Volume 46, Issue 1, September 23, 2015

MONTA VISTA HIGH SCHOOL SEPTEMBER 23, 2015 ISSUE I VOLUME XLVI

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Special report: Exploring Cupertino’s growth elestoque.org 4.0

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NEWS 04

The hidden costs of college Exploring costs outside college tuition

Linked to help

06 Link Crew help freshmen academically

08

Testing waters

Preparing for the new PSAT

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Part of something smaller

We should strive to be involved in our community

24 Old school, new school Two generations on how MVHS has changed

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How do you feel

Fine arts help students become more well-rounded The elephant in the room Men suffer from gender inequality as well

Special 19

101 09 Politics Out of the Blue

22

What’s up with downtown Sand Hill Property Company’s Vallco redesign plan

Growing pains

Exploring Cupertino’s growth and expansion

This land was my land Teachers reminisce about Cupertino’s past

ENTERTAINMENT 26

In transition

New transgender themed movie ensues reflection on representation in films

28

New foundations

20 Use this old, outdated security software--or else.

OPINION 12

The virtual closet

Social media offers platform for people to come out

25

Applying genuine

Fresh faced

class office finds 29 2016 success after initial

AP classes should be taken with true interest

struggles

21840 McClellan Road Cupertino, CA 95014 mv.el.estoque@gmail.com

Editors-in-Chief: Alina abidi, Kristin Chang Managing Editors: Maya Murthy, Malini Ramaiyer, Sharon Tung, Vanessa Qin Copy Editor: Sanjana Murthy Webmaster: Itay Barylka News Editors: Avni Prasad, Caitlyn Tjong Sports Editors: Pranav Iyer, Kalpana Gopalkrishnan, Aditya Pimplaskar

EL ESTOQUE

28 Upperclassmen reflect on F-credit experiences

13 interest

1

The most valuable F

Entertainment Editors: Neha Patchipala, Anushka Tyagi, Opinion Editors: Pranav Jandhyala, Emily Zhao Special Report Editors: Trisha Kholiya, Anjana Melvin, Mingjie Zhong Beats Editors: Aditi Desai, Dylan Tsai Visuals Editor: Justin Kim Business Editors: Tal Marom, Ilena Peng

Staff writers: Fatima Ali, Ananya Bhat, Shriya Bhindwale, Vijeet Chaugule, Amanda Chan, Ada Chen, Jennie Chen , Bill Cheng, Vivian Chiang, Chris Chin, Ankit Dua, Meghna Gaddam, Aanchal Garg, Sneha Gaur, Elizabeth Han, Sandhya Kannan, Om Khandekar, Aditya Krishnan, Emma Lam, Stephanie Lam, Daniel Lin, Zazu Lippert, Amita Mahajan, Akshara Majjiga, Tal Marom, Isabel Navarette, Nanda Nayak , Issra Osman, Renee Pu, Ilena Peng, Chetana Ramaiyer, Priya Reddy , Sarah Robinson, Derek Shao, Andy Tu, Miloni Vora , Hannan Waliullah , Kingsley Wang, Devika Watawe, Jessica Xing, Sebastian Zhang, Zach Sanchez, Grace Zhao

30 32

You have a new follower A take on cultural appropriation in the media

First week blues

What it’s like to be non-binary in a pink and blue world

33 Senior Nikki Stuart becomes

comfortable in their own skin

Coach to coach

As coaches cycle, both players and former coaches move forward

Tour de Francisco

38 Friends bond during 46-mile bike ride to the Bay

39

from t h e

EDITORS

Musical musings

SPORTS

36

LETTER

The time I got hit in the face Students share stories of being hit in the face

39

Mission statement: El Estoque is an open forum created for and by students of Monta Vista High School. The staff of El Estoque seeks to recognize individuals, events, and ideas and bring news to the Monta Vista community in a manner that is professional, unbiased, and thorough in order to effectively serve our readers. We strive to report accurately and will correct any significant error. If you believe such an error has been made, please contact us. Letters of any length should be submitted via e-mail or mail.

They become the sole property of El Estoque and can be edited for length, clarity, or accuracy. Letters cannot be returned and will be published at El Estoque’s discretion. El Estoque also reserves the right to reject advertising due to space limitations or decision of the Editorial Board that content of the advertisement conflicts with the mission of the publication.

SEP 2015

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n the way home, whether we’re stalled in traffic or stuck at one of the many stoplights at one of the many intersections, we let our eyes wander. To the 7-11 or the Starbucks or that one beauty salon you swore has been there since the beginning of time. But things are never as permanent as they seem: where there is now a Home Depot or a dance studio there were once stables and dog kennels and expanses of green land.

As sophomore Daniel Lin describes on page 25, our teachers can attest to the existence of a rural Cupertino, one in which the landscape is carved out by trees and not condominiums. But rural Cupertino is long gone, and in its place are the telltale signs of suburban life: houses, front lawns, cars idling in traffic. It’s easy to think that at some point in time, a point far removed from now, it all happened at once. The trees toppled and the fruit withered, and houses grew out of what was left. And it’s easy to think that nothing that dramatic could happen again.

But maybe it’s happening now. From rural to suburban. From suburban to urban. It seems to be a natural progression, something as inevitable as the computer industry taking over the

produce one. Still, as junior Trisha Kholiya explores on page 20, urbanization isn’t as simple as good or bad, cool or uncool. When our homes were built over orchards, people lost their jobs and their land as new people built their lives and careers. Vallco, once the bustling center of Cupertino, is now one of the few indoor spaces where your echo seems louder than your voice. Is demolishing it an act of mercy? An erasure of something essential? Both? Who can say?

They’re the same questions tradespeople and craftsmen must have asked decades ago when they saw their land, no longer considered lucrative, carpeted by the homes we live in now. Like in farming, like in physics, like in life, there are opposing forces. A give and a take. A push and a pull.

An old and a new, suburb and city. It’s up to us to decide which one we are.

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The hidden costs of college College preparation causes financial stress for some more than others STORY BY ANDREA SCHLITT AND ELIZABETH HAN

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HE WAS TOLD TO CHECK THE BOX beyond the Naviance messages.

FOR A WAIVER IF SHE APPLIED FOR “I wish I had the list [of students], but I ONE. Her heart sank. don’t because it’s so confidential,” Cao said.

“I didn’t know until I sat down at the “I would reach out to them individually, but testing center,” class of 2015 graduate So- I can’t.” phia Alejandre said. “I was like, ‘You can get For the SAT, this adds an extra strain, a waiver?’” as taking it more than once In a conceptual sense, is a luxury some can’t afford.

I DON’T college is the four years a Alejandre was a victim of such student spends pursuing a unknown offers — only when THINK A major of their choice. The she sat down with her $50 scanLOWER institution itself demands tron on the day of the test did a considerable amount of she discover that she could have INCOME money, but it doesn’t end taken it not once, but twice, FAMILY there. What students do durfree of cost. Afterwards when ing their four years of high she requested a waiver for the WOULD school add up to create what test, it was already too late. could be considered the hidHAVE Apart from the cost of the den costs of college. tests themselves, the level HAD THAT of the playing field often STANDARDIZED TESTS shifts depending on the MONEY are the foundation for colamount of money a lege applications. Over $100 student puts forth in for both the SAT and ACT, preparing for these another $100 for each AP SENIOR ANINDIT tests. For students test and $50 for the SAT GOPALKRISHNAN here, the money usuII — the fees build up over ally ends up in test prep time as students make these courses, such as those payments multiple times a year. offered by Elite Educational InstiMVHS students are informed of waiv- tute or Excel Test Prep. Based ers through Naviance notifications sent out on a survey of 60 MVHS from the college and career center, but the seniors, 73 percent have opportunity is sometimes overlooked. Even taken an SAT/ACT prep if they’re aware of such options, students class. Though must voluntarily come forth to the school to not required, request a waiver. Career and college advisor many parLe-Xuan Cao claims that because the school ents and doesn’t have access to s t udent s a list of students who need waivers, they are unable to inform them

EL ESTOQUE 4 / EL ESTOQUE / SEP 2015

look to these hands of assistance, exchanging their money for an easier way to polish their college applications.

Senior Anindit Gopalkrishnan is one of the many students who benefitted from this trend. Through an SAT course costing him almost $1000, his score took a jump of over 17 percent.

“I paid $800 to $900 on my SAT course, but I don’t think a lower income family would have had that money,” Gopalkrishnan said. “I don’t think that part is fair.”

Although students like Gopalkrishnan are aware of this privilege, many take it for granted. Alejandre recalls that the SAT classes were out of her reach due to her financial situation, leaving her with nothing but a workbook at home to

study with.

She remembers shocked classmates when they found out that she took no classes, which they insisted were necessary for a better score.

According to Alejandre, many students consider these extra classes as one of many necessary steps to getting to a better college, but some people just don’t have the means to afford them — even in an affluent school like MVHS. However, it doesn’t end there. Test scores and grades can only do so much to help a student stand out in their college applications. Thus, to further strengthen their resumes, students take part in extracurricular activities — most of which demand yet another pile of money.

Senior Julia Cho has had access to these opportunities, some entailing more costs than others. She attended a several thousand dollar Johns Hopkins summer program called Center for Talented Youth for two years and also gained an internship at Berkeley, in which she had to pay for her own transportation fees. Though she admits s h e initially pursued both programs with the intent of benefitting her application, she claims to have garnered valuable lessons through them as well.

BESIDES THE numerous spendings under the label “college,” the application itself adds to the cost.

According to the U.S. News and World Report, the average costs for one college application can range from $37.88 to $90, excluding the cost of transcript and Secondary School Report fees. Three or five dollars to send an SSR report may sound reasonable to some.

However, students are often encouraged

to send multiple applications for both an increased likelihood of acceptance and the feeling of security — thus the average cost of college applications in reality climbs over to the hundreds, even thousands.

Following the SAT incident, Alejandre learned to exempt herself from these high prices through waivers schools offered. On

struggle that she faced isn’t uncommon for those without extra hands of NEWS assistance. She had no access to the costly college counselors or other classes. Her parents couldn’t provide any advice. Hence, she had to tackle the process alone.

She attended a few programs Check Naviance for waiver info that MVHS oWffered, inGo to the college and career center cluding La A102 for financial issues Pluma’s college workshop, but wished for Financial aid takes time to process, so she further direcdon’t miss the window to apply tions as she felt lost in filling out the forms Make a spreadsheet with deadlines and submitting them on time.

Seeking additional help, she the other hand, Cho is aware of the costs, contacted one college specifically about but has decided to apply to around 25 col- financial aid, but she received no answers. leges this fall.

“The website wasn’t very good. I tried “In terms of application fees for schools, to call in, but I just kept getting transferred they get so much money for tuition in the to different departments,” Alejandre said. “I first place. I don’t understand why they couldn’t get a clear answer from anyone, so have to charge more on top of that,” Cho it was extremely frustrating.” said. “It’s nice that they waive it, but even Only after a student’s acceptance into a if you’re able to pay for it, I don’t think it’s college do people begin wrapping their heads necessarily [reasonable].” around the costs of college — tuition, dorms, To help with the application process, both etc. Starting with SAT’s and ending with colCho and senior Nanette Wu receive outside lege applications, however, the true costs help like many other MVHS students. Under emerge much prior to these four years. Some their parents’ recommendations, Cho goes costs are more hidden than others, but the to a college counselor and Wu attends a col- fact is that they exist. And students struggle. lege essay writing class. The high “A lot of people aren’t aware about ficosts do not hinder the families from nancial problems,” Alejandre said. “[It’s] not the chance to perfect their applica- out of ignorance, just some people haven’t tions at ease. been able to experience them.” e As for Alejandre, the waivers weren’t enough for a smooth application process. The

tips for the unknowing

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ELIZABETH HAN l EL ESTOQUE ILLUSTRATION

NEWS / 5

Linked to help

Link Crew focuses on helping freshmen with academics AMITA MAHAJAN AND MAYA MURTHY

Senior Aishwarya Natarajan

”

Freshman orientation is oftentimes a student’s first encounter with MVHS and their first encounter with Link leaders. While Link leaders are known for their work during the beginning of the school year, their new focus on freshmen academics has led to the creation of several new policies.

“We worked on [dances] and having Link Crew leaders talk to freshmen more,” Link Crew advisor and Assistant Principal Mike White said. “Now we’re trying academics.”

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I DON’T THINK [MY LINK LEADER] WOULD BE MY FIRST PERSON TO GO TO [FOR ACADEMIC HELP].

Freshman Antara Palkar

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SEP 2015

45%

THIS YEAR, LINK LEADERS will be helping their students avoid F’s.

However, as the system is new, White is unsure of what an intervention would look like.

“One of the ideas that we have out there is that Link Crew will man tutorial,” White said. “My hope is Link Crew leaders will say, ‘Hey, you’re not doing well in Biology.

Let’s meet at lunch.’”

Link leaders already organize tutoring sessions, usually before first semester finals, but White feels that these are too last minute. In addition to adding extra sessions, Link leaders are encouraged to use their bond with students to encourage them to seek help.

“We’re trying to encourage them to...come to us if they have any problems,” senior Aishwarya Natarajan, a Link leader, said. “I think that’s really the whole point.”

In what ways did your Link Leader help you adapt to high school?* *Based on a survey of 177 students

29% 20% 7% Teacher Help

THE WHOLE POINT... IS TO MAKE THIS RELATIONSHIP COMFORTABLE ENOUGH SO THAT THEY CAN COME TO US WITH [ACADEMIC] PROBLEMS IF THEY HAVE THEM.

