International Dateline - November 2022 Edition

‘The Hunger Games between students’

College counselors implement new honor code to curb competition

By MAIA NEHME, 2023

PAPERS peppered with the phrase “we regret to inform you…” line the walls of the Senior Lounge (“Slounge”). Personal statements and supplemental essays circulate the grade, often without the writer’s knowl edge. Two seniors spend hours compil ing their classmates’ Early Decision (ED) schools in a spreadsheet.

Such was the culture during the Class of 2022’s college application process.

“The class dynamic… seems to have become something akin to WIS’s version of Squid Game,” College Counselor Pam Joos wrote in an email to the class on Nov. 5, 2021. “Please count to 10 the next time you think about saying something college related in a public space where people oth er than your closest friends can hear you.”

As a result, on May 19, 2022, Joos and College Counselor Joanna Tudge shared a Google Form titled “College Counseling Honor Code” with the Class of 2023.

In the honor code, Joos and Tudge outlined five rules that the current seniors must follow during their college applica tion process.

Two of the rules were in place for pre vious classes: students must write their essays and activities list alone, and if a stu dent is accepted to a university in the ED round, they must attend the school. These two rules are part of the Common Applica tion’s application affirmations, which are five statements that students must attest

inside look

Eighth grade exchange trips return The Class of 2027 will travel to Paris and Madrid wisnews page 4

WIS parent sells mochi at Whole Foods Mika Shino de scribes her company’s journey

to before submitting their college applica tions.

The other three honor code rules are brand new. Students cannot discuss where they and their classmates are applying, their essays or their test scores while on the WIS campus (which Joos and Tudge referred to as the “collegiality rule”). Ad ditionally, students cannot apply to more than 15 U.S. universities and must send their college counselor the final list of schools they are applying to by Dec. 1, 2022.

Though WIS’s college application cy cles have been competitive in the past, the Class of 2022’s particularly cutthroat process spurred Joos and Tudge to add the new rules. “There was too much chatter about college in a public place,” Joos said. “Some of it seems very innocuous, but we know that there were pretty severe mental health issues that came out because of that and students who had to take off time from school.”

If current seniors were to violate the honor code, the Upper School adminis tration might take disciplinary action, according to Joos. For instance, students who broke the collegiality rule would face individual consequences, and if the issue was widespread, the administration might consider revoking seniors’ access to the Slounge.

Alumnus Alek Danielyan, Class of 2022, believes that students should be en couraged to have open conversations about college. He highlights the stress of senior

Karin

WIS junior dedicates her time to synchronized skating

seniors from doing the same. “Before I got off the waitlist for [New York University], I didn’t want to go to any of my safeties and I was so upset,” she said. “I wish I had only applied to schools that I would genuinely be happy at.”

Senior Braden Kiang was initially frus trated by the 15 school cap, but he is now grateful for the rule. “I probably would’ve applied to 30 schools, and I definitely don’t have the time for that, or the mental ca pacity,” he said.

While senior Tristan Martin is apply ing to domestic and overseas universities, he believes that this rule disadvantages students who are only applying to U.S. col leges. “It can bring comfort to some peo ple to be applying to a lot of schools, just because it makes them feel like, ‘Even if everything goes wrong, I’ll get into a cou ple,’” he said. “If a student really wants to put in the work to apply to 20 schools, I don’t know if they should be restricted [from] doing so.”

Moreover, some alumni disagree with the honor code rule that students must submit their final college list to their col lege counselors by Dec. 1.

Alumnae Kumar and Martin added schools to their list from mid-December, when ED decisions were released, to the first week of January. This was mainly so that their college list would be more bal anced between safeties (colleges which the student will most likely be accepted to), targets (colleges with academic creden tials that match those of the student) and reaches (extremely selective colleges).

year at WIS: in addition to undergoing the college application process, students en counter heightened academic rigor in the second year of the IB Diploma Programme (IBDP) and often take on leadership roles in clubs and sports.

“Talking about [college] overall can be really helpful so students can just vent,” he said. “They can not only get out their own thoughts and feelings that might have been overwhelming them a little bit during senior year… but also, they can find ways to relate to their peers.”

Senior Madeline Robbins echoes the sentiment that discussing college applica tions can benefit students’ mental health. “I’ve found a sense of comfort in not dis cussing in detail, but just knowing where other people are in the application pro cess,” she said. “I either feel like I’m so be hind or so ahead… I have no sense of where everyone else is in the application process, and that stresses me out.”

Alumna Mila Martin, Class of 2022, noticed that when the college counselors asked students to stop talking about col lege, this merely exacerbated the prob lem. “That entire year, [there wasn’t] a single conversation where people did not bring up college,” she said. “It was literally all-consuming.”

Though many alumni and seniors alike are opposed to the collegiality rule, they mostly support the rule that limits stu dents’ college lists to 15 universities.

Alumna Rani Kumar, Class of 2022, ap plied to 26 schools and discourages current

“When you haven’t gotten that ED back, there’s still a little part of you that [thinks] ‘I might actually be going there,’ and could make you perhaps not apply to as many safety schools,” Martin said. “Stu dents should have more control because this is their process. If they want to add a school [after Dec. 1], why not?”

In general, alumni and seniors wor ry that the honor code will not effectively diminish the competitive nature of WIS’s college application process.

Martin points out that many students feel pressured to attend top universities.

“At the end of the day, you know that the college counselors and the school want you to go to the best university you pos sibly can, because it looks good for them,” she said. “[Students] are not really given a way to cope with this pressure, so instead, it becomes the Hunger Games.”

Robbins thinks that the college pro cess is indicative of a greater trend of com petitiveness between students. “There’s this competitive aspect that’s just so in grained in WIS culture, and I think that it honestly has such a deep, negative im pact,” Robbins said. “If you take [the Class of 2022] for example, it’s not that the col lege admissions process just brought out the worst in them… It was all leading up to this. They’ve always been competitive.”

Ultimately, Danielyan believes that the key to fostering a less toxic environment is limiting comparisons between students’ college application processes. “It’s differ ent for everyone,” he said. “People’s living situations are different. Their financial sit uations are different… Be nice to people. Everyone is overwhelmed. Everyone has their own [expletive] going on.”

FORZA WIS: WIS Primary School students gather to watch the Varsity Soccer homecoming games against The Field School on Sept. 16, 2022. The boys team won 10-0, and the girls team won 3-0. In the gym, Girls Varsity Volleyball played Maret School, ending with a score of 0-3.

MARTINA TOGNATO GUÁQUETA/INTERNATIONAL DATELINE

hispanicheritage

By MARTINA TOGNATO GUÁQUETA, 2024

Con la esencia de Bolivia en su corazón, enseña la cultura latinoamericana y la len gua castellana a los estudiantes de Español B.

Ana María Nicolich es la profesora de Español B en bachillerato. Su trabajo se impulsa por su amor y su orgullo de la cul tura latinoamericana.

Nació en Bolivia y también se crió y estudió en la universidad allá. Siempre te niendo la familia en mente, vivió con sus padres por muchos años, cuidándolos en su vejez.

Con el español como su idioma nativo, la llegada a los Estados Unidos (EE. UU.) fue una mudanza por amor. Su marido era americano y hablaba más que todo inglés. Nicolich llegó a los EE. UU. hace treinta años, donde empezó su propia familia.

