Red & Black, January 2020

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Hillsborough High School | HHSToday.com 5000 N. Central Avenue | Tampa, Florida 33603 January 2020 | Volume 121, Issue 4

Y R O S O SE N D

D A O A O L R OV OV E UCH page page 14, TO E T S A T 3, -1 es 11 -7, HEAR pag g ELL pages 6 an M w S ei 5, m 3ei s e SEE pag tion by m ra st u ill | 16 age 15, VIBES p

The fashion trends we see on campus | p. 5

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We’re not doing enough about climate change | p. 10

Sensitive hearing impacts Janet Crawford | p. 12

1/27/2020 3:57:53 PM

2 January 2020

RED&BLACK

BRIEFS

hhstoday.com

VOLUME 121, ISSUE 4

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Marin Fehl WEB EDITOR Jaden Shemesh GRAPHICS EDITOR Johnathan Doan PAGE EDITORS Javier Cuevas Asher Montgomery Reema Patel Adrianna Rodriguez Kylie Smith Carolina Tortorelli STAFF WRITERS Micah Arbelo Alex Croft Patrick McCurdy Edilawit Seyoum Rahul Yalamanchili Meredith Yen ADVISER Joe Humphrey, MJE PRINCIPAL Gary Brady ABOUT Content decisions are made by student editors MEMBERSHIP Red & Black belongs to the Florida, National and Columbia Scholastic press associations AWARDS 2018-2019 FSPA All-Florida 2018-2019 NSPA Pacemaker Finalist 2018-2019 NSPA First Class 2018-2019 CSPA Gold Medalist Bylined COLUMNS represent the viewpoints of their authors

This is not your standard newspaper. It would, however, pass a vibe check.

We decided that it was time to tackle the senses. All six of them. Yes, there are six. We covered the usual suspects: sight, smell, hearing, taste and touch. We also covered vibes because let’s face it, high schoolers really are just vibing.

We decided to publish an issue on the senses soon after the magazine came out.

December and January are full of interruptions, so we knew that we needed to publish something that would stick out, something that would make an impact on our readers.

To us, there was no better way to do that than by appealing to the things that we use every day.

The challenges and obstacles that we face not just as individuals, but as a society, can seem overwhelming. Too big to take on or face or understand. However, at their core, the issues that we face are just a combination of the six senses that get us through the day.

We wanted to go back to the basics. Because how can we really understand the big issues and challenges if we can’t break them down to their kinesthetic parts? In this issue, we tackled climate change, our community and the memories that students at Hillsborough have made that make them who they are.

After you have flipped all the way to page 16, I hope that you have seen, smelled, heard, tasted, touched and even vibed with everything we had to say. After all, it was just a reflection of what is integral to all of us.

Happy reading.

Bill HB 315 proposes mental health days Recently developed bill HB 315 was proposed to give students mental health days in Florida. The plan is to give students a day off each semester, which would be classified as an excused absence.

“I hope it passes, I believe it’ll prevent many mental problems or at least help students manage it better. It’s definitely something that I believe will make a positive difference towards students,” sophomore Brenda Chamizo said.

State Rep. Susan Valdes of Tampa, former Hillsborough County School Board member, proposed this to try to cut back on the anxiety and suicide rates seen today in students.

“Mental health is a really important thing, especially for high schoolers, because kids shouldn’t have to feel anxious or depressed,” sophomore Abigail DePolis said.

The would go into effect July 1. story by micah arbelo

The rifle team steps up practice during competition weeks. Usually, the team only practices on Tuesday and Thursday. Before a competition, they can be found practicing every day.

The competitions have three shooting positions: prone, standing and kneeling. It is the captain’s job to make sure everybody is getting prepared. “What I do is I do it exactly like competition,” junior and captain Zoë Sleeter said. “I time it so you have five minutes for practice and 10 minutes per station. I check where they’re hitting and try and help adjust.”

The team allows members to join after taking a simple test. New members gain experience by watching the more experienced team members. “The first time I shot on the team I had no idea what I was doing,” Franchesca Santos said. “Sleeter tried to boost my confidence. I don’t hear anything. All I see is a small hole and my target. I am just focusing on breathing in and out.”

The team is even adaptable to different circumstances. Every practice is held at the range. “Our first competition was at Middleton,” Sleeter said. It was indoors in the auditorium. It was kind of weird but we still had a good experience.” story by patrick mccurdy

SNAP proposal would limit eligibility for free lunch

We welcome your LETTERS, which may be edited for brevity and clarity.

Submit via email, deliver to Room 506 or mail to Red & Black, 5000 N. Central Ave, Tampa, Florida 33603.

Phone: (813) 276-5620 Email: hhstoday@gmail.com Twitter: @HHSTodayOnline Instagram: @HHSToday Visit us online at HHSTODAY.COM Students pick up their lunch in the cafeteria. photo by reema patel

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Rifle team shoots for a good competition season

Letter from the editor

Thousands of students statewide could lose access to free and reduced school lunch through the National School Lunch program.

The reason? A proposal from the Trump administration that would tighten the eligibility for SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) or, as it’s commonly known, the Food Stamp Program.

The proposal was first announced in July and would cut nearly $90 million from the budget for SNAP. However, this cost-cutting measure could cause many students to lose their eligibility to receive free lunches at school.

SNAP provides automatic access for children to the free lunch program. However, as the proposal would limit states’ flexibility in

determining who is eligible, millions of students across the country would no longer have access to free lunch. According to the Tampa Bay Times, nearly 200,000 students in Florida would be affected.

The proposal would end automatic access for many students, but there is still an application process to receive free and reduced lunch in school. Additionally, all schools in Hillsborough County provide breakfast to students free of charge. However, although many students can still qualify for free lunch through an application process, the extra step may lead to many kids losing access entirely as the process can create barriers. story by reema patel

1/27/2020 2:13:22 PM

SIGHT

January 2020

A LO O K A R O U N D T H E WO R L D

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IB homerooms are assigned a country and create food and presentations to share among the IB program in the annual International Day event, held Jan. 27. | photos by Kylie Smith

ABOVE Senior Dalia Sanchez from Ashley Payne’s homeroom dances to traditional Indian music. “Performing this year felt incredibly bittersweet, but I enjoyed it just as much as the other years,” Sanchez said.

BELOW Bella Martinez from Ana Cooper’s homeroom twirls for their Cuban performance.

“My favorite part of International Day is eating food; this year Japan had really good food,” she said.

ABOVE Students from Cecilia Boyce’s sophomore homeroom represent Somalia in a cultural dance lead by Azriel Webb. “My favorite part [of International Day] probably was watching the performances and seeing the differences between each of the cultures,” Karina Syc (third from front) said.

ABOVE Linda Wilson dances with sophomore Emily Mudra in their presentation for Morocco. “I think we performed at the same level as last year but as the years go on it gets more competitive and we get more into it,” Mudra said. My favorite part is getting to see the diverse cultures, food and dances,” she said.

LEFT Students from Chelsea Oggero’s homeroom perform a bamboo step dance that originated in The Phillipines.

MIDDLE LEFT Zoe Schuler from Laura Wells’ homeroom participates in the limbo game presented. After everyone in their homeroom went, they encouraged students from around the room to join in.

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SIGHT

January 2020

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LEFT Junior Jalen Harris makes a shot to the basket. RIGHT Freshman Tyra Kennedy dribbles down the court. | photos by luis rodriguez and kayla kennedy Students scroll through social media. “Gaming platforms and social media are really available and often used tools for traffickers to talk to youth, and since that’s one of the main ways young people communicate, it’s a very easy avenue for traffickers,” Heather Curry said. | photo by asher montgomery

Spotting solutions to human trafficking Hillsborough County plans to create a Committee for Human Trafficking and Prevention to lower human trafficking rates in the county. It will involve both community members and law enforcement.

“We outlawed slavery a long time ago, but it still exists domestically,” said County Commissioner Kimberly Overman about the human trafficking problem that exits in the U.S Human trafficking is separated into two categories: labor trafficking and sex trafficking.

Trafficking involves three components: force, fraud or coercion by another person.

High schoolers at risk Leading the charge, under appointment by Commissioner Overman, is Heather Curry.

According to Curry, middle school and high school students are particularly at risk for sex trafficking. “Gaming platforms and social media are really available and often used tools for traffickers to talk to youth, and since that’s one of the main ways young people communicate, it’s a very easy avenue for traffickers,” she said.

