January 2019

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Dial

The voice of the student body Vol 121, No 4

Stars on the Rise

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B&G Profile

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Hackley School, Tarrytown, NY 10591, January 31, 2019

Local Art and Theater

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hsdial.org

Diversity vs. Decolonization: Teachers discuss diversity in the school’s faculty and curricula

News Analysis

include different voices that enables students to not only see themselves but feel selfempowered.

Hackley is a place that prides itself on its He further explained saying, “[In a] inclusivity, an idea illustrated by the Hackley decolonized mindset, you start thinking motto: “Enter here to be and find a friend”. about what are the structures that have led Hackley not only strives to be an inclusive to a narrative and how can we use those community, but also a diverse one that structures to talk about things like whiteness represents a large number of economic, racial, in fiction, people of color, othering, [etc]”. and ethnic groups.

He mentioned that power structures were The student body is composed of many important to keep in mind when making voices where numerous races, classes, and decisions about which books to include. nationalities can be found engaging in In terms of room for improvement, he discussions about identity, politics, or current stressed the importance of considering things events. Students have numerous options to relatively saying, “I think we do a nice job of dive deeper into some of these topics, whether offering a relatively diverse curriculum in the it is through taking minors 11th grade [but] I think we like History of the Middle need [to do] a lot of work...

East, or attending the [In a] decolonized mindset, [you in the 10th grade.” meetings of one of the “It is about recentering diversity organizations like start] thinking about what are the conversation.”

UNITY. the structures that have led to [a] Steele Sternberg, an Despite the richness narrative and how can we use those Upper School histor y of diversity that already teacher, brings these exists at Hackley, through structures to talk about [things like] c o n v e r s a t i o n s t o h i s reflection in the strategic whiteness in fiction, people of color, department by discussing plan, a plan created to othering, [etc]. the history curriculum and e v a l u a t e H a c k l e y ’s its ability to include diverse James Flanigan future growth, an voices. acknowledgment has been “I think our curriculum made that there is room for even more very much still embraces a western canon,” opportunities to explore multiple perspectives. he said, “There is a set core knowledge about The plan briefly mentioned the desire to have the History of Europe and the United States... an emphasis on diversity, and due to the broad that [our current curriculum implies] you phrasing, an opportunity arises for members need to learn.” of the community to share their thoughts and This description of the current approach define what this could mean for the future. better brings into focus where Hackley stands Diving deeper into specific departments like diversity-wise within the history curriculum. the English department, James Flanigan, an He continued with examples saying, “You’re Upper School English teacher, spoke about not talking about African kingdoms his efforts to have conversations about race, independent of European colonization. The class, and gender, and described the process reason African kingdoms make it into the 9th of doing so. He mentioned that, “Whenever grade curriculum is because of the Europeans, I talk about curriculum and whenever I talk because they’re part of the European story.” about diversity, I like to distinguish between In terms of room for improvement, diversifying things and decolonizing things.” Sternberg left this up to the community to The difference between these ideas is that decide through responding, “Whether we decolonizing is a more conscious effort to say that this western centeredness of our

By Sophie Thomas

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Photo by Sophia Thomas Steele Sternberg teaches Upper School History to the ninth and tenth grade, and has an elective focusing on the Middle East. The ninth grade curriculum focuses on world history from various periods and perspectives, and tenth grade is American history leading up the the 20th century.

Sternberg explained that the curriculum embraces a western canon.

curriculum is a good thing because it provides that core foundation, or whether we say that it’s a bad thing because it cuts certain students off from their ethnic or cultural heritage, that’s a debate people are gonna have all the time.”

Another area for growth within the Hackley community is in regards to faculty. While they represent a qualified group of people with different upbrings and stories, there exists a lack of racially diverse members. When asked about the lack of racial/ethnic diversity within the faculty, Amanda Esteves-Kraus, an Upper School biology teacher and faculty advisor of UNITY, mentioned room for improvement.

“I think for students, it’s a huge weakness because [students] learn better from a diverse set of humans. You think better, you’re pushed, and it opens everyone’s minds,” she said. “It’s [also] important for students to see themselves in people that teach them.” This brings attention to the pre-existing need for more

representation within the faculty, to benefit and more accurately reflect the student body.

While Hackley does a relatively good job in creating a diverse student body and attempting to include diversity in the curriculum, it is still the responsibility of any school to continue to grow and change with the times. The world is ever shifting and morphing daily into a different place, and it is important that Hackley does the same, possibly through diversifying the faculty and adding to the curriculum in order to include more voices and perspectives.

Willie Teacher, a Middle/Upper School acting teacher and faculty advisor of UNITY, ends the conversation in a thoughtful way saying, “It’s a love movement, because, as I recently heard a speaker say, ‘justice is what love looks like in action’. I am proud that Hackley, in its own way, is seeking to be a more than just community.”

Annual Advisory Fashion Show incorporates new house system

By Lauren Ahern

Photo by Lauren Ahern Ms. Stanek’s Advisory won this year’s Fashion Show with their Ghostbuster’s dress-up. They won the last show with a dress-up inspired by “Pokemon Go.”

Photo by Lauren Ahern Community Council President Zaya Gooding was the announcer for the event in which eight advisories participated. This year’s winners and runners-up won house points.

Upper School Students gathered in the PAC to view eight advisories who participated in the Community Council Advisory Fashion show.

Participants had to dress up and strut down the runway in front of three judges.

Community Council president, Zaya Gooding, explained that this year the new house system will be incorporated into the event through “house points,” given to the two placing advisories. She also noted that the house with the most points at the end of the school year will win a prize, although the prize has yet to be determined.

This year’s first place winner was Ms. Stanek’s advisory, who dressed up as “Ghostbusters” and pretended to exterminate the ghosts on Hackley’s campus. They even carried around the cardboard cut-out of Mrs. Hackley.

Their advisory also won two years ago when they dressed up as Pokemon characters inspired by the “Pokemon Go” craze.

The second place winner was Mr. McLay’s advisory, who dressed up as “Oren’s Nightmare.”

Junior Oren Tirchwell walked onto the runway with a pillow and lay down pretending to take a nap when his fellow advisees ran onto the runway, dressed in white sheets, pretending to be ghosts and circled around him holding cardboard cutouts of cellos.

This was a continuation from their previous dress-up two years ago when their theme was “Oren and his Eight Cellos”.

The third place winner was Ms. Kaplan’s advisory, who dressed up as characters from the movie “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.” When they walked down the runway they threw out candy to the crowd.

“I had fun planning it with my advisory it really helped us bond,” junior Jacqueline Deila, a member of Ms. Kaplan’s advisory, said. “It was something that we could all do together.”

Ms. Stanek’s advisory and Mr. McLay’s advisory are in Gildersleeve, meaning that Gildersleeve received a total of 120 points, Ms. Kaplan’s advisory is in Wheelwright and won 70 points for their house.

Randalls gained 10 points for participation, and Nichols recieved none.

