the candidates, but I disagree with Trump

more,” Hood said.

Hood added that this election has sparked more political awareness for high school students. “There’s going to be a lot more political involvement for our generation because I think this election has really brought to light a lot of the importance of being active in politics for a lot of younger people,” he said.

A handful of students volunteered for campaigns this election cycle, worked at polls, or were eligible to vote themselves.

“I was invested [in the election] because I am getting to the age where decisions made in politics will start to affect me, and even though I couldn’t vote, I was very invested in Biden winning just because I didn’t want Trump,” Tafara said.

International WIS students noticed that the 2020 presidential election has been discussed at length in their home countries as well. 10th-grader Mar-

ianne Pouliot is Canadian and realized that the Quebec daily newspaper has recently been “all about the American election” and that “a lot of American politics have gone into our daily lives.”

Some students are concerned about the implications of Biden’s election on the rest of the world. Ogutcu, who is Turkish, remembers Biden’s vote for the war against Iraq and is skeptical about how he’ll handle future conflicts. “I don’t trust Biden when it comes to the Middle East. I know he doesn’t like our president,” Ogutcu said.

Other students’ reactions to a Biden presidency lie closer to home. “We live in D.C. I am very close to the White House and the Capitol,” 11th-grader Saul Meyer-Fong said. “I think that hopefully [Biden] will give DC a chance at statehood.”

See ELECTION, page 3

inside look Independent Research A look into labs and projects during distance and hybrid learning wis news page 2

Note: All news in this edition is from November 17. Therefore, some content may not be up to date upon receiving this newspaper.

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NOVEMBER 2020

How independent research has changed with distance, hybrid models

By MAIA NEHME, 2023 Independent research during distance learning:

Lab-oriented or hands-on independent research projects like the 10th Grade Project and Extended Essay (EE) usually take place on campus, with WIS students having access to help from teachers. However, the COVID-19 pandemic and the switch to distance learning forced students to adjust to working from home.

Sophomore Eleanor Hawkins’ 10th Grade Project involves creating a computer program to test for heritable connective tissue disorders. Her original plan was to meet with WIS teachers to decide which coding language she would use to create her prototype. But having these meetings over Zoom made her feel less confident and more confused about which direction to take.

“I was originally going to make a website using Javascript. However, by the time I had learned enough of the language to start coding, it was the end of the year.

This meant that I was unable to contact any teachers about meeting with them to discuss how to start programming,” Hawkins said.

10th-grader Pau Anta’s project consists of designing spider silk with electrical conductivity. Once produced, the silk would “be used in smart clothing, since an electric current can produce pressure sensors, stretch sensors, functioning buttons, and other circuits.”

During distance learning, he didn’t make any changes to his prototype because he was mainly conducting research and designing the DNA digitally. However, he was also in Spain due to COVID-19 and didn’t “have access to equipment or community labs, so [he] likely [wouldn’t] be able to produce anything tangible until [he returned] to D.C.” Because of this, Anta doubted he would be able to finish the project in time for the December Project Fair.

Sophomore Nora Galizia is working to

improve the efficiency of the metal baskets used to feed and collect tennis balls. Galizia’s plan involves creating “a basket with a frame made out of recycled metal laundry hangers. The sides of the basket will be filled with recycled plastic from water bottles to contain the balls, and the handles double as a stand.”

Like Anta, Galizia hadn’t started creating her prototype during distance learning, so she hadn’t experienced any difficulties.

But if she was unable to use the Design Lab, she was unsure of how she’d gain access to necessary tools like a 3D printer, and would need to simplify her prototype.

Although WIS allowed students to check out kits with simple tools from the Design Lab, Galizia was not allowed to borrow the high-tech equipment she needed.

Senior Clementine Rotsaert is doing a biology EE. By using a genetic expression database, she is analyzing whether gender plays a role in the severity of COVID-19 by taking a closer look at the expression of different proteins.

Originally, Rotsaert’s topic was a complex lab experiment which would’ve been both unreasonable and unsafe to conduct at home. Because of this, she had to spend her EE days coming up with a new topic, rather than starting her research.

Ultimately, Rotsaert decided to pursue a data-based EE, using existing data from a database rather than collecting her own through an experiment. “The amount of information on my topic was abundant because the entire scientific community was researching the same thing,” Rotsaert said.

12th-grader Riley Contee is also doing a biology EE. She is examining the “effect of radiation on the fermentation of three distinct strains of saccharomyces cerevisiae [yeast].” Unlike Rotsaert, Contee chose to do a simpler experiment, so she was able to conduct it by herself.

Contee’s experiment consisted of microwaving “yeast for different lengths of time and record[ing] the changes in glucose concentration and the amount of carbon dioxide produced.” While she had to

COURTESY OF PAU ANTA

Pau Anta’s molecular modeling, displaying the N and C termini of the spider silk protein. So far, Anta has been unable to produce a physical prototype for his 10th Grade Project due to COVID-19.

adjust her topic slightly due to not having a carbon dioxide detection probe, it mainly stayed the same as her original concept.

Independent research during hybrid learning:

On September 15, Head of School Suzanna Jemsby announced that WIS would be switching to a hybrid learning model.

The student body was divided into two cohorts, red and blue, and they would alternate weeks studying on campus and learning on Zoom.

Hawkins hasn’t attended school in person yet, which she hopes she will be able to do sometime in November. “If I were to return to school, [my 10th Grade Project] process might change slightly as I would have access to more potential participants in my program and be able to stop by my sponsor’s office if I have any questions,” Hawkins said.

Hawkins noticed that showing her project to family members has helped her “fix a few bugs and practice presenting my project,” so she’s interested in sharing it with more peers. She hopes that if she returns to school, she will be able to test her computer program on her classmates.

However, she is unsure of how this would work with social distancing regulations in place.

Anta is still in Spain but thinks he will return to D.C. by December. In the meantime, despite Menorca, the island where he is staying, not having any community labs, he hopes to use the labs at the Polytechnic University of Madrid to start creating a prototype. However, since Spain has stricter regulations regarding genetic engineer-

ing than the US, he will have to wait to “get the DNA synthesized” so he can use it “to produce the spider silk protein.”

