High Tide: Oct 5, 2018

Redondo Union High School Redondo Beach, CA Oct. 5, 2018 Vol. XCXIV Edition 2

HIGH TIDE

Freshman quarterback Kaden Martin began to recieve college football offers starting in middle school. page 20

Your rights within school gates

How your constitutional rights are altered once you walk onto campus each morning

PHOTO COURTESY OF CREATIVE COMMONS

page 10-11

NEWS

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Giving back

PHOTO BY RODRIGO MARTINEZ

New clubs work to solve issues beyond RUHS

by Analise Asaro

Students for Tibet President: Whayden Dhamcho

Tibetans have been religiously, economically, and politically persecuted by China, who invaded the country in 1950.

Because of China’s oppressive control, junior Whayden Dhamcho’s family was not allowed to purchase plane tickets to see his family in Tibet. This occurrence inspired Dhamcho to start a branch of a national organization called Students for Tibet in order to raise awareness and preserve the Tibetan culture.

“As a Tibetan who doesn’t have to go through that, I feel like it’s my duty to advocate for it.” Dhamcho said.

Because the Dhamcho family was

protesting, the Chinese government denied their visas to come into all parts of China, including Tibet.

“They’re barricading us from our own home country,” Dhamcho said. “They call it an autonomous region, but really they’re cracking down on everything that Tibetans are trying to do.”

Dhamcho decided to pursue the club in order to provoke changes “one step at a time.”

“It made me emotional because I’m not even allowed to visit where my parents and grandparents were from, which is pretty messed up. It made me rethink what

Portraits of Hope

my priorities were and gave me more passion to pursue this as a club.”

Because it is not shown on the news much, the Dhamcho family has to find out what happens in Tibet through personal connections .

“We found out about self immolation, which is where monks, in form of protest because they don’t want to harm others, they harm themselves. They douse themselves in gas, burn themselves and run. It’s crazy.” Dhamcho said.

Dhamcho believes that our government could become involved through awareness, or the future Chinese rulers may

Random Acts of Kindess

Co-Presidents: Samantha Slatcher and Morgan Alonso

Q& A

What does this club do?

Q & A

Portraits of Hope is a non-profit organization that does public art projects. They hold public painting sessions each Saturday from 10-12. They also involve children with dissabilities by using painting supplies with braille for blind children and long paintbrushes for those in wheelchairs. Portraits of Hope have also taken part in painting New York taxi cabs, the Good Year blimp, and Los Angeles lifeguard towers.

make changes.

Students for Tibet is a national organization that helps to spread awareness about the situation in Tibet by holding culture nights so people better understand it.

“There are institutions in Tibet that don’t allow Tibetans to even learn their language and force them to learn Chinese,” Dhamcho said. ”It’s like a complete loss of identity. As SFT, we are not only trying to bring awareness to that, but also preserve that culture so is doesn’t become lost like other cultures have in the past.”

Co-Presidents: Hannah and Elle Marine

Q& A

What are your goals for this club?

We want to do little things like spread kindness around the school and bring smiles to people’s faces. We are going to pass around kind notes and surprise students and teachers with gifts.

Q& A

What made you want to start this club?

We felt that school got dull throughout the day and wanted to promote little things that can brighten anyone’s day or week.

Why did you decide to start this club?

It’s a great opportunity to help beautify our community. I thought it was a unique service program that is different from other philanthropies. Making this a club at Redondo would help get more individuals involved and will hopefully expand Portraits of Hope.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF CREATIVE COMMONS

FEATURES

OCT. 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

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Spreading pawsitivity New K9 therapy dog Meredith provides break from school stress

by Lorraina Scolaro With recent school wide tragedies and stress levels high, school administrators along with officials from Redondo Beach Police Department have made the decision to bring a new furry friend onto campus.

K9 Meredith will soon be roaming the halls as RUHS’s new best friend.

“We’re really excited about having Meredith on campus,” Principal Jens Brandt said, “I walked her through a bunch of classrooms last week, and it’s neat to see the response whether it’s journalism students, students in Miss Malik’s class, or even here in the office.”

The goal of Meredith’s presence on campus is to “uplift” staff and students by providing a break from the stress and anxiety that comes with school.

“It’s nice for students to know that there’s an outlet for them,” Rose, Meredith’s handler said, “I

mean, having counselors to talk to and people to talk to is very helpful, but having a dog is just amazing.”

Meredith and Rose’s office will be located in the CTE building near the journalism and culinary arts classrooms.

In time, a system will be made where

students will be able to visit Meredith in her office. The office will be filled with furniture to help create a calming environment.

“My office is going to be a safe place to visit,” Rose said, “If somebody needs to get away, or they just need to talk, it’s a place that’s not affiliated with the high school necessarily. We can relieve people’s nerves, calm people down, and bring people some happiness throughout the day.”

Along with staying in their office, Meredith and Rose will walk around campus. They will be present during snack, lunch and sometimes even in class. Teachers will even be allowed to request Meredith for certain days and in-

vite her into class if they see her roaming the halls.

“It’s really quite remarkable to watch the impact she has on a students in terms of just making them feel better in challenging situations. I think it’s just her presence that does the trick,” Brandt said. “We’re just going to try to get her out and about as much as possible.”

Meredith and Rose will also be able visit some people’s homes to help with any stressful situations that exist outside of school.

“I go where I’m needed,” Rose said. “It’s good for somebody having a problem at home. You never know because there might be something happening, and I can go to their house if they just need to have somebody show up.”

As of now, RBPD is one of only three police departments in California that has facility dogs.

“Police departments are now starting to kind of understand what a good thing this is for people,” Rose said, “We work with victims, but it’s not just about victims. It’s about people that need to have that mental break. There’s so much more to it.”

Truly excited about Meredith’s arrival, Brandt can’t wait to see her impact on students.

“She’s trained as a comfort dog, for students in stressful situations, who have anxiety, and even health issues,” Brandt 3 said “She is uplifting and is really good with all types of 3 students. She can even pick up Everyone’s best friend. 1. Meredith on students that are a little bit goes to the RUHS spirit battle. 2. more introverted and reserved, Meredith comes from the organization “Canine Companions for Indepenand she finds her way to those dence,” which has been around since students, which is amazing. I’m the 70s. 3. “When the vest comes off, just so excited about the opporshe’s this funky little girl,” Rose said. tunity here.”

PHOTO COURTESY OF SHANNON ROSE.

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Ending the stigma

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Baker and Haddad work on BCHD to destigmatize mental health

by Miriam Farah Senior Claire Haddad and junior Brianna Baker are among 15 RUHS students serving on the Beach Cities Youth District (BCHD) Advisory Board, which will focus on destigmatizing mental health through student activities on campus.

“It’s important because it’s becoming increasingly prevalent nationwide, and there’s always going to be someone who is suffering. I feel that it is our responsibility as a school to address that. It is nice to be doing something that will have an impact, and even if it doesn’t happen this year, I will be able to see my work come to life next year,” Haddad said.

While researching for her presentation to the board, Haddad was shocked by the overwhelming statistics of the number of teenagers suffering from mental illnesses. About one in five youth aged between 13 and 18 experiences a severe mental disorder during some point in their life, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI).

“I found pages and pages of data showing that it’s a prevalent issue and it even affects our education and our well-being. It really does have an im-

pact on your education since only 40 percent of kids with mental disorders graduate high school,” Haddad said.

Likewise, Baker was stunned by the data and became invested in the topic when completing her Girl Scout’s Gold Award project, which centered around the mental, social and emotional well-being of students in the South Bay. Baker, Haddad and four other students spent hours each week over the summer researching and planning how to promote mental health to RUHS students to present to Shana Martinez, the social-emotional coordinator at BCHD. “We are planning to have a week when local resources, like local therapists and Blue Zone restaurants to help with your mood, come as well as yoga places coming in and giving their resources to students,” Baker said.

Baker believes that low student turn-out is an issue for the board, but they are hoping to promote their planned activities through incentives like extra credit and other rewards.

To increase student participation, the board is discussing more student-oriented activities, such as an art walk with a scholarship opportunity.

After presenting their ideas to the

RUHS administration this week, the youth advisory board will move forward with their plans this school year.

“We want students involved at our high school and middle schools to understand mental health and become aware and interested in it. I came up with a presentation that had a lot of different options that we could do, and I ended up planning a week to increase awareness and presented it to Shana,” Baker said. “Then, we came together as a class to put everyone’s ideas together to plan a week that we are all satisfied with.”

Though Haddad believes that RUHS is more welcoming of discussions on mental illnesses compared to other schools, she believes that the stigma still hinders students from speaking about their experiences with depression and anxiety.

“I think we are pretty well-off but I know people who struggle with anxiety and they might not always be comfortable speaking about it,” Haddad said. “I think that is how we can improve by increasing access to resources that can help kids we’re struggling or destigmatize discussions about mental illness.”

INFORMATION COMPILED FROM NATIONAL ALLIANCE ON MENTAL ILLNESS

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NEWS

OCT. 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

From Redondo Shores Continuation School to Patricia Allen Drezilier Continuation High School

“

I’m happy we’re highlighting volunteerism. That’s the strength of our community,” board member Michael Christensen said at that same meeting. “Taking on one of the preeminent volunteers in our community shows a great message.”

The offical ceremony is said to take place in late October or early Noveber

Patrca Allen Drezilier frequently volunterred at the Redondo Beach Women’s Club and South Bay Youth Group.

Saying goodbye. A last look at the Redondo Shores before the name is changed to

Patricia Allen Drezilier Continuation High School. PHOTO COURTESY OF RUHMEDIA INSTA-

“

I think honoring someone as wonderful as Pat is a benefit, and I think Shores is the perfect school torename for her because that’s where her heart has Been,” said board member Anita Avrick.

Drezilier worked for 30 years in public service and then became the first female department head in RBEF history.

Loved by all. Drezilier sits proud afrer the Board of education

unanimously decided to change Redondo Shores to Paticia Allen Drezilier Continuation High School. PHOTO BY DAVID MENDEZ

Quotes and information courtesy of Easy Reader News.

Positive additions Baumgartner and Sands take over as math department co-chairs

by Reem Chamas After the retirement of the previous Math Department Chair, Donna Williams, AP math teachers Timothy Baumgartner and Laura Sands step up as the new Math Department Co-Chairs because of their integral roles in the RUHS math department.

Baumgartner has taught at RUHS for 32 years and Sands has been teaching for 14. Their years of experience made both great candidates for the job, according to Baumgartner.

“Seniority is a big part of who is the department chair,” siad Baumgartner, “I have just been around the block several times.

I know how we’ve done things in the past and what’s been successful and what we’ve tried that hasn’t been successful.”

Baumgartner and Sands share the responsibilities of co-chair because the math department is one of the biggest departments on campus.

Part of it is making the master schedule, ordering supplies, organizing curriculum ideas, trying to help get people approved and paid for to go to math conferences and putting together tutoring lists.

A big focus for the department this year is to strengthen students’ skills in order to help the school perform better on SBAC test.

According to Baumgartner, in order to elevate SBAC scores, the math department will be implementing more practices throughout the year, emphasizing communication with mathematical language be-

tween students and doing more rigorous, real world application problems that will require more analysis.

“We’re going to try to take a year long approach for preparing for the SBAC test.

We always want our students to do well on these tests to reflect the strong education that we believe they’re getting here at Redondo,” Baumgartner said. “I think if we look at it over a longer time frame that will help students to become really comfortable with the types of things that are expected on the SBAC test.”

As Chair, Williams advised Baumgartner to consider socializing more with the teachers in order to keep a good line of communication between the Chairs and staff, which is essential in all functioning teams.