Durante ese tiempo también pasó al gunos periodos en Bolivia. Ahora sus hijas son bilingües, orgullosamente aceptando su identidad boliviana.

Los sabores de Bolivia ayudan a man tener la cultura de dicho país en su vida: los condimentos, adobando el cerdo, el mote, el chuño (la papa seca) y demás. A pesar del nombre extraño, el ají de len gua “es delicioso,” ella dice. Ingredientes compartidos por los países, inventados de maneras únicas y especiales. La comida es una conexión a la familia y su cultura.

La religión católica es parte de su latinidad. Las Semanas Santas celebradas devotamente, las Navidades con el Niño Dios; todo celebrado con la familia. Para Nicolich la familia es un salvavidas. Pasa la mayor parte del tiempo posible con su familia.

Los miembros de la familia que aún quedan en Bolivia son lo que más extraña. “Cuando… te vas del país, por cualquier motivo, tu corazón queda partido en dos,” ella dice. Las tradiciones latinas, casi siem pre basadas en la familia, se hacen difíciles de celebrar. En un país nuevo, uno queda más aislado y el trabajo consume mucho tiempo, haciendo el anhelo aún más dolo roso de acuerdo a Nicolich.

Añorando las montañas y las selvas bolivianas, la pasión se transmite en sus enseñanzas en clase. Proyectos basados en la cultura hispana abren los ojos a la com plejidad y belleza de Latinoamérica. “Tu enseñas de corazón… enseñas con amor,” dice ella acerca de su pedagogía. La pasión real es lo que la impulsa.

“Nunca se va la nostalgia, es más, crece,” Nicolich explica, razón por la cual ella promueve el orgullo de la identidad latina. Su sugerencia a los estudiantes lati nos es mantener el orgullo sobre la identi dad, porque eso es lo que mantiene viva la conexión a su país.

By MARTINA TOGNATO GUÁQUETA, 2024

La latinidad viene en muchas formas. Na cida en Estados Unidos (EE. UU.). Criada en Argentina. Demuestra la celebración latina día a día.

Celina Bragagnolo es una profesora de Teoría del Conocimiento y de Español en el bachillerato. Enseña una variedad de te mas y siempre le pone un toque personal.

Nació en EE. UU., de padres argentinos. A los ocho años se fueron a Argentina y ahí pasó un tiempo en Buenos Aires y luego en Bariloche, donde se graduó. Empezan do el colegio en EE. UU., su primer idioma fue el inglés. Sin embargo, cuando se mudó a Buenos Aires, su español se desarrolló. Mantuvo su inglés visitando Delaware du rante las vacaciones.

Argentina es un gigante culinario y por eso tiene la comida en el centro de su cul tura. A pesar de que hay gran variedad, el requerimiento para ser la comida favorita de Bragagnolo es la presencia de la carne. Desde el asado a las medias lunas, la comi da es una conexión indudable que tiene a su latinidad.

Con la cultura rica vienen las celebra ciones. La más memorable para Bragag nolo es el día de los niños. Dice que, “Es un día [al] que se le da mucha impor tancia, con mucha alegría, regalos y actividades.” Es el principio de pasar el día con la famil ia apreciando a los más pequeños. En general, si la familia quiere participar, es un lugar de felicidad

y libertad.

Viviendo en los EE. UU., hay mucho que extrañar. Desafortun adamente la nostalgia de “mi familia, los ruidos, los olores, el paisaje,” nunca se va, dice ella. Los Andes, el cielo, las vistas de su juven tud siempre serán algo para recordar.

Por eso, la sugerencia de Bragagnolo para la ju ventud latina de WIS es viajar y no perder la conexión con la familia.

Latine Student Union embraces hispanic heritage month

By MARTINA TOGNATO GUÁQUETA, 2024

Superando las barreras en su vida con un fuego latino. Él ha hecho todo tipo de tra bajos para llegar a donde está hoy. Com prometido con hacer todo lo que pueda para ayudar a la comunidad latina.

Oscar Urízar-Gromsch es profesor de Español en la escuela media. Nació y se crió en Chile. Se mudó hace doce años a los Estados Unidos (EE. UU.) con su esposa. Es tudió en la Universidad de Iowa y ahí obtu vo un diploma de salud pública y estudios humanistas.

El español es su idioma nativo. Se lo enseña a su hijo e hija, a pesar que a veces les habla en inglés. Ser bilingüe “abre puer tas,” dice. Enseñando el español y consid erando su descendencia chilena, asegurar la continuidad de la lengua castellana es una prioridad para él. Además, es una con exión vital a la cultura latina y mantiene las relaciones con el resto de la familia.

La importancia de la conexión con la cultura es algo que se ve en la crianza de sus hijos. “Tienen sangre chilena si o si,” él dice. Una manera en la cual se manifies ta su cultura es a través del asado al palo familiar. Aquí preparan carne asada, cho ripan clásico y otras delicias. El enfoque de este tipo de reunión es increíblemente importante y trae mucha felicidad. Es una práctica a través de la cual se conecta a su familia y puede pasar tiempo con ellos dis frutando la comida.

Dado que Urízar y su familia viven en EE. UU., ponen mucho enfoque en la famil ia. Es el centro de sus vidas, disfrutando la comida sentados juntos. Una tradición es pecífica es “las onces,” dice él. Es un tiem po donde la familia se sienta con un café o té para picar algo. La meta es pasar ti

empo juntos. A pesar de que muchas de las celebraciones están atadas a una historia militar, la familia de Urízar encuentra “un montón de actividades para la familia.”

La experiencia latina en Estados Uni dos es “chocante,” dice, pero tiene mucho que ver con dónde viven. Por un tiempo le tocó manejar camiones para mantener a la familia, dado que a ese punto el dominio de su inglés no era excelente entonces mu chas puertas se cerraron. Él destaca la im portancia de crear una comunidad.

Su sugerencia para la juventud latina es la siguiente: él dice que van a enfrentar “decisiones difíciles pero creo que el apoyo de una comunidad siempre te va a ayu dar.” La nostalgia aún es difícil combatir; es importante ser fuerte y tener apoyo. Los sueños son posibles con un toque de real ismo, perseverancia y una comunidad en la cual se puede confiar.

By VALERIA CUESTA LOPEZ, 2024

The Latine Student Union (LSU) club is led by seniors Isabel Restrepo, Ariana Campo, Natalia Martina, Kathy Lee and Luana Dos Santos. LSU’s mission is to create an “en vironment where Latine students at WIS can feel comfortable and celebrate their culture,” according to Martina.

During meetings, the club members get together to both embrace their culture and discuss current issues and events in Latin America.

LSU recently celebrated Hispanic Her itage Month from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15. Sept. 15 marks the day when Costa Rica, El Sal vador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicara gua gained independence from Spain. The next day, on Sept. 16, Mexico gained inde pendence.

To commemorate this month, LSU members are finding “nice and fun ways where a whole community can come and bond together” such as hosting lunches and teaching dances, according to Martina. Although Hispanic Heritage Month only lasts for 30 days, LSU members will continue to celebrate their culture during the rest of the year. There are many ways to be more involved in Latine culture: sup porting local Latine businesses, listening to Latine music, trying new Latine foods and staying informed on Latin American issues.

