Amplifier 2021-2022 Senior Edition (Volume 102 - Issue 2) by wlhsNOW

Amplifier West Linn High School

TRAIL BLAZER West Linn, Ore. / Volume 102 / Issue 2 / Spring 2022

The story of an historic May Court victory.

LETTER FROM THE EDITORS AUDREY LIPPERT print editor-in-chief KARINA ROWER web editor-in-chief LILY GOTTSCHLING copy editor-in-chief HELENA ERDAHL coverage editor-in-chief

In our final Amplifier edition of the 2021-2022 school year, we aimed to create a collection of stories encompassing the innovation, moxie, and grit that affect change in times of distress and humility in times of triumph. Our cover story, “Trail Blazer,” tells the story of historic change to a century-old tradition while our closing story, “Crescendoing to confidence,” tells the story of a return to victory two years after the start of the pandemic. As we prepared to craft this edition, the editorial board agreed that this senior edition couldn’t fall prey to the cliches normally used to curate

the last edition of the school year. Rather than reflecting on what may have gone wrong, or the moments missed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we chose to see the path ahead, paved by the class of 2022. Thank you to our seniors for dusting yourselves off in the face of a remarkable challenge and demonstrating fearlessness, tenacity, and benevolence. This issue is for you. Additionally, we want to thank our readers for your time— we hope the stories of coping, making a voice for oneself, and calling out issues that demand fixing resonate with you as much as they have with us.

SYDNEY MCCRONE social media editor Staff Reporter: MYRTLE GUARISCO JOSEPH MURPHY MALLORY COOPER EDEN PEPOS KAELYN JONES KARTER HILL DANIKA LAMBERT LILLY AUGUSTYN JOSHUA CRISMAN MIRANDA ORDONEZ GIANNI TIGANESCU AUTUMN GALLAGHER

Thank you. Your editors,

Audrey Lippert

Helena Erdahl

Karina Rower

Lily Gottschling

TWITTER: @wlhsamplifier @wlhsNOWmedia FACEBOOK: @westlinn.amplifier INSTAGRAM: @wlhsNOW SNAPCHAT: @ wlhsNOW YOUTUBE: wlhsNOW The Amplifier is published bi-anually by the West Linn High School journalism class. Opinions expressed in the commentaries and editiorials represent those of the writer, and are not necessarily the opinions of the West Linn High School, its administration, faculty, staff, or student body.

CONTENTS CURRENT EVENTS 4 6

Revitalizing a refuge Robotics: the future of engineering

LIFESTYLE 8 10

De-glamorizing diet culture Finding support

FEATURE 12 16 18

Trail blazer Little power, big impact 10 questions with Sarah Talbert

SPORTS 19 20

Senior send off ‘There’s no better motivation than yourself’

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT 22 24 26 28

Heartstopper: convinced/skeptical Music to your ears The year in concerts Crescendoing to confidence

Refuge

REVITALIZING A

BY KAELYN JONES staff reporter n the Pacific Northwest, wetlands are among the most endangered habitats. In Washington and Oregon, at least 50% of areas that were originally wetlands have been lost to agricultural and urban development. An even higher percentage have decayed due to invasive species and pollution. “A lot of the wetlands are being drained and filled in, and then [developers] come in and build big housing developments on top of them,” said Jeff Dillon, a biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Department. The Steigerwald Wildlife Refuge covers just under 1,050 acres of land in Washougal County, Washington along the Columbia river. These wetlands

include shallow ponds, marshes, and riparian forests, as well as miles of walking trails. Previously, a modified Gibbons Creek ran through the refuge, separated from the Columbia by a levee. It attracts an average 90,000 people per year. For two years, the refuge has been closed to the public for construction. From the beginning of summer 2020 through May 2022, the $31 million Steigerwald Reconnection Project became the largest restoration effort along the Columbia River to date. The project’s main goal was to reconnect Gibbons Creek to the Columbia by removing the 5.5 mile wide levee, which is an embankment built along a river to prevent overflowing, that separated them. Originally, it was put in place to protect the refuge from flooding

during rainy seasons. While it was initially successful, the flood water instead channeled through Gibbons Creek, causing frequent flooding there. Even standard rainfall could result in the flooding of the nearby CamasWashougal Port and other commercial and residential buildings. Allowing Gibbons Creek to return to its natural state mitigates flooding and allows salmon and steelhead to migrate freely. Previously, an ineffective fish ladder had been in place for this purpose- it was also removed as part of restoration. The project also included an array of other environmental improvements. With the levee removed, over 115 acres of new wetlands were added, and the quality of the previously existing areas increased.

“Now that all the earth moving stuff has been done, it’s to go back in and replant with native plants,” said Dillon when asked what the plan for the refuge was. “There are new willows, new cottonwoods being planted. There are some new herbaceous plants that are being planted. New shrub species that are all native.” Throughout the two years that the project was underway, over 14,000 pounds of native seeds were planted, along with over half a million new trees and shrubs. Recreational opportunities were also improved, including more than a mile of new trails. Habitat enhancement was also a focus of the project. BioHabitats Inc., an environmental restoration company based in Portland, placed 84 wooden habitat structures in the area to diversify the ecosystem. These help support a variety of species as well as stabilize the land. The project not only bettered the refuge’s habitat, but also improved the local economy. The new flood water management removed 124 acres of industrial and municipal land from the FEMA-mapped floodplain. Protecting the Port of

Camas-Washougal from flooding will save an estimated $40,000 per year in repairs and damage control. Removing the levee required extensive funding and construction work. From engineers to scientists, planners, and machinery operators, the project generated over 500 jobs. Over 70% of the money that was spent on the restoration efforts stayed in Clark County. This isn’t unique to the Steigerwald Reconnection Project eitheran economic report of habitat restoration projects in Oregon found that $.0.80 of every $1 spent on habitat restoration stays in the county where the project is located and $0.90 stays in the state. Countless animals call the refuge home. According to the US Fish and Wildlife Service, 200 of the 300 known species of birds in Clark County were spotted within the zone, along with 20 species of mammals and 15 reptiles and amphibians. Now that construction is completed, the native animals have already begun to return to the refuge. Steigerwald Wildlife Refuge is now open to all visitors.

PHOTOS AND GRAPHIC BY KAELYN JONES AND FINN HOWELL

ROBOTICS

The Future of Engineering

By Eden Pepos staff reporter

or the first time without rookie advantages, rookie advantages are given to first years teams that make it a little easier. the Robotics team. Team 7034, were finalists in the Newton Division at worlds which was held in Dallas, Texas. The robotics team each year creates a robot which they then use to compete against other high schools at competitions. Each year the team builds a new robot to accomplish new tasks for that year’s course. While Tim Manes, robotics teacher, advises the team, the competition team is student lead. Below is an interview with Sarah Talbert, senior, and Sam Felsted, junior, regarding their participation in robotics. [Eden Pepos]: Can you explain what robotics is to someone who has never heard of robotics? [Sam Felsted]: There’s an organization called FIRST. Every year they release a game. The

“

objective of the game is to build a robot in six weeks to perform to the best of its abilities in the competition. The objective is to score as many points as possible. This year’s game was called Rapid react. The idea is that there’s a goal in the center of the field, and your robot has to pick up oversized tennis balls and shoot them into that goal. You get two points for every shot the robot makes. At the end of the game, there is what’s called the hanger. There’s these monkey bars your robot has to climb up to and you get to surmount points depending on how high your robot climbs. [EP]: Can you discuss what it’s like to be kind of a part of the robotics team or how it might differ from another club? [Sarah Talbert]: It’s a lot of hours of work, but it’s also a really good community, a lot of people that dont know it’s actually structured as a class so we get class credit for it. And so it’s considered a class, club and team, three in one.