Link leaders like Natarajan often establish strong connections with their groups and in the process, find that students are more willing to ask for advice without prompting.

“Once in awhile, you’ll get a kid that comes up to you and is like...‘I don’t think I’m doing so well. Can you please help me?’”

Natarajan said. “And I think that’s when you step it up.”

In Link Commissioner senior Mark Geha’s experience, the first step in a student intervention often is approaching the teacher.

Academically

“

The year’s goal is to help freshmen who are failing their classes or receiving either a D or an F. By focusing specifically on F’s, White hopes to reduce the amount of students dropping courses, as well as out of the school itself. According to a study by the University of Chicago, the number of freshman students who fail classes correlates with that of students who drop out of high school.

“If we keep three kids from dropping out, that’s amazing,” White said. “We don’t have a huge problem, but we have a problem. And let’s address it.”

According to Assistant Principal Ben Clausnitzer, approximately 10 percent of students on campus receive at least one D or F as their overall semester grade. The program may expand in the future to target D’s as well. This would keep students on track to college eligibility, as to colleges, a D is not recognized as a passing grade in a high school course.

Socially

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S A CLASS OF INCOMING FRESHMEN stumbles blindly into the MVHS gym for the first time on Aug. 11, they’re immediately greeted by a disorienting blast of cheers accompanied by rows of smiling faces and waving hands. Link leaders anchor the anxious masses, herding groups towards tables with name tags and into the stands for their official induction into high school.

Other

STORY BY

“We approach the teacher, see what’s going on, if the kid is just being lazy,” Geha said. “Then we’ll just slowly get in and be like, ‘Hey, how’s it going? Haven’t seen you in a while, tell me what’s going on.’ It’s not gonna be like, you come up to them and [say], ‘You need to do better!’”

In addition, Natarajan offers blanket advice spanning from scheduling templates for finals studying to offering to tag along when

ts

THE MISSING LINK a student speaks to a teacher. Natarajan and other Link Leaders like her try to keep in contact with their group, in an effort to remind students that they are available.

“I give my Link kids my number,” Geha said. “When I see them in the hallway, we actually have a conversation. It’s a professional-friend type thing.”

WHILE GEHA AND NATARAJAN are able to connect with most of their groups, many freshmen lose contact with their Link leaders after orientation. This lack of connection has the potential to make the year’s focus on freshman academics awkward.

“I don’t think [asking a Link leader for advice] would occur to me...because I have someone who’s close to me and kind of knows me better,” freshmen Advika Varma said. “I would probably not think to go to a Link leader.”

If failing students don’t ask for their Link leaders’ assistance, Link leaders have the option of asking White, who gets a grading report that shows which students have D’s and F’s and can then inform the respective Link leader. While White can notify Link leaders if their freshmen are struggling, by law he is

How much of an impact do you think Link has on freshmen (1 = no impact, 5 = high impact)?*

1

21% 36%

2 28%

3 12%

4 4%

5

*Based on a survey of 184 students

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OUR GOAL IS TO GET THEM INTO HIGH SCHOOL COMFORTABLY AND SUCCESSFULLY.

Senior Mark Geha

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not allowed show a student’s transcript to other students.

Freshman Jessica Zhu sees the benefits in the system, especially due to the unfamiliarity many freshmen feel with their Link leaders would make having a conversation about grades easier.

“I think the policy is pretty great because if you’re failing a class, you usually don’t want to tell anyone that you’re close with.

You want somebody who could actually help you,” Zhu said.

For the most part, White hopes to rely mainly on teacher recommendations to find struggling students. The freshmen’s teach-

ers can provide White with a list of students who are failing the course upon his request.

By targeting all freshman teachers, White hopes to have a comprehensive idea of the students in need of the most help and the subjects for which Link leaders can provide assistance.

Link leaders have taken nearly every class in the school, allowing the Crew to have a tutor for any freshman who needs help.

While some students seem receptive to the idea, students who don’t feel comfortable approaching their Link leaders, or who refuse help, will simply be left alone.

“If the student doesn’t reach out, then we’ll reach out to them,” White said. “But if someone comes and doesn’t want help, then you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make them drink... we’ll do our best, but if you choose not to let us help or take advantage of it, we’re kind of stuck.”

“If we had a freshman who was failing a class,” White said, “and we intervened and our Link Crew leaders were able to do these interventions, and by the semester [the freshman was] passing...that’s a big thing.” e

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I WOULD PROBABLY ASK THE PEOPLE IN MY FAMILY OR FRIENDS OR PEERS OR OTHER TEACHERS OR TUTORS [FOR ACADEMIC ADVICE]... I WOULD PROBABLY NOT THINK TO GO TO A LINK LEADER.

”

Freshman Advika Verma

DESPITE THE NEW FOCUS, White insists that much of Link will remain the same — there will still be dodgeball tournaments and carnivals. Attempting to help failing students will simply be an added responsibility for Link leaders as they help guide their groups through their freshman years.

NEWS / 7

PREP CULTURE Changes to the PSAT/SAT cause students to adapt their study habits to fit the new format STORY BY BILL CHENG AND JESSICA XING

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HE PSAT, ALSO KNOWN AS THE NATIONAL MERIT SCHOLARSHIP QUALIFYING TEST, was created to help students prepare for its scarier older brother — it’s a practice round for students to familiarize themselves with the concepts and formatting of the SAT, which is different enough to potentially throw off first-time test takers.

And now the PSAT, come October, will be the first official preview to students of the new SAT in March 2016.

students taking prep classes can get a higher score by memorizing the “tricks” Coleman mentions.

Coleman, in an attempt to fix this issue, has decided to form a partnership with Khan Academy: an online school that offers free preparatory material for students. Collegeboard is even offering some income-eligible students free registration to four colleges of their choice. By changing the format of the PSAT/SAT, Coleman hopes to discourage the current trend amongst students of using tricks and hacks to get them the highly sought after 2400.

The new PSAT and SAT The SAT has a notoriously bad reputation, according to a New York Times arChanges in preparation ticle, due to its confusing questions THE PSAT There has been a lot of and reliance on obscure, untaught talk about what is changcontent and expensive preparatory IS A GOOD ing and what is not. Calclasses. College Board President culus AB teacher Martin STARTING and CEO David Coleman addressed Jennings has been teaching these comments in March 2014 by POINT...YOU extracurricular PSAT/SAT announcing the new SAT’s changes classes at MVHS for the MIGHT AS set to take place in March 2016. past eight years.

“No longer will it be good enough WELL GET “Our resources are going to focus on tricks and trying to elimito change,” Jennings said. nate answer choices,” Coleman said USED TO IT, “[I’m] not sure what we’ll in an interview with CNN. “We are ESPECIALbe using for the SAT, but not interested in students just pickthe PSAT book we use is ing an answer, but justifying their LY SINCE already in the new PSAT answers.” format.”

IT’S NEW “Justifying their answers” has beThe PSAT takes about six come a repeated phrase, a tagline for THIS YEAR. days to cover, and the genthe current education reform. First eral principles will be staylaunched in America in November ing the same, according to 2009, Common Core plays a big role SOPHOMORE Jennings. in the new features of the PSAT/SAT “There’s a lot more staJEN HUANG — the education system is evolving tistics,” Jennings said. to test students’ ability to connect “Graph interpretations. So, information back to a bigger picture instead that will be reflected in the materials we’ll of the rote memorization of facts. use to prepare. The same strategies will still “I heard the new SAT is more in terms of be involved, though.” content.” said sophomore Krithika Rao. Although classes are the most popular way SAT prep classes, their cost and their pur- to prepare, some students have taken to self pose, are another main criticism of the old studying. Because of her tight schedule, format. While on the topic of memorization, sophomore Krithika Rao prefers to study at her own pace. She studies about two

8 / EL ESTOQUE / SEP 2015

hours on Saturday and two hours on Sunday.

“Usually I just have a book and then I time myself using the timed tests [and] an alarm on my phone,” Rao said, “and then I just take the tests and after that I see what I got wrong and I correct myself. For vocabulary, I have Quizlet sets on words that I need to work on.”

Finding the time and motivation to study for the PSAT can be hard for Rao because she has to factor in homework, daily swim practice and study for regular tests during the school year. However, Rao likes the system she has because of the control she has over her own pace. With her study style down, Rao can now choose to study for the PSAT or the old SAT. “Right now I’m mostly studying for the PSAT,” she said. “I don’t like it as much.”

Sophomores are most likely to be affected by the new SAT, which is why many are taking the PSAT this year to familiarize themselves with the format.

“The PSAT is a good starting point, especially in junior year when you have to take the NMSQT [National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test],” sophomore Jen Huang said. “It is the same thing, so you might as well get used to it, especially since it is new this year.”

A second chance at the PSAT Huang took the PSAT as a freshman at her old school, and then later took a practice test for the new PSAT at a separate site.

“The timing is different,” she said, “and the main difference is the reading. You don’t go back and reread the passage — you read the passage and the questions are happening while you are reading.”

Juniors have the privilege of being stuck inbetween — there’s a lot of uncertainty surrounding the new SAT, leaving many juniors rushing to squeeze it in the fall before it changes. Yet, despite the overwhelming popularity of the old test, many are still signing up to take the PSAT this year.

“I’m taking it specifically for the scholarship,” junior Vincent Huang said. “But I’m taking the old SAT because you know what’s going to be on the test. No one knows anything about the new SAT for sure.”

There are also juniors who, despite taking the old SAT, still want to use the PSAT as practice, or as a way to gauge future options.

“I want to first try it out,” junior Maneesha Kanukuntla said. “If I like it I might take the new SAT.” A l t h o u g h s t r a i g h t- f o r w a r d sophomores and question juniors are both fill in the blank with trying to adjust the correct definito the changes, tion. both agree that the new practice test gives a more holistic obscure vocabulary preview of what The vocabulary tested March 2016 has is less commonly in store for fu- used. ture test takers. questions in context Vocabulary and sentence changes in terms of text.

OLD

NEW

PSAT/ SAT 1

1 Although the Emperor was the highest authority in the Empire’s chain of command, the Roman Legions were led by a Legate (1). The Legions defeated Hannibal Barca at Zama, subjecting the Carthaginians to a humiliating surrender (2).

The Legate’s ------- was skilled at speaking on a(n) ------- basis and could craft an appropriate speech to lead the Roman Legions to victory in a matter of minutes.

(A) etiquette .. inclement (B) paradigm .. radical (C) forebear .. pliable (D) liege .. extemporaneous (E) aperture .. notorious

Which would work best to transition smoothly between sentences 1 and 2?

(A) No change (B) The Romans next marched on their long- time enemies, the people of Carthage.

(C) Scipio Africanus, the renowned general, was next commanded to march on Carthage where he clashed with Hannibal Barca.

(D) The Emperor commanded that his armies defeat the Carthaginians and their commander, Hannibal Barca forever.

2014

OCTOBER 2015

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NEWS / 9

They’re not like us!

Despite their efforts, politicians don’t reflect modern America

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oliticians spend a lot of time trying to get the public to believe that they’re a lot like the rest of us. Hillary Clinton has photos of her stuffing an entire side of pork into her mouth, as we average Americans do. Jeb Bush eats a corn dog, then grills more pork as we average Americans often do.

Ted Cruz cooks his bacon by wrapping it around the barrel of a machine gun and then firing for 10 straight minutes, as apparently average Texans do.

Donald Trump, of course, goes against conventional political norms and just flies small children around in his helicopter while managing to categorically insult almost every minority found in this great nation of ours.

There’s the Donald, classy as always.

The point is, according to our presidential candidates, the average American eats a lot of meat, cooks a lot meat and exclusively exists in a hypothetical version of the

ZACHARY SANCHEZ l EL ESTOQUE ILLUSTRATION

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Midwest comprised of corn and good ol’ fashioned family values. In their world, the booze is cheap and the main topic of porch conversations center around “those darned homosexuals,” “those darned coloreds,” and of course, “those darned feminists.”

Living in a representative democracy

Statistically, the majority of this country is not comprised of its 37 percent. Most of us just aren’t white men anymore, and in fact we never were: apologies to the KKK, Neo Nazis and many of Donald Trump’s supporters. Today’s average Americans span spectrums: skin color, gender, sexuality. We come from all walks of life, born of experiences that shape our beliefs into the entire collection of individuals we like to believe OUT OF THE BLUE make us so great.

Think about the life you live, the people you care about: every person you’ve means that the people we elect need to reever encountered. How many times do you flect who we are and what we care about. see yourself in the people who represent Looking at the current field of candidates, you? we have two white women, one black man, And no, Bobby Jindal doesn’t count. Not two Latino men, one Bush and a billionaire even Bobby thinks he’s Indian. troll doll masquerading as a human being.

The fact of the matter is that the lives Everyone else is a white man, middle aged that we live are as vast and varied as we are, or older, who has previously held public and it’s time our politicians acknowledged office. Or, even worse, they’re Bobby the fact that most of those lives don’t take Jindal, a sellout who tells people place in a cornfield. Honestly, I don’t think his brown skin is the result of I’ve even seen one. a perpetual tan.

Most of us just aren’t the type of AmeriI checked the latest cans our politicians think we are, people census statistics, and who’d be satisfied with different iterations apparently white men of the same chunks of fried meat, plaid are 37 percent of the shirts and just enough midwestern twang population. This is that in focus groups connoted folksy charm in contrast with rather than blatant incompetence. the white men that Changing the demographics of our politcomprise 71 perical representation isn’t something we’ll be cent of the popuable to do in one cycle, or even in a couple. lation running for The electoral landscape is far too crowded President. this time around — lord forbid we find anyone else with an ego large enough to believe they can lead the free world.