“One of her biggest pieces of advice [Williams] had for me was to make sure I talk to people and check in with them, see if they have any concerns, let them know that I’m here to advocate for them and try to make connections the best we can,” Baumgartner said.

Williams also taught Sands that being Department Co-Chair has a more collective endgoal and that the decisions made affect everyone.

“One of the most important things is just being a team player, and just realizing that as a group we are a team, and we all work together to make the math department successful,” Sands said.

Taking charge. Baumgartner helps students in his sixth period class. PHOTO BY JUNINHO PANIOUCHKINE

NEWS

OCT. 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

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(Insta)nt Disrespect Students act terribly during Cyber Bullying Assembly

by Reem Chamas With the threat of 3.2 million sexual predators in the world, Carlos Sanchez, Cyber Cop patriot, came to Redondo in hopes of helping students better protect themselves online.

Social media brings dangers such as encounters with sex offenders, bullying and stalkers, according to Sanchez.

“Today, [sex offenders] can go online with a fake profile and kids come to them.

They feel more protected and they can reach out to thousands of kids at a time,” Sanchez said. “It’s more important and dangerous today.”

As Sanchez mentioned examples of sex offenders and situations with students involved, the student body had a surprising response with an uproar of applause.

“I don’t know how many students actually wanted to do that on their own, but a lot of students bought into the few just being disrespectful,” Dargen said.

It is not “a big deal” if it happens once or

twice, according to Dargen. However, the students’ disruptive behavior continued throughout the presentation.

“They didn’t have a good enough judgment to just stop, get over their fun and give the man the respect that he deserved,” Dargen said.

The majority of students understand how to be safe on social media, but people do not grasp the dangers until “[they] see it themselves,” according to Sanchez.

“Presentations like this are helpful because you can see students who have gone through it,” Sanchez said. “Hopefully this helps students understand [the dangers of their actions on social media] a little bit better.”

Dargen believes that due to the importance of cyber safety and the class time set aside for the assembly, students should have been more respectful.

“He was there for the sole purpose of trying to help [the students] out and give

them a message to help them in their lives,” Dargen said. “Sometimes, you think it’ll be fun to do something just to entertain yourself, and there’s a little leeway for that. However, you have to understand the boundaries.”

To point out students for their behavior, administration spread out and turned the lights on, letting students know that “they were being watched.” Students were pulled out when they were caught with inappropriate behavior. “[Students] just have to bear in mind that future assemblies are sometimes dependent on the behavior of students in the past assemblies,” Dargen said. “They should always value the special things that happen so that [assemblies] continue to occur.”

Dargen hopes that this behavior will not repeat in future assemblies.

“Respect others, especially people who are there to try and serve you in some way,” Dargen said.

Standing for what’s right. Carlos Sanchez speaks to students about the dangers of social media. PHOTO BY HASEEB KHAN

Clean up our act The campus remains filthy and staff is left to clean it up

by Maia Ward

Q

&

What areas of campus takes the longest to clean?

A

Trash: Students fail to clean up after themselves leaving the campus filthy. PHOTO BY JUNINHO PANIOUCHKINE

“The quad area between the 800’s and the cafeteria, Freshman Circle, and all the way down the Alumni Walk from Freshman Circle to Vincent Park,” Assistant Principal Bill Dargen said.

“That’s where the majority of students are, but our students are spread all over campus.”

Q

&

How can students help with the mess?

A

“This is a matter of respect for the school and respect for the staff that has to keep the campus clean because it’s so big,” Dargen said. “It’s a hard job for someone to keep up after 3000 kids, and so respecting them and their efforts is the right thing to do to take care of your own trash.”

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OPINION

OCT 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

EDITORIAL

It’s time for teachers to stop playing favorites The intensifiying divide between honors and AP

By Kylie Yorke

After 10th grade, there’s a shift in the organization of english classes. No longer an “honors” option, many students who were placed in advanced english classes up until this point choose one of the seven other “cp” choices, whether it be due to lack of a teacher recommendation or intimidation.

Regardless of the reason, many students find themselves unchallenged, bored and unstimulated for the rest of the academic school year.

Studies have found that the environment a student works in can have a greater effect than the instruction given: being surrounded by other “advanced” students creates a challenge that stimulates growth more than a teacher can.

So why aren’t there any “honors” or “advanced” classes for the large sum of students that fall between CP and AP in 11th and 12th grade? With admin dedicated to “increasing the rigor”, it seems they would look to challenge these students who feel stuck by the system.

Introducing“tracking”: the separation of students into classes by ability. It’s cousin, “ability grouping” sorts students within a single classroom into groups by ability.

You can probably remember your 4th grade teacher sorting the class into different reading groups. If they told you those

groups were random, they were lying to you.

Tracking started to fade away in the 90’s — AP and Honors classes being an obvious exception — due to controversy over its effects. Many argue that it creates a “modern form of segregation” by placing those who have the resources to achieve higher test scores — statistically whites and Asians — into more advanced classes.

This in turn creates an “achievement gap” epidemic, keeping the advanced students advanced and the struggling students struggling by not challenging those on the lower end.

Stanford researcher Eric Hanushek studied educational systems in various countries and found that eight out of nine countries in his study that track students before age 16 have a significantly larger gap between high and low test scores (the U.S. was not studied due to lack of nationwide policy).

When RUHS stopped traditional tracking in the early 90’s and their system of having “levels” of 1, 2, 3 and honors started to die off, teachers began to notice a growing difference between the achievements of honors 10 students and 11 AP students: the AP students were ahead by about a year and a half in ability as opposed to the one year they should be.

That is when the discussion about creating 11 and 12th grade honors or advanced classes began, and it seems no progress had been made since.

It is clear that something has to change: many students coming out of 10 honors into “Speech and Argument” or other similar classes feel they are going backwards in writing ability, and the gap between AP and CP continues to grow. There needs to be a middle ground.

However, simply adding honors to 11th and 12th grade is not the solution. If students can get the GPA boost without the rigor or workload of AP, why would they take AP? And, if more students are encouraged to take AP, the same issue about learning environment arises: the higher achieving AP students won’t feel as challenged or stimulated.

The addition of an “advanced” class that students coming out of 10 honors can be placed into or CP students can test into would offer a solution.

Although it would not offer an extra GPA point, students want to be in a classroom with other like minded individuals and want to feel engaged and challenged.

It would bridge the “achievement gap” and prevent the more accelerated students from being left out and forgotten.

OUR STANCE After English 10, there should a more diverese selection of courses in terms of rigor to help bridge the achievement gap between CP and AP students.

AP

H

11TH GRADE

HIGH TIDE Staff Editors-in Chief Mia Berger

Ben Brill

News Editors Analise Asaro, Lorraina Scolaro

Opinion Editors Adam Sayad, Christina Owen

Features Editors Martha Farah, Miriam Farah, Alexis Mesa, Grace McGonigle

Entertainment Editor Alex Dang

Sports Editors Yasmine Elahi, Maia Ward

Photo Editor Eden Millan

Copy Editors Molly Cochran, Alexander Clark

Writing Editors Reem Chamas, Molly Cochran, Lauren Kim, Kate Ripley, Angie Tait

Online Manager Summer Saad

Online Editors Justin Pioletti, Ben Yepez

Staff Writers

Meghan Jacob Ansel Reyes Nadia Bidarian Anthony Ganis Nicole Sandoval Austin Nunis Sangjun Lee Derek Stoetzer Sara Stienecker Ella Son Sarah Falahahwazi Gabe Berger Sydney Nguyen Grace Molinero Taylor Quaye Heather Lee Trina Kolas Hunter Shank Rebecca Bloch Kiera Patterson Nicholas White

Photographers Malena Buffagni Danielle Sestak Shawna Joseph

CP

Kylie Yorke

Haseeb Khan Juninho Paniouchkine Gracelaina Horn

Illustrators Emma Arseneault, Sophie Fleming PHOTOS COURTESY OF CREATIVE COMMONS

EDITORIAL

Miniumum wages should reflect minimum costs of living

By Christina Owen

High school often provides students with their first exposure to the workforce, usually at minimum wage jobs in the food industry. Sure, the extra pocket money is great for a high schooler still living under their parent’s roof, but for the millions of Americans who work minimum wage jobs full-time as their only source of income, the wages are not liveable.

In California, the minimum wage is 11 dollars, whereas the living wage, or a wage high enough to maintain a “normal standard of living” is $14.01 for a single adult.

In the U.S., the federal minimum wage is $7.25, and the living wage is $15.12, according to MIT. Unfortunately, large employers hire almost all part-time labor, meaning that they avoid having to offer health benefits. To receive health benefits, an employee must work at least 30 hours per week, so having two part-time jobs does not equate to having one full-time job.

Nearly 30 percent of the American workforce receives public assistance, such as food stamps and housing subsidies, and of this 30 percent, 50 percent have full-

time jobs, according to a report released by Cooper.

Although the U.S. economy is the “greatest ever” according to President Donald Trump, wage growth remains stagnant.

Wages are growing at an annual rate of 2.7 percent, which seems great until you account for a 2.9 percent inflation rate.

The simplest solution to this problem would be to raise the minimum wage, but when it costs $803 to rent a two bedroom apartment in Louisville, Kentucky and $2,782 in Los Angeles, California (RENTCafe), is raising the federal minimum wage necessarily the way to go?

Not to mention that raising the national minimum wage may not be necessary in other cities. For example, in San Francisco, a dozen eggs costs $4.07 compared to a meager $0.89 in Rockford, Illinois, according to the Council for Community and Economic Research.

Instead of raising the national minimum wage, we should adopt a regional policy that implements a range of national minimum wages depending on the cost of living and labor markets.

Regional price differences, such as the eggs, are compiled into a cost-of-living index for cities and states, known as ‘regional price parities.’ Instead of raising the federal minimum wage, we should implement a minimum wage based on the cost-of-living index. Although all states would eventually reach a minimum wage of $15, highcost areas would surpass or maintain the minimum wage to meet the needs of their people.

We are one macro-economy, with hundreds of micro-economies having to adapt to the impact of technological advances replacing low-wage labor with machines and kiosks. That being said, it is not difficult to see why the battle for a minimum wage increase has been as much regional as partisan.

While making smoothies or waiting tables is an easy way to earn extra pocket money now, it is not sustainable as a fulltime job. As high schoolers, we have the privilege to go to college and pursue high paying jobs, but that is not the case for many Americans who are currently living paycheck-to-paycheck.

OUR STANCE Instead of raising the federal minimum wage as a whole, minimum wages should be adjusted depending on regional costs of living.

This is a wholly student-managed, designed, and written newspaper that focuses on the school and community.

Signed commentaries and editorial cartoons represent the opinions of the staff writer or cartoonist.

Letters to the Editor The High Tide encourages greater input of opinions from both students and staff. If you have an opinion about one of the articles, letters can be sent to the editor at

hightideonline@gmail.com We reserve the right to edit for content, grammar and space constraints. Letters must be signed and are not guaranteed to be printed.

Please keep letters to a maximum of 250 words. Longer guest opinions are also accepted.

Keep in touch with

@ruhsmedia

hightideonline.org

OPINION

OCT 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

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It’s time for teachers to stop playing favorites Favoritism must be acknowledged before it can be counteracted

by Adam Sayad Does this sound all too familiar? A few lucky students reaping all of the benefits from being the teacher’s favorite — smiles, hugs, laughter, even work breaks and grade boosts perhaps? The latter two are a serious problem that won’t be stopped unless ethical teaching practices are enforced.

Favoritism is a complicated issue that can’t be solved by simply banning it. It’s human nature to like some people more than others, whether it applies to a social or classroom setting. The problem, however, lies in using personal inclination over set academic standards to evaluate students.