Overman discussed similar risks linked with teen vulnerability on social media. “Teenagers post on social media that they are frustrated with their parents. The traffickers know that they feel isolated or are looking for attention. From there they are basically groomed for human trafficking,” she said.

Overman said they may later find themselves in a situation where they are forced to sleep with someone for money or with someone they don’t know.

In order to prevent sex trafficking of minors, Florida’s Board of Education passed a bill

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requiring K-12 schools to teach students about child trafficking prevention. Florida is third in the nation for reported trafficking cases, having 767 cases reported in 2018, with 20 % involving children according to the Florida Department of Education.

Curry said they haven’t decided what the awareness program is going to look like yet.

She said she personally hopes that someone local will teach about trafficking, someone who has a good sense of what Hillsborough County schools look like.

The Commitee

Hillsborough County specifically, is also taking its own measures. The commitee will have two parts, one involving people in law enforcement dealing with the demand side and the other dealing with raising awareness.

On the law enforcement side is Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister, who led an undercover operation to combat human trafficking.

The operations brought more than 100 arrests from between June to November 2019. They are investigating and prosecuting both traffickers and purchasers.

The other side, raising awareness, involves not only the new law requiring Education for students about sex trafficking, but also an online training which will be taken by 500,000 workers in the county. The training will about how to avoid human trafficking, what to do if they find themselves caught in it, as well as how to spot a human trafficking case.

Prostitution vs. Trafficking

There is a cultural difficulty in targeting sex

trafficking in the United States. In the past, cases that may have been considered sex trafficking now, were considered as prostitution, meaning the victim was punished instead of the pimp.

The difference is that sex trafficking involves force, fraud or coercion, while prostitution assumes that the person is choosing to be paid for sex.

Curry and Commissioner Overman with help from law enforcement plan to change that culture in order to punish the traffickers instead of the victims. “If you’re arrested multiple times for prostitution you not likely to trust the law enforcement. Instead, the only person you trust is the pimp that has been selling you, through their manipulation,” Overman said. “Calling it prostitution is an excuse to ignore that someone has been stripped of their dignity.”

How to help “I think that anytime you can raise awareness of any issue, that’s really your greatest power to start with,” Curry said. “Verse yourselves on the signs to look for.” “If you see a friend who is going away for periods of time, getting in the car with an adult you don’t recognize, has health problems, a dramatic change in personality, there are lots of signs,” Commissioner Overman said. Many of these signs can be found on the National Human Trafficking Hotline.

“The key is to let children know that someone forcing you to do something you don’t want to do is not always right,” Commissioner Overman said. “Be cautious about who you trust when it comes to being coerced into something you wouldn’t normally do.” story by asher montgomery

Point guards lead team to victory Every position on the court is valuable.

Each player has his or her own role on the team and is relied on heavily by their teammates. One of the most important positions is the point guard, who is relied on to run the play and look for open teammates to try to win games.

Point guard, junior Jalen Harris, makes sure he prepares for his games by having a working friendship with his teammates and staying aware of his surroundings. “I see what the defense is doing and the people around me,” Harris said. “I also see who is open and how I’m going to get to the basket.”

According to freshman Tyra Kennedy, it is important to practice and play games with a postive mindset. “My mindset going into games is to stay focused and play hard,” Kennedy said. “It is important to give a lot of effort no matter what happens.”

It does not matter whether the game is home or away to the Terrier point guards. “It does not matter at all,” Kennedy said. “We should still be able to go out there and play our game.”

Even when games are difficult, it is the job of the point guards to make an impact on the game and stay observant. “When we play our hard opponents, I see a bunch of tall 6-(foot)-8 dudes that can shoot threes and block shots,” Harris said. “I still have to take care of the ball and just work harder.” The point guards are responsible for visualizing what the team’s next move needs to be.

What happens around the court and what the point guards can see might lead to mistakes. That is why the players try to focus on the game as much as possible. “I’m really focused on the game,” Kennedy said. “I really don’t worry about the crowd what they are doing does not affect how I play my game.” story by patrick mccurdy

1/27/2020 2:20:27 PM

January 2020

SE EN O N

SIGHT

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Photos by Alex Croft

CENTR A L

ABOVE Sophomore Aleidys Nunez sits on a bench striking a pose of her simplistic vintage inspired outfit. “I really like the style they had in the ’90s and it fits me you know. It’s cool and different and that’s why I like it,” Nunez said.

BELOW Senior D’Andre Noel steps forward to show off his Off-White Jodan 1’s along with his Supreme jean jacket. “I really I think the style is something I’m more invested in, like the Supreme name itself is an additional flare,” Noel said.

ABOVE Sophomore Gianna Settimi poses in front of a bright green palm tree in a dark colored plaid dress with a black turtleneck underneath.

“My process is to wear something comfortable underneath so that I can row in the afternoon, and then to look semi-presentable for during school,” Settimi said.

MIDDLE Senior Joleen Lane sits on top of the stairs leading to the main hall with her left foot extended, showing the sole of her colored Air Forces. “I look up to the upcoming rapper’s styles, and then I like to combine it with my own clothes and style. My style switches up depending on my mood,” Lane said.

LEFT Sophomores Isha Modha and Martin Leon sit in the grass in front of a palm tree in their vintage inspired outfits, striking a pose. “I definitely wear a lot of vintage clothes like the older band tees, but I love the vibe of streetwear. It’s important for me to plan my outfits ahead of time,” Modha said. “I don’t typically wear like normal street wear, I wear more things that would be different. Some may say more feminine clothes, like the floral shirts, but I just like the different styles that floral shirts can come in,” Leon said.

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1/27/2020 2:23:14 PM

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SIGHT

January 2020

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LEFT Sophomore Lauren Nvorska has volunteered at the Humane Society three to four times a week for the past two years. Her favorite animals to work with are cats, specifically kittens. “One of the best parts of volunteering is kitten cuddles,” Nvorska said. RIGHT Nvorska posing with one of the cats at the Humane Society. She plans to continue volunteering there througout high school. After that, she wants to become an environmental lawyer. | photos by carolina tortorelli

Lauren Novorska is not kitten about her future It was the summer before her first year of high school.

She would go to the Humane Society of Tampa Bay three to four times a week, where she helped kids learn more about animal shelters and taking care of animals. At the end of it, she had amassed a total of 120 service hours.

After many years of Girl Scouts and multiple volunteering programs, sophomore Lauren Novorska finally found the perfect project for her Girl Scout Silver Award.

It combined her passion for animals with her dream of educating people about important issues of the environment, such as spreading awareness on animal homelessness.

Exploring a new passion

“That [project] kicked off my volunteering at the Humane Society. It has really opened up a lot of doors. I love working there,” Novorska said.

Her mother also volunteered at the shelter with her, and now works there as a volunteer coordinator. “I think it’s terrific that Lauren wants to give back to her community by volunteering at the Humane Society. She’s always been very interested in animals and has loved working with them and trying to preserve the environment,” her mother, Lisa Novorska, said. “Volunteering also gives her an opportunity to learn about possible animal-related careers. Plus, who doesn’t want to spend their afternoon playing with kittens?”

Besides achieving her goals of giving back to the community and advocating about the topics she is passionate about, Novorska also gets to explore her love for cats, and animals in general, each time she volunteers there. Her role at the shelter is typically working with the rescued cats or educating people.

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She takes visitors and volunteers on tours and explains the Humane Society’s mission. Two of her own four kittens, Cocoa Puff and Rascal, also came from the shelter.

“Even though my pets may be safe and happy, others may not be. So, it’s really important to me while working there to make sure that they have the best life that they can possibly have during their time at the shelter,” she said.

Her future plans

Novorska is very interested in ecology and genetics, and plans to combine those with her passion for animals, becoming an environmental lawyer in the future. “It all plays into conservation and the species survival plan. That would be my dream job, to work with animals and educate in things like climate change and why it’s important to impose regulations from a governmental stand point and from a law stand point,” she said.

She is currently working on her Girl Scout Gold Award project with the Humane Society. Her plan is to work with their Trap, Neuter, Vaccinate, Release Program.

This program includes capturing feral or stray cats in the community to give them any specific treatment needed before returning them to the wild. She says her goal is to spread advocacy about the importance of neutering your pets.

“Even though it’s great that volunteering gets me hours, it’s more of wanting to actually do something to impact those around me. If I’m here, I want to make sure I’m doing something to help, and this is the way I’ve chosen to do so,” Novorska said. story by carolina tortorelli

Meet the cats that Lauren volunteers with Blue Blue is a 3-year-old female. Blue was taken in by the shelter after her owner’s surrendered her because they couldn’t take care of her any longer.

