Bear Witness - May 2023

ANOTHER DOOR OPENS

The CLASS OF 2023 will soon close the door on four years of their lives at Branham and will discover what's waiting for them on the other side.

GOING DOOR TO DOOR

Where our seniors are headed, from college, to work, to taking a gap year.

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OUTSTANDING SENIORS

Recognizing student achievement, and department award winners.

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SENIOR SURVEY

Seniors share their thoughts on everything from online learning to their favorite pets.

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DOWN MEMORY LANE Seniors share their favorite moments of high school.

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WHAT'S BEHIND THAT DOOR?

Seniors share their hopes for their future.

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SENIORS, FROM A TO Z From "Among Us" to "Zoom," our favorite moments.

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ARIZONA

Did you know: Arizona doesn't practice daylight savings unlike many other US states.

Arizona State University

David Glover

KANSAS

Did you know: The first helicopter to be patented was done so in Goodland, Kansas in 1909.

Benedictine College

Megan Forsman

42%

Of students are going to a fouryear college

CALIFORNIA

Did you know: California makes up 1/8th of the United States' population of around 40 million residents which is more than the entire population of Canada. TWO-YEAR COLLEGE

BY THE NUMBERS

24% Of students are going to a twoyear college.

56%

Of students are staying in California.

4%

Of students are either taking a gap year or still deciding.

Embry Riddle University

Nathaniel Katz

Grand Canyon University

Tony Aruta

University of Arizona

Audrey Katz

KENTUCKY

Did you know: The state of Kentucky requires every citizen by law to shower at least one time a year!

University of Pikeville

Caden Jones

popularized by its craziness.

Carnegie Mellon University

Nick Mino

Lafayette University

Melissa Burnstein

Swarthmore College

Alexia Enache

TEXAS

Did you know: Texas as an independent country as it lasted a whole 9 days, 11 months, and 7 days with the title.

Rice University

Santosh Areti

ARKANSAS

Did you know: Historians theorize that cheese dip was invented in the Mexico Chiquito restaurant in Arkansas' capital Little Rock in 1935.

MARYLAND

Did you know: Maryland is rumored to have the nation's largest number of citizens over the age of 100.

Texas A&M University

Ethan Seitz

UTAH

Keaton Cooper Alana Firsty

Stacy Spurlin

Carly Waldorph

Loyola Marymount Univerity

Diana Fine

Menlo College

Nolan Rodriguez

Palomar College Brostko Culley

Sacramento State University

Nnadozie Awuzie

San Diego State University

Rebecca Lee

Tyanna Lent

Isabelle Moret

Lauren Peters

Ella Sandoval

Juanantonio Melgoza

Emily Men

Aviv Michael

Karlie Migues

Vanessa Moreno

Ethan Peglow

Sophia Quast

Nathan Radle

Anthony Rivera

Katelynn Rugg

Chandler Schmiedeberg

Nima Sinaki

Janet Solis Tellez

Ayden Stephens

Melvin Tenner

Eduardo Villegas

Patrisha Wengler

Lucy West

Colin Williams

Michele Zamora

FOUR-YEAR COLLEGE

Academy of Art University

Cameron Bonacum

Azusa Pacific University

Mari Yamashita

Cal Poly Humboldt

Jada Morrison

Cal Poly Pomona

Gabriel Hurtado De Mendoza

Sophie Nguyen

Sophia Slayton

Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo

Jason Armer

Chloe Bagi

Michael DeHart

Ethan Kim

Michael Schroeder

Elizaveta Znamerovskya

California Aeronautical University

Connor Sierras

California Baptist University

Kayla Tehrani

California State University

- Bakersfield

Charles Knuth

California State University

- Fullerton

Tyla Arbuckle

Carissa Freimarck

Jacob Rinehart

Jewels Torres

Brennan Wong

Chapman University

Kate Turner

San Francisco State

University

Sophia Baluta

Joshua Menard

Jaylene Razo

San Jose State University

Ailton Acosta

Livia De Andrade Graf

Bardeen Ganjeh

Sofia Gomez

Rian Jackson

Chloe Le Nomi Lin

Ivan Marquez Lara

Sophia Pan

Megha Sengupta

Jacob Walkowski

Shinjung Yoo

Santa Clara University

Kaila Castanon

Kaylee Lopez

Jaiden Windell

Scripps College

Sydney McGonigal

Sonoma State University

Natalie Fielden

Donovan Pinza

UC Berkeley

Jaythan Dao

Maggie Dong

Hannigan

California

University of California Santa Cruz Hayley De Mello Shreya Johar Filip Kurtovic

University of La Verne Erica Sanchez

University of San Francisco

Jake Abendroth

University of Southern California

Shantala Muruganujan

Dillon Tadeo

University of the Pacific

Audra Ryquist

William Jessup University

Marissa Pepitone Evan Williams

CAREER

Cosmetology

Charlize Amezquita Arielle Van Fossen Electrician Oscar Rivas

Kroeker Jaden Mortenson

Pastry chef

Gonzalez Charlotte Rago

Dental hygiene Valeria Saucedo Mercado Work

University of Central Arkansas

Maddie Connolly Hojas

COLORADO

Aveda Institute Denver

Ellie Jenkins

Colorado State University

Cassie Hickinbotham

Callie Milrad

United States Air Force Academy

Chanel Moshy

University of Colorado Boulder

Sasha Heneghan

Isabel Puebla

CONNECTICUT

University of Connecticut

Kaylynn Park

GEORGIA

Did you know: Despite being known for their masses of peaches, Georgia is also the world's largest producer of peanuts.

Emory University

Akunna Awuzie

Shorter University

Ava Medina

HAWAII

Did you know: The flag of Hawaii is the only U.S. state to still have the British Union Jack.

University of Hawai’i at Manoa

Emily Meraz

Kai Saguindel

IDAHO

Did you know: Rigby, Idaho resident Philo Farnsworth is credited by historians as the first human to create an electronic television set.

Brigham Young University Idaho

Melanie Coy

ILLINOIS

Did you know: The first McDonald's was built in Des Plaines in 1955, then was demolished in 1984, then was replaced with a replica that is now a museum.

Millikin University

Zachary Van Gelder

University of Illinois Chicago

Kay Doan

School of the Art Institute of Chicago

Emilia Leon

INDIANA

HVAC

Amador Computer science

Did you know: In case you ever wondered where your letters to Santa go, many are rerouted every year to a town where the jolly man at the Santa Claus Museum and Village attempts to respond to as many as he can.

Purdue University Nick Breitwieser

University of Maryland

Gabriel Hui

MASSACHUSETTS

Did you know: Though New York City is known for its subways, it should be noted that Boston created the first subway system in 1897.

Bentley University

Rishika Moorthy

Harvard University

Stella Wong

Massachusetts Institue of Technology

Nina Ruiz-Garcia

Williams College

Michelle Ho

MICHIGAN

Northern Michigan University

Hunter Oblander

MONTANA

Did you know: The populations of elk, deer and antelopes vastly outnumber the human population.

Montana State University

Allison von Barloewen

NEW YORK

Did you know: New Yorkers, as a collective state, are known to speak more than 800 various languages!

Ithaca College

Danny Roach

John Jay College of Criminal Justice

Olivia Scandal

Hofstra University

Ainsley Bateman

New York University Elise Niva

NEVADA

University of Nevada

Elijah Bustamunte

Kendall Green

Sean Murphy

Reno

Yoryia Papadokonstadakis

OREGON

Did you know: Oregon is one of four U.S. states that have no general sales tax.

Clackamas Community College

Zachary Reynolds

Oregon Tech

Logan Lord

University of Oregon

Michael Simpson

Madisynn Runyon-Ozdinski

Josh Tsuji

Ellis Yan

Willamette University

Freddie Porter

PENNSYLVANIA

Did you know: Two minor league hockey teams in Pennsylvania have been

Did you know: Though Utah is famous for its pastrami burgers, the first pastrami burger was made in Los Angeles in the '60s (take that, Utah!).

Brigham Young University

Clara Ford

Utah State University

Olivia Earl

Noah Proveaux

Aidan Van Tassell

VIRGINIA

Did you know: The state actually did not start with tobacco production, but the crop was introduced in the 1600s and quickly became a major part of the state’s economy.

Strayer University (Two-year)

Alexander Bueno

WASHINGTON

Did you know: Behind Calfornia, Washington state is the second-largest wine producer in the United States .

University of Washington

Minjae Ryu Nithila Vasant

Western Washington University

John Zeljak

WYOMING

Did you know: Barbie comes from the (fictional) town of Willows, Wisc.

University of Wyoming

Aidan Paskett

INTERNATIONAL CANADA

Did you know: Canada adopts both metric and imperial measurements. Does that make cents?

McGill University (Quebec)

Justine Dreux

Queen’s University (Ontario)

Sophie Jakab

University of Calgary

Zach Elford

University of Toronto

Averie Ikeda-Lee

FINLAND

Did you know: There are over 2 million saunas in Finland and 99% of Finns take a Sauna once a week or more.

University of Helsinki

*Based on 354 respondents out of 480 seniors. D'marco Pilgrim

John Rothman

ISRAEL

Did you know: More than half the landmass of Israel is desert, but it still has an Olympic bobsled and skeleton team.

Rakia Israeli Prep Academy

Ziv Galpaz

INDIA

Velammal Institute of Technology

Mona Rabi

English TARA KAVIANI

"One aspect of Tara’s work in English that particularly stands out to me, however, is not only her playfulness and skill, but also the critical thinking that takes place between the lines."

Bobbi Arduini, English

Social Science MICHELLE HO

Science KRISH JAGASIA

"There are no words to accurately describe the achievements of Michelle both inside and outside of the classroom."

Sarah MacInnes, AP World History

Math JOHN ROTHMAN

"John has a passion for Mathematics and Physics and has a deep conceptual understanding." Ramani Visvanathan, math

Visual Arts TOBIAS ALLEN

"He is always inmy classroom making beautiful art and willing to help ith anything I may need help with."

Eileen Bertron, art

NOLAN ZILS | SENIOR OF THE YEAR

Performing Arts CARISSA FREIMARCK

"Their ability to work diligently and enthusiastically on theatrical productions, whether it was perfecting a part or helping a fellow cast member, is outstanding."

Jennifer Sorkin, theater

World Language LILY PIERCE

"She surpassed my expectations whenever Lily provided answers or showed her Spanish knowledge."

Damian Fragano, Spanish

Bear Witness editor led paper for past four years

JIYOON CHOI

Co-Editor-In-Chief

Journalism adviser Fitzgerald Vo vividly remembers his first meeting with co-editorin-chief Nolan Zils four years ago. He wore a a black bomber leather jacket that was a little too big, wore his hair like a mop. And would cross his legs and arms like veteran journalist skeptically interviewing a foreign dignitary.

"I was thinking, ‘Who is this kid?’ during our first encounter," and since his freshman year, Vo said he knew to pay attention to Zils. Vo describes Zils as a very passionate and visible member at Branham.

“For the last four years, he's been such an important member of the Bear Witness, and whether people knew it or not, he was an important in the community,” Vo said.

Vo and Zils have worked closely with each oth-

Scholar Athletes of the Year

Gabe Hui

Allison Von Barloewen

Cully R Plant Scholarship

Akunna Awuzie

Erica Colin Sanchez

er over the last four years. The team has traveled to conferences in Los Angeles and San Francisco, and hold regular out-of-class meetings.

Vo said he was "beyond happy" to see his editor win.

“I don't know about expecting him to win, but I do know that he deserves to win,” he said. "I'm glad that I was able to work to have worked with him.”

Zils moved quickly up the ranks, first as the copy editor his freshman year, then Arts and Culture editor his sophomore year. He has served as co-editor-in-chief the last two years. He recently committed to the University of California-Berkeley as a media studies major and wishes to continue journalism.

“He leaves such an impression on you,” Vo said. “He's not the biggest kid, but it’s how he handles himslef and interacts with others just shows a confidence that you don't see a lot in

high school students.”

One of the characteristics of the editor that Vo admires is that he tries to serve others in the best way that he can.

“He's dedicated and loyal,” Vo said. “He's dedicated to the mission of what a journalist does and it's to help inform and share what's important in his community.”