Besides, how can personal relationships cloud a teacher’s standards of evaluation?

The truth, as hard as it is to hear, is that we all feel “most comfortable around people [we] perceive to be most like [us],” according

to Paul C. Gorski, assistant education professor at St. Paul, Minnesota’s Hamline University. “We’re socialized to relate to each other on the basis of race, class, and so on.”

Consequently, it is possible for teachers to unknowingly distance students who don’t have the same skin color, live in a different neighborhood, or those who have a different cultural background.

This subconscious set back that drives some teachers towards discrimination must be acknowledged before it can be controlled. Favoritism, if noticed by other students, can bolster an unhealthy and counterproductive learning environment.

A class hierarchy can often develop as a result of favoritism — where a select group of students are labeled as superior to the rest. This, in effect, causes unnecessary confusion and friction among peers, further discouraging essential collaboration in the classroom.

I’ve first-handedly experienced the negative effects of favoritism in one of my past classes. My teacher, who projected their favoritism in class for everyone to see, created an unhealthy and divisive environment for all of us.

As a result, their authority wasn’t taken seriously, leading many students to complacently give up or become defiant.

My experiences stretch back much further than high school, proving that favoritism is more systematic than apparent.

Growing up with working parents, I noticed that students with involved parents almost always got special treatment and extra recognition by teachers and administrators.

While it’s easy to think that hands-on parents are more invested in their children’s education, that is not the case.

My parents, like many others, work hard to send their children to college. Everyone’s situation is different which is why it’s critical to keep student evaluations centered in the classroom, not outside of it.

After experiencing the undesirable outcomes of favoritism on more than one occasion, I know this serious problem won’t be solved unless we start talking about it.

It’s about time administrators and teachers acknowledge that favoritism is disrupting classrooms, with motivated students, all across campus.

Just like students, teachers should be

held accountable. More often than not, students who witness unprofessional behavior are too afraid to report it.

Fortunately, you have the power to change that. You can report any teaching malpractices via Sprigeo. Administrators actually respond — out of requirement — to reports made on this platform, making it a great option if it’s not abused.

Don’t get me wrong, teachers are people just like us. It’s inevitable for them to connect with certain students better than others. There’s nothing wrong with admiring some students for their personalities, talents or abilities.

However, students should never receive special treatment on the premise of personal preference alone. Doing so is flat-out wrong and demoralizing to most students.

The solution is a matter of teachers being aware of how they treat students in the classroom setting. Preferential inclinations to certain students should play as little of a role in academic progress as possible.

If you ever find yourself trapped in this often subconscious trap, don’t simply accept it— speak up! That student whose mom took the teacher out for lunch is no more entitled to a fair evaluation than you.

ILLUSTRATION BY SOPHIE FLEMING

Hits&Misses IOS 12 is blazing fast!

Bathroom mayhem

This is the first update released that doesn’t trash older Apple devices. Thanks for finally listening to us Tim Cook!

With frequent toilet paper shortages and fruity fumes, our bathrooms need a serious intervention. At least they’re staying open, or are they?

Lobster Fest starts up again as Lobster/Rock N’Roll

#metoo, but for guys?

Lobster Fest was originally going to be cancelled (like it was last year), but it was revitlized and added a musical aspect.

Donald Trump Jr. expressed more concerns for allegations arising about his sons than the saftey of his daughters amid the Kavanaugh hearings.

Browns win first game

A half-hearted senior day

The Cleveland Browns finally won a game for the first time in 635 days, snapping one of the longest losing streaks ever in sports.

Not only has administration announced senior day late, but they’ve taken out many of the fun activities, like the obstacle course, from past years. ‘19 deserves better!

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OPINION

OCT 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

Standing in Solidarity

How to be an ally to victims of sexual assault

W

ith testimonies from Kavanaugh and his accuser Dr. Christine Blasey Ford last week, Americans have multiple moral questions to answer. Regardless of the differing opinions and possibility of political bias, the committee called for testimony from both of the people involved.

They let Ford speak; they listened, and that is extremely important. To us, the most important effect of these events is not whether Kavanaugh is confirmed by the s\ Senate, but the discussion we have as a society: what can we, as survivors and as allies, do better?

by Ben Brill

by Kate Ripley

I am a survivor. Some of you know this, but not enough. I’ve slowly started telling friends, people I trust, but it’s time I come forward.

This isn’t just about me; this is about the millions of women and men assaulted each year and the change that needs to happen.

I need you all to know that this isn’t just something that happens in Hollywood or in the newspapers. It happens to everyday people, people you know, people you care about.

Initially, I decided not to speak out about the incidents. I was ashamed. I felt alone. I felt like no one would listen because the few times I did open up about my assaults, I was dismissed. I didn’t think I had any allies.

Assault is not easy to hear about, but it’s imperative that we start listening to victims and survivors. Even if you’re skeptical, hear us out. More importantly, create an environment in which survivors feel like they can talk. There is no obligation for victims to come forward and we can’t expect them to until we all become better allies and friends.

When I was 14, I was assaulted by someone I thought cared about me. He told me what he was doing was okay, even though I knew it wasn’t. Maybe I would not have been in that situation if I felt okay with myself, if I loved myself at that point, if I had more people actively supporting me. Maybe my mental health issues caused me to reach out to the wrong people. There are an endless amount of maybes.

At the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter why or how it happened, but that it did and that I felt like I couldn’t talk about it-- because no one wants to talk about it, and when they do, it’s usually demeaning.

I personally know handfuls of people who have been raped or assaulted… but no one is talking about how to change that.

We only just started talking about how frequently it happens. No one is suffering repercussions, no one is standing up, no one — it seems — is doing anything, and I am sick and tired and frustrated that my experiences, the experiences of millions, are happening in vain.

DISCLAIMER: THE AUTHOR WILL NOT BE ANSWERING ANY INQUIRIES ABOUT HER PERSONAL EXPERIENCES. PLEASE RESPECT HER PRIVACY AND WILLINGNESS TO SHARE THIS INFORMATION. DO NOT CONTACT HER FOR DETAILS ON HER STORY.

People need to step in and become better allies in order to lower the frequency of assaults and make survivors more comfortable to reveal their experiences and seek justice.

We need to start speaking out more often and more fiercely about sexual assault.

No difference will be made if we continue to talk about it as a taboo, distant hashtag. #Metoo was great, but where is the #Imwithyou? Where are the allies?

It’s one thing to say you are against rape.

It’s another to tell someone “that joke isn’t funny,” to watch out for friends, to go to fundraisers and events for those suffering.

The truth of the matter is that we do not pay enough attention to those we care about. We let our friends go home with a random stranger, assume pda at parties is consensual, and assume the answer is always “yes” if they’re in a relationship. We need to be there for each other, and we need to help each other make healthy decisions.

Even if you don’t personally know a victim, we all still need to make an effort. Just because something doesn’t directly affect you, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t care. We need to start caring. I need you to care.

The easiest way to be an ally? Listen.

There are millions of women — and men — who simply need someone, anyone to believe them. Sometimes, a kind smile and “I’m here for you” are all we need.

Teach your children, your parents, family and friends about respect. Instill values in others. Prevent incidents before they happen through education and love.

If you want to do more, do more! There are plenty of opportunities to help out locally, nationally and globally. Volunteer at the hospital or Planned Parenthood, fundraise for charities, become a detective and catch rapists. For God’s sake, just do something!

This isn’t a gender issue.

This isn’t women against men. It’s victims and allies against rapists, and we need more allies. If we don’t do better, we become the problem.

by Ben Brill

by Adam Sayad

Let me just say right off the bat: I am not a survivor. I have never been sexually harassed or assaulted. Nor have I knowingly witnessed sexual harassment or assault. That’s probably something I take for granted each day.

Though I may have never experienced or witnessed sexual assault, I recognize that women and men are sexually abused everyday, around me and all across the world. An American is sexually assaulted every 98 seconds, according to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN).

Just because I haven’t seen it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. That is especially important to remember with this topic. I used to think that I didn’t know anyone who has been sexually assaulted. Now I know that’s not true. One out of every six American women has been a victim of attempted or completed rape in her lifetime, according to RAINN. Victims of sexual assault are all around us. I know victims, even if I’m not aware of that.

Since the scathing New York Times and The New Yorker articles last Oct. detailing the stories of survivors who were harassed or assaulted by producer Harvey Weinstein, the #MeToo movement has been a recurring headline, from accusations against the president resurfacing to the exposing of predatory actors to now, the possible borking of a supreme court nominee due to allegations of s exual misconduct.

I see the headline “____________ accused of sexual assault” time and time again. These exposés in the news are just a constant reminder of the continuing sexual abuses in the world around me. Everytime it makes me angrier. And everytime, I want to do something, anything to help.

Whatever is needed.

And at the sametime, I feel helpless.

What can I, a male who has no experience with this, do to help survivors of one of the most heinous crimes on earth heal? How can I empathize with experiences I cannot fathom experiencing?

I can’t. But I know I can do at least one thing to help: Shut up and listen.

Like I said, I can’t speak to the experiences of survivors. Nor should I. I’m not going to draw baseless assumptions about what the survivor could have done to prevent sexual assault or to get help. Because I don’t know these things. Anyone who has never been sexually assaulted has no business trying to force their own narrative and conclusions on the survivor.

So just shut up. Let the survivor do the talking. It seems like a pretty easy thing to do, but we live in a society where everyone wants to make everything revolve around themselves. This environment probably makes survivors even less likely to tell their story, fearing the arbitrary input of others. The only person whose input matters is the survivor’s.

Two of every three cases of sexual violence go unreported, according to RAINN. Often, people don’t report their abuse because they’re afraid of what others will say, what they’ll endure further, and how those around them will react.

And listen. Don’t immediately write off what a survivor has to say because it doesn’t piece in with our perception of reality. I’m sure many survivors do not report their cases because they fear they won’t be believed. Do we want to live in a society where the word of a rapist is worth more than the word of a survivor? Just listen, give survivors a supportive audience to tell their story. It’s not that hard.

You see cases of sexual abuse happening on such a large scale all over the news, so for some the issue may feel distant. But you never know how local the issue could be. The person sitting next to you in your third period could be a silenced survivor.

So for anyone who wants to be an ally: take a step back to take a step up against sexual assault.

IMAGES COURTESY OF CREATIVE COMMONS AND REFINERY29 I N F O R M AT I O N COURTESY OF RAINN.

OPINION

OCT 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

9

Running uneccessary hurdles The SAT Essay does not accurately measure a student’s ability

by Ben Brill

by Alex Dang

With the October SAT nearing, it is not uncommon for students to be hunkered down, poring through dictionary-sized prep books, taking practice test after practice test. In effect, they are preparing themselves for the mental aspect of the test-taking environment, one which is often characterized by silence, eagle-eyed proctors and the muffled sounds of frantic erasing as the clock inches toward zero.

But what students should not have to expect is having to spend an additional 50 minutes writing a pointless argumentative essay on top of the three-hour long test. Unfortunately for students aspiring to attend a University of California campus, the essay is still a required supplement to the college application.

Students who take the SAT spend months — weeks, for you procrastinators out there — studying for it, and for good reason. It is the most commonly used standardized test for college admissions.

But why exactly is the essay section so bad? The answer to that is at the heart of the reason it is administered in the first place. The College Board intends for the essay section to indicate the level of students’ writing and analytical skills. They provide a text, whether it is a speech or a written piece, for students to analyze how the author uses reasoning, evidence or other rhetorical techniques to build a compelling argument.

The topics are random and potentially dull, ranging from how a speaker advocates for continued funding of space exploration to the reasons why sand should be preserved.