It’s more than just the engineering. Working with a team is very important. And robotics is a diverse group of people. Oftentimes you are not going to agree with everyone and working it out and problem solving is a very important aspect of it. -Sam Felsted 6

Photo Credit: Lily Frazier

[EP]:Is there anything you wish people would understand about robotics? [SF]: It’s stereotypically very nerdy but you can really just join and start showing up and learn a thing. You don’t need any experience to join and do well. [ST]: So it operates as a business so we need people doing marketing and outreach as well as people building robots. So it’s not just the engineering side of things. It’s also learning how to run a business and those skills. [EP]: Why did you particularly choose to join robotics? [SF]: When I was nine, my dad took me to a robotics competition. He mentored a lower resource team in South Carolina. And it was a great experience to see what a robotics competition looks like. That was back in 2014.

And there’s teams from all over South Carolina and then the lens and like just other areas of the world as well as a competition. And it’s just really cool to see like, you know, I can do what you can do in high school. [ST]: I joined because my parents encouraged me to join one of the little kids robotics teams, and I’ve been a part of the program ever since. And it’s like it led me onto the path of engineering. So robotics is really like a precursor to what I’ll do for the rest of my life.

Lily Frazier “Robotics Explains Robotics” Video Interview.

Photo Credit: Lily Frazier

Photo Credit: LIly Frazier

De-glamorizing diet culture S

BY SYDNEY MCCRONE social media editor

a strict diet, such as cutting out carbohydrates and sugar, to be able to wear the dress. Not only are Kardashian’s comments promoting unhealthy eating habits, they also tell people around the world that they should lose weight in order to achieve a certain body type. The National Institutes of Health defines a healthy weight loss as one to two pounds per week for up to six months, meaning Kardashian’s 16-pound

ocial media has long since been a source of fake news and false advertising. While we mainly use platforms like Instagram and Twitter to catch up on the latest news or to check in with friends, it can also be a very toxic and harmful place. Celebrities and influencers who use social media as their source of income often try to promote unethical and irresponsible habits when it comes to health and wellness. So when we’re scrolling through TikTok and Facebook for hours on end, how does it impact our mental and physical wellbeing? ‘Diet culture’ has become a popular phrase when referring to the pressure that we feel when it comes to beauty standards and achieving the ‘it’ body type. Throughout the history of stars in the spotlight, we’ve seen different waves of the so-called “perfect” body type. In the 50s, Marilyn PHOTOS COURTESY OF CREATIVE COMMONS Monroe was considered the sex symbol for men and women because of her delicate curves and drop should have happened over glamourous style. However, in the last eight weeks to be considered healthy. several decades, we have adopted the Additionally, while Kardashian has societal goal of becoming unhealthily always denied speculation, cosmetic skinny, and achieving unrealistic body surgeons have suspicions that she has standards. received butt injections, a nose job, At the 2022 Met Gala, Kim multiple breast enhancements, and Kardashian sparked controversy liposuction. after telling an interviewer how she Actress Lili Reinhart best known for prepared for the red carpet event. her work on the teen drama series, Kardashian showed up wearing the “Riverdale,” took to her Instagram same dress that Monroe wore to sing story to speak out against the effects “Happy Birthday” to former President, of diet culture. Although Reinhart John F. Kennedy in 1962, and said didn’t mention her by name, there that she lost 16 pounds in three weeks is speculation that her comments in order to fit into the dress before the were directly related to Kardashian’s gala. She also told Vogue that she wore interview. In one of the story posts she a sauna suit twice a day and followed wrote, “To walk on a red carpet and

do an interview where you say how starving you are … because you haven’t eaten carbs in the last month … all to fit in a f***ing dress?” The following day, Reinhart tweeted and said, “I speak up because I don’t see enough people with large platforms calling out toxic behavior in our industry.” This isn’t the first time that Reinhart has spoken out against behavior regarding body image. In Jan., Reinhart used her Instagram stories to share her experience with fame and how it has affected her own feelings towards her body. “I’ve been struggling with obsessive thoughts about my body/ weight the last few months and it’s gotten pretty severe the last week,” she wrote. In an interview with Everyday Health, Amanda Sauceda, RDN, a registered dietitian who helps people with intuitive eating and gut issues, applauded Reinhart for speaking out against diet culture. “When people call out behavior like [Kardashian’s], it helps bring to light the fact that diet culture very much exists,”Sauceda said. “In the past, we would have seen praise for [Kardashian’s] weight loss splashed on magazine covers without a second thought.” Sauceda brings up an interesting point regarding media and its influence on physical appearance. When we stand in line at the grocery store or pass by a newspaper stand, we often see magazines that have bold, eye-catching headlines that are covered in celebrities’ paparazzi photos. Celebrity magazines are often commenting on the bodies of famous people, labeling them as either out

of shape, or extremely fit. Not only do these magazines make people feel uncomfortable and self-conscious, but they are usually heavily edited and exaggerated in order to fit the tone of their story. Page Six called Jessica Simpson “out of shape” and said she “ballooned” after she had gained a bit of weight. Star Magazine also bodyshamed Kelly Clarkson’s weight gain during her second pregnancy. “[Kardashian] is participating in the glamorization of starvation,” Paula Atkinson, a psychotherapist who specializes in eating disorders and body image says. “It supports anti-fat bias and the ongoing oppression of people based on body shape.” A study published in Sept. 2019 in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research found that low-calorie diets can lead to bone loss and increased

risk of osteoporosis, and that the risk is even greater for people who exercise while restricting calories. Extreme diets also cause problems in the body such as dehydration, low blood sugar, slower metabolism, and breakdown of muscle. The glamorization of diet culture leads to issues that not only affect someone physically, but also mentally. According to Sutter Health, poor nutrition can lead to stress and depression. No one body is built the same, and everyone has different needs and genetics that are unique to them. While diet culture may not disappear completely, it’s important to recognize its harmful impacts, especially for the younger generations who are growing up in the age of social media and photo editing.

TREND SETTERS THROUGH THE DECADES: Marilyn Monroe and Kim Kardashian

Students and staff find ways to take care of mental health increase in help-seeking behavior and increase feelings of overall school connectedness.” igh school can be a stressful Students also have multiple supports time for teenagers, as it’s within the school, which they can turn plagued by adjusting to social to in a time of need. lives, the struggles of growing up, and “So we have our counseling team, academic pressure. Especially nearing we have me, we have Mike Miller, we the end of exam season, students have have our administrative team and our received their fair share of stress. teachers all thinking about mental The administration, teachers, and students have all made efforts towards health and thinking about stress.” Erin O’Malley, a French teacher, is improving methods for dealing with one of the supervisors for the program. stress, and the admin focusing their She agrees that this addition to attention on directing west linn’s environment is students to mental beneficial for student health resources. health. Imo Udoh, junior, Drinking lots of water and “It’s because is a part of Sources eating a balanced diet can I want to make a of Strength, a connection with help can help small imsuicide prevention more students in program at provements to daily health. the building and WLHS. Sources of help them make more Strength focuses on connections amongst organizing events that themselves,” O’Malley support students and tell said. “We have a dynamic group of them they aren’t alone. This program students this year is a three-year operation where they that are hope to give select students the tools

