Issue 1, 2013 by Matthew Chow

epitaph

Falling for fresh faculty

the

HOMESTEAD HIGH SCHOOL

VOL. 51

ISSUE 1

Get familiar with this year’s newest Mustang staff

See In-Depth page 8

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2013

21370 HOMESTEAD RD. CUPERTINO, CA

Common Core introduces new school standards

All states have the same standards

A nationwide shift toward critical thinking and real-life applications By Shiri Huber

Smarter Balance standardized test taken on the computer

Starting this school year, new educational standards will be implemented in classrooms nationwide. Referred to as the Common Core State Standards, they address national concerns regarding high school seniors’ lack of preparedness for college and professional life. Until recently, educational standards differed between states. Curriculum was also governed under No Child Left Behind, an act that has been criticized for setting unrealistic goals and for relying on standardized test scores to judge academic performance. The Common Core, which standardized requirements nationwide, emphasizes critical thinking and application to real ife, and implements a new standardized test called Smarter Balance. “It’s more focused on thinking and explaining your thought process rather than just getting an answer,” said Connie Murray, who teaches AP Calculus BC. “The big difference with the Common

Emphasis on critical thinking and applications to real world

NEW STANDARDS Under Common Core

Core standards is really more of a greater focus on depth versus breadth. The state standards right now are not looking for depth or understanding, and the Common Core is trying to reduce the list [of standards] a little bit and to allow more time to go in-depth.” According to English and Humanities teacher Erin Harris, the English standards are similar to what Homestead English teachers have been teaching already. Analysis and critical thinking are already common topics in English classes. The one major change is an increased amount of nonfiction, as well as a rewritten list of standards that need to be covered in each grade. According to Madame Ronsheimer, the World Languages department is also following the Common Core, but change are mostly based on the new English standards and have not changed too dramatically. Common Core is also being implemented in history, PE, and science classes. Common Core also replaces

Each state has its own standards

Test scores used to judge proficiency

the STAR test with Smarter Balance, a standardized test that is taken entirely on the computer. These tests are taken annually from third to eighth grade, and only once in high school, during junior year. It is still unclear at Homestead whether the new tests will be taken this year. The decision is up to state legislator Jerry Brown, who is advocating for Smarter Balance, but is currently met with opposition from the Department of Education. The practicality of Smarter Balance is under debate. Each test has to be hand-graded and returned to students in a timely manner, whereas the STAR test was graded electronically. There is also the difficulty of providing enough computers for all students in the junior class. The response to the new standards has still been positive. Said Harris, “Overall, I like the standards. Anything that causes students to problem-solve in the real world is a good thing.”

STAR testing using Scantrons and automated grading

OLD STANDARDS Under No Child Left Behind

FUHSD experiences slow but steady economic growth

State legislation helps restore previous cuts to education By Camille Miller

In an effort to improve California’s school finance system, the state has provided increased revenue for education within the past two years through the implementation of Proposition 30, Common Core Standards, and the enactment of the local control funding formula (LCFF). As a result of the recently passed legislation, the Fremont Union High School District (FUHSD) has experienced a budget increase of about $2 million this school year. The increased revenue will be focused on restoring cuts that were made in the district within the past decade due to the state

education’s economic crisis. to get through what was cut and dent funding. FUHSD is a basic According to Jason Crutch- lost and a lot of students lost out aid district, meaning that besides field, FUHSD’s Director of Busi- on some benefits of education a $200 per student basic aid from ness Services, cuts in classified because we weren’t able to offer the state, it relies mainly on propstaff salaries and previously state those kinds of things,” principal erty taxes for funding. Crutchfield funded programs, as said, “because we’re well as raises for teacha [basic aid district], “To us, it’s less of a cut but it’s we’re not really going to ers will be restored. Positions within the still $5.3 million less than what we feel the positive effects district office that had of those changes.” should have.” been left open in prior In addition, the state years are now being has revoked about $7.3 -Jason Crutchfield filled, including Homemillion of the district’s FUHSD Director of Business Services annual $9 million in stead’s former principal Graham Clark’s role as categorical funds within the Associate Superintendent of Greg Giglio said. the past two years to help fund Administrative Services. A porThe changes in legislation revenue limit districts. “That’s tion will also be fostered towards mostly benefit revenue limit dis- why we don’t see that [$2 milclassroom supplies and textbooks. tricts, or districts that do not meet lion] as an increase in funding,” “It’s going to take us years the state’s minimum for per stu- Crutchfield said. “To us, it’s less of