In the meantime, I’d be satisfied with just a different gimmick, one that feels a little more with the times than the whole rough-and-tumble farmer even most Iowans agree doesn’t exist beyond Mike Huckabee’s wide and vivid imagination. Even if our candidates don’t reflect reality, maybe they could start accepting it.

To start, I’m a vegetarian so maybe they could try a salad.

MAYA MURTHY

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MEGA PREP

2014 OUTSTANDING ACCEPTEES Brown James L.

Smith College Richelle J.

Yale Jane L.

Carnegie Mellon Jessica L. Anna H. Michelle K. Jasmine K.

Johns Hopkins Anna S.

Uni. of Washington Melody L.

Princeton Johana L.

U of Chicago Anna H.

Penn State Jessica L.

Boston University Emily L.

HARVARD Jennifer Y.

SAT SCORE INCREASES Beginning Score

Name Alice C. Isaac T. Shau C. Christine P. Anna H. Nar M. Rachel K. Janice G. Ellen K. Andrew Y. Anne S. Julia C. Jasmine K. Rachael K. Bill D. Charles K. Eun P. Sera C. Jason J. Jasmine H. Joo L. Il S. Jeffrey S. Anna S. Victor H. Isabelle J. John P. Jennifer K. Brian Y. John L. Abby W. Daniel W.

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Tim C. Jatin M. Mark L. Alec J. Joseph K. Nicole J. Hosun Y. Erin K. Howard M. Henry Z. James P. Alice L. Yoonju P. Eric C. Xiao W. Justin Y. Harry J. Jerrey W. Michelle O. So J. Melody L. Oh K. June Y. Junki J. Jessica S. Byron F. Brad H. JiYeon H. Swetha K. Hars K. Zachary W. Louis H.

Name Suk. K. Grace K. Elysia L. George J. Hyun C. Courtney S. Stephanie T. Seong K. Shawn S. Robert L. Hyejin A. Yeji K. Michelle C. Rhonda D. Jiwon K. Mad K. Se J. Austin L. Jin L. Dae E. Hyeoun C. Jay K. Sae J. Anes K. Amanda K. Grace Y. Ji C. Hannah C. Justina K. Tin H. Jake E. Ji K.

MEGA PREP

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1072 S. De Anza Blvd. A207, A208, A209, San Jose, CA 95129 (800) 738 - 1689 www.megaprep.net 17

Part of something

SMALLER

Amidst the changes in Cupertino, we should strive to be involved in our community

W

ork hard, and all will pay off. This is the mentality that is ingrained in our minds as we strive to be academically successful. Out of a survey of students, 73 percent stated that the main reason their family lives in Cupertino is for the education; MVHS is ranked number 13 out of all high schools in California as reported by the U.S. News and World Report. We follow advice to achieve academic success and find satisfaction in being that student with a 4.0 GPA, or the student that is ranked among the top decile of our graduating

What describes your parents’ involvement in the community?

Highly Involved

8%

class. Our routines are largely homogenous.

This is not to say that it’s wrong to strive for academic success, but it becomes an issue when this culture impedes our involvement in our community.

We know how important it is for us to get good grades, study hard for the SAT and go to a highly-ranked college. Study for tests, focus on clubs and seek impressive extracurriculars. Regardless of whether or not we acknowledge it, the Monta Vista community embodies a homogenous routine amidst the competitive mentality. And we can’t let that prevent us from getting experience in our own community.

Eighty percent of students reported that their parents are first generation immigrants.

We may not be able to say that our grandparents attended MVHS. We may not view Cupertino as our community. We may not

Minimally / Not Involved

52%

find permanence in Cupertino. But the truth is that this is our hometown. It surely isn’t one of those towns in which everyone is a familiar face, but it’s still a place worthy of appreciation, involvement and attachment— even for those who were born somewhere else. All of us attend high school in Cupertino and are people of this community.

Though our family heritage may not be of America and our families may not be fully involved — whether it be not voting, not reading the newspaper, or not participating in local events — we hold a different role.

Though 52 percent of students state that their parents are minimally or not involved in the community, and even though our parents may not view Cupertino as their original or permanent community, we should. As members of the community, we have a responsibility to be aware of and involved in Cupertino. Regardless, the community is in our hands, and it’s up to us whether bbwe stay isolated from it or get involved in the future.

With many changes in Cupertino, we should recognize what the future of this city will become. The reconstruction of the Vallco Mall will transform the entire mall area into a sort of “downtown” space along with a chunk of land dedicated to the creation of more residential homes. The new Apple Campus, according to Macworld, will be finalized in 2016 and have an area of 2.8 million square feet and house more than 13,000 employees. The city’s population grew 15 percent from 2000 to 2010, as reported by the Bay Area Census.

Though this increase doesn’t seem drastic, it does means something. We contributed to that population increase by living here and attending MVHS, so it’s time to give back to our community after it has given so much to us and our families. A visit

What is the main reason your family lives in Cupertino?

Somewhat Involved

40% Parents’ Work

16 EL ES12 / EL ESTOQUE / SEP 2015

14%

E

7

to Cupertino’s website can help us explore it—to give back. We can find more sincere volunteer opportunities that range from satisfaction from assisting our community maintaining Cupertino’s clean environment because our impact lasts longer and is larger to helping out in the Senior center. Research than our own lives. Aside from achieving

by The Corporation for National and Com- academically, striving to improve our community Service shows that being involved munity through various methods allows us in one’s community can help strengthen to see the bigger picture and gain invaluable connections, improve lives and find a sense experience. We get to be a part of something of purpose or belonging. Taking initiative is key to being a part of something and expanding our experiences.

OPINION OF THE EL ESTOQUE We can turn a blind eye and focus solely on EDITORIAL BOARD our SAT prep, five APs and college applications rather than contribute to our surround- collective and more impactful than our daying environment, but we can’t shake off our to-day test scores.

Through various community service clubs presence in our community. We, as students, should serve a purpose in Cupertino be- such as Octagon, National Honors Society yond just our own education. A role to ap- and Interact, we often are involved in other preciate our community and be invested in communities instead of Cupertino. . These

STAFF EDITORIAL

clubs do indeed give us valuable service experience, OPINION but we still need to remember and directly give back to Cupertino. Exploring the Cupertino website and reaching out to the city council allows us to boost communication skills. This is our community, our home, and we are the ones who shape the future of our community, the mentality of the student body.

With the start of the new year, we have a chance to explore our community and develop insight into unexplored areas of our community. With the chance we have, let’s mold the c u l t ure of MVHS’s

14% No

Should students be more involved in the community?

community for the better. Cupertino has a history, and today, we are here to make more of it.

86% Yes

Yes

80%

Education

73% Illustration by Emily Zhao and Grace Zhou

Are your parents first generation immigrants?

Other

13%

Unsure

4% No

16%

O P I N I1O7N / 1 3

The virtual closet

Social media positively influences transgender teens coming out STORY BY EMMA LAM AND SHARON TUNG

F

rom YouTube to Facebook comments, the Internet has been an infamous platform for bullying. Cyber bullying has been a long-standing issue in social media, but even though sites such as Reddit and Tumblr can be known to be hateful. Some people are transforming social media into a much kinder experience — hashtags and reposts are used to raise awareness about nationwide problems.

For misgendered teens who find it hard to communicate their gender to countless people in real life, social media has provided an outlet to come out more easily at one time to a mass of people. More and more people are turning toward media as their new way to tell their feelings “aloud,” for the first time in a while or ever.

Skylar Kergil, a well known transgender activist said this on Feb. 2, 2015, in an online article from the Huffington Post about how his experience on social media made coming out as transgender one of the best things that had ever happened to him. He made himself a second family, with all the support and connections made with members of the transgender community and those who wanted to support him anyways.

“Without knowing the repercussions, I reached a hand out into the world, via the Internet, in the hope of finding love and understanding,” Kergil said in the article. “It didn’t take long to recognize the intensity and value of the connections I’ve made with other trans folk and allies across the globe.”

More and more people are becoming aware of transgender people or the influence of trangender people through social media.

Especially through celebrity influences like Caitlyn Jenner, formerly known as Bruce Jenner, who recently came out as transgender on social media. With people coming out as transgender, everyone is starting to realize how much of an impact this has on our society and our school itself.

Take Freddie Bolongo, another person who recently came out as transgender on social media. Bolongo came out to 2 million people all at one time, according to Mashable, and got a huge overwhelming response of positive reviews. Bolongo gave three op-

14 / EL ESTOQUE / SEP 2015

tions through a mass text; the first one being asking questions, the second supporting the new him, and the last one being neither.

To his surprise, thousands of people texted mostly response one and two, not sending nasty comments back, but actually taking the time to give him a thought out reply. All of them strangers, yet they all supported this newfound change, through one simple message. Bolongo didn’t even have to say it in person, just one click of the mouse, and thousands of responses of encouragement started to pour in.

Social media has given all these people a chance, like Bolongo and Kergil, including students, who are afraid of taking the challenge of speaking out, and has given them the benefit of having countstrangless ers accept them for w h o t h e y a re.

St udents in our school may be unaware of how to come out to their fellow classmates, so with social media, all these unknown students who are hiding the fact that they are transgender, can finally tell us how they feel. Classmates will know what pronouns to refer to them by, without having to ask every time.

But this is only the first step for transgender teenagers.

With social apps like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, coming out as transgender on social media is a way to start the conversation, and the first step for transgender teens to “expose themselves,” or share their pent up emotions. Through shows as well, ranging from Youtube to Twitter to T.V., all have started to open up society’s viewpoint in viewing transgender as positive, and social

media has been paving our way to making transgender issues more prominent. Social media has given transgender teens a way to communicate with the outside world.

Media has found a way to help transgender teens to finally say things they can say aloud. It’s given transgender people an outlet to release some of their feelings of stress and anxiety away. Social media has created the first step to allow transgender teenagers to let their emotions come out for the first time since they knew who they were. e

Is social media a good way to come out?

NO 30%

YES 29%

NOT SURE 28% OTHER 14%

Are transgender people accepted in our community?

YES 36% NOT SURE 31%

OTHER 13%

NO

20%

*Out of a survey of 192 and 191 people

APplying true interest

Our motive in learning has become too standardized STORY BY KINGSLEY WANG

E

very year, the chances of getting a research paper examining the question of One major side effect of this is that stuinto Ivy League universities drop at whether or not AP classes help with a stu- dents do not strive for true understanding. an alarming rate. Cornell University, dent’s learning. In an interview with the They are more focused on showcasing their once known for its friendly acceptance Stanford Report, Pope stated her views on ability to take on a rigorous course load and rates, dropped from a 31 percent in 2007 to on the conditions of taking AP classes. score well on the AP test, in hopes of admisa meager 14 percent for the class of 2018.

“If you are sion from top universities.

The numbers are truly interestWhen administered in 1955, the AP even slimmer for OVERLOADING ON APs ed in the sub- tests were initially intended to provide high Stanford University. ject, there’s a schoolers with the option to skip basic colIS NOT AN OUTSTANDING Last year, Stanford good teacher lege level classes. While AP tests still mainhad a record-low PERSONAL QUALITY——IN and you’re tain that function today, the purpose of acceptance rate of s u r r o u n d e d taking them has slowly evolved into demononly 5.05 percent, FACT IT HAS THE OPPOSITE by motivated strating to colleges both an understanding accepting 2,145 EFFECT. students, then for a diverse repertoire of subjects and the students out of the you’re prob- ability to work at the proficiency of a college 42,167 that applied. ably going to freshman. However, truly learning 10-12 inHowever, these dismal acceptance rates have a good experience from taking a more depth subjects is a monumental undertaking create a false impression of this seemingly advanced class,” Pope said. that will require vast amounts of time; and necessary undertaking — the belief that If students overload AP classes with the there is simply not enough time in the lives overloading AP classes guarantees entrance intention of appealing to colleges rather than of modern high-schoolers. Students focus to a top school. On its website, the Harvard for a genuine interest in learning, AP class- on learning about succeeding at the AP test administration explicitly states that, “While es will ultimately become burden. In other rather than learning the subject itself. the heart of the matter will always lie in words, forced learning. academic promise, we prize candidates with special talents and with outstanding personal qualities.”

Overloading on APs is not an outstanding personal quality—in fact it has the opposite effect. The more students cramming AP classes, the more their peers struggle to stand out. That then raises the bar for others and the cycle continues. The competition only gets stiffer. With more students taking more AP classes throughout their high school careers, the less impressive it becomes. If the average amount of AP classes is increased consistently, it will reach a point where it isn’t humanly possible to take any more AP’s. In other words, a talent is no longer a talent if it is the norm.

Ultimately, AP classes should be taken with the interest to truly learn a subject I think people I think taking rather than that to appeal to colleges as it People are should choose amounts to a lack of critical thinking skills many APs is good starting to overand superficial knowledge about the subject their own classes because you can itself. Taking too many AP classes takes up load on APs and ...but you can [take start harder classa lot of time which could devoted into much they can’t do many APs] if you needed relaxation time to prevent stress. es in the first year hobbies.”

Surprisingly, many admission advisors want.” of college.” and well esteemed lecturers disapprove of.

Denise Pope, senior lecturer at Stanford UniSenior Sophomore versity and cofounder of non-profit organiSophomore Namrata Subramanian Hannah Nordeen zation Challenge Success, recently published Jiwon Kang

AP Report Card

Con

“

Neutral

“

Pro

“

OPINION/15

How Do You Feel One question Five answers

?