Being the one to announce and make a speech about the Senior of the Year, Vo is glad to have a journalism student be recognized as Senior of the Year for the first time he has been at Branham.

“I'm very proud of Nolan,” he said. “What's important is how much we get along and when we disagree, it is cordial, and we talk about it, to have a space where we're comfortable and be able to express our differences in opinion. That just shows the kind of leader he is.”

HIGHLIGHTS OF AWARD RECIPIENTS AT SENIOR AWARDS NIGHT

Iris Berke Future Educators Scholarship

Stella Rabago

Elise Niva

Sports Boosters Scholarship

Erin Troiano

Bryan Zachary Elford

Rishika Moorthy

Lauren Peters

PTSA scholarship

Maggie Dong

Jeremy Potts

Nima Sinaki

CWCC

Gizelle Alvarez Hernandez

Jaden Mortenson

Citizenship Award

Justine Dreux, Alyssa Klise, Jack Lawrence, Jeremy Potts, Nina Ruiz-Garcia, Ethan Seitz, Kelsey Stone, Nolan Zils and Alli Wang

P.E. NOLAN RODRIGUEZ

"In addition to having a great work ethic, they were a great classmate encouraging other students to work hard as well."

Chris Jensen, P.E.

CARISSA TAKAKI STAFF WRITER

Legally me

Growing up I was, without question, what you would call a “girly girl.” I loved wearing dresses, matching my sparkly flats to the ribbons in my pigtails, and playing with Barbies in my pink room.

As I matured from playing with dolls and my two braids merged to become one, I quickly realized being a girl meant more than liking pink and Barbies. Being a girl meant bearing the hardships of a birth-given label I never had the opportunity to choose.

Later, I realized I was a woman living in a man’s world. I was stronger than half the kids in my class, yet the teacher only requested boys to help move the desks. I wanted the cooler, bigger, blue toys, but those were for the boys. Blue was a boy's color. The boys could run and play without shirts, but if my skirt didn't meet my fingertips, I'd be sentenced to don my dirty gym shorts.

Entering high school, my awareness of institutionalized sexism broadened and I began to see the inequities of women firsthand. Being told by boys to "Go back to the kitchen" or by adults that "boys will be boys,” I learned misogyny was bolstered by the society I live in.

Beginning my high school career, these phrases and one-liners weren’t something I could just let roll off my shoulders; they clung to me and diminished my confidence as a girl.

Growing up meant losing my innocent perception of my female identity, and of course, I continued to hear these little jokes throughout my time in high school—that still remains unchanged.

I didn't choose to be a woman, yet I'm forced to bear the requirements womanhood comes with. I'll have to work equally as hard as men to be "Pretty good for a girl,” and when I fall short, be told to "man up.”

As I matured, I was able to utilize this desensitized misogyny for my benefit. I realized that I had the power to make the change I want to see in the world. While I may not be able to destroy the patriarchy or rid society of injustice, I have the opportunity to enact change. In high school, I learned that I wanted to be a woman for future generations of girls to admire.

Witnessing the inequality around me, I've grown an interest in deliberating upon these social issues, but I've developed a far deeper passion for desiring to combat them.

Leaving Branham on the path to becoming a lawyer, I want to do more than eradicate this concept of a “man's world,” I want to galvanize young girls to find the power within their existence as women and view womanhood as an honor, just like I do.

So while I'll have to work harder to receive a fraction of each dollar a man makes, I’ll do so with pride. Pride that I can achieve and will prove myself, not to men, but to the women around me.

Being a girl, doors have been closed on me my whole life, but now it's my turn to open them and explore my full potential as a woman.

"Their level of professionalism and dedication is remarkable, and will serve them well in this industry and beyond."

Jennifer Sorkin, theater

Fitz Vo/Bear Witness

Senior of the Year Nolan Zils asks a question at April's journalism conference, held in San Francisco. Adviser Fitzgerald Vo calls him "dedicated and loyal."

"Krish is special not only because of his brilliance, but his ability to be humble, helpful and for his pursuit and love for learning itself."

Kevin Kalman, AP Biology and chemistry

Senior Athlete of the Year Ava Medina Salutatorian Stella Wong

Salutatorian Gautam Nair

Valadictorian Maggie Dong

Senior Athlete of the Year Spencer Zeljak

RYAN WALTERS Staff Writer

The key to my confidence

Ever since I was in elementary school, I had always wanted to play football and be a star wide receiver in the NFL. After playing years of flag football, I was ready to try my luck playing at Branham. Then I saw the varsity squad practicing in guardian caps and saw the sheer hits the players were taking. I was a measly 5-foot 9-inches, just over 100 pounds, and my mom next to me had done the same thing she tried to do with me when she took me to school in kindergarten — she tried to push me to talk to the head coach directly.

Perhaps if I mustered enough courage to talk to coach Stephen Johnson that day, my life would be completely different, but that’s just speculation.

Ever since I was diagnosed in preschool for Asperger’s, a form of autism, it always felt as if I was on my own, even with support from my friends, family and teachers.

I was uncomfortable at Branham when I was almost late to my first biology class, and to make matters worse, I hardly knew anyone there. Most of the class were kids from Price or people I wasn’t familiar with from Dartmouth.

Luckily Mr. Kalman made a seating chart, but, unluckily, I still had trouble bringing myself to try to introduce myself and mostly was a mumbly-mouth for the day.

Though I have still noticed growth within myself, at times I still feel uncomfortable and irritable around my peers and still lack a true feeling of self-confidence to talk to all of them.

Tthe pandemic gave me an opportunity for growth. I’m not exactly sure if it was because I don’t fare well with face-to-face confrontation, but having to text or call everyone behind a screen gave me leeway in making new friends and building new relationships, not the ones I had from Dartmouth.

Coming into my junior year, I was more familiar with a good portion of my peers.

Though the pandemic made me learn of my confidence behind a screen, I still had little when someone was staring right at me.

That’s when I put on a mask for the first day of my junior year. Though some may think it’s odd, it made me feel as if I could say anything without anyone saying my laugh or smile looked stupid.

In an extremely odd turn of events, a pandemic and my concern of getting COVID opened the door to a world of fake confidence. Not real confidence, since that I still don’t entirely have, but fake confidence.

I was now able to muster up courage to ask my teachers about how their days are, I’m able to ask for help (though I still feel intimidated at times), and I’m able to talk to new people that I’ve never met a bit easier.

There’s an old adage that regards confidence that my friends used to use when I’d talk to a girl I’d never met: “Fake it ’til you make it.”

That’s been my new life motto — I throw everything I want to say on a project and I tidy it up. When I’m talking about sports, I can say something egregious like the Dodgers will win the World Series, and then retract it and explain what would need to happen if the Dodgers were to win.

When I look back on my junior year, I see a boy mature into a young adult who emulated his father’s blue collar mentality and brought his GPA from a 2.9 to a 3.5 in the span of a year. I see a boy who was once a hardcore wallflower allowing himself to spring toward the light, not away from it. I see a boy who opened doors of opportunity himself as he grew closer with everyone in his life.

This man is more than excited to move down to Los Angeles in fall 2023 for the next two years as he gets to care for his three year-old cousin as he ventures into pre-K and learns to socialize for the first time.

I’ll be taking classes at El Camino college as I obtain my associate’s degree and hope to transfer into a major in sports management, and to one day become a general manager of a professional baseball club.

IDEAL FUTURE?

71.1% are attending the school/ pursuing the career they expected.

The Common App experienced a 15% surge in total applications submitted in 2023, with an unprecedented number of rejection letters.

WHAT'S WORSE?

50.7% of Branham say that AP tests are the worst.

Blame this on the College Board, your college admission dreams, your parents, your laziness, your sibling who asked you to drive them that one time to school who made you late, your...

EVER SLEPT DURING CLASS?

73.7% of seniors caught their Zs while learning the ABCs.

20-30% of high school students and 6% of middle school students fall asleep in school each day, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

EVER GOTTEN DRUNK?

For 34.2% of seniors, yes.

The National Institutes of Health said that while historically underage teenage males are more likely to drink than females, the number has been declining.

EVER BEEN HIGH?

28.9% of seniors have gotten high. An National Institutes of Health study found that teens are most likely to use marijuana as a coping mechanism to combat anger, feeling excluded, or to escape reality.

EASIEST GRADE?

In this case, the first was not the worst. 39.5% said that freshman year was their easiest grade

CAFFEINE ADDICTION?

28.3% admit that a good jolty beverage gets them through the day. Medical news today found that 83.2% drink caffeinated beverages on a regular basis.

FAVORITE YEAR?

Source: Bear Witness survey of 111 seniors

Is there a correlation with a return to school? 64.5% said that senior year was their favorite, followed by 18.4% saying it was their sophomore year as tops.

MOST DIFFICULT SUBJECT?

Thankfully Google Forms calculated this percentage for us because 52.9% of seniors said their hardest subject was math.

BEEN IN A RELATIONSHIP FOR 2+ MONTHS?

Love is in the air for the seniors! 52.6% have been in a long-term relationship (relatively speaking).

DO YOU HAVE YOUR LICENSE?

Watch out for 63.2% of Branham's seniors on the road!

Wired.com found that 71% of high schoolers have their license.

HAVE YOU PROCRASTINATED?

97.6% of seniors are probably behind on their work.

A study from Studymode revealed that when procrastinating, 62% of students chose to watch TV.

HOW MUCH TIME DO YOU SPEND ON YOUR PHONE?

The senior class has major self-control. 47.6% spend 2-4 hours on their phones each day.

PRE-REGISTERED TO VOTE?

Time to get political! 38.7% of seniors are signed up to take part in future elections.

With this week's primary election, let's hope they registered in time!

The seniors were the last high school class to have been at Branham before the COVID-19 lockdown.

54.9% of seniors agreed that all forms of testing are equally horrible. With many schools going test-optional, tests are still a reality.

INTROVERT OR EXTROVERT?

37.5% of seniors are a mix of both, while 25.7% said they were extroverted. The rest are introverts.

An article by BBC claims that ambiverts are better leaders due to their tendencies to both take charge and listen to others.

80.9% of seniors didn't go to club rush just for the food. They participated in them as well. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the most popular types of extracurricular among students are sports, performing arts, and academic clubs.

FAVORITE PET?

Woof woof! 60.5% of seniors are dog people. The least popular? Fish owners, at 3.9% The CDC found that owning a dog is linked to lower blood pressure and decreased feelings of loneliness.

LGBTQ+?

21.3% of Branham seniors are LGBTQ+.

In a recent Gallup survey, more than 70% of Americans now say they support nonheterosexual marriage, compared to 27% in 1996.

HAVE YOU EVER VAPED, OR USED BANNED SUBSTANCE IN CLASS?

8.4% admit to taking that chance. A study by the FDA found that 3.05 million high schoolers in the U.S. had used an e-cigarette at least once in a 30 day period in 2018.

BEST PART ABOUT HIGH SCHOOL?

As the Spice Girls once said, “friendship never ends.” 75.7% said that their friends made their high school experience.

WHICH WAS YOUR FAVORITE BELL SCHEDULE?

39.6% of seniors said that sophomore year's distance learning schedule was their favorite. Who can argue with shorter classes, and Wednesday's optional Outreach schedule? Oh, that shelter-in-place thing.

LIED TO A TEACHER?

Honesty is not the policy for the class of 2021. 67.5% of seniors said that they might have been a little academically dishonest.

Source: Bear Witness survey of 111 seniors

Although it wasn’t like the musical, 80.9% of seniors enjoyed their high school experience.

ARE YOU SEXUALLY ACTIVE?

29.6% of Branham seniors are. Among teen females aged 15-19, 42% had ever had sex, and among teen males, the percent was 44%, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

WHAT IS YOUR POLITICAL PARTY AFFILIATION?

52.6% of seniors are feeling blue, while 34.2% are Republican.

The Pew Research Center found that 24 million members of Gen Z reached voting age in time for the 2022 election.

HAVE YOU EVER CHEATED ON A TEST?

70.4% of seniors couldn't keep their eyes on their own papers. Punishments for cheating on a College Board exam include reporting the incident to colleges and prohibiting students from taking other related

EVER

BEEN CHEATED ON?