All participants who did not place gained 10 points for participation towards their houses.

Results of the Advisory Fashion Show: Gildersleeve: 120 points Wheelright: 70 points Randall: 10 points Nichols: 0 points

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January 31, 2019

Students seek additional English department course offerings Humanities departments need to expand their curricula

By The Editorial Board

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n this issue of our ‘Portrait of a Student’ series, The Editorial Board is focusing on seniors and the stresses they manage. We spoke at length with Ella Zaslow about her experiences as a senior, finding that in having to create an English major for herself, she exemplified the challenging dynamics of balancing required courses against those she wants to take. Her comments prompted us to further examine the options available in humanities subjects’ curricula in order to allow seniors to find both balance and pursue challenging and interesting courses.

Considering the anecdotal evidence offered by Zaslow, we urge the administration to consider greater curricula flexibility beyond the addition of new minor courses.

The Dial Editorial Board urges the Hackley English department to offer major courses similar to those in other subjects, where students can take more than one major course.

Ella exemplifies a student managing such challenging courses with stress and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. The Editorial Board believes that certain school reforms could aid this pursuit.

Despite her love for the humanities,

the Dial staff Hackley School 293 Benedict Ave.Tarrytown, NY (914) 631-0128 January 31, 2019 Vol. 121, No. 4 hsdial.org Editors-in-Chief Amy Chalan

Raghav Chopra,

Will Goldsmith Managing Editors Jordan Miller

Sydney Stoller Social Media Editor Sofia Graziano Section Editors

News Lauren Ahern, Yingshyan Ku Opinion Ella Jones, Tommy Larson Arts Roya Arjomand, Tyler O’Brien Feature Matthew Traum, Kylie Morrison Lifestyles Natalie Sukhman, Katy Robertson Politics Max Rosenblum, Jimmy Hefter Science & Tech Cory Gorczycki, Samantha Rosenstein, Jared Tilliss Sports Cole Wyman, Julia Thomson, James Sexton-Holtmeier Advisers Michael Bass, Anne Budlong Policy Opinions expressed in staff editorials reflect the majority view of The Dial Editorial Board. Opinions expressed in signed articles are those of the author and do not represent the views of Hackley School, its administration or its staff. The Dial invites and encourages its readers to write letters to the editor or submit contributions.

Contact us at dial@hackleyschool.org.

We reserve the right to edit any submission for clarity and brevity, and to correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation when necessary. We refuse to publish submissions which are unsigned, libelous, or plagiarized.

Four hundred copies of each issue are distributed among the High School student body of about four hundred students and the faculty and staff.

Photo by Ella Jones As a teachers’s assistant to one of Mr, Flanigan’s English classes, Ella offers her asistance to students throughout the essay writing process. Along with the assistance she provides, Ella keeps up with the course work and she gives passage presentations. Ella has worked more literary analysis into her schedule through her role.

Zaslow was unable to take English minors, or an additional English major, as taking the two senior courses offered simultaneously is not allowed by the English Department.

Thus Zaslow opted to create an independent study and work as a teaching assistant to Mr. Flanigan’s junior English class. Ella not only attends every meeting of the class, adding the equivalent of a major course to her schedule, but she also must juggle the project with 5 other majors, including AP Biology, AP Statistics, and Post-AP Spanish.

“English has been my favorite subject since 10th grade and I wanted a way to add more English into my schedule because the science department and the STEM side of the curriculum gives a lot more opportunities to add a course on to the senior schedule than the humanities, especially English,” said Zaslow.

While Zaslow did choose to take on such a time-consuming project, the stresses that afflict her are not solely her fault. Zaslow elected to be a TA to further pursue the subjects that inspired her; education ought to encourage students to follow their passions, rather than abandon them because of the stress of a plethora of obligations. espite the stress of taking all on a heavy course load alongside college applications, Zaslow said she would not give up the extra work she took on.

College admissions and the need to appear competitive in the eyes of colleges influence students like Zaslow to take optional challenging courses in subjects that do not interest them. While this pressure is deeper rooted than Hackley’s curriculum, the lack of advanced classes in the humanities such as English minors and AP English and Histor y courses creates

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a disproportionate burden for humanities lovers like Zaslow.

Adding to the pressure to perform well in school, seniors must write important Common Application personal statements and supplemental college-specific e s s a y s o r t a k e s t a n d a rd i ze d tests for college applications.

“I found it pretty challenging to work on applications during the week because I felt like my brain just could not be in both of those places,” said Zaslow concerning balancing college applications and school work. While applying to colleges, Zaslow had to separate her workloads, creating an environment when she was working on one or the other at any given time. espite these inherent challenges seniors must face, Hackley can and ought to make reforms to alleviate some pressure and allow students to explore their passions. The administration has begun to implement some systems to these ends.

The English department has removed the year-long theory paper that twelfth graders worked on throughout the course of their senior year in addition to their normal English coursework.

“I believe we can and should do better. We like children and helping them. We care deeply about the students and want them to minimize stress,” King said concerning seniors’ balance.

Mr. King also stressed his desire to implement a system that will better inform teachers of what the workloads students are facing in other classes. The goal of this system would be to avoid assigning multiple assessments or intense projects at the same time. he only other English courses that ran this year were Creative Writing, the Vision, and Psychology, none of which appealed to Ella’s

specific interests since they all tend to focus on creative writing as opposed to literary analysis.

“We could offer all the cool course descriptions in the world.

Students actually have to sign up for them,” said Upper School Director Andy King. King claimed that there are not enough students actually willing to minor in English.

The Editorial Board believes that a lack of interest in minors is likely owing to the fact that people truly interested in English,

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to more interdisciplinary classes. It is the first of the series of steps for courses to break out of being silos.

Education has to go there, or else all the wonderful cross-fertilization g e t s l o s t ,” s a i d R o b i n s o n . “[The English department] is exploring the possibility of implementing trimester long courses,” Robinson added. Under this setup, new classes offered would allow more flexibility to students who are not interested in fully committing themselves to the subject. Rather, students will now be given the opportunity to commit smaller amounts of time to more focused minor courses.

Such courses would allow the department to offer more than just two courses to the seniors and provide the opportunity for students to select majors that will fit better with their own wishes. hile the Dial applauds the added flexibility and range in focus these changes would give student’s with clashing interests, we hope that more major classes will also be offered in the future to students who are looking for more intense courses. However, this does not necessarily entail reimplementing AP courses to match those offered in the maths and sciences; in fact, according to a 2012 Atlantic article, the AP curriculum squelches creativity and free inquiry.

Rather we hope the curriculum will allow for more major and minor opportunities for students passionate about the humanities.

Many Hackley seniors face similar stresses to those expressed

by Zaslow, often arising from a desire to appear well-rounded and academically capable for colleges, that competes with a natural and admirable desire to explore one’s own interests and make use of the resources one’s school offers. It is time for senior year to change.

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such as Zaslow, want more content and analysis-focused classes like those offered in the sciences rather than the more niche offshoot classes currently offered.