Ultimately, the style essay the College Board expects is highly formulaic in nature, writing of the hamburger essay variety: an introduction, three body paragraphs and a conclusion. For students who are unaware of the formula, it can be difficult to prepare for the essay. The resources the College Board and Khan Academy provide are limited: four essay examples and links to prompts. Sure, an outgoing student could write a practice essay and ask her English teacher to grade it, but even that does not correlate to a high scoring paper; I know high-performing AP Language students who scored a three out of eight in the analysis section. Students could always hire a tutor, but they can be expensive, charging up to $350 per hour.

Luckily, as many higher education in-

stitutions have recently determined, there are plenty of more effective and telling methods to ascertain applicants’ writing skills; Princeton and Brown now both require a graded school paper to be submitted along with the application.

Students in English and history classes, AP or not, have written timed essays and research papers, which are much more indicative of a student’s ability to analyze source texts, conduct extended research projects and to write coherently and cohesively. The College Board would be seriously mistaken if they believed that the SAT essay is an accurate indicator of students’ writing skills, which should not be limited to a 50 minute essay on a random subject.

Perhaps College Board has already sensed the waning popularity of the essay section. In the SAT redesign of 2016, the essay was made optional.

While universities across the na-

tion are signaling their opinion of the SAT essay section, with the likes of Stanford, the University of Michigan and four of the eight Ivy League schools no longer requiring their applicants to submit an essay score, the most notable, and unfortunate, holdout is the University of California (UC) system.

With over 200,000 applicants to its nine schools every year, the UC system still requiring students to take the SAT essay section is like Warren Buffett refusing to upgrade from his Blackberry. There is no public university system that is more respected or more influential than the UC system; and as long as it continues to require the SAT essay, the College Board will continue to include it with tests.

At the end of the day, the College Board is a business. The executives and test writers in that business spend much of their time and effort trying to convince prospective test takers to choose their test, the SAT, over its main competitor, the ACT. Every SAT essay taken means another $17 cashed to the College Board, in addition to the $47.50 cost of the SAT (and the $20 late-registration fee for you procrastinators out there, once again). So as long as the UC system continues to make its legion of applicants write the essay, the College Board will happily oblige.

Students applying to college should not be forced to have their writing skills evaluated in the form of a standardized essay.

Many universities agree with this view already — it’s time for the UC system to get on board.

ILLUSTRATION BY SOPHIE FLEMING

A dose of the TRUTH

IMAGE COURTESY OF CREATIVE COMMONS

Parents who opt out of vaccinations put their children in danger

by Ben Brill

by Molly Cochran

The Anti Vaccination movement is killing America’s children and undermining scientific progress. Not only are “anti-vaxxers” spreading scientifically incorrect medical information, but they’re also contributing to outbreaks of diseases that have been dormant for years.

“Anti-vaxxers” are people (often religious) that argue against the use of vaccine to prevent or treat disease because they believe that vaccines cause autism and other disabilities in their recipients.

Their uninformed viewpoint is detrimental to modern society because they attempt to convince people that vaccines are dangerous; when really, vaccines are helpful to prevent viral diseases.

Anti-vaccine followers believe that vaccines will hurt them, but they don’t consider the consequences of their actions for others. When parents choose to not vaccinate their children, they put all the children around them at risk which is selfish and irresponsible.

The idea that vaccines cause autism in children was spread in a 1997 British study

but has since then been debunked because of “serious procedural errors, undisclosed financial conflicts of interest, and ethical violations,” according to publichealth.org.

In addition to Measles; Mumps, Whooping Cough and Chickenpox have made a comeback due to anti-vaccination sentiments, according to time.com. Measles— which was considered “wiped out” by the year 2000— has made a resurgence in populous areas like New York city. The resurgence can be traced back to “anti-vaxxers” because they give vaccines a bad name; people scared that vaccines will cause autism are less likely to vaccinate themselves and their children, leading to the spread of dangerous (yet preventable) diseases.

In January 2015, parents brought Measles to Disneyland, and the first person to die from measles in 12 years died from the outbreak. Parents send their children to school every day, and schools (especially elementary and preschools) are breeding grounds for bacteria—unvaccinated children are a danger to their classmates and friends.

Anti-vaxxers are also “eroding the integrity of vaccine science,” according to an editorial in the New York Times. Because vaccines have now become a controversial topic, researchers stay away from it to avoid scrutiny. Disease research keeps us

all safe, and this controversy is censoring medical discovery.

Sticking Points

72 18 35 3

percent of children aged 19 to 35 months in the united states were fully vaccinated as per guidelines from the advisory committee on immunization practices.

States permitted opting out vaccinations via nonmedical exemptions (NMEs) due to philosophical beliefs. These states include Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wisconsin.

A child with an NME from the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine is 35 times more likely to contract measles than is a vaccinated child.

TIMES MORE LIKELY A child without the diphtheria, tetanus, and acellular pertussis (DTaP) vaccine is 3 times more likely to contract pertussis than is a vaccinated child.

TIMES MORE LIKELY INFORMATION COURTESY OF THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL

10

IN FOCUS

OCT. 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

WITHIN Your rights SCHOOL GATES

The

Tin

How your constitutional rights are altered once you walk on to campus each morning

by Ben Brill and Lauren Kim The first amendment of the Constitution guarantees every U.S. citizen the right to freedom of speech, petition, religion, assembly and press. However, students’ rights change the second that they step onto campus; their freedom becomes limited. With the polarized political climate, more students are vocalizing their opinions — whether it be by kneeling during the national anthem or walking out of class. So what rights do students have on campus?

SPEECH The key court case defining the extent of students’ freedom of speech on school grounds is the Tinker vs.

Des Moines case of 1969, which ruled that students and teachers do not “shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate.”

However, these rights still have limitations within a school, as not all student speech was protected by the ruling. Student speech that “materially and substantially interfere[s] with the requirements of appropriate discipline in the operation of the school” is not protected, and thus is subject to disciplinary action by school officials.

“The interpretation that most courts give to the material substantial disruption prong of the Tinker standard is speech that creates a serious, physical disruption that doesn’t allow normal school activities take place,” Student Press Law Center Senior Legal Counsel Mike Hiestand said.

For example, if students were to post signs advertising a walkout, encouraging other students to participate, Hiestand believes that the signs would fall under the speech prohibited by the Tinker standard.

“That would actually be the sort of speech that the court was talking about because anyone can reasonably conclude that that speech was going to lead to a serious

physical disruption in school,” Hiestand said. “Walking out of a class is about as disruptive as you can get.”

Principal Jens Brandt, and the California Ed Code, classify “disruptive” speech as anything that is “obscene, libelous [or] slanderous.”

“There is an exception [to the first amendment] when it becomes disruptive to the safety and well being of those present on campus, which is of course, students and staff,” Brandt said. “So this is the reason for example, somebody cannot wear a swastika on a T-shirt, because when people come onto campus, they have the expectation and the right to it, being free of hate and being in a safe environment.”

Students in the past have tried to use their “freedom of speech” as justification to say or do whatever they want on campus, including justifying hate speech. Brandt says he supports students’ right to express themselves and their beliefs, but at the same time he must protect other students’ safety.

“

There is an exception [to the first amendment] when it becomes disruptive to the safety and well being of those present on campus.

JENS BRANDT PRINCIPAL

“A few years ago, we had some students that wanted to have the Confederate flag flying out of the back of their car and park on campus. I let them know that they were not allowed to do so because of the hate that is a associated with it,” Brandt said. “What I communicated to these students was the following: You have every right in the world to put that flag on the back of your car as long as it’s parked off oour campus. We need to make sure that all students on our campus feel safe and protected at all times.”

Meghan Schooler, assistant principal at RUHS, constitutes anything that can disrupt a students’ physical or mental state of mind as speech prohibited under the TinYour rights do not really change in school once you turn ker standard.

“If speech makes it 18. “The penalties typically go up once you turn 18. But if we’re so that another student talking about speech activities, its really is more your students stacannot be focused and tus opposed to your age,” Hiestand said does not feel safe, it is disrupting the environment. Disruptive is not just yelling something You have the right to access your educational records and in the middle of class,” have them protected through the Family Educational Rights Privacy Schooler said. “Whether the threat is physical, Act (FERPA). “If people wanted to find out what their second grade verbal or otherwise toteacher wrote about them, you can file a FERPA request and get wards another person, it very disruptive for that individual during school. It’s impossible According the federal law, the school is your acting parent to think about high when you are on school grounds. “The court has told us that we level math problems when you’re wondering have, essentially when you’re with us, we are there is a Latin term, whether or not you’re but it means it looks apparently we’re acting as a parent guardian,” safe.”

Brandt also notes that dress code does not fall under freedom of

speech or expression.

You might not know:

“We have to make sure that this is a distraction free environment for students to learn. And we’re just asking people to be reasonable. I’m not asking for people to dress conservatively,” Brandt said. “I think everybody can agree upon the fact that we don’t just want body parts essentially being exposed. And, like I said, a distraction free environment, not just for our students, but our staff members to feel comfortable teaching young people is essential too.”

Privacy The fourth amendment grants all Americans protection against unreasonable search and seizure, protecting their rights to privacy. Students’ rights to privacy, however, became ever more complicated with the advent of social media Hiestand believes one of the most contested issues in the legal community is where the line is drawn on the school’s jurisdiction online.

“There used to be avery clear line between what a student did on campus and what a student did off campus and what sort of authority school officials had over that. So the minute that you walked across the street from the school and onto the public sidewalk used to be pretty much the end of your principal’s authority over you,” Heistend said. “With the internet and social media, the line has changed.”

Content posted on public accounts is fair game for administrators to obtain, according to Heistend.

“If it’s a public account, once you put stuff online in a public fashion there’s no legal restrictions on school officials or anybody else being able to look at it,” Hiestand said. “Whether or not they can take you and then punish you for things that you’ve done online outside of school hours, that’s the hot issue right

“

If a student is engaged in conduct off campus, it’s not the job of the principal to punish students for material they are writing from a private computer at midnight from their bedroom. That’s a really dangerous slope to go down.

MIKE HEISTAND now.”

Because actions on social media can affect a student during school hours, mentally or socially, Schooler believes

M Eck in s war had if th The the bla the the stu she sch

OCT. 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

IN FOCUS

11

e court cases that defined our rights

nker v. Des Moines

Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier

New Jersey v. T.L.O.

The students writing for The Spectrum, the East Hazelwood High School newspaper, planned to publish two articles about family life. In the first, a girl blamed her father for her parents’ divorce and the second detailed the experiences of pregnant students who remained anonymous. The principal did not allow the articles to appear in the paper, as he believed the father should have a chance to comment in the first and that the second could be inappropriate to younger readers. The Supreme court ruled in favor of the principal, stating his actions did not violate the first amendment and that he could censor the articles because they were “inconsistent with ‘the shared values of a civilized social order.”

Mary Beth Tinker and Christopher khardt planned to wear armbands support of a truce in the Vietnam r. Their school in Des Moines Iowa d warned of possible suspension hey wore the armbands to school. e school suspended the two when ey did come to school donning the ack armbands, so their parents sued e school district. The case made it to e supreme court, who ruled in the udents favor that “Students don’t ed their constitutional rights at the hoolhouse gates.”

that school has the right to intervene.

“If something is disrupting the learning environment, it doesn’t have to occur during school hours. There can be something that’s posted at midnight that you’re still thinking about the next day,” Schooler said. “So it can be disruptive, even if the posts and actions took place outside of school hours. It can still impact the school day.”

However, to Hiestand, what happens online at midnight is exactly the type of senario the school should stay out of.