16.4% of seniors, it's sadly a yes. The best cure for a broken heart? Time, and perhaps a little bit of patience.

PULLED AN ALL-NIGHTER

Desperate times call for desperate measures. 40.8% of seniors have pulled an all-nighter studying.

ALLI WANG News Editor

Finding my voice

As I step into the biology classroom during my freshman year of high school, I feel a knot in my stomach and my face flushes with heat. I can't wait for it to be over. High school was a nightmare for me, especially public speaking in front of large classes of 30 students. I would stumble over my words and rush through my rehearsed presentations, feeling deeply embarrassed.

Making friends and socializing with new people was also a challenge. I would practice my words in my head, but struggle to speak them out loud, leading me to shy away from most people.

The school that I will be graduating from in June was the bane of my existence. The large crowds and chaotic daily events filled me with anxiety, and I found solace in reading in the back of the classroom where I could avoid social interaction.

My anxiety did not go away after a school presentation ended. I tried joining clubs such as debate, spoken word poetry, and STEM where collaboration was crucial, but I still found every person I met intimidating and felt anxious about every club meeting.

During the pandemic, I found my voice at this school. Although the pandemic was isolating for many, I found virtual interaction as a way to let go of all my inhibitions. The school was shut down, but because school was online, the anxiety of everyone staring at my mistakes in the classroom withered away.

I was able to express myself more confidently, whether typing my answers in online chats or accidentally unmuting myself during Zoom meetings. Little interactions like these led me to join online communities where I shared my passion for writing with people inside and outside of school.

11.8% of seniors probably paid attention in class for the wrong reasons.

HAVE YOU EVER QUESTIONED YOUR IDENTITY?

43.2% of seniors said that they have. PBS reported that teens felt isolated and unmotivated during the shelter in place.

All the fears I had during my freshman year vanished in an instant, and I finally saw a light at the end of the tunnel. Seeing the orange skies outside my porch from the California wildfires during virtual learning prompted me to get involved in environmental advocacy initiatives, and I even shared my original songs on my personal YouTube channel to entertain my friends.

Eventually, I summoned the courage to join journalism after a friend recommended it as a way to talk to random people at Branham. I learned that I didn't have to let my social anxiety hold me back from finding community and staying true to myself.

Steve Jobs has 88.1% of seniors on his side. According to Apple, there are over one billion iPhones in use around the world.

As I came back from online learning, I began to eagerly laugh with peers as we make mistakes in group presentations, interview random students on a weekly basis, and take charge in lead classroom discussions. More importantly, I have found an amazing community at Branham that I am glad to call my own.

As I close my door on Branham and open my door to attending UC Berkeley, I hope this door will lead me to continue amplifying not just my own, but others’ voices.

Illustrations by David Tran

JOINED CLUBS AND EXTRACURRICULARS?

SHANTALA MURUGANUJAN STAFF WRITER

Choosing my Bruin family

Coming to Branham was my second choice. In eighth grade, I planned to attend Leigh without a doubt. Because I live in the “freezone,” I had a choice between the two schools. After seeing most of my friends choose Leigh, the decision was easy.

However, after I turned in my form, I learned about the journalism class that Branham offered with students who took part in publishing an award-winning newspaper.

The night before the transfer deadline, I made the impactful decision to go to Branham for the next four years.

During my first weeks at Branham, I felt alone. I missed my friends, who were mostly at Leigh. I stuck with the one girl I knew. But as I attended more classes, I realized that I was bound to make new friends.

I quickly bonded with the freshmen on the tennis team and students in my journalism class. Throughout the first semester, I noticed Branham’s student life and encouragement for school spirit and community building. I really felt like I belonged at Branham. Since there are no prominent cliques, everyone feels like your friend and you can express yourself how you want. Branham’s environment allowed me to become a social butterfly, a 180 from who I was in middle school.

I am so grateful to be able to be a part of and attend many of these events that the school has advertised, such as Homecoming week and Battle of the Classes. Joining clubs such as National Honors Society and SPARE, and attending student-run events, such as Acoustic Night and the musical, have made my experience at Branham memorable.

In my junior year, I took Digital Photography I, which taught me how to take quality photos and use Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom.

As a journalism student, these skills were also essential to put together a good newspaper.

My favorite part about Branham is how inclusive we are. The student body and staff are diverse and include everybody. Every class has students of different backgrounds and interests, which allows the school to feel like a community.

Taking part in the Bear Witness helped me develop a passion for journalism, photography, and video editing. I am continuing this passion in college by joining the Daily Trojan at University of Southern California in the fall. I never knew that choosing to attend Branham would be so pivotal to my future.

I have also become more outgoing. Four years ago, I wouldn’t believe you if you told me that I would be the most talkative person. I am so grateful to experience such a welcoming environment with academics and extracurriculars that prepared me for college and beyond.

WALKING DOWN

We asked the Class of 2023 about their favorite memories at Branham HIgh School. From joining programs such as theatre to enjoying school spirit events, the seniors all shared different unique experiences.

Dancing the night away

"Last year’s prom, I was just hanging out with my friends more after COVID right with your friends are the day or last topic that you more friends went and more. Coming back from COVID like hanging out with everyone was definitely helped me remember high school in a positive way. There's a lot of things that you could take from high school."

Gabriel Hurtado de Mendoza

Lights, camera, return to action!

"My freshman year entered the drama program and met so many people, but because of COVID the show was cancelled. However, we all stayed connected. This year, was our first unmasked show and the first real musical I was doing. Before the opening night, we had worked hard and going outside with everyone waiting was exciting. "

Marilyn Alonzo

ZIV GALPAZ STAFF WRITER

Water guns and fun

"My favorite memory was doing senior assassin with my friend. Our first round, we got paired up to assassinate our other friends with water guns. It was pretty positive and fun but it made me have trust issues."

Isha Roy

Strike up the squad

"Doing BOTC cheer with all of my friends made me feel more connected with my school community. I’m going to miss all of the members and I wish I was able to do it my sophomore and junior years."

Filip Kurtovic, senior

The TV episode that would change my life

Ididn't know that this one show would change the course of my post high school endeavors. I have always admired TV, even inspired by it.

When I was confused or anxious as a kid, I found solace in the make-believe characters who were written to represent different types of people, furthering my love for film. However I never thought that one tv show would change the course of my future. When I watched an Israeli TV show for the first time that explored the idea of service academies, I started considering it as an option. (The show is hard to translate from Hebrew.) The episode was about medic soldiers on a base, and how all of their young adult lives were being shaped by their service. It was funny, realistic, dramatic, and out of everything honest. This one show, one episode, led me to really consider if college is something I really want, and quite quickly I realized that there are other great options, and that going to a four year school might not be for me.

From that catchy tune, the upbeat electric guitar, the quick drums, and acoustic guitar all meshed together was what led me to envelop myself in my native culture. Relearn the language, learn the culture, and figure out my future options. That's when I decided, the summer going into my sophomore

year, that I wanted to move back to my homeland, and that would be through a leadership academy.

Since sophomore year, I experienced a drastic change, and no longer fought to assimilate into a culture so different from my own.

I embraced the duality of my upbringing. I went through the traditional college acceptance rollercoaster while applying through zoom to military leadership academies, a perfect example of something I finally learned, I can be both Israeli and american.

Now as I am about to leave in 2 months for my life abroad, I keep revisiting those moments of hearing the guitar and xylophone, and saying thank you to myself for paying attention for once. Freshman me would have expected by the end of senior year to be attending a prestigious four year, working towards eventually living the classical american dream.

Beginning september I will be attending Rakia leadership academy, the israeli air force prep school, and living in an apartment in a city, a different lifestyle than I could have ever imagined. But if there is one thing I would wish for anyone, is do what you want to do, not what everyone expects of me cause that is how I am pursuing my dream.

Compiled by Ziv Galpaz, Shantala Muruganujan, Carissa Takaki, Alli Wang, Ryan Walters, Nolan Zils

Seniors were asked to design a door representing their past, present and what they hope their future holds. We

Branham and Bear Witness word search

Find words that you may recognize from reading our issues.

Bruin crossword

Think you know this school? Think again! You might be right!

This is your Criss Cross Word Puzzle!

ACROSS

2. Abbreviation of the school that took over Branaham’s campus between 1991-1999

3. First name of the person this school is named after

6. Where to go to get textbooks

7. The last name of the AP is a synonym for standby

Word list Clues

Puzzlemaker is a puzzle generation tool for teachers, students and parents Create and print customized word search, criss-cross, math puzzles, and more-using your own word lists

1) Branham’s mascot’s name.

2) Our school colors are _____, navy, and white

3) Blu’s favorite drink at Boba Pub

4) An assistant principal's last name is synonymous with standing by.

4) Most popular World Language

5) The name of the facility that opened in 2023

6) Name of ASB's Instagram account

7) Number of schools in CUHSD

8) Where to go to get textbooks

9) Abbreviation of the school that took over Branaham’s campus between 1991-1999

10) First name of the person this school is named after

11) The first Branham sports team to win NorCals

12) The company that blocks our websites

13) Number of truancies or tardies before social probation

15) The utorial alternative being removed next year.

Sophia Mishareva

Jake Abendroth

Princess Ruiz Garcia

Adi Leist

Among Us: The biggest game over our sophomore year. So big in fact that even teachers decided to hold tutorials specifically to play with students.

Bathrooms closed: Since we returned full-time our junior year, continuous vandalism has often closed more than half of the bathrooms.

COVID-19: The reason we did not have school for over a year. Where would we be without this life-changing pandemic?

Devious licks: The viral trend decimated bathrooms last year, causing repair costs to skyrocket and bathrooms to close.

NOLAN ZILS CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

No doors left unopened

Iwas a scared freshman trying to navigate school, when after the first few weeks I had the additional challenge of finding a new elective.

Exodus. More than 26 teachers left after our junior year, hopefully for better pastures.

Facetime: We could not see each other in person for a long time so we got used to talking over the phone.

I had tried out Musical Theater 1, but I was already doing theater outside of school, and wanted to branch out, open a new door to something beyond performing arts. I went to my best friend, senior Ryan Walters for advice and what he said would end up changing my life: He said that he was in a journalism class, and that I should join because he knew I liked writing.

After a whirlwind of interviews and counselor meetings, I found myself in the classroom of one of the best high school publications in the country.

To my surprise, writing was just a fraction of what it really took to be part of the staff. The high school scene, my social anxiety and the workload seemed so daunting to my 15-year-old self, especially when thrown into the middle of the first production cycle.

This was nothing like the creative writing I did in my free time. I was in a room filled with so many obstacles that I couldn’t even see the door of possibilities on the other side.

Gym bros are trending. Everywhere you go, someone is curling a kettle bell.

Hades: Our Greek god for our senior year homecoming.

In-person learning. We were only in person for the first few months of our freshman year and then returned to campus as upperclassmen.

John Chun: The campus supervisor joined the school last year and has become a favorite among students for his friendly and chill nature.

If I hadn’t gathered the courage to take a leap of faith and push through, I would never have learned what was waiting for me at the end of the room.

That next door would open into a world I had never even considered before. Suddenly I was embarking on the adventure of a thousand lifetimes, running around like a madman to cover events, interview district board members, take football photos, and more.

Falling in love with the class and with journalism was the most apparent door of opportunity that had swung open for me. What I didn’t know is that it initiated a chain reaction of breakthroughs and improvements in other aspects of my life. I used to be a bit shy in public settings since my autism held me back from feeling like I truly fit in.

When I went all-in on journalism, others noticed. It presented a win-win situation where I could become more confident while doing what I loved, and improving at it and getting recognized for it.

Kahoot: There’s nothing like taking a break from classwork and earning bragging rights over your classmates.

Lunch lines: Once the new cafeteria opened, lines wrapped around the entire campus. Everyone loves orange chicken.

Masks: Still a part of our lives, and we saw each other in masks for a good amount of our high school years.

New schedule every year: Let’s hope future classes have more consistency in the school year than we did.

The image of my 5-foot, 2-inch’ frame scurrying around the football sidelines, usually donning a hat and leather jacket became increasingly present at the games. Football players who initially intimidated me, whom I would never have been acquainted with otherwise, began to call me “The Little Dude with the Camera.” Interviewing people who were basically strangers forced me to go outside my comfort zone, and ensured that I thoroughly reported on the story.