English Department Chair Dr. Richard Robinson hinted at the reworking of the curriculum structure in future years. The department is excited to implement a new minor to the student next body next year, which will focus on furthering students’ writing and analysis skills and implementing other humanities d i s c i p l i n e s s u c h a s h i s t o r y. “[This course] will not be like any other course offered before. I’m hoping that it will be the gateway

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January 31, 2019

What we are watching

By Jordan Miller

A collection of shows that members of the Hackley community are watching

Photo by Amy Chalan Tarrytown Music Hall, a popular theatre, is situated on Main Street, among Tarrytown’s wellknown restaurants. There are different performances such as “A Bronx Tale,” “Moondance,” and ‘The Very Hungry Caterpiller” showing there each weekend. In addition, various well-known comedians and artists perform at the theatre.

Best places to explore local art and theatre

By Roya Arjomand

Tarrytown Music Hall Tarrytown Music Hall is a busy theatre in Tarrytown, NY where music, theatre, dance and films are offered. The Tarrytown Music Hall offers official shows and provides opportunities for students to perform and become a part of the theatre experience. It is run by a nonprofit organization that strives to keep the oldest theatre in Westchester alive and provide a high quality experience for both actors on the stage or members of the audience. Many Hackley teachers visit the music hall during the year. “[The performances] are not all great, but the great ones are really great. But some of the good performances are really extraordinary,” said history teacher Vladimir Klimenko.

Jacob Burns Center

Hudson Valley MOCA

The Jacob Burns Film Center is a theatre and education center in Pleasantville, New York. The Center is a place to go and celebrate different films. What makes the experience special is that at the theatre you do not simply just watch the movies, you get to discuss them, speak with the actors in the movies, and sometimes the filmmakers themselves. Jacob Burns is also a nonprofit organization that strives to facilitate conversation and provide a space where everyone’s opinions can be heard and accepted.

Sophomore David Bernstein said, “In addition to their diverse array of foreign, indie, and smaller films, the center offers a chance to have a discussion with notable talent from in front of and behind the camera.”

The Hudson Valley MOCA is a leading visual art center located in Peekskill, New York. This art center offers a multitude of unique and interesting exhibits of contemporary art, mixing the works of well known artist with that of local artists. The exhibits are constantly changing, providing something new to go and see often.

Sophomore Leah McKirgan who just recently visited the Hudson Valley MOCA said, “I would recommend anyone who is passionate about art and would like to be exposed to different forms of unique art go visit the gallery. There were so many beautiful pieces of art that caught my attention and the variety of different types of art displayed was also amazing.”

“The show is a feelgood show. It’s lighthearted and funny so it never fails to put me in a happy mood.”

Sophomore, Lara Schetcher

Junior Adam Tannenbaum showcases unique singing talent at NYSSMA

By Tommy Larson

Hackley junior Adam Tannenbaum has been an active and involved member of the singing community since he was little. He grew up playing the piano and really enjoyed playing pop songs. He soon learned and began to develop his passion for vocals when he discovered he loved to sing along to the songs as he played them.

Once Adam entered middle school, he joined the Hackley chorus instead of choosing other majors such as band or drama. He quickly distinguished himself as a gifted singer, and in eighth grade he was prompted by Ms Fogarty to try out for NYSSMA (the New York State School Music Association) for the first time. Tannenbaum started on NYSSMA level three, and sang Down by the Sally Gardens in front of a judge. It was his first time being judged and graded on his singing.

“Going in to the audition, I was extremely nervous, but as the song progressed I slowly began to focus more on the music instead of the presence of the judge,” said Adam.

He ended up receiving a score of 97 out of 100, but strove to do better. That year he was invited to participate in Intermediate AllState, in which he sang with around 75 students from the New York area. He was also an member of the high school male a capella group in eighth grade, demonstrating his remarkable ability as a young male in vocals, and has helped to grow the

program as it has developed upon the hilltop.

As a freshmen, Adam continued to be a member of the acapella group and sang level five NYSSMA, receiving a score of 99. However, he still was unsatisfied, desiring and knowing that he could achieve a perfect score.

Finally, in junior year, Adam competed in the level six auditions and received perfect marks from the scorer. Using this score, Adam applied to be a member of the Conference All-State, an accumulation of the best high school singers from the New York State. He was accepted into the mixed chorus, and became a member of a group of 280 students with extraordinary talents.

In early December, Adam drove five hours to Rochester, New York, where the conference was taking place.

“I was really excited to be able to sing with many other skilled musicians and singers. I also was very interested in working with a renowned conductor and developing and learning choral techniques.”

He was at the conference from Thursday until Sunday, and was forced to miss two days of school.

While in Rochester, Adam rehearsed with his fellow peers for the majority of the day. The group was working towards a concert on Sunday, and had to maximize the amount of rehearsal time in order to make sure they were well prepared and new the music.“The concert was one of the

“After a long day at Hackley the show is a great way to have a few laughs. Watching it is thrilling.”

Junior, Patrick Schulman

Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Feuer Adam Tannenbaum practices for his singing audition at the New York State School Music Association. Adam takes vocal lessons and practices singing daily.

most unbelievable things I’ve heard.

The compilation of 280 voices all working together and blending in the music was marvellous.”

Adam recently participated in the Hackley Collage Concert, in which

he performed a solo piece, which stunned many of the audience members. He hopes to continue his singing career for the rest of high school and potentially into college.

“Vox Explained is a high quality show and a great way to get a quick look into in depth topics. The format of the show makes it easy and fun to watch while you learn.”

Managing Editor, Jordan Miller Grraphics from tvguide.com

January 31, 2019

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Increase in early applications influences seniors Students weigh options of early decision, early action, and regular decision processes

Illustration by Amy Chalan

By Max Rosenblum

Over the course of the past few years, America’s top colleges have become increasingly more selective. Acceptances rates have dropped because schools receive more applicants than ever before, and students find themselves working harder to receive an acceptance from the college of their choice.

In response to these trends, one particular tactic has become increasingly more popular: the early decision application. And though applying early decision can provide an edge, it seems that the early application process may lend an unfair advantage to the wealthy.

According to a 2018 comprehensive report from the National Association for College Admission Counseling, “between Fall 2016 and Fall 2017, colleges reported an average increase of 4% in the number of Early Decision applicants and 5% in ED admits.

Considering the thousands of applications most institutions receive, this increase in popularity of early decision applications is substantial.

Hackley’s college counselors — Peter Latson, Jean Nadell, and Rebecca Hall — offered insight as to why early decision applications have become so popular.

“Early decision applications have increased as students look for an advantage in an increasingly competitive admissions process.

It is the ultimate demonstration of interest in a college—exclusive interest in this case.

Colleges have taken a greater percentage of their freshman classes from the early decision applicant pool for two primary reasons: One, it enables them to ensure the enrollment of a higher percentage of the students they admit, and two, it enables them to ensure that they enroll certain important subgroups that may be important to them, such as athletic recruits, students of variously diverse backgrounds, children of alumni, students whose families can pay the full tuition, etc.