Although Galizia was unable to start building her prototype during distance learning, she will now be able to work in the Design Lab and use its equipment. Unlike Hawkins and Anta, she has chosen to physically attend school. Galizia plans to work on the prototype after school during her cohort’s in-person weeks.

Rotsaert has made no changes to her EE, despite moving into hybrid learning.

“There is no way for me to turn my existing research into an experiment and I am way too far in to restart,” Rotsaert said.

Now that Contee is in hybrid learning, she could redo her experiment using a carbon dioxide detection probe or other equipment that she was missing beforehand. However, she thinks that this is unnecessary, mentioning that “with college applications and [Internal Assessments], redoing my experiment seems like a bit much when I have valid data.”

Other than Galizia’s 10th Grade Project, the switch to hybrid learning has had a minimal impact on the students’ independent research. Since they are all several months into their processes, making dramatic changes to their original plan would be impractical. “Even if I was in D.C. going to school in person, the school doesn’t have the resources that I need, so my project would still be on hold,” Anta said.

This article has been updated since its original publication on September 12 on wisdateline.org.

Other D.C. schools reopen amid COVID-19 pandemic

By MIA SAMPSON, 2022 and SOPHIE STEEL, 2022 Since being forced to suddenly move online in the spring of this year, private and public schools across D.C. have been struggling to find ways to get students back into classrooms safely and efficiently.

For the many students who face distractions at home, struggle with technological difficulties, and lose out on social interaction, reopening schools in person is crucial.

However, schools must take into account many factors as they plan for reopening during the pandemic, including how to enforce social distancing, how to keep high-risk faculty and staff safe, and how to implement a contact tracing or testing system.

As WIS has transitioned into a hybrid learning model, other schools in the D.C. area have also been grappling with the decision of whether to reopen, and how to do so.

D.C. Public Schools (DCPS) are fully online, after cancelling their November 9 reopening plan. The original plan was to open public elementary schools, though middle and high schools will remain online until at least the beginning of term 3 in January.

“I doubt that [Woodrow Wilson High School] is fully going into session, like into an in person session, especially because the school is so large,” Natalie Sipress, a junior at Wilson, said. Wilson has over 1500 students, further complicating the logistics of reopening.

To adjust to the virtual setting, Wilson has moved away from its usual eight course model. Students will now take four classes in the fall semester and four more in the spring. They then have a few weeks before the May AP exams to catch up on what they learned in the fall. DCPS students also have Wednesdays off from classes to do homework and spend some time away from the screen.

“Compared to right when we got on online, [online learning] is a lot cleaner, especially since we have Wednesdays off as a way of readjusting and catching up on work,” Sipress said.

Relative to public schools, private schools in the D.C. area have had more freedom to reopen in the way they see fit.

The British International School of Washington has also chosen to open in a hybrid model. Unlike WIS’s cohort model, at BISW, whole grades are on campus at once. Students are on campus for three weeks a month, and each grade stays home for one week on a rotating basis.

On BISW’s campus, new rules have been implemented to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

“We get temperature tests before we are allowed in, and we’re not allowed to go out in Georgetown for lunch,” BISW IB student Jasmin Toor said.

Other D.C.-area private schools have taken different approaches. Sidwell Friends School had an optional on-campus sports set up throughout the fall, and returned to full hybrid learning in mid-October.

Alden Zhang, a Sidwell junior and three varsity sport athlete, did not return to an on-campus sports model. “It seemed like it was not worth the trouble” she said.

“But I do return to campus for clubs because it’s nice to see everyone.”

Sidwell’s standout policy is that they have implemented a mandatory COVID test for all high school students. Zhang and other Sidwell students “appreciate the school’s efforts to keep [the students and faculty] safe and informed.”

Georgetown Day School also has yet to return to campus, but hopes to reopen on November 19. As of now, students are completely online, but this policy may change soon.

“The GDS administration has plans to return to the ‘hyflex’ model hopefully sometime after winter break”, GDS Junior

Maddy Carol said in October.

The hyflex model consists of a cohort system in which half of the school attends in-person learning on Monday and Thursday and half would goes Tuesday and Friday, while Wednesdays is used for cleaning.

GDS students had limited on campus access before returning, but students like Carol appreciate that the school has attempted to “maintain community” by allowing some sports teams and clubs to come onto campus. Nevertheless, Carol is “glad that they’re being cautious” by not beginning in person just yet.

Maret, much like Sidwell and GDS, has remained online longer than WIS dis with some exceptions for sports, clubs, and teachers. They reopened with a hybrid-cohort model in early November

Overall, schools in D.C. have erred on the side of caution, either opening with strict precautions and social distancing measures, like WIS, or staying online completely. Whether schools have been able to open has also been largely dependent on how large the school is and whether it is private or public; private school students have generally had many more opportunities to participate in in-person school or extracurriculars than public school students.

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Students COVID causes surge in teenage poll workers react to WIS students among those who filled in for usual older demographic election H outcome global news

By CAMILA LEVEY, 2022

igh school students helped fill the shortage of poll workers in the D.C. area on Election Day, as much of the usual older demographic didn’t volunteer due to the pandemic.

According to the Pew Research Center, 58% of poll workers in the 2018 general election were over the age of 60. Predicting that many people who volunteered in the past would drop out since they are in a high-risk population for the coronavirus, local governments encouraged teenagers and millennials to work the polls.

“A lot of the poll workers, from what I understand, were usually older, and they were really at-risk if they came out to work because of COVID. I wanted to fill that gap,” WIS junior Sophie Racine said.

Racine also emphasized the importance of volunteering as someone who is

bilingual: many voters who don’t speak English can be discouraged from voting if there are no poll workers who are able to help and communicate with them.

Although laws differ between states, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia all allowed teens to volunteer.

Elena Cura and Isa Paley, both juniors at Wakefield High School in Arlington, Va., worked at local polls on election day.

Paley stressed her interest in politics and eagerness to help in the election. “I was really interested in politics…and when you’re 16, you can’t vote. It’s harder to do stuff that feels like you’re contributing to helping with the election,” Paley said.