Fine arts and applied academics

Despite reluctance, fine arts and applied academics benefit students STORY BY SEBASTIAN ZHANG

A

ttending school in the technology-centered Silicon Valley, students may devote more time to the STEM subjects, focusing less on required fine arts and applied academics courses. However, these classes develop students in less obvious ways, such as building visualization and handyman

Industrial Technology Teacher

Ted Shinta Shinta feels that art builds outside skills.

BENEFITS: Art can really help a student develop their ability to visualize and to imagine things. Many studies have shown [that] people who listen to music [or] appreciate music do better in math.

DISADVANTAGES: I guess the disadvantage for the student is that they’re forced to take a class that they may not necessarily want to take.

abilities. Five staff members and students give their opinions on the benefits and disadvantages of the fine arts and applied academics credit requirement, with a general consensus that it helps students become more well-rounded.

Assistant Principal

Senior

David Deng

Deng feels that while fine arts classes can benefit some students, they often waste time.

BENEFITS: I feel like you can possibly be more well rounded this way.

DISADVANTAGES: Say someone just absolutely sucks at art and is interested in something related to engineering or business... then I think that doing art related stuff is a waste of time.

I mean, you take an art class, you’re not gonna be made an expert from this kind of thing.

16/ EL ESTOQUE /SEP 2015

Senior

Amol Upadhyay Upadhyay feels that certain fine arts/ applied academics classes can turn out to be enjoyable.

BENEFITS: I had to take photography because of a fine art [requirement], and I thought it was going to be a really boring class, but it actually turned out to be really fun.

DISADVANTAGES: I feel like I didn’t learn anything that would have helped me through the future [in an applied academics class I took].

Mike White White believes that applied academics courses can be very useful and bring no disadvantages.

BENEFITS: What I learned in my woodshop class [in eighth grade], I still use those skills to build things around my house, around campus, so they were very useful skills. And that’s one that people don’t see the benefit of it; you might not until much later in your life, when you go... “How do I hang the door, how do I route out a piece of wood?”

ART TEACHER

Jodi Johnson Johnson believes that art classes teach students to think critically.

BENEFITS: I think for some classes, there’s a lot of critical thinking that goes along with it that you don’t necessarily get other places in school.

For example, in the 3D Design class, or in what used to be the ceramics class, there’s a lot of things where you’re actually required to design something and then follow through with that concept.

DISADVANTAGES: [Maybe] students feel like they want to spend more time on their academics, and doing their studying and doing their homework, but I just feel like having that break in your day is so healthy.

Gender equality is a two way street Let’s recognize the other side of the equation

I wa sn’t going to w r ite t his colum n.

It’s somet hing I’ve always wante d to s ay but never did. I’ve always b e en c a ref ul to bite my tong ue, to ke ep my mout h shut in an effor t to remain p er fe c t ly p olit ic ally cor re c t on an issue t hat is so p ers o n a l to so many of my fellow st ulonger sentences for dents. men than women Howevfor the same crimes er, t here comes a t ime in ev e r y i n d i v idual’s l i f e w h e n t h e consequences of not st anding up for t heir de ep est conv ic t ions out weigh t he cons equences of doing so to t he ex tent t hat t hey inspire de cisive ac t ion.

T he issue on t he t able to day is e qualit y, sp e cific ally among t he s exes. I, like most p e ople I k now, wholehe a r te dly b elieve in e qualit y.

However, when it comes to fem inism, I have my res er vat ions w it h t he ide a t hat t he movement is a p er fe c t solut ion to gender ine qualit y.

T he mo der n fem inist movement which claim s to b e promot ing gender e qualit y, pur p osef ully or not, op erates under t he pr inciple t hat men a re more pr iv ilege d t han women in ever y a sp e c t and inst it ut ion of so ciet y w it hout except ion. It’s a sp e cific t y p e of gender e qualit y t hat is b eing promote d. It comes w it h all t he b enefit s but never t he cost s. A s awesome a s it would b e, you a re never going to s e e a g roup of

63%

6

fem inist s c ampaigning for women to b e eligible to b e drafte d dur ing t imes of wa r— even for non combat roles.

It is a fac t t hat men a re cur rent ly more pr iv ilege d t han women a s a whole in so ciet y, and it do esn’t t a ke

r ight s issue yet? Women a re now outp er for m ing men in college g raduat ion at a rate of 142 to 100. A s t he New York Times rep or t s, t his is most ly due to t he fac t t hat t he e duc at ion system ha s b e en ge a re d towa rds qualit ies t hat women a re more likely to p ossess such a s b eing able to remain st ill for longer p er io ds of t ime. T he so cial impac t s a re b ound to b e dis a st rous in a societ y t hat gives more and more female to male college imp or t ance to a college deg re e. graduation rates Imagine t he public out rage t hat would ensue if it wa s discovere d t hat t he e duc at ion system is more ge a re d towa rds t he ac adem ic success of men t han women. Pe ople would b e r iot ing in t he st re et s, nat ional movement s would mobilize w it hin days, and billions of dolla r s of gover nment money would go to proje c t s aime d at closing t he gender gap.

Yet no mat ter how ha rd I a deg re e in gender st udies to under- t r y, I am unable to find a single c amst and t hat. T his do es not me an, how- paign or organiz at ion t hat is de diever, t hat t here a re no inst ances in c ate d to fi x ing any gender ine qualit y our so ciet y where men a re t he ones issue t hat affe c t s males. In fac t, no who a re severely dis advant age d. one even bat te d an eye. We live in a In t he U.S. cr im inal just ice system, cult ure where issues of gender inmen face 63 p ercent longer s entenc- e qualit y t hat affe c t women a re given es t han women when conv ic te d for pr ior it y. T his c annot b e sust ainable.

T he simple t r ut h of t he matter is t hat one c annot find balPRANAV JANDHALAYA ance by fo cusing solely on one side THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM of t he e quat ion.

So ciet y is t r icking it self into t hink ing we a re fight ing for gender e qualit y when we st ill live in t he s ame offens es. Addit ionally, t he a world where I w ill have to regisdispa r it y b et we en conv ic t ion rates ter for t he s ele c t ive ser v ice draft is si x t imes la rger t han t he dispa r- when I t ur n 18 in a few mont hs it y b et we en conv ic t ion rates among while my female counter pa r t s won’t. white and black men. Sound like a civ il

142:100

times as unequal as the disparity between white and black men in the justice system

OPINION/17

17

Photo Illustration by Justin Kim

W

hen we first think of Cupertino, we tend to think of Apple and its sleek, circular designs for new Apple Headquarters, coined “Spaceship Campus” — a futuristic design plan that embodies the essence of technological advancements. Inevitably, Cupertino’s placement in the center of the Silicon Valley, a region brimming with innovation and progress within the tech world, has monopolized our thoughts on what it means to live in Cupertino. But it wasn’t always like this.

Exactly 60 years ago, on Oct. 10, 1955, Cupertino was first established as a city. A rhapsody collection of orchards, vineyards and wineries, Cupertino attracted immigrants for its ranches and vast areas of greenery. Yet with the 1967 establishment of De Anza College and 1960s construction of Vallco Park — Vallco Shopping Mall’s first incarnation, a business and industrial park at its birth — the city began to expand with residential areas and local businesses that sprung up — businesses that are no longer at the forefront of what “living in Cupertino” means. Around the same time, tech corporations also started to establish themselves, taking root in a city that began with rural

origins. It hasn’t stopped growing since.

Today, little of Cupertino’s original rural ambiance remains. The city’s continuous redesigning and reinvention may yet be furthered by the proposed reconstruction of Vallco Shopping Mall — a construction plan that just might reorient the culture of Cupertino.

When we first decided to explore how Cupertino has changed in its 60 years of existence, we found that expansion proved to be particularly conspicuous, along with changes in the city’s demographics. We then asked ourselves: How has Cupertino changed over the decades, and how has that impacted us? How will the city’s increased urbanization affect our lifestyles? And, most importantly: what will be the differences that we will see, if we return 60 years later?

19

Proposed revitalization of Vallco, with new retail and a green roof

D

S T O R Y B Y T R I S H A K H O L I YA A N D D Y L A N T S A I

RIVE DOWN Ste2005, the lower part of vens Creek, and the Vallco was shut down. signs of change are According to Sand all there. A fence hides Hill, Vallco will soon be the acreage of Apple’s Cupertino’s main hub. construction projects.

After unifying Vallco Two-story red and white Shopping District unapartments stand across der its ownership, Sand Vallco where an empty Hills Co. has held meetlot sat just years ago. ings with Sand Hill deAnd then Vallco Shopvelopers, FUHSD PTSA ping Mall itself, an inmembers, and regular creasingly vacant mall Cupertino residents, and that a Silicon Valley real there finally seems to be estate company is trying a direction and goal for to bring back. the Vallco project.

Sand Hill Property Company’s In 1976, Vallco was “Vallco is part of [Cuthe place to be. Vallco managing director Reed Moulds pertino’s] history,” said parks became an instant hit in the region upon opening, drawing customers from many difThe proposed Vallco project has ferent areas. However, that is not the Vallco a town square that would include of today, which bares empty, echoing hallAMC., Bowlmor and Ice center. ways and vacant storefronts.

Sand Hill Property Company, founded by Peter Pau and Susanna Pau in 1988, is a Silicon Valley real estate development company responsible for creating the De Anza Plaza, Hilton Hotel and Arioso Apartments in Cupertino. Now, it’s set on bringing life back to Vallco.

Sand Hill Property Company’s managing director Reed Moulds explained Vallco’s loss of consumer traffic when it was bought out by three other companies. Any change required consent from all three property holders, which rarely happened. Meanwhile, nearby shopping centers and Westfield Valley Fair began attracting more customers. By

We started this project in a way that we don’t always start projects.

We came to the community and we asked [the public] what [they] thought. And that’s not going to change.

Helene David, president of the Cupertino Historical Society, which works to preserve Cupertino’s heritage. “Even as it changes, it’ll still be part of that history.”

According to Moulds, the Cupertino city council will most likely vote on the plan in one year. If accepted, he explains that it will only take about five to six years to construct because the company already has their plans and the necessary funds — the entirety of the $3 billion — needed to build the shopping center ready.

“We started this project in a way that we don’t always start projects,” Moulds said.

“We came to the community and we asked [the public] what [they] thought. And that’s not going to change.” e

Photo used with permission of Sand Hill Property Company.

senior Aarohi Palkar is saddened by the

prospect of Vallco closing. To buy the cheap clothes she wants, she would have to travel farther outside of Cupertino or endure online shopping where she can never find the right clothes size. And if she had to return something, there’s nowhere in the vicinity to return items.

“It’s like living in the middle of nowhere,” said Palkar.

One of the largest problems Palkar sees is how unaware students are of these changes. Though she

20 EL ESTOQUE

SEP 2015

believes that the project isn’t largely advertised, when people do hear about it, they seem to be really passive.

Palkar hadn’t noticed that Vallco was changing until Macy’s closed its doors.

“We’re not completely devoid of things to go to,” Palkar said. “It’s just a lot more effort driving to places outside if you really want lower prices.”

Palkar believes that the plan overall benefits the company more than the residents of Cupertino.

VOICES ON VALLCO

Three students explain their perspectives on the proposed Vallco reconstruction

Senior Nirupama Chandrasekhar,

shopped at Vallco avidly and will only faintly miss the shops that she once shopped in. The undercrowded and cheap mall was enjoyable, but the idea of sustainable technology and the forwardthinking planning that went into these designs are far more interesting.

She sees this as a way to revitalize Cupertino’s downtown, which would not directly affect the MVHS student body, but would nevertheless be a good investment to the future.

“A lot of people here complain about Cupertino being boring and there not being enough to do here, so they go elsewhere,” Chandrasekhar said.

Though she sees the possible increase in traffic and noise disadvantages in the Vallco plans, Chandrasekhar classifies them as small in comparison to the revenue that the city would gain and the ability for children to have a place to congregate.

Additionally, the idea of having a green roof appeals to Chandrasekhar because she believes that having the nature amidst the town would not only be good for the environment, but would also be aesthetically pleasing.

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IANG CHAO, founder of a group of residents known as Better Cupertino who discuss changes in Cupertino, voices her doubts about Vallco’s suggested development project.

Chao explains how many people who work in Cupertino do not live within the bounds of the city. When Vallco constructs the 2 million sq. ft. of office space, Chao believes that there will be no place for the new workers to live, forcing them to reside outside of Cupertino, increasing both traffic and greenhouse gases as a result of more people on the road. Though the plan proposes shuttles, Chao suspects that because the shuttles would be within Cupertino, workers would still be unable to use them to get to work. As Vallco’s new plan calls for only 625,000 sq. ft. of retail, Chao asserts that residents will also be forced to drive out of the city to shop.

“If we want to revitalize Vallco, that doesn’t mean revitalize so it generates profit for the developers; it doesn’t mean revitalize so it generates more revenue for the city,” Chao said. “That’s a secondary goal. The main goal is that it’s revitalized for the community surrounding Vallco, for Cupertino residents so that we have a lively mall where we can go and shop.”

Chao also believes that the proposed effects on the school have been dramatized.

She says that because schools in Cupertino have an overcrowding problem, the creation of an innovation center —a congregational area of Vallco for high school students— would not alleviate this problem in any of the high schools of FUHSD. The addition of 800 housing units is worrisome to Chao, who sees the housing units as an increase in students entering the district.

Chao believes that the way to fix Vallco is to hire national renowned retail consultants who are experts at restructuring malls to attract more people by analyzing spending patterns to find out what types of shops CuBetter Cupertino pertino needs. founder Liang Chao “Are [they] revitalizing Vallco as a mall,” Chao asked, “or are [they] just turning The proposed vineyards will be it into an ofon the hills of Vallco and will have fice center to recycled water irrigation. so [they] can make more money?”

