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LUNAR NEW YEAR AT BERKSHIRE: First school-wide celebration brings fireworks unseen in 13 years, Kung-Fu, food, and culture by Darran Shen ’20 This past week, Berkshire School celebrated Lunar New Year as a school community for the first time. First envisioned years ago, this effort was spearheaded by the Asian Affinity Club along with faculty members of the Language Department and was months in the making. With celebrations over the course of many days, the Lunar New Year was a massive success and reflected the burgeoning Asian cultural diversity and exposure across the
Chinese III students preforming a traditional dragon dance.
by Chris Branch ’20
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INSIDE NEWS • Higher Recognition for value of SEED • A Perspective on Gender Equity at Berkshire SPORTS • Inaugural Skate For Her Game • Basketball Player Highlights ARTS • Berkshire Presents RENT • Winter Carnival • • •
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Jack Whitney ’20 performing as Chef from South Park. comradery exhibited is truly a testament to the unit we have become as a form. Berkshire will always be a place where it is safe to learn and grow, and from this, we can extract the greatest versions of ourselves. Such are those that we exhibited during this year’s Hamlet Night. As an actor in this years
Instacart Invasion by Campbell Mecke ’21 & Sophia Pasquale ’21
paying shoppers to do it for them. While this service is helpful to students by eliminating the need to shop themselves, it also raises concern for campus safety. All Berkshire delivery services, like Romas or MealGopher, have instructions to deliver to the student center. This is where the problem starts with Instacart. Instacart is operated on a personal level, meaning that individual shoppers receive delivery instructions from their customers instead of instructions from the school. Mr. Quilty quickly shut this down in an all-school email, stating that, “all
There’s a new buzz in the food delivery sector for the Berkshire students this year. Instacart invaded the Berkshire School last spring, bringing confused drivers, an abnormal amount of produce, and very concerned dorm parents. Instacart is a local grocery delivery application that links a customer with a shopper who does the grocery shopping and delivery for them. This application is very helpful to the Berkshire student body because it replaces the need to go on weekly town trips for groceries by
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production myself, the wacky, wild, and positively strange experience that Hamlet Night was and will continue to be brings to mind a certain quote from the play that will forever be perfectly applicable of this beloved tradition. “Though this be madness, yet there is method in’t.” Instacart deliveries need to be delivered to the Rovensky Student Center” and that lack of cooperation with this will lead the school to “stop all deliveries if Instacart is seen delivering to dorms.” We interviewed a student who we witnessed picking up their groceries outside their dorm on a late Sunday afternoon. We will refer to them as ‘anonymous student’ to preserve their privacy. This
OPINION The Mamba Mentality Sorry, You're a Woman Making Mental Health Counseling Mandatory Letter From The Editor
is what she had to say: “When I first signed up for Instacart in the spring of 2019, I originally put down CGR as my drop off location,” confesses the anonymous student “the issue now is that, after receiving an email saying that students are required to get their food dropped off at the student center, I can’t change my drop off location, and have to stealthily get my groceries from in front of CGR.” We followed up with this anonymous student a week later; they since have figured out how to change their drop off location to avoid receiving points from the dorm parent on duty. So the question remains: will students get their groceries delivered to the student center out of cooperation, or will they continue to risk it all and get it delivered to the dorms out of convenience? Sophia Pasquale
Another holiday season has come and gone here at Berkshire, and the annual Holiday Shuffle that accompanies the short time in between Thanksgiving and Winter break too often blurs that activities in between. But one event always seems to shine through the seasonal fog. That event is Hamlet night. Hamlet Night is a show that the sixth form presents each year with the help of their teachers in the wake of reading William Shakespeare’s timeless play Hamlet: Prince of Denmark. Each english class adopts a scene from the play as well as a theme from popular media or literature and performs it as a class in front of the form, their nervous teachers, and an array of curious faculty attendees. Students are tasked with picking a unique theme, altering the script to match it, and creating a set before Hamlet Night Arrives. Some time after the performance, a winner is declared (along with several minor individual awards), and the winning class has the “privilege” of reperforming (or rather reforming) their piece in front of the entire school during an All School Meeting. This year may have presented one of the most harrowing challenges in
Hamlet night history for the sixth form class. A later-than-usual Thanksgiving that resulted in a later than usual break resulted in a time crunch that was somewhat unprecedented. Many classes only had mere days to collect costumes, allocate roles, alter scripts, and memorize lines;the most time any of the classes received was a meager 5 days. Nevertheless, the class of 2020 rose to the occasion spectacularly and, with the aid of a few outside-class meetings, was able to put on a Hamlet Night that will surely go down in the books. Each theme was creative, the line execution was impressive (though at times precarious), and the enthusiasm was palpable. Passing students not attending the show may have been startled by a roar of laughter exploded from the Great Room as Lynx Schiava (as a reindeer [as Hamlet]) or intrigued by gasps as Aimi Sekeguchi (As Luigi [as Hamlet]) let loose a barrage of makeshift fireballs on her adversary. The night was teeming with hilarious and intricate interpretations of the play through themes such as South Park, Keeping Up with the Kardashians, and even Dodgeball (the movie). After a phenomenal, hysterical, and at times harrowing night, the entire sixth form and Berkshire English Department as a
Berkshire community. Berkshire Hall and Benson Commons were draped in traditional Chinese signs of hope and prosperity. Paper lanterns hung from ceilings and New Year Couplets posted on walls wished passersby good luck. The celebration represents a significant step for the school in officially recognizing a critical festival celebrated by almost 10% of its student body. In years prior, that support had instead come from Cheng-Chia Wu, co-Director of Berkshire’s music program, who held annual Mid-Autumn Festival and Lunar New Year dinners for those students identifying as Asian in her own home on campus.
Berkshire School
Listen to many, speak to a few: Senior Class Performs Hamlet
whole was left entertained for weeks. Soon after, the winner of the competition for best adaptation and performance was awarded to “The Real Housewives of New Denmark”, a title that explains itself. And to the victor go the spoils. The AP literature class responsible for the wonderful adaptation performed their iteration in front of the entire student body during an all school meeting, flawlessly concluding another year of Berkshire’s intimate introduction to Hamlet. So what did we learn? This years Hamlet Night, despite adversity, was a fantastic showing of the class of 2020’s wit, dedication, and willingness to rise to any occasion. The
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Instacart orders spotted all over campus.