In regular decision, most colleges only enroll about one in three of the students they admit; in ED, colleges know that the student they admit will enroll.”

As with many other features of college admissions, there are some common concerns from students and parents in applying to a school through a binding early admission plan: some worry that a student might feel constrained by the lack of choice. With reference to the timeline of making a choice, the College Counseling office feels that “the student will have to make a commitment to one college eventually. The question is whether or not a student is prepared to make that commitment in the fall, instead of the spring. Since Hackley students generally start the process in January of junior year and ideally visit all of the colleges they are considering before the end of the following summer, they are often ready to make a commitment come fall.”

One more widespread concern among those in the college admissions sphere, however, is that the binding nature of the early admissions process benefits the wealthy and puts those less well off at a disadvantage. The College Counseling office explained: “students with fewer educational and/or monetary resources are generally less aware of and less prepared for the early application timelines.”

Yet this concern surrounding an unfair advantage to the wealthy carries more of a nuance at an institution like Hackley.

Although not all Hackley students are necessarily “uber-wealthy” — 145 Hackley students receive some sort of financial aid — Hackley’s less wealthy students still receive the exact same counselling that their wealthier counterparts receive, meaning that they are both as aware and as prepared in a counselling sense for early application timelines as their wealthier counterparts.

Instead, the binding nature of the early decision process posed a problem for some seniors who require financial aid after Hackley.

One senior in this position, who asked to be quote anonymously due to the private nature of the subject matter, explained, “I felt restricted by the ED option because I wouldn’t be able to see my package until my decision arrived and although many of the schools on my list were ‘meet 100% of

demonstrated need,’ it is up to the school’s judgement to determine how much a family needs to contribute and I did not want to put that type of financial burden on my family.

As a result, I decided not to apply anywhere early decision because I didn’t love any college enough to risk my family’s financial wellbeing since the majority of the colleges on my list only had ED. In the end, it did work out for me and I applied and was accepted to my top choice (early action), but the maneuvering and planning I had to do because my family could not commit to pay for me to attend a school under a binding contract was stressful and made me feel as though my family’s socioeconomic background was a burden.”

A current junior disagrees: “Because many of Hackley’s students apply to institutions considered ‘very selective,’ and the top 30 or so institutions in the country meet 100% of demonstrated need — on top of the fact that there is an early decision loophole that allows you to get out of the binding agreement if the financial aid package is not sufficient, I don’t think that a family’s financial situation really impacts the early application process at Hackley given the financial wellbeing of the caliber of schools that Hackley students apply to.”

Nevertheless, Hackley families for whom financial aid is a factor in considering colleges do tend to prefer the opportunity to consider multiple financial aid packages — although many top schools do meet 100% of demonstrated need, each school’s financial aid office has the jurisdiction to determine a family’s expected contribution — and a binding early application only allows families to consider one package.

For freshman, sophomores, and juniors who will require financial aid when applying to college, the early decision process may pose considerable challenges — the popularity of early decision in recent years has surged and shows no signs of slowing down. Early action might prove to be a much more viable choice for students who want both a decision early and an affordable tuition.

B&G staff member Eury Ferraras reflects on his immigrant experience and looks forward to future

By Amy Chalan

“When you come here, you need to do After spending 12 years anxiously awaiting things that you might not be comfortable his US legal status, Buildings and Grounds with, it’s a little difficult, but you start staff member Eury Ferraras embarked on a adapting as time goes on and you become life-changing journey to the United States more relaxed.”

Although he misses his home country, Mr. with his four children. Today, Mr. Ferraras works tirelessly every night making sure the Ferraras is confident in his decision to bring Dining Hall and English hallway are spotless his children to the US. His kids, who are for students. Since beginning his job on the between the ages of 12 and 30, have been B&G staff in March of 2018, Mr. Ferraras able to attend college and travel the world. has enjoyed working at Hackley and hopes “In terms of development, being in the US is much better for them. This country offers his story of resilience can more opportunities,” reach students. he said.

Mr. Ferraras grew up Your country of origin, Although he enjoys in Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican you never forget it. I his life in America, Mr. Ferraras explains Republic. His father first came to the US, know you can be here, his work-life balance after being granted a but your mind can be is sometimes strained.

“During my free time Visa and permanent I’m at home with my somewhere else residency through his family, sharing. You sister, looking for better Eury Ferraras know it’s hard here, you economic opportunities have to share with your to support his family in family, day by day. You the DR. Shortly after, he petitioned for citizenship for his children. can’t relax, you need to work to pay bills and Twelve years after filing the petition, Eury and your house bill. Here, by obligation, you have his children were able to travel and move their to be outside [working].”

After he sees his kids through their family to the US. When he arrived in the US, his two adulthood, he hopes to go back to Santo daughters stayed in Providence with their Domingo. “Your country of origin, you never grandmother and Mr. Ferraras and his two forget it. I know you can be here, but your sons came to Tarrytown, staying with his mind can be somewhere else… In time, I’d brother. His daughters were one, eleven, and like to go back home. Here, you come and fourteen years old at the time. Mr. Ferrara’s do what you need to do, and in time you can mother had a house in Providence with more go back,” he said.

Mr. Ferraras hopes to continue being a space for the girls and they stayed with her for six years. Mr. Ferraras recalls constantly going part of the Hackley community and seeks to visit his daughters when he had free time. to use his own experiences to teach students.

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Photo by Amy Chalan Eury Ferraras has been working nights at Hackley since last March. He legally immigrated to the US recently hoping to offer a better life to his children. Mr. Ferraras appreciates how Hackley students work hard to learn and better themselves.

Although he attended college for some time, Mr. Ferraras wishes he could have stayed on his former path and obtained a degree in social communication. He was enrolled in college when his mother died and he was unable to continue his education. He recalls missing his mother’s advice, guidance, and support, which led him to chose to work instead of finish his degree.

“I went to college and did four semesters in social communication but I couldn’t keep

studying because I had to work when my mom died.”

After reflecting on his own experiences, he hopes students today can take advantage of their opportunities and continue education past high school. “I didn’t prepare myself the way I should have and today I lament it, and that’s why I emphasize that you guys, who are young and are studying, give it your all, to do everything you can do so that tomorrow, you can have a better future.” he said.

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January 31, 2019

Michelle Obama strives to inspire women through bestselling memoir and book tour

By Sydney Stoller

To this group, Obama is the epitome of grace, poise, and a e m i L o v a t o ’ s physical representation of female “Confident” and black success. blared across the There have been forty seven black loudspeakers, a fitting women elected to Congress since choice for the event’s guest of honor. Shirley Chisholm was elected to the The guest? Michelle Obama, House of Representatives in 1968. former First Lady of the United Only 7.5% of the entire U.S. States. Obama sat down with host Congress are black women. Obama Phoebe Robinson at the Wells and her peers are a rare breed of Fargo Center in Philadelphia, powerful black female politicians.

