Economics Upheaval An Upper School Departure Upends Student

On Dec. 15, an email sent to the families of Upper School students enrolled in Advanced Placement Macroeconomics for the spring broke the bad news: e class had been canceled.

Prior to the o AP Macroeconomics, the administration had been trying to for Upper School history and economics teacher Adrian Martinez. Martinez had been scheduled to teach the AP Macroeconomics course in the spring, but he accepted a teaching position with another district in late October and le semester break.

at set o the economics and history courses that Martinez had been teaching. Students in AP Microeconomics semester with Kathy Li.

“We were fortunate that SMU had just hired Dr. Li, who came in to substitute for the rest of AP Micro, and she had come in from out of town, so she wasn’t scheduled to start teaching there until the second semester,” said Head of Upper School Trevor Worcester.

However, because Li was scheduled to begin teaching economics courses at Southern Methodist University, she couldn’t teach AP Macroeconomics at Greenhill in the second semester.

“If you think about mid-November to mid-December, it’s the middle of the year,” said Worcester. “It’s hard to nd really good teaching candidates for any subject.” e administration was unable to nd a quali ed candidate for the role by the end of the rst semester, so students were given three options: ey could replace the AP Macroeconomics course with a di erent history elective, take the Macroeconomics course o ered by Global Online Academy, or have an unscheduled period.

On Dec. 22, students were also given the option to take an online macroeconomics course through Texas Tech University K-12. e cost of the course is being covered by Greenhill.

Pursuing Economics

For many students enrolled in AP Macroeconomics, the immediate reaction was disappointment.

“I was initially very worried about my curriculum since I tried to center my second semester around studying for the [AP Macroeconomics] econ course and exam, and have been forced to nd other options,” said senior Ahmed Agha.

I was initially very worried about my curriculum since I tried to center my second semester around studying for the [AP Macroeconomics] econ course and exam, and have been forced to find other options."

Agha says he wants to major in business or economics in college.

“Looking back at it, I felt like I was involuntarily put in a position where I need to put more e ort in to achieve what I wanted,” said Agha.

Senior Shreeya Madhavanur says she had similar feelings.

“I couldn’t believe that they were just

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I thought that they were going to figure something out sooner, and when they couldn’t I was pretty surprised.”

“I’m glad I took the GOA [course] because it’s asynchronous and gives me more free time in the day,” said Madhavanur. “I’m a second-semester senior, so that’s always appreciated.”

At the time when students were o cially noti ed of the course cancellation, there were 56 students enrolled in AP Macroeconomics – and only seven openings in the GOA macroeconomics course.

“You had to respond really quickly to get a spot,” said Madhavanur.

Days later, an institutional partnership was set up with Texas Tech University K-12 that gave students another option

For so many of us, taking economics was a priority. In many high schools, economics is a requirement, so this was just one of those classes I was counting on to prepare me for what I want to pursue for the next four years.”

Until then, students who are interested in pursuing economic-related elds in college still have the option to take either the GOA economics courses or a slightly related non-AP Economics in Society course which the Upper School will continue to o er. ese options aren’t much consolation for some unhappy students. “I can’t imagine us not having AP Economics at Greenhill,” said Madhavanur. “It’s just such a fundamental class that every school has.”

Ash Wednesday

Next Month

March 1

Middle School Musical – “Seussical Jr.”

March 4

March 9

Greenhill Gala

Middle School Greek Play Performance

March 13-17

Spring Break

March 17

St. Patrick’s Day

March 20

Professional Development Day

March 22

Beginning of Ramadan

March 28

Upper School Singers Concert

March 30 - April 1

Spring eater Production

Next issue: April 5 e celebrations mark the beginning of the lunar calendar and the arrival of spring. At Greenhill, the East Asian A nity Group and Southeast Asian A nity Group led campus e orts to commemorate the holiday.

Glossy red envelopes, traditional clothing, glutinous meals, dragon dances, and the gathering of family means one thing for many East Asian and Southeast Asian households around the world: the celebration of Lunar New Year.

“I just like celebrating Lunar New Year with the school because I get to share some of the excitement around the holiday with others, and other students getting to try new foods or learn more about di erent [cultural] traditions is one way I can share the holiday spirit with others,” said senior Kevin Han, president of the East Asian A nity Group.

Director of Community Service and Engagement Jessica Chu, who serves as the East Asian A nity Group’s faculty sponsor and also teaches Upper School math, says the school’s e orts to celebrate Lunar New Year have reminded her of what she loves about the Greenhill community.

I just like celebrating Lunar New Year with the school because I get to share some of the excitement around the holiday with others, and other students getting to try new foods or learn more about different [cultural] traditions is one way I can share the holiday spirit with others.”

“I think one of the reasons why I came to Greenhill is because I noticed the diversity and I noticed the fact that we are willing to educate our community about all sorts of celebrations, cultures, backgrounds, whatever they are,” Chu said.

Cultural Traditions

is year, Lunar New Year fell on Jan. 22.

e holiday originated in China: