Eastside: October 2017

www.eastside-online.org

Vol. 51 No. 1

Cherry Hill High School East: 1750 Kresson Road, Cherry Hill, NJ 08003

October 2017

East welcomes new administrators

and although his ultimate goal as assistant principal is to ensure the continued success of the school at large, he — like his counterparts — plans The commencement of the new school year, in to focus on observing current policies and teachaddition to marking the usual returns to business er behavior to “see what needs tweaking” and and welcomes, marks a conspicuous change to the then roll out new policies within his department school’s central administration. East welcomed next year if necessary. However, he does hope three new assistant principals to its roster this to place greater emphasis on student initiative year: Dr. R. Matthew and achievement Covington, Mrs. Rethroughout the becca Metzger and Mr. year, socially as Lou Papa, all of whom well as academimost recently worked as cally. Ultimately, assistant principals at he encourages stuCherry Hill West. With dents to be their a few more decades of best selves and experience under their challenge thembelts than the Class of selves in all areas 2021, they are just as of life, he said. new to East and just as Covington overexcited to jump right saw the junior class, into their momentous but has already first years as Cougars moved to the senior Dr. Dennis Perry, class this month to who is beginning his take over for Mr. second year as East’s Bernie O’Connor, principal, explained who stepped into that the hiring and rethe role of interim shuffling of administraprincipal of Beck tion within Cherry Hill Middle School. At schools, as took place that point, no East here, was overseen by administrators will superintendent Dr. Johave been on-site seph Meloche, in collabfor longer than a oration with the school year and a month. board and district prinPerry anticipates cipals. The process was that this phenomlengthy and required enon will have both several rounds of meetand Jiseon Lee (’20)/ Eastside Photo Editor advantages ings and recommenda- East’s three new assistant principals, Dr. Matthew Covington, Mrs. Rebecca Metzger and Mr. disadvantages for tions. the East community; Lou Papa, pose near the main entrance.

“We want to make lack of “institutional sure that we have people with the necessary World Language departments. In her 17 years of knowledge” about previous administrative expebackgrounds to lead, in all of the buildings,” said working in education, she has taught at schools rience, for one, is definitely a concern.

Perry, who added that this year’s staff changes in Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania, such “What we don’t want to do as an administrawere also motivated by a desire to bring the same as Lower Merion. She has worked as a special tive team is… to make the same mistakes that administrative experience to both East and West. ed teacher, a special ed supervisor, an assistant were made in the past,” Perry said. “Everything The official responsibilities of an assistant principal and in graduate school teaching prohere happened over time, and so it’s a benefit to principal include supervision, evaluation and grams. Now, she is excited to help the East comhave somebody who has that background knowlobservation of staff; involvement in hiring new munity grow and achieve. As the year goes on, edge to help you.” staff; working with the curriculum, lessons and a typical day for Metzger will include observing However, Perry hopes that the newness of assessments in their departments; and working lessons, meeting with students; setting goals, adthe team will bring fresh perspectives and ideas to ensure the safety and security of East students dressing concerns and attending extracurricular to the school, eliminating the complacency that at all times. events, she said. This year she hopes to work colmight deter a longer-established staff from seekFor Papa, this necessitates filling the shoes of laboratively with her departments and to undering new schoolwide improvements. a position that has not specifically existed at East stand teacher and student needs going forward.

“It’s an advantage from the perspective that before. Instead of overseeing a specific grade, he She also hopes to make a point of getting to know we’re not encumbered by obstacles in our minds,” will act as the disciplinary supervisor for grades her ninth-graders as well as the East faculty, besaid Perry. “When you’re new, you have that 9-12, relieving all other vice principals of discicause “you always feel like it’s a welcoming place fresh optimism. We can pretty much try everyplinary duties. Papa said that this can be helpwhen you know everybody’s name.” She encourthing – why not?” ful for ensuring that in terms of discipline, “no ages students to get involved and be adventurous As the adminstrative team members continue matter what it is you’re doing, there’s consistency this year. to optimize their new mindset, students can exacross the board.”

“Try new things, and if you fall down, we’ll pect a myriad of small changes to the East enOriginally a chemical engineer, Papa has been help you up,” said Metzger. “That’s the way that vironment. For one, East’s system for processing working in a school setting for 23 years, although we learn about ourselves, and that’s the way we 504 plans, which are intended to help secure indihe still has a penchant for science-themed neckgo forward.” vidualized supports for students but which drew ties. He taught chemistry and physics in Cherry The final new arrival to the administrative concern from many parents last year, has been Hill and Maple Shade high schools before workteam, Covington comes to East following a yearrevamped for this year so that each individual ing as an administrator in Burlington County long stint as an assistant principal at Cherry Hill grade level has its own 504 team. In addition, and then at Cherry Hill West. A typical day at West, but he is also a veteran of the public school each grade level will also now meet with its class East might find him patrolling the bus yard to system in Virginia. Originally a science teacher, SGA once a marking period. ensure buses are in on time, checking crowds for he has since accrued thirteen years of experiOverall, the entire administrative team, from dress code violations, implementing systems to ence as an administrator. Covington happily the new assistant principals, to Dr. Perry, to rekeep kids in class as efficiently as possible — late notes that so far he has been met with consistent turning assistant principal Mr. Matthew LaGrou, passes and detention notices have now become friendliness all around Cherry Hill East. hope to make East a more welcoming place this digital, for one — helping keep the halls clear “I’m excited to see a lot of the students have year and to encourage students to pursue their during class and meeting with students to adalready started kind of coming up to me, saying, passions. dress specific disciplinary issues. ‘hey, you look new,’ and introducing themselves,” “I think people become transformed when Papa’s greatest goal as assistant principal is said Covington. they’re doing what they love,” said Metzger. “You to help East students succeed. He feels that as a Covington is the supervisor for the Business, can see it on people’s faces, and in the way they disciplinarian, it is important to help kids take Physical Education and Guidance departments, carry themselves.”

■ By Ilana Arougheti (‘19)

Eastside News/Features Editor

Inside This Issue

advantage of the opportunities that school can provide.

“You kids don’t come here for us... we come here for you,” Papa said. “You’re here for four years. We should be giving you the best we’ve got.”

Metzger is assistant principal to the freshman class and head of the Special Education, ELL and

Meet Wawa’s newest competitor Community, Pg. 6

A berry cool new trend Underground, Pg. 16

DiBart Gym’s new speaker system Sports, Pg. 19

NEWS/FEATURES

Page 2

EASTSIDE

Delayed B-Wing construction affects students

■ By Ali Koenig (‘20)

Eastside News/Features Editor

Picture this: It is a Day Three, and you have four minutes to take you from the very back of F-Wing to your English class, located in B-Wing. You are pretty confident that you can get there, and as you hustle down past the cafeteria and through the breezeway, you find yourself smack in the middle of C-Wing intersection. You push through the crowds, ready to enter the hall that leads towards the library and B-Wing and find yourself in front of… a wall?

Though this may sound like a scene straight out of a cheesy high school movie, the construction in the BWing breezeway is no dramatization. The need for construction arose during a routine visual inspection of the school, according to the district’s Facilities Director, Mr. Tom Carter.

The purpose of the construction is to repair struc-

tural problems. The brick facade outside of both firstand second-floor B-Wing’s north corridor will be replaced, as well as a new curtain wall (a non-structural outer wall designed to protect from weather) overlooking the courtyard outside of the auditorium.

B u t t h e r e w e r e s o m e surprises in store.

D u r ing this project, which began back in June of 2017 and is scheduled to be completed by the end of October, asbestos-containing materials were found in the old window glazing of B-Wing as a result of testing in suspected areas.

In a memo sent to Cherry Hill parents, guardians and staff in August, Carter described the asbestos-related activity going on in the building, including the collection of affected window glazing from B-Wing.

With boarded-up doors a n d w i n dows, as well as makes h i f t walls r e d i recting routes and restricting student access around the building, the construction project at times seems to swallow Cherry Hill East.

“The construction is very noticeable in the school,” said Carter, “so [students]

will be able to see the progress throughout.”

This construction has also significantly affected student life.

“The construction really affects the path I take to get to each class,” said Jessica Paritsky (‘20). “[It also] causes tons of crowding in other main hallways and staircases.”

For the time that the BWing breezeway has been blocked off, students like Paritsky have squeezed through crowds and raced down back hallways in an effort to make it to class on time.

Luckily, the construction appears to be making good on timing as well.

“It’s running on schedule,” said Carter.

This means that, by the end of October, the construction that has become a focal point of East life will have been completed and the halls will be clear once again.

easily connect with each other, while simultaneously making classwork and homework easier to access and submit,” said Aditi Lohtia (‘18).

Though East is only now officially transitioning to Google Classroom, many faculty members have al-

grades. Through Google Classroom, they have been able to share grade-specific information as well as simplify the election processes to a matter of a couple buttons on one’s phone.

With Google Classroom, teachers can encourage collaboration between stu-

Classroom to grade essays because of its editing purposes.”

Although many students and teachers are excited by the prospects and abilities of the Google for Education program, some appear to be a bit more skeptical of its application at East.

For example, Abrielle Lindenberg (‘19) said, “I don’t know if Google Classroom is going to have a large impact on student learning, but I may be thinking this because I have yet to have a teacher who incorporated these types of technologies strongly into their teaching. Classes that have used the chromebooks, for instance, allowed students to just go and play games.

I do, however, think it will give teachers ways to reduce paper use and waste and help the environment.”

From a teacher’s point of view, Computer Science and Mathematics teacher Ms. Dayna Morris said, “Although I think technology can be really helpful...

I just don’t see how Google Classroom can be successfully incorporated into my math classes specifically.”

How East will make use of this new technology is yet to be determined. What is for certain, however, is that technologies such as these have and will continue to shape the educational system, especially as virtual reality technologies are further developed. Already, Google for Education is promoting the use of its VR Cardboard Glasses to allow students to experience everything from the surface of Mars to the depths of the Pacific Ocean.

“Simply that [a technological approach to learning] is where we are heading. We can either fight it or we can introduce these programs now, while the students are a little more flexible, so that... they are just gonna be much more comfortable and prepared to use them,” said Eister.

Art by Rose Ni (‘18)/ Eastside Art Director

East community adjusts to Google Classroom

■ By Nafessa Jaigirdar (‘19)

Eastside Webmaster

Technology is constantly advancing, and so it is only reasonable that education should keep pace. The issue with this, however, is that educators sometimes struggle with integrating technology into the classroom so that neither ease of use nor functionality is sacrificed.

As a solution, Google proposed Google for Education, a program which allows students and teachers to save time and stay connected to one another. Their program takes a simple, three-pronged approach: purchase affordable and easy-to-use Chromebooks, provide each student with a G-Suite account where he/she can access all off Google’s productivity tools such as Gmail, Drive, Vault, Scholar and Hangouts, and finally to make the switch to Google Classroom.

Last school-year, a GSuite account was created for every student, with the hopes that teachers would use these accounts to set up virtual classes on Google Classroom. However, because the directions on how to log into a G-Suite account for the first time were relatively unclear, many students were unable to gain access to their accounts. Ultimately, however, plans to switch over to Google Classroom simply did not pan out in time.

Luckily, now that most students have figured out how to log into their accounts and teachers are better acquainted with GSuite, East is finally ready to make the full transition to Google Classroom and join the thousands of schools around the world in becoming what Google has termed, “A Google School.”

“I think East’s transition into becoming a Google School is a great way for teachers and students to

Courtesy of Google

Google Classroom’s logo will become a familiar sight this year as East increases its use. ready experimented with the program with their students. For instance, this past year the Driver’s Ed teachers utilized Google Classroom for collecting their annual Profile of a Driver Project.

Because the CHCLC email server is not powerful enough to support the 500+ projects that flood in all at the same time, the Driver’s Ed teachers have, with the exception of last year, collected the project through USBs or CDs. Switching to Google Classroom, however, made the submission and grading process more efficient than it has ever been.

Like the Drivers’ Ed teachers, the class advisors have also made Google classes for their respective

dents, provide timely feedback to students, create lesson plans, offer virtual office hours, reduce cheating and plagiarism and go completely paperless, while still staying organized with Google’s Cloud System.

“I want to slowly ease my students into using Google Classroom,” Spanish teacher Ms. Rachel Eister said.

Ultimately, Eister does want the majority of her inclass writings to be done on Google Classroom instead because of the suggestions and correction codes she can provide through it.

“The editing options just make Google Classroom so much [more] useful and easier to use,” Eister said.

“And I know for a fact that the English teachers also plan on using Google

October 2017

PRO REPUBLICA ■ By Joshua Pipe (‘20) Eastside News/Features Editor

If the Democrats had learned anything from their failure in the 2016 presidential election, they never would have gone near Phil Murphy.

Conversely, if the Republicans had learned anything from Chris Christie’s historic notoriety, they never would have gone near Kim Guadagno. Yet, both of these figures have their respective party’s nomination.

Murphy is everything that works for the Republicans on their tickets and disenchants Democrats when on their ticket. He is a businessman and former diplomat with absolutely no legislative experience. His platform is fairly progressive, but there is a certain “hero of the proletariat” je ne sais quoi that is lacking.