Pennsylvania on November 29th Becoming is the origin story of — Obama’s fifth stop on a ten city this grace and poise. The memoir book tour for her new bestselling details how and why Obama rose memoir. to become a cultural icon.

The memoir, entitled Becoming, Obama describes herself sold the most copies of any other as continuously “becoming” a book published in 2018 — breaking more ideal version of herself as the record in 15 she progresses days. through life.

Robinson, The word ‘becoming’ She chooses an actress this simple word a n d a u t h o r, had an empowering as the title of the introduced her effect on the crowd book because it self-proclaimed serves as both “ n e w b e s t a n d e n c o u r a g e d a description friend” casually, them to do just as the of her existence but to those in as well as a the audience, individuals on stage question and this was a once had done: figure out challenge to her in a lifetime who each of them readers. experience.

In the Wells A s O b a m a were ‘becoming.’

Fargo Center walked onto on Novermber stage, a roar 29th, five local emerged as Philadelphians the mass of stood on stage before Obama people burst out into tears while and announced what they were simultaneously beaming with pride “becoming.” and excitement.

There stood a Latina woman T h e g r o u p o f j u s t u n d e r becoming a small business owner twenty thousand people was and a black army veteran becoming over whelmingly female, and financially stable in order to send overwhelmingly black. her kids to college, among others.

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From Crown Publishing Group As Michelle Obama entered the Wells Fargo Arena in Philadelphia, the audience was enthralled and erupted into loud cheers for their former First Lady. She captured the crowd through her loving charm and insightful best-selling memoir.

Thousands of people travelled to Philadelphia to hear Obama’s inspring words.

The word “becoming” had an empowering effect on the crowd and encouraged them to do just as the individuals on the stage had done: figure out who each of them were “becoming.”

The memoir itself explores Michelle Obama’s experience growing up on the South Side of Chicago and how, with the help of her mentors, she attended

Princeton University and Harvard Law School.

Obama credits her mother, father, and older brother Craig with helping her to accomplish her goals.

Indeed, her mother’s care and effort towards education instilled in her the importance of learning that prompted her to pursue a higher education.

Her father’s dedication to his work despite a crippling disability caused her to be resilient in all aspects of life from an early age.

Her brother Craig became her constant support system that set the tone for meaningful relationships later in life.

It is these people that helped Obama to pilot her “Let’s Move” campaign against childhood obesity as well as her numerous outreach programs at schools and hospitals in the Chicago neighborhood that she grew up in.

Finally, Obama and former Second Lady Jill Biden founded Joining Forces, a movement dedicated to ease veterans’ transitions back into civilian life.

Through these organizations and projects, Michelle Obama has dedicated her life to giving back.

She was able to discover her voice and role in the country completing a job that does not come with a description.

Michelle Obama’s story, as portrayed through Becoming, is one of an underdog rising to the top.

Despite all odds, she was able to do what most children can only fantasize about: fulfill her wildest dreams.

Lessons from California: Preventing the horror of devastating wildfires in New York

By Chapman Jones, Guest Writer

The lingering haze of smoke over New York City in late November drew little interest from most bystanders.

Despite its innocuous nature, this cloud of ash made a remarkable 3,000 mile journey, beginning on the West Coast.

Its origin: the raging Camp Fire in northern California.

This is only one in a series of devastating wildfires that have recently ravaged the state.

The largest and most deadly fires have been contained, but the damage they have caused is quite visible. The largest of the fires, The Camp Fire, burned for a month and was only contained this past November. The devastation of California’s wildfires throughout 2018 has left 86 people dead, 11 missing, and cost 400 billion dollars.

The cost of fighting fires alone in 2018, totalling 1 billion dollars, is a record for expenditures on fire suppression — the total losses represent 2% of the nation’s GDP. With destruction of this magnitude, safety is dependent on residents understanding the risks wildfires pose and the preventative measures necessary to avoid them.

In New York state, New York City and the wetlands of the western part of the state frequently fall victim to these fires.

Infographic by Max Rosenblum This data was taken from move.org, an organization offering helpful information for Americans thinking of moving to different locations across the country. While the five most dangerous states for wildfires are listed above, the top five safest states for wildfires are Delaware, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Indiana, and Vermont, respectively.

In these areas there are urban interface fires, a common evolution of wildfires, that increase their lethality. Urban interface fires result when structures in the path of wildfires act as further fuel for the inferno.

Gi ve n Ne w Yo rk’s d i ve r s e geography, the state forestry services and government recognize ten FDRAs (Fire Danger Rating Areas), grouped by proximity as well as

a variety of environmental and regional boundaries.

Of the 2,237 fire related incidents in nearly a thousand towns between 2003 and 2017, 440 of these occurred within the Hudson Valley FDRA, which demonstrates how the Hudson Valley region, home to Hackley and much of the Hackley community, is at the highest risk for wildfires of any other area in the state.

While causes of these fires vary quite a bit, the overwhelming majority of them are man-made (95%), according to data from a 24 year data collection from the Forest Ranger Division.

When assessing the causes of wildfires in New York, 35% of the fires that affect Westchester and the wider Hudson Valley are due to the burning of debris. This is the leading cause of wildfires in New York State.

While wildfires are inevitable, reducing their frequency benefits the economy and the citizens of New York.

Burning debris, campfires, arson, smoking, and use of fire inducing equipment can all be easily avoided with both careful consideration of surroundings and further regulation (for example, regulating explicitly illegal activities like debris burning).

The battle against wildfires is a slow one, but advisories on home and community prevention and deterrence, as well as changes in tendencies among the population, have all contributed to their decline.

And while New York has struggled with nowhere near the level of damage or loss of life like that of California, it is still important to understand the risk that they pose.

The only true defense against the spread of wildfires, and particularly the prevention of casualties, is to educate people on how to be conscientious, proactive, and aware of the risks that wildfires pose.

35%

of wildfires in new york state are caused by the burning of debris

95%

of fire related incidents in new york state are manmade

$1B

cost of fighting american wildfires in 2018 Infographic by Max Rosenblum

6 lifestyles

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January 31, 2019

The Dial‘s 2019 Playlist

By Katy Robertson and Natalie Sukhman

As students settle into the new year, they can listen to this playlist while working on homework or just relaxing.

You can find the Dial spotify at www.spotify.com/hsdial.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

“Saturday Nights” KHALID

“Shallow”

LADY GAGA AND BRADLEY COOPER

Photo courtesy of Alex Cohen The Hudson Scholars program welcomes the scholars back to campus for a monthly reunion. In January, they spent the day learning about computer science, debugging programs and building Bristlebots. The scholars are always eager to learn and meet new mentors and the club encourages anyone interested to sign up.