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For many students, those interactions provided a meaningful sense of community in a school where Asian identity wasn’t always discussed or even acknowledged at times: “Dr. Wu’s dinners are definitely some of the most memorable experiences I’ve had at Berkshire,” says Luke Nguyen ’21, “we have an Asian community that is so incredibly grateful for her unwavering support and encouragement.” For Wu, a native of Taiwan, providing that support was the least she could do: “We have international students coming to Berkshire who don’t always find the environment they’re used to back in Asia. I’ve always felt like I have this maternal obligation to take care of them and make them feel at home. “I’m so happy that my students have finally stood up and advocated for themselves – it’s about time they were recognized and supported for their cultural heritage. If we truly want to embrace Berkshire’s core values, it is important that we all share and learn from each other.” Unlike western countries, many Asian countries base their calendars off the moon; a lunar year is comprised of 12 lunar cycles, or lunations. Because the length of each lunation is approximately 29½ days long, the length of a lunar year fluctuates and is not in sync with solar-year based calendars like the Gregorian calendar. Although the Lunar calendar is no longer in legal use for practical reasons, it continues to be used to determine traditional religious festivals and holidays across the Old World. The Lunar New Year is primarily celebrated in Asia, spanning numerous countries and over a billion people annually, and is considered one of the most important times
Berkshire School
Lunar New Year Record continued of the year. This year, it occured on January 25th, earlier than normal. In China, travelers looking to return home to celebrate the 15-day festival engage in the largest annual human migration in the world; approximately 3 billion journeys were undertaken in 2016. Says Michelle Wang ’20, “My relatives live all over the world, from Xinjiang to Vancouver. As an only child, I love that Lunar New Year is a time where all of us come together to celebrate a sweet new beginning. The only distance separating us is the space between the Mahjong table.” This year is the Year of the Rat, which is based off traditional zodiac signs. Legend says that the Jade Emperor, the Emperor of Heaven in Chinese folklore, once invited the animals of the world to participate in a race, in which the first 12 finishers would occupy spots on the soon-to-be-zodiac. The rat, with his persuasive skills and advanced planning was able to finagle a first-place position, quickly followed by the Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig. Berkshire kicked off its celebration Thursday morning, January 23rd, during All School Meeting in apropos fashion with a traditional Dragon Dance, composed of students from Susan Beattie’s Chinese classes. A group of students from the Asian Affinity Club followed, bringing forth experience and memories of their own respective cultures. In an unprecedented move, all four hundred-some members of the student body and faculty engaged in an all-school Kahoot, with the top three finishers taking home traditional Red Packets stuffed with chocolate coins. The next day, on the eve of the New Year, the school hosted a Kung Berkshire School Master ShiFu, head of Shaolin Temple USA teaches Berkshire Bears Kung Fu.
Berkshire School presenting a Lunar New Year fireworks show as students spectate. me, symbolizing reunion) Given the success and importance of the festivities, the question remains why Berkshire waited so long to recognize the celebration, and why it chose this year to begin. Jesus Ibanez, chair of the Language Department, and another major advocate for this event, says that it’s a reflection of the changing nature of student advocacy at the school: “Celebrating the Lunar New Year has been something on my mind for a long time. However, we wanted students to push for it – instead of the school forcing yet another presentation ad nauseum. “When the Asian Affinity Club was formed last year, we had students who were invested in bringing this experience to the school, and we were just as excited to help facilitate that. It was the students who advocated for this in front of Mr. [Pieter] Mulder, and it was the students who
Fu Master from a local Shaolin Temple in New York. Instead of study hall, students were introduced to traditional Kung Fu techniques and the basics of Buddhist philosophy. At the closing of the night, students crowded around the football field to enjoy a firework spectacle, the first time Berkshire had hosted such an event in over a decade. The last time the Berkshire community enjoyed fireworks on campus was during its centennial, 13 years ago. “The festivities just reminded me so much of home,” said Michelle, “Lunar New Year at its core is about family – I felt at home at Berkshire that night.” The following Monday saw a lunch featuring cuisines from across Asia, including a made-to-order noodle soup bar, fish (fish is traditionally used to symbolize excess wealth and prosperity), and Tang Yuan (a type of glutinous rice ball stuffed with sesa-
SEED Draws Record Number of Students by Basil Shillingford ’21 and Mike Burrell ’21
to confirm her belief that teachers could be leaders of their own professional development. The National SEED Project is a peer-led professional development program that creates conversational communities to drive personal, organizational, and societal change toward greater equity and diversity. Through the organization’s methodology,
SEED was introduced to the Berkshire School community to give students and faculty a safe and respectful space to talk about the school and its culture. SEED is a nationwide organization created by Dr. Peggy McIntosh, who launched SEED as an experiment
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presented the entire thing on Thursday. This effort was driven by the leaders of the Asian Affinity Club from the beginning, and it’s amazing to see the time and energy come to fruition.” And as for what the school hopes students will bring away from the week of festivities, Aimi Sekiguchi ’20 aptly concluded during Thursday’s meeting: “The appeal of Lunar New Year is that it transcends all sorts of linguistic, cultural, and
geographic boundaries. No matter where you come from, the binding factor is family. Lunar New Year is a time for families to come and celebrate together. This year, we’re so incredibly grateful to be celebrating with our Berkshire family.”
SEED equips participants to connect their lives to one another and to society at large by acknowledging systems of oppression, power, and privilege. SEED stands for “Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity” and is structured in a way that gives students the ability to express their opinions in a respectful, safe environment. This environment allows students to identify the systems in Berkshire that could be improved and change them. SEED has met three times this academic year, with more meetings to come. This year, the group of the student SEED group is twice as big as has been in past years, with close to forty students participating across all forms. Over the course of the meetings, students have tackled a wide range of challenging topics that have sometimes lead to uncomfortable moments. In the first meeting, perspective was the focus, learning the difference be-
tween windows and mirrors: mirrors mirror what you see; in other words, they share your perspective. Windows show you something different, a new perspective to look at. With the newfound knowledge of perspective and the difference between windows and mirrors, the group came to the conclusion that acknowledging the existence of other perspectives is important when talking to peers about topics as everyone can have a different perspective. In the second meeting, SEED discussed the difference between sympathy and empathy. Students watched a short video, then gave a visual representation showing the contrast between the two, making it clear that empathizing is the more effective way of showing you care about someone, but is also a difficult task to complete. To empathize means to bring yourself down to someone else’s level, to climb into their hole. Climbing into this hole of
If you would like to learn more about Lunar New Year or the Asian Affinity Club and its mission, please contact Aimi Sekiguchi ’20, Darran Shen ’20, Michelle Wang ’20, and Luke Nyugen ’21.
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50 Years of Coeducation: Gender Segregation at Berkshire by Alexandra Schmidt ’23 To begin this article, I am not in any way trying to persuade or dissuade anyone from their opinions or perspectives on Berkshire life and on gender segregation. I am simply stating facts and trying to start positive change here regarding gender segregation to make Berkshire a more positive experience for us all. In talking to Mrs. Bebe Bullock ’86, we discussed the adverse social constructs the school has put in place. At a school that 50 years ago was predominantly boys, what is the point of adding girls when boys and girls sit on the opposite sides of Benson? It is pointless to go to boarding school, to live and learn with and from others if we are only interacting with students of the opposite gender in the classroom. Recently, friends and I were at dinner and we
emotions not only allows you to understand the person’s perspective more but improves your ability to help that person out of the hole. Sympathy is when you pity someone or try to feel their sorrow. The most common sympathetic response starts typically starts with, “at least...” Students came to the conclusion that when you sympathize with someone, you refuse to go into the hole with them, and instead are trying to make them feel better about themselves by offering a different scenario that did not happen. Participants also took the time to talk about the majority vs minority and those two groups at Berkshire. We formulated a list of these groups that fall into the two. One of the
sat on the “boy’s side” of Benson. We were soon greeted by boys, one by one, ridiculing us for sitting on what they called the “wrong side of the Benson.” Although we stayed at the table that night, it didn’t take away the mistreatment we felt. I was shocked by how willing my friends were to leave the table and sit on the “right side”. We also received stares from other students and faculty members. It wasn’t just a group of boys. Of course, not all Berkshire boys – or boys in general – would stare or comment. If we were boys sitting on the “girl’s side,” nothing would happen. A common complaint I received in the survey results was that the girls have no right to complain about gender segregation at Berkshire because of our “better dorm quality”. My reply to this is that although dorm quality matters, being ridiculed
more controversial groups was on political ideology, conservative versus liberal. This topic is touchy at Berkshire, yet it is important to keep the discussion of politics active at Berkshire. It was clear that it was unknown to most people whether their peers are liberal or conservative, or whether they even had a viewpoint. The intention of SEED is to start discussions that contribute a greater understanding of the community that we are apart of. Sometimes, that transparency can be hard to swallow, but in most cases, as is the ultimate goal of SEED, students are respectful of each others’ opinions and use that knowledge to inform their future actions for the better.