The more stories I took on, the more I wanted to discover, as my community consisted of so many people I had yet to meet, stories I had yet to learn. Learning about how others lived, and what their lives were like made me feel more alive and gave me more purpose than anything else.

Orange skies. Remember that time in September sophomore year when our entire sky was orange from the raging wildfires? Our high school career saw multiple big wildfire seasons.

Peardeck: A slideshow website that students became all-too familiar with over COVID, with editable slides for us to answer questions.

Queue for Taylor Swift tickets: Seniors, and millions of others, skipped school or work on Nov. 15, the day of the pre-sale, praying that the Ticketmaster gods would let them in so they could buy tickets.

Rain: For a few months, our senior year we had more rainy days than sunny days. Atypical to our dry Bay Area weather.

Now, at the end of an eventual four years in the journalism class, as the co-editor-in-chief for the past two, I leave grateful for the way that the class taught me to open all doors.

It took a long time to develop it, after understanding how much fear was holding me back. After years of bullying and feeling like I couldn’t be myself, so many experiences, so many moments of life and my development were left untouched, the doors remaining closed for way too long.

Asking a girl out? That took me until junior year to gather enough courage to do. But what helped me finally overcome this social barrier, was treating it like an interview, as silly as it sounds.

Sometimes I knew I wouldn’t get what I wanted when talking to a person, whether it be a friend, classmate or crush. Having that mindset made the rejection easier, and also made me appreciate that at least I tried.

Sherbourne Drive: Our favorite student band won the Battle of the Bands this year. The group consists of seniors Tony Aruta and Andy Chen, and juniors Eneko Rios and Kaulen Velasquez

Test Optional: We are the last class that qualifies as a test optional for college admissions.

Under construction: Access to the cafeteria was off-limits until this year. Construction began before the shutdown, and only stopped before this semester.

VSCO girls: We, the Class of 2023, were made fun of for the VSCO girl trend. But let’s be honest, we all love scrunchies, Hydros and saving turtles !

Once I realized that it was part of the process to try and fail, I began to thrive in all aspects of my life. I used to hate how my singing voice sounded as an underclassmen. I still do. What’s changed is that I am okay with my performance not being perfect, because no performer is.

When I began to fret less about my vocals, I felt more motivated to improve, and I had a more positive outlook on myself as a performer. This acceptance allowed me to have a breakthrough in my theater company, where I began to get casted in lead roles, eventually leading to an award for Outstanding Vocals last year.

These experiences showed me that without journalism, I would not have learned how fun and rewarding life can be if you keep moving forward and never give up, as simple and cheesy as it sounds.

As I go into college I will ensure to maintain the passion created from this class, and use it to meet more people, and go on even crazier adventures that lie ahead of me. Who knows what fulfilling life experiences I will miss out on?

In the past I may have feared uncertainty, I now find it exciting. Accepting failure has turned me into the person I am today, someone who will be majoring in journalism in college and beyond. But to say this approach to life has only affected my career prospects would be selling it way short.

Working in rather than working out: The pandemic inspired a trend of indoor workouts, and many P.E.. classes got on board.

Xylophone: A mysterious, magical instrument only played by the world’s four ancient sages, and Alli Wang, one of our favorite Bear Witness journalists.

Y2K style: coming back into fashion. Low-waisted jeans, cargos, small tank tops, all of it.

Zoom: Our sophomore year classroom, whether we liked it or not. Anyone who says they didn’t fall asleep at least once during a Zoom class is lying.

Compiled by Ziv Galpaz, Shantala Muruganujan, Carissa Takaki, Alli Wang, Ryan Walters, Nolan Zils Illustrations by Karis Do

Highlighting senior athletes who've committed to playing in college.

BEAR WITNESS BEAR WITNESS

CHANGEIN THEGAME

Seeing benefits of on-campus coaches, athletic director pushes for higher pay

LIA CHOI Staff Writer

In his two years at Branham, P.E. teacher and wrestling and football coach Greg Stefani has already helped prevent a student from facing expulsion.

This year, Stefani and wrestling coach Ryan Matthews, a Living Earth teacher, helped bring home Branham’s first wrestling championship in 40 years, when senior Scotty Moore won in the 106-pound weight category.

For Stefani, there are benefits to being an on-campus coach and teacher, where they can build relationships on and off the mat.

He said that connection he cultivated with the student through his coaching and check-ins throughout the year helped the student improve his standing in his classes.

“Being a teacher and a coach, you get to see different sides of students,” Stefani said. “Sometimes students make poor decisions and get themselves in sticky situations, but that doesn't really reflect who they truly are. So we try to provide any kind of help that can get them on a better path.”

Athletic Director Landon Jacobs said that on-campus coaches such as Stefani are essential in helping Branham develop the student-athlete mindset, and reinforces core values of academics and athleticism.

Yet Stefani is part of a dwindling group of teacher-coaches left on campus. Though in the last decade the number of Branham coaches has increased over from 42 to 93, the number of on-campus coaches has remained stagnantdropping from 17 in 2010 (40.5% of the overall coaching staff to 14 this year (15.1%).

Jacobs said that the main reason is that coaches aren’t paid what they’re worth in the district. He said that pay for coaches, who put in hours after school with their students, are the second lowest in the region.

A varsity head coach receives $3,931 stipend in the district regardless of their seniority, above Gilroy and Santa Clara. By contrast, the Mountain View-Los Altos Unified School District pays $6,202 for varsity coaches, nearly $8,000 for the varsity football head coach.

In the current round of contract negotiations with the Campbell High School Teachers Association and the dis-

Comparing pay of first-year varsity coaches in the Central Coast Section Though varsity coaches make up a large part of thnumber of the extra-duty stipends that are allocated. Additionally, districts vary by the type of stipendsthat are rewarded. For example, the San Mateo Union High School District

Wellness check: What is your quality of life quotient like?

SENIOR AWARDS

Awards ceremony streamlined

Move to shorten honors draws criticism

AVA STARK Arts & Culture Editor

The annual senior awards, presented Thursday, have been a showcase for high-achieving students, and a chance to announce scholarships and valedictorians. It also gave teachers in departments big and small to highlight their standout seniors. The awards nights had previously recognized students in 19 teacher-selected categories, but that has been reduced to nine, with one student per department recognized.

Page 11

The science department, which previously handed out two awards, one for life science and the other for physical science, was asked to honor one senior. The world language department, which previously recognized students in French, Mandarin, and two awards for Spanish, has been reduced to one award. The career technical education department, which previously honors student from foods, yearbook, engineering, business pathways, and journalism, has also been

SEE SENIOR AWARDS • PAGE 10

BELL SCHEDULE

Jen Ozdinski Bell Schedule Committee chair Says that Outreach has cut into time to help students catch up with schoolwork.

Outreach is out in favor of tutorial

JIYOON CHOI Editor-In-Chief

Teachers have overwhelmingly voted to remove the twice-a-month Outreach period from the bell schedule next year and replace it with a tutorial where school information will be occasionally shared.

The change was a long time coming, as dissatisfaction with how the advisory period is executed began shortly after it was introduced more than a decade ago. It is also the latest evolution in a series of schedule changes, which has seen five variations in five years.

AP Psychology teacher Jen Ozdinski, who leads the Bell Schedule Committee, said that 81.4% of teachers had voted to eliminate the Friday advisory, with no additional changes. Other proposals to change the bell schedule were made in the last few months, including changing period lengths, but teachers did not have enough time to deliberate, Ozdinski said.

SEE BELL SCHEDULE • PAGE 10

Editorial Short-sighted plan overlooks deserving students.

Alexia Enache Evan Williams

Maddy Connolly-Hojas Marisa Pepitone

BELL SCHEDULE | Outreach widely unpopular SENIOR AWARDS

She said the main issue that teachers had with the alternating A/B block schedule was its inconsistency. It wasn’t enough to have four tutorial days spread over two weeks, she said.

“Teaching AP Psych, especially with all of the test corrections that I offer, I know having two tutorials a week is not sufficient,” Ozdinski said.

The Outreach advisory has seen various incarnations since it started more than 10 years ago. Its original goal was to provide an advisory period for students to receive and disseminate information, such as drug abuse and mental health awareness, and to connect with students.

However, teachers and students have complained of its effectiveness, despite the administrators’ best efforts to provide lessons and activities. In an extensive Bear Witness survey four years ago of 1,024 students, more than 65% of students said that advisory was not effective. Seniors were more likely to say that it was not.

Teachers such as math teacher Ramani Visvanathan have mixed feelings about Outreach. He said the period provides information, but it occurs too frequently, making it “not worth it.”

“We talk about mental health, and so there are some issues which are really, really important to talk about, but at the same time, I feel you don't need to do Outreach classes,” he said.

Students like sophomore Kelly Zhang, who is enrolled in seven classes, five of which are AP classes, said she prefers tutorials that allow time to complete homework.

“It's really good that they're changing Outreach because I don't think anyone cares about Outreach,” she said.

Late start complicates athletic schedule

One of the main reasons for last year’s schedule change was due to Senate Bill 328, which required public high schools in California to start no earlier than 8:30 a.m. It was implemented last fall.

The later start discontinued early morning classes such as the 7 a.m. and later 7:30 a.m. 0 period, which offered before COVID-19. With the later start this year, 7th period classes ended at 3:55 p.m.

Often, later ending times interfered with sports practice, the P.E. the department this year got rid of 7th period P.E. to avoid conflicts.

“I’ve been in a lot of communication with the athletic director and the coaches from the other schools that we need to be able to finish our unit or the locker rooms will not be available until a certain time,” said P.E. department chair Laura Andersson

Still, student athletes with 7th period have to miss class due to practices or games overlapping, frustrating their teachers and their efforts to catch up.

“They are under extra pressure because they're missing classes,” Visvanathan said. “They have issues understanding the content.”

Impact on extracurriculars

Zhang participates in Traditional Competitive Cheer in the winter and Competitive Sports Cheer in spring. Extracurriculars taking up usually six to eight hours a week, late 7th period end

times affect Zhang.

“It feels like it's so late and then sometimes I end up skipping part of the practice because the games just start a little bit earlier,” she said. “I get really drowsy by the end of the day, so I can't even focus on that class. I'd rather just wake up earlier.”

Zhang is part of clubs such as the Bionic Bruins, Data Science Club, and Science Olympiad. Because the clubs also require outside of school commitments, Zhang has been especially busy.

“I just had a lot less time after school because 7th period ended so late and then clubs and practices would also go later and that was just a bit annoying,” she said.

Other after school clubs like Math Club are impacted by 7th period end times and the alternating block schedule. Although they used to meet once a week, they now meet every other week after school.

“So we are not able to meet in clubs regularly like before, and that's impacting our club,” said Visvanathan who is also the advisor for Math Club. “We were not able to participate in activities that we should all be doing so that high school is fun for our students.”

The alternating block schedule and the late end times also decreased after school support availability for teachers like Visvanathan. With staff meetings and 7th periods, he “hardly gets one

19 teacher awards cut down to nine

or two days” to help students and feels that the “support is missing."

Before COVID-19, Visvanathan also taught zero period IM2 classes in which students from Price Middle School could also enroll. As an IM2 and Calculus teacher, Visvanathan wants more advanced math opportunities for students who are doing above and beyond.

“Yes, you need to cater to the needs of students who are average and below average, but you also have to take care of students who would want to move ahead,” he said.

The 8:30 a.m. start time’s goal is to help students be more academically successful and get more sleep. However, many students like Zhang say it does not help.

The Bell Schedule Committee, continued to be led by Ozdinski next year, is looking for more student inputs next year. They plan to gauge more opinions from the community members to incorporate to the schedule.

“It's obviously difficult because everybody has their own take on what the perfect bell schedule would be and there's no such thing as the perfect bell schedule,” Ozdinski said. “We just have to try and do what's best for the majority of students and put our own personal desires aside and make sure that we're focusing on what's best for the students."

STIPENDS | Contract talks reach an impasse

trict, coaches may be due for a modest pay increase, a push that Jacobs and others have initiated. The district is proposing $4,325 for varsity coaches, while the teachers union is pushing for $4,500. Their pay has not been increased since 2015.