“If a student is engaged in conduct off campus, it’s not the job of the principal to punish students for material they are writing from a private computer at midnight from their bedroom,” Hiestand said. “That’s really dangerous slope to go down. That’s the sort of behavior I think school officials have no business being involved in. They should have much better things to do than to nominate themselves as the off campus police like that.”

Hiestand argues that there is typically no conclusive connection between actions on social media and their impact during the school day.

“We’ve seen these outrageous sorts of instances where school officials think that they do have kind of 24/7 authority over students, and that’s absolutely not the case,” Hiestand said.

“The only time where school officials have been able really to punish students for their off campus expression on social media or otherwise lately was when

T.L.O. was a high school student.

School officials searched her purse suspecting she had cigarettes and found cigarettes, marijuana, and a list of the names of students who owed T.L.O. money. T.L.O. was charged with possession of marijuana. The Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court of New Jersey found her guilty and sentenced her to probation for one year. The Supreme Court held that public school officials can conduct warrantless searches of students under their authority notwithstanding the probable cause standard that would normally apply to searches under the Fourth Amendment.

there is a very clear connection to speech that happens to be taking place off campus and on campus activities or conduct.”

Brandt agrees that illegal activities that are posted on social media do not yield disciplinary consequences unless the students posts about buying or selling illegal substances or they are an endangerment to themselves or those around them.

“The only reason we would get involved is if there was fear the student was endangering himself or herself.” Brandt said. “There wouldn’t be any disciplinary consequences. If there’s anything like threat of violence, of course, police [would be] involved immediately. I think this goes without saying.”

Press The High Tide has the right to publish whatever it wants, as long as what it publishes is not obscene, libelous, or slanderous or solicits illegal activities on school grounds. Administraton cannot prevent the publishing of an article as long as it meets those conditions.

The right to freedom of press as a student publication is protected by the Calif. Student Free Expression Law of 1977. Only 13 states have laws similar to Calif. The rest

of the country does not have these additional protections sand is governed by the standard set by the Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier case of 1988.

“In the 37 other states, students are in deep trouble in many cases. The Hazelwood case really did get rid of any sort of attempt to balance student first amendment rights against the authority of school officials,” Hiestand said. “It pretty much gave all those sorts of rights to school officials after Hazelwood.”

The Supreme Court ruled school officials can censor an editorial or article because it is “inconsistent with the shared values of a civilized social order” -- language used in the decision that Hiestand calls “crazy and unbelievable.” According to Hiestand, schools could declare an article “poorly written” or “inappropriate” so that is falls under this standard, opening it up to censorship.

“In these 37 states, lack of students’ first amendment protection is unbelievable in terms of its weakness and the sort of credence that we give to young voices,” Heistand said.

Even though it would be illegal in Calif. to censor any content that is not obscene or libelous, Schooler says that she would not attempt to censor the High Tide if there was an article that she considered inappropriate.

“It’s less about what you can or can’t write,” Schooler said. “I would ask that the newspaper is mindful of the role it plays in the community and take that seriously. I would hope that the newspaper thinks through what its printing and that it’s representative of this entire school.”

Other rights: Due process and Petition Due Process

RUHS administration guarantees students their right to due process through what Brandt calls “progressive discipline.” This means conducting thorough investigations to find out who is responsible for the transgression.

“A good example of due process is really digging in deep and finding out who’s responsible for what, but we take our time with that,” Brandt said.

“And you know, it’s innocent until proven guilty. And we look for evidence of the behavior and then there are consequences based on that evidence.

That’s due process in our minds.”

Due process on campus means that everyone involved in the issue is asked for his or her perspective on what occurred.

“I want to hear what happened from your perspective, if there’s other people that were witness to it, or people that are involved that you think I need to speak to, I will speak to them. If the situation you were involved in had both a perpetrator and a victim, I would want both perspectives,” Schooler said. “And then based on as much evidence as possible, [I would] move forward with determining what seemed to happen, and what’s the appropriate response based on that, but never just based off of the account from one person.”

Petition

Petitioning is a way of letting people know that change needs to occur, whether it be on a school-wide or a national level. Students are able to petition to administration or the district if they are unhappy with the way that things are being run. However, regardless of how vocal students are, administration does not necessarily have to listen to anything students say.

Despite this fact, Schooler encourages RUHS students to advocate for the improvements that they want to see.

“I love the idea of people having agency and pushing or asking questions, or looking for routes to improve and change things,” Schooler said. “Administration is a place to start. We might be the one enforcing the rule that you don’t like, [but] that doesn’t mean that I’m not also open to discussing it with students.”

FEATURES

12 Listening to music causes the brain to release dopamine, a feel-good chemical.

Music acts as a distractor, focusing the attention away from negative stimuli to something pleasant and encourging.

Sound waves Forbes, Bird, Lucas and Morrison are creating an app, Myndsetter, to help students release stress

by Sangjun Lee

Music also has the power to improve your state of mind.

This helps keep things like depression and anxiety at bay.

Music with a strong beat can stimulate brainwaves. Fast beats encourage more alert concentrated thinking.

Music can help to reduce the perception of pain.

Music occupies the mind with something smoothing and familiar.

A

fter months of mapping out designs and ideas with scientists and mentors, senior John Forbes looks forward to the upcoming November launch of his new subscription-based app MyndSetter.

Created with the purpose of helping people transition from a stressed to a relaxed state of mind, MyndSetter focuses on boosting productivity.

“Stress is a common issue for both students and adults,” Forbes said. “I knew that if I could utilize music in a way that could directly affect people’s mental states, it would be a great way to bolster productivity for everyone.”

Forbes enlisted the support of business mentors and friends, reaching out through LinkedIn to the Vice President of Business Development of a similar stress-relieving app, Headspace, for advice on his product.

“It was motivating to receive his feedback on my ideas,” Forbes said.

Forbes also took multiple Massive Open Online Courses, MOOCs, on business literacy to strengthen his expertise on building a successful brand.

“These courses gave me a more in-depth

look at business strategies, and it taught me how to fix some of my previous mistakes with running a business,” Forbes said.

MyndSetter was brought up from an accumulation of experience that Forbes gained from past failures.

“What I learned most from my last business was that I found myself too concerned and stressed over profits,” Forbes said. “That only seemed to bring fatigue and diminish my passion.”

Now, Forbes focuses his resources on product development, future goals, and social impact.

One mentor is a UCLA Masters Candidate in physiological science who helps research the scientific backing of his product.

He helps Forbes with the types of music to play that would increase the efficiency of MyndSetter in targeting individual moods.

Forbes is also working with RUHS students such as Matthew Lucas, Thunder Bird and Hannah Morrison to create Myndsetter.

With Lucas creating the audio itself and Morrison researching the linguistics to be played over the audio, Bird develops the structure and code of the app. Bird

Music has the ability to alter breathing and heart rate.

Music alters patterns of pain, depression and disability.

INFORMATION COMPILED FROM WWW.BEHANCE.NET AND ILLUSTRATION BY SOPHIE FLEMING

has been applying his knowledge from UCODE, a business that hosts software programming classes, to design the structure of the app.

While Bird admits that creating an app is never easy, he feels that MyndSetter will be worth the struggle.

“This is a really interesting app that I would recommend to anybody,” Bird said.

“I’m glad I got to work on this app.

This business has helped Forbes clean out some harmful habits of the past such as binging TV shows and movies in his down time, thus encoraging Forbes to be more productive “One day we’d be researching linguistics and music theory, and the next day we’d be brainstorming ways to make this app affordable for students to use regularly. I learned to keep my priorities straight and get rid of distractions,” Forbes said.

Forbes has learned to fail before reaching a goal.

“I came into this business knowing how hard it would be,” Forbes said. “It is the process itself that drives me. I know that I am

gaining valuable skills and strengthening values like hard work every time I overcome a failure.”

Forbes’ efforts at productivity have paid off. With the release date set for the start of November, Forbes already has a marketing plan to encourage high school students to try out MyndSetter when it is releases.

“It’s an idea I have been developing for years as a student, but now, I finally have the support necessary to execute it,” Forbes said.”

Forbes has taken interest in the concept of music and its effects on the human brain from an early age.

Also, after an insightful conversation with a family friend who gave him confidence in his idea, Forbes realized how music-based stress treatment could be put on a larger scale for the public.

“I’m really excited for this launch, and I hope my business ends up inspiring other young business-minded students as well,” Forbes said. “All of those cold emails sent to business leaders and the networking that resulted from them have really paid off.”

PURA VITA

PHOTO COURTESY OF LILLY SPANGLER

Spangler’s family opens up Vegan-Italian restuarant, Pura Vita

by Nicole Sandoval Think of Italian food. You’re probably visualizing pizza, pasta, cheeses, perhaps delicious meats.

Did the word “vegan” come to mind? Probably not.

With the rising trend of veganism, junior Lilly Spangler and her family opened up the first vegan Italian restaurant and wine bar in the U.S alongside executive chef, Tara Punzone who has more than 20 years of experience. Pura Vita opened four weeks ago and serves a variety of pasta and lasagnas, all 100 percent plant-based.

“The idea came up around a year ago. I thought it was a possibility, but when it actually be-

came a reality about three or four months later, I was really shocked,” Spangler said.

When Punzone suggested to open a restaurant, Spanglers dad, Jay Spangler, was fully on board.

“It was kind of like a seize the moment kind of opportunity. It was also perfect timing because there was a place that went up for sale, and West Hollywood is such a diverse location,” Spangler said.

Due to the Spangler’s vegan lifestyle and Punzone’s Italian heritage, they decided that Vegan-Italian would be the way to go.

“We do have a mainly vegan diet.

Tara is also vegan and she worked

PHOTO COURTESY OF LILLY SPANGLER

for the Real Food Daily which is a vegan restaurant, and she’s very skilled at what she does,” Spangler said.

Opening Pura Vita in West Hollywood was an “obvious” choice since the vegan community is already “accommodating and huge,” according to Jay. Opening night was an “amazing experience.”

“There’s a line out the door every night. We have to take reservations, and the local community has already welcomed us with a ribbon cutting,” Jay said.

Jay believes having a mainly vegan restaurant is unique be-

cause vegan choices are “limited” at most restaurants.

“As a vegan, being able to walk into a restaurant that is 100 percent plant-based, you know that you’re not going to accidentally get food with dairy or meat. It’s very liberating to eat in a place that is 100 percent vegan with no worry,” Jay said.

The next step to expanding Pura Vita is opening one in the South Bay, according to Jay. “Veganism is such a popular trend.” Spangler said. “I think that people think it’s difficult, but it’s really rewarding. We’re hoping to attract everyone.”

FEATURES

OCT. 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

In the moment. Daw captures Piggy D playing in popular rock band Rob Zombie. PHOTOS COURTESY OF KIRSTIN DAW

13

Pictures from the pit

Kirstin Daw photographs famous rock bands

by Angie Tait

by Angie Tait

S

mall in a big crowd, eager photographers tower over her as she elbows her way to the front. With a press pass and camera strap slung around her neck, she jostles for space as the audience’s cheers get louder. Finally, the stage lights come on, the first bass note blares, and sophomore Kirstin Daw peers through her viewfinder to find the perfect shot.

Daw’s passion for band photography stems from years of family outings to various concerts, starting when she was eight years old, combined with a childhood love of art.

“I’ve always loved taking photos and drawing, and I’ve always known since a young age that I wanted to do something creative, but with music as well,” Daw said. “I wanted to find a way to combine them, and as soon as I found that band photography was a thing, I knew that that was what I wanted to do.”

Daw started her band photography career around 6th grade, emailing managers and

bands to ask about potential gigs to photograph.