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An Economic and Political
for eating a sandwich is far more important. You can always decorate your room, but you can’t control the opinions of others on where you belong. After talking with Bullock, I sent a survey out to the school through Mr. Maher, asking the Berkshire community if they noticed any form of gender segregation, and if so, where. With 137 student responses, 63.8% of them were female. Out of the 166 responses received, 76.5% of Berkshire community members noticed a gender gap at the school. This data was shocking to me. 64 males in the school replied while 100 females replied and two students preferred not to state their gender. Within the data I received, what struck me the most was that a four-year senior boy responded by saying that gender segregation is physical. He continued, stating that the campus is split apart physically, boys on one side, girls on the other. It surprised me that out of everyone to respond, his response was the most candid. He envisioned life at Berkshire where students of all genders sat together, studied together, and learned from each other. The student’s response has made a profound difference in how I view the social constructs both in and outside of Berkshire. As responses rolled in, Berkshire faculty members echoed his point of view by stating that gender segregation here is prevalent. They elaborated stating that there are 40 more boys than girls, that the buildings here are named after men, and that the paintings of Berkshire alumni are mostly of men. Besides Benson and the rest of the campus, students notice a gender gap mostly in dorm rules and in the classroom.. In the classroom, in the majority of my classes, boys sit on
“Divorce”
by Sanjna Srinivasan ’22 Brexit–It’s all over the news and social media, but what is it exactly? Many people read about Brexit without knowing its meaning and end up taking a side without proper judgment of the entire situation. Let’s understand what’s going on here. Brexit refers to the United Kingdom’s “divorce” from the European Union. The United Kingdom consists of four nations: England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. The European Union (EU) is an economic and political union consisting of 28 European countries. It allows for free trade and free movement of people to live and work in whichever country they choose within the union. The UK has been a member of the EU since 1973. Leaving the EU would make the UK the first member state to withdraw from the union. There was a public vote, often referred to as a referendum, held on Thursday 23, June 2016, to one side while girls sit on the other. In dorms, boys have one room check per week, while girls have one daily. While the girl’s rooms are expected to be perfectly spotless, boys are not punished for having an unmade bed. The worst part about this information is that it’s not just Berkshire. Boys and girls don’t have to be separated. It is important to celebrate each other’s differences, but it is not ok to separate, consciously or unconsciously one group from another. Regardless of what you responded on the survey on your opinions on gender segregation at Berkshire, it exists, so please, stay informed and start conversations.
The Modern Trail of Tears: The MMIW Crisis by Graham Hynes ’22
the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Crisis (MMIWC). According to a study conducted by the Urban Indian Health Institute, across 71 urban cities, 5,712 native women and girls were reported either missing or dead in 2016 alone. Of all these cases, only 116 of these cases were logged in a Department of Justice database. This failure to
As the oppression of Native people has reached the public spotlight around the world and here at Berkshire, it is an opportune time to present other issues surrounding Indigenous people that haven’t received the attention that they need and deserve. One of these issues is
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decide whether or not the UK should leave the EU. The four nations of the UK voted and the results showed that 52% supported leaving the EU and the remaining 48% wanted to stay. The majority voted to leave in Wales and England, while Scotland and Northern Ireland saw a majority voting to remain. Why leave? Why stay? One might wonder how it makes a difference. Looking into what factors drive people towards a particular stance will help us comprehend Brexit better. First and foremost, exiting the EU would affect the UK’s sovereignty. Most Remainers believe that it would weaken their sovereignty by taking away the UK’s ability to influence events in an ever more interdependent and complex world. They also argue that the UK’s sovereignty would not be absolute outside the EU since the British government would still be a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the United Nations, and the World Trade Organization (WTO), and remain in treaties with other nations. The Leavers, meanwhile, believe that leaving the EU would allow Britain to reestablish itself as a truly independent nation with connections to the rest of the world. Brexit would also affect immigration. While under the EU law, Britain could not prevent a citizen of another member state from living in the UK, and Britons benefited from an equivalent right to work and live anywhere else in the bloc. This led to a high take cases involving native women seriously is consistent with the devastating lack of legal action towards finding justice for the 4 out of every 5 women or children who are victims of sexual violence. The Urban Indian Health Institute study’s goal was “to demonstrate the ways in which these issues also impact urban MMIWC cases, highlighting the results of a deeply flawed institutional system rooted in colonial relationships that marginalize and disenfranchise people of color and remains complicit in violence targeting American Indian and Alaska Native women and girls.” This case concludes that “if we rely solely on law enforcement or media for an awareness or understanding of the issue,” the public is likely to develop an inaccurate and eurocen-
pace of incoming immigrants that caused some difficulties with housing and service provision but also had a positive net effect, as noted by a majority of the Remainers. Brexiteers want a substantial cut in immigration. Some believe that it was less about numbers and more about the principle of national sovereignty. Quite obviously, Brexit would have an impact on trade between the UK and other countries. Remainers say that outside the EU, the UK would lose the benefits of free trade with other member states and reduce its negotiating power with the rest of the world. On the other hand, Brexiteers say that the UK would compensate for such disadvantages by establishing its own trade agreements. Boris Johnson, the UK’s prime minister from the Conservative Party, and his pledge to “Get Brexit Done,” market his claim that leaving the European Union is an act of empowerment. The British government recently asked the EU to delay Brexit until 31 January 2020 and the EU approved this request. If the UK parliament and the European Parliament vote in favor of the Brexit agreement, there will be a transition period that will last until 31 December 2020. During this time, all EU regulations will continue to apply to the UK. After this period, the new relationship between the EU and UK will begin, provided an agreement has been reached that has been approved by the European Parliament, the UK parliament, and by the EU member states. ‘Till then, we wait! tric idea of what colonialism’s modern implications. As the media continues to struggle with taking the stories of native women seriously, it is important to recognize the disproportionate struggle that native people, women above all, have been forced to endure. When encountered with the wrongdoings of European ancestors, too many are reluctant to start a conversation claiming that it was too long ago to maintain relevance in today’s society. While the original instances of systemic racism towards native peoples were established and carried out over three hundred years ago, the effects and fallout of these decisions are still relevant and affect thousands every year causing the native voice in this country to go unheard.
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SPORTS Berkshire School
Getting to Know Annie Hauser by Victoria Gagas ’20 Annie Hauser: Green and Gray leader, Regeneron STS National Science participant, and defender of Berkshire School teams. Walking around campus, Annie’s beaming, smiling, or hilarious greetings are obvious to see, but little may know just how aggressive and committed Annie is to sprotecting the net from opposing teams. Annie has been the goalie for Varsity Field Hockey, Varsity Girls Hockey, and Varsity Girls Lacrosse. Safe to say, the net is in good hands. When not under the mountain, Annie is at home in White Plains, NY, most likely playing hockey with her brothers or hanging out with her dog, Lacey. Annie credits her competitive mindset to her brothers because while growing up, Annie always fought her brothers in “friendly” games of hockey, which pushed her to be her best self. Sports have always been involved in her life, starting from basically the moment she could walk: “I’ve been playing sports all my life.