Guadagno is Christie’s lieutenant-governor, his second in command. Let the Republicans know if there is anyone with more ties to Christie so they can give the nomination to them.

Political idiocy of both parties aside, this race is perhaps most remarkable for the lack of attention paid to it prior to Senator Menendez’s corruption trial, whereafter state and national media slowly started picking up the ball they so veritably dropped.

From July to September, no polls were released regarding the race, which gives a pretty good indication of the lack of interest level that plagued this election.

This race, however, has myriad implications for New Jersey going forward.

For one thing, the state’s education system is on life support, and teacher pension systems is on a fast track to bankruptcy and the state is 103 billion dollars in debt, per the National Debt Clock. The next governor will face not only those challenges, but also the issues of a new decade.

And almost no one is paying attention.

What I’m saying is this: due to political apathy in the primary elections, New Jersey must choose between two boring, establishment, and un-impactful candidates. This is perhaps the most important election New Jersey will ever face, and yet a blind eye had been turned to it for the entire summer. Due to its monumental implications for the future of education in New Jersey, it palpably affects our school. Many of the teachers at East may not receive pensions if the next governor does not address the issues plaguing that system, which could disincentivize future teachers, which could cripple our state’s education system.

Pro republica, we had better start paying attention.

Logo by Rose Ni (‘18)/ Eastside Art Director

NEWS/FEATURES

October 2017

EASTSIDE

Page 3

Meet the Board Of Education Candidates: 2017 edition As the 2017 election to fill three seats on the Cherry Hill Board of Education approaches, Eastside takes a closer look at this year’s candidates.

■ By Joshua Sodicoff (‘18) Eastside Opinions Editor

Fredrick Dande is seeking to unseat one of the Board of Education’s incumbents in November’s election. He has three school-age children and hopes to make a better school district for them.

Dande started his higher education at Mercer County Community College, but with hard work he was able to progress forward and receive Master’s degrees in Business Administration from the University of Massachusetts - Amherst and Management of Technology from the New Jersey Institute of Technology. He now works as an IT manager for Janney Montgomery Scott LLC, a local financial services company. He also is an adjunct professor at Wilmington University and Mercer County Community College.

Dande has a long record of community service. He acts as a leader ■ By Ali Koenig (‘20) Eastside News/Features Editor

Carol Matlack has lived in Cherry Hill for 29 years. She has four kids, all of whom graduated from Cherry Hill West.

Throughout the time that her children were at Cherry Hill schools, she served as a PTA Executive Board officer at A. Russell Knight and Zone PTA. Matlack has been on the Cherry Hill Board of Education for seven years. She served as Board President in 2015 and 2016. Since being appointed to a vacant board seat in December 2010 and getting elected in April 2011. Matlack has contributed to the district by serving on the Board’s Curriculum & Instruc-

for Junior Achievement of New Jersey, an organization dedicated to teaching youth about financial literacy and entrepreneurship. He volunteers with Philabundance, an anti-hunger organization, and at J.F. Cooper Elementary School events.

Dande has been heavily involved with local politics since 2015. He has run for Board of Education twice and in the most recent primary for the New Jersey General Assembly. During his campaign for the General Assembly, he ran as a part of the Cherry Hill Progressives movement, who hoped to promote the public school system, environmental conservation and the government’s fiscal responsibility.

He wants to apply his understanding of information technology and business to bettering the schools. His primary goals are improving the state of infrastructure in the schools, ensuring increased state funding of activities within the district and updating technology to its newest state.

■ By Ilana Arougheti (‘19)

tion, Policy & Legislation, Human Resources and Strategic Planning committees, as both Vice President and President of the Board. She is proudest of her role in the hiring of superintendents Dr. Reusche and Dr. Meloche, under whom the district has revamped its technology and added new turf fields and boiler rooms. If re-elected, Matlack hopes for the board’s vision for full-day kindergarten to “come to fruition.”

She can be counted on to continue strengthening Cherry Hill schools and preparing students to become successful in the future.

Matlack’s words of advice to Cherry Hill students? “Stay involved,” she said. “That’s what makes us successful.”

■ By Joshua Pipe (‘20)

Culture Corner: Meet your class presidents We asked...

Sunny Doshi (‘20)

Saurabh Shah (‘19)

Jillian Rivera (‘18)

What are your goals for this year?

What was the hardest part about campaigning?

“To get more people involved in class- and school-wide events. We hope to gain unity for our class by getting more support for fundraisers and things of that nature.”

“[My opponents] both had experience as class officers, while I was a representative.

They both had a lot of support, so I had to figure out how to gain my own.”

“Win spirit back, put out nice “The hardest part was probapparel and have a [great] ju- ably running against one of nior prom.” my friends.”

“Dominate Spirit Week, plan many fundraisers that people are excited to go to, plan an unforgettable senior prom along with a unique theme and leave East with a legacy.”

“Getting everyone to vote because not a lot of people take their time to go to the cafs and vote. It was also very hard to come up with a speech that was different from others’.”

Eastside News/Features Editor

Out of the three incumbent candidates in the upcoming Cherry Hill school board elections, Eric Goodwin has been on the board the longest, having served on the board since 2008. School board members serve out staggered threeyear terms so that every year, three out of the nine board seats are open for reelection.

In the 2011 elections, Goodwin beat out five challengers for his seat, coming in third place out of eight challengers to reclaim his seat on the board; in 2014, he was elected unopposed to the board along with current incumbent candidates Carol Matlack and Lisa Saidel. Having thus far served one term as a new board member and three terms as a recurring member, Goodwin feels that his greatest contribution to the board so far has been serving as a sympathetic ear through which the public and the district administration can interact effectively.

Eastside News/Features Editor

Lisa Saidel has lived in Cherry Hill going on 20 years and has been involved in the Cherry Hill School District at almost every level. She was President of the Bret Harte PTA and Chair of the districtwide Zone PTA. (The Zone PTA oversees joint meetings between PTA members and district administrators.) She has two children in the district, one in eighth grade at Beck Middle School, and one in eleventh grade here at East. Her oldest son graduated from East last year.

Saidel first ran for school board because of her philosophy that “if you see something that you want to change…you have an obligation to roll up your sleeves ■ By Joshua Pipe (‘20) Eastside News/Features Editor

Sally Tong, a resident of Cherry Hill for 25 years, has had four kids in the Cherry Hill School District.

Two of her kids are currently in the district, including one student here at East.

Tong has been frequently involved with the PTA and book fairs in the schools her children attended, as well as with extrascholastic volunteer programs such as the Chinese American Women Sisterhood

Goodwin has served as VicePresident of the Board since January, and currently serves both as a member of the board’s Human Resources Committee and as the chair of the board’s Business and Facilities Committee. The Business and Facilities Committee is responsible for, among other things, overseeing physical additions and projects in the school and processing grants. However, he considers his greatest accomplishent as a board member to date to be his role in hiring superintendents Drs. Reusche and Meloche.

As a candidate, Goodwin maintains that while he does not have a specific agenda, he wants to continue to ensure that district resources are being used to give Cherry Hill students the best “educational outcome” possible.

“I just want to... make sure that [Cherry Hill schools are] a great working environment for those that work there, and a great learning environment for those that learn there,” said Goodwin. “I want to make sure that everybody has an opportunity to learn.” and be a part of the solution.”

Saidel has been a major contributor to the district’s ‘Cherry Hill Public Schools 2020: A Clear Vision for the Future’ plan, which would be a priority in her second term as board member. Saidel has served as Chair of the Curriculum and Instruction Committee and as a member of the Strategic Planning Committee.

Saidel wants all East students and their families to know that they are receiving a quality education and that Cherry Hill schools “set students up for great success” in the future thanks to an amazing community of parents, teachers and administrators.

Saidel won her seat again in November of 2014 and is seeking her second term on the Board of Education.

Society of Philadelphia, where she currently serves as Vice-President.

If elected, Tong plans to fight for fair funding of Cherry Hill schools from the state of New Jersey, work to amend school curricula to better prepare students for the future beyond Grade 12, and push for renovation in school buildings that most need it.

Tong’s message for the East community manifests itself in her plan to brighten the future of Cherry Hill students by making classrooms safe and fairly funded.

Photos courtesy of the Cherry Hill School District and NJpen.com

COMMUNITY

Page 4

EASTSIDE

October 2017

Le Cat Café brings adoptable felines to “purr-isian” coffee shop ■ By Sophia Liang (‘19)

Eastside Community Editor

Nestled in a row of clothing boutiques and greasy spoons, the colorful storefront of Le Cat Café caught my eye as I walked down Girard Avenue in Philadelphia. A three-foot-tall Eiffel Tower model stood in the window, surrounded by doodles of berets and teacups.

Upon entering the cozy building, I was transported to a classic Parisian coffee shop complete with bistro umbrellas and ironwork chairs. The only difference was all of the cats—every-

member of a growing group of cat-friendly restaurants in which visitors can pay an hourly fee to hang out with cats while enjoying refreshments. Ever since the first cat cafe was started in Taiwan in the late ‘90s, the concept has rapidly spread to Asia, Europe and, more recently, the United States.

In the spring of 2016, the trend made its way to Philadelphia when cat-lover Kathy Jordan founded Le Cat Café, the first of its kind in the city.

In the cafe, the walls are bursting with kitty paraphernalia, from catthemed books to coloring

of squeaky toys, plushies and laser pointers that customers can use to play with the cats.

The cats inside Le Cat Café aren’t just adorable— they’re also adoptable. They are all stray cats that have been rescued and nurtured back to health by Green Street Rescue, a non-profit cat rescue organization, also founded by Jordan. “[We rescue] cats that have been dumped outside and left to fend for themselves,” said Jordan. “We know the cat from rags to riches—from the day it was pulled from the street, starving, dirty [and] cov-

pages to paintings. Visitors can serve themselves complimentary coffee, hot chocolate, iced tea or lemonade. There also are bins

ered in fleas…to the day it’s adopted.”

For rehoming the rescued cats, Jordan believes the cafe is far superior to a

traditional shelter environment. The home-like atmosphere within the cafe allows the cats’ personalities to shine and the potential adopters to see which cat would be most suitable for them before bringing one home.

“Cats in shelters are in cold meta l boxes—there’s no stimulation mentally or physically. They get depressed a n d t h e n a r e l e s s likely to be a d opted and more likely to be put to sleep,” Jordan said.

“Cat cafes are so much better because the cats are living happy, active lives.”

However, Le Cat Café isn’t just for people who want to adopt. Many visitors are college students who can’t keep pets, people who can’t own cats because their family members are allergic or senior citizens who can no longer manage the work of hauling litter and kibble.

“There are dozens and dozens of reasons to come to the cafe,” said Jordan.

“It’s for anyone who needs a cat outlet.”

Besides the standard Coffee With Cats event, the cafe also offers yoga sessions, art classes, wine tasting and party hosting— all with cats, of course. Jordan hopes to expand into pilates classes and a children’s reading event in the future.

munity interaction, Philly Free Streets helps local businesses—the 2016 event created an estimated consumer value of around 1.1 million dollars. The pro-

tents, as a way to encourage local businesses to get involved.

Last year, only 15 percent of people attending the event arrived using their

The Open Streets Project encourages Free Street events in cities more than once a year because they are so beneficial. According to its website, “An Open

Sophia Liang (‘19)/ Eastside Community Editor

Rescued cats take midday naps in the storefront of Le Cat Café in Philadelphia. where I turned, there were cats batting toys, climbing boxes and snoozing in the sun.

Le Cat Café is a recent

Since its opening, Le Cat Café has grown steadily in popularity. It has adopted out almost four hundred cats to date, and Jordan does not plan to stop until all the e s t i - mated

390,000 stray cats in Philadelphia have found loving homes.

“I’d like to see all shelters open a cat cafe aspect…[and] I’d love to see a hundred more cat cafes open up from here to California,” Jordan said.

It’s easy to see why cat cafes have caught on so quickly—covered in cat hair and smelling faintly of tuna, I left the cafe feeling considerably more cheerful and less stressed. So whether you’re looking for a new family pet, a good cause to support or just an afternoon activity that’s ohso-Instagrammable, Le Cat Café is the purr-fect destination.