How to impact and engage with the local community through service opportunities

By Katy Robertson and Natalie Sukhman

“Sunflower”

POST MALONE AND SWAE LEE

“thank u, next”

ARIANA GRANDE

“Control”

FEDER, BRYCE VINE, AND DAN CAPLEN

“Eastside”

BENNY BLANCO, HALSEY, AND KHALID

“comethru”

JERMEY ZUCKER

“C’est la vie”

MAURICE MOORE

“What If”

JOHNY ORLANDO AND KENZIE ZIEGLER

10 11 12 13 14 15

“La Di Da”

LENNON STELLA

“Wow.”

POST MALONE

“Hurts Like Hell” MADISON BEER (FEAT. OFFSET)

“Wish I Never Met You” LOOTE

“Panama”

QUINN XCII

“3005”

CHILDISH GAMBINO

Hudson Scholars Club and Program The Hudson Scholars Program is an amazing way to get involved with Hackley’s surrounding community this holiday season. There are three major opportunities to participate in the club: monthly reunions, weekly after-school homework help, and the summer enrichment program.

Each month the scholars are invited back to the Hackley campus to take part in a day filled with activities that range from an academic focus to a creative one, featuring

math games, study sessions, arts and crafts, and sports. In January, the Computer Science department held engaging activities for the scholars where they designed their own product and made a prototype in the Makerspace. If you have any ideas on activities you’d like to lead, Hudson Scholars is a way to explore and share your passion with younger students.

To get involved more frequently, try weekly tutoring sessions. Every Thursday, students have the opportunity to help the scholars with their homework at the Warner Library in Tarrytown. The next reunion will be on Saturday, February 9th.

Abbott House If you are passionate about immigration issues and like working with kids, you can volunteer at Abbott House in Irvington. The kids housed at Abbott House were apprehended at the southern border and are seeking refuge in the US. If you speak Spanish or like being a mentor, you can connect with and talk to the children through various volunteer opportunities. Freshmen Mira Zaslow and Parker Diaz visit Abbott House every Tuesday night to run arts and crafts activities with kids in the foster home. In addition, there are events and parties held on holidays.

How to make and keep your New Year’s Resolutions

By Kylie Morrison

As the clock strikes 12:00 on January 1st, many people devote themselves to a Ne w Year’s Resolution, but a week later the resolution is abandoned for old habits. To some, though,0 the New Year represents a new start and a chance to change oneself for the better.

The first step in making a New Year’s resolution is to identify something you want to change about yourself, anything from a dangerous habit to an unhelpful personality trait. Most importantly, make sure that change is something you can consistently work on. The preparation to consistently attempt at achieving the goal is the key to creating the perfect resolution.

It is common for people to abandon their resolution a couple days into January. Research by the Marist Poll showed that among those who said they made a resolution, only 68% said they managed to maintain at least some part of their goal. But here are a

couple ways to maintain resolutions this New Year: First, start small. Rather than making a sudden drastic change, it is better to start with something that is reasonable and can actually be kept. You find a change that is possible to keep, then try to accomplish it one step at a time.

Second, try to be specific. Vague goals are close to unachievable.

Setting a specific goal to be completed in a certain period of time creates a restriction that may push give you the extra push you need to accomplish it.

Third, make your goal personal.

Everyone has different desires and different things they want to change in their lives. Do not try to achieve a goal stemmed off the desires of another person. A goal made only for you is the best way to go.

Lastly, if you are unable to keep your New Year’s Resolution, the best thing to do is try again. Do not abandon the resolution after just one attempt. In an interview with Forbes magazine, Professor Clayton R. Cook, Ph.D stated, “relapse or going back to the old habit is a normal part of the behavior change process.”

Though the New Year does present new opportunities, it does not restrict your ability to make a change in your life at any time you choose.

By Hannah Ostfield

Guiding Eyes for the Blind Volunteering with Hackley’s Guiding Eyes for the Blind club is a great way to spend time with animals while making a difference in their lives. Sophomore Kiri Fitzpatrick visits Guiding Eyes for the Blind in Yorktown, NY every Sunday to help the staff with taking care of dogs in training to become “guiding eyes” or aids for the blind.

When volunteering, you can wash the dogs, play with them, and help clean their cages and toys. It is a great way to spend time with friends while aiding staff in taking care of the dogs.

Behind the scenes of community council

H a c k l e y ’s U p p e r S c h o o l Community Council works as the nuts and bolts of the community, but the student body doesn’t necessarily know how much work they put into all they do. While many know the events council organize like Snowball and field day, they may not know what goes on behind the scenes.

“I would say, a lot of people probably don’t know the amount of work it takes to plan a specific event,” said Junior and Class President Taylor Robin. Taylor also noted that a big event like Snowball takes two to three months to plan along with consistent meetings and check-ins with the administration.

In addition to all the work that goes into planning these events, Council also works tirelessly to raise money to put them on. Council is always working to new ways to earn money for events but also give back to the community. For example, the parking raffles allow students to have the opportunity to get a parking spot while giving back to Council. The money raised from these events goes straight back into fun events for the community.

Although Council organizes these exciting events, there are ways for the student body to get involved.

Council along with faculty advisors, Mr. McLay and Mr. Gruenberg, meet each week to discuss ways to better the community and make high school a fun experience.

Although not widely known, these meetings are open to all students. The Monday night Council meetings are open so students can come and voice any opinions concerning school issues they want to address. This policy gives all students to ability to advocate for themselves and witness the work being done by each grade representative.

Taylor noted, “Also, a great deal of what council does is publicize other events in school, so a way to be more involved is to go to events on campus such as the play, or concerts/ coffeehouse, or other sporting events to show your support!”

Going to events that the council puts on is a great way to be involved in everything they do. Not only will students have fun by attending events like these, but they will be able to get an inside look into the work that goes on behind the scenes.

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Trump continues to deny climate change despite mounting evidence from his own administration

By Yingshyan Ku

President Donald Trump has had a long history of climate change denial, including claims that climate change is a hoax invented

by China. On November 26, 2018, Trump rejected the Fourth National Climate Assessment issued over Thanksgiving weekend by his own administration.

“I don’t believe it,” Trump said, when questioned by reporters.

The National Climate Assessment is a major government report which details the potential effects of climate change on American society required by law since 1990. The report, which is based on information from 13 different agencies, such as NASA and the Defense Department, is produced by a team of 300 experts and concludes that the world’s temperature is rising primarily as a result of human actions. It warns

that climate change will have a significant detrimental impact on the lives of the American people. “ Wi t h o u t s u b s t a n t i a l a n d sustained global mitigation and regional adaptation efforts, climate change is expected to cause growing losses to American infrastructure and property and impede the rate of economic growth over this century,” the report says.

Illustration by Sofia Graziano Donald Trump has been a longtime denier of Climate Change, despite more and more people becoming supporters after the publication of scientific studies backing up the existence of Climate Change. Many important administrations and esteemed scientists that have also claimed that Climate Change is real but have failed to change Trump’s mind.

On the contrary, while he has moved past claims of climate change being a hoax, President Trump remains unconvinced. Since he assumed office, his administration has removed legislations which pertains to combating climate change and promised to withdraw from the Paris Agreement, an accord within the United Nations regarding greenhouse gas emissions.