Martina believes that LSU is a tightknit community that strives to inspire peo ple to “show pride for [their] culture and identities.”

Ana María Nicolich: ‘Cuando te vas del país... tu corazón queda partido en dos’

spanish

Oscar Urízar-Gromsch: ‘El apoyo de una comunidad siempre te va a ayudar’

Ana María Nicolich, la profesora bo liviana de Español B.

MARTINA TOGNATO GUÁQUETA/INTERNATIONAL DATELINE

Oscar Urízar-Gromsch, un profesor chileno de Español de la escuela media.

MARTINA TOGNATO GUÁQUETA/INTERNATIONAL DATELINE

“ “[El día de los niños] es un día [al] que se le da mucha impor tancia, con mucha alegría, re galos y actividades.”

CELINA BRAGAGNOLO

COURTESY OF LUANA DOS SANTOS

The Latine Student Union (LSU) leaders pose at the Upper School Club Fair. From left to right: seniors Isabel Restrepo, Ariana Campo, Natalia Martina, Kathy Lee and Luana Dos Santos.

Celina Bragagnolo: ‘[Extraño] mi familia, los ruidos, los olores, el paisaje’

MARTINA TOGNATO GUÁQUETA/INTERNATIONAL DATELINE Celina Bragagnolo, una profesora argentina de Español y Teoría de Con ocimiento.

Overturning of Roe v. Wade impacts WIS seniors’ college decisions

By ELIANA AEMRO SELASSIE, 2023

The landmark Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade was overturned on June 24, 2022, declaring that the right to an abortion would no longer be upheld by the feder al government. The decision came after a leaked draft opinion in May, which out lined the possibility of the overturning.

Abortion rights have been a conten tious issue in U.S. politics for years, as many states had restricted abortion access prior to the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Some Americans, such as Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, believe that Roe v. Wade was unconstitutional and that it should be up to individual states to make abortion de cisions. However, an overwhelming 62% of Americans support the legalization of abortion, according to a survey by the Pew Research Center.

Trigger laws, defined as legislation designed to go into effect immediately af ter the reversal of Roe v. Wade, have been implemented in 13 states, primarily in the south and the midwest. Many of these states have now completely banned abor tions, making receiving or providing an abortion a punishable offense.

Additional states like Nebraska and Arizona are in the process of implementing abortion bans. Michigan and South Caro lina are part of a small number of states where bans have been blocked by state Su preme Courts.

Restricting abor tion access has proved to have negative im pacts on the health and quality of life of women and girls across the nation. These ef fects are mainly expe rienced by women of color, LGBTQ+ communities and people living in low-income parts of the country.

From left to right: WIS seniors Bianca Pattison and Kiri Diaz-Asper march in protest of the U.S. Supreme Court’s over turning of Roe v. Wade on June 24, 2022. Their signs read “You’re not my gyno, get out of my uterus” and “Abortion is freedom,” respectively. Pattison and senior Madeline Robbins march with the sign “Why are you so obsessed with me?” Crowds gather in front of the banner “Rally for Abortion Justice.”

ed WIS students and their plans for the fu ture.

Senior Isabel Restrepo was not sur prised by the overturning because of the initial leak, yet she fears the effects it will have throughout the country. “Many states are taking advantage of the overturning of Roe v. Wade, very clearly impacting the lives of so many people,” she said. “It’s horrific to watch.”

highlighted those in states where abortion is banned or restricted. “That’s definite ly become a factor in my college decision making that I didn’t expect to be there before,” she said. “When I was originally choosing my schools before the overturn ing of Roe v. Wade happened, I wasn’t real ly thinking about reproductive rights.”

something that I don’t really want to have to deal with,” she said. “It’s honestly really sad for people that don’t even have the op tion of leaving.”

LUANA DOS SANTOS

In D.C. and many majority Democrat ic states, abortion remains legal. Yet the overturning of Roe v. Wade has still affect

Senior Luana Dos Santos feels as though Roe v. Wade is proof that the state of women’s rights in the U.S. is not improving. “It really does show that we are going

back in time, because instead of making progress, it feels like we’re just moving backward,” she said.

After learning about the Supreme Court decision, Restrepo looked over the list of colleges she was applying to and

Restrepo emphasizes that the over turning will change the college experience for many students, restricting their access to both abortion and contraceptives.

Roe v. Wade has also changed Dos San tos’ application process, as she’s no longer considering certain schools in states where abortion is restricted. “I was going to ap ply to [a school] in Texas, but now seeing how strict the abortion rules are in Texas, I just don’t really think that it’s somewhere I would want to be anymore,” she said.

Similarly, abortion access is an im portant factor in where Dos Santos plans to live in the future. “Knowing that there’s certain rights that I wouldn’t have is just

Restrepo was initially worried about how abortion would be legislated in D.C., given that is not a state. “Most major poli cy decisions made in D.C. are made by the federal government,” she said. “So when Roe v. Wade got overturned, and abortion and reproductive rights [became] on the state level again, one of my first reactions was, ‘Is the D.C. local government going to be able to control this [or] is this going to be up to the federal government?’”

Dos Santos highlights that the over turning of Roe v. Wade is part of a great er problem of some men’s lack of respect for women. “People need to care about is sues, regardless of whether or not [it] af fects them,” she said. “And there’s just a lot of men that really don’t actually seem to show any care or interest.”

‘Everything is different’: Arlington public school through a former WIS teacher’s eyes

By TINDRA JEMSBY, 2026

Humanities teacher Denise Rodriguez left WIS last year to teach Geography at a pub lic school in Arlington.

Gunston Middle School, her new workplace, is part of the Arlington Public Schools (APS) system, which means that its structure is based on the model used all around Arlington County. This cookie-cut

ter nature of the public school, however, is exactly what Rodriguez was hoping to ex perience.

In an interview with Dateline, she shared that “I decided, ‘Okay, it’s been a while; let’s see the other side of this.’”

Now, Rodriguez has experienced both private and public education, and her re marks on the disparities between the schools are highlighted below.

COURTESY OF BIANCA PATTISON

““Knowing that there’s certain rights that I wouldn’t have is just something that I don’t re ally want to have to deal with.”

wisnews

Eighth grade exchange program returns after three year hiatus

By NAOMI BREUER, 2024

The annual eighth grade language ex change program is making a comeback for the Class of 2027 this school year. For the past three years, the typical exchange was on hiatus, due to the pandemic and the sudden end of the Peruvian exchange in 2019.

WIS cut ties with Colegio Santa Mar garita, which is in Lima, Peru, in 2019 due to the school’s unwillingness to place their students in households with same-sex, divorced or single parents. Instead, WIS administrators and teachers organized a non-exchange trip for Spanish language students in the Class of 2024 with travel agent EdOdyssey, but it was canceled with the start of the pandemic in March 2020. French language students, on the other hand, received correspondents in the fall of 2019, but their trip to Paris was also can celed in 2020.

All middle school trips that followed were suspended until the Class of 2026 went on non-exchange trips to Puerto Rico and Québec in the spring of 2022. The trips still focused on language immersion but did not include the homestay aspect, which wasn’t possible due to the pandemic.