Art by Sabrina DeAbreu (‘18)/ Eastside Art Director

Philly Free Streets clears city roads for pedestrians

routine of physical activity and healthy living. Costs for the organizing body also get lower the more freOn Saturday, October quently the program occurs 28, seven miles of busy city and attendance goes up as streets in Philadelphia will the word of mouth close. From Third gets around.” and Chestnut in Old While there are City, to North Fifth clearly many beneStreet and Indiana fits to having open Avenue in Fairhill, street events in roadways will be cities, people are closed to all cars often concerned to create a pathabout the traffic way for pedestrians congestion that and bicyclists only. may occur during This event is run by the road closures Philly Free Streets, in busy urban ara branch of the eas. However, the country-wide Open organizers of the Streets Project, a Open Streets Projpeople-powered ect also assure movement inviting residents on their city-goers to walk, website that they bike and get outside “are very interestwith their neighed in... looking for bors. solutions to alleviWith over 30,000 ate traffic congespeople participating tion.” in last year’s Free Since these Streets Day, Philly programs mostly Free Streets has reoccur on Sunday turned in hopes of an mornings, traffic even larger turnout, build-ups are as providing food and Samantha Dayton (‘19)/ Eastside Staff unlikely as possible. entertainment in The city of Philadelphia is closing its streets to cars for Philly Free Streets Day. So come out to walk, order to encourage talk, run and play active lifestyles. gram directors choose not cars—the other 85 percent Streets program that ocwith your neighbors on OcIn addition to promotto rent outside vending opwalked, biked or used pubcurs multiple times does a tober 28, and don’t forget ing healthy living and gettions, such as food trucks or lic transportation. far better job of instilling a your sneakers! ting outside more for com■ By Maddy Cicha (‘19)

For Eastside

COMMUNITY

October 2017

EASTSIDE

Page 5

Duck Donuts introduces creative flavors

■ By Chelsea Stern (‘18)

Eastside Community Editor

The famous freshly-fried delicacies of Duck Donuts are waddling their way to the South Jersey area.

Originating in Duck, Outer Banks, North Carolina in 2006, Duck Donuts has begun to spread its beloved treats to the South Jersey suburbs. Since expanding the company, the business has come to own a whopping 167 locations across the East Coast, including the newest addition opening up in Marlton.

Co-owners of the upcoming Marlton store Jennifer Hollander and Nora Branconi reside a few miles outside of Marlton. Living in the area helped them decide that South Jersey is the perfect community for the family-friendly doughnut shop.

“We wanted lots of families and businesses [around]... for easy access. We really liked it and thought that it fit the community needs,” said Hollander.

The Duck Donuts team members pride themselves on the freshness of their doughnuts, which are made right on site. Anyone who walks in can watch as his or her personal doughnut is made until it is served hot and freshly glazed. Cus-

tomers have the opportunity to either pick one of the funky classics directly off of the menu or create a flavor of their own.

“The moment you order,

to your liking,” said Hollander.

Many residents of the South Jersey community rely on their local Wawa or Dunkin’ Donuts for their

“We are also going to offer breakfast sandwiches on doughnuts and serve ice cream sundaes on doughnuts,” said Hollander.

For the late-night snacks

Screenshot by Dakota Rosen (‘19)/ Eastside Photo Editor

While the Duck Donuts Marlton location is under construction, people can check out the featured doughnut flavors menu on the website. we make them right there for you. You can choose from a variety of toppings, coatings and drizzles. You can make yours any combination you want, totally

deep-fried, sweet cravings, but Duck Donuts aims to bring some new additions to the classic warm vanillacake doughnut, unlike its competitors.

and even early-morning breakfasts, Duck Donuts has made innovations to the menu for the Marlton location. To keep both returning customers and

newcomers excited about the creative creations they offer, Hollander and Branconi have reinvented the traditional doughnut into a trendy dessert available in various flavor combinations.

“One of the biggest fan favorites is maple bacon.

It gives you that sweet and salty flavor. It’s dipped in maple icing and topped in crumbled bacon,” said Hollander.

The South Jersey community should expect the made-to-order doughnuts later this fall or in the early winter months. Duck Donuts will be located in Marlton Crossing on Route 73. While hungry Duck Donuts fans wait for the doors to open for business, the Marlton management team has been updating its Facebook page with the progression of the storefront as new signs go up in the windows and the grand opening approaches. “[The grand opening] is going to be a fun day for the whole community. It’s a really fun place to be. Adults and children both love that they get to step up and see their doughnuts made in front of them, the whole process,” said Hollander.

Whether it’s maple bacon or seasonal pumpkin, Duck Donuts hopes to add some flavor to South Jersey.

Geekfest promotes embracing the inner nerd ■ By Jocelynne Dorotan (‘18) Eastside Staff

There is no need to spend several thousands of dollars to attend ComicCon when its equivalent is coming to South Jersey.

Geekfest, a convention that intends to unite several thousands of attendees who share common interests in games and comics, will be held at the Woodbury Heights Community Center on October 28 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The event is named “Geekfest” to denounce the negative associations of the word “geek”. The convention is intended to empower people to be confident in their seemingly “geeky” interests and hobbies among their peers.

This year’s convention includes artists, tournaments, music and open board games. The convention will also feature developers and certain Internet personalities.

With a wide selection of companies, fans can purchase apparel, merchandise and toys that pertain to their Geekfest-related interests.

Attendees can also purchase food from caterering vendors including Craigie Mack’s BBQ Shack, Adelaide’s Cakes, Kung Fu Hoagies and the Bean Bros.

In addition to shopping and eating, attendees can participate in various activities.

For instance, the convention will host Quidditch, which is a competitive sport involving broomsticks that originated in the Harry Potter series.

Geekfest also offers a Super Smash Bros. for WiiU tournament, perfect for all of the active gamers attending. The virtual competition begins at 11 a.m. and costs 10 dollars per person.

Even old-fashioned entertainment will take place when professional yoyo-ers perform during specific hours throughout the convention.

Atendees will pay eight dollars for regular admission for the convention’s

entire duration, and five dollars for those dressed in costumes and those who donate three or more non-perishable items. The convention is completely free for children under 11 years of age. Tickets can be purchased on-site of the annual event or ahead of time online.

Prior to attending Geekfest, cosplayers should be aware of the convention’s rules regarding costumes.

Masks are prohibited unless they are an established part of a cos-

tume.

F a k e props are permitted as long as they do not resemble dangerous weapons that other Geekfest convention attendees may perceive as a threat. All props will be inspected upon arrival to the

convention.

Cherry Hill residents can reach The Woodbury Heights Community Center, located approximately 30 minutes away, by taking I-295. Street parking will be available near the building and a parking lot is located outside Gateway High School for easy accessibility while visitors come and go.

Geekfest also presented a show called “Geekfest Presents Comics,” which featured comics, games, toys and tabletop games.

This event occurred on September 10, from 10 a.m to 4 p.m.

Tickets for this p a r ticular event cost 3 dollars at the d o o r a n d w e r e free for children 10 years and under.

Whate v e r your inner nerd embraces m o s t , Marvel or Harry Potter, Geekfest opens up the floor for you to celebrate among your fellow geeks of South Jersey.

Geekfest provides a safe environment to be you!

Art by Jeffrey Kaminer (‘21)/ For Eastside

COMMUNITY

Page 6

EASTSIDE

October 2017

The Philadelphia Museum of Art displays Duchamp’s Fountain

■ By Sophia Liang (‘19)

Eastside Community Editor

From now until December 3, an exhibition entitled “Marcel Duchamp and the Fountain Scandal” will be on display at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The showcase celebrates the centennial of French artist Marcel Duchamp’s Fountain, one of the most controversial works of art of the twentieth century.

One hundred years ago, Duchamp revolutionized the art world when he purchased a factory-made porcelain urinal from a hardware store, signed it with the alias “R. Mutt” and submitted it to a New York art exhibition whose organizers promised they would display any and all works of art so long as the creators paid the submission fee. Despite this promise, the exhibition committee rejected Duchamp’s work, and so a heated centurylong debate began—what qualifies a piece of work as “art,” or a person as an “artist”? “[Duchamp] was an intellectual person as well as a very skilled craftsman,” said John Vick, the Collections Project Manager at the museum of art, which houses the largest collection of Duchamp’s works in the world. “He always wanted to try to push the

Fountain was just one piece of a collection of “readymades” that Duchamp created in his continual attempts to challenge the status quo. Readymades were ordinary manufactured items, such as a bicycle wheel or a ball of twine, that he selected and presented as art. Most traditional artists at the time refused to accept these mass-produced, apparently meaningless pieces as “art”—especially Fountain, which was considered indecent and inappropriate. Others, however, including many scholars today, argued that by virtue of the strong emotions and difficult questions they provoked, the readymades conveyed meaning and thus Sophia Liang (‘19)/ Eastside Community Editor ought to count as Marcel Duchamp’s Fountain has kindled debate about the defi- works of art.

“I guess the arnition of art. gument is, why boundaries. He wanted to fore something stopped beare they not art?” see how far he could go being art for most people.” said Vick. “Who gets to de-

cide what is or isn’t art?

Who gets to tell an artist what to do or what not to do?”

Even today, Duchamp’s original intention is still being fulfilled; Fountain continues to elicit as much emotion in 2017 as it did in 1917.

“We got some really, really angry letters from some of the museum members,” Vick said. “Some people who have been supporting the museum for years threatened to cancel their memberships because they were so upset [that we featured this urinal].”

The debate over Duchamp’s readymades shows no signs of ceasing, but Vick encourages these types of discussions and considers them an integral part of art’s purpose.

“Whether it’s a Renaissance altarpiece or a contemporary video piece or a readymade, art has some real amazing power to make people think and feel things they don’t on a dayto-day basis,” Vick said.

“The more people can be exposed to times where they can think and feel things, and talk about those moments, [the more] we can figure out who we are as people. No matter what form it takes, art in general is a valuable part of the human experience.”

Wawa faces its newest competitor Meet the ■ By Julia Benedetto (‘19)

Eastside Community Editor

While many New Jersey residents have come to love and depend on the massively growing chain of convenience stores and gas stations known as Wawa, a new competitor will be coming to the area soon.

Royal Farms is a Maryland-based, family-owned, high-end convenience store and gas station chain that has

plans to pop up all over New Jersey.

While there are already 178 stores operating across Maryland, Delaware, Virginia and Pennsylvania, the company is still looking to expand into New Jersey.

Breahna Brown, Royal Farm’s Marketing/Public Relations Representative said in an email, “Construction for our first location is slated to begin in October 2017. Over the next 15 months, we plan to open between three to five stores in the area.”

The first store will be built in Magnolia while the other stores can be expected in Gloucester City,

Marlton, Bellmawr and East Greenwich Township. These store locations already have employment opportunities available for all positions on the Royal Farms website.

Royal Farms has been satisfying the mid-Atlantic area’s hunger for over 50 years. The convenience store is anyone’s go-to place for gasoline and diesel fuel, breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Unlike Wawa, Royal Farms offers tables and seating for a sitdown meal

juicy taste.

Alongside the world-famous chicken are the handcut western fries. Fresh potatoes are hand-cut in the store and breaded while pressure-cooked in transfat-free cooking oil.

In addition, Royal Farms serves fresh subs, sandwiches, hamburgers, hot dogs, grilled chicken sandwiches, breakfast sandwiches and salads. They are also available to cater and sell different party platters.

“Since 1959, Royal Farms has been c o m -

both indoors and outdoors versus the normal “grab and go” atmosphere of a Wawa convenience store.

The Royal Farms slogan, “Royal Farms: Real fresh.

Real fast. Real Green,” is a standard that the chain aims to live up to.

While the stores offer a wide variety of fresh food and beverages to their customers, they are most well-known for their worldfamous fried chicken and western fries. Relevant to the Royal Farms slogan, the chain only uses fresh, never frozen, chicken that is hand-breaded with its own special spices and pressure-cooked around the clock to help maintain a

mitted to providing lowcost fuel, low-cost cigarettes and fresh, never-frozen fried chicken and hand-cut fries. This sets us apart as a one stop shop,” said Brown.

While the chain focuses greatly on the freshness of its food, being an environmentally-friendly business is also extremely important to Royal Farms. Since 2008, Royal Farms has been making modifications to the standard store design and materials to make them less costly to operate and more energy-efficient. All new stores have highly efficient mechanical systems,

customer-accessible recycling, low carbon-emitting materials, no irrigation, water recycling in their car washes, cooking oil recycling into biodiesel and lowflow waterless fixtures.

Although the Royal Farms chain is successfully expanding, it will face fierce competition. Many New Jersey residents have come to love Wawa’s famous hoagies and routinely go on “Wawa runs” when in need of some late-night snacks or a refill of gas. With over 700 hundred stores on the East Coast, there is no denying that W a w a is a

contestants Wawa

Courtesy of Wawa

Founded in: 1803 Number of stores: 750+ Headquarters: Wawa, PA Located in: Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Florida Slogan: Gotta Hava Wawa Specialty: Hoagies Also offers: Coffee, breakfast sandwiches, ice cream

Royal Farms

huge and extremely successful company.

“Competition between us and existing gas stations and convenience stores won’t be easy, but we expect to excel by providing goods and services that our competitors do not,” said Brown.

While the two competing convenience stores bring different aspects to the table, it will be interesting to see how Royal Farms does in an already heavily populated market. So, which do you choose: hoagies or fried chicken?

Art by Sabrina DeAbreu (‘18)/ Eastside Art Director

Courtesy of Royal Farms

Founded in: 1959 Number of stores: 170+ Headquarters: Baltimore, MD Located in: Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, Pennsylvania Slogan: Real Fresh. Real Fast. Real Green.

Specialty: Fried chicken Also offers: French fries, subs, coffee

October 2017

EASTSIDE

Page 7

EDITORIAL

Page 8

EASTSIDE

October 2017

Editorials represent the views and opinions of the Eastside Editorial Board.