Your eyes, your responsibility Zero Tolerance promotes slutshaming See page 4

Tattoo and piercing stigmas

Body alterations not so bad afterall? See page 8

a cut but it’s still $5.3 million less than what we should have.” Despite the lack of support from the state, the district is looking at a six percent increase in property taxes which started last year. This increase will help with FUHSD’s funding the most, as well as with restoring cuts. “In years past, there’s been real belt-tightening and less money coming in,” Giglio said. “This year, we’re getting about the same money we got last year, which is good news. It’s bad news in that costs go up and we have more students and more staff, but generally we’re not going backwards which is where a lot of other districts have been going.”

Inside:

Lifestyles

News

Entertainment 9

Opinion

Sports

In-Depth

The Last Word 12

PAGE DESIGN BY CAMILLE MILLER AND LAURA TANG

news

Thursday, October 3, 2013

FUHSD cracks down on security

Stricter attendance and security rules enforce attendance policies By Laura Tang

With the start of the new school year, schools among the district have implemented a series of rigorous new security rules in an attempt to regulate student attendance. Fremont High School has taken the initiative most significantly with its new ID scanning process. Students must swipe their ID cards upon entering and leaving the campus, which not only checks for identification but also the fulfillment of certain requirements: a grade point average above 1.0, no truant tardiness, and no trouble on record with the deans. Additionally, freshmen are forbidden from going off-campus at any time during first semester, a rule that had been in place for many years but was not enforced until this year. Fremont High School’s rationale for these stricter regulations is a lack of school funding. In many states such as California, Texas, and New York, schools receive their operating funds based on attendance. In recent years, decreasing attendance rates have significantly impacted the funding received by Fremont, which goes toward employee salaries and benefits, textbooks, maintenance, technology, and other essential expenses. Although there has been an evident improvement in attendance and punctuality, the effectiveness of the new security regulations are under debate. “The minimum GPA is 1.0, which isn’t even passing high school. If it

PHOTO COURTESY OF BAHN MI

were to be effective, people should be required to have at least a 2.0,” added Fremont senior Kathryn Sire. “Because of the ridiculously low GPA requirement, the offcampus policy isn’t even worth it. And it’s just a nuisance for staff and students.” “They’re successful in what they’re trying to achieve, but nobody likes the rules,” said Savanna Kiene, a senior at Fremont. Savanna Kiene used to go off-campus extensively but now she opts to stay on-campus because of its convenience. The lunch routines haven’t changed drastically with the exception of the long lines to leave campus, although students have

acknowledged the hassle of the new rule prohibiting them from leaving within the last ten minutes of lunch. The new rules in place at Fremont have significant implications for other FUHSD schools. Homestead has already established harsher regulations for tardies and unexcused absences: now four tardies will cause students to be referred to the Dean, and students are permitted a limit of six unexcused absences before being declared truants. The stricter attendance policies being implemented throughout FUHSD schools will likely improve attendance records, contributing to increased funding for both Fremont High School and Homestead High School.