Now, WIS is beginning a new exchange program with Colegio Estudio, a school in Madrid, for students in the Spanish sec tion. The French program will resume with Parisian school Collège Sévigné, which they have been partnered with since 2015, according to Middle School Principal Ran dy Althaus.

“For the most part, everything that would have happened in a normal school year exchange, likely will be the experience of the students this year,” Althaus said.

The experience consists of WIS eighth graders hosting an exchange student in their homes in the fall, and then staying with their correspondent in their respec tive country in the spring. Students will participate in a variety of activities orga nized by the school with their classmates, and spend the rest of the time with their correspondents and their families.

Althaus is looking forward to begin ning the program with Colegio Estudio, which is an independent secular school that has been around for about as long as WIS. He believes the two schools are very compatible, as the school is very well es tablished in Madrid and has exchanges with other schools around the world.

“They have a strong tradition of [doing exchanges], and they’re very open and flex ible, and they are certainly not prescriptive in their morality or perceptions of morali ty,” Althaus said.

Class of 2027 students in the French section are hosting their correspondents from Oct. 25 to Nov. 2. The Spanish corre spondents will stay from Nov. 30 to Dec. 11. WIS students will travel to Paris and Madrid from March 14 to 24, right before Spring Break.

Middle School Spanish teacher Gema León discovered Colegio Estudio while scouting Madrid schools in 2019. She had started to look at schools online after un certainty of the program in Peru began to arise. While she was in town that summer, León toured Colegio Estudio and met with the teacher in charge of the exchange.

“They have the same philosophy [as us],” León said. “[For example,] they do some Project Zero themes. So pretty much, they are at the same level as us.”

Althaus began conversing with the school’s principal that fall. If it hadn’t been for lingering concerns over the pandemic, Althaus would have started the program during the 2021-2022 school year for the Class of 2026.

He was finally able to visit the school in June 2022, after the WIS school year ended and pandemic concerns diminished. He loved the campus and saw many simi larities to WIS. The school is also bilingual and has native English speakers teaching English. Additionally, most students are Spanish, so there will be authentic immer sion for WIS students.

“I’m very, very excited about the com patibility and the similarity and vision for this exchange,” Althaus said.

One thing Althaus regrets giving up is the unique experience of visiting the coun try of Peru. “Many of [the students] had never been to Peru, and generally came back a lot more transformed from the trip than a place like Spain, where many fam ilies have already been,” he said. But the challenges of finding a compatible school in Peru and previous setbacks made it nec essary to turn to other options.

In terms of COVID protocols for the trip, WIS students will follow the typical guidelines and rules of the country. The schools have a Memorandum of Under standing (MOU) that includes COVID con tingency plans if a student gets infected. There will be testing and monitoring stu dents’ health, and teachers will facilitate an extension stay, paid for by the schools, if needed for the quarantine period. In terms of masking, if there are no clear guidelines, WIS will use their own.

León is looking forward to the ex change and is excited about the partner ship with Colegio Estudio, but still doesn’t fully know what the experience will be like, as this is new for everyone. “We know in theory [what to expect], but we haven’t been there. We haven’t been in the process, in the exchange,” she said.

Currently, she is in the midst of plan ning and scheduling the student activities in Madrid with the other Spanish teachers. She intends to alter some parts of the pro gram from previous years so that students will become more in touch with the local culture.

“[We want] something more, where you can integrate more [with] the people who live in the city,” León said. “More than just the history and the monuments and the architecture.”

Althaus looks forward to seeing stu dent growth and ending the year with a more unified class, something he believes was lost in the past few years during the pandemic. “My hope is that we get back to what I used to see, as the large transfor mation of student responsibility, indepen dence and connection,” he said.

Q & A

Sara Sonsalla: Following in her mother’s footsteps

By SELENA SAID, 2026

Sara Sonsalla is the new Upper School Coun selor, replacing Kelsey Morgan. During an interview with Dateline, Sonsalla discussed why she chose to become a counselor, her fa vorite ways to spend her free time and more.

International Dateline (ID): Where are you from?

Sara Sonsalla: I grew up in New Jersey and I have spent the second part of my life in D.C. I went to American [University] as an undergrad and stayed here for eight more years. I was in Philly for two years [work ing] in a low-income charter high school. Then, I moved to New York City for about 14 months.

ID: How did you know you wanted to pur sue this career?

Sonsalla: My mom was a disabilities coun selor at the college level my whole life. I always saw the relationships that she formed with her students and the things that she did for them, and helped them get through some really hard times, even not social-emotionally, but physically and mentally. That was really inspirational for me.

ID: What do you love to do in your free time?

Sonsalla: I like to play every sport. I’m willing to try literally any sport. I like just wandering in nature, finding random parks to go to and having picnics. I also like wan dering the National Mall and reading.

ID: Who is your favorite fictional charac ter from any movie, book or TV show?

Sonsalla: One is Dottie Hinson from “A League of Their Own.” When World War II started, all the men [were] drafted over seas, so they started baseball for women and she was their star athlete. I also love Giselle, from the movie “Enchanted.” I just love that she’s so naive but, at the same time, she has the most tender heart.

The Classes of 2023, 2024 and 2026 during their various language exchange experiences: The Class of 2023 in Paris on the last regular language trip before the pandemic. Class of 2024 students in the French program, who received correspon dents but did not travel to Paris due to the pandemic. The Class of 2026 on a non-exchange trip to Puerto Rico this spring.

GRAPHIC BY NAOMI BREUER; PHOTOS COURTESY OF ABIGAIL BOWN, ZOE HÄLLSTRÖM AND FEDERICO PISANO

LUCA CRUZ/INTERNATIONAL DATELINE

New Upper School Counselor Sara Sonsalla sits at her desk in the AAA Building.

opinion

Guide to the U.S. 2022 Midterm Elections

By ZACHARY S. PAN, 2023

Election season is here. On Nov. 8, 2022, voters across the country will decide the outcome of the midterm elections. At stake is control of the U.S. House of Representa tives and the Senate, along with dozens of state and local governments.

To help you make sense of the mid terms, Dateline is introducing its first ever election guide. The following guide in cludes coverage of important issues and key races along with predictive insights.

Issues

Midterm elections are generally a referen dum on the President’s party, which puts Democrats at a disadvantage: President Biden has an approval rating mired in the low 40s and has faced difficulty exciting the Democratic base. That being said, there are four primary issues that will shape the midterms: Inflation, Abortion, Democracy and the Jan. 6 Capitol Attack and Immigra tion.

Inflation is the top concern for voters, according to recent polling by Marist Uni versity. 30% of registered voters say that their vote will be most affected by infla tion, which has topped 8.2%, according to the latest Federal Reserve estimates. Mil lions of Americans have seen the price of basic goods increase and inflation is a bad issue for Democrats.

Abortion is another issue that will af fect the midterms. 22% of voters say abor tion is the most important issue following the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in June. Republicans led by Sena tor Lindsey Graham (R-SC) have vowed to pass legislation banning abortions after 15 weeks if they retake Congress. That posi

tion is distinctly unpopular and abortion is a good issue for Democrats.

Jan. 6 and Democracy: 9% of voters say that the Jan. 6 insurrection is the most important midterm issue following the Jan. 6 committee hearings. The issue has taken center stage as Republicans have nominat ed dozens of election conspiracy theorists and “stop the steal” activists in key states. Jan. 6 and Democracy is a good issue for Democrats.