Cura agreed with Paley but added safety as one of the factors that lead her to volunteer. “I saw that a lot of poll watchers were going to try to create voter intimidation, and I wanted to be there to prevent

that,” Cura said.

Because of COVID-19, many people chose to vote by mail, so there were fewer people physically going to the polls to vote on Election Day. However, Paley still felt her experience was important.

“I thought it was a really cool experience, and I felt good doing something that helps other people,” Paley said.

All three high school students expressed interest in continuing to volunteer in future elections and emphasized that they wanted to make as much of an impact as possible, regardless of their age.

Racine connected her interest to a memory from when she was younger: “I remember going to vote with my mom when I was little, and I was really interested in the process of democracy. So even if I can’t vote, I still think it’s really cool to help with that.”

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COURTESY OF TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR

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ELECTION, from page 1 “Oh [expletive] yeah, we need statehood.

I’ve made a whole website about how we need D.C. statehood and the history of it. And I lived here my whole life so I am a big advocate for it,” junior Ana Diaz-Young said.

Despite the outcome of the presidential election, D.C. statehood seems unlikely given the possible Republican control of the Senate, pending two January runoff elections in Georgia. “Everybody’s favorite turtle majority leader [Mitch McConnell] is going to have a grip on the Senate, so I don’t think that we’re going to really see too much radical change over the next four years,” Meyer-Fong added.

WIS students were generally invested in this election’s outcome, but some were frustrated by some of their peers’ apparent indifference.

“I’ve heard a lot of people at school be like, ‘You know what, I don’t really care. I can’t vote, so it’s not my problem. It’s not going to affect me’ and it gets me really pissed off because you have the privilege to say that, but there are people on the streets, there are people that can’t afford things, or that will be affected by the election severely, and the fact that you can’t have that compassion is so upsetting,” Tognato Guaqueta said. “I feel like maybe, just maybe, people should care a little bit more.”

DONNENEILPALLONE.COM

LEFT: Sophie Whitehouse ‘15 poses with her Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper jersey after signing with the English club last month. RIGHT: Angela Caloia ‘19 was called up to the Italian National team in her sophomore year as a soccer player at Harvard University.

Girls soccer alums find success overseas

By ANDERS WESTERMANN, 2021 Two former WIS Girls Varsity Soccer players have reached new milestones in their respective careers. Sophie Whitehouse ‘15 signed a professional contract with English soccer club Tottenham Hotspurs and Angela Caloia ‘19 was called up by the Italian National Team.

Whitehouse played for four years under WIS coach Colin Buck and played club soccer with the Potomac Hotspurs. She went on to play collegiately for Division I

Columbia University where she was named captain in her senior year. She enrolled at top-15 ranked Santa Clara University for her graduate year, helping the Broncos reach the round of 16 of the NCAA Division I Tournament.

Caloia also played under coach Buck for four years and competed for McLean Soccer Club. She is in her sophomore year playing Division I soccer for Harvard University after a standout freshman season in which she was named Ivy League Rook-

ie of the Week twice and was selected for the All-Ivy team. She scored six goals and notched a team-best 11 assists. She ranked first in the nation with her 73.9-percent shot accuracy and fourth in the nation with 0.69 assists-per-game.

Caloia was called up for a 2022 UEFA Women’s Euro qualifying match on October 27, which Italy lost 3-1. They are set to play again on December 1. Prior to the call up, she appeared in eight games for Italy’s U19 team, notching three goals.

REBEKA TATHAM/INTERNATIONAL DATELINE

Washingtonians gather at Black Lives Matter Plaza in Downtown D.C. during the week of the 2020 election. Many WIS students joined the crowds downtown throughout election week.

Allison Ewing, Assistant Principal, talks diversity, goals, and her road to WIS

By ABIGAIL BOWN, 2023 Allison Ewing arrived at WIS this year as the new Assistant Principal for Grades 9 and 10. Ewing sat down with Dateline to talk about her background and life before WIS. International Dateline: What’s been the most interesting or enjoyable place that you’ve lived?

Allison Ewing: When I was in college, I participated in this program for undergraduates, where we were paid as research assistants. I had a professor who was researching the Vietnam War, and he had a group of students. We lived in Vietnam for a month, and we researched the effects of the Vietnam War when I was there. So that was really cool to literally travel the length of an entire country and immerse myself there for a whole month. I got paid to do it,

too. So, even better.

ID: What was your job right before you came to WIS? AE: I was at Bullis School, which is in Potomac, Maryland, for six years. I was the Upper School Social Studies Department Chair. I was also the Co-Director of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). Along the way, I chaperoned various trips. I took a group of students to Cambodia. I got to take students on Habitat for Humanity trips a couple times there as well. So I did a lot of different things. But those were my two major roles.

ID: Focusing in on the diversity coordinator* aspect, why did you want to become the diversity coordinator? Did you feel like that’s something really important to you? *The role of a diversity coordinator is to provide policies and leadership to improve diver-

sity, inclusion and equity in schools.

AE: In an ideal world, I like to say that my goal is that I put myself out of a job. My goal is that a school doesn’t need someone in a role like that, because then there is an institutional value for equity and justice and inclusion. However, for institutions to improve, it’s a “you do better when you know better” kind of thing. So having someone in that role is really important, because they are looking at policy, issues, curriculum, athletics, and admissions, and it all sort of dovetails into this one area.

I do it too, because I went to a small independent school in Albuquerque, and we didn’t have anyone in this role. I was one of very few students of color, and I wish that my school had a DEI director. They have one now actually, but I do wish they had one because it would have been someone I could go to. I want to make sure that students, faculty, staff, and everyone at

a school has that because you need to be able to bring your whole self to school.

ID: What is your biggest goal?

AE: Personally, I have two little girls; I have an 11-month old baby, and I have a 3-yearold daughter. I look at them, and I look at what’s going on in the world, and I think my personal goal is to do whatever I can to make the world they live in now as good of a place as it can be for them. But then also equip them so that when they are old enough, they can have a positive impact as well, because they’ll be here long after I’m gone. And I want to make sure that I leave it better than the way I found it for them.

Answers edited for space and clarity.

Listen to the full interview in a 15-minute podcast on wisdateline.org under “features.”