Homestead introduces classroom biology tutors By Anthony Garcia The Homestead High School Science Department has decided to implement biology tutors to help students struggling in freshmen biology, for the 2013-2014 school year. Biology tutors are very similar to algebra 1 tutors in the sense that they are students recommended by their previous biology teacher to assist other students in their freshmen biology classes. They help out during the class period, and assist small groups of students by answering questions, explaining concepts and taking notes for students who are absent. The science department decided to implement biology tutors in the classroom because of the significant struggles freshmen have in biology. According to California Department of Education’s Data Quest, of the 584 freshmen who took the CST, 26 percent scored below proficient in biology. According to AP Biology teacher Dara Levy, “Biology is the hardest class for freshmen because there is new information and vocabulary.” She explained that the course “asks students to think critically and use the scientific method.” The science department has been working on a system where students can get more help in bi-

ology, since the biology homework center has not been the most practical solution. The idea of having tutors assist students, while they are there in class, seemed to be a viable alternative. Junior biology tutor, Neeharika Muppa, shared her experiences regarding being a tutor. “I like biology, it is my favorite subject, so it’s really fun helping out teaching it to others,” Muppa said. Since the school now has tutors helping freshmen taking biology, there was no longer a need for a biology homework center. Instead, there is now Science Hub, which is similar to the biology homework center, only it is open to all students seeking help in any science course. Science Hub is in room C107 from 3:15 pm to 4:00 pm. Currently, Science Hub has been a major success for students seeking help in their science classes. According to a tutor in the science homework center, Nushi Yapabandara, Science Hub is working extremely well. “[The students] benefit greatly from the Science Hub according to teachers, and I think it’s safe to say that all the bio tutors enjoy what they do,” said Yapabandara. She added, “The kids’ grades have always improved from our help, thanks to Ms. Kirby for organizing everything.”

ASB redesigns activities schedule By Emi Kamezaki

Aloha Dance The Aloha Dance has been cancelled due to low attendance rates.

Winter Wonder Week Ethnic Fest week has been cancelled, as aspects of cultural celebration will be incorperated into Winter Wonder week.

Homecoming Homecoming week took place two weeks earlier to compensate for the cancellation of the Aloha Dance and balance the calendar of school events.

Sadie Hawkins Dance The Sadie Hawkins Dance has been moved to second semester, and will serve as the end to Battle of the Classes week.

Winter Formal The time of Winter Formal has been changed to first semester, and will take place on the Thursday after finals week.

PAGE DESIGN AND PHOTO ILLUSTRATIONS BY SHIRI HUBER

news

Thursday, October 3, 2013

Deckshuffle to donate $3,000 to Fremont Union High School District By Matthew Chow Senior Anish Aitharaju, creator of the Deckshuff le application for Android and Apple phones, will present a check worth $3,000 to the Fremont Union High School District (FUHSD) Foundation at their next board meeting on Oct. 22. Aitharaju raised the money through the contribution of companies that advertised with the application. Popular advertisers include SAT centers, ThinkTank, and local grocery stores. “I’ve limited the amount of advertisements I have to 10 per semester, so I can limit how many ads of each category there are,” Aitharaju said. What has now grown into an effective fundraising method for the district evolved from a similar application Aitharaju created two years ago. Designed solely for the Homestead user, the original application allowed users to access all staff contact information, links to school resources and even a library catalog from a single menu page. Aitharaju first introduced this application to former Homestead principal and current FUHSD Associate Superintendent of Administrative Services, Graham Clark. “It started as a great idea to provide access to information for the Homestead community,” Clark said. “But Anish took it a step further and turned it into a community service.” In January 2013, Aitharaju approached Principal Greg Giglio with his plan to expand his product and begin raising revenue. “It was a win-win situ-

ation for us,” Giglio said. “Besides, Anish had done all the hard work. We just had to try to get the word out to parents and students.” Giglio brought up the application at PTSA meetings and also at Back-To-School Night. After several tweaks and updates, Aitharaju created the Deckshuff le application, which extended these same functions to other schools around the United States. Currently, the application supports 37 different schools across the country. “Every school website has a generic format, so it’s possible to create a program that organizes school information,” Aitharaju said. With help from his older brother Nitish Aitharaju (’07), Aitharaju created this formula to replace the more tedious manual method of adding schools. In the future, Aitharaju hopes to create another program that can look through all school websites and create a database of school information. “With this, we can add schools automatically and the application can be self-sustained,” Aitharaju said. “That’s my ultimate goal before I leave for college.” “This is really one-in-a-million,” Giglio said. “Here’s a guy that’s created a great plan and, instead of expecting to get paid, he gives money back to the schools. Anish is another Homestead kid who has made his mark in the world.” Superintendent Polly Bove agreed. “It’s a great product, and it’s wonderful that he’s so generous to give the proceeds to us,” Bove said. “The money

will go to help people all over the district.”