Rylie Griffith on ice with a member of the Berkshire Rattlers
The Inaugural Skate For Her Game
by Megan Mokriski ’21
Autumn Coard You may know Autumn Coard ’22 as the tri-varsity athlete star. Just finishing an impressive Varsity volleyball season, Coard is transitioning from the volleyball court to the basketball court as she starts her second year playing Varsity basketball here at Berkshire School. From Southampton, New York, Autumn grew up with basketball in her blood. She began to first play the sport in third grade. With her dad being a basketball coach, it wasn’t long before Autumn started playing more seriously. Back home, Coard was involved in a local rec center team in which she was the only girl. Reflect-
ing back on the experience of playing on an all male team, she explained, “I had to look past the discomfort and the struggle to be able to succeed on the team”. After being asked what her most significant moment was, Autumn proudly said being awarded female athlete of the year at her old school. This was an impressive feat considering her old school didn’t even have a girl basketball team. Instead, she had to find a different school to play for if she wanted to continue her basketball journey. Coard’s basketball idol would have to be her dad. She explained that he coached her for a long time and helped her “see the game from another perspective”. If you were
tioning jerseys. In total, they managed to raise an astounding $5200 to “support equality and visibility for female athletics.” After the game, younger girls from the community skated with the hockey players. Senior Ryle Griffith ’20 stated that skating with these younger girls after the game was “something that I will always remember because I could tell how much they looked up to our team. After a hard-fought battle and tough loss, being around big smiles and laughs made me realize how much bigger than a game hockey is.” The all-female A Capella group Ursa Minor opened by singing the national anthem, and Cat Appleyard ’20 scored the first goal of the game for the Bears. The stands were packed with students in all black, cheering for the team. During the first intermission, members of the first girls’ hockey team at Berkshire, many coaches from
throughout the program history, and the team captains Annie Hauser ’20, Appleyard, and Griffith were honored. Coach Marshall would like to thank everyone who came out to make the night special. This was only the beginning of what we hope will be a long-standing tradition at Berkshire.
Berkshire School
On Friday, January 10, the girls’ varsity hockey team faced Buckingham Browne and Nichols School in the inaugural “Skate for Her” game, beginning a great tradition for Berkshire. While the final score was 1-6 in favor of BB&N, the Bears played a great game and raised money and awareness for an amazing cause. All proceeds from the game went to the Women’s Sports Foundation. According to their website, womenssportsfoundation.org, the Foundation was established by Billie Jean King in 1984 to “advance the lives of women and girls through sports and physical activity.” Their goal is to bring more girls and women into sports through financial aid, research, education, and advocating based on the philosophy that girls who experience athletic success are more likely to succeed in high
school compared to those who don’t. They want to get as many girls involved in sports as possible to boost their academics, give them a team experience, increase fitness, and more. In the words of Lisa Marshall, the head coach of the team, “Everyone deserves to learn life lessons, gain confidence, create lasting relationships, and most importantly, to dream.” In high school, 40% of girls will play on sports teams, compared to 80% of boys, and playing on sports teams can benefit physical, social, and emotional health. As she told the community during a speech at a school meeting. Marshall founded the Skate for Her game to “create an opportunity for dreams to be seen.” Members of the team raised money through selling pom-pom hats, concession, chuck-a-puck, a skate with the players after the game, and auc-
I’ve been playing hockey for about 13 years. I got into it because of my brothers (Shoutout to my younger brother, you’re a cutie) and my Dad always played with me. Some of my favorite moments of hockey are with my family.” When I asked Annie to elaborate on one of those moments, she described Sunday mornings as a time when “I used to skate with my Dad. One time my Dad just had the funniest chirps and I was laughing too hard to actually play well. It was such good vibes and just a great experience with my Dad and hockey.” In addition to Berkshire’s varsity sports, Annie also played for CT Junior Eagles and Mid Fairfield Stars. Annie graciously states, “Without those teams, I definitely would not be the player I am today. They’ve helped me so much and I’m incredibly grateful for the people I met.” Both of those teams helped Annie commit to Hobart and William Smith College to play Division III Hockey. When I asked her about playing in college, her vibrant smile swiftly changed into a humble soft smile. In sim-
ple terms, Annie is highly proud to attend her future school. As for the Berkshire Girls Varsity Hockey team, Annie is more than pumped for this year’s season. For her to channel her “game mode,” Annie explained how she blasts 2000’s throwback songs, saying, “I love a loud and fun environment before a game. Being in a quiet locker room only stresses me out, plus it’s a fun way to bond with my teammates and have a good time listening to fun songs.” Annie, along with the rest of her teammates, is looking forward to an exhilarating season. For future bears, Annie wants everyone to know the importance of hard work and doing it not just for yourself, but for your teammates as well. In her final statement, Annie wants everyone to know that Berkshire’s Girls Hockey is an amazing opportunity to have that this school. “Everyone should take this advantage and utilize this opportunity. I used it to my advantage and I’m really happy that I did.” Good luck to the 201920 Girls Varsity Hockey and make sure to cheer for the defender of the Bears!
Annie Hauser, goalie, during the game.
BALLER HIGHLIGHTS by Samantha Bernstein ’22
looking through Autumn’s perspective, however, you’ll most likely find yourself doing her pre-free throw shot ritual: spinning the ball, dribbling three times, then spinning the ball again before taking the shot. With the season still fresh, Autumn encourages anyone who’s looking for a close group of friends to eat dinner with, travel with, and be very good friends with to join the team. Best of luck to Autumn Coard ’22 in this year’s season!
left his home of Agawam, Massachusetts to become part of the Berkshire cohort this year. In the fifth grade, Thompson took his curiosity about the sport onto the court for the first time. After receiving a flyer mentioning basketball tryouts, he decided to give it his all, and he ended up making the team. Back home, Thompson has be en involved in a club team for four years, during which he still plays during the spring and summer seasons. DeVon’s proudest moment was making the Varsity basketball team as a freshman. When asked
DeVon Thompson DeVon Thompson ’22
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about the season so far, Thompson optimistically explained that they are “a great group of guys with the potential to go very far this year as long as [they] work hard in practice, trust the coaches and trust the process.” He’s very excited to be able to work with everyone on the team, as well as the coaches this year. And as for Thompson’s favorite player? Allen Iverson. His toughness, grit, and attitude during the game make him an admirable player. As for a favorite coach, that would have to be Gregg Popovich for the San Antonio Spurs. DeVon noted that “he doesn’t just know how to coach his players, he loves them as well.”
As for on the court, DeVon can be found dribbling once before taking a free-throw shot. For anyone wanting to try out next year, Thompson believes that if you work hard and are excited to learn, you’ll do very well on the team. Good luck with the season this year!