BY HELENA ERDAHL coverage editor-in-chief

to support themselves and others to improve mental health. Last year, they organized a school event where they wrote encouraging messages on slips of paper and gave them to everyone at the school. The program started in 2019 before COVID-19 hit and lockdowns ensued after. Technically 2022 is the second year of the operation but because of COVID-19, this year is seen as the first phase of the program. “I was introduced to Sources of Strength at the beginning of February, and it has been a pretty positive experience,” Udoh said. “We just get together on Thursdays and organize events and talk about coping mechanisms, and we just talk about a variety of things.” Cheryl Wilson, the district social worker, has helped work with Sources of Strength, and the administration has also been involved. “It’s an upstream prevention program to reduce suicide, bullying, and drug and alcohol abuse,” Wilson said. “It helps students engage in an

mental health issues, but they can be helpful strategies. “Just movement during the day and getting outside is essential.” O’Malley said, “Taking a fresh air break, exercising if you’re able to, or just you know, going for a walk around the block, getting enough sleep, eating healthy foods, drinking lots of water. And trying to keep things in perspective, as you’re working through it a class or an assignment.” O’Malley recommends that teachers are here to help you and support students through harder times. Some teachers are flexible in deadlines, tests, and accommodations around mental health issues for students. This is a method in which teachers can seek to help students and their success. “They stress the importance of taking care of your mental health and just giving extensions when they see that you don’t have enough time to do something because your life is so complicated,” Udoh said. “They’re understanding.” Mike Miller, the school psychologist, has a large role in starting Sources Medication and “talk” of Strength, as the district wanted therapy can help allevistudents to have access to mental ate feelings of anxiety health support. He stresses that the and depression, and school staff is open to having students sign up and talk to them so they can help manage it. provide help. working “We’d like to emphasize that stress hard to get more is normal and that it is normal for activities planned for the school and everyone to feel some stress with all the student body and get the the things that are going on,” word out of these different Miller said. “And stress strengths that are can sometimes be good Meditation can help you important to recognize because it helps provide reduce stress and worrywhen things are rough.” us the motivation or ing, and improved health Sources of Strength energy to do things that is one method that we need to, but too much and focus, etc. the school uses to help stress can lead to anxiety students’ mental health and depression. And we want and decrease anxiety within to encourage people that if they’re the student body. For students and feeling too much administrators, everyday tasks can 31% of teens feels better stress, they reach also help alleviate stress and make out to someone after exercise. (American Psychological they can talk to things easier. According to the Mayo Association) Clinic, being physically active, eating a trusted adult in a healthy diet, avoiding unhealthy their life.” habits, and connecting with others can all help alleviate the stresses of everyday life. They aren’t cures for

BEST OF @wlhsNOW

TRAILBLAZER

An updated return to tradition

101 years after the first May Day celebration the tradtion continues, evolving as the decades pass

BY AUDREY LIPPERT print editor-in-chief After a pandemic-induced hiatus lasting two years, West Linn High School’s oldest tradition, May Day, returned in full bloom. A new queen and king were crowned during the production that lasted three hours and featured performances from student-led bands, the Debs, Jazz Band, as well as individual student talents. The court featured 10 princesses and nine princes, as voted on by the students. Mariam Hassan and Karter Hill, both seniors, were voted queen and king by the student body from the list of princesses and princes that had already been elected. The May Pole dance was also performed, and for the first time ever featured boys as well as girls. Traditionally, the May Pole was exclusive to freshman and sophomore girls and draws its roots from a Pagan fertility ritual performed at the beginning of spring. After being crowned May Day queen, Hassan’s photo will join the ranks of 100 other former queens in the downstairs hallway to stare regally down at generations of students to come. Weeks of rehearsals led up to the moment in which her name was announced in the midst of the May Day ceremony and she walked up in a bright red dress to receive her crown. “I thought it was going to be someone else,” Hassan said. “I was looking at the person I thought it was going to be the entire time, and

“I thought it was going to be someone else. I was looking at the person I thought it was going to be the entire time, and I rember I was looking straight at her because I was like, ok it’s you. And then it was me.” - Mariam Hassan I remember I was looking straight at her because I was like, ‘okay it’s you.’ And then it was me.” The vote is announced to the court at the first ceremony, and they find out at the same time as the rest of the school watching from the bleachers. As the first hijabi and Muslim woman to be on the May Court, Hassan had multiple hurdles to jump over in order to participate. “As a freshman I thought there’s no way I could do this, like I could just watch,” Hassan said. “Then at the beginning of this year my friend and I made a joke. We were like, ‘oh my gosh, what if I did Prom Court and I get the red dress or something like that.’ And my friend approached me to say that we should just tryout for it. I was hesitant because obviously I had a lot of things and different kinds of precautions and requirements for me specifically to participate.” Due to her religion, Hassan could not be partnered with a male student for the dance. In order to work around that, the 101 court featured 10 princesses and nine princes. During the ceremony, instead of being escorted by a prince, Avery McDowell, senior, walked arm in arm with Hassan to the center of the stage for her bow. McDowell was one of the night’s emcees along with fellow senior, Mia Garofalo. “I feel like everyone on the court was so kind,” Hassan said. “Every single person and especially this year because I know in 100 years they’ve never done one with a hijabi, and they changed up the dance because they couldn’t do the traditional one since I didn’t

have a partner and couldn’t do the waltz.” The May Court doubles as the Prom Court and members perform choreographed dances at both celebrations. Participants have rehearsals for three hours every Sunday for months leading up to their performances in which the court members practice their dances. Due to the fact that the queen and king are not announced until the ceremony, throughout the rehearsals different pairs practice the dance of the queen and king. “Every single practice became more and more fun,” Hassan said. “Especially when we started getting our petticoats.” All of the dresses worn by the court are custom made for each girl and the event. The princesses are shown color swatches by Annie

Kaiser, the leadership director who helps organize the event, and then get to choose the color of their dress. After picking a color, the princesses were fitted for their dresses at a shop in Portland, they then had a dress rehearsal where they wore the new dresses before having any necessary final alterations made. “Getting ready was definitely my favorite part,” Hassan said. “Nate [Watton] got a speaker and he was blasting music while we were all just kind of getting ready, running around, doing our makeup, and dancing.” Hassan is planning on attending the University of Oregon and majoring in sociology with a minor in criminology. Throughout high school she has been a part of the mock trial team, attending the 2021 Empire World Championship with them in Chicago. After college she hopes to continue down a law path and become a criminal defense attorney. “May Day is such a fun experience,” Hassan said. “I completely recommend it, especially if you think you might not be able to, not that you might not be voted on, but that you literally think you might not be able to. Just talk to Ms. Kaiser.”

Passing the torch Averi Fels, 2020 ASB president, returns to crown the newest May Queen, while May King Karter Hill watches.

Swinging out of senior year The May Court is made up entirely of seniors many of which are ASB officers, like ASB president Lucinda Fein (right).

Ending on a high note

May Day ended with a dance by all members of the May Court to the song Butter by BTS.