MATTHEW CHOW

Senior Anish Aitharaju created Deckshuff le last year with help from his brother and Homestead alumnus Nitish Aitharaju. “My brother deals with the business part and working with advertisers while I deal with adding schools onto the application,” A. Aitharaju said.

Government shutdown implications reach far By Eugene Cheng

For the first time in 17 years, Americans are experiencing a government shutdown. A deadlock between the Republican-controlled House of Representatives and the Democrat-controlled Senate forced the federal government to partially cease operation. This means nearly 800,000 federal employees must go on leave without pay until Congress agrees on how to fund governmental agencies. Other detriments to the shutdown include the suspension of the Center for Disease Control’s efforts to research diseases, background checks on employee eligibility through E-verify and the closure of hundreds of national parks. Essential programs, like Medicare, Social Security and unemployment benefits will operate as usual. Every fiscal year, the government has to decide on how to fund the multiple government agencies. If Congress and the President fail to pass such a bill, then federal agencies are legally prohibited from functioning. The shutdown occurred after Republicans in the House of Representatives introduced a spending bill that left out funding for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, commonly referred to as Obamacare. The Democratic majority in the Senate had already voiced its opposition to any funding bill that would delay the implementation of Obamacare. Neither side budged before the Oct. 1 deadline, hence the shutdown. While the shutdown may not currently affect high school students, awareness is imperative, as similar events in the future could more directly impact our lives later on.

PAGE DESIGN BY MATTHEW CHOW

opinion

Thursday, October 3, 2013

epitaph STAFF

\ the

Editors News

Laura Tang

News

Camille Miller

Opinion

Greg Schrader

Features

Eugene Cheng Anthony Garcia

Entertainment Sports

Khalil Bourgoub

Editor in Chief

Matthew Chow

Production Team Emi Kamezaki

Business Manager

Grace He

Design Editor

Andrew Reyes

Photo Editor

Reporters Donnie Denome

Shiri Huber

Michelle Fuller

Priya Sodlapur

Dipshikha Kandel

Rachel Hildebrand

Marissa Lee

Nicole Chung

Nancy Zhou

Adviser

Natalie Calderon

epitaph

the

The Epitaph is a non-profit publication at Homestead High School, 21370 Homestead Rd, Cupertino, CA 95014. The Epitaph is a forum for student expression and not subject to prior review, in accordance with Education Code 48907. The staff is comprised of Homestead Journalism students. Views expressed do not necessarily represent views of the school, its staff,

Your eyes, your responsibility

During the annual Zero Tolerance Policy presentations in August, female students were yet again reminded to be shameful of their bodies. When it came time for the administrator to address the school’s dress code policies, his speech was no longer directed to the entire class, but to the select few possessing the XX chromosome pair. Female students were scolded about transparent shirts, short shorts, and how modern culture had paved a way for more revealing outfits for girls. Their bodies, once surpassing a certain level of bareness, would be considered objects of distraction to the adolescent boys with their teenage hormones and uncontrollable staring disorders. The message was clear: Male tendencies are a female’s responsibilit y. Her body is ac c ou nt able for his actions. Not once were the boys told not to look. Not once were they taught to respect another person’s body. Unfortunately, this approach to gender roles dominates schools across the nation. In May, ThinkProgress blog exposed several cases of administrators who attempted to reduce “distractions” for male students by further suppressing girls’ wardrobes. A middle school in California banned tight pants. A high