DeVon Thompson in action
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VOL CXI, No. 1
February 3, 2020
ARTS by Phoebe Mulder ’22 On November 11, a chilly fall morning, Dr. Davis and seven music students piled into a Berkshire suburban and headed off-campus. After much preparation, we were going to audition for the Western district music festivals. The district festival is held annually and consists of both instrumental and vocal performances from high school students, who perform in either the orchestra, concert or jazz bands, or a 200 person chorus. It is organized by the Massachusetts Music Educators Association. Involvement in the previously mentioned performances is dependant on an audition. Students are given pieces of music to prepare, and travel to audition in front of musical professionals involved
in the festival. In the weeks leading up to the audition, Zeynep Lal Kara ’23, myself, Luke Nguyen ’21, Maia Tolentino ’21, Angela Ansah ’21, Christina Tao ’21, and Giang Le ’20 worked hard to prepare for the different components of the audition. Ansah and Tao auditioned for flute and violin seats, respectively, while the rest tried out for seats in the festival chorus. While the students are judged on their performance of the prepared song, they also must perform various scales and sight read. This last element of the audition is generally the most difficult. Both chorus and band hopefuls must analyze a piece of sheet music they have never seen before, and sing/play the piece as written. The wide scope of musical skill that is tested
The MMEA District Music Festival at the district audition means that everyone involved worked hard to prepare for the looming audition day. To better understand the different work everyone put in and experiences they had, I talked to a few of the students involved. In general, practice was put in during chorus and chamber ensemble classes as well as study hall hours. Students also met with Dr. Wu and Dr. Davis to perfect their pieces. Luke Nguyen ’21 and Giang Le ’20 even set the district audition song as their alarm, so that the melody would be easier to memorize. Maia Tolentino ’21 spoke to the
Winter Concert Review On December 13, 2019, in Allen Theater, the annual Berkshire Winter Concert took place. Chamber Music, Jazz Ensemble, Chorus, Digital Music, Ursa Minor, and Greensleeves all performed. The Winter Concert would not be possible without Dr. Wu and Dr. Davis. Both of them have been working as music teachers and putting on Winter Concerts at Berkshire for 20 years. Davis, one of the music directors at Berkshire explains, that the Winter Concert “can be a great celebration of the work
we have been able to accomplish throughout the semester. Unlike the fall concert, we have had more time to fine-tune and work on music at a deeper level.” Wu explains that in choosing what songs are going to be performed “there are some factors to consider: one, finding the right music to challenge further learning, two, focus themes on any topic we choose, and three we make sure the concert program represents enough diversity.” This was seen in the song selection performed at the Winter Concert. This Winter Concert, Chamber Music per-
phonist Sonny Rollins. Ursa Minor sang an arrangement of “Ocean Eyes” by Gian Le ’20 and “Move,” which included extended choreography. Mia Lake ’20, an Ursa Minor member, exclaimed, “We brought a lot of energy to the stage!” Greensleeves performed “Fun, Fun, Fun” by the Beach Boys and “Counting Stars” by OneRepublic. Throughout the concert, selected original compositions from the Digital Music classes were showcased as well. Victoria Gagas ’20 expressed that one aspect she loves about the Winter Concert “is the variety and the difficulty of the songs. As the year
formed a beautiful waltz from the famous ballet “Coppelia” and a collaboration with Chorus class, where they performed “Durme, Durme,” a Sephardic lullaby sung in Ladino. Besides the collaboration with chamber music, Chorus class sang “Vuelie” from the movie Frozen and Jacque Offenbach’s famous composition the “Can-Can.” The Jazz Ensemble performed the theme to the television show Hawaii Five-O and a funk version of Ben Tucker’s tune “Comin’ Home Baby.” Additionally, the Advanced Jazz Ensemble performed “Tenor Madness,” a composition by tenor saxo-
Berkshire School
Ursa Minor Performing “Move” by Little Mix.
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When asked his favorite part of the MMEA district process, Dr. Davis quickly identified the final performance, speaking to the rare and powerful experience of performing in a 200 person choir or a large chamber orchestra; “We’re a school of 400, so we’re not going to field a 200 voice chorus, because that would require half of Berkshire to sing… We can’t produce that here. The concert band has also full brass, wind, percussion, and we can’t replicate that either - we don’t have the numbers.” While the performance is exciting, there is more on the horizon for a few Berkshire musicians. A high enough score qualifies a singer or musician to advance to the next level of auditions - auditioning for all-state performances.
Lucia Mulder
by Peggy Stansbery ’20
importance of monitoring what you eat in the days leading up to the audition, staying hydrated, and doing daily vocal warm ups. All the work paid off, fortunately. For the first time in six years, according to Dr. Wu, every single student placed in the district festival. The good news was received a few weeks after the audition. Rehearsals for the district performance begins in January, and the final performance is on January 11th. After the stress of auditions, returning musicians and those who have been accepted for the first time, are looking forward to the final performance. While Berkshire’s music program is uniquely strong, the sheer quantity of musicians involved in the district festival allows for amazing rehearsals and performances.
While the district performances only involve members of one of the five Massachusetts districts, All-state performances involve the best high school musicians from each state. Zeynep Lal Kara ’23, Maia Tolentino ’21, and Giang Le ’20 all qualified to audition in January for the all-state festival chorus, which is held in early March. Overall, the MMEA audition process is rewarding and educational, regardless of the outcome. However, the fact that every single Berkshire students who auditioned were accepted is a big accomplishment and promises a very fun district festival experience. As the weather turns colder and snow falls on the mountain, Berkshire music students look ahead with enthusiasm to the MMEA performances and auditions that January has in store.
Students (from left) Angela, Luke, Giang, Lydia, Maia, Phoebe, Zeynep, Christina and co-Director of Berkshire's music program Dr. Davis enjoying dinner post audition in a Berkshire Districts tradition.
goes on, we learn more challenging songs, but performing such advance songs is so rewarding and one of my favorite parts about the Winter Concert.” Putting together all these songs took a great deal of work from Wu and Davis and the students involved. Chorus, Jazz, and Chamber Music all meet four times a week for class, where they work on fundamental skills as well as learning repertoire for upcoming concerts. Chamber Music even took a waltz dance class with dance teacher Mrs. Keefer in preparation for their performance of the waltz, “Coppelia,” in the Winter Concert. While Chorus, Jazz, and Chamber Music had
class time to prepare for the concert, the acapella groups, Greensleeves and Ursa Minor, purely have to meet outside of school to rehearse. Mia describes that the preparation process for Ursa Minor “was great but a lot to manage, but, I love making time for what I love. Ursa Minor is like my second family.” Students who performed in the Winter Concert worked very hard and are passionate about music and performing. The Winter Concert was a fantastic event showcasing the talented students and teachers in the Berkshire community. As Wu states: “How can you not love the Winter Concert?! It’s during one of the most festive seasons!!!”