The May Day celebration was guided by the night’s emcees Avery McDowell and Mia Garofalo, both seniors. They provided transitions between portions of the event and entertained the crowd by peppering the May Court with questions while performers set up for the next act. As an ASB officer, McDowell was required to participate in the evening’s festivities, however, as opposed to running for court, she decided to be involved in a different manner. “When I first started ASB this year I was kind of considering running for court,” McDowell said. “But then I didn’t really want to do the dance or anything like that, but I still wanted to be involved. Ms. Kaiser said, ‘you would be a really good emcee,’ and I had been kind of thinking about doing it since August, and then I emceed the Mr. Ms. Mx. competition in the winter to prep for it.” Along with emceeing the event, McDowell also helped walk Hassan up to center stage and bow during her presentation as a princess, as Hassan’s religion prevented her from being walked up by a prince. “Because of her faith, it wouldn’t really have worked for a prince to walk her out,” McDowell said. “So she’s doing it solo, but it’s a very difficult bow to do alone. And so

they just asked if I could help her. And I said, ‘yes, of course.’” While most of the event was scripted by Kaiser, the emcees came up with the questions they asked the court on their own. The court was also unaware of the questions they would be asked, making all of their reactions genuine and their answers made up on the spot. “[Garofalo] and I went through and individually thought about each person and what we know them for,” McDowell said. “What interests they might have, and then tailored some specific questions to them along with five or six generic questions to fill in the gaps.” After a year and a half of online school and then another six months of COVID-19 related restrictions, May Day was the first school sanctioned indoor event to take place in years. The lack of traditional events like football games, pep rallies, and dances left some students feeling disconnected from their peers and the school in general. “I feel like I missed so much,” McDowell said. “Like the high school experience. I wanted to do the best that I could to make it memorable this year, and I felt like that was a good way.”

To find more pictures from May Day scan the QR code below.

All photo

s by Aud

rey Lipp e

LITTLE POWER, BIG IMPACT BY LILY GOTTSCHLING copyeditor-in-chief

est Linn’s Youth Advisory Council (YAC), created in 2016, is an organization aimed at giving young people the opportunity to voice their opinions at the highest local level— City Council. Each school year, anywhere from 1020 students are selected from a pool of applicants to serve on this council with a goal to make the voices of local youth heard by public officials. YAC’s bylaws state a mission to, “Engage a representative group of West Linn youth to effectively serve the City through community oriented discussions and projects aimed at providing recognition and understanding for the issues that affect both them and their peers in West Linn.” Each year, YAC begins the ninemonth session by outlining their main goals. This year, the council selected three areas of interest: mental health services, transportation accessibility, and accurate COVID-19 information in schools. Danielle Choi, Community Relations Coordinator and YAC adviser, takes pride in the work being done by the student advisory board and cites their work as a present influence in local politics. “Whether students personally participate in YAC or not, they are the future,” Choi said. “The City needs to hear young voices today to plan for a better tomorrow.” The following is a set of interviews with three senior members of YAC— Emily Newbore, Summer Tan, and Liv Tinio.

“

Emily Newbore

Photo Courtesy of Emily Newbore

LG: So my first question is, what are the goals of YAC? EN: We work towards doing what we want to change in the community. We have probably 15 different projects that people are working on— some are bigger than others— that really just show what the youth of West Linn is wanting to see in the community. We’re working on Park cleanups, mental health resources in schools, inclusivity in race [and] different programs for that. There’s not one set goal which I think is cool, there’s a lot of different things, but it’s basically to see what the youth wants and tell the council that. LG: What are the ways that people get involved in it? EN: There’s an application and interview process [and] they select like, 16 of us out of the pool. LG: Are there a certain set of qualifications or a certain kind of person who does it?

The City needs to hear young voices today to plan for a better tomorrow. -Danielle Choi

EN: Anyone can join. There’s not really a specific type of person, usually, it’s people that want to make [a] change or are into that type of work too. It’s a good hands-on experience to see if you like that area [of work]. LG: What are some obstacles that you think YAC faces that are a little bit different from the actual city council or other government organizations? EN: We have a lot of regulations because we’re kids which is funny. Like we have been fighting to get an Instagram for the longest time [but] they won’t let us because we’re underage. We also don’t have any weight politically at all. We just advise the city council so we can’t do a lot without their approval. That’s different and hard to kind of work through. LG: So what are the methods that you guys use to get stuff done? EN: We send lots of emails. It’s kind of our main thing we do to get stuff done. We [also] go into the city council meetings probably once a month and we present what we want to be done to the council members, and then they either approve us or give us revisions or just say “no,” and then we start working on it. LG: What’s an issue that you guys have worked on in YAC this year that’s particularly important to you and why is that specifically important to you? EN: We did a drug drop the other week for YAC. That was the thing when it first was brought up I was like, “Why do you need a drug drop,” and drug drop is just like any drugs that people have laying around that they want to dispose of and they just go and drop them and I was like, “How many like how many people need that?” And then we started working on this project and when I was working at it so many people were telling us how necessary this was and how cool it was, and how impactful it was in their lives. They just like [saying how] this is helping them through their addictions and stuff. So that was really cool to see and it was fun to get educated on that topic because I wasn’t before.

Liv Tinio

LG: Yeah for sure. Do you have anything else to add? LT: I mean, I think it’s just a really important [thing to have] and I think that the more people know about it and kind of are involved with it, the more that we can do as YAC to help our community and the youth in our community.

Summer Tan

Photo Courtesy of Liv Tinio

LG: Why did you kind of feel inclined to join YAC? LT: Well, I think that throughout high school I’m just kind of wanting to find ways to serve our community and have a real impact so I thought that being on YAC would be a way to do that. LG: How did you first find out about it? LT: I think I first found out about it a few years ago. I have a friend who’s on YAC and she kind of told me about it. Then COVID-19 hit so nothing really happened to it for a bit of a time, but then it started up back again this year I applied. LG: What do you think has been the most rewarding experience for you being a part of YAC? LT: I think just being able to do projects that have an impact on the community, like the drug drop off that we held or being able to go to city council and talk about issues like what to do with Oppenlander Park, which was an issue back in September— October. Just being able to have a voice in the city council is really important. LG: Yeah, and why do you think it’s valuable for young people to have a voice in matters happening within the local government? LT: Well, I think that when we think about young people and the youth in our city or in our communities, we don’t really realize that they can have a voice as well and that they have needs that maybe adults don’t realize or just have the means to understand. So being able to have that direct voice in city council is really important.

Photo Courtesy of Summer Tan

LG: So first off, why did you join YAC? ST: Yeah, my mom actually ran for city council when I was five and in kindergarten, and one of her passion projects was starting a YAC like Happy Valley has to kind of, like the name says, advise the City Council on projects that are important to the youth. But I really didn’t know about it until I saw that there were, applications open [when I was in] eighth grade. I applied and I got in freshman year, and I just became kind of involved in the projects. I thought it was super fun and so I did it for the next three years. We didn’t have a session, in [my] junior year because of COVID-19, but I was vice-chair sophomore year onwards and I’m chair this year. LG: What’s the most important thing to you that you’ve done this year in YAC? ST: I think one of our first projects was mental health since the pandemic really exacerbated some issues in West Linn and in the world. So we wanted to make sure that youth had support and accessibility to mental health resources. We also wanted to make sure that we had

public transportation because West Linn is kind of far from everything and if you don’t have a car, it’s hard to get around and hard to see friends, so we wanted to make that a little bit more uniform, in terms of equity. And then our last one was actually making sure that people were COVID-19 safe in schools. The schools and districts were doing a fantastic job with messaging, but because there are so many changing guidelines, we felt like students could easily get confused or parents might not know what was going on. LG: Yeah, is there anything specific you want to add to that? ST: Yeah, so we did a drug takeback event in March that was super successful. We filled like, a ton of bags with things like expired prescriptions or just drugs that people were trying to quit and so that’s important to us. We also did a volunteering event for environmental protection. We’re currently working on advising the council on their, budgeting use for the upcoming year, [and] we’ll be advocating for things like a community center, as well as ice storm restoration. And then obviously, we learn a lot about things like land use and a while ago, we presented to the council how we thought the youth of West Linn would like land or parks to be developed.