However, Jacobs said that the pay is not enough to keep veteran coaches in the district, and it hurts the quality of the athletic programs.

“We live in one of the most expensive places in the world, so we're seeing fewer on-campus people being willing to commit time after school to do these jobs,” Jacobs said. “If we're looking to recruit quality, young coaches that we want to retain and help them impact the lives of our students after school, an increased stipend matters to them.”

Coach Stefani said that while he loves interacting with students, an increased stipends would improve the experience of coaching and recruit potential coaches.

“Better stipends would have us fundraise more money to pay these coaches and more can go towards the kids, rather than having to pay the coaching staff,” he said. “Because at the end of the day, we just want to make the high school experience as positive as possible for our students.”

Other issues, such as an open stipend option, would help to cover costs when the school adds a new coach, pointing to the addition of freshman football team this year. Though he said coaches work far more than they’re worth, “There's a minimum wage in California, but it's not minimum wage for any of these people,” he said. “The hours that they're working, how's this ever determined that it was acceptable to pay somebody less than minimum wage for the job that they're doing?”

Negotiations at an impasse

The district and the teachers union are returning to the negotiating table after a brutal round of negotiations last year, which saw a public vote of no confidence against district superintendent Dr. Robert Bravo.

Though the two parties at their May 22 meeting have reached an impasse on a percent salary increase — the district is proposing 8%, while CHSTA is proposing 11.5%, the two bargaining teams have agreed on several key items, including professional development pay rate to increased funding for athletic directors and AVID coordi-

Staff writers

Editors-in-Chief | Jiyoon Choi and Nolan Zils

Editors

Art director: Erica Kang

News Editor: Alli Wang

Opinion Editor: Jiyoon Choi

Arts and Entertainment Editor: Ava Stark

Science and Health Editor: Angela Choi

Student Life Editor: Reese Gardner

Sports Editor: Alan Schaeffer

nators.

Meredyth Hudson, Chief of Strategy and Human Capital, is in her seventh year of CUHSD and leads the meetings. Earlier in the “Based on these initial proposals, we have more work to do, but we are looking forward to meeting with the teacher teams and making progress toward an agreement,” Hudson said.

In fact, on May 5th’s meeting, CUHSD announced they are no longer having teachers bid against each other for fair compensation and are negotiating salaries separate from stipends, professional development pay, and compensation for additional support teachers provide students with fair district allocations.

Jacobs said that whether or not teachers coach because of the money or their passion in teaching students, they must be compensated properly for the work that they do.

“Everybody in education is probably sick and tired of hearing the argument of ‘you’re not doing it for the money, you're doing it for the love of what you're doing,’” Jacobs said. “Yes, we do, but that doesn't mean we don't deserve fair compensation for our time for what we're doing.”

Aresema Agdie, Juliette Bonacum, Lia Choi, Owen Dazko, Sahasra Makamchenna, Shantala Murujanugan, Aadyant Suresh, Carissa Takaki, Anabelle Walker, Ryan Walters, Mila Windell, Makayla Wu

Guest artists: Dao Do, Supriya Khandewal, Nandita Rao, Karis Do and David Tran

Adviser: Fitzgerald Vo

From PAGE 9

limited to one award.

Additionally, the visual and performing arts department used to give out a total of four awards for dance, art, instrumental and vocal, but now is allowed to give out two awards, visual and performing arts.

Principal Lindsay Schubert said that the reduction was meant to streamline the length of the awards, which historically has run upward of two hours.

She said that the school is making efforts to recognize students more frequently through other award ceremonies and Bruin of the Month Recognitions.

“Our goal is to recognize students throughout their years at Branham and not just senior year,” she said.

Though Spanish teacher and World Language department chair Leticia Molina said that the awards have been “extremely long,” she also said that the streamlining of the number of awards denies recognition that Molina believes students deserve.

“As a student, it's something that I would be disappointed about,” she said. “They have been working towards this goal for a while and it's not easy and those students are balancing their time.”

The cutback has forced departments with diverse classes to find a consensus. For example, the World Languages department is composed of Spanish, French, Mandarin and Korean teachers, it is only able to recognize one deserving student.

“Spanish teachers can have Spanish input because that's who they work with,” Molina said. “But it's very difficult for me to judge someone who took Mandarin or who took French.”

To make up for the recognition, Schubert and administrators said one solution is for individual department awards to host their own awards ceremonies in addition to the senior awards. This past week, the band, World Language, science and journalism departments have held award ceremonies recognizing their students.

But Molina said doing this has meant more work for teachers to have to prepare and host their own ceremonies.

“It would be more work on the departments,” Molina said. “If departments chose to take that on, then the amount spent on senior night would be reduced, but parents would have to come back.”

Alumnus Dee Nguyen last year was recognized for one of four art department awards, and said that the awards should not be cut back. Nguyen hopes that staff find other ways to highlight their students for senior awards night, since some can get lost when the school only recognizes its most prominent students.

“(When I got my award) I was surprised because I didn't know other people were paying attention,” Nguyen said. “All these kids have worked so hard and they deserve the recognition, no matter how long the ceremony.”

Mission Statement The Bear Witness is committed to providing accurate, timely coverage of local and world news while connecting these events to the lives of our diverse student body.

Website: www.bhsbearwitness.com

Phone: (408) 626-3407

Email: bhsbearwitness@gmail.com

Address: 1570 Branham Lane, San Jose, CA 95118

Alli Wang/Bear Witness Alumnus Dee Nguyen hugs former arts teacher Jessica Bender after Nguyen recieved the senior art award last year at the Senior Awards Ceremony.

Jiyoon Choi/Bear Witness

Senior Lauren Peters asks math teacher Ramani Visvanathan a question about her AP Calculus BC homework during tutorial, which will increase to three times a week.

SENIOR AWARDS

The opinion of the Bear Witness editors

Shortened ceremony denies seniors proper recognition

The annual senior awards, which previously lasted more than two hours, have been reduced by shrinking the number of awards that teachers from different departments hand out, from 19 to nine. This change has cut one science award, three world language awards, two visual and performing arts awards and four career technical education awards.

The science department used to recognize a student from life science and physical science, but now has combined them. Additionally the visual and performing arts department previously recognized four students for art, dance, vocals and instrumentals, but now gives out

two awards, for visual and performing arts. The World Language department which used to spotlight a student from French, Mandarin and two from Spanish, now highlights only one from all languages. While this change does make the awards ceremony more efficient for administrators, the length of the ceremony will not be reduced by that much, considering that the teacher presenting the award only speaks for about two minutes.

Several teachers, such as World Language department chair Leticia Molina do not believe this change is worth the lack of recognition

LEARNING DISABILITIES

that students are getting, and does not reflect the quality of students who represent Branham.

When each department only selects one students, it becomes an issue of equity. It may be difficult for a Spanish teacher to come to a consensus on who to recognize in a department with French, Mandarin and Korean classes, or for an engineering teacher to judge students from foods, yearbook, business pathways and journalism.

Several departments, such as World Languages, journalism, science and band have or are planning on hosting their own awards ceremonies before

PROCESSING DYSLEXIA

Struggling with an invisible disability

REESE GARDNER Student Life Editor

If you know me, you’ll know that Grammarly and spell check are my best friends. You would know that I’ve always been a slow reader and that I hate reading aloud because I tend to stutter and stumble over words. And if you know me, you would know that I’m very open about talking about my dyslexia. Gov. Gavin Newson also has dyslexia, and this month started the California Dyslexia Initiative, CDI, which recently received $4 million budget to allow districts the ability to hold free screening for learning disorders.

This is welcome news because, with one in five students defined as a learning disability, earleir screening will help provide more opportunities for success.

I have learned to live with my dyslexia and it’s sometimes a struggle. I have cried about test scores because I can’t spell. I have given up on Spanish because test grades are lowered only by wrong spelling, and I dread being called on in class to read aloud in fear that people will laugh when I can’t pronounce a word.

Dyslexia is not a visible condition and a subject that is usually not regarded about which is one of the disadvantages people with dyslexia has to live with. It takes extra effort and time to keep up with the people around them.

Neuroscientists note that dyslexic people don’t necessarily see letters and words backward; they actually see things the same way as everyone else. The reason one might have a hard time spelling, reading or speaking is caused by a phonological processing problem, having a problem manipulating words rather than seeing them.

Someone with dyslexia usually needs to break up the word into parts, and time spent decoding makes it hard to catch up with others.

Remembering definitions or words in other languages like Spanish is a struggle because I don’t hear accurate spelling of the word. I also stumble over words and stutter a lot when reading things out loud or talking since processing the words take more time and often have to re-read things in my head to understand.

I’ve always had to read for more hours and days in order to finish a book on time for the test I’ll have on it in class.

BITE-SIZED OPINIONS Minor problems, minor solutions

Brain functions

Functional magnetic resonance imaging studies show dyslexic people rely more on frontal lobe and the right side of the brain.

Dyslexics

Pablo Picasso, Muhammad Ali, Steven Spielberg, Cher, Albert Einstein, Walt Disney

Misconception

It's not just about scrambling words; it's about processing them.

The extra work is hidden by the grade attached to the assignment. Many assume that I did the bare minimum in work because of the score I got.

And it’s so frustrating. People make fun of me because I can’t say a word correctly. I’ve been laughed at in class, called out in front of everyone for not being able to spell or for spelling something wrong, and when I've been asked how I did on assignments, I never feel inclined to respond because I don’t want to get made fun of.

When it comes to writing, which I am better at, spell check and Grammarly are always in use because almost every other big word is spelled wrong. I’ve never gotten 100% on a spelling test.

Dyslexia isn’t something that’s will go

Problem: I am tired all the time and need to take a nap daily. The only thing is, it takes too much time out of my day to have a nice nap.

Solution: All collectively take naps at the same time, and not count the hours so we are all on the same schedule.

— Anabelle Walker

school lets out. However, this extra time spent on an awards ceremony makes it so that parents and teachers defeats the purpose of streamlining the awards ceremony in the first place.

While the administrators still make an effort to recognize students, not just seniors, throughout the year through awards ceremonies such as Bruin of the Month, it still denies the recognition for seniors who have worked their high school careers.

Shortening the ceremony denies teachers the ability to recognize their students before their peers, especially those who do not normally receive recognition.

Clock is ticking on climate action

ARESEMA AGDIE Staff Writer

This past year has stirred up a lot of conversation in classrooms and at lunch about the unusual, often “bipolar” weather California has been experiencing. Rainy and cold one day, unseasonably warm the next. I have participated in such conversations myself, and many students shared the same deep concern when discussing climate change that is becoming more apparent in California.

This winter, for example, was one of the wettest and coldest I have ever seen, with one atmospheric river after another, flooding our reservoirs.

In September scorching heat broke many records as temperatures reached as high as 113o in San Jose. Chemistry classes have taught us that as the weather warms up, the potential energy in the atmosphere can hold more water vapor, leading to more intense storms. This was preceded by years of intense drought.

According to UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the average summer climate in California has risen by 3°F since 1896. Future predictions cause even more distress as it is likely that California will experience warming by more than 2°F by 2040, an additional 4°F by 2070, and another 6°F by 2100.

As a teenager passionate about issues surrounding climate change and global warming, I always felt as though not enough change was not being implemented to meet the net zero goals.

Sources: University of Minnesota, Mayo Clinic

away in life, so I can’t ignore it. I still am trying to figure out how to live with dyslexia and not feel ashamed to ask how to spell a word. It’s frustrating when people tell me “stop faking” or “dyslexia isn’t even real” and I need to “get over it” because it is real, and it does affect me and I’m trying to learn to work with it. People who say those things only make my life, and probably the lives of others with dyslexia, worse. So maybe the next time you go to make fun of someone who mispronounces a word, or takes longer to to process a thought, just don’t. We should alway try to better understand the perspectives of those around us; not only by seeing the world through their eyes but by understanding it through their brains.

I take pride in not shopping in fast fashion stores like Shein, which emit approximately 6.3 million tons of carbon a year. Instead, I purchase sustainable and high quality clothes so that I get my money’s worth and simultaneously not contribute to said emissions.