Schedule-change procedures in Guidance require revision At the start of each school year, students overwhelm their guidance counselors with various requests. Most frequently, requests deal with scheduling and level changes. This year, Guidance reported approximately 400 schedule change requests from the summer through the beginning of school.

More so than in the past, administration is strongly enforcing to guidance counselors this year a rule which forbids students from making level changes until the first interim. Although this requirement provides students adequate time to acclimate to a certain class, Eastside feels that it could keep students in an uncomfortable situation longer than necessary, affecting their overall grades in the course. If a student feels uneasy in an honors level course due to the rigor and academic difficulty, the student’s first instinct would be to move down to A-level. However, with the enforcement of this regulation, students are potentially confined to an unbearable environment for an entire interim.

It also becomes problematic to begin a new class with a new teacher halfway through the first marking period. Students fall behind initially after failing to comprehend the information in the higher-level course, and later jumping into a room of students

already assimilated to the class and the teacher.

Eastside believes students should be allowed to switch levels in a class after experiencing one to two weeks of the course’s workload and expectations. Students who are forced to stay longer than they desire may encounter academic trouble later due to an inconsistency among teacher policies regarding the transfer of grades between levels.

As it is up to teachers to make the decision, some input a student’s low grade from an honors course for the first interim, and despite earning an A or B in the A-level class, a nearfailing grade for one interim in honors can cause a student a C-average in A-level. Other teachers, however, do not consider the student’s grade in the previous level and allow the student to start fresh, disregarding the first interim.

If students are allowed to change levels after one to two weeks as opposed to one interim, and teachers remain steady with carrying over grades, Eastside believes level changes will cause less difficulty for guidance counselors.

Additionally, to further avoid such a demand for level changes, Eastside proposes that guidance counselors

more specifically outline the rigor of a course a student wants to take, if the counselor believes the student would not succeed in the class. In a similar sense, teachers should consider their class recommendations more seriously and understand the differences among the variety of courses and levels offered at East.

Nonetheless, counselors continue to be bombarded by other issues like college recommendations for their seniors and inadvertent double labs scheduled as students settle into a new school year.

Thus, Eastside believes this sense of overwhelm in Guidance during the first months of school could be solved by teachers who have duty periods helping out in the Guidance Office once a week until November. More staff in the office will better facilitate the sea of students seeking help during the first months of school.

Ultimately, Eastside advocates for an earlier level-change policy, consistence among teachers when carrying over grades, contribution by guidance counselors and teachers when filling out course selection and recommendations and assistance by faculty members to ease guidance counselors’ workload as they seek to accommodate students.

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Letters to the Editor

Submit signed letters to F087

Summer reading assignment should be modified in the future

Prior to the summer of 2017, English teachers from Cherry Hill East and Cherry Hill West met to discuss a new, more accommodating summer reading assignment. The consensus between the two schools left the students with the option to either read a novel of their choice that related to the grade level’s theme, or to read a suggested title. In addition, each grade had three different options for the follow-up assignment. Eastside believes this change in the summer reading curriculum disadvantaged students.

Primarily, the overarching themes for each grade level did not directly correlate with the suggested novels. For instance, The Namesake, the suggested novel for twelfth graders, contains some ideas regarding social justice; however, it is not an ideal literary example of this theme.

While each title somewhat connects to the grade level’s theme, Eastside believes the themes were too broad to be captured in just one book. The assignments prove this opinion to be true; many of the thematic connections within the assignments seemed forced.

The only consistent assignment among each grade level was the option to respond to journal questions. The questions listed on the assignment sheet were abstract and repetitive, especially for Platinum The Rothkoff Family Sam and Debbie First Matt and Cheri Cohen Andrea Cohen and Dave Samuel Sherri and Ken Hoffman Deluxe Packaging Fran and Sid Fisch The Duffy Family Lois and Mitch Cohen The Fisch Family Jared Fisch

the senior and junior classes; students needed little knowledge of the suggested novel to answer these questions. Additionally, these broad topics made it increasingly difficult for students to incorporate quotes into their responses.

Moreover, with the exception of the sophomore summer reading, all of the journal questions came from the internet. The freshman and senior questions appear to come from teachthought.com and the junior questions appear to come from a Google blog dubbed ‘English Class On-Line.’

Eastside feels that in a world where internetbased plagiarism remains an adversary to most English teachers, the usage of assignment questions from the internet sends mixed messages to students as they were taken without crediting their rightful authors.

Furthermore, Eastside views the assignments as unrealistic. For the senior class, an option was to write a college essay in the main character’s point of view. However, the essay had to be four to six pages while the typical college essay is no longer than 650 words, hardly exceeding a page.

Additionally, these essays can become a burden to teachers with five classes, or 150 students, as they start the year with over 1,000 pages of writing to grade. Keeping this in mind, students may

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Friends of Eastside Ronald Stearn Sari Cohen Marilyn Koenig Sy and Florence Jerome Heidi Silverberg Bernice and Irving Kernis Kaitlyn Valladares Louis Zimmermann Christine Benedetto Ali Family Abbie Levine Elaine Yang Ben Zemele

feel as if their work is unnecessary, as it is unlikely the teachers will read each essay in depth.

Eastside commends the committee who put together these assignments for their creativity in assignment ideas; however, drawing graphic novels and writing talk show scripts cannot accurately portray a student’s understanding of a book.

In the future, Eastside suggests that summer reading assignments relate to each student’s comprehension of the novel. Students can still have the option to choose their own novel, but teachers should continue to encourage students to read the suggested title. As they read, the students should be required to take guided notes on traditional literary elements such as plot, character development, setting, themes and symbols.

In addition, students should note important quotations that represent the story’s main ideas to strengthen their skill of pulling textual evidence from the novel. With this simple assignment, students will not feel overwhelmed and they will feel as if their work has a purpose.

Eastside believes this new assignment can benefit the English teachers and students, as the students will have a better understanding of the book on the first day of school.

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Eastside 2017-2018 Editorial Board

Managing Editor: Jared Fisch Editors-in-Chief: Elissa Cohen, Sari Cohen, Hope Rosenblatt Adviser: Mr. Greg Gagliardi Photo Editors News/Features Editors Community Editors Ilana Arougheti Julia Benedetto Jiseon Lee Ali Koenig Sophia Liang Dakota Rosen Joshua Pipe Chelsea Stern Sports Editors Adam Dashevsky Jacob Kernis Sophie Levine Opinions Editors Eric First Joshua Sodicoff Louis Zimmermann

Contact the Board: Art Directors Sabrina DeAbreu Rose Ni

Video Editor

Webmasters

Multimedia Directors Adiel Davis Drew Hoffman

Business Managers Nashita Ali Abigail Richman

Entertainment Editors Jonathan Calabrese Nafessa Jaigirdar Harry Green Eli Weitzman Luke Shin Gregory Rothkoff Underground Editors Claire Joanson David Le

To contact a member of the Eastside Editorial Board via email, type the person’s first name followed by a period, then his or her last name followed by “@eastside-online. org,” ie: jared.fisch@ eastside-online.org.

(Note: There is a dash between “eastside” and “online”)

October 2017

COMICS EASTSIDE

Page 9

CalcBOOlus by Rose Ni (‘18)/ Eastside Art Director

Senya 18r by Isabella Cammisa (‘18)/ Eastside Staff

A Kickin’ College Tip: If you have a word count, make your words count!

When writing your college essays remember to Go Big, Go Bold or Go Home.

Now go kick those apps into gear!

Seniors by Sabrina DeAbreu (‘18)/ Eastside Art Director

Page 10

EASTSIDE

October 2017

OPINIONS

October 2017

EASTSIDE

Page 11

College creates opportunities – and barriers

LEGACY

■ By Louis Zimmermann (‘18)

Eastside Opinions Editor

While progressively filling out the Common Application for what most high school seniors spend countless stressful hours on, one question repeatedly appears in the colleges’ question section.

“Have any relatives ever attended _____ University/College?” Hidden under the formal text, colleges truly want to know whether or not the applying student has legacy.

Legacy encompasses one central idea: a family member, such as a parent or grandparent, has attended the university to which the student is applying.

Ultimately, legacy allows an admissions counselor to see that a student has a specific interest in the culture of the school, will likely attend if accepted, and that the family will foreseeably donate to the college.

Highly debated throughout the nation, the topic of legacy creates opinions on whether or not it truly helps keep students’ applications out of the dreaded “deny” pile. Although certain colleges use

■ By Eric First (‘18)

legacy solely as a mechanism of choosing one student out of two equally strong applicants, other colleges take legacy highly into consideration. These colleges rank amongst the top 50 colleges in America, including Harvard University, Princeton University, University of Pennsylvania, Brown University and Yale University.

The unfair advantage legacy students receive over other applicants can be exhibited through acceptance rates. While Princeton typically has a highly selective acceptance rate of seven percent, it changes to 40 percent for legacies. On average, of the top 30 schools throughout the nation, colleges that consider primary legacy, parent or grandparent relation, grant 45 percent higher acceptance rates to legacy students over non-legacy. This is directly equivalent to a 160-point SAT score increase on the 1600 total scale.

Although legacy seems to be a simple deciding factor, colleges use legacy because of the benefits they know will come from these students. Colleges do not only consider the student benefiting at their school, but also the school benefiting from the student.

Eastside Opinions Editor

Colleges lure in prospective students by promising that they hold the key to a lucrative profession. However, many students exit their four-year school in massive amounts of debt, only to be burdened with financial struggles for years to come. In America, over 44 million people have student loan debts, accounting for close to 1.4 trillion dollars. In order to limit student debt, there are several smart, preventative measures that should be utilized to circumvent the standard traps.

According to ACT, at traditional four-year universities, the retention rate of freshman for public schools is 64.5 percent, and the retention rate at private schools is 72.6 percent. Once these schools reel in their students as freshmen, the students tend to stay as tuition generally rises each year. A smart way to avoid falling victim to the universities is to attend two years of community college or local public college before transferring to a dream school. While the cost of tuition at a four-year university may cost nearly 60,000 dollars, one can attend Camden County College for a tuition cost of around 3,300 dollars.

Eastside Opinions Editor

Colleges and universities throughout the United States have increasingly regarded diversity as an important factor for freshman applicants. Diversity throughout the admitted student population revolves mainly around race and geography. Both of these aspects limit the chances of some students getting in over other more qualified students.

As an increasingly disputed issue, Affirmative Action should be eliminated from a college’s consideration of a student. Affirmative Action is an effort to increase the educational opportunities of minority groups. However, with the heavy consideration of Affirmative Action in admission decisions, the act stands as a mechanism for reverse discrimination. In other words, a Caucasian student with a slightly more impressive resume, GPA and SAT/ACT score than a student of color may be denied over the student of color because of a wanted diversity. For instance, the University of Wisconsin-Madison admissions results of 2017 exhibit African-Americans admitees having a 150-point lower average and Latino admitees having a 100-point lower average on the SAT than the Cauca-

sian and Asian admittees. Ultimately, this correlates to the high pressure Affirmative Action places on colleges to be diverse at all measures. A Caucasian student and an African-American student should be considered solely for the usual criteria: GPA, test scores, resume and essays. Sometimes, these are ignored.

Furthermore, geographical origin often plays a vital role in admission decisions.

Because most colleges are required to admit a certain number of students from instate, the admissions for out-of-state students are very selective and typically more diverse. Therefore, the admission rates for certain colleges immediately drop. Certain colleges also admit students based upon hometowns because they want to see varied backgrounds in students. Therefore, a college may admit a rural student from Iowa over a more qualified urban New York City student because a surplus of urban students have already been admitted.

Although geography and race truly characterize a student’s thoughts and actions, Affirmative Action and geographical diversity should not be taken into consideration as severely. Affirmative Action limits the possibilities for majorities although their intelligence and extra-curriculars may be comparable to those of minorities.

The savings can really add up, and with strong grades, one can still transfer to receive a degree from his or her dream school.

Another option to limit student loan debt is to attend a public in-state four-year college. Instate four-year college tuition, on average, costs about 9,000 dollars less than out-of-state tuition.

Furthermore, students should always be on the lookout for scholarships. While there are a number of mainstream scholarships offered through universities and major companies, these are very hard to win due to the significant number of applicants. There are hundreds of other smaller scholarships that students should also look into in order to begin chipping away at college debt. It is important to remember that any scholarship money can be helpful in the long run.

Overall, college loan debt can accumulate quickly, but it may take years to pay off fully.

Before entering college, it is necessary to weigh the financial positives and negatives of schools prior to enrollment. Deciding where to attend college can be life-changing, so one should consider what is truly best for his or her future plans, financially or otherwise, before making a final decision.

SOCIOCECONOMIC DIVERSITY

RACE AND GEOGRAPHY

■ By Louis Zimmermann (‘18)

DEBT

■ By Joshua Sodicoff (‘18)

Eastside Opinions Editor

Infographic by Joshua Sodicoff (‘18) / Eastside Opinions Editor

Universities nationally have recognized that the ever-increasing cost of college has made higher education untenable for lower-income applicants. They have implemented need-blind admission systems in order to guarantee that students who may not have the means to pay can still be admitted.