Rita Rita is a 1-year-old who was found as a stray.

Her personality was too sweet and cuddly for her to stay at the Humane Society for very long.

Ross Ross is a 2-year-old stray who was found abandoned on the streets. He was at the shelter for two months, much longer than the usual two weeks.

Shadow Shadow is only 8 months old and was adopted almost immediately because of his shy and sweet personality. compiled by carolina tortorelli

1/27/2020 2:35:45 PM

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SMELL

January 2020

hhstoday.com

Smells of home What smells remind students of Tampa?

“When you go outside of Hillsborough into the Seminole Heights area, there are so many small stores and little restaurants. Like if you go Spaddy’s it’s a nice coffee smell.”

-SHREYA KOTHAPALLI, 12

A vape display at Kwik Stop on Florida and Hanna avenues. | photo by asher montgomery

New law raises legal vaping age to 21 Every so often, a walk past the bathrooms in a high school hallway leads to a whiff of something sweet, the sugary artificial smell of a donut or a fruit flavoring.

Ten years ago, those smells didn’t have the associations to a recently popularized electronic cigarette as it does today. Starting with the introduction of the vape to the United States in 2007, the vape cloud has only gotten bigger, despite the health risks that have been discovered.

In a unanimous vote in early November, Hillsborough County Commissioners voted to raise the legal vaping age from 18 to 21. The bill also requires that vendors have a sign posted saying it is illegal for minors to purchase electronic cigarettes or vapes.

“There are stories of people making their own liquids to put in a vape. It’s easy for things like this to occur when dealing with products people can get on the street,” said District 6 County Commissioner Kimberly Overman about her choice to vote for this bill. She explained that if someone underage is found vaping then they get a citation, which is considered a misdemeanor.

With this new law, Overman hopes that will be prevented. “The key is making sure retailers

don’t sell to people who are underage,” she said.

At the Kwik Stop, at the intersection of Florida and Hanna avenues, employees must check IDs to confirm that buyers of any tobacco products are over 18. The county had not informed them about the change in law yet in mid-December or provided a sign informing customers of the legal purchase age, according to employees Mike Booz and Mohammed Qadri.

Booz recounted a young man who attends HHS coming into the Kwik Stop that day to purchase a vape. Since he was over 18, born in 2001, they were still legally allowed to sell it to him, he said. “When [the law] is implemented, we’ll know. They’ll tell us and we’ll follow it,” Booz said.

There was no sign posted about the new age limit as of Jan. 27.

Two students who used to vape to deal with stress but have since quit, and wish to remain anonymous, have opposing views on the law.

One supports the new law because by preventing access, it will prevent the culture of vapes from becoming like the culture of cigarettes.

The other supports the motive to create the law but doesn’t believe it will work. “If the law makes it longer before [a kid] can legally vape,

Scentimental scents

Ana Cooper

After living in Brazil for 21 years, the math teacher smells fresh bread it reminds her of home, where there was always fresh bread.

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they’ll say screw it and vape anyway instead of waiting even longer,” one said.

The increase in use of vaping products could be attributed to the advertisements that began circling after 2011 saying that vaping is a safe form of smoking.

Making the problem bigger, JUUL, which is a type of vape that looks a bit like a flash drive, can easily be hidden in school. In the United States, the first factory produced 20 million cigarettes in 1861.

It wasn’t until 1912 that the first report of the link between smoking and lung cancer was published. For years, cigarettes were smoked without lawful limitations. When vapes were first produced, it was a similar case, and people were quick to accept that they were not harmful. Now, studies show the harmful effects of vaping. A 2019 study published by the American Heart Association showed that e-cigarette use is linked to stroke, heart attack, angina and heart disease.

For these reasons, Overman chose to support the bill raising the legal vaping age to 21.

“Habits that are developed as a teen are hard to break later in life,” Overman said. story by asher montgomery

“A lot of nature, tree and rain water. The smell of coffee. You can feel the humidity everywhere.”

-ESHA KATHIRIA, 12

What smells remind students of Hillsborough?

“It reeks of cologne mostly.

The 400 Hall is gross.”

-MEGAN PELLETIER, 12

“Weed. Just weed” -MAGGIE MICHEAL, 9

“The bathrooms smell bad, so the halls smell like toilet water.”

-ESHA KATHIRIA, 12

compiled by reema patel

We asked people about their most nostaglic smells:

Ryan Pais, 11

When Pais smells oil on the street in front of the school, it reminds him of his hometown Las Vegas.

Ava Anderson, 12

When Anderson smells the Sweet Pea perfume from Bath and Body Works, it reminds her of middle school.

Philip Morris

Assistant Principal Morris is taken back to his grandparents’ house when he smells any dish that they used to make

Diego Rodriguez, 10

Coffee reminds him of waking up for school because his mom always has a fresh cup for him. compiled by meredith yen

1/27/2020 4:53:38 PM

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FOCUS

January 2020

hhstoday.com

To act or not to act?

HCPS is making lunches sustainable Students move through the lunch line picking up chicken and mashed potatoes, a slice of pizza, hamburgers wrapped in aluminum. With 29.8 million students in the United States receiving school lunch daily, the school system has an influence on what majority of children eat and what resources are being used in the food industry.

Studies show animal agriculture is the second largest contributor to human-made greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions after fossil fuels and is a leading cause of deforestation, water and air pollution and biodiversity loss.

Because of these statistics, or other reasons such as health, compassion for animals, or religion, some students choose to go vegan or vegetarian.

A vegetarian is someone that removes meat, fish and poultry from their diet. Vegans are similar except they eliminate all animal products, so they do not eat or drink dairy products or eggs.

Sophomore Elizabeth Milan chooses to follow the vegetarian diet. She packs her lunch every day, but if the school had vegetarian options, she said she would consider buying lunch from the school. Senior Gillian Bennett packs a plant-based lunch every day to.

“I don’t think I’d consider eating school lunch if there were more options because I like eating my own lunch, but I think the school should do it regardless,” Bennett said.

Hillsborough County Public School (HCPS) website provides documents titled “Managing a Vegan Diet at School”

and “Managing a Vegetarian Diet at School.” These documents include the definition of each diet as well as what the school district provides that fit each diet.

There are eight options for lunch meals listed on the document for vegans.

“We have multiple vegan/vegetarian options available but our sites do not always prepare everything if they do not know there is a need to avoid waste,” Hillsborough County’s Registered Dietitian said.

For the nutrition staff to provide options for vegan and vegetarian students, the county requests that students fill out a Meal Preference Form and turn it into their school’s Student Nutrition Manager.

At Hillsborough, that role belongs to Lavan Walker. “If you’re a vegan or vegetarian just come back here and say, ‘Hey Mr. Walker, I am a vegan or vegetarian’ and we will provide you with options other than just picking through what we have [in the lunch line],” he said.

As of Jan. 17, the Trump administration plans to remove nutritional standards for school lunch set in place by former First Lady Michelle Obama.

This includes allowing schools to serve fattier, saltier and more processed foods, as well as cutting the amount of vegetable and fruits required to be served, meaning more meat and cheese.

Junior Olivia Kasper became vegetarian in the fourth grade because of animal cruelty but came to realize

the environmental benefits as she got older. “I probably wouldn’t eat school lunch even if they had more vegetarian options because I like having control in what I eat based off my preferences,” she said.

Many studies and statistics show though that having a mainly plant based diet could be worth in in the long run.

According to a study from the American Chemical Society, because of the beef industry, an average American’s diet annually produces 1,984 pounds of C02e, a greenhouse gas that is linked to climate change.

If the beef was replaced with a plantbased meat, that would be reduced 96%.

By as early as 2030, the Earth’s temperature will increase by almost 3 degrees. The temperature increase will be disruptive for all of the Earth’s ecosystems. According to the study from the American Chemical Society, reducing consumption of meat is one way to reduce these consequences.

According to a study done by Oxford Martin School researchers, a worldwide switch to plant-based diets could save up to 8 million lives by 2050, reduce greenhouse gases by two-thirds and avoid climate damages of $1.5 trillion.

Sophomore Isha Mondha is a vegetarian, originally for religious reasons but now she is motivated by environmental reasons, too.