Immigration: 9% of voters say immi gration is the most important issue for the midterm elections. Apprehensions at the southern border have topped two million this year and Republican governors have recently stirred controversy by sending thousands of immigrants to Democratic leaning cities. Immigration is perceived to be a bad issue for Democrats.

GRAPHIC BY ZACHARY S. PAN

Other issues such as Crime, Educa tion and Gun Control motivate voters as well, though it remains to be seen how they will impact the elections.

Ratings: The House leans Republican, meaning that Republicans are favored to retake the House. The Senate tilts Demo cratic, meaning that Democrats are slight ly favored to retain Senate control.

Predictions: Democrats have a slight chance of an upset in the House, but Date line is predicting a post election outcome of 223 Republican seats and 212 Demo cratic seats. In the Senate, we predict an election outcome of 50 Democratic seats and 49 Republican seats with Georgia go ing to a Senate runoff election.

international dateline October 2022

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Key Senate Races

In the Senate, Democrats have a strong group of candidates, while Republican nominees have struggled. Democrats also benefit from a favorable midterm map and have to defend fewer seats then Repub licans. However, Democrats have to run against political headwinds generated by Biden’s low approval ratings.

AZ: Mark Kelly, Rating: Lean D Democratic Senator Mark Kelly is a strong incumbent. A former astronaut, Mark Kel ly has a high approval rating and has been a prolific fundraiser. He is favored in his reelection bid against Republican Blake Masters, a former hedge fund manager.

GA: Raphael Warnock, Rating: Tossup. Reverend Raphael Warnock, former pastor at Martin Luther King Jr.’s Ebenezer church, is one of the most endangered Democratic Senators. Al though Warnock has been a strong fundraiser and is rela tively popular, Georgia is a historically Republican state. The Republican candidate is former football star Herschel Walker, a man with a history of domestic abuse and erratic be havior. However, Walker is benefiting from millions of dollars in outside spending. It is likely that the election will go to a run off.

NV: Catherine Cortez Masto, Rating: Tossup.

Democratic Senator Catherine Cortez Mas

to is the first Latina to represent Nevada in the Senate. She is running against former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt, who has embraced election conspiracies. Masto will benefit from a number of con servative third party candidates on the ballot but is up against President Biden’s low approval ratings in Nevada.

WI: Ron Johnson, Rating: Tossup. Senator Ron Johnson’s seat is only com petitive due to his unpopularity. However, Democratic challenger Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes is facing a deluge of outside Re publican spending. The race is tight and Barnes’ initial momentum has faded.

NC: Open, Rating: Tilt R

The retirement of Republican Senator Richard Burr has created a competitive race in North Carolina. Former North Car olina Chief Justice Cheri Beasley is the Democratic nominee, while Repub lican Congress man Ted Budd is the Republican candidate. President Biden is unpopular in North Carolina and Beasley faces tough head winds.

PA: Open, Rating: Lean D (Flip)

The retirement of Republican Senator Pat Toomey has given Democrats their best chance for a Senate pickup. The Democratic candidate is Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, a 6’8” populist with a strong base in Western PA. The Republican nominee, celebrity doctor Mehmet Oz, has struggled to gain traction and has faced questions about whether he lives in Pennsylvania. The biggest wildcard in the race is Fetterman’s health, as the Lt. Governor suffered a stroke in July.

Key House Races

In the House, the electoral map is slightly biased towards Republicans due to redis tricting. Democrats will have to run the ta ble in order to maintain their majority.

PA-08: Matt Cartwright, Rating: Tossup. Pennsylvania’s eighth district is located in North East Pennsylvania and encompass es the cities of Scranton and Wilkes-Barre. The district has swung hard to the right over the past decade, but Democratic in cumbent Matt Cartwright is popular. If Democrats hold this seat, it will demon strate that they can still win in areas domi nated by working class white voters.

PA-07: Susan Wild, Rating: Tilt R (Flip) Pennsylvania’s second district is another critical battleground. The district encompass es affluent, historically con servative suburbia in the Lehigh Valley. Earlier this summer, Democratic incumbent Susan Wild seemed destined for defeat, but the abortion issue has given her a chance. Should Susan Wild win, it would demonstrate that abortion rights are a salient issue for voters. If Dem ocrats win seats like PA-07, they will likely keep the House.

VA-02: Elaine Luria, Rating: Tossup. Virginia’s second district encompasses suburban Virginia Beach and exurban and rural areas further inland. Democrat Elaine Luria is seen as a rising star, serving as a member of the Jan. 6 committee. Howev

er, Virginia’s second district became sig nificantly more conservative after redis tricting. Luria will likely have to gain the support of some moderate, traditionally Republican voters in Virginia Beach to win.

OH-09: Marcy Kaptur, Rating: Tilt D Democratic incumbent Marcy Kaptur is the longest serving woman in Congress, but her district was recently redrawn to be sig nificantly more conservative. While Kaptur can still rely on her home base of Toledo, her electoral position has become more tenuous. However, Kaptur will benefit from the weakness of her Republican challeng er, J.R. Majewski, who attended the Capitol riot.

AZ-01: David Schweikert, Rating: Tilt R Far-right Republican incumbent David Schweikert is fac ing a spirited challenge from Democrat Jevin Hodges. Sch weikert is con fronting multiple ethics investigations which have under mined his position in an affluent, tradi tionally Republican district.

CA-27: Mike Garcia, Rating: Tossup. Republican in cumbent Mike Garcia represents a strongly Democratic, subur ban Los Angeles district. Garcia has won under tough conditions in the past, but Democrats are heavily targeting him this year, and his support for abortion bans is unpopular in the district.

NM-03: Yvette Herrell, Rating: Tossup. Another Republican with ethics woes, Yvette Herrell is facing a strong chal lenge from Democratic State Senator Gabe Vasquez. The district is mostly rural, but contains a portion of suburban Albuquerque.

Who voters want to control Congress according to an aggregate of recent poll ing. Republicans have secured a slight lead after modestly increasing their sup port over the past month.

sports

Sopher’s new coaching style ignites Boys Varsity Soccer team

By KAS SALEHI and LEO SARZI, 2025

Upper School Math teacher Andrew So pher, now in his fourth year of coaching soccer at WIS, has made a clear imprint on the school’s soccer program.

Since becoming head coach of the Boys Varsity and Junior Varsity (JV) Soccer teams this year, as opposed to an assistant, Sopher has a clear vision of what he wants from his players. “[I want] someone coach able, who’s willing to put the work in day in and day out, and somebody who’s re spectful on and off the field to [their] team mates,” he said.

Sopher began emphasizing the im portance of hard work the minute the final whistle blew at the end of WIS’ season last fall by setting up an after-school weight program for players. With many varsity and JV players working out multiple times a week during the off-season, Coach So pher thinks this will make WIS more com petitive in matches.

“As the season goes on, there’s physi cality in the varsity games,” he said. “The stronger we are individually, the more possession we can keep, which can lead to more fouls drawn.”

This change is one that Sopher hopes to build on over the next few years. “If players are lifting all season, they’ll be per haps in better shape when they come in for tryouts in the fall,” he said. “The big gest thing is continuing to build the weight training program [and] getting more play ers to buy into it so that they can improve their physicality.”