SPECIAL

Are [they] revitalizing Vallco as a mall, or are [they] just turning it into an office center to so [they] can make more money?

of Students approve of the Vallco *according to a development project survey of 182

MVHS students

Junior David Chen went to Vallco as a child

for ice skating lessons with his friends. Now, he goes to Vallco with his friends for movies or with his parents for dinner. Other than that, to Chen Vallco is useless. The idea of a green roof appeals to Chen.

He could relax with his friends and watch a movie at AMC in one outing.

“I’ve always wanted a green place where I could relax and hang around with friends,” Chen said. “I feel

Photo used with permission of Sand Hill Property Company.

like green is a nice color to see in urban environments.”

But even if it proves to be a success, he won’t be able to enjoy it because the construction would not finish until he leaves for college. The change of Vallco would result in Chen losing his memories of Cupertino life, but because of the general positive impact it could have on the community, he has an overall neutral stance.

21

WHAT’S UP WITH D SCHOOL IMPACTS WHAT’S NEW: An Innovation Center with classrooms and lab space for all five FUHSD schools

OTHER CONTRIBUTIONS TO SCHOOLS: New Cupertino Union Student District campus, replace Collins Elementary School’s portables, endowment for CUSD eighth grade Yosemite trip

“It was clear to the community that schools were the priority, so we really wanted to make this happen.”

Sand Hill Property Company’s managing director Reed Moulds

WHAT’S STAYING: AMC, Bowlmor and Ice Center

WHAT’S NEW: 5,000 sq. ft. for nonprofits, meeting space and office space

THE LOOK: Think San Francisco’s Ferry Building — artisan foods, cultural events, movie nights, festivals and special events

22 EL ESTOQUE

SEP 2015

H DOWNTOWN

S T O R Y B Y : T R I S H A K H O L I YA AND DYLAN TSAI i l l u s t r at i o n by Z a c h S a n c h e z

THE THING: The world’s largest green roof

WHAT’S NEW: Gardens and vineyards with recycled water irrigation, outdoor wine bar, community hall and banquet facility

THE LOOK: It’ll slope down as a street-accessible incline, 3.8 miles of trail and 30 acres of park grounds

HILLS OF VALLCO TOWN SQUARE

23

Two families compare how MVHS has changed over the past 20 years

STORY BY MILONI VORA

A

UG. 20, 1990 — LAURA MALONE’S FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL. Filled with excitement, she took in the large MVHS campus and envisioned her next four years as a time to grow form a new identity.

Aug. 20, 2012 — Laura’s daughter Ally Malone entered high school. However, her reaction to joining MVHS was not the same.

“I was a little bit more scared because I had already heard about how hard Monta Vista as a school was,” Ally said.

During Laura’s time, students were encouraged to reinvent themselves. Now, Ally notices, students are pressured to map out their future, and anything unrelated to their career prospects is losing importance — a preoccupation that forces Ally to fight peer pressure and remind herself that it’s not all about college and grades.

Laura, who also has children in elementary school, notices that this increasingly academic focus is spreading throughout Cupertino, even in the lower grade levels.

“There are parents who are saying, ‘My daughter played outside three times [during school]. That is way too many times.

When is the real curriculum going to start?’” Laura said. “These kids are five and they’re in kindergarten. It is really disappointing because kids need to be kids.”

[the increased academic pressure] is really disappointng because kids need to be kids. Parent Laura Malone Photo by Kristin Chang.

I

ALL IN THE FAMILY: Junior James HIbbert and mother Gayla Hibbert stand in front of a tree that was planted the year James was born.. Gayla Hibbert graduated from MVHS in 1979.

August 20, 1990 Laura Malone’s first day at MVHS.

24 EL ESTOQUE

1992 MVHS Football wins CCS Championship

SEP 2015

N A WAY, JUNIOR JAMES HIBBERT BELIEVES he has benefitted from the culture of peer pressure that permeates MVHS. “The peer pressure actually helped me start thinking, ‘Why do I want to do well?’ That helped me decide that it is because I want to become a doctor someday and help people, and I need to do well now to be able do that in the future,” James said.

In this manner, James is able to take the peer pressure and turn it into something that has a positive impact on his life — an outlook that his mother, Gayla Hibbert, supports. She experienced friendly competition herself during her time at MVHS and thinks that it is good to have self-drive. However, she states that there is a limitation to competition.

“It’s one thing if a kid is driving himself because of his own goals,” Gayla said. “It is another thing if he feels like he has live up to what his friends are doing.” e

1997 MVHS Robotics Team is started.

November 2005 Wall Street Journal publishes “The New White Flight” about declining white population in MVHS.

August 20, 2012 Senior Ally Malone’s first day at MVHS.

Teachers compare Cupertino life in years past with life there today STO RY BY DA N I EL L I N

T

I l l u s t r at i o n by s h a r o n t u n g

AKING A STROLL DOWN MEMORY LANE, we encounter rows upon rows of orchards in the expanse of a township that once was — the humble beginnings of Cupertino.

Soon, we see townhouses, the Vallco Shopping Mall, Mervyns and other landmarks being built. Through the eyes of a growing town, we begin seeing growing diversity, growing population — and growing traffic as well. Today, in a city dominated by construction, we see relics of Cupertino’s suburban past torn down and renovated.

With these changes, it is undeniable that Cupertino’s growth will raise an array of opinions, questions and concerns.

To people like business teacher Jeff Mueller, an MVHS Class of 1973 alumnus, Cupertino used to be a lowly countryside town rather than the bustling suburb we see today. He remembers the city as a farmland where he picked apricots off orchards and took them home to eat.

Some landmarks from Mueller’s youth included Safeway, Cicero’s Pizza and Cali & Bros., a majority of which have since then been replaced. Now, Mueller and his wife live in the peaceful countryside of Morgan Hill where they have few neighbors, a lifestyle of solitude contrasting that of the hometown of Apple’s Headquarters.

For others, living in Cupertino was defined by a uniquely different lifestyle. Biology teacher Pooya Hajjarian, who moved to Cupertino at age 12, remembers it through the eyes of a teenager in the 90’s.

“My buddies and I would have a Friday night ritual. We’d go and rent a movie from Blockbuster, go to Lucky’s and grab snacks,” Hajjarian said. “Then [we’d] go to someone’s house and watch movies.”

Today, Lucky’s and Blockbuster are long gone. Even so, one of the things Hajjarian ap-

years and believes that the shift in racial diversity is for the better.

“I grew up being a small minority,” Shinta said. “You get teased and stuff, but to me I just accepted it as part of living here. Now, it’s very Asian, so you don’t feel that much different.”

Shinta also notes the skyrocketing housing prices that have taken place in Cupertino since his youth.

“I know friend’s sister, she bought a house in the 90’s when the houseing market was pretty hot, and paid $500,000 for it. I thought ‘Gee, she’s never gonna get her money back,’” Shinta said. “Now it’s worth Industrial technology $1.5 million.” teacher Ted Shinta went on To all three teachers, bike rides in this area. there are drawbacks to Cupertino’s construcDuring his youth, business tion, higher costs of teacher Jeff Mueller came living, and increased here to shop and enjoy pizza. population size.

Business teacher Biology teacher Pooya HajHajjarian, who Jeff Mueller jarian came here with his lives in the Santa Cruz remembers the friends to buy snacks. mountains, faces traffic apricot orchards regularly. Despite this, Biology teacher Pooya Haj- Hajjarian thinks Cuperthat grew behind jarian used to work at the tino’s growing trend will Kennedy Middle Subway on De Anza Blvd. continue, especially with School.

MVHS being among preciates most about Cupertino’s changing America’s top schools. Mueller, however, landscape is its diverse food choices. believes otherwise. He thinks that the infra“Now if you are hungry, you have so structure cannot sustain any more growth many choices,” Hajjarian said. “There was and that it is only a matter of time before no Islands, no Ike’s, no Panda Express, so it’s resources like land run out. kind of neat seeing One thing all three teachers agree on is how many options that they will miss the old Cupertino in one you guys have if way or another. you want to go out Shinta reminisces his days riding his for lunch.” bike aroundthe city he calls home, Hajjarian However, Cumisses being able to find a spot at the Cupertino’s landscape pertino Library, and Mueller reminisces the is not the only thing modest size of his hometown. While these that has changed memories may be dismissed by others as over the de“trivial,” they stand as momentos of CuperIndustrial technology cades.

Industino’s older days. teacher Ted Shinta trial technology “When I was here, nobody really knew teacher Ted Shinta notes a growth in Southwhere Cupertino was,” Mueller said. “Now east Asian and Indian populations over the Apple has put us on the map.” e

I know my friend’s sister bought a house in the 90’s for $500,000. Now it’s worth over $1.5 million.

25

In TRANSition

Release of transgender-themed movie “About Ray” signals step in the right direction, but leaves room for improvement STORY BY

A

TV SHOW PORTRAYS A GIRL meeting a mysterious boy and falls in love. A short film shows the daily lives of stereotypical American households. A film depicts a transgender individual struggling to deal with the internal changes occurring in their body and the unaccepting external environment they reside in.

ADITI DESAI AND SANJANA MURTHY story of a young teen named Ray (formerly Ramona) who decides to make the transition from female to male. The movie describes his struggle to gain his family’s accep-

Social Commentary Even while the media increases its representation with gay, lesbian or bisexual characters, the spotlight on the T in LGBTQ+ remains relatively dim.

Throughout the past eras, there has been a clear progression of the transgender community in the media. On the right are the five stages of its shift.

In the 1970s, movies, such as Willy Milly, portrayed gender questioning teenagers but by trivializing the difficulties that transgender people face.

tance, as his father refuses to sign consent forms and his grandmother doesn’t seem In the 1950s, the to understand why “she majority of the movies and can’t just be lesbian.”

TV shows such as I Love Lucy and Father Knows It will be among Best focused on the few films that have atstereotypical household, without recognition of tempted to accurately gender fluidity. portray the obstacleheavy journey that transgender people must go through.

However, in comparison to past de- The trailer shows Ray facing ignorance cades, the entertainment industry has and outright rejection, as people quesdefinitely taken powerful strides in the tion his decision and doubt his emotions. right direction in terms of giving recogniAlthough “About Ray” signals a step totion to both sexual and gender fluidity. wards increasing transgender representation in media and the film industry’s attempt to THE FILM “ABOUT RAY”, STARRING follow the example set by television, there are Elle Fanning, is making its own contribution still others who have concerns with the film. to the progress that media has made in recent years with LGBT+ representation. It tells the

26 EL ESTOQUE

SEP 2015

IN THE PAST, THE PORTRAYAL OF transgender people in the media has often been inaccurate and offensive, either due to a misunderstanding or to prejudice.

A study conducted by GLAAD, a media monitoring organization founded by LGBTQ+ people, found that transgender characters were portrayed as victims 40 percent of the time and were cast as killers or villains 21 percent of the time.

Early movies such as the 1986 drama “Willy Milly” portray a “tomboy” who longs to become a boy so that she will not have to follow societal constructs. In later movies, the idea of transgenderism was explored more in detail and uncovered real life struggles of the community. In 1999, the

In the 2000s, shows like Pretty Little Liars portrayed transgender characters as dangerous, furthering transgender stereotypes.

movie “Boys Don’t Cry” explained the life of a transgender man who was beaten following the discovery of his gender identity.

In constrast, transgender characters were later portrayed as unstable, violent and incapable of controlling themselves, a sentiment that unfortunately translated into the way society viewed transgender people. In Pretty Little Liars for example, “A”, who has tor-

mented the main characters of the show for several seasons, was revealed to be transgender, furthering the association of sociopathic behavior with transgender individuals.

Further, the crime show CSI and the horror movie “Silence of the Lambs” both portrayed transgender or gender-questioning individuals as sociopathic and a danger to the public.

However, our current society is slowly taking a step above from the past ideologies, making the release date of the film quite timely. After the legalization of gay marriage and the coming out of Caitlyn Jenner this past year, many have taken the state of the transgender community more seriously. The inclusion of transgender characters in Degrassi, Orange is the New Black and the Fosters have brought the issue into a more positive light. Additionally, organizations such as TransMediaWatch and

In recent years, transgender people have been shown as side characters, such as Sophia Burset in Orange is the New Black.

studen who wants to learn more about different people’s journeys and in understanding homosexuality to join the upcoming fall play.

“I’m not afraid to tackle the [LGBTQ+] issue and I hope [by this] the students are interested in learning more about it,” Capule said.

JUNIOR ADVAIT GADRE, WHO IS openly gay and a strong advocate of LGBTQ+ rights, is very supportive of the new direction in which mainstream media is moving. He expresses how in a world in which heterosexuality and being cisgender is considered the norm, it becomes easy for those who don’t fall into those categories to feel out of place and unaccepted.

“If I thought accepting myself for being gay was hard when there not a lot of other people like that, I can’t imagine how hard it is for them,” Gadre said.

Gadre’s sentiments are supported by Nick Adams, the director of GLAAD, who cited (through the GLAAD’s research on transgender characters in epidsodes) the fact that 41 percent of transgender people report attempting suicide and one transgender woman is murdered every month in the U.S. in a hate crime, making it even more important for transgender youth to see hope in their future.

While many agree that “About Ray” definitely represents progress being made in the entertainment industry, many still believe that it is outright offensive and wrong that cisgender actors are being given the roles of transgender characters, when there is a multitude of transgender talent present in the industry.