Applications to be a member of the West Linn Youth Advisory Council for the 2022-2023 school year are open now.

SHE’S A

10 QUESTIONS WITH SARAH TALBERT

SEN IOR

BY KARTER HILL staff reporter

WHAT ARE YOU DOING AFTER SCHOOL IS OVER? I think I am hanging out with friends until I start school. WHAT ARE YOU DOING THIS SUMMER? I am going swimming, and hanging out with my friends. WHICH SCHOOL ARE YOU GOING TO? I am going to CPSU WHERE IS THE LOCATION OF THE SCHOOL? It’s in California, in San Luis Obispo County WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO THERE AT COLLEGE? I am going to study Mechanical engineering. ARE YOU GOING TO PROM? Yes because I am in May Court WHAT ARE THE SENIORS GOING TO DO AFTER HIGH SCHOOL? I think they are going to hang out with their friends one last time and go to college. WHEN IS THE THE LAST DAY OF SCHOOL FOR SENIORS? It’s Friday June 10, 2022. WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP? I want to be a Mechanical engineer. ANY PLANS AFTER YOUR FIRST YEAR OF COLLEGE? I am going back home to see my friends and family.

Photo courtesy of Sarah Talbert

Senior send off

An examination of the quintessential high school tradition, senior night BY DANIKA LAMBERT staff reporter This year, like every year, hundreds of seniors have played or are preparing to play their contest on their home field or in their home gym. For most, their athletic careers are winding down. Overall a little over 7% of high school athletes go on to play a varsity sport in college and less than 2% of high school athletes go on to play at NCAA Division I schools. Senior night is the culmination of years of training for many athletes, not just their high school athletic career Making it to senior night, as a high school athlete is a sign of stamina and commitment. Being a student-athlete today is a large time commitment. It is a culmination of four years of hard work, including day after day of practice, weight lifting, team meals, summer workouts, weekend tournaments and yoga sessions. Due to the huge commitment required when playing a sport, many athletes give up

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a particular sport before their senior year for various reasons. Few high school athletes continue their careers into college, due to the time commitment, but Anna Boyer, senior, is planning on swimming in college. Anna has been swimming for many years. She is currently on Lake Oswego Swim Team which is a former club swim team. While her senior year is ending, she announced she will be attending the University of California both for academics and swim. “I have really enjoyed being a part of the West Linn swwim team for the

Photo by Joseph Murphy

of their family and friends. The celebration is traditionally held at the final home game, meet, or match of the season. “I’m going to miss being on the West Linn swim team,” Boyer said. “But I’m excited to continue my swimming career in college.” While traditions vary from sport to sport, usually parents and the student are called out onto the court/field/ etc. at either half time or the end of the game. Typically, flowers are presented to the athlete and their family, while a brief “bio”, written by the athlete, is read for each athlete. Depending on the team, gifts are sometimes given to the coach, the team manager, whichever students kept the books for the team, and the seniors. After COVID-19 forced many sports to change their senior night traditions, this year’s senior nights were a return to normal, featuring dances by underclassmen and the usual fanfare that was absent from last year.

“I have really enjoyed being a part of the West Linn swim team for the past four years.” - Anna Boyer

Photos by Joseph Murphy

past four years,” Boyer said. “The team environment has been super uplifting and encouraging with high energy. I’ve loved meeting new people through being on the team and made connections with great coaches. I’m going to miss being on the West Linn swim team but I’m excited to continue my swimming career in college.” Senior night celebrates the culmination of years of hard work and recognizes each senior’s contribution to the team and program, celebrates their athletic achievements, and acknowledges the support

‘There’s no better

MOTIVATION

than yourself’ Adam Maxwell, senior, officially commits to the University of Montana to pursue hurdling and high jump.

Photo by Joseph Murphy

BY JOSEPH MURPHY sports editor

he senior class of 2022 is comprised of a variety of athletes, from hurdlers to soccer players to football players. Throughout the year, these athletes were in the midst of a recruiting process. Soccer player Asia Hardin and track athletes Adam Maxwell and Olivia Iverson share their stories about committing to college.

Adam Maxwell Maxwell is the school record holder in the boy’s high jump and the 300 meter hurdles. In the 6a Three Rivers District Meet, Maxwell placed first in the 300m hurdles and high jump, and had the second best time in the 110m hurdles and 4x100 meter relays to advance to the 6a state meet in all of his events. Maxwell has been hurdling since seventh grade. Hurdles pose a larger challenge than other races like the 100 meter or 400 meter by design because athletes have to jump over obstacles while running instead of just focusing on speed. “There are definitely some obstacles at first because I’m not the tallest and so my strides are pretty short,” Maxwell said. “There’s a lot of steps in between the hurdles and while other kids could just lift their legs up, I kind of had to jump over them to clear them.” After last year’s season got shortened due to COVID-19 and the 2020 season was canceled, senior year was an opportunity for Maxwell to

race for a full season for the first time in two years. This year, he became the school record holder for the 300m hurdles and is hoping to break the school record for the 110m hurdles. “It’s definitely just been kind of that final point where I can like, show what I’ve been working towards these past three years and just putting it all out there,” Maxwell said. “Trying to go for those school records and see where it can take me.” While competing for school records, Maxwell was also in contact with various colleges who were interested in him. “My top schools were University of Montana, Montana State, George Fox and Southern Oregon,” Maxwell said. “Honestly, when I visited [University of Montana], I got to talk with some of the team as well as the staff and all of them were super inviting and actually seemed like the athletes weren’t just there to compete,” Maxwell said. “They were actually like growing together and just growing bonds essentially.” Maxwell committed to Montana

Photo by Joseph Murphy

University and will pursue hurdling and high jump. “Take your time with it and think through the options,” Maxwell said. “Don’t just think you’re set on one and then be discouraged if they don’t respond back.”

Olivia Iverson Iverson is the school record holder in the girl’s 400 and 200 meter events. She qualified for the state meet in the 200 meter and the 400 meter events and the 4x100 and 4x400 meter relays. During the winter and summer, Iverson also runs with the Inner Circle Track Club (ICT). She moved to West Linn during the summer before her sophomore year. Due to COVID-19, Iverson’s

sophomore track season was canceled and she didn’t get out onto the West Linn track until spring of 2021. “It gets really hard especially as you get into your junior and senior year to like want to stay in track,” Iverson said. “You just have to remember all those times that you PR (personal record) and also like the exciting moments.” For her, the big payoff of her work came in the recruiting process Iverson emailed a lot of lower D1 schools after ICT coach Hashim Hall told her to “send out a bunch of emails with your times.” “Once you start reaching out to these colleges and they start responding it’s like the biggest feeling ever,” Iverson said. “It’s like everything you worked for coming to a head.” One of the colleges interested in Iverson was Sacramento State. Friends of Iverson questioned Iverson’s decision to not walk-on to the University of Oregon.

“I don’t feel the need to. I’d rather have these awesome opportunities,” Iverson said. Olivia Iverson committed to Sacramento State to compete in track and pursue graphic design. “Stay personally motivated because as much as people might be able to motivate, you might not have any motivation besides yourself,” Iverson said. “There’s no better motivation than yourself.”