“A few years ago, I was asked if I would like to be press for our friend’s festival as a trial, and I immediately said I’d love to,” Daw said. “I was also doing interviews in a tent there, and the journalist I was working with asked if I’d do more shoots that year with her; since then I’ve been getting more and more opportunities.”

Her parents have been supporting her since the beginning, according to Daw, and helped spark her interest in music.

“They brought me up listening to tons and tons of different music. They’re the ones who took me to my first gig when I was eight years old, so they’re really, really supportive about it,” Daw said. “We know a couple of people who are in the photography industry already, so my parents are always telling me to go for it, as long as I’m doing my best at something that I love.”

Kickstarting her photography so early set

Snapshot. 1. Daw photographs the band Rom Zombie at OZZFEST-

KNOTFEST. 2. Lizzy Hale, lead singer of rock band Halestorm, performs at Ramblin’ Man Fair. 3. Michael Starr plays with Steel Panther at Ramblin’ Man Fair. 4. Zoltan bathory plays with Five Finger Death Punch in London. PHOTOS COURTESY OF KIRSTIN DAW

Daw at a much younger age than many other band photographers, but she doesn’t find the difference to be much of an issue when she’s shooting - if anything, it allows her to “find angles most people don’t look for.”

“Most other band photographers tend to be extremely old with a lot of experience, but this is just what I want to do. I feel like if you’re passionate about something enough to go and chase it, you should go for it,” Daw said.

For each concert she photographs, Daw starts by picking up her pass, then waits backstage with the bands until about 10 minutes before they come on. At this point, she walks down to the pit — the area directly between the stage and the audience in order to get “a good spot at a good angle.”

Bands tend to allow band photographers in the pit for only three to five songs, according to Daw. This time can be cut even shorter for her, though, given the time it takes to set up her camera, an EPL7 Olympus Pen. “It looks a little bit like a film camera, but it’s mirrorless and digital, so it does everything. It’s a little bit awkward to use because there’s so much to do, and not as many buttons for easy access, but the shots themselves are really great,” Daw said.

The amount of photographers in the pit depends on the artist and the venue, and where it’s usually “packed,” Daw has had some rare opportunities to be the sole photographer at a concert. Recently, she was able to shoot alternative rock artist Beck at the Hollywood Bowl, a venue that rarely allows more than one photographer.

“I’ve had a lot of people just push past me, but usually photographers are very considerate. You don’t want someone standing in your camera view. If there’s someone in front of you, you can just ask them to move, and they’ll be thankful for the respect,” Daw said.

So far, Daw has taken photos for Steel Panther, Rob Zombie, Five Finger Death Punch and Marilyn Manson. She also briefly traveled with a band for the first time­with hard rock band Guns N’ Roses, meeting them in Gothenburg, Sweden, and then flying to Reykjavik, Iceland.

“You need to act cool, because you can be freaking out on the inside, but not necessarily acting that way on the outside,” Daw said. “At the end of the day, you do have to remember that they are just people, and they’re doing what they love.”

With the gigs Daw has taken and will continue to pursue, she intends to build a “foundation” to use for a more professional career as well as a college education. In terms of dream concerts to shoot, Daw is pretty open-minded; to her, all that matters is the band’s “pure emotion” in their performance.

“I’m always thrilled to have these opportunities, and when I’m backstage or in the pit, it makes me realise how lucky I am to be there doing what I love,” Daw said. “The moments no one else is paying attention to - that’s what make the best photos.”

14

FEATURES

OCT. 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

How far they’ll go. Lanakila teammembers participate in an outrigger canoe race in Hawaii. PHOTO BY KYLIE BEBE

One w

Lanakila

by Austi

n Nunis

ith th

girls win

annual C

For almost 6 hours across thirty miles of open ocean, these girls are jumping out of a canoe into cold water, climbing onto the escort boat to drink some water and reenergize with some food, and jumping back into the ocean to hoist themselves into the canoe again.

The Catalina Crossing is an annual nine-man outrigger canoe race that members young and old from Lanakila, the local outrigger canoe club, compete in every year.

For the first time ever, the Lanakila junior girls crew came in first place, beating their longtime rivals from Dana Point. Sophomore Kamio DeFries, junior Cameron Penn and senior Kylie Bebe all made history.

“It was really the energy of the boat that was amazing,” steersman and fourtime Catalina Crossing competitor DeFries said. “It took a long time and was pretty difficult but your crew has everything to do with how much you enjoy the race, and we had such a talented and connected group of girls.”

In a nine-man outrigger race, three paddlers stay on the escort boat at a time while six paddle the canoe. Every

e wate

atalina C

r

rossing

12 to 15 minutes, the coach on the escort boat calls for three seats to be replaced by the three paddlers waiting on the escort boats. Due to this alternation, athletes tend to paddle for 30 minutes at a time.

For almost six hours, the girls worked on paddling as a team and keeping the morale of the boat up.

“The boat was never quiet,” first time crosser Bebe said. “We just spent the whole time making jokes and constructively critiquing each other. So it was a lot of laughing but there were also a lot of really good, focused pieces.”

In addition to talking, the girls all employed different strategies to keep their minds occupied and focused for the duration of the race.

“It’s hard to keep up the motivation and energy for everybody because it gets tiring around the third or fourth hour,” Penn said. “I tried to zone out so didn’t hurt as bad. [Zoning out] also just helps me focus on my technique to make sure it doesn’t get messy or I fall out of time.”

For DeFries, what some would say is the most arduous part of the race, is actu-

race for

the first

time

ally the most rewarding.

“The middle part, the hardest and longest and coldest hour, is the best part. I get to see all the girls really just pour their hearts out on the water,” DeFries said. “I got to see [everything] finally come together.

It’s no more who’s better than anybody else or putting in more effort, it’s just a bunch of girls who came together and had the same dedication to make it happen.”

Unlike previous years, this year’s race guidelines dictated that teams were to have ten paddlers instead of nine in an effort to give athletes longer breaks through the long race. The team also experienced other, less beneficial differences from previous races.

“In our race, we had maybe a half-mile visibility at any point because of the thick fog bank. We couldn’t see Catalina or Newport, and we had no idea where the other two junior crews were,” Lanakila coach Brian Munce said. “And when you’re by yourself, your rate slowly kind of dissipates, that fatigue level can turn to boredom, and you can start to lose energy in the boat.”

Because of the fog, the team was unaware of their lead on other crews for a majority of the race and didn’t realize they had won until crossing the finish line, according to Bebe. Their rival crew from Dana had taken a different route through the fog and had ended up in second place.

“We celebrated with a lot of sweat and tears. We all just kind of huddled up on the beach afterwards and Munce had one big speech for us,” DeFries said. “The only thing I could think was ‘Wow, we did it.’ It was a really cool moment.”

Munce believes that their connection as a team allowed the girls to be successful.

“They have a strong bond and can lean on each other and trust each other, which is something that [comes with] time,” Munce said. “They understand that they don’t necessarily need to carry the boat or be the fastest the whole time. We all need to be carried at one point, and we all need to carry the team at some point too.”

Giving hope

Freshman Kenneth Thomas spent two-years speaking to children with cancer

by Yasmine Elahi After battling stage three Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, freshman Kenneth Thomas served a two-year term with Hyundai Hope on Wheels in order to help other kids with cancer fight that same battle.

“When I was eight, I got Lymphoma cancer and the hard part was that it was right before my birthday. Everything felt so sudden, and it just sucked,” Thomas said.

After the cancer was fully gone, Thomas’ doctors told him to try to become an ambassador for Hyundai Hope on Wheels, an organization that works to raise money for pediatric cancer.

Thomas had to submit what cancer he had and why he wanted to be an ambassador. His story was liked so much that he was chosen from thousands of kids from different countries and states.

“I mainly gave inspirational speeches. I traveled to children’s hospitals, so I could speak to the kids and give them help. It was hard traveling and balancing school, but I got the hang of it and would work on the planes,” Thomas said.

In the beginning, public speaking was hard for Thomas because in some states, like New York, he would talk to crowds of over 1000 people.

“The first three times I gave a speech, I got incredibly nervous but by the fourth time I was comfortable with what I knew and what to say. I had it down by that point

and got used to it over time,” Thomas said.

Being an ambassador gave Thomas a way to “relate” to other kids because they understood what he went through.

“I saw kids everywhere who were in the same position I was: sad and hurting because they could not see any of their friends or go out,” Thomas said. “The biggest goal I had was for them to end up with some hope.”

Thomas valued the “one on one time” he got with the children because he felt it was more “personal” to hear the children’s individual stories dealing with cancer.

“I just wanted to talk to them kid to kid.

When I was going through chemotherapy, I would also talk to kids with cancer. It helps because kids can relate a lot better to each other versus an adult and feel more comfortable,” Thomas said.

Thomas felt if the kids could find a way to distract themselves it would make it all easier.

“For me, my focus was always how to get my mind off everything. Music helped me a lot, and I fell in love with it,” Thomas said. “My aunt never left my side, and my family supported me through it all. Kids battling it need to find what helps them most.”

Thomas feels like working for the organization “opened him up” as a person.

“It definitely made me a more compassionate person. I feel like it showed me

A helping hand. Thomas speaks in front of an audience with Hyundai Hope on Wheels.

PHOTO COURTESY OF KENNETH THOMAS

who I am and thanks to it, I feel comfortable speaking in front of anyone and can

be who I am,” Thomas said. “Being an ambassador has opened a lot of doors for me.”

FEATURES

OCT. 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

15

Clash of the high schools

Transfer students Maya Harvey and Ashlee Lamason compare Mira Costa to RUHS

by Martha Farah For more diverse students and a more welcoming environment, juniors Maya Harvey and Ashlee Lamason transferred from Mira Costa High School to RUHS where their schedules could be better accommodated.

“At Redondo, there’s a lot more mingling and I noticed that a lot more people have closer relationships with lots of different types of people,” Harvey said.

Comparing the movie “Mean Girls” to attending Mira Costa, a student either “fits in or they don’t,” according to Lamason, who says RUHS has more spirit and student involvement on campus in comparison to Mira Costa.

“I like the spirit, the football games and [the involvement] in clubs, and that’s super important to me in a school aspect. At Costa, it’s looked down upon,” Lamason said.

“It’s just not cool to be in a club and a lot of people aren’t spirited about the games.”

Contrary to Mira Costa, which both students describe as cliquish, Lamason feels as though she can be herself by getting involved in RUHS. “I don’t have to label myself to one group. I can literally be friends with everyone,” Lamason said. “I love that so much.”

A student’s school environment is important because if a student feels alone or unwanted, it can be difficult to attend school everyday, according to Lamason.

“School’s already hard enough with grades, but it’s super important to make sure that you have people that care about you,” Lamason said. “They don’t even have to be your best friends, but just at least someone who’s always saying ‘Hi’ to you in the hallways.

Harvey did not always feel encouraged to talk within a group of students at Mira Costa. However, RUHS has a more welcoming social environment where students can “mingle with new people,” according to Harvey.

“I think it’s really important when you have students to collaborate

with because then you learn not only from your teachers, but also from the other kids. Everybody’s got a good story,” Harvey said.

Harvey felt as though she “never had anything to do” for her classes at Mira Costa, leading her to enjoy the more rigorous classes at RUHS. “[At Mira Costa], you’re just stuck sitting there with absolutely nothing to do and I feel like that’s almost teaching students that they don’t have to work to get good grades,” Harvey said. “Then I’ll just be watching TV and feel so unproductive, which then makes me unmotivated to study.”

With the grading scale and rigor differences, Harvey feels more prepared for college and the future with RUHS classes.