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NOVEMBER 2020

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WIS community troubleshoots new hybrid model

By ROSE BOEHM, 2022

W

hen WIS pivoted into hybrid learning in early October, students and teachers adapted to new forms of instruction. In-person learning is now an added benefit, but balance between in-person students and students tuning in on Zoom is a major obstacle the WIS community has faced.

Going into hybrid learning, teachers planned on how to adjust their classes.

Some choose to use breakout rooms or platforms for discussions; Others treat it as a live classroom. However, teachers need to act with various things in mind to facilitate the learning experience for athome students.

“You have to be conscious that you’re within view of the camera, that you can’t roam around the classroom or roam off the camera. And just the fact that if you get too far away from the microphone, the people at home can’t hear you,” Michael Jollimore, upper school physics and chemistry teacher, said.

Discussion-based classes, such as language and humanities classes, particularly struggle with audio as it becomes more difficult to hear students in class. Teachers like Susan Chung have shifted away from typical discussions to digital platforms like Flipgrid and Padlet which allow her to recustom a similar experience as she would before.

“I love doing visual colorful and critical projects in the classroom with markers, and we can’t really do group work like we used to. Padlet is a way for people to collaborate and interact with each other while being creative and analyzing or expressing ideas,” Chung said.

However, some teachers have found ways to retain the discussion component of their classes for at-home students. “[Economics and TOK teacher Guy Neal] has done a really great job. He has been using breakout rooms, and I think that’s the added benefit to TOK class

From science classes to band, students and teachers adjust to halfand-half classrooms since it’s pretty large, but he’s been able to let the kids at home into small breakout groups, and at school, they discuss too,” a junior who only recently returned to school, Ana Diaz-Young said.

In instrumental classes, audio issues are particularly challenging because students at home need to follow along with people playing in class.

“I felt like it was kind of hard to follow what was going on because it was outdoors and the audio wasn’t great. It was just really hard to stay with the band,” a senior who’s remained home during hybrid, David Allen said.

On top of audio, instrumental is more difficult because of the safety issues it poses. The instrumental teacher, Joshua Frayer, has decided to hold classes outside and spend part of the program’s budget on special masks for specific instruments.

“You can’t play an instrument, a wind instrument, with a mask on the way you can with percussion. But playing a saxophone, you have to use your air, you have to blow through the instrument. So that’s some of the things that I’ve come up with,” Frayer said.

Additionally, P.E. is independent fitness for at home students, like what was done in distance. However, in person, the P.E. department has had to adapt to the hybrid model. Mindfulness activities were added to the last 10 minutes of class and outside activities have been prioritized as much as possible. Some activities implemented have been nature walks learning about the history of the Klingle Trail.

“It’s been a shift trying to keep stu-

dents from sharing equipment, because the natural tendency is ‘there’s a ball out on the field, we want to pick it up, we want to play’,” P.E. teacher Nicole Coviello said.

Labs in science classes have had to utilize demos and video analysis, giving students a chance to develop data analysis skills.

“They’ve literally seen me making the measurements, and I put the camera on the device, so they can actually make the measurements themselves, but it’s me manipulating the materials,” Jollimore said.

Overall, balancing both cohorts and being flexible are the most important priorities for teachers. For Allen, classes don’t seem too different, especially with the majority of seniors staying home.

“I can’t speak for how the people who are there feel but it still feels like the classes are on Zoom,” Allen said.

Diaz-Young finds that in her discussion-based classes she struggles more. Her Physics class with Tony Godwin, though, is a lot better. However, she did return to school because of the disparity between online and in-person.

“He said ‘it’s gonna be exactly the same. I’m just gonna have an audience.’

I think that’s a really good method, especially for people at home,” Diaz-Young said.

For students and teachers alike, hybrid is difficult. But according to Chung, the hybrid model needs patience and adaptability.

“You have to just constantly adjust and be flexible because you think something’s gonna take five minutes, and literally, in my ninth grade class it took 20 minutes,” Chung said.

Additional reporting by Saul Pink, 2021

ILLUSTRATION BY CLARA MELLO FOR INTERNATIONAL DATELINE

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Sophomore Sara Oueijan discusses being new to WIS in 2020

By MAIA NEHME, 2023 Sara Oueijan is a new Sophomore at WIS this year. Oueijan previously attended the American International School of Riyadh (AISR) in Saudi Arabia before moving to D.C. During an interview with Dateline, Oueijan discussed her contrasting experiences at WIS and AISR, what it was like starting at a new school in distance learning, and more.

International Dateline: What differences have you noticed between AISR and WIS? What about similarities?

Sara Oueijan: I’ve noticed that people here are more welcoming than at AISR, because it’s a lot more cliquey in Saudi. I feel like I’m more welcome here than I was when I went to AISR in seventh grade. I’ve also noticed that the teachers are a lot nicer, as in they’re more lenient, they’re more empathetic towards the student. Some similarities are that they’re both IB schools, so they focus on the same program. Most of the courses I want to take in the IB are the same at my old school.

ID: How did it feel to start the year at WIS in distance learning?

SO: Honestly, I was kind of bummed out about it. I would have liked to go to school physically. Going to school in distance

learning was a challenge for me, because I didn’t really know anyone, so I had a lot of difficulty talking to people in my classes.

In Breakout Rooms, it was really awkward.

ID: How did you feel when hybrid learning was announced?

SO: I was really happy because that meant that I could meet people and make friends and also get closer with my teachers, learn what they’re like, and how the system works. Physically being there is so different from not being there at all, because the whole vibe is just different.

ID: What are your thoughts on the hybrid learning system at WIS, and do you intend to return to school?

SO: I don’t like the fact that we can’t mingle with the Blue Cohort, but I understand where WIS is coming from, because they don’t want to risk anything. And there’s also a lot of tech difficulties. Oh, and the six feet apart thing is not really working.

But I noticed that [the first in-person Red Cohort week was] going way better than [the in-person Blue Cohort] week. As long as hybrid learning is in place, I’m still going to be going to school because I really enjoyed it. And it made me feel like I actually had a purpose because I like to go to school and see my friends.