Many top universities with billion-dollar endowments have assured their prospective students that their demonstrated financial need will be met, and they will be able to attend no matter their circumstances. It would seem that higher education across the United States should be getting more democratic, more accessible and ultimately more diverse economically.

If this is true, then why do enrollment and graduation rates differ so much between the rich and the poor?

The Pell Institute, in a study of the historic trends of equity in higher education, found that enrollment rates across earnings quartiles had remained mostly stagnant from the 1970s until today. Members of the top quartile earn more than five times as many bachelor’s degrees than those in the bottom quarter, and the top half accounts for 77 percent of bachelor’s degrees. This gap

is even more exacerbated at selective universities, where 70 percent come from the top quarter and four percent from the bottom quarter.

The National Center for Education Statistics found that only 14 percent of students from the bottom quartile who thought they would get a bachelor’s degree ended up with one, compared to 60 percent of their peers in the top twenty-five percent.

Perhaps a need-blind approach to admissions is unfair then. Maybe, need should be more heavily considered when taking scores, extracurriculars and essays into account, and need should be remedied beyond grants.

To be competitive for college admissions, students in Cherry Hill and elsewhere must keep their grades up and get good scores on standardized tests. Here, bad grades can be fixed through the use of an expensive tutor and prep materials, but the same cannot be said for those without the resources to afford those luxuries. Schools that are need-blind have much more trouble taking into account the impact of socioeconomic status in scores and in involvement than those who utilize need to understand circumstances.

When more and more colleges describe their admissions as “holistic,” extracurricular participation becomes an important factor, but wealthier students have an advan-

tage in the time and money they can put into these endeavors. And of course, few high-earning families rely on their children to help support the financial needs of the household. With all of these factors added together, college can seem an impossible dream for poorer students. If schools want to represent this segment of society, they must encourage them to apply.

Even if students are monetarily aided, their responsibility to their family remains. Leaving school to care for a parent or sibling is a greater concern when it is not possible to pay for day-care or medical assistance. Universities need to understand that they do not make the choice to accept a student as an individual, but rather a student with all of his or her concerns. They should afford students who need help extra services and leeway to continue with their degree.

Colleges should not solely level the playing field on ability to pay.

They should level it on opportunity, on circumstances and on how fully an applicant has taken advantage of his or her surroundings within his or her means. Colleges should seek to hold and help a diverse crosssection of society, and if they are truly committed to creating classes with the widest set of experiences, socioeconomic diversity needs to be a factor.

Logos courtesy of respective colleges Art by Rose Ni (‘18)/ Eastside Art Director

OPINIONS

Page 12

EASTSIDE

October 2017

The play approval process is open to censorship

ers or administration, and the argument comes when a title is removed instead of prevented from ever enterFor years, Cherry Hill ing the school environment.

East’s Theater Department However, the concerns adhas put on play after play dressed by those in favor to resounding success in of censorship are similar the school and town. The across all platforms. Acschool’s skilled actors, the cording to the Ameristage crew’s technical can Library Associaabilities and months of tion, 5,246 challenges practice come together to to the presence of cerresult in an exciting and tain books were made visually appealing perforover the course of the mance. years from 1990 to East has never been 1998, with 25 percent content to put on a dazrelating to sexually zling show, however. The explicit content, 22 advisors and students percent relating to the have rarely shied away use of offensive lanfrom shows with imporguage and 20 percent tant messages meant to for the unsuitability better our school and the of the content to the greater community. And age group. Additionshows that carry these ally, the NCAC notes messages, like “To Kill a that most requests Mockingbird,” like “Cabafor censorship do not ret” and like “Ragtime,” come from malicious most recently, rarely do so individuals but rather without the use of contromembers of the comversial themes, settings munity who believe or language. The day for that the content poses shows like these may have a threat to their valpassed. ues.

After last year’s conOur Theater Detroversy over the use of partment is important racially insensitive lanenough to deserve a guage in the spring musipublic dialogue on the cal, the responsibility of viability of its propreventing a future play posed performances. from being cancelled and The discussion at an similar widespread critievent like this would cism fell on the central adJiseon Lee (‘20)/ Eastside Photo Editor not be a deciding facministration of the Cherry Censorship will remain a threat for as long as scripts lay on the desks of administrators. tor, but rather a way Hill Public Schools. Their of gauging what chalresponse was the developWe might not see a script come remains unclear. abuse by a small number of lenges a script could face if ment of a longer and more denied the ability to be perLet this not be an atindividuals, independent of performed in its full capacthorough process that poformed this year, or even in tack on any members of their intention. ity. The staff and Thespian tentially threatens to rethe next few years, but as the administration. I trust Most frequently, books Society have shown their strict valuable content. long as the flow of content our current administrators, are seen as the target of ability to make good deciPreviously, the Theater is controlled by a group and others should as well, censorship, but the Nasions in recent years and Department was granted not as deeply entrenched and I believe that they untional Coalition Against deserve to keep control over autonomy over its choice in the daily interactions derstand that the message Censorship (NCAC) defines the process. One lengthy of performance. Now, this of the school, the risk will of many plays outweighs the act as the suppression public discourse should not choice moves up the chain exist. Although the shift the use of language or imof ideas in any content make all future ones imposof leadership to several key toward administrative apagery. One day, however, within a school by teachsible. members of the administra-

■ By Joshua Sodicoff (‘18)

Eastside Opinions Editor

tion. They read the script over a short period of time and fill out documentation with their appraisal of the themes, representation of demographics and other aspects. They then discuss how the theater will handle the more sensitive aspects.

proval is one toward a standard consistently followed elsewhere, it is also one removed from the transparency that the East community has come to expect from our Theater Department. Because it remains mostly untested its out-

when the leadership has changed and the lessons we recently learned are forgotten, they may not be as understanding. The new system for approving plays is not a form of censorship in its current form, but rather gives the opportunity for

NCAA delivers unjust sanctions ■ By Eric First (‘18)

Eastside Opinions Editor

Tyrannical, miserly and dictatorial are just a few of the words that one can use to describe the NCAA’s governing body. While the NCAA is known for bringing spirited events to college campuses across 24 sports, there is a much darker side to the association that has only recently been thrust into the national spotlight.

The NCAA has delivered ridiculously unjust sanctions to some of its teams and athletes as a selfish way of asserting its power over the college sports world.

In late July, the NCAA made headlines ruling that University of Central Florida’s (UCF) football kicker, Donald De La Haye, was ineligible to play because he monetized his YouTube channel, “Deestroying.”

The NCAA objected to De La Haye earning money from his videos because they included kicking and throwing footballs, which reflected his sports image.

De La Haye was forced to make an impossible choice: forfeit his Division I scholarship and the sport he loves, or stop benefiting financially from the videos that he has been making since he was 12 years old.

De La Haye decided to continue making videos and accept the NCAA’s draconian punishment. This result was unfair to De La Haye, his teammates and the UCF fan base.

This scenario is an example of the NCAA’s abuse of power.

College athletes should be allowed to earn money without the fear of NCAA suspension or ineligibility.

There is no difference between college athletes earning money based on their sports skills and a business major making money by working in retail; both situations involve students making money from a skill that they are developing in college.

Ultimately, even with a college scholarship, numerous college athletes who come from low-income families simply do not have any

money to spend while they are in school. They need to find alternative sources of money to pay for the basics,

Jonathan Calabrese (‘18)/ Eastside Video Editor

such as snacks, dates and movies. Only two percent of all high school athletes receive either partial or full scholarships to play sports in college, wrote Lynn O’Shaughnessy for CBS News in 2012.

As a result, the financial burden of college is even greater on these student athletes than on regular students, as they are unable to utilize other means to earn money to support themselves.

Another appalling example of the NCAA atrocious sanctions involves Charleston Southern University (CSU). Thirty-two of CSU’s football players received various levels of suspensions and fines for using the leftover money from their college scholarship book allowance on other school supplies from the school bookstore.

In fact, running back Ben Robinson wrote on his Facebook page, “We would have leftover book money and the workers in the bookstore advised us to spend the money because we would

not get it back, so we did.

Now the school and NCAA are saying that is against the rules.”

In this scenario, the NCAA made an absurd decision to discipline student athletes for using scholarship money for academic reasons. When offering scholarships to studentathletes, the scholarship money should be used to promote the best possible academic experience.

There is no reason why student-athletes should be punished for spending scholarship money they earned on necessary school supplies in the school’s own store.

It is hypocritical that schools such as CSU give scholarships so that students can further their education, but those same students are restricted by the NCAA from using that scholarship money on academic pursuits.

There are numerous other examples of the NCAA abusing its power to the detriment of student athletes who represent their schools without compensation. Either the NCAA needs to revise its disciplinary policies and approaches, or the member colleges need to disassociate themselves from the NCAA.

OPINIONS

October 2017

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Page 13

Students should not feel terrorized to travel ■ By Louis Zimmermann (‘18)

Eastside Opinions Editor

With the extensive number of actions, thoughts and decisions people make, a primary feeling manipulates people’s lives: fear.

Traveling should always be a privilege, never a fear.

With seven continents and 195 diverse countries, the world is too beautiful for one to live with a fear of traveling.

Sadly, the already long list of terrorist attacks throughout the world continues to grow, especially within the previous four years.

In fact, the attacks have become more abundant and more advanced than previous years. Namely, Belgium, England, France, Spain and even the United States are some of the countries that have fallen victim to terrorism and have suffered the most detrimental effects.

Because the aforementioned countries are all considered tourist-heavy, the attacks may have come as a shock to most. However, the lasting effects on society created from these savageries should come as a greater shock to people.

Without a doubt, terrorist attacks strike a sense of fear, and horrid anticipation of the utmost unexpected. However, people too frequently think of these attacks, associate them with a given country, cross off the country in their “places to travel next” bucket list and shut off their m i n d s from all other reasonable consideration. People need to stop listening solely to their local news station.

News stations typically hear of an attack and immediately resort to broadcasting the crisis non-stop. Although the news informs people of the issue, exaggeration of certain tragedies leads to the use of fear-mongering. In turn, this fear-mongering creates the status that the United States is safer than

other countries throughout the world, especially Europe. This is fundamentally untrue. Although the recent attacks have occurred predominantly in Europe, the possibility of a future

attack is just as likely in the United States as it is in Europe.

Fear-mongering provided by the news exaggerates the truth and creates an incorrect mindset that international travels may cause more deaths than car acci-

dents perhaps, which occur 1.3 million times yearly. In fact, 700 people die in the bathtub per year, but only 1 out of 20 million people die from a terrorist attack each year. In concurrence, the recent countries that have experienced attacks have created security mechanisms to evade terrorists entering the country with weaponry.

Also, the listed countries thrive off of the money made from tourists. Without tourists roaming every inch of the diverse countries, economies would suffer and hurt the country altogether.

The world is full of unknowns. One of these may be terrorist attacks in international countries.

However, bus or plane crashes are just as unpredictable, yet we do not question the action of stepping into a bus or plane

Who is the better candidate?

■ By Aden Savett (‘19) For Eastside

After nearly eight years under Governor Chris Christie’s disastrous stewardship, New Jersey needs a leader who cares about its citizens. The Democratic gubernatorial candidate, Phil Murphy, is that leader.

Murphy believes that the government should implement rules to even the playing field, allowing women the same labor and employments benefits as men. In addition to advocating in favor of paid family leave time, Murphy wants to provide more opportunities for women to get involved in STEM programs, an area disproportionately run by men. Murphy also understands that we need to love our LGBTQ brothers and sisters: he wants to allow them to select their gender on birth and death certificates and ensure that facilities such as bathrooms are not discriminatory among gender or sexual orientation.

Murphy also seeks major education reform, an area utterly ignored by the most anti-teacher governor in our state’s history. Murphy wants to abide by the agreed-upon formula to fund the state’s pension system – a victory not just for teachers, but other public employees like our first responders – and eliminate unnessary standardized testing.

Climate change, arguably the defining issue of our time, is something Murphy takes seriously, too.

He wants to make New Jersey a green state by banning fracking, incentivizing energy efficiency and expanding solar energy use that will create thousands of jobs. If the workers installing those solar panels need to unionize, Murphy will be there for them.

Murphy also intends to tackle rising property taxes. While taxes are an important and necessary

aspect of government, they are disproportionately burdening in New Jersey’s middle class and working people. That’s why Murphy is prioritizing easing the property-tax burden so that New Jersey is a more affordable state for its citizens, specifically those in the middle, working class.

With the federal government’s crackdown on immigration, Murphy wants to protect crucially important immigrant communities.

He wants to legitimize and support undocumented r e s i dents by providing them w i t h s t a t e identification and extending in-state financial aid to DREAMers, children born to immigrant parents in the United States.

While opponents might question Murphy’s positions given his career in the financial sector, that experience has shaped his ideas to expand our state’s economy.

Though Murphy has never held elected office, his diplomacy skills forged as U.S. Ambassador to Germany under President Obama will bolster his ability to forge compromises with those holding competing beliefs.

Murphy has bold ambitions from fully legalizing marijuana to expanding voting rights to enacting a millionaire’s tax and closing corporate tax loopholes. With his bold ideas, Murphy is the right candidate for New Jersey’s future.

■ By Aaron Kopew (‘19) For Eastside

New Jersey, with Election Day quickly approaching, it is important to pay attention to the candidates. Kim Guadagno may be behind, but that is no reason to dismiss her. With so many issues including taxes, education, the environment and minimum wage, this election could drastically change the course o f

N e w Jersey.

With lifechanging issues on the table, it is important to pick Guadagno over Phil Murphy. Murphy will drastically hurt workers, businesses and schools.

Guadagno’s first experience in public service was in 1988 when she joined an anti-crime task force, specializing against illegal racketeering. Soon after, she rose to the position of Assistant United States Attorney for New Jersey. During her time she received the Department of Justice’s highest honor for her prosecutions of two corrupt public officials. Currently, she is New Jersey’s Lieutenant Governor.

during everyday life. In this case, why should we emphasize the question on traveling?

What seems to sometimes be a trivial issue is certainly not. Travel creates three main opportunities for people: it opens one’s mind to new cultures and traditions, creates a deeper understanding of the world and allows for the creation of international connections.

It allows people to see a new lifestyle and create a new perspective. Fear shuts one off from reality and takes away opportunities such as these.

Even though one should not fly into a victim country the day after the attack, the countries will recover and adapt so one can visit them later in life. When looking back at one’s life, regret is surely a burden in the back of one’s mind.

To avoid this possible regret, travel when an opportunity seeks. And the next time a relative or friend sends the State Department warning before a planned trip, remind them that traveling is the best cure to ending terrorism.

Art by Rose Ni (‘18) / Eastside Art Director

Although topics such as jobs and taxes might seem like foreign issues to students, every change to economic policy by Murphy can cost New Jersey businesses and jobs. Guadagno is against the fifteen-dollar minimum wage and the removal of the real estate tax increase cap, two of Murphy’s promises. Murphy’s suggested 180 percent increase in the minimum wage and removal of the cap on increasing property taxes each year will not do New Jersey businesses right.

A large portion of Guadagno’s future constituents care deeply about environmental issues. Guadagno’s plan is to rejoin the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a multi-state effort to clamp down on carbon pollution. Guadagno agrees with Murphy on the environment in addition to loosening marijuana restrictions. However, she would prefer increased access to medical marijuana and decreases in drugrelated sentencing.

The biggest issue affecting students is education. The funding for schools is based off of an antiquated formula, which is a weighted per capita funding formula all New Jersey schools’ state funding is based upon. Murphy supports this formula, which deeply underfunded certain schools, whereasGuadagno knows this equation is unstable. Guadagno wants to completely remove the current formula and fully fund schools.

Given these points, it is necessary to take another look at the election. It is important to take a look at the candidates running to compare them on their economic and social policies as well as their qualifications. Guadagno is the candidate who will bring New Jersey to a drastically better state economically, educationally and environmentally.

Art by Sabrina DeAbreu (‘18)/ Eastside Art Director

ENTERTAINMENT

Zimbabwe: A view from afar Page 14

EASTSIDE

October 2017

popular sport in the nation, ed States. To date, nearly than street vendors or open although tennis, rugby 95 percent of the nation is air markets. This chain and football (soccer) mainunemployed as a result of consisted of a “Creamy

tain large followings. On financial mismanagement Inn,” “Chicken Inn” and This July, my trip, the only sports “Pizza Inn,” I travI saw on television were along with a eled to the updates on international seeminglysoutherncricket championships, unrelated African rugby trade deals and the burger joint, country like.

“Steers.” As of ZimbaAnd, in case you were to access bwe with interested, another conseto a televimy father and brother for quence of British colonision, I didn’t a family friend’s wedding zation? Tea. see a single anniversary. I traveled Tea is a staple beverone outside around the country for ten age of the country, and of Harare. days and, along the way, many in Zimbabwe inDue to the was able to compare the corporate “tea time” into current interests and activities of their daily routines. The economic people in the United States preferred tea of the counstatus of with those living in Zimbatry is a black tea called Zimbabwe, bwe. “rooibos.” In contrast to areas outAmericans, few side of tournative Zimbaist destinabweans drink tions like coffee.

FurVictoria thermore, Coca Falls or the Cola is not the more afflucountry’s mostent areas popular soft of Harare drink. Instead, don’t offer people prefer much to do “Mazoe Orange (at least in Crush,” a drink the eyes of similar to Fanthis Amerita. can).

If you were It may looking for seem as good comedy though I’m clubs in Zimbadescribing bwe, they don’t Zimbabwe exist.

Robert as a thirdMugabe, the world councountry’s dictatry.

After tor, does much all, I have Harry Green (‘20)/ Eastside Entertainment Editor to repress the said that Rooibos is served during breakfast. voice of anyone there were who opposes no televihis policies. Unby the government, among sions, no restaurants and der his authority, other issues. As a result, almost no cell phone covthe government there are nearly no opporerage. Yet, despite these has consistently tunities for small businessthings, the country truly seized the land es to open. is beautiful in a rawer, and property of While on my trip, I more natural sense. The people who spoke quickly took notice of the ineffable beauty of places out against him. austerity in public enterlike Victoria Falls and the This type of retainment venues. There wide African savannah left pression makes were no movie theaters, me awestruck. The people Harry Green (‘20)/ Eastside Entertainment Editor comedians, comwhether we were in the there are some of the most Visitors to Victoria Falls watch a rainbow over the Zambezi. edy clubs and capital city of Harare or in humble, kind and clever I satire off limits Victoria Falls (twelve hours have ever had the pleasure From the start, I was to a football field, baseball as forms of entertainment. away). There were no bowlof meeting. caught a bit off guard in field or even a gym, then In the United States anying alleys, baseball fields or Zimbabwe has fallen on finding that reliable cell you are in for a rude awakone is free to make fun of gyms. There were no highespecially hard times in rephone coverage in Zimbaening. Since the country the president, while Zimend restaurants or even cent years, but the sense of bwe is more rumor than rewas a British colony until babweans can be arrested recognizable chain restaucharm I felt about it has not ality. The house my family 1965, the country’s intersimply for taking a picture rants. Instead, a single lessened since I left. If I’m stayed in purportedly had est in sports is heavily-inof Mugabe’s motorcade. chain of restaurants reprelucky, an opportunity like the best internet connecfluenced by England. Many Finally, Zimbabwe just sented the only legitimate this occurs more than once tion of our group. However, consider cricket the most isn’t as wealthy as the Unitdining opportunities other in a lifetime.

■ By Harry Green (‘20)

Eastside Entertainment Editor

I soon became frustrated upon discovering that a single Instagram post took a full minute to load. This inconsistency in internet coverage prevented me from efficiently accessing several social media outlets I would take for granted in the States. Facetime calls were frequently disconnected. Snapchat never activated. Safari did not work for the majority of the trip. I quickly became aware that a steady use of social media was a luxury I would only find in a select few countries.

If you were to go to Zimbabwe expecting to find anything remotely similar

Amazon dominates the e-shopping world

■ By Gregory Rothkoff (‘19)

Eastside Entertainment Editor

There are not many companies that have done what Amazon has done. Solidifying itself as the premier store in shopping, four dollars out of every ten dollars spent on the American online marketplace is with Amazon. According to Forbes, 64 percent of American households have an Amazon Prime account.

The great success experienced by Amazon is in large part thanks to the visionaries at the company.

For 100 dollars a year, you get free two-day, oneday or same-day shipping on at least 20,000,000 items. If the shipping is

not enough for you, there even bigger than Prime. is also a wide library of For only an extra 15 dolshows and movies, music lars a month, Amazon and books. Although the will give you unlimited Prime Video feature is grocery shipments. Amabelow the likes of Hulu, zon has everything from Netflix and HBO, it is pretzels to shrimp. Along still a pretty good deal. with its recent purchase It seems as if products of Whole Foods, the oron Amazon have lower ganic brand “365” has prices than products made its way onto Amaanywhere else. If you zon’s virtual shelves. frequently buy a product The Prime and Fresh through Prime, you can features are huge consubscribe to it and save tributors to Amazon’s money on its shipments. success, but its line of With many American electronics has made a households, including dent in the cluttered tech mine, that seem to almarketplace. The Amaways be in need of somezon Echo, with competithing else, it is easy to tion from Google and, see why Amazon Prime most recently, Apple, Eli Weitzman (‘20)/ Eastside Webmaster still seems to be the is a no-thought-about-it Amazon lowers Whole Foods’ pric- front-runner in smart purchase.

Getting products deliv- es, as shown on this sign. speakers. ered is not the only thing The line of Fire tabzon’s success. The Amazon that Amazon specializes in; lets, starting at 50 dollars, Fresh feature will continuthe online grocery store has is also an intriguing option, ally develop and become also contributed to Amaraising brand popularity

for Amazon’s name.

The biggest step for Amazon in the clothing retail space has been its partnership with Nike announced in June. This gives Amazon a legitimate hold of the retail clothing market, leading to fear from similar brands. Going back to Amazon’s purchase of Whole Foods, the grocery competition, even for organic food, has completely changed thanks to Amazon.

Amazon has packed so many features into such a good price, making it easy to see why consumers are opting to go with the online retail giant. Its lineup of technology and companies has made Amazon a cool product for a household to have. Amazon’s vision with the aforementioned products is unlike any other company, leading to a great deal of success.

ENTERTAINMENT

History of Games October 2017

EASTSIDE

Chess stands the test of time ■ By Harry Green (‘20)

Eastside Entertainment Editor

Checkmate. Stalemate. Pawn. Endgame. All of these words have been developed into common phrases in the English language. However, these expressions arose from a game older than English itself. Chess has evolved over the course of more than a thousand years to become the game we recognize today.

The history of chess begins in sixth-century India. At the time, the game was referred to as “chaturaga” or “four divisions of the military.”

Today, these divisions are recognized by the differing chess pieces: The pawn representing infantry, the knight representing cavalry, the bishop representing elephantry and the rook representing chariotry.

Chess spread throughout the world through

trade routes exiting India. The game became popular in Persia around the year 600, where the first inklings of chess-related phrases appeared. People described an attack on their opponent’s king as "Shāh!" which was Persian for king.

The term "Shāh Māt!" which was exclaimed whenever the king could not be defended, later became the phrase “checkmate!”

By the mid-1100s, the game had spread to central Europe. By 1400, chess was well-established across the continent and operated under the same basic rules used today.

The first international chess tournament occurred in London in 1851.

Modern chess pieces were conceived in the mid-1800s by English chess master Howard Staunton.

Today, chess remains ubiquitous. There are several international chess tournaments, magazines and clubs.

Its enduring popularity is likely owed to the timelessness of its themes. In the end, chess captures the age-old struggle for power and dominance.

Monopoly maintains popularity ■ By Gregory Rothkoff (‘19)

Eastside Entertainment Editor

Who does not remember the long hours spent buying properties, paying rent and, of course, going to jail? This nostalgic family fun game known as Monopoly has deep roots dating back to the early twentieth century in the home of inventor Lizzie Maggie.

Maggie was a stenographer whose progressive views drove her to create a board game that reflected her beliefs.

The original game was called the “Landlord’s Game,” which Maggie believed reflected the present system of buying property and all the outcomes and consequences to follow. The game had a set of rules for anti-monopolists, where all wealth was distributed, and monopolists, where the goal was to crush opponents.

On March 23, 1903, Maggie brought her game to the U.S. Patent Office to secure her legal claim to the game. The game became very popular with progressives and in the Quaker communities where it was introduced to Charles Darrow.

Darrow took the game to Parker Brothers in 1935 and introduced it as “Monopoly”. The Parker Brothers then bought the rights to Maggie’s “Landlord Game”. Maggie received 500 dollars and no royalties, while Darrow became very wealthy by receiving royalties throughout his life.

Darrow at first believed the player’s pieces should be household items such as a button or lighter, but Darrow’s niece suggested using charms from a bracelet. That suggestion would create the most iconic part of the Monopoly game.

The game has remained pretty much the same, besides the 300 different licensed versions that were created. The changes have come in the form of pieces. The original Thimble and Top Hat have prevailed since its inception – until now. The most recent edition of the game features the Scottie dog, top hat, roadster car, cat and battleship.

Maggie’s story was forgotten until 1973, when Ralph Anspach brought her story to light. The case lasted a decade and ended with Maggie being credited as the inventor with indisputable evidence from Anspach.

Still, Parker Brothers’ parent company, Hasbro, still credits Darrow with the invention. Despite the changes made in the game of Monopoly, the all- too-familiar “Go To Jail” space has stayed the same since Lizzie Maggie’s original version.

Art by Sabrina DeAbreu (‘18)/ Eastside Art Director

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The next food trend in South Jersey: a berry?

■ By Claire McFadden (‘19)

Eastside Staff

For the last thirty years, health and fitness trends have been all the rage. Gluten-free, fat-free and lowcarb diets are advertised on nearly every television channel. Countless studies come out with new health advice daily. Welcome to the 2017 version of kale: acai bowls.

Smoothie bowls allow consumers to treat themselves to something sweet without feeling guilty after.

Acai bowls are made up of a smoothie base generally consisting of green vegetables such as spinach, milk and the acai berry.

Fruit, nuts, granola and oatmeal are some of the possible toppings.

The acai berry is only grown in parts of Central and South America, particularly in the rainforests of the Amazon. Acai berries look like purple blueberries but with a darker juice on the inside.

Health experts from the Global Healing Center praise the berry for its nutritious benefits. This berry is believed to aid in weight loss, heart health and skin health. Acai berries are also known for their positive anti-aging and immune system effects. According to the Huffington Post, acai berries have more antioxidants than cranberries, blueberries, strawberries

Jenna Ringold (‘19)/ For Eastside

Acai bowls are popular purchases at California Frozen Yogurt in Margate. and raspberries.

New York City and EngMargate and Soulberri in Restaurants that serve land. Some local locations Brigantine. acai bowls are popping include B Good in MarlNatalie Hay (’19) beup in places all over the ton, Animo in Haddonfield, lieves that acai bowls are world, including Boston, California Frozen Yogurt in a positive addition to her

daily life and diet.

“Acai bowls are great for breakfast, a snack or dessert. They make me feel so energetic afterwards,” said Hay. However, not everyone finds these bowls so magical.

Erin Quay (’18) said, “I had an acai bowl once, and didn’t love it. I found it too sugary.”

Articles have come out debating whether acai bowls are actually as healthy as advocates claim.

SHAPE magazine recommends that in order to receive maximum nutritional benefits, consumers should add natural toppings and sweeteners.

In a world centered around social media, acai bowls make a great post.

They are colorful and meticulously organized. A lightly colored base can be topped with any pattern of color-coordinated toppings.

The arrangements are satisfying to the human eye and promote health in a fitness-crazed society. This encourages consumers to buy them not only to eat, but also to share for guaranteed likes.

Whether you’re up-todate with recent “foodie” trends or not, you may as well try one of these smoothie bowls on your next meal out, and decide if they are worthy of being hailed as the “next big thing” in health and fitness dieting.

Hardcopy and paperback books rise in sales over the e-book

found that students really like the physical books.

They’re much more likely to check one out, even with With the invention of the e-books available,” said modern e-book, consumers Greenblatt. and companies alike braced The surge in for the eventual book sales could decline of physical also be due to the books. When Amfeeling of nostalgia azon stated that the younger genit had sold more erations feel about electronic books the technology and than hardcopy in lifestyle of their 2011, it seemed parents and grandlike the end was parents. It’s a simiimminent for the lar concept to the print industry. recent popularity However, new of vinyl records, in data suggests which a person feels that the resilience more connected to of physical books the past by using is not to be disitems of that time. counted.

Physical books In 2016, for the are also an advanfirst time in ten tage to those who years, publisher are trying to limit revenue in all fortheir time spent on mats saw growth, screens. In an age while e-book sales where it is reportfell 16.5 percent, ed by the Nielsen according to a reCompany that port from the AsAmericans spend sociation of Amerover ten hours a ican Publishers. day consuming meThe United dia, paper books Kingdom also exare a welcome alperienced this ternative to the trend, with five of phone, laptop or TV the largest pubthat many consider lishing companies themselves addict(Harper Collins, ed to.

Penguin Random Although e-books House, Pan MacDakota Rosen (‘19)/ Eastside Photo Editor will likely continue to millan, Simon & Students in the East Library browse through and choose books to check out. integrate themselves Schuster and Haacross the world and chette) reporting But why? What stopped ian for over nine years. able to give access to books into society, the physical their overall e-book sales the growing trend of elecShe is not alone. to everybody at the same book still holds weight in fell 2.4 percent in 2015. tronic books that people In a recent study led by time is amazing. However, the publishing world–and According to Euromonitor once saw as the end of hardNaomi Baron, an American not everybody has internot just because it’s heaviInternational, a research copy and paperback books?

University linguistics pronet accessibility... and I’ve er. group, e-book sales fell by ■ By Claire Joanson (‘19)

Eastside Staff

40 percent between 2011 to 2016.

This data suggests that e-books do not have the once-predicted power to replace the physical book.

“In my personal experience, I like to hold the book.

Everything about the physical book is so much better to me,” said Ms. Abbey Greenblatt, an East librar-

fessor, 92 percent of college students said that they prefer a physical copy of a book to an electronic one.

“E-books are a great resource. The idea of being

October 2017

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Page 17

MoviePass announces new subscription movie ticket service

believe they’ll can no longer share the revbe fulfilled…

Eastside Underground Editor enue and profit will not proWith popular entertainits… we can be vide sufficient ment services like Netflix a valuable memrevenue to and Amazon Prime, the ber of the movoperate qualmembership service in the iegoing ecosysity theatres movie industry has skytem.” nor will it prorocketed, while the theIn terms of duce enough ater industry has declined. profit, Hyder income to proHowever, a company called Alikhan (‘18) bevide filmmakMoviePass has taken both lieves that Movers with suffia different approach to the iePass will benecient incentive growing trend, and develfit both theaters to make great oped a way to solve the apand moviegoers. new movies... parent problem in the the“I think that We are acater industry. Its solution? in putting [Movtively work$9.95 a month for a differiePass] in place, ing now [with ent movie showing every it’s a win for both our attorneys] day. the consumer to determine Originally founded in and the theater. whether it 2011, MoviePass previously The consumer may be feafocused on earning revenue will get a good sible to opt from members who did deal for movie out and not not go to the theater often tickets and theparticipate in enough to justify the origiaters will make this shaky and nal monthly $30 fee. It was a profit from unsustainable only recently that the commore customprogram.” pany announced the draers and concesIn response matic change in the price sions,” Alikhan to AMC’s Rose Ni (‘18)/Art Director press release from $30 to $9.95, which said. only covers 2D movies and However, not MoviePass and popcorn sit in a movie theater. indicating its is approximately the price all share simidesire to reject lar senMoviePass, people won’t be able to go timents. For some, Lowe explained his opinion to the movies much beMoviePass seems too in an interview with CNET. cause of transportation or good to be true or just Lowe indicated that Moviethey’re just too busy. Even not feasible in the Pass does not currently rely if some people do use it oflong run. on partnerships with major ten enough, people will just Jocelynne Dorotan theaters like AMC to operrun out of movies to watch,” (‘18) said, “Initially, ate its service; it simply Wu said. it will make a big imuses the services of MasterThe low membership pact with an influx of Card. Essentially, it is able cost for the service has also people. After that, [it to operate in theaters that generated unease amongst will start to imitate] use MasterCard without ofsome major theater compaa gym membership, ficial theater consent. nies, most recently AMC. with inactive memDespite the mixed reIn a recent press rebers and a decrease in actions over MoviePass lease from AMC, the thepeople.” from both theaters and the ater company stated, “The Allen Wu (‘18) sugpublic alike, the service

Courtesy of Screen Rant gests that MoviePass [MoviePass] price level is is quickly rising to mainFeatured MoviePass card and the corresponding app. unsustainable and only sets will not succeed due stream popularity and, if up consumers for ultimate to outside factors. successful, will completely disappointment down the of a single ticket. aters more often and make “Of course it will make a change the dynamic of the road if or when the product Mitch Lowe, commonly the studios more money, we difference at first, but some theater industry.

■ By David Le (‘18)

known as one of the early executives of Netflix and former president of Redbox, is CEO of this startup company. He believes that the key to the revitalization of the theater industry lies in services of MoviePass and its inexpensive ticket subscriptions.

A sizeable amount of consumers seem to be in favor of the service and its price change. Brett Kamen (‘18) thinks that the service is a good idea for the community.

“Not only will it bring people back to the theaters, but it will also open [theaters] up to people who usually don’t have the money to see movies,” Kamen said.

“With [students], it might not work out during school, but it would be very popular during the summer.”

The goal of MoviePass as a business is to attract more customers more often.

In an interview with CNET, Lowe said, “If we can get people to the the-

Out of the Vault: Heelys roll their way into extinction ■ By Jared Fisch (‘18)

Eastside Managing Editor

Nothing says “rad” more than a sweet pair of Heelys.

The convenience of being able to walk or roll made the Heely a particularly ingenuitive style of footwear that managed to separate itself from the standard shoe market.

The roller shoe, originally known as Heeling Sports Limited, was patented by Roger Adams in 1999. In each sole was a removable wheel that allowed users to either walk on the front half of their shoes or wheel around on their heels. The roller shoe concept was similar to inline roller blades; however, the shoe only used one wheel in the back.

With Heelys, users could walk or even run, then immediately switch to rolling by putting their weight on their heels and gliding away.

In order to slow down or stop, one could lower the heels to the ground so the back of the shoe made contact with the ground, or simply hop back up onto one’s toes.

The shoes became very popular in skate culture

and even developed a set of tricks.

Special tricks include s p i n s , b a c k wards riding,

safety precaution and the suggested outdoor environment has been largely ignored by most heely users.

The neglect of the suggested guidlines and equipment has led to the shoe having an infamous reputation as “dangerous.”

A 2007 study conducted by the Ameri c a n Academy of Pediatrics found that 51 per Courtesy of Heelys.com injuries 100,000 chilUptown Heelys by Mija. onedren were foot riding, ground tricks, Heelys-related incidents. grinds, stalls, verts (vertiAt their peak popularity cal ramp tricks) and flips. in the mid 2000s, schools The Heely has had been one of the first to been comban heelys because of the pared to potential safety risks inskatevolved with the product. boards Soon enough, shopping a n d malls and stores alike rollerwere also beginning to ban blades.

Heelys due to their uncontrollable danger. This was the beginning of the end for Heelys.

Heely sales began to decline in 2009. The company, which was worth around thirty million dollars in 2007, was worth just a million dollars in 2011.

Despite its decline, Heelys are still around toStandard safety equipday and you can even buy ment is recommended for your own pair at heelys. these shoes due to the risk com. The company has also of injury. However, this begun to release new de-

Courtesy of Science Buzz

A warning posted in the mall prohibits heelys. signs for the roller shoe. Recently, Heelys announced a new line of shoes called the “Uptown.” These high-top Heelys are part of a collaboration with electronic music producer, Mija.

Although the return of Heelys to mainstream popularity is doubtful, the shoes and their loyal fans are still rolling around.

Logo by Sabrina DeAbreu (‘18)/ Eastside Art Director

Page 18

EASTSIDE

October 2017

SPORTS

October 2017

EASTSIDE

DiBart Gym receives new speaker system

■ By Jacob Kernis (‘20) Eastside Sports Editor

Music during a sporting event is crucial to an athlete’s play on the court or field. Throughout the last twenty to thirty years of Cherry Hill East’s athletic and school events, there has been one speaker system in the DiBart Gym. The old system, implemented over two decades ago, had become so dated that the music was barely heard out of the speakers. Although a tough issue due to its substantial cost, a combination of class donations, the school itself, outside businesses and donors chipped in to give the DiBart Gym a new speaker system at the end of last school year.

Although the combination of those groups came together to buy the new speaker system, the majority of the money came from multiple class donations and businesses. The school spent a minimal amount on this project in comparison to the vast sum of money donated by the classes and businesses. The classes that donated a portion of their class savings include The Classes of 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016. In addition, businesses like Abo and Company LLC, Dr. Merrick Wetzler, NFI Industries and the Katz JCC contributed to the new system. Without the donations from the classes and businesses in addition to the school’s contributions, the students would still have to settle for a twenty-year-old system that functions inadequately.

“The sound quality was horrible, and it was very difficult to get anything accomplished that anyone could actually hear… The old system had the old horn-style speakers.

They couldn’t do the array of sounds we needed,” said East Activities Director, Mr. CJ Davis, who organized the efforts over the past couple of years to improve the sound system.

Instead of having old horn-style speakers, the newly installed system has more state-of-the-art directional speakers that are easier to work with. In addition to the more modern technology, the new system has multiple speakers around the gym.

Page 19

Music powers athletes’ performances

These two major differences are a ■ By Adam Dashevsky (‘19) significant part of the reason that Eastside Sports Editor this $34,000 investment will make an impact on all events in the DiBart Gym. The moments leading up to The quality of the old speakers a sporting event can be some of was subpar and this lack of sound the most critical moments for an affected the athletes before and durathlete. They get dressed, talk to ing their games. During warm-ups, their fellow teammates, stretch athletes benefit from listening to and gameplan with their coaches. music to get into a rhythm or their While these are all improper game mode. Therefore, the portant things installation of this new system is athletes do, crucial to their performance on these are not the court. the only reasons Varsity volleyball player why the moments Sarah Pintel (‘19) said, “Havbefore a game are so ing a speaker in the gym to important. Right before a play music during practicgame, an athlete will use es and games is essential. that time to “get in the Music gets the whole team zone.” Get happy, mad, fired up and ready to comhype, relaxed, however pete before a match.” they like to put it. An Without athlete is able music, to achieve a t h these emoletes tions with may not music. be able Crossto get as country energetrunner ic for the Maddie game, L e v i n which Art by Rose Ni (‘‘18)/ Eastside Art Director (‘18) said, c a n faAn athlete uses music to prepare for a game. To “My t a k e v o r i t e a w a y find out what your East athletes listen to, go to song beeastside-online.org. f r o m fore a their game is perfor‘Black mance. The athletes need to be hyped Skinhead’ by Kanye West because up in order for the crowd to get more the drums get me hype.” invested in a game; this will all occur Music has the power to get athwhen loud music is present. When letes in the proper mental state to loud music is surrounding the gym, compete in their respective sports the athletes may have more fun as to their greatest ability. Whether well as the people watching. it is rap, pop, dance music, rock Varsity basketball player Ryan or any other music genre, muGreene (‘20) said, “I think the new sic plays a distinct role in getting speakers will make the game more athletes in the perfect mindset for fun for us so when we are warming competition. Even Michael Phelps, up, we can get in rhythm before the one of the greatest athletes in hisgame starts.” tory, listens to rap music before he Although it was a costly process races. and system to install, the new speakPhelps told Time Magazine he ers will increase the entertainment listens to music “to sort of help and enjoyment of all athletic com[him] get focused, to get ready to petition and school events that take get up and do what [he is] there to place inside the DiBart Gym. do.”