Both students value the “strong work eth- much more doable especially because of ic” of RUHS students. block scheduling.”

“At Costa, students don’t like to work Lamason transferred to RUHS after because they can get away with it and still freshman year while Harvey transferred get good grades. At RUHS, students have after sophomore year, mainly due to to work hard, and everybody understands scheduling issues. Unlike the schedule ofand recognizes that,” Harvey said. “I think fered to her at Mira Costa, Lamason was it’s also because some of these students able to take Biomed and AP Biology her from Costa come from families where sophomore year at RUHS. everything’s just given to them.”

Mira Costa’s administration did not acBoth Harvey and Lamason appreciate commodate Harvey’s academic and athletthe “critical thinking” involved in class- ic needs in her schedule as she wanted to es. take four AP courses while participating in “I know the dif- the music program and beach volleyball. ferences be“I had an opportunity to challenge mycause my self here at RUHS which was really cool,” friends Harvey said. “I’m really enjoying it.” w h o Both Harvey and Lamason felt included t o o k and welcomed by everyone when transA P ferring. biol“I couldn’t wait to start and literally the o g y first day, people I didn’t even know were a t telling me ‘You’re the transfer girl. How Costa last are you? Do you need anything?’” Lamason year had said. “Everyone was so kind, and I was so high A’s, as happy. It’s amazing.” the majoriLamason enjoys the atmosphere at ty of the RUHS because of the diversity and campus c l a s s . size.

Here, “The campus has a college feel. It’s big, we’re but you still know the people here,” Lamaj u s t son said. “Everyday, you still see a new trying to face and I really love that because pass,” Lamason that’s a thing I want in a college.” said. “The rig The overall environor here is much ment at RUHS is “happier” than at more intense.

Mira Costa, according to Lamason.

Even though “I’ve become a much more it’s so much open-minded person, and I’m h a r d e r, also definitely becoming a better the homecritical thinker because of the way work is the classes are built,” Lamason said. surpris“I think overall I’m just happier and ILLUSTRATION BY SOPHIE FLEMING ingly so more positive.”

Aidan Patterson leaves RUHS for competative hockey team “I decided to move because I felt it was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up. It was one of those things I just had to kinda jump at,” Patterson said.

hightideonline.org

ENTERTAINMENT

16

Binge Season

The best shows to stream

by Ben Yepez

Master of None Seinfeld who? Aziz Ansari created, writes and stars in “Master of None.” PHOTO COURTESY OF NETFLIX

Manhunter. Olivia Munn (left) stars as an evolutionary biologist who joins the battle against an extraterrestrial hunter. PHOTO COURTESY OF FOX

Get to the choppa!

STREAM ON NETFLIX

“The Predator” fails to honor original film

by Sydney Nguyen

Over two decades after the release of the John McTiernan’s eighties sci-fi hit “Predator,” director Shane Black (“Iron Man 3”) makes an unsuccessful attempt to bring the extraterrestrial hunter back to theaters in his new film “The Predator.”

“The Predator” follows ex-Army Ranger and sniper Quinn McKenna (Boyd Holbrook) who is arrested by the US government after a deadly encounter with a Predator during a hostage retrieval mission. He meets a group of military prisoners in transport, each with unique quirks and personalities accompanied by lethal talents.

When the sniper’s son (Jacob Tremblay) gets his hands on Predator armor his father shipped home to hide from authorities, the boy accidentally attracts the Predator to Earth. McKenna elicits the help of the military madmen and a science professor on the run (Olivia Munn) to protect his family from two evils: the government and the Predator himself.

Unlike the original, “The Predator” forgets to include the most captivating part of the action-thriller hybrid: suspense, which is exchanged for excessive, unnecessary gore which adds no value to the plot.

Black decided to bludgeon the audience with so much bloodshed that the cinematic element is desensitized: a stack of guts over here and a couple limbs over there and suddenly the dread that followed the human hunter of the original film is nowhere to be found.

There is hardly any narrative for the action scenes to build on. The progression and pacing is messy throughout the entire movie with plotlines that are often unclear and potential ones which are immediately disregarded.

The only redeeming quality of the film is its ensemble cast. Consisting of actors like Keegan-Michael Key (“Keanu”) and Thomas Jane (“Boogie Nights”), Black directed them in such a way that they could easily bounce jokes off each other in an improv-like manner. With clever banter and witty one-liners, “The Predator” is funnier than expected.

Although amusing, when it comes to serious acts of bravery, the squad of soldiers tend to be overly audacious. In fact, they seem to be fueled by pure machismo instead of the selfless desire to do what’s right. They lack the courage which made the original characters of “Predator” so charming in the first place.

STARRING: AZIZ ANSARI SEASONS: 2 EPISODES: 20 Co-creators Aziz Ansari and Alan Yang explore social interaction and love in the twenty-first century through Master of None’s main character, Dev Shah, an actor living in New York City.

Mixing humor with serious themes, the Emmy Award-winning show is perfect for those with a refined taste in comedy.

The Handmaid’s Tale

STARRING: ELISABETH

THE FRANCHISE, BY THE NUM-

1

MOSS

SEASONS: 2 EPISODES: 23

STREAM ON HULU The Handmaid’s Tale is a dystopian drama based on the best-selling novel

by Margaret Atwood. The show is set in Gilead, a totalitarian society where women are treated as property of the state after a rapid decline in their rights.

The show’s main character, Offred, is determined to reunite with the daughter that was taken from her.

“PREDATOR” SMASHED THE U.S. SUMMER BOX OFFICE, OPENING AT #1 IN JUN. 1987

2

TWO CROSSOVER FILMS WITH THE “ALIEN” FRANCHISE HAVE ALSO BEEN RELEASED: “ALIEN VS. PREDATOR” (2004) AND “ALIENS VS. PREDATOR: REQUIEM” (2007)

The Marvelous

Mrs. Maisel

PHOTO COURTESY OF FOX

3

THREE SEQUELS HAVE SINCE BEEN RELEASED: “PREDATOR 2” (1990), “PREDATORS” (2010), AND “THE PREDATOR” (2018)

$337, 348, 219 TOTAL WORLDWIDE BOX OFFICE GROSS OF THE “PREDATOR” FRANCHISE.

Throwback. Arnold Schwarzenegger (left) played Major Dutch Schaefer in the 1987 classic. PHOTO COURTESY OF FOX

Thankfully if fans were missing the original film, “The Predator” contains several references to the classic. “Get to the choppa!” makes its big screen return, but disappoints when Arnold Schwarzenegger does not burst in and save the film.

Unlike the “Alien” franchise, the “Predator” franchise has progressively deteriorated since the originial film.

“The Predator” is a sloppy and un-

imaginative installment of the film series which contains the elements of the original, but comes off as a parody. To save ourselves from more disappointment, let us hope another “Predator” does not enter theaters anytime soon.

THE PREDATOR SHANE BLACK

Marvelous. Rachel Brosnahan stars as Midge Maisel in “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” PHOTO COURTESY OF AMAZON

STARRING: RACHEL

BROSNAHAN

SEASONS: 1 EPISODES: 8

STREAM ON AMAZON Set in the 1950s, this period comedy focuses on the life of Miriam “Midge” Maisel whose life takes a turn when she discovers her talent for stand up comedy. Filled with humor and tenderness, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel is perfect for those looking for witty comedy.

Curb Your Enthusiasm STARRING: LARRY DAVID SEASONS: 9 EPISODES: 90

STREAM ON HBO

In Curb Your Enthusiasm, Seinfeld co-creator Larry David stars in a better version of the successful sitcom. The show follows a fictional version of the creator and his friends, facing a variety of self-induced awkward situations.

David’s blunt approach to social interaction promises hilariously uncomfortable galore.

ENTERTAINMENT

OCT. 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

17

Bye. Brockhampton forced Ameer Vann out after he was accused of sexual misconduct. PHOTO COURTESY OF CREATIVE COMMONS

Things fall apart

BROCKHAMPTON moves on from past sound and past member

by Sydney Nguyen

BROCKHAMPTON’s debut RCA-Labeled album goes harder than it is spelled; “iridescence”embodiesthefrenziedlunacytheband has dealt with over the past nine months, and sets the stage for their anticipated future.

The project is the first to release following the departure of member Ameer Vann, who was removed from the band in light of multiple abuse allegations.

The incident derailed three projects the group had been working on and occured in wake of their spontaneous commercial and critical success. On top of everything, the LP is stated to be the first chapter of “The Best Years of Our Lives” trilogy, so going into the release the band had big expectations to fulfill.

“NEWORLEANS”isanoisyintroductionto the album. The track is heavily layered in distorted, kicking instrumentals and topped off with a Jaden Smith feature. Considering the group is made up of fourteen members total, it was a risky move to bring in a feature on the firsttrackbeforebringinginlinesfromeveryone. Fortunately, the song serves the album justice in establishing the project as much

moreexperimentalthantheSATURATIONtril- the sensible Bearface on “SAN MARCOS.” ogy,takingclearinspirationfromgroupssuch Despite the group’s strong arsenal of talas Death Grips. ent,“WEIGHT”isremarkablyunanticipatedin The transition from “NEW ORLEANS” to lyrical honesty and vulnerability.

“THUG LIFE” is profoundly smooth, paying Arguably one of the best verses of the homage to those listening to the project in year, and receiving critical acclaim from Rolltrack order, a rarity in toing Stone, the band’s ring day’s world of streaming leader Kevin Abstract services. takes a dark and somber

In spite of drastic Thanks to lead instruin unmasking his measures the group takes turn mentalistRomilHemnani, own anxieties. He speaks to break barriers in the production throughout on isolation derived from the album is thorough- industry and cut ties with recent success, managing ly engineered, plucking aspects of their past, what hardships in the fallout of from a complex variety of makes “iridescence” great Vann and digging into life samples, even including is its authenticity.” before self-admitting his unreleased Beyonce vohomosexuality. cals.

Without hesitation, Versatilityisaffluentthroughouttracksas instrumentals throughout are blazingly wild well. Taking advantage of diverse talent be- and eccentric. tween members, “iridescence” jumps from While most members struggle to keep up wall to wall in emotional contrast — the ex- with the intensity, the group’s wild card Joba plosive oddball Merlyn Wood delivers head thrives in it. This is best exemplified in “J’OUbanging highs on tracks like “WHERE THE VERT,” as Joba’s progression from line to line CASH AT,” only to be cradled into serenity by embodies a derailed lunatic frantically losing

“

grasp of his sanity.

The album is a departure not only from Vann, but also from the group’s past sound.

Fromtheirfirstmixtape,“All-AmericanTrash,” to their flurry of “SATURATION” albums, the group’s oeuvre has been marked by traditional instrumentals backed by hard rap verses.

The group is attempting a kind of rebirth with “iridescence,” but in this evolution, they haveleftthepossibilityofalienatinglongtime fans. But the experimentation is the mark of artists who do not care what their fans or critics think.

In spite of drastic measures the group takes to break barriers in the industry and cut ties with aspects of their past, what makes “iridescence” great is its authenticity. The album is by no means intended to be a radio success, ratherdeliversomethingBROCKHAMPTON fans all around could appreciate.

IRIDESCENCE

BROCKHAMPTON

Korea’s Caffe Bene arrives in Torrance

by Sarah Falahahwazi

Upon entering, customers are hit by the bitter, rich aroma of espresso. Swarms of students with their noses in fat textbooks or laptop screens are all the eye can see, many with cold cups of coffee and half-eaten desserts forgotten on their tables. No, this is not the scene of Starbucks XYZ — it is Caffe Bene, whichalthoughmoreexpensive,isessentially the Korean counterpart to the Seattle-based coffee mega chain.