Another of Sopher’s new initiatives is the implementation of a 3-5-2 formation,

as opposed to a traditional 4-3-3. The 3-52 employs three central defenders with five midfielders above them and two attackers leading the line.

“The main reason is we have a plethora of good midfielders who can run the game,” he said. “The idea would be that our wing backs are getting forward [and are] able to play in a wide space. The width of a 3-5-2 gives us an opportunity to switch the ball, stretch the defense out and get in behind.”

Coach Sopher has also utilized sta

tistics to assess the team’s strengths and weaknesses. “[The most important statis tics are] pass com pletion and shots on target, and then shots on target also for the other team,” he said. “It shows us how well we’re com peting defensively, how many chances we’re creating and how precise and consistent we are with keeping possession of the ball.”

ably be between three and five players from JV who will move up,” he said. “It’ll create more competition with varsity, it’ll add depth to our lineup and it’ll offer more variety [to] what our team can offer.”

ANDREW SOPHER

Sopher also believes rewatching filmed moments from the games is vital. “[It has] helped this year’s team see the mistakes visually and not just reading statistics on paper,” he said.

As the season approaches the Potomac Valley Athletic Conference (PVAC) and District of Columbia State Athletics As sociation (DCSAA) championships, Coach Sopher hopes that his efforts will pay off.

One of his plans for states is to cre ate a roster of between 25 and 30 players, which he believes will be essential for the team’s success. “When it comes time for a state tournament, or even the PVAC tour nament, for that matter, it’s crucial to have at least three players in every position… even if they aren’t given a chance to play,” he said. “For me to have the best team to win, I need to have as many players who are able to play in each position because each player brings a little bit of difference.”

This constant rotation of the roster is another important factor in the team’s philosophy this season. “When the JV sea son ends in mid-October, there will prob

Looking to the future, Sopher hopes to continue strengthening WIS’s soccer program. His main goals “would be for individual players to improve, which means the team will improve, and by the end of the season, the team has an out come that is most suitable for them.”

Karin Kaneda: Synchronized skating sensation

By ZOE HÄLLSTRÖM, 2024

IB students often struggle with how little time they have to do homework on top of their extracurriculars. Now, imagine hav ing to do your homework in addition to dedicating over 27 hours per week to one extracurricular activity… This is junior Karin Kaneda’s reality.

Kaneda has been ice skating for 12 years. When she was a young child, her parents put her in almost every single ex tracurricular available in the area, hoping that she would enjoy one. “Skating stuck because I was probably the best at it,” Ka neda said.

In fifth grade, Kaneda specialized in synchronized skating during the No vember to March season, in addition to solo dance during the March to Septem ber season.

Synchronized skating was formed in 1956 and is a relatively small sport with about 600 registered synchronized teams in the Unit ed States. In synchronized skat ing, teams of eight to 20 skaters across 18 levels perform chal lenging formations and step sequenc es together.

Kaneda is currently in her third year at the Junior level, the sec ond-highest non-adult level. Her skating program, D.C. EDGE, synchronized skating the D.C. metro area, does not offer the highest non-adult level, the Senior level, so she is working towards improving at the Junior level.

Her team meets for skating prac tice 18 hours per week and off-rink training for over four hours per week. Off-rink practice includes ballet, ballroom dance, pilates and conditioning at the gym through weight lifting and cardio.

“It’s really hard to find times where, one, the rink is open and two, everyone can

come so [practice is] either late at night or very early in the morning,” Kaneda said. Kaneda also skates individually for at least three hours each week, up to 15 hours per week before major competitions and does around two hours of off-rink prac tice per week on her own.

At the level that Kaneda is at, skating is a family commitment and her parents invest a lot of money and

Nevertheless, Kaneda’s parents are supportive of her skating. “They’re definitely happy that I’m doing syn chronized skating because it gives you a lot of aspects that you can grow, such as teamwork and leadership,” she said.

Kaneda notes that the team dy namics depend on the year and the people on the team. “This year, some people like being in a lead ership position, some people fol low,” she said. “Some people are less friendly with each other, but we’re still able to work together and practice.”

Kaneda has mostly had the same coaches for the past five years and feels that they put a lot of pressure on the team. “A lot of the people on our team do not like how they deal with us, and how sometimes it’s inhumane,” she said. “[But] at the end of the day, we are [doing] what we need to do.”

One of Kaneda’s accomplish ments is being selected for Team USA for the past two seasons. Every season, she competes with her team at seven national competitions and one in ternational competition.

Her team travels together a few days before the competition to adjust to the climate and the time zone. After they participate in official practices, they skate in the competition in an order that is

decided by a lottery.

Kaneda feels a lot of pressure as indi vidual mistakes are counted as the team’s mistakes. “15 other people’s goals, and all this time and effort they put into it, is on you,” she said.

However, once she starts skating, she gets adrenaline and enjoys herself. “It’s fun just looking at the faces of the crowd and the judges and seeing how they react to your skating,” she said.

Ultimately, competitions are Kaneda’s favorite aspect of skating. “After a good skate or accomplishing something, being able to be happy about it with your team mates and knowing that you put in effort to achieve the goal that’s not just your own, but other people’s too [is rewarding],” she said.

One of Kaneda’s favorite skates was in 2015 when her team got a national bronze medal for the first time. “It’s the first time I remember seeing all of our coaches cry,” she said.

Kaneda’s other favorite was her team’s best skate at the 2022 TISSOT Neuchâtel Trophy in Neuchâtel, Switzerland. “That was a really big feeling of accomplish ment,” she said. “They’re cheering for you, but they’re cheering for your team and your country, so then it feels like you’re really representing something bigger than yourself.”

Kaneda recognizes that she has had to sacrifice a lot, especially her time, to ac complish all that she has. “On the social aspect, it’s not that nice,” she said.

Nonetheless, she believes that her dedication to skating is worth it. “At the end of the day, getting Team USA and be ing able to compete internationally, I’d say it’s worth it in the long run,” she said. “But then it’s also trying to convince yourself that it is.”

To follow Karin Kaneda’s skating jour ney, follow her team @dcedgejuniorusa on Instagram.

Synchronized skater Karin Kaneda was part of Team USA for the 20212022 season.

COURTESY OF KARIN KANEDA

Karin Kaneda’s synchronized skat ing team, D.C. EDGE Juvenile, wins bronze at the U.S. Synchronized Skat ing Championships in 2019. Kaneda is second from the left.

COURTESY OF KARIN KANEDA

““For me to have the best team to win, I need to have as many players who are able to play in each position because each player brings a little bit of a difference.”

COURTESY OF ANGÉLIE TALAPATRA

Boys Varsity coach Andrew Sopher sets up cones before a game.

DERIN KIRTMAN/INTERNATIONAL DATELINE

The Boys Varsity Soccer Team huddles during a game.

By LAUREN BROWNELL, 2023

Buskers play music on the sidewalk as nu merous customers browse each tent. The smell of freshly-baked empanadas wafts through the building. Shoppers try pieces of freshly-cut fruit and wait in line for de licious treats.

Eastern Market, completed in 1873, was designed by a German-born immi grant named Adolf Cluss. By the early 20th century, Eastern Market was known as the center of Capitol Hill. Now a historic land mark, the market has expanded to selling wares both within the building and along 7th St. SE.