Trump believes that pledges to reduce America’s carbon footprint places the US at a disadvantage against competitors.

In response to the report, Trump’s administration said, “it’s not based on facts...It’s not data-driven. We’d like to see something that is more data-driven. It’s based on modeling, which is extremely hard to do when you’re talking about the climate.”

Despite the Trump administration’s beliefs, overwhelming scientific evidence points to the fact that climate change is real and caused by humans. This evidence includes a rise in global temperatures, warming oceans, shrinking ice sheets, glacial retreat, decreasing snow cover, a rise in sea levels, declining Arctic sea ice, extreme temperature events, and ocean acidification. According to NASA, the average surface temperature on the planet has risen 1.62 degrees since the late 19th century along with a corresponding rise in sea levels of 8 inches.

Rick Perry, the current US Secretary of Energy and a member

Companies introduce new software to combat smartphone overuse, but effect is unclear

By Cory Gorczycki

4.7 hours: the amount of time every day that an American spends on their phone. Given that most are awake for about 15 hours each day, spending nearly one third of the day on a mobile device is a staggering statistic.

While the thought of smartphones being a key part of people’s lives is not a new concept, the importance that mobile tech represents in people’s lives only continues to increase.

Even though the average hours that Hackley students and faculty seem to spend on their phone each day is not nearly as high as the national average, phones are still an itnegral part of their lives, given that the average amount of time that Hackley students use their phone when surveyed was between two and three hours per day.

Android and iOS have been updated over the years to be able to complete more tasks while being more intuitive, efficient, and enjoyable to use for the customer. While this is reasonable in theory, there is a glaring problem: people have discovered the convenience of using their phone for more and more everyday tasks, and it has caused people to spend hours on their phone as they develop a reliance on the device.

Companies have recognized this phenomenon as well. Google has some new software to combat the problem with phone usage, entitled Digital Wellbeing. At the main menu, there is a large circle at the top, which contains a variety of colors. Each color represents a certain application and when clicked, gives more information

on how much time was spent on each application. In the middle of the circle resides the amount of time the screen has been used during that day.

Within this menu, the number of times the phone has been unlocked and how many notifications have been received that day. This information alone already presents the user with valuable insight into just how much people reach for their phone.

Google does not just have this information available, but they also have ways for people to disconnect.

One method is Dashboard, which allows the user to not only access information on how much each application is being used and how many notifications they receive from each application, but also gives the ability to set a timer for how long they want to limit their usage to a certain application each day. For example, a person can set Instagram to only be available for 30 minutes, and then it will not be able to be accessed until the next day.

Wind Down is another way for people to decrease their phone usage, and this is where certain actions are triggered near bedtime. Wind Down makes the phone grayscale, turns off notifications, and as a result, will hopefully encourage the user to want to stop using their phone and go to sleep.

On iOS devices, there also exists features that help users manage their phone usage. The software Screen Time tells the user how long their screen has been used on a given day.

It also informs the user about how often they pick up their device, which

Infographic by Cory Gorczycki The above results are from a poll that was emailed to the Hackley community.

Although the mean amount of time that people use their phone is less than the average in America, phones are still a crucial part of life for Hackley students. The software could be improved further to become more useful to people.

apps are used the most, and which send the most notifications. Screen Time gives detailed information about what applications have been used in the last 24 hours, and for how long is present. These can be viewed by individual application or by categories of applications.

Features to control usage are present here too. Downtime gives users the opportunity to schedule time without phone usage, and app limits serve the same purpose as the app limits feature on the Digital Wellbeing software by Google.

With phones becoming more versatile and easier to use, people are

relying on them more. Companies like Apple and Google have both released software this fall to try and address this issue. But this is just the beginning, as the features, while useful, are still limited and require the user to do a lot of work in order to take full advantage of them.

However, it is a step in the right direction, as it has influenced some users already to limit their phone use.As smartphones will only become more useful in people’s lives in the near future, companies need to continue to focus on the issue of overuse in a way that can benefit both the user and the creator.

of Trump’s cabinet, has previously remarked last year during a congressional hearing that, “to stand up and say that 100% of global warming is because of human activity, I think on its face, is just indefensible”.

Some, like Trump, share similar viewpoints to Perry. Those who argue that humans are not responsible for climate change maintain that the climate has always been changing and the temperature changes that can be seen now are merely part of a natural cycle. However, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s fifth assessment report, human emissions and other activities are responsible for the warming seen since 1950.

Trump is of the opinion that current deals on climate change harm US workers and place businesses at a disadvantage. Nevertheless, both the reports from the National Climate Assessment and earlier Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warn that failure to address the threat of climate change will lead to significant damages.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change states, “taken as a whole, the range of published evidence indicates that the net damage costs of climate change are likely to be significant and to increase over time.”

App of the month:

Photomath

By Sam Rosenstein

As technology becomes a major aspect of Hackley’s curriculum, students begin to turn to websites and apps in order to assist them with work done at home. One app that has gained tremendous traction within recent years is the app Photomath.

Initially released in 2014, the app helps students solve math problems such as basic algebra questions, all the way to certain calculus problems.

Equipped with a camera feature, the app recognizes problems without requiring them to be typed in which helps it perform substantially quicker than alternative apps.

Additionally, the app provides users with a description of how to arrive at the solution, making it a very powerful learning tool.

Senior Lilly Yerkes commented on the app stating, “it was enormously helpful all of ninth and tenth grade when I was doing homework at night.”

What differentiates Photomath from alternative apps is that it acts, in part, as a teacher or tutor rather than simply providing solutions.

The app can be downloaded on both iOS and Android and receives updates frequently on both it’s interface and ability to solve problems.

Graphic by Sofia Graziano

8 sports

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January 31, 2019

Young athletes begin their varsity careers during winter seasons

By Hadley Chapman and Cory Gorczycki

T

his winter season, Freshman Eve Spencer joined the Hackley Winter Track team with hopes of helping the team by making it something people feel inspired to do.

Eve has been running competitively since 5th grade, however she started running on and off in 4th grade. She got into running originally because her brother started doing it. She was a soccer player at the time, and was doing track on the side to help with her stamina during games.

“I am passionate about running because of the way I feel after having a great race or completing a challenging workout that just makes me want to keep improving,” Eve said.

“The Hackley team as well as my old one is so supportive” Eve said her work ethic can be attributed these teams. “Both teams makes me want to keep working at it,” she adds.

“I hope to show members of the team what hard

work can accomplish.” Spencer adds. She will go through with this by setting a good example for the team.

Sophia Petriello joins the Hackley Girls Basketball team as an eighth grader this winter season.

Sophia has been playing basketball since 2nd grade.

“I am passionate about basketball because I have been playing from such a young age and enjoy the sport,” Petriello said.

This fall, Sophia had an outstanding season on the Hackley Girls Varsity Soccer team, where she started as a center defender. However, “Basketball is my favorite sport,” Petriello said.