Lunch system undergoes changes during hybrid; IB cafe to remain closed

By ROSE BOEHM, 2022 As WIS entered the hybrid model, Brock Food Company introduced new cold meals to their weekly menu shifted from the hot meals last semester. Offerings range from salads to sandwiches with side items, and a new snack bar that students may buy from.

The new snack bar is located in front of the Carriage House and can serve as a supplement for students and faculty who may need an extra snack during the day.

Students and faculty can buy an assortment of fruits, chips and cookies.

“We are able to manage the flow at the table during the lunch times based on how the lunches are separated. And so we thought there was an opportunity for people who needed something to supplement their lunch that they brought from home,” Chief Financial Officer, Bethany Neuman said.

In addition to the snack bar, options for same day ordering are likely going to expand. These orders are available until 9 a.m. the day of.

“We are looking at extending the

same day offering on the app. So we’re going to add some of those, what I would call snack type items to the same day ordering app,” Neumann said.

While there are numerous options the day of, junior Ander Petri-Hidalgo believes the range of food quality varies day to day. He’s enjoyed the chicken avocado wrap, for example. However, he finds the salads to be lacking and wishes there were more snack options.

With this in mind, eating quality meals may be difficult being vegetarian or vegan.

“You wouldn’t have fun as a vegetarian, but you wouldn’t starve,” Petri-Hidalgo said.

Many juniors and seniors, like Petri-Hidalgo, are hoping IB cafe reopens soon. Though, Neumann said it is not in the forecast at the moment.

“I think it’s very good for us, it rewards the IB students and makes us happier and makes people actually want to go to school,” Petri-Hidalgo said.

As options expand, WIS may see an improvement in certain Brock bagged meals. WIS students now have the opportunity to buy one hot meal option a day.

NOVEMBER 2020

INTERNATIONAL DATELINE

A TA L E O F T W O C O H O R T S

5

Photos: WIS’s first month of in-person school Dateline photographer Zachary Roberts captured the empty hallways, partial-Zoom classes, and masked students of the Red Cohort’s first week back on campus

ZACHARY ROBERTS/INTERNATIONAL DATELINE

TOP LEFT: WIS juniors study and socialize during a free period in Davies Hall, masked and socially distant. TOP RIGHT: Upper school English teacher Katherine van Niekerk speaks to the students tuning in from home during a class in the first week of hybrid learning. BOTTOM LEFT: A student walks to class through a vacant AAA Building hallway. Tregaron has been noticeably quiet due to over half of students being at home during any given week. BOTTOM RIGHT: Junior Matias Cerisola works on his laptop in the art classroom, sitting distanced from other students.

from the arts section

Zoom becomes the new Blackbox Theater in pandemic

By NAOMI BREUER, 2024

M

iddle school and upper school teachers at WIS are finding innovative ways to keep students involved in the performing arts this semester. With the pandemic still ongoing, and safety concerns, they had to adapt to the situation.

Over the summer, middle school Theater teacher Erik Lurz came up with the idea to have a virtual Middle School Fall Play. He thought he would be a unique opportunity for students to take part in, as well as bond with the community. So, Lurz decided to write an adaptation of the original Shakespeare play The Tempest, called “The Rats Have Quit It!”

“It’s a play entirely adapted for Zoom.

So instead of it being about these characters who get shipwrecked on a deserted island by a storm, a Tempest, the pandemic is the Tempest. They’re sort of trapped in this extreme quarantine, where they’re

only in this room. This is the island. This is it, and each of them have their own individual island,” Lurz said.

The performances were live Zoom sessions, with the actors and audience members in one Zoom room together, and occasional breakout rooms. The characters interacted with the audience, as if they were also part of the play. Additionally, there were pre-recorded musical numbers.

“So we’re really treating it as sort of, this Zoom immersive performance with, like, talent show/ escape room almost,” Lurz said. “We’re really hoping that it’s a way that the community can come together, even though we all can’t be in a theater with a hundred fifty people in the audience.”

In the Upper School, Vocal Music teacher John Munt conducted a “virtual cabaret-style review” with numbers from 21st century Broadway musicals instead of a Fall Musical this year.

Munt had one-on-one vocal coaching herself to keep the performing arts alive at sessions with students to practice their WIS this year. selected song. Students recorded them- “Whatever I can make happen, I want selves singing their song at home, which to make happen,” Gondek said. was shown in a Zoom event on November Gondek believes that it is import20 and 22 with the community, along with ant for the performing arts to continue, live emcees to provide a fun and accessible despite the situation, as they provide a experience for chance to escape from everyone. not the real world and its a high stress challenges for a little It’s an outlet. It’s something kind of situawhile. tion. It’s more

“It’s an outlet. that makes a lot of people about students It’s something that happy, and right now I think we makes a lot of people enjoying being need that. able to express happy, and right now MADELINE GONDEK, I think we need that,” themselves m u s i c a l l y,” MS VOCAL TEACHER Gondek said. “And it’s Munt said. something where, no Middle matter what feelings school Vocal Music teacher Madeline you have, you can take those feelings and Gondek says that, while COVID has hit the turn them into something beautiful and performing arts hard, they are making the productive.” best of the situation. She has dedicated

INTERNATIONAL DATELINE

opinion NOVEMBER 2020

staff editorial

How safe is returning to campus?

WIS entered hybrid learning on October 5 after administrators spent the last few months laying out policies to minimize the spread of COVID-19. Although these policies are mostly effective in theory, the WIS administration needs to implement more measures to ensure they all work in practice too.

It should be noted that some of the policies appear to be working quite well.

Students generally wipe down their desk spaces in classrooms, and everyone wears a mask. Some hallways are uncrowded, and any virus exposure in those will be for a relatively short period of time. There are air filters in every classroom to help with ventilation.

These policies are deserving of praise.

They substantially reduce the risk of COVID-19, and students choosing to come to campus can benefit from in-person learning without much worry about picking up virus particles in the classroom itself.

On November 17, an eighth-grade student in the Red Cohort tested positive for COVID after receiving a rapid test, announced in an email to parents of Red Cohort eighth-graders. This marks the first positive case reported in the WIS community after six weeks of hybrid.

