INSIDE THE ISSUE
feature 8
opinion 4
a&e 9
the bull's eye news
opinion
feature
sports 16
MARCH 24, 2021 VOLUME XXXIX ISSUE VII ONLINE AT DBBULLSEYE.COM
arts&entertainment
sports
School to begin in-person tutorial DBHS applying strict safety measures for campus to partially reopen. Marcus Hsieh asst. News editor
Photo courtesy of LATITIA THOMAS Seniors Harris Daud, left, and Crystal Tsao competed in front of six Duke law students and a room of virtual spectators.
Taking first at Moot Court Mock Trial captures its first win at the Duke competition on March 8. steve qu Asst. news editor Mock Trial made school history by becoming the first Diamond Bar High School team to win Duke University’s National Moot Court Competition. This Moot Court competition, held on March 8, simulates an appellate court, in which decisions
of another court are reviewed through a Constitutional lens. In this year’s event, competitors argued for and against both abortion and a physician’s ability to speak to their patient. “The 10 students that competed in this national Moot Court competition sponsored by Duke were all integral to pushing each other to achieve more and do better,” head coach Latitia Thomas said via email. Normally, the group would travel to North Carolina to participate in the event. However, because of the pandemic, the competition was
conducted online over Zoom. Members were given the option to go on DBHS campus and compete virtually from there or stay at home. “The experience was quite different than how it is in person. No longer was courtroom demeanor or body language as prevalent since it was all through a virtual setting,” senior Harris Daud said via Instagram. “However, it was still as challenging and interactive as before.” The 10 DBHS participants were divided into five pairs, four of
court ON P.2
Marking the one-year anniversary of Walnut Valley Unified School District’s closure on March 16, Superintendent Robert P. Taylor announced via YouTube livestream that the majority of students at Diamond Bar High School will continue with distance learning for the remainder of the 2020-2021 academic year. The decision was made in an effort to maintain academic consistency heading into AP testing and final exams. However, those students who do wish to attend school on campus will be able to do so through Academic Cohorts, a new support program offering students additional guidance. In addition, it was announced that some form of in-person graduation ceremonies will be held on May 27. “We’ve worked to provide opportunities for in-person instruction during the primary academic program from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. each day for academically at-risk students,” WVUSD Deputy Superin-
Jianlan busteed contributing writer The Brahmas managed to secure second place in the Super Sweepstakes due to their high placements during the Eastern Los Angeles Journalism Education Association write-offs last month. In the first online write offs, Diamond Bar High School’s journalism and yearbook students competed against eight other high schools. The top ten competitors for each category also participated against 27 high schools in the Southern California region last Saturday, where DBHS tied for fourth place in the newspaper sweepstakes. “Even though we had a smaller than normal group of students competing, I thought we did well, with three first place winners,” journalism adviser Doug List said via email. The contest included the categories News, Novice News, Critical Review, Sports, Opinion, Yearbook Design, Editorial Cartoons and Feature. Competitors listened to a pre-
sentation from a guest speaker, followed by a brief question segment before working on submissions. Participants in the News, Novice News, Opinion and Editorial Cartoon sections during the ELAJEA write-offs listened to a presentation by Gabby Galvan, founder of LA Donuts, who described her financial struggles as a small business owner during the pandemic. In the News section, junior Anika Yatawara secured seventh place. As for the Novice News category, freshmen Maia Pak, Jianlan Busteed and Taylor Joe, all Journalism 1students, placed first, eighth and 10th, respectively. One month later, Pak received an “excellent,” placing in the top seven for the Southern California Journalism Education Association write-offs. Focusing on inequities of governmental funding distributions in the pandemic, senior Camille McCurry secured first place in Editorial writing. McCurry said she was excited upon hearing about her placement, as she felt unsure about her story. “The biggest challenge actually ended up being time,” McCurry said via Instagram. “I had to do a lot of a last minute planning and idea formation.”
write-offs on p.3
reopening on p.2
Mesdjian named Wellness adviser
Brahmas rank second in journalism event Both Taurus and The Bull’s Eye do well in several write-off categories.
tendent of Human Resources Matt Witmer said. Those opting to return to campus for extra guidance would continue to attend classes virtually, but have the opportunity to work in-person with credentialed educators. Academic Cohorts would move in lockstep with the current schedule, with students cycling between classrooms specialized for each subject category, such as a Math or Humanities classroom. Additionally, beginning April 19, in-person tutorial hours will be hosted four days a week. Taylor and DBHS principal Reuben Jones announced that the designated hours will be utilized for on-campus academic support, science labs and other classroom activities. DBHS teachers will return to the classroom on April 12, even as they continue to teach via Zoom or Google Meet. “All interested students may attend in-person with their teachers and their peers during student support tutorial time in the afternoon,” Taylor said. ”Our administration will work collaboratively with counselors and teachers and support staff to build a program between the hours of 1:10 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. that will address academ-
Photo courtesy of AILEEN PARK Senior Philip Ma painted new posters for the upcoming fundraising events.
Raising funds for the senior class Class of 2021 officers have asked for club donations to go toward activities. Connor cho Asst. business editor While the pandemic has presented numerous challenges to high school students--especially the class of 2021, as many senior activities have been canceled--class committee officers are still hard at work, taking steps to remediate its financial state so they can finish off the senior year on a positive note.
English teacher will take over center founded by Sandy Davis. marcus hsieh asst. news editor
After the loss of its $6,000 prom deposit, the Class of 2021 has been in a financial deficit, and raising money has been especially difficult this year as many of the usual fundraising options have been unavailable. “Like many other clubs and organizations, our main fundraising events occurred when we had food fairs at school,” Class of 2021 treasurer Aileen Park said via Instagram. “The afterschool boba sales also added to our funds but due to COVID-19 we lost all these fundraising opportunities.” It wasn’t until February that
Diamond Bar High School English teacher Denise Mesdjian will be taking up the mantle from previous Wellness Center adviser and founder Sandy Davis, who retired last summer. Since the beginning of campus closures, athletic director and peer counseling instructor Albert Lim has been providing guidance for the center, acting as an interim adviser. The team, with his assistance, has formulated events and activities such as virtual Wellness Wednesdays, which have become one of the group’s main operations during distance learning. Mesdjian, who will officially be-
seniors ON P.3
Wellness on p.3