Weekends are typically the busiest, with crowds of people browsing jewelry, clothes, posters and prints. Additionally, from fruits and vegetables to bread and meat, Eastern Market has a wide variety of ingredients and food to choose from.

The Market Lunch, one of the most popular stands in the Eastern Market building, specializes in Italian sandwich es. Outside of the building, many visitors are attracted to the aroma of West African style grilled chicken sold at Spicy Water, a well-known food stand. There are also veg an and vegetarian-friendly options avail able, such as Zoe’s Vegan Delight.

Eastern Market’s surrounding area also includes many attractions. Call Your Mother, a popular bagel shop, and The Duck & The Peach, a modern brunch spot, are just a few blocks away. Turtle Park, a one-minute walk from the Eastern Market building, is perfect for a picnic on a sunny day.

Finally, Eastern Market is very acces sible via metro on the Blue, Orange and Silver Lines. Prices are between $5 and $20: a reasonable fee for a delicious meal. With options ranging from food trucks to produce, Eastern Market has something for everyone.

By TINDRA JEMSBY, 2026

Mika Shino, WIS parent of two, got a call from Whole Foods this January offering to stock her mochi product in 192 US stores. Issei, Shino’s startup, was expected to pro duce, package and ship 3000 pounds of mochi in the next seven months, a break neck turnaround for a two-year-old busi ness with no manufacturing company.

Born in Kyoto, Japan, Shino grew up surrounded by appreciation for traditional arts. Kyoto is a city where “different tradi tional arts and crafts like kimono making, obi making and traditional foods are still very much preserved,” according to Shino.

She was also influenced by those around her, as many of her family mem bers were makers. “I come from a family of artists and creators and people taking the un-treaded path,” she said.

Shino was starkly reminded of this part of her identity during the pandemic, as she was one of many to be the victim of an Asian hate crime.

“I was attacked during the pandemic in the parking lot of the Whole Foods where my products are featured right now,” Shi no said. “When I was going back to my car, this old woman tried to run me over with her car and screamed at me, ‘You Chinese virus.’”

For weeks after the experience, it was difficult for Shino to leave her house to shop.

Now, Shino is able to go into the very same store that she was attacked outside of and see her product on the shelves, a gratifying experience for the business owner. Her product is situated in the “Can dy” section beside other bestselling prod ucts, rather than in the “Ethnic” section: a finetuned balance between tradition and mainstream.

“It was really important for me, espe cially during all the attacks against Asians,

arts

Eastern Market, located in D.C.’s Cap itol Hill neighborhood, offers a wide variety of foods, fashion and history.

to create something that Asians could be proud of,” she said.

Kyoto to Whole Foods: A WIS parent’s mochi businessEastern Market: Capitol Hill’s cultural hub

The sweet pearls of mochi that she makes stem from traditional Japanese methods, a delicate art which is relatively unknown to US manufacturers. “I had to change facilities three times because no body knows how to work with rice flour,” Shino said.

“With only three months to delivery date, we found a production partner who believed in our vision and wanted to go all in,” Shino wrote on her LinkedIn page. “That is when things really began to break down. The main equipment didn’t arrive. Our other support equipment began to fail, almost immediately. We ran out of ingredients. The packaging was delayed and mis printed.”

Due to this lack of production capa bility, Shino had to hand-cut each pound of mochi in order to be ready in time for the order. Biting back pain as she cooked, cut, packaged and prepared the mochi for weeks on end, the hours seemed endless; she even developed tendonitis in both of her wrists.

However, her diligence was not for nothing, as her mochi gummies became a huge hit around the country. “I have mes sages on my Instagram from people saying, ‘I went to Malibu, Santa Monica, West LA [but] they’re all sold out. What should I do?’” Shino said. The same goes for stores in the DMV area; the Georgetown, Bethes da, Rockville and P Street shops selling her products have no Issei mochi left on their shelves.

Shino was one of many business own

ers to apply for the Whole Foods open call last year, but she wasn’t expecting her product to be selected. “We were so far from having a final product, but I thought, ‘Let’s just try it,’” Shino said. “Worst case, they’d just say no. And then they said yes.”

Despite the product’s instant suc cess, the baker confessed to knowing little about business before becoming an entre preneur. “I didn’t know anything about the food business,” she said. “I didn’t know anything about manufacturing, packaging, barcodes, nothing.”

MIKA SHINO

In addition, her goal of staying natural has been a continuous uphill battle. In Japan, mochi is either filled with stabilizers and addi tives or it’s considered a perishable food. “You make it mostly for the day and you sell it at a mochi bakery, and you can’t sell it the next day,” Shino said.

Shino’s food scientist, Brandon Jahner, found out that the food industry is filled with questionable hacks to preserve can dies, something Shino wanted to stay away from by creating a truly chemical-free snack.

According to Jahner, other companies use “natural flavors” such as crushed up insects and insect secretions disguised un der the name “confectioner’s glaze” to add shine to their treats. Additionally, some mochi products in Asia were even found to be using diaper filler in their recipes, which is not meant to be ingested.

Although this research process was challenging in many ways, it was fueled by Shino’s passion and it all came togeth er in the end. “As soon as you have a great product, and you really put your heart into making the best product, I feel like every thing else kind of falls into place,” she said.

A guide to thrifting effectively and respectfully

By SOFÍA VAKIS, 2025

The past few years have popularized thrift shopping (“thrifting”) in Gen Z practical ly overnight. Though buying secondhand clothes was once looked down upon, now it’s considered cool.

Social media has brought the envi ronmental impact of fast fashion to the spotlight. Globally, the fashion industry produces 92 million metric tonnes (one metric tonne is 2,204 pounds) of textile waste every year. Due to the constant cycle of trends that fast fashion brands create, most people in the U.S. will wear an arti cle of clothing fewer than ten times before throwing it out.

With the cost of environmental conse quences in mind and the resurgence of Y2K and other vintage styles in mainstream fashion, people are looking for alternative ways to be stylish while helping the plan et. Although thrifting offers an exciting substitute for shopping for new clothes, it can be hard to know where, when and how to start. The following tips are a guide to make you a pro thrifter!

Decide where you’re going to thrift. If you want to thrift but don’t know where to start, think of what kind of clothes you want to buy and how much you want to spend. Thrift stores usually have con temporary clothing for low prices, while vintage stores offer a curated selection of clothing that’s usually more expensive and specific to the era or style the store adver tises.

Flea markets and estate sales are a great place to find a little bit of everything. In flea markets, vendors sell different types of clothing, furniture, decor and handmade crafts, while at estate sales, owners put up good sales on otherwise expensive items.

Fashion YouTuber bestdressed recom mends keeping a “thrift store diary” where you record places you’ve shopped at, what you found, prices and which sections were especially good or bad to help you decide where to thrift in the future.

Decide when to go.

Weekday afternoons are the calmest days to thrift. Although it’s tempting, try to avoid the weekend rush.

If you are committed to finding a spe cific piece or want to get the best experi ence possible, find out what days of the week your local thrift store restocks and go on those days. There will be a wider selec tion of clothing and trending items won’t have been bought yet.

Go in with a strategy.