Some policies, however, have been less successful. For example, in the Middle and Upper School parent and student meetings, administrators announced that students must exit classes one by one at ten-second intervals. This mandate is gen-

erally followed in the Middle School. Had it actually gone into effect in the Upper School, it would have reduced the number of students in hallways at any one time.

The lack of ventilation in hallways would not have been an issue, since people would have moved through them quickly.

Instead, during hybrid learning students exit their classrooms all at once because very little staggering is enforced.

Since all classes in a given period end at the same time, hallways are often crowded to the point where distancing is impossible and any virus exposure is prolonged. While students bear the responsibility to stay at least six feet apart from others, doing so is nearly impossible as long as Upper School teachers fail to coordinate a staggered exit policy with each other. These teachers can only coordinate dismissal once the administration establishes a clearer message around staggering. Once administrators and teachers are on the same page about the dismissal policy, students’ job will be to uphold it.

The WIS administration also determined the maximum occupancy of common spaces such as Davies Hall, but relies on trust rather than adequate proctoring to make sure these rules are followed. Occasionally, a teacher or administrator will pass by, but most of the time these spaces are left unsupervised. As a result, they are sometimes overcrowded, making virus transmission far more likely even for those who try their best to physically distance themselves. Davies Hall, especially, needs

to stay below its occupancy limit since it doesn’t have an air filter and students often forget to wipe down its tables.

The hall often ends up crowded after school as well. Although students are technically required to leave campus right after their last class (with a few exceptions), this rule is not adequately enforced either, and students who want to stay distanced can’t use Davies Hall to work.

The administration has taken a stance of trust that students will follow the rules during hybrid learning. In some cases, it has no alternative. For instance, there is no way for administrators to police cross-cohort mixing outside of school or efficiently record each student’s temperature every morning. However, when it comes to maintaining occupancy limits in common spaces and leaving campus right after school, many students have shown they cannot monitor their own behavior.

The stakes in this pandemic are high, and while students need to take more responsibility for their own actions, any who do not will endanger the health of the entire community. Teachers and staff, especially, are at risk because they interact with both cohorts, so they are more likely than students to suffer the consequences of failed policies. Although it is impossible to completely stop virus transmission if and when an outbreak occurs, the administration needs to tighten its existing restrictions to minimize the number of people who get COVID-19 and allow for a swift recovery as a community.

Amy Coney Barrett is a threat to our democracy

By FEDERICO OPERTTI, 2022 With an extremely far right ideology and an inability to separate church and state, Amy Coney Barrett is an imposing threat to the democracy and separation of church and state of the United States. She will replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and although an extra seat in the Supreme Court doesn’t sound like a big difference, that liberal seat has been the reason for many key decisions in the past, such as preserving the Affordable Care Act, DACA, and women’s reproductive rights. Although it seems that her arrival in the Supreme Court is inevitable, it’s important to note how large the scale of her impact will be on America.

Looking over Barrett’s record, her outlook on politics becomes very clear.

At a conference in front of law students at Notre Dame, Barrett said that “a legal career is but a means to an end, and that end is building the Kingdom of God.” Her statement implies that she’s less concerned with upholding the law to be fair for all, and more concerned with spreading her own personal religious values in America through her decisions in the Supreme Court. After endorsing the court case Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, when questioned about Obergefell v. Hodges, the court’s 2015 decision that made same sex marriage legal, Barrett refused to say whether she supported the case, or whether it was fairly decided. Barrett has also written about the “barbaric legacy of Roe v Wade”, and has said that she will try to do whatever she can to re-

6

EDITOR’SNOTE

To our readers,

In late August, the 23 members of the Dateline staff met on Zoom to kick off this year’s coverage. The message we gave to our team of student journalists was this: Get ready to be creative and get ready to be flexible. Creativity means thinking of this unprecedented school year as an opportunity for the WIS community to connect through Dateline’s coverage.

Flexibility means getting ready for things to change. And getting ready to cover those changes with speed and accuracy.

In our first two months of school, we used video, audio, and graphics on our website and social media to create journalism for this moment. When the news came in mid-September about WIS’s move to hybrid learning, our team produced a flurry of content to bridge the gap between students who were nervous and confused about the returning to campus and the administrators explaining the upcoming changes. We brought social media journalism to our audience with our revamped Instagram account. If you don’t already, be sure to follow @wisdateline.

Our staff’s dedication culminated in the newspaper you’re reading right now.

Just like last June, this paper was mailed to the doorstep of every middle and upper school family. On the front page, you’ll see a symbol of 2020: the mask. We urge you to keep this copy of Dateline so you can look back at it as an artifact of your year at WIS.

While we are proud of our staff for all their hard work, you, our readers, are really what keeps Dateline running. If you’re a loyal Dateline reader, we thank you for your long-lasting support. If this is your first time picking up a copy, hopefully we make a good first impression.

Saul Pink Editor-in-chief Nicolas Greamo and Anders Westermann Managing Editors

international dateline November 2020 Editorial Board Editor-in-chief Saul Pink Managing Editors Nicolas Greamo Anders Westermann REBEKA TATHAM/INTERNATIONAL DATELINE

An image of late Supreme Court justice Ruth bader Ginsburg hangs on a fence outside of Lafayette Square.

peal it if given the opportunity.

She’s very clearly a far-right Catholic whose main goal is to impose her religious faith in politics, which is inherently against popular sovereignty and democracy, as she doesn’t adequately represent the will of the people of the United States.

Only 20 percent of Americans identify as Catholic, and only 33 percent of Americans want to overturn Roe v. Wade, so her opinions aren’t a true representation of current American values.

Another important factor to note is her complete incompetence and lack of previous legal experience. She’s only been a judge since 2017, and has never argued an appeal, or argued before the Supreme Court.

• Design • Photography However, her threat to • Satire • Video America goes beyond a misrepresentation of values and • Website design • Cartoons lack of experience, Barrett is • Opinion • Podcasts a direct threat to democracy.

If you answered yes, join Dateline! To join When asked about Miranda the Dateline staff, you don’t have to write rights (the law that makes officers have to read you articles...you can do any of the above. Head your rights while arrested), to tinyurl.com/joindateline to sign up.