A&E

As both a Spanish teacher and advisor of the Gender Sexuality Alliance, Joyce Fortune wants to be accommodating of transgender students, but needs to stay true to the Spanish language.

Q

: How are you changing your lesson plans to accommodate for the transgender community’s needs?

A

: I’m trying to be more gender neutral because I know it’s really important to the transgender community, but it raises a complex question in language classes.

Q A

: What do GSA members struggle to deal with the most?

: They struggle with the world around them and it’s difficult for them to give us time and realize that it’s hard for the rest of us to make that shift. But dealing with these issues now will make future issues easier to resolve.

They’re leaving a legacy.

GLAAD aim to improve media coverage of transgender issues and aim to help people in the media understand these issues and produce more accurate and respectful material.

DRAMA TEACHER SARA CAPULE HAS the opportunity to decide the type of plays and casts in each production and is well aware of the increasing incorporation of the LGBTQ+ community in the media and entertainment.

“Even though there’s definitely been a change, people need to be aware that there is even an issue,” Capule said.

This year, Capule is bringing more awareness to the transgender community through the Drama department by incorporating “The Laramie Project.” The play reenacts the story of the 1998 murder of Matthew Shepard, a gay college student. The story of Shepard discusses the efficiency of hate crimes and the derogatory views towards the LQBTQ+ community. Capule encourages any

The Pronoun Problem

Today, movies like “About Ray” and “The Danish Girl” cast transgender characters as the protagonist, with the focus on their story.

Jos Truitt, executive director at Feministing, a popular online network, expressed his disappointment with the casting choices of the film in an interview with The New York Times.

As stated in the interview conducted, Tru-

itt expressed his opinions by saying, “when cisgender actors play these roles, it perpetuates the stereotype that trans women are just men in drag and vice versa,” Truitt said.

There is no denying the fact that “About Ray” is groundbreaking in the impact it can have on transgender youth struggling to come to terms with their identity.

While it does strive to accurately tell the story that few movies have attempted to recount in the past, it fails to allow transgender actors to tell their own story and misses out on the opportunity to make a bigger impact for transgender representation in the media. Progress is being made, but there’s still a long way to go before the T in LGBTQ+ gets the spotlight it deserves. e

27

The Most Valuable F Upperclassmen dwell on their F-credit class experiences STORY BY SHRIYA DESHPANDE AND HANNAN WALIULLAH

TRANSFERRING TALENT

P

ARENTS FORBID RECEIVING THE GRADE F. Teachers forbid cursing that starts with F. But there is one type of F that is a requirement: The F-Credit. The F-credit includes a series of art, drama, music and other fine arts classes. In order to be accepted into any UC university, many students need to fulfill the F-requirement with fine arts or applied academic classes. While some students describe it as just that, a requirement, others have different opinions.

SENIOR SELECTION Senior Kavya Ramamoorthy explains the upperclassmen course priviledge Upperclassmen who need to fulfill the F requirement tend to take Photography 1 rather than Art 1, Beginning Drama or any other introductory class. According to Art Department Chair Brian Chow, many Photography students are juniors and seniors taking an art course for the first time. Senior Kavya Ramamoorthy is one exception to this generalization, as she took various F-credit classes, ranging from dance to art, throughout high school. “[Seniors] don’t want to face that awkwardness, when you’re in a class full of people who are younger than you,” Ramamoorthy said. “To help avoid that awkwardness, maybe [seniors] might not consider joining Art 1 or Ceramics 1.”

Even though Ramamoorthy needed an F credit to apply for the UC system, she explained that even without a requirement, she would have taken Photography as it helped her to de-stress from other, more demanding classes and still develop her general knowledge and personal pursuits.

“Seniors have more opportunity to take classes, and I think that most seniors want to utilize that opportunity,” Ramamoorthy said. “When you have more options like [Photo], I think it’s better to go with those options.”

Graphics by Ming jie Zhong 28 / EL ESTO QUE / SEP 2015

Senior Thomas Nguyen describes veteran experience in a beginner class.

When senior Thomas Nguyen stepped into his orchestra classroom, two things set him apart: his experience and his age. Before moving to America in his junior year, he was a member of his city orchestra in Vietnam. Playing for more than five years, Nguyen was a veteran in a beginners class.

Nguyen felt compelled towards Orchestra instead of other fine art classes when he was choosing his classes because he felt he would be more successful in a class he already had experience in. His experience, however, did not prepare him for the social aspect of the class.

“I am more of a shy person in the class because I don’t really talk to the ninth graders,” Nyugen said. “[The freshmen] treat me with more respect, [as] they try to not make weird jokes, try not to offend me, but [overall, they] try to avoid conversation with the upperclassmen.”

SCHEDULE CLASH Junior Aniqua Azad discusses fitting dance into her full schedule.

Junior Aniqua Azad first walked into fifth period dance class feeling anxious about the potential lack of other juniors. Knowing that upperclassmen do not usually take dance, she thought that she would be one in maybe 10 people in the classroom who would be in her grade. But, the concern faded when her eyes scanned the mirrors and she noticed her friends waiting there too.

Other upperclassmen were taking the class with her.

“It’s not bad. It just [would have been] embarrassing. You’re that one person that doesn’t have a group, so you feel singled out,” Azad said.

One reason that Azad and many other students ignore their art credit until their later years is due to scheduling conflicts. With Physical Education being required for two years, and a foreign language recommended for three, taking an extra class adds onto the workload.

“A lot of people have other classes they want to take, and being told, ‘If you don’t take this F credit we won’t accept you,’ I feel like that’s taking it too far,” Azad said.

ANUSHKA TYAGI l EL ESTOQUE

Fresh faced

Senior class officers discover difficulties, enthusiasm in inexperience STORY BY ALINA ABIDI

T

HE CLASS’ VOTING HABITS HAVE ALWAYS BEEN ODD. Most class officer teams are decided when their incumbents are fresh out of middle school, and the group steadily climbs to ASB, dropping off and picking up one or two new members along the way, but 2016 is different: None of the five ASB officers have been in class office all four years. This year, they kept their tradition of breaking tradition, electing four senior class officers with no Leadership experience, a stark contrast to 2015’s one new member.

And despite a few bumps, the team is figuring things out.

When senior Maddy Marten, the team’s only member with previous experience, saw the election results, she was shocked — and a little unhappy.

“I was like, ‘Woah, this is going to be a little interesting,’” Marten said. “I expected people from commissions to come in because that’s

LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE SHOULD BE REQUIRED FOR SENIOR OFFICERS

45% 24%

SAY YES

SAY NO

30%

UNSURE

FROM A SURVEY OF 193 STUDENTS

what traditionally happened. All these other people spent a year in Leadership, so don’t they deserve it in a way?”

As she got to know her team, Marten changed her mind, but the early discomfort was present — and she wasn’t alone in it.

“There were a few mean tweets,” senior class president Julia Cho said. “It wasn’t a great way to start off, to [not] have that full support, but it’s just a tweet.”

The main hurdles were logistical ones. When the new officers talked about ideas, like a Senior Sunrise, Marten would jump in and say that they need a motion, only to be met with confusion.

“You could tell there was a difference,” Marten said. “It was kind of hard in the beginning, but now it’s totally fine. Everyone knows that it’s more than just coming to class every day. It’s coming to Quad Decs, coming to fundraisers.”

While the new officers did have to shift schedules, they had already been making time for class activities. Senior Ahmad Ali-Ahmad was nicknamed “pseudo-Leadership” for his contributions to the class, and his lack of experience wasn’t by choice — he just wasn’t elected or chosen until this year. He doesn’t view his or his team’s inexperience as a bad thing, just as a starting off point.

The early struggles of this starting off point manifested themselves in Quad Decs. In the first weeks, Quad Decs was populated only by class officers and two other people.

“In the beginning, there was like nobody, but now we’re doing stuff. They haven’t promo-ed as much yet this year compared to previous years,” senior Tara Arya said. Arya fits into the same “pseudo-leadership” category Ali-Ahmad did, a non-leadership Quad Decs regular, with dedica-

Seniors Shivangi Sharma and Maddy Marten nail a wooden structure at Quad Decs on Sept 13. Of five senior class officers, Marten is the only with prior Leadership experience. tion and a sore throat the day after a rally.

And when they finally did promote, it worked.

A Homecoming Kickoff, complete with its very own Facebook event, had a turnout of 25 people.

The Sunday morning gathering boasted a High School Musical soundtrack to fit the theme, a vegan-friendly barbecue and a group photo with three levels of people.

The new faces aren’t just an obstacle to get past — they benefit the group as well. An allexperienced team would have its downsides, too.

“People would be tired a lot quicker,” Marten said. “I notice that with a lot of returners — more burned out and sticking to old ideas instead of new ones that will get more people involved.”

However, according to some, including 2016 adviser David Clarke, it doesn’t really make a difference either way.

“Even if these kids have not been in Leadership, they’ve probably been in leadership positions with clubs,” Clarke said. “If you’re in Leadership and you’re not doing class officer stuff, you’re doing commission, and that’s a lot like clubs anyway.”

Marten’s ideal ratio would be about three experienced members and two new members — the original ideas are appreciated, but there’s a bit of a learning curve. When spring rolls around and 2017 votes for their class, they might stick with tradition and vote for familiar faces, or they might follow 2016 and try something new. e

29

You have a new follower Media misrepresentation of cultural minorities sparks discussion WRITTEN BY

ILENA PENG

PHOTOS BY ANAYA BHAT

W

ALKING ACROSS CAMPUS, YOU MIGHT HEAR STUDENTS ASSUMING A FAKE ASIAN ACCENT, harmlessly satirizing their own culture. You probably never gave it a second thought, and laughed along. But in other places across the country, innocent actions like these might be labeled as cultural appropriation.

Negative portrayals of other cultures has always been present. From Disney movies to music videos, it seems that every culture has been stereotyped. But the increasing accessibility to social media creates even more controversy about cultural appropriation.

Seeking to stand out from the norm, celebrities often draw inspiration from other cultures. Yet the line between a negative portrayal and a positive representation can be extremely thin. “[The media is] feeding everyone what they want people to think and then people automatically think negatively about that culture,” sophomore Sarah Harb said. “After they’ve thought that and after they have that in their minds, it’s hard to change especially after it’s been said so many times.”

Harb accuses movie producers and news reporters of being the biggest culprits in contributing to the many stereotypes associated with her Middle Eastern culture.

The Disney movie “Aladdin” is based on an Arabian folktale from the well-known “Arabian Nights.” The movie warps a tradi-

30 / EL ESTOQUE / SEP 2015

tional folktale into an exotic movie where princesses have tigers as their best friends. Aladdin parades across the screen bare-chested, with only a vest on. Jasmine wears a cropped top and sheer harem pants, all of which Harb entirely believes is a misrepresentation of the Arabian culture – from head to toe.

Harb was initially annoyed while watching the movie. In addition to the factually inaccurate clothing, Harb found the depiction of Aladdin as a sneaky thief and the portrayal of the townspeople as clumsy and stupid

dia, bindis were traditionally worn to ward off bad luck or to signify that a woman is married. And although its original cultural significance has faded over time, many South Asians still follow the tradition.

To Saharia, wearing it for another purpose not only shows ignorance, but is offensive to those who abide by those customs.

She also points out how celebrities tend to take components from other cultures in an effort to stand out from their peers, not to promote the acceptance of different cultures.

Selena Gomez’s controversial “Come and Get It” music video in 2013 featured choreography that was supposedly inspired

by Indian culture. and during the c o r r e s p o n d i ng “Stars Dance” tour, she repeatedly donned a bindi. Saharia believes that celebrities like Gomez tend to use the customs of other cultures for all the wrong reasons.

“I feel like when Selena Gomez shows that ‘Oh, I can do it too because it looks good but I don’t really actually know the religious significance of it,’ it’s kind of hurtful that she would use our culture for her own benefit,” Saharia said.

Cultural Appropriation (n.)

A negative or stereotypical portrayal of another culture insulting. While viewers may find the stupid townspeople entertaining and the deceiving Aladdin intriguing, to Harb, this creates a stereotype of Arabs being stupid and dishonest.

According to junior Pallavi Saharia, a dancer on the Bhangra team, people in the media tend to unconsciously disrupt traditional rituals when they don’t understand the culture they’re portraying. In In-

Sophomore Natasha Subbaraman thinks otherwise; that it’s rather news broadcasters and not celebrities that tend to use cultural appropriation for publicity.

When Kylie Jenner posted a photo on Instagram this summer wearing cornrows with the hashtag #whitegirlsdoitbetter, the Internet exploded with articles, tweets, and comments. Although Subbaraman is partly African-American, she doesn’t consider the picture offensive, instead finding that news broadcasters commonly warp others’ actions to their own benefit.

“I feel like the media will take things that people say or do and will translate it into the opposite because it just gives them more people to view their shows and gives them more popularity,” Subbaraman said.

Subbaraman and Harb both find that major news broadcasters unconsciously add to stereotypes every day. Because people focus more on the bad events that are occurring around the world, the media’s tendency to only report the negative events creates a biased perspective on a culture’s people.

As Harb puts it, every culture has it’s bad and good side and when the news only reports the bad side, it results in stereotypes.

“I think they’re trying to be part of the culture because they like it… that’s good. It’s good to be exposed and be more open,” Harb said.

Subbaraman says that news reporters

alter the actions of celebrities so they look like cultural appropriation. Harb and Saharia believe that the actions of celebrities themselves exhibit cultural appropriation. Yet, all three think that some form of media, whether it’s for information or entertainment, is responsible for creating misrepresentations.