Northwest FC had a showcase in North Carolina where scouts from Western Washington, one of the

stuff and just talked about what they liked in me and what they saw for me at Western Washington,” Hardin said. “They really caught my eye specifically because they are D2 and that kind of fits with what I want.” Asia Hardin committed to Western Washington to play soccer and to become a sports kinesiologist. ¨It’s kind of like my escape,” Hardin said. ¨It’s something that forces me to get out of the house and step away from my social life to go do something that I love to do.¨

Photo by Joseph Murphy

Asia Hardin

Hardin has played varsity soccer since her freshman year. In seventh grade, she was selected to a team at the Northwest Elite Football Club, which is a part of the Elite Clubs National League (ECNL). The ECNL is the top developmental soccer program in the country, according to their website “I made a really good club team that not a lot of people made and that kind of opened my eyes and showed how like actually good I was,” Hardin said. “Then I started to put in more work.” During her time at Northwest Elite FC, she not only made a lot of friends, but she also discovered her preferred position. Before Hardin joined the ECNL, she played forward, “that was really fun because I like to score,” Hardin said. Rosie Rocha, ECNL coach, saw something different in her style of play and put her on defense in the center back position. “My coach told me I was going to be a center back and I was like, well, that’s weird. That’s like the opposite end of the field,” Hardin said. “I’m also like, I’m only 5’4 and like a lot of center backs are really tall and big. That’s the stereotype.”

Photo by Joseph Murphy

colleges she previously contacted, were impressed by Hardin’s performance. Immediately after the showcase, Hardin was offered a spot on the Western Washington soccer team. “I called them and had some like zoom meetings with their coaches and

HEARTST

two tak

CONVINCED BY MIRANDA ORDOÑES staff reporter

lice Oseman’s graphic novel “Heartstopper” has been gaining popularity, and now a show has been created and made available to the public. Charlie Spring, a 14-year-old British boy (Joe Locke), is the protagonist of the story. He attends Truham Grammar School. Charlie’s all boys high school is hostile to LGBTQIA+ students, making it difficult for him to fit in. He faces a variety of challenges, including being called names, being perceived as frail, and being surrounded by stereotypes when everyone knows he’s gay. Charlie meets Nick Nelson (Kit Connor), a rugby player, and quickly develops a friendship with him. They both live in different worlds, making it difficult for them to connect with each other. While Charlie and his friends were outcasts, Nick was more of the jock stereotype, hanging out with the rugby players and is the character who people assumes is straight The show depicts the horrors of coming out in a realistic manner. Charlie was struggling to ignore all the homophobic remarks, threats, and, bullies. As it went on, it was leading to his self-esteem eroding away. Even when dealing with Charlie’s more serious issues, the series

maintains a lighthearted tone. It’s a modern LGBTQIA+ love story that makes viewers feel good while also keeping them guessing. The show is a typical queer coming of age show, but as the series progresses, Charlie and Nick’s relationship evolves into a mutual romantic attraction. Heartstopper has an open concept of the two developing together. These details give it a more realistic feel. The cast gave an excellent performance by connecting with the characters they were playing through personality. The show focused not only on Nick and Charlie’s relationship but also on other LGBTQIA+ characters and their relationships. Tara and Darcy, two side charachters, were introduced to the show in a situation similar to Charlie and Nick, with Darcy already out as a lesbian and Tara concealing it from the public. Heartstopper does an excellent job of incorporating their relationship not just as a side plot but also as a fully

fleshed out second story. The show also introduces a trans character, Elle, and details her experience switching schools and making friends in a new environment, reminding viewers that LGBTQIA+ isn’t just about relationships, but also gender identity. The series shouts the message ‘love is love’ in a beautiful way that touches people’s hearts and has been having a positive impact on perceptions of LGBTQIA+ in media with everyone gossiping over it. Heartstopper excelled at showing realistic and heartfelt queer representation and adapting the graphic novel into a TV series.

TOPPER

kes

GRAPHIC BY MALLORY COOPER

SKEPTICAL BY MYRTLE GUARISCO staff reporter

have a confession. I binged “Heartstopper,” and could do nothing to stop it. Its stylized cinematography, aesthetic British secondary schools, diverse cast, and queer rom-com storyline captured me for the eight episode series after popping up on my Netflix page. The adaptation of Alice Oseman’s webtoon, “Heartstopper,” has been a hit, reaching 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and trending on Twitter for weeks. The Guardian called it, “possibly the loveliest show on TV.” The show’s success shows progress in many ways. My qualm, however, lies in the center of the show: obsession with coming out, and the difference between on-screen acceptance and preaching messages to the audience. Since the nineties, media has focused on this one aspect of the queer experience that is becoming increasingly irrelevant. Acceptance of queer identity has grown since Y2K, and queer labels, if individuals choose a label at all, have diversified and blurred.

Coming out in media is a public revealing of ‘otherness,’ met with homophobia and the need to seek acceptance. It gives others the power to accept or reject a queer identity, while queer people can’t simply ‘exist,’ only live lives of struggle. Books and movies like “Love, Simon” and the following “Love, Victor” show a story arc of the gay archetype character leading only to their coming out as opposed to any other development of depth and dimension.These stories can be irresponsible in the lack of authentic representation, and ignorant storytellers perpetuating unproductive ideas about LGBTQIA+ people. “Heartstopper” is a sweet show, and gets a lot of things ‘right.’ Charlie shows sensitivity with Nick, and Nick stands up to homophobic friends. Elle (Yasmin Finney) overcomes isolation in a new school after transitioning, and Tao (William Gao) learns how to support friends even when their group changes. There are two schools of thought when it comes to representation. The first: presenting a setting of acceptance and a cast of queer characters—without exaggerated attention on their identity— allows the development of other facets, stories, and plots. The second: creating an environment typical to what an individual would see today. An unacceptance of queer people with characters going through similar struggles to real life sends a message to the audience explicitly about the importance and necessity of acceptance. Outside of his group of friends,

Charlie faces bullying and harassment, a lesbian couple is mocked, and Nick hangs around homophobic friends. A point is being made when each character needs to overcome their obstacles. Queer people every day have to experience these things on screen, and it can be a comfort to some, especially younger viewers. But why can’t we tell more, different stories about LGBTQIA+ people? “Schitt’s Creek” featured David Rose (Dan Levy), where in a genuinely casual moment viewers learned he liked “the wine and not the label.” HBO’s new comedy “Our Flag Means Death” offers a plentiful bounty of queer characters, without an onslaught of identity-based discussions or explicit, oversimplified explanations of identity. Why can’t we see successful shows about queer people that are comfortable in their identity, have a healthy support system, and grow completely separate from their sexuality or gender? The message of “Heartstopper” isn’t new. It might help young people come to terms with their own identity, or show family members how to accept queer family, but only through accessibility and relevance. Shows like these have existed before, and others exist to build acceptance as a part of life, with nuance and exploration, not explicit messaging. I had light-hearted fun watching “Heartstopper”, but was hoping for something more.

Music to your ears Does music help students learn or does it distract them? Here are five reasons why music is beneficial to a students learning and education.

BY MALLORY COOPER lifestyle editor

hen walking in the halls and in class, a majority of students tend to have headphones or airpods in their ears. The real question is what are they listening to? How is this helping them learn? Alana Ryan, Sophomore, believes music is one of the best ways to help her learn in school. “Music is like a get away to me, it really makes me motivated to actually be productive and get my work done,” Ryan said. These are five reasons why music should be allowed in class and helpful for students to stay focused and engaged.