school principal in Minnesota emailed parents to ask them to cover up their daughters. Two girls in Ohio were turned away from their prom for being “improperly dressed.” A New Jersey middle school banned girls from wearing strapless dresses to prom. Forty high school girls were sent home from a winter dance in California after “degrading” clothing inspections “bordering on sexual harassment.” “Too tight.” “Too low.” “A distraction to the boys.” These are all too familiar phrases used within the justifications of each of these incidents. The sexist attitude towards dress code policies is apparent in the countless restrictions that girls must adhere to, while male students happily escape the pressure via the classic te s to s te r one excuse. In fact, this twisted mindset represents much more than what girls can and cannot wear to school. By deeming a girl’s outfit to be “suggestive,” schools are advocating a form of a slut shaming—the act of criticizing women for behaving in ways that are supposedly associated with her real or presumed sexual activity. Girls are repeatedly reminded that their attire can make boys feel uncomfortable, yet the discomfort that girls face due to the sexualization of their bodies is

WRITTEN BY THE EDITORIAL BOARD

or the district. Editorials are opinions of the editorial board. The Epitaph welcomes all letters to the editor but reserves the right to edit all submissions. Letters should be limited to 300 words. Include contact information. Unsigned letters cannot be published, but names will be withheld upon request. Send via Homestead.Epitaph@gmail.com, or drop letters in the newsroom or the office mailbox. If The Epitaph has made an error, please send corrections to Homestead.Epitaph@ gmail.com. The corrections will be published in the corrections box for the next issue. To reach the Epitaph staff in C-105: call (408) 522-2572 or fax (408) 738-8631.

Advertising One email and you can reach nearly 2,300 students and teachers from Northern Sunnyvale to Southern Los Altos. If your target market is between the ages of 14 and 18, contact The Epitaph at epitaph.ads@gmail.com and we can make it happen.

Donors Your ongoing support is appreciated.

Jing Xu Donna & Avi Huber Valerie Fermor Xiaoming & Holly Zhang Debbie Vanni

rarely addressed. This is a society where strapless dresses are somehow equivalent to an invitation for sex, and the problem does not get much clearer than that. The solution does not lie in balancing out the consequences. After all, it seems impractical to blind-fold every male who is distracted by girls’ clothing.

However, as long as Homestead promotes sexist and slut shaming attitudes within the presentation and implementation of these codes, female students should not feel obligated to follow such policies.

Schools can, howe ver, change the way these policies are presented to the student body and eliminate the notion that a male’s attention deficiency is a female’s liability. To a c er t a i n extent, dress codes are a necessary function in maintaining the climate of a school.

PHOTO ILLUSTRATIONS BY LAURA TANG AND CAMILLE MILLER

Prejudice against piracy is invalid

Torrenting is unfairly condemned By Nancy Zhou Over the years, technology has flourished. It is now 2013, and albums no longer need to be bought on physical records, not to mention that pirating no longer means plundering on the high seas. Pirating before the golden age of computers was, in fact, not as easy as it is today. Now, with a handy dandy little file type called torrents, any kind of digital media can be transferred from person to person instantly across the globe. But should it be called theft? Torrenting is highly frowned upon because it has been classified as theft. Misclassified, in fact. When people download a torrent, they are downloading a copy of a file from someone else who obtained the file legally. According to Merriam Webster dictionary, theft is defined as “the felonous taking and removing of personal property with intent to deprive the rightful owner of it.” With torrenting, there is no intent to deprive the owner of said property, and thus, torrenting is not stealing, though the

entertainment industry would argue otherwise. In torrenting, there is a person who buys and obtains a product. They then make copies, and put those up for people on the Internet. This is comparable to someone buying a product and then casting a mold to make copies. The production companies don’t lose money on the copies

because those that take the metaphorical molds would not buy them in the first place.

