Hopkins School 986 Forest Road New Haven, CT
Vol LXV, no. 1
www.therazoronline.com
Normalcy Returns to The Hill Evangeline Doolittle '23 News Editor
the pandemic. Director of Medicine Don Bagnall explains that the Covid protocols vary depending on the sport, “... mask usage may be altered in terms of practicing/playing athletics. We require masks usage inside buildings, and sidelines, but do not need to wear masks on the outside fields & courts.” Bagnall provides an example of this in the volleyball team: “if volleyball is inside, they may be required to wear masks while practicing/playing matches.” Students anticipate the upcoming sports season to be uncertain. Co-Captain of Girls Varsity Soccer Jenny
The 2021-2022 school year marks the in-person return of all clubs, sports, and Student Council (StuCo) activities. With the new schedule allotting two 25-minute periods to activities, clubs will move from Zoom meetings to in-person meetings. Additionally, the long-anticipated Activities Fair will take place in person on September 20 and 24. Head of PAWS Caroline McCarthy ’22 explains, “I think the Fair is a unifying time on campus and it really kicks the fun parts of school into gear.” Coordinator of Student Activities Teresa Picarrazi describes the importance of inperson activities, “Clubs and activities help build community in so many ways!” McCarthy explains that she feels better connected to the community while in person, “I’m excited to have a...fair this year and to get as many people to sign up for my group as possible, and to join a bunch of clubs too.” Picarrazi echoes this idea, “It is important for students to gather together and share their interests outside of the classroom and to work toward tangible objectives. Reinstating in-person Activities will bring Hopkins one step closer toward being a more inclusive and cohesive space.” McCarthy describes the struggles of @hopkinsschoolct online Activities and the decline of Club particStudents gather at the 2019 Back-To-School Bash. ipation, “Clubs were having so many fewer meetings as it was hard to motivate people to get on another Zoom at, like, 7:00 p.m.” She continues, “I think having Alaska ’22 says that this year, “our big challenge is trying in-person club meetings during the school day is going to to make sense of a team with many younger players that increase participation which will be especially great for the we’ve never seen play before, and building up a team that students, and the organizations that various clubs assist.” hasn’t played together at all. We also have no idea what Athletes are also preparing for preseason and the our competition will look like either since the last time we return of sports games. Although Covid preventions will played our big rivals was about two years ago, and we really be in place, the season will be similar to that of before only saw the older talent play. ” However, she is excited for
September 10, 2021
the season to start and meet the new teammates, “There are so many little traditions that make our team so special and it makes the fall time my favorite time on campus. I think soccer friendships are some of the best ones you can find!” Lastly, StuCo plans to bring back in-person events such as the Back-to-School Bash and the Connecticut Food Bank Fundraiser (CFBF). Junior Class President Dev Madhavani ’23 expounds on his excitement to share traditions with new students, “During the past year, StuCo created a lot of virtual events to make up for in-person events that were canceled. It was very tough to do fundraising or dances virtually, so some of our events were trivia nights or game nights over Zoom.” He continues, “We can finally return to some of our beloved traditions that many new students from the past couple of years haven't been able to see. I remember how cool Five Golden Rings was my first time, so a lot of kids will be looking forward to these types of events.” However, Student Council President Albert Yang ’22 explains how the evolving safety procedures could impact StuCo events: “In response to the changing guidelines, StuCo will make sure that all events are run safely and responsibly, following all policies in place. We are looking forward to integrating virtual with in-person events if needed.” Seniors are excited to begin their final year on The Hill. Yang elaborates, “I can’t wait to get back to school and see the entire Hopkins community in action.” McCarthy wants to make up for lost time, “I really hope to be able to look back on my senior year in June and feel that I was able to help Hopkins and the New Haven community through my Club participation.” Alaska comments, “I’m looking forward to a year that mimics the first half of sophomore year. That means all of the dances and Homecoming festivities that come with fall time. I’m also looking forward to jumping back into our normal routine- except now I’ll get to have all of the new excitements of being a senior on campus."
Cultivating Young Artists: Hopkins Students Teach Drama Rose Robertson '24 Assistant Arts Editor As Hopkins students have spent their summer in pursuit of new outlets through which to serve the community, Anand Choudhary ’22, Orly Baum ’22, and Will Schroth-Douma ’23 brought drama to students at the Discovery Interdistrict Magnet School in Bridgeport, CT. Following the disHighpoint Pictues solution of the drama department at Discovery, Choudhary, Baum, and SchrothDouma sought to reintroduce theater and all its joys to about 25 students aged 11-13 for six hours each week. Typical daily activities started with warm-ups and games, followed Anand Choudhary '22 by a main activity which “switched between doing scenes, telling them a story, and leaving out the ending and having them come up with and act out their own endings in groups, lip-sync battles, [among other things].” The trio looked to Hopkins Drama teachers and directors Mike Calderone and Hope Hartup and Director of Choral Music Erika Schroth for curriculum inspiration. Choudhary said that nearly “every single improv game we played with them was something Will, Orly, or I learned at Hopkins. My love for acting and theater started just before I got to Hopkins, but it's because of Mike, Hope, and Mrs. Schroth that I feel so passionately about it.” Inside This Issue: News............1 Features........2 Op-Ed/Arts...3 Sports...........4
An alum of the Magnet school, Choudhary felt a strong personal connection to the project: “The first show that I ever did, The Lion King, was [at the school] where the program took place… I thought that bringing [the drama program] back would be awesome because that's where my love for performing started.” Similarly, Baum’s own positive experiences with theater programs at Hopkins, as well as others, motivated her to help students reap the benefits of drama. She said, “Theater and improv are both such good ways to learn more about yourself and about the people and the world around you, so I wanted these students to have the opportunity to do that in a fun and relaxed environment.” Schroth-Douma added his motivation, “There are truly few things more sacred and special to me than theatre and the arts—performing with a group of people is this spontaneous, unpredictable, and as a result, magical thing—and if we could share with these kids a portion of that “magic”, then I would’ve been satisfied.” The added social pressures and anxiety caused by the Covid-19 pandemic were also a consideration for Choudhary: “Since Highpoint Pictures the program was in-person, I'm hoping that performing in a low-stakes environment was a jumping-off point for [the students] to be reintroduced into inperson life again.” He continued, “the performing arts have been a great way to Orly Baum '22 stay connected in
Features Page 2: New Faculty Profiles
the Hopkins community for me, and I hope that I was able to pass on that experience to the kids.” Choudhary shared that the group watched their pupils’ growth with pride: “On our first day, we were looking at a group of mostly shy kids who didn't want to come up on stage and participate, but on our last, we had a group of kids who Highpoint Pictures were sad that the class was over and were eagerly raising their hands to participate in all the activities we did. I'd definitely call that a success.” The most valuable lesson for the drama mentors was the importance of adapting to those you are working with Will Schroth-Douma '23 and to the situation. Baum said, “Go with the flow! Programs like this are so everyone, including teachers, can have fun and learn something new. [It’s important to] trust yourself: you know what you're doing and you love what you're sharing, so be confident and have fun.” Choudhary suggested that students considering a similar initiative should: “just go for it. If you really love something enough, you'll find a way to spread your love and passion for a certain thing in a way that works best for you.” He concludes, “It would be nice if I was able to instill a love for performing arts, and just arts in general, in the kids, but at the end of the day, I really just hope they had fun.”
Arts Page 3: A Midsummer Night's Dream
Sports Page 4: Summer Exercising