EASE STUDENTS STRESS

INCREASES FOCUS

Boomer Reinhold, Freshman, listens to music all day at school, unless he is told to take his headphones out. “I almost feel a little frustrated when my teachers tell me to take my headphones out since I need to focus. In reality it actually helps, and gives me motivation to get my work done instead of procrastinating,” Reinhold said. Music is a way to process emotions and strengthen your thought process. Turning on music can be a stress reliever, especially when you are in class and you feel bored and don’t wanna pay attention. “Often when I forget to bring my AirPods or my phone dies I have a harder time being able to stay motivated when I am working on an assignment,” Ryan said. “It even makes my work more stressful, since it becomes harder to finish in class when all I want to do is leave.” Having a music option is helpful to students because it can actually give them a chance to enjoy listening to something while not having to stress as much on the things going on around them.

Studies have shown that music can help people perform better in highpressure situations. For example, if a student had a test next period, forgot to do some homework for a class that had a strict deadline, or it’s finals week and it is their last day to study. “I noticed overtime when I would look at my grades, I started getting more 100 percents on my assignments when I would listen to it and do my work,” Ryan said. Listening to some of your favorite artists or albums can increase your focus by making you feel more relaxed and motivated. Other times, music can be a distraction. “During a test I do take my headphones out because that can take away my focus or thought process,” Reinhold said. “Any other time though, music is my favorite.”

ILLISTARTION BY MALLORY COOPER

MEMORY, MUSIC, EMOTIONS Several studies have shown that memory, music, and emotions are all linked together. Two studies conducted by Petr Janata were created to show the link between them. The studies conducted were using a student and looking at their brain by taking a Functional Magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) as they played songs from his childhood. “Music serves as a potent trigger for retrieving memories,” Janata said. “After each excerpt, the student responded to questions about the tune, including whether it was familiar or not, how enjoyable it was, and whether it was associated with any particular incident, episode or memory.” This evidence supports the theory that studying with music can be beneficial to learning and memorizing. It can bring past memories back when listening to music, which can really help with anything that needs to be remembered.

BRAIN FUNCTION IMPROVMENT

REDUCE ANXIETY

One of the most compelling reasons to listen to music during a study session is because music has been proven to improve cognitive performance. In simple words, music helps improve brain function. Like physical activity, musical training early on can have the same effect of training the brain to learn and make your brain and body healthier. Exercising your brian with music can not only improve your brain performance while studying, but it can also improve your emotional state which helps students improve better in school by being more emotionally prepared and well rested. “In high school I realized when I listened to music during class I felt in a better mood and more energized then I normally would,” Reinhold said. “When I can’t be listening to something when I am trying to be productive, my work never turns out the best it could be.”

Anxiety can become one of the hardest things for teenagers to deal with while balancing school and their normal life. Levels of anxiety and tension increase the more you study for a test or even for a simple quiz. “This year I took AP US History, and studying for the AP exams gave me a lot of anxiety because I took no AP classes freshman year. While I was studying I would get so frustrated and nervous when I was in my silent room, but once I turned on some of my music I felt almost relieved,” Ryan said. Putting in headphones and turning on one of your favorite uplifting songs can be a great way to reduce anxiety and relax your body from all the tension. Uplifting music can affect its listeners by helping them manage and deal with their mental health issues along with breaking the anxiety blockade because it improves your mood and relaxes your brain.

THE YEAR IN CONCERTS

photo by Claire Doel

OLIVIA BY LILLY AUGUSTYN staff reporter

Growing up in California, Olivia Rodrigo demonstrated an early ability to compose her own songs and showed creative promise as a child actress. Rodrigo was born on February 20, 2003. At the age of 5 she showed interest in music by starting music lessons and soon started competing in contests and talent shows as well. Rodrigo created her first major single hit “Drivers License” and after that she opted to create a full length album, “Sour.” Rodrigo came to Portland on April 5, 2022, making her Portland show the second concert of her “Sour” tour.

harry styles A Fine Line

photos by Kate Sewell

Beginning his career in 2010, Harry Styles has made himself known for his multiple chart-topping singles and albums. Styles made a solo entry that was very successful with the single “Sign Of The Times.” Fans then waited another two years for his next solo album “Fine Line” to drop in 2019 which

contained a No. 1 single, “Watermelon Sugar.” Off of this album, Styles was nominated for three Grammys. Styles recently finished his run of Love On Tour, which came to Portland on November 8, 2021 to be one of his final stops on the tour.

tyler the creator at the moda

photos by Morgan Stuart

California pop culture icon and rapper Tyler Okonma does not need any introduction at this point in his career. On Tyler’s latest album, “Call Me If You Get Lost,” the trajectory continues on with heavy raps that are all woven together with vibrant pop hooks. His

musical output, which began when he was 16, first started out with dark themes and controversy before he changed the style to finding the softer parts of himself. Tyler came to Portland April 4, 2022 for his most recent album “Call Me If You Get Lost.”

BY KARINA ROWER web editor-in-chief

Five-time state champion choir director Aubrey Patterson sits down with seniors Ellie Seward, Karah Rhoades, and Ty Walters to talk success and the moments that made the choir season.

[Ty Walters]: This is like a podcast. [collective laughter] [Aubrey Patterson]: When did you decide that you wanted to sing all four years or join, and stick with it through graduation? [Karah Rhoades]: Okay, well, I can go. My brother was in choir for like a long time before me. So I went into choir just because my brother did it and my family was a big music family. But I think I found out that I was like, good at it at the end of middle school or like the beginning of freshman year. And I made a lot of friends at the beginning of high school through our freshman choir. So then I just stuck with it and it was a lot of fun. [Ellie Seward]: For me, I’ve been performing for a really long time, but I was a terrible actor. So I took the time off freshman and sophomore year to focus on my acting, and I actually wasn’t thinking of joining choir ever again, until Grant Halverson bullied me every day for an entire year. And then I did it and it’s the best thing I’ve ever done. AP: So your situation is slightly different because your first year in choir was online, so how did you decide, “I’m going to do this even though I don’t know what the culture is?”

ES: I knew that everyone there would be nice because from the people that I knew, I was like, ‘I like these people.’ And I trust performing arts communities. I was really nervous about not being able to make friends cause I knew that everyone was already so close. And I was coming in and it was online. But it was really easy to make friends because it was the most active class, like it was the only class where everyone had their camera on and actually unmuted and stuff like that. And it was a lot easier than I thought. AP: Okay, Ty, all four years? TW: When I knew it was gonna be for all four years, I think it was probably my sophomore year. Freshman year, a lot of the people were just enjoying Cantus. At the time, I was like, well, I’ll take another year to go to like California schools. And for me it wasn’t up until Grant Halverson… ES: [laughs] TW: …left me a note in my phone pocket and I still have it, it’s sitting on my desk now I kept it all these years. And it says something along the lines of, ‘I hear your voice it sounds really amazing [and] you’re someone that I think is going to bring up the choir these next four years,’ and that really stood out to me and that’s what I knew I was going to do for the rest of high school. AP: I’m gonna make this a little more broad. So going into this year, after the pandemic year, what were your expectations or goals for the choir?