Sheffield, Massachusetts
VOL CXI, No. 1
RENT
by Leo Yang ’22 “No other path, no other way, no day but today!” On October 17, Jesse Howard, director of theater announced the annual winter musical: RENT. While a frigid winter is coming under the Mountain, this Rock and Roll musical is going to bring fire to the Allen Theater. “RENT is about ‘a community of people coping with life’,” said Mr. Howard in the audition note. Indeed, based on Puccini’s opera La Bohème, RENT
narrates the story of a group of impoverished young people who lived in Lower Manhattan, striving to live a Bohemian life filled with bravery, happiness, and love. Just like the fall play, Nickel and Dimed, the musical aims to “show our audience characters that are often overlooked and marginalized, dignify them and bring them alive on stage,” according to Mr. Howard. There’s the AIDS-infected musician who’s attempting to leave one glorious song in his
remaining days. There’s the club dancer who is also HIV-positive but seeking for fearless love to her heart. There’s the impecunious filmmaker who gets to survive but suffers from loneliness… RENT embraces and accepts people of various races, gender identities, social backgrounds, etc., and as a Berkshire theater performance always does, it embraces a litany of strong female characters. Love and Spirituality are among the many important themes of this show. Markus Lebenthal ’21 who plays Angel, an HIV-positive drag queen and bucket drummer, mentioned that “Angel is the most positive and optimistic one, and his bright and cheerful spirit allows him to befriend with the whole group and brings other up.” As Seasons of Love sings, “how do you measure a year
Berkshire School
VIVA LA VIE BOHÈME! Berkshire Presents:
February 3, 2020
Luke giang, pheobe. FromNyugen, left, Luke Nguyen ’21, Giang Le ’20, and Phoebe Mulder ’22 building a set piece. in the life / What about love,” way. For instance, more love and solicitude are the singing and dancing from way to go during the hard the ensemble are added to certain scenes to amplify times. the sound and emotion The production of of the show. Moreover, RENT will evoke the the sets and scenery are creativity of the team to a great extent. While obsignificantly different from taining inspirations from the the Broadway production, adapting to our own original choreography, the directors are going to create stage in Allen Theater. a “Berkshire ver-sion” of the Apart from acting and musical that shows the singing, all cast members personalities of the characters are involved in set builds in our own and technical work. Cast
members often assemble and paint the sets by themselves, and they all help out in organizing props and costumes, creating headshots, etc. RENT is opening on Thursday, Feb 20 and runs through Saturday, Feb 22. All are welcomed, and be ready to feel a little warmth of love at the tail end of the winter.
OPINION A Tribute to Kobe: The Mamba Mentality by William Onubogu ’22
PIPELINE:
A Thespian Interpretation of Parenting by Leo Yang ’22 How important is a parent’s company for teenagers? Is good parenting simply providing the most to your children? On Saturday, Nov 9, five Bears together with Dr. A.J Kohlhepp were lucky enough to catch the closing performance of the play Pipeline, which discussed those questions and more. Crafted by the talented playwright Dominique Morisseau, Pipeline portrays a frustrating family struggle and a concerning social prophecy. The main character, Nya, a single mother and public school teacher, sends her only Elsa via Getty Image
I woke up Sunday morning as many of us did, walked to morning brunch, ate a big meal, and headed to the library to get some work done. Sitting down, with books laid out in front of me, I took for granted every intake of breath, and release of breath, as they settled in my subconscious. Satisfied with the work I completed, I gathered my things and headed to Soffer Athletic Center, graced with the ability to walk, to feel, to smell, and see the world in front of me. I entered the beautiful Duryee basketball court and got some shots up. Immediately I feel a deep therapeutic feeling as my worries fade. I play for some time and after a while I go to take a seat. My phone is blowing up. I bring it up to see chats from varsity basketball saying “R.I.P. Kobe.” Confused, I assume that they’re referring to Lebron passing Kobe in all-time scoring leaders: Kobe’s 33,643 points to Lebron’s 33,655 points. I brush off the text. But, just to be certain, I look it up and find that five sources are reporting Kobe and eight others dead in helicopter crash. I refuse to believe my eyes; I think to myself that if – and only if – Adrian Wojnarowski, the most reliable source in the basketball world, reports it, would I believe it. Not long
after, Woj announces it on Twitter. I’m sickened. Kobe was 41 years old, only 41, and to make things worse, his 13 year old daughter Gianna was on board. I reminisce about Kobe’s drive not only as a player but as an individual in the real world outside sports. He inspires so many with a “mamba mentality” that is not restrained to the parameters of basketball; I believe it’s a lifestyle. To take risks, embrace, and rise to opportunities. His drive is absolutely impeccable. Constantly overlooked, undermined, he pushed, and in 41 years, he gave life his all and left us in body. What do we make of this situation, we can say his story, but what does that do? You see, as is breathing, life is often put in the subconscious. Kobe gave life his fullest and will never be forgotten. But where do you stand today? Waking up to a nicotine filled vape nursing your addiction? What is it? Is it your “I’ll get it done later” attitude? Is it in your worries? Where does that get you? My mom says this to me all the time: “time waits for nobody.” So why waste your time worrying when it just brings more troubles, why vape away your life until you’re sitting at your darkest hour, why hold things off. I get it, it’s “too hard to live to your fullest capacity,” or maybe you’re thinking “I don’t need to
live otherwise.” Excuses in and of themselves are psychological reflexes made to keep you comfortable. We make excuses to reassure ourselves there is nothing more we can do. Kobe lost the championship in ’08 to the Celtics. He didn’t make excuses for himself. Instead he came back next year and ousted the Orlando Magic in five games. Again, I ask, where do you stand today. Bring life to the forefront of your mind. Life is not forever, but your impact on life is. And what are you doing to impact the Berkshire Community and abroad? What actual actions are you taking to bring about a greater change? Think about this, consider this. You have been given the gift of individual and the world is curious to know what gift you can share. Because there is no better comfort than contributing to a cause bigger than self. Live life with a mamba mentality...
Kobe Bryant warms up with daughter Gianna Bryant during the NBA All-Star Game 2016 in Toronto, Ontario.
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son Omari to a private boarding school, hoping to prevent a criminal future she fears he will fall into. The huge educational investment offers little salvation: in the opening of the play, Omari is suspended for the third time, facing possible expulsion because he punched a teacher who pushed too far to make Omari answer a question. Conflicts burst out between the parents and the son. What overrides blame is fear: Nya’s fear that Omari will step on a destiny of crime and violence; Omari’s father, Xavier, is afraid that his educational investment is failing and his son is self-destructing; Omari’s fear that the inevitable mistake he made will lead to him be locked inside a cell for years and seal his fate...All of which corresponds to the theme of “black fatalism,” which refers to the fate of crime, poverty and failure. Loneliness and lack of parent’s company are among the most serious of teenage issues, especially for those students in boarding schools. Without the care and advice of parents for a long period, it is easy for teenagers to feel overwhelmed and stressed, and thus make
bad decisions. Outside of boarding schools, it isn’t uncommon to see parents too busy with work to pay enough meaningful time with their children. Pipeline was created to raise awareness of the importance of company in education. The relationship between partners can be equally influential to the growth of the children. In Pipeline, Nya and her ex-husband Xavier have endless quarrels, and they use Omari as their only remaining bond: “It’s you and him. Me and him. Us and him. That’s the deal. You and I without him does not exist” shouts Xavier, as they blame each other for not taking good care of Omari. In fact, it is the problematic partner relationship that leads to Omari’s grumpiness and impatience, as may be expected from bring made the couple’s punching bag. On the car ride back to school, students discussed whom in our community should go and watch Pipeline. We agreed that the administrators attend, seeing that the play reveals many teenage issues that could help them more deeply understand students and look for better ways to educate. This play is also ideal for students who feel lonely and helpless. We hope that Omari’s story, during which he eventually escapes his predicament, resonates with those students. Overall, Pipeline is a great play with profound lessons, and we highly recommend you to check it out.