“At Hillsborough, there are so many people who have a meatless diet so schools should definitely look into more plant-based meals.” story by asher montgomery

In the face of climate change, junior Matthew Lewicki believes every little thing counts, but senior Hirsh Kabaria is among those who doesn’t think solving climate change is up to him

Students can visit Lavan Walker, the Student Nutrition Manager, to arrange options for plant-based dining at school. | photo by asher montgomery

Dietary accomodations in HCPS Pork-free diets All of the deli meat served in school cafeterias is pork free. In addition, carnival corndogs, All-American hotdogs, pizzas, breakfast bagels and beef crumbles are pork free offerings.

Vegan diets HCPS offers a variety of vegan breakfast options including soy milk and also serves black beans or garbanzo beans as a protein alternative used in place of meat, eggs or cheese.

Vegetarian diets Black beans and garbanzo beans are used as a meat replacement for lunches.

Students can also ask for grain-based options made with cheese. compiled by marin fehl

Expanding meat alternatives The traditional veggie burger, constructed from a mixture of soy, beans and lentils, has been around in name since 1982. Since its introduction, it has enticed few. This was also the case for many plant-based meat alternatives of the past.

However, the demand remained high.

These consumers are concerned with the faults of the meat industry, including bustiness, environmental and ethical concerns. As a response, many popular startup companies have formed in pursuit of plant-based options which not only satisfy ethical concerns, but flavor concerns as well.

This is where lab-grown meat substitutes

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come in. The first artificial beef burger was produced in the Netherlands in 2013. This patty was grown using cow cells and cost a total of $330,000 to produce. These synthetic products are made through the growth of muscle cells, which are placed in nutrient serum.

The result is boneless processed meat which can be seasoned, cooked and consumed like regular meat. This “cellular agriculture” produces the same proteins, fats and tissues that would be found in animal products. In addition, these methods provide a direct alternative to those of traditional meat production, which have been found to

cause greenhouse emissions. Cattle livestock contribute to 10 percent of worldwide greenhouse gas emissions, which has been connected to climate change. Livestock also require large amounts of resources, such as food and water, and take up large plots of land.

Numerous restaurant chains including Burger King brought artificial meats to their menu. Starbucks, the largest coffee chain in the world, recently announced that it would be exploring meat alternatives. story by javier cuevas graphic by marin fehl

Senior Alexandria Scott attends a climate protest in downtown Tampa, where she spoke about the need for government action to address climate change. Scott volunteers at The Florida Aquarium, working with marine scientists to find solutions to the dangers that face Florida’s aquatic ecosystems.

Fighting habitat degradation in Florida The consequences of climate change are particularly evident in the Tampa Bay Estuary, a longtime habitat breeding ground for endangered species. And for students like senior Alexandria Scott, these efforts can’t come soon enough.

“I’ve always loved animals and wanted to work with them in some capacity, and just by keeping up with various environmental issues in recent years I’ve seen how much danger the natural world is in because of man-made causes,” Scott said. “It’s a huge problem right now and it just feels like so many people shrug it off as something can’t do anything about, and the fact that the government and big corporations seem to only ever do the bare minimum to placate people on a surface level is immensely frustrating, so I do what I can to help make some change.”

Scott currently volunteers at The Florida Aquarium, raising awareness for environmental concerns and attending several yearly cleanups in Cotanchobee Park and Fort DeSoto.

She also worked with marine scientists from the University of Florida and the American Fisheries Society over the summer to stabilize populations of endangered aquatic species.

A global initiative

Her efforts echo the global initiatives of the Smithsonian Zoo and other wildlife and habitat preservation groups.

“There are species survival plans, which means that all of the zoos communicate, and

we use computer programs that tell us the genetics of our captive population and how to best breed them to keep those genetics healthy,” a Smithsonian reptile keeper, Sara Hausenstab, said in an interview. “We don’t want to bottleneck these captive breeding populations, so we’re maintaining captive populations as healthy as we can for potential future release.”

Rehabilitiating species

Smithsonian houses an active population of Panamanian golden frogs, which are currently extinct in the wild because of a virus that destroyed their habitat. Hausenstab, along with her colleagues, wants to preserve populations in captivity so they are not lost.

The severity of the situation facing aquatic species is what motivates Scott to continue advocating for environmental protection.

“Since the areas that common musk turtles live in are really susceptible to development and environmental destruction, they’re really important to protect,” Scott said. “We work on protecting various habitats in Florida. On my own, however, I regularly write emails and sign petitions to protect important environmental lands and I also hope to participate in more government advocacy in the future because that will be critical in the coming years to make some change.” story by marin fehl photo courtesy hirsh kabaria

He started an environmental protection club in elementary school.

As a child in Canada, junior Matthew Lewicki was already an environmental advocate. Now, he no longer eats beef or pork for both health and environmental reasons and brings his own bags to stores. For Lewicki, addressing climate change is about individual choices.

Part of his efforts have included incorporating sustainable, reusable materials in his everyday life. When he goes to restaurants, he tries to bring his own metal straw. At grocery stores, he has reusable cloth bags and he even brings a reusable water bottle with him everyday to avoid purchasing single use plastic.

According to Lewicki, the only way to make a difference is to start small.

Taking small steps

“I do make more environmentally conscious choice, such as I don’t eat any beef, or bringing cloth bags into the grocery store, or using my reusable water bottle, but I don’t let climate change weigh me down because at the end of the day I want to be happy,” Lewicki said. “If the world begins to end but I’m happy, that’s a win.”

He also participates in yearly cleanups in Tampa Bay. Despite his volunteering, Lewicki doesn’t actively participate in protests. “I mean theoretically to get to a protest I’d have to use my gas operated vehicle which would cause pollution anyways, so that wouldn’t really be helping anything,” he explained.

He just doesn’t think protesting is the most necessary thing to do. He does, however, believe that addressing the youth mindset surrounding climate change is crucial.

With the impending threat of climate disaster and conflicting reports about when it’s too late to make a change, nihilism has been on the rise, espe-

cially in the younger generation.

High schoolers have taken to social media to vocalize their despair and to tout a nihilistic view. Nihilism, the recently popularized outlook, is centered around the idea that no individual can really make a difference, and therefore not much matters. Lewicki says that this kind of outlook is what is setting addressing climate change back.

“If people realized that anything helps, they’d do more to help, but if climate change seems like an ominous store that’s looming, everyone will freak out, but nobody would know what they can do to help,” Lewicki said. “If you follow that concept, you will make a few choices that can help the environment instead of panicking and doing nothing.”

Nihilism is on the rise

Senior Hirsh Kabaria disagrees.

Kabaria also tries to make environmentally conscious choices, but he believes that corporations and the government are the ones who have a role to play in combatting the issue.

“The threat of climate change has definitely made me more aware of how my actions influence the planet,” he said.

“However, it also made me realize that a lot of the change has to come from a corporate or government level, and that personally, I can’t do much about it. I do think about it a lot, and I try to make changes if I can, but my day to day life has stayed pretty much the same.”

He does think that the recent interest in the environment is beneficial. However, he argues that the push towards doing small things, like using metal straws, is misplaced energy. “I think it’s good that people are thinking critically about their impact on the world,” Kabaria said. “I just feel that sometimes, things like the plastic straw controversy create a feeling that we did something when we really didn’t. It makes people feel like they don’t need to act when in reality, they were advocating for banning something that was a drop in the bucket compared to pollution issues like fishing waste or even just the rest of that cup they were drinking from.”

Everything helps

However, even though actions may be small, Lewicki believes that everything not only counts, but is necessary.

“I think if climate change is promoted as an accessible issue, one that can be solved, then people will try to solve it. If climate change is promoted as a monstrous beast that cannot be contained, nobody will care because if you’re going to die anyways, you might as well use the rest of your life the best way possible, even if that means excessive carbon emissions along the way,” he said. “Everyone can help by doing little things and more people supporting the issue is more support the issue is getting period. If you don’t think small things can help, you’re the problem.” story by marin fehl graphic by john doan

1/27/2020 3:49:52 PM

10

OPINION

January 2020

We’re seeing the effects.

We smell the BS. We’re hearing about fires in Australia.

We feel powerless.

And the truth is, we need a change in mindset. From everyone.

The threat of climate change has always been on the horizon. It’s just become a lot more urgent for all of us, and we still aren’t doing enough. It’s easy to say that it’s game over. The world is supposed to end in 2030, or was it 2050?

It’ll end at some point, that doesn’t mean we can just throw our hands up and allow it to be on our watch.