DespitehavingKoreanfounders,CaffeBene’s Americanized menu offers a melting pot of cuisines, though the most Korean thing you will find is the $11.95 red bean ice parfait.

Caffe Bene even manages to beat Starbucks in being outrageously overpriced.

Their frappuccinos cost about a dollar more than Starbucks’ versions, but for the same quality and size. However, the desserts are what will really empty your wallet; $4.25 for a single scoop of ice cream is unreasonable — especially compared to the prices of creameries like Handel’s, which sells four scoops for $3.25.

Unlike other coffee shops, Caffe Bene has a certain homely charm to it that makes it great for studying. For one, it’s open until midnight, while most cafes tend to close around 9 p.m.

The cafe is also spacious, meaning that even at However,outofalltheiroptionsofmelt-inits busiest, there will always be a place to sit. your-mouthcakes,thetiramisuisperhapsthe Not to mention, the fast and completely free mostmisleading.Ratherthanthelight,almost Wi-Fimakes bitter coo n l i n e coa taste homework of tramuch less ditional of a headItalian ache. tiramisu, Strawberry Waffle - $10.49 A l the airy though flavor of Banana Bacon Waffle - $9.95 the prices vanilla are not the s e eme d Garlic & Cheese Honey Bread - $6.95 far more most student-friendprevaGreen Tea - $3.75 ly, Caffe lent. DisBene’s wide appointvariety ing and Cafe Mocha - $3.95 of calofull of rie-packed wasted Vanilla Latte - $3.75 desserts potenis difficult tial, the to find at tiramisu many other left me cafes. Among some of their most impressive wonderingifIhadmistakenlyorderedavanilpastries, for instance, are the chocolate, vanil- la cake upon the first bite. la and matcha crepe cakes, which fill eaters’ The beverage options at Caffe Bene are mouths with a rich, silky sweetness. like that of any other cafe, other than the

CAFFE BENE’S SELECTIONS

fact that they allow customers to add tapioca balls, more commonly known as boba, to their drinks. While their boba costs an extra fifty cents, it is an excellent addition to most beverages, particularly the frappuccinos.

Their honey bread, however, is far more notable and unique to the cafe. An excellent dish for study groups due to its sizeable portion, the four kinds of honey bread —caramel cinnamon, garlic and cheese, strawberry cream cheese or banana and walnut — are all a must-try.

Overall, while Caffe Bene is a solid spot for sitting down and studying with a group of friends, customers are left feeling robbed when they see their receipts.

With prices that are too high for what is being sold, locals are better off spending their time at other alternatives, whether at a chain like Starbucks or at an independent store like KirariWestBakery,whichoffersqualitydrinks and pastries at a more reasonable cost.

CAFFE BENE TORRANCE

18

SPORTS

OCT. 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

High spirits Girls tennis stays positive after expected loss against Peninsula

by Ella Son Peninsula beat Redondo 4-14, but the Redondo Girls’ Tennis team didn’t let the loss tear them down.

“I think no one really got down on themselves when we lost because we kind of knew we were going to lose,” team captain Tate Stensby said.

Rather than stress about the score, they made their way up the hill with a positive approach.

“We were just there for the fun of it and trying to get in the most matches, trying our hardest and making it fun.” said varsity player, Rebecca Bloch.

According to the Redondo team, Peninsula’s players are more skillful- there was no question that they’d suffer a defeat.

“I feel like they are very intense. They do a lot of agility, they train a lot more than we do,” said Tate, comparing the rigor of Peninsula’s tennis team practices to Redondo’s.

In the match this Tuesday, “they had strategy, they were communicating, and they did everything right,” she added.

Having solid communication on the court is especially crucial for doubles matches.

“If you play tennis without talking to your partner, it does not work as well as if you were communicating.” Tate said.

This is still the beginning of the season for the Redondo Tennis girls. With the help of a new coach, Mr. Casile, the girls have been focusing on new techniques to improve their game.

In addition to working towards better on-court communication and strengthening their strategy, they strive to have a supportive, positive team environment.

“In training, the team is working to raise

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Swingin’. 1. Varsity tennis player hits the ball to the opposition. 2. Redondo player swings for the ball.

PHOTOS BY HASEEB KHAN

team spirit and to lift up team members, especially the people not on the court-kind of cheering everyone else on,” said Tate.

For them, having fun and improving their game is their main focus- not whether they win or lose.

Despite their loss, the trek up to Palos Verdes was well worth it for the players.

“Looking on the bright side, Tate said, “We got to take pictures on the cliff and get a nice view!”

RUHS is 2-1 in its last

9/27: RUHS def.

Chadwick 9/27: RUHS def. PV 10/1: RUHS Loss vs.

North

2.

On a roll Girls volleyball goes undefeatable with a 5-0 winning streak

Bay League Standings:

10/5: RUHS vs.

Tourney

Redondo Mira Costa

2nd

1st

Playoff Predictions Predicted Top 4 Teams to place for D2 volleyball title High up. 1. Senior Jasmin Davis jumps prepared to hit the ball. PHOTO

BY MASON CHILDS

Upcoming Games

PV

3rd Mater Dei

1st

10/8: RUHS vs.

Penn 10/10: RUHS vs.

Costa INFORMATION FROM MAX PREP

2nd: Redondo 3rd: Marymount 4th:

Vista Murrieta

SPORTS

OCT. 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

19

Off and Running

Redondo hopes to beat Leuzinger and take lead in Bay League

by Derek Stoetzer Led by their punishing ground game and shutdown defense, Redondo continued their stretch of dominance after shutting out Centennial by a score of 48-0.

They now sit at 3-3 and are tied for first in the Bay League.

Friday was a productive day for the Redondo backfield, as they set single game rushing records for the Bay League with 40 carries, 352 rushing yards and seven touchdowns. Senior runningbacks Demarcus Johnson and CJ Dietrich led the charge with 20 combined touches for 199 combined yards and three touchdowns.

“Demarcus and CJ are a good pairing.

Demarcus is a normally downhill back, and CJ is a more durable, strong back,“ Head Coach Matt Ballard said. “They’ve been a really good pairing so far.”

After Centennial, Redondo looks to beat Leuzinger, who is also sitting on a 3-3 record after losing their last two games.

Leuzinger hasn’t won a Bay League game yet and is tied for last in the league with Mira Costa and Centennial.

Though having an above .500 winning percentage is normally a major signal of a good season, Coach Ballard has a different

outlook on his statistical success rate.

“Our goal isn’t just to win games,” Ballard said. “It’s not like we need to; we just want to compete in every game and get to that goal of winning the Bay League.”

Leuzinger, led by sophomore quarterback Marcus Johnson and senior runningback Semaj Daniels, is a fast paced offense full of quick, elusive runners that scores quickly and creates yardage through short throws and draw plays up the middle.

“Defensively, we have to stop the run first. They’re a good downhill team, so we have to eliminate that first.” Ballard said.

“After that, we just have to make them uncomfortable and force them to throw the ball longer distances.”

Redondo’s upcoming schedule is a tough one. They play Palos Verdes, a strong team that has a similar record and a polar opposite team scheme-wise. Palos Verdes also sits tied for first in the Bay League.

Although Bay League has just begun, Redondo and Leuzinger are two evenly matched teams, and the game can truly go either way. Friday’s game against Leuzinger is shaping up to be Redondo’s biggest game of the season so far.

Let’s Go Redondo. On Friday, Sept.

28, football played Centennial home.

The team won 48-0, and showed how their training and perserverance is paying off. The team plays Leuzinger away this Friday. PHOTO CREDS CLOCKWISE ADAM FANCO, HASEEB KHAN, MALENA BUFFAGNI

Rivalry Loss

Just Keep Swinging

Boys Polo Lose Against Costa 12-4

Girls Golf loses to Torrance Tuesday

by Kiera Patterson

by Sophia Gamboa

After a 12-4 loss to Costa on Wednesday the boys water polo players look to improve their record of 14-8.

“During the game our strengths were our chemistry and ability to help set each other up. Our weaknesses were that we didn’t stick to our game plan, and we let their most dangerous player shoot,” said junior Gavin Pierce.

Going into the game, the boys knew that it would be tough because of the rivalry and the competitiveness from both sides, but were not intimidated by their environment.

“If anything I’d say there’s more pressure at home because they’re our rival school and [we’re] very competitive, so there’s more pressure to not get beaten on our home turf,” said senior Logan Lewis.

The boys received a CIF title last year and are looking to do so again this year with another title or at least a qualification.

“This year coming off a CIF win, we’re

Working to Improve. Sophomore Brad Volge-

sang (left) and junior Hayden Brown (right) fight to win. After a tough loss against Costa, the team looks to improve in order to qualify for CIF or win their second title ever. The team will play Costa again on Tuesday, Oct. 23, home.

As of this week’s loss, the team is sitting at 14-8 overall and 0-1 for Bay League.

PHOTO BY MASON CHILDS

up a division we are just trying to bring it all back,” said sophomore Max Hendrickson.

With a new team and three new coaches including a new head coach this year the boys have adjusted the way they play.

The coaches push the boys to continuously improve their game.

“There have been plenty of changes with having a new coach, but that comes with playing the sport,” said Lewis.

The boys have formed a close-knit bond, which has greatly contributed to the way they communicate in the water.

“Having a tight bond definitely helps a lot. If you’re all friends it creates a dynamic and it’s very useful,” said Lewis.

The boys team has found success so far because of their hard work, determination and the chemistry they have in and out of the water.

“The new team feels a lot stronger than last year, we have better chemistry and communicate more,” said Pierce, “My team is the reason why I play.”

After a loss against Torrance Wednesday, the girls golf team makes sure they keep their hopes high. The slow but intense game against Torrance is one of many to come this season.

“They are our strongest competition,” said captain Sofia Haskel.

Even though they lost, during this challenging game, they at least came close to a win. According to Haskel, they are on the right track, improving by preparing to compete against not only Torrance again, but also Palos Verdes and Mira Costa.

“Our team is improving so much, and we’ve gotten so much practice in,” Haskel said.

Unlike others teams, girls golf is determined to focus on playing for teamwork and having a good time as a team.

“It’s less about winning and more about self improvement and just having fun with the team,” Haskel said.

As balls started to fly out of range during the game Wednesday, they continued to play with smiles and confidence.

Teammates gave each other feedback, and Haskel emphasized how this applies to their whole season.

“We give each other pointers on our swing and we hype each other up on our way there….and as captain I get to make the groups, so I make sure that [the groups] work well together,” Haskel said.

Along with support and feedback, the right state of mind is also important to the team.

“Going into the game, we make sure we have a very positive mentality,” Haskel said.

The team hopes to go far in Thursday’s tournament, according to Haskel. This season is going really well for the team right now, and they hope they can make it to Bay League finals.

Time for a Comeback. Although the team

lost against Torrance, the players are looking to prepare for the rest of their season. “Our team is improving so much, and we’ve been getting so much practice in,” captain Sofia Haskel says. PHOTO BY RODRIGO MARTINEZ

SPORTS

OCT. 5, 2018 | HIGH TIDE

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Climbing the ranks. 1. Freshman Kaden Martin guards

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the football as he races towards a touchdown. After playing against Centennial High School on Sept. 28, RUHS wins the game with a score of 48-0. 2. Martin prepares to throw the football at the start of the football game against Villa Park on Aug. 24. RUHS lost the game to Villa Park 57-14. 3. Martin sprints through the field as a Centennial High School football player tries to grab the ball from Martin. Despite being a talented football player, Martin still feels presured during competitive games. He is working to cope with his stress to help his team win Bay League Championships. PHOTOS BY LILLY LOPEZ AND MASON CHILDS