Most torrent users are found to be lower-middle class residents, and 77 percent of them are college students. With the changing times, students find themselves trying to keep up on the current trends, but unfortunately most of their money is spent on tuition and textbooks. Netflix is now even using torrenting sites for market research, trying to figure out which movies and TV shows are worth purchasing the rights to. Torrenting has been found to have no effect on either the music industry or international markets. The numbers thrown into news are merely the losses they receive from advertisers and marketing themselves. When production companies fork out big bucks to promote their movies or games, the realization that many people obtaining said media don’t pay for it is like a slap to the face. Time and time again, bills like SOPA, the Stop Online Piracy Act or PIPA, the Protect IP Act, have been proposed, but due to an online uproar, no bills have been passed.

PAGE DESIGN BY EMI KAMEZAKI AND GREG SCHRADER ILLUSTRATIONS BY NANCY ZHOU

opinion

Cyrus

vs.

Syria

Thursday, October 3, 2013

Celebrity gossip distracts and detracts from substantial news By Greg Schrader A recent report from Pew Research found that Americans are increasingly getting their news from the Internet. Not exactly earth shaking - but what is interesting is that among Americans younger than 30, just as many get their news from social networks as they do from television or newspapers. The problem is that rather than receiving news that has been selected and filtered by reliable journalists, they get it from their friends, and the “news” they are receiving is more likely to be about Miley Cyrus’s twerking than about genocide in Syria. People’s focus should be on current events, rather than celebrity gossip. When the Average Joe focuses more on which nude, wrecking-ball-perched celebrity has been most “controversial” or “edgy” than the latest current events, they are less likely to notice that the government has just shut down or that millions of people have been denied food stamps. Even those who seek relevant news may be disappointed in their searches. CNN’s top spot was recently occupied by an article titled “Miley did what??? Twerks, stuns at VMAs” - not exactly critical information for a well-educated populace. Instead of reports on hard news -

say the threat of a broader war in Syria, unrest in Egypt, or even a story on the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King’s ‘I Have A Dream’ speech – there was a video of Cyrus twerking, accompanied by a slideshow and analysis. In the age of Google and Facebook, news is selected and presented based on search engine optimization and what your friends “like” instead of by relative significance. Many news sites in fact post articles in order to

450,000,000

gain views and boost ad revenue, and future articles are dictated based on past data. Thus we create a downward spiral – if people continue to invest their time on articles detailing the lives of celebrities instead of important issues involving anything from the govern-

ment to natural disasters, then sites will continue to post those articles. People are being given what they want, and not what they need, which they might also want, but they don’t know that they want it because they don’t have access to it. It is obvious that sites cannot completely change their layout to contain only hard news because that would mean a massive loss of traffic and revenue, but it would definitely help if news sites balanced their top articles out between pop culture and more relevant news. And while some people won’t stop clicking on the scandalous celebrity articles, at least they’ll a l s o have the chance to click on something more informational as a second choice. This might act as a push, raising awareness, acting as a f lashing sign of sorts, saying, “Hey, there’s something more worthy of occupying your time than celebrity scandals!” Though videos of celebrities’ twerking or lists of tweets gone wild can be entertaining, they detract from more important issues. Celebrity news has become the “opiate of the people”, distracting voters and allowing special interest groups to rule by proxy.

Monthly viewers on top websites

350,000,000

110,000,000

74,000,000

65,000,000

STATISTICS COURTESY OF THE eBUSINESS KNOWLEDGEBASE

Library privileges are abused By Dipshikha Kandel The school library is always full of students, but most of the time, it is not appropriately used. When students should be working on their schoolwork, the library is instead often overf lowing with students looking for hangout spots during tutorial, lunch and seventh period. While some students at Homestead often go to the library to use computers or finish their homework, many others fill up the rest of the open space

simply to sit and chat. This causes problems for students who actually need help from the computers and books to work on their assignments. First, it is not fair for the students who are waiting in line to get inside the library when there are students who are there merely to pass the time. It is not reasonable, especially during tutorial and seventh period skinny, for students who are

rushing to get their work done to be told there are not enough seats for them, while the students inside are chatting about unnecessary topics, unrelated to their assignments whatsoever. Furthermore, it is even worse for students who have upcoming tests to study for and projects to complete. The constant cacophony of voices and chatter inside the library

keeps students from focusing on their studies. Librarians try to quiet down the loud students, but unfortunately students ignore them. With all the noise and chaos, the atmosphere created for students studying in the library is mediocre at best. In order to create a decent

environment for students to study in, students must take responsibility for themselves and acknowledge that they have peers who are trying to get their work done in time. Students who need to get their works done should be let in, and the students who are not utilizing their time appropriately should be either turned away, ejected early or directed to do something related to their learning.

ILLUSTRATIONS AND PAGE DESIGN BY MATTHEW CHOW

spread

Thursday, October 3, 2013

Sumana Banerjee Physics and Geometry

Megan Rupe Student Teacher - English

Goals for this year: “I want my students in geometry class to think they’ll use geometry in life. Not just in class, application in real life, physics and geometry.”

Inspiration to teach: “I just had teachers who really inspired me, who really taught me how to think, not just to complete assignments, but about literature and what meaning it had toward my life. [...] I also have no other marketable skills.”

Likes to do for fun: When Banerjee needs to de-stress herself, she loves to “cook and try out new dishes.”

Lester Leung Student Teacher - Chemistry or, according to Leung, a “catalyst whose function is to alter the bonds and electrostatic connections between the neurons in student’s minds that will enable them to think scientifically about the world around them.”

Leila Granahan Student Teacher - English First impression: “HHS has been so welcoming since the first day I came.”

Alice Carvalho Math - Algebra I First Impression: Carvalho commented that she likes the “various cultures and diverse students” at Homestead.

Memorable moment in high school: In high school, Granahan’s friends celebrated her birthday by waking her up, kidnapping her and taking her to breakfast. She was forced to spend the entire day wearing pajamas.

Was not photographed

Goals for this year: She hopes to “help [her students] be successful” Adam Herald US History, World Literature, System 44. Varsity Football Assistant Coach

Zenas Lee Science - Physiology and Biology Most embarrassing moment in teaching career: “I was playing [...] a staff-student dodgeball tournament [...] and I fell on my butt in front of all the kids.”

Differenes between Homestead and your high school: “My high school was very similar to HHS except HHS seems to have a more connected student body while my high school were better at sports.”

Kieu Pham Student Teacher- Biology

Furong Miao Student Teacher - Chinese Background in education: “I taught in China for eight years [...] weekend school for 4 years and am now at San Jose State for credentials.”

Goals for this year: “The spirit of hard work, and never giving up, even though your task might be difficult.”

First impression: “My first impression was how many different types of students were here, so the diversity was awesome. I also liked how a lot of students were outgoing.” Goals for this year: “My goals for this year are to get in touch with the school culture and get in touch with as many kids as I can and to learn the style of Homestead.”

Wei Huang Special Education - Para-educator

Sara Frausto PE/Leadership

Best moment in high school: “I had a friend who had cancer [...] in my yearbook, he wrote in Spanish, and I didn’t really understand what he wrote until actually a week ago... and it was really touching. I didn’t know I made such a big impact on his life.”

Least favorite thing about Homestead: “We’re having to be creative with my schedule,” commented Frausto, as she works part time at Homestead. Favorite thing about Homestead: “[I’m] so excited to finally be over here at Homestead, my new home. I’ve wanted to be here for three or four years.”

Athena Gibbs Special Education - Pyschology Best moment in high school: “At our senior night, we went on a dinner cruise. [...] Plus, at this event, my fellow ‘office mates’ managed to keep me from finding out that I was elected ‘Most Silver Tongue’ for senior superlatives.”

Most embarrassing moment from high school: “I’m super clumsy, so I run into things a lot: poles, parking meters, trees.”

Guillermo Portillo Student Teacher - World Language

Samira Samadani Student Teacher - Math Memorable moment from high school: “When I was finishing senior year, there were people that I’d been in school with since kindergarten [...] like we were family members.” Advice for seniors: “Finding good resources, not being afraid to ask people who have been through the process.”