We can’t win

Yet, it feels hopeless. We can swap for metal straws, stop eating animal products or at least reduce our consumption of them. We can carpool, go zero waste and make sustainable choices in every possible facet of our lives. But that doesn’t stop greenhouse gases from filling the atmosphere at an increasingly alarming rate. And it doesn’t stop erratic weather patterns or clean the oceans. So, what’s the point?

The point is we have to. But we can’t just use a metal straw one time and say that the environment has been saved, either.

So, we’re left with a dilemma. An individual’s sustainable decisions can’t save the environment, only sustainable decisions of multibillion-dollar corporations can. We can’t afford to be unsustainable either. Because it’s going to take everyone.

We have practiced a lifestyle of overconsumption, of thoughtless use without consideration for others or for the people and things that will come after us. We have done that for a while. After all of that, we have been left with an existential nightmare. So, no one person or one company could possibly hope to salvage the

burning remains of our greed. Or to clean the oceans or plant every single tree that has been cut down.

It’s time for drastic action

Saving the planet, it seems, is not such a small task.

It wouldn’t be. People are terrified of change, especially when the change that is required is drastic. We’ve passed the point of taking small steps towards addressing climate change. We need to leap, jump, pole-vault, whatever we have to do to solve the problem. We need to be radical. We need to do it now.

Unfortunately, a large majority of the people in power aren’t willing to do that. Most of them

are crawling towards a resolution, others are just statues. We can’t afford that.

Our generation, especially, cannot afford that.

Because it isn’t just about

saving the planet for right now, it’s about doing it for later. Climate change is our midlife crisis, and we don’t get a choice in the matter.

It’s on us

So, it’s fallen on our laps. It’s fallen on the laps of high schoolers to fix the planet that the people before us destroyed. Fair enough, we accept that challenge. Because we can take it on.

Climate change may feel so

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overwhelming that we feel powerless, but we aren’t. We have voices that are ready to yell and changes that we are ready to implement. And we need a complete restructure of how we live to do that.

We need to make individual sustainable choices. We also need to demand corporations make them too. We need to demand that governments make them, too. And truth be told, we have that power. We have the power to vote, and soon enough, we will have the power to be voted for. Climate change has felt impossible for so long, but we’re just going to have to fix it.

Despite the enormity of the issue, we hear change coming. And it’s thunderous.

THIS EDITORIAL REFLECTS THE OPINION OF OUR EDITORIAL BOARD, WHICH IS WHY IT APPEARS WITHOUT A BYLINE. WE WELCOME YOUR LETTERS TO THE EDITOR DELIVERED TO ROOM 506 OR EMAILED TO HHSTODAY@GMAIL.COM Illustration by John Doan

We all need to make more sustainable choices Ethical consumption is difficult but not impossible.

Sitting on his couch after a stressful day at work, he lifts his favorite chocolate bar to his mouth, already salivating at the thought of eating it. As he takes a bite, he wonders how the chocolate was made, so he googles it. He discovers the company uses child labor. Suddenly, he feels ashamed. He contemplates boycotting the company’s products, but he stops. “Why does it matter?” he wonders. “Other people will buy this bar and the company will keep making money anyways.” Irritated, he chooses an indifferent approach, his temples now hurting profusely.

Overwhelmed and cynical, he devours the rest of the chocolate, feeling a pang of guilt deep down.

His brain hurts, and frankly, mine does too.

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Why should we be subjected to such complex thinking over a $1 candy bar? Because of ethical consumption. Defined by The Guardian as the “buying [of] products which were ethically produced and/or which are not harmful to the environment and society,” ethical consumption has become a prominent, and even controversial idea in the past several years. These ethical choices can be as simple as choosing organic produce at a grocery store. However, most choices are more complex nowadays, as conscious consumers take into account energy consumption, fair trade, and environmental impacts.

In today’s world, anyone besides a no-waste, ultra-vegan producer of zero emissions is going to be subjected to some rude comments. Just check Twitter. While that may feel discouraging, no one is perfect. The cliché applies especially to

ethical consumption because the options are no longer as simple as good and evil. For instance, one might choose to boycott the chocolate company that uses child labor. But while lower than Western standards, that company may be the best option for work in that country, and so thousands of jobs would be lost. Some people can’t afford cruelty-free products, or boycotting cotton because it demands too many resources and too much agricultural land.

At this point in my Chidi Anagonye-like lecture (he’s a character in “The Good Place”) you may be wondering, “So what should I do?”

The answer is: I don’t know. I really don’t. Every choice you make is an ethical dilemma, but that shouldn’t overwhelm you. I would argue that as long as you contemplate your choice’s impacts on the environment and others, you

are practicing ethical consumption. So, if your priorities don’t align with the ultra-vegan community, don’t immediately become cynical or overwhelmed. We all must decide what we’re OK with and accept our decision. I’ll admit, I understand the environmental impacts planes have; however, travelling is a big part of my identity and so I choose to continue flying. However, I decided to cut out eating meat at my house. Yes, I sometimes eat meat at restaurants, but that’s my decision.

We all have a stake in the future of our society and of our planet. Becoming an ethical consumer is the minimum we can do to ensure we are doing our best to protect our planet and to lead a thoughtful life. column by jaden shemesh

1/27/2020 2:50:01 PM

January 2020

11

HEAR

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High school sounded like this We asked teachers what song described their high school experience:

Pop artist Billie Eilish took home five Grammys: Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Album of the Year, Best New Artist and Best Pop Vocal Album | photo courtesy justin higuchi/flickr/used with permission

The Grammys aren’t a popularity contest Despite the massive backlash which the award ceremony seems to receive year after year, the Grammy Awards still don’t appreciate music.

On Jan. 26, the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards were brought to viewers live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Sadly, the musical taste of the Academy’s voting members remains indistinguishable from that of your average 14-year-old Twitter user.

The list of winners makes it apparent that the ceremony is more focused on damage control than musical appreciation. As a result, artists are celebrated for the material success which their project has achieved, while creativity and originality remain irrelevant qualities.

Of all the winners of the ceremony, none stand out more than Billie Eilish. The viral

pop sensation left the venue with five trophies: Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, Best New Artist and Best Pop Vocal Album.

Looking at the alternative nominees in the respective categories, these victories seem undeserved. The music industry seems to have been force feeding the artist to the casual listener for an entire year.

Over time, the star has achieved massive popularity and a rather militant fanbase.

Denying Eilish of a category sweep was unlikely. However, these aren’t the People’s Choice Awards. This ceremony should be dedicated to musical achievement, not popularity achievement.

The category of Best Rap Album seems to always be the center of controversy.

This year, the tradition of upsets was sadly

continued with Tyler, the Creator receiving the award for Igor. Despite being the artist’s most quality project to date, it was in a category that it did not belong to. Sadly, this seems to be the case for most rap artists who produce genre-defying content. The ceremony finds a way to restrict the potential of the artist. It is rap, nothing more.

Meanwhile, true rap albums were not given the recognition they deserved. This includes nominees Meek Mill and Dreamville, who each released some of the best music within the genre in the last year.

Depriving Igor of an album of the year nomination and placing it into an unsuitable field stripped the title from the hands of genuine hip-hop artists.

review by javi cuevas

Take me back tunes These are the songs you said would remind you of high school: 1. “Graduation” by Juice Wrld “It’s a song about high school with lyrics that are pretty accurate like the one about the science lab, I really felt that because of the experience I had with this kid in my science class,” junior Anthony Guttierez said.

2. “That’s What I Like” by Bruno Mars “Most school dances played that song and it’s so upbeat and fun,it’s the sound of adolescence in my opinion,” junior Zoë Sleeter said.

3. “Young, Dumb and Broke” by Khalid “Us kids are at a young age where we are so blind about the world even though we think we know so much. We’re broke as well because half of us don’t even have jobs. We’re just young dumb broke high school kids,” senior Marc Santisteban said 4. “Bricks” by Gucci Mane “High school is filled with people that think they’re gangsters, but Gucci shows that he has lived it and knows what it’s like,” senior Aliyas Athens said. compiled by and graphic by kylie smith

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At one point in their lifetimes, the staff at Hillsborough were kids too, and to relax, they would kick back enjoy some tunes.

For Michael Welch, Class of 2008, he described that on his first day of high school he was listening to a lot classic ’70s rock.

“My favorite tracks were probably like Stairway to Heaven, Back in Black and Hotel California.