“I feel like it’s just their ignorance that’s speaking” Saharia said.

Despite the negative cultural representations bouncing across cyberspace, it seems that students at MVHS have just the right amount of exposure to cultural diversity. Saharia feels fortunate that she’s been able to keep in touch with her culture without judgment from her peers, as she believes it’s a very important part of one’s identity. Meanwhile, Harb is just glad to fit in and not have to worry about being affected by stereotypes. “[In Cupertino] it’s evenly divided but outside, it’s all white,” Harb said. “If I went there it’d be like ‘Oh, who are you?

Why do you look like that? That’s weird.’”

Fortunately, the minimal stereotyping in Cupertino doesn’t offend most individuals.

While actions like wearing bindis and faking asian accents may seem harmless, it creates a portrayal that can unconsciously offend others. And although the severity of cultural appropriation at MVHS is minor, as long as our social media accounts keep us attached to the outside world, cultural appropriation will always be relevant.

Impact of cultural appropriation

Sophomore Natasha Subbaraman

#everyonematters

Junior Pallavi Saharia

#respectthebindi

Many movies and celebrities integrate other culture’s traditions into their lifestyles. Below are examples of social media, videos, and other types of entertainment that represent this.

Selena Gomez’s “Come and Get It”

375,255,893+ views

“Aladdin”

earned $404 million

Kylie Jenner’s cornrow selfie

1.4 milllion+ likes A & E / 31

First Week Blues

The start of the school year through Troye Sivan’s song ‘Fools’

T

I need time to replace what I gave away.

No, my friends. No time can replace what I gave away. Without realizing it, I had given spend away the part summer of my learning sanity. mateNot to rial for mention MUSICAL MUSINGS my new my soclasses. cial life.

But let’s Oh, and be real; sleep.

I spent the larger half of my summer listen- We both know that no time can replace all ing to music and watching Youtube videos, the sleep I gave away. just as I’m sure many of fellow peers did.

So when Troye Sivan, who happens to be And my hopes. they are high, I must a Youtuber and singer, released his electro- keep them small. pop EP “Wild,” on Sept. 4, I just about My hopes were high… only for the one went wild (pun totally intended.) If only my whole week between Running of the Bulls mind hadn’t screwed up my favorite track and the first day of school. I crossed my “Fools” by relating it all to school. fingers for teachers who don’t grade insanely hard. I hoped that maybe I’d be more I am tired of this place, I hope productive and maybe, just maybe, I’d have people change. a nice cushiony grade so I could kick up Only one month in and tired of school? my feet and relax a little when finals came Please tell me I’m not the only one who’s around. Then I’m sitting in yet another already exhausted by the early mornings classroom with the teacher telling me how and late nights. I recall walking into school tests are worth a mere 65% of my grade. the first day, naively hoping that this year At least I wasn’t one of the unfortunate would somehow be less tiring than the last. few who got a graded pop quiz on the first What a foolish thought. As Cher Horowitz day of school and then signed into Schoolwould say, “As if.” But high school isn’t loop to see a beautiful curve: C. Yay... I like “Clueless,” where Cs can become As think, This is going to be one of those years simply by setting a teacher up on a blind again, isn’t it? Thank you very much, first date. Unfortunately, no matter how much day of school. You have taught me a valuI dream, grading systems are just one of able lesson: to keep my hopes low. If only I those things that will never change. could lower my parents’ hopes too…

HE MOMENT I SAW THE LETTER about Running of the Bulls I realized that I’d spent my entire summer doing nothing. Ideally, I would

ILENA PENG

Though I try to resist. I still want it all.

I think this just about sums up all my thoughts on Club Promo Day. Trying not to sign up for any clubs I don’t actually want to be in, but signing up for a bunch of clubs that I’ll never actually join. I jot down my email. Maybe this will look good for college apps. It sounds sort of interesting? I might come to the first meeting because there’s free food. More likely, I won’t even go because getting trampled to death by hungry students is not one of my life goals. And then because I skipped that first meeting, I realize I have no clue what the club’s about. Oh well, I guess I’ll join next year. Not. Actually, this lyric applies to my class schedule too. In selecting courses, I try to resist the allure of all the classes that might look good on my transcript. Pick a few more fun classes, less honors and AP’s, maybe a free period. In the end, I still pry myself out of bed extra early on the first day of school to get the dreaded pink pape that confirms my fate for the next 160 days.

Yet despite the constant fatigue, the fact that our school wants it all defines our spirit. No matter how tired and frustrated we get, we’ll keep going. Or we’ll try to keep going, anyways. After all, isn’t it the effort that counts? We’ll just keep going round and round in our familiar cycle like an old worn out record, cracked but cranking slowly through each day. And with that being said, here’s to another long year together, MVHS.

1.

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un ni 2. n B Fi ul g o rs ls f T tD 3. he Cl ay ub of Fo 4.

Sc od Cl ho ub Da ol Pr y 5. om H om o Da ec y 6. om W in in g te rF 7. in Cl al ub s Da Pro y m o 8.

Cl ub Fo od 9.

Da AP y Te st in 10 g .S pr in g Fi na 11 ls .G ra du at io n

The Rhythm of School

SNEHA GUAR l EL ESTOQUE ILLUSTRATION

32 / EL ESTOQUE / SEP 2015

SPORTS

BEING NONBINARY IN A PINK AND BLUE WORLD

Senior Nikki Stuart finds solace both at home and on the field STORY BY KALPANA GOPALKRISHNAN AND ANJANA MELVIN

T

HE WALL ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE ROOM, closest to the teacher’s desk, is decorated with posters from previous years’ freshmen Ad Buster projects. Magazine cut-outs of product advertisements guaranteeing weight loss, fair skin and thick hair are lined up side by side, along with posters with original and photoshopped photos of women. A constant reminder of the expectations the media places on body image.

On the first day of the gender unit in English teacher Vennessa Nava’s American literature honors class, another poster is added to the collage on the wall. This one is blank, with only a box in the middle and the female gender symbol drawn at the top. A similar poster is taped on the wall on the opposite side of the room, this one for boys. Then-junior Nikki Stuart remembers leaning forward, arms resting on the desk, listening intently as Nava explains the instructions: generate a list of gender norms and non-normative behaviors.

Nava then asks her students to go to their respective sides of the room; girls on the right, boys on the left. Stuart sits back, watching as classmates go to either side without a second thought, then stands, and after a few seconds

of looking at both sides of the room, walks to the group of girls huddled around the white poster that was quickly being filled up with words like slut, whore and bitch.

That was the day that Stuart seriously began to consider the idea that the gender they were assigned to at birth was not the one they identify with.

“Before high school, when I had started questioning [my identity], I would’ve just gone on the right side with the girls, no problem,” Stuart said. “But as I was questioning, I thought, should I really be on the right, or should I be on the left, or should there be some other option for me?”

The purpose of the gender activity was for girls and boys to write, first on the inside of the box on the poster, stereotypes, descriptive words and experiences that pertained to their respective gender. Stuart had a lot to say about what it meant to be a woman, but only from what they had read online or heard other women talk about. Stuart wasn’t describing their own experiences— they were describing somebody else’s.

“The way [the girls in the group] were talking about everything, it felt like they had some kind of connection that I was missing,”

NON-BINARY DOESN’T IDENTIFY WITH BINARY GENDERS ( MALE/FEMALE) NIKKI’S PREFERRED PRONOUNS THEY/ THEM/ THEIRS

Stuart said. “I felt like I was behind this glass window, looking in. I could hear them and they could hear me, we could see each other, but there was still something there that...I didn’t quite fit in.”

Then Nava asked the students to switch to the other side of the classroom, this time to write around the outside of the box on the poster what they thought the stereotypes and expectations were for the opposite gender. This time Stuart could relate to what the group was feeling, because none of the girls

33

were speaking from their own experiences; they were all examining the male experience from a distance. But Stuart didn’t feel either the girls’ or boys’ experiences was theirs to talk about. After that day, they started to notice how gender-segregated the world is.

“It’s all very binary. In clothing stores, there’s a men’s section and a women’s section. In school, there’s a girl’s locker room and a boy’s locker room. Even graduation, there’s a white line and a purple line. White and purple. Pink and blue,” Stuart said. “Everything is one or the other. It’s very hard to realize that... and also at the same time realize where is my color? Is it even possible to live as something else? And that was really scary to think about, especially at first.”

DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES | After that activity in Nava’s class, Stuart started researching, scouring the web for stories that could help them understand where they belong on the spectrum of gender. They had only heard about binary transgender people, and the idea that it was possible to identify as neither male nor female was a surprise, but also gave them new insight to their identity. They found people sharing their stories on media outlets such as Tumblr and Youtube, and after compiling all of their new information on a Google Doc, they came to an understanding.

“Hearing people talk about their experiences, what non-binary and trans meant to them, that was when I realized this is me,” Stuart said. “I am non-binary. And it felt really, really good to finally be able to describe that feeling that I’ve always had but not realizing what that was and what it meant.”

After spending hours drafting a letter and coming out to their friends two months earlier, Stuart then came out to their mom as transgender and non-binary on July 4.

“When they first told me, I was kind of upset honestly,” Denise Stuart, Nikki’s mother, said. “Because it’s hard; [I’ve] known Nikki as [my] daughter for the whole 18 years almost, and the concept of non-binary is very new.”

Denise is a teacher and advisor for the Gay-Straight Alliance club at Lynbrook High School. She finds that as a teacher, it’s important to be flexible and willing to listen and understand, and to be accepting of people externally, if not internally. Understanding sexuality, Denise explains, is like understanding a different culture or a different religion; by ask-

SENIOR NIKKI STUART’S FIELD HOCKEY PROFILE

34

EL ESTOQUE SEP 2015

ing questions and doing research, people can develop empathy and sympathy for different types of people.

Nikki came out to their dad a few weeks later, on July 21. For Tim Stuart, there were a lot of unknowns when Nikki first came out.

He didn’t completely understand what the term non-binary meant, nor what impact it would have, and he’s had to adjust quite a bit.

Nikki admits that their parents and older siblings have had some trouble, especially with the use of their pronouns. But they have also been completely accepting, putting effort into using Nikki’s preferred terms and correcting themselves whenever they can. Of course, their family is worried about how Nikki’s new identity may subject them to discrimination.

“I think it’s going to be challenging interacting with older adults,” Tim said. “Because I think your training and what you’re used to and your concepts— they’re so deep in your

ostracize me from the team in any way.”

But to Stuart’s surprise, as the group continued to hit balls around, the conversation continued to flow as it had in the past.

“Nothing was going to change,” Stuart said. “This was the new normal.”

As Stuart continues their fourth and final field hockey season, they have found overwhelming positivity from the team’s players, coaches and parents. With the transition in mind, the team has incorporated subtle differences into their daily routine that have been pleasantly clear to Stuart.

Instead of “Secret Sister,” a field hockey tradition where players receive gifts from an unknown benefactor, it is “Secret Siblings.” In the first get-to-know-each-other team circle, each player introduced themselves with their name, grade and preferred pronouns. Now, the coaches yell, “Players, let’s go!” instead of “Ladies, let’s go!”

Junior varsity coach Bonnie Belshe, who has known Stuart since middle school, first received notice of Stuelestoque.org art’s transition via an email sent by them to her and varsity coach Denise Eachus. subconscious, and being one of those adults, “I emailed them back, and I’m just so proud it’s hard to think differently…[but] you have of Nikki for being open and honest and comto empathize for the kids, particularly for the ing into their own skin,” Belshe said. teenagers that find themselves in that comSince the email, which Belshe regarded munity.” as bravery unprecedented for a teenager, she and Eachus have pushed to make the pronoun ON THE FIELD | Stuart didn’t think any- change not just during an interaction with Stuthing would scare them after they came out. art, but in casual conversation as well.

But here they were, a Facebook-proclaimed “At the beginning of the year meeting for non binary and transgender, afraid of a field fall coaches, I informed them in the meeting hockey practice. that we are not the girls field hockey team,” It wasn’t an official practice. More of an in- Belshe said. “We are not going to refer to them formal gathering of a few of their field hockey in that way. We are the field hockey team.” friends getting ready to brush off the cobwebs That distinction made field hockey a place before the season started. Yet for Stuart, it where Stuart could test the waters of the biwas a test. They waited for something weird nary system. But for soccer, the other sport to happen, for some indication that would con- they have played through high school, Stuart firm their fears. does not feel as welcome.

That the team would consider them “dif“The nature of how [soccer] is divided into ferent.” boys and girls, I feel like I would be intrudThat the team would tiptoe around the sub- ing more than I would like to,” Stuart said. ject about them being trans.

“I don’t think it’s the time or place for me to That the team would consider them more change that binary system.” fragile than before.

And field hockey, with its tight-knit team “[I was afraid] that instead of being one that has loosened some of the stitches to team, it would be the girls and then Nikki,” make Stuart feel a little more snug, has given Stuart said. “I didn’t want me being trans to

FOR VIDEO COVERAGE

POSITIONS OUTSIDE WING, OUTSIDE DEFENDER

FAV O R I T E M O M E N T JV GAME AGAINST LYNBROOK SOPHOMORE YEAR

them an opportunity to be a more authentic teammate.

“They have really stepped up vocally, helping out new players.” Belshe said. “[Stuart’s] really a positive force on the field.”

They have found themselves being more forgiving of their mistakes, being more empathetic towards other players, being more comfortable about who they are. And now, with their teammates on their side, Stuart is not afraid.