Make sure you know what you are looking for beforehand. Create a list and bring it with you so you don’t get overwhelmed by all the options once in the store. Bringing a list will keep you from getting distracted and getting things you won’t actually wear.

For example, if you are looking for oversized T-shirts, go straight to the men’s section. If you are looking for crop tops, try the children’s section before going to women’s.

Search by material.

Once in the store, look for good quality materials like silk, cashmere, velvet, cordu roy, lace, denim and cotton. Avoid polyes ter and acrylic knits. These materials don’t age well and won’t last for a long time.

Although thrifting brands like H&M, Forever 21 and Shein is better than if you were to buy them new, avoid fast fashion brands famous for their bad quality cloth

ing altogether.

Always check whether what you are buying needs to be dry cleaned before pay ing for it. Dry cleaning can cost double or triple what you paid for the piece of cloth ing!

Dress for success.

Many thrift stores don’t have dressing rooms or have a long line to use them. To maximize your time, wear leggings and a tight T-shirt or tank top so you can try things on top quickly and efficiently.

Remember online thrifting exists!

If there aren’t many thrift stores near your house, or you are an online shopping per son, thrifting can still be for you! Sites like ThredUp, an online thrift store, have mil lions of pieces to browse from. Depop and Poshmark are online marketplaces where vendors can sell directly to their custom ers. To find what you’re looking for on on line thrifting sites like these, use the filters to narrow down the thousands of options by brand, color, material, size, fit and more.

Be a mindful and respectful thrifter.

Although it can be tempting to buy bigger sizes of clothing to tailor or wear oversized, if you generally have an easy time finding clothes your size, leave those finds on the shelf or rack for people who can’t comfort ably size up or down.

If you have the resources to buy new or are planning to resell online, don’t buy in bulk to resell at a much higher price. And if you see a piece of clothing on the ground or in the wrong place, do the store’s staff a favor and put it back in its place. They’ll appreciate it!

“

“I was attacked during the pandemic in the parking lot of the Whole Foods where my products are featured right now.”

backpage

1 Greek lord of the Underworld.

6 Pandemic…?

9 Recently shortened rapper’s name.

12 Part of WIS, abbreviated.

13 Sound of mockery, e.g.

14 Nickname for a previous US president.

15 Grill team, WIS__.

16 Newark-parallel route from Connecticut to Wisconsin.

18 Back Page podcast hosted by Derin and Andrea.

21 Sound of disgust, e.g.

22 Battery building.

23 Slither, Skribbl, Agar…

24 “Table” in Chile.

27 Congrats, you go here.

29 Apps or analysis, SL or HL, taught by P, M, S and B.

30 Everybody’s favorite Canadian Middle School Math teacher.

32 I ______ the Zoom call late.

33 Alas, not a state.

35 You have one per period.

36 Buck, Beck, Burk and ______.

38 Prep for 19 Down.

40 A friendly greeting, backwards.

41 Something that often splits; part of a pen.

42 Get out, underclassmen.

44 Point average shown on report card.

46 2022 Best Picture Oscar winner.

47 Long ago, archaically.

2 You need this for archery.

3 Double helix.

4 Latin, and so forth.

5 Sometimes followed by 61 Down.

7 Sound of surprise, e.g.

8 One of the Devil’s favorite restaurants on Connecticut.

9 Fifth word of FRIENDS theme song.

10 Not the beginning, not mid dle…

11 Alternate name for WIS mascot.

14 The Bad Place resident.

49 2D or 3D.

51 A 2017 Disney movie with a marigold underworld.

53 ‘Normal’ schools do this; not IB.

55 Hoco, pep rally, pied-faces.

56 Most-watched Winter Olympics form of Karin Kaneda’s sport.

59 In the event that; condition; supposition.

62 Acronym for drama elective. 64 2022 WIS Mock Trial theme.

65 Acronym for craft elective.

66 “________ llegó a los Estados Unidos hace treinta años.”

69 DP 4,000-word writing.

70 Commerce and finance class, abbreviated.

72 Eternal.

74 Often preceded by 12 Across; zone across from the Prime Meridian

76 “Essay,” phonetically.

77 ____ Pink, legendary Dateline Editor-in-Chief.

79 Crocker, Hannah and Coviello.

80 Wooden tub or pail.

82 In such a manner.

84 Affirmative.

85 International council featuring Thunberg,

17 Weaves together.

19 College admissions test.

20 A science class, in short.

24 Apple app for communication.

25 Italian volcano.

26 Helps; assists.

27 Second part of now non-existent thrifting club.

28 Senior zone.

29 “Mika Shino, WIS parent of two, got a call from Whole Foods this January offering to stock her ___ product in 192 US stores.”

31 IB café boss.

33 A South Asian person.

34 Fee, __, foe, fum…

36 Bach two skull knight.

37 Cars manufactured by a company in South Korea.

38 Sports league acronym; similar to the letters of a common plumbing pipe.

39 Latin suffix forming plural words.

41 Form of clothes bought effectively as described by Sofía Vakis’ article.

42 Stenographic Google app.

43 Much ___ About Nothing.

Who has the most pie-able face?

45 That report when your parents finally get to see your grades.

48 A starchy Asian plant.

50 Initials of singer-songwriter who recently released Midnights album.

52 Something that you aren’t if you get a Tardy Unexcused.

54 It gets shorter the more you use it.

57 Acronym of a Diploma Program form of examination. 58 Utilize. 59 Scanned in the lunch line.

60 Freshmen.

61 Full range of ______.

63 Highest card in a deck.

66 Cornell, two-column, e.g.

67 Problematic lunch feature.

68 Advanced level classes in Grades 11 and 12.

71 WIS mascot item of clothing.

73 ____ern Market, the “center of Capitol Hill.”

75 Student council for minority.

78 Acronym for school system where Denise Rodriguez now works.

81 “My” in Venezuela.

Q & A with the Red Devil

By NAOMI BREUER, 2024

For the first time ever, Dateline sat down with the school mascot, the Red Devil himself, to answer WIS’s burning questions. Quotes have been edited for clarity.

What is your name and where are you from?

My name is Devil and I’m from WIS. I was born in the gym. I emerged from hell to the gym.

What do you do on a day-to-day basis?

I live with the P.E. teachers. They keep me in their room. And I am al ways working out 24/7. And then if I’m not, I’m on the field.

What is your favorite thing about WIS?

I’d say definitely the people. The people are really nice. The teachers are really great. The sports are great, especial ly soccer. This year, we’ve been really strong.

What is your favorite shop on Connecticut Avenue?

Well, I don’t really buy things, but I do eat a lot. So I’d probably say either Vace or Fresh Med. That’s my go-to.

Do you know if the suit gets cleaned?

I don’t think it does. It doesn’t get cleaned. All we do [is] spray Lysol, and we hope for the best. Last time I put it on, it had red facepaint inside and my face was covered in red.

What’s been your fa vorite Devil TikTok?

Oh, that’s a tough one. There were a lot of the good ones. I think the best one to film was the Mansion bathroom one. That was a lot of fun.

Where did the Devil learn how to dance so well?

The Devil was just born to dance. He just always had it in him. It’s in his DNA.

CROSSWORD BY TINDRA JEMSBY AND EILEEN MALONEY CUNNINGHAM