It helped a lot to make friends and find common ground between us.”

Music helped guide the teachers and administrators down the right path, and really helped them get through some tough times as well.

Administrator Travian Mitchell feels the same way. “I always say that OutKast wrote the soundtrack of my adolescence,” he said. He believes that music is what helps him identify apart from other people, and that old rap music is what represents where he is truly from.

“Me being from a town that is metro, and just outside Atlanta. Rap is real big in those parts. Rappers like OutKast and Goodie Mob are something that really influenced me growing up, and that I listen to on the regular,” Mitchell said. “You start to look at things for more than what they are at faith value. There is a song called ‘Thought Process’ that really helped me open my eyes.”

It’s not just rap music that can be held so close to somebodies heart. Math teacher James Fosco said music really helped him when he was in college. He was able to make friends through their comparable tastes in music.

“I love Bob Marley. I pretty much love all of his music,” Fosco said. “It reminds me of back when I was in college, when I was first exposed to his music,” he said. He enjoys listening to reggae, and alternative music. “It’s very relaxing for me,” he said.

For some of the staff at Hillsborough, music proved essential for them. It wasn’t just something to help them escape, but it was something that helped open up the world to them. “Music really helps to forget. All these songs really helped me get through, in terms of helping me understand the world around me, and also being able to sit back relax, and zone out,” Mitchell said. story and photo by rahul yalamanchili

1/27/2020 4:26:38 PM

12

HEAR

January 2020

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Living with misophonia

JANET CR AWFOR D

On her first day of high school, Janet Crawford was making small talk with a girl sitting behind her in second period.

The two were getting to know each other as the girl loudly smacked a piece of chewing gum between her teeth. The noise was minimal, but Crawford instantly began tapping her foot under her desk, tempted to put in her earbuds.

Finally, she was forced to quickly step outside the classroom.

Chewing. Swallowing. Slurping. Sounds that usually go unheard in the din of a classroom are magnified for Crawford. Earbuds in, she tries to prevent these noises from reaching her ears and making her dizzy and upset.

The diagnosis

The freshman was diagnosed in seventh grade with a rare disorder called misophonia, which causes a strong reaction to specific sounds. Those with misophonia may feel anger or panic when they hear their trigger sounds, which can include dripping water, pencil chewing and snapping.

The main sounds which elicit strong emotions for Crawford are any noises relating to the mouth, such as eating, swallowing and gum chewing.

In her previous home in North Carolina, she recalls suddenly slamming her hand on the dinner table as the surrounding cacophony of eating became too much to bear. Her family, shocked at the outburst, began a quest to under-

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stand what she was feeling and why.

“My mom got really confused,” Crawford said. “She thought I was kind of just doing it for attention because she really didn’t know.” Her parents felt frustrated by her actions, unable to understand why she was feeling angry or upset.

After seeing a hearing specialist in response to her outburst, Crawford learned that her hearing was perfect. It was her pediatrician who diagnosed her with misophonia and placed her on anti-depressants.

The medication made Crawford constantly sleepy, leading her to flush them down the toilet. However, she realized that the medication was what allowed her to control the anger and panic that resulted from her misophonia.

Living with misophonia

Crawford’s said her mother sometimes feel frustrated with her, upset that she can’t do certain things. Mom will warn Crawford, letting her know when she’s about to eat or drink.

Still, there is agitatation by the restrictions of her daughters’ disorder. The family’s inability to find a specialist in Florida who is able to treat Crawford has contributed to the sense of helplessness.

“You’re different,” Crawford said. “Sometimes people just treat you differently and they get ticked off that they can’t do certain things around you.”

Crawford found a community on Instagram for people with misophonia despite the rarity of

the disease. Most of the people in the chat are from other countries, mainly the UK. “I’ve heard they have better doctors in the UK than here, so it’s a little harder to get help,” Crawford said. Her family has yet to find a doctor in Tampa who can help her, and she hopes to eventually seek therapy for her disorder over medication.

The emotions resulting from misophonia have been difficult for Crawford to deal with it.

“It’s kind of hard to cope with it,” Crawford said.

“Sometimes, my family with get frustrated with me, and I know my parents don’t mean to yell at me.”

She avoids going out to restaurants and, when babysitting her nephew, clamps her hands over her ears while he drinks to avoid hearing him swallow. “It’s a really emotional thing to deal with. I just cry all the time, and I don’t mean to,” Crawford said.

Despite being home schooled throughout middle school, when she moved to Florida in July, Crawford decided attending a traditional high school was the push she needed. Her lack of social opportunities had left her lonely, and despite the challenges it posed, she wanted to go to school with her peers.

Crawford’s coping mechanisms

“It’s definitely helping me find ways to cope and find ways to do things for myself,” Crawford said. Her teachers are aware of her situation, and when the noise becomes too much to bear,

Crawford simply exits the room to take a few breaths.

Crawford enjoys theater and takes it as an elective. She chose theater at random from a list of electives, but found that she enjoys reading plays and being loud on stage.

Crawford also has a passion for editing photos and videos using programs like Adobe Photoshop and deeply enjoys writing as well.

“Editing really helps me engage my mind and my creativity,” Crawford said. She learned how to edit by watching her brother edit photos and videos when she was young and began doing it herself at age 10.

Despite her extensive experience with editing, she usually doesn’t post her edits online.

“I know they’re good, I know I’m good, but I just don’t have the self-confidence to post them” Crawford said.

Attending high school has allowed Crawford to find interests like these as well as friends, helping her overcome an unexpected side effect of her disorder: loneliness.

“I think that when you have positive thoughts, it can give you a path to where you want to socialize with other people,” Crawford said. “It’s not going to ever go away, but you can get better by trying to talk to people and cope with your emotions.” story by reema patel photo by tammy nguyen

1/27/2020 2:54:49 PM

13

HEAR

January 2020

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We can hear it, but she can see it

Standing in front of the small crowd, she grows nervous. This isn’t her first time performing, but the Westshore Yacht Club is filled with strangers. No matter. The song is in her head. The notes flow out of her hands. Senior Natalia Artz sits down at the piano and begins to play “Pirates of the Caribbean,” colors filling her vision.

Artz has been singing and playing piano since she first heard Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror.” At 3 years old, she was setting up Christmas decorations with her family when she first heard the song and immediately began playing it on the piano. She was soon diagnosed with associative synesthesia and perfect pitch. “I assign colors to the notes, so sound and sight are mixed together, and I can identify a note if it’s played for me,” Artz said.

Perfect pitch has helped Artz learn to play quickly.

“If I’m trying to figure out a song but I’m not near a piano I’ll just sing it out and play it in my head, and then I’ll play it when I get home,” Artz said. However, the condition has also frustrated her. “Whenever I go to orchestra concerts, I see exactly where in the orchestra someone played the wrong note,” Artz said. “Did you know that the radio station 93.3 plays every single song one quarter step higher than it’s normally supposed to be?” Synesthesia, while not as noticeable anymore, has only helped Artz’s development as a musician. “It used to be really easy for me to figure out songs when I was smaller,” she said.

While she’s never taken singing lessons, she took piano lessons for six years. “It used to just be an extracurricular with a couple of recitals,” Artz said.

However, in high school, her parents encouraged her to start singing and playing on her own. Last year, she decided to perform in a public setting for the first time.

She played at the Coffeehouse, thinking she would

have stage fright. “Playing in front of all those people actually made me really happy, especially when they recognized some of the Disney medleys I played,” Artz said.

In September, she began playing a regular gig at the Westshore Yacht Club. While the audience is comprised of strangers, within 20 minutes, Artz’s nerves disappear.

“If I lose track of time, I can play a whole two hours without knowing,” Artz said. However, it is still difficult for Artz to simultaneously greet members and play piano.

Artz’s favorite songs to both play and listen to are classical and modern. “I’m classically trained, but I like playing modern music like the top 40s, Disney songs or basically anything I hear,” she said. Several modern artists have inspired her music style over the years.

Since she was 7, Artz has listened to Florence and the Machine. “They’re pretty mainstream, but usually the main instrument you’d see [is] a guitar, but one of their main instruments is the harp, and I don’t think that’s very common,” Artz said.

While she wants to write her own music eventually, lyrics are currently difficult for her to write, and her perfect pitch causes her to lapse into a similar song she has already heard when playing new riffs. So, for now, she sticks to creating medleys.