I conserve energy and water in my house by not leaving the water on when I brush my teeth, using minimal amounts of water when washing dishes, and turning off the lights and only using the lights I need at night. I try to walk, bike, and recycle as much as possible as well. The most effective way we can make change is by being conscious of the way we live our lives. If we think about the effect our decisions have before we make them, we are able to create an attitude that is pro-eco.

President Joe Biden signed an executive order into action in 2021 to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050 in the United States. With the last chance to jolt into action being 2030, just less than 7 years away, the clock is ticking away.

Although a majority of scientists believe that we will not be able to avoid crossing the 2.7°F limit of warming before irreversible damage is made, we can still make sure we maintain this temperature, so that by 2050 we can be carbon neutral. If we were to pass this limit, there would be irreversible damage done to the planet.

It’s not difficult to imagine a world that doesn’t have polar bears or glaciers anymore, because I can see it happening in the way that more extreme weathers are becoming more frequent. But if everyone was willing to put in the effort, drastic changes could be made, so we are able to meet the goals set.

Problem: Time differences are annoying when having meetings with other people who are in other time zones.

Solution: The entire world should adopt PST as their time zone. It's in America, and America is important. Secondly, because California has the highest GDP out of all the states, and we should get an award for this by being the standard time zone.

— Makayla Wu

Problem: I’m getting assigned one or more projects to do in every single class and it’s overwhelming.

Solution: Let us off of school two weeks early, we’ve done enough as is.

(Editor's note: Yes, but only after this issue comes out.)

— Ava Stark

Problem: I don’t know what to wear to school anymore since the weather is hot but the classrooms are cold.

Solution: Get rid of classrooms and teach students outside to minimize clothing confusion.

—Lauren Gernale

Problem: As a senior, I’m miffed that some of my finals are either handwritten or art projects, meaning I have to use pens (since I don’t have pencils) or markers, which gets my hands all inky.

Solution: Let’s just use invisible ink instead! It’s not like seniors need the 100% grade.

—Ryan Walters

Reese Gardner/Bear Witness

SCIENCE & HEALTH

SCIENCE &Health BRIEFS

ADAPTING TO A.I.

Students and schools work to adapt to the presence of AI assistants in education

AADYANT SURESH Staff Writer

Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin to help NASA to moon NASA selected the company Blue Origin, founded by Jeff Bezos, to take NASA astronauts to the moon. However, some members of the Congress have criticized the decision due to concern that taxpayer dollars will be granted to Bezos. The Blue Moon lander will first be sent to a dock orbiting the moon, and 4 astronauts will be sent in a separate capsule before taking the lander to the moon’s surface and preparing for a week-long stay. Blue Origin will conduct a manless demonstration flight in 2028.

A representative from Blue Origin reported that some entities are interested in opening the company’s rides to the public.

ChatGPT has taken the world by storm, recording 1.6 billion visits to the website and more than a 100 million users — beating other popular sites such Instagram, which took 2.5 years to see that kind of activity.

In the time since its release last November, Microsoft has included ChatGPT into its Bing search engine with Google following suit with its AI chatbot, Bard. This new framework allows for the ability to go through more information such as being able to analyze pictures.

The growth of these AI assistants posit various possible effects on education like academic dishonesty, with teachers and the district moving to react to the change.

New possible benefits

As students become increasingly aware of the technology, Westmont teacher Dianne Leo gave a presentation during the teacher development conference regarding ChatGPT, which was attended by more than a hundred teachers.

“We can’t run from ChatGPT or pretend it doesn’t exist,” Leo said. “We need to learn how to work with it and incorporate it into our classrooms or at least let students know that we’re aware of (it).”

Bitcoining mining energy

bils reach millions

Cryptocurrency has given rise to bitcoin mining facilities, where rows of computers will test combinations of numbers that bitcoin will accept. These facilities make around $170,000 a week, but also can use as much electricity as up to 300,000 homes in the same area. The New York Times has identified 34 operations that together use 3,900 megawatts of energy. These mining companies add hundreds of megawatts of demand when countries and companies are trying to reduce the use of fossil fuel energy.

Drug shortages delay patient treatment

Patients are struggling to get treatments for life-threatening illnesses due to drug shortages resulting from interruptions in the supply chain. The Biden Administration has put together a team to mitigate the issue. Some states have already encountered gaps in treatments. Current potential initiatives favor the lowest prices, which has been criticized for potentially benefiting organizations saving money by cutting corners.

Leo teaches AP Language and English 4, as well as the coordinator for EL TOSA (for English learners), and finds different potential uses for the program in her classes.

She sees a possibility where all students can use ChatGPT to proofread their work, such as asking where evidence could be added or where a section could be improved upon.

AP U.S. History teacher Stefanie Menera also said a student could use an AI assistant when making sure that a passage they have written matches with a rubric that a teacher has provided. She also said how AI assistants could be used as starting points for research or a way to get ideas.

“That is a useful and an ethically acceptable way to use it,” Menera said.

Leo also highlighted benefits that ChatGPT and similar programs can have when teaching English learners. This can come in the form of translating or using the software to help explain topics in a simple manner.

In math teacher Ramani Visvanathan’s AP Calculus class, students already use online tools such as Desmos and Wolfram Alpha to check their work. For Visvanathan, use of ChatGPT to check work is fine as long as students are doing the work and making an effort to understand concepts.

Use of ChatGPT for teachers

Menera has used ChatGPT as an equivalent to a teaching assistant that helps complete basic tasks.

She first heard about the program in a Facebook group with AP U.S. History teachers. Menera also got more information on the matter from an educational technology CUE conference this March in Palm Springs.

Pharmacies sold non-FDA approved diabetes meds

When ozempic, medication used for type 2 diabetes and also used for weight loss, has become hard to find, patients are turning to alternatives like TikTok nurse practitioners selling “generic versions’ ‘ of the drug. However, the FDA has no approved generic drugs for ozempic. Because the FDA’s drug shortage website currently lists ozempic as in shortage, pharmacies were allowed to buy semaglutide, the active ingredient from ozempic. They mix semaglutide with certain other drugs, which is a practice that research has found contributes to weight loss, and sometimes sell semaglutide in salt form. None of these compounded drugs are FDA approved.

— Compiled by Angela Choi with information from the New York Times

She is now using the program to make random groups, take a detailed instruction set and break it down or make a rubric. She compares ChatGPT to using a calculator, another tool.

“As teachers, there are so many decisions that we have to make in a day and so many tasks that we have to complete that if there’s any way that I can find a resource or a tool to make my job more efficient, even if it’s in a small way,” Menera said.

Despite its usefulness, ChatGPT has been prone to making many errors. Menera recalls how she tested the program to make a rubric for the AP U.S. History final after she had written a detailed description of the assignment; yet, the program had included categories that did not exist and failed to include others that she had already included.

Need for student responsibility

With these new programs, comes additional efforts by teachers and administrators across the country to make sure improper use does not proliferate.

“The teacher should educate their students (on) how they should be using AI for their benefit. Make sure you use AI to check your work rather than do your

work,” Visvanathan said.

For Visvanathan, this comes in the form of focusing on the concepts and the proper notation to use, something that AI assistants may not provide.

“Writing is an important part of mathematics, but students won’t know how to document their work because they are using a documentation which is not theirs,” he said. “Students won’t know what to put on paper because they’re looking at something else done for them.”

For example, students need to know the proper format for integrals that are checked in the AP exam.

Teachers may also be able to tell when AI use takes place, noticing details that separate it from work previously done by a student.

“There’s some element of student-ness in the work that can be easily distinguished by a teacher,” Visvanathan said. Menera agrees and explains how she can recognize changes to a student’s writing style. She also said that the lack of sourcing from students who use AI assistants is another indicator.

Teachers emphasize the need for stu-

Finals dilemma

Your teacher has given you a final, and you aren’t sure how to get started.

Put in a prompt

Some good ones include:

“Teach me the (topic of your choice) and give me a quiz at the end, but don’t give me the answers and then tell me if I answered correctly.”

“Can you give me an example of how to solve a (Problem statement)?”

Teachers Say Yes

Proofread essays

Students can ask ChatGPT to check their essays for grammar, places to add evidence, or where a section could be improved upon

Get ideas

Students can ask an AI assistant for ideas pertaining to the project or assignment from a topic to research to a a type of presentation to pursue.

Conduct research

AI assistants can be used to gather quick information and get sarted with researching for an assignment. Students should keep in mind that sources still need to be cited for information from AI assistants.

Math-check

Students can check their solutions and see if they made a mistake. They should keep in mind that AI assistants can make mistakes

Teachers Say No

Write Essays

Students should not ask AI assistants to write essays for them

Research

When using AI assistants to research, students should not just use given information without citing it.

Math

AI assistants shoudl not be used to solve all given problems without students attempting it by themselves

managing recent AI assistants. She said that it was a good method to get ideas and get some basic information, but it then required further research to check the accuracy of the information from a reliable source.

For Schubert, it is important to manage the benefits of the technology while keeping the principles of current education intact.

ChatGPT as another tool in your educational

Some educators in the district are looking to ChatGPT and other AI-powered software to develop critical thinking skills, rather than outright banning it.

Grace Ngo/Special to Bear Witness

dent responsibility, such as knowing appropriate times to use the AI.

“Just like you would with any teacher or peer, you decide how you use the advice and how you incorporate it into your essay,” Leo said. “You can’t let the machine do your thinking for you.”

This proofreading also extends into citing sources when using the program for research. Leo urged the students to follow up on sources to make sure that they are properly cited.

Additionally, Leo warned that using these tools irresponsibly will adversely affect students, as they may not be prepared to write during an AP exam or in future classes they take. She also emphasized that handwritten work will remain and students need to stay prepared for it. When students take the AP Language exam they need to be able to synthesize documents and come up with their own argument for a prompt, among other tasks.

Principal Lindsay Schubert compares student use of ChatGPT to her time as a teacher and managing students’ use of Wikipedia, in a similar situation as with

“We have to figure out how to find that balance between using it as a tool and knowing how to cite that and how to incorporate that into the research process, but still make sure that we’re not relying on it to the point that students aren’t learning the skills to be able to write and to be able to construct their own thoughts, because that’s really important,” Schubert said.

Moving forward

As of now, students who use their personal computers at school have easier access to AI assistants than those who use Chromebooks due to its security programs such as GoGuardian.

Although it is not solely in response to AI, Schubert said a goal next year will focus on making sure that students use their Chromebooks for classwork in an effort to ensure security as well as making sure necessary tools, like Canvas, are available to all students. Exemptions would still apply to use outside of class or if a different type of computer is needed for an assignment.

In an effort to respond to the growing presence of ChatGPT and other AI assistants, German Cerda, Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services, sent a districtwide email sharing the county’s plans to develop a policy for AI use forschool.

For Schubert, she is not certain about the effects of a total ban on AI assistants while also acknowledging future concerns about student work.

“Anytime you just ban something outright, it’s not really going to work and so we definitely want to still uphold our expectations about integrity and not turning in stuff that’s not your own,” she said. “But if it’s going to be something that could be useful or a tool that’s going to be around no matter what, we might as well learn how to deal with it.”

EXTRACURRICULARS

Expert: Find your 'why' when pursuing extracurriculars Career Specialist wants to fill career-planning gap

ALAN SCHAEFFER Sports Editor

Think of the stereotypical overachieving student. Captain of their sports team, running around from band practice to Math Olympiad to debate team, volunteering at the local soup kitchen on weekends, all while staying up late each night to finish their essays and research projects.

It’s no secret that extracurriculars are a big part of many high school students’ lives. According to the College Board, around 80% of teens participate in at least one extracurricular activity, whether that’s a sport, school club or a separate organization such as Boy Scouts.

So why are extracurriculars so popular among high schoolers? According to college and career specialist Chen Liu, some universities such as those in the UC system do what's called a holistic review when looking over applications, meaning they take into consideration everything that the applicant provided. However, it isn’t that simple.

“The more competitive the school is, the more weight they’re going to put on activities,” Liu said. She also recommends that students should start volunteering, joining clubs, and taking on leadership roles as early as ninth grade.