“

KR: Well, I was a little nervous because we had a couple years off and I know that being online like we still did sight reading, we still did like vocal technique stuff, but it’s not the same when we’re not in person. And we weren’t actually able to sing together to work on blend and that sort of thing. It was just kind of working on our voices individually. And so there was like two years of no work on that sort of stuff. And so I was worried that we were going to come back and it was just going to be a mess. ES: I’m confused. [laughs] AP: [laughs] This may not apply to you as much because you didn’t have a sense of the culture from the year prior. ES: Yeah. AP: So you were worried but then did you have any goals that came after hearing us initially? KR: I think initially we were a little bit of a mess. But I think we came, I mean, obviously we came a long, long way since then. But I don’t know, I didn’t have a lot of expectations for this year. TW: I don’t know if it did [change] a lot for other people, but for me definitely moving into like COVID I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I know so little about music theory.’ So even though I didn’t really like doing the SR [sight reading] factory stuff I still did it because I wanted to improve in the aspect of sight reading, because my singing was okay, but like my sight reading back in sophomore year was terrible. And I was like, Oh my gosh, this is gonna be so bad. But then I think it helped a lot.

AP: You were able to come away with some skills that helped you this year. TW: Yeah, I definitely came away with way better counting and all that stuff. I could barely keep time to be honest. [collective laughter] ES: Sophomore year. [laughs] AP: What were some of the most memorable moments of our festival season? So like January, until now. TW: Whoa. [laughs] KR: I mean, state was obviously very memorable. AP: For me, it’s bringing in one of the composers that was the highlight for me. Caroline Shaw came in and was able to work with us onto her piece. TW: Yeah, working with Caroline Shaw was so wonderful. I was really scared. I was talking with Ben. I was like, ‘Please don’t be the Gordon Ramsay of music.’ And she was so lovely. That was super awesome. ES: I was scared that she was gonna be like, ‘Oh, that’s so cute.’ KR: Yeah, I feel like the song wasn’t a spot that we thought was good either. And I was scared she was gonna be like, ‘Oh.’ AP: That was pretty aggressive. We picked that up in about a month. Another eight part piece that is not high school appropriate. It’s college, beyond, adult professional choir and I was like, I don’t care if she’s coming. I really want to do this piece. So we kind of shoved our way through it, but we got to a really musical place. Um, other moments?

You were able to come away with some skills that helped you this year. -Aubrey Patterson

ES: Right after we performed was my favorite, I think. KR: Yeah, yeah. I mean, Solo and Ensemble, if that counts here. Yeah, I think that’s more like Fresh Pitch, that’s our smaller choir but we went to solo ensemble and we had a group in every category go to state and we placed really well at state and that was really exciting. And I know I was doing a duet with one of my best friends and at state we were a little more competitive. But after districts, we had no expectations for ourselves. And after we perform like we just had so much fun on stage and afterwards, it was like super fun. But state, we had a lot more expectations. So then we were not as happy but it was fun. It was fun. ES: This memory plays in my head. It was right as they were announcing the placements for the large groups. And they said third and second, and we were all looking at each other and there’s just this like a very sweet mom who’s sitting right behind me. And she went, ‘Oh, get ready West Linn.’ And then they said our name. I just keep thinking about that, I think it’s funny. I also think it shows all the work that you’ve put into everything, like people hear West Linn, and they’re like, oh, yeah, it’s like because the work that you put in and that’s really awesome. [collective laughter] AP: I can’t do it without you guys. So what was your initial feeling? After we performed, immediately after we performed, when there was a standing

“

ovation? TW: I remember so vividly. This plays back in my head. Me and Ben looked at each other and we were like, ‘well we performed.’ AP: [laughs] TW: We were like, well, I was like, I think we either crushed it or I did everything wrong.

This is not where the story ends. For more of the Q+A, scan the QR code above.

TW: Like I was so tuned into the music that I either got it all, everything bit by bit, or I just totally botched the round. Those are the only two outcomes. KR: So OSU, the space we were in was so hard to hear as a choir. Yeah, it’s easier to just lhear yourself. And so lI couldn’t really tell what we sounded like as a group [and] if we’d done good or not. So, after we performed, Victoria [Garcia] was like, ‘how do you think we did?’ I was like, I really don’t know. I can only hear myself. ES: So true. I was so afraid because I could only hear myself in that space and every time you looked in my general direction, I’d think, ‘I’m too loud.’ I was so panicking over it. I actually thought that it was awful. AP: Oh really?

ES: I was [thinking] since we know the music so well. I had every single tiny minor mistake that no one else [could] hear but we can hear. I was like, beating myself up. And then I saw the people stand and I was like wait, what did we sound like? It was either awful or amazing. TW: The entire time I heard two tenors going sharp through. The second time we were supposed to be crescendoing, I was sitting there. I was like, ‘I have no way of telling them that they’re so sharp.’ And it was the only thing I can hear and I was like, I’m so scared right now. AP: I weirdly got overcome and I never get emotional. KR: Yeah. AP: It was weird, and it never happens and it was just like an upwelling of emotion. TW: That’s what I asked [everyone], like did you guys think that was like happyoverwhelmed? [collective laughter] KR: You were like, ‘my career’s done!’ You also told us [about] morning choirs and you hyped us down in the morning. AP: No morning choir has ever won. KR: Because they do the schedule by how you placed at your districts or what we call it, league and we didn’t place very good at league. It was a really good comeback story. But since we didn’t place very good at league we had to go in the morning. ES: You kept it real.

IT WAS A REALLY GOOD COMEBACK STORY. -KARAH RHOADES

Against all odds Aubrey Patterson speaks on pushing the limits and achieving success following a two-year hiatus

I PHOTO BY KARINA ROWER

“So the expectation is that everyone is down a level, and I said, ‘no, I’m not going to do that.’ That sounds boring. And to me, that’s a disservice to my students. Like if I can push my students to this level, let’s do it.”

want to say we had about eight students who had prepared for a festival season two years prior, so we had eight returning seniors who were in a symphonic choir their sophomore year, who had had any sense of what a festival was and what is it like to go on a field trip together. Also knowing what it is like to buckle down and really work the intricacies and fine tune a piece to the nth degree as far as we can go with it. That is not experience that any of the other students would have had in the nonaudition choirs. Everyone who was coming up was from a non-audition ensemble. So the other 49—50 singers were going to be coming from auditioned [ensembles]. And so there was kind of a lack of an understanding of what level of vocal development is necessary. Now we just have some younger singers in order to get to the numbers that we wanted and they were ready to sing. They’re ready to sing at this level. They just didn’t have the lead up that we would expect in finalizing a year and singing together. So those were kind of some of our barriers, but I didn’t let that stop the way that I programmed. I continued to just push the choir into pretty difficult pieces right away.

I chose an eight part motet [by composer] Bruckner, as you see in the fall, which is a college level piece and I was like, ‘we’re going to learn how to sing this part.’ So we’re gonna learn how to tune this well, and this might be pushing you beyond your ability and we’re still going to do it. And that was moderately successful. It was not my proudest performance, but we found moderate success in October and then we did another really difficult masterwork in December. And then I just decided to stay ambitious and I think a lot of directors around the state, rightfully so said, my singers are young, and they’re not musically mature enough to be ready for this and I’m going to program differently, or down a level. In fact, [at] band[‘s] state [competition], they allowed everyone to go down one grade level from what they normally perform. So the expectation is that everyone is down a level, and I said, ‘no, I’m not going to do that.’ That sounds boring. And to me, that’s a disservice to my students. Like if I can push my students to this level, let’s do it. Did I regret that? In February and March? Yeah, very much so. But we kind of pushed through that together. We did a mini retreat. And then by April we were starting to really push on together in a positive musical way.-As told to Karina Rower