Barrett said, “[T]he Miranda doctrine, which inevitably

are you interested in...

excludes from evidence even some confessions freely given, is an example” of “the court’s choice to over-enforce a constitutional norm by developing prophylactic doctrines that go beyond constitutional meaning.” One of her most shocking decisions as a judge was in the sexual assault case of Martin v. Milwaukee County, where she went against a jury’s verdict to give the victim a settlement of $6.7 million. In the case, a police guard had repeatedly sexually assaulted a woman in custody, including while she was pregnant and after giving birth. She decided that the district was not to be held liable, and argued the crime was not “within the scope of employment,” because sexual contact with incarcerated people is illegal in Milwaukee county.

Barrett is not just a typical conservative or Catholic: she’s very much a theocratic reactionary who goes against the core values of modern America and is about as far right a judge as America has had in its history. Barrett is also likely to be a judge for 30 or more years,as she is currently only 48 and Supreme Court justices serve for life. The repercussions of her far-right politics could have dire consequences for America’s democracy.

Publications Editor Rebeka Tatham Print Design Nicolas Greamo Saul Pink Rebeka Tatham MS Dateline Student Adviser Rose Boehm Marketing Managers Rani Kumar Natalie Sanchez Faculty Adviser Alexandra Wilding

WIS News Maia Nehme Sophie Racine Global News Camila Levey Sports Jonathan Baunsgaard Philip He Opinion Elise Naftulin Features Abigail Bown Emily Muenzer Arts Naomi Breuer Food Julia Dell’Ariccia Back Page Jonas Tomkin

International Dateline is a publication of the student body and therefore has a responsibility to reflect student, school, and community affairs. It will strive to inform, entertain, and inspire its readers in a broad, objective, and accurate manner.

Dateline also provides an open forum for the opinions of the student body, Dateline staff, the faculty, the school administration, and people in the community.

Dateline staff editorials reflect the opinion of Dateline’s editorial board. Over 50% of the editorial board must support the opinion. Editorials do not reflect the opinions of individual writers.

Submit a letter to the editor: Go to wisdateline.org or scan the QR code on page 1.

“Submit a letter to the editor will appear in the top right corner of the screen. Letters must be under 250 words and can address any issue concerning Dateline or WIS.

INTERNATIONAL DATELINE

sports

7

NOVEMBER 2020

Athletes alter training plans for out-of-school sports

By JONATHAN BAUNSGAARD, 2022 and PHILIP HE, 2022

A

thletes rarely have time for breaks in between the constant training and competitions. However, as the COVID-19 pandemic hit, many sports facilities have been shut down, leaving athletes with the sole option of training at home.

According to gymnast Julia Dell’Ariccia, her gym, Silver Stars, transitioned to virtual training sessions. However, without the necessary equipment provided in a gym, they had to adapt accordingly. “[Training] was all strength and endurance-based,” Dell’Ariccia said. “We would train muscle groups that would help us when we do [gymnastic] skills.”

However, challenges extended past limited equipment accessible to athletes at home. Although rower Isa Carre-Diaz had the necessary equipment to continue training from home, she faced mental hurdles throughout quarantine.

“It was a lot harder to be motivated on your own because you didn’t have anyone else to work out with you,” Carre-Diaz explained.

Although some athletes have been presented with these mental barriers, others have made a smoother transition from training in a facility to training at home, including ballerina Carolina Payeras.

When quarantine started, her ballet studio held zoom practices. She had a portable bar to grip onto and got a small piece of special flooring called Marley to mimic

the studio.

“You would set up your phone or computer somewhere so that the teacher could see you doing your exercises,” Payeras said.

This isn’t to say that practice at home was the same as practicing in a studio. Even with equipment, she still faced difficulties.

“It was harder for [the instructors] to give corrections [to our technique] because corrections are better done in person,” Payeras said. “Let’s say you want to fix something that your leg is doing, [the instructors] would grab your leg and move it around.”

Technique is also a concern for water polo player Liam Byrne.

“My mechanics rusted because I hadn’t really practiced them super intensely,” Byrne said. Without his coaches or teammates, Byrne worked with his brother to keep fit.

“We’re very fortunate because some of my family members have pools, so we’ve been able to get in and do some training there, or weight lift at home to try to stay in the best shape possible for when we were able to return,” Byrne said.

With restrictions easing, Byrne has started to practice again with a new team.

However, while some athletes still remain on a modified practice schedule, Byrne’s practices have become similar to before quarantine.

“It’s kind of interesting with water polo. It’s not a very common sport. And it’s a pretty physical sport so there’s a lot of contact between players, everyone’s close

COURTESY OF CAROLINA PAYERAS

Junior Carolina Payeras, who practices ballet outside of school, transitioned back to her studio and into competition after a period of practicing at home.

together and up in their faces, but it’s one of the sports that the National Institute of Health has said is on the safer side because playing in a chlorinated pool helps prevent the spread of the virus.” Byrne said. “I think it definitely is safe.”

Byrne is not alone. With the return of practice, soccer player Joost Almekinders has also achieved a sense of normalcy.

“So at the beginning, we have to wait in the car instead of going immediately to the field,” Almekinders said. “But once practice starts, it’s just like a normal practice.”

Byrne and Almekinders felt that the situation of their sports made it safer to start practicing. With both of them playing outdoors, as well as other precautions such as temperature checks, they are starting to train properly for future competitions.

Some athletes are still far from normal.

While Dell’Ariccia’s gym has reopened, she

has so far opted not to go there to practice.

At first, her gym placed restrictions on the number of people allowed to practice at once. However, after a while, her gym started allowing everyone to return.

“It’s not soccer where everyone can beo utside. It’s inside a gym. [There are] no masks and very little potential to distance,” Dell’Ariccia said.

In her opinion, going back to the gym was an unnecessary risk.

“I might go [back if there are better restrictions] because you can stay 20 feet away from people,” Dell’Ariccia said. “You wear your mask all the time, and it’s ten people, instead of the fifty that are swarming the gym.”