Sheffield, Massachusetts
VOL CXI, No. 1
Sorry, You’re a Woman (Anonymous) When I was a kid, my parents told me I could do anything. What they didn’t tell me was following my dreams would mean discovering hundreds of obstacles put in place due to the discriminatory nature of our society. My parents didn’t tell me I would spend on average $1,400 a year due to gender price discrimination. Gender
price discrimination, more commonly known as the Pink Tax, is when companies “pink it and shrink it”. Companies take the same product and make it smaller and pink. Then, they proceed to charge more for it than the same product marketed for men. For instance, Bic’s women’s razors cost $7.49, while their men’s razors only cost $5.49. When I told someone this, they asked me why
women don’t just buy the product marketed for men, after all, it does the same thing and costs less. Women should take the extra step and buy the men’s product. They should make that little change to make it just a little bit easier for men and harder for women. It’s a small thing, after all. But, since it’s every product, you’re now buying men’s deodorant, shampoo, pain killers, body wash,
Dictionary.com
Comparing men's to women’s shavers: for the same product from the same company, the women’s “pink” blades are more expensive.
Letter from the Editor by Darran Shen ’20 If anything over the past week at Berkshire has taught us, it is that deep-seated prejudices can – and do – exist, sometimes manifesting themselves in the most unexpected ways across the community. The issue with such manifestations is that they represent the most extremes of situations and that if they can be expressed in such horrific ways, then they most certainly do so in other everyday situations – interactions that are subconsciously internalized and accepted (to a certain degree) by members of this school. Make no mistake: the vast majority of our school is committed to transparency, inclusion, and acceptance. But when jokes turn to comments turn to conjecture, it becomes hard to escape the draw of convenient generalization in ways that are harmful, intentional or not, to both the individual and the community as a whole. Over the past week or so, as public awareness of the novel Wuhan Coronavirus has risen, our
public understanding of the infection has not kept up, stumped by misleading news sources and halfbaked word-of-mouth conspiracy stories. I know that I am not alone in having experienced some of the worst xenophobic fearmongering over the last few days, both online and among my peers here. For one, there are some at this school who seem to think that Wuhan, the city of origin, covers the entirety of China, or at least that cities from which our students hail from are somehow geographically “close enough” to pose a risk. To be clear, no current Berkshire students are fromWuhan, or have recently visited, and that the School is in communication with both the families from Wuhan who visited over the past few months, neither of which have had family members fallen sick. What’s worrying about these claims is that they imply that catching the Coronavirus is at least partially predicated on race and ethnicity – as in, “if you’re from China, there’s a chance you could infect
the school. How dare you jeopardize our health?” Such is the sour nature of xenophobia. This outbreak has also reinforced negative stereotypes about China. The Coronavirus originated from a seafood and poultry market in China, and there have been reports that they were transmitted from the consumption of bats or snakes. As a result, Chinese people are castigated as “uncivilized” and “cruel” for eating animals that don’t fit into a neat western narrative of acceptability. Such (unconfirmed) allegations have blown up online, with thousands of racist comments posted under alleged exposés: “They deserve a virus like this to wipe out their stupidity. They are abusing animals,” writes one. “Now karma on you Chinese people, stop eating animals,” writes another. “They are worse than animals,” writes a third. And of course, the tour de force: “It’s their fault, why not just take out the whole country if they [are] spreading the virus to the world?” Widely circulated news
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February 3, 2020
snorkeling gear, and any other product. And now, you aren’t being taken seriously because you quote “smell like a man,” so your ideas aren’t being heard, and you aren’t moving up in your company. But, at least you’re not paying more for deodorant. The Pink Tax is one of the many ways the United States says “Sorry, you’re a woman.” Another way is the Tampon Tax. In many states throughout the United States, tampons aren’t counted as a necessity and therefore tax-exempt. At Berkshire, we claim to offer free pads and tampons. However, I visited all three women’s bathrooms in Benson and none of the tampon or pad dispensers were stocked. In response to this, someone could and likely will say, “I’m sure the dispensers are stocked somewhere, you could just go there.” They would be correct: the dispensers in Berkshire Hall are almost always stocked. However, why should women walk to another building to get a free tampon when Berkshire claims to stock all women’s bathrooms? Living in a women’s world means constantly taking that extra step to accommodate the men’s world we truly live in.
If you’re a man reading this, you may be asking yourself why you should care about this. You should care about it because there is a woman in your life whom you care about who is negatively affected by the men’s world we live in. They may pay more for the same product or pay extra for an item they require for basic hygiene. Every woman has to take extra steps to accommodate the men’s world, and if you care about the women in your life then you should care they are being treated differently simply because of their gender. Here at Berkshire, there are some steps we can take to fight gender discrimination. The first one is fairly simple, keeping all the tampon and pad machines in our school stocked at all times. We could also abolish the Pink Tax here at Berkshire. In our bookstore, the Pink Tax can clearly be seen. If it’s the same product just marketed for women, then it should cost the same as the men’s version. This isn’t a women’s fight. This is everyone’s fight, and as a community, we need to come together to fight the tax of being a woman.
posts have only exacerbated the issue. One from the Daily Mail’s Snapchat story, commonly read among Berkshire students, posted an article titled “Bat eater begs for forgiveness,” of an apology by a Chinese reporter depicting her eating a bat. The article gladly neglects to mention when it was filmed (2016) and the context of the video (it was not eaten in China, and the bat was farm-raised). Instead, the summary makes it seem as if the reporter was directly linked to the virus’ source. Similarly misleading images and videos abound. At Berkshire, these falsehoods and fearmongering have flourished in lieu of a lack of research. Widespread rumors indicate that Kent has caught the Coronavirus. Freshman girls text home complaining of Coronavirus-like symptoms. “If you go home,” a comment was made, “I don’t want you to touch anyone when you come back.” When Berkshire engages in such actions, it lends credence to a miasmic culture of racism and xenophobia. That in and of itself perpetuates stereotypes that negatively impacts our school community as a whole; it is simply not acceptable to generalize the country as a whole and undermine the
values of a culture and her people. The nature and origin of the Coronavirus has made it easy to scapegoat China, but we must tackle this information problem head on and realize that viruses are not bound by national borders or cultural barriers. This is an issue for all of us, and one that must be dealt with using empathy and support. Even now, as I hope to bring awareness and understanding to this issue, my family is back home trying to protect themselves the best they can. Back here in Sheffield, we remain safe. A report from Harvard Health Publishing shows that there is little to worry about for people in the United States; apparently, we are much more likely to get influenza B — the flu — than any other virus. I urge all members of the Berkshire community to do their own research and understand for themselves what the Coronavirus is. The school provides a very helpful free New York Times subscription. There is no place for xenophobia, racism, or fearmongering on campus. There is, however, an opportunity to grow into a stronger community. I hope we get there.
WINTER JAMS by Jackson Chapin ’20 We have met your winter music needs with this curated playlist. The songs here are not ones you will hear replayed on the radio. These songs will bring something fraesh to your ears and fit the wintry mood. 1. “Dear Winter” - AJR: Composing a song to your future kid is bold. So is naming them after the 3-month mini ice age that is winter.
2. “Hollow Tree” - Ok Moon: Even though winter is a physically hollow season, Ok Moon reminds us that one’s disposition doesn’t diminish in the cold.
3. “Wicker” - The Fourth Son: The Fourth Son paints a nice winter picture with their lyrics about “attic boxes” and “thawing by the radio.”
Rounding out the playlist are: 4. “Black Out Days” Phantogram; 5. “Storms” Mr. Carter Davis; 6. “Keep in the Dark” - Temples; 7. “Feels Like the End” Mikky Ekko. Editor’s Note: the “Winter Jams” playlist can be found on Spotify under the “Green and Gray Jams” profile.