Freshman Jonas Mettler, despite only being in his first year of high school, is already taking part in Robotics Club and the Branham band, while also volunteering at his local pool.

When choosing what extracurriculars to do, Liu urges students to look for “creativity and originality," explaining that activities that allow kids to express themselves in new ways that also impact the community look the best on college applications.

However, this should not be at the expense of activities that meet students' interests.

The College Board website encourages students to pursue extracurriculars that “match your interest and passion”, but many students ignore this advice just for the sake of checking the boxes.

Liu notes that she has worked with some students who fall into this trap, including one who had tons of volunteering hours, with little to say about it.

“It’s good to show commitment to your communi-

THE SENDOFF

Bear Witness seniors, many of whom have been with the program for the last four years, will be leaving the newsroom. Here is where they will be spending the next phase of their lives — Reese Gardner

ty,” she said. “But when I ask him to write about his motivation, he has nothing to say.”

Liu also encourages looking for quality over quantity, that is, going deeper into a topic that the student is interested in rather than getting minimally involved in a wide array of clubs and organizations.

Although she understands why this environment surrounding college applications exists, Liu doesn’t feel that this is how it should be.

“I always think you should follow your heart and just pursue your passion,” she said. “It’s not just for college applications, it’s also for your personal goals.”

POLICY OF DISHONESTY

SAISAHASRA MAKAMCHENNA Staff Writer

With new AI chatbots, the widespread use of cell phones, catching someone cheating during a quiz or an exam has become harder.

Though explicitly stated in the Parent/Student Handbook, cheating has seemingly become normalized. In an informal online survey conducted of 117 Bear Witness readers, 75% say they have cheated themselves or have seen others cheat.

According to the Educational Testing Service, 75% of high school students admitted to cheating in 2023.

“You're only cheating yourselves when you cheat because you're missing out on a good opportunity to learn something and better yourself,” said English teacher Kerry Murphy, adding that students are getting more crafty with how they cheat.

Three years ago, she caught a former student plagiarizing their final essay. The student, who wasn’t a native English speaker, had used Google Translate, since she said the student wasn’t confident with her writing ability.

Junior Neysa Gupta said that she’s seen a student who used their phone on a difficult test.

“But at the end of the test, I ended up scoring higher,” Gupta said. “Google might not be accurate sometimes so I'm glad that I trusted my own knowledge in that situation.”

Many claim to have seen their peers cheat, whether it’s copying off of someone else’s homework or

searching up answers on a test, using ChatGPT to write their essays, they still remain silent.

Gupta said it’s not her job to interfere, since it’s not so obvious why they’re cheating.

“They might be under the pressure of their parents, or something, and I don't think it's my place to interfere in matters like that,” she said.

Sophomore Gina Shim said she’s afraid of potential backfire if she informs teachers of academic dishonesty.

“I try to keep shut because you never want some-

Since joining Branham in January, new College and Career Specialist Chen Liu has been planning financial aid workshops for seniors as well as a career planning workshops for juniors.

She studied mathematics and received a master’s degree in economics at UCLA, however, shortly after graduating she decided that college and career counseling was a more fulfilling career path. Ever since, she has been a private college counselor for eight years, and volunteered as a counselor at Leigh for two years.

“Math just felt that's something I'm good at, but not really something I want to make as my career.” Liu said. “This is actually something I love to do, and it's very rewarding.”

She hopes to utilize college and career counseling to help students choose careers not solely on what subjects come easiest to them, but also what is fulfilling for them.

“I think finding the right career path really requires not just knowledge, but also some creativity in finding students’ interests,” she said. “So I really, really like this job.”

Since volunteering at Leigh and counseling privately, she’d noticed a gap in career planning access to all students, in addition to those just wishing to attend a four-year university.

She said that she wants to also help students find alternative career paths, such as trade school, two-year, or career technical certification by bringing in guest speakers from two-year and four year colleges and helping students explore different options.

She hopes to help as many students through college and career workshops and essay writing with volunteer editors for the Class of 2024.

“I want to make an impact,” she said. “With students, I want to help them find out what they're really passionate about, not just helping them to pick a career based on classes they find easy.”

Alli Wang

I look forward to broadening my skillls as a writer and as a journalist with my media studies major.

one from your class confronting you about you snitching on them,” said sophomore Gina Shim.

Murphy also states how cheating has become easier and more accessible, too. When she was in high school, students had to communicate in-person in order to cheat, from whispering to each other, to passing notes. Now easy accessibility to the internet, as well as the difficulty to monitor it — GoGuardian can only monitor district Chromebooks, for example — has facilitated more opportunities to cheat.

Students and staff say there’s no way to completely prevent cheating. Murphy often shares stories about students who were disciplined due to plagiarism. Some universities expel students due to academic dishonesty. She also reminds students that papers are automatically submitted through Turnitin.com. Additionally, she said that more English teachers assign writing activities throughout the grading period to gauge the level of writing for each students. They say they can easily tell when they cheat, such as the use of advanced vocabulary.

Murphy adds that, at the end of the day, cheating comes back to personal ethics and morals, and how good of a learner the students want to become.

“God if we knew how to stop cheating then life would be easier,” said Murphy, “It's also making sure we're creating environments where our core morals and values stand above everything else of us wanting to be good learners.”

I am most excited for the amazing resources that USC offers and the connections that I can make because they will guide me to future success. I am looking forward to being a Trojan!"

Alli Wang, News Editor UC-Berkeley | Civil Engineering

"I look forward to finding my new home in women engineering organizations and other organizations such as marching band. Berkeley is the hub of social change along with uplifting students' voices."

Ziv

writer Rakia Israeli Air Force Academy | Psychology

"I am excited to meet new people and also get to experience a new culture and way of life."

Carissa Takaki,staff writer UC-Davis | Political Science, pre-law I’m so excited to utilize (what) Davis has for my major to help me grow academically. College is such a unique experience and I’m so grateful to have the opportunity to continue my education in the fall!

Ryan Walters,staff writer El Camino College | Sports Management

"I'm ecstatic about the possibility of living in L.A. for the next two years and the possibilities of interning with one of the many sports franchises down there." about the possibility of living in L.A. for the next two years and the possibilities of interning with one of the many sports franchises down there."

It's easier to cheat than ever, but students are reluctant to snitch

Nolan Zils, co-editor-in-chief UC-Berkeley | Media Studies

Shantala Muruganujan, staff writer USC | Communication, pre-law

Galpaz,staff

Alli Wang/Bear Witness College and Career Specialist Chen Liu said it is clear which students are in activities purely for college and that their lack of interest will be apparent.

SaiSahasra Makamchenna/Bear WItness illustration

Coaches combat ‘lack’

of dedication

OWEN

DASZKO Staff Writer

Sports P.E. is seen as a way student athletes can commit to sports as underclassmen, but students and some coaches say it’s a way for some students to get out of enrolling in P.E. classes.

At Branham, there are only 78 students who take Sports P.E., which means that they have to participate in at least two sports throughout the season.

P.E. teacher Laura Andersson, who also advises the Sports P.E., said that students who enroll in the class primarily plan on participating in sports for all four years at Branham.

Sophomore Matthew Do, a cross country and track runner, is taking seven classes, and Sports P.E. opens up a class for him to fulfill his performing arts credit.

“Sports PE has been beneficial because it allowed me to fill in my Visual Performing Arts credit so I can take Tech Theater,” he said.

But there are some students take advantage of the Sports P.E. system. Coaches say that students join no-cut sports such as track and field and swim to “look good” for college, but the athletes do not provide any advantage other than a physical presence.

“There has been more students getting dropped from not meeting the criteria that is required to continue taking Sports P.E.,” she said.

Andersson points out that students will continue missing out on learning topics, such as CPR and that are centerpoints in why taking a PE class is so important.

“It’s unfortunate that students think Sports P.E. is a solution to not taking P.E.,” she said, “they are then having to balance seven classes and not participating in lessons such as CPR that could be beneficial.”

The Citizen CPR Foundation states that CPR and AED training in school will dramatically increase the number of first responders in communities each year.

CPR and AED training is key in certain situations where having knowledge of the training is needed by most people in society.

And when students take advantage of the Sports PE system, it becomes even worse of a situation.

In addition, Andersson said that students who take advantage of it are put in situations where they don’t know what to do when they don’t make the cut for a team.

“We’ve seen it more this year, and students start to scramble to find solutions,” she said.

Do said when it gets used by students as a way to not take a class, it rips the view on how successful the system really is.

“You just have to have the right motivation for wanting to commit to your sports,”

Do said, “it can be difficult but you are able to experience what being on team is like.”

Branham track coach, Aidan Kirwan said thathis track athletes specifically have found the correct mindset to push through their hardships and follow their competitive nature.

HISTORY MAKERS

MILA

WINDELL Staff Writer

Branham’s boy’s volleyball team made school history as the first team to win a NorCal title after a close fight against Carmel on Saturday, winning in three straight sets.

“This is something I will never, ever forget,” said head coach Heather Cooper, who’s been at Branham for 16 years. “It’s extremely special.”

The match off began inconsistently after the Padres got on the board early. The team shook off their nerves and completed a 2515 win in the first set.

Branham followed with an even stronger performance in the second set, completely dismantling the Padre’s defense with strong, consistent serves and locking down on defense, keeping a 10 point difference

SENIOR COMMITMENTS

Team first in Bruin history to win state championship

throughout most of the set.

The Padres responded in the third set, creating a back-and-forth battle between both teams as the Padre tightened their defense and began gaining momentum for an intense fight.

At match point, senior Georgios Argiris spiked the ball over the net, catching the Padres off-guard and securing the decisive point, ending the game 35-33.

Cooper credits the team’s strong culture with their win. The furthest the boys team previously advanced in the postseason was a CCS championship in 2018.

“I think this is probably the strongest bond I’ve had with the team,” said Cooper, who was doused with water in celebration. “It was just a different season and community and I think that was a huge asset to help us take on NorCals.”

READY TO LEVEL UP

Competition was no stunt

Since she joined the Branham cheer team her freshman year, Marissa Pepitone has been immersing herself in the world of athleticism.

Her peers convinced her to try stunt cheerleading, a decision that would shape her future. She discovered a passion for the activity and has stayed devoted to it ever since. Pepitone is now committed to William Jessup University.

Pepitone joined cheer in middle school with her friends, and found comfort in doing something enjoyable with them and sharing the experience. She said that the environment was welcoming and perfect for improvement and growth. The challenge brought motivation to stick with the activity.

“You have to push forth and be the best you can,” Pepitone said. “because you don’t want to let your team down.”

Pepitone found value in prioritizing what’s best for oneself. Her commitment to her studies intensified during her junior year as she strived to achieve her desired grades. However, between the demands of academics and athletics, she had limited time for socializing.

“It’s just like you have no time for friends at some point,” she said. “It does get a little depressing.”

She believes that maintaining one’s grades and navigating challenges is essential. Pepitone recognizes her sacrifices as a student.

“Once I (committed), I was really proud of myself. When I first started, I was not good but I pushed myself to be where I am,” Pepitone said. “I was really proud of what I was able to accomplish.”

A lifelong passion Overcoming Injury

Senior Alexia Enache has committed to Swarthmore College for volleyball. Enache started playing volleyball when her father enrolled her and her sister in lessons at their local community center. She later joined the Vision Volleyball club and played on the girls varsity volleyball all four years at Branham.

“I just always loved it,” Enache said. “I was always a kid who never felt the need to quit and never hated it. I always loved playing, so I just kept doing it.”

Enache remembers sending multiple emails all year long throughout the the recruitment process in the hopes of receiving a response. She said that the difficulties were worth it when she got the email asking her to play volleyball.

Throughout Enache’s volleyball career, her determination never faltered and continued to strive throughout the years.

“I know everyone on my team has wanted to quit or has (wondered why they were here),” Enache said. “But I was always just like, what do you mean? It’s amazing!”

Even with pressures of school and the commitment process, Enache said that she balanced her academic responsibilities and unwavering passion for volleyball, as the sport became an integral part of her life. The team has advanced to NorCal regional playoffs the past two years.

“I’ve learned that it takes a lot of hard work to just be able to commit time to both volleyball and everything else outside of your life.” Enache said. “For me I just saw it as part of my life.”