Artz is pursuing a career in geology, but she intends to keep piano as a hobby or a second job in the future, as it keeps her well-rounded and serves as a method of relaxation therapy. And when she hasn’t played in a long time, she agitates to find one. “It is an integral part of my life.”

Choosing their sound

story by jaden shemesh

then vs now:

LEFT Artz plays a Campbell piano at age 3. “I would just tinker on the piano to emulate my dad,” she said. RIGHT Arts plays a Boston Grand piano at age 17. Now she typically plays showtunes, top 40, classical and sings songs that she normally listens to. “My favorite thing about playing is the freedom. It’s theraputic to me,” she said. | photos courtesy natalia artz

Five students explain why they chose to play their current musical instruments it at first and wanted to switch back but then I grew a love- hate relationship with it,” Pellenbarg said.

They were standing at the center of the stage, trumpets in hand, while the quiet audience waited for them to start playing.

Of course, performing a duet with one of your best friends mid winter concert sounds nerve-wracking.

But as sophomores Jackson Adamski and Ian Smith started playing the notes, they both got involved in the music, and as they completely forgot about the audience, “Hallelujah” came together.

The two of them chose to play the trumpet long before they joined band.

Cello

Trumpet

Adamski and Smith both play the trumpet for the Big Red Band. Adamski found out about the trumpet during a Great American Teach-In in fourth grade, “This one band director came to my school and brought his instruments. He let me play the trumpet and I was able to play a note, and I thought that sounded really cool,” he said.

Smith comes from a family very involved in music, with all of his siblings playing instruments. He said he was originally going to be a percussionist, but his dad did not quite like the idea.

He suggested him trying something that would expand his creative mind, so Smith picked the trumpet. “Since I couldn’t do percussion, I decided I wanted to be the first brass instrument in my family,” he said.

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Trumpet player Ian Smith followed siblings into playing music. The sophomore is the first in his family to play brass.

Bassoon

Freshman Lucy Pellenbarg wanted to play a more unique instrument. “I played the clarinet in sixth grade and I thought it was kind of boring, so I asked to switch to the bassoon,” she said.

With no other bassoons in her class, Pellenbarg said she thought it looked like a more interesting and challenging instrument to play.

“The bassoon was the one with the most buttons,” she said.

Her friend taught her the skills, but it was still a challenge for her learning all the scales, which took her a year. “I actually didn’t like

Going in the orchestra route, junior Tatum Watson plays the cello. “In sixth grade we had a wheel class and my orchestra teacher told me I had long fingers and I would be good at the cello, so I stuck with it,” Watson said. Watson really liked her instrument from the beginning, “It was kind of like I had a natural feel for it. It felt right,” she said. Her favorite thing about it is the sound.

Saxophone

Sophomore Siddhant Srivastava decided to join his middle school’s band in sixth grade. He wanted to play the trumpet, but all the spots were taken, so he chose the saxophone. “The saxophone is a good combination of brass and wood wind. It has the intensity of brass but also the subtleness of a wood wind instrument,” he said. It was after his first concert that he realized the saxophone was the right instrument for him. He has now been playing it for five years and says he really enjoys it. story and photos by carolina tortorelli

1/27/2020 2:59:30 PM

14 January 2020

TASTE

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Senior Kylie Olivera and junior Emma Zimmerman prepare a dish fo the culinary competition at Hillsborough High School. | photos by john doan and kaylie harkness

Culinary is making fast food fancy

Hungry customers, busy chefs, a humid kitchen as the aroma of spices and herbs fill the air.

Mouthwatering orders come out and practically cleared plates coming in to the students’ kitchen, providing customers with a fast order and fast delivery.

The culinary program has worked to perfect their fast food and lunch serving standards. They have made a system to better combine speed, quality and presentation. Junior Kaylie Harkness is in her second year of culinary and works to create the best quality food her team can provide from prepping and cooking to plating and presentation.

The kitchen has different stations that take in different parts of an order. They have a salad side, a press side (which does like sandwiches, quesadillas and wraps) and then they have the sautée side, which is for dishes like pasta.

A flat station is where the meat is done.

Students cook the chicken and the steaks.

Each person has his or her own job and when everybody is working together, the orders get out faster.

When a lot of people are doing what they are supposed to do and working as a team with everyone in their own space doing their job, it creates a more efficient work environment.

The culinary students have worked to hone

in on presenting better looking food and that plays a role in making better products.

At a culinary competition last month, they came in second place against Tampa Bay Tech, Leto and Jefferson.

Their presentations pleased the judges and scoring wise they did well overall.

Each week, the culinary program serves dozens of meals, available both as takeout and dine-in.

For their dine-in orders, they have been working on their presentation. The goal is to satisfy the customers and in order to do that, they must make sure everyone does their job.

“When making food fancy ... it’s all about

how you plate it, and how you serve it and how it looks,” Harkness said.

She described plating to me and all the factors that take part in plating.

“You’re going to have it symmetrical or asymmetrical depending on how you want it and then color contrasting. You’d have reds and greens on the same plate together, so you don’t want everything white washed. You don’t want a bunch of light colors you want some dark colors and putting it on a plate that makes the food look nice,” she said. story by adrianna rodriguez

Which food are you?

Match the nostalgic food with the person. Turn in your ballot to Room 506 by Feb. 6 for a chance to win a $20 gift card.

A: Pasta means a lot to this student because it was the first dish she learned how to cook.

B: Biryani is a Mexican dish; it is special to this student because his great grandma has been making it since the early 1900s.

C: This “cookie monster” loves eating cookies; peanut butter is this person’s favorite D: Her mother’s side is from Sicily and her grandmother has a recipe that is the perfect pasta sauce with meatballs, pork and sausage with ditalini pasta.

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E: Fried chicken is an important part of this students family because they love to eat it often.

F: Struffoli is this student’s grandma’s special recipe that consists of many spices.

G: His family makes yellow rice from a recipe passed down from his great, great, great grandmother.

H: Their grandparents have a strawberry field in their yard and Thomas would always go strawberry picking when she was little. compiled by meredith yen

Kylie Fiore, 10___

James Boggs, 9___

AP Eric Brooks___

Afraz Khan, 9___

Jermisha Thomas, 9___ Anika Balaraju, 10___

Bryan Rodriguez, 9___

Elizabeth Johns, 9___

1/27/2020 3:23:57 PM

January 2020

TOUCH

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Pedestrian and biker deaths are on the rise “He should have just waited,” junior Elijah Muňiz said.

While crossing the street on a walk to a friend’s house, Muňiz’s older brother got hit by a car for the second time.

“He tried to beat a car,” Muňiz said.

“I guess it looked like it was far, and he tried to beat it and the car came faster than usual.”

Then, an ambulance came. The street was so hot the medics had to wrap a sheet around his brother to stop his face from burning.

When his mother got to the scene, she saw the sheet and thought her son was dead. The ambulance rushed him to the hospital. He came back to the neighborhood the same night with no broken bones, but he has a scar from the hot street.

The 19-year-old wasn’t so lucky in 2015, when he got hit and came back with a broken arm.

“I used to do what he does, like try to beat [the car],” Muňiz admitted.

“Now I’ll just wait until the whole street is clear to walk across.”

In a new report by Smart Growth America, the Tampa Bay area was ranked the ninth most dangerous place in America to walk, with more than 900 pedestrians deaths in 10 years. Florida is ranked the second most dangerous state for bikers in the United States. As a country, the number of pedestrian deaths has increased 35 percent between 2008 and 2017, according to Smart Growth America.

At Hillsborough

After school, students crowd the bike ramps near the 400 Hall, unlocking bikes and riding away, some on the sidewalks while some ride on the street.

Freshman Kenneth Harding is one of those students. He bikes about a mile to school every day and has done so since attending Memorial Middle School. He recalls one day, two years ago, when he got hit by a car. He was taken to the hospital, but the injury wasn’t serious.

He still has a marking on his forehead from the incident, however.

Freshman Ja’Niyrah Haggins also bikes to and from school every day, with a pillow attached to the seat of her bike.

She says she doesn’t feel unsafe riding to school, but she admits she’s almost been hit by cars a couple of times.

TOP Students walk down the sidewalk and cross the street in front of the library. MIDDLE Principal Gary Brady walks in the cross walk at Osborne Avenue. BOTTOM Freshman Ja’Niyrah Haggins rides her bike down the sidewalk in front of the school. | photos by asher montgomery

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School-Related Crashes

According to the School Transportation Working Group (STWG) there have been 12 school-related crashes involving pedestrian and bikers near Hillsborough

High School between 2012 and 2016.