Sheffield, Massachusetts
VOL CXI, No. 1
hidden only in their own minds could very much backfire on its original intentions, exacerbating the situation. To simplify the problem’s complexity and formulate a solution with only one single action is a bold move, but here I propose the addition of an obligation in schools, which takes advantage of the resources available and the limited but adequate control schools have over students, that counselling sessions for students be made mandatory at Berkshire. Below are three reasons why I believe this could be successful. First of all, and most importantly, counselling sessions will target every student in the school. Students will have the freedom to choose when they would like to conduct the sessions, but there will be
Why Mental Health Counselling Should Be Mandatory For Students by Wilson Zheng ’21 Although difficult to embrace, numbers that have significantly increased in schools have not been the average GPA, nor the college acceptance rate, but the suicide rate. Between 2007 and 2017, according to The Wall Street Journal, the suicide rate among people ages 10 to 24 years old had climbed a staggering 56%. On top of that, the number of students diagnosed with depression between ages 12 to 17 has increased by 62% from 2009 to 2017. Some people might find these numbers to be surprising, and are thinking
to themselves that these events only happen on television, distant from their own life. The truth is, about 1 in 30 people aging from 3 to 17 years old experience some kind of depression, and that number is a lot higher if we only look at middle and high schools. Four years ago, a classmate of mine killed himself by jumping off a building; recently, the number of similar occurrences have increased significantly. It had been shocking to even hear about these events, but in reality I have already seen way too many of them around me. So what could be done by schools to provide
the absolute maximum amount of support to every student, and to create a healthy learning and/or living environment? As a teenager myself, I believe the simple “raising awareness” is nowhere near a reliable answer. Exposing the problems may bring more attention of the public to them, but how exactly will it help the troubled ones? Will that simply be enough to liberate their minds? Or will it become another source of stress and pressure adding onto the tower? The minds of teenagers are much more complicated and sensitive than one might assume. Exposing one’s problems previously
Chen Chia (Tasia) Wu
Aimi Sekiguchi ’20
ASSOCIATE EDITORS
Chris Branch ’20, Emily Liu ’20, Megan Mokriski ’21
ASSOCIATE LAYOUT EDITORS
Wilson Zheng ’21, Wakaba Aihara ’22
FACULTY ADVISORS
Peter Giordano, Sarah Pitcher-Hoffman
STAFF WRITERS
themselves or others when it comes to seeking help, the ones who might feel embarrassed for seeing counsellors will feel a lot more accepted, for example. Looking at the rocketing growth of suicide and depression rates among teenagers, we must pay immediate attention to these issues. Finding a feasible solution will take time, but we won’t get any further until we’ve taken actions. I believe constructing mandatory counselling sessions will be a great first step. This could not only be for the purpose of mental health issues, but also helping students with more common problems such as time and stress management, acting as a great resource for a variety of reasons.
A New Tradition for Berkshire and Me by Aimi Sekiguchi ’20 On January 1st, less than a day into 2018, I left home to fly back to JFK Airport. I’m from Japan, and New Years is our biggest national holiday; the first week of January is full of reunions, food, games, and prayers at temples. The early start of Berkshire’s second semester cut my celebration short, but hey, at least I got my Pochi Bukuro, an envelope with New Year’s money. I spent the money at Bizen with my Berkshire friends. Similarly, many of the Asian international students who celebrate the Lunar New Year (which happens in late-January) miss out on their biggest family reunion. So when the language department invited the Asian Affinity club to organize a Lunar New Year celebration at Berkshire, I was beyond excited and determined to make it memorable. But as a Japanese student who doesn’t celebrate the holiday, I was unsure of my standing as an organizer. While preparing for the all-school presentation, I learned what Lunar New Year meant for different students. Luke Nguyen ’21 thinks of Chung cake and visiting the first Vietnamese university for academic luck. Moya Techakalayatum ’21 thinks of massive feasts of Chinese food and ang pao, the Thai red packets given to children. Michelle Rhee ’21 thinks of sebae, the traditional bowing of children to elders, and
Darran Shen ’20
PUBLISHER-IN-CHIEF
a requirement of at least one session per semester. This ensures a periodic mental check-up for the students, which would be a great way of noticing any premature signs of mental health problems, or even discovering ones which have already developed. Secondly, I believe these counselling sessions could act as an excuse for students to voice out their concerns. The possible thought of “since it’s mandatory, I’ll have to go” will provide students who are initially hesitant of using counselling services a proper reason and motivation to seek for help. Thirdly, mandatory counselling sessions could possibly create a culture in the school that acknowledges the importance of mental health. These obligations could positively affect how students view
I Don’t Celebrate the Lunar New Year:
Asian and Asian-American students gathered in the Great Room for a Lunar New Year feast from five different local restaurants.
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
February 3, 2020
Jackson Chapin ’20, Victoria Gagas ’20, Tad Koenigsbauer ’20, Peggy Stansberry ’20, Mike Burrell ’21, Sofie Fisher ’21, Lindsay Knight ’21, Campbell Mecke ’21, Sophia Pasquale ’21, Basil Shillingford ’21, Grace Wood-Hull ’21, Samantha Bernstein ’22, Remy Bond ’22, Graham Hynes ’22, Olivia Mirabito ’22, Phoebe Mulder ’22, Will Onubogu ’22, Sanjna Srinivasan ’22, Charlotte Turner ’22, Leo Yang ’22, Alexandra Schmidt ’23
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ddeokguk, a Korean rice cake soup that marks the new year. Michelle Wang ’20 and Darran Shen ’20 think of the fifteen-day celebration with fish and Tangyuan, a traditional dessert, which are puns on Chinese words that respectively mean prosperity and reunion. I was fascinated by the different significances the same day held for each person, and couldn’t wait for them to share with the rest of the community. When we met to discuss the food to be served at the special community lunch with Flik representative Denee Danner, sushi was quickly added to the menu. I was certain students would love it, but uncertain of its significance. For a Lunar New Year themed-lunch, was sushi really appropriate? In fact, should I be involved at all, representing the entire Asian student body to explain a foreign tradition? I was ambivalent going up on stage at the Thursday all-school meeting, but thankfully, our presentation was a great success. I couldn’t be happier with all the positive feedback I received. Michelle Wang later told me, “Seeing the Chinese III class performing the dragon dance in front of the entire school hit home. My heritage was recognized here at Berkshire; people who don’t celebrate the Lunar New Year holiday was embracing the culture that I’m a part of.” I realized that by
enjoying this process, I too had helped her and many others share their identity with the community. On the night of January 24th, I saw my first fireworks in the United States. And it was to recognize our race, our heritage, our home. I teared up. As the beautiful sparks of light blurred in my vision, I felt like I had truly accomplished something. During Monday lunch, sushi was indeed very popular, and I was proud that it was there, representing me, even though Japan celebrates the solar New Year. Why, you ask? The Lunar New Year is a celebration of family, but I learned each of my friends celebrate in their unique way. For me, it is a celebration of my life as part of the Berkshire family. I can proudly say that every year, when the Lunar New Year comes around, I will remember what I felt seeing the fireworks here at Berkshire. I hope everyone at Berkshire can embrace the Lunar New Year as a continuing tradition, whether to remember their home or to learn about their friends’, classmates’, and colleagues’ homes. I am Japanese, and with my biological family, I celebrate the solar New Year. But the Lunar New Year is a new celebration I will cherish: one to embrace my Berkshire family, and to remind myself of the joy and value of sharing who you are.