Although the option is there to go, it is good to take a step back and consider the best options. In the end, the most important thing is an athlete’s safety.

food Back to school lunch ideas With the hybrid model in full swing and limited lunch options provided at WIS, it’s time to get creative with your packed lunches! Here are three easy to make school-friendly lunches; you can make them during weeks when you’re at home, too.

By JULIA DELL’ARICCIA, 2022

30 minutes While ordinarily, uperclassmen could go off campus for lunch, students are not able to due to COVID safety measures, so why not bring “off-campus” to WIS with this Chipotle-inspired bowl?

• • • •

• • • • •

2 cups longgrained white rice 1 teaspoon olive oil 2 tablespoons minced cilantro Fresh lemon and lime juice (juice from 1-2 lemons and limes) Half a can of spicy black beans 1/2 pound of chicken (or steak) Assorted toppings Tortilla Portable

Bruschetta

15 minutes Bruschetta (pronounced broo-skeh-ta, not bru-sheta) is a great option for a light lunch. The pairing of salty tomatoes with garlic bread is one of my favorite lunch flavors.

Chipotle-Style Burrito Bowl

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil (about 8 cups but follow the instructions for your rice) and salt to taste. Add 2 cups of white rice.

2. Cook uncovered for 8-12 minutes (again, follow the instructions for your rice), stirring occasionally.

3. Once cooked, remove from the stove and stir in cilantro and lemon/lime juice.

4. Place the tortilla in the bottom of your container.

5. Spoon the rice on top of the tortilla.

6. Heat the black beans on the stove and place them on top of your rice.

7. Prepare the meat of your choice however you would like and put it in the container.

8. Add any toppings you would like (salsa, corn, guacamole etc.) and seal your container.

9. When lunchtime rolls around heat your “bowl” in the Davies microwave and mix it for the perfect on campus dupe Chipotle experience.

JULIA DELL’ARICCIA/INTERNATIONAL DATELINE

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DANNY DALY/FLICKR

For two more recipes, head to wisdateline.org/category/food

BLT Turkey Wrap 15 minutes Sandwiches are arguably the school lunch with their ability to be enjoyed cold and transported easily. Try this slight twist on a classic for a perfectly crunchy and delicious lunch.

• • • • •

Tomatoes (any type works but I think cherry tomatoes taste the best) Bread (again any type is fine but Italian bread works best) 2 cloves of garlic Salt Pepper 2 tablespoons of olive oil

Tortilla 4 to 5 slices of turkey 1 large tomato A few leaves of lettuce 4 slices of bacon

1. Peel a clove of garlic and chop it into pieces. Place the pieces in a small bowl with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and let rest for a few minutes.

2. Rinse and chop the tomatoes into small pieces.

Season them with salt, pepper and garlic-infused olive oil to taste. Place the tomatoes in a sealed container.

3. Toast the bread and rub it with a peeled clove of garlic and place it in a plastic bag (in order to maintain freshness until lunch).

4. At lunchtime, spoon the chopped tomatoes onto the toasted bread and enjoy!

1. Wash and slice the tomatoes and lettuce.

2. Fry the bacon in a pan on medium heat until crispy.

3. Place lettuce, tomatoes, bacon and sliced turkey on the tortilla and wrap it up.

4. Roll the wrap in parchment paper and eat at room temperature.

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8

NOVEMBER 2020

BORAT: MADE AT WIS

BORAT (SCREENSHOT)

Note: Much like Borat himself, this article is comedic.

“B

orat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan” is a comedy film made by British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen. This film came out recently, as a sequel to Cohen’s first film “Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan” which many people consider to be one of the most brilliantly made cinematic masterpieces in the history of film. If you haven’t seen either of these ‘moviefilms’, they are centered around a an eccentric man named Borat, played by Cohen, who is from Kazakhstan and travels to America to ‘learn’ about the culture here.

The sequel, while still very funny, is not in the same legendary category as the original. One of the reasons the first film is so beloved by the Washington International School community is because one of the famous scenes in the first film was filmed here at WIS, in Mansion room 205, the home of many economics classes.

The scene involved Cohen taking an American comedy lesson from a man named Pat Haggerty, who was and still is a public speaking coach

‘Borat Subsequent Moviefilm’ revives memories of legendary scene in Mansion

By JONAS TOMKIN, 2021 here in the District. Haggerty believed that Borat was a real person, and that he was trying to learn about American comedy in this documentary about American culture. He, therefore, was a bit shocked when the lesson began, as Cohen was really struggling to make jokes in an appropriate manner, quipping about topics that would not fly (or be very relevant) while discussing supply and demand in an IB economics class. Among the first “jokes” Borat makes in the lesson is about him making “sexy-time” with his mother-in-law. The theme of incest continues throughout the scene.

Many of WIS’s current upper school students, who were born around the time the original movie came out, both find it amusing and interesting that a part of this treasured film was filmed in the room where they learn economics. Alexander Gatti-Roaf, a WIS senior, first discovered this news in 9th grade when he noticed on WIS’s Wikipedia

page that “Borat” was credited as being filmed there. He had already seen the movie but had never known the scene was filmed here.

“I was surprised and just thought it was really cool that some of it was filmed at WIS. I also could never imagine WIS would allow something like that to be filmed which makes it even funnier” Roaf said, describing his initial reactions to finding out about the incongruous scene.

Even though “Borat” is considered to be a cinematic masterpiece, I don’t think any school would want the film’s innapropriate rhetoric to be filmed on their own property. Natasha Bhalla, current Associate Head of School, was at WIS at the time, but really had no idea of the scene being filmed, until after the movie came out.

“It was actually really low key. There was a call asking for room rental. I believe it was during the summer….I think at the time, people thought it was for a meeting of some sort but nothing more,” Bhalla said, explaining how the room was rented in the first place.

When the movie was released to the world WIS realized a scene had been filmed there. Bhalla said at the time staff and students thought it was pretty funny, and even if Cohen’s jokes are not necessarily “school-friendly,” she, like many others, recognizes it as “a slice of WIS history.”

Borat (Sacha Baron Cohen, right) makes jokes in the “humor coach” scene of his 2006 movie “Borat,” famously filmed in Mansion room 205.

DATELINE CARTOON

BY Clara Mello, 2021