An article from BelievePerform. com reported that researchers have developed six criteria for how music can help athletes: powerful rhythm, positive lyrics, a rhythmic pattern similar to the movement pattern of the athlete, stimulating melodies, lyrics relating to sports and a similar style the athlete is used to hearing.

A survey of 50 East student athletes showed that 80 percent of them listen to rap music before a game with the reasoning to get hyped before their respective sporting event. In addition, 68 percent of the interviewed students recorded that they enjoy listening to music as a team before events.

Girls’ soccer player Jordan Tort (‘18) said, “I like some type of throwback song because everyone knows the throwbacks.”

Costas Karageorghis, the worldleading researcher on the effects of music on athletes, refers to music as “a type of legal performance-enhancing drug.” Listening to music alone or with a team is crucial to helping athletes get the motivation to perform at their highest level; it can influence mood.

Karageorghis also reported that when listening to music, the key is to tap into the brain’s secretion of dopamine and natural opioids, chemicals that help divert the mind’s attention away from pain.

Music is also great at helping athletes block out personal problems.

You are mad about the test you failed. Do not let it negatively affect the way you play the game and hurt the team. Put on that song that just erases your mind and helps you focus on the objective at hand. Grab a speaker and sing along with teammates to get your mind away from anything else.

The game is important, but you indeed must never forget how impactful music can be to an athlete. Whether it is Michael Phelps, Lebron James or some boy on the freshman soccer team, music is powerful. Music is a weapon that should surely be used by every athlete to get in the mind state of a winner.

Field hockey looks to build upon last year’s playoff run ■ By Drew Hoffman (‘18)

Eastside Multimedia Director

Making it deep in the playoffs is usually a huge accomplishment for any team. For the East Field Hockey Team, it was bittersweet. The players were ecstatic to make it to a territory they were not supposed to make it to; however, they wanted more.

They know they could have gone further. This year, the team is using last year as motivation to make yet another deep playoff run.

“We made it to the semifinals, and we beat the first seed,” said co-captain Bella DiAmore (‘18). “We could’ve gone to sectionals and won.”

The girls won games in the first two rounds, defeating West WindsorPlainsboro South and Toms River North, respectively.

However, they ultimately lost a nail-biter to Jackson Memorial High School in the Central Jersey Group IV semifinals, losing by a 3-2 margin. While they managed to have a Cinderella run, the loss to Jackson left a horrible taste in their mouths.

East Field Hockey Coach Mrs. Beth Scharff said, “This year we have a lot of returning starters, and we

ing the ability to have the team work as one unit.

The team is very confident it can build on last sea-

to know one another more, which then translates onto the field. Having closer relationships with the team

Jared Fisch (‘18)/ Eastside Managing Editor

Carli Ciocco (‘19) (left) avoids a Lenape defender in field hockey game. are looking ahead and hoping that this season pans out the same as last season did.”

A big part of playing any team sport is possess-

son’s success, as its unity is a unique trait that many other teams do not possess.

By having psych parties and other team bonding activities, the players get

off the field helps the team perform during the games.

“We are very bonded,” said co-captain Nicole Wilson (‘18). “We are all close off the field as well.”

DiAmore agreed.

“We have a good connection on and off the field. We are not just players that go in and play, we all hang out outside of school,” DiAmore said.

The team will rely on its strong bond to carry it back to the promised land of the state playoffs. The players believe they can do so, and so does Coach Scharff.

“I was very disappointed last year when we didn’t beat [Jackson] in the last round of the playoffs, and we should have won. We are hoping that this is the year,” said Scharff.

Scharff has nothing but praise for the girls whom she coaches.

“We have a very closeknit group of girls, and we have a lot of really talented players that know the game. The knowledge we have of the game, on and off the field, is one of our biggest strengths,” she said.

The team has a lot of potential to make another deep run in the playoffs.

The bond and connection among the players is what will keep them going in the field hockey postseason this year.

SPORTS

October 2017

EASTSIDE

Page 20

East inducts new members into the Athletic Hall of Fame ■ By Adam Aaronson (‘20)

Eastside Staff

For the past three years, Cherry Hill High School East has introduced a new class of members into its Athletic Hall of Fame.

Whether it be former coaches, staff members or athletes, the Hall of Fame is where East has recognized the best of East Athletics for their outstanding achievements at the school.

This year’s class features three former coaches and staff members who have left remarkable imprints on the school and its students: Coach Dave Martin (baseball), Coach Bill Sheppard (golf, swimming) and equipment facilitator Ed Johnsen.

These three men were all perfect matches for the school. The school would find that each of them fit in seamlessly to the society inside of the school that emphasized warmth and

compassion. tively impact others in any “It was truly like a famway he could, wherever and ily in every aspect,” Johnwhenever needed. sen said.

“I hope to be remembered What truly sets Martin, as a person who tried to Sheppard help, whethand Johner it was in sen apart class or on a from their team,” Sheppeers is not pard said. just simply They all their desire have long to win on histories of the field, doing exactbut their ly that. For s h a r e d instance, hopes for evMartin’s ery student proudest they have achievement crossed lies within paths with many stuto succeed dents whom later on in he helped life. get accepted S h e p into college.

Courtesy of Eidolon pard com- Coach Martin pitches to “Whether pared life his team during practice. it was going at East to with them having one on visits or giant family. Like a memwriting letters to schools, I ber of a family would do, he always did whatever I could always attempted to posito help my players get into

college,” Martin said.

Martin’s coaching career at East included 502 wins and 268 losses, including two South Jersey Group IV championships in 1988 and 1998. His team also won nine division championships. He coached at East for 32 years. His accomplishments did not go unnoticed. The current East baseball diamond, “David J. Martin Baseball Diamond,” is named after Martin.

Johnsen felt proud of how he went out of his way to always help students, with their wrestling ability and their skills in the classroom. Sheppard coached girls’ swimming from 1986 to 2001. These years were some of the best for the girls’ swim team. All three inducted went above and beyond to ensure that they were doing everything they could to improve the future of their student-athletes’ lives.

Martin said, “I had ter-

rific experiences with students and players... the memories I have made with them are second to none.”

All three inductees praised the community of caring people within the school, citing everyone from the faculty and parents to the students. Each of the three feels like he has been a member of an extraordinary community at East, surrounded by people who have formed an irreplaceable bond over the years.

Johnsen put it perfectly when he said, “It was like a family in every aspect.”

preseason and doing extra tional varsity players. footwork,” said Jewett.

Jocelynne Dorotan (‘18) The starting seven for and Mattea Boyarsky (‘18) the 2017 season includes will see a lot of playing Pallavi Goculdas time as substi(‘20) as tutes on the the numvarsity level. ber-one “ O u r singles starting sevplayer, en players Rebekah are all strong Colacot competitors (‘18) as the with their own number two, strengths and Sunny Doshi weaknesses, but (‘20) as the we all come tonumber three, gether to form a and Mari powerful team,” Kimenker (‘20) said Lohtia. with Lohtia Jewett and Rose Ni (‘18)/ Eastside Art Director the team hope and Sophia Liang (‘19) with to make this Landen Tennenbaum (‘19) season even better than the as doubles and the addiseason they had in 2016.

“Last year, we exceeded our expectations, so I am hoping to exceed what we did last year,” said Jewett.

The girls tennis team is not all about tennis. The game they love has helped them form unique bonds that will last a lifetime.

Tennis has also supplied the girls with skills they will continue to use in the real world.

“They are developing leadership skills, love [for] a lifetime sport and honest communication and real teamwork,” said Jewett.

The girls love what they do and all of the successes they have accomplished.

They talk with their racquets but play with their hearts.

mainly at forward, they the most elite teams in the corporate long-distance make a dynamic duo that country. running and sprints into helps the other girls on the Becoming number one their everyday routine. field around them. They in the nation does not come They strongly believe that are both valuable assets easily. The twins put in practice is the only way to to the team. perfect their perRoni wears formance on the number six field.

Between and Lexi East soccer and sports numtheir club team, ber nineteen. the girls practice “They trunumerous hours ly care about a week. the success “Roni and I of the team. make training It’s not about a daily habit, them.

It’s whether it is about everytechnical work thing,” said or conditioning,” Head Girls’ said Lexi.

Soccer Coach An important Mr. Lee part of being an Troutman. upperclassman Additionon a varsity team ally, Roni and is not just the Lexi play on ability to play.

SJEB Rush Dakota Rosen (‘19)/ Eastside Photo Editor Leadership is one 01 Academy, Lexi (left) and Roni (right) Schaffer pose before an of the top qualia club team East soccer game. ties the twins that travels possess.

Roni throughout and Lexi’s leadthe Eastern part of the hours and hours of practice ership abilities and hard United States to particiand conditioning. Roni and work have surely not gone pate in highly esteemed Lexi focus on three main unnoticed. The East soccer tournaments. Their team areas: strength, endurance program looks up to them is currently ranked number and skill. Their practice as leaders and role models. one in the nation on gotsocroutine correlates with “They are really helpful cer.com. They have won nucertain days of the week. during drills and always merous tournaments takFor example, on Monday, cheer you on,” said Jillian ing place throughout the they focus on their quads Rivera (‘18), a member East Coast against some of and glutes. They also inof the East Girls’ Soccer

Team.

The girls greatly appreciate all of the work Troutman has put in to better the team and themselves.

“Mr. Troutman’s experience with East Girls’ Soccer and love for the game makes us better players.

He stresses teamwork and dedication, which Lexi and I respect greatly,” said Roni.

Additionally, Roni and Lexi take many higher level classes, including multiple honors and AP courses.

With those classes comes a lot of homework. It requires great organization and time management to be student athletes like the Schaffers.

“Roni and I have a lot on our plate between school work and athletics, so organization and time management are super important,” said Lexi.

Currently, Roni and Lexi are in the college recruitment process. Many schools have reached out to them regarding their interest in having the twins play for their school. They have not decided where they would like to play yet.

Roni and Lexi hope they can kick the team into gear and pull out a winning season for the Cougars.

Other 2017 Inductees: Kristel Haesler Erin Halpin Kristin Kisselbach Gary Kranzley Mike Meyer Bruce Miller Jared Morris Judy Neutze Lisa Neutze John Nicholson Patti Owens Larry Price Rocco Santaguida Lori Watson

Girls’ tennis team looks to continue recent dominance ■ By Sophie Levine (‘19)

Eastside Sports Editor

\ Game. Set. Match.

Do not let the ladies in tennis skirts fool you. The Cherry Hill East Girls’ Tennis Team is quite the powerhouse. During the last nineteen seasons under Head Coach Ms. Mary Jewett, the girls have had plenty of success. They have won fourteen sectional titles, two state titles and one Tournament of Champions. To top that off, the Cougars have had several undefeated seasons.

Most recently, the 2016 season for the girls ended with twenty wins and one loss, putting them in the top spot in the Olympic

Conference. They worked very hard and showed tremendous perseverance.

“Last year’s season was definitely one of our best, winning several games and tournaments, and it has set many expectations for this upcoming season,” said Aditi Lohtia (‘18), a fouryear East Girls’ Tennis Team member.

This season, East looks to rebuild after the loss of its number-one singles player, Stephanie Yanosov (‘17), who went on to play collegiate-level tennis at Quinnipiac University.

“Our girls have been working very hard to fill that void, so they have been practicing during the off-season and during the

Schaffer twins excel on the field and in the classroom ■ By Sophie Levine (‘19) Eastside Sports Editor

Some sets of twins are born with similar personalities. Some are born with the ability to complete each other’s sentences. Some are born complete opposites of one another, with many different likes and interests.

The Schaffer twins were both born with the ability to maneuver the soccer field with their fancy footwork.

Roni and Lexi Schaffer (‘19) have been playing organized soccer since they were six years old. Their parents encouraged them to try out the game, and neither of them has looked back ever since. What is a fun game for some has become an obsession for the Schaffers.

“I chose to play soccer over any other sport because it gives me the opportunity to show my athleticism and technical ability in a creative way,” said Roni.

For the past three seasons on the East Girls’ Soccer Team, the twins have held starting positions and have experienced a lot of playing time at the varsity level. With Roni mainly at center midfield and Lexi