THE NEW SCHOOL YEAR | Stuart is coming to terms with their new identity, they face a whole new challenge at school. During the first week, they spent a significant amount of time explaining to their teachers their new identity. In Spanish, Nikki and their teacher, Joyce Fortune, came up with a set of non-binary pronouns that can be used in lieu of the distinctly masculine and feminine pronouns that are the norm in romance languages.

Nikki is the co-president of MV’s GSA club, and is planning to discuss trans issues on campus in a staff meeting, including the proposition for gender-neutral bathrooms.

“It’s a topic we’d like to shed light on,” Nikki said. “[But] it’s hard to start the campaign without the staff having the knowledge.”

They plan to hold the meeting this winter, but nothing has been decided yet.

Although Nikki admits that it’s not the ideal, it is possible for non-binary people to meet with their assistant principal and get acquainted with the librarian who has a key to the unisex bathrooms behind the library and in the school office.

On New Year’s Eve 2014, Nikki made a memory jar. Whenever something important happens in their life, or if they had a lot of fun on a certain day or they came across something cool, they take a piece of paper, write the date on the back and the event on the front, and then drop it in the jar. On New Year’s Eve this year, they will open it and read about everything that happened in their life during a short period of twelve months.

“I don’t think I could have ever predicted how much change I would go through,” Nikki said, laughing. “But I think I had a feeling that this year would be something special.”

Photo used with permission of Senior Nikki Stuart

SENIOR NIKKI STUART’S A DV I C E C O L U M N

“

Let yourself explore, let yourself question.

It’s okay not to know who you are and be struggling with that, because it’s more important for you to define yourself than anyone else. And also just try to reach out even if you’re afraid to, find a friend or a teacher or someone that you think would be open enough to let you talk or explain something and go through what’s happening in your mind, so that you’re not holding it all in, because that’s what I did, and it sucks, a lot. It’s really hard to go and struggle through that by yourself.”

1. Senior Nikki Stuart high-fives players after a game in the 2014 season.

2. Stuart anticipates a corner shot at the same game 3. Stuart sends the ball down the sideline on Oct. 3 last season Photos by Malini Ramaiyer

“ THERE

WAS ONE POINT WHEN I DRIBBBLED ALL THE WAY DOWN THE FIELD TO THE TOP OF THE CIRCLE AND HIT IT STRAIGHT INTO THE CORNER.” -SENIOR NIKKI STUART

SPORTS/35

Coach to Coach

Sports teams choose to move on from previous coaches and focus on the season ahead STORY BY NANDA NAYAK AND STEPHANIE LAM

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE A COACH?

“I think a coach is an adult or individual that helps you improve your sport, or anyother activity. They help you grow.”

-Sophomore Football player Daniel Vyshetsky

“Someone who can motivate student athletes to be the best they can be to really fine where they can improve on and work on those, and also build on their strength.”

-JV Girl’s tennis coach Alan Wong 36

EL ESTOQUE

36 EL ESTOQUE

SEP 2015

SEP 2015

W

ITH EVERY NEW YEAR, and every new season, sports teams find themselves adjusting to new players, new talent and new equipment — it’s the same thing each year. This year, however, three teams found themselves adjusting and coping with something new, but very different — a new coach.

“We lose coaches for various reasons,” Athletic director Nick Bonacorsi said. “Although we would love to keep our coaches forever, it just does not always work out. As an athletic department, we do not look back.”

Girls JV tennis, girls water polo and girls golf all recently hired new coaches.

Like Bonacorsi, the teams have all decided to accept their new coaches and focus their attention on how the new coach will benefit the team and upcoming season.

The girls water polo team is no stranger to new coaches. In the last three years, the team has had four coaches: Don Vierra, Cyrus Kahangi and now this year, Gigi Swan and Katy

Basile-Ferro. Despite the continuous transitions between coaches, the girls have learned to accept each new coach and focus their attention on the sport they love, water polo.

“I wouldn’t say it’s too big of a problem ,” co-captain of the team senior Nicole Deacon said. “We all have to adjust to the new coach together. It’s a learning process for both the coaches and us. Because the coach has to understand us, and we have to understand the coach and his or her style.”

Senior Priyanka Agrawal, a returning player on the team, also agrees with Deacon.

“The transition so far has been pretty smooth,” Agarwal said. “ Each coach focused on the same thing and it hasn’t really affected our team dynamic as much. If anything, we’ve been focusing on different things, like conditioning and building up strength.”

Both of the players also believe that the uncommon experience of transitioning between multiple coaches has made the girls closer as a team.

“Throughout the whole process we’ve gotten a lot closer, and definitely this year I would say we are a lot closer than we have been in the past,” Deacon said. “There’s a lot more unison in the team rather than a feeling of being separated by grades.”

Like water polo, girls golf also found that switching from former coach Brian Sullivan to coach Barbara Wang Tolentino did not strongly affect the team.

The girls agree that Tolentino’s dedication and commitment to the team has been a key factor to the transition.

“The transition has not been that hard because [Tolentino] is a really great coach.” returning member junior Sruthi Ramabadran said. “She’s supportive and gives us specific exercises, like putting, that helps us to narrow down our aim.”

“[Tolentino] is very dedicated to the coaching, even though it is Wong’s first team and makes sure she knows all the time coaching at MVHS. According players.” junior Shiya Perati said. “She to Tong, Wong communicates with the herself enjoys the sport, and I think that varsity tennis coach to provide a strenucreates a more positive energy throughous, yet beneficial practice session for out the whole team. It’s a good team the tennis team, and he focuses on helpunifier.” ing the team improve their strengths.

JV girls tennis had not experienced “It’s been pretty smooth, because a coach change in eight years, but the Mr. Wong talks to the varsity coach team still found the transition to be [Gene Fortino] a lot, and he always asks fairly smooth. The team’s former coach me and the other captain [sophomore Charley Situ resigned from coaching Ashley Chang] what we used to do. It’s this year in order to make time to care going pretty well,” Tong said. of his father.

Tong thinks that the greatest dif“Family first — that was one of the ference between the two coaches is big reasons I stepped out.” Situ said. “I their coaching style, but admitted that needed to spend more time taking care coaching style is expected to differ with of my dad after school hours and spend different people. more time with him.”WW “Both are really nice and they both Situ’s abrupt resignation as JV coach talk to you a lot and give you advice surprised returning tennis players, but and everything,” Tong said. “[Situ] for JV tennis captain junior Emma was more chill. He always talked about Tong, Situ’s decision didn’t surprise her. random things with us. Both are pretty Tong played for the badminton team nice, and it’s not like one is mean and last year, in which Situ also normally one is really nice.” coached. When Tong found out that The new season, with the new Situ was no loncoaches, however, ger their badminhas barely started, ton coach, she “AS AN ATHLETIC and all three of assumed that he DEPARTMENT WE DO the the MVHS would not be reteams agree that it NOT LOOK BACK” turning as the JV is too early to fully ATHLETIC DIRECTOR tennis coach. understand their Contrary to NICK BONACORSI new coaches. But Situ saying he for now, all the resigned for his teams focus on father’s health, Tong blames herself moving on from their previous coachand her team, because she believes ing experience, and look forward to a that Situ’s decision to quit was also inmemorable season. fluenced by the less than ideal performance of the tennis team as well has the low number of girls that have been trying out.

Although Situ is no longer a coach, Tong believes that the transition to math teacher and new coach Alan Wong was a smooth one. Tong believes that Wong does an exceptional job at

“Someone who has a goal in mind of where they want their team to be and how to get to that goal.”

-Dance teacher Hilary Barron

37 37

䔀 刀 䔀 䠀

䐀 䄀

刀 唀 夀伀

䰀漀漀欀 昀漀爀 琀栀攀 氀椀渀欀 漀渀 猀挀栀漀漀氀氀漀漀瀀℀ 琀椀渀礀甀爀氀⸀挀漀洀⼀瀀最渀㈀㐀搀洀

17

Tour de Francisco

Students bike a challenging 52 miles to San Francisco

STORY BY CHRIS CHIN

A

fter seniors Vincent Tran and Peter pany of other students motivated him to overKim and juniors Rahul Uppuluri and come the obstacles ahead of him.

David Sun biked 52 miles north to “The most important part was being able San Francisco, they summed up their adven- to get closer with my friends and leave my ture like this: “exhausting”, house for once,” Uppuluri said, “cramps,” “friendship.” From “The most ex“to get some exercise.”

Cupertino to San Francisco, For all who tried it, the bike their trek challenged them and citing event ride left impactful memories that brought them closer together.

For the students, the chance to that happened will last for years to come. From get closer to their friends while during our trip enjoying the peaceful scenery, to biking vastly outweighed the car accidents, to love at first sight, intimidating nature of the long, was witnessing the days of these students varied. exhausting ride. [senior Peter Tran and Kim spent the day tourFor Tran and Kim, their journey was more important than the Kim] fall in love ing San Francisco and frequently at food and boba resdestination. with a random stopped “The most significant aspect taurants before finally visiting about biking to San Francisco is girl.” the Golden Gate Bridge. With a the fact that we chose to bike,” Senior Vincent camera, the two friends looked Tran said. “ We could’ve easTran around for someone to take a ily driven 45 minutes without photo of them at the Golden Gate breaking a sweat, but choosing Bridge. to bike in spite of a more con“The most exciting event that happened venient alternative was definitely significant.”

However for Uppuluri, being in the com- was most likely me witnessing [Kim] fall in

love with a random girl who we asked to take our picture with the bridge,” Tran said.

Uppuluri began his ride by experiencing the city at its worst. As his group’s bikes neared the edge of the city, they slammed their brakes at the horrific sight of a small gray car getting hit by a van. Although no one was hurt, they were shaken by the sudden screech of colliding metal. However, as they entered the city, they quickly forgot the previous amongst the sights of San Francisco. Captivated by Pier 39 and the towering buildings of the city, they enjoyed their freedom far from home.

“At San Francisco, me and my friends explored the city,” said Sun. “We ate as much food as we could afford and had a really good time together.”

52 miles away from home, four MVHS students accomplished their goal of biking 4 hours and 30 minutes to San Francisco.

“I would definitely consider biking to SF again,” Tran said . “I would highly recommend other people attempt [it], but I warn them: it’s tiring, sweaty and not for the faint-hearted.“

STOPS ALONG THE WAY Pier 39 47.5 miles 4 hours 9 min

Stanford university

11 miles and 55 minutes

35

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Graphic by Sneha Gaur 39 / EL ESTOQUE / SEP 2015

THE TIME I...

got hit in the face

STORY BY KAREN MA PHOTOS BY JUSTIN KIM

“I STREAMED RIVERS OF RED INTO THE CLEAR POOL.”

T

he joking tone of sophomore Timothy Pai has a tinge of vehemence as he recalls last year’s frosh-soph water polo game against Saratoga High School, when he was hit in the face by the JV captain of the opposing team. The Matadors had beaten the Falcons 10-1, and according to Pai, SHSs captain was furious. He got the ball on offense and, as if intentionally, hurled it into Pai’s face. The rush of the blood from his broken nose into the swimming pool ensued.

“And that is why I have this crooked nose thing here,” Pai said, raising his voice.

“Yes, actually. My nose was not crooked before last year. But all because of that stupid…”

However, Pai is far from intimidated or discouraged. “I was really looking forward to this season, to play Saratoga, to break his nose,” he said. Then, with dismay, added, “But then I found out he’s playing football.”

Just sun protection

Field safety

“I saw it coming, but I didn’t think it was going to hit me,” senior field hockey player Julia Lu said, laughing. “I thought I was going to duck or bring my stick up, but I was a little too slow on the reaction.”

It was the toughest, most anticipated game of the season: the Matadors against the Los Gatos Cats, the number one team in their league. It was during a short corner, a penalty given against the defending team and an excellent opportunity for attacking players to score, when an opposing senior lifted the ball in the air and into Lu’s face. Despite the protective goggles and mouthguard, Lu’s face streamed with blood and embarrassment.

From realizing the danger of the field hockey to emphasizing the consequences of carelessness, this experience has reshaped Lu’s perspective on the sport.

“It has helped me become more careful.

This is a dangerous sport, and I need to be more cautious to not get hit,” she said.

40 / EL ESTOQUE / SEP 2015

It never occurred to senior Sarah Lim that a tennis private lesson at Brookside Club would leave her with a bloody nose and temporary fear of volleying. In the midst of practicing volleys with her coach, Lim hit the the ball with the frame of her racket, bouncing the ball onto her nose and surprisingly, over the net.

“I was wearing a shirt with sheep on it, and then it was like bloody sheep because my nose was bleeding all over my shirt,” Lim said.

For a while after, Lim was more hesitant about advancing to the net in fear of getting hit again. She’d learned the hard way that tennis, since the only protection a player has is protection from the sun, was very dangerous.

“Eventually, I got over it because volleys are super important in tennis and also really fun to hit,” Lim said. She is now more prepared at the net, thus enhancing her skills and confidence in tennis.

Lessons learned To junior football player Rohan Sarang, getting hit wasn’t surprising. But what he didn’t expect was a trip to the hospital, a sprained neck, a two-day neck brace and a week’s break from football.

“It’s a collision sport,” Sarang said. As a cornerback last year, he had to be prepared to defend passes and make tackles.

During a game against Los Gatos, the opposing team ran the ball into Sarang’s side while another opposing player came up to block him. Their face masks clashed, and Sarang fell onto the ground from the impact.

“When someone blocks you, you’re supposed to get low to engage the block,” Sarang said. “I didn’t really do that.”

Instead of letting this affect his mentality, Sarang acknowledged the severity of getting hit and sought to improve his game even further, in the aspects of skill and safety.

“I’m now a little more cautious on defense and able to engage all my blocks correctly,” he said.