First impression: Portillo thinks the students and staff are “nice people.”

falling for fresh faculty Paula Mockler Special Education - Para-educator

Siobhan O’Connor Special Education - Student Advocate

Background: “I was a first grade teacher and I worked at Cupertino high school.”

First impression: “I was imagining myself as a freshman and thinking ‘Oh My God! This place is huge.’”

Vivian Ju World Language - Chinese I and II

First impression: “Very nurturing and [..] warm place for students as well as new staff.”

Background: Ju was born and raised in Taiwan, but came to the United States for graduate school.

Goals for this Year: “To make a difference with the kids I work with and see success in their daily classes.”

Goals for this year: Ju hopes to “incorporate more commore core and improve [students’] proficiency,” while also meeting new teachers.

Differences between Homestead and your high school experiences: “Homestead is definietly academically higher performing and is also higher income [and] the neighborhood is better.”

Differences between Homestead and your high school: “[The] Chinese education system is so different and also the culture is so different [...]”

Significant high school moments: “In Korea, high school was from 7:30 AM to 10 PM. [I was] always sleep deprived and stressed out.”

First impression: “It was a real nice, clean campus; students seemed friendly, just have a real positive light to it.”

Brian Dong Dean

First impression: “I thought that the Homestead kids were super nice. The first day I came for orientation and I was lost and a student helped me.”

Favorite book: Fahrenheit 451 because “some of those things are very relevant.”

Viky Morales World Language - Spanish (Part-time) First Impression: “The other staff are incredibly generous with their time and are willing to help with any question. [...] The students are awesome, [...] they are always ready and willing to do the work.”

Most Embarrassing moment from high school: “I tried out for cheerleading and back in my high school [...] and midway through my routine I [...] froze and didn’t finish my routine.”

Plan on changing: “I am just hoping that I am able to do a good job at teaching my students Spanish.”

Goals for this year: For this year, Portillo “hopes to spend more time at Homestead.” Best high school memory: During high school, “people would be confused about my name so I always had many different nicknames.”

Dawn Predium Special Education - Student Advocate

Maritza Speiller Student Teacher - Music Best moment in high school: “At the last band concert [...] I was the last person [the band director] talked about. He started crying, so proud I was going into music.” Professional: “I’ve played in pits for musicals, but I have more fun doing this.”

Least favorite thing about Homestead: The long commute from Predium’s home to campus has been a challenge as she adjusts to her new role at Homestead. Most embarrassing moment from high school: While reporting sports games’ statistics, Predium fell over a fence, causing a temporary halt in the game.

Amber Tanger Special Education, Algebra 1, Environmental Science Most embarrassing high school moment: “Pretty sure I tripped in the quad like a million times.”

John Rodriguez Assistant Principal - “The Gap and the Sap” (AP in charge of Guidance and AP in charge of Scheduling)

Best moment: “I just enjoyed socialising, and being part of the school.” (Was ASB Vice President)

First impression: “[...] everybody here was really friendly, but not just to me [...] one of the things I saw was that you guys are very caring to each other.” Passionate about: “ELD students, students of color, minority students [...] making sure they have access to things that everybody else has access to.”

Nicole Tseng Speech Teacher Goals for this year: “Help the students I work with as best as I am able. In hopes of them feeling more supported as well as improving their speech and/or language skills.” Embarrassing Moment in high school: “Having an allergic reaction, hives and all, while on a first date with a guy I really liked.”

First impression of Homestead: “I feel that everyone (students and staff) here is so welcoming and friendly and really has made this transition SO much easier than I could ever imagine.”

First impression: “Everyone here is so friendly. I felt very welcomed.”

Not available for interviews: Isaac Pallone, Sharon Riddle and Ryan O’Haver PAGE DESIGN BY MARISSA LEE AND NANCY ZHOU PHOTOS COURTESY OF EPITAPH STAFF AND LIFETOUCH