Sophia commented on how she got into the sport at such a young age, “when I was younger, I would watch basketball on TV and went to Knicks games so I decided to try it out. I played for my church league (CYO) until 5th grade, and we even won a championship.”

Petriello currently plays on a travel team called New Heights, where she devotes a lot of time to basketball: “it has been great training. I play games most weekends.”

This winter Sophia has high hopes for the season: “I hope to bring a positive attitude to put 100% into every game and hopefully have a winning season.”

Freshman Grace Park joins the Hackley swim team this winter. Grace hopes to swim her best and give her all at each meet this season.

Grace has been swimming since she was 6 years old.

She got into swimming because her Mom wanted to make sure she knew how to swim because as a child she didn’t know how to. It started off as one 30 minute

lesson a week when she was 5 years old but that turned into a love for swimming and a lot of hours devoted to practicing.

“I started to really look forward to my swim lessons” Park said, “so my mom signed me up for a swim team that practiced twice a week. I have been competing ever since.”

“Swimming has given me some amazing friends which makes going to practice really fun and sometimes the best part of my day too.”

Gr a c e a c k n o w l e d g e s t h a t swimming is a very challenging sport with many highs and lows, as it is mentally and physically strenuous.

However, she feels accomplished when she reaches her goals whether at practice or a meet.

“When I do really well in a race or at practice it makes me feel very happy because all of my hard work is paying off,” Park said.

Grace looks forward to being on the Hackley swim team. “I hope I will be able to encourage my other teammates and have a awesome time too,” Park said.

Hadi Sumaida, a freshman at Hackley, has grown a strong affinity to the sport of squash.

He started the sport in the 5th grade, and he always thought it would be a fun sport to try. Hadi had played tennis beforehand so he was used to racquet sports.

Naturally, squash came easily to him, as he says “I am glad I started playing squash pretty early in his life because of how much I have grown to love the sport. I really appreciate the physical exercise I get, as well as the strong intensity that the sport provides for me.

I hope that I can continue to become a stronger player as I become older”.

Quickly after he began playing the sport, he really enjoyed it and excelled at it all throughout middle school.

Hadi comments that to train, he “starts the practices by warming up with 50 court sprints and then I go into stretches and some straight drives afterwards to warm up.”

Then he says, “I will practice specific parts of my game that could be improved and then end off with another 50 court sprints.”

Hadi hopes to continue to improve his squash game as he goes through his high Top photo by Cory Gorczycki school career.

Bottom photo by Sofia Graziano

Photo by Amy Chalan Coach Paverini works with many of the athletic teams in the weight room, as well as individual students and teachers that work out on their own. She stresses the importance of good technique when working out because this is so important in preventing injuries.

Training Coach Paverini encourages girls to lift in the weight room

By Eki Uzamere

The practice of lifting is still today overwhelmingly male-dominated.

According to a 2017 study from the National Center for Health Statistics, only 21 percent of women participate in strength training.

Coach Lisa Paverini, the only female trainer in the Wellness Center, has worked very hard to change the face of fitness here at Hackley and the overall gendering of weight lifting.

“One of the best things about coaching here is getting the opportunity to work with so many young women,” says Coach Paverini.

Last year, the Physical Education curriculum underwent changes to make sure the program was void of disruptive gender divides, in which women would be discouraged from participating in lifting and benching activities.

“Lifting weights has built my confidence and has made me feel much more confident in my everyday day life. I’ve always wanted to share that with other women,” says Coach Paverini.

Physical Education coordinator, Patricia White, assigned Coach Paverini to the weight room to make sure girls felt comfortable in the weight room. Ms. White says that her presence in the weight room has been “positively received” by the female lifters.

The girls whom Coach Paverini trains, like Junior Sydney Stoller, admire her kindness, strength, and general happy attitude. “Aside from being a role model and a really good person she [Coach Paverini] has taught me a lot about how you can make exercise and lifting

empowering and fun and not something scary or intimidating which is often what it seems, especially for girls in an environment without many girls or other females.

[Lifting] definitely opened a lot of doors and made me feel comfortable which then in turn allowed me to do better and focus more without worrying.” Sydney said.

Long before coming to Hackley, Coach Paverini worked a desk job in New York City for CBS News.

She did not intend to change her life so drastically, being content in the city, but a Crossfit class in 2011, made her realize where her true passions lay.

Paverini instantly “fell in love” with Crossfit. She attended the next class, and the one after that, and the one after that. Soon, Paverini started teaching and working toward certification.

The more Coach Paverini learned, taught, and experienced, the more she desperately wanted to continue her training. “It was such a fun way of making a living and much better than sitting at a desk all day,” Coach Paverini said.

“I felt like that’s kind of what I was always meant to do,” Coach Paverini said, “I enjoyed the group setting and working with people, helping people reach goals. Especially, I love working with women, girls in particular. I have two daughters so that’s important to me.”

In the end, it was Coach Paverini’s desire to teach and empower her own two daughters that led to her decision of switching fields, leaving her job in the city, and becoming a certified trainer.

Rock climbing and curling clubs expand physical education course offerings

By Ethan Yablon

Photo by Tommy Larson Physics teacher and rock climbing club leader, Dr. Ying, demonstrates his skills on the rock climbing wall. The curling club was first added to Hackley’s physical education program in 2011 and has gained popularity ever since.

Only 1.5 to 2 million people in the world curl or have ever curled. While not as large or popular as other sports, curling has a community that is as close-knit as any other.

The Hackley curling PE class takes place once a week every Wednesday night and has about 10 or 12 members every year dating back to its conception in the 2011 school year.

For two hours a week, the members gear up and head to the Ardsley Curling Club where they go through a variety of practices and drills before playing some friendly 4v4 games.

Karen Casper, math teacher and head of the curling club, is proud of the fact that students bond and make friendships through curling.

The curling community extends beyond

Hackley and reaches further into the curling world as a whole.

“Curling clubs and leagues all over the country are started by curlers who were once in clubs just like Hackley’s,” said Ms. Casper.

Another PE class offered by Hackley isrock climbing, an eleven-person club that takes place for an hour and forty-five minutes on Wednesday nights.

The members head out to The Cliffs in Valhalla and spend the time completing grueling climbs up the rigorous walls.

Senior club member Liam Gonick said, “It has been great to get the chance to bond with the members of this club, and to make new and lasting memories.”

The club has largely been run by physics teacher Andrew Ying after a group of seniors

needed a chaperone for the club. “I had never before rock-climbed,” he said.

Dr. Ying noted, however, that he has seen tremendous improvement in not only his rock climbing ability but also the rock climbing abilities of various members of the rockclimbing club. The chemistry within members of the club is also strong.

“This group of seniors has been really inclusive, and the members within the club are close to one another,” said Ying.

Eleven members work as one, to reach the peak of the climb.

Curling and rock climbing, two activities that many have never had the opportunity to enjoy bring members of the Hackley community together, creating memories and experiences that will last a lifetime.