That is the third highest among county high schools, falling only behind Chamberlin with 14 and Middleton with 19.

Reports including more recent data have not been released.

A similarity between the three schools is that they are located in a low-income area. According to the Smart Growth America report, those who live in low-income neighborhoods are more likely to be struck by a car than their counterparts.

The statistics match, as those biking and walking in areas around each school are walking and biking in a low-income area.

“I used to do what he does, like try to beat [the car],” Muniz admitted. “Now I’ll just wait until the whole street is clear to walk across.”

Five years ago, Chamberlain student Alexis Miranda died after being struck by a car while crossing Busch Boulevard on her way to school. In an article about the incident, Tampa Bay Times reporter Richard Danielson described Chamberlin students crossing Busch before and after school.

“Traffic chokes all four lanes. Vehicles turn the center turn lane into an illegal passing zone. Students dart across traffic, ignoring the crosswalks the city has tried to make safer,” he wrote. The description is similar to Hillsborough students crossing Osborne, Central, Florida and Hillsborough avenues.

Who’s at Fault

While watching kids cross at the intersection of Osborne and Central, Principal Gary Brady has seen many students not paying attention and walking into traffic as well as drivers not paying attention to the students crossing in front of them.

“I think many of them are very careful, but I also think many of them are on their phones,” Brady said about drivers on Central. Tampa Police Officer Frank Noel demonstrated an action he’s seen many times; a kid not glancing up once from their phones as they walk right in front of a car while crossing the street.

However, many times, pedestrians are not the ones at fault. Sophomore Ivy Burton describes a time last school year walking with a friend along a two-mile route home from school. While she was

crossing the street, a man in a car slowly ran into her legs, then didn’t stop the car, just kept moving slowly until she got out of the way.

“I cursed at him a little then just kept walking,” Burton said.

What is Being Done

Walking and biking to school is proven to have physical and mental health benefits many scientists say, including The Journal of American College Health.

So, the school district and the city are working to increase safety for those that walk and bike to school.

Lisa Silva, principal planner for Plan Hillsborough, provided a list of improvements Hillsborough County has made when it comes to student pedestrian and bike safety including the county organization, the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) and STWG studying and improving crosswalk markings and sidewalks to help.

They also study Leading Pedestrian Intervals or an LPI, which give pedestrians the “walk” signal (typically 3-7 seconds) before drivers can proceed through the intersection.

Improving safety

According to the Hillsborough County MPO School Safety Study, LPIs improve pedestrian visibility and increase the likelihood that a driver will stop for pedestrians in the crosswalk.

At Hillsborough specifically, in a two-year plan to help with flooding, flashing lights will also be added at the intersections of Osborne and Central Avenues to make drivers aware of students crossing.

Other improvements include adding committees to the school board that focus on safety in transportation and providing programs to educate students and teachers.

To encourage more students to walk and bike to school in a time where the car is our main form of travel, Hillsborough County’s website provides resources about “Walking School Buses” and “Bike Trains.”

These are mainly designed for elementary schoolers who live relatively close to school. Parent volunteers lead kids on a walk or bike ride to school so that students are safer than if they were to walk themselves.

By high school though, students are old enough to walk themselves to school. story by asher montgomery

1/27/2020 4:52:04 PM

16 January 2020

VIBES

hhstoday.com

Kobe Bryant’s legacy lives on

Studying in solidarity

The rumbling noise of morning traffic echoes as students and back, feeling that way really sucked.” teachers arrive on campus to start their day. Some still drifting in Calviac was a very successful throughout his academic career, and out of consciousness, trying to power through it all to get to despite his apathy towards being in school. He said that he was class. Meanwhile others look for an escape, to find peace of mind naturally gifted with having the ability to absorb information from daily pressures that they face. easier and faster than the average student. “Grades don’t necesDuring his freshman and sophomore year, senior Luis Calviac sarily reflect what I know. I could not do so well in a class or not decided to focus less on school to cope with the pressures he be there and still pass all of my exams with a high score because I faced. So out he went in search of solitude. was able to still retain what was taught,” Calviac said.

With Advanced Placement (AP) and honors classes constantEventually he began to feel the social effects of mentally ly confronting Calviac with new material, he felt overwhelmed withdrawing from schoool; missing out on what his friends were with juggling his school responsidoing and feeling disconnected from bilities with his mental and physical people he cared about. health.

“My friends would always check “I started to care less and less It eventually got to the point up on me to see if I was OK or like to the point where I could care where Calviac began to develop what I was up to because they wantless about whether I make it to a very strong feeling of apathy ed to see me, but like I was never towards school for putting such an there so I felt like it kind of put a graduation or not.” immense amount of work on top of strain on our friendships.” Calviac - LUIS CALIVAC, 12 his shoulders. said.

Calviac found he learned better By the time Calviac reached his in an environment that could junior year, he had a change of heart. provide the sense of solitude. The idea of being in a building Realizing that despite all of the stress and all of the negative surrounded by people who did not feel authentic nor beneficial factors that come along with the stress of school, that graduating to him, was dreadful. with a high school diploma was actually very important to him.

“I really enjoyed learning new stuff, like I did in history,” “I realized that what I was doing was affecting people I love, it Calviac said. “Honestly I didn’t think that being there was neccreated a sense of distance between us because they believed that essary to learn or understand.” He said that the classrooms he I didn’t care at all and that wasn’t really true,’’ Calviac said. “I was was in did not provide the solitude that he needed because of the worried I was going to fall into the cycle of just not trying and various types of personalities that he encountered. that bothered me, I knew I was better than that.”

“It isn’t like I don’t have friends, I just felt like school was an environment filled with different kinds of pressures,” Calviac story by alex croft said. “I started to care less and less to the point where I could photo by john doan care less about whether I make it to graduation or not. Looking

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It was a long day of basketball practice. He got home to watch the Lakers game against the Utah Jazz, where Kobe Bryant scored 60 points. Little did sophomore Rohit Ramaswamy know that this was his idol’s last game.

This Sunday, Jan. 26, famous NBA player Kobe Bryant died in a helicopter crash. There were nine vicims, including his teenage daughter.

Bryant spent his whole career playing for the Lakers and was the number fourth all-time scorer of the league and a five-time NBA champion. From his Mamba mentality to his immense skill, his name became a terminology for a talented basketball player and his legacy will remain.

“I couldn’t believe it was real at first. He was a big mentor to a lot of people from when I was growing up. He was just one of the greatest players of all time,” junior Nicholas Bowling said.

Besides his recognition on the court, Bryant was also a role model for many people for his actions off the court. He was the official ambassador for the nonprofit organization, After-School All-Stars, which provides an after-school programs for children and also started a charity with the Chinese government, the Kobe Bryant China Fund.

A role model

“Growing up, coming home Sundays was watching NBA and NBC. When I found out about what happened to Kobe it was like a piece of my childhood had passed away. I’ve always been a Lakers fan,” math teacher Jason Wiggins said. “He’s also 41. He is a father of four and when I found out he was on his way to an AAU game with his daughter, that struck me. I might not have any kids, but I have students and just realizing that a young man and his daughter’s lives ended like that was just breaking.”

Bryant’s daughter, Gianna Onore, was only 13. She was an aspiring basketball star.

“She inspired a generation of younger girls to play basketball and dominate at that sport,” sophomore Avery Ferrera said. “She was playing levels above, even at her age, and to see her doing that, and doing well was really motivational.”

Leaving behind a legacy

The Terrier basketball team was also shocked. “It was very sad to the basketball community and the world,” junior Jalen Harris said. “He made a very big impact on the game and his work ethic and dedication impacted everybody. He inspired many to do the best.

Senior Tyriq James was also shocked by the news and described Bryant’s death as losing a mentor and a role model.

Not only Lakers fans suffered from the loss. Celebrities from all over the world spoke out about it with kind words towards Bryant. From soccer stars like Neymar to singers like Camila Cabello, the death of Bryant was a big shock to everyone that saw him as not just an idol, but an inspiring person that had a big impact on basketball and the world in general.

“I’ve been a Celtics fan and the Lakers are like rivals since I was a kid, math teacher Michael Welch said. “Bryant was always a big part of that cultural connection between Boston and LA in the NBA. He was always a great player and competitor so seeing him go was just a loss for the organization, the rivalry, and just all of it.” story by carolina tortorelli

1/27/2020 4:50:42 PM