Senior Maddy Connoly Hojas started her softball journey when she was seven years old with the West Valley Slammers and immediately fell in love with the sport. While growing up, Hojas dreamt about playing for a school team and when the opportunity arose, she was delighted. A decade later, Hojas has committed to the University of Central Arkansas for softball, continuing her career.

“It’s not a typical game that loves you back because you know, there’s a lot of failure in it,” Hojas said. “I just kind of love the challenge. And it’s just something I just want to do for the rest of my life.”

During her junior year, Hojas faced a knee injury that set her back during recruitment.

“With the injury, it was so tough and heartbreaking,” Hojas said, “I thought maybe this isn’t an option for me anymore.” During these moments of uncertainty, Hojas’s determination remained, as she refused to let a single setback define her future in the sport she loved. The work with her physical therapist inspired Hojas to help other athletes by majoring in exercise science.

When the opportunity to play at the University of Central Arkansas arose, she seized it and committed herself to continuing her softball career. Through this journey, Hojas held onto her childhood dream and aspirations “I’m not going to let my 10-year-old self down,” Hojas said. “I just kept her in my mind and did it all for her, and it’s all worked out.

Senior Evan Williams found his passion for baseball when he was very young, after playing in the yard with his grandfather.

Since then, Williams has played baseball for 12 years and has committed to William Jessup University.

“I was really excited,” Williams said. “That’s been a goal for the past couple of years, to play in college.”

His dedication to the sport also allowed him to develop strong time management skills over the years, ensuring his athletic commitments did not overshadow his academic pursuits.

Along the way, Williams found that baseball had become such a significant part of his life that his work ethic had improved.

“I’ve been playing sports my whole life. So I kind of learned how to

[balance] at a younger age.” Williams said.

Upon making the decision to attend Jessup, Williams reflected upon the past years at Branham and the accomplishments he and his team had experienced, including the heartrbreaking Division II CCS finals loss last season.

By committing to this new chapter, he was able to fulfill a lifelong dream of playing with his college, marking a significant transition in his life.

“I think I’ve learned a lot from [the experience].” Williams said. “And there’s many things that have made me a better person because of baseball.”

Bruin athletes look forward to their next challenge at the collegiate level

Maceo Inoue/Special to the Bear Witness Head coach Heather Cooper celebrates after the boys volleyball team douses her with water. The team defeated Carmel High School.

‘Many things have made me a better person because of baseball’

photos by Nolan Zils • stories by Anabelle Walker

CONCERTS

CAN'T SHAKE IT OFF

Higher prices, Ticketmaster difficulties make concertgoing more of a chore for fans

Mini Reviews Perfume

By NCT DOJAEJUNG

Produced by MZMC under SM Entertainment

What it is: Perfume is NCT DOJAEJUNG's first mini album and consists of title track "Perfume" and 5 other b-sides. With a debut in April, the sub-unit is composed of 3 NCT 127 members, Doyoung, Jaehyun, and Jungwoo.

Liked: The aesthetics and concept of the album and music video were very pleasing and refreshing, highlighting the members' versatility and visuals. The songs in the album all fell in the RnB genre and were very pleasant to listen to first listen. Also, I loved the choreography for the hook in "Perfume" — the members dance as if they are putting on perfume on their wrists and neck.

Disliked: The ending of the title track "Perfume" was a little abrupt, and I wish the last hook went on a little longer or went back to the acappella-like, harmonic vocals showcased at the very beginning of the song.

— Lia Choi

Suzume

Directed by Makoto Shinkai

LAUREN GERNALE Staff Writer

In the next three months, math teacher Diane Viernes plans to see pop artists Louis Tomlinson, Beyonce, Ed Sheeran, K-pop groups Blackpink and TWICE. Oh, and Taylor Swift.

She’s also seen Harry Styles twice, once paying $1,100 on his Feb. 1 birthday concert, a Wednesday school night in Thousand Palms, Calif., 454 miles from Branham.

“For Harry, even if it doesn’t work out in my schedule, I’ll change it so it does.”

This will also be Viernes’ second time seeing Swift, whose fans in November crashed the TicketMaster website for her current Eras tour, which is coming to Levi’s Stadium for three-days at the end of July.

The company was sued for its ability to meet the demands of Swift’s more than 14 million fans waiting to buy a ticket.

AP World History teacher Sarah MacInnes was among the fans waiting on the TicketMaster queue in class, and rates her experience a “2 out of 10.”

“I got to 19 people in front of me and then it kicked me out of the line,” she said. “I got tickets, so I can’t completely hate it. But it was so stressful.”

Ticketmaster difficulties

Ticket prices for Swift have jumped from an average of $279 for her Reputation tour in 2018 to $691.74 for her current Eras tour, and many blame

Ticketmaster’s price policies for the increase.

Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that fans, on average, are spending three times more on tickets than they did three years ago. Swifties are the latest example of music fans’ increased frustration over the

Upcoming concerts

past few years with unpredictably high ticket prices, quick sellouts and aggravating wait times.

“Inflation is real,” Viernes said. “Now (purchasing tickets) seems like a monopoly. Either way, prices are too high.”

Billboard blames higher ticket prices on inflation, but also venue size, sale duration and demand. Popular artists with arena or other large-scale venues will typically cost more.

But most blame Ticketmaster, which currently controls over 70% of ticket market sales. It adds to initial ticket prices 30% for additional service and processing fees.

The company in 2011 adopted dynamic pricing, which adjusts the cost of concert tickets based on their demand.

When TicketMaster merged in 2010 with Live Nation, the largest concert promotion company, it became unavoidable for artists to use the two services to sell their concert tickets.

Senior Crystal Mai paid $560 for a ticket to the K-Pop group TWICE’s June concert at the Oakland Arena, a price 425% more than the group’s average face value of $138.

TWICE tickets sold out within minutes during its initial sale in March. She blames high prices on vendors like TicketMaster and management instead of the artists themselves, who have little control over prices.

“Vendors are trying to monopolize and make money off the people because I know a lot of artists don't even want to list prices that high,” Mai said. “They know that for their fans. It's unfair.”

Mai recalls the process for large-scale venues like this being particularly stressful. TicketMaster either sent users an email code to be placed in a randomly-selected queue to purchase tickets, like a raffle.

“For arena venues, I don't think the prices are justified,” she said. “The process can be so stressful and tickets are harder and more expensive to get.”

Local bands unchanged

Ticket inflation seems to have less of an effect on smaller, local artists that do not use Ticketmaster. Freshman Cassie Baker has attended several local punk shows recently in San Francisco and San Jose. They plan to attend a rock festival called “Aftershock” from Oct. 3 to Oct. 5. It’s usually spontaneous, since there’s usually no problem purchasing tickets on the day of the event.

“Most of the time I just show up and pay there,” Baker said. “It’s super cool and not stressful at all.”

The shows have a philosophy called NOTAFLOF: No One Turned Away For Lack Of Funds. In other words, though they ask for donations, they do not require attendees to bring money. The low prices, often not more than $15, combined with a safe community and a fun concert ambience makes the experience worth it for Baker.

“It's so fun,” they said. “The energy and the people always make you feel super-safe. Even though I'm younger than the majority of the people there, I still feel really comfortable.”

While local prices remain evergreen, Ticketmaster prices in the future are uncontrollable and are expected to rise with inflation.

Although Viernes disapproves of Ticketmaster and LiveNation’s monopoly, she’s learned to live with paying the higher prices to see her favorite artists.

“I don’t mind it because I don’t have a family to feed. I feel so safe, happy, and loved at a concert,” Viernes said. “It's a priceless experience.”

Date: Aug. 26

Location: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles This tour

Date: Aug. 30

Location: Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara

Being the fifth world tour out of her seven total concert tours, Beyonce’s tour commemorates her seventh studio album “Renaissance”. The tour began on May 10 in Stockholm, Sweden and will end September 27 in New Orleans, Louisiana

Date: Oct. 5-8

Location: Discovery Park, Sacramento

The 2023 Aftershock festival will be the 11th annual festival at Discovery Park. Rock and heavy metal bands such as Guns N’ Roses and Avenged Sevenfold will be performing in the three-day festival.

Toho Co., Ltd.

What it is: The last movie of director Shinkai's disaster trilogy, "Suzume" completes the trilogy that started in 2016 with "Your Name" followed by "Weathering with You" in 2019. Suzume, the main protagonist of the story, and Souta, a Closer, travel around Japan preventing supernatural forces from starting Earthquakes.

Liked: I loved the cats: Daijin and Saidajin. Daijin's character is so lovable despite the antagonistic portrayal in the beginning of the film. Although Daijin barely speaks in the film, Daijin's voice has become the most viral thing of the film and the fact that an actual child voice actor voiced Daijin enhanced the Daijin's character and the film.

Disliked: As a person who has been following the disaster trilogy, the film did feel repetitive in its themes and the overview of the plot of two characters trying to prevent or do something around natural disasters. However, it was still enjoyable to watch.

— Jiyoon Choi

From The Start By

Laufey

Photo from Spotify

What it is: This single from the Icelandic singer-songwriter Laufey, who describes her music to be modern jazz, was released on May 12, preceding the announcement of her upcoming tour.

Liked: I really like fast-paced rhythms of the song in contrast with the slow and lyrical vocals and string background.

Disliked: I just wish it could be slightly longer because I really enjoyed it but it was over so fast.

— Ava Stark

Courtesy of Diane Viernes

Math teacher Diane Viernes has attended two Harry Styles concerts so far this year, and over spring break saw traveled to Tampa, Fla. to see Taylor Swift in concert (middle)

Photos from Wikimedia Comons, NME

WELLNESS CHECK

WELL•NESS: The quality or state of being in good health, especially as an actively sought goal

Many people believe that only the rich can afford to take care of their well-being, with expensive beauty products, spa days, and elaborate routines. However, true wellness doesn't come with a price tag. Simple things like getting enough sleep and taking time for daily reflection can significantly improve our mental and physical well-being, leading to a happier and healthier life. So, you don't need a fat wallet to prioritize your wellness.

Improving cntentment

Contentment and wellness are closely intertwined. When we experience content ment, it positively impacts our overall well-being, both mentally and physically. Contentment plays a crucial role in promoting overall wellness. By prioritizing contentment, we can cultivate a state of well-being that encompasses both our mind and body.

Physical wellness

An important aspect of wellness is physical wellness. This extends to taking care of one's body to live a healthy lifestyle, including drinking enough water, getting enough exercise and sleep, and more.

Gratitude

Gratitude is a mindset of appreciating and acknowledging the positive aspects of life, whether it be being thankful for your summer vacation or showing your appreciation to the ones you love. It promotes a positive outlook, emotional well-being, and stress reduction by encouraging self-reflec tion, personal growth, and resilience in the face of challen ges. Practicing gratitude can help shift your focus towards the positive aspects of your life and cultivate a sense of contentment.

Unplug

Constant exposure to digital devices and social media can negatively impact our sense of contentment by promoting comparison and feelings of inadequacy. The anxiety and comparison fueled by social media can sometimes feel overwhelming, so it is important to take regular breaks. Disconnecting allows you to reclaim your time, focus on the present moment, and rediscover your passions and desires.

Connection

Building and nurturing connections with others is a key aspect of improving contentment. Meaningful relationships and social connections provide a sense of belonging, support, and fulfillment. Surround yourself with supportive and positive people who uplift you to create a network of support and love in our lives.

What makes you happy?

Natalia Castañeda, Junior

"My friends because they are very positive people, and we always do really fun stuff together. They have really great energy and I love them."

Logan Waldorph Sophomore

"Playing volleyball for my school team and for my club makes me happy. It’s a fun sport and I get to spend time with my friends and also make new friends."

Water Sleep Exercise

The amount of water a person should drink depends on many factors such as age, gender, activity level, climate, and overall health.

Sleep can restore energy, enhances cognitive function, reduces stress, and enhances athletic performance. According to the CDC, regulary exercise provides a plethora of benefits such as healthy aging, lower risk of stroke or cardiac arrest, dealying onset of cognitive decline.

Make

reading

Christian

Ngyuen Freshman

"When I get home from school, I'm playing 'Fortnite' every day